Snow day!

Today was a little bit crazy because this is what we woke up to:

And really, it wasn't very much, but the kids were ecstatic. Caleb kept asking if it was Christmas.
Unfortunately, we had a lot of schooling to do, so I promised the kids nothing and we buckled down.
I put Jacob to bed around 9:30 and realized that I couldn't deprived these fresh Texas transplants of their first Colorado snow. And if I waited much longer it would all be gone.

So we set the puzzles and writing and piano practice aside and bundled up to go outside. Caleb was so excited! He was the first outside and he turned and reported to the other kids, "There's TONS of snow!! There's tons of snow!" And I suppose there was, compared to what we've gotten in Austin the past couple of years.

I loved how there was a sort of  preliminary investigative process before they could get down to business. We probably need to think about buying mittens before the season gets much further underway.

They got the hang of it eventually. I spent some time running from snowballs, mostly sent my way by the darkly hooded one.

And yes, I did have to tell this one to stop eating the snow.

I loved that when I scooped Elinor up to take her inside she looked up at me and said, as best as she could through her chattering teeth, "This actually is snow!"  (She says actually a lot.)

Afterward, we all went in for some hot chocolate. It was really just chocolate milk that I warmed up in the microwave. We just came from Texas! Of course we don't have hot chocolate mix!  ... yet. We will adjust to this climate eventually.

Boulder Creek Path

So, remember how I swore to never run with a camera again? That was before I tried running on a flood-ravaged trail in a city still recovering from massive amounts of rain. So, here are a few pictures from this morning's run.

One of the beautiful things about the Boulder Creek trail is that you don't have to cross any main streets because of the underpasses. Alas, this was my first experience at an underpass:

The rest were barricaded - I don't know why this one wasn't. It sort of took me by surprise.

Some really big trees had been broken and not cleared away yet. For the amount of damage that had occurred, I was very impressed by how much had been taken care of. This underpass was closed, but the barricade was a little superfluous, since the path was literally impassable for all the debris.

Here's a picture of the creek. I'm almost positive it's not usually this full or fast.

This mud-covered picnic area made me laugh, in a sad sort of way.
Hey, kids! Let's stop for a picnic! This looks like a good place!

All of this sand everywhere made me sad. It'll take so many people so much time to clean up! The first time I passed it, the sand was all over the path as well. It made me want to bring a broom along with me on my next run.

I think it's probably supposed to look a little more like this picture, which I found on a website for the trail.

And I bet the guy who posted this sign is patting himself on the back right now!

Here's a picture of a rooster outside a grocery store. Just because I had the camera.

Here's the Boulder Public Library. And the mountains behind it. Isn't it so pretty?
And running + books = awesome! Two of my favorite things at the exact same time! Did you know that once while our car was in the shop in Austin two of my books came due so I took them with me on my morning run to return them? I ran probably a mile and half with two hardcovers tucked under one arm, trying my hardest to not sweat on them. It was the ultimate nerd run. I sort of loved it.

Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin at the library.

It really is a very pretty creek and I'm sure the trail is gorgeous as well. I'm excited to explore Boulder a little more... I just wish it didn't rain so dang much!

Schooling

We are slowly getting settled into our new apartment. Things are still a little shaky: the other day I started mixing up some pancakes for lunch. Then I realized we didn't have any buttermilk or lemon juice to make sour milk so I upped the baking powder and took out the soda. Then I realized we had no sugar, so I added a dollop of honey to the batter. And then I remembered we had no maple syrup, and no sugar to make more with, so I fell back on our trusty Nutella and topped it all with some fresh raspberries from the refrigerator. I was feeling a little frazzled by the end of all this, but the kids weren't complaining! The end product was pretty delicious.

Jacob has been affected by our haphazard, improvised post-move lifestyle. I was sorting kid clothes when he spilled something all over himself so I dressed him in what I had on hand. This is how he looked when Joseph got home:

He's a pretty stylish young man, right? Those are the fiesta pants I made for Elinor when she was his size and I'm pretty sure it's the first time he's ever been in shoes.

So, here we come to the real meat of the post.
Yesterday was Emily's first day of school. She is attending a program designed for homeschooling families that is funded through the school district and meets once a week. She is able to do some theater stuff with them (which she LOVES), some art, some group discussion stuff, science, computers, and some other extras that they are adding on.

About the homeschooling thing. I always feel like I need to defend this decision of ours. There is often a stigma associated with homeschooling families, whether it be that the parents are eccentric or overprotective, or at the other end of the spectrum, that the parents have a hippy, unschooling mentality. I remember our last visit to Emily's pediatrician. The nurse was talking about vaccinations the Boulder school district might require, and then she stopped, almost mid-sentence, looked from Jacob's cloth diaper to the glass Lifefactory bottle* he'd just drained, to my un-made-up face**, and said, "...unless you're homeschooling. Then you don't need to worry about any of this."
And I sort of cringed as I mentally tracked her thought process because that is not what we are all about!!! I am not really an extreme parent in either of the aforementioned directions. I have nothing against the public school system. Emily has attended school for two years and has loved it. We plan to send both her and Caleb back next year.
I had a few issues with scheduling and curriculum, but what I feel most strongly about is that my daughter is prepared to be out on her own, unsupervised for the majority of her waking hours. I want her to know what Joseph and I as her parents expect of her and I want her to feel confident enough in herself as a daughter of God to follow through and live by those standards.
And that is it. I am not taking a social or political stance here. I am just doing what I think is best for our family right now.


*These bottles are the best! The day we received ours in the mail Caleb promptly dropped each of them off the table onto our very hard linoleum floor and they were fine. They have been dropped many times since then and have lasted well.

**I sometimes wear makeup. It does make me feel pretty. Still, it's not worth the time to me, so I go without probably 90% of the time. I love when the kids see me putting it on on a weekday for some reason and get all confused about whether or not it's Sunday. And also, once when my mom was visiting we were getting things together to go somewhere and she stopped and looked at me and said, "Do you want to go get ready?" And I drew myself up somewhat indignantly and said, "Get ready how? I feel totally ready! Let's go!" And I followed her out the door with as much dignity as I could muster, baby spit-up on the shoulder, three-days-worn jeans, makeup free face, and all.

Happy Birthday Elinor!!

So I was feeling a little overwhelmed with the whole moving thing yesterday.
Joseph even caught me red-handed with a spoon in the Nutella jar - that's how stressed out I was.
Okay, so maybe eating Nutella out of the jar isn't a super rare occurrence for me, but allowing Joseph to catch me is. :)

My little Elinor's birthday was on September 17th. She turned three! Except, that was in the midst of our move, so we didn't tell her. I was a little surprised at how hard this was on me. It sort of broke my heart to remember that day she was born and to think it was her special day but to not make a fuss over her for it. Today was her makeshift birthday, so she got to open a pile of presents and I made her a cake (but then I realized we didn't have powdered sugar for frosting, so we'll eat it tomorrow). We went to a ward member's home for dinner, and they were kind enough to add three candles to the dessert brownies for her to blow out. She was just thrilled to have her own little moment in the spotlight while everyone sang to her and while she blew out the candles.

I didn't have a camera with me then, but here are some pictures from present opening time.

It's a little sad that she was on the floor surrounded by boxes, but I don't think she even noticed.

Big sis helping with the birthday bling.

My Elinor.

 She's crazy. I can't wait to see what three will bring!

Moving

I always think I remember how hard moving is until we try it again.

Armadillos, Pigeons, and Turtles

I really like to run.
I'm not fast, and I'm not cute - I'm more frumpy. But I go a lot and I always enjoy it (unless it's right after a meal or on a treadmill).
My sister-in-law Stephanie was awesome and came over to watch the kids so I could go for a quick run Friday morning. I was grinning like an idiot for the first mile and a half.
I ran cross-country through high school and then I stopped for a while in college, but then I started again after Emily was born. And let me tell you, running in Texas is a whole different ballgame.

My very first run in Austin, I got home and found a leech-like grub on my leg.
I have had the only live armadillo I've ever seen cross the path right in front of me.
I have had someone's sweat splattered onto me (and I almost threw up. The trail gets very crowded Saturday morning!).
I have endured the potent scent of millions of bats living in a bridge I run under regularly.
I have run through poison ivy multiple times. It is awful stuff. Once I had it on one side of my face and neck and all across my eyes. I basically didn't leave the house for a week.
I have dashed out into traffic to save a turtle. And then gone the remainder of my run with salmonella hands. Eww!
I have had a pigeon fly into my head. I am disgusted by city birds and feathers. I even am grossed out by the wind kicked up by pigeon wings when they all take off. I was very traumatized by this experience.
And why is it always still 85 degrees at 6 in the morning?!

After all of this, I kept coming back for more. I loved that trail. My last weekend in Austin, I ran the entire loop, just to experience the whole thing. It was such a great run! You want to see?

This is the juice place that I pass every time I head down to the trail.

The lovely, well-kept community gardens.

My favorite sign - picnic tables, swimming, and dinosaurs! Rrawr!

Since the trail goes along a river, I cross a couple of bridges. Here is quite the awkward picture of this cute little bridge. That runner rounded the corner right as I pushed the button, I promise! We had sort of an awesome little nod-of-heads, sorry-about-that-whole-paparrazi-behavior exchange as we passed each other.

Standing on the Lamar pedestrian bridge. I do miss that cityscape!

Part of the trail on the north side of the river. Aren't those trees gorgeous? Kind of crazy that there's a major road probably 50 feet from the trail here.

The rowing dock.

And here's a picture of Joseph and golfer Jacob that I found in the same file as those others.

After that run, I swore to never run with anything in my hands again. So I will probably never post any other pictures of my running trails, unless I happen to walk the same route with a camera one day.
But I miss that trail! And I really like those two boys.

Sister-in-Law Day

When I first met Joseph's family, somehow the topic of birthdays came up. They asked when my birthday was and I told them September. Suzie, the wife of the only married brother said, "Is it maybe on September 14th?" And that was when we figured out that Suzie and I share a birthday so of course I was going to marry Joseph and September 14th would be sister-in-law day.
The third sister-in-law to come along told me the other day about how she felt less than welcomed into the family because her birthday didn't conform to the rules.

Anyhow, the point of all of this is that today was my birthday! I am now 28 years old, the proud mama of four fantastic (if slightly crazy) kids and the wife of a freshly minted PhD of computer science.
Joseph and I were a little sad to realize that we would be in separate states over my birthday, but he did what he could to take care of me. Before he left he carefully wrapped a little pile of presents for me to open in his absence. He contacted several friends we have in the area and asked them to do little things for me. I was planning to meet some friends from Austin in a park this morning, so he emailed them and asked them to bring a birthday treat. They did, and balloons too! They even lit a candle and sang to me at the park!
My wonderful sister-in-law Stephanie (the third one, with the wrong birthday) had us over for dinner - and having a family with four kids 6 and under is no small feat. She made us a delicious meal, followed by cake and ice cream. I received many messages from friends and family wishing me a happy birthday, which made me feel loved and thought of. My always thoughtful grandmother, living in Australia, was one of the first to send an email. My brother Daniel is sending me a yard and a half of some Japanese import fabric that I've had my eye on for over six months! It is fun to have a special day.

I wanted to record, really quickly, how touched I was by Emily's offering today. She had been feeling distressed by the fact that Daddy wouldn't be around on my birthday and she didn't have money to get me anything. I told her again and again that a card would be wonderful and a day of being extra nice to Caleb would be a great bonus. But I could see that the wheels in her head were still turning. Today she brought me a carefully wrapped bundle and told me it was my birthday present. It was really so sweet - she had taken a piece of computer paper and wrapped a thick purple ribbon around it. I opened it to find a necklace that she had just received today, from our Austin friends. She loved that necklace and as she saw me examining it I could tell she was fighting back tears. I asked her if she was sure about this, and she said that she really wanted to give me a gift but she also kind of wanted to keep the necklace. All I could do was hug her tight for a minute while I tried to figure out what to do. We worked out a deal that made her happy and it made me so proud to see my little girl sacrificing so much to bring her mama a little moment of joy.

People sometimes think I'm a little strange for loving this young age so much. My kids are so dependent on me. When I clip fingernails, I clip 50 of them. When I brush teeth, I brush four sets. I am called to the bathroom probably at least every hour, and I found myself feeding Jacob, Elinor, and Caleb this evening at dinner time. But there is nothing like seeing these little personalities develop and laughing along with them as they do crazy things. So often, I am pulled out of a funk by some unexpected antic performed by little Jacob or Elinor. I do love these kiddos and I try to appreciate this time that I have with them. My birthday was really fun, and though I was very sad to have Joseph so far away, I felt lucky to have the four kids with me.

Some favorite books

So, I was talking to Joseph last night (okay, we were typing to each other, but it's almost the same), and I decided that I have been blogging incessantly for the last little while because it's my way of chatting to a captive audience while my husband is not around.
Today I just wanted to talk books for a second. If you know me at all, you know that I love books. I have not mentioned on here though, three of my favorite books, all by the same author:

Atul Gawande. He's a surgeon, he's a professor, he's a journalist (for the New Yorker), he's an author, and he also fights crime by night (kay... maybe not). He's sort of my hero. And his books are fantastic! He's definitely my favorite non-fiction writer, and one of my favorite writers period. His books are well-written, he's very intelligent, and this might make a few people angry with me, but I prefer his stuff to Malcolm Gladwell's! I think Malcolm tends to go off on tangents that are super interesting, but really only very faintly related to the main point.
But Gawande always keeps me happy and wanting to read more and be better and to improve the world around me. Go check one of his books out!

Whoosh! Cecil!

Yesterday I went to the BYU Creamery on 9th for lunch with the kids. This creamery is just down the street from where I lived from 5th through 8th grade. I wasn't there a super long time, but those were really important, formative years! I would be a very different person today had I not spent that time in Provo, Utah. I took a couple of minutes to drive through my old neighborhood and it was a very bizarre feeling to see my old house, my best friend's old house, the homes of my old Young Women leaders, and my old elementary school. I spent so many hours outside, all over that neighborhood! Good times.
The kids got their kids meals (which are such great value! Even for adults!) and for dessert I ordered the "Whoosh! Cecil" flavored ice cream. I asked for it even while I had no clue what was in it. Mostly because Cecil is awesome! Remember those "Cecil is my Homeboy" shirts?

Classic. I had a friend in college who asked him what he thought of those shirts and he said that he had to ask someone what homeboy means, but once he knew, he was cool with it.

I was thinking last night about how lucky we have been with our moves. Austin to Boulder? I can't even think of cities I would rather live in.

Today I was pushing Elinor and Jacob in baby swings while Emily and Caleb were competing to see who could go highest in the big kid swings. The weather was pretty much perfect and all the kids were happy. And I came to a realization - I was happy too! I love spending time with my kids! I tend to focus on what I'm missing out on as I take care of these very young, very dependent children, but today I was able to realize that they have brought me more joy and satisfaction than anything else I could have spent my time doing. I am so lucky to have four healthy, beautiful children that I enjoy. They all have great personalities, they're all bright, and they're all ready to play whenever the opportunity presents itself. I love that they look for fun and positivity in their little worlds.

And here is Baby Jacob rockin' a serious case of bedhead AND the pants I brought back for him from Japan.

Love the tail!

Monologues and dirt feasts

So, today we were all sitting there, eating dinner, when suddenly Elinor started monologuing:
Gruff man's voice: "Oh, you stupid boy!"
High-pitched girl's voice: "But I'm not a boy, I'm a girl!"

it has to be from a movie, right? I just don't know which one. (I sort of hope it's from a movie - that would be a really crazy thing for her little brain to come up with out of the blue.) I'm not totally happy about my two-year-old using the word "stupid" casually in her monologues, either. She's funny though. There's always a lot of laughter when Elinor is in one of her moods.
I really love when she decides to sing, so passionately, to "Patriiick! Daarliing!" in Carrying the Banner from Newsies. Newsies is the kids' new favorite CD, by the way. It is a step up from High School Musical 3, but we listened to it at least four times per day on our drive here from Austin.  It was still super fun though.

Today we spent a lot of time outside in the lovely weather.

Em's latest aspiration is to be a botanist when she grows up.

Jacob has been eating a lot of dirt lately. My dad thinks he has some sort of mineral deficiency.

No dirt in this mouth! (There's that awesome horse dress again.)

This girlie fell asleep as soon as we walked in the door today.

And this guy, well, he thinks he's big and tough but he still loves baby food! What's the deal with that? And also, check out those curls above his ears. Can you see them? And another also, he fell down on the pavement at Bridal Veil Falls and somehow scraped right below his nose without hurting his actual nose at all. He's talented.

 Things are going really well, but I can't wait for our little family to be put back together again!