Saturday, July 21, 2012

Craziness...and a YURT!

Oh my, what a crazy last couple weeks it's been! Summer session is soooo insane, and Blake's taking four classes! He has three at a time right now, and every minute he's not working or (trying) to sleep, he's doing homework. Well, that's a slight exaggeration. We celebrated our fourth anniversary!

For the big day itself, I had a rather brilliant idea (I thought so, anyway- other people I've told seem to think it's weird): we didn't have room in the budget to go out for dinner or anything, and whereas I like to cook, I HATE doing dishes, and anniversary dishes did not sound like fun. So, since my inlaws offered to watch the kiddos, I commissioned my good friend Jenn, who is a pizza making extraordinaire, to make a pizza and salad for us to pick up after dropping off the kids. We would in turn babysit her cutiepie so she could have a date night with her hubby! Jenn made us delicious pizza, salad, and apple crisp, and even included something to drink! We watched part of a movie (we had to stop it early because I got worked up over a split second scene that Blake didn't even see that involved raiding Mongols ripping a baby from its mom's arms and tossing it into a well) and then an episode of Funniest Home Videos to make me happy again. It was such a fun night!

Then, this past week, we got to enjoy our first kidless getaway in a baziliion years! It was sooooo nice to spend a couple days just with my spousy; we finally used the groupon we bought last year and spent two nights in a yurt at the Flagstaff Nordic Center! I highly recommend yurting, for those of you who are unfamiliar with their charms. We stayed in one of the large yurts, which is a mile-hike into a mountain meadow. There are two large yurts there, separated by an outhouse. The yurts have no electricity, but they have beds, a futon, table and chairs, lantern, propane grill, and come with 5 gallons of water. We hiked some gear in (bedding and food), and found it to be an inspired mix of plush car camping and mild backpacking. My favorite parts were watching and hearing the monsoons through the plexiglass "yurt hole," and spending hours of unplugged time talking and laughing with my husband.

Trying to get a picture of Bash's Larry the Cucumber tooth, since his second one was finally coming in
Blake manned the grill. We ate well: lasagna, garlic bread, and squash; breakfast burritos; steak and corn on the cob; stuffed strawberries... camp food at its finest!
Our cute little yurtty and it's yurt friend
We want to go back in the fall when the aspens will be changing color, and we'll actually want to use the cozy yurt wood stove.
Prickly pear Martinelli's...now Arizonan!
We had some quality bench-sitting time.
Peering up through the yurt hole!
Some of the yurt interior
Yurt meadow, looking across at Kendrick Peak
Our brave little chipmunk buddy, Damon.
Home, sweet yurt. Yurt is really fun to say, incidentally. Yurt yurt yurt.
Spousy wousy and his spork.
We were sooo excited to get home to our babies. I think that's a good thing :)
They got even cuter while we were gone!
Aaaaah she's growing up so fast!

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

My New "Writing" Career!

The idea of subbing was freaking me out. Rather, the idea of leaving my babies three days a week was freaking me out. But something needed to be done financially while Blake's in school. So, at his encouragement, I stumbled upon the illustrious field of content writing. I call it my new "writing" career because it's a fairly lowly form of writing; basically it's ghost writing for various websites that solicit articles from a service I am now a member of. I can pick what I want to write, and get paid (a paltry sum, but it's money!) per word. So far a couple things I've written have been about wheel chocks for airplanes and a university in Australia, for example.

It's actually been really good so far. Though the hourly wage is pretty dismal, it will improve as I improve. It will also discipline me to write everyday, instead of just when I feel like it. And, I get to be home with my babies (though I need to figure out designated writing time when they won't need me)! The company I'm working through has been super fabulous so far; I'm impressed by their professionalism and the fact that they seem to take great care of their writers. Who knows, maybe one day I'll graduate from this and be a real writer!

Monday, July 9, 2012

In honor of our coming 4th anniversary, an anecdote from the summer we met!


Summer is a dangerous time in Seattle. The days are achingly long and the unobstructed sunshine fills everybody with a thrilling energy that makes one believe that nothing, really, is impossible.
I am fairly certain that it’s been scientifically proven that this season is particularly treacherous for the young and single, something about the UV rays making normally sensible heads think silly thoughts. Combine that with the intoxicating smell of salt water and leafed-out deciduous trees and properly cautious girls such as me feel like they can fly.

It was one of those summer days, and I was at work. But don’t mourn for me; work was absolutely where I wanted to be. I was home from college and had through some miracle landed (pun sort of intended) employment at the airport. Working for an international air cargo company was surprisingly enjoyable, but by far the most stimulating part of the job was my intriguing and (dare I say?) very attractive boss (whom I was secretly desperately in love with).
The workday was winding down when that same very attractive boss gave me a final task that I should have implored him to reassign to someone else: “Brittany Joy, call London and find out why the flight to Milan is cancelled.”

Despite being a “language person” I am entirely baffled by English variations, and have to turn on the subtitles to just about every movie filmed in Great Britain. But that dazzling Seattle sun and a striking pair of blue eyes blinded me to my weakness, and I was overwhelmed with a desire to awe that very attractive boss with my stunning competence.

I should have run away and hidden. Instead, I reached for the phone. 

“Yes.” The Brit who answered the phone already sounded bothered (Americans sound annoyed, English people sound bothered).

“Oh, yes. I’m calling from Seattle. Could you please tell me why the flight to Milan is cancelled?”

“It’s because of the stohme.” Impatient. Why is this American wasting my time?

“The stohme?”

“Yes, the stohme.”

“The stohme? The stohme?” I scrawl “STOHME????” on a sheet of paper and wave it wildly at my coworkers.

“The stohme!”

Bewildered silence, as I debate my next move and he contemplates how Seattle could have hired such an imbecile.

I open my mouth to ask if he would please spell “stohme” for me, but instead manage to get out, “Thank you, good bye.” I hear the dial tone before I even finish.

Quite an audience had gathered for my performance, and I held up my paper in bewilderment. “He said it’s cancelled because of the stohme! What on earth is a stohme?”

They stared at me, disbelieving, and an incredulous coworker answered, “The STORM, Brittany. They have British accents!”

My mortification was instantaneous and thorough. But there was hope of salvation; maybe he hadn’t- no, there he was, guffawing and shaking his head.  Despite my humiliation, I was able to appreciate the irony: I am truly not an idiot, so why was this man that I so very much wanted to impress always around to witness my less than shining moments?

Hostility seemed like the best way to approach the situation, so I glared my deepest glare at one and all and sternly asserted that I would never call London again.

My extremely attractive boss turned out to be extremely sensible too; it was summer in Seattle, a dangerous time, and London could wait.

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Sign of the Times

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you may know that I really, really dislike "pithy" church signs. Unfortunately, I have to drive past one such sign every time I come home. It's most recent offense:

"When we are at our worst, God is at his best."

Cute. Memorable. Blasphemous.

It's not that I fault the sentiment; it certainly is nice to know that God's got it together when our life is a train wreck. However, to imply that God can ever be something less than best is ridiculous: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). He is experiencing his most impressive, productive, satisfying, holy, meaningful moment ever, right now. And now. And now. And now. And...

So, really the sign should read:

"When we are at our worst, God is at his best. And, when we are at our best, God is at his best."

Since that's a bit long, it can be summarized with: "Usually we're a mess but even when we're not God is perfect and holy and good and must be praised."

Or perhaps simply the apropos: "Less of me, more of God."

Now that would be a church sign I could honk at.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Fourth Festivities

July Fourth is sentimental in my house. Blake and I got engaged five years ago July third, after the symphony's Independence Day concert. We went to the parade the next morning, and to a family friend's huge annual BBQ. We've been back to that BBQ every year (and have some fun pictures documenting our changing family!), and we braved the parade again this year, thinking Rory was old enough to enjoy it. Enjoy it, she did. Though her main concern was definitely the random balloon that escaped into the sky (she would point it out and exclaim "Balloon!" in concern and excitement). She also spent quite a bit of time singing the happy birthday song (to herself, not America).
We went to a fun breakfast party on the parade route!
Rory was a parade skeptic at first, and she kept plugging her hears.
Rory's parade perch
Bright Eyes enjoyed the festivities in his laid back way.
This girl is obsessed with popcorn.
Cutie
We've come along way in the five years!
Aurora's "I think farm animals are gross" face
Sweet sibling love
Awww

Monday, July 2, 2012

A Wee Weekend in WAI

We got home last night from a speedy weekend in Seattle for our niece's first birthday. Despite its brevity, we had a great time; it offered a nice break from the heat, and we had RAIN (we're STILL waiting for the monsoons in Flagstaff!). We didn't really do any visiting (so don't be sad if we didn't see you!), and now it's back to the daily grind. Wish we could have stayed longer!

Probably 80% of the pictures I take these days are of Sebastian sitting and looking cute.
Bash just loved this toy- he kept coughing at it (his newest sign of delight) and leaning on it.
Mirrors!
Gramma and Rory went salmon berry picking in the backyard!
Blake is a self-described porch sitter, and he transitions seamlessly to deck sitter.
The men worked hard at providing us with delicious burgers, my favorite!
See? Sitting and looking cute!
Bashy and his sweety cousing, Evelyn, who's ONE now!
Me and my squirmy baby girl
Evie and Rory love to play together!
The tunnel was quite the attraction.
"This tunnel ain't big enough for the both of us, Papa!"
Sitting. Cute.
Me and my niecey, trying to get her cute birthday hat on!
Yay birthday cake!! She performed well, stepping on it and wiping it in her hair!
Dad and Blake kept the kiddos away from Ev's cake. Well, Aurora anyway- Bash didn't care.
Not good for a mama to see!
More sitting cuteness- it's impossible to get enough!
Cleaning up the grimy girlies.
Both Sebastian and Rory loved my childhood Cabbage Patch Doll, John the Baptist!
Rory always wanted to have John the Baptist with her!
Silly Bud-o