Thinking twice about lemon water

I love lemons!

In California there are probably as many lemon trees as palm trees, and my mother-in-law has a nice, big one in her backyard. When she comes to visit, she usually packs a few to bring along because she knows how much I like them.

Personally, nothing hits the spot on a hot day like a big, icy glass of lemonade, or if I'm feeling under the weather, it's nice to have a cup of steaming hot tea with a squeeze of fresh lemon and honey. I also enjoyed lemon in my water when dining out; however, after my friend Lori forwarded this video to me, I shall be drinking tap water sans lemon from now on. How about you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeye8wnBJoU

Is dog food tasty?

I have never tasted dog food, at least I cannot remember if I have; however, Luke has discovered the crunchy morsels in Missy's dog bowl and can't keep them out of his mouth!

Now, I'm not dumb. I do realize that as long as he is crawling around in the kitchen, the dog's food and water bowls should be on the counter. But, the dog's gotta eat, right? So when Luke is seemingly occupied with other things, or is crawling off to another room, I put the food down. And today I forgot about it.

Every mom knows that when a crawling baby is quiet for more than 60 seconds straight, it's probably because they are into something they shouldn't be...like unraveling toilet paper into the toilet, pulling trash out of the trashcan, or eating dog food, which is precisely what Luke was doing this morning. Unfortunately, I didn't catch him in time. When I fished the chunks out of his mouth, they were nothing more than the leftover dissolved particles of the larger, denser pieces that he had managed to get into his mouth.

So, I suppose I can take comfort in the information I read on the Goodlife website:

"That's why all of our products are made with the right balance of real wholesome ingredients your pet needs without any of the artificial flavors or preservatives they don't. Our range of food for dogs and cats, wholesome biscuits & bones for dogs and wholesome treats for cats are not only safe but healthy and delicious."

Since Luke loves Missy so much, it only seems natural that he should share in the love of her food too, right?

The budding virtuoso

Luke received this "baby grand" piano from his Grandma for Christmas.

He absolutely loves it. I would guess that his two favorite toys are the piano and the dog's water bowl (when he sneaks over to splash in it when I'm not looking!)

Christmas Eve

I'm a little behind with my posting due to the fact that Johan and Hannah are home for Christmas break and I don't have as much "free" time as usual, which I really don't mind because it's nice having them around the house. Nevertheless, I wanted to post a few pictures from Christmas Eve. It was a beautiful evening and Hannah, Luke and I ventured out after a nice Swedish dinner (prepared mostly by Hannah ~ I'm so proud of her!) to enjoy the fresh snow and Christmas lights. The neighbor up the street from us had his lights set to blink to the beat of Christmas tunes. It was quite a show and Luke was impressed! Hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas.

This is a test

I decided to try posting video. This is an older clip of Luke. It is only 18 seconds long, but it took 10 minutes to upload.

Wasting time

If an award existed for the World's Most Proficient Procrastinator, I would win - hands down.

I put off cleaning, laundry, yardwork, and most recently Christmas decorating in order to piddle around online. I like to find websites about fitness, cooking or decorating, travel or clothing. Today I found the Elf maker on OfficeMax.com. This wasted about an hour of my time, but the results are very funny, I must say.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1213478421

Click on the link, but you might be tempted to waste some time as well.

There's a first time for everything...

...and this is my very first Blog. (Yes, I realize the title is lame. I'm trying to think of something more creative.)

I decided to start a Blog for a variety of reasons, but what really inspired me was reading Anne's Blog. She is one of my Spin "students" and I have known her for a few years. Her Blog is a menagerie of musings about work, friends, family, pets, raking leaves, cute produce-toting bags and anything else she feels enthusiastic about. I thought it looked like a fun and creative way to keep our geographically-scattered family and friends updated with what's new in the Linna world. So, in honor of Anne, I would like to offer 6 things you can expect to see on the Linna Blog:

1. Cute kiddos - we have 2 of them.
   
2. Videos - we have a digital video recorder and are not afraid to use it
   
3. Photos - I still have a 35mm camera, so this may take a little longer
   

4. Maybe some fitness tips or other thoughts about the classes I teach at the local YMCA

5. Possibly some ranting about my spouse (and vice versa if he feels so inclined, but he couldn't possibly have anything to gripe about)

6. Lots of updates about our life here in Michigan, which isn't too thrilling, but to those who know us it might be of interest. Michigan is polar opposite from the various cities where you will find our extended families: Orange County, California; Maui, Hawaii; San Francisco, California; Colorado Springs, Colorado; even Stockholm, Sweden, to name a few.

That's all for now. I leave you with a picture of 2 of my favorite kiddos making funny faces...

And here's one more...to get you in the holiday spirit ~