Lingering

Somethings from Valentine's Day have lingered around our house.

• 60 or so little kid valentines, which I keep finding throughout the house
• the kids bedroom door's still have residual paper hearts from their "heart attacks" 
• and this heart I made for Travis above his sink on the mirror

Sadly...there are no more of these lingering.

Despite All That

I like to think I have some pretty attractive children.  But despite all that I still seem to be able to caputre some totally unflattering shots.

It's Not A Glow

I have always been amused by the women who claim not to sweat but instead glow.  Apparently they have not met me.  I sweat especially after working out hard for 2.5 hours.  And when I rub my tired face, you can see just how much salt I have sweat out. 

Mundane

After feeling super busy and taking a hiatus from blogging this week is going to focus on the mundane.

Lunch today!  Total accident that everything happened to be orange.  But of course the kids noticed.

Transplant

You can take the boy out of Texas, but you can't take the Texas out of the boy.   And this is exactly why my 7 and almost 9 year old have already had their first driving lessons.  And not your garden variety sit on my lap and steer kind.  No my hubby took the kids to a parking look jumped in the passenger seat and let them try it all on their own the whole kit and caboodle of driving.  Everyone's alive, but it was a bit shocking to learn about this especially from one of the kids. 

In other news...I have taken the boy out of Texas into Pennsylvania and into this crazy weather.  Last week we had several nice days, two reaching 70+ degrees, no coats, and lots of playground action.  Tonight it is snowing and since I didn't watch the news I was shocked to get up from reading and see an inch already on the ground.  T-rex informs me we are supposed to get 3-5 inches.  Let's hope for a delay and no cancellation.  At this rate we're already going into the middle of June.

Can I Just Tell You?

This was how my friend approached me on Saturday night.  He said, "Can I just tell you how much I love your husband?"  Is this answer to this "yes" or is it "I know he's great that's why I married him"?  He continued to enumerate all the reasons he loved my husband. And I can't help but glow because I think the world of him too.  And of course I passed that list of compliments right along to my husband.  But here are some of the reasons that I love my husband that most people don't know:

• He is super funny - he may appear quiet on the exterior, but he can get very funny and his humor changes.  Most people have one type of humor, but my hubby has a silly humor, a dirty type of humor, he's very big on puns, and when he uses sarcasm it is the absolute best, because he can use the deadpan tone so seriously most people don't know if he's joking or not.
• He is one of the strongest men I have ever met - although not all bulky, meat head muscles, pound for pound he is the strongest man I know.  Our courtship started with wrestling matches and still to this day I love to without warning run and jump on him to see if he can catch me.  The other night he held his arms out at a 90 angle, like he is about to do a bicep curl and I did a straddle jump and landed in his arms.  He caught me flawlessly.  And come on how can this not be super sexy to be toted around as if I weigh nothing.
• He loves games - I love to play games, not your garden variety Candyland or Monopoly, and he indulges me constantly.  There will be times where I fake faint in the middle of him talking to me and I can't be revived until he kisses me in some specific spot I have predetermined in my mind.  And he will start at the very top of my head kissing every possible inch.  Keep in mind the whole time he will be trying to tickle me or torture me while I try to stay fainted.  It's ridiculous I know, but this kind of stuff makes me love him forever.
• He is super handy - whether it is a home repair, car repair, etc...he will fix it.  Or ehow to find the answer on how to fix it.  He has saved us tons of money just from his curiosity into how things work.
• He would give me a massage every single night - and he pretty much does.  Whether it is sore muscles from working out, sore feet from being on mom duty all day, or a headache from stress, he will rub all night every night if I ask him too.  I try not to take advantage of him in this area and his good naturedness, but it is divine.
• He will get me anything I ask for - I could be up walking around doing things, and he could be laying in bed on the verge of sleep but if I asked him to run downstairs and get me something he would not even hesitate before jumping out of bed to go get it for me.  Some of my friends give me a hard time saying he is my virtual slave that's how cool he is about it.

I know I'm a bit spoiled.  He sounds like perfection right.  Well he is.  I mean he is all these things I've listed and a million more making him the most special man in the world.  And guess what, he picked me.  Now it may have taken some cajoling and convincing him on my part in the beginning but no more.  I know as clearly as I know anything in this world that my husband loves me more than anyone or anything.  He would do anything to make me happy.  And with someone like that how can you not love them back fiercely.  And so to my friend I say, "He is pretty great, huh!" with a smirk because even though you might think you know how great he is: what's makes him the most special treasure in all the world is the unassuming packaging he wraps all these abundantly good qualities up in.  And that even me who knows him better than anyone else is constantly surprised and thrilled to find almost daily more undiscovered good traits in him. 

Happy Valentine's Day, babe!

Cheers

When I was younger my dad often worked long hours and when he got home I recall him eating dinner with our family and then going up to his room to watch TV or read a magazine.  Many times I would join him laying with him in his bed.  My favorite show to watch with him was Cheers and often if I was laying with him he would appease me by turning it on.  He used to ask me why I liked the show so much and I remember answering that I thought that there would be nothing better than going somewhere "where everybody knows your name".  They were all bound by some link and a sense of belonging was so prevalent it seemed to meet my ideals just perfectly.

Fast forward 20 years and you will find me smack dab in the center of a small rural Lancaster County town.  It was a town picked intentionally for it small town feel, its great feeling of longevity - next year we will be celebrating it's 250 year history, and sense of community which is so strong.  There are lots of small town events and long standing friendships reminiscent of the movie "Funny Farm" starring Chevy Chase.  And imagine my utter shock and delight to actually find a bar named Cheers within this town.  So once I moved here I worked to establish and deeply embed myself in this small town charm.  I participated in the PTO and served as an officer, I joined Women's Club of Manheim, a philanthropic organization, and attended many meetings concerning MC Rec and the Downtown Development Group. 

When I walk into the school everyone knows my name and who my kids are, as I run errands around the town I can't do so without seeing someone I know and chatting a bit, the librarians know me by name and will hold back brand new books they think I might like before shelving them for general use.  I feel that sense of community that I longed for from my childhood and I love it.  In some ways I am still an outsider being from the "whole" next county over and not familiar with every establishment by both it's current name and what it used to called 20 years ago, but overall the adjustment has been quite fulfilling. 

So it should come as no surprise than that over the past few months as several officers from PTO are announcing this to be their last year, many have looked in my direction to see if I would be interested in being the next PTO President.  And after being hinted around a bit, last night I was asked to be the Vice President for the Women's Club.    Although flattered to no end, it feels a bit overwhelming too and truth be told I am still weighing out my decisions.  But I can't help but also feel frustrated.  Many are more qualified than me for these positions, know more than I do, have been here longer - why not ask them.  It all comes down to people willing to serve around them.  And I have found that enough people just aren't willing to fill in these positions with claims of being too busy.

And I feel sad to know that not all people want that same charm of small town living that I do including the responsibilities of everyone doing five different roles.  I can't help but wonder what will happen if people continue to not be interested in helping.  What will become of a school with no PTO and a community with a dying women's organization.  Where and what will my small town be then?

The Super Bowl and Other Things I Love...

the highlight of my week - being at a super bowl party where the kids danced like crazy at halftime to the black eyed peas:

also watching wyatt wrestle, building a snowman family to then be rehabbed into snow bunkers for fight, and continuing to watch the falling snow at night

What do you love?

I Love....

I love seeing Travis get a glimpse of this cake.  It's his favorite. 

And seeing this smile as a result of his happiness at getting to lick the bowl. 

 I loved the berry sauce on Travis's b-day dessert from P.F. Chang.
 
I love being with Travis

.

And friends and being totally ridiculous.

I love a good burger, this homemade half turkey burger recipes I found is banging.

I love setting a nice table and having friends over for a fancy lunch.













And seeing my house all clean before the fun chaos and mess begins.












I love the cakes this bakery by our house makes.  This chocolate peanut butter cake was not only beautiful but good and I don't even like chocolate cake or cake in general really.










I love my neighbors and our get togethers.  I love that we all get along.  And are always there in a jam.

 

I love seeing this car and its owner total Hoyt dedication and thinking of my brother in law and the statistics he is always spouting to me about Hoyt and archery hunters in PA.  He works for Hoyt.

Only In Lancaster County...

When Travis and I were first married, birds tweeted above our heads as we walked, the rain dried up and sun appeared wherever we went until about 1 month into our marriage. 

One afternoon we had both returned home from campus and our classes to meet for lunch.  I saw that we had dishes from breakfast in the sink and instead of doing them myself I asked, "Travis will you redd in the dishwasher?"  And he said, "What?"  I repeated, "Will you redd in the dishwasher?"  To which he said, "Huh?"  It was at this point that I couldn't understand the problem.  My previously unchauvinistic husband was exhibiting some chauvinistic tendencies and I was not thrilled.  So in all my maturity I said to him, "Are you retarded?  Do you really think it is my job do to all the household chores?  If you know anything you will put the dishes in the dishwasher."  Side note:  Yes I have a temper! 

At which point he said, "Yes I'll put the dishes in the dishwasher, but what the heck did you say?"  I repeated, "Will you redd in the dishwasher?"  And then it dawned on me this phrase was a Pennsylvania Dutch colloquialism and he had no idea what I meant.  I elaborated it means to prepare something for how it should be or make ready, i.e. "redd up the room", "redd in the dishwasher", "redd off the table".  It was at this point that I felt like a total heal for losing my temper and being the cause of our first marital fight.  And so it was with no small affection for my husband that I burst out laughing yesterday when he sent me this email...

Only in Lancaster County would anybody understand this heading in the newspaper. “Redd up”

Highlights

5am: finished my book and went to sleep

6:30: woke up, got the kids up and off to school
7:30: go get Issac to prep him for Pre-K to step in and see vomit (no worries, he's not sick, but if my kids don't eat a good dinner their stomach bile becomes too acidic and they start the next day with emptying their acidic stomachs) to be safe keep Issac home from Pre-K for observation. yeah it was just the dinner thing because cran-raspberry juice and a waffle later he feels great.

8-10: sleep on the couch while a 3 and 5 year old boy watch barbie: the princess and pauper repeatedly
12: go to the optometrist for Issac's eye appointment (his primary care physician thought he "might" need glasses) it is deduced that his vision is so poor that only a pediatric opthomologist specialist will be able to treat him, referrals concluded, specialist appointments set up, some shocking, somewhat disturbing news that unless you are 2 inches and completely level with Issac you are just a fuzzy shape to him; find out every three months he will need to go to the opthamologist for the next year or so for follow up treatment, upside Dr. Walton my costco optometrist doesn't charge us for the visit. I love him for many reasons but this is just one more reason: "the fact that he knows we will pay a small fortune in the upcoming year(s)"

12:30: travis meets us at Costco for lunch and to check up on the eye appt conclusions
1: decide to buy a 47"tv, find out they only have the floor model left of the one we want, can order it but will be after the rebate period or we can reserve it at the next closest Costco in Harrisburg - decide to reserve it and pick it up tomorrow.
1:30 leave Costco with crying, fit throwing kody, put him down for nap after he sleeps for ten minutes in the car with more fit throwing
2:15 pick up kids from the bus stop and try to contemplate how what I thought would be a completely mundane eventless day turned into this day filled with many highlights

oh and my brand new camera is not downloading pics to my computer. but pics of Issac trying glasses frames on to come. let's just say he has very specific tastes