Family Picture!

Halloween and Birthdays

We're still alive; I'm just a negligent blogger. Tom got transfered to a new branch about two months ago and is really enjoying the dymanic of his new team. There are whispers of a promotion in our near future, so we're keeping our fingers crossed for that.

I am still LOVING my job and am starting to get more comfortable in my position after passing the year mark, and watching things start to cycle through again. I like the "I've done this before" feeling, instead of grasping at straws. In the two years I've been back at work we've switched babysitters 4 times, but I think that's the nature of in-home daycare. It's stressful, and of course I struggle with the guilt of being a working mom. But I just try to do each day better than I did the last day, and it seems to work out in the end.

Lucy is too smart for her own good, and is a constant source of laughter and energy in our house. She loves her brother, playdough, snow, and Dora. She says the funniest things: while trick-or-treating she said to someone: "Thanks for the candy. I really appreciate it." Hahaha! Another Lucy story: she asked what lions eat. I hesitated, then answered: "Zebras."
"No mom, what do they really eat?"
"They eat Zebras and other animals, honey. They eat meat."
Lucy bursts into tears, "I don't want them to eat the Zebras!"
Me, feeling like a total dream smashing tyrant said, "Ok, honey. We'll say they eat grass."
"Lions eat grass?"
"Yes."
"Ok, thanks Mommy." She's so sweet.

Ethan weighs as much as his sister and loves to do anything she is doing. He has a really hot little temper, which is a new experience from Lucy's generally sweet disposition. But he's also a cuddler and a lover. He doesn't talk much, at least not that you can understand. His motor skills are very developed though; at 16 months he can stack blocks, string beads, and poke straws through lid-holes. He loves to color, run, wrestle, and rearrange things . Proof that they can play nicely

Me with the two best looking guys I know


Limo ride

surprise dinner arranged by Tom

Delivered to my office from Tom

Boots the monkey and Benny the cow. I was Dora

At the Scarecrow Festival

Learning to tie her shoe

Lilli and Lucy

If I knew then what I know now...

I've heard people say this a lot. So I started thinking back to high school, and what I've learned in the 6 years (can't believe it's been 6 years) I've been "out in the world". Here are a few of the pearls of wisdom I've picked up:

1. Kindness is crucial. Above all, true kindness makes the biggest difference, and I've yet to meet a person who is unreachable with kindness.

2. No one's life is perfect; in one way or another, we're all messed up. It's ok.

3. Most people just act like they know what's going on; we're all just guessing.

4. Daydreaming gets you nowhere. I used to sit around and hope/wait for things to happen to me. For that cute boy to notice me, for a job opportunity to find me, etc. Then I realized I have to make those plans, try for those things, fail sometimes, and then...it happens.

5. The hardest, most important, and most often missed step to happiness, is determining what it is we want.

Pictures!

So I know I've been M.I.A.---sorry! Things just never seem to slow down. Here are some pictures of recent outings :)

All dressed up for our Hawaiian Ward Picnic

Ethan looking "gansta" in his hat and diaper

Trip to Moab--they were beasts this whole meal. I had to take Lucy out of the restaurant more than once

More Hawaiin party. I know I look pregnant in this picture; I'm not. Just the way the loose dress falls :)

Snowbird!!

Dancing to the music

Lucy and her friends

Just some thoughts

At work we're preparing to end a Fiscal Year and start a new one. Last year I left around this time on maternity leave. It is so strange to look back at where I was then, and where I am now. I'm not big on reminiscing, but it really seems like so much has changed in the last year. I guess primarily with my work. Taking this promotion has changed everything about my life, it seems. It's mostly good--but so....unsheltered. I never used to be "in" on any of the drama, concerns, administrative decisions. I found out when everyone else found out. Now, I get worried if there's a meeting without me, a decision I didn't know about before everyone else, etc. Being privy to such information has good and bad elements to it. I am so grateful to be in the position I am, and I KNOW I've never loved a job as much as I love this one. But it really has lost all of its simplicity. It seems like a lot of things have lost their simplicity.
One of Tom's favorite sayings is "It's not a magic show when you're the magician." That pretty much sums it up. All of the employee gatherings/parties/activities aren't the same because I'm the one planning and executing them. Again, not complaining, it's just very, very different at the close of this Fiscal Year when compared to last year.
Those are my thoughts.

Ethan's Birthday and Temple Square

Our little baby Ethan turned one!! Cannot fathom how time flew that quickly. He is NOT as sweet as Lucy was/is, but he is just as cute :) He is strong and energetic. He is quick to smile and even quicker to laugh. He loves to rough house and chase his sister. It has been so fun to watch his personality begin to develop, and see how very different my children are. Most days I just try to keep up with them hour to hour. I am so lucky to be a big part of their lives for a short while.
The other day while I was running I ran by Temple Square and realized we'd never brought the kids there. So when I got home I showered and shuffled everyone out the door. I was met with some resistance, but Mom always prevails ;) It turned out to be a great afternoon, and everyone was glad we went.
Lots of pictures!

If you saw my FB, you've already seen these

Here are some quick picture updates for those who don't have FB!I reserve the right to brag about my beautiful kids; look at them! Who wouldn't??

Lucy never stops talking. So her mouth is always open :)

Blanket set I made for a friend

Outfit I made for my boss's granddaughter

Running

I finally broke down and started getting up before 6 a.m. to go running. I never thought I'd be one of those early morning runners, but running at night was really becoming a chore. I found I really didn't like running anymore, I did it out of obligation. And it cut into my time with Tom after the kids went to bed. I would literally start dreading it the moment I got home.
So for the past two days I tried running in the morning on a trial bases. I have to get up at 5:45 to get everything done on time, but it's SO WORTH IT!
I absolutely love it. Today I ran 4 miles in 32 minutes. I'm training for a 10K at the end of the month, and my goal is a respectable (though not spectacular) 58 minutes. I've already hit that mark a few times in practice runs. But in running shorter distances at faster times, I'm hoping to improve my long distance times, too.
Either way, I find it refreshing, invigorating, and a great way to start my day! And, I enjoy my evenings more, too!

My thoughts on Bin Laden's Death

I am getting really frustrated with comments like, "how can we celebrate someone's death? What is this world coming to?" To avoid political heat, I am blogging my response because only people who like me, for the most part, read my blog. So I'll assume this is safe territory.

We aren't celebrating the death of a man, we are celebrating the death of a key, leading role in worldwide terrorism. We are celebrating what we hope will be a large stride in reducing the power of merciliess extremists, who for decades, if not centuries, have slaughtered innocent people in unspeakable ways to gain power and money, with the end goal of overtaking the world...literally. Their mission, was to crush all Western society, and be the rulers of it. Bin Laden has been quoted as saying, he will no stop killing until every single Christian church has been burned to the ground. Sounds awfully familiar....Hitler, anyone? Were they not after the same thing? The complete eradication of a people, race, or religion? Or all three? Was Hitler's death something to be mourned?

How about all you self-righteous, oh-so-tolerant and enlightened "liberal thinkers" march your ass over Afghanistan or Iraq and ask the people how they feel about his death? Do you think they are sad? Worse off? Do you think they're not sleeping just a little bit easier tonight, knowing that Bin Laden won't be cutting off their daughter's noses that night? Because that's what he did. He mutilated his people, beat them into submission, tortured family memebers for NO REASON other than to instill fear. I have friends in Sadi Arabia praising Allah that he is dead. So don't you, for one second, tell me I can't praise God he's dead.

You know nothing, NOTHING, of the horrors this man was responsible for. So yes, I am happy he's dead. And yes, the death of his leadership, and what he represented, should be celebrated. If you disagree, then sit there and don't celebrate. But don't try to stop my rejoice that the world is short one more mass-murdering, genocidal, truly evil bastard. And don't be so impressed with yourself. Chances are you've never looked into the eyes of a woman whose nose was carved out, leaving a gaping cavity in her face, in order to scare her father into submission. My Dad, has. My brother in law, has. Bin Laden will not be missed.

Ballerinas, hockey games, and cute kids

Things have been rolling right along here, for the Griffith's. Tom just finished the first quarter at Wells Fargo where he was qualified to bonus...and he did! In fact, he's #1 in his branch, and #4 in the district. I'm so proud of him! I couldn't do that job. Be nice to your bankers, by the way. You have no idea what goes on behind the scenes; it's an enormous amount of pressure and ridiculous regulations.
Still loving my job; April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, so it's pretty busy at the Family Support Center. We'll have an online auction going on the 24th through the 29th. Check it out at www.familysupportcenter.org. Never know; you might find something you like! Proceeds go to child abuse prevention and treatment.
Ethan is growing like a weed. There's a HUGE difference in little boys and little girls. I had to BEG Lucy to eat; still do. Ethan has NO problem eating. He out-eats his sister 9 times out of 10. He does a little army crawl and can get across the room faster than you can catch him. He says "Da ba da da" a lot; I really do not count that as "da da", but Tom does. Wishful thinking, sweetheart :)
Lucy is SO SMART! She knows her ABC's and most of the sounds, she can count to 13 without help, knows all her shapes and colors, and speaks in complex, grammatically correct sentences. She's my little talker! She loves to do craft projects, put together puzzles, watch Elmo and Dora, and play at the park. She truly has a sweet heart.

Cannot Handle It

Some of you know, and some do not, that I sometimes obsess a little bit about my weight. Good, bad, or indifferent, I am always at least aware of my weight and shape. So I decided to start training for a 10K so that I would focus more on strength than on the number on the scale. It started out well, but now that I'm a couple of weeks into it, I sure can run harder and longer than I ever have..but I'm also gaining weight. I know some of it is muscle gain, and some of it is straight up needing more reserves/energy to burn to run that far and long. I went from running 8-10 miles a week, to about 20 miles a week.
However, I think part of it is also my letting myself eat what I want. This probably sounds pathetic, but it somehow feels better to blog about it. I cannot handle gaining weight like this, even when I understand what it's for, and know I can drop it all after the race. It makes me irritable and angry at myself all the time. I just don't feel good when I gain weight. And I have no energy when I lose it all. AHHGHGH!
So, there is my whiny, "poor me" post. Sorry you had to read it :)

Working with women

I love my job. One of the things I love about it is all the wonderful women I get to work with. Powerful women, docile women, energetic women...all varieties, all working together to prevent child abuse. It's incredible.
What I love, though, is also what I hate. There is always this game, this balance, of friend and coworker, supervisor and supervisee...and it seems someone is always offended at what another has said or done, or not said or done, or said in a different tone, or didn't use any tone at all...you get the idea. I feel like I'm constantly doing damage control; smoothing someone else's feathers, or my own. It can be exhausting. I think I'm joking around with someone, then find out they took offense. Someone is joking with me, and I take offense. It's ridiculous.
Today seemed to be exceptionally full of those games, and it left a bad taste in my mouth.
The tricky thing is, in order to bond on a certain level with people, you have to go outside a certain level of office formality. And once you cross that line, you risk falling into the cycle I just described. This seems to always happen, and I end up wishing I'd just stayed on the outskirts of the office friendships. Ugh. Maybe someday I'll figure this out.
I welcome your advice. Please.

Picture update...going clear back to Halloween. Yes, I know.