9-year-old Hadley: “Bode, what ARE you doing?”
7-year-old (going on 50) Bode: “Taking precautions.”
Unrelated on a different day: The kids decided to play horse.
There was a definite winner and loser in this game.
Ying and Yang (as overheard in the kitchen)
January 28, 2014 By
How You Know You’re Raising a Geek Part 1,204
January 14, 2014 By
I’m going to start a series on How You Know You’re Raising a Geek. This is not a bad thing. In fact, it’s quite delightful and never boring because Bode’s mind is always working, thinking, evaluating and analyzing. I find it fascinating because I just don’t work like that. I can look up at the pink clouds and think, “Wow, they sure are pretty today and look like cotton candy” and he’ll make some comment that clouds turn pink because sunlight travels at a greater distance through the atmosphere at dusk. Ummm, OK, kid.
One of his favorite things is quizzing me about everything and everything, particularly his space books.
“Mom, how many dwarf planets are there?”
“I don’t know.”
“Mom, we’ve been over this before.”
The kid is learning that my long-term memory is about 20 seconds before it is deleted from my internal hard drive forever. I fear the day he discovers Trivial Pursuit.
He got the book Time for Kids Top 5 of Everything, which is perfect for a human kid computer with trivia quizzes on everything from the five youngest Presidents to the most popular names for dogs. As he was reading the book, he announced “They got it wrong.”
“Got what wrong?”
“The moons on Jupiter. They say they are 53 but there are actually 63.”
“Bode, I think they thoroughly researched it and you’re mistaken.”
But he was insistent so I Googled it and sure enough, there are 63 moons on Jupiter. Take THAT, Time magazine!
And then a recent incident. He was asking me how many minutes are in a day and then how many seconds (thank goodness for calculators) but then as we were walking to the bus, he asked if we could go to the library so he could check out some books on recycling and maps.
That kid of mine is #7GoingOn70.
Geek in Training: The Schedule Edition
January 13, 2014 By
I have a lot of blog posts in the pipes about Bode these days. The reason? Pumpkin season is over so I can’t mock Jamie, Hadley has been pretty low-key juggling volleyball and school but that boy-man Bode makes me laugh. Constantly. The funny thing is he isn’t trying to be funny; he’s just being himself. But his big, bad self is a 50-year-old dude wrapped up in a 7-year-old package.
Case in point: he got a cold last week. Before bedtime, Jamie gave him some cough medicine and a few minutes later, Bode came into my room and whacked my bed.
“What do you need?”
“NOBODY TUCKED ME IN.”
I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes I don’t want to drag myself out of my warm bed but their childhood is fleeting so I always do it and never regret saying prayers with them and their bedtime kisses.
After I tucked him in, he was hacking away and I informed him I was going to let him sleep in and when he woke up we’d determine if he was well enough to go to school. A few minutes after I tucked him in, he summoned me back to his room.
“I have figured out my schedule for tomorrow.”
“Your schedule?”
“Yes. At 8:15 a.m. I will do my spelling test and then at 8:30 a.m. we will do reading. Next is a 5-minute break and we will start math.”
And you know what? He stayed home sick and stuck to his schedule. Heaven forbid he should miss a day of school.
I’ve got a newsflash to my little geek in training: Just watch TV, Dude.
XO
Your Mom
She Who Cherished Every Sick Day Home From School
Hygiene, Shmygiene
January 9, 2014 By
What you don’t want to hear after your son is bundled up and needs to go to the bathroom:
“Don’t worry, Mom. I went without taking my gloves off!”
It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
December 24, 2013 By
My very most memorable Christmas wasn’t even Christmas as I spent the evening in Shepherd’s Field outside of Bethlehem.
However, spending time with our LDS ward family at the Christmas party is always a highlight of the holiday season.
Sure, the Shepherd looked ticked.
Note: He was pretending he was looking up at the herald angels in awe. The kid may need acting lessons.
The girl who aspired to be Mary (remember that little debate?) was assigned to be the star, which she forsook when she learned there were animals was not very pleased about her “cheesy” sheep costume.
Baaaaaaaad. Sorry, bad pun.
Sure, our rehearsals were a disaster (but they pulled it off) and the manger was made of a hula skirt.
And that heathen Santa made an appearance. 
But somehow I think baby Jesus would have loved our ward Christmas party as much as I did.
The Holiday Piano Recital: The Story of Meltdowns, Stresses and Triumphs
December 23, 2013 By
For my kids’ holiday piano recital, their teacher gave each of them challenging holiday songs to memorize. After several Hadley meltdowns, I told her to just focus on Silent Night instead of the assigned two and that seemed to work like a charm.
Until she actually started regressing a few days before the recital. And then the freak-outs began, followed by mind games as she started thinking she couldn’t play it at all.
Bode was another story. While Hadley had lost her confidence, he was overly confident he could knock out Jolly Old St. Nicholas and Angels We Have Heard on High. The complication: he’s totally ADHD on the piano. He is always playing (just ask driven-to-drink Jamie who just wants a moment of silence) but Bode is all over the place and rarely focuses on just one song for long. At times, he was more focused on memorizing Hadley’s song than his own which, as you can imagine, went over stupendously well with her.
So, I was nervous before the recital but then I forced myself to calm down. What was the worst that could happen? So, they screwed up. Many of our friends would be at the recital so it’s not like they were performing for strangers. I assured myself that failure and learning to pick yourself back up is a good growing experience at any age.
At the beginning of the recital, their teacher announced how proud she was of her students and how they had been assigned pieces a bit beyond their level of expertise. Finally, a ray of hope. Maybe my kids wouldn’t be alone!
And they weren’t. Though all the kids did great, there were definitely a lot of mess-ups and do-overs.
Hadley was nervous but she knocked it out of the park until the final few bars of her music, in which case she had a pretty minor flub. Most amusingly, though, was when she crossed her legs in the middle of her piece. 
Then there was Bode. The last one to perform, he could either be the grand or much less-than finale. He confidently strode over to the piano, plopped himself down and started pounding away with the intensity of Schroeder from Charlie Brown. The piano bench was pushed sideways, his brow was crinkled but gosh darn it if that boy didn’t pull his songs together in the 11th hour. Like Hadley, his flubs were relatively minor and he was all “I told you I could do it” grins when it was over.
He was in such an exuberant mood that as he was downing his refreshments after (one of each treat, of course), he jokingly called out “FOOD FIGHT!”
I’m sure the owners of the venue with their $25,000 pianos would have been thrilled.
As we were driving home, Hadley was in a much better mood. “Our teacher is the perfect piano teacher,” she raved. “She not only has us learn songs from the piano books but different ones as well. Then she has us perform them at a recital!”
We’re counting this one as a very surprising win.
November: Because It’s Better Late Than Never
December 18, 2013 By
Sure, I know we’re already blazing through December but November, how I loved November. I’d be pretty darn remiss if I didn’t give a few of my favorite November moments a mention before they’re lost forever.
We had our first family ski trip of the season at one of my favorite Colorado ski resorts, Copper Mountain. Many more details to come but for now, our first of what I hope will be many pictures on the lift together.
And then there’s Hadley. This fun, free-spirited, strong-willed girl of mine and I may not always agree but there’s no place we bond more perfectly than the outdoors. 
There was plenty of bonding for the whole family on the slopes and off.
That evening, the kids tried to make me jealous when they abandoned me for Jamie’s side of our booth at Casa Sanchez Mexican restaurant.
Nope, I didn’t feel envious even one bit.
When people say they have no desire to ever try skiing because it’s too cold and difficult, I honestly feel sorry for them because they think a ski vacation starts and stops on the slopes. Soaking in a hot tub under the stars and white lights as you listen to the groomers on the mountain is truly a magical end to the day. 
Boy with creepy beady eyes notwithstanding.
Jamie and I had a great month in the romance department. It turns out that if you sing “You don’t bring me flowers anymore” that if you married a good man, he will deliver.
We went on some memorable dates but none was more memorable than when we were at a preview for the History Colorado Center’s new Living West exhibit and we tried the two-seater outhouse.
Let’s just say I saw him in an entirely new light.
Do you love It’s a Wonderful Life as much as my Jamie does? I surprised him with a date night to see this story brought to life as a 1940’s radio broadcast at Miner’s Alley Playhouse in Golden. I’m admittedly not a huge fan of the movie but fell in love with the charming and hilarious cast who made us laugh ’til we cried and ignited an appreciation for idealistic George Bailey as he received divine intervention one Christmas Eve. This 130-seat theater was quaint, the acting superb and the audience interaction was fun (have you ever been playfully given Jelly Bellies by the actors prior to a show?) 
We made an evening of it and went to dinner prior to the show. Downtown Golden has some of our favorite dining options and we tried the new Indulge Bistro & Wine Bar with outstanding service, food and ambiance in Golden’s Gateway Station. I’m still salivating over my Filet Oaxaca, a Black Angus filet mignon served with manchego potato puree, grilled vegetables, blackened shrimp and mango mole sauce. I could show you a picture but it would just make me hungry again.
In honor of Thanksgiving, Bode gave a great lesson for Family Home Evening and they made a big gratitude basket where we listed all the things for which we are grateful.
Jamie cut out a big pumpkin and put “grandma” on it. We all know what he really meant.
For the third year in a row, we served Thanksgiving dinner and made cards for low-income seniors through Volunteers of America.
I get a little choked up thinking about all the wonderful people we met that afternoon that really brought home the whole spirit of Thanksgiving. November, you’ve never been a favorite but you will be most welcomed next year.
Let the Christmas Insanity Begin!
December 16, 2013 By
What a great weekend! On Friday, my friend Amie and I volunteered at our city’s Santa House which collects and distributes toys to low-income families. I helped unload and stock shelves but by far my favorite was being a “personal shopper” and helping those in need select toys for their kids. I’ve donated plenty of toys to toy drives in the past but being behind-the-scenes and seeing the wonderful people who are struggling gave me a new resolve to do more in the coming years.
After school, Bode joined some of his classmates to perform several Christmas songs at a local retirement home How to score hot second grade chicks: land the coveted role of Rudolph.
Old ladies will also dig your nose and reindeer games.
Jamie’s sister Lisa generously invited the kids for a sleepover on Friday so Jamie and I could have date night at the Denver LDS Temple, which is a pretty darn awesome way to celebrate the season.
Saturday was a frenzy. Boot camp, picked up the kids, cleaned the house and had Hadley’s final volleyball game of the season. I have been the assistant coach for her cute team and they’ve improved leaps and bounds. Most gratifying is she has finally found her sport and constantly has a volleyball in hand around the house.
It’s only a matter of time until she breaks something.
After that, we raced over to see the highly-anticipated Hobbit and Bode is already counting down ’til when the third movie in the trilogy is released on his birthday this summer. Translation: they loved it.
Upon arriving home, baking insanity ensued. Whenever Christmas rolls around, I start baking. And then bake some more. I have so many great recipes that I want to make them all so that’s exactly what I did. But I’ve gotten smarter over the years and don’t kill myself by cramming it all in on one day and started baking weeks ago. That’s what freezers are for, right?
Saturday night was about compiling all our goodies. This year’s haul included caramel toffee squares, gingerbread men, white chocolate snowball cookies, cream cheese cutout cookies, whipped shortbread and almond rocha.
What I did kill myself with was packaging everything for our friends and neighbors then the massive clean-up. But didn’t they turn out lovely?
Bribery is how we make and keep our friends.
The cute kiddos made and decorated gingerbread men for their Primary class at church. 
If you need us, we’ll be the ones passed out in the corner in a sugar coma.
Why I’m hiding the knives
December 13, 2013 By
Thursday is our crazy day when I juggle carpool, volleyball, piano and Activity Days at the church. Yesterday was particularly crazy because Bode had literacy night at his school and I had my Relief Society Christmas dinner, all at the same time as Hadley’s volleyball.
That whole cloning thing would have been especially useful.
As we were racing around, Bode I were chatting and he announced, “No pressure, Mom.”
I perked up, figuring he had something he wanted to add to his Christmas wish list but it was so much better/worse.
“No pressure, Mom, but when you die are you going to leave Hadley and me money?”
Jamie joked when I told him later: “I was wondering why he was asking about my life insurance policy the other day.”
KEEN on Bode’s Killer New Winter Boots
December 11, 2013 By
I haven’t complained even once about the Arctic freeze that has fallen over the country for one simple reason: remember our blistering summers? No way I can ever forget. So I’ve kept my mouth shut, grateful it’s not hot but not fully embracing the single-digit temps with biting wind chill.
Yesterday was our first day above freezing in over a week. The moment the kids walked in the door from school I announced, “We’re going on an adventure!” which usually results in knowing groans but within moments, all reluctance is forgotten as they’re unleashed in the great outdoors
We were on a mission to test out Bode’s new KEEN Loveland Boots WP ($70). I’ve been a long-time advocate of their great footwear–everything from sandals to Mary Janes to trail runners but we’ve never tried out their boots so I jumped at the chance when KEEN offered to send Bode a pair to review. Never mind I’d just bought a used no-name brand from the local thrift store. These are, after all, KEENS!
As soon as Bode slipped them on (easy to do with their bungee lace system), he squealed, “They’re so light!” which is certainly a paradigm shift from his usual heavy, clunky winter wear. Prospect Park was the perfect testing ground as it combined outdoor play on the trails with versatility on the playground.
Because doesn’t every kid do the monkey bars in the snow?
And scale treacherous climbing walls? No problem with the dual-climate outsole for great traction on slippery surfaces.
Of course, you have to do the snow test in winter boots and the warm insulation kept his feet warm while the waterproof, breathable membrane kept him dry. 
Bode wasn’t the only one having an adventure that day and both kids pressured me to join in the fun. I doubtfully looked at the slippery jungle gym. “You really don’t want me to try this and die, do you? I’m the only one who knows where the Christmas presents are hidden.”
They took their chances and I rose to the challenge by climbing the very slick climbing wall in my very non-KEEN boots.
It was touch-and-go for a bit but I lived to tell the tale. Sometimes it’s the little [in your face] victories that mean the most.
But next time, I hope I’ll be sporting some cool KEEN winter boots like Bode.
I'm a Canadian-born mom of two, former Denver Post columnist, family travel writer, editor of MileHighMamas.com and 9News contributor. Expert on all things Utah, Denver, family and travel. Lover of laughter and life. Happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin. 