I Am the "Whistler's Mother"

Lucy can really whistle! A couple weeks ago she did it accidentally, but now she knows she's doing it, although she's very quiet. You might have to listen closely. After I made this video, I noticed she's been getting better and better at it... what a weird thing to accomplish so early!

Get Smart

A couple weeks ago Grandville High School put on the comedy play, Get Smart. Ron and I really enjoyed it, and the kids did a nice job. Then recently, I saw a commercial for a movie version of the old 1960's TV show... one trailer here. Makes me want to stay up and catch it on TV Land.

Here's another preview:

Across the Universe

Last night Ron rented Across the Universe, a movie we've both been very much wanting to see ever since we saw a trailer in the theater. We never made it to the theater to see it, but it came out on DVD this week - yay! We were thinking about just going out and buying it without watching it first, but I am sort of glad we didn't. Let me explain...

First of all, I really did like the movie. The characters were interesting, the plot was decently emotional (even if a little predictable), and of course the musical and visual aspects were wonderful - some scenes were just beautiful. On the other hand, some scenes were highly disturbing to the point of us not really knowing what to make of them - most notably the scene with the song "Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite", which is under normal circumstances a decent Beatles song. However, here it reaches new levels of creepiness. I'm still debating whether or not I can actually watch the clip I just linked. I probably will since I'm still trying to make sense of it, and as much as it freaked me out, I have to say it was very creative and strange - and I'm sure the way it made me feel was exactly the response they were looking for. I liked the scene with Bono okay (other than the fact that it led to the creepy Mr. Kite scene)... but actually I think Joe Cocker's character(s) & performance was better. The other thing I liked about the movie is how the characters (and the changes they undergo) and the mood of the movie parallel the Beatles's career...

If you go to the movie's site (link above) you can watch a few clips (non-YouTube) check out "I've Just Seen a Face", which is one of my favorite scenes. In fact, there were several scenes I loved loved loved! I just wanted to warn you that this is not the kind of modern musical that you might be expecting. I can't compare it to anything I've ever seen before! I'm glad we rented, we probably won't buy it, but I definitely want the soundtrack.

Happy Valentine's Day

Piles of Tissues!

Over the past few days I have been fighting a cold. It started out as a sore throat (the usual first sign for me) and then moved upstairs to my head, where it has made me miserable for the past two days. This morning I finally feel like it's beginning to fade. Lucy has some slight slight symptoms but doesn't seem to be acting any differently. Ron has a sore throat for one day and drank water all day, and it went away. Blah.

Anyway, so it's been a while since I posted anything and I don't really feel like spending much time down here in the basement, so I'm gonna make it bullet-point quick:

• Friday night we went to the Fish Fry at the VFW Hall in Walker... ate some good fish, and saw a few friends.
  
• Saturday Ron worked all day and I hung out at my parents' house.
• Sunday church was canceled due to weather! We spent most of the day lounging around and I let Ron take care of most parental duties so I could be a baby and rest. Watched part of the Grammies.
  
• Monday was a snow day - the 5th one of the year! We finally finished the mudroom flooring, all but the stair nose which wasn't going well. It looks so much nicer in there now! We still have to dispose of the old linoleum, which is leaning up against the side of the garage...
  

Cable Guy, Bloody Dog, Dented Toddler

Why is it when you order cable television they give you a time frame and you get thinking, be ready, 'cause he's going to BE HERE between 8:00 and 10:00 AM! Then he calls and is running late, and finally at 11:45 arrives and does his job... plus as an added bonus I got to hear about his tattoos, his brain aneurysm/spinal tap, his bungee jumping experience, and how many male and female cousins he has respectively, on his mom's and dad's sides of the family.

Well, I'm patient and he was a nice guy... perhaps a bit slow since he mistook the road Division in Grandville for Division Ave in Grand Rapids, making his first appointment this morning extra late. Whoops. Anyway, we are no longer limited to three and-a-half channels, and all with NO RABBIT EARS. The future is NOW!

Meanwhile Killian ripped a claw out her paw by catching it on a baby gate and was bleeding on the unfinished portion of our mudroom (we are halfway done installing the wood laminate flooring in there). Poor doggy. Ron is taking her to the vet this afternoon for a trim (of the remaining claws) and bandaging.

After lunch Lucy fell onto a miniature Poang chair (seriously, she's quite good at walking, but gets a little clumsy when she's tired. I know it sounds like I'm making excuses because wasn't there another recent blog post about her falling on her face? Hmm... I think there was! In all fairness I don't blog about any of the times she walks around all day without injuring herself...), which put a tiny dent in her forehead which was already turning bruise-colored by the time I gave her the Tylenol. The dent is gone, but I think it's going to turn into a big purple bump... cute.

After an Awkward Pause and Confused Look, I'd say, "she's a girl"...

When Lucy was little (well, she's still little, but I mean really little) she did not have as much hair as some of her little infant girl friends. Of course we think she's been beautiful since day one, but it would always sting just a bit when strangers would say things like, "hi little fella!" or "what a big boy!". Nevermind the fact that she's been swathed in pink and purple to compensate for her lack of luxurious locks. Only now do I really feel that her hair makes her look decidedly feminine, but I still hesitate to dress her in something that doesn't clearly feature flowers, or noticeable amounts of pink or purple (and I think others can agree that gets a little sickening after a while).

But Katie just sent me a link to a site that I wish I would have known about a year ago: Brilliant Bows, which has a huge selection of bows and clips for baby girls with even the finest trace of hair, and they're guaranteed to stay in. They still might be good for Lucy, since she doesn't have tons of hair yet, and what she does have is quite fine. I was never a big fan of the stretchy headband because they left weird textured imprints on Lucy's head (even if they weren't tight), so this is a good alternative to that option, especially for those still sporting peach fuzz.

Lawn Mower Accident

Yesterday after lunch Lucy was playing around in the great room, mainly pushing her toy lawn mower. She turned quickly and fell on her face, so I got up to pick her up (I knew she'd start screaming any second, since it looked like a bad fall). Sure enough she took a deep breath with her mouth wide open and let out a high pitched scream of pain. I inspected her face and didn't know where she hurt herself, but she put her hand up to her mouth. So, I put my finger just inside her lips and pulled it out - and she was bleeding! Eeek! I was so afraid she loosened a tooth... I couldn't see anything in there, and she wasn't letting me pull her upper lip up (shocking).

So, I loaded her into the car seat and went to the pediatrician. Stupidly, I didn't call first, and when I got there I learned that none of the doctors were in at that location. I went all the way from my house to Ivanrest/Prairie in Grandville for NOTHING! Of course it didn't matter because before we even arrived Lucy was jabbering and happy in the backseat, oblivious to the blood on her chin and collar. I felt pretty stupid because there seemed to be no reason for her to see a doctor at that point... but when it happened I didn't know how bad it was, and I wasn't going to sit around at home to find out just how long it was going to bleed.

Since the bleeding stopped and she seemed to feel fine, I just went home, gave her some Tylenol and put her down for a nap. She still has all her teeth, and I got the stains out of her purple shirt. I never thought seeing my child's blood would freak me out that much... but I think it was partly because I couldn't actually see what was wrong, as opposed to a bad scrape on the knee. Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later to our little Stumbelina.

Lost in 8:15

The other night I saw this on TV and thought it was pretty good... since it seems like watching the DVD's to catch up would be just way too time consuming for me... tell me, Lost fans, does this really do it justice? Am I ready to jump into the obsession now?

Stolen

I stole this from Dooce, but I had to link this news clip for anyone who might not visit her site frequently enough. It's actually from WZZM 13 - right here in West Michigan.

And I Don't Even Have to Clean Up...

Last night Ron and I went to a Super Bowl party at our friends' house, where we got to enjoy lots of good food, lots of wild kids, and an amazing theater room... at first Lucy was a clearly nervous and didn't want to leave my side, but after she ate some food, and got used to the surroundings, she had a great time. There were millions of new toys for her to check out, and she managed not to get trampled by the stampede of kids - mostly very energetic little boys. We stayed until 8:45 (which is way past her bedtime) but she was doing so well, and was still smiling and playing happily well past halftime. We decided to pack it up and head home, skipped her bathtime, and she fell asleep almost immediately. Ron and I stayed up to watch the remainder of the game, and we were both very happy to see the Giants pull off the upset!

I was hoping her late party night would result in Lucy sleeping in a bit... no such luck. Then this morning I took her to Play to Learn at Bauer Elementary. She was a little bit tired when we got there, and also a bit clingy, but eventually explored a bit, looked at new books, tried to eat some fake waffles, and during snack time crammed approximately 35 Goldfish crackers into her mouth at once. I tried to stop her but she was just way too fast and determined! This lead to a Play-dough factory of cheesy slime oozing out of her mouth. She couldn't even close her lips completely around the mass of crackers. I tried to catch some of it with a baby wipe, but it's hard when she's reaching for the crackers on another plate, and arching her back to slide out of the little elementary school chair she was sitting in. Anyone have any idea how I can teach her to regulate her food intake? I just figure she has to learn the hard way.

It was also nice to finally see Dylan and Ella Terpstra in REAL LIFE, although I have gotten to see some of their antics on Katie's Blog. Katie is also doing what she can to give her kids more of a social outlet (and perhaps herself too!). Ella is only about a month and a half younger than Lucy, so it would be cool if they could learn to play together nicely.

On top of all this, Lucy did better than ever at the church nursery on Sunday, and I got to actually sit through the entire service without having to go in part way to remind her that I didn't just abandon her forever in a room full of strangers. I peeked at her once through the window and saw her drinking someone's juice... I just hope that someone wasn't upset about it. I didn't see anyone screaming, so I assume it was alright. The nursery person gave me a thumbs-up sign and I left without Lucy noticing me. She's getting the hang of it!

Background

I changed my obnoxious bright fuchsia background... basically by saving the background image and altering it on Photoshop, putting it on our Smugmug in an inconspicuous place, and then linking to that image in the HTML for the template. I can change the color to anything quite easily... and after a couple trials (dark purple, teal...) I have settled on this dusty red color. I am sure Ron will show me how I can do it directly from our computer... All I know is I don't have to squint at the screen now.

Kiss Hello

Kiss from Mindy on Vimeo.

New Look

I found a site with various free templates... actually, it was advertised on someone else's blog, and since I had been looking for free templates lately I checked it out, looked through them and chose one... I like it, even though I lost my widgets and had to re-create them. I'm not sure about the bright fuchsia... but I liked the flower design. I also adjusted some other small details... just a change from the defaults that come with Blogger.

Over to the right I have a slide show instead of a photo - it's a feed from our Photo Page but I've noticed that it won't scroll through all our photos, only a limited number. Also, the image quality isn't very good. Oh well, still nifty.

Also over there is the Lilypie Ticker, but a new half-size version, which fits nicely in the sidebar with all the other page elements.

MIA

Sorry I haven't posted anything new in so long... things have been kind of blah around here lately. The only real noteworthy thing is we attended a visitation for the former GHS student who was attacked downtown a couple of weeks ago. He was on life-support but did not end up surviving. His mom was doing so great - I was truly amazed. Then last Saturday night one of Ron's students, Henry Ditmar, died in a car crash in Walker. He was one of his favorite students because whenever Ron would ask him how he was doing, he would respond and then ask the same back to Ron, and was truly GENUINE about it. He was always polite and friendly.

Saturday night we made a pizza and watched a movie... and I was just thinking how weird it is that the world just keeps going on, when for some families it is turned upside-down. This is not the first of Ron's students to pass away, and it won't be the last, which is a scary thought. We just have to believe that everything is part of a big plan, and we have faith that it's a beautiful one, even if at times it seems unfair from our limited perspective.

So, moving on to more positive things... we just paid off the first chunk of debt on our list! That will help our snowball get rolling, as we can apply that payment to the next item (and subsequently the payments can get bigger and bigger as we move down the list). It feels good to have a quick "win" like that, and it is quite motivating. Our list is on our refrigerator where we can always be reminded of how we're doing.

Hopefully something cool will happen this week... I have nothing interesting to write about. Until then...

Ramsey Recap

Last night Ron and I attended the Dave Ramsey Live Event, "Total Money Makeover" at the Van Andel Arena - we got there shortly after the doors opened to get really good seats... when 6:00 finally rolled around, this clip was shown on the 3 big screens behind the stage: This was the first site I could find it on.

Too funny, and of course featured, ahhh, Steve Martin. Anyway, that got everybody laughing. As many people already know, Dave Ramsey's teachings emphasize lifestyle changes, and breaking away from how society makes us all assume that living with debt is a way of life... It certainly doesn't have to be that way, if you are willing to change your way of life, make sacrifices, and be accountable. In the end it pays off in spades when you can "live like no one else".

Two years ago we took the 13 week class and it helped us make some major progress toward that goal. Now we find ourselves not dumping debt at the same rate of speed we had been, and we want to attack it once again. We are going to be helping to teach the course through our church, and we're already excited about getting back on track, as well as seeing others' lives change through this process. It's not about getting rich. It's about how your spending habits reflect your values, and how financial distress negatively impacts your life, physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Ultimately the goal is to get to a point where you aren't a borrower slave to the lender, and you can have fun with your money... by building wealth and security, and most of all by GIVING. Hearing Dave speak at the event renewed my hope that we will someday get there, and on top of that he is immensely entertaining.

pink . dress

Today, per my mom's request, I took photos of Lucy in her pink dot dress. The goal was to get some cute ones of her wearing the matching little hat. Although I got some good ones, I can't say she even cracked one smile the entire time. First because she isn't a big fan of hats, and also because she was on her way to getting tired... she was a good sport though, and I'm sure over time hats won't be so unbearable to her. Then again, I never like wearing hats either, and I'm 26.

Movies

Friday night Ron and I ate at Chili's and then went to see Juno. It was VERY good, funny, touching, smart, and I'm not doing a movie review. I will just say that I am glad that this was one of the [few] movies we actually have seen in the theater in the last couple of years! It was definitely worth blasting through half of our Celebration! gift card.

We had a babysitter (and she brought a friend) watch Lucy and put her to bed, and when we came home and I went to pay her, she refused to take the cash and said it was her Christmas gift to us! So all in all, it was a really nice evening.

Then last night we watched We Are Marshall which is how on November 14th, 1970, the Marshall University football team, football coaches, athletic staff, key alumni, and friends were flying home to Huntington, West Virginia after an away game against East Carolina. Their plane crashed killing all seventy five aboard... anyway - it's really about how the program was rebuilt afterward and all the struggles they went through... try not to cry. Even those who might not like Matthew McConaughey because he might happen to not wear deodorant might actually enjoy this movie. :)

Tonight: Transformers ... maybe.

Expressions

Took some new pics of Lucy today - posted here. Some are beautiful, others not so much... but I love all her silly faces. Have a great weekend!

This Old Kitchen

Ron has entered us in a Remodel Contest through This Old House's website. You may have to click "More Reader Remodels" a few times to see ours. He entered our kitchen / great room renovation... so maybe we'll get lucky and win another gift card. Ron's just holding out hope that we'll be in the magazine. So far it looks like the majority of voters think our project looks like "a winner"! Woo hoo!

Vimeo

I just created a Vimeo account because I am sick of Google Video. This is an OLD clip from last August of Lucy walking (a tiny bit), and Ron muttering something about Michelle Tanner (I think in reference to when Joey was trying to teach her to ride a bike). This was in the backyard of our old home in Wyoming. I apologize for the excessive video posting...

Hollaback Girl

This is a video from back in December. The radio was on - and I was just generally "filming" Lucy going about her business... so I didn't get a chance to change the station. Well, at least one of us seemed to like the song. She has to work on her moves...

Nighttime Fun

Lately we've been keeping Lucy up a bit later at night - she used to go to bed at 7:00 PM (but she'd sleep until about 7:00 AM, so it was alright). Now we've been keeping her up until closer to 8:00 - like last night... she was having so much fun playing that we didn't even realize how late it was getting. Here's Lucy talking on the phone... we always have to watch closely to make sure she doesn't call anyone! She hugs the phone under her chin. Close enough.


Ron took Killian out for a walk around the neighborhood... when he got back Lucy stood by the front door with her hands behind her back, patiently waiting for him to finish taking the harness off of Killian... so she could get picked up. She loves it when he hangs her upside-down (Lucy, not Killian)...

Another fun game we discovered last night is dragging Lucy around in her big nylon Disney Princess tube. I don't know if it's the recommended use for this toy, but she seems to enjoy it, giggling and squealing the whole time, and even after stopping she continues to laugh until she eventually calms down!

VÄNNA

This is a mirror from Ikea that I think I want to get - it has elastic straps that you can move around, where you can stick notes, photos, etc. Pretty cool. 31.5 inches in diameter, so it's a good size, too.

Nook

Looking back, I realize that I was in such a great hurry to get our Christmas tree up because it would fill this empty space in our house... and for the same reason, I was in no hurry to take it down! I finally did on Saturday (I know, I know...), and this is what we have going on now:


I am not sure what we are going to do here... some ideas are, 1) get a nice, simple looking desk, maybe a couple plants; 2) a long bench, possibly with a storage-seat; 3) a small "bistro" style table and two chairs. 4) a pinball machine. Just kidding...

Our computer is downstairs, and I am so used to it, I actually like not having it in the great room. Maybe someday if we get a laptop, but for now I don't want a computer staring at me all day long. Therefore I'm afraid a desk would just sit there and not get much actual use (other than a place to pile junk). Any suggestions (either from my ideas or something completely different)? This nook is located halfway between the foyer and our kitchen, in sort of a traffic zone of the great room. It is about 7 feet long and a couple feet deep (3' on the left end, 1' on the right)...

Who Are You?

I've been looking at my blog stats and notice that I get a lot of visitors from other countries, and of course plenty from the US - but some who I don't recognize. I even have multiple referrals from someone's blog, but this person's blog is inaccessible to me! I know that online anyone has the right to look at anything they want to, but if you would, please indulge my curiosity and tell me who you are and how you found this blog!

A woman who I used to work with at GHS (she was a special ed teacher) is going through a really hard time right now. Her son was attacked in downtown Grand Rapids yesterday by a random group of people. He and his brother and friends were leaving a bar when they were approached and within a few moments it was over. The police are still trying to figure out who did this. He is in critical condition and on life-support with very little chance of survival.

I'm not quite sure how to make sense of this - I guess it isn't supposed to make sense, something so random and horrible. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, and now his poor mother is going through hell. I knew him a little after having him in class several times (a few years ago). He was a star athlete, funny, and handsome (and he would also accompany his mom's class to field trips, where I got to see his compassion and open-mindedness toward special needs children, unusual for most "popular" high school boys), but really I am most sad for his mom, dad, step-dad, siblings, and close friends.

We can't go through life worrying what might happen when you step out onto the sidewalk... and I know in some way this happened for a greater reason that we don't need to understand. So with little hope that this will have a happy ending, I can only pray for his family to have the strength to get through each day.

Candy Cane Joe-Joe's

Snack of the Day in the Denning house. I better put them away so Ron gets a chance at 'em.

I Don't Ask Questions...

... I just take pictures.

FPU Plug

Two years ago Ron and I attended a 13 week course through our church called Financial Peace University, which is Dave Ramsey's program for anyone to eliminate debt and build wealth so you are better able to provide for your family, give to those in need, and reduce the tension and fear that accompanies living with debt - and bring that sense of peace to your life. It was a great experience and we certainly are much better off than we were two years ago (even though I am no longer bringing in a paycheck, and we have the added expense of a child!).

Anyway, the course is being offered again through our church, Spring Valley Community Church in Allendale, and we have been asked to help "teach" the class, which basically means showing the DVD, and guiding the group of people through class discussions, etc. We're looking forward to refreshing what we learned, and this is also an opportunity for us to become more involved, meet people, and keep us motivated to attend church on a regular basis - now that we've started to put Lucy in the nursery! So, it seems to me that this is all probably happening for a reason, and I'm excited about it. I think it is going to lead us in a very positive direction.

If you are seriously interested in taking this course, anyone is welcome... you don't have to attend Spring Valley to take this class. No matter how much, or how little debt you have, you can learn something. It's going to be on Wednesdays from 7-9 PM starting Feb 13 ($90 since it's through a church).

Foggy Shoot

This weekend my sister and her boyfriend came up to visit and to celebrate Christmas with the Chamberlains. They stayed at our house, but we also spent time in my parents' neck of the woods. Sunday turned out to be an oddly foggy winter day and we went out for some picture-taking - originally to get some photos of some big gray horses that were up by the front fence of their pasture, down the road from my mom and dad's house. Unfortunately, by the time we got there the horses had moved on.


So instead we drove down the road, near Millennium Park, and also to the Grand River boat launch by Johnson Park and looked for good photo opportunities. Heath has a new Canon Rebel XT (like mine) so he was getting to know his camera a little bit better. This was also a chance for Ron and I to have a rare photo of the two of us taken (actually a couple of them turned out pretty good!).

Photo Gallery

Lucky Us

Ron entered a photo of our Christmas tree into the This Old House "Dress Up Your Home for the Holidays" contest. I hadn't even thought about it until last night he began racing through the house excitedly telling me, "you've gotta come see this!". Turns out, we won "Best Tree" and are now awaiting our gift card to Home Depot! What an unexpected and nice surprise, as it will help us get even more accomplished with our home improvements!

A commenter named "Ricardo" left his thoughts regarding the tree and the merits of real vs. artificial. Of course that is actually my brother-in-law, Steve...

Anyway, I haven't really won anything since the sixth grade spelling bee, so I am actually pretty proud and excited (although I have to say Ron was truly giddy, not just we're getting a gift card, but that our Christmas tree was featured at ThisOldHouse.Com)!

A Look Back at 2007

2007 was a year of milestones and firsts, and some major ups and downs, which have changed me forever. I liked Amber's approach, to break it down month by month:

January: Lucy learned to roll over, and so began the start of a child who loves to be on the move!

February: My cousin and his wife had a son, Ryder Jay; Ron and I both reconnected with a few of our old friends.

March: Lucy started sitting up, we went the "cry-it-out" route and taught her to sleep through the night... it only took one night of a 52-minute crying session to improve the quality of sleep for all of us! She graduated from bouncer to high-chair for her solids, and into a sitting ring for her bath time. My Grandma Shirley turned 80 years old!

April: Lucy turned six months old, and we celebrated with a little half-birthday party. Kelly and Heath visited that weekend, and we invested in a play-pen finally... which made our lives easier with our semi-mobile baby. We learned that taking Lucy to the ophthalmologist to explore her heterochromia was a giant waste of time, and my sister biked some beautiful parts of Ireland with her friend.

May: Our niece, Annika, was born on May 1. My mom and I brought Lucy to Holland to experience Tulip Time, Lucy began crawling and pulling up on furniture, I celebrated my first Mother's Day, and saw a Whitecaps game with my sister, Heath, and Ron (on my 26th birthday). Ron's grandmother in England passed away - she was 96 years old, and we were all thankful that his mother was able to be there during her last days, and take part in celebrating her life and mourning her death with her other relatives in England. Lucy learned to clap, and also put her little feet in Lake Michigan for the very first time.

June: We banished the TV from our living room, to help make it appear larger and less cluttery - since we decided to list our home for sale! We got a barrette to stay in Lucy's whispy little baby hair, and she also became able to stand on her own for several seconds! Lucy went in our pool for the first time, and I got my hair cut shorter than I ever had before.

July: I painted Lucy's toenails, we did the Grandville 4th of July thing (even though we missed the fireworks, our little girl was too scared and tired), I was selected for Jury duty but got excused since I would be going on a trip to Baltimore later that week with my mom, sister, and aunts. Lucy mastered the Sippy Cup, and we threw a surprise 40th anniversary party for Ron's parents.

August: Kelly completed the Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon - a half-Ironman length race! We were all there to cheer her on at the finish line. It was one of the biggest highlights of the year for us to see her conquer such a challenge. Ron and I celebrated our third anniversary, with dinner at Via Maria and a play at Hope College. More "Big" news - we sold our home and found the one we would move into! My cousin and his long-time girlfriend got married, and a couple days later we all learned that his mom and dad would be getting a divorce. Lucy took her first steps on the 24th, and we started practicing every day with her.

September: Ron went back to teaching, and we were finishing up packing to move. Our friends lost their baby daughter who was born at 19 weeks, and none of us really knew what to say or do. It really reminded us how blessed we are. I am still heartbroken for them. We gained possession of our new house and started painting, cleaning, etc. Our friends' daughter turned one, and we celebrated at her party the day before we moved all our stuff with a U-Haul to the new home. The following weekend we had Lucy's 1st birthday party at my parents' house!

October: Continued working on the new house, and basically lived in a disaster area for a few weeks. It was all worth it in the end... Killian got sprayed by a skunk, and we visited Kelly and Heath in Evanston. Lucy did her first scribbled piece of artwork, and toward the end of the month was painting on my grandparents' slider for Halloween. She dressed up as a little witch, and even wore the hat!

November: Oh... I broke my foot - 3 small fractures - by falling down some steps at GHS. The next day we went to our friend's wedding and reception, and I managed to have a great time - even on crutches! We got all our new flooring in this month, just before Thanksgiving. My cousin had a small appearance on Desperate Housewives, and Ron and I managed to actually go out on a "date", leaving Lucy with a non-relative babysitter (teenage girl) for the first time.

December: Our house finally looked like a home, and was decorated for the holidays to boot! I tried to photograph Lucy for the "perfect" Christmas card photo and realized how difficult it is! We got two cars in the garage for the first time since we've been married, and had a whirlwind Christmas Eve and Christmas with our families. For New Years, we had our friends Eric and Jen over, and we had a very, very low-key get-together with the four of us, plus Ryan Seacrest.

Now on the first day of 2008 I cannot imagine what is in store for us... I hope many joyous things, and few tragedies - for us, and all of our loved ones. Happy New Year!

Lucy in the Sled with Snowpants

One of Lucy's gifts for Christmas was a sled - so today we bundled her all up in her snowsuit and boots, and hat and mittens, and strapped her in. Ron dragged her all around the backyard and she was really loving it, especially when he would go faster. I took lots of photos - too many as usual. So I made a gallery of these pictures just for the occasion: the last gallery of 2007!

Cadaver Calculator

I just found out my dead body is worth $4525! Ron's was $4325. Ha. Talk about world's most morbid blog post.

See how much you're worth!

This is the kind of stuff we get from my brother-in-law, Tom.

Totally Tubular!

Yesterday afternoon my brother- and sister-in-law (Ron's sister) came to visit us with their twin 2-year old boys. Upon arriving the boys starting running throughout the house (apparently thrilled to be freed from their car seats after an hour on the road). We hung out and opened Christmas gifts - since they weren't able to make it on Tuesday. We watched the DVD Ron made for everyone in his family, which is 47 minutes of photos from the past 40 years (his parents were married in 1967). They loved it very much, and enjoyed seeing the mullets and bad Cosby sweaters, etc. It was a nice time, although we wish they could have stayed a little longer. The roads were getting bad and they had to head back to Portage, so they left after only a couple hours. It was also the first time they got to see our new home.

Lucy got a little stuffed toy and book, and also a big nylon tunnel that she can crawl through. She watched as the boys went in and out several thousand times, but hung back, a little nervous to go in. We didn't want to push her, but we tried luring her with her favorite toys... she didn't seem to want to have anything to do with the tube. We tried again this morning by putting a piece of cookie a few feet into the tube. She went in only as far as necessary to retrieve it and backed right out. After Ron left for work, I decided just to leave the tube there, and she will explore it on her own terms if she wants to (the more we try to force her, the more she will hate it). Sure enough, within a minute she was crawling through it like a pro.

It's covered in Disney princesses and flowers.

Here she is with the latest issue of Zymurgy magazine:

Christmas Crazies

Wow - I can't believe Christmas has come and gone. Here's the rundown:

Christmas Eve we went to my Grandma and Grandpa Chamberlain's house for dinner. Almost all my cousins were there, even the two who live in California. One of them brought a rotweiler named "Tank" who made us a bit nervous to say the least. He is a very well-trained dog. He would lay his head on the floor if my cousin snapped his fingers... but I don't care, he's still 100 pounds of potentially angry solid muscle. That breed has a reputation for a reason, I think. There were no incidents while we were there, thankfully. We tried to keep Lucy away from him, since she does not have a healthy fear of big dogs (our dog is so wimpy and tolerant)... we hate to think what TANK would be capable of. As it turns out, it clamped onto my uncle's head sometime after we left, with my mom sitting a couple feet away. No blood was drawn, but according to witnesses, it was quite a buzz-kill. That dog belongs to none other than the center for the Los Angeles Clippers, Chris Kaman... my cousins' buddy/housemate. I think my uncle wanted to kill Chris Kaman's dog. But don't worry, Tank is going home unharmed. I'm not one who would be star-struck by being a degree of separation from a professional basketball player (as far as I am concerned Chris is a good player, but just a regular guy from Grand Rapids), I just think it's such a random weird thing to say that Chris Kaman's dog was running around my grandma's house on Christmas Eve and bit my uncle's head. That type of thing doesn't happen too often.


Yesterday we got up in the morning to open gifts with Lucy, and then spent the rest of the morning preparing for Ron's family to come over (12:30)- which included baking, cleaning, and some last minute home-improvements, if you can believe it! Once that started, it was full-throttle for the next 5.5 hours or so, as we juggled all the food, kids, entertainment, and gifts. After the last person left around 6:00 (!) , we loaded Lucy in the car and headed to my grandparents' house to see my extended family on my mom's side. As we arrived, some of my cousins were heading out, but we got to see basically everyone. Lucy was in amazingly good spirits, considering the day she had which included the following:

1) perhaps 90 minutes of total naptime, at best
2) loads of interaction with pushy (but loving) older cousins
3) a face-plant on the wood floor when she tripped, resulting in a nice bump on her forhead AND
4) a trip down the basement steps.

Apparently she made it down several steps before tumbling, which I can't really believe since she has virtually no experience with navigating stairs alone. I saw she was gone, I looked at someone who I thought was watching her and the next thing I know I hear thumpthumpthumpthumpthump... [pause...] then screaming. I shoved my mother-in-law out of the way, since she was blocking me and moving slowly toward the sound of our daughter's cries (sorry, but I wanted to get there quickly and anyone would've done the same. It's not like I knocked her down), and hustled down to find her... in once piece. She got some bruises and I'm sure she was quite scared... but after I took her upstairs and we got her some milk, she calmed down and was back at her normal activities as if it never happened. Tough chick. All in all, it was a good day because everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Lots of other little things happened but the bottom line is, it went as well as we could've hoped for, and I'm already looking forward to next year, when Lucy will be even older and able to understand what this is all about... and we won't be hosting.

See all Christmas Photos Here

Wii Video

Have you played on a Wii system yet? My sister, her boyfriend Heath, Ron, and I got a chance to play at my aunt and uncle's house on Thanksgiving (after the Bingo party)... we did a variety of sporting games... in my opinion the boxing was the most fun. My uncle Dan was at the ready with a video camera and here are some highlights. I know we look rediculous:


Untitled from Dan Van Malsen on Vimeo.

Matchmaker Man

Ron fixed up one of his students with one of his Woodcraft coworkers. They are both seniors in high school - one at Grandville, the other at Jenison. I am skeptical about their compatibility, but apparently they were both quite excited about their date tonight... ice skating!

The girl is the same one who babysat for Lucy a couple of weeks ago - she is really sweet, and so is this guy. How boring are our lives that we're fixing up high school kids! Yikes!

I Better Start No-Baking

Ron's mom and dad stopped by last night to drop off many of their Christmas gifts (less to carry on Christmas when they'll probably have food, etc., as well). They gave us a box of Pine Mountain logs (the packaged logs for your fireplace, easy and clean and burn for about 3 hours) as a late housewarming gift. Huh, I just realized that is quite literally a housewarming gift. We were all impressed when Lucy held the sides of it and dragged the 30-pound box of logs a few inches across the floor. She's a future American Gladiator. Anyway, they also gave us a giant bag of Quaker Oatmeal. It came in a giant box which contained two giant bags, and they kept one and gave us the other. It's from Costco. I am not quite sure what I will do with 4.5 pounds of oatmeal. I was thinking no-bake cookies would probably burn through some of it.

Speaking of cookies, I am starting a tradition. Last year I made these amazing gingerbread cookies that look like snowflakes, and I decided that I will make those again this year. I'm not taking credit for the cookies being amazing, I just happened to find the best recipe online and tried it. Everyone seemed to love them last year (the photo from last year's party shows them, along with Steve's amazing cookies). I want to make December 21 the cookie-baking day, where we have a fire going, and listen to music, and have NO TV, and bake cookies. It will probably be much more enjoyable when we have little helpers, but for now I'm the one doing all the work (that's okay). And since we're not enlisting the help of any kids yet (the one we have would probably just make a huge mess), I cheated and got a head start last night, baking my first batch. I justified it by saying I need a trial run to figure out exactly how thin to roll the dough and how long to keep them in the oven - as gingerbread is very temperamental. I succeeded in this and know exactly what I'm doing now... and I'm 28 cookies ahead of schedule.

In a Former Life She was an 80's Pop Star

All Wrapped Up

Well, I am basically done with all Christmas shopping! I have one more little tiny thing to get to accompany another gift, but I know exactly what it is and where to buy it. I might put that off since it's for someone who I won't be seeing until after Christmas, sometime in January.

So, the gifts are all wrapped all pretty and sitting under the tree. The ones for Ron's side of the family are stacked neatly in one corner of the 'nook' since they are all going to show up with probably another 30 gifts or so, so I'm setting aside some real estate for them.

Ron has been working on some details around the house, like adjusting the size of the holes in the floor where floor registers go - they didn't quite fit before, and stuck up (a little ugly, a little hazardous), but now they lay flat. Thanks Ron. He is also installing the handrail by our basement steps tonight, and attach the base trim on the kitchen island (it's just sitting there).

Yesterday he also installed three new light fixtures: one in the foyer, one in the bathroom (the big vanity light over the mirror), and the dining area chandelier. I got good deals at Lowe's and we had a little extra money for home improvements, so we decided to go for it, and it makes a big difference. The old ones were so ugly (the 1980's brass boxy types). We're slowly converting all fixtures and hardware to brushed nickel... I'd say if you count all the doorknobs and stuff that are left, we're about 40% of the way there.

Meanwhile, we're trying to get actual preparations for the Christmas party figured out, and I want the house to look really pretty. I made a table runner last night - it's dark green with light blue ribbon - about 2" wide - trimming the edges, and a little silver loopy cord going along the seam where the ribbon and the green fabric meet up. Photo to the right:

One Good One vs. Two Battles

Lucy's naps are really the best time for me to get anything accomplished (for example: undo the mess she made, plus any other cleaning or TV watching or playing on the Internet...) and for the past week, more consistently than ever, she isn't taking 2 good naps. If she takes a nice nap in the morning, it always results in not napping in the afternoon. And vice-versa. So I get to decide whether or not I want her nap (my "break") in the morning or afternoon. I would have to say afternoon, which is when I hit the wall of being tired. Yet she is currently down for a nap because she was acting tired and woke up twice last night (she never EVER wakes up in the middle of the night)...

... which is a short story that needs to be explained. She started crying for no reason around 12:00 midnight, I figured she has a toofer poking through and flip on the hall light so I can see enough of what I'm doing to give her a bit of Tylenol. She is so upset that the can't stand still and pulls her head back just as I squeeze the dropper, and red cherry Tylenol drops onto her crib sheet. I'm a freak about treating stains immediately, so of course I have to call Ron in to hold her while I change her sheet. At midnight. You know this requires removing the bumper pad, lifting the mattress out of the crib and pulling the sheet over the four corners. I swear the crib sheet factory workers must be laughing all day thinking about how they make those fitted sheets just 2 inches shorter than they should be, and the frustration they are going to cause. Anyway, then she woke up again at 4:30 and fell back asleep after a couple minutes of crying. So strange.

All this would make me think she would actually sleep this morning, but she's not. That's okay too - this is known as "quiet time", but I hear her in there playing and feel like I am neglecting her, or missing an opportunity to stimulate her developing brain. Although that sounds dramatic, because at the end of the day I know the long-term effect(s) are minimal. Lucy gets plenty of stimulation, and I shouldn't feel bad for giving both of us a break. It's like playing Snood when you should be filing a never ending tidal wave of depositions. It keeps you sane.

It's a Christmas Miracle

Tonight there are 2 cars parked in the garage for the first time since we moved our stuff here! This is great, but unfortunately, much of the stuff that was in the garage is now in our basement... except for all the old carpet and padding, which Ron and his Woodcraft (his weekend job) coworker brought to the dumpsters behind the store we bought our carpet from. Actually the basement isn't too bad, just some more random boxes and items that we can sort through fairly quickly. So it looks like it has been a fairly productive evening - and Ron's car will be safe from the big snowfall we're supposed to get tonight and tomorrow!

Pine Tree Air Freshener

Since our tree is artificial, we are without that pine aroma that accompanies a real one at Christmas. So, I decided to make a real pine garland from trimmings from the trees in our backyard, using florist wire to tie pieces together. I added glittered pine cones and blue poinsettias, as well as some other gold accents. It's mostly spruce, which is kind of prickly but according to Martha Stewart, lasts a long time. Some of it is some kind of fir (which is slightly softer) and I'm hoping that lasts as well. Luckily, Lucy never goes anywhere near the fireplace, and this hasn't piqued her interest. She knows that getting close is a "no-no".

Some day we are going to re-do the fireplace surround with stone, and attach a new mantle, but that's not happening in the next week and a half... so I think this dresses it up pretty nicely for the holidays. Last night we had a fire and I have to say, it looked quite picture-esque!

Perhaps the Biggest Difference...

This is a much better portrayal than the last before-and-after post I put up. The crown molding and valence are done, and the bar is finished (except for a little touch-up paint). We really enjoy the improved layout.

Ho-Ho-Ho

Our Christmas card is being mailed today! I ended up using a photo that I took while I was trying to get Lucy to be cute in front of the tree... here she is by our front door, being herself... so I thought it was a good "natural" picture of her. I put them in all the envelopes last night, and wrote all the addresses. Now when she wakes up from her nap, I have to go to the Post Office, buy stamps, and leave them there to be mailed. Hopefully most people will get them by the end of this week (although a few are going overseas to Ron's side of the family!). Cards, check.

Here's my parents' card, which I think turned out pretty cute (I took the pictures last weekend). We received theirs yesterday (that was quick!). I just love those photo cards you can create online!

Poinsettias

Our Christmas colors are going to be blues and evergreens, with silver and gold, etc., and for a couple weeks I was thinking I'd get some of these new trendy blue poinsettias to go with everything else (either real or fake)... so today I went to Michaels, then to Hobby Lobby, and both places were sold out of blue poinsettias! I guess I was the last one on the bandwagon. With low hopes, I went to the Jenison Meijer and found them, tucked into a small section of fake floral stuff in their Christmas department. There are a few left, if you're also on the hunt. By the way, the real ones are not poisonous, that was just a myth.

Snowed, 'Eh

This morning watching the weather on the news, I remembered one of the key perks to Ron working at a school... Today there was a 2 hour delay for many schools, which soon turned into a full snow day! That meant that Ron got to stay home and I got a hand with Lucy which helped me get a lot of stuff done...

Now that the day is winding down, he put in Escanaba in Da Moonlight, a really weird Jeff Daniels comedy that takes place, obviously, in the UP of Michigan. Since that is where Ron is from, it is extra entertaining (as well as disturbing). He's doing is weird laugh right now. Note: there was just a Leinenkugal reference for anyone interested. Anyway, it is pretty funny and I recommend it, especially if you're at all familiar with Yooper culture.

I Love Hugs

Lucy has a new IKEA POÄNG chair from when her grandma Carla visited Chicago. It matches our adult version that used to be Kelly's. She likes to sit in it and read, but she needs a little help getting on and off... Here are some cute new photos.

Meow

Random site alert: KittyWigs!, worth visiting :)
 

With Care

Last year we didn't have a place to hang stockings at our old house... and this year we have an actual fireplace, with a mantle, and it's Lucy's 2nd Christmas so it's about time we get some stockings. I could not find any that I loved, plus I wanted them to all be similar designs but different colors... so this past weekend I made stockings, which we will be using for years to come. They are corduroy with lace and a felt top. Ron doesn't even mind the lace on his, the dark blue one...

I made four of them, but that is not an announcement (somebody we know already wondered about that) - it's just so that if and when we do have another child, I'm not scrambling to put together a matching stocking to go with these three. I like the corduroy because they won't get too stretched out over time, and it's somewhat unusual for stockings. I also kind of like the idea of leaving them plain, because they have a classic design - just different fun colors.

Blue Christmas

This is the new light fixture above the sink. As you can see, the crown molding and valence are done, and I have our lit garland on top of the cabinets. We chose a funky bluish purple light because I'm leaning toward shades of periwinkle blues for accents in the great room. Also we have both always wanted a pendant light with a colored glass shade... and since it's just one fixture, we figured why not have a little fun with it? We can easily swap it out for a plain one later if we get sick of it, or a different color if we want to change things up.

Here's a closer look at the shade... with criss-crossy clear lines that let the light kind of sparkle through.

Just For Now

I know Howie Day has done something similar - but I like this better...

Need a Challenge?

Ever try to trace the hand of a 1-year-old onto a piece of paper? If you feel like your morning is going a little more smoothly than you'd like, you should do this. My grandma enlisted me to accomplish this feat for something she is making (she told me to "act surprised") - so this morning I did my best and came up with an actual tracing of her hand. It required me to combine 2 separate attempts in order to make it look like a human hand... but I did it! Maybe it's just Lucy, but she does NOT like someone grabbing her hand or arm. She only cried a little. Now, whenever I look at the mystery thing my grandma is making, I will think of our little hand-tracing adventure and it will bring back such fond memories.....

Needle in a Haystack

I just took 623 photos trying to get something good for a Christmas card. I know that sounds completely outrageous, but my camera allows me to take lots of photos, and many quite quickly. If you know toddlers, you know you need to be fast. I am sure 75% of them will still be blurry (I tried to get good angles that allowed some natural light to shine - I don't like using the flash if I can help it), or just too wacky (like when she comes running at the lens and all I see is her face getting bigger and bigger before I have time to back up....), and some of them will feature our dog, Killian, who was trying to sneak Cheerios - which I was using to lure Lucy back near the tree. Then Lucy decided to start giving her Cheerios to Killian... awwww how sweet. Kind of works against what I am trying to do. By myself. Oh Ron - if only you knew how difficult this is to do alone!


Here's one that is definitely NOT going to be a contender for this year's card, yet it sort of portrays the afternoon really well:


I know I am going to have a couple of "maybe's" and perhaps one of them will work for our card... we need to get that done soon!

Meandering

Last summer when searching for a home to obsess over, we found one in Allendale - the price was right, the location was beautiful... it was just "perfect"... or so we thought. It wasn't meant to be, as it sold before ours did. However, it was meant to be that we visited the house and walked through, where I discovered the woman who lived there is a wonderful photographer. I found her website and blog, and like to peek in from time to time at some of her photos. I just like seeing people's creativity and artwork. Anyway, her blog had a new link that I checked out: My Meanderings. I loved it so much, I added it to my own Photography links (to the right). I love that she takes pictures of everything - kids, family, nature, food, architecture, and more. I also love that she adds such vivid descriptions and tells a story, and lets the photos act more as illustrations. Anyway, it's a really pretty site and I plan to check back periodically.

Book I Want

I never really put things on here that I "want" per sé, but I actually really do want to read this book... and thought I'd plug it for anyone else who might be interested in the same kind of thing and doesn't yet know about it.

Book Description (from Amazon.com):

In The Greatest Generation, his landmark bestseller, Tom Brokaw eloquently evoked for America what it meant to come of age during the Great Depression and the Second World War. Now, in Boom!, one of America’s premier journalists gives us an epic portrait of another defining era in America as he brings to life the tumultuous Sixties, a fault line in American history. The voices and stories of both famous people and ordinary citizens come together as Brokaw takes us on a memorable journey through a remarkable time, exploring how individual lives and the national mindset were affected by a controversial era and showing how the aftershocks of the Sixties continue to resound in our lives today. In the reflections of a generation, Brokaw also discovers lessons that might guide us in the years ahead. Read more.

Race, war, politics, feminism, popular culture, and music in the 1960's truly changed our country and the world. It is a decade I wish I could have experienced first-hand - but someday maybe my kids will say the same thing about the 1980's! I just love Tom Brokaw, and I love reading about this kind of non-fiction, 20th century historical stuff, as it really brings back a lot of things I studied in college about communications and pop culture, how they impact each other... and I think I would really enjoy it. So... if you need any last-minute gift ideas...

Look Up and Smile!

Christmas Card

We've been trying to come up with ideas for our Christmas card (and we need to get this done soon!) and the most recent adventure was to take Lucy outside with her mittens and coat and attempt something cute. Today I noticed the sun was shining, filtering through our snow-dusted spruce trees, and the ground was white and sparkling... a perfect day to bring a toddler out into the winter wonderland. Of course, Lucy's only previous experience of winter involved being bundled up in her infant carrier, with only her face peeking out, like so (Feb. 12, 2007):


So, when I set her down in the backyard, my big camera case slung over my shoulder (not yet sure how I'm going to manage not do drop my camera when and if I do get it out), she starts to cry and sits down. I can tell right away this is not going to work like I imagined in my mind (where she is playfully toddling around in the snow, smiling and exploring...). This is definitely going to be a 2-parent job if it is to have any chance of working. Otherwise, it will be on to plan "C" (which we have not yet come up with).

Doggy in the Sun

Crafty

I was just glittering the edges of pine cones. Now, what to do with them...

Giant

Lucy is so tall! I don't know if we're raising a future 6'-plus Dutch kid or if she'll slow down eventually. It just seems like she is nearly the size of a 2 year old... in fact, if she were currently 2 years old, she'd be in the 75-80th percentile. Yikes...

Welcome

This is my good old wreath. I've had it for quite a few years, and it has hung on many a front door...

The Tornado Episode

Holy cow did anyone watch Desperate Housewives?! I've never been so stunned by that show as I was during the "Something's Coming" episode which aired last night. Now I'm forced to watch it next week too...

Bringing Her Home!

I just checked my pal Lindsey's blog and got to read all about her time in Ethiopia, where she and her husband are adopting a baby girl. It sounds like this has been a very long, complicated, and emotional process for all of them. I am very excited for her and her family and wanted to mention it here because I think it is really cool what they are doing. That little girl will be very loved by her mom, dad, and big sister... and very photographed! Congratulations, DeYoungs!

Date Nite

Last night we left Lucy with a babysitter who is not one of our mothers. However, Lucy was put to bed before we even left the house, so I'm not sure if it counts. As far as she knows, we were there the whole time. But we weren't. We went to Olive Garden! Oooh the "fancy" restaurant for people with kids who never get to go out! Plus we had a gift card from our Realtor, so we knew we could get a lot to eat for not much money. During our wait we were entertained by a big group of teenage girls in fancy cocktail dresses and their moms' high heel shoes, one with a tiara (it was her 16th birthday)... and they were TOTALLY having an AWESOME time crammed in the hallway to the bathrooms, playing some kind of digital trivia game you have to pass around in a circle. Anytime someone wanted to actually use the facilities they had to squeeze through the gauntlet of balloons, hairspray, and giggles.

We had a bottle of wine and I had the latest saucy chicken dish that's featured on their commercials. Ron had the Tour of Italy... because I guess he couldn't narrow it down to just one meal.

We of course ate too much, and then attempted to go bowling, but all bowling alleys were packed. We even went to Terry Hall (rollerskating) but they were about to close, so we will have to save that for another time!). Instead, we decided to mosey along to the Whiskey River Saloon. Neither of us knew this place even existed - next door to Chicago Drive Pub in Grandville - but there it was, and you could hear the music from the parking lot. It's a country bar with live music and no cover charge, so we went for it. It was a little smoky but it was still a neat place (if you hate country music, stay away). It doesn't have that "meat market with a DJ" atmosphere like Chicago Drive Pub, so we sat at a table for an hour and had a couple drinks and headed home.

Craziness - we ran into Katie Terpstra at the hostess stand at the Olive Garden - checking to see how bad the wait was. She took off ... something about Matt being really hungry :) (where'd you end up going?) but we stuck it out and it ended up being about a half hour wait. Not terrible for a Friday night at 7:15 PM!