State of Obvious

I am sitting in my kitchen browsing other blogs. This is by turns dangerous* and fascinating. I find that I can't help comparing myself to those girls out there that have all the qualities I don't have. And I started making a little list inside my brain that goes something like this: I wish I was that girl that is in bed on time and up early, making breakfast for her kids. I wish I was that girl that still looks like she never had kids. I wish I was that girl that never gains an ounce. I wish I was that girl that LIKES to run, ride her bike, swim, climb things, or jump in the pool. I wish I was that girl that has a million friends commenting on her blog. I wish I was that girl that finds time to make cards, write letters, and still keep the house clean. I wish I was that girl that works out of the home and enjoys it. I wish I was that girl that goes to concerts, knows about art, and can recite words from a play off the top of her head. I wish I was that girl that makes Dr. a

Josh boy endlessly fascinates me. For very many reasons beyond the fact that he actually popped out of me, he has tthe power to captivate, melt, enrage, frustrate and confuse me. A few examples of his spell binding powers from just today: - constant humming of "I don't believe in you anymore" by maroon five, just the chorus. (I am not going to bother to pretend that this is the official title, I have no idea what its really called) - minute attention to the details of his lego island, boat, and fortress and yet complete inability to remember that I asked him to put the empty milk jug in the trash. - running outside at 2 am (his dad said he could stay up at late as he wanted) and yelling "Dang it!" into the night, then back inside and into the bathroom to yell "dang it!" again, then back to the kitchen to plop in front of the computer and play WoW for just under five minutes. - after hearing a loud crash from upstairs, running up behind me with fear pra

So, we're home :) I considered a recreation of all our adventures including pictures and titles and all kinds of details you never needed to know but I shared anyhow. Instead I'll share some of my favorite pics with short explanations. Because I'm lazy. That's how I roll. Anyhow, here goes: Josh, Kadin, and Alex - The Three Amigos We bought Kadin and Alex cowboy boots as their birthday/Christmas presents for the year. Carly and Josh also got boots...they all wore them pretty much nonstop, even before we left the store where we bought them. We had a BBQ and fireworks for ChaCha and Alex's birthday. According to Charlotte this birthday had all the best things a birthday can have: fire, fireworks, presents and pumpkin pie. I loved the fire pit. Loved. It. Carly also celebrated her birthday while she was in NM. The big T-W-O. She didn't quite understand why we were singing to her, thus the blank look pictured below. Marion and Kiana (Ben and Angie) got home from Chi