Eliza learned to pedal her bike yesterday. I swear, I thought the girl was going to spend the rest of her life propelling herself forward by pushing her feet along the ground. Daniel, mainly, has invested countless evenings encouraging her to pedal. Well, she finally put two and two together and we have a pedaler, people! Hooray!

Eve learned how to tie her shoes tonight. Extremely exciting and long overdue. She should have learned this essential skill last year but Daniel was deployed and I couldn’t do it. Teaching stuff like that is… not my thing. I don’t have the patience for it.

Eve wanted to have some “chucks” like Daniel for hip-hop class, perfect timing for learning how to tie a shoe. It’s been all about the flip flops and sandals so no one has thought about shoe laces. Today, she conquered the shoe tying. She even learned Daniel’s special way to tie so the laces don’t accidentally untie. I’m proud of my girl – she stuck with it, never getting frustrated.

Judah and I have thrown caution to the wind and eaten all the delicious peaches we wanted to today. We bought them on Friday from “The Peach Man” who sold them roadside. Sure, they’re no Pennsylvania peaches picked from a tree earlier in the day and put in a wooden bushel basket but… they’re sweet like candy and semi-fresh and available to me. Whereas, those Pennsylvania peaches are totally not available. I’ll take what I can get and call it good.

And they are very good. Judah will tell you!

I made a Peach Berry cobbler with raspberries I bought from Costco this weekend. I was late getting the cobbler into the oven so we’re having it for breakfast tomorrow instead of dessert tonight. Honestly, this way is better for my rep… dessert for breakfast – my kids think I’m the best.

Baby girl got her pointer finger jammed in her dolly stroller tonight. She’s had pinches before and has certainly gotten her finger stuck in places it shouldn’t been. But tonight was a doozy. I thought Daniel was going to have to rip the stroller apart to get her finger out. Horrible isn’t a big enough word to describe listening to her cry while Daniel tried to free her chubby little finger. Her poor finger was absolutely crushed. Eliza is one tough cookie so for her to carry on and cry for more than a couple seconds told me that she hurt badly. Judah took my place on the couch as her comforter when I had to get back to making dinner. He loves her a whole lot.

One of the best parts of my day was listening to Daniel play “hot and cold” with Eve and Eliza. I had a long frustrating day but hearing them laugh and play made me smile. Eve, especially, cracks me up.

I have these “skinny” jeans on the tightest adjustable waist size and they still fall down! Sigh. Girlfriend is petite, petite, petite!

I worked out tonight – hard. I pushed myself as much as I could. Doing that made some of today’s yuck fly away… The rest, I’ve forgotten. I’m remembering the farm fresh eggs given to me by my friend Brandy, the clean and organized school room, freshly vacuumed floors, and the belly laughs I heard today. Much happier thoughts!

We were in Albuquerque at Jason’s Deli waiting on our dinner. We picked a table with no one around us because Eliza was done. Completely done. So was Judah. All you can do at that point is laugh. Either that or cry and since I don’t really cry… we laughed instead.

It looks like we’re hugging… so sweet, right? Actually, I’ve got him in a hold so he’d be still for just one second, please! Just kidding (kinda), he was hugging me. Judah is extremely affectionate.

Usually when we play this particular game with Eliza we say, “Eliza, you’re a cutie pie!” She answers right away, “No, you’re fill in the blank.” This night, she wasn’t having it. Like I said, she was D.O.N.E.

Untitled from andrea hub on Vimeo.

They may be crazy and slightly unruly at times but I love my kids. I know someday I will miss these wild and exhausting times.

I finally remembered to make the drive into Texas on a Thursday to check this barbecue thing out. I needed to know if this was the real deal or just your average joe’s barbecue.

Apparently this was the real deal. When I pulled into the parking lot I could barely find a spot to park my truck. I was not shocked to see that out of all the vehicles, and there were a lot, there was one lonely car. At that point I knew I was in Texas for sure.

This was the view that welcomed me from the front door…

A long line. At 11:30, when we arrived, our order was number 78. The line never shortened the entire time. We waited for a good twenty or twenty-five minutes to simply place our order. Then we waited about as long for our order to be ready.

There were a few parts of this Texan experience that cracked me up. First, the number of cowboy boots and cowboy hats contained in that building. As a New Yorker, I take great delight in seeing all the cowboy paraphernalia. Second, the gallon jugs of barbecue sauce that sat on the counters for public use. You could also buy a gallon of the sauce for fifteen dollars. I don’t know a whole lot about the going rate of barbecue sauce, but I’m thinking that’s a deal. Thirdly, the fact that the four of us smelled like a big ol’ piece of brisket for the rest of the day.

Was the food worth it?

Unequivocally, yes. There was a good reason the line never shortened and the parking was full.

We’ll be going back.

After our awesome dinner of pulled pork, brisket, beans, and macaroni and cheese the kids played with a couple of balloons. Dull, you say? Boring? Oh no. They played happily for the longest time! Who needs expensive toys when there are balloons to be had.

Early this morning Eve and I harvested tomatoes… we have them coming out of our ears, so to speak. I had no idea that the teeny tiny garden my mom helped us plant back in April would yield such a harvest. I have gotten so much joy out of my garden. And delicious food too!

I’m already plotting and planning next year’s garden in my head. What’s funny about that is I still have cold-weather veggies to plant this year. Spinach, swiss chard, and peas are planned for once the weather chills out.

Today during school, Eliza and Judah recited their latest poems for me. I decided to give the video capabilities of my new Nikon D90 – which was part of the prize package from winning the photo contest – a whirl for the recording. I liked it! Perhaps a bit choppy but still pretty fantastic. I had a 50mm lens on the camera when I took the video and I like the way it looks.

Eliza with “It’s Raining, It’s Pouring”

Eliza recites “It’s Raining” from andrea hub on Vimeo.

Judah with “Wise Old Owl” (and yes, he’s an incredibly funny and sweet little boy)

Judah recites “Wise Old Owl” from andrea hub on Vimeo.

We rounded our day out by attending a birthday party at our wonderful friend’s house. There was a BIG bouncy castle for the kids (20 of them!), delicious bbq ,and lots of friends to hang out with. The party was such fun! Jamie made this amazing cake for her son Andy… I was so impressed! I love spending the evening with friends…

Happy week-ending!

Daniel was able to sneak away for a bit during nap time to check out a gorgeous 1966 Chevy truck. He’s in great need of a vehicle to drive to work both here, during the winter, and once we arrive in San Antonio. New Mexico is an ideal place to buy a classic vehicle due to the roads being salt-free in winter and the price being low as a reflection of volume in the market. Time will tell what he decides to do!

“Dessert and drinks” was a blast, as always. Gorgeous perfection in the weather department, zero flies (a terrible problem here), and plenty of amazing friends…

Gingersnaps disappeared in record time…

Gorgeous Abby was showered with love…

The swings were never empty…

What’s life worth without friendships? I never want to find out.

I rounded out the day with a back squat workout. I have a tender spot in my heart for back squats. I love them, I do. But last night… no love. The muscles across my shoulders were angry with me from the previous night’s sumo deadlifts and push jerks. Laying the heavy bar onto those sore muscles was no fun… no fun at all.

I set a personal record – which isn’t much so don’t get too excited – my body isn’t built for strength. I was happy nonetheless. I did get stuck once, thankfully Daniel saved me. The last time I dumped the weight while in a back squat I did it incorrectly and hurt my back, I had much trepidation about dropping the weight again. I’m grateful for my man who lifted the bar off my shoulders like it was a feather.

Before we headed to bed, Daniel and I watched a couple of episodes of “Friends.” I love ending the night in gales of laughter…

And now, a brand new week!

My little guy has loved grape tomatoes since he was able to get them from his hot little hand into his mouth. I had to shut him down when he was a wee one because of the horrendous diaper rash he would get the day after. I hated doing that. I promised myself that when he was done with diapers I would never deny him grape tomatoes again. He could eat them by the fist full and I wouldn’t bat an eye.

Last summer he ate as many as I could get into the house. Farmer’s market to table to Judah’s happy mouth.

This summer, we have our own.

I was afraid that this day would never come; the first grape tomato plant that came up from the seeds I planted, died. I guess it couldn’t take my constant attention. Unfortunately I am a hover-er. I know my neighbors think I’m crazy because I am constantly checking on my garden.

The second little tomato plant that decided to give this life thing a whirl… lived! Flourished, even. I watered it, talked to it, cheered it on…

Fruition:

I was so excited for this day to come! I’ll admit to being a little nervous that Judah would mysteriously decide that he didn’t love grape tomatoes anymore, but my fears were put to rest.

I had one very happy boy with a handful of just picked grape tomatoes.

He even shared with his sister, though truthfully it was a bit begrudgingly. He’s got some stiff competition in the “oh-may-yo” lovin’ department from one Miss Eliza Dove.

Maybe next year I should plan for a “Judah” tomato plant and an “Eliza” tomato plant!

Last night I whipped out my camera at dinner. Because what’s better than capturing people mid-chew? Actually it was because Eliza was looking so cute sitting in Daddy’s chair; she loves to sit there whenever Daniel’s not home. Her greatest goal in life is to be just like the big kids, you know.

Anyway, Eve made this face:

Instantly my mind went to this photo of me:

I realize I’m scary looking. I apologize. It was post-Crossfit workout and I was bright red and sweaty, waiting for Daniel to finish rowing a 2k, and acting like a dork.

But look! We made the same face!

I’m grasping at straws here, but I feel validated. We really are related. And you know what, God bless her, she’s getting my freckles. I could not possibly be more tickled!

(addendum) Looking back on these photos… this is definitely a “We do Crossfit” themed post!

I would totally do a full on photoshoot in that laundromat. It’s funny how the places we often overlook because they are ordinary can be so interesting.

Happy Fourth of July, dangit.

Hope your day was wonderful and filled with exceptional company and food!

(post playing in the dirt, hot dog roasting, s’mores eating and pre-bath)

Or smile…

(anyone who has a younger/older sibling totally gets this photo)

Or melt a little…

(they are best buds)

Maybe we should have a ‘lil talk!

I’d love for you to vote for me today if you have an extra half minute. It’s a once a day vote on this photo that I submitted to “My Air Force Life.”

Vote Here for my photo – #673 – (I’m on page 7 today)…. no registering or info involved!

If we were neighbors, I’d bake you copious amounts of cookies for doing this for me! Instead a simple thank you will have to do.

Thank you!