Thursday, December 17, 2009
Maui Part 3: There are a lot more pics on the card without 200 pictures of waves
Continued from the previous post, I loves me some jelly fish. And even more than that, I love this creepy shot with Geoff being reflected in the glass. And even MORE than that, I love the Geoff.
Okay, this is a less creepy shot.
Hazel played tour guide.
Okay, this is a less creepy shot.
Hazel played tour guide. This is a shark.
That is a sting ray.
Moving on from the aquarium.
That is a sting ray.
Moving on from the aquarium.We went to Lahaina (and had a crazy delish shave ice from ummm.... random shave ice stand. Look for it!) And we saw the banyan tree. Oh, I am sorry I meant THE Banyan Tree. Blah blah blah banyan blah blah.
Awesome family shot with the time.
So, I like family shots. I like to see all of us and to have proof of our happy-family-ness. The last time we went to Hawaii was in 2006 (ack! so long) and we took this shot in Hosmer's Grove.
Awesome family shot with the time.
So, I like family shots. I like to see all of us and to have proof of our happy-family-ness. The last time we went to Hawaii was in 2006 (ack! so long) and we took this shot in Hosmer's Grove.2006:
And a similar shot in the redwood forest in 2009.
And a similar shot in the redwood forest in 2009.2009:
Holy cow, we have all changed so much. Of course, the kids is 4x older so she has changed the most but still.
Holy cow, we have all changed so much. Of course, the kids is 4x older so she has changed the most but still.We also went to Santa's photo-opportunity-land in the Queen K's Mall. Alas, Santa was sick. But, we took a picture anyway. A prior day we saw another Santa at the Maui Mall and we was creeeeeepy. We have a picture. But a physical picture, not digital. Come to my house and I will show you. Technically, it is at my work, but I will bring it home for you.
Oh, this is at the redwood forest, I should move it. Not gonna.
We also went to Iao Valley to hike around (which is awesome when (a) I gots the sciatica and (b) we are facing a 5.5 hour plane ride and thus my sciatica will be even worse if I inflame it by walking around. Also, I am old.)
Oh, this is at the redwood forest, I should move it. Not gonna.
We also went to Iao Valley to hike around (which is awesome when (a) I gots the sciatica and (b) we are facing a 5.5 hour plane ride and thus my sciatica will be even worse if I inflame it by walking around. Also, I am old.)Moving on. We saw a cat that looked like Rufus.
And we played in the houses.
And Geoff carried Hazel on his shoulders. That is the Iao needle in the background.
And, of course, we made Hazel keep up on her studies since she missed so many days of preschool.
And we played in the houses.
And Geoff carried Hazel on his shoulders. That is the Iao needle in the background.
And, of course, we made Hazel keep up on her studies since she missed so many days of preschool.
I have a couple more shots from the little camera. But I am trying to boost my post count. Mwa hahahahaha
Labels: Geoff, Hawaii, hazel, meadow
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Picture overload-Part 1
Hazel's first day of preschool.
And then we went to Orlando.
Oops, this is on the airport tram and is before we met the pink princess statue, but whatever.
At the water park, which was truly a highlight of Orlando. They had all ranges of slides, from itty-bitty for Hazel to crazy tall for Geoff. Videos in the next post.
It was a chore to get Hazel to try the tube ride but once she did it she was hooked (again, video in the next post).
And then she progressed to the even bigger slide.
Family shot.
As we were going through pictures, Hazel said, "Remember when you stuck my hand in Fritos and made me go to sleep?" Yeah, that is what happened. Really, she was tuckered out from the water park. My conference gave us sack lunches at the end and it was perfect for eating after the park, on our way to Tampa.
Fireworks on the cruise.
Disney's island with Captain Jack Sparrow.
Family with Donald Duck. Hazel said, "He is the captain of the yacht." Yacht?!?! How does she even know what a yacht is??
Geoff snorkeling.
He took this picture himself. You can barely see Minnie Mouse.
Family shot in the ocean. We only got one shot and then the batteries died. Doh.
This was at the REI, Hazel was exhausted and fell asleep in the cart. I think she wasn't feeling good.
More to come. But now I must go and enjoy the beautiful fall day.Labels: florida, Geoff, hazel, meadow, vacation
Monday, October 19, 2009
GFA, Part Three
Remember how I was going to bed? Me neither...
But, since I am parked at the computer, I decided to continue uploading pictures from Florida (but also keep reading past Florida to see the doll dress Hazel made).
These are from September 18, Day two of our cruise. Over a month ago. Man, I am a procrastinator.
We woke up bright and early Friday morning to see The Princesses. Backing up a bit, let me tell you about Disneyland. We went to Disneyland in June and waited in line approximately 14 hours to see princesses, and that was after cutting in line with Zoe and April... Herein lies the beauty of the Disney cruise. It may be $$$ but, no lines. Or, really, minimal lines. We probably took 30-45 minutes to see all four princesses (one line for all of them) and that included plenty of talking to each of them.
First up, Snow White.
Hugs for everyone.
Then we saw Belle (or "the yellow one" as we like to call her). She was oddly tan. I know she works on a cruise ship but, come on. She needs a little sunscreen.
I don't know if Belle got a hug. Maybe Hazel was afraid of the tan...
Pink princess. She was nuts. Do you see the massive quantities of make-up? Of course you do because, holy cow, that lady had a heavy hand with the eye shadow and lips and everything. Hazel didn't mind.
Next up, the blue one, Cinderella. Hazel repeatedly told her that she had the same dress at home.
Cinderella was cute and nice. And even though her dress is not pink, Hazel loved her best. And will be her for Halloween, if she can have a headband and necklace. Easy-peasy.
And, then we were in the Bahamas. Yee-haw.
Hazel was not a fan. We went through the Straw Market (meh) and bought some random-y souvenirs and then we went back to the ship and hung out at the pool. Much better...
Huh, this should be sooner because this is right after we got off the boat. Alas, I am not rearranging, just explaining. I love this shot of the two of them. And it is a nice shot of our boat. Look, that's our room!
It was Pirate's In the Caribbean night and we dressed like pirates. Barely.
And we got to meet Jack Sparrow. Hazel and Jack did not care for one another.
And then Hazel went to kid-land and dressed up. Because that is what she does.
Whilst at Kidlandia she obtained booty in the form of pirate head scarfs. Matey. Oh, and we won a pirate trivia game and got medals. Because we are winners. We win.
It is a big production, pirate night. They have dancing pirates and singing pirates and then Mickey Mouse comes in to save the day and then fireworks. (I have pictures of the fireworks on the mysterious "other camera" that I claim to own but never upload from. Because I am lame.)
I wish I had a better shot of the three of us. But Hazel was more impressed with all the characters and music and dancing and whatnot.
I promise to update with Part Four (I believe the final part) at some point in the near-ish future. Labels: Geoff, GFA, hazel, meadow, vacation
Monday, September 28, 2009
The Grand Floridian Adventure Part 2
As you may remember, when I last left off on the Grand Floridian Adventure it was September 13th (on the GFA, not posting). Now we are jumping ahead to September 17, because I have ZERO pictures from those between days. We did stuff but either (a) I don't have pictures or (b) they are on the other camera. Anyway, quick summary:
Monday, September 14: Meadow went to meetings all day, Geoff and Hazel swam in the pool and played with ponies. I think they also rode the bus to the Animal Kingdom Lodge to see animals. But that could have been Tuesday (I think there are pictures of this on the other camera). Monday night we went out to dinner at the fancy-schmancy restaurant in the hotel, it was a conference thing. Hazel did not have a great time. Then we went swimming afterward and to the boardwalk. Or maybe that was Sunday. Man, my days are confused. Probably both days. We swam a lot. Oh, we also walked around Downtown Disney this day too. And had an extremely mediocre lunch at some restaurant that really should have been more delicious.
Tuesday, September 15: Meadow=meetings. Geoff and Hazel=stuff. We had dinner with the conference this night too and then we all went to Cirque du Soleil. It was pretty good, but I am glad I didn't have to pay for the tickets. The 7 bucks for popcorn was plenty and I got reimbursed for that.* Geoff and I went to the show that came through Utah at the E Center, but this was Hazel's first time. I think enjoyed watching her more than the show.**
Wednesday, September 16: Meetings and packing in the morning. Then a lady gave us tickets to the water park and we went in the afternoon. It was awesome and a lot of fun. I would have even paid. I KNOW! Paid! They had a great kid zone that had a multitude of slides in vary degrees of scariness and Hazel increased her bravery bit by bit. I know we have pictures of this on the other camera, cause it is waterproof. And then we drove to Tampa. Which was a long drive but totally worth it to see Geoff's cousin and her family. We went to dinner, and spent the night with them on Wednesday which brings us to Thursday and I have pictures.
Whew.
They live on this great pond with a bird.
And an alligator. Possibly a stick, except it really is an alligator and we saw it swim and yawn. They also have a swimming pool at their house. Lucky.
And, Hazel favorite part. A BABY! Yeah, for baby Aysia! Hazel was in baby heaven. She got to hold the baby and feed the baby and pat (burp) the baby. She wanted to sleep in the baby's room so she could "help her in the night" we put the kibosh on that. It was great seeing them and we would love to go visit them for more than a quick overnight trip.
And then we made the trek to Cape Canaveral. Unbeknown to me, Geoff had the GPS set to avoid toll roads. Which made for a very, very, very long drive across Florida. He claimed it was "scenic" but Hazel and I just watched cartoons in the backseat and waited to see our boat. Or ship. Whatever.When we finally spied it, we were very excited.
Very, very excited.
Even Geoff got in on the excitement action.
And then Hazel lost it for a bit. She absolutely did not want her backpack to be tagged and sent to our room. Because, she is nuts. Does she not realize that it is better to have someone else take care of the luggage?!? Obviously not. So, Geoff went to park the car and Hazel and I went in to the terminal to start the check-in process and just as we were finishing who should show up but THE mouse herself. NOTE: In our house, the only mouse that matters in Minnie. See that mouse silhouette on the ship model in the background? Minnie. The pasta she would get at dinner? Minnie. The ice cream bars? Minnie. You get it. Everything is Minnie. Mickey is not even discussed. Hazel was very excited and perked right up at seeing Minnie and kept up the pleasantness for the rest of the cruise. (or at least that is how I am going to remember it. I cannot think of any other freak outs so I am going to remember the awesomeness of our cruise. It is my cruise. And my blog. I can do what I want.)
Geoff showed up just in time to get a family shot.***
We toured the kid land and it was awesome. I could do an entire post on the awesomeness that is kid land. But, I am not going to. Let me just add it in here: Awesome.
Very, very excited.
Even Geoff got in on the excitement action.
And then Hazel lost it for a bit. She absolutely did not want her backpack to be tagged and sent to our room. Because, she is nuts. Does she not realize that it is better to have someone else take care of the luggage?!? Obviously not. So, Geoff went to park the car and Hazel and I went in to the terminal to start the check-in process and just as we were finishing who should show up but THE mouse herself. NOTE: In our house, the only mouse that matters in Minnie. See that mouse silhouette on the ship model in the background? Minnie. The pasta she would get at dinner? Minnie. The ice cream bars? Minnie. You get it. Everything is Minnie. Mickey is not even discussed. Hazel was very excited and perked right up at seeing Minnie and kept up the pleasantness for the rest of the cruise. (or at least that is how I am going to remember it. I cannot think of any other freak outs so I am going to remember the awesomeness of our cruise. It is my cruise. And my blog. I can do what I want.)
Geoff showed up just in time to get a family shot.***
We toured the kid land and it was awesome. I could do an entire post on the awesomeness that is kid land. But, I am not going to. Let me just add it in here: Awesome.Oh, you want more? Okay, so Hazel is 3 which means she was in with the 3- to 4-year-olds. See how that is only a two year span? Awesome#1. Every single one of the counselors that I met was perky and friendly beyond belief. Awesome#2. The kid land was huge. They had a playground-thing with stuff to climb on and a little slide and then a little TV area with shell chairs. Then there was a huge open space and a stage. They had tables where they served them meals and snacks (They fed them, I could have completely neglected my child all cruise. Awesome#4. (because I am still working on #3)) and then a GIANT tree house thing with a steering wheel (see below) and a slide and other such awesomeness. Plus, a computer room and dress-up area. Awesome#3 And, Hazel favorite part of all, tiny toilets. Awesome#5. Seriously, the kid loves tiny toilets. She wants a tiny toilet in her new bathroom. Except by the time we get done with bathrooms she will be like 15 and who wants a tiny toilet then?!? Moving on. The best part of all: We had late seating for dinner (8:15pm) and our server would take the kids' orders (we were seated with another couple who had a 4-year-old girl) and then rush their food out and then, magically, at 9pm the kid land folks would show up at the restaurant and whisk the kids away to kid land. Awesome#6-10. Disney is a giant marketing machine and I feel guilty about buying Hazel the Disney-crap but I will tell you what. They know how to take care of kids, and more so the parents. The end.
At lunch we met the captain and the first mate. Hazel was very happy with "the dog what walks on two legs".
Our cruise ship had a big old sports area. We played some soccer.
Later, we met Minnie Mouse again. (1) I don't know what is up with the kid and her crazy hands. I assume she is pledging a gang****
We also got Hazel to lay in the windows. She wasn't really amused.
But, dang, look how cute she is in her little mouse ears and adorable dress!
I promise to finish updating the remaining parts at some point in the future.*I am a cheapskate.
**I am also a sucker for my kid.
*** How short are the people in the costumes?!?! because we are taller than Minnie and her head is H-U-G-E!
****Do you pledge gangs? How does that work? When will she stop with the weird hands?
Labels: Geoff, GFA, hazel, meadow, vacation
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
The Grand Floridian Adventure Part 1
We recently returned from 8 days in, or around, Florida. Meadow had a conference at Disney World for 4 nights, then we spent a lovely night with Geoff's cousins in Tampa and then 3 nights on a Disney cruise. It was great but, holy cow, Florida is h-o-t. And muggy. Oh, the muggy, muggy Florida air.
We stayed at the Swan. It was nice but not as nice as some of the other hotels the conference has been held at. But, on the other hand, nicer than where I would stay if I had to pay. Hmm... this is kind of a crappy picture of it. But, all I could find.
More proof that everything is Minnie Mouse. Hazel was uber-cute in this dress. She told someone, "My mom made the dress but we had to borrow the sash." As if borrowing something was the worst thing ever. I am proud of this dress. I think it looks great and even though I deviated from the pattern and had to do a few things repeatedly (see collar and sleeves) it turned out great. The marketing ladies from my conference found Hazel adorable and bought her matching Minnie ears which she LOVES and wore everywhere.
We went to a character breakfast our first morning in WDW and had a great time. I think Hazel ate about 2 bites but she loved the characters. This picture does not show the true amount of love she had for Donald. I think he was the first character and she was still a bit nervous at this point. By the end of the meal she had warmed up to everyone.
Loved Goofy.
Loved, loved, loved Minnie Mouse. HOWEVER! Not once did we see Minnie in the "traditional" i.e. matching dress. Bummer.
And she got earrings. So, all around Florida was a win for Hazel.
They are clip-on earrings (which had never occurred to me before) and she loves them. She has wanted earrings for quite some time now and I think this is filling the need. They are pink butterflies and, surprisingly, they both made it home.
We made a trip to Downtown Disney before my meetings on Sunday and it was awesome. They have My Little Pony thing where you get a pony and all the outfits you can stuff in a box for $20. Best 20 bucks we spent on the trip. We were able to get all of the outfits (princesses and Minnie) plus extra shoes and other fiddly things. Hazel loves it and it ate up plenty of hours and kept her entertained at dinners.
Daisy. Angry Hazel. Angry Donald. Angry Geoff.
We have quite a few photos with Hazel on or near something.
She was fascinated with the "stick" Tigger is sitting on and was convinced it was poop. From our angle, it kind of did look like poop.
Not a fan.
I had to go to meetings (you know, the reason my work shells out the cash for me to go places). Geoff and Hazel headed back to the room. Hazel put on her princess dress and fell asleep. (Long aside: We were looking for another princess dress for Hazel. She got a blue one at Disneyland and wears it constantly. She sold Popsicles on the 24th of July to buy a dress and I told her she could have another one in Florida. She really wanted the mermaid outfit but it looked cheap (but, was NOT cheap) but she would settle for the mermaid ball gown. And then they were out of her size. And so we tried Snow White. Same story, not in her size. So, we had the guy call around and NONE in her size. We tried quite a few princesses before they found ONE in her size. The blue one. Ack. We went to the princess factory (or so it seemed) and they rummaged around and same story, nothing in her size. WTH!?!?! Come on Disney! 3-year-olds need princess dresses. Finally, they found ONE pink one in her size and Hazel proclaimed it was "her favorite". Fabulous, because that is the only one they have. End) It is a cute dress, however, and off the shoulder like she loves.
Then we went to the cocktail reception (Geoff and Hazel came to and Hazel was fabulous and well behaved and cute and everyone fawned over her) and swimming and THEN to the ESPN Zone for food. Hazel zonked out at the ESPN Zone even though it was incredibly loud and loud and sporty and loud. It was a long day.
Anyway, we had a great time and here is my story.
Geoff ordered a snorkeling outfit from his Delta points. I am not really sure how this program works, I just know he got free snorkeling stuff. And Hazel modeled them. In a princess dress.
Remember how I have two cameras? Well, I can apparently only update with one of them at a time. So, this post is from the big camera. My point? None.
Remember how I have two cameras? Well, I can apparently only update with one of them at a time. So, this post is from the big camera. My point? None. Disney World is enormous. I guessed about 600 square miles. But, turns out is is like 36 square miles or 25,000 acres (which sounds far more impressive). My point is this: They are a powerful marketing machine. This was the coolest thing I saw on the compound. Minnie (everything in our world is Minnie, not Mickey) Mouse electrical poles. Awesome.
We stayed at the Swan. It was nice but not as nice as some of the other hotels the conference has been held at. But, on the other hand, nicer than where I would stay if I had to pay. Hmm... this is kind of a crappy picture of it. But, all I could find.
More proof that everything is Minnie Mouse. Hazel was uber-cute in this dress. She told someone, "My mom made the dress but we had to borrow the sash." As if borrowing something was the worst thing ever. I am proud of this dress. I think it looks great and even though I deviated from the pattern and had to do a few things repeatedly (see collar and sleeves) it turned out great. The marketing ladies from my conference found Hazel adorable and bought her matching Minnie ears which she LOVES and wore everywhere.
We went to a character breakfast our first morning in WDW and had a great time. I think Hazel ate about 2 bites but she loved the characters. This picture does not show the true amount of love she had for Donald. I think he was the first character and she was still a bit nervous at this point. By the end of the meal she had warmed up to everyone.
Loved Goofy.
Loved, loved, loved Minnie Mouse. HOWEVER! Not once did we see Minnie in the "traditional" i.e. matching dress. Bummer.
And she got earrings. So, all around Florida was a win for Hazel.
They are clip-on earrings (which had never occurred to me before) and she loves them. She has wanted earrings for quite some time now and I think this is filling the need. They are pink butterflies and, surprisingly, they both made it home.
We made a trip to Downtown Disney before my meetings on Sunday and it was awesome. They have My Little Pony thing where you get a pony and all the outfits you can stuff in a box for $20. Best 20 bucks we spent on the trip. We were able to get all of the outfits (princesses and Minnie) plus extra shoes and other fiddly things. Hazel loves it and it ate up plenty of hours and kept her entertained at dinners.
Daisy. Angry Hazel. Angry Donald. Angry Geoff.
We have quite a few photos with Hazel on or near something.
She was fascinated with the "stick" Tigger is sitting on and was convinced it was poop. From our angle, it kind of did look like poop.
Not a fan.
I had to go to meetings (you know, the reason my work shells out the cash for me to go places). Geoff and Hazel headed back to the room. Hazel put on her princess dress and fell asleep. (Long aside: We were looking for another princess dress for Hazel. She got a blue one at Disneyland and wears it constantly. She sold Popsicles on the 24th of July to buy a dress and I told her she could have another one in Florida. She really wanted the mermaid outfit but it looked cheap (but, was NOT cheap) but she would settle for the mermaid ball gown. And then they were out of her size. And so we tried Snow White. Same story, not in her size. So, we had the guy call around and NONE in her size. We tried quite a few princesses before they found ONE in her size. The blue one. Ack. We went to the princess factory (or so it seemed) and they rummaged around and same story, nothing in her size. WTH!?!?! Come on Disney! 3-year-olds need princess dresses. Finally, they found ONE pink one in her size and Hazel proclaimed it was "her favorite". Fabulous, because that is the only one they have. End) It is a cute dress, however, and off the shoulder like she loves.
Then we went to the cocktail reception (Geoff and Hazel came to and Hazel was fabulous and well behaved and cute and everyone fawned over her) and swimming and THEN to the ESPN Zone for food. Hazel zonked out at the ESPN Zone even though it was incredibly loud and loud and sporty and loud. It was a long day.And then I have no pictures (on this camera) until September 17th.
More tomorrow, or another day.
Labels: Geoff, GFA, hazel, meadow, vacation
Monday, September 7, 2009
Camping!
Okay, first off, if it was for the Awesome Bonnie we never would have gone camping. And that would be a shame because we had a great time. We went up American Fork canyon for the night and while it was chock-a-block with people it was still fun. We had a fire and roasted marshmallows, hunted for bears (none found, however), hunted for moose (Geoff "saw" one), hiked and ummm... camping stuff.
Second, remember how I despise some things about blogger? One of them is the crappy way it moves pictures. I have complained about this before but haven't taken the initative to move to a different site. Just deal with the odd order of pictures because it is a pain to move them without losing the big picture (literally, the BIG picture which I like to keep a copy of at work.)
Moving on.
We hiked/walked around Casade Springs. Hazel took this lovely picture of me and Geoff.
And she took this nice picture of herself.
And then Bonnie took this shot.
And a better one. Hazel got a piece of candy for behaving.* I haven't been up to Cascade Springs since I was a kid. Geoff had never been. You can no longer play in the springs, you have to stay on the path. Still, it was a lovely time and a perfect hike/walk length.
Hazel climbed the rock across from our campsite. There was also one in our campsite that she climbed and almost fell off of. Luckily, I have reflexes like a cat** and was able to grab her before she toppled off backwards, head first.
Hazel and Geoff chilling by the fire. It was hard to get a good fire shot without using the flash and keeping the ambiance. But, I think you get what I was going for. We also told ghost stories and they were awesome. Hazel's was about 30 seconds and incoherent. Nathan's (Bonnie's son) was about 30 minutes and incoherent. In his defense, he was constantly interrupted. Still, it was good times.
Hazel really liked playing in our tent. Not her tiny tent that she insisted on us bringing, only the "whole family tent". She was reading stories to her babies. Except that I notice now that one baby is smashed under her back.
She wanted to take my picture with her dog book. "Look happy!"
Behold the power of static electricity.
Playing frisbee with Geoff. She was not great at catching.
But not too bad at throwing.
Look at that follow through! It is as if the heaven's are shining down upon her and bestowing the power of frisbeeing. Or something.
After being fed (because we are super lame and no one is feeling really great so we didn't even pack breakfast) and packing up camp we headed down to hike Stewart Falls. Except everyone in the UC was up the canyon and traffic was horrible and parking was worse and Hazel was tired and just wanted to visit Grandma and Grandpa. So, we bid adieu to our friends and headed to my dad and Anne's house. We hung out and chatted and then decided to go to the Festivale Magnifico!*** We ate some tacos and Hazel won a toothbrush and really, Really, REALLY wanted to go on a ride except (a) I don't trust carnies, (b) I don't trust those rides and (c) I didn't want to pay the outrageous prices for the lame-o rides. Lucky for Hazel, she found two tickets on the ground and that was just enough to go on the train. So, I still don't trust carnies or the rides but I didn't have to pay and the train didn't go in the air or very fast so I agreed.
She had a fabulous time.
As we were leaving we saw this poster and Hazel was quite concerned about the missing cat. Except it is not missing.
The sign actually says "Have you seen this cat? Because it is Awesome." Oh, Provo, you are so high-larious.
Second, remember how I despise some things about blogger? One of them is the crappy way it moves pictures. I have complained about this before but haven't taken the initative to move to a different site. Just deal with the odd order of pictures because it is a pain to move them without losing the big picture (literally, the BIG picture which I like to keep a copy of at work.)
Moving on.
We hiked/walked around Casade Springs. Hazel took this lovely picture of me and Geoff.
And she took this nice picture of herself.
And then Bonnie took this shot.
And a better one. Hazel got a piece of candy for behaving.* I haven't been up to Cascade Springs since I was a kid. Geoff had never been. You can no longer play in the springs, you have to stay on the path. Still, it was a lovely time and a perfect hike/walk length.
Hazel climbed the rock across from our campsite. There was also one in our campsite that she climbed and almost fell off of. Luckily, I have reflexes like a cat** and was able to grab her before she toppled off backwards, head first.
Hazel and Geoff chilling by the fire. It was hard to get a good fire shot without using the flash and keeping the ambiance. But, I think you get what I was going for. We also told ghost stories and they were awesome. Hazel's was about 30 seconds and incoherent. Nathan's (Bonnie's son) was about 30 minutes and incoherent. In his defense, he was constantly interrupted. Still, it was good times.
Hazel really liked playing in our tent. Not her tiny tent that she insisted on us bringing, only the "whole family tent". She was reading stories to her babies. Except that I notice now that one baby is smashed under her back.
She wanted to take my picture with her dog book. "Look happy!"
Behold the power of static electricity.
Playing frisbee with Geoff. She was not great at catching.
But not too bad at throwing.
Look at that follow through! It is as if the heaven's are shining down upon her and bestowing the power of frisbeeing. Or something.
After being fed (because we are super lame and no one is feeling really great so we didn't even pack breakfast) and packing up camp we headed down to hike Stewart Falls. Except everyone in the UC was up the canyon and traffic was horrible and parking was worse and Hazel was tired and just wanted to visit Grandma and Grandpa. So, we bid adieu to our friends and headed to my dad and Anne's house. We hung out and chatted and then decided to go to the Festivale Magnifico!*** We ate some tacos and Hazel won a toothbrush and really, Really, REALLY wanted to go on a ride except (a) I don't trust carnies, (b) I don't trust those rides and (c) I didn't want to pay the outrageous prices for the lame-o rides. Lucky for Hazel, she found two tickets on the ground and that was just enough to go on the train. So, I still don't trust carnies or the rides but I didn't have to pay and the train didn't go in the air or very fast so I agreed.She had a fabulous time.
As we were leaving we saw this poster and Hazel was quite concerned about the missing cat. Except it is not missing.
The sign actually says "Have you seen this cat? Because it is Awesome." Oh, Provo, you are so high-larious.
All in all, we had a great weekend. Michelle moved into the basement, and watched Nacho for us while we were gone. We also went to the zoo on Saturday with cousins Tiffany and Ginger and saw the baby tigers and, my goodness, they were cute. And....I think that is about it. We are all suffering from various degrees of allergies and Geoff tore his bicep at work.
The end.
*Yes, I realize I am a horrible parent. My kid watches TV, eats candy, gets bribed by her parents and throws tantrums. I predict she will be thrown out of preschool in less than a month.
**aahahahahahaha aahahahaha I normally have horrible reflexes but I did save her this one time.
***Probably not the real name.
Labels: camping, Geoff, hazel, meadow
Sunday, June 28, 2009
California Über Alles
We went to California on Wednesday and came back (incredibly early) on Saturday morning.* It was a fabulous time and while I am exhausted (not quite as exhausted as Hazel and Geoff who both fell asleep a couple of hours ago) I am glad we went and hope to be back to full power by tomorrow when I have to be at work. :(
This is Hazel's standard airplane pose. She loves reading the safety guide almost as much as she loves picking her nose. It was not a bad flight and my mom, Bernie and Jenni were just a couple rows ahead so Hazel could go visit them.
Anyway, when we got to California on Wednesday we drove around crazily, hit the Trader Joe's, got some lunch**, and then went to La Brea Tar Pits. It was pretty cool. Hazel was very concerned about the daddy elephant that got stuck in the tar and was terrified of the moving mammoth.
I was only scared of the skeleton.
Ben and Zoe and clan were there and the cousins (mostly) played nice.
And then we went to the beach. I cannot even begin to quantify how much my child loves the beach. We could have spent four days at the beach and she would have been happy. Note to self: Must go to Hawaii this winter.
Ben and Zoe and clan were there and the cousins (mostly) played nice.
Then we went to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles (per Snoop Dogg's suggestion) and it was delicious. If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend RC&W. We went to the Long Beach location. Hazel had a drumstick.
The family at Disneyland. Look how non-plussed my kid is. Does she not know this is the happiest place on Earth? HAPPIEST!
These were the first characters she met. I am thinking this could be our family group costume this year...
The first ride we took Hazel on was the Pirates of the Caribbean. In case you don't remember this ride, it is dark, loud and has a couple of drops right at the beginning. She had a death-grip on my arm the entire time. Based on this (and the fact that we are dopes) we took her on the Haunted Mansion next***. She was on sensory overload.
We then wised up and took her on Winnie the Pooh's kid-friendly ride. She got off and said that she loved it and "none scary parts."She also enjoyed Buzz Lightyear's shoot-em up ride (how could she not love a ride with guns?).
And we got to ride in the front of the monorail. She would have happily ridden this all day.
We also met more characters.
She loved this phone and had to be physically dragged away from it. Someone talked on it, Mickey or something, I don't know. But she loved it. I love her casual stance.
Of course we met Mickey Mouse. I think the Mickey line is the best of the bunch. You wander through his house (which is really part of the "line") and then you get to watch movies while you wait and it went really fast.****
All day she asked for the Dumbo ride, but the lines were crazy and so we kept putting it off. Finally, the line was down to about 30 minutes and we went on it. She had a great time and again, "none scary parts." Apparently a three-year-old likes the little kid rides. Who knew.
At some point during the day we tried to have naps (ha!) and then stayed up late to watch the fireworks and Fantasmic. Geoff was far more tired than Hazel was.
But, after Fantasmic (and a quick trip to the Tiki Room), she passed out and was gone for the night.
We got up super-early the Friday (or so it felt after being up past midnight on Thursday) so we could ride Nemo's submarine ride.
Then we went on the Jungle Cruise. Obviously, we planned a little better on Friday with regards to kid-friendly rides.
And then we saw the princesses. They were great. Three princesses rotate throughout the day and you wait in one (giant) line for them. They spent time with each little girl (and boys, probably) and made each one feel special. I was glad we did it. But, I wish there was a fastpass.
And we got to ride in the front of the monorail. She would have happily ridden this all day.
We also met more characters.
She loved this phone and had to be physically dragged away from it. Someone talked on it, Mickey or something, I don't know. But she loved it. I love her casual stance.
Of course we met Mickey Mouse. I think the Mickey line is the best of the bunch. You wander through his house (which is really part of the "line") and then you get to watch movies while you wait and it went really fast.****
All day she asked for the Dumbo ride, but the lines were crazy and so we kept putting it off. Finally, the line was down to about 30 minutes and we went on it. She had a great time and again, "none scary parts." Apparently a three-year-old likes the little kid rides. Who knew.
At some point during the day we tried to have naps (ha!) and then stayed up late to watch the fireworks and Fantasmic. Geoff was far more tired than Hazel was.
But, after Fantasmic (and a quick trip to the Tiki Room), she passed out and was gone for the night.
We got up super-early the Friday (or so it felt after being up past midnight on Thursday) so we could ride Nemo's submarine ride.
Then we went on the Jungle Cruise. Obviously, we planned a little better on Friday with regards to kid-friendly rides.
And then we saw the princesses. They were great. Three princesses rotate throughout the day and you wait in one (giant) line for them. They spent time with each little girl (and boys, probably) and made each one feel special. I was glad we did it. But, I wish there was a fastpass.Mulan and Hazel showed off their muscles.
Sleeping Beauty was Hazel's favorite, because of the pink, I think.
Snow White tried to get the kids to pose "like a princess".
This is my favorite picture.
Princess hands again.
And then, Hazel needed her own princess dress.
It leaves glitter everywhere. It makes everything "fancy". Me, Geoff, the stroller, the car seat, everything she touches. Seriously, it is glitterific.
And even more awesome with bug glasses.
We rode the bumper cars and then the ride broke or something so we just had to sit there forever.
And we went on the Bug's Life caterpillar's chew-chew train. Jenni was terrified. This was, by far, the lamest ride ever. It is like 20 feet of ride. I think Hazel has more train track in her box o' trains. Seriously, it was short.
Hazel swore she didn't need a nap and wouldn't take one but, man, she needed one. I think we wore the toes out of her shoes dragging her around.
Outside the Monsters Inc ride.
On the Monsters Inc ride. This was the only ride that Hazel wanted to go on again. We got off and she wanted to immediately get back on it. We distracted her with the photo op stuff outside the ride (see above, there was also a cab you could play in).
We watched a lot of parades. Hazel got to play the drum head in this one.
I like that Jenni, Hazel and the Mad Hatter are all staring at something. The Mad Hatter looks horrified.
We also stayed for the Electric Light Parade. It started at 8:45pm, but on the opposite end of the park. Hazel was wide awake, but that crazy, manic, awake and running around and licking and causing all sorts of mayhem. And then the parade started. She lasted like two floats and then was out. If only she would have had a nap.
As we were leaving California Adventures, the fireworks at Disneyland were going off. This was cool but caused a crazy traffic jam at the exits.
Saturday morning we got up bright and early, drove to the OC and flew home. All in all, it was a great trip. But, I am glad to be home. And glad to be sleeping in my own bed.
*So, we fly standby which is free, but we are at the mercy of the airlines. So, when I checked flights on Friday night after a full day at the D-land I discovered out preferred noon-ish flight was dangerously full so we went for the 6:45am flight. Which meant leaving our hotel at like 5:15am. Which sucked. But, you know, free flights.
Sleeping Beauty was Hazel's favorite, because of the pink, I think.
Snow White tried to get the kids to pose "like a princess".
This is my favorite picture.
Princess hands again.
And then, Hazel needed her own princess dress.
It leaves glitter everywhere. It makes everything "fancy". Me, Geoff, the stroller, the car seat, everything she touches. Seriously, it is glitterific.
And even more awesome with bug glasses.
We rode the bumper cars and then the ride broke or something so we just had to sit there forever.
And we went on the Bug's Life caterpillar's chew-chew train. Jenni was terrified. This was, by far, the lamest ride ever. It is like 20 feet of ride. I think Hazel has more train track in her box o' trains. Seriously, it was short.
Hazel swore she didn't need a nap and wouldn't take one but, man, she needed one. I think we wore the toes out of her shoes dragging her around.
Outside the Monsters Inc ride.
On the Monsters Inc ride. This was the only ride that Hazel wanted to go on again. We got off and she wanted to immediately get back on it. We distracted her with the photo op stuff outside the ride (see above, there was also a cab you could play in).
We watched a lot of parades. Hazel got to play the drum head in this one.
I like that Jenni, Hazel and the Mad Hatter are all staring at something. The Mad Hatter looks horrified.
We also stayed for the Electric Light Parade. It started at 8:45pm, but on the opposite end of the park. Hazel was wide awake, but that crazy, manic, awake and running around and licking and causing all sorts of mayhem. And then the parade started. She lasted like two floats and then was out. If only she would have had a nap.
As we were leaving California Adventures, the fireworks at Disneyland were going off. This was cool but caused a crazy traffic jam at the exits.
Saturday morning we got up bright and early, drove to the OC and flew home. All in all, it was a great trip. But, I am glad to be home. And glad to be sleeping in my own bed.
*So, we fly standby which is free, but we are at the mercy of the airlines. So, when I checked flights on Friday night after a full day at the D-land I discovered out preferred noon-ish flight was dangerously full so we went for the 6:45am flight. Which meant leaving our hotel at like 5:15am. Which sucked. But, you know, free flights.**Genetically, the women in the family do not do well without food. This includes me, my sister, my mom and my kid. I am just saying, we MUST be fed. Logic fails, emotions run wild.
***In our defense, she loves ghosts and doesn't scare easily.
****The princesses, on the other hand, were horrible. We cut in line with April and Zoe (who had been in line for 45 minutes) and still waited for an hour-and-a-half. And it was boring, no movie, nothing. But, the princesses did a great job with each and every girl.
Labels: Disneyland, Geoff, hazel, meadow, vacation
Monday, June 22, 2009
Third post of the night.
Or the first, depending on how you read them. I am cleaning the cards off both cameras before we go on vacation Wednesday. Because, apparently, that is my top-priority?? What about making sure clothes are washed, everything is packed, the basement is ready for paint and the house is clean? Nah. Might as well play around on my computer.
Anyway, here is another (or the first?) shot of my kid with a gun.
Ack! This one slays me. Could she be any tougher? I think not.
A fabulous shot of my friends Candi and Amy that Hazel took. Hazel portraits are easy to tell as (a) there is normally a finger and (b) they are pointed up.
Oh! This one does not follow the rules and points down. But, Cedric is a baby AND there is still a finger in the shot.
I know I posted pictures last time of the sprinkler playing, but I have more. You know, two cameras.
I like this running away one.
Okay, first up. All my pictures are in random-y backwards order but this is because it is a pain in the butt to reorder them. I am trying to not let it make me crazy.Anyway, we went to the zoo a couple weekends ago with my friend from work and her little boy. Hazel lost it because she wanted to ride on the wolf but another kid was on it and HORRORS! she had to ride on something else, I think a baby polar bear. Anyway, she lost it. Like shrieking and trying to leap off the carousel. And then the next go round she got the wolf and it was as if the crazy was forgotten. Except by me.
Hazel and her friend Kade. He really did like her and would like to go to the zoo again with Hazel but "not with her mom or my mom." Dating so young? I think not.
Hazel wanted to take a picture of my bubble. I think it is a nice picture.
And I took this picture of her. In my hat. Because it isn't enough that she owns like 10 hats, now she has to wear mine too.
Look at the foot. She is truly my kid.
Oh, here are some pictures of our crap-tastic sidewalk. We had some crazy rain (about 2 inches in less than an hour) and it flooded our front yard. That pond should be sidewalk.
Randomly: Hazel in a dust mask.
Back to the flooding. Can you see the water shooting into the stairwell?!?!? Bah! This should not happen again.
Last, but not least, a family portrait. Good thing we have Geoff to look at the camera. :)
The end. Now I am ready for California and I promise I will post pictures in a month or less. Or more....
Hazel and her friend Kade. He really did like her and would like to go to the zoo again with Hazel but "not with her mom or my mom." Dating so young? I think not.
Hazel wanted to take a picture of my bubble. I think it is a nice picture.
And I took this picture of her. In my hat. Because it isn't enough that she owns like 10 hats, now she has to wear mine too.
Look at the foot. She is truly my kid.
Oh, here are some pictures of our crap-tastic sidewalk. We had some crazy rain (about 2 inches in less than an hour) and it flooded our front yard. That pond should be sidewalk.
Randomly: Hazel in a dust mask.
Back to the flooding. Can you see the water shooting into the stairwell?!?!? Bah! This should not happen again.
Last, but not least, a family portrait. Good thing we have Geoff to look at the camera. :)
The end. Now I am ready for California and I promise I will post pictures in a month or less. Or more....Sunday, May 31, 2009
Still on Blogger
Okay, so in my last post I implied that I would be leaving Blogger. Well, as it turns out, I am lazy. And possibly a dope. Thus, I am still with Blogger. And still annoyed with it for a few things (why don't my freaking archives work?? how come Chrome doesn't uploade pictures??), but I am moving on. Or staying put. Whatever. If Geoff wasn't madly trying to finish up house projects I would ask for his help. But, frankly, I would rather have a renter.
Moving on.
Hazel loves this bunny costume from her friend Tayvia. It is kind of too small but she still wears in constantly. She can no longer really get the hand nor feet things on but she manages. Also, she tried to escape.
I still maintain everything is cuter when done in a bunny costume.
Even if it is just bunny ears. FYI: Geoff was not thrilled with me taking a picture of him in the bunny ears. But the two of them were so cute that I just had to do it. Besides, there are boy bunnies. I don't know why he was such a complainer.
Hazel and her friends Jack and Serenity had a fabulous sprinkler day last Saturday. Serenity has this AWESOME octopus sprinkler and the three kids had a great time playing in it. Jack's dad (in the upper right corner) doesn't look like he was having such a great time. Seriously, the kids played in in forever. Hazel was freezing but still wouldn't quit.
Eventually I convinced her to take a break and dry off on her beach towel. Notice our lovely roses in the background. (Tangent) I am not a fan of roses. I think they are poky and lame. I have good memories of my grandfather having them but I still didn't want them in our yard. And then they bloomed. We have five (5!) different colors of roses in our yard and they are beautiful. There are two shades of pink (light and dark-which is behind Hazel), a fantastic reddish-pinkish-orangey (hands down, my favorite) , yellow (also behind Hazel) and an orange one. They are awesome and we have been making great bouquets out of them.
Hazel looked adorable one day and so I asked her if I could take a picture and if she would put her hat back on. This was what I got. Hil-ar-i-ous.
We read stories before bed and the other night Hazel wanted me to read this dorky Mad book (as in the magazine). My eyes were killing me so I took my contacts out and put my glasses on so I could see. Hazel followed suit.
Peace out.
Moving on.
Hazel loves this bunny costume from her friend Tayvia. It is kind of too small but she still wears in constantly. She can no longer really get the hand nor feet things on but she manages. Also, she tried to escape.
I still maintain everything is cuter when done in a bunny costume.
Even if it is just bunny ears. FYI: Geoff was not thrilled with me taking a picture of him in the bunny ears. But the two of them were so cute that I just had to do it. Besides, there are boy bunnies. I don't know why he was such a complainer.
Hazel and her friends Jack and Serenity had a fabulous sprinkler day last Saturday. Serenity has this AWESOME octopus sprinkler and the three kids had a great time playing in it. Jack's dad (in the upper right corner) doesn't look like he was having such a great time. Seriously, the kids played in in forever. Hazel was freezing but still wouldn't quit.
Eventually I convinced her to take a break and dry off on her beach towel. Notice our lovely roses in the background. (Tangent) I am not a fan of roses. I think they are poky and lame. I have good memories of my grandfather having them but I still didn't want them in our yard. And then they bloomed. We have five (5!) different colors of roses in our yard and they are beautiful. There are two shades of pink (light and dark-which is behind Hazel), a fantastic reddish-pinkish-orangey (hands down, my favorite) , yellow (also behind Hazel) and an orange one. They are awesome and we have been making great bouquets out of them.
Hazel looked adorable one day and so I asked her if I could take a picture and if she would put her hat back on. This was what I got. Hil-ar-i-ous.
We read stories before bed and the other night Hazel wanted me to read this dorky Mad book (as in the magazine). My eyes were killing me so I took my contacts out and put my glasses on so I could see. Hazel followed suit.
Peace out.Monday, May 4, 2009
April? I hardly knew you...
Man, April flew by. I can't believe we are already well into May. And by "well" I mean, "tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo." I would lament that I have been busy and thus haven't had time to update but the truth is this, I have never been very good at keeping up on the updates. I get busy, it stays light at night and, frankly, I need to watch me some TV. I am lucky if I even TAKE pictures, much less upload them to the computer.
Hazel is still cute. And now will only do weird poses when I take her picture. I don't know what is up with that. It must be genetic, as my step-dad Bernie thinks the Oman girls cannot take a normal picture. Luckily, Hazel has not progressed as far as Jenni and I have. It is probably only a matter of time. Poor kid.
My mom was in town last weekend to get a new dog. (Roscoe, and he is adorable) The AF Omans came up to visit and the kids took a moment to torment the cat. I believe Gloria was chanting, "Brains.....braaaaaaiiiinnnnnsss" but I can't prove that. Also, I don't think she is as obsessed with zombies as my little blonde child.
They did not spend all evening messing with the cat, they also played on the swingset.
Hazel likes to play with her chalk. A lot. I like to keep the chalk on a hook in the coat closet while it is not being supervised. A high hook. I am sure I was not the one who got the chalk down this time. 
Hazel was surprised at how chalky her face was. I don't know what her arm is doing in the picture. She must have been posing. Because that is what you do when you are COVERED IN CHALK!!
Geoff has had like a week off. Of course. Because he gets a lot of days off and I have to go to work. And it is extremely unfair. One day last week he decided the best use of his time would be to copy the little picture from Hazel's puzzle onto the Magnadoodle. Immediately after he was done, Hazel erased it. Luckily, I took a picture so Geoff can remember the good times...
Oh, so one day Hazel was in going to the bathroom. It is great that she can finally go to the bathroom by herself (I just installed low toilet paper holders that she can reach, now we have two per bathroom, awesome). HOWEVER, this does not mean she should be left in the bathroom for long periods of time by herself. By the time Geoff went back there the sink was overflowing because she had shoved toilet paper in the sink drain (and we are old school without an overflow drain thing at the top) because "the fish needed to swim." Geoff helped her dig the toilet paper out and I took a picture. We both have our roles. Look how Hazel almost looks like she feels guilty for flooding the bathroom.
Finally, Hazel got earrings. She is VERY proud.
Hazel is still cute. And now will only do weird poses when I take her picture. I don't know what is up with that. It must be genetic, as my step-dad Bernie thinks the Oman girls cannot take a normal picture. Luckily, Hazel has not progressed as far as Jenni and I have. It is probably only a matter of time. Poor kid.
My mom was in town last weekend to get a new dog. (Roscoe, and he is adorable) The AF Omans came up to visit and the kids took a moment to torment the cat. I believe Gloria was chanting, "Brains.....braaaaaaiiiinnnnnsss" but I can't prove that. Also, I don't think she is as obsessed with zombies as my little blonde child.
They did not spend all evening messing with the cat, they also played on the swingset.
Hazel likes to play with her chalk. A lot. I like to keep the chalk on a hook in the coat closet while it is not being supervised. A high hook. I am sure I was not the one who got the chalk down this time. 
Hazel was surprised at how chalky her face was. I don't know what her arm is doing in the picture. She must have been posing. Because that is what you do when you are COVERED IN CHALK!!
Geoff has had like a week off. Of course. Because he gets a lot of days off and I have to go to work. And it is extremely unfair. One day last week he decided the best use of his time would be to copy the little picture from Hazel's puzzle onto the Magnadoodle. Immediately after he was done, Hazel erased it. Luckily, I took a picture so Geoff can remember the good times...
Oh, so one day Hazel was in going to the bathroom. It is great that she can finally go to the bathroom by herself (I just installed low toilet paper holders that she can reach, now we have two per bathroom, awesome). HOWEVER, this does not mean she should be left in the bathroom for long periods of time by herself. By the time Geoff went back there the sink was overflowing because she had shoved toilet paper in the sink drain (and we are old school without an overflow drain thing at the top) because "the fish needed to swim." Geoff helped her dig the toilet paper out and I took a picture. We both have our roles. Look how Hazel almost looks like she feels guilty for flooding the bathroom.
Finally, Hazel got earrings. She is VERY proud.
Other things we have done this month:
- Played with the neighbor, Jack, a lot. Hazel loves Jack and Jack loves Hazel. They play together very nicely and it is awesome to have a kid Hazel's age (he turns three this week) to play with.
- Walked to the dog park, a lot. Nacho is missing Triscuit, and likes to play with the other dogs at the park. But only if we are in the park too, she freaks out if we put her in there and try and play on the playground.
- Today Hazel and I went to the Utah Museum of Natural History (free day!) and Hazel got to be one of the volunteers for pulling the tablecloth off the table. She was very good and so proud about doing a good job.
- Hazel is starting to read. Good and bad because it is getting trickier to spell things around her.
- Trips to the zoo. The bird show is back after the Winter hiatus and the elephant is due in July!
- Worked on the basement. It is getting closer, I promise! We used all 30 (!) sheets of sheetrock and still need more. We have, of course, had a bit of scope-creep but we are almost done with the re-framing and then can finish the sheetrock. It is getting there.
- Geoff's cousins, Corey and Ryan, were in town for a week or so. They were great fun and Hazel adores them. She wants to go visit them in Hawaii next. I am supporting her in this.
- Probably some other stuff too but it is getting late and Hazel is sitting on my lap waiting for me to read her stories.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Geoff's Birthday
Geoff's birthday was on Saturday, Hazel did not know how to feel about having such an old dad...
Seriously, I think that picture is hilarious. Her face kills me.
Hazel is VERY into birthdays right now. She wanted to put a candle in everything. Turns out candle in molten hot pizza = bad idea. Candle in cookie = okay idea.
We had a party on Geoff's birthday. But not FOR his birthday. And look how HAPPY Geoff was!! He loves birthday parties.
There was dancing at the party. I especially like how Brandon's arm is see-through. That is a good feature to have in a friend.
Plus, Geoff rode on the elephant. This was about 2am. Needless to say, we did not get much done on Sunday.
Seriously, I think that picture is hilarious. Her face kills me.Hazel is VERY into birthdays right now. She wanted to put a candle in everything. Turns out candle in molten hot pizza = bad idea. Candle in cookie = okay idea.
We had a party on Geoff's birthday. But not FOR his birthday. And look how HAPPY Geoff was!! He loves birthday parties.
There was dancing at the party. I especially like how Brandon's arm is see-through. That is a good feature to have in a friend.
Plus, Geoff rode on the elephant. This was about 2am. Needless to say, we did not get much done on Sunday.
Happy Birthday, Geoff!
Labels: Birthday, Geoff, hazel
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Catching up. Kind of.
So, we have two cameras (really, like four) and take pictures on most of them. But only the Canon takes really good pictures, and it is the easiest one to upload. My point is this: I have no point. Oh, here are some pictures.
Hazel found a bucket of wire nuts* and proceeded to put them on her fingers and then showed them to me and said, "scary!" But in a crazy voice.**
I believe this may have been Hazel's first (and second, and possibly third) Oreo. She loved them.
Hazel invented her first joke, after we were teaching her a bunch of pirate jokes.Q: What is a pirate's favorite kid show?
A: Arthur.
NOT said as "Arrrr-thur", thus I don't know if she knows it is a legitimate pirate joke or if it is just her favorite joke. Regardless, it is hilarious.
She was nicely drawing and taping the pages together with flags so I took her picture.
But it turns out I ACTUALLY took her soul. And she was render incapacitated. Except for the ability to wail.
Jenni and Nova came over to visit yesterday and Nova followed us upstairs. And then she was too scared to go down the stairs. And Geoff had to carry her. Good thing he spent all day hanging sheetrock so his arms were warmed up.
Hazel is having a sleepover in our entry way. Like 10 minutes ago. Also playing with jewelry Geoff found in the basement.
*ha! I hope this is the right name for these.
**She is obsessed with scary stuff. We play "zombie mom/regular mom" all the time. Plus, she wants to work at the "castle" (Nightmare on 13th haunted house) and wear a "Strawberry Shortcake ghost costume". Yeah, I don't know what that is either. But, she only wants to be a "regular princess" for Halloween. No zombie.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Q1V Update #3 - With Pictures!
Okay, so it is Friday. Geoff and I had all week off and my mom was here and we worked on the basement all week. My goal was to have the basement in move-in condition by the end of the week (Ha!!). Technically, I still have two more days to go so maybe it will happen (double-ha!). We did, however make some excellent progress.
A couple of numbers:
Outlets installed: 21 (I think, it is hard to remember exactly)
Lights installed: 6 (+ the porch light should be installed tomorrow)
Three-way light switches installed: 4
Feet of wire used: 200+
New furnace vents installed: 3
Old furnace vents re-worked: 7
Trips to the various home improvement stores: 12 (3 in one day!)
A fancy outlet that Geoff installed, before we had one crappy (two-prong) outlet in the floor, notice the hole, now we have a double-gang outlet box in the wall. Aaaah, technology.
Hazel and my mom cooked a lot. This day they were making bread. Hazel spilled a bunch of flour and decided to eat it. Gross. Also, they made caramel popcorn balls one day. They were delicious. Mmm....caramel popcorn. Today they made carrot cupcakes for Gloria's birthday. They were delicious.
Notice my awesome photo placement? That is sheer laziness. Or exhaustion. Geoff installed a floor outlet in Hazel's under-the-stairs room. He was very proud of it.
Dave was super-awesome with the duct work. And very enthusiastic. We had horrendous ducts before (see the giant 12" ducts in some of the older pictures). Now we have lovely 6" ducts that either hug the ceiling or actually travel through the joists. Fancy.
Dave, in action.
Another shot of the lovely ducts. And one of the six lights Geoff installed. Four in the main room, one in each of the bedrooms. The main room has two lights on each half and each half is controlled by a three-way switch. It is very tricky. And fancy. And awesome. Which are apparently the only adjectives I know.
Geoff thinks we are doing a great job.
This was the first outlet I ever wired. Turns out, I am pretty good at the wiring. Granted, this is not super-difficult. They are fairly self-explanatory. Once they are explained to me. I just can't twist those dang screws forever into the box. Because I have weak wrists. Boo hoo.
And those are the pictures I have. Lame. We should be ready for ceiling insulation, wall insulation, and drywall really, really soon. And then it will look like progress is happening fast. Maybe we will be in move-in condition by the end of the month. I am going to stay optimistic.
A couple of numbers:
Outlets installed: 21 (I think, it is hard to remember exactly)
Lights installed: 6 (+ the porch light should be installed tomorrow)
Three-way light switches installed: 4
Feet of wire used: 200+
New furnace vents installed: 3
Old furnace vents re-worked: 7
Trips to the various home improvement stores: 12 (3 in one day!)
A fancy outlet that Geoff installed, before we had one crappy (two-prong) outlet in the floor, notice the hole, now we have a double-gang outlet box in the wall. Aaaah, technology.
Hazel and my mom cooked a lot. This day they were making bread. Hazel spilled a bunch of flour and decided to eat it. Gross. Also, they made caramel popcorn balls one day. They were delicious. Mmm....caramel popcorn. Today they made carrot cupcakes for Gloria's birthday. They were delicious.
Notice my awesome photo placement? That is sheer laziness. Or exhaustion. Geoff installed a floor outlet in Hazel's under-the-stairs room. He was very proud of it.
Dave was super-awesome with the duct work. And very enthusiastic. We had horrendous ducts before (see the giant 12" ducts in some of the older pictures). Now we have lovely 6" ducts that either hug the ceiling or actually travel through the joists. Fancy.
Dave, in action.
Another shot of the lovely ducts. And one of the six lights Geoff installed. Four in the main room, one in each of the bedrooms. The main room has two lights on each half and each half is controlled by a three-way switch. It is very tricky. And fancy. And awesome. Which are apparently the only adjectives I know.
Geoff thinks we are doing a great job.
This was the first outlet I ever wired. Turns out, I am pretty good at the wiring. Granted, this is not super-difficult. They are fairly self-explanatory. Once they are explained to me. I just can't twist those dang screws forever into the box. Because I have weak wrists. Boo hoo.
And those are the pictures I have. Lame. We should be ready for ceiling insulation, wall insulation, and drywall really, really soon. And then it will look like progress is happening fast. Maybe we will be in move-in condition by the end of the month. I am going to stay optimistic.Sunday, March 8, 2009
Wilde Family 1st Quarter "Vacation" Part 1
I have to burn through a lot of vacation this year. About a week a quarter. This is harder than it seems because I hate taking time off work when I am not actually going anywhere. Plus, I am whiny and ungrateful.
Anywho, this quarter instead of going somewhere (boo) we are working on the basement (woo and boo). 'Woo' because it needs to be done and 'boo' because, you know, working on the basement sucks and not going somewhere double-sucks.
My mom was kind enough to make the trek down from the Wyoming to watch the kid (the basement is not exactly Hazel-friendly so we are hoping to make a bunch of progress. I am going to document what we do, (a) so I can look back and see what I did on my Q1 vacation and (b) because I would be documenting a real vacation.
Yesterday (Saturday) Geoff worked on the ceiling demo and then we took a load to the sanitary landfill*. I didn't get to help for a good part of the day because I went to lunch with my friend. (hee hee hee). After the sanitary landfill, Jenni was kind enough to feed us. Hooray!
This was an in-progress shot from yesterday: Notice the random light fixture hanging down, the boards running east-west (left-right) and other assorted stuff.
A better shot of boards running east-west (they held the drop ceiling**) and remaining lathe-and-plaster to remove.
Ummm.... This is like the same shot but from this morning. Apparently the air was cleaner.
Yesterday we also made a lovely guest room upstairs for my mom. And if I was not exhausted after only two days of manual labor I would go take a picture of it. We also put up a shelving unit and organized some stuff upstairs.
Anywho, this quarter instead of going somewhere (boo) we are working on the basement (woo and boo). 'Woo' because it needs to be done and 'boo' because, you know, working on the basement sucks and not going somewhere double-sucks.
My mom was kind enough to make the trek down from the Wyoming to watch the kid (the basement is not exactly Hazel-friendly so we are hoping to make a bunch of progress. I am going to document what we do, (a) so I can look back and see what I did on my Q1 vacation and (b) because I would be documenting a real vacation.
Yesterday (Saturday) Geoff worked on the ceiling demo and then we took a load to the sanitary landfill*. I didn't get to help for a good part of the day because I went to lunch with my friend. (hee hee hee). After the sanitary landfill, Jenni was kind enough to feed us. Hooray!
This was an in-progress shot from yesterday: Notice the random light fixture hanging down, the boards running east-west (left-right) and other assorted stuff.
A better shot of boards running east-west (they held the drop ceiling**) and remaining lathe-and-plaster to remove.
Ummm.... This is like the same shot but from this morning. Apparently the air was cleaner.
Yesterday we also made a lovely guest room upstairs for my mom. And if I was not exhausted after only two days of manual labor I would go take a picture of it. We also put up a shelving unit and organized some stuff upstairs.Today we pulled the carpet off the stairs to upstairs and then removed approximately 60,000 nails. Some were regular size (like an inch) but some were like 3 inches. I thought it was over kill. And it over-killed my back. Ack! My back! But, look how lovely it looks without the disgusting carpet. Which was mostly just cat hair and dirt.
More demolition and lots of cleaning up today. This room actually looks great in real life. But it is hard to get a picture of it.
A view from the opposite direction, see how lovely the ceiling is? All free of east-west boards and no more lathe-and-plaster over the wall/door and the floor is mostly clean, also Geoff pulled a duct down (it is leaning against the door). Trust me. This is progress. 
And I cleaned the storage/utility room. And it looks fan-freaking-tastic. I am very proud of this. I filled half the trailer and a good portion of the truck with crap from this room.***
I have no Before pictures of this, so trust me. It was gross.
Also, we have a lot of hoses. And they are now in the utility sink...
So, there are the first two days of Q1V**** If I am still able to move tomorrow, I will update with the progress. Hopefully, we will get wiring done tomorrow.
More demolition and lots of cleaning up today. This room actually looks great in real life. But it is hard to get a picture of it.
A view from the opposite direction, see how lovely the ceiling is? All free of east-west boards and no more lathe-and-plaster over the wall/door and the floor is mostly clean, also Geoff pulled a duct down (it is leaning against the door). Trust me. This is progress. 
And I cleaned the storage/utility room. And it looks fan-freaking-tastic. I am very proud of this. I filled half the trailer and a good portion of the truck with crap from this room.***
I have no Before pictures of this, so trust me. It was gross.
Also, we have a lot of hoses. And they are now in the utility sink...
So, there are the first two days of Q1V**** If I am still able to move tomorrow, I will update with the progress. Hopefully, we will get wiring done tomorrow.One more side note, which would be an asterix except I am at the bottom: A lot of what we are doing this weeking (wiring, ductwork, insulation, etc) is not really visible or impressive(?) to anyone but us. But, trust me, it needs to be done and it will be better for us in the long run. Hooray for electricity!
*Because we would NEVER go to the dump.
** Who puts a drop-ceiling in the basement!! Morons.
***Jenni: we will make another sanitary landfill truck tomorrow or Tuesday so you can still borrow the truck. But, I really need to clean the stupid basement. Especially because it was something I could actually accomplish.
****Quarter 1 vacation is so much to type, plus I need a slogan for the week. Or something. Man, I am beat.
Labels: Geoff, House, Progress, Q1V
Monday, February 9, 2009
Fingerpaints and destruction
First, a picture of Hazel and Triscuit. I think this one is sweet. Notice they are both wearing pink. Awesome.
I find this combination of clothing odd. Or funny. Or something. Whatever. It is late, and I am tired.
On Saturday Geoff and Michelle decided to pull down the ceiling in our basement. It needed to come down but it also need the stuff removed first. Notice the STOVE still in the one room they destroyed?? Yeah, I don't think Geoff noticed. Anyway, it was filthy work. And Geoff hurt his back.
And why didn't I get to help? Because Hazel had a birthday party. And it was awesome. Here she is in her "fancy birthday party tea party dress" with the Hello Kitty bow in her hair.
And a whole couch full of cute.
Since Geoff hurt his back on Saturday, I got to spend time on Sunday cleaning in the basement. Between working at my job (aaaaagggghhhhh!!!!!) and holding a sick kid, it was not fun. But, I made some progress and even though my arms, back, shoulders, ummm... torso? is/are sore I am still upright and mobile, unlike Geoff. So, I have that going for me.
I busted out the finger paints tonight. Hazel had a rough day. She is has a bit of a cold and thus is mopey, Geoff threw out his back and is, in HIS words, "useless", I had to work late and so on and so forth. Plus, I had some really big sheets of paper from work. Thus, throwing caution to the wind, we finger painted. Let's put it this way, I should have waited until summer when I could put her outside. I thought pushing her sleeves up would be adequate. Because I am an IMBECILE! Hazel had a great time. I freaked out a lot.
I put Hazel in the tub with all her clothes on and made her scrub herself down. And then I had the brilliant (actual brilliant, not sarcastic "brilliant") idea to let her finger paint in the tub. Aaaaahhh...It just wipes off, and she is already wet so the paint doesn't really stick to her, and she is nekkid so I don't have to worry about her clothes. Perfect.
This was her masterpiece. I actually like it better than the finger paints on paper. Plus, clean up was much easier.
I find this combination of clothing odd. Or funny. Or something. Whatever. It is late, and I am tired.
On Saturday Geoff and Michelle decided to pull down the ceiling in our basement. It needed to come down but it also need the stuff removed first. Notice the STOVE still in the one room they destroyed?? Yeah, I don't think Geoff noticed. Anyway, it was filthy work. And Geoff hurt his back.
And why didn't I get to help? Because Hazel had a birthday party. And it was awesome. Here she is in her "fancy birthday party tea party dress" with the Hello Kitty bow in her hair.
And a whole couch full of cute.
Since Geoff hurt his back on Saturday, I got to spend time on Sunday cleaning in the basement. Between working at my job (aaaaagggghhhhh!!!!!) and holding a sick kid, it was not fun. But, I made some progress and even though my arms, back, shoulders, ummm... torso? is/are sore I am still upright and mobile, unlike Geoff. So, I have that going for me.
I busted out the finger paints tonight. Hazel had a rough day. She is has a bit of a cold and thus is mopey, Geoff threw out his back and is, in HIS words, "useless", I had to work late and so on and so forth. Plus, I had some really big sheets of paper from work. Thus, throwing caution to the wind, we finger painted. Let's put it this way, I should have waited until summer when I could put her outside. I thought pushing her sleeves up would be adequate. Because I am an IMBECILE! Hazel had a great time. I freaked out a lot.
I put Hazel in the tub with all her clothes on and made her scrub herself down. And then I had the brilliant (actual brilliant, not sarcastic "brilliant") idea to let her finger paint in the tub. Aaaaahhh...It just wipes off, and she is already wet so the paint doesn't really stick to her, and she is nekkid so I don't have to worry about her clothes. Perfect.
This was her masterpiece. I actually like it better than the finger paints on paper. Plus, clean up was much easier.
Finally, three things Hazel hates:
1- Jupiter
2- Going into space
3- Scuba diving
Randomly, on Saturday she told me this list of dislikes, and counted them on her fingers. It KILLED me. Still does. Because I am a nerd like that. Seriously, JUPITER!! Who hates Jupiter? My kid, that's who.
1- Jupiter
2- Going into space
3- Scuba diving
Randomly, on Saturday she told me this list of dislikes, and counted them on her fingers. It KILLED me. Still does. Because I am a nerd like that. Seriously, JUPITER!! Who hates Jupiter? My kid, that's who.
Labels: Birthday, Geoff, hazel, meadow, Triscuit
Monday, February 2, 2009
Hazel's Dress
Okay, I made this dress: 
And I think it is for sucks. Which means, of course, that Hazel loves it. It is basically a fleece sack with arm and neck holes and purple edging. She won't let me do anything to it because she, "loves it just like this!!" Also, bare arms and bare legs = bad mom.
This pose is funny. And look, arms AND legs covered and warm.
Hazel and Geoff rode the elephant together the other day. Geoff did not want his picture taken, which is lame because I have way worse photos of them. I made this dress too (Hazel has it on backwards) and it is way better. But a year old and getting kind of small. 
And I think it is for sucks. Which means, of course, that Hazel loves it. It is basically a fleece sack with arm and neck holes and purple edging. She won't let me do anything to it because she, "loves it just like this!!" Also, bare arms and bare legs = bad mom.This pose is funny. And look, arms AND legs covered and warm.
Hazel and Geoff rode the elephant together the other day. Geoff did not want his picture taken, which is lame because I have way worse photos of them. I made this dress too (Hazel has it on backwards) and it is way better. But a year old and getting kind of small. 
Sunday, November 2, 2008
"Packing"
Packing is sometimes hampered by playing.This was while we were sorting the toy box of infinite stuff. We found the Spiderman (on Hazel) and Pokemon (on me) capes. I don't think either of those characters actually wear capes in "real-life". Geoff and I bought the capes on the infamous trip to Tijuana when the mexican wrestling mask was purchased. *Sigh* Poor, missing, mexican wrestling mask. Anyway, good times...
Things I find funny about this picture:
Things I find funny about this picture:- The ridiculous cape.
- Geoff's crazy waving (he is sorting computer junk)
- How the camera is so heavy that Hazel can't really take a decent picture.
- Something weird going on with my hair.
And here is a brief glimpse into the chaos that surrounds us.
Tattoo for the day. Oh, she is a tough one with the tiny baby hands.
Labels: Geoff, hazel, meadow, Packing, tattoo
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Our week
This picture is a good indicator of yesterday. Even the mermaid was in timeout. I am just saying some days are hard.
Today was better. Except when it wasn't. But, the mermaid behaved. So, that's good.
Tonight we went to the Red Butte Garden After Dark. It was pretty awesome, but COLD. Luckily, our wicked-smart friend, Christie went too and she had handwarmers. Oh, Jordan went too, but he did not bring us handwarmers. The Red Butte was fun. They had stories and crafts and blacklights. My contacts glow in the blacklight. So much that it was like looking through a dense fog. Like I have cataracts. Oh, and they had face painting. Hazel's awesome face paint:
And the entire family: We all have evil mustaches. Geoff had his the longest, that is why he is extra evil.
Labels: Geoff, halloween, hazel, meadow
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Whoa. That's a lot of pictures
In no particular order (because, dude, Blogger uploads pictures stupidly, and then I have to move the code to keep the pictures clickable, so just deal with it.)
Geoff and Hazel unpacked the Halloween decorations a while ago and Hazel found this: A GIANT LADY HAND! ACK!
Oh, and we went to the zoo. At the begining of October, I only remember because I got off work early because of the ground breaking for our new building. But, this zoo trip was special because we took the camera. Here is Hazel and mama on the elephant. She has never been brave enough to stand in front of the elephant while he sprays but this trip she did and it was hilarious. If I was a better mom, I would have video. One day you will have to come to the zoo with us and see it for yourself. And then keep it in your brain, because I will probably never make a video of it.
Oh, and Hazel sat on the rhino statue with NO HANDS! Oh, what a brave little girl.
And Hazel and Geoff rode on the carousel. Hazel is riding on the panda bear because she has a panda bear on her shirt. I love the little look in this picture.
Oh, and I was attacked by an alligator. Hazel jumped on the alligator's back and tried to scare it off with ummm....I got nothing. I don't know what she is doing. But, she obviously didn't care that I was being attacked.
Hazel normally hates the snake slide, but she went down it a couple of times. I think it helped that there was another little girl there.
Apparently we are done with the zoo. We had some packaging from ummm... a package? and Hazel found it and LOVED it. She dressed in it for days. And the kitty dressed in it. Good times. Maybe one day we will be able to afford real clothes for her (stupid economy) until then, she is happy wearing brown paper.
Oh, back to the zoo. We were being those gopher things. The name of which is currently escaping me. You know what I mean. At the zoo. With the faces. And they live in holes.
One day Hazel got in the Sharpies. Or Shapies as I call them. Geoff was having some asthma issues, laid now for a bit and this was the result. Hazel and the mermaid have matching drawings. ALL OVER! And the wall. And my computer desk. And probably other things we haven't found. And this was a while ago.
Hazel and Geoff found a praying mantis. And then it attacked. The praying mantis (or A praying mantis) reappeared today on our back window. Weird.
Just highlighting the fashion choices of my child.
And more.
Oh, and this was today. We went to the farmer's market and Hazel decorated a pumpkin. It was a witch.
Oh, the eyes fell off. Luckily, the mama has some glue and I was able to save the eyes. However, it is doubtful the pumpkin will ever be able to play the piano.
Tattoos:
Oh, and we went to the bird zoo (aka Tracy Aviary) today for free day. Hazel was tired. Before the bird zoo (aka bird park) we walked to the game store (about 1.5 miles) and back and we walked around the farmer's market (see the above pumpkin) and we walked to the bird zoo. Thus, she was really tired. So tired, in fact, that she fell asleep about 6:30pm whilst we were lounging on the couch (Geoff is at work tonight) and has stayed asleep.
Geoff and Hazel skating board. They are super-cute. Notice Hazel's safety gear. She found Geoff's knee/elbow pads in a donate box.* She is in love with them.
A tea party with Dr. Evil.
Hazel adores Nacho.
The feeling is less than mutual.
*Okay, so we are in the process of buying a new house and let me tell you. It is a pain. We have nine years of junk accumulated in this house. NINE YEARS! That is a lot of stuff. And now we have to sort it, pack it, donate it, toss it and/or move it. Exhausting.
Geoff and Hazel unpacked the Halloween decorations a while ago and Hazel found this: A GIANT LADY HAND! ACK!
Oh, and we went to the zoo. At the begining of October, I only remember because I got off work early because of the ground breaking for our new building. But, this zoo trip was special because we took the camera. Here is Hazel and mama on the elephant. She has never been brave enough to stand in front of the elephant while he sprays but this trip she did and it was hilarious. If I was a better mom, I would have video. One day you will have to come to the zoo with us and see it for yourself. And then keep it in your brain, because I will probably never make a video of it.
Oh, and Hazel sat on the rhino statue with NO HANDS! Oh, what a brave little girl.
And Hazel and Geoff rode on the carousel. Hazel is riding on the panda bear because she has a panda bear on her shirt. I love the little look in this picture.
Oh, and I was attacked by an alligator. Hazel jumped on the alligator's back and tried to scare it off with ummm....I got nothing. I don't know what she is doing. But, she obviously didn't care that I was being attacked.
Hazel normally hates the snake slide, but she went down it a couple of times. I think it helped that there was another little girl there.
Apparently we are done with the zoo. We had some packaging from ummm... a package? and Hazel found it and LOVED it. She dressed in it for days. And the kitty dressed in it. Good times. Maybe one day we will be able to afford real clothes for her (stupid economy) until then, she is happy wearing brown paper.
Oh, back to the zoo. We were being those gopher things. The name of which is currently escaping me. You know what I mean. At the zoo. With the faces. And they live in holes.
One day Hazel got in the Sharpies. Or Shapies as I call them. Geoff was having some asthma issues, laid now for a bit and this was the result. Hazel and the mermaid have matching drawings. ALL OVER! And the wall. And my computer desk. And probably other things we haven't found. And this was a while ago.
Hazel and Geoff found a praying mantis. And then it attacked. The praying mantis (or A praying mantis) reappeared today on our back window. Weird.
Just highlighting the fashion choices of my child.
And more.
Oh, and this was today. We went to the farmer's market and Hazel decorated a pumpkin. It was a witch.
Oh, the eyes fell off. Luckily, the mama has some glue and I was able to save the eyes. However, it is doubtful the pumpkin will ever be able to play the piano.
Tattoos:
Oh, and we went to the bird zoo (aka Tracy Aviary) today for free day. Hazel was tired. Before the bird zoo (aka bird park) we walked to the game store (about 1.5 miles) and back and we walked around the farmer's market (see the above pumpkin) and we walked to the bird zoo. Thus, she was really tired. So tired, in fact, that she fell asleep about 6:30pm whilst we were lounging on the couch (Geoff is at work tonight) and has stayed asleep.
Geoff and Hazel skating board. They are super-cute. Notice Hazel's safety gear. She found Geoff's knee/elbow pads in a donate box.* She is in love with them.
A tea party with Dr. Evil.
Hazel adores Nacho.
The feeling is less than mutual.
*Okay, so we are in the process of buying a new house and let me tell you. It is a pain. We have nine years of junk accumulated in this house. NINE YEARS! That is a lot of stuff. And now we have to sort it, pack it, donate it, toss it and/or move it. Exhausting. Labels: clothes, Geoff, hazel, meadow, outfit, zoo
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Costa Rica - The Final Chapter
More of Geoff's nature photography. Hazel and I "caught" this crab in the pool. It was actually already dead when we got to it. We later got one out that was still alive. But, it didn't hold nearly as still for pictures.
Family portrait on the beach. This was our last day to play at Playa Flamingo.
Hazel and Geoff dug a really deep hole.
Then we had to go and get cleaned up for the wedding. It was perfect weather for a beach wedding.
Hazel ran away.
I chased after her.
And then I chased her some more.
They had little cones of flowers to throw, instead of rice. Hazel thought this was awesome. She wore the cones as little armbands, but I don't have a good picture of it.
The wedding was very nice. But my favorite part was the looky-loos. Notice the couple between Jim and the right-hand post. And the dude bobbing in the ocean.
There were appetizers and cocktails on the beach while Jim and T had pictures. Hazel took the time to dance.
And then a guy came by with horses. This is actually a very excited face. Like so excited she could barely breath.
A bit of a smile. Not many two-year-old gringas can say they have ridden a horse, at sunset, on the beach, in Costa Rica.
The best family shot I could find.
Notice Geoff's crazy eyes? I think he was done at this point. Hazel was still happily eating chicken.
This shot may look blurry, but this is actually how everyone looked at this point. I thought it was super-late. Like midnight. It was actually like 8:30pm. The party starts early in Costa Rica.
Family portrait on the beach. This was our last day to play at Playa Flamingo.
Hazel and Geoff dug a really deep hole.
Then we had to go and get cleaned up for the wedding. It was perfect weather for a beach wedding.
Hazel ran away.
I chased after her.
And then I chased her some more.
They had little cones of flowers to throw, instead of rice. Hazel thought this was awesome. She wore the cones as little armbands, but I don't have a good picture of it.
The wedding was very nice. But my favorite part was the looky-loos. Notice the couple between Jim and the right-hand post. And the dude bobbing in the ocean.
There were appetizers and cocktails on the beach while Jim and T had pictures. Hazel took the time to dance.
And then a guy came by with horses. This is actually a very excited face. Like so excited she could barely breath.
A bit of a smile. Not many two-year-old gringas can say they have ridden a horse, at sunset, on the beach, in Costa Rica.
The best family shot I could find.
Notice Geoff's crazy eyes? I think he was done at this point. Hazel was still happily eating chicken.
This shot may look blurry, but this is actually how everyone looked at this point. I thought it was super-late. Like midnight. It was actually like 8:30pm. The party starts early in Costa Rica.
All in all, we had a fabulous time in Costa Rica. Hazel is still talking about it and would like to go back. Hazel and I (and Jenni and Grandma Marilyn) leave for San Diego on Saturday. We will see if the whirlwind of parks can compete with full days at the pool.
Labels: Costa Rica, Geoff, hazel, meadow, swimming, vacation, Wedding
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Costa Rica - Part 3
Thursday, August 28: Obviously, we swam. We also decided to go on a trip to Tamarindo. This is the most developed of the towns we saw in Costa Rica. We were going to do some shopping but just after we started out it started raining. Hard. Harder than we had seen all week. And we had seen some big rain. Geoff went to get the car and Hazel and I (and the camera) huddle under some shelter. Then we went to look in a store and Hazel, despite adamantly denying the need to use the potty, peed on the floor. In the bathroom, we were so close. And then started whine-crying. Which is the absolute worse. So, we left without getting anything, after my kid peed on their floor. Luckily, it was raining a lot so maybe they just thought it was rain. Or that we were jerks. And we walked around the Tamarindo mall and got some ice cream. Then we went back to the hotel.
This is the only good picture I have of the day. It does not even begin to show how much rain there was.
Friday, August 29: Swimming. Reading books. Naps. Swimming. Books. TV. Oh, let me discuss the television situation. Remember, I love TV. It is a staple in my life. Hazel also loves TV and only knows about TiVo. We always hit a point in our vacation where she asks for this show or that show and we have to explain that we can’t always make it appear. Anyway, no TiVo. But, we did get to watch awesome television either in Spanish (dubbed) or with Spanish subtitles. Personally, I liked to watch the subtitles. But, sometimes the subtitle readers get gypped. But, it is still a fun way to learn words in another language. Also, we were watching “Anti-trust” on TV and half-way through it just cut out and was “Law and Order” because, yeah, that show is not on enough. So, I missed my beloved TiVo. But, I still got to watch some TV and read 6 books, not just Friday, the whole trip. It was a beautiful thing.
By this point in the week, Hazel was exhausted. Finally.
These birds were everywhere. We fed them pancakes at breakfast. Which I am sure contributed to the being everywhere... Anyway, I love how angry this little guy looks. Loook at his little yellow eyes. Geoff does a great job at the nature photography.
Saturday, August 30: We went on a canopy tour with the wedding group. We met at the fabulous Paradisus Playa Conchal, which made our hotel look pathetic and small until we realized it was a crazy cart ride to go anywhere on the hotel grounds and they beach was more crowded and less wave-y? And then we once again loved our hotel. But, I digress. So, we rode a bus. Hazel loved it, I wanted to barf.
When we got to the starting point they strapped us in to harnesses and given the barest minimum of lessons on how to ride the zipline. Hazel had fun playing with the helmets, she especially liked this blue one.
She also enjoyed the gloves we had to wear to lessen the chance of zipline burn.
We asked if Hazel could actually go with us on the zipline and they said sure.* They got her all harnessed up (this was the worst part-only because she wanted to wear her beloved blue helmet and it was too big to be actually safe):
They did explain that someone would have to actually go with her. Because we were just going to push her really hard and hope for the best. It was great. And then it started raining. Which was less great, but we still had a great time. Hazel was super-brave.
This was our cute and shiny family in our helmets (and sunscreen and bug spray-thus the shiny), all ready to go in the canopy.
And we saw two monkeys in a tree, and then at the end we saw another monkey, right by the building, and he pooped and that was the highlight of Hazel’s zipline experience. This is the monkey who pooped. It is amazing to me to see monkey just out in the wild. It is not a normal thing for Utah.
Plus, in typical Hazel fashion, on the bus ride home she decided she didn't need to wear a shirt. A couple of Jim's friends weren't wearing shirts so she figured she didn't need to wear them either.
Then we went back to our hotel, went swimming, had a nap, the usual.
We went to the rehearsal dinner Saturday night. It was delicious and lovely and one of Jim’s friends was far more disruptive than Hazel, so I was pleased. And Hazel fell asleep and then we went back to our hotel. All in all, a great day in Costa Rica.
This is the only good picture I have of the day. It does not even begin to show how much rain there was.
Friday, August 29: Swimming. Reading books. Naps. Swimming. Books. TV. Oh, let me discuss the television situation. Remember, I love TV. It is a staple in my life. Hazel also loves TV and only knows about TiVo. We always hit a point in our vacation where she asks for this show or that show and we have to explain that we can’t always make it appear. Anyway, no TiVo. But, we did get to watch awesome television either in Spanish (dubbed) or with Spanish subtitles. Personally, I liked to watch the subtitles. But, sometimes the subtitle readers get gypped. But, it is still a fun way to learn words in another language. Also, we were watching “Anti-trust” on TV and half-way through it just cut out and was “Law and Order” because, yeah, that show is not on enough. So, I missed my beloved TiVo. But, I still got to watch some TV and read 6 books, not just Friday, the whole trip. It was a beautiful thing.
By this point in the week, Hazel was exhausted. Finally.
These birds were everywhere. We fed them pancakes at breakfast. Which I am sure contributed to the being everywhere... Anyway, I love how angry this little guy looks. Loook at his little yellow eyes. Geoff does a great job at the nature photography.
Saturday, August 30: We went on a canopy tour with the wedding group. We met at the fabulous Paradisus Playa Conchal, which made our hotel look pathetic and small until we realized it was a crazy cart ride to go anywhere on the hotel grounds and they beach was more crowded and less wave-y? And then we once again loved our hotel. But, I digress. So, we rode a bus. Hazel loved it, I wanted to barf.
When we got to the starting point they strapped us in to harnesses and given the barest minimum of lessons on how to ride the zipline. Hazel had fun playing with the helmets, she especially liked this blue one.
She also enjoyed the gloves we had to wear to lessen the chance of zipline burn.
We asked if Hazel could actually go with us on the zipline and they said sure.* They got her all harnessed up (this was the worst part-only because she wanted to wear her beloved blue helmet and it was too big to be actually safe):
They did explain that someone would have to actually go with her. Because we were just going to push her really hard and hope for the best. It was great. And then it started raining. Which was less great, but we still had a great time. Hazel was super-brave. This was our cute and shiny family in our helmets (and sunscreen and bug spray-thus the shiny), all ready to go in the canopy.
This was the very first run and I didn't quite have a good method of holding the kid. Plus, I was a wee bit nervous taking my only child on the giant zipline in the middle of a freakin' jungle. I don't know if they have safety regulations there! And, I forgot to brake. Whoops.
Geoff also took Hazel on a couple of the lines. By this point we were a little less nervous about it, and Hazel had a better idea how to hang on.
Geoff also took Hazel on a couple of the lines. By this point we were a little less nervous about it, and Hazel had a better idea how to hang on.
If you click and look at the bigger picture of this shot you can see how wet and dirty Hazel got. The wire had grease or dirt or something and when I applied the brake (my hand) we would get a dusting of grease or dirt. But, she did not complain and was a trooper about anything. This was near the end when we were all pretty soaked.
And we saw two monkeys in a tree, and then at the end we saw another monkey, right by the building, and he pooped and that was the highlight of Hazel’s zipline experience. This is the monkey who pooped. It is amazing to me to see monkey just out in the wild. It is not a normal thing for Utah.
Plus, in typical Hazel fashion, on the bus ride home she decided she didn't need to wear a shirt. A couple of Jim's friends weren't wearing shirts so she figured she didn't need to wear them either.Then we went back to our hotel, went swimming, had a nap, the usual.
We went to the rehearsal dinner Saturday night. It was delicious and lovely and one of Jim’s friends was far more disruptive than Hazel, so I was pleased. And Hazel fell asleep and then we went back to our hotel. All in all, a great day in Costa Rica.
*At the top of the first platform I asked a guy if he had kids and he said one little girl. Then I asked if he would let her ride the zipline. He said, “No, way.” I was ready to get down and then he clarified that she was only two-months old. And then I felt a little better about taking my kid on the canopy tour.
Labels: Costa Rica, Geoff, hazel, meadow, vacation, zipline
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Costa Rica - Part Dos
Tuesday, August 26: We swam a lot. And we went to dinner at the sub shop. Because, when I think “tropical vacation”, I think “sub sandwiches.” There were not a lot of food choices. And then more swimming. And playing in the sand. It rained really, really hard at night and our power kept going on and off and on and off and on and off. And so on. And so forth. And every time the power would come back on our air conditioner would beep and the light on our TV would flash and the pool lights would flash. It was less than ideal. I have no pictures of the annoying power surges. But here are Geoff and Hazel playing in the waves.
Hazel was constantly sandy. Seriously, I have no idea how she got so sandy. She would rub her face with her sandy hands and rub sand on her legs and anyway, she was sandy.
Wednesday, August 27: We went to the Monkey Park. Or as I like to call it “The Sad Zoo.” Not sad for me, as you can see. 
There were also monkeys (of course) and a bunch of different birds and a raccoon and some weird animal that kind of looked like a cross between a raccoon and an anteater. There were a bunch of these things and the babies could get out of (and back into) the cage. It just did not seem safe. Also, a crocodile and a dog (maybe a fancy kind of dog, but there were no signs), I don't think this is rainwater in his cage, I think it was all pee. Cause, man, it stunk. But notice the excellent "museum hands" on Hazel. Also, you have a good shot here of the lack of barriers between us and the animals. Sure, there were cages but you could reach right through/over them. We honestly could have touched every animal in the zoo. But, we did not.
Hazel was constantly sandy. Seriously, I have no idea how she got so sandy. She would rub her face with her sandy hands and rub sand on her legs and anyway, she was sandy.
Wednesday, August 27: We went to the Monkey Park. Or as I like to call it “The Sad Zoo.” Not sad for me, as you can see. 
I am sure the animals were well taken care of but it was not up to first-world standards. But we got to pet the friendliest Chacoan Peccary ever. He was adorable and had soft ears like Nacho. It had a pig nose and body but spikes like a porcupine. Weird little animal.
There were also monkeys (of course) and a bunch of different birds and a raccoon and some weird animal that kind of looked like a cross between a raccoon and an anteater. There were a bunch of these things and the babies could get out of (and back into) the cage. It just did not seem safe. Also, a crocodile and a dog (maybe a fancy kind of dog, but there were no signs), I don't think this is rainwater in his cage, I think it was all pee. Cause, man, it stunk. But notice the excellent "museum hands" on Hazel. Also, you have a good shot here of the lack of barriers between us and the animals. Sure, there were cages but you could reach right through/over them. We honestly could have touched every animal in the zoo. But, we did not.
And then there was an awesome butterfly house thing. This was the tunnel leading to it. It was very cool. Like a magical little tunnel to fairyland. Or butterflyland*.
And one of Geoff's fancy pictures of a butterfly.
We even got a butterfly to sit on Hazel's head. And it was awesome. She would not hold one in her hand and was hesitant to have it on her head, but the butterfly was patient and we finally got a picture.
Oh, and we went swimming. And I read books in a beach chair in the shade.
And one of Geoff's fancy pictures of a butterfly.
We even got a butterfly to sit on Hazel's head. And it was awesome. She would not hold one in her hand and was hesitant to have it on her head, but the butterfly was patient and we finally got a picture.
Oh, and we went swimming. And I read books in a beach chair in the shade.
*Blogger thinks "fairyland" is a word, but not "butterflyland". Stupid Blogger. I don't think IT is a word!
Labels: animals, Costa Rica, Geoff, hazel, meadow, vacation, zoo
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Costa Rica - Part 1
So, we are back from Costa Rica. It was fabulous. Our hotel was right on the beach. It was also the perfect Wilde family beach. Beach chairs in the shade for me, a long beach (with no pokies) perfect for sand castles for Hazel, and excellent body surfing waves for Geoff. He would have also liked to do some skim boarding but we didn’t take his board and we didn’t see any to purchase. In fact, we didn’t see much of anything to purchase. Costa Rica is pretty remote. Barely any restaurants, almost no stores, one paved road, that kind of thing. I hear other places are more built-up, but not where we were staying (Playa Flamingo). But, the beach was fabulous. Our hotel was fabulous and the pool was, what else, fabulous. The kiddie pool had a thatched roof over it, so even though Hazel spent every waking moment swimming, she didn’t get a sunburn.
Aaaah. The joys of Photoshop. But, I liked this picture and our faces were in the shadows. Now we just look crazy. But not shadowy.
The Costa Rican people (Ticos) were probably the nicest people I have ever met. Without exception everyone was friendly and helpful and nice to my baby. Which is all I ever want on a vacation.
Sunday night: We took the red-eye to Atlanta. Or as I like to say, “The Midnight Plane to Georgia.” The flight went from ‘no-problem’ to ‘our-we-going-to-get-on’ in hours. And it was nerve-wracking, and sucked. But, we made it on. The last three, not sitting together, seats. But, we made it. Hazel slept a little and kicked the lady next to us repeatedly (not so much kicking, just stretching out in her sleep).
Monday-Part 1: We arrived in Atlanta at around 6:00am Atlanta time and then had to hang out until our flight to Costa Rica at 10-ish. I don’t remember the actual time of anything… Hazel did NOT sleep in the airport. Geoff and I both took turns doing the head-bob. It was miserable. However, the Atlanta airport had these fascinating displays of contraband items. Like a polar bear rug, a snake in a bottle, a stool made out of an elephant foot, and, best of all, a narwhal horn. NARWHAL! Seriously, this was the best part of Atlanta. I guess we have never been in that concourse before because I don’t remember seeing the displays before. And then we ate some grits and then got on our plane. And it was blessedly empty. We all got some “sleep” on the plane. The only one who was really invigorated was Hazel. Because she is little and can sleep anywhere.
Monday-Part 2: I think these need separate sections because they are so vastly different. We left ATL and it is a giant airport, with a train. And air conditioning. And 3.5 hours later we arrived in Liberia, Costa Rica. LIR is little. With no air conditioning. We got to walk down the stairs from the plane, no jetway. Then we hit “customs”, there were two lines. The first one the dude just looked at us and stamped our passports. Then the second one, some guy grabbed my suitcases for me (I had two of the suitcases and Hazel) and then cut me in line, had the guy stamp something and then we were through. Seriously, we didn’t talk to anyone. **Remember this story when I get to the return trip in Atlanta** This was the first of many times people would be lovely and nice to us.
Then we got our rental car. We had a Kia Something. 4WD. Diesel! The guy showed Geoff how everything in the car worked. (not that he remembered) And then they gave us directions to our hotel (stay on the only road, basically) and directions to a delicious restaurant. (see picture with Hazel drinking her delicious blackberry smoothie) And we had food. And it was delicious. And we saw cows and a dog. So that was great. And then it started raining. Not a light drizzly but RAIN! Buckets and sheets and cats-and-dogs. And it rained almost until we got to our hotel. And then it let up. And we probably did something like swim or nap or whatever. But I don’t remember. I think it was nap. We were really tired.
I had to take a picture of Geoff's awesome volcano chicken. It was beautiful and delicious.
But now it is late and Hazel is still awake. She spent the evening with Aunt Jenni and Nova while Geoff and I helped move Auntie Michelle. And Geoff is grumpy. Which means I better get off the computer and help.
More later. Maybe tomorrow. We have a lot of pictures.
Labels: Costa Rica, food, Geoff, hazel, meadow, swimming, vacation
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Outfits-a-go-go.
Hazel has been opininated for quite some time, especially when it comes to clothes. Well, now she is getting older, but not necessarily wiser, in the ways of dressing. My point, yesterday as I was getting her dressed she repeatedly said she wanted to wear her "pirate shirt", I was not sure what the pirate shirt was, and so just kept offering her options. Finally, I let her just dig through the drawers and this is the outfit she came up with:
How, in the name of all that is pirate, is this a pirate outfit? Later, she switched to purple shorts, which were also "pirate". Who am I to argue? **When I was uploading pictures she pointed to this one and said, "I'm a pirate!" So, it seems it wasn't a passing thing. She really was a pirate.**
It seems the car on blocks and engine on a table is finally getting to her, because today she come up with this hillbilly outfit. And then she wanted to tussle. Luckily, I am wearing the tussle-repellant (proof?) bracelet today. In Your Face, Tussle Baby!
Not really clothing related, but Monday night (man, my days are all outta wack, wickity-wack), I was in the dungeon studying and everything was quiet upstairs so I went to investigate. Here is the cuteness I encountered:
Not really clothing related, but Monday night (man, my days are all outta wack, wickity-wack), I was in the dungeon studying and everything was quiet upstairs so I went to investigate. Here is the cuteness I encountered:
Reading! Together! On the window seat! Notice how the Hazel is a haze. Ha!
Also, a tea set I bought in Chinatown. I was a little disappointed when I opened the box and there were no space aliens. Number One Tea Set!
Labels: clothes, Geoff, hazel, misc.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Monthly Update? What's that?!?!
I = suck. If only I could be a little more incompetent, people might not expect me to do so much. Of course, you would think from all the grief I get, that I am, in fact, completely incompetent. Or, maybe I would just think that.
Hazel made another trip to visit Baby Alex and co. in Texas. The weather was great and they watched Mickey Mouse and went to the zoo. Maybe other stuff, I don't know. I went to Portland and it was fabulous. I didn't watch Mickey Mouse or go to the zoo.
Hazel also made a "snow penguin". I don't know what made it a penguin. Or why the penguin wore a hat.
Playing in the box with daddy.
Sometimes we make her clean. She had to put on an apron to clean. Her choice, I am fine in her cleaning in whatever. By the time she gets really good at cleaning, she probably won't want to do it anymore.
Hazel likes to play on the computer. Mostly this involves banging on the keyboard and moving the mouse. And YouTube. She loves watching videos. Especially the Fairy Alphabet, from an old Sesame Street. And the Alligator King, and Ladybug Picnic, and so on and so forth.
The Internet. It is hypnotizing.
Notice that Hazel is now in a different outfit. They watch YouTube A LOT.
Cute baby in a hat. I love her in hats.
Hazel likes dogs a lot. Real or stuffed. She fashioned a leash out of her monkey backpack tail to use for her stuffed dog.
Most of all, Hazel loves her Nacho dog. Nacho is Hazel's dog. Triscuit is mommy's dog. Daddy doesn't get a dog. "sorry dad"
Anyway, we haven't uploaded pictures since January 28 and haven't taken a picture since February 10. Yeah, that was like a long time ago.
So, here is a quick catch-up. With a bunch of pictures.
Hazel's verbal skills are improving every day. She talks more frequently and more clearly. It is great. Two is a fun age. I like the crazy talking and the "my turn!" and whatnot. Plus, Hazel is old enough to do stuff but still young enough to be restrained in a stroller. It is a bit tiring for the mama, but maybe that is just because I try and get in at least two hours of studying every night. Oh, and I have a job. And a two-year-old. And a Geoff...
Hazel's verbal skills are improving every day. She talks more frequently and more clearly. It is great. Two is a fun age. I like the crazy talking and the "my turn!" and whatnot. Plus, Hazel is old enough to do stuff but still young enough to be restrained in a stroller. It is a bit tiring for the mama, but maybe that is just because I try and get in at least two hours of studying every night. Oh, and I have a job. And a two-year-old. And a Geoff...
She is also getting better at doing stuff. Like puzzles and reading books. And recognizing letters everywhere. She has also been very into coloring and playing with her doll house. And probably other stuff that I would think of if I wasn't exhausted.
Hazel made another trip to visit Baby Alex and co. in Texas. The weather was great and they watched Mickey Mouse and went to the zoo. Maybe other stuff, I don't know. I went to Portland and it was fabulous. I didn't watch Mickey Mouse or go to the zoo.
Making a snow angel. This was a massive snowstorm on....January.....28th? I just know that I got let out of work early, it took forever to get home and Geoff was laid up on the comp so I had to shovel everything. It has been a bad winter for snow and shoveling.
Hazel also made a "snow penguin". I don't know what made it a penguin. Or why the penguin wore a hat.
Playing in the box with daddy.
Sometimes we make her clean. She had to put on an apron to clean. Her choice, I am fine in her cleaning in whatever. By the time she gets really good at cleaning, she probably won't want to do it anymore.
Hazel likes to play on the computer. Mostly this involves banging on the keyboard and moving the mouse. And YouTube. She loves watching videos. Especially the Fairy Alphabet, from an old Sesame Street. And the Alligator King, and Ladybug Picnic, and so on and so forth.
The Internet. It is hypnotizing.
Notice that Hazel is now in a different outfit. They watch YouTube A LOT.
Cute baby in a hat. I love her in hats.
Hazel likes dogs a lot. Real or stuffed. She fashioned a leash out of her monkey backpack tail to use for her stuffed dog.
Most of all, Hazel loves her Nacho dog. Nacho is Hazel's dog. Triscuit is mommy's dog. Daddy doesn't get a dog. "sorry dad"
And that is the past month or so. Oh, and then our fridge died today. Or probably last night because the food was starting to thaw. But, I called a local appliance store (Famous Appliance) and they were able to deliver us a new fridge within an hour. Woo!!
Labels: dogs, Geoff, hazel, monthly update, snow, YouTube
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Deep Fried New Year's Eve
So, to celebrate the new year, we (Jenni, mostly) decided we should have a Deep Fried New Year's Eve (DFNYE). This is as delicious as it sounds, but deadly.
We had donuts. Covered in sugar.
Also, clockwise, starting from the top. Cream cheese wontons, mini corn dogs, panko covered brie and onion rings.
Also, we deep-fried a Twinkie.
You see how we used whole-wheat flour? It is almost like our batter was "healthy".
We also deep fried: S'mores (which were like 100 times better than the zoo's), ham and swiss rolls, ham and Swiss wontons, pizza rolls, Brussel sprout (only one), my entire kitchen. It is like there is a haze in my house. The brie and the s'mores and the mini corn dogs were the most delicious, in my opinion.
And then we toasted the New Year with mini pigs-in-a-blanket. They were not deep-fried.
Happy New Years!
We had donuts. Covered in sugar.
Also, clockwise, starting from the top. Cream cheese wontons, mini corn dogs, panko covered brie and onion rings.
Also, we deep-fried a Twinkie.
You see how we used whole-wheat flour? It is almost like our batter was "healthy". 
We also deep fried: S'mores (which were like 100 times better than the zoo's), ham and swiss rolls, ham and Swiss wontons, pizza rolls, Brussel sprout (only one), my entire kitchen. It is like there is a haze in my house. The brie and the s'mores and the mini corn dogs were the most delicious, in my opinion.
And then we toasted the New Year with mini pigs-in-a-blanket. They were not deep-fried.
Happy New Years!Labels: fried food, friends, Geoff, Jenni, meadow, new years
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Christmas!
Christmas was fabulous this year. Hazel was far more into it this year. She loved giving presents and getting presents and wrapping presents and unwrapping presents and a sleepover with Auntie Jenni and seeing relatives and going home and all the other joy that comes with Christmas.
Hope everyone had as fabulous a Christmas as we did. Hugs and kisses.
Hazel got these super-cute jammies for Christmas from Shauntil. She got the matching robe (without even planning it!) from her mama. I thought I uploaded a picture of it but apparently I didn't. And since I have to upload in reverse order (stupid blogger, stupider Vista) and the Internet (the ENTIRE Internet!) has crashed twice, requiring two reboots, I am done. Just enjoy the pictures from Christmas.
Our three-generations (and Santa) picture. Apparently, I don't know how to brush my hair.
The normal Christmas Eve chaos. Meadow, Ashton, Anne, Hazel, Dylan and Sadie.
Mama and Hazel opening new jammies (JAMMIES!) on Christmas Eve. Hazel was having a hard time with all the other kids getting presents and none for Hazel. She was fine after opening jammies.
Jenni got a button for Christmas, something about how Engineers are ALWAYS wrong and never trust them, or something, Hazel borrowed it and wrapped it in a napkin and then gave it back to Jenni. We wrapped a lot of presents this season, but apparently not enough for Hazel.
Hazel, Sadie and Dylan. In a rare moment where Hazel is not attacking Dylan.
Hazel and Jenni reading the story of Ping, the duck who gets lost and then captured by a boy with a barrel on his back who later lets him go so his family doesn't eat Ping. I just think it is weird he has a barrel on his back.
Geoff standing guard on Christmas morning. He is the family brute squad.***As a side note: Geoff got a pedometer for Christmas (it was the "IT" gift this year) and now he is jogging in place while I update the blog. Damn you, Internet! I am going to lose in steps today, just like every day.***
Hazel and mama reading Knuffle Bunny Too, her new book from Auntie Jenni. It is much wordier than the original Knuffle Bunny, but Hazel has a longer attention span now, so it works out.
Hope everyone had as fabulous a Christmas as we did. Hugs and kisses.
Hazel got these super-cute jammies for Christmas from Shauntil. She got the matching robe (without even planning it!) from her mama. I thought I uploaded a picture of it but apparently I didn't. And since I have to upload in reverse order (stupid blogger, stupider Vista) and the Internet (the ENTIRE Internet!) has crashed twice, requiring two reboots, I am done. Just enjoy the pictures from Christmas.
Our three-generations (and Santa) picture. Apparently, I don't know how to brush my hair.
The normal Christmas Eve chaos. Meadow, Ashton, Anne, Hazel, Dylan and Sadie.
Mama and Hazel opening new jammies (JAMMIES!) on Christmas Eve. Hazel was having a hard time with all the other kids getting presents and none for Hazel. She was fine after opening jammies.
Jenni got a button for Christmas, something about how Engineers are ALWAYS wrong and never trust them, or something, Hazel borrowed it and wrapped it in a napkin and then gave it back to Jenni. We wrapped a lot of presents this season, but apparently not enough for Hazel.
Hazel, Sadie and Dylan. In a rare moment where Hazel is not attacking Dylan.
Hazel and Jenni reading the story of Ping, the duck who gets lost and then captured by a boy with a barrel on his back who later lets him go so his family doesn't eat Ping. I just think it is weird he has a barrel on his back.
Geoff standing guard on Christmas morning. He is the family brute squad.***As a side note: Geoff got a pedometer for Christmas (it was the "IT" gift this year) and now he is jogging in place while I update the blog. Damn you, Internet! I am going to lose in steps today, just like every day.***
Hazel opening presents from her Auntie Jenni. She was much better this year at opening presents. She even helped other people open their presents.
Hazel and mama reading Knuffle Bunny Too, her new book from Auntie Jenni. It is much wordier than the original Knuffle Bunny, but Hazel has a longer attention span now, so it works out.
Hazel and her daddy on Christmas morning.
Playing the accordion with Grandpa Ray. We tried to get a video of them playing together and Hazel freaked out. Her relationship with Grandpa Ray runs very hot-cold.
Cutie-cute pink shoes from Grandma and Grandpa Caracena. "Hazel Shoes?"
Opening the tent.
Hazel signing 'tent' to show the tent she got from her Grandma and Grandpa Caracena.
Hazel got a dollhouse from her Tutu. She loves it and has spent a good portion of the day playing with it.
Hazel got this fabulous cat from Auntie Michelle. There was a stray running around her 'hood and she took it to the taxidermist. It is actually a puppet, the hand hole is not in the back...
Meadow and Hazel got matching kitty (KITTY!) shoes from Ray and Anne. They are even more awesome in real life. Plus, matching. And kitty.
Hazel loves her tent. And it works perfectly on her bed, we were a little worried because Geoff shortened her bed to fit her mattress, because we don't have a crazy Ikea mattress. But, it worked and it is fabulous.
It was a very, very, very long day.
Playing the accordion with Grandpa Ray. We tried to get a video of them playing together and Hazel freaked out. Her relationship with Grandpa Ray runs very hot-cold.
Cutie-cute pink shoes from Grandma and Grandpa Caracena. "Hazel Shoes?"
Opening the tent.
Hazel signing 'tent' to show the tent she got from her Grandma and Grandpa Caracena.
Hazel got a dollhouse from her Tutu. She loves it and has spent a good portion of the day playing with it.
Hazel got this fabulous cat from Auntie Michelle. There was a stray running around her 'hood and she took it to the taxidermist. It is actually a puppet, the hand hole is not in the back...
Meadow and Hazel got matching kitty (KITTY!) shoes from Ray and Anne. They are even more awesome in real life. Plus, matching. And kitty.
Hazel loves her tent. And it works perfectly on her bed, we were a little worried because Geoff shortened her bed to fit her mattress, because we don't have a crazy Ikea mattress. But, it worked and it is fabulous.
It was a very, very, very long day.
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
Labels: Christmas, cousins, Geoff, Grandma, Grandpa, hazel, Jenni, meadow, signing
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Happy Halloween!
Hazel was a vampire for Halloween. You know, she bites. Although, she only tried to bite once the whole night. She had a great time Trick-or-Treating and was a big hit. She was cute and friendly and wished people "Halloween!" The "happy" was really more just implied, not so much spoken.
And the vampire family at home.
I was a Lazy Eye for work. It was hilarious. to me. No one got my costume. But, I found myself to be quite funny. But way too hot.
I was a Lazy Eye for work. It was hilarious. to me. No one got my costume. But, I found myself to be quite funny. But way too hot.
Labels: Geoff, halloween, hazel, Lazy Eye Costume, meadow, vampire
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
A Brief History of October
A few things notable October events:
- Hazel learned about tents. This involves putting something, especially a blanket, over her head. In fact, Hazel and the daddy are playing in a tent this very moment.
- Hazel learned about "lights on" and how to turn on the dining room light (aided by the fact that our safe is sitting under the light switch and is the perfect height to assist her in turning it on).
- A whole lot of "shut up"s and "don't know"s
- Even more crazy outfits (see exhibit a) - why does she have the carbon monoxide tester? I have no idea. We will probably die in our sleep.
- Not a lot of naps.
- (random story) One night I mentioned to Geoff that I needed to go to the library the next day because I had books due. All Hazel heard was library and she got very excited. She got her stuff ready and started chanting "li-berry, li-berry". When I explained that we were not going until the next day, she lost it. However, when the next day came and we actually went to the library she was ecstatic. A girl after my own library-lovin' heart. Or, really her librarian grandma's heart.
- Oh, and a lot of candy. And it isn't even Halloween yet.
- Fish faces, really silly faces in general.
- Helping daddy rake leaves.
- And, apparently, a lot of ponytails and looking concerned.
Labels: Geoff, hair, hazel, library, Stories
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]