Attitude Wins a Starbucks Card

Upon picking up Hope from gymnastics on Tuesday she informs me her coach has been really stressed out this week and the following conversation ensued:

Hope:  Mom, Shannon has been SO stressed all week!  You HAVE to buy her a Starbucks card so she won't be crabby anymore.

Me:  Well, I'm pretty stressed out and crabby a lot and no one buys me a Starbucks card.  (yes, I know... this is a good self reflection moment - there is an opportunity for improvement here but that is totally not the point of this story!)

Hope: (pausing just briefly...) yeah... (slowly spoken) that wouldn't help you (again, drawn out with pursed lips and a tilted head as if I were insane for even suggesting something so simple could make me happy).

Me:  (raised eyebrows and at a loss for words because I know my response was totally inappropriate and I got called on the table...)

And then I busted up laughing (uncontrollably) and bought Shannon a Starbucks card just so I could share this hilarious story with her coach who encounters Hope's attitude more often than not. 

Gone Living

Over the past 12 months I've been busy, busy, busy... I never took the time to write down my thoughts on paper but every night as I sipped my coveted glass of wine I jotted down a blog in my head, hoping to at least imprint the memory in my mind. Truth be told, I've missed the ritual of spinning words on paper to tell a wild and crazy tale that provides glimpes of this wild ride I'm living. And what a roller coaster ride this past year has proved to be. For all the twists and turns below I have grand plans to reconstruct each story into a well documented memory... here is a window into what has evolved in my life and how each plunge continues to shape me - here are just of few of the memories that make up my inner most being.

After 22 Years My Heart was Once Again Made Whole

My Karaoke Gene Lives On at an Indian Reservation

A Meow of a Time

Saying Goodbye and New Beginnings

Christmas Picture Drama

A Snowy Adventure in Denver

Medical Quandries

The Yarbrough Family Christmas of 2011

The Happiest Place on Earth

Post soon to follow on each of these rides... stay tuned!

Did You Eat Me?

One recent outing to Barb's combined with an absurdly preposterous photo had my littlest babe believing I partook in infanticide. I was simply showing Hope some earlier photos of her ridiculously crazy hair when she was just a toddler. Nico was not interested in taking a trip down memory lane if he was not involved and so inquired why he wasn't in these photos. I assured him he was with us - just still in my belly. A similar photo (that I am so proud to share with the world) was produced to satisfy his desire to be included.


His very serious and concerned response to viewing this picture:


"Did you eat me?"


Well... it kind of does look like I ate him! But note: I did not eat that tub of ice cream next to the regulation size basketball under my shirt. As appalling as this photo might be to you all I am proud to say that this was taken approximately 7 weeks before I actually gave birth to Nico.


But now that you've digested my pregnant nature in this picture (no pun intended!) back to the point of this story... after I wiped the tears away from laughing and finally had the breath to tell curious bystanders what was so funny I promised Nico that I did not eat him for lunch that day. I told him he was much too cute to eat! Thankfully no subsequent questions ensued about he got in my belly to begin with.

A Real Witch

I might just be a real witch...

And Hope just may love dressing up like her Mommy...

But make no qualms about it... Hope is, without a doubt, exactly like Sarah...

Not to mention that Riley often gets mistaken for Barb's twin...

Does this mean Batman looks like Janet???

To view all of our annual, traditional Halloween fun click here...

I want to be a Rock Star

Post turkey coma (and groggy after a day filled with family and friends, good wine and a few rock star serenades) I awoke to a sad and confused little boy peering over my bed, staring directly into my eyes, only inches away from the fog that was settling into my mind. On the verge of tears my littlest babe pleaded desperately vying for some sympathy or perhaps just a bit of consolation. In his shaky voice Nico barely managed a very sad little whisper of a whine:

“My room… is a MESS!”

He too seemed to be lingering in the after effects of a Thanksgiving party that ran late into the previous night. I visualized my own pile of unattended dirty dishes downstairs and I gently assured Nico that waking to a messy room was simply a sure sign of a great party the night before. Then I tried to lure him into my arms and under my warm blankets for a few more moments of cuddled slumber before we had to further examine the party’s aftermath.

The comforts of my warm bed couldn’t keep him away from the lingering mess in his room. Nico sauntered off mumbling something about not having enough space for his toys. I couldn’t let him wander off so disoriented and sad… and it was 10:00 a.m. after all – time to go see what the fuss was all about.

"See, I don’t have any more room to put my toys away”, Nico quietly cried as I entered his room and sat with him on the floor.

I moved some things around on his shelf securing a home for the remaining toys and offered up my praise at a job well done. Nico cleaned his room all on his own accord – a first in our world and I really was proud of my little babe.

Still not quite emerged from his own slumber Nico looked me straight in the eye and very seriously stammered, “Sometimes… when Sissy clean her room… (a long pause obviously lost in deep thought)… she is… a WWW… WWW… RRRRock SSStar!”

With a melting heart and tears stinging my eyes I recognized the plot behind the clean room was to attain his very own rock star status. I wrapped my arms around my littlest babe, held him tight to hide the tears streaming down my face and whispered, “You’ll always be my littlest Rock Star.”

Christmas 2010 Photo Shoot

Picture day in the Gronke household always justifies skipping school and ditching work responsibilities. It's a lot of work to coordinate cooperation for this annual event.

Riley is naturally mellow and loves the day off with the promise of lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings so he only mildly grumbled when we forget his belt. He really just wants it all to end so he can go back to bed.

Hope was modeling her attitude through the first round of pictures because we insisted she not wear her shirt that shouts "Totally Cool" (and you'll see that attitude if you look through all the pics).

Nico has no idea what's going on but he doesn't like to hold still for the camera and he perfected the art of the fake, plastered, constant smile, not moving his lips at all when he repeats "my brother is stinky" (our failed attempts to get him to smile normally).

But it's all in fun. We got some great shots that convey the story of picture day in all its glory. And I might be bias but I think these just might be the cutest kids ever... goofiness, attitudes and all.

To see all the unedited fun click here.

Homecoming 2010

I'm thinking the homecoming party was a hit... hoards of soda and chips, intense foosball matches, movies, xbox, 1:00 a.m. runs to McDonalds, 3:00 a.m. street football, 5:00 a.m. walks to Safeway for more food! It was a successful all nighter topped off with some extreme flipping at Sky High Sports in the morning only to find kids passed out in the office that afternoon - they were sitting in chairs, heads bent over desks or slumped in their seats while attempting to do homework! If nothing else we successfully wore them out.