Where has the time gone?

My baby boy will be 5 this year... I can't believe it. David stumbled upon the above toddler pics of Max and I got all weepy. I'm gonna be a wreck when he goes to his first dance! I love you, Maxwell. Mama's so proud of you!

I want muscle strength like this chic.

Trust me...it gets interesting after the first min and 20 seconds...

and this girl's strength...

Rollin' with the homies...

Every time I see this picture I can't help but love her even more. :) Precious little wombat.

**(Thank you, David for this sweet picture text and cute title to go with it... can't think of anything better to get while at work)

Monty, The Moose and Moab.

Maxwell started preschool this year at "Dancing Moose Montessori." This past weekend we had the pleasure of taking Monty, The Moose, a classroom friend, down to Moab.

Monty's pretty hip. Like the little traveling gnome from the movie, "Amelie," Monty gets around. Each kid from class has the opportunity to take Monty home with them, have some good times, and then share their experience with the class. Anyway, this was the first time any of us Greens had ventured to the breath-taking spot and it certainly was not our last. A time was had, folks-- a splendiferous time!

A look down Main Street...

Fun at a local park...

Wanna-be-gnome...

All he needs is a pointed red hat...

Breakfast.

Lounging/horse-playing at the hotel...

A look back as we enter Arches...

See the dude rock-climbing?

So gorge! Glad we got a year-round pass!

Am I an antisocial freak?

So, last night, David and I watched No Country For Old Men again-- a great thriller adapted by the Coen brothers. Javier Bardem's eerie character sends chills down my back and gives me lots of anxiety, nevertheless, I am intrigued by him and cant help but like the movie.

Well, this morning, while thinking about the movie and Javier Bardem, I was reminded of something I was told once. At my old job, I joined in this activity led by one of the therapists. It was to pick your favorite movie star. This was super hard for me because I have many. So, I narrowed it down to a couple. After we shared the names of the actors and discussed the movies they were in, it was revealed by the therapist that subconsciously we are attracted to these actors because we are LIKE the characters they play in some way. Whoa. My actors were Daniel Day-Lewis and Anthony Hopkins. Gangs of New York? There Will Be Blood? Silence of the Lambs? Um, Psychopath? (that last one is not a movie, just a question). So am I? A psychopath? Or sociopath? (depending on the character). How I am LIKE these guys, Sandra? (name of therapist) Certainly, food for thought.

It's a stretch for me to imagine I am similar to a psychopath. Couldn't it just be that I am simply fascinated by how sick/wrong a person can get? Or that I like to imagine there must be something deeply emotional underneath all that crazy in order to justify my own neuroticism and irrational behaviors when I get upset?

Or can't it just be that I am in awe of such brilliant acting?!

And what about those actors? They've gotta be at least a little "nuts" for pulling off such a believable nutcase!

I don't know.

I DO know that I love Day-Lewis, Hopkins, and Bardem, just the same in their insane roles as they are in their "normal" roles. What does that say? But then again, they do play "crazy" pretty darn fantastically and I'm a little more apt to pick watching a movie they play "crazy" in than a movie they don't. Well, maybe that's not true. I think it depends on the mood I'm in. If I'm feeling crazy or not. Ha.

Your thoughts?

Maxwell's cooking show- May 2011

The Backyardigans

A couple of days ago, I reunited with two dear friends of mine, both of which I met in Argentina while serving a mission. We've stayed friends these past 10+ years but haven't been the best at keeping in touch and spending time together.

This was the first time since marriage and kids that all three of us got together. A bit of mayhem was had that day. Kids screaming, yelling, running, chasing, laughing, pooping (baby Kacie blew out on my lap and onto the "thank-goodness-leather-and-not-fabric" couch), crying, arguing, loving, sharing, not sharing made for an exciting and somewhat exhausting day. I decided to dedicate this post to our 4 year olds, who created most of the mayhem and who I got the most pictures of. heehee.

Introducing... The Backyardigans...

They got excited to water themselves...
the yard...
and the plants.

One of them decided it was time to STOP watering...

and start drying...

They were instructed to get silly...

and then it was time to calm down and learn how to do a loving, group shot...

they needed some help...

but they managed to pull it off after all!