Use Your Words...

well since I've poked at Leigh to do it, I suppose I should give it to you:

My Life List - 100 things I will do before I meet my Maker
(explanation can be found here)

(I know it's supposed to be 100, it's a work in progress)
(and in no particular order)

1. Write 3 complete works of fiction, novel length

2. own 100 cookbooks that I have made at least one dish out from

3. Throw a Miracle Fruit party

4. Live in Morrocco long enough to pick up their slang

5. Learn CSS

6. Speak French and Spanish fluently

7. Visit all the continents

8. Teach Colin how to pig latin

9. Own a sewing machine that gets a lot of use

10. Own my own home

11. Buy a car with cash

12. Teach Colin how to make at least 7 meals (one for every day of the week)

13. Finish my Bachelor's Degree

14. Get my Master's Degree in Divinity

15. Write in my blog every day for a year

16. Take a class with Luke, on a topic of his choosing

17. Perfect "my style"

18. Get all the tattoos I've been wanting to get

19. Watch Colin learn to swim, learn to ride a bike, and join a sports team

20. Memorize 10 important Bible verses to pull out in times of need, or joy, or as a party trick. ;)

21. Kiss my husband under the Eiffel Tower


this has been fun, I'll continue updating, and like the ever amazing Mighty Girl I will put my list in my sidebar...

well sort of...we had a slow start and a long delayed nap but after all was said and done, it was pretty marvelous!




We watched fireworks at a park by a friends house (fireworks are illegal here in the dry desert so we have to go to organized fireworks displays instead of making our own!), there were free snow-cones, free glow sticks and an amazing front row seat for our whole group! Thanks Greg and Janet!




Colin really enjoyed the fireworks, especially with me covering his ears from the big booms. I, too, had ear protection, any sudden loud noises trigger a huge headache so my wonderful husband brought me some ear plugs. We had some for little buddy but they proved to be to much. He enjoyed the show on our laps and Luke took some great shots...




I can honestly say I have never sat quite so close to a fireworks show before so I was just as entranced as my kiddo...it was awesome!

I was originally of the mind that if one had a toddler, one could not venture anywhere after naptime, not anywhere that closed at 4 o'clock anyway. I thought to myself: "Not worth it, the drive, the fact that we'd only have an hour, not worth it." What am I talking about? The Children's Museum of Phoenix.



It's a godsend to parents in Phoenix, 3 floors of fun things to do, to play with. The fact that I work there has nothing to do with how awesome it is (who am I kidding? The fact that I work there Saturday mornings! makes it twice as awesome.). Colin and I have ventured there many times and every time he loves it more than the last. As an employee I'm also a member so we can bop in and out whenever we like (how about them perks?!?) and everyone knows me and my kid. It's about a 30 minute drive from our house but truth be told almost everything is a drive in suburban Phoenix.



I generally tell people with young kids (and adhere to the policy myself) to get there right at opening so you can leave with naptime ready kids by noon. After 12 or so it gets quiet at the museum because most folks are at home for naptime between 12:30 and 3:00 and we close at 4 so it makes sense that I steered clear of the afternoon and just braved the crowds some days. There is a whole area fenced off for kiddos under 3 that is like a toddler dreamland with a play kitchen and baby dolls and a slide and books. It keeps Colin safe from excited big kid feet and entertained with stuff that is just his size.



In my approach to "re-becoming" a stay at home mom I really looked closely at our schedule. I'm not a schedule person but we have certain times during the day when it's wisest for us to eat and sleep and be at home. So I looked at those times and realized that the way we eat and sleep allows us to be awake and looking for afternoon activities at 2:30 or 3! And if I timed it right we could stay at the museum till 4, leave, and meet my mom for dinner after work in downtown Phoenix and avoid the traffic! JACKPOT! (a side note: If you've been reading for a while you know that Luke works until 9 on Tuesdays with a rehearsal for the church band)



Truthfully this is not we have tried yet. I have been tracking naps and my theory pans out. This Tuesday will be the first day we are able to take advantage of the idea, I should have saved this entry but I have all these shots from the last time we were there and I wanted to encourage anyone in the Phoenix area with kiddos to meet us at the museum Tuesday afternoons. Call it a standing playdate! If we have dinner afterwards we avoid the traffic and if we take the light rail...well we're just unstoppable then aren't we? ;)




Up Next: Your kid can cook! Even at age 2! And they eat what they make! Especially if it involves chocolate...

"When you march stand up straight.
When you fill the world with hate
Step in time with your kind and
Let it ring

When you speak against me
Would you bring your family
Say it loud pass it down and
Let it ring

Let it ring to Jesus ‘cause he sure’d be proud of you
You made fear an institution and it got the best of you
Let it ring in the name of the one that set you free
Let it ring

As I wander through this valley
In the shadow of my doubting
I will not be discounted
So let it ring

You can cite the need for wars
Call us infidels or whores
Either way we’ll be your neighbor
So let it ring

Let it ring
in the name of the man that set you free
Let it ring

And the strife will make me stronger
As my maker leads me onward
I’ll be marching in that number
So let it ring

I’m gonna let it ring to Jesus
Cause I know he loves me too
And I get down on my knees and I pray the same as you
Let it ring, let it ring
‘Cause one day we’ll all be free
Let it ring "

Amy Ray Let It Ring
Listen here

Here's the thing: it's damn hot outside. So far this summer we've had some bizarre weather in AZ (80 degree days in June, 109 degree days with 50% humidity) but overall it's been the usual amount of hot and bah outside.



If you grew up in Arizona (and I did) you appreciate the fun of a good garden hose. As my child, much to his Texan fathers dismay, will be an Arizona native, the talent of drinking from the hose needed to be passed along. And 4:00 in the afternoon is the PERFECT time for hose time!



If you live where it climbs above 100 degrees, a word of wisdom: wait to hand the hose to your kid for a little bit. The water sitting in the hose has been boiling along all day. Let's avoid those 2nd degree scalding burns eh? GOOD TIMES! While I was waiting for water to cool off I slathered 45 SPF sunscreen on Colin, I burn in seconds and you can never be to careful, I mean sure he LOOKS like he'll tan but who knows??!?! After the water cooled off, I turned it to a low trickle, just enough for a good drink but not enough to spray Mama with.



As usual it was quite the hit (at some point I'll do something he has zero interest in). He "watered" the lawn and the front planter, he drank from the hose like a champ, he got soaking wet and even a little tan (despite the sunscreen and the genes). It was a great afternoon activity because he's safe to run around in the front yard, basically tethered by the hose, and I can sit in the shade, drinking! I'M kidding! I wasn't drinking, I was...wait, yes I was. I was drinking.



Whatever the case, it's a good choice and killed a couple of hours. I will admit that these particular photos were taken by my brilliant husband, he was the best hose drinking teacher in the house. But we have ventured out into the heat many times to enjoy the delight of a hose in the baking summer sun...




Next Up: What's that you say? You don't have a Children's Museum by your house? Sucks to be you dude...oh relax, here! steal some ideas from my museum! We went there and our heads almost exploded from the fun!

My mother came up with this next fun activity. One day at her house she pulled a chair over to the almost empty sink and asked Colin if he'd like to play with some bubbles and water and wash his plate. DID HE EVER!



I decided to try this at our house, because let's be honest, who enjoys washing the dishes? I had a couple of plates and a ladle that needed to be scrubbed so I pulled up his step stool -more on that in a moment - and let him go to work. I filled the sink with about 2 inches of water and a capful of soap. I handed him a sponge and plopped the already rinsed dishes into the sink. He loved it just as much at home as he did at Nana's house! "I wash dishes Mama!" and thank goodness for it because I hate that particular chore...



About the step stool: my husband is a woodworking genius. He built a lovely set of steps for Colin out of scrap wood. He routed the edges so they are easy on tiny feet, he painted it a lovely dark brown shade to match my furniture, and it's light enough so Colin can push it around.
It's been the best "toy" Colin has ever gotten



The dishes thing was a great idea, and even if you don't have any dirty dishes filling the sink with some water and soap is a really fun time waster! I will admit that this particular set of photos was taken by my lovely husband, and we cheated a bit and did this activity after dinner. But I am certain that if we HAD washed our dishes before daddy came home we would have had a GREAT time!

Next up: Who doesn't love the hose?

This editorial in the New York Times really fascinated me. The author is intelligent and clear, she is passionate and, to me, an inspiration. The comments following the post are even more fascinating, religion, as always, has the ability to move people so strongly.

I empathize with her longing for the ritual of the Catholic Mass, there is nothing more comforting than tradition and as someone who was raised Catholic those traditions will always be special to me. I remember the first time I went to church with Luke and was blown away at the incredible differences in the way we worshiped. Today, I am at home in our church. It is not the worship of my childhood but it is a new comfort.
Like always, I will put the disclaimer on here that the way I profess my faith may not be the way you live and that there is nothing at all wrong with that. What is life but enjoying and celebrating the different stories we all bring to the table?