mavora art and adventure

midnight thoughts

2012-01-23T23:12:00.001-08:00

Last night at 2:00am Grant had a coughing fit for what seemed like an hour. Every 15 seconds a new string of coughs would come from his room (VERY close to ours with all the doors open). As I woke out of the deepest and most luxurious sleep ever I figured out the key to this problem! I need to sleep in a different house! It still seemed like a good idea by the time I got back in bed after giving the poor boy a cough drop..... it doesn't seem as plausible now.

a serious vacation

2012-01-13T20:39:00.000-08:00

My parents blessed us greatly last week and I hope in turn they received great memories and joy playing with some of the cutest grandchildren ever on vacation! Without them we could not have done this very serious 5 day getaway that included a ton of driving in Dad's giant Excursion, a 5k run, the Aquarium of the Pacific, and a day in Disneyland. We were totally unplugged for 5 whole days, and although I had to work long days before we left it was totally worth it - LA traffic and all!

SoCal Half Marathon and 5k. I ran a personal record of 30.01 and Tim crushed with 23.09 - pretty good, as he ran twice in the last two months and I run four times a week (he mountain bikes a lot though he's not a complete miracle worker). We love a good vacation race!

Spider Crabs!!!!

Bonnet Shark - we're calling it a full size Hammer Head though.

And Grant was very excited that his friend Sarah met us at the Aquarium!

Don't forget the awesome cleaning hand fish!!!!

and on to DISNEYLAND.....

My first beignets (Mickey-shaped of course)! A hot donut they give you to shake in a sugar bag - why did no one tell me these existed before? Thanks to Tim for giving me the New Orleans down low.

Calli liked the scary rides more than Grant did. They were both hooked on the Tea Cups actually. Everyone was staring at us as Cal was yell-laughing when they started to spin. I think Grant went 5 times. Another crowd pleaser was the Buzz Lightyear vs. Zurg ride. Literally, it's a blast.

Great memories!

not a baby anymore

2012-01-13T12:36:00.000-08:00

Calli got her first pair of light-up shoes today.

It's all piercings and tube top fights from here on out I'm afraid.

christmas!!!!

2011-12-27T14:01:00.001-08:00

I hope you had a lovely Christmas! Ours was exhausting but so much fun! We started with a sunrise hike on Christmas Eve up Mt. Rose. It's a hike that can't usually be done this late in the year but with only two small storms so far we made it up without snow shoes in the single degree temperatures.

My sprained finger couldn't get enough warm blood at the frozen summit and I thought I might loose it but then Erik told me to put my hand down my pants and that warmed it right up! We encountered a lot of ice and most of us fell down two or three times but no one fell off any cliffs which is the important part. The 10 miles with the rough conditions and a lengthy freezing breakfast at the top took 7 hours this time so we were pretty beat by the end but happy we had accomplished it with some really great friends.

I didn't know Camelback hoses have a tendency to freeze up in this kind of weather! Keeping it in my sweater helped a lot. So that's something new I learned on this hike....that I hope I don't have to put into practice ever again.

Donuts and cocoa in the parking lot after was the best part for sure!

Christmas day with the kids is always so much fun! We didn't get a lot of presents for each other but we tried our best to spoil the kids - and so did the Morton Aunts and Grandparents! Grant had a great attitude about every present but when he opened one that he didn't love he would quickly say, "Okay, I'll go put this in my room." It was almost as though they got time out and his "good" presents got to stay in the living room to play.

And of course we had the whole Lange Family together again this year and Dad got the ladies new Dyson vacuums!! What!? I'm a little happy about that!!

I am so thankful for my family and friends! They make it all more fun!

reminder to myself

2011-12-19T09:13:00.000-08:00

I wrote this as my status on facebook yesterday, after a terrible day that God redeemed, but I'm also keeping it here so that I'll be reminded of the truths that soaked into my heart when reading "Counterfeit Gods" by Timothy Keller. And maybe you're a friend who is not on facebook, this is also for you!

"Whether you believe in God or Buddha or someone else or no one else, we all have our pursuits, our goals, the things that drive us and define us. We can't live without these things and when they fail us, or we fail them, we often go down hard in a ball of anger or depression. It's because these things become gods. Yes, even those of you who have "no" religion have types of gods that you elevate everyday. We all can worship status, career, perfection, athleticism, creativity, beauty, and______ (name your favorite here). But the true God fills hearts much better then these pursuits we give our lives too. And don't get me wrong, I worship God AND athleticism, and being perfect in relationships, and being good at my job. But God wants me to live only for Him. And He is a good God. He doesn't elevate me to awesome one day and shove me straight under the bus the next day - like my job (and my ego) does. I hold my place of free and beautiful and loved everyday. It's not always easy, but it's good! Christianity is not following a list of commands - you do that already in your social circle and, you may have already figured this out, it's not very satisfying long term. It's believing in the gift sent in a baby named Jesus. And it's following a God that is helpful, forgiving, and caring not a god (and not people) that you can never feel good enough for.

Merry Christmas! This is how I send my love, because I know Jesus is just the BEST gift I've ever received!"

year wrap up

2011-12-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

Many of you received our Christmas card this year - totally on time, I would like to add! And to all our friends and family we'd like to say, "WE LOVE YOU!", even if we couldn't afford 200 cards.

God has continued to bless us through my business (Mavora Art and Design) which makes it possible for Tim to go to school full time another year. In February we should find out whether we will be moving to Portland for pharmacy school next year or not. If we are denied we have other plans to keep us busy and we're excited for those too! But Tim has been doing his job - getting A's! And he enjoys learning all he can in this new field.

Grant is in full day kindergarten this year and having a great time. We often walk his friend Marley to her car since her Dad picks her up at the same time. They run and laugh and at the street they yell, "Bye Mr. Crocodile" and "Bye Mr. Burger Goober." Yeah, I don't understand either. Grant is a funny one though. He can shout out a "your face" joke with the best of 'em.

Calli is learning more and more words including: Alright! oh no! Whoa! Mommy, Daddy, Where's Papa? Where's Beba? Ack! Potty, and Hey guys! And there are many full sentences coming out that no one can understand except Calli herself. She is currently on my lap coloring her fingers and my volleyball registration form. In short, Tim and I LOVE her 21 month old littleness, silliness, and cuteness.

I also have been working part time for Coram Deo Christian Church with my brother. I still do the design and communication support but now also direct the volunteers in the Children's Ministry. That's been a new challenge but I work with GREAT volunteers so it's not the headache I was thinking it might be! God is doing great things in our church family and we're happy to be a small part of it!

But just when I've convinced you our life is totally awesome, I'll add this picture for you. This is how our christmas shoot really went... and in real life one out of 4 is usually mad about something, but those odds aren't really that bad right??

Through God's Grace & Love - MERRY CHRISTMAS!

(Thank you to Lori Mathews Photography for snapping our pics just as a friend. She does great full sessions if you need a photographer in Reno that gives you a CD with your prints.)

december...

2011-12-04T20:59:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like christmas! Our tiny tree and candy cane stained lips will tell you so.

we feast tonight!

2011-11-29T16:52:00.000-08:00

Today I had the MOST fun I've ever had in a grocery store. My mom and I (and Calli) went to the rich Raley's up the hill (the one right next to us usually has one to two crazy people wandering the milk aisle shouting curse words at the air). She shared her $500 gift card she received as a christmas present from one of Dad's associates. It was clean and uncrowded, we were grocery queens! I helped myself to:

a pretty little tri-tip steak

3 bottles of wine (but they were on sale!)

2 bags of sugar cookie mix

a pineapple

Feta

Camembert

Sushi for lunch

Doritos

Odwalla superfood

Juice Squeeze (2 packs)

and was there anymore absurdly exotic and expensive things...?

oh yeah,

1 giant wild salmon

Ahhhhhhh.... it feels good to be rich! We feast tonight!

Thanks mom!

the turkey trot

2011-11-26T19:48:00.000-08:00

I am now the owner to two 10k Turkey Trot sweaters. But how many Turkey Trots have I run? ZERO.

The white sweater was last year. I had the flu for 2 days before the run, couldn't eat, couldn't move. But I woke up at 5am that morning to try and eat something before the race. I couldn't eat. I couldn't run.

The red sweater was this year. I got the flu the night before at 8pm. Since it's fresh in my memory I can tell it it was the most painful night of non-sleep I've ever had. But I didn't throw up in hopes that it would pass and I'd still have my carb dinner to carry me through the run. I woke up from 2 hours of sleep and dressed. Lauren picked me up (this was her idea). I ate a little. My fever was gone. I was NOT going to be beaten this time!! Except I was. In line for the bathroom, 3 minutes before the gun, I felt flush and blacked out. I stayed on my feet but that was it for me. If I couldn't stand in a line in the freezing cold I couldn't run 6 miles. I stumbled to the car with half of my vision blacked out. I just kept telling myself, "don't pass out in the parking lot where no one will ever find you again."

Tim came and got me.

And so I was sick on Thanksgiving again. I swear people, I'm not just signing up to get these awesome sweaters.

the hard transformer

2011-11-17T22:00:00.000-08:00

I get discouraged often. Although it looks like I have a lot of my life together I often think I'm still coming up too short.

My business could be richer.

My design talents higher.

My running faster.

My spike harder.

My love greater.

I had been thinking these thoughts for the last 30 minutes, and then I remembered what I said to Grant when I put him to bed tonight....

As I squished him and he giggled I said:

Do you know I think you're cute.

And I think you are smart.

You are so good at puzzles.

You are the very best at transformers.

And you're funny.

And I love you.

And just then his giggles turned to tears. He said sadly:

Mommy I'm not good at transformers.

I've been trying to fix Bumblebee and I can't get his arm in right and I can't get his gun to fit right either.

I explained that even if he couldn't do this one thing on this one transformer that he could transform 5 others perfectly and I could not transform one. I told him to be proud of how many he could do, and that he was way smarter with transformers than his mommy was. I told him I was still very proud of him.

I just realized I needed to hear what I said to his little heart tonight. And maybe you do to.

God created you, and He loves you. He never expected, or hoped, you'd be perfect.

wedding challenge

2011-11-06T22:00:00.000-08:00

I'm a part of the Etsy Wedding Team "at my work" and I need your help to be awesome! Before Nov 15th follow this link and vote for my piece in the Fall Team Challenge. Just click on mavora #6 on the right hand side. Thanks for the support!

And to see more of my new products go to my store: www.mavora.etsy.com

halloween 2011

2011-11-05T20:08:00.000-07:00

I forgot to show you our flying fairy this year! She soars thru the air yelling, "fly!!!"

and Grant was.....can you guess?

If you are old enough to read blogs you probably don't know, but when a pack of children knocked on our door for candy I heard the first little boy yell out, "You're Ben Ten!! Awesome!!" You just have to be hip to know it.

We hit the Discovery Museum Sunday night and trick or treating with our little friend Eliza (and Rory!) Monday night. I will never forget Calli running wildly through the streets, like a horse that had been corralled for years, finally free. She yelled and jumped in the dark eating more smarties then she could ever dream of. Pure joy I tell you, pure joy!

Happy Halloween 2011!

library day

2011-11-03T19:27:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I took Grant and Calli to the library. We've been to busy to read most of our books at home so I just said we'd read some at the library today for a while. I sat in the kids section and told Grant to pick out a storybook. He of course complains. He hates storybooks. He likes science books. I sat with Calli trying to read as she just kept turning the pages like she always does. After a few minutes Grant is still gone and I'm thinking I may need to look like I'm supervising him. I look around the kids section. No Grant. I sit back down to gather Calli and go find him and then here he comes from the other side of the library carrying the LARGEST book he could carry.

Last time we went I took him to the reference section with me to look for a cook book and he found a giant ocean encyclopedia. He remembered this time where is was and hunted it down all by himself. Good grief kid! So we sat on the kiddy couch learning about clams and hatchet fish, and flat worms. Oh this book has it all! He has officially read all the elementary school books on cephalopods and sharks anyway, might as well go for the encyclopedia! So this I guess is on Grant's Christmas list for the Morton Aunts and Grandparents who love to buy book he enjoys: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0756636922/ref=rdr_ext_tmb

It's 512 pages of pure little boy excitement - well maybe 395 pages - the maps aren't his favorite.

project 365

2011-10-30T21:29:00.001-07:00

Tim and I may give up soon, but for three weeks now we've done Project 365 (a popular idea among bloggers and flicker-ers to take a picture of ones life everyday for a year). We're not sharing this online. Just taking pictures and once a week I print them up for an album. We don't even actually have an album yet. Tim has a box. I have a mavora cubby. BUT we are taking notes and will put them in a real place soon I hope. So, if I tell you to smile it's because you're probably the picture of the day. And if you come over you can ask to see the album of the everyday shots of our life - like a reality show I think you'll like them.

Tim - October 26th

Abby - October 15th

life with kids

2011-10-20T22:29:00.001-07:00

Tonight I found a package of fruit snacks in the bathroom so I hid in there and ate them.

the recipe killer

2011-10-16T21:31:00.000-07:00

I've started ANOTHER project: The Recipe Killer. I'm insane, I know, but its been fun so far! Please check it out and share it with your friends. I'm hoping to get a whole new following of people I don't know! At church we're always swapping recipes or at least saying we should, so I am! Hope you like it.

mt rose 2011

2011-10-14T18:33:00.000-07:00

Tim and I took Thursday off for a Mt Rose hike. Tim likes to get up there every year while I....well I'll hike it if it's needed.

The hike was a little more exciting this year as we had a pretty tight time limit. We dropped Grant at school and had to pick him up too. When we got to the top we knew a record descent was needed so we ran the 4+ miles down the mountain and out of the woods to our car in an hour and 25 minutes. We did the entire hike in 3 hours and 40 minutes (a typical time would be more like 5 hours) and that was with a lot more snow on the trail then we expected to run through in my tennis shoes. We arrived at the school 5 minutes late - but there were still 2 other kids in the room so we won! Thanks for taking me honey!

just like her brother

2011-10-10T21:54:00.000-07:00

She knows you stand on the red stool and you spit when the water is turned on.

like strawberry shortcake - but not

2011-10-05T16:47:00.000-07:00

Grant and I finally had a moment to make Tim's birthday cake - it's only a week late - I have a feeling he'll still like it. This morning we also signed the papers to sell our old house. It was a little anti-climactic seeing as we moved out over a year ago but it's very good news that we don't have a foreclosure or an empty house on our hands any more. Praise the Lord!

The Cake Boss on Rachel Ray made a strawberry short(layered)cake this week so I of course stole the idea and changed it (I'm just not that good at following directions and raspberries were on sale). I have a feeling my lemon-raspberry super-short(layered)cake will be just as fabulous!

Happy Birthday Timothy! I love you more everyday and look forward to the new chapter of non-home-ownership with you. ♥

midnight wild

2011-09-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

I made Tim get the camera last night. Just another midnight cuddle session, my very favorite thing. When Calli wakes up, playing loudly in her crib, as we're brushing our teeth I always grab her and pull her into our bed. Last night I wanted to remember everything about her. Her sweet, gleeful smile as she knows she shouldn't get to be in mommy's bed in the middle of the night. Her crazy, curly hair that's been tackled by all the blankets. Her joy every other minute that spills over from smile to full volume squeal in the silent house. I try to cuddle her tiny frame but she can't be overpowered. She is more wild at night then in the day. And then when Tim says it's time for bed I cradle her tightly and tell her it's nigh nigh time. She's not thrilled but she seems to understand and takes her blankey in her hand and her thumb in her mouth and lies calmly in her crib with a smile. I don't want to forget a moment of our midnight friendship. I LOVE my baby girl!

big girl

2011-09-14T11:37:00.000-07:00

We're celebrating 1 year and 6 months just a bit early. She's a lover of clothes and grabber of cameras. Her newest fashions include Grant's underwear over her shorts and Daddy's as a toga.

the growing never stops

2011-09-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

Last week I was wondering how I would feel when Grant went to Kindergarden. Most women around me asked the loaded question in the super spooky voice, "What are you going to do when Grant goes to Kindergarden!?" I felt a bit like if I was a good mom I would cry or be disturbed or something... but alas, today is the day and I feel good. I guess I'm just not as surprised as I used to be that my baby is always growing. And I find a lot of joy in sharing new things with him. This summer Grant has accomplished a lot! He went from the little bike with training wheels to the big bike with a kickstand. At the water park he went from not wanting to go down the frog slide to taking on Tortuga - by himself - backwards. And in his kindergarden interview, even though he'll be one of the youngest in his class, the teacher said he'll be in the advanced group. I guess I'm ready for the challenge because he is. He can do it! And I'm very proud of him!

Now when Calli goes to school it may be a whole different story seeing as she will be my baby forever.

calli fashion

2011-09-01T16:12:00.000-07:00

when Calli and Daddy play...

ruby mountains: the whole story

2011-08-30T21:28:00.000-07:00

I posted a few pictures and videos from the our camping vacation in the Ruby Mountains a couple of weeks ago but you may not have heard the whole story. This is how it goes.

___________________

My old Jeep is packed full as we hit the road at 1pm.

The air conditioning hasn't worked well for about a year (I'd say it runs 40% of the time) so on the hot desert road between Reno and Elko we're excited that it's keeping us cool at 2pm.

There it goes again. No air at 2.30pm. Tim and I enjoy a nice talk and laughter as I pour water on us to keep our cool with the windows down.

We hit Winnemucca at 4pm and as we take the exit and the wind blast of the highway vanishes we hear terrible noises coming for the car. Tim checks under the hood and adds some coolant.

2 more hours and we're pulling off in Elko, just slightly behind out friends who left early but got a flat tire on the road. This time the noises are the most painful my Jeep has ever made. It's not going to make it to the campsite that night.

So this is our Elko hotel room.

We did finally make it when our friends picked us up and our car made it too after a new air conditioning compressor and accessory belt a day later.

Calli learned to say "cheese" for the camera - seen here - and "yes" which we had a lot of fun with!

We did a night trail run/hike - running for the wives, hiking for the dads with kids -

and a 5 mile day hike with all the littles next!

Later that day there was RAIN. The thunderstorms there do not mess around! Thankfully we knew it was on it's way and we took cover with our valuable possessions.

But the biggest highlight? My lasagna in my new dutch oven.

Put it all together and there you have it - a family vacation.

the big time

2011-08-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is Grant's kindergarden interview and tonight there was this:

happy 6 years

2011-08-23T22:45:00.000-07:00

We celebrated our 6th anniversary all week (including a night out at Harrah's) but the actual day was a family of 4 extravaganza including Wild Island, Grant's first giant slide: Tortuga, and a picnic dinner watching Tangled on the air mattress. I am very blessed!

sing song

2011-08-20T10:09:00.000-07:00

Calli tries to sing the Wild Kratts theme song now. It sounds a bit like, "while while rice!" but she's in tune. This new word stage is hilarious fun!

real photos

2011-08-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

Check it out - we had family pictures taken! Beats the usual tripod or extended arm method.

UNR campus | Athena Rochelle Photography

video time!

2011-08-17T22:07:00.001-07:00

Our new digital camera has some better video capabilities - lucky you! Here are a few clips from the past few weeks.

Calli's new "words" she learned camping last week. "Cheese" is only hummed but we all know what it means! And since this lunch we've all been saying, "Calli, say yes!" and she almost always obliges. Love it!

In fact the very first time she hummed and smiled was for this picture a little earlier:

AHHHdorable!

And this one is Grant doing great on his longest and hardest hike ever - 5 miles, 1,000 feet gain, 3+ hours total. We passed the time with a little Wild Kratts (that's his favorite TV show).

And I'm not a paranoid mom - it was his idea to wear the helmet!

misplaced

2011-08-09T18:51:00.000-07:00

I was cleaning up the house 5 minutes ago and I thought, "why did Tim just dump his shoes next to the rack? Uuugh".

I was cleaning up the house 1 minute ago and thought, "Tim's shoes are back on the floor. Soooo once again Calli is out making other people look bad."

Often I find something misplaced, spilled, and MISPLACED and I still think Tim or Grant did it. Duh!! The baby is ALWAYS doing it! She's out to ruin us with the sweetest smile and curls abundant.

This picture features Calli in two shirts and a dress. She LOVES herself some pretty clothes!

prayer thoughts

2011-08-03T21:35:00.000-07:00

I'm in a big fat blessing of a marriage.

tahoe/volleyball

2011-08-01T10:52:00.000-07:00

Tim and I stayed up at Tahoe this weekend. Sunday was my second co-ed grass tourney in Zephyr (and the first for my partner Nick). We placed third in our (lowest) division. Pretty good except that I REALLY thought we could have gotten second.

I realized this VolleyNation t-shirt is my first volleyball shirt! All the other gals there have drawers full from tourneys, clinics, high school, college, club, etc. My volleyball history is not so exstensive so it will take me a while longer to catch up to my competition but I'm having fun with my Reno volleyball friends! They're good to me. Volleyball has helped me stay sane and get into better shape this last year and I'm thankful my husband lets me do it!

another race, another story!

2011-07-30T07:57:00.001-07:00

Last night was my first trail run, yes, last night. My running partner and another friend from church did the Moonlight Madness at Rancho San Rafael Park. I'd classify it as a mild trail run except that we did half of it in the dark and in painfully hard rain - these were quarter size drops that I swear started a mile up and gained speed the entire way down until slamming into me. Once in my exhausted, jumbled brain, I thought - what is making all that noise? It was the rain hitting my bib number, making the sound of hail on a tin roof! It wasn't rain that you'd willfully stand in that's for sure.

There weren't any mile markers on the course so it was difficult to gauge my speed but I was going hard. Near the end there was a very curvy paved section but the rain had soaked the path too much to run it with my slippery toe shoes so I took the thick grass next to it with the squirrel holes and a tree branch clean swept my sunglasses off the top of my head in the sprint. I slowed slightly for two steps and then thought....nah I'm not wasting 30 seconds on this issue, I have enough to worry about here. And why was I wearing sunglasses for a night run? Because the wind gusts before we started were throwing LARGE amounts of painful dirt in our eyes! That was right before lightning hit the hill above us and started it on fire. Luckily the smoke was blowing uphill! And poor Tim had the keys to the girls' car and he was huddled with screaming Calli under a tree, but he still cheered me on as I flew by!

After finishing there was no time to celebrate. I ran back up the hill to Tim and the kids, ran more uphill to look for my lost glasses (I saw a guy cheering and asked, "did you see some sunglasses around here?" He replied, "I can't see anything!"), found my glasses, and ran to the car with the keys to get us girls out of that insane rain! So the race was mainly Madness without any Moonlight. I finished a little ahead of my comrades, 32:01 and 11th in my age group out of 61 runners. For the training I put in and the course conditions I'm very happy with that time.

Now today I'm off to Tahoe, I'm in my second grass volleyball tournament on Sunday and that's where I'm really hoping to shine. I'll let you know how that goes!

before

after

number 5

2011-07-26T13:57:00.000-07:00

Oops! I forgot to write about the Colossal Squid Birthday Party! Grant still doesn't put his head under water but he LOVES the pool so much that we had a pool party for the big number 5! We rented out our neighborhood pool and added toys and boys. It was a great time!

Another highlight was the Optimus Pinata - Grant is looking ninja good!

Thank you to all Grant's friends who came to play and to his aunts who sent GREAT Bakugan and Star Wars loot! Love to you my 5 year old little guy, you're so big and yet so little to snuggle-wuggle. You rock!

the big buy

2011-07-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

Grant made his first purchase - a Bakugan case from Toys R Us. He's been collecting quarters for doing extra chores around the house. It's a win-win: he's happy to have a new avenue of collecting toys and I am happy to have him do all the little tasks I don't have time for. Mainly he cleans up whatever the baby dumped out on the floor but he can also sweep the porch, feed Calli lunch, and play with Calli when no one wants to at the time.

get your lemonade!

2011-07-12T08:37:00.001-07:00

Friday was Grant's Alex's Lemonade Stand, and it went fabulously with his right hand man Ethan! We pulled in a lot of traffic on 7th and a lot of Grant's friends came out to support us. The lemonade stand pulled in $225 in just two hours plus we made $50.00 online so we beat our goal of $100 quite easily! It was good to see so many people supporting my kids and the kids this money goes to help. I explained to Grant that he just gave away 18 transformers - his jaw dropped!

Thanks for all the support! Talk to me if you'd like to have an Alex's Lemonade Stand with your kids. It was great 5 year old fun!

just like her mom

2011-07-11T09:10:00.000-07:00

Calli loves green olives more then I do! This is really scary!

grant's alex's lemonade stand is HERE

2011-07-07T20:50:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow (Friday) morning Grant and his friend Ethan will be on the corner of 7th and Wyoming selling cups of lemonade and raising donations for Alex's Lemonade Stand , a foundation that helps families and hospitals fight childhood cancer. Grant has been involved in stands for two years now and came up to me wanting to do his very own - so here we are! Come on down for a very fine cup of lemonade from 10:30 to 12:00 OR you can donate two other ways.

ONLINE: go to http://www.alexslemonade.org/mypage/74770

or TEXT: "lemonade e74770" to 85944 to give $10.00

Tim, Grant, and I - with the help of our fabulous church - have raised $3,200 in past years for the cause and this year Grant wants to get at least $100 more. HELP US!

camping 2011

2011-07-04T17:33:00.000-07:00

So the camping season begins with the Coram Deo Church Campout at Davis Creek. The group site is fabulous there with real sinks, quarter showers, and lots of shade. The bugs weren't bad either this weekend which is always a big bonus for me! AND we re-arranged the tent so we had more room, I was super excited about that! But don't get me wrong. I'm not all a ball of joy when we camp. When you're in a tent there's A LOT of walking back and forth to the car, A LOT of searching thru misc. bags and boxes and coolers. I pretty much yell every hour - WHERE IS _____!? I feel like a trailer might be more helpful when it comes to my desperate need for organization in the forest but until that upgrade comes (in 5 years) this will have to do. To help with some of the chaos I've decided to start a list now to remember how to pack for next time. We tend to pack for the 4 hours directly preceeding pulling out of the driveway and this year we ran out of diapers and Grant was packed NO t-shirts. The list can't fix my spacey-ness but it should make home in the woods a little cozier. I'm putting it online so I can always look it up here instead of trying to find a tiny piece of paper somewhere, and, maybe some newer campers out there will be aided in their chaos too. It won't be comprehensive, but mainly things I tend to forget or things you might want to buy that we use.

THE CAMP LIST

paper towels

* can opener

plates/silverware/cups

* soap to leave in the bathroom and share

wet wipes

clorox wipes

dishsoap/dish bucket/dishtowel

* spices

rugs

broom

2+ bug spray

2+ sunscreen

foil

hot pads

camera

books

* clothes line and pins

extra blankets

EXTRA DIAPERS!

* extra garbage bags/plastic bags/ziplock bags

hats for all

hammock

glow sticks for kids

dry erase board

sharpie

table cloth or 2 w/ clips or weights

• good marshmallow sticks

And the number 1 most important thing you need tent camping:

* plastic bins and trash can to save food from squirrels and not walk back and forth a bazillion times to your car.

mavora.com

2011-06-26T19:54:00.001-07:00

Hey you should check out my business site/blog if you're bored. It's got Salsa, Calli of course, and other pretty things. My home business, Mavora Art and Design, has been doing very well. I make 80% of our living these days as Tim goes back to school on his way to a Pharmacy degree. Although I can feel VERY buried and stressed at times I'm so thankful that I have a flexible job so I can be a mom too and I'm NOT waitressing! Plus I now have two part time employees - Tim does all my cutting and my Mom works every tuesday on magnet tag assembly. I like employees, especially the kind I don't actually pay.

I just started advertising at My Wedding Library at the Summit Mall in Reno. I was talking with the girls there about the work I do and one of them made a comment, "you must have a huge craft room!" Yeah. No. But I'm glad other people recognize that I could use some space. I work out of our 950 square foot home. Through the power of organization somehow we all eat, play, and print a billion pieces of paper around the dining room table and the ottoman. Someday I'm positive I will look back and laugh - and I'll tell my kids it was a 700 square foot house.

wild island

2011-06-22T16:21:00.001-07:00

Grant and I got season passes to the water park this year in hopes of some fun time together without work and growing his comfort with the water. So far we can do the kids pool and the lazy river. Grant could walk the river circle for hours in fact! Calli LOVES the water so she's a steal getting in for free. Her new thing is trying to walk super fast in the baby pool (and she's not even so good on land) so she gets a face full of water every so often before mom grabs her but she seems to enjoy it. Our goal is to go every week at least once and we have a lot of great friends that usually join us. I don't know how I got here but - summer is on!

my favorite calli shots in june

2011-06-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

summer begins

2011-06-13T14:26:00.001-07:00

Saturday night was family night at the Marina. Free fishing day for Grant and Calli's first time in the kayak with Daddy. I realized I should have more blogging to do as we get out and play in this nice weather and slack off at work!

Grant and I had the perfect plan to catch fish with marshmallows and squirt gun in hand but alas, none were found to squirt and hook.

Looking forward to more fun outside!

tough days

2011-06-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

I haven't been too active on my internet socialities... yeah I'm gonna make that word up. It's been a rough few weeks and I hate to spill it all on innocent bystanders but, yes, it's not been my favorite time. I feel like these are my "Job" days. I have these itchy skin sores that won't heal and a dermatologist appointment still 2+ weeks away. My urgent care drugs ran out and they won't give me more. I can see the sleepless night crouching back at the door. I've learned that marriage is harder when you itch all night and so is counting and cutting wedding invitations. And Tim's Calculus class isn't a walk in the park either. I'm just praying for strength until I can get the help I need and then Tim and I decided we're going to have a ton of fun this summer. We'll take turn watching the kids so I can play tons of volleyball and he can mountain bike.

Oh Lord sustain me! I have little faith but I have no other source of hope - so it's rely on the God who I know loves me or.... start buying some kind of drugs off the street. I think I'm going with option 1 but if I had shadier friends I think I might just go with option 2. Despair is not something to underestimate.

And because I just depressed you I'll leave with this latest adorable Calli picture to keep you coming back. And maybe if you're having a rough time, knowing that I feel your pain will make you feel a slight bit understood. As always I'm lucky to have a family that is my light in dark places, God's precious gift. I hope your gifts are shinning bright as well.

growing pains

2011-05-27T17:26:00.000-07:00

Grant has a problem with over-reacting when he gets a slight pain or a bit uncomfortable. An inch would make a stranger think he was dying. I'm working with him on it - and so is God obviously.

This week he:

rammed his face into a metal ladder resulting in a bloody nose

got his finger VERY stuck in the tiny holes of the playground floor

and ran into a friend at preschool creating this super fat,bloody lip

But he handled each dramatic event surprisingly well! That a boy!

game night

2011-05-02T20:16:00.000-07:00

Game night is always more fun when you use How to Train Your Dragon game pieces - at least if you're a 4 year old boy. When Calli gets bigger we may be playing with Polly Pockets.

half marathon day

2011-05-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

I ran the Rock N River 1/2 Marathon yesterday with my bestest running buddy Latricia. We are great running partners with similar strengths and weaknesses - except she doesn't use the bathroom every 30 minutes like me. This race included a record of mine: three potty stops. We had a great race overall. Even though I fought with stomach pains most of the way, they never overtook me. We had great weather, except at the start in the FREEZING cold. (pictured below)

I had my typical "I'm late for the race...oh crap I missed it" dream earlier in the week but on the real morning we made it early to the downtown event and that helped my stress levels a lot!

We made the 13.1 miles in 2:35 with a super-fast last 3/4 of a mile as we thought our chip time might get 2:30. I'm still not sure of our chip time but it's probably 2:33. Mile 11 was HARD but we only walked for 5 minutes in small increments throughout the race and at 11 we just kept trotting, afraid of freezing up all together. I thought I'd pass out and never move again at the line so I think I did my job.

about me

2011-04-27T20:43:00.000-07:00

I feel like I've been talking about my kids a lot so here's some stuff about me:

I like lists better then paragraphs. It's easy. It's to the point. It's like how men talk.

I like The Voice better then American Idol. I think they pulled it off!

By the end of this week I'll have created 8 proofs for new clients, glued 315 invites to folders, made 130 magnet tags, cut 11 stacks of card stock, changed 20 diapers, gone to Staples 3 times, Printed on 992 envelopes, and told my mom "good job, have a cookie" four times for helping me four days. My job is to make enough money to pay for everything but rent and Tim's School. It's hard!

I'm hoping Tim will stop having so much school work (he's working on a pharmacy degree) so he can cut all my invites soon and bathe the children once in a while. Oh and go back to doing all the dishes!!

Tuesday I started the grass volleyball season off with two kids in tow. It was wonderful.

I'm running a half marathon (13.1 miles) this Sunday but I don't feel anymore in shape then usual so I'm a bit afraid.

I like Tim a lot. My favorite part of my life is still laughing with him late at night. I also enjoy the public being taken aback at how cute and wonderful my children are. I also like squishing my children because the joy they give me has to be released.

My knees and back just hit virtual year 40.

I don't go an hour without picking up something Calli threw on the ground - except when I'm sleeping. I refuse to clean up after her when I'm sleeping.

I only have one kleenex box left in the house that I carry from room to room with me because we should go grocery shopping but we rarely have the time. If you know me you know one box of kleenex is NOT okay.

Parenting a 4 year old going on 5 is proving itself more and more difficult. Swimming, Soccer, they know what you're talking about all the time, the complaints are flying, real life lessons have to be boiled down to tiny brain language, BUT he's a great babysitter.

I drink an Arbonne protein shake every morning to stay alive. I recommend having an Arbonne lady around for this one product and waiting for the 50% off sales to buy.

I don't really drink soda anymore but I WILL take a McDonald's Sweet Tea. MMMmmm

Tim and I are watching ALL of Scrubs on Netflix.

I like my church - Coram Deo. There's a lot of nice people there and I serve a lot but I'm happy to do it. God is good!

We're probably moving to Portland in a year...or two. But we're headed that way. That will be awesome because I love Amy and Kristina and my other fam and friends up there. But that will also suck ey? I have to leave Reno?? I'll never find a better running buddy then Latricia.

Grant is the master of hurting himself slightly and freaking out to a level 10. Today he hit his head on the wall while sitting on his bed putting his shoes on. What? Oh that wasn't about me but it affects me greatly!

I look at this computer WAY WAY too much.

So that's some of my life....just in case you wanted to know.

more soccer shots

2011-04-25T17:50:00.000-07:00

I remembered the real camera for Saturday's game. Here's the action.

This is Grant's signature thumbs up to me during the game. This one came right after he slammed another kid in the shin guards.

Miracle shot of the day - all the kids on the field are running. You don't see that often!

happy 13 months

2011-04-21T22:28:00.000-07:00

Calli's new tricks April 21st - 13 months old. She just started picking up more signs and more steps in the last 7 days. You're always a joy Calli!

purple panthers

2011-04-18T19:10:00.000-07:00

Annnd I forgot my camera again for soccer! So I cell-phoned these for you. My kid is the one most completely aloof of the camera and the soccer game. But this week he scored TWO goals! One was a kick off that no one could touch, it just kept rolling, slowly, slowly, into the goal. This was followed by a very good end zone dance. All the parents go crazy for his heart melting sweetness. On the field, every three minutes he turns to me on the sidelines and gives a thumbs up, plus there's his signature galloping run!

I have to share one funny story that happened during his first game. Most of them at the first game didn't really understand why everyone was trying to get the ball and...where should this ball go? Grant was on the field and the green team scored against him but he didn't quite get the defeat. He ran as fast as he could across the field, off the field, onto the team blankets and yelled into my face, "our team did it! we really did it!!!" Oh the joy of 4 year old sports!

cubbies award

2011-04-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

Grant finished his first year of AWANA. He was in Cubbies every Wednesday for 6 months or so and memorized an entire book of bible verses. We worked on the verses often at dinner time and it was fun! Thanks so much for your love for the youth of our community - Sierra Bible Church members. It was a great experience and we're happy to live within walking distance of a great church.

I'm pretty sure this is Grant's first "major award". Stay tuned for SOCCER! I'll remember my camera for the next game and tell you all about it!

oh the stares

2011-03-29T18:10:00.000-07:00

Before my run today I needed to quickly send my orders and pick up a few things. I didn't have much time (surprise, surprise) so I dressed for my run before my errands so I could take off as soon as I was done. As most of my friends know I wear Vibram toe shoes running. They out-right say I look goofy but I still feel I have some of their respect. At every race it's the same thing, a few extra glances come my way and I always have a product review conversation with a stranger on the course. And no, I'm not bringing it up. At the store today however it was a different story. People were staring for LONG periods of time. This older gentlemen in line ahead of me stared so long and then stared some more. I'm surprised he was able to look up and pay for his stuff. I honestly thought his eyes might pop out and roll away on the floor. It took all my energy not to laugh. I was turning away and looking at the ceiling holding in my grins. Good grief people! What if I was missing a limb or something was really wrong with me?If people are staring like that I feel BAD for those who look different in this world. Next time do I say something? Maybe I'll say I have a disease and my toes aren't allowed to touch each other. Obviously people can't put together that my running shorts and special shoes might mean I'm a RUNNER.

the big one

2011-03-21T22:06:00.000-07:00

It's Calli-O-Mally * Calista-Mista * Babes * Calli-Calculator's first birthday. She didn't really touch her cake but I think she could tell it was beautiful. :) I can't believe she's growing up! And I would protest more but she just keeps getting cuter! Her "uh-oh" and her "ups" and her giggles and wiggles. She is the highlight of my life. I love you more and more everyday Cal!

- Mommy

in the news

2011-03-18T17:19:00.000-07:00

...also on our vacation the 101 collapsed into the ocean outside Monterey. We were on it just a few hours before. It will be closed for weeks, maybe months they say. I'm glad we weren't stuck on the other side. Dad's huge Excursion probably put the nail in the coffin on that one!

fishy blessings

2011-03-16T20:23:00.000-07:00

Did you know that when Grant and I go to the library we only leave with ocean books? Did you know when he draws something 75% of the time it's something under the ocean? He's a sponge for the marine world right now so we grabbed our change to go have fun at the Aquarium.

We went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for three days this week. Yup THREE days. Grant and I love it there so we went back an extra day. We were able to bring the Reno Grandparents with us and had SO much fun learning and laughing. We saw the giant octopus swim twice! That's a very special and rare thing as he sits in his corner most open aquarium hours. We also touched the bat rays three times and played shooting-water-at-fake-fish for hours and hours. After walking around that place for 6 hours I didn't hear one little boy complaint about his legs hurting. He was seriously enjoying himself people! It's magical sharing moments with your child when you are both honest-to-goodness having a blast! It was not a restful vacation but it was a blessing with our children for sure.

the cough walk

2011-03-09T20:45:00.000-08:00

I made another bad decision today. I took Grant out for a walk since he's been inside for the better part of 5 days, sick. It was a beautiful evening and I figured it was time to get him some air. I planned a 5 minute walk before his FAVORITE show came on: Wild Kratts. When I turned toward the street we take to the park he said, "are we going to the park?" I told him no but he insisted he could miss Wild Kratts and walk all the way to the park. Well I'd be a bad mom if I said, "No, I don't want to go play with you and let you breathe fresh air - back to the house! Watch your TV!" - right? So, I said yes to the new plan.

We make it half-way to the park, chasing shadows and kicking rocks in the quiet evening. Then upon approaching a couple of people talking by their cars Grant coughs. coughs. coughs. coughs. Throws up a loogie. coughs. coughs. Throws up a loogie. coughs. coughs. After standing there what seemed like 10 minutes in the couple's stare we start again toward the park. He coughs now every 5 seconds until we reach the park, and at the park. I'm trying to tell him to play but he's just standing there coughing. Good job mom! Well, it's not over. We play "Transformers in the ocean" for 5 minutes and need to head home since I'm now fearing for his life and this unexpected journey is running out of sunshine. He starts to do better and we kick more rocks. He sees a storm drain and wants to kick a "goal" with his rock. There are a few neighbors out watching as we play rock soccer and I know my boy is the cutest.

Then the cough starts again - with a vengeance. He leans over and throws up something good. coughs. coughs. coughs loudly. coughs. vomits up another glob. coughs. coughs. Finally one of the neighbors yells, "Is he okay?" Humiliated that I brought a dying child out to play rock soccer I yell back, "He's okay, just getting over a cold." Good grief! At least he wasn't crying and freaking out like he normally does during cough attacks. So I gave him a piggy back ride home hoping to save him his lungs. Of course I made him promise he wouldn't vomit on me first.

When we got home the family was all on the the bed talking. Daddy said, "I'm glad you got to go for a walk buddy." To which Grant replied, "Yeah, I vomited A LOT." and then he demonstrated with his hands how much.

Yup, another bad decision.

*For other Grant and Mommy adventure walks go Here and Here.

31

2011-03-07T10:51:00.000-08:00

Well I'm 31 now. My kids are SUPER sick and I'm on my way there so it wasn't the best birthday ever but there were still some highlights,

Having Calli sleep on my chest like she used to as a new born. To bad she had to be super sick to do it - but I took it and loved it!

My Taylor Swift CD from Tim.

My new running clothes from Mom.

Juicys dinner and volleyball with my team - we won.

A nap.

5 voicemails and a bunch of e-mails and facebook messages.

Money to pay for new jeans and a top from The Morton side of the family.

Illustrator upgrade from my Dad - a VERY big gift I am super thankful for!!

S0 here comes 31. My goal is to squeeze every bit of youth out of my 30's. I'm washing my face and using anti-wrinkle creams, I'm running, I'm working on my volleyball skills, I'm snuggling my babies, and I'm working hard designing and rolling in the dough! Thanks to all my friends and family for the love you give to my life!

communication

2011-02-26T13:19:00.000-08:00

Calli added the word "up" last week to her mama-dada-vocabulary and she can wave "bye bye" (even if it is 10 seconds after daddy goes out the door). Here's her first sign.

And here's a little of Grant's life.

snow walk

2011-02-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

We did our snow walk! Tim made a sledding hill - for himself - Grant wouldn't go. I dragged Calli in the sled propped up in her Bumbo seat. It was a perfect little car. Although, she did tip out on her face once. Head in the snow, feet in the air. Oh my so funny and also not...because I try not to be the meanest mom on the planet. I plucked her out and brushed her off. She wasn't fazed a bit. Just ready to roll once again. Man, she's hilarious! It's starting to look like she's the opposite of her brother. She's a rough and tumble dirt eater.

snow!

2011-02-19T10:51:00.000-08:00

Well we got covered with a good 16 inches of snow over the last three days. Tim's bird feeder is the only refuge for the fat doves and tiny sparrows flocking to the yard for food.

We're thinking about going sledding behind our back yard but at the moment we have two kids that don't like sledding so we may just pull them along in the sled for a snow walk. This is pretty nice to have snow for the week but I'm going to want to go running outside soon so.....let's just keep it winter for a week.

two

2011-02-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

During bath time tonight it dawned on my soul - it may be a lot of work but two kids are better than one. And who knows, maybe someday three will be better than two?

valentine's day

2011-02-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

you can read about my Valentine's Day at work here.

Have a lovely day my friends and family! I appreciate all your love to us!

mama video

2011-02-04T22:30:00.000-08:00

I just got into my new Mac Pro!!! And now I have the tools to upload my videos straight to blogspot. Yay!!!

a good january

2011-02-02T21:41:00.000-08:00

I'm sad it's February. Why you ask? Not because it's still freezing cold out. Not because it's the lovey-dovey Valentine month. Not because I can see summer over the horizon and I haven't had a sweet swim suit bod since high school. Nope. I'm sad because my bundle of free subway sandwich coupons just expired on the 31st. I've been eating free at least twice a week the entire month. The stack of coupons at Grant's preschool just kept being there... and sometimes growing... so I took one everyday. That was fun!

octopus

2011-01-31T15:54:00.000-08:00

Grant has been working hard on writing his alphabet and drawing dragons and sea monsters. This is an orange octopus in green water - just like he saw in his library book. It's my favorite drawing of his so far. He knows just about every kind of octopus and squid - blue ringed, pacific octopus, vampire, and now he's into angler fish BIG TIME. Oh what fun!

missing video

2011-01-30T14:47:00.000-08:00

Well I want to upload video of my baby girl saying "ma ma" but Yahoo video doesn't do it anymore and I don't know how else to get it on here. My camera saves it as a file that Blogspot doesn't accept. Is this a good enough reason to make Tim buy me a flip? hmmm . Anyway my baby says Mama!!!! Smile from me!

2011-01-25T21:14:00.000-08:00

Our "Babes" is 10 months old.

First swing at the park.

Calli, you're little!

First stand....for 2 seconds.

The big hat is due to the fact that we left the mittens inside when we put it on her head.

meet "ton"

2011-01-13T18:37:00.001-08:00

"Ton" is Grant's imaginary dragon. He has described him over the last 3 months as:

able to change into any color

able to change into any animal

can turn his wings into huge pinchers

has 4 eyes like a camel

he shoots fire

he can kill everybody

and Toothless the dragon is his friend

BUT tonight we learned that a woodpecker can kill him by pecking thru his neck - so he's not as invincible as we all thought this whole time.

x-country running

2011-01-10T17:50:00.001-08:00

I should be making wedding magnets right now as I have 5 orders of 100 this week BUT Calli is on the prowl and I can't risk my work being that close to sticky fingers and gnawing jaws so I'll tell you the story of this weekends race.

My running partners signed up for the Arrowcreek 8k X-country snow race last weekend but one of them got sick so I got a free entry the day before. I had to run 6 miles anyway that day so I figured I'd be dumb not to take the chance. It didn't go great with HUGE hills in the first half of the race and the WORST stomach cramp for the last half. But considering the pain I did well enough. The best part of the race though was how it made my dreams come true - or rather my reccuring nightmares....literally. I have had a dream three times that I am super late for a race and still trying to put on my Vibrams and my iPod when everyone else is at mile 2. Did I give too much away?

******************************

So I get to the race 35 minutes early. I feel late but not a lot of people are there so I relax a little.

My friend JoAnna has my race number so I have to wait for that which comes 15 minutes later. So now we have 20 minutes.

With no safety pins we go inside and stand in line for a bit to get some pins off the registration table. We check out the starting line, the competition, and put on our race numbers. We have 10 minutes I'd guess - we aren't wearing watches.

Although we thought we may need snowshoes or external treads most people are wearing just simple trail runners. I have on my tennis shoes (but I usually run in 5 finger Vibrams) and my gaiters to keep the snow out at least a little. But upon inspecting the course of 3 inches of snow, some dry grass, and some dry cart path I decide I should put on my toe socks and Vibrams in the car. I'm a little worried about slippage but more worried I'd hurt myself in shoes I wasn't used to. I'm a little panicked changing shoes so close to the start but JoAnna assures me we have plenty of time.

We start to warm up a little and test our shoes on the snowy grass and path. As we make it over the hill we see everyone at the starting line - okay let's go that way now!

But of course I have to go pee! It's what I do. So my friends go to the line and I go to the bathroom. The ladies room is occupied and this is no time to wait so I whip open the mens door to find someone using it. I close it and wait until he is finished. I can't be shy and run away. I have to go!! As he departs I rush in.

As I head thru the back of the country club to get to the door and the start of the race I hear about 4 women yelling...."oh my! you gotta go!" "there's the door!" "have a good race!"

I open the back door to the sound of the gun. Off everyone goes and I am 200 feet back. My friends are shouting and I yell to go and I catch them right before the first humongous hill. So that was my warm-up ey? Not good. Not good at all.

And that is how my nightmares came true. I hope you enjoyed it even though I bet you aren't really surprised.

So the Vibrams are x-country snow tested. There were a few 2 foot drifts but overall just lightly snowy grass. Once I saw a flat path a little left but they made you go straight up a 6 foot bump and straight back down again. Someone thought that was funny I'm sure. And now I know I need to add hill training into my routine.

But there is GOOD NEWS! The nightmare I had the night after the race didn't come true. I dreamt I had to run the 5 miles again but this time in the approaching darkness with Grant and his preschool friend Eli who were both not dressed for the occasion and I was searching everywhere for tiny gloves....late for the race again.

family photo

2011-01-03T19:35:00.000-08:00

The whole family together with only one person crying! It's the best so far! We woke up poor Calli for the picture and she cried just long enough for this one shot.

christmas run

2010-12-30T11:48:00.000-08:00

My favorite part of Christmas was running around the Marina with my family. It was a warm winter day and Tim made me run real fast.

not ready yet

2010-12-28T12:47:00.000-08:00

Am I supposed to blog about christmas? Oh man. I'm still on holiday. Family and friends in town for another week. So maybe next week I'll have some pictures. Hope you had a Merry Christmas!!

gingerbread house

2010-12-17T14:03:00.000-08:00

I am not typically a gingerbread house maker - which you will believe as you see my pictures - but I decided it was time for Grant and I to try our hands at a little Christmas house. Graham crackers, frosting, M&M's, and "mushrooms" (gum drops). The craft went a little like this:

Get the stuff

build a roof and take it off

put in a door

gum drop the new roof

watch the house fall down

push the wreck into a single story house

And fun is had all around! It's been a good snowy day!

2010-12-17T13:45:00.000-08:00

oh my babes! I love you!

a glimpse of grant

2010-12-16T19:14:00.000-08:00

Coming home from grocery shopping Grant says, "I am gonna be a paleontologist and look at the King Crabs. Also if I have a sword I'm gonna cut their legs off!"

it's christmas time

2010-12-11T22:39:00.000-08:00

We cut our first Christmas tree today! I've heard some terrible stories this season but we went in after a big snow melt and we had no problems at all. Our favorite family the Bjurs came with us which makes things all the more fun. Our tree is perfect for our little house all decorated. Now the season has begun for us. I think we have a tradition here!

little trouble maker

2010-12-07T16:33:00.000-08:00

Things heard repeatedly this week:

"Daddy, put the babes in her room cuz she's eating my toys."

"Daddy, put the baby in her room cuz she's in the way of the TV."

"Babes, don't look at me when I'm eating, alright?"

"Babes, I love you but you have to do what I say."

"Mommy, put the babes to bed cuz she's screaming too loud."

"Daddy, put the baby in her room cuz she's coming over and gonna eat my food."

"The babes is gonna fall over!"

"Babes, stop doing that!"

"Mommy, get the baby outta here cuz she's touching my toys."

- Grant

splash time

2010-12-06T15:46:00.000-08:00

Bath time is fierce these days when you add Calli to the mix.

splash bath @ Yahoo! Video

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crawling!

2010-12-06T14:56:00.000-08:00

calli crawls @ Yahoo! Video

8 months. My baby is advanced! (I think) I have a video of Grant crawling at about 10 months. If nothing else she's cute!!

bad mom!

2010-11-29T22:15:00.000-08:00

I totally just woke Calli up from bed to cuddle her but she wouldn't be cuddled. She only uses people to get to things she can put in her mouth. But we rocked for a while anyway, smiling and butting heads, and then I put her back down, for which she thanked me and went promptly back to sleep -blanket in hand and thumb in mouth. Oh Cal, how I love you and your calmness in the face of your crazy Mother.

not so good thanksgiving

2010-11-27T16:00:00.000-08:00

Well we've been cooped up for days at the house as I've been SUPER sick with some kind of flu. I guess it's good to pile up sick days with holiday days since there's too much work to do otherwise but....THE TURKEY! I missed my 6 mile run I've been training for the last 4 months and we didn't make it to my parents for turkey and fun. It was sad for sure. At least my mom sent dad with a box of food that helped lighten the blow and I love Tim so that helped too. We've had a week of sick saturdays now and things are getting a little too blurry. The only appointment we had was Grant's soccer class and....we missed it this morning. It's been a week of many ups and downs and frankly I guess I'm just thankful to be alive and semi-happy. I keep hoping my stomach will get better soon and I'll be able to eat a heap but it still hasn't happened. After four days of optimism I'm about dried up and ready to never eat again. The snow is coming down outside as the night approaches us again. At least I can get some computer work done and tomorrow I swear - I'm leaving the house come hell or high water!

hospital time

2010-11-18T20:23:00.000-08:00

My nephew is in the hospital this week with severe Asthma. I've been there a lot playing trucks and reading books. It's exhausting following a 2 year old around with an IV stand! But at least he's feeling better and playing even though it's not ideal in such a tight, stuffy place with cords hanging all over him. He gets to go home when he can sleep with a normal oxygen level....hopefully tomorrow. I LOVE my sweet little buddy and their poor, poor, sleep deprived parents. May God send recovery tonight!

a loud eater

2010-11-15T13:30:00.000-08:00

Well it took me about 3 months to get batteries for the camera so I could put this up but here's a clip of Calli's signature eating screams. She doesn't do it anymore but for the first month of eating solids this would happen with EVERY spoon full. Oh I love my baby girl!!

calli eats loudly @ Yahoo! Video

new hobby

2010-11-05T22:31:00.000-07:00

Alright, this is now my new hobby...

photoshopping my baby's craziness into appropriate situations.

fall kids

2010-11-04T12:11:00.000-07:00

Our cute kids -

photos by Daddy

smiles by Mommy jumping up and down yelling

my first glass

2010-11-03T21:20:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Tim and I went on a much needed date - and unlike most that rate 4's and 5's - this one was a TEN!

Reason one: Brugo's Pizza. No crowds, no wait, nice music, great pizza! We happily pretended we were far far away from Reno and talked of things around the world.

Reason two: I ordered my first glass of wine. That's right - I hate wine. I think it's terrible! But Tim loves it and I want to enjoy it with him someday so last week I bought a bottle of "starter wine". Yep, Arbor Mist! I drank the whole bottle by myself in a few nights and I was ready for our date. I ordered a White Zinfandel on the advice of another wimpy-wine-friend. It was kinda good! That's big for me! But the new adventure of it all helped our date go fabulous - the alcohol itself didn't hurt either. We managed not only to not talk about the kids and work but we didn't even think to go there! Wow!

The down side - What, we spent $14 on two glasses of wine!? It's a whole new world.

God is

2010-10-26T11:48:00.000-07:00

I feel as though my life on this earth has one goal for me - to make me forget God is the ruler of all.

Not everyone who reads my blog believes in God - the True God - but I believe God is as much as I believe if I drop a bowling ball on my foot it will hurt like hell. Through the work of Jesus Christ, God is in my soul now and I can't shake Him. And more then God is - He is the King of me and (although not all bow yet) the world around me. But even though I have this tie to God so deeply in my soul it is still so hard not to forget it. I mean, how do you make pulling food goop out of the kitchen scrub brush spiritual? Sometimes there are hours I don't eat or pee because I can't bear the thought of taking the time so do you think I take time to read the Bible much? The life I live is out to get me - and yet I feel no call from God to abandon my lifestyle. I can go nun now! But I need to stop my secret assumption that life should go well all the time. Life is a fight. There are trials, frazzled emotions, and sometimes in my life right now there is poop and spit up and wedding invitations everywhere and it takes all my strength to keep them apart! But God is. Whether I acknowledge it or not, God is. And I am thankful to have a God that is so big and that when you open the door just a bit for Him to come in - He does! To see God even just for a few minutes in a world of chaos is so wonderful. Although Life wants me to forget Him, He desperately wants me to remember. I am thankful that He loves me so much more then I love Him. And no matter what happens in my life - God is. So I keep fighting - to do what's right, to remember God's love in my life, and to not strangle my children...or my wonderful husband.

James 4:8 - Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

Isaiah 41:10 - Do not fear for I am with you...I am your God.

just like her daddy

2010-10-25T14:28:00.000-07:00

optimus prime time

2010-10-19T13:16:00.000-07:00

grandma and grandad morton

2010-10-15T19:26:00.000-07:00

Grant and Calli are currently half of the great grandchildren of this lovely couple's legacy. On their couch rests a pillow that reads, "here lives a great fisherman with the catch of his life." It's possibly my favorite pillow on earth. Happy Anniversary to a beautiful couple.

cubbies

2010-10-14T18:54:00.000-07:00

Last night at Awanas it was Parent night. Cubbies is crazy but blessings on leader Jane who had it all figured out. She's amazing. We finally received Grant's patches from the last few weeks which I was happy about, until I got home.... I just want to share this with you all that don't have facebook - or me on your facebook. Obviously there's a lot of support out there for this problem.

(p.s. this is the funniest blog post ever and has to do with Awana)

Abby Lange Morton How the hell am I supposed to get the cubbie patch on the cubbie vest?

21 hours ago · · Comment ·

Rebekah Schroeder likes this.
- Athena Buller ha ha ha.. been there.. I think my hubby stitched it on?
  21 hours ago ·
- Nick Timko huh?
  21 hours ago ·
- Jennifer Jones I'm with Nick....huh?
  21 hours ago ·
- Ali Jones Ball are they not iron on?
  20 hours ago ·
- Amanda Bartlett recite a verse at it- see if that helps...then sew it on. Even if it is iron-on, mine ALWAYS came off during games. :) Me as a Cubbie...kinda cute huh?
  20 hours ago ·
- Abby Lange Morton Grant is in Awanas - a church kid program like cub scouts. Patches!! Ack!
  
  Ali - I put an iron on it but no sticky was happening.
  20 hours ago ·
- Nick Timko wouldnt it be an awana patch then? lol how bout supper glue
  20 hours ago ·
- Erik Bjur One word...stapler.
  20 hours ago · · 1 person
- Ali Jones Ball I can't believe they wouldn't make then iron on. I think maybe we should earn a patch for sewing it on.
  19 hours ago ·
- Amy Staley Bird LOL! Abby I love you. I ironed Jonah's patches on his vest but we were told to stitch it as well. Did you try ironing it from underneath the vest? The patch is too thick for the sticky to melt if you iron on top of the patch. If that doesn't work, try trading it in for another patch. Maybe the one you got is defective.
  11 hours ago ·
- Shiloh Muller Annalita's cubbie leader always puts the patches on for us. I think her patches come with some kind of really sticky backing.
  11 hours ago ·
- Jenni Saake I just use super glue. ;)
  10 hours ago ·
- Rebecca Mixon Abby.You can buy iron on sheets at a fabric store and cut it to size and iron it on.No sew and it takes seconds.:)
  10 hours ago ·
- Liza Martinez Munson We tried hot glue not knowing that would it would "expire" shortly afterwards!
  10 hours ago ·
- Abby Lange Morton
  AMY- yes I think you're right - iron on from the back and then stitch. I'll try that. They couldn't come with directions??
  
  Thanks for all the support everyone.....I figured I might not be alone here. I got two out of three on and they only l...See More
  9 hours ago ·
- Lindsay Spencer I stitched all Paul's, that might be why only half of them made it onto his vest.
  9 hours ago ·
- Nick Timko Lol did u expect this much response
  8 hours ago ·
- Ronda McCormick hot glue gun!!!!
  3 hours ago ·
- Ronda McCormick Have your mother help you!!
  3 hours ago ·

the harvest

2010-10-11T21:01:00.000-07:00

I have some super soil in my back yard - It might be all the worms I've rescued on fishing trips and rainy days. I got tomatoes!

worm walk

2010-10-06T08:38:00.000-07:00

Fortunately during a very busy day yesterday I decided I would take the time to walk Grant home from preschool under a thick cloudy sky. All the way home we rescued worms washed out to the street by the rain. Big ones little ones, any that still wiggled. We picked them up and put them in the nearest dirt. It was a wonderful walk full of giggles and shouts. Not a common sight in the desert of Nevada. Thanks for being my worm buddy Grant!

the call

2010-10-04T22:10:00.001-07:00

Rain pouring down in the dark of night, driving home alone... since I can't really see I know I should keep two hands on the wheel but the Cheetos bag in my lap calls out to one....It is a strong call....too strong to resist...and I didn't die so all is well. Cheetos - forever my friend and foe.

happy birthday

2010-09-30T20:48:00.000-07:00

It's Tim's birthday today. I didn't get him a card so I will write him a blog post/poem.

I love my husband Tim

Can't believe I found someone as great as him

He's cute, he laughs at my jokes

He fixes my printers, my cutters, my woes

He takes out the trash almost always

His hand is the best to hold

He's at band practice now instead of home

cuz that's how he rolls

and I love him.

Happy Birthday Timothy! I didn't watch 30Rock and Community so we could Hulu and snuggle later.

it's picture time already!

2010-09-27T15:44:00.001-07:00

Yay! I'm happy to say, I finally took some pictures! And with a few tips I picked up recently in a few places I think they turned out well! My house is really too dark so I'm still fighting with that but check out the cuteness around the Morton house.

I'm pretty sure this last one will be my new banner. How true it is!

the lovely church

2010-09-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

Usually Tim and I give and give and give to our church - and I love it! I'm blessed so much when God uses us to love His people. BUT over the last few weeks the church has really come through for us in a time of need. I am overwhelmed that God knows my needs and sends people to help. Now in fact I am embarrassed as I see all that I have and our needs fall into the shadows. God is good!

If you are a part of the body of Christ, pray about how you can bless someone this week.

teaching at home

2010-09-14T13:32:00.000-07:00

Now that Grant is 4 the educational world is hitting me rapidly and I'm freaking out as I find myself totally unprepared. My college roommate however is once again on top of things just like always. Check out her new blog for creative ideas to teach your young ones at home whether as their complete schooling or in addition to the system. Go moms!

The Bird Brains

it's also linked on the right hand side of my blog for the future.

I also would recommend this site http://www.tlsbooks.com/preschoolworksheets.htm with great printable worksheets.

daddy daughter 10k

2010-09-12T16:33:00.000-07:00

This morning before church my Dad and I finished our first race together! A 10k in South Reno for the Lung Association. My Dad walks just about everyday and averages 6 or 7 miles most days so we expected to walk together and I'd run a few miles at the end. But when we got there and NO ONE else was walking it Dad was determined to step it up a notch. So we kept a good walking pace and ran small sections throughout. We kept the last jogger in sight and tried to make the REMSA guy in the golf cart heading up the rear not hate us. Dad took the last jogger at the end! Pretty good considering I don't think he's jogged since we were kids!! I passed a few people before the line too so as not to look super insane coming in last wearing my Vibrams - these weird sock shoes that have a lot of hype behind them at the moment.

I'm wearing them to fight my history of shin splints and they are performing beautifully! The down side is people think you are either awesome or looney. I like to think of myself in between those two markers.

So next time I'll pick a run/walk that people actually walk for my dear old Dad but the unexpected challenge was fun and I'm glad we didn't bail. I think we crossed the line in something like 1 hour and 1 hour and 10 minutes. Pretty good for a 6.2 mile walk.