Music Monday

When I was in high school I listened to the classical radio station often. One of the regular programs had some intro music that I loved. Every week I would listen to this particular program, if only long enough to hear the introductory music. I discovered that the music they were using was the second movement of Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata. So I bought the CD and never had to plan my life around that particular radio show again.

I enjoy the entire Sonata, but the second movement especially appeals to me. The first melody is simple yet beautiful. And if you pay attention to the time counter on this video...check out the chord right at 2:02...boy that one gets me.

There are a lot of recordings of this piece on youtube, and I listened to a few of them. I thought this guy did a very nice job. And hey- check out his awesome room. I'd love to have a grand piano next to such a large window full of greenery.

Enjoy.
Beethoven Pathetique Sonata, 2nd Movement in A Flat Major

About Clothes

So here's the deal about kid's clothes as far as I am concerned. I think I speak from experience considering I buy and wash the clothes of a 5, 3, and 1 year old. It's not worth the money to buy expensive brand name clothing. Here's why: Children are disaster zones. They somehow ruin almost any clothing that touches their body. They utilize mud, markers, blood, grass, ketchup, or anything else they can get their hands on. If they can't stain it, they tear it.

Maybe I just don't have the right brand of stain remover, but I have serious trouble getting the stains out of their $30 OR $3 clothing. I admit, part of the problem is that I am too lazy to check the clothing before I put it in the dryer. I just assume the stains came out, until I am folding the clothes later and realize I was sadly mistaken. Everybody knows once you dry it, the battle is over. But sometimes, I do catch a stained item of clothing right after the wash and set it out to wash again. There are a few shirts on my washing machine that have been washed about 12 times in a row now over the course of 6 months...and the stain is still there. But I think as long as I haven't put it in the dryer, there is still hope.

So my way of dealing with this is to buy cheap clothes that I could care less if they ruin. It saves my sanity. And you know I need to conserve every last bit of sanity possible.

I will say that Cody's mom can get almost any stain out. She has tried to pass along her tips and products to me, but it never works as well for me as it does for her. I am just stain-challenged. I accept it. I move forward. I buy shirts for $1.50 on clearance at Target.

Sorry, Feminists

Today I had a reminder that Ava is constantly forming life views and beliefs based on her daily personal experience. There are many things she absorbs as truth, or "just the way it is", whether or not it really is the truth.

There are many aspects of life that I don't set out to teach her, usually because I haven't ever thought of it. For example, it never occurred to me make it a point to ensure that Ava knows that both men and women have jobs and careers. It never occurred to me until this afternoon, that is.

While playing outside, Ava casually told Cody and me that she was a "grown-up" now. I replied, "Good! Now you can get a job and pitch in some money around here." She frowned and said, "No, no! I said a grown-up, not a Daddy! I'm a girl so I don't work."

Whoops. My first thought was, "Wait a minute! It's not like I'm sitting on the couch eating bon-bons all day." My second thought was that maybe I need to emphasize some of the career women in her life like her female dentist, etc.

Unusual Streak

I've been experiencing an unusual streak for the past three weeks. For three weeks now, our church has hosted fun outdoor activities on Wednesday nights. At each of these events, exactly 2 people have told me I look skinnier and have asked if I have lost weight. This is my kind of streak! I just think it's weird how it is always 2 people, no more, no less. It is always two different people than have said it before, and there is time between the incidents. (It's not like two people are standing together and they both make a comment.) Now that it has happened three times in a row, I'm getting a little worked up over it. I'm wondering how long the streak can last. I'm almost planning ways to keep it going. As if I had any control over it!

I hope this doesn't come off like bragging. My goal here is not to blab to the world about how skinny people apparently think I am becoming. Because frankly, I think I might just be getting really good at dressing deceptively. The right shirt can hide a few pounds, you know.

Spelling

One day, about 3 years ago, I decided I was fed up with always spelling the word "definitely" wrong. I always wrote it as "definately" which is the way it sounds to me when I say it. So after writing it incorrectly hundreds, perhaps thousands of times, I finally slapped myself across the face and said, "Dang it girl, can you just memorize the right way to spell this word so you can stop looking like an idiot already?" And that is what I did. I looked at the word, written the correct way, and realized that there are two "i's" and that the base of the word is the shorter word "finite." And from that day forward I have always spelled it correctly.

Today, I am making a similar stand. I've known for several years now that I spell the words "becoming" and "occasionally" wrong every time I write them. If you must know, I just misspelled them as I was writing them now and had to go back and correct them. The little red line told me that "becomming" and "occassionally" were WRONG WRONG WRONG. Apparently, my main problem with these words is the irresistible desire to double more consonants than allowed. So I am now committing them to memory and hoping that this conscious effort will result in a change of habit. These aren't the only words I routinely misspell, but they are by far the most common. And today I have realized that enough is enough.

So tell me, if you dare to admit it, what word(s) do you routinely misspell. I'm dying to know. Please don't tell me I am the only one with this kind of problem. I don't think my delicate psyche (rats, there is ANOTHER one) can handle it.

Music Monday

You just NEVER know what genre I am going to draw from for Music Monday. I don't know how many people have heard of Putamayo, but if you haven't then you should explore the music they have to offer. Putamayo compiles CD's of world music for adults and children. Their CD's might feature a particular continent/country or a style of music with examples from many countries. The only Putamayo CD I own is called Dreamland and contains lullabies from all over the world. But the kids and I regularly check out other Putamayo CD's from the library. They are always high quality.

My favorite lullaby from the Dreamland CD is from Brazil. It is sung by Virginia Rosa and the title is "La Vai Alguem (There Goes Someone)." A loose translation of the words is "There goes somebody and who could it be? / There goes somebody in the night beyond / Bringing everything treasured by the heart."

(TO PLAY: Click on green music notes, then click on "play")

One More

Ok, Ava has this chipmunk puppet that she plays with occasionally and today she gave it a new name. (oh how I love this...) She's calling it "Chocolate Chipmunk." Hahahahahahaha. And that is not on accident..she knows what she's doing.

Things That Make Me Laugh

I think my kids are pretty funny. Probably every parent thinks their children are the cutest and funniest in the world. I'm no exception. Sometimes I have trouble thinking of a particular funny event, but for some reason as I sit here typing I have quite a few floating in my mind. I'll just start with today. I looked over at Nate this afternoon to find him nursing a stuffed animal. And that's not even the funny part. He was nursing it from his belly button.

Not ten minutes later Ava stomped over to me piping mad and on the verge of tears because...and this was her exact complaint..."Nate is pretending to spread imaginary salsa all over my room!!" I tried not to laugh as I asked if that was really SO bad since it was imaginary and all...but she was thoroughly miffed and replied, "I don't want imaginary salsa all over my room!"

Then last week when we were loading the car to take the kids to Cody's parents during our trip, Nate was crying because he couldn't find his favorite stuffed bear Brownie. We really needed to leave, but we did a fast search and couldn't find Brownie anywhere. So, I tried something that I really doubted would work. I gave him a different stuffed bear and suggested he take it instead. I was expecting a firm no, but surprisingly he was okay with that idea. And he quickly dubbed this different stuffed bear "White Brownie." And that, for some reason, makes me want to roll on the floor laughing. Here is a picture of Brownie (who has since been located) and White Brownie. I'll let you decide which is which.


And if for some reason you don't think my kids are funny...and that's okay, it won't hurt my feelings (as long as you don't tell me), then here is what else has me laughing lately. About 6 months ago we had a rolling gate installed across our driveway. They put a warning sign on each side of the gate. I've seen that sign hundreds of times over the past 6 months, but I never once actually noticed what was on the sign until last week. Obviously I am not the most observant person in the world. I am also, apparently, not the most mature because the picture on this sign has me in stitches.

You would think that the words "Serious Injury" and "Death" would impart some sense of respect and solemnity on my behalf. But no. That picture of a person getting squished by the gate...man, it is making me laugh while I am trying to type.

Canada: Day 4

On day four, we had to say goodbye to Canada. Leaving was much easier since it meant we'd soon be saying hello to our sweet kids that we were missing. The morning of day four, we went on a short hike from the hotel to the Bow Falls nearby. It was a beautiful place where we could walk right up next to the river.

Next to the falls we could see impressive slabs of rock that were beautifully layered.
I couldn't resist trying to capture the sunlight glistening on the river.


And I also couldn't resist snapping a shot of Cody pondering some deep thoughts while gazing at the river.
We left around 10 AM to drive back to Calgary, stopped for a quick lunch, and boarded the plane. It was great to get home and hug the kids. Lucas had already been put to bed, but when I went back to see him I found that he was still awake. He was sort of rolling around face down in the crib, but he glanced up when he heard me come into the room. You should have seen his eyes as he realized who I was. He jumped up so fast into my arms. I carried him to the living room where he kept going back and forth between Cody and me.

I have to say that Canada was a perfect destination for our anniversary celebration. There was plenty to see and do, the weather couldn't be beat, the scenery was majestic, the food was fabulous, and we have a lot of great memories to cap our first decade of marriage.

Canada: Day 3

Day 3, A.K.A. June 13th was our actual wedding anniversary. It was also Friday the 13th. It's a good thing I'm not superstitious and didn't have to worry about walking under ladders and dooming our next decade of marriage with bad luck. We drove into Banff first thing in the morning to shop the main downtown area. I got tired of walking after a while so we stopped on a park bench next to the river to read for about an hour. I had picked up the novel Twilight the day before. (I finished it on the plane ride home...good book.) After a while we shopped some more and got three perfect gifts for our kids: a Canadian hockey jersey for Nate, a puzzle of Canada for Ava, and The ABC's of Canada board book for Lucas. We ate lunch in a small restaurant there in downtown Banff and they had amazing fish tacos. The best part was the avocado lime dressing.

After lunch we drove a few miles to the Banff Hot Springs because Cody wanted to take a soak. I decided to read a bit more in the car. He said it was a really nice place, though the pool was small. The water temperature was naturally 104 degrees.

Then, before checking into our hotel, we drove around the hotel grounds. They have a famous golf course that is known for having elk all over it. We drove a large loop around the course that was thick with trees and had pretty views. Ours was the only car around, and we did stumble upon a herd of elk crossing the road.

I loved the tall, straight trunks of the aspen and pine trees. So I tried to get a photo of them reaching toward the sky.


The Fairmont Banff Springs is truly a sight to behold. It looks like a castle and is luxurious inside.



This was taken on one of the several hotel balconies that offer incredible views of the mountains. We enjoyed wandering around the hotel. There were large common rooms, cozy corners, and historic furnishings.



That evening, we celebrated our anniversary with dinner at the hotel's Italian restaurant Castello Ristarante. We started with fried calamari. Cody ate steak and I had the butternut squash stuffed ravioli. My dish was so sweet it would almost qualify for dessert. It was in a creamy sauce with shaved truffles on top. It was so delicious I savored every bite. For dessert we had the Trio of Chocolate which featured a brownie, tart and ice cream. That sounds so mundane, because I can't really describe the elegance of this dessert or its richness. And we had the best red wine I have ever tasted. It was full-flavored, fruity, with a hint of spice- a peppery taste- to it. Dinner stretched over a couple of hours, and it felt like a true celebration of our first 10 years of marriage.

Canada: Day 2

I'm going to skip Music Monday today in order to continue my travel tales. On our second day in Canada, Cody and I woke early (not really on purpose, but we are used to getting up early and it is an hour earlier there, also.) We quickly got dressed and headed on a hike along the Johnston Creek. This is a popular trail with bus tours because the hike to the lower falls is only 30 minutes and the path is paved. We had the entire place to ourselves in the early morning, however, and didn't see another soul until into our return hike. The view of the river is breath-taking along the entire hike. Sometimes, the path turns into a metal catwalk bolted into the side of the mountain, right above the fast moving current. Below is a photo of the lower falls.


At this point one can turn around or continue to the upper falls which is a mile further. We continued our hike. The morning air was so cold that my face and ears were freezing, but I felt warm under my jacket because of the work out from climbing the steep rises. We eventually reached the end of the trail right in front of the upper falls.


We returned to our cabin and then drove about 30 minutes to Lake Louise, a lake famous for its beautiful turquoise water. We spent about an hour there, walking around the lake, and sitting on a bench gazing across it. There were many people from all different countries there sight-seeing. Of course, the person I decided to ask to take our picture didn't speak a word of English, but he did a good job with the photo.


We left the lake and started a long drive North toward Jasper along what is known as the Icefield Parkway. It has been called one of the 10 most beautiful drives in the world. There are stunning mountains, glaciers, and wildlife along this stretch of otherwise desolate road. At one point, we saw many cars stopped along the side of the road and people out with their cameras. Those fools were taking pictures of a black bear (I took this picture of the bear as we drove by slowly...from the safety of the car.)


There were places to pull over and enjoy the view every so often. We pulled over at this vista point to see back across where we had come from.

After driving about 2 hours we came to a Glacier Information Center across from the Athabasca Glacier, one of 6 prominent glaciers of the Columbian Icefield. The glacier is the huge mound of ice between the mountains. I have to admit I was slightly disappointed by this. I had pictured all glaciers as these massive mountains of ice that stood alone. That wasn't exactly the case here, but it was still interesting.


We drove back to our cabin and it was getting past dinner time. We weren't sure where to eat so we eventually decided to drive into Banff to find a hamburger type place. I chose Bruno's from the guidebook. This turned out to be a great choice because I had the best gourmet hamburger and my new favorite food in the world: sweet potato fries. The hamburger was topped with bacon, swiss cheese, sauteed mushrooms and onions and roasted red peppers. The mound of fries was enormous, but I'll tell you now I ate every last one of them. I ate long beyond the point of fullness because there was no way I was leaving a single tasty fry behind. We watched a bit of the Lakers/Celtics game while we ate and relaxed from a busy day. And, I tried a Canadian beer called Kokanee that was the best beer I have ever tasted. Maybe I was just super hungry because everything I ate that night was the best I had ever had.

Coming up on Day 3: Downtown Banff, the hot springs, the Fairmont Banff Springs, and our anniversary dinner.

Canada: Day 1

Last Wednesday, the trip that we had been day-dreaming about and looking forward to became a reality. Cody and I went to Canada to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. I plan to share some of the details of our 4 day adventure over the next week.

DAY ONE
We dropped the kids with Cody's parents and, thanks to Cody's nice collection of air miles, flew first class to Calgary. We hopped in the hybrid rental car (with it's strange push button start and extreme, almost eerie, quiet while running) and drove about 1 1/2 hours to Johnston Canyon which is just past Banff.

This was our cabin that overlooked the river. It was so relaxing to hear the perfect white noise of the river at all times.




We took a short walk around the grounds before driving to a nearby restaurant where we had dinner reservations for the evening. Baker Creek Bistro was recommended by Cody's parents and lived up to their glowing recommendation. We had delicious seafood chowder to start. Then Cody chose (from the eclectic menu) Rabbit Carbonara and I had the pan-seared Halibut. The dishes were top quality gourmet and we savored every bite. Then we finished with a slice of apple/blackberry pie with vanilla rum ice cream. Mmmmm. We walked off our dinner for a while and posed for this photo on the bridge that crossed the river near our cabin.
We went to bed early, tired from traveling, even though it was still light outside. It stayed light until 10:30 each night! Plus, we were planning to get up and take an early hike the next morning.

The cabins were rustic and cozy in some ways, but very pretty inside. This small gas stove was the only heat source for our 2 room cabin, but it kept us toasty on the chilly nights.

And I fell in love with this claw foot tub in the bathroom.

All around us, during the entire trip, there were so many beautiful snow-topped mountains. This is the one we could see from our cabin area. I can't imagine living somewhere like this all the time. I don't think I would ever get used to the sensation of awe their size and beauty inspired in me.
Stay tuned for Day 2: Hiking to water falls, Lake Louise, and the Icefield Parkway...

Music Monday

I don't hide the fact that the 80's are not my favorite decade. First of all, it was a fashion nightmare. (Rolled jean cuffs, double socks, fringed/beaded t-shirts??) Second of all, my hair didn't do bangs like everyone else's. And third, I really don't think the music was all that good. But, the very first cassette tape I owned, at the age of 11, may be an exception. It was Heaven on Earth by Belinda Carlisle and I wore that sucker out on my Sony walkman. My absolute favorite song was I Get Weak. And you know what? I still like it today.

I Get Weak 1987

10 Years

This week Cody and I will celebrate our 10 year anniversary. It's hard to believe that a decade has passed since that day we stood at the front of a small chapel. I remember every detail so clearly. My friend Ellen played the violin so beautifully. I felt like a princess in my white gown. We were surrounded by family and friends. I had so much birdseed in my hair and clothes on the ride to the airport. And I had enough bobby pins in my hair to warrant a search with the hand held wand at the security gate. We went to The Salish Lodge outside of Seattle for our honeymoon. There was a beautiful waterfall there. I have a framed photo of that waterfall on my bookshelf. Will my great-grandchildren have that photo tucked away somewhere in 70 years?

In honor of our 10 years together, I am sharing 10 things I appreciate about Cody. Some are single acts, others are personality traits or things he does time and time again. I don't claim that any of these are the most important or most endearing traits of his. These are just 10 things that come to mind that may reveal more about his character and why I have been so blessed to be his wife for 10 years.

1. In college, he wrote me tons of love letters and poetry. And he was really good at it. He might think that dents his manly image, but I think all women know that it takes a real man to write a good love letter.

2. On my first Mother's Day, he gave me a beautiful pearl necklace. It was perfect. He knows what I like.

3. Almost every evening when the weather is nice, he takes the kids outside for a while to play. It gives me a chance to do some cleaning up or just relax and do something for myself.

4. I almost combined this with number 3, but it's a totally separate thing he does that I love. He gives the kids their baths. I've always disliked getting on my knees and leaning over the tub. He never complains.

5. He has never, ever lost his temper with me or anyone else for that matter. I love the calm consistency he provides for me and the kids.

6. He doesn't give up. He's one of the most determined people I know. If things get difficult...he keeps going. I can always count on him.

7. He is generous. He gives his time and money to help others. He gives to me and the kids constantly.

8. He is forgiving. I've made a lot of mistakes and he has never held a single one against me.

9. He let me get a cat when we had been married for a couple of years even though he really didn't want one. That may not sound like such a big deal, but to me it sums up another of his great qualities: sacrifice.

10. He loves me just the way I am. He has never expected me to change or be a better person even though I could grow in a lot of areas. He is unconditionally in love with me.

Ocean

This afternoon, I was kicking back in a patio chair with my eyes closed and the sun on my face. Suddenly I could have sworn I was at the beach. The wind was powering through the leaves on the tree so forcefully that they sounded like ocean waves. I carefully opened one eye just a bit to check where I was. Then I felt dumb because I was still in the backyard, and I couldn't believe I had to check. So I closed my eyes again and immediately I was back on the beach. This time, I could even smell the ocean. I realized that was backwards from the way smell usually works with my memory. I often smell something that causes me to become almost transported to another place and time. But rarely do I become so transported by other means that I begin to imagine a smell.

This got me thinking about some of my most powerful "smell memories." The ones that happen frequently or are especially intense. Here are a few of them in no particular order:

When I smell exhaust while walking along a busy street, I feel like I am walking in London. That was the only time in my life that I regularly had to walk along busy streets to class.

When I smell watermelon I think I am in the backyard of my grandparent's farm house splitting open a ripe watermelon from the field.

When I smell popcorn burning, it reminds me of the many lunches I ate in the crummy faculty lounge at the elementary school where I taught.

What smells are memory-inducing to you?

Bounce

All three of my kids have winter birthdays. It makes me sad that we'll probably never have an outdoor party complete with bounce house, pony rides, or water balloon fights.

But tonight, I got an idea.

MY birthday is in August. I think I should have a bounce house party this year. I could invite my friends and we would have an awesome time bouncing, grilling out, and relaxing on the patio. I think that deep down, whether or not they are willing to admit it, most adults would love to spend an hour in a bounce house. Right?

6 words

My friend Carrie tagged me with the direction to describe my life in 6 words. This is probably a popular thing to do right now because of the recently published book:
Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser. The authors asked over 300 people to sum up their life in 6 words; a lofty goal considering they couldn't even keep the book title under that. It's actually an intriguing idea, and I think I'd enjoy reading what some famous people have to say about their lives. I wonder how long most people had to think about it before they came up with something. I have to admit I've been thinking about it for days now and haven't invented a satisfactory phrase. I thought it would be super hard to restrict myself to 6 words. But it turns out that the best phrase I've come up with so far is actually only 4 words! I know, I must be a genius or something. So, I'm bucking the system and giving my 4 word phrase as an answer.

Getting better with age.

I have plenty of great memories, but I don't ever long for times past. Whatever stage of life I am currently in is the best I've had so far, and I have reason to believe this is going to continue to be the case. As I age my life truly gets better. I'm not saying that only good things happen. There are crummy experiences at every stage of life, so that is not going to change or go away. But I enjoy who I am as a person more and more with time. I become more thankful and aware of blessings with time. I have accepted myself and loved myself more and been able to show more love to others as a result of that.

So, anyone out there have a 6 word phrase to describe their life? It's a big challenge. Obviously, I'm okay with some rule-bending. Actually, I completely disregarded the directions. Oh well. That probably says something else about me...

Music Monday

The songs I post for Music Monday have usually been a part of my life for a long time. But today I'm going to post a song I just heard for the first time recently. Suddenly it became one of my favorites. I could listen to it 20 times in a row easily. It has the hard-to-find quality of having BOTH an amazing musical sound (because of the soft acoustic guitar chords and the unique quality of the voice) and incredible lyrics. On some listens I zone in on the guitar, and on others I pay more attention to the lyrics. And then others still I listen to each equally. I had heard of Dave Matthews Band before, as most people have. But I had never heard this song. I'm really glad I know about it now. And, being the kind, philanthropic person that I am, I figured I should share it.

Oh by Dave Matthews Band 2007