Big day!

Guess who peed on the potty?!? Danny!

We're so proud! He took us quite by surprise. I try to always invite him to sit on the potty before baths. He usually complies with the sitting, but nothing has ever come of it... until tonight! He peed in the potty! And all over the floor, since I had neglected to put that little guard on the potty. But progress is progress, I say!

We made a big deal of it, gave him lots of high fives, and let him call his grandpa in Tennessee to tell his big news. Who knows if he'll make a practice of it at this point - probably not - but we'll celebrate this milestone just the same.

Way to go, Danny!

A little Christmas cheer

We had quite the festive weekend two weeks ago (and I'm just getting around to recording it all). We woke up Saturday morning to a beautiful light snow fall - pretty to see, but not too much trouble otherwise. We had to head out for an errand, and then on the way home we stopped and got snow boots for Danny. The boys (including Daddy) spent a good while trudging around in the snow and eventually came in when they started to feel the cold.

That afternoon, we hauled the family downtown, where Santa was making a special visit to my office building. Mason and Daniel enjoyed sitting on Santa's lap and telling him what they'd like for Christmas (Mason: "A steam roller!" Daniel: "choo choos!"). Hmm. Choo choos we can handle. I'm not so sure about the steam roller...


Then we walked around the corner to see the Christmas train display at the Duke Energy building. I must admit, I'm a Cincinnati native, and this was my first trip to see the trains. It was an impressive set-up!



The boys got a kick out of all the moving parts and people. Although, in the interest of full disclosure, the lack of naps was getting to them at this point. We piled in the minivan and headed back home.

After church on Sunday, we set up the tree. This is the first year (perhaps in my entire marriage!) that I've had helpers when it came to trimming the tree. Brandon prefers to take a management role in the process, so Mason, Danny and I went to work. Note: when your tree trimmers are all under 4 feet tall, the ornaments tend to congregate on the lower half of the tree. I was just glad to have such enthusiastic assistants, I didn't mind a bit.


All told, it was a very fun, Christmas-y kind of weekend. And be honest - who doesn't love lying under the tree, looking up at the lights?

Memory lane

I have a lot of good memories from high school, but I've always felt that I really came into my own in college. I started fresh, made new friends, discovered I could make it on my own, embraced the gospel, and really found out who I am. I enjoyed both my undergrad university experiences - at Miami University, and then as a transfer student at BYU. Keep in mind, though, that I'm sort of a school junkie. I like school, in general.

Looking back now, I think that in high school I felt a little overshadowed. I was very involved in theater and music, but often played supporting roles ("There are no small parts, only small actors!"). It seemed that the lead roles usually went to other girls, but I still loved the stage and enjoyed performing. When it came to the arts, I always felt a little "second best," which carried over into my Freshman year at Miami.

And so, when I stepped onto Miami's Oxford campus, I had very reasonable expectations. I hoped to audition and perhaps make it into the larger, combined voice choir. Thus, I was utterly shocked when I saw my name on the list for the Chamber Singers, Miami's 24-voice select chamber choir. I never dreamed I was that good! I wondered if there had been some mistake. Suddenly, I found myself surrounded by serious musicians, singing challenging pieces, and I held my own. I loved it. When I transferred to BYU, leaving the Chamber Singers was the hardest thing of all. I had a home there.

Our director, Dr. B. (that's what we called him), is a wonderful musician - a composer, arranger, and performer in his own right, too. His constructive direction gave me confidence and made me a better singer. I minored in vocal performance at Miami. And I knew there were more talented singers around me, yet I never felt second best. Something changed for me, and the Chamber Singers had a lot to do with it.

My Freshman year, we did something rather cutting edge: we recorded a Christmas CD! Mind you, that was 1992, so recording a CD was pretty high tech. We spent an entire day, holed up in Kumler Chapel (great acoustics), singing our Christmas songs over and over, pushing for the perfect execution. The result was beautiful and to this day it is my very favorite Christmas CD. It's just not Christmas without the Chamber Singers!

In order to have the CD ready to sell at our Christmas concert, we had to do all this recording in early fall. I still remember gathering in the common area of an un-air-conditioned campus dorm on a very sticky August day to shoot the cover picture - all dressed in our festive winter sweaters! We were boiling. It was hilarious.

Here we are, in all our 1992 glory. I am in the back row, at the right, leaning on the piano. Can you find me?


Every Christmas, I think of the Chamber Singers and try and find out when they're performing. Unfortunately, I usually don't think to do it until the concert has already passed. This year, though, we made it! My parents watched the boys last weekend and Brandon and I drove up to Oxford to see the Chamber Singers perform. It was magical.

I don't know if it was the nature of the sacred music or the flood of memories that came over me, but they hadn't sung five notes before I felt this wave of emotion well up in me. I was totally overcome by the beauty of their music. It was as precise and gorgeous as ever, only this time I experienced it from the audience. What a treat! Afterward, I slipped downstairs and said hello to Dr. B. We've been in touch over the years, so he remembered me and greeted me warmly.

The Chamber Singers will always be dear to me. I was so thrilled to be able to sit and enjoy an evening of beautiful music - and to share it with Brandon. It was a great night.

A very preschool Christmas

Last week, we attended Mason's preschool Christmas program. It was so adorable!

They divided the kids into three groups, each group performing 3 or 4 songs. A slideshow played in the background, telling the Christmas story through pictures of our kids dressed up as Joseph, Mary, wise men, etc. Mason was a sheep. My parents were able to come to the show, which was wonderful.

Mason didn't seem the least bit nervous, and was very entertaining to watch. In true Mason style, he stood on the top riser and joined in the song and dance whenever he felt personally inspired to do so. I've got to say, though - I was so proud. He was well-behaved and did his best. That's my boy!

They sang three songs, including one to the tune of B-I-N-G-O, only about Jesus (J-E-S-U-S!). Too cute! All the groups did well, some sang with more gusto than others, and one little girl threw up in the lobby. Sounds about right for a preschool Christmas program, I'd say.

Thanksgiving Report

So, it's taken me awhile to get around to reporting on Thanksgiving. Mainly because it's taken me this long to recover!

We had a wonderful long weekend with Brandon's family. His parents and brother Brett and his wife Andrea (and their chihuahua Riley) stayed with us, which made things extra lively. Kyle and Anne and their kiddos live in town, so they were able to join in the togetherness as well. A good time was had by all. Here's a recap, in pictures, of all the fun.

First, let me just say, my gratitude and admiration go out to all the women (and men!) before me who have slaved over Thanksgiving dinner and pulled it off. My grandma Chaney was amazing. My dad is equally gifted. My mother-in-law makes it all look effortless. It is, by no means, effortless. Here's where I stayed, most of Wednesday and all of Thursday:


I'm wearing my grandma Chaney's lovely floral apron, for good luck. Thankfully, I wasn't alone in this endeavor.

My mother-in-law helped with every critical task (thank you, Nana!), and my sister-in-law Anne came prepared with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and the most adorable place cards for the table.

Everything turned out well, for the most part. I thought the turkey was a little dry, which was a bummer (we cooked it in an external roaster, which I had never done before). But that's what the gravy's for, right? I was glad to have a chance to use my china and crystal and my grandmother's silverware.


We also staged two separate family photo ops, complete with coordinated outfits. Yikes! It's a lot of work, getting this crew to smile and look at the camera at the same time. Especially when 4 of us are 4 and under. But we have some good shots to show for it:

Finally, I can't report on Thanksgiving without sharing some pictures of Danny with his new best friend - Riley:

Danny was in love! He followed Riley around all weekend, wanting nothing more than to "hold him on the couch." He cuddled and patted and nuzzled Riley to his heart's content. And Riley was quite a sport, I must say.

And no, this doesn't mean we'll be getting a dog.

And yes, Riley is wearing a diaper in this picture. It's a long story.

Unsupervised

They were playing together a little too well, for a little too long. I should have known they were up to something.

Hot chocolate surprise!

I love hot chocolate on a chilly morning. My very favorite brand is Land O Lakes, which comes in single serving packets. You can buy them individually at the grocery store, or in bulk from Sam's Club or Costco throughout the winter season. There are lots of flavors to choose from, but my very favorite is the Dark Chocolate. So delicious! Sometimes, if I'm feeling dangerous, I put a dollop of real whipped cream on top. Mmmmm!

Yesterday, I made myself a cup of hot chocolate while I was making the boys' breakfast and starting in on the day's to-do list. I kind of forgot about it, for awhile, and my cup sat unattended on the kitchen table while the boys ran around like loons, played play-doh, and raced cars in the kitchen. When I remembered it later, I warmed it back up in the microwave, so as not to miss out on my morning treat!

Imagine my surprise when I reached the bottom of my cup of cocoa and found . . . a big lump of green play-doh. Nice.

You know, it did taste just a little bit play-doh-y, but at the time, I didn't make the connection.

Still, I'm guessing Land O Lakes won't start making a Play-doh flavored cocoa mix any time soon.