Thank goodness for...

1.  The husband being home.
2.  A child that can use the potty all by herself, though she tends to use way too much toilet paper.
3.  Banana bread.
4.  Chipotle. 
5.  My comfortable bed.
6.  Good workouts.
7.  Having electricity.
8.  Not hearing whining for 30 minutes.
9.  A good shower.
10.  Dora the Explorer.  Seriously.

Morning off

My wonderful mother-in-law came over this morning to watch the girls so that I could get a run, shower, and Target trip sans girls.  It was awesome!  I haven't run since Saturday (been doing workout DVDs instead), so I decided to really push my first mile to see how out of shape I am (lol).  My typical first mile is between 9:30-10:00, especially because it's uphill, so I expected something closer to 9:30.  It was 8:45.  Holy crap!  No wonder I ran out of steam before my 3.1 miles were done.  I think I ended up running about 2.8, but still - 8:45 for my first mile!  Wow!  I should push it more often.  :)

Then, a nice luxurious shower before heading out for a relaxing, non-time-pressed trip to Target.  I got everything I needed, and then some, so I obviously spent more than I intended.  Why is that so easy to do there?!?  Then, home, breakfast, and bye-bye to my mother-in-law.  Thankfully, the girls were great until nap time after she left.  Yay!

Now, I'm just waiting for the husband to fly home tonight so we can all be together again tomorrow.  Can't wait for him to get home!  However, I'm sure it will be more like me taking care of three children tomorrow, as he'll probably be exhausted from his trip.  Oh well, at least everyone will be home!

Today is also my brother-in-law's birthday.  He is my husband's younger brother.  Happy golden birthday to him as he doesn't celebrate in style!  (he hates birthdays)  Have a great day, A, and have a wonderful time not celebrating!  :p

Pets

Over the past month, I've talked (and read quite a bit) to several people who are having pet issues.  There are various things going on, but it all boils down to being unwilling to be responsible for their pet.

Let me state my history with pets:  in the cat world, there has been Patchy, Hana, Red, Shiloh, Smokey, Cloud, Cuddles, Donut, and Cookie (our current cat).  In the dog world, there has been Belle.  With the cats, when I was still with my parents, we'd just collar them and call them ours after we adopted them.  They were never fixed, never licensed, and rarely collared.  They wandered in and out of the house all around our yard, which ultimately led to most of their deaths (the neighbor would feed them antifreeze, the damn cat hater).  With the cats I've had since being on my own, we've kept them collared, tagged, micro-chipped, up to date on shots, and done our best to keep them happy, fed, and loved.  Donut ultimately had to go after being with us for six months because she peed on everything and hated Cookie, but Cookie has always been slow in the head and we've had to deal with all that.  Ugh.  Belle was taken to obedience training soon after we adopted her, has always been collared, tagged, licensed, micro-chipped, up to date on shots, and had a yard to run around in.  She gets a fair amount of exercise with the girls, and (sadly) gets walked about once a month.  However, she runs around the yard all day long, and it keeps her tubby self in fairly decent shape.  We've always made sure all our animals are taken care of if we're not around, that they are in a safe environment from which they can't get out (coyotes, javelina, scorpions, etc. to prey on them?  i think not), and that they get proper food and care for what they need.  If they misbehave (e.g. crap in the hallway), they get punished with a whap on the nose and stuck in isolation (the bathroom) for awhile.  As much as they may drive me crazy at times, they are loved members of our family.

So, when I read about people considering getting rid of their pets because their work schedule changed, I get appalled.  When I was working three jobs after the husband and I first got married, I'd come home between jobs 1 and 2 to feed Belle, walk her, and make sure the cat hadn't thrown a party.  You adjust yourself to make sure your pets are taken care of.  You wouldn't just give away your child if it didn't fit your schedule, would you?  Also, provide them a safe place to spend time!  If they can go places that aren't safe, you need to change something so that they can't go to those places.  Bigger fence, longer rope, not letting them outside - whatever it takes.  Finally, if you let your pet run all over you and spoil them rotten, expect repercussions.  If you can't draw a line between what is allowable by a pet and what isn't, you can probably expect people to be unwilling to watch your pet for you or unwilling to meet all the gazillion things needed to keep your pet happy.  Deal.  There is such a thing as a high-maintenance pet!

Okay, I've said my piece.  Be responsible, and if you complain about something that's your fault, don't expect any sympathy from me.  I'll just tell you to do what you need to do (from my point of view), whether you like it or not.  It takes time, money, resources, and a lot of love to care for a pet - if you're unwilling to provide any one of those items, give up the pet or don't adopt one.

Photos

Just posting some photos from the last few days without the husband.  Read the captions for more details.

Yay, the slide came inside!  Play can commence!!!
EDIT:  Haha, I just noticed Belle looking so forlorn in her bed!  She's probably thinking "great, these kids are already driving me nuts, and now you're bringing in this giant thing?  thanks a bundle..."

L in her "ballet" skirt and playing with the styrofoam that goes with my sewing machine.

E's new curtains in her room (messy and the dog was probably wondering WTF I was doing).

E admiring her new curtains.  They're a bit longer than I intended, but they'll do!

L helping to make banana bread.

E rockin' a spiky 'do during dinner (she put food in her hair that I had to clean up).

Productive day!

This morning, when I went in to get L, we went to the potty like we always do first thing in the morning.  I opened the toilet up and found that it had been used (no flushing).  I looked at L in shock and said "did you get up in the middle of the night and potty?"  She said "yes, it dark."  (there's a night light in there but it's still pretty dark)  In my chat with her yesterday after wetting the bed, I told her that if she needed to get up in the middle of the night to go potty, she could go ahead.  Apparently, she listened!  So proud of my big girl.  I told her I was super proud of her and to just flush next time (I was also ticked that I didn't wake up when she went - I must have really been out!).  She was beaming that I told her she was such a big girl.  YAY!

So, knowing that she was fine, I took L and E to Home Depot and the grocery store this morning.  We got paint for the master bedroom (yes, I'm going to paint, again), lots of groceries, and had a good morning.  Then, after nap time, we made banana bread, cleaned up the kitchen, and are currently watching an episode of Dora the Explorer to celebrate.  So pleased!  After their bath and bedtime, I'm going to do a DVD workout and then couch out.  Yay!

The husband called from Alabama and said he's hot but getting things done.  He seems tired but good, so I think everyone is having a productive day.  Even E, who tried to run out the door at Home Depot to her freedom.  Argh.  I hope tomorrow is just as productive!

Alone, again

The husband left this morning for another business trip.  This time, he's in Mobile, Alabama.  YAY.  Well, at least he's not all the way across the country this time (just most of the way!).  He won't be back until almost midnight Friday, so the girls and I really won't see him until Saturday morning.  Ugh.  I honestly hate having a week without him and having the girls solo because there's just no break.  I've figured out how to better manage everything now that it's the third time around in so many months, but it's still hard.  Today, since L wet the bed this morning and complained that she wasn't feeling well, we stayed home and just hung out.  I worked on E's new curtains while the girls ran around and drove me crazy.  Tomorrow, time for groceries, Home Depot, and more DVD workouts (I did one this morning too).  Hurry home husband, and hurry up week to be over!

Sunset in the desert (pictures)

The husband got pictures of our gorgeous sunset last night.  Now that monsoon season is on the horizon, there are clouds in the sky, making sunsets so pretty.  Enjoy!

Sunset over our house

Sunset somewhere in our neighborhood

So pretty!

B-R-A-T-S

That's what I describe my girls as today.  They were pains in my ass, whiny, wanted everything they shouldn't be in to, and E got naked about five times prior to bed tonight.  AUGH.  So glad they're in bed now.  Here's hoping for a less whiny day tomorrow!

My day off

After we went to the Children's Museum yesterday, I dropped the girls off with their grandparents and headed off for a day by myself.  WAHOO!  I started with lunch at Beyond Bread, then paint samples and tile perusing at Home Depot, home for a nap, then played junk on my computer, went out to dinner with the husband at Freddy's, took a luxurious long shower, and then had massive problems trying to get to sleep.  Damn nap.  I laid down around 10pm and didn't fall asleep until almost 12am.  That meant the run I had planned for 4:30am this morning was out the window.  I slept until almost 7am, did a Jillian Michaels DVD workout, showered, dropped off the girls' applications for the charter school nearby off, taught piano lessons, and then got the girls back.  Oh, and I managed to clean up some toys, vacuum, and do a bit of laundry too.  It really was a nice day off, I swear!

"But it's a dry heat!"

Yes, I'm going to complain about how hot it is outside again.  No, I haven't forgotten than I live in southern Arizona, where this is pretty typical all summer long.  However!  The reason I'm complaining is because is the first full day of summer and it's 107F outside!  That means it's just going to get hotter.  Until I get used to it, I'm going to bitch.  I guess I'll note the things that piss me off the most from people back east who have no clue about the desert heat.

1.  "...but it's a dry heat!"  Yes, it is!  So is the inside of your oven!  Would you like to stick your head in there and exist for four months out of the year?  I think not.
2.  "There's no humidity."  Sure there is, it's just low.  Just because there isn't a lot of humidity has nothing to do with the fact that it's plain freaking hot.
3.  "I could never live out there!"  Well, sucks to be you.  It's awesome eight months out of the year - I'd take that trade off any day.
4.  "How do you survive?"  It's called air conditioning, avoiding being outdoors as much as possible between 8am-6pm, eating, drinking, and breathing.
5.  "Wow, that sucks!"  Yes.  Yes it does.  Care to state anything else obvious?

Most of you probably wouldn't say this to an Arizonan.  However, I will point out that my parents, who have known me all my life and know that I have lived out here for almost ten years now, still say and ask me the same things every.  freaking.  summer.  I'm beginning to think they have Alzheimer's or dementia or something.  I mean, really?  Do we have to have the same conversation all the freaking time?  I'd like to move on, please.  Really.

Also?  This is a great time of year to come to Arizona for vacation!  Hotels are cheap, there's lots to do, and I can guarantee you'll have water.  Maybe not perfect (hot hot hot, no cold water from the tap ever until October, sweat sweat sweat, pant pant pant), but I'd love to see you!  ;)

I can't wait to post a picture where it's 115F later this summer and make you all cringe, LOL.

Play at the mall

I love the play areas at the mall.  While we don't take advantage of them very often, when we do, it's such fun!  We went to the mall today to pick up the pictures we took last Monday, and so the girls got plenty of time to play.  Since it's so hot outside now, these places are the perfect place for really young kids to play in a cool place that lets them run energy off.  L had a great time playing with a 5-year-old boy, E had fun just running around and sliding, and we even saw a little girl we've seen at storytime there!  I'm sure there are tons of people out there that won't go near play places like that do to germs, bacteria, etc., but I guess my attitude is:  my kids are going to run into those germs somewhere, might as well be somewhere I approve of.  LOL.  Yay for the mall!

Music making for the very young

L asked me this morning to teach her how to play the piano.  I said sure, we'll try it, but in the back of mind, aaaalllll the insecurities I feel about the entire process came roaring back.  First, I've wrestled with the idea of whether I should teach her (and eventually E) or not.  Should I allow someone else so that they can differentiate between Mom and Teacher?  Or, should I do it so that they can progress at their own pace, i.e. move faster than most students if they comprehend things quicker?  Then, if I do teach them, what's the best way to go about doing it?  Should I use methods I'm used to?  Should I try something new?  Should I even use a method?  On top of all that, how often should I be reviewing things with them?  A lesson a week, or a lesson a day?  How do I handle practicing?  I can't do what my mom did, which was stand at my left side and yell at me for 30 minutes every day for six years.  Or do I do that?  It seems effective, in retrospect, considering my piano skills.  SO MANY QUESTIONS WITHOUT ANSWERS.

I guess we'll try a short lesson today.  Then, it's back to my pedagogy materials for research.  Then?  We'll see where we end up.  What would you do?  Would you teach your own child or not?

It's a touch hot...

The girls and I went for a run at 7:15am and it was already 85F.  Now, at noon, it's 104F.  It's supposed to get up to 112F today.  I think it's just a touch hot.  I guess that means summer is here.  BLEH.  I'll be happy for October...

EDIT:  See?  Here's the forecast for Saturday.

Father's Day

I am so lucky to have a husband that is such a great father.  He loves his girls to death, is always concerned for their welfare, and makes sure we're all well taken care of.  They in turn yell at him, scream at him for picking them up, throw things at him randomly, squirm away from him when he tickles them, "bathes" him while they're taking a bath, and generally could treat him a whole heck of a lot better.  Thankfully, though, he seems to take the punishment in stride and loves them nonetheless.  Thank you, Husband, for being so good to us all, even though I want to knock you upside the head now and then.  L and E are so lucky to have you in their lives.

Good to run

Got up at 4:30am this morning so that I could run 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) before the sun came up too much.  Luckily, the sun came over the mountain when I was at about mile 5, so I didn't have to contend with that for too long.  Also, it was only about 70F when I set out, which is cooler than it has been and just perfect.  Good music, good run, and good feeling about getting that in at the start of the weekend.  I finished the run (ran the entire thing!) in 1:00:48, which is about 9:48/mile.  Not too shabby, considering I haven't run that far in awhile.  I usually do about 5 miles on the weekend per run, and while 6.2 miles doesn't sound like it would be that bad after having done 5 miles, think about it this way:  you just ran 5 miles and you still have a mile to go.  It can be daunting, which (to me) is where good music comes in.  It's great motivation!  Taking the day off tomorrow for Father's Day, and then back to the grindstone with the girls on Monday.  Yay running!

YAY

YAY THE HUSBAND CAME HOME LAST NIGHT I'M SO HAPPY HE'S HERE AND SO ARE THE GIRLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Questions questions questions

L is a nonstop questioner these days.  Every. single. thing. out of her mouth lately is a question about something.  It's driving me crazy.  Then, when she doesn't get an answer right away, she asks again.  I've actually counted her asking me the same question 14 times in a row before she finally yelled "MAMA!  ANSWER MY QUESTION!  please."  (love the 'please' addendum)  Then, when I ask her a question, she doesn't listen.  EVER.  I'm about to bang my head against the wall for a few days to keep myself occupied so she doesn't ask me stuff.  If I did that, though, she'd probably just ask "Mama, what you doing?  Mama?  What you doing?  Mama?  Mama?  Mama?  What you doing?  Mama?"  *screams*

Romance movies

I don't really get to see romance movies all that often anymore, as there isn't much time with the girls around and the husband isn't a big fan (the gagging motions throughout get annoying).  So, last night I decided to just watch one for the fun of it.  We have Amazon Prime and get random movies and TV shows for free to watch, so I selected The Prince and Me with Julia Stiles.  It was a crap movie, truly, but it made me feel all warm and fuzzy at the end.  By the way, if you read any of the plot synposes or summaries on IMDB, they are all wrong in terms of what actually happens!  How weird is that?  Anyway, I'll have to see if I can't find another crap romance movie to watch before the husband comes home again.  I really like the Amazon Prime stuff - now I don't have to worry about having the DVD around!

3.5 and 1.5 Pictures

Yesterday, I managed to wrangle the girls down to the mall so that we could get pictures done.  It wasn't anything important or high class - I just wanted to get some nice pictures of them at this age for memories later.  I packed an extra set of clothes for each girl (just in case, as they're known to do odd things to their clothing), snacks, water, and after we watered the neighbor's plants, we headed off to the mall.

Since it was early, we went ahead and played in the play area before heading to the photo studio.  L decided to climb up on the highest thing in the playground and fall off it face first.  Lovely.  I saw her start falling and ran over to her, and she sat up screaming and crying...with a face full of blood pouring down on to her shirt.  Shit.  I managed to get her back over to where our stuff was, hold her nose and tip her head back, wipe her face and clothes off a bit, and calm her down by just talking to her and stroking her hair.  E was curious as to what was going on and kept trying to steal the bloody wipes I was putting down.  Argh!  After about five minutes of holding her nose, wiping her up, and talking to her, L was wanting to go back to playing, so I knew she was okay.  However, she looked like a vampire that had just fed on its latest victim, so I changed her clothes first before sending her back in the fray.  Thankfully, she stayed semi clean, so pictures would be fine (and bloodless).

Pictures turned out alright but the session itself was a nightmare.  L would do exactly the opposite of what the photographer asked, and then wouldn't stand still for more than two seconds.  She kept trying to choke E in pictures with her, and wanted to keep her legs spread wide open in her skirt so that she could show off her pink underwear.  Doh!  E just wanted me and wouldn't stay with L or where she needed to be for photos.  It took probably 45 minutes to do just the few pictures that we did get, and then lots of tears and screaming afterwards from L when I told her that her poor behavior meant no play area again.  Sucks to be her, I suppose, but she's gotta learn.

Then, lunch at the mall, drive home, and NAP TIME!  I cannot wait for the husband to come home Thursday night.  :D

E at 17.5 months

L at almost 3.5 years

L and E  <3

SHE'S NOT A BOY!

Yesterday, we went to the grocery store for much needed supplies.  When we went to check out, I noticed our neighbor was working a register and decided to check out in her line.  I like catching up with her now and then, and she loves seeing the girls.  E happened to be wearing a sundress yesterday, and our neighbor said with surprise "oh, I thought she was a boy!"  Apparently, she's thought this since E was born.  Great.

I realize E doesn't have a whole lot of hair, but really?  Even when she's wearing girly things I get comments like "what a handsome boy!," or "he's so cute!," or even once "You're so lucky to have a girl and a boy!"  Um, nope, sorry, I have two girls.  Poor E.  I think she looks very much like a girl, but maybe I'm in the minority?  And of course, I always then get the snide comment about having another kid so that we have a boy.  Really?  Takes me straight back to my opinion that a "perfect" family does not consist of one boy and one girl, but whatever you have and make the most of.  Have six boys?  It could be the perfect family for you!  It's what you make of it.  My usual responses are "we don't want to have a third girl," "we're done having kids," and "well, if we do, it's none of your business." 

Do you think E looks like a boy?!?  Is it just the hair or what?!???  My poor baby girl! 

E playing with the camera strap (notice how early it is, ugh).

E in a hat!

E asleep on my shoulder.  <3

He's gone...

My husband left this morning at about 4:30am for his business trip.  Sucks.  He comes back Thursday night, but that's still a long time away from us and away from home.  I'd much prefer him here, and hate that he has more business trips now than he did before.  It's great that he has more responsibilities at work and that they trust him to go to these places, but it sucks for our family because it means he's away more often.  I'd almost rather pick up and travel with him, but that just creates a whole new set of issues!  He travels this week, he's home next week, and then he's gone for a week again.  ARGH.  Miss him already.

They're home!

The girls came home this morning, and I couldn't be happier.  They came home just before 9am and have just been little balls of energy and love.  E loved her room - I literally walked in to her room and she just started bouncing in my arms.  I put her down and she just ran in little circles at first, then delved into the toys and books.  10 minutes later, the room looked like a child lived in it, lol!  L was thrilled to have a new doll (Prince Charming) and is currently playing with him and Cinderella.  L has also been ultra demanding, something I'm pretty sure comes from getting her way completely for the last week, so that's going to be a bit of a task to bite in the bud.  Many tears already today from not getting exactly what she wanted when she wanted it.  Thank goodness for nap time!  My in-laws apparently took them all over, including the mall and the zoo.  It sounds like they had an excellent week and I'm so happy that A) my in-laws are willing to have them for so long, and B) they had such a good time.  However, I'm glad they are home.  Too bad Daddy leaves on a business trip tomorrow morning for a week.  We're getting our family time in now, so that helps, but it's still going to be an adjustment to be alone with them this coming week when this past week has been such a breeze.  Yay for little girls being with Mommy and Daddy again!

E's Room is DONE!

E's room is done!  Took me pretty much all day yesterday to finish it (longer than expected), but I think it turned out well.  We'll see what E thinks when she comes home tomorrow.  :)

Pink stripes done, now on to the white ones!

More taping (and don't worry, I fixed the ones that were falling down before I started)

White stripes done, now on to purple!

On a whim, I decided to paint the back of the door and the closet doors.  Added time = 1 hour.  UGH.

YAY THE PAINTING IS DONE OMG! (also, those blackout shades?  are AMAZING)

Ta-da!  All done!  View of the room when you walk in the door to the right.

Area on the north side of the room, by the window. (the curtains are the ones that were there before - I've got new material on order and will make [more] matching curtains when it comes)

Entry area (I couldn't get rid of the Donald Duck drawings, Auntie V!)

E's sleeping area.  Notice the brand-spanking new bookshelf!  Yeah!

Painting E's Room...

So tired.  However, not finished.  Cleaned, gutted, and taped E's room Tuesday afternoon.  Started painting yesterday morning.  Base coat (three coats of it) done in about 4 hours, more taping, more painting, and still more to go.  More trips to Home Depot in the very near future!  Posting a few pictures here to show that no, I'm not being a lazy butt while the girls are away.  E had better like it (she chose the colors - well, she chose the way any toddler chooses really, but was insistent on base coat).

Doing borders around the room first

Border around the closet.  Transforming from green to pink!

Partially painted room

Base coat done!  (and moving around that damn crib is HARD all the time)

Putting up the marks and taping for the stripes

More to be posted when I finish...

My Vacation Week!

Monday, I painted our hallway upstairs.  That took about 8 hours total.

Tuesday, I ran a ton of errands and prepped E's room for painting.

Wednesday (today), I'm painting E's room.  That will take all day, hence the reason I'm up early.

Tomorrow, I plan to go see Snow White and the Huntsman in theaters, get the pest control guy to spray the crap out of our house/garage/yard, and clean up all the toys laying around.

Friday, I shall have to put together the girls' rooms again, get groceries, clean, and just generally get prepped for the girls' return on Saturday.

Saturday, the girls come home.  :D

Sunday, the husband leaves on a business trip.  :(


What's your week like?

Phoenix Vacation

I suppose I should go back and document the vacation we just took last week before I forget what we did.  It really was a great week, just exhausting in some respects.  L and E both had pretty bad reactions to the air pollution up there, suffering from coughing, congestion, runny noses, and red eyes by the end of the week.  They also didn't sleep too well, but that's understandable.

Saturday, May 26th - We packed up in the morning and drove to Tempe during the girls' nap time.  E fell asleep right away (yay!), but woke up about 40 minutes later because L was still awake and squealing with way too much excitement.  L eventually drifted off, but E never did again.  Argh.  We got to my husband's grandparents' house, unpacked, had dinner, and then headed over to his uncle's house (south Tempe) for a pig roast (and Uncle Buster's 90th birthday celebration).  That's right, a whole pig, rotating on a spit, just like you'd imagine in some medieval feast.  The whole Chinese family was there, as well as quite a few of the grandparents' neighbors.  E took a naked dip in the pool with her grandpa, L had a great time playing in the basement and watching Dora with her second cousin C, and we ended up taking the girls home around 7:30pm so they could go to bed.  Pig wasn't done yet so we didn't eat.  Boo.  However, my husband's grandmother was kind enough to bring some back for us to enjoy the rest of the week.

E napping in the car on our way up to Tempe

L having fun with the flashlight in her "cave" (a dark room).

Busy readers:  L read Dr. Seuss while snuggling against Uncle Buster reading TIME magazine.

E taking a naked dip in the pool (thankfully, my FIL had swim trunks on).

Pig on the spit!  I'm told it was ~90 pounds and took ~12 hours to roast.

Sunday, May 27th - Husband and I's 7th wedding anniversary.  7 years!  I guess that means if I don't have the "itch" now, I'm probably not going to, so we're stuck together from here to eternity.  Not that I mind.  :)  I got him a set of headphones he's been wanting (the note said "After being married to me for 7 years, you deserve some quiet!"), and he got me a pack of flower seeds (his version of getting me flowers), and some books.  Yay!  He got me a trashy romance novel too!  Love that man.
     Since the weather was unusually cool (~90F during the day), and was forecast to go up to almost 112F later in the week, we decided to go to the Phoenix Zoo that day instead of later.  Glad we did!  We had a great time with the girls seeing all the animals.  I got a bit sunburnt on my shoulders, E panicked a bit at the petting zoo goats (a kind of omg-look-an-animal-does-anyone-notice-it's-roaming-free-omg-omg-omg panic), L loved anything with water she could play in, and I think the husband got some great pictures. 
     We then went to YC's Mongolian Grill in the evening for dinner.  It was where my husband and I went for our first date, so we were glad to come back.  The girls actually ate well, which surprised us, and then we just couched out at his grandparents' house the rest of the evening.

Me and E looking at the giraffes eat.

L and a baboon making faces at each other.

Husband, E, and L play in the border town area of the zoo.

L getting ready to go rub down another goat.

"Hey!  HEY!  Does anyone notice there's a goat there?!??  ANYONE?!?"

L being silly at dinner.

E gorging on frozen yogurt (chocolate, of course).

Monday, May 28th - Memorial Day.  We decided to go to IKEA and look through the children's section, as well as just browse in general.  We ended up getting some dog butts for the girls' bathroom (aka hooks), a new duvet set for L, a picnic basket toy for E, a bathroom towel rack (which doesn't fit so we'll have to return it), a new rug for E's room (to match it when I paint it), and a crib pillow, for E when she's ready to transition to a toddler bed (way, WAY in the future).  Then, we spent the day doing a whole lot of nothing while hanging out with the girls' great-grandparents.  It was great!

Reading with Ho-Ho.

Making pancakes with Ho-Ho.

"Talka dolls" (talking with dolls) with Great-Uncle B.

Tuesday, May 29th - Our wonderful  nephew (and the girls' cousin)'s 2nd birthday.  What a big boy he is now!  We called him to wish him a happy birthday that morning, and then it was off to the Arizona Museum of Natural History.  The place turned out to be a lot bigger than I thought it would be, and there were so many more dinosaurs than I ever imagined.  I wish we could have spent more time there - it's definitely on our list of places to go back to!
     In the afternoon, I drove up to Glendale to meet with my co-presenter for our session at the state music teachers conference.  It went well, and quickly, so then I ran over to my friend M's house to drop off some baby clothes for her impending little one (due any day now!), and then drove back in rush-hour traffic to Tempe.  Some days I miss living in the Phoenix metro area, and some days I'm so glad we're in Tucson!

The girls and I with the woolly mammoth (mastodon?) in the AZ Museum of Natural History entrance.

Look out, L!  There's a pterodactyl behind you!

E rotating the handle on an exhibit where you could make footprints.

L and I carefully "dusting" for dinosaur bones.  We found a T-rex!

L in jail (the museum is the old Mesa City Jail building, and the cells are still downstairs!).

L, E, and Husband with a triceratops.

Wednesday, May 30 - Husband's birthday.  Happy birthday!  The girls and I greeted him with a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday To You (at 6:15am, LOL), and we made sure Daddy had a very special day.  We went to Fry's Electronics (*groan*), had lunch at NYPD Pizza (yum!), opened presents, had cake, had an amazing dinner of enchiladas and taquitos (courtesy of Husband's grandmother), and generally had a good day together celebrating.  We were also desperately in need of a low-key day, and this fit the bill perfectly.

E and Daddy (I love the polar-opposite looks they have on their faces).

Mommy and L, celebrating Daddy's birthday.

Helping Daddy open his gifts. (this was the Captain America belt buckle from the girls).

The birthday cake, complete with superhero rings and a musical candle.  I kid you not, it played Happy Birthday when lit!

E attempting to serenade her great-grandmother.

Thursday, May 31 - We weren't sure if anything was going to happen today because E was a little under the weather.  Eventually, we decided that she was okay enough to venture into Phoenix and visit the Children's Museum.  We'd been here last summer, but E hadn't even been able to crawl yet, so it was a total novelty for her this time.  L loved it again, and we explored a whole lot more too!
     We came back and spent the afternoon at "home" (my husband's grandparents' house).  In the evening, I had to go up to the conference hotel for a banquet.  The food was alright, the company was decent, and the evening itself was uneventful.  Still, I hate going to stuff like that.  I had to go, though, as I was presenting in the morning.  Ugh, formalities, I loathe thee.

3-story wall of CDs in the Children's Museum.  Love it!

The 3-story climbing structure in the atrium.  It's amazing!

L climbing.  We made it to the top!

E climbing.  She seemed to have a BALL.

L pulling E along (with me behind) through the bike wash.

L and E shopping.

Mmm, dessert.  It must mean this fancy dinner is almost over!

 Friday, June 1 - Left bright and early for the conference hotel in order to get ready to present.  I talked more about the presentation on Sunday, so I'll spare the details here.  Once I got back to the house, we packed up our stuff, had lunch, and drove back HOME.  L napped most of the way back, and this time E didn't nap.  Argh!  Luckily, she did take a short nap once we got home, but omg CRANKY.  So nice to be home, except for the cat crapping everywhere in the house because she was pissed off we weren't there.  Damn cat.

So that was our trip, and I even managed to run 11 miles during that time.  How did your week go?