Bittersweet

Above is a picture of C's "kiki". This blanket is what I swaddled him in as a baby. He had heat rash from the double-thick flannel blanket I had been using, so I asked my mom to go get some light fabric to make some swaddling blankets from. "Just get something cheap," I said. "It doesn't matter what it looks like." So she got the Teletubbies fabric, which just happened to be on sale. Go figure. I couldn't have anticipated how much my little guy would love these blankies. He would chew on them, hug them, and drag them everywhere. They have gotten smaller and smaller, and on a recent trip to Colorado, Nana was hemming one and noticed a big hole right in the center of it. She suggested making "mini-kikis", and idea C loved, so now we have about 7 small ones. But he still preferred the big one.

C has made a lot of changes lately. He is now 5, and is thriving in a pre-K program. He LOVES going to school, and never clings to my leg when I take him there. He didn't cry last Wednesday when I left him with a sitter to go to back to school night. He doesn't have to be in the same room as me, but we still have to be on the same floor at all times. He has no problem when I leave him at friends' houses. And a few months ago, he stopped sleeping with kiki.

So on Sunday, I noticed kiki was lying by the front door. Just to see what would happen, I left it there. It stayed there until I had to pick it up a week later before the cleaning lady was coming.

I'm so proud of C, and how big and brave he's becoming. So why did I feel sad seeing kiki lying there all week?

Grass

As I've referenced before Dave has a very deep relationship with our yard. Some people take pictures of children or pets, Dave takes pictures of his blades of grass.

I have to say these turned out pretty cool.

Microwave

Do you have one of those plastic covers for your microwaved food? I bought one once as a part of those "school fundraisers" where they sell wrapping paper, flavored popcorn, and big tubs of cookie dough. (The year prior I opted for the tub of cookie dough which was a big mistake. Every hour for weeks I found myself sneaking to the freezer for just one more spoon full of cookie dough. No matter how many bites I took the blasted thing remained 3/4 ths full. Finally I pawned it off on some missionaries. Only missionaries would be ecstatic to take a year old, partially eaten tub of cookie dough covered in spoon marks).

When the microwave cover arrived I was a little shocked at it's size. It was quite large, and I really didn't have anywhere to store it. My kitchen is small. The way things work at my house is if you bring something new in - you have to get rid of something old to make room. I didn't particularly want to throw away my plates, silverware, or my gallon jug of Frank's red hot. So I thought - maybe I'll store it in the microwave? After all every time the microwave is used the cover will be involved right?

Genius, I know.

As an added bonus I figured this storage spot would guarantee 100% coverage of all food placed in the microwave. You open the microwave and what is the first thing you see? This would be the end of my weekly dates scraping pasta sauce off the side of the interior walls.

But alas, it was not meant to be. I should have known my creative husband would find a way around this forced conformity. Guess where I found my husband's morning oatmeal?

When I confronted him about it he claimed he thought it was a permanent part of the microwave - like a pedestal, or stage.

Like I said - the man is creative.

Anxiety

Me: Hey, I'm going to go upstairs and take a shower.

C: (anguished sob) Mom! Why did you tell me that?! Now that I know you're going to be upstairs, I'll be scared to be alone down here. You shouldn't have told me that!

Pause.

Me: Okay. I guess I'm going to be... in the kitchen... for a while.

C: Okay.

(I leave and take my shower. C is fine.)

Twilight

If you are waiting for book #4 to come out, you will enjoy these.

Warning...do not click on the links below unless you are prepared to waste 45 minutes of your day.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=uHOMVZ4b7g8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=advv4Crpp0o
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Wj18OWhjGx0
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ywVX8kc23_Q
http://youtube.com/watch?v=t_9PzgF-CRs
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ps8rbCB_Q8k

Is anyone else leaning towards Jacob after watching these?

SHOUT OUT

Preface: Turns out the 3rd Lewis girl is NOT just a myth. Laura has asked me to put up this post on her behalf. Isn't she a gem?

SHOUT OUT (by the oldest Lewis girl - Laura)

I couldn't sleep Monday night. I had just left TGL (dad) who is now in the trenches of TIT (Torture in The Twenty-first Century) Part II. His white blood cells (WBCs) had fought their way to a whopping 30,000 but plummeted to Nader/zip/zero/nada in 2 days time. You've got to feel for the poor little guys.

I generally don't let myself really think about how our lives have so drastically changed since Mr. L (leukemia) knocked on our unsuspecting door on 6/30/07. Trust me, if Mr. L would have emailed or called he would have gone on the "block this sender" list of email addresses or we would not have answered the phone; but, Mr. L won't take NO for an answer. Instead, he has bulldozed his way into our lives (the gender specification of Mr. L isn't accidental).

So back to my insomnia. In an attempt to divert my thoughts and hopefully get some sleep since I needed to get up for work in a pair of hours, I focused on TEAM LEWIS who fights Mr. L along with TGL. I thought of each team member and started to get vacklemp like the church lady on Saturday Night Live. (If you don't know who that is then I have just dated myself). My thoughts of our Team brought peace and finally sleep. So in thanks for the help I would like to do a Shout Out to some members.

Rand who is the rational and grounded voice. He has taken charge, done research, and stepped in as the family patriarch. After traveling all week, coaching soccer, being dad to 4 kiddos, he still brings his kids, and Leslie over on Friday night to spend time with mom and dad. He bought a big screen TV and ordered DVR so that when TGL returned from the hospital he could truly feel like he was "at the game" or "at the golf tournament". Rand calls each day whether from Boston, New York, or Colorado.

Carrie and Dave who treat the drive from Denver to Boulder like a skip across the street. No matter how busy they are with their jobs, blog posts, and yard perusal and maintenance, don't bat an eye at coming up to see my parents. They single handedly moved all the furniture back after new carpet was laid, and have done countless other things to help out.

Sara who talks to mom multiple times a day despite her 'three ring circus' in NY. She spent 3 weeks in Colorado this summer and helped mom clean out her closets, drawers, etc.

T who coordinated the purchase and delivery of an "at home putting green" for grandpa. T is the oldest cousin and an incredible example to his brothers, sister and cousins.

S who at the ripe old age of 7 helped Nana "harvest" the garden each day while visiting in Colorado for 3 weeks. She continues to demand to know what grandpa's white blood cell count is when she speaks with Nana.

Baby S and Oz who simply remind us of the miracle of life. They are so fresh from Heavenly Father that they ooze of joy, hope, potential, and happiness.

Little M who is just…M. As Rand says "It is good to be M". There is no way you can look at him and not smile.

Colorado C and New York C who fight Mr. L through their tenacity and loyalty to DS and Spiderman.

Leslie who provides support to other team members and allows Rand to spend time away for TGL's benefit. Who doesn't bat an eye when I show up on a Sunday and stay for 5 hours. Who turns a blind eye as I raid her candy drawer.

Travis who allows his family to stay in Colorado for weeks while he is alone in the Big Apple.

Extended family and friends who have sent emails, cards, prayers, thoughts, and foregone good food in fasting for us and TGL.

Nana who somehow is the rock as she watches her sweetheart in pain and suffering.

• She goes to every Dr. appointment and spends countless hours at the hospital.
• Fixes meals that are high in protein to fight his anemia
• Does her 28 year old daughter's mending
• Makes bath towels for her grandchildren in NY
• Calls her grandson on the Saturday he had a soccer game in Steamboat to find out how he did. (I promise this is the FIRST game of any type she has missed).
• Still attends church, enrichment, book club, and does her visiting teaching
• Is always up for watching a movie with me when I show up on a moments notice looking for company and a diversion
• Arose at 5am to start a dinner for her neice and husband who stayed in The Republic of Boulder a couple of nights enroute to Chicago.
• Reads, prints, and files all of the amazing emails from friends and family in support of TGL.
  

And Finally to "Captain Oh My Captain", the quarterback, goalie, pitcher, senior companion, the team member who we all rally around, none other than TGL . We all go about our business, jobs, social engagement, lives, etc. while he lays there hour after hour without complaint. Who is held captive to my constant chatter each night as I pepper him with relentlous questions from "how many square feet was your house growing up" to "How do they determine how much money is printed and in circulation" . Who is still skeptical and unbelieving that so many people are devastated because they admire, respect, and love him so much.

So thanks to everyone. This TEAM will NOT BE BEAT. We are truly kicking some Mr. L Arse.

Is it wrong to punch a 4 year old?

Today I took C to day 6 of pre-K. He's notorious for his separation anxiety, but has been acclimating rather well to his new school. He was actually EXCITED to go today, and ran up to the other boys as soon as he got there. One of them yelled, "Get out of here!" right into C's face. He ran off and buried his face in my leg. It took everything I had not to drop kick the little fetcher off the play structure.

As a result, I had to stay for an entire hour until he was ready for me to leave. GRRRRR.

Happy Birthday Ashley

We love you for lots of reasons, but ESPECIALLY because...

• you are beautiful even with gnats on your teeth
• you think "shooting the breeze" means hanging out by yourself
• you followed your brothers down the black diamond as a 6 year old (poor little broken leg!)
• you once bore a striking resemblance to the middle Hanson
• you played soccer for months with a big piece of glass wedged in your foot
• you were sure Dave and JD would like each other because they were so similar..."they both have chicken legs, lots of moles, and are into themselves!"
• you got mad at your dad when he defined "a loan" for you
• you are stronger than your brothers
• you never say anything mean about anyone
• you are always happy, easy going, and fun to be around

I hope you have a fabulous day!

Cha Ching!

For all you on-line shoppers who like me, would much rather pay $15 in shipping that step foot inside a store...I just found the greatest website:

http://www.retailmenot.com/

It has coupon codes for on-line retailers, and get this, they actually work. I just made $10 with one of these fabulous codes. (true I made $10 by spending $52, but I prefer to focus on earnings.) Enjoy!

Happy 34th Birthday Sara!

34 things you didn't know about Sara...

Childhood

1. She never crawled. She just scooted on her butt & flapped her arms

2. She had chicken pox twice

3. She sported a mullet for the bulk of her youth

4. She is a fast reader. Growing up my mom would take books away as a form of punishment

5. She choose her own middle name at the age of 12

6. She begged to have braces, but the orthodontist wouldn't go for it because her teeth were naturally too straight. Unable to give up the dream, she would force on her siblings retainers.

High school

7. She had a Wendy's Junior bacon cheeseburger every day

8. She had a tendency to "borrow money" from the tithing portion of her piggy bank. One night before tithing settlement she was frantically running around trying to borrow money from her siblings. When she couldn't rally enough cash, she declared to my parents that she would like to investigate other churches. My dad said that was fine, but she still had to go to tithing settlement and tell the bishop she had spent her tithing money. As a younger sister, this was the best moment of my life.

9. She totaled my parents garage freezer while parked in the garage

10. EXCALIBUR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Need I say more? If you don't know ask her.

11. She was a cheerleader

12. Having been taught by my mother to play sports so boys want to do more than just "make out" with you, she played basketball, volleyball, tennis & skied. She went to state twice in tennis.

13. Much to my mother's dismay, she intentionally wore men's clothing 5 times too big - Girbaud jeans & Polo Ts. When she left for BYU she swore she would change the local Utah fashion. Instead she came home in fitted khakis & a tailored blazer

College & Early Married days

14. She was a vegetarian for 10 years. She once turned down 50 bucks to eat 1/4th of a hamburger

15. Shopping with Sara doesn't mean finding what you want, but instead, finding something you can turn into what you want. She will hold up an item and say something like "This swimsuit cover will make the perfect skirt, I just need to cut it in half and add an elastic waist." This would all be well and good if she could sew. She can't. Instead, she runs my mom like a sweat shop in a 3rd world country.

16. She ran a 1/2 marathon

17. Her favorite date was dinner and a movie

18. Our older sister Laura set Sara up with her husband

19. The day of her wedding she went for a 7 mile jog at 5am

20. Her first year teaching middle school fellow teachers often mistook her for a student and demanded to see her hall pass

21. She went through a phase where she (and S) wore all black, all the time

Present

22. She knows every Billy Blanks kick boxing routine by heart. She also has a lot of theories about the kick boxers in his videos - "that one has got to be Billy's daughter," "I'm pretty sure that one is Billy's wife."

23. She eats the exact same thing for lunch everyday: bagel and cream cheese, apple & hot cocoa

24. I'm pretty sure she started the camouflage trend beginning with her first trip to the army surplus store years before camo was sold in mainstream stores

25. She is writing a book

26. She is a fabulous baker

27. She set me up with my husband

28. She has purchased & returned 50% of target merchandise

29. She has done Tae Bo 9 months pregnant, while in labor, more than once

30. She is a self diagnoser of all physical ailments. She claims to have cured her sweating problem by switching to salt with iodine

31. She never leaves the home without sunscreen on

32. She buys shoes in the kids section. Her favorite pair of boots are from Gap Kids.

33. She is a people pleaser and doesn't like to say no

34. She is an amazing mother - unbelievably patient, entertaining, and completely dedicated to her children

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARA. I love you.

Sam's club

Why do I do these things to myself?

Backpacking

Dave and I went backpacking this weekend in White River National Forest near Silverthorne, Colorado.


I know what you are thinking. Who is this teenage boy Dave and Carrie decided to take on their backpacking trip? Actually that is a picture of me. I know, I look totally ridiculous.

I was a little nervous for this trip (as it was my first time backpacking). Sometime during the "packing" phase I decided women's clothing just wasn't going to cut it. I felt my female clothes would fail me when it came to comfort, size, durability & warmth. So I packed and wore almost exclusively Dave's clothes.

Sticking with the male theme I also opted NOT to bring the following items (as Dave had warned me again and again that anything I brought I had to carry on my back): make-up, hair products, brush or deodorant (I figured I could steal a few swipes of Dave's old spice).

Taking all this into account I guess I shouldn't have been too shocked when I got home, looked at our pictures, and saw 2 boys instead of 1. Oh well.

The trip began Friday afternoon. I had eaten all day long knowing this could be the last time food came "easy," as I might have to survive for months on berries and twigs. (My dad taught me to plan for worst case scenarios.)

As we got off 1-70 and passed through the last town I felt relieved when Dave suggested we stop at Wendy's for a snack. After all I felt full, but not "live on your fat stores for 2 months" full. So I told Dave to order me a cheeseburger, and ran in to use the bathroom while he drove through and got our food.

When we were back on the road I started rifling through our Wendy's order. I was surprised to find in the bag 3 cheeseburgers, 2 orders of chicken nuggets, 2 orders of fries, and about 20 packets of ketchup. Apparently I wasn't the only one in the group who thought this might be our last meal.

As we got close to where the trail head was supposed to be, it became obvious that Dave hadn't gotten specific directions and was instead relying on his childhood memories to find the trail. We had a 3 mile hike to our first campsite, and it was 5:15pm. I was getting stressed. In an attempt to remain calm I started making suggestions like "Why don't we stop and ask those people where to go?" "Can you call your dad, or your brother?" Our cell phone service was spotty at best, no one was home anyway, and the 14 year old local didn't give very convincing directions. So we were back to plan A. Driving around looking for something to peak Dave's memory.

Finally he took a turn on a "gut" feeling and after 10 minutes we saw a sign to the trail head. Dave's reaction was to scream:

"YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
turns to look right at me
"EAT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Um, excuse me? Did you just tell me to EAT IT? Dave assured me the "EAT IT" was into the air, directed to no one in particular.

By 5:30 we were on the trail. We hiked FAST and made it to our first campsite, Surprise Lake, 30 minutes before dark.

Note: the cluster of boards on the far left side in a makeshift raft Dave and his brother used to take into the middle of the lake while fishing.

We enjoyed a fire, hot cocoa and dinner. Dave was understanding when in a stroke of independence, I tried to finish up dinner while he pumped fresh water down at the lake. (Apparently you are NOT supposed to actually cook your pasta dinner in the coffee pot that is warming the water. Instead you poor the boiling water from the coffee pot to a new pan, and then cook the pasta there. I think Dave spent a good 30 minutes scraping out the 2 inches of pasta I burned to the bottom of the pot.)

The number of stars you could see in the sky was probably my favorite thing about day 1.

As far as we could tell, there were no other humans near by. The feeling of isolation was cool and also very creepy. My girl scout training came into affect when I insisted we gather anything with a smell and hang it from a tree far away from our camp (so bears would go there instead of our tent.)

Dave obliged but this didn't bring much comfort. As we tried to go to sleep that night I kicked Dave awake at least 3 times due to unrecognizable sounds. The first time there was a VERY distinct and loud sound of something interacting with our tent. Dave was sure a tree branch had fallen on our tent. I was sure a bear was running his paw across the tent.

The next 2 times I woke Dave up it was because I heard a soft, high pitched whistle sound. Each time he woke up the sound stopped. When he went back to sleep after the 3rd false alarm, I realized his nose was making the sound while he slept. Finally I fell asleep - and probably only woke up another 15 times before morning.

The next day Dave woke me up with breakfast & cocoa. His pancakes were delicious even without butter & syrup. Apparently the trick to cooking pancakes is frying them in oil - who knew? As we ate, and dropped crumbs here and there, we noticed a perimeter of animals circling us: 3 Chipmunks & 4 birds. We tried to scare them off by clapping & yelling, but they didn't even flinch. Each time they circled they got a little closer. It became clear we better pack up our food & get out of there or they were going to attack.

We explored the nearby lake, and then headed out for hike #2.

Hiking the 2nd day was great. We saw amazing views, and took our time exploring. Dave told fun stories from hiking these trails with his dad, brother and little sister. For 3 hours of the hike I recounted the plot of the books Twilight, New Moon & Eclipse. I feel confident Dave could now hold his own in any book club out there.
At 3pm we arrived at the planned campsite #2, Eaglesmere lake:



As we sat down to rest, Dave said "I'm just going to throw this out there. Since your parents cabin is available this weekend, maybe we should finish the last 3 miles of the hike now - and sleep there tonight." Without hesitation I replied, "Done, and I'll do you one better. Maybe we can catch a movie tonight."

I love the hiking, but the sleeping in the woods I can do without. So we explored Eaglesmere and then took off. Before we left, we snapped the picture below just in case Dave ever needs another "senior picture."


We made it back to our car at 6pm. All in all we did a 12 mile loop in 24 hours. Dave took excellent care of me carrying all the heavy stuff (his pack had to be at least 20 pound heavier), cooking all the meals, filtering all the water, etc.

It was a great trip.

Broncos

1st season game for the broncos

+
Dave going to church that same day
=

I really should have worn my orange skirt and a blue top. What was I thinking?

Change of heart

Ok, I've changed my mind. I want a dog.

Well let me re-phrase that. I want a dog, one day of the year. Once a year The Bay, a local water park, closes it's door to children & opens it's door to dogs. That my friends, sounds like a great day to own a dog.

Actually forget wanting to own a dog. I want to BE a dog that day. I've been to this water park before, and I've never had as much fun as Danny did.

If this doesn't prove Denver's dedication to dogs I don't know what does.

Why not?

I'm posting this picture of my husband because...I can. It is just too fabulous to remain as only a file on my computer hard drive.

I love to imagine this little boy, standing in front of a mirror, gel in hand, trying to get his bangs to swoop just right before the big game.

Can you tell that I am bored?

In totally un-related news, Dave has come up with a new nick name for me. This, is not an uncommon occurrence. New nicknames surface every week or two, and last until they are replaced with something new. Sometimes nicknames are based on a recent life experience, sometimes they are pulled out of the clear blue sky.

This week Dave has been calling me "Turkey Leg Denham." It seems cumbersome I know, but I can assure you when he is looking for me he will actually call out "Turkey leg Denham? You ready to go?" To find out the source of my latest nickname click here.