gobble gobble

Well, after having turkey three of the past five days, I am officially on a vegetarian diet for the next twenty four hours. Okay, okay, I am having turkey rice veggie soup for lunch tomorrow for lunch. And dinner. And the next two days...

The past several years we have hunkered down at home over Thanksgiving, not wanting to travel in the snow with small children and wanting more quiet time to enjoy the long weekend. But this year, we thought, what the heck? Let's continue with our world traveling and head up to Fargo. 

It wasn't too long before Jaxon and Kiley made themselves right at home at grandma and grandpas house. Jaxon and grandpa crafted a matchbox car ramp out of an apple pie box. It's no Hot Wheels sky jump, but it will do.

Kiley made herself at home with Grandma's jewelry stash and the dog toys... though it took her a little while to warm up to that Sammy (one of two dogs) and Maggie. By the end of our visit, she was intensely focused on Maggie of all animals- the cat who doesn't really do anything. Sorry Mags. Kiley just followed her all around saying screetching 'Kitty!!'.

On Thursday afternoon we headed over to the Geurin side (my mom's side) for a turkey dinner, lefse (actually one of my favorite parts!) and some awesome too much football.

We snapped a few photos in the backyard- yes, it really was 57 degrees in Fargo in November. I know, unheard of. No, it wasn't a dream. Yes, we lived through the blizzard of 91 and no they don't talk like that movie Fargo.

Oh yah, you betcha they do.

The kids got squeezed by grandma and grandpa...

I got squeezed by the kids...

The four generations of women (and Jaxon)... (no squeezin')....

And then lo and behold, a Thanksgiving Miracle happened.

Jaxon asked for a carrot. He not only wanted to see the carrot, he wanted to dip it in ranch and eat the carrot. It was truly a miracle--he even went back for more. Mark this one for the record books.

Kiley kept grandpa busy by taking the salt and pepper tops on and off. For a long time. Welcome to our world dad. The joy of doing nothing and being really excited about it.

On Friday, we went to the Walkers, where we had another turkey, ham, some other yummies... Kiley really enjoyed herself.

Hey dad- I'm gonna need some more of those beans.

And then Saturday we spent the morning just hanging out. I love moments like these.

They sure do make all the fighting, bickering, toy stealing, walloping on the head, and general misbehavior worth it. Maybe they were just putting on a show, but it sure seemed to me that Jaxon genuinely loves his little sister. And I know Kiley looks up to Jaxon in every way possible. Just today, she saw him going 'pee-pee' and she started saying 'potty-potty', pointing frantically. So I set her on the potty just for fun. She loves to be like her brother... in many ways they are the best of friends.

I so love watching them grow up together. Though I have to say I am getting a little nervous... I think the older Kiley gets, the more in cahouts she will be with Jaxon. Scott and I don't know it yet, but we have trouble on our hands with these guys!

Nevertheless, I am so very very thankful for the blessings of family, friends, children, good health, and most of all, simple moments- the joy of doing nothing and being really really excited about it.

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving...

hummingbirds and Tootsie pops

four airplaines, two shuttle trains, six people movers, 6 Tootsie-pops, 8 chocolate chip cookies, a box of cheese-its, 17 fruit snacks, two applesauce squeezes, lots of 7-up, five fruit strips, many unsuccessful organic crackers and yogurt drops, and a few stops at McDonald's....

we made it to Sacramento and back...

with two kids...one who can only sit still for a maximum of 17 seconds and the other who asks more questions than Alex Trebec on Jeapardy...

we arrived on a Wednesday afternoon to surprise the birthday girl Carol- I wish we had photos of this... the look on her face was priceless and she didn't miss a beat... just gave us all hugs, welcomed us into her home for the next five days, and offered us a beer... only a true friend or family does that... she certainly is both.

on Thursday, we woke up and decided to go to the park--there were lots of ducks, a doggie snack break, and a very wet playground... there was also a little boy who had to stop because he had a hangnail....

Carol and Jaxon managed to do some digging, despite the hard sand...

 On Friday afternoon we ventured out to the Sacramento Zoo--across from FairyTale Land. We all remember the incident at Fairy Tale Land (click here if you do not remember the incident at Fairy Tale Land). So, we were hoping we didn't have a repeat of the incident at FairyTale Land. Especially since Carol had just been insulted at the admission window when the clerk asked her if she qualified for the 65 and older discount. Absolutely not!

Jaxon put his charm to good work as soon as he saw this camoflauge stroller. Even though we had a perfectly capable stroller to push Kiley in, we rented this one for $8 and then just pushed an empty stroller.

 I beleive this is our only family shot from the whole trip... and we are standing next to a giant monkey. Fitting because Kiley kind of sounds like a monkey sometimes when she shrieks.

And this is one of my favorite photos... what would any loving father do when his daughter cries because he took something away from her? Laugh in her face. I mean, sometimes you just have to. Really. You would know if you lived with her.

It was all good though since Jaxon had a map and could tell us where we were going (and that we had yet to see that pointy-nosed-animal).

We also did an interesting thing while we were in California. We drove to Lodi, about 40 minutes from where we were, to see cranes.

Yes, cranes.

Now, most people who know me, know that I'm not particularly fond of birds. Especially being in an open field with them flying over your head. (I've had far too many close encounters with 'the birds' and often imagine myself in that horrific scene from 'The Birds' when she gets pecked to death by birds.)

Too much for a kids' blog?

Okay, so anyway... we drive to this big open field, and arrive about ten minutes before sunset. Interestingly, there were other people there too. Lots of them actually for it being in the middle of nowhere. All of them armed with cameras way more powerful than ours. We figured something might happen... and Carol and Jeri promised hundreds of cranes would show up, each making their craney sound... and they were right.

All of a sudden, around 5pm when the sun had just set, like clockwork, these cranes just started coming out of nowhere. Apparently they do this every day. They fly out to work and then fly home to nest... (or something like that). Pretty amazing sight actually, even for someone who fears birds in open fields. This picture doesn't really tell the whole story- you had to be there...

 Put it on your bucket list the next time you're in Sacramento.

  

Saturday was the big party. We sure missed the rest of the Hoods- Laura, Janet, and Jeff- but we had so much fun celebrating with those who were there. Fun to catch up with everyone and Kiley got to make a new friend too- baby Ella. She is a little sweetie.

Kiley showed her where all the tupperware was and how to be silly by putting it on your head. She's got some real leadership qualities, that girl. Especially with her ability to be vocal about what she wants.

 

Kiley says, 'later Ella, I will show you how to put a shoe in your shirt and make people laugh.'

Skills for a lifetime. 

 Jaxon made Carol a leaf. He sure was proud to show it to her. He was also quite proud of his ability to eat apple cake (below). Good stuff. I can attest.

 The chefs were doing their thing in the kitchen and they wowed us with risotto, ribs, chicken, pasta salad, and something else I'm sure. I can't say for sure, because I didn't do much, but it really seemed like a lot of work. Probably a good thing not all of the Hoods were there!

Again, for someone who's not really a fan of birds, one of my favorite things about spending time at Carol and Jeri's was the hummingbird feader out front. We'd be talking or sharing stories, and out of nowhere Jaxon would exclaim 'the hummingbird is back!' and we'd all watch him feed, along with all of his friends. They're pretty magical little birds- they've always somewhat fascinated me.

I think this quote about hummingbirds (from wikipedia) sums up our time spent in California, with dear friends and family...

'In Native American culture, a hummingbird symbolizes timeless joy and the Nectar of Life. It's a symbol for accomplishing that which seems impossible and will teach you how to find the miracle of joyful living from your own life circumstances.'

I know it seemed impossible to us to fly across the country with two little kids, our luggage, a stroller, a laptop and an HP touchpad... but we found our joyful living in Tootsie Pops, playing Oh Hell and 31, and watching cranes swoop in from afar.

Thanks Carol and Jeri (and Margaret!) for a wonderful trip, lasting memories, and hey- did you ever find Kiley's fork??