Pamela's 32nd Birthday

Years ago, for my 27th birthday, Pamela put together a list of 27 things that she loved about me.  It was such a sweet gesture, and one of the nicest birthday presents ever.  This year, for Pamela’s 32nd birthday, I made a list of 32 things I loved about Pamela.

1. Her Smile.  She had the kindest and most infectious smile.  It would brighten the room and make all those around her smile as well.   
2. Love for the kids.  She loved them with all her heart and you could tell by the things she said and the things she would do for them.  
3. Sense of style.  She had such good personal style in the clothes she would wear, the jewelery, hair, and makeup.  Everything worked together and it was always a classy, timeless look.  Never over the top trendy, just plain good style that looked as good today as it would 10 years from now.  
4. Style for me and for the kids.  It’s no surprise that Pamela was in charge of picking out the clothes for the rest of the family as well.  She made sure we were all looking good.
5. Driven with her career.  She was always a great businesswoman and worker.  She focused and worked so hard at her job.  She was going to go back to full time at her job once the kids were in school.  She wanted to continue to have a fulfilling career outside of the house.
6. Saving Money.  She was such a good saver.  Together we were a savings machine.  Saving for a down payment, new cars, vacations, you name it.  We would set our goals and get there every time.  We also had such a good head start on the kids college funds and our retirement funds.
7. Her body.  She had an amazing physique that any woman would be proud of, let alone a mother of 2 kids.  She was dedicated and worked at it.  She watched her diet, drank lots of water, and made sure to be active as much as possible.  
8. Patience.  Any parent can understand how patience is such an important quality.  Even when the kids weren’t quite behaving she would remain calm and kind with them.
9. Competitive spirit (but always in a good way).  She loved to play games and compete and wanted to be the best at whatever we were doing or playing.  But no matter the outcome or who was winning, she was always encouraging and having fun.
10. Love for helping others.  The entire time I knew her and before that she really loved helping others.  She made it a priority and found time to help others even when our lives were busy and hectic.  
11. Kindness.  I have never met anyone so kind.  She would always show compassion and caring for everyone no matter who they were or where we were.  
12. Holiday spirit.  I loved this about her because it complemented my lack of spirit for most holidays.  She was great about decorating and doing fun activities surrounding each holiday and it really taught me to enjoy them more.
13. Generosity.  Among the many things Pamela taught me, this was another one.  She set a great example for me of how a person can and should be generous towards others.  With time, money, and other resources.  
14. Sense of humor.  Hard to describe this one other than we could always make each other laugh and smile :)
15. Supportive.  She was always my biggest supporter and advocate.  Pamela always had my back and wanted nothing more than for me to succeed at my goals.  
16. Fun.  I think it was because of her attitude, she could make anything fun.  If you’re positive and looking to have a good time, then you will certainly find it no matter what you’re doing.  
17. Toughness/Wellness.  Even when me and the kids and everyone around us would come down with the flu or a cold, somehow Pamela would stay well.  I was thankful for this many times because we all needed someone to stay well and keep things running.  
18. Beautiful.  She was so beautiful. :)
19. Fair and Moral.  Maybe because she was a middle child she had such a strong grasp on what was the most fair and moral route in any situation.  She was a good compass to turn to in tricky situations and I could always trust her judgement.
20. Video Games.  I loved that she enjoyed playing video games.  We would sometimes play together but also played separately at times.  Her favorite games were time management games like the Delicious series.  Our favorite video game to play together was Guitar Hero.
21. Good Listener.  Always attentive and interested in what you had to say.  She truly cared about the conversations and would remember the things you talked about.
22. Adventurous.  She was always willing to try something new.  Sometimes experiences and often times new restaurants.  This was one of those things I loved about her because it complemented my personality so well.  Her adventurousness helped open me up as a person.
23. Happy.  Not a fake kind of happy either.  She was genuinely happy a majority of the time.  I loved being around her because she was so happy it just made me happier being close to her and doing things with her.
24. Good Dancer.  It’s how we met after all.  She asked me to dance and it was the greatest thing that ever happened to me.  
25. Good Singer & Rapper.  This was a bit of a secret talent of Pamela’s; definitely something you wouldn’t guess judging by her appearance.  She was a surprisingly good rapper.  I think she knew all the songs from the 90s but knew some modern songs as well.  
26. Her love for Jordan.  Before the kids, she treated Jordan like our child.  She always made sure Jordan was very well cared for and felt loved.  There’s a reason why Jordan would follow Pamela around and it wasn’t just for the treats.  Pamela loved her and Jordan loved her back.  
27. Pamela would get up first thing in the morning with the kids on the weekends so I could sleep in a little bit before breakfast.  It was only an extra hour but it would make a big difference in my energy level throughout the day.  
28. Pamela would keep me up to date on entertainment and social items that I had no idea about.  She knew all the details about events going on and would organize our calendar with things to do.  Without her, I would have been a lot more isolated from the outside world.  
29. She would always stand up for me and make sure I was treated with respect by everyone.  Nothing would get her more fired up than if someone treated me poorly.  I know she would do anything to make sure I was protected emotionally and physically at all times.
30. Pamela had such a caring group of friends and family around her.  Pamela cultivated a great network of people that she loved and that loved her back.  They all welcomed me in as one of their own and continue to care for and support Ryan, Audrey, and me.
31. Pamela was so good about documenting our lives.  She suggested we start a blog.  She took most of the pictures and videos that I have of our family today.  It never got in the way and she was always able to take a picture or remember details to write down later.  I appreciate it and I know the kids will appreciate the ability to look back on the memories from their first few years.  
32. Pamela was such an amazing person in so many ways, it was hard to narrow down this list.  We were all very fortunate to have known her and have her in our lives.  I was incredibly lucky to be able to call her my wife.  She was my best friend and she completed me as a person.  I loved her with all of my heart and she loved me the same.  We made each other so happy and I will always cherish the time we had together.    

Milk Jug Jack-O-Lanterns

For the last couple of years we have done milk jug jack-o-lanterns as a part of our Halloween decorations.  Pamela saw someone post these things on line and figured it would be fun to try.  So a few weeks or months before Halloween we start saving up milk jugs for the project.  All you have to do is draw funny/scary/happy faces on the jugs with a sharpie.  I'm sure there are fancier ways to make these but they always turn out great.  When we put them out we will cut an access flap in the back to stick a few heavy rocks. This keeps them from knocking over if it gets windy.  Then we run some plain white Christmas lights between the jugs and into each milk jug-o-lantern to light them up.

I keep this picture as a template for fun faces to draw

Even in the daytime they are fun

Jack-O-Lantern Update

At Night - Glowing Elmo

A few years ago I posted about the fun Jack-O-Lanterns we like to make.  It appears we may have taken a year or two off from carving pumpkins, or at least posting about them.  I'm sure we have still done pumpkins but they apparently have not been as photo worthy.  I did find some pictures from '14 where we did a fun one with Ryan.  At the time Sesame Street, and Elmo in particular, were his favorite!

With the lights on - Elmo is carved in relief

These are the only other pumpkin pictures I could find since then.  Ryan dressed as a pumpkin for Halloween and I of course dressed as a pumpkin farmer.

Ryan Pumpkin

Ryan and me dressed up - Halloween 2015

Date Night Phoenix - POSH Restaurant

Matt and I need to get better about going on frequent, scheduled date nights, but it's been tough with work travel and kid schedules and life in general.  But one thing that we always make it out for is Arizona Restaurant Week!!  Typically, we'll try to find some new places to try based on how yummy their prix fix menus look.  But this time, we decided to go back to an old favorite - POSH.

They call themselves "improvisational cuisine" because there is no set menu when you get there.  It's a list of items that could potentially be served that night, and you cross off anything that you absolutely would not want to eat.  Matt is brave and adventurous, so he doesn't cross off anything and leaves it up to the food fates.  I cross off a few things (I'm not big on red fish or animals that I've owned as pets), and then we waited for the courses to start coming.  You choose how many courses you want at the beginning (4, 5 or 6) and whether or not you want a wine pairing with each course (we were driving, so nope!)

Amuse-Bouche:
Little bite to kick off the meal: we both got a Basil Leaf with Cucumber and Coconut Ricotta.  Tasty and refreshing!

Course 1 - Salads: 
Matt got a Watermelon & Tomato salad topped with mint leaves.  Very summery and light, and Matt enjoyed it even though he's not typically a tomato fan.
I got a Butternut Squash puree with Sweet Potato Chips.  Fall-tastic flavor.
Winner: Tie

Course 2 - Fish:
Matt got an Uni mousse with Cucumber Wasabi sauce.  Neither of us had tried Uni before, and I was pleasantly surprised at how un-fishy it tasted.  It was strange to eat something that for sure does not look edible to me when I see it in the ocean :)
I got seared Scallops with Jalapeno sauce and Popcorn.  Who doesn't like popcorn?  It added an interesting crunch to the meal, and the scallops were cooked perfectly.
Winner: Pamela

Course 3 - White Meat:
Matt got Escargot with Purple and Fingerling Potatoes.  I would not try the snails.  Gross.  Matt didn't love them, but didn't hate them either.
I got Sesame-crusted Pork Tenderloin.  I'll never be able to cook a pork chop this well if I tried my whole life.  Why is pork so hard to cook?!
Winner: Clearly Pamela

Course 4 - Dark Meat:
Matt got Goose Breast with Plum and Porridge.  I joked that it might be the most Charles-Dickensy Christmas meal I'd ever heard of.  I tried a bite even though I had geese growing up because geese are jerks and sometimes bite your toes.
I got an amazing take on the BLT - thick-cut Wild Boar Bacon on a compressed Tomato and Romaine leaf.  SO delicious.
Winner: Once again, Pamela

Course 5 - Dessert:
Matt got a Chocolate Ganache cream bar with Caramel Sauce and Chocolate crumbles.  It was insanely rich.
I got a Peach Caputte (pattotie? carpute? I couldn't even Google this one... I have no idea what the waitress called this thing!) with Cream
Winner: depends on what mood you're in - Matt won for decadence, mine was nice and light

Finally, they top off the meal by giving you frozen Passion Fruit Lollipops with your check.  It was a great, exciting meal and a fun way to spend our night out.  We always recommend POSH to people looking for a fun, interesting and adventurous date night!

Mint, Grey & Blue Baby Girl Nursery

Decorating nurseries for our sweet babies was definitely one of my favorite house projects.  It's fun to create such a relaxed, cute space for the little ones to sleep (or scream) in.  For Audrey's room, I struggled with color options since I wanted to avoid pinks and purples.  Nothing against those colors at all - in fact, I love them!  But I knew she would get enough pink and purple stuff from our friends and family, so I wanted to give her some different colors in her world.  I bought a cute outfit at Carter's that inspired my paint choices - Mint Green, Silvery Grey, and Royal Blue.

First up, Matt painted the room in a lovely shade of grey with silver/blue undertones.  Then he added a 1.5' white stripe of paint around the whole room (tough to do with so many angles in her bedroom!)  And then because he hadn't taped enough yet, I had him put a 1' mint stripe within the white stripe so the green would pop off the grey.

We loved Ryan's furniture and didn't feel like doing a crib search all over again, so we ended up getting the same bed/dresser/changing table/toybox/bookshelf combo off Amazon, but in white this time.  I had to find white curtains, which was WAY harder than it should be!  But everything I bought seemed to have a weird tinge of another color in it, it was hard to find a pure white that was not sheer.  I think we went through 4 or 5 sets of curtains before I found some that worked in the room.

Next came decorative touches: her name in wooden letters with blue flowers hot glued onto them.  White frames from IKEA with decorative paper backing and card stock numbers cut out with my Cricut tool.  Some fun flowers, a great mint coffee table box from Target that is doubling as a headband holder.  And of course my throw pillow since no room in my house is complete without at least one.  Then my very talented sister, Kim painted her a blue flower on a canvas to add a final, personal touch to the room.

I love this room and it is such a joy to spend time with Audrey in there.  And I'll look forward to the day when she can voice her opinions and make the room truly her own!

Pie Engineer

A Pie Engineer Hard at Work

One of the best things about having little kids is that you get to teach them things.  Literally everything is new to them and you get to (have to) explain everything to them.  I love that our little guy Ryan is so curious about the world around him.  He is such a little sponge for information and wants to know everything.  This one was from a while ago, but it was one of my favorites.  He had just recently learned that his dad works as an engineer.  I don't think he knows what an engineer is, but he had learned the word and knew that his dad did that in some fashion.  Some time afterwards he saw a DVD player with words on it and wanted to know what it said.  Just as with everything, I read him the word: "Pioneer."  Ryan, not quite getting it at first, repeated it back as "Pie Engineer."   Even better.  I wish I could get a job as a pie engineer, that would be a pretty sweet job!

Audrey Update

Our sweet girl just turned one year old!  Since she didn't get monthly written updates on her progress during her first year, I'm condensing a year's worth of sweetness and fun into one mega-post.  Sweet is truly the best way to describe Audrey.  She has such a big heart and loves to cuddle and smile and play.  She is a mama's girl to the extreme, which I don't mind at all.  But she also has a feisty side that crops up every once in a while and lets me know she is going to be a strong, smart, funny girl on top of being the most beautiful little lady in the world.

Snuggle Bug

Some fun and cute stories about our girl that I want to remember:

She likes to play games, including one where I pretend to fall asleep on floor and she rushes over to kiss my face, aggressively snuggle me or climb over me in an effort to "wake" me up.  She loves to race her brother in their ride-along cars: her in the Mickey Mouse car, Ryan in the Construction one.  Matt or I will push her as fast as we can go in a circuit around the house and she bounces and smacks the steering wheel with excitement.  And sometimes, if she's feeling calm, I will scratch her back while she just relaxes and occasionally giggles and twitches.

Her favorite activity is reading books, which just makes my heart soar!  She goes to her bookshelf or to the table of books in her playroom and searches through the piles until she finds something that catches her eye.  Her current favorites are lift-the-flaps, anything with dogs or other animals, and trucks with faces.  Sometimes when she gets a new book, we will sit down to read it and once I close the book at the end, she flips it over and demands we read it again immediately, multiple times.  If I am sitting in the playroom, she will grab some books and crawl or walk them right over to me and thrust them in my face with a smile.  I hope to always foster a love for reading with her so we can exchange books when she's older :)

She's already getting good at her animal noises.  When she sees a dog (in real life, a book, on TV), she will pant and stick her tongue out.  She can hoot like an owl, and does a mean lion growl.  And she's currently working on monkey noises as well.

Speaking of dogs, Jordan has captured Audrey's affections, much like she did Ryan's.  Audrey loves to crawl over and pet Jordan's fuzzy head and pat her on the back.  She thinks it's hilarious to feed her treats,  Whenever we are snacking, she hands half of her food over to the dog.  If I tell her not to feed the dog, she will pretend that the treats are for her by putting them in her own mouth, then turning away from me and taking them out of her mouth to feed Jordan.  Such a cute little friendship that makes me grateful for our great little pooch.

Her best friend, however, is definitely her big brother Ryan.  He is so sweet to his Sissy Missy, and she just adores him in return. I will sometimes be working in a separate room of the house and hear them both giggling wildly.  When I go to see what's so funny, Ryan is just making faces at her or making a weird noise that she finds hilarious.  If Audrey wakes up before Ryan in the morning, it is a struggle to keep her away from his door - she wants to go over and knock to wake him up to play.  Ryan will hold "his" baby while they watch cartoons together, or they will crawl around on a mattress together pretending to be dinosaurs.

Her hair is getting so much lighter these days, going from a dark brown to a very light brown that borders on blonde in the sunlight.  I've already had to cut her bangs multiple times, otherwise they fan over her eyes and down to her mouth where they get in her way.  And she's now old enough to pull headbands off, so haircuts are the easier option.  Still not enough length anywhere else to style, but just so cute.

#longhairdon'tcare

In terms of mobility, she started crawling around 8 months old and got around well that way.  When she would crawl, she preferred to do so with an object in one or both of her hands (washcloths, toys, anything she could find on the floor).  She started walking fairly early, taking her first lone steps on 7/29/16 at the age of 11 months.  While she walked, she laughed and laughed, amused and amazed at her new skill.  Now, she is an incredibly persistent and determined walker.  She will pick herself up after falling again and again without getting frustrated.  And if she wants to hold on to my hands, it means she has somewhere she wants to go fast, and will nearly run with my help.

She has a love for all things music and musical, and I think she will be a lover of the arts.  She likes to play her xylophone, recorder, triangle and drums.  But what she really loves is to listen to pop or hip hop music on my phone and dance to it.  If she hears a song with a good beat, she is all smiles and bounces.  She also loves to color (although we're still working on the part where you don't eat the crayons in between scribbling).  Since I have very limited artistic ability, it is so cool to see this side of her emerge.

She's got 3 little teeth right now - 2 on the bottom and one that just came in on top.  But that hasn't stopped her from trying every food we offer to her.  From the time she cut her first teeth, pizza has been her favorite meal to eat.  She also loves spaghetti, gnocchi, potatoes of any kind really, and mac & cheese.  Her favorite food overall is probably just whatever fruit we have that day, be it grapes or blueberries or mangoes.  If she sees fruit coming, she tosses everything else off of her high chair to make room for it.  (We affectionately call her "The Tosser," as she likes to walk or crawl around and toss anything she sees in her path off to the side or behind her.)

I'm sure there are a million more little things that I'm forgetting right now, but those are just a few fun things about my girl.  She brings so much joy to our lives and just completes our family in a way that I could have never expected.  I feel so lucky to be her mama, and I'll try to do a better job of jotting down the cute stories about her so she can read them someday if she'd like!