Aaaaand we're back.

Our family's week with no TV and minimal computer (sometimes you've just got to pay the bills) is over. These are some of the things I learned:

1. Getting through the day with no TV was a ton easier than I thought it would be. Clara never even brought it up! Granted, we usually watch just Sid, the Science Kid in the mornings and It's a Big, Big World in the afternoons (I just love that hippie sloth), with the occasional tune-in to Word World. But still--I can't tell you how many days (on any given day of the week before and including this one) I find myself just yearning for it to finally be time to watch one of our shows.

2. Sometimes T.V. is very nearly a godsend. For example, this week we have had sickness in our house AGAIN. Clara has another ear infection, and Jonathan is wheezing again. Jeremy has been congested all week, and I came down with a cough and fever yesterday. You may not be surprised that we ended Turnoff Week a little early so Clara could enjoy Smooch and Winslow while I took a much-needed huddle on the couch, covered with a blanket.

3. Going TV-less is way easier when the weather is good. We had great weather earlier this week, and I took Clara and Jonathan to the park twice--even though they were both under the weather--and then on a 3-mile-walk (by the way, after that walk I realized that I desperately wish the jogging stroller fairy would drop a double jogger on our doorstep; three miles with a heavy tandem stroller just about did me in, and I am pretty tough). Going without TV is also easier when your kids like to color and do art. Every time I would run out of things to do, I'd say, "Let's paint!" and out the watercolors would come. Since every finished product is followed up with a demand to "hang it on the 'frigerator," we are awash with masterpieces this week--including a couple of my own little gems.

That's pretty much it. Jeremy and I have decided to watch our three weekly shows (Chuck, Lost and The Office, if you must know) online on the weekends rather than during the week. We enjoyed having all of our evenings clear to read and play chess (OK--we didn't actually play any chess, but if we had a chess set we totally would have, on account of I would've smoked him).

Off the grid

We're going off the grid for Turnoff Week. In the meantime, here's a little something to remember us by:

Happy Easter!

Who has time for blogging...

...when it's 65 degrees and sunny? See you when the rain returns...

We are marching!

If you read this blog or know us, you know that we have encountered several challenges as we've had each of our children. Sam's birth was obviously a heartbreaking experience, but we also had quite a scare with Clara's unexpected premature birth. Despite the three weeks in the hospital and the stress of her early arrival, we were overwhelmed with gratitude that she was as healthy as she was. The advances in the care of premature infants have been exponential in my lifetime, and I often reflect on how different our family could be had Clara been born in a different time.

Clara's birth is not the only time that I have been touched by the dangers of prematurity. My aunt and uncle bravely brought four premature children into the world, including their oldest daughter, Erin, who died not long after she was born--not too many months after I was born. I have thought often of Erin over the course of my life, and I visit her grave, which is very near Sam's, every time I'm in Provo.

Jeremy and I have decided to honor Clara's health as well as to continue championing the healthy births of all babies by walking in this year's March of Dimes March for Babies. We'll do a six-mile walk with our kids six weeks from now, and we're excited! We hope to raise a total of $200 for March of Dimes, but even if we only raise what we're able to contribute, it'll be worth it. Because, really, we just love to walk, and we feel like our commitment might be just the karma we need to get good weather to finally arrive! If you're interested, please email us at theplenary@gmail.com for easy-peasy donation instructions. And if you're in the area, we'd love to have you walk with us. We're always happy to add more teammates!

Books

Rather than keeping a running list of my recent reads in the sidebar, I've added a link to the right that will connect you to my "shelf" on goodreads. As a disclaimer, sometimes my reviews are not as well written as I'd like... I'm only human! Be ye warned.

Bronchiolitis baby

After writing my previous post things really went downhill with poor Jonathan. Last Thursday I took him to the doctor because I felt like he was having to work a little too hard to get a good, deep breath. The doctor discovered infections beginning to develop in both of his ears, and he also noted a little wheeze in Jonathan's breathing. He sent us home with a diagnosis of bronchiolitis (probably caused by RSV, although I declined testing since it didn't affect treatment), a prescription for antibiotics, and a panda bear-shaped nebulizer. We are now on his fifth day of breathing treatments, and he's doing much better. Also, he is more malleable than Clara, so getting his medicine in him has been a cinch.

Anyway, we are totally ready to bid a final farewell to all of the sickness at our house. Jeremy and I are still healthy, which is nice, but after a random vomiting episode from Jonathan this afternoon I was ready to pack up and move to warmer climes. What does any of this have to do with climate? Weather is life, my friends! I think I might be able to bear our disease-ridden house if we could have even the smallest chance of stepping outside into pleasant weather. I know I've fallen far when the dangled carrot of 50-degree weather this weekend is enough to very nearly bring tears of joy to my eyes (really, though, I'll believe it when I see it; it hasn't been 50 degrees here since November). For being just this side of paradise, north Idaho is absolutely wretched this time of year. My kids may be sick, but I'm just sick of being so dang cold all the time!

Lest you feel too bad about Jonathan (I know your sympathy is not extending to me and my cold weather complaints), here is another photo of him, taken on the same day. Happy boy! He discovered just last week that he can get his toes into his mouth. What cause is there for sadness?

'Tis the season for effluvia

We have been laid up for more than a week now with lots of snot and sickness and general malaise. Clara came down with a virus last Monday, which developed into a secondary ear infection, which led to an epic battle over the drinking of amoxicillin, which led to a new prescription of chewable antibiotics, which was followed by a ruptured ear drum, which means we can't get any water in her ear for two weeks, which means her hair is looking a tad greasy. And now we're going through the same thing with poor Jonathan--minus the ear infection and the medicine and the greasy hair (knock on wood). It's been a long week.

But, in times like these, it always pays to keep one's good humor intact. Clara helps out with this, since she always has something interesting and amusing to say. The other day, for example, she got out her halloween pumpkin bag and told us she was going to the store. "Good-bye, Friends!" she proclaimed before waltzing off to the laundry room closing the door. When she returned a few moments later, we asked her what she'd bought at the store. "Meat," she answered. Of course.

Also, she was looking at a wedding picture of Jeremy and me. She pointed to my dress and veil and said, "Kess gets married, too" (it's important to note here that she calls herself "Kess" if she uses her name at the beginning of a sentence; otherwise, it's Care-la). I told her she could get married when she was a very big girl like mommy, and she looked at the picture, touched the veil, and said, "Kess wears a purple dress and wings!!" So I guess it looks like I'm wearing fairy wings with my evidently purple dress. Go figure.

And finally, we recently bought a copy of the classic Little Golden Book The Tawny Scrawny Lion at the Goodwill. Several times the words say that the lion wants to be "as fat as butter." After many, many readings, Clara turned to me, poked my lumpy tummy, and said, "Mommy's fat as butter." Bless her heart.

Losers, go home.

Nothing quite says "Spring has sprung" like me and Jeremy being so gnarly at March Madness.

::Jeremy::

::Rachel::

Six Months

Jonathan is six months old today. How did that happen? We celebrated the big day by giving him some really liquidy rice cereal for the very first time. What a milestone.



In honor of our sweet baby boy, here is a list of some of the very many things we love about Jonathan:

1. His fuzzy, barely-there hair.
2. That he'll smile at you every time you make eye contact with him.
3. The smell of his breath. If I could bottle up that smell and carry it with me forever, I would. Now that he's starting to eat solids I'm sure the quality of his breath will change. I will miss that smell.
4. His soft skin.
5. His snuggly rotundness.

Oh, he is a sweet, sweet baby. We are big fans.

The Playlist

A few people have asked me to post the music from our mix tape, so I have. It's good to respond quickly to alert readers in times like these.

Because I am quite often startled and very nearly terrified by the unexpected launch of a playlist when I visit people's blogs, you will have to press "play" yourself if you want to be soothed and buoyed by our music. Also, I had to substitute Elizabeth Mitchell's "Peace like a River" for her "You Are My Sunshine." It fits in well with the general theme, and it will still allow you, in these difficult times, to get a sense of her vocal stylings.

Peace.

Mixing Things Up

Jeremy and I have occasion, at this point in our lives, to feel the pressures and stress that accompany a global economic downturn. I'm sure we're not alone. But rather than wallow in the uncertainty of our current situation, we've chosen instead to do what any good American would do in times like these: make a mix tape. This is always the best way to deal with difficult times. Another thing that helps is to use the phrase "in times like these" or "in these difficult times" as often as possible. (Example: "Should we buy fresh fruits and vegetables this week?" Answer: "That's a frivolous concern in times like these.")

So that our general readership might feel the enlightenment we've achieved by uncovering hope in these hard times, we are (at least temporarily) changing the theme and focus of our blog. But since we are, generally, not too focused (at least I'm not), you may not notice a huge difference. Keep coming back, though, and you will find that, even in times like these...

A Tonic for Times like These:

1. Kenny Loggins, Danny's Song (This is the glue of the whole album. Key line: "Even though we ain't got money/ I'm so in love with you, Honey.")
2. Tracy Chapman, Talkin' 'Bout a Revolution (Key line: "Poor people gonna rise up/ And take what's theirs." Wait for it.)
3. Bob Marley, Three Little Birds
4. Inoj, Time After Time (Classy remix of a classic song.)
5. Jewel, Have a Little Faith in Me
6. Bob Dylan, Shelter from the Storm
7. The Beatles, Here Comes the Sun
8. Travis, Flowers in the Window
9. Tom Petty, Wildflowers
10. Elizabeth Mitchell, Peace like a River (If you don't know Elizabeth Mitchell, you should.)
11. Norah Jones, Sunrise
12. Guns n' Roses, Patience
13. Tom Petty, Time to Move On
14. Eddie Vedder, Rise (Has anyone else noticed how many artists on this list are notorious potheads? They're all Jeremy's picks, natch.)
15. Alison Krauss, I'll Fly Away
16. Natalie Merchant, Kind and Generous