Tuesday, September 8, 2009
My brother Jason, Norte Maar, & Jack Tworkov
My brother, Jason Andrew, an artist and art curator, and founder of the non-profit organization, Norte Maar, is the archivist & curator for the Jack Tworkov estate. The New York Times recently featured a piece in their art review about Jack Tworkov. My brother, Jason, has organized an exhitibition highlighting 50 years of Tworkov's work, which will run through the end of October. Check out the NY Times article here.
Monday, September 7, 2009
The 2 1/2 year old come-back
This is what Rebecca & Mary-Gail say to me when they're mad at me or want to be quick-whitted and use a come-back:
"You a boy!"
And this is what they say to Tony when they're mad at him:
"You a girl! Mommy's in charge. Mommy's the boss."
Oh, what's not to love about my girls. I love my twiners!
"You a boy!"
And this is what they say to Tony when they're mad at him:
"You a girl! Mommy's in charge. Mommy's the boss."
Oh, what's not to love about my girls. I love my twiners!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
We lasted 18 minutes last week (Draft dated: 7/19/09)
That's how long we were at church last Sunday - 18 minutes. Church is at 1:00 pm, just in time for naps. Rebecca was particularly tired (more so than usual) and her 2-year old coping-skills had evaporated in the 90 degree heat. On the other hand, Mary-Gail was particularly mischievous and quite the tease, which lead to Rebecca's breakdown.
We all know that Mary-Gail has her blanket, her "Tickah," which is vital & completely necessary if we want to calm the child down, which is why I always bring it to church with us. Rebecca wanted the blanket, because she was super tired and wanted a blanket to go to sleep. However, Mary-Gail would not let anyone touch her Tickah. Never before has Rebecca wanted a blanket with her at church, so I never bring one. But when Mary-Gail stubbornly objected to sharing her Tickah with Rebecca, Rebecca dramatically collapsed, fell off the bench, and hit her head on the song-book holder in front of us. I was wrestling with Mary-Gail to be quiet (Mary-Gail was livid because as Rebecca fell off the bench, she grabbed for something to catch her and it happened to be Mary-Gail's Tickah); Tony was trying to calm Rebecca, and the Deacons were getting ready to bless the Sacrament. Tony swept Rebecca off the floor and hustled out the doors before the Sacrament prayer began - I stayed seated with Mary-Gail.
We received the bread, and of course, Mary-Gail wanted more (and she doesn't whisper when she wants something either). I passed the bread onwards, and glanced back at Mary-Gail. Mary-Gail had a terrible mischievous smile on her face, and I quickly found out why when she showed me her finger. She had picked her nose, and on her pointer finger was a booger nearly an inch long!! I quickly (and as discretely as I could) wrapped her boogered finger in her Tickah, only to notice there were blood spots dropping onto the blanket. Mary-Gail's nose was bleeding - a fountain of blood! Oh my goodness!!!
I used Mary-Gail's Tickah to wipe her nose, lip, & mouth off. Then I wrestled with the diaper bag to get a wet-wipe to wipe my shirt off, and to wipe the back of the bench off (there was blood everywhere!). I tried cradling Mary-Gail in my arms with her head lowered a bit (to try and get her nose to stop gushing), but Mary-Gail was flailing like I was drowning her. It seemed as though she & I were the only two people making noise during the Sacrament; or maybe everyone was just holding their breath as they watched us (maybe they were thinking they were glad it wasn't them).
I could still her Rebecca screaming bloody-murder in the foyer, and realized she & Tony were not coming back in. I snatched the diaper bag, wrapped Mary-Gail's body in her Tickah and hustled out the doors - thankfully before the Deacons began the prayer on the water.
We all know that Mary-Gail has her blanket, her "Tickah," which is vital & completely necessary if we want to calm the child down, which is why I always bring it to church with us. Rebecca wanted the blanket, because she was super tired and wanted a blanket to go to sleep. However, Mary-Gail would not let anyone touch her Tickah. Never before has Rebecca wanted a blanket with her at church, so I never bring one. But when Mary-Gail stubbornly objected to sharing her Tickah with Rebecca, Rebecca dramatically collapsed, fell off the bench, and hit her head on the song-book holder in front of us. I was wrestling with Mary-Gail to be quiet (Mary-Gail was livid because as Rebecca fell off the bench, she grabbed for something to catch her and it happened to be Mary-Gail's Tickah); Tony was trying to calm Rebecca, and the Deacons were getting ready to bless the Sacrament. Tony swept Rebecca off the floor and hustled out the doors before the Sacrament prayer began - I stayed seated with Mary-Gail.
We received the bread, and of course, Mary-Gail wanted more (and she doesn't whisper when she wants something either). I passed the bread onwards, and glanced back at Mary-Gail. Mary-Gail had a terrible mischievous smile on her face, and I quickly found out why when she showed me her finger. She had picked her nose, and on her pointer finger was a booger nearly an inch long!! I quickly (and as discretely as I could) wrapped her boogered finger in her Tickah, only to notice there were blood spots dropping onto the blanket. Mary-Gail's nose was bleeding - a fountain of blood! Oh my goodness!!!
I used Mary-Gail's Tickah to wipe her nose, lip, & mouth off. Then I wrestled with the diaper bag to get a wet-wipe to wipe my shirt off, and to wipe the back of the bench off (there was blood everywhere!). I tried cradling Mary-Gail in my arms with her head lowered a bit (to try and get her nose to stop gushing), but Mary-Gail was flailing like I was drowning her. It seemed as though she & I were the only two people making noise during the Sacrament; or maybe everyone was just holding their breath as they watched us (maybe they were thinking they were glad it wasn't them).
I could still her Rebecca screaming bloody-murder in the foyer, and realized she & Tony were not coming back in. I snatched the diaper bag, wrapped Mary-Gail's body in her Tickah and hustled out the doors - thankfully before the Deacons began the prayer on the water.
Lovey & I both looked at each other exasperated and said, "One word...Nightmare!" We lasted 18 minutes at church - from arrival to exit.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
The hired help
Becca said to me as I was cleaning the bathroom (8/25/09):
"I do it Mommy? OK? OK? I help?" and she was so cute as she said it, because she nodded her head "yes" and mouthed "OK, OK," after she asked me. Is she aware of subliminal messages already?
And then I said to her:
"Will you wait so I can get the camera and take a picture of you?" (I found that I was nodding my head "Yes" as I spoke to her).
And she said:
"Yes, I will."
"I do it Mommy? OK? OK? I help?" and she was so cute as she said it, because she nodded her head "yes" and mouthed "OK, OK," after she asked me. Is she aware of subliminal messages already?
And then I said to her:
"Will you wait so I can get the camera and take a picture of you?" (I found that I was nodding my head "Yes" as I spoke to her).
And she said:
"Yes, I will."
Cleaning toilets is serious work
And while I was thus distracted helping Rebecca clean our toilets, I found this little critter pushing all of Daddy's buttons in his office. He's going to love that! :O)
The house that spells (Draft dated: 10/27/08)
Rebeccan & Mary-Gail have been signing since January (we have been thrilled with their communication and how smart they are) and because of their increased signing, Tony & I can't sign the words we would normally sign, like "outside" or "bath," or the signs to show how we were feeling: grumpy, excited, sick, etc. But, we've had to change how we communicate with each other because our girls know all the signs we've been using! So, Tony & I have been spelling the words for a while now, and it really irritates the rest of my family. They aren't used to having to think about the words that we're spelling - they just want us to say the words!
On our drive home from my Mom's house last week, I told Tony that I would put the girls in the "T-U-B" if he'd unload the car. Rebecca heard me say "T-U-B" and said: "Double-U; X....Z!"
Saturday we went to the Provo Canyon and stopped at McDonald's before our drive up. Rebecca saw the over-sized "M" in the McDonald's sign and said, "M, M, M. M says mmmmmmm." Mary-Gail quickly followed with, "O, P, Q, S, T..."
And yesterday we were driving to Springville to go to the Walmart there and Rebecca saw the "Y" on the mountain. You guessed it - she pointed to the mountain and said, "Y, mommy, Y. I see it!!"
Now were hear the girls saying, "Stop sign says 'stop.' " Is that possible? Yes, it is and it's true. Rebecca & Mary-Gail pick up on everything we say, which is why they say, "Green says go!" (I'm sure Signing Time has a little something to do with that too). I just hope they don't repeat all the slang that Tony & I use!
On our drive home from my Mom's house last week, I told Tony that I would put the girls in the "T-U-B" if he'd unload the car. Rebecca heard me say "T-U-B" and said: "Double-U; X....Z!"
Saturday we went to the Provo Canyon and stopped at McDonald's before our drive up. Rebecca saw the over-sized "M" in the McDonald's sign and said, "M, M, M. M says mmmmmmm." Mary-Gail quickly followed with, "O, P, Q, S, T..."
And yesterday we were driving to Springville to go to the Walmart there and Rebecca saw the "Y" on the mountain. You guessed it - she pointed to the mountain and said, "Y, mommy, Y. I see it!!"
Now were hear the girls saying, "Stop sign says 'stop.' " Is that possible? Yes, it is and it's true. Rebecca & Mary-Gail pick up on everything we say, which is why they say, "Green says go!" (I'm sure Signing Time has a little something to do with that too). I just hope they don't repeat all the slang that Tony & I use!
Home (Draft dated: 10/5/08)
I got home last night well after the girls were in bed and asleep. I rushed a "hello kiss" to Tony, and leaped upstairs to peak at my babies. I missed putting them to bed, giving Rebecca her "Piggy" and Mary-Gail her "Tick-ah." Rebecca likes to pull her blanket up to her chin as she says "bane-kit," and Mary-Gail likes to lay on her side holding her tick-ah rolling the crocheted edge in her hand. Tonight I am home from my weekend in St. George, and although I thoroughly enjoyed spending my time with these two girls:
I now get to spend my time with these two girls:
Thursday, September 3, 2009
growing up (Draft dated: 9/8/09)
Rebecca is growing up fast! Her words are becoming more mature as she learns to enunciate and her voice is no longer "baby-ish." Sigh. And sigh again. I am bummed that my favorite words she would say now sound "grown-up."
Bam-bah: is now Gam-ma (Grandma)
Pink: is now bane-kit (Blanket)
Keen: is now Kween (Clean)
But her "ahh-ohh" is still the same and as cute as ever!
Bam-bah: is now Gam-ma (Grandma)
Pink: is now bane-kit (Blanket)
Keen: is now Kween (Clean)
But her "ahh-ohh" is still the same and as cute as ever!
Seasons (Draft dated: 7/28/08)
You know that scripture: "To everything there is a season..." I'm wrestling with the seasons in my life that seem to clash with each other...
This past May [2008] I began interviewing for jobs again. One of them was an amazing job at Utah Valley University in their Human Resources department working with the Employment Manager. The official title of the job was Assistant Benefits & Compensation Manager - a true and perfect fit for me. I absolutely love working in the Human Resources field, and I really enjoy handling and administering benefits.
As the 2nd and 3rd interviews progressed, I learned that I was one of the two candidates being considered for this prestigious job. I was so elated and excited to be joining a college-turned-university, and even more excited to work in HR and focus on benefits. Tony & I discussed our 2 year, 3 year, & 5 year plans, we knew we would be here for at least 5 more years, and we both wanted another baby (hopefully two!). That being said, I knew that I couldn't accept the job knowing that in less than a year I'd be pregnant and have to go on bedrest (we're hoping for an August start on IVF medications = May/June full-term baby).
Making the decision to withdraw my application & having to say "good-bye" to my dream job was so difficult. I told Tony that this type of job is the rarest of jobs to find, and HR jobs don't come open often; but we both felt that the timing was not right & I needed to be home with Rebecca & Mary-Gail. Plus, I'm not one who accepts a job, and then quits after undergoing hours of personnel training & investment when I knew I wouldn't be staying on to begin with.
JoJo, my sweet & understanding & loving sister gave me this poem:
She came tonight as I sat alone,
The girl I used to be...
And she gazed at me with her earnest eye
And questioned reproachfully:
"Have you forgotten the many plans
And hopes that I had for you?
The great career, the splendid fame
And wonderful things to do?
"Where is the mansion of stately height
With all its gardens rare?
The silken robes that I dreamed for you
And the jewels for your hair?"
And as she spoke, I was very sad
For I wanted her pleased with me.
This splendid girl from the shadowy past,
The girl I used to be.
So gently arising I took her hand
And guided her up the stairs
Where peacefully sleeping, my babies
Innocent, sweet and fair.
And I told her that These are my only gems
And precious they are to me
That silken robe is my Motherhood
Of costly simplicity.
And my mansion of stately height is Love
And the only career I know
Is serving each day in these sheltering walls
For the dear ones who come and go.
And as I spoke to my shadowy guest
She smiled through tears to me
And I saw that the woman that I am now
Pleased the girl I used to be.
This poem truly sums up the season I'm in right now.
A season that I love and wish could last forever.
I will always have an opportunity to work,
but I will not always have the opportunity nor blessing
of being home with my precious daughters;
I will not always have the time with them that I do now;
and I know that I will not always have them to myself.
Savour this season, for it will pass too quickly. 
This past May [2008] I began interviewing for jobs again. One of them was an amazing job at Utah Valley University in their Human Resources department working with the Employment Manager. The official title of the job was Assistant Benefits & Compensation Manager - a true and perfect fit for me. I absolutely love working in the Human Resources field, and I really enjoy handling and administering benefits.
As the 2nd and 3rd interviews progressed, I learned that I was one of the two candidates being considered for this prestigious job. I was so elated and excited to be joining a college-turned-university, and even more excited to work in HR and focus on benefits. Tony & I discussed our 2 year, 3 year, & 5 year plans, we knew we would be here for at least 5 more years, and we both wanted another baby (hopefully two!). That being said, I knew that I couldn't accept the job knowing that in less than a year I'd be pregnant and have to go on bedrest (we're hoping for an August start on IVF medications = May/June full-term baby).
Making the decision to withdraw my application & having to say "good-bye" to my dream job was so difficult. I told Tony that this type of job is the rarest of jobs to find, and HR jobs don't come open often; but we both felt that the timing was not right & I needed to be home with Rebecca & Mary-Gail. Plus, I'm not one who accepts a job, and then quits after undergoing hours of personnel training & investment when I knew I wouldn't be staying on to begin with.
JoJo, my sweet & understanding & loving sister gave me this poem:
She came tonight as I sat alone,
The girl I used to be...
And she gazed at me with her earnest eye
And questioned reproachfully:
"Have you forgotten the many plans
And hopes that I had for you?
The great career, the splendid fame
And wonderful things to do?
"Where is the mansion of stately height
With all its gardens rare?
The silken robes that I dreamed for you
And the jewels for your hair?"
And as she spoke, I was very sad
For I wanted her pleased with me.
This splendid girl from the shadowy past,
The girl I used to be.
So gently arising I took her hand
And guided her up the stairs
Where peacefully sleeping, my babies
Innocent, sweet and fair.
And I told her that These are my only gems
And precious they are to me
That silken robe is my Motherhood
Of costly simplicity.
And my mansion of stately height is Love
And the only career I know
Is serving each day in these sheltering walls
For the dear ones who come and go.
And as I spoke to my shadowy guest
She smiled through tears to me
And I saw that the woman that I am now
Pleased the girl I used to be.
This poem truly sums up the season I'm in right now.
A season that I love and wish could last forever.
I will always have an opportunity to work,
but I will not always have the opportunity nor blessing
of being home with my precious daughters;
I will not always have the time with them that I do now;
and I know that I will not always have them to myself.
Savour this season, for it will pass too quickly.
A tag-a-dag-dag! (Draft dated: 2/5/09)
8 Things About Me
Rules:
1) Post rules on your blog
2) Answer the six '8' items
3) Let each person you tag know they're tagged by leaving them a comment
8 Favorite TV Shows: (most of these are TIVO'd to be watched later)
1. The Biggest Loser
2. The Office
3. NCIS
4. Life
5. America's Funniest Home Videos
6. The History Channel
7. The Discovery Channel
8. The Learning Channel
8 Things I Did Yesterday:
1. Took Becca & Miguel to the Library for story time
2. Vacuumed
3. Cleaned off the kitchen table...again!
4. Installed Energy-Saving tinted film on 2 windows in piano room
5. Took pictures of Becca & Miguel being silly
6. Had JoJo and her 4 cute kidlets over for snacks
7. JoJo & I took all 6 kidlets to the Bean Museum
8. Bath time with Becca & Miguel
8 Things I Look Forward To:
1. Becca & Miguel's smiles & sweet voices every morning
2. Lovey coming home from work
3. Becca & Miguel's incessant request for me to sing to them...I get to pretend I'm Ariel and sing while I do their hair in the morning @ breakfast. They LOVE it!
4. SPRING & FLOWERS
5. Morning & afternoon walks outside again! Hooray!
6. Taking the girls to the nearby elementary school to let them play, swing, slide!
7. Wondering what Becca & Miguel will do next to amaze me and completely astonish me
8. Friday night Date-Nights with my Lovey
8 Favorite Restaurants:
1. Joe Vera's
2. China Town Restaurant
3. Spaghetti Factory - their Pesto salad dressing is de-lish!
4. Jason's Deli
5. Art City Trolley
6. Outback Steakhouse
7. PF Chang
8. Cracker Barrel - for their French Toast & regular hashbrowns
8 Things On My Wish List:
1. To be a better Mom
2. To be a better Wife
3. A Home addition
4. Cement poured in the RV parking area
5. While we're dreaming of building a new addition & pouring cement, I'd like a larger cement patio in the backyard
6. A new vinyl fence along the backyard
7. A self cleaning house (copied from Paige's wish list)
8. To be happy, always
8 People I Tag:
1. JoJo
2. CarCar
3. Pam
4. Jessica
5. Ashelina
6. Kelli
7. Ann
8.Kim
The demands of 2 one-year olds (Draft dated: 3/26/08)
I'm struggling under the demands of my 2 very beautiful, very intelligent, very happy, and very, very different one-year old twin girls. Rebecca has had a difficult couple of weeks (hospitalized; endured too many tests, x-rays, and suctions; and now trying to adjust to that awful nasal cannula). Gratefully, I was able to stay with Rebecca every minute of her hospital stay, and because of that (and the nightmare of deja vu), she's grown a tight attachment to me. Rebecca has enjoyed having my constant and undivided attention, and isn't liking the fact that she has a sister whom she has to share me with.
Tony & Aunt Carol (+family) doted on Mary-Gail during my absence. Mary-Gail was the only focus of their attention, and she loved every minute of it. Since Rebecca has come home, and our family has been put back together, Mary-Gail has been teasing Rebecca: pulling at Rebecca's oxygen, sitting on her oxygen tubing, stealing her toys, "racing" in front of Rebecca when Rebecca crawls towards me, and Mary-Gail even edges Rebecca out of my lap when we're reading books. Both girls have grown accustom to being the only child...
Tony & Aunt Carol (+family) doted on Mary-Gail during my absence. Mary-Gail was the only focus of their attention, and she loved every minute of it. Since Rebecca has come home, and our family has been put back together, Mary-Gail has been teasing Rebecca: pulling at Rebecca's oxygen, sitting on her oxygen tubing, stealing her toys, "racing" in front of Rebecca when Rebecca crawls towards me, and Mary-Gail even edges Rebecca out of my lap when we're reading books. Both girls have grown accustom to being the only child...
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Kemp Kuties on the Charleston Pier
September 2007
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