Mulberry Street

...with my little eye, something that is green. I might have to wear glasses to do it, but I am pretty good at spotting wildlife in various forms. Crawling around on my overgrown parsley is a caterpillar. A rather large green caterpillar with yellow and black spots.  It measures about two and a half inches long. When I saw it I got rather excited. In fact I thought it was worthy enough to pull Genevieve away from her dinner to show her (had I known Genevieve wouldn't have gone back to the table afterwards, I may have reconsidered, but I didn't want it to crawl away in the time it may have taken her to finish her meal). At first glance I thought it must be a Monarch Caterpillar, but now that I have done some superficial research on Monarch Butterflies, I am not sure. First, the markings are different. Second, Monarchs feed on fairly specific plants, none of which are parsley. Third, I think it might have red antennae. In any case, I will be checking on my caterpillar regular...

Our ward organized a bike parade for the kids to celebrate the 24th of July. Eric helped Genevieve decorate her bike up like a covered wagon. He did a great job. Sometimes he is super creative and we love to benefit from that lovely talent of his. In other news, I've been spotted. Now that our hands are really full - two kids, giant diaper bag, water, camera, etc - we don't take photos of ourselves. But, here is the proof that I do in fact exist.

So, my little guy is a whoppin' six weeks old and that means I have to start over with all those annoying cliche's. Here goes... Where did all the time go?! I had all sorts of intentions to keep a journal for him like I did for his sister. I also had intentions to take lots and lots of photos of him like I did for his sister. I even intended to spend one-on-one time with him (that is to say, time apart from nursing him or preventing him from crying but rather enjoying the quiet "awake" time) like I did with his sister. But alas, he is the second child. Instead I have a note pad covered in scribbles and dates, pretending to be a journal. Instead I go days without taking a picture of him. Instead I use up all that quiet "awake" time running around the house like a mad woman trying to get something done before he starts crying and I have to spend one-on-one time with him. Yes, I just wrote "have to spend one-on-one time" and yes, it disgusts me too. ...

I actually wrote down Emory's birth story within a couple weeks of his birth. It took me at least a month or two (or even three) before I wrote down Genevieve's. Maybe because Emory's birth experience was so much better and I actually wanted to remember it. “A seven? Does that mean you have to keep me?” I asked the nurses. I think every woman fears getting sent home from the hospital. First, it is a tad humiliating because, apparently you don’t know what is going on with your own body. And, second it means you don’t get to have your baby, you have to wait, usually for an undetermined amount of time, to be done with pregnancy. I had been laboring off and on for a couple of days. The regular contractions started around 7:00am but varied in length and intensity. It was Sunday, which meant I couldn’t just go to the doctors’ office and get checked. I would have to go the hospital, with a very likely outcome of being sent home, in order to get checked. So, I waited a seemingly re...

Grandma Kristy came to visit. She was a great help while Eric was away at scout camp. If I needed more sleep I just left Emory with her and went to bed. She would stay up and take care of him until he was ready to eat. She read books with Genevieve and spoiled her with gifts every day. Thanks mom. I don't mean to brag, but check out our splash pool setup. Who needs a waterpark when you can set one up in your front yard?

A year ago my grandmother died. I was privileged to spend a couple of weeks with her just before her death and I will always treasure that time. Today, my thoughts are with my grandfather, who misses his wife dearly. I miss her too. I am grateful that I have a little bit of her on video to help us all remember her, laugh with her, and love her. Grandma Grandma & Family Remembering Grandma

I haven't completely given up on taking photos and here is the proof. How could these two NOT be my favorites with smiles like these?!

My friend Alison lives near a fantastic little lake. With my mom's help, we loaded the kids and met Alison and Mac there for a day of fun in the sun. We had a fantastic time and even a little relief from the heat (it was only in the high 80's that day). Genevieve couldn't get enough of of the water or her friends, well neither could I in fact. We need to go again soon, because then I get Alison to myself all day long. I know that is very selfish, but it's true. Her calling as R.S. President keeps her super busy and we don't get to talk much as a result.

I forgot how loud fireworks can be. If I had just thought back to the previous year, I would have remembered how Genevieve buried her head in my chest and refused to watch the firework display, because she the booming noise frightened her. At Genevieve's current age I thought she would love the fireworks. At best she was skeptically entertained. Oh, well. Next year she might change her mind. Mac and Jason are great for two reasons. They agreed to let me watch the fireworks from their place (that is after I invited myself) and then they let us inside to watch when the booming scared Genevieve out of her seat. So Evie and Em watched the fireworks through very tired eyes in their pajamas . Eric was at scout camp over the 4th of July this year. John and Alyson graciously invited us over for great food and a little sparkler action. Genevieve was polite enough to hold the sparkler, but once the men began lighting the whistling and crackling fountains she took off. Genevieve and Will coul...

Recently, Eric brought home matching running shirts with the firm’s logo. Genevieve was ecstatic to have a shirt just like her daddy’s. Upon receipt of her new shirt, Genevieve began planning her next running race. Eric was on the hook and signed up for a local 5K for the 4th of July. When the day of the race arrived, Genevieve suddenly couldn’t decide if she should wear her “I RUN FAST LIK DADDY” shirt or the new shirt, so she put them both on. When we arrived at the race I gently urged her to pick one or the other so she wouldn’t sweat to death on the course. She decided to match her daddy, a great choice. Over the course of attending various running events, Genevieve has picked up on the fact that runners throw cups on the ground. Eric got a cup of water for Genevieve and she insisted on throwing her cup on the ground like all the other runners. Only the race hadn’t begun and her cup would be the only cup on the ground. Eric suggested she hold onto her cup until they passed a water...