The Daily Starr

Spooooooooooooky weekend!

2011-10-24T08:06:00.000-07:00

Big Halloween Party this weekend at the girls' school. It was super fun going room to room through the "haunted house" - until some kid pulled the carbon monoxide alarm and we had to flee the building in terror. Luckily - there was a hay ride! OUTIDE! Away from the alarm of doom!

The pink butterfly and bluebird had a fantastic time.

Costumes had to be SLIGHTLY modified from long sleeves to short due to the unseasonably warm weather.

SOME of the rooms in the "haunted house" were scarier than others....

"check out my wings"

Iris - not the photo fan. So you have to sneak up on her.

Again - creepy rooms......

Yay! Photos?

Getting ready....but really just goofing.

pre-party hot air balloons flew over the house

Here we are at a kidless bonfire wedding at the beginning of Oct. So relaxed....

Happy Birthday, Grandma Janie!!!

2011-10-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

Click the "play" button in the middle.........

We love you, Grandma! Have a great birthday!

Art Institute - here we come!

2011-08-22T10:15:00.000-07:00

OK - I don't even know where to begin. I did NOT see this one coming from Nora. At all. I would have never in a million years pegged HER to be the artist, but here they are - her drawings from last night. With ZERO help from Mark and me.....she drew these 2 awesome faces. And these are just two examples. She did it all night! Amazing.

Right???? Crazy.

KC Zoo

2011-08-14T12:53:00.001-07:00

Well, Saturday was supposed to be relatively cool, so we decided to go to the KC Zoo. Well, it ended up being hotter than we thought. But you can't tell from Iris' face as she enjoyed watching Nikita the Polar Bear swimming her laps.

Here are Nora, Iris, and their new girlfriend watching Nikita. If you look in the water to the right, you can see her diving. The girls loved watching her.

Nora has a bird's eye view for the sea lion show. Best seat in the house!

You can see the heat starting to take its toll. Red faces, but still having some fun.

Our noble chariot. Daddy's a champ to push them all over the zoo.

Snack break!

Sandcastle-mania!!!

2011-08-14T11:15:00.001-07:00

FINALLY, the heat broke in Kansas City. We were able to get out and enjoy some beautiful sunshine at the park.

Iris was building some sandcastles and giggling on the swings.

This is messy.

Nora B is a champion builder.

More Lake Pics!

2011-08-12T13:14:00.001-07:00

Lake Weekend!

2011-08-12T11:36:00.000-07:00

We had a great lake week! Grumpy even helped us catch fish! Here's Nora learning how to reel 'em in!

Alright! She caught a whopper!

Iris had the first catch of the day!

The Discovery Center

2011-07-28T09:11:00.001-07:00

Crazy times with the TX cousins at the new Discovery Center in Topeka.

Iris and James painting

Nora and Bodie's Masterpiece

Nora B - taking after her pop

Taking care of the patient

Checking the heartbeat

If I had a hammer....I'd hammer out a warning...

Gage Park Train!!!! Our Fave!

Sillies

There's Blue on it....

2011-05-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

There are really no words. Just watch.

Easter

2011-04-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

The Texas cousins came up for Easter this year and we had such a great time. The kids really played well together - so wonderful.

Here is Uncle Colin teaching the kids about Cascarones - which are REAL egg shells that are dyed and stuffed with confetti. You smash them on each other and the ground. So fun.

Sitting on the gorilla statue at the Topeka Zoo

Tiptoe through the tulips...

Dandelions

The Starr Clan

Sunshine!

Pink Flamingos

ZOO!!!

Superdads!

Happy 3rd Birthday!

2011-03-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

Such a great birthday party at Little Monkey Bizness celebrating with family and friends!

I'm not sure if Daddy or the girls had more fun...

Iris enjoying the day

Crazy Train

Zoo snacks

Elephant!

Nikita - the most awesomest polar bear on the planet

Iris and Mommy on the zoo train

Iris and Nora's snow capers

2011-01-24T10:56:00.000-08:00

Click to play and watch the mayhem unfold.

Sledding!

The Christmas Eve video. Watch Nora's reaction to the Goldfish around the 2:20 mark - PRICELESS

Neverending snow

2011-01-18T13:03:00.000-08:00

This snow will NEVER melt. We were able to enjoy one more day on Sunday before it started to warm and melt. The girls got in their first sled-ride. Hard to find a decent sledding hill in the plains, but this method worked just fine.

Cabin FEVER!!!

2011-01-14T14:45:00.001-08:00

More pics of the Monday snowstorm. Nora works on a snowball.
Iris picks up the snow and drops it while repeatedly chanting her snow mantra "watchin the no" or something that sounded like that. (Videos to follow)
Winter wonderland!

"Hey Nora, don't close your eyes, I'm going to take a picture."
uh..........
This is from late October/early November. We went to Antioch Park to watch the ducks and collect pinecones.

SNOW DAY!

2011-01-10T13:06:00.000-08:00

BEST MONDAY EVER!!!

Iris tries to eat the snowflakes as they fall. Blue is not impressed.
Nora watches the falling snow with pure wonder.

Christmas with the Starrs

2011-01-04T13:16:00.000-08:00

This Christmas was a magical time.

Santa followed us to Topeka where he delivered many wonderful gifts down the chimney to Iris and Nora Starr - who were very good this year. They received an easel, a Dora dollhouse, many dinosaurs (which were big this year), books, puzzles, and a giant cardboard playhouse. We then went home after the weekend and spent the following week cleaning the house and making room for the hoard of new toys we received.

We also spent a fun night at Jen and Phil Charlton's where the girls played with Quinlan and we visited with Aunt Linda and Uncle Gene. Gene took this amazing photos of the girls. It was such a blast.

Hope you and yours had a wonderful Holiday as well!!!

Thanksgiving!!!

2010-11-29T04:37:00.001-08:00

What a GREAT Thanksgiving! Molly, Colin, James, and Bodie came up from Texas and we spent 3 action-packed days in Topeka!

This is the kids' table. Now that we've had Iris and Nora, we've been banished to it again. Not that anyone minds.

Here's the feast! Colin and I got to go first - again, played the "kid" card. Nice!

No one had more fun with the cousins than Iris - often to the detriment of her nutrition. Ahh well.

More giggling....

Nora and James are obviously much more serious at mealtime.

Bodie Bode!!

It's like a clown car, but a bed! We are actually belting out Wizard of Oz songs as we watch the movie. Which may sound lame. And it is. But it was fun.

The weather Saturday was warm enough to run around the yard, visit the horses, and get out the pink Escalade! Yay! Sometimes, Daddy has to help steer....and hit the gas.

Iris glams it up.

Follow Daddy, follow Daddy!

What a great time! Wouldn't want to do it again before tomorrow! Gobble Gobble!

Grandma Starr, we missed you so much!

Sad news

2010-11-04T08:44:00.000-07:00

Blue's cancer is back - although you cannot tell from this video, which was taken last night BEFORE he started his meds. Good ole Blue boy. Takes a freight train to keep that dog down!

He started Prednisone last night and already feels a lot better. He ate a bowl of food overnight. The doctor says he has a couple months left, but we all hope for more!

All Hallow's Eve EXTRAVAGANZA

2010-11-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

Oh yes. Here we are - Alan from "The Hangover" and the Robert Palmer video girl. It's embarrassing, but we got out of the house and had real conversation with adults, so all worthwhile.

The morning of Halloween, Nana was visiting because she babysat the night before so Mommy and Daddy could go to the adult beverage party. We decided to go run around at the Arboretum Fun, fun!

You'll note above that Iris is completely airborne. It's impressive.
After all that frolicking, a girl needs a breather!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.......what the heck happened to THIS poor kid?

No, I think your feet are bigger....no, YOUR feet are bigger....no YOURS are. No, YOU!

They called this a "tunnel."

Iris loves tunnels.

Mom, what would happen if I put my left foot in that water? Moments later, her question was answered.

Aw, isn't this one neat? Last flowers of the season.

It's a neat picture if you don't notice the weird goat-head wolf laying down behind them.

Nora thought it was neat to sit on the pumpkin.

OK - now we're getting to the good stuff. Here are the Wondertwins after their nap and dinner and hours of trick-or-treat practice. All ready for the big show!
The fam out in the dark, dark night walking down to the Haunted House on the corner to start our adventure.Look at our Halloween Hero selflessly hauling the girls up and down the street. What a champ!

Pulling up to the yard of the Haunted House. There had to be 20 inflatables on the yard and roof. AMAZING. There were hundreds of kids down there.

First things first Haunted House people, where's our candy?

Woooo - those ghosts are PRETTY scary! Look at Iris' face! Priceless.

This was the inflatable walk-through Haunted House and Nora and I are standing in-between the Keymaster and the Gatekeeper. "Okay, who brought the dog?" LOL. Ghostbusters. I kill me.....

I'm telling you, these people do NOT mess around with Halloween.

Alright - now it's on down the street for the real deal - the candy! Trick or treat, Olathans!

Wrapping up a wonderful weekend and magical night. Back to the house to hand out candy, which was just as much fun as acquiring it. Zzzzzzzzzzzzz. Already planning costumes for next year. Any ideas?

Grandma Starr comes to visit!

2010-10-04T13:52:00.000-07:00

What a fun weekend! Grandma Starr came up from Oklahoma City and we all had a blast!

Here we are at the park on Friday - we packed a picnic dinner and drove to Gardner! Here, Grandma Starr is twirling Nora on this funny spinny contraption. Round and round she goes!

Here are the super sweet trikes Grandma got the girls! They're working on the pedaling, but they are great for pointing!
FAIL! Here's Nora's first attempt at the tricycle. We'll give her thebenefit of the doubt. She just woke up from her nap.

Starting to get the hang of it.....

Teeter toddler - get it?

Iris wants you to know the tricycles have a huge amount of cargo room. Thanks for the visit Grandma Starr and all the great toys and clothes! We wouldn't want to do it again before tomorrow!!! Love you!

Post-summer wrap-up

2010-09-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

I realize it's been a million years since our last post, so here's what we've been up to. In the past 2 weeks, we discovered a playground in Lenexa that is next to a pedestrian tunnel that goes UNDER a traintrack. It's a toddler perfect-storm!!! We all love it! One day, we saw 4 trains!
We had some rain this weekend, but we made our way through the fog to the playground.
When you yell in that tunnel, it makes a lot of noise. That's what Iris wants you to take away from this picture.
I just like this photo a lot.
You get 3 chances to guess what she's pointing at.....
Oh - and poor mullet-head Nora got a second haircut. She's adorable, but her hair has some work to do. But it's getting there.

Oh - did I mention the Playground by the train tunnel has its own TUNNEL for little people?

This is the look we get when we say "be careful Nora, slow down." Such attitude.

Labor Day, we went to Topeka and rode the carousel in the park. One girl likes it, one girl doesn't. Guess which one does.....

Here's Nora on the train. It's super awesome and the conductor remembered the girls from last time!!!

All aboard!!!!

This is our Hawaiian Princess. Aloha!

Clear the streets! The girls are licensed!

Ohhhhhhhhhhh how we love cupcakes!
Hope you have a great fall! Grandma Starr is coming to visit soon and we cannot wait!!!

Poor Sony....

2010-08-23T13:28:00.000-07:00

This is what Iris thinks of Sony's constant, irritating meowing at all hours of the day and night. Don't feel bad for Sony, though. He crawled up on the bed and laid there all on his own. He was not under duress of any sort.

I'm a lady, I am!

2010-08-12T09:59:00.001-07:00

This has become the topic for much fiery debate in the Starr household. I painted the girls' toenails on Tuesday night - while Mark was out. I think it's super cute and the girls are so tickled - always staring at their new raspberry-colored toes.
Look - even Buzz Lightyear approves (top right corner of photo)!

Clowning Around

2010-07-22T20:52:00.000-07:00

COOKIE!!!

2010-07-13T05:37:00.001-07:00

Ch-ch-changes

2010-07-12T07:58:00.000-07:00

Many big changes in the Starr household these past few weeks...Lots to update.

But FIRST, Father's Day. Here are Daddy and Iris on Father's Day being goofy. Typical.

And Nora wanted to ham it up as well....

Grumpy stopped by for dinner and to draw some pictures for the girls so they could guess what they were. Some of the sketches left us all guessing.....Grumpy may need a bit more practice. But he CAN draw a solid car.

Oh the best part of Father's Day - playing in the wrapping paper and ribbon.
OK - now onto the updates - this is attempt #1 at Iris' hair. We put it in, well, what can best be described as 2 afro-puffs and a cute bow barrette to hold back the bangs. It lasted a whopping 3.2 minutes.

AND - we introduced a potty. Isn't it ridiculous? It's a princess potty that plays music. Egads. We also have a princess potty book and Elmo potty video, which are the most ignorant things I've ever seen. But if they work, I'll eat my words!

This heard last night as I was working in the kitchen...

Mark: "The girls just pulled all of their puzzles off of the dresser. NOT IT."

Nice.....

And finally - the piece de resistance! They are OUT of the highchairs and IN booster seats at the table. Such big girls.

Next on the agenda: Nora's hair - as evidenced in the above photo. Sheesh.

Also - we took the Wondertwins to see Toy Story 3 at the theater yesterday. It was hairy at first. LOTS of boring previews. Also, they had a hard time not being folded up in the theater seats, so we had to sit them on our laps, but they sat through the whole thing and a great time was had by all! So proud.

Fourth of July

2010-07-07T04:52:00.001-07:00

Rain? What rain?

A newt!!!

2010-06-22T10:41:00.001-07:00

Iris's Painting - Done FINALLY

2010-06-10T19:24:00.000-07:00

Alright. FINALLY! I have been working on this painting for about a year. I got stumped at the Iris and the Rose. But I had to finish it. So, I plowed through it tonight. And I added the bees, which are my favorite. I sure hope Iris likes it. She's a tough critic!

More from the Lone Star State!

2010-06-08T13:37:00.000-07:00

One of the draws of Texas - you get to dine with superheroes. It's a fact! Here, Nora and Iris enjoy a leisurely breakfast of bees (cheerios) and berries with Superman and Batman.

Here's the crew on the way to the Beaumont Farmer's Market. What a great morning!

BUBBLES!!!!!!!!
Here, Molly shares her experiences on the short bus

Nora Takes a Haircut

2010-06-08T13:31:00.000-07:00

Nora got rid of the raggedy baby mullet a few weeks ago and got a new improved, more shapely mullet. It's way better. She loved every minute!
Please note that Nora chose the #20 Joey Logano Home Depot car. She's all about the Sprint (Piston) Cup! Kachow!!!

Our Long TX Weekend

2010-06-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody! Sorry it's been SO long. Three weeks ago, Mark and I took the girls on a plane. To Texas. To see Molly and Colin and the boys. It was such a great time. They were awesome on the plane - the girls AND MARK! Here are some pics of our awesome vacation. Molly's pool might be the greatest place on Earth.... Dad and Iris swimming after dinner

Nora chilling in the floatie
TX construction

Chowing on some Rao's

Rao's cookies can't be beat! James agrees!

Bodie and Nora

Mark teaching Nora how to down-shift Lightning to second

Watching Scooby-Doo with the little peeps.
Come on ride the train....
Bodie Bode!!!
Iris McGee
Here are the girls lounging on a floatie.

Pots N Pans

2010-05-15T09:12:00.000-07:00

It's called art people...

DUNKING!

2010-05-14T09:11:00.000-07:00

WATCH OUT MOLLY!

When Animals Attack - Wondertwins Version

2010-04-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

Without further ado!!!

2010-04-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

Here are the wondertwins enjoying their downtime before bed.

Wednesday afternoon, our good friends Andy and Tami gave birth to twin girls. Welcome to the world, Kenzie and Morgan! We cannot wait to meet you.

Enjoying the great outdoors after a hard day at the office.

Nora tiptoeing through the tulips rocking her baby mullet.

Bathtime and boats!

Oh fun! Using the fingerpaints we got from Aunt Laurie for our birthday!!!

The gang's all here!

2010-04-01T12:08:00.000-07:00

Molly and the boys came up for Spring Break and I managed to sneak a few days off work to hang out with them in Topeka with Iris and Nora. It was a non-stop party. So much so that we all ended up with nasty colds. We're like Led Zeppelin.
These pictures were taken at the World Famous Topeka Zoo. It was a beautiful day and we had so much fun!
Iris was hysterical and wore those sunglasses all day long. I think she looks like Jackie O. What a diva.

Here are the kiddos in the art room at a playplace in Shawnee called "Little Monkey Bizness." It's the greatest place ever.

Here's Nora and I with the African Elephant. Not to be confused with the Asian Elephant that was just around the corner.

OK - now this place is super cool. It is a restaurant that delivers your meal by TRAIN. There is a track that runs around the top of the place and a whistle goes off and lights flash and the train comes around the whole restaurant to deliver the food. The girls went BONKERS - but the food was barely edible.

Here is the Krakon at the Topeka Zoo. Okay, it's not a Krakon, but it might as well be. Look at the size of that thing. We were lucky to get away with our lives!

This is our attempt at a nice group photo. Good intentions ended in mass chaos.

Look at those sweet girls in their wooden bear chair. Such a great day.

Here are the girls with James right before the black bear exhibit. As Papa would say - wouldn't want to do it again before tomorrow.

I'm 2!!!

2010-03-30T19:29:00.001-07:00

So, of course Mother Nature would pick the girls' second birthday to nail us with NINE inches of snow. It was a rough trek getting there, but the party was a smashing success! Thanks to all who helped us celebrate! Here is their yummy cake....
Daddy is showing the girls how to wind the bunnies to make them hop...
My cousin Emily showing Nora how to accessorize with her birthday hat.
The Starr/Charlton clan! Wouldn't be a party without them!

Nana is helping the Nora and Iris properly unpackage their gifts.

Mark and Quinlan playing with iPhone apps

The after-party! Here the girls assemble and play with their toy trains!

Mommy knows what we like - SUNGLASSES! There's no such thing as too many!

Alright! Their new Princess ride-on. Push me, Iris! Mush! Mush!

It's great being two!

March Madness!

2010-03-14T19:27:00.000-07:00

Made a trip to Lawrence a while back to visit our "alma mater." Introduced the girls to our old friend, Mr. Jayhawk. We'll be seeing more of him in the weeks to come. Rock chalk!
Here is a beautiful shot of Iris looking all radiant and beautiful - with Nora yelling at us in the background. You just gotta laugh....
And here's our new pasttime - coloring.
Sunglasses - the hottest accessory in the Starr household.
Who loves Youtube more than the wondertwins? Did you know they have Finding Nemo clips AND Old MacDonald sing-a-longs out there? They do.
And this weekend, we discovered the Emerald City - well, it could have been the Emerald City - we hit the motherlode at a playplace for toddlers in Shawnee.
It's called Monkey Bizness. It's the place to see and be seen for the toddler set. In fact, we saw 4 other families we know there!
They even have an art room to color and paint - although the paints managed to all get hidden by the time Nora and Iris made it to the room. Huh. How did that happen?
A great and fun way to enjoy the last weekend until our terrible twos hit!

Dessert with Iris & Nora

2010-02-26T22:43:00.000-08:00

The Valentine's Day Massacre

2010-02-15T07:32:00.000-08:00

Iris and Nora destroyed these yummy cupcakes our dear friend Marcia Valera made. YUMMY!

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

2010-02-15T07:31:00.000-08:00

RIP Yoshi

2010-01-27T04:51:00.000-08:00

Last night, our dear friend Yoshi passed away. He was a great cat with a big personality and the house already seems empty without him. We hope he entertains the other cats in Heaven with his mad paper ball-fetching skills. Goodnight, sweet Yoshi! We will all miss you.

JUNKIE

2010-01-20T09:34:00.000-08:00

Nora discovers the wonder of chocolate.

Holiday Wrap-Up

2010-01-05T04:31:00.000-08:00

Pre-Christmas festivities - during their tea party, Grumpy pretends to eat a piece of plastic cake while Iris and Nora ignore him. Grumpy gets no respect!
Nora and Koffee watch the squirrel as he steals the bird-food for his Holiday feast.
Blue and Iris bully each other over control of the ottoman.
Christmas morning - what did Santa bring Nora??
Oh - looks like Santa brought Daddy a whole lot of white stuff. This won't be the last time he has to shovel us out over the break.

Here's the lovely casa covered in a foot of snow. We got 4 additional inches on top of this and 3.5 are expected tomorrow (1/6). Bah Humbug!
Not everyone hates the snow.......
Cabin fever sets in and the block-stacking marathon commences!
Counting the stars in one of their favorite books.

One of our favorite tricks 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10, YAY!!! Cheering always follows counting in our house.It's all downhill from here, Iris. Daddy introduces her to M&Ms.

Happy New Year from the Starrs!

2009-12-23T10:26:00.000-08:00

Grandma Starr comes for Christmas!

2009-12-23T10:16:00.000-08:00

Grandma Janie made a visit to the cold North the weekend before Christmas and we were so glad to see her! Iris and Nora love visiting with Grandma! We're VERY interested in opening presents. Grandma feeds us lunch.

Peekaboo!!!!

Grandma gave us the cutest red-headed twin baby dolls. You can't find a more perfect Christmas present than that!

Iris and Nora love the dolls and play with them every day!

Thank you Grandma! We love you and Jessie. Merry Christmas! Ho Ho Ho.

Bouncin's what Tiggers do best!!!

2009-12-16T14:28:00.001-08:00

Home grown fun.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

2009-12-13T19:46:00.000-08:00

Christmas is rapidly approaching and the girls are on their BEST behavior anticipating Santa's arrival. For example, here is Nora and the beautiful Starr tannenbaum we have repeatedly told her not to touch. Ahhh the Holiday Spirit - alive and well.
Mark and the girls relaxing in the afternoon watching our favorite - "Horton Hears a Who" - for the six hundreth time. "I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An elephant is faithful - one hundred percent!" Dr. Seuss, the cream of the crop!

Alright, so here's my favorite part, well, aside from being with family and friends and celebrating the true meaning of Christmas and being thankful for health and happiness. After all that malarky, I mean, here's my favorite part. Baking. Ahhh baking. And boiling - in this case, butter and sugar until it forms TOFFEE. Yummmmmmmy.

I tried a variation of my Mom's sugar cookies this year using royal icing instead of her Meringue Buttercream. I must admit, Koffee's got it down. Her cookies taste much better. And that's the most important part!

More family (and baking) pictures to come. The Starr Holidays rest for no man, woman, or beast! Hope to see you all very soon! Ho Ho Ho!

Turkey Day Wrap-up

2009-12-02T19:37:00.000-08:00

What a merry Turkey day we had! All the family came to Topeka to celebrate the day! Here are the boys preparing to deep fry the turkeys.....looks like trouble to me! Here are all the kids (except Iris) enjoying a wholesome meal of various Frito Lay goodies. L to R: Nora, James, Megan (our exotic Arizona cousin), and Bodie.
Here is the star of Thanksgiving - Poochie the dog. She is new to the family and lives in Belton, MO with my Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom. Nora and Iris thought she was the bee's knees.

Here are the parents fixing the pre-Thanksgiving vittles. Mmmm! James and Bodie were a little stand-offish with Aunt Kiki, so I dressed in stripes and looked up Cars videos on Youtube to entice them. Worked like a charm!!!

Playing outside was so awesome. What a great weather week to run around with the kiddos. That gal in the hat is Molly Moore - of Judge Judy fame. Incognito with the hat pulled over her face - so no one recognizes her.

Iris and Bodie playing in the shrubbery....lighting was beautiful!

Nana herding the cats.

It was such a great week. Seeing Molly, Colin, and the boys is always fantastic! I wouldn't want to do it again before tomorrow!

Thanks, Cuz!

2009-12-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

A HUGE Starr "thank you" to our cousin Quinlan. He was so generous and gave the girls his fantastic kitchen set. They LOVE it and play with it every day. They know how to use the utensils to "mixa-mixa-mixa" in the saucers and pans. It's so much fun. Here are some fun pictures to show their cooking chops. Taking after their chef Daddy!
Iris especially likes to make toast in the toaster.

Thanks again Quinlan!!!

Deck the Halls - and the Hair!

2009-12-02T19:33:00.000-08:00

My friend Marci gave me these adorable holiday hair bows for the girls so I promised her a picture. Little did I know how difficult that would be! The bows lasted mere seconds in their hair! But I can see them playing a larger role in Christmases to come!

Ode to Frances

2009-11-16T10:18:00.000-08:00

I made scalloped potatoes from scratch this weekend. Once when I was little, Frances had me over and we made scalloped potatoes by layering cheese, flour, and cream over sliced potatoes. I must admit, mine were better because
a) I used salt, and
b) because I made a roux first and added the milk and cheese creating a cream sauce first, so my sauce wasn't lumpy.
Hmmm, although I don't remember Frances' potatoes running over in the oven causing the kitchen to smoke up. Regardless - here's to you Frances!

Weekend Update

2009-11-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

The weather was so crummy on Sunday, we stayed inside and played with the dog.
Iris likes the way her voice echoes in this bucket. It reminds me of the scene in Parenthood when Justin smashes into a wall repeatedly with a bucket on his head and the mother remarks "he likes to BUTT things with his head." That's our Iris!

Here, Iris climbed into the basket and Mommy threw a pillow on top of her and started rocking her back and forth. You can see how much she hates it.

Ah the dual bath. It's a great idea in theory. But Nora has some issues with bathtime on occassion. She clearly had some sort of water-related accident in a past-life. She cries hysterically if we add bubbles to her bath and about 3 minutes after this shot was snapped, cried hysterically when I tried to wash Iris' hair. Ah well. Never let this kid see Jaws!

A few weekends ago, Mark and I got a babysitter and had a nice date night. We went out to dinner and headed down to the Plaza for their Waterfire show. Some performance artist builds floating bonfires on the creek and there are performers and food vendors, etc. I was really excited....Mark thought it was a pretty big case of the empties. Regardless, we were out of the house together! Here's the pic....

Happy Halloween 2009

2009-10-31T07:44:00.001-07:00

Ketchup & Mustard (getting ready for the show)

Iris McGee as Ketchup

Nora B as Mustard (look daddy...there's a hot dog down there!)

The girls made their second annual appearance at the Sprint campus yesterday. And needless to say, mom did a great job on the costumes. Ketchup and mustard were the favorites of many of the ongoers, and lots of laughing ensued. The girls, however, did not have time to be adored as they found themselves wanting to run all over the entire building. Granted, the office is much bigger than our living room. Happy Halloween Everyone!!!!

Iris & Nora's Texting Saga

2009-10-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

So first of all, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY GRANDMA STARR! Mom and Dad have been busy with Blue and other things, but they told us they wanted to start your Monday off right with loads of updates of us. To get the ball rolling, here is a little set we like to call "The Texting Saga." What is a mommy and daddy to do when they only have two cell phones for us. You'll just have to watch and find out.

Autumn at the Arboretum

2009-10-24T08:28:00.000-07:00

The Notorious Bathtub Shoot

2009-10-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

Nora B. with the mohawk!!!

Iris McGee having a grand time.

We all have them; pictures of ourselves as children in the bathtub. Embarrassing or not, they're just a fact of life. Iris and Nora are getting to an age now where they really enjoy their baths and have learned to even make a wet mess all over the floor - tile is probably not far off in the future I suppose.

Blue Armstrong

2009-10-22T03:46:00.000-07:00

I hope you're sitting down. Got some sad news. Our crazy, rambunctious, lovable 4-year old puppy, Blue, has been diagnosed with Lymphoma. That's cancer, people. We're very sad. He had been acting strange lately - sometimes not eating, sleeping in weird places, not coming up when the girls were playing.... We took him to Topeka a couple weeks ago and he was his normal crazy, energetic self - but when he came home he hit a wall, refusing to eat and sleeping in the basement 24-hrs a day - VERY un-Bluelike. Our vet ran some tests and diagnosed him with Lymphoma. He recommended we meet with an oncologist - because of his age, Blue is a good candidate for chemo treatment. Last Friday, Blue, Mark, my Dad, and I made an appointment at the Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center. They told us that with the Chemo, Blue had a likelihood of living 12-24 months - but there are examples of dogs being cured of the disease (hence the name "Blue Armstrong" - like "Lance Armstrong's" miraculous story of how he beat cancer). Unfortunately, from the tests, they could tell that Blue has a mass near his heart, which lowers his prognosis to 6-9 months. To date, he has had his first chemo treatment and goes in again on Monday. He's also been taking a steroid that makes him eat and drink a lot - which is great. I can tell he's not his old self and is tired all the time. But at least he's not sleeping in the basement anymore. We love our Blue Boy and will keep you posted on his progress! Poor puppy.
Although, I kind of feel sorry for the cancer. If it saw what Blue had done to our couch as a puppy - ripping it to shreds AND moving it diagonally in the room in a couple hours, it definitely would have chosen another host!!! Blue is a FIGHTER!!! Or as our dog trainer said "uh, he IS a defiant one, isn't he?" Yes, crazy dog lady, he IS a defiant one!!!

A Cow Says Moooooooooooooooooo!

2009-10-08T06:40:00.001-07:00

The "See and Say" - popularized by Mattel in 1965. Still relevant today in the Starr household.

Life is a Highway

2009-10-06T06:45:00.000-07:00

Here are three videos I took Sunday at the Kansas Speedway. I know my nephew, James, is a "Cars" junkie and I thought he'd appreciate them.

This one shows the cars going slow after a crash in the first few laps.

This second video shows how loud and fast the cars go around the track. What a rush!

Okay, look in the middle of this video and you'll see the Best Buy car #19 come in for a pit stop. In and out in 23 seconds!!!

The Weekend of Activities

2009-10-04T18:49:00.000-07:00

Here are our extremely selfish photos (without the girls) from this weekend.... Mark went to the KSU/Iowa State game on Saturday at Arrowhead. He met up with our old buddy Carlos and his girlfriend! Always great when Carlos comes to town!
I got tickets to the big NASCAR race this weekend. Sprint sponsors NASCAR, so they rolled out the red carpet. It was awesome!
Did I mention we had good seats?

Here's #99 Carl Edwards from Columbia, MO on pit row before the race! He's on crutches due to a nasty frisbee accident - as a result he pretty much stunk it up in the race, but we still love him.

This is some rookie driver. He's like 18 years old and had his Mom there with him. But he was my co-worker's driver, so here we are.

We snuck through the garage.....I asked a dude for extra krums. He wasn't amused.
This is what I really hate about NASCAR - they'll let ANYONE in. Look at this turkey!

Ah - the loving Jayhawk. Spreading cheer and good will to man.

Seriously? These guys were sponsored by one of Sprint's brands - Boost Mobile. They were NUTS.

My friend Amanda and me posing in front of the fancy trophy. Much nicer than the one I got playing for the Starlets in 1st grade. What a great weekend. Now we need our sleep! Oh, and I promise to post pics of the girls soon!

Happy Birthday Painting!

2009-09-29T08:25:00.001-07:00

In honor of James' 3rd birthday, I painted this underwater submarine scene. Hope he likes it!

Happy Birthday, James!!!

2009-09-27T18:08:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Marko!

2009-09-01T05:04:00.000-07:00

Alphabet Pasta

2009-08-20T14:01:00.000-07:00

Today I wanted to make the girls something unique for dinner. Low and behold I remembered I had bought some alphabet pasta a while back, and I also happened to see a fresh new jar of Cascone's Marinara in the cabinet. And voila...Iris & Nora's Alphabet Pasta for dinner tonight. Consider it a much better version of Spaghetti O's.

Vacation Week at the Lake

2009-08-02T14:21:00.001-07:00

Nora and Grumpy getting ready for the first-ever boat ride.

Iris with her FBO on...

Mom and the girls prepping for the boat ride.

A little breakfast first.

The family unit hitting the lake for the first time together.

Iris and mom. Iris unsure.

Dad and Nora. Nora taking it well.

Mommies idea -- not mine!

More dining at the lake. How happy can you be?

Talk to the foot because the face ain't listening.

Blue and Chili keeping an eye on the squirrels for Bubba.

Nora in the lake with mommy.

Iris and Nana going Hawaiian.

We drank the Creme Brulee Stout and I drank the Cherry beer.

Nana's amazing BBQ chicken. Someone already tested it.

Fashion Show, Pt. 1

2009-07-22T04:54:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't like a good fashion show? Iris and Nora sure do, and here they are to show you what's hot in baby fashion this year. Iris is wearing her new sunglasses by an undisclosed designer (let's just say it's a big one), and Nora is leading the pack in her tutu that Aunt Linda and Uncle Gene bought them earlier in the year. Sit back and enjoy the show...

The future's so bright...she's gotta wear shades.

Nora likes to do her little move on the catwalk.

The catwalk is a little narrow here.

This summer, the action figure is the ideal accessory.

Girl, you better work it!

Daddy, I've had enough of your fashion show.

Curls for girls are definitely in this season.

Seriously dad, don't make me tell you again. Let a playa play.

Antioch Park

2009-07-14T18:57:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning, we met The Valera Family at Antioch Park for donut holes and fun with the kiddos. I know this blog over-indexes in swing photos, but bear with us a few more weeks, please.Here's Mighty Mite hanging on for dear life. I also like to call this pic "Jane of the Jungle."
A thunderstorm blew through a few hours before and little Salvador did his best to dry all of the slides for the other Saturday morning park patrons. So thoughtful!!!
I love this pic. Making a break for it!I think Sal and Herley were looking for Nessie.

And another sunshine swing photo of Miss Iris. Fun fun! I wouldn't want to go again before tomorrow! Thanks for the invite Valeras!!!

Rah Rah, Sis Boom Bah!

2009-07-05T13:48:00.000-07:00

What a fantastic Fourth of July weekend we had this year! Started out with a little rain and then the sun came out - 80 degrees! Couldn't be better. We hung around the house on Friday and Saturday morning and then spent Saturday night with Mark's family - Aunt Linda, Uncle Gene, and his cousin Jennifer, her husband Phil, and Quinlan. What a great time at a backyard BBQ complete with DJ, Jump Jump, and Conga Line! Nothing says "Happy Birthday America" like some celebratory Golden Grahams!Uncle Gene and Nora checking out the Conga Line spectacle.
After the brief recess watching the Conga Line, it's back to her studies.
Jen, Quin, and Phil digging in to the feast.
Real men aren't afraid of Jump Jumps.
Self portrait
I think this is the best photo I've ever taken. Those girls sure love those swings. We drove up to Fairway Sunday afternoon. There's a great park we love there.
Giggles McGee strikes again.
Yay! Even Daddy loves the swings.
Nora's getting in her exercise keeping up with Daddy.
You can sort of see where she gets that red hair...
There is no pattern or order to how the teeth come in. They have minds of their own.
No Starr blog post would be complete without a pic of what what we grilled this weekend. I can hear my sister now...."Colin, they posted food again."

LOL. Love you all. Hope you had a fabulous Fourth. Thanks again to the Starrs for including us in their BBQ! Great fun!

Summer Madness

2009-06-30T20:02:00.001-07:00

Here is a mish-mash of what we've been doing the past few weeks. In early June, I went to Beaumont for Nephew Bodie's first birthday!!! The cake was fantastic - went with his "Big Kahuna" theme.
Here are Nana and James asleep on the flight down. They dozed off during "Cars," which I'd never seen - and which turned out to be a really great movie (wish I could have heard it over the snore symphony).
It was also Molly's birthday and BOY can she throw a party!
Ah the delights of cleaning up after the previous evening's festivities

Isn't Bodie the cutest don't you just want to squeeze his cheeks???

Here is James summoning the Power of Greyskull.

And here he is hiding in the pillows kinda like ET did with the stuffed animals...

Oooookay - back to the Starr household. Unfortunately, Iris developed a raging cold and 104 degree temp while I was in TX. When she started feeling better, however, she also started immediately walking! So now we've got two on the move!

Her hands are always in this position when walking. Perhaps she's attemting to do the Charleston?

We learned at our visit to Children's Mercy that texting always makes Iris feel better.

And here's our sweet pea Nora. Quite the intellectual - always with her head in a book.
The old family pic in the mirror trick!

I like to call this one "when animals attack."

This past weekend, the gals and I headed to Topeka while Daddy went to the lake with the boys!

We're nutty. Wanna know how nutty? Iris lost her shoe. That's how nutty.

Alright! That's all from the Starr camp. More to come soon! Have a great Fourth! Happy Birthday, America!!!

Iris Is Back

2009-06-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

After a very rough weekend last week I'd like to report that Nora and Iris are both feeling better. Nora had a bit of a teething problem and Iris had a bit more of a virus problem. She is doing much better now and finally back to her happy self.

Back to the Drawing Board

2009-06-02T19:28:00.000-07:00

Okay, so you guys know I used to do art stuff and I pretty much haven't for about 10 years. I wanted to do some paintings for Iris and Nora's rooms. Here's the first attempt. It looks like I planned, but now Mark and I think the letters don't "pop" enough. Suggestions are welcome.
I'm going to start working on Iris' paintings in a few weeks. They will feature flowers that start with the same letter as her name instead of animals.

The Ladies Dine in Hats

2009-06-01T05:34:00.000-07:00

Don't these dainty ladies look thrilled? It's 6:30am. I tried on their hats this morning as we dined at breakfast. You'll want to notice the exquisite chin straps. I sewed those on myself last night. This weekend was filled with outdoor fun, but we learned Nora and Iris aren't too keen on hats, so we'll have to nudge them into it a bit - hence the chin straps. Cheerio!

May Photos

2009-05-27T19:59:00.001-07:00

As my sister would say, "long time, no blog." So sorry. We've been busy chasing down the bambinas. Nora is now walking up to ten steps at a time. Iris can hold on to the wall and try to keep up - but it won't be long for her!
We had such a great visit in Oklahoma over Mother's Day. Got to see Grandma Starr and Jessie and Nana the Great!
Oh, the girls also learned how to text that weekend. As you can see, they are very engrossed.
Nora couldn't get enough of Jessie.
Lou and Carol entertain Iris while Nora reads a story to Nana the Great!
Snuggling with Miss McGee before Kyle's Graduation party last weekend.
How cute is this picture???
This purple ball is the best $1.97 I've ever spent.
Yay! Getting the summer hats ready for the season!
Being goofy with my lovelies. I'll try to be more prompt in updating the "Daily" Starr in the future!
Miss everybody and see you real soon!

New Videos

2009-05-27T19:54:00.000-07:00

Nora takes several steps and bites it in the end - but fear not! There were no injuries!

Iris yodeling to family in Oklahoma

We are VERY Protective of our Golden Retriever

2009-04-27T12:49:00.001-07:00

Just A Swingin'

2009-04-26T21:32:00.000-07:00

This weekend saw the family unit driving through Fairway on our way to the Plaza for some site seeing. Well what do you think we saw? Swings! That's right. Iris and Nora had the time of their lives, and at one point I couldn't get Iris to stop laughing. It was amazing!

Iris

Nora

The Chicken Dance

2009-04-09T05:23:00.000-07:00

Older Than A Year

2009-04-03T18:06:00.000-07:00

Iris is ticklish.

Team Starr

Iris and Grandma

Present Demolishing

Baby Burrito

Those Eyes!

Iris in Tutu

Happy First Birthday!!!

2009-03-21T14:25:00.000-07:00

Whew! A year flies by FAST! Today, the girls turned 1! We had the party at Old Chicago this afternoon. Thanks to EVERYBODY for celebrating with us. The party was a grand success. And especially thank you to Marcia Valera for her fabulous cake, Cousin Quinlan for being such an outstanding helper, and Grandma Starr for making the trip from Oklahoma. We love having you here!

Top O the Morning!

2009-03-17T18:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a very early video of the goofball twins having breakfast on St. Paddy's Day.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

2009-03-17T18:07:00.001-07:00

Iris and Nora want to wish you a Happy St. Patrick's Day! Nora clearly is showing more enthusiasm. Iris will inch up the excitement next year.
Nora is loving the delicious sugar cookies that one of St. Patrick's elves dropped off on our doorstep. Wait...maybe I'm getting my holidays mixed up.

Iris looks like a right Irish lass with her kelly green shirt and red curls.

Nora is having a spot of tea with the early birthday present from our friend Jen Ray! Jolly good day all around!

Cabin Fever Persists

2009-03-13T13:12:00.001-07:00

The weather remains pretty cold here in KC, but we manage to make up our own indoor fun. A couple weeks ago, Iris and Nora had a playdate with little Quinn Roach. Quite a blast. Quinn is super cute!
Iris as E.T. - hiding among the stuffed animals. On one of the colder, more boring Sundays, we decided to do some handprints of the girls. Seemed easy enough.....
Except for the dripping paint and getting the girls to uncurl their fists.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-16T17:49:00.000-08:00

Nora and Iris had a very busy and happy Valentine's Saturday playing with their new bears from Nana and Grandma. Fun for everyone!
Hope you all had a great holiday too!

Tea Time!

2009-02-16T17:34:00.001-08:00

Here are the pics from our fun Sunday Ladies' Tea!

Back Row: Margaret, Emily, Nancy, Koffee, Laurie
Front Row: Lola, Cleota, Ruth (Mimi)

What a great time sipping tea, eating finger sandwiches, and gossiping! Much thanks to our gracious host, Miss Cleota Travis (the original Kiki)!

A Busy Saturday

2009-02-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

Watching the Backyardigans

Nora is O-U-T

Camera Shy (or tired)?

Iris and Nora recently made the move to bigger, forward-facing car seats. While this has put mom and dad at a slight disadvantage when it comes to getting them in and out of the car, it makes for a much better car ride for the girls. It's also nice to finally be able to see their cute little mugs while on the road.

Saturday, the family unit went to Legends and had lunch at The Yard House. This was also a first for the girls since they both got their own high chairs. But I have to tell you that all the excitement really wore them out. Not even ten minutes in the car on the way home and the girls were getting the smackdown by the sandman.

At least they no longer have to stare at the headrests. Now they can finally see the TV and it's all fun from here on out in the car. Kristen and I wish we'd had this sort of luxury when we were kids. Don't you?

Bathing Beauties

2009-02-06T08:23:00.001-08:00

Unfortunately we all have pictures of our childhood baths. So here is Iris and Nora with their contribution.

Nora's Crawling

2009-01-26T05:53:00.001-08:00

Here's Miss Nora with the wind-up and thundering speed toward the Baby Tad toy that Grandma Starr got the girls for Christmas!

Cabin Fever

2009-01-25T17:53:00.000-08:00

I realize we haven't made a post lately...so here's the gist - girls are getting bigger. Eating like champs. Putting on weight. Getting taller. Nora's crawling. Iris is trying. Fun all around in the dead of winter!!!
Here we are before dinner playing with toys on the floor.

La Cocina de Estrella

2009-01-07T19:37:00.000-08:00

There's one thing you can rest assured of -- we don't ever go hungry around here. This week, we have been in the kitchen making grub after Iris and Nora hit the hay, and the last two things have been too good not to post. Now if we could just get The Food Network to give us a show so we can leave Sprint...

Kristen's "Free-Form" Pepperoni & Hamburger Pizza

Mark's [already] Infamous "Bah Rumbug" Cake (chocolate style)

Happy New Year Redux!

2009-01-01T07:30:00.000-08:00

Hope you all had a very safe and merry New Year and awoke hangover-free! Huzzah!

Great Holiday pic of Mark and Nora.
Little Iris in her Christmas dress. She was very taken with her Mary Janes.

I attribute this caliber of natural beauty to strong Kennedy genetics.

Happy New Year

2008-12-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

The Starrs have returned home from Christmas in Texas. We're now looking forward to New Years 2009. You may have noticed that we have not updated the site for a while, but we should be caught up now with the addition of several updates. Please scroll down as you will see several from the past couple of weeks.

For pictures of the girls from our recent visit with Gene, Linda, Phil, Jennifer, and Quinlan, click here.

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Christmas Dinner

2008-12-25T09:42:00.000-08:00

Searing the delicious prime rib for Christmas dinner.

Christmas Morning with the Kids

2008-12-25T09:35:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve

2008-12-24T09:13:00.000-08:00

Molly and Colin had a lunch get-together on Christmas Eve and one of her good friends came over to take pictures of the family that morning. Kristen and I got a self-portrait, too. Also below is baby James and his best friend at the party, Evelyn Delcambre. Aren't they cute?

Entertaining The Kids

2008-12-23T09:01:00.000-08:00

Unlike past years, 2008 in Texas meant entertaining four kids. While waiting for Santa Claus to arrive, the girls and boys spent their time playing. Thank God for baby Bodie and his room full of goodness. There was always plenty to do.

Ann B. Dextrous

2008-12-21T19:21:00.000-08:00

Here is Iris playing with her new toy called Ann B. Dextrous. I was hoping to video her without knowing I was watching, but apparently I'm not as stealthy as I used to be.

Carlos Visits KC

2008-12-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

Last week, my good friend Carlos was in Kansas City and stopped by to see the girls. Carlos is now living in Mexico City so it was a nice surprise to have him in town. After dropping by and giving Iris and Nora their first "official" winter coats, the two of us went out and had a few bottles of wine so we could catch up. Good to see you Carlos, and thank you for the awesome coats.

Teddy Bears

2008-12-19T08:53:00.000-08:00

Since this was Iris and Nora's first Christmas, we wanted to get them something memorable. What better gift than a good quality teddy bear as a keepsake? They had fun opening them and putting them right into their mouths. We'll have to keep the bears safe from slobber for a while, but pretty soon the girls will get to keep them in their beds and always have a friend close by when they sleep.