Sowby-it

Baby Beats now Available

2010-11-17T11:10:00.001-08:00

The first volume of Baby Beats is finally complete. Well, it has been for a few months now, and selling quite well on iTunes and Amazon.

Baby Beats is designed to stimulate infants and toddlers in a fun way. The unique rhythms and beats provide a fun and calming way for your children to listen to music.

Both Suede and Ellis love the sounds and rhythms that this cd has. Whether it's getting them to calm down on a long car ride or providing music to dance around to, Baby Beats does it all.

You can get your own Audio CD or MP3 Download by clicking any of the following links.

iTunes, Amazon MP3, Amazon CD

It Serves Craig Right for Not Posting

2010-06-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

The truth is, who knows what has happened in the last 6 months. I'm not even sure. But, as I look at the pictures on my phone (as that is all I have access to at the moment), I guess I have a few things I can whip up.

First of all, a vent (with a joking tone of course). Why the H E double hockey stick is it my responsibility to do all the blogging anyway? It's not like I'm a medical student with 2 kids... that's also getting her MBA in her spare time or anything. But, I must follow the counsel of my dear husband. On the brighter side, I will have some sort of record (though few and far stretched) for future reference.

We had some pretty nice snow storms this winter. I enjoyed them, but was more than a little bit put out the time that our power was out for 2 days. We now own a generator and will not be freezing to death again.

All the sleds were sold out, so we improvised a bit.

And redefined an animal drawn sleigh.

We love, love, love living in the mountains 5 minutes from a free National Park with some fun trails. One of us is in the mountains everyday (with the dog EQ of course).

Suede is all girl and pictures of her Alice in Wonderland tea birthday party will have to come another time.

To my much dismay, my baby is no longer a baby. Ellis Craig turned 1 year old on May 23rd. No, there are no messy cake pictures, as I couldn't get the kid to eat the cake at all! One of my professors (a Dr. of course) was present and called me out on trying to get my kid addicted to sugar as I forced the cake down his throat, so hence, I gave up the effort and ate the cake myself. He is his daddy's son, and we have to keep a weary eye out to make sure he's not climbing something he shouldn't be.

Notice the blur. Yes, he was jumping while I sat back and took a picture. Sometimes there is only so much you can do.

Yes we are good at these photo ops that question our parenting skills.

Lastly, I would like to make a tribute to Craig as the post title suggests.

Here is my mother's day present for 2010.

Yes indeed that is a right handed putter (I'm a lefty). Just what I always wanted.

Rumor has it, it goes along with his latest project (that I remember being against and somehow....)

Yes, that is AstroTurf in our enclosed porch, which now has 2 holes cut in either side for a soon to be completed practice putting green.

This Father's Day I'm sure I can find something "wonderful" (and sparkly) that he will find great joy in.

Taralyn is Granted a Blog-Update-Time-Extension Due to "Not Getting on the Ball'

2010-05-31T18:50:00.000-07:00

Unnoficial Blog Update

2010-05-20T06:57:00.000-07:00

Official update to come from Taralyn in less than a week.

Obligatory Christmas Picture

2009-12-22T20:45:00.000-08:00

Here it is, our official Top 10 of 2009 list and card.

Some people I know have eschewed the traditional card and gone with an e-card, but not us. Taralyn won't let me embrace the digital age fully, although she is making me post it in digital form. I guess some people really like the Postal Service to make more money. I prefer to inconvenience a few electrons in a digital transfer over the interwebs.

If you are among the chosen few, you will also see this in your snail mail box between Dec 26 and Dec 29. If not, we may not like you enough, so you can print this one out and display it on the cold-food-keeping device in your kitchen.

Fall Fling

2009-09-14T10:33:00.001-07:00

Fall is my favorite season. For some reason it always seems the most romantic of all. My good friend is featuring Fall in her "Fall Fling" so I decided to participate (see her blog Because Babies Grow Up)

One of my most favorite things to do during the Fall is to camp (in the mountains or the forest. Anywhere with trees.) and wake up to a crisp morning where we can drink hot chocolate and sit by the fire. Those of you who knew me pre-Utah know that this is somewhat new and was in fact adopted in my college years. Craig has turned me into more of an outdoor girl (although he would still argue the opposite). I never thought I would, but I actually enjoy sleeping out with no tent. That is...if there is an absence of mosquitoes. Suede had her first camping experience a couple weeks ago, and (I am told) really enjoyed it. We'll have to go again soon before it gets too cold for the kiddies.

Here are a couple pics of the campout with her Daddy a couple weeks ago. Of course I was stuck at home studying, studying, studying.

Repentance

2009-09-06T18:13:00.000-07:00

So I promised myself I would post today as I have been telling myself for months I would catch up. It's the catching up that's so daunting you know. Months of change and where to begin. Also, there is the fact that we always forget to document things with pictures, so what do I have to show! Well here goes....

Brief Update
We left Virginia full of tears in July as we embarked on our new journey in Tennessee/Kentucky (I'm sure Zac and Gina were rejoicing as they now have their basement back).

We have a new house....let me rephrase that, we have a house built in 1929 that is new to us that we love. It's a funhouse, literally, with slanted floors and doors and all.

Craig has once again taken over the house with his recording equipment and drums. Glad he feels at home now.

Craig's commentary: And what's left over, Taralyn has scattered with her dozens of school books and supplies.

I started medical school on July 28th and am LOVING IT! I just don't know how I'm going to remember all the awesome stuff.

Our new ward is awesome and Craig finally has a big boy calling (he's gotten off the hook since we've been married). He's the assistant ward clerk over finance. I laughed at first, and then this morning realized it adds work for me as I have to get the kids ready for church by myself and bring them home by myself. Why oh why did I wish this upon him (and me)? :)

Phew, that wasn't too bad.

Now for a funny story.

As we were bringing a load out here (we moved in stages), we stopped for some food at Wendy's and a feeding/ changing of Ellis. Well, I fed and left the changing to Craig (dun, dun, dun). He had the van door open with Ellis on the seat and forgot the cardinal rule of diapering the child RIGHT AWAY! Needless to say, it was not the pee party you are thinking. It was quite the opposite. A powerful opposite at that. He just so happened to be bending down right at the moment Ellis decides to have one of his amazing squirty rocket poops. Outcome = poor Craig's face (and Taralyn laughing so hard she can't even hand him the wipes). Let me tell you, this was some power. We measured the distance that this rocket traveled, 8 ft!

This one's for you Craig!

Craig's commentary: Speaking of things on people's faces. Here's what Taralyn had on hers recently. All from a little plant called poison sumac.

Back to Taralyn: It was SO HORRIBLE! I became a believer in homeopathy this last week. My face is back to normal. Our Bishop (also a teacher at the medical school so he's a genius Dr) gave me a remedy b/c I can't take steroids while breastfeeding. Miracle stuff! Works better than steroids!

Well, that's all for now folks. Hopefully I won't wait 3 more months before I post another one.

Ellis Craig Sowby

2009-05-29T18:33:00.000-07:00

Ellis Craig Sowby arrived on May 23, 2009 at 12:22pm after a VERY long night. He was 7lbs 12oz and 20 inches long. Almost a pound and a half bigger (and 2.5 inches longer) than Suede was. All in all it went well and Mom and family are doing great. Here are a few pics we got today. That makes him... 6 days old.

Happy Cinco de Mayo! Flan anyone?

2009-05-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

In honor of Cinco de Mayo (and some cravings for some custard) I made my first attempt at the beloved flan. I was quite nervous about the outcome. But....I have to boast and say it was AWESOME!!! Looked great and tasted even better. This will have to become a tradition :)

Letters, Letters, Letters!

2009-04-24T05:28:00.000-07:00

We love the Leapfrog Letter Factory Video. Suede does too. We've done a little bit of work with her, but mostly it came from the movie. We didn't show it here, but she also knows all the sounds the letters make. That video is great! Thanks to Heleen for telling me about it! If only we could find one sufficient for potty training. The ones we've found don't motivate her much :)

PS She's not even 2 yet :)

"Come Here! Come Here!"

2009-04-17T09:14:00.000-07:00

Fairy Pics

2009-04-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

We went to Disney World for New Years with the Clawson clan this year. Instead of spending approx. $100 for Disney to dress up my daughter as a princess and do her hair and make-up, we decided to do it ourselves by bringing along the outfit etc. So Suede and her cousin Hannah were fairies. Hannah was Tinkerbell, Suede was a generic non-Disney fairy (I know I'm a cheapo).

Eggs-actness

2009-04-09T07:06:00.000-07:00

I have a strange child. When presented with an artistic activity, she has an extremely long attention span. Last week my sister-in-law introduced water coloring to her. She sat there for an hour and a half without even making a sound continually painting. She then had to be pulled away in order to eat lunch. All of the other kids (even the 9 year old) had left her at the table to paint on her own a long while before.

This week, we were coloring Easter eggs for family home evening. Allowing the egg to sit in the dye without her participation seemed too boring, so I decided to give her paints. She was very upset when I finally had to pull her away from her artistic project (1 egg) after the other children had colored 3 dozen eggs, and everything else had been cleaned up.

I'm not quite sure what this means. Neither Craig nor I have any visual artistic ability, so hopefully we'll get back to Virginia soon (we're moving in July for my medical school) so Aunt Gina and MeMa can foster this possible talent.

Happy Easter!

Here's a good quote I found to remind us of the season.

"In his life, Christ is an example, showing us how to live; in his death, he is a sacrifice, satisfying for our sins; in his resurrection, a conqueror; in his ascension, a king, in his intercession, a high priest. -Luther

Genesis 2:19

2009-03-17T18:18:00.000-07:00

Genesis 2:19
And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

This was the theme of our family home evening lesson yesterday (with my brother Zac's family and my parents) in which we chose the name of our new puppy. We all wrote down names and we drew 3 and voted.

The winner: "Bloke"

This name was supplied by my niece Hannah. I think she really wanted to say "Blake" but messed up and Gina quickly wrote down the first one she said. It's definitely starting to suit him.

He's a Basset Hound/Collie/? mutt and I think he's going to be a great dog. He's been preparing me for the baby with his nighttime potty breaks, but he is really starting to catch on.

P.S. Did I mention Craig's contribution was "Barfy-McToots" I'm really happy it wasn't one of the final 3. The kids really liked that one and I'm sure it would have been the winner. I can imagine myself calling that out my door at night.

A True Artist

2009-03-06T08:21:00.001-08:00

A true artist isn't held within the boundaries of a desk and chair. Luckily we have a cement floor.

Or...the mom could just be too tired to regulate :)

Utah Fun!

2009-02-27T12:44:00.000-08:00

Since Suede will be 2 in April, and this was the last chance for us to fly with her for free, Craig's parents gave us some airline tickets for Christmas to come out and see the family. It was short, but fun and we're glad we got to see who we did. Craig of course spent a day on the slopes and came back bruised and sore thinking he could pick up on those jumps where he left off last year... I hear he did alright though. Suede had her first Sledding and Snowman experience and was so angry when we were leaving that she threw a tantrum in the snow. Luckily we borrowed a camera for the event since we seemed to have forgotten ours (as usual). Here is a sampling of the snow day.

House we have an offer on :)

2009-02-15T17:25:00.000-08:00

Here is a video Craig made about the house we have an offer on. We're so excited. If all goes well with closing it will be ours soon :) YEAH!!!

Weird Pregnancy Dreams

2009-02-07T18:18:00.000-08:00

So I'm blaming the hormones on my recent but frequent weird dreams. I'm either married to someone else and remember that being married to Craig was so much better and I need to just figure out how to get back, or....I forget who I am married to and know that there must be someone, but the name just doesn't come to light. A couple of them I've been married to ex boyfriends which is incredibly odd (it's never the same one. They seem to be on random selection). Luckily, I still wake up happily next the right guy.

On a similar but somewhat different note, some of you may not have caught that the baby in my belly has 3 lower appendages and is thus providing a whole new array of hormones for me to try out. I'm not the nice happy pregnant person I was with Suede. Craig would probably say I'm quite the opposite...and I must say I have to agree. Carrying boys does not agree with me :) Luckily I love the thus far unnamed anyway. Oh the things we do for our children.

Suede's First ER visit

2009-02-06T10:09:00.001-08:00

So it seems as if I'm doing a monthly blogging. I'll try to keep it up a bit more. A couple weeks ago Suede had her first trip to the ER (to all of our great displeasure). She couldn't keep anything down, so when nothing prevailed, her Dr. sent us to the ER to get some IV fluids pumped into her veins. So sad, but it did the trick and she was up and running just minutes after. They put Dora stickers on her IV so she kept saying, "Dora owe" :(

Clawson-Sowby Family Band Premier

2009-01-05T16:03:00.000-08:00

We performed for our ward (church) Christmas party this year and everyone from my brothers family, our family, and my parents performed. We practiced a lot and the kids did awesome! Craig and I have been teaching the Violin and Cello and it was their first time playing in a group.

Gary-vocals and guitar
Judy-percussion and children container
Zac-Bass
Gina-Cello
London-Violin
Mason-Rockin cello and dance moves
Charlie - Kazoo
Hannah-Kazoo
Noah-sweet wood block and oral metronome
Craig-Drums
Tar-Cello
Suede-jingle bells

We're planning on hitting the road in 2009. We'll let you know of our tour schedule :)

Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T10:59:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Everyone!

Things the Season Brings

2008-12-12T15:46:00.002-08:00

I spent the morning in the Emergency Room with my niece and my sister-in-law, more out of curiosity than support. The Christmas season brings so many wonderful traditions and memories, some of which involve crafts (for ambitious moms like my sister-in-law). Thus the 3 cornered beads that you string on pipe cleaners come out in red and green to create beautiful ornaments. Hannah, my niece, decided to decorate her nose this morning and forced one of these oddly shaped beads up her nose so far it was hardly visible. No amount of blowing would budge it and when the pediatrician said it was too risky for them to dislodge it, we were off to the hospital. I really wondered how they would manage to free this tiny piece of Christmas cheer, so I had to go along. Plus, someone needed to take the pictures for posterity's sake. It took quite a few tries for the PA, with a nurse, a tech, and my sister-in-law restraining the 3 year old. Tis the season to make new promises, and she faithfully promised all involved she would never stick anything up her nose again. :)

Is There A Dr. In The House?

2008-11-25T11:11:00.000-08:00

Well, I have to say that my hiding under a bushel for my fears of not being able to control my future are finally over. In the past months that I have neglected this poor blog I have re-taken the MCAT, finished my medical school applications including what seemed like hundreds of entrance essays. I have had 2 interviews so far, and today I got a phone call with my second acceptance. Thus, I can now come back out of my hiding space and tell you all of the happenings in the Sowby household. Dr. Sowby will be in the house.... just give it quite a few years for me to finish up :) The important thing is that I am finally on my way! Move over House, Dr. Sowby is on the way up. So far my acceptances are to a school in NYC (HARLEM) and one in the sticks of Tennessee. I'm not sure how I feel about living in the city of cement in a tiny apartment, but Craig hasn't decided yet which he prefers. NY would definitely do well for his line of work, but the school in Tenn. is in the middle of the mountains with great hiking trails. It's a tough call for him :) Anyway, I have fully repented of my folly and will keep up with the updates.

P.S. On other big news, baby #2 is on it's way at the end of May. Man do we have some changes coming to us! I obviously think this is not merely news for a Post Script, but am always unsure on how to break such news. Thus, I have resorted to the PS. Plus, those that get bored up top won't have patients (like my Dr. joke?) to find out the exciting news thus entered:) haha!

Brian May Remembered

2008-09-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

This week is the one year mark of my cousin-in-law Brian May's death. He was/is an awesome guy and I can't remember back to when he and my cousin Stacey weren't married. He was a VERY large man and I remember as a child being nervous at his towering above me, but it always wore off after his friendliness came through.

I loved hearing about the way they met and fell in love. Stacey was an early morning custodian on campus at BYU and Brian was at her apartment (visiting her roommate) when she came home looking lovely from the early morning cleaning. I might not be remembering it completely accurately, but it seems that he made some smart comment, she returned one, and she wasn't much impressed with him. Needless to say they later fell in love.

Brian was a BYU football starter and so this past weekend my cousin Stacey was in Provo for a fundraiser etc. She and another BYU football widow were interviewed and carried the alumni flag onto the field at the game.

Here is the clip.

We love you May family and we miss Brian.

Snaggle Tooth

2008-09-17T08:16:00.000-07:00

It was getting to Suede's 16 month birthday and I was getting extremely anxious about the fact that no teeth had yet popped into her gum filled mouth.

Web MD says, "Usually, the first primary tooth comes in (erupts) at about 6 months of age, although it can be as early as 3 months or as late as 1 year of age. In rare cases, a baby gets a first tooth after his or her first birthday."

Thus, Suede was EXTREMELY RARE being 4 months past her first birthday. Finally, just as I was getting ready to schedule an appointment with her Doctor (a day after her 16 mo. birthday) a tooth popped in. YEAH!

Again she is unusual in that it wasn't the bottom 2 teeth (that usually come in first), but her top front right tooth. I'm excited that the time of breaking food up in extremely small pieces is almost over. I had to get a picture, but as you can see, she wasn't the happiest about it at the time.

I was told that our friend Brad didn't get his teeth until really late as well, and he seems to have a good brain, so lets hope there's a correlation there :)

Hawaiian in the blood

2008-09-13T11:09:00.000-07:00

It all started back in Utah when my Ward (church congregation) was having a Luau. A member of our ward was an AMAZING Polynesian dancer and teacher and she taught us a Tahitian dance and a Hula. It was so much fun I couldn't stop. I started taking Tahitian but soon got pregnant and my expanding hips couldn't take it. Here's a picture of my awesomeness (OK Maybe it's not me. I wish. I'm really white when it comes to this stuff. Someday I'll be able to shake like this).

Thus, I switched to Hula and the same dancer in my ward came over and gave me private Hula lessons right up until I delivered. Let me tell you, it is an amazing leg and hip workout.
Here's a taste of what it supposed to look like

After visiting Hawaii and hearing the music, my Dad became convinced that he was supposed to have Hawaiian blood running through his veins. Now I think I agree.

Anyway, all of this to say that I have once again started taking Hula lessons. I found a Halau in Stafford, Va. (Hoku Hula) and am really loving it. Someday I'll be good enough to share :) As of now I'll just continue to be extremely sore every Saturday afternoon.

Rambo vs. Black Ninja

2008-09-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

Those of you who have spent even a short amount of time with me and Craig have inevitably seen us have it out at one point or another. Don't get me wrong, we are madly in love, but what else could happen with two extremely stubborn people. Heads collide and we let them roll. They are (mostly) stupid things that have no relevance to our lives together and we end up laughing at them mere hours later. Yesterday was such a day as we were leaving stake conference (for you non-Mormons that is when a bunch of congregations in the area meet together to listen to the area leaders). We had just left a meeting in which we learned to be more charitable and more Christlike and as we entered the car, exploded into one of these wonderful battles. I argue like this....

With bazookas and machine guns and all out explosions. Craig on the other hand argues like this....

With stealth modes an untrained eye cannot recognize.

Thus commenced our argument. I blowing up the car with yelling and Craig sneakily taking out my feet. It's quite a site if you are ever fortunate enough to observe this theatrical event. Thus brings me to a jewel of a quote provided by my dear husband.

Speaking of our "spiritual meeting" we had just left he replied with a calm voice, "Well I am glad that you felt the spirit...(big pause)... of contention."
This was was followed by some great explosions on my part of course.

Now it is a wonderful laughing matter :)

Old Dogs and New Tricks

2008-08-21T10:47:00.000-07:00

Don't believe people when they say you can't teach an old dog new tricks. My first experience going anywhere with Craig proved a lot about both of our personalities. We walked up to his car, he got in and I stood in front of my door waiting. He looked at me oddly at first then reached over (from the inside) and opened the car door. I closed it. He opened it again. I closed it. He then shrugged and started to back out. I smiled. He stopped the car, got out and opened my door and we had a lovely afternoon. Needless to say I didn't marry a hopelessly romantic fellow. We spent our honeymoon camping across America (other than the wedding night hotel provided by my parents). Practice has definitely paid off and yesterday I was provided with a WONDERFUL birthday. I awoke to, well, a crying baby, then I was presented with a menu selection.

I chose my breakfast of waffles, got ready, and we went to my favorite store, Barnes and Noble, where I picked up A Left-Hand Turn Around The World to read about all of the left hand places I need to visit, The Female Brain to help me in my quest to help Craig understand how I think (and to understand myself), and My Cousin Rachel by my favorite author Daphne du Maurier. As you can see from the itinerary I was only supposed to pick 2, but I convinced him to let me get 3 since 2 were on sale. We had a wonderfully tasty lunch at Maggiano's and returned home to eat some delicious chocolate cake (made from scratch by my sister-in-law Gina). This cake is labeled WAGONFOOD (as you can see in the video) so I can safely eat it on my diet and still stay "on the wagon".

I then was ushered into the car not knowing where we were going. We arrived at The Whistle Stop Bed and Breakfast in Louisa, Va. and had a relaxing time reading on the porch, putting coins on the train track to get squashed, eating a fruit tart and drinking sparkling apple cider (provided by my sister-in-law and mom), watching a movie, and "going to bed early". It was an awesome birthday thought up entirely by my wonderful husband, who when I first met him was unwilling to make an effort to even open my door. Thus, Old Dog, new trick.
P.S. I have since learned how to operate a car on my own (comment added by Craig as he was proofreading my writing. He has to feel manly somehow I guess. Just know he still does open my door.)

Beaches and Butterflies

2008-08-03T16:50:00.001-07:00

We've done a few fun things thus far this Summer. All in all I realize that as soon as you have kids things are changed from, "This will be fun for me." to... "This will be fun for the kids!" The only way they coincide is if you happen to live through their enjoyment (that was said with a smile on my face if you were wondering). A trip to Virginia Beach with my mom and 7 kids (4 of my sister's and 2 of my brother's and Suede) proved my patience has not grown to the heights I had previously thought. It was a fun trip though and I really did like seeing them have so much fun.

Her first visit to the ocean was a big success and I had a hard time convincing her that she wanted to be playing in the sand by the blanket so I could read my book. The water was just to tempting to her and she would run for it at every chance. I did prevail for about 3 pages though.

With DC so close we feel the need to start her experience of the Nation's Capitol early. Last week we rode the metro and visited the Natural History Museum.

Before going to the museum we visited the Old Post Office for lunch and went up to the tower. They have these huge bells and every Thursday evening. the bell ringers come to practice and you can hear it out on 12th street. They do some crazy patterns that don't repeat themselves and have something like 5000 sequences or something (without music). At the tourist shop I saw something you will only find in our wonderful Nation's Capitol. Check out these pre-printed license plates. Not John or Mary but...

and

and

At the Natural History Museum I decided to get her started on her anatomy early. And starting with the skull is always easiest.

It was about 2 hours after nap time while she decided to have a melt down in front of hundreds of tourists, that I vowed never to take her in public again. Luckily that all melted away and I found the trip completely worth it when we visited the butterfly house. It was filled with hundreds of butterflies with the most amazing colors. You first enter a little room so they can ensure that none will escape and as you walk in the door a fan blows down on you to try to keep them contained. After you leave you have to enter another room and get checked to make sure none of the butterflies were hitch-hiking their way to freedom. Although, who would want to leave that paradise of flowers and fruit. It was amazing having them land and sit on me. Suede loved them. If you're ever in DC make sure to go to the Natural History museum on a Tuesday b/c that's when the butterfly house is free. I would suggest getting your tickets early though. We had to wait about 2.5 hours for our time to come up. Hence the break down. All in all it was a great time and I love visiting my favorite city.

Have you ever had a butterfly on your head? Well I have...

Memories!

2008-07-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

My sister claims I'm a narcissist, and well truthfully, aren't we all? We all look for our picture first in a group photo. Anyway, when I saw this on my sister-in-law's blog I couldn't resist. I want to hear all about... well ME! I might be sorry later, after I start to remember things long since past :), but I'll give it a shot. Note for rule #4, as long as it is funny and won't be too unbearable it's fair game in my book. Here are the instructions as copied from her blog:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember. If we're only blogging friends write about a post that is most memorable.
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll be sure to write one about you....either on your blog, in my comment box, or I will email you one back.
3. If the memory happens to involve my husband, please include him.
4. If you can't say something nice, don't say nothin' at all.

That's me contemplating all our memories together :)

Happy blogging!

Happy Anniversary

2008-07-11T17:13:00.001-07:00

Craig and my anniversary is on July 5th, so this year (6th anniversary) we decided to abandon my family and the tradition of spending the 4th on the Mall in DC for what I thought would be a spectacular show in Philadelphia. We also managed to leave Suede as well :) I do have to say our hotel was great and I found this Italian restaurant with a pasta dish that was so tasty I had to get it again the second night. We walked down Ben Franklin Parkway with all of the booths fit for a fair and finally reach the stage at the end for the show. It began to rain and after hearing the "Jersey Click Girls" perform we decided that no fireworks were worth that wait. (I tried to do a google search for these famous click girls and found NOTHIN- just picture 3 wanna be Hannah Montanas with microphone stands and mic covers adorned with sparkly sequins). We ended up leaving the show to go back to our hotel room and watch the show in DC on TV instead of live. I think we were actually asleep before the Philly fireworks even began. But let me say again. It was a nice hotel and I quite enjoyed it. The next day....our anniversary... we decided to see the historic sites. We stood in line for tickets to Independence Hall and then.... we went back to the hotel for a bit of a snooze. Craig got a migraine and ended up staying in that wonderful hotel to sleep while I ventured out on my own to walk back down to tour Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. (Those of you that know my sense of direction and incredible anxiety for being lost should be quite impressed with this feat) After a few hours of rest, he seemed up to going to the festival down at the water. It was going to be spectacular. There were food vendors from all of the great restaurants in the city and Boys II Men were going to perform. If you have forgotten this jewel of a band from the 90s here's one of their hits for you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZcG0NBMcDA

(Sorry they blocked being able to put the video on blogs. You'll have to go to the link)

Well, we sat on the steps waiting for the show to start for an hour past starting time until Craig finally decided it wasn't worth waiting for (I had my doubts before we even entered the gated cement park with shoulder to shoulder people). Thus, we were to leave, but not without Craig's blessed funnel cake. We stood in line for another hour to get the powdered sugar coated fried pancake batter that cost $5. All that matters is that it was worth it to him I suppose.

Trying to exit this wonderful facility was another matter. There were 3 entrances with people charging through and the staff WAS NOT letting anyone out. We stood amidst an angry crowd that was getting more and more agitated as the minutes passed with cops that merely opened up another entrance instead of letting anyone out. Finally after about 45 min. we were permitted to leave (as I think they realized no one else could even fit inside). I think what finally opened their eyes was the woman who passed out and was being carried by her distraught husband trying to find the ambulance. I watched a policeman stare at this man in great need of help without even acknowledging his existence. I WAS DISTRAUGHT and proceeded to yell at the cop (much to Craig's embarrassment).

It all ended well though because I got that incredible pasta dish to go and we once again missed the fireworks and relaxed in the hotel room and watched the first stage of the Tour de France (another one of my loves).

All in all, it was a great anniversary, but next time I think I'll stick with the best and spend my Independence Day in DC as always. Here's a taste of what we missed.

At this point I would like to turn to the wisdom of Tevye.

TRADITION!!!

Coldplay Contest With Jubeus Opening

2008-07-08T08:06:00.001-07:00

Craig recently joined a new band named Jubeus. Here is a video that they did right before he joined for a contest to play with Coldplay. I hope they win! If you want to hear more of their music you can go to www.jubeus.com
He's having a lot of fun with them and they have shows every weekend throughout the Summer.

Suede's Mural

2008-07-03T13:43:00.000-07:00

So it's been quite a while since we have done a post. I hope I haven't lost all of our readers. For Suede's birthday my mom (Judy) and my sister-in-law Gina painted a mural for Suede on her wall. She loves books so they combined storybook characters. Raggedy Ann and Andy, Beatrix Potter characters, and Pooh. They did an awesome job and I can't believe how cool it is every time I walk into her room. The most amazing thing to me is that they did it all FREE HAND. They just looked at a picture and drew it on the wall. It still amazes me. It was the best birthday present for Suede and she really does love looking at the pictures. As you can see she has a book corner in her room that she spends a lot of time in. Thank you Mom and Gina!

I always knew I was the daughter of a Sultan

2008-05-29T13:30:00.001-07:00

You Are Jasmine!

Independent and adventurous. You don't want much; just to break out of the guilded cage society has put you in and experience life to the fullest. Following orders isn't really one of your strong points, and you would rather live a life of poverty than being forced into something that you hate.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Suede's Birthday Bash

2008-05-28T19:16:00.000-07:00

Suede's 1st B-day was April 25th. Taralyn was proud of the ladybug cake she and her mom made. Meanwhile, Taralyn's dad was exhausted from all the work Taralyn and her mom had done.

Johnny Cash @ the Muppets singing with Miss Piggy

2008-05-05T08:42:00.001-07:00

I've had a rough well.....school year. I finished my first final of the semester this morning and needed a much needed break. I decided to listen to a bit of Johnny Cash to ground me. Wow, did it do the trick. I couldn't help but move and tap my feet. I'm sure those around me in the study room found it quite odd that in the midst of hell I was tapping my toes with my headphones on. I decided to share the wealth and post a bit on Johnny and came across this treasure. Nothing better than Johnny and the Muppets to make your day. There's more too if you need some extra pick-me up on You-Tube. I'm still smiling.

Fiddler On The Roof - Bottle Dance.

2008-05-02T18:34:00.001-07:00

I knew I had seen Suede's skills somewhere. Thanks to Corbin for pinpointing it. Fiddler On The Roof bottle dance. She's got an early start. Soon we'll be able to add the bottle.

Suede's Scootin' Shufflin' Shimmy

2008-04-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

"When words are scarce they're seldom spent in vain" Shakespeare

2008-04-21T08:17:00.001-07:00

This pictures is a bit old (about 3 mo ago), but I felt it was fitting for her first word. Let me introduce the family dog. We enjoy all the perks of being dog owners without any of the hassle i.e. feeding, cleaning, walking. Our upstairs neighbors (my brother and his family) have the best Boxer. He's smart, sweet, and cuddly and Craig never lets us forget he's also stinky. He's amazing with kids and Suede squeals every time he comes down to visit us. So her first word was not the loving expression of Mama, but that of "Boo" the family dog. You can see here she is tugging at his ears while he just lays in waiting for what may come next. He has one blue eye that is thus red in the picture and I'm starting to think he might be deaf in one ear. His hearing is very acute, but he has trouble spatially; figuring out where the sound comes from is sometimes a challenge. He opens doors to get in the house (which can be bad if you want to keep his muddiness outside). But like I said, I have the joy of hearing about the messes without having to take part in their cleaning up :). He actually assists in OUR clean up with his rapid actions under Suede's high chair after meals. So, all in all I don't feel slighted by her choice of word. I think he's rather great too.

DISCLAIMER: Craig, being the one that sees the most of Suede during the day, states that Suede's first word was in actuality Dada. I was not told of this at the time, thus if he wants me to concede to such things has to keep me abreast on all the latest happenings in the world of Suede.

Happy Easter

2008-03-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter to everyone. I had a wonderful week leading up to Easter Sunday preparing to speak in Sacrament Meeting (to the congregation). I've never spent that much time contemplating the Resurrection of Christ before Easter actually comes, and I think I'll make it a yearly tradition (hopefully not counting the speaking part). It really helped me to appreciate it much more than I have in the past. We spend so much time leading up to Christmas, but Easter, the most important event of all we kind of glaze over until the day of. It was a little nerve racking having me and Craig as the only speakers on Easter Sunday, but we got through it.

My favorite quote of this year for Easter is by Howard W. Hunter (in his talk "He Is Risen"):

“Think of it! When his body was taken from the cross and hastily placed in a borrowed tomb, he, the sinless Son of God, had already taken upon him not only the sins and temptations of every human soul who will repent, but all of our sickness and grief and pain of every kind. He suffered them all. He did this to perfect his mercy and his ability to lift us above every earthly trial. But there remained one more set of chains to be broken before the Atonement could be complete; the bands of death... It is the responsibility and joy of all men and women everywhere to “seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have [testified]” (Ether 12:41) and to have the spiritual witness of his divinity. It is the right and blessing of all who humbly seek, to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness of the Father and his resurrected Son.”

Here are some pictures of Suede and her cousin Hannah in their pretty Easter dresses. Happy Easter!

Deer Me! Hiking (a wee bit of) the AT

2008-03-20T07:02:00.000-07:00

What's the AT? you ask. For us veterans of long distance hiking, we have our own explanation. For the rest of you couch potatoes, the Appalachian Trail is 2,175 miles of the most bucolic and famous hiking trail in the US. We decided to tackle the AT (well, 4 miles of it anyway). This was just the first of many warmups to our June 2-6, 5 day, 56 miler.

The first thing we discovered was that we were not alone.

What we didn't realize was that Pete's dragon was somewhere near.

We found some huge cliffs with a giant lake beneath.

Well, it looked big on the book cover.

Taralyn decided to use her awesome hooded exercise jacket to it's fullest.

We made it to the top of Stony man Mountain, second highest point in Virginia.

I love Jane Austen

2008-02-20T19:09:00.003-08:00

Take the Quiz here!

I was quite surprised. I always pictured myself as an Elizabeth Bennett :)

4 Generations

2008-02-20T18:04:00.000-08:00

My 86 year old grandmother was in town last week for my cousin's wedding so we took the opportunity to take some pictures of our 4 generations of womanhood. Let me say she is absolutely amazing. She exercises every day, is computer savvy, and of course keeps up on politics. Just last March she even traveled to Israel. I'm proud to be carrying her mitochondria and passing it on to Suede. Thanks to my sister the photographer. It's always nice to have a professional around.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

2008-02-03T18:49:00.000-08:00

It's been absolutely wonderful returning to my home of Virginia after a seven year excursion in Utah in which I gained both an awesome husband and a wonderful daughter. I did enjoy my time there, but I really never expected to miss it this much when I came home. Here's a short portion of what I miss about that Beehive state inspired by Leslie's recent post.

1. The Sowby Fam
2. Huge looming mountains with snowcapped tips
3. Beautiful temples around every bend of highway
4. An excess of great music concerts (played and watched)
5. SNOW, SNOW, SNOW, SNOW
6. Did I mention the SNOW?
7. Being able to walk to church (instead of driving 40 min.)
8. Hiking
9. Rock climbing OUTSIDE
10. Great bike trails
11. Sunday drives on the alpine loop
12. Many nights of debate and fun with the Wittusens
13. Sunday dinners at the Orchard's
14. FRIENDS

Leslie I must say, and I never thought I would, I heart Utah as well!

She has potential!

2008-02-01T15:41:00.000-08:00

When Suede gets excited, and then you watch it slowed down to 70%, it looks like she is conducting a symphony. So here it is in full score. This is just a teaser for her feature film. Enjoy!

How Many Close Calls Can One Weekend Bring?

2007-12-26T08:27:00.000-08:00

I am beginning to realize that my 8 month old is following a bit too closely in her father's footsteps. Craig made it through his childhood with 3 concussions, 2 skull fractures, multiple trips the the ER for stitches and who knows how many major cuts and bruises. This weekend marked the beginning of the chaos for me and Suede. Luckily Craig and I are laid back and realize there will be bumps and bruises along the way. A couple were a bit too close for comfort though.
Sat. Dec 23
My parents bought us a new bookshelf from Ikea in the scratch and dent. Craig and my Dad were carrying it in, and as they walk into the room, I realize my Dad is headed straight (backward) toward Suede. I yell, he doesn't register it, and proceeds to step on Suede. He realized this, didn't put down his whole weight and subsequently fell pushing the bookcase forward to try to miss her. It came crashing to the floor barely missing Suede. It was the closest call we've had with her thus far.

Sunday and Monday were somewhat uneventful with just your normal head bumps etc. on the floor while playing. Nothing to be too concerned about.

Christmas brought so much more. She first fell on her cheek on Craig's new Bongos leaving a bruise, but that was just the warm up. Suede is now fully mobile and is into things as any child could be. She dislikes being held because it takes her away from exploring the vast floor space. We were sitting in the living room of my sister's house after opening presents and Suede was on the floor playing around. Suddenly she started choking but we couldn't quite figure out what was in her mouth. She was still breathing, but having trouble. We finally saw that she has one of those metal snowflakes that you see on presents lodged in her throat and we were able to dislodge it. My sister proceeds to scare me with a story of our cousin who had a dried flower in her mouth and had to be medivaced to the hospital because her throat started closing in.

Next adventure occurred when we were packing up to leave. She was on the floor in the kitchen and I checked for any small objects around and found the area safe...so I thought. As curious as she is she decided that the dishwasher that was inadvertently left open was an excellent play space. Suddenly there was a crash and we came running in to see the her on the floor with silverware surrounding her and the bottom drawer flipped up. Either a fork or a knife or some other sharp object had punctured her eyebrow. Just a little closer and she probably would have lost her eye. Luckily it was small enough for a butterfly bandage, but walking in to see your baby bleeding is definitely a jolting experience. We're hoping she's done with these close calls for a while. Luckily it's apparent that she has angels watching over her. We were definitely blessed in more ways than one this Christmas.

Here is a picture of her eye, sort of. I tried to get it, but if you get too close she merely grabs the camera.

Merry Christmas To All, And To All A... Well You Know

2007-12-18T12:57:00.000-08:00

Suede loved her first visit with Santa. She decided that instead of crying, she would win his heart over from the very beginning to ensure ample presents in years to come. There are so many things you don't think of (well maybe everyone else does and I don't) about having a child. Santa visits, etc., etc. Luckily I'm finding it to be quite fun. And equally lucky I have my sister Cassie to remind me of all of the essentials like first Christmas ornaments, Santa pics, and the list goes on and on. Hopefully I'll catch on to all this soon. Merry Christmas everyone!

Lame Video, Cool Digs

2007-12-04T14:00:00.000-08:00

Well, people have requested some pics of our new place. So here is the super-budget-low-quality preview.

7 Random Things

2007-11-09T14:15:00.000-08:00

I was "tagged" by Melanie and that is all the direction I got so here are my 7 random things. I think in actuality it is just a ploy to keep track of who actually reads your blog, so at the end I get to "tag" to keep my own "tabs"

1. I was once a closet pink lover. I was once so much of a closet pink lover I had convinced myself that I hated the color passionately. Now I've come to realize I LOVE pink, so much that I even love Craig in pink.

2. Suede is such a mini-me of Craig that I would wonder if I contributed anything to her being if it weren't for her femaleness and mitochondria, and it only grows worse the older she gets.

3. I have to hide my blogging from the study Nazi (Craig) and thus, you may deduce that he is at the moment out of the house leaving me free to blog, only for him to see my works at a later time making punishment futile.

4. I love Fall. It is my absolute favorite season in Virginia. I drive to school and get lost in the beautifully colored trees every morning. That may be why I'm late....or maybe it's the fact that Craig has to drag me out of bed every morning. Either way, I do love Fall.

5. I like to fall asleep holding Craig's hand and touching feet, thus socks on either of us while in bed gives me the heeby jeebies.

6. I love school. Absolutely love it....the hours of studying and sometimes even the stress of tests. Good thing because I'm hoping I'll get some more years of school in as a MD student.

7. I found a new hobby in spider spotting. Last weekend Craig and I went backpacking/camping in the woods and as he was spending time trying to make sure we were on the right trail in the dark, I found that the eyes of the spiders reflect back at me when I have my head lamp on. At first I thought they were water droplets because there were so many, but on closer observation they were all spiders! It was really cool. Needless to say the idea of sleeping under the stars was no more as Craig has a fear of spiders and the thought of them all over the ground made him a bit uneasy.

So there are my 7 random things... Now I shall tag.... Corbin, Alice, Chas, Lacey, Leslie, Mallory, and Joe. Lets see who really reads my blog....

My new favorite poem

2007-11-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Now this is worth reciting. I'm placing it as it's own blog as it is worth more than merely being a comment to the previous blog.

Descent From Rhyme

I have no comment for such nonsense
Except that I have no comment
Such blather you must condense
Or my face will albescent
For such large amounts of rubbish
Are too much for me to cherish

Zac Clawson

Who is Ogden Nash?

2007-11-01T07:57:00.000-07:00

Wikipedia has done it again! I felt a tug to find out who this Ogden Nash was because I used his quote in my last post. Turns out he was (died in 1971) an American poet with some rather funny poems. The following is one that was on wikipedia that I thought was funny.
Ode to the Llama

The one-L lama, he's a priest

The two-L llama, he's a beast

And I would bet a silk pyjama

There isn't any three-L lllama

(Nash later appended a footnote to this poem: "The author's attention has been called to a type of conflagration known as a three-alarmer. Pooh."

It peaked my interest so I looked up another

The panther is like a leopard,

Except that it hasn't been peppered.

Should you behold a panther crouch,

Prepare to say ouch,

Better yet, if called by a panther,

Don't anther.

Ha! He may become one of my favorites.

Happy Halloween

2007-10-31T15:53:00.001-07:00

Happy 30th Birthday To Craig

2007-10-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

I know many of you may be surprised that Craig is actually 30 today. It's true. I've seen his drivers license. When we first met I didn't believe he was as old as he told me, and proceeded to require his driver's license as proof. Even after seeing it I promptly asked if it was a fake. I guess he is now getting to the point where it's good to look younger than you are.

"You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely."
- Ogden Nash
(I have no idea who Ogden Nash is, but the quote was nice)

Happy Birthday Craig!

Let The Battle Of The Sexes Be Won

2007-10-26T13:50:00.000-07:00

If you read Corbin and Alice's blog comments, and you noticed the comments by my wonderful brothers on Suede's video posting, you will realize that my brothers and I are always in a battle of the sexes. I've decided, since Zac has put his foot down on the superiority of men, I need to shake the ground that foot is placed on and open his eyes to reality. On the surface you may be thinking, "maybe men are superior. Women take their names when they marry, children take their names, they can lift heavy things...." That's about all I could come up with, but you get the idea. Women are the masters of smoke and mirrors. There are amazing things that are passed down through the generations of women, that I am now willing to unveil to prove once and for all we are the superior sex. Well, I'm not going to give away all the tricks...just a few. If I unveil all of them we could no longer be absolutely superior.

Women have known the art of persuasion throughout the beginning of time. The trick is, as my momma taught me well, to make the man feel like it was all his idea. You keep up the facade that they are the ones in power, making the important decisions, when in fact, we are the one behind the curtain. Make them FEEL like they have the power and you will in actuality have the power. All the men reading this are thinking, "I know exactly what she's doing when she's doing that," and that's the ultimate, give them snippits of downplay so they are even more blindsided when you carry out the real plans.

Now for the hard evidence....the mighty, mighty, mitochondria. For those of you that don't know what the mitochondria are, they are the power house of the cell. All energy that you use is produced by these amazing organelles. Just think hard back to that biology class and you'll remember that practically all cellular processes are coupled to these all powerful little kidney beans. What does this have to do with the superiority of women you ask. Only EVERYTHING. Men leave a lineage of names, women leave a lineage of the mighty, mighty, all powerful mitochondria. May I quote, "What's in a name?" It's just the smoke and mirrors to make the men feel good about leaving something to their children. When, in actuality the most important things are given by the female. All the mitochondria that an embryo receives is provided by the wonderful mother. The lineages can be traced back through the female lines for endless generations. We are the power behind every action and every thought. So men, next time you have a thought of being superior, remember the energy for that thought came from those wonderful female entities you have within each cell called the mitochondria. Oh, and remember when I said men can lift heavy things....all the energy required to lift those heavy things is made possible by those mighty, mighty, mitochondria.

Happy .5th B-Day to Suede

2007-10-25T09:45:00.000-07:00

Happy 1/2 birthday to Suede.

More fun with Suede

2007-10-23T13:19:00.001-07:00

Well, we hate to brag, but everyone keeps requesting pix of Suede. So here's the next batch. We only post sweet pix like these by popular demand.

Don't Throw the Baby out With the Laundry!
Remember in E.T. when he is hiding in the clothes. This is kinda like that, but a bit cuter.

Boot Scootin' Boogie

First Solid Food. Yum!

Craig's Done It AGAIN!

2007-10-10T07:41:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if you all knew, but last year Craig entered an International student recording competition at the Audio Engineering Society's conference in San Fransisco. He walked away with 1st place in the Pop/Rock category. As he graduated in April, he was able to submit his recordings one last time to the conference, this time held in New York City. This time he's surpassed his previous winnings and walked away with two awards. 1st in the Pop/Rock category and 2nd in the World/Folk category. This is an amazing award to me because he is up against the next generation of professional recording engineers and he has won 2 years in a row. As I responded to my Mom when she asked what competitions there are after the student competition, "Only the Grammy's!" I see myself on the red carpet one of these days probably not so far away. I know I'm bragging, but someone's got to. You'd never hear anything from him. There were many entries and most of them had access to the most advanced equipment. Then there's Craig with his not so top of the line equipment recording in places like our previous little house in Pleasant Grove Utah and a barn house in the middle of the Utah desert! That's talent for you! Here's to you Craig!!! His winning songs should be up on his website if not now than shortly. www.cornerhousestudio.com

The Greatest Show on Earth

2007-10-07T12:20:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, we recently moved from Utah. There are many things we miss, but one in particular is our "House MD" night with the Wittusens. I have tried and tried all of those "great" shows everyone talks about, i.e. grey's anatomy, heroes, etc, and they never quite took. BUT, other than Discovery Health, House MD is the only thing that interests me on that tube (can I still say that since they don't use tubes anymore). We would gather every week at the Wittusen's to partake of the incredible mind of Dr. House, with me using the educational value of the show as an excuse for time away from studies (you know they use real medical cases for the show). Every week without fail Brad would sit down on the couch complaining about "how dumb" the episode was....granted he could never wait until we came over to watch the Tivoed episode, and he would spend the time to watch it yet a second time. Now that we are away from them, I miss our bantering on this great show (although after the first episode of the season I did receive an e-mail from him about the "dumb aspects"). This last episode was AWESOME! I'm loving the fact that they have a black Mormon on the show. Not only is that going to bring the best comedy from Dr. House, it makes me excited to see how he'll be portrayed. This first experience with him already created some debating among Craig and I. I don't remember his name, but my question to all of you is would you have done what did on the show last week if placed in front of you? I won't ruin it for you by explaining it if you haven't watched it yet. Craig said he let us all down, where I feel quite the opposite. If placed in that position I would have done exactly the same. Craig claims he would not. So, I am now placing my first poll on our blog for your feedback. Feel free to also leave comments on this blog. If you have not seen the episode I implore you to watch this episode. I think you may be able to get it off itunes if you missed it. Or maybe somewhere online. It was seriously awesome (completely void of dumbness Brad). I guess I should find out his name for the poll...

Basement stories

2007-09-28T15:35:00.001-07:00

So, Craig was in actuality supposed to be posting this, and as I am too tired to keep reminding him, he has had success in his ploy. I will thus, update you all on the progress of our soon to be home. We are finishing Zac and Gina's (my brother and sister-in-law) basement into an apartment where we can live out my endless years of school while stealing a piece their beautiful country life. All the fun none of the $$ required to build the house. Craig spent hours framing with a guy in our ward to create an awesome apartment with one bedroom for Suede and the rest in studio style. We have recessed lighting and all. We then took on the challenge of acid-staining the concrete (inspired by our wonderful friends the Wittusen's basement). It was quite a task, but it is done. Wouldn't know it with all the drywall mud on the floor we have yet to clean up. Craig and my Dad worked endless hours on the electrical work. All with no major electrocutions. We got smart and hired out the drywall, and are just lacking doors, the kitchen (which will take forever since it is an IKEA kit requiring EVERYTHING to be put together). We hope we can finish everything up and be in by mid-October. We'll see. The original plan was early July.... I feel like I'm a General Contractor who can never quite set the right finishing date. When it's all done we'll send the final photos. Now what we're realizing is that we've spent all our money on the building of the apartment and now are left with....an empty apartment we can't afford to fill up. Oh, well. All that will come with time. We've got a bed and a bathroom. What more do we need.

The nightmare!

2007-09-28T14:58:00.000-07:00

I sat staring blankly at papers in front of me, eyes glazed not knowing what to do. The bright lights of the huge auditorium shined down to reveal a secret code that had to be deciphered OR ELSE! All that, and I was confined to a tiny writing space of a small fold up desk over my fidgeting legs. I sat for hours...staring, staring, knowing that every second ticking by was becoming a detriment to my life. Then, I realized....I wasn't asleep! If only I could wake up from the horror. Every problem plagued my brain with doubt. Even now, after all I could do has been done, I still have anxiety and I find myself praying for the first time in my life to, "Please, please let me be average, please let me be average!" Damn that Biochemistry graduate course! The countdown now begins for the next torturing hours in that horrid room, all the while with me praying that I will be among those considered "average".

Man I wish I had one of these!!!!

2007-09-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

She loves this thing! I would too. This video was taken with my new treo phone. Oh yeah baby! HA!

Some of Tar's Brainiest Moments

2007-09-20T13:46:00.000-07:00

As I was 1 hour late for my test this morning with my shirt on backwards and critical things left at home (all unbeknownst to me), I was reminded of my most brainy moments. They leave me smiling foolishly and saying "I'm gonna be a doctor!" (Like yesterday when my friend gave me a fig newton and I said, "These are good, I wonder what kind of fruit they put in these.") Granted it was one heck of a week with 3 tests right in a row, but if only I always had this excuse.

I never thought being an airhead would let me off the hook for a ticket, but whatever works.
I was in college driving my friend's truck, which mind you had a blown fuse so I could not roll down the window. I was chatting away with my friend, who was also in the car, and all of a sudden the blue lights were flashing behind me. The cop comes up, I open the door, he asks for my license, which I do not have, and tells me I have run 3 red lights with him right behind me. I tell him I don't have my license, then a light bulb goes on and I beamingly say, "But I have my phone!" Both he and my friend look at me with concern, and he says "What does that have to do with anything?" and I reply, "Well, it has my name on it so I can prove who I am." He paused a moment, then trying not to laugh says, "Try to be more careful," and sends me on my way.

Oh That's How Hot Air Balloons Work!

Yes, I was in college for this one too. I was on a date with a guy I REALLY liked. We were walking through the parking lot and I see a hot air balloon being blown up with the wonders of FIRE. I stopped stood a little while, and yes said out loud, "Oh, that's how HOT AIR balloons work." As if that wasn't bad enough I went to work on Monday and my boss was telling a story he heard at a Bachelor's party that weekend about this girl his friend went out with that seriously didn't know how HOT AIR balloons work. YIKES! Needless to say that was our first and only date.

And best of all.....

PULL the lever....
I was on my way to college and flew into Phoenix to get a car my parent's bought my brother and I for college from my uncle (a car dealer). He was showing me the car, how to check the oil, pop the hood, etc. He had me sit in the driver's seat so he could show me the features. I felt like I got everything fine, except when I tried the windshield washer fluid. It said pull, and pull with all my might I did. I even thought to ask my uncle about this broken lever, but all he did was stare at me. I figured he was thinking I was being ungrateful mentioning something broken, but I was actually thinking ahead to my drive through the Arizona desert with all of those gigantic smashed bugs impeding my view. So, I just dropped it and figured I'd get someone to look at it sometime. Man did my windshield collect bugs, and I kept thinking how great it would be to have a working windshield wiper lever. Months later as my friend was driving my car with me in the passenger's seat, he began cleaning the windshield with that blessed windshield wiper fluid. Why had it worked for him? I promptly asked him the trick to this finicky lever when he merely replied, "You just pull the lever towards you." And all this time I was pulling it out.... As my Dad would say to me (as he did many times while I was growing up), "Dumbsville, Taralyn, DUMBSVILLE!!"

On a heavier note, school is going well. I'm learning a lot and loving my classes. Our basement apartment is ALMOST finished and Craig has promised to post pics and a blog on his endless hours getting our home finished. Suede is growing and is luckily one smart girl....she must take after Craig.

Break For An Infomercial-Men are from MARS

2007-09-16T13:14:00.001-07:00

One night as I sat around my parent's kitchen table with my siblings (minus Corbin and Alice :( and maybe Cassie too), I was deemed the family's walking and of course talking Infomercial as we played the incredibly entertaining game "Imagine-If." I was a bit offended by the unanimous vote to that extent, but then thought...."How great. Those infomercials get you EVERY time. No matter how annoying they are, you still linger on that channel just to see what new and exciting things are up for sale. I've at least got their attention, which of course is always my goal." So I now take the label as a great compliment of their attention and will thus never let them down.

MEN ARE FROM MARS!!!

Now we all know that book on relationships "Men are From Mars, Women Are From Venus"...they may have actually hit on something quite important. New theories suggest that the first living organisms actually arose on MARS. There is evidence that Mars is or was suitable for sustained life with some not so concrete discoveries of the possibility of water beneath the surface and the evidence of Nitrogen in the atmosphere.... do you see where I'm going with this! So, the theory stands that life began on Mars then was transfered to Earth through asteroids or other such means. This is amazing stuff! Think of the chances. Organic materials just happened to come into contact with each other in just the perfect circumstances of energy to yield the first living organism with just the right arrangement of lipids to protect them. Then, miracle of miracles... actually scratch that. That would be admitting a higher power. Lo and behold (I think that's better) they happened to be trapped in a piece of the blessed Red Planet that became detached and flew toward and hit this other planet unsuitable for starting the life called Earth to begin anew. Then billions of years later, no life is found on Mars but the Earth is booming with intelligent creatures that arose from these life starting organisms through evolution. So, the gist of it is, we evolved from single celled organisms on Mars that could not evolve on their own planet to yield life, but came here to produce the environment necessary to produce the human race. Now that is definitely MORE believable that those quacks that believe GOD created the Earth and all life on it. Idiots.
P.S. For a more factual account, please visit the Hubble Space Telescope website and find it yourself.

Suede is smiling (at daddy of course)

2007-09-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

Well, a lot of you have requested some recent pix of Suede. So without any further ranting on my part, here they are.

Post Script to "Sweatin' with the oldies"

2007-09-12T08:32:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are not privileged to know my parents, you must know that they are in no way overbearing or controlling. These few points were brought up for comic relief. Time living with them is GREAT!

Like father like daughter...?!?!?

2007-09-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

As Suede grows (for those of you who don't know she is now about 4 1/2 mo. old) I see incredible family resemblance. Not of me surprisingly, but of her Daddy (as my sister loves to point out (EVERYtime she picks her up) that she sees nothing of me in her). What is this anyway? Isn't it supposed to be like mother like daughter? Here's just a few tidbits of my observations:

Of course who could miss those blue eyes! Her Momma got her wish there, but I didn't think that wishing that would lead to all of the other attributes shared with her Daddy. I just hope that when she closes those eyes someone somewhere can see a resemblance of me.

Will she ever be able to sit still? Those of you that know Craig know of the constant movement associated with his being, usually expressed in the form of drumming his fingers and feet. Suede has inherited this incredible amount of energy. Even the way they fall asleep is similar. Craig will drum and drum and drum even into his REM cycle I'm sure. Suede on the other hand without those refined skills of movement, turns and arches and kicks and whatever else, not fusing, just constantly moving until she finally stops moving and I have to go check to make sure she's still breathing for fear of that lack of movement.

Even temperament. I wish that this attribute was linked to me, but as all of you know, I'm not so evenly blessed. She's all smiles unless there is a problem and has the ability to play by herself without entertainment. You all know that this also is an attribute from Daddy as her Mom needs constant stimulation from others.

Music stops EVERYTHING. Don't try to carry on any sort of conversation with Craig if ANY music (or even sounds that could be construed into music) is present. He'll just keep saying OK and nothing will actually reach the brain as it is being overtaken. Suede is all wiggles, EXCEPT when there's music. She'll sit for crazy amounts of time on her Daddy's lap not moving a finger while they sit and listen to a wide range of music. Also like her Dad I think Jazz is one of her favorites.

Focus. You're eating right now. Many times I'll leave the table after a meal with Craig coming back into consciousness asking, "You're already done? I haven't even started" I learned after a while just to remind him that he's supposed to be eating, not dreaming up whatever rhythm is echoing in his brain. Although like her Mom, she doesn't forget about wanting to eat, she quickly forgets what's going on and needs reminding of the task at hand. Once again, if music is on, forget it. Might as well try later.

If all else fails take that girl outside. There's something hypnotic about the outdoors to her. Understandably, if you recall that Craig spent over a year sleeping outside (even during family vacations while everyone else enjoyed the comfort of hotel rooms) ... just because.

Parents always talk way too much about their children, so I'll stop my wandering words and get back to studying.

They say that you live through your children. Maybe this time around I'll be a sweet, happy, adventurous, incredibly smart peacemaker with musclely legs and bright blue eyes.

I hope she at least gets my brown hair.

Sweatin' with the oldies

2007-09-11T14:09:00.000-07:00

After 7 years on my own (5 of which I have spent married), I am once again under my parents' roof. Interestingly I have waited until I myself became a parent, to embark on this venture. The dynamic is interesting with many positive and negative aspects of our co-habitation. To leave this blog with a positive note, I will start with those very few negatives present in our living arrangements, then venture to list but a few of those positive experiences back here in the Clawson nest.

Negatives

1. Bedtime has once again become a dictation of my sweet mother, who, like most mothers thinks that if she is tired I MUST be tired also. Late night fun with my siblings (when they come to visit) is still a NO.

2. From the time she walks in the door at night to the time SHE goes to bed, I am constantly asked, "Is all your homework finished," which in graduate school the answer is always inevitably NO.

3. When I hear the doors close from my parents' car in the driveway, I still instictually immediately turn of the TV in their bedroom, straighten the sheets and run downstairs to open a textbook. Luckily, with the tube as a nightly ritual of my Dad, the threat of "canceling that satellite" is not included.

4. Mom still knows best.... even when I'm the Mom. Constantly being bombarded with, "Forget the schedule, just feed her," Suede has a constant ally against the sanity I'm trying to create in our hectic lives. note: this is also included in the positives. See below.

Positives

1. I never have to worry about missing my alarm, and my breakfast and lunch are always waiting when I'm ready to walk out the door. I catch the envying eye of my schoolmates everyday when I pull that lunch out to microwave it in that student lounge.

2. Groceries, what groceries? With my Mom's Costco membership the cupboards are always overflowing with "food for the kids." What kids she is referring to I still haven't figured out, but the overabundance of food is welcome in my book.

3. Mom always knows best... oh the doctor's bills we have prevented. Having my first baby brings a million questions and over reactions. I have her vast knowledge to counteract my over-protectiveness.

4. She is always willing to take some "MeMa" time with Suede and give Craig and I a chance to get out and still act young.

The lists of positives goes on and on... but Craig tells me blogs aren't supposed to be books, and that I should start on my homework....Good thing I have so many people ensuring I have good study habits.

We'll try to keep this updated as all of you know, we aren't the best at keeping you all connected on what's going on in this Sowby (Clawson actually) household.

FYI started my graduate program in Microbiology at VCU and loving it! Craig's being Mr. Mom and Suede is loving that!