New blog

In the Company of Cedars

Hanging with Truman

On trial

Franco v. Society

The prosecutor: Jason Shutt
The defending attorney: Mairead Shutt

Witnesses: Neighborhood Lab, Lucy, Rio, Dexter

Expert opinions:  The Nau Family

The crime: Being a total a**hole, inciting violence

The evidence:
Exhibit A: Record with Kitsap Animal Control
Exhibit B: Torn left ear
Exhibit C: Pissed off neighbor
Exhibit D: Patch of golden dog hair all over my sheets

Verdict: Lifelong probation, electric fence turned up to highest setting, more rigorous exercise

Pig roast at Seabold Farm

Hey Mom, where is that cute pig they used to have on the farm? The one with the pink curly tail and the bristly pink skin? Also, what is that delicious smell? Is it time to eat yet?

Sleepover

Cousins are the best! They teach you how to make a sword from regular household supplies, disregard your mother's plea to stop jumping on the air mattress, and carry you around in supremely fun and unsafe ways. This is a shot of Truman's sleepover with Daniel and Andrew, my fav nephews.

Baaaaack!

We are back! Where have we been and what have we been doing?

Just having fun and hanging around. We took a couple of trips, saw some cool friends tie the knot in San Diego, went car camping five times, and debated weather Franco would live to see his next meal.

I took a break from blogging mostly because I was boring myself. Our life is really not too exciting or unique. And I just started to feel very cliche. Here is a list of boring things I was going to blog about:

- Should I go against my long-time rule of NO TRAIN TABLES and get a train table?

- All the cool craft projects I have been doing that include one or all of the following materials: felt, chalkboard paint (oh yes), poster paint, and beads. (my diy projects are probably cooler than yours, just saying).

- How did our DNA render the smartest child in the universe? Yesterday he said "elbow" as clear as day and today he figured out that stomping on a craft project I was in the middle of was a great way to get my attention. Genius.

So anyways, hopefully some time has past and I have funnier stories to tell. And oh yes, pictures of Tru and Frank. More soon . . .

Terrariums

Recently, my mom has been going through her house and getting rid of a lot of stuff.

And a few awesome things have been passed on to me.

Including a brown and orange crocheted blanket. That she made in 1972.

And a framed latch hook of a bird. That she made in 1973.

And a bunch of glass vessels. So what should we do with a bunch of glass containers from the 1970s?

TERRARIUMS!!

And of course I had to make some for Tru.

We wanted dessert

So we made a jelly roll. It involves separating eggs and all types of complicated steps.

We decided not to roll it.

We just took it out of the oven and ate it in about 4 minutes.

So good.

Sunday morning

I am one lucky lady.

Wishing he was outside

Truman is more and more like his dad with every passing week. From the moment he wakes up, he stands at the front door, pointing outside. He much rather be out in the fresh air - just like Jason - than doing anything inside. He will put his shoes on and carry his coat around to let us know he rather be throwing pine cones into the pond, being pulled in his wagon, walking the little trail to the road, finding rocks, and watching Dad do the heavy lifting in the yard. These are pics of Truman complaining when I brought him in for a diaper/clothes change this weekend.

Truman's room

While all of the other rooms in our home still need some love, Truman's room is officially finished. Until, that is, he climbs out of his crib and we have to buy a real bed. But anyways - we were going for a colorful and cheerful space and I tried to incorporate little things from both my childhood and Jason's childhood. (Jason's dad built both the cradle and the crib. The little bluebird on the wall belonged to Jason's mom. My mom latch hooked the faux bear skin rug.)

Quick update

Things we are doing: Buying last minute mother's day gifts, making terrariums, working late, working early, spray tanning.

Things we are not doing: Yard work, putting away the clean laundry, walking the dog.

Things we wish we were doing: Spending our lottery winnings, basking in the Seattle sun (F*** you Seattle weather), admiring our toned bodies.

Things we are grateful for: My mom noticing a. we have no groceries and b. the bush outside our front door is diseased. What does she do? Stocks the fridge and figures out how to get ridof rare strawberry weevils.

Here is Truman modeling the shorts I bought him in little-Haiti in New Orleans. (And by the way - I love New Orleans.)

If you are looking for some good reading

Check out the Dear Aunt Slugger link to the right. Love her.

Happy Easter

This is what 5:00 pm looks like at our house

Are we close to weaning?

No.

Jason put Truman in his crib the other night without calling me upstairs for my nursing/story reading/snuggle time with Truman. Me and Truman both protested loudly.

I am leaving Tru for the first time for a weekend trip next weekend (WATCH OUT NEW ORLEANS! HELLO BON JOVI and JAZZ FEST) and I am a little bit worried that our wonderful time nursing will come to an end . . . but I hear it is not so bad . . .

My all-time favorite teacher, Barb Guilfoil

Barbara Guilfoil knew me when I was born. She knew my brother and sister and hundreds of elementary children that came before me. In third grade, I landed in her classroom at Lockwood Elementary School. Since it was a smallish alternative program, she was my teacher for three years (3^rd-5^th grade).

In third grade, she praised my natural aptitude for academics and made a big deal out of all of my artwork.

In fourth grade, she came to my house for dinner and spent most of the meal telling my parents how wonderful I was.

In fifth grade, she told my mom when my first boyfriend gave me a ring from Fred Meyer (which I denied) and she scolded me for spitting watermelon seeds at my second boyfriend.

In other words – she kept me on the right track. She was a total force.

She taught us about the ocean by taking us to the ocean. She taught us about Greek Gods with puppets and plays she directed herself. She was concerned with our academic success, but she also cared if we were polite, honest, and brave.

When I graduated from high school she sent me a card and money. When I turned down an offer to the University of Chicago she scolded me. When I graduated with my MBA she sent more money. She never forgot about me. She came to my wedding shower and then my wedding. She came to my baby shower and bought Truman his very own monogrammed duffel bag – his first piece of fancy luggage.

I saw her last year at my folk’s house. She looked the way she had always looked to me, those thick, gray bangs swooped to the side of her face. Her small, strong frame. Laughing. Laugh lines.

I remember thinking that I probably would not see her very many more times in my life. Sadly, I was right.

She passed away this weekend.

There are lots of things that will be said about Barbara Guilfoil. That she lived an amazing life. That she was a wonderful mother and wife. That she survived cancer. That she touched the lives of many, many students.

To me, she was one in a million. Rest in peace, Barb.

Ripped

Remember that time that I started a daily upper body work with the hand weights I bought at a garage sale? And on the second day I threw out my back?

(It was that same time that I was too cheap to buy a workout dvd so I just youtubed "upper body workout" and watched random weirdos in their home gyms.)