I'm not sure there's much more to be said, but in case you're not aware of this family's relationship with football, you'll find some enlightenment in this post. I'll let that speak for itself; I need to save my voice for tomorrow.
Saturday found us heading into the city; the Pacific Science Center was wrapping up their showing of the Ripley's Believe It or Not exhibit and, true to form, we waited until the second-to-last day to go check it out. (Because we really love spending our Saturday afternoons milling through crowded buildings with every other procrastinator in western Washington. No, really--we do. I don't know why you don't believe me.)
Fortunately, good company has a way of lending this introvert the courage to face the masses, and so we trapped invited some friends to go along; it was risky, but I just checked--they're still speaking to us. :-9
All aboard!
Warming up on the ferry; everyone's still being polite and smiling nicely...
...but Littlest--well, she can't help herself.
She sure does know how to get a good thing started. :)
Einstein toast art; he's all about the silly faces, too, though.
With...you know...the robot guy from that one movie.
Um....???
Robot model of world's tallest man--he was 8'11".
(And still she throws attitude.)
(Oh, hey--didn't expect to see you here. But then, you probably didn't expect to see me here either, huh? I mean, despite the fact that it's my blog, and all.)
Seriously, guys, what is going ON?
{shrugs shoulders} I don't know. Writer's block again, I guess. What an identity crisis, being a writer who can't write.
Now I'll admit, I sometimes startle myself with the cool stuff I'm able to fluff out, like this one, or that one, or even random ones like this one; it's fun, I sound intelligent--life is good, you know? (Why, yes, this is a blatant attempt to remind you of just how good I can be sometimes.)
And then there are days when I wake up, and all I can think is,
"Me. Want. Cookie."
That's it--that's as good as it gets. (And don't even try to pretend you didn't go back over that quote in your best Cookie Monster voice.)
Well, it's been a "Me.Want.Cookie" couple of months; I don't even know where to begin. Maybe I'll just leave you with a single picture of our beauties, on their way to Uncle Josh and Aunty Bethany's wedding:
Words don't come easily this evening, but it's been on my mind to update the blog, and so here I are. :)
Our time home on the Big Island was precious, and something I am still unable to write about. We returned home to Washington at the end of July, and have enjoyed sweet days full of sunshine, friends and family, and for myself, a constant, aching awareness of having "one less"--miss you, Mom.
And, now, the easy part:
Finn Turns 4
He happens to be one of our favorites. :)
We Go to the Blackberry Festival
Blackberry Festival on the Bremerton Boardwalk
(Need I mention Kiana took the following 4 awesome shots? Nah-I didn't think so.)
Littlest.
Middlest.
Also the Littlest.
(Well, he used to be; then he turned 3.)
Bossy. I mean, BossMan.
Heading home, waiting in the car for Daddy.
We Eat a Lot of Sweets,
and Hang Out with Uncle Kale
She's at it again--my baker extraordinaire. She has gifted us with brownies,blackberry cobbler, cookie pies, and this "back-to-school!" cake; I assure you, it has all gone to waist. :-9
There are more fun shots from this day, but I am too lazy and/or law-abiding to hijack them from him.
The Girls Pick Blackberries
at Dorothy's Place
Our gracious hostess.
Miki eventually gave up being sneaky about
popping every other blackberry into her mouth.
♥
Happy girl!
SweetTart.
Fresh air, fresh fruit, and a cool old barn--sweet.
(Oh, and some silly geese. :D )
Checking in again, with thoughts more random and irrelevant than usual. Let's just jump right in, shall we?
Ain't Nothing Gonna Break-a My Stride
Okay--agreed: I'm a short person with short legs, making for a short stride. Throw in a usually laid-back personality, and you're not likely to find me first in line at...well, anywhere.
However. (And there is almost always a "however.")
Sometimes, you'll find me moving more slowly than usual--not by my own choice, but...(wait for it)....because the person in front of me is moving slowly. (I know--you're just so accustomed to blaming the short girl.) With that in mind, I just wanted to let you know: if you think that elbowing your way past me is going to solve your problem, I assure you--it won't. Often, that urge in you to "big-body" your way past me, creates an urge in me to stomp your toe, or stick my foot out to trip you as you ga-lump on by--none of you ever look graceful as you pull this move, FYI. Maybe these guys can help you improve your technique and style:
You have been warned; take heed. (And if you insist on continuing this way, maybe wear steel-toed boots until your situational awareness starts improving.)
I know; I'm such an angry elf. :-9
Keep trying, DoRe'
Made it to Zumba on Saturday morning; it was a full class, and after bumping elbows a few times with the lady next to me, I encouraged her to take the empty spot in the row ahead of us; she was the better Zumba-er, and I didn't want to embarrass myself dancing in front of her. There was a minor language barrier, but, before she took her place as Queen of Zumba Of The Second-To-Last Row, I'm pretty sure the gist of her (very sweet and sincere) response was that she, too, was not a very good dancer when she first started, but after coming for a year, she improved;I would get it eventually, she assured me. (For those that don't know me, I have been doing Zumba for a year. More, actually.)
Ouch--I think I'll file that one under "Reality Check." ;-)
And here's that picture again.....
It's been confirmed--I'm a rightie. :-9
Now, switching gears to the really interesting humans in this household....
Genetic predisposition
That would seem to be the case, anyway; all five Recaido granddaughters have performance and recording credits to their names. :) The girls put a few more under their belts this past week: Kiana and Mikela, with a piano and voice recital last Saturday; Mikela and Malia, with parts in their school's production of "The Emporer's New Clothes" (Miki on Tuesday, Malia on Friday).
"When You Wish Upon a Star..."
Getting ready to sing "Amazing Grace."
Performing "Beauty and the Beast."
Singing "Wind Beneath My Wings."
Baby Chorus Girl.
They all did well, as expected. :) I mentioned on Facebook my delight at realizing my littlest chorus girl had memorized and was singing along to every song, including the solos. :D She did sing quietly, but had a much harder time controlling the expressions on her face--she always speaks volumes with her eyebrows. (Which makes her a pretty fantastic storyteller. :D)
Well, I was hoping to have one more segment here, but I'm having a hard time working it out; guess it'll make its way into a post another time. Before I go, look at this:
It's good for me to see that hair in all its glory;
as her personal stylist, it definitely has its challenges. ;-)
These fantastic photos were included in the book the girls made for me for Mother's Day;
the following shots were not.
(Thank goodness.)
These faces were meant to hide the fact that
I cried like a baby when I opened this gift.
They also highlight the fact that I am a complete dork.
I am aware of this.
So, the girls finally learned their lesson:
The key to surprising Mom
(Master Skeptic and Finder-Outter-of-All-Surprises)
is to leave Dad
(Guy-Who-Can't-Keep-A-Secret-To-Save-His-Life)
completely out of the loop until his (credit card) involvement is absolutely necessary.
Even then, he still came thisclose to slipping up, but they managed to pull it off.
gorgeous model credits go to Kiana, Mikela, and Malia.
I heard Josh was whining about not getting any credit for hauling that chair out to the field for the shoot; here you go, Bruddah ChairMan.
(What a diva.)
Up the hill.
Down the hill.
I think it was worth it.
(And he's a definite keeper. ♥)
Hope you had a great weekend;
Happy Monday!
April 3, 2012
Ah....much better--I like this background.
If you happened to stop by my blog the other night, you may have gotten caught in the crossfire of my indecision--it was the eve of the first day of the month, also known around here as "The Changing of DoRe's Blog Background Day," in the more rural areas of my insanity. For a few short hours, my blog appeared to have been the scene of a massive Easter egg explosion, pastels screaming across the page, with pinks, and blues, and greens galore. It was cute, and seasonally appropriate, but when I logged on the next morning (or was it still that night?), it was an experience akin to this Hawaiian looking at a mirror, and seeing a tall, thin, blue-eyed blonde--it just wasn't "me." (Although, if the mirror experience actually ever did happen, I might not feel the need to change things so quickly. :-9) Now, moving on....
...And I'm back. This post got shelved the other night; it was much too late for me to try and be coherent, as the paragraph above indicates. :-9 I've been avoiding a post, as it feels like there could be so much to talk about; I don't even know where to begin, or if most of it is even significant enough to be taking up as much brain space as I allow. I'm just going to let the fingers do the talktyping, and see where this goes; thank goodness for the editability of this medium. :)
In no particular order:
Songbirds:
Oldest and Middle Daughters had opportunity last month to participate in a couple of concerts through the school district. As usual, I was MIA where photography is concerned, so here are the scant few I could rustle up (thanks, Dad):
Kiana, the Soloist. :)
("Amazing Grace")
Halfy Birthday, Malia!
If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll remember we celebrate half birthdays; this year is no exception. Malia is now officially 7-and-a-half, as of March 17th.
Malia's Irish roots coming out here--she looks slightly leprechaun-ish, I think. :D
Okay, I need to regroup here; I started writing this post on Saturday night, and it is now Tuesday-turning-into-Wednesday. I am having a remarkably difficult time uploading photos; I'm going to try to get one of Miki on here, and then this is turning into a "words-only" post.
Princess FrogFeet:
Ever the trendsetter, Middle Daughter saved up her allowance, and picked up a pair of these to add to her extensive shoe collection:
Miki's version of "Happy Feet."
Happy Miki. :)
For those who don't know, those are Vibram FiveFingers. Super comfy, but wearing them in public may require more self-esteem than I possess at this point. :) Miki, she's got no problems. :D
Ack--I give up. I think this is it for now--I'm exhausted. This post is incomplete, but if I don't publish now, it may never happen. If I don't show up again soon, we're having a great spring break, complete with sleepovers, pool time, stomach flu, sleeping in, a little bit of sun, a little bit of rain, and so on. Hope all is well in your corner of the world...Happy Tuesday!
Looking for something? You may find it here. (Then again, you may not.)
Thought for Today
“Your children are not your children. They are sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. And though they are with you yet they belong not to you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts, For they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the make upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness. For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He also loves the bow that is stable.”
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Marianne Williamson, "A Return to Love"
Resolve to be tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant with the weak and the wrong. Sometime in life you will have been all of these.
