Santa's new helper

You can find a lot of unexpected things in St. George...
like Santa for instance.
He runs story hour in the library on Mondays at 10 am and 11 am (its not quite his busy season yet). Maybe that is how he keeps tabs on the good boys and girls (although, if "good" is measured by how well you sit in your seat and pay attention...then Anna is in a LOT of trouble!). These days he goes by the name of "Steve" ("Kris Kringle" is apparently no longer a good alias-- too many movies ratting him out)

"Steve" confided to Anna that he needed a little help this year delivering presents. Turns out his latest driver's test didn't go so well (he was caught with some open eggnog containers) and his sleigh license has been revoked temporarily
so Anna has been practicing all week using this wagon. Which makes me her makeshift "reindeer." She can be a bear with that whip though!

the best way...

The best way to keep up to date with fads, trends, entertainment, and the modern day world....

is to get your hair cut at a hair academy by a student.

Here are some snippets of the conversation that ensued over my 2 hour hair cut (she wanted my hair to look perfect so she cut each strand individually):

student 1: I can't believe that Taylor got a huge tattoo all over his shoulders, and its not even the name of his mom, its the name of the motorbike store where he works
student 2: are you guys going out?
student 1: no, he is just texting me!
student 2: did you see the American music awards last night
student 1: just part of it
me: I didn't see it.
student 2: Justin Beiber won everything-- best boy singer, best musician, best new artist..
me: every time I see him, I just want to push his hair out of his eyes.
student 1: he is so young...how old is he-- 15.....that is way too young to make that much money, he is probably going to end up like Lindsay Lohan going through Rehab.
me: I think she has been through rehab 4 times, but her mom says that only two times were court ordered so that the other two do not count.
student 1: she probably spent a billion dollars on cocaine and that is why she is so broke now.
me: yeah...and she's not even cute, either.
me: (listening to the play list blaring throughout the salon) is that Rhianna?
me: (same scenario) and that's Shakira, right?
student 1: thats Keisha...we SO need to get a new playlist!
me: did she get her start on the Disney channel?
student 1: no, Keisha is just trashy!
me: well, how did she get discovered? I thought all singers either got their start on the Disney channel or American Idol? Was she just singing in a bar one day...

all I can say, is that it was entertaining!

things I'm not 'post to eat

I got braces TODAY....and I was not expecting it. I thought they would take some molds, some more photos, and then send me on my way. But then they just started gluing the brackets on, and it was too late to change my mind.

If I had known that today was THE day, I would have spent some leisurely time with my teeth this morning. I would have brushed 3 or 4 times, and I would have spent the morning just running my tongue over my teeth. Then I would have eaten a bag of caramels, some corn on the cob, and then I would have brushed again.

*sigh*

Here is the list of things I not 'post to eat

* hard candy (that's okay, there is better candy out there than mints and jolley ranchers)
*corn chips (I can live with that-- there are lots better junk foods out there)
*popcorn (this is considered a "hard" food. but what am I supposed to eat during movies-- marshmallows?)
*jerky (why...oh why can't I have my dried animal flesh?)
*ice (its just frozen water...I can wait for it to melt)
*nuts (that is what peanut butter is for)
* pizza crust (WHAT???!! This is not happening. Why do I have to choose between happiness and healthy teeth. Some things are just more important.)
*corn on the cob (the punitive damages of eating corn on the cob with braces is too much to ignore)
*sticky candy such as Starbursts, gummy bears, and caramels (basically all my vices. Gummy candy is my equivalent of medical marijuana. Its makes me happy)

additionally, fruits and vegetables need to be cooked or cut into small pieces. So that means that Anna and I should roughly have the same diet-- soft boring foods!

I try not to make promises I can't keep. Therefore, I will try to eat less of the forbidden foods, and will cut my pizza into small pieces and melt my caramel before I eat it. As for the gummy candy....well, I will just have to replace them with chocolate!

Has anyone had bad experiences with food and braces? I can't remember and I am trying to figure what I should consider hard and fast "rules" and what should be considered mere suggestions?
*

Christmas card time!

Hey everyone, it is that time of the year again-- when I go back to the address list we used for our wedding to try to put together some kind of Christmas list for cards (our friend Kaela put together this beauty for us last year).

However, if any of you have changed your address since the spring of 2007, or if I have met you since then, please let me know your current address, whether it be couch, tent, or yacht.

So if you want this year's card (and who wouldn't....really?), let me know, and leave me a way to send it to you.

Braces...

Braces...

I have been trying to deny that I need them. I have been in denial for a few years now. But it is time to face the music. My dentist staged an intervention and referred me to an orthodontist. I have very short roots on my front teeth, and if things continue as they are, I could potentially lose them fairly young. And despite the poor way I have cared for my teeth in the past (I have been to a dentist, an endodontist, a periodontist, and an orthodontist in my brief life), I am actually quite attached to them and want to keep them for as long as possible.

But for the first time in my thrifty shopper life, I actually want less for my money-- braces for as little time as possible.

Turns out, I have a smaller uppper jaw, but a pretty big tongue (haha, I know I know-- fits right into my big mouth), which means that over time my tongue has forced my teeth apart on the sides. It also doesn't help that I chew on my tongue when I concentrate (most of you will be nodding at this-- you have seen it, and it makes me look like an imbecile). So now I have a hugely open bite and my front teeth (which are beautifully straight) are the ones bearing all of the pressure when I chew.

So the diagnostic is....
braces for 18 months, along with surgery to widen my upper jaw.

That might sound like a long time, but I had braces on for 7 years before (thats right...7 years), so 18 months seems like nothing.

But this time, I will actually go to my orthodontic appointments (I skipped my appointments for a whole year once), and I will wear my rubber bands (it was only slightly more important than flossing, which I also didn't do), and I will wear my retainer (I think I lost it and then never tried to get it replaced...)

Lesson: Take care of your teeth

On the outs with Daylight Savings

I used to love Daylight savings time....an extra hour of sleep, right? As a kid, daylight savings is the best because you get to sleep in later and stay up later...

Unsurprisingly, Anna does not believe in Daylight Savings (I kept trying to tell her to set her clocks back an hour, but she decided to get up at her usual time-- a lovely 6 am this morning), and Frankly (Delano Roosevelt), neither do I.

Apparently, Mr. George Vernon Hudson was the first person to propose the idea of Daylight Savings in the late 1800's. He was an entomologist that liked to collect bugs in his after-hours and he needed more daylight to do his work. Apparently, you CAN expect the world to revolve around you. I mean, what about all the vampires that need more darkness to do THEIR work? Are we going to value one man's hobby over another? IS that fair?

And...I have just learned....Daylight Savings is OPTIONAL. Arizona and Hawaii have seceded from the Daylight Savings union! Now that is train I could get on board.

Amazing Seattle

Seattle weather, as it actually is (and not how people think it is), is really quite amazing. This last week has been incredibly warm-- the warmest November weather in Seattle history. I have spent most of my free time with my face tipped toward the sun (keeping one eye on Anna of course). I took a few moments to snap some pictures of the blueberry farm and lake close to our home and had some epiphanies about parenthood (and how it is like Seattle weather).

When the sun is shining in Seattle, there is nothing more glorious. Everything seems touched by brilliance and light.
the colors are so rich and beautiful that you feel like they have been painted on.
you actually think that you could see yourself camping for the rest of your life...or at least building a house made completely of windows-- roof optional.
everything makes you happy, and nothing annoys you-- long lines, grocery lists, errands.....and all because the sun is shining
you find delight in the smallest things...
and you wonder why anyone could possibly ever be unhappy here.
But not all days are like that.
There are some days that rain ALL day. And the bottom of your pants have inches of mud on them, and you feel perpetually cold, and the color of the sky never seems to change from steely gray. The sun, in fact, seems to be on vacation, and has taken with it all that is good and happy.
But most days are not like that either. Most days are fairly mild... and include brief periods of rain and gray mist as well as interludes of sunshine and color.
But the reason why people live in Seattle, through those sometimes hard winter days when you feel as gray as the sky...are for the brilliant summers when life is radiant and glorious, and for the beautiful surprises of sunshine and warmth you get from time to time the rest of the year.
Anna, I love you little girl! We have had some hard days for sure, and we have both shed our share of tears...but my life is more full of sunshine because of you. I am happy right where I am...and I'll stick with you if you stick with me!

Halloween 2010: The princess and the frog

Halloween 2010 proudly presents an encore showing of the Princess and the Frog.Starring Anna Rose as the froggy....

with her supporting cast of Rachael as princess and Richard as villain

the climax of the show-- the princess kisses her froggy

the froggy, however, does not look too excited about it. Perhaps she wants to stay a froggy!

the best things in life are candy! I LOVE candy. I love Halloween. I love FREE CANDY. Thanks to Richard's office party, we got to four floors of candy giving, cubicle goodness in record time. Trick or treating at its most efficient. Guess how long this candy will last us?

a) one month

b) two weeks

c) one week

d) its already gone...

The official fruit of Halloween: the ultimate caramel apple.

One day a year, I am willing to watch a scary movie (Richard loves to watch scary movies the entire month of October. Thanks to AMC and TCM and TNT, he can watch an infinite amount of movies. His favorite-- "Halloween" ala Mike Meyers). However, the kind of scary movie I can get up the courage to watch, is fairly limited. I don't handle gore, so the Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream, Final Destination, and Saw franchises definitely don't work.

Richard and I have been reading Bram Stokers Dracula this month, so it made this years decision easier (usually we go with a Hitchcock). I love the book! Its eerie and suspenseful and well-written. The movie--- not very good. But I successfully came away with no nightmares.