Ophidiophobia

(Fear of Snakes)
But yet, I still found myself with the rest of the fam at the Snake Farm in the name of good sport. Nobody mentioned there were also going to be creatures one step removed from my snake phobia-that's right, scorpions and tarantulas. I spent the whole trip watching my back.
Needless to say, L & M were thrilled!


I was able to handle them one at a time...


Even admiring this one for being my favorite color. Nice work snake!


But it's when you start looking at this...


and feel them staring right back at you


that things start to get a little awkward.
Snake count in this cage: four snakes, in one big tangle, yikes!

We promptly moved onto tarantulas and scorpions.
And then promptly to outside.



Turns out the snake farm is a misnomer (thank goodness!) because a good portion of it is a petting zoo.
Here is London and a pot bellied pig. In case you are wondering, the band-aid on her nose is completely unrelated to the day's activities, but not completely unrelated to Madelyn.


The twins were sure this monkey wanted to come home with us.


But they ended up finding something in this guy's cage they liked even better than a monkey.




Yes, a few of these little caterpillars were befriended, captured, named, fed (and by fed I mean raisins and crackers), and transported back to the mothership with all the potato bugs, all of which have since died.


Meanwhile, Liv hangs out with her handsome, sweaty dad.


And enjoys the whole wagon to herself while the twins are busy with caterpillars.

And just when we think we're in the clear--
on the way out, we discovered something else available for petting.


Meet Oliver, the friendly ball python!
L & M were beside themselves.


Here they are, a front row seat, showing the rest of us how it's done.
In case you are wondering, I did touch Oliver with one finger while he wasn't looking.


L & M held Oliver all by themselves!
As you can see, even Liv was fascinated.

The girls talked about Oliver the whole way home; mostly how he should be our pet. L & M had all the details worked out, including where he would sleep (their bed, naturally), what they would feed him, not to mention a good alternative name since 'Oliver' is by no means a Disney Princess. I guess it's settled...what this family needs is a good pet python. At least my training in the behavior sciences have taught me a thing or two about flooding.*
Maybe someday, ha!

*a technique used in behavior therapy; client is flooded with experiences of a particular kind until becoming either averse to them or numbed to them

What are your phobias?

(Stay tuned, this week I was also confronted with a different one!)

Family Night +1

For some reason, L & M thought we meant 'soccer game' when we said bowling, so imagine their surprise when we ended up here!


I guess our family doesn't get out enough...And really who needs to these days when you have a Wii?
Though I admit our characters are much cuter in person.



Ok so they let the kids use not only bumpers but these metal contraptions that only require placing the ball and you pretty much get a strike every time.
Yes, their score exceeded their mother's (seriously, the adults can't use bumpers, seriously?)
Those of you who have bowled with me aren't surprised, though Wii bowling--a whole different story.


London's victory dance.


Don't mess with miss Madelyn.

And oh yes, meet-

Little Fella. We discovered a friend of the earwig variety crawling on the kitchen floor...L & M's insta-BFF. They immediately got to work setting up his house and even gave him a pink grapefruit tic tac to keep his blood sugar up while we were bowling. Who can blame them, earwigs are the most charming pets I can think of.


Of course what is family night without the family pet, though an interesting thing happened after our vigorous game: London came home and promptly put Little Fella on the back porch. When I asked why he was outside, she said
"Because he needed some sun...
and he's dead."
We are now in search of a new Little Fella, who has to be named accordingly because we kept the container and the marker-permanent. Anyone have any suggestions for a new Little Fella send them our way...oh wait, they find their own way, unannounced, into our kitchen.

Father's Day 2009

This Father's Day was special because it was the first time L & M sang in the Primary musical number! At first they were hesitant, so I went up with them and got a front row seat. There they were, singing their little hearts out and holding hands--like this.


London also gave her first talk in Primary. Of course the topic was Fathers! London's daddy helped her write a talk about all the things we love about fathers, not to mention all their favorite things to do together. Very first on London's list? Weeding the yard!


L & M walked around all day yesterday singing, 'happy birthday to father's day!' (I guess it didn't occur to them they could substitute different words in the song.)


Ladybug Liv and her mama.





L & M were such great helpers and shucked the corn for our feast. (Couldn't help but bite it a few times-these girls love corn on the cob, even raw!)





I accidentally made twice as much food as we needed-good thing we had guests!


Uncle James's family is in Utah, but he graciously agreed to join us for dinner and participate in all the things fathers around here love, that's right-new computers, steak, and cake.
(Ryan could hardly contain his excitement.)

Per our Prince Charming's request, I give you--

My triple chocolate butter & sour cream strawberry creation. I did not get to partake, but I'm told it was alright.


What is a holiday without Aunt Heather? (The girls would move in with her if they could.)


Help yourself, Liv!
So non-chalant.





Ok I give in, you can have your cake and eat it too.


Anything for that face! She stuck in her thumb like little Jack Horner in the nursery rhyme! :)

Hope you all had a fabulous day!

Lucky Me

As it turns out, putting Liv in the same tub with L & M, even though she is long since big enough, disrupts their entire world. There is no end to the complaints that Liv is splashing and/or biting Ariel's water shell, not to mention eating the bubbles.


But as long as she fits in the sink, she's still mine to bathe.


Afterwards, I get this lavender smelling, happy little girl to snuggle with...


Who has an obsession with my pink bathrobe. She buries her face in it every morning.
Look closely there is one bottom tooth coming in!


Still a baby, right? I just keep telling myself that.

ps. Clearly five minutes in the sun gives lucky Liv the suntan I've spent an entire lifetime trying to achieve.

Queen of Peaches

How to Maintain Your Thunder Thighs: A Lesson by Liv Barlow

Recruit two of your favorite sisters, not to mention fruit puffs in your favorite fruit.
Have them do a test run. Observe carefully.


As always, they may fight over who gets a turn first...


They usually come to a compromise.


Pay no attention to that mom behind the camera.


Don't forget to squeeze in plenty of time for girl talk, especially the comings and goings of Minnie Mouse.


Relish every second being the center of their world.

There is Beauty All Around

How I love Saturday mornings in these parts. Immediately upon opening the front door you are met with a buzzing and whirling of activity. Birds, lawn mowers, sprinklers, chainsaws, each contributing to the symphony of invigorating activity, with a common goal to make the world more beautiful (with the exception of that blasted motorcyclist). Yesterday I decided to add my instrument of choice to the mix, that's right the shop vac. Having been one of the proud owners of our shop vac for two years, I had previously failed to recognize its level of intensity until my car was in desperate need of some cleaning. After a test run, I thoroughly evaluated my feelings toward the contraption: I think we're going to have a beautiful life together.

Not to mention what the white noise did to this girl.
(I think Pluto makes a good pillow too.)



Each morning, before the Strawberry Oatmeal is even on the stove, I hear the alarm system sound as two little ones make their way out the door. Turns out, the break of dawn is the prime time of day to catch potato bugs, or as L & M so lovingly refer to them, rollie pollies. Rollie pollies are a sad substitute for a pet I know, but when pet allergies and a little bit of OCD runs in your family, you have to explore other venues. Ryan found the girls a little house for their newfound friends, dead and alive, and come to find out, the new hobby has bloomed from a collection to somewhat of a sport. Half of the excitement is seeing who will show up on the porch next.
Just today I heard London drop another one into the mix, saying, "there's another Uncle for you!"
And then she told them all quite solemnly, You are a child of God.




Yesterday I also re-emerged my tree-pruning skills (does 're-emerged' mean they had to be there in the first place?) I figured, I'm already the family barber, how much harder can it be to give the trees a little snip-a-roo? Well, judging from a few mishaps, including the discovery of hornets and birds harmoniously living in my tree, it appears my hair cutting disasters carry over to topiary. I think a little practice is in store, but maybe someday our trees will look as pruned as our neighbors'... ps. Unlike the barbering business, the task is almost impossible without a large ladder, not to mention you come away with blisters.



Our lawn is finally making its way out of depression. A couple of years of neglect and fire ants left it feeling no self-worth. Ryan has given his best effort to try to talk it off the ledge, and this spring a little life emerged...We think there is hope yet.
Speaking of lawns, it rained yesterday, one of those tropical rainforest sort of storms that I love. L & M must have gotten a little carried away because they came back into the house soaking wet. It appears once again, their love of water reigns superior. While I was getting the girls bathed and into bed, Ryan finished up the Mount Everest of 2009: cleaning the garage, which event was even more insurmountable than it sounds. Alas, he was rewarded for his efforts around 10 pm, with this little guy.



And the story that will be etched into my memory forever...
Ryan was mowing the lawn while I was helping the girls on bikes, when Maddie suddenly had to go potty. The aforementioned 'opening the front door' skill comes in handy when you don't want to pack up three kids for one potty break, so I let her do her thing. A few minutes later, even over, I repeat, even over the deafening motor of the lawn mower, I heard a very shrill, very angry Madelyn Jane Barlow's voice--"MOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!" She was yelling from the toilet! Not to mention, the front door was closed. The lung power on that girl is deafening, I could barely hear London talking and she was two feet from my face. Oh wow, Maddie stops at nothing when she needs immediate attention. You gotta admire her determination! I was laughing all the way into the house. I am still laughing.

And there's a little glimpse into our Saturday.