Here's a new workout move that Otis made up last night. We made him stop after 5 times. We're going to get a patent on this and make millions!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
1, 2, 3, 4...Can I have a little more?
This line starts out the ever peppy "All Together Now" by the Beatles. Just a couple weeks ago, after turning 4, Miles heard this song in the car and wanted to hear it over and over until he learned the lines to it. I remember glancing in the rear-view mirror and watching him carefully and proudly belt out the lines. And then it occurred to me how appropriate it was for this little guy who's been through ages 1, 2, and 3 and just turned 4 a week before....and he wants a little more! That's been clear to me since he's mentioned his next birthday numerous times already.
Anyhow, Miles turned 4! Like most kids, he loved all that turning one year older entails: the little birthday bash, the gifts, moving up to the next number on the journey to finally being able to drive a car, etc. On his b-day morning, he devoured a big chocolate chip "4" pancake and got to try out his new bike before heading off to preschool.
Later, he got to open some more stuff, like this awesome dino set from grandma and grandpa A...
And from Baba and Popi some clothes, an awesome Pixar storybook, remote control Mater and even a hat that reads "Smiles for Miles." I think it's safe to say he was pretty intoxicated with birthday bliss by bedtime. 
And a few days later we had a little pirate party for him, complete with a treasure chest cake, some piratey games, and pirate-hat-making (I seemed to be the only one who actually wanted to wear a newspaper hat, though).
And a few days later we had a little pirate party for him, complete with a treasure chest cake, some piratey games, and pirate-hat-making (I seemed to be the only one who actually wanted to wear a newspaper hat, though).Our friends and family were so nice to help make it a memorable birthday for Miles. He is growing up so quickly and loves learning about anything. His storytelling skills are constantly being honed (i.e. he can't stop talking sometimes), and he is an incredibly fun and spunky kid to be around. We love him a ton!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Midnight train to Georgia
Since Brian had a conference scheduled in Atlanta, we decided to make it a family trip to go visit our good buddies there, some of whom we hadn't seen since we moved away almost 2 1/2 years ago. It was a fun-filled week that flew by too quickly, but we are so happy that we got to see lots of our beloved friends in that short time. Two days of snow in Albuquerque right before we left made us excited to get to warmer climate...but we didn't expect the weather to be so incredibly beautiful there (except for a rainy Halloween night)! The trees in their fall colors were breathtaking and made us pine for our days living in "the city in a forest," and the time we got to spend with friends reminded us of why we enjoyed living there so much. It was hard to leave! Here are some photos of the trip: 
Milena and Kristi put together a gathering on Nov. 1 so that we could hang out with lots of our buddies. The Skollars let us crash their place and their kids were very nice to the boys. Here they all are (sans Miles) with the Garrison and Campa kids having a good time in the playroom. And below is Brian with Jeff and Brandt... 
And here I am with Kristi, Stephan, Karma and Jana. We loved getting to visit with so many people we hadn't seen in years!
Miles and Vaughn had lots of fun together.
The boys had a great time spending an afternoon at Kadie and Brandt's house.
Vaughn, Margaret and Dewey (Margaret's dad) let us over-run their place a few times (and even let us borrow their car the whole week). We got to spend some nice time with them playing at the nearby park and revisiting the good ole Brookhaven Fields Family Band days (with Miles on the drum!) Otis was more interested in distracting the musicians.
The Pettys had us over for Calvin's first birthday party--it was so much fun! The kids were in love with the dump truck cake. What kid wouldn't love to dig into a chocolatey mountain of frosting and cake and worms?! 
Because the weather was SO amazing, we went to a lot of parks while visiting with friends, including colleagues from our student days in Atlanta.
Here is my grad school advisor Gayle playing with the boys at the park.
And we had a nice visit with some of Brian's former coworkers at the torture treatment center where he worked as a grad student.
And of course no trip to Atlanta could be complete without 1) a visit with our dear friend Sister Abernathy (but it was tough keeping the kids from attacking her endless supply of breakable collectables displayed conveniently at toddler eye-level on the coffee table!), and... 
2) a stop at the Varsity to get our fill of cole slaw chili dogs (I'm pretty sure mine is still floating around my system somewhere). Josh joined us, too. I've been waiting so long to once again have very loud people dressed in little red paper hats yelling at me the Varsity war-cry "What'll ya have?!" (Truly, you can't miss out on it if you're ever in Atlanta)
And we had a SUPER special treat because our good friends Jamie and Jessica came down from Virginia with sweet little Soren and Asher for some fun. Don't you love their jammies?!
Milena and Kristi put together a gathering on Nov. 1 so that we could hang out with lots of our buddies. The Skollars let us crash their place and their kids were very nice to the boys. Here they all are (sans Miles) with the Garrison and Campa kids having a good time in the playroom. And below is Brian with Jeff and Brandt... And here I am with Kristi, Stephan, Karma and Jana. We loved getting to visit with so many people we hadn't seen in years! Miles and Vaughn had lots of fun together.The boys had a great time spending an afternoon at Kadie and Brandt's house.Vaughn, Margaret and Dewey (Margaret's dad) let us over-run their place a few times (and even let us borrow their car the whole week). We got to spend some nice time with them playing at the nearby park and revisiting the good ole Brookhaven Fields Family Band days (with Miles on the drum!) Otis was more interested in distracting the musicians.The Pettys had us over for Calvin's first birthday party--it was so much fun! The kids were in love with the dump truck cake. What kid wouldn't love to dig into a chocolatey mountain of frosting and cake and worms?! Because the weather was SO amazing, we went to a lot of parks while visiting with friends, including colleagues from our student days in Atlanta. Here is my grad school advisor Gayle playing with the boys at the park.And we had a nice visit with some of Brian's former coworkers at the torture treatment center where he worked as a grad student.And of course no trip to Atlanta could be complete without 1) a visit with our dear friend Sister Abernathy (but it was tough keeping the kids from attacking her endless supply of breakable collectables displayed conveniently at toddler eye-level on the coffee table!), and... 2) a stop at the Varsity to get our fill of cole slaw chili dogs (I'm pretty sure mine is still floating around my system somewhere). Josh joined us, too. I've been waiting so long to once again have very loud people dressed in little red paper hats yelling at me the Varsity war-cry "What'll ya have?!" (Truly, you can't miss out on it if you're ever in Atlanta)And we had a SUPER special treat because our good friends Jamie and Jessica came down from Virginia with sweet little Soren and Asher for some fun. Don't you love their jammies?! Sunday, October 11, 2009
What's a cold air balloon?
We watched a billion hot air balloons float around northern Albuquerque a couple times this week. Brian's mom and his sister Elin came out to visit, and they got to see the awesome spectacle, too. Yesterday Miles asked me about cold air balloons. Hmm. (By the way, Elin and Marne helped us a bunch with packing and cooking meals for the freezer and playing with the kiddies. It was great having them here!)
Our New House
We close on our house next Friday and we've had requests to see pictures of it. It's in a great neighborhood--3 parks, a library, and Trader Joe's within walking distance. It's a bit outdated but totally ready for moving in with no major repairs to be done. The boys will have a lot of fun running around the house and playing in the yard. There is a huge sleep-over-friendly family room in the back with a fireplace...so come visit!
The screen doors have "I"s on them--how convenient!
The Next Big Thing!
Some of you may think that there's nothing new in music these days; everything has been done that will be done and we're just hearing the same stuff year after year. However, Otis may have started a trend in music that may not become popular until 2024 when he's in a teen boy band: Humming and Clicking!!!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Sumbendo
We found a mega huge, beautiful hornworm on our tomato plant the other day. That gluttonous bug ate the leaves and unripe tomatoes off an entire branch of our plant! No wonder it was so fat! Miles named it Sumbendo and we kept it as a pet until I realized that if I kept feeding it our tomato plant leaves, I'd soon have no plant left. We put it in a tree at the park, and I won't tell Miles but I'm pretty sure that it has become birdfood by now.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Flour and Olives--what Ms. Andrews missed in the song...
When the dog bites, when the bees sting, when we're feeling bad, we simply remember our flour and olives, and then we don't feel so bad...
I've been dumbfounded with how long Miles can play this game of cutting flour. And I've been equally shocked (and mildly grossed out) with the fact that he loves to eat flour as much as he loves to play with it.
And these kids could live on olives alone. Truly. And I don't think many olives have actually touched their palms because when we offer them, lots of little fingers stick up at us begging to be olive-capped.
I've been dumbfounded with how long Miles can play this game of cutting flour. And I've been equally shocked (and mildly grossed out) with the fact that he loves to eat flour as much as he loves to play with it.
And these kids could live on olives alone. Truly. And I don't think many olives have actually touched their palms because when we offer them, lots of little fingers stick up at us begging to be olive-capped.
...But you've gotta love the SKY
The other day, Brian had to endure one of my oh-so-rare bouts of complaining that we don't live closer to a beach (I think this was sparked by photos of my cousin surfing with her kids near their house in Hawaii--that is such a bitter-sweet blog to read! ugh!). But then I went outside at sunset and the sky had to go and do THIS on me (it does this kind of smart aleky thing alot)...
...and I was suddenly re-enchanted.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Welcom to the world, Abella!
Erik (Brian's brother) and Jennille had their baby, Abella Isakson, on July 29th. She weighed in at 6 lbs 5 oz. and measured 18.5 inches. Isn't that grin sweet? Congratulations to the CA Isakson fam on their lovely addition! 
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