Junk DNA

Taste Impairment

2012-02-07T16:21:00.000-06:00

So, I'm back.

Did you miss me?

I hope you're not expecting a long profound post for my foray back into the blogosphere, because you are going to be disappointed if you are.

Instead, I am going to update you on the state of my taste buds. (The next post will include something profound-ish and/or a picture of my kid. Promise.)

So without further ado...

On Saturday, I bought some new mouthwash.

This particular mouthwash promises to:
1. rebuild my enamel
2. prevent cavities
3. clean my teeth and gums
4. freshen my breath

All without the burn of alcohol!

Could there be anything better?

So I tried said mouthwash on Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I woke up, brushed my teeth and used the mouthwash for a second time.

And while I am confident that my enamel is being rebuilt, my cavities are being prevented, my teeth and gums are being cleaned, and my breath is being freshened...

I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO TASTE ANYTHING FOR THREE DAYS!

I used this mouthwash TWO times and THREE days later, I still cannot taste a darn thing.

So...I did a little digging on the interwebs and it turns out that this mouthwash contains a chemical called cetylpyridinium chloride. It's an antiseptic that is also used (alarmingly!) in some pesticides.

Not only does it kill microorganisms, but it can also cause taste impairment in some people -- LIKE ME! Furthermore, it can cause some people's teeth to turn brown!

Not super helpful, if you are shooting for pearly whites!

NONE of this is contained on the label. Seems like it should be.

Needless to say, I will not be using this product again.

For now, I will wait patiently for my taste buds to recover so I can taste things again.

Anything.

I would just like to taste SOMETHING.

PLEASE.

And for the record, P&G Dental Hygiene Department, you need to put this kind of thing on the label.

Houston, We Have A Smile!

2011-12-05T09:47:00.000-06:00

Finally!

2011

This was the year that Harper finally smiled in her Santa picture.

Last year, there was a slight suggestion of a smile.

2010

And the year before that, I can only describe her expression as "Santa Paralysis".

2009

I'm glad she's finally warming up to the old guy.

`

Pulling The Santa Card

2011-11-28T15:03:00.001-06:00

A mother-daughter exchange from last night:

Harper: Can I have some candy?

Me: Nope. It's time for bed.

Harper: Santa, are you watching? Mommy is not being good.

Touché, young one.

On a similar note, I just got an email from Amazon that one of Harper's Christmas presents is on its way.

Here is the actual title of the item on Amazon's website:

Double Layered Rainbow Fairy Princess Butterfly Costume Dress-up Wings w/Pink, Purple, Blue & Green Rainbow Fairy Wings

Never in my wildest dreams did I think my life would include double layered rainbow fairy princess butterfly dress-up wings...

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-24T09:55:00.000-06:00

My church did a fantastic message about gratefulness last Sunday. You can watch the whole thing here. It's only 30 minutes and well worth your time.

But, if you are more of a CliffsNotes type of person, here are the points that really hit home with me.

1. Don't assume people know you are thankful.

Don't assume your husband/wife knows you are thankful for them.
Don't assume your parents know you are thankful for them.
Don't assume your boss knows you are thankful for him/her.
Don't assume your friends know you are thankful for them.

Tell them. Express your gratitude. It will make you feel awesome and it will make them feel awesome.

2. You can't be grateful for something you feel entitled to.

This video is a funny representation of that.

But on a more serious note, if you feel entitled to your family, job, house, health, etc. you can't really be grateful for those things.

I have so many things to be thankful for this year. I hope you enjoy your Turkey Day and can reflect on all of the blessings in your life!

Thankful For The Clan

2011-11-23T19:24:00.000-06:00

I was saving the best for last...

Today, I am thankful for my wonderful family.

My husband is awesome. He is the quintessential Renaissance man. He fixes our cars, our bikes, and pretty much anything else that breaks around here.

He protects and serves our community.

He's good at everything he attempts.

And most of all, he's a wonderful father and husband.

I am thankful for Harper.

She is the best part of every day. She is sweet and witty and thoughtful.

And sometimes, she's a little over the top. But, I like that side of her too.

I am thankful for my wonderful parents.

They shaped me and molded me and encouraged me to be the person that I am today.

They are awesome parents and even better grandparents.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and this mini blogging project of mine will be over. Even though I struggled to post every day, I thoroughly enjoyed reflecting on all of the blessings in my life. Stay tuned for one more installment...

Thankful For Dodging Bullets and Cultivating Friendships

2011-11-22T20:45:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, I had my checkup with my neurologist and everything looked good - which I could have told them before the 500 pin pricks they made me endure to make sure that they felt the same on both sides of my body!

The waiting room of the neurology clinic is not a happy place. There were lots of people in bad shape - some looked like they had had major strokes and lost the ability to walk, some were shaking from Parkinson's, and the guy sitting next to me (who looked about 50ish) told me that he had multiple sclerosis. He needed a walker. He was 32.

I don't know why some people get a raw deal and others dodge the bullets. Yesterday (and forever) I am thankful that I was one of the dodgers.

Today, I am thankful for all of my wonderful friends. If you are reading this, I'm probably talking about you.

I am thankful for my friends who live all over the country and who I can email prayer requests or funny stories or little annoyances to. I'm grateful that technology allows us to connect and be involved with the daily details of each other's lives.

I am also thankful for my Nashville friends. I love the people who are becoming an integral part of our lives. I'm grateful that they are investing in us and helping us make Nashville feel like our home.

Thankful For Sundays and Fortune Cookies

2011-11-20T21:25:00.001-06:00

Tonight, I am thankful for Sundays.

Rob has a weird work schedule. Sundays are the only day that we can spend the whole day together as a family.

Much of today was spent cleaning and cooking to get ready to have friends over for dinner tomorrow night. But we did manage to squeeze in a fun family lunch at a local Chinese place.

The food was pretty good, and the fortune cookies were three for three.

Here's Rob's:

Pretty good, considering we're having dinner with friends tomorrow night.

Here's Harper's:

Again, right on!

And here's mine:

This one is probably true for all wives and mothers. Rob got a good chuckle out of it and said something about the universe trying to tell me something. I don't know what he was talking about, which is kind of annoying...

Although our Sundays can be kind of intense because we try to pack a lot in, I am thankful that we get to spend this day together.

Triple Thankful

2011-11-19T18:57:00.002-06:00

So I'm kind of failing at posting every single day. I have a new found respect for bloggers who crank out consistent content. But like I said earlier, while I may have trouble finding time (and energy) to conjure up a post, I have yet to have trouble finding things to be thankful for.

So here are my three things to cover Thursday-Saturday. They are a little on the frivolous side, but I think that's ok. I'm trying to be mindful of the little things in life that I'm grateful for.

1. I'm thankful for regular butt-kickings. Several times a week, I hit the gym for body combat (think kickboxing but better) and spinning classes.

I hardly ever want to go to these classes. I can usually think of about five excuses to skip them. But without fail, I am always glad I went.

These classes are challenging. Multiple times during the class I think my legs and/or arms are going to fall off. But, it's a good feeling.

I sleep better at night. I'm in a better mood which makes me a more patient mom and wife. I feel better about myself. I find out that I'm stronger than I think I am. And for that, I am thankful.

2. I am thankful for DayQuil.

I have been fighting a cold for about two weeks now. At some points I thought I was winning. But the last two or three days have made me think the cold is getting the upper hand.

Enter DayQuil. I love this stuff. It's my go-to cold remedy. It tastes good but just mediciney enough to make me think that it's capable of knocking out my symptoms. It makes me functional and for that I am thankful.

3. I am thankful for Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness.

This is my other line of defense against colds. There are so many vitamins and minerals stuffed into this drink that it really is a super food. And it tastes good too!

Harper and I both drink this in the morning and I credit it for keeping our sniffles from becoming full-blown colds. We are both around a lot of germy people (preschool, college kids, hospital, etc), so any immune edge we can get is much appreciated. And for that, I am thankful.

Thankful For My Students

2011-11-16T21:28:00.001-06:00

Today, I am thankful for my students.

I have a great bunch of students in my general biology class this semester. It's kind of a weird mix - half are non-science majors who put off their required science class until their senior year and the other half are freshman nursing majors who have to take my class as a prerequisite to their nursing classes.

Some professors might not like having these two very different groups combined in one class, but I really like it.

Every single one of them brings something unique to the table. They are all insightful and inquisitive. I find myself learning from them as they are (hopefully) learning from me.

Tonight, I got an email from one of my students. He sent me a link to this cool video of a white blood cell chasing down some bacteria.

He said he was trying to find out more about something we talked about in class and just happened to run across this.

He's an English major.

I am so using this in one of my future lectures!

This class is a great change of pace from the research part of my job. It involves a lot of instant gratification, something that's almost non-existent in research.

My students really recharge my scientific batteries and for that I am thankful.

Thankful For Old Friends And Round Two

2011-11-15T10:34:00.001-06:00

Again playing catch-up...

Last night, I got the chance to talk to not one, but two, of my childhood friends on the phone.

I am so thankful for long-lasting friendships. There is just something about the consistency that comes along with childhood friendships that is very comforting.

Even though we live in different cities and don't talk nearly as often as we would like, there is always a common connection that we can tap into. It feels good when someone knows where you're coming from because they essentially came from the same place.

This second one stems from one of the conversations from last night.

I am thankful for round two.

Just when holidays start to become lackluster, you have a kid and everything is new and exciting again.

Now that Harper is three, she is in full holiday mode - every holiday - even arbor day. Which is awesome!

Her excitement is contagious and it makes everything fun again.

For example, she is totally obsessed with the leaves and turkeys right now. It's pretty much all she talks about. She's also very in to making holiday-related crafts (which I blame her school for- not that it's a bad thing, but it does put extra pressure on me to try to match the craftiness bar that has been set by the professionals).

So on Sunday, the three of us took a walk, collected leaves, and later that night (after I had time to think of a craft to do - as stated above, this is not my usual area of expertise) Harper used them to make a turkey.

Note the eyelashes. She wanted to make sure everyone knew this was a girl turkey. I tried to explain to her that girl turkeys don't have red wattles, but she would have none of it.

In any case, I am thankful that as a family, we get to do silly things like this to celebrate the holidays.

Thankful For Goodness

2011-11-13T20:46:00.001-06:00

We sang this song in church today.

I love that first line.

You are good, you are good

when there's nothing good in me.

So often I feel like I have very little to show to God in the way of progress. I make the same mistakes over and over again. I take one step forward and two steps back. I forget truths. I forget lessons that should have already been learned.

But even still, God is good.

Today, I am thankful that there is a God and that it's not me.

Thankful For New Babies (No, I'm Not Pregnant)

2011-11-12T21:33:00.000-06:00

Today I went to a lovely baby shower for a lovely friend. I have no less than 7 friends who are currently expecting. It's all very exciting!

So today, I am thankful for new little babies.

Babies are great for many reason, but they are particularly awesome for their ability to transform their unsuspecting parents into decent human beings.

Not that you have to have kids to be a good person - I know lots of people without kids that are awesome humans. But they usually have something in their lives that play a similar role as kids do - spouses, pets, dedication to their church or community, etc.

Babies take us out of our comfort zones. They expose our weaknesses. They take no prisoners.

I speak from experience when I say that babies pull you out of self-absorbedness. They force you to be patient. They force you to be flexible. They force you to monitor what you say out loud. They force you to watch ridiculously annoying cartoons.

While there are definitely days that I can sympathize with those organisms who eat their young, at the end of those days, I'm still thankful for my kid because I know that she is helping me to become a better human being.

Whether I like it or not.

Thankful for a Cushy Life and for Those Who Facilitate It

2011-11-11T16:21:00.000-06:00

Wow...this blogging every day thing is challenging. Coming up with things to be thankful for is easy, but finding the time to write a coherent post about them is not. Sigh...

Yesterday, I was meaning to write a post about being thankful for how easy my life is.

Despite all of the daily stresses and obligations I have to deal with, my life is super cushy. I have everything I need to be happy and comfortable right at arms length. And if I don't, I can hop in my car and drive less than a mile to Target and get what ever I need as well as things I didn't even know I needed to make my life even more cushy.

This is not the case for everyone.

All too often, I am way too concerned with how I can obtain more creature comforts instead of how I can help other people get basic things like clothes, diapers, food, heat, clean water - things that I take for granted every day.

I am thankful for what I have and I am going to be more intentional about helping others get what they need to be comfortable.

On a similar note, today, Veterans Day, I am very thankful for the people who make it possible for me to have the cushy life that I do.

I am thankful for people who serve or who served in dangerous situations in order to preserve my way of life.

Rob and I have gotten hooked on a new tv show called Bomb Patrol. It's a documentary-style series that profiles Explosive Ordnance Disposal Units serving in Afghanistan.

These units go out into the field, locate, and disarm improvised explosive devices (roadside bombs) and any other booby traps set by the enemy. IEDs alone are responsible for the vast majority of coalition casualties in Afghanistan.

It is not for the faint of heart.

Members of these units put their lives on the line to keep other soldiers and civilians safe.

I am thankful for their service and the service of all veterans.

`

Thankful For Provision

2011-11-09T21:00:00.000-06:00

Tonight I am thankful for divine provision.

As my medical bills have started to trickle in, I am very thankful that I have good insurance. Strokes are expensive. Think really nice brand new car expensive. Luckily, my insurance has taken care of 90% of it.

This still leaves us will a chunk of change to come up with - a chunk that we weren't necessarily planning on.

At the end of the summer, I was presented with the opportunity to teach a biology class at Belmont University. I was really excited about it because Belmont is a great school and I thought it would be a rewarding and fun teaching experience.

I was also excited about it because I was going to get paid. Not a lot, but enough that I was already planning the cruise that Rob, Harper, and I were going to take in the Spring.

At the time, I had no idea that a month after I started teaching, I would be racking up thousands of dollars worth of MRIs and echocardiograms.

The amount that we owe is almost exactly the amount that I am making moonlighting.

Almost to the penny.

Talk about provision.

It's almost like God had it all planned out...

We may have to take a raincheck on the cruise, but we have what we need.

And for that I am thankful.

`

Thankful Two For Tuesday

2011-11-08T13:03:00.000-06:00

Because I missed yesterday, here's a two-fer.

I am thankful for NPR.

I love NPR. I especially love listening to NPR podcasts at work. Some days, I literally spend hours with my face pressed up against a microscope. Listening to This American Life or Fresh Air makes that time infinitely more enjoyable and I feel like I'm enriching my brain (all while getting my work done which kind of makes me feel like I'm getting away with something...)

I also listen to Car Talk on occasion which comes in handy when you have a mechanically inclined husband like mine. The other day I told Rob that the wear indicators on my breaks were making noise. He was totally impressed that I even knew what wear indicators were.

I actually don't.

I just know that when someone calls into Car Talk and tells them that their breaks are squeeling, the guys usually say something about wear indicators.

So, thank you to NPR for making me smarter. Or at least making me sound smarter.

I am also thankful for scientific innovation.

My dad forwarded this video to me. It's from a story National Geographic did about a new way to deliver stem cells to burn victims. Doctors retrieve a patient's own stem cells and then spray paint them onto the burned area. The results are jaw-droppingly dramatic. Watch the video. You will be amazed. There are so many ways this technology could be used but something that comes to mind right away is what a blessing this will be for soldiers who are burned in combat.

I am thankful that there are smart people out there working hard to find new ways to heal people.

Thankful For Choices

2011-11-06T21:05:00.000-06:00

Today, I am thankful for choices.

Today was kind of a blah day for me. From the time I woke up, I realized that I was teetering on the edge of a bad mood. There was really no reason for me to be in a bad mood. It was a beautiful day and I didn't have anything particularly pressing to accomplish. But nonetheless, I felt like I was in a funk.

As soon as I realized this, I had a choice to make. I could choose to indulge my bad mood or I could choose to turn things around. I could choose to be grumpy (for no reason) or I could choose to be joyful.

I'd like to be able to tell you that right then and there, I chose joy and turned myself around.

But, the truth is that I had to keep reminding myself all day that I had no reason to be in a bad mood. I had to keep choosing to be positive. Every time I felt myself slipping into grumpiness, I had to choose to snap out of it.

In the past, I probably would have failed at days like today. I would have given into the bad mood. I would have been miserable and infected those around me with negativity.

But today, I made progress.

So tonight, as I reflect back on the day, I am thankful that at any given moment, I have the chance to choose what kind of person I am going to be. I have the chance to choose what the script of my internal dialogue is saying. I have a chance to choose how I perceive myself and the world around me. I have the chance to chose to be joyful. I have the chance to chose to be thankful.

`

Thankful For Fall Colors

2011-11-05T13:15:00.000-05:00

Today I am thankful for the beautiful fall we are having. Many times over the last few weeks, I've been blown away by how pretty the tress are this year. This picture was taken on Vanderbilt's campus. It's a beautiful place to work on any given day, but it's particularly nice this time of year.

The combination of bright sunny days and cool nights has really done the trick this year. If you want to learn more about why and how leaves change colors, click here.

`

24 Days of Thankfulness

2011-11-04T11:59:00.001-05:00

I'm back!

Did you miss me?

Holy moly have I been busy these last couple weeks!

Extra Work Stuff + Halloween + Normal Stuff = No Time To Blog

But now I'm back and I have a wonderful way (that I totally ripped off from lots of other bloggers) to get my blogging back on track.

Every day from now until Thanksgiving, I am going to mention one thing that I am thankful for. There is a lot of evidence to suggest that people who cultivate a grateful mindset are happier and healthier. Although I try to be mindful of this, I have found that I tend to be sporadically grateful rather that continuously grateful. I'll feel a wave of gratitude for a beautiful day or a good result at work, but at times I forget that every day brings things to be thankful for. This is going to be a good exercise for me to really appreciate the gifts of everyday life.

So to start things off, here are my first four things (I intended to start this on November 1st, but that just didn't happen. So, I'm playing catch-up already!).

1. I am thankful for my stroke.

I know that sounds funny, but it's true. I would never want to have another one, but I'm really glad that it happened to me. I know that I can only say that because don't have any residual effects. I am incredibly thankful for the healing that I experienced as well as the attitude adjustment that followed.

2. I am thankful for my kid.

I know that's kind of an easy and obvious thing to be thankful for, but it's true. The other day, we were having a conversation about what happens to food after you eat it. I told her that after you swallow it, it goes down into your tummy where it is broken up into really small pieces. Then it moves into your intestines where all of the nutrients are absorbed so that your body can have energy. Then once all of the good things are absorbed, the leftover stuff is waste and it leaves your body when you go potty. Later that night, we were watching tv and she said, "Mom, I am going to wast some energy." She then got up and went to the bathroom. When she cam back I said, "Harper, did you use the potty". She said "Yes. I wasted my energy!" Not exactly, but it's a start.

3. I am thankful for awesome friends who take beautiful pictures of my kid.

This is my friend Erin. She is a great photographer. She's also a great singer, a great cook, and a great mom to THREE boys with another little boy on the way! A couple weeks ago, she took some pictures of Harper. Last night she posted them on her blog. You can check them out here. She totally captured Harper's personality. I already have visions of our Christmas card dancing in my head! If you live in the greater Cincinnati area, make an appointment with her. You will not be disappointed.

4. I am thankful for Pumpkin Pie-flavored coffee creamer.

Take that Starbucks! I no longer need your overpriced (but oh so good) Pumpkin Spice Latte. I can make my own at home!

Ok, I'm all caught up now. I hope you will play along with me for the next few weeks. I will be posting these blogs on facebook so leave comments here or on there to tell me what you are thankful for. I think it will be great to encourage each other in this and I'm looking forward to hearing about all of the blessings in your life!

`

Party Tricks

2011-10-10T09:13:00.000-05:00

Harper and I have a 45 minute commute to school/work in the morning. While some people might hate a long commute, I actually rather enjoy this time. Sometimes we listen to music or kid books on tape. Other times, we talk about the things that we see as we drive.

Lately, I've been trying to make our morning car time more purposeful by using it to teach her something specific. At the beginning of the week, I set a goal for what I want her to learn. For instance, one week I taught her the order of colors in the rainbow. Another week, I taught her how to spell her first and last name.

While my goal is to have her master these things in the span of a week, it really only takes her a day or two.

I've found that the trick to getting her to remember things is to put it in the form of a song. This kid will instantly absorb any bit of information if it's set to music. I just make up a song that contains the "lesson" for the week, sing it to her a couple times, and by the time we get to school she pretty much knows it.

Last week, I taught her how to name all of the planets in order of their proximity to the sun. Below are the lyrics to the little song that I made up.

Try it with your kids. It makes for a fun party trick.

And that whole learning thing is probably good too.

To the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star:

Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Pluto used to be a planet
But the scientists said it was too small
Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Knock It Off Already.

2011-10-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

2008

2009

2010

2011

I have repeatedly asked her to stop growing up.

I think she's doing it to spite me.

`

The Sanctity of Pumpkins

2011-10-04T10:32:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago, we went to Walden Farm to pick out our pumpkins. I look forward to our pumpkin pickin' outing every year. I don't know about you, but for us Fall doesn't officially begin until we have pumpkins on our front porch.

Did you ever wonder why pumpkins are associated with Halloween? Well, I did so I looked it up.

The tradition of carving vegetables seems to have originated in the British Isles. Particularly in Ireland, turnips, potatoes, and beets were carved and illuminated with pieces of burning coal and set on porches or in windows to represent the souls of departed loved ones in celebration of All Saints Day and All Souls Day (celebrated on November 1st and 2nd respectively to remember departed loved ones in heaven and those who may be in Purgatory) .

In the mid-1800s, over a million Irish citizens immigrated to North America to escape the Potato Famine. They brought with them their rich traditions including the carving of vegetables. Turnips, potatoes, and beets were not as readily available in their new homeland, but pumpkins were in abundance. Hence, pumpkins were carved and illuminated instead.

I'm not big on carving pumpkins. I put so much effort into picking just the right ones that I can't bear the thought of cutting them up.

However, Rob and Harper are not of the same opinion when it comes to the sanctity of pumpkins and I may get out voted this year...

Oh well. I do enjoy roasted pumpkin seeds, so all is not lost.

`

Trying Not To Let It Wear Off

2011-09-30T11:59:00.001-05:00

Well, tomorrow marks exactly one month since I had my stroke.

I just want to say a sincere thank you to everyone who reached out to me with words of encouragement.

Individually and on this blog, I have tried to share bits and pieces of the realizations that I've had while I process what happened to me and the implications it has on my life. I've been kind of hesitant to talk about some these things because I really don't want to be perceived as one of those touchy-feely types that talks about their feelings all day. I also don't want to be perceived as a preachy know-it-all who's got it all figured out.

I assure you, neither is true.

Over the last month, many of you have shared inspirational testimonies of your own with me. So many of us have had profound moments in our lives that have given us life-altering attitude adjustments.

But, so many of us have also forgotten or minimized these profound moments and their affect on our lives has been muted.

I don't know about you, but now that I've gotten a glimpse of what mortality means, I don't ever want to go back to the old way of doing things.

Everyday I wake up and I don't have a stroke, it's a good day. No matter what else happens in the course of that day, I keep reminding myself that I'm having a good day. I now have this deep and constant sense of gratitude that serves as the underpinning of everything else that's going on around me. It's a wonderful feeling and I can literally feel it transforming every aspect of my life from how I approach my marriage, parenting, work, free time... Everything is changing. And it's a good thing.

But like all good things tend to do, I'm afraid it will wear off. I don't ever want this good thing to wear off and the only way I can think to prevent that is to constantly remind myself that life is fleeting and there is no time to waste on things that don't matter.

In this video, Ric Elias talks about his life-altering attitude adjusting moment. He was a passenger on the plane that crash landed in the Hudson River. Take the 5 minutes to watch this. He is right on about how you can't afford to put things off and why you should try to eliminate negative energy. This guys gets it.

As I continue to find meaning in my experience, I will try to share it with you. And I hope that as you find meaning in your own lives, you will share it with me. Let's keep reminding and inspiring each other.

Delicate Doesn't Even Begin To Cover It

2011-09-27T10:47:00.000-05:00

This is a mouse heart. It's pretty massive as you can tell (heavy on the sarcasm).

Some of my research deals with the blood vessels that supply the heart with blood, the coronary vessels. Mouse coronaries are huge (even heavier on the sarcasm).

I'm trying to understand how these vessels (along with a couple other types of vessels) form and how they repair themselves if they get damaged. I spent the better part of yesterday with my head in a microscope dissecting out these babies from the surrounding heart tissue. It's a delicate operation, but it's also kind of relaxing.

Growing up, I always thought that I would enjoy being a paleontologist who carefully digs up dinosaur bones with a paint brush or being an art historian who painstakingly restores frescoes on the ceilings of cathedrals.

I think I've found the scientific equivalent.

.

Morning Email

2011-09-20T12:55:00.003-05:00

My mom emails me every morning. Typically, there's nothing important in the messages. She just wants to say good morning and let me know she's thinking about me.

I look forward to it every day.

This email from last week made me smile. It's soooo my mom.

Here is my inner commentary as I was reading it.

Mom: Dad was notified by American Express that someone was using his card. American Express cancelled his old card and sent him a new one.

Me: Boo on people who steal. Glad AmEx is getting it straightened out.

Mom: I do worry about you and Rob using debit cards.

Me: I know. You've told me that before. We like to use debit cards instead of credit cards because it forces us to be more aware of what we're spending.

Mom: I WORRY THAT SOMEONE WILL CLEAN OUT YOUR BANK ACCOUNT.

Me: Wow. My mom is passionate about credit card fraud. How does she even know that all caps equals yelling?

Mom: (AND THAT'S ALL THAT I WILL SAY ABOUT THAT.)

Me. Why is she still yelling at me? And how do parentheses affect the yelling? Do they indicate yelling on the inside? Is this yelling turned inward?

Mom: SORRY, I HIT THE CAPS BUTTON BY MISTAKE.

Me: Ah yes. Everything is now clear. This is the mother I know and love.

And as a side note, I did discuss with her the implications of bringing home baby squirrels. Crisis averted.

And, yes. My mom does sign every email WOW. It's MOM upside down. I love her.

Out Of The Mouth Of Babes

2011-09-15T10:22:00.000-05:00

This kid cracks me up. Sometimes I just can't believe the things that come out of her mouth. For instance...

She's in this phase where she like to narrate everything that's going on around her. If you've ever watched a dvd with the bonus director's commentary feature on, you know what I'm talking about. During a trip to Target, she single-handedly offended just about every person we came into contact with. First there was the overweight lady that she pointed to and said, "That lady has a baby in her belly." Next, there was the teenage boy (bless his heart) with acne that she pointed to and said, "That boy has spots on his face!". And finally, there was the old man that she pointed to and yelled (literally yelled), "Hey old man, why don't you go to Florida!".

I have no idea where she got that last one from. Maybe she noticed that there were a lot of old people around on our recent trip to Florida? But, we certainly didn't point them out to her.

Just to give you another little glimpse into her mind... we were eating Dunkin' Donut munchkins the other day and she picked out a jelly-filled one. She took one bite and inspected the middle of it. Then she turned to me and said, "Mom, this donut has blood in the middle...and I like it."

Seriously? Please tell me that this is not the first symptom of an impending Twighlight obsession.

I took this video earlier this week. I wanted to show my mom and dad that Harper can spell her first and last name. She is in fact 3 by the way. Not 5 like she would have you believe. (She's on a 5 kick because she really wants to go to kindergarten and I told her that she can only go when she turns 5. So she's trying to will herself into growing up and in addition convince us to go along with it. Oh, when she learns how to channel that willpower into concrete things...look out! She is going to be a force to be reckoned with.)

I Promise This Blog Is Not Going To Turn Into A Stroke Blog

2011-09-09T15:50:00.002-05:00

I really do prefer to write about my kid or weird things my husband does (love you, Rob!). So, I promise that this blog will return to its regularly scheduled programming soon.

But, I just had to share this with you. One of my friends tipped me off about this amazing video. Jill Bolte Taylor, a neuroscientist, had a massive stroke. Her description of what it feels like to have a stroke is fascinating. But what is even more remarkable is the perspective that she gained in the aftermath.

My situation was nowhere near this traumatic. But, I can definitely relate to the paradigm shifting attitude adjustment that comes along with something like this. In the last couple days, I can't count the number of times that I have said "I'm really ready to get back to life as usual." But honestly, I don't want to return to life a usual. I got a glimpse of how fragile life can be and I realize that there's no time for life as usual.

At the end of the video, Dr. Taylor talks about how in every moment you can choose the person that you want to be. This statement really resonated with me. I am going to start making some different choices. How about you? Let my wake up call be your wake up call.

The Best Worst Day Ever

2011-09-04T23:58:00.001-05:00

On Thursday morning, I had a stroke.

As I was taking a shower, my right arm and the right side of my face became numb.

Then, I couldn't remember my husband's name.

Then, I couldn't remember my daughter's name.

Then, I couldn't remember my name.

Something was very wrong.

I got out of the shower and woke my husband up. When I tried to tell him that my body was numb and I was having trouble remembering things, I couldn't talk. I tried to say the words, but only jumbled sounds came out.

I grabbed a pen and scribbled this.

On a good day, my spelling isn't great, but this was worse than usual.

Still no words. I started to cry.

Rob jumped up and called 911.

An ambulance took me to the ER at Vanderbilt Medical Center. It was the right place to go.

Shortly after I got to the hospital, the numbness was gone and I could talk again.

When you come into the ER with symptoms like mine, there's no messing around. Right away, I saw teams of neurologists and cardiologists who ordered a multitude of tests.

I'm a good test taker. I passed all of them except for two.

I had an MRI of my brain. They took lots of cool pictures like this one. You wish you had a picture of your brain, don't you? It's ok to be jealous.

The MRI showed that a blood clot cut off the blood supply to part of the left side of my brain. The white spot indicates where the damage occurred.

The good news is that it's small. The other good news is that my brain was able to "re-wire" itself to bypass the dead tissue. Within about two hours after the initial incident, the numbness disappeared and I could talk. I don't have any residual effects (although I'm probably going to blame all future spelling mistakes on the dead brain tissue).

This is nothing short of a miracle.

At this point, my doctors are stumped as to what caused the blood clot in the first place. It's exceptionally rare for someone my age to have a stroke. I'm as healthy as they come. I exercise regularly. I eat all the right food (Hello? I put flax seed on my oatmeal for goodness sake!). I don't smoke. I hardly ever drink. The only thing that might have caused it is the fact that I take birth control pills. In a very small percentage of people, birth control pills can cause blood clots (but you usually have to be a smoker for that to happen). For all intents and purposes, this thing just came out of the blue.

My doctors may not know what caused the clot, but they were able to figure out how it got to my brain.

It turns out, I have a hole in my heart. Who knew? Actually, three out of ten people who are reading this have a hole too. It's pretty common and most people never know that they have one.

In my case, I have a hole that connects the right and left sides of my heart. They did a pretty cool test to prove that there is communication between the right and left chambers. Basically, they inject some bubbles into the right side of the heart and look to see if any bubbles end up in the left side.

Here is a picture of my heart before they put the bubbles in.

Then, they injected bubbles on the right side.

Then, they look to see if bubbles end up in the other side. If they do, it means the bubbles are leaking through a hole between the chambers.

So...I have a leak. This leak allowed a blood clot to travel from the veins in my legs into the right side of my heart then into the left side of my heart and then into the arteries that carry blood to my brain. Not a good situation.

I can have a procedure to seal up the leak. I'm not sure I want to do that, though. I would rather prevent future blood clots and just leave the hole alone.

So for now, this is my new best friend (and I'm ditching the birth control pills. Harper keeps asking for a sister anyways...).

I'm a down-player by nature. I like to tough things out and I certainly don't like people to worry about me. But, I'll be honest with you. This was the scariest thing that's ever happened to me.

I'm still processing all of this (and I'm still waiting to discover what my new superpower is going to be. Surely, the new wiring upstairs has allowed me to speak an obscure tribal language or reheat my coffee with my mind, right??) and I don't want to get all philosophical or anything, but I feel like I've been given the gift of perspective and I want to share it with you.

There's no time to waste. You have to be all in all the time. It's too important not to.

Fore!

2011-08-24T10:15:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite memories of being pregnant was the day we found out we were having a girl. I distinctly remember Rob's reaction. He was kind of hoping for a boy, so it took him a minute to process this new nugget of information.

Deep in thought, he started going through the following check list out loud: She can still play golf. She can still play tennis. She can still be a swimmer. She can still be a cyclist... He was audibly switching gears from blue to pink and reassuring himself that even though football was probably not going to be an option, she could still do many of the activities that he enjoys doing.

The ultrasound technician and I just looked at each other and smiled.

Well, I am happy to report that we are one step closer to achieving Rob's checklist. Behold what was waiting on our porch when we got home last night.

Rob has been teaching her how to putt in the living room using one of his putters. It was obviously too big for her, but she was actually pretty accurate with it. Now that she has some clubs that are a little more appropriate, watch out. We may have the next Michelle Wie on our hands!

PT Cruisers Behaving Badly

2011-08-19T10:16:00.002-05:00

Some of you may be familiar with my theory on PT Cruisers. In a nutshell, people who drive PT Cruisers are the worst drivers on the road. If there is some sort of unnecessary congestion on the highway, chances are a PT Cruiser is involved. If someone is driving down the middle of the turning lane, more often than not they are driving a Cruiser.

I'm a scientist, so it's only natural that I would want to collect data to document my run-ins with Cruisers. Case in point...I took this picture in my parking garage not too long ago. I actually watched this person park. It was a sight to behold.

Last night, I caught this PTC behaving badly. Notice that the light is green, yet traffic is still stopped because the Cruiser is blocking the lane. By the way, I'm fairly certain that this is a different car than the one above. The color is just coincidental.

You don't have to take my word on this subject. The next time you find yourself in the midst of a PTC, keep your eyes on it. I bet they do something ridiculous. And when they do, snap a picture and send it to me. I'll add it to the collection.

Disclaimer: I realize that I am making a rather generalized claim. Furthermore, I'm not aware that any of my family, friends, or acquaintances actually drive a PT Cruiser. So if you are reading this and you do indeed drive a PT Cruiser, I'm not talking about you. Fair enough?

Fair Rides and Fair Fries

2011-08-17T09:49:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, I took Harper to the Williamson County fair. All in all, it was a pretty dinky fair - nowhere near the caliber of the Canfield Fair. Those of you who still live close enough to go to the Canfield Fair, you do not know how lucky you are. This fair didn't even have any good fair fries! Can you imagine?

Although I was a little disappointed, Harper had a great time riding the rides.

Until that day, she had never been on a carnival ride so we started out slowly with the caterpillar and bear.

Then we hit up the bee and elephant.

Look at the humoring fake smiles she was able to muster.

It was at this point when she politely asked me to put the camera away...

which I agreed to until she decided to brave the roller coaster. She'd been eying it all day and after a quick ice cream break she was ready to tackle it.

The first hill

White knuckling it

Looking slightly more under control

Maybe a hint of a smile

Although it may not have looked like it, she enjoyed every minute of that ride. So much so, that she didn't want to get off when it was over. The lady running it had to unbuckle her seat belt and lift her out.

Overall, this trip to the fair was pretty fun. I enjoyed watching Harper be adventurous (did you notice that she instinctively sat closest to the front on the roller coaster? All of the other kids wanted to sit in the middle or the back. Amateurs.). It also became clear to me that we will need to go on a family pilgrimage back to Ohio so that we can go to the Canfield Fair. I don't think it's going to happen this year. But next year, look out. I'm coming for you, fair fries!

Heartwarming Technology

2011-08-14T08:18:00.001-05:00

This is my friend, Andrea. She's a fantastic photographer among other things.

Andrea recently shot a wedding that is gaining international attention. The bride's mother was terminally ill and could not attend the wedding. Thankfully, technology intervened and her mother was able to watch the ceremony and reception via Skype.

My abridged version certainly does not do this sweet story justice. Click here and here to read more. And stop by Andrea's photography blog. It's beautiful just like she is.

Rainbow

2011-08-12T15:16:00.003-05:00

I took some pictures at work today. Here's my favorite of the bunch. Sorry for the poor resolution. The images were taken on a high resolution microscope camera, but they got compressed when I uploaded them.

I love that even though this is a static image, you can almost see the cells stretching to crawl out of the pile.

Then I decided to play with the color.

I like my job.

Cheeseburger in Paradise

2011-08-10T15:23:00.000-05:00

I took this on the way to the airport as we were getting ready to leave Florida. Harper was so worn out from the week, she fell asleep mid-burger. I think she actually took another bite when she finally woke up.

Back

2011-08-09T15:54:00.002-05:00

Well, our vacation is officially over. Today was our first day back to work and baby school. If Harper could read, she would object to the term baby school because she is not a baby anymore. She would then remark that she would like me to refer to her school as big kid school because she is in fact a big kid now. But alas, I digress...which is a major symptom of vacation withdraw.

In an effort to ease back into real life, I will be posting some of my favorite pictures from last week. I will then visit this page periodically though out the day and wish we were all still at the beach. You can play along if you would like.

Harper and her crazy sunglasses

Taking a break from swimming in the pool

Cinnamon Beach - don't you just love that name?

Harper holding a crab

Outside of our favorite breakfast spot

Having lunch after a morning at the beach

Dad Job

2011-08-05T19:30:00.000-05:00

Some things are dad jobs. Throwing the kid into the air? Dad job.

Teaching her how to jump off of the fountain without her floaty?

Definitely a dad job.

Sand Fleas

2011-08-03T16:29:00.001-05:00

Today, I'm thankful for the beach. We spent the better part of the morning at Flagler Beach and I'm not going to lie. It was awesome.

Harper kept busy building sand castles and jumping waves with Rob. The kid has no fear.

This might be the sun talking, but as I was sitting with my feet in the sand I was thinking about how awesome it is to have a beach. Think about it. Earth is the only planet in the universe that is known to have beaches. And for that, I am thankful. E.T. is totally missing out.

Gone Fishin'

2011-08-02T17:57:00.001-05:00

We've been in Florida a whole two days and Harper is definitely in vacation mode. First thing this morning, she was trying out her new fishing pole in the pool.

She didn't even change out of her pajamas.

She's actually pretty good at casting (Check out the one at the very beginning of the video. The second one is questionable.). We wanted to make sure she could do it before we removed the plastic fish and attached a real hook. You know... because we're not really in the market for any extra piercings.

Bubbles

2011-07-31T07:09:00.000-05:00

Someone may or may not have gotten a little carried away with the bubble bath last night...

Shaving Years Off Of My Life

2011-07-27T09:38:00.000-05:00

Harper busted her mouth on a bookshelf last night.

She's a tough kid. She cried for literally 60 seconds and then started singing a song. I, on the other hand, was scared half to death. There was so much blood, I thought she knocked her teeth out.

This kid is single handedly shaving years off of my life. She clearly does not realize how much my sanity hinges on her well being. If she did, she would not put a blanket over her head and run around the living room for fun. Yep, that's how she got hurt. She ran head first into the bookshelf. Three year olds are not the sharpest knives in the drawer.

Leaving, On A Jet Plane

2011-07-26T15:10:00.000-05:00

My friend, Katie, is moving to China on Thursday. You heard me right. China. She is going to be teaching high school history at the prestigious Shanghai American School for at least two years. Her husband, Tie, and their dog, Scout, are moving too. What a wonderful adventure they are about to embark on. But honestly, I'm totally going to miss them and a nano-particle of me wishes they weren't going. Harper's going to miss Katie too. They've been buds for a while now.

Stupid pictures. Uploading them made me sad...

Anyways, if you want to keep up with all of Katie and Tie's adventures, check out their blog. And if you are of the praying persuasion, pleas keep them in your prayers. Especially Scout the dog. It is China after all.

Of Dogs and Snakes

2011-07-21T09:44:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week, Rob informed me that our neighbor's dog was bitten by a cottonmouth water moccasin snake and died. The dog was bitten in his back yard. Next to our back yard. Which means the snake was practically IN OUR BACK YARD!

Oh yeah and by the way, Rob has been finding snake skins in our yard.

And (unbeknownst to me) he has seen alive snakes in our yard too!

Not cool.

Now I'm not going to lie. I didn't really like the dog next door. It barked All. The. Time. Come to think of it, it has been quieter than normal lately...Sorry. That was mean. I guess if i had to pick between the dog and a snake, I'd pick the dog. But just barely.

Anyway, back to the snake... Needless to say, I'm not venturing out into our yard until winter.

Flashback

2011-07-20T15:54:00.000-05:00

This is an old picture, but it's one of my all time favorites. She's got his eyes.

Suburban S'mores

2011-07-17T21:18:00.000-05:00

School Friends

2011-07-16T19:50:00.000-05:00

The only thing better than swimming is unexpectedly seeing a friend from school at the pool!

Jesus Needs New PR

2011-07-14T10:20:00.000-05:00

I'm hesitant to write this post. When somebody else writes this kind of post, my hypocrite radar goes off when I read it. So let me be clear. This is something I struggle with too. It may manifest itself in more subtle ways, but it's in me too. This post is first and foremost a reminder to me.

As I was driving home yesterday, I noticed that the car in front of me had a cross pendant hanging from the rear view mirror. Suddenly, another car in the adjacent lane merged over in front of the cross car. In my opinion, it wasn't a super dangerous maneuver, but I could see where the lady in the cross car could have felt that she was cut off.

In response to being cut off, the lady in the cross car honked her horn profusely and flipped off the driver of the merging car. She then proceeded to change lanes so she could get right up next to the merging car, roll her window down, yell at the other driver and flip him off again. Nice.

I would roll my eyes at this behavior under any circumstance, but the fact that the lady is openly professing to be a Christian and still chooses to conduct herself in this manner really bothers me. Now I admit that I am making several assumptions here. First, this may not be her car and even if it is, she may not have been the one to hang the cross on the mirror. But, for the sake of conversation, let's just assume that it's her car and she hung the cross.

I realize that this is a relatively insignificant example, but it's no wonder why people have trouble rationalizing Christians with Christ. We preach love and grace and mercy, but are we living it out?

Am I living it out? Can strangers tell that I love Jesus? Can my co-workers? Can my family?

St. Francis of Assisi is credited with saying something along the lines of "Preach the Gospel always. Use words only as a last resort." Easier said than done, but I for one am going to try harder in this area.

Seriously?

2011-07-13T09:25:00.000-05:00

When I tuck my daughter into bed at night, she has one blanket, a pillow, a baby doll, and a glow stick or two in bed with her.

When I go into her room in the morning to get her up, this is what I find in her bed. Ridiculous.

The First Cut Is The Deepest

2011-07-11T11:08:00.000-05:00

I finally caved. Harper has been asking to get her hair cut for a while now. Until Friday, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

I'll admit, it was starting to get a little uneven in the back. But look at those ringlets! I definitely did not want to lose those.

I took her to the place that I get my hair cut. I couldn't bear to take her to an ordinary Great Clips (which I do realize sounds ridiculous). I really like Alana and I knew she would do a great job.

This is the before shot sitting in the big girl chair. Not surprisingly, this salon was not really equipped to cut kids hair, but Alana made it work.

The first cut

Harper sat completely still the whole time.

Sometimes beauty is rough.

Putting on the finishing touches

All done!

And yes, Alana does look exactly like Lauren Alaina from American Idol...

What was the verdict? Well, the ringlets may be gone. I took this picture yesterday.

But, she's still pretty cute in my opinion.

The Inherent Consequences of Blueberry Donuts

2011-07-08T12:40:00.002-05:00

I pretty much ate my way through my hometown last week. It was glorious! For whatever reason (namely a large and vibrant Italian community -seriously the greater Y-town area has literally 189 Italian festivals per year), Youngstown has some of the best food in the world. I feasted on pasta and Italian greens and wings and hot chips and Handles ice cream... But my favorite indulgence is always blueberry donuts from White House Fruit Farms.

These things are a gift from God himself. I literally ate half a dozen over the course of a couple days. Consequently, despite the fact that I made myself go on two pretty decent runs while I was away, my pants were a little snug by the end of the trip (totally worth it, by the way).

What are some of your favorite hometown foods?

Friends 2.0

2011-07-07T10:36:00.000-05:00

This is my friend Katie. We grew up together, were college room mates (that's a picture of us at Miami circa 2000), were in each other's weddings, etc. Katie lives in Baltimore now and I haven't seen her since before Harper was born. That's just not right.

I got to see Katie when I went back to Boardman last week. We were both in town visiting family. And what was even better than seeing Katie, was meeting her daughter, Anna! Harper and Anna were fast friends.

Katie and I also got to see our friend, Mandy. Her little girl, Lydia, is about a month older than Harper. They were two peas in a pod! Lydia graciously let Harper and Anna play on her awesome swing set.

Anna was not too sure about all of the picture taking. But as you can see, Lydia and Harper have done this sort of thing before.

Can I just tell you how surreal it was to watch our girls play with each other while we sat in the shade laughing about middle school and high school memories? (Thanks to the dads, Ralph and Seth, for playing with the girls while us moms sat in the shade!)

The moral of this story is that reconnecting with old friends is wonderful. I have a feeling that I'm going to be doing more of this kind of thing soon.

90 and 3

2011-07-04T20:41:00.001-05:00

You would think that taking a picture of my grandma and my daughter would be a relatively easy task. Not so much.

Come on, guys!

Seriously, I'm as tired of this as you are.

I guess this is as good as it's going to get.

Actually, I kind of like this one.

1-2-3

2011-07-03T10:22:00.000-05:00

Ohio

2011-07-01T21:11:00.000-05:00

Harper and I are spending a few days at my parents' house in Northeastern Ohio. I grew up here and I always love coming back. Every time I visit this place, I feel like my mind is going a million miles an hour trying to incorporate the old with the new. It's all good stuff, but it definitely takes me a couple days to wrap my brain around everything.

I took this picture this morning. I grew up in that house. Now, my daughter sleeps in my old room and I get the guest room. A lot has changed since I left home.

Mmmm...Donut

2011-06-28T09:16:00.000-05:00

What powdered donut?

Pulling A Pippa

2011-06-26T11:08:00.001-05:00

We went to a wedding last night. Harper LOVED it. She made a big splash at the reception.

Here she is with some of our friends.

Basically, the only time she left the dance floor was to get a cupcake (and make room for the bride and groom's first dance, albeit begrudgingly). The band members had a lot of fun with her. They asked me if I would consider renting her out so that they could take her to other gigs to break the ice on the dance floor for them. I took a cellphone video of some of her moves. It's terrible quality and she really didn't want me to video her. Every time I whipped out my phone, she stopped dancing. But whatever. Here's what I got.

Monster Cloud

2011-06-24T10:02:00.000-05:00

This may have been the biggest cloud I've ever seen. The pictures definitely do not do it justice.

A little after 8pm last night, I noticed a bright light coming from our back deck. At first, I thought Harper turned the outside light on. However when I looked out the sliding glass door, I realized that the light was the setting sun reflecting off of this monster cloud. Very cool.

Grocery Store Perspective

2011-06-23T10:51:00.001-05:00

I used to hate grocery shopping. It was seriously one of my least favorite things to do. Now, I rather enjoy it.

I'm sure this change of heart has a lot to do with my shopping buddy.

Harper and I have been tackling the grocery store together from more or less day one. When she was a baby, I would strap her into her Baby Bjorn and we would tag team the shopping list (and by tag team I mean that I would get what we needed and she would fall asleep).

Now, she's a little more participatory in the shopping experience. The store that we go to has one mini shopping cart that she loves to push around and put food into. ONE. Do you know how much pressure and anxiety I feel pulling into the parking lot knowing that if I do not procure the one mini cart in existence, Harper's world will end? Luckily, it was available last night. And despite the numerous times it was rammed into the back of my legs, we had a successful and fun shopping outing.

I think it's this kind of thing that I enjoy most about being a mom. Our day to day routine. The rhythm that we've developed. She's only three and I'm already keenly aware that our rhythm has an expiration date. One day, she'll be too busy to come to the store with me. She'll have friends to hang out with or studying to do (lots and lots of studying to do). Until then, I'm going to relish these moments and enjoy our trips to the store.

Repost: My Dad Got It Right

2011-06-19T08:03:00.001-05:00

Originally posted on March 23, 2010.

Last night, my small group talked about fathers (which was good timing because yesterday was my dad's birthday). We talked about how a father's relationship with his daughter influences every aspect of her life including things like everyday decisions, career choices, relationships with other men, how she views herself, and how she ultimately views God.

I have a dad who got it right. He spoke blessings and affirmations into me. He protected me. He understood the power he had to point me in the right direction. He gave me a good example of how a husband should treat a wife which ultimately helped me pick out a good husband for myself.

We built snow forts together. And we went on canoe trips. And he taught me how to drive. And we went fishing on the Flagler pier. And we picked on my mom together. But most importantly, he told me that he loved me and that he was proud of me.

If you have a dad who got it right, tell him. If you have a husband who is getting it right with your kids, tell him. It's a big deal.

I really lucked out in this department. I have a good dad and I have a husband who's getting it right with Harper.

Biohazard Bags and Diapers

2011-06-15T09:32:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I forget that my workplace is not what you would call normal. These drawers are accurately labeled. I use both daily.

Although, the diapers are not conventional baby diapers. They are disposable bed pads. I don't know why we call them diapers. We use them when we think we are going to make a mess and/or don't want to get mouse guts on our benches.

The P Word

2011-06-14T10:51:00.000-05:00

Harper has a new favorite word. Poop.

Apparently, it's fun to say this word over and over and make up little songs about it.

Having a girl, I thought we would escape this wonderful phase of life.

But no. Poop is funny to little girls too. Who knew?

My strategy thus far has been to inform her that we only say that word when talking about going to the potty. In hind sight, this was not the best strategy.

Now, when she is singing/yelling the P Word at the top of her lungs and I tell her to knock it off, she informs me that she is singing a song about going to the potty. Touche.

This too shall pass.

Summertime And The Living Is Easy

2011-06-12T07:12:00.000-05:00

The only thing better than spending time at the pool

is the swimming-induced nap that is sure to follow.

Reunited

2011-06-11T09:48:00.000-05:00

I'm happy to be home. The end.

New Hampshire, I'm A Fan!

2011-06-08T21:17:00.002-05:00

I am loving New Hampshire! It's absolutely beautiful and the weather couldn't be better (think being outside in the sun, but with the air conditioner on). I think my favorite part about the "Granite State" is the abundance of lilacs.

Lilacs everywhere! They really should rename this place the "Lilac State".

As much as I'm enjoying being in the "Lilac State" and soaking up all of the good science at this conference, I'm very ready to get back to my husband and kiddo. I think Harper is getting mad at me for being gone so long. She refused to talk to me on the phone tonight. Little does she know that I am at this conference to get new ideas about how to regenerate body parts so I can make bajillions of dollars and buy her lots of ponies. Apparently, the master plan is lost on her. I guess I'll just have to make sure I have a toy in hand when she picks me up at the airport on Friday.

A Couple Things

2011-06-02T12:24:00.004-05:00

1. Tomorrow, I'm leaving for science summer camp for a week. Actually, I'm going to a Gordon Research Conference on tissue repair and regeneration. The conference is being held at a picturesque little college in New Hampshire. We are staying in the dorms so it kind of feels like summer camp. I get to give a talk about my research (new ways to repair blood vessels).

Never been to New Hampshire before. It should be fun.

2. I'm going to miss these two.

3. My anniversary is on Saturday. Did you know that we got married in Las Vegas?

We've been married six whole years. Here's to sixty more!

We Heart Chattanooga

2011-05-31T10:53:00.001-05:00

In an effort to explore the great state of Tennessee and get away for Memorial Day, we took a weekend trip down to Chattanooga. What a great little city! We had so much fun visiting the Aquarium and the Creative Discovery Museum and just walking around the downtown area.

The aquarium was great. It was way more than just fish exhibits. They had a butterfly garden, penguins, snakes, and flying squirrels (which are native to Tennessee -- who knew??) among other things.

Here, Harper is reaching out to touch a butterfly in the butterfly garden.

She made a friend at the penguin exhibit. This little guy kept swimming up to investigate her through the glass.

The Creative Discovery Museum was awesome too.

They had lots of different exhibits for kids to explore. I think Harper liked the doctor's office the best. Here, she is bandaging up an injured baby doll's leg.

Some of the coolest parts of downtown Chattanooga are the interactive play fountains. Harper had a great time splashing around and cooling off.

"Mom, I know you told me not to get my skirt wet, but I just couldn't help it!"

We had a great time in Chattanooga. Harper especially loved it and as we were driving out of the city to come home, she started crying and yelling that she wanted to "stay in Chattanooga ALL DAY LONG!" Because it's only 2 hours away from us, I think we can make that happen again soon!

3 Years Later

2011-05-29T20:27:00.000-05:00

I took this picture Memorial weekend 2008.

Three years later...

Life is good.

Payoff

2011-05-26T09:55:00.000-05:00

Remember these guys? Look at them now! I can't really take any credit for them. Rob is the main gardener in this house. But, I certainly do enjoy the benefits of his green thumb.

Pink Bunnies and Chick-fil-a

2011-05-25T10:17:00.000-05:00

Only a mom who truly loves her kid would venture into a Chick-fil-a on Kid's Night. It's crazy. But you know what? Harper loves it. So every Tuesday night, we go.

In addition to free kids meals, Chick-fil-a brings in special guests to entertain the kids while they eat. Tonight, Sonnie was there to do face and arm painting. It was actually pretty cool.

Harper decided to get a pink bunny on her arm. It actually wasn't her first choice. She initially picked out a skull with flames coming out of his head. I nixed that one. (That's ok to do, right? I'm not crushing her creative freedom or individuality, right? I mean seriously, it was a skull with flames!). After some negotiation, she decided she wanted a tinker bell. However, when she got up in the chair and Sonnie asked her what she wanted, she said a pink bunny. Go figure. It is never a dull moment with this kid.

Anticipation

2011-05-21T19:53:00.000-05:00

I'm starting to get excited about the humble garden that's taking shape on our deck.

Physics Friday

2011-05-20T09:00:00.000-05:00

While it's well known that I prefer green science (ie. biology) to any type of physical science... every once in a while, physics proves itself to be not as lame as I like to think it is.

For more information about what this is, how it works, and general nerdy-nerd stuff click here.

Trophies and Ice Cream

2011-05-19T09:38:00.001-05:00

Harper's last dance class of the semester was last night. It was pretty fun. The girls got to do some special dance games involving stuffed animals and rainbow ribbons. They also got to run through their recital dance one last time. Then it was time for the most important part of the night...the trophy presentation!

Each little girl received a trophy with her name and the date on it. Pretty fancy stuff.

Then it was time for one last group picture...which is actually code language for time to herd the cats.

Next, we took all of the girls out for dinner and ice cream.

I'm kind of glad that we're getting our Wednesday nights back for the summer. But, I think Harper and I will both be ready to start back up with lessons in the fall.

Until then, we'll just bask in the glow of her trophy which is front and center on the fireplace mantle.

They're Back...

2011-05-10T12:16:00.000-05:00

News Flash: I'm a science nerd.

That being said, I'm sure you're not surprised that I'm a little excited about all of the cicadas that are erupting in Middle Tennessee at this very moment.

Cicadas are pretty cool little creatures. The females lay eggs under the bark of a tree. The eggs hatch and the newborn nymphs burrow into the ground where they hang out for 13 years (17 in some cases)! Then, they tunnel out of the ground, shed their exoskeleton, and emerge as adults to start the cycle all over again.

Can you imagine taking a 13 year nap? Sounds fantastic to me. Just think of all of the things that have happened in the last 13 years. For starters, in 1998, Bill Clinton was president and our country had a budget surplus. Personally, off the top of my head in the last 13 years I graduated high school, graduated college, got married, got a PhD, had a baby, moved to Nashville, started carrying a purse etc, etc.

But, back to the cicadas. I took these pictures at work yesterday.

All Grown Up

Discarded Exoskeletons

Cool, aren't they. And, I hear they're good eats...

As Promised

2011-05-09T10:47:00.000-05:00

This picture is so sweet, I get a cavity just by looking at it.

Harper is on the bottom right. Click on the picture to see a version that you can zoom in on to get a better look.

A Working Mom's Lament

2011-05-04T21:05:00.001-05:00

Bright and early tomorrow morning, I am heading up to Cincinnati for a few days to attend a work conference. Part of me is very much looking forward to seeing old friends and hearing good science. But, part of me is also sad because I am going to miss Harper's very first dance recital on Saturday.

Luckily, Harper has an awesome dad who is going to assume the role of stage dad while I'm gone (and by the way, did you know that he changed every single one of Harper's diapers while we stayed in the hospital after she was born? Well, he did and I'm going to remember that fact when he tells me he gave her candy for breakfast...).

Don't feel too bad for me, though. I take her to her dance lesson every week and I've seen her routine dozens of times. Tonight was group picture night (I'll post it next week). They also got to do a dress rehearsal run though of their dance for all of the parents. I think Harper got a little distracted by all of the flashing cameras. But, she's still the best dancing princess as far as I'm concerned.

Iris Garden

2011-05-04T11:41:00.000-05:00

We made a pit stop on the way to school this morning.

The Only Thing Ants Are Good For

2011-05-03T10:14:00.000-05:00

The peonies on the side of our house are blooming. Legend has it that ants are needed to crawl through the buds and open the petals. This isn't actually true. Peonies will bloom with or without ants. But, I'll ignore that and give this one to the ants. Really, what else do they have going for them?

Puddle Jumper

2011-05-01T15:13:00.002-05:00

Really glad I put her rain boots on before we left for church today...

Zoo Day

2011-04-30T22:18:00.000-05:00

It was way too nice to not be outside today. So, we went to one of our favorite hangouts, the zoo! As we were getting parked, I asked Harper which animal she wanted to see today. Very authoritatively, she said "The elephant and I want him to spray water out of his nose." The first part we could definitely do, but I wasn't so sure about that last part. However, when we got to the elephants, they were congregating around the watering hole throwing mud on themselves to keep cool. Close enough!

Next up were the flamingos. I always like the flamingos. They remind me of Pinkalicious, a cute kids book where the main character eats too many pink cupcakes and turns pink (kind of like how flamingos are pink because they eat shrimp and algae that contain pink and orange pigments).

I usually judge the success of our zoo outings by whether or not we can avoid the petting zoo area. Today was not my lucky day.

After a good hand washing, we leisurely strolled through the rest of zoo and I practiced the fine art of cell phone nature photography.

This Never Happens

2011-04-28T20:40:00.000-05:00

Looks like someone played hard at school today.

She fell asleep in the car and then continued her siesta on the couch when we got home. In fact, she's still snoozing as I type this. At this rate, she'll be up with me at 4am to watch the Royal Wedding.

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T10:19:00.001-05:00

Happy Easter from our family to yours!

Professional Egg Hunter

2011-04-23T20:29:00.000-05:00

Today we went to the annual McKendree Easter egg hunt. Steve and Penny Hooper have been holding this wonderful event at their house for the last 37 years! Today marks the third one that we had the pleasure of attending.

2009

2010

2011

I hear that this is the last year the Hoopers will be hosting an egg hunt. I completely understand, but I'm really hoping they reconsider. Come on, just 7 or 8 more years! Please?!?

We had a fantastic time. The weather was beautiful and the eggs were plentiful!

Last year, Harper's basket runneth over with eggs. This year, I wised up and got her a bigger basket.

Taking a break to check out the loot.

Well done, kiddo!

After the hunt, the Hoopers have all kinds of snacks and activities set up for the kids. Harper blew bubbles for at least an hour.

All in all, it was a fabulous day that culminated in an epic nap. She's still sleeping in fact, which has given me ample time to ~~pillage~~ inspect her eggs!

Egg-cellent

2011-04-22T13:01:00.000-05:00

A few days ago, Harper colored Easter eggs for the first time ever! She concentrated very hard on making each one the perfect color.

Here, she is explaining that she can't look up at the camera because she has to pay attention to her eggs.

I have to say, she really was very gentle with the eggs and they all turned out great!

She also tried really hard not to make a mess...that is until we ran out of eggs and she discovered that she could also color her fingers!

Thank goodness it all came off in the bathtub!

She Prefers Baby Dolls To Bunnies

2011-04-19T11:13:00.000-05:00

Last week Harper and I met our buddy, Katie, for lunch and bunnies. And by bunnies, I mean that we went to Phillips Toy Mart to see their annual display of bunnies.

If you are ever in Nashville, I would highly recommend going to this toy store. Whether you have kids or not, this place is an experience. They've been in business since 1946 and every millimeter of their store is jam packed with toys (and not just the every day run of the mill toys that you find at Target. I'm talking about some of the coolest toys I've ever seen.)

But getting back to the bunnies... Every year they have a different theme for their display. This year it was The Year of the Rabbit (which was very appropriate, because Katie and her husband are about to move to China!).

Katie and I thought the bunnies were awesome. Harper was a little more impressed by the array of baby doll accessories in the isle next to the bunnies.

I love the expression on Katie's face in this one!

I tried and tried to get Harper to stand in front of the bunnies and smile. This was the best shot I got. If it looks like she is in pain, she is. Posing for pictures is torture when there are baby dolls to inspect.

Hippity Hoppity

2011-04-15T20:00:00.000-05:00

Easter's on its way.

TMI

2011-04-13T10:55:00.000-05:00

I've been out of commission the last couple days. On Sunday night, I ate a prepackaged salad from a reputable grocery store and came down with the worst case of food poisoning ever in the history of the world. Seriously. It was borderline catastrophic.

I'm pretty much back to normal now and I can sit back and reflect on how utterly absurd the whole situation was.

First of all, I was eating the salad in an attempt to be healthy. My husband had two delicious looking pieces of pizza for dinner. Me? I thought to myself, that pizza looks good, but I'm going to have this salad instead. Look at me being all disciplined! Yeah. That worked out well. Next time, I'm having the pizza.

Secondly, my husband says funny things in times of crisis. Case in point...it's the middle of the night. I'm laying in bed curled up in a ball trying to understand what I did to bring the full wrath of God upon me. In an attempt to comfort me (I think), Rob leans over, gives me a hug and says "Do you think you're pregnant? Because it's ok if you are." Now some of you may remember that I had major ~~morning~~ 24 hour sickness that lasted the whole time I was pregnant with Harper. I can see why Rob might think that I was pregnant again. But let me assure you, I will come up with a much better way to share the happy news when and if I do get pregnant again.

Thirdly, I blame the Reese's Pieces. Approximately 2 hours before I got sick, Rob and Harper ran to the drugstore for some contact solution and brought back a bag of Reese's Pieces for a treat. Never before in the history of our family have we ever had Reese's Pieces in the house. This is significant because the last time I ate Reese's Pieces was literally 20 years ago. I was playing at a friend's house, ate some Reese's Pieces, and puked for no reason. I wasn't a pukey kid. It was totally out of the blue and that's probably why I remember it. I never ate Reese's Pieces again until this past Sunday. As I grabbed a couple pieces of candy, I instantly remembered that time 20 years ago and thought it was funny that I had such a strong association with Reese's Pieces and puke. Little did I know what was in store for me mere hours later. Coincidence or trigger? Either way, it was weird.

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

2011-04-10T17:23:00.000-05:00

What a great day for baseball. The Nashville Sounds took on the New Orleans Zephyrs and we were there to take it all in.

The Sounds have the coolest scoreboard in all of baseball.

Harper thoroughly enjoyed herself.

The only thing better than getting a new pink hat is getting pink cotton candy to match.

Yay for warm sunny days and yay for baseball!

My Hangout?

2011-04-08T20:15:00.003-05:00

We've lived in Nashville for almost 3 years now and it still doesn't feel completely like home. One thing that's definitely preventing it from feeling more like home is that I can't find my hangout. You know what I mean - that go-to neighborhood restaurant that always hits the spot and feels like an extension of your own personal clubhouse.

I had lots of hangouts in Cincinnati (Christy's and Arthur's for example), but I just haven't found that kind of place here in Nashville. Now granted, I go out significantly less than I used to (thanks to you know who *cough* Harper *cough*), but after 3 years of looking I still haven't found my hangout.

This place is starting to come close, though. The kiddo and I had dinner at McNamara's Irish Pub tonight.

The fish and chips was pretty darn good.

And you just can't go wrong with one of these...

Although we didn't stay long enough to hear the live music tonight, that's definitely a selling point in my book too. Now I don't want to jinx it, but McNamara's, you and I might be on the verge of something special here.

Winning

2011-04-06T10:02:00.000-05:00

Kids Night at Chick-fil-a is awesome. Harper eats ALL of her dinner (which was free with the purchase of my meal), gets a balloon animal (she actually got a pink guitar), and thinks I'm the best mom ever (I know because she told me)!

Goldilocks

2011-04-05T11:22:00.002-05:00

Harper went to a birthday party for one of her buddies on Saturday morning. It was a beautiful day for a party and all of the kids had a ton of fun. The party was at the birthday boy's house (brave mom) and for the entertainment, the music teacher from his daycare came and sang songs. This was right up Harper's alley!

Harper and Robert were captivated by the singing! Robert's mom has a great blog. You should check it out!

Robert's mom sent me an email yesterday and told me that Robert is in love! He can't remember Harper's name, but he keeps asking to play with "Goldilocks"! How sweet!

The kids were singing a song about firefighters and pretending to drive a fire truck!

All good parties end with a good piece of cake and this one was no exception!

Progress

2011-04-04T10:23:00.000-05:00

I woke up to this beautiful bouquet yesterday. My first though was "How nice!" not "What did he do?".

Y'all, that's progress!

Binky Fairies, Jesus Jukes, and Perspective

2011-04-01T13:44:00.001-05:00

I'll be honest. Harper has been driving me a little nuts this week. She's in this phase where she pretends to be a baby. This includes, but is not limited to, speaking in baby talk, crawling instead of walking, and sucking on binkies. The kid hasn't taken a binky since she was 6 months old... until last weekend when she found the box containing all of her old ones.

To solve the binky problem, I rounded up all of the stray binkies and hid them in the top of her closet. When she couldn't find them the next morning, I told her that the Binky Fairy came and got them so that she could give them to a little baby that actually needed them. There were tears. And, yep. I lied to my 3 year old. But, desperate times call for desperate measures.

While the binky cravings have subsided, the baby talk and crawling have not. As of this morning, we are now instituting a zero tolerance policy for these behaviors. Time outs will be doled out accordingly.

I was thinking about how annoyed I was at the whole situation as I walked into the Children's Hospital this morning to get a latte from the coffee shop (I told you, desperate times call for desperate measures).

That's when it happened. I got Jesus Juked. If you don't know what a Jesus Juke is, read this.

As I'm making my way to the coffee shop, I see a mom holding a little girl on her lap. The little girl is in pajamas, her head is shaved, and there are stitches in the shape of a halo around her entire head - as in she had some type of surgery that required removing the Top. Part. Of. Her. Head.

I Jesus Juked myself.

I immediately wanted to burst into tears. Here I am being annoyed that my kid is acting in a way that I find unpleasant. And here this mom is, probably just happy that she can hold her kid on her lap.

Talk about an instant attitude adjustment.

Wild Turkey

2011-03-29T10:59:00.001-05:00

You never know what kind of wildlife you're going to encounter in the greater Nashville area. Harper and I saw this rafter of wild turkeys on the way to the gym on Saturday morning. I would have gotten closer, but they seemed a little territorial and I prefer to run on a treadmill as opposed to an open field. If you want the "up close" experience, click on the picture for a larger version.

Saturday Snapshot

2011-03-26T16:50:00.001-05:00

Move over daffodils. There's a new sheriff in town.

Just as my daffodils were starting to fade, these beauties popped up. Good timing if you ask me.

Name That Tree

2011-03-24T12:56:00.001-05:00

This tree lives in our backyard. It's pretty fancy. I'm not sure what kind it is. Cherry? Crabapple? Any botanists out there want to take a stab at it?

Tulips

2011-03-23T10:33:00.000-05:00

Last week, we went to the park after church. We picked up some sandwiches on the way there and had a mini picnic. It was great.

The weather was beautiful. It was sunny and in the 80s. I'm ready for warmer temperatures, but it's a little weird when it's that warm and the leaves aren't on the trees yet.

Sometimes when we want Harper to smile when we're taking her picture, Rob tickles her. I'm not saying it's right. I'm just telling you how it is.

I'm hoping she forgets those moments when she's picking out a nursing home for us some day.

Now Send It To Him

2011-03-22T07:56:00.001-05:00

Today is my dad's birthday and Harper has a special message for him!

Knuckle Sandwich

2011-03-21T11:03:00.001-05:00

So the other day, I punched my husband in the face.

Well, not really, but yeah, kind of.

Here's what happened.

Rob gets home pretty late from work - like close to midnight. Most of the time I hear him come in. That night, I didn't. I was sound asleep.

I feel like I should give you some back story so that you can better understand the rest of the story. I like to fall asleep with the tv on (I know, horrible). I find a channel I like (usually the history or discovery channel), put the remote on Rob's pillow (so he can easily find it when he comes to bed), and settle in to go to sleep.

That night, I semi-woke up to the sound of an ~~annoying~~ car show on the tv. I don't think I even opened my eyes. Not realizing that Rob was home, let alone in bed, I reached over to his pillow to get the remote. Instead of grabbing the remote, I grabbed his face.

Scared me half to death.

I sat straight up in bed, realized it was him, and then curled up into a little ball. I was scared, embarrassed, and ticked off all at the same time. I mean seriously. Rob should totally know better:)

He just kind of chuckled.

That says a lot about my punching ability.

Our Little Leprechaun

2011-03-17T10:10:00.000-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Motivation

2011-03-14T15:16:00.000-05:00

So yesterday, the guy on the elliptical next to me was watching The Weather Channel.

The Weather Channel? Really? That's what motivates you?

Me?

I watch The Food Network.

I'm ok with the dirty looks that I get from my fellow gym-goers.

Cool

2011-03-10T12:34:00.000-06:00

Dry ice makes science feel more like...well, science.

New Developments

2011-03-09T13:12:00.000-06:00

Every night for the past 2 weeks or so, Harper crawls out of her bed and tiptoes into our room and scares the pants off of me. I'm about 93% sure she doesn't mean to scare me. She just wants to tell me that she's getting up to go to the potty. Don't get me wrong. I'm super happy that she knows enough to get up and go to the potty in the middle of the night. I'm just not sure why she feels the need to announce it.

Another thing that's kind of scaring the pants off of me these days is the little fibs that have started popping up. For instance, this morning Harper wanted to go outside and ride her bike before we went to school. It was raining and we just didn't have time for bike riding, so I told her no. Without batting an eyelash, she said "My daddy lets me ride my bike all the way to school." My response was "I think that sounds like a fib." To which she responded by crumpling up in a pile on the floor and crying. I'm pretty sure she was crying because I called her on the fib and not because she couldn't ride her bike. It seems a little early for fibs, but then again she has always been ahead of the curve...

She slept in this tutu last night. When I was getting her dressed this morning, she said "Mom, can I please wear this tutu to school? It's not stinky." Sounded like a well thought out argument to me.