Apparently there's two of us in the house

Addicted to chocolate, I mean. Yesterday, I was downstairs with Jane helping her try to play a PBSkids computer game (you never realize how much coordination it takes to point and click a mouse until you watch a 3 year old try to master it....) when I realized it was waaaay to quiet suddenly. Where's Allie? Dang it. She had been taping up her feet with scotch tape just a moment ago, but now was nowhere to be seen. I ran upstairs to this:

This is what happens when you leave a box of wrapped Valentine chocolates on your dresser. Normally you think this spot is safe, until you realize that your near-two year old can make a rudamentary ladder out of your dresser drawers. Notice how in one hand she has a fistfull of at least 5 chocolates? She was in Allie heaven. The funniest part about it all was how she quickly tried to shove them all back in the box when she saw me. Sorry, honey, the chocolate beard kinda gives you away. Allie is also sporting a new trend in hairstyles. It's going to be all the rage. All you have to do is pull out the pigtails your mom put in your hair...multiple times.

Jane also told me today that she had 3 dreams last night, all about what she was going to be when she "growed up". In her words: "In the first dream, I was basketball player. In the second dream, I was a mountain climber. In the third dream, I was BUHTtographer!" So watch out world, my daughter is going into the WNBA and will then summit everest while taking pictures of "buhts" all along the way.

Just for kicks..

Just because i finally took the time to post this on facebook, I figured I would stick this on the blog too. Not really that ya'll are interested...my kids are far more exciting...but I'm doing it anyway, just for kicks and giggles.

25 Random Things About Me

Here goes:

1. I think I could live my entire life in hoodie sweatshirts. I wouldn't even mind living in Alaska so i could wear them in the summer.

2. My arms are way too long for my body.

3. I am a living oxymoron: I love change but thrive on routine in my everyday life. I really like being with people, yet, I would be perfectly content living in a cabin in the mountains all by myself for a year. (okay...my girls and husband would probably have to come along.....for at least some of the time. :)

4.My life dream is to be a park ranger. Dorky huh? But I will do it. Even when I am 70 and I have to drag Jevan around in a big RV. Maybe if I promise him we can put pink flamingos out in front when we park it.

5. My most random childhood memory is when my friend and I found a GIANT gymnastic mat in a pond by our house. We had the time of our lives...until we noticed the leeches.

6. People think I really like to exercise. That's only sort of true. Mostly, I just really like to eat.

7. I can't stand it when people rub their bare feet back and forth across carpet. It's like nails on a chalkboard to me.

8. I would have LOVED to work on the movie crew that did Planet Earth. My top 3 dream destinations are Peru, New Zealand and China.

9. I have never broken a bone or had stitches. I have had a blood transfusion though. Twice.

10. I have some strange disease that makes my hands and feet cold ALL the time. It's really annoying. My favorite Valentine's present from my husband was a fleece covered heating pad. Sadly, I think I curl up with it more than I curl up with him:). Kidding, Jev.

11. I LOVE off-the-wall random comedy. Flight of the Conchords is one of my favorites. Movies include Rubin & Ed and Danny Deckchair.

12. I once went without bathing for close to 20 days. Know that I didn't have any choice. Luckily, it was in the great outdoors and everyone else around me stunk too.

13. I am addicted to chocolate. If anyone knows any way to overcome this, please let me know. Is there a patch or something I can use?

14. Other foods I love include artichokes, mashed potatoes and homemade ice cream.

15. I've always had this small fear of talking on the phone to strangers. It goes back to the time I tried to ask some pet store owner about the strange behavior of my hamster and he hung up on me.

16. I love to read but it's hard for me to find time anymore. My new obsession is downloading books onto my iPod. It's so great..try it. Folding laundry is so much better when you're listening to a good book.

17. I have absolutely no long term memory. Or short term for that matter. It drives me crazy.

18. I also have no fashion sense. See number 1. I'm a very lazy dresser. In fact, I often leave the same pair of earrings in for probably a month.

19. One of my many heros is Jane Goodall. I once saw her speak and she made me cry real big tears. Other heros include Gordon B Hinkley and of course, my mom.

20. I have always had a thing for Sean Connery even though he's like.....80.

21. I had secret crushes on all my soccer coaches except for one.

22. I like to cook for the most part. Sometimes I find myself wondering who in the heck ever figured out how some foods work. Take meringue. What sad person sat and thought "maybe if I hand-beat these egg whites for 20 hours it will turn into cool fluff!" Who does that?

23. Most people know this, but I really love snow. My happy place is cross country skiing up Millcreek Canyon with my dog. Snowy days give me warm fuzzies. I even don't mind shovelling it.

24. It takes me forever to text things on my phone. So, if you ever get one for me, know there was a lot of heart-felt effort put into it.

25. I could never imagine my life without my husband and my little girls. They are all truly what gives me the most joy in this life.

When did my eyes get too big?

The other day I was washing Jane's face and apparently I got a little too vigorous, so she told me I had to stop or I would rub her spot right off. I looked at her face and had no idea what she was talking about, leading to this little repartee:

Me: "Jane, I don't see a spot..."
Jane: "Dad, you can't see it."
Me: "Why not?"
Jane [matter of factly]: "Because your eyes are too big. You can't see it because you have big eyes."

I've been thinking a lot about that statement, and wondering what other things there are in life that I can't see because my eyes are "too big". Maybe it's your eyes getting bigger that makes imaginary friends disappear, or what makes a walk through the park routine rather than an adventure.

I get reminded of this every time I watch my favorite TV show, Charlie and Lola (seriously... it's great. My favorite time of any daddy day is seeing Allie's face just light up when the show starts - she positively glows.). It's on the Disney channel and is absolutely fantastic. They are brother and sister, Charlie being older. His eyes are medium sized, but Lola's are definitely small. Lola has the ability to turn anything into a game or an adventure, and sometimes Charlie exhibits big-eye syndrome and gets frustrated with Lola, but eventually ends up joining her.

It makes me wonder how much I miss out on because my eyes are too big. Perhaps if we all could let our eyes be just a little smaller we would be a little happier and more appreciative of the wonderful things life has to offer. And if in so doing I get to see Mr. Snugglyface again (my former imaginary friend) I will be quite happy.

In other news, we were playing house the other day. Em was Allie, I was Jane, Jane was mom, and Allie was ... Allie (don't ask, but she hates it when she has to play dad. I guess technically this means that I wasn't part of the family somehow). Anyway, "mom" was putting "Allie" and "Jane" to sleep, so she tucked us in and decided to sing this lullaby:

(to the tune of Brahms' "Lullaby")

Lullaby, and good night,
Go to sleep and sleep well
Close your eyes now close your eyes
No one will eat your toes.

I have to be honest, I was worried about my toes.

Finally, from the "I think my child needs to get out more" department comes this picture of Jane decorating her room:

Em (my extremely OCD wife) told me she has no idea where this kind of behavior comes from...

It doesn't matter if your eyes are big or small, that is both really weird and really cute.