Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Thanksgiving Photos





Some photos from our trip to Ft. Worth for Turkey Day 2006.
Joey chose not to accept chocolate candy on Halloween, thus limiting his haul.
Max photo taken over Thanksgiving at Gramma and Grandad's
This is a Halloween photo that never got posted, Max set the record this year, and also won first place for most time consuming arrangement of the loot.

Monday, November 20, 2006

It's Wime

When we are at church, and it's time for communion, we all head up as a family. David and the kids dip their bread in the chalice, while I just take a sip out of the cup. The kids started taking communion much younger than I did growing up, but then again, everything seems to change over time, and they are doing fine.

Joey has finally started listening to the words while he takes it, and has noticed that they say the cup is BLOOD of Christ. When that first registered, he took a look at the chalice bearer and said, "It's not blood, it's wime". She sort of nodded and moved on. The next occasion that she gave Joey communion, she headed him off by saying, "Blood of Christ, cup of salvation -- but it is really wine", before his dip.

Today he took communion, we went back to our seats, and he turned to me and said, "You know mom, it is actually wime".

OK.

Friday, November 17, 2006

Waking Joey

Every school day, the big kids get up at 6:30. David and I get them dressed, fed, lunchboxed, and off to school by 7:30. Lately, David's the guy to ferry them to Bryker Woods, and then he just keeps on going to work.

I enjoy a few moments of quiet, then I wander in to wake up Joey. Usually, he has switched over to our bed, and he sleeps very hard in the morning. Recently it occurred to me that this a special little time with him, before he starts "big kid school" next year, so I am savoring every morning of his wake ups. I crawl in next to him, and on these cold mornings, I snuggle up to this little warm lump.

He smells like a little piece of toast.

And that is my best moment of the morning.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

What I've been up to

Girl talk

I've had several occasions to hang out with groups of women lately. I took my Girl Scout troop camping, and there were a couple of other moms. Been to the park, and hung out with the moms there, did an Art Day at a friend's house, and there have been other gatherings recently.

What I've come to realize is that it is very important for women (don't know about men) to have nice talks. Margaritas too, if the occasion warrants. But at each gathering, whether we knew each other very well, or not so well, the talking was almost the same. We listened to issues about other kids, our health, our families, the world. And it struck me that it is almost like building a spider web. I get these little glimmers of shared experience from other women, so that I'm better prepared to be the family counselor, doctor, or whatever. They weave together and then when I need them, they make a nice strong net for me.

I don't know if guys need that. Or maybe they do and they just work past it. But if I had any advice for young women, it would be to get involved in lots of different groups, so that you have multiple places to go to recharge the batteries. And you make lots of good girl friends.

Kind of deep, but that's what's on my mind.

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Random Thoughts on Halloween and other stuff

1. This Halloween, even though I was in my Cowgirl costume again, complete with fringe, Joey told me I didn't have the Halloween spirit. When I protested, he said, "Mom, you have to like ALL the Halloween candy, and you don't like sour Skittles." When I pointed out that Joey does not like candy with chocolate, he spun it around so that it was OK, or he really did like chocolate, or somehow he had the Halloween spririt more than me.

2. Joey declares: "Jolly Ranger" candy is best, it is the"most jucier and flavory".

3. Emma bought clothes that she put together to be a Pirate, and my main thought is that I am starting to want to wear her clothes. We got her some black suede boots at Target and I actually wish I could borrow tham. She is already wearing ladies size 7 shoes, so perhaps that time is coming sooner than you'd think.

4. The kids confound David and me when they Trick or Treat. After walking one long block from our house, they report they are done and ready to come home. Even the kid we were trick or treating with told his parents the same thing. What's up with that!? When I was a kid, I don't think we ever asked to stop trick or treating. David confirms this was true for his childhood too.

My only theory is that when I was a kid, you got one piece of candy per house, and it might be something like a roll of smarties. To get any volume, or prize pieces of candy (little candy bars) you might have to knock on many doors, so you were predisposed to want to trick or treat for a long time. Plus it was fun.

Today, children in Bryker Woods get candy by the handful at each door. And every other house has Snickers bars. By the time our kids get to the end of one block, their bags are pretty full.

The other theory a friend proposed, is that we know the other parents in the neighborhood so well that we slow the kids down with our chatting and they get so frustrated that they just want to lug their big bags home and eat.

Fortunately, Max has a love of candy and a streak of greed. After coming home, I convinced him to keep trick or treating with me and we did another block. He came home and carefully arranged his candy into categories. When Emma saw his loot, she got a little jealous, so next year, I don't think we will have the party pooper syndrome again.

5. One of Max's classmates lives about a block from us. His mom gives out margaritas to the trick or treater's parents. That is a great idea.

6. Outside of Halloween, there is a significant achievement to report. I usually have a messy house, and most of my friends know it. No biggie. But one aspect of the mess is that I always have a laundry basket full of stuff that has no home; patches the boys got at an expo, old dice, popped buttons, bits of pieces of paper that don't really get filed but can't be thrown away, and other weird stuff.

I can usually guage the cleanliness of my house by how many baskets I have going. When I have two laundry baskets full of this orphan trash, I am in bad shape. And I only have my last, third, basket for laundry. When I have a half a basket, I am on a roll.

I am pleased to announce that for two days, I used free time to tackle that laundry basket, and I have an empty basket! I've noticed for the days that have followed, I wake up in the morning with a sense of calm. The rest of my house is getting cleaner, and I have dirty laundry sorted into three baskets (whites, darks and colors). Yea me!!

7. Our WORD group is planning yet another party. It will be held this Sunday. We were asked to hold it by the Texas Democratic Party. Apparantly our email network is something to be envied! Go to www.wordtexas.org. If you live in Austin, come hang out with us. I guarantee glorious weather, and even Republicans will have fun with us.

Happy Thursday!