M.I.A.

Family pics by our family friend, Becky Farrell. Love!!

So I've been missing on my favorite little side project for more than a while. At some point, when I'm 35 or 40 or 70 I'll be real pissed that I forgot to write down some of the super fun stuff going on with the kids over this entire period. Just real pissed.

We've done some big stuff over the past three months that I failed to chronicle. Derrick registered Ellie for kindergarten. I can't believe it. She'll be going to the neighborhood school this fall and she's pretty excited. She's doing really well with her numbers and letters recently (thanks iPad) and she's even getting her own version of the cool technology for her birthday. (I'm pretty sure it's just so she stops asking to download apps onto Pope's iPad.)

Ellie turned 5 this week. She's big and smart and amazing. And real sassy. And exactly like me when it comes to controlling and planning everything. EVERYTHING. I have to give her an itinerary for the next day every night at bedtime or she won't go to bed....

Parker is well on his way to actually being potty-trained and real "big boy who wears underpants" if we could actually get anyone in this house healthy enough to work on real potty-training. The kids have been sick on and off since January.  And Pope has been sick for three months straight. Of course moms don't get sick, though. Because if they did who would take care of all the sickies!?!

And Parker is registered for pre-school, too. I don't actually know what I'll do with myself with they are both in school this fall. Madness, I say. Absolute madness. I'll probably just fill up the time with work because I'm cool like that. I like to stuff my self a little full. 5 open minutes in the day? Fill it with something, STAT!! But it will definitely be exciting and I just can't believe how quickly we went from having "babies" to having "kids."

And our kids will be celebrating said birthdays with a big olde family party in the coming weeks. We've booked our family holiday to the coast for this summer. I dusted off the old grill last week to make carne asade. SO GOOD. I'm getting this grilling thing down. Mr. Pope better watch his back. Tonight is blue-cheese macaroni and BBQ chicken. I love cooking in my cute little kitchen with the windows open and the kids playing. Well, Ellie is playing. Parker is sleeping because he's sick...

We're getting back to it. Fun stuff to come for the Popes.

A little country...

Don't judge me. I just got home from Houston. And this song is real purdy...

Our Last Visit to the Christmas Museum....

Merry Christmas!

The Pope Family

Too Much Living, Not Enough Blogging

So I've been remiss in blogging. I blog to remind myself of the awesome things that happen in my day, my life, my world. And yet I've been too busy to write these things down lately. I love to write. And more than that, I love to go back and read what has been. Soon.

Soon, I'll write all about Thanksgiving and how yummy all the food was and how we got to see so much family.  Soon I'll write about the pecan pie I made Pope for his birthday and the awesome lunch we had at Japiox drinking bloodies and eating sushi and laughing our faces off.  Soon I'll write about Eliana and her super-sweet rendition of "Santa Clause is Coming to Town," and how she is refusing to wear the crazy cute plaid dress I got her for her Christmas pageant.  Soon I'll write about how excited I am for Christmas and how all Parker wants is a set of "Spiderman Squinkies" that I had to order off Amazon two weeks ago for $42.00 as they were already sold out in stores and now they are running about $245.00. That's insane.

And soon I'll write about all of the joy and blessings and gifts I have been given in the form or friends and family and opporutnity that keeps me from a regular blog ritual.

Soon.

Date Nights & Girl Parties

As we're back to the whole school season, which I will be "going back to" for the next 20 years,  we've been crazy busy with all of the fun things that school and fall bring.

On one particular Saturday afternoon, with Ellie at a birthday party, I had the pleasure of taking Parker out to dinner. Solo. I don't think Parker and I have ever done something just for fun and just for us. It was awesome. He talked his face off, played with the other kids without the super friend big sister to pave the way for him, and drank my whole milk shake. He's a sweetheart. And an excellent date. I got lots of kisses but all in all he was a perfect gentleman. 

You're welcome future grown-up Parker girlfriends. You're welcome.

Mr. Pope aka Mr. Baby

And as Ellie now goes to school four days a week, one of those being our Monday Funday, Derrick is able to stay home and sleep in with Parker while the girls get up and go to school.  Eliana LOVES the girl time. She calls them our "Girl Parties." And she races out the door to make sure it's just us in the car and she'll get every ounce of my attention. She started a great tradition and now I love Monday mornings, too.

My Litte Miss

I love that my little buddies like each other so much, but I love my time with each of them on their own. They are big, smart, amazing people stuck in tiny little bodies. And they teach me something new everyday.

Funny

Kick It!!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Favorite Things

@ Toast for Grandma Barbie's b-day

I have to write down the things that the little Popes love so I can remember when I'm 80.

Eliana:
Puzzles! She completed her very first one ALL by herself. She says she gets "distracted" from her other activities because she just wants to work on puzzles all the time.
Her friend Danika. Seriously. She has a BFF.
School. She loves it. She can't wait to bring Spinner the class pet home for the weekend.
Picking out her own clothes. This one has been a long-time coming as she's always been picky - but now she's out-grown pretty much everything all at once and I think I am actually going to have to take her shopping for the first time. How is this happening?
The library. She wants to go all the time. And she loves picking out Dr. Seuss DVDs.
Gum. She's old enough for gum.

Parker:
He loves music! He tells me what all of his favorite songs are. He says they're "pretty cool." His favs are LMAFO "Party Rock Anthem" (the Shuffle song) and Foster the People "Pumped Up Kicks."

One of my favorite things....

Veggie Tales. Oh gosh.
Spiderman! We've left the world of Batman and ventured over to Spiderman. He's Spiderman for Halloween this year.
Comic books
His Batman slippers. Okay, so he still loves Batman.
Jellybeans
Gum. He is not old enough for gum. He immediately says, "I put it in my tubby."
Asparagus. For real.

All That Happy

Lindsey's "Making Monsters" Cake!!

Somethings are better in your head. Others end up surpassing even your most optimistic expectations.  Our trip to Missoula, MT for the premiere of "Making Monsters" fell into that latter category.  Seeing everyone who worked on the show was amazing.  As as one person summed it up so wonderfully, "everyone was so joyful."

It was true.

I am grateful for my part in the show. I'm partial to episode 103 with the Roswell Aliens. I can't wait to see it!! But all of the elements came together to make a great product. (OK, I'm partial to the entire thing, but that's what you get. This is my blog.)

For starters, I'm moderately in love with everyone on the crew. What can I say, I have a lot of love to give. I love talented people. And there are a lot of them on the crew. It was fun to see them with their families and girlfriends and lives outside the warehouse. I think I hugged everyone 10,000 times.

Ellie and Parker stayed at home with the grandparents and actually watched the show too at their own little premiere party at our house. Eliana loved it. (I'm a little worried what will come up at her Christian preschool this week....) and Parker told me it was "Pretty scary but the monsters are just pretend." Good job, little man. And thanks to all of our family who make it so easy for us to get away for a day or two.

And as always, Mr. Pope was my biggest champion. He always has been. He stood outside the room where I defended my Honors Thesis ten years ago just so he could be the first to congratulate me on being a big smarty pants and getting to publish a thesis at 21. And he's still the exact same way. That blows me away....

It all makes me "joyful."

The Customer is....big boned?

Like most folks, I spend a fair amount of time online.  I'm home ALL DAY. This is how I get big stuff done. I order the kids clothes. I buy furniture. I use all of the cooking websites. I chat with Derrick. We keep Amazon in business...let it not be said that we aren't doing our patriotic duty to stimulate the economy.

And so, since I really want a new dinning room table and chairs I've been looked at some online. I'm not actually going to buy something new - I think I'll just re-stain the one that I have (and love.)  But I've noticed that the art of buying furniture online comes with something both awesome and annoying: customer reviews.  

If I look at new chairs online I might see something like, "These chairs are cute but they are flimsy and broke the first time I sat in one. I'd like to see them have much more structural support." This is good information from some lady in New York who shops at Crate & Barrel six times a year and is a 5Star reviewer. But what's missing is something very important.  How much does she weight?

I think about this all the time and apparently I'm a jerk for wanting a little clarification.  If I weigh less than 500 lbs and you, as a reviewer, weigh more than 500 lbs, well, then we have different needs in chairs. But how am I do know this if the information is lacking in the review?!? 

In a world of information all I want is a little frame of reference, something to qualify all of said info. Everyone likes to blab about themselves all day long online, so lets make some of it useful.

If people want to review a restaurant in the neighborhood I want to know how often they eat out and how often they send food back. And if they've ever worked in the restaurant biz before I trust their judgement. 

If someone complains about a mechanic down the street I want to know how often they change their oil and if they know how to change a flat tire. That should just be a standard qualification before you start complaining about people who know things about cars.

Complaining about a company you've worked for? I want to know how many jobs you've had, how often you're late, and how many days of work you missed while employed there before I believe that the management there is unfair in their personal-leave policy.

Let's start setting some standards here people! A little information goes a long way.

"Making Monsters"

I had the amazing good fortune this year to get to work as a producer on the new Travel Channel series, "Making Monsters." I had the most fun with some of the very best, most talented people.  I'm so excited to see the show and hope you all will like it too!

"Making Monsters" premieres Sunday, October 2nd at 9PM EST on the Travel Channel. Check it out!

More videos and information here @ the Travel Channel.

True dat

Source: sawdustcityllc.com via Amy on Pinterest

And this is cool, too:
"V is for Veronica"

The Good Stuff

I come from a family that loves food. All good things include food. Good food. So it's no surprise that all of Ellie and Parker's favorite things of late are based on the quality of the food supplied at the event. Naturally the winners are 1.) The Wheat Ridge Carnation Parade (hello!?!? buckets of candy!!) and 2.) camping out in the backyard over Labor Day Weekend (S'mores!! And BBQ!! And cinnamon rolls!!)

Thanks Mom for the fun at the Parade. Thanks to Wendy & Cole for the awesome camp out. Thanks to all of our friends for taking such good care of us over the past few weeks. We needed a little love. And when the love comes in the form of Mt. Dew Cake, it's even better.

Moods

Mr. Pope feels like this.....sans binky.

And since Parker looks EXACTLY like Mr. Pope we'll just say this is Mr. Pope's recovery photo.

I feel like this: old & thoughtful.

Parker feels like a smarty-pants. He's telling us everything about everything.

Next week the Binky Fairy comes for his binkies....

Ellie feels like an awesome big sister. She's been reading lots of books.

And we all feel better having the Washington Popes here to take care of us.

Quotes of the Day:

1.) "Parker - you eat so much guacamole, I'm gonna call you 'Parkermole!!'" - Elles Bells

2.) "I wanna watch the Batman Movie!! One more time." - Parkermole

3.) "I just want a little bit of water for the water table...." - Colester

4.) "People should ask me questions. I'm drugged and brutally honest." - Mr. Pope

Energy

I'm one of those people who is both religious and not. I suppose some might see it as non-conformist and others might see it as flat-out lazy - but that's okay with me. I find faith to be an incredibly personal thing. I know lots of people have to go to church and publicly confess their beliefs or discuss them openly with anyone willing to listen - but that's not me.

But, nonetheless, I'm frequently struck by the grace of God. And I feel the energy of our lives coming together in the little moments and the in-betweens. They say you should just keep moving. Waiting for your life to happen to you will leave you empty and lonely and with little to show for your time. So we just keep going. And I just hope our energy is keeping us from having regrets, or getting caught up in self-pity, or falling into anger.

Ellie is getting ready to go back to school in the next few weeks. Four days a week! I can hardly believe it. She's four going on 22. And she's decided full on that she's an awesome big sister. She reads to Parker everyday. Sings him songs and plays with him in a mostly awesome manner. And Parker's Batman obsession is just about the funniest thing our house has ever seen. I've started a photo essay tentatively entitled, "I'm Your Batman." More to come on that...

And Mr. Pope, version 3.0, is just now out of surgery. I'm waiting to go back and see his blue eyes gleam when he first sees me, just like they've done every time he's looked at me for last 10 years.

And we'll just keep going.

Blame it on the Rain?

Something cool that happened #1: I met this guy!

I'm feeling a little gloomy - and I don't typically like to put stuff out into the universe when I'm gloomy. One - I'm usually too honest and people feel the need to set me up for emotional interventions. Two - I'm not into bad karma. It's all about positivity - baby. But I kind of feel like my summer to date has been measured by checks; by mass of amounts of money floating out the door.

Don't get me wrong - they have gone to purchase some cool stuff. Well, maybe warm stuff - a new furnace and hot water heater. And a new roof. And now a refinished and re-designed back porch for my sunset-watching and wine-drinking enjoyment. And Mr. Pope's possible ongoing and possible improving health....

All good things.

Something cool that happened #2: Tiny Town

But the process of getting all the stuff done is always so much more difficult than the process of just enjoying the stuff. Enjoying the summer. That part is easy - we've hit up Water World already this year and had THE MOST fun. We've been to the splash park, visited the dinosaurs at the mall, built sand castles, been to super-hot summer birthday parties, fun trips around the city, and had great dinners with family and old friends and new friends.

And we're trying to figure out how to get new carpet in the house before the holidays - which means I'd also love to get Mr. Parker potty-trained before we invest in pee-free carpet. And we've got two or three trips on the horizon before summer actually closes it's doors for the season. So many plans - they should lift my spirits and give me stuff to work on. I'm nothing without something to work on.

Something cool that happened #3: Parker got a haircut.

And I'm thinking of our friends and family who could probably use some thoughts and prayers - for all of the stuff that life throws at us....the happy and the sad. I'm working on being hopeful and yet, content. And wish this for all of those who need it now, too.

More to come with happier stories and irresistible pictures of my adorable children, sure to turn any frown upside down.

Drive Me Crazy....

Mr. Pope sent me this. It's pretty funny and I'm moderately convinced he wrote it himself. Plus, I think it's a sign...

A sign that we've been together for a very long time.

Please to enjoy....

6 Ways To Drive Your Partner Wild in Bed
via Aiming Low by DanielleH on 6/22/11

It seems like Cosmopolitan and other lady mags have advice on how to titillate your partner in bed every month. Try as they might, they often miss the mark.

Here’s the inside scoop on six surefire ways you can drive your partner wild in bed.

1. Be sure to wear your oldest, largest t-shirt to bed, the one with holes in it that hangs at an unflattering angle against your bloated, candy-filled belly. Nothing says “ugh, not tonight” like an improvised Homer Simpson costume. Nothing will drive them crazier!

2. Make sure their side of the bed is filled with books, headphones, newspapers, magazines and anything else that screams “I’ve been here for hours.” Your partner will go from zero to RAGE as you move things around for ten minutes, lights shining in their face as they try to sleep and you try to clean up.

3. Eat something that produces an unbelievable amount of crumbs while leaning over their side of the sheets. Watch them FREAK OUT and rip the sheets off the bed with passionate abandon!

4. If at all possible, develop a stress-induced sleep disorder that involves accidental and completely involuntary kicking and punching. Nothing says HOT like being punched in the back unexpectedly, or repeated kicks in the shins. The surprise sleep attack will keep them guessing, and add SPICE to an otherwise dull, sleep-filled evening.

5. Nothing says “let’s do this” like sleeping corner-to-corner. Take up as much room as possible by stretching your body diagonally across the center of the bed, forcing your partner into the fetal position. They’ll either sleep so soundly they’ll develop rigor mortis, or relent and roll over onto you. Hot!

6. You’re hot. You’re cold. You’re hot. You’re cold. You can’t make up your mind about the blankets because your sexy, sexy body has a mind all its own. It might be too early for perimenopause, but your partner doesn’t have to know that! Keep them guessing by throwing the blankets to the ground only to commandeer the blanket entirely moments later! Their blood will boil with excitement. You are a wild stallion!

Transitional

We've had a lot of doctor's appointments lately. Parker had his 2 year check up last month and Ellie had her 4 year check up at the beginning of this month. And yes, both of these appointments were late in comparison to when they actually turned 2 and 4. That's how I roll.

They are such good, strong, healthy kids. We know we are blessed. The docs always end up saying they are "small but mighty." I suppose it's true. Tough little guys. Emphasis on little....

But from both Eliana's (wonderful) Pre-school teacher and her (lovely) doctor we've heard that Eliana probably has a tough time with "transitions." This is another one of those, "Really?!? I hadn't noticed," moments for Mr. Pope and me. And that, my friends, is sarcasm.

It's obvious. She doesn't like to switch from one thing to the next.

But as I was scrubbing out the highly desired and overly-used gigantic bathtub in our bathroom the other day I had an epiphany. Yeah, no one really does well transitions, at all, ever, anyway. Mr. Pope had surgery and our life kind of stopped for 8 weeks. I still feel like I can't go do stuff all by myself with the kids because it's too hard when that clearly isn't the case anymore, they do great but I'm still a sissy. We've been in this house for over a year and I still feel like we just moved in.....

The list can go on and on. I guess we're not very good with transitions. Ellie came by in honestly, apparently it's genetic.

And now I'll be working for the next few weeks and we'll have to transition into that as well.

Parker will flip out and wake up all night long (like he needs an excuse). Ellie will ask every single morning, "Who's coming over today?!?" And then be sad when I come home for good and the grandma and papa visits slow down.

And then it will all be over and we'll have to transition into something else entirely...

Quotes of the Day:

"HaHa in the hole!!" ~ Parker, when he sticks the heads of all of his Batman figures into the holes in the coffee table. ("Haha" is Joker. "Hahahahaha Batman!!")
"Don't mind if I do!" ~ Elle when being offered some dip for her chicken nuggets.

Did You Ever Have a Dream?!?

Nailed It!!

Around the World

We've entered the season of a million activities. Seriously. If we have one thing to do it's because we've had to turn down five other fun things to do. This is a combination of way too many friends and family members making great invitations and our general inclination to want to do everything and nothing all at once. Making the rounds is exhausting. And so much fun.

Our Memorial Day Weekend was fantastic. The kiddos and I joined my family in Boulder for the Boulder Creek Fest on Saturday morning. We had the BEST time with Grandma & Papa Jones and "The Girls." Breakfast at Turley's where the waitress said Ellie and Park could have whatever they wanted because they were just about the best little kiddos she's ever waited on. Good job guys. Babes, you made out with a yummy breakfast and a TON of new crayons as that was her gift to you. And I got a huge delicious latte and the gift of drinking it while it was still hot.

At the festival we bought super cute hats (Parker's has green TRUCKS!! and Elle's has a super-cute flower and a bee), danced on the HipHop stage, got Kettle Korn, ran into some friends, road the train and jumped in the Jumpy Castle, and got Bubble Shooters from Papa Jim.

Sunday was park day with Aunt Wendy & Cole. The Arvada slide park is too much fun. And the fountain park and the ice cream from Old Town was my favorite part of the day. Mr. Pope was EXHAUSTED after the trip...but it's good to start getting out of the house and doing some fun stuff again. And we loved our time with the Velez family.

Monday was dinner with the family. Uncle Chris, just home from the Philippines, brought Parker a "Jeepney" and Eliana a Korean doll. And I got some cat poop coffee. Really. It's a thing in the Philippines. A story for another day....

But really, these kids get the coolest souvenirs. Philippine trucks! Race cars from Japan. Mexican art. Canadian Moose and the much coveted Roots hoodies! Russian dolls. Kazakhstan tops. Our family name carved into the same stone that built the Kremlin.

We get love from all corners of the world. We are so very lucky. It makes me think of a song...

And I've been obsessed with Daft Punk since high school...so I have to post this one too as Parker saw it started shouting, "ROBOTS!!!"Ahhh, Robots!!" That little kiddo - warms my heart. (Watch until at least the middle. It is clever....)