out of the loop

dudes.  we have been out of the loop.  like so far out of it we no longer even see the loop.  it is invisible to us.  a lot has been going on.  we have a ton of stuff to update you on.  some new developments, new projects, major home renovations and a lot of random little things in between - but several things are happening today, tomorrow and wednesday and therefore as much as i would love to do a post about what's been going on, we gotta keep moving!  what we can tell you is summer is upon us and it is already going way too fast!  we'll be back soon enough with some pictures of what we have been up to the past few weeks and fill you in on what you've missed!  until then....

instagram of the day: what the what?

we'll have to explain this one later...

instagram of the day: on record

i want to go on record and say that some day, i am not sure when, where or how, but someday, i will track down the man who owns this car and buy it from him.  and love it forever.

or i'll just sit in it when he's not looking, like i almost did today... had he not come out and driven away with my dreams in tow.  dream stealer.

one month later...

i realized yesterday that we never shared pictures from the awesome mother's day that we spent at the nelson art museum last month.  it was the perfect day - gorgeous weather - and plenty to do.

my loves started the day out right for me with a ridiculously cute card and a hope.  do i like zebras?  two hopes actually, do I like zebras and do i like zebras named "meaty" - you know i do.

since it was going to be such a beautiful day we grabbed a blanket, the world's greatest chai,  a to-go lunch from  the mixx, and found a great spot on the lawn at the nelson.

there was also something about "the world's largest picnic blanket" going on, so we got in on that...

i'm not 100% sure what was going on exactly, but it was a giant orange paint-a-pa-looza and then there was a world record of some sort involved.  i'm fuzzy on the details...

i'll look into and get back to you.

either way, a day filled with a lot of "world's".  my two favorite people in the world, one of my most favorite salads in the world,  for sure world's best chai latte, sunny skies, a zebra named meaty and something about orange paint that i am going to investigate further.

and because no celebration would be complete without cartwheels - some official cartwheel training also went down.  not the best in the world, but they get an a for effort:


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it's a little past due, but here's hoping all of the mother's out there had an equally as wonderful day filled with all the little things you love most...in the world.

xoxo

cool stuff

alex drew a character from kung fu panda two.

here is the real one:

 and here is her pretty awesome version, that she drew at school, from memory:

not bad!

watermelon ninja fruit kabob

oh what's this?  looks like a rubbermaid storage container with a little piece of fabric in it, an old sock perhaps or maybe a forgotten mitten that got left behind during winter clothing storage....

WRONG!

WRONG!

WRONG!

that my friends is an effing bat!!! aka a real-live vampire, aka a rat with wings, aka a murderous inhabitant of my living room that tried to decapitate me and murder my family and my kittens the night before last.  and i will tell you that although i may have rolled into a ball faster than a 1980s popple when it dive bombed my brain, my hero husband and those killer kittens of mine, were having no part of this burglar bat bastard.

that's right.  he may have swooped in via some currently unidentified location, but my three guys went gangbusters on his butt, trapping him in a plastic jail cell then condemning him to a momentary sentence of snapshots and shrieking.

want a closer look?  of course you do.

now, let's talk about a few things:

1. those creepy feet. i could have gone my entire life without ever needing to know and/or see proof that bats have creepy spider toes.  sick.

2. my cats can jump as high as the top of my windows and over my head if provoked.  impressive.

3. turns out that even though alex has claimed to be a giant fan of bats for a number of years, they are not as "cute" nor "cool" when flying through your house on nighttime suicide missions.  who knew?

4. this bat was given a name and it's watermelon ninja fruit kabob. bam!

that's right bat, you flap into our home with your circus freak feet and your murderous motivations and we'll release the felines on your ass, put you in a plastic flying mammal restraining device, photograph you and let our seven-year-old give you a stupid name.  because that's the way we get down around here.

now be sure to use those creepy finger-like-toes of yours to hand deliver that memo to your friends.

give to grow

earlier in the year i mentioned that i was going to be taking on some freelance writing projects as well as some special projects that hit really close to home.  well today i am all jazz-hands-a-blazin' to tell you about one of the special projects and share a little bit of it on the blog.

last summer i was asked to collaborate on some marketing materials for alex's school and then to be a part of their capital campaign this spring.  well, the work on both projects is now complete and the official capital campaign kicked off this week with the pieces i helped create arriving in homes just yesterday.

before i show you the pieces, i thought it might be helpful to give you an idea of what the campaign is all about and in total, what her school is all about. now some of you already know, but for those who don't, alex is a part of academie lafayette - a full french immersion, public, charter school in the heart of kcmo.

the following video is one of the most moving and exciting things i have ever been a part of and i just think it's a total masterpiece.  it really helps capture the spirit and essence of the educational experience we chose for our daughter.

up first, the video:

http://youtu.be/oSiTAXTCGOg



and here is the brochure i collaborated on for the campaign: 

CLICK HERE TO VIEW 

evan has also taken on a piece of the campaign lending several of his weekend hours to leading a group of volunteers in the renovation of the new lower campus that alex will be at for second grade in the fall.

here are just a few pics of some of the work he has been involved with there:

and last night we helped to "install" a piece of the campaign at the main campus that will serve as a recognition piece for families.

here i am putting up a bunch of sticky tree branches on a wall and there alex is staying up way past her bedtime...for a good cause i might add.

pretty sure another one of these puppies is getting the amazon prime treatment and then stuck up on a wall somewhere in our house.  i mean, who doesn't need a giant tree on their wall?  it's kind of been the year of the trees for us and we're kind of nutso like that, so yeah.

and just because i didn't get a chance to show it to you last summer, and while we're on the topic, here is the initial marketing piece i collaborated on for general recruitment/info:

CLICK HERE TO VIEW

i'll be honest and say it wasn't an easy choice when we were moving into the district and trying to decide on school options.  we were incredibly skeptical about what we were getting into and whether or not it would be a good choice for her future - but being a part of this campaign and being a part of the day-to-day experience of having a first grader who is fluent in french and is exposed to teachers from all over the world, has been rewarding on a level i can't really even begin to explain.  we've gotten involved with several different things and have made some friendships that i already know will last a lifetime.

in short: we are over joyed with our decision, extremely proud of our school and super excited to share a few of the pieces from the campaign we helped build.

anyway, in the event that you have any further interest in learning about AL or being a part of the campaign, you can learn more (and donate) at www.givetogrow.net.  and especially if you live in kansas city, mo and are aware of the urgent need for HIGH quality public education, and you're looking for a shining star to invest in, we can't say enough about our school or the need for helping it grow.

now be a good blog follower and go copy/paste/facebook/tweet/google+  that video link all up on the web-sies and help spread the word. merci! 

like mother like daughter

a lot of people seem to think that alex and i look alike.  she's obviously mine, i saw it happen, but i rarely see the similarities.  there are some occasions where i'll catch a profile view of her and i can see a resemblance.  it usually happens when she's sleeping - that is when, to me, we look the most alike.

but every now and again even i can't argue that there are some similarities between us.

about two months a go i gathered with a group of people on world kidney day and posed for a photo op.  yep, that's me, front & center because, well,  that's the kind of crap i like to do.

then yesterday, the girls were posing for an end-of-year photo op at girl scouts and you won't believe who waited until the last second to take her spot down front...

even i couldn't deny the irony.

i guess we're alike in more ways than one and she likes to do that kind of crap too.  its kind of funny when you're a parent.  you wonder and worry about the things your kids will learn from you and carry with them.  i was having a conversation with some girlfriends today about whether or not our daughters would do the crazy things we did in our youth.  thinking about it inspired this post.

and also scared me half to death.

instagram of the day: sunset ride

the perfect night for a ride. also someone needs a new bike.  and it's not me.

oh yeah...

my lil' brother graduated from college last weekend.

and in related news, my dad made what would have been a really nice pic of his kids, an even better pic of his kids complete with a photobomb.

we only managed to take about 4 1/2 pictures on this day and this is basically what we ended up with:

pretty lackluster but congrats anyway baby bro.  we failed you on the photo documenting, but you've done us proud on the growing into a smart, handsome and amazingly awesome dude.  we're super proud of you and love you tons.  i'd like to think all those years of sticking peanut butter on the roof of your mouth and aiding and abetting your massive fear of butterflies, really helped shape you into the man you have become today.

p.s. you can stop getting taller any day now.  we get it, you're all grown up.