Ballet Shoes

Because I decided that my entire family should suffer through the most intense grad school semester I could pull together, I decided to do something special for Marley--a mother-daughter experience--before I get buried in school-related stuff. We hosted a mother-daughter book club party today. We chose to read Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield. We evited a few friends and read the book. For ages 9-12, the book was more than Marley could handle on her own, so I read it out loud to her. We didn't begin as early as we should, so we ended up reading 1-3 chapters a day for 10 days or so.

Marley enjoyed the book very much and I took advantage of her willingness to sit and listen to work on her comprehension skills. Every night that we read, we did a mini-review of the main points of each chapter. Granted, by the 15th chapter, we only covered the most recent chapters and didn't go back all the way to chapter one.  We read the last 18 pages just two hours before our guests were due to arrive.

I really wanted this to be something different for Marley. I wanted her to experience reading and discussing a good book, but I also thought my social butterfly needed some friends around her to enhance the experience... and a craft. Marley dearly loves a craft. I tweeted and facebook status'd for help and Veronica over at Toddled Dredge came through with No Sew Tutus. My in-laws scoured thrift stores for china cups and saucers. Ballet Shoes takes place in 1930s London, so of course, tea was the refreshment of the day. Used teacups are cheap and who cares if they break? The local bakery was the source for yummy tarts and petit fours. Sticky Fingers Scone mix was used for plain and chocolate chip scones. There was lemonade for the girls and tea and coffee for the moms. The final touch was 20s and 30s music courtesy of internet radio. 

Before our guests arrived, I gave Marley a crash course on hostessing. The hosts pick last. Hosts offer to take the moms' purses. The hosts offer refreshments. She did a wonderful job although her discussion faciliation was rather interesting. She tended to interrupt to move on to the next question or to share her own point of view.  As it became time for our guests to leave, Marley was a little too enthusiastic in her goodbyes. She was to go home with one of her friends for an overnighter and had her bagged pack and slung over her shoulder, ready to move on to the next experience!

Yesterday, Marley and I took some time to have discussion questions ready. We asked about favorite characters and events in the book. We considered what type of conversations we might want to have with the characters. Marley was very interested in asking what Great Uncle Matthew collected (Fossils!!!!) and wondering if everyone knew what GUM meant (Great Uncle Matthew!!!!).  My favorite question that Marley came up with, is "If you had influenza, what would you do... take medicine or not?" The girls very enthusiastically shared their thoughts and opinions. Marley had passed out questions to each of them so they could take turns. Seriously, it was just too cute. Of course, my cynical teenager had to tell me tonight that he didn't want to hurt my feelings but the party today was the DUMBEST THING EVER. I laughed at him because what else would a teenage boy think about a 1930s themed, mother-daughter book club party?

Here's a slideshow of our party. Because I don't have permission, I am only posting pictures of Marley, the tutus, the teacups. If you have a daughter, I highly recommend hosting a book club. After the discussion, the girls talked and decided that for their NEXT book club, they would read Theater Shoes, also by Noel Streatfield. When a party gets kids excited about reading, that's a very good thing! (Of course, I don't know if the moms are ready for another 200+ page book read. The girls might have to wait for a couple of months!

Western Union: Update

TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY

FROM MARY AND PAUL

MARLEY SICK STOP

COLIN STOMACH ACHE STOP

MARY PAPER OVER DUE STOP

PAUL AT WORSHIP REHEARSAL STOP

FAMILY UP CREEK WITHOUT PADDLE STOP

8:00 PM UPDATE

COLIN STOMACH ACHE FALSE ALARM STOP

Marley, the Cheerless Leader

Marley and Paul went out a couple of weeks ago to pick up a poodle skirt so she could be a 50s girl for Halloween. They came home with something, um, completely different. The money was paid, so I figured why not, although it is not our usual thing.

Here is Marley, the Cheerless Leader (which is, she will tell you, a cheerleader without any cheer.)

What's going on?

Nuttin' much.

We haven't been up to too much around here.  Here are a few highlights, though.

Paul spent a week in the Pacific Northwest.  He made it home safe and sound on Friday.  

Colin took the PSAT--under much duress. 

Marley is celebrating her 1/2 birthday today... 8 1/2!!!

I just finished up a paper and am continuing with my tutoring of a third grade girl.

We had a fun potluck with a few friends Saturday night.  We BBQ'd yummy, yummy tri-tip.

Our church is moving to a new facility on November 2osomething.

Marley and I took her friend Lyndy to go see High School Musical 3 on Friday night.  It was as good as you might imagine--for an 8 year old, it was delightful, for a 43 year old, it was tolerable.

Mmmmm.... I guess that is it for now.  What's up with you guys?  How about leaving us a comment?????  

P.S.  I'd put some pictures up but our scanner went kaput.

Fondant Friday

Marley has fallen in love with WE tv's show, Amazing Cakes. She is now an expert on fondant, stacking, etc. She was pretty anxious to make a cake and I actually was brave enough to look up a fondant recipe and make a go of it. She also wanted to do some traditional frosting decoration on the cake. Our fondant was too soft, but still fun. Next time, I will work out some kinks by adding more powdered sugar and figuring out how to get that smoother finish.

Well, without further ado, here is our fondant slide show:

Marley's Summer

Marley wrote this at school as part of her personal journal.  You need to know that she has never written this much in one sitting before!  I think this trip was very memorable for her.

My summer was fun.  I went to Phoenix, Texas and Oklahoma.  My whole family had to go.  We saw lots of family.  I also saw my mom's mom, but we call her Grandma Didi.  My cousin Jacob came with us to Oklahoma.

Cousin Jacob

My mom's cousin lived next door.  She had a nine-week old dachshund puppy.  His name was Drill Bit.  He was so cute!  I wanted him so much but my dad wouldn't let me.  

Drill Bit

On Saturday, we saw more family.  One of my cousins is named Mae Lea.  She loves Hannah Montana just like me.  We went down to the lake.

My Mom's Cousin's Lake

My brother was there with my cousin named Jordan.  He is seven, but he likes football like my brother.  Me and Mae Lea had a sleep over and Jacob and Colin and Peto lit off fireworks at night.

Me and Mae Lea Watching Fireworks

It was boring, especially the last one.  We got to sleep with Drill Bit and he was fussy.

The Week in Review

The big news of this past week is our fridge seems to be going on the fritz.  It is kind of strange because the fridge half is barely cooling.  It is still working somewhat but not cooling enough to keep food from potentially spoiling.  The freezer on the other hand is close to a "quick freeze" according to our fridge thermometer.

Weird.

I spent a good part of last night cleaning out the old fridge in the garage.  (How do they get so dirty just sitting there?)  Paul is out of town (in the Northeast) and so I did make Colin help me transport food.  Heading out to the garage this morning for milk somehow felt like I was camping or something.

As I said, Paul is outta town.  He is traveling through Massachusetts, Connecticut, etc., talking about cables, looking at cables; it's all about cables.  He took a red eye out, which he almost never does.  Between the lack of sleep and adjusting to his new "multiview perspective" glasses, I'm not sure how straight a line he could walk if he had to.  

He'll be gone for a week--a week which is one of the hottest we've had all summer.  Lovely.  At least the bonus room air conditioner is at my beck and call.

I am supposed to be doing homework but I haven't done too much, yet.  Maybe I'll fold some laundry instead.

The kids are just doing the school thing.  Marley is running for vice president in her class.  They have these elections every trimester.  Only third graders can run for the top two positions.  I always hate these elections.  The teachers do a great job of teaching the kids about the democratic process and the responsibility of the positions.  Yet I still hate when she doesn't win.  She tried a couple of times last year before finally winning the Librarian post last year.  There are, like, six kids running for VP.  I can't take the stress!!!!

It seems like every day Colin is bringing home papers for me to sign with academic policies, attendance policies, etc.  Each teacher has their own set of rules.  English class looks like it will be challenging this year.  There is a lot of reading, an actual research paper, etc.  I hope Colin does better than I did in English my junior year.  The irony is that I ended up being a literary studies major.  I would love to go back and "redo" my junior year.  I'd write the best research paper, EVER!

No pictures this week.  If I could, I would have taken pictures of Marley doing her weird sleeptalking/walking thing.  I don't know quite how to classify it.  She doesn't really talk much and she isn't walking around.  However, she will bolt right up in bed and look right at you but I know she isn't seeing anyone.  Two nights ago, I walked past her room and found her standing up holding a portable fan and staring at it.  I thought she was trying to turn it on but when I started talking to her, it was clear she was in La-La land.  It took about five or six, "Go back to beds" before she finally did.  She just kept looking at the fan, looking up at me, saying "huh?" in a really quiet voice and not moving.  Bizarro.  Hopefully she won't actually start sleepwalking.  She'll trip on all the detritus (Vocabulary Word Alert!!!) that litters our floor and get a concussion or a broken limb or something.  Sometime I'll record it and post it.  She'll hate me, but you will all get a good laugh over it!

Until next week...

School has begun... Dum, Dum, DUM!!!!

I think today, August 28, 2008, was one of the smoothest first days of school we've experienced here in the So Cal Cinema household.

Every supply was purchased.

Breakfast was eaten.

Clothes were clean.

Children were distributed to their respective schools in a timely manner.

Woo Hoo!

Marley enjoyed her first day but came this close to a mini-meltdown afterwards. She wanted to go to 7-11 OR SHE WAS GOING TO DIE AND SHE NEVER GETS TO GO TO 7-11 EVER, EVER!!! She moved on to wanting a play date with Caroline because SHE HASN'T GOT TO SEE CAROLINE ALL SUMMER AND SHE NEVER GETS TO PLAY WITH HER!!!!!

(I quickly informed her that just because she was overdone because of school didn't mean she had to take it out on me. The major irony here is that I am ALWAYS taking out everything on my family and making sure they know that they have to take it because of all my "Woe is me!" happenings.)

I guess they discussed leadership in her class today and Marley told me that she used Shawn Johnson (Olympic medalist and all around cutie) as an example. I think that works for me.

Colin, of course, was not looking forward to school. Fortunately, he isn't one of those kids who won't get up in the morning, etc. In spite of loathing school, he gets up on time, gets himself ready, etc. Easy for me... especially since getting myself up in the morning is not my strong suit.

Let's see. What else?

OH! Paul has joined me in the ranks of multiview progressive lense wearing. It takes a while to adjust to them. You feel a little wobbly sometimes when you are walking and you have to get used to moving your eyeballs around looking for the right place in the lenses to see what you're lookin' at. He has better overall vision than I do, though.

Hmm... I started my classes. Because of the Labor Day weekend, I'll still be able to ease in. I'll be doing lots of reading assessments and tutoring with a student this semester. The hands on bit is always a little hard for me because I have little experience teaching; however, the professor seems very relaxed and kind and I think she'll help me out if I need it.

Well, that's the news from the So Cal Cinema for now. I'm going to be adding a subscribe feature in the sidebar, so if you want posts to come directly to you as I write them, then sign up. I'm the only one who will see the email addresses and I promise I won't be selling them!!!! ;)

TTFN!

We're baaaaaaaaack!

Um...

Well...

Er...

Okay. I know I've said it over and over again. I need to post more often. Let me try something different this time. I am posting now. That is all I can promise.

The Summer season at the So Cal Cinema is almost at an end. A week from tomorrow Colin will be a junior in high school and Marley a third grader. How did this happen? 16 years old and 8 years old. I have a friend who has a three year old boy. Sometimes when I see him, it reminds me of Colin at three with his spiky, blond (BLOND) hair. I can picture him in his t-shirts and shorts and velcro sandals. Yikes! We've added one kid to the mix and they are both so big. The book on 8 year olds I am reading says this is the year when their bodies really start changing and they are no longer little kids. I am definitely in agreement with that one. She is a big girl now.

I've been thinking about what this year holds for us. Junior year is supposed to be the most difficult one academically in high school. I imagine Colin will be feeling some pressure there. The PSAT should be taken which I imagine Colin will resist. He has his driver's license. He isn't doing sports this year at all. He's going to get TALLER some more. Colin hasn't been one of those kids who was shorter than me one day and yards taller the next. He has slowly but surely been growing and growing and I didn't really notice when he managed to get taller than I am.

Marley will be a "senior" in her class of kindergarteners through third graders. I asked her the other day what the responsibilities of a third grader are in her class: be a good model for the kindergarteners. The privlege is getting to go to Knott's Berry Farm at the end of the year. Just three years ago she was one of the new kindergarteners. She had a third grade big buddy. The big kids set examples for her. She'll do more writing, more math, more everything this year. She's back in gymnastics and I think it is really good for her.

I'll be finishing up my last year in school (fingers crossed!). There is a change in plan and I won't be graduating in May, though. There was a scheduling problem and I will be graduating in July. I think this means that I won't be able to go through commencement exercises until the next May. I think this means that I am just not going to go through commencement exercises. Why walk 10 months later? They only reason I might is if some of my classmates are walking, too. I am taking fewer units than I did in the Spring and hopefully that will make life better for all of us. I realize that I really withdrew "from society" much more than necessary. I think it is better for me to make space for people and activities.

Paul should be up to the same ole, same ole. Work, travel, music, fetching me mochas from Starbucks and, in an addition to our repertoire, gelato from Frati Gelato (mmmmmmmmmmm).

We spent some time this summer seeing family. A couple of days in Phoenix with Paul on business allowed for me to spend time with my brother Roger. It is a long story but the relationship is new. We moved on to Allen, Texas (just north of Dallas) to see Aunt Becky and company. We finished up in Okemah, Oklahoma to see Grandma Didi, Cousin Darnise, etc. The kids are both ready to go back to both Texas and Oklahoma. I didn't take too many pictures, but here are a few:

Paul, Larissa and Jordan at the Dallas World Aquarium
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Jordan, Larissa, Mary and a reluctant photo subject, Marley at the aquarium
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Mary, Larissa and Jordan at the Kimball Art Museum at an AWESOME Impressionists exhibit.
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Papparzzi-style photo of Marley and May Lea at Darnise and Tom's place.
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Cousin Tom showing that horse who is the boss.

The New and Improved So Cal Cinema!!!!!

As you can see now that you've loaded this page, we've undergone some major renovations here at the So Cal Cinema.

First, there's the look of the place. Izzy of Izzy Design and Graphics did an awesome job with the blog. I can hear the "Let's All Go to the Lobby" song every time I look at it.

Next, I decided to shorten the name from So-So Cal Cinema to So Cal Cinema. The So-So seemed, well, you guessed it, so-so. It didn't flow all that smoothly and so it has been retired.

Of course, my turn in the design queue came when I am so busy that I am not keeping up with the blog. Maybe this will help me do a little better.

(No laughing please!)

So... it has once again been a few weeks. Mostly things are the same for us personally. Colin and school; Marley and school; Me and school; Paul and work. We are, however, in the middle of a literal ring of fire. There are fires to the north, south, and west of us. Big fires. There are restrictions on outdoor play, the smell of fire and ash is in the air. The wind is blowing, knocking down trees and fences. (Neighbors tree; our fence) If you live in Southern California for any length of time, you will experience this. Whenever it happens I am transported back to elementary school. I remember playing on the playground with ash flying through the air. It makes for a weird combination of tragedy and nostalgia.

Let's see if there are any specific updates...

I finished a HUGE paper for my content area literacy class. It turned out to be 13 pages after I did a last minute addendum. I've never written anything that long in my life. I estimate I spent about 40 hours on it from start to finish, searching for articles online, interviewing someone, thinking, more thinking, writing, more writing. I can't wait to see what my grade is!

Marley's school just started Red Ribbon week so she can look forward to all sorts of fun activities. She's enjoying school these days and we'll appreciate that while it lasts! On Sunday, October 28th, she'll celebrate her 7 1/2 year old birthday. Yes. A half birthday. We have her friend's family to blame. They always do an ice cream or something little for a half birthday. They've invited Marley along and of course, she's absorbed this as something we HAVE to do! ;)

Colin is still working away on his driver's education course. He's more than half-way through and when he's done, we'll have to find a behind-the-wheel course. On November 19th, he'll celebrate his half birthday, the only half-birthday he's thinks is EVER worth celebrating--the driver's permit birthday. He's thinking about when and how he'll get a car and it all equals one thing in his mind: F-R-E-E-D-O-M. We'll see about that.

Paul is home for a couple of weeks. Yeah for us. He just upgraded to a Blackberry phone so it is just a matter of time before he's complaining about Blackberry Thumb, I'm sure. ;) He just pieced together an amp to give to a friend using bits and pieces of things he's had laying around, including the guts of an organ he just dismantled. It all sounds so MacGuyver. It is on a cutting board for a base!

So, there you have it, the So Cal Family update. I'll be back... sooner or later!

Marginally Better Mommyblogger

Well, it has only been two weeks since the last post. I was hoping for one, but two is better than a month, isn't it?

Here is Colin's crowning achievement this week:

He was very proud of kicking the ball so hard it got stuck under the eaves. Our son is very talented.

I have a couple of soccer pictures. Marley continues to confirm my suspician that she is not meant for team sports. She doesn't have the drive to get in there and mix it up. Still, she looks very cute in her uniform, doesn't she?





In other news, as I was uploading the pictures from today's soccer game, I found this:



She may have a future in video blogging.

Well, that is it for now. If you're really lucky, I'll be back in a week with more news from So-So Cal Cinema.

Bad Mommyblogger!!!

I can't believe it has been six weeks since the last entry here at the So-So Cal Cinema. As life has gotten busier and as I tend to my other blog more, this one has just fallen by the wayside. I need to fix that. I think I will try to blog once per week. Maybe every Saturday. I can do a little weekly wrap up, with or without pictures.

Life the last few weeks has been about my school, the kids' school, me working at church and soccer. All mushed up without any good boundaries. It has been very stressful, but hopefully, it will take a turn for the better soon.

I was asked to come in to help out when the business administrator at our church quit. I'm trying to only do 10 hours per week. Usually, I succeed. I don't like the added responsibility of it more than I mind the hours. They are in the process of hiring a new person and once that person has some training under their belt, I'll be released.

This week marks my last meeting of one of my classes. It was only a five week class. A lot of work but still only five weeks. I think I will feel much better coming home at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday nights for the rest of the semester instead of 10:00 p.m.

Colin is still cross-countrying and computering and complaining. All about average, I would say.

Marley is mouthy (loud) and mommy-wanting and messy. Again, all about average. The mommy-wanting is kicked up a notch. This is probably because of school and soccer being a drain on her and my being busier with work and school.

Paul is preparing to travel and poking around doing the laundry and possibly having an issue with his right ear. He'll leave tomorrow morning early and be gone until Friday. His right ear went wonky a couple of weeks ago. Antihistimines and decongestants aren't really doing anything and so it is off to the ENT for further examination.

I'll leave you with a few pictures of Marley from her soccer game today. Yes, they are neon yellow, hence their name: the Highlighters. Clever, eh?

 

 

 

 

Um...

I've turned into such a laze-about when it comes to this blog. It has been almost a month since I've posted anything and that was just pictures of plants!

I do have more pictures, plants and a little person, but I should do a proper update first.

The summer is moving along at a breakneck pace even though we aren't up to much. Colin has spent a lot of time at home (begrudgingly) although he has been able to hang out with some friends more in the last few days. He's been reading a lot in the last few days, first Harry Potter 6 to refresh his memory and next, as of early this afternoon, Harry Potter 7. He says it is good so far. He also says he'll be glad when he's finished and can be done with the books. He started them when he was nine or ten. At 15, it doesn't seem nearly as cool as it used to.

Marley has made the most of 3 weeks of swim lessons. It should have been four but she developed an ear infection. It has lingered and so we are on Week 2 of No Swimming. She hates it. We started out the summer doing great with reading, both by her and to her. Not so much lately. I really need to get back into that habit. She starts soccer camp next week and has picked out an entirely pink soccer ensemble. You'll see the picture below. It has to be seen to be believed! With out luck, her actual soccer uniform for her team will be orange or something. She'll be running around with an orange uniform and pink cleats!

Paul is getting back into the swing of travel, much to my chagrin. He's off to Florida and other parts next week. He has been working on a short CD with a friend. The friend has now taken off for parts northwestern, so the project, almost finished, is stalled out for now. Other than that, he continues to play at church. This past Friday, he helped out a friend and played guitar for a worship band at another church.

I'm a fully registered grad student as of two weeks ago. I'll be taking six units. I still have to buy my books and hopefully a laptop and then I'll be set to go. My first class is Monday, August 20th. Anticipating that my pleasure reading will be greatly reduced, I've been reading as much as possible. If you are interested in knowing what I've been reading, you can go to my other blog and check out the sidebar. I'm keeping a running list of books in progress and books finished there.

Well, I guess that is it for now. Here are a few pictures of Marley in pink and my first pumpkin. Enjoy!

Pink ball, pink shirt, pink shorts, pink socks, pink cleats and underneath it all? Pink shin guards!

The small plant lying on the wall is the other pumpkin plant. I put it out of its misery today. While it started out as the big and strong "first" child of my pumpkin patch, it failed to thrive.

Here is it, my first pumpkin baby! It is only two to three inches long, but I have high hopes it will be a big orange behemoth before it is all said and done.

Haircuts, Planting and Tea

The best pictures I could get of the new haircuts.
Colin's has been short for over two months now, but he just had a fresh cut.

Not a tiny lizard!

About one more week until the pumpkins sprout.

Where we are planning on making a sunflower fort.

Mommy and Me Tea for Brownies a couple of weekends ago.

Happy Marley... and Not-So-Happy Marley

Well, it has been an eventful couple of days here. Marley is turning seven tomorrow!!!!!! To celebrate, we gave her a big birthday party at one of those party places. They have giant inflatable stuff, air hockey, ping pong, etc. It is only your party there for a two and a half hour time period and the staff handles everything. It is nice and if you are going to invite a lot of kids, a great way to go. So, we go'd that way! We invited all of her first grade classmates (11 kids) along with their siblings, plus a couple of friends from church.

Here is a picture of Marley's hamster. I'm showing you this because I gave it to the bakery to use to make her cake. I just wanted them to have pink icing with white stripes to make it look like a cage and then I asked them to draw a hamster in white icing.


THIS is what we got! Isn't it great? Marley was thrilled and I was pretty impressed.




While you are waiting for everyone to arrive, you hang out in the lobby area. There are fun house mirrors:


And big floor pillows:



Here's Marley playing air hockey. I don't know if you can see how flushed her cheeks are. She'd already been up and down the giant slide quite a few times. I don't have any good pictures of the slide, but it is just like they have at carnivals: Tall and Steep. The kids l-o-v-e it!



By now, she was ready to move on to the room which houses the pizza and presents.


See look! We're hosting a party and we have time to sit around and have someone take a picture of us.



Oh wait! There's the giant slide. You can't see the whole thing, but you get the general idea. There is another inflatable right next to it with ropes and an obstacle course. So, here are all the kids from the party. Because Marley is in a multiage class, these kids all tend to know each other really well. There is a lot of crossover with sports, scouts, birthday parties. It is quite the little community.


Here she is, blowing out her candles!


And the best part? The presents of course. A scrapbook kit is perfect for her. All in all, she really loved everything she was given. There was one odd present, but I managed to convince her that it could be put to good use.



That was Wednesday and we sailed through Thursday just fine. Unfortunately, I didn't know what this morning would hold. She's been pretty fussy about going to school for weeks now. Between minor bribes, minor threats and some distractions, we've been managing. This morning, it all fell apart.

I've known that this last stretch of school was going to be a challenge. I've discussed it with her teacher and we both agreed that if Marley needed a day off of school here and there to get through it, we should do that. However, when she is in the middle of pitching a fit, I don't want to reward her with the day off. That leaves Paul and me to be more intentional about her getting it before she falls apart. Um, well, we didn't make it today.

Paul "placed" her in the car this morning but she cried the whole way there. Usually, she stops crying. She'll complain but still go along to school without too much hassle. This morning she would not get out of the car. She cried and cried. I said everything I knew to say. She said everything she thought would keep me from making her go. Finally, short of physically dragging her out of the car and carrying her to school--which I would do, except she is too big for me now--I chose to give her the choice of going to school or going home and sitting on a chair facing the wall until it was time for school to be out. She could get up to use the restroom. That's it.

Well, she chose the chair. I knew she would end up freaking out about it, but I thought she would eventually decide to go to school.

No Such Luck.

I put her at the wall around 8:45 a.m.

We started out on a cushy ottoman.


This lasted for a while until she decided to keep pushing it away from the wall. After being warned, we moved to a metal folding chair. I did let her have her blanket, but no pillow or toys or books.



She started her up and down dance at one point which necessitated the switch to the "jail" chair. This is one of our dining room chairs which has "bars" making it harder for her to slide out.


She fell asleep about 1:00.


It is not almost 2:30. She'll sleep through the rest of her "sentence." In addition to the seating arrangements being changed up a few times, there were many tears, a googolplex of "What time is its" with some tantrum throwing, escape attempts and dagger-throwing glances along the way.

My head hurts. My back hurts. My patience is spent.

I hope we don't have to do this again. Just a few weeks until school lets out.

From Marley

Marley is going to have me type a post for her. Here is what Marley has to say:

"Me and Colin are so crazy. We both like Jurassic Park. I like the long necks in Jurassic Park. That's all."

In response to my asking her what is up with school lately: Nothing.

What is Colin up to? Watching TV.

What is Daddy up to? Sitting on my bean bag watching Jurassic Park.

What is Mommy up to? Writing the blog with me, Marley!

I'm going to Scooter's jungle and I'm going to annoy Colin and Sam and Bishop, if he goes.

I want the Naked Brothers Band DVD for my birthday. And that's all I want to say.

Long Time, No Update

Wow! I just looked back through some old posts and it has been awhile since I did a real update on the goings on around here. I guess that is really an indication that I've become more busy. I tend to focus on my other blog, Life, the Universe and Everything and even there, I'm not posting as often as I have in the past. But real life should take precedence over blog life, right?

Without further ado, the family update:

Trip to Arboretum on Wednesday

Marley - Marley is in the middle of one of those developmental phases. You know the kind. Over the course of a couple of weeks, it seems as if you have a whole new child. She is getting taller. I just measured her and she has grown a quarter inch in the last month. That makes about one inch since just before Christmas. Paul and I have both noticed how much her language is developing and she has these adult teeth filling up her mouth. (Note to self: make an appointment for her to go to the dentist. She's overdue!) School is going well although their is a lot of "breaking up" of friendships occurring. Things seem to blow over in a day or two, but it isn't just Marley and her friends. It seems to be a tumultuous time for the entire set of first grade girls. (I can't wait for the high school version of all this... NOT!)

Current favorites:

• Color: Blue
• School Subject: Writing
• Friend: Hannah (This is one of the third grade girls from her class. It should be noted that while Hannah does enjoy Marley's company, she has recently expressed that she is "getting a little tired of her." Marley is taking this well... so far.)
• Food: Chocolate Chip Pancakes (Currently, she is observing Lent and has given up chocolate chips. Fortunately, we practice Lent beginning on Ash Wednesdays and take Sundays off of our abstaining. So, she got some lovely pancakes this Sunday a.m. But shhhhhh, don't tell her, I never got around to picking something to give up for Lent.)
• Book: Tinkerbell
• TV Show: Naked Brothers Band
• Animal: Dog and Hamster and Guinea Pig
• Movie: Ella Enchanted

Colin - Colin is running the half mile and mile for Frosh/Soph track this year. He is working hard and we are learning about shoe spikes and underarmour and all sorts of things. We are absolutely forbidden from attending his track meets. I am hoping for a negotiation session soon so that we can see at least one. Paul and I feel pretty strongly about respecting some of these types of decisions on Colin's part, so if he says no, we'll respect it. We won't like it, but we will honor it. Academically, no major alerts. To say that Colin is ready for Spring Break would be an understatement of epic proportions. Oh, and I mustn't forget to inform you all that Colin had his hair cut. Short. He is now sporting a first class buzz cut--about 1/2 inch all over. This was his idea and only his idea. I loved his hair long but the management of it all became too much for him. He is now thoroughly enjoying unobstructed vision, a lack of long, blond hair all over and a sunburned neck. His haircut coincided with a couple of 90 degree days. Ouch! (As of this morning, I am also forbidden to take a picture of him with his no 'do so that I can post it. I'll also be negotiating that soon, too!)

Other Colin news:

• Paintball excursion several weeks ago
• Trip to Texas to visit cousins
• First unaccompanied trip on plane
• First frustration at being 14 and having to be escorted to his seat by airline personnel
• First research paper

Well, this is getting long and I'm supposed to be getting reading for church. I've got 50 minutes to get showered, iron clothes, do my hair, get Marley ready, and get to church and seated. Um... I might end up missing worship. I'll come back and catch you all up on me and Paul in the next few days. And I have a regular feature I think I'm going to do on this site. Some of the blogs I read do Flashback Fridays. For them, they use it to practice their writing and explore the past. I'll be doing a Photo version. On Fridays I'll post a few pictures from the thousands I have thrown in boxes which sit under a table in my dining room. It should be fun.

In the meantime, we found this in our yard a few days ago. I figured out what is. Can you?

Our New Baby

Well, it has been quite a long time it seems since I have posted anything here. I guess that is because life has been busy. We are all doing well and were able to spend the afternoon at Disneyland with some friends. After living with two guinea pigs and an inordinate amount of poop and other mess, we sent them out for adoption by one of the local pet stores. (As of Thursday, they hadn't been adopted yet.) In their place, we now have one Dwarf Hamster, named Bobby, who is white with black eyes. No red eyes for this mom. He lives in an all pink Critter Trail cage and is still quite wild. We are working on taming him, though, and I am confident we will get the job done in a couple of weeks' time.

Here is a picture of our new little guy:

Bobby the Dwarf Hamster

And here is a video clip of the little guy in action. Now, it isn't nearly as loud in real person as it sounds here, and the background tv noise is Paul watching a NASCAR race which he recorded. Having recorded his first race, it is all downhill from here and I assume that within a few short months, our lives will revolve around the race schedule. It is an inherited condition. ;)

She's got fever... (Updated for the second time)

(Updated below)

... fever in the morning, fever all through the night. FEVER!

Well, we're off to the doctor this afternoon. Today was the beginning of Day Four of fever and now includes major congestion and a minor cough. Apparently this particular brand of icky lasts for days and days. Even with the fever, she's quite perky today, so that is good news.

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Marley was much perkier this morning but still running a fever of 101. Around 11 am, Paul and I had an opportunity to go see a concert at the university. We took Marley to her grandparents to lie around there but she was not happy and very clingy which was a huge clue, in addition to the fever, that she still isn't up to snuff. When I got her to the doctor, her fever had risen to 102.4. Even though I had made her the appointment, I really thought the worst of the fever was over. After checking her out, the doctor said to keep an eye out for a rash because the bug that is going around sometimes has that. Also, he said the fever hasn't been lasting quite as long as it has with Marley. Taking into consideration that some of Marley's classmates have had strep recently, the doctor decided on a strep prevention program of Zithromax for five days. If we see a rash or she doesn't improve, we'll take her back in.

After getting her back home, she has actually been quite energetic and up to her old tricks. All this while continuing to run a 102 degree fever. She was a perfect patient when it was time to take her medicine. Supposedly Zithromax doesn't taste bad but I took advantage of the flavoring service at the pharmacy to make it taste like bubble gum. Just four more doses...

... oh, I almost forgot. On my way out the door of the doctor's office, the doctor looked at me and said, "I hope you don't get it." Yeah, me too, Doc!

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Update Number Two.

It has been seven days and Marley is still running a consistent fever. Other than some congestion and a slight cough, fever is her only real problem. We took her back to the doctor at the urgent care this afternoon and, for now, it is back to waiting out this marathon virus. She's getting pretty restless to play with friends and we are getting pretty tired of not being able to go anywhere with her or being able to send her to school. So, a few more days and if it doesn't break, another call to the doctor.