Our "hip" crossing guard

"My Lackey" is coming back. (L's way of saying his name last year before she could pronounce Mr. Las**) Hooray. His wife is nice, but we miss our guy to cross the kids at the bus stop.

About 3 weeks ago he stood up from the table, realized that his leg had fallen asleep. As he realized it, he fell, breaking his hip. Did I mention that he's really old? I remember not too long ago when for an elderly person breaking a hip was pretty much a death sentance. Not any more! Within 2 days of his fall, Mr. L had already had surgery and had been up on his feet. He's had a short stay at a rehab center for hip replacement recovery, and is now home. We expect he'll be out holding that stop sign again very soon.

It's completely amazing that they can do that these days. Swap out parts like fixing a car. Oh, your hip is bad, let's get you a hip replacement and get you going again. We're so pleased. He's such a great guy.

Nut Mom

How fitting is that... our Brownie troop is beginning their annual Nut Sale* next week. I get to be in charge of it - me - in charge of the nuts. Ha. We had our meeting at Council last night, and I can tell you that the new spiced Almonds are totally yummy. I think a can or two of them will end up in our house, and C wants Gummi Bears... imagine that. I love that they'll come in between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We'll have them for holiday parties - if they last that long!

(Please note: this is NOT not no way a solicitation for orders. That's not allowed! If you're not an IRL friend and are interested in the Girl Scout Nut Sale, find your local GS troop/council and support them!)

Sing it!

L sat at the table tonight singing theme songs from Noggin. She's 3 and she has them all memorized. We need to bring back Schoolhouse Rock! B and I sang to her, as C looked on with a completely horrified expression. Deal with it, kid. We're gonna embarrass you waaaaay more as time goes on...

For a blast from the past - all you folks that grew up in the 70s... sing it with me!

L has the whole process down

L just spent a few minutes explaining how photos work. She told me,

"I smile and you take a picture. Then you put it in your 'puter. You can send it out. You can get a picture and put it in the 'crapbook."

Ok... the whole "crap" book pronunciation cracked me up. Maybe because that's what her father thinks of the whole "scrapbooking" hobby. He likes to see whole photos. He is of the opinion that the whole photo tells the story better than just part - the people in the background, the scenery, etc. And it also bugs him when people write captions. While it's useful to name people, he wants to form his own impressions of the picture. Yes. He is a royal pain in the ass sometimes. (But I love him anyway!)

L has spent most of the morning playing in her "house"... well, it's a house right now. Later, it may be a school bus, or an airplane depending upon her mood. I just love the creativity and imagination of a 3-yr-old. Where does it all go? How do we lose it? Do we become so grounded in reality as adults that we can't find that place anymore?

Magazine Junkie

I am a total magazine junkie. I have a real problem going into a grocery store and not buying a magazine. The only way I can stop myself is to get subscriptions to my favorite ones. I can then walk past the magazines, safe in the knowledge that some of them will come in the mail. I don't know what it is about them - the wonderful photos, the glossy pages, the advertisements... "Subscribe, you idiot," I shout in my head! They've gone up in price, and it's SO much cheaper to get a subscription...and you don't miss an issue... and you get them often before they're on the shelves... and it's nice to get mail that isn't a bill!

Is there a group for this? Maybe there'll be an ad for one in the back of a magazine...

How much is too much?

I was chatting with a dance dad this week while waiting for C's step class to end. His daughter has the fullest schedule of any 7 year old I've ever heard of. Monday is Piano, Tues - Gymnastics, Wed. - Girl Scouts, Fri - Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Sat. - Step dance, then Karate. When does this family get to breathe? I'm feeling a little stressed 'cause I'm breaking my "two things only" rule this fall and allowing C to try chorus. She auditioned (at 8?? I thought it was just a formality, or to place them, but no... they mean business. They win competitions...) and made the cut, and it's directly after school. She loves dance, and now with L starting, and my deep involvement in it, she really can't quit that (haha), and Brownies, well, I'm one of the leaders... so she's gotta come along for that anyway.

My mother is thrilled! She sings - and is very good - and it made her day to hear that C tried out and made it.

I really must vow to keep my nose out of chorus. I have this problem with volunteering to help with the activities C is involved in. Ok, I skipped baseball last spring. But I'm so mired in step dance and GS, it's not even funny. Right now I should be planning our first GS meeting - parents and girls.

But back to the original subject - is this girl enjoying doing all this? She has two days where she has no extra activities - and I'm sure they go to church on Sunday. I want my kids to do things that they're interested in, but also to be kids without the pressure to do so much. There will be plenty of time for that later on in life!

Drosophila melanog (pain in my ) aster

The little bastards have invaded my kitchen. I think it's from the garbage disposal. I've gotten rid of the spaghetti squash a neighbor had given us that was on the counter. Guess I have to toss the last remaining potatoes, too. They're making us nuts. They are even in the bathroom (WTF?). I hear B swatting at them when ever he goes in there. There's gotta be something that will kill them...

The ironic thing is how well they breed now. In junior HS Honors Biology, we had to breed fruit flies, separate and count males/females and do a report. The buggers all died! We had special tubes with some blue gunk in them, I followed the instructions, but noooooo. They died. Every last rotton one of them. I don't remember what I did for the report... probably outlined my procedure, and reported that they all died.

So, I guess the best way for me to kill all these damned fruit flies is to try to study them...

'noeing

I forgot how fun it is to come out of a store and be able to pick your vehicle out in the parking lot right away. It's easy when there's a big silver thing attached to the top!

I used to love when we'd leave the canoe on top of the car when I was a kid. I loved that people knew we had one, and that I canoe. (I still do, tee hee!) With it there, there was the "spur of the moment" possibility. "Hey, wanna go canoeing?" "Sure! Let's go!"

We now have my grandparents' canoe. When the house was cleaned out, and they were giving away their things, that was the one thing I requested. This is the first season we're using it. They got it in the 60s. My grandmother got it as a surprise and brought it into the house in a snow storm on Christmas eve. It's been well-loved! It's a big beast of a thing (I can't get it atop our Blazer!) - a 17' aluminum Grumman! We passed another canoe-topped car on the way home the last time we were out. It was a smaller, non-aluminum canoe. Dh said the driver nearly hit another car checking ours out. He said he must've had canoe envy! Good thing B doesn't think anything of heaving the 75lb behemoth onto the Blazer. My grandfather had a great system. He had pulleys in the garage. He'd pull the station wagon into the garage and just lower it onto the roof from its home hanging from the rafters.

My grandfather and his cronies used to throw his and another on the station wagon, and the 4 of them would drive to Canada. One driver, one passenger to chat and keep the driver awake, and 2 stretched out in the back of the wagon sleeping until it was time to switch. They'd then put the canoes and gear on a train and go out into the wilds for a week. I can only imagine how lovely they smelled when they came home!

I had my first ride in it at 2. My grandmother used to LOVE to tell the story of how they took me out on a crisp, fall day. I (of course) refused to wear the little life jacket. She said I was squirmy, and after a short ride, she suggested that we go in to shore. When we reached shore, I apparently stood up and very regally pointed my chubby little finger out at the lake and demanded, " 'Nother go, Bob-Bob!" Thus began my love of canoeing!

Now, C is learning, and L rides in the middle, telling anyone who will listen that "the front is the bow and the back is the stern". We went out yesterday. The leaves are just beginning to change, and they were reflecting on the glassy surface of the lake. The canoe's still on the truck... I feel like playing hookey!

My Cousin is finally blogging

In her first post, she says she's doing it to get me off her back. Well. I never. I wasn't actually ON her back about it - it's just that she lives out in the middle of BF nowhere, and I keep telling her that it would be a great way to keep folks up to date on how she's doing... especially now that she's expecting another baby.

Also, she has a business making keytags and charms, and her blog could help with that, not to mention using her blog itself to make money. Of course, that takes time and effort, and I'm still working on that myself. I'm wondering if having AdSense ads up will ever make any money. I think in the last month about $1.44 has been put into my account. I don't know that annoying people with big, visible ads is the way to go, or is worth a whopping $1.44. I think I'd rather write about things that I know about, have tried, or will try. I can think of lots of things that I'd write about in exchange for a little cash or some product! (Hell, I think I'm due a new pair of Birks by now!) But this other site has put credit into my account, pending the waiting period. So...

The Dress

My cousin emailed me yesterday with exciting news. The Academy of Music in Philadelphia is holding a Gala celebration in January to commemorate their 150th anniversary. The exciting part for us is that an ancestor of ours (we're racking our brains to remember the name. Dear Grandmother told so many stories that never got written down... HINT - write 'em down before it's too late!) attended the opening of the Academy in 1857, and the family happens to be in possession of the dress she wore and the fan she carried. The photo is of the dress with the fan, framed, hanging in the background. We're discussing loaning the dress and fan to the Academy for display at the event.

Turns out, there were more clothes, too. After my dear Grandmother died, and my relatives tackled the thankless task of cleaning out the house, they found boxes with other clothes... Amazing stuff that we probably should not have been touching without gloves!

But SO cool to look at. I believe that much of it will be loaned or donated to an historical society where it can be properly cared for, instead of sitting in a box somewhere disintegrating.

Back to the Gala... So we're thinking of spending the WAAAAAY too much money for tickets (it's a white tie event!) and having reproduction gowns made to attend. It's an exciting prospect. I'd LOVE to see dh in a tail coat. Once in a lifetime opportunity. (both the Gala and the tail coat! LOL)

She has no idea what she's getting into

C started dance for the year last Saturday. As we milled around between classes, chatting and catching up, I tracked down the teacher/owner to chat with her about the fit of C's ghillies. L got her attention and showed her what she'd learned. (C's been showing her steps.) M looked up and asked me "how old?" "3 and a half," I replied. "Do you want her to start in the beginner class?" she asked. I was shocked. Floored. Amazed. I fear for her sanity. I have stood by my statement that I will not be one of *those* parents... the ones that push and shove and micromanage. Oh, my little Trixie is SO talented. You must take her... I have made it very clear that I would not even *ask* when L may start classes - I would wait for her to be invited in. "It's up to you," says I. M then bent down and asked L if she'd like to take classes. L hugged her bear tight and nodded yes. I again warned her, "She's your vampire, you know. Once you invite her in...."

I think she'll have a great time. I've heard about little else since then. She has her "ghillies" (black ballet practice shoes) ready to go. I wonder how she'll do. It's hard stuff. If you start a kid in ballet at 3, it's no big deal. C took classes then. They don't do much, and it's a lot of pointing and turning and arm movements. In step, you have to learn to keep those arms down at your side, and to do "two-threes". Not the easiest thing to learn. I tried it once. M did a ceili class before St. Pat's one year. Thankfully, she taught in a room above one of the popular Irish Pubs in town. "Two-Threes" are much easier to learn (as an adult with 2 left feet) if you've got a Guinness in you... Currently, L skips around the room, then stops and kicks her butt. She then announces that she has kicked her butt and skips on. Hysterical. We shall see!

A new side biz?

In addition to everything else in my life, I am working on a small photography biz. I've been taking pics for C's dance group for years now, and indulged in a new digital SLR Nikon. The shots are amazing! I am in love (surround that word with hearts and flowers!) with this camera!

Here, I was doing a small shoot of the kiddos just to get some shots to show people, and L decided to curl up on the gold side of a reflector that I was using. I took it into Photoshop and gave it a watercolor effect. I love it! I have the advantage of having years of experience in Photoshop. The new darkroom! I remember in high school, all the hours spent playing under that red light. Now, shoot 'til your card is full, dump 'em on your hard drive and go for it!

C's dance teacher likes my photos so much that she's having me do her daughter's senior pics. We're just waiting for the rain to stop - she has a particular spot in a park in mind. We shall see. The upside is that M is less than thrilled about getting her portrait done, and while mama worries that with a "stranger" M will just say "fine" but really hate them, she knows that M is comfortable with me and if she doesn't like something, she'll say so. I'm nervous, but I can't wait to do it!

A New Baby

Not for me! hahahaha.

My cousin is pregnant again. We never thought she would have one baby, and now that her dear girl is 3, they've decided to add to the joy and have another. I'm so excited for her. I can't wait to help her find all the new stuff that's out there that wasn't around her last time. Amazing how things change in a few years. Cute new clothes, better diapers, and all the online stuff available. She lives in a rather remote area, and I found the coolest thing that she'll be able to use. I made my own announcements when L was born, and with the time, paper and ink costs involved, I wish I'd found a service like this one for Birth Announcements.

This site has designers that work with you, they print on actual card stock, not that flimsy photo paper, and they have tons and tons of designs to choose from! Looking at this site makes me think of organizing a long-distance baby shower, and using them for the invites! I love this card design for a shower. I can change the text to my own, or use the phrasing the provide. And... if I do order shower invites, they'll send my cuz a discount coupon to use for announcements! What a deal. I'd better bookmark this site!

One Law at a Time, Please

If you've been reading these, you know that my cousin came through with her parents. She told a great story of a friend's advice to her for college, and life.

She and X (I don't wish to incriminate anyone!) were leaving a party at which adult beverages were available. (X is over 21.) X got into the passenger's seat with the remainder of his drink, but did not fasten his seat belt. Y (the friend) stated, "Either fasten your seat belt, or get rid of the drink." He then turned to my cousin and said (I'm paraphrasing, of course), "If you're gonna break the law, be sure to only break one at a time. When you see those folks on TV, it's 'cause they've broken 3 or 4 laws at one time!"

Apparently, this system works for him. Dear Hubby just about shot beer out his nose. X is a recently retired juvenile probation officer, and DH is a cop! DH comes home with stories of this all the time. "If the underage kids had just been quiet, no one would have known they were drinking..." (Before anyone gets their panties in an uproar - we aren't advocating underage drinking or the breaking of laws. Kids - don't break laws, don't drink alcohol under the age of 21, and if you're going to, for the love of God, don't get behind the wheel of a car! There PSA over!)

So, that's today's lesson... If you're going to break the law, only break one at a time.

Pay me to talk about stuff?

What has this world come to? People get paid for blogging about products or companies or other web sites! What a great idea! Paid “word of mouth” advertising. I could go on and on all day long about things I like and believe in… just read my other posts. Birkenstock should love me by now! I would love to do this - I already do it for free. But then, I’ve always love to write – I annoy people with long, chatty emails all the time.

What I should do is find someone who needs some writing/advertising/web work done for their cleaning business and see if I can trade services. I would simply LOVE it if I could afford to pay someone to clean my house. Cleaning is just so loathsome. The house looks great clean, but man… give me some html to code any day over dusting and vacuuming and picking up clutter.

Revised Opinion

I just KNEW Nora wouldn't let me down. Morrigan's Cross has gotten much better. I'm half way through it now.

The thing with Nora Roberts' books (and several others like Diana Gabladon and Karen Marie Moning) is that when she puts out a new book, I really have to force myself to slow down and savor it, rather than attack it like Cookie Monster eats a cookie!

My next book has to be a "Banned Book". I'm looking over the list of top banned books and some I understand the reasoning behind (although I certainly don't support banning books!!) but others, I haven't a clue. I've read an awful lot of this list. A Ben Franklin Autobiography? Gone With the Wind? Little House on the Prairie? What is *&^% is Little House doing on that list? It's #84 - before Lolita and Slaughterhouse Five! (Both great books, by the way...) This bears more investigation...

If You Read a Girl a Story...

...She's going to want a puppet stage to go with it...

L and I have been reading some of our favorite stories before bed lately - to the point where she reciets the words along with me. Our current favorite is If You Give a Moose A Muffin. She loves the bit where the moose makes sock puppets and puts on a puppet show.

On a whim, I decided to see about a puppet stage for her for Christmas. I found a site that has all this great School Furniture available, including puppet stages. Several of them even offer free shipping. I realize that B could easily make her a puppet stage, but for around $100, we can get one delivered to the house. He's so busy these days at work and doing stuff to the house that it's hard to find time to do the extra projects, no matter how much he might want to get to them. The other cool thing about this puppet stage I'm looking at is that the bottom is a chalk board. L will be able to use it for art even if she's not putting on a show. They even have this cute puppet holder available. I'll have to bookmark the site so I remember to check it out again before we're swamped by the holiday season.

I know, it's only the beginning of September, but the Halloween stuff is out in the stores already, and before you know it, the trees and twinkle lights will be going up. Please, let me take the canoe out one more time before you hit me with Christmas!