Big Black Dog

Snack Cupboard

2012-01-30T21:08:00.003-07:00

I have suggested to my mom that she move her snack cupboard to higher ground away from the reach of a small child. Today reinforced that idea. From the office I could hear Copper crawl from the family room into the kitchen, open the snack cupboard, and pull out a crinkly bag of junk food. Then my dad called into me to come and see what my daughter had gotten into. She had pulled off the clothespin and was eating Chili Cheese Fritos. The perfect snack for a 14 month old.

Impromptu Napping

2012-01-30T21:06:00.003-07:00

Copper was a super turd this morning. Whiny, needy, whiny. I guess this was why. My little girl was just tired.

Another hobby for Aubrey

2012-01-22T20:55:00.003-07:00

When Aubrey was a kid, he and his Granddad used to fly model airplanes. Like all of Aubrey's hobbies, he was way into it. Like many of his hobbies, he quit doing it, but never lost interest. A few years ago we bought two used planes, but never got around to flying them. Actually Aubrey tried to fly mine, but it didn't want to fly. They've been in the garage ever since. Last weekend Aubrey got his plane out and we went up to the high school track by our house and he flew his plane. It was pretty damn cool. Aubrey said he was super nervous flying it and that it was very sensitive, but to my untrained eye, he did great. Take offs went well, he didn't hit any power lines, and there weren't any crash landings. Melvin also loved the experience, but he was more obsessed with the antennae on the controller. To a dog's eye, it closely resembles fishing pole.

Momma's Little Helper

2012-01-22T20:47:00.003-07:00

Copper absolutely loves to help empty the dishwasher. Is she catches wind that I'm starting to unload, she hauls ass into the kitchen and starts pulling out the dishes and silverware from the bottom rack. When that rack is empty. She helps me push it in and then she climbs onto the door and pulls out the top rack. So far she's only broken 1 drink glass. What can be a bit annoying though is that I generally have a lot of dirty dishes to load as soon as all of the clean ones are out and she doesn' t quite get that the dirty dishes need to stay in the dishwasher.

New Background

2011-12-14T21:51:00.000-07:00

I wanted to put a Christmas background on my blog. This one was perfect!

How a 1 Year Old Eats a Yogurt

2011-12-14T21:38:00.003-07:00

1st you allow her a small amount of yogurt in a small cup.

You provide a spoon, but she chooses not to use it.

It is on the floor being licked by a pet.

Once she has "cleaned out" her small cup, you hand over the rights to the remaining yogurt.

Which is quickly poured onto the table.

You assume that you will have to wipe up a large quantity of organic yogurt off the table.

You are wrong.

The one year old will generously coat her hand with the yogurt

and proceed to lick her fingers.

Smack!

Now, not only are her clothes covered in yogurt, but so are yours.

At least she continues to lick her fingers.

Your husband is standing across the kitchen from the scene,

shaking his head from side to side.

He tells you that he is not cleaning up that mess.

You're fine with that because look at how much fun she just had eating her yogurt.

Taking Daddy to the Zoo

2011-11-30T21:10:00.003-07:00

Copper and I took her Daddy to the zoo for the 1st time on Sunday morning. The weather was great and it was a nice quiet day at the zoo. This time nobody got attached by hostile monkeys.

Copper seemed to enjoy the reptile and amphibian house the most.

She also liked hanging with the non-hostile monkey while he (or she, I'm not sure) played with their little one.

The zoo was an excellent way to end the long Thanksgiving weekend.

Cord Control

2011-11-30T21:01:00.003-07:00

Copper has taken it upon herself to be in charge of the cord while I vacuum. Just to be clear, I didn't drape it over her shoulders. She did.

Teaching Daddy how to Read

2011-11-25T14:11:00.001-07:00

Damn it Copper

2011-11-20T18:02:00.002-07:00

If I let her sit pulled up to the table she pushes herself back with her hands until she can get her feet on the edge of the table and then pushes herself ALL the way back with her feet. Apparently falling against the wall is not scary. It's fun.

Spaghetti Face

2011-11-20T17:54:00.003-07:00

If you can look past my child's ridiculous tongue, you'll see that she has spaghetti covering 90% of her head. It's one of her favorite meals and she enjoys feeding herself. Since it takes her 45 minutes to eat a small amount of food, the least she can do is keep us entertained.

Dog beds are for doggies.

2011-11-20T17:50:00.001-07:00

Not babies.

Quote of the Day

2011-11-09T19:48:00.001-07:00

"I can feel my wine. It feels good."

-Me

Happy Halloween

2011-11-01T14:58:00.004-06:00

Last night we went over to Lucy's house to go trick or treating to celebrate Copper's first Halloween. Lucy totally rocked out the ET costume and Copper looked pretty darn cute in her elephant costume. Which I can proudly say she left on the whole time. Fortunately for all the adults, Lucy is not a big fan of candy, so we all scored big time. Thanks for the sweets, ET!

Lucy wasn't sure if she wanted to wear the ET mask, so Lisa painted her face just in case.

Holy cute baby elephant!

Apparently a 1 year old can not see past face paint. This look was plastered on Copper's face every time she stole a glance at Lucy. She never cried, just made this weird whimpering sound and kept a steady death grip on me (Lisa has it on video). She was better when Lucy had her mask on. When I showed Copper the pictures of Lucy on the computer this morning she made the same face again. When she saw Lucy this morning she was still a little wigged out, but quickly realized that her cousin was back to normal again.

Candy!

Yes, that is a full size bag on Peanut M&Ms.

Lucy scored 2 of those and a full size 3 Musketeers.

I do not recall EVER getting a full size candy bar in the many years that I went trick or treating. I think we can thank Costco for that.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween!

New Hiking Buddy?

2011-11-01T14:38:00.002-06:00

If you know Aubrey at all, then you know that his body is pretty damn beat up. About a week and a half ago he finally went in for knee surgery. He had an MRI earlier this year because his right knee was causing him more pain that he preferred to tolerate. Turns out his ACL was gone, he had a nastly tear in his miniscus and something else was all messed up too (I can't remember what it was though). So to finish off his deductible he had surgery to get fixed back up. Surgery seems to have went well and Aubrey's been gimping around. He's been off work since Oct 21 and isn't quite sure when he can go back. Hopefully sooner than later. Our couch is really taking a beating from his constant presence. The machine he in in the pic is a CPM machine (Constant something Motion). Since two days after his surgery he's been spending close to 8 hours a day in it. He had a follow-up with the doc yeststerday and now he's done with the machine, but will be starting physical therapy this Friday. That will be twice a week for about 12 weeks. He wears a leg brace whenever he is walking since he can put pressure on his knee, but can't have it bent at the same time. Hopefully everything heals well because I'm really looking forward to being able to go hiking with my man again.

Nap Time

2011-10-24T10:37:00.002-06:00

Two days in a row, Copper had no interest in napping when I wanted her to nap. So she hung out with Paca until she just couldn't keep her eyes open anymore.

The second day, after Copper sustained an injury under Paca's care, Grandma rocked her to sleep.

3x3x365

2011-09-29T13:28:00.003-06:00

Just in case you haven't noticed the blog 3x3x365 that I have listed in my blog list, you really should take a look at it. "Richmond, VA" is Stacy's sister, Amy (for those that know Stacy). The blog is three women, in three states that each contribute a photo and post everyday for a year (although I hope that they never quit). If you ever get tired of looking at pictures of Copper on my blog and would like to read something a little more meaningful, then you should read their blog. My Aunt Diane told me that she noticed the blog in my list and checked it out and now reads it everyday. It truly is an amazing, life changing type of blog. These women can write! It is a guarantee that you will feel some kind of emotion very strongly each day. Yesterday's post from Richmond, VA is very powerful and you wouldn't have guessed it from the picture of the bottle of Downy. I would also suggest reading the second comment by "Three a Day" (Amy) on that post. Have a tissue ready.

Holy Mutant Catergpillar

2011-09-28T17:15:00.003-06:00

I came across this little guy at the cemetery while out on a walk. I used the tennis ball that was conveniently stored in the stroller for a size reference.

Mariachi Band

2011-09-28T17:12:00.002-06:00

Copper got serenaded the other night at a Mexican restaurant by a mariachi band. I was a bit concerned that she may have one of those weird baby freak outs, but she took it quite well and was very interested.

It's hard being a cat without teeth

2011-09-28T17:04:00.002-06:00

We had our very first mouse in the house a couple weeks ago. Flea tracked it down and cornered it and in one of its numerous attempts to escape, Flea finally got a hold of the poor thing. She couldn't hold on to it for very long though because she doesn't have any teeth. The mouse would fall out of Flea's mouth each time she caught it and instead of being covered in blood as your typical mouse would be, it just got progressively more wet with slobber. Despite Aubrey's faith in Flea that she would be able to kill it with her claws, it's just not the natural way for a cat to kill. After Flea had her fun, Aubrey put an end to the little guys life with the blunt side of a shovel.

Cutest Baby in the World

2011-09-09T14:33:00.002-06:00

Coloring Cousins

2011-09-09T14:31:00.002-06:00

"Supervised" Play

2011-08-23T22:38:00.003-06:00

There always a certain look to Copper after she's hung out with her Grandpa for any period of time.

Grandma brought Copper out to see me after hanging out with Grandpa and asked me to guess what was on her face. I guessed chocolate. I was right.

So strong

2011-08-23T22:32:00.002-06:00

One afternoon while eating tortilla chips, Copper kept clawing at my chip bag and diminishing my snacking experience. So I grabbed a full bag of Cheerios out of the cupboard for her to play with. The kiddo is stronger than she looks. She ripped the middle of the bag wide open and out came the Cheerios.

Kellie's New Nursery

2011-08-23T22:18:00.002-06:00

There are a lot of reasons why I love my friend Kellie. One of those is that she lets me paint every room in her house. It's not just that I do the actual labor, but I always get a say in what gets done. A few years ago I "helped" her paint her daughter Evelyn's room (prior to Evelyn being born and knowing that Evelyn would be a girl) and now with a new baby on the way I painted her new nursery. For some reason it took us forever to make a final decision on colors and design, but I absolutely LOVE how it turned out. Last weekend a bunch of the girls got together and helped Kellie get the nursery set up (I don't have any pics of the final product) and it looks amazing. Next room...the kids' bathroom.

Zoo Day

2011-08-22T13:09:00.005-06:00

Fun zoo fact: Elephant's have 6 sets of teeth that get wore down and replaced as they grow older. Once that 6th set is wore out, the elephant will starve to death.

This is the psycho monkey that tried to attack and maul Lucy through the glass.

It was having some kind of altercation with it's zoo mate and then fixated on Lucy's cute little face that was pressed to the glass. It lunged at the glass and scared the crap out of Lucy and then growled at her for an unnecessarily long time. It made Lucy cry. Bad zoo monkey.

Lucy's quite proficient with a map.

Grandma, Paca, Lucy, Copper, and I went to the zoo a couple weeks ago. Lucy started full time school last week and we wanted to do something fun before her days of hanging out with us at the office were finished. It was hot, but the girls rocked it out. Copper was surprisingly perceptive. She found the animals and watched them. I keep underestimating my child's genius.

Dinner

2011-08-17T19:43:00.000-06:00

Refried beans mixed with drool kind of looks like poop.

Quotes of the Day

2011-08-17T13:16:00.003-06:00

"That's not your mom. That's Grandma."

-Lucy to Derek

"My butt's behind my bagina."

-Lucy

Copper's 1st 14er

2011-08-10T22:07:00.002-06:00

Aubrey's sister and her family were in town for a long weekend and we took them to Mt Evans. I don't have any pictures of them on the mountain, but here are some shots of us. Just shy of 9 months, Copper "climbed" her first 14er. Well we drove to 14,130' and then I carried her up the short hike to the top at 14,264'. It's kind of cheating to complete her first 14er this way, but at 9 months it's just makes sense. I haven't been up to Mt Evans in about 15 years. I remember my last trip when Lia was about 6 or so (she's now 21) and giving her a piggy back ride up a hill by the lake. I had forgotten how beautiful it is and what a great drive it has to the top. It was also Aubrey's 1st time to Mt Evans. It makes me want to want to do a real hike up a big peak. The views are somehow that much more spectacular when you have to work for them.

Uncle Derek's Multi Tasking

2011-08-10T22:05:00.002-06:00

We all scream for ice cream!

2011-07-31T22:17:00.003-06:00

Copper LOVES ice cream! We generally give her little bites with a spoon, but I made ice cream cones tonight and let her try it. The first time I put it up to her mouth she opened wide and dug right in. She couldn't get enough.

Quote of the Day

2011-07-28T10:06:00.001-06:00

Derek: "Eat you spaghetti, Lucy."
Lucy: "Eat yours, Daddy."

Kids are becoming smart asses earlier and earlier these days.

Camping Trip #2

2011-07-22T21:41:00.004-06:00

Last weekend we went on a camping trip with a bunch of people that Aubrey works with. It was a large-bonfire, heavy-drinking, loud-music-past-midnight kind of weekend, but it still felt good to get away. We went up near Red Feather Lakes in Northern Colorado by Fort Collins. The area was really pretty and we camped round-up style at a roadside no fee area. The weather was nice with minimal rain. We played Corn Hole, tossed a football (I haven't done that in over 10 years), went fishing (again with no success), and split wood that one of the guys had cut down. There's a lot of beetle kill in the mountains so rules are different about cutting down trees. Aubrey was a master at splitting wood. He doesn't have that Paul Bunyan physique, but his arms are so damn long that the leverage he manages swinging a sledge hammer put the other big boys to shame. I split one log with much success. I had some practice swinging an ax in our yard removing tree roots, so it felt pretty good showing off my skills to the boys. I did Aubrey proud. Copper rocked out her second camping trip. Even slept through the horrendous, way too loud music that blared past 1am on Saturday night. She even let other people hold her. Have I ever mentioned that my kid rocks? It was a fun weekend and even though it was not our ideal way of camping, we look forward to going again with the crew.

Swim Day

2011-07-22T21:24:00.004-06:00

We had a swim day at the office on Monday. Every business should have a pool. It was fun playing with the girls. I was holding Copper for a little while in the water and Lucy asked me to put her back in her chair. It's funny watching Lucy interact with Copper. Sometimes she's really sweet with her and other times Copper is more of an inconvenience Lucy would like placed out of sight and sound. A common phrase that we use whenever Copper is being loud is, "She's hurting my ears." That of course is compliments of Lucy. On swim day, Lucy wanted my attention so eventually Grandma came out and hung out with Copper in her float while Lucy and I played. This summer Lucy is just tall enough to be stand in the shallow end on her tippy toes. She thinks that's pretty cool.

This was Lucy's float from when she was "little" and she never really cared for it. Now she likes it because Copper was sitting in it. Lucy wants everything that Copper plays with.

This pic isn't immediately after dunking my kid. She's recovered a bit. I did swim lessons with Lucy when she was a little over 1 1/2 and learned a few tricks of the trade. Now I get to teach them to Copper. I don't recall ever seeing a baby happy after going under the water.

Copper REALLY likes the inflatable jet ski. So much that she...

...totally passed out.

Day with Lucy (A bit belated)

2011-07-22T21:12:00.003-06:00

A couple weeks ago we had Lucy for the day. So naturally we headed to the playground. Here's a few shots of the girls.

;)

That's an awfully big squirrel

2011-07-14T11:38:00.003-06:00

While running at the cemetary yeterday, I saw out of the corner of my eye Melvin take off running. He chases squirrels all the time, but they ususally quickly run up a tree and then Melvin moves on. This time he was running a ways through the headstones so I glanced back and thought, "That's an awfully big squirrel." This thought came to me in a fraction of a second before I realized that he was chasing a coyote. Thankfully Melvin is a pretty good listener so when I yelled his name, he immediately stopped the chase and came back to me. This isn't the first time he's done this either. Mel went after a rather large coyote while out on a walk by our house one evening a few weeks ago. We've been stalked by coyotes and Mel almost got attacked by one while playing fetch a few years ago. The thing got about 5 feet from him before we saw what was happening and started yelling and chasing it. Aubrey pegged it with a rock as it ran away. As much as I'd rather coyotes not stalking us as we walk, it does add an element of excitement to our outings.

My new favorite pic

2011-07-11T22:34:00.001-06:00

Get out of the water now!

2011-07-11T22:05:00.002-06:00

We went to Bear Creek Lake (I believe that's what it's called) with Lisa and Lucy last Wednesday. Lisa wanted to get an early start to beat the projected storms. Instead we got there late just in time for the monster thunder cloud to unleash it's fury on us. We did get some quality time in, although not much of it was in the sun, before the crazy storm hit.

Seeking shelter while the simultaneous lightning/thunder struck all around us. Complete with hail.
It was still a summer day, so we got ice cream afterwards anyways. Lick and turn (Lucy learned how to eat an ice cream cone so it wouldn't drip all over. See Lisa's Blog).

July 4th - Copper's 1st Camping Trip

2011-07-11T21:41:00.001-06:00

We took Copper on her first camping trip over the July 4th weekend. We stayed in a campground near Jefferson Lake about 1.5 hours outside of Denver. She totally rocked it out. Probably because she had our full attention the entire time. Naps went well, nighttime went well (after we kicked Aubrey out of the bed so that Copper, Melvin, and I had more room), activities went well; it all went well. It was a busy campground and the lake was even more busy. It was kind of funny when we first pulled in. There were kids on bikes everywhere. My first thought was, "All these damn noisy kids everywhere. I wish they weren't around." Then I remembered that I have a kid and that within a couple years she will be terrorizing campgrounds on her bike. I had a more accepting attitude after that realization.

We did a 2.5 hour hike on Saturday and got to try out our new backpack. She threw a fit for about a minute when I first put her in, but as soon as I started walking around she totally loved it. For a bit of the hike we were along a fast moving river and Copper kept her eyes glued to it. It felt good to get her out of the city and I look forward to doing more hikes with her this summer. Since she is a kid, she had no problem falling asleep in the pack. How she managed to stay sleeping while folded in half in the pack is beyond me.

Aubrey monopolized my new hammock for most of the weekend. But I managed to get some quality time in it during one of Copper's naps. Hammocks are sooooo relaxing. I need to find a way to rig it up in my backyard.

We stayed up by Jefferson Lake because we heard that it has great fishing. Apparently everyone else heard the same thing because the lake (shore) was packed. We had to hike a ways around the lake to get a spot and then Aubrey kept getting snags and he finally quit after a couple hours. The hike was a bit treacherous with a 8 month old on my back, otherwise it would have been more fun. When we did find a spot the bugs were pretty bad and I never got to fish because I had to sit with Copper the whole time. It wasn't the best location for fishing with a little one. We have some ideas for next time, but it may have to be at a different lake.

We're all ready for our next trip with the Bug.

Sunday Morning

2011-07-06T21:30:00.002-06:00

This was 2 weeks ago, but I didn't get around to posting it then.

This was a great start to a Sunday. I finally convinced Aubrey that we should ride our bikes to Einstein Bagel for breakfast instead of driving. It's a whopping 2 miles away. Maybe I didn't so much convince him to go as I just got our bikes out and brought up his shoes and made him go. I love riding my bike to shopping, restaurants, etc. Aubrey, not so much. The compromise: we never ride our bikes. That just needs to stop. I digress. Anyways, this was also Copper's fist Burley ride! She loved it! If I didn't feel the need to bring Melvin with me everyday to work, Copper would have had her first ride a long time ago. I would love to ride my bike to work everyday as I did in my pre-Melvin days (and attempted to do with Melvin, but he eventually refused to get in the Burley). I'm definitely looking forward to many more rides with the Bug.

Melvin and Flea also had an enjoyable Sunday morning. We all love sitting out front on the deck in the summertime. I want everyday to be this relaxing.

And yes, Copper went to the restaurant in her PJs. She's a baby. She can do that.

Shades

2011-07-06T21:26:00.002-06:00

I should have bought these even though they were too big because they are way too freakin' cool. Aubrey and I could have spent an hour putting sunglasses on Copper and laughed the "ahh'd" the whole time.

Miss Billie

2011-06-29T21:54:00.002-06:00

Billie

1991 - 2011

Quote of the Day

2011-06-29T21:53:00.001-06:00

Lucy: "Grandma, I need help."

Sarah: "What do you need, Lucy?"

Lucy: "I wasn't talking to you, Sarah. I was talking to Grandma."

Oops

2011-06-18T16:16:00.002-06:00

I was standing in the kitchen and I could smell this burning odor. I was doing laundry in the basement, but when I went downstairs, it didn't smell. The swamp cooler was running, but when I went into the living room, it didn't smell in there either. The smell was not from outside, not from the oven...then I finally realized it was from the dishwasher. I opened the door just a bit to let the steam out and when I opened it all the way to inspect, this is what I found. The one time I put a Nalgene bottle on the bottom rack because there wasn't room on the top, the lid managed to work it's way down through the rack, get burned off of it's strap and then melt onto the heating element. The burned plastic smell has officially given me a headache. Time to work outside.

Where's Copper?

2011-06-18T16:14:00.000-06:00

Paternity Test

2011-06-14T14:31:00.002-06:00

I was so sure that Aubrey was the father.

Maybe I shouldn't have had that one night stand with Gene Simmons.

Quote of the Day

2011-06-13T14:01:00.002-06:00

This note was waiting for me at the office today. My mom had Lucy all weekend and this is an exchange between them.

Lucy: "Grandma, can you help me?" (Needed help pulling up her pants)
Grandma: "Yes I can Lucy."
Lucy: "Big girls can't so this, but old grandmas can."

Damn It, Flea

2011-06-07T23:12:00.003-06:00

Oh well. It's not like we don't deal with massive amounts of dog and cat hair every day at our house. A little on the bath towels won't kill us.

Kickin' It

2011-06-07T22:47:00.003-06:00

I'm not the only one that holds Copper way too much. Her Grandpa spends a couple hours a day holding and playing with her. He crossed her legs for her and she didn't seem to mind because they stayed that way.

Supper Club #1

2011-06-07T22:35:00.002-06:00

Lisa started a supper club and last Saturday was the first event. Lisa and Derek hosted it with a "Belated Derby Party" theme. Ladies were required to wear hats and all of the food was very Kentucky and very delightful. Lisa set the bar kind of high for supper club and it was a great kick off to a hopefully long lasting group. Copper (so far) is the only little one allowed since she's a booby baby. In following the rules I also made her a hat. We had a great time and I look forward to Supper Club #2 at Lynn and Chris's (Lisa's sister and brother in law).

Hammin' it up for the camera

2011-05-31T22:16:00.003-06:00

She was looking totally normal until I got out the camera and then she gave me the biggest silliest grin ever.

Lucy Lu in Iowa

2011-05-29T12:38:00.003-06:00

I just wanted to give a little shout out to Lucy Lu. Now that Copper's around I don't do as many post about Lucy. Believe me, she gives ample opportunity to capture some amazing pics and hilarious quotes. Here's some highlight photos of Lucy from our trip to Iowa. Love you Monkey.

Iowa

2011-05-25T21:42:00.003-06:00

Lisa, Lucy, Copper, and I headed back to Iowa on May 17th to visit all of the family. Copper got to finally meet her Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Meeves and her Great Great Grandma Meeves. She also got to meet a lot of her Great Aunts and Uncles and 1st Cousins Twice removed (my aunts and uncles and cousins) along with seeing a few familiar faces. We had a great time and the girls traveled surprisingly well. We took a lot of pictures, but here are a few of the must have pics.

The girls with Great Grandma and Grandpa Strong.

At the Des Moines Farmer's Market with Grandma, a couple Aunts, and a few cousins.

The girls with Great Grandma and Grandpa Meeves.

With their Great Great Grandma.

What is wrong with this note?

2011-05-10T21:34:00.001-06:00

My dad wrote me this note to remind me to bring back his fishing pole. Can you tell me what is wrong with it?

Dusk at the Golf Course

2011-05-08T22:15:00.000-06:00

Benefit of the Doubt

2011-05-05T21:53:00.002-06:00

While scrambling to get my house ready for a dinner party for my family 2 nights ago, I was interrupted by my doorbell. I approached the door with a bad attitude ready to turn the guy away, but he sprayed the glass on my front door before I barely even had it open and said about 10 good one-liners in fast succession. He was dressed in a thin white dress shirt, old leather belt with a few too many holes, and drab dress pants. He was extremely friendly and pretty funny when I able to follow his fast talking monologue. He engaged me by asking questions that he knew I could only provide answers to that supported his cause and after about 15 minutes and him cleaning my front house window, driveway, and front door threshold, I handed him over $40 for a bottle of cleaner. I always buy products that kids are selling for fundraisers (I was once that kid) and I always turn away adults trying to sell me stuff or get me to vote for their favorite candidate. (I have donated money and signed petitions though.) I don't know what came over me to purchase a $40 bottle of cleaner. It's not that the guy was attractive and I was swayed by his good looks or that I necessarily felt like his spiel was created especially for me. I appreciated the effort that he made to be personal, funny, and very original. Did I need cleaner? Nope. Just bought a huge bottle of Green Works cleaner at Costco and still have 3 bottles of Scrubbin' Bubbles waiting for me in a cabinet. Did I feel confident that this cleaner was the bomb diggity? Nope. There was a pretty good chunk of me that felt certain I was being scammed. But I bought it anyway. Maybe this guy was an ex-military who fell on his face (his words), formerly homeless, trying to get his life back in order legit man. Who knows. I won't even give a homeless man a dollar. But for some reason I decided to give this man the benefit of the doubt and buy a product I could not financially rationalize or even need.

Evening Stroll

2011-05-05T21:39:00.004-06:00

I took Melvin and Copper out for a walk the other evening about 7:15. About half way through the walk I checked on the kiddo and she was out. Still had a death grip on her toys though. When we got back I was able to get her out of the stroller and take her coat off without her ever waking up. She eventually woke up enough to eat and then went night night in her bed. It was a very nice evening.

Mini Me

2011-04-28T22:07:00.003-06:00

Copper's first outfit of the day bore no resemblance to mine. After a major blowout prior to leaving for work, I somehow managed to dress Copper as my Mini Me. You can't see it in the picture, but I have striped socks on too.

Lunch time

2011-04-28T22:06:00.000-06:00

Our new center piece. Special paper bag crown hat and all.

Looks cool, but...

2011-04-23T14:02:00.002-06:00

Our Mac computer died. Again. Good thing we have our ancient Toshiba laptop as a trusty backup. In the meantime, I may not be getting any photos posted until it gets fixed. Sorry. Blame Apple.

Tasty

2011-04-17T22:25:00.000-06:00

Enjoying a piece of licorice with dad.

Helmet Bag are for Helmets

2011-04-17T22:24:00.001-06:00

Not kitties.

Sunlight

2011-04-12T22:26:00.002-06:00

I said, changing pads are for babies

2011-04-07T22:24:00.002-06:00

Not kitties.

Flea was still there one and a half hours later when I put Copper to bed. I had to carry her out of the room. Last night I accidentally locked Flea in Copper's room and realized it about 10:50pm when I heard noises in the monitor, but Copper wasn't moving. Flea loves the nursery.

Vroom Vroom

2011-04-06T22:05:00.002-06:00

Copper's first ride. She'll be doing wheelies in no time.

Changing pads are for babies.

2011-04-06T22:03:00.001-06:00

Not kitties.

Jumper Time

2011-03-30T21:43:00.002-06:00

We got Lucy's jumper out about a week ago for Copper to try and she took right to it. She can even touch! I remember putting phone books under it for Lucy. She doesn't really jump in it yet, but she loves playing with all the toys and can even turn her seat. This has since become our dinner time savior. We can now eat our dinner without having to hold and entertain her. She gets all fussy as soon as she smells our dinner and I often have to hold her while I eat. Not anymore.

Standing Guard

2011-03-30T21:40:00.001-06:00

Flea loves Copper's new rug. It's orange like her.

Flower Girls

2011-03-27T12:33:00.002-06:00

Copper 4 1/2 months

Lucy @ 11 months

It's hard to resist putting flower headbands on babies.

No Begging

2011-03-27T10:04:00.000-06:00

Do dogs behave this way if they've never been given handouts?

Bird Hat

2011-03-22T21:54:00.000-06:00

Obliques

2011-03-17T22:20:00.001-06:00

She was reaching for her toy on the table, but couldn't sit back up again. Is it bad that I went and got the camera to snap a shot instead of helping her up?

Boppys are for babies

2011-03-15T22:20:00.001-06:00

Not kitties.

Cancer...but not the bad kind

2011-03-07T21:35:00.004-07:00

We've only had to take Flea to the vet for 2 different issues in the 7 years that we've had her. And it's been 7 years since she's had to see the vet. Mel seems to go to the vet all the time for various injuries and fat issues. When Flea goes, she goes big. A couple weeks ago Flea had an accident on the floor and then dripped about 20 little drops of blood all over the house. It was the second time she's done this in about 4 months. Flea never has accidents and the blood was not from an injury. It came out of her butt. I'm no vet, but that just didn't seem right. The day before I called the vet to get her in about the butt issue I was petting her and noticed a lump on her chest. I assumed it was just some kind of fatty lump that older pets always seem to get. After the vet finished sticking her finger in Flea's butt and cleaning out some very solid anal glands, I told her about the lump. Quick digression...the blood was probably just from some hard stools that caused some small tears in the last 2 inches on her bung hole. Back to the lump. The vet felt the lump and told me that it was her mammary gland and that about 50% of the time an enlarged mammary gland is cancer. She suggested we do blood work and schedule her for a chest x-ray and biopsy. The blood work came back looking really good. Last Wednesday Flea went in for her x-ray, which came back clean, and biopsy. The x-ray was performed to see that if it is cancer and if it had spread. They removed the lump and sent it in for biopsy. The vet explained that the lump definitely had mammary tissue in it, but that there wasn't much of a blood supply going to it, which is a good thing. On Saturday morning the vet had the results back and Flea's lump is cancerous, but it's the mildest form. They had removed the whole mass and most likely that's all that is needed. The vet is expecting a call from an oncologist to get their expert opinion on it, but so far it's looking good for Flea. She's got a pretty good little incision, but has been doing awesome. You'd never even know she had surgery from the way she acts. I may need to get her one of those t-shirts that says "survivor" on it.

Yo Gabba Gabba

2011-03-07T21:33:00.003-07:00

Good thing Copper had these great flower pants to go with her Yo Gabba Gabba shirt she got from Aunt Lisa and Uncle Derek.

The Girls

2011-03-07T10:46:00.002-07:00

Both are modeling Copper's favorite hold. Little harder position for a 3 year old.

Big Fat Dog

2011-02-24T21:01:00.004-07:00

Mel hiding from the vet.

Mel went to the vet the other day for his yearly check up and to have his T4 (thyroid) tested. He was put on traditional medication last August and I haven't seen a reduction in his weight. The very first time he was put on the meds his dose was .8 which caused him to act really weird and quit eating after 3 days. I then put him on a holistic medication which helped him initially lose 3 pounds, but then gain 10 pounds within a year. In August he weighed 87lbs and was put back on a traditional medication with a dose of .2. When we first found out that he had a thyroid problem he weighed 80lbs. He now weighs a staggering 97.6 pounds!! The vet upped his meds to .3 and we'll see what happens over the next 2 months. His reaction to the medication was so strong before that the vet is keeping his dose low to try and avoid any more adverse reactions. I don't think that Aubrey can keep saying that he's just big boned. Unless his bones are still growing at a very rapid rate, I would have to say that he's just plain fat.

Quote of the Day

2011-02-16T15:14:00.002-07:00

"You don't look like a 10. You look like a 6."

-GAP store clerk (now my best friend)

New Bouncer

2011-02-16T15:11:00.003-07:00

Grandma got Copper a doorway bouncer for the office. It says 4 months +, but we put her in it anyways. She doesn't quite get the bouncing part of it yet, but she does like the way it taste.

Thanks Great Grandma Donna!

2011-02-16T15:08:00.002-07:00

Copper got a Valentine's Day bear from Great Grandma Donna and she loves it! She's been working on grabbing it with her hands and when she tipped over onto it she didn't even fuss. She just lied there content as could be.

Big Crib

2011-02-09T22:18:00.003-07:00

Copper slept in her big crib in her own room for the first time two days ago. Does it still count if it was only for a nap and she was in her car seat from the ride home from work?

Meow

2011-02-01T15:42:00.002-07:00

Sparkle Converse

2011-02-01T15:32:00.002-07:00

I've learned that no matter how cute baby shoes are, it's very rare that they will actually wear them. Since it was below zero today when we left for work I figured a little extra protection for her feet would be good. The results: ADORABLE!

Elephant Mirror

2011-01-24T22:11:00.003-07:00

Yes, I am one of those people with crazy baby gear hanging in their car. But she likes it and I can now see her face when she's screaming at me while I'm trying to drive.

The 4 Year Shelving Project

2011-01-24T21:46:00.004-07:00

Four years ago Aubrey and I decided to make his Grandparents a set of shelves to hold his Grandma's bank collection. She was using a pretty ghetto looking metal shelf and had expressed an interest in getting something different. We enjoy woodworking and had the tools so it made sense to do something ourselves. Before Christmas of 2007 we went out and bought a bunch of oak to make floating shelves. The problem with floating shelves is that you need some beefy hardware to hang them. We couldn't find that hardware anywhere to purchase so we changed up the method of hanging them. As many of our lofty projects go, we waited till the last minute and didn't get them made in time for Christmas. So we made an IOU on paper and presented them with that with intentions of finishing the shelves within the next couple months. Well...next Christmas rolled around and we still didn't have anything made. We once again brainstormed some ideas and came up with a plan. Aubrey got to work on it , but once again didn't finish in time. So we packaged up a few pieces of the cut wood and typed up some directions on how they could finish the shelves on their own. That didn't really fly with them so we again set out with the goal of finishing them within a couple months. The next Christmas rolled around and we still didn't have anything made. For some reason a solid design plan was not coming to us. We toyed with the idea of writing a letter that explained how all of the bad things going on in the world prevented us from working on the shelves, but we didn't even manage to get that finished. So they got nothing. This year, despite having a baby, Aubrey was determined to finish the damn shelf project. We went full circle and decided to make our original floating shelf plan since we couldn't come up with anything else that we liked. Aubrey can weld so her decided to fabricate his own brackets. Three days before heading back to Texas Aubrey got to work...and of course didn't finish. He managed to get them constructed, but didn't get started on staining or a do the detail work that he wanted. He packed up all his tools and we presented them with an unfinished shelf. But this year was different. Aubrey set up shop in their garage and finished the shelves. Ta da!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-17T22:02:00.003-07:00

We spent New Year's with Rian and Josh. Since Copper had never been to sleep before midnight in her life, she got to stay up and celebrate with us. The evening started out with a game of Killer Bunnies and ended with Settlers. I finally get my board game fix when we go to Texas since Rian and Josh love games as much, if not more than, me.

First photo of 2011!

Looks like someone had a little too much to drink.

Pics of Copper with Aubrey's Family

2011-01-17T21:45:00.002-07:00

When Kai was born, Rian was pretty adamant about getting a picture of him with all of his family members. Now that I have Copper, I also wanted to get shots of her with her Texas family. I was just double checking in my head if I got everyone, I realized that we missed a shot of her with Uncle Dougie. There is a professional 5 generation photo that was taken and Dougie's in that, so I guess that we actually got it covered.

Copper with Aunt Rian

Copper with Daddy, Great Grandma Jaci and Great Granddad Phil.

(Note: Copper has Phil's last name. It skipped a couple generations, but his name now lives on.)

Copper with Grandma Chris and Great Great Grandma Jewel

Being a turd as usual.

Copper with Grandma Jaci

Jaci would hold Copper until she made the slightest sign of distress and then immediately pass her off. I do the exact same thing when I hold other people's babies.

Copper with Grandma Chris

Christmas in Amarillo

2011-01-16T18:31:00.006-07:00

Copper Jo's 1st Christmas!!

This year we spent two weeks in Amarillo with Aubrey's family. Since Aubrey was still off from work, we didn't have to deal with trying to take time off. Usually we only get back for long weekends. It was a very nice and relaxing trip. Copper did unexpectedly well on the 6.5 hour drive. The amount of baby stuff that we had to bring down was staggering. Between gifts and baby gear, the entire back end of our truck was full.

Our nephew Kai was in charge of handing out gifts this year. He did a very good job and looked super cute at the same time.

I'm pretty sure that my Chex Mix is about 90% of Phil's diet when I bring it back at Christmas every year. So this year we gave him his very own stash for when the community bowls runs out.

Um Yeah, Copper slept through the entire gift exchange. This will probably be the only year in her entire life that this will happen. I guess opening gifts just isn't that exciting for a 1 and a half month old.

Thanks to the Bjorholms, Copper had a totally cheesy Christmas outfit to wear this year.

The annual "Picture From Above."

Hats

2011-01-16T18:20:00.001-07:00

Since Copper was born at the beginning of winter, she pretty much has to wear a hat every time she goes outside. Unfortunately baby hats do not stay on baby heads very well. Usually by the time we reach the car, she has her hat off the top of her head and onto her face.

Managing Two Blogs

2011-01-13T10:06:00.003-07:00

As you've noticed, the moment that Copper was born I have completely ignored this blog. Our lives are all about Copper now. It seemed odd to have two separate blogs now that she is here. Aubrey convinced me to keep the blogs separate and continue to do both. So my plan is to keep the baby blog about our thoughts and experiences as they directly relate to parenting. This blog will be about the family, as it always has been. Only cuter.

Diaper Bags are for Babies

2010-12-14T21:04:00.004-07:00

Not kitties.

Strollers are for babies

2010-11-04T18:55:00.001-06:00

Not kitties.

If I were 39 weeks pregnant on Halloween, I'd be a...

2010-11-01T20:43:00.002-06:00

...woman at 39 weeks with an alien head coming out of her stomach.

It kind of sucks that we didn't take advantage of our situation. I can totally envision the outfit. Normal clothes, but the shirt will be ripped down the middle of the stomach with an alien head coming out of it. There would be blood too. The alien could also be a monster. There are options.

Master Bedroom

2010-10-26T22:07:00.003-06:00

Just wanted to let you know that Aubrey and I will be sleeping in our new master bedroom for the first time tonight. We would like to give many, many thanks to my mom for helping move furniture into the basement and for making our upstairs hardwoods the cleanest, shiniest floors our home has ever seen. Thanks Mom!!

Sofa Fiasco

2010-10-18T18:05:00.004-06:00

Aubrey and I ordered a sofa a few months ago for the basement. We knew that we would need a sectional so that the parts would be smaller and easier to get down the stairs. We made sure that the sofa would fit within the floor plan of the basement, but for some reason we neglected to take into consideration the stairwell dimensions. About a month ago before we had the drywall finished, we took a look at the stairwell and freaked out. The opening at the bottom on the stairs (at the 90 deg turn) wasn't even wide enough to fit the sofa. After hours of contemplation, we decided to cut a load bearing post in half (we had to leave the bottom half since that's where the bottom stairs were attached) and install a new load bearing post next to it. That new post is not sitting on a footer either, but we've convinced ourselves that our house will not collapse. Hopefully the new post is close enough to the old one that it still shares some if the footer. We crossed our fingers in hopes that the only modifications we could do to the stairs would accommodate the new special order, non-returnable sofa.

Here's how it all went down...

We managed to get Derek and our friend Jay to help with bringing it down. The sofa had to be flipped end over end when it was in the stairwell because the back, top was hitting a corner at the top of the lower opening.

After it was flipped, it still didn't fit. It appeared that cutting off an additional 8 inches of the old post would solve the problem. We decided that we didn't cut that far down initially due to aesthetic reasons. So we got out the Saw All and went to town. Aubrey was not thrilled to be doing this, but it really did look like the only way to make the sofa fit. This sofa is our new TV watching sofa. It HAD to fit.

The damage. It's all fixable.

It worked!!

Our beautiful sofa is in the basement in one piece. A few little scrapes, but nothing I can't handle. Taking the sofa out may be a different story. After we repair the stairwell, the sofa once again won't fit. If we ever sell, we may have to include the sofa.

Progress

2010-10-14T19:01:00.003-06:00

Progress. Not a word that I normally associate with our basement, but finally fits the bill. People always ask how the basement is coming along and we would respond, "It's not." But not anymore! Now we get to fill everyone in on all of the progress that we're making. Speaking of progress, we're getting carpet installed tomorrow! It was supposed to get done on Tuesday, but we had rain and nowhere to cut the carpet. I can't wait to get home tomorrow and see the beautiful gray carpet that we picked. It's really going to make the space feel complete. Aubrey has gotten all of the trim installed that he can, outlets and switches are in, everything is painted, door frames are hung...It's really crazy to finally see the space as we envisioned it. After carpet we need to install the baseboard heat, install a few small sections of trim, finish the trim touch ups and caulking, put in the data outlets, and then the main living space is pretty much complete. The bathroom is still pretty raw. Aubrey will start tiling next week and it will be a long project with a lot of work involved. We have 3 1/2 weeks until our due date. It may not be completely finished, but we're going to continue to put in a ridiculous amount of time and energy into it, to get everything done that we can. May the force be with us and may Copper come a week late.

Mom rocked out and spent 3 full days (including a Saturday and Sunday) helping me paint. She'll be back next week to paint our stairwell.

No pregnant ladies allowed on ghetto ladder and plank scaffolding over stairs.

Aubrey did some very fancy trim work in the stairwell.

We're hoping that the carpet can still get installed without too much damage.

Say Orange!

2010-10-14T18:57:00.002-06:00

A couple Birthday Wishes

2010-10-08T12:12:00.002-06:00

Happy Belated Birthday, Cousin Meggie!

Love Ya!

(Sept. 5th)

Happy 50th Birthday, Aunt Diane!

Love Ya!

South Africa Slideshow

2010-10-07T10:24:00.003-06:00

My Aunt Fel (my mom's sister), cousins Alyssa and Whitney, and Whitney's husband Chris recently went on a trip to South Africa. I don't know the name of the reserve/park that they stayed on, but apparently it is the largest in the world. Chris put together this slide show of the wildlife that they saw on a daily basis. Looks like an absolutely amazing trip! Enjoy!

A Belated September Birthday Wish

2010-10-04T14:55:00.003-06:00

Happy Belated 13th Birthday, Mia Rae!

Love Ya!

(Sept. 18th)