For school, Lastborn was asked to interview a family member over Thanksgiving break, and then write a piece from what he learned about the person. Lastborn chose to interview his Grandfather - and the result is rather funny.
Grandpa Ross
Have you ever had to live on a farm and had to clean chicken poop, or had to be drafted into the Korean War? Well my Grandpa Ross did. Grandpa’s favorite holiday is Christmas, because everyone is so happy in the holidays and everybody looks forward to church meetings. Grandpa Ross had a powerful father and a mother who kept the house neat and tidy, Grandpa had many difficult chores like caring for chickens and much more. He went to school at Deerfield Grammar School in Deerfield, Illinois. Grandpa had scarlet fever in the fourth grade so he had a lot of work to do to catch up. A role model of Grandpa’s is a farmer next door who was elderly. The farmer is Grandpa’s role model because he did a lot of things while working as a police chief. His goal was to reach college and he did, then a small amount of time after he graduated he was drafted into the Korean War. Grandpa Ross says there are mountains in the north part of the country, as you get closer to China the mountains get higher. A big river in Korea is the Haun River that runs through the capital of Korea. The people in Korea were very poor so they sold dogs to the GIs (soldiers) then when the dogs get bigger the people would steal and eat them, then try to sell more puppies to the same GIs. Grandpa was at the MLR (main line of resistance) for 5 months. After WWII (World War 2) Korea was split in 2 parts, North and South. This split was done at the 38th Parallel or 38 degrees latitude. The only time Grandpa was south of the 38th parallel was after the shooting stopped and Grandpa’s outfit, the 5th Regimental Combat Team, was moved to Pusan, a town way south. Grandpa spent a total of 15 months in Korea and was happy to leave. Grandpa’s favorite time of day is the morning because he gets a lot of work done. He is retired but he can do a lot of things he couldn’t do while working. His most treasured memories are his experiences in Korea. I bet you’ll drive all the way to Schenectady to meet Grandpa Ross.
It's always interesting what these kids will bring from a conversation. Lastborn was asked to follow up his interview with more questions about Korea. So one of the questions he asked Grandpa was if he saw any wild animals in Korea. That's when Grandpa wrote about the dogs. Of all the things he wrote for the follow up questions, I knew that Lastborn would take this as the most important gem. Parent conferences happen in a couple of weeks. I can't wait to hear the teacher's reaction. And if I notice a group of parents laughing while gathered around a piece of writing attached to the wall in the hallway outside her door, I will know that the essays were posted and that they are reading Lastborns.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Bring back some change
Last night, I took Lastborn to the local roller rink for a school sponsored skating night. Luckily, a neighbor was also there with her son, so we were able to chat and Lastborn had company as well.
Understand that both of my boys are far more interested in the junk food available at the rink than they are at the skating, and Lastborn has not yet gotten himself off "the wall." So he was really there for the food.
He skated for about an hour and then came to me asking for some food. I want to raise my children to be independent. So, I handed him a twenty and told him not to spend it all. I was not prepared for his interpretation of that command. I expected that given a 20, he would think to buy everything on the menu in single serving sizes. The "don't spend it all" was meant to control his greed a bit. Instead, he went to the counter with pure economics in mind.
A minute later I looked over to see how he was doing and saw Lastborn, carrying a full pizza with the biggest smile on his face. I happen to know the woman working at the counter, and she knows Lastborn, so she was equally amused with his choice of purchases.
As he rolled back to our table with his beaming smile, he declared, "It was only $12!"
"Yes, but you will not be eating an entire pizza by yourself. " I replied.
My neighbor saved him by suggesting that we bring it home and Lastborn jumped on the idea, acting as if it was his own. Then he rolled back to the counter to pick up his cup of soda.
In the end, we shared the pizza with others at the table and all was well.
He had fun roller skating with his friend. He's growing up and at least he understands the economies of scale and will understand how to save money while shopping.
Understand that both of my boys are far more interested in the junk food available at the rink than they are at the skating, and Lastborn has not yet gotten himself off "the wall." So he was really there for the food.
He skated for about an hour and then came to me asking for some food. I want to raise my children to be independent. So, I handed him a twenty and told him not to spend it all. I was not prepared for his interpretation of that command. I expected that given a 20, he would think to buy everything on the menu in single serving sizes. The "don't spend it all" was meant to control his greed a bit. Instead, he went to the counter with pure economics in mind.
A minute later I looked over to see how he was doing and saw Lastborn, carrying a full pizza with the biggest smile on his face. I happen to know the woman working at the counter, and she knows Lastborn, so she was equally amused with his choice of purchases.
As he rolled back to our table with his beaming smile, he declared, "It was only $12!"
"Yes, but you will not be eating an entire pizza by yourself. " I replied.
My neighbor saved him by suggesting that we bring it home and Lastborn jumped on the idea, acting as if it was his own. Then he rolled back to the counter to pick up his cup of soda.
In the end, we shared the pizza with others at the table and all was well.
He had fun roller skating with his friend. He's growing up and at least he understands the economies of scale and will understand how to save money while shopping.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Of kitties and doorknobs
Shortly after we adopted the girls, they figured out that if they pushed on my bedroom door, it would pop opened. This was never a real problem until we got the puppy. Indeed, even after the puppy, it was almost a year before this ever became a problem. She stays pretty much in place all night and during the day when we were out, she was confined in a small area downstairs. 
This summer, however, we started giving her half the downstairs and up the stairs. We would close the bedroom doors to keep her from a steady diet of Bionicle and Lego pieces, but there was no way to close her from our room. The cats would just pop it opened and let her in. Eventually, being a smart dog, she figured out that her nose was just as powerful as that of a cat and she could pop the door opened herself. I can't tell you the number of balls of yarn she would wrap herself up in or how many shoes she ate.
Finally, this weekend, DH fixed the door so that no one can pop it opened again. He did this while I was helping out at cub camp. I was exhausted and in pain from standing on concrete all day. So after a glass of red wine, to help the foot pain, I headed off to bed. Not thinking too clearly, I let the door close and latch. This was never a problem before. The cats would simply open it if it was latched.
As I relaxed in bed, or rather fell into a wine/pain induced coma, I began to hear the door rattle. Gently at first, and then more of a crescendo, the door would rattle as the cats tried ever harder to push it opened. They were not happy, but I was so exhausted and the thought of putting any weight on my feet did not sound good. So I tried to ignore it. I reasoned that if I opened the door, they would learn that all they had to do was to rattle the door and I would open it.
After a very brief silence, I heard the jingling of the bell on a cats collar from down the hall. It approached ever closer and then I heard Crash! Obviously, one of the cats had taken a running start from down the hall and thrown her body against the door.
That got me out of bed. I limped to the door and opened it. Both cats were lurking in the doorway of Firstborn's room. Nadia was standing looking at my room expectantly and a little guiltily. Georgia was sitting with her back to me acting like nothing at all was happening.
I know the culprit. While she is far more shy around people and far more jumpy around strange noises, new experiences, and movements, Nadia is an insistent cat. She knows what she wants and she will not take no for an answer. Georgia would try the door once and then patiently wait. Nadia would give me hell.
The two cats calmly strutted into the room as I stood there assessing the situation.
I left them there until DH went to bed. As he finished up in the bathroom, I heard the door latch. Great, I thought. I'm going to be hearing it again. Sure enough, the rattling started right after he went to bed. It continued and again, I was too tired to get up. I reasoned with my tired brain that I had to just live with it and let them rattle tonight so that I would have hundreds of sleep-filled, quiet nights in the future. Eventually the noise stopped.
I awoke the next morning with two cats in bet with me and the door opened. Did they figure out how to use the doorknob? No, DH had been awakened by the door rattling and let them in. Inconsistent rewards. They are trained now. So much for ever sleeping with the door latched again.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
I survived the back-to-school shopping.
Today, I took the boys to Old Navy because they were having a sale on kids jeans and t-shirts. Firstborn is becoming interested in girls, which means that he is becoming interested in fashion. So this is the first year he has actually cared what I bought for him. For summer, I only needed an approximate size and a description of what's "cool." For winter clothes though, I needed him to try things on. Since he has grown 6 inches this year, I can't keep up in my head with how big he is.
And because I had to drag Lastborn along anyway, I had him try things on too. Both boys did well, only rolling their eyes a little when I made them try everything on. So, when we were done, I called DH and asked if he could meet us for lunch. The strip mall we were at was not far from the base.
We entered a very packed food court and the first stall we approached was giving samples of chicken teriaki. I allowed the boys to have some and Lastborn was in heaven. He even said so. The staff at the shop was so pleased with his response that they offered him more samples and more samples. So of course, we had to buy our meal there. Lastborn was happy with that conclusion, Firstborn warned that "if they had to try that hard, maybe they weren't so good. "
We sat down to an enjoyable lunch and bragged to DH about our purchases. DH suddenly noticed, and commented aloud, that the boys would be starting school in one week.
I did a little happy dance.
Lastborn stuck his lower lip out in a pout as tears came to his eyes, which then made him laugh because he knew he was being silly.
Firstborn told me I was being weird and everyone was looking at me.
I replied that all the other mothers totally know what I am doing and are inwardly doing the happy dance themselves.
To which Firstborn responded, "yes, INWARDLY."
Lastborn announced that he was going to live as a hobo because then he wouldn't have to go to school. He would live in the tree house during the week and come home on the weekends. And to get food, he would come to this mall and they would give him free samples of teriaki. He could live on teriaki. That would be a good life.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
New Sneakers
Took Lastborn out to buy new sneakers. He is very hard on his shoes and runs through a pair in just weeks. This time, I decided to spend a little more and get the sturdiest I could find. My hope is that if his feet are comfortable, he will move more.
So off we went, to the new Shoe Department near the mall. He was bored at first and wandering around the store. This is a big stage for him because I have decided no more Velcro. The ones with Velcro are just too flimsy and he is lazy, so he doesn't keep the straps tight. He tends to break down the shoe because he wears them too loosely. He understands shoe tying on an intellectual level only. So I have been putting this off for my convenience. We have a week and a half to teach him how to tie reliably.
The real thing I love about shoe buying is getting those great new shoes on. When they fit right, and they are new, you feel so strong. It took a couple of pairs to get him to that point. He has wide feet. So he can be hard to fit, but we found a couple of pairs of 3.5 wide and he was in business; running all over the store. It's fun to watch, because it's how I feel when I put on a new pair of sneakers. But as an adult (and a large one) I'm not supposed to run around the store with glee when I put on new sneakers.
So, I let him do it. There were no other shoppers and the employees seemed to think it was funny. And best of all, he didn't run into anything!!!
On the way home, he figured out how to tie them on his own. He's not reliable with it, but we have moved from theoretical to practical here. It's a big step towards reliable.
So off we went, to the new Shoe Department near the mall. He was bored at first and wandering around the store. This is a big stage for him because I have decided no more Velcro. The ones with Velcro are just too flimsy and he is lazy, so he doesn't keep the straps tight. He tends to break down the shoe because he wears them too loosely. He understands shoe tying on an intellectual level only. So I have been putting this off for my convenience. We have a week and a half to teach him how to tie reliably.
The real thing I love about shoe buying is getting those great new shoes on. When they fit right, and they are new, you feel so strong. It took a couple of pairs to get him to that point. He has wide feet. So he can be hard to fit, but we found a couple of pairs of 3.5 wide and he was in business; running all over the store. It's fun to watch, because it's how I feel when I put on a new pair of sneakers. But as an adult (and a large one) I'm not supposed to run around the store with glee when I put on new sneakers.
So, I let him do it. There were no other shoppers and the employees seemed to think it was funny. And best of all, he didn't run into anything!!!
On the way home, he figured out how to tie them on his own. He's not reliable with it, but we have moved from theoretical to practical here. It's a big step towards reliable.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Cheese grows on trees
Back at the Green County Fair, Firstborn actually asked me if I was planning on planting some cheese now that I had seen the garden entries. I don't know where he got this idea as there were no bricks of cheese among the cucumbers, beans, and corn on display. I stopped quickly and looked at him to see if he was joking. There was no sign of humor on his face.
I confess, my child thinks cheese grows on plants. I have failed miserably as a mother. At least the COSI show at school this year was on dairy farming. So Lastborn knew better. However, when the presenter included in his talk that Bessie (the life size, milkable model of a cow) and her brothers and sisters get milked twice a day, I vowed that my children would never be so ignorant of where their food comes from. I was under the impression that my sons had some idea of where their food comes from. They might not know that only the females give milk, but they should know that milk does not grow on plants!
Sigh.
A gaff like that can't be ignored; especially when it comes from a child who is so incredibly intelligent and intellectual. Certainly, the younger brother will not let this chance go by. He reminded Firstborn at dinner last night that Firstborn thought cheese grew on plants.
"No," firstborn replied, "it comes from trees."
He likes to cover up his embarrassment by making out that he is telling a great fantasy story. So making the gaff larger makes it harder to believe he seriously made such a mistake in the first place.
"Cheese doesn't grow on trees, it comes from cows," Lastborn replied.
"No, cheese doesn't grow on trees, cows do and cheese comes from cows," replied Firstborn. (Great, we finally got one right.)
At this point, I had pictures of cows floating on the ends of branches high up in the trees.
Being the insightful child that he is, he continued on. "And the buildings all have to be made of steel in case the cows fall out.
Now, I've got a visual of cows falling from trees. "That would make fall kind of dangerous don't you think? You couldn't walk outside while the cows were falling from the trees, and all you would hear all day and night would be splat, splat, splat, as they hit the ground."
At this point the boys are laughing. There's nothing funnier to a boy than cow carnage (except maybe toilet humor). So i continued. "Do you think the leaf blower would be useful? I mean it could only do so much in blowing the cow guts off your lawn.
Dinner was over at that point and now it is a given; cows grow on trees.
I confess, my child thinks cheese grows on plants. I have failed miserably as a mother. At least the COSI show at school this year was on dairy farming. So Lastborn knew better. However, when the presenter included in his talk that Bessie (the life size, milkable model of a cow) and her brothers and sisters get milked twice a day, I vowed that my children would never be so ignorant of where their food comes from. I was under the impression that my sons had some idea of where their food comes from. They might not know that only the females give milk, but they should know that milk does not grow on plants!
Sigh.
A gaff like that can't be ignored; especially when it comes from a child who is so incredibly intelligent and intellectual. Certainly, the younger brother will not let this chance go by. He reminded Firstborn at dinner last night that Firstborn thought cheese grew on plants.
"No," firstborn replied, "it comes from trees."
He likes to cover up his embarrassment by making out that he is telling a great fantasy story. So making the gaff larger makes it harder to believe he seriously made such a mistake in the first place.
"Cheese doesn't grow on trees, it comes from cows," Lastborn replied.
"No, cheese doesn't grow on trees, cows do and cheese comes from cows," replied Firstborn. (Great, we finally got one right.)
At this point, I had pictures of cows floating on the ends of branches high up in the trees.
Being the insightful child that he is, he continued on. "And the buildings all have to be made of steel in case the cows fall out.
Now, I've got a visual of cows falling from trees. "That would make fall kind of dangerous don't you think? You couldn't walk outside while the cows were falling from the trees, and all you would hear all day and night would be splat, splat, splat, as they hit the ground."
At this point the boys are laughing. There's nothing funnier to a boy than cow carnage (except maybe toilet humor). So i continued. "Do you think the leaf blower would be useful? I mean it could only do so much in blowing the cow guts off your lawn.
Dinner was over at that point and now it is a given; cows grow on trees.
Thursday, August 06, 2009
The city boys hit the country
In MA, I had no interest in going to the county fairs. There is no country in eastern MA, so what kind of fair would there be? Crowded, full of rides and games, but no real fair feel.
Now that we are in the heart of Ohio, it's time to introduce the boys to the good 'ole country fair. I had no idea how citified my boys were though.
Firstborn decided he was far too sophisticated to go to a fair. Lastborn could only think of the food. We attended the Green County Fair. Not that we live in Green County, but the Montgomery County Fair is in the city and it's exactly what I was trying to avoid in MA, though there would still be more livestock to see in Montgomery County than in any of the county fairs in MA. The Green County fair is really small compared to the Altamont Fair that I grew up with. They have very few events and the barns are newer and smaller. They did have some livestock judging which Firstborn decided was boring. He also decided that the fair was for people younger than him, even though I showed him kids his age and older who were showing livestock. He said they had to be there because they were showing their animals. No, you can't explain to a 12 year old that they don't have to show their animals, they want to. He was deep in his angst. There was no pulling him out.
Until I bought him a rare treat; Gatorade. We did try out all the fair food. Pizza (boring), corn dogs (not for Lastborn), a bucket o fries, funnel cakes and deep fried candy bars. We tried a game and walked around the midway, which was not quite open.
The best part for me was bringing the kids around the livestock barns. The kids showing the animals all smirked at my boys' comments.
"that's a goose? I thought it was a duck."
"I got a feather from that chicken thing down there with the feathers that fan out." (That's a turkey, son)
"What's that brown thing there?" (It's hog poop, son)
Lastborn loved it (except all the walking). He had to touch every kind of animal and was so excited to see a llama close up. I asked the teenager girl showing a llama if he could pet the llama. So he got to see it really close up. He hugged it's neck and petted its fur. All I could think of when looking at it was fiber! She had an alpaca too and explained to me why alpaca hair is used more often for yarn than llama hair. Lastborn also got licked by a cow and sneezed on by a goat. He was in heaven.
I think Lastborn wants to raise a hog now. After all, he loves bacon.
Both boys agreed that they were glad they had come because the deep fried candy bar was awesome.
Now that we are in the heart of Ohio, it's time to introduce the boys to the good 'ole country fair. I had no idea how citified my boys were though.
Firstborn decided he was far too sophisticated to go to a fair. Lastborn could only think of the food. We attended the Green County Fair. Not that we live in Green County, but the Montgomery County Fair is in the city and it's exactly what I was trying to avoid in MA, though there would still be more livestock to see in Montgomery County than in any of the county fairs in MA. The Green County fair is really small compared to the Altamont Fair that I grew up with. They have very few events and the barns are newer and smaller. They did have some livestock judging which Firstborn decided was boring. He also decided that the fair was for people younger than him, even though I showed him kids his age and older who were showing livestock. He said they had to be there because they were showing their animals. No, you can't explain to a 12 year old that they don't have to show their animals, they want to. He was deep in his angst. There was no pulling him out.
Until I bought him a rare treat; Gatorade. We did try out all the fair food. Pizza (boring), corn dogs (not for Lastborn), a bucket o fries, funnel cakes and deep fried candy bars. We tried a game and walked around the midway, which was not quite open.
The best part for me was bringing the kids around the livestock barns. The kids showing the animals all smirked at my boys' comments.
"that's a goose? I thought it was a duck."
"I got a feather from that chicken thing down there with the feathers that fan out." (That's a turkey, son)
"What's that brown thing there?" (It's hog poop, son)
Lastborn loved it (except all the walking). He had to touch every kind of animal and was so excited to see a llama close up. I asked the teenager girl showing a llama if he could pet the llama. So he got to see it really close up. He hugged it's neck and petted its fur. All I could think of when looking at it was fiber! She had an alpaca too and explained to me why alpaca hair is used more often for yarn than llama hair. Lastborn also got licked by a cow and sneezed on by a goat. He was in heaven.
I think Lastborn wants to raise a hog now. After all, he loves bacon.
Both boys agreed that they were glad they had come because the deep fried candy bar was awesome.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Yesterday's Big Bang
(Big Bang Theory. Sheldon notices the paint ball paint spot on "his cushion")
Early yesterday morning, I asked the boys to go brush their teeth at the same time. Usually, we don't do this because it leads to fights over who uses what sink. You see, the boys' bathroom has two sinks. I have always assumed that the one that had globs of toothpaste and junk around it was Lastborn's and the clean one was Firstborns. This state seems to reflect their personalities.
I was wrong. Very wrong. It seems they are both using the same sink. This seems to be the cause of their repeatedly forgetting who's toothbrush is who's; a fact that really grosses me out.
So much, that merely months ago, I threw out all children's toothbrushes in the house and bought new ones. This includes their electric toothbrushes. I bought every toothbrush color coded. Three red toothbrushes, three green. Lastborn chose red for himself because he was dragged along with me on the trip. When I returned home, I placed the toothbrushes, one red manual, one red electric on the right sink, along with Lastborn's medicine. I placed on one of each green toothbrushes on the left sink along with the facial soap that Firstborn uses. I then informed Firstborn that his color was green.
The problem is that Firstborn, is more concerned about which sink is his than Lastborn. And one day, Lastborn seems to have used Firstborn's sink and left his toothbrush there. And thus ensued the resulting big bang in the bathroom.
They were arguing. "No that's my toothbrush." "No. Yours is green." "No, mine is red." And so on.
I tried logic. Bad idea. It seems that Lastborn won't give up the red toothbrushes. I can't remember clearly which color I gave each kid. I can't even remember which sink is who's. All I know is that 2 months is too short a time for me to run out and buy all new toothbrushes again. They will have to share spit. But firstborn doesn't want to use the green toothbrushes. And Lastborn doesn't want to stay to his sink. And Firstborn announces to me, "The left sink is mine."
"Why does it matter?"
"Because it is the left. Everything I do is the left. I sit on the left side of the car, I eat on the left side of the table, my bedroom is the left one and my sink is the left one. It is who I am."
So cousin J, the next time he tells you that you can't sit there, understand that it is "who he is."
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
The other side of genius
Firstborn is a genius. Really. His mind works in amazing ways. It's not that he aces every test he is given, it's more the style of thinking that he does. Sometimes it's scary.
But then there is the other side of genius. The side where he can't handle the smaller, more mundane thinking processes that we mere mortals take for granted. Like dressing...
Last night he had to dress for a special Boy Scout meeting on fitness. They were taking a baseline fitness test for their fitness badge. They were supposed to dress in Class B uniforms, which means their Boy Scout green pants and a troop designed t-shirt. The troop gives out candy bars when the boys come in full uniform, so this meant the special Boy Scout green socks too. He could only find one. So he was dressed in his Boy Scout pants (with the lower leg removed to convert them into shorts), his black troop t-shirt and one green sock and one grey.
Me: "Um. Firstborn? Your socks don't match."
DH: "Go upstairs and change your socks. That looks ridiculous!"
Firstborn: "No! I want to be in uniform."
Me: "I think they will notice that you only have one sock."
Firstborn: "I'll only lift one leg to show them. They only check one sock, they never look to see if you are wearing both."
Me: "Um... You are wearing shorts. You don't need to lift your leg for them to see that the socks don't match."
He blushes with the sudden realization that he is wearing shorts and not pants and therefore, there is no concealing the unmatched socks.
This is the same child who came up with the brilliant plan to catch the toothfairy when he was 5. What has happened.
DH says this is teen brain.
But then there is the other side of genius. The side where he can't handle the smaller, more mundane thinking processes that we mere mortals take for granted. Like dressing...
Last night he had to dress for a special Boy Scout meeting on fitness. They were taking a baseline fitness test for their fitness badge. They were supposed to dress in Class B uniforms, which means their Boy Scout green pants and a troop designed t-shirt. The troop gives out candy bars when the boys come in full uniform, so this meant the special Boy Scout green socks too. He could only find one. So he was dressed in his Boy Scout pants (with the lower leg removed to convert them into shorts), his black troop t-shirt and one green sock and one grey.
Me: "Um. Firstborn? Your socks don't match."
DH: "Go upstairs and change your socks. That looks ridiculous!"
Firstborn: "No! I want to be in uniform."
Me: "I think they will notice that you only have one sock."
Firstborn: "I'll only lift one leg to show them. They only check one sock, they never look to see if you are wearing both."
Me: "Um... You are wearing shorts. You don't need to lift your leg for them to see that the socks don't match."
He blushes with the sudden realization that he is wearing shorts and not pants and therefore, there is no concealing the unmatched socks.
This is the same child who came up with the brilliant plan to catch the toothfairy when he was 5. What has happened.
DH says this is teen brain.
Monday, June 08, 2009
The point of the exercise
I've been going on walks with Lastborn over vacation. He's going to Webelos camp next week and I'm told there's lots of walking there. Being a pretty sedentary kid and a bit overweight to boot, I'm worried that he will have a horrible time at camp because of how much they push them.
So today, I gave him the word that we were going on another walk and he should put his shoes there.
His response?
"Can we drive there?"
"Where," I replied?
"To the walk."
"Um. The purpose of the walk is to walk child. "
So today, I gave him the word that we were going on another walk and he should put his shoes there.
His response?
"Can we drive there?"
"Where," I replied?
"To the walk."
"Um. The purpose of the walk is to walk child. "
Saturday, June 06, 2009
IMing with Lastborn
Not that I feel a need to spy on my son, but he left the screen open after chatting with his cousin. He was using my account. Here's a typical chat session with Lastborn:
Lastborn: yo beninator
bkn: hey, how are you?
Lastborn: good how are
it feels awkward with this picture (referring to my avatar)
bkn: im good, so how what kind of party are you having?
Lastborn: bowling
do you do clubpenguin
bkn: not anymore, I used to when my friends played it
Lastborn: ok then
fewwsd;'
rsthyuuyuyyggftdsffduykgfdrtrwdsugyrfrthiujtyy4ehtetrgtdgheyteqrrtr34etrtwrthhytrt5he
laugh
fgfjkghfybjklnkutgydseqaertfdhjnmk,ljiugf4tqawedrttuhyfgdgrtuyytuyerrttir5ydeyrtyhjfdtsudrtruseeuryt4ireuysgvufduiugyuirsdghkjfdshtueirshgjfds
hehehehehye
luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunch
bkn:well i hope you have fun at your party
Lastborn: dffffffffffggggggghggggffdrfsfdtrgfhijkiopufgfhbgbchdhdegfsrtdedtrddfrtfddfokjf;hfxdkkjhglkhghhghhghghhgghhghghghghghghghghhgghghhghghgghghghghghghghgghhghgghghghghhghghghghghghghghghg
i dont know what to talk about
beans
i crave for lima beans
we will we will rock u rock u
sigh
g
g
dd
p
p
ph
gg
hahahahaha hairball
ok bye
bkn:bye
Lastborn: bye
Lastborn: yo beninator
bkn: hey, how are you?
Lastborn: good how are
it feels awkward with this picture (referring to my avatar)
bkn: im good, so how what kind of party are you having?
Lastborn: bowling
do you do clubpenguin
bkn: not anymore, I used to when my friends played it
Lastborn: ok then
fewwsd;'
rsthyuuyuyyggftdsffduykgfdrtrwdsugyrfrthiujtyy4ehtetrgtdgheyteqrrtr34etrtwrthhytrt5he
laugh
fgfjkghfybjklnkutgydseqaertfdhjnmk,ljiugf4tqawedrttuhyfgdgrtuyytuyerrttir5ydeyrtyhjfdtsudrtruseeuryt4ireuysgvufduiugyuirsdghkjfdshtueirshgjfds
hehehehehye
luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunch
bkn:well i hope you have fun at your party
Lastborn: dffffffffffggggggghggggffdrfsfdtrgfhijkiopufgfhbgbchdhdegfsrtdedtrddfrtfddfokjf;hfxdkkjhglkhghhghhghghhgghhghghghghghghghghhgghghhghghgghghghghghghghgghhghgghghghghhghghghghghghghghghg
i dont know what to talk about
beans
i crave for lima beans
we will we will rock u rock u
sigh
g
g
dd
p
p
ph
gg
hahahahaha hairball
ok bye
bkn:bye
Lastborn: bye
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Risotto Prima Vera
I saw this recipe on the Barefoot Contessa and it looked really yummy. I've thought about cooking with fresh fennel bulb for a while but didn't have the courage. But this risotto with fennel, asparagus and leeks looked so good.
Add to this that the kids have become much more adventurous in eating. No more are we limited to the chicken nuggets, mac 'n cheese and pb & j that graced our menu for so long. After the very limited diet, they began to branch out to the point where one would always like new foods and the other not. It was never something you could reliably put odds on. You just knew that one of them would love it and the other hate it and the only other reliable fact was that if kid one liked it last time, there was not guarantee that he would like it the next time.
Now, Lastborn pretty reliably likes everything we place in front of him and Firstborn likes it as long as he can pick out the bits and taste them separately.
I did know going into this process that neither of them like asparagus, but I love it, so I was forging ahead.
The Risotto looked so wonderful. I added chicken to make a meal of it. DH loved it. He loves fennel and though this was his first dish with cooked fennel, he was happy with the outcome.
Lastborn tried valiantly to eat all of his. He didn't love it and did pick out all of the asparagus, but he simply couldn't get the whole bowl of fennel and leeks down. Firstborn gave it his typical barely-try-it-then-spit-it-out-announcing-how-gross-it-is try. He's much less trusting of my food experiments, but he knows to rein in his disgust to a certain extent. After picking all the chicken out and some of the rice, he asked if he could make pb & j sandwiches.
So I scooped up the leftovers in their plates and mixed them with Nova's food. Se was very excited to get table leftovers as this doesn't happen often. But even she was not sold on the fennel, leeks and asparagus. She carefully extracted her kibble, the rice and chicken pieces from the veggies and spat the veggies onto the floor to the delight of both Firstborn and Lastborn.
"Even the dog won't eat it, Mom." They announced with glee pointing to the pile of veggies on the floor in front of her bowl.
Add to this that the kids have become much more adventurous in eating. No more are we limited to the chicken nuggets, mac 'n cheese and pb & j that graced our menu for so long. After the very limited diet, they began to branch out to the point where one would always like new foods and the other not. It was never something you could reliably put odds on. You just knew that one of them would love it and the other hate it and the only other reliable fact was that if kid one liked it last time, there was not guarantee that he would like it the next time.
Now, Lastborn pretty reliably likes everything we place in front of him and Firstborn likes it as long as he can pick out the bits and taste them separately.
I did know going into this process that neither of them like asparagus, but I love it, so I was forging ahead.
The Risotto looked so wonderful. I added chicken to make a meal of it. DH loved it. He loves fennel and though this was his first dish with cooked fennel, he was happy with the outcome.
Lastborn tried valiantly to eat all of his. He didn't love it and did pick out all of the asparagus, but he simply couldn't get the whole bowl of fennel and leeks down. Firstborn gave it his typical barely-try-it-then-spit-it-out-announcing-how-gross-it-is try. He's much less trusting of my food experiments, but he knows to rein in his disgust to a certain extent. After picking all the chicken out and some of the rice, he asked if he could make pb & j sandwiches.
So I scooped up the leftovers in their plates and mixed them with Nova's food. Se was very excited to get table leftovers as this doesn't happen often. But even she was not sold on the fennel, leeks and asparagus. She carefully extracted her kibble, the rice and chicken pieces from the veggies and spat the veggies onto the floor to the delight of both Firstborn and Lastborn.
"Even the dog won't eat it, Mom." They announced with glee pointing to the pile of veggies on the floor in front of her bowl.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Mom, Can We Go to Church More Often?
A couple weeks ago, I had to bring Firstborn to the dermatologist for a checkup. He has a number of moles she is keeping an eye on. He gets very talkative in her office. Usually she encourages him because of the amazing things that come out of his mouth. Amazing sometimes because they are profound and other times because they are outrageous.
The end result is that I sit through the whole procedure on pins and needles.
We left Lastborn in the waiting room and he forgot to bring entertainment for himself. But when I left, he was doing calisthenics, his latest thing. Luckily, no one else was waiting.
The doctor who owns the practice is very religious. He has pictures of Jesus and the little children all over the office and religious pamphlets all over the waiting room.
As Firstborn and I waited in the exam room, he started his talking routine. He got onto the subject of how mean I am because I won't let him drink Gatorade more than once a month. After all, all the other kids do it.
Mom: "So if all the other kids jumped off a bridge, does that mean you should?"
Firstborn: "Well, it depends on how high the bridge is and if there are jagged rocks at the bottom or deep water. I'm a pretty good swimmer."
I thought for a moment and countered with, "Just because lots of people voted for George Bush in the previous election, doesn't mean it was a good idea."
Firstborn thought for a moment, smiled and said, "You got me on that one."
At this point, the doctor arrived and I had to start worrying about what he would say. We were doing well, until he had to repeat the George Bush joke. How many times do I have to explain that not everyone has the same political views as us...
So we get through this appointment and I'm pretty happy that he hasn't gotten everyone upset. We are waiting in line to pay for the appointment when Lastborn walks into the office and says at the top of his lungs, "Mom, Can we start going to church more often?"
The receptionist is watching me to see my reaction. I'm reeling because I thought I had gotten through the hard part of this doctor visit.
"We'll talk about it in the car," I reply.
"You don't want to go to church." Firstborn says with emotion.
"But this thing says that if I go to church I'll live longer," Lastborn says waving a pamphlet in our faces. "I want to live longer."
"They are just getting you to go to church so they can get more money out of you." Says firstborn.
"We'll talk about it in the car." I say with more emphasis.
Red in the face, I pay my bill, get my new appointment and try to slink out of there.
Again, Lastborn shouts, "Can we start going to church more often?"
We get in the car, and I close the doors tightly and shut the windows before shouting at them about embarrassing their mother in public. They both find this very funny.
Lastborn starts reading excerpts from the pamphlet and Firstborn explains how there is no God and it's all a scam to get money from people. Where did I get these kids?
The end result is that I sit through the whole procedure on pins and needles.
We left Lastborn in the waiting room and he forgot to bring entertainment for himself. But when I left, he was doing calisthenics, his latest thing. Luckily, no one else was waiting.
The doctor who owns the practice is very religious. He has pictures of Jesus and the little children all over the office and religious pamphlets all over the waiting room.
As Firstborn and I waited in the exam room, he started his talking routine. He got onto the subject of how mean I am because I won't let him drink Gatorade more than once a month. After all, all the other kids do it.
Mom: "So if all the other kids jumped off a bridge, does that mean you should?"
Firstborn: "Well, it depends on how high the bridge is and if there are jagged rocks at the bottom or deep water. I'm a pretty good swimmer."
I thought for a moment and countered with, "Just because lots of people voted for George Bush in the previous election, doesn't mean it was a good idea."
Firstborn thought for a moment, smiled and said, "You got me on that one."
At this point, the doctor arrived and I had to start worrying about what he would say. We were doing well, until he had to repeat the George Bush joke. How many times do I have to explain that not everyone has the same political views as us...
So we get through this appointment and I'm pretty happy that he hasn't gotten everyone upset. We are waiting in line to pay for the appointment when Lastborn walks into the office and says at the top of his lungs, "Mom, Can we start going to church more often?"
The receptionist is watching me to see my reaction. I'm reeling because I thought I had gotten through the hard part of this doctor visit.
"We'll talk about it in the car," I reply.
"You don't want to go to church." Firstborn says with emotion.
"But this thing says that if I go to church I'll live longer," Lastborn says waving a pamphlet in our faces. "I want to live longer."
"They are just getting you to go to church so they can get more money out of you." Says firstborn.
"We'll talk about it in the car." I say with more emphasis.
Red in the face, I pay my bill, get my new appointment and try to slink out of there.
Again, Lastborn shouts, "Can we start going to church more often?"
We get in the car, and I close the doors tightly and shut the windows before shouting at them about embarrassing their mother in public. They both find this very funny.
Lastborn starts reading excerpts from the pamphlet and Firstborn explains how there is no God and it's all a scam to get money from people. Where did I get these kids?
Monday, April 20, 2009
Why do bad things happen to good people?
I don't have an answer to that question, just an example.
I recently learned that the 2-year old son of Firstborn's 5th grade teacher is going through treatment for leukemia. This man was just wonderful for Firstborn last year. Firstborn couldn't have gotten a better teacher for his first year in Ohio. So, I'm putting out the word to all my Ohio friends. There will be a marrow doner drive on Saturday from noon to 4PM.
Location: Beavercreek Family Care
2510 Commons Blvd # 220
Beavercreek, OH 45431
Near Fairfield Commons Mall
And for those of you who don't live in Ohio, you can still help. The national bone marrow registry has a very easy test they can mail you. All you have to do is swab your cheek and send the swab in to the lab. Even if none of us are a match for little Nathaniel Bouchard, maybe we can be a match for some other deserving person.
You can support Nathaniel and other children with pediatric cancers by going to: www.marrow.org
Select the tab "Join the Registry"
Select "Join Now"
IF YOU MEET THE CRITERIA, please follow the instructions. A kit will be mailed to you. Send the kit back A.S.A.P. and you increase Nan's chance (and others just like him) of a good match.
There is a bone marrow typing fee associated with this process. It is tax deductible.
Finally, should you want to make a contribution to our outreach efforts, please send your donation to:
Jason Bouchard
357 Park Lane, Springboro, OH 45066
Please write "Be The Match Fund" in the memo line of your check
In an effort to save lives, please contact everyone you know and share this information with them.
I recently learned that the 2-year old son of Firstborn's 5th grade teacher is going through treatment for leukemia. This man was just wonderful for Firstborn last year. Firstborn couldn't have gotten a better teacher for his first year in Ohio. So, I'm putting out the word to all my Ohio friends. There will be a marrow doner drive on Saturday from noon to 4PM.
Location: Beavercreek Family Care
2510 Commons Blvd # 220
Beavercreek, OH 45431
Near Fairfield Commons Mall
And for those of you who don't live in Ohio, you can still help. The national bone marrow registry has a very easy test they can mail you. All you have to do is swab your cheek and send the swab in to the lab. Even if none of us are a match for little Nathaniel Bouchard, maybe we can be a match for some other deserving person.
You can support Nathaniel and other children with pediatric cancers by going to: www.marrow.org
Select the tab "Join the Registry"
Select "Join Now"
IF YOU MEET THE CRITERIA, please follow the instructions. A kit will be mailed to you. Send the kit back A.S.A.P. and you increase Nan's chance (and others just like him) of a good match.
There is a bone marrow typing fee associated with this process. It is tax deductible.
Finally, should you want to make a contribution to our outreach efforts, please send your donation to:
Jason Bouchard
357 Park Lane, Springboro, OH 45066
Please write "Be The Match Fund" in the memo line of your check
In an effort to save lives, please contact everyone you know and share this information with them.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Back East
For spring break I drove back east with the kids to visit Grandma.
We did a layover in New Jersey before starting out again on Saturday for New England. Our first stop on Saturday was to Tewksbury to see friends. Firstborn had a get together planned with his friend V. I guess we can't call them play dates anymore, though they did play the whole time.
We left on Friday morning since the teachers were having one of those convenient development days that lengthen holidays and long weekends. It was nice to travel on a weekday and avoid the mid day traffic of the weekend, but it meant that we had to deal with rush hour.
The trip out from Dayton was nothing but fog. Firstborn was learning about wind farms in Science class and I wanted to point out the many wind farms we have here in Ohio, but we couldn't see anything off the road. It was truly a pea soup fog. Very tiring to look at nothing but white and the small bits of road lines that I could see. The boys were happy in the back of the car doing their video games and watching movies.
We did a layover in New Jersey before starting out again on Saturday for New England. Our first stop on Saturday was to Tewksbury to see friends. Firstborn had a get together planned with his friend V. I guess we can't call them play dates anymore, though they did play the whole time.
I called Remcat and was happy to hear that she was available in the afternoon. So, Lastborn and I killed some time in the Tewksbury playground before we went to her house. The weather was beautiful and the park was almost as full as it is every fourth of July. And what was that we spied in the back corner of the parking lot?
Yes, that's snow. They still have snow in Massachusetts. OK. So the snow was left over from what the plough had dumped in the corner of the parking lot, but it was still snow and we revelled in the fact that we are so past that in Ohio.
Lastborn was not too into playing because he didn't know any of the kids there. A few of my friends stopped by and I was able to chat, but their kids had all gone to different elementary schools from Lastborn. So, he didn't remember them much from the toddler playgroup days. He spent most of his time hiding in this tube scaring the toddlers.
But we very much enjoyed the sunshine until Remcat called to tell us she was home. That was where it started to get fun for Lastborn. Remcat 
has three boys, 9, 7, and 3. Lastborn was able to play inside and outside with them while Remcat and I talked. It was good to talk to old friends again and her dog decided that I was missing Nova and climbed into my lap giving me kisses the whole time. Remcat and I talked until dinner time and then I went to find the boys dinner and drive down to the cape to visit with my MIL. The Garmin sent us through Boston on the expressway and the trip seemed to go really fast that way. It was a Saturday night and there wasn't much traffic. So it probably was the best way, until we got to Bourne. Grandma's place on the cape is north of the canal. We should not have to cross any bridges. But the state had recently finished a big construction project around the Bourne Bridge and they had decided to change all the exit numbers. So we ended up going over the bridge. Then when we turned around the rotary to go back over the bridge, the Garmin got confused again and sent us back over the bridge. We were in an infinite loop! Added to this situation was the fact that Lastborn had to gooooo. You know. Kids always have to go when you are lost. So we eventually stopped into the Knight's Inn in Bourne and asked to use their bathroom. They were nice enough to let him and we continued on. At this point, I figured out which exit we were supposed to take in within 5 minutes, we were pulling into Grandma's driveway.
has three boys, 9, 7, and 3. Lastborn was able to play inside and outside with them while Remcat and I talked. It was good to talk to old friends again and her dog decided that I was missing Nova and climbed into my lap giving me kisses the whole time. Remcat and I talked until dinner time and then I went to find the boys dinner and drive down to the cape to visit with my MIL. The Garmin sent us through Boston on the expressway and the trip seemed to go really fast that way. It was a Saturday night and there wasn't much traffic. So it probably was the best way, until we got to Bourne. Grandma's place on the cape is north of the canal. We should not have to cross any bridges. But the state had recently finished a big construction project around the Bourne Bridge and they had decided to change all the exit numbers. So we ended up going over the bridge. Then when we turned around the rotary to go back over the bridge, the Garmin got confused again and sent us back over the bridge. We were in an infinite loop! Added to this situation was the fact that Lastborn had to gooooo. You know. Kids always have to go when you are lost. So we eventually stopped into the Knight's Inn in Bourne and asked to use their bathroom. They were nice enough to let him and we continued on. At this point, I figured out which exit we were supposed to take in within 5 minutes, we were pulling into Grandma's driveway. Hugs all around and some visiting before bed. We had wonderful accommodations though the boys had to share a bed. Always harder on Firstborn who doesn't like to touch than on Lastborn who is extremely cuddly. We could hear the boys giggling until almost 10 o'clock.
On Sunday the rain came in and the boys spent the day playing computer games. Not much fun but at least they had that to entertain them.
On Monday, I got together with S and Remcat at the Barnes and Noble in Burlington and we talked over coffee and chocolate cheesecake. Mmmmm. The boys were with Grandma and P doing some final cleanup on the house they had just moved out of. Can you believe Grandma allowed us to stay with her the day after she moved into the newly remodelled house on the cape? What a wonderful grandma and we were amazed at how moved in they were.
We all got back to the house at around 7pm and the boys settled down for some TV watching when Eddie fell asleep. 
He must have been exhausted from the nights of late-night whispering with his brother. I finally laid him down on the floor because he was threatening to fall down between the chairs and knock his head. His head probably would have been fine, but it would have left a dent in Grandma's newly installed hard-wood floor.
Tuesday was our one and only fairly nice day and I insisted that the boys spend some time outside. We walked the smaller beach in the cove near Grandma's house and looked for shells and sea glass. The beach was littered with many shells some of them even nice ones. We went back home at one point to pick up some plastic bags to carry all the shells and neat beach rocks we found. The boys loved that though Lastborn kept asking for food.
I decided that since Grandma and P had a meeting all day on Wednesday, that we would make Wednesday our tourist day and we would try to do lots of tourist things. We headed out first to the other side of the Bourne Bridge because I wanted the boys to see the glass blowing at Pairpoint Glass company. This is something DH and I did on our honeymoon and it is quite a sight to see. Unfortunately, they did not blow that day because their furnace was not working. But we picked up a glass swan for my friend T who was watching Nova with her husband and I picked up a piece for DH.
Lastborn was like a bull in a china shop. He simply can't stand still, and the more you try to make him stand still the more he has to move. I finally sent the boys out to the car to play video games while I selected the pieces because I could not concentrate while trying to keep him away from the many shelves of glass. We nick named him GlassCrusher.
Next, we moved on to the Sandwich Boardwalk over the marshlands.
We walked the length of the boardwalk over the marshes, up a large sand dune and down to the beach. I was a bit nervous as the boardwalk had no railings except where it crosses a creek. Remember lastborn who can rarely sit still? Well he finds equal trouble in walking a straight line and he seems to think the rules of gravity do not apply to him. The whole walk I was waiting for him to fall into the smelly mud of the marsh.
I'm really sorry I didn't bring my camera because it was really beautiful. Firstborn walked faster than Lastborn and I and he crested the sand dune first. He announced to the group that it was well worth the trip.
Lastborn replied, "Why? Is there food up there?" This is becoming a theme with him.
On the crest of the sand dune, the view of the ocean and back to the marshes was spectacular. This is why we come off season. The sky was full of puffy cl0uds and the wind was blowing in a menacing way as a new front came in. The waves were high and choppy and seagulls hovered over the shore looking for food. No one else was around.
The boys ran down to the beach to look for shells and rocks. They explored tidal pools and threw things into the water. The tide was coming in. So, I warned them to keep lots of room between them and the waves so they wouldn't get wet. We were lucky if it was 40 out that day and I didn't want to deal with wet cold feet. Sure enough, on the second wave in, Lastborn was covered almost to the knees. Sigh.
After an hour on the beach we were all getting hungry, so we headed out to Marshland's restaurant. The locals had recommended it. Wow. We all ordered a different fried seafood and shared. Clams, scallops, and shrimp. Firstborn was a bit put off by the fact that the shrimp still had their tails on. All three boys finished everything on their plate and then had huge desserts. Better to give them energy for the rest of the site-seeing day.
Next we were off to the Sandwich Glass Museum. This time, the boys got to see glass blowing and they thought it was soo cool. They were the only people in the demonstration, so they got to ask all the questions they wanted to and the artist allowed them to use the glass press machine to make a sun catcher. She even gave them each one that had been cooled a day to take home. The museum had other interactive shows that the boys liked a lot too and they had a great time. 
The boys enjoy one of the interactive shows on the history of life in Sandwich.
But we weren't done yet. Now, we were off to the Heritage Village Museum. We toured the car museum, we walked through the gardens, the boys tried the maze (though it was not much being made of deciduous shrubs), and they tried the labyrinth. Firstborn, pedantically walked through each turn and curve of the path, while Lastborn ran across the rock path markers to race to the center. They both meditated in the center of the labyrinth.
Then Firstborn ran out of the maze following the path while Lastborn repeated his own process in reverse.
While all this exercise was great for both boys, there were times when Lastborn didn't have the energy to make it any farther.
We continued on the Lake Path, stopping for a rest at the lake. 
Then it was on to the History Museum. All the boys were willing to do was ride the carousel though. And the 
only thing that kept them going was the promise of candy at the end of the ride.
only thing that kept them going was the promise of candy at the end of the ride. It was time to go home and rest.
Thursday, P tried to help me find more things to do with the boys since the rain had returned. We tried to go to the Aptucxet Trading Post, but it was still closed for the season. We tried to go to a ticky-tacky tourist store, but you had to get the guy at the bait shop to open it, so we gave up. Finally, we ended up at Marshlands again for lunch and I let Grandma go home. She doesn't like site seeing.
I headed out with P to find another ticky tacky tourist shop and to find a special liquor our neighbor wanted me to pick up. We stopped at 4 package stores and never found it. But I was able to get some tourist trinkets for me and the boys and their friends.
Early on Friday, we ate breakfast and headed out for home. The boys wanted one more stop on the beach and so I brought them to the main city beach in Onset. We spent about a half hour looking for shells and throwing rocks into the surf and then climbed into the car for a very rainy ride home.
The weather cleared when we hit the Pennsylvania border but then we hit traffic west of Harrisburg. After a two hour traffic jam, we stopped for dinner. So did everyone else who was stuck in traffic. We beat the crowd by just a little and then headed out again to drive as much as I could before stopping for the night. Unfortunately, a cold front was moving west to east and it packed some very high winds. I was only able to drive till about 9 o'clock before I had to give up and rest in Somerset PA.
Again, we woke early on Saturday (much to the pre-teen's dismay) and headed out. Again, we got stuck in traffic, this time in Columbus, but we finally made it home.
We had fun and thank Grandma for her patience putting up with me and my boys for a whole week.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Its a Cake Walk
Before moving to the midlands, I had heard the term cake walk, but I had no idea what it was. Until our new school started planning their yearly carnival. They went on and on about how important it was to have enough cakes for the cake walk.
Last year at the carnival, Firstborn went into the cake walk himself, but didn't give it a very favorable review because he didn't win. But this year, the boys had a strategy. It was partially fueled by the fact that our now-empty freezer in the basement was the storage arena for some 15 donated cakes from the local grocery store. The thought of those poor frozen cakes sitting down there waiting for the carnival was just too much for the boys. They soon decided that they needed to provide a more permanent home for at least a few of them in their stomachs.
So Friday night, I loaded 15 cakes in my car and drove them to the school where they would join the others to form an army of 300 cakes! With all that booty, the boys decided that their chances were good. They strategized together and decided that if they used all their game tickets on playing the cake walk, they should be able to bring home a lot of cakes.
They worried that we would not get there in time and the best cakes would be gone.
We were there by 10:30 and already people were leaving the building with cakes. The boys worried. But when we arrived in the cafeteria, at least 290 cakes were still there. Right away, the boys got into line and began the play.
Now for those of you who are not initiated in the lore of the cake walk, it is sort of like musical chairs without all the pushing. They set up a path of numbered squares on the floor. The kids proceed around this circular path stepping from one numbered square to the next while music plays. When the music stops, a number is drawn and whoever is on that square wins a cake of their choice.
It took only three plays for Lastborn to win his first cake; but then to choose between so many delicious gems. He chose a one layer Oreo cookie piece and clutched it to his chest. I offered to carry it for him and he seemed reluctant to give it up.
"Can I eat it now?" He asked.
Firstborn was still playing the game. Lastborn went back up to the stage to play again. Both boys came back in a few minutes with a two-layer birthday cake with a thick frosting clown which Firstborn labelled a leprechaun. I guess leprechauns carry bunches of balloons in his mind.
Firstborn was discouraged at this point and sat down with me and the cakes. He convinced Lastborn to go back up and play and even gave Lastborn his remaining tickets.
Moments later, Lastborn came back with a dutch chocolate 2-layer cake with nuts. I asked him why the nuts and he said, "they're nuts? Can I trade it?"
"No," I said. "We'll let Daddy have that one."
They were good with that solution thinking that giving Daddy the nut cake would leave more of the frosting-laden items for them.
We were getting comments on our luck at this point. Firstborn convinced Lastborn to go back up, but this time, he said that he should choose the cake if Lastborn wins.
They came back in moments with a large green sheet cake with blue piping and a yellow rose. Firstborn had chosen carefully based on the required frosting-to-cake ratio.
In my defense, each time I sent them up there to play the game, I did not think that they would really win again. I expected both to have luck like Firstborn's. It was a way to support the school and have fun while doing it. At one point, I was considering slipping a cake or two back on the tables and having the kids continue to play the game. I know the cakes were great, but I think Lastborn was just having a rush at winning something; and even better, being better than his brother at something.
In the end, Lastborn gave the nut cake to his new best friend and we took home the totally over-the-top three frosting-laden pieces to share with our neighbors.
But before leaving, my young entrepreneur, Firstborn, figured out that with Lastborn's luck, we should probably hire him out to walk the cake walk for other people and charge a dollar for each play. We could make a killing.
In addition to our cake walk luck, I also won two baskets in the silent auction. I didn't expect to win anything because we left before noon and the carnival went until 4pm. The only problem with winning the silent auction is that you then have to pay for the items.
Last year at the carnival, Firstborn went into the cake walk himself, but didn't give it a very favorable review because he didn't win. But this year, the boys had a strategy. It was partially fueled by the fact that our now-empty freezer in the basement was the storage arena for some 15 donated cakes from the local grocery store. The thought of those poor frozen cakes sitting down there waiting for the carnival was just too much for the boys. They soon decided that they needed to provide a more permanent home for at least a few of them in their stomachs.
So Friday night, I loaded 15 cakes in my car and drove them to the school where they would join the others to form an army of 300 cakes! With all that booty, the boys decided that their chances were good. They strategized together and decided that if they used all their game tickets on playing the cake walk, they should be able to bring home a lot of cakes.
They worried that we would not get there in time and the best cakes would be gone.
We were there by 10:30 and already people were leaving the building with cakes. The boys worried. But when we arrived in the cafeteria, at least 290 cakes were still there. Right away, the boys got into line and began the play.
Now for those of you who are not initiated in the lore of the cake walk, it is sort of like musical chairs without all the pushing. They set up a path of numbered squares on the floor. The kids proceed around this circular path stepping from one numbered square to the next while music plays. When the music stops, a number is drawn and whoever is on that square wins a cake of their choice.
It took only three plays for Lastborn to win his first cake; but then to choose between so many delicious gems. He chose a one layer Oreo cookie piece and clutched it to his chest. I offered to carry it for him and he seemed reluctant to give it up.
"Can I eat it now?" He asked.
Firstborn was still playing the game. Lastborn went back up to the stage to play again. Both boys came back in a few minutes with a two-layer birthday cake with a thick frosting clown which Firstborn labelled a leprechaun. I guess leprechauns carry bunches of balloons in his mind.
Firstborn was discouraged at this point and sat down with me and the cakes. He convinced Lastborn to go back up and play and even gave Lastborn his remaining tickets.
Moments later, Lastborn came back with a dutch chocolate 2-layer cake with nuts. I asked him why the nuts and he said, "they're nuts? Can I trade it?"
"No," I said. "We'll let Daddy have that one."
They were good with that solution thinking that giving Daddy the nut cake would leave more of the frosting-laden items for them.
We were getting comments on our luck at this point. Firstborn convinced Lastborn to go back up, but this time, he said that he should choose the cake if Lastborn wins.
They came back in moments with a large green sheet cake with blue piping and a yellow rose. Firstborn had chosen carefully based on the required frosting-to-cake ratio.
In my defense, each time I sent them up there to play the game, I did not think that they would really win again. I expected both to have luck like Firstborn's. It was a way to support the school and have fun while doing it. At one point, I was considering slipping a cake or two back on the tables and having the kids continue to play the game. I know the cakes were great, but I think Lastborn was just having a rush at winning something; and even better, being better than his brother at something.
In the end, Lastborn gave the nut cake to his new best friend and we took home the totally over-the-top three frosting-laden pieces to share with our neighbors.
But before leaving, my young entrepreneur, Firstborn, figured out that with Lastborn's luck, we should probably hire him out to walk the cake walk for other people and charge a dollar for each play. We could make a killing.
In addition to our cake walk luck, I also won two baskets in the silent auction. I didn't expect to win anything because we left before noon and the carnival went until 4pm. The only problem with winning the silent auction is that you then have to pay for the items.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
This is the way my life goes.
So last night, I ran a Destination Imagination Instant Challenge Workshop. As background, I am the building coordinator for Destination for my son's elementary school. As such, I'm supposed to schedule and plan these workshops at the beginning of the year and at the end of the season, just before competition.
The sessions at the beginning of the year are supposed to let the kids try new DI-ish things while the team managers see how they handle the challenges and figure out which kids will work best together. We form the teams from the outcome of those nights. They are easy because once I choose the challenges, compile the materials, and publicize it, my work is done.
But these IC workshops at the end of the season are a bit more work. I need to come up with 4 challenges for each team (we have 6 teams). I need to find people to act as judges for six stations so that we can process 6 teams at a time. I need to compile the materials and label them for the 6 stations. Then I need to provide instructions to the judges so that they know how to run the challenge.
For those not initiated into the DI code world, and instant challenge is a problem that the kids have to solve within a very short time limit. For example, the kids had to build a 12 inch bridge with only two supporting points, using only 6 straws and 25 paper clips. They are given points for whether the structure meets the criteria (12 inches and 2 supporting points), teamwork, and creative use of the objects.
To get through these challenges, the kids need to be able to concentrate, listen, and keep on task for the full 6-8 minutes. Last year, because I was a newbie at this job, I was forced to hold the workshop in the basement of a theatre. It was one big open room and the kids had a hard time concentrating. So this year, I was prepared and got use of the whole school for both workshops. We would locate each IC station at a different corner of the school so the kids could work in peace.
This adds to my job the task of finding locations, assigning them to the judges and then communicating a performance order to each team. Not being a detail oriented person, this whole package takes me days and lots of effort. But I completed it last night and arrived at the school with all my schedules and plans and materials. I set every thing up and while doing so, I noticed that the school was a bit dirtier than it usually is at this time of night. Floors were swept, but the piles of debris were still on the floor, not yet cleaned up. I also noticed a half page advertisement for lice shampoo on a cafeteria table.
Sigh. I'm going to need to rework two of the challenges. One requires a team member to wear a blindfold. Moving the blind fold from one head to another through 4 teams will increase the risk of passing lice. Another challenge requires the building of a sandwich on the head of a team member who is inside the middle of a 6 foot diameter circle. OK, so I've already figured out how to create fake food items so that those who have religious objections to pork will not be offended by having pork on their heads and those allergic to wheat and eggs will not break out into a rash from the bread. Now my fake felt food will become a lice transmission device. What now?
Finally, 1 minute before our start time, the janitor approaches me and tells me that they have sprayed all of the classrooms with a lice killer and it might cause breathing problems for anyone with asthma. One of our team managers is already having problems breathing.
I've got 40 kids ready to do instant challenges and we have to reset all of the instant challenges in the cafeteria. Finally we get started and the first IC goes on without a hitch. I'm starting to get comfortable, though my team has decided that this is all just a joke and they can fool around through it.
We all finish up our tasks and get ready to move on. I find my next station based on my schedule and get the boys started. Another team manager approaches me and tells me that someone else was doing their challenge they just picked up a different station that was not being used. I think it through and realize one of the 6 teams didn't show. So there would be one empty station for each IC time. It will work out.
It turns out that one team manager had decided that since all the stations were in a single room, she could just move around the room in a circle. While everyone else was trying to take the ICs in the order they were assigned. Basically, we experienced a collision in schedules and by the end of the night, all hell broke loose.
The best laid plans of mice and men...
The sessions at the beginning of the year are supposed to let the kids try new DI-ish things while the team managers see how they handle the challenges and figure out which kids will work best together. We form the teams from the outcome of those nights. They are easy because once I choose the challenges, compile the materials, and publicize it, my work is done.
But these IC workshops at the end of the season are a bit more work. I need to come up with 4 challenges for each team (we have 6 teams). I need to find people to act as judges for six stations so that we can process 6 teams at a time. I need to compile the materials and label them for the 6 stations. Then I need to provide instructions to the judges so that they know how to run the challenge.
For those not initiated into the DI code world, and instant challenge is a problem that the kids have to solve within a very short time limit. For example, the kids had to build a 12 inch bridge with only two supporting points, using only 6 straws and 25 paper clips. They are given points for whether the structure meets the criteria (12 inches and 2 supporting points), teamwork, and creative use of the objects.
To get through these challenges, the kids need to be able to concentrate, listen, and keep on task for the full 6-8 minutes. Last year, because I was a newbie at this job, I was forced to hold the workshop in the basement of a theatre. It was one big open room and the kids had a hard time concentrating. So this year, I was prepared and got use of the whole school for both workshops. We would locate each IC station at a different corner of the school so the kids could work in peace.
This adds to my job the task of finding locations, assigning them to the judges and then communicating a performance order to each team. Not being a detail oriented person, this whole package takes me days and lots of effort. But I completed it last night and arrived at the school with all my schedules and plans and materials. I set every thing up and while doing so, I noticed that the school was a bit dirtier than it usually is at this time of night. Floors were swept, but the piles of debris were still on the floor, not yet cleaned up. I also noticed a half page advertisement for lice shampoo on a cafeteria table.
Sigh. I'm going to need to rework two of the challenges. One requires a team member to wear a blindfold. Moving the blind fold from one head to another through 4 teams will increase the risk of passing lice. Another challenge requires the building of a sandwich on the head of a team member who is inside the middle of a 6 foot diameter circle. OK, so I've already figured out how to create fake food items so that those who have religious objections to pork will not be offended by having pork on their heads and those allergic to wheat and eggs will not break out into a rash from the bread. Now my fake felt food will become a lice transmission device. What now?
Finally, 1 minute before our start time, the janitor approaches me and tells me that they have sprayed all of the classrooms with a lice killer and it might cause breathing problems for anyone with asthma. One of our team managers is already having problems breathing.
I've got 40 kids ready to do instant challenges and we have to reset all of the instant challenges in the cafeteria. Finally we get started and the first IC goes on without a hitch. I'm starting to get comfortable, though my team has decided that this is all just a joke and they can fool around through it.
We all finish up our tasks and get ready to move on. I find my next station based on my schedule and get the boys started. Another team manager approaches me and tells me that someone else was doing their challenge they just picked up a different station that was not being used. I think it through and realize one of the 6 teams didn't show. So there would be one empty station for each IC time. It will work out.
It turns out that one team manager had decided that since all the stations were in a single room, she could just move around the room in a circle. While everyone else was trying to take the ICs in the order they were assigned. Basically, we experienced a collision in schedules and by the end of the night, all hell broke loose.
The best laid plans of mice and men...
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
A stiff wind
One big difference about living in Ohio is the wind. I never in my life experienced the kind of winds we get here in the spring and fall. There are many nights I simply don't sleep, convinced that the house is going to blow away. I keep the TV on and watch the little weather warning map to see when we will be freed from the high wind warnings -- or tornado warnings sometimes.
Ike was the monster of all high wind storms. Like a typical non buckeye, I wanted to hide inside and keep the path to my tornado shelter clear while neighbors were outside walking around dodging falling limbs. There was something about the warmth and humidity that day that softened the feel of the winds tricking folks into thinking that it wasn't as bad as it really was. The tree roots facing skyward in my backyard were enough proof to me that man should not be out in that one.
These thoughts all came back to me a couple of weeks ago as we battened down the hatches for another wind storm. This one brought with it a cold air mass after a few days of unseasonably warm muddy weather. Again, the winds were very strong, but because the trees were nearly all leafless, they survived the storm. Except for the evergreens that toppled and snapped.
As I weathered this storm, I resolved to update you on the state of the root balls in our backyard. You may remember that two poplar trees in our yard were felled by the storm.
This was the view of our yard the day after Ike passed through.
After a few days, DH bought a chainsaw and started cutting the wood from the tree in the previous picture. It is actually the only one of the trees on our property. The other tree was a couple inches into the greenbelt behind our land. So this tree was our first priority. Additionally, it landed on our neighbor's shed, so we felt we needed to clean it up.
Miraculously, when DH got to about 8 feet from the roots, the tree slowly tipped back up. It now stands in our back yard with a bird house on top. Maybe some day we will cut it down further, but for now, the 8 foot tall stump is a big improvement over the roots reaching to the sky.
So, DH cut the tree in the greenbelt back hoping that it too would pop back up. But alas, it stayed tipped over and we began to think we would have to string some colored lights on it next winter. It had become a fixture of our backyard landscape. It was fun to show it to people who visited from out of town. They could see some of the might of Ike.
But on Christmas morning when we all came downstairs, DH noticed that the other tree had popped back up. After a couple days of rain the ground was very soft and the wood from the roots must have softened up enough to become flexible again, because now the tree was righted.
It looks much better but the boys are disappointed that they don't get to climb around on it anymore.
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