Happy Halloween

Now this is a scary looking bunch.

They are off trick-or-treating. Two little ninjas and a samurai. It's so warm here I was able to sit on the porch for a while. Unfortunately, brick steps make for cold buts and I had to come back in. The slew of beggars has already started to wane at 7pm. We've already had more than we had all last year. I still have a bag of candy that I haven't even opened. No wonder I have time to blog.

I'll report on the take tomorrow.

Note: It's pretty bad when even the Blogger.com spell checker doesn't know that blog is a real word.

Crown Jewels

Firstborn participated in a pumpkin decorating contest for third graders. His contribution, the St Edward crown was inspired by his love of all things that glitter and shine and can be traded for large sums of money.

The model was this.


Not a bad rendition.

Rare talents

Friday night at our dinner table.

Lastborn is going on about a Spongebob Squarepants episode.
Daddy: Who lives in a pineapple under the sea
Firstborn, Mommy, Daddy:Spongebob Squarepants!
Daddy: Whose porous and yellow... and porous....
Mommy: absorbent and yellow and porous is he
Daddy, Mommy, Firstborn: Spongebob Squarepants.
Pause while Daddy realizes he doesn't know all the words.
Mommy: If nautical nonsense is something you wish
Mommy, Daddy, Firstborn: Spongebob Squarepants!
Mommy: Then drop on the deck and flop like a fish!
Mommy, Daddy, Firstborn: Spongebob Squarepants!
Spongebob Squarepants! Spongebob Squarepants! Spongeboooooob Squarepannnnts!!!!

Can I put this on my resume?

Lastborn was not participating because he thought it was all very weird.

Kindergarten Bully

Yesterday, I picked the boys up after school. There they sat in the gymnasium with their matching lime green backpacks and their tired slumped over posture. But lastborn was sporting a black eye.

I wasn't sure whether to be surprised or not. I wasn't sure whether to assume he had started the fight or had been on the receiving end of the fight either, but I was really curious as to how it had gone down.

Mommy: So how did you get the black eye?
Last born (with a big smile): I don't know
Mommy: You don't know? How could you get a black eye and not know how?
Lastborn: I don't know! My teacher asked me how I got the black eye too, but I don't know.
Mommy: Well you must have done something that hurt. That's quite the black eye.

We walk across the parking lot to the car.

Lastborn: Do you have a mirror? I want to see my black eye.

He climbs into the car and I strap him in. As I do, I notice his hands are covered with black magic marker. You know how kids hands get dirty because they rest them on the paper before the marker dries. My eyes travel up to his face and the thought occurs to me that maybe that's not a black eye after all.

A little spit on the finger and a wipe proves that the black eye was actually marker rubbed from hand to eye. The black marker had mixed with his sweat to form a perfect smudged black to purple to blue. A little on the cheek bone below the eye. A little on the outer lid and a lot on the brow bone above the eye. A practiced stage makeup artist couldn't have done better.

Imagine his teachers surprise at his quick recovery today.

I had been thinking of taking a picture of his first black eye and now I wish I had before I wiped it off. It would have been fun to have a picture of the black eye that wasn't.