Virtual Tour, Monterra Ridge Edition

Here we go:
This is the front of the house. There are basically two construction styles for homes in Tucson, brick and stucco. We much prefer the stucco style. While we didn't find the exact southwest/Santa Fe style house we wanted, I still think this house looks nice from the outside. At least it isn't one of the dumb/out of place looking California and Florida style houses.
I love this screen door. It is nice and sturdy and has a deadbolt lock so that you can open your house to let the fresh air flow through, but still remain securely locked inside. This door is much prettier than the one at the rental.

Once you come inside, to the left we have our laundry closet. It has enough cupboards and shelves and you enter through the garage. Sadly, I am getting WAY behind on laundry. One might think that dryer plugs and outlets are standard, but one would be wrong. Our 3-pronged dryer plug does not fit in the 4-hole outlet. We are going to have to air dry our delicates until that is remedied.

This treadmill is a pleasant surprise...my husband came through again as the king of obtaining free stuff. It is housed in the bike shop corner of the 3-car garage. We kind of had to have a 3 car garage because there are no basements here, and limited storage space.

This is the 3rd space in the garage. Patrice has big plans for this space once we get rid of the remnants of the trash from the move. I am impressed and amazed at how hard he worked and that he managed to get all the trash compressed into that one little corner.

The right hand side of the garage. We still have some containers to sort through...our shower curtain is in there somewhere! But again, I am impressed and amazed that THIS is how the garage looked after just a couple days after the move.

What you see when you enter the garage. Again, some things to sort through, but it is nice and organized and not too overwhelming.

This is the inside of the front entry. We limited ourselves to just these two masks because we do not have proper wall space for the entire collection.

Immediately to the right of the entry is our dining room. Eventually, we will hang our tapestries on either side of the mirror. Patrice was missing some hardware, so that will have to wait. (Probably just until tomorrow or Monday.)

I love the arches and nooks and niches in the house. There are two arches and a column that separate the dining room from the rest of our living space.

The office is immediately to the left when you enter the house. It is not decorated or furnished yet...Patrice is on a quest for a nice desk. He also has plans to build shelves in the closet and (*squeal*) a bookshelf for me.

Pretty French doors that close off the office. (Ignore the boxes on the floor outside the doors.)

I think this small corner opposite the front door is a nice place for our rustic mirror.

The previous owner had stuff and stuff and stuff on every ledge in the house. He had some nice stuff, but just too much for my taste. I think our pottery fits well above the hall closet and bedroom door (with the arch...I love the arches!)

It was quite a dilemma to find a good spot for our most recent portraits of Nicco. This is the best option. Soon, Patrice will mount the TV on the wall and install all the other various components and eventually, we will have a nicer piece of furniture in which to hide electronics and wires.

The living room. Cozy! The only carpeted space besides the bedrooms. I am really glad to have some carpet. It is just so much more comfy and cozy than tile and wood. I am also really glad to have tile and wood in all the high traffic and wet areas. No more carpet in the bathrooms! Hooray!

The TV corner. I like its cozy nook.

Breakfast nook.

We don't have enough cabinet space for all our glasses, so these butcher-block tables will hold them. I love how that print looks with the blue countertops.

The kitchen. I like having an island. It is too bad that it only fits three of our tall chairs. Four would have been better. Oh well.

I like the tall ceilings. It makes the house so open and bright and large.

I don't like having too many family pictures in the living spaces, but I had to have our Naked Nicco beach pictures. They are in the hallway leading to the guest room, guest bath, and Nicco's room.

I like the lighting features in the house. The previous owners had nice taste. I also like the warm, but subtle colors they chose for the walls.

Tip your head to the left so you can see the super fantastic sky light.

One side of the guest room

The other side of the guest room. We had a small debate about which room to make Nicco's and which to make the guest room. First, we chose this room for the guest room because it is ever so slightly larger to accomodate the king sized bed, but then we thought we would prefer this to be Nicco's room because it is inside and not facing the street. Also, the Lt. Colonel who owned the house before us left a curtain rod with little jets hanging over this window, so you know, that makes it Nicco's room. Then when we arrived and laid out the frame for the bed in the other room, it just barely fit and cut off access to the closet. It fits better here and just makes more sense. The airplane curtain rod was quickly removed, I pulled off the clips from the airplanes, and now Nicco has 10 brand new airplane toys. All's well that ends well.

Nicco's room.

Again. Soon, we will hang his F-15 fathead and his autographed Nascar trading cards picture.

Guest bathroom, sans shower curtain. We may have to break down and get a new one. I like the blue tiles. I thought they were kind of weird the first time we saw them, but they have grown on me.

I also like these two little windows above the tub as an architectural feature, and for the natural light they bring to the bathroom.

Speaking of bathrooms, this is the toilet closet in the master bathroom. Tile on the floor! Yahoo! I also like the closet idea for the potty.

Pretty mirrors and lights and faucets. Must have double sinks in the master bath. I apparently missed the tub picture...it is nice. We have glass blocks for the window which are not my favorite, but they do make the bathroom nice and bright.

You can't really see how cool this little entry to the master bedroom is, but trust me, it is a cool little entry! Come visit...I'll show you!

I thought I would replace our bedset with a nice chocolate brown and soft green pillows to coordinate with the walls, but I think the red we already had goes nicely. Red and green are complimentary colors, after all, and this particular shade doesn't make it look too much like Christmas.

Ah, look at the bright sunlight coming in from the sliding door patio/pool access! I love the tall ceilings...now I have to figure out what to put on that wall above the dresser.

Now we go outside...the grill is behind the breakfast nook. We have a big bush that hides the pool equipment and the cinder-block wall, to a degree.

Our camping furniture will eventually be replaced with actual patio furniture. I took this picture this morning, so you can see that we get the sun in the morning and we'll get it again in the evening, but during the day, our patio is pretty well shaded.

There is a post-hole for an umbrella. Some day...

The pool view from the patio side. I like that iron gate. It isn't ugly like so many we saw. I also like that it was already there so we don't have to find and install one ourselves.

One of our tropical patio plants. I'm going to have to learn how not to kill plants. You would think that desert plants would be pretty hearty. I guess we'll find out!

Pool from the pool side of the patio. I love the little wading ledge. I also love that it has the pop-up cleaning system so we don't need one of those ugly slinkies. (Nicco called them "bonkers")

The pool-side hammock, beneath the palms. Ahh....

Our mountain view. It cost about $20,000. Worth it, I say.

The hot tub. Even in Arizona, you can't beat a nice soak in a hot tub.

And that is my house. Come visit! (Just call first.)

Get Ready...

...because I know (all 3 of) you are anxiously awaiting photos of our new house! I am currently at the library because my internet is not hooked up yet. Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow...

You may need to set aside some alone time to read the super fantastic post I have planned for tomorrow. I will be sharing pictures of every nook and cranny of our new house. If you thought the first virtual tour of the rental was big, just wait!

Transcendentalism

My brain hurts. I just spent 35 minutes with a student who wanted me to explain a quote from an American transcendentalist and which element of transcendentalism dominates that particular quote "in simple terms." Have you ever read Thoreau? Emerson? Whitman? Are you familiar AT ALL with American transcendentalism? "Simple terms" hardly apply. Ever. Ouch...I need some tylenol. And chocolate. Maybe just chocolate.

Day of Rest

For the past half hour or so, Nicco has been climbing up onto the arm of the couch, whistling (but since he can't actually whistle, he puts his two fingers in his mouth and screeches) to get his daddy's attention, then jumping onto the daddy, lying vulnerable on the couch below. Apparently, this is exhausting. After several repetitions, Nicco brought all his stuff to me on the other couch and asked "Is this the rest store?"

If only such a store existed. Then again, in true need of rest, I would be entirely too tired (read: lazy) to go to a store to buy some rest.

Bouncy House

When I asked Nicco what he wanted to do today and he said "play a game on the computer, or two, or three, or seven or more, or....whatever." I decided to get him out of the house for some unplugged fun. The bouncy house has drop-in play three days a week for an hour and a half, so we took a little drive to bounce and slide. The boy released plenty of energy in that hour and a half and was ready for puzzles and books when we came back home.

He mimicked the olympic sliders at the start. I giggled as he pushed himself down the slide. A couple of times he got up enough speed to propel himself over the barrier at the bottom! I think it was $7 well spent.

Arbitrary Thoughts and Miscellaneous Moments

• This is my new trick to get Nicco to practice writing his name:
  

It's that game you play where you make dots on a page then take turns connecting the dots to make squares...whoever completes a square marks it with their initials. He started out making me hold his hand to write his "N" but after we played several games, he filled in his squares with the consecutive letters in his name. He had no idea he was practicing writing! HA!

• Nicco asks his daddy if he "brought [me] a surprise today" when he comes home from work probably 3 days a week. Once in a while, the answer is yes. The other day, the surprise was this crown from the Renaissance Festival. He wore it most of the following day and got mad at me if I called him King Nicco, promptly informing me that he is not a king, "this is for my birthday!" Now he thinks his birthday is just around the corner.
  
  
• Nicco got his hands on the camera again. This Penguins DVD was his surprise/reward from his daddy for being such a good big boy at the doctor. I think I like the Penguins of Madagascar better than he does. With lines like "Private! You know how I feel about the metric system; we go with feet, and inches!" and "Kowalski, intelligence..." "...Significantly above average, but I don't like to brag." and "You'll find sarcasm is more effective when you don't giggle it out like a naughtly little school girl." and with lobster warriors who have New England accents, can you blame me?
• I love the Olympics. I get nostalgic and almost weepy listening to the music. I get emotional and weepy when I see parents in the stand. I know I will most likely not (but possibly...who knows?) be the mother of an Olympian, but I just think how proud and nervous and excited those mamas and papas must be! I get sick to my stomach sometimes thinking about how much I love my little boy.
• I think Canadians are jerks. It's Diana's fault. She told me that they are being stingy with ice time (and she knows, because she and her family have interacted with the Olympic team and coordinators at the Salt Lake Oval) and I have heard 2 different broadcasts that mention other teams complaining about not getting enough practice time. Could that poor sportsmanship have contibuted to the death of the Georgian luger? Hmm? Maybe. Big jerks. So I was glad to see Jenn "The Real Deal" Heil lose dramatically to our own charming and delightful Hannah Kearney in the women's moguls.
• I HATE sports where winners are judged. I thought it was pretty crappy that the French guy got 6th place in the men's moguls when he was soooo fast. I realize that he didn't perfectly execute his second jump, but 6th? Really? I think it was a conspiracy to let the Canadian win. Big jerks.
• I also hate cocky athletes. I much prefer humble athletes and non-attention seeking athletes, like the Canadian-turned-Australian guy whom everyone in the media thinks is a big jerk because he doesn't do press conferences. I think he's a super cool dude for defecting to a country that lets HIM decide for himself whether he can be a successful businessman and world class athlete. Again, demonstrating Canada's big jerkiness. Oh, and by the way, Apolo Anton Ohno, you did.not.win. You got second place. And you were lucky the two skaters in front of you screwed up big time so you could get a medal by default. So, good for you, Mr. Ohno, but save the champion of the world celebration for an undisputed singular gold medal winning effort, when you are actually champion of the world. Blech.
• Back to the weepy-mom syndrome I suffer from, did anyone else cry at the Tide commercial Lucy's friend was in? You know, the one that says "To their moms, they'll always be kids." Win for whoever came up with that one!
• Our Relief Society Birthday Dinner is tomorrow night. Don't these women know it is LOST night?
• I saw picture of a guy wearing a jacket over an Obama t-shirt that presumably said "progress" but his jacket cut off the "pr" and the "ss" on either end, so it looked like it said "ogre." HA!

Check-Up

I finally got a new pediatrician and took my kid to the doctor for his annual well-child visit. I didn't tell him ahead of time because frankly, any time I can put off whining/fighting/crying, I will put it off. I had to wake him up this morning (as opposed to just letting him move to his own circadian rhythms) and break the doctor visit news. He was not pleased and expressed that displeasure with a loud and emphatic "I AM NOT SIIIIICCCKKKK!!!!" To which I responded "We need to go to the doctor to make sure we don't get sick and so we can be healthy and strong." To which he responded by flexing his awesomely developed musculature and grunting in a very macho-manly manner, thereby proving that he is healthy and strong. (Appropriately, perhaps, I accidentally went to the MENTAL health office next door to the MEDICAL health office.)

Nicco asked all sorts of questions about what would happen during the visit and was confident that the doctor would see that all his parts are just fine, and said that he changed his mind, he's not scared after all. We had a student doctor come check him out first (I had a student doctor at my delivery too...are we destined to be practice people?) The student doctor was kind and pleasant enough, did all the requisite reflex checks, eye, ear, and nose inspections, etc. However, he wasn't sure whether Nicco would need shots or not because he said they didn't have his medical records from Littleton. But he reassured me that it would be fine, as soon as they get the records, they will be happy to give me a call and I can bring my kid (and another $20 copay) back to get his shots. I suggested he check the file again, perhaps even go to the front desk, because I called and confirmed that the records arrived before I made the appointment. Lo and behold, there they were, tucked behind the other papers on the clipboard, ominously revealing that Nicco is indeed due for a couple more shots.

After the student doctor left, the REAL doctor came in and basically repeated the battery of tests and checks, and pronounced our name correctly without hesitating and even said "That's a nice strong French name."

When he left, Nicco casually informed me that he would "jump and say ow" when he got his shots. He didn't jump, but he did say ow. He did not cry though! He earned his lollipop.

And now for a completely random side note:

This is a submarine.

Chocolate Cake or Elephant's Knees?

Yesterday I pulled weeds. I think it is completely unfair that we can't enjoy a lush lawn and still have to deal with weeds!

Today, I took Nicco to our neighborhood pool. It is February 6 and it is an outdoor pool. I guess I will quit complaining about the weeds.

That's What I Learned at My School

I realize that by writing this post I am opening myself to edits from the grammar police.

I also realize that everyone makes mistakes when they write e-mails, notes to self and others, memos, lists, letters...virtually any form of writing can be butchered on any given day by any given person, including (gasp) me.

That being said,

Really?

Hello? Hello? Are You There?

Nicco loves talking on the phone. Almost daily he will tell me that he wants to call someone, usually Grandpa and Grandma or Daddy. This evening he called his daddy both on his cell and on his office phone and got the machine both times. The cell phone voicemail goes to a robo-female voice with instructions on what to do after the beep. Nicco whispered hoarsely "Mommy, it's not him!" and hung up. When we got the voicemail on the office phone, Nicco mumbled "DaddyIloveyouit'smeBoo" Then said "Well, I guess he's not home. He's probably out for a walk or somethin'."

Softy-soft

Nicco loves soft things. Who doesn't, really? Anyway, he named my soft robe Mommy's soft; he has three little fleece cuddly squares called Baby Softy, Broncos Softy, and Duckie Softy; he snuggles his Soft Blankie; his favorite toy is his Soft Bear. This afternoon when we arrived at his swim class, I had to dig him out from under all his stuff. I named all his soft things one by one as I removed them...SpongeBob, Soft Blankie, Soft bear...Soft Boo.

Nicco is picky about what he can be called. Nicco, Boo, Buddy, Bug, Baby Bear, all seem to be acceptable. He does not like being called a Monkey and he objects to SpongeBoo NiccoPants. Perry the Platypus (of Phineas and Ferb fame) is the only Secret Agent allowed in our house, there can be no Agent Boo. So when I called him Soft Boo at the pool today, he was highly offended and said indignantly "I am NOT SOFT!" Then to emphasize his point, he rubbed his little bare thigh and immediately changed his tone. "Oh," he said, "maybe I am."

N-I-C-C-O; That Spells Nicco!

We went to the State Farm office today to look at converting our auto coverage from Colorado to Arizona as well as to evaluate our home insurance policy. While we were discussing options, this is what Nicco did:
All on his own, without prompting or assistance. This is the first time (that I am aware) he has tried to write his name. At home, he either lets me hold his hand while I write it, or he will let me make dots for him to trace. I am not sure if they have worked on it at school more or not. His teacher just told me about the one time they tried and he was nearly in tears because he is "not doing great at this." I know it is a small step, but I'm still pleased and proud! (He also sounded out "Fresh Fish" at the grocery store.)

Then again, he didn't finish because "WAIT! O is not next!" pound fist on table, throw pen and paper on the floor, hang head in shame and dismay, cry tears of frustration. He did not accept my assertion that the letter following the "i" is not an "o" because it is open on one side, like a "c."

Like I said, small steps.

American Dream

This afternoon, Patrice joined 52 other newly minted US citizens in a moment that culminated a years-long journey.

When Patrice was very young, in his early twenties, he left his native France in pursuit of what we call the "American Dream." He left his home country to escape the stranglehold of socialism and to pursue happiness in the form of freedom and liberty to succeed or fail by his own actions, to labor for himself, and to keep the fruits of his labor, rather than hand them over to a corrupt (yet somehow morally superior?) government system to disperse among the entitled population getting by on social security, disability, and other public funded welfare programs.

Is there a better time to become a citizen than now, where we witnessed this very week the power of the vote, the demonstration of a frustrated public who will be pushed only so far, and no further? A time where our lifestyle and values are being threatened by a tyrannical government that wants with all its might to take over every aspect of our lives? Now, as an American, Patrice has a voice and a vote. He gets to participate in the democracy that guarantees the blessings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

The road to citizenship began several years ago, when Patrice first entered the country. He brought a suitcase, less than $100, and fewer than 5 words of English. He learned the language, went to work, and eventually arrived at the courthouse in Tucson where he recited the Pledge of Allegiance with his fellow Americans.

Enter cynical me. There were a couple of stumbling blocks in the path...we moved from Colorado to Arizona after he started the application process, and somehow, the government institution screwed up the paperwork (surprise) and process to change the address. Patrice received his notice to have his fingerprints taken at our Arizona address, asking him to report in Aurora, Colorado. It took several phone calls to finally correct that problem. Once he cleared that hurdle, he spent several evenings studying the 100 questions about American history, government, and civics from which the questions would be selected for his exam. As we reviewed together, I was pleased that I would certainly pass the test without studying, but ashamed to realize how many questions I did not know the answers to. On the day of the exam, Patrice was prepared to demonstrate fluency in the language, culture, and history of this great nation. He was asked 6 civics questions, had to read and write the phrase "We the People." All of this available in Spanish, in case he needed a translation, and administered by Mexicans. Sorry, Mexican-Americans. This took 5 minutes. He passed. He was given a date to appear at the courthouse to take his oath and be sworn in as a naturalized citizen. (Exit cynical me.)

Today, Patrice came home and picked us up to go along with him to the courthouse. We stood in line with the other candidates and their friends and families to pass through the security screening. On the wall, there was a sign listing things you cannot bring into the building. The words "NO CAMERAS" were printed in large, bold letters. I wanted to cry and could not believe that I would not be allowed to document the ceremony for our family annals. But, being the obedient girl that I am, I ran back to the car and put the camera away to avoid a lecture from the security officers and a disturbance that could delay or prevent me from watching my husband take his oath. I made it back in plenty of time, and we entered the jury assembly room, periodically lit by the flashes of cameras as candidates and their families stood together in front of the judge's bench and the flag and the seal of the USA at the front of the podium. What the what??? Of course cameras are allowed. OF COURSE THEY ARE!!! So, I beat myself repeatedly on the forehead for taking my camera back to the car and settled for whatever pictures I could get from Patrice's phone. Oh, wait. What was that announcement? NO CELL PHONES DURING THE CEREMONY??? YOU WILL BE ISSUED A CITATION IF YOU USE YOUR CELL PHONE??? Almost in tears, I silently vowed to memorize every moment so I could document it in words, if not pictures. Then I just decided to throw caution to the wind and turn the cell phone to silent in order not to interrupt the ceremony and be issued a citation. Such a rebel! (pictures will be added later when Patrice gets home and I have access to the phone again)

Re-enter cynical me. There was a young hispanic gentleman translating every spoken word for the candidates in Spanish. I couldn't help feeling disgusted and insulted. I may have even vomited in my mouth a little. I am sure the Vietnamese and Somalian candidates appreciated the translation as much as my French candidate did.

The candidates signed in and took their seats in the first 3 rows. Their countries of origin were acknowledged. There were people from France, Italy, Ukraine, China, Vietnam, Canada, England, Somalia, Afghanistan, El Salvador, Spain, Uruguay, and Mexico. The Mexican contingent, very appropriately for the solemnity of the setting and the occasion, shouted and clapped, instantly transforming the ceremony to the atmosphere of a soccer game. Nice. (Blech...okay, exit, cynical me.) We all stood as the Judge entered. He welcomed the candidates and expressed his pleasure and pride in the assembled group. He spoke as a citizen, welcoming them to the land of the free and the home of the brave. He commended them as a judge, for taking the proper and lawful route to citizenship. He admonished the crowd to enjoy the blessings offered by this great nation.

Then the candidates all stood and took their oath:

I, (Patrice Boudou), here declare on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the armed forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

Following the naturalization oath, we all recited the Pledge of Allegiance. I got a little choked up. So did my husband. Following the pledge, the Judge invited anyone to share their stories or feelings at this solemn occasion. He looked around the room at timid faces who were not inclined to speak. Full of emotion and not wanting this moment to pass without any words from the audience, I stood and told how my husband left his country many years ago to pursue his dreams in freedom and liberty, and how pleased and proud I am this day to call him "My Fellow American."

Massachusetts Miracle

The people speak! I am giddy and thrilled and happy that the people in MA turned out and voted and sent a very clear message as to what our American Democracy is: by the PEOPLE for the PEOPLE!!! This special election in Massachusetts was a battle won in a war that is still being fought, but I tell you Mr. Brown said all the things tonight that a president should say in times like these. We'll keep our eyes on him. Let Freedom Ring, baby!

go to youtube and search Massachusetts Miracle. If that video doesn't give you chills, well then, you have no soul.

It feels good to have faith renewed in the American people!

Blog Book, First Edition

Some time ago I was talking with Sheila about how I don't believe in the permanence of anything on the internet and that I would one day like to make my blog into a book. A few days later, she sent me a link to a company that does precisely that! So I spent hours and hours uploading and arranging text and photos to make a satisfactory book, only to have to START ALL OVER every time Patrice cleaned up the computer. It only happened twice, but I was really pleased, happy, and mostly relieved when January 1 arrived and I could finalize my project and send it off to be made into a book. It arrived today! Hip, hip, hooray! Nicco browsed through the pages, flipping back and forth, reliving the memories recorded within.
I learned a few things that I will change in future editions. First, bigger is better. Some of the photo layouts make the pictures too small. Next time, I will keep the text on one side and pictures on the other, rather than trying to put text and photos all on one page. That way I can probably make the text bigger too. Sometimes I squeezed too much and it is a little difficult to read. It will only get more difficult as I get older. I thought about making a table of contents, I will probably do that next time. I didn't include comments from blog posts as I went along and since the software to upload the blog posts did not include the comments, it was just way too tedious to add them all, so next time I will do that. Overall, I am very happy with it! It is much better than a boring snoring photo album, and as tedious as it was to arrange everything, it is MUCH less tedious and time consuming and considerably less expensive than making scrapbooks. There are over 500 pictures, which would cost at least $50 to print them all, plus the cost of either photo albums or scrapbooking stuff. So to have a hard cover book with all my pictures and stories in 258 pages for $70 (plus shipping) is pretty darn reasonable!

Fresh Squeezed Part II

We picked a bucket full of grapefruits off the tree today.

There are two reasons this picture is not so great...one is that the settings on my camera are clearly off for the lighting situation, and two is that it was so darn bright and sunny! (77 degrees today...) Nicco was very proud of the giant grapefruit he found and picked.

The bucket of grapefruits, and there's plenty more where that came from!
Squeezing the juice is hard work! Thank goodness it's an electric juicer!

Half of the grapefruits, halved.

Finally, the bucket is empty!

Nearly 5 liters of freshy-fresh grapefruit juice. Mmmmmmm.

Monday Fun is Back!

We took Nicco to the International Wildlife Museum yesterday. Stuffed animals from all around the world!

Here's my boy next to the lion outside the entrance. There was also a cheetah near the entrance. When we drove by, I asked Nicco what that animal is and he said "It's a moose." I snortled and suggested that it was probably a cheetah, maybe a leopard or a panther. It wasn't until we parked and walked up to the actual entrance that I noticed the rather large elk on the bridge overhead. The moose comment suddenly made sense and I felt bad for snickering at my little boy. (bad mom)
This picture is out of order. (I thought I was being so careful!) You enter the museum in the bug room (below) then you follow the path marked by arrows on the floor to the other exhibit halls in the museum. Mr. OCD did not like wandering off the marked path. Must.Follow. Arrows.

Millions (okay, maybe just thousands) of butterflies, moths, and other creepy crawlers.

Face to face with a skorca skull. (That's a sky-orca for anyone who doesn't watch Penguins of Madagascar)

Petting the ferocious tiger.

Being pounced upon by the ferocious tiger.

Bears, just like at the working house! Every wall in this hall was covered with mounts of various creeters. Hundreds and hundreds of creeters. Grandpa Madsen would be envious of the deer head wall!

Nicco finally agreed to step off the designated path and approach the leopard.

Because the 'gator was on the floor in the middle of the hall rather than behind the roped enclosure or mounted on the wall, Nicco thought he might be alive. He walked up to him timidly then knocked on his head and said "Hello??? ... He's dead, mom."

Walking under the giraffe bridge

again...

The mountain goat mountain. I thought this was cool. The mountain is huge and it has mountain goats and big-horned sheep from all over the world climbing up to the top.

Nicco recited the "Goin' on a Bear Hunt" song as he wandered through this cave. "...it's dark in here...is anyone around?...I see two eyes...and a big furry body...RUN!!! IT'S A BEAR!!!"

And he crawled around like a ferret.

Staring up at the Wooly Mammoth. Across from the mammoth was an elk whose antlers were big enough to lie down on length-wise. The boss told Patrice about such creatures, but Patrice thought he might be exaggerating a bit. Not so.

There was a small theater where they show National Geographic films. They had a polar bear video running. We sat down and watched for a few minutes until Nicco whispered to me "How long are we going to be here?" We promptly left. He played around in the tunnels and caves for a few more minutes then declared our visit done.

Fresh Squeezed

Nicco and I picked oranges off our tree this morning.

Mmmmm...mmmm...mmmm...YUMMY!

That is all.

Rough Stuff

Every once in a while when we were kids, Dad would come down the stairs after changing out of his work clothes, kneel down on the floor, and put his glasses on top of the stereo. The moment he reached for his glasses, we would erupt in squeals and giggles because that was the sign that we would get to play "rough stuff." All four of us would climb on top of our dad and he would tickle us, pull us, push us over, bulldoze us, and carry us around on his back. Even though there were four of us, I think that our childhood "rough stuff" was mild compared to Nicco's version. Tonight, Nicco was riding on Patrice's back, shaking his head back and forth, squealing, and pounding his daddy. Patrice said "I have a monkey on my back!" Considering the pounding of fists, I said he was more like a gorilla. Nicco stopped squawking long enough to say, very matter of factly, "It's me, your kid." and went right back to his noise.

A little bit later, the game evolved to one in which Nicco climbed up on our bed, ran and jumped into his daddy's arms. He can be a little unpredictable, and the mommy gets a little anxious. One time when he stood up after being thrown back onto the bed, he stumbled in his dizziness and almost fell off the bed. I reached out to block him and he looked at me and said a little breathlessly, "That was close." Then reading the anxiety on my face, he reassured me "I'm still alive."

Well THANK GOODNESS! Carry on!

Where Have I Heard That Before?

Yesterday, Nicco wanted to play a game on the Wii. He had to take one out and put the new one in the console. I helped him find the box he needed, but when I asked him to put the game inside the box he said "I can only do one thing at a time."

Reverse Psychology

After spending a few weeks playing around on Starfall.com, Nicco has learned all the letters and sounds and can read a few sight words and even sound out several simple words. He surprises me every now and then, like when we drove past a shop and he said "O-puh-eh-n. Open. Mom, that store is open, I guess we can go in." He can also count pretty high, only omitting 7 and mixing up a couple of the teens here and there, and he recognizes and can put numbers 1-10 in order. I'm not sure where he picked that up, because starfall doesn't really address numbers much. He is a quick learner and an enthusiastic student for the most part, but for some reason, (maybe because he couldn't do it "great" the first time...) he has been reluctant, even stubborn, about attempting to write. I know, WHAT??? My kid? Stubborn? NO WAY. He was on the verge of tears at school when they did writing practice, he gets angry when I try to help (make) him practice, so I have just let it be. He will try (and get it) when he is ready. Mom and Dad got him a really great dry-erase book for practicing lines and letters and I bought him a set of dry-erase markers to go with it. I thought that having something special to practice with would encourage him, but he just skipped to the last page with the blank space for free-form scribbling. He does love his special markers, but is intimidated by making lines. When we packed up the Christmas stuff, Patrice had him trace letters on tags to label the boxes. He did the first letter with characteristic Nicco-style enthusiasm, but then got stubborn, angry, and frustrated. Also characteristic Nicco-style.

Fast forward several hours...We put in a video, Nicco wandered between the movie with us and the office with his "stories" (a.k.a. Starfall) and at one point, of his own volition, he pulled out his "special book" and colors and started writing. When he did the A, we said "That's great, but there is NO WAY you can do the B." and so it went, through both the upper and lowercase alphabets.


And as you can see, he was very proud of himself.

Bonne Anee 2010

Ringing out the old:

Last night, we went up to the working house to watch the dog while the boss is out of town. Nicco showed off his diving, floating, and other swimming skills in the hot tub for about 45 minutes. After the soak, we got our comfies on and settled in front of the fireplace. We turned on a show for Nicco at about 10:00, thinking that after playing in the warm water for so long he would fall asleep quickly and we could watch a mommy/daddy show. No such luck, Nicco stayed up through all of Madagascar 2. We snuggled into bed and put on a late-late show to watch until either Nicco fell asleep or 2010 arrived. The boy got his silly on and could not stop laughing. He even uttered "I...can't...stop...laughing!" between bursts of laughter. At midnight, I told him to give his daddy (who was mostly asleep) a kiss and tell him happy new year. We watched 2 minutes of madness in the streets of New York, turned everything off, and went to sleep. Big night!

Ringing in the new:

We are cleaning up the house, taking down Christmas, relaxing a little, hopefully signing papers for a new house, and setting goals.

Tam resolves to:

*learn French

*exercise every day

*finish my Pulitzer reading list



Nicco resolves to:

*learn French with Mommy

*keep his toys orderly



Patrice resolves to:

*practice French with Mommy and Nicco

*exercise every day

(P.S. I started this post on January 1. It is now January 2 and so far, a big FAT failure at our resolutions! Nothing like getting off to a great start! In our defense, we have spent nights and mornings at the big house to watch the dog. Things are not normal. Back to normal on Monday. Monday is a good goal starting day, right? Also, nothing like starting off by making excuses!)

(P.P.S. We submitted an offer on a house today. We really like it. A lot. Anyone who wants to cross their fingers, say a prayer, light a candle, sacrifice a goat...whatever...in hopes that the owners and the bank accept our offer, the sentiment would be appreciated.)