Mount Charleston

With a forcasted high of 112 in the valley we fled into the mountains this afternoon where it was only in the mid-80s. Cool enough to tunr off the ac and roll down the windows to enjoy the lovely mountain air. We hoped to hang out at the picnic area across the street from the ski lodge at the top of the mountain but it has already closed for the season. We did get to stretch our legs,buy some junk food and snap some pictures with Smokey at the visitor's center.

Little Gardener

Remy and a Green Ribbon

Oahu Bound (6 days to go!)

This afternoon Mom went with me to the Southern Nevada Health Department downtone to get Remy's birth certificate. We are flying out early Sunday morning and since he is going to be riding free I wanted to have it in case someone said "this handsome young man couldn't possibly be under two years old!" No one questioned us the first four times we flew with him, but that was when he still fit neatly under a blanket like a little bundle from heaven. Now he will be rolling into the airport with long arms, long legs, and, when he wants to, a fierce stare.

So yeah, proof will be at hand. Check.

Remy Pics

Remy's latest hang-out spot is the inside of one of those microfiber storage cubes. Nothing melts my heart like a baby in a box.

They're Here!

Mom and Dad's exciting cross country trek finished on Thursday morning when they drove the final stretch from Utah to Vegas and arrived here before lunch time. We are so, so happy to have them here!

Tory

This is Tory, also known as "The Garage Cat" because she grew up in a garage. Apparently you can not grow up in a garage without having some serious quirks. For example, when Tory is at least three feet of the ground she is as cool as a cucumber. She will let me look her in the face, pet her, insult her...all with admirable equanimity.

At all other elevations, however, I am utterly terrifying. A spector of doom who makes her heart pound and causes her to flee in a panic. This picture was snapped seconds before her flight instinct carried her off in a blur.

Poor Garage Cat!

Reading about Faith and Doubt

The Mormon Mirage by Latayne C. Scott

This has been a really eye opening read, and I am only on page 80. I get the feeling, reading this, that the author is being as restrained and respectful and she possibly can considering the outrageous fraud that has been perpetrated on so many well meaning people. It has got to be the greatest con pulled of in American history. And the thought that it is being perpetuated throughout the world...stunning.



Evolving in Monkey Town by Rachel Held Evans

I love Rachel Held Evans' blog and, being married to a passionate creationist, was drawn in by the title of this book. It doesn't just deal with creationism, but with a host of issues that are currently controversial within the Evangelical community - homosexuality, egalitarianism, hell and universalism, etc. The author doesn't try too hard to convince the reader one way or another on these issues, but talks in a conversational tone about the way her doubts have affected her life and faith. Her conclusion is that a vibrant faith is an evolving one.



Suspicion & Faith: The Religious Uses of Modern Atheism by Merold Westphal

Reading the above two books has reminded me that we don't need to run away from the tough questions, and made me think of this book, which was required reading in my philosophy class at Calvin College. While I don't think the challenges of Freud, Marx, and Nietzsche are as urgent to young Christians today as they once were, this book is a head on confrontation of atheism as well as a humble examination of their objections to Christianity and I credit it with giving me a more mature and thoughtful faith.

Oahu Bound (13 Days to Go!)

This necklace belonged to my great grandmother on my father's side. She left it to her daughter, who was a nun, and she left it to my mother, who was an orphan. (I think there is something really lovely about that - from a daughterless mother to a motherless daughter.) It is one of the most beautiful necklaces I have ever seen, and I am hoping I will get a chance to wear it for the first time on vacation. It is most likely not from the Pacific at all, but from Italy - still, it came from the water and it ought to be worn near the water!

15 Months Old

Remy last August and Remy now. He is still a bundle of love, but a much bigger one!

My Routine

In the previous post I mentioned my routine. It really has changed my life. I am a procrastinator, and like a lot of procrastinators, I found myself constantly consulting my feelings when deciding what to do. I wasted so much time and sabotaged myself in so many ways when I ran my day to day life like that. Now I try to run my life based on my predetermined routine and not only has it made my marriage better (because home is a peaceful place where Ross and I can relax and enjoy one another's company whenever he is not at work,) but I feel like it gives me greater autonomy from my feelings (anxiety, ambivalence, self-pity, etc.), which has always been a struggle for me. In case you are curious, here is my current routine. It is hardly strenuous, and I follow it with a reasonable amount of flexibility.

Weekly:

• Monday: Floors (this also includes dusting)
• Tuesday: Bathrooms
• Wednesday: Desk (mail, email, filing)
• Thursday: Bedding, menu planning, and grocery shopping
• Friday: Kitchen and catch-up (Meaning whatever I missed earlier in the week or something random like clean out the car or organize a closet.)
• Saturday: Family day
• Sunday: Faith day

Daily:
Wake up at 6:30, change the baby, get him a cup of milk and turn on the news. Make coffee and get dressed. Drink coffee, eat breakfast, check email and fb. Feed the baby. Put on baby show and water the plants. Start laundry and dishes. Get baby dressed. Make bed. Make husband's lunch. Sweep and clean up after cats. Put baby down for nap at 10am. Work on whatever the day's chore is and then spend the rest of the baby's nap reading or surfing the web. Eat my lunch and feed the cats at 11am. Baby wakes up at 12:30. Feed him lunch and then play with him. Put baby in stroller and go get mail around 1:45pm. If there are any errands to run, do it after picking up the mail. Around 3 o'clock give baby his snack, fold and put away laundry, and unload or load the dishwasher. At 4 I usually put him in his pack n play even though he rarely takes a second nap. He's cranky at this point and it seems to soothe him and give him some down time. 5pm baby eats dinner. I start dinner for me and Ross and then give baby a bath at 6. At 6:30 I text Ross letting him know dinner is ready and it's time to think about coming home (or that I was too tired to make dinner and he should pick up something on his way home.) At 7pm put Remy in pack n play with a sippy cup and put on a show to wind him down for bed. Put him in bed at 7:30. Pick up the living room. Relax with Ross. I usually leave the kitchen as is at night. Get myself to bed by 10:30.

What's Up

Hey all, I'm over due for a blog update and yet I can't formulate a coherent paragraph so...it's LIST TIME!!!!

• Mom and Dad will be here by this time next week. (((wild applause)))
• My 15 month old baby is like, 4 feet tall. At least that's what it feels like when I am carrying his limp sleeping body from the pack n play to his crib.
  
• The Willow Creek Association's Global Leadership Summit kicked off today, complete with a controversy. Between that and Rachel Held Evans/ Donald Miller exchange yesterday I have been glued to twitter.
  
• The evangelical drama has been a much needed distraction from the junior high drama going on in my online mommy group. (No offense if you are from the group and you read this, I just don't like the popularity contests and the penis jokes. I am old and prissy.)
  
• Bought a cake at the grocery store today. Ross is out playing 40k with his buddies so that means I get said cake all to myself. It also means I get to watch Antiques Road Show. But I am not. Instead I am writing this lame blog post.
  
• It's hot! Things that were fun in May are almost unbearable now. Remy is as red as a lobster by the time we get back from the mailbox. I think we are ready for fall.
  
• Am thankful every day that I have a routine. Routine, routine, routine. It's not very glamorous but I am pretty sure it is the only thing that has saved me from being a terrible SAHM.
• That's it for this blog post! Gonna go watch the last 8 minutes of Antiques Road Show. Which I am pretty sure is going to be mostly the "sponsored by" stuff.
  

Doctor Who

I have been watching Mad Men and Game of Thrones during the mid-season break of Doctor Who and I am so ready for the Doctor to come back and inject a little of his decency and optimism into my tv viewing! There is only so much desperation and meaningless sex I can stomach in my "entertainment." The second half of season 6 premieres on August 27th. (((squeee!)))

Season 6 Part I Recap

Season 6 Part II Preview

Rough Week for Monkey

Remy has barely had a chance to catch his breath between molars this week. Buckets of drool, late nights, tiny teeth marks in unexpected places, and lots of minutes logged rocking together in the rocking chair.

Dog Days of Summer

We haven't been to the park in over a month. It is just too hot! We could go in the morning when it is cooler, but that is my drink-three-cups-of-coffee-while-stumbling-around-cleaning-the-house-and-checking-the-blogs time and I think the world would end if I messed with that. I know when Mom and Dad get here we will have plenty of motivation to leave the air conditioned splendor of the apartment, but until then when I need some fresh air I just go out on the balcony for a few minutes. Thank God for whoever invented balconies!

Anyway, the balcony garden seems to be doing much better this summer. Part of that is due to a cooler summer (cooler being a relative term), and the other part is that I am a more conscientious waterer than I was when I had a newborn to care for. When plants are competing with the cutest baby in the world for your attention they don't fare so well.

My little pretties. The Rose Moss continue to bloom, even if the blooms are a little smaller and sparser.

Remy Playing (Video)

Remy is such a boy, he loves playing with anything with wheels . Here is a video from last week of him playing with his toy buses.

It's August!

In theory I am all about living in the moment, but the truth is that these days I am living in the future and the future (parent's move and vacation) is happening THIS MONTH! Hooray for August!

Mom and Dad are planning to hit the road on the 14th or 15th. The drive will take three or four days and then they will arrive in fabulous Las Vegas! Yesterday I transplanted two of my Rose Moss plants to new pots for them to take to their new apartment. Earlier in the week I bought new sheets for the guest bed so they won't have to sleep on flannel sheets during their visit before their apartment move-in. And some of their boxes have already started arriving via the postal service! It's all very exciting!

(Parents will live in this apartment until the condo business is worked out.)

The other big thing, of course, is the vacation. I bought a new memory card for the camera today. The old one only held about 170 pictures - that would clearly be a disaster on a week-long vacation in Oahu. This one holds 1500 8 megapixel jpgs. Yeah, that is more like it! Soon I will start making lists of what we need to pack. I am even excited about packing!

What fun things do you have planned for August? Or are you more excited about autumn being right around the corner?