Monday, January 28, 2008

Joey

Joey lost his first baby tooth today. It had been hanging on by a thread most of the weekend. I walked into the den during breakfast and he was in tears because he had swallowed it. We had a talk with him.

Then, later at drop off at school, he told everyone the story, ending with "and my dad is going to find it in my Poop!"

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Lately, it's all about Emma


Now she's eleven....



Only a year ago (seems like yesterday)



We have been busy selling hundreds of boxes of Girl Scout cookies



... and attending concerts!
I have to admit, that while very LOUD, the concert was actually pretty impressive. For a kid, little Miley Cyrus is very engaging and fun to watch. I was prepared to be very cynical about the whole production, but in the end, I think I liked it as much as the girls.

I did let my mind wander toward hoping that she doesn't end up the next Lindsey Lohan or Britney Spears. That would be a shame.

I also wondered why Billy Ray Cyrus doesn't do duets with her. I've never been a fan of his, but you know, his career could only improve by hitching his wagon to his daughter's star.

Friday, January 18, 2008

Too long... no write

OK. So what's new...

1. Joey and I got haircuts today. We were really overdue for our trims this time around. He and I are regular customers with Darlene, who I've known for over twenty years... we discussed that today.

Max gets homemade buzz cuts here, but I won't let David use the clippers on Joey. Max's hair is much darker and more thick, so mess ups are hidden pretty well. Plus, Max's hair and fingernails seem to grow freakishly fast, so I'm less concerned with him getting a bad haircut.

Emma's hair just gets longer, and she gets it trimmed a couple of times a year. Joey and I share regular appointments with Darlene. I should have taken a camera for before and after, I didn't. Before, Joey's hair was so long, and now it is so cute and handsome.

2. Emma and I went to the Showcase at the Magnet Middle School last night. I had been secretly happy when she decided that she would go to sixth grade at our Elementary school. I'd have another dream year of kids walking two blocks down the street, and having all three in one building. But there is a wonderful advanced program at Kealing Middle and after checking it out, I was very impressed.

The rumor from kids we know who attend now, is that the homework is brutal. And desire to work on homework is a weakness of Emma's. She will argue about having to start homework for twice as long as the assignment takes to finish. She is also a perfectionist which means she agonizes over simple assignments.

But..... Kealing is so cool. The teachers are fantastic, the electives (Robotics, Comic Books as Literature, Video Game Design!, Art in Math, Technology and Underground Music, etc...) were explained by enthusiastic teachers who seemed to be loving their careers in a school that lets them be creative and push the kids to new heights. One teacher told me that they don't worry about the standardized tests and that their school scores highest in the district. We mentioned to several teachers that we were making the decision between staying at our beloved Elementary School or attending Kealing, and their general response was that if she waited until 7th to come over, she'd miss all the fun. It is a school of brainy kids who love being smart and creative.

3. I'm still loving work. I'm not doing any housework, grocery shopping or clothes washing though.

4. Emma turns 11 next Thursday and we will be attending the Hannah Montana concert that night. I didn't find out until after buying the tickets (face value) that other girls in her school think Hannah is not so cool. However, I believe that once we are there, she will be excited to attend the concert. I have told a few friends and mentioned that with two hours of constant screaming in front of me, I plan to have a couple of margaritas before. A few have remarked that might not be enough. Thankfully I've got a designated driver to and from.

5. All our Christmas decorations are still up. ALL of them.

That's it for now.
See you in a month!
Just joking,
sort of.

Monday, January 07, 2008

Me Good.

School starts tomorrow... the kids are waaaaayy off the bedtime schedule, just now dropping off at 11:30!

I have completed a herculean task of cleaning up the parent bedroom of the house. Anytime we have guests over, our room takes the brunt of my "cleaning" as I fill laundry baskets full of crap and pile them in a corner of our room. And then there are the craft supplies, and the dead computer with all it's assorted paraphernalia, and the two dead video cameras and the layer of dust that was ungodly. Plus, rolls of art paper we've been moving since Seattle, but never have time to use. And clothes to be mended.... you get the picture.

Well, yesterday I just hit it. I had picked up a big metro shelving unit at an estate sale (great deal) and it has a canvas cover that sort of makes it into a huge beige elephant sized wardrobe. So I basically neatened the piles of crap, discarded some, decanted much of the remainder into stylish Container Store bins, and threw the lot into the wardrobe.

Our room looks like grownups and a big beige elephant live in it. It is wonderful. I didn't realize the floor was so pretty! I also devoted one wall to the kids art. It will hopefully look like an artful collage, like a bigger version of our refrigerator, confined to what's left of the wall behind the elephant, thus drawing the eye away from the beige blob.

Photos tomorrow.

Tomorrow is going to come very early for the Genets.

Friday, January 04, 2008

quicksand

OK, I'm a goner.

Just in case I don't spend enough time hovering over my eBay auctions, checking them minute by minute.... I've found a new feature.... Best of eBay. It is the collection of nominees of funniest listings. I've been reading for the last half hour or so, and just came across this guy and his hilarious captions for the photos he sells.

http://stores.ebay.com/Casa-Gargantua

What a hoot.

All the other nominees are great too.