Rocket Tots

Barn Light Electric Contest! I love their lights.

2011-09-26T08:34:00.004-05:00

I love this lamp and need to get three of them, one for the side porch and two for the front porch. A design classic! I'm entering a cool contest from my favorite lighting company. I have two of their lights already here at Casa Genet, can't wait to swap out the three exterior lights we have left.

Look around online at Barn Light Electric and pick lights you’d love to own
Feature your lighting picks on your personal blog, and link to the lights if you can!
Copy/Paste these rules at the bottom of your blog article so others can enter
Once your personal article is up, you must email your blog link to: contest@barnlightelectric.com to be qualified to win. The contest ends Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Don’t have a blog? Find out how you can enter by reading the Official Rules

I'm also loving this for the TV room....
http://www.barnlightelectric.com/barn-ceiling-fans/modern-ceiling-fans/cirrus-ceiling-fan

eat/relax/drink/shop/repeat.

2009-04-06T16:51:00.007-05:00

Wonderful friends, wonderful trip.

Carefully selected photos from this year's girls get-away weekend.
Our first view of the dock behind our house.
We made a visit to Warrenton (see last post) on the way to Palacios Texas.
(Note: Palacios rhymes with molassas!)

First meal of really brown food: Fried pickles, shrimp, hush puppies.

Clear day looking toward the water.

View from my bed.

Stocking up on essentials.... peach cobbler.

Cute town square in some nearby town.

Custom partay glasses!

Testing the glasses.

The devil's snacks, including the fatty-buttocks size bag of peanut butter m&ms.

DVDs: 30 Rock, Mama Mia, Sex and the City

A mishap.
Adjusting to the idea of heading home with a last ditch meal at Threadgill's.

Warrenton Preview Weekend

2009-04-03T19:58:00.007-05:00

Warrenton and Round Top Antique Weekends are my favorites. I don't even need to buy stuff... I just really like looking at the jumble of objects and taking pictures. This year, I seemed to get objects like dolls or photos of people looking at me in each of my shots.

I know this photo from my childhood, but it wasn't at my own home. It was either at a friend's house, a cousin's house or the doctor's office.

The last photo from my old camera... I got a fun new one after "the accident"

New York, New York!

2009-03-21T23:37:00.002-05:00

This wasn't the first day's activity, but a nice photo to start off the report....
Joey at "Lady Liberty" as he calls the statue.

First Day in the city, Times Square

Lunching in Times Square

Blurry, but Joey's favorite memory from the trip

The American Museum of Natural History
Biological Diversity Exhibit

Joey indulges his love of weapons

Gum Gum Dum Dum

Times Square at Night

Tuesday's Walk

This is how we met New York, on foot, through lots of neighborhoods.
Our kids are troopers and walked miles
with very little complaining.

Tuesday's Lunch at a neighborhood Park
Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty

Wednesday, David and I went to the city by ourselves, so we could find some important landmarks....
and so I could fanatically be the first in line for the Daily Show taping!

Daily Show building... the sign over the door reads:
"Abandon News All Ye Who Enter Here"

Walking to the Train with Julie and Jim and David after the taping.

Emma's Required Reading in the 42nd St. Library Reading Room
(extra credit for this shot?)

St. Patrick's Cathedral..... the organist started playing while we were in there... very cool

If only Tina would have been walking out right then, I'm sure she would pick me to be a best friend!

Grand Central Terminal

Dylan's Candy Bar.... Candy for the kids, eye candy for Mom

after the candy....Central Park

Last day - Guggenheim!

Bonicles from the Toys R Us in Times Square...
(= Joey's Heaven)

Last Subway Home

Happy Birthday Dad!

2008-12-18T23:39:00.002-06:00

Thanksgiving in New Mexico

2008-12-02T16:07:00.003-06:00

Joey in Angel Fire

What a great Thanksgiving! We got to go play with our neighbors at their cabin in Angel Fire. Of course if we see any yard sales on the way there....

We drove through West Texas and saw cotton....

Once we got to Angel Fire the weather was perfect...

My neighbor and good friend Michele and I came early with the three boys, the daddies and daughters came out a couple of days later.

We met up with a third Bryker Woods family and took a group hike.

We'd like to think there were bears around....
Old New Mexico barn.

Things I should have posted....#1.

2008-11-16T08:00:00.003-06:00

OK, so going back in time, before the election, before Halloween, before the heartbreaking UT loss to Tech in the final second of the game from hell.... there was a simpler time. A time when a mother could take her baby boy to a football game. A time when the mama could buy two tickets from Craig's List for a song, and a time when the next door neighbor loaned her phone, with camera!, because I forgot to grab mine on the way out of the house. Enjoy the documentation of a fun game.

My favorite memories were walking into the same gate at the same time as the Longhorn Band (Show Band of the Southwest!)

Joey getting to see the opening video and the band and players take the field thanks to a very lovely lady in the fantastic season ticket seats who picked him up and let him stand on her chair.

Finding out our seats were on the top row of the upper deck and Joey having to go to the bathroom once each quarter, down all the stairs, then back up. On our fourth trip back up, a lady on the aisle about 20 rows below us said, "I thought you left a while ago, oh my, you are a good mom!"

Getting Joey an overpriced hook 'em foam hand because he loved it.

Watching the team win. Enjoying the band and alumni band on the field at the same time.

But, most memorable was the black cricket plague. As night settled in, sitting under the huge flood lights, we became a landing pad for hundreds of the biggest blackest crickets. They crawled on our bodies, they got in Joey's cap. He thought they were cockroaches and screamed every time they got within sight. So, that was the only downside, and his fear of cockroaches/crickets persisted for several weeks.

Still thrilled

2008-11-07T17:34:00.002-06:00

I am so excited about the future of our country.

Maker Faire

2008-10-25T08:13:00.006-05:00

Children's Tent Sculpture

Art car with synchronized Larry the singing fishes on the side,
and singing Lobsters on hood and trunk.Emma tries a loom.

Beautiful art robots

Making beads from paper

Our second year at Maker Faire... perfect Austin crisp Fall day. Fun things to look at. Kids having a ball. Mom sneezing non-stop from the dust (the only downside). But all-in-all another wonderful creative weekend.

24 Hour Art Road Trip

2008-10-21T17:36:00.004-05:00

I have several things to post about... Maker Faire, Seeing the cousins a couple weeks ago in Ft. Worth... but I'm going to post the freshest photos today and deal with the older stuff later.

I took off yesterday evening at 6pm with my two Art Girl Buddies, Robbin and Connie. We fed our families then hit the road. Landed at Casa Kennemer and visited with Mom and Dad (thank you!) on Monday night. Woke up this morning after sleeping in, went for big ol' breakfast at Paris Coffee Shop. Then it was off to the Kimball for the Impressionist show.

The show was a delicious treat for my eyes. So much beauty and light and dreamy beauty. We were back on duty with our families by 4pm today. Perfect!

First the Fair... then the Family...

2008-10-16T22:48:00.002-05:00

Nothing like a scary clown.

Pre-Fletcher's Corny Dog

Joey's stocking! Another ribbon to add to the Competitive Quilting Award Box

Who would have thought Barack would be at the Fair?

Had a fun weekend, we drove up to see the Kennemers in Fort Worth and ended up seeing a bunch of them, Aunts, Gramma and Grandad, sister Julie and kids, cousin Lance, Great Gramma Lu. You get the Fair photos today and the family photos next.

UT Torchlight Parade

2008-10-09T07:55:00.003-05:00

Last night was one of those spur of the moment outings. I wanted to see the Torchlight Parade which is a tradition before the UT/OU game at the Cotton Bowl. It's a way to cheer and see the band outside the football stadium. Emma had volleyball practice, so after picking her up at 8 (when the parade is scheduled to start) , and dropping her off at home, I grabbed the only willing child to run over to the drag.

Max and I pretty much figured we missed it all as we drove down the drag. We opened the windows to try to hear the band around somewhere. As I got onto campus, we saw a crowd of orange at the Littlefield fountain, and I noticed it was the football team milling around. Max was about to jump out of the car window, but I convinced him to stay put until we got parked. We ran back to the fountain, just as the team started their walk up to the tower and the cheering crowd.

I cursed myself for not bringing A) a camera! B)A piece of paper of any sort! C) A sharpie! or D) any article of burnt orange clothing for me or Max.

Having gotten there thirty minutes late, we seemed to be the only people walking alongside the team, everyone else was at the tower. I pointed out Mack Brown to Max and Max went to shake his hand. Mack was very kind and chatted with his loyal fan. Then Max started randomly high-fiving guys walking near him. Then I saw Colt McCoy and Max scurried over to shake his hand. Colt threw an arm around Max's shoulders, asked his name, told Max his shirt was cool (tie dye from the beach!) and was in general very chatty with my kid. Max bounced around to a few other guys. Then we were at the tower and the team ran up to the crowd. It was really cool.

At the rally, I let Max head off through the throng to stand by himself at the front of the pack. A long while later he came back to me. The rally was fun. The cheerleader who was leading us at first was not bright... top ten percent? I think not..... But things really got going when Mack Brown led the crowd, the band played, the fans cheered, and finally Mad Dog Madden, UT's strength coach got the team yelling and the crowd crazy.

As the players walked back through the crowd toward Littlefield fountain after the rally, Max and I mingled with all the young guys. They were hitting on girls, and we were so mad to have left camera and pen and paper at home. So many opportunities to get autographs. Max shook more hands, and some of the players saw him a couple of times and would shout "Max!". I guess that's the upside of wearing something other than burnt orange. Max said he would never wash his hand again after all the high fives.

Then I had the brainstorm of the night. The architecture school was just down the street, and I knew there were Sharpies inside. So we ran over. I hoisted Max up to a closed window and he yelled at the dreadlocked boy inside...Sharpie!... can I use your pen!... My mom was in architecture school! The guy opened the window and passed down an orange Sharpie and a big scrap of Cresent board. We ran back to the rally aftermath and Max got 13 autographs. It was mostly the freshmen and sophomore players who stuck around (picking up girls).

Max would walk up to some guys chatting up some cute girls, and I'd almost cringe that the players would crush him. He would ask for an autograph, then the girls would say..."oh! how cute" and then the players were glad to sign.

As we were leaving Max thought it was the best day or the second best day of his life.

And he is already planning next year.

Recent Trip to Fort Worth

2008-09-19T08:47:00.003-05:00

It's been a while, but we recently drove to FW for a quick visit. On the way up, stopped at Health Camp and met their most famous customer. He is sort of the Ambassador of Hamburgers. He is in his 90's, eats a hamburger a day, and loves to meet people. When you eat there (on the circle in Waco) his framed photos are by the drink machine.

On our way back, we stopped by the water gardens, and Joey was determined to have me take 20 photos of him "meditating". I've got tons! He took it very seriously.

2008-09-15T16:55:00.001-05:00

This was an email forwarded to me from a friend:

I'm a little confused. Let me see if I have this straight.....

* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic, different."

* Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, a quintessential American story.

* If your name is Barack you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.

* Name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you're a maverick.

* Graduate from Harvard law School and you are unstable.

* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well grounded.

* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.

* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to become the country's second highest ranking executive.

* If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 daughters, all within Protestant churches, you're not a real Christian.

* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you're a Christian.

* If you teach children about sexual predators, you are irresponsible and eroding the fiber of society.

* If, while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state's school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.

* If your wife is a Harvard graduate laywer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values don't represent

America

's.

* If you're husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that hates America and advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.

OK, much clearer now.

New Roof

2008-09-10T08:28:00.004-05:00

Our new Galvalume Standing Seam Metal Roof!
... and if you live in Austin, we highly recommend our roofers!
Straight Solutions is awesome.

During construction....

The May hailstorm that caused all this.

awful collectable

2008-09-07T21:09:00.003-05:00

This is just wrong.

I threatened to buy this for Davids' next Christmas gift.

First week of school

2008-08-28T23:07:00.004-05:00

Back to school photos of everyone but our Middle Schooler, Emma. I'll snap one of her when she isn't looking!

Joey's favorite girl and favorite boy both made it into his class for the new year.
They sum their feelings up perfectly:
Sweet, Crazy and Sad

Joey with his first barber shop haircut and his new first grade teacher, Mrs. Wallace.

Max and his fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Cross

And in honor of BarackObama accepting the nomination for president, this photo from last spring when we worked making a sign at Obama's Austin headquarters. A staffer took this photo. We hung the sign proudly in our yard during Texas Primary season

Summer Birthday Swim

2008-08-03T17:44:00.007-05:00

I'd better not hear anyone say "cookie cake" until I'm done serving....

It is our annual Missy Kay birthday blast... and this year Mary's mom (another birthday girl) hosted us at her wonderful house. My kids consider Maddie and Hannah quite lucky to have such a nice pool and outdoor wonderland at their disposal.

We had wonderful food and of course, we are all so funny and clever, the conversation was very amusing and enlightening. It truly was a fun night out.

The only business we did not take care of was a traditional photo of all the kids. We will have to fix that the next time we are all gathered together.

For some reason I missed getting photos of Garrett and Emma and our hostess Judy. But next year, I won't miss them!

I found this old, old photo of the kids as little stinkers... Joey was missing for some reason.

perfect product - perfect day

2008-07-20T21:50:00.007-05:00

I've always planned to write posts about my favorite products. You can consider this part one in a two part series. The series will examine products I feel are practically perfect in every way.

The first is the Sharpie Pen.

The Sharpie Pen is a perfect product. When a Sharpie is fresh, it gives the most satisfying really black, wet line. It is just the right pointy-ness for my writing needs. Hold it one way and it is fine, another and it is bold. It's permanence is what gives stability to an ever changing world.

You should always ALWAYS carry a Sharpie pen in your purse, pocket and car.

Because you just never know......
=

When you will really need the Sharpie Pen in your purse.

Actually, the clever reader will realize that I had pre-meditated enough to carry a 2004 campaign shirt in my purse. But the chance meeting was pure serendipity.

I had a delightful lunch with my Godmother on Thursday. Knowing I probably missed the rally, I decided to drive by Brush Park to see the Obama campaign bus I'd heard would be in town that day. When I got there, a handful of guys were breaking down tables, podiums and stage. I chatted with one of them about how the rally had gone, and he mentioned Howard Dean was still in the tour bus and would likely be out shortly. So, fresh Sharpie in hand, I waited him out.

And I finally met him, chatted briefly, and got my shirt signed. I wish I had a camera, but you can't carry everything with you. (I have a lame old cell phone, perhaps it's time to upgrade to a camera phone!)

Besides that fun experience, I had lunch with four different, dear friends over the last ten days or so. And the evening after meeting the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee I had a delightful night out with three very cool ladies, margaritas, Mexican food, laughs and a walk in the park on a breezy Texas night.

What a life.

Port A Recap

2008-06-28T21:21:00.004-05:00

Our annual trip to the beach just ended. We call it Cousin Camp, because the eight cousins on the Kennemer side of the family bring their eight adults along and we enjoy the beach for a week. This year the weather was perfect and the kids were in heaven. The top photo was one of the early nights on the beach. I found my poor old camera fogged up immediately when I got toward the sand and water. So most of my pix are taken inside. These three big boys were together all week and loving it.

The smallest and biggest cousin... Emma had to stop tickling when Alex used his secret (gas) weapon!

Hanging out during the heat of the day.

The little kids really wanted to be with the big kids... swimming, out in the ocean, playing video games, and the big kids were very patient with their little friends.

Tie Dye shirts and photos in the whale always wrap up a successful trip.

Thank you to Grandma and Grandad for hosting us again for another great year.

Befores and After

2008-06-20T21:55:00.003-05:00

Two before photos and one after.

The first before is Max's extra tooth. We had it pulled on Monday. He had been growing (fast) an extra tooth right out of the roof of his mouth. One trip to our friend, the oral surgeon and that feature was history. Max did great, his mother, however, almost passed out. Since we are friends with the doctor AND I am working on two Architecture projects for him, I wisely waited until he finished and left the room before asking the nurse to close the door so I could sit with my head between my knees.

Sometimes I wondered if I could have cut it as a doctor, the answer is clearly NO.

Joey: Before haircut.

Joey: After haircut, with our wonderful hairdresser, Darlene. I've known her now for over twenty years. She and Joey really hit it off.

Father's Day is so Starbell

2008-06-16T23:06:00.005-05:00

Happy Day after Father's Day!

I hope all the fathers out there got the love they deserve.

David and the kids watch the Mike Meyers Saturday Night Live Special. Our kids LOVE that they get to occasionally watch that show. They feel like they are onto a funny inside joke because they understand the humor of "Schwetty balls"

This is the very cute turtle that Emma found. We called Grace to tell her how starbell it was.

First Day of Summer....

2008-06-10T22:54:00.004-05:00

Hey kids! There is no water there!

We've been at summer almost a week now! That's hard to believe, but on the first day of summer, we met a few friends for River #2 on our Water Tour of Central Texas.

This time we visited San Marcos and the San Marcos River. It is much closer than the Guadalupe, about 40 minutes from home. The Guadalupe has always been my favorite, with its breathtaking big vistas, sheer cliffs, open wide swaths of river. In a way, though, the San Marcos was prettier. It's much smaller with vegetation teeming at the banks of the narrow river. And there are fewer signs of life as you float down. Not too many big houses on the banks. Funky old train trestles and bridges that you have to duck down in your tube to get past.

Ironically, the San Marcos is right in town, practically on the grounds of Texas State University, but it feels more secluded. It is very pokey, however. Lots of paddling and quite a bit of pesky duckweed.

This makes my third river since April; Blanco, Guadalupe and San Marcos. Now there are only about 5 or 6 left to hit.

Mr. Arce's Going Away Celebration

2008-06-07T17:22:00.003-05:00

There were slices of cake and LOTS of mustaches!

First Day : Last Day

2008-06-06T22:43:00.005-05:00

Joey's Kindergarten year is over.....
Max's third grade year is over... I'm not sure he and his teacher ever stopped hugging...

...and Emma wrapped up her elementary school experience with a wonderful fifth grade year.
Then there were lots of last day photos... Emma with Joey's special friend.... she looks like an American Girl Doll!
This is our principal who is leaving to take a promotion with the district... he has been at Bryker Woods two years longer than Emma, so he's the only one we've known... Emma got her lunchbox autographed by him as a souvenir!
This is Joey's big buddy, River. River always treated Joey with so much respect and love. He was an excellent 6th grade friend.
And our last picture, taken on the way home.... Edward, our fantastic friend and crossing guard. By this point, Max was out with a friend getting a snow cone, and we were on our way out for gelatto.
I'm still a little blue that it is over. This year was by far our best ever. We had three excellent teachers this year. And I realized and appreciated how special it was all year long. I was mentally putting the brakes on every day, but things end and change no matter what.

Girls Night Out...

2008-06-01T19:44:00.005-05:00

A bunch of us are going out to see Sex in the City on Tuesday!
We are meeting at a restaurant first, then walking across the parking lot for the movie.

It was one of those situations where I saw the preview for the movie while on a date with David. When I whispered, "I want to see that.."
David whispered, "I think it is time for you to have a girls' night."
What a good husband!

Then the kids have their last day on Wednesday, then it looks like another river trip on Thursday. I am having more fun these days then ever before. When are my sister and sister-in-law moving to Austin!!???

Field Trip Day

2008-05-30T16:32:00.004-05:00

OK, you have a choice.

Child A has a field trip to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum.

Child B has a field trip to Volente Beach Water Park, lots of your buddy mom-friends are going to chaperone THAT trip, and it is warm and lovely outside... hmmm... get smarter, or have fun???

I chose the Water Park! I hung out with some of my best school buddies, rode water slides- including one terrifying one twice, ate lunch, sat in the sun and chatted, stood in the lake and chatted and ignored the kids since they are fifth graders and want to be ignored anyway.

It was lots of fun. We decided that if you have to spend a day volunteering for the school, this has to be the best way to do it.

When you have a daugher, you get to drive girls to the water park, not boys.
Volente Beach, in the background notice the white thing. To ride that you have a two person raft, and you hike to the top of a tall staircase. Then you start at one side of the slippery taco shaped ride, and they launch you down the hill. It is truly scary and I rode it twice!
Emma and Helen and Maddie
Two of these are teachers. At our school, they actually hang out socially with us after hours. We have the best school!

Lance Letscher Show

2008-05-28T09:02:00.002-05:00

My favorite Austin Artist has a new show. I got to drop by the gallery yesterday and take a look. Wonderful work, as usual.

Just had an urge...

2008-05-24T19:37:00.003-05:00

... an urge to do something fun during the three day weekend. The thought of griping at the kids about video games, and cleaning the house (to no avail) as the first day of the Memorial Day weekend was more than I could bear. I went out for a walk early and it was clammy and muggy, and when I got home I decided that I wanted to have some fun today.

So I informed the family I wanted to go tubing on the Guadalupe. Even though I knew it would be crowded, and a long drive, I wanted to go. David didn't, but I can still force the kids to do fun stuff... so here is our day.

Summer has begun

2008-05-12T18:45:00.002-05:00

As if 90 degree days aren't enough (since those can actually happen in Spring!), we had the first REAL sign of summer.

The ice cream truck rumbled through at 6:30 pm tonight. Playing its endless loop of Rock-a-bye Baby it got David outside even before the kids knew what was happening. Of course, since we don't even eat until 7:30 the treats went to our freezer until after dinner. Nonetheless, summer is really here now.

Emma Rocks (actually, she Classicals)

2008-05-12T17:25:00.002-05:00

Emma accepts her "Third Year Trophy" for making the Music Memory Team
yearly since third grade.

Emma and church friend, Sara, with their trophies.

Emma has a freaky memory for music.

Specifically, classical music, and jazz and musicals. Our school participates in a city-wide competition called Music Memory. In the fall, the students start learning the songs that are covered that year. There are 16 songs in all. By the spring, each school gives tests to narrow down to a team which is entered in the district competition. It is sort of like name that tune for classy music. They listen to short snippets and have to name the piece and composer.

This is what Emma's mind does best. She's been on the team each year she was eligible. On the following Monday, the team members receive their awards at the Monday Morning Assembly. That is when they find out how they did in the competition.

Each year, Emma has earned the highest honor, the Malcolm Gregory Award for having a perfect test paper. And this year, despite her certainty that she messed up on some of the answers, her freaky brain came through.

Yippee Emma!

River Mamas

2008-05-10T20:54:00.002-05:00

On Friday, we dropped off the kids, and hit the road! We are the River Mamas. We were floating on the Guadalupe, drinking beer by 10:15 am. It was very fun, and very relaxing. And a nice surprise for us, a record hot day with the temp reaching the mid 90s... perfect for the icy cold water of the Guadalupe! Yee ha!

Our lunch potluck. We found it easiest to circle the table and shift every five minutes or so. That way everyone got to try a little of all the food.

2008-05-08T15:29:00.001-05:00

If your vision is for a year, plant wheat,
If your vision is for ten years, plant trees,
If your vision is for a lifetime, plant people.
~Chinese Proverb

Happy Birthday to Us!

2008-05-05T16:27:00.003-05:00

Outsider Art - Exhibit A

2008-04-30T22:04:00.002-05:00

Although the artist left this piece untitled, I like to think of it as, "Ples Pass the Catsup." The composition is dominated by a huge chandelier and a candelabra, which symbolize two sources of light for the feast of the century. The catsup, emblematic of yearning and nourishment, has dwarfed the humans in the work, giving us a sense of the futility of eating when we will only "want more catsup" at the next meal. Thankfully, as the superimposed text intones, it's all good.

Jeremiah Wright and Bill Moyers

2008-04-26T19:02:00.004-05:00

I just watched the Bill Moyers interview with Rev. Jeremiah Wright. It was full and complete and thoughtful. It was exactly NOT what sound bites and our media have suggested about Obama's pastor.

I would vote for Barack Obama, Bill Moyers OR Jeremiah Wright to be our president. They are three thoughtful, intelligent Americans. And what is done during our political campaigns, the business of politics as usual, is so anti-American and anti-Democracy that it is shameful.

Watch the video of the interview for yourself (or read the full transcript) before you vote in November....
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04252008/watch.html

River Girl

2008-04-21T15:24:00.006-05:00

I had a big epiphany while laying on my back in the middle of this river Saturday.

I am a river girl. My mom and sister in law are really beach girls, and don't get me wrong, I love the beach.... but in my heart, I'm happiest in a Texas Hill Country River.

I was laying next to a little waterfall on a rock in the middle of the Blanco on Saturday afternoon. I felt the warm sun, the cold water, saw the blue sky with big hawks circling overhead. Heard the rushing water and birds and frogs. Felt the breeze blow by. It was absolutely perfect. The water was crystal clear. And there was no buring sun, or sand in my swimsuit.

I had so much fun that I've decided to act on a plan I formed a couple of years ago. Here is my flyer, it goes out this week:

Butts Up!

Please join your buddies for the “First Annual Moms Only Before the Kids are Out of School For the Whole Summer River Trip”

When? Friday May 16 (if raining, we’ll go May 30)

Time? We drop off the kids at school at 7:45 and start driving to the River at 7:46. We’ll head back in time to pick up our little ones by 2:45.

Where do we meet? Near the BW parking lot

Bring? $15 for tube rental + $20 for tube deposit + a bit extra just in case, cooler (Styrofoam not allowed!), beverages, food to share potluck style for lunch, camp chair, hat, sunscreen, towel, river shoes, and your funky self!

Who can come? Fun moms, the more the merrier! Forward this.

What if I have to work? Call in sick!

Little Max's Ghost

2008-04-15T20:49:00.004-05:00

Because there may be ONE person who doesn't read my sister's weblog who reads mine... this is a long lost photo of Max. What is remarkable is the little person on the TV behind him. It is the future brother trying to call to Max.....

"M....mmmm...... Max-eeeeee....... I'm going to torment you in the future......."

shark mouth

2008-04-15T20:27:00.002-05:00

Max is growing an extra tooth from the roof of his mouth. Yes, it is exactly as weird as it sounds. Yes, it is proof that one of my children is my genetic offspring since my mom and my brother each produced extra teeth (however, not from the roofs of their mouths)

We went to the dentist and he informed us that the tooth will of course have to come out, but that there was no rush and we could do it this summer.

Coincidentally, the oral surgeon who was the father of Emma's best preschool friend called asking about Architectural services for two projects he has in mind. I mentioned Max's situation and he offered a free consultation and xrays. Too bad I can't stamp the drawings and do the project myself or I could barter dental care for drafting.

Anyway, the dentist yesterday asked to take a photo. It really is that weird. If he gets a digital shot (using a special mouth mirror) at Max's cleaning next month, I'll post it. One of the teachers at school called it Max's Lucky Tooth, so he feels pretty OK about it.

Par-tay Oh 8!

2008-03-31T17:09:00.007-05:00

A little glimpse into the secret activities that occur when four old friends get together for the yearly road trip.

Fortunately for us, what happens in Tyler--stays in Tyler!

We started our trip with a little surprise, Mary had made a DVD trip down memory lane, complete with high school yearbook photos.

Our lodging...outside...

... and, inside.

Shopping for steak and PJs

Breakfast on the deck.

When your B&B has decorations like this....

... you should expect some of this.

No longer allowed to dine in the presence of strangers.

Tyler Azalea Trail
We hadn't really planned the trip to see the flowers, but it sure worked out well.

Lafon, our friendly innkeeper

We had to stop shopping before we ran out of room.

Our last meal together, at Joe T's

Good food!

Wishing Rock

2008-03-18T21:09:00.003-05:00

One of Joey's friends gave him a "wishing rock" today. Joey told me that anything you wish for with the rock comes true. For example, when we waited in the hall for the rain to stop after school, Joey wished he would find his black marker to draw with. Then he walked into his classroom and found his black marker in his cubbie. He also wished for food because I hadn't packed a snack, and then, in his room when he mentioned to his teacher that he was hungry, she gave him a banana.

He also wished he was a superhero, but that wish did not come true.

Max's Party

2008-03-17T15:12:00.004-05:00

Max finally got his birthday party.... 13 days after his real birthday.
Bowling at Dart Bowl

Make Art

2008-03-14T11:05:00.003-05:00

We worked on this piece of art for many years before it finally gave up the ghost recently. Some lucky Goodwill worker will enjoy repairing or dismantling this charmer.

Left over from Maker Faire

2008-03-13T16:10:00.005-05:00

Last summer, when we were at Maker Faire, the Chronicle had a booth where you could make your own announcement. They posted some of the photos on their newspaper machines around Austin, and then the rest were posted to the Chronicle site.

I found the slip of paper with the weblink, downloaded these photos, then lost the slip of paper.

Look how hot we were! October that felt like August -- UGH! And summer is coming again. It is supposed to be in the 90's tomorrow, we might break a record -- DOUBLE UGH!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAXY! (and other news)

2008-03-10T20:41:00.006-05:00

March third, our special middle guy turned nine years old. His birthday weekend was spent in Fort Worth enjoying opening day at Six Flags! That was a blast, then we had a family birthday cake for him on his actual birthday. Then his friend party has to be on hold until all his buddies get home from Spring Break. So this Sunday, watch out for crazy fun at Dart Bowl, Max's favorite place to celebrate.....

Other things I meant to post.... but forgot......

During cookie sales, this is what our recycling looked like on Fridays. Each of those case boxes held 12 individual boxes of cookies. The sale lasted 5 weeks, and our recycling looked like that each week.

Emma ultimately sold...... 1064 boxes of cookies! Woo HOo!!! She will get all sorts of goodies, and parties and receptions along with the other 1000+ sellers. But I am most jealous of the 1000+ Club patch. I really wish I would get one too!

Tried to donate blood with the girls one day a short while back, unfortunately my iron level was one point too low. So I just sat around mouthing the words.... "this part really hurts" right as the nurse was about to stick my friends.... (I'm a naughty slightly anemic girl!)

And of course, I did enjoy the post donation breakfast just as if I had donated... hopefully next time I'll be good to go.

Just got this photo of Joey's lost tooth out of the camera. His second one is wiggly and he's sad about losing it.
Emma finally got her birthday party, a few weeks late...but it was really fun. We invited a few friends to eat pizza at Mellow Mushroom on the drag (excellent pizza) and then we went to Amy's for ice cream, then home for gifts. A girls night out. I'm training Emma to enjoy girls night and I hope she has a lifetime of good girls' nights with her friends...

Now, that almost catches me up.... I just have about a three weeks of delayed chattiness to go before I'm up to current events. Hopefully I'll stay on track now, but if not, I've got a good excuse. I'm busy!!!!!!

2008-02-23T09:32:00.002-06:00

A better photo than mine....

Girls Night Out

2008-02-22T23:30:00.003-06:00

OK, so this post is called Girls Night Out, referring to tonight, but the post is going to backtrack about 24 hours.

First off, I'll say that Thursday night is my favorite time of the week. On weeks that I take Friday off, it is the beginning of my "golden day" when my weekend starts, and a full day before my family's weekend starts. Yippee..

So last night, I watched the Democratic debate and I was so proud that 1) it was at UT, 2) it was in Austin, and 3) Barack AND Hillary did so well that I could vote for either one. I was so proud to be a Democrat and eager to get to work getting the country back on track.

Then today, I went and early voted for Obama!

Did chores, but the house was my own so that was OK.

Then this evening had a girls' night out and saw our friend Luis and his beautiful artwork which will be at City Hall for the next year.

Then, of course some margaritas....

Then, the Obama rally at the capital with many thousands of my fellow Austinites....

Emma Did It!

2008-02-20T08:19:00.002-06:00

On Saturday, Emma sold ME her 1000th box of cookies (Thin Mints). Since then we've sold 50 more and then stopped. YIPPEE! It was a wonderful relief to hit that super milestone.

Other news, my boss came over and gave us some excellent guidance about adding onto the house. Now instead of 50 variables about how to add some square footage, we are using his expertise and experience to narrow it down to one, very workable plan! YIPPEE! I slept like a baby that night.

I've got a handle on the kids' summer camps, need to sign up for those.

And on a sad note, a mom at our school and her teenage daughter were involved in a terrible wreck this weekend. And a high school age former student at BW was killed in the wreck But watching the Bryker Woods machine spring into action to support those families was amazing. Life can change in an instant, hug your kids extra hard every day.

2008-02-13T21:59:00.000-06:00

903
9 days to sell 97 boxes....
unless they extend us two extra days.....

2008-02-12T00:14:00.000-06:00

835.... sold 50 today!

2008-02-10T20:28:00.000-06:00

Cookie update:
Emma has sold 785 as of Sunday night.
Monday and Tuesday are usually our best selling days.
I'm now afraid I've seriously underestimated the number of Caramel DeLites/Samoas we needed to order, although we have about 13 cases of Thin Mints. If they extend the selling period to include the weekend after Feb 22 (they almost always do that...) we should be fine.

Joey update:
He's going to school tomorrow!

Household update:
Tamaflu seems to be working, however I am actually (now) knocking the wood window jamb next to the computer.

Work update:
Very busy day ahead for David and Kathy

Weather update:
PERFECT! This is why we live in Austin, it is glorious.

Life update:
Going great, although if cookie time was over, I'd be much more relaxed.

2008-02-09T15:33:00.001-06:00

749 boxes sold..... 13 days to go.

yikes!

2008-02-07T07:23:00.000-06:00

Emma has sold about 650 boxes. We've just ordered the rest we will need to reach 1000, and I'm a little nervous......and.....

Joey tested positive for the flu.... so I'm wondering if a week of the flu for various members of the family will waylay the chance for selling all those cookies.

wish us luck!

The art of selling cookies.

2008-02-02T10:03:00.000-06:00

Emma has sold 460+ boxes. Yesterday we got a new shipment which, when sold, will take us to 696. The sale goes until February 22nd, so mathematically, she could reach her new goal of selling 1000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies.

However, since we often have the boys with us- and payment for good patient behavior is a hot chocolate, or donut- I will have spent around a hundred bucks on bribes, which could have bought about 50 boxes of cookies.

It's a delicate balance.

Wish us luck. A little later I'll describe the turf war we are in with another leader down on the drag. It is very intense.

Joey

2008-01-28T08:12:00.000-06:00

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!"

Lately, it's all about Emma

2008-01-26T21:35:00.000-06:00

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.

Too long... no write

2008-01-18T20:22:00.000-06:00

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.

Me Good.

2008-01-07T23:31:00.000-06:00

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.

quicksand

2008-01-04T23:24:00.000-06:00

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.

How Christmas Was

2007-12-29T13:14:00.000-06:00

Christmas was great.

I'll backtrack and say that Advent was great too. I've always got this voice in the back of my Episcopalian mind (nagging) that we aren't supposed to celebrate Christmas when it is really Advent. Advent is the time to wait for the Christ Child and prepare. This year, I came to the full realization that every mom I know celebrates Advent correctly. We are all preparing and waiting.... right up until the last moments of the night on Christmas Eve. That preparing and waiting turns into quiet celebration for me at church. When we sing songs about a young mother blessing God with a kiss, and we all sing a lullaby to a baby.

I also had a sublime Advent moment in my car, in the parking lot of Randall's listening to Prairie Home Companion. After a lot of searching afterwards, I found the song online that had captivated me. It was called "A Child is Born in Bethlehem. Since we are now truly celebrating Christmas, you should take an hour and listen to GK tell his stories and end the first segment of the show with this wonderful song.

Then, of course, there was Christmas morning. We try not to instill materialistic urges in the kids, but this was the year we made dreams come true. Lots of video games, players, etc. Robes, toys, bow and arrow that shoots marshmallows, gift cards, ugly dolls and so forth. I felt content to make the kids happy this year. I felt a sense that we were very fortunate to be able to have such a wonderful holiday. David and I are home from work. We lounge as a family in our PJs many days, we have friends come over, we read Christmas cards, what a holiday!

Hope you all had a great holiday as well-- whatever you celebrate, and if it's Christmas, I hope it was a spiritual success as well. Here's to a wonderful 2008!

Early Christmas

2007-12-19T15:50:00.000-06:00

This isn't a Christmas gift, but it is something Joey really loves, a bazooka! Made especially by Grandad to fulfill a request. Joey had wondered if Grandad would give him a real bazooka (without ammo) but this is a little better.

Cousins can't wait to open the presents!

My aunts!

David and a couple of my cousins

Wow, I've been busy!

We had a trip to Fort Worth with photos to share. Celebrated Christmas with my growing up family, and my extended Kennemer family. Both were so much fun. My main thought there was how much my grandparents would have enjoyed seeing how everyone grew up and all the beautiful babies and kids running around. Nannie and Poppa would have been very proud.

Then, last night, I got to go celebrate a birthday with my circle of girlfriends from the kids' school. Margaritas and laughing and funny stories. Then, when we walked to our cars, drunk college boys tried to hit on us! One of our group told them they were too drunk since they didn't realize how old we were!

I feel like I'm so satisfied now, after seeing so many people, that I don't need any other Christmas gift. Really. I can't think of anything I really need this year. (other than the 30 Rock DVD, thank you very much Julie..... and the copy of Robbin's painting, thank you very much Mom and Dad). I'm content and happy to buy stuff for the kids and I wrapped that work up today about thirty minutes before school let out. I'm all bought, and wrapped, and hidden and mailed. Yippee!

So it's been a great week. Lots of hugs and laughs and contentment.

That's all.

Trail of Lights Night

2007-12-09T21:48:00.001-06:00

Tonight was Emma's big night, the opening of the Trail of Lights! She brought along a friend, and at every step of the way, we were pleasantly surprised that the guest limitations had been lifted. We thought only Emma and two guests would get to attend the VIP party... nope, all 8 of us got in! Our family of five, Emma's friend, David's mom and our favorite sitter, Elisa.

They had promised "light food" but we got fajitas from Taco Cabana... yum and no late dinner to cook!

Then, for the sleigh ride we had been told would have Emma plus guest, was changed. Now all six art winners, plus siblings, plus a family adult got to ride in the JUMBO 25-person sleigh. We let David's mom be the one adult, and Elisa, David and I walked alongside the sleigh.

Joey uses our new kiddie digital camera to take a photo of a very special couple....

And Emma gets a seat of honor on the sleigh... everyone else is seated above and behind her.

Sleigh-full of kids... our boys were on the top row, where we couldn't quite control them verbally.

We found the sleigh good at blocking the surprisingly cold wind! Zilker Tree in the background... only a week ago, it was the main attraction.

Getting ready to cut the ribbon.....

Emma got to be the person wielding the oversize pair of scissors.... and she got to countdown from ten before cutting the ribbon. After it was cut, the lights came on, and Emma was hustled back onto the sleigh. Those of us "VIPs" walking alongside the sleigh got to follow it into the trail of lights, while all the villagers huddling behind their barricades had to wait a bit longer.

Once we were about half way through the one mile trail, they got to start their walk.
It's nice to get the VIP treatment!
Hard to get photos with the flash on, and blurry without the flash, but I like this better. This is the mayor in the tan pants to the right, next to the sleigh, which is entering the big tunnel of light at the entrance to the trail.

Lots of beauty.
These are very blurry, but it was so pretty there and this is the best I could do... my old friend with vertigo (Par-tay) just needs to scroll on down.

The kids in Santa's house. By the time we got here, M/M Claus greeted Emma by name. Mrs. Claus called out, "Santa! Emma's here!"

Joey and his beloved Elisa.
He is 6 and she is 16 so they posed by the Six Swans a Swimmin' display.

Big Night Number 1

2007-12-03T23:04:00.001-06:00

OK. The first of a two part series on: What it's like to win an Art Contest!

Emma was one of the guests of honor at the lighting of the Zilker Park Christmas Tree. The night truly belonged to a friend's daughter, Jane Addison. She is the little sister of one of Max's classmates. She won the Junior division of the Zilker Christmas Tree Contest and got to flip the switch to turn on the lights. Very cool honor!

We got there about an hour early for our front row seats, so got to watch the sun set on a beautiful, unseasonably warm December night. There was an orchestra and a huge elementary school choir providing music while we waited.

Sue Flores, Bryker Woods Art Teacher, with four of the six winners in the contest. (She is really a great art teacher!)

Emma with Judy Maggio, our longtime local newscaster
and master of ceremonies for the evening.

The crowd awaits! And Jane is being interviewed by a reporter...

Emma chats with the Mayor, Will Wynn.

Max, with classmates Noah and Ellie--
Ellie is big sister to Junior Art winner, Jane.

Where else, but our cool city, does the Mayor show up for a big event in his shorts and flip flops?

Jane and the Mayor flip the switch!

Happy Joey!

Zilker Tree Lighting

2007-12-03T09:10:00.000-06:00

Until I have a chance to unload my camera with photos from last night's Zilker Park Tree lighting ceremony, you'll just have to do with this....

More Christmassy

2007-11-29T18:06:00.000-06:00

Joey just couldn't wait.

He is in love with his Kindergarten teacher and he couldn't wait until closer to Christmas to get her the perfect gift.... a snow globe. Right now, he is mesmerized by snow globes. He even told the teacher last week that would be her present, and each day he wanted to go shopping (around 8pm) to find the right one.

Yesterday, the rare opportunity arose, Max had chess club, Emma had a playdate, and Joey and I had an hour to ourselves. I told him THAT was the right time to shop. So we drove over to Breede, the most wonderful Hardware/Housewares store I know, because that would be just the place for snow globe shopping.

I was right. As we walked in the front door, there was a beautiful one. It had Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus in it. I said, "Oh Joey, they do have snow globes! Look at that one." He took a look and said... "No Mom, it's got to be more Christmassy." Ouch. We'll be working on that during Advent.

Anyway, just like I'd imagined, Breede had about twenty to choose from on a shelf towards the back of the store. We settled in and started listening to the music boxes for the top choices. Joey was very careful to put his ear right next to them and sing the words if he knew them. As I was watching him, being so careful, I could hear the garden center right outside the door. There was a little fountain running, and that kept mixing with the music box twinkles and Joey singing some of the right words and making up the rest. And I had such a nice moment.

He did eenie meenie and inky binky bonky to choose between the final two. He kept going until he got the one that I knew he liked the best. It had a penguin inside, played "We wish you a Merry Christmas", and had a bright green glitter covered base. Joey kept singing, "I wish you a Happy Christmas and a Go-od New Year".

Joey and I used to have lots of time together when he was in preschool, and now I hardly ever get him alone. (and not begging for a "date" to eat Happy Meals) It was really lovely.

When he got home, he must have played the music for two hours, staring at the snow and the little penguin inside.

He told us he wanted to take it to her this morning. So we wrapped it up after breakfast. He walked right up to her first thing and gave her the present, and she opened it and he was just beaming. It was really great. It sort of lurched me right into the holiday spirit-- now I feel More Christmassy.

Happy Surprise!!

2007-11-27T20:40:00.000-06:00

We are so Excited!!!!

Emma entered the Zilker Park Christmas Tree Coloring Contest
and she won the Senior Division!
YIPPEE!!!

This means that we (the whole family) get to attend the tree lighting ceremony this Sunday to see another girl from our school-- a little sister of Max's friend--- light the big Zilker Park Christmas tree. Emma gets to stand on the podium with her.

Emma's big night comes on December 9, when they open the Trail of Lights. Emma got us tickets to the VIP party before the official opening. We got VIP parking passes allowing us to bypass the police barricade (my favorite part of this by far!) And then Emma and the Mayor will cut the ceremonial ribbon opening the Trail of Lights. THEN... if that wasn't enough.... Emma and her parents have the opportunity to ride in the sleigh with Santa and Mrs. Claus through the Trail all the way to Santa's house where they will disembark and have photos taken.

Whew!

Free Parking!!!!!!

2007-11-26T08:29:00.000-06:00

On the last day of the Thanksgiving Weekend, I never even got out of my pajamas.

Pretty Food

2007-11-23T22:13:00.000-06:00

This was the prettiest thing I cooked yesterday.
Cranberries with Clementines.

2007-11-22T11:09:00.001-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!
Gobble Gobble

Season of Shows

2007-11-21T15:36:00.001-06:00

The way they get you to come to PTA meetings at Bryker Woods is to have your kid do some sort of performance that you don't want to miss. Therefore, I predict I will go to three evening PTA meetings this school year. Max's was this month, when the third grade classes sang patriotic songs for us. It was actually very cute, and the program had improved from the year Emma's third grade did patriotic songs consisting of the Navy, Army, Air Force and Marine songs. Max's group did "This Land is Your Land", and "Fifty! Nifty! United States" which were much more catchy.

Joey's class held the pilgrim/indian show. They got to choose which they wanted to be and the class only ended up with two little settlers and a dozen native Americans. Joey is on the back row, but his "girlfriend", Jillian is on the front row. She is the teeny blonde in front of Zach who is just to the right of Joey.

Emma and I talked with Jillian and she told us, about Joey.... "I like him and he likes me".

Joey says...."She chases me, and I like it."

The Kindergarten Room

Mrs. Black, Carlotta the doggie, and Joey

Joey asked to have his picture taken with Mrs. Black's visiting daughter, and later wondered if she could be his babysitter.

Monday's Adventure.... Enchanted Rock

2007-11-14T21:48:00.001-06:00

He really is a ham.

About half way up.. looking over to Little Rock

Lunch at the top.

Exploring a cave passage.
(I stayed out!)

We left Joey clinging to the side of the rock so we could get this photo!
(actually, no, don't call CPS, it is a trick shot!)

I first heard about Enchanted Rock when I was in High School. I remember Mrs. Carroll, Geometry teacher and German Club Advisor, took the German club to Fredericksburg and Enchanted Rock on a field trip. When I was at UT I heard about it, but never took the trip to see it. I have thought about a visit all these years.

Finally, with November here, the weather is cool and beautiful, the kids had a teacher's in-service day, and David had a work holiday. So we decided to make the trip down. We thought it might be crowded due to Veteran's Day, but it seems only Austin schools had a day off, so we had the park almost to ourselves. The weather couldn't have been better. The clouds were beautiful and kept the sun from being too intense. There was a great breeze on the rock and all the kids are like little billy goats with lots of energy for climbing. Just a perfectly fun day.

A big bowl feature at the summit.

Emma
We all laid down on the rock and it was really comfortable because
the slight curve stretched out your back just right.

It's been dry, but there were little pools here and there. Some were just puddles and some had the start of little ecosystems in them. Later, when we got down, the Ranger's station mentioned that they are used to learn about how little ecosystems develop.
If you click and enlarge this photo (taken from Little Rock looking back at Enchanted Rock) you will see tiny people to give you a sense of scale. We walked up Enchanted rock first, then over to Little Rock, then "off road".
Little Rock

More amazing life taking root

Just one of the big old rocks scattered about. This is where we started to blaze our own trail, and just beyond we got to ....

I was the most nervous about our "off the beaten path route". The kids and David didn't seem to mind the 10' drops between the boulders they leapt among, or the possibility of SNAKES that I was so acutely aware of!!!

Happy Halloween

2007-11-13T22:02:00.001-06:00

Yes, they are going for increasingly scary costumes each year.
Emma is dressing like a pre-teen, which is scariest of all.

Joey visits Mrs. Black's house.

How many more years will I see this scene?

The loot!

Max is always the leader in candy acquisition. We think he is young enough to want the candy and his hands are big enough to really grab a nice big handful when offered.

Today was actually a real scare. About mid-morning I checked my email from work to see one from the kids' principal. He said the school was under modified lockdown. Apparently, someone robbed McBride's gun shop which is less than a mile from our school. The Austin Swat team was trying to figure out if the crook had actually been cornered in the store, so as a precaution, the daycare and three nearby schools were on lock down.

Today the store was having a Beretta show. It really makes me question the wisdom of gun rights, knowing that semi automatic weapon shows are being held just up the road. I'm not against guns that are designed for hunters, but ones that really are only good for killing people would be better left out of my neighborhood.

I never worried about our kids. Our school is amazing and kept them all safe. I'm very thankful that this was a non-story.

Catching up...

2007-11-12T19:55:00.001-06:00

Today was a wonderful day. Full of adventure! Documented with fabulous photos! Inspiring! Awesome!.....but you won't hear about it until Wednesday at the earliest.

That's because today when I was taking all the good photos, I realized I'd never posted any of the others on the camera during the last month. So today, you'll see : Picking out Pumpkins!

Tomorrow... Halloween!

and Wednesday.... well, you'll have to wait and see......

Max and his friend Uma. She has been pumpkin shopping for each of the last three years. It is sort of a tradition to take her along.

Joey age 6

....and at age 2!

2007-11-10T00:16:00.001-06:00

I've got ART!

2007-11-09T17:56:00.000-06:00

Today, I bought TWO beautiful pieces of art. I couldn't afford the Three Muses in my earlier post (Robbin is painting me a smaller version after her big show in the Bahamas). But today's purchases were by my friend Luis Abreux.

I met Luis about two months ago. Each Friday, we have Art Day at Robbin's house. Luis joined the three of us, Robbin, Connie and I, and he is fantastic. Watching him work is hypnotic and apparently the city is starting to notice him. He escaped from Cuba two years ago, in a dramatic, multi-stop plane flight. Connie and Robbin met him at an art show at Austin Interreligious Ministries. He even won a recent Best of Austin Award in the Austin Chronicle:

Best Surprise! We Have an Art Show Here!: Austin Area Interreligious Ministries Hosting Luis Abreux
One step in the door of the agency’s Eastside location, and all eyes become riveted to Luis Abreux’s vibrant, fantastical work. Vivid colors reminiscent of the painter's native Cuba and the dynamism of the topics command attention; it's as if his subjects were run through a Chuck Jones-meets-Picasso daydream. You may be tempted to stay and gaze for hours or wish you could take them all home. The local nonprofit gave the honor of their first foray into the art world to Abreux, whose recent situation qualified him for their services, allowing him to participate in his own assistance.
701 Tillery #8, 386-9145 www.aaimaustin.org

So today, I visited his house and saw the dozens of paintings he has in every room, more than dozens, at least a hundred! I picked two small ones, and fell in love. He let me have a "friend rate" and wished them well in their new home. Photos will be posted momentarily!

The Three Graces

2007-11-07T20:13:00.001-06:00

My friend Robbin painted this wonderful picture, it is called Three Graces and guess who is in the middle! It is the first time I've been painted into someone's artwork, and I love it. Connie is on the left and Robbin, the artist, is on the right.

I love love love it.

What we Saw at Maker Faire!!!....

2007-10-21T19:52:00.000-05:00

David and Emma watch the Ping Pong ball projectiles that the Robot beyond just shot out

What a wonderfully fun day today. We went to Maker Faire at the Expo Center. We first heard of it from a Seatte friend who told us he was coming down. He backed out, but we are glad we didn't. What is Maker Faire you ask? Hmmm... a carnival for techhies? a geek convention? crafter's paradise? circus of the bizarre? YES, it is!

Someone rigged up a big screen TV, with a video game and some buttons to make this video pinball game.

Emma uses the motion thingie on her hand to make a robot pick up a can

Max watches an automatic sand art machine

Life sized Mousetrap Game. By the way, the big thing rolling by in the background is a human powered Ferris wheel. Three riders made it move forward by swinging in their seats. It was very cool. It rolled across while the mousetrap went off.

This was one of our favorite parts... Mentos and Diet Coke! These two guys had spent three hours setting up the display and it all went off in a three minute fizz of glory!

Where else do nerds get to sign autographs like rock stars?
We got to help decorate an Art Car

Other Art Cars included this Yarn Car...

...and the Camera Van

Astroturf car with gnome hood ornament

The End

Architect again...

2007-10-15T14:05:00.000-05:00

I started a new job today.

I'm an Architect again. I work at Chris Lewis Architects. It was a good first day. More later.

Two inspirational links....

2007-10-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

Elisa's blog was perfect today, so all I can do is copy it.....

inspiration 1

and

inspiration 2

and Trey's was perfect too... but you'll have to read it for yourself....

goofing around

2007-10-05T17:35:00.000-05:00

Joey and I played with the camera last night....

In the teepee

Cutie Joe

clowning around

Joey posed himself for this shot

My best haircut ever... from Darlene earlier on Thursday

Good editorial

2007-10-03T09:22:00.000-05:00

I am ready for a 9/12 candidate. So I loved this editorial by Thomas Friedman.

Mister SIX

2007-09-29T17:30:00.000-05:00

Yippee for Joey who is SIX years old today.
We love you Jo-Jo!

We had a Ben 10 birthday party for him at Zilker Park. If you are not "in the know" Ben 10 is a show on Cartoon Network. Ben is a little boy who can turn into any one of ten aliens. The beauty of this is that it gives the loving parent an almost endless supply of things to buy. But that's another story.... Today we used those ten aliens to make ten birthday games. I remembered to take photos of a couple of them! The names of the aliens are highlighted.

Four Arms/ Three-legged Race

Upgrade-ing their cupcakes

We missed the Zilker Train - twice!
So on the fly, David and I invented this "train game" which was really Crack the Whip.
The train motif was to honor the alien named XLR8.

Joey had a good time, and the guests seemed to as well. We are having pizza for dinner and opening presents. The fun continues.....

The other blog.....

2007-09-23T22:41:00.001-05:00

I feel like I'm cheating on Rocket Tots. For years, it has been the little task that, at times, I eagerly poured my thoughts into. Other times, when life gets dull, it nags me like a report I need to write for school.

Then, a new feeling, I started a blog called "Estate Sale Mama" about my hobby. I'm all fired up to post photos of the things I find, and write about eBay. It is so new, so fresh, so easy. But poor old neglected R.T. just sits here. So, here I am, with something not so dull to report, hoping that I appease the Rocket Tot task master:

I'll let you know that David and I had a nice date on Saturday. Our priest at church has a daughter we love, and we asked to have her come babysit/sleepover, then we would drive her to church the following morning. My kids were looking forward to it all week. (of course I did too!)

We went out to the Alamo to see Superbad and I give it a rave review. ALTHOUGH, it is not a film I would actually recommend to many people, a few, yes, but most, no. It is very full of cuss words, and high school boy fixations on sex and booze. But it is by Judd Aptow, who makes the funniest comedies (40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up) and this was funnier than both of those. David and I bought our tickets online, but because we tried to play it cheap and eat at home before we went, we got to the theater right as it started. Not a problem with pre-sold tickets, yet still a problem when there was only one seat on the very back row. The theater accommodated us with folding chairs in the handicap spot. Not comfy but smack in the center, so we did OK. We were probably better off than if we had gotten there 15 minutes earlier.

I did Girl Scout training for five hours (!!!) on Saturday, so that movie was just the raunchy counterpoint to all the Girl Scout goodness I was exposed to.

Now, go check out my other blog.

http://estatesalemama.blogspot.com

I'll try to post here or there semi-frequently.

yippee!

2007-09-19T10:10:00.000-05:00

I just got new tennis shoes!

September 11

2007-09-11T16:29:00.000-05:00

I completely agree with Leonard Pitts' editorial published yesterday.

stocking up

2007-09-11T11:12:00.001-05:00

Sometimes there are little ideas (often of interest only to me) that keep popping into my head that make me think I should write about them in some way. Weird facts about life or what have you. Here is one that I can't believe I'm remembering when I'm actually sitting at the computer.

It seems lately, these last ten years, my brain doesn't work quite right. Take grocery shopping for instance. When I go, which is at least four trips per week, I don't use a shopping list, I rely on my faulty memory. So I cruise the aisles hoping to have the item itself trigger my memory. I will get on a kick where I am so thankful that I remembered, let's say, MAYONAISE because I know we were very low and I'd hate to run out. Well, there are about 3 big jars of mayonaise in my pantry right now. There are 4 1/2 bottles of dish soap under the sink. For a while it was margerine. For a while eggs. David says nothing, but keeps storing away my mistakes as though I'm stocking a bomb shelter.

The one item that doesn't worry me is my toilet paper hoarding. I swear I didn't dream this, but when we lived in Seattle, there was all that fighting about the spotted owl and logging. I clearly remember hearing a story on the radio that the loggers would protest by cornering the market on toilet paper to teach us all a lesson about the importance of paper products that their logging provides. Ever since then I hoard TP. When we get down to 6 rolls, I start to get a little worried.

Anyway, that is a strange fact about Kathy that I'll bet you didn't know until just now.

what's up

2007-09-05T08:39:00.000-05:00

Boring stuff to report. I'm starting to jog daily... actually, I've been doing it for a month. I'm up to walking two blocks and then jogging every third which is more than I did when I started.

The kids are loving school. They dig into homework without problems. They aren't yet griping about the repetitious lunches I invariably make.

I'm polishing up my resume. Getting ready to apply for a couple of jobs. Got one Architecture job in the back pocket, I think. Not sure if it's a good fit, project wise, but I would have flexible hours which is important at this stage. And it is not computer system research which is the last real "job" I had.... it kicked my bootie.

Did the photo albums - Huge Achievement! -

House was very clean, but not so much anymore. Our life is just messy.

I guess that's it.

I'm going to make you jealous (if you are a mom anyway...)

2007-09-03T16:40:00.001-05:00

I just finished putting all my photos into photo albums.

First Day of School Photos

2007-08-27T08:32:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow, three Bryker Woods students!

2007-08-26T21:29:00.000-05:00

I wrote an email to a friend recently, and I did such a good job of describing the kids' teachers I thought I'd just copy that and post it here. (Friend: hope you don't mind!) Anyway, here is what we have in store for tomorrow. The biggest change is that I'm no longer the mother of a pre-schooler. Now they all attend Bryker Woods. I guess this means I'm not the same kind of a stay at home mom, and very shortly I'll be a part time working mom again. One door closes and another opens....... here's the copied info:

Yes, Emma, my oldest, has a new teacher. But even that teacher is known to us, since her daughter is one of my Girl Scouts and a member of Emma's grade at school. So we know her as a fellow "Mom" at the moment. I've heard wonderful things about her as a teacher. I had a friend who was a clerk in the office and she said Mrs. Spain was the only teacher who never sent kids to the office, she takes care of all the discipline in her room. Impressive....

Max, 3rd grader, will have a lady we've had with Emma two years ago. She is about a year or two from retirement and a very impressive teacher. She gives them each hugs at the end of the day as they leave the room. She asks them about their day, and what they'll be working on that night for homework. It takes almost 20 minutes to get the whole class outside after the bell rings. Her students are "her babies" for the year, and she loves them. Great teacher.

Joey's Kindergarten teacher is a family friend. When Emma was in her class 4 years ago, I volunteered to be a reader on Fridays. Joey was a one year old then, and she would take him to the teacher's lounge for the half hour. When I got him back, he would have cookie crumbs and strawberry juice on his shirt, and lipstick kisses around his cheeks. She even offered to babysit Joey when the other four of us went to movies and she and Joey were special friends... she was like an aunt to him. Now she is teaching him. She will have to train him not to dig through her desk drawers for candy. I asked if she would prefer not to have him be a student, but she is very excited to teach him. She is only a year or two from retirement as well.

We live about three blocks down the street from the school. My husband attended it as a kid. So that is another good thing, we can all walk to school, and actually, I may let the kids walk home by themselves later in the year.

Kathy's Last Temptation

2007-08-21T23:44:00.001-05:00

OK, so who's got Kathy's number?
Randall's, that's who!

Not only do I shop there once a day, sometimes more.
Not only do they take more and more of my money each month.
Now they have developed the one impulse purchase that I simply couldn't resist.

I just went ahead and grabbed them and kept on walking.
The oddly hued, over-bright flowers. No way they are really this color, but they were like catnip to me.

Had to have them,
and had just the perfect vase for them.
Now washing the dishes isn't too bad.

Museum Tragedy...

2007-08-17T14:47:00.000-05:00

I was missing the cavemen at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History so much that I wrote an email when we got home. I asked the Curator what happened to my all time favorite representation of prehistoric surgery.


This was the disturbing response:

Dear Kathy,

When we dismantled the History of Medicine exhibit, we gave it to the UNT Health Science Center. They were storing it and planned to install it in a new building. Unfortunately, the Tindell Warehouse burned down and the exhibit was lost. I have attached a photo of the cavemen and they are indeed dusty.

Best wishes,
Jim Diffily

Cowtown Vacation

2007-08-15T23:48:00.002-05:00

What do you do when you have a couple weeks of Summer Vacation left, the need for a change of scenery, but little cash or energy for a glamorous trip?

Head to Fort Worth!

Stay out of the street when the steer pass by, they might sweat on you.

The kids are old enough now that we decided to do some of the "touristy" stuff on this trip to Gramma and Grandad's. So the first day, we went down to the Stockyards to see the cattle drive. The staff wanders up and down the street before the longhorns, giving us all warnings about standing away from the street. Good thing, because those steer looked mighty feisty in the mid morning heatwave. Actually, it was kind of fun, and we went to the gunslinger show and the Cowboy museum afterwards.

Our wonderful hosts

Where is Santa spending August? At the Gunslinger show!

David warned me to keep my hand off this guy's piece

From there, we made was our second visit to the outstanding new museum in Fort Worth, The Modern.

They had a neat show going on that gave all of us lots to talk about. The permanent exhibit had the ladder to the sky that we all loved.

We stayed in Cowtown for four days, and had time for a visit to the Museum of Science and History. David and the kids took in the Star Wars exhibit, and I spent time in the "Attic" exhibit. They are going to pack up the collection during construction of the new, bigger and better museum. So the attic exhibit pulled out old, retired items that I was familiar with from my yearly field trips as a student in the FWISD.

Mighty dinosaur, where are the Cavemen performing brain surgery? Did you eat them?

The kids loved the Water Gardens, but it did get quite warm..... like Hades.

And we had lots of cousin time with Alex and Grace, and my cousin Amy and her baby Anna and my aunt Shorty. I got to see Missy's pretty new house. And we got to shoot bb and pellet guns, make things in the woodshop, watch very good movies, play dominoes, and hang out and relax.

Thanks Mom and Dad!

beautiful poem

2007-08-02T15:22:00.000-05:00

I went to a beautiful memorial service yesterday. On the back of the pew sheet, there was a poem printed that I love. I had seen it in the past, and was actually trying to find it again just a few weeks ago without success.

It is by Henry Van Dyke

Gone From My Sight

I am standing upon the seashore. A ship, at my side,
spreads her white sails to the moving breeze and starts
for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength.
I stand and watch her until, at length, she hangs like a speck
of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

Then, someone at my side says, "There, she is gone"

Gone where?

Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast,
hull and spar as she was when she left my side.
And, she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port.

Her diminished size is in me -- not in her.
And, just at the moment when someone says, "There, she is gone,"
there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices
ready to take up the glad shout, "Here she comes!"

And that is dying...

woo hoo

2007-08-01T08:01:00.000-05:00

Found this great new site called simpsonizeme.com, and you can see how David and I turned out.

sometimes you just get lucky

2007-07-30T12:51:00.000-05:00

http://plaidstallions.blogspot.com

swamp thing

2007-07-29T10:02:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was the first time I saw the ground immediately turn to mush right when the rain started.

I'm on the email list for the Soup Peddler (souppeddler.com), and even though I've yet to place my first order I L-O-V-E the little quirky letter he writes when he emails out that week's menu. This week he summed up perfectly the state of Austin after our endless rain. He writes:

"Greetings from soggy South Austin, where front lawns resemble bright green spreads of squishy tundra tussock instead of the crunchy, desiccated fire ant pits that they normally should be. We feel at least partially at fault because of our ceaseless prayers for soup weather... perhaps we have inadvertently bollixed up the weather machinery up there. Alas."

Even if you don't live in Austin, his mailing list is well worth the time it takes to read it.

I'm not sure if we will get more rain today. Probably so....

Sorry no posts lately....

2007-07-25T19:43:00.000-05:00

Haiku 1

now, daily thunder
mud in the van endless rain
mosquitos eat us

Haiku 2

Dad's house is for rent
paint it clean it fix it quick
many calls... priced low?

Haiku 3

Stuffy head, sore throat
cranky mom, no cleaning, but...
...read Harry Potter!

Haiku 4

Art camp, gym camp, house
This week was much busier
than rest of summer

Haiku 5

Read Elisa's blog
Read Julie's and Christi's too
I'm not keeping up!

Haiku 6

Enjoy life now
slurpees, swimming, sleep in late
sweet summer kids free

hot mamas

2007-07-15T13:13:00.001-05:00

wonderful dinner party last night....
here are the mamas and not-so-little babies

we decided it would be a good idea to get together for girls weekends more often than once a year... so if I can just hold out until december......

thanks Julie Kay for being a great host.

floating

2007-07-07T22:34:00.000-05:00

We are pool and house sitting for our neighbors, and tonight we went over for a swim after our late dinner.... I felt guilty having so much fun, but it was very peaceful floating on my back and looking at the stars.