some videos and an aside....

Taylor lost a tooth and said, "I'll just leave it on my desk, it's easier to reach." So practical, but still, he'll have the money, please.

way behind....

I have several things I would like to get posted, but, I don't think today looks good for it. However, before I forget, Taylor's baseball team is so good. They amaze me a play or two every game, but last night, they were on fire. They won 16 to 7, and except for one or two mistakes, they were wonderful. The game on Saturday ended with a 12 to 12 tie. But, Taylor hit the ball at least once in both games. I don't actually remember, but I have some videos. Things are a little busy at the moment, but I will get them up. We are about to have spring break, so that will allow catchup time. There are other things that I want to accomplish before the blog hits priority again. Trent and I have had to spend a lot of time lately taking turns staying home with the sick babies, but they are getting better and were only sick for 3 or 4 days. He was sick, too and so, got to stay home Sunday afternoon. It was really nice for an afternoon to spend at home together.

a haircut and a crowded bed....

Taylor has been talking for weeks about getting his haircut and has mentioned several (very interesting) hairstyle ideas, but he has not settled on anything. I cut Trent's hair off, at his request, and so last night Taylor let me cut his off. He is planning on growing parts of it back out, but still hasn't decided which parts he wants to grow. I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation we shared while I cut his hair. He is so stinking smart that I felt behind him the whole time. He was referring to things that I didn't realize he knew and it took me a few sentences before I realized what he was saying. Then, I would think, "Oh, I see" and reply. Then, it was on to the next thing the same way. Sometimes he just catches me off guard. He even made a metaphor about metaphors (don't know how we got there, but there were metaphors flying) and he said he is "the opposite of Samson". At any rate the hair got cut and looks just fine. I am sure that, like Trent, he'll be glad for it the first time he starts to sweat. Now it is my turn to whack off the locks. Also, over the last few weeks, Jewel has been showing more and more interest in her dolls, and that is very cute. She fell asleep with Pooh and her princess doll last night. But, when she came to bed, rather than a sippy cup of water (the usual) she brought her "twin" doll (which is hard plastic) and her pooh. Both of them slept with us, one tucked under each arm all night. So funny, and crowded. She even tried to make me hold the hard plastic doll at one point. But when I gave it back she whined and hugged it and went back to sleep. I have some pictures but they will have to wait, it's Monday. Tuesday I get to go to orientation, obviously I can't wait.

for taylor from TED...

daddy's little joke and an 'eructo'

This song goes out to Trent, now, stop asking me that question....you know the one I mean. I could come up with more to post about (this week was pretty exciting for the physics world) but, I am just starting to feel better after this cold, and I just don't have it in me. But, I did want to keep up with a little about school this week. We finally got around to getting the Muzzy program from the BBC, and although I think it is slightly overpriced, it seems to be speeding the process along. As neither of us (the parents) is fluent in any foreign languages, we can't really do the optimal thing (just speaking the language in the home) to help the kids learn. But, we are both learning new words and use what we know whenever the chance presents itself. Now, with the videos, cds, and computer game, the kids are trying to speak more too. Already I have noticed 5 more common phrases that are being said in various languages. And (the reason I just had to post about it) Trevor just tonight asked me, "Mom, what is 'dark' in spanish?" I didn't know, so we looked it up together. An hour later, while practicing his new fave trick 'belching', he asked what 'belch' is in spanish. He even told my mom "goodbye" in italian for me. Taylor, too, has a new interest in learning Spanish. He was interested before, but his motivation has increased. So, if any one has Level II, we will soon be looking for it. Peace.

D-backs faced the Rays again....

The boys had a good game, they tied with the Rays 7 to 7 in the 7th inning. This was the first time they had time to play into another inning with the tie. But, they couldn't get around the bases again, and they didn't let the other team either. Better a tie than a loss. I caught a few videos. (Jewel's mouth is blue because someone gave her a blue lollipop.)

tidbit about influences....

Taylor finished two lectures on geometry and felt tired, he is at the end of a little cold. I said, "just rest on the couch, before your game, and watch this movie with me." "What is it?" "It's a musical, it's really old." He replied, "Mom, I really don't like musicals." I said, "It's just like High School Musical, except better." "Um, Mom, I hate High School Musical." I said, "Well, just rest here and ignore it then." "OK." About 10 minutes later, Taylor was laughing out loud. By the end he said, "Maybe I should take tap lessons." He actually watched all of Singing in the Rain and liked it. Geez, I love Gene Kelly!

a couple of unrelated things and some stuff....

There are several things that I have been meaning to post about and I just haven't taken the time. So, I am now taking the time, because I have a cold and I am feeling a little too run down to do much else. First, I finally found a recipe for bread and pizza crust that is truly easy and useful. It is the Crusty Bread recipe from Mother Earth News magazine (Dec. issue, I think), and I can make it 100% whole wheat. I had never heard of this magazine, but my mom sent me a subscription last year, now I am afraid I never want to give it up. The recipe is one that you can get 4 loaves from and leave in the fridge for up to two weeks. If I were making bread with it I would add honey, but I have made several pizzas and even the kids love it. It is great, because now they can have something they consider "junk food" and I don't feel guilty about it. All I have to do is lay the dough out 40 min. in advance. Another thing that I thought was neat, is that the broccoli I was growing bloomed. I did harvest one head and it was delicious, but after we decided not to plant again, I left the others and just watched them. Now there are interesting looking seed pods all over two of them. I hope that our plans to get some beds prepared work out, this summer. I am only going to take one class, so that will help. I want to make sure that I am able to fit it in before I get too much going on and with a shorter semester I don't want to be overwhelmed. Also, Trevor started a new gymnastics class without me, and he enjoyed it so much. The instructor is very good with the kids and Trevor is the youngest in the class, so he follows along with the others well. Jewel starts dance class in a few weeks. I can't wait. Oh, and Trent and Taylor are both chopping their hair off. Trent's is done, but Taylor is trying to decide on a style. I am considering it, I'm just not sure how short I want to go this time. I think I have enough for a fourth donation to Locks of Love, but I know it won't beat the record 16 inches I donated before. I doubt I'll do the cropped off look I had after boot camp, but maybe. There were a few other things I thought I might mention, but on second thought, I'm done.

Tony's birthday party....

Last night, we went to a birthday party for Tony, who has been friends with my parents since I was a baby. His wife, Judy, was not only at the delivery of Taylor, she was the only one awake with me at two in the morning when I reached the proper dilation. She wrote me almost every day while I was in boot camp and cried with my mom when I left the airport for Chicago, and I used Strawberry scented shampoo while there, just because while shopping, it reminded me of her kitchen. She was the first person to buy Taylor a pooh doll, within 24 hours of me telling my mom that I was pregnant. She was there in the room when they finally brought Ethan to us and then took him to TGH. She was there within minutes the morning that Ethan died. She is as much my friend as my mother's and I just love her. So, imagine how bad I felt when she said she hasn't ever seen Jewel before last night! What! She has only seen Trevor once. I have seen her a few times, but I guess I never had the babies with me. That is just crazy! I suppose it is better than others at the party. People that I saw all the time growing up, but who have only heard about me from my mom and sister for the last 12 years didn't even recognize me at first. It was nice to see everyone again. And it was great to celebrate another birthday for Big Daddy Tone! (there are a few more videos on youtube.)

a few lazy days...

I love that I can say things to Jewel like, "Let's get in the van." And now, instead of a confused look, she says, "OK, fan, fan, wun wun wun, bubba, go!" Not only is it really cute, but every little thing she learns to do for herself, especially by voice command, so to speak, makes my life easier and more efficient. She will now find her cup/doll/toy/crayons herself, get into her seat in the van herself, and frequently attempts to undiaper herself. She says,"I tinky, diaper, i tinky, momma!" Trevor is learning new things to do for himself too, but they are more subtle. Such as, getting to nickjr.com without help, or wiping his own butt. Honestly, now that these are the things he is trying, I would rather just do them for him (sometimes) because the mistakes are more time consuming to fix. He is also learning to pour his own drinks and help me cook, so you can imagine the messes that can generate. (Don't worry, Taylor found the egg shell in his pancake before he ate it.) There were lots of learning activities that we did the last two days. But, it was a kind of lazy study. We did a few experiments to complement the things we learned from the Joy of Science lectures (5 and 6). We tried to find the iron in our cereal, an activity from the about.com email "kids chemistry activities of the week". Then we did a few motion and force experiments from My Book of Science Experiments. We also started reading The Odyssey (and it's lecture). We also watched two movies for a break, and to get them sent back so Dad can get the movie he's been waiting on. I also started reading The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, which I loved when I was young. I read to Taylor while he plays a video game, sometimes we read outside, sometimes we walk and read, and sometimes we listen to audio books while we play video games together. (I actually managed to read three articles from Discover magazine while on the treadmill, not while running, obviously.)