I know, I am a bad blogger.

Not bad as in cool or awesome, but bad like I really stink at this. I enjoy doing it when it suits me and the last time it suited me was hmmm lets see.......back in December. Anyway, I am going to try to do one at least once a week. The problem with that is I often don't think that anything has happened that is note worthy for my blog. Today I had to rack my brain to try to think of something that I feel is worthy of putting on here and this is what I came up with.

This step.Try to ignore the baby with the crooked pacifier and slobbery t-shirt who wouldn't stop standing in front of me every time I held the camera up to my face. If you can do that you will see it. Quiet and unassuming it waits for me to let my guard down. It waits for me to use it when my hands are full of diaper bag, coats, and anything I might carry out of the house. Then it strikes. Sending me crashing to the concrete floor with a high pitched oooohhhh and an oommpffff. The things in my hands tossed into the air and scattered in front of me. This step has been the bane of my life at this house. I can't tell you how many times I have fallen down it. Every time I fall I turn to look at what I tripped over and there is nothing there but this step. It's gotten to the point to where I tell that step not to trip me and that I have my eye on it. Maybe I am going crazy, or maybe I am tired of falling down it onto the dirty garage floor.

Twas the night before the next day

Twas the night before the next day, and all through the house,
Not a child was stirring, not even the spouse.
The dishes were done, the laundry basket bare.
It was my time alone to do what I dare.
All day snow had fallen and covered the land.
And I thought it would be fun to make a snow man.
I looked for some gloves, coat and a hat.
But I found toys, dust and, oh my! What is that!
I grabbed my camera and threw on warm clothes.
Pulled open the door and just about froze.
"you want to come too?" I asked my pug dog.
But she walked away as I said "It would be fun for my blog."
Wind was gusting and the air had a bite.
But there were no children to contend with this night.
Only one lamp lit the empty street.
And a blanket of snow lay at my feet.
I dug my hands in and tried to make a ball.
But it kept falling apart, it would not stick at all.
"Of course." I said as I rolled my eyes.
It's like wanting a pair of shoes but they don't have my size.
Its to dry! To dark! To windy and chilly!
I feel frustrated! Let down! Tired and silly!
I wanted to do something since the kids were asleep,
With no crying or asking or toys at my feet.
So I sat on my bottom and lay down on my back.
Stretched out my legs and pulled down my hat.
With my arms sticking out and the snow in my face.
I made a snow angel at a very rapid pace.
I took a quick picture and made my way in.
And the next time I want to make a snow man, I hope I think again.

The cutting of the tree

This last weekend we decided to go pick out a Christmas tree, cut it down, put it up and decorate it. The place we go to is the Erratic Mammoth Tree Farm, home of a lady who makes sculptures out of metal. I wish I had a picture for you. Her sculptures are amazing. She made a woolly mammoth out of rusty metal that was pretty close to life size, hence the name. We pull into the drive and find a place to park in the soggy grass. It's raining and muddy my shoes squelch into the ground as I step out of the car. A perfect Oregon day for browsing through hundreds of trees. Here is Caveman and our baby before we set out to find the perfect tree.


Caveman had called his mother and brother to see if they wanted to go with us so they could also get a tree. Caveman's mom met us there with her husband and Josh and Emily, Caveman's brother and his daughter. Usually we use one of the hand saws that are provided to cut down our tree but luckily, Caveman's mom brought a little chain saw. That made me extremely happy because when we usually cut a tree Caveman has to get down on his knees and saw away causing him to sink lower and lower into the mud. Then he proceeds to walk around for the rest of the day with big stains on his pants. But I guess I didn't have to worry about that because he said he brought something for him to kneel on. When asked what it was he pulled out newspaper. Not a whole newspaper, just one page. One page, people! Am I the only one who knows this will have no effect on keeping his clothes clean? Here is our daughter impatiently waiting for me to take the picture.


We tromp around for awhile, wandering from tree to tree. I'll say 'this ones looks good' but then spy one a few rows away that looks even better. Upon inspection the new tree doesn't look as good as the other so I decide to go back. Except now I can't find it among the rows of green bushy triangles and the whole process repeats itself. Soon enough I find that I am not only carrying the baby, but also the chainsaw. How did this happen, I thought to myself. I say to Josh that it's so nice to be able to carry a baby and chainsaw at the same time in which he simply tells me that 'don't you know they go hand in hand?' It would have been funny if he would have taken the chainsaw off my hands, but he didn't. I think his manners are with Caveman's somewhere in a dirty ditch where they left them years ago because guess who relieved me of my burden?


Their mother. Finally we pick one and get it cut and loaded. There are many other people loading trees on cars, in trucks and sticking out of trunks. I love seeing Christmas trees on cars going down the road. (sorry it's so blurry)

I also love this bridge when they line it with the flags.

Trying my hand.

It's late afternoon on Monday and here I sit in the corner of our living room typing while my kids have hot cocoa and watch Sponge Bob. This will keep my soon to be two year old from climbing onto my lap, putting his big baby head right in front of my face and his sticky hand on the screen. Uh oh, here he comes........what a slobbery mess he is.

My sister who designs web pages, blogs and all sorts of different things has been showing me a thing or two. I tried my hand at making my own design for my blog. What do you think? It took me awhile just to be able to do this. My poor sister has been putting up with me while I ask her the most dumbest questions. I can't even believe I've asked them after I hear the answer. I keep apologizing to her in hope that she wont declare me a hopeless cause and thanking her for continuing to count me as a sister. Usually in the evening I will sit at the computer and just play with photoshop, trying different things and figuring out what all the buttons do. Caveman tells me that he has to pry me away from it. Which makes me laugh because I picture him finding a crow bar or a really big stick and jamming it between my and the computer. He is prying away while my fingers cling to the screen, pressing it to my chest and saying no no no. Hope everyone had a great Monday.

Things that make you go ahhhhhhh.

There are certain things that just make you sigh in contentment. A very hot bath or hot tub. Laying down after a long exhausting day. Massages. Food that is utterly delicious (thank you Martha Stewart). One of my favorite things to see as I walk into my baby's room is this

This sight brings me a sense of relief and security. Even if everything is falling apart I know that I will always have a clean diaper and wipe. (Except when I forget to bring one out of the house as you can see in my previous post) It's enough to bring a tear to any mothers eye. I can't help but think to myself, as I open the box and see the gleaming rows in plastic, 'I love you big box of diapers and you too wipes'.

Translation

Early in the morning one Sunday ago we decided to go for a drive into our backyard. Which is the beautiful forests of the pacific northwest. A fifteen minute drive will take you into what a local news reporter called "the gateway to isolation". It's green and wet and full of colorful leaves, the forest that is, not Caveman's beard......well, most of the time it's not. It's time to get everyone ready to go and as usual Caveman is ready in 10 minutes. As I am searching for clothes, diapers, toys, water bottles, snacks, a shot of whiskey, coats, boots, blanket and pacifier, Caveman says he will go start the car. Which translates to:

"I am going to sneak out of the house so I don't have to help you. Okay?"


We next come to a little waterfall where I want to stop and take some pictures. I am trying to get better at taking photos so I keep asking Caveman to stop so I can hop out into the mist and point and click at a pine cone or a rock or maybe a pretty weed.



Awwwee ain't she purty. The path I took was fraught with danger. No, not really. It was a little steep and muddy, nothing I wasn't use too. I take a few shots and turn back and then I see this.




When I asked "What arrrre you doin' ?" He said, "I just wanted to get you on video." Which translates to:

" I was hoping I might catch you slip and fall so I can have it on replay for the rest of my life."

Up and up we go, because out here you are either going up or down. I see a good spot for a picture and yell stop. Slowly we come to a halt. I look at Caveman wondering why he stopped so slowly and he says " the brakes are gone." Which translates to:

"Somethings wrong with the brakes, I still have some, but not all. We can make it back home just fine. I just wanted to freak you out."

Needless to say that it worked.

I'm not a hill billy. Right?

The other day Caveman asked me to come to work with him up at his mothers house. "Sure!" I said excitedly at the thought of getting out of the house for awhile. He tells me to be quick because he is ready to go. So I hurry through the house and quickly grab a scrunche (thats a hair tie), jacket, purse, diaper, wipes and baby. It was a good morning until our baby had used up the one diaper I had brought. I don't know why I only picked up one. Something has happened to my brain from being pregnant. Anyway, I couldn't let him run around naked because it was cold and rainy. The best thing I could use was a shop towel and some electrical tape.




































I'm not a very prepared person. For some reason Caveman can't believe that I only brought one diaper and I can't seem to explain it to him that I can't believe I did that either. Hopefully this flaw will end with me and not trickle down through the generations.