Best news all week!
August 31, 2007
A hearty congratulations to D&K on the birth of baby Reed. Great name! Beautiful baby. We're so happy for you!
In the better late than never file
August 30, 2007
Happy Birthday Nora! Hope yesterday was grand.
The tail end of summer is whacking us in the face like an excited dog. The level of irritability in the house is amazing. Miranda can cry over the drop of a hat, or shoes on her feet, or not being able to push that button on the Leapster in the right way to pet her virtual dog. Henry has been peeing in his bed almost nightly. Unless one of us wakes up when he murmurs lightly and puts him on the toilet. It is a hard decision--sleeping lightly or doing the sheets every morning. I think I hate my hair. It seems all wrong. I am terrified to cut it as it will be shorter, but still all wrong. And I am going to meet all of these new people next week. With bad hair.
School phobia is the underlying current driving our days. Henry has asked 17 times this week if he can not go to camp again. being told that he doesn't go the camp anymore is not even vaguely reassuring. Miranda is being largely positive about school. Except for the nightmares. And the crying. And the inability to choose pants.
Rob has been grumpy too, but who can blame him living with the three of us.
Toad!
August 27, 2007
www.flickr.com
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Cleaning up
August 26, 2007
6 years ago, I think I felt this disorganized. Yesterday we had Miranda's birthday party and the inaugural house party. (And if I know you, I tried to invite you. I have some sad excused why that might now feel true. I tried some interesting free postcards for the invites. On which I got our phone number wrong. And they looked a little too professional -- several people told Rob they retrieved it out of the trash. And I was too scattered/disorganized/dumb to send out an email in accompaniment that would have reached the 10% of you I feel I may have neglected. Mea culpa.)
The house is pretty clean. I spent last week in a flurry of picture hanging. Now that our stuff is on the wall, it does feel more like home. I went to Parade of Homes today and I found myself not in awe of their massive sizes and designer abundance but just in constant comparison. I like this about our house. Ooh -- that's a good idea. I hate that. Why would anyone pay 4/5 of a million dollars for that? It is good to know I have fallen in love with the house. Even if I still find it overwhelming at times to think about.
And I wasn't thinking of making that a metaphor for six years ago, but it nears midnight so I will go for it. I was too terrified to be awed by Miranda, but I immediately thought she was adorable and beautiful and perfect. If a bit loud and hard to understand. It felt like I was leaping off a giant cliff. I was going to take her home? When? Maybe that c-section wasn't so bad. A few extra nights with nurses on duty. I wish I could talk to me from 6 years ago, but thankfully,we don't live in a Bill & Ted movie. I'd tell her, it will be OK. It will be fun. It's OK to be awed.
Happy Birthday Miranda!
August 25, 2007
Six! Six! How can she be six? She's growing up and it is pretty wonderful. The lists we make of accomplishments for the younger set seems so odd for a six year old. Yes, she's reading and climbing across jungle gyms. But she's a little person now, completely. She has opinions and jokes and dramas and feelings. Oh the feelings. The end of summer is a hard time. It is a good thing to have birthday then, to cheer you up.
It has been an absolute pleasure to be Miranda's mother. And I am sure the next year will bring us love and worries and joy. Thank you for the longest 8 hours in my life--from when my water broke at 2 am until you were delivered via c-section at 10 am.
And now we have a party to get to! I love you, Miranda!
In Heaven there is no beer
August 19, 2007
That's why we drink it here...and when we're gone from here, all our friends will be drinking all our beer.
I think that song represents how I feel about how busy life feels right now and how it is impossible that I don't have time to watch bad television. The fall season is right around the corner. Whatever will I do?
In other notes of (sarcastic) profundity: I have a design idea to ameliorate the obesity crisis in America. Ban drive-thrus. I say this as a mom who will give my children fast food, but almost always from the drive-thru. When I have to actually go inside the restaurant, then I somehow find the grocery store or home or a real restaurant preferable. If banning drive-thrus doesn't help enough, I suggest that children's playlands should be installed in every fast food joint. And placed right next to the grumpy coffee drinkers who stay there for several hours. The combo will be enough to make fast food a rare treat.
A little fun
August 14, 2007
And a happy birthday to I and to P!
Today, the kids and I went to Chuck E Cheese for lunch with friends. And then after stopping at home, we went to the community pool. And yet, on the ride home, Miranda threw a fit and accused me of never doing anything nice for her.
We have an epidemic of little fun this summer. We do things that seem fun. that certainly have large reputations,. But the kids either don't quite enjoy it or they remember it as much less fun than they seem to be having. Camp, parks, swimming, sand box, boat ride and fishing (the last two respectively Miranda and Henry)...all little fun.
Henry's camp teachers tell me about the fun he has at camp. The smile on his face matches his willingness to participate. He asks about a friend he has made at camp. And yet it only rates a little fun. And maybe he can never go there again?
After Miranda gleefully went down the big slide at the pool, Henry wanted to try it. It was fun to walk up the steps. A little fun to sit on mom's lap. OK to ride down the slide. And not at all OK the part at the bottom, even though I lifted him out of the water and prevented him from going under. And he finished by saying he never wants to do that again. Ever. I got him to compromise by saying never again today.
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And tonight, on Henry's half birthday, he sang out in his sleep "California sky."
D'oh
August 12, 2007
We simply had a delightful weekend. A little boating, a little fishing, Turbo Cranium, fresh air, beautiful scenery, pleasant company with wonderful people. And I took their garage door opener when I left.
Sigh.
And when I get home, my grandmother points out that I listed my telephone number wrong on an RSVP to my house. For anyone who wouldn't choose email, the phone on the back is correct. My number ends in a 2, not a 3.
D'oh. That will really come back full circle if I fail to get a job for not being detail-oriented enough.
I need more math
August 9, 2007
I have been having math inferiority issues. I was good at math, but "was" may be the key word. I think frequently that algebra and geometry are useful, if you can make yourself apply the facts. As much as my math skills were well-taught, I don't think there were enough story problems. And I liked story problems. For example, if you have a 24 foot pool, and you take it away and you decided to put lots of sand on the pool spot, how much sand is a lot? I have an order for 3 cu yards. Rob thinks that is high. My dad thinks it is low. It is also relative how much is a lot. I can sit with paper and pencil and scratch out an answer, I think. But I wish I had better estimates on volume. If we lived metric lives, would we understand volume better?
Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity-Jig
August 5, 2007
The sand on the beach was luxuriously soft. I used bug spray early and often and avoided getting any mosquito bites. For a trip to a state park, it was pretty good.
That explains it
August 2, 2007
I am chatty today. Oh well, I will be in the woods all weekend and so my words will not be typed here.
Unfortunately, Weed pollen season has begin. It is HIGH at home and high at Point Beach. I am very allergic to ragweed. That perhaps explains why this week has been so miserable.
And did I mention that I bought a Costco membership at the County fair? The first Costco in Wisconsin! Woohoo!
BTW, I went with negative space to rework the turtle. The overlaps didn't stick.
EDITED TO ADD: This may be the best Costco story ever. I hope it's true. And it makes me want a penguin.
How does this look?
August 2, 2007
The picture is too dark--it is actually very light and bright, but the camera didn't capture that.
I am too cheap to buy two window clings. Thus creative cutting.
The theme of the new bathroom is sea turtles. I have a tile that inspired the wall color (the too bright green) and now the window. We'll see how long it takes me to change themes. Any thoughts, O Internet?
Taking Stock
August 1, 2007
Nine years ago today was one of the happiest days of my life. Conventional wisdom suggests you put the birth days of your children very high on that best days list. That idea is sentiment talking and not sense. Being given tiny, unintelligible little people is amazing, but also scary and overwhelming. Our wedding was fun, at least for me, and since this is my lists of great days, that's pretty much all that matters. The weather was perfect, if a little warm. The crowd was loving, kind and patient. Nothing went awry in any way that detracted from a lovely day.
Happy Anniversary Rob. To many more!
Today, on contrast, was not perfect. Henry's cold pushed over that line between "it's just a summer cold" and raging infection halting his ability get through a cartoon without crying. We went to see a new doctor. And he diagnosed poor Henry with a sinus infection. And we discussed allergies. Henry is presenting allergic symptoms. He has a bluish tinge inside his nasal passage. He has had the drippy clear discharge from his nose. And his eyes look sick, with the purple circles underneath. He is starting an antibiotic for the infection and a daily dose of antihistamine until this gets under control. If we are lucky, he'll have seasonal allergies. I don't suspect animal dander allergies; he hasn't shown symptoms in unison with me or my mom, his fellow sufferers. Weather.com told me that ragweed was prominent today. And my allergies sprang out of control yesterday. I am almost better now. Ragweed would explain my outbreak. Let's hope we both get better soon.
Tonight, we went to the Ozaukee County Fair. The dusk made the event more charming than I think I would have found the tired carnivals books and midway rides. The power went out during a loud band, I think it was the battle of the teen bands. The midway rides were expensive. We were more impressed by the Washington County Fair last weekend. I must admit the company picnic at that fair tipped the balance.
Painting progress: Kitchen done!