The Wittyclan

Spring is in the Air

2008-04-12T11:35:00.000-07:00

You know it is spring when:
You dare to run in shorts
You find that you are squinting because it is bright out
The kids ask for popsicles......already
You are asked, in a very urgent manner, to get a jar and poke holes in the lid for worms and bugs
Kids melt after being in the yard forever and it isn't even lunch
Tulips are everywhere
Allergy medicine goes on Sale
People are actually walking here and there
People seem more friendly
Iced coffee is ordered without hesitation
Magazines are preparing the world for bikini season (seriously a waste of paper to print this)
Lawn mowers are clipping at the speed of light
Dirt is the new skin care regime to those under the age of 12

It is gorgeous today. Of course, it will probably only last until sunset, but we are basking in the warm sun and fresh air. It will be lovely to watch soccer in the dry weather and not whip out the umbrellas and struggle to keep warm and dry!!!!

Happy Birthday Chloe

2008-03-10T21:39:00.000-07:00

Chloe had her 8th birthday.....finally. She got to spend the night before at Kennedy School with Grandma Suzzie then had birthday breakfast before heading off to school. She was tickled pink! Being 8 is very busy. There is basketball, Brownies (troop), friends, crafts to do, letters to write, parties to plan. sigh, who knew?! Happy 8th Birthday Chloe!!!!!

Happy Birthday Beck!

2008-02-15T20:37:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Sweet B! Our littlest little is 3 today. He started his day with a ham and cheese croissant and playing rocket and finished with a rousing game of basketball with his brothers and sister. Apparently when you are very first 3 you do not like *anything* at all. For example: "I don't like Santa Claus, I don't like m&m's (clearly, I realize he is not thinking before speaking) I don't like lunch or breakfast, I don't like red cars, I don't like the store......" So, I asked him if he liked birthday cake to which he obviously said no to. That lasted all of two minutes when suddenly he liked everything he had not moments before. Hopefully his testing of age 3 was done during the car ride to the grocery store.

Ironically, Beck woke up from his nap at the same time as his birth. It was so crazy. A few minutes after he finally fully awakened he turned my head to his and smothered me in kisses. It gave me a chill this moment of tenderness. He is such a sweetheart. Happy Birth-day baby B!

Fierce Competition

2008-02-02T19:23:00.000-08:00

One Day, One hour, One minute, one second

2008-01-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

There is not many things more annoying than forgetting to change the alarm clock on a day off.

4:42am: alarm goes off.
4:42.30: alarm gets turned off.
7:20: small human alarm gives slobbery, yet sweet kisses
7:40: get out of bed, begin waking everyone else up
7:41: put last of beans into grinder to make coffee, add to grocery list
7:45: rewake everyone
7:48: round up lunch boxes, empty out half eaten lunch, begin making lunches
7:50: holler to wake them up
8:10: attempt to get dressed while dressing two others
8:12: stop everything to pour boiling water into french press. will it to brew faster today.
8:20: find socks, shoes, water bottles, backpacks, folders, housekeys, library books, hairclips
8:25: change poopy diaper
8:25.30 chase half naked toddler to re-dress
8:30: realize that my once molten lava hot coffee is now only "hot" but pour into travel mug.
chug a few ounces to add remaining amount from pot to mug.
9:30: arrive at Baker Spice to buy pie slices. A % of sales goes to charity! Pie for a Cause!
9:57: Market of Choice to buy some groceries and ZBeanz coffee.
10:00: Back already hurting from pushing "Customer in Training" mini-cart. B is in another aisle
10:20: finally make it to coffee aisle. Out of my beans. As a consolation, buy Mrs.Meyers
laundry detergent in Gardenia. We may as well smell nice.
10:25: Return 1/3 of items that mysteriously made their way into cart. B finds shelf of wine
glasses that are sooo purty. Note to self: find Patient Parenting book at Library.
10:40: Wrestle two bags of groceries, bottle of detergent, and a coat-vs-B. Coat wins
11:00: Home. WHAT?! 7 dwarves must have had a hay day in the house whilst I was gone.
There are plates with sticky syrup and bowls of drying cereal all over the counter, toast
crumbs, and old homework on the table. harumph.
11:10: Reheat coffee, even though slightly jittery. It's freezing outside and need to warm up.
11:30: Proceed to find a good playlist on line, crank it up, and begin cleaning the house for the
pending photos to be taken later in the day. Try to be chipper about it.
11:30.30: B is hungry. Debate whether or not to make a good lunch or quick lunch, or hope he
falls asleep watching the show I am about to let him see. Realize that on many levels this
is a bad idea. Make tasty lunch in the really clean kitchen. Damn, more crumbs. Sure
there is a huge sugar ant nest waiting to come inside to taunt me.
12:00: find not one, but TWO brooms! B comes to my rescue to help. Sings Teamwork song. I
think this is adorable and we have a nice conversation about helping.
12:20: B is sweeping the fridge. He will not stop, even after I glare at him and put the broom
down 100 times. Apparently the fridge, which is stainless steel, is very, very filty and
*needs* brooming on the outside.
12:21: unenlist B's help, hide the broom, put away 600 flashcards that got angrily emptied out.
2:00: Naptime donkey-kicked me. Brian arrives home, I hightail it out for longoverdue run.
Still jacked up on coffee and carbs, crank out a quick run, but have to finish at the school
to bring kids home.
3:20 Home from school, kids got rides home from C's playdate mom. Photographer taking
pictures of house.
4:00: yearbook carpool. Try to stifle giggle at hearing the teen chatter. Three girls, my son.
5:10: Take N to central pickup for soccer carpool. Continue drinking reheated coffee.
5:20: Feeling pretty smug that I put pork roast in oven earlier. The house looks and smells great
and I revel in the temporary state.
6:30: Eat dinner
6:30.01: up from table to refill milk glasses, pull B from under table, more salad dressing, etc.
7:00: Baths for the two littles, read paper and fold clothes.
8:00: Resolve tantrum, realize that it will take a bigger book than Patient Parenting.
10:00: immerse self in really bad "reality" tv, but it is enjoyable and all children are asleep.

What's a Few....In months?

2007-11-24T23:11:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, it's been a really long time. So long that maybe you all thought I forgot we had a blog? It's the computers' fault. Really, it has been damaged goods until 4 hours ago. I've been blogging in my brain to keep in blogging shape so fear not! I will not bore you with a complete run down of the past few months. The jist is that we had a successful move, we love our new to us home, school is well under way, Halloween was a blast, and the kids are still cute. Whew, life covered. More later (taunt, taunt)

2007-07-09T22:34:00.000-07:00

Jake's team played cousin Nick's team. It was fun to cheer for both teams.

2007-07-09T22:21:00.000-07:00

Soccer tournament weekend (again!) Just look at those healthy, happy, shiny faces!

Run Romp

2007-06-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

I am not sure what it was that made me do it. Temporary "fun" insanity, lack of morning coffee, or desperation, or was it a combo platter of them all? Somehow I convinced my friend Cheryl that it would be just great if she and her daughter Clara met us for a run along corridor from OMSI. Nathan and Chloe rode their bikes while Cheryl and I ran with the Clara and Beck in the joggers. Okay, it was fun and I got my run in (that's the desperate part) and we did get coffee afterwards. Plus, Cheryl and I could actually carry on a conversation in person. It was 7 miles of nice easy fatburning miles. We had to talk the bike riders out of 10 miles (apparently we are pansies) and bargained to turn around when the "path ends." Clara was ready to go home so lucky for us we were not lying when we said we were headed there. Beck fell asleep, Nathan got a rubbed finger, and Chloe? Well, she just pedals on and on. Sometimes she gets sidetracked and ends up in the grass but for the most part she stayed on her side.

In the Swim of Things

2007-06-26T23:05:00.000-07:00

We are practicing our *walking quickly poolside* strut each morning at Grant Pool. Swim lessons have begun. The smell of sunscreen and chlorine greets us with the whistle of the lifeguards. It's a lot of work for a half and hour out of the day, but it is worth it. The park is bustling with activity and it is easy to let a few hours go by. Of course we had to have the inaugral shaved ice the first day of lessons. Both Nathan and Chloe got coffee and vanilla flavored ice and Beck got peach (it was the lightest colored flavor) Yum, so good and so summer.

Evidence of Play

2007-06-26T22:52:00.000-07:00

Here is an actual picture of Nathan playing soccer. Usually we have loads of pictures of the kiddos on the sidelines (ie, Beck being totally cute or Chloe being goofy. No shock there) Nathan, aka big cheese of the house, had a soccer tournament over the weekend. He played for the U12 team (Nathan is a U11) They did not win win the first 3 games, but managed to win against the hardest team. Their third game was great, even though it was a loss. The games were played in Beaverton at THPRD and at Commonwealth lake. We lived there from 1995-1997 or so. It was fun to all be able to go to the game. Grandpop Wayne and Grandma Mary made an appearance for one of the games. Mary pretty much took over Beck who was giving all his time and energy to find frogs and turtles at the swampy creek. There was also a nice downpour on Sunday.

Adios Amigos!

2007-06-26T22:38:00.000-07:00

Jake was off and flying (in more ways than one) to Mexico with Boppa, Grandma Suzzie, Uncle Peter, and cousin Nick. The trip was in honor of the boys turning 13. The preparation was short of hilarious. As long as Jake had an American Eagle brand swim suit and t-shirt he was set. Insert big grownup eyeroll. What do I know. The group left of Wednesday the 20th at the precrack of dawn. The main destination was Los Ayalas. We are receiving texts from Jake that go like this : "Laying on beach, boogie boarding, playing soccer with Rodriguez family, heading to pub for dinner." Or "paddled to island. picnic. sun and surf." Sounds like a really rough trip, doesn't it? We have had some fun as well. Jake arrives home late evening on the 27th.

(most) Everyone Loves A Parade

2007-06-06T16:07:00.001-07:00

The bands, the clowns, the bicycle brigade, the crowds oh my. Today was the Junior Rose Festival Parade. Jake was in his school marching band and Chloe marched with the Trail Blazers. As much as I am not a parade person, it was a lot of fun (as the Junior parade is!) and it was exciting to see the kids participate. Nathan, Beck, and I sat with my friend Young and her kiddos Colin and Kylie (friends of our kids!) We sat at our usual spot in front of the coffee place which comes in handy. Beck was a very good spectator clapping and yelling "Go Jake Trumpet" every time a band went by. Chloe scampered over for hugs and was off and marching. It was a big day!

A Bicycle Built For Two

2007-06-05T23:04:00.000-07:00

Did you know that petal and pedal sound alike? Did you know that if you ride your bike on grass it feels like you are mountain biking? If you stand up and pedal (or is it petal?) it means you go faster. Did you know a baby duck is called a gosling? If you laugh really hard when you pedal sometimes your bike turns funny. Did you know that?

This evening we rode bikes during Nathan's soccer practice at Willamette Park. We got an earful. It was very sweet. It was not tiring enough.

A Gaggle of Brownies

2007-06-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I got to experience Brownie Camp. I took a vanload of girls (along with another mom) up to Camp Collins for a day of adventure. It was so much fun. We started off with a very exciting game of Elbow Tag-which happens to involve screaming and running. The game came naturally to the girls. We got to do some art projects, a scavenger hunt and critter shelter making, bouldering, and some hanging out with the big sister girl scout troop. Seeing the cabins their "sisters" stayed in was a huge hit. I have to say, the cabins are so nice and there are bunkbeds! Our troop made a bunch of felt flowers to take to the "SWAP" portion of the day and it was darling to see the younger girls attempt to make eye contact with the older girls. The previously screaming elbow tag girls were shy and quiet. It was very touching to watch as the girls took in the whole experience. We stayed for most of the campfire and songs/skits which was delightful to the girls. Remember the days when making up skits and songs was easy and carefree? I remember playing "Make me Laugh" for hours during the summer and having many "I am going to pee my pants" moments! We also had a rubber chicken for a prop so that made all the difference. Anyway.......on our ride home the girls were singing and laughing so it was a great day at Brownie Camp. Thanks to the hosts that kept the huge cauldron of coffee on throughout the day.

Don't You Dare

2007-05-29T22:50:00.000-07:00

I am not a soccer mom, nor a baseball/gymnastics/romp-n-roll/basketball/swimteam mom. If you call me any of the above you will see stink eye. Okay, so I agree I sort of *look* the part, but I assure you that I am not the part. In fact, if you are driving and see this debacle the thought "soccer mom" could in fact cross your mind in which case I will sense this and give you stink eye. Seriously folks, that is an insult. If I were indeed a soccer mom then I would be knowing a lot more about the game, the stats, chugging diet coke for the first morning game, wearing the team colors, and making other people feel uncomfortable. I suppose I would also be carrying a cooler of Capri Sun and Kudo's bars at all times. In case a soccer mom is reading this I apologize and want to be the first to let you know how much I respect your dedication. Honestly. This evening I spent 90% of Nathan's baseball game in the long jump pit while Beck played in it. The other 10% was spent chasing him around the track to tire him out, taking Chloe to the bathroom, playing catch with B, and trying not to infringe on Jake's cool factor. Oh, I did have fun in this beautiful weather and even enjoyed a few minutes talking with the other parents. Much to my surprise I even expressed how the weather would have been double header friendly. Gasp! The only reason I knew the game was over was because some mom brought out a cooler full of popsicles.

Crossing State Lines

2007-05-27T22:13:00.000-07:00

If any of you wondered what it is like to play soccer in Tacoma, feel free to ask Nathan. This weekend Nathan had a soccer tournament in Tacoma. He has been reminding us of this fact for about 3 weeks so it was no surprise come 5:30 Saturday morning that he was heading north. Rumor has it that soccer in Tacoma is very similar, if not identical, to soccer here in Portland. He actually played for the U12 team (a year older) and enjoyed himself quite a bit. Apparently he had a "beautiful" run up the field at the last game and juked his way through some opponents. In fact, I have heard the story so much that I would hate to keep the info to myself. Silliness aside, it was a great weekend for Nathan and he might have added a few feathers to his fur.

The rest of us (me, Jake, Chloe, Beck) did nothing near as spectacular as soccer in Tacoma. We perused the Lake Oswego Farmers Market and saw two friends that sell there. I have such creative and endevorous peeps! The weather was mild, albeit muggy, so we walked around LO and went by our old stomping ground then played at George Rogers Park. Beck fell asleep on our way home so we decided to attempt Shrek 3. I was secretly hoping he would remain asleep (am I dumb or what) Of course he woke up, but was a bit scared at first so he sat in my lap quite well. The last 10 minutes we had to pull out the M&M's to keep him focused, but we were all game for the bribe. For dinner we had Spaghetti and Meatballs (and a glass of cheap Merlot for mom) at home. As an added bonus to a weekend with a two year old, Beck sang song "bottle wine, bottle wine" all through Trader Joe's. I am sure those that had bottles of wine in their cart were impressed to know that the toddler in my cart knew this fact. Good times. It was a very relaxing, fun, and spontaneous Saturday and the boogie man did not make his usual faux appearance.

Smells Like Teen Spirit

2007-05-17T22:19:00.000-07:00

13 years ago today I was looking in awe at a weensy, cone headed, pink (soon to be yellow) baby named Jake. He was the start of it all-we learned fast and hard how to soothe colic, bribe a toddler, hold our parental ground, share and not share, let kindergarten happen, to stand back and when to step in, and to love unconditionally and so honestly. It's official: there is a teenager in the house and a pretty darn good one at that!

We had a fun evening shared with Grandma Suzzie and Boppa, Grandma Mary and Grandpa Wayne, Marcus and Hayden Swanson and our clan. We could have each had our own carton of ice cream thanks to the Swanson's bringing extra gallons of dairy love. It is reassuring that teenagers pretty much want/get the same things we did: clothes, CD's, money, cell phone minutes. Oh, wait, we got dimes for the school pay phone!!

It will be fun to see how the year evolves. So far so good.

Aye Batter Batter!

2007-05-17T10:32:00.000-07:00

Baseball season is in full swing! This week we have four games to attend. Lucky for us, two during the week are up at Grant High School. Jake, Chloe, and Beck are easily occupied by the park so it makes for a fun and long evening. Nathan's team lost on Tuesday night pretty significantly. I decided that we needed to bust out the mini grill and dogs to rally their spirits. They had to face the same team on Wed. The boys tied it up, played another inning to "double tie." They really stepped it up and played hard. They have such great coaches! Oh, although there is no evidence, Nathan is the ballplayer. Beck would like to be on the team, as he is entertained by all the catchers gear and bepops around saying " I catcher I catcher" and "baseball ready." It is pretty cute!

Happy Mother's Day!

2007-05-13T20:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day! This blog is a bit of a treat for me to start so how appropriate that it begins on mother's day!

Our house had a festive air today. I went for a run and Brian diligently rode his bike along side me. He was rather bored but did not complain. Two cell phone calls and a cease fire to a rubberband fight made for a calm return home.

Coffee was definately a priority so we headed to Muddy's Coffee House for a delicious late breakfast. Those that know me well will look for a review some other time (once I figure out more to this blogging!) After properly stuffing ourselves we faced a large clean up task involving buckets, hose, brooms, and a lawnmower. What is it about holding a hose that brings out the wickedness in us? Nonetheless, we got the job done in time for Brian's mom, sister Brenda and her husban Keary to stop by. Next year Brenda will have her own Happy Mother's Day! We are so excited to share the cousin love!