Tiptoe through the tulips

Helping water Mama's flowers

Wee Bit Wednesday 5

{one} how tall are you?5'3" (barely)
{two} besides bills, what do you spend most of your money on?my money, on myself? that would be shoes.it's kind of a problem i have.
{three} what are your three favorite websites?etsy, dooce, and good "old fashioned" google
{four} what brand of tennis shoes do you prefer?asics
{five} what food can you absolutely not stand to eat?shrimp. bleck!
{six} How many pairs of jeans do you own?kind of a lot, actually. my weight has fluctuatedso much the last few years, and i haven't weeded out any of them yet.
{seven} if you could have any job, what would it be?this is a tough one. i've always wanted to be an elementary school teacher or a children's librarian. not the most glamorous or exciting jobs, i know. i would also like to be a philanthropist.
{eight} have you ever ridden in an ambulance?yes. once. as a patient.
{nine} how many pillows do you sleep with?i have three, but i only actually use one to sleep.
{ten} on a scale of 1-5, how organized are you?like a 500. i'm a big fan of the alphabet, and color coding, and label making, and general neatness.some may say it's a little like OCD. 

Jumping for Joy

I broke down today and bought Mason one of those inflatable bounce houses. He was so excited tonight when I set it up in the yard for him. He kept telling me "This is fun!" He was so exhausted after running around in that thing tonight....totally worth it!

That is the face of one very happy boy

Run Run Run

This is FUN, Mama!

Pretending to go night night

Playing peek-a-boo

That place is still open?

Last weekend my little Bug turned 9! She had her birthday party at Dimond Skateland this year...much to my surprise, yes, it is still open. Even more to my surprise was that I strapped on some skates and didn't fall on my butt! It kind of came back to me, even after all these years. Even Mason put on some skates for a try.

Happy birthday, sweet Bug! Hope 9 is the best year yet!

Here we go!

Look at me! I skate, Daddy!

Having fun still

My little ladies man had to sit next to the birthday girl.
And, as you can see, with ALL the girls!

We don't let Mason have soda, but I'm not sure a slushie
is much better. At least there's no caffeine. Of course,
he wanted a green one. Everything has to be green lately.

Big Day for the Big Guy

Warning: This post will be solely about Mason and me being a proud Mama

Mason will officially be 2 and a half this week, and today he had his well child check up with the pediatrician. I decided to take this opportunity to get rid of Mason's "me me" (pacifier).

He actually only gets his me me when he goes to bed at night. It isn't allowed to leave the top of his dresser any other time, not even for nap. Considering some other kids I've seen around town, who are WAY older than Mason I might add, this seems pretty harmless. I know, I'm such a meanie, but it's time for the thing to go.

We started talking last week about Mason being almost 2 and a half, and that we were going to see Dr. Elliott. He LOVES his pediatrician, so this was pretty exciting news to him. Then I brought up that he needed to give his me me's away, maybe to a baby that needed them. He actually was ok with this idea. So I combined the two events, and we decided he would give the me me's to Dr. Elliott since she knows a lot of babies that might need them.

There were only a couple times that Mason informed me "I not doing that" when we talked about it, but last night he put them all in a gift bag and went to bed without one for the first time since he was a baby! Today was also no problem. He gave them to Dr. Elliott with no problem, and was actually very proud of himself that he packed them up for her. It was awesome! Tonight, I put him to bed and he didn't even ASK for one! I really hope this is not a fluke.

One slightly unexpected thing at his check up today was that he needed to have a bunch of blood drawn.  Mason is definitely small for his age, and while it may just be genetics (neither Todd or I are tall) but it could also be because of a metabolic problem. Better to find out now, either way. The last time he had to have blood drawn (other than his 1yr finger poke) was when we had our awful ER visit at 5 weeks old...and I did it myself! I didn't do it this time, but I did "hand pick" the person in the lab I wanted to do it. I even called my mom to meet us in the lab (she works there) for moral support.

Turns out, I was the only one needing the moral support. Mason was a total rock star! He held perfectly still, only winced for a second right when the needle went in, and then THANKED the girl who drew his blood for the bandaid after it was over. Now we just have to wait for the results.

Other little things today that were just icing on the cake...we had a totally dry underwear day, even nap time and a poop on the potty (sorry, this is what happens when you become a parent)! To celebrate, and also to share our day with Daddy, we went to the fire station after it was all over (where he was excited to find a potty there to pee on as well). As an extra special treat, Daddy even took him up on the ladder truck.

It was a big day for Mason in many ways. But he handled it all like a pro and I am definitely one very proud Mama!

Get Golf Ready

Honestly, where was Hermione Granger to make being a nerd kind of cool when I was a kid? I need to find a picture of me around this age to post. You'll die! Frizzy hair and all!

Last summer, Todd took me to the driving range a few times. I was hesitant at first, but I really liked it! We ended up buying a cheap, beginner set of clubs for me last year, and of course I had to get golf shoes, too.

This year a friend told me about a Get Golf Ready program that the Anchorage Golf Course was doing. It's five, 90 minute lessons that basically go over basic rules and protocols. Last week was my first lesson, where we practiced our putting. I'm happy to report a few of my putts even made it in!

I was worried before going to my lesson, I guess nervous is a better word. I didn't want to be the worst one out there! The same friend that told me about these lessons also had given me a little pink book last summer called "Feeling Naked on the First Tee". Thanks to this little book, I knew all the answers at my class. Like, what does par 3, 4, or 5 mean, or what are the different colors at the tee box.

I'm excited for this weeks lesson. We're going to get into the bunkers (sand traps) and learn how to get the ball out of them.

I'm a total nerd. But I'm ok with that.

Wednesday No. 4

{one} have you ever been stuck in an elevator?Unfortunately, yes. The elevators at the hospitalare notorious for doing this. I'm so claustrophobic, I wishI didn't have to use them at all!

{two} have you ever ridden on an elephant?No.

{three} have you ever met a well known celebrity?I met Sean Penn when he was at Humpy's once.

{four} do you have any food allergies?Strawberries. It's terrible.

{five} do you know how to sew?By hand? Not really. I can sew pretty well witha machine, though I don't do it often.

{six} did you get an allowance when you were young?Nope. We just had to do chores.

{seven} how often do you fill up your gas tank?Maybe once a month? I don't drive much.

{eight} have you ever been stung by a jelly fish?Nope.

{nine} have you ever been robbed?No, but once someone at work stole my favorite magnet that was on my locker. It said "I'm not drunk, I have MS". Oh, and in high school someone stole my flute.

{ten} what is the worst haircut you’ve ever had?Probably right after high school, I wanted it cut like Faith Hill's was at thetime. Needless to say I didn't articulate this well and it lookedNOTHING like her hair! It took forever to grow out!

Man Cold

This video cracks me up! All you women out there who have ever lived with a man when he gets THE SAME COLD you have, this is for you!

P.S. Sorry, Todd.

Sandman

Mason and Daddy finally built the long awaited sandbox in the backyard and Mason couldn't be more thrilled. Todd let him "help" as much as he could. They went to the "wood store" (Lowe's) and the "rock store" (AS&G) together, and Mason was in the yard to "help" dig the hole and build the box itself...and of course he helped fill it with sand!

Now he's in dump truck heaven! As you can see from these pictures, I can't even get him to look away from what he's doing for a quick picture!

A Trip to the Big City

As I write this, I'm in a hotel room in Klamath Falls, OR. For those of you who don't know where that is, don't worry, no one else does either. It's in southern Oregon, about an hour and a half east of Medford. There really isn't much here to speak of, other than the Oregon Institute of Technology. Work sent me down for the Clinical Instructor Workshop, and I also had the opportunity to meet the new student that will being coming to Providence for their clinical rotation.

It seemed a little crazy to fly all the way down here for just a one day workshop, but I am SO glad I came! It was a lot of really useful information, and I really feel like I will take a lot of things I learned today back home. It was nice to meet other CIs and hear about their struggles. I'm definitely not the only one out there who expects a lot out of their students, and it's so nice that OIT supports that! It's also helpful to understand how OIT runs their program, and what the expectation is here, especially considering all I'm used to is having students from UAA. Without getting too into it, and probably getting myself into trouble, there are some pretty huge differences between the two programs!

SIDE NOTE: The student isn't from Anchorage and is stressed out trying to find a place to rent while she's there (it will be a year long rotation). She and her boyfriend need to find a place...and the catch is that they have an 80 pound dog. Please let me know if you know of anything that may work. Thanks!

I'm heading back home tomorrow, so for tonight I ordered a pizza and will probably watch a movie in the room. As nice as some "alone time" is, it's always hard to leave my little man. As he gets older, he definitely understands that mommy is gone! As I was tucking him in Wednesday night, I was telling him that I was going bye-bye on an airplane and that after he went to sleep THREE times, I would be back. He got pretty quiet, and I was worried he was going to start crying, but he looked at me and said "The airplane bring you back, Mama?" My heart just melted. Yes, baby, Mama will always come back!

Wee Bit Wednesday 3

{one} what is one food that, as an adult you love, but as a child you said you’d never touch?Salmon. I always thought I hated it. Then I tried it a few years agoand realized I just hate smoked salmon. 
{two} did you go to college? if yes, what was your major?I did. At first it was nursing, then radiologic technology.
{three} what’s the most wild animal you’ve seen in real life (not counting the zoo)?I've seen a lot, and other than snakes,the ones that freak me out the most are bears.
{four} have you ever been to a fortune teller?No, but one night with some drunk girlfriends we called Miss Cleo. Oh, and I saw a palm reader once, I guess that counts.
{five} can you juggle?Not at all.
{six} hardwood floors or carpet?Hardwood, except the bedroom. That's carpet.
{seven} is it called “soda” or “pop”?Soda.
{eight} what was your first car?A 1984 GMC Jimmy
{nine} what is the most decadent dessert you’ve ever eaten?I'm not a huge dessert person, actually. One thing that sticksout to me is the green tea cheesecake at Kinley's. Maybe not exactlydecadent, but it was so different and delicious.
{ten} how often do you rearrange your furniture?Never. It pretty much only works the way it is.

Faux Italian

ADN posted today that Olive Garden applied for a permit here in Anchorage. If I had a dollar for every time in my life someone told me that an Olive Garden was coming here, I would seriously not have to worry about Mason's college tuition! Anyone who is from Anchorage can probably relate to the constant Olive Garden gossip. This one seems fairly legit, but only time will actually tell.

Here's my thing.....if you want actual Italian food, DON'T GO TO OLIVE GARDEN! Seriously. This is not actually Italian food. Kind of like Taco Bell is not actually Mexican food. There are other offenders here in Anchorage already...Romano's for one. I can at least eat at an Olive Garden and be happy. This is not the case with Romano's. Bleck!

Maybe I'm just being an Italian food snob about this, but really people, I don't see why everyone is so freaking overboard about this place when Villa Nova is right down the road already. Hell, if you want "less fancy" you could even head over to Nino's. I'm not saying the food at Olive Garden is awful, but it's typical "all you can eat" Americanized Italian food. Ok, I'll get off my soapbox now.

Born this way

Trying to catch up on shows I've got on the DVR...I watched the "Born this Way" episode of Glee today. Let's just say I totally want/need this shirt now. Clearly, I am not as bad as Emma (I don't scrub each piece of fruit I eat) but I do have my own little neuroses that I'm sure bug the hell out of people.

Wee Bit Wednesday 2

 
{one} have you ever fainted?Unfortunately, yes, many times.
{two} what is your favorite casino game?I have no poker face what-so-ever, so I generally avoid casino games. I will allow myself to lose my money to a slot machineor two, though. 
{three} do you have a good sense of direction?Yes, at least I think I do.
{four} laptop or desktop?Laptop. I LOVE my MacBook Pro!!!
{five} what is your go-to hair style when having a bad hair day?My hair is naturally curly, so this to me is a permanent badhair day. I usually straighten it, and since getting the GHD flat iron I've had pretty good luck.
{six} do you read the newspaper on a daily basis?No. I browse through it and do the crossword at workif I have time. Otherwise I read most of my news online.
{seven} do you have a favorite celebrity chef?Love Tom Colicchio! And Anthony Bourdain. 
{eight} what tv show would you like to make a guest appearance on?I need to have a make-out scene in any show Johnny Depp is on.
{nine} do you have satellite radio in your car?Yes, but it doesn't work in Alaska so I don't have it hooked up.
{ten} what was the last movie that made you cry?Love and Other Drugs.  

Never Forget

With the crazy news hitting the world right now that Osama Bin Laden has been killed, my mind naturally wanders to 9/11/01. This year will be 10 years since that awful day, and I hope this news today can bring some peace to the families who lost loved ones that day.

On a personal note, I have a hard time "celebrating" the death of anyone, even someone as heinous as Bin Laden, but I can absolutely understand why this is something that is being celebrated. It does seem crazy to me to think of the thousands of lives that were lost in the last 10 years in exchange for this one life. I guess I just hope it was all worth it.