The Colwell Chronicles

Christmas Smiles

2011-11-20T09:32:00.000-06:00

Looking through past Christmas pictures - so many happy memories and so many smiles! I love the holidays! So excited to see what this year will bring!

Jessica's Boom Boom Dance

2009-02-01T09:32:00.001-06:00

This is why I worry about Jess hitting the pole!

The Menu

2009-02-01T09:28:00.001-06:00

Here is Jackson describing the menu for his 5th birthday party which was Star Wars theme - of course!!

Mom

2008-12-02T22:51:00.001-06:00

My mom fell down BAD on Sunday and is having surgery on Wednesday. Then in rehab for 6 weeks. Blogs this week will be scarce.

Disco Fever!

2008-11-28T20:49:00.001-06:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Our Dance

2008-11-28T20:38:00.001-06:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Thanksgiving Fun!

2008-11-26T11:15:00.008-06:00

I try to make sure that Jackson and Jessica realize that there is a holiday between Halloween and Christmas, which is hard as the stores do not cooperate on this one. Lucky for me, they both think it is crazy that stores have Christmas up and we have not had our Thanksgiving turkey yet. They always point it out and groan. In fact, my old boss, Joe, asked them last weekend what the next holiday was and they both answered Thanksgiving. He said he has asked lots of kids this question and they all said Christmas. Kudos kids! We have tried to do lots of fun Thanksgiving things around here all month. We have colored Thanksgiving coloring pages that I printed from the Internet - good-bye printer ink. We also made some really cool Thanksgiving candles, fake of course. I even sent out a few Thanksgiving pictures. One day this week, I made a special fall lunch - leaf shaped bologna and pumpkin shaped cheese - both things cut out with mini cookie cutters. Let me tell you, if you want your kids to devour something, make them into cool shapes. They LOVED it!! Today, since Chris is home (yay!), I actually had time to make Marshmallow Pilgrim Hats (which actually look harder than they are). I can not wait for tomorrow when I get to serve them. I think we might have to taste test them tonight. And we have even talked about what they are thankful for. Jackson is thankful for: "My Chunky and my Star Wars figures". Jessica is thankful for: "You (me, mommy as I asked the question) and Dada and my cute Chunky and your computer and Jackson". We are all looking forward to tomorrow and after that, The Colwell Christmas Train is leaving the station at high speed!! Woo woo!!

I am Super Mom

2008-11-23T12:28:00.010-06:00

OK, that might be too strong a term - Super Mom - but I am awful proud of myself. This past Thursday, I braved taking both kids to the eye doctor! By myself. No Daddy, no Grandma, just me. It was so much easier than I had imagined!! The kids were perfect and they were quite hilarious! We went to Wolfe Eye Clinic to see Dr. Suh, who is an awesome eye doctor for kids, if you ever need one. It was time for Jackson to see him again and time for Jessica to see him for the first time. They went through the first part of the exam great. Read pictures on a wall for Jess and read letters on the wall for Jackson. Then came the eye drops. I don't think either one really enjoyed the eye drops but they put up with them and heck, they feel a lot better than a shot. After the drops, we went back to the kids' waiting room filled with toys to wait for the drops to take effect. It did not take too long - Jackson exclaims "I can't see anything!!" And Jessica is stumbling around like Nicholas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas. Their pupils were so large that they both would have fit in quite nicely at a Dead show back in the 60s! They called us in to see Dr. Suh after about 20 minutes. He is so sweet and so nice! Both kids were champs. Jackson went first. Then Jessica, who climbed right up into the chair and put her chin on the device. Did not need to sit on my lap or anything. It was a breeze! Both eyes checked out well, Jessica especially , who does not need to go back and is good with school exams unless we have concerns. Maybe we have a girl who might not need glasses her whole life like her mom did. She would be so lucky! Jackson, on the other hand, has to go back to Dr. Suh in one year because "He has some more issues than Jessica." Personally, I think Jackson would be adorable in a little pair of wire rimmed Harry Potter glasses. We'll see - we have a year! All in all, I wish the dentist and the pediatrician was as easy as the eye doctor. Also, because of the eye drops, they got these hilarious sunglasses to wear home. BONUS!

The Last Bath

2008-11-23T12:18:00.003-06:00

Last Sunday, we had a time crunch and needed to bathe the kids. So instead of Jackson showering with Daddy and Jessica having a bath, we needed to do them both together at the same time to save a few minutes. They have not done this for ages and it is doubtful they will again. So of course, I had to take some pictures! It was so cute and reminded me of when they were small. Or smaller than they are now! P.S. Sorry for the lack of new blogs - Christmas shopping is upon us but I think I might have finished yesterday!!

Chunky is Famous!

2008-11-12T16:36:00.004-06:00

Chunky has been selected to be a pug model for Better Homes and Gardens! He will be in the 100 Days of Holidays next year. They are doing some AKC breed jack-o-lanterns and Chunky gets to pose by them. No paycheck for him, too bad as we were going to use that money to get him neutered. Just kidding. But seriously, that costs $100. Ouch! Maybe this will be just the beginning of Chunky's illustrious modeling career. Kate Moss, watch out!

A Successful Day at Home

2008-11-12T16:31:00.002-06:00

You know you have had a successful and fun day at home with a two year old and a four year old when your family room looks like this. Sure, it will get cleaned later but for now, who cares!

Jackson Says...

2008-11-12T16:22:00.003-06:00

This morning Jackson overloaded his nighttime Pull-Up so he was wet. A rare occurrence but it doers sometime happen. This morning, he hollered for Daddy (yay!) so Chris got up and took him into the bathroom, stripped him down, hosed him off and put some undies on him so he could come in a snuggle me this morning like he usually does, except usually he is still in his PJs. He walks into our bedroom and granted we keep our house about 66 or 67 during the nighttime, he touched his nipples and proclaims "My nipples are so BIG! I can feel them!" What's is the phrase? Turkey's done. That is what little Jackson was experiencing. Chris and I died laughing.

The Royal Tea Set

2008-11-12T16:12:00.004-06:00

Jessica and Jackson love Christmastime for a multitude of reasons and one of their favorite things is looking at toy catalogs. For the longest time, Jessica has been pointing to a real china tea set and saying she wants that for Christmas. Well, her Cousin Vicki in Washington got her one a longtime ago when Jessica was very new and I have had it stashed away until she was responsible enough. Is two and a half too little for real china? Well, we were going to find out. I gave it to her and explained how Cousin Vicki had given her this beautiful princess royal tea set when she was just a baby and how I had been saving it for her. I instructed Princess Jess and Prince Jackson to be very careful with it. It is packaged in a pink castle so when I handed it too Jessica, you would have though she just won the Super Bowl! "Oh I love it! I love it!" And she proceeded to do her happy dance. Which is hilarious. She and Jackson now have daily tea and she even knows exactly how to put each piece back in it's home in the pink castle box. (Sometimes Jackson has to help her with the silverware.) So, in closing, with the right Princess, two and a half is most definitely NOT too young for a real china royal tea set. In fact, it might just be the perfect age.

15 minutes....

2008-11-11T12:02:00.002-06:00

And I am leaving for my gastroscopy. Please think good and wonderful thoughts as I am nervous and a total baby!! Everyone I have talked to has said this is a breeze but I will be just so happy to have it over with.

Valley Free Church Pumpkin Party

2008-11-11T11:29:00.004-06:00

OK, if you have never gone to Valley Free Church's Halloween celebration called the Great Pumpkin Party - you are seriously missing out! They have tons of games for the kids, inflatables (which we don't do as it is pretty hard in your costume), kettle corn, a maze that you walk through (one year they did Narnia which was awesome!), Mr. Science experiments, and the best $1.50 meal you can buy - hot dog from the grill outside, chips and a soda! This is the third year we have gone so it is pretty much a family tradition. Every year we leave there, Chris and I are so impressed with the church and all the kids that participate and volunteer. It is really a great place to take the kids. This year we went on Oct. 27th. Here are some pics. Please if you have kids, go next year. Everything is free and the kids score tons of candy at the games!! Here is a picture of Jackson and Jessica arriving!

Daddy walking them around while I am snapping pictures!

Here is one of the many, many games - bean bag toss. Notice Jackson's correct form. Now check out Jessica, who basically walked up to the thing and dumped her bean bag in. Cheater!!

This was a really cool game - Frisbee toss! Jackson really liked this one. Here is Jessica, pinning the nose on the Jack-o-lantern. Another great one!

Fishing was fun - Jackson fished and got tons of candy!!

Jessica was a ringing success at ring toss! (Sorry, I had to!)

Followed my the delicious $1.50 dinner! YUM!

A wonderful family fun night! Check it out next year - usually around the 27th or so!

Gastroscopy

2008-11-10T13:13:00.001-06:00

I will try to post something later this afternoon during naptime but if I don't, tomorrow is my gastroscopy. They are putting a tube down my throat, down my esophagus, through my stomach and into the top of my small intestine. Sounds fun, right? Yeah, I am dreading it and even thinking about it makes me very nervous so I will not be mentioning it again until it is over. Anyway, I will be out all day tomorrow. Hopefully, I will feel better Wednesday. Thanks to Gaga for watching the kids!!

Jessica Says...

2008-11-08T19:15:00.003-06:00

It started snowing yesterday and Jessica exclaims "It is sooo snowflakey!!!" and she had the hugest grin. Then today we got the mail and in it, there was the new Newsweek with Barack Obama's picture on the cover. I show it to Jessica and she goes "Barack Obama! I love him. He is a good sharer!" So sweet! And no, for my Republican friends, she was NOT calling him a socialist!! Another quick anecdote, we started Christmas shopping today and we started with Jackson and Jessica's cousins, Xander, Hayden and Mallory. We got through the whole shopping trip with nary a toy request for themselves. I was totally proud!!

BARACK OBAMA

2008-11-05T00:34:00.002-06:00

It's about 12:35 am, and I'm watching coverage of the beat down and am reminiscing about the first time I actually met Barack Obama. I was wickedly hung over at the time, more than like smelled like beer and stale farts from an evening of virtual XBox warfare with my hardcore Republican life long brother and friend BG Hammer...and I'm not entirely sure I brushed my teeth that morning. But anyway, I'm sitting there one fine June morning with my 2 kids eating cereal, when suddenly my wife hangs up the phone on her mom and declares, "we're going to Union Park to see Barack Obama!" Based on the name alone, I just assumed we were going to meet a character from the Mortal Kombat videogame series, so I was all for it.

We arrive at the great beautiful merry-go-round at Union Park, and Barack's handlers see the stroller, our stunningly cute kids (I'm sorry, but Jackson makes the kid from Jerry Maguire look like Sloth from Goonies, and Jessica makes Martha Plimpton look like....Martha Plimpton. But I digress...) So anyway, Barack's handlers see my family, the stroller, my t-shirt that says IOWA; and they rush us like celebrities to the front front row...6 feet from the goofy wooden platform that this Mortal Kombat kombatant is going to deliver his address to the great people of the East Side.

His motorcade rolls up promptly at 10:00am as promised, and he strolls out in a crisply pressed white button down and Dockers. People are going cuckoo around us, including my wife. His first impression was dynamite, but I was still leary....hung over and leary.

So he immediately greets this crowd and goes into his now famous stump speech about hope and change...you know the one. The speech that makes people feel, you know, inspired and full of hope. Some just call it "words" or "rhetoric". I feel sorry for these people. As Heath Ledger's Joker might say, "Why so serious?" But again, I digress.

Anyway, he's giving this inspirational speech, and my daughter, who is 15 months old at the time, is stomping and pointing and babbling at all of Barack's key points. Obviously, Barack is a politician, so he pounces on the opportunity to address my toddler daughter, countering her toddler gobbly-goop babble with, "See? She doesn't like George Bush's foreign policy either!" (much laughter and applause) He continues, talking about the price of gas, the economy, the cost of college...and Jessica, age 15 months, goes cuckoo again! "See?!?!", the future President-Elect states, "She's worried about the cost of college too! And so is her Daddy!" (much applause and laughter). Jackson, age 3 at the time, is oblivious...too busy trying to share his Nerds with a massive bearded overall wearing unfiltered Camel smoking Hell's Angel sitting directly behind us. (Newsflash! The Hell's Angels are as big a fan of little kids as they are of adults. And they don't like candy either!)

So Baraka starts discussing Iraq, and Jessica starts stomping and pointing and baby barking again. If Fox Nexs had a camera there, they would have tied the two together.."Obama supports war hating baby!" or "Barack shares stage with war-hating domestic baby terrorist!")But AGAIN, I digress. No, our future President Elect doesn't play the same joke again, using my most precious child as a prop for a speech he's going to deliver a thousand plus times. But rather he shoots me a funny glance...warm and strangely understanding, as if he was hinting to me "hey, I've been there. It's politics, it's hot out here, and she's obviously bored. I wouldn't be offended if you scooped this angel up and took her to get a cool drink and hang out under a shade tree or something." So I did, smooth as silk. And he continued his stump speech.

So Jessica and I got our drink of water, much needed to say the least, and headed to a HUGE tree that stood within a thinly roped off area. "Why is this roped off?", I thought to myself as Jess and I dipped beneath the twine to get to the blessed shade. "This must be some important tree!"

I held Jess like I still do, tucked in one arm, head level so we can talk about stuff...when suddenly I get this weird sensation like I'm being watched. No, like I'm being monitored. Actually, monitored is too kind. Like I'm being....targeted? I scan the crowd 50 yards in front of Jess and I as we stand under this roped off shade tree as the future President Elect starts his improbable journey with just a few words that make people feel good, when I notice 2, 3, 5, 8 SECRET SERVICE people staring at my daughter and I, each with their right hands up to their right ears...communicating between them. It was like 8 Agent Smiths had a bead on me, ridiculously menacing sunglasses, same haircuts, all trained to blast/rip my face off on command. They didn't wave, gesture, or blink. They just stood, stared at me, and waited. Jessica babbled on about the Care Bears or something while I quietly and without threat, moved from this roped off area. Recognizing I was not "an asset", but rather a hung over dad with an overheated daughter, the Secret Service stood down.

After his speech, Jess and I managed to catch up to the future President Elect. He recognized me in a large line, thanked Jess and I for coming (I apologized for her behavior, he just laughed it off good naturedly) and we shook hands. He had a firm grip. And he made eye contact with me. I was impressed with that.

And here we are in November of 2008. This man, who just 2 summers ago made my goofball daughter part of his first stump speech in Iowa, has changed the course of history by winning the Presidency. And I have to say, I'm still impressed.

I LOVE THIS COUNTRY!

2008-11-04T22:13:00.001-06:00

BARACK OBAMA WAS JUST ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

REJOICE

BE HAPPY

LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR

Living History Farm Field Trip

2008-11-04T11:08:00.005-06:00

Jackson's preschool had a field trip to Living History Farms which I volunteered to stay with him and stupidly, brought Jessica. It was really cold that day and Jessica decided to be a total pill with a few bright spots! The kids got to see what an old time school room was like. Jessica did not like this and got bored fast. I thought it was pretty interesting but I am not two years old. Then we got to go see how brooms were made. Jackson and Xander were very good and actually Jess seemed to approve of this. Snacks were fun! The two highlights of the field trip were the chickens. And this humongous pumpkin. And we bought ornaments for our Halloween tree at the gift shop. All in all, it was okay. Better without little sister tagging along. I learned my lesson but I thought I would try to save a babysitting time.

Halloween Party 2008, Part 2

2008-11-04T10:38:00.005-06:00

As for the Halloween party activities, we made crafts. I had the kids decorate their own treat or treat bags with colors and stickers. There were light saber and laser battles! Jessica's best friend, Abby was there and dressed up as the cutest pirate ever!! Cousin Mallory was an adorable little orange witch! Even some parents got into the act! Here are Joanna and Jeff dressed up as Olive Oyl and Popeye! They looked great!! Grant and Ruby were a witch and pirate. We were so glad they came as Jackson and Jessica really miss them now since they no longer go to school together. Here is Miss Ava who was an adorable little bee. Little fact, her pug Schnell also has a bee costume so I bet they were cute together!!! We even had a parade up the street. We tried to make it a little spooky. Next year, I will try harder! After the parade, we had some playtime in our playroom while I cooked the Mummy Dogs (hot dogs wrapped in bread sticks with capers for eyes). Finally! It was time for food! This is what I call our Toddler Cafe but Chris calls it the Nightmare Cafe. He is probably right - 10 kids ages 2-4? Might be a little on the nightmare side. After dinner, we decided to have a Night Walk since it was dark. We had lanterns and blow sticks for everybody but a couple did get a little spooked! What a mess!! I don't think Jessica is going to clean this. Luckily, Aunt Lisa totally went to town so together her and I got this all cleaned up. What a night and what a blast! Halloween Rules and it had only just begun!

Halloween Party 2008, Part 1

2008-11-04T10:03:00.007-06:00

On October 18th, we had a Halloween party for the kids and for the adults as well. It was so fun! Originally, I had not planned on having another Halloween party as we had one last year but I got pressured by my two adorable kiddies. I am so glad they did as we had a great time!! Tons of good food, wine, games, cute costumes, friends and family. After this year's party, I am thinking that it might be an annual occurrence. Yes, it was that fun. It was hard work but Chris was a champ and took an afternoon off before to help out and get the house ready.

I made a game at the kids' request, Pin The Leg on The Spider. I am not an artist but I think it turned out pretty good. Pictures of each party guest are on each leg. Cool, huh? Yes, my own invention!!

Here is another picture of our Halloween tree. We got even more ornaments for it before the party!!!
Here is some of the food I made - skeleton brownies, Halloween cookies and Apple Worm cake which is delicious, tastes like apple pie!What food I did not make had to be orange to go with the Halloween theme.

Here are some pretzel rods which I used Wilton candy molds to make various Halloween designs. It was the hardest thing but Jackson loved it so I will definitely try it again! Here is my beautiful pink princess - Jessica! She was adorable!! Jackson was dressed up as Jango Fett who for the non-Star Wars geeks, is Boba Fett's dad. Uncle Jeff surprised us all by arriving in full Darth Vader gear! It was awesome and kinda freaked Jackson out! Here are all the cousins - Jackson as Jango Fett, Xander as a Clone Trooper, Jessica as a princess and Hayden as Optimus Prime. They all look so cute!!

Stay tuned for Halloween Party Part 2!!

I am BACK!!!

2008-11-04T09:59:00.003-06:00

OK, after two weeks of Mommy sick, kids sick, Mommy sick again and just general craziness around here, I am back to being a Blogging Mama!

Just to prove how sick I was and not just being a lazy blog master, here is an incriminating photo of me at prime sicky sick.

Quick Post

2008-10-23T12:04:00.001-05:00

I have been really sick this week. More after I am up and around! Lots of Colwell happenings! Stay tuned.

The Great Pumpkin Carving

2008-10-16T16:53:00.004-05:00

Last night we finally did it - we carved pumpkins! As much as we are holiday crazy, you are not going to believe this but we had never carve pumpkins with the kids. Chris and I had done it once before kids at our old house but that was years ago. Every year, we run out of time, too messy. too busy, some lame excuse. Last night, we decided to do it! I made Halloween pancakes for dinners - witches, jack-o-lanterns and bats. They were blueberry and delicious! I got the molds last year at Williams Sonoma - they work great and the kids go crazy!! After pancakes, we brought the pumpkins in from outside and Jackson and Jessica knew what was going to happen. "We are carving pumpkins!!" "Yay!!" They were literally jumping up and down. I read a quick article on how to carve a pumpkin and then I designed a classic jack-o-lantern face which Jackson picked. Daddy's job was to do the lids and scoop out the pumpkins guts! YUCK! Jackson and Jessica each stuck a hand in and decided to continue letting Daddy have this job. I traced my homemade pattern and did the sawing on the face. Our first masterpiece is called Jackson O'Lantern. The next pumpkin we tackled was for Jessica who said she wanted a happy face. I tried a couple of designs freehand but then went to my trusty pumpkin craving booklet with tools and patterns! We found the perfect face - Jess O'Lantern! So happy and cute! She loved it. We saved the hardest for last - Chunky's pumpkin which we called Fang Face. Actually that was the name of the pattern I found on the web. The kids wanted a scary pumpkin for Chunky and all the ones in my carving booklet were TOO HARD! Fang Face was perfect!! I think they all turned pretty good. I can't wait for Halloween!!

More Halloween Here!

2008-10-16T16:46:00.004-05:00

It has been a crazy Halloween week here! We have been doing something related to Halloween every day. Tuesday, I spent about an hour cutting out Halloween pictures and Jackson and Jessica made Halloween collages. I found Elmer's Glue at Target for twenty-two cents a piece so I let them go crazy! Jessica was so excited. I don't think I have ever let her loose by herself with glue. She used it liberally! The finished products were quite unique. I think I am going to have to start cutting pictures out of our old magazines before they hit the recycle bin. It was a great project for the kids and the had a blast. And you know, really, it was not that messy either.

Jackson Says...

2008-10-13T17:05:00.005-05:00

OK, I am going to start a repeating post of "Jackson Says..." or "Jessica Says..." because well, they say weird and funny things.

Here is Jackson over the weekend:
Jackson: Dad, I will tell you my favorite holidays.
Chris: Okay
Jackson: One of my favorites is Halloween because of the candy. Another favorite is Christmas because of the presents and the candy. I also like Easter because of the toys and the candy. My next favorite is Fourth of July because of the candy.

So you see, Jackson likes candy. He also said that he sleeps with his eyes open so I took this picture over the weekend to prove to him that he does not.

For Chunky

2008-10-12T11:48:00.001-05:00

Family Day With Jackson

2008-10-09T15:21:00.007-05:00

Monday was Family Day with Jackson's preschool class. I must admit, I was not entirely looking forward to it after Jessica's 1 hour and 45 minutes class trashed this old bod, I was very worried about Jackson's 2.5 hour class and how I was going to make it. I could not have been more wrong!! It was GREAT! I had a blast and Jackson had a wonderful time showing me all around. October is Wheel Month at school so he showed me all the wheel things there. He showed me all the toys that he loaned the school. Hello, didn't I haul everything over there? It was cute and he was very proud. They even have an official race car wheel there in the classroom which is pretty cool. Cars are definitely Jackson's bag so it could not be a better month! After cars and wheels, then we did some art. I actually showed Jackson and his cousin Xander how to trace along a stencil. I think Jackson looks like he was enjoying himself! We also did some finger painting. I really need to do more finger painting here at home but the mess!! I need to get over it and let them have fun. Next stop, computer time. Jackson showed me all his awesome computer skills and I must say, I was impressed! I have encouraged him here at home but I must admit, since Jessica has gotten bigger, I have not let him do it as much because she always wants to do it too and there is not that much stuff for her to do. Again, I must get better on this. Outside play consisted of parachute - not one of my faves but the kids had fun! Miss Forrest had some fun games to play that made the parachute a lot more interesting. Something called Cat and Mouse. Two kids are underneath the parachute (the mice) and the Cat is on top, crawling around, trying to tag the mice through the material. It was hilarious! Some mice just stood in one spot but some mice really put up a fight and were scurrying everywhere!! Snack time consisted of pouring their own juice from a pitcher - UGH!! and cheese and pretzels - YUM!! Mommy was hungry as my Caramel Latte did not really fill me up much! We also had some very animated conversation!After snack, we had more play time and did some puzzles and talked about the date and day of the week and the weather outside. What a great school and what a great time!! Also, thanks to Aunt Kris who played with Miss Jessica for three hours while we were gone! Jessica said she had a great time too!!

Nature

2008-10-09T15:13:00.003-05:00

Howell Tree Farms does have some of the most amazing mums you have ever seen. Mums too big to fit in our car. You need to check them out!!

Also, check out our little fall woolly caterpillar that we saw, inching along by the corn maze. Actually we saw several. This one, who I will call, Javier, was the most photogenic.

We Love The Fall

2008-10-09T14:14:00.004-05:00

Best. Season. Ever. Fall rocks. Football, great weather, leaves turning, school, Halloween, and pumpkin patches! We hit Howell Tree Farm on Sunday and it was awesome. We had been out there once already this season but we were too early to get pumpkins so we went back. Tons of pumpkins and tons of people. The kids had a blast! We rode the tractor that had a big "wagon" (probably not the right term but I am not much of a farm girl) attached to the back and you bought a $3.50 ticket to ride. They take you way out by their mum garden, to their pumpkin patch where you can pick your own pumpkin, walk through a huge corn maze and pick your own squash. One of several tractors will come back to pick you up and take you back to the farm. We also do The Kiddie Koral there, where the kids play in a huge sandbox filled with corn instead of sand. By huge I mean, HUGE, it is basically a big shed with 90% of the floor changed into a big box of corn, over 300 bushels. It is hard to explain obviously but kids love it! There are tons of farm animals to pet and feed, chickens and bunnies to pet! A hay bale maze, see saws and Jackson's favorite addition - the Wiggle Racers, a trike that you wiggle to move instead of pedal. He is a total pro at it. Jessica's favorite thing was the corn pit. She was there forever! She kept saying "I want to play in the corn!" They have a great little cafe there - hot dogs, juice boxes, apple and caramels, chili, popcorn, chips and the most delicious pumpkin bars! All pretty cheap too! The kids each picked out a pumpkin and got one for Chunky. We even rode the tractor again before we left and did not disembark because it was so relaxing and the kids loved it too. I think we are done going out to Howells this fall but we are thinking about a Christmas road trip!! It was a really fun Sunday - the kind of day that really makes you appreciate living in Iowa with all four seasons! Perfection! Now I am on the lookout for the next fall adventure!

Jackson David Beckham

2008-10-06T20:32:00.003-05:00

Oh my sweet, sweet life as a soccer Mom. Please read that sentence carefully....I said SOCCER Mom, most definitely NOT a Hockey Mom...shudder! Man oh man how our life has changed on Saturdays! Jackson is gung ho and excited every Saturday morning. On Friday night, I have to tell him who the Purple Gumballs play so he can gear up. This Saturday we played the Denim Dots and believe it or not, I think the Gumballs had their first WIN! It was a beautiful morning, we played at 10am - the best time! Gaga was there and Grandma and Grandpa Colwell both were there too! The stands were packed! OK, there are no stands, just camping chairs and well, I don't know if six onlookers, FOJs (Fans of Jackson), is packed but it meant a lot to us and Jackson. Again this week, we were down two players and a coach. Luckily, a dad volunteered to step in and coach so the Gumballs could play. Everyone had lots of field time and it seemed like all of them were excited to be out there! Before the game started, my little Diva, Jessica, even got in some soccer field time in her glitter pink shades, purple sparkle shoes and embroidered jeans. If you can't be fashionable on the soccer field, why bother? Once the game got under way, all of a sudden, Gumballs goals started happening! It was awesome! Jackson did not get one this week but he got the ball from a gaggle of players right before they were going to score and kicked several kicks, getting the ball all the way down the field! It was amazing! He missed the goal by mere inches but it did not matter to him - you should have seen the kid's face! Beaming! I think he even flashed a thumbs up to his adoring fans. So cute! On the sidelines, Mom & Dad, Grandma & Grandpa, Jessica and Gaga, we were all going crazy! Jackson, on his few breaks, is a great cheerleader as well. Constantly yelling "Go Gumballs Go!!" The game got over and without a doubt, the Gumballs were victorious. No official score but most of the time, you have a pretty good sense of the outcome. After the game, my family consented to going to the grocery store with me which made an unpleasant task a little more bearable, although at the end, both kids had had enough. After a delicious lunch at home, Jackson got to play some wii - Star Wars Legos - because Daddy stayed up Friday night and opened General Grievous for him to use. This was a big deal. Bigger than even the Gumballs victory. Our Saturdays have been so fun that I am definitely going to be bummed in three weeks when soccer is over. It has been great seeing the family at every game and now that Jackson is having a blast, the whole thing just rocks. Fun fall Saturday!! Can Sunday possibly top this? You will have to wait to see!!

Strike A Pose - The Sequel

2008-10-06T19:56:00.002-05:00

Again, no idea why or what this crazy girl is doing. I can tell you this, she is no wall flower.

Friday Night TV

2008-10-06T19:37:00.004-05:00

What is the big deal about what's on TV on a Friday night? Well, if you live in our house, you would know that 10-03-08 was practically a national holiday. It marked the first episode of The Clone Wars television series on Cartoon Network. We have been waiting and waiting for this night. The kids were so excited! Then I found out that there are two episodes on this first Friday and they start at 8pm. Not good. 8pm is the kids' bedtime. What to do, what to do? Lucky for the kids that their Mom & Dad are Star Wars nerds from way back. With a slight nap adjustment putting them down at 3:30pm vs. 2pm, easy for me as I was at Costco buying giant packages of breakfast sandwiches and Cascade at 2pm. They woke up at 6pm, we had a little dinner and bath and then boom, down to the Green One. (For those of you who do not know, we call our Family Room the Green One because it has Green Carpeting. The Living Room is called The Big One because, you guessed it, it is big.) As a special treat, Jackson and Jessica got to break out their new matching Halloween PJs that I got them and they got to watch both episodes together on one of our mini aero beds. They were in heaven - totally awesome way to end a long week! Plus, the shows were really good! We all went to see the new movie when it was in the theaters and I actually enjoyed the TV shows more. Both kids loved them of course and already were talking about next Friday. Jackson has been humming the theme to Star Wars ever since. Even as I type this, Jessica is playing with an Ewok and C-3PO. Good kids, good kids.

What a Poser!!

2008-10-02T17:41:00.004-05:00

Seriously, can you believe this pose? She ought to be a model! Maybe she is practicing because I have no other idea what she is doing.

I am Getting Old

2008-10-02T17:00:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was Family Day in Jessica's preschool class and I am just now recovering. How sad is that? Her class is only an hour and forty-five minutes long but my knees are saying it was at least a week and a half. Constant up and down, sitting at a table eighteen inches high, sitting on the floor playing Little People. It was super fun and Jessica had the best school day ever, but my old bod was aching! I did not tell her until the night before that I was going with her and she was excited! This is her first school experience and she has wanted Mommy there a lot this first month so I am glad I could finally oblige. Then Jackson also had a surprise at school - he had loaned the preschool some of his car/wheel/track toys and they had set up some auto & car centers around his classroom. I told him he had a surprise waiting for him at school. This was the first morning since preschool began that he came up to me in the morning, as I was checking my email, and asked if I was ready to go so we were not going to be late. This was at 8:10am, preschool is at 9am and about 5 minutes away and I am never late. Ever. I think we have been the first ones there every morning. Just a pet peeve of mine - early is much more relaxing. We have time to read a quick story in the parking lot or play rhyming games or whatever I come up with and I hate being stressed out so being early is just easier on the mind and soul. Needless to say though, this was the first time Jackson has ever been concerned and we were NOT leaving at 8:10am so I put him off for awhile. Once we got there, everyone looked so cute, I had to take some pics. Then, into the school! Jackson saw the car center and was thrilled! Plus his teacher gave him a big thank you so I think he felt pretty good that morning. Then into Jessica's classroom where she proceeded to pull me around from center to center.From activity to activity. We played in the water table, we played playdoh, we played car garage, & we played dress up (and kept the princess outfit on for quite a long time!!). We had delicious snacks (thank goodness, I was starved, no breakfast that morning), and read stories. We also hung out with her best friend, Abby whose mom, Shari, is also one of my best friends, so we had a great day together at school - I can't wait for more opportunities! (Monday is Jackson's family day and his day of school is 2.5 hours long! Ouch!) As if having Family Day and a new Car Center wasn't enough, we decided to go downtown to eat with Daddy and Aunt Emily. This is always a special treat! They love mooching off Aunt Emily's lunch and it is awesome having an extra pair of hands during a meal out! Then we went to the bank, got suckers and tried to take naps which should have been a HUGE success but for some reason, neither of them were too interested in their beds. Bummer! After the crazy day yesterday, we have been chilling at home all day and gearing up for Survivor and the VP Debate - I don't know which one will be more interesting but I have a feeling I know who will OUTWIT AND OUTPLAY on one of these shows. :-)

Two More Things

2008-09-30T11:10:00.005-05:00

First, The Gummi Bear video. I read about this video on another blog and she said her 2 year old loved it. Well, it must be a two year old thing because Jessica dies every time she watches it - especially when he shakes his little Gummi butt and you see his Gummi Bear Butt Crack. I don't know - go figure, Jessica is whacky. Second, we are on a citywide search (like every Halloween) for Booberry Cereal. It is always only available for a limited time and it is Chris's most favorite cereal. He loves Booberry during Halloween time like I love Christmas Crunch during Christmas and he needs his fix. I have seen some empty shelves but no actual Booberry. So, I am asking you, Blog Readers, if you find some, please email or comment on this blog so I can go fetch him some! Please, I implore you. It just isn't officially Halloween time until Chris has a bowl of blue marshmallows in front of him. Thanks!

The Halloween Crazies

2008-09-30T10:29:00.008-05:00

The Halloween Crazies have struck the Colwell House! Hardcore. We have had the inside decorated for awhile now - there are pumpkins, withes, goblins, bats, ravens, candy corn and zombies throughout every level of our house. Finally the time came this weekend for Chris to decorate the outside and put up the lights. Yes, we have Halloween lights. We are the Clark Griswold of Halloween decorating. Jackson has been dying to do this decorating. If it was up to him, our house would be decorated for Halloween starting right after July 4th. We all got into the act - putting up pumpkins outside, decorating our outside pug (an awesome donation from Cooper & Johnny), hanging up witches and so much more. The kids were having a blast!!! This past weekend was just awesome! The soccer game, the decorating! We also went to Illumifest which could have been cool if we had gotten there earlier and/or were willing to wait in monstrously long lines. Illumifest is a new West Des Moines Fall Festival and everything was free - inflatables, lanterns, glow sticks and carnival rides. That translates into HUGE lines everywhere. Also, since we have 2 kids to get into bed at a halfway reasonable time, we did not even get to stay until the lanterns were set on the lake and we did not get to stay for the fireworks which I am assuming were at 10pm. In a few years, this festival will be cool - lit lanterns, glowsticks, hot air balloons, all at night plus fireworks sounds like a pretty fun way to spend a nice cool fall evening - especially with a band and beverage tent and deliciously bad for you food from vendors. Since we were too late to get glow sticks or paper lanterns, we took the kids home and had our own Illumifest in our driveway with our own glowsticks which was cool but our neighbors probably thoughts we were loons. Oh well! Anyway, we are preparing for another Halloween Party that Jackson - The King of Halloween - has begged me to allow him and Jessica to have so that is taking up a lot of my time but it should be a blast. I can't wait to blog all about it! Have a great week!

Total Cuteness For A Fall Day

2008-09-28T14:31:00.002-05:00

Gummi Bear

2008-09-28T09:50:00.002-05:00

Gummi Bear - Watch more amazing videos here

FYI

2008-09-27T15:50:00.001-05:00

In the team shots of the Purple Gumballs on the field, Jackson's number is #1. Also, new video on the video bar - Jackson making his goal!!

The Power of a Smile

2008-09-27T13:35:00.005-05:00

The soccer game is over. Did the Purple Gumballs win their game? I have no idea but Jackson won and our whole family won. First, a little history. Last week, during his first game, Jackson had LOTS of tears. Crying because he did not get to kick the ball, crying because he thought it was his turn, crying because he fell down, lots of crying. It was to the point that I was wondering if he had any fun. Flash forward to this morning as we are laying in bed and having snuggle time, Jackson tells me, when I bring up the fact that he has a soccer game this morning, that he thinks that soccer is for five year olds and that it is pretty hard. I assure him that we have him in the correct age bracket and that age bracket is four year olds. He seems uneasy and unsure. I tell him to remember our family motto (yes, we have a family motto, don't you?) - Do your best, forget the rest. He says okay but then tells me that he might cry if he falls down and I tell him that's understandable but to try to just chill the rest of the time that he might cry during soccer. Needless to say, I do not have high hopes for today's big game. We arrive on the field a little before his 10am game which was beautiful (noon stinks and is TOO HOT!) and who was there to our surprise but Uncle Jeff (Chris's bro), Aunt Emily and their two kids, Hayden & Mallory. Then Gaga arrives so he has his fan club there for another game. We were short two guys for the first half so the 4 that were there were going to get a workout - oh no! Jackson gets out on the field right away and gets in the midst of it. Then it happens, he goes down and gets stepped on, hard. Tears start flowing. Daddy goes out there and dusts him off and he goes back to the middle after his injury time out. And you know what? That was the only tears from Jackson and after seeing his leg, I would have cried too. Not only were there no tears but there were SMILES! Out right, happiness, laughing, and joy spread across his face. Smiles the whole game, whether he got to kick the ball or not. Plus, he never wanted to take a break. He kept wanting to get in there!Not to brag too much, Jackson even made a goal!! That was amazing! Not that I care too much about that goal with the net at the end of the field because Jackson scored a bigger goal - he had fun. Good, outside, healthy, athletic, run hard, get sweaty FUN! That was huge goal and he did it. I was so happy for my little guy because I could see how happy he was that I almost cried out there at the soccer field - thank goodness for big Olsen sisters sunglasses! What a 360 our Soccer Saturday took, huh? You just never know what the day has in store for you.

The Purple Gumballs

2008-09-27T09:18:00.001-05:00

They have another game today! If you are reading this blog, think good thoughts for them! They play the dreaded Green Starbursts - ughhhh!!!!

Another Funny Jessica Quote

2008-09-27T09:14:00.002-05:00

About an hour after I blogged about her yesterday, Jessica comes up with another gem. She got out of her bed after naptime again! Scared the poo out of me! This time I asked her what she was doing, she goes "I'm just peeking and sneaking." Turns out she must have been peeking at me and Jackson before she made it all the way down the stairs! Just peeking and sneaking.

Jessica and Her Funny Quotes

2008-09-26T14:35:00.004-05:00

Jessica is hilarious. The things that come out of her mouth crack us up on a daily basis. On Wednesday, after preschool, I picked her and Jackson up. As usual, I start trying to find out about their day. I always ask, "What did you have for snacks?" Jessica pipes right up and says, "I had Dora cookies and applesauce." I say, "Was it good?" Jessica replies "Yes, my tummy is happy, happy, happy." Then she goes, "I love you, Tummy." Jackson and I about died laughing. Some days I don't think she could be any cuter. But there are the days when she refuses to eat, throws her fruit on the floor and grabs various toys from her brother's hands without asking. And then she will look at you with her big blue eyes and says, "I love you, Mommy" and we all just melt.

Check Out The Video Bar

2008-09-24T17:30:00.001-05:00

Hilarious new videos have been uploaded!!

It is located on the right hand side of the blog.

The Dreaded Dentist!!!

2008-09-24T08:10:00.007-05:00

I did not get to blog yesterday as both kids decided that napping was not in the cards. That never makes for a good afternoon but I made it and so did they. Needless to say, it was an early night. But I digress, yesterday above all things was our SIX MONTH DENTIST CHECKUPS for both kids. Always necessary but never fun. Luckily, my mom has always consented to go with me and help out or I don't know what I would do. We pile in her car and are honest with both kids about where we are going. They are surprising agreeable, even Jess! Maybe this won't be as bad as last time. Really, to be honest, ever since Jackson has been about 2 years old, there have been no tears. Now, Jess is two so maybe this will be a turning point for her as well. Oh, by the way, we go to the BEST Pediatric Dentist in the world! His name is Dr. Wade and his website is http://mykidsdentist.com/ and if you have small kids, you need to call him. I just found out yesterday that if your kids get a cavity (god forbid!) that they do not even have to give shots of Novocaine. They use a laser and it is painless - there is NO DRILLING!!! Anyway, back to my story. Jackson is called first and I pull him away from the video games in the lobby to go have a seat in his awesome purple dental chair. They have The Incredibles playing in the ceiling and Jackson puts on the headphones and he is good to go. Fifteen minutes and a fluoride treatment later and he is done. Next up, Jessica. She is out in the lobby with my mom and I hear her screaming in the hall as she brings her in. Obviously Jessica remembers this place from six months ago and is none too happy. She is still too little to go in the chair so she lays back on mine and Dr. Wade's knees, screaming the entire time like she was being stuck with red hot pokers. Which she was not, I guarantee you. Finally she is done and we find out she still has two more molars to come in, poor thing. As soon as this little Screaming Mimi gets down, she immediately has smiles, playing with toys and saying hi to the other kids in the exam room. Talk about Jekyll and Hyde. Jackson and Jessica go to collect their two toys each and we all go have a celebratory lunch at Chili's, where they each have some horribly sweet sugary drink (Jackson red and Jessica blue) that would have Dr. Wade shaking his head! But we got to keep him in business, you know!

New Hats

2008-09-23T08:13:00.002-05:00

Gaga bought the kids Halloween hats.

We are Halloween CRAZY here already!!

The Toll Soccer Takes on a Four Year Old

2008-09-22T17:08:00.004-05:00

Scrolling through my weekend pictures today, I thought this was funny. Here is a picture of Jackson BEFORE his 32 minute soccer game.

And here is a picture of Jackson after it was all over.

Our Weekend Update

2008-09-22T16:10:00.005-05:00

Man oh man, it was a crazy weekend in the Casa De Colwell. Let's start with Friday - had Gaga (my mom) and her friend, Jerry, over for a BBQ as even though summer is supposedly over, I think today is the first day of fall, it was like 80 degrees. We got some burgers, beans, chips and dip and some vino. Of course, no BBQ is complete without the infamous bubble blower. Seriously this is a great item and no house with small kids should be without one. I think I spent $10 on it at Wal-Mart 3 years ago and we have had hours of entertainment with ours! The kids had a blast and so did the big kids. Chunky loves a good BBQ and the challenge of catching anything - raw, cooked, dirty, metal, greasy that Daddy, the chef, might drop. He also had some big fun playing house with the kids. This picture about sums up how much fun we had on Friday night.Flash forward to Saturday morning - Jackson's first soccer game! The Purple Gumballs debut performance. It was also Chris's debut as Coach. It the only time he has to do it all year but he was nervous! I was in charge of snacks that first game and when you are dealing with preschoolers, snacks are of great importance. Here I am getting Jackson suited up for the big game. Gaga, Grandma & Grandpa Colwell all showed up for Jackson so he even had some fans! Daddy was a wonderful coach and though Jackson had some tears out on the field when he could not get a good kick at the ball, I am pretty sure he had fun as well. We don't really keep score but I am pretty sure the Gumballs suffered a loss but you could not tell that after the game was over and everyone was eating their purple gumball cookies. They were hot, sweaty, and completely gassed but they all had smiles on their faces! Check out Chris, Coach of the Year! After the game, I had to go to work with Mom and when we were done, we decided to stop at The Chocolate Stor ybook to get some delicious chocolates! Not only did we find tasty treats, I also found the greatest thing since Trick or Treating if you ask Jackson & Jessica - I bought a Halloween Tree. Just like a Christmas tree only black and you put Halloween ornaments on it. Yes, they make such a thing. The kids were more excited about the tree then they were when we got the Wii. We immediately had to go to Michaels to get more ornaments, per Jackson's request . On Sunday morning, they both ran downstairs, not for cartoons, just ran downstairs to gaze at the tree. We also specifically got non-breakable ornaments so it is (to quote Jackson) a "Kids' Tree" which means they can take ornaments off, touch it, rearrange ornaments - whatever. This is the same as our Christmas tree - no breakables!! Here is a picture of them and the finished product. My mom also bought everyone delicious chocolate truffles - at $28 per pound! Yes, even for the kids. Do they know the difference between $28 per pound truffles and a M&M? I doubt it but they both loved them as you can plainly see here. After all the family, the BBQ, the soccer game, the tree, the playing of Star Wars, the ornaments, the reading of Halloween books, you would think we were be done, right? Well, we weren't.
There was still time to squeeze in a little Wii for the boy (he only gets to play on weekends) so Chris and Jackson hit Monster Jam and Lego Star Wars before bedtime on Saturday night. Then after the kids went to bed, Mommy and Daddy began the Great Colwell Competition on the Wii- Mommy stinks at tennis but I can hold my own at bowling! Although my friend Cooper has reported a game with EIGHT strikes! I am not there yet but a couple more late nights with Chris, who knows! Anyway, the pretty much sums up our crazy weekend! I can't wait for next weekend!!!

What Kind A Mother Am I?

2008-09-19T15:33:00.003-05:00

What a great day! TGIF! I decided since Jackson has had a "long" week (if you are a regular reader, you will know, we have had some drama) so I wanted to do something special for him to end his week. I decided to take Chunky with Jessica and I to pick him up from Preschool. This is going to be a feat, I know. Aunt Lisa helps out by agreeing to go in and get Jackson as she gets Xander so I can be outside with the girl and the pug. Jackson comes out and is thrilled!! Big smiles, lots of tail wagging (Chunky, not Jackson) and happiness all around. Chunky gets to meet at least 20-25 kids and he is wonderful with them all. He was excited too but you could see he was really trying not to jump on any skittish three or four year olds. We were there for about a half hour until the school emptied out. What a blast. Then since Chunky was out and about, the kids wanted to take him to the pet store. OK, I am Super Mom, I handle getting two kids in and out of car seats while holding a 4 month old pug, right? I manage although at one point my shirt blew up in Petsmart parking lot and I had to just ignore it. No free hands. To show my gratitude to this sweet little dog, I buy him a Halloween costume. He is a pirate. Doesn't he look happy? Now, just so you do not think I am completely horrible, I did buy him a Greenie and the kids each bought him a toy. He will be happy. As soon as I get this hat and wig off him. Mommy loves you, Chunky!!

I Need A Smile

2008-09-18T17:03:00.013-05:00

Here are my two ecstatic kids with suckers - a rare happening in the Colwell house as Mommy is paranoid of all choking hazards. I am trying to chill a bit. Anyway, this is a good way to start your morning and set out to find your lollipop today!!

What a Day

2008-09-18T17:03:00.010-05:00

I don't know how else to say it. Just what a day. What a rollercoaster! This morning, Chunky, our not-house broken little pug decided to pee all over one of our bed pillows that was on the floor in it's decorative sham. The sham, which is dry clean only. Bad dog. Bad bad dog. That is okay, I can deal. I have a great day in store for me and the kids. Check it out - this was their surprise this morning! Yes, that is right - we went to Krispy Kreme! It was a total surprise and they had a blast. Mommy did too - aren't they diet food? Here is another picture that you might like. I do!

After that, surprise number 2 - trip to the play area at the mall and Aunt Lisa & Cousin Xander met us there.

They were surprise #3! So far, all is well. They all three were having a blast! Until..some kid pushed Jessica off a bench and bloodied her lip Crying, tears, snot, and much drama ensued. That is okay, Aunt Lisa was there to help. She was clam - me, not so much. We went to get everyone together to go home and ice Jessie's lip as it was getting swollen and Jackson decides not to leave. Throw a fit like nothing I have ever seen - horrifying! He did not care about sissy's lip, all he cared about was playing and he was not stopping. Trust me, this episode was so bad and behaviour was so naughty, I can't go into more detail. He would not listen to me, Aunt Lisa or even Xander! Finally, we got him and Jess in the car and we got home and as punishment, Jackson got all his Star Wars figures taken away. This is a HUGE deal. I was so upset by this whole thing I was practically in tears making lunch as I questioned everything I ever thought I taught my sweet little boy. Had he really not understood anything? I felt like a total failure. Finally naptime, sweet naptime. I throw myself into creating a Fantasy Football League online for my husband so I would not think about it anymore.

After a couple hours, I heard something odd. Like a tiny ghost saying "I love you", "I love you", "I love you, Mommy". Very faint and coming from somewhere odd. I looked up the stair and in the reflection of my other stars, I see a little face - JESSICA! Not to some parents this might not seem odd, kids get out of bed, why are you freaking out? Because Jackson has only gotten out of bed one time in almost three years and Jessica has not gotten out of bed since her first week in her big girl bed, over a year ago. It made my heart skip a beat to see 2 eyes in that mirror. She was just sitting on the steps and when I asked what she was doing, she replied "I 'm just sneaking. I am just sneaking, Mom." Here is a picture of her sneaking. It was so cute that you just can't be mad.

And now Chunky is eating rotten fruit every time he goes outside so that will certainly be coming out the other end soon.

So, today has been my rollercoaster - full of ups and downs like that quote from the movie Parenthood (which is in my Top Ten), Grandma says: "You know, when I was nineteen, Grandpa took me on a roller coaster. I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting to me that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn't like it. They went on the merry-go-round. That just goes around. Nothing. I like the roller coaster. You get more out of it."

Charlie Bit Me

2008-09-17T19:32:00.004-05:00

I like Charlie. He just doesn't care. And he laughs at his own material.

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

One More Thing...

2008-09-17T15:49:00.003-05:00

I am getting ready to send an email out announcing this blog - yikes! This is a lot of pressure and I hope I don't disappoint. Seriously, I vow to blog at least every other day about all things Colwell! If you like it, become a follower of The Colwell Chronicles. If you don't, that's okay too. Just don't tell me. OK, here we go - The Chronic's unveiling to the masses. Well, at least the people on my email list. OK, now look at this picture and see how sweet I am so be nice! And I will too!!!

Ninety Minutes of Paradise?

2008-09-17T14:36:00.008-05:00

Hey I am two for two in the blog world! Amazing! Now if I just had something to say....I will start here. I actually had one and a half hours completely to myself this morning - no Chunky, no Jackson, no Jessica. I went to the mall, I walked, I window shopped, I took the escalator (this was a huge deal!) and I tried on clothes without two small children sobbing and pounding their tiny fists on the floor length mirrors. It was heaven! I hope this does not make me a bad mom but I totally had a great time. The past four and a half years, I have spent 99.9% percent of my days with one or both kids or once in a great while, working for my Mom or filming a legal deposition. But just ninety minutes of total freedom - I don't know if that has happened and it was weird but delightful. Perhaps this might become a Wednesday morning ritual, we'll see. I am not going to count my chickens yet. Now, as delightful as my ninety minutes were, there was nothing like the feeling I felt when that preschool door opened and this beautiful little girl shouted with glee, "I missed you, Mama!" and came running into my arms.

Not to be out done, a half hour later, Jackson came bounding out of his classroom, shouting, "Mama!" with a huge smile on his face. Yeah, I enjoyed my ninety minutes but these last two minutes, picking up Jackson and Jessica from preschool made my escalator ride seem pretty mundane.

Hello Blog, It's Me, Kerry

2008-09-16T14:51:00.006-05:00

Welcome to The Colwell Chronicles! I have often thought about starting a blog but was always wondering who would read it? Who cares? If a blog is written but no one reads it, does it still exist? Is this just some weird public diary? I have decided that I don't care and I will give it a shot as long as I continue to not care about my lack of audience and it does not take too much time away from my kids, Jackson and Jessica who deserve the world!

So, do you really want to know what we did today? Hmmm, not a lot. Played soccer outside with the kids and Chunky, our three month old pug puppy, watch the first half of The Little Mermaid, which caused Jessica to change her mind about her Halloween costume. Then Jackson stepped in and said "Jessica, Mom said when I bought my Jango Fett costume at Super Target that this was it and I can not change my mind so you can not change your mind." To which Jess replied "Okay." Jackson is Yoda to Jessica's Luke Skywalker. He is her hero, sage, best friend and partner in fun, crime and various adventures. There is nothing better than to listen to their conversations.

Tonight is also the finale of Big Brother which marks the official end of summer for Chris and I as it is our summertime guilty pleasure. Actually, this year was pretty lame and I will be glad to see it end. When you have the greatest reality show ever going on, the presidential race of 2008, it is hard to care about stuff like that.

Bringing me to one huge personal fact - I am a hardcore Obama supporter and lifelong Democrat. I am sure I will have posts along the way concerning Obama and various volunteering I have been doing, my rants about the other side, etc. Will this be every post? Heck no, I am a proud Mom above anything else so lots of these posts will be about my family but once in awhile, I will not be able to NOT say anything. So if that makes you uncomfortable, don't read this. It's okay, I won't mind.

I will try to keep on this frequently with all sorts of happenings, recipes, pictures, cool links, and whatever else I can squeeze into my very limited free time!