Too funny, and too true! My dad could give this lady a run for her money. In fact, my sisters and I got him the t-shirt for Father's Day last year.
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Friday, October 23, 2009
Ketchikan, AK
When J and I went on an Alaska cruise a month ago, we looked forward to seeing the wilderness, the wildlife, and the history. We saw some of that, but not much, unfortunately. I love cruising because it is an effortless way to travel. You don't have to worry about getting yourself from place to place, or finding hotels or transportation or places to eat. You don't have to figure out what the "must see" sites are because the cruise line has done all that research for you. The downside of cruising is that you get a very limited amount of time in each port of call, and most of the shopping is either jewelry or "touristy crap." The other thing I hate about cruising is that I forget to take my camera everywhere I go. Or I take it, but forget to take pictures. I thought we had a ton of awesome pics, but it turns out there are not nearly as many as I had hoped.
Regardless, we had a blast. Our cruise was scheduled to make 4.5 ports of call: Ketchikan, Skagway, Juneau, Tracy Arm Fjord, and Victoria, BC. (I say 4.5 because Tracy Arm is not a place you get off the ship - it is an amazing, scenic area.) It'll take a few entries, but I'll blog about all of our experiences in the different ports.
We boarded the ship in Seattle on Sunday at about 1:30 p.m. We had spent the weekend at my dad's house (Friday night we went to see Wicked, and Saturday night we went to Teatro Zinzanni for my step-mom's birthday), and Sunday Dad fed us breakfast then he and Mel took me, J, and my sisters and all our luggage to the cruise docks. It was beautiful - Dad lives about 15 minutes from where we had to go. We didn't have to get up early, or worry about traffic or anything. Stress free!
The ship pulled out of Seattle around 4 p.m., and we were on our way. After a full day and a half of travel, we made it to our first port of call, Ketchikan, AK. J and I did a lot of cool stuff there! The Bering Sea Fisherman's Tour was probably our favorite. Then we walked around town for awhile. We saw the famous "Creek Street" (which as far as I can tell is a wooden sidewalk over a creek, and a bunch of buildings on stilts over the same creek), the Totem Pole history museum (not worth the 3 mile round trip walk, much of it uphill, or the $10 for the both of us to go in, but it did get us out of the rain for awhile), and a Lumberjack Show my dad told us to check out. (Dad and Mel took the exact same cruise - same ship and everything! - about a month before.)
Here are some pictures from Ketchikan.
As we were getting off the cruise ship (the Star Princess in case you were wondering!), they took our pictures then practically shoved us off.
This first picture was bright and early at 7:30 a.m. on the Aleutian Ballad. J was excited for our tour, but not thrilled about the time we had to be there!
Have you ever seen the show The Deadliest Catch? About crab fishing in Alaska? This boat used to be on that show. It was during the second season, and it was the boat that took a rogue wave that nearly capsized it. Well, that was the second rogue wave it had taken in less than ten years.
Here's a video of that rogue wave. It was caught on camera for The Discovery Channel. It's a rare video - not many rogue waves have been caught on camera.
After the second rogue wave, they moved it to another area of Alaska to fish for awhile, and the new captain ran it into the side of a cliff, nearly sinking it. After that, they retired it from crab fishing. They fixed it up, added seating and heaters, and then started giving tours to cruise line passengers. Sounds like an unlucky boat to be on, right? Well, I figure if it's survived two rogue waves and a cliff, this boat is pretty lucky! We had a FANTASTIC time on this tour. It was 3.5 hours, but felt like just minutes. We got to see all sorts of crab pots and a variety of crab species.
We even got to see an eagle up close and personal (they threw bait out on the water to get it to come close), and this 25 pound octopus.
In this next picture, you can see the octopus had reached out and grabbed on to "Kiwi's" face. Yuck!! (He's called Kiwi because he's from New Zealand. He was actually on the show for a season, but it was on a different boat.)
When we left Seattle, it was a gorgeous day. I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Probably didn't need the jeans - shorts would have been better! But when we got to Alaska, it rained the entire time we were there. Mostly it was just a drizzle, but it was a constant rain. With all the rain and the humidity, my hair was a perpetual mess of frizz and curls. Even on board the ship. I didn't bother trying to tame it as I had better things to do.
These next pictures were taken while we walked on Creek Street. There was obviously a creek right there, and we were amazed at all of the salmon in the creek. Ketchikan is known as the "salmon capital of the world" and it's true! There were so many fish, it appeared you could have walked across the creek on top of the water. It's hard to see in the pictures, but trust me: it was a solid mass of salmon. They were packed in (are you ready for this?) like sardines! There were two sea otters having lunch in the creek. J and I stayed to watch for awhile, then continued on our way. While the sea otters were cute, I'm from Washington, and J's lived here for a long time...sea otters are something we can see at home, so it wasn't terribly thrilling for us. The two women we passed, on the other hand, were ecstatic. I appreciated their enthusiasm, and didn't have the heart to correct them when I overheard one tell the other "Let's go look at the seals again! Those seals are so cute!"
J and I thought we might like to check out the totem pole museum. So we headed off looking for it. It was mildly entertaining, but like I said earlier, not really worth the money or the effort to get there. Perhaps I'm a little jaded, but I grew up in a state where there are coastal Native American tribes...the totem poles and all the heritage stuff at the museum is very similar to what I see at home. I did particularly enjoy the first totem pole we ran across, though. J was a good sport and posed for me, even though he didn't really want to. Well, he wasn't opposed to it until I said, "NO! Don't stand next to it! Stand right under it like you're part of it. Won't that be funny? You know, because you're so tall!"
But he did it anyway. Good man. His willingness to pose is probably the reason I agreed to walk up that darn hill for that museum.
After we went to the museum, we were headed back down the hill and we heard the cheering from the lumberjack arena. We still had two hours before we had to be back on the ship, so we decided to just go for it. It was so campy! But lots of fun. J is one of those closet geeks who has been known to watch lumberjack competitions on ESPN (or whatever channel they show up on), so he even knew who some of the lumberjacks were! That's right, ladies and gentlemen, my husband is a wealth of random knowledge. Sometimes he surprises the heck out of me with the random crap he knows.
Anyway, it was a "competition" between two different lumberjack camps, and they split the audience in half to cheer for "their" teams. We were cheering for Dawson's Creek Camp. Or was it Mill Creek Camp? I don't remember, and I don't suppose it really matters. It was neat to see them do the different events. I think my two favorite were the log rolling and the pole climbing. I think I could use a chain saw and cut a tree. I know I can use an axe to cut a tree. I also know there is no way I could do the log rolling or climb a tree that has no branches (it would be iffy even if it did have branches!) so I was particularly impressed with those two events. The team saw cutting was cool too, though. They cut through that big tree in a matter of seconds!
I think Ketchikan was a great place to visit, and I would like to go back again sometime when we have more than a few hours. I especially want to eat at this restaurant. Their sign intrigues me.
This was just the first stop...more to come!
Regardless, we had a blast. Our cruise was scheduled to make 4.5 ports of call: Ketchikan, Skagway, Juneau, Tracy Arm Fjord, and Victoria, BC. (I say 4.5 because Tracy Arm is not a place you get off the ship - it is an amazing, scenic area.) It'll take a few entries, but I'll blog about all of our experiences in the different ports.
We boarded the ship in Seattle on Sunday at about 1:30 p.m. We had spent the weekend at my dad's house (Friday night we went to see Wicked, and Saturday night we went to Teatro Zinzanni for my step-mom's birthday), and Sunday Dad fed us breakfast then he and Mel took me, J, and my sisters and all our luggage to the cruise docks. It was beautiful - Dad lives about 15 minutes from where we had to go. We didn't have to get up early, or worry about traffic or anything. Stress free!
The ship pulled out of Seattle around 4 p.m., and we were on our way. After a full day and a half of travel, we made it to our first port of call, Ketchikan, AK. J and I did a lot of cool stuff there! The Bering Sea Fisherman's Tour was probably our favorite. Then we walked around town for awhile. We saw the famous "Creek Street" (which as far as I can tell is a wooden sidewalk over a creek, and a bunch of buildings on stilts over the same creek), the Totem Pole history museum (not worth the 3 mile round trip walk, much of it uphill, or the $10 for the both of us to go in, but it did get us out of the rain for awhile), and a Lumberjack Show my dad told us to check out. (Dad and Mel took the exact same cruise - same ship and everything! - about a month before.)
Here are some pictures from Ketchikan.
As we were getting off the cruise ship (the Star Princess in case you were wondering!), they took our pictures then practically shoved us off.
This first picture was bright and early at 7:30 a.m. on the Aleutian Ballad. J was excited for our tour, but not thrilled about the time we had to be there!
Have you ever seen the show The Deadliest Catch? About crab fishing in Alaska? This boat used to be on that show. It was during the second season, and it was the boat that took a rogue wave that nearly capsized it. Well, that was the second rogue wave it had taken in less than ten years.
Here's a video of that rogue wave. It was caught on camera for The Discovery Channel. It's a rare video - not many rogue waves have been caught on camera.
After the second rogue wave, they moved it to another area of Alaska to fish for awhile, and the new captain ran it into the side of a cliff, nearly sinking it. After that, they retired it from crab fishing. They fixed it up, added seating and heaters, and then started giving tours to cruise line passengers. Sounds like an unlucky boat to be on, right? Well, I figure if it's survived two rogue waves and a cliff, this boat is pretty lucky! We had a FANTASTIC time on this tour. It was 3.5 hours, but felt like just minutes. We got to see all sorts of crab pots and a variety of crab species.
We even got to see an eagle up close and personal (they threw bait out on the water to get it to come close), and this 25 pound octopus.
In this next picture, you can see the octopus had reached out and grabbed on to "Kiwi's" face. Yuck!! (He's called Kiwi because he's from New Zealand. He was actually on the show for a season, but it was on a different boat.)
When we left Seattle, it was a gorgeous day. I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Probably didn't need the jeans - shorts would have been better! But when we got to Alaska, it rained the entire time we were there. Mostly it was just a drizzle, but it was a constant rain. With all the rain and the humidity, my hair was a perpetual mess of frizz and curls. Even on board the ship. I didn't bother trying to tame it as I had better things to do.
These next pictures were taken while we walked on Creek Street. There was obviously a creek right there, and we were amazed at all of the salmon in the creek. Ketchikan is known as the "salmon capital of the world" and it's true! There were so many fish, it appeared you could have walked across the creek on top of the water. It's hard to see in the pictures, but trust me: it was a solid mass of salmon. They were packed in (are you ready for this?) like sardines! There were two sea otters having lunch in the creek. J and I stayed to watch for awhile, then continued on our way. While the sea otters were cute, I'm from Washington, and J's lived here for a long time...sea otters are something we can see at home, so it wasn't terribly thrilling for us. The two women we passed, on the other hand, were ecstatic. I appreciated their enthusiasm, and didn't have the heart to correct them when I overheard one tell the other "Let's go look at the seals again! Those seals are so cute!"
J and I thought we might like to check out the totem pole museum. So we headed off looking for it. It was mildly entertaining, but like I said earlier, not really worth the money or the effort to get there. Perhaps I'm a little jaded, but I grew up in a state where there are coastal Native American tribes...the totem poles and all the heritage stuff at the museum is very similar to what I see at home. I did particularly enjoy the first totem pole we ran across, though. J was a good sport and posed for me, even though he didn't really want to. Well, he wasn't opposed to it until I said, "NO! Don't stand next to it! Stand right under it like you're part of it. Won't that be funny? You know, because you're so tall!"
But he did it anyway. Good man. His willingness to pose is probably the reason I agreed to walk up that darn hill for that museum.
After we went to the museum, we were headed back down the hill and we heard the cheering from the lumberjack arena. We still had two hours before we had to be back on the ship, so we decided to just go for it. It was so campy! But lots of fun. J is one of those closet geeks who has been known to watch lumberjack competitions on ESPN (or whatever channel they show up on), so he even knew who some of the lumberjacks were! That's right, ladies and gentlemen, my husband is a wealth of random knowledge. Sometimes he surprises the heck out of me with the random crap he knows.
Anyway, it was a "competition" between two different lumberjack camps, and they split the audience in half to cheer for "their" teams. We were cheering for Dawson's Creek Camp. Or was it Mill Creek Camp? I don't remember, and I don't suppose it really matters. It was neat to see them do the different events. I think my two favorite were the log rolling and the pole climbing. I think I could use a chain saw and cut a tree. I know I can use an axe to cut a tree. I also know there is no way I could do the log rolling or climb a tree that has no branches (it would be iffy even if it did have branches!) so I was particularly impressed with those two events. The team saw cutting was cool too, though. They cut through that big tree in a matter of seconds!
I think Ketchikan was a great place to visit, and I would like to go back again sometime when we have more than a few hours. I especially want to eat at this restaurant. Their sign intrigues me.
This was just the first stop...more to come!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
I'm just sayin'
Awhile ago I told you about how my sisters have always told me my smile is stupid. Well, maybe not in those exact words. Actually, yeah, in those exact words.
Every time we pose for a picture, they tell me to have a "real" smile, not that "stupid" one.
Well, I'm just sayin'.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Please excuse the hair
I have SO much to tell you! And SO little time to do it! J and I went on an Alaskan cruise a month ago, and we had a great time!! Unfortunately, I've been playing catch up ever since we got back. I'm supposed to be grading papers right now, but I really want to post on my blog. So after some negotiating with myself, I've decided that I'll do a short post now, finish my grading, do some laundry then reward myself with some posting.
Let's keep our fingers crossed that I'm able to do all of that!
But for now, here's a picture of us at Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, Alaska. We didn't see any wildlife, but that could be because my hair scared them off. The rain and humidity did a number on my wild hair! This is actually one of the more tame pictures. You'll see what I mean when I am able to post more.
Monday, June 22, 2009
I'm tired..
Last week I started going back to the gym daily. It's amazing how quickly your body forgets what it's been doing. Last week was a crazy week, but this week is looking better. J and I went to Seattle on Saturday, had dinner with my dad and step-mom, and then went to see an M's game with them. Good seats, decent game, great company. The Mariner's won (against the Arizona Diamondbacks...nothing to write home about), and fun was had by all. (Side note: We were not some of the first people to arrive, so we did not get free Ken Griffey, Jr. t-shirts. We weren't too upset, but ironically, on the night they gave away t-shirts with his name all over them? He didn't even play. I don't care what my dad thinks, I was a little sad about that. I went to a lot of baseball games as a kid when KG Jr. AND Sr. were playing on the team...it was all about the nostalgia for me, but he didn't even play. Oh well, that just means that J will need to take me back!)
We stayed up WAY too late talking, and then slept in a little bit Sunday morning. Had breakfast with Dad and Mel, spent a few hours chatting and reading the Seattle Times (FYI - it's a WAY better paper than the Tri-City Herald!), then drove up to UW to have a late lunch / early dinner with C, J's baby sister.
We got to see her new house (way cute!), and then went down the hill to Aqua Verde for lunch. I highly recommend this place! I had never been before, but had seen a Rachel Ray special about it on the Food Network Channel. It's right on Lake Washington. The chipotle salsa is amazing, as is their guacamole. Good food, resonable prices. We ate out on the deck, and it was beautiful. J and I had to get on the road right after lunch/dinner because he had to work today, but if we had had more time, I would have tried to talk him in to renting a kayak and going out on the lake for awhile. Maybe next time.
We finally got home around 10 pm last night. Late, but totally worth it!
I went to the gym this morning and took two classes. One where I got all sweaty and gross, then I ran down to the locker room and got changed, rinsed off in the shower and then took a water aerobics class.
Whew! I'm now home, and trying to come up with some ideas for blog topics. Hopefully you'll have something more exciting to read tomorrow!
I'm going to go rest for a bit, and have a bowl of cereal! Happy Monday.
We stayed up WAY too late talking, and then slept in a little bit Sunday morning. Had breakfast with Dad and Mel, spent a few hours chatting and reading the Seattle Times (FYI - it's a WAY better paper than the Tri-City Herald!), then drove up to UW to have a late lunch / early dinner with C, J's baby sister.
We got to see her new house (way cute!), and then went down the hill to Aqua Verde for lunch. I highly recommend this place! I had never been before, but had seen a Rachel Ray special about it on the Food Network Channel. It's right on Lake Washington. The chipotle salsa is amazing, as is their guacamole. Good food, resonable prices. We ate out on the deck, and it was beautiful. J and I had to get on the road right after lunch/dinner because he had to work today, but if we had had more time, I would have tried to talk him in to renting a kayak and going out on the lake for awhile. Maybe next time.
We finally got home around 10 pm last night. Late, but totally worth it!
I went to the gym this morning and took two classes. One where I got all sweaty and gross, then I ran down to the locker room and got changed, rinsed off in the shower and then took a water aerobics class.
Whew! I'm now home, and trying to come up with some ideas for blog topics. Hopefully you'll have something more exciting to read tomorrow!
I'm going to go rest for a bit, and have a bowl of cereal! Happy Monday.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Schools out for summer!
I can't believe it's finally here, but today is the last day of school!
You heard me...today is the last day of school!
I don't think I will get tired of saying that! My face hurts already from smiling so much.
Yahoooooooooo!!!!!!!
I have a TON of plans for this summer, but I think you and I will be seeing each other here a lot more frequently!
PS Happy Anniversary Mom and John! I hope you have fun plans for "our" anniversary! I plan to make my husband take me out to dinner to celebrate the last day of school. He'll drink a beer and we'll toast you!
You heard me...today is the last day of school!
I don't think I will get tired of saying that! My face hurts already from smiling so much.
Yahoooooooooo!!!!!!!
I have a TON of plans for this summer, but I think you and I will be seeing each other here a lot more frequently!
PS Happy Anniversary Mom and John! I hope you have fun plans for "our" anniversary! I plan to make my husband take me out to dinner to celebrate the last day of school. He'll drink a beer and we'll toast you!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Happy Mother's Day!
Between us, J and I have three moms - and they're all pretty great. They are all very different from each other, too. The one thing they all have in common is that they love us - and we love them.
Small post with a big message:
Happy Mother's Day Mom R., Mom H., and Mel!!! We love you.
Small post with a big message:
Happy Mother's Day Mom R., Mom H., and Mel!!! We love you.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Art on the Boulevard, featuring Mom H!
I've talked before about my mother-in-law, and what an amazing artist she is. I thought I would take this opportunity to brag on her just a little bit more. At any given time she has her work hanging in at least two galleries I am aware of (plus she hangs different themed paintings in the local tea house and maybe one other place?). Throughout the year she has many different art shows she goes to as well.
I LOVE looking at her artwork. Several times she has updated her portfolio for different art shows and has brought it with her when she and Dad H have come to visit to show us her new stuff. I don't like to bother her and ask if I can see it, but when she brings it out, I get so excited! If I could, I would probably sneak into her art studio every time I'm at her house to just check out what's new.
J gets a kick out of how much I love his mom's art. He loves her art, too, but he's seen it his whole life. It's just not as thrilling to him as it is to me. I'm such a huge fan of her art, in fact, that J and I have no less than twelve prints of her paintings. I've given my mom a print, my sisters each a print, my dad and step-mom a print, and one of my friends got one, too!
Nobody in my family has that kind of talent. One of my aunts can draw pretty well, but I haven't seen her draw on anything other than lined notebook paper when we were kids. I could be wrong, of course, but I don't think she really does any "serious" art. It's more doodling when she's bored.
Anyway, Mom H. recently shared some exciting news! She (and about 11 other artists) are opening a new art gallery in their town. It's to be called Alcove Art Gallery, and will be a co-op. They will be open for business on April 17, and will have a grand opening on May 8. When their website is up and running, I'll share the address.
She is still a member of Art on the Boulevard in Vancouver, WA. Some of her artwork was featured in the advertising for their new show.
She sounds crazy busy right now. Between art shows, opening a new gallery, and putting new art in the old places, I don't know how she has time to do anything! But I am looking forward to seeing her new stuff.
I LOVE looking at her artwork. Several times she has updated her portfolio for different art shows and has brought it with her when she and Dad H have come to visit to show us her new stuff. I don't like to bother her and ask if I can see it, but when she brings it out, I get so excited! If I could, I would probably sneak into her art studio every time I'm at her house to just check out what's new.
J gets a kick out of how much I love his mom's art. He loves her art, too, but he's seen it his whole life. It's just not as thrilling to him as it is to me. I'm such a huge fan of her art, in fact, that J and I have no less than twelve prints of her paintings. I've given my mom a print, my sisters each a print, my dad and step-mom a print, and one of my friends got one, too!
Nobody in my family has that kind of talent. One of my aunts can draw pretty well, but I haven't seen her draw on anything other than lined notebook paper when we were kids. I could be wrong, of course, but I don't think she really does any "serious" art. It's more doodling when she's bored.
Anyway, Mom H. recently shared some exciting news! She (and about 11 other artists) are opening a new art gallery in their town. It's to be called Alcove Art Gallery, and will be a co-op. They will be open for business on April 17, and will have a grand opening on May 8. When their website is up and running, I'll share the address.
She is still a member of Art on the Boulevard in Vancouver, WA. Some of her artwork was featured in the advertising for their new show.
She sounds crazy busy right now. Between art shows, opening a new gallery, and putting new art in the old places, I don't know how she has time to do anything! But I am looking forward to seeing her new stuff.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
What do you say?
In the interest of continuing honesty, here's another fine character trait of mine: I don't know how to react when someone tells me bad news. I get awkward. I don't know what to say, what to do, how to deal.
Tuesday evening, when my sister called to tell me that my uncle has been given four months to a year to live, I responded by saying, "You're kidding."
What kind of a response was that? No one in their right mind jokes about something like this. All I did was make an awkward situation even worse. But I didn't know what else to say. Sometimes I amaze myself with my own social stupidity.
Now what do I say? What is there to say?
He was diagnosed a few months ago with cancer, but the story we got was that the doctors were optimistic and Uncle J was in good spirits. It was a minor inconvenience, and life would go on as regularly scheduled.
Today we found out that the doctors did a full body scan and the cancer has metastasized throughout his entire body including his liver and his brain. I am at a complete loss for words. There are no words of advice, no words of sympathy, no words of empathy. There is not one thing I can say.
I want to say that everything will be all right, but it won't.
I want to say I understand, but I don't.
I want to say a lot of things, but I can't.
I guess all I can say is I love you, Uncle J.
Tuesday evening, when my sister called to tell me that my uncle has been given four months to a year to live, I responded by saying, "You're kidding."
What kind of a response was that? No one in their right mind jokes about something like this. All I did was make an awkward situation even worse. But I didn't know what else to say. Sometimes I amaze myself with my own social stupidity.
Now what do I say? What is there to say?
He was diagnosed a few months ago with cancer, but the story we got was that the doctors were optimistic and Uncle J was in good spirits. It was a minor inconvenience, and life would go on as regularly scheduled.
Today we found out that the doctors did a full body scan and the cancer has metastasized throughout his entire body including his liver and his brain. I am at a complete loss for words. There are no words of advice, no words of sympathy, no words of empathy. There is not one thing I can say.
I want to say that everything will be all right, but it won't.
I want to say I understand, but I don't.
I want to say a lot of things, but I can't.
I guess all I can say is I love you, Uncle J.
Monday, January 5, 2009
A sister's love
For a long time, I've been jealous of the relationship my two younger sisters have. For a long time. I'm not going to lie, I wish I was as close to them as they are to each other. But I'm not.
But this Christmas I realized that we are closer than I thought.
It's amazing how sometimes they don't seem to know anything about me, but other times, they just seem to understand everything without me having to say a word.
Sometimes I think I may be too honest here, and share too much detail. But honesty is important, right? So let's be honest.
I'm overweight. I'm working on rectifying this, but it's a long sloooooow road. Frankly, it sucks. But I've talked to my sister about this periodically over the last few months, and she has been so supportive. In fact, December was "Give the gift of health" month at her gym, so L took me twice in the three days we were together at our Mom's house. She just understood. She didn't pressure me, she didn't criticize me. She knows what it's like. We've got that shared history. She's been overweight most of her life, too. Not as heavy as I am right now, but enough to know where I'm coming from.
It was actually kind of fun. So much so that instead of the rowing machine J was going to buy as our "big" Christmas gift, we are going to look into a gym membership instead. It would probably be cheaper than the rowing machine, and we both need to get our lazy behinds to the gym. Whatever we decide on, though, we're going to get healthy...together.
As if it's not embarrassing enough to talk about how fat I am, now I'm going to tell you about how mean I am. The morning after Christmas we were getting ready to leave for J's folks house, and I was in a bad mood. I didn't really know why I was in a bad mood, but I was. L and I went to the gym for an hour and a half, and when I got back, J was still in bed. Granted, we got back at 8:45 a.m., so it wasn't like he was lounging all day in bed, but I was annoyed. If you asked me that morning, like J did, what I was so angry about, I couldn't tell you. I didn't know. All I knew was that I was pissed off.
Guess who bore the brunt of it?
Nothing he did that morning was right. It didn't matter what it was, J could do no right. I snapped at him, I ignored him, I stomped around the house yelling that I wanted to just be left alone. I think I startled my mom and my sister. I was behaving irrationally and immaturely, and totally unlike me, and I knew it. But I couldn't stop, either.
Until L came and gave me a hug. She asked me what was wrong and I burst into tears. Turns out a lot of things were wrong, none of them important individually, but together they added up to a lot.
The straw that apparently broke the camel's back was that I was experiencing a huge bout of low self-esteem, and was not looking forward to the clothes shopping sprees sponsored by gift cards courtesy of my family.
She understood. And she took care of it for me. She explained to J why I was being such a royal witch. She explained to my mom, too. She then took the clothing gift cards I received from me, and told me to just go to J's folks. She would shop for me, and mail me stuff later. In fact, as soon as J and I left, Mom jumped in the shower, and she and L went shopping before L had to get on a plane back to Vegas.
It was such a relief to have someone who just understood. Who just knew. I didn't have to explain because she practically took the words out of my mouth. She knew that I was upset, but she also understood. She knew that I felt stupid for being upset by something so silly, and that it was making me angry. Words can't explain how that felt.
She took care of it.
She took care of me.
She understood.
Our bond is much stronger than I thought.
But this Christmas I realized that we are closer than I thought.
It's amazing how sometimes they don't seem to know anything about me, but other times, they just seem to understand everything without me having to say a word.
Sometimes I think I may be too honest here, and share too much detail. But honesty is important, right? So let's be honest.
I'm overweight. I'm working on rectifying this, but it's a long sloooooow road. Frankly, it sucks. But I've talked to my sister about this periodically over the last few months, and she has been so supportive. In fact, December was "Give the gift of health" month at her gym, so L took me twice in the three days we were together at our Mom's house. She just understood. She didn't pressure me, she didn't criticize me. She knows what it's like. We've got that shared history. She's been overweight most of her life, too. Not as heavy as I am right now, but enough to know where I'm coming from.
It was actually kind of fun. So much so that instead of the rowing machine J was going to buy as our "big" Christmas gift, we are going to look into a gym membership instead. It would probably be cheaper than the rowing machine, and we both need to get our lazy behinds to the gym. Whatever we decide on, though, we're going to get healthy...together.
As if it's not embarrassing enough to talk about how fat I am, now I'm going to tell you about how mean I am. The morning after Christmas we were getting ready to leave for J's folks house, and I was in a bad mood. I didn't really know why I was in a bad mood, but I was. L and I went to the gym for an hour and a half, and when I got back, J was still in bed. Granted, we got back at 8:45 a.m., so it wasn't like he was lounging all day in bed, but I was annoyed. If you asked me that morning, like J did, what I was so angry about, I couldn't tell you. I didn't know. All I knew was that I was pissed off.
Guess who bore the brunt of it?
Nothing he did that morning was right. It didn't matter what it was, J could do no right. I snapped at him, I ignored him, I stomped around the house yelling that I wanted to just be left alone. I think I startled my mom and my sister. I was behaving irrationally and immaturely, and totally unlike me, and I knew it. But I couldn't stop, either.
Until L came and gave me a hug. She asked me what was wrong and I burst into tears. Turns out a lot of things were wrong, none of them important individually, but together they added up to a lot.
The straw that apparently broke the camel's back was that I was experiencing a huge bout of low self-esteem, and was not looking forward to the clothes shopping sprees sponsored by gift cards courtesy of my family.
She understood. And she took care of it for me. She explained to J why I was being such a royal witch. She explained to my mom, too. She then took the clothing gift cards I received from me, and told me to just go to J's folks. She would shop for me, and mail me stuff later. In fact, as soon as J and I left, Mom jumped in the shower, and she and L went shopping before L had to get on a plane back to Vegas.
It was such a relief to have someone who just understood. Who just knew. I didn't have to explain because she practically took the words out of my mouth. She knew that I was upset, but she also understood. She knew that I felt stupid for being upset by something so silly, and that it was making me angry. Words can't explain how that felt.
She took care of it.
She took care of me.
She understood.
Our bond is much stronger than I thought.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Hallmark Ornaments
Every Christmas since I was born, (except, apparently 1983) I have received at least one Hallmark Christmas ornament. It is tradition, and it's one I hold close to my heart. It's almost to the point of obsession.
Three or four years ago, a few days before Christmas, my mom happened to comment that she had not purchased Hallmark ornaments that year because she and John had gotten us some cute ones when they visited Leavenworth. It shocked me how disappointed I was, and how immediately the feeling hit me. I hung up the phone, and found myself near tears.
Over an ornament. Or, more appropriately, over a lack of an ornament.
I called my mom back and told her how I felt. That I didn't know why I felt so strongly about it, but I did. I told her that I didn't particularly care which ornaments she got in addition to Hallmark, but that I wanted a Hallmark ornament, too. She acquiesced, and has continued still.
J and I haven't even put up a tree for the last four Christmases, but I love getting those ornaments every year.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not an ornament snob, exactly. I love all Christmas ornaments. When I put up a tree, I put them all up, no matter where they came from. But it's tradition to get a Hallmark ornament from my mom every year, and I don't want that to stop.
In addition to being a nice record of time passed, when I moved out of the house my mom gave me a box with all my ornaments in it. I was only 22, but I already had a lot of ornaments of my own...Mom didn't have to give up any of hers to supplement my collection. Some people like the plain round ball ornaments, but I don't love them. I want my tree to have more personality. I was thrilled to death that J and I had enough ornaments between us that we didn't have to buy generic ornaments to fill in the tree. We did buy some small red and silver balls, but didn't use them all. And we had a 6 foot tree.
Even before we got married, I started giving J Hallmark ornaments at Christmas, but it was sporadic. I didn't give him one every year. Once we got hitched officially, though, I got deliberate about it. In addition to whatever my mom gives him / us, I give J at least one Hallmark ornament each year. He doesn't care about this stuff as much as I do, but I think it will be cool for our kids or our grandkids to have those ornaments one day. When we have kids, they will be getting Hallmark ornaments for sure.
It's horribly morbid to think about your parent's demise, but when I think about my mom's belongings, and what makes me think of her, her Hallmark ornament collection is the forerunner. Her wedding ring and some cement planters that used to be my grandma's are on the list, too, but the Hallmark ornaments are near the top. I'm sure my sisters will want some, too, but I definitely will get some of them!
But I digress.
Because we haven't put up a tree for a long time, we haven't bothered to pull all of our ornaments down from the attic in the garage. I've just taken whatever new Christmas decoration stuff we get and put it in shoe boxes and then stacked them on J's workbench in the garage.
This year I decided I wanted to take them all down, and photograph each and every single ornament. I'm not really sure why. It's sorta crazy.
It's really crazy.
But I did it. Well, to be exact, J climbed up into the creepy attic and handed down plastic storage bin after plastic storage bin. I carried them into the house and then got to work. I charged the batteries for my camera (I have two so that I never have to stop taking pictures while the other one charges - it's one of the best purchases I ever made), grabbed a white towel to use as a neutral background, and then got to work. It took me almost all of yesterday, and most of today, but I did it! I have created a list of every Hallmark ornament I own (plus the few that J owns and the few that were given to us as a couple), and taken pictures of literally every single ornament, Hallmark or not. Turns out we own 73 Hallmark ornaments and countless other types. Of the 73 Hallmarks, J owns 10...and we share about 8...I told you I had a lot...
Here are a few of my favorite Hallmark ornaments over the years. Remember, I have tons...I love them all, but these are a few that stand out.
This is the very first ornament I ever got.
Coincidentally, J got a Hallmark ornament his very first Christmas, too! He didn't get another, though, until I started giving them to him 23 years later! This one was from his great-grandma on his dad's side.
And this is the first one I gave J in 1998. We had been dating for a year.
I don't love this one, but the year we got married it was the ONLY "Our first Christmas" ornament at Hallmark.
This one reminds me of Easter. Santa at Easter?? It's not really Easter. It's called "Woodland Friends" and I love it, regardless.
This is the ornament I got this year. It is from "A Christmas Story." Remember that movie? I remember watching it as a kid, over and over and over again with my sisters.
This is my all-time favorite ornament. I don't really know why. Perhaps it's because nobody else in my family has it? T was born in 1979 so hers is a baby's first Christmas ornament. It's pretty, and it's my favorite.
Just to prove I am not an ornament snob, here are some of my favorite non-Hallmark ornaments. We have tons of these, too. Interestingly, I find that the ones I like the best are the handmade or unique ones. I have lots of "generic" Santas and snowmen, etc. that are super cute, but these are my favorites.
This came from J's grandma. She made it for me. I LOVE the all white / silver look. It's so elegant!
She made this one, too!
Hmm...apparently J's grandma and grandad have fantastic taste in ornaments, because this one also came from them. Grandma did not make this one, though! It opens up like a little box! It's so cute. J has a red one with white reindeer on it. I got online today and found a bunch more of these. I'm considering ordering a bunch to give away to people next year. I know that I'll end up keeping them to myself, though, so I'll have to think it through before I make the purchase...
This is the cute one from Leavenworth that threatened the Hallmark ornament collection a few years ago. I can't hold it against her, though...she's divine!
I imagine when I have kids, I will like the homemade ones best, but regardless, I think this Hallmark tradition is here to stay.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Why couldn't this have been LAST week?
Whenever it starts to snow, I start singing.
"Oh, the weather outside is frightful"
That it is. We haven't had this much snow in I don't know how long! We tend to get a little bit of snow every year here, but just a little. This year was so mild for so long, I didn't think we'd see any white stuff this winter. But, it started snowing a week ago today. It essentially hasn't stopped. We've had breaks in the snowfall, but the weather has been so cold, it hasn't melted off any. It has been in single digits most days, but there were two (or maybe three) days that got up to a seemingly warm 23-24 degrees. There was just enough time for the city to get out there and plow the roads well enough that we had to go to school EVERY day last week. Granted, we had five 2 hour delays in a row, but we were in school every day.
"But the fire is so delightful."
Well, the fire used to be delightful. But we have burned through all the firewood that was usable. The stuff we have left is either too wet and buried under more than a foot and a half of snow, or too green. We resorted to burning a few duraflame logs last night. But we ran out of them. J may just have to brave the cold and bring some of it in to the garage to hopefully dry out a bit. He intends to put a roof over the firewood stand as soon as he possibly can.
"And since we've no place to go, let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!"
Oh, boy, this is so not true this week!! We have places to go! We want to get across to the other side of the state to see our family. Our original plan was to go to Federal Way / Seattle first, to see my folks, then make our way south to see J's folks near Vancouver, then back home. I got out of school on Friday, and we decided to stick around for the weekend so we could get stuff done and have plenty of time to do it. We intended to leave first thing Monday morning. Last night, when it started snowing again while we were running errands, we got online as soon as we got home to check the pass conditions.
It's closed. From milepost 34 near North Bend, to milepost 106 near Ellensburg. With no opening time in sight because of continued bad weather.
So, let's look at alternate routes. Hmm...Hwy. 14 is closed until further notice.
White Pass appears to be open. But there are parts of Hwy. 12 that are slippery, and could potentially be closed any minute according to WSDOT.
Well, we could always drive down into Oregon and back up. Portland has been hit with snow, and they are requiring chains for all vehicles. But that's okay, we just got chains for my car, even though we have 4-wheel drive. Oh, wait a minute, no we can't. I-84 is closed from Troutdale to Hood River.
Well, shoot. I don't know what we are going to do. Hopefully it will stop snowing soon.
"It doesn't show signs of stopping"
Oh, that's right. There is more snow forecast this week. For the next five days. Crap. I really don't know what we're going to do.
"And I've bought some corn for popping"
If only that would make me feel better. Right now I think I need a stiff drink, and I don't drink.
"The lights are turned way down low"
Yeah, but that's because the snow clouds are so heavy, it appears to be twilight, rather than early morning.
"Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!"
I changed my mind. Let it stop, let it stop, oh, please, let it stop.
I love a white Christmas, usually. This is kinda crazy, though. If we really had no place to go, this would be wonderful, and romantic, and just all around fun. Because we have places to go, this is highly stressful and no fun anymore. Why couldn't this have happened last week? I would have loved a few extra days off from school!
"Oh, the weather outside is frightful"
That it is. We haven't had this much snow in I don't know how long! We tend to get a little bit of snow every year here, but just a little. This year was so mild for so long, I didn't think we'd see any white stuff this winter. But, it started snowing a week ago today. It essentially hasn't stopped. We've had breaks in the snowfall, but the weather has been so cold, it hasn't melted off any. It has been in single digits most days, but there were two (or maybe three) days that got up to a seemingly warm 23-24 degrees. There was just enough time for the city to get out there and plow the roads well enough that we had to go to school EVERY day last week. Granted, we had five 2 hour delays in a row, but we were in school every day.
"But the fire is so delightful."
Well, the fire used to be delightful. But we have burned through all the firewood that was usable. The stuff we have left is either too wet and buried under more than a foot and a half of snow, or too green. We resorted to burning a few duraflame logs last night. But we ran out of them. J may just have to brave the cold and bring some of it in to the garage to hopefully dry out a bit. He intends to put a roof over the firewood stand as soon as he possibly can.
"And since we've no place to go, let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!"
Oh, boy, this is so not true this week!! We have places to go! We want to get across to the other side of the state to see our family. Our original plan was to go to Federal Way / Seattle first, to see my folks, then make our way south to see J's folks near Vancouver, then back home. I got out of school on Friday, and we decided to stick around for the weekend so we could get stuff done and have plenty of time to do it. We intended to leave first thing Monday morning. Last night, when it started snowing again while we were running errands, we got online as soon as we got home to check the pass conditions.
It's closed. From milepost 34 near North Bend, to milepost 106 near Ellensburg. With no opening time in sight because of continued bad weather.
So, let's look at alternate routes. Hmm...Hwy. 14 is closed until further notice.
White Pass appears to be open. But there are parts of Hwy. 12 that are slippery, and could potentially be closed any minute according to WSDOT.
Well, we could always drive down into Oregon and back up. Portland has been hit with snow, and they are requiring chains for all vehicles. But that's okay, we just got chains for my car, even though we have 4-wheel drive. Oh, wait a minute, no we can't. I-84 is closed from Troutdale to Hood River.
Well, shoot. I don't know what we are going to do. Hopefully it will stop snowing soon.
"It doesn't show signs of stopping"
Oh, that's right. There is more snow forecast this week. For the next five days. Crap. I really don't know what we're going to do.
"And I've bought some corn for popping"
If only that would make me feel better. Right now I think I need a stiff drink, and I don't drink.
"The lights are turned way down low"
Yeah, but that's because the snow clouds are so heavy, it appears to be twilight, rather than early morning.
"Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!"
I changed my mind. Let it stop, let it stop, oh, please, let it stop.
I love a white Christmas, usually. This is kinda crazy, though. If we really had no place to go, this would be wonderful, and romantic, and just all around fun. Because we have places to go, this is highly stressful and no fun anymore. Why couldn't this have happened last week? I would have loved a few extra days off from school!
Monday, September 1, 2008
Security...it's a good thing
J and I went to Federal Way this Labor Day weekend to visit my mom, sister and step-dad. It was a really nice weekend. It was low-key, but fun. We did a little shopping with my sister T, went to dinner with my mom, and went to the Emerald Queen Casino to see my step-dad in action. For the last eight months, he's been working two jobs. Monday through Friday and one weekend a month, he works as an alarm technician. He works for a company that installs and maintains security and fire alarms.
On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, you can find him at the EQC working security. He's talked a lot about his job for a long time now. He really enjoys it. He's pretty funny, actually. When he talks, he talks in code...security code. He'll say things like, "Badge 233 and I were working the floor, when we got a call on our radios that said there was a Code 4 in progress." Of course, I'm making those numbers up entirely, but you get the idea. He really seems to enjoy this job. In fact, I asked him if both jobs paid the same, would he rather work security or as an alarm technician. I was surprised when he answered immediately without thinking, "Security."
It was nice to finally see him in action, and see the places he talks about. Usually, he works the night club or the different events, but sometimes he works the casino floor. When we went to see him on Saturday night, we surprised him by just showing up. The last time we were in town, J and I were supposed to go visit him at work, but since he works nights, we fell asleep and didn't make it. This time, I didn't want to disappoint him again, so we thought we wouldn't tell him we were coming. Then, if we fell asleep again, it wouldn't matter.
When we got to the EQC, we found out he was working at the night club, and he was upstairs on "bathroom duty." For those of you who know my step-dad, you'll know that this is rather ironic. At the night club, there are no bathrooms inside the actual club area. You have to leave the club to use the facilities, so they post a security guard at the door to monitor the comings and goings of club guests. That's where we found him. Sitting on a chair near the door. It's no wonder he loves that job! In fact, when I asked him what "stations" he liked best at the EQC, his top favorites were the bathroom, the elevator (again, sitting on a chair near the elevator monitoring the comings and goings of patrons), and the exit (if you guessed it involved sitting in a chair monitoring the comings and goings of patrons, you were right!).
He was surprised and pleased to see us, and told us he'd come find us on his break. We got to hang out with him for just a few minutes, but it was neat to see him in action...well, sort of.
While I was at my mom's, I briefly skimmed through her drawer of pictures, looking for some new ones to scan. I only had about five minutes to look before we left, so I didn't find very many. I did, however, find photographic proof that John was destined to work security at the EQC.
On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, you can find him at the EQC working security. He's talked a lot about his job for a long time now. He really enjoys it. He's pretty funny, actually. When he talks, he talks in code...security code. He'll say things like, "Badge 233 and I were working the floor, when we got a call on our radios that said there was a Code 4 in progress." Of course, I'm making those numbers up entirely, but you get the idea. He really seems to enjoy this job. In fact, I asked him if both jobs paid the same, would he rather work security or as an alarm technician. I was surprised when he answered immediately without thinking, "Security."
It was nice to finally see him in action, and see the places he talks about. Usually, he works the night club or the different events, but sometimes he works the casino floor. When we went to see him on Saturday night, we surprised him by just showing up. The last time we were in town, J and I were supposed to go visit him at work, but since he works nights, we fell asleep and didn't make it. This time, I didn't want to disappoint him again, so we thought we wouldn't tell him we were coming. Then, if we fell asleep again, it wouldn't matter.
When we got to the EQC, we found out he was working at the night club, and he was upstairs on "bathroom duty." For those of you who know my step-dad, you'll know that this is rather ironic. At the night club, there are no bathrooms inside the actual club area. You have to leave the club to use the facilities, so they post a security guard at the door to monitor the comings and goings of club guests. That's where we found him. Sitting on a chair near the door. It's no wonder he loves that job! In fact, when I asked him what "stations" he liked best at the EQC, his top favorites were the bathroom, the elevator (again, sitting on a chair near the elevator monitoring the comings and goings of patrons), and the exit (if you guessed it involved sitting in a chair monitoring the comings and goings of patrons, you were right!).
He was surprised and pleased to see us, and told us he'd come find us on his break. We got to hang out with him for just a few minutes, but it was neat to see him in action...well, sort of.
While I was at my mom's, I briefly skimmed through her drawer of pictures, looking for some new ones to scan. I only had about five minutes to look before we left, so I didn't find very many. I did, however, find photographic proof that John was destined to work security at the EQC.
Friday, August 8, 2008
'Stina!!
Can I tell you how much I love the way little kids try to say my name?? When I was in the seventh grade, I started babysitting for a little boy named Nick. He was three. His older sister is my one of my sister T's best friends. She is about nine years older than her brother, so when I babysat, it was just for Nick, even if his sister was home. As most older siblings do, Nick's older sister took great pleasure in tormenting and teasing her little brother. The very first time I babysat for Nick, his sister was home. She told him to clean up his toys in the living room or she was going to get the vacuum out and suck them all up.
Nick was apparently afraid of the vacuum cleaner, and freaked out. He hurled himself across the room and onto my lap (remember, we had just met about twenty minutes before), screaming and crying. He kept reapeating, "Help me, Tatina! Tatina, help!!"
For the next few years, that's how Nick's family referred to me: Tatina. How cute is that?
My cousin Kirk and Andy, a friend of the family, used to call me Tina, but that didn't last long. For the last fifteen years or so, I've just been plain old Kristina. Boring.
Until recently, that is. My friend's son, let's call him Wall-E (he LOVES that movie!), turned three in May, and for the last six months or so, he's been saying my name. When I walk into the room, Wall-E's eyes light up, he smiles, and says, " 'Stina!"
Oh, my goodness. How cute is that? A few times, he's actually said, "Kristina" but I don't encourage that at all. 'Stina is way cuter.
Speaking of cute, check Wall-E out! He's gonna be a heartbreaker for sure!
Nick was apparently afraid of the vacuum cleaner, and freaked out. He hurled himself across the room and onto my lap (remember, we had just met about twenty minutes before), screaming and crying. He kept reapeating, "Help me, Tatina! Tatina, help!!"
For the next few years, that's how Nick's family referred to me: Tatina. How cute is that?
My cousin Kirk and Andy, a friend of the family, used to call me Tina, but that didn't last long. For the last fifteen years or so, I've just been plain old Kristina. Boring.
Until recently, that is. My friend's son, let's call him Wall-E (he LOVES that movie!), turned three in May, and for the last six months or so, he's been saying my name. When I walk into the room, Wall-E's eyes light up, he smiles, and says, " 'Stina!"
Oh, my goodness. How cute is that? A few times, he's actually said, "Kristina" but I don't encourage that at all. 'Stina is way cuter.
Speaking of cute, check Wall-E out! He's gonna be a heartbreaker for sure!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Happy Birthday, Mom!
I suck. Today is my mom's birthday, and I did not send her a card. I'm going to call her, of course, but she won't have a card to open. Damn. I've been trying to be better about remembering to do that kind of stuff early. I hate living so far away sometimes. I have known her birthday was coming up for a long time. I've even discussed possible gift options with J. We just kept putting it off, though, because this day seemed so far away.
Well, here it is, and I'm the worst daughter ever.
In an effort to make up for my lack of preparation, I'm going to include a list of 58 things I like most about my mom. (Anyone want to guess why 58?)
1. She loves me.
2. She loves J.
3. She is interested in my boring school stories even when nobody else is.
4. She thinks I'm funny.
5. She gives great hugs.
6. She loves my sisters.
7. She can't remember the punchline to a single joke. You can tell her the same jokes over and over, and she's like a brand new audience. Every single time.
8. She helped plan and pay for my wedding.
9. She always wanted us to bring our friends over when we were younger.
10. She once bought 12 boxes of corn flakes so my sisters and I could get free "Duck Tales" bags.
11. She cleaned the litter boxes last time she came to my house.
12. She loves to surprise people.
13. She will still help do my laundry when she visits here, or I visit there.
14. She used to let us use a "You are Special Today" plate on our birthdays.
15. She is generous.
16. She once asked for a "litter box" instead of a "little box" in a restaurant.
17. She has a great sense of humor.
18. She gives great advice.
19. I look just like her. Just fatter.
20. She taught me to play cribbage.
21. She is the kindest person I know. If you need something and she's able to give it to you, she does it.
22. She is sympathetic.
23. She loves to laugh.
24. She loves cats.
25. She called my friend and arranged to surprise me with a visit on my birthday one year.
When we arrived at the play we were going to, my mom was standing on the sidewalk in front of the theater.
26. She taught me how to be a nice person.
27. She loves me.
28. She loves J.
29. She loves my sisters.
30. She loves to spend time with me and my sisters.
31. She is programmed to tell stories three times. Once for each of us. Unfortunately she doesn't always tell each daughter - one of us usually gets the same story twice and one gets left out.
32. She will talk to anyone. Even the clerk at the grocery store.
33. She taught me to share.
34. She is proud of me.
35. Education is important to her. She went back to college when I did. She graduated a month after me.
36. She likes to have fun.
37. After the divorce from my dad, she took care of us by herself while working and going to school full time.
38. She is predictable.
39. She gives great medical advice.
40. She is brave.
41. She gets a kick out of e-mail jokes. She prints them out to share with people.
42. I get my gift of gab from her.
43. She's always ready for an adventure.
44. She has learned how to use the computer. She knows just enough to be dangerous.
45. She considers everyone family. When J and I are visiting her, we like to be able to see J's sister C, too. She goes to school in Seattle. My mom has extended an open invitation for C to come over whenever, even if J and I aren't there.
46. She's creative.
47. She will stay up late and watch stupid television with me.
48. She wants me and J to live closer to her so she can see us more often.
49. She loves me.
50. She loves J.
51. She loves my sisters.
52. She listens to me vent my frustrations.
53. She is one of my best friends. I can tell her anything.
54. She is not judgmental.
55. She is protective of me and my sisters still.
56. She stopped giving me haircuts.
57. She's funny.
And reason number 58: She's my mom and I love her.
Happy Birthday, Mom!!
Well, here it is, and I'm the worst daughter ever.
In an effort to make up for my lack of preparation, I'm going to include a list of 58 things I like most about my mom. (Anyone want to guess why 58?)
1. She loves me.
2. She loves J.
3. She is interested in my boring school stories even when nobody else is.
4. She thinks I'm funny.
5. She gives great hugs.
6. She loves my sisters.
7. She can't remember the punchline to a single joke. You can tell her the same jokes over and over, and she's like a brand new audience. Every single time.
8. She helped plan and pay for my wedding.
9. She always wanted us to bring our friends over when we were younger.
10. She once bought 12 boxes of corn flakes so my sisters and I could get free "Duck Tales" bags.
11. She cleaned the litter boxes last time she came to my house.
12. She loves to surprise people.
13. She will still help do my laundry when she visits here, or I visit there.
14. She used to let us use a "You are Special Today" plate on our birthdays.
15. She is generous.
16. She once asked for a "litter box" instead of a "little box" in a restaurant.
17. She has a great sense of humor.
18. She gives great advice.
19. I look just like her. Just fatter.
20. She taught me to play cribbage.
21. She is the kindest person I know. If you need something and she's able to give it to you, she does it.
22. She is sympathetic.
23. She loves to laugh.
24. She loves cats.
25. She called my friend and arranged to surprise me with a visit on my birthday one year.
When we arrived at the play we were going to, my mom was standing on the sidewalk in front of the theater.
26. She taught me how to be a nice person.
27. She loves me.
28. She loves J.
29. She loves my sisters.
30. She loves to spend time with me and my sisters.
31. She is programmed to tell stories three times. Once for each of us. Unfortunately she doesn't always tell each daughter - one of us usually gets the same story twice and one gets left out.
32. She will talk to anyone. Even the clerk at the grocery store.
33. She taught me to share.
34. She is proud of me.
35. Education is important to her. She went back to college when I did. She graduated a month after me.
36. She likes to have fun.
37. After the divorce from my dad, she took care of us by herself while working and going to school full time.
38. She is predictable.
39. She gives great medical advice.
40. She is brave.
41. She gets a kick out of e-mail jokes. She prints them out to share with people.
42. I get my gift of gab from her.
43. She's always ready for an adventure.
44. She has learned how to use the computer. She knows just enough to be dangerous.
45. She considers everyone family. When J and I are visiting her, we like to be able to see J's sister C, too. She goes to school in Seattle. My mom has extended an open invitation for C to come over whenever, even if J and I aren't there.
46. She's creative.
47. She will stay up late and watch stupid television with me.
48. She wants me and J to live closer to her so she can see us more often.
49. She loves me.
50. She loves J.
51. She loves my sisters.
52. She listens to me vent my frustrations.
53. She is one of my best friends. I can tell her anything.
54. She is not judgmental.
55. She is protective of me and my sisters still.
56. She stopped giving me haircuts.
57. She's funny.
And reason number 58: She's my mom and I love her.
Happy Birthday, Mom!!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Sam the Beagle
Recently I wrote about the camping trip J and I went on with his family. I mentioned that I wished I had taken more pictures. While this is still true, I realized that I do have a picture of Sam the Beagle, H's dog. H is in the Air Force and stationed at Edwards Air Force Base in California. A few months ago, Mom and Dad H. went to visit her and Sam. While they were there, they took Sam and went on a hike. Here's a picture of Sam in the rental car. Isn't he cute?
Friday, July 11, 2008
Camping at Cougar Flats
I enjoy camping, but after four days in the wilderness, I have this to say: running water rocks and vault toilets suck. Seriously. If you have never had the privilege of using a vault toilet, count your blessings. I guess it's better than nothing...but not much.
J told me that there would be bathrooms and running water. Unfortunately, the two things were not in the same place. There was a water pump at the entrance to the campground, but it was missing its handle. A little further in were vault toilets. If you don't know what a vault toilet is, it's basically an outhouse. You walk into this little room that has no lights and no sink. The "toilet" is basically just an opening over...well, you can figure the rest out. Suffice it to say, I hate vault toilets. Unfortunately, unless I wanted to drop my pants in the middle of the woods, I had no other options. J brought a bottle of hand sanitizer which was a life saver. I did not realize that I wouldn't even be able to wash my hands. Gross.
Overall the trip was pretty fun. I finally got to meet my SIL's dog, Sam. He is a beagle, and beyond cute. I wish I had taken pictures of our trip. I don't know why I didn't. There were several things that were photo worthy. I only managed to capture one on film. I'll share that in a minute. But here is a list of the things I wish I had gotten pictures of:
1. My FIL came back from a two hour hike and was so hot he planned to go jump in the river. (Remember that we were on a mountain, so this river was COLD!!) He decided to just go jump in, fully clothed. He did, however, take the time to change from his hiking boots into Aquasocks. He did not, however, take his white athletic socks off. We laughed so hard, and teased him so much, he finally did take off the socks. I wish I had gotten a picture for posterity...and possible blackmail.
2. Sam the beagle was cute, but not entirely brilliant. He wanted treats, and we periodically shared our food with him. H makes him sit or lay down before she gives him a treat. One night at dinner, he wanted a treat so bad, he couldn't even pay attention to what H was telling him to do. She said sit and he would lay down. I lost track of how many times this happened, but my sides hurt from laughing.
3. The bug tent that goes over a picnic table was NOT over the table. It was in the middle of the campsite, over nothing. I'm really not sure why we bothered to put it up at all. It looked kind of lonely sitting there all by itself, doing nothing.
4. I was so desperate for a shower and clean hair, that I tried to get water from the pump myself. Turns out I am not tall enough or strong enough to do it. J was on a hike with everyone else, though, and I was at the campsite alone. I was resourceful...and desperate...and I got an empty water bottle and filled it with melted water from the cooler. It was COLD, but I felt much better when my hair was clean. I even braved the cold water for a spit bath.
5. The vault toilet house that I complained about already.
6. The scenery. It was a gorgeous place in the middle of nature.
7. Here are the pictures of the one event I did get. J was gearing up to go gold panning, and possibly fishing. You can see the coolest tent ever in the background, on its maiden voyage. You can also see our bikes (being used as towel racks) and the clear boxes I used to store our stuff in an attempt to be organized. (I LOVED the tent, by the way!! It was very comfortable and roomy! So easy to put up, easy to keep clean, and easy to take down. It was nice to use the cab of the truck for our "dressing room" and keep the bags out of the tent. Everything else we had was in clear plastic tubs under the truck. Easy access, clean and organized, and out of the way. Great experience overall!! If you like to camp, I would highly recommend this tent. I put a step stool at the entrance of the tent because our truck is giant, and that worked great as well.)
J kept trying to avoid me and the camera. I managed to get him, though.
J and I went camping this week with his parents and one of his sisters. When the Hockings go camping, they like to be in the middle of nowhere, with nobody around. Originally we were going to go camping in the Blue Mountains in Oregon at a place near Lowestein. Unfortunately, they had snow in June, and an avalanche covered the campground. In June!! After several plans were thwarted because of the crazy weather we've been having, we finally settled on a place. We ended up at Cougar Flats, in the Wenatchee National Forest about a half an hour outside of Naches, Washington. It was beautiful.
J told me that there would be bathrooms and running water. Unfortunately, the two things were not in the same place. There was a water pump at the entrance to the campground, but it was missing its handle. A little further in were vault toilets. If you don't know what a vault toilet is, it's basically an outhouse. You walk into this little room that has no lights and no sink. The "toilet" is basically just an opening over...well, you can figure the rest out. Suffice it to say, I hate vault toilets. Unfortunately, unless I wanted to drop my pants in the middle of the woods, I had no other options. J brought a bottle of hand sanitizer which was a life saver. I did not realize that I wouldn't even be able to wash my hands. Gross.
Overall the trip was pretty fun. I finally got to meet my SIL's dog, Sam. He is a beagle, and beyond cute. I wish I had taken pictures of our trip. I don't know why I didn't. There were several things that were photo worthy. I only managed to capture one on film. I'll share that in a minute. But here is a list of the things I wish I had gotten pictures of:
1. My FIL came back from a two hour hike and was so hot he planned to go jump in the river. (Remember that we were on a mountain, so this river was COLD!!) He decided to just go jump in, fully clothed. He did, however, take the time to change from his hiking boots into Aquasocks. He did not, however, take his white athletic socks off. We laughed so hard, and teased him so much, he finally did take off the socks. I wish I had gotten a picture for posterity...and possible blackmail.
2. Sam the beagle was cute, but not entirely brilliant. He wanted treats, and we periodically shared our food with him. H makes him sit or lay down before she gives him a treat. One night at dinner, he wanted a treat so bad, he couldn't even pay attention to what H was telling him to do. She said sit and he would lay down. I lost track of how many times this happened, but my sides hurt from laughing.
3. The bug tent that goes over a picnic table was NOT over the table. It was in the middle of the campsite, over nothing. I'm really not sure why we bothered to put it up at all. It looked kind of lonely sitting there all by itself, doing nothing.
4. I was so desperate for a shower and clean hair, that I tried to get water from the pump myself. Turns out I am not tall enough or strong enough to do it. J was on a hike with everyone else, though, and I was at the campsite alone. I was resourceful...and desperate...and I got an empty water bottle and filled it with melted water from the cooler. It was COLD, but I felt much better when my hair was clean. I even braved the cold water for a spit bath.
5. The vault toilet house that I complained about already.
6. The scenery. It was a gorgeous place in the middle of nature.
7. Here are the pictures of the one event I did get. J was gearing up to go gold panning, and possibly fishing. You can see the coolest tent ever in the background, on its maiden voyage. You can also see our bikes (being used as towel racks) and the clear boxes I used to store our stuff in an attempt to be organized. (I LOVED the tent, by the way!! It was very comfortable and roomy! So easy to put up, easy to keep clean, and easy to take down. It was nice to use the cab of the truck for our "dressing room" and keep the bags out of the tent. Everything else we had was in clear plastic tubs under the truck. Easy access, clean and organized, and out of the way. Great experience overall!! If you like to camp, I would highly recommend this tent. I put a step stool at the entrance of the tent because our truck is giant, and that worked great as well.)
J kept trying to avoid me and the camera. I managed to get him, though.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Importance of being bilingual
Right now my mom is in Honduras learning how to speak Spanish. She was a Pediatrics Nurse Practitioner, but decided that she wanted to go back to school to get her Family Nurse Practitioner license instead. While she was completing her schooling, she worked at a clinic called SeaMar (I'm not sure how to spell it...it means from Seattle to Marysville). A high percentage of this clinic's patients are Spanish speakers, and my mom does NOT speak Spanish. Other than burrito, margarita, enchilada and taco, that is. While she was there, though, she fell in love with the clinic, and applied for a job. She was hired. Now, in addition to studying for her licensing test, she needs to learn some Spanish, too.
So she decided to go the immersion route, and hopped a plane to Honduras. Well, it wasn't quite that simple, but almost. She is living with a host family and going to school to learn how to speak. She'll be there for three weeks total. She's already been there for a week and a half or so.
It sounds like she is having a good time so far. And, I think she is learning some Spanish! She texted me on the Fourth of July and told me (in Spanish) to have a good Fourth, and that it was very early in Honduras and the rooster was confused because he was crowing at 12:30 in the afternoon.
Pretty soon she'll speak more Spanish than me! One of my goals is to be bilingual. I'll get there eventually, but for now, I'll live vicariously through my mom.
Here's a cute video my sister sent me a few years ago that goes well with this topic. It is pretty grainy, but you can see it well enough to understand.
So she decided to go the immersion route, and hopped a plane to Honduras. Well, it wasn't quite that simple, but almost. She is living with a host family and going to school to learn how to speak. She'll be there for three weeks total. She's already been there for a week and a half or so.
It sounds like she is having a good time so far. And, I think she is learning some Spanish! She texted me on the Fourth of July and told me (in Spanish) to have a good Fourth, and that it was very early in Honduras and the rooster was confused because he was crowing at 12:30 in the afternoon.
Pretty soon she'll speak more Spanish than me! One of my goals is to be bilingual. I'll get there eventually, but for now, I'll live vicariously through my mom.
Here's a cute video my sister sent me a few years ago that goes well with this topic. It is pretty grainy, but you can see it well enough to understand.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Sisters
I love my sisters. We are all so different, yet there are some random similarities. When we were little and fought like...well, sisters, Mom always said we would love each other when we were grown ups. We didn't believe her.
My sisters share the same birthday, but they are not twins. T was born 10/5/79 and L was born 10/5/81. They are closer to each other than I am with either sister. That's hard for me a lot of the time. I get jealous, to be honest. But I know they both love me, too. I don't know if it's because they share a birthday or if it's because they are just more alike, but they are close.
While I think each of the three of us has a great sense of humor, both of my sisters are funny...very funny. They can tell jokes and stories that have you rolling on the ground laughing so hard you cry.
They both are very friendly, and are not afraid to talk to people. They have both worked in retail before, and were awesome at it. At parties, even family parties, I tend to stick to one or both of them as if I'd been velcroed there.
As much as I hate to admit it, Mom was right. The older I get the more I love my sisters. Here are the two most recent pictures I have of my sisters. Coincidentally, I took both pictures, and in both pictures they are each doing something for me...voluntarily.
T is taking out the vacuum cleaner to clean my living room before my in-laws came to visit. In the two pictures of T doing my laundry I was not fast enough to catch her face...
In the picture of L, she is sitting in the beauty salon while I was getting my hair done. She was there to keep me company, just because.
This post is short, because though I could say a million different things about them, it all boils down to the same thing: I love my sisters.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Babies
My great-auntie Bea recently turned 75, and I went to Gig Harbor for the party.*** I haven't been able to go to a family function in several years because of school schedule conflicts, so it was really nice to be able to go. While I was there, I had the chance to meet not only a lot of Auntie Bea's friends, but my new cousins. My cousins and I have reached the age we are all getting married and some are having babies.
Brian and his wife Kelly have two young sons, Angus Eliot is three and a half, and Finley Randall is about a year and a half. Kelly is about four months pregnant again, so they'll have a third soon.
Angus with my sister L.
Brian and Finley
Finley at the screen door
My cousin Paul, Jr. (who is three weeks older than I am) and his wife Amalia just had a baby girl three months ago. Her name is Mya Elisa, and she's such a good baby!! She never fussed once the entire time she was at the party. She was content to be passed from person to person to person...to person.
Paul
Mya
Mya with my sister T
Paul, Amalia and Mya (Amalia is so cute!! No wonder Mya is too! Sorry the picture is so small. This was one from an e-mail, and if I make it bigger the quality is really poor.)
J and I were only asked about five times when we were going to have a baby of our own. I hate that question. How do you answer it? I have no answer. J and I are trying. We've been trying for a long time now. We are at the point where we think we need medical intervention, but that's a scary step to take. Though we're ready for it intellectually, we're not quite ready for it emotionally. It was hard for me to go to the party, knowing I would see my cousin's kids, and knowing I would be asked that question. But I am glad I did go. It was great to see my family, and it was nice to see the new additions. Hopefully we'll have our own new addition soon, too.
***I was SO busy the entire time I was there, I was not able to see any of my old friends, and for that I apologize. I was hoping to be able to visit with people, but my mom and aunt kept me busy and running back and forth between Federal Way and Gig Harbor the entire time I was there. When I come for just a visit, I'll make sure to make time for friends!
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