Easter in Kansas

This may be my most photo-laden post ever...just a heads-up!

The Greenies took a little road trip to Kansas to see the family for Easter. While sitting in the car for ~13 hours (each way!) isn't necessarily my most ideal vacation, it was nice to just hang with the boys and listen to some tunes. Carter did WONDERFULLY in the car (except he only napped for about 30 minutes each way) and we got a kick out of his love of seeing semi trucks, trains, and
A LOT (you have to scream it!) cows along the way to Kansas.

Even better was being able to spend a little time with my folks ("Grandma and Grandpa C" in this blog) and my brother (Jason), his wife (Katrina), and my nephew (Daniel). We took a ton of photos and I wanted to put them up here for posterity.

[Not sure if I've mentioned, but I had our blog published in two volumes - 2009 and 2010 - and gifted a copy to Grandma and Grandpa C for Mother's and Father's Day gifts. I had a second set made for me and I consider it my own little way of scrap-booking...minus the glue, stickers, and tape...]

So let me move on to the photo show... Up first, is a shot of the fam playing in the backyard - some badminton, some soccer, some stick hauling, etc. Remember you can click on any of these to make them bigger.
Some short soccer videos - playing with Grandpa C:





Carter's "big kick" (or something like that):




The net we brought for badminton was a total piece of poo, so we pretty much played without it...

Grandpa C showing off his badminton skills:
Not quite as awesome as me:
Carter tried to fix up the net:
"Sorry, Mommy, broken..."
Daniel played very well with Carter, too. This next pic cracks me up - sort of a "nu uh" look :)
My brother, Jason, and Daniel:
The boys had a fantastic time hunting for plastic Easter eggs (which Carter talked about afterward for about two weeks straight...):
Daniel received a sweet monster truck setup from his cousin, Carter:
Daniel even "shared" the egg finding with Carter (which was adorable - "Look, Carter, what's that?"):
Daniel found the "special golden egg" and was QUITE proud of his find:
Daniel gave Carter a fun basket of loot, including a fun football-shaped egg:
...and yes, there was A LOT of candy (chocolate-covered Peeps, blech):
The boys then had a second egg hunt outside:
Katrina and Carter (LOVE this pic!):
[complete with soccer balls and sticks...]
Some more badminton - family style:

Whoops, net down...again:

Not only was the net a hunk of junk, the rackets were also crappy. We broke about 3 of them, but Grandpa C was able to "fix" them with some sticks and duct tape:
We then moved inside to eat a tasty, tasty Easter meal. My mom sets the prettiest table for EVERY holiday, so I wanted to snap a couple photos to prove it:
...and every relish plate needs a goofy, tiny silver fork, right Jason?
Ellie (the Basset Hound) enjoyed feeding off of Carter's fingers, spills, etc. (Carter also talked ALL about Ellie all of the way home...maybe it's time for the Greenies to get a doggy?!):
The boys played a little piano (my old piano. *sigh Someday it will end up in MY house and I'll have to learn to play it all over again...):
We then took some family photos. Every time I look at these, they crack me up! Trying to get the entire gang to A) look at the camera, B) sit still, and C) smile at the same time was nearly impossible. And to prove it, I decided to put ALL of the shots here so you can have a chuckle too.

So let's start with Katrina and Jason:
Grandpa C:
The boys:
The girls and the boys (Carter is CLEARLY enjoying photo time, eh?):
Katrina gnawing on Daniel's toes...
And Carter's done...
...cuz, you know, he's got a string to play with...
The siblings:
And just a few more random shots:
And that's all folks! I hope you made it through this crazy long post! We had a great, great time in Kansas and when I look back at these, it makes me smile and be sad all at the same time. Sure wish we had more family nearby, but by having them so far away, it just makes it all the sweeter when we get to see them, eh?

Hope you had a fantastic Easter, too, and I hope you are finally off of your Easter candy high!
~kerrie

Fancy Pants

The Greenie's spent a much-needed night out with the adults a week or so back when we attended the annual Albuquerque Mayor's Charity Ball. The Mayor's wife (I guess that would be the "First Lady" right?) hosts the Ball to support ~5 local charities. It's a really great cause and I'm always happy that my company supports it.

Carter stayed home with Hannah (co-worker's kid who is raising money to attend a vet program at Cornell this summer). We were only happy to help support her education and didn't mind that Carter was able to hang out with a young, blond gal (of which he talked about CONSTANTLY the day after...)!

Anywho, I tend to attend several of theses types of events each year with my work and I have a rule about NOT wearing black... Mainly because A) I already own 15 black dresses and B) it's easier to find me if I'm wearing something brightly colored (right Matt?).

So here's a shot of the gang in all of our fancy pants (click to enlarge) and me in my yellow dress:

L-R (back): Heidi, Steve, Laura, Tom
L-R (front): Eileen, Paul, Kerrie, Matt, Danita

Hope you have many opportunities to wear your fancy pants too!
~kerrie

Graduation Congratulations!

Just a short post to say...
to our nephew, Daniel, on his graduation from preschool! A few pictures of the happy graduate:
(And we weren't there, but I swiped these photos from Katrina...tee hee...thanks Katrina, great pics!)

Here's a pic with the proud grandparents (Grandma and Grandpa C):
Awwww....we're so proud of Daniel! Good luck in kindergarten in the fall!!!
~kerrie (& matt & carter)

Playin' with Chickens

With the recent warm weather, Carter has been a playground fiend. As in ALL he wants to do is play "outside"... (I often joke that toddlers are no different than dogs... "Want to go outside?!")

Anyway, I had Carter in this super-sweet outfit (he was telling me that he had his water):
...and ALL he wanted was to open the back door and run free:
Except the door was locked. And he was sad:
REALLY sad (this photo is simply priceless):
So I let him out to play (even though he was dressed all goofy...).

Later we had a little dinner and Carter selected the "chickens" napkin. I've been making cloth napkins (we don't use paper) and I chose some super-fun fabrics, most are kid-friendly. Napkins help with A) the mess... and B) teaching Carter a few new vocabulary words (for instance, he learned "stripes" by using the balloons napkin!).

Anywho, a few photos (and a fun little video) of Carter telling me about chickens and "what they say"...
[and in case you don't know what a chicken says, watch this short little video - it'll help you with sheep too...]




Thanks for the laughs, Carter!
~kerrie

The Sinus Infection Challenge

I mentioned a few blog posts back that I was on a really wacky diet to help pin-point the cause of my chronic sinus infections. Remember that one? Well, thought I'd finally tell the whole story here... And if you could care less, scroll down for some cute photos of Carter playing with his Thomas trains.

I'll start with the summary: the doctors have NO IDEA why I get chronic sinus infections.

Now the how-I-got-to-that-realization...

1.) After being on antibiotics pretty much every month between September and March (i.e., the cold months) for the last 2 years, I decided to complain to my doctor. And the only reason I complained was because the antibiotics were interfering with my wine drinking at Book Club (which is monthly). So yes, I'm very selfish. Oh, and every time I got a sinus infection, I shared it with Matt and/or Carter, so at any given time, one of us was sick. Guess I'm not TOO selfish then, eh? Spreading the love!

2.) Doc C sent me to see an ENT. We did scans of my head to see if I had anything wrong "structurally," and he put me on a super-powerful antibiotic for 30 days to [hopefully] kick out any remaining bugs. Results of the scan: nothing wrong. Results of the antibiotic: nothing - even got another sinus infection in the middle of the 30 days.

3.) Doc C then sent me to see an allergist (Doc K). We did a full-panel skin test (where they prick you with 90 known allergens - foods, plants, animals, etc. to see what you react too). We did some blood work to see if my immune system is compromised. We did some breathing tests to see if I'm asthmatic. Results of the skin test: nothing (I'm allergic to Japanese Cockroach - just like the other 99.99999% of the world and milk and eggs, which I already knew). Results of the blood work: nothing. Results of the breathing tests: nothing.

4.) Doc K then made the leap that since I had "hits" for the milk and eggs, I MUST be allergic to several other foods and THOSE foods are causing the chronic sinus infections. Excuse me?! So he put me on the world's worst diet for three weeks, which eliminated ALL known allergens (dairy, grains, sugars, citrus, nuts, alcohol, and pretty much everything else that tastes good). THREE WEEKS OF THIS! But I did it. I ate beans, potatoes, some vegetables, and some fruit for three weeks. I lost like 10 pounds (don't worry, I've gained it all back...).

5.) So I went back to the allergist to discuss the results of the diet and determine the next course of action. Basically I had no reactions to anything I ate, I was feeling fine (i.e., no sinus infection - but it IS warmer here), and I was ready to eat "normal" food again.

After being p*ssed off for having to eat next to nothing for three weeks, I was hoping this doctor could shed some light on my "condition." What's the first thing he says after the three weeks of H*ll?

"So, why did you decided to come see us?" EXCUSE ME?! IT WAS A FOLLOW-UP VISIT!!! I meekly told him so and maintained my cool.

Holding onto my bloodwork results, he then says, "Looks like we did some bloodwork, wonder why?" EXCUSE ME?!?! MAYBE BECAUSE I LOVE GETTING PRICKED WITH NEEDLES!?!? NOT!!!

I couldn't speak. I just sat there.

He flipped on the computer and proceeded to READ MY CHART TO ME OUT LOUD FOR 20 MINUTES! I was about *this* close to losing my cool.

This quack then explains that my immune system is fine. He flipped through the diet and said it was fine (although he had no idea or memory of telling me to DO the diet...). He then informs me that it MUST be another food causing these "sinus infections" as I called them (using air quotes).

OH MY LORD! I ALMOST WALKED OUT!!! Does he think I've made up my own misery?! Did I not really know what a sinus infection is/was?! I wanted to stab him (except I'm a pacifist and besides, I didn't have anything to stab with...).

I tuned him out while he quacked on, but he kept reminding me that it MUST be because of a food. We just had to "find out which one." So he put me on "challenge diets" for 8 weeks. For 8 weeks I was to basically over-indulge in a single food, one per week (milk, soy, wheat, etc.) and record how I felt. Thanks but no thanks.

When I asked WHY I should do this and explained that I was slightly puzzled how a food was causing my sinus infections, he proceeded to treat me like an idiot and slowly explain that the food or foods was/were aggravating my sinuses and prolonging the infections. I'd never be able to make them go away completely, but I might have ONE LESS per cold season if I eliminated the food (i.e., eggs) for the entire cold-weather season.

*eyeroll

So the gist of my saga - I'm blaming my toddler that is in daycare with zillions of other snot-nosed toddlers. He's building up his immunities by bringing home every ounce of crud that he is exposed to. Carter gets over it in 3 hours, I get over it in 3 weeks. Matt, he's just the innocent by-stander that is gonna get the crud too - most likely from me.

My pals tell me that when Carter is 6, 7, or 8, it will get better. Until then, I'll just suck it up. (And I'll take 1,000 mg of vitamin C twice a day and do sinus rinses/sprays when I need.)

And finally, the moral of my story: Allergists are complete and total quacks, especially Doc K. I'm canceling my second follow-up appointment and I'm NOT doing any stupid challenge diets. So there. Plbbbt. And it's not like he'd even remember me, why I was put on those diets, or whatever.

So let me end this post with some cute photos of Carter playing with his trains. He spends the entire time saying "Choo choo!" and it's absolutely adorable:
He's also just like his mom and sticks out his tongue when he's really, really concentrating:
Thanks for reading my rant. Now I have a doctor's appointment to cancel...

Stay healthy!
~kerrie

Off to the Races

With the Kentucky Derby coming up (this Saturday!), thought I'd get a post in about our own little jockey. Behold, Carter the Great riding on the super-fast, pure-bred, African-raised, "GIRAFFE EXPRESS"!!! (...thanks Grandma C!):
Such concentration required in a high-stakes race such as this(!):
Uh oh, traffic ahead, must lean a little to the right:
And it's a photo finish! Carter the Great for the WIN!
Good luck to all of the horses, jockeys, and bettors this weekend! And let's hope there's a Triple Crown this year!
~kerrie

Psycho Bunnies

I have lots and lots of photos and stories to tell from our recent trip to Kansas for Easter. As soon as I get a third arm, 10 more hours in the day, and an assistant, they'll get posted up here... I kid, I kid, but yes, we're that busy these days...

However, I couldn't resist sharing a tale of the "Psycho Bunnies," so I'm making the time RIGHT NOW to post these pics and the tale. Here goes...

You see, my favorite bread shop, House of Bread, advertised Easter Bunny Bread back in April. Since Matt and I were making the trek to Kansas, I felt that we should bring a little Albuquerque love with us. So, we did. It was in the form of a whole grain "white" and a whole grain "wheat" bunny...

Ta-da! Mr. Wheat (left) and Mr. White (right):
Let's see Mr. White up close, eh?
And Mr. Wheat?
Aren't those just fabulous?! So life-like, eh?

So why the "psycho" label for this post? Well, you see,

THEY ARE BOTH MISSING THEIR RIGHT "EYE BALL"!!!!!

AHHHHHH!

PSYCHO BUNNIES ON THE LOOSE!!!!!

Just being silly. Hope you had a Happy Easter! More to come, I promise!
~kerrie

PS For the record, the bunny bread was mighty tasty! Just had to overlook that one-eyed thing...

Congrats to Jeremy & Liz!

Just a quick little post for our good pals, Jeremy and Liz!

Starting with a big....
Their little girl, Natalie Lucille, arrived on Saturday! Can't wait to see lots of photos and meet the little gal! She came into the world healthy and perfect at 6 pounds, 5 ounces and 19.75 inches long (which is a teeny, tiny baby compared to our horse, Carter...)!

A big congrats to Jeremy and Liz and I especially can't wait to see photos of little Natalie laying about on the Parisian Kitty-Cat quilt I made for her back in March. They have a Parisian theme for the baby's room (how cute is that?!) complete with French kitties and chandeliers.

Few photos of the super-softy blanket below. The front:
Both sides:
A close-up of the kitties:
And here's a photo from Liz's Baby Shower:

And another photo from Jeremy's Baby Shower here at work (that's one of the two outfits I picked out for little Natalie...Jeremy thought it was totally cute...):
With that, a big, heartfelt congratulations from the Greenies to Jeremy and Liz! Here's to a few rest-filled nights!
~kerrie (& matt & carter)