My Favorites of 2007

My favorite t.v. shows of 2007:
-House
-Extras
-The Office
-30 Rock
-Heroes

Favorite books I read in 2007:
-I Am a Mother by Jane Clayson Johnson
-History of Love by Nicole Krauss
-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
-Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
-Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Favorite Movies of 2007:
-Breach
-Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
-The Bourne Ultimatum
-Sicko
-Enchanted

Least Favorite Movies of 2007:
-The Ex
-Blades of Glory
-Premonition
-Evan Almighty
-Bee Season

Favorite Pictures of 2007:

My dad directing the choir of cousins and Harrison's pathetic snowman.

Easter Sunday at my sister's house and Chloe eating sand Memorial Day weekend.

Grandpa Maxwell with Harrison buried on Topsail Island and Bath Time.

Me with the kids at Jordan Lake and the preschool girls looking adorable.

A rare shot of Jeff and me and the children playing dress-up.

A Maxwell Family Christmas

10 Joys of Christmas

This holiday season has been filled with joy and fun. Here are a few things that have warmed my cold December days.

1. The Countdown to Christmas Chain. I made a paper chain for the kids and on each day I wrote something fun to do. (Ex. make gingerbread cookies, mail Christmas cards, give toys away to other kids, watch a Christmas movie together, . . . ) They love having a fun surprise every day and I love getting all of my Christmas business done.


2. This picture my mom gave me of my days as a swimsuit model.

3. "Enchanted." I've never seen a more adorable movie. I was giddy with happiness for days afterward. The best part was that Jeff loved it, too!

4. Making Candy. Last year I started a tradition of making candy for neighbors and friends. I always think this is going to be a fun thing for us to do as a family, but then I end up banishing everyone from the kitchen so nobody dies. This year we made toffee, buckeyes, and caramels. I think they weren't gross.

5. Chloe's catchphrases. As her vocabulary continues to grow, she continues to make us laugh. Some words that start with "w" she begins with an "m." So when she tells us she wants something, it sounds more like, "I mah some." (I'm Awesome.) The other day she told Jeff she loved him. He said, "I love you more." She said, "I not More, I Chloe."

6. The Writer's Strike. At last I can start suffering and write that symphony.

7. Christmas music. Whether it's Bing's "White Christmas" or Wham's "Last Christmas," this season is filled with memorable ditties.

8. Harrison changing his mind yesterday about wanting Bob the Builder toys from Santa. Nice.

9. Jeff on vacation! He's taking Step 2 of his medical boards on Thursday, so technically vacation hasn't started, yet. But he hasn't been traveling and it's been great having him home more.

10. Family. Friends. Deck them halls and all that stuff.

Jingle Bells! Batman Smells! Florida's a peninsula!

Earlier this week Jeff let us tag along for two of his interviews in Florida. I had never been to Florida and decided it was probably unfair of me to declare that I didn't want to live there, ever. We've never taken a road trip as a family before, so it was a real adventure.

We set out for Jacksonville, FL Sunday night with the help of the new man in my life: Mr. GPS. He's an early Christmas present from my grandparents. (My grandparents don't have a microwave and only recently got air conditioning. Just wait till I try to explain a GPS system to them.) I don't know how we would have managed without him.

On the trip down we listened to Christmas music and played Six Degrees of Greg Grunberg. (If you think you can't link Owen Wilson and Gene Kelly through Greg Grunberg, you're wrong.)

Monday morning Jeff went to his interview at the Mayo Clinic and the kids and I went to the Hands-On Children's Museum in Jacksonville. Other than the odor, it was the coolest place, ever. Once Harrison and Chloe were worn out, we went to see "Bee Movie." It's a good thing there was no one else in the theater or all the crying, cookie spilling, and row swapping would have been annoying.

The kids crashed in the car as we drove to Gainesville that night. We let the kids swim in the cold pool and then spent the night playing musical beds. I left our bed so Jeff could sleep and I could get the kids calmed down. Then I went back and Chloe kicked Jeff out of our bed. Then Harrison kicked Jeff out of his bed. Jeff ended up on the roll-away bed while I clung to the side of the double bed Chloe and I were "sharing." Harrison had a double bed to himself.

While Jeff was interviewing at the University of Florida, we spent all day at the mall. ALL DAY. It worked out well. The main event was to see Santa, but when we went to see him Harrison was "too nervous." We had to walk around for a while so he could prepare himself mentally. I guess all the "You better watch out because Santa knows when you are sleeping and knows if you've been bad so be good!" he's been hearing has damaged his psyche.

The trip home seemed twice as long. (Doesn't it always?) We stopped at a fruit stand where I got to try my first kumquat. Coincidentally, this was also the place where I tried my last kumquat. Blech. The verdict: Florida is way too warm, but I can learn to be happy anywhere. Below is a slideshow of the fun times.



Note: If you were wondering about the title of this post, that's how my younger brother sang "Jingle Bells" when he was little and our family was on a road trip. Just trying to make learning fun, I guess.

Road trip to Florida

Crazy For Feelin' So Lonely

Jeff has been out of town a lot doing interviews for his residency and intern year. That means he's spent a lot of time in lonely hotel rooms and I've spent a lot of lonely nights in the crazy house (aka my apartment).

I think I hit my limit last Saturday after my children were psychos at a birthday party. When I got home I told Jeff I was going out and I would probably come back. I spent some time clearing my head and trying to figure out where I went wrong and how to fix the mess I'd made.

Here are a few things I've discovered about myself and ways I'm going to change:
1. Sometimes I go out and buy things to make myself feel better. From now on, I'm going to stay in and buy things online to make myself feel better.
2. I tend to eat a lot of ice cream when Jeff is away. From now on, I'll eat a lot of Swiss chocolate when Jeff is away.
3. Instead of flipping through the channels all night waiting until I'm good and tired to retire to bed, I'll find one Lifetime movie and stick with it all night.
4. Instead of sitting my children in front of the t.v. watching kids shows so I can get a break from them, I'm going to sit my children in front of the t.v. watching Christmas movies so I can get a break from them.
5. I need to stop bribing my kids with candy and surprises and just play the "You don't want to be on Santa's Naughty List do you?" card.

Actually I discovered that we all need to spend more time together and making an effort to do so has already made a difference in our home. Over the past couple of days, there has been more laughter than tears and that's all I could have hoped for.

Here's Harrison helping Daddy hang the stockings with care.

Be Our Guest!

No one ever comes to stay with us (the lack of room and close proximity to nothing might have something to do with it) so it was a real treat to have some houseguests last week.

My mom and dad and my brothers, Rob and Aaron, stayed with us last Monday. I'm glad the kids got some one-on-one time with their grandparents and uncles. By the end of the week, they were packing their bags for Grandma Peggy's house. (All they packed were their swimsuits and Coco Pup. Perfect for Utah this time of year.)

Wednesday my sister Nicole, her husband Brian, and my neice Bridget stayed with us. Harrison and Chloe were fascinated by Bridget and her one-year-old ways. We had a great time hanging out at home and playing in the park. Thanks for coming, guys!