read to your bunny.

"Read to your bunny often,
It's twenty minutes of fun.
It's twenty minutes of moonlight,
And twenty minutes of sun.
Twenty old-favorite minutes,
Twenty minutes brand-new,
Read to your bunny often,
And...
Your bunny will read to you."
-Rosemary Wells, Read to Your Bunny

reading with Ellie really has become my very favorite part of our days together. she is so enthralled with every page, every picture, and every type of book. in fact, i'm pretty sure that she would pick a book over a toy any day. she loves it.

so here's my plug for literacy. read to your little bunnies! reading twenty minutes a day...heck, even ten minutes a day is the greatest gift you can give to your child (outside of loving them). my kindergarten students are never as quiet and as engaged as they are when i am reading to them. my Ellie is never as entertained and still (she's such a wiggly bug) when i am reading to her- it has been my experience that children really can learn to love to read...and it all starts in the home when you read that first nursery rhyme or peek-a-boo book to your little baby.

ok, i will now kindly step off my soap-box...and go eat a burrito... or something equally satisfying.

befriend the world.

i'm a hippie at heart (minus the drugs and immorality, of course).

you see, when i was in seventh grade, my best friend carly gave me these awesome bell-bottom jeans that were her mom's in the 70's. it was love at first sight. i squeezed my little tushie in those tight bell-bottoms almost every day that year...in fact, one day, they were on so tight, they gave me a stomach ache...and even made me barf in the ninth grade hall (how embarrassing for a little sevvie to puke in front of the big-bad ninth graders). true story.

tonight, my hippie-ness came out as i made this anti-racism poster for my Multicultural Education class. all you need is love, right?

i have a feeling that tonight i'm going to dream in kaleidoscopes with incense and wonder what it would be like to live in a yellow submarine with orange, green and yellow people, all while singing and dancing.

i guess i could just watch sesame street instead.

and....we're back!

my lil ol mac is back...as in back to the future...as in back attack..as in, i couldn't be happier to see all the beautiful pictures of my almost-9-month-old baby's life.

and the sun is shining so brightly.

today is a good day.

catch-up and mustard

i have lots to catch-up on. which makes me think of two things:

1. would you like any mustard with that catch-up?

2. Harry and Lloyd on dumb and dumber where they squirt the ketchup and mustard all up in each others' faces.

don't lie- you laughed when you thought of it.

n e wayz (brought you back to 7th grade yearbook day, didn't i?)

i haven't blogged in a while.

which is SO unlike me.

excuse:

i am computer-less.

my poor lil mac is still undergoing surgery.

diagnosis:

not good.

still waiting to hear from Adam from IT.

*tears roll down cheeks.*

i've been pretty optimistic and happy with the whole thing, all things considered. but its starting to sink in that i might lose all my pics of my little royal cuteness (E, that is)...and i get that real-thick-wad-of-dry-bread-sorta-feeling in my throat. i'll stick with being optimistic. it's easier that way.

back to my catch-up business.

catch-up #1:

love day was simply lovely.

filled with chocolate, kisses, roses, hugs...and everything else that is hallmarkish. LOVED it.

i love LOVE.

i loved reading about your LOVELY days.

catch-up #2

Ellie claps now. so stinkin cute. she also is drinking out of a cup with a straw...no sippy cups for my lil E. stubborn thing. she is learning so fast. and gets cuter every day. is it getting redundant that i keep saying that? well, i don't care because i'm gonna keep saying it.

catch-up #3

it was sunny around here for a few days. and i LOVED it. i didn't realize how much i'd been missin' my good 'ol vitamin D. come back, sunshine. please!!

catch-up #4

i used coupons at the grocery store on saturday. TONS of coupons. and it was amazing. never felt so good. it was one of the few times in my life that i had the feeling, "finally i beat the system." i highly recommend it.

catch- up #5

i stink at going to the gym. i'm so inconsistent. why is it so blasted hard to get up extra early in the morning? when do you go to the gym? how can i motivate myself any more?? i obviously am needing some real psychological help. who wouldn't rather stay in their cozy bed than feel winded and sweaty at the gym at 5 am? but then again, who wouldn't rather have a slim butt and firm thighs than...a NOT slim butt and NOT firm thighs.... see my dilemma?

catch-up #6

we are officially addicted to making home-made pizza. we have tried almost all of the recipes you shared with us (thank you! you guys are amazing!) but my favorite was my friend Anne's. if you'd like it, i'd be happy to share. it's easy and SUPPPEEERRR yummy. like i said, we're addicted to it.

catch-up #7

i'm still depressed that Jason let Jillian go home last week. what the heck??

catch-up #8

while i'm on the t.v. thing- is anyone freaking out with how amazing LOST is right now? holy cow. i can't stop thinking about it. for example: "they're on the island again!? get out! i wonder what year they landed on the island." "who the heck is this ben character??? he is such a creep." "is desmond going to die?? the island isn't finished with him yet...what about penny?" i know, i'm obsessed.

catch-up #9

i'm not usually one to solicit prayers...but my grandpa Hartley is really sick right now- and i would love for any extra love and prayers to go his way. thank you in advance :)

well, that's all for now.

sorry it's so bleak with no pictures.

pray for my computer while you're at it :)

xoxo

bewitched.

my computer's sick.
let's just pray i'm not going to lose my 7,500 pictures of Ellie i have on it.
*tear streams down face.*
i can't think about it.

well, while my computer's been sick, ellie turned 8 months old. much to my dismay, she did NOT listen to me when she turned 7 months and just kept on growing. and changing. and melting my heart with every moment. it's getting harder and harder to leave her sweet face every day. especially now that she reaches out and says "mama" as i walk out the door.

why do i feel like a horrible person for leaving every day?

how i ache to be home.

but i am so grateful for M for making it possible for me to be at work. i honestly don't know how we'd make it if i wasn't doing this. we make such a great team. even if he makes me bonkers when he doesn't voluntarily take out the trash. (for more info on his view of this ordeal, read his most recent blog post here). but i love him. even if i don't show him enough...but instead show him more often how crazy he makes me...i love him. so much it hurts. he's the perfect daddy to our Ellie, and the perfect husband for crazy 'ol me.

so, while my computer receives emergency surgery, i leave you with this sweet picture of little Ellie i found on M's computer- i think she was about 2 or 3 weeks here. such a wiggly creature she's always been. i love how it looks like she's putting a spell on the world- and in my opinion, the last 8 months, she truly has bewitched me and M...and all of the people in her little world.

jumbled jots and random thoughts

for some reason, i feel some sort of obligation to always make my blog posts have some sort of theme or subject matter. today, i have several random thoughts and jumbled jots i want to smear all over this blog, so i'm throwing that obligation out the window.

thought #1
i'd like to introduce you to our new CAR.


yes, this is OUR new car.
a 2007 mazda 6.
i like to just look at him.
so beautiful.
is it really ours?

newest dilemma: what should we name him? you see, in my family, we have the habit of naming our cars. the '91 ford explorer i drove in high school was affectionately called "dora" (get it, dora the explorer...ba dum, ching), our '01 scratched up white corolla is lovingly named "swan" (even though it is quickly resembling more of an ugly duckling)...so now, we need a name for lil blackie. any ideas?

thought #2
i'm running a half-marathon. i'm not telling you this to receive praise or anything weird like that. it's something i've always wanted to do...and i'm telling you for accountability reasons. heaven knows i need something monumental to whip me into shape...and on May 2nd, i sure as heck better be in shape, because i'll be running 13.1 miles in Hurricane, Utah. a friendly, "how's the running going, marci?" every so often would be much appreciated. (p.s. thank you KIM for inspiring me! can't wait to see you there in May).

thought #3
ellie woke up from a nap yesterday looking like this:


it was hilarious. hand print on the face...and check out that hair. holy smokes! i have no clue what to do with it. she obviously needs a hair cut...but i don't know how to cut hair...and i don't know who to take her to. advice??

thought #4
my cute hubby M recently started a blog. you see, he gets to spend all afternoon with little El while i am in kindergarten land. so, he started a blog to document being a stay-at-home dad. it's really cute and fun to read about parenting from dad's perspective- the link is fromdadsview.blogspot.com. check it out.

thought #5
i am currently addicted to bread. and not just any bread. it's rosemary olive bread from costco. ever had it? i just had a slice. ohhhhhh. it is to DIE for. try it. eat it. love it.

thought #6
i'm watching madagascar 2 for the first time right now and laughing my head off. hilarious! i love moto moto and the communist monkeys. holy canoli, i'm lovin it.

thought #7
my newest favorite Ellie thing is that she's giving kisses. yes, they are slobbery and a little make-shift- but they're oh-so-sweet.



thought #8
Valentine's day is on Saturday. what do YOU get your hubby's for Valentine's day?? any wonderful tips for me?

thought #9
i never really believed people when they told me that "it just gets better and better and more fun" when it comes to babies. but it really is true. i mean i'm freaking out as i type because she is so cute. i can't handle it.


a===============---------p']]]]]]]]]]

{that lil message was from E}

and those are all my random thoughts for the day.
i like embracing the randomness.

xoxo

i wish everyone had a mom like mine.

anyone who knows my mom would agree that there is no one in the world like her. i often ask myself, "how did i get so lucky to have her in my life...let alone as my MOM?" in fact, i asked her that question today. of course, she just laughed and said something like "how did i get so lucky to get YOU?" and made me feel good inside.

we've been so blessed this semester to have my mom come to Provo every Friday to help watch Ellie, since M's classes go a little later that day- and since i am off in kindergarten-land. yes, she treks the 1-hour drive here, and the 1-hour drive home every Friday- just to help us out- because she loves us that much- she loves Ellie that much- and she's just that nice. how i look forward to Fridays- i love getting an excuse to see my mom every week.

today was an extra-special mom visit. as you all know, i've been a stress-filled basket case the last couple of weeks. my plate is a little too full, i think. not that everyone's plates aren't full. because i think everyone is busy. i just don't handle full-plate busy as well as others do. and so, of course my mom knew how whacko i've been. i tell her everything. and to help boost my spirits, celebrate the arrival of February (and the farewell of January), and celebrate the end to this gruesome week, she did the following:

cleaned my apartment
did all of our overflowing laundry (which heaven knows i've been neglecting- who does laundry when they're stressed?? not me)
cooked us a fabulous dinner (can you say Cuban deliciousness???)
set the table for me and M (i forgot what THAT looked like)
made two lovely flower arrangements for our bleak-winter apartment (i LOVE flowers)
ALL while keeping my SICK baby El happy, occupied, and most importantly, smothered in hugs, loves, and kisses.

my heart is huge with love for my m-o-m this moment.
everyone needs mom-love like this every once and a while.

so, MOM, thank you times a million for being you. i'm the luckiest girl in the whole wide world. love you to the highest mountain- with strawberries, blue skies, raindrops on roses, instant-healthy pills, lots of Ellie cuddles and kisses, and guilt-free cheesecake. mmm. te quiero muchiiiiiisimo!

wondering where i've been?

well, baby E has yet another ear infection.

and the doctor said the dreaded words today: TUBES (dun dun dun).

uuuggghh.

oh, and i've been practically living at my school, as this week has been parent teacher conferences.

but i'm not complaining...

*promise to catch up soon.*