bloom where you're planted

I am not much of a gardener. I have a bush in my front flower bed. I don't know what kind of bush it is. We bought our home last summer and I haven't figured out most of the plants yet. I don't really like it. It has to be trimmed almost weekly or it looks terrible and I have been thinking about ripping it out rather than have it look unkempt much of the time. Yesterday it bloomed. It is covered in some sort of tiny fuschia flower. I love them. I know they must not last long but just for those flowers in the spring I will keep it. I am yearning for a lilac bush and wishing I had planted tulips last fall. All over the city everything is just starting to flower. I can't believe how pleased I feel every time I see a cherry blossom or a daffodil. Wisconsin did not really have much of a spring, it was winter until about May 10 and summer started on the 15th. I had no idea how much I had missed it. Kansas is really good at spring and my heart is happy to see it.

nothing of consequence

Nothing terribly earthshaking in Kansas this week. All the action was at Nate's house in Utah (see previous posts). We went to three Easter egg hunts- Tommy only sort of gets the idea. He finds the goodies inside the plastic eggs very distracting and forgets what he is doing, It took all day to find the twenty or so eggs that I hid around the living room. It was surprisingly fun to get coordinating outfits for the boys. Of course they both had spots on them before we even left the house. I went "antiquing" for the first time yesterday, I found a great side table for the living room and a chair for my bedroom as well as several odds and ends. It was great fun. Tommy had the whole week off from school. It was really great to have no schedule for about two days. We are schedule people and can't wait to get back to regular life this week, we need to be busy, we're happier that way. I went for my first run. Four miles. I cheated, but only a little and not as much as I expected. I also didn't hate it as much as I remembered. I didn't love it, but there is more hope than I expected at this point. Spring is finally here and the Tommy comes in every evening covered in dirt, leaves, grass, water or some combination of the previous. I love little boys.

Welcome Baby

Tommy and Johnny Daniels are pleased to introduce their brand new cousin,

Chase David Kofford. Hooray!

Busy day

Nate and his wife Diana have had a very busy 24 hours. Yesterday they found out that Nate will be spending his residency at Dartmouth. Today their first child was born. A little boy, 5lbs. 6ozs, 19 inches, healthy and happy. So delighted for all three of you.

Run, Lola, Run.

I want to be a runner. People are always talking about how much they love running. They run races every weekend. They have t-shirts from all their races. They casually mention how they went "for a run" in conversations. They have really great bodies, no fat anywhere. It's all very attractive. I firmly believe that running is the thing that will finally help me get rid of the last of my baby weight. There is only one problem. I really hate running. I don't like to be uncomfortable and I am just a little lazy. For some reason these things are not issues in the gym. I can do the elliptical for hours. I can kickbox all day. Power yoga is my favorite thing ever. When I try to go for a run, I get all whiny. I have tried to start running several times but I can never get past the first few weeks. This time is going to be different. I have retrieved the fancy running shoes that I bought the last time I decided to be a runner and this time I am going to wear them out. I am not allowed to give up due to dislike until at least Thanksgiving. If I don't like it by then, there is nothing that can be done for me. I am going to run races and get t-shirts and casually mention my morning run. So, all you runners out there, tell me why I am going to love it and how it's going to change my life, just to get me through that first few weeks.

If I had a hammer...

I am the proud owner of three can-openers. They are the old-fashioned, handcrank kind. I only use them a few times a week. Today I found that they had all disappeared. All three of them. In one day. I had to open the black beans with a bottle opener. I looked in every drawer and cupboard. No can openers. I asked Ty-no idea. I finally found one. It was in the backyard in the back of Tommy's favorite dump truck. When I asked Tommy about it I was informed that the dump truck had needed a new crane and ,"no, thank you," I could not have it back.

(photo by Sara Weihn)

just breathe

I love my yoga class. I do yoga almost every day but on Saturday I go to a 90 minute class at the gym. It shouldn't be that big of a deal. It's 90 minutes right? But for 90 minutes every week I get to focus on nothing else but my own breathing. No one will interrupt. Everyone in the room will do their very best to make sure that I am not distracted. I get to focus all my energy and concentration completely inward and only on myself. Pretty selfish. It's lovely. Tommy has joined his first soccer team and his game schedule means that I can't go to my Saturday class. I am going to pay a babysitter so that I can go to a different class on another day. A friend asked if I couldn't just skip the class for eight weeks since I practice on my own anyway. Nope, I will be there every week, breathing.

Johnny

Johnny is six months old. He is 14 lbs 13 ozs. (10th percentile)and 27 1/2 inches tall (60th percentile). He is almost sitting up and has 3 1/2 teeth. He is smiling and laughing and lots of fun. He scoots around on his head (strangely enough) and rolls to get where he wants to go. His very favorite person in the world is his brother. He can't concentrate on anything else if Tommy is in the room, not even dinner. I would never have guessed a few months ago when we were in the throws of colic that he would be such a pleasant and joyful baby. (Photo by Sara Wiehn)

where the heart is

Here in Kansas we are having our first really big thunderstorm of the season. I love storms here. The rain pours down in sheets, the sky is purple and the lightening lights up the whole house. We got home from St. George just in time. We had a wonderful time seeing all of our friends and running around in the lovely 70 degree weather, but we missed what has, surprisingly quickly, become home. The kids loved to see all the grandparents, Zions, Red Rocks and all the new friends (all of our friends' children whom he has never met because we so seldom go home). The baby stopped sleeping through the night and Tommy managed to catch that version of the flu not covered by the vaccine. Ty played video games with his brothers every night and went climbing during the day. I had lots of Grandmas to play with and ooh and aaah over my children. It was wonderful. There is , however, nothing like walking into your own house after an extended period away from home. I love that sense of instant well-being that comes with being home. I put my babies to sleep in their own beds and put my shoes in my very own closet, sigh. So happy to be home.