Nap Power

Ever since Eli watched an old episode of He-Man online he has been proclaiming "I have the power!"  Today when I reminded him of his nap time, we had a very humorous conversation about nap power.

Eli:  "I can't take a nap.  I don't have nap power." 

Me:  "Oh really?  Why not?"

Eli:  "Um...(thinking)...because Daddy has the nap power and he didn't give it to me, so I don't have the power to take a nap."

Me:  "Oh, I see, so you have to wait until Daddy comes home, and then you can take a nap?"

Eli:  "Yes, yes.  I just don't have nap power.  But Daddy gave me garbage truck toy power, so we can go play garbage trucks!"

Me:  "Oh, okay, but guess what?  I have nap power because Daddy gave it to me before he left."

Eli:  "Oh, so you can go take a nap?"

Me:  "Yes, and you can come with me because I will give you the power."

Eli:  "No!  (starting to cry)  I don't want you to give me nap power because I don't want to take a nap."

Well, I guess it was only funny until the crying took over, but you have to hand it to him, he's a creative little boy.

Nana and Bampa Visit New Mexico

Eli's Nana and Bampa Pratt came for a visit over Memorial Day weekend.  Of course, this gave us the opportunity to explore some new areas around here.  We went up to Santa Fe, which is about an hour away from Albuquerque.  We didn't spend a lot of time in the town itself, but I would like to go back.  It seemed like it had a lot of history and would be very interesting. 

We spent most of our time at Bandolier National Monument, which is known for its cliff dwellings.  They were fun to see, though it was quite hot.  It was a different kind of heat from what Houston has.  Houston has the "I'm miserable, drenched in sweat, and can't breathe" kind of heat.  This was the "burning fire on my skin with warm wind slapping my face" kind of heat.  Josh and I both agreed it was preferable to Houston's heat, but then again it was the end of May, not July. 
 
We also went to Petroglyph National Monument, which is about 15 minutes away from our home in Albuquerque.  You can probably guess what it's known for and what we saw.  Both national monuments were a great way to see and understand the cultural and historical roots of the area. 

This is Albuquerque.

Albuquerque Aquarium and Botanical Gardens

Last week on Josh's day off we decided to explore Albuquerque's Aquarium and Botanical Gardens.  Since we have been to many aquariums with Eli, the thing that stood out about this one for me and for Eli was the ship section.  Eli was excited to pretend play pirates. 

I enjoyed the botanical gardens.  Houston doesn't really have anything like that (at least that I've been to or know of).  They were quite pretty, and they had a train section with Thomas the Train and Percy that Eli loved.  We had a hard time pulling him away from it.

 

Leaving Houston for Albuquerque, Part 2

As we settle in to our temporary new home here in Albuquerque, I can’t help but notice the differences between here and Houston.  After all, I’ve become a Houstonian after living there for almost six years, and it won’t be long before I’ll be headed back. 

Weather differences are obvious, and mostly, I like the change.  Houston humidity in the summer is ridiculous, so I’m looking forward to a drier summer.  That said, already our skin and lips are chapped and chafed here in Albuquerque.  I’ve always had dry skin and am addicted to Vaseline, even in Houston.  Josh makes fun of me for it, so I had to laugh when he asked me for some the other night. 

Mountains are an obvious difference too.  I think I forget that Houston is near sea level where it’s flat.  Only as I was driving to Albuquerque was I reminded of that.  I forgot what it was like to drive up mountains.  Difficult but beautiful.  Josh even asked me if I was having trouble breathing here because he obviously was. 

Albuquerque is calm and quiet.  Houston is not.  I’m sure to some people Albuquerque is not quiet, but several times I have wondered why the streets are deserted.  I forget just how big Houston is (4^th largest city in the U.S.).  Josh commented that he likes not hearing the police sirens all the time, so quiet probably means less crime too. :-)  Although, we both have noticed that the cops pull people over more for traffic violations.  I feel a little more on edge driving around here.  In Houston, cops don’t have time to pull people over for speeding and other traffic violations; they’re too busy chasing criminals.

Expenses are another difference.  Some things are cheaper here, but other things are cheaper in Houston.  I guess there’s a little give and a little take.  I still don’t know why gas is cheaper in Albuquerque given that Houston makes its living off oil.  If anyone can explain that to me, feel free. 

As far as personal differences, I like that I have a washer and dryer here in my house.  I told Josh that it may be difficult for me to go back to Houston and use an apartment laundry room again.  We may be looking at places with washers and dryers when we go back. ;-)

We don’t live in an apartment here, so we have a yard.  It’s not the prettiest yard to me since it’s done with cacti, rocks, and dirt, but Eli is having a blast digging in all the dirt and rocks. 

We have hardwood floor here instead of the carpet we’re used to.  I think I prefer carpet.  It’s a lot easier to scratch and damage hardwood floors, and my feet get dirty when I walk barefoot.  I also like the padding that carpet provides.  I’m already nervous about Eli getting hurt on these hard floors. 

Of course, there are many other differences, but we’re looking forward to exploring Albuquerque more.  It will be interesting to see if I’m dreading going back to Houston at summer’s end or if I’m breathing a sigh of relief.