Colorado Crockers

Every year we have hit "Zoo Lights" and loved it. Some years we freeze, others we get snowed on. This year we decided to try something new and we hit "Trail of Lights" at Chatfield instead. It was fun and pretty, but it was no "Zoo lights". Oh well, it was close by and we still had a lot of fun with no crowds to fight and no long drive. Here are the highlights !

For the life of me I can't seem to find the " sarcasm font" on my computer. If I could, I would apply it to the title of this post. I am passionate about many things; my children, education, helping women lift themselves from poverty. Fashion falls some where higher on the list than "dental hygiene " and lower than "really good food". A good day for me is clean yoga pants and a tee shirt. Usually, but not always, my outfit will include clean undies and a bra. Hey, don't judge, I have kept 3 children alive for 5 years and sometimes that takes all I've got. For a while I could blame my post baby body and the fact that I was in between sizes for my slightly lack-luster wardrobe. Now said baby is a year old and I have no excuse for leaving the house looking like a lesbian librarian. Last year I did a style post that got me moving in the right directions. Sense fashion changes, I figure it is time to do another little up-date First up, military st...

I am a compulsive " over thinker ". I am an information junky . These things go hand in hand. When faced with a problem, my first resource is information which is gathered like a rabid squirrel hording nuts facing a nuclear winter. And then I think. I chew over information, mull it over and over again until...well, until it usually ends up in some form or another on my blog. My dad is quirky, and I mean that in a good way. Even though he is currently sporting uni-bomber hair, he is one of the smartest men I have ever met. Back when he was a grown up (I am saying that because I not sure what he is now, retired maybe?) he was a consultant, which basically means he was paid obscene amounts of money for telling people what they were doing wrong and how to do it better. And to think, I was given all that information for free for year while I was growing up and had no appreciation for it! My dad likes thinks like "mission statements" and "actionable goals" ...

It is her fault. I can't help the way I was raised, I was brain washed from young age. Some of my earliest memories of Christmas are of my mother in the kitchen. Every year she would slave away, Christmas music blaring, while she baked one delicious sweet after another. She would make sweet breads and candy's , cookies and bars. We were allowed one or two but the rest were packed away in Tupperware in the freezer . Until the day we made plates. All the yummys were brought out and lined up on the table, fudge, gingerbread, toffee, caramels, cookies of all types, mini loves of cranberry orange bread. Assembly line style, plates were filled to overflowing, wrapped , labeled and bowed to be distributed among those we deemed worthy, pastors, teachers, bus drivers and friends. To me, Christmas is synonymous with baking and I blame my mother. When I play Christmas music I just can't keep myself from whipping up a batch of whoopie pies or revel bars. Soon the house smell...

Its that time of year again. And frankly I am feeling a little... grinchy . I don't know if its that fact we have yet to have a good snow (HELLO! It is freaking December in COLORADO! what the heck?!) Or if I am just sick of Matt having to travel or if I am just put out buy all the commercialism and consumerism of the season, but my Christmas spirit is, well, lacking. Eliana loves this time of year and I do my best to make it very special. We bake ridiculous amounts of cookies, even for me, decorate the house, read special stories, the whole works. And yet my heart just feels...grumpy. Last year we got a little people manger scene. We brought it out this Christmas and Eliana loves to tell the story. She will actually hide all the pieces from her sisters because "they just don't do it right!" The other morning I came down and the scene was all set up, Eliana style. That means everything, from sheep to camels to kings, was facing the sleeping baby Jesus. All the pie...

I am not a fan of socks. I wear flip flops in the summer and slip on's durring the winter. I own socks but rarely feel the need to wear them. Matt steals my socks. He is an avid sock wearer, which I believe many men are, and he looses/ destroys his own so he steals mine. I have taken to buying pretty socks just so they will stay in my drawer. He is never desperate enough to reach for the pink argyle. My children don't wear socks which isn't all together shocking considering the battle over undies. But now it is winter. To earn my ever fleeting "Mother of the Year Award" I feel the need to make my children wear appropriate foot attire when it is under 30 degrees and that means socks. Eliana always whines "but I can't FIND any". I thought she was being dramatic. I went into the sock drawer, which is FILLED with socks. Single socks. Baby socks. I sat for a good 20 minutes and sorted the socks. I found several pair of matching socks...in sizes t...

Ok , so it isn't a very original topic for a blog post, but it seemed appropriate for today. Today I am thankful for: - My country. America, with all its screwed- uped - ness is still the best place in the world I could hope to live and raise children. And though I try not to make it a habit to quote Oprah, the fact my girls were born here already makes them some of the luckiest women on the face of the planet. I don't have to worry about my home being bombed, weather or not my girls will ever learn to read or be allowed at school, and weather or not they will be able to follow there dreams to become whatever God created them to be. -My state. Both of living and of mind. Colorado is beautiful, lots of opportunities to appreciate the beauty God created for no other reason than He is a God who loves beautiful things. My state of mind is content, my needs are met as are so many of the desires of my heart. -My family. The in-laws, those under my roof, my sisters, nieces , neph...

Some time the land scape of my brain is baren as a sand dune. I couldn't come up with an idea to blog about to save my life, some days it seems like a struggle to just come up with a conversation topic. I can always write about my life, my kids and what my day looked like, but that is very surface, and rarely captures my heart. I came accross this list and was inspired. I stoll it from another blog, don't give me credit, but I thought it might help some of you other blogging friends. Maybe I am the only one so sleep diprived that I need help, but if not, here is a little inspiration. 1. What was the funniest/nastiest/most memorable prank you ever pulled on someone? 2. Describe your first date/first kiss. Hmm.. did you see stars or you just felt gross? 3. What is scariest experience you had? 4. What kind of games did you play as a kid? 5. What do you miss most about your childhood? 6. What kind of child where you? Shy? A bully? Popular? Loner? Stubborn? … 7. Do you have any phob...

My dad posted this video a while back and it has stuck with me. Warning, she drops the "f" bomb. But it is still worth watching. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6wJl37N9C0 Pretty. Even Eliana is already obsessed with the idea of 'pretty'. Princesses are pretty. Dress make you pretty. Make-up is pretty. Bows in your hair, lace on your socks, ruffles on your clothing...pretty. I consider myself happily average when it comes to looks. Happily now, but I remember obsessing when I was younger. Boys didn't help, making comments about my flat chest and long skinny legs. I have always felt to skinny, to tall, I talk too much, have too many opinions, I'm too loud and clumsy. I don't have a dainty or graceful bone in my body. I am not sure when it all changed, not my appearances and everything else but my reaction to it. My body is not nearly as good as it used to be. But I am OK with what it is now. The scars show my history and the body I have is the one that bro...

Us Crocker's know how to party. Well, as long as the party includes insane amounts of children, obscene amounts of candy and copious amounts of cake. This weekend, we rocked it. Here is the proof.

In 5 seconds: -Annabelle can flip over and escape a diaper change, naked hiney flashing as she crawls down the hallway, stopping only to pee on the floor and giggle. - A one year old can fill your cup of coffee with what ever was left on your breakfast plate. Eggshells can really ruin a cup of joe . - A 2 year old can completely forget what she was supposed to be doing and get side tracked by just about anything. In five minutes : - A baby can completely empty a cabinet of Tupperware - I can take a full shower including washing my hair and shaving my legs - My girls can go from best friends to mortal enemies -I can start a load of laundry, brush my teeth, put on my make up and find one shoe In five hours: - I can get all 3 girls down at the same time for a nap - I will have made 2 meals and at least one snack for 5 people - A five year old can pretend to be a princess, a vet, a mommy and a monster - A clean house can look like a tornado hit In five days - I will make a least one tri...

One year ago today I met Annabelle for the first time. Tiny, loud, and very much adored. She is becoming such a little person. Gone are the days where she is a paper weight, smoshed in a blanket, staying in one place, demanding constant minding. Now, one the move with a sense of humor to accompany her sense of adventure, she is becoming more and more herself. She hates to be excluded from any fun or food, dances to music both audible and in her mind. A tiny peanut of a person, I am loving watching her grow. Happy birthday baby!

Crepes make me happy. Crepes filled with chocolate or lemon curd and strawberries or marscopone and cherries make me really happy. Alas, those are hard to pass off, in good conscience , as a nutritious meal for 3 small children. At our house Matt is in charge of the dishes. I hate dishes. I love cooking. This, and the picky appetites of the other female members of the household, leaves me with a real problem when Matt is out of town. I must come up with a meal that uses as few dishes as possible and that the girls will still eat. I could serve the munchkins pb and j every night of the week with nary a complaint from them, but when it comes to meals I prefer a little variety , and by that I don't mean the occasional hot dog. And we are back to why crepes make me happy. With 2 dishes, a skillet and bowl, I can make a meal the appeals to the masses (if you consider the 4 of us a "mass") and is quick to clean up. A bonus is that I clean out the fridge from left overs to...

Eliana was born and my life hasn't been the same since. It has been nosier , more exhausting, more fulfilling , less restful and so much fuller. I am so proud of our little girl. She is starting to learn to read, she is kind and loving and the best big sister. She takes care of those littler than she is, is learning to love Jesus, has lots of friends and is such a sweet child. I am blessed to call her mine. Eliana today, all dressed up in her new cowgirl outfit.

My friend Jen just posted a blog post about " time - out's " that got Matt and I talking. Jen is a great mama who loves her girls a ton and I am so happy they have a system that works for there family. That got me thinking about what works in our family. Our discipline strategy is different for every kid and every age. With Eliana we have some expectations. She is big enough to use words to let us know what is wrong and mature enough to have some self control. She is not, however, quite old enough to always stay on task without help, not melt down when she is really hungry or tired, and she is still learning what "truth" is. I don't believe in disciplining children for things that they are still learning. For instance, if I ask Elie to do something and she blows me off, she gets in trouble for not obeying. But if I ask her to do something and she only gets it half done before getting side tracked, I will help her by reminding her to stay on task or setti...

I use his mug for morning coffee I have to make my own coffee and it just isn't as good I sleep on his side of the bed I use his pillow We eat fast food more I cook less I get more done I have to do the dishes and take out the trash I get less sleep I don't eat as well I miss him The girls miss him The dogs miss him

Sometimes I have an entire blog post written out neatly in my head, other times it is more "stream of consciousness. Today falls under that "other" category. I am visiting my best bud Jenny out here is Little Rock. Since we are in the South, we went to church on Sunday, least the McHam family get hunted down and tossed from the state for sacrilege. The church was a "big box" type, run like a machine, everything clean, punctual and polished. The sermon was about Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem. A couple of guys who didn't play well with other kept trying to get Nehemiah to come to a meeting to sort things out. As we all know, nothing important is ever accomplished by committee and Nehemiah declined. Over and over he said "no". He knew God had called him to do a work and he wasn't going to be distracted, even by something that was" good", because it wasn't the "best" of what God called him to do. This morning I was sitting...

This week I have been a lousy blogger and here are my excuses, you may choose the one that seems most valid: -My husband was gone. As he cruised the streets of Berlin and Milan, I was up with a baby who had a cold. -My operating level is somewhere between exhausted and comatose . I don't currently posses the intellectual capacity to type out witty banter. I hardly posses the ability to remain upright. -All energy I possess is going into my children, sad but true. My house is a testament to this. Sorry to leave you all hanging. Maybe if I get an hour or two of sleep I can think of a few sentences to string together.

Discuss: Bible- Proverbs 6:10-11 Sleeping when you should be working Do: Vocabulary-find all the "new" words we don't know (peddler, caps, etc) Discuss: Types-What kind of hats was he selling? What other kind of hats are there? Do: Art-Create our own hats out of paper Discuss: Emotions-Talk about all the ways the man felt Do: character-Show how we can handle each emotion in a right way. Play chrades and act our each feeling and let papa guess what it is Discuss: Ways to carry-Why did the man carry things on his head? What other ways can we carry things? See pictures of African Women Do: Large Motor-See how many hats you can balance on our heads while doing different activities Discuss: Math-Count hats of each color and monkeys Do: Money-Count out money and find all the different ways you can make .50 Field Trip: Zoo to visit the monkeys

I am an addict . I can't help it, is is something I have loved from a very young age. Books. I have shelves of them. I read several a week. I like true stories and mysteries, things that challenge my thinking or leave me dreaming. I have raised children that love books. Nothing makes us happier than sitting together with a new story. There is a curriculum out there called "Five in a Row" that is all based on quality children's literature. I have had the book for a while and just not gotten on the ball to use it. Matt knew it was driving me crazy so last week he gave me a couple hours to go to Barnes and Noble and get my act together. The idea is you pull from a story your science, math and literature concepts. it is a christian based book so there is some bible learning in there too. You read the same book for 5 days, each day you discuss something and do something. Here is our plan for this week: Book: The Runaway Bunny Discuss: Bible God's love is everlasting:...

My children are generally well behaved. Yes, they have there moments, as all children do, but over all they mind well. Except... We have been having this issue of "blowing mom off". I ask Eliana to do something and she willingly leaves the room to go do it. Five minutes later I go check to see if it is done and Eliana is doing something totally unrelated. I offer a gentle reminder about what the original task was and leave her to get to work. After checking back, the task is still uncompleted and I offer a stern warning. And so it goes for ten times longer than it should to get things done. I find this endlessly aggravating . Part of the problem is me. Eliana is 4. A VERY distractable 4 with two little sisters who add to the problem. Sometimes I need to give her a task and remove all " obstacles " (read: sisters) from her path so she can concentrate on finishing the job. But part, a large part, of this problem is with Eliana blowing me off and just not doing ...

at my house you will find: -3 little girls in their beds, all who should be taking naps, none who are. -1 crock pot full of pork spare ribs cooking in apple cider waiting to be grilled up for dinner - 6 baskets of laundry, some clean, some folded, some just waiting - 3 kittens, one black, one white, one gray, all naughty and dangerously cute - 1/2 a pan of brownies that was baked last night - 2 tubs of ice cream, chocolate and vanilla -7 shoes of various sizes in the hallway and yet not one that makes a pair -1 mug of half drunk, now cold, decaf coffee - 1 sink full of dishes and 1 full dishwasher because I forgot to buy stuff to make more detergent -4 un -made beds because in the grand scheme of things, making beds seems like such a waste of time -1 man, home for 7 days before he heads off to Canada, Italy and Germany -1 brand new dinning room table with 4 chairs and 1 bench And you will find me. A 30 year old teacher, mother of 3, wife to one, who has not had a full nights sleep in ...

Do you see it? That apple up there. The one taunting me, hanging high out of reach, looking all shinny and red? Well, sure, I have a full tree of apples, but THAT one looks amazing. I am pretty sure it is bigger than the ones on the branches within reach. And it looks like it is more red, too. I have shaken the tree repeatedly, but that darn apple refuses to fall. Life is like that, isn't it. We are surrounded by good things, apples with in reach, but what we REALLY want is that apple up on top. I guess it is a classic case of "the grass is always greener". The truth is I already have more apples than I know what to do with. They have made me yummy pie and apple butter and crisp. I don't need that one. It would do me know good to wish for that apple and ignore the ones I have. Sometimes life is a balance between contentment and striving. You don't want to be shaking the tree so hard that you bruise all the apples within your reach but you don't want to quit dr...

We are big fans of green chili in this house, we put it on everything that holds still long enough. Last year I made my own. Matt complained, after finishing the last jar, that I hadn't made nearly enough. This year we have already made and frozen two batches. Frozen because I don't really know squat about how to can things. Maybe next year I can tackle that. For anyone else who enjoys a little kick to there life, here is how we went about it. -Green chilies . We buy pre-roasted ones from the farmers market. You could roast your own but that would be...intense. Or just a heck of a lot of work. Assume you need several pounds of roasted chilies . We buy a mix of medium and mild and our green chili always has a kick to it. - Stock. We use chicken, homemade. You could use canned or even water, but we love home made stock. You will need 4-8 cups. Yes, that is a broad range but it sorta depends on how thick you like your chili and how many roasted chilies you could get your hands o...

I suppose it was inevitable. All of her friends are into it, it was only a matter of time. The last few months the evil "Disney Princess" bug has hit our house hard. Gag. I have a couple of beefs with these chicks, one being they always need a man to come save them. That beauty reining supreme is enough to make me shudder. I feel like it goes against a lot of what we try to teach the girls. Things like beauty doesn't matter and you can work to fix your own problems. These pretend women are willing to change who they are, give up everything, all for a man to love them. And now, for icing on the cake or insult to injury, Eliana wants to be a princess for Halloween . I will let her, begrudgingly . She has the right to choose to pretend to be what she wants. I want her to feel like it is ok to be into things that I am not, she is her own person with her own mind. But that doesn't mean I won't show her some other, much cooler choices.

We lucked out. The GAP Clinic, where Belle needed to be seen, was booked through mid-November. After they looked at her charts they got us in with-in a week. Here is the short and long of it: -Annabelle is skinny. They do a height vs. weight comparison and then assign either slightly underweight, moderately underweight or severely underweight. She falls in the category of " moderately ". - In the last month, Belle has put on almost a pound. This is the same amount she put on in the prior 3 months. We haven't changed anything. I attribute her weight gain to a steady diet of lots of prayer of those who love her. - We are in a holding pattern. Since Belle's weight seems to be getting better, we are going to wait and see for the next 8 weeks. We will go in to our Doctors office for weight checks in that time to make sure the numbers are rising. -We were encouraged to continue physical therapy to see if we can help with her stiffness. If it doesn't seem to help, w...

It is strange to me that when my brain is very full my blog is very empty. I like to write but when my head is stuffed I sometimes have a hard time getting it all out. Brain constipation. Here is what is bouncing around in my head right now: -Tomorrow is Annabelles visit to Childrens . I am trying not to over think it or dread what is coming , it won't do any good. I know they will do blood work, which won't be fun. I also know that in cases like hers they sometimes worry about neglect. I hate the thought of anyone thinking that this baby who is so dear to my heart just may not be getting the love she needs to thrive. - Motherhood is an odd thing. You don't get a report card or pay check so it is easy to judge how your doing by other things i.e the way your home looks or weather or not your children are thriving. Right now I think I would be fired and get a flunking grade. I know something are beyond my control but I take the fact Belle is tiny as a sign of personal failu...