Scary Pickles

Sometimes I wonder about this kid.

The Brag Blog

And now we have two options.

Scott got accepted at the Harvard Medical School. After that last post he complained about my bragging ways and worried that people might think it was him posting and bragging about himself. I assured him that even though he is technically a contributor to this blog, he has only posted twice in the past 337 posts. I think it's safe to say the bragging is coming from me (I have since changed my tag to say "Emily" instead of "The Raymonds" so it's completely obvious who's bragging here).

We might be staying here.

The plot thickens.

Back on Track

Friday night was my night off. Bruce and Scott headed to the Museum of Science for a daddy-son date, and I went to an indoor track meet at Boston University and watched my teammates kick some booty. Watching the track meet made me want to jump out there and lace up my spikes, but I'm trying to be smart about a comeback. I ran 55 minutes each day this week, and will run 60 minutes each day next week. I'll add fartlek and tempo runs in two weeks and then aim for a 5K or 10K in April or May. That's the plan. I miss you track; I'll be back.

Running in the 3K that night was Delilah DiCrescenzo of Hey There Delilah fame (she inspired the song; she's the one with long hair in the picture).

FINALLY!

It seems like it has taken forever, but we've finally heard back from one med school. Scott is accepted at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland! I'm not saying that's definitely where we're heading (although my side of the family is definitely rooting for it), but it's nice to have one great option.

"Snow" is the word

We got lots of the white stuff this weekend. Today we suited up and ventured into the snow, which Bruce refers to as a "soft, white blanket." He learned that phrase from a library book. After a few snowballs and getting pulled around on the sled by me, we headed home and made bread. It takes a little longer to make than hot cocoa, but it's oh so good on a cold night.

Brrrr.

This is what I felt like this morning: old, slow, and under-dressed.

But at least I'm running.

(Apologies to whoever took this picture and isn't getting credit for it. A friend sent it to me in an email. I googled it and found it on this training web site).

We've got lots in common...

Bruce loves the movie "Charlotte's Web" (the old cartoon one, not the newer one) and all the music in it, which he sings and hums multiple times a day. Here he sings "We've Got Lots in Common," a song Wilbur the pig sings to Geoffrey the duckling and involves a lot of other barnyard animals. Sometimes Bruce will include a few high notes and attribute them to the hens.

Here comes the Weapon Phase

I've always been a little fascinated and disturbed by little boys and their obsession with weapons. Where does it come from? I've never bought Bruce toy guns or any sort of weapons, nor do I let him watch anything violent.

But he still has that innate love of weaponry.

He has built a gun out of Legos before ("built" is probably a strong word for it - it was just a straight stack of Legos but he still ran around the house pointing it and making shooting noises) and became interested in swords when he got a Playmobil advent calendar that had a Mideval theme with tiny swords, horses, knights, and treasure.

Here Bruce is swordfighting his cousin at Grandma and Grandpa's house, where there are limited weapons and they are all made of foam.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN!

My baby brother is turning 18 today. Can you tell he's the youngest of ten kids?

Happy Birthday Ben!

The Victory Dance

Cleveland Rocks!

We had another reason to head to Ohio: Scott interviewed at Case Western Reserve University's med school. Scott's sister, brother-in-law, and their two kids live in Cleveland and are attending the dental school, so we stayed with them for a few days. More Cousin Time for Bruce!








Thanks for having us Lana and Scott!

So Good to be Home

These are my youngest two siblings. Marissa is back from college for a few weeks and Ben is still in high school. They still give each other noogies and bicker about being in the shower too long.

When Marissa isn't wrestling Ben, she has other business to attend to. Here she is giving foot massages, but the nieces also line up for makeovers.
My parents have an eclectic Christmas tree (like mine), mostly because they have a wide variety of eclectic ornaments. Bruce must have missed throwing junk into our tree because he did the same thing at their house: I found a few Legos, a stingray, and a few other toys in there.
We ate lots of clementines. I'm not sure who made this, but it looks like something my dad would do.
Scott and I made breakfast one morning and it was like cooking for an army. We cooked up a bazillion sausages along with dozens of pancakes. The trick was to do it all without a functional kitchen. My parents are remodeling the kitchen and the appliances aren't in yet; that made feeding everyone interesting. We had lots of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and even ordered food in a few times.My dad is the handiest man ever. He installed a heated floor (along with a bunch of other stuff).

Cousin Time

Bruce has lots of cousins and almost all of them are in Ohio. We stocked up on Cousin Time while we were there.
Eliza was bedazzled at all hours in ballerina princess attire.

Katheryn and Amaya make lovely princesses too. While Bruce isn't normally into princesses, he did allow himself to be dressed up by his cousins for a few brief moments. Bruce got some Dad Time too. Grandma and Grandpa's house is loaded with toys, which is good for playtime but makes naps and meals difficult. Bruce hardly ate (as you can probably tell from his bony appearance) while in Ohio, but when we got home he had an enormous dinner: 3 plates of buttered rice, a huge plate of macaroni and cheese, and a banana. Elydia is a month or two younger than Bruce. She could be a model; she puts on this gorgeous smile whenever the camera is turned her way. Jared came on New Year's Eve and played with Bruce (and cars and trains) for hours.
That's Izak beside Bruce. He claims he's too cool for pictures.

Holiday in Ohio

Happy 2009! We spent the New Year in Ohio surrounded by lots of family. We drove the 10 hours on Tuesday; the drive was smooth with the exception of a tree falling two cars ahead of us (luckily, everyone swerved around it and was just fine). Bruce did great in the car: he watched a few movies and got to eat generous amounts of junk food.

Here are a few highlights from our trip so far.

* My dad made toast with butter and sprinkles at midnight for our New Year's celebration.

* We attended my ex-boyfriend's wedding reception and caught up on the smalltown grapevine.

* Scott and I went for a 4-mile run and I got bit by a dog (thank goodness for thick running tights - it got the hole and not my leg).

* Bruce collided with a nightstand and got a gash on his forehead. We didn't go to the ER because it wasn't that deep, but Bruce will probably get a scar from it.

* BOWLING! Bruce has been itching to go bowling for months, but I never took him in Boston because it costs an arm and a leg. We went bowling with lots of family - enough to require three lanes - and Bruce bowled a 78 with the help of the bumpers. We had a great time.