flee! flee!

I'm having one of those moments. Talked to my awesome grandma for about an hour last night, which of course meant that all day today I've been feeling the need for a Montana fix. Don't want to do anything. No, scratch that. I do want to write, knit, watch a good movie and read a good book, but I don't want to do anything I'm supposed to. Having one of those days where I suddenly wish that I had no callings (don't want to do any of the things I should for my 4--yes, count them, 4--callings) and no bills and no school (well, technically, Keilana has school) so that I could just steal away somewhere fun with my husband and kids and not worry about anything else.

Does such a place exist in grown up land?

Doug jokingly asked this morning, "How about we drive up Highway 1 to Monterey today?" Oh, the temptation. A great drive along the rocky coast. A day at the Aquarium. Chowder in a bread bowl slathered with garlic butter. Happy little kids playing in the surf. That sounds pretty fabulous.

Ah, but in two weeks we're doing Disneyland for the Wild Thing's 4th birthday. Four. Where does the time go? Suddenly, two weeks doesn't seem so long.

I love creative people

One of my bestestest friends is starting her own business, making handbags. First of all, she has the best business name ever: Bags for Bettys (she's a recovering snowboarding addict--motherhood steals some of that slope time). But check out one of her prototypes:

Love it. These are exactly the kind of color/prints I can never get enough of. Send some good karma her way on this new adventure.

*kicking myself*

The other day on the way home from school, we decided to stop at the Plaza and play for a little while. It was a perfectly overcast (but not a drop in sight) day. So, in other words, perfectly even, soft light. Perfect day for shooting photos. And I was found with nothing but my little phone to take pictures with. Its a shame I missed the opportunity, because there was stage dancing:

"I am a T-Rex!"

And hill rolling:


And, of course, posing:

(Because even if its just a phone, its still a camera, after all)

True Friends

We all value highly the friends we can count on. The best friends are those who love you patiently, with all your faults, and make you want to be better. We all need people with whom we can speak freely and not feel judged, not feel the need to justify or excuse ourselves, trusting that the person to whom we speak will understand. We need friends in our lives who can wipe away the dust of our imperfections and see the good beneath.

I absolutely despise when people pull out the "If you were a true friend, you wouldn't judge me" line, though. There are certainly times when that applies--times when people in our lives are overly critical or impatient. But there are also times in our lives when we need someone to hold us accountable. A friend of mine in high school was very fond of the Oscar Wilde line, "A true friend stabs you in the front." Very true words. It is often our kindest, most trusted friends who are the only ones willing and able to do this for us--to say what hurts, not because it hurts but because not saying it will hurt much, much more. There are times when our actions, attitudes or behaviors can be destructive--both to ourselves and to many others in our lives by the nature of our relationships with them. Most people, even if they see such behavior, will turn a blind eye, or say something to others, but will not try to talk to us directly. The friends who loves us the most will have the courage to say, "If you keep heading down this road, you're in for a world of hurt--and a lot of people around you are, too."

Truest friends will support us in all things that make us better, and help lift us up where we are lacking. But if someone is the best kind of friend, they will not sit idly by while we do things or behave in ways that are not right. They may be a listening ear, they may well be the one who is still there to pick up the pieces if we don't heed their advice, but they will not tell us something we're doing is OK if its not OK.

Don't get me wrong. As many of those closest to me are frustratingly aware, I don't think there is ever an appropriate time to launch an angry attack. I don't think its ever OK to scream at someone "because that's the only way to get through" to them. I have given in to my temper on a few occasions, but I don't think screaming or angry accusations or insults are ever right. But if someone tries to talk to you--if they express their love for you and say that they are trying to help, and sound sincere--listen to what they say. Thoughtfully, sincerely consider it. True friends don't refrain from judging us--true friend know our faults and love us anyway, but they try to help us be better than we are. They realize their own faults and hope that we will help them become better, too. Love isn't consistently putting up with the status quo and patiently trying to ignore backtracking--its kindly, patiently and generously pushing each other to be the best version of ourselves.

Funny kids

Keilana didn't go to school today. This morning she told me she had a cough and couldn't go to school. (She's had the sniffles for a few days). This afternoon, she asked me if she could write her teacher a note saying that she was home sick. She got to work, and about 15 minutes later brought me a piece of paper with a picture of her laying in bed with a blanket over her, me standing next to her, and "Yo enferma en mi casa" scrawled across the top. Not too shabby.

An hour or so ago, Kylie was standing at the piano bench and, with some paper plates and sheet music that her sister had helped her acquire, was dutifully rearranging things over and over again into different sized piles. I love how toddlers engage in such tasks while looking like they are concentrating very hard on a job of immense importance.

Ah, someday she'll be a super powerful CEO, arranging people and products in such an efficient manner that it makes millions of dollars, and I'll feel stupid for having written that.

Recent quotables:

Doug (passing the two big dairies on 168 & 137): Mmmm-mmm, that's the smell of money.

Keilana: No, Dad, its poop.

Doug: Someday you'll understand.

Keilana: No, Dad, I do understand. Its poop.

Keilana (after saying "I knew that" to everything we told her for two hours): Daddy, do you know who else knows everything? Sethy.

Doug (watching the girls fight over a toy): Do you know what causes sibling rivalry?

Me: Having more than one kid!

Dylan (from across the room, to this point in his own little world): It wasn't me!

Doug (to Dylan): You're cute.

Dylan: No, I'm cool. And mommy's beautiful.

Keilana: That's Chuck. He likes to beat box.

Keilana(dismayed to turn on the TV and find that her program had been preempted by a speech): Not the president AGAIN!

ah, life :)

There's really nothing quite like the look on your spouse's face

when he thinks you're at home

caring for his three children

and then he unexpectedly passes you

on the street,

by yourself,

carrying a broom.

Happy Friday!

Beautiful Day

After a solid week of rain, both children and dog were in need of some serious outside time and running around. Saturday turned out to be an absolutely gorgeous day, so we loaded up said children and dog, grabbed some lunch and headed to Mooney Grove park for a few hours. These are the days I live for. . .