What a difference...

a haircut makes.  Sam, waiting at the bus stop.

Recent Finds on the Camera

Things happen around here that I have no idea about…until they show up amongst the pictures taken with my camera.  Like these:

Now just times this x 100, and you have a photo album’s worth showcasing every individual stuffed toy in this house. 

But wait, there’s more!

 

Kitty wears glasses?

Kitty wears a wig?

Uh-huh, I think we just found the perp. 

But it doesn’t seem to be a arms-stretched out self-portrait.  And in the wig picture, there are obviously two hands in the picture and someone has to be behind the camera so judging by my policework, I’d say we have some partners in crime. 

Interesting Choice in Hand Protection

As a punishment for a little tiff between the two last  weekend, Sam and Caroline were given the job of working together, helping Gary restack a row of wood that had fallen.  They were told to get ready.  “Get your coats.  Put on some gloves.”

When I looked out, I thought that was what I saw.

 

“Sam, turn around.  Let me see your gloves.”

 

Yep, that’s what I thought. 

Mr. Dapper

Sam, Dress Up Day at school today.

This Morning

Look who was left out in the cold as Gary took off for work in his new wheels.  The new one, he’s named it Zippy for now.  I’ll introduce you very soon.

  

The eggplant F150 has been retired to just occasional hauling and camping events. 

Speedometer reads:  177,303

It’s hauled him across the River to work, based on my calculations, roughly 2750 times. 

 

Caroline stayed home from school today and Sam went in to “cheer her up with his hair.”  It looks like it worked.  By the time he got out the door, it was a rainbow faux-hawk fallen over. 

Luckily it is Crazy Hair Day at school.  

Nice Ice, Baby

Here’s Grant Friday night, ready to head off to the Boy Scout Klondike Derby.  He told me he had on seven layers.

 

Jack wasn’t going, but helped out getting everything loaded up.

 

Nice new red scarf, Gary!  Wish I had one.  Oh, I do!    : )

It was freezing rain with a weather advisory in effect, but that just added to the Klondike theme, right?  Grant and Gary, pulling the trailer, took off around 5 pm, but headed back home after determining safety before fun.  Did I say fun?  Camping out in a tent when it’s 15 degrees and pulling around a heavy sled human dog-sled style is so not fun for me, but what do I know?

Well, what I do know is I was mighty relieved when they came back home that night and when they decided not to go the next morning because it was still too icy.  

Little Knucklehead

Sam had not been eating his yogurt that I packed most days for his school lunch.  It’s really sweet stuff so I know he likes it. 

After a couple of days, I asked him if if didn’t like that kind or if he had too much other stuff to eat.  You gotta tell me just what’s going on with skipping the yogurt.

Sam: “You didn’t pack me two spoons.”

One for the pudding, and he needs a different one for the yogurt.

MusicMonday—Black

I hadn’t thought of this song for awhile, but heard it on the radio the other day and since have had it on repeat.  My favorite Pearl Jam song for sure.  For this week anyway.

But yes, wow.  This performance is just excellent and reminds me of this era in my life and it was good times in those early nineties. 

I had finished grad school, had a respectable job that was awesome and rewarding, and bonus!, it followed the school calendar which meant three-day weekends and spring break and summers off.  I was renting a two-bedroom townhouse of my own with a wonderful south window, was traveling around, had great friends and a hot red car and dates and something interesting going on all the time, including loving the grunge.  It was all good. 

(I have to add that I feel to say every era of my life has been good times, fortunately.  I feel lucky about that.)

I remember the very day it clicked, when I heard Pearl Jam and recognized what a force they were, musta been 1992.  I was upstairs with the radio on KSHE while I was getting ready to go somewhere and I heard Even Flow.  I really do remember the moment.  Isn’t that so weird but I guess telling?

I’ve always liked listening to Eddie and told Gary that I’d even go see him on his ukulele tour last year, but of course never shelled out the money to buy some tickets to see him at The Fox.  Maybe my 2012 resolution shouldn’t be so much about eating Mexican at least once a week as stopping letting things I want to do pass me by. 

Stone Gossard wrote the music before Eddie was even in the band.  Eddie added his lyrics and it came together as just a great (but sad) rock ballad.  This line just gets me every time:

I know someday you'll have a beautiful life,
I know you'll be a sun in somebody else's sky, but why
Why, why can't it be, can't it be mine

-----------

It is just entirely coincidence, today’s title and that today we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.   Here’s to love and peace for everyone. 

Wanna Know Something I Love?

This little guy's way he crosses his leg and bounces it while he's lying by me.  Have I mentioned how I really would like to freeze all my kids at the very ages they are right now?  So true.

I Saw Three Levels of Intelligence...

as I watched the kids huddling like cattle out in the weather while I waited in the pick-up line at middle school.  It is snowy and 18 degrees with 30+ mph wind here today. 

Top:  one single girl wearing huge panda head hat that looked completely goofy but very, very warm

Bottom: a boy striving for coolness wearing only a t-shirt

Middle:  most all the other kids including Grant, wearing just an unzipped jacket, refusing the wool hat and gloves that their moms suggested this morning

You Know It's Not Exactly....

Gonna be an easy or fun service call when the voice on the other end says,
Ok, Deeann, tell me about your eeshu.

MusicMonday—Feeling Good

My latest favorite song.  I don’t know what it is but what we use as cool down songs at Zumba just seem to really get into my brain.  Because I am feeling so good when I hear them?  Or because they are really great sounding songs?

Either way…very fun song.  Love the horns.  Noticing that seems to be a reoccurring theme with me, too.  Hope you like it. 

We Interrupt This Quiet Sunday....

With a huge announcement:  Sam has discovered pig.  This morning he found he loves ham. And a couple of nights ago, he ate a whole pork chop and asked for more the next day.  Add in his new love of bagels and the world formerly known as 'corn dog' is slowly but surely expanding.

There's hope, people.  Yay, Sam!

Look Who Lost a Tooth...

today at school. He said he pulled it out himself at the carpet after Ms.Riddle read "The Mitten." 

On My Mind—House in the Works

Gosh, I really don’t find I have anything interesting to share, but I do seem to want to avoid doing my current list of jobs to get done today, so you know I can piddle around here doing something. 

What I think about a bunch lately is just what I want to happen with our new house addition.  I have all these ideas and haven’t been very organized about keeping them straight or in a place where I can go back to when it comes times to make decisions.  I really want to have a well-thought-out house.  Living in one for a year and a half that is the total opposite really makes you punctuate the well-thought-out part.

We have an architect who I have really enjoyed working with to help us sort out our thoughts on what we need to make this into a comfortable home for us and how to make it work aesthetically and structurally on the interior/exterior and also how to accomplish all the changes while we are able to remain still living in the house while it is under construction.  I know when it comes time to choose details and finishes and all those things, I will probably be on my own so I am trying to prepare and give them all some forethought so I am not in a panic when the time comes. 

So, some of my house thoughts right now, just off the top of my head (to explain why they may come off as kinda out there and all over):

Wood floors.  We have two carpeted rooms right now, boys’ rooms upstairs, and I strongly dislike that we have that carpet.  But if it were new carpet, carpet I picked out, maybe I would be open to carpeted bedrooms.  I do think the carpet square idea is a great one considering we had that in the Walton basement, so I have been looking at this site, FLOR.com.  I think something with almost no pile, but a bit of an interesting texture is what I would go for.  But for the cost, I bet I could do better getting carpet remnants locally that would be bedroom-sized.  Still, though, I would like the majority of our rooms to have hardwood and I do love to buy rugs.  And of course I have thoughts on having some tiled spaces: bathrooms, entry, mudroom. 

Windows.  This would be wonderful for our new living room that will have windows facing south and west. Hmm, on second thought, I’m not sure we have that beautiful of a view, though.  I forgot about looking at the neighbors’ across the road houses.  If we had a different setting, I would love this.

So, instead maybe I’d take this in my living room.  I really loved our dining room picture window that we installed at the Walton, just in time for us to move out. 

Front door.  How about something like these?  I just read that you can have an in-swing or out-swing door.  Why wouldn’t everyone do out-swing?  Must be a reason, since I have never lived in a house with an out-swing.  Seems like it would be nice to have the open floor on the inside. 

 

Hmm, will have to research that a little more. 

 

   

My, how time flies when you are thinking fun!  More to come later I’m sure.