Sparky's View

We're in PA!

2009-01-20T12:23:00.000-05:00

lunch at isaac's. Yummy pickles.

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2009-01-20T06:05:00.001-05:00

Waiting to be let in the airport...

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Cheetos Please

2008-12-07T13:02:00.001-05:00

Evls enjoying a picnick lunch on the beach woth Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o.

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Lucky Stiff

2008-12-05T19:48:00.001-05:00

Girls Night out in FL with Mimi. We're the youngest here by 30 years. Looking forward to the show.

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Bday dinner

2008-10-10T16:16:00.001-05:00

Eva's coloring with Dada before her big birthday dinner!

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Blue Egg Photography Note Cards

2008-10-01T13:30:00.001-05:00

Blue Egg Photography Note Cards, originally uploaded by BenSpark.

The other day Drew got a package from Blue Egg Photography. I was pretty curious, but I patiently waited for him to come home to see what was inside. I was thrilled to see the package contained beautiful cards of food! What could be better than pictures of food?? These are beautifully done artistic photos of food taken by Susan Lalich a chef and photographer. Her talent is truly amazing!

And apparently when Drew blogged about the cards here he was told that Chef Sue would be happy to hear how I would be putting the cards to use.

In his post, Drew explained that I have been working with an organization called ChemoAngels. ChemoAngels is a not for profit organization that provides a ray of sunshine to the lives of chemo patients by connecting them with volunteers who send cards, letters and small gifts to men, women and children who are enduring chemotherapy treatments.

I think I joined ChemoAngels about 7 years ago and still hear from former patients who have graduated from the program. It's rewarding to get a note that you made someone's day a little brighter. And I love stationary and writing, so this is the perfect volunteer project for me. And I bet my ChemoBuddies will love getting these beautiful cards for the next few weeks!

Eva's First Visit to Disney

2008-09-18T08:15:00.002-05:00

We have been having a great time in Florida visiting with Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o. We've had lots of fun adventures. So far, my favorite was taking Eva to Disney World with Drew and Auntie Mo.

All sunblocked up and ready to hit the park

Eva's loving the tram ride with Daddy

The Halloween decorations at Disney were just amazing.

Eva's first ride at Disney!

Eva fell asleep on the walk over to It's a Small World and slept right through the ride. But not to worry, we rode it again once she woke up.

Eva and Daddy in a cage!

Eva sitting on a Honey Pot in Pooh's Playful Spot

Mommy and Eva at Pooh's front door.

It was a long day at the park and Eva was a trooper! I think she held up better than mommy! But it was a great day and we're so glad to have been able to take Eva to meet the mouse!

Drew has some photos up on the Benspark and Mo has some up on her Flickr site from her entire weekend with Eva. Her commentary is worth the read!

Mickey Here We Come!

2008-09-14T10:16:00.001-05:00

On our way into Disney!!

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IZEAhunt is over!

2008-09-13T19:51:00.001-05:00

Livin it up with a Lager after IZEAhunt!

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IZEAhunt

2008-09-13T17:29:00.001-05:00

Andy arrives for IZEAhunt. I'm a little scared...

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Smiles

2008-09-13T17:02:00.001-05:00

Drew and Eva bond before mommy and daddy leave for IZEAhunt.

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Doorprize Winner!

2008-09-13T12:15:00.001-05:00

I just won a camera at IZEAfest!

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Mmmmmmm.....Lager!

2008-09-12T19:05:00.001-05:00

Yummy Yuenglingy goodness! I'm in heaven.

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Moderation

2008-09-12T12:24:00.001-05:00

Drew is moderating a panel on big money bloggers right now! I'm very proud of him.

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My First Socks!

2008-09-11T15:14:00.002-05:00

I recently learned how to knit socks. Everyone in my knitting class was right, they're addicting! Right after I finished my socks I found a pattern to make matching socks for Eva. Now I'm working on my second pair of socks for me (with a matching pair for Eva to follow, of course!). I fear that I will spend a small fortune on sock yarn in the near future! It really is an addicting hobby. And the socks are so small and easy to take everwhere!

For your viewing pleasure, Eva and Mommy's blue socks!

Mommy's First Socks

Top View of Mommy's Socks

Mommy and Me Socks

Eva modeling her new blue socks!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Dan-o.

2008-09-10T18:23:00.001-05:00

Eva's enjoying the coastal ride from Del Ray to Boynton Beach after celebrating Grandpa Dan-o's birthday dinner.

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Moooooo....

2008-09-01T17:45:00.001-05:00

Eva has a cute cow towel. Tonight before bathtime Dada and Mama got a little silly.

Moo Moo Dada

Moo Moo Mama

Baby Moo Moo (pre-bath)

Baby Moo Moo (post-bath)

Either way, I think Eva's the cutest Moo Moo in the family!

Flip Flop Girl

2008-08-26T06:33:00.001-05:00

Eva loves mommy's flip flops! They are fun to play with.

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New Pics

2008-08-24T08:28:00.002-05:00

Miss Eva has been very photogenic lately. Okay, she's always photogenic and mommy has just taken a bunch of photos recently. She's been a lot of fun the last week or two. She's pulling up and starting to cruise along furniture and the toofer count is up to 8! Wasn't she born just a few weeks ago? She's growing up way too fast!

And for your viewing pleasure:

Eva sporting her teddy bear raincoat!

Eva prefers not to wear the bows, she thinks they should be tossed about the floor. Mommy thinks the bows are cute.

Maraca Mama - Eva loves the maracas that her friend H sent her!

Baby Blues - Those eyes just kill me!

Superstar - Eva loves to play with mommy's sunglasses.

Smiley - Eva loves to smile.

Big Girl - Eva likes to try to stand when she's not near any furniture. So far it hasn't gotten any further than this. I'm really grateful that she's a dainty girl and hates to fall over, so she's very careful to sit. :-)

Maine

2008-08-20T11:53:00.003-05:00

Eva and I went to Maine a couple of weeks ago to see my best friend, Elise, and her family at her family's vacation house. It was great fun to see them and Eva enjoyed playing with Elise's little boy, H. We were in Maine for one night, then we headed back home, stopping to see Uncle Nate and Auntie Sarah for lunch on our way.

Eva and I riding the golf cart to the beach.

Eva enjoying the beach in Maine.

Eva with our friend Amy.

Me and Eva with our friend Amy. (Photo credit to Elise.)

Eva watching the waves on the ferry ride back to Portland.

Eva and her friend H check out the view.

The girls on the ride to Portland.

Eva and Uncle Nate in Portsmouth.

2008-08-10T14:45:00.001-05:00

Sleeping on the beach...

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Silly Sleeper

2008-08-06T18:20:00.002-05:00

On Sunday at the Newport Folk Festival Eva learned to sit up by herself for the first time. She's been sitting by herself for quite some time, but she finally learned how to go from her belly to sitting up by herself. On Tuesday I found her in two very silly positions during her naps. They were so cute I had to share!

Morning nap - she scooted to the foot of the crib, pulled down a decorative pillow and gave in to sleep.

Afternoon nap - she scooted to the foot of the crib and decided she'd had enough, apparently.

Mmmmm... Falafel

2008-08-03T16:44:00.001-05:00

Eva enjoyed a little falafel today at the Newport Folk Festival while she waited to see Jimmy Buffett for the first time.

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New Pics

2008-07-25T09:44:00.002-05:00

I haven't been good about getting pictures up, sorry! Eva keeps me busy! So here are some new ones from this week!

Eva snuck into my knitting bag and stole some scrap yarn from me.

She is so proud!

What a happy stash stealer!

She's a pointing machine these days!

Who me? Going somewhere I'm not supposed to? NEVER!

Today Eva pulled herself up in her Pack'n'Play

She's so proud to be standing up!

And finally, a close up to see those top toofers!

Mmmm...Salty

2008-07-06T10:41:00.001-05:00

Eva's enjoying a pretzel on the front porch. She loves being at the beach.

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Red White & Blue

2008-07-04T13:31:00.001-05:00

Happy 4th of July!! We're enjoying a lovely day on the Cape.

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Back from Florida

2008-06-30T14:49:00.010-05:00

Eva and I are back safely from Florida. She's kept me busy the last week, but I'm all caught up now and have photos edited to share. Eva loved seeing her Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o. It was so nice to stay with them.

Here are some highlights from our trip.

On Tuesday, Mimi took us to the Palm Beach Zoo.

Eva rode on a carousel for the first time.	Eva liked watching the alligators swim around.
Mommy enjoyed watching the flamingos argue.	Mimi enjoyed having lunch with Eva.
There were some free roaming animals, like this giant iguana.	Mommy did not like the free roaming peacocks. Ask me about my peacock attack some time... I'm not a fan.

On Wednesday, Eva and I hung out alone at the house after running some errands in the morning. The errands made Eva sleepy.

On Thursday, Grandpa Dan-o took us to IKEA to look for bibs for Eva (so far these are the best we've found). We had lunch at the IKEA Cafe. When we got home we went swimming.

Eva liked eating in her stroller.

Eva and Grandpa Dan-o at the pool.

On Friday, Mimi was off and we went swimming!

On Friday night Auntie Mo arrived. On Saturday we went swimming with Auntie Mo.

Chillin' with Auntie Mo

On Sunday we went to the pool with Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o. At the pool she discovered that she could take off Grandpa's glasses and throw them in the water. It's a very fun game. After the pool we went shopping and had a nice dinner out.

Hey, these come off!	Into the pool they go!
Swimming with Mimi & Grandpa Dan-o	Eva's finally had it with the photos.

Knit1 Purl2

2008-06-24T19:32:00.002-05:00

Eva's having lots of fun learning to knit with Mommy tonight. Everyone is enjoying having her.

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New Shoes

2008-06-17T15:26:00.001-05:00

Mimi bought Eva some flip flops. Eva thinks they are super tasty!

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Pruneface

2008-06-12T08:12:00.001-05:00

Is this what they mean when they call someone a pruneface? Eva's really liking the prune/oatmeal combo

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Spinach & Potatoes?

2008-06-06T16:53:00.002-05:00

Believe it or not, Eva is really enjoying her spinach and potatoes for dinner. So far she's liked everything we've tried.

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She's Rollin'

2008-06-05T07:32:00.001-05:00

Eva is so ready to move. This kid is a mad rolling machine! The cats are officially afraid.

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Kitty!

2008-05-21T13:54:00.001-05:00

Eva is rolling around and finds the kitty. Thank goodness Duncan has the patience to deal with her, because she loves the kitties.

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Happy Girl

2008-05-19T21:49:00.001-05:00

Eva is one happy kid. She definitely has her moments, but over all she's a happy girl. And that big smile makes us so very happy.

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Relay for Life

2008-05-08T08:02:00.002-05:00

Drew and I are walking in the Relay For Life as a part of the team that our church has sponsored. We will be be participating in an overnight walk to raise money and awareness for cancer research. We are walking for many reasons, primarily because we have both had many friends and family members touched by cancer and we want to do something to help find the cure.

If you are able, please help us out by making a donation at my personal page. And of course your thoughts and prayers will also be greatly appreciated.

Girl's Weekend

2008-05-06T10:28:00.003-05:00

Well, if you read Drew's blog you know that he had a guy's weekend this weekend. That would mean that Eva and I had a girl's weekend. Our friend Jenn had our friends Amy and T.R. and Eva and I up to her parents' house in Vermont (we missed you Beth!). It was a great weekend with friends and Eva loved having four women to dote on her all weekend long! Eva was a champ for the three and a half hours of driving and was great all weekend.

On our drive up we made a brief pit stop to visit Eva's great-grandpa John and great-grandma Eva (Mommy and Miss Amy needed a potty break and Eva needed to stretch a bit, too).

With Great Grandma Eva

With Great Grandpa John

When we got to Vermont Jenn, Amy and T.R. went to get groceries and Eva and I relaxed a bit. Then we had a yummy dinner of tacos. Well, Eva had rice cereal and peas, but we'll not split hairs.

On Saturday we went to the Vermont Country Store for some shopping.

Eva's curious about our adventure.

Eva and Mommy after a long afternoon of shopping

After a nap (for both of us!), we all went out to a nice dinner in South Londonderry, Vermont. Then we came home and took a group photo.

Miss Amy, Miss T.R., Aunt Jenny, Eva and Mommy

On Sunday morning, Eva ate her breakfast, the girls made a great big yummy breakfast and we headed out on our way home.

Eva is very serious about breakfast.

Miss Amy, Eva and I found an interesting little place for lunch on our way home and were happy to get home to our families. The weekend was a lot of fun. But I think next time Eva will be old enough to stay home with daddy.

Eva Started Swim Lessons

2008-04-29T10:27:00.002-05:00

Eva started swim lessons at the YMCA today. We had a lot of fun playing in the pool. Here are some photos for the pool.

Eva just getting into the water.

Eva and Mommy in the pool waiting for class to start.

Eva getting ready for the waterfall to come by.

Eva got all worn out from swim class.

Boston Church Tour Photowalk

2008-04-23T06:30:00.006-05:00

On Saturday Drew and Eva and I went on a photo excursion with the New England Photo Expeditions group at Meetup.com. We had a great time meeting everyone and were able to get some great shots around the city. Eva really seemed to enjoy herself as well. I'm glad we found the group and we are looking forward to more trips with them.

Part way through the trip my camera battery died, so Drew let me borrow his Canon point and shoot. He'd played with his settings and all the shots came out with a blue tinge to them. It actually makes some of the shots more interesting. Here are some of my favorite shots from the trip.

Eva enjoying the church tour.	Eva telling mommy about the day.
A memorial garden at the Old North Church	Dogtags representing all who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I call this one "Strange Man with a Camera"	Paul Revere Statue
Steeple at St. Stephen's Church	Old North Church from the back
St. Francis behind Old North Church	St. Francis again
Old North Church from the street	Apartment building in Boston
Blue St. Francis	St. Leonard's Church
Blue St. Francis with Fence	Blue Children Praying

A Kid of Many Faces

2008-04-18T10:57:00.003-05:00

Because Eva has had a camera in her face since 5 minutes after she was born she is quite used to having her picture taken. She either ignores the camera entirely or she poses, it's a riot. I took a bunch of photos of her earlier this week, here are some of my favorites.

Eva looks surprised here...	and startled here.
Curious	No Lips!
Exploring	Posing
Eating her fingers	Determined
Model baby	Concentrating
Just Eva

We Have a Tooth!

2008-04-16T22:09:00.001-05:00

Eva's cutting her first tooth! It's a very exciting time in the Bennett household.

The light spot where the arrow is pointing is Eva's first tooth! Try taking pictures inside a six month old's mouth some time and you'll appreciate this shot a whole lot more.

More Florida Pics

2008-04-16T14:38:00.002-05:00

Here are some more photos of Eva from our trip to Florida.

This is Eva's talking face. She's gotten quite chatty recently. I wonder where she gets that from?

Eva loves to chew on her fingers...

...and her toes.

I love this thoughtful look on Eva's face.

Later in the day Eva chewed on this water bottle. She's fascinated by them.

First Swim

2008-04-05T09:50:00.002-05:00

Eva had her first pool experience while we were in Florida. Drew was bummed that he missed it, but I managed to capture the experience here for him and the rest of my viewing audience. Eva was really comfortable in the water. I think she'll be a fish like her parents.

Eva's not sure what to think of this yet. I mean, all of her water experience to date has involved getting a bath. Why is she in the water in a diaper and clothes?

Eva and mommy posing for Mimi.

A little floating for Eva. For some reason she put her hands behind her head like this a lot in the pool. I don't know if it was because she was nervous or she just wanted to look the part of a bathing beauty.

Again with the arm behind the head.

Eva sitting pretty on the side of the pool.

Apparently we spent a little too much time in the water. But Eva was having too much fun.

Our big pool adventure really wiped Eva out.

After a little snuggling Eva finally fell asleep poolside.

Florida Trip

2008-04-04T21:04:00.002-05:00

I finally unpacked my camera from our Florida trip. I have a few photos from Eva's first day in Florida here and will put up the photos of her first swim and other Florida photos this weekend.

As I've said before, Eva loves naked toes and in Florida they could be naked quite a lot. That made Eva one happy kid.

My dad's friend Stephen visited our first weekend there. He brought Eva this adorable seahorse. Its belly lights up like a Gloworm and it plays music. It's awesome.

My mom got Eva this cute hat for our visit. I love the little flap in the back to cover her neck.

Eva makes the cutest faces when she's babbling. I love this face, especially. Those cheeks make me melt.

Stay tuned for more Florida photos.

First back to front roll for Eva!

2008-04-03T15:42:00.001-05:00

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Bathtime Fun

2008-04-02T12:43:00.002-05:00

Eva is such an expressive kid. She makes me laugh with all of her silly faces and her silly baby babble. I snapped these last night as Drew was getting ready to give her a bath.

She makes this face all the time. It makes me laugh - it's somewhere between surprise and her talking.

This child LOVES naked toes! She can't wait one second to get them in her mouth, which can make diaper changing an interesting challenge.

Drew dropped her little hooded towel on her head - she seemed not to notice since there were naked toes to look at.

Kisses from her daddy. What a nice picture of daddy-daughter bonding time.

The Butterfly Place

2008-03-25T15:10:00.002-05:00

Last Friday Eva and I went to The Butterfly Place in Westford, MA. It was a nice trip out for us with the area mom's group. I somehow managed to steal the good camera from Drew and get some good photos while we were there. Eva really seemed to enjoy the outing. The butterflies really caught her attention.

Eva is all smiles watching the butterflies flit overhead.

This giant moth was hanging in a tree. It was neat to see it so still.

I got a little artsy here.

Two butterflies on yellow flowers.

A close up of two butterflies on these flowers.

Same butterflies with a different focus.

There are lots of butterflies on these flowers.

At one point it seemed like Eva was talking to the butterflies.

Jumperoo!

2008-03-25T07:29:00.001-05:00

Eva loves to jump in her Jumperoo!

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Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T18:45:00.001-05:00

>From our family to yours, we wish you a very happy Easter. Eva enjoyed our day with family and is happy snuggling with her bunny.

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Wearin' o' the Green

2008-03-17T07:50:00.001-05:00

Happy St. Patty's Day! Eva's all dressed up in her green today!

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Kitty!

2008-03-12T11:17:00.001-05:00

Much to their chagrin, Eva has discovered the cats! Only Duncan is brave enough to let her pet him. And boy does she love it!

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What's with the Fleece?

2008-03-12T07:47:00.001-05:00

Eva is not fond of the cold weather that requires her to wear fleece pajamas. I can't say that I blame her. We're missing the nice weather and good company at Mimi & Grandpa Dan-o's, but it's good to be home.

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Leavin' on a Jetplane

2008-03-09T12:28:00.001-05:00

Eva's all ready for her flight home. Can someone turn up the outside temp at home? Eva's gotten used to having naked feet all the time.

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Breakfast time!

2008-03-07T09:05:00.001-05:00

Eva loves her highchair. She has lots of toy choices and best of all she can watch how we eat. She can't wait to get her chance at food.

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Play Time

2008-03-05T09:50:00.001-05:00

It's raining this morning. Drew and I took Eva for a walk just before the rain started. Now Eva's enjoying some floor time in her diaper. She really seems to love being able to hang out in very little clothing. I think it's because it gives her easier access to those toes.

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More Car Rides?

2008-03-02T10:07:00.001-05:00

Eva's all ready for the ride back to Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o's. Eva was so good at SeaWorld yesterday. Daddy took lots of great pictures. Check out www.benspark.com for photos.

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Bright Lights

2008-02-29T19:40:00.001-05:00

Dinner and dessert at Downtown Disney tonight. Eva is going to sleep well. She has loved the lights and people here.

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Orlando Bound

2008-02-29T10:10:00.001-05:00

We're on our way to Orlando to pick up Drew and meet the folks at IZEA. Eva is resting up so she can take part in a cakeplow. ;-)

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Too Much Shopping

2008-02-28T15:25:00.001-05:00

The weather is a little cool here today. Mom needed to get her car fixed, so we went out for breakfast while we waited. Then we hit the mall for a bit and Eva zonked out. She's a big fan of the sling. So is mommy!

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Crazy Wildlife

2008-02-26T09:09:00.001-05:00

Eva and I encountered this very ugly duck on our walk this morning. He followed us for a bit, but he was friendly enough. I guess my run in with a peacock 25 years ago affected me more than I realized because I got a little panicked when this guy began following us. Thank goodness he was friendly.

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2008-02-26T09:04:00.002-05:00

Eva is enjoying meeting the wildlife of South Florida. Okay, it's just Bonnie & Clyde, but she's enjoying them very much.

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Made in the Shade

2008-02-25T23:00:00.001-05:00

Eva's looking too cool in mommy's shades. The face makes me laugh - she's a funny kid.

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Too Much Fun

2008-02-24T13:01:00.001-05:00

Someone has had a little too much fun with Mimi and Grandpa Dan-o. Eva seems to like the warm weather and hanging out with her feet naked.

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Florida is warm!

2008-02-23T13:51:00.001-05:00

We have arrived safely in Florida. Grandpa Dan-o got the car seat all installed for us.

Now where is that pool?

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So Far So Good!

2008-02-23T09:13:00.001-05:00

I slept the whole first leg of the trip.

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What's going on here?

2008-02-23T04:47:00.001-05:00

Off to the airport bright and early...

Well, maybe not so bright.

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Eva loves her balloon

2008-02-14T23:07:00.001-05:00

Eva playing with her balloon from Grandfather.

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New photos

2008-02-05T16:52:00.001-05:00

A few new photos of Eva.

She's just about to blow bubbles here... or maybe it was that she was about to blow chunks on mommy...

Eva swinging

One of our favorite musicians is Ellis Paul. And just before Eva was born, Ellis released his first children's CD, The Dragonfly Races. Of course Drew and I had to have a copy for our little baby and now it's a favorite of ours to listen to. I like to think that Eva likes the song "I Like to Swing" - you can hear it at Ellis' Dragonfly Races MySpace page.

Test Utterz #1

2008-02-02T11:01:00.001-05:00

My first Utterz post. Actually this is a guest post by Drew.

I love Utterz and have set up Allison with the ability to post directly to her blog and Flickr account. Very Fun.

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New pics

2008-01-29T11:22:00.000-05:00

Sorry that I haven't posted pictures in a while. Our computer went wonky on us. We still don't have photoshop loaded, so I can't add some of the pictures I really want to, but I have found a way to load some from my phone. So here for your viewing pleasure is Eva and her Daddy reading. I was running around getting ready for a baby shower this weekend but I had to stop and snap this shot; it just melted my heart.

Tummy Time

2008-01-07T20:59:00.000-05:00

Eva did a little "Tummy Time" last week and I caught it on film - okay, memory card, let's not be too picky here, people! So today I have some photos of Eva holding her head up, drooling and looking like she just came off a three week bender. Enjoy our lovely girl!

She's so strong holding her head up so high!

A little drooly!

So expressive!

A little tired after all that work! Or maybe it's a milk hangover....

Not a resolution

2008-01-04T19:15:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm not making a New Year's Resolution, but I do want to make more of an effort to use my blog and get photos of Eva up, especially when Drew is traveling. Yesterday I took some cute photos of Eva and Drew started pestering me about getting them up on my blog. So today I dusted off my Photoshop skills and got these photos touched up and uploaded. I took some cute ones today, hopefully they will be up tomorrow.

So for your viewing pleasure....

Eva smiles

I think I'm happy....

Yes, I'm happier.

I AM happy!

Eva at play - who let a three month old have a pen?

What are you looking at Mom?

What is this in my hand?

Really, what is this thing?

Oooohhhh... it's a snowman!

Baby Bennett is here!

2007-10-17T12:23:00.000-05:00

Most of you have read about this on Drew's Blog already, but Eva Grace has arrived!! She's a week old today, having arrived October 10th at 12:04 pm with speed that shocked everyone. She was 8 pounds 5.8 ounces and 20 1/2 inches long.

Mom meeting Eva

Our family

Check out Drew's Blog for more photos!

Thinking Pink

2007-10-02T12:51:00.000-05:00

No, it's not a commentary on Baby BenSpark's gender! It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, silly!!!

This has been an important cause to me for a long time and I'm always happy to do what I can to support the cause and spread the word! So for the month of October, Sparky's View will be Thinking Pink.

And for the month of October (and always!) I'm asking you to Think Pink. Check out events in your area that support breast cancer research, read up on the latest work and news of Komen for the Cure, click daily at The Breast Cancer Site to donate mamograms to women who can't afford them. Do something this October to help the cause.

Dunder Mifflin Infinity

2007-09-26T11:13:00.000-05:00

Our friend Maureen is applying to be a Regional Manager for Dunder Mifflin Infinity. Check out her post here: Schrute-mania and sign up to be an employee under her.

The details are vague, but it looks like this will be an online game, similar to the Apprentice online game. So check it out - and sign up to be an employee of Maureen's. She'll be the best boss you've ever had!

Drew's in Another Contest

2007-08-15T11:05:00.000-05:00

So Drew is a finalist in another contest. This one would put him in a Super Bowl Commercial - and would send us to California for the taping.

Check out his post for details on how to vote.

Knitting

2007-08-09T09:21:00.000-05:00

So I finally uploaded pictures of some of my projects. I have a few more photos to take and upload, but here's a start.

This was my first project. I gave it to a friend as a shower gift and am trying to finish a similar one for Baby BenSpark, but with ducky buttons.

Here is a detail of the buttons.

My next big project was for my friend's son's third birthday.

And the button detail again - buttons make the sweater most of the time!

I will add some photos of some of the hats and other things I have made soon. I am working on a blanket for Baby BenSpark at the moment and will add photos of that when I am done. Hopefully you've enjoyed my new hobby - I sure love it!

Lindsay's Bachelorette Weekend

2007-08-02T20:13:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago my in laws were kind enough to allow me to use the Cape house to host a bachelorette weekend for my oldest friend Lindsay. Everyone had a great time. Friday night we had Paul's Pizza (a Falmouth favorite!) and girl talked. We spent a beautiful Saturday on the beach and had a great dinner at the Casino Wharf fx, followed by drinks at the British Beer Company.

Here are a few pictures of the festivities:

Lindsay and I celebrating.

Lindsay's Escort into the Casino

All gussied up!

Drew's Soda Club Contest

2007-06-25T12:47:00.000-05:00

Drew is running a contest on his blog. I couldn't enter because I am married to him - and we already have a soda maker, but some very talented people have entered the contest. You can check out Drew's post of the entrants and vote every day this week for your favorite.

Farewell Mr. Wizard

2007-06-13T08:56:00.000-05:00

It's a sad day for the Children of the 80's; our beloved Science teacher, Mr. Wizard, has passed away. Mr. Wizard taught many of us the wonders of Science and made it fun and interesting.

There is a very interesting timeline of his life on his website, including the history of his first show "Watch Mr. Wizard" in the 1950's and 60's.

I never really loved science in school. I did well enough, but it didn't excite me. But Mr. Wizard always made me excited about science and showed me new ways to look at the world. I'm glad the DVD sets are available to share this brilliant teacher with future generations.

A baby game for you to play!

2007-06-02T09:38:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy month! Sorry I haven't been around! But here is a game for you to amuse yourselves with until I can get back to posting regularly, which should be soon.

Guess Baby BenSparks' gender, height, weight and birthday. See how you compare to others who have guessed!

Big Announcement!

2007-04-30T08:25:00.000-05:00

That's right - we have a big announcement to share. We've outgrown our college clothing!

No!!! Drew and I picked up these toddler shirts on our last visits to our respective colleges in preparation of this big announcment...

We're expecting our first child in October!

We're very excited and have been waiting to share the good news with everyone!

Now that the big news is out, I'll start posting photos of some of my knitting projects, most of which have been baby related.

Enjoy the happy news and keep an eye here for updates!

Totally Adorable

2007-04-25T14:21:00.000-05:00

I came across this site today and just had to share it with any parents or people with kids in their lives. Totally Out of Hand makes custom jewelry out of sterling silver, or gold if you prefer, from your children's drawings. The artist, Lee Skalkos, has tons of photos on the site of her work alongside the original artwork.

The pieces on her site are so cute and different that you can't help but fall in love with them. I can't imagine how special it would be to get a piece of your child's artwork sculpted in silver!

Happy Easter!!

2007-04-08T10:28:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter!

We are enjoying a very relaxing Easter weekend in NH with my parents. It's been wonderful to enjoy the company of family on this holiday weekend. I hope that everyone has an enjoyable celebration with their loved ones!!

Thursday Night TV - She Said

2007-04-06T07:09:00.000-05:00

So here we are again with the She Said. To see the He Said, check out Drew's entertainment blog.

The Office was great last night. And we got an extra 15 minutes - I was in heaven!!! I can't believe that Dwight saved the day!! What a great bit of irony - the one person who makes Jim crazy is the one who saved him!

And I can't believe how clueless Michael is sometimes - he knows NOTHING about negotiation. It's hard to imagine that anyone can be that clueless. But Michael comes around to remind us every Thursday.

SCRUBS was a good epsiode, too. I was really sad that Laverne had to leave, but they did a great job with the story. Sometimes it's hard for a comedy to do something serious like the death of a cast member without seeming too flip about it or totally killing the vibe of the show and being too serious. This episode was well written with just the right amount of humor and drama. Hopefully Jordan won't kill Dr. Cox for forgetting to tell the rest of the hospital staff about the baby!

LOST - She Said

2007-04-05T07:51:00.000-05:00

So Drew decided that we would do a He Said/She Said about LOST. And informed me of this decision by posting to his entertainment blog. Thanks, hon!

So, my take on LOST. Last night was a little less exciting than the last few episodes. But I did love the scenes with Hurley and Sawyer. It was so great that Hurley conned the con-man. Even if it was a little cheesy.

I have no deep theories on the smoke monster, I'll leave those to Drew. I'm not sure if I trust Juliette or not. I can't imagine that she can do a lot of harm on her own, but stranger things have happened on the island.

The one thought that did enter my mind was that Juliette knows the code to the electric fences - maybe they'll move all the Losties up to the Others camp and take it over. Then there will be a huge battle scene when the Others return and find their camp taken over. That's my one little theory/daydream about the show.

So that's my She Said. I hope it wasn't too boring for you!

Tagged twice!

2007-04-04T15:10:00.000-05:00

I've been bad about updating, please forgive me.

So it appears I've been tagged twice. So here goes:

First I was tagged by Christine:

List five things you are obsessed with, then tag five people to do the same. I'm not sure I'm really obsessed with anything, but here are my five biggest passions (besides Drew, which is a bit cliche to use as a line item).
So here goes, in no particular order…
1. Folk music
2. Cats
3. Reading and Writing
4. Knitting
5. Cooking

Then I was tagged by Drew:

This time it's a musical theme.
About the MEME: I need to pick 7 CD’s or music tracks that I am listening to right now. 5 from CD player at home and two from the car. I listen to CDs at work more than home, so we'll do work and car.

1. Essentials - Ellis Paul
2. Big Dream Boulevard - Antje Duvekot
3. Side Streets Live - Christopher Williams
4. Live in Michigan - Don White
5. Jake Armerding - Jake Armerding
6. American Jukebox Fables - Ellis Paul
7. Hope & Other Casualites - Mark Erelli

People get mad when I tag them... and I have no one left to tag, so just enjoy my responses and chec out some of the artists I'm listening to. The're pretty cool.

Did someone say makeup?

2007-03-19T09:40:00.000-05:00

Almost a year ago I started using new makeup. Little did I know that my world would never be the same!

I had been eyeing the commercials for Bare Escentuals Mineral Makeup for a while and found out that my mom had some, so I decided to give it a shot and I really loved it! It looks natural, not like I'm wearing a ton of makeup, even though I need good coverage because I was not blessed with the best skin.

Then I discovered that QVC has kits that they sell and both my wonderful husband and our credit card began weeping. Honestly though I think that the kits are a great way to gather some staples and some new/fun items at a bit of a discount versus buying each item individually. I just got a new kit this weekend; it was part of an automatic delivery set I bought in September. It was fun to play with some new things while we were snowed in on Friday night and Saturday morning!

Drew was kind enough to offer to let me set up a Bare Escentuals discussion section in the forum that he set up for his blog. So if you're interested in BE or love it and want to talk about ideas or have questions, stop on by the forums. We don't bite!

Long Weekend

2007-03-14T15:55:00.000-05:00

We had a lovely long weekend in New Hampshire visiting Drew's Aunt & Uncle. You can get all the gory details of the weekend here and here and here. I spent the weekend doing a lot of knitting. I'll get some pics of my projects and share them soon.

Tomorrow night we are going to see Christopher Williams. We are very excited!!

Tagged again

2007-03-09T10:51:00.000-05:00

I was tagged by Drew for this grateful meme. The three things I am most grateful for.

1. My family. Which is huge and encompasses everyone related to me and my wonderful husband. Our family is always supportive and wonderful and I'm happy to have them.

2. My friends. I have a wonderful network of supportive friends who I really appreciate. Even if we don't all get to talk as much as we'd like, it's great to know they will be there if they are needed.

3. Our boys. Our cats, Oliver & Duncan, may drive me crazy sometimes, but they have been wonderful company and are always good for a hug and a snuggle when someone needs it the most. We're lucky to have such wonderful pets.

Okay, I'll tag Pink Pirate Pants. Maybe she's better at responding here than to phone calls. ;-)

New Stuff

2007-03-08T10:40:00.000-05:00

So I'm learning more and more about blogging. Mostly things my wonderful husband tells me that I need. So I am now on FuelMyBlog and have a widget for people to vote for me, if they feel so inclined.

And now I've added Drew's Photo-a-Day widget to my page, which will show Drew's most recent photo from his Photo-a-Day project. He's an excellent photographer. You should check out his photos.

I also added a MyBlogLog widget, so you can see my recent readers (only those who are registered with MyBlogLog). Apparently I have some readers that I don't know. Pretty nifty!

I've Been Tagged!

2007-03-06T13:41:00.000-05:00

I have been tagged by Autumn. So here goes:

Eighteen Musical Meme

Here's what you're supposed to do: Go over to popculturemadness.com, click on the decade you turned 18, find the actual year you turned 18, and copy the top songs for that year...pasting them. The ones I liked are bolded, the ones I hated are in italics, the ones I was neutral about are not formatted, and the ones I didn't know at all have question marks (???) next to them.

I don't have as many as Autumn but here it is!

One Sweet Day - Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men
Because You Loved Me - Celine Dion
Always Be My Baby - Mariah Carey
Tha Crossroads - Bone Thugs N Harmony
How Do U Want It - 2Pac featuring K-Ci and JoJo
You're Makin' Me High - Toni Braxton
Macarena (bayside boys remix) -Los Del Rio for about five minutes, then it got annoying
No Diggity - Blackstreet featuring Dr. Dre
Un-Break My Heart - Toni Braxton

Apparently I've never really been into pop/current music. And that was years before I became a folk groupie!

So I'll tag Mo and Stephen (maybe he can do his A's year since he's not 18 yet!)

Knitting?

2007-03-05T09:21:00.000-05:00

So this winter I decided that I needed a new hobby. I read a lot, I like to do Sudoku in front of the television, but I wanted to do something else. There is a little yarn shop right around the corner from our house called Yarn It All. So one day I decided to stop in and see what the classes are all about.

The classes are really reasonably priced and run for four weeks, two hours each Tuesday night. It's nice to get to meet some other people in town, learn to knit, see what other people are working on and get a little social time.

It's great fun and I'm starting to find some cool online resources in addition to my weekly classes. I plan to start a link section about knitting, since I've found some pretty cool sites about knitting. So far one of my favorites is Lion Brand Yarn. They offer free patterns, a free newsletter and info about knitting. If you're interested in knitting, check it out.

First Photo

2007-02-28T19:13:00.000-05:00

So this was the view out my car window on Monday on my way into work. I really liked how the snow clung to the tree branches making everything look soft and white. Who knew that hibernating trees could look so pretty?

New Blog, First Post

2007-02-28T12:30:00.000-05:00

So I've decided to enter the world of blogging. Partially because Drew can't have a blog hosted by more than one person and use PayPerPost, so if I have something to say or share, I don't have a place to do it. And partially because Drew now has all this fun money from PayPerPost and I am a bit jealous.

In my new webspace I hope to share pictures that I've taken with the nifty new camera that Drew got me for Valentine's Day, share info I've found on one of my new hobbies, knitting, and any other new hobby or obsession that comes my way.

I hope you all enjoy it. Leave me comments, say hello - I'm new to this big, scary place called blogging.