June 10, 2009

and this is not Seattle...

Graduation Girl

Last week, my friend and I were interviewing a bunch of moms of girls who are graduating high school - we were putting together a spotlight video of the girls. We asked the moms about goals the girls have accomplished and what their hopes and dreams are for their daughters' futures. It was surreal. All I could picture was my 6-year-old and how, in the blink of an eye, that will be me talking about her. A few fun things about her:

• Kindergarten has turned her into a voracious reader. It's now her favorite passtime - she loves Junie B. Jones and is now writing her own version, "Junie B. Schrader".
• She has scored more goals for her team than any other player. Sadly, she's only scored 2 goals - their team hasn't made a lot of points this season.

• She is a NIGHT OWL - no matter how we try, we cannot get her to sleep before 10 and if she's alone in her room she'll stay awake much longer.
• Still a girlie girl, she's no wimp. She has big scabs on both knees at the moment and loves riding her scooter down hills.
• Her hair is almost to her waist - she's growing it out to donate.
• She's a blast to have at home. I'm going to miss her when she's in first grade. I've said to many people, if I could send 'D' to school for seven hours a day and keep her home, I'd do it...

Mommy Parrot

So, I'm putting Diggity (age 3) to bed the other night. I often lie down next to him for a few minutes to calm him down and help him settle in. Here was our conversation:

D: Mommy, will you get me my elephant pillow?

Me: Yes - I will in a minute (I was tired and thought I'd give it to him on my way out)

D: No, I want it now.

Me: Well, you'll just have to wait a minute.

~~about a 30-second pause~~

D: I got an idea.... Here are your choices: You can go to time out, or you can get me my pillow.

Me (burying my face in the pillow): I'll take the time out.

D: No. You can get me my pillow...

Two of my favorite words he uses are: 'hello doctor', meaning helicopter, and 'got for' or 'gotted for' - meaning forgot. eg "Mommy I gotted for my backpack". It took me about a month to figure that one out.

I See London I See France...

A few weeks ago, BB came home from work and said something like, "Instead of going to St. George for our anniversary, what would you think about going to London and maybe France?"
~Really~
It was a tough decision - but I opted to cancel our two nights in Southern Utah in favor of a week in Europe. Yes, the timing was crap - this was mere months from Sina and family living in Paris. However, even without the benefit of Paris's soulmate being there to guide us, it was an incredible experience. I'll just let the {many} pictures speak for themselves...

If we look a little red in the face, it's because we just raced up the steps of the Eiffel Tower.

ok - we didn't race. But I think climbing them was still an accomplishment.

Arc de TriompheHonestly, I think I could have spent the entire day in the Louvre courtyard. Between the people watching and the a-ma-zing architecture, I could have just sat and stared...And then there was the inside of the Louvre...Victor Hugo's home was a decent place for a pitstop...Among other artifacts, they had a first edition Les Miserables. Notre Dame Cathedral was another place I would like to just sit and stare...After Paris, we headed to the English countryside

Warwick Castle is between 750 and 1000 years old. They have re-created the inside of the castle to make it as close to authentic as possible - they even use wax figures to exhibit actions that would be happening in different sections (e.g. washer women working, blacksmiths making weapons and tools, etc.) This was a saddle used by Queen Elizabeth IAnd somehow they managed to get Queen Elizabeth II to come pose for pictures...The back side of WarwickLeeds CastleThe English Channel - you can faintly see France across the waterDover CastleThis is in front of a cottage we stayed in in Lower Slaughter in The CotswoldsStonehenge - not just any old pile of rocks...Stratford upon AvonSo as we were walking down the street in front of Shakespeare's birthplace, I said, "Imagine you are young William Shakespeare and it's the 1500s and you are walking around this town. Do you ever stop to think that in 500 years, this entire town and basically everything about it will be dedicated to you?"

BB responded, "Yeah. If I'm Shakespeare I probably think that's how it should be."

Sadly, the one day we spent in London was rainy and cold. I guess that means we got the whole experience. We braved the weather and the sarcasm of the tourguide to ride on top of a double decker tourbus so we could at least see the main sights...

St. Paul's Cathedral Tower of London Tower Bridge English Parliament Building - Pictures truly do no justice to these buildings. We came out of the underground station to the spectacular sight of Big Ben. Westminster AbbeyThere was something really charming about the red phone booths - however they were usually emptyAnd now that I've stood on Platform 9 3/4, I can die happy :)

April Fools Joke??

I wish the sun would pop out and say, "Gotcha!"