Dominique Dawes and her chauffeur ...

OK ... so I hate being on my own blog, but c'mon! This is Dominique Dawes! I had the pleasure of picking her up at the airport along with little Miss M. We waited and waited and waited, and after I couldn't stand it any more, I snuck off to the bathroom and left my daughter by the security guard holding a sign that said "DOMINIQUE DAWES" (and wearing her renaissance costume from her gifted program that day). It was a cute sight! Of course, Dominique arrives in that moment. By the time I returned, little M had told her about a plethora of life events and Dominique knew more details about our family and life in Tulsa, Oklahoma than most!

I will have to try and capture the portion of Dominique's speech from our luncheon because she mentioned little M! I wish I would have taken photos of our personal afternoon with Dominique before her Q&A session at the Council office (for Girl Scouts who wrote essays and some of our outreach girls). A couple of the girls there were gymnasts ... one in particular cited Dominique as her inspiration. Even though she was too young to be aware of it at the time, she later grew up watching video tapes of the Olympic Games and Dominique Dawes. What an amazing opportunity for her to sit in a room with 25 girls and Dominique!!!

Lights ... Cameras ... FREEZE!

Every once-in-a-while, I realize my kids are growing up way too fast. I have them freeze-framed in my mind as a few years younger than they really are. I have to remind myself that my oldest is ready to learn how to drive and my youngest is becoming a social butterfly.

Little Dancer

I have to make sure I'm in the front row for Parents Night so I can snap away while the little ones rehearse. The big show is coming up next month!

Glamour Shots

M&S had a little bit of an adventure today as I tried to play with the lights and backdrop I ordered for some Girl Scout events. M was uncannily "Top Modelesque" and S was an endless stream of entertaining poses for almost 200 shots! Of course, Daisy couldn't escape the glamour and patiently endured the fashion divas and their costume changes.

Senior Photos

Getting my cousin's son to smile was a rare moment ... accidental, actually! Isn't he handsome? It's hard to believe these kids grow up so fast. True to form, even though we were hiking all over to take his photos, the girls weren't far behind (and I had to snap a photo). It just makes me laugh!

Sister Scouts

Sister Scouts ... a whole troop of Brownies being introduced to camping by their older "sister" Girl Scouts. It was a beautiful overnight and I don't think any of the girls wanted to go home!

Favorite Things

Seuss is a favorite of ours ... so we didn't pass up the opportunity to enjoy Who Cakes and Beezlenut Splash!

Eggeriffic!

Easter is special all on its own ... but being able to stay up late and make Easter Eggs with grandparents is priceless!

Bocce Ball!

A rousing game of Bocce Ball ... a perfect evening, an easy family game, and a few quiet moments at a picnic table for mom. WHEW!

Women's Legislative Day

It was my first trip to the Capitol of Oklahoma with the Oklahoma Women's Legislative Coalition. I was surprisingly comfortable for being out of my element! I found that the issues presented clicked with me and easily energized my thoughts. Next year, I'll be able to be more involved and hopefully generate some good press! Although, I have to admit I'm proud to say that I garnered an on-site interview for our CEO with Oklahoma Public TV.

Yep ... typical photo.

Picture of the day ... serious J and fun-finding M. Today we experienced history, science, physics, and even sports. Who can forget the treasures at the end of the day ... GO TIGES!

Bomb Threat in the Chicago Airport

It's always interesting when I find myself in situations like this where I am not allowed to be somewhere, but I can still snoop with my camera! Originally, I was looking for a quiet place to sit and hopefully take photos out the windows. I didn't know all this was going on and was on the other side of the phone booths. I got chased out!


Of course, I couldn't resist using my telephoto and watching things a little more close up. I could read the paperwork after I took a photo of it ... a bomb threat!

Winter Art in my Winter Windy City

This was something new ... art in ice! Today's art adventure involved ice sculpture, art in the ice rink (yes, we even skated), the art museum, an artsy lunch and dinner, and Wicked. That's what I call a wonderful Valentine's trip!

My goofy valentines ...

Selling Girl Scout Cookies

As I look at my white board after my daughter visited my office last week, I recall a line from my grandmother's poem ... "Annette and Ingrid have orderly minds and even make lists when they play." My daughter seems to have inherited my love of lists!

She will probably inherit my schedule as well, which right now is very demanding and the reason why I have not kept up with kid photos on the blog! But I'm taking a moment today because I wanted to help my little Brownie with her "sell cookies" goal. Last year she wanted to do a super-fun video, and we made it happen with music and photos. This year she wanted to get a Girl Scout "build a bear" outfit and have a photo shoot with her bear selling cookies. UNFORTUNATELY we might be too busy this weekend, which is the last weekend to take orders. Hopefully I'll have some photos to share, but just in case, I wanted family and friends to know that you can comment here or email me (or littls M) and she can tell you all about the cookies and her goals, etc.

I'm so proud of her ... if weather warms up, she and our neighbor will be going out together to sell cookies. They have become good friends and since my daughter is a big talker and our neighbor is in speech therapy and has a very difficult time speaking, it will be a great thing for both of them. I'm imagining Moses & Aaron wearing Girl Scout sashes! LOL!

And just so everyone knows, the Girl Scout Cookie Sale in Magic Empire Council starts with individual order taking January 19-February 3. Booth sales happen in March, and girls can still take individual orders until then (and fill the orders with booth cookies). This year I have recruited help on the post office side of things so cookies will go out right away in March!!

OH ... and guess who was on TV? Click here to find out!

First Chess Tournament

What a girl! I didn't even know she REALLY knew how to play, so I was trying to make sure she understood the announcements. Not only did she understand, but she explained to me what they were talking about!

Matt Holliday Press Conference

Sometimes we get to tagalong to some interesting things! Tonight? A press conference at Stillwater High School, home of Matt Holliday. They were retiring his numbers from his high school teams tonight. I'm not much into sports (as those of you who know me realize) but I find the "people angle" interesting.

I was impressed with this guy! He seemed very real and was more people-oriented than I expected. He had questions that gave him the opportunity to boast, but he was far from arrogant. Actually, I found him surprisingly humble. But not the slimy "I-want-you-to-see-me-as-humble" kind of thing ... genuinely thankful to be where he is and truly respectful of others. I always appreciate and respect that when I see it (and it doesn't feel like someone saying what he/she "should" for an audience).


My little one came prepared (little puppies in a carrier - one day they will probably be real!) but soon found herself stifling yawns and passing them around as we waited. She was so cute earlier ... she said she wanted to go so she could learn more about soccer. Soccer? She thought he was a soccer player. While we were waiting at the press conference, she asked who was going to be there. I told her, "Mr. Holliday." She said, "Who's that?" Of course, it got a laugh. And then she got shy.


Maybe one day my little Miss M will realize what a cool opportunity this was! I'm actually a little stunned my teenager decided not to come. He's the one who is into sports and even had Matt Holliday on his fantasy team last year! Hmmmmm ... maybe he's just tired of being cooped up in the house with 3 girls (me, M, and Daisy)!

For you fans ... a few more Matt Holliday photos are here (forgive me, I'm not taking time to edit much of anything tonight): Matt Holliday Press Conference

In Search of Fire

Amazing what freezing rain can do! Power is out everywhere (I'm blogging after the fact) and has been for several days. I feel like I have it made because we only lost power for a day. The store down the street was open for a few hours on generator power ... no lights, but they could ring you up! Normally I would stay cozy and warm but that's why I'm out and about. I'm concerned about staying cozy and warm! I need fire logs. Just about every store was closed. Thank goodness for this one! It was eerie, however, to be roll-clatter-rolling through dark, quiet aisles.

Look what I finally found at the airport!

I'm proud of my little girl, who rather accidentally became the poster child (just happened to be with me one day in the summer when a request for a local girl photo came) for this project presented by GableGotwals, a law firm that partners with Girl Scouts! I've been in the airport a few times since this went up, but it wasn't until a recent trip to New York (including a visit to the national Girl Scout headquarters, or GSUSA as I've come to know it).

Shall I shamelessly blog for Girl Scouts of Magic Empire Council? (I have to admit, I love it when these things show up in my media alerts!) My own background with Girl Scouts doesn't go much beyond one year of being a Brownie, so this is pretty new to me. But I am so impressed with the opportunities offered to girls! It's like a "design your own" leadership experience that could really lead girls into great places ... Not to mention gaining the life skills that are such a wonderful part of Girl Scouting! Our council serves nearly 13,000 girls and volunteers with offices in Tulsa, Stillwater, and Muskogee. We are in the process of "realigning" and will be uniting with two other councils and by June of next year will be making a difference across eastern Oklahoma.

So ... I'm not only proud of my little girl, who is a fantasic little Girl Scout, I'm also proud to BE a Girl Scout! Did you know adults can be Girl Scouts? I guess I never thought about it. But all of the leaders, trainers, and volunteers are members - men included!

Icy Fascination

We woke up to ice today. Naturally, it's only a matter of time before the camera emerges. This little ice drop fascinates me ... it looks like miniature fireworks inside! What I love about days like today is mostly because it's a wonderful excuse to light a fire and feel cozy (even if I am still working on things in the meantime). The kids love the thought that if the weather gets worse, they might get to do this for a few more days instead of going to school!

Click on the photo below more photos from the icy storms in Oklahoma:

Icy Mornings

Momma!

M had a great idea ... She wants to make a Web site that shows what my offices are like because some kids might not get to see a Girl Scout office. She started describing it and how the home page would say something like, Girl Scouts Rock!

I delightedly shared the phrase that I feel like I own ... Green Girls Rock! In my mind I have Wicked, Girl Scouts, and myself all wrapped up in a marketing campaign. She exclaimed, "Momma!" In a shocked and horrified tone of voice, she said, "That's for sick people!" Her reference to cartoons and sick people turning green were cited. I'm happily thinking - WOW! We just had our first marketing debate! How cool is that?
Ingrid
*sent via AT&T wireless*

Chilly Christmas Parade

Look who we found! I can't believe I didn't think to ask any cousins about who would be at the Christmas Parade ... but we found a few. Click on the album link below for all the photos (including some beautiful ones of "Miss B").

Broken Arrow Christmas Parade 2007