Thanksgiving Cinderella

We had a lovely holiday. Drew took Wednesday and Friday off, so it was a five-day relaxation extravaganza at our house. This year we splurged on a loaf of black walnut povitica (served with scrambled eggs and little oranges) for Thanksgiving breakfast. And in the afternoon, we went to Elizabeth's house for Thanksgiving dinner.

Her turducken turned out beautifully, and was really quite tasty, esp the duck part. There were all the usual fixings: a regular turkey, stuffing, gravy, two kinds of sweet potatoes, one Chipotle spicy, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce. I brought brussels sprouts, green bean casserole and biscotti (thanks, Megan!). The latter were a hit even though I was "competing" with a fab Nutella yule log cake that E's sister Em made, with these adorable little marzipan mushrooms that their BIL sculpted. Sorry, I was too busy eating and talking to get a picture.

After dinner a lot of the adults, nearly a dozen, had to be dispatched into the backyard (with flashlights) to help find G's shoe, which she lost in a monstrous pile of leaves. Though I didn't see it with my own eyes, Drew tells me it was maybe 20ft x 20ft (the size of our living room?), not particularly tall. (While they were diligently looking, G, reportedly, kept frolicking without a care.) Unfortunately, the shoe will probably spend the entire winter there. For her part, G limped around in her remaining shoe the rest of the evening like it was the most natural thing.

Nerd Humor

Drew's prof told this joke in class on Tuesday:

He wrote the number "10" on the board and said, "There are ten kinds of people in the world. Those that understand binary; and those that don't."

:)

Here Comes the Bride

One morning, BB was rushing down the stairs dressed in her Cinderella nightgown calling, "I'm going to go get married".

Drew: Who are you getting married to?
BB: Ummm... (Up until recently, she'd reply "nobody", but I set her straight saying she had to marry a boy, like a prince, or it wasn't a marriage.)
G: You, Daddy! You're a boy so she can marry you!

Daddy Finds A(n Expensive) Way

In all our years, we've been locked out of our abode only three times: once in Alaska, twice at this house.

I can't remember the circumstances of our being locked out in Alaska, but we had been standing in the foyer debating whether or not we should call the landlady when G, who had been potty training at the time, announced that she had to use the restroom. Drew promptly disappeared out the front door of the triplex, and within a minute, reappeared through our apt's front door. How did he do it? We had one of those mini balconies (without stairs) that evidently Drew was just tall enough to grab hold the edge of and monkey up. Our sliding glass door didn't have a lock, but there was a stick I rarely used, so he easily walked in – comforting, huh? – and was the day's hero.

The first time we found ourselves outside of locked doors here, we had returned from church to find that we had forgot to pack the door key and the garage door opener. (This was before we got the new garage door opener which finally helped us to program the buttons on the car.) Luckily, we had brought Jimmy Johns home because, of course, the girls were hungry; and the weather was delightful, so we were able to sit out on the back deck while supervising Drew's efforts. (Calling the landlady was not an option because she probably didn't have a spare. She once told us whenever she locked herself out, she would climb through the dog door, which was one of the first things I had Drew board up for fear of the girls curiously poking in and tumbling down the narrow stairs on the inside.) After surveying all the windows, he finally decided on muscling the stationary side of the sliding glass door that had yet to be screwed into the frame since the house was built, a happy notion of security. Within an hour of regaining the house, Drew had his toolbox out and was completing the job the contractors didn't finish.

This week, however, required brute force strength, and significantly more than just his regular toolbox (think power tools). I had left Drew at home with the girls to do some last-minute Thanksgiving grocery shopping, and when I returned, I found Drew in the garage with G and BB, locked out, and Z still asleep upstairs in our room. Drew had been busy putting some new shelves together when, apparently, G and BB came downstairs, closing (and locking) the door behind them. They had hoped that I had the key, but I did not. Once again, Drew surveyed the house, and rather than wait for a locksmith, during which time Z would wake up, and though she usually doesn't fuss, she'll eventually come to it if no one comes after some polite requests, he decided to kick the door down. Literally. If you've never seen it done, it can be quite exhilarating because the whole time you expect that the frame is going to burst apart, like you see in the movies, splinters flying in all directions, door flat on the floor. Instead, our frame held and the door buckled where the knob is: it took about four or five good kicks. I think we're going to get on the ball about getting us a spare key to hide in the garage...once we get the door fixed.

That First Thanksgiving

We stopped by Elizabeth's house yesterday to see the turducken, but didn't stay long so they could get back to their cooking. The girls were disappointed to not be able to spend more time, so I reassured them that we'd be back the next day (for Thanksgiving dinner).

G: What's going on tomorrow?
Me: Tomorrow's Thanksgiving.
G: Oh! Thanksgiving! Will there be an Indian?

Happy Thanksgiving.

A Slip of the Tongue

Most people won't believe me when I say G talks a lot in the home environ and virtually non-stop during meals, whether because she knows she has everyone's undivided attention or she has no interest in eating. Anyway it was during dinner one evening (last week) that she was monologue-ing away about what she'd learned at school and, in particular, about the upcoming holiday. What got the whole table laughing (with the exception of Z) was when she called it "Stanksgiving".

The Floss of Our Mouths

A month or more ago, I had been brushing G's teeth when I noticed what I thought to be a hole in the top of one her back molars, kind of near the edge. Not knowing what it was I dismissed it until it could further develop into something... It was only a couple weeks ago that I was looking in there again – Drew usually does the nightly brushing – and I found the hole was bigger and pie-shaped. We rarely let the girls have hard candy, and though I know G grinds her teeth a bit in her sleep, I didn't think it was enough to cause this kind of damage.

Originally, we had a dentist appt scheduled for next Monday, but we were lucky to get in on a cancellation yesterday afternoon. The bad news is G's got a lot of stinking "sugar bugs" and the broken one is eaten away in the side-middle so that the top "crumbled" during regular chewing. What gets us right here [in the pocketbook] is that we'd taken her to a regular (for-adults) dentist last year, spent a hair more than we did yesterday to watch a monkey brush his teeth, be lightly prodded with a couple of those scary-looking instruments, and given a pair of star-shaped sunglasses (to keep the exam light out of her eyes) – and we didn't even get full X-rays out of the deal, which I'm convinced would have helped us to prevent at least half the sugar bugs she currently has. We're looking at at least three caps, which you might be wondering, why go to all that trouble for teeth that are just going to fall out eventually. For one thing, these are her first and second year molars that typically don't fall out until 9-11 years old, so there's a lot of potential for infection, pain and more cavities in that time. Secondly, this office advocates keeping baby teeth for as long as possible, since they are space keepers for the permanent teeth behind them. Worse case scenario is that G doesn't cooperate with their treatment and we have to send those teeth to the tooth fairy. (Specialized pediatric dentists apparently like to use "positive terminology" for the more unpleasant elements of dentistry, such as needle or shot = sleepy water; drill = whistle or water toothbrush; decay or cavity = sugar bugs. I can't say which is better since this is my first experience with one, but I'm willing to play along.)

In any event, G went into the examination room by herself without any ceremony, and reportedly was a very good patient, since among other things, they had a TV on the ceiling and she got to pick out a Cinderella toothbrush for herself. It's a pleasant office, as far as the waiting room is concerned, so though I'm not exactly looking forward to it, I don't cringe either at the idea of having to spend a lot more time at the dentist's office (just like in my own youth).

My Baby Prune

In recent months, Z's gone from my least washed child to the most often bathed. I modified a friend's idea by filling a smaller tub for Z to sit in while I'm showering. She loves to scoop and pour, and will often sit in there long after I've gotten out.

All You Saints

Part of our bedtime routine is to set the girls down to a Hail Mary and then ask for that day's saint to pray for us. If there isn't a saint noted, we usually substitute that month's featured saint (on our church-distributed calendar) or anyone that comes to mind, like St Jude or St Francis. Somewhere along the way, BB became particularly attached to St John (the Apostle?), so that just about every night, BB asks for his intercession. Even G gets in on the act by jumping in with a saint that she knows. But recently, BB threw us a zinger: "St Pope". I immediately thought she was referring to either Pope John Paul or Pope Benedict because they're familiar with both their names and photographs, but then I thought, why not go for the gold? Why not ask for the intercession of all the Pope-saints? Yeah, that should pretty well cover us.

Hansel and Gretel

When we were courting, Drew once related a story to me about his being a half-starved airman home on leave visiting his parents and their taking him to Taco Bell for lunch. Of course having learned to wolf a meal down in basic training, he finished his order in record time and proceeded to throw the wrappers away. Upon his return to the table, his parents had disapproving looks on their faces at the mess of lettuce and cheese he'd left in his wake, and reportedly, to Drew's chagrin, his father even shook his head, saying, "I thought we taught you better than this." I often think of that story as a good example of my FIL's half jesting, half serious demeanor and because I sometimes find that not much has changed since then, except now there are the crumbs of three others to sweep up after. In fact, I was joking with Drew after lunch one Saturday that the remains of that particular meal had encircled the entire table except in the slot that I occupied.

Damsel in Distress

My camera's not broken. Lately, I just haven't been in the mood to capture the girls' embarrassing moments.

These last couple of weeks, G's been esp fond of playing quietly in her room – I"m not complaining! –, taking all the clothes out of her drawers and, I think, shopping for them. Whenever I poke my head in or try to ask what she's doing, she gets all bashful and hides. But if I "ignore" her and go about my own business, she'll go prancing around the house in her outfits and, like yesterday, sing at the top of her lungs, a little off-key. Did you ever see the musical West Side Story? There's that song the Romeo character sings, two whole minutes of "Maria, Maria, Maria". That was G, except she was singing, get this, "I love you, I love you, I love you", to whom, I don't know. At one point, I think she had a conversation with BB about being rescued, but this was from the kitchen to their room, opposite sides of the house, and my hearing isn't what it used to be.

Termination Slush

It seems for about a month now, G's been asking me when we're going to get snow and last night we finally got some, just the slightest bit. Most of it didn't even last until mid-morning. But it was there! When the girls came into the kitchen for breakfast, I switched on the porch light and asked them if they saw anything different outside. To see the blank looks on their faces was so anti-climatic – BB ventured a guess that all the leaves on the trees were gone. And when I pointed out the *snow*, it's like they were seeing it again for the first time. G started listing all the gear she'd have to put on in order to play in it: her big coat, boots, the "black pants to wear so she can sit in the snow without her regular pants getting wet", gloves, a hat. But because she had school today and the snow was mixed with rain, I was afraid the snow wouldn't last long enough for her to play in when she got home in the afternoon. What a let down it'll be, I'm sure.

Overheard

I honestly have no idea what G and BB play at when they hole themselves up in their room. It's quiet and they're not fighting so I don't bother them. But when I'm passing their door, which is across from the bathroom, I overhear snippets of their conversation when the door's not shut all the way, and sometimes I get a good laugh. Like this one from last weekend, "May I fart please?"

Like Christmas in November

You know that feeling of waking up to your presents under the tree on Christmas morning? I got that sensation this morning when I found my laundry rack hanging next to my washer. Oh, the loving-husband craftsmanship. Happy Birthday to me (a little early)!

Remembering Our Veterans

Drew; his brother Mark; Mark's wife Cindy;

the FIL; and even my AhPoh and AhGong, my mom's parents.

Small World

Not long after we moved here and started attending Our Lady of Lourdes, I spotted someone in the pews that looked like a guy we went to college with. He was only a passing acquaintance then, someone that we had one or two classes with, and since he was a year behind us and ran with a different crowd, I couldn't say with reasonable certainty that he was the same person. For one thing, this person seemed a lot taller than the one in my memory. There were only some 2500 students at our college, however, and I would say not more than a couple hundred within our dept, so having seen the same faces on a regular basis for years, I didn't think I was mistaken either. As it happens, his wife recently gave birth to their second child, a little girl, whom they were having baptized on Sunday, and we stopped to congratulate them. Before we could move away, the wife burst out, "I didn't catch your name," and she introduced herself, emphasizing the last name, which Drew and I both recognized immediately. We looked over at our fellow alum, and we all just nodded: South Dakota.

Related link: The SDMINES Plates.

The Glow From the Man Cave

On Saturday, Drew built one of the pre-project necessaries for my laundry rack (when he should have been studying). Which would you say is brighter: that light or Drew?

School Picture Chronicle

G's pictures came back this week and they turned out much better than last year's. Oh, to remember how difficult things were in Ms April's class, the complete about face since being in Ms Stephanie's. Can you see the difference? We'll actually be able to give G's picture out this year LOL!

That's Why They Call It Paradise

When we first moved here, I Googled family attractions for Kansas City and one of the top hits was for a place called Paradise Park, which is conveniently located around the corner from our house. Though we've driven past the place at least a million times, we've never been inside because of the price: even if I were to take the girls on Mom's Day Monday when I could get in free with their admission, it would still be $20. But we finally had our first taste of PP on Wednesday when Parents as Teachers participants received free admission for the day. Only the Edutainment Center was open to us, but we had so much fun that we decided to get the PaT-discounted season pass.

The girls probably had the most fun at the pretend restaurant making pizzas; the water play station; outside in the adventure garden; and face painting. There was also a convenient little soft play area for Z. As the parents, we esp liked the layout of the building: lots of places for adults to sit out of the way and still be able to keep an unobstructed eye on kids.

Head-Sitting

One quiet afternoon when my mom was still a-visiting, BB awoke abruptly from her nap, crying and screaming as if from a really horrible nightmare. AhPoh went rushing in to find Z, who had sneaked into the room and crawled up on BB's bed, sitting on BB's head. I don't think it was a premeditated head-sitting – her head just happened to be convenient to the purpose. AhPoh declared it was at the same time one of the funniest and meanest things she'd seen. Of course, it got me to thinking about the justice of it: in their own time, I can remember when BB sat herself on a reposing G's head and when G did the same to my snoozing noggin. So Z was only taking her place in the line of family head-sitters.

Four Months of Therapy

I'm often asked, when speaking of Z's therapy, how I think she might have developed without the intervention. I had occasion to speak of it with her physical therapist at our appt last week and she told me, in cases like Z's where the delay has nothing to do with, say, autism or Down's, therapy concentrates on how to get to standing properly (as an adult would rather than in the upside-down-V fashion); specific "exercises" to improve core strength for standing and walking; not flopping to sit but carefully lowering oneself down to the ground (as an adult would); and in the end, gaining about one or two steps on what she might have accomplished on her own. Being in therapy certainly has made me more aware of Z's progress, esp in the little things. Momentum was slow to build at first – for nearly a month we plateaued at pulling to stand and she was naturally cautious of lowering slowly –, but lately I see targeted improvements, e.g. raising onto her knees, standing from a sitting position on a low stool, come to fruition within two weeks. Another sign of her burgeoning strength is her new passion for climbing on formally insurmountable furniture.

In-the-Meantime Quilt

Since it'll probably be months and months before I finish quilting my Sunbonnet Sue (not to mention binding the edges, which are fraying from constant use), I decided to try this little quilt project: I used six fat quarters so I wouldn't have to do any cutting – it ended up roughly the same size; and the backing is an unbleached muslin. The tutorial says quilting is unnecessary, so I left it, because I know from experience what can result when you don't have the walking foot (machine) attachment.

Handy Andy

My birthday's coming up this month and I was led to believe that I would be receiving a homemade laundry rack this weekend. After eagerly scouring Lowe's for all the required parts, I was informed that it would be a couple weekends more before I could put my present to good use: other necessities are currently on order: these things take time. I was going to regale you with pictures of the building process, of the lovingly finished product, but it seems you'll have to look at these pictures from October instead.


I think you can see some of the girls' personalities in their singing styles: BB's is a touch of the reckless abandon, loud and carefree...


G's is careful and "exact" even if her tone is a bit off.

p.s. The girls had a fantastic time trick-or-treating. First, we took them to Drew's former co-worker's house – he retired; 31 October is his wife's birthday so she likes to do it up big – for a spell; we hit up their cul-de-sac; and then they did about a dozen houses in our neighborhood. Z, who had fallen asleep minutes after we pulled away from our house, slept quietly until morning, missing everything including the candy. Sure, you may think me mean, but she's got a lifetime of candy-eating ahead of her, what's a few more months.

Birds of a Feather

Since getting a class pet, a cockatiel named Charlie, last week – the other preschool class has a rabbit –, G's been obsessed with different bird calls and "flying" from the couch. I'll have to get my act together to feed the wild birds this winter – they loved watching all the hummingbirds at our window over the summer.