SKIP-BO!

I don't remember NOT knowing how to play Skip-Bo. The box says "Age 7 & up", but I know I learned earlier. My Grandma Pat taught me, and it was one of my favorite things to do when we would visit. When I was in college, I was delighted to find that my roommate owned Skip-Bo too! I didn't think anyone else knew about the game. I would make all my roommates play with me and we even had a scorecard on the wall of who had the most Skip-Bo wins. I know I love playing it because it reminds me of my childhood days at Grandma's. My roommate bought me my own set of Skip-Bo cards as a Christmas present, and Tanner and I have played it numerous times since we began dating. Tonight it was our Friday night fun after Clark went to bed. I won a game and Tanner won a game...so I guess we both get to go to bed happy (although I wanted to play a tiebreaker....what's the fun in a tie? I like winners and losers!). The cards have changed in quality and color, but I still get that same YEAHHHH feeling when I turn over a SKIP-BO card on my stock pile as I did twenty years ago. How many games can you say that about?

La Boca Grande

Nielson Needs...

Here are some of the Google "needs" that members of my household may have thought this week...

Chez's version of what Tanner needs:

Tanner needs to come clean (about when and if he is EVER going to accept his job offer!)

Tanner needs our help (to stay alive...the man won't eat unless he's fed)

Tanner needs a forever family who will be committed to him and provide him with unconditional love (I am not joking, it really was on google)

Tanner's version of what Tanner needs:

Tanner needs some help around the house (sad but true on some days)

Tanner needs more exercise (after sitting in a chair reading cases ALL DAY LONG)

Tanner needs a place to hide out for a while (when Clark comes to visit him at his desk for the 30th time in 10 minutes...okay okay, AND when I ask him the 30th question of the day while he is studying)

Tanner needs to communicate (on the football field, talking smack with those pesky 1Ls who THOUGHT they could take on the old men (3Ls) and win)

Chez's version of what Chez needs:

Chez needs to write about it. And please trust me on this one- Chez needs an outlet (I LOVE BLOGGING!)

Chez needs a nap (all the time...I love naps!)

Chez needs convenience (who doesn't??)

Chez needs to redirect her energy into something constructive (when I am going on my 10th game of Spider Solitaire)

Tanner's version of Chez's needs:

Chez needs to pick up my laundry (when he opens his underwear drawer...oops no underwear)

Chez needs to be activated to become properly functional (in the morning after Clark wakes up and I am still snoozing in bed)

Chez needs to be more active (Tanner loves to exercise and thinks everyone around him should love it too!)

Tanner and Cherylyn's version of Clark's needs:

Clark needs to be stopped from doing this (crawling in his room and shutting the door and then sitting there blocking it so we can't get in)

Clark's version of what Clark needs:

Clark needs to do some investigative work on his own

The Office

Yesterday, Clark and I went and visited some friends at my old job at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. They have had a lot of changes take place since I left, and there is a lot of stress associated with the upcoming events for Virginia's 400th anniversary. Everyone could not believe how big Clark is, and they just kept saying how well behaved he is...I have to admit that he was putting on quite the show...it was as if he knew he was on display!

My favorite moment of the day was when I was visiting with someone in their cubicle and I heard a group of people laughing nearby, and when I peaked outside of the cubicle down the long hallway, there was one of my former co-workers Debbie, who is in her late 40s, pushing Clark down the hallway in a box with his little head sticking out of the top with a big 'ol grin on his face. How I wish I had my camera with me! Someone came over and said "This is the happiest the office has been in months. Can you come back once a week?" I wanted to say "Sure, can you pay me?" But I didn't.

We ended up being there for over two hours visiting and playing. As I was buckling Clark into his carseat to leave, I replayed in my mind a comment someone made while we were there. They said "you can tell that he is a baby who has his mama at home with him...what a lucky boy he is."

I think I am the lucky one.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our 4th anniversary! I kept saying to Tanner tonight that four years doesn't seem like a very long time, but that it feels like we have been married a really long time because I am starting to forget what life was like B.T. (before Tanner) and for that matter B.C. (before Clark). Tanner said that it was because we have done a lot in those four years. I have been thinking about all of our adventures, especially as we are planning for our next trip to Gettysburg and Annapolis next month. Here are some of the highlights of the last four years:

-We have moved four times in four years...not by choice, but by necessity due to things like pee coming through the ceiling from the apartment above us AND neighbors who we almost called the cops on...twice.
-Interesting places we have visited together: Grand Canyon, Tijuana, Southern California, Las Vegas, Zion's National Park, Boise, Denver, Topeka, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New York, New Jersey, Washington D.C. (numerous times), Boston, Connecticut, North Carolina, and West Virginia. Should I count Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown a.k.a. The Historic Triangle? Oh alright. I must also mention our numerous trips to both Florida and Washington state to visit our parents. Tanner has also been to Dallas, TX and Louisville, KY without me (wah!) for job interviews.
-Tanner has 1.66 university degrees and has had 4 part time jobs.
-Cherylyn has had 1.2 pregnancies....that's in the PAST people, don't get so excited, and 5 full time jobs (if you count the one that I had for 3 days, and the one that I held for less than 30 days...NO I didn't get fired from them.)
-9 church callings between the two of us.
-Gone through 4 televisions...don't ask.
-Cherylyn has had 3 different hairstyles...although Tanner might argue more because I have visited my sisters and mother more than 3 times, so it must be more.
-One growing baby boy named Clark, who Tanner and I couldn't help but talk about over dinner tonight even though we were alone, and we decided he is the biggest highlight of the four years....although every thing else has been pretty darn fun too!

Tribe Football!

On Saturday, we went to our first William and Mary football game, which is pretty pathetic of us since we are going on our third year here. I really wasn't expecting much, but I was pleasantly surprised at the spirit of the William and Mary students. Even the College president was in the student section screaming with everyone else! The one thing that I have never quite understood is why we are the William and Mary Tribe. I know that Indians were here before we were, but does William and Mary really go with tribe? No. So, when I heard that the NCAA was trying to determine whether the name Tribe would "create a hostile environment" (whatever that means), I was actually secretly hoping it would have to be changed, not because I agree with the ridiculous notion that it is offensive, but because I think there are much better prospects out there. Below are my choices. Feel free to choose your favorite, and I am also open to other suggestions. However, in May the NCAA did announce that the Tribe could stay, but the feather logo would have to go. LAME-O!

1) William and Mary Colonists
2) William and Mary Revolutionaries
3) William and Mary Founders
4) William and Mary Royals (hello, they actually were royal)

We went to the game with our friends Dave and Jenn, and Clint and Mindy. We went and sat in the comfie seats on the alumni side and Clark made googlie eyes at the older people sitting behind us. William and Mary lost but we had fun anyway, which is good considering the shellacking that BYU took earlier in the day. Clark even picked up on the cheering and started doing it too...which we caught on camera!

Greek Women

One of the great things about having a cute baby boy with me all the time is the amount of attention we get everywhere we go. I meet new people EVERYDAY. People always want to touch his white blonde hair and if it wasn't so invasive they would probably kiss his chunky thighs. They always say they want to!

So I was down at my neighborhood Farm Fresh grocery store on friday, and there were these two older women who were shopping. It was clear that this was their big outing for the day, and they were dressed nicely with their hair and makeup all done. Then there was me with my undone hair, no makeup, and Clark's slobber on my jeans. They each had a cart, and they each had one thing in their cart...some meat I had never bought nor seen before. They were talking to each other in English, but it was clear they had European accents that I couldn't quite place. The second they saw Clark, they got OUT of line and came over and were kissing and stroaking Clark saying that he was the cutest thing they had ever seen. I asked where they were originally from and they said Greece, which I had to kick myself for not guessing because these two were straight out of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". I always had thought that movie played big on stereotypes, but it didn't. These two were a total crackup. I ended up talking to them outside of Farm Fresh for 20 minutes. I know how many kids and grandkids they have, and I also know that one grandchild almost got engaged, and came to his grandmother and said he wasn't sure if he should propose because he had just found out she had no interest in having children, to which my new Greek friend said (to be read with a classic greek accent for full effect) "Don't you give that ring to her, don't do it. What is the point in getting married if you don't have children". He didn't give the ring to her. She said I was very skinny and that she was the same way after having her children, but one of her daughters got fat after having her children. Hearing that information you might think this lady was rude, but I think only Greek women can say something like that about their daughters and somehow get away with it.

I have always enjoyed talking to old people...their life experiences always seem to automatically gush out when you engaged in a conversation with them, and I am always educated or at least entertained by it. There have been times when I have passed strangers at the store or on the street and wonder what kind of people they are. I wonder if they are married, have children, or what kind of job they have. In our culture, we just don't engage in conversation with strangers very often, and I think it is sad. Those ladies put a smile on my face that day, and I have silently chuckled everytime I have thought about them since.

My cookies

So I have been craving some chocolate chip cookies this week, but I always try to put it out of my mind because making them always turns out to be a bad experience. Like the time when I made them, they came out terribly bad and then I realized after going back and looking at the recipe that I had added baking POWDER instead of SODA. Come on! They are both white powders, how different can they be? Turns out? REALLY different. I think Tanner only ate one of them....or he ate more, but it was only out of sympathy. We have been married 4 years next week and I have NEVER made a good batch of chocolate chip cookies. They either come out too cakey, too runny (yes, cookies can be runny..at least mine anyway), or taste just plain nasty. I have even done the recipe right a few times, and it turns out groady. The last time, I made one batch, and they looked and tasted so awful that I didn't even bother cooking the rest of them and Tanner and I just ate the cookie dough (which tasted okay, go figure) for the rest of the week.

But yesterday was the premiere of Survivor, and I wanted to make something yummy to eat while we watched. I happened to see Jeff Probst on Martha Stewart's cooking show today and they were making some ridiculous appetizer. It looked really good, but in order to get all the stuff that Ms. Martha said to use, it would take my entire grocery budget for the month, sooooo, I had to think of something else. Enter chocolate chip cookies again. Why is it that whenever I watch cooking shows or any athletic event (especially tennis and figure skating), I think I can do everything as good as they can, and then when I go try, I realize just how bad I really am? But, I decided to do the cookies anyway.

As I was mixing all the ingredients together I noticed that the consistency was completely different than any other time I had ever made cookies...A GOOD SIGN! There were a few close calls, like almost not adding the vanilla, and I originally put the oven on 325 degrees instead of 375 degrees, but realized after the first batch that it was too low. Better too low than too high! Here is how they turned out!

They turned out so good (in spite of myself), I almost cried.

Sick or not Sick?

Clark woke up with a slight fever yesterday, so I thought he was sick. But then, it went away, so I thought he wasn't sick. Then, he was really whiney when we were at a friends house who has lots of cool toys, so I thought he was sick. When we got home the fever had returned, definitely sick. Checked his temperature. 102 degrees. Bring on the children's Motrin. Put him to bed at 8pm, woke up at 9pm. Definitely convinced my boy is not feeling well. Stayed up with mom and dad and PLAYED silently the WHOLE time and had numerous smiles and giggles until 11pm. Wondering if I am getting worked by my 9 month old. Gave him more Motrin and put him back to bed. Went to sleep immediately. Woke up this morning with a fever again.

Was able to rock him to sleep in about two minutes.

Definitely sick.

TP

Clark did something really cute. He crawled into the bathroom and unrolled the toilet paper roll onto the floor. You might think I am being sarcastic, but I am not. Every time I have ever seen a picture of a child in a pile of unrolled TP, I think it is cute...especially on Charmin commercials. Maybe when I am sitting on the toilet one day and realize there is no TP thanks to Clark I won't think it is so cute, but honestly, who can resist this face?

An action shot (this one's for you Nana!)

Remembering 9/11

What does it mean to remember 9/11?

Every year, I watch over and over again what happened on that awful day, feeling sorrow at the loss of thousands of lives at the hands of evil people. I am outraged that evil people still exist in the world today. But I always become frustrated that maybe I don't do enough, that maybe what I do and say is trite and can not possibly even begin to remember that day the way it really deserves to be remembered. And so this year I wondered, what should I as an average United States citizen do to remember this day in the way it should be remembered? What would those who died want us to do?

This year, I watched a documentary that helped me answer at least a part of those questions. As I watched the footage and listened to the stories of individuals who both lived and died that day, I began to notice a common theme throughout. At some point during the day they all did the same thing. What did they do?

They all called their families.

This wasn't an amazing revelation to me. It is what I would have done if I was there that day, but as I continued to think about what it meant, it became very poignant to me. We are distracted in the world by so many things: our jobs, finances, schooling, and recreational activities, that sometimes we forget what is truly important. Unfortunately, sometimes it takes an event of such catastrophic proportions to simplify our lives and put into perspective what really IS most important.

As I went in to check on my baby boy tonight and saw him sleeping serenly in his crib, I realized that the most important thing I can do to honor the memory of those who died that day, is to love and cherish my family every day, because I think that if they were here, that is what they would do ... and that, I hope, we will always remember.

My First Haircut

Yesterday, my mommy and daddy took me to get my very first haircut. There was a very nice lady who sat me high on a booster seat and put a cool animal cape on me! Then I saw the mirror and got really excited! I love looking at myself in the mirror.

Every once in a while, I would turn and make sure everyone was still around.

But mostly I just let her cut the little hairs off my head while I watched in the mirror and kicked the cape around my feet.

I think I look pretty spiffy! What do you think?

VA Safety Inspections

I like most things about Virginia, but there are a few things, and one thing especially that I despise...Safety Inspections. Ever since we moved here, me + vehicle + the state of VA = DISASTER.

I believe I took 3 or 4 trips to the DMV when we first moved here. 4 if you count when the lady put me at the back of the line because I didn't fill out one of the forms. Enter the Monte into the picture a year later...need I say more? Alright, I will anyway. My understanding is that in most states, when you have an emissions and safety inspection, provided you don't have some clunker that emits black smoke from your exhaust that could cloud the view of the driver behind you, the car would pass. In Virginia? NOT SO! You would think they go over every inch of the car with a fine comb. I had the naivete to take the Monte in for it's inspection, and we failed on three points. And in Virginia, when you fail a safety inspection, they make you feel bad about it. They put a big ol' sticker with a circle with a slash through it on your windshield with the words REJECTED on it. We had two small lights out (you know the one's on the sides of the car that no one ever sees) and the driver window wouldn't roll down...for them. I say for them, because the driver window had a mind of its own. It worked perfectly until you needed to roll it down to pay a toll, or in this case, pass a safety inspection. And I have to ask the question here: What does a driver window not rolling down have to do with safety? Someone, please give me a scenario where my driver window would be my only saving grace against utter destruction! Besides the obvious embarrassment of having to open the door to pay a toll because my window won't roll down and feeling about as white trash as you can get, what is the big deal?
Anyway, you have 30 days in the state of Virginia to fix what it was that caused your REJECTION, but it won't stop you from being pulled over. I was pulled over by a cop twice within the thirty days, probably because you can see the big fat REJECT sticker from a mile away. They came, they checked the date, and let me go. Then, I got pulled over for a third time after the thirty days was up because we were still trying to get the motor for a new window installed. Did the officer feel bad that not only was I pregnant but I was driving around with part of my door disassembled from us trying to fix it ourselves? No...and he slapped me with a fine. To make another long story short, we got the window fixed and another year came and went.

We took the Saturn in for its inspection the other day, and I thought there would be no problems. NOT SO! We received a phonecall saying "Your fog lamps are out, and the law in the state of Virginia clearly states that while a vehicle is not required to have fog lamps, if you DO have them, they must work properly". Are you joking? He wasn't. I looked up the law online myself, it's section 11 of Virginia State code 19VAC30-70-160. We got that fixed, for a price I might add, and planned to take the Monte in this week. What were the CHANCES that the monte would pass? Within the last year, the Monte's automatic gear shift handle broke off...I don't know how something like that happens, but it did. It still worked, but we would have to jimmy rig it every time we got in the car. Our only option to trying to fix it was with liquid nails, so I did that a few days before we took it in, and all the while I was glueing and pressing it back into place I was murmuring "You won't get me this time Virginia". We took the car in, and we didn't hear from the place all day, which made me think something big was wrong with it. We finally called them to see if it was done and it was. IT PASSED! Shock of the century! I feel like I outwitted, outplayed, and outlasted the state on this one...so I guess that makes the score Virginia-9 Nielson's-1.

My new and improved gear shift! (My father should be proud)

Notice you can still see the remnants of the Rejection sticker from one year ago.
The Monte will forever be scarred.

Bella's Blessing

This weekend we were in Charlotte for Bella's blessing. You may recall I did not get a chance to spend my time with my newest niece after she was born because we had to jet back to Florida. I spent a lot of time holding her, and I just could not get over how tiny and pretty she is. I am still flabbergasted that Clark was ever that little because I just don't remember it.


We spent the first part of the weekend picking up projects where we had left off when we were in Charlotte back in July, and my mom and I had fun wallpapering the 'retreat'. I told Tricia when I come back, I want to spend lots of time in the retreat because it turned out so good! After doing projects all day, we decided to go out for dinner at Firebirds. We were all starving, and after waiting over an hour for a table, we found out it was going to be another 20 minutes. Tensions were high and blood sugar was low, and there was nearly a family split reminiscient of the Nephites and Lamanites, except this time it was the Wendyites and the Firebirdites. I have to admit I was nearly a converted Wendyite...I thought I was going to perish! But thanks to some quick thinking and action on the part of my father and I, we got into another restaurant and enjoyed quite a yummy meal together in harmony.

Other highlights of the weekend include celebrating Corky's sixth birthday and going bowling! Tanner and I won the couples contest, although we did almost tie with mom and dad thanks to my awesome choking skills. We won't talk about Dan's skills as a bowler...he could take lessons from the Cardoe...it's okay Dan, we all have had those days (when we were 10). We also had fun at the neighborhood water park, and Clark and Dad had a great time on the lazy river. Dad said that he could hang out on the lazy river all day (shocker).
Tanner and I enjoyed our first lesson in chocolate tasting courtesy of Dan's dad Ed Seguine who is a chocolatier. It was very educational, and I am now a true believer. Chocolate IS a symphony.
All in all it was a wonderful weekend. Bella was beautiful in her dress made by Nana, and Dan did a great job, even if he does think that Tanner and I live in Waynesboro. Thanks for the fun weekend!!