Castlewood Canyon

We purchased a state parks pass and it is turning out to be less of a fantastic idea than we thought. The pass can only work in one car (it must be held by its own adhesive in the windshield of one of our vehicles) and we were nonplussed to find that one of the two state parks we regularly visit has its own small fee on top of the pass fee. What is the point you ask? The point is that I am determined to get our money's worth out of the darn thing at the park I know it works at.....I hope this explains why I am hiking with three kids in the rain. Oh yes, and any thing is fun with Tracey even if we are soaking wet and mosquito ridden.

Love,
Monae

Sorry for the huge pics. Still figuring out iPad blogging.

Fireside Tales

We have lived in our incredibly luxurious apartment for 4 and 1/2  years now, and in all that time have never used the fireplace that we were so very excited about when we signed the lease.
This past few weeks The Resident decided it was time rearrange the furniture so the couch was no longer blocking the fireplace, remove the candles and fish tank gear from the grate, and make good use of our hearth.

The kids were thrilled! I was nervous. I don't particularly like the smell of burning wood, especially after it has gone cold and the whole living room smells like day old camping laundry. When all was said and done, even with my very vocal doubting (no, I did not nag why would you ask?...), the presence of a crackling fire has been a nice addition to the Christmas season. Christmas music, the Christmas tree, a cheery (o.k. maybe a little on the roaring side) fire; all these happy things make this luxury apartment a happy place to be. I almost don't notice that the carpet in the hallway is starting to peel up because it has been flooded so many times in the past 4 and 1/2  years...almost.

Merry Christmas!

Monae

The word 'work' is definitely relative..

"Kindergarten is hard work!”

This is how my 5 year old daughter feels about the enlightening 13 year or longer educational journey she has recently commenced.

I try to gently explain to her that she can learn to be grateful for the marvelous opportunity we call education, and she should take this time in her young life to explore new intellectual avenues like letter writing, music class, and the complexities of counting to 100.

I also say, “Sis, you have to go to school for a long time, so we might as well figure out a way to like all that hard work.”

She thoughtfully responds with, “I like recess and free choice time.”

That’s my girl! Always a silver lining…

Love,

Monae

P.S.  Now this giant paper mache eagle...this looks a lot like work!

Lazy Sundays...or not.

So if your Sundays go anything like ours the essentials consist of :

1. The mad rush to get the whole family in the chapel before the opening song finishes (even though you were aiming to be there five minutes before the hour).

2. A stressful hour, lightly seasoned with peace and comfort, and a blissful following two hours where you are virtually child free and surrounded by all the adult conversation/spiritual uplifting you could want.

3. The despearate rush to get food into hungry mouths when you reach home so kids can then go down for naps. This way you can also take a nap and not be interupted five thousand times by busy children who don't understand the phrase, "mommy is sleeping...".

4. And last but not least, the grand finale of a huge wrestling session that take place on the 'wrestling blanket' as soon as everyone wakes up 2 hours...I mean 45 minutes later.

Things get a little rough around here. Just to be fair, I do not usually join in. When asked, I gently and patiently remind them of my superior WWF skills and they remember that no else really has even a small chance of winning when the champion (that's me) enters the arena (that's the wrestling blanket).

Always truthful on a Sunday-
Monae

Photography Newbie

So... I am very new to the world of photography, and I think it's pretty apparent. I do, however, have a goal (one of many) to figure out this darn Photoshop program that has been marinating on my computer for 5 years. Besides appeasing Leslie, this blog has another motivator driving it; I'm pretty sure loading my pics on the Internet will force me to exhibit some sort of publishing pride and try out this strange thing called post processing. Wish me luck!
Here's Halloween at the Guercio's:

I may have gotten a little carried away with Cinderella's makeup, but she thought it was fabulous and I didn't tell her otherwise.

It might have done me some good to carry myself just a little further with Super Girl's makeup, but I was exhausted after Spidey's and Cinderella's. 

No one would believe this, but Spiderman sat still as can be for this whole affair. I just had a hard time getting him to not wipe it all over his sleeve when his nose started running shortly there-after.



Possibly a little over processed, but my goal is to get better. Let's not hold our breath....

Love,

Monae

This post is for Leslie whom I love! No she hasn't died, she is just moving and has coerced me into chronicling my very boring life on the internet. (to those who have gone before her, she is incredibly persuasive...) I will miss you so much Leslie, I won't think about it too much. Let's just pretend you are on vacation.

Love You-

Monae