Don't Forget the Easter Bunny!

What a day!  It was a day filled with good friends, really good food, and happy kids.  I feel so full of contented happiness that picking one moment to write about today is a little tricky.  But one does come to mind.  In the wee hours of the morning, or the late hours of the night, depending on your perspective, I woke with a nagging feeling I had forgotten something.  I got up to use the restroom, and on my way back to bed, it hit me.  I hadn't put together the kid's Easter baskets!

Panic ensued.  I ran downstairs and tried to gather all the Easter goodies as quietly as I could.  Their baskets were still in a box in the garage, and I tried not to break my neck while getting them off the top of a very high shelf.  Once I had the baskets, the "grass" and the various toys spread in front of me, I felt a huge wave of exhaustion roll over me, and all I wanted to do was crawl back in bed.  Tessie is usually a very late sleeper, and Christian can't leave the bedroom on his own, so I was pretty sure I could get up in time to fill the baskets before they woke up.  But I didn't want to take the chance, so I stayed up for another half an hour, arranging their baskets from the Easter Bunny.  Once they were waiting on the coffee table, and all evidence that I had been the one who filled them was gone, I slunk back upstairs and into bed.  It took awhile for my brain to slow down, but I eventually fell back asleep.

I awoke this morning, just before seven, to rustling sounds from downstairs.  Tessie was in the living room, going through her Easter Basket.  She didn't even get up that early at Christmas.  I laughed to myself, and had a "aren't you glad you didn't procrastinate even further?" moment.  Before long, she ran upstairs and climbed into bed with us, a couple of her gifts in tow.  She was beaming, and ecstatic that the Easter Bunny had come while she was sleeping.  I smiled at her, thinking all the while that I was the lucky one.  That was a beautiful brush with parenting disaster, and I made it!

National Monument

Today my husband and I attended an event to celebrate the creation of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument.  A huge section of the Rio Grande, from south of Taos, up to the Colorado border, was signed into National Monument status on Monday by President Obama.  This is a project that many people, my husband included, have fought very hard to bring to fruition.  It means that the beautiful Rio Grande gorge, which we are fortunate enough to neighbor, will stay wild and protected, for my children and theirs to enjoy for generations to come.

Watching the group of politicians and conservationists talk and thank people for their hard work, I was filled with the emotion and excitement of the day.  All around me people cheered and applauded, everyone was grinning from ear to ear.  When the Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, thanked the people of New Mexico, and especially those of Taos County, for their hard work, I looked up at my husband proudly.  Although he was only a small part of this project, he is fighting every day to preserve and protect the rivers and forests around our home.  As I was introduced as Nick's wife, to senators and state representatives, it was easy to keep the smile on my face, and the pride in my stance.  Today was a beautiful celebration of what can be accomplished when people work together towards a common goal, and I was honored to be a part of it.

The First Fire

Impromptu get togethers are always the best kind. This afternoon we had an egg coloring get together, which turned into a "who brought wine" get together, which led to a"I have a bunch of food" get together, which led to a lot of fun.  As the evening progressed, and the egg colorers tired out, us adults got to actually hang out.   I couldn't remember the last time we hung out with friends that didn't include kids.

Since the night was as warm as it had been since last October, Nick started a fire in the fire pit, and after the kids were happily distracted with a movie, the rest of the parents followed.  Slowly, our kids fell asleep, and we got to continue hanging around the fire.  This never happens, and we took full advantage.  We told stories, drank wine, and carried on until the fire was gone and we could no longer hold back the yawns.  Spring has been teasing us, and summer is just around the corner.  None of us can wait, and tonight we got a pretty great preview of what is to come.  We all had huddled close to the fire, ignoring the cold that crept upon us, and stayed out due to sheer will.  Although we will have plenty more to come, it is always the first fire that is the most beautiful.

Grocery Shopping Alone

Today I went grocery shopping alone.  That sentence says it all, as far as I'm concerned.  And not just for a couple of items, a full on grocery shopping trip, with no kids.  It was amazing.  I meandered through the aisles, not missing any items on my list due to distractions, like pulling my kids off of one another in the middle of the canned goods aisle.  Yup, that happens a lot.

I ran into several friends, all of whom I had long relaxed conversations with.  It felt a lot more like social hour than an errand.  I was actually reluctant to leave the store, knowing that I would be returning to Mommy Land, which is in a small area of Dirty House Land.  But I did leave, I loaded the car, and headed home.  I am already looking forward to my next solo trip to the store.  It is sure to be just as beautiful as it was today.

A Beautiful Combination

I worked in the Fly Shop today, and I had one main goal; to organize our office.  This is was a daunting task.  Our office contains the cumulative clutter of almost ten years, and although it is occasionally "cleaned out" there is never really time for much of a deep clean, and inevitably the clutter just gets deeper.  I was determined to actually make a difference today, and dug in with a gusto.  It was tough to keep my momentum in between customers coming in, but by mid day I had actually started to make a real dent in the black hole that is our office.

I was in full tilt cleaning mode, and had two trash bags filled already.  There were catalogs, receipts, and notes from years back, definitely stuff that did not need to be piled up on our shelves.  I was pulling random things down from the top of a shelf when two dusty pieces of paper fluttered to the ground.  I sneezed, then bent down to see what they were.  After wiping the very thick layer of dirt off the mystery paper, their origin suddenly dawned on me.  They were our tickets into the Colosseum in Rome, from our visit to Italy nearly six years ago.

The tickets froze me on the spot.  I have no idea where they came from, or how they ended up on top of a shelf filled with fly fishing catalogs and paraphernalia, but they caused a wave of memories to wash over me.  The clutter filling our office was evidence of the ability that my husband and I have to work and play together, simultaneously.  We have built a business and a life, side by side.  Standing in the middle of a ridiculously cluttered and dusty office may have been a strange place for this realization to take place, but it did, nonetheless.  I felt lucky and loved, and it was a beautiful combination.

Pull-Ups

Today I began the terrifying task of potty training my son. We have been slowly leading up to it for a while now. Christian has been sitting on, and even occasionally using, the potty before bath. We started a "potty chart" a couple of days ago, something we did for Tessie that worked well, and he gets a sticker every time he goes pee or poop in the potty. He has one sticker so far. Until today I hadn't really given it my all, I was dragging my feet. So I decided to give him a little more incintive. Today Christian got his first pack of pull-ups.

He was over the moon excited when I showed him the pull-ups, and couldn't wait to put them on. He was so proud once he had them on, that I had to take a picture and send it to Nick. We also had to show them to Tes before I put his pants back on. Not long after Christian had on his new pull-ups, he told me he wanted to go potty. I carried him to the bathroom, got him situated on the potty, and sat down on a stool in front of him. We had barely been there a minute, when his expression changed to one of concentration and he said "I'm gonna go pee pee." Sure enough, I heard the tell-tale sound and cheered out loud. We high fived as I got him off the potty, and we picked a new sticker for the chart. He smiled the whole way to the living room, where he high fived Tessie, and asked to call his Daddy. It was quite the celebration.

Although I carried him back to the bathroom for several more potty trips throughout the day, no more stickers were earned. But I still feel like today was a success. Potty training is hardest on Mom, no matter how you look at it. If all I accomplished today was getting Christian excited about wearing pull-ups, then I still think it was a beautiful start.

An Early Bedtime Surprise

I spent the last three hours being yelled at, whined at, and sassed to.  Great fun.  Both kids were really misbehaving, and hadn't let up by the time dinner rolled around.  Luckily, by that time, Nick had come home, and he was able to step in and help discipline, I was worn out.  Both kids were refusing to eat, yelling and carrying on.  Both kids got a time out.  With Christian it was successful.  He returned to the table happy and proceeded to eat his dinner without a fuss.  Tes on the other hand, refused to eat, slunk away from the table when we told her not to, and pouted on the couch while we all finished eating.  I don't think she has ever disobeyed us so outright. 

As a punishment, Tes had to go straight to bed without books.  She took her consequences gracefully, and went to bed without much fuss, thank goodness.  Christian read books with Nick, and then I tucked them both in and kissed them goodnight.  I left their room feeling like I had just run a marathon.  As I walked through the kitchen, I glanced at the clock.  It read 7:40.  The earliest I can ever get them to bed is usually 8:00, more like 8:30.  We got a beautiful surprise with the early bedtime, and I'd say we earned it.