tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47008467085102062652024-03-12T16:43:16.913-07:00The Every-day Life and Adventures of an American BombshellBombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.comBlogger218125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-13180000891264483182013-08-15T22:22:00.001-07:002013-08-15T22:23:00.952-07:00Ketchup<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I yet live.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Some of you may have wondered. (With reason.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Actually, to be honest, the reason I didn't post anything for so very, very long is because I was having a hard time finding much nice to say about my situation. Ok, that was the case for a few months, but then I just vacillated between being busy and being lazy. (Sorry.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">But here's the down low:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* We moved back to Utah. I was not an initial fan of this plan (Pete admitted that he was actually terrified to bring up the idea because he knew how much I loved living in NYC). But when his parents decided to serve an LDS mission and the opportunity came up to live in their home free of rent for 18 months, well, the lure of saving money for a future home eventually won me over. (I'm much happier in Utah now than I was those first few adjustment-y months.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* My In-laws did NOT leave on the above mentioned mission. At least, not until seven months after the initial planned date. They were originally called to serve a temple mission in Brazil, but because of visa issues, their departure date kept being pushed back month by month until they finally tired of waiting and requested a reassignment.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* My in-laws left for a mission to Mozambique. That's in Southern Africa, for those of you who had only a foggy idea of where that may be located. So I no longer live in the same house with anyone who is not part of my immediate family. It's nice. But won't last long; Pete's cousin is going to live in the basement (not a separate apartment) while he's waiting to get married. Then we'll have all sorts of family staying with us as we get ready for my sister to get married. Which brings me to my next point:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* My baby sister is getting married. Kind of exciting, and I'm a little bit embarrassed of how much time and effort I put into searching for the perfect flower girl dresses. (They are pretty fab, though.)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* I've lost 25 pounds. We can talk more about this later. Or maybe we won't. I tend to think of my health (weight, diet, etc.) like I think of my sex life. Just because it's there doesn't mean it needs to be discussed openly, and with strangers. But people ask, and I have to admit, it is pretty exciting to have found something that works. And I'm also considering becoming a health coach for the program I've been using, so if that happens my weight loss story will become a shameless marketing tool. We shall see.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* I've started refinishing furniture. So far I've redone a decorative bookcase and a set of whicker patio furniture. Next I'm planning on working on a coffee table. My ideas are becoming more ambitious a lot faster than my skills are progressing, but since I'm working with thrifted, garage sale fodder, I feel validated experimenting.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* My kids are growing up. For reals, though. Georgia has transitioned from a baby into a little human being, complete with a definite personality, sense of humor and extensive vocabulary. It amazes people that such clear, thought out sentences come out of something so small. And Amelia is practically a lady. She's getting ready for her second year of pre-school, and is taking a ballet/tap dancing class. She's always running out the door to the neighbors' house and talks incessantly about what her friends said, and did and all that kind of stuff.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">(Is this reading like a Christmas letter?)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Anyway, we're in Utah. Pete works for doTerra as the Corporate Communications Manager (and loves his job, actually) and his wedding cake and catering business, The Mighty Baker, is doing well and picking up steam. I have fun hobbies (plan to start writing seriously again IN THE NEAR FUTURE) and my life is full. We are really happy. It took me a while to be able to say that honestly, but it is now true. We are happy.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">And I might post here again soon.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Maybe.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">If I get over being busy/lazy at the same time again soon.</span><br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-38706949696415105132013-02-01T19:07:00.000-08:002013-02-01T19:07:01.682-08:00Retrospect; My 30th BirthdayI spent five hours on a bus covered in vomit. Life is glamourous, no?<br />
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Pete and I decided to go to visit my sister's family in Boston for Thanksgiving and we left on my birthday. (We still lived in NYC at the time, remember?) Of course the traffic leaving the city was horrendous. And, of course, my baby got carsick. Poor babe was fussy and unsettled. She kept going back and forth between Pete and me and then finally settled down long enough to throw up all over me. I was able to step into the nasty little horror of a WC at the back of the bus and get both Georgia and myself cleaned up, but it was only a matter of a few minutes before she repeated the performance and I was out of options for clean clothes.<br />
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Georgia felt much better and spent the rest of the journey snoozing peacefully on her daddy's lap wearing nothing but her raincoat and a diaper. I pulled my coat on over the smelly mess on my chest and cracked open the window.<br />
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It wasn't the best beginning to a birthday celebration I've ever had. But when we arrived at Sharon's house my sisters surprised me with a party and Pete had secretly made me a cake. Lovely Mexican food and balloons everywhere.<br />
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I really was happy about my party and cake, I promise. This is just what happens when someone else is in charge of taking the pictures.<br />
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So now I'm 30. It feels good. I'm more comfortable with myself, my talents, abilities, personality and purpose than I've ever been. I'm pretty sure that this is my prime decade. Life is better than ever and I'm loving the adventure. Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-19943653335656836722013-02-01T18:18:00.000-08:002013-02-01T18:18:03.573-08:00Saying GoodbyeTo New York City.<br />
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It all happened so fast; one minute we're living cozily in our (maybe) 500 square feet of New York rented space, and the next we're hauling our lives back across the country in favor of a 5 bedroom home with the most agreeable rent agreement possible--free. And just in time for Christmas.<br />
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I suppose we did kind of see this coming; Pete wasn't exactly making headway in the saving-for-a-bakery plan and we knew his parents were planning to leave for a mission to Brazil. I just don't think I really believed that we'd head back to Utah so soon--or ever.<br />
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We made the decision and acted fast, giving ourselves three weeks for packing and checking off our city bucket list. I must say I'm proud of everything we were able to squeeze into those three weeks, but of course there were things we left unexperienced.<br />
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One thing I insisted that we do before leaving was have a family portrait taken. It turned out to be a bit of an ordeal to make it happen (our poor photographer had to cancel last minute due to pregnancy complications so we had to scramble to find a photographer, and the dear friend we asked to step in and take our photos last minute didn't have any of his equipment available at the moment so he had to use my camera, which he wasn't familiar with. Nor is he a portrait photographer, he's a fashion photographer which is entirely different) but we got our photos done. <br />
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So here are a few images of my family bidding farewell to New York City and leaving our blessing. And a promise that we'll be back to visit someday. When we've made our fortune.<br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-16546916575242931242012-11-14T12:10:00.000-08:002012-11-14T12:10:00.327-08:00Retrospect: Four Babies and a Birthday PartyThree friends and I all had babies within six weeks of each other last year. That means that they all had their birthdays together this year, and we mommies decided to throw them a combined birthday party. We held the party at one of my favorite playgrounds for ambiance in Central Park; Safari Playground. I chose this location because of all the charming hippos popping out of the ground. They are just cute and I felt they provided the perfect setting for photographing a pack of squirmy one-year-olds.<br />
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We gave Georgia a bubble machine for an early birthday gift and it was the hit of the party. In fact, there was another birthday party going on at the other side of the playground and all the kids from that party kept coming over to play with our bubbles. It made me smile because I know we spent much less on the bubble machine than the other party must have spent on the clown they hired to make balloon animals for their kids' friends.<br />
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Pete made the birthday cakes, which we designed to be simple 4 inch rounds frosted white with bright colored sprinkles around the edges and a stenciled number 1 on top. I love the way they turned out.<br />
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The cupcakes we brought for everyone else were iced with a very light whipped icing so the sprinkles ended up bleeding in the frosting resulting in a tie-dye look. Not what I was going for, but pretty nonetheless. And oh so tasty!<br />
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Of all the babies Georgia definitely has the reputation for being the biggest eater, despite the fact that for several months she's been the tiniest one, so we were all surprised when she didn't dive into her birthday cake like the other babies did. She sat back and daintily dabbled her fingers in the icing and snacked on it rather than demolishing and stuffing.<br />
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I'm really grateful that Pete got a few pics of me with Georgie at her birthday party. I'm typically the one behind the camera so I have very few pictures of myself with my kids. <br />
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I had originally wanted to do a lot more with decorating, but because of guidelines for parties in playgrounds at Central Park I wasn't able to tie up balloons, banners, garlands or anything else. I'm glad I didn't. It was a perfect first birthday party for four birthday cuties; simple and understated, with lots of freedom to just be babies. It couldn't have been better (except for maybe if I had been able to get some of those giant 36" balloons. Just for photos. Oh, well). Next party.Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-88344106531296632072012-11-12T19:09:00.002-08:002012-11-12T19:11:51.782-08:00Halloween with Little Miss Muffet and The Spider (not the Tuffet)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I love Halloween. Years ago, long before I had children, I told Pete many many times that I wanted kids for the sake of celebrating holidays. It seemed like such good fun to have kids from Halloween through Christmas, and then to return them just before New Year's like an unfortunate Christmas sweater. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Still a fond dream of mine. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I particularly love kids in costumes. Cute ones, not icky gross ones. This year I decided to continue the theme of classic children's literature characters by dressing Amelia as Little Miss Muffet and Georgia as the spider, but Amelia would tell anyone who asked her what she was going to be for Halloween, "I'm going to be Little Miss Muffet and Georgie's the tuffet." That pretty much sums up her view of their relationship--which is ironic considering how many photos my parents have of my older sister sitting on my head when I was a baby.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I made, or at least collected all the elements for both girls' costumes, something my mother always did and I'm going to try to continue to do. It was a fun challenge to gather ideas for how I could accomplish the look I was going for and actually get my sewing machine out and make costumes happen. I'm pretty proud of the way they turned out, except perhaps Georgie's spider legs, which, after she vomited all over them the first time she wore them out of the apartment, never were quite the same. But she looked pretty cute in her costume even without the spider legs. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Since Georgia's birthday is so close to Halloween we decided to celebrate it at the Bronx Zoo, which she loves--particularly the Bug Carousel. We dressed the girls in their costumes and hit the zoo's annual Boo at the Zoo Halloween celebration. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Told you she loves the carousel. (Thats a jeweled spider on her headband, which is the exception to my mommy-made-everything rule. It was just too cute to pass up.) The polka dot jacket is not part of her costume but was the only clean clothes I had to change her into after she inexplicably threw up all over her costume on the way to the zoo. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I made the hat and pantaloons Amelia wore. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The dress is one my mom made me when I was Amelia's age. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">In line for the 4D movie at the zoo.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Georgia loves the rumbling seats, </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">the bubbles that shoot out, the mist and the big screen.</span></div>
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Love these faces.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Here are a couple with Georgia actually wearing her costume, but you can't really see the full effect. She had eight legs and a tulle tutu for a web. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I'm glad I took as many photos as I did at the zoo because I didn't get any of the girls out trick-or- treating. I didn't want to carry around my nice camera and the ones I took with my phone didn't turn out. Too bad because trick-or-treating in Harlem is really worth seeing. The kids trick-or-treat up and down the streets at all the businesses (nail salons, cafes, laundry mats, convenience stores, etc.) and Harlem is one of the few neighborhoods in the city that offers trick-or-treating in residential areas. The beautiful old brownstones that are so iconic of Harlem lend themselves well to trick-or-treating, and all the houses that are participating tie an orange balloon by the front door signaling that kids are welcome. Most of the participating houses are decked out in full spookiness anyway. It's such a great community event as everyone meets each other and admires each other's kids' costumes--Amelia's costume was particularly admired (although everyone thought she was Little Bo Peep. Oh, well.) Georgia was in the stroller happy as can be with a lollypop. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">So Halloween, and Georgia's first birthday, were a success. And now Amelia keeps telling me what she wants to be for Halloween next year. So far the list includes: Minnie Mouse, Peter Pan and Captain Hook, Cinderella, a wolf, Robin Hood and a scary witch. I won't start thinking about it for at least three or four months. </span></div>
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Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-17896859653373622502012-11-07T16:43:00.002-08:002012-11-07T16:43:56.486-08:00My Baby's BirthdayOur little Georgie Porge is officially 1 and I made a video to mark the occasion. At 13 minutes long I warn you it's a bit of a time commitment, but it is pretty darn cute and I worked hard on it. So watch it anyway and enjoy the GeorgeFest.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/53039806?badge=0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="500"></iframe> <a href="http://vimeo.com/53039806">Georgia's First Year</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user5732085">Charlotte Tidwell</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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Until next birthday!Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-78392531978188386352012-10-30T14:18:00.000-07:002012-10-30T14:18:08.397-07:00Retrospect: Pete's Birthday {The Old Boy is 30}Birthdays are a big deal. It wasn't many hundreds of years ago that people didn't live to see too many birthdays, so we have to celebrate in big fashion whenever we do reach such momentous milestones; or at least in as big a fashion as we can afford.<br />
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When Pete turned 30 I wanted to do something he would remember. So 30 became the number of the day and everything we did was in groups of 30.<br />
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While Pete was at work I picked up 30 balloons and placed them throughout the apartment, each tied to one of his 30 birthday gifts. The first balloon was tied to the railing just outside our apartment door next to a stack of party hats and a sign that read, "Please Take One." When we got home from dinner at Patsy's Pizzeria, our fave New York pizza joint, Pete had to go throughout the apartment from balloon to balloon gathering gifts that ranged from Kit Kat bars and chocolate milk, to shirts, ties, baking tools and self help books extolling the virtues of self employment.<br />
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The 30th and last balloon was tied to a cake stand on which I had fashioned a donut cake (no, there were not 30 donuts, there were only 18. Why in the world would I want 30 donuts in my house??).<br />
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Even though I don't think Pete got quite as much of a kick out of the balloons as the girls did, I think he really loved his birthday celebration. He enjoyed having so much candy and junk food at his disposal, and looks pretty snappy in his new birthday clothes.<br />
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I wanted Pete to feel how much his ladies at home love and appreciate him, and in that respect think the mission was a success.<br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-57779862355045348172012-09-28T20:01:00.000-07:002012-09-28T20:01:10.196-07:00A just because moment <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This girl just kills me. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">And at 11 months old, as Amelia says, "She's growin' that hair!" And it's looking pretty strawberry.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">:)</span></div>
Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-39660212160453903232012-08-09T14:53:00.002-07:002012-08-09T14:58:11.148-07:00The Family that Plays TogetherMy family plays pretty hard. It feels like we're doing "stuff" all the time. Parks, museums, concerts, libraries, gardens, zoos, pools, puppet shows, you name it, we're there. In fact, when I'm talking to my Mom on the phone, our conversation often goes something like this:<br />
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Mom: So, what're you up to today?</div>
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Me: Well, there's this ________ going on down at the _______ ______, and I was thinking I'd take the girls and go _________ing, and then check out the ________ ________, and then meet some friends for some _________.</div>
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Silence</div>
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Mom: You sure work a lot harder to entertain your kids than I ever did.</div>
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<i>Touche.</i></div>
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But<i> </i>I don't have a back yard. So climbing trees and running barefoot through the grass and making flower chain crowns and catching grasshoppers are kind of out of the question. (There are few places in this city I would suggest running barefoot--and just try picking flowers here, see what happens.) </div>
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So I embrace it. I'm busy entertaining my kids almost all the time. So this is a post dedicated to highlighting some of the things we've done to stay entertained lately:</div>
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Indoor games with Daddy (On rainy Saturdays) </div>
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Checking out the Discovery Room at the American Museum of Natural History (of Night at the Museum fame)</div>
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P.S. This is the coolest card catalogue chest type thing I've ever seen. The little ladies explored opening the drawers and finding treasures for almost an hour.<br />
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Impromptu Huck Finn swimming at the park</div>
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And Beauty Parlour--this was also impromptu, and unfortunately, unsupervised.</div>
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But that is not all, oh no, that is not all.<br />
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More to come.</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-49619726634779957022012-07-28T19:46:00.004-07:002012-07-28T19:46:55.719-07:0018 Months<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The last nine months . . .</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Have gone insanely faster than the previous nine. </span><br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-12756414740397461772012-07-23T17:57:00.000-07:002012-07-23T17:57:06.142-07:00What Happened Today<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Today my three year old:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Flooded the bathroom sink</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Smeared chocolate on one of my living room chairs</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Ate half a bottle of Tums before I caught her</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Wet her pants (twice)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Used permanent marker on her bed</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Pulled out every wipe in a brand new package</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Scattered my earring dish across the nursery floor, a number of them are now missing</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">-Dug into my sewing tote and wadded up the tissue paper pattern pieces I had cut out</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Some days I don't feel the joy or privilege of motherhood. Some days I think a two year lease is a much better option than a contract for life--and longer. Some days, I realize I'm clearly not paying enough attention and this poor kids is turning herself inside out to get me to notice her. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-41695003331638308932012-07-10T14:58:00.002-07:002012-07-10T14:58:46.181-07:00High Culture and Barn Yard AnimalsMy baby sisters came to visit me for a few days and so I naturally had to show them a good time. Kait came a couple days before Ally arrived, and we decided to hit the Metropolitan Museum of Art to indulge in some high culture before heading to the Central Park Zoo.<br />
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I love the Met, and I don't spend near enough time there. Here's a tip for anyone looking to visit NYC: The Met, like many other city museums, his a suggested admittance price. That means that when you walk in and see the sign that says Adults $25, you don't really have to pay $25. It's just their <i>suggestion.</i> You can hand them a quarter and walk in.<br />
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I try not to be too cheap, I do support the arts after all, so I gave the lady four quarters instead. It's worth the investment to expose my children to some of the world's best art.<br />
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Here's Kait contemplating the masters. </div>
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And of course Amelia running amok and ignoring the priceless masterpieces on the walls. </div>
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Amelia was much more taken with the round couches</div>
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And the water fountain. </div>
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She was much more in her element among the barn yard animals in the Children's Zoo in Central Park. </div>
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It happened to be Georgie's eight month birthday. Here are a few shots of the wee birthday baby.</div>
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</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-11729824895207585042012-07-10T13:38:00.002-07:002012-07-10T13:38:50.768-07:00NY Independence Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It seems reasonable, does it not, to suppose that New York City would have a full calendar of exciting events scheduled to commemorate our nation's Independence Day? </div>
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Well, they don't. </div>
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We decided to stay in the city for the 4th of July this year and I guess we assumed we'd hear of something fun and patriotic going on that we could check out, but we never did. </div>
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Yes, there is a fireworks display over the Hudson, but the City goes to great lengths to ensure that it's the least convenient fireworks show in the nation to attend. All the local parks are closed and the only place people are allowed to assemble to watch the fireworks is on the West Highway (which is, of course, closed to traffic). But no one is allowed to bring chairs or blankets to set out, so there is just a swarm of hot, uncomfortable tourists (the locals all go out of town--except us) milling around for possibly hours waiting for the fireworks to start. </div>
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Not willing to stand around with the girls for hours to stake out a spot, we arrived around 8:30. We actually found a place to sit on a low wall and got out the glowy bracelety things for the girls to play with until the fireworks started. They had a great time staying up late and playing around, but when the fireworks started, we realized why it had been so easy to find a seat. The fireworks were far enough down the river that they were hidden behind the trees. We could see a few scattered sparkles through the branches, but we missed most of the show. Thank you NYC for putting on a fireworks display but making sure that most of the population of the city couldn't see it through the foliage. </div>
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So much for a New York Independence Day. I've decided that the 4th of July is best celebrated in small towns anyway. I think I'll do like most New Yorkers and leave for the 4th of July every year from now on.</div>
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The one other event we did find to participate in for the 4th was a small (very small) children's parade. It was being held not far from our apartment, so we decided to check it out. Our intent was to watch the parade, but when we got there, there were no spectators. Just a hoard of kids and parents dressed up in their red white and blue. Many of them I recognized from the Stake, so it was largely a parade of patriotic Mormons. Typical, yes? So we joined in and walked the parade.</div>
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At the end of the parade a fire engine hooked up to a fire hydrant and sprayed water for all the kids to play in. This was definitely the best part of the parade, even though Georgia wasn't too pleased that I made her pose with the hydrant to get my city-kids-playing-in-the-fire-hydrant photos. </div>
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This photo was before the parade. Amelia was so excited to see, "the dancer girls and the music." Sorry, no dancer girls. No music. This wasn't that kind of parade.<br />
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This was after the parade. Amelia completely forgot about the absent dancer girls when she got some free samples of Annie's Cheddar Bunnies someone was handing out. Georgie couldn't get over the fact that I actually put her down--again.<br />
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Happy as a clown waiting for the fireworks to start. I didn't have the heart to tell her we were missing the Beach Boys at the Stadium of Fire. Next year.<br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-90595885737823119522012-06-24T15:23:00.000-07:002012-06-24T15:23:39.458-07:00Miss Georgia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This shot reminded me of this:<br />
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Which made me happy because I love this movie and they are both, "pretty as a peach with skin to beat the band."Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-15145137826332549422012-06-21T16:44:00.001-07:002012-06-21T16:44:22.511-07:00What Pete got for Father's DayMy first official, real, genuine homemade video! Hooray hooray hooray. My seester will be so proud.<br />
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Enjoy.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/44485146" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<a href="http://vimeo.com/44485146">Father's Day</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user5732085">Charlotte Tidwell</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-16884284938567685622012-06-12T20:15:00.002-07:002012-06-12T20:15:23.034-07:00Fort Tryon ParkWe are taking full advantage of having Pete around for a few days before he starts his new job. Today I had the man rearranging the furniture in our whole apartment (we now have a <i>real living room. Really</i>! We just don't have a bedroom anymore.) <br />
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But that's for another post. Yesterday we played. We took a picnic up to Fort Tryon Park, which is near where we lived a couple summers ago, so it was a bit of a walk down memory lane.<br />
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It was a perfect, lovely day and I love the way the photos turned out.<br />
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Amelia brought Georgia a bouquet.</div>
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This was a pleasant surprise--I had no idea that butterfly was flying through my frame until I uploaded the pics to my computer. Too bad Amelia isn't making a better face.<br />
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Smoochies.</div>
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This is a fun contrast; I took the bottom photo two years ago and it was one of my favorite from that summer. We stopped by the same lookout point to get an updated version. (Overlooking the George Washington Bridge.)<br />
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I don't know what we're going to do when Pete goes back to work.</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-30238517371627405712012-06-07T19:52:00.002-07:002012-06-07T19:52:51.831-07:00Exploring My CityI've had a few perfect days already this summer. Today was one of them.<br />
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Thanks to a couple of friends who have taken it upon themselves to be the social directors of the Mom's group I am a part of, today we took a day trip in Brooklyn. First we took a walk across the miracle of modern engineering that is the Brooklyn Bridge.<br />
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(Apparently it was a good book and Amelia couldn't be bothered with the world famous skyline behind her.)</div>
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And then we rode the 100 year old carousel at the base of the bridge. </div>
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After the carousel we had a picnic in the shade of the bridge, and then made our way to the only slightly less famous Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory.</div>
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After an ice cream break, we hit the best playground I've ever been to; Brooklyn Park playground, which feels more like a water park than your average, run-of-the-mill playground. My little ladies were in splishy-splashy heaven. </div>
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To wrap up our day out in Brooklyn we took a walk through Brooklyn Heights, which is a completely beautiful neighborhood that actually temps me to move out of Manhattan, but we'll never be able to afford to live there. </div>
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Days like today make me remember what an amazing city I am fortunate enough to live in. </div>
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Oh, and Pete got a job offer at Microsoft, and he's decided to accept. So I guess we can stay in NYC after all. </div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-76484914336619927432012-05-26T18:40:00.000-07:002012-05-26T18:40:27.058-07:00Iris<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Easter Bunny brought this girl an Iris costume. We may never go back to princesses.</div>
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-48112044254548205512012-05-26T18:32:00.000-07:002012-05-26T18:32:44.337-07:00Spring in the NYCWhen Pete and I decided to move to New York about a year ago people pretty much told us we were crazy. I heard every single version of, "I don't know how you can <i>live</i> in a place like that."<br />
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Now I walk around the Central Park gardens (which are about two blocks away from my apartment) with my camera snapping photos of every lovely thing and I can't help but think to myself, "They haven't a clue what they're talking about."<br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-71582496566029321662012-05-26T16:08:00.002-07:002012-05-26T18:04:49.147-07:00Decisions DecisionsThe number of major life changing decisions with which my little family and I have been faced is decidedly above average of late. I'll list a few:<br />
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1. Pete decided to leave his job. A desk job in marketing within the international beauty industry turns out to not be the best fit for an outgoing people person whose passion is pastry.<br />
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2. We decided to launch a website promoting Pete's cake art career (more on this later).<br />
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3. I decided to give up writing entirely and devote myself to developing as a high-end wedding photographer.<br />
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4. We decided to buy a wedding cake and catering business in Seattle, which of course also entailed moving across the country.<br />
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5. I decided that it really is more practical to buy a house in Seattle than rent one. I also decided on a house to buy.<br />
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6. We decided <i>not</i> to buy the wedding cake and catering business (it's a long story, but trust me, we made the right decision) and to stay in New York. (We also decided not to buy the house.)<br />
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7. I realized that there was no conceivable way I could become a real, professional wedding photographer, and gave that nonsense up. Back to writing (which is harder).<br />
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8. I decided to look into child modeling agencies here in the city and entertained the idea of getting my girls an agent (an idea I did not come up with on my own, but have been told that I simply <i>have</i> to do so nearly on a daily basis. Mostly by strangers.) <br />
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9. After briefly researching childrens' modeling, I remembered that I don't believe in children modeling as a principle. I decided not to get the girls an agent or sign with an agency.<br />
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10. Pete decided to take a sales position that he should be really successful in, and should give him time to pursue his cake business.<br />
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That's a lot of deciding going on. <br />
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But although I've decided not to become a professional photographer and not to turn the little ladies into professional models, I'll still be snapping a lot of pictures and they'll still be my primary subjects.<br />
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<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-17520840164517687632012-03-05T12:52:00.001-08:002012-03-05T13:24:06.941-08:00Me Time?A few people have asked me lately, "So, are you still writing?"<br />
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Not so much.<br />
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In fact, not at all.<br />
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I used to write every day. 500 to 1,000 words a day. And I churned out a novel (well, most of a novel) at that rate in a few months. It wasn't a very good novel, in fact I'll probably scrap it and return to my first novel; I'm much more invested in that one.<br />
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But wait, did you notice in that last sentence I implied that I was returning to writing? 'Cause I am.<br />
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My Georgia is four months old now and life has settled down into something resembling a predictable pattern and Amelia still naps during the day, kind of, and it's just time.<br />
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And you know another reason I need to start writing seriously again?<br />
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Because when I write, I run. It's true. Somehow in my brain the two activities have been linked together and if I do one, I feel inspired to do the other. If I skip one, well, the other falls off almost without question.<br />
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So. Here's to writing. And running.<br />
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And I desperately, desperately need both in my life again.<br />
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Because these two lovely ladies deserve me at my best:<br />
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And I'm better/happier/healthier/cuter/patienter when I'm being creative. </div>
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So next time you see me, ask me, "Are you writing?" And I had better say, "Yes."</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-67447106870517903042012-02-22T12:36:00.000-08:002012-03-05T13:23:17.021-08:00Of Wishes*We've had colds at our house.<br />
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Bad ones.<br />
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The kind that keep babies up ALL night coughing and crying and smearing yicky noses all over the mommies that stay up all night with them. <br />
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But that's not what I want to write about. That's just the back story so you can understand why my three-year-old has been watching movies nonstop for the last three days instead of getting out and enjoying New York City at Christmas. Movies like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, the Disney Christmas Special and Aladdin. (Incidentally, Donner from the Rudolph movie, is pretty much the <i>worst</i> father on film who doesn't actually beat his kid.)<br />
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So while a bleary-eyed, sleep deprived Amelia was watching Aladdin this morning I started reflecting on what I would wish for if I had a genie who would grant three wishes. (You all know you play this game too from time to time.)<br />
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I started out with some pretty big wishes; things like perfect health for myself and my family (inspired by the above mentioned colds) a successful bakery business for Pete; having my pre-baby body back; some extra square footage and another closet in my apartment; you know, that type of thing. These are the thoughts that were going through my head as I was folding laundry when I heard a high pitched wail from my bedroom. And I had a realization.<br />
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What I want more than anything else right now is for Amelia to leave Georgia alone when she finally manages to fall asleep in her bed rather than lying in my arms. That would be my Christmas wish.<br />
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*This is an old blog entry from Christmastime that that never got posted. Both babies are well now and Pete is the one keeping me up at night coughing, but I figured I'd throw it up here anyway.Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-66994529847386616012012-02-22T12:27:00.000-08:002012-02-22T12:27:00.282-08:00All Prettied Up for ChurchWhen a professional photographer friend, <a href="http://annerobertphotography.com/index2.php#/home/" target="_blank">Anne Robert</a>, offered to let me borrow one of her fancy lenses to play with for an afternoon, I jumped at the chance. I had been wanting to take some really nice portraits of my Georgia in her gorgeous smocked dress that she's about to grow out of. I'm really pleased with the results.<br />
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My, she's a pretty baby. <br />
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And yes, now I really want to buy this lens. </div>
<br />Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-85907186416010889102012-02-22T12:05:00.000-08:002012-02-22T12:05:47.762-08:00Now She is ThreeFor Amelia's second birthday I planned a big soiree with a butterfly theme; fancy invitations for all the neighborhood tots, lots of carefully handcrafted treats, cute party favors and games.<br />
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It never happened.<br />
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I was newly pregnant and not at all up to actually hosting the toddler bash of the century. So all that stuff went into a closet. Luckily, it all made it's way across the country in our moving truck last summer, so for this birthday I pretty much had a party ready made.<br />
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Unfortunately, several of Amelia's little friends were out of town for the long holiday weekend (no one celebrates President's Day like New Yorkers--pretty much any excuse to go on vacation, they will) so our numbers were few. But since we live in a tiny apartment it all worked out quite nicely.<br />
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I bought a package of plain white butterfly masks at Michael's and pulled out every imaginable embellishment for little imaginations to decorate with. There were glitter, rhinestones, stickers, flowers, feathers, ribbons, foam shapes, etc. The kids had a ball.<br />
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The star of the party, however, was not my brilliant mask-making activity. It was Pete's butterfly birthday cake.<br />
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What can I say, the man's brilliant with sugar. </div>
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So happy birthday to my little lady. You are darlingest and I love you. </div>
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Photo by the incomparable <a href="http://www.kensingtonblue.com/index2.php#/home/" target="_blank">Lesley Colvin</a>.</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4700846708510206265.post-4256578291273289642012-02-22T11:25:00.000-08:002012-02-22T11:25:21.762-08:00So life goes on, even when blogging does not. Here are some highlights from the last, um, two months that I have been absent:<div>
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Amelia started her first dance class.</div>
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If there's anything in this world that's cuter than little girls in leotards and tutus, I don't know what it is. </div>
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Another first for Amelia was her first trip ice skating. We took her to the rink near our apartment in Central Park. She LOVED wearing the ice skates. This girl isn't typically real big on posing for photos for me (which would be why I have no great pics of her in her "dancer girl outfit") but she made certain I got several of her in her "big girl ice skates." </div>
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She didn't end up loving the ice quite as much as the skates and got pretty tired after two or three times around the rink. I told her she was lucky she wasn't Chinese; she'd be practicing two hours a day on the ice at her age, preparing for her Olympic career. </div>
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Lots of museum trips with our co-op preschool group.</div>
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These shots were taken at the Children's Museum of Manhattan and the Museum of Modern Art. Amelia's turning into quite a cultured, metropolitan young lady. </div>
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We had another visit from Aunt Sharon and Cousin Caroline. It was pretty cold outside so we spent most of our time indoors. The girls managed to entertain themselves just fine. </div>
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Between playgroup, music class, dance class, preschool and long weekends, we've had a busy couple months.</div>
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Oh, and someone had a birthday. Next post.</div>Bombshell Charhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901012798945795727noreply@blogger.com1