Elle's First Day of Dance Lessons

Today was her debut on the dance floor. Well, at least a traditional dance floor. Elle started tap and ballet and as you can see on her face above, she couldn't wait to get started. While I anticipated a bit of shyness and timid movements, she was quite comfortable and seemed to fit in nicely.

This photo was taken at home after class. She just can't seem to rid herself of the attire.

During class and working on her tap. Notice the flex in her foot! Not bad for a first day.

And here is our ballerina. She did quite well and made us proud. Her sweet brother walked up and gave her a hug afterwards.

Craft Project

My friend Krystal started a monthly eNewsletter centered around craft projects you can do with your kids. I am really excited about it because it's rare that I have time to research ideas myself. Her first eNewsletter featured a Crayola project using old discarded broken crayons.

I tasked Elle with going up to the playroom to pick up all the broken crayons she could find.

Mind you, there were plenty because she like to test her physical strength by breaking them in half any time she can get her hands on them. The next step is to unwrap all of the paper from the crayons. While this sounds simple enough, it was actually a long and tedious project. Elle's patience quickly wained while Dakota remained my trooper and helped until the very end.

After peeling the paper, we loaded the naked crayons into muffin tins.

Then bake them on 250 degrees for about 15 minutes and the end result is these really cool multicolored funky shaped "crayons" you can use when coloring. The final product was so cool, Dakota ended up taking three of them to school as his "show and tell".

Thanks Krystal for sharing your talents with us. And if anyone else wants to sign up for her eNewsletter, you can email her.

H. E. Double Hockey Sticks Begins

So why am I complaining? I do it to myself. I signed up as a volunteer on a Tulsa Area United Way Community Investments panel (on top of everything else) and now I've signed both children up for spring sports. I re-enrolled Dakota in spring soccer and I'm hoping 2008 is nothing like 2007. In 2007, we froze our arses off in 20 degree weather with negative degree winds and poor Dakota cried he was so cold. But fall soccer was such a positive memory that we're doing it all over again (only spring...and friggin' colder).

And Elle expressed some interest in dance lessons. So naturally, I did an impulse stop at the dance studio less than a mile from our home to inquire further. Only $135 later, I have a recital costume purchased as well as five week of classes pre-paid. But oh how beautiful she will be. The recital is May 31st if you want to come. Just let me know.

Did you know that my mother (Nana Ellen) was a professional ballerina with Tulsa Ballet Theater several (okay, many several) years ago. She danced for them for a short time before my father swept her off her feet and eloped with her after a few short days of courtship. But alas, they're in love...

More ballet and tap pics to come... and more freezing cold soccer pics to come as well. What the H.E. Double Hockey Sticks was I thinking?

Glamour Girl Cont...

Just two days following the powder incident, Elle came downstairs (after I had her dressed and ready to leave for school), and informed me that she had painted her toes. Oh heavens. Well naturally I wanted to take a look at the feet first so I could compliment her pretty toes and THEN I would head upstairs to see what the carpets looked like.

Well here is a photo of her feet. Her right foot had purple on the big toe and the second toe. The third was a combination of purple and pink, and the remaining toes were featured in pink. The other foot was a completely different shade of light pink. She got very creative with her color options. And fortunately, the carpet was spared. Just a little purple polish was found on her pant leg but overall, she stayed "in the lines" exceptionally well.

- confessions of a Glamour Girl's mom.

She Does Love a Sparkle

So, Nana Ellen bought Elle some glamour girl kit that includes all sort of make up and accessories and came complete with shimmery powder. Little miss independent took it upon herself to open the entire baggie of shimmery powder and then proceeded to adorn herself with the contents of the entire bag (not kidding)!

Below is a photo of her when I first discovered her. Notice that in both photos she has down cast eyes and refused to look at the camera. What you don't see is that she has it EVERYWHERE. It's in her hair, on her chest, ALL over her face and sprinkled here and there on her legs (she had taken her pants off).

The final picture is of my hands after just picking up the baggie to dispose of it. That's some powerful powder! There are some professional dancers out there that would kill for the contents of that glamour girl kit. :-)

Dakota helped vaccum the carpet and when he touched it, you could see the glittle fly.

Christmas 2007

Christmas this year was fabulous and as you can see, it pretty much wiped everyone out. In fact, this photo was taken post Christmas at mom and dad's lake house. Even Buddy was exhausted which is pretty rare.

We celebrated Christmas a few times over this year. We did a small one at our house with my sister and her family, my parents and my in-laws, another with the Doctor's, another with the Gernhardt's and Zahn's and yet another with Santa Clause. It goes without mentioning that the kids loaded up on many gifts. Topping this years' list was a new go-cart for Dakota and a new Barbie Jeep for Elle; courtesy of grandparents.

The best part of the holiday was that we got to spend plenty of time with family and especially with our own children. I was fortunate enough to have taken some remaining vacation days and was off work for about 11 days. We've watched lots of movies and I've got plenty of book reading in. I read a good one titled Oh My Stars by Lorna Landvik (author of Angry Housewives Eating Bon-Bons). It's worth your time.



I've included a few other Christmas photos worth a look see. Hope your holiday was blessed with lots of joy and from all of us Doctor's, Happy New Year!


Tree Hunting.






Gabby & Dad


Shara, Kara, and Sam (friend of Kara)


Mom X2



Guess who?


Tindall Gift Exchange



Auntie Sissy and Elle


Gernhardt Siblings...showing the love.

10th Annual Doctor Family Christmas Party

It's so hard to believe but it's been 10 years that we've shared the Christmas Party tradition with our friends and a few family members. We hosted our first party in our home on College Ave. It was a 1,000 square foot starter home with two bedrooms and one bath and yet it managed to accommodate our guests just fine. Several years and a couple kids later, we did it again in our new(er) home that's capable of accommodating more people and yet the coziness of the get together remains the same.

Now we're 30 something's having the bulk of our conversations about our children, our jobs, our hobbies, new cars, new appliances, etc. and yet the special spirit of this tradition is alive and well. Perhaps it's the stress of this time of year or because we're all so busy with our lives that some people don't REALLY want to go to the party (or any party for that matter), but everyone rolls out and a few beverages later, we're relaxed, laughing, reminiscing (Camden has a memory like no other) and usually we end up getting our grove on in the middle of the family room. And sometimes, a guest manages to throw in a little surprise.

For example, this year Beau hid "surprises" in his BBQ wieners and god only knows what they were going to be or who would find them (it turns out they were toy badges...as in sheriff, police, BEEF INSPECTOR). And Jason put KJ to task on his E.R. duties when his pink eye got so out of control that KJ had to "flip his lid" to determine if it was infected. And never mind the rabbit. Those of you who were there know all about the rabbit.

It's with great gratitude that I write this entry. I'm very grateful for our wonderful friends, their memories and their love. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

The Afro made an appearance.

Party Animals!

Mr. Robato

Mr. Singing Christmas Tree (he's 10 years old now and still works, just has a bit of a gimp eye)

Family Photo...a few years delayed

It has been quite some time since the last Doctor Family photograph was taken. Sandy's Christmas wish was that we come together and take a current picture. We're embarrassed to admit that the last one was taken when Elle was about six months old! Anyhow, we mustered the courage to take on Sears Portrait Studio during the holiday months and ended up with a new family picture. The original idea was to wear all white shirts. Then it switched to either blue or purple. Then everyone realized that they didn't have the colors of choice in their closets. So we all showed up in whatever we had on hand and as you can see, we're beautiful like a rainbow.

Take a peak!

The consequence of taking a picture with the Doctor family is that I realize how white I am!

Thanksgiving 2007

Thanksgiving with the Ogdens

This Thanksgiving season was spent with the Ogden bunch down in Quinton, Oklahoma. We had a wonderful weekend spending time with family and did a good deal of laughing which is pretty typical when we get around Jason's cousins.

Dakota & Rynda

Elle & Rynda

The Doctor Girls (Kara, Shara, Candice & Elle)

Doc fishin' at the pond. Brrrr.....

Papa Herman & Dakota - Aren't they handsome?

Dakota and cousin Paul. Paul is one of Dakota's favorite cousins because he picks on Dakota and wrestles around with him with tireless energy. They're pretty good buddies and there is irony in watching these two play considering the playful friendship that Paul and Jason had as children.

The outdoor picnic which is involuntary and brought on by the fact that it's quite difficult to cram upwards of 40 people in small country house. Thank goodness for the small children who don't take up too much space.

I like this picture. Cell phone technology has been adopted by all generations and in all geographic territories. It reminds me of a few Christmas' ago when we bought Granny Ogden a present and wrapped it in an old cell phone box. When she opened the package, she assumed that the box was representative of it's contents. She cast the box aside and told me thank you for the cell phone "It will come in real handy just as soon as Quinton gets those cell towers needed to work one of these things". I had to insist that she proceed with opening the gift, that it was in fact NOT a cell phone. They've since got towers...

Blake, Preston & Monica

(featured on a floral/velvet couch circa 1970)


Dakota's first school presentation in celebration of Thanksgiving. They spent the month learning about Indian and pilgrims. He was shocked and amazed to learn that he was an Indian too!