I wonder how I'll like driving when I learn how?

Okay, so I'm hoping that if I vent over this little episode it will help me move on from it - which I clearly have not done yet. So, here's the story:

The past couple of days I have been hit hard by the CCs. You know - the Curse of the Clutter. I mean, it's everywhere! We've got Christmas decorations, we've got wrapping paper on the bed upstairs, we've got bags and tissue from purchases, we've got new toys everywhere and most of all, we've got GARBAGE. That's right. You see thanks to ARCTIC BLAST 2008, our trash and recycling hasn't been picked up in nearly two weeks now (actually, make that a month for recycling because they only do that half as often). Combine that with all the extra trash you have during the holidays and well, let me just say it ain't a pretty sight. So, suffice it to say that Mama Bear has not been happy with all of the clutter in our midst. Yesterday I set out to take some steps to remedy the situation by starting to remove some Christmas decorations and wrapping paraphernalia upstairs and organize them back in boxes. Well, about two seconds into this little project it was clear that I was going to need more organizational tools at my disposal. Which is where Target comes in. Okay, hold that thought for a minute.

So, yesterday morning Jeff took his car into the dealer to get a couple of things repaired. They gave him a brand new TL (same car that I drive) as a loaner for the day, which he proceeded to drive about 1.2 seconds from the dealer to our house and park in the side parking spot of our driveway where it stayed all day until the afternoon when the following conversation took place:

Me: Hey, I'm curious how the new TL drives. If you don't mind, I think I'll take it for a spin down the road to Target. (The TL was just redesigned for 2009 so I wondered if there were many differences in the new one versus my now older model - which is really the point of why they give you a brand new TL as a loaner, right? With the hopes that maybe you'll love it and be interested in a little upgrade?)

Jeff: Sure, but it's a keyless operation so I'll need to come out and give you a little tutorial.

Me: Oh, I don't want to go through all that - never mind, I don't really need to drive it.

Jeff: Oh, it's no problem, it'll be quick. Oh but wait, I left the keys upstairs, I'll have to go get them.

Me: Oh really, never mind - this is turning into more of a production than I intended.

Jeff: No it's not - but just make sure you don't get in an accident!

Me: Okay, I'll try! (Nervous laugh.)

So we go outside and I get my little tutorial on the keyless operation as well as a few other things. A half hour or so later, I'm all set for my little jaunt to Target about a mile down the road. Jeff reenters the house and I put the car in reverse - watching for a car to pass behind me before I pull out into the street when BAM! I feel the back side of the car slam into something hard. All I recall is quickly pulling the car back up and jumping out while uttering a few choice words. It turns out that I hit a telephone poll that sits directly in the path (well, off to one side but still directly in the path) of where the car was parked in some extra pavement space that is to the side of our main driveway. It was on the very side edge of the back bumper and while it did not actually cause a dent - the gook-covered pole did a rather nice job scratching up and discoloring the shiny new silver paint job on the car. Ugh!!!! Are you kidding me??? I couldn't believe it. As you can tell, I still can't believe it! I got back in the car to pull it forward again, I think all the while saying Choice Word. Choice Word. Hit the steering wheel. Hit the steering wheel. Choice Word. Choice Word. Then I got out and ran inside yelling for Jeff to come outside and help me make sure this wasn't a bad dream. He assured me it was real.

Jeff returned the car to the dealer (which is literally across the street from the end of our street) yesterday evening and they said they'd call today with an estimate on the damage - which turned out to be just over 500 smackers. After insurance, we are hoping our portion will be just about $100, but we'll see. My glass-is-always-half-full husband is encouraging me to move on given that it's now a "sunk cost" in his mind, but let's face it - I'm not as good as he is at moving on quickly. I have to dwell on it for at least a day. Sheesh. Which is why I decided to do a little blog therapy. I will consider this my final release and plan to move on immediately upon posting.

However, to end on a more positive note: This little incident did finally encourage me to post a couple items on Craigslist today that we've been meaning to get rid of for quite a while now in hopes of helping make up the cost difference for this unfortunate episode. Also, I learned an important lesson which is that I will never again drive another vehicle that isn't mine unless I really need to. Grrrr. Okay, now deep breath. Out with the bad energy, in with the good energy. You see, I already feel much better.

Until I write again. Oh, and Happy New Year!

Now this is what we like to see

I thought I'd post some evidence that things have returned back to normal in Portland. (And I can vouch that it happens to be pouring cats and dogs as I write.) I think I echo the feeling of many Portlanders when I say that I've never been so happy to see precipitation of the non-frozen variety:

And just for good measure, here's one last snow picture I took a few days ago of Jeff and Ian's faceless snowman in our front yard (who has since gone bye-bye):

Until I write again.

A new day

It's been nearly a week since I last posted so I figured it was time to get back at it. There have been many little things that have happened over the past week that are certainly post-worthy, and I realized that they could all be summed up in the title of this post: A new day. Why?

Well, first of all - it feels like a new day on the weather front for sure. By the morning of Christmas eve, about one and a half weeks into our seemingly never-ending snow/ice event - things were getting pretty frustrating. Really, when people can't go to school or work or finish up Christmas shopping or really go anywhere they want or need to go when they want or need to go there, it can start to get a little maddening. I mean, even the cats were at each other's throats by last Wednesday. Oh wait, that's normal. Never mind. The point is, there was definitely some stress building that may have even caused an episode (or two) of family bickering. Oh, and there was also that one semi-awkward moment of a slight breakdown at the FedEx facility where I trekked on Christmas eve to retrieve some packages that never made it to our house. I think it had something to do with the stress of most every road - including Interstate 5 - being like some combination of driving over a bed of rocks (huge chunks of packed ice and snow) and being on that car ride at Disneyland where you have to stay perfectly on the tracks without veering too much to one side or it would shoot you back to the other side rail.

Road stress aside - by late morning of Christmas eve, the weather conditions were looking up. The additional snow that they had forecast did not materialize and instead the temperature was slowly climbing. I believe it was at that point there was a collective "Yahooooooeeeeyyyyy!" that could be heard across the city. And we in the Burpo house decided that being it was Christmas eve and all, it was time to get over our frustrations and get in the Christmas spirit. So that, we did. Christmas eve we had a very fun evening with our two neighbor families and had a wonderful Christmas day watching Ian experience the joy of Christmas, cooking and eating a delicious turkey dinner, and talking with family members. By Friday morning, the snow was already starting to disappear (helped by lots of rain, of course) and though many roads were still in desperate need of a good plowing - they were starting to improve slowly but surely. With vastly-improved mobility under our belts - we did what any good American would do in this time of economic crisis: we headed straight for the mall. By Saturday, we were driving down the highway on actual pavement just like normal people would do. And today I went for my long-awaited haircut. Tomorrow, Ian will return to school and tomorrow eve we are planning to go to Zoolights at the Oregon Zoo, which we thought we had missed when the Zoo was closed several nights due to weather. So yes, it feels like a new day indeed!

But in addition to a new day in the sense of returning to normalcy after two weeks of things being not-so-normal, it's also very clear that this holiday season marks the beginning of a new phase in our parenting journey. The phase I'm referring to is, of course, the Santa Deception Phase. Because all of a sudden this year Ian clearly gets it. I mean, not only does he suddenly know who Santa is, but he knows where he lives. For example, on Christmas morning we went in to get him up and immediately he wanted to know if Santa had been to our house. We said, "Oh, I think he was definitely here last night and he left you some presents." And he said, "And now he went to the North Portland?" (Which for the non-locals, happens to be one of the "up and coming" areas of the city with a few kinks still to be worked out.) "Um, well close, but I think what you meant was that he's back at his home in the North Pole now," I said. "Oh," he said.

But as with many lies, you find that once you start telling a little white lie like the fact that there is this jolly old fat man who wears a red suit and climbs down chimneys to deliver presents to kids around the world all within one night - there's a whole other set of deceptions that now must follow that you don't initially think about. Which is frankly why it's much easier to tell the truth. For example: wrapping the presents. One day I was wrapping presents and it suddenly occurred to me that I only had one type of kid wrapping paper, when really I should have two types of kid wrapping paper: One for gifts that Santa brought (and of course had wrapped himself) and then one for presents from us. Dammit. Of course normally it may not have been a problem just to run down to Target for a new roll of wrapping paper to keep up with this little Santa charade, but when there happens to be a foot of snow on the ground and you have the very person you are trying to deceive locked to your leg, it becomes slightly more challenging. So then I started making up explanations in my head (as if my two-year-old is going to ask why the wrapping paper is all the same - just like I knew he'd never find the unwrapped gift under the guest bed): Santa clearly didn't have time to wrap all the gifts beforehand, so after he came down the chimney he snuck upstairs to borrow our gift wrap. Perfect. Whew, the path of deception was still intact!

And then of course there are the presents themselves. For example: what Piece de Resistance would the little come down to find from Santa under the tree on Christmas morning? This year, after remembering at the somewhat last minute that we were lacking an actual Piece de Resistance from Santa -we decided on, and procured, a "Grand Walk-In Kitchen" with so many bells and whistles on it that it would make Emeril salivate. Of course Grand Walk-In Kitchens don't just come already assembled. No way, Jose! They come in large boxes in about 50 bajillion (yes, you read that right - bajillion) pieces. And this is where the real fun begins for parents entering into the Santa Deception Phase, right? WRONG. So, enter Tuesday eve. I said to Jeff, "You know, we are going to be at the neighbors tomorrow night and maybe it's not the best idea to wait until Christmas eve to start putting this thing together." He agreed and so after Ian went to bed that night we went down the basement and pulled out a couple of engineering textbooks to get started. We had it halfway put together when trouble struck. Try as we might, we couldn't get the counter on. That, and a couple of other issues, led us to the conclusion that we had a defective product on our hands. Of course what we also had at that point was a half put-together Grand Walk-In Kitchen that was not coming apart. After about 20 minutes of two people with graduate degrees standing there perplexed about what to do next - we decided that one thing that was for sure was that this was not the kitchen that "Santa" would be giving to Ian on Christmas morning. So we had approximately 24 hours to get this one returned, procure a new one and put it together. Oh, and PS - there was supposedly more snow coming in the morning on top of already difficult roads. So again, it wasn't like we could just count on zipping down to Toys R' Us first thing in the morning.

Travel challenges aside, we knew we had to get this one back in the car. So we tore apart the car as much as we could and around 10 p.m. on Tuesday evening embarked on what I can now call a comical process of trying to shove a half put-together kitchen and rather large box containing the rest of the parts into the back of our car. (Remember that bickering I referenced earlier?) Then I went online to find out what time my favorite toy store was actually opening in the morning only to find out that low and behold - they were open until 1am that night. Well, hot damn! With more bad weather on the way and the clock ticking toward Christmas, I figured there was no time like the present to take care of Santa business. So off I went at a maximum speed of about 20 mph the whole way on icy roads trying not to kill myself and my defective Grand Walk-In Kitchen on a mission to retrieve a new Piece de Resistance. And let me just say that standing in the Customer Service line at Toys R' Us with a half put-together kitchen in my car at 10:30ish p.m. two nights before Christmas is most definitely one of the highlights of my parenting adventures to date. Frustrations aside, I have to say though that the process actually went very smoothly and a very nice man helped me remove the old and put in a new one - at which point I (slowly) trekked back home and Jeff and I did a Take 2 on putting together the Grand Walk-In Kitchen - this time very quickly and without incident. Thank God.
And so we have also entered a new day in the realm of holiday celebrations and all the good-natured deception that comes with it. But boy was it all worth it when he came downstairs and first saw that kitchen on Christmas morning. Which kind of sums up the whole interesting phenomenon I've discovered about being a parent: Even though you can feel a whole lot of frustration and sacrifice sometimes, really all they have to do is smile or give you a hug or say, "I love you, Mommy" and it makes it all worth it. And so I have included some pictures here of Ian's first glance at and moments with his kitchen, along with some general Christmas day excitement and festivities.

Until I write again.

14 inches and counting

We received several more inches of snow overnight and this morning, making our current total somewhere around 14 inches and breaking 40-plus year records for Portland snowfall, according to our local NBC affiliate.

Today for fun the three of us ventured out and went to pick up our friend Zach down the hill from his house (getting up the hill to his house is pretty much impossible right now) and then we all went to Washington Square Mall (with about half of the stores open) to watch Ian run around the play area there and eat lunch at The Cheesecake Factory. I won't count on having that type of family experience again any time soon.

The roads are still somewhat passable, but are significantly worse from when we were out and about even yesterday. (In case I forgot to mention it earlier - Portland owns very few snow plows so counting on plows to clear the streets doesn't really happen here.) We came across many a stuck or abandoned vehicle. I'm still awaiting delivery of an overnight FedEx package from California that was supposed to arrive here on Friday and as of about 30 minutes ago is showing that it's still sitting on a truck in Lake Oswego (just south of here) - as it has been since Friday morning. So, at this point I am not counting on anything reaching us (that isn't already here) by package delivery before Christmas. More sighs.

We did get together with our two neighbors for dinner last night to watch some football and let the kids run around like crazy people. We are also going to get together again for Christmas eve dinner, so that will be nice.

So, the good times continue here in Beaverton. Oh well, at least it's pretty! Today's pictures are ones that I took from our outing today and out our front and back porch just a while ago.

Until I write again.

Still going strong...

I'm referring to the Bummer Moments, of course. I'm very unhappy to report that every single one of my Bummer Moments as well as my Anticipated Bummer Moments came true this week. And, we even have a couple new ones to add to the list!

Let's see...where did we last leave off in our little adventure? Oh right, I think they had opened schools on Thursday and them promptly panicked when they saw snow falling and immediately closed them again. Sigh. Well, the snow eventually subsided and the roads were FINE on Thursday. Really, I can't even remember now what we ended up doing that day to pass the time, but I'm sure it had something to do with either Ian or I (or both of us) pulling out every last strand of our hair at some point. Now, I know what you are wondering: Is it possible to have too much togetherness with a two/almost three-year-old? Well, I'm here to tell you that the answer to that question is most definitely, yes. Not that I don't think my little angel is the most wonderful thing put on this earth, but hey, we all need a break every now and then.

So anyhooskie, let me tell you that when that alarm went off Friday morning, I floated down the stairs with glee because I was just 110% positive that school would be open and I would have a few free hours to get myself back on track. But oh, silly me for getting my hopes up. I mean, why would they want to open schools for just one day of the week? Okay, well maybe we did have some sort of precipitation on Thursday night that had iced up the roads again making it supposedly dangerous for school buses to navigate their way around Portland, but is that really a reason to close school for the fifth day in a row? I mean, can't all these kids just walk?? (Okay, just kidding. I wouldn't want to put any little ones in danger.) More sighing. Well, all I have to say is thank God for OMSI. I packed up Ian and we headed over to the east side for a morning of good times at the museum. And while I was positive that it would be packed, it actually was not at all. In fact, just the opposite - there was hardly anyone there. Bonus.

On Friday afternoon Jeff came home from work a bit early which allowed me to join the rest of the greater Portland metro area at the mall late Friday afternoon to wrap up some last minute shopping. I mean, I'm positive that absolutely everyone who lives within a 50 mile radius was at Washington Square that day. And, by the way, don't you think it's strange that the second you walk into a mall that the entire world's population changes into only teenagers? Hmm...very odd. Anyway, by Friday eve they (and by they, I mean those weather people on TV) were busy talking about more bad weather again. You know, that whole Phase 3 thing I referenced in an earlier post. Yeah, that one. Well, they kept saying that this one was going to be the real deal. Lots of snow, ice, freezing rain, hurricanes, tornadoes, you name it - all rolled up into one big weather system expected to hit about mid-day on Saturday (at least accordingly to Doppler Radar - and we all know that the good ole' DR doesn't lie). Okay fine, we'll see.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early (like I really need to point that out since I haven't "slept in" in about four years now) to find that we already had a dusting of snow and it was continuing to fall lightly but consistently. Well, I wasn't even going to make an attempt to find out if perhaps there was some smidgen of a chance that our Parents' Day Out was still happening. Clearly it was not. (I do believe that was Anticipated Bummer Moment #6 becoming Actual Bummer Moment #6.) So the three of us piled into the car headed out to pick up goodies for the holiday dinner we were hosting for the Hyders that evening (which I'll just mention we had scheduled about three weeks prior and were of course looking forward to). Even as we were out and about on Saturday morning, things were looking a bit ominous. We saw several cars struggling to make it up slight hills even on main thoroughfares as a now moderate snow continued falling. Hmm. By the time we got home midday with enough food and drink to feed an army, I must say the white stuff was really starting to come down. By about 2pm, it was becoming painfully clear that we were about to add Bummer Moment #8 to the list: our holiday dinner was not happening. (Those people said that the snow was only expected to worsen throughout the day/night - not get better.)

So, phone calls were exchanged, (and once again this week) plans were canceled and then we did the only thing we could do: bundled up Ian and headed outside to enjoy the snowfall. We had purchased a couple of small sleds when we had the bit of snow the previous Sunday which we expected to use on a still TBD trip up to the mountains this winter - but luckily they ended up coming in handy yesterday. Ian was beside himself with excitement at the opportunity to do a little sidewalk/street sledding with Dad. Much to Ian's disappointment, we weren't able to stay outside too long because well, it was snowing hard and FREEZING outside, but I believe a good time was had by all anyway. Last night we made our holiday dinner anyway sans our guests (it was yummy - sorry you weren't here Z&B!) and continued to watch the snow along with the Godfather 2.

By this morning the precipitation had ended and all told I think our area ended up with about eight inches of snow along with a good sheet of ice on top of that - helping make this the snowiest December in Portland in more than 10 years. The mountains have gotten well more than two feet, I believe (not counting all the stuff from earlier this week) and the highway in the Columbia River Gorge just east of Portland has been closed to traffic due to blizzard conditions out there right now. We did some Sunday morning snow frolicking and then decided to venture out to Costco midday. With chains on (required on all roads in the area right now) we fared just fine on the roads - though I have to say that the MDX has proven to be a real trooper in bad weather. With temps only in the mid-20s today, we've seen more bands of snow and freezing rain coming through and apparently have another chance of some snow accumulation tonight (two to six inches). The latest we are hearing is that this unusually cold air in the valley is going to keep hanging on for about another week or so before finally pulling out sometime around next Saturday. Hopefully we'll all still like each other by then.

So, that's the latest weather report from the Pacific Northwest. Even though all Portland Public Schools are now officially closed for holiday vacation anyway, Ian's preschool was scheduled to still be open tomorrow and half day on Wednesday. Which brings me to Anticipated Bummer Moment #9....

Until I write again.

Yeah, scratch that last post

News Flash #4: So, about two seconds after I finished my last post saying that things were looking up, out of the blue it started snowing again. Hard. And it hasn't really stopped. PPS schools on the west side (that's us!) reversed their earlier decision and schools are now closed again.

Per an email from Ian's school director, the holiday program has been officially postponed. And I'm a bit nervous about venturing out and about now in my car as temperatures are dropping once again.

Even Zach is wondering when this madness will end.

Until I write again.

A few news flashes

There have been some developments overnight that I feel are important to report on this morning.

News Flash #1: After the additional snow they predicted overnight did not materialize and temperatures have remained just above freezing (also contrary to what was predicted) - PPS decided to open schools today. Woo hoo! While this does not affect us today because Ian doesn't attend preschool on Thursdays - it does mean that he will definitely be going tomorrow. And it means that ice shouldn't a be problem so we can feel free to go about our day as we normally would. So, things are definitely looking up! We're still not sure whether or not the holiday program is on for tonight but if it is, I'm sure you'll hear about it.

News Flash #2: This one is actually more of a correction versus a news flash. Yesterday I stated that Jeff brought home some peppermint schnapps to go with the hot cocoa. It was actually peppermint extract. Still a yummy addition, just no alcohol involved. I don't know why I felt the need to correct that. I just did. The hot buttered rum thing still stands, though.

News Flash #3: Okay, this one is a BIGGIE. I made a monumental declaration last night to myself and my family - or at least to the one family member who was here and still awake at the time. And here it is: I have decided that Haagan Dazs' Chocolate Peanut Butter and Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Toffee Crunch are my two most favorite ice cream flavors in the world. (At least I'm pretty sure they are. Unless there's one I'm forgetting about, but I don't think so.)

Okay, that's all I have to say right now. Until I write again.

Okay, this isn't fun(ny) anymore

Well, this week has turned out to be a little frustrating. No, scratch that. Actually, it's been a LOT frustrating. What started out on Sunday as a fun and pretty little snow day is now shaping up to be a week-long nightmare full of what I like to call Bummer Moments. Let's review them here.

As you might guess, Bummer Moment #1 came as I was wrapping up my last post and it was announced that Portland Public Schools (PPS) would be closed on Monday. Now, you're probably wondering - well how much snow did you actually get? And the answer is - not a ton. I mean, in reality we only ended up with a few inches on the ground Sunday (though it was a bit hard to tell because there was a strong wind blowing most of the day). But thanks to the frigid temperatures that also arrived on Sunday and decided to stick around for a while, the ice factor kicked in. Now, this is particularly a problem for those of us who live on the very hilly west side of the city (versus the relatively flat neighborhoods that are east of the Willamette River). Thus, the PPS cancellation on Monday which, by default, meant that Ian's preschool was also closed. Okay, fine, I thought. I had a few things on the schedule for my valuable kid-free hours but no biggie - I'd just switch them to Wednesday.

On Monday, I took Jeff to work so I could use his car. It was definitely slippery but overall Ian and I did a couple things out and about with no problem (though not for long since it was colder than a Popsicle outside). Despite the generally fair conditions, by sometime on Monday, PPS, as well as most other districts in the region, had already announced that schools would again be closed on Tuesday. Ugh - really? Now, Ian doesn't go to school on Tuesdays, but he does go to Sports Class. And yesterday was scheduled to be our last one so it was kind of a special day. So, first thing yesterday morning I called the Rec Center and experienced Bummer Moment #2: our last Sports Class was indeed, cancelled. So long Sports Class. We didn't even have an opportunity to say a proper goodbye. Sniff, sniff.

With Sports Class off the roster, I needed to find something else to do with Ian. So I put together a shopping list and figured we'd head out to the store early to pick up some things and spend the morning baking Christmas cookies. I knew that would be a hit since he's really into the cooking thing these days. Jeff was still home getting ready to leave when Ian and I got all bundled up and piled into my car. I had no sooner backed out of the driveway and into the street when Bummer Moment #3 hit. I turned to go forward and try as I might, couldn't get any traction to get going forward up the slight incline outside our house. (We have been needing to change out the bald tires on my car but it hasn't been a priority due to $$.) I tried a few times without luck before pulling back into the garage. We piled out of the car and went back inside to see about sharing the MDX with Jeff again, but no such luck as he needed to use his car at work that day. So off he went while I sat on the couch unbundling an unhappy toddler who was whining, "I need to go in the car, mommy. I need to go in the car right nowwww..." I felt like saying, "Yeah, well me too so just zip it!!!!" But I didn't.

By midday Wednesday the weather guys and gals were all abuzz again about Bummer Moment #4: the fact that Phase 2 of "ARCTIC BLAST 2008" was forecast to arrive on early Wednesday morning. This was to be another dose of snow mixed with some freezing rain, then rain then back to snow overnight Wed and into Thursday - all matched with continuing freezing temperatures, of course. By early Tuesday evening PPS had once again cancelled school for Wednesday morning. Another ugh. Suddenly I found myself relating to how the prisoners at San Quentin must feel. On a bright note though, about 2 p.m. yesterday Ian and I made another attempt to exit the house and were successful this time. So, we ventured to two different grocery stores just because we could. (Though by 4ish it was clear my car was turning back into a pumpkin as we did some slipping and sliding on the road back home. )

So, here we sit. We made cookies this morning, which Ian loved, and did a couple of other activities before I resorted to parking him in front of Sesame Street after lunch. We've had snow showers off and on all day, but again, nothing monumental. Just enough to continue to make travel on hilly side roads difficult. (Jeff made it to work this morning but they closed the Nike campus at 1pm so he's been working at home this afternoon.) We are expected to get a couple more inches overnight tonight. I figure this should be just enough to cancel school again tomorrow, which brings me to Bummer Moment #5. Ian was supposed to debut in his first-ever holiday program at school tomorrow night. As you might guess, we had already tuned up the video camera in anticipation. But at this point, I don't have high hopes of it actually happening - and with not much time left before Christmas, I don't know that it will be rescheduled unless they are able to do it for maybe Monday of next week.

And speaking of Monday, this brings me to Anticipated Bummer Moment #6 and #7, which I predict will occur this coming weekend. First of all, Ian is also scheduled to attend a "Parents Day Out" this Saturday where his school will provide a few hours of childcare during the day on Saturday so parents can go out and wrap up last minute shopping or just take a few hours to themselves. I believe we were first on the sign-up list for that event. Anyway, if school ends up closed all week, I won't hold my breath on that event still happening either. Oh well.

And then there's Sunday. I happen to be about two weeks overdue for a haircut right now. I mean, it's not pretty (literally). But I do finally have an eagerly-anticipated appointment with my new lady scheduled for this Sunday afternoon. You know, the very same day that they are now forecasting that Phase 3 of "ARCTIC BLAST 2008" will arrive (calling for more snow and freezing temps Sunday into Monday). Awesome.

It's not all bad, though. We do have our cookies and on the way home today Jeff made a stop for provisions: the makings for hot buttered rum and hot cocoa with peppermint schnapps. I'm also very thankful that we aren't both struggling to work and deal with closed schools all week as many families are right now. I feel for them.

For now, I'll leave you below with a shot that Jeff took the other night of our happy little snowmen outside our front window as well as a humorous little video that I saw on CNN today which pretty much says it all around here right now. Until I write again.

The white stuff and Santa make an appearance

There are two things that I thought we were saying goodbye to when we left the DC area: The first was good restaurants and the second was seeing snow fall at our house. (Actually, I think there are more than two but these are the two that come to mind right now.)

Well, I was most certainly wrong about the restaurant thing given that there are many great eateries here that more than rival the best restaurants in DC. And as we go through our third winter now, it also appears that I was mistaken about that whole no snow thing as well. In general, it does tend to get colder here in the wintertime than I thought it would. I mean, it's definitely not typically that biting cold like you get back east but we still have our share of quite chilly days. More often than not, the most extreme weather issue we deal with is ice. But at least once over the past three winters we've also seen a bit of snow. Last winter we barely had any, but what did come was on Christmas day which was kind of cool.

So around last Thursday the weather people started making a fuss that we had a big storm approaching shore that would bring a lot of wind and rain (shocking, I know!) on Friday and Saturday. Then by Sunday (as in, today) temperatures would plummet to highs in the 20s in Portland and the rain would turn to possibly significant snowfall. Of course for the ski resorts who have been tapping their watches since before Thanksgiving waiting on Mother Nature to do her thing, this storm was music to their ears. But for those of us down on the "valley floor" as it's called - well, we were skeptical about the wet stuff actually turning into white stuff.

In general, the whole Friday and Saturday thing was kind of a bust. I mean, yeah sure, there was definitely some wind and rain - but nothing earth shattering, especially for December in Portland. Saturday evening we went to Jeff's holiday party at an art gallery in the Pearl District downtown and had a very nice evening. By the time we exited around 11 p.m. to make our way home, there was definitely a good bite in the air. And by around 8 a.m. this morning some white stuff started coming out of the sky somewhat fiercely and as of this writing has yet to stop. Our high was about 32 degrees this morning and it's been going in the wrong direction ever since. It's been very windy too, which makes for nice blowing snow dramatics as well as fun wind chill factors. And the awesome (and unusual) thing is that these 20ish degree temps are expected to stick around most of the week giving us the coldest weather here in about 10 years (at least according to the weather people and everyone knows that weather people are always right). Brrr! And to think that when we moved here I thought the coldest it would get was maybe in the 40s. Apparently I needed to beef up on my Portland weather history a bit more.

So, of course we had to take this opportunity to head outside this morning and do a little snowball action with Ian and let him enjoy his first real snow experience (that he recognizes and will remember, at least). There were also a couple of snow angels involved at one point which we caught on video. So all in all, it's been a wintery but fun Sunday here.

And in other weekend news - I think I've mentioned that this is the first year that Ian is really starting to get the whole Christmas concept. Of course for him this means a tree, presents and Santa Claus. He's been especially intrigued by Santa Claus so we decided to break Vow #683 on the "things I will never do when I become a parent" list and took him to see a mall Santa yesterday. The line sucked but at least there was some entertainment involved in watching all the parents shove their screaming babies in Santa's lap in hopes of getting the perfect shot. We offered Ian the option of backing out several times while we were in line but no such luck. He was very excited to get on Santa's lap. I said, "You know, Santa will probably ask you what you want for Christmas - so what will you tell him?" And he threw up his hands and said, "A tostada!" Awesome. I think we can handle that one. While we weren't really interested in taking out a second loan on our house to pay for one of the "professional" photo packages they offered us, we did manage to snap our own shot:

Oh, and then just to cap off the weekend extravaganza - I'm extra excited to report that less than a week after finally recovering from the effects of my last cold, I came down with a new one yesterday. Frustration and disbelief are the two words I'll throw out and leave it at that. (Ian came down with his latest around Wednesday and already appears to be on the mend, by the way.)

Last, I'll leave you with some food for thought: If you were awakened in the middle of the night fearing your house was on fire - do you have an evacuation plan? Because we don't. And I realized this at about 4:30 a.m. this morning when for some unknown reason multiple smoke alarms - including the one in our bedroom - starting going off in our house. Let me just say I didn't know I could move that fast. All I remember is jumping out of bed and racing toward Ian's room when the alarms just stopped after about 10 seconds and everything seemed to check out fine. I don't think my heart stopped racing until about midday today, though.

Until I write again.

LATE BREAKING NEWS: We just heard on the news that basically every school district in the region is closed tomorrow which means no preschool for Ian. Our first school closing experience. Bummer.

Happy Birthday Ellie!

Today Jeff and I became an aunt and uncle! Ellie Aiken Shoup was born to Jeff's sister Jill and her husband Steve at 7:23 a.m. this morning in Austin. Though things didn't go quite as planned (do they ever?) and Jill ended up delivering via c-section, all turned out well and Mom and daughter are both doing great. We've seen a couple of early photos and she looks beautiful! (Yeah, I know everyone says that but this little one really is a looker and she's not even 24 hours old yet. Crazy.)

This certainly counts as one of those times when it's difficult to live so far away from family as we'd love to be able to pop down the street to spend time with our new niece and support Jill and Steve as they take on a newborn. But given that is not in the cards since driving from Portland might take a while, we'll have to settle for frequent pictures (hint, hint) for now. And, we'll be counting the days until we go to Texas for a visit early next year.

In the meantime, we wish Ellie a very Happy Birthday!

Until I write again.

Appreciating today

I started off writing today's post on something we'll just say is related to holidays and retail. But that post has been preempted by other, larger events. Actually, it appears we have two other, larger events happening in our family right now - but for now I'm only going to talk about one of them.

So Ian's been physically ready for potty training for at least six months now. By last July, he was showing most of the major signs. I was so encouraged/scared to death of his readiness that one day I decided it was time to take the "all or nothing" approach to potty training. This is where you just wake up one morning and announce that Target has stopped carrying diapers altogether therefore you must go in the potty now and wear underwear. Now, let me just say here that this is actually a recognized and accepted approach to potty training that is recommended for parents who have the time to devote 24/7 to training their child and who also have no need to leave the house for a period of three or four days straight. And since I basically fell into that category, I decided to go for it.

Well, by the end Day One I came to the conclusion that this tactic may have been one the dumbest ideas I've ever had. This kid clearly seemed to have no concept of the whole "tell me when you have to go and I'll get you there" thing. The only person that was being trained that day was me in learning the best techniques for cleaning rugs and floors. No thank you, I actually like my things just the way they are. So of course I did what I always do and posted an SOS message on DCUM for advice on how to proceed. Everyone immediately agreed that I needed to abort Operation Potty Training and try again later which frankly, I was more than happy to do.

If we were at Square One in July, by September we were back to Square Zero. Meaning, he showed very little interest in training. Our hope was that starting preschool in September and seeing other kids sit on the potty would help things progress, but by October we still had nothing. Around that time we did force some progress by announcing one day that we had a new rule in the house that Ian would sit on the potty every morning when he woke up and every night before bath time. And being the general rule follower that he is, he was pretty much okay with this. But it hasn't been without its challenges. Like, at first he figured out that the longer he sat on the potty the more books I would read to him. Well, I'm no dummy and it only took me about two weeks to catch on to that little trick. So, we had to make another new rule that Ian could look through books but was not going to be read to while on the potty. Also, sometimes his version of sitting on the potty was to be down and up within about a millisecond. So Jeff told him he needed to at least count to ten before he could get up.

One of the things I've heard about potty training is that "incentives" work well for many kids. Of course we all know that this is parent speak for bribery. The key is discovering what makes your kid tick and then using that against them (I mean, to "incentivize" them to use the potty). For many kids, candy does the trick (I've heard M&M's or jelly beans are popular) but for Ian it's all about the stickers. He really loves stickers. Well, one day I was at Freddie's and came upon this pack of Sesame Street stickers that I knew he'd love. Originally I was going to buy them for him just because I'm a nice mom like that. But then I remembered that word - incentivize! Once at home with stickers in hand I announced another new rule: that Ian would get a sticker every time he went in the potty (and that he would get to flush because he loves to flush).

While there was much excitement over this new rule - there wasn't lot of action. His teachers told us that he's still on the earlier end of training for boys and not to worry yet. So, we've continued to be patient and generally encouraging. (Except for that one time that I told him he needed to learn how to use the potty because I was sick of changing his diapers. Hey, I was having a bad parent day - it happens to the best of us.) We periodically remind him that if he ever feels like he needs to go, he can just tell one of us and we'll help get him to the potty. This is generally met with a look that says, "Yeah, whatever Mommy, I'm all over it."

But then enter today (!!). We had been home from preschool for a bit and he said, "Mommy, I need to go the potty." Now again, being the nice mother that I am, my first thought was, "he's lying". (He has done this before just to try and get a sticker by sitting on the potty.) But of course I had to give him the benefit of the doubt so in we went to start the process of taking off the slippers, taking off the pants, taking off the diaper... Once he got up there he had a very focused look on his face. Immediately I knew this was not our typical potty-sitting exercise. And a minute later, he was going!!!! I was so excited you would have thought I had just been given that million dollars I've been "needing". And then Ian was all excited and there were many hugs and kisses. Then he flushed, we washed hands, called Daddy at work to report the good news and of course picked out a sticker. A head shot of Elmo was today's choice. Now, I know enough to recognize that it may be another year before this happens again, but sometimes you have to just appreciate today and not worry about tomorrow.

Until I write again.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

We were very busy in the Burpo household this weekend decking the halls with boughs of holly. Though just to be clear - there wasn't actually any holly involved, but there was definitely a real Christmas tree and several fake items like berries and snowmen. But moving along, after a Friday evening of pizza and Rock Band with the Hyders (well, except Zach who just watched because apparently he's too good to play with the Stumptown Burpies) we sprang out of bed bright and early Saturday morning to begin our holiday extravaganza weekend.

Our first stop was at Village Inn so that we could all indulge in a highly caloric and generally extremely unhealthy breakfast (but boy was it tasteee!). It's good to know we can always count on the ole' VI to start our weekend off right. And this breakfast was particularly important because it was the fuel that would get us through our next stop and perhaps the main event of the weekend: securing the 2008 Burpo tree.

Now, there are a lot of Christmas trees in Oregon. In fact, not too surprisingly, Oregon is the #1 producer of Christmas trees in the United States. And where you get your tree determines how much of a True Oregonian you are. For instance, someone who goes to a grocery store lot is clearly not even eligible for their True Oregonian card. Actually, don't even bother applying. Now, if you've advanced to one of the plentiful "U-Pick" farms out in the country - then you are eligible for what they call a Semi-Oregonian card. And True Oregonian status? Well, that is awarded when you actually get your $5 permit from the U.S. Forest Service, pack up the car with safety gear and a sled, and hike into the Mount Hood National Forest to cut down your own tree. Some folks probably do some mountain climbing while they're at it because that's the type of thing that True Oregonians do for fun on the weekend. But seeing as how we clearly have not yet reached that status - we opted for one of the "U-Pick" farms. We chose the same one that we attempted to go to last year on perhaps the coldest, rainiest, windiest day of the winter. And let me just say that was a really good time until we decided that our lives were more valuable than U-picking our tree and aborted the mission in favor of heading to our local nursery on a lovely sunny day the following weekend.

This Saturday, we had much better weather. And now that I had the chance to get a good look at it this year without fearing for my life, this little farm called Lee Farms has everything a good tree farm should have: a store with ornaments, hand made wreaths and garland on site, and homemade apple cider donuts - which unfortunately we were not able to partake in due to the bacon, sausage, biscuits, gravy, french toast, etc. still sitting like a brick at the bottom of our stomachs. So our tree experience went like it usually does: We wandered around for a bit while Jeff and Ian patiently trailed along. And then once we hit about say, the 30 minute mark, Jeff started to get that look in his eyes. You know, the one that says, "Just choose a damn tree now because Ian is getting impatient and I'm ready to go home." Which of course only made me feel more indecisive because now there's major pressure on me which is really more than I can handle. But I worked through it and finally we all agreed on a beautiful nine-ish foot Noble.

The next stop was of course back home so that we could get the tree in the house, in the stand and begin the all-important decorating process. Jeff had already given us a head start by checking and organizing all the lights earlier in the week. The whole process went very smoothly until we started on the light application later in the afternoon. We had a few issues there, but nothing that a little spiked hot apple cider couldn't cure. By early evening our pretty tree was almost complete minus a little ornament project we were saving for later. We fed Ian dinner and then got him off to bed while Jeff finished up a very yummy "let's celebrate because we got the tree up" dinner for us of his special Cowboy steaks, crab legs, pasta and some tomatoes with a basil, pine nuts and melted cheese topping (or something like that). All quite delectable. Oh, and of course all washed down with an Oregon pinot. Later that evening we watched 12 Angry Men which I had never seen before but highly recommend.

On Sunday the festivities continued with outside lighting. At first things were a little touch and go because unlike the sunshine we had the previous few days, the weather had turned quite cold, rainy and foggy - and Jeff looked pretty comfy cozy on the couch watching football. But late in the afternoon we got up our energy and headed outside to complete the holiday preparations. This year we added a few little fake snowmen to the front yard that I think add the all-important cute factor. Plus, Ian appears to be a fan of the whole snowman concept. Then we went back inside and had a little impromptu ornament painting party. I had purchased a few unpainted ornaments from Michaels (which, by the way, might be deserving of its own post later on due to my new obsession with this store) and each of us decorated our own ornament and hung it on the tree. I like Jeff's snowman a lot, but I have to say that Ian's little teddy bear is my favorite.

So, I guess it's safe to say that our halls are officially decked. Now on to all that other stuff.
Until I write again.

Who's smarter than whom?

So, unlike how I usually operate at Christmas, which is to run around like a chicken with my head cut off the last couple of weeks before Christmas madly collecting gifts, I've actually tried to be semi in control this year. So in control as a matter of fact that I even had the forethought to buy one of Ian's gifts BEFORE Thanksgiving. It was a truck that he had eyed a couple of times when we were in Target. Okay, well I say "eyed" but it really wasn't as casual as that. It was more like begged for.

But anyhooskie, so I picked up this truck for him about a month ago when it was on sale. And when I got it home, I put it where anyone would - under the guest bed upstairs thinking, "He'll never look under this bed in a million years!" I mean, he's not even old enough to understand the whole concept of looking for Christmas gifts yet, and why would he ever have cause to poke his head underneath a bed in a room he barely ever goes into? Clearly this was the perfect spot.

Enter this past Monday. Ian was upstairs playing in his room while I was sitting at the kitchen table typing on the computer when suddenly I hear, "Mom, I need to open this! I need to open this!" Then I can tell that's he's coming down the stairs. Again: "Mommy, I need to open this truck!" So I get up to go around the corner to see what he needs, of course thinking, "What the hell is he talking about? What truck?" I said as much, too: "What truck, Ian?" By now he's reached the bottom of the stairs. He shoves the box in my face and says, "This one, mommy. I need to open this truck right now!" I know I clearly had some sort of startled, thrown-off look on my face as before me was the very truck I had hidden under the bed a few weeks ago. So, my quick-thinking self said, "Oh, well you can't have that because it's not for you," and snatched it out of his hands. This did not go over well. In fact, there may have been some tears involved. And guilt immediately fell over me as I realized I had just lied to my two-year-old's face and then made him cry. Great. But there was no time for bad feelings because I had to throw him off somehow - so I decided in that moment that it was time for him to go up for his afternoon "rest time" which went over even better, by the way.

Once Ian was cleared of the scene and upstairs in his room, I moved quickly to find a new hiding place. I went into the den and looked up to all the empty space way up high in the cabinets over the desk. Sure, they have glass doors on them but A) He barely goes in that room and B) If he does go in, he'll never think to look up into the cabinet a million years. Perfect! So in it went - with the box turned backwards for good measure. After naptime, not another word was uttered about the truck, so clearly the crisis had been averted and I was in the clear.

Enter today. I picked up Ian from preschool as usual and we headed home. Though I'll add, not before he threw a complete fit when I attempted to pull him away from his teacher. In fact, once I corraled him into the car it was only after I told him that Aunt Brianne and Uncle Zach were coming over to visit him tonight that he was able to compose himself. Not that I felt like chopped liver or anything. But, I digress. So, we weren't home five minutes and he started in on, "Mom, I need to play with my truck. I need my truck, right now." (Everything is "need" and "right now" these days, by the way. I mean, I understand that we all have our needs. Like, I "need" a million dollars "right now" but I'm probably not going to get it. Sheesh.) So, immediately I started to get a little nervous but thought, "I'm not going to panic. I'm not going to panic. He could be talking about something else." So I said, "Oh, what truck are you talking about? I don't know where it is so maybe you can help tell me what it looks like." "The blue truck, mommy. I need my blue truck. " Hmmm...well this Christmas truck does happen to be blue. Now I'm starting to panic. Again, "I don't know what you're talking about Ian..." Until he suddenly turns and starts heading toward the den and says, "This one!" pointing up right here:

Score: Ian, two; Mom, zero.

Until I write again.

Tales of a sunny December day

Well, now I feel like I need to start taking back all that talk about the nonstop rainy winter weather here because on the whole it's been really nice lately (which means that starting tomorrow it will be pouring nonstop since I just said that). In fact, now people are starting to complain because the ski resorts haven't even opened yet due to lack of snow. Apparently this messed up how many people like to spend their Thanksgiving in these here parts of the country. Poor Mother Nature can't win for losin', I tell ya.

Anyway, today has been a particularly beautiful and chilly early December day with bright, sparkling sunshine. This morning I went in to get Ian up about 7:15 a.m., and as he has taken to doing recently, he quickly buried his face and shut his eyes as soon as I walked in. He likes to pretend that he is still asleep - so we go through this thing where I say something like, "Oh, where's Ian? I guess he's not here this morning!" while he's trying to keep quiet with a big smile on his face. This goes on for about a minute until I say, "Well, I guess he won't be able to go school/sports class/whatever today!", at which point he springs up proclaiming that he's ready to get down now.

This morning he jumped up holding Grover and announced that Grover was his baby. (Personally, I think it's related to all the talk around the house recently of his soon-to-be-arriving new baby cousin.) But here was essentially the conversation:

Me: Oh, you have a baby! What is your baby's name?

Ian: Oh, baby's name is Cats.

Me: I see. That's an interesting name for a baby. Is your baby a boy or a girl?

Ian: My baby is a person! (Yesterday I was trying to explain the difference between people and animals and that Zach and Catalina are animals, for example.)

Me: That's right - babies are people. But people can either be boys or girls. Is your baby a boy or a girl?

Ian: It's a baby!

Okay, apparently he wasn't interested in assigning a sex to his baby, which is fine. However, he was very concerned with Baby/Grover being treated well (I had to hold him/her while Ian sat on the potty) until we got downstairs for breakfast and poor Baby was tossed on the floor and left to fend for him/herself for the rest of the day. Anyway, Thursday is the one day of the week when we do not have a pre-planned activity for the morning. And for some reason I was feeling quite exhausted and low energy on this particular Thursday morning. Plus, I had a few phone calls to make and things to do. So, needless to say we were a little slow in getting started. By 10ish the natives were getting very restless so I was forced to turn to the power of Sesame Street. Man, I can see why parents get addicted to TV. That stuff is like magic. At first Ian was running all around me like a mad man, not leaving me alone for two seconds and all I had to say was, "Ian, do you want to watch some Sesame Street?" and it was like he disappeared into thin air, leaving me free to finish up my things and get us ready to leave the house. Awesome. And any guilt I had about using the television as my babysitter instantly went away when I came downstairs to turn it off and witnessed him following along with the program in counting out loud to 18 for the first time (that I've heard, at least). I mean, now I'm thinking maybe the whole importance of parent involvement in early childhood education thing is highly overstated when all we really need is Sesame Street 24/7, right?

So, finally I decided that our morning activity would be to go out and pick out a few toys for donation. Jeff's holiday party is coming up next Saturday eve and there will be a Toys for Tots donation there and the local NBC affiliate also does a big toy donation drive that we wanted to participate in this year - so I thought it would be a good idea to take Ian out to a toy store and have him help me pick out a couple of things and then participate in dropping them off. So, out we went. Once we got to the store, he was very good about making toy suggestions, which were of course all things he wanted and thought were for him. I explained what we were doing about 50 times though and I think he somewhat got the concept because he very willingly helped me put the toy and books into the donation drop box at our local tire store on our way home. I thought about taking a picture of this as it was happening to include in this post, but I decided it was a little much to be whipping out my camera in the middle of the tire store to capture my kid putting a toy in the box. I didn't want people to think I was some overly obsessed parent or anything like that.

On the way back to the car I took note that it was such a great day outside that I decided to offer Ian the option of either going home or going to the park. Can you guess which one he chose? So, we went over to Raleigh Park (which somewhat to my surprise was completely deserted) and put in some time on the swings, then slides, then swings and then more swings before heading home for lunch and nap.

All in all, a nice day here in Beaverton!

Until I write again.

Cat for sale

Actually, she's not even for sale. She's FREE to a great home. And that's exactly what I said on the craiglist ad I just posted for her today. This is not the first time that I've put her on craigslist. The first time was about six months ago and I got exactly zero responses. Which is pretty amazing considering that you can put a pile of dirt on craiglist for $1 and get about a million responses in the first 30 seconds. But for our adorable Catalina: Zilch. Zero. Nada.

Now, even though it might appear that we only like to threaten parting ways with our dear kitty cat - I have to say that this is becoming an increasingly difficult and serious issue for us. Yet, we do take our kitty parental responsibilities seriously and have never really considered it an option to drop her off at a shelter. We wouldn't do that to our child (which I'm sure you're all relieved to hear) and we feel we can't do that with our cat who we agreed six(ish) years ago - with our signature on paper - to adopt and love through good and bad.

Why all the frustration for a kitty cat who, on the surface, seems only loving and adorable? Well, first of all, she is adorable and loving. Which is what makes everything even more difficult. She has a very good heart and would cuddle on your lap 24/7 if you let her. But those of us who live with her see other, not so good traits. First of all, she comes from West Virginia (not that I'm judging W. Va. cats, but I bet you can get a picture in your head) where, before adoption, we believe that she was on her own and was forced to become a scavenger kitty. This part of her personality has never left her. She is obsessive about food. Many have heard the story of the time we chased her around the house with a steak in her mouth or when she ate raw chicken from the kitchen counter. And don't even bother coming anywhere close to the kitchen after 3:30pm or you'll be hounded with nonstop painfully annoying meows until you feed her. As a result of her obsession, we have a whole procedure that involves feeding the cats in separate rooms so that Catalina doesn't steal all of Zach's food after she inhales her own portion.

Second, she is ruining our things. The newest trend is that, despite placing several scratching items throughout the house, she has taken to scratching places where we would like her not to - including most recently, our leather chairs. Yesterday I caught her scratching one of the legs of our leather dining chairs. I flipped it over and saw that the leg is all torn up. But she's also doing it to our leather sitting chairs in the living room. Today, Ian and I arrived home and Ian walked in the living area and said, "Uh oh, mommy" pointing at the arm of the chair. I walked over and saw that she had torn holes all up and down the arm of the chair while lying on her blanket in the chair. Double ugh.

Third, and here's the most serious one - she is a safety issue with Ian. While she was great with him as a baby, she's not so great with him as a toddler. This is because she's so obsessed with being close to people that, unlike Zach who runs the other way when Ian starts to get too close, she doesn't know when to leave. So, Ian inevitably does his toddler thing and she gets frustrated, and on three or four occasions has swiped at him and scratched his face just barely missing his eye. One time I watched her do this unprovoked by Ian.

There are other things, too, like the fact that she has to eat special diet food (which isn't cheap) or she throws up all over the house and gets urinary tract infections. Or, the fact that she clucks like a chicken when she scratches her ears (yes, very weird but true). Or, that she quite often goes into crazy howling fits in the middle of the night that wake us up. Or, that she does just about everything very loudly. She eats loudly (SLURP, SLURP). She bathes herself loudly (LICK, LICK). She even sleeps loudly because she snores. That's right, have you ever heard of a cat that snores before? Because we have one. Sometimes I have to nudge her to make her wake up because I can't hear myself think if I'm sitting next to her on the sofa. Also, she's a complete drama queen. If Zach even attempts to play with her (which is often), she squeals and screeches like an attempt has just been made on her life. No fun for sure.

So, what do you do when you have a beloved member of the family who you realize is becoming increasingly difficult to live with? Well, for now we are stepping up efforts to try and find her a new home. We are also going to explore some new avenues such as calling around to retirement homes (she would be wonderful with an elderly person or as a group home cat of some sort), talking to the vet about the option of declawing her, talking to our wonderful cat sitter who may know someone, and potentially having her become an indoor/outdoor cat to make her happier (?). But in the meantime, if anyone wants to adopt an adorable, loveable and FREE cat, we have one we'd love to give you. Sigh.

Until I write again.

A chip off the old block

I'm back! (From Thanksgiving break, that is.) We happily skipped town for a few days and traveled down to Klamath Falls in southern Oregon for the first time to spend the holiday with my Mom and Barry in their future and sometimes-current home at the beautiful Running Y Ranch there. (If it sounds confusing, it is, which is why I won't bother explaining.) Though the trip isn't exactly a hop, skip and a jump from Portland (driving time is about 5.5 hours), Jeff and I both noted on the way home what a blessing it feels like to have some family that is a car drive away (or will be at some point). For me, the last time I could say that was about 15 years ago.

But rather than spend this post-Thanksgiving post talking turkeys, let's talk sport. As in, the sport of ice skating. First, some of you may recall that I've taken a turn or two around an ice rink in my time. (Back in the days when not only could I drive to my family's home, but I still actually lived there - which means about a gazillion years ago now.) So, of course it goes without saying that one of us in the Burpo parental unit has been very excited about getting Ian on ice skates. And that someone is, of course, Jeff. Yes, it's true. I never said a word but one day - I think when Ian was about three months old - he started saying, "We gotta get this kid on ice skates." And he kept at it, too. Especially when we moved to Portland, for some reason. Maybe he was inspired by the super fancy rink in the Lloyd Center where that infamous Portlander Tonya Harding made her mark. And if you ever visit the Lloyd Center (which is a shopping mall), let's just say you won't be surprised that this was her home-away-from-home. (For the record, it actually is a nice ice rink that just happens to be located in the middle of a really bad mall.) Or, maybe it's the fact that Jeff gave up his dream of being a star hockey player to pursue management consulting instead, and is now passing along his unfulfilled fantasy to his son.

I'm not sure which, but anyhooskie, when my Mom called us up just as we were about to leave town last Wednesday and said, "Bring your skates - our ice rink is open!", you-know-who got very excited. I mean, he was upstairs grabbing his hockey skates (which I noticed are Nikes, by the way - very appropriate) and flinging them in the car faster than Sarah Palin can say Hockey mom's are pitbulls with lipstick! I, however, was a little more skeptical. Granted, I had never been to Klamath Falls before or the Running Y, but I'm thinking the "ice rink" there probably makes the Lloyd Center rink look like an Olympic venue. Plus, I wasn't sure that I was up for all the potential drama that might come with putting Ian on the ice for the first time while traveling for Thanksgiving. Still, I played along and put my skates in the car, too.

Now, fast forward about 6.5 hours (driving time plus one bakery stop to pick up the T-Day goodies plus one Golden Arches lunch stop). Just as night had fallen, we were pulling into the main entrance to the community when what to my wondering eyes should appear (yes, I'm getting into holiday mode) but one of the most grandiose outdoor skating rinks I've ever seen, sparkling in the night with holiday lights. Clearly I had underestimated the potential of the Klamath Falls skating community. Suddenly, I was intrigued. Maybe this whole skating thing wasn't such a bad idea after all. So, Thanksgiving morning on our way back from our big trip into town to check out the local Fred Meyer (which, by the way is about the best thing that Klamath Falls appears to have going for it in terms of shopping venues), we stopped at the rink to check out the schedule. There were a few people hanging around waiting for the rink to open. And from the looks of things, they were going to be waiting a while. Hmmm...okay so perhaps Ian's big skating debut would have to wait until Friday.

And Friday, it was. We showed up around 1:30 p.m. for the big event. The rink was already packed with locals who clearly were not out taking advantage of Black Friday specials at Freddie's. And not only were they not into bargain shopping, but they weren't the most graceful bunch either. So, at first I was little anxious about putting our son out there amidst a scene that more resembled Bang Up Derby (I just made that up, by the way) than Stars on Ice with Kristi Yamaguchi and Friends. But we decided to go for it anyway. And I must say, I was also nervous that this little adventure was going to be a big flop. Meaning, I thought for sure he'd be in tears before we could even get his skates fully laced up. But no sirree, Ian. Hands were flapping with excitement and exclamations of, "We go icing! We go icing!" He clearly couldn't wait to hit the ice. And if his first experience walking in ice skates on the floor was any indication of his skill level, he's bound for stardom because much to our surprise, he barely missed a beat when he stood up for the first time. No tipping over or anything funny like that.

After a slight Zamboni delay, we let the crowd disperse and then slowly made our way toward the entrance to the ice. I stepped out first and then Jeff lifted Ian out to me and came behind us. We held him tight between us while we very slowly pushed him along. I kept waiting for tears, but nothing. At first he stood there with his feet frozen in place (perhaps, literally?). He was like a little robot on steel runners. Except, he did occasionally lean backwards so we'd have to hold him up straight. Pleas to stand straight and bend his knees fell on deaf ears. Hmmm...perhaps two-year-olds are not as flexible as we first thought. Still, we made it around one full lap! At the end when we asked, "Ian, do you want to stop or keep going?" it was met with a resounding, "Keep going!" Okie dokie. The second time, he even started to move his feet a little. Not really a gliding or pushing motion, but more like a walking on ice motion. But hey, it was a start. We took one small break and went back out for another few rounds or so. And by the end, we were really flying! I think he even threw in a couple of split jumps while we weren't looking. Finally, after about the 50th time of asking him if he was okay and wanted to stop or keep going, he proclaimed that he was ready to get off. Which, thank God, because frankly, my feet were killing me!

And so our first ice skating adventure came to an end with a trip to the outdoor fire pit with Grandma Charla to warm hands and feet. A few days later, he's still asking, "We going icing today?" so I think it's safe to say that we'll be visiting the Lloyd Center soon - which I'm super excited about. I guess the only question now is - do we have the next Wayne Gretzky or Scott Hamilton on our hands? Only time will tell...

Until I write again.

Blogging: a new way to communicate with your spouse

So, this morning I learned that the Cyclo...whatever drug that I took twice over the past weekend was not the generic Sudafed. It was a muscle relaxer. Which explains a lot. How did I find this out? Because Jeff decided to read the blog this morning. I was finishing up my packing for Thanksgiving a short while ago and he came in and we had something like the following conversation:

Jeff: So, I just caught up on your blog (with a semi-serious look on his face).

Me: Oh yeah? (Thinking: Oh geez, I must have said something wrong - I knew this whole online thing was a bad idea!)

Jeff: Yeah. So about the Sudafed thing...did you happen to look up the drug that you were taking to make sure it was Sudafed?

Me: No.

Jeff: Well, I did and it was a muscle relaxer - probably the one that they gave you for your back issues earlier this year.

Me: Oh, well how was I supposed to know? You were right there when I was trying to figure out which bottle was the Sudafed. I asked you if you knew...

Jeff: Yes, I vaguely remember, but I think I was preoccupied with making you dinner at the time.

Me: Oh.

Jeff: Well, I can help you figure out the where the actual Sudafed is. Where are the bottles?

Me: Downstairs. Oh...wait...actually, now that I think of it...

At which point I go into the bottom drawer in our bathroom and immediately pull out one bottle of - yep, "Sudogest", generic form of Sudafed. It said so right there on the bottle. Right then I recalled that I had specifically put it in that drawer right next to the emergency supply of real Sudafed so I would know where exactly where it was when I needed it. I guess that didn't work out so well. So, my sincere apologies for anything negative or misleading I may have said in my earlier post. I take it all back.

Now I can go eat my turkey with a clear conscience.

Until I write again.

Just pretend I'm not here

Catalina knows that she is not allowed up on the couch, except when she is on her own blanket. However, last night her mean brother (who even stuck his tongue out at her) stole her blanket so she very sheepishly decided to sneak up and try to snuggle next to me. She refused to look up at me, as if not making eye contact meant that I wouldn't notice that she was somewhere she wasn't supposed to be. It didn't work.

Until I write again.