family pictures

I haven't had a chance to blog about vacation to the outer banks yet but here are a few of my favorite family pictures from the trip!

Utah trip

We just returned from our Utah vacation. We had to tell smart son that just because we had been doing cool things each day that was merely a vacation treat and not the precedent for a new daily schedule. We started out our trip hiking around Silver Lake; smart son was enamored with the desert vegetation and wildlife and the gorgeous mountains. The next day we took the boys out for Indian food- Smart son proclaimed that naan was now going to be what he put down on his primary spotlight paper as his favorite food. From there we went to the Clark Planetarium where we saw the Ultimate Universe and Mysteries of the Nile (2 thumbs up) and i have to say they have a stellar gift shop (yes we walked out with a rectangular based prism, litmus paper, vortex maker, and rock collection- i was trying to be conservative!)! They loved the jaunt to BYU- complete with BYU t-shirts, books from the bookstore, free reign at the candy counter,trips to the Bean Museum, Earth Science Museum, and Art museum (where i even snuck in a chicken Caesar salad at the MOA cafe-yum!) Cougareat lunch and Creamery ice cream. Smart son is already planning to follow in our academic footsteps- what better way to convince your child of your alma mater's superiority than to spoil them with everything delicious the campus has to offer. We had a few family dinners with allen's siblings, and a little reunion BBQ with all the cousins on his moms side. We got to enjoy an annual sonic excursion (no they don't have a single one in my state of residence) an sometimes you just can't go without a great limeade and onion rings. I left for my MOF GWO weekend (see separate entry) and Allen spent his first days ever of solo parenthood. They went to the Air Force Museum, fishing, swimming, and to the zoo. And being 24th of july weekend I bought the boys a whole package of sparklers to enjoy and celebrate their pioneer heritage with! It was a great trip and my boys can't wait to go back!

one trip down, one wedding down and 17 weeks down

whoa- I feel like i haven't blogged in forever- and then i saw the date on my last post-where has the last month gone!! That is my longest break ever-part of my lack of blogging I will blame on my parents slow dial up internet which makes me crazy (one day highspeed will come to their street!)And have been a good mom spending a lot of time each day reading books to the boys and helping Bennett with an EPGY class he has been doing this summer.

We are heading back to home tomorrow. My boys had a fabulous time in Virginia visting my parents. They loved their daily trips to visit Gigi, riding the tractor with my dad, driving the motorized jeep around my parents yard, going swimming at the club with aunt d, picking chokecherries, making "salad" for the wild animals to come eat, spotting bats, horses, deer, foxes, and millions of insect varieties, baths in the giant tub, sourdough pancakes with my dad, donuts from Ukrops, going to Tom Leonards, summer haircuts, fireworks, (although they both fell asleep in the middle of them) and all the other fun things that come with our trips here.

Thanks to everyone who has been checking in on me- I am 17 weeks this week and still kicking along- It still doesn't feel "real" yet-I am starting to show more but mostly just look thick. I am not as sick as before- but still not feeling really peppy- on top of pregnancy yucks i got a cold that went straight to my chest and has had me coughing for days! So most nights i just want to veg out and go to bed (hence lack of blogging). I can report I made it through the wedding I was doing- wedding cake, grooms cake, and flowers. It is always nice when they are done and you can breathe a sigh of relief. Smart baby loves the perks of being the son of the cake baker.

now we head back to home unpack and repack for our Utah excursion! okay that is all the patience i have for picture loading tonight!

puerto rico- part 2

okay back to where I left off (i have so wanted to blog these week but it has been insanely busy and every time something has been in my way- but no more!!)- beautiful warm Puerto Rico - Wednesday we got up and drove to Arecibo to the worlds largest radio telescope- It was cool I really i enjoyed the topography of the karst region with the sinkholes. We stopped at a scenic lookout - i informed smart daddy-o that i wasn't hiking up any further because i knew it was going to rain and yes within 1 minute of my exclamation a sudden downpour started- at a full sprint we were soaked by the time we hit the car. We stopped and had pinchos (tasty and the bread was really good too) at a roadside truck thing- and then went down to Lagos dos bocas- were we went on the free water taxi ride- we were the only people beside the workers and one old man headed home and a boy taking it as his ride home from school. It was so beautiful. We sat there for a while just watching a pelican swoop down and catch fish- and admiring the amazingly gorgeous views. On the way back we stopped at some gorgeous beaches in Arecibo. The surf was rough and i loved watching the waves crash against the rocks- I totally love beaches with sand and rocks. Smart daddy-o was climbing on some rocks looking at hermit crabs and called me to come over- of course just as i tried to get over there a giant wave came and soaked me and slammed me against the rocks. Thursday we got up and went walking with our friend , she takes this beautiful walk along the beach each morning- it was so gorgeous and then we just stayed on the beach for hours- not a person in sight- basking the in the sun and reading books under the palm trees and finished off the afternoon with a trip to Coldstone creamery and went on a little hike up to some bluffs where we sat and enjoyed the sunset with A. Then we night swimming at the pool in our friend's the H's neighborhood. Then Friday we went to El Yunque the rain forest. It was beautiful we went on a gorgeous little hike to a waterfall-we brought a lunch and just sat on the rocks out in the water for hours relaxing. Then that night we met the H's who brought kayaks and we went kayaking in the bio luminescent bay for a few hours- seriously although they are the age of my parents they put us to shame kayaking! It was a gorgeous night and you could see all the stars. We made smart daddy-o jump out and swim around for us so we could appreciate the full effect of the glowing water. (he could have totally been in one of those 1940s MGM movies with the swimming in them- he could be the next esther williams). Saturday we enjoyed our last moments at the beach and the H's graciously invited us to join them with for a delightful lunch at a club overlooking the pristine beach where they were entertaining some church authorities in town for a training meeting. From there we left for the airport- and made our way back home. It was such a wonderful trip and many thanks to our friends the H's who made it absolutely perfect and are the best Bed and Breakfast in PR! and sadly my essence of tan i acquired is now hidden under the layers requisite of 20 degree weather and sunny warmth is a mere memory. So if you are thinking about a trip to PR- I say just do it!

i'm home- puerto rico trip part 1

Well I made it back from puerto rico-- and I had an absolutely fabulous time- i planned on blogging before i left- but life was complicated at the last minute by the great jet blue fiasco- in which our flight was cancelled and we were told we couldn't get to my parents for 3+ days- problem was we had to get there within in 24 hrs of our planned flight to drop of the smart boys and make it to puerto rico. This all unfolded 4 hours before we left for the airport (mind you this is vacation week where we live- and everyone is trying to get out of town) at which time the trains were sold out, tickets to my parents one way were at the cheapest $711 per person- but we were bound and determined to get there- so we rented a car and drove to my parents (9 hrs with smart baby) and had to stop in scenic newark for the night and arrived at my parents in time to basically throw our children in the house, sleep for a matter of hours and get on our plane to PR. It was such a crazy feeling to get on a plane carrying only my own junk! To watch the in flight movie, read a book and drink my drink without it and other things being sloshed in my lap. We arrived in San Juan Monday and rented a car and drove to our friend's the H's house. We went for a stroll on the beach, had dinner, and just enjoyed visiting. Tuesday we drove to ferry and rode it in old San Juan- were i bought the cutest polka dot summer dress, visited galleries, ate lunch 2x- once at a puerto rican place (where i had pork, fried plantains, rice and beans, and mashed plantains) and once at a Turkish restaurant (where i had the greatest Turkish dish ever- iskindir kebab and elma cay) I used to live in Turkey and love love Turkish food and it is very hard to find and so i had to max out my turkish food experience. We went to El Moro, traversed all the streets, enjoyed the gardens at the white house, toured the governors mansion, and then returned to the Turkish restaurant for dinner where we enjoyed a great chat with the owner mustafa who gave me a website of a turkish grocer out of NY) and we feasted on adana kebab, chicken shish kebab, the best bulgar pilaf, coban slata, sigara borek, baklava. picked up some more cute things for me and took the ferry back and drove home. To be continued...

gluttony thy name be smartmama

I am not someone who generally gains weight- but this Christmas I added 5 lbs- would you like a sampling of where those 5 lbs came from...1- Prime rib and gravy, roasted potatoes, peas and pearl onions, yorkshire pudding, and croissant bread pudding and haagen das vanilla ice cream.
2-Turkey with mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing, gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry salad, and 4- yes 4 types of homemade pie made by my friend jennifer (coconut cream, apple, pecan, and pumpkin)
3- Dinner out- a ribeye with asparagus and whipped potatoes, Caesar salad, fresh rolls, creme brulee
4- Lunch at the inn in Williamsburg- Mini kobe beef burgers with a citrus tossed salad (fresh lime segments and grapefruit- tart and tasty!) and decadent chocolate cake
5- Mongolian Beef and Honey Coated Chicken at PF Changs
6- Eggs, Bacon, Debra's Homemade coffee cake and Sourdough Pancakes and my grandparents great "green grapefruits"
oh and about 2 lbs of sees chocolates, lindt truffles, godiva bars- and a reminder to self- cake and pie are not breakfast foods!
I guess I know what my news years resolution should be...

I made it!

I 'm home!! I got in last night- which is a feat in and of itself (if you know smart baby- you will know why my mom and dad offered to fly me and smart baby home while smart daddy-o drove with smart son and were in fact standing by on travelocity to make instant reservations in case smart daddy-o left us at some airport on the way between virginia and home because things got too ugly). But I took one for the team and in the name of family bonding passed up a quick, semi luxurious ride- for being crammed into the station wagon for 11 hours in the role of official snack passer outer, navigator, and chief entertainment provider.

I am sorry I haven't blogged christmas- i planned on it but things were busy at my parents house and the dial-up (they have no high speed available where they live) is enought to make you rant and cry in the torture of slow loading! and i left all the pics there- so Christmas is coming in a week or so...And I have not forgotten you and your blogs- again blame my parents dial up-

We got home at 7:30 and I madly set to work getting things ready for the show I am hanging today- 19 pieces! I had to make cards for the backs, title cards for the wall, print price lists, artist statments, bios, and get those framed, varnish and yet unvarnished pieces, and get everythign in their frames and ready to go. This is the last time I agree to hang an art show the day after I return from Christmas break.
(okay I edited this- I just came back from hanging- here is the lobby piece)

On a sad note- I heard yesterday that the prinicpal at smart son's school died. I still remember sharing a table with her at the first PTO meeting and talking about her plans for the next few years. She was diagnosed with cancer in October- and an acting principal took over- and here a 2 months later she is gone. She was a kind and good woman who made a difference in the lives of many children. The world will always miss great people. So here is in memory of you Mrs. S. -You will remind us today to do good and use wisely the precious time we have.

Where has smart mama gone...

Lest you think some tragedy had befallen me- I just took a trip to Kansas for Thanksgiving- smart daddy-o's family was having a reunion there- and well my philosophy is a trip isn't worth the time if you don't stay at least a week so, we were gone for a week. (couple that with the craziness which is packing for a weeks vacation and recovering from a weeks vacation- and my lengthy absence is explained) Smart son has no officially travelled to 25 states! I am finally back to report good times were had by all. I have to say I am impressed with Kansas City- the service, the food, everything we did was well worth our time and $. We swam in the indoor pool at the hotel, ate out, went to see a fighter pilot imax movie (well worth your time), a sharks 3-D movie, went to the KC rail experience (all about trains) the Robots traveling exhibit, science city, enjoyed the tree and wreath and train displays at union station, ate at the crayola cafe (where I run into one of my old grad school roommates I had long since lost touch with- totally random!), made things at the the Hallmark kaleidoscope, and checked out moon marble company (it is so cool - we watched how marbles are made by hand and bought lots of cool marbles- but I won't tell you how many $ I spent because that would be embarrassing) Then we drove down to Wichita for the reunion. On the way our cranky, tired baby (who we later realized had an ear infection) vomited all over the rental car- so here we are pulled over on the side of the freeway attempting to safely clean up- somehow I manage to sit in some of that unfortunate substance- Smart daddy-o is laughing and I am telling him it is not funny as i feel it soaking in through my jeans- but there is nothing you can do about it on the side of the road in Kansas. Luckily the marriott had a courtesy laundry and I only received a few strange stares as I carried a stripped down baby into the hotel. We then enjoyed days with aunts and uncles and cousins. It was fun to meet people I hadn't met before and to see those I hadn't seen in a while. Smart son and smart baby enjoyed more swimming in hotel pools-- which was fun until the last day when I put on my swimsuit bottoms and noticed the fabric felt funny- I looked in the mirror- and to my horror- part of the fabric had gone sheer- yes like you can read a newspaper through it!? Who knows how or when (my swimsuit is only 9 months old!)? And I have likely been wearing a semitransparent bathing suit for some time without my knowledge- my apologies to anyone who may have unwittingly glimpsed my backside!

Also 2 thumbs up to Midwest- our airlines on the trip-I love the 2 across seating, warm cookies, and cheap fares. (also thanks for the brief stop in wisconsin- long enough to grab some good ole squeaky cheese!) Sadly I only have 17 pictures from our excursion- due to the fact that somehow the camera got left on and battery ran down and we didn't bring the charger dock-

But I am back and heading full swing into the Christmas holidays!