Conversations with Hinder

Kids say the most hilarious things! But as a mother, my days are so constant that I fail to write down the funny moments. Here's are few recent conversations with our wee one that I hope to never forget.

Hinder- "Mom, get me some milk in a cup!"

Me- "Excuse me? That's not how we talk."

Hinder- "Mom, don't worry. I'm just cheesing you. Just cheesing (a.k.a. teasing)."

(Icecream with Papa last week. Hinder kept saying, "Ooh that Papa! He's so nice." Probably because Papa brought eight billion prizes for him)

A few mornings back, I had poured H his morning bowl of cereal and I was standing at the kitchen sink. Then I hear...

Hinder-"Ahhhh! Snoggy!"

Me- "What's snoggy?"

Hinder- "My cee-ral. My cee-ral is all snoggy!"

Me- "Soggy?"

Hinder- (pouting) "Yeah...I waited too long and now it's snoggy"

A week ago, H woke up and I came into his room to get him out of his crib. First thing he says when I walk in the door...

H- "Mom, I want a puppy"

Me- "Maybe we can get a dog when you're older"

H- "Yeah, that's right. I'll have a dog when I'm bigger"

Me- "What color of dog would you like?"

H- "A brown puppy"

Me- "What would you name him?"

H- "Hmmmm...(long pause)...Can you give me some ideas of names?"

(Now I'm giggling)

Me- "Uh...Spot, Rover, Pongo..."

H- "Hmph. How about just Brown Dog?"

(strong elbows)

We inherited a trampoline from Riley's grandpa. After a few days of walking all the way around the house to get to the backyard, just to jump for 10 seconds, and come back inside, we decided to push the tramp up next to the house. Then we could just lower the kiddo onto the tramp through an adjacent window. Easy right?! Except that Hinder weights roughly 400 lbs. after lifting him in and out of that darn window. So one day I refused...

Hinder- "Mom! I'm ready to come back in!"

Me- "I'm too tired to lifting you in and out. I don't have any muscles"

Hinder- "Yes you do"

Me- "No, you'll have to wait for dad. He has all the muscles"

Hinder- "No mom, look. (shows me his muscles) You have very strong elbows. You can!"

This kid is growing up WAY too fast!

Anniversary

Almost a year has past since we boarded that plane to make our way back to where Riley served his mission. Time certainly flies! Remembering and reminiscing has led to several Danish-inspired day dreams.

I think it's time for another vacation adventure!

Date with Daddy

Riley took Hinder on a little boys date Thursday. Hinder chose mini-golfing the night before and was a whirlwind of excitement the entire morning. I was equally excited because, as most mamas know, nothing is better than having a few precious hours with the house to yourself.

Lining up for the perfect shot...

Scoping out the terrain...

Look at that form!

Hole in One!

Riley was so proud of his miniature golfer.

Beautiful

Somethings are truly beautiful.

Like this photo my sister sent from Bulgaria of an open field.

Monday List

1. When I was in second grade my mom made this little jumper for me. I imagined she fashioned it from old curtains. In my mind, my childhood was very much like "The Sound of Music".
2. Guess what?! In a fit of stupidity, I signed up for a half marathon about 2-3 months ago. And then I forgot about training for it. (more like chose to forget) The dadgum race is in 4 weeks and so far, no good. I'm going to die. What can I say? I'd rather sit on the couch eating bon bons and catching up on Real Housewives of New Jersey.
3. There are about 5 loads of laundry, plus all the bedding, that I need to launder today. The smell has accosted my senses long enough... Side note: I've come to the conclusion that 85% of being a housewife/stay-at-home mom is odor-control. The cleaning, the laundry, the diapering, the bathing, the dishes...all in an effort to hide the fact that malodorous slobs live here. So to save time, I've started burning a fresh linen Scentsy and figure it has the same effect (affect?).

4. My niece and nephew live too far away. Boo hooo!!! Hinder misses Pierce and Livi and I miss having the perfect playmates around. The holidays are too long to wait to see their cute faces.

5. Speaking of H, he won't wear pants these days. Not for more than 3 hours at a time. By the time we get home from church, he's in a frenzy to get his slacks off. It's weird. They say it's a phase. That he'll grow out of it. That he's a free spirit. I sure hope so, or else he's going to have serious trouble making friends in kindergarten.

6. Just in case not training for this run isn't bad enough, I've been eating like a maniac. Before this past few days, diabetes might have been a question mark in my future. Now it's for certain. Domino's pizza, a box of Famous Amos cookies, a personal apple pie (a.k.a. lard bar), brownies, popsicle, Costa Vida....heaven help me.

7. I feel guilty about my indulgences, so I'm thawing salmon for dinner. Maybe we'll have rice and broccoli with it. And a pudding pie....a la mode.

8. In the time I've spent typing this rambling post, the laundry is ready to be switched, a diaper ripe for the changin, and H has his pants off...again. Oh yeah, and it's time for my mid-morning snack. Somethings will never change.

Day 30

A Photograph of Yourself Today &

Three Good Things That have Happened in the past 30 Days

1. One of my favorite people in the world had a baby. And he's so stinking cute and sweet.

2. Riley organized our garage. This hadn't been done since we moved in nine months ago, so it was a bit overdue. All of the fun summer stuff is now within reach! AND he did it without me asking. Amazing!

3. Hinder's vocab has exploded lately, and it definitely keeps us laughing. Words like "flabbergasted' and "actually" are pretty funny coming out of a two year old mouth.

And...

4. I'm finally DONE with this challenge! Maybe it took me about 47 days rather than 30, but I think I've blogged myself silly in the past few weeks. More than you ever wanted to know about me... thanks for reading!

My Mother

When I think of my mother, I remember...

How she would practice the piano at night after we had gone to bed. The piano was in her preschool room that was near my bedroom window. The sound travelled right to me. It was like my own private lullaby.

Her words of wisdom whenever we had a big day or performance. She would give me the "channel the nervous energy" speech. Generally, it worked out.

During the summers, she would plan day trips around our rural town to give us a break from the usual. We would hike to Wild horse Monument or visit the Whitman Massacre museum. Even in high school, I loved going on these outings.

No matter how angry or frustrated she was with us, and no matter how loud she had just yelled, she would always answer the telephone with a sing-songy "hello"

She fills her life with things she enjoys. Singing, music, teaching, theater, reading, history...the list goes on.

And mostly, I remember that she did EVERYTHING for us kids. Like most mothers, she made huge sacrifices for the benefit of her family. She still does. I just adore my mom.

Happy Mother's Day!

Day Twenty- Nine

Something You Could Never Get Tired of Doing

This.

The End.

Day 28

Your Favorite Movie

I adore this flick. The cast and the dialogue are rich. It's full of dry humor, my favorite kind. I admit, I've watched this movie on repeat play for hours on end when it first came to DVD.

The best part: When shy IRS agent, Harold Crick, brings flours to the pretty baker, Ana Pascal. Adorable.

Day Twenty- Seven

A Picture of You Last Year and Now and

How You've Changed Since Then

(March 2010. Photo by photographer Katy Wilson)

(April 2011. Photo by photographer Hinder in the Backseat)

Ways I've changed in the last year include...

* Hair color*

*We're DONE with school I get much more time with Riley on a regular basis*

* Maybe I've mellowed out a little. Maybe not *

*Then- mother to a 15 month going on two year old. Now- Mother to a 2 going on 15 year old *

* Put miles and miles on the old running shoes*

* Maybe a little more empathetic*

*Appreciate this blessed country a little more*

*Then- planning every detail of our futures. Now- realize most of my future is out of my hands*

*Maybe a little less sleep deprived*

* A year older and many fine-lines richer*

Day 26

A Photo of Somewhere You've Been To

Here we are in Penticton, British Colombia, Canada.

When I was 16, I did Junior Miss. Trying to explain what a Junior Miss pageant entails is difficult. Until Riley watched his first pageant, he thought it was something like a cotillion. Trust me, it's not a cotillion. And I didn't have to wear a swimsuit. That definitely would have been a deal breaker for me.

Anyway, that little tangent is just an effort to explain why we had sashes and crowns in the picture. Basically, we were silly teenage girls who wanted to feel royal for a minute.

It was a quick trip,and we spent the majority of the time in the car, watching Scarlett O'Hara throwing tantrums in the south via the portable DVD player. But I do remember that my experience in Canada was beautiful. Flowers everywhere. Fresh fruit stands dotting the highway. Friendly people and too much techno music.

Day Twenty-Five

What's in Your Purse?

I was going to take a picture, but then I realized how mortally embarrassing that would be. All my unorganized shame posted on the world wide web. No thanks.

So here's the inventory of what's in the ol' shoulder bag today:

1 South Fork lanyard with my keys attached
1 teal pocketbook stuff to the brim with too many coupons and not enough money
4 tampons
1 mini sunscreen
1 cough drop
1 unknown random white pill
1 bottle of aspirin
3 diapers
1 mostly chewed pack of Dentyne Fire
1 blue pair of toy sunglasses
1 immunization record
1 old Ensign magazine
1 old prescription that I never had filled
1 Ziploc full of crumbled Ritz crackers
1 Ziploc of wipes
1 package of fruit snacks
1 lone stick of gum. Trident layers, I believe
2 lip glosses
1 camera battery (I've been looking for that!)
1 dead pen
1 golf pencil
Scads of old grocery lists, receipts, and gum wrappers

"And a partridge in a pear tree!"

Day 24

A Photo of Something That Means a Lot to You

While walking through Copenhagen last June, Riley suggested we detour through a church yard to see this obscure statue. I don't recall the name of the church, but it seemed to be rarely used, maybe even abandoned. This statue was one of the only things within the walls of the shadowed church yard.

We saw many statues in Denmark. So many beautiful and majestic sculptures. But this small, oxidized piece of art really affected me. It affects me more now.

The crumpled woman. He face buried in her hands. Her hair strewn haphazardly about. It shows grief in a way that words can't.

But my favorite part is the look on Death's face. Looking back at her with pity and compassion. As if untimely death is just something that has to happen, and even Death himself doesn't enjoy carrying out his task.

Art has a way of expressing precisely what the heart yearns to express, but language simply can't.