My Cinco De Mayo Baby

Today, my sweet Sydney turned fourteen. There is something about that number that just tugs at my heart. For some reason, 13 didn't seem so old, but that extra year she added today just does me in. We always celebrate her birthday for about 2 weeks because it gets pushed aside with all the little league games, end of the year school assignments and the baseball state tournament. So, to start, she opened presents this morning and later I bought her lunch. Normally, she would choose her favorite dinner, but the baseball team was having a BBQ, so she chose to go to that. (I really didn't have to twist her arm). The boys were great. When she showed up, they started singing "Happy Birthday", and then posed for this picture with her. You can tell by her smile that it wasn't torture. I've already printed it out for her so that she show off at school tomorrow. This weekend, we'll do a little shopping in her honor, and then when we actually have a free day, she is going to have a little party with her friends.

In her honor, here are 14 facts about "Syd the kid".

1. On the day she was born in Flagstaff, it snowed, rained, hailed, blew and the sun came out. All in one day. It has always reminded me of her personality...a little of everything.

2. When she was a baby, she did not like to be held or comforted. If you tried to snuggle with her, she would throw a fit. But if you just laid her down, she could be happy for hours.

3. When learned to talk, she couldn't say her "l" or "r" sound. So we spent a lot of time saying "Lori loves lollipops" to practice. It sounded a lot more like "Wowi Woves Wowwipops". She did finally catch on.

4. Her first word (outside of the mama one) was "stomp". She was bossy about it. When she said "Stomp", you'd better get with it, or she would get angry.

5. She loved my parents dog, "Suzie". Suzie moved in with us when my parents moved to Alaska. She was too old to make the trip. Syd made her final years happy. They spent a lot of time laying on the grass and eating Cheetos together.

6. When she was younger she was a champion snake catcher. She had watched so much Crocodile Hunter that she could copy exactly how he would catch snakes with a stick.

7. Speaking of TV, she loves to watch shows like "How it's Made" and other Discovery Channel shows. Sometimes I'll leave my room because Ryan is watching some "BORING" show, only to find that Syd is watching the same boring show downstairs. But she will watch Cold Case and The Unit with me, so it's not all bad.

8. She is COMPETITIVE. She comes by it naturally, but phewwwww! She is a spitfire when it comes to winning. But she also has the ability to channel it in order to fuel herself, not cut down others.

9. She has always been a beautiful girl. But when she was little, that competitiveness often resulted in a scowling face (and a little attitude). So every morning when I brushed her hair I would remind her that Beauty comes from how we act, not how we look and you're not pretty if you don't act pretty. She still can chant it to Lauren when Lou needs that talk.

10. She plays the piano extremely well. She has been taking lessons since she was eight. She's excited because she only has 2 more lessons before I let her quit. I love to lay on the couch and listen to her play.

11. She is an incredibly determined girl. If she sets her mind to something, it will happen. She has amazing will power. (I think she is adopted).

12. She is at the top of her class academically.

13. As I've mentioned before, she likes to be alone. But at the same time, she does enjoy having fun and being silly with her friends. (Just not for long stretches of time).

14. She is a super athlete. She plays soccer, volleyball, basketball and her all-time favorite softball.

and one to grow on...She is a great daughter and I love her "too much"!

Happy Birthday Syd.

The Perils of being a Mechanic's Wife

After school today, the girls and I headed out to the car to run errands and then head home. When I started the car up, it seemed like it couldn't get enough gas. It was shaking and chugging. I thought maybe it would clear up on its own, but it just didn't. I tried giving it more gas, but it couldn't get much past 20 miles per hour. I was surprised to make it up the little hill headed to the high school.

Having listened to many stories of "How am I supposed to fix something if I've never seen it act that way?", I headed to the baseball field to find Ryan.

Not there yet. And the car is still running poorly.

As we are driving by the hardware store, Syd spots his truck. (Which is another trait she inherited from him).

We track him down in the paint aisle. Like the dutiful car owner that I am, I tell him, "Something is really wrong with the car. Come listen to it!"

He starts laughing. "Well it should be running poorly, I took a part out of it at lunch to fix a customer's car. They couldn't wait for the part to come in, so I took yours."

So now, I sit here and wait for my part to come in....tomorrow... Good thing for the used car lot that we call our front drive.

A little of this and that

Lauren thinks that I don't put enough pictures of her on my blog. So this one is for her... She just informed me that I chose the wrong one...

I made Ryan and Cade pose together so I could see if they looked alike. You decide...

Cade contemplating a home run.

Poor Syd is too busy to have her picture taken. Actually, I wish I could take a picture of her and Ryan's personalities. They are SO much alike. Today, I sat down in the front room where she was watching TV. I asked her what she wanted for dinner. "Whatever" was her reply. What are you watching? I asked. "Just a show." It was quiet for a moment. Then she said, "I think I'll go upstairs." Why? I asked. "I don't feel like talking to anyone right now, sorry". And off she went. And just like Ryan, it isn't moodiness or anger. She just truly needs her alone time. A couple hours later she came downstairs and chatted up a storm. She is one of a kind. Or at least one of a very unique pair.

The Weather

ODE TO THE WIND

Or

St. Johns in the Spring

The Wind is blowing again today,

Just like it did before.

It's blown and blown for two months now,

And I'm afraid it'll keep blowing some more!

My flowers I planted in April,

Are growing in New Mexico today.

And the dirt that they were growing in,

Has settled on San Francisco Bay.

The kids on the playground have started

To fly UP the slides, rather than down,

And the kids who want to be swinging

Are soaring over some Texas town.

Last night I went to a baseball game,

The pitcher threw the ball,

Back and forth it was thrown by the wind,

Strike 1, 2, AND 3! Was the umpire's call.

So if you venture to St. Johns

And want to give this place a try,

Put two large rocks in your pockets,

Or the wind will just blow you on by!

AND it is now snowing, AGAIN. Ugh.

But on a side note, we beat Round Valley in baseball today. Whoooohoooo!

The Ox in the Mire

I unexpectedly started my period yesterday with not a single tampon in the house.

I mean really?!

While Lauren was searching the house for Easter eggs, I'm searching for tampons. She was a lot more successful than me.

A while back I bought 3 mega boxes from Sam's Club. I mean those dang things are expensive, so I thought that I'd stock up. I forgot that I'm not the only one using them these days. We go through them pretty quickly. I had to say a quick "thank you" in my head to my mom for all the boxes she must have bought raising three girls.

So what to do? My dear friend that I borrow things from is in church. I figure I could go search her house, but that may be overstepping the bounds of friendship. Not only is it Sunday, but it's also Easter, so the grocery store isn't open. One of the perils of living in SJ is a lack of shopping options. I'm dreading the thought of searching Circle K for a box. Luckily, the Dollar General is open.

As I'm walking in, I'm considering the "Ox in the Mire" story, and figure this one fits the bill. But then there is that nagging embarrassment of "just" buying a box of tampons. My heck, I'm thirty-five years old, it is probably time to get over that one. But not today. So I also purchase Pepsi, chips and chocolate (plus the tampons). As if that's disguising the issue! I also figure that throws me complete out of the "ox in the mire" umbrella and right under the "sinner" one.

To be perfectly honest I'm always under the "sinner" umbrella when it comes to not shopping on Sunday. But I really had been trying to do better.

Sooooooooooo

To make a really pointless and long story even longer, here is a little bit of trivia that I learned. If you buy the Kotex brand, it even has a box top for education.

So I'm also giving a little back to the schools. By shopping on Sunday.

Easter Bunny S'mores

I can't claim an ounce of credit for these-but they are really cute. And they are one of the few things I've made that actually looks like the picture. I'm giving these to my visiting teaching ladies. (I am the WORST visiting teacher, but I decided to try to turn the corner. . .)

INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

1. Reduce 1 sleeve graham crackers to crumbs.
2. Layer 2/3 of the crumbs in a 1 quart jar.
3. Place 8 marshmallow bunny peeps standing up, facing out around the inside of the jar.
4. Press them up against the glass, but don't squash them.
5. Carefully spoon remaining crumbs in the center of the jar to support the bunnies, pressing down to keep it snug.
6. On top of this pour 1-1/4 cup Easter M&M's.
7. Spoon 1/3 cup brown sugar into center of M&M's, gently pressing with a spoon.
My changes: I did M&M's first, then Peeps, then put combined brown sugar and graham cracker crumbs in baggie. I didn't like how the crumbs made a mess in the jar.

Attach a gift tag giving the following instructions:

1. Empty the jar contents into a bowl. Snip the bunnies into bits with kitchen sheers or cut up with a knife. Return the bunny bits to the mixture. Mix well.
2. Melt 1/2 cup butter; add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour this over the dry ingredients, mixing well. Pat into a greased 9" square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.
(Makes 9 to 12 bars.)

*Option - leave bunnies whole; combine remaining ingredients and place the bunnies on top; then bake as directed.

*This gift jar may be created to suit any holiday for which marshmallow candies are available.

The girls and I also tried them out to see what they tasted like...they are cuter than they taste (in my opinion) but they are so cute. . .

I got the idea from this blog. It is full of cool stuff.
http://creativeholidaygiftideas.blogspot.com/

Test Anxiety

Last night I dreamt that I was back back in high school, competing in the academic decathalon again. As we pulled into the competition parking lot, a lady met us and told us we had to get to our interviews "on the double". When we arrived she clucked her tongue and said, "Most people make it in 12-18 seconds, your 30 seconds is pretty weak." During the interview, the lady kept asking me crazy questions like "What did you see in Customs while you were in the airport?" and "Which of these items would be best as an engagement present?" Huh?!? Then one of our team memebers left the testing area resulting in the warning that our scores would be invalid if that happened again. The next insult came when I saw our program of study. . .among the items were pig terminology and advanced mathematics!?! The final straw was when I realized that I did not have a speech prepared. Not only that, but I knew there was no way I could get up and wing it. All the while, I'm thinking, Risa is going to kill me.

Luckily, my alarm rang right then.

My first thought was, "What in the world? Where did that come from?"

My second thought was, "Oh yeah, AIMS testing starts today!"

I guess even the teachers get nervous.