The Fix

I just couldn't bring myself to cut Claire's hair as short as the shortest piece that she cut, so my friend Shelly brought up the length all around and gave Claire layers so the chunk Claire took out doesn't stand out quite as much. You can still see the shorter pieces, but I am just going to pin it back on that side til it grows back.

It's Finally Happened

I have been expecting this to happen for a year or so now... Claire was upstairs for about 10 minutes by herself tonight. I knew something was up, but I was enjoying the quiet time with Miles, though I should have gone to check on her.

Claire came downstairs with a huge smile on her face - "Mom, it looks so different now! It's different!" That's when I saw her hair and screamed - CLAIRE!!!! Then she immediately started crying...

Upstairs this is what I found - a lot of hair!


Claire gave herself layers basically - the right side didn't look so bad, actually. But the left side was a hack job. Oh, my little girl! I am not sure what hairstyle will hide those layers, considering you can see her ear. It could have been a lot worse - like bangs up to her scalp :)


Notice the tear

Bass Pro Shops!!

Every time we drive by, Claire has to yell out - Mom, Bass Pro!!! We treat that place like our indoor zoo/aquarium and stop by on especially hot days, like yesterday, and see the giraffe, bears, lions, fish, and every now and then, a mermaid.

Coyote Countryfest Concert

We went to a country concert this weekend with the Nielsons - we heard Hunter Hayes, Randy Houser, Craig Campbell and Dierks Bentley. It was a great show - and a good intro for Matt to his first country concert. I was a bit worried he wouldn't like it, but I think he had fun. I only had my cell phone and it was pretty dark, so the pictures aren't great.





This concert got me thinking about how many concerts I have been to - so I thought I'd try to write them all down for later when my memory is even worse. In no particular order, here are the concerts I have seen:

1. Garth Brooks
2. Dixie Chicks (2x)
3. Lee Greenwood
4. Michael Buble (2x)
5. Coldplay
6. Indigo Girls
7. Dave Matthews Band
8. Dawes
9. Brett Dennen
10. Jason Mraz
11. Alanis Morissette
12. Cindi Lauper
13. Brad Paisley
14. Ben Harper
15. Mana
16. Paul Simon
17. Bare Naked Ladies
18. Mat Kearney
19. Country Music Awards - saw Reba, Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw
20. Dierks Bentley
21. Sarah McLachlan
22. George Strait
23. Maroon 5
24. John Mayer
25. Still thinking... I know there are more!

Lovin' the Library

Our new library on Windmill is amazing - I hope that Claire gets to the point where she will just sit quietly and read, instead of running around and grabbing random books to bring back to me. A few more years, maybe. We usually leave with at least 15 books.

Summer Book Club

When I was a kid I would read outside by the pool for most of my summer, and then bring my book inside for dinner. I guess that was rude, but I just had to keep reading. I love having my Kindle in my purse at all times because anytime I have to wait for even just a few minutes, I can sneak in some reading. Line at the ATM - Kindle! Especially long red light - Kindle! Lunch break in my car - you get the idea.

Here are some books I have read of late that I have really enjoyed:

New York: The Novel by Edward Rutherfurd - a bazillion pages long but you stay interested in this book that follows several fictional families through the history of New York. It goes from the settlement of the area by the Dutch and their relationship with the Native Americans, all the way to 9-11 and beyond.

The Kitchen House, by Kathleen Grissom - another historical fiction novel about the relationships between the Big House (plantation master) and the Kitchen House, where the household slaves cooked and lived.

Bossy Pants, by Tina Fey - way too many swear words, who knew Tina was such a potty mouth? But if you like 30 Rock you will like her quick wit as she tries to explain how she ended up with a super successful career. I don't think I got any real career advice out of it, but I did laugh.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, by Helen Simonson - a story set in England about an older gentleman reinventing his life after his wife dies. It was a good book and not just for an older audience - better than I expected.

This Girl....

... cracks me up! Here are some of her latest gems:

"Mom, pickles have these tiny, weeny seeds and if you put the pickle seed into the ground it grows a pickle tree!"

We were looking at Miles' cute little legs and I said can you believe this guy used to be in my stomach (meaning, he has grown a lot), and Claire said, "Did you swallow him Mom?"

"Can we get a new house with a back door?" i.e. with a backyard. Our house now has zero lot lines - a very small amount of space around our home is actually ours. I hear ya, Claire.

I found our food scale up in Miles' room and asked Claire what it was doing up there. She said, "It is for my presentation. I have a work job to do." I guess I have been talking about work lately...

Dressing up at MeMa's with a little girl-sized wedding dress... I am sooo not ready for that! But Claire was so happy - she loved wearing it!

Miles Man Turns 2!

Miles was in Toy Story heaven this year for his birthday - he got so excited with his new hat and holster, plus the "action figures" (not dolls, says Matt) that he received. Something I never noticed was that Woody doesn't have a gun in the movies - Papa Hiller had to remedy that, and made Miles one out of wood with his name carved into it.





It is so fun to have this boy in our family - he gives the best hugs and insists on hugging and kissing each of us before he takes a nap or goes to sleep at night. He smiles a lot but his laughs are rare. He seems to have no fear when it comes to climbing, running, jumping and wrestling. Miles jumps off of everything he can climb - we are sure to end up in the ER again someday.

Miles can say a lot of words now, but still communicates with grunts and sounds with his mouth closed. I guess we can understand what most of his sounds mean, because we can answer him. Why should he talk? :)

He wears size 2T shirts and 18 month pants, but can even fit into some 12 month shorts - he is all torso. He likes to play in the water, eat lollipops and popsicles, and make forts out of the couch cushions. He loves animals, especially dogs. His favorite movies are Toy Story 1, 2, and 3 (of course), Mary Poppins and Winnie the Pooh. We call him Meloshe or Manzer more than his real name, and he also answers to Stinky. And we think he's getting cuter by the month, if that's possible. Happy Birthday Miles!

Big Sur

Big Sur is a beautiful forest of redwoods - impressive for adults, not so much for soon to be four and two year olds. We thought Claire would just love it, but at one point she said, "Is THIS why we came here?" gesturing to the massive trees above her. Yes, Claire, it is. And you will appreciate it someday.

Matt and I made a stop here on our honeymoon as well, but on this trip, one of the main trails had been closed due to a fire. We missed out on some of the larger trees and a waterall. Maybe even Claire would have been impressed with a waterfall... :)

Monterey Scottish Festival

Sacramento Firefighters Pipes and Drums took second place - they were robbed! We had great weather - in the low 60s. The 45 degree difference between there and Vegas was fabulous! The weather deceived me though, and I got sunburned. All during our trip I kept reminding Claire to look at all the beautiful Cypress trees, rocky beaches and the animals. We also made sure to breathe in deeply to get all that fresh air... Claire took a big breath in and started choking. :)





Cousins




The Mass Band - all the bagpipe groups joined together, very impressive and very loud!





Uncle Kenny and Miles