Do YOU have room for a mousse?

So when I came home tonight Pieter showed me what had been doorbell ditched at our door:

Chocolate Mousse cupcakes! How cute and creative is that...not to mention delicious! Ok so you're going to have to envision a second cupcake with the eyes on it but someone was a little piggy and ate it before the picture was taken...oh wait that was me. They also signed it "Anonymousse" Anyway a big thank you to whoever thought of us!

Speaking of "mousses," my favorite puppet growing up was a shaggy moose puppet. My brother-in-law used to make it talk to us and once we got a card showing that Mr. Moose had snuck out to visit my sister and brother-in-law in Utah. Mr. Moose also pushed me down the stairs one time...thanks Amy (don't worry, Mom saw right through that one)

Christmas 2010...better late than never

In a very belated Christmas post...Pieter got me a really nice new SLR camera for Christmas. So for once, I actually have pictures on my blog! I really feel inadequate for this camera but I'm trying. I remember when I got my very first camera when I was little I took a bunch of pictures and then opened the back to see how the pictures were doing. D'oh! Needless to say, I haven't done that yet(oh wait, it's digital) so I'm going to call it pretty good :)
Ward Christmas party before leaving.
/>We took the train out to California for Christmas again. There was tons of fresh snow so it was really gorgeous...but fresh snow meant that we had to stop a lot for them to clear the rails; add that to an overnight trip with a kid suffering from an ear infection in the car and the way out was no picnic, but we made it!
We spent Christmas evening at Pieter's grandma's house. Ignore me...I have as my wedding photographer kindly put it: my worst fake smile ever on. (Pieter enjoyed two weeks of no shaving...this was only the beginning)
Christmas dinner at my parent's house.
We spent a few days relaxing up at the cabin and taught Pieter how to ski. He did really well and ended up going down a blue by the end of the day and loved it. I hadn't been in a few years and was a little nervous...but the snow was probably some of the best I've skied in. A favorite part of the day was watching a 7 or 8 year old with no poles making slow pizza turns down my childhood nemesis black diamond run that my dad always had us ski down to go to lunch at the lodge(it was the way that involved the least walking). Needless to say, that kid wasn't as freaked out and didn't cry and complain like I used to. Oh and I made it down just fine that day too. :)
I finally faced my fears and we played Quelf with my family...I got the stick ice down your pants card and sing Ice, Ice Baby AGAIN!!! Seriously, what are the odds? At least this time wasn't the first night with my future in-laws...
My mom had to talk through a sock puppet for the game. For those of you who know my mom know that she had a lot of fun.
We spent a day up in SF with my parents to go to the de Young Museum to see the Van Gogh, Cezanne, and Gaugin exhibit from the Musee d'Orsay. It's currently traveling around the country right now while the Musee d'Orsay is being renovated so if you get a chance to go, definitely go!
Anyway so this is just a fun shot on the Bay Bridge that I really like and took while I wasntrying to figure out my camera.
These are just a few bridge shots where I was playing around, trying to be artsy :)



We also visited SFSU's campus while we were there and I have to say I really really really love SF houses...like probably too much judging by the space taken up by them on my memory card. A not-so secret goal of mine is to live in the city someday.

Anyway, that was Christmas! Better late than never right?
PS After being married for 18 months we finally have a butter dish...best present ever? Quite possibly.

Professor Leslie

This semester I'm officially teaching my first college course! After TAing for MMBIO 241 for a while, I'm now an instructor. If you go to MyMap->register->MMBIO241, you'll see Leslie E. Mueller listed as the instructor of the Wednesday 1-4 section :) I'm so excited and it makes me one step closer to my end goal of being a real professor...and don't worry, I'm still just Leslie...just how I like it

Now, if only the promotion came with a pay boost, but no one's lying when they say how little BYU pays their teachers.

Perspectives

I know it's been about two months and I have several partially composed blogs written out and to catch up on, but I wanted to share something that I think helps put life into perspective. Enjoy!

What a 4 Year old Should Know

1. She should know that she is loved wholly and unconditionally, all of the time.
2. He should know that he is safe and he should know how to keep himself safe in public, with others, and in varied situations. He should know that he can trust his instincts about people and that he never has to do something that doesn’t feel right, no matter who is asking. He should know his personal rights and that his family will back them up.
3. She should know how to laugh, act silly, be goofy and use her imagination. She should know that it is always okay to paint the sky orange and give cats 6 legs.
4. He should know his own interests and be encouraged to follow them. If he could care less about learning his numbers, his parents should realize he’ll learn them accidentally soon enough and let him immerse himself instead in rocket ships, drawing, dinosaurs or playing in the mud.
5. She should know that the world is magical and that so is she. She should know that she’s wonderful, brilliant, creative, compassionate and marvelous. She should know that it’s just as worthy to spend the day outside making daisy chains, mud pies and fairy houses as it is to practice phonics. Scratch that– way more worthy.

But more important, here’s what parents need to know.

That every child learns to walk, talk, read and do algebra at his own pace and that it will have no bearing on how well he walks, talks, reads or does algebra.

That the single biggest predictor of high academic achievement and high ACT scores is reading to children. Not flash cards, not workbooks, not fancy preschools, not blinking toys or computers, but mom or dad taking the time every day or night (or both!) to sit and read them wonderful books.

That being the smartest or most accomplished kid in class has never had any bearing on being the happiest. We are so caught up in trying to give our children “advantages” that we’re giving them lives as multi-tasked and stressful as ours. One of the biggest advantages we can give our children is a simple, carefree childhood.

That our children deserve to be surrounded by books, nature, art supplies and the freedom to explore them. Most of us could get rid of 90% of our children’s toys and they wouldn’t be missed, but some things are important– building toys like legos and blocks, creative toys like all types of art materials (good stuff), musical instruments (real ones and multicultural ones), dress up clothes and books, books, books. (Incidentally, much of this can be picked up quite cheaply at thrift shops.) They need to have the freedom to explore with these things too– to play with scoops of dried beans in the high chair (supervised, of course), to knead bread and make messes, to use paint and play dough and glitter at the kitchen table while we make supper even though it gets everywhere, to have a spot in the yard where it’s absolutely fine to dig up all the grass and make a mud pit.

That our children need more of us. We have become so good at saying that we need to take care of ourselves that some of us have used it as an excuse to have the rest of the world take care of our kids. Yes, we all need undisturbed baths, time with friends, sanity breaks and an occasional life outside of parenthood. But we live in a time when parenting magazines recommend trying to commit to 10 minutes a day with each child and scheduling one Saturday a month as family day. That’s not okay! Our children don’t need Nintendos, computers, after school activities, ballet lessons, play groups and soccer practice nearly as much as they need US. They need fathers who sit and listen to their days, mothers who join in and make crafts with them, parents who take the time to read them stories and act like idiots with them. They need us to take walks with them and not mind the .1 MPH pace of a toddler on a spring night. They deserve to help us make supper even though it takes twice as long and makes it twice as much work. They deserve to know that they’re a priority for us and that we truly love to be with them.

Meet the Cover Stealer

Meet Pieter-the cover stealer. Needless to say, it was a chilly night.