movin' on up...

how rude of me!
i haven't introduced you to my new best friend.
her name is mabel and she's mine.

she's an early birthday present from my whole family.
she's my new "kitchen maid."
she's totally professional.
she's definitely a step up from the six-dollar handheld mixer that only has one working beater.

in the first four days that she was in my kitchen she helped me make
the fluffiest peanut butter frosting
and my first (ever!) loaves of crusty, soft yummy white bread.
the bread was so good i went so far as to make 100% whole grain bread with honey and it is amazing.
oh, and don't forget the gooey caramel creme brownies.

now that i know i can make bread without screwing it up (pretty sure the dough hook is the key, because my pizza dough attempts have been miserable), i think i'm ready to start making some for other people to try.

boy, do i like mabel. 
thank you to all my family, for trusting me with your tastebuds. you won't be sorry.

wait? who ate half the pan of brownies? i guess it was the baby.

speaking of babies, just a quick update:

baby boo is doing well. she is kicking me nearly senseless. 

she really loves red meat. ribs, steak, burgers - you name it and i want it. i could eat ribs every single day. twice. mmm, and steak for breakfast. 

she loves sweets, especially chocolate. i've been downing golden grahams like crazy.

she also loves when i drink diet rootbeer. 

pretty sure we're going to have double trouble around here. 

this new little boo has such a big personality already.

brasstown bald.

during our little vacation, daddy took us on a day trip to brasstown bald.

it's the highest point in georgia and is very close to our border with north carolina. 

the drive isn't actually very far, just a few hours north. it was fun to be in the mountain country on the winding roads - almost like being back for a visit in the rockies. 

it was a perfect day for hiking. even though it was hot, it was breezy and a little overcast and the sun didn't bother us much. there is a .6 mile trail from the parking lot to the summit. we were a little bit worried about getting ellie and my wide load up the trail, seeing as it is described as "very steep" and there is a shuttle available. also... i was wearing flip-flops, because i didn't know where we were going when i got in the car.

we wanted to give it a try and it ended up being no sweat - okay, maybe a lot of sweat but not a tough hike. we only had to rest twice and, although the trail was steep, it was nothing compared to timp cave - if you've been there you know what i'm talking about. in fact, it really wasn't a big deal compared to almost any trail i've been on in utah. i think they warn people about the steepness because they don't want to be rescuing retirees off the mountain all day (and because they get to charge $3 a pop for the shuttle). 

(disclaimer: after carrying that girl all the way up on his shoulders, his sweaty hair makes it look like he has bald spot. :) that is just what happens when a baby musses up sweaty hair. both of us ended up with such sweaty, gross hair that most of our pictures aren't very glamorous.)

("it's not the heat, it's the humidity!" - except the heat index has been like, 110 degrees lately.)

ellie was a wonderful little shoulder-rider and we explored when we got to the top. i think she thought it was a playground and she didn't want to stop running from one end of the deck to the other. the view is pretty incredible, especially considering that the woods in georgia keep you from seeing very far in any direction when you're anywhere else. you can see south carolina, north carolina, tennessee and (of course) georgia from the lookout.

  

both smiling at the same time. miracle?! too bad my hair is a joke!

 

in the visitors center, there was even a two-man saw display! we thought grampa brad would be happy to see it. ellie liked playing with it, but it was hard to get pictures in there with the way that the sun was coming in the windows. she also liked crossing the little bridge and looking at the "stuffed" animals. 

on the way home, we stopped at burger king because ellie's tummy was making her grumpy. she got a little ahead of herself - this girl is getting too big for her britches. i was feeding her pieces of a burger when she decided to grab the entire thing and eat it herself. i tried to pry it out of her hands because the toppings were all about to slide out onto her lap and in the chaos she threw the burger at the window and we all watched in horror as it slid down the glass. what an attitude! luckily we were in a booth - i don't know what would have happened if she had thrown it into the crowded dining room. she hadn't ever done anything like that before, but she was extremely hungry and tired at the time. i'm hoping that the terrible twos aren't starting already. i'm also glad that we most likely won't ever be eating there again. not only did we make a beautiful scene, but there were no high chairs and they didn't even have a changing station in the bathroom! (maybe it's their fault that ellie had a fit - she felt like she wasn't wanted.)

it was nice to get out and see the mountains here in georgia. it made me want to hike the appalachian trail even more than i did before we went. maybe in a long time, when we're empty nesters and have free time again. that gives me a few years to get in shape, too.

wordsmith.

i feel like i'm really behind on mentioning this, but ellie has become a little chatterbox. 

even just a few weeks ago we could hardly get her to talk. she would whisper and sing a little, but nothing much - especially in public. she didn't even really jabber. i remember someone asking me "you know how babies just scream to hear themselves make noise?" no, i didn't know. 

it used to be impossible to make her laugh, even. she would smile and sometimes do the silent giggle, but laughing out loud was rare. 

it has all happened so suddenly, but it feels like she has always been talking.

some of the things she says: 

"mama"  (finally.)

"baw" (ball)

"beebee" (baby)

"mee mee!" (usually "hungry" or "gimme")

"shet" (sit - yes, it's a good one)

"duhie" (judgie)

"eye" (exactly what it sounds like)

"dut" (duck)
"toyee" (story)

"byeeee! byeee!" and "buh-bye" 

(whenever we go anywhere or shut a door or walk away from someone or something, including toys)

"err eh-ee" ("where's ellie?")

"ear ahh" ("here are," which means "here i am")

"ehdoh?" ("where'd it go?")

"whydeh" ("right there")

oh, and her new favorite word (now that she has been in nursery):

"noew!"(no)

i have to try not to laugh when she says it, not only because i'm surprised but because it sounds like she is saying "meow" with an "n." oh, it is so horrible and so cute.

she can say "pees" and "dando" (please and thank you), but she rarely does. 

i say to her: "can you say please?"
she replies: "yes."

oh dear. 

 oh, and sneak preview:

that's right. in other world news, daddy has been taking a vacation of sorts and we have a lot to catch up on - including a hike to the tallest peak in georgia, spending time with our first and only nephew and my early birthday present. woohoo! be looking for some posts later this week.

daring again.

 it's that time of year again. 

(see last year's post) 

okay, so i have only done this once before but i feel totally awkward when i do things like this. i'm a rather private person on some accounts and i'm really not one to toot my own horn or draw attention to myself. part of me wishes i could just submit these and then let you know how it goes, or if it even "goes."

but here we go: toooot. tooooot. 

last year i entered 

shabby apple's dare to design contest 

(click to see their blog and read about the contest)

and i was a semifinalist, so i figured i'd try my hand at it again. 

the colors at the top have been on my mind lately, so my dresses all have them.

i'm not loving the colors i used on number 2, so i decided to include the unfinished drawings.  

(can you tell that i did these late at night after my tornado baby finally fell asleep?)

with this last one i like all the colors, but pink best of all. maybe having a little girl growing inside me makes me love pink more, i don't know. the last design is my favorite in general, too.

anyway, check out their blog for updates (but i'll be sure to let you know, too). 

and if you're in need of a beautiful dress, this one is one of my favorites.

the blessed day.

(singing the popcorn song: "... surprise!")

hallelujahs were heard world-round as this little booger stepped into nursery for the first time.

it had been a long nine months of wrestling a fully mobile baby. i can't lie, it was mostly daddy who had to wrestle since i was tied up teaching kids. these past few months she has been a tiny tornado. who wants to sit still when you're in a giant room with plenty of space to run, anyway? 

she loved playing with toys and didn't even notice when i left the room for a few minutes. she also followed the lead of the older kids after playtime and sat quietly around the table, waiting for snacks. she didn't want to leave the table for the lesson, though, because she wanted more food to show up in front of her. 

her hair even stayed in little pigtails the whole time. 

(this hairdo - and mine - brought to you by yo gabba gabba. it keeps her mesmerized enough to let me mess with her and content enough that i can get some things done. let's admit it: if church was a cartoon on tv, life would be much easier.)

some thoughts on a tuesday.

on sunday, some guys in a band stopped by church. they're on tour and just happened to be in the area for the weekend. husband talked with them a little and found out they knew a lot of people from our "previous life" in provo.

we told them, "they haven't ever seen us like this."
they especially haven't seen me in a dress, six months pregnant, holding a squirmy toddler and wearing a backpack full of diapers, scriptures, crayons and toys.
(incidentally, it was ellie's first week in nursery. i'll give you some pictures of my big girl tomorrow.)

i can't stop thinking about how much has changed in just a few short years.

i often find myself thinking
"if anyone told me five years ago that this was going to be my life, i wouldn't have believed it."

not that my life isn't what i wanted, it just would have been impossible for me to comprehend all the things that have happened between then and now.

this song always makes me think of parenthood, of marriage and of life in general. it's simply beautiful and beautifully simple, as most good things are. it is 100% appropriate for how i feel.

putting all the vegetables away
that you bought at the grocery store today
and it goes fast
you think of the past
suddenly everything has changed


driving home, the sky accelerates
and the clouds all form a geometric shape
and it goes fast
you think of the past
suddenly everything has changed


putting all the clothes you’ve washed away
and as you’re folding up the shirts you hesitate
then it goes fast
you think of the past
and suddenly everything has changed

(my favorite song by the flaming lips, covered by the postal service)
(i couldn't find a very good video of the flaming lips version)

dinosaur park on a stormy morning.

there is a lot of cranky boredom going on around here, caused by molars, toddlerhood and hot summer days (oh, and naughty, noisy birds living in our chimney - yeck!). we've been trying to get out of the house almost every day. we have a pass to the huge park nearby, so a couple of days ago we took off during the cool morning hours before the rain started.

can you think of a better place to play than a dinosaur tot lot? 

we took a very short walk around the boat docking area and ended up drenched with sweat in the humid air. a good day in the park always makes for a good nap, though.

(taking pictures was hard - as you can see by the quality. i had to wipe off the lens almost constantly because it fogged up in the humidity. any tips on how to keep that from happening?)