Opal Gets A Butt Lift

Opal (my pretty 2010 Tahoe) recently had some rear-end work done.

On Friday the 13th my mom and I were out and about, ending up at a charity function to paint a canvas. Well apparently during our endeavors to spark our inner Picasso, Opal's rear passenger bumper was smashed pretty good by a hit & run schmuck. My mom and I didn't even notice the damage. It was only when Dustin was out playing in the garage the next day that he discovered the extent of her tushy trauma. A call to the insurance company and a couple of weeks later, Opal got a much needed butt lift. =)

She's as good as new and back to normal. I also made sure to treat her extra special with a spa-day trip to the dealership for the "Colorado Package" which included a leather treatment to her seats (I consider that anti-aging cream), a clear bra for her front (who doesn't need support and protection up there??) and an undercarriage coating (car version of exfoliation and mud bath I think) to spare her from the annual dumping of mag-chloride each winter.

Ironically enough I didn't take any pics of the damage, so taking a picture of her new bumper seems silly. Instead I thought I would entertain you with our artistic debut. My artistry reminds me very much of Van Gogh on an acid trip. Definitely not worthy of hanging on the wall...

Genius Bar

So, as I'm sure you've noticed, my posts have been spotty (ok non-existant) the last few months. My computer has been on the fritz since February, when it ran an update and has locked itself down tighter than Fort Knox ever since. Needless to say, I'm on a first name basis with the yahoos at my local Apple store. Genius Bar my tush!!! 2 restores & 3 reformats later, I still have little faith that this is a permanent fix. On a positive note, I'm at least able to get online and post a blog, so things are headed in the right direction. On a not so positive note, through this whole process I have "lost" almost 2000 pics from the kiddo's first year. The geniuses at apple assure me that they're not lost, only locked. They had better be right, or else heads are gonna roll!

Anywho, I apologize for the mutli-month hiatus. I promise to "catch" you up on all the latest jungle shenanigans and will backfill posts with time relevant pics (once I get them back).

Shake Your Tail Feathers!

Not that I'm a very fashion-forward girl (although I like to think I am) but the latest rage in Denver are feather hair extensions. My stylist FINALLY got her hands on some and I was there that day. I was so damn excited about it I was her first client! Pathetic, I know...

I think they are super fun and give a little pep to your step! They're clipped to a strand of hair with a crimp bead, making them semi-permanent, without damaging your hair. Even cooler is that you can wash and style these bad boys because they're actually fly fishing feathers. Yup, I have fishing lures in my hair and I'm lovin it!!

Excuse the crudeness of these pics. I took them with my phone, by myself, in the damn bathroom. YUP, I'm that girl. UGH.

April Showers

April was a pretty busy month in the jungle.

First and foremost was the eminent and quickly approaching 1st Twinsday. I had been planning for months and decided on a prince & princess theme, complete with custom designed/made invitations, high chair decorations, P&P goodie bags and castle bounce house (for the bigger kids). However, my plans were thrown out the window when the "Royal Party" had to change dates. Dustin was going to be out of town for their actual birthday weekend, and consequently forced us to moved the party date up a week to accommodate. With my creative juices completely deflated, my fabulous twinsday festivities was tabled. I found a Cinco-de-Mayo-esque #1 pinata and cancelled the bounce house, settled for a Dora & Diego cake instead of the fabulous 3-tier castle & crown fondant masterpiece I had envisioned, scrapped the high chair decor and bought pink & blue balloons instead. You guessed it, a less than "fit for royalty" party for the kiddos. And while I knew they won't remember a single shred of it, I would and that broke my heart. The only thing I was still really excited about was lil A's amazing tutu!! A light pink balloon tutu complete with fabulous ribbon and LOTS of glitter (fit for a princess naturally). Anyhow, preconceived notions aside, the day was a success minus the blizzard conditions outside. Lil A LOVED her cake and ate 1/2 of the icing off and would've kept going if it had been allowed. Lil D, on the other hand, wasn't having it. He ended up smearing the frosting directly in his eyes and then cried the rest of the time.

2 days after the not-so-royal birthday party, lil D went in for his ear tubes. I made a way bigger deal out of it than I probably should have, but after all, it was my baby boy and it was a surgery. So, with major butterflies in my stomach I walked him back to the operating room where the laughing gas was waiting. The minute I walked into the stark, cold room, flashbacks from a year ago and the hell of my delivery hit me in the face. It was eerie and surreal. Little man was out in about 2 seconds flat, but it was still hard to hold him and wish him sweet dreams - all the while thinking that damn anesthesologist had better have gotten the dosage right and not kill my baby. I know, I know - overdramatic mom. Either way, no sooner did my tush hit the waiting room chair was the doctor back out saying they were all done. What the hell?? We're paying how much for 2 minutes of work?!?!? I was immediately reunited with him - extremely fussy and hungry - but it was great to hear him cry...he was alive! YAY! (Insert overdramatic mom again) The tubes were an immediate success and within the day you could tell he was a different kid. Happier, laughing, smiling, not crying every time you put him down AND most importantly not sleeping propped up on my pillow with me at night! HOORAY!

Please excuse the disgusting-ness of my appearance - it was a 6 am check-in. OUCH!

All done. Healthy baby - Happy momma!

A couple of days later, Dustin left for his rugby trip and gramps was in town to celebrate the actual passing of the 1st birthday. We did absolutely nothing but spent tons of time at home, playing and having a great time. Quality time for all of them, especially grandpa, since he only sees them a few times a year. It was perfect!

Lil A in her princess ball pit

Next up on the list was the infamous 12 month checkup (ie: a bunch of awful shots) - JOY! These beauties incubated nicely for about 10 days and then hit at the same time.

(That's the wonderful joy of twins - nothing ever hits at separate times. They let things fester so it hits simultaneously. Its a damn conspiracy and they're ganging up on me already!)

Fevers, coughing, throwing up...we ran the gauntlet...did I mention that I love shots?? We were on a roll with no icky bugs/colds in the house for at least a month and here we go again. UGH! Thank god for wine and zoloft!!

Easter was also wrapped up in this fun-filled month. The kids loved their baskets (although I think I loved assembling them more). They both got tons of fabulous toys & treats. Sissy got a barista machine and brother got a workbench. They both got a bouncing turtle to share along with lots of other annoying toys that make entirely too much noise. Note to toy manufacturers: please install on/off switches on ALL toys!

Please note: sissy has brother's remote and brother has sissy's pink donut from her barista machine. Why do I bother buying gender specific toys??

This embodies just about everyday of my life.

Screaming babe and me acting like a complete idiot!

I may go to hell for this BUT how could I resist?!?

Lil D impersonating Ralphie from Christmas story (ala pink bunny suit).

This bad boy will surface in his senior yearbook! HAHA!!

The balance of the month came and went in the blink of an eye. Lil A started taking a few unassisted steps and lil D figured out that size matters and has been using his weight & height advantage to beat up his sister.

Life in the jungle is great and grand. April showers bring May flowers....stay tuned!

February & March

February and March flew by in the blink of an eye. The winter this year was extremely tolerant and unseasonably warm. Typically I'm madder than a hornet when we don't get snow, secretly dying inside for a massive blizzard to shut the city down for a few snow days; however I welcomed the lackluster winter with open arms. Warmer weather meant a chance for the kiddo's immune systems to build up some strength! I think we actually had a stint of at least two solid weeks without anyone being sick. It was amazing! Regardless of the lack of colds, lil D was still extremely fussy 99% of the time. Still not sleeping through the night, it was all I could do to maintain a decent amount of sanity. The crying was just ridiculous. Turns out my previous month's statement about tubes for his ears was just assinine. We met with the specialist in mid march and the resounding recommendation was TUBES! Why am I always such a skeptic?

Shortly into the month of Feb. lil A sprouted all 4 of her 2nd set of teeth. Official tooth count is dead even, tied at 8 a piece. With these new teeth the kiddos have figured out that they can really start munching on things. Absolutely everything still goes into their little mouths, but now things don't come out looking the same. Books are destroyed, dvd cases are punctured with vampire-esque markings, and I think I'll have a scar in the shape of lil A's mouth on my calf for the rest of my days.

Other noteable milestones the past 60 days would be lil a's cruising ability, her distinct hatred of spoons (that's right, eating in the jungle is a damn mess!) and her realization that she can crawl faster than her brother. This skill apparently comes in handy when one steals a toy from a sibling and needs to make a quick getaway. Lil D is finally crawling with gumption. He's still slow and a bit wobbly, but he's getting there. He's also figured out how to pull himself up to stand. What's extra hilarious is how he transitions from standing to sitting. Most kids just plop down on their tush, but not my lil creative monkey! He slowly inches himself down, into a near perfect split, to get to the ground. I've also discovered his insatiable love for the television (which he got from his dad, not me). His favorite shows are Dora, Diego & Blues Clues, but really isn't picky just so long as the tube is on. He stands right in front (hence how he learned to pull himself up), his nose inches away from the screen. I have a huge fear that he'll be wearing coke bottle glasses by the time he's 3.

Flashback

Here's the January recap...

Do you ever have those days (or month) where you feel like you're walking uphill? Well that's been this month in the jungle. We've been battling more sick bugs, its an every 2nd or 3rd day sort of thing. All I can say is THANK GOD my job has been totally understanding and flexible with me during all of this. Honestly, I don't remember the last "full" week I've actually been able to work without having to stay home with one of the kids. If D doesn't have an ear infection, one of them has a cold bug, or is cutting teeth...or something. We've seen our ped's more than I care to mention. Long story short, I'm ready for spring and some healthy days!

D has had 3 ear infections in 3 months, SO...we're off to see the ENT specialist next month for tubes consultation. I'm honestly not totally sold that tubes will fix the problem, I feel like he hasn't been healthy (not sick) since August...so its not a fair assessment to say tubes are the answer, but I'm hoping the specialist will be able to clear the air. The second weekend in January he also decided to sprout all 4 of his 2nd set of front teeth in 2 days. That was definitely a long weekend! He also learned how to army crawl (FINALLY!) and to go from sitting to crawling. We're working on pulling up and hopefully standing, but we'll see how that goes. Sweet petite A has been a champ for the most part. She's crawling everywhere, pulling up on things and shuffling around from 1 thing to another. Any day now I think she'll be trying to take a step or two on her own. She's definitely our strong willed and independent one. Last week she spiked a fever of 103 and it hovered around there for at least 4 days. That's either one hell of a bug or she's cutting more teeth. For the record, official tooth count is D = 8, A = 4.

Big news from last month was the graduation from their baby carriers. We're officially into big kid seats. While very exciting for them, it was a sad day for our bank account as we dropped a grand on 4 car seats and baby gates. OOF!

My dear Fargo friends made it to town the last weekend in January for a photography class (note to self, add photography classes to the bucket list). They stayed with us for twinny bonding time. Who could resist a day of shopping, cheesecake factory and a twilight marathon?!?! The weather cooperated nicely for them and it was a balmy 40 to 60 degrees for their entire trip! It was sad to see them leave, but I was so glad they came.

As for the adults of the jungle, rugby is ramping up for big D so the spring will be filled with his practices, games and tournaments. I've been busy as a bee at work. With the award and start of the salt lake courthouse, I have the next 5 years of my career mapped out. On top of work, I've also been frantically trying to plan (ie: spark creativity) the kiddo's first birthday party. I can't believe its just around the corner.

That's life in the jungle. Joy!

One Little Word

This new year, I made a lot of internal resolutions. Paramount on my list were two things, getting back in shape (ie: getting my tushy off the couch no matter how tired I feel) and finding motivation.

My first resolution is easy to conquer, it just takes a bit of physical effort. Working out, cardio, eating well and vitamins. Done.

The second took a bit more mental effort on my part to really define. I knew I needed to motivate myself, but how? What is it in my life that is keeping me unmotivated? Then one day I was reading a friend's blog and she linked to this page. It talks about the One Little Word Project. Listening to yourself and identifying what word keeps trying to catch your attention. Then, once you find it, you invite it into your life and let it speak to you. Basically committing to making it yours for the year. By doing so, you bring that into your life and fulfill what you've been needing. While I was reading, I was giggling inside. Sounded like a bunch of hocus pocus. Well maybe, but perhaps the motivation I needed would come from a new way of thinking, a new perspective; an optimistic outlook and acceptance of the power of positive thinking. I've been around a lot of people lately who feel that if you believe something enough, you will find a way to manifest it in your life. So, I figure what the heck. It can't hurt to try.

After I decided to give this whole "one little word" a whirl, it was time to find mine. Easier said than done, that's for sure! I waited and went about my routine. I tried to calm the chaos of life, slow down my mind and listen, but I heard nothing. So I waited. As I did, I noticed an internal whisper. More of a roar really, but I think with everything going on I only heard it as a whisper. Be strong. Thats when I discovered how many times a day I was quietly calling out. God give me the strength to: Get out of bed today. Be patient and breathe. Not fail in my endeavors. Find a way to smile on my worst of days. See happiness through the chaos, anger and resentment. Laugh when I want to cry. Love and raise my kids regardless of the circumstances. Find myself.

The light bulb went off! Hello A, there's your word!! All these months (and possibly years) I've been willing myself to be strong. For me, my family, my friends. So, its time to start enabling that; finding new ways to build inner strength and reminding myself daily that I am stronger than I could have ever imagined.

So with an optimistic outlook, my one little word for 2011 is STRENGTH.