Congrats to Jenn and George!

Just a short little post to say CONGRATULATIONS to one of my most favorite SWE pals, Jenn, and her beau, George!

George popped the question just before Valentine's Day while they were out on a camping trip!
[and she said YES!]

[and keeping with my engagement news theme of late, this clip art also looks nothing like either of them, but it's cute, eh?]

Here's wishing them both the very, very best! And I'm already counting the minutes until the wedding... which will be in WINE COUNTRY, right Jenn?!?! Oooooh yeah!
~kerrie

Brunch and Swingin'

I've been planning a meal with my pal Amelia and her family for about, oh, the last 438 years... At any given moment, at least one of the Greenies or someone from her family is sick. Like always.

Miraculously, there was a Sunday a week or so back that NO ONE was sick. So Amelia kindly invited us all over to their place for a FANTASTIC brunch! Carter even added "brunch" to his vocabulary that day!

Amelia, Shawn (her husband), and Liam (her son) whipped up a super-tasty meal and we ALL chowed down. Even better was washing it down with a little glass of mimosa love!

And yet, even better than that was hanging outside in nearly 60 degree weather watching the kiddos play on the swing set/jungle gym/playground contraption thingy in their backyard! Few pics of the fun follow.

Carter heading down the slide while Shawn helped Greta up the ladder:
Greta heading down the slide (backwards) and Liam heading for the monster trucks:
Carter found the scooter thingy (shortly thereafter he spent a considerable amount of time on the swing...which is unheard of...he usually HATES being on the swing...weird, I know...):
Greta's turn:
Up goes Carter:
Liam with the big digger, me helping Carter up the ladder (nice shot of my backside, eh?...thanks for that Matt...):
Jailbird Carter:
Thought I'd try out the slide too:
And finally, a shot of Liam showing us all how it's REALLY done:
Thanks again to Amelia, Shawn, and the kiddos for having us all over! As soon as I'm healthy again (yes, it's my turn now...), we'll totally reciprocate!
~kerrie

Sewing Guild

Those that know me, know that I'm a tad crazy and extremely over-committed to just about, well, everything. I volunteer for everything. I have a zillion hobbies. And if I had 1 more hand and 4 more hours a day, I'd be able to accomplish oh-so-much more!

Well recently my co-worker Sarah and I joined the Albuquerque Modern Sewing Guild (if you're on Facebook, check them out here) to have a fun outlet for our sewing hobby. I was originally hesitant to join since I don't get as much free time as I used to (have I mentioned the insanely busy nearly-two-year-old we have at home?). Sarah went to the January meeting and the very next day she told me I "HAD TO COME!" She even got them to rearrange their schedule to accommodate us (was on the same night as our local SWE meetings). So wooo hooo!

I went to the February meeting and included another pal, Beth (she is also in my Book Club). Beth is crazy talented and can sew, knit, crochet, re-build engines, etc. (and she even made me one of these(!!!)):
I tried and tried and tried in 2007 (that's when the pattern came out in the KU Alumni Magazine - which is where I swiped this photo - MY Jayhawk is resting comfortably in my office at work, so I don't have a photo of it with me...) to find someone who knew how to knit. NO ONE would make me one. Until Beth came along. I super duper love it! THANK YOU BETH!!!

Anywho, at my first Guild meeting, I tried my hand at making pillow covers. The "theme" for the night was "Winter Accessories" and I just wasn't up for making anything too wintery. Mainly because I HATE winter...

So I had some choo-choo fabric and with Sarah's help, I whipped up a pillow cover for a little pillow for Carter. Action shot (I screwed up my bobbin and was checking it out):
Oh well!

There's the awesome Beth on the left. She was knitting (or crocheting - I honestly don't know the difference) some mittens:
Close up of another one of Beth's projects - she's stitching a cover for her Kindle. Cool!
I didn't get any pics of Sarah that night, but if you want to see her amazing skills, just check out her Right Brain My Brain blog on any given day (also linked on the right-hand side of the Greenie Times).

So now that I'm done writing about how cool I am and how TOTALLY cool my friends are, I'm going to sign off here before I lose any more street cred...
~kerrie the G

Souper Bowl School

It appears that I'm a few posts behind and well, frankly, I don't care! Life is getting pretty busy around the Greenie house with a very-soon-to-be-two-year-old that pretty much doesn't stop moving...

And speaking of moving, have I mentioned that Carter is now in the "two's class" at school? Since he was pretty much towering over the other "one's," his teachers opted to kick him out to the next class. He is totally loving it (and the teachers just adore him)! Biggest challenge for us, no more sippy cups. That's right, our big boy uses a cup now. What does that mean for dinner time? We clean up a lot of milk...

Thought I'd post one of his final art projects from the "one's class" - yes, another let's-glue-food-to-paper-and-call-it-art project:
I don't keep his foodie projects, so I snapped the pic before it went into the trash.

I'm all out of segues, so I'll just more right into some photos from Super Bowl Sunday. Grandma C shipped us our very own antique Campbell's Soup pot so we filled it with some chili on SBS. Just check out this fantastic dinner presentation(!):
Carter was ready to chow and ate about 3 bowls of chili (see next pic). And speaking of eating three bowls of chili... Have I mentioned lately how ready I am to have him out of diapers (see that segue? Chili to diapers? Man, am I good or what?!):
Maybe next year my Chief's will make it to the Super Bowl and we'll have a big 'ol celebration and eat FOUR bowls of chili. Yeah, probably won't happen (the Chief's...we can so eat that much chili), but we'll still celebrate in style!
~kerrie

Wicked Girls Night Out!

Not so very long ago, the crazy Book Club girls and I had a "theater date." That's right, a group of us all went out to see my mostest favoritest musical of all:

If you have not read the book, nor seen the musical, I urge you immediately to run out and buy the book, then buy the tickets to see it. Wicked is FANTASTIC! (Link takes you to the official musical site - which is where I stole the above image.) I saw it a couple years ago in Phoenix with Matt and my pal Holly and I nearly peed my pants when I learned it was coming to my very own backyard! Whooo hoo! And IT. WAS. AMAZINGLY. GREAT!!!

So while I was at the theater, Matt was tending to the boy and fed him a delicious dinner consisting of mashed potatoes, green beans, raviolis, and some orange slices. Hey, whatever works, right? Well, Carter was clearly a fan:
In case you'd like to gauge just how much he can shove in that mouth of his:
The girls and I had a meal that was a TAD better. We dined at Seasons and even wore our fancy dresses. (L-R: Holly, Kristin, Myja, Beth, Amelia, and me) At this point in the night, we'd all had a drink or two and had some silly fun for sure (and note the program for Wicked being held up in the back by Beth):
We all agreed that we should make this a regular type of outing since it was so much fun. Thanks to everyone that came out and had a blast on our "theater date!"

Now go buy your tickets to Wicked!
~kerrie

Congrats to John & Stephanie!

Just a short little post to say CONGRATULATIONS to Matt's brother, John, and his lady-love, Stephanie!

Who knew John was such a romantic, but he proposed to Stephanie on Valentine's Day![and she said YES!]
[and this clip art looks nothing like either of them, but it's cute, eh?]

Here's wishing them both the very, very best!
~kerrie

SUPER COLD, er, BOWL!

Yes folks, the Super Bowl is just around the corner. And I heard them say on the radio that the last thing the Super Bowl planners want to hear is the phrase "inclement weather"...

Well let me tell you, folks, we've got some inclement weather. You've got some inclement weather. Folks all across the US are getting inclement weather. And to sum of my feeling toward inclement weather, it's this:

SNOW AND ALL COLD WEATHER DAYS SUCK!

Ok, there, I said it. Pheww, I feel better now! :)

But really, it was seriously cold in Albuquerque today. Our high temp was NINE degrees F. NINE. That. Is. Cold. When I woke up this morning it was minus two. When I dropped Carter off at school, it was two degrees. When I picked Carter up from school, it was seven.

Take me to Florida. Now.

But I will say something positive about this craptastic weather. Bundling up Carter makes him extra adorable, see (and the sweater is from Amelia, no way do I have that good of a fashion sense...):
Trying to catch a smile:
And Carter saying "Smile!" (which means bare your teeth and stick out your tongue):
And we're also getting ready to watch the Super Bowl this Sunday with some pals. We've missed their party for the last 2 years because one of the Greenies has always been sick (and a few of the attendees have small kids, so I don't want to bring the germy bug with us...).

We've been testing out a few snacks and Carter's been the biggest fan of Spinach Dip. He doesn't like to eat the chips, but he sure likes the dip, especially the ooey-gooey cheese:
And the rockin' plaid pants - another hand-me-down from Amelia, that girl has style!In case you wanted to see it INSIDE his mouth:
And finally, my spinachy-cheesy covered, smiley boy:
Gotta love him, eh? Makes me smile every single day!

Stay warm out there and enjoy the cold if that's your thing. [And if it IS, you might consider getting a psych exam...ahem...]
~kerrie

Runaway Train

So I've been working my tushy off and have had very little time to blog (much less take any photos so I have something to blog about...). I've been working on a proposal at work that requires a preliminary (or 30% defined) design for some wastewater-related components. Being that I've been given VERY little information about the project, it's been QUITE a challenge to say the least. And well, they gave me all of just a handful of days to do it, so the hours are late and my brain power is spent... And I'm still not done. But I'm taking a night off to do a little blogging.

So a week or so ago, I came home late from work on a Friday night and took to the sewing machine to just get a little brain down-time. Sewing is one of the most relaxing activities, so it was indeed a good way to wind down from the busy week.

I've been wanting to try my hand at a fleece blanket for a while, so I picked up some Thomas the Train fabric so I could make one for Carter. Although they sell little kits (that require zero sewing - just some cutting and tying), I figured with a toddler, I should sew the two halves together so it wouldn't fall apart. So I asked my pal Sarah for a few tips and she told me to stitch it all together and leave a 4-inch edge, cut some strips, and tie it together. Since she's a sewing pro, I figured I should follow her directions.

So I did - ta da! Check out the finished project (the back is a darker blue):
Close-up of the "choo choo" - Thomas:
I also figured Carter would beat it up, so I free-hand stitched over the stars (or "shaas" as Carter says) - not my most super-straight sewing, but hey, it'll do:
I placed the blanket next to Carter's crib (not IN the crib - he still doesn't sleep with a blanket because he pulls it right over his face - every time...). So I put it within reaching distance for when he woke up and come Saturday morning, you could hear "choo choo" all through the house. Happy kid, that's for sure.

I think my next blanket will be a KU blanket of some kind... Because I NEED another one of those...

And to end this exciting post about sewing, I'll give you a random, yet scandalous picture of Carter running away from the bath. He usually LOVES to take a bath, but on this particular day, he was having more fun staying OUT of the bath. I've censored it to protect the innocent...

He thought he was simply hilarious. He raced up and down the hall like he was a racehorse. Let's just hope he didn't pee when I wasn't looking...

Hope you're staying warm out there! Bundle up with a blanket, that's my motto!
~kerrie

Zombie Girl [ewwww, TMI!!!]

[ PS I revised this post to include a bail out link and a little quip about Carter's 80's jeans.]

And my final post of the night (which, hooray, makes me finally caught up!). My disclaimer for this post:

I'VE INCLUDED SOME GNARLY PHOTOS OF MY EYE IN THIS POST - IF YOU'RE THE QUEASY TYPE, I'D SKIP THIS ONE. CLICK HERE TO JUMP TO THE PREVIOUS POST (and then you can use the archive list to move around the blog).

There, you've had your disclaimer. Exit now. Or keep reading (as a bonus, there are cute Carter photos at the end!).

So let's begin. Carter (below) is expressing how I felt on Thursday morning (and check out the sweet 80's stonewashed jeans! And the whiny look was due to the fact that I accidentally peeled his orange. You CANNOT peel his oranges, tangerines, clementines, etc. He will either A) just eat through the peel or B) do it himself, thank you!):
I woke up with a ruptured blood vessel in my left eye (pictures coming, you can still bail out here...). Never had anything like this, so I was a tad freaked. I went to the eye doctor and he checked it out. Wasn't alarmed, but wants to see me again next Friday to be sure.

Let it be known that when I'm famous and they write my biography, there will be SEVERAL chapters on how I've stumped the medical profession...

You see, blood vessels can rupture from the silliest of things - sneezing, blowing your nose, lifting something heavy, and well, just because they want to.

I had a headache last week for about 3 days (and I only remember this because I NEVER get headaches, so when I do, I complain about them to Matt profusely). Doc said this MIGHT have something to do with the rupture, but maybe not. Needless to say, after the rupture, the headache was gone...

So you wanna see it?

Really?

.

.

.

.

.

.

Ok... Here's a close up of my left eye (and this looks WAY better than it did on Friday...it was still bleeding then and moved further down on my eye):
In comparison to my "good" eye - if I look to the left, this is what you see (and I didn't get a picture of it, but above my retina is some SERIOUSLY gnarly bloody stuff - see, I'm sparing SOME details as to not gross you out TOO much...):
Looking straight ahead - ewww:
And my "normal" look - with glasses - most of my co-workers avoided eye contact with me on Friday because I was so freakishly zombie looking:
Doc says it should only take a month to clear up... Yay (says Carter):
Hooray for 4 weeks (says Carter):
That's like a touchdown, right (questions Carter):
So I'll post a follow-up next week (and maybe take a photo after the blood starts to absorb into my eyeball...and then it turns yellow like a bruise).

Just thought I'd have a Too Much Information, or TMI, post to change it up 'round here on The Greenie Times! :)
~kerrie

School Pictures 2010

It's been a while since I posted some "stats" on Carter. Since we don't have to take him to the doctor as much as we did during his first year of life, we don't have as good of a handle on his height, weight, etc. But let me say this: We have a very healthy and happy little boy!

Carter just rounded the 22-month mark and will be turning 2 before we know it! He's the tallest in his class (of 1 year olds) and while we haven't measured him, he's at least 3 feet tall. He's hanging steady at the 30 pound mark and still can fit in size 5 diapers and mostly 24-month clothing (although we have him in 3T PJs because he's so tall).

Last time the doc checked, his ear tubes were still in position and that's a big relief for us. I like to think we've avoided a zillion ear infections by having the tubes in.

Carter has had a couple haircuts, but he's still mostly blond. It is a little darker than before, but not much. I keep it cut short so that shampooing is pretty quick (and Carter LOVES the bath...and splashing).

He still eats pretty much everything we put in front of him and has gained a new appreciation for "cookies." We rarely have cookies in the house, so it's kind of funny that he REALLY wants one after dinner. It's hard to say no because he asks for one so cutely :)

School is still wonderful and I think his development is right on target. He knows most of his body parts (including where the "poo poo" comes from...although he's showing not much interest in using the potty) and he's got a pretty lengthy vocabulary. I thought for one of my future posts I'd put together a list of all the words he knows. Would be a fun reminder once he's older and talking non-stop, eh?

He's big on coloring lately, as well as reading books. I'm glad he's enjoying the stories and we read 3 or 4 books minimum each night before bedtime. Matt does a better job at making silly sounds than I, but I'm trying...

And finally, I thought I'd post Carter's school pictures from November. They had a professional photographer come in and take photos of all of the kids, just like they do in elementary school. We had three shots of Carter to choose from and this one (below) is my favorite:
This next one is also cute and I like that he's holding onto the ball:
And this last one makes him look like he's really pissed off...so it makes me chuckle:
Thanks for reading and hope you're staying happy and healthy too!
~kerrie

Time Out (for Brussels Sprouts)!

This will be a completely random post, something I'm fond of doing every now and then... And well, it's MY blog, so I can do whatever I want. So there! :)

I'll start with a few cute photos of Carter trying on Daddy's shoes. He was quite proud of himself for being able to "walk" (which was more of a shuffle) in them:
"Bravo!" as Carter says!
Next up, a few silly photos of Carter running around with the stalk after I pulled all of the Brussels sprouts off for dinner. Both him and Matt are Brussels sprouts avoiders (fine with me, more for ME!), but Carter was keen on helping pull them off and put them in the pot. Actually, he had more fun running around with the stalk afterward. See?

It's a sword:
No, it's a broom!
Maybe it's edible?
Nah, yukky. It's trash, here Mommy:
And the next few photos include Carter's "time-out" timer (just a basic kitchen timer - he gets one minute for bad behavior and has to sit in his time-out chair - or "the thinking chair" as they call it at school - and then he has to say "sorry" and give a hug once the minute it up). Anyway, he climbed up on the furniture and swiped the timer the other day. He was quite proud of his accomplishment and was quite willing to "smile" when I asked him to for the camera:
And I'll end with one of my favorite shots of the year:
Is our little guy handsome or what?!
~kerrie