Twinkle, Twinkle

OK. One more, just because this also is the cutest thing in the whole wide world. I think in this video Carolyn had just turned 2. We hadn't even put our pictures on the wall yet so it must have been right after we moved into this house.

And now: Twinkle, twinkle

When spaghetti was so much more than food

I was cleaning off my laptop a few days ago when I found a bunch of old videos from when Carolyn was a baby. It is seriously hard to remember when she was this little, but I thought it was the cutest thing in the whole wide world.

And now for our feature presentation: Messy Spaghetti.

An end to the Top 5 list

I knew it wouldn't last forever.

In January, I return to what I'll call "the real world." Not that my world isn't "real," but it does have a very flexible nap plan. That's because I'll be returning to school as a full-time student. Actually, a full/full-time student as I will be completing 62 credit hours in 12 months. Yes, you read that right.

I'm pretty sure that's not the "real" world either, but I do think naps will not be included. I'm returning to school to be a nurse, which is really a lifelong dream of mine. It's pretty exciting, but panic-inducing.

That's because it's an accelerated nursing program for people with a bachelor's degree, a CNA license and a crapload of science classes. Even mothers of 4-year-old girls – who have never been in daycare and don't really have any idea of how drastically life will change and will probably cry everyday because it is just not right to get dropped off at some strange lady's house – can be admitted.

So now, I spend my days trying to figure out if I'm immunized to rubella, paying hundreds of dollars for ugly white pants and shoes, researching how to scam money from the government (help in this area would be helpful) and trying to find a strange lady to care for my poor, sweet, adorable 4-year-old.

Did I mention that I'm a horrible parent? Oh, well, Penny will be ready to fill you in for the next 18 years or so.

Halloween, part 3

Here it is. An end to the month-long Halloween celebration at our house. Sure it's been fun endlessly planning the outfits Penelope will where, when she will wear them, how cute she will look wearing them and if maybe she shouldn't wear some other costume. But it's over, at least for the next 11 months.

Even Steve and I got into the spirit. The girls said I should be a rock star, like Hannah Montana. I tried to tell them gently that Hannah Montana was not a look I could achieve, but I could do a mildly interesting rocker girl with spiky mohawk. The problem was, my wardrobe errs more on the side of soccer mom than rock star, so it was just a barely passable rendition, which the girls kept saying looked JUST like Hannah Montana (they have never actually seen the show, so I guess I should have just nodded politely and said thanks).

Truthfully, it turned out to be more sleazy barfly than rock star, if there's actually a difference.


The girls were Princess Penelope and Rapunzel, which I felt sort of proud to tell people because it's a character from literature, and not Disney literature but the good old-fashioned kind. But I would have paid cash for something not princessy. Skeleton. Witch. Slutty cheerleader. Anything without a tiara.



But princess it was, and of course, they were adorable. We got just enough (too much) candy. And mostly good chocolate stuff. For the first time, the girls actually went up to the doors by themselves. And we had fun hanging out together. And eating candy.

The good chocolate kind.