House of Broken Crayons

Funny Mums

2011-11-22T15:11:00.000-06:00

100 points to whoever can dig back into their brain to high school or college biology and identify the phenomenon that is causing my mums to bloom funny.

Princess Belle, A Jedi, and A Really Good Sport

2011-11-02T21:22:00.001-05:00

I may not be the most enthusiastic participant in Halloween, and I honestly don't understand the fun of going door to door begging for candy, when we could all just go out and buy a bag of our favorites, tell a lot of lies (to ourselves) about not eating it, and then eat it anyway; but I tried to play along, and I do think everyone looked cute in their costumes:

Even dinner dressed up:

Now, onto some holidays I do get enthusiastic about - eating until we explode and dragging full sized trees into the living room!

Flat out of fun.

2011-10-27T10:23:00.000-05:00

We just got home from Disney World. It was absolutely fun - I'll subject everyone to vacation pictures soon.

But right now, I have a problem. I've promised a room full of kids FUN games on Sunday after they sing and speak in church, and I'm out of fun ideas.

Please help - comment with some fun game ideas!

Many thanks!!!!!

Yo VIP, let's kick it!

2011-10-09T20:11:00.000-05:00

Fall soccer season is in full swing, and Blue is playing on team "purple panther". Here he is pumped up on panther juice (aka purple Gatorade):

Of course, no soccer game is complete without ~~helpful~~ advice from mom, part of the purple cheering section:

And finally, a purple sister practicing her own soccer moves - in case everyone on the team gets injured...at the same time.

Not pictured: purple dad, toting 10 pounds of camera equipment around to make sure we get good action shots (or maybe he's just not ready to be photographed in that purple shirt).

A Fun Weekend Away!

2011-10-05T14:31:00.000-05:00

It's not often that we have a weekend without soccer, birthday parties, or church responsibilities (thank goodness for conference online), but somehow this past weekend, the stars aligned perfectly, so with her remaining swimsuit in hand, Pink (and the rest of us) set out for a little beach trip.

It's been almost 2 years since the last time we swam in water not contained in a pool, so this felt like a first for Pink. To say she loved ocean swimming (okay, it's a gulf, but it has salt water and sand) would be an understatement.

Perfect weather, sand to dig in, and waves low enough to adequately jump without being dragged around - Blue was in heaven.

Red loves spontaneous trips, and was happy to be someplace new (and without his phone and blackberry for a while)

Green loves salt water - and sand in between her toes - and mostly spending a relaxing weekend with the family!

Oh Crap, that sucks.

2011-09-01T08:59:00.000-05:00

It's all fun and games until somebody loses their pants.

It was the last Saturday before schools started, and I had the great idea to not only buy the 12-pound box of plums, but also to feed some to my family for lunch. And then take them to the church pool party in the evening.

Poor Pink, her little system couldn't quite take it, and she...ummm....didn't quite make it to the potty. Out of the pool and into the bathroom, but not quite onto the commode. Being an experienced mother, unafraid of body fluids (and really with no other options, standing dripping in the bathroom of the community pool, with everyone we attend church with swimming outside), I diligently stepped into another stall to rinse out the swimsuit bottom in the privy. To give it a good rinse with some swirling action, I flushed. Who would have guessed that our community pool has jet-force suction on the toilet flush? Certainly not me until I watched that swimsuit disappear with a whoosh.

I had to leave her there confused and half-naked while I retrieved her swim cover and then tried to explain that she could not, in fact, get back into the pool, and that she had to stand up very straight while we cleaned up the party.

Now she keeps asking where her butterfly swimsuit is...and I resist the urge to tell her that it flew away.

Back to School, take three!

2011-08-31T21:32:00.001-05:00

Rounding out our week of first days of school, yesterday was Pink's first day of preschool. She was totally excited about the whole idea of preschool - although it might have been more about the new outfit and the princess backpack than the actually learning.

Once we got to school, and Pink wrapped her head around the idea that I was going to leave her, she was a little nervous - or maybe it was that her teacher asked her to find her nametag, and while Pink can name every disney princess and tell part of their life story, she cannot identify all her letters. Epic parenting fail.

Fortunately, she was able to catch up with 2 other little girls whose older siblings were all in a class with Blue at this age. And really, red playdoh cures most ills, doesn't it? Wait, not when it comes home on their shoes...

At final report, she had a great day. Circle time was fun, playing dress up with her friends was awesome, and the snack of goldfish crackers and water was just perfect. Maybe if the teachers are willing to come in their Cinderella dresses, she might even learn her letters.

Back to School, take two!

2011-08-24T16:02:00.000-05:00

After a successful send-off for Blue on Monday, and an uneventful first school bus ride home on Tuesday, it was my turn. Lots of syllabus reading and lab orientation, but a good start to the fall semester. I've got my new backpack and lab-approved closed toed shoes, so I guess I'm good to go. Now, all I have to do is wake up this old brain!

Blue goes to school!

2011-08-22T20:24:00.000-05:00

Today is the first of three first days of school that our family will experience this week. First Blue, then Green, and finally Pink. Not sure why Red isn't in school - guess someone has to earn the money!

We didn't get off to a very quick start, since they both collapsed on the floor after I woke them up for breakfast:

Nevertheless, after a little prodding, we managed to get everyone around the breakfast table. As happened last year, Red's bacon omelets won out over my spell-your-name pancakes. Protein is a good choice for a first day breakfast anyway, right?

Here's my baby boy, all ready for the big leagues. I can't believe how quickly his little-boyhood is passing us by:

All things considered, it was a successful day: no one cried, no one got lost, and the report at the end of the day is that kindergarten is "great".

Prima Ballerina

2011-07-12T08:46:00.001-05:00

Have you ever had the ~~torture~~ pleasure of attending a small person dance recital, and noticed that one little dancer who can't find her spot on the stage? The one who looks ready to burst into tears (or worse)? I am proud to announce that this year, that was our Pink.

Of course, what can you really expect from a ballerina so excited to perform that this is her on the drive to the theater:

In her eyes - and certainly in her Daddy's - she is a prima ballerina

In the true spirit of family togetherness, Blue attended his sister's recital - and in the true spirit of little boy-ness, asked every 3.2 seconds if it was over yet.

Honestly, this was a lot of fun for her mom. Seeing Pink so excited to do something that was all hers, and not just another thing she gets dragged to or included in because of her older brother, was priceless. Her little ballerina friends were adorable, and since I had the pleasure of helping out in the dressing room before the recital started, I got to spend some quality time playing ring around the rosies with them.

Her studio closed its doors after the recital - I guess the economy has been hard on everyone. We have the summer to figure out what to do next, but I'm not sure it will be ballet again - especially after Daddy took her to see Kung-Fu Panda (and may have told her that Kung-Fu was just like dancing, but with hitting). We might be looking for karate lessons instead.

Like drinking from a firehose

2011-07-11T20:30:00.031-05:00

A few years ago, I started talking about what my next career would be. My first, as biochemist, didn't mesh so well with my second, as mom, so I started looking around for the third.

This past spring, after much deliberation, and the incredible luck of finding a like-minded friend, I decided to take the first steps toward a career in nursing. I dusted off some very old college transcripts, re-learned the academic hoops necessary to pass the clep test in biology, and then enrolled in anatomy and physiology 1 during the accelerated 1/2 summer semester.

Why I thought this would be a good idea escapes me at the moment, but I enrolled, paid my tuition, and showed up for my first day of classes in a very long time. Despite the technological advances since the last time I was in a college classroom (really, the powerpoint slides are online? why would I show up to class?), I still found it incredibly helpful to make notecards (see pyramid above) - lots of them - and memorize like crazy.

Compressing an entire semester of anatomy into just over a month was overwhelming and frustrating - a little like academic water-boarding - but was also probably a good way to start. Kind of that "if you can live through this, everything else will seem like a breeze" way of thinking. My family has been ignored, my household chores have been neglected, and my dining room was turned into study central. The result - I passed, and I got an A. One down, many many more to go.

Sleepover?

2011-07-10T00:29:00.000-05:00

We read a library book this week about sleepovers, and Pink and Blue thought that a sleepover sounded like a marvelous idea. Of course, with no family nearby, and most preschool parents not so keen on the idea of their children sleeping away from them (yeah, okay, it's us), they were kind of out of luck.

Never easily deterred, Pink and Blue found a way around these problems. Blue designed and manufactured an invitation for his sister (okay, it was a piece of paper with the word "bed" written on it), and invited her to a sleepover in his room. Since her toddler bed is pretty light, we moved it in after bath time, and put them both to bed. There was some giggling and getting up, but they managed to fall asleep and are happily snoozing away.

I'm just grateful they didn't decide that we all had to participate and started lobbying for the tent in the backyard - especially since it's still a delightful 93 degrees at midnight.

Enviable, indeed.

2011-05-29T22:25:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, everyone is jealous...and really, who wouldn't be? It's only May and we're already in the 90's temperature-wise, which means the first round of swimming lessons is already over. We've had the chance to be taught by a cowgirl with an alligator in her hat...

...been forced to swim like a fish....

...worked on our freestyle swim stroke....

...been given unintelligible instructions like "hum your bubbles" and "pull your arms"....

...and been ~~pushed~~ helped off the diving board.

Yup, pretty enviable stuff.

When Dad pays up, he really pays up!

2011-05-29T22:04:00.000-05:00

About a month ago, Pink accepted a challenge to stay in bed for 30 days in a row - with a reward of a night in a hotel if she could do it. It turns out that given the appropriate motivation, anything is possible. We had to sneak in a few "bonus points" to make it to Memorial Day weekend, but last Friday, Pink filled her sticker chart and was rewarded with a night and two days in this:

The biggest indoor water park I have ever seen - and all of it connected to a hotel. Fabulous! We were able to use the water park starting early afternoon Friday, spend the night in the rustic-themed room (and start our day with pajamas, pop tarts, and cartoons)...

...and finish with a full day of water slides, lazy river, and wave pool on Saturday. Absolutely fun!

There was also an outdoor pool and more water slides (and yes, I managed to let every person get a sunburn). Pink still refuses to take her wristband off, and keeps telling us she is going back to the hotel!

Everything I know, I learned in Pre-K.

2011-05-22T21:14:00.001-05:00

As those who have known us for a while realize, we really like going to school. Since we have been married, we have experienced 4 college graduations. This past week, Blue reached his first educational milestone, with graduation from his Pre-K program. Despite being a big man on campus, he managed to avoid the late-night parties (bedtime is still 7pm) and binge milk drinking.

Pictured above is the sweetest group of preschoolers one could ever hope to meet, and to the right are his 2 fantastic teachers - Ms. Jen and Ms. Jacee, who proudly taught in room J this year.

As part of the festivities, the kids performed several songs including "Deep in the Heart of Texas", of course. In keeping with his Yankee roots, Blue sang with heart and feeling, but had his cowboy hat on backwards.

We are so proud of all that Blue has accomplished - he can read, write his full name, and do basic math. He is ready for his next adventure: the public school system!

To All the Moms:

2011-05-06T22:32:00.001-05:00

It is not surprising to anyone who has ever so much as seen a pregnant woman that carrying and birthing a child is a full-body experience. That part is a given. But there is so much more to the full body experience of motherhood than that. Mothers give their whole bodies to their children.

With her eyes, a Mother sees her newborn baby for the first time, watches her toddler’s first tentative steps, see her child off to school on the first day, watches them dress for their first date, and sees her child shine on their wedding day. With her ears, she hears that first cry, that first word, she listens to accounts of trials and troubles, to stories of schoolyard spats and hurt teenage feelings. She listens to her adult children as they venture forth into their own lives, and hears stories of her grandchildren and maybe her great grandchildren. With her lips, she kisses away boo-boos and ouwies, reads countless bedtime stories, teaches principles, and changes the outcome of a bad situation with a smile. She also bites those lips when she watches her child suffer through something difficult or when she wants to offer advice that she knows is better left for another time. Perhaps most importantly, with her lips, she prays for her children – for guidance to know how to raise them, for help with struggles, and with gratitude that she is allowed to mother these sweet spirits.

A mother’s arms and hands rock a baby to sleep, hold the uncertain hand of a preschooler, hug a tired teenager, and work, work, work. Laundry, dishes, and household cleaning are usually a mother’s job too, and she gives herself to these tasks as an act of service, charity, and love to her family. She throws and catches balls and Frisbees, and twists little girl hair into braids and buns. Her shoulders are a place of solace for sorrowing children, her shoulders stand proud as she sees her children accomplish things they thought they could not do, and those shoulders stand strong when she is faced with trials that threaten her family.

A Mother's heart is permanently changed by having a child. The author Elizabeth Stone said, “Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”

A mother’s hips may never be quite as svelte as they were before she gave birth, but they make such an excellent shelf for carrying a baby and toddler – and sometimes even a preschooler who just can’t go one more step. As the mother ages, those are the same hips that often fail, and make it harder to run around with her grandchildren, but easier to sit and enjoy their exuberant youth.

A mother’s feet walk the floor with a fussy infant, teach a toddler how to walk, and play soccer with a growing young boy or girl. They pace the floor awaiting the sound of a teenager coming in at curfew. Her feet walk with joy at a graduation ceremony, a wedding ceremony, or walking with her children in their accomplishments.

A mother’s knees crawl on the floor to encourage her little one to learn to move independently, then crawl some more to race matchbox cars and toy trains around tiny tracks, later, her knees run to keep up with lightning-fast children. And her knees are used in prayer - In pleading with our Father to know how to raise his children and how to help them learn and grow.

I am a mother. To my children and their upbringing, I have given my whole body. I do it willingly and lovingly. It was done for me and for each of us by our mothers.

Happy Mother's Day to my Mom, my Friends, and my Friends' Moms, all of whom helped shape me into the mother that I am.

When a child opens a door, her parents want to jump out a window

2011-04-30T20:36:00.000-05:00

Am I really about to tell a story about door handles? Yes, yes I am.

A few weeks ago, we had our "looked cool in the 90's" round shiny brass doorknobs replaced with the oiled-bronze beauties pictured below (what does it say about my life that I am so excited about new doorknobs?).

Since then, we haven't gotten a full night's sleep. Pink, who was formerly being kept in her room by one of those toddler-proof door locks, can escape from her room at 2am now, and does every single night.

In my last attempt to save my sanity before I go buy another round doorknob and re-attach it to her door, we are starting a sticker chart today. See those cute beds? Every night she stays in bed all night, she gets to put a sticker on one. Six nights in a row, she earns a lollipop; twelve nights, she gets lunch at chick-fil-a; after a full 30 nights, she gets to go to a hotel.

The first two of these incentives I understand - she loves candy and those weird nuggets and fries, but that last one I was surprised about. After some intensive questioning (which is hilarious, since this 3-year-old doesn't really reason yet), it turns out that hotels are fun because:

* you get to watch tv in bed

* they have a pool

* everyone sleeps in the same room

So does this mean that if we work and try and finally get Pink to sleep through the night in her own room for 30 nights in a row, we will completely undo all that effort in the reward?

Never a dull moment in this parenting game....

Happy Earth Day!

2011-04-22T22:20:00.000-05:00

Earth Day!
Torment the bullfrogs...

Torture the children with a hike in 90-degree humid weather...

Tell Dad about it later!

The big catch up post

2011-04-14T21:03:00.000-05:00

It's been almost 4 months since I posted any pictures or any substantive family nonsense (is that an oxymoron?). If I set myself up to chronicle the last 4 months in depth, I'll never do it, so here is one big catch up post and a fervent hope that I might stay on top of our lives a little bit better.

Christmas, 2010:
We continued our tradition of having Santa bring the presents on Christmas Eve. So much more pleasant (to me) than an early-morning trashing of our living space. There were plenty of presents to go around, including a very unusual necklace for Red.

January 2011:
After 5 good years, we said farewell to our trusted Labrador Elvis. He went to live with Red's grandparents in Pennsylvania. It is an ideal arrangement for everyone - Elvis was slowing down and getting stressed about the rapidly increasing speed of Pink and Blue, and the grandparents, who lost their dog last year, got a well-trained companion. In typical fashion, I didn't take a single picture to commemorate the handing off of our beloved dog, the visit with the kids' great-grandparents, or the car (dubbed "snowflake") rented to take us all on this grand 2500 mile adventure - not even New Year's Eve in Nashville, and a visit to a life-sized replica of the Parthenon.

At least I remembered to pull out the camera a few weeks later when we celebrated Pink turning 3 - or maybe it was her father who had the good sense to take some pictures:

February, 2011.
This month was full of ice and snow, and one major holiday. Which Red and Green celebrated by taking a painting class...and giving the paintings to Pink and Blue for Valentine's Day. Yup, we are an original bunch. But what we lack in originality, we may make up for in ability to follow directions. Note how much our paintings look like the prototype, seen over Red's shoulder.

March, 2011.

Regardless of any wagers taken to the contrary a decade and a half ago (or perhaps to spite the wagerers), we celebrated 15 years of marriage in March. We attended a Devotchka concert with friends, and, as might be expected of a smallish indoor concert venue, the pictures taken are kind of dim. Lack of photographic evidence notwithstanding, we are still happily married.

April, 2011.

Apparently, when the sun comes back out, so do the cameras - and the crazy ideas. I came home from a Friday-afternoon doctor's appointment to find my family frantically throwing clothes into suitcases for a "surprise vacation". We drove way into the night, and didn't tell the kids where we were going until the next day. "Bat Cave" and "Hotel Pool" were enough to sell it.

Whew... I feel better now. I am sure there are a few things I missed, but at least we don't have a gaping hole in the family record.

A big thanks to anyone who made it through all this!

What happened to this blog?

2011-04-13T22:33:00.000-05:00

Sometimes, the smallest events can really change my attitude about everything. Take, for example, the last post on this blog. I put it up a couple of days before we left town. It was, for the record, a picture of Red's feet as he fixed a minor leak in a valve on the back of our refrigerator. One that we discovered after coming home from a week to visit loved ones in Utah at Thanksgiving. I meant to post something humorous about leaky fridges and and my live-in-handyman. Of course, I didn't get around to it before we had Christmas (and all of it's associated chaos) and then left town again for a week. A week from which we returned to a true flood. A lift-the-carpet-to-dry-it-out kind of flood that leaves a particular texture to hardwood and stains that need to be painted over on walls.

In the midst of cleaning it up and eradicating the sour smell of wet house from the air, I lost my blogging momentum - and my ability to write witty things about small floods. I blame the sound of the fans and the creeping suspicion that our house might actually not like us very much. Or at least, not like being left alone.

I've vowed to change (not a vowed like my marriage vow, which I take quite seriously indeed, but more like my "eat less chocolate" vow, which only applies on days that I designate), and I will catch up and keep writing on this blog; if only so that my children will have some written record of what they did during their childhoods. But I'm not writing about floods.

A New Game!

2010-12-22T08:00:00.000-06:00

Anyone willing to play, "Write a funny caption"?

I'll tell you tomorrow what's going on in this picture!

Our Two Snowmen

2010-12-21T21:41:00.003-06:00

November 21, 2010. Sandy, Utah:

December 21, 2010. Dallas, TX:

Hope that wherever you are, and whatever your weather, you're welcoming winter with a smile!

Elf on the Floor

2010-12-20T22:13:00.003-06:00

For our family, this is the first year that the children really understand the Santa aspect of Christmas. Blue has known for a while that he's a guy in a red suit, but the idea of a naughty and nice list and not beating up your sister equaling presents is just sinking in.

To help the "elves are spying for Santa" story along, we've made a big deal about rustling bushes in the backyard, and have even had a couple of elfin visits. Our first elf visitors took away the letters to Santa that we left in our stockings and replaced them with candy canes and books. This morning, we had another reminder that the elves are watching.

Sometime during the night, small, pointy footprints appeared on our windowsill and floor, and little packages of candy were placed in our shoes. When Red went to put on his work shoes this morning (poor guy, he's the only one not on vacation this week), he couldn't find one, and everyone was very shocked to find it in front of the fire place.

Here's Pink admiring what a midnight frenzy and some washable markers can do:

I think Blue might have been onto me, but once he saw his beloved York peppermint patties, he forgot to delve deeper into the mystery of the footprints:

Feature Presentation: Christmas Letter 2010

2010-12-11T23:00:00.003-06:00

"My Mama always said, 'Life was like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're gonna get.'"

The constant search for unique Christmas letter themes ended with this series of famous movie quotes. What can we say, it seemed like a good idea at the time.

"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a %$&*!"

Pink turned 2 in January of this year, and has developed a bit of an attitude. A pint sized cutie with a Texas-sized attitude. She likes to speak in complete sentences, annoy her brother, and dress up with accessories. We love her spunk, we’re not so in love with her ignoring us when we ask her to do something.

"Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."

We’re still adjusting to life in Texas – this year we had a run in with the local pests. While planting a garden this spring, Red was bitten on the hand by some fire ants. Normally, this would lead to a couple of uncomfortable, itchy welts that go away in a few days. Unfortunately for Red, these fire ants hadn’t brushed their teeth, so the bites got infected, and he had to go to the emergency room for intravenous antibiotics. We were also fortunate to have Oma and Opa visit for Easter – they were smart enough to get out of town before the 110 degree weather hit in August, although Oma’s visit in September was still mighty toasty. For a change of pace, we took the kids to Utah for Thanksgiving and got snowed on – over and over again. They got their wish to go sledding and build a snowman, but after the excitement of owning snow boots wore off, they were done with the cold weather.

"Go ahead, make my day"

Blue had a friend birthday party this year, and what a day it was! Blue turned 5, and had a marvelous time dressing everyone up as a pirate and eating pirate ship birthday cake. Green had a great time planning the party, and can’t wait to have another birthday. As an added bonus, Blue’s great-grandparents were able to be here for the party, and did their part to make the event a success.

"What we've got here...is failure to communicate."

Green attempted to spiff up our communication by attending the BlogHer Conference in New York City this summer with Vermilion. The conference was a whole lot of fun, but whether this blog is actually better because of it is debatable. Green also keeps busy with her church calling in Primary, and loves working with the kids and watching them learn and grow.

"Houston, we have a problem."

Well, not so much of a problem, but certainly a frequent visitor. Red continues to work with the Department of Justice, and spends a good deal of his time traveling back and forth to Houston. He is grateful for the opportunity to work in a field, and at a job, he enjoys.

"I feel the need—the need for speed!"

For the first time in 10 years, Red bought a new car. His Volvo, dubbed “Meatball” by the kids, is providing much commuting enjoyment. In other speedy news, Green has been experiencing the true suburban mom commute – running Blue to preschool five days a week and Pink to various activities and classes.

"Have fun storming the castle!"

We introduced Pink and Blue to Cinderella’s castle this spring at Disneyworld, and all had the time of our lives. The kids had a great time on the rides and meeting characters, and the parents enjoyed themselves too!

"There's no crying in baseball!"

There is, however, crying in soccer. Blue played summer and fall soccer this year, and after the first game, where about 80% of the time was spent crying, he finished the year really enjoying himself. Pink has started taking ballet and tap class, and although her dancing skills are pretty minimal, she loves having a big girl activity to go to every week. Red continues to improve his golf game every chance he gets. Green has started taking piano lessons, and feels like she is making good progress.

"I'll be back."

Wishing you all the best for a joyous Christmas Season, and wonderful 2011.

Please share your best EASY recipe!

2010-12-03T18:15:00.003-06:00

Friends who love to cook! Friends who hate to cook! I need your help. A friend of mine is trying to give a wonderful gift to her very deserving sister. Here is her story:

_______________________________

My sister has a goal to have 10 dinners she can pull off. I want to help her with this as a Christmas gift.

It is more difficult than it sounds. Her family was T-boned in a car accident in the 90's and she has had terrible back pain ever since. It has gotten progressively worse. So when she prepares dinners she can't stand there chopping or stirring. Even opening can's and jars is a problem. Her husband is a great guy, but is a busy Dr and the bishop of their struggling ward. He would like her to invite the missionaries to dinner and others but she is overwhelmed by the idea. So here is where you come in.

Everyone has one or two throw together meals don't they? I hope that you do! Would you share yours with me? Money is not an issue. I tried a list of 10 I thought of and when I got to more than 3 or 4 ingredients she almost cried. (And most of those were spices or soup mixes-no chopping involved.) She can pick up any prepared or pre-chopped or frozen items needed. The only caveat being that she can't lift anything heavy-as in she can't lift a gallon of milk. Her husband thinks he has not had dinner if meat has not been served. She told me one of her current recipes is to put a pot roast in the crock pot with some water and then cook it all day.

__________________________________

Do you have any recipes that might work? Please leave them in a comment or email them to me!

Thanks so much!

Dallas Building Falling Down, Falling Down, Falling Down

2010-10-31T20:02:00.006-05:00

We had a once in a lifetime chance on Saturday to see the building next to Red's office demolished by implosion. We dragged the kids out of bed at 6:30, and after a picnic breakfast in a conference room, settled into some comfortable seats to see the show. We were not disappointed!

Happy Halloween

2010-10-30T21:05:00.005-05:00

Tonight we had our neighborhood Halloween party and trick or treating. The kids were beyond excited, especially about the bounce house and trackless train. As worn out as they were from all that bouncing and riding, we still did some neighborhood candy begging. They had a great time!

A few words about Blue's costume. A while ago he insisted that he wanted to be the UPS guy for Halloween. I dismissed it, thinking he would opt for Superman or a toy story character instead, but the UPS guy thing stuck. Finally, in a skype conversation with Vermillion, who had asked about a few things that I have been really excited about lately, and my

answer was always "amazon.com", Red put it together for me - the reason Blue wanted to be the UPS guy is because of my love of amazon, and that his grandparents and great-grandparents live far away. The UPS guy is kind of like Santa Claus around here - constantly delivering really good stuff. Guess I'd want to be the guy bringing the presents, too!

Proving that with the right motivation (party + candy), they can, in fact, hold still for a picture and act like they like each other.

Boo!

2010-10-27T22:20:00.003-05:00

As a preview for the coming candy-begging, we had our church Halloween party tonight. Blue insisted that he wanted to be "the UPS guy", so we managed a costume; and not surprisingly, Pink decided to be a princess...wearing pink.

A Motley Crew

2010-10-22T21:09:00.002-05:00

Blue turned 5 this week, and celebrated this evening with a Pirate-themed party. We were lucky enough to have his great-grandparents in town to ~~work as slave labor~~ join in the fun.

Here's Blue with his pirate gear on:

Great-grandpa acted as the tattoo artist. As an added bonus, he impressed the preschool crowd with his WWII era coast guard tattoos.

What's a pirate party without weaponry? Red acted as the swordsmith, and impressed the preschool-parent crowd with his balloon artistry. He also does poodles, but they didn't seem appropriate.

Pink was grateful to join in the fun. Green was grateful that she took a nap before the party so that she wasn't a cranky mess.

Wondering how we managed to have a party at our house but still take pictures? Here's Blue's ~~girl~~friend Pretzel - her mom took all the pictures in this blog post.

The requested Pirate ship cake. With a major shout-out to my friend Mauve who showed up late last night to save me from my frosting nightmare.

Nothing quiets a room full of kids down like a great-grandma with a story book. The perfect transition from outside games to sitting still for pizza.

Happy Birthday Blue! Here's to another swashbucklin' year.

No more radio silence.

2010-10-18T22:35:00.005-05:00

About a year ago, I chronicled my adventures repairing the power mirror on my car that somehow failed to survive being rammed into the side of our garage. Basically, I fixed it myself with a little help from a website, a fedex shipment, and a whole lot of luck - and for about half the price that the dealership quoted me.

Last week, I lost power in my car to the radio and clock. How does that happen? Well, if a 2-yr-old inserts a penny into the cigarette lighter, that may cause a bit of a short (which I actually felt when I removed the penny). Sadly, this has happened before, and the dealership was happy to fix it for about $100. Because I'm trying to laugh about the things my kids do rather then let them drive me to psychotropic drugs, I posted the shorted-out-the-radio blurb on facebook. And I got some very nice comments, including one from my friend Patrick.

A little about Patrick - he's a fix-anything kind of guy, who also is a great teacher. In grad school, he used to encourage me to rebuild my own cell-media pump after I would flood it, even though we both knew it would be faster and easier if he just did it for me. Like I said, he's a good teacher. So Patrick comments on my facebook status that the problem with my car is probably just a fuse.

That was last week, and I was busy, so the car never made it to the dealership. Today, during Pink's nap, I taught Blue how to wash a car, and while I was at it, showed him some of the engine. With the hood open, I saw the fuse box, and thought about my non-functioning radio, but all the fuses were fine. I grabbed my owner's manual anyway, and discovered that my car has another fuse box, tucked way, way, under the steering wheel. Like, only visible to a skinny 4-yr-old who can squeeze himself in between the gas pedal and brake. He found it, though, and I replaced (with the spare fuse included in the box) the blown fuse.

Thanks, Patrick, for fixing my car from 2000 miles away.

And thanks, Blue, for helping me save the $100 and the hours in the dealership waiting room.

Complete blogging failure

2010-10-17T19:33:00.003-05:00

Somewhere in my mind, I think of this blog as a place to chronicle the really important things that happen in our lives - things like grandparents coming to visit, friends stopping by, important events that happen to those we love. And in that part of my mind, these things should be chronicled by photo, yet somehow, even though there are two phones in this house that take pictures, a point and shoot camera, and a digital SLR, we've managed to not take a single picture of:

Oma coming to visit. She was here for more than a week, played with the kids, ventured to six flags, cooked, cleaned, swam at the pool, and did I post a single picture? Nope.

The Periwinkles (yeah, everyone gets a color here), who are some of our favorite people from the Washington, DC years; whose son was born within weeks of Blue, and whose daughter is the same age as Pink; and whose company we love to keep - not a single photo. Nada. The kids playing, the adults catching up.... we got nothing.

Or maybe the Chartreuses? Since they came over hours after getting the baby they are adopting, stayed for a few days while we all (including our over-eager kids) watched this tiny little person in amazement, and let us share the precious early bonding time with their son. Did anyone whip out a digital imaging device? Not so much.

This week we've got the great-grandparents coming, Blue's birthday - and his first friend birthday party in years, and our annual church primary program. Even if I don't blog about any of it, could someone please remind me to take a picture of something? Please? Before my kids grow up and my mind grows old, and I can't remember any of it.

When did she get this grown up?

2010-10-06T15:28:00.002-05:00

Pink had her face painted at a recent birthday party (in shades of pink, no less), and I just go this picture from the birthday mom. I can't believe how grown up my baby girl looks.

We're Just a Little Backwoodsy

2010-10-03T22:40:00.007-05:00

An unusual series of events happened this weekend - First, the weather cooled down from "melt your face off" to "downright pleasant". Also, we realized we were, yet again, going to miss our church camp-out this month, which would surely break Blue's heart. Thirdly, Red had to spend some time working on Saturday, which is usually his play with the kids day. Additionally, earlier in the week I managed to douse our yard in twice the recommended amount of fire ant poison (yes, I doubled it on purpose). And finally, it was General Conference for our church, which meant that we wouldn't be seen by anyone on Sunday and could watch church on TV in our pajamas.

With all of that adding up, we decided it was the perfect weekend for a camp-out....in the backyard. This is really the best possible scenario for me us. The kids get to sleep outside, but we still get to maintain our minimum hygiene standards.

Red and the kids worked hard to set up the tent:

I tried "living on the edge" and didn't use my stove top grill attachment:

Red, proving what a good sport he is, but also hiding from the mosquitoes:

Everyone piled into the tent, or, "proving we can contain our excitement for 10 seconds for a picture" - it was difficult:

Pink trying out her new "big girl" sleeping bag:

Blue, with his favorite Lightning McQueen bag:

Much to my surprise, everyone (including me) lasted through the night in the tent. There was some crying, but probably more out of confusion at being dressed in triple layer pajamas by your mother than actual sadness (hey, the temps were in the low 50's).

This really turned out about as perfectly as we could have hoped - Red had time to work while the kids and I hunted down supplies during the day, we didn't get bitten by too many bugs, the adults were not stressed by our usual Saturday-night-leading-up-to-Sunday-responsibilities scramble, and sleeping in the same tent with Dad more than made up for not having him every minute during the day.

Lunch is on me

2010-09-23T00:01:00.000-05:00

Congratulations, Tristan! Lunch is in the mail.

Free Lunch?

2010-09-21T20:47:00.003-05:00

A result of the blogging conference I attended a few weeks back was getting to know some of the companies involved in sponsoring the conference. It turns out that women make a lot of the household buying decisions in America, and these companies saw a great chance to sell some stuff to the 2000+ women gathered in New York for a couple of days.

I happened to speak with the folks who make the Healthy Choice line of foods, and talked a little about their new "Cafe Steamers" frozen meals. They talked about their focus on preservative-free, fiber and protein rich foods. This sounded like a great idea to me. When I heard words like "vegetables big enough to see" and "easy preparation," I was in. Why? Because lunch is a challenge for me. I'm home with two small kids, and I don't do hot dogs, chicken nuggets, or mac'n cheese. I just don't. I do, however, rush through lunch so that I can get them fed before Pink's afternoon nap (that saves all our sanity). I usually manage something the kids enjoy and meets my minimum standards for healthy eating. I don't usually manage this for myself.

Healthy Choice offered me a few samples to try to improve my lunches. I tried a couple of the Cafe Steamers, and had to share with Pink, who insisted that the Pad Thai was just her liking. Red tried the General Tso's Spicy Chicken, and was favorably impressed (which is saying a lot from a guy who generally refuses anything that comes out of a box or can). I loved the steaming baskets that let me decide how much of the sauce I wanted to add to my lunches. Super!

Do you have lunch challenges? Want to give these a try? Thanks to the folks at Healthy Choice, I get to give away lunch! I'll pick a winner at random at midnight on Thursday - just leave me a comment with the best or worst lunch you've ever eaten!

The Tutu Tote

2010-09-02T22:23:00.003-05:00

I may be taking the girly-ness of my favorite toddler just a little too far, but I decided that she needed a special bag to carry her ballet and tap shoes to class. And it couldn't be just any bag, it had to be cute; no, CUTE.

And what doesn't say "cute" like a tote bag wearing a tutu - with a daisy and enough ribbon to strangle a Labrador?

The best part - I had the tulle, the tote bag was on clearance, and I had a coupon for the ribbon. Final cost for my cuteness overload: less than $4.

Meatball and Spaghetti

2010-09-01T23:12:00.003-05:00

About a year ago, Red started shopping for a new car. The first car he noticed on the highway that looked interesting was a Volvo. Fast forward 11 months and many, many test drives. Red was in the Volvo dealership, trying to convince them to give him the car he liked for free. Well, not quite free, but for a price that was pretty laughable. They laughed, we left. A few emails back and forth, but they were still snickering. Until yesterday - the dreaded "last day of the month" - and the last of what CNN is reporting was a horrible car sales month. They stopped laughing, and Red bought the car.

We have a tradition of naming cars in our house, and we struggled with this one. We wanted something that paid tribute to the Swedishness of the car. Sven? Bjorn? Ikea? No, food lovers - the car's name is Meatball.

We celebrated by going out for spaghetti.

Big Man on Campus

2010-08-30T22:10:00.002-05:00

I offered the spell-your-name with pancakes breakfast this morning, and was rejected...apparently, Dad's omelets are better than my pancakes. I offered to walk him to class, and was rejected...but eventually he had to let me when he realized it was a rule that the parents walk the kids to class on the first day. I offered a goodbye hug, and was rejected...he was already too busy learning the ropes.

At least he let me take a first day of school picture!

Pink can't help but be part of the action. She spent all morning asking if she could go to preschool too. I told her to wait until next year, and then took her grocery shopping (hooray, one kid at the grocery store!) and to story time. I think she enjoyed the one-on-one time with mom, but she clearly missed her big brother.
The first day went well, Blue came out of school smiling and happy, with a backpack full of preschool homework (which roughly translates to mother/son craft projects with a theme), and an assignment to get a bigger backpack (the one he had didn't fit a full-sized folder appropriately). We did some of the homework today, and we have more for tomorrow. We did manage to score a 50% off backpack at Target this afternoon, and it has lots of extra space for a hot glue gun - just in case we need it for all those craft projects...maybe father does know best.

There's a Sucker Born Every Minute

2010-08-29T23:11:00.002-05:00

Why am I removing a hot glue gun from Blue's backpack? Because tomorrow is the first day of school and his father thinks he's funny. Yes, the enviable "first day of Pre-K".

To Blue, it's a big deal - preschool every day, more responsibilities, new shoes...

Apparently to his parents, not so much. When putting Blue to bed today, I thought we should check on his wardrobe choices for tomorrow. Good thing I did, or he would be making his Pre-K debut in hand-me-down seersucker shorts (which he loves, but probably aren't the nicest thing in his closet). After starting the laundry, it occurred to me to assemble his backpack, which doesn't really need to have much in it - other than a change of clothes, which, as I mentioned, are currently being laundered. Red, ever the helpful one, decides to help pack the backpack - by inserting a hot glue gun.

Me: "What are you doing?"
Red: "This will be the first time a preschool teacher looks in a backpack and says, 'what the $#%^@?"
Me, laughing uncontrollably: "Please don't help anymore"

It's 11:30pm. Our day starts in about 6 hours. Am I sleeping? Nope, blogging. Someone help us all.

Dadurday and Momday

2010-08-16T20:33:00.002-05:00

The day between Friday and Sunday is known as "Dadurday" around here. It's the day that dad stays home all day and plays with the kids - that's what they tell us, at least. We had a good Dadurday this week, filled with the usual dad-kid activities.

Yesterday, Red and I were comparing schedules for the week, and realized that he would be leaving Monday morning at 6am, and not be returning until 10pm. Additionally, I was planning to have 5 extra kids in the house, some for several hours. We decided that Monday should be renamed "Momday". And any good renaming should have a theme song:

MOMday MOMday, so good to me,
MOMday MOMday, it was all I hoped it would be
Oh MOMday morning, MOMday morning couldn't guarantee
That MOMday evening you would still be here with me.

MOMday MOMday, can't trust that day,
MOMday MOMday, sometimes it just turns out that way
Oh MOMday morning, you gave me no warning of what was to be
Oh MOMday MOMday, how could you leave and not take me.

Every other day, every other day,
Every other day of the week is fine, yeah
But whenever MOMday comes, but whenever MOMday comes
You can find me cryin' all of the time

Honestly, now that it's over, MOMday wasn't really that bad. Lots of kids, lots of fun, very few problems...except for the completely trashed kitchen that I will now go remedy.

What's for dinner?

2010-08-14T13:31:00.002-05:00

Overheard on the drive to soccer this morning:

Red (looking at a sign for a new restaurant): "Best Thai" - hm, that's a little presumptuous, don't you think?

Green: How do you know? Maybe "Best" is their last name.

Red: Yeah, sure - the famous Best family of Thailand. Maybe later we could try out "Shapiro Thai".

Green: Or "Rogers Vietnamese" - you never know.

Mostly, I just feel sorry for our children. How are they ever going to be useful adults if this is the kind of conversations they hear every day?

Happy Lefthanders Day!

2010-08-14T00:03:00.003-05:00

Our little Pink is a southpaw, a leftie, a witch (seriously? who could have believed that?) - at least, so far. I hear this can change up until she is about 5 or 6 years old.

She seems to have been sinistral (what a horrible name) from birth, always turning her head to left when she slept, and sucking her left thumb. As she has grown, she uses her left hand to color, use a fork, and punch her brother. She may be a true leftie - using her left hand also to hold a tennis racket and swing a golf club.

We are delving into the world of the left handed, searching for child-safe, left-handed scissors, and realizing that most things, including spiral bound notebooks and wristwatches are made for the right-handed.

Until a few days ago, I didn't realize there was a Left-Handed Holiday; yet, here it is, August 13th. Funny with the whole sinister/13 reference. We celebrated today by coloring left handed and punching our brother.

Happy Lefthanders Day to all those out there trying to use a mouse the opposite way, or just to those that love them.

Mr. Potato Head Giveaway - and a really great blog.

2010-08-12T16:31:00.002-05:00

I'm still in BlogHer recovery mode, so it might be a while before I post anything coherent, but I wanted to point you to a great contest - my BlogHer roommate, Vermilion, is running a contest for some of the blog swag; specifically the very awesome ToyStory 3 Mr. Potato Head. I would give you mine, but he barely made it out of my suitcase before he was claimed by Blue and taken to his room.

Check out the contest, and the rest of Mundane Magic (including awesome posts on kids and technology) right here:

http://mundanemagic.com/

Live from NY, it's BlogHer '10

2010-08-07T06:48:00.004-05:00

I'm in NYC for the weekend attending BlogHer'10, and am loving it. In addition to the blogging conference, which doesn't make for very good pictures, Vermilion and I have been taking advantage of the city that never sleeps. I love being in a place where you can really start your evening out after all the conference sessions end at 7pm, and not feel strange about it.

Oh yeah, I ♥ NY

My mothership It wouldn't be NYC without some celebrity sightings...blogging celebrities, that is - like Pioneer Woman. One of my favorite painters - we stayed until the museum closed, when the security guards started muttering about the "free friday filth". Ha!
When Red and I lived here, we always saw the view of the skyline from the top of the world trade center because 1) it was the tallest building and 2) (and probably, most importantly, because we're cheap) we got a discount because Red worked in the building. Last night, I saw the view from the top of Rockefeller Center. Still impressive. As we headed back to the hotel around 11:30pm, we saw two enormous lines of people on the street. Figuring they had to be gathered for something fabulous, we took a closer look. To our amazement, we had managed to run into The Halal Guys, serving fabulous food from a truck for $6. Topped off with a cupcake from The Magnolia Bakery, the perfect midnight dinner.

List of Accomplishments (well, only if I finish them)

2010-08-03T16:39:00.006-05:00

I'm leaving for the BlogHer Conference in a couple of days, and inspired by my friend Lolli (who I hope to spend some time with while there), I'm posting my to-do list. I'm hoping the accountability of writing this out will help me finish.

Things I need to finish:

1. Clean out my car - heaven forbid something happen to me and someone else has to deal will all those cracker crumbs.

2. Laundry - it's not enough to decide what to wear; it actually has to be clean, too.

3. Re-evaluate the shoe situation - I can't possibly need this many pairs of shoes for 3 days.

4. Toenails - enough said.

5. Find and pack chargers - why does every electronic device require a different charger? Can't we all just get along here?

6. Clear off my desk space - this stuff is completely out of control and buried in here somewhere are all the bills - who wants to come home to this?

7. Think about what to do in my time off - it's New York City, and I want to make the most of every minute!

8. Stop worrying about leaving so much - before the kids were born, I traveled for work all the time, so I know what to expect when I leave Red on his own (a weird number of Taco Bell meals and him staying up way too late, as well as strange organizational frenzies that might leave my closet bare), but I've never left Red and the kids alone for more than about 3 or 4 hours. Crazy, huh? Never, not a girls' weekend, not a long shopping trip, nothing. I am sure they can handle it, but 4 days with no mom - anything could happen here.

Things I have already managed to do:

1. Fill the house with kid-friendly, low-cooking foods - so what if they live on cereal bars and fruit snacks for a few days...and I included Oreos, not because the kids like them, but because Red loves them, and experience shows that a happy parent leads to happy children (at least, that's how it works with me).

2. Restore some order to the kids' rooms - and do enough laundry that they should at least have something to wear every day until I get back.

3. Resist the urge to make an hour-by-hour comprehensive list of activities for those 4 days - they really will be okay without an exacting timetable of soccer practice/swimming lesson/meal schedules, right? RIGHT????

The Dark Side of Saturday

2010-07-31T20:18:00.005-05:00

What do a power outage, the hottest day of the year, 2 locksmiths, and an accordion player have in common?

Normally, not a whole lot, but today, through an unusual sequence of events, they were all part of our Saturday.

We started the day innocently enough - Red speed mowed the lawn while the kids and I ran to the donut store for breakfast so that we could make it to Blue's soccer game on time and in full sugar high. After soccer, we took advantage of a generous agreement we have with our neighbors - we take care of their fish and collect the mail, and they let us use their pool while they are out of town. Since we were only planning to be in the pool for 30 minutes, and we only walk across our back alley to get there, we didn't put on sunscreen, didn't take an extra swim diaper, and decided to just go out the garage, and thus, not take any keys with us.

While in the pool, we notice that the power has gone out in the neighborhood. We didn't think anything of this, and finished our swim. Back at the garage, we plugged the code into the garage door opener (knowing full well that it is new and had a battery backup for power outages), and nothing happened (so much for the battery). We ran into a neighbor who told us the power was supposed to be back on in about an hour, so we figured we'd just swim a little longer. An hour later, no power, and a chat with the now-onsite crew says that we'll be out for a while. A frantic knocking on some doors to find someone, anyone home, leads us to a person with a cell phone willing to call a locksmith. We wait, and we wait. The kids are hot, tired, and hungry. The adults are too. We wait some more. Finally, 2 locksmiths show up. On the bright side, it turns out that our house is incredibly difficult to break into. On the less than bright side, we've been outside now for about 4 hours when they finally get into the house.

To soothe our fried nerves and fried bodies, we decide that since we can't cook and have no A/C, we'll have dinner at our favorite German deli - because, really, what doesn't say, "wow, we've had a crazy day" like ending it with sauerkraut. To Pink's extreme amusement, there was live music in the restaurant - lucky us, the accordion player knew all the notes to Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.

(sorry this guy is sideways, I didn't realize I wasn't supposed to turn the phone that direction - it's been a long day)

Nice Buns

2010-07-30T21:55:00.002-05:00

A "guest post" from Red:

The morning conversation went like this. I started by asking Green for a smaller than usual breakfast.

"I've been travelling and that is never good for my waistline."

Green consoled me with a "don't worry, a few days of reasonable eating and you'll be fine."

Off to work I go. Sitting at my desk - minding my own business - and a paralegal asks "Red, have you had a Tootsie's cinnamon roll?" I indicate that I haven't and she insists it is a must try. We walk a short distance to a nondescript cafe and I order a cinnamon roll and wait.

From the rack the attendant pulls the above "Texas sized" loaf of bread being peddled as a cinnamon roll. After a few minutes of warming in what looks like a pizza oven, she ~~drenches~~ drizzles it with glaze using - pause for effect - A PITCHER.

I snapped the above photo and sent it to Green with the tag line "so much for reasonable." Aside from the hallucinogenic sugar high throughout the day, it was quite good. I saved a portion to share the love with Green, Pink, and Blue when I got home.

Here's hoping I can practice better self-control this weekend. If not, I will be the fat guy in Tootsie's screaming at the attendant to "JUST GIVE ME THE PITCHER AND NOBODY GETS HURT."

HOT!

2010-07-29T23:30:00.004-05:00

This is the imagine associated with the weather forecast for our area for the next 5 days. It's not "sunny" or "partly cloudy". It's just called "hot", and is accompanied by a triple digit high. Good thing we're stocked up on popsicles!

Group Nap

2010-07-28T22:10:00.005-05:00

Business travel is a way of life in our household, as it is in many. For Red (and thus for all of us), it's not a question of 'if', but only 'when'. Since it's summer, and the three of us who depend on Red have a much more open schedule than usual, we've been able to drive him to the airport and pick him up a few times recently. The kids love it because they get to spend a few extra minutes with dad, Red loves it because he gets to see them a little longer and not deal with parking, and I love it because everyone else is happier (secretly, the kids are always hoping for a treat, which Red knows and always delivers, although he has been unable to top the candy rocks that came home a few trips ago).

When we picked Red up tonight, he looked pretty beat. Traveling through Texas in a suit probably wears on a person almost as much as sleeping in an unfamiliar bed, rushing to make flights, driving a rental car, and actually working do. Anyway, we dragged him on a couple more errands before we finally got him home (don't judge me, I let him take the suit off) tonight, and after a few minutes, this is what I found:

Guess they're all happy to be together again after a long day.

Rainbow

2010-07-27T22:32:00.004-05:00

I freely admit that this is not a great picture, but rainbows are rare enough here that the kids and I ran outside to see this one, and marveled at it's beauty. Blue mentioned that he had seen a rainbow in Hawaii (thank you, thank you for remembering that - and not the harrowing plane ride there and back).

I like the science of rainbows (and light in general). I like that the rainbow that I see is not the same one that anyone else sees, because it is an optical phenomenon based on the position of the observer (but can be captured by camera). I like that Pink stood on the table outside in her Snow White dress and refused to come in because she was so enthralled.

My two cents worth (probably not even that):

The ROY G BIV thing is bogus. Newton ascribed 7 colors because the number 7 was considered holy in his time. I'm not the only one to say that "Indigo" is not only difficult to see, but doesn't make any sense in terms of the primary and secondary color theory of today. The spectrum is actually continuous, so all colors are there, but if we're going to divide the rainbow into bands, let's be reasonable.

We saw a Supernumerary Rainbow tonight, which is not only rare, but is also impossible to describe with classical geometric optics. The supernumerary rainbow helped demonstrate the wave nature of light - and that's a whole lot more fun than particles alone.

And a little from Wikipedia:

A rainbow does not actually exist at a particular location in the sky. Its apparent position depends on the observer's location and the position of the Sun. All raindrops refract and reflect the sunlight in the same way, but only the light from some raindrops reaches the observer's eye. This light is what constitutes the rainbow for that observer. The position of a rainbow in the sky is always in the opposite direction of the Sun with respect to the observer, and the interior is always slightly brighter than the exterior. The bow is centred on the shadow of the observer's head, or more exactly at the antisolar point (which is below the horizon during the daytime), appearing at an angle of 40–42° to the line between the observer's head and its shadow. As a result, if the Sun is higher than 42°, then the rainbow is below the horizon and usually cannot be seen as there are not usually sufficient raindrops between the horizon (that is: eye height) and the ground, to contribute.

Baggage.

2010-07-26T22:55:00.004-05:00

What do the laptop tote I just finished making and Red's latest homework assignment have in common?

Check out his assignment here .

Reach Out and Nuke Someone

2010-07-25T22:16:00.002-05:00

I think I was born as an experimenter. I love to try stuff and see if it works, whether it's a new food technique or a genuine lab experiment. One of my favorite parts of my old job was having a chance to try new things that no one had ever done before. I also love to try household experimental stuff, and the quick and easy experiments are always the best.

When I came across "How to Check A Microwave for Leaks" in my WikiHow feed the other day, I just couldn't wait to try it. The experiment is actually pretty simple, but I needed Red's help, so I had to wait all day before I could do it. Essentially, microwave radiation is on a very similar electromagnetic frequency as cell phone radiation, you can check a microwave for radiation leaks by putting your cell phone inside, closing the door, NOT TURNING ON THE MICROWAVE, and calling the phone. If it rings, the microwave is not properly insulated against leaks. Simple enough.

When Red came home from work, and we had the kids in bed, I told him I was going to put my phone in the microwave and that he should call it. Once I told him I wasn't going to turn it on, he wiped the "you have lost your mind" look off his face and replaced it with his "you're just as crazy as always" eyeroll, and we were in business.

Experiment ended when we didn't hear the phone ring, the voicemail picked up, and there was no record of a missed call. Guess we're safe from those electromagnetic waves after all. Of course, there's no real evidence that low levels of microwave radiation are dangerous, but whatever.

As an added bonus, I now know that I can throw my phone in the microwave if I don't want to hear it ring (yes, I know I could just turn the ring tone off, or the phone off completely, but that's way too easy).

Anybody out there just put their phone in the microwave?

Turn Off That Noise, Mom; We Want Real Music.

2010-07-23T20:33:00.006-05:00

A few weeks ago at the library, Pink discovered the CD section, and asked to check one out. I agreed, and she picked out Sleeping Beauty and Princess Birthday (that Disney marketing machine is something else - she's only 2, can't read, and yet managed to get double dose of Disney). We listened to "Happy Birthday Princess" every time we were in the car, and by the next trip to the library, Blue was begging for his turn at the CD collection. Since the Disney equivalent of princesses for boys is pirates, he figured he could score some great swashbuckling tunes. After a pretty intense search, he determined there were no pirate CD's, but he had managed to find a Vikings CD, pictured below (yeah, he can't read either): Since I didn't see any harm in it, we got the Viking CD, turned it on in the car and were happily on our way. After a week or so of this, the kids had gotten pretty used to the songs.

Today when we got in the car, the radio was tuned to a station I listen to on the way to work out at 5:45am. Imagine Lady Gaga and Usher and the like - it helps wake me up. I wasn't really paying attention as we were driving until about 5 minutes later, when the request comes from Blue in the back seat, "Mom, can you turn on Figaro?" And Pink chimes in with, "That's my favorite!" Shhhh, nobody tell them it's not cool.

Wash, Rinse, Repeat...

2010-07-22T23:59:00.002-05:00

If you happen to mention to me that you are thinking about buying a new dishwasher, you might as well grab a chair and get comfortable, because I LOVE my dishwasher, and will happily tell you about it for hours on end. If you happen to come to my house for dinner, and help clear the table afterward (which I appreciate, thank you very much), I will do everything I can to discourage you from rinsing, and try to talk you into loading those plates and platters directly into the machine. Why do I do this? Because this thing gets everything clean. The dishes go in scary and come out sparkly.

Is it that Bosch builds an awesome dishwasher? Maybe. It certainly is quiet.

Is it that the dishwasher tabs I use have the extra built in powerball? Probably not.

The massive amounts of jet dry? Nah.

The precise chemical composition of Texas municipal water? I don't think so.

I think the reason I believe that my dishwasher is such a marvel of cleaning technology has nothing to do with the dishwasher itself,

and

everything

to

do

with

the

pre-treatment:

Tiny Bubbles

2010-07-21T23:17:00.004-05:00

In an effort to save time after swimming lessons today, I asked Blue to take a quick bath in the master bathtub instead of walking up the stairs to his bathroom. Why, exactly, I thought this would save time is beyond me. Sure, I saved walking up the stairs, but instead I got suckered into turning on the jets, adding bubbles, and by this time, Pink realized what was going on, and was frantically trying to figure out how to undress herself.

Oh well, parenting is about happy little moments, not a strictly kept meal and naptime schedule, right?

Mixed Signals

2010-07-20T23:12:00.004-05:00

A few years ago, when we lived in New York, we got very comfortable with driving in New Jersey, and making many left turns via a right turn jug handle. This isn't a very difficult driving concept once you've done it a few times, and everyone pretty much gets the hang of it. But when I saw that an intersection that I drive through fairly frequently was slated for the (no joke) "first ever in Texas left turn jug handle," I started to panic. Jug handles are okay if everyone knows what they are doing, and what to expect. To put a solitary one in on a busy intersection where no one is likely to have had experience with this type of traffic pattern seems like a bad decision to me. Even worse, this intersection is just south of one of the 10 most dangerous intersections in America (I think it's #6). I think the traffic planners here are insane. I've thought that from the moment we moved here, and had to start figuring out how to navigate this: That is the Dallas North Tollway. It runs north AND south. Seems pretty simple, but try explaining to someone that they should take the north tollway south. I used to get lost a lot. Now I have GPS - and a map.

Of course, we also had to get used to the unusual orientation of the traffic lights. See that left turn signal with 5 lights? One red, one yellow arrow, one green arrow, one solid yellow, and one solid green. Some signals around here add even one more, with a double red. No wonder I'm always lost, I'm too busy trying to figure out if I can turn left or not. If this weren't enough to keep me inside, we are also very close to the Interstate 35 twins: I-35E and I-35W, which wouldn't be confusing at all, except that they both run north/south.

Some days, I decide it's easier to just walk.

How Can Summer Be Half Over?

2010-07-19T23:05:00.003-05:00

Pink's Rec Center ballet class ended on Saturday with the performance of 'The Teddy Bear Dance,' and we all clapped and cheered like she had mastered Swan Lake. I had a great time with this - maybe because I like doing her hair, maybe because she loves being such a girly girl, or maybe because I am entertained that she stayed in class all by herself for the second week in a row with the promise of a treat from the vending machines (crazy chick - who picks ranch potato chips over chocolate?) and I find myself regretting all those times I didn't understand why parents bribe their children.

Since it's all over until I can find a more permanent studio for her, here are the pics:

"Sassy Ballerina"

"Princess Arms"
The only two little girls who made it through the whole class:

Doing her best to follow along. My favorite part of this is that she's concentrating so hard, she's sticking out her tongue. And the farmer tan. Not exactly elegant.

For us, we are also marking the half-way point of summer. From here on, it's a countdown to the school year. The time has already passed much too quickly - I had so many big plans for us, and now I've just realized that Blue has not a single pair of long pants, so I guess I'll be scrapping a few plans in favor of school shopping.

GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLLL.....

2010-07-18T22:35:00.003-05:00

Black Soccer Shorts to match everyone else on the team: $6
PeeWee Ultimate Shin Guards: $10
Telling stories of his first soccer game where he cried through 80% of it: Priceless.

Blue played his first soccer game on Saturday. As might be expected with a 3 and 4 year old league, there were lots of tears, very few rules, and lots of adults encouraging kids to "just try your best, you'll get a turn to kick the ball."

Most of the tears were soothed by the post-game snack with friends, and the report from Blue himself was that he had a great time and even scored a goal (really? I remember multiple requests to go home - and he did score 2 goals - one for us, and one for the other team). Good thing this is so informal. By league rules, no one is allowed to mention a score, the parents are allowed to trot along on the field, and the "official" tries to make sure each kid gets a chance to kick the ball.

With all of the anguish, why is he putting himself through this, you might ask. Well, her nickname is Pretzel, and we happen to think she's pretty cute. As an added bonus, she also plays tennis in his same clinic.

And the best part of all of this? I have to shop for a new whistle this week; Red (who knows nothing of soccer, and didn't watch one minute of the world cup) had been recruited as assistant coach. He sure must love that little boy.

midnight haiku

2010-07-17T23:50:00.001-05:00

Saturday

Children play all day
Parents watch and play at night
Pain by morning light

The Royal Family

2010-07-15T21:50:00.002-05:00

I blame her father for this, or maybe her grandmother, or anyone else that has called her "princess" in the last 2 1/2 years. She insists that we call her Snow White, and this morning, while enjoying her sippy cup of milk stretched out on MY bed, started asking where her "charm prince" was. Maybe it's her brother's fault, for pulling out a pirate shirt and cowboy pants and calling himself the prince. Either way, this certainly can't be my fault. It's not like I helped her put the dress on, did her hair, or painted her toenails...oh wait, yes I did.

Ignaz Semmelweis: not the name of a monster - the guy who figured out that handwashing helps stop disease spread.

2010-07-14T22:41:00.005-05:00

We started off today with big plans, until Pink came out of her bedroom with a fever, and the entire day was turned upside down. We spent way, way too much time in the family room today reading books and watching Sid the Science Kid (hey, Blue picked it, leave me alone). Sid was talking about the germ theory of disease and how we can help not spread viruses around. Apparently, Pink was paying attention, because she put herself in quarantine.

To her credit, she thought ahead and brought a snack with her.

I had to pat myself on the back a little, because half a day inside gives me horrible cabin fever, even though there are rooms in my house I go into on a less than monthly basis; and cabin fever stifles my ability to patiently deal with requests. "Mom, can I have a drink", "Mom, I need to wear my princess dress", "Mom, bring me a snack" - I handled them all. When I was confronted with, "Mom, I want to turn my room into a monster", I calmly came up with the following for Blue:

Here's hoping that her fever breaks unmedicated tomorrow so we can be back to our regular schedule of nonsense by Friday.

Art imitates life

2010-07-13T20:22:00.002-05:00

I had to share this video - I laughed, I cried, I groaned a little, and then I thought, "I have friends who would like this". Hope you like it.

In the end, it's worth it to me, too.

Parenting Pirouette

2010-07-12T23:20:00.005-05:00

I hope I'm not one of those crazy mothers - the kind that push their kids so hard to perform at sports/music/dance/whatever that the kids hate their activity and don't feel too kindly toward their mother either. I think I might be, though, since I'm sad that we only have one more rec center ballet class with Pink (who went to class all by herself on Saturday - hooray!). I am so sad that I started looking for a local studio that teaches ballet to 2 year olds - and was a little put out that I haven't been able to find one that focuses on ballet rather than "creative movement". Yeah, I might be a little crazy.

Hey, good lookin', whatcha got cookin?

2010-07-11T22:34:00.004-05:00

I love that Pink is at the age where she loves to cook - not only in her play kitchen, but with actual ingredients. Blue has lost his love of helping in the kitchen (except when chocolate chips are involved), but Pink is my little helper. She loves to stir and knead and taste ingredients; including baking powder...yuck. I know that this age is going to pass, and she'll be too busy for things like this soon, but hopefully in a few years, she'll be back - maybe with her own recipes and ideas!

Christmas - it's not just for Winter anymore.

2010-07-10T19:59:00.004-05:00

When I see Christmas stuff in the stores before Halloween, I twitch a little, but figure, hey, some people like to get an early start with their consumerism. But today is 6 days past the 4th of July, not the middle of October, and this was the scene OUTSIDE my neighborhood Hallmark (outside and through the front store windows, not in some back corner somewhere):

Back by popular demand? Really? Is there an army of screaming grandparents out there trying to finish Timmy's Christmas list before Labor Day?

When Junk Attacks

2010-07-07T22:23:00.005-05:00

My life is not a model of order and efficiency. I like things organized, but I certainly have been known to ignore a pile of clutter in favor of something I would rather do. But this week, the clutter is overwhelming. Over the holiday weekend, we moved some furniture around, and took the enormous catch-all bookcase out of our family room. Unfortunately, the bookcase hasn't found it's way to it's new home yet, so it's contents have been vomited all over the floor for about 5 days now. It's driving me crazy. I don't know what to do with the stuff, or whether I should just wait it out and see if the bookcase does, in fact, find a new home somewhere convenient.

As a commentary on the clutter on the family room floor, Blue built this tower today. He put it together this morning, and it's still in the middle of the floor. The worst part is, I've spent most of the day trying to figure out if there is any real purpose for CD's anymore, or if I should just dispose of these thoughtfully. Maybe they just need to be thinned, because, really, who in this family is going to admit to even buying the Boys II Men or PM Dawn CD's, forget actually breaking one out and listening to it?

Happy 4th of July.

2010-07-06T22:11:00.005-05:00

We had a great holiday!

We:

- swam

- golfed

- shopped

- over-ate

- biked

- got seriously rained on

- enjoyed 4 days with Red

- baked a flag cake

- skipped the fireworks because they terrify our children.

Hope you celebrated your independence!

The Great Indoors

2010-07-01T22:16:00.005-05:00

I have long claimed that summers in Texas are the winters of more northern climates - not that it is cold here, but rather that this is the season where we huddle indoors around our air conditioner vents and don't go outside in regular clothing expecting to be comfortable. So unlike previous places we have lived, summer is an indoor season. This also means that we have to come up with some indoor activities. Today I pulled out all the stops, and we did two separate goofy activities.

The first is one we forget about for a while and when we remember it again it is that much more fun. We call it "firefly" - which is funny because Blue doesn't remember ever seeing a firefly, and Pink has never seen one. Anyway, this game involves a green laser pointer and a lot of imagination. I shine the laser pointer at the walls, floors, and ceilings, and the kids (and dog) chase it around the house. Yes, I know this type of setup was sold as a cat toy, but it works for kids too. Everyone loves chasing (and occasionally catching) the firefly, and when I've had enough of the dog running full speed into the walls, I shoo the firefly out the door, and hide the laser pointer until the next time.

Our latest indoor game was a scavenger hunt with map. My friend Holly did this with her kids a while ago in the backyard, but I had already been outside once today, so we played indoors. It took a couple of rounds of explanation before Blue understood this, but once he got it, he had a great time. We used my drawn "map" (yes, art is not my strong suit) of the house and hid golf balls. I hid the golf balls the first few times, and then Blue loved it so much, he took the next dozen rounds. I was impressed that he understood not only my sketching, but the idea of map reading. Definitely one to play again on a rainy day (and by "rainy" I mean "blazing sun").

We're all in the same boat, it seems.

2010-06-30T20:50:00.002-05:00

Thanks to all my mom friends who commented and offered suggestions - and empathy - for the sibling wars being waged at our house. Thanks also to my cousin Kim who works with Head Start kids and offered some suggestions via facebook. I am thankful that so many of us are having the same experience, especially all of you that I admire for your creativity, calm demeanor, and great attitudes. It helps me not feel like the battles are all my lack of parenting skill - because you clearly have skills, and your kids are battling too.

What I mostly get is that there are no quick and easy answers here. After writing yesterday's post, I tried really hard to make things better today, and incorporated some of the suggestions offered. Here are my thoughts:

- I paid attention as much as I could. I am prone to wander away with my thoughts (or just mealtime preparations), and ignored children seem to fight more to get my attention (I feel dumb for mentioning this).

- We moved our bodies in (somewhat) constructive ways. Blue had a rec center class today, and we also spent a good deal of time racing around the house. When I thought we might descend into chaos, we took a walk, even though it was hot, threatening thunderstorms, and I had other things to do.

- I tried to get a few quality minutes in with each kid so that they felt like I was paying attention. For Pink, this was during Blue's class, and for Blue, during Pink's nap. I didn't do any special projects today or any significant meal prep so that freed up some time.

- I tried really hard not to raise my voice. I'm kind of a loud person, so my "inside voice" is already at increased decibels, and I tend to shout up the stairs rather than walk up and talk to whoever's attention I'm looking for.

- I checked out the site from Vanderbilt University recommended by Kim. Certainly a lot of good information there about how to help little ones build pro-social behaviors.

Thanks to everyone for offering support and similar stories. I believe we are all trying our very hardest to raise our kids to be happy, healthy, functioning members of society, and I appreciate all the moms who offer a listening (blogging?) ear when I become the unhappy, unhealthy, totally non-functioning person who can't get her kids to behave.

This, too, shall pass - and one day, they'll have kids of their own, and we can snicker...

With a sibling like this, who needs enemies?

2010-06-29T22:05:00.003-05:00

That stupid bumpersticker that I used to jeer at, "Insanity is hereditary; you get it from your children" is coming back to bite me. Blue is going to drive me insane. He is a good kid, uses his manners most of the time, takes turns, and does what I ask if not the first time, usually the second; but there is one thing about him that is going to push me over the edge - it's the way he treats his sister. Much of the time, they play nicely together. Blue is in charge of the games, but plays along with Pink when she puts her own spin on stuff. But sometimes, whether for reasons of hunger or boredom or whatever, the relationship spirals out of control to hitting, yelling, pushing, slamming doors, and biting (what is he, 2?). I CAN'T STAND IT!!!! It makes me want to hit, push, and bite someone. If he doesn't watch it, she's going to be an only child.

I blame his mother. She's an only child and never had any sibling relations to deal with. Or maybe his father since he's the oldest of a bunch and knew all the tricks. Regardless, I need help. Ideas. Something. My usual parenting technique (thank you, Kazdin method) is to reward and encourage appropriate behavior and (try to) ignore inappropriate behavior. How do I reward someone for not hitting?

Anyone out there with kids about as far apart as mine that has successfully dealt with this, please, give me some hints.

BlueGrass and BlueShield

2010-06-28T21:46:00.002-05:00

I am in charge of most of the paperwork that filters through our household. Bills, insurance paperwork, car registration renewals - I generally do the filling out of forms, addressing of envelopes, writing of checks, and general tracking of stuff and how and when it gets handled. In the last few weeks, I have done more than my usual amount of paperwork for some pretty random reasons, but I just noticed that a really high percentage of this stuff goes to Lexington, Kentucky. I wonder why - does Lexington have some sort of monopoly on insurance and loan paperwork? Or is it that people with a last name in my part of the alphabet have been assigned geographically to be processed in the bluegrass state?

The temperature is not the only thing rising.

2010-06-27T23:08:00.002-05:00

It's summer in Texas when the best parking spot is determined by shade instead of distance, and you discover that a car seat buckle can double as a branding iron. It's also summer in Texas when the love-hate relationship with baking sets in for me.

I love to bake, but in the summer, anything with yeast makes me thrilled. It rises at supersonic speeds, and if I'm a little behind on my timing, a few minutes out on the patio makes up for it. This morning before church, I baked 5 dozen rolls. The yeast start practically climbed out of the bowl, and I had to rearrange my other activities because instead of an hour to rise, the rolls were ready to go in the oven after 20 minutes on the counter. A few days ago, I made oatmeal bread, which is generally kind of hit or miss for me because the dough is so heavy and the yeast start is unusual. Nevertheless, a few minutes outside, and everything turned out fine.

The only problem with everything being the temperature of a warm oven is that turning on the actual oven is not so appealing. Although, I might just be able to get around turning the oven on - I'm pretty sure that it was close to 350 degrees in the attic the last time I went up, maybe I can just bake up there.

In ballet, like life, it's all about spin.

2010-06-26T22:07:00.004-05:00

"Pink, let's put your leotard on"
"No, I'm busy"
"Pink, it's time to go"
"Just a minute"
"Pink, you can have some lipstick if you get dressed right now"
"Coming, mommy"

In keeping with our summer of over scheduled lessons (ie, golf, tennis, other sports, swimming lessons, piano), we signed Pink up for ballet lessons. She thought it was a marvelous idea, and has spent the last week gearing up for the lessons by telling every member of the family that they would not be allowed into the room for her lessons - we would all have to wait outside.

She practiced before we left by demonstrating fifth position:

Of course, once we came into the classroom, Pink's big talk about everyone waiting outside turned into a plea to hold mommy's hand and sit on her lap. I managed to get 3 feet away for a second to snap this picture before Pink noticed and insisted that I sit within arms reach. What's so scary about a ballet teacher?
With her hand firmly in mine, we practiced running on tiptoe making "princess" and "beachball" arms, pointing our toes, and some stretches. For a first class, not too bad. To hear her tell it, she had a marvelous time and was totally into it - and earned a teddy bear sticker for all her hard work.

Three years in, and I'm still learning to survive

2010-06-25T23:08:00.003-05:00

I originally started blogging to chronicle our family's journey from Washington, DC to Texas. In fact, one of my first posts was about some of the stranger things I had noticed about this area. Now, almost three years later, I am starting to embrace the stranger things - or at least, not be horrified by them. The book pictured has been a great help. It was written as a humorous take on life in Texas from an outsider's perspective. While it does make me laugh (out loud sometimes), it is also extremely comforting to know that I am not the only person to have moved to this area and thought things were a little different...but in a good way.

Mind you, I still haven't come to terms with everything, and I've spent most of today trying to work "yall" into a sentence (I just can't do it), but it's getting better. We're feeling more settled, I've stopped ranting about the lack of grocery delivery and the overabundance of firearms (or at least, stopped ranting as loudly - note the firearms), and the whole family has started to establish friendships. I still don't understand the obsession with football, I still snicker every time I drive past the MaryKay world headquarters building, and I'm dying for some decent Ethiopian food; but as a family, we have discovered golf, learned to style our hair for heat and humidity, and gloat each time we can have a picnic on our lawn in December.

Like it or not, Texas is growing on me. Who knows, maybe next year I'll buy cowboy boots.

Making Up is Hard to Do

2010-06-24T21:44:00.002-05:00

This picture was taken in the adults' bathroom. MY bathroom (okay, Red has half of it). That stool Pink is standing on - not normally in this bathroom; she brought it in.
So that she could get to my lipsticks, which I keep at the very back of my counter (after discovering that "in the drawer" was not safe).

After trying out several options, Pink finally settled on this one, and wore it proudly for about 1 minute until I attacked her with a tissue (before she attacked my white sheets in the next room).

Today I learned:

- Some 2-year-olds really are good problem solvers - get a stool, grab the stuff you want, figure out how to open and twist up a lipstick.

- Some divas are born. I swear I don't feed this, but Pink doesn't consider herself dressed until she has "accessories" - like a necklace, bracelet, or feather-accented headband.

- Some kids can't sleep through thunder storms. Pink was supposed to be napping during the time these pictures were taken. Blue, who rarely naps, slept for almost 2 hours through thunder so loud the windows were rattling.

- Some mothers can justify anything. I spent this whole episode thinking things like "oh, she's practicing her fine motor skills by taking the lids off", but never thinking things like "if I were a decent disciplinarian, she wouldn't be trashing my stuff"

- Some stages of life are much too fleeting. Pink is adorable right now. She's generally happy about stuff, says "I love you" a lot, and even when she says "no", she's cute about it. I know harder ages are coming, but I just love this little girl right now. She's trying so hard to be big, but still wants to cuddle with her mommy sometimes.

My first cousin once removed in law by marriage...

2010-06-23T21:26:00.002-05:00

The title of the blog post isn't a real relationship (I checked with the genealogy gurus I know), but you get the idea. My (insert obscure relationship here) Ann is a truly lovely person (for the record, her husband and my husband are first cousins once removed). I met her for the first time at Red's grandmother's wedding about 10 years ago, and didn't see her again until we showed up on her front door step looking for a place to sleep before a job interview - where she and her whole family welcomed us with open arms. We've been great friends ever since. She's my parenting hero as well as the most considerate and hospitable person I have ever met. I can't stand that we live so far apart now and only get to see each other on rare occasions and via blogs and facebook.

Fortunately, I will get to see Ann live and in person later this summer - all by myself. I hadn't realized it before, but I have never taken a vacation without either my parents or my husband. Crazy! I've done plenty of solo travel for work, but never for fun. This one will be for fun. Ann and I will be at the BlogHer conference in NYC this summer, and I am so excited I can't hardly stand it. Not only is she a fabulous tech guru and resource, she seems to have no real need for sleep. This is my kind of girl! Can't wait to see you, Ann!

Hot and Heavy . . .

2010-06-22T21:07:00.004-05:00

I didn't want to go. It was the middle of the day and I knew that going would have repercussions but I knew I had to go through with it. As soon as I opened the door, the heat took over my entire body in a way I haven't felt for months. My cheeks blushed and my eyes squinted so that nothing seemed clear. I needed to move quickly and so I charged forward. Once I got what I wanted, I was gone in a flash. Back at home I could finally cool down. Why did I do it? I could have stayed in the safety of my home instead of engaging in this hot and sweaty affair. It didn't matter, it is summer and I would need to do it again tomorrow. Why is the mailbox so far from the front door anyway?

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-20T19:57:00.002-05:00

When Pink asked today, "Why your name Dad?", Red replied, "because of you and your brother"

Happy Father's Day to Red, from the two colorful souls who call him Dad. Thank you for being excited about paper ties colored with crayons (nothing but the finest in at-church crafts). Thank you for being their hero and friend. They love you, and so do I.

It Takes a Man to be a Dad

2010-06-19T21:06:00.005-05:00

I think tomorrow's post should be reserved for Red, so I'm taking the opportunity a day early to pay tribute to the other fathers in our lives - Red's Dad and my Papa (yeah, I still call him that).

As I get older, and get to watch more and more kids grow up from an adult's perspective, I see how important dads are - especially the ones that are trying. As in, trying to be involved with their kids, trying to do the best they can, and trying to teach the values they believe in. I am grateful to Red's Dad and my Papa for trying so hard to raise the two of us, and for trying to be involved with our kids, even though we've moved them so far away from their grandparents.

Here is Grandpa with Blue, doing chair races. Grandpa raised 8 kids, has 6 grandkids, and acquired 4 daughters-in-law. That's a lot of people to remember - yet he still knows all our names and relevant information. Thanks for teaching Red how to work and about the responsibility he has for his family - it shows in the way he raises his own son and takes care of us.

Here is Opa. He has always called me his favorite daughter (so what if I'm an only child...), called Red his favorite son-in-law, and carried that on with Blue and Pink. It always makes everyone feel special. Thanks for always believing in me, and making me believe that there wasn't anything I couldn't do if I put my mind to it. Thanks for teaching me to ride a bike and drive a stick shift car. I can't imagine how you survived that with your sanity. Thanks for showing by your example that it's never a burden to go out of your way to help someone or to share what you have - even if that's only a smile.

What would you do for a handful of gummy bears?

2010-06-18T22:57:00.002-05:00

In a few years, they will no longer perform on command (or for a handful of gummy bears offered as a bribe). For us, it will be tragic when they stop. For everyone unrelated to them...not so much.

Who Invited You?

2010-06-17T15:37:00.006-05:00

We have a couple of spare family members that I don't remember giving birth to (and the drugs are good, but not THAT good). We call them "new bear" and "snuggle kitty", and they really are a part of our family. They are never late for bedtime, always in a good mood, and very minimally demanding in terms of feeding and hygiene; because of that, unlike our dog, they get to go on vacation with us, travel in the car, and sleep in the bedrooms.

Late Bloomers

2010-06-16T22:04:00.002-05:00

I am an admitted procrastinator - an ignorer of things that "should" be done in favor of things that "have to" be done or things that "want to" be done. Case in point; our front flower beds. Last fall, we planted pansies. Pansies do well here in the winter and early spring. It is no longer early spring; frankly, it's not even early summer here anymore. Those flowers are pathetic looking, and have been for a while now. Today, I couldn't take it anymore, so in the middle of the afternoon, in 100 degree blazing heat, we tromped off to the garden center.

After a quick consultation with a local expert, we decided on periwinkles, which are apparently extremely heat and full-sun tolerant. We shall see. Tomorrow morning, when it's only in the upper-70's at daybreak, the kids and I will plant them - or at least, that's what I'm tell myself right now. I may put it off a day or two.

If less is more, just think how much more more is...

2010-06-15T23:15:00.000-05:00

I might be in a manic phase right now. I think it's the unusual amount of daylight this time of year that created the illusion in my mind of having more hours in the day.

In the last few weeks, I have started attending exercise class 3 days a week with a group from church. Not that impressive unless you consider the last exercise class I attended more than once was in college, and I needed the credits. I've ridden my new road bike an incredible number of times, and at unusual times of the day: crack of dawn, check; dusk, check; 95 degrees in the middle of the afternoon, check that too. I've taken my first piano lesson ever, and practiced the 5-note version of "Ode to Joy" enough to make my children run in fear. And I've committed to myself that I will write at least one blog post a day until the BlogHer conference in August.

But now I find that the mania is backfiring, because exercise class comes really early, but I can't go to bed until I blog...thank goodness summer solstice is almost upon us, and the daylight hours will be lessening.

They call it "working" for a living

2010-06-14T20:58:00.003-05:00

I am not complaining, but Red just checked in from work, which he has finished for the day, and sent me this picture of where he will be enjoying dinner.

I'm trying to tell myself that my leftover meatloaf with view of messy kitchen was the same thing - or better because I never have to answer to a performance review.

stiffles and gorillas

2010-06-12T23:09:00.003-05:00

I love watching my kids grow up, especially some of the language development. Blue, at 4 1/2, asks when he hears a word that he doesn't understand. Pink, at 2 1/2, just pronounces things the way she thinks they should sound. For instance:

stiffles: stubble + prickles = what daddy's face feels like when he hasn't shaved

gorilla: umbrella

next by me: as in, "sit next by me", which is something between "by" and "next to"

litty bitty: little bit or itty bitty, I'm not really sure, but I know it's not very much

mommymommymommy: my new name; apparently the old one wasn't getting attention quickly enough

bistic: biscuit

Pink is also working on her "s" sounds at the beginnings of words, so we either hear a lot of "SSSSS" or none at all, either of which is hilarious.

Tennis, anyone?

2010-06-12T22:23:00.003-05:00

It's been a pretty typical Saturday for our young family - trying to cram as much fun into one day as we possibly can! Red started out this morning with golf lessons, so the rest of us had some time to play. We decided to check out the peewee tennis clinic at our local PGA superstore (what, tennis in a golf store? Yes indeed!). Pink insisted that she wanted to play, so we got her a racket, and discovered once again that she favors her left hand - she prefers to hold her fork in her left hand, color with her left hand, and even putt left handed (apparently, Daddy-Daughter dates sometimes involve putting). She held her own with the tennis balls for a while:

Blue couldn't get enough. One of his friends from preschool happened to be there, and he was so grateful to have someone to pal around with.

Apparently, Blue has decided that covering his face is the most important thing to do with his racket. He actually did a pretty good job, and certainly had a good time.

After Pink lost interest, we wandered around the store, where she discovered frisbee golf, and decided those lovely disks were perfect plates. She served me some salad and "picy tuff" (aka, spicy stuff). I still have no idea what she means by spicy stuff, but I certainly find it charming that she thinks I like it.

We also did a little geocaching, attended a birthday party, took an extremely hot walk to the grocery store, and tried to get Red packed for his trip to Newport Beach tomorrow. Saturdays always seem to go by in a blur, but I am so grateful for every minute we have to spend together as a family.

Artificial Intelligence

2010-06-11T22:53:00.001-05:00

I feel a little silly writing about this, but I love my new ~~toy~~ phone. In the last couple of weeks since I got this marvel of web-enabled technology, here are my "where have these things been all my life" moments:

- pandora on the go: I exercise in the mornings with a group of people in our church gym. One morning, no batteries for the CD player - enter my phone with pandora, and we all got to sweat to my Gwen Stefani mix.

- google sky: point the phone at the sky and learn the names of constellations, stars, and locations of planets. I even found the polar star for the first time ever. I'm a geek, but I'm okay with it.

- live navigation: the woman who tells me when to turn has saved my skin more than once.

- gps: okay, this is silly, but I'm totally obsessed with the geocaching thing. I'm trying to talk random people into playing with me now - since I've already exhaustively nagged my friends and family to go find stuff in the woods.

- email in the park: I think the grandparents have gotten more pictures of the kids in the last few weeks than all of last year. "Click, send, I'm in contention for daughter(& -in-law) of the year"

- mickey mouse clubhouse (or anything YouTube): the kids think it's amazing that mickey can sing to them while we are waiting in line for something.

I'm a little embarrassed about how long it took me to be talked into this thing - Red really had to go the extra persuasion mile. I'm slow to adopt new technology. I won't even tell you how long it took me to start paying bills online. The only drawback is that I spend most of the day trying to convince myself that it's me that's getting smarter, and not the phone.

The High Price of Not Paying Attention

2010-06-10T19:47:00.002-05:00

AAAAAHHHH! Surely this has happened to everyone at one point or another, but I opened the credit card bill today and practically had a heart attack. This doesn't happen very often, we have a pretty good budgeting system in place - we log all our purchases on Google docs and keep a running tally of what we have spent for the month. And usually, we do a good job of watching and paying attention. Apparently, not this month. We didn't do anything exotic, exciting, or extraordinary - just everyday life - and the money just trickled out. To the tune of twice our usual monthly expenditures. Twice!?! Yikes. Guess we'll pay better attention this month.

Have you ever paid the price for not paying attention?

Siblings of Summer

2010-06-09T23:18:00.004-05:00

As we enter our second week of summer vacation here, and realize that Pink and Blue will be spending more time together than they have for a while, it is my fervent hope that they will choose to get along more than they choose to hit/bite/yell at/torment each other.

I caught them in a rare moment of quiet peace in Blue's bed.

Maybe what they really need is to share a room...

Dear burglars, don't bother.

2010-06-08T15:08:00.005-05:00

When we bought our house, I was grateful to see the little box on the wall near the door indicating that a security system is installed. Little did I know, that the box and the little beep-beep noise that happens every time a window opens and closes in no way compares to the burglar proofing provided by two children and a dog. Let's face it, if you were looking to steal something, and saw this, you wouldn't dare break and enter. And risk breaking an ankle? Not worth it.

And not only would you have a broken ankle, you'd be stuck on the floor, likely to be the slobber victim of an 80 pound Labrador who wasn't loved enough as a puppy. Of course, if you were a smart burglar, you would realize that anything of value that we might once have owned has long since been spit on, colored on, mangled, or just lost.

You might consider the house across the street - it's a nice childless couple with a very small dog.

Geocaching!

2010-06-07T20:57:00.001-05:00

Geocaching: A nice tromp through the woods, or yet another reason I love my new cell phone (even though I have yet to figure out how to actually make a call on the thing).

Have you tried geocaching? I hadn't, until I saw a little description on Wendy's blog (sorry, she's private, or I'd link), and curiosity got the better of me. I looked up the geocaching website during dinner, signed up, and convinced the kids that this was a good use of our evening - with a little help from this video:

So, we looked up our closest cache, put the dog on a leash, and went on a treasure hunt with a GPS-enabled cell phone. Lo and behold, we found it (see Pink with the container under her arm?)!

In retrospect, the 95 degree temperatures, mosquitoes, and black-panting-dog-who-hates-heat should have been a little bit of a deterrent, but what's a little suffering in the name of treasure hunting fun?

There are over a million geocaches out there, and I can't wait to find some more. Long live technology!

Vacation, all I ever wanted.

2010-06-06T22:08:00.005-05:00

We travel. Not extensively or fabulously, but we have no qualms about strapping our kids in a car/plane/train/boat and heading out somewhere to see something new. In the few years we have been doing this, I have discovered a few things for keeping my kids (and therefore the adults) happy in-transit. I hope you have some tips too, and will share them as we enter the summer travel season.

* Rest stops are not for resting, they are for running around like mad. Resting is done when strapped into a seat with nowhere to go.

* Stopping to eat is futile. Kids who have been strapped in need to move. Feed them while they are strapped in. Eating kills time, and keeps tired parents awake while driving. Don't ask what my upholstery looks like.

* Strange amusements. I found these wax sticks in the dollar bin at my local craft store. They provided 2 full hours of entertainment on a recent plane ride. Better than the game system, far quieter, and lighter too.

* Leave early, stay late. If you can manage it, travel while the kids are supposed to be sleeping. They might sleep in the car/plane/train/boat.

* New toys. They don't have to be fancy or flashy, but something small and interesting, preferably in a difficult-to-open package will buy a lot of mileage.

* Don't forget the lovey. Whatever my kids love (we call them snuggle kitty and new bear), they travel with us. We're down to just one snuggle kitty because we lost one in the Honolulu airport, so they now travel exclusively inside suitcases, but when we get where we're going, the kitty and bear are there.

* Hotel pool (thanks to my friend Charlotte at Memories for Later for this one). The hotel pool will tire out a small child so much that they will sleep no matter how unusual their surroundings - and it might be their favorite part of the vacation anyway.

* Dishsoap-soaked paper towels. This one sounds odd, but before we leave, I drizzle a little dishsoap (we've already established that I like Dawn) on some paper towels and let them dry for a day, then fold them and put them in a Ziploc bag in my luggage. They go through security because they are not "wet", and it lets me do some dishes - like reusable water bottles and sippy cups at any hotel sink.

Bon Voyage!

What is an oil spill, Mommy?

2010-06-05T08:36:00.003-05:00

One of my jobs as mom is to try to explain the world in language that a 4-yr-old can understand. When I got the question, "What is an oil spill?", I tried an explanation of drilling, pumping, leaky pipes, and environmental catastrophe, but eventually had to go with a demonstration.

We started with a bowl of clean water:

Added a few drops of sesame oil (it was the darkest oil I had, and also the smelliest):
Swirled the oil around a little, and found out that even though there wasn't very much of it, it stuck to our fingers when we put them in the water:

Then we tried to clean the water. We added Dawn detergent, and it certainly moved the surface oil out of the center, but there was really no place for it to go:

Finally, we stirred the detergent in, and ended up with an evenly dispersed, foamy mess:

I don't know how much of this Blue and Pink understood, but they got that adding oil to the water meant that 1) we didn't want to drink that water or swim in it and 2) we had a hard time getting it cleaned up. My heart aches to think about the disaster in the gulf right now, and I hope that somehow the health of that area will someday be restored.

Happy Birthday, Red!

2010-05-31T21:37:00.003-05:00

You've had a birthday, shout hooray!

We want to sing to you today.
One year older and ~~wickeder~~ wiser too!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy 34th to Red, whose real birthday is tomorrow, but who got to spend the whole weekend on birthday fun - guess it's an advantage to be born right around a holiday!

Some Like It Hot

2010-05-24T22:28:00.002-05:00

The only real advantage to the Texas heat is that our water toys come out a little earlier than they might in some places (like where Red and I grew up and it snowed today).

We had our first ever adventure with a slip n slide.

Blue gets it:

Pink, as always, has her own way of doing things:

And where siblings are involved, there is always a new twist:

Here's to a long summer with no water restrictions!

Blogging around the block

2010-05-12T18:33:00.003-05:00

Hi! I'm doing something different today - guest writing with my friend Lolli!
Have you met Lolli? I hope so - she is as sweet as her name! And she's amazing - the mother of 5, super blogger, and awesome photographer. She'll be speaking at the Casual Blogger Conference coming up soon, and she'll be at BlogHer later this year (I'll be there, too, but that's not the point).

I shared a few of my thoughts that I was able to share in church this past Mother's Day. Lolli added the pictures. Take a look HERE, and let me know what you think! Neither the pictures nor the bodies or babies are mine, they're all Lolli's photos. Pretty amazing!

When you wish upon a star

2010-04-28T23:46:00.005-05:00

Family Vacation, 2010 - the video montage:

April Fool!

2010-03-31T17:26:00.003-05:00

I'm a creature of habit (and my kids have very short memories). We'll be celebrating dinner tomorrow the same way we did last year, with meatloaf cupcakes (complete with mashed potato frosting) and sushi made with rice krispie treats and fruit leather:

What silliness will your family endure tomorrow?

You know, some people just pay someone to do this stuff.

2010-03-27T22:40:00.003-05:00

Today started innocently enough: a fairly short to-do list and reasonably nice weather. We started with a quick trip to Home Depot for fire ant killer (yes, we douse our yard in poison on a regular basis - those fire ant bites really hurt) and composting bags. Then the fun began - pruning a couple of trees. Easy ones. After about an hour, it was decided we needed a chainsaw. Back to Home Depot. Chainsaw purchased. Realization that we need new gas can for oil/gas mixture. Back to Home Depot, and gas station. Chainsaw running, children terrified. Tree trimmed. Trimmings dealt with. Family exhausted.

Next weekend: plant something in these pots so the children will stop hiding in them:

"Mickey Mouse No Eat Me"

2010-03-24T20:33:00.006-05:00

We are taking our annual family vacation in a few weeks, and are busily preparing our ~~fragile psyches~~ kids for an adventure in the happiest place on earth.

The marketing machine that is Disney has started to send us things, including cute little luggage tags that arrived in the folder pictured on the right.

To me, this looks like a very happy mouse meeting a little boy. To a 2-year-old Pink, this looks a little more intimidating.

Pink: Mommy?

Green: Yes, sweetheart?

Pink (with fear in her eyes): Mickey Mouse no eat me?

Green: No, Mickey won't eat you, he's smiling.

Pink (in a suspicious tone): Mickey mouse nice?

I'm patting myself on the back for not scheduling a breakfast with the big-headed characters.