The Cress Chronicle

A Question of Love

2008-12-03T21:56:00.000-08:00

A friend from Academy days, Tami Zane Kizziar, sent me the following video of Keith Olbermann's response to Prop 8's passing, and I feel it is so compelling that I want to share it with those I love. I hope it speaks to your heart as it did to mine.

A New Beginning for America

2008-11-05T09:50:00.000-08:00

Last night was a historic night - and President Elect Obama delivered a powerful speech that was thoughtful, inspiring, and deeply moving. I have rarely experienced the sensation that I am witnessing something of historical significance, but last night as I listened I felt sure that this was a defining moment for our country. His speech had a magical, uplifting and timeless quality that gave me goosepimples and made me weep with solemn joy (perhaps it was just euphoria about having a president who can put two coherent sentences together for a change!).

After hearing this speech, I believe that as President, Barack Obama has the capability to unite our divided people and to regain for our nation the respect of the world. For those of you who may have missed this "Camelot" experience, here it is:

Hands as Art

2008-09-03T21:35:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me this video today and I thought it very creative and inspiring, so I'm sharing it with you. :)

Punny

2008-08-30T09:32:00.000-07:00

Emmy: "What are you doing, Mommy?"
Me: "I'm putting mascara on, Honey"
Peter: "It's called mascara because it 'masks' the 'scara' parts!"

Sound Bites from a Three Year Old

2008-08-26T21:57:00.000-07:00

Emmy's increasing verbal skills are a source of wonder, amusement, astonishment, and, rarely, embarrassment and/or frustration. Most of the time we're just in awe at how fast her mind works - how quickly she picks up language and modifies things she hears to suit her own purposes.

Here's a small sampling of what we're hearing lately:

1) "I don't WANT to!" (heard entirely too frequently for Mommy's and Daddy's taste)

2) After time out in the "naughty chair" and an explanation of why she was put there:

Emmy: "I want to say I'm sorry to Mommy, Mommy."

Mommy: "OK, sweetheart."

Emmy: *gently pats Mommy's shoulder and says in woeful voice* "Sorry, Mommy!"

3) "Mommy, I'm scared of the scratchy monster!" (stalling technique used at bedtime)

4) "I miss you SOOOOOO much!" (how adorable is that? Mommy can't resist that kind of thing)

5) Given the chance to talk to Grandma on the phone tonight - spoken all in one breath: "Grandma, I have ouchy toes! I took a bath with Daddy, Grandma! I drew pictures on the bathtub, Grandma! Mommy has an itch! I make Mommy laugh, Grandma!"

Favorite word mispronunciations:

1) con-CU-ber (computer)

2) um-DUM-bra (umbrella)

3) tel-uh-BIH-jun (television)

4) be-MEM-ber (remember)

5) kuh-SPLORE (explore)

Lately she's displayed a real affinity for silliness (those are pants on her head in the photo above). She loves to make up silly rhymes and modify the words to well-known songs. On one of her favorite shows, a character was having a hard time remembering the word "star" while performing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and substituted other words and made up verses to rhyme as follows:

"Twinkle, twinkle, little . . . little . . . ants! I've got purple underpants!"

"Twinkle, twinkle, little . . . little . . . hippopotamus! How I love your big gray bottomus!"

She thought that was HILARIOUS. Now she's taken to inserting a random word in place of the rhyming words at the end of each phrase. "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Sigh" ("How I wonder what you sigh" etc.) is her current favorite - God only knows why.

You probably had to be there, but we just about died laughing the other night when at a critical point in the song "Jesus Loves Me" she inserted the word "poop." I don't want her to encourage her to continue to sing it that way, but the unexpectedness of it caught us completely off-guard, and we couldn't help the hysterical laughter that burst forth. We'll try to control ourselves next time.

Emmy delights in making us laugh. Here are a few of her favorite jokes:

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Cargo.

Cargo who?

Car go "Beep, beep!"

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Dwayne.

Dwayne who?

Dwayne the bathtub, I'm dwowning!

(Peter taught her that one - I love it!)

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Banana.

Banana who?

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Banana.

Banana who?

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Orange.

Orange who?

Orange you glad I didn't say banana again?

(an oldie but goodie)

I know I'm forgetting some priceless things she's said - I'll try to be better at writing them down from here on out.

Our Olympian

2008-08-17T22:44:00.000-07:00

Emmy's reaction to watching Nastia Liukin perform her floor exercise routine in the all-around competition this week:

I wonder if I ought to get her enrolled in a dance or gymnastics class?

Only God in Heaven Can Make a Butterfly

2008-06-23T21:14:00.001-07:00

Emmy came home from day care last week singing this song, and since this is the first thing I've been able to get her to sing upon request in FOREVER, I thought I'd better capture it on video for posterity. In case you can't understand the words, they're as follows:

Little caterpillar, he climbed up in a tree
He wiggled long, he wiggled short, he wiggled right at me
I put him in a little box, "Don't go away" I said
But when I looked inside it was a butterfly (instead)
I never could have made it, not even if I tried
'Cause only God in Heaven can make a butterfly!

Note the graceful bow at the end - she's already quite the performer!

Aye Waukin-O and Allelujah

2008-06-17T19:02:00.000-07:00

I just stumbled across a beautiful voice, and wanted to share her with you. Eddi Reader is her name, and she's blessed with an incredible vocal gift. The lyrics to the first lovely song are by the famed Scottish poet Robert Burns. The fearless abandon with which she sings the second song (live, mind you!) reminds me a little of one of my favorite artists, Joni Mitchell. Who have you discovered lately?

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2008-06-04T23:12:00.000-07:00

Emmy is at the most adorable age - there's a lot of whining (it seems every time she opens her mouth, it's to say "I want . . . "), but we love that she's able to express herself so well, and seeing her little personality emerge is unbelievably fun. Although her pronunciation is pretty good, she still struggles with some of the multi-syllable words - but I'm not sure I ever want her to stop saying "umdumbra" instead of umbrella. Now that her speech has progressed so far, we adults are having to be much more circumspect about what we say - she got in trouble at day care a few weeks ago for dramatically exclaiming "Oh . . . my . . . God!" so I've had to nip that one in the bud (yes, that was Mommy's fault). Every now and then she says something priceless, and I always think to myself, "That's so cute - I'll never forget that!" . . . and then I forget. So for posterity, here are a few of the more endearing things she's said lately:

Playing peekaboo: "Keepaboo!"

Upon being informed that nose oysters are yucky: "Tiggers don't like boogers!"

Imitating Piglet: "Oh D-d-d-d-d-dear, dear, dear!" and "Oh my goodness!"

In a voice filled with awe, while watching the garbage truck empty our trashcan: "How beeeyouuuuuuuuuuuutiful!"

Observing Daddy sleeping in: "Daddy's sleeping! It's so morning!"

Whenever Mommy and Daddy don't do exactly what she wants: "I want to go to Grandma's house!"

While crying about something unbelievably trivial: "I . . . *sob* . . . want . . . to be . . . *hic* . . . happy!" (for some sick reason that one made me laugh)

Here are a few recent photos - playing catch after Sabbath School last weekend looking like Alice in Wonderland in a beautiful dress from my cousin Janel, and horsing around at Uncle Ryan and Aunt Shari's house.

A Memorable Memorial Day

2008-06-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

On Memorial Day, Peter had his heart set on taking Emmy to the 93rd annual Orange Show in San Bernardino - so in spite of Emmy's bad mood (she was fighting a cold) we went, hoping for the best. It turned out to be a fun couple of hours for all of us - Emmy got to ride an elephant AND a pony (both very exciting firsts!), pet animals in the petting zoo, and watch a few circus acts (that was a bit loud and weird for her - we left before it was over). Here are a few pics from the day (click to embiggen).

None Too Bright

2008-05-26T10:50:00.000-07:00

This entertaining video of a homemade fireworks experiment demonstrates the importance of knowing what you're doing when it comes to handling explosives . . .

Before He Speaks

2008-05-07T21:31:00.000-07:00

I got a kick out of this parody made by the pastors' wives at Florida Hospital SDA Church for entertainment at their church retreat - enjoy!

Praying for Time

2008-05-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

I was moved by this performance of a beautiful song I'd forgotten, and wanted to share the experience. The song is Praying for Time by George Michael. This performance by Carrie Underwood was aired on American Idol's recent "Idol Gives Back" broadcast. I find the lyrics to be profound and deeply moving:

These are the days of the open hand
They will not be the last
Look around now
These are the days of the beggars and the choosers
This is the year of the hungry man
Whose place is in the past
Hand in hand with ignorance and legitimate excuses
The rich declare themselves poor
And most of us are not sure if we have too much
But we'll take our chances
'Cause God's stopped keeping score
I guess somewhere along the way
He must have let us all out to play
Turned His back and all God's children
Crept out the back door
And it's hard to love
There's so much to hate
Hanging on to hope
When there is no hope to speak of
And the wounded skies above say it's much too late
Well maybe we should all be praying for time
This is the year of the empty hand
When you hold on to what you can
And charity is a coat you wear twice a year
These are the days of the guilty man
Your television takes a stand
And you find that what was over there is over here
So you scream from behind your door
Say "What's mine is mine and not yours!"
"I may have too much, but I'll take my chances
'Cause God's stopped keeping score."
And you cling to the things they sold you
Did you cover your eyes when they told you
That He can't come back
'Cause He has no children to come back for?
And it's hard to love
There's so much to hate
Hanging on to hope
When there is no hope to speak of
And the wounded skies above say it's much too late
Well maybe we should all be praying for time

Fun in Fallbrook

2008-04-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I was running an event in Fallbrook, and Peter brought Emmy down on Sabbath afternoon for a visit. We found a playground on site and Emmy had a ball climbing the ladder, chasing a kitty who did not want to be caught, throwing acorns down a covered slide, and most of all, swinging in a "big girl" swing. Here are a few pics (click to embiggen) . . .

Happy Birthday, Dear Daddy

2008-03-30T15:46:00.000-07:00

Saturday was Peter's 38th birthday, so after Sabbath School we headed down to Dos Lagos and hung out in the conveniently located Barnes and Noble bookstore and then outside (it was a gorgeous day) by the beautiful, enormous fountain while we waited for Shari, Joel, Mom and Stanton to arrive for a celebratory birthday lunch at Rosine's. Emmy took the opportunity to divest us of every penny we owned (in favor of the fountain, of course), and Shari took the opportunity to try on Emmy's hat.

After we were seated, Peter opened his present from Emmy & Mommy - a new t-shirt emblazoned with a cute pic of Emmy and the text "Some bunny loves me!" (is that gag-me cutesy or what?!). Although our alfresco dining experience was a trifle chilly, the stimulating company and terrific mediterranean cuisine more than made up for the windchill factor.

After stuffing ourselves silly, we headed back to Mom and Stan's place for some homemade banana cream pie. Mom & Stan had just recently received the toy piano they'd ordered for Emmy's birthday, which Joel and Mom put together the day before, so Emmy had the delight of playing it for the first time that afternoon. It was a huge hit. Then Peter opened his gift from Mom & Stan - a Krups cappuccino maker - and Peter made delicious cappucinos for everyone, which turned out to be a perfect accompaniment to my mom's to-die-for banana cream pie.

It was a lovely, relaxing day, but the highlight was definitely Emmy's rendition of "Happy Birthday to You" later that evening, which she played and sang for her daddy with gusto. We think she may be a child prodigy, akin to Mozart. In addition to the forceful playing and heartfelt singing (in this case she decided she wanted to sing in her "kitty voice"), we were very impressed with her fancy pedal work. Enjoy the performance!

Hoppy Easter

2008-03-23T17:32:00.001-07:00

Since I spend most of each Easter Sunday singing at a Catholic church gig in LA, we did Easter brunch with my family on Saturday instead. We gathered at my mom and stepdad's house for our traditional feast of goldenrod eggs, tender asparagus, savory vegelinks, fresh out of the oven melt-in-your-mouth scones with clotted cream and preserves, and a refreshing fruit salad of fresh oranges and berries. Stuffed to the gills, we then stepped out into the beautiful garden for an Easter egg hunt. It was a lovely afternoon, unseasonably warm (in the mid-80's) - we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. As the only child present, Emmy had a field day hunting for the dozens of eggs we'd hidden, her every move shadowed by the family papparazzi. She ate up all the attention, looking adorable in a Janie and Jack outfit from Grandma Jean and bunny ears from Mommy. After finding all of the eggs she immediately asked us to hide them again . . .

Lunching with the girls at Grapevine

2008-03-23T17:32:00.000-07:00

On Friday I had the rare opportunity to have lunch with my dear friends Brenda and Rachael at Grapevine restaurant in La Verne - and to meet Rachael's adorable 3-month-old baby boy, Kieran. We had a lovely time chowing down on delicious Middle Eastern cuisine, kissing Kieran's irresistably chubby cheeks, trying to prevent Emmy from drowning herself in the ornamental pool near our table on the patio, and generally catching up on what's been happening in each other's lives.

I really enjoyed spending some quality time with these amazing friends - and it was a lovely respite from the seemingly neverending flood of activity that goes along with being a (somewhat) responsible parent, spouse, employee, homemaker and member of society.

It was especially wonderful to see how happy Rachael is as a new mommy, and what a terrific job she's doing with Kieran. Holding her darling little butterball made my ovaries hurt (to borrow a phrase from my cousin Janel )!

Me and my cholecyst

2008-02-11T17:05:00.000-08:00

For anyone who's interested, here's the heartrending saga of how my gall bladder and I recently parted company.

For the past 8 months I've suffered from pain and pressure under my sternum and bloating, which I'd been told was reflux. After being diagnosed by an urgent care physician, I took every over the counter medicine available for these symptoms with absolutely no benefit.

On the night of January 20, the typical pain and pressure under my sternum turned into severe pain and cramping accompanied by nausea and vomiting. I waited until I couldn't stand it anymore, then drove myself to the local ER and of course, waited a couple more hours in complete agony ("Would anyone mind hitting me over the head with a sledgehammer?") before being seen. They gave me an IV with morphine (highly recommended), did some lab work and sent me home with "abdominal pain, uncertain cause."

I spoke with my physician father, who was convinced that I had gall bladder disease - he had the very same symptoms, both his brothers had it, and so did my mom's mother and brother. I saw my doctor two days later and she suggested that it could be a hiatal hernia, but allowed that my father could be right, and scheduled an upper GI and abdominal ultrasound in 2 and 4 weeks, respectively (which my father called "ridiculous"). She said that in the meantime to reduce the risk of experiencing the same symptoms, I should not eat any fat (do you have any idea how hard that is?!) and wrote me a prescription for Vicodin in case the pain returned, admitting that it would only "take the edge off" the pain.

While in New Mexico for a conference the last week of January, the cold I'd had for several days turned into bronchitis - and as I sat waiting to board the plane home, I developed a fever and abdominal pain. When Peter arrived to pick me up at the airport, I had him drive me straight to our urgent care center.

After hearing what had been happening, the urgent care physician offered to send me to the local ER that night for a full abdominal workup, and I wound up taking my first ambulance ride (they wouldn't let my husband drive me thanks to fear of litigation if something went wrong between the urgent care center and the ER). Although my pain was not severe and my symptoms did not seem to warrant any emergency action, the ER doc took pity on me and offered to do a cursory ultrasound to check for stones. He found enough to warrant a more thorough ultrasound, and the results were troubling - one large stone had completely blocked off the mouth of the gall bladder, and as a result it was severely inflamed. The ER doc said that since I was running a fever he wanted to double-check with a surgeon and see whether I needed surgery right away or could wait. The surgeon responded that I needed emergency surgery that day (it was now early Saturday a.m.). So late that afternoon they arrived to take me into surgery.

The anaesthesiologist made small talk with me while reviewing my medical history, and then gave me an injection which he said would make me start to feel drowsy. The nurse shared that thanks to the inflammation of the gall bladder, the surgeon was probably not going to be able to do the operation laparoscopically, and I expressed my sincere hope that he still could. I remember being wheeled into the OR and seeing the surgeon and nurses preparing the instruments, and then . . . nothing. No countdown, nothing - until I woke up with an oxygen mask on. The first thing I said when they removed it was "You gotta love the massage!" My lower legs were hooked up to some pneumatic devices which stimulte blood flow and prevent clotting by alternately inflating and deflating. Between that and my blood pressure cuff doing the same thing to my arm, I felt like I was getting a full-body massage. Apparently I wasn't breathing deeply enough, 'cause the nurse kept getting on my case about it. Once I was awake enough to be a little more sensible of how I actually felt, I became very nauseous, and began to perpire profusely. The nurses changed shifts while I was in recovery, and the next nurse on duty was kind enough to let me sleep for 45 minutes or so (instead of waking me and exhorting me to "Breathe!" every 5 minutes), which made a world of difference. They changed my soaking sheets and hospital "gown" and soon wheeled me back to my room, where my rather anxious family had been waiting for some time since hearing I was out of surgery.

Peter and Emmy, Mom and Stan, Joel, David and Renee were all there. Dave & Renee had gone the extra mile and brought cards and a huge, gorgeous flower arrangement that made my room smell absolutely divine.

Fortunately, the surgeon was able to do the surgery laparoscopically after all, thus shortening my recovery time considerably. Since I had absolutely no vacation time available, this was very good news to me - it meant one week without pay instead of two or three.

They released me the next day (Sunday afternoon) and I packed my bags and headed to my mom's so that she could help me take care of Emmy while I was recovering. This turned out to be a very wise decision, as between the aftereffects of the general anaesthesia and the effects of the Vicodin, I was pretty much comatose for the first several days. I was running a fever thanks to the cold/flu bug as well, so didn't mind being unconscious most of the time. The fourth day I finally gave up the Vicodin, 'cause I literally couldn't keep my eyes open for more than five minutes at a time . . . and I discovered that although the Vicodin had been responsible for my sleepiness, it wasn't responsible for the fact that I felt dizzy and likely to pass out at any moment. It wasn't until Saturday (a week after the surgery) that the faintness dissipated and I started feeling somewhat "normal" again.

Me and "Frankentummy" (as I've dubbed it) are doing much better now. My dang cold is still hanging in there (don't make me laugh or I'll cough for 10 minutes and share my nasty germs with you), but I'm slowly getting my strength back. Thanks to all of you who prayed for my recovery and who've had the sheer force of will (or lack of anything better to do) to read all the way through this incredibly long post. I love you guys!

Hallelujah!

2008-02-10T11:47:00.000-08:00

It's finally happened! Peter interviewed with a company called Romac in Commerce on Monday, 1/28, was offered a position as a junior estimator and accepted. The salary is not as high as he'd hoped, but for a first job straight out of college, it's not bad - and it definitely beats flipping burgers (which he was beginning to consider!). He likes that it's a small company and was happy to discover that many of his fellow employees share similar interests. It's a stepping stone to something bigger and better, and a serious answer to many prayers - so we're naturally very excited and very grateful.

Now if we can just work out the transportation (with only one car between us) and child care issues, we'll be all set . . .

Emmy's birthday tea

2008-01-13T22:24:00.000-08:00

As we were discussing how to celebrate Emmy's third birthday, my mother, who had kindly offered ot host the party, suggested a birthday tea. Having considered the bewildering array of party themes built solely around an animated Disney character or TV show and wanting something less expensive and more unique, we thought a tea party would fit the bill admirably.

We invited three other toddler-age children to attend (following the rule of thumb that one should invite no more than one guest per year of your child's age), and asked them to bring any items they owned to play dress-up. I purchased some inexpensive feather boas and straw and crochet hats at a craft store and decorated them with fancy ribbon and silk flowers for the girls to wear.

A child-sized table and chairs on the back patio were set with a pretty floral tablecloth, enameled tea cups, saucers and spoons for tea, clear plastic tumblers for juice, pink paper plates and napkins, with a potted pink mini rose as the centerpiece. Knowing all this would be lost on 3- and 4-year-olds, I still folded the napkins like fans and placed them in the tumblers.

When the girls arrived, they played dress-up for a while, and then participated in a treasure hunt Peter had organized using digital photos of objects around the house as clues. In the last location of the hunt, each girl found a goody bag filled with inexpensive favors - little bottles of bubble solution with a wand, a plastic tiara and necklace, a plastic "camera" with pictures that change as you click the button, stickers, lollipops, horns, etc. After the treasure hunt, it was time to don the hats and have tea.

My mom and I had gleefully prepared a beautiful toddler feast - heart-shaped peanut butter & honey (Emmy's favorite) and scalloped open-face cucumber/dilled cream cheese sandwiches (not as popular with the toddler set, but the adults loved them!) on a rose glass platter, mini vegetarian corn dogs (sans sticks) served from a cut glass basket with mini bottles of ketchup, artfully arranged fresh berries, grapes and tangerine slices on a footed glass plate, a cheese dome filled with colby and mozzarella cheeses cut into stars, flowers and hearts, and a glass plate of fresh veggies including flower-shaped carrot slices, rings of sweet mini bell peppers and cherry tomatoes. Since the table was small and the serving pieces were fragile, Mom and I waited on the girls, allowing them to select what they liked from the serving pieces and offering to pour the (lukewarm) berry tea and apple juice. The tea and sugar cubes were especially popular, but more as an activity than as a source of sustenance.

For dessert, each child was given a plate with a frosted cupcake in the center with several kinds of sprinkles in piles around the edge that they could use to decorate it. Once they were decorated, we lit the candles on Emmy's and sang "Happy Birthday to You!" Emmy beamed as we sang, and blew out the candles beautifully (and immediately asked if she could do it again!). Then it was time for presents, which she received a lot of help in opening from her enthusiastic guests.

Amazingly, we finished up in just under two hours, which was the time we had allotted for the party. The girls all had a blast, and so did we. Emmy loved all of her gifts, but was especially enamored of her birthday balloons, a new doll from Grandma Jean and Gramps, and the most beautiful pink tricycle in the world from Uncle Joel, Uncle David & Aunt Renee.

This birthday tea was such a success that we may make it a tradition!

Christmas in Crisis Mode

2008-01-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

Christmas was kind of a blur this year - so much going on that I simply couldn't keep up this blog the way I wanted to. Here's a quick recap: I spent my spare time in December seeing friends and family, decorating the house and making jewelry and beaded snowflakes to give as Christmas gifts. It was great fun to involve Emmy this year in trimming the tree, setting up the nativity and decorating (and of course eating) gingerbread boys.

I will spare you the details, but something awful happened over the holiday that pretty much robbed us of any real sense of vacation - but the circumstances reinforced how very blessed we are in our family and friends, and we're deeply grateful for the many ways they've gone out of their way to help us through this difficult time. We're praying that God will turn this experience into something good, and draw us closer to Him in the bargain.

Emmy, on the other hand, missed out on much of the trauma and had a great Christmas. She loved the beautiful decorations, and enjoys playing with all of her many gifts - especially the hat and mittens she got from Gramps and Grandma Jean, her "very own kitchen" as she calls it (generously donated by prior owner Annika Kong) stocked with pots, pans utensils and food from Mommy and Daddy, and the Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls Uncle Dave and Aunt Renee got her at FAO Schwartz in New York.

Please keep us in your prayers - our circumstances are likely to be challenging for quite some time to come.

Late as usual

2008-01-06T22:16:00.000-08:00

I know, I know - I should have had this done eons ago. Things have been unusually busy for us this holiday season, so I hope the saying "better late then never" still applies here. :)

Some of you will receive a printed version by mail, but for those of you not on our snail mail list, click here to read our 2007 Christmas newsletter.

Hoping all of you had a blessed Christmas and wishing you a happy New Year!

A day at the zoo

2007-11-13T22:41:00.000-08:00

November 12 being our seventh wedding anniversary, I took Monday and Tuesday off work to spend time with my family. We decided to spend Monday taking Emmy to the San Diego Zoo. We had a wonderful time. Emmy especially enjoyed the Petting Paddock in the Children's Zoo, where she climbed on a log bench and petted goats, sheep and bunnies. They even had kid-sized sinks for washing hands afterwards, which was also very exciting.

Among the many pleasant experiences of the day, we found Morning Star Gardenburgers for sale at the snack bar (who knew?), which made for a yummy lunch.

Emmy loved all of the animals, but her favorites were the elephants, peacocks, and ducks. She also loved the orangutan exhibit, but mainly for the smallish trees planted in the viewing area close to the plexiglass which she made a point of hugging repeatedly. It was a blast to see her wonder and excitement at every new experience. Another highlight of the day was taking the "Skyfari" back to the entrance at dusk - the view was truly lovely!

I had lots of fun snapping photos throughout the day - some of the animals seemed as if they were posing for me. Here are a few of my favorites.

Trick or treat!

2007-11-01T20:43:00.001-07:00

This Halloween was Emmy's first to wear a costume and trick-or-treat. Since we had zero trick-or-treaters at our place last year, we thought we'd try Ryan and Shari's neighborhood this year.

She's had a thing for stories involving lions and tigers recently, and is especially fond of Tigger (from Winnie the Pooh), so when I found this adorable Tom Arma white tiger costume on Ebay for about half the normal price, I snapped it up. Our friend Tracie (who, like me, has a sick mind) suggested that Peter and I dress up as Sigfried and Roy (preferably post-mauling), but as Peter pointed out, we don't own any leather clothing - and that stuff's expensive!

After initial protest getting her into her costume, Emmy had the time of her life going from house to house, ringing the doorbell and/or knocking on the door, saying "Trick or treat!" or "Happy Halloween!" in a tiny, timid voice, reaping "awww"s wherever she went and raking in the loot like a pro. Peter told me that this morning the first thing she wanted to do was get into her costume again, and you'll never guess what she wanted to do when she woke up from her nap! Thank goodness that she hasn't yet made the connection that the candy is edible . . .

Here are a few pictures of Emmy in her costume, living it up. Enjoy!

Princess party paradise

2007-10-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

On Sabbath afternoon we attended Lacy's third birthday party. Since it was a costume party with a princess theme, Grandma Jean came up trumps and bought Emmy a beautiful Cinderella costume, complete with the most adorable "glass" slippers (which would not, unfortunately, stay on her feet!). Although she screamed bloody murder while I dressed her and was grumpy for a little while afterwards (she didn't get a nap that day), she eventually got too interested in the toys, balloons, and other children to mind the dress.

When she wasn't whacking things with a plastic hammer she'd found or trying to drown herself in the pool when no one was looking, she especially enjoyed riding a tricycle (Mommy or Daddy had to push it - she couldn't get the hang of the pedals) and exploring Lacy's playhouse. Lacy appeared to be having a ball, jumping tirelessly in the bounce "castle" rented for the occasion and looking adorable in her pink Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) dress. She was especially enthusiastic about her Disney princess birthday cake, and glowed with pleasure as we sang "Happy Birthday." Cousin Caden seemed even more enamored of the cake, if you count the amount he lovingly plastered on himself and the chair on which he sat. After watching Lacy open her enormous pile of presents, we trundled on home with an exhausted but happy little girl.

Tea with Lacy

2007-10-28T12:32:00.000-07:00

On Friday we paid a visit to Grandma Jean and Gramps, who were taking care of Lacy for the day. We had a lovely time. The garden and patio were so pretty (as usual!) and Emmy had a blast playing outdoors with Lacy - kicking and throwing a ball, picking flowers, and especially having tea. Pouring water from one container to another made this a fascinating (if wet) pastime. The heavy involvement of Emmy's tongue as she poured was hilarious to watch. Here are a few of the many photos I took throughout the day.

Losing again

2007-10-28T10:26:00.000-07:00

Good news - this week I weighed in 3.6 pounds lighter than the previous week, and although that's only a net loss of .8 pounds in the last two weeks, it feels good to be on the downward swing again. This makes a total loss of only 7.8 pounds in four weeks, but if I can manage that every month, I'll be doing great.

Peter has been supportive of my efforts, which definitely helps. He's been trying his hand (very successfully, I might add) at pumpkin pies for the past couple of weeks, but was kind enough to make lowfat pumpkin pie filling in a separate pan for me - without the fat-laden crust, made with lowfat milk instead of evaporated milk, and served with a couple of tablespoons of light whipped cream, the "pumpkin custard" is a yummy treat at only 3 points per serving.

Another recent discovery is that Tostitos salsa con queso is only 1 point per serving (2 Tbsp) - served on a baked potato topped with chopped tomatoes and green onions or drizzled on southwestern egg beaters, this cheesy sauce is extremely tasty and makes me feel like I'm "cheating" without the negative consequences.

If any of you have Weight Watchers-friendly recipes, please share them. As the weather turns cooler I get more interested in cooking, and I'm especially interested in finding some decadent-tasting but low-point substitutes for traditional holiday foods.

Thanks again to all of you who are being so supportive. Please continue praying for my success on this program.

Warming up to the Wozencrafts

2007-10-21T00:17:00.000-07:00

We spent this afternoon and evening with our friends Devin and Julie and their adorable three-year-old twins, Lukas and Leilani. When we arrived Emmy had just awakened from a nap in the car, so she was a bit bashful at first - but the Little Einsteins toys and pint-sized pianos (not to mention the gregarious twins themselves) soon had her out of her shell.

The number of instruments and music-related toys at their house is truly impressive. At one point in the afternoon, Devin played the organ while Leilani delicately picked out notes on the Steinway and Lukas and Emmy pounded on their kiddie-sized keyboards - creating what I'll charitably call "an untamed cacaphony of sound." The highlight of the afternoon was inflating the "bounce house" that miraculously fits in their family room - but unfortunately Emmy was too intimidated to try it out for more than a few seconds before bursting into tears. I was surprised by her reaction - we thought she'd go nuts for it since she loves to bounce every chance she gets (our bed is a favorite bouncing spot, and Tigger and Roo are her idols!). We hope next time she'll feel more adventurous.

For dinner, Devin and Julie treated us to a fabulous barbeque dinner at Lucille's. I pretty much blew my weekly points in that one meal! The biscuits, beef ribs, cheese grits, grilled corn and tri tip were standouts, but it was all scrumptious. We ate far too much, and enjoyed ourselves immensely.

All in all, it was a terrific day. Emmy had a wonderful time getting reacquainted with Lukas and Leilani, and we adults had a lot of fun catching up as well - trading the latest news of old college friends, and in the case of Peter and I, obtaining valuable potty training advice from parents who are "in the trenches" so to speak. We hope we'll have the pleasure of seeing the Wozencrafts again very soon!

Capturing the moment

2007-10-20T23:26:00.000-07:00

Once in a while, you get lucky and manage to capture a mood, expression or moment in time with a camera. After arriving home from Sabbath School today, Emmy was ecstatically playing with the balloons we purchased for her yesterday, and I took the opportunity to snap a few photos. Here are a few of my favorites - the last one made my day. :)

Gaining frustration

2007-10-19T10:06:00.000-07:00

So I counted my points all week like a good girl and weighed in Wednesday night to find that I'd gained 2.8 pounds! This roller coaster thing is disconcerting. I don't have a clue what I did wrong. I suppose it could simply be water retention, or perhaps the unusually big dinner I'd eaten the night before . . . or it could even be that I'm not drinking enough water (high fiber diet + low water intake = clogged pipes, if you get my drift). I'm trying not to be discouraged - reminding myself that it's the long-term results that matter. But it's hard not to feel disappointed. It would help if I knew what to do differently . . .

I've noticed that my tummy is definitely accustomed to less volume when it comes to meals. Since I've been on the program, the couple of times I've eaten too quickly I've felt uncomfortably full for hours afterwards. I have to keep reminding myself to eat slowly. This can be a challenge when I get home from work at 8:00 p.m. and still have to clean the kitchen, cook dinner (sometimes for Emmy and Peter as well as myself), feed the munchkin and then myself, do the bedtime routine (jammies, teeth-brushing, story-reading, singing, water-drinking, and if all goes well, sleeping), check e-mail, pay bills, do laundry and get some shuteye before it's time to get up and start the cycle all over again. I hope that once my November event is over, I'll be able to get home earlier, cook more, and enjoy some relaxing evenings with my family.

In other news, poor Peter is still looking for a job. There are a few leads, but they're taking their sweet time developing into a face-to-face interview, let alone a job offer. This whole thing has been quite a blow to his self-esteem - he hates not being able to "bring home the bacon" after investing so much time and effort into getting a degree. Please keep praying that the right job will come along soon.

Well, gotta go - it's a gorgeous day, so we're taking Emmy to the park for a little fun in the sun. Have a lovely weekend!

The great weight update

2007-10-12T11:15:00.000-07:00

OK, OK - I know I promised a weekly update on my Weight Watchers progress, but last week was so dang discouraging I couldn't bring myself to blog about it. After one week of faithfully following the flex plan, I weighed in and found myself nearly two pounds heavier than when I'd started. Needless to say, this was not the direction I was hoping for.

(warning to male readers: the next paragraph briefly and unexplicitly mentions female-related things - if this grosses you out, stop reading or grow up.)

The first question they asked was "Are you on your period?" and when I answered in the affirmative, they assured me that the gain was likely just water weight, and that I'd lose it in the next week or two. I stuck with the plan, and this week when I weighed in I had lost 8.8 pounds! Whoohoo!

The coolest thing about this plan is that (thus far at least) I truly don't feel deprived. Because I'm so heavy, my daily point allotment is pretty high (as I continue to lose weight, this will gradually drop), and since I'm eating healthier foods with lower point values, I can eat quite a bit of them if I so desire. These foods are often quite filling, so I don't have to eat very much to feel full. In fact, it's sometimes a challenge to eat all of my points for the day (until I remember the presence of chocolate covered pretzels in my pantry, and then it's a cinch!). I've also noticed that I feel hungrier than I used to before meals (since I used to eat only once or twice a day), but it's actually pleasurable to feel that hunger and then satisfy it with something healthy and delicious.

Here are a few of the yummy things I've made/discovered in the past couple of weeks:

One point chili (one point per cup)
Grilled cheese, carmelized onion and apple sandwich (6 pts per sandwich)
Vegetable curry (potatoes, onions, cauliflower & peas) made with Trader Joe's masala or korma sauce and served with brown rice (1 cup brown rice = 4 pts, 1 cup curry = 4 pts)
Kozy Shack no sugar added puddings - chocolate and tapioca (one pt per serving)
Trader Joe's Cinnamon Graham Toucans (100-calorie packs = 2 pts per pack)

That's all for now - I'll keep you posted on my progress. Have a terrific weekend, everyone!

This one goes out to all the moms out there . . .

2007-10-12T11:10:00.000-07:00

I'm indebted to WonderGirl for this terrific video - two minutes and fifty-five seconds of hilarity. Enjoy!

One point goes a long way

2007-10-01T20:59:00.000-07:00

As y'all know, I'm a newbie on the Weight Watchers program. Last night, my friend Shari and I made the chili that everyone was raving about at my first meeting - and I have to admit that it's very good and VERY filling! For those of you who want to give it a try, here's the recipe:

One Point Chili

10 oz. extra lean ground turkey (we substituted vegetarian Morning Star crumbles)
1 medium onion, diced
2 28 oz. cans diced tomatoes
2 medium zucchini, diced
2 medium yellow squash, diced
1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 15 oz. cans fat free beef broth (vegetable works as well)
4 stalks celery, diced
2 bell peppers, diced
1 package dry chili seasoning mix

Brown turkey and onions (about 5 minutes). Add remaining ingredients; simmer 30 minutes.

Makes 20 1 cup servings (each serving is only one point!)

Just a note - since we didn't use real meat and the crumbles didn't have enough fat to cook on their own with the onions, we added just a tad of olive oil. Also, one packet of chili seasoning didn't cut it as far as we were concerned - so we added a little more salt, garlic and onion powders, ground cumin (adds a nice depth), chili powder and a dash of cayenne. Yum!

I'm going to continue experimenting with this recipe - it's a tad low on beans, so I might add more black beans or some kidney beans next time. I think fresh chopped garlic would be wonderful added to the meat and onions as they cook, as well as some Worcestershire sauce for a little extra depth of flavor. If you have any ideas or have other low-point recipes, please share them!

Shy Welsh phone salesman sings Nessun Dorma

2007-10-01T10:20:00.000-07:00

I'm indebted to Roy Williams' Monday Morning Memo for this gem - if you haven't already heard of Paul Potts, you will. Make sure you've got a Kleenex handy . . .

Fun at Grandma's

2007-09-28T11:33:00.000-07:00

Here's a few photos from a recent trip to Gramps' and Grandma Jean's house - among other delights such as kicking back in her adirondack chair and taking her "smart car" for a spin, Emmy had the rare privilege to host a tea party for Uncle David, Aunt Renee and Uncle Joel. The end of the day found Aunt Renee sacked out on the couch and Grandma Jean snoozing peacefully with Mickey and Bear cradled tenderly in her arms.

Cloudy skies

2007-09-28T11:25:00.000-07:00

The interesting weather we've experienced over the past couple of weeks has created some beautiful and unique cloud formations - just thought I'd share a couple we caught on camera . . .

Taking the plunge

2007-09-27T23:32:00.000-07:00

Those of you who've known me for any length of time know that I've been struggling with my weight for many years. For the last 10 years I've been steadily gaining, and I've finally decided to take my health seriously and do something about it. Last night, I joined Weight Watchers and attended my first meeting.

I chose Weight Watchers not only because it's one of the less expensive options available (and money's very tight for us right now!), but because I have several friends who have been very successful in both losing (in many cases impressive amounts) and maintaining weight on this program.

In the interest of accountability, I intend to track my weekly progress on this blog. I hope that in addition to forcing me to be honest with myself, it will be an encouragement to those of you who have similar struggles.

So last night was my first meeting - and it was good, although I have to admit it didn't blow me away. I have a couple of friends at work who attend, so I hitched a ride with them. I was surprised at the number of people there (I'd guess there were at least 40 in attendance at this particular meeting) - and then at the lack of respect for the leader, as many people continued to chat with each other at full volume while she was speaking. However, despite being a bit on the rowdy side, the group was good-natured and friendly in a remote sort of way - most people (like me) sat in little clusters with people they knew.

The leader was enthusiastic and entertaining, sharing "true confessions" of her recent struggles after allowing butter, peanut butter, and Costco cheese danishes back into her diet. One of the best things about WW is that every one of the receptionists (who weigh you in each week) and the group leaders have lost weight on this program and kept it off - so they know firsthand what you're going through. The attractive, petite brunette who signed me up had rather dramatic before & after photos prominently displayed at her station, which made her far less intimidating.
When I signed up, I purchased the "starter kit" with a 3-month journal and food guides to assist me in tracking my points. When I got home, I was still sufficiently inspired to fix a little package of assorted baby veggies (carrots, zucchini and snow peas), a sweet potato, some cottage cheese, and a Fresca (diet soda) for dinner.

So today was my first day on program, and guess what I forgot to bring to work with me? That's right - I left the starter kit at home. Next, I hit Starbucks with a friend and without even thinking, ordered a Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte (yum!) AND a breakfast sandwich. I also purchased a fresh veggie tray for lunch, and promised myself I'd make up for the morning splurge with low-point meals for the rest of the day . . . which I think I did - the only food I had for the rest of the day (besides the veggie tray - and I didn't even touch the dip!) was a stick of string cheese, some cashews, and half a turkey and pepper jack sandwich. I'll have to add up the points tonight and see where I stand.

As I begin this journey to a happier, healthier me, I would truly appreciate your prayers for my success on this program - that God will grant me the strength I lack to make good decisions where food is concerned, and help me to keep trying, even on the occasions when I - as I inevitably will - give in to temptation.

Thanks to all of you for being such wonderful friends - it feels great to know I've got a terrific built-in support system in you guys. :)

Time to go and fill in my first journal entry, so as Tigger says "Ta ta for now!" I'll post again on this topic next week.

Building the Kingdom

2007-09-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

I admire the heck out of Samir Selmanovic. Formerly a teaching pastor at CrossWalk, he has taken a huge leap of faith to start a big, hairy, audacious project called Faith House Manhattan. The idea is to create a space where Muslims, Jews, Christians and atheists can come together to build understanding and work together for social justice. Seems to me that something like this would be right down Jesus' alley.

As a lifelong Adventist who's attended mass nearly every Sunday for the past three years (after being taught that the Catholic church was the Beast of Revelation incarnate), I can testify that there are many admirable and beautiful things about the Catholic faith, and rather than weakening or testing my Christian experience, my contact with Catholicism has strengthened it. I've had similarly eye-opening encounters before, delightedly discovering that God can be found in a Sikh house of worship, in Shinto shrines, in Buddhist temples, Zen gardens and Muslim mosques.

Isn't what Samir is doing what we are all called to do as Christians? To step out of our comfortable, insulated lives and learn to see the face of God in everyone with whom we come in contact? Rather than beating them over the head with our version of "the truth," shouldn't we be taking them by the hand and seeking God together as equals - His beloved sons and daughters? By discovering and focusing on what we have in common with people of other faiths, we can deepen our understanding of how big our God really is - and how He can use any faith (or even a lack thereof!) as a means to draw us to Himself.

If you have a few minutes, take a look at Samir's web site and sign up to receive his bi-weekly newsletter - he always has interesting things to say, and includes insightful articles, beautiful poems, etc. that will challenge your mind and edify your spirit. And if you like what he's doing, send him an encouraging e-mail. I'll leave you with a lovely "Sabbath Poem" from his collection:

WITH THAT MOON LANGUAGE

by Shams-ud-din Muhammad Hafiz (c. 1320-1389)

Admit something:

Everyone you see, you say to them, "Love me."

Of course you do not do this out loud, otherwise someone would call the cops.

Still, though, think about this, this great pull in us to connect.

Why not become the one who lives with a full moon in each eye

that is always saying, with that sweet moon language,

what every other eye in this world

is dying to hear?

(from the Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West, translation Daniel Ladinsky - Penguin Compass, 2002)

Peristyle promenade

2007-09-14T15:26:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago a group from Solomon's Porch packed lunch and carpooled to the Getty Villa in Malibu for a lovely Sabbath afternoon excursion. While most of the group explored the exhibits in the museum, Peter and Emmy and I remained out of doors - mainly in the outer peristyle, with its formal gardens punctuated by grape arbors, trees, hedges and numerous statues, dominated by an enormous reflecting pool running down the center. Emmy loved the gravel "paths" bordered by short ornamental hedges running down both sides of the peristyle - those areas seemed scaled just for her. She also loved splashing her hands and arms in the water and playing with the umbrellas freely available at the entrance doors (although it was a gorgeous day, there were thunderheads that drizzled half-heartedly during our drive - but thankfully they kept the rain to themselves the remainder of the afternoon!).

After taking in the museum, we sat in hideous traffic for well over an hour before arriving at The Grove, where we had a wonderful (if rather late) Italian dinner at Maggiano's. Here are a few more pictures of our outing - click on an image to see a larger version.

The way to Hell is littered with Starbucks cups

2007-08-26T22:24:00.000-07:00

I recently read an article in the Pacific Union Recorder written by the Union President, Tom Mostert. I was actually incensed enough to write the following response to the editorial staff. I'd be interested to know what you think. Please join in the discussion!

I grew up in the Adventist Church, and attended Adventist schools from kindergarten through college. I went to church every Sabbath unless I was ill. I didn’t smoke, drink, or wear jewelry. I examined package labels and shunned any snack containing lard (no matter how tasty it looked!). I didn’t wade in the ocean past my knees, read non-religious books, listen to non-religious music, play non-religious games or watch TV on Sabbath. I was a model Pathfinder, I sang in the church choir from the age of 9, and I ate just about every product that Worthington and Loma Linda ever made. I read the Bible all the way through several times, read Ellen White and even fasted and prayed for a day when I was 12. I was a good kid – got good grades, had nice Adventist friends, loved and respected my parents, and got along well with others. Mine was a traditional Adventist upbringing.

Thanks to my early instruction by pastors and teachers like Pastor Mostert, I grew up believing that I had to behave correctly or my sinful behavior would separate me from God. And in spite of being a “good girl” I was terrified at the prospect of the Second Coming, knowing I wouldn’t be good enough to qualify for salvation.

It wasn’t until I became an adult that I came to understand that salvation isn’t earned – and that relationship guides behavior, not the other way around. In time, I realized that if I am faithful in maintaining my relationship with God through time spent in prayer and in the study of His word, my lifestyle is informed – and reformed – by that relationship. When we accept Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, we cannot help but want to express our love and gratitude by living a life that is pleasing to Him.

Pastor Mostert’s article “0+0+0+0=0” was extremely disheartening to read, and is a good example of why so many intelligent believers have left our church. It is downright insulting for him to suggest that Adventists whose beliefs and/or practices differ from his own have modified their faith purely to suit their own convenience, thus insinuating that there are no legitimate reasons for differing from “traditional” Adventist teachings. Can he truly be claiming that it isn’t possible for Adventist believers to come to a new understanding of their faith through a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ?

There are so many confusing statements and blatant errors of understanding in his editorial I can hardly begin to address them: how does one “practice sanctification only in general terms” (we are left to suppose he must be referring to those who do, say or think things with which he doesn’t personally agree)? In what way does drinking coffee – or even wine in moderation – amount to zero incorporation of the Adventist health message (how does one deviation = zero incorporation)? Since when are all Christians called to be evangelists – what happened to the idea of Spiritual Gifts, and the illustration of the church as a body with different parts which complement each other? And how does the investigation of Ellen White’s authority as a prophet eliminate serious consideration of her writings? Pastor Mostert’s statements reflect a clear bias and a troubling lack of discernment.

The importance Adventist Christians place on the study of the Bible is one of the more admirable aspects of our denomination. In Mysteries of the Bible (p. 707) Ellen White reminds us that seeking new understanding of the Scriptures is vital to our spiritual growth: “When no new questions are started by investigation of the Scriptures, when no difference of opinion arises which will set men to searching the Bible for themselves, to make sure that they have the truth, there will be many now, as in ancient times, who will hold to tradition, and worship they know not what."

Mrs. White makes it clear that our understanding of Biblical truth – both as individuals and as a church body – should continue to grow as we draw closer to our Savior: “new light will ever be revealed on the word of God to him who is in living connection with the Sun of Righteousness." (Counsels to Writers and Editors, p. 35.) In Christ’s Object Lessons (pp. 130, 131) she writes "the old truths will be presented, but they will be seen in a new light. There will be a new perception of truth, a clearness and a power that all will discern.”

The faith vs. works debate has been raging within the Adventist Church for well over a century. Undoubtedly the most well-known example in our church history is the 1888 General Conference session in Minneapolis. Staunch traditionalists G.I. Butler and Uriah Smith upheld that obedience to the law was essential to salvation, opposing Jones and Waggoner and Ellen White herself, who had changed her stance and accepted the “new light” that salvation was obtained by grace through faith alone. The Shut Door teaching is another example of an about-face in Adventist theology. If a prophet can be inspired to change her opinion on such vital issues, it stands to reason that we as individuals and the church as a whole should be willing to investigate our faith – and even change our “traditional” stance – as the Holy Spirit leads us to new understanding.

Pastor Mostert seems to be firmly entrenched in the Butler and Smith camp, trumpeting “Tradition!” and condemning those who have investigated their faith and found traditional Adventist views to be in conflict with what they have discovered for themselves through Bible study and a growing relationship with Christ. He would do well to remember that the people Christ rebuked most harshly were the Pharisees who ranked obedience to the law above relationship with God.

As a leader with significant influence within our church, I pray that the Holy Spirit will lead Pastor Mostert to spend less time finding fault with the beliefs and practices of other Adventists, and to focus his energies on developing a deeper relationship with Christ and living a life of love, which are the only things that can truly unite us as a church.

“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12, NIV

Good news!

2007-08-23T12:20:00.000-07:00

I just found out that Mr. Krause, the poor man who rear-ended me last week, is still alive - and it looks like he's going to stay that way for a while (provided he wears a seat belt from here on out!). I called LLUMC today on the off-chance that I could get some information about his condition, and lucked out by reaching a nurse who's apparently not intimidated by HIPAA regulations. She told me that Mr. Krause was transferred out of ICU last night and was able to sit up in bed for a little while today - so it sounds as though he's making good progress. Thanks to all of you who've been praying for his recovery.

Disco dancin'

2007-08-21T22:38:00.000-07:00

Just had to share this little tidbit - while having lunch at IHOP last week, Emmy began spontaneously dancing to September by Earth, Wind & Fire with suprisingly appropriate 70's moves - but by the time I thought to get a video, the sound system had moved on to Seal's Kiss from a Rose. Emmy kept on dancing, and we kept on giggling. Enjoy! :)

Crash update

2007-08-16T22:11:00.001-07:00

Google is a heck of a useful tool. I Googled "accident, Redlands, Barton Road, San Timoteo" and found a Press Enterprise article (scroll down to the second headline, "Man critically hurt in Barton Road accident") with more information about the crash. The man who hit me is named Helmut Krause (I am the mysterious "woman in the Mazda"). I also spoke with the police officer in charge of the investigation today, and was informed that Mr. Krause was in critical but stable condition last she'd heard, so it's possible he'll recover after all. Please continue to keep him and his family in your prayers.

I owe my dad, the urgent care physician and all the rest of you who've said "you're going to feel a lot worse tomorrow" an apology. I assumed that you were exaggerating the after-effects of an accident, and thought I was made of tougher stuff - until I woke up this morning feeling as though a steamroller must have run over me sometime during the night. I literally could not lift my head from the pillow without excruciating pain. The scariest thing is that it's supposed to be even worse tomorrow. Thank God for Vicodin and muscle relaxants! :)

However, my full-body owie (as my husband has so perfectly dubbed my whiplash) seems a small price to pay considering the injury or even death that could easily have resulted. The accident keeps replaying in my mind, and I still can't figure out how I managed not to hit the cars in front of me. While I'd love to chalk it up to divine providence, that doesn't seem very fair to Mr. Krause - why didn't God see fit to protect him, too?

Divine intervention or not, I feel very fortunate, and am grateful to God for my life. I pray that I'll never take a second of it for granted.

Sedan to hatchback in just a few seconds

2007-08-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

Some of you have heard that I was involved in a major car accident last night (for those of you who hadn't heard, now you know!). I left work around 7:15 p.m., and was in the left lane heading west on Barton Road approaching the intersection of San Timoteo Canyon Road when I saw a car swerve to my right and looked in my rear view mirror to see a blue Ford pickup truck bearing down on me way too fast. By the time I saw him, there was no time to get out of his way and I knew I was going to be hit hard. I suspect that the driver was not in control of the vehicle, because he didn't make any apparent attempt to slow or stop (there was no sound of brakes being applied at any time).

A second or two later there was a deafening crash and my car seemed to explode - the back windshield shattered, glass and coins from the ashtray (which had opened on impact) flew everywhere, and my seat back was thrown all the way backward, slamming into the car seat behind me (thank God Emmy wasn't in the car!). Knowing there was a car ahead of me in each lane, I braced for a second impact. All I remember thinking was "I may not survive this." Miraculously, my car shot like an arrow straight between the two cars without so much as grazing either one. When I regained control of the vehicle a few seconds later, I was already nearly a quarter of a mile from the scene of the impact. I sat up and saw that I was in the middle of the road with no cars near me, still moving at a good clip. I applied the brakes, pulled over to the side of the road and stopped. Here's a pic of my car taken today at the tow lot to satisfy your morbid curiosity. ;-)

The good news is that aside from whiplash and some nasty bruises on my calves, I'm just fine. The bad news is that the guy who hit me didn't fare nearly as well. After rear-ending me, his car careened off the road (also miraculously hitting no one else) and hit a concrete block wall that borders a construction site. He was not wearing a seatbelt, and his head hit the windshield hard enough to make a rather large hole in it (the windshield - though the guy had a good-sized hole in his head as well). He was in critical condition when the ambulance arrived, and the police said they were told that he wasn't expected to survive. We learned from the Redlands Daily Facts that he was taken to LLUMC where a coma was induced, and from the City of Redlands that the driver was 67 and from Mentone. Here's a pic of his truck.

The wreck was treated as a fatal injury accident - the police closed down the intersection for hours to take photos and measurements. It took them two hours just to get around to photographing my car and interviewing me about what had happened. At that time, they did breathalizer and blood tests on me (and indicated their intent to do the same on him if he was still alive by the time they got to the hospital).

The fact that my car was totaled seems a minor inconvenience when I consider how much worse it could have been. I thank God that I'm still alive, and that no one else was hurt. Please keep this poor man (I'm going to try to find out how he's doing and will post the info as soon as I know) and his family in your prayers.

Beatboxing flutist

2007-08-10T22:06:00.000-07:00

I'm obviously not very creative, 'cause it never occurred to me that it is possible to beatbox while playing the flute . . . if you haven't already seen this video, you should take a few minutes to see and hear something new. Check it out at: http://dailymotion.alice.it/visited/search/beatbox/video/x16hdk_flute-beatbox.

No news isn't always good news

2007-08-08T23:25:00.000-07:00

We're still waiting to hear from the company Peter interviewed with several weeks ago, but since they've failed to return his calls, we fear the worst. Please continue to keep us (Peter in particular) in your prayers!

Aside from having no money, we've been having a wonderful summer - a few weeks ago, we had the pleasure of keeping our nieces Emily and Elyssa while their parents moved into their new rental home. Emmy had a ball playing with them in her little inflatable pool, and Peter and I got creative and made little doll houses and furniture out of cardboard boxes, wood and fabric bits, etc. We may have had more fun than the kids did!

A couple weeks ago we joined our dear friends Tom & Debbie Saknit for a Sabbath afternoon jaunt to San Diego. We spent the afternoon admiring the ocean view at Shelter Island and paid an evening visit to the zoo, which was loads of fun. Emmy especially loved playing in the park at Shelter Island and seeing the elephants, bears and hippo at the zoo. Since we arrived at dusk, a lot of the animals were already asleep by the time we got around to their exhibits - but it was fun to feel like we had the place to ourselves!

Last weekend Emmy and Peter went attended Jamie Wallace's birthday party at Brookside Park in Redlands. Emmy enjoyed swinging on the swings, eating cake, wearing her birthday hat and admiring the balloon ladybug given to her by the balloon artist at the party.

Emmy has been growing insanely fast - she's getting longer and leaner and looks less and less like a baby and more like a little girl. She's very imaginative, interacting animatedly with her stuffed animals and dolls, and reenacting scenes from her favorite television shows, Go Baby and Little Einsteins. She is quite the little mimic these days, and has mastered the phrase "Oh my, YES!" uttered by the Go Baby narrator with the same high-pitched tone and ecstatic inflection. A new favorite activity is getting on the couch and burying herself in cushions until only her head is sticking out of the top of the pile.

She's saying TONS of new words every day now - we can't keep up. She imitates nearly everything she hears, with no prompting necessary. Singing and doing motions is a blast for her and for us - her giggles are truly infectious. It's an exciting time, and we're more smitten than ever.

With Emmy in the family . . .

2007-07-19T21:46:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, Grandma Jean discovered that Emmy can sing "Happy, Happy Home" - and Daddy was clever enough to record it on our web cam today. So cute I just had to share it with you . . .

Chillin'

2007-07-07T00:31:00.000-07:00

Emmy and I spent a couple of hours relaxing in the ool (you'll notice there's no "p" in it! Ha, ha!) with Ryan and Shari at her mom's place. It was truly oven-like outside, but the water was perfect. Emmy had a great time splashing around in our arms, and floating all by herself in an inflatable ring with a seat in the middle. We're thinking we'll make a Friday afternoon ritual of this - at least for the remainder of the summer. I hope to teach our little fish how to swim.

Anyway, Emmy looked so adorable in her bikini and pigtails that I had to share a couple pics with you (if you haven't already figured this out, you can click on a photo to "embiggen" it). Stay cool!

Unemployment is not working

2007-07-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

Good news on the job hunt - Peter got a call today from a defense contractor requesting him to come for an interview on Monday morning. He's really excited about the job description - it's something he's really interested in - but he's trying not to get his hopes up too high. Also, it's in southern California, so we'd be able to stay in the area. Please keep him in your prayers (or if you don't go in for that sort of thing, keep your fingers crossed, knock on wood - whatever works for you!).

Sunny Seashore Snapshots

2007-07-01T00:11:00.000-07:00

Here are a few photos from our Sabbath afternoon outing to Crystal Cove - enjoy!

Sitting in Katie MacFarland's sunchair

A break from making sand castles

Back from testing the waters with Daddy

Solemnly waving beach grass

Dancing with delight

Auntie Shari gives a farewell hug

Coy with the camera

Angel face

Friday I'm in Love

2007-06-29T12:31:00.000-07:00

Ah, glorious Friday! I'm so in love with you it's not even funny . . .

It's remarkable what sleeping in 'til 10:00am and then drinking two cups of delicious freshly brewed coffee can do for one's outlook on life! I must say that my hubby earned some serious brownie points this morning. :)

Once Emmy's had her nap and I've had a much-needed shower, we'll be heading out to exciting destinations like KMart and Target to find an umbrella and sand toys for our outing to the beach tomorrow afternoon . . . should be fun. It'll be only the second time that Emmy's been to the beach (her first time was last August), so we're looking forward to seeing her reaction. Last time she wasn't too keen on all the sand sticking to her legs, and was only able to shovel a few grains at a time into her bucket - and then there was the horrifying experience of the cold shower to wash off her feet. We're hoping that she'll have a lot more fun this year!

Something seems to have clicked in the past couple of weeks on the speech front - Emmy's saying 2-3 new words every day now. More, moon, top, house, eat, bathroom (pronounced ba-oom), and duck (now with a "duh" in front of the "k" - a major accomplishment!) are recent additions to her vocabulary. We can't wait to find out what "Aboo . . . da!" means . . .

Well, Emmy's finally asleep so I'm gonna hit the shower. Have a terrific day, and a wonderful weekend!

Long Time No Post

2007-06-19T21:36:00.000-07:00

OK, so it's been FOREVER since I posted anything to this blog . . . there's been a lot going on since I got back from Italy!

In May Emmy and I flew to Asheville, North Carolina to coordinate a TQH weekend event and spend time with my dad and stepmom. We had a wonderful visit, though far too short to suit my taste. Emmy had a great time with Grandpa Fred and Grandma Cheryl, and especially enjoyed playing in the fountains at the Biltmore Estate and a sidetrip to Dry Falls (so called 'cause you can walk behind them) on the way back to Georgia, where she was able to stomp in puddles to her heart's content.

Our biggest news is that on June 9, Peter graduated from Cal Poly Pomona with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. Five long years of non-stop studying (well, OK - there were a few breaks in there) are finally over! Now he's on to the challenge of finding gainful employment - any of you know anyone looking for an inexperienced but intelligent and highly trainable electrical engineer?

Peter's older brother, Ken, and his wife Heather and kids (Alex and Shelbie) were able to come for Peter's graduation. It was the first time we'd seen them in three years - they'd never met Emmy. She warmed especially to Uncle Ken, who tried every trick in the book to thaw her initial reserve, and succeeded in winning her over in short order. We're thrilled that they're planning on moving back to Southern California in the next month or two.

The graduation weekend was busy, with a party after the ceremony on Sabbath, and a family gathering in Crestline on Sunday to celebrate Peter's graduation, his stepmother's birthday, and his father's retirement from Loma Linda University. It was the first time that the whole family has been together since two of its members (Emmy and Gwen) have been in existence, and we had a great time spending time together. We're going to miss Ray and Gail when they move to Wisconsin next month!

In other news, Emmy is growing fast and seems to be ingesting caffeine on a regular basis - we can't figure out where she's getting it from, but it's apparent from her high energy levels that she's getting fairly significant doses.

She babbles a lot more now, and is slowly becoming more amenable to trying new words. Just this week she started saying Daddy, Mommy and baby (as opposed to Dada, Mama, and behbeh) and has recently added bow, bear, owl, Bambi, yes and a flirty "Hi!" to her spoken vocabulary. Her vocabulary of words she understands and can identify is huge - she's just not in any rush to say them. In the last week or so she began "singing" with me on the lullabies I've always sung to her before putting her down to sleep, which is almost unbearably cute.

Being outside - whether at the park, in Grandma's back yard, or at the Huntington Library - is Emmy's ultimate joy, especially if water is involved. I've learned to bring a change of clothes for her everywhere we go, just in case. Clothes are turning out to be entertaining, too - taking her shoes off and putting socks on her hands are more fun than you can imagine. The other night my mom and I tried a dress on for size, and she spent 15 minutes or so putting the diaper cover (with tag still attached) on her head like a hat and looking very self-satisfied with the results (see pic at left), which had us in stitches. She loves stories, and enjoys picking out books to read before her nap and at bedtime. She has become much more imaginative, and plays with her dolls and stuffed animals much more than she used to.

Just in the last couple of weeks, she's begun acting out scenes from her favorite movies. For instance, one day she found a ribbon, and immediately dragged Peter into her bedroom to get her stuffed dog out of her crib. She then proceeded to drag him into our bedroom, where she got a shoebox out of the closet. She took all of these things into the living room, and put the stuffed dog (coincidentally named Lady - we just discovered the name on the tag today) into the box, put the lid on top, and then wrapped the ribbon around the box. She then proceeded to unwrap the ribbon, open the box, and hug Lady - in imitation of the opening scene from Disney's "Lady and the Tramp" where Jim Dear gives Darling a ribbon-tied box containing a cocker spaniel (named Lady) as a Christmas present. She especially appreciates it when Daddy or I play along by reciting the appropriate lines for her as she goes through the motions.

Last weekend was eventful - on Friday we had lunch with one of my college roommates, Wendy Wareham, and had a great time catching up on news and meeting her two beautiful children, Clara and David (unfortunately I didn't think to get pictures!).

Saturday we were privileged to attend the 10-year wedding vow renewal ceremony for our dear friends Pat and Maria Diegelman. It was a lovely service, and we enjoyed the opportunity to spend more time catching up with old friends and to bid Pat and Maria a fond farewell as they move up to northern California - Pat's just been promoted to General Manager of the Il Fornaio restaurant in Roseville, and is already doing a terrific job getting the place running smoothly after years of mismanagement. Emmy loved playing with her "cousins" Erin Smith and Jamie Wallace, and did not want to leave!

Well, that's about it for now - I'll try to be more faithful from here on out. Thanks for bearing with me, and please keep in touch!

Home Again

2007-05-05T15:44:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been more than a month since I've blogged! The time has really flown by. Things are slowly getting back to "normal." Needless to say, it's wonderful to be home with my family again. I was worried that Emmy would hold a grudge against me for abandoning her for 10 whole days, but when I met her in the driveway as Gail brought her home the evening I returned from Italy, she just clung to me and wouldn't let go - and I didn't put her down for a very long time . . .

The tour was amazing, but too fast-paced for me to absorb it all. I'm still basking in the glow of the shimmering watercolor world of Venice (see photo below left), the beckoning charm of Ravenna, the old-world nobility of Florence, the serene and lovely hilltop jewel that is Assisi, and the awe-inspiring greatness of Rome. I look at my photos and try to recall all of the unphotographed details in my memory - what it felt like to walk the uneven cobblestone streets, and the exhilaration of driving through the Villa Borghese Gardens in a four-seat bicycle-powered surrey (see picture on right); the glittering golden glow of the intricate mosaics which line the interior of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, the startlingly bright hues of the frescoes in the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua, and the lovely Giotto frescoes and jewel-like stained glass in the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi; the scent of blooming wisteria seemingly everywhere we went; the reverberation of our voices as we sang Palestrina's Sicut Cervus in the enormous, ornate church of St. Ignatius in Rome; savoring the fizzy sweetness of a sciroppo di lampone (raspberry soda) and the lilt of a waltz tune at the venerable Cafe Florian as the afternoon sun bathed the facade of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice. The flavors of Italy are memorable as well: flaky white fish served with shavings of pumpkin and spiced with nutmeg; deep-fried zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and anchovies; piadina (flatbread sandwich) filled with squaquarone (a creamy spreadable cheese made in the Emilia-Romagna region) and figs; spaghetti tossed with sweet cherry tomatoes, basil and mint; unbelievably tender and savory lamb cacciatore; fresh, peppery arugula greens served with nearly everything; velvety panna cotta in caramel sauce; the seductively rich bacio ("kiss" in Italian - chocolate with hazelnuts) and wonderfully refreshing grapefruit, pear, blackberry and cherry gelatos. The list of wonderful experiences could go on and on . . .

The best thing about the trip was being with my family - traveling with Mom, Stanton and Joel was a joy (the photo is of us on a gondola in Venice). Joel was a fabulous travel companion, putting up with my notorious snoring at night and sometimes grumpy exhaustion during the day with infinite graciousness, speaking very passable Italian and guiding us around each city we visited with patience and aplomb. Mom and Stanton seemed indefatigable, handling the brutal pace and length of the walking tours as if they were merely extensions of their daily morning walk. It was truly a pleasure to be able to share the sights, sounds, and tastes of Italy with people of similar likes who are willing to tolerate my idiosyncrasies. My only regret was not being able to stay another week with them in the Tuscan villa they'd rented with my brother David and his wife Renee, exploring Arezzo and the other hill towns nearby. Unfortunately, I had no more vacation time available, and even if I had, I couldn't have stood being away from Peter and Emmy another week. I'm trying to persuade them to plan another trip in a year or two . . .

Of all the places we visited, I think my favorite was Assisi (see photo on left). This beautiful pink limestone city perched on an emerald hilltop is truly spectacular, and seems untouched by time. We passed a number of wonderful-looking shops with absolutely no time to do more than admire the display in the window while briskly walking past (Mom, Stanton and Joel wisely skipped the private mass that day in order to do some exploring). With heart-stoppingly beautiful views of the surrounding countryside everywhere you turn, gorgeous churches, walls, arches and fountains, brightly flowering window boxes at nearly every shuttered window, tantalizing shop displays, charming cafes, and inviting stairways beckoning you to climb and discover, I felt I could have spent weeks (or months) in Assisi without losing interest.

If you'd like to see my photos of the tour, click on the following link for a guest pass to Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/gp/72248478@N00/Pq4g54. If you click on a photo, you can read the descriptions beneath - unfortunately they won't show up in a slideshow. I'm still adding descriptions, but most of the photos have them now.

I promise to post another Emmy update soon - for now, Ciao!

April Fool

2007-04-04T00:37:00.000-07:00

I ran out the back door on Sunday morning April 1st to find that my car had inexplicably disappeared from the driveway. I frantically reviewed the weekend's events in my head "Could I have forgotten that I left it someplace else?" But no, we'd taken Peter's car the day before, and I remembered that my car had been there in the driveway when we'd gotten home that night. My mind reeled . . . "It's not possible that someone could have stolen the piece of crap, is it?!"

I called to Peter: "Honey - I have a problem. My car's not here." I should have instantly known by the sprightliness in his manner as he answered (he's not usually all that sprightly in the a.m. hours), "Are you sure? Where did you leave it?" I insisted that I was sure, and that I had left it there in the driveway where I always leave it. He said "Well, I suppose you'd better go and look for it!" As if we're on an easter egg hunt. Then it finally dawned on me what day it was, and I felt quite the sucker. A peek around the corner of the house revealed that my car had been re-parked in the space reserved for the downstairs apartment (currently unoccupied).

I'm guessing it'll be a very long time before I live that one down . . .

My Visual DNA

2007-03-30T23:15:00.000-07:00

I am indebted to WonderGirl for this lovely little quiz.

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

Snappy Comeback

2007-03-27T23:17:00.000-07:00

Peter's parents took us out for dinner tonight to celebrate his upcoming birthday, and gave him a beautiful scrapbook containing photos of him and his family from babyhood to the present. This was the first opportunity for me to see many of his baby pictures, and I eagerly perused them for similarities to Emmy. In one of the pics (entitled "Southern Exposure"), toddler Peter is shown from the back with his pants down to his knees, leaving his shapely little derriere in full view. I pointed at the photo and quipped "Look, Honey - I think Emmy has your butt!" to which he immediately retorted "Yeah - but she has your genitalia."

Once in a while, the man absolutely slays me.

Sexual Orientation - Free Will and Grace

2007-03-27T00:48:00.000-07:00

You're entering dangerous, politically-charged territory here, so readers beware! If you don't like controversy, don't touch this one with a ten-foot pole . . . but if you enjoy discussion and debate, pull up a chair and read awhile.

I've been recently involved in a discussion with a dear friend who feels called to minister to people who suffer from what she calls Same Sex Attraction. She herself was a victim of the most abhorrent sexual abuse you can imagine from her earliest years, and has lately come to the conclusion that any person living a homosexual lifestyle can be healed from SSA through Christ and live a healthy, happy heterosexual life. Below is my take on the subject:

I feel there’s a distinction between true homosexuality and homosexual behavior. I happen to disagree with the premise that experiencing homosexual desires (or Same Sex Attraction) is a choice. I also feel that it’s dangerous to apply anecdotal information to a population and claim that because one person (or even thousands of persons) managed to successfully transition from a homosexual lifestyle to a heterosexual one, it means that anyone who does not achieve that feat has “chosen” not to.

I truly believe that some people are simply born with “the wrong plumbing,” so to speak. I have several close gay friends whom I believe were born that way – one of whom I’ve known since childhood. Without exception, they tried desperately to fit in and be “normal,” though from an early age it was apparent to them and to others that they were “different.” Throughout high school and even college, they dated women, and tried to rationalize their homosexual attractions and encounters as part of a normal friendship between men, as being gay was simply unthinkable. These men each had a firm belief in and fostered a strong relationship with God. They had a healthy prayer life, studied the Bible, attended church regularly and went to church schools. They came from loving Christian homes (two of them are pastor's kids!).

One of these men has been one of my dearest friends for many years. I personally witnessed his struggle to deny what was obvious to others since he was a child but was not even a possibility in his mind until he was in his 20’s. Eventually he rejected his faith (for intellectual reasons) and attended a non-Christian school, and only after leaving the Christian belief system behind was he able to admit to himself—let alone to others—that he was, and had always been, homosexual. It is actually really sad to me that he could not accept his sexual identity within the context of his Christianity – that choice was simply not made available to him. With the exception of the Episcopalians, the Christian Church has largely made it clear that there is no place for homosexuals within its ranks.

There’s another group of people who have been victims of sexual abuse at an early age which led to sexual confusion and/or rebellion against heterosexuality – and yet another group who get their rocks off doing what’s perceived “forbidden” or taboo and choose to indulge in non-heterosexual behavior simply for the thrill of it. I believe that these two groups can definitely find healing and achieve a happy, heterosexual lifestyle. But in my opinion, expecting people who have been born homosexual to lead a heterosexual lifestyle is like asking a normal heterosexual man to decide to become a homosexual – or worse, like asking a person born without a limb to just have faith and pray, and it will be restored. These folks can no more choose not to be gay than Stevie Wonder could choose not to be blind or I could choose not to be Caucasian.

Sin has resulted in some nasty consequences. Things on earth are not as they were originally designed to be – children aren’t always born healthy and whole, good people and bad suffer alike from horrible illnesses. Tragedy strikes the innocent and the guilty. All of us fall short of the ideal that God had in mind when He created us. While I acknowledge that God is powerful enough to heal any disease or rescue anyone from death, the fact is that He doesn’t heal or rescue everyone (at least not in this lifetime!). And I’m sorry, but I just can’t believe that children die from cancer because they don’t have enough faith in God to heal them – or that innocent people die ghastly deaths because they didn’t pray hard enough or have enough trust in God to save them.

That said, I recognize that desires and actions are two different things, and that while desires may not be altered, actions certainly can. And yet it also seems clear to me that I’m not really qualified to make a judgment call on that – provided that we’re talking consenting adults, I feel that it’s best left between the individual(s) and God.

My greatest comfort comes in knowing that our God is loving, and full of grace and mercy. He knows our struggles intimately, and can read the depths of each soul – and He chooses to save each one of us in spite of our sinful, imperfect selves.

As Paul stated so eloquently in Romans 8:33-39: “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

OK, I've had my say - now it's your turn to weigh in. What do YOU think?

The Latest

2007-03-19T22:27:00.000-07:00

Since I've recently posted an update and there's not much news, I'm being lazy and just posting some pics of Emmy's recent activities (and not-so-brief explanations). Note the poor lizard - wish Peter had managed to get a video, 'cause apparently she was twirling it in circles by the tail until her alarmed Grandma and Daddy persuaded her to "be gentle!" and hold it still. Seems our scaly little friend was either too petrified at being helicoptered violently through the air or simply too stupid to cast off its tail . . .

Two weeks ago we attended a party to celebrate our dear friend Pat's promotion to GM of the Il Fornaio restaurant in Roseville, CA, as well as his wife Maria's 36th birthday. It was bittersweet for Peter and I - we're really happy for Pat (he's worked his tail off for years for this!), but we're sad that they're moving so far away. We're trying to look at it as an opportunity to spend more time in beautiful northern CA. Emmy didn't let the goodbyes spoil her fun - she had a terrific time on the slide and swing in Maria's parents' back yard . . .

Last week was finals week for Peter, so his schedule was flexible enough that he actually had time to bring Emmy and meet me for lunch and giggles at Las Fuentes, and to take her to the park for some more serious swinging . . .

And finally, we got to spend some time with Ryan and Shari last Saturday night, and while we gaped in awe at their enormous new LCD TV, Emmy tried her hand at taking a picture of us for a change . . .

Last weekend I had an event and had to work all day Friday and Saturday, so I'm looking forward with real anticipation to having a little time to spend with Peter and Emmy this weekend. Grandma Jean has even agreed to take Emmy this Friday afternoon/evening so that Peter and I can enjoy the first hours alone we've spent since our anniversary last November. Hooray for Spring Break!

Hope you're all having a great week!

None Too Bright

2007-03-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

Peter and I were just trying to recall the name of the demon writing to his nephew Wormwood in C. S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters . . .

Uh . . . Who's buried in Grant's Tomb again?

Obviously not the sharpest tools in the shed, so to speak.

The Emmy Update

2007-03-02T16:15:00.000-08:00

The last month has been full of activity and adventure for 2-year-old Emmy. A few weeks ago, Mom and Stanton offered us the opportunity to attend a members-only showing of John Constable's six-foot landscapes at the Huntington Library, so Emmy and I (Peter had to study as usual) joined them and Joel for a rare (and quite chilly) nighttime visit. Emmy loved being outside, and while she did not seem to be impressed by the paintings, she fell in love with the string quartet playing just outside the gallery entrance. When they finished their first piece, she squealed and clapped delightedly, and immediately signed for "more!" She watched, enraptured for about 10 minutes. What can I say? The girl likes her music.

I've introduced her to the Tiny Tots Sabbath School the past couple of weeks, and she absolutely loves it. Unlike Cradle Roll, this class is well-organized (thanks to former classmate Stefani McFarland), with a sheet provided to parents that outlines the activities and songs (including the lyrics for those of us who don't have them memorized) for the morning's program, which makes it a cinch to successfully involve your child in the proceedings. Emmy clapped and squealed after every song (and there were a lot of songs!) and really enjoyed hammering on a two by four with all the other kids (ostensibly like Jesus did while helping out his dad in the carpenter shop) and doing songs with motions. When the teacher put out the "mommy sheep" in preparation for the kids to bring their "baby sheep" to her, Emmy ran up and grabbed it and was mid-getaway when I intercepted her and explained that the mommy sheep had to stay up front so her babies could find her. The felts used to illustrate the Bible story also proved to be an irresistible temptation. So the upshot is that although I got a little more "on stage" time than I wanted, Emmy had a ball. The poor teacher charitably stated that she "enjoyed her enthusiasm!"

My dear friend Gayle showed up unexpectedly a couple Fridays ago bearing Starbucks (God bless her!), and we had great time together playing and reading stories with Emmy. Emmy and I are hoping we'll continue to see a lot more of her. :)

With Peter studying and Ryan sleeping last Sabbath afternoon, Shari and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and took Emmy to the park. It was interesting to see how cautious she was after just a few months' hiatus from the equipment. She loved climbing up the stairs and sliding down the slide, and even after the sun went behind the hill and it started getting really chilly, Shari nearly had to pry her out of the swing. While there, we serendipitously bumped into John & Katie Wical (John is Peter's 2nd cousin) and their daughter Emily. It was fun to see them again - Emily has grown so much since we last saw her! We've gotta figure out a way to see them more often.

Not much else new to report on the growth front. New teeth are constantly coming in, but it doesn't seem to bother her. Apparently speech has been deemed unnecessary (at least temporarily), despite all Mommy's and Daddy's encouragement. She plays with a large variety of toys, though her instruments definitely still rank among her favorites. Another endless source of entertainment is wearing Mommy or Daddy's shoes, and wearing her own clothes in unique ways (shoes on hands, pants on head, etc.). She's still very fond of her books, but occasionally resists storytime, as it usually precedes nap/bedtime. And (as you may have read in my previous post) she's strongly resisting going to bed at night - though for some reason pretending to sleep (putting a pillow on the floor and having one of us cover her with a blanket while she makes pretend snoring noises) is fun. Go figure!

Must play with Emmy now so Daddy can get some more schoolwork done. Hope your weekend is wonderful!

It's a new dawn, it's a new day . . . and I'm feelin' good!

2007-03-02T10:56:00.000-08:00

I so love Fridays! Sleeping in (when Emmy lets me), having lots of time with the munchkin, and general anticipation of a little quality time with friends and family over the next couple of days (and maybe even a little down time for Mommy!) make Fridays feel full of promise. The fact that it's shaping up to be a perfectly gorgeous day doesn't hurt. Perhaps we'll make a sortie to the park after naptime - assuming Emmy cooperates and actually takes one.

I've been fighting a really bad cold all week, but I think I'm on the mend, so things are looking up. If I could have, I would have kissed my choir director when he called me yesterday afternoon to say that rehearsal last night was cancelled - although I'm sure he'd cringe at the thought (for a multitude of reasons!).

Emmy's been acting her age lately - the past two nights she has cried inconsolably when we put her to bed . . . for what seems like forever! This from the child who never used to make a peep unless she was sick or had a legitimate need (hunger, messy diaper, etc.). Now she's a toddler, and smart enough to figure out that if she cries, we try to figure out what's wrong, which means she gets to spend more time with us and less time sleeping.

The first time it happened, we assumed it was because she was fighting a bug, and since it was Friday night, we decided to hold her until she went to sleep while we caught up on what's been happening at The Office. We soon figured out that she was feeling just fine and simply wanted to play instead of sleeping, so I put her back in her crib. After much crying and several attempts by Peter and I to run interference with her, she finally went to sleep. The next night, we tried taking turns putting her back down and telling her to go to sleep, but she kept crying for over half an hour until I held her for a long while.

Last night, we tried letting her cry it out. For the first 15-20 minutes, we took turns putting her back down again every five minutes or so, to no avail. After 30 minutes, I tried expressing displeasure and telling her she was naughty and threatening consequences, but that definitely didn't help. She got so worked up after 45 minutes, I figured she might actually go to sleep faster if I got her to calm down, so I held her again for a while in her room. It took several cycles of holding her and calming her down, putting her back in the crib, her crying again, and me holding her again before she was finally too exhausted to fight it anymore and went to sleep. We do NOT want this to turn into a nightly power struggle. Any ideas for how we can break this cycle?

Well . . . I've gotta go play with my girl. Hope you have a terrific day! :)

The Mill on the Floss

2007-02-22T09:21:00.000-08:00

Question for the day: why is flossing one's teeth such an anathema to so many people (including me)? It's not like it's difficult or painful or incredibly time-consuming--I just inexplicably hate doing it. Theories, anyone? My poor, neglected gums want to understand why I resist giving them the attention they deserve . . .

By the way . . . did anyone know that mill is slang for "fight" or "overcome?" I give you leave to admire my literary double-entendre! ;-)

The Great Soulmate Debate

2007-02-20T12:16:00.000-08:00

During lunch with a single friend this weekend, she shared that she'd been to a recent seminar about how to attract one's "soulmate." She was enthused by what she'd learned there, and felt that she was now open to more dating possibilities. She said that the presenter described a soulmate as the "one person in the world meant for you", and that they'd said you can find love outside of a relationship with your soulmate, but that it will never be as satisfying. She expressed excitement at the prospect of having a relationship with someone about whom she'd have "no doubts" - someone so desirable that she'd feel incredibly lucky to be chosen by him.

I don't want to discourage her or sound like I have all the answers (don't I wish!), but I'm worried that the entire premise of such a "soulmate" is misleading . . .

I've had several experiences with love (always beginning with a healthy dose of infatuation) in which I was absolutely certain - beyond a shadow of a doubt - that I had found my "soulmate." Eventually, those relationships ended, and I had to face the fact that I was entirely wrong about how well-suited we were for each other. I began to revise my thinking about what constitutes a healthy and lasting relationship, and how such a relationship is fostered.

Enter Peter. We'd been friends for years - since college days - and I believed that I would never be physically attracted to him. Not that he's not good-looking (I'm happy to say that he is!) - I just didn't think he was my "type" (my "type" apparently being self-absorbed jerks who didn't value me). So he was out of the dating picture as far as I was concerned. But when he re-entered my life we hung out together as friends for months, seeing each other as often as 2-3 times a week.

When I felt the first stirrings of physical attraction, my first reaction was "Dear God! There must be something wrong with me! I'm attracted to PETER!" After some reflection (and a couple of Xanax - jk!), I realized that in those months we'd spent together, he had become my closest friend. I loved his quick wit, his intellectual curiosity, his commitment to self-improvement and his loyalty to those he loves. I had come to trust and respect him - and slowly, quietly, to love him for the wonderful individual he was/is. And I knew in my heart that he loved me, too. Ironic (and perhaps lucky) that it wasn't until our friendship was well-grounded and that love was already growing in my heart that the infatuation finally decided to show up!

Though the infatuation has long since faded (not the passion! *wink, wink*), I love him more now than ever - and I do feel incredibly lucky that he chose me.

Here is where the debate begins . . . how does one know beyond a shadow of a doubt that someone is "the one person in the world meant for them?" My concern is that this theory invalidates good relationships by suggesting that if one of the persons involved experiences doubt, or dissatisfaction with any aspect of the relationship (which I think must happen at some point in even the healthiest of relationships), they must be with the wrong person, and encouraging what could be a fruitless and damaging search for "the one" who will fulfill all of their dreams.

My own theory is that there are many potential "soulmates" for each person, and the trick is to learn to accept each other as flawed human beings and to choose every day to love, support and encourage each other through the joys and heartaches of life. I honestly believe that shared values and dreams built on a foundation of trust and friendship are the ultimate criteria for a happy and lasting marriage - which means that (theoretically, at least) more than one person could fit the bill. I think that the most important thing is for both persons to be wholly committed to investing the every-day energy that a healthy relationship requires: really listening when the beloved speaks, setting aside "quality time" to spend together, choosing to ignore a behavior that annoys you, resisting the urge to bite their head off when you've had a rough day . . . you get the idea.

I didn't "find" my soulmate, I chose him - and I intend to go on choosing him in times of uncertainty and dissatisfaction as well as in times of unquestioning joy and fulfillment . . .

OK (*climbing off soapbox*), you've had my two cents' worth. Time for you to weigh in!

Sunset Swirl

2007-02-19T14:31:00.000-08:00

We had the most amazing sunset last night - through our picture windows it looked positively surreal, like the backdrop for a play. Just wanted to share a little beauty from our corner of the world . . .

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." - Psalm 19:1

The Emmy Update

2007-02-04T15:31:00.000-08:00

As I sleepily stumbled into the living room with Emmy in my arms on the morning of January 12 (her second birthday), I looked out the big picture windows and did a double-take. Why was everything white? Could that be snow?! Amazingly, it was. Flakes were falling softly, dancing in the air, and about an inch and a half had accumulated on our lawn, roof, cars, etc. I laughed aloud with delight, and immediately bundled Emmy up and went outside. Unfortunately, our camera battery had died earlier that week and we'd been unable to locate the charger, so the only way I could capture photos was with my cell phone--and I have no way to download them. So you'll just have to take my word for it that it was magical. Here's a photo taken from our home later that same day - the snow is already melted in the low-lying areas, but it still majestically crowns the mountain tops.

To celebrate the big day, Peter and I had planned an open house for close friends and family, and served some of Emmy's favorite foods - guacamole & chips, fresh fruit, Cheezits, veggies & dip and pigs in a blanket, as well as the obligatory cake and ice cream. Though seating was limited, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, especially the guest of honor, who suspected the moment people started to arrive that this occasion was all about her, and was delighted to find out that her suspicions were well-founded. The look of ecstatic joy on her face when Auntie Shari arrived the bouquet of balloons we'd ordered, the way she delightedly screamed and ran away upon seeing each new visitor (Uncle Joel is a superstar!), and the big, bashful smile on her face when everyone sang "Happy birthday to you!" were priceless. She tolerated the cake, but loved the ice cream, and the Thomas the Tank Engine ride-along she got from G'pa Ray and G'ma Gail was a huge hit. In spite of all the great gifts she'd received, she seemed to have the most fun playing with the balloons, soaking up attention from the adults, and running through the house screaming with Erin and Jamie. All in all, it was a very successful birthday party.

A week after her birthday, Emmy went for her 2-year physical. From the moment she looked into the back office while we were checking in and spied a nurse, she knew what was about to happen, and was NOT a happy camper. It took almost the entire 1/2 hour that we had to wait in the examination room for me to get her to calm down. She was better for the doctor than in times past (perhaps it's starting to sink in that the doc isn't who she needs to be afraid of!), but as soon as the nurse came back in, she panicked again. Fortunately there was only one shot and a little toe prick, so the torture didn't last long. As the nurse exited the room, in the midst of hysterical tears and heart-rending sobs, Emmy screamed out a raw, high-pitched "buh-BYE!" Needless to say, I got a big kick out of that one. :)

So . . . for those of you who care, she's now average height and still a little underweight, "so she's just perfect" to quote Dr. Mailander. We're not to worry about her speech--the doc doesn't think she's "delayed" - just not in a hurry. If she's not using at least three word sentences by 2-1/2 years, then we can start worrying again (if we feel so inclined). In the meantime, I'm enjoying all the adorable babbling and her unique attempts at words. In the last week or two, she's started saying "ni-NI!" (her version of "Night-night!")--she's never used the "n" sound before, so that was cool.

She still loves musical instruments, and bangs on just about any available surface with her drumsticks. Among her birthday gifts from Mommy and Daddy were a plastic recorder and a very realistic-looking toy violin and bow. The recorder came with a cleaning tool, which Emmy seems to prefer "playing" to the actual instrument. She has a love/hate relationship with the violin--it only makes a sound when you create a circuit by hitting at least two strings at once on the violin with the bowstring, which she can't always manage to do, and that frustrates her to no end. She's getting better at it these days, so we think that love will win out--but you never know. She also enjoys trying on Mommy or Daddy's shoes whenever she gets a chance . . .

After freezing overnight temperatures the last few weeks, we're now experiencing record highs (it was 89 today!). Emmy is enjoying being outdoors in this wonderful weather, whether it's smelling the flowers on Grandma jean's back porch or playing with the fountain outside Starbucks with Mommy and Auntie Gayle.

Why I'm here

2007-02-01T16:53:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to write a bit about why I felt inclined to start this blog. I was inspired by a site I happened across by chance, and then couldn't seem to stop reading - WonderGirl and the Sift (if you haven't already discovered this blog, it's definitely worth a read). I was delighted to find a kindred spirit online and decided that if she can find time for that level of writing with three kids and one on the way, then by golly, I can do it, too! Well, OK--maybe not as well as she can, but I'll give it the old college try!

I've been told that I have a gift for writing ever since the second grade, when for a creative writing assignment, I turned in the tragic tale of a piece of chewing gum from the moment he was unwrapped--chronicling his suffering as he was chewed and accidentally swallowed, his fascinating journey through the human digestive tract, and his eventual emergence into a large, white porcelain receptacle and finally (*flush*), the sewer system. Yes, dear readers, I went there--much to my shame. But my teacher (God bless her!) loved it, and encouraged me to keep writing.

So here I am. I'll bet you can't WAIT to read more! ;-)

My definition . . .

2007-02-01T16:51:00.003-08:00

Lorelei --

[adjective]:

Banshee-like

'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com

A Passing Rant

2007-01-25T08:12:00.000-08:00

OK, I hate to start off with a rant, but I just don't understand: what is it that makes people who drive 30 in a 50 zone suddenly speed up to 80 miles an hour as soon as you attempt to (or God forbid, succeed in) passing them? Is its cause genetic or environmental? 'Cause it seems to happen to me a lot, and it's driving me insane.

And so it begins . . .

2007-01-24T16:28:00.000-08:00

I'm finally breaking down and entering the free-wheeling world that is Blog. So please have patience with the newbie while she figures out how the heck to make this thing look good and function properly!