The Effects of Aging

Sunday was my birthday.  As all of you know, I turned 24.  Okay, fine, not really.  I turned 32.  Whatever.  Erin threw me a ridiculously fun 80's theme birthday party on Saturday night (pictures to follow, don't have my camera).  I was super excited that everyone chose to dress up because that just makes a party so much more fun, you know?  Even the kids that came (like including babies and toddlers) were dressed in totally tubular 80's style.  I will post pictures in a bit.

Anyway, Sunday I had to run into work to finish up some specimens.  I keep another pair of shoes there that are comfortable because my job requires I stand while cutting tissue and dictating (called grossing- and not because the specimens are "gross", even though sometimes they are, that's just what it's called).  It's commonplace for me to kick off whatever shoes I'm wearing and slip on my "grossing shoes". 

So I kick off my shoes and realize something rather upsetting:

These are the shoes I took off.

They do not match.

Now, you may be thinking "well, they aren't THAT different", but let me show you something else:

This is a view from the back.  The left one is significantly taller!  How did I not notice that?! 

Clearly it's the old age.

*Sigh*

Not crying today. Not going to do it.

The first day of kindergarten has finally arrived.  Kenzie was excited to go and has had her new Barbie backpack fully stocked for a few weeks now.  In Knox County, kindergarteners go to school on a "staggered schedule" for the first two weeks.  This means that each kid only goes for one assigned day (with another 3-4 kids) to get them used to school.  They also only go until noon these days.  Furthermore, kindergarten gets out of school at 1:00 daily (almost 2 hours earlier than everyone else) for the rest of the year.

I find this to be totally unnecessary.

First of all, Kenzie has been at a real school for the past two years for a curriculum based preschool.  She knows what school is.  I understand that some kids are fresh out of the house with no preschool at all, but come on.  Have they ever been to Sunday school?  Or dance class?  Or any organized activity at all?  If you're five years old, you know how to play with other kids and how to do what you're told. 

Second of all, this schedule is terribly inconvenient for working parents.  School has already started back (college too) so there are no available Samantha's or summer camps.  Daycares won't let you send your kid for 4 days only for 2 weeks only.  And I really didn't want to use 8 vacation days.  Fortunately, my Mom agreed to help me out so we have each driven to and from Crossville, over an hour away, twice this week.  That's roughly 560 total miles.  In 4 days.  And we will do it again next week.

Anyway, I'm sure I'm not the first parent to think this is completely crazy, so I'll hush about it.  Kenzie will be in kindergarten full time soon enough, so I'll deal with this bump in the road.

*stepping off of soap box*

I'm sure she will have lots of stories about today and I can't wait to hear them.  You will be proud to know that I successfully walked out of the school with my head high rather than as a sobbing lump of sad Mommy.

I did kind of want to cry a little though.

Yeah, yeah, so it's been since March.  Let me tell you about my morning.

Our roof suffered major injuries during the hail storm in April and has to be replaced.  The roofers got here today at 8:30 to begin work.  Today.  Like 4 months later.  It's cool though; I know they've been busy.  Well, when I went to pull out of the garage, there were about 300 piles of roofing equipment spread all over the driveway.  And a big long truck blocking the whole thing at the bottom too.  Every worker was on the roof so I had to walk down the driveway just for them to see me.  Trying to convey the message "Can you move your stuff so I can get my car out of the garage" was about as difficult as asking them to write out the pythagorean theorem because I don't think they knew anyone was home in the first place & couldn't see the garage door open from where they were on the roof.  And they didn't speak English.

Next, I went to Kroger because Kenzie needed a specific kind of Lunchable to take to school.  I stopped at the Starbucks inside and ordered my regular:  Grande Lite Mocha Coconut Frappuccino with an extra shot of espresso.  Trajedy struck again when she told me they didn't have the coconut flavor and it had likely been discontinued for the season. 

I took Kenzie to school and signed her in, however, not a single soul could be found.  I ran into a couple teachers and they denied seeing any of a group of about 30 preschoolers all morning.  I kind of feel like the noise generated from that group alone would be hard to miss.  Anyway, after walking all over the school, I finally found them all outside.  Behind the school.

Finally on the way to work, while driving down the interstate, a semi blew a tire and most of it flew back and hit my car.  Surprisingly, and thankfully, I can't see any damage to my car.

I had planned to get to work around 9.  It ended up being around 10.

This all happened in an hour.  See how my intentions are good and things just happen?  Same thing with the blog.  Good intentions + poor follow-through = neglected blog.

So here are the last two weeks in our life-

By the way, the top picture is "Diva Pippa", dressed by Kenzie of course, two days ago.

This "cake" is not really a cake at all.  In fact, it should be called "hardest to make fake cake in the world" because it's really made out of watermelon, kiwi, blueberries, strawberries, and whipped cream.  And making the bottom half wasn't hard.  But what happens when you have a really heavy, wet, watermelon disc and then try to set it on top of perfectly placed blueberries and whipped cream?  It squishes everything out because whipped cream isn't all that dense.  Erin showed me a picture of one (sans recipe) and since I'm such an awesome wife, I made it for him.  It did taste really good though.

This cake, which I did not make, was brought by Erin's coworkers for his last day at work at Fort Sanders Regional.  He had been there for 10 years so they threw him a little going-away party.  He has accepted a new job at Parkwest Hospital, which is much closer to us.  Same job, different location.  And he really loves it so far.

Our sweet Kenzie had to have surgery last week.  She had 2 hernias and they were evidently congenital.  They weren't causing her any trouble, but her doctor said they needed to be repaired before she got any older.  In true Kenzie fashion, she took it like a big girl and did really well.

The dog she is holding is a girl and it's name is Joshua.  Kenzie put bows on Joshua's ears the night before.

This is right after she came back down from recovery.  They gave her a grape popsicle, hence the purple teeth. . .

She was quite proud of her IV, although at the time, she didnt realize it was actually connected to her.  She thought it was just a tube taped to her hand.

She has since asked to go back and do "doctor day" again.

On the way home, she asked for ice cream for lunch.  She hadn't been allowed to eat or drink anything since midnight the night before and had done SO well at the hospital. . .

Who would say no?  I mean really.  Plus, I wanted ice cream with tons of candy on top too.

Speaking of ice cream, the ice cream truck has been frequenting our neighborhood and that is pretty much the best news ever for me because it's the ONLY way I can get one of these:

If you know where I can just buy these, please let me know.  Because we've been looking since I was about 8 or 9 years old.  That's a true statement.

Best.  Stuff.  Ever.



You know, I really don't know what is wrong with the blog below.  My "Year in Pictures" is for some reason posting as "Few Months in Pictures".  I can look into this later- right now, I'm catching up.  Now, let me preface this with a disclaimer:  I got a new camera for Christmas.  Some of these pics are either terribly washed out or blurry or just plain bad looking.  I'm pretty sure it's due to one of two reasons:  Either something is wrong with the camera or it's user error and perhaps we need to read the manual; Of course it's probably the first reason.

We kicked off New Year's Eve at Travis and Noel's.  Surely you have heard me talk about them.  Or you've at least heard us talk about how we are going to bring back the art of the arranged marriage in about 20 years.  That's when we plan to marry off Kenzie and their son Ethan. 

This is the best picture I have of the two of us from that evening.  And I have about 8 or 9.  Stupid camera.

They started out dressed up for a party and ended up dressed as a fireman and a doctor.  Cute as always.

These are mint Oreo truffles.  They are one of the things I made for the party.  If you have ever had Oreo truffles, then you should be quite proud that I was able to actually make it out of the front door with this many for the party.  It's so easy to eat like 3.  Or 10.  Anyway, I was kind of proud of how they turned out.

Next we headed to Todd and Danielle's house who live a couple houses down from us.  This is where we rang in the New Year and the picture above is when Erin and Kenzie are saying "Happy New Year!".  I believe all the Polte Pirates were in attendance.  I have gobs of pictues from this night.  Few are acceptable to use without consulting with my fellow Pirates to get permission first.  Ahem, there are no inappropriate pictures, mind you.  I just think it's nice to ask first.  Maybe you will see more at a later date.

This is my very good friend and neighbor (and fellow Pirate) Cherie.  Quick related funny story (which you already saw if you are on Facebook):

     Kenzie:  "Mommy, I want a Mexico kiss."
     Me:  "What's a Mexico kiss?"
     Kenzie:  "It's where you rub your noses together."
     Me:  "Oh!  An Eskimo kiss!"

Well, Cherie is who taught Kenzie how to Eskimo kiss.

It's our tradition to have a New Year's Day dinner at our house.  I have a few pictures of the spread, but honestly, the lighting (stupid camera) makes it look puny and pitiful.  And it certainly was not that way.  I know this because it was my blood, sweat, and tears that made every single bit from scratch (which I honestly enjoy- and it's not hard, just time consuming).  It is the one day where I don't make a single substitution in any recipe for the sake of healthy eating.  It is fattening and it is good.  So I will not show a picture that doesn't do the meal justice.  Instead I'll show some people who were able to enjoy it with us.

Isn't it a bit ridiculous that Noel just had that baby AND ate a big meal, yet still looks that great?  Almost feels unfair. 

Great picture of Mom and Collen.  I take it as a compliment that Denton and Noel didn't look at the camera because they were focusing on dessert.  And that's cool.  After all, the only picture of me this day was one where I had a fork in my mouth.



The Year in Pictures

Happy New Year!

Wait, what?  It's the 31st?  Well, it's still January for a few more hours so I think it's okay to still call it the "new year".  Besides, you know me.  Better late than never.  Right?

I figure that the best way to sum up the entire 2010 is with pictures.  If Time magazine can do it, so can I.

January

The traditional New Year's Day meal that I make TOTALLY from scratch.  To be fair, I guess I should mention that at least half of my recipes are Aunt Deloris', so it's not like I just came up with them alone.

Kenzie had just come home from her friend Julia's birthday party at The Groovy Pad.  They do your hair, makeup, and nails and then you dress up like a princess.  Right up her alley.



February

Father/Daughter date night.  There are about one hundred pics from this night.  None of her and Erin since he was taking the pictures.  All the big girls danced with Kenzie.  I don't know this girl, but you can tell Kenzie was just eating up the attention like a biscuit.  She SO looks forward to this every year.

If you're wondering where March is, I honestly put the best pics in an April blog last year.  What a let-down, huh?

April

Next to our tree on Easter.  Isn't it pretty?  The flowers only last a few days & often the wind blows them all away before we can take a picture.  We got lucky to have such a beautiful day.

I don't remember what the problem was here, I just know that this is one of my all time favorite pictures of Kenzie.  Such a grumpy little squirrel!  It got better once we got to the farm.

Okay, so grumpy little squirrel doesn't look much happier here, but I think she was just ready to hunt eggs.  To our left is our cousin Abby.  I've probably mentioned her on here before.  Anyway, Kenzie pretty much thinks she's the bee's knees; I don't blame her.  Abby is pretty awesome.  Plus she introduced me to the amazement that is Charming Charlies. 

Hunting for eggs in the very same hiding spots I checked when I was her age.  I'm really glad that she is getting to experience the annual egg hunts at the farm.  There really is nothing like it.

Have I ever put a picture of Mom on here?  I don't think I have.  That's actually pretty shamefull now that I think about it.  I'll have to do better in that department.  You'll notice that Collen is holding a bag.  That bag contains Kenzie's loot collected so far.  It's just not fashionable (or practical) to carry around a huge basket so you have to dump out your eggs somewhere.

Our first 5K of the season.  It was the Clean Air Run.  I'm not the best runner.  I try really hard though.  Afterward, I remember being very proud that I didn't stop to walk at all- well, really I was just proud I didn't collapse on the side of the road.

Kenzie's school went on a field trip to Dollywood & I was a chaperone.  These are some of her very best school friends:  Maliyah, Julia, and Slade.  I was kind of tired by the end of that day.

 

This is just before the Loop Lope 5K at Cades Cove in the Smokey Mountains. They had just reopened the loop and were doing a one time race to celebrate.  It was very cold that morning.  Then again, it was 6:45a.m.  In April.  In the Smokey's.

I'm going to brag here.  I know that's a little crass, but I don't care.  Erin and I both got 2nd place in our age groups in that race!  The man in the middle is the mayor of Townsend.  See the medal around my neck?  And my trophy?  They're legit.  Got 'em from the mayor.  I even have them displayed in the living room.  Shameless?  Of course.  Do I care?  Not this time.

This is us a little more gussied up.  We were on our way to see The Barber of Seville (you know, that opera that has the Figaro, Figaro song in it).  It was very enjoyable.  Although, I did have to switch seats at intermission because the lady sitting next to me must have accidentally spilled her entire bottle of perfume on herself before she arrived.

I took Kenzie with me to have my car serviced & ended up taking one of their convertibles for the afternoon.  It was exactly like my car on the inside (the color was different though) & Kenzie asked how they cut the top off our car.  She thought it was super cool.  A couple months later, I ended up getting one of these.  Now all she talks about is how she doesn't like it & asks when we are going to get our old car back because she doesn't like the wind blowing her hair.  And just so you know, we were parked when I took this.  Didn't want you to think I was driving and taking pictures.

Things that make Kenzie smile

One day it was raining and Kenzie was upset because everyone had to go inside.  After the rain stopped, we looked out and there was a double rainbow- a complete one!  Even though it was very clear and vivid in person, it was actually kind of hard to photograph; the colors wash out.  And the upper one is a little harder to see.  This is the best picture I got.  Since we live that the end of a cul-de-sac on a hill, the rainbow spanned over our street with the mountains in the background. 

Added bonus when it rains:  Cute rainboots. 

This is our next door neighbor, Samantha.  Kenzie thinks she is prettier than Hannah Montana (she really is) and cooler that just about anyone.  She is 16 and sometimes keeps Kenzie.  We invited her to go on a walk with us.

What that really meant was that Kenzie walked with Samantha and we were left behind and forgotten about as usual.  

Best thing about walking after the rain?  Splashing in the puddles, of course.

About a week later, we went to Anderson's princess birthday party.  Here they are modeling the crowns they crafted themselves.

Okay, so anyone wanting to make Kenzie happy now has the basic ingredients to make that happen.  Double rainbow?  Check. (although I'm sure a regular rainbow would work fine).  Cute rain boots?  Got 'em.  Doing anything at all with Samantha?  Check.  Splashing in puddles?  Yep.  Birthday with her bestie? Of course.

Mission accomplished.

Mini Trips

Have you ever been to Lake Winnipesaukah?  It's just past Chattanooga into Georgia.  I have always heard people talk about it, but had never been until July.  You know how fun the county fair is?  Well, it's like the county fair bolted to the ground.  But cleaner.  And with better rides.  And oh yes, the small lake in the middle.  They have all the same yummy fatten-you-right-up fair food and they are pretty inexpensive.  Anyway, we went and it was seriously fun (well, except for that one ride that takes you up and just drops you- that made me see my life flash before my eyes.  Not fun.). 

Also, there were these huge, huge carp in the lake so when you were on the lift ride that takes you across, you could see them from above. 

No carp in this picture, but I swear they were there.  They were about the size of Kenzie.  Seriously. 

I actually took quite a few pictures, but on this particular day, it was hot enough to make the devil sweat, so very few were post-worthy.  You can tell it's bright and hot by Kenzie's face- she's doing the "peep-eye".  That's what my grandmother would say when she would turn on the light in the morning when Collen and I would wake up at the farm.  When it's so bright you can only hold one eye open, that's the peep-eye.

Next up, The Lost Sea!

If you have never been to The Lost Sea, that's another place that is worth visiting.  It's this big cave near Sweetwater.  After you walk through for awhile, you end at a room with a lake.  And who doesn't enjoy a boat ride on an underground lake?  They stock the lake with rainbow trout but over time, due to there being no light in a cave, the fish lose their rainbow colors and also end up almost blind.  It's actually kind of sad now that I think about it. 

There are people who have gone diving way under the cave walls and found that the lake actually extends over twice as far into a different room, but it's entirely filled with water and no one knows how big that other room is (their sonar devices wouldn't reach any further).  Anyway, it's very interesting.  Kenzie wasn't really a fan at first.  I think she thought we were going to a haunted house or something.  It didn't help that once you're really far into the cave, they turn out the lights to show you how pitch-dark it really is.  On the way out there is this rock (shown above) that's supposed to give you good luck if you touch it.

Kenzie took the above picture.  I think she did a pretty good job for a four year old!

Kenzie is wearing a frog hat and Erin's is a pizza hat.  They are at the Crazy Hat Shop near the cave entrance.  I am still trying to figure out what crazy hats have to do with an underground lake.



Back in the Saddle

I am embarrassed.  No, seriously, I am.  It has been so long since my last post.  It's pitiful, really.  And I have no excuse; other than the fact that sometimes it's difficult to upload pictures correctly so I just quit instead of spending time trying to figure out what went wrong.    I just think posts are boring without pictures, you know?

So here is what I'm going to try.  Instead of playing catch-up all in one big swoop, I'm going to attempt to highlight past events every couple days.  I mean, the reason I even write this blog is to keep friends and family (especially those who refuse to do Facebook) updated about the happenings in our family.  If my past blogging habits were how anyone was keeping up with me, I could have been eaten by alligators for all they know!

So here we go.

Every year we go camping for the 4th of July.  And when I say camping, I don't mean rent a camper and "rough it" on the pull out couch.  I mean camp in a tent.  Sleep on the ground.  Build a fire.  Real camping.  I do require that there be a bathhouse somewhere nearby, but that's just for basic hygiene.  Plus Kenzie would flip out if she had to use the woods as a restroom.  The above picture is on the top of a mountain overlooking the Ocoee river. 

The cool thing about camping near the Ocoee, is getting to ride bikes or hike down to the river when they close the dam.  Then you can play on the rocks and even swim through long rock tunnels underwater.  I wasn't brave (crazy) enough to try that last year, but this year I was courageous (insane) enough to take the plunge.  Sadly, there is no photographic evidence of this, but Kyle and Erin will confirm that I did it.

 Kenzie being pretty

 One of the only pictures that exist of me with no makeup (& likely the last you'll ever see)

On a rock near our campsite

The sad thing is, I can't really remember all the amusing stuff that happened while we were there since it's been 3 months ago.  I can tell you that a copperhead snake fell out of a tree about 5 feet from the campfire and strangely, Kenzie and I were the only ones that didn't jump out of our chairs.  My reasoning was that (in my mind) snakes rarely jump out of a tall tree with the intentions of landing on someone to bite them.  I figured that he probably suffered a frustrating fall, was going to shake it off, and then try to climb the tree again.  And that's what he did.  He did fall 4 more times before reaching whatever height he was going for.  Alec was concerned that the snake would somehow make it into his tent while he was sleeping.  You know, because snakes can operate zippers and all. . .

The other funny thing was about my car.  I had just gotten a new G37 convertible (remember in that earlier post I said it was my last day in the G37?  Well this replaced that car.  See?  Tying all the posts together).  We always bring these little speakers that Erin will plug his iPhone into so we can listen to Pandora radio (which is an awesome app if you have never heard of it).  Well, he couldn't find the speakers and the iPhone doesn't sound all that great by itself so we decided to put the top down on my car and turn up the radio.  That was fine until we realized it was kind of loud so I pulled the car closer to the fire, put the top up, and rolled down the windows facing us so you could really only hear the music from one side.  After awhile, I got scared that all the smoke was going to suck into my car and ruin the new car smell, so Erin took a Neat Sheet (kind of like a blue fabric tarp) and anchored it to the top of the car with rocks so it fell over the window like a curtain.  And that's how we listened to music every night.  I'm going to try to find a picture; I'm pretty sure I have one.  It's more comical if you see it- I mean, is it a redneck sound system or is it a cool new car?  Who can tell?

It was a fun trip as always.  Except for when Kenzie and I were driving back and got rear-ended in the McDonalds drive through.  Did I mention my car still had temporary tags?  Sometimes I really think our last name is Murphy.  At least we have humorous stories to tell.