Thursday, May 17, 2007

Connecticut native brings a fresh perspective to Colorado

My cousin Diane has an amazing talent for photography and a passion for horses that comes alive in her shots. She's just released a new web gallery of work called Red Feather Ranch Photography. Her photos will inspire you to take a visit to the Wild West or your local stable.

Wednesday, May 09, 2007

The 'terrible twos' we'd only heard about

We are going on 3 days without a nap. I refuse to believe the veteran mom warnings I've been hearing that our days of sleepy afternoon bliss are over. This transition to the big boy bed is wreaking havoc on our (my) beloved afternoon routine. Sam figured out this week that a bed works unlike a crib. It offers FREEDOM! and EXPLORATION! because he can GET OUT AT WILL! Once this discovery was made, we dealt with running around upstairs for the first day. Then, we put a gate up at his bedroom door in hopes he'd at least be contained and eventually he'd fall asleep. In preparing this new safe environment, we tried to imagine what hazards he might uncover in his room if left unaccompanied and we eliminated them. But he outsmarted us. This afternoon while he was not napping, I heard several loud thuds and headed upstairs curiously to see what the commotion was about. What I encountered was a mess of two year old proportions.

Note the goofy look of surprise on his face as he trots over to his bed. Note the toys, books and wipes scattered everywhere. Last, note the biggest offender, the open diaper cream on the windowsill with the last of the container carefully finger painted all over the top of my vintage cedar chest. Thankfully, it wasn't the industrial strength variety that surely would have left a coat of impermeable white on the surface for all eternity. Silly you, you say for leaving all those stimulating items in his room. Well, I hear you and this evening we removed all the toys and baby hygiene items from the room so he can only be lulled to sleep by the sounds of his own humming. Tomorrow at naptime, I'm putting the blinds down and we'll try again. Until then, rest well my love, it isn't bright enough to play by the light of the moon.

Friday, May 04, 2007

Grilling!


Hey hey! Warm weather is finally here and we just bought our first gas grill. What a great feeling. Here I am putting the Weber to the test for the first time.

It seems that there's no buying decision Deanna and I can't over complicate. We both swore that we didn't want anything special- just a basic grill. Grills get nasty after a couple of winters outside, right? First we went to Home Depot, then Lowe's- where we actually bought one. Then we got cold feet, reconsidered, and canceled the order with Lowe's. Then to Natick Fireplace, Sears and then back to Home Depot again. Then we ended up placing the order at Natick Fireplace. I'm finding supporting the local companies a more viable thing to do here than in Phoenix.

Did you know that almost every store will assemble a grill for free? But the rub is that an assembled grill is really big. Like- too big to fit in the CR-V. But have no fear- they'll deliver them for only $45. What a deal! Early Wednesday morning, while I was working in our home office, 2 nice gentlemen delivered and set up our wonderful grill.

I'm thrilled. Not only is it a great feeling cooking outside at the end of the day, but buying a grill somehow makes me feel more settled than even buying this house did. It's a good feeling. I've gotten more enjoyment "puttering" around the house and the yard than I thought I would. With baby #2 arriving shortly, I don't think we're going to be traveling anywhere soon. And for once, in spite of my tendency to wander, that's OK with me.
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