first day

this girl is ready for the adventures of kindergarten! what and exciting time... have a great year, Ash!

stitches

it couldn't have been a cleaner cut; glass cabinet, unfinished edge. it's such a strange moment when, as a parent you're looking at your little kid and you realize, "wow. that's a super deep cut. that's going to need stitches." it's almost slow motion. fortunately i was able to keep my cool so Ash didn't get scared. Ash was such a brave girl. the poky shots were the worst part but three stitches later she was okay. plus G'pa Rem happened to be in town when she was ready to have them out. how's that for lucky?

pack 'em up and move 'em out

thanks for a great three years, Reno! here's a quick list of things we will most certainly miss:

pals, no dout
Truckee river
parks, parks, and more parks
Winco (i love you, Winco)
quail and jays in the backyard
Lake Tahoe (camping at Bliss S.P.)
peach tree
Peavine fields
NMA
hiroba, süp, blind onion (restaurants)
balloon festival
girls night dinners
sierra nevada
fresh, local (and i mean local) eggs
close proximity to so many cool places
Pyramid Lake
ease and convenience of the airport
a Target within a few minutes' drive
mild winters
CSA basket
co-op preschool
ARTown concerts
taking a new way home
... to mention a few.

packed up boxes make good seats / having some flan in the empty kitchen, using the step stool for a table / great pals / all of our belongings in the moving truck / sleeping on the air mattress / driving into Utah with the sunrise

in kilometers it sounds awesomer

the first 5K i ever "ran" was the Willie Walk put on by my high school. i was 18 and in really good shape. still, i didn't run the whole thing - probably because i didn't really know about pacing - i had to stop and walk. after that i ran/walked several more 5Ks but i never ran the whole thing. then, after being married to a very strong distance runner i thought i simply wasn't a runner. my family is full of sprinters. give me a 50 yard dash and i'm there. but recently i realized i was in a family of runners with two little kids who will most likely enjoy a good run on a regular basis. so rather than be left behind (in the dust, as it were) to cheer from the sidelines, i decided to get over the lame excuses and run.

with the help of a good friend who taught me some techniques and kept me in check by meeting me at 6 am three times a week, not to mention a very supportive family, i worked up to a three mile run. we signed up for a 5K and fortunately it was cool and breezy. i was slow, but i ran the entire thing... with some left in the tank to sprint to the finish (Johnson style).



i have to say the shirts at 5Ks are much better now. no more regular t-shirt, folks. these are cool-tech athletic shirts! still need some work on graphic design and sponsor logo placement, but hey, one thing at a time.

p.s. just for the record, i've been running regularly since, and with the bionic man no less. :)

Museum School pals

Ash and Tom have been spending lots of time with me at the Museum School. this month we took a clay class together (they both made awesome pinch pots and mugs). We've also gone in a few times to load/unload the kiln, prep for classes, throw a pot, etc. they've been great company and i'm happy they've been able to share a bit more of the working-at-the-Museum experience with me.

summer is here

snooze

Tom is in the nap/no nap transition. lately he skips it more often than not but there are some days when he just can't help it. this is true fatigue.



Ash is quite amused.

it hasn't taken long for him to master his G'pa Kent's snoozing technique: find a good spot on the couch, nestle in half sitting up, half reclining and... aaahhhh, zzzzzzz.

on a Tuesday

this year our anniversary landed on a Tuesday, which is the day of the week we were married. we had the chance to celebrate 11 years in San Diego: a couple more Spanish missions, cacti, a great little bakery, and the beach... oh, and ice cream too.




thanks to Aunt Ash and Ollie for holding down the fort with Ash & Tom!

let's sing a song of 5!

five whole years with this sweetie Ash...




a blue princess dress (made by Ash & Mom) to celebrate, plus real binoculars, and a bath robe with her name on it. good times!

Snappy Tom turns 3!

with a sea creature party complete with gummy sharks and Swedish fish atop ocean blue cup cakes! the shark blimp also made a showing.




the piñata was a Christmas stocking gift and had nothing to do with the sea but the kids enjoyed giving it a good whack all the same.



a big happy birthday to my sweetie Tom!

the Earth is flat

and yes, i did drop off from the face of it. but i'm back now with an update: a trip to Monterey in January! whale watch, aquarium, Carmel Mission...