Turkey Day at the beach?

Yup....didn't think it would ever happen. Didn't think I would even really want to go. But when a trip to Hawaii is placed in front of you, how do you say "no"? (Hint: you don't)

It was my parent's turn to host Thanksgiving this year. My mother really threw us for a curve when she asked if we would be willing to fly with our kids to Waikiki, stay at the Trump Towers and play on the beach for Thanksgiving. Oh, minor issue...we needed to cook a dinner for 12 in a hotel room. No problem!

We flew, we played, we were drenched in sea water (Brett had no craving for chips the whole trip. Weird, eh?), we walked, and walked, and walked. We cooked a holiday dinner for 12. We shopped at nearly 15 ABC Markets. We consumed pineapples at nearly every meal. The kids convinced us that after the beach they needed to rinse off in the pool before taking a shower. How do you say no to kids that bathe that much?










Some additional surprises: a random parade, Friday night fireworks (you should have heard the car alarm chorus!), crabs, neon fish, snorkeling, sea turtles, window displays with models in bikinis in the snow, seeing the "giraffe whisperer" at the zoo, getting photos taken of Mom and I out running by Asian tourists in a bus - (hey, we look like locals!), and finally enjoying the amazing Trump hospitality. If I could have brought my pillow home I would have. And the robes. Oh yeah, the appliances...I would take those, too. Mostly the shower. I would KILL for that shower. Truly.

To my wonderful parents: MAHALO!!! What happens when it's my turn to host? Buggers....

( this is the kitty that missed his girl while we were gone...)

A new day of celebrations

We celebrate around here like any other family; birthdays, anniversaries, teeth that fall out....the usual.  But this year we added a new celebration on November 18th. That is the day Brett received notification that everything was approved on his dissertation and became officially finished with school! 

Brett and I spent our first year at the University of Utah together and when we married he was half way through his Bachelors.  When Marin was 18 months old he graduated with a BS in Exercise and Sport Science. After Gabe was born Brett decided he really wanted to go back to school so he investigated all the options and selected a program that would get him through a combined Masters/Ph.D. It has been a long, long road and Brett has been such an amazing example to these kids of determination and sacrifice. He has worked full-time through all his education and never took summers off. He is tenacious and a total brain (with a 3.95 for his Masters of Science in Public Health and a 4.0 for his Ph.D in Public Health). What you never get told is how long the dreaded dissertation process actually takes.

I had moments in this process when I really despised his committee and reviewers. It took a lot of time and some real perspective to see that this is what separates the Masters students from the Doctoral students. There is a dramatic difference between the two! A Doctoral degree is an education in intense refinement by fire and brimstone. I now truly appreciate the process and hope never to have to go through it again...

November 18th will be celebrated forever around this house. Congratulations, Dr. McIff. Your degree looks good on you!

P.S. If you want an education for yourself, check out the differences in how a Ph.D. looks when he/she graduates.... http://doctoralgraduationgowns.org/

Birthdays...

August is a busy month.....we have birthdays and an anniversary to celebrate. 12 years ago I tried really hard to convince Marin to be born on Brett's birthday but she refused to cooperate. I think she already knew it was important for her Dad to keep his birthday all to himself! She thankfully chose to arrive exactly 2 weeks later!

Brett's birthday is a tough one. He will disagree with me but truly, it's hard. I have things I want to get him but I just can't justify it. There are things he would LOVE, but he just can't justify it. Then there are the gifts that just seem to work...

While traveling in Spain last year we had a moment of watching some people play Bocce on a sandy area of a park in Barcelona. We were on a pedestrian bridge looking down on their game and they were having so much fun! There were teams, intensity, camaraderie, belligerence and hilarity. Truly, those are all the components of a wonderful game! So this year my mom and I bought a Bocce set for Brett in memory of that delicious trip to Spain!! (if only the balls smelled like jamon....that would be perfect!)

The kids love a good game - especially a new one that involves throwing large objects. This was no exception! Interestingly enough Marin took to Bocce like a pro and managed moves that we didn't think were possible. She also cheered herself on a lot, gloated, and giggled....very disconcerting to those who were losing.

Marin also was the queen of measurements. Points are given based on how many balls are closest to the "pallina", the first ball thrown in the game. Much discussion goes into deciding which balls are the closest and how to measure - in Spain and in the US! Marin has multiple methods from using her hand-span to her arm length to her arm plus 2 or 3 fingers width. She is pretty ingenious if she would stick with one method while measuring one game.....ha! She goes from arm length plus 2 fingers to counting off 2 1/2 feet length. I'm not sure how she thinks those will compare but it made for some lively discussions.

I think Brett had a happy day. All he really wanted was time with his family. He probably got a really big dose of it - perhaps more than he wanted or expected. What can we say? We just love him!!

Happy Birthday, Brett!

Joyful Noise

JOYFUL NOISE

So....6 weeks of rehearsals and lots of dramatic attitudes at home for the
performance by the after school drama club of JOYFUL NOISE!!!!

For those who have never heard of this book, it is a collection of poems about BUGS.
Here is a description:

Winner of the 1989 Newbery Award, Joyful Noise is a children's book of poetry about insects that was designed for two readers to enjoy together. On each page are two columns of verse for children to alternate reading aloud about the lives of six-legged creatures ranging from fireflies writing in the sky to a love affair between two lice, crickets eating pie crumbs and the single day in the life of a mayfly. Charming large scale soft-pencil illustrations enhance the comical, easy-to-read text.

Marin's 6th grade teacher felt this book could be done with many voices and with dance moves added. It is a fun and fast production with much memorization and movement. It was pure entertainment the first night but going back a second time really highlighted all the silliness and intricacies of the performance.

(this video is the butterflies coming out of their chrysalis)

Marin played the parts of the butterfly, firefly, mayfly, water boatman, cicada, maple moth, cricket, bee and a digger wasp. Some were speaking and some were dancing. She did really well until the bee performance in front of her peers. The bees have to do little bum wiggles to show the shaking off of the pollen.....oh, there were ample giggles! You can start figuring out which bugs are in each performance by the moves and the descriptions of their lives. A very well planned out production!

Top left video is fireflies, top right is crickets

Events

Life never slows around this house but as it's my normal, I don't often see the purpose in sharing. I need to remember that other people (like Grandparents!) love to hear what is going on in our crazy lives. So here is a brief synopsis:

Marin has been in drama club this year and is making final preparations to perform "Joyful Noise". She plays a digger wasp, a whirlygig and a mayfly...I think. She is nervous and excited but has really enjoyed drama and theater this year.

Gabe is an outstanding reader! He passes his reading tests with excellent scores and is reading out loud to us in the evenings. He has such a mastery of punctuation, intonation and grammar. We are beyond lucky!

Brett is starting a string of trips with work....currently in Washington D.C., then Atlanta, then Houston and finally San Diego/Long Beach. He hasn't traveled this much since his last job but he is so good at what he does!

Marin has registered for Junior High School. Ugh. I'm not old enough for this! It was interesting to watch the dynamics with her friends....she thought they would all continue the same interests they have shared through elementary. Not so. Faced with some really great class options, each friend chose a different focus and left Marin wondering what was going on! Thankfully she knows they will all still be together at the same school and they will still be friends...she also wasn't willing to give up an art class that she fell in love with! I wonder if they will cure her of her scissor fetish?

Gabe is a collector. I am learning this about him as I appreciate how he manipulates me. It began with Blue's Clues, to Diego then to Thomas trains (that was a big collection). We moved to legos and kitties and now we are into Pokemon and Bakugan. It is becoming difficult to organize his room as he won't let us move any of the collections to another room. He has managed to find ways for me to skillfully purchase these toys for him when I truly mean to save the money. I am toast.

Brett is practicing a game of "PATIENCE" that is a much bigger and more complex game than I ever thought it would be. He masterfully phones or emails his dissertation chair weekly to get any information about his progress and skillfully evades all familial inquiries about progress of said dissertation. It is a mine field full of emotions and frustrations and short burst of progress. I liken it to birthing a child. If you really knew what it would be like, would you sign up for it?

I am making myself busy to distract myself from not feeling productive. I am continuing to offer PE support at our school (and a few others), chair a safety committee, sit on a couple volunteer committees within our city, help with anything involving trees, try to create paying jobs for myself and cross my fingers that I will get to go back part-time at the Health Department. I like feeling that I am a productive part of the family. I am not one to sit home and enjoy Brett's hard earned pay checks. I want to help! Hopefully the planets and stars will align and open all the doors I have been banging my head against.

Other than that.....we are all good! It's almost spring which is a good time for this crowd to get outside and play..and garden...and ride bikes....and kick balls....and watch flowers push up out of the ground. We're ready!

In honor of Brett.....

A few poignant thoughts for the next few weeks....

I know you are thinking some of those...just don't say them out loud.

The Dissertation Cloud



The Dissertation RUN!!! I think I like this tradition!


They all seemed so applicable....we are cheering for you!

What cures the winter doldrums?

PAINT!!!

Yes, Brett gets nervous when I say, "Do you know what I think we should do today?". He has reason to get nervous. It never ends up well for him. Whatever it is in my brain always involves more work and more mess and more money than he wants to deal with. He'll get used to it.

January brought bone deep cold, monochromatic colors outside and lack of desire to do anything. It seemed the perfect time to shake it up and go buy paint. I have avoided painting the kitchen for the 8 years we have lived here as I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to a color. I still really want to brick the walls but until then, paint would have to do.

here is the boring kitchen before....

Color....now that is a hard one. I have shades of yellows, greens, purples, and browns around the main floor. The kitchen just seemed to beg for something with substance, depth, intensity and vitality. We started investigating spicy colors: paprika, chili powder, pomegranate, and found a color that seemed to satisfy all the requirements. I love it!

The color has warmth but doesn't shrink the kitchen or dining room. It plays in the different lighting around here and pulls the greys and lavender flecks from the counter tops. It really warmed up the cabinets and the white accents and appliances are so bright and clean.

hmmmmm...home at last.



Brett asked why I didn't do this sooner. Ugh.