partial marshall

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

O.M.G.

I’ve died and gone to heaven and apparently Mark Burnett is my God.

I can’t believe that I have to wait until July 31st for The Contender Muay Thai. I’m not sure I’ll make it…

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

Salt in my wounds…

As if it wasn’t hard enough on me that I haven’t seen my baby girl in 3 days, I have people sending me photos of her that remind me of how much her presence makes every day so enjoyable! (thanks for sending these Mom & Uncle Adam!)

Monday, July 28th, 2008

Bye Bye Sissy

Today we drove down to just south of Eugene and met my mom at a park for a picnic, after which she took Sissy to stay with her for a week. Sis has been excited about this for a few weeks, and has enjoyed putting on an exaggerated sad face and saying “but I’m going to miss my brother…. because he isn’t coming. Only I’m going. He can’t go, so I’ll miss him. He has to go home and only I’m going to Grammy’s…” etc, etc. So much knowledge of nuances of emotional manipulation for such a small girl.

We had a nice visit, but when it was time to go, we couldn’t find Leo anywhere and started to get really scared. It was as if he just disappeared… and then… we saw something moving in the driver’s seat of Grammy’s car…

OK, I’m lying. We never lost him. We just thought it was funny that his shirt served as camo in Grammy’s car.

So Sissy has a big week ahead of her with concerts and farm visits and train park. I’m sure she will do fine. I, on the other hand, am struggling after only being away from her for 9 hours. Sure, she drives me nuts on an almost daily basis, but she’s my baby. Things feel a little too quiet around here.

On the flip side, we finally get a few days to spend some dedicated time with little man. Sissy had us all to herself for 2 and a half years, but little man has always had to share. We took him for a bike ride to the Columbia River today and let him throw rocks in the water for a while. Then, we let him watch Barney, which is something Sissy wouldn’t stand for.

Saturday, July 26th, 2008

Uncle Michael’s 37th Birthday

Our favorite Leo (for which our son was named), Uncle Michael, gave us the honor of cooking him a birthday dinner last week. We went with sweet potato and black bean enchiladas with spanish rice and pinto beans. I’m sure it was a spread that would make my Mexican family cringe, but the gringos didn’t seem to mind it… unless you count the fact that the kids cried and whined about not liking “red rice” or the potatoes in the rice (which, of course were not potatoes at all, but rather onions).

Since Uncle Michael just bought a house recently, we opted for some home accessories as gifts. It was funny to watch the kids try to wrap their heads around the idea of a tray that holds the chips and the hummus!

We’ve been to a lot of birthday parties in the past few months and the kids know that when it is time to sing, that means cake is just around the corner… which explains the excitement and sheer volume of their singing voices.

I’m sure I’ll pay for it when I have to get on the scale again in a week or so, but I couldn’t resist the graham cracker coconut cake with vegan buttercream frosting. I have zero will power when it comes to vegan desserts. Such a weakness.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Michael… We love you!

Saturday, July 26th, 2008

Little Man’s Birthday Party

I often take the kids with me to the gym and Leo has really taken to the basketball hoops at the Vancouver gym. Some days, he just stands in front of them for an hour shooting baskets. He has pretty impressive form for a 2 year old. So, it was kind of a no-brainer that we would get him a hoop for his birthday.

Since I had already baked a cake for his actual birthday, I decided to try something new this year instead of cake. I know, I know… I am usually a total cake purist and get super obsessed with the kids’ birthday cakes and spend way too much time making and decorating them. Maybe I’m getting lazy in my old age.

This year, I opted for homemade ice cream sandwiches made from super yummy vegan chocolate chip cookies and vanilla soy dream.

Come to find out, kids don’t care if there is cake or not… as long as it has icecream and chocolate. Just ask these kids…

It was fun to see little man get so excited about his friends coming over to play. I don’t get much chance to observe him playing with his little friends at daycare, but he talks about them all the time. It was entertaining to watch them play together, like a miniature society of sugar-fueled banshees.

And, of course, the girls will play dress-up anywhere… even a dirty backyard in 90 degree weather.

Unlike Christmas, when the concept of opening presents was still a little over his head, buddy tore into the presents this time around.

Happy Birthday, Lee-Lee. I love you, little man!

Monday, July 21st, 2008

The Phrase Every Mom Waits To Hear…

Little man is picking up a ton of new words and phrases - so much so that I can’t really keep up anymore. He crossed that line between “his new word” and “he’s just talking now.” So, phrases don’t really jump out anymore unless they are truly funny (such as when he blurted out “Oh my goo-ness, big mountain” when we were driving to the gorge this weekend) or, in this case, sweet…

During our recent trip to Mexico, I was changing his diaper on the floor of a restroom in some restaurant (yeah, yeah, gross… whatever) and decided to whip out the camera and see if I could get him to talk to me while there were no distractions. It worked. Such sappy, melt a mama’s heart sweetness.

Sunday, July 20th, 2008

Viva La Mexico

Top 20 highlights of our recent Mexican vacation to Puerta Penasco (in no particular order).

 1. Half-naked hubby (is that even an appropriate thing to write on a blog… even one that is only ready by two people?)

2. Margaritas

3. Ridiculous sunsets

4. Pig faces

5. Margaritas

6. The endless fun to be had with mama’s empty happy hour cup

7. Leo-Bamba

8. New cousins

9. Taking the boy for his first swim and helping the girl overcome her fear of the water…

10. Margaritas

11. Much needed family time

12. Mariachi dancing

13. Sandball fights

14. The crazy towel animals we found each day in our room when we came back from a long day at the beach / pool

15. Margaritas

16. Siblings getting along

17. Diablo Fajitas

18. Mexico’s answer to Starbucks (I really LOVE the blatant violation of this one)

19. Miles of beach

20. This was the crown jewel of vacation for me… We went to dinner one night at one of Pop and Gee-Gee’s favorite restaurants and as we are leaving, I scan the wall of autographed photos only to find this one. It was like I had traveled to another dimension… What? Really? Sensei John Kreese from the Karate Kid?!?! That is classic. I really wanted my friend Liz to be with me at that moment, as she is truly the only other person on earth who would have full appreciation for the fact that he signed his photo “Sweep the leg, Johnny”

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

Leo Turns Two

It is hard to believe that it has been two years since the amazing fiasco that was Leo’s birth. And what a crazy two years it has been… more so for us, as we try to keep up with him!

To celebrate, we had Uncle Michael, Uncle Adam and Auntie Jess over for a little BBQ (man, it was hot) and some cake. And because we are parents first and foremost, we caught it all on tape. I must say, this year’s adventures in cake was a little more eventful than Birthday #1.

And for those of you with dial up (ahem, mom), a series of still photos… starting with the cake:

Careful, buddy. Don’t want to get dirty…

Keep those fingers clean….

Go for it!

Ahhhhh, yeah boyeeeee….

But Leo is not alone when it comes to loving cake. He learned everything he knows from his big sister.

Stay tuned for more photos from his upcoming birthday party this weekend!

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

Givvins Visit Marshalls

I am so behind on my blog posts… or lack thereof.

Over Memorial Day weekend, we had the privilege of hosting the Givvins and we had a great time. It is always so great to see them - and always so sad to see them go. Over the years, we’ve been able to let go of a lot of the California stuff, but it is hard to argue that the California friends are irreplaceable.

We used the visit as an excuse to get out and do some fun things too.

Went to the fair (and Leo got whiny on the nont-so-merry-go-round).

Finally got around to trying out Hopworks.

Daddy approves!

And the littlest Givvin turns his water into modern art.

A little science fun at OMSI…

A little up and down at the park…

And a pose with Portland’s favorite family… the Simpsons!

Until next time…

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

Marshallhawks

Back around Father’s Day, Michael finally gave Leo the haircut he was shooting for when the boy wiggled around and got bald-efied. And, just for the weekend, Daddy gave himself a matching haircut. Here they are: Michael and Leo (aka, Chuck Little, aka Lil Evil).

And the weekend ended with Michael’s salute to Chuck Liddell… at the zoo… which is not really the toughest place to pull out such an impersonation:-)