And she's off...

Well...it's actually been a week.

Tuesday before last, Grandma's dear friends Gigi and Baba (names changed cuz it's how I roll) pulled up in their 5th Wheel to sweep Grandma back to Arizona. Thankfully they didn't sweep her RIGHT away, or there would have been far more tears.

They stayed in the area until Saturday morning. We did a few things with them of which there were no pictures. They play the most interesting game of Yahtzee ever.

But on Friday night, we decided to have a fakey little Thanksgiving Dinner. Just your basic rotisserri chicken with the fixings that we LIKE to make, like cranberry sauce and mashed taters and soooped up stove-top-ish stuffing...and salad, cuz I didn't feel like any actual-prep-needed veggies...and sparkling cider. We pulled out the pretty glassware and the pretty-but-plastic everyday...ehem "china"...and the same old, mismatched, nicked cutlery we use everyday and had a real meal with these people that we've grown to love so much and adopted as another set of grandparents.

It was great. Really REALLY great.

And then Miss Baba pulled out one of her passions to share with the girls.

Miss Baba is a rock person...rock collector...rock cutter...rock placer-into-pretty-settings-and-make-actual-jewelry-out-of-something-that-used-to-be-just-a-rock person...And she had a lot to show us. Sadly, she hadn't brought any of the finished jewelry. It was already packed to go...we'd gotten to see it earlier in the day back at the RV...but no pictures. Sad.

She started with just Beanie and Bear...

But it wasn't a terribly long time before she'd sucked us ALL in...


We sorted and wetted SO many stones. You wet the cut stone to see how it will looked when it's polished. And I, for one played with them...looked at the light shining through them...


Lined up Bubba's head so it looked like I was about to SQUISH it as I was admiring the rock...in the second one the boys actually KNOW what I'm doing...hence the laugh...


HA! Mr. Gigi, I SQUISH your head!


This is my favorite one...I love that color blue...A.LOT. It is also nearly the color of my daughter's bedroom ceiling which I also love A. LOT. You know, she still won't let me move all my stuff into and take over her room so that I can look at it all the time. (sigh)


We had quite a good time with that. But there was another very important person involved in this visit. Well, not exactly a person...but loved...VERY loved.

This is Barley...isn't he sweet...


Well you can't tell from pictures, but he is sweet. One of the sweetest dogs EVER. And Monkey Face LOVED him...and that's saying something as dogs aren't always her thing...


We tried really hard to get a shot of all the girls with Barley to show to Uncle BakerMan, who also loves him...but Barley wasn't playing with us. He's a little old and a little sore and he just wanted to EAT or SLEEP...So Miss Baba fed him while the girls cheesed it up...


And in the end...Barley didn't want to go. He found our kitchen floor MUCH to his liking and Bubba had to lure him out with the promise of mashed potatoes...


And the next morning we dropped Grandma off and followed along beside them for a ways as they set out...


So Grandma is back in Arizona now for awhile. We expect her back some time in December for Christmas fun.

As I was putting this together, I really wanted a picture of Grandma and the girls as the closing shot. All I could find was this one...well, it's actually a set...and it would have been taken last Thursday night...but...teee heee...look at how silly it is. We call Beanie "strange-alien-child" when we see her dressed like this and I'm positive that were she another year older she wouldn't want me taking ANY pictures in this state. But as I inadvertently managed to get a whole series, I'm taking this one opportunity!! WOOOO HOOO!!! So this is for the Grandma and her goofy girls...



Look while you can, because I'm certain that when she's 13 she'll make me take it down.

See ya around...

One of these things is not like the other...

One of these things just isn't the same...



Please notice my children sitting like little lumps on the couch (they are watching Scooby Doo, if you must know). Also notice that they are ALL wearing glasses. The third thing you will not remember if you've ever met my children or followed my blog is my children ever wearing glasses other than in a sunglasses fashion sense.

Today was the last day of our first quarter break and we set out to the mall to accessorize with whatever monies they had left from their piggy banks. On the top of each of their list was a pair of fashion glasses.




Why there is a fashion that includes real LOOKING glasses eludes me. As a long time glasses sufferer...it's just not a fashion I can wrap my head around. I mean there are really cute little fake glasses out there...but I spent my childhood being called four-eyes and fearless fly (thanks Dad) and having people ask why the doctor didn't at least scrape the word "coke" off the bottle before he put my lens in the frames...who CHASES that kind of joy? ALL THREE OF MY CHILDREN.

So we were on our way to the mall this morning so that they could BUY some fake fashion glasses...But we had a slight hiccup. Something happened other than what we planned.

I have suspected for a while that Miss Bean might need glasses. I've worn glasses since I was 7...that's 32 years to hone my "I-think-you-need-glasses-radar"...but she was a weird case. She doesn't squint or rub her eyes excessively like others I've seen...she just really REALLY doesn't like to read. She does it fine. But she has some weird reversals and stuff. About 3 weeks ago, I knew we had to at least CHECK. She was having a really hard time with comprehension in her new science book unless she was reading aloud...

So I started researching insurance stuff, cuz of course it changes year to year. But I had made NO plans as of this morning. This morning we were going to the MALL not the eye doctor.

But guess what, there was an eye doctor in the mall that I just happened to know was on my new insurance...and it was one of those can-have-your-lenses-in-about-an-hour places...so we ended up with not one but TWO eye appointments. Both Bean and Bear got their eyes checked. And sure enough...Beanie needed a prescription.

The eye doctor also thought she saw something wrong with Beanie's eye so she dilated them. So pretty...sorry the lighting is so bad...I tried it a couple different ways and just couldn't get it to show HOW big her pupils were.



Turns out she also has a cataract in there. They are unsure exactly WHY it's there...possibly it's been there since birth or some injury (although I can't think of one)...so we'll be watching it but it doesn't affect her vision. If you feel like praying that it's nothing, I'd appreciate it.

Her prescription is really just for reading and it's not corrected as far as it will be, but the Doctor thought it would be better to work her up to her full prescription over six months or so.

The silver lining is, of course, Beanie didn't have to spend her money on fake fashion glasses...she got the REAL ones that mommy took care of...and they are still pretty cute...and they are green which is a huge plus for my girl right now. They are WAY cuter than my coke bottle ones of the late 1970's and early 1980's even IF my glasses had a cute kitty cat sticker...and WAY lighter...those coke bottle bottoms are HEAVY.

Her sisters still bought the fake ones. I think getting glasses might just be easier when your sisters get some too...besides she gets to say things like, "Mine are REAL and yours are just for dress up." which is ever so endearing...

So here she is with her new beautiful glasses...huh, I guess you CAN see the dinner plate sized pupils in this shot...



She's pretty happy about them and can't wait to tell her friends...I'm pretty happy to have it done, even though it made for a really long day.

Hazaar for our newest Fearless Fly...

See ya around...

Our Secret Day...

We are on a first quarter break this week and we are doing nothing but stuff we wanna! Well, or stuff we've put off for a long time that we wanna but haven't had time.

For instance...I FINALLY took the girls to the nail place that I've been promising since Bear's birthday in February. We finally had a moment to breathe and gathered a couple of good friends and off we went.



But today. Today was a secret. Nobody knew what we were going to do...including the children and Bubba (well, Grandma knew and I told Beanie on Monday).

For months and months we've been working on the house. MONTHS AND MONTHS. And today, we did something that we've been trying to find time to do since MAY. I didn't want to tell anyone 'cuz I wasn't positive that I could pull it off...either with timing or manpower.

Thankfully, I called a friend of mine who also happens to clean my house...Miss M., we'll call her. I said, "Could you, would you, help me?"...well she could and would...and did indeed, show up this morning at 9:00am. By the time she got there Grandma and I had cleared something out...and then were taping some other stuff...and we were still in a quandary on what to do on some other stuff (you wouldn't think that ceiling fans would make for such interesting conversation). Miss M. was unable to completely answer all of our questions...so SHE called her hubby who just happened to be home...and in short order we were directing Mr. G. to our door.

And OOOOOOOOHhhhh, are we glad that they came. Because I learned a million things that I never knew before and we were able to complete something in about 6 hours that probably would have taken me more than a day by myself...

What did we do?

You really want to know?

Do you have any guesses???

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Well, I guess that I can tell you now...I mean, it's not like you are going to actually answer me in time for me to toy with you...besides...I did call this "The Secret Day" so it would be rude not to out my secret...

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So...drum roll please...

check it out...





That's right we ALL painted.

Here is the first time we painted that room...this is Beanie at 4...right after we moved into the house...

Notice that the walls are purple...



In all these years...this wall hasn't changed much, but it's a great for comparison.

Again...before...



And here is the after...the young lady room that we've been "working on" since May when she got her new bed spread...check it out...



and here is that wall again...



I have to say...the 16 year old in me is GIDDY at the color of the ceiling. Seriously, I'd lie there and stare at it if that kid would get out of the way.

Oh, and by now, Bubba has seen it and so has Beanie's best girl friend from down the street. It has received the seal of approval from Bubba...and even better the ear-piercing SQUEAL that only a ten or eleven year old girl can bestow with such clarity.

I owe a SERIOUS thank you to Mr. G and Miss M. without whom I'd have had to learn some of that stuff on my own...and who wants that?

See ya around...

Charlie's Angels 2010

My neighbor is so wonderful. A week or so ago, Beanie was playing outside and the little boy next door shared a REALLY cool play cell phone with her. This phone struck her heart. She was full of descriptions of this phone. "It's so COOL, Mom...it looks just REAL! I could pretend to text and everything." (She is a little disappointed in my apathetic view of texting which she believes might be nearly the most exciting thing she will EVER experience, aside from MAYBE her wedding. 11 year olds, you understand...but I digress.)

Well, it turns out that this "play" phone is actually a "blank" or "dummy" phone from the cell phone store...these are what they use as floor models and they are essentially a cell phone without the guts.

About 3 days ago my neighbor showed up with THREE of these little babies...and OOOOOOOO lemme tell you the fun the girls have had. They have been talking on them...setting up spy meetings...calling the Amazon River Valley...and calling out for Chinese food...pretending to be stranded like in "Man, Woman, Wild"...but with a cell phone (as it should be).

They've also decided to bedazzle them. Now, not REAL bedazzling...but shiny stickers do the trick in a pinch.




The question is...will they learn to stop playing with them while they are supposed to be doing school work BEFORE I lose my mind. I don't know how school teachers get anything done with so many of the kids having REAL phones.

I've gotta say, I'm a little jealous of one of the fakes...it's REEEEALLY cool...and my real phone is showing it's age. Maybe I'll bedazzle it so I can join the "Angels".



See ya around...

A Plague of One...

The weather has been a little cooler here. With a couple of good sized storms behind us, I think it's probably safe to say that our days of 100+ degrees are probably finished for 2010.

With the cooler weather comes the WANT to be outside in all of us...it's kind of like "spring fever", only for fall...or nearly fall.

So we've been outside a lot...hooping...watching the clouds...and checking out the wildlife.

We have watched the wonderful aerial displays of dragon flies every night. And there haven't been less than a dozen at any given time...and one time I counted twenty-three. It was a little nerve-wracking right at first because they are HUGE and get really close to us...I think that we must scare up bug life that they like to eat because they come out every time we are out there.

And then there are the grasshoppers. They are EVERYWHERE! We have this little bug pop-up tent that the girls keep filling up with grass hoppers and then letting them go, and then filling it up again.

So catching a grasshopper isn't really that big of a deal in our yard...but check this out...



Not impressed? How 'bout this one...



That is my kid's toe. Surely just the whim-wam factor has to impress a little. I mean, I'm not afraid of grasshoppers...I've even caught them...but to let it crawl around on me...(shudder)...no THANK you!

So she found this beast today...and they made best friends. Did I ever mention that Beanie's middle name should have been Doolittle?



But I did have a little bit of vindication...

After a few minutes of this...



and then THIS...


She also got the whim-wams...and had to find a new place for her friend...a new place that was not TOUCHING her. WOO HOO! I'm not the only "girl"...I hate being the only "girl".

Maybe it's only a grasshopper...but it sure puts a new pin in "plague of locusts" for me.

See ya around...

Accentuate the Positive...

So...hmmmm...yesterday, five days from my first hooping try, I still could not hoop around my waist. VERY irritating.

I got online at a new forum I just joined and said something along the line of "WAAAAAAAAHHH...my 7yo is so much better than me...why can't I hoop...WAAAAAAHHHH!" They took pity on me and gave me a ton of pointers...chief of which was "make the hoop bigger and heavier".

I also got some advice on how to tape the hoop to increase the friction and what type of clothing to wear...both more form fitting and natural fibers, and how to move within the hoop, how to place my feet, etc.

SO...this morning I made me a BIG 'Ole Hoop...it reaches my chin...which is about 60" across(I'm very tall, don'tcha know). Then we put 3 cups of water in it and taped up the connection (it still leaks badly, but it's hot, so we don't care). As for the other stuff, I've gotta wait until I can acquire the materials.

And guess what!!



That's right, I can hoop! And what's more, I'm STARTING to be able to catch it when it's on it's way down...



It's AWESOME! I can't tell you how great it is to have a little success after 5 days of trying. YEAH!

And what's more? Grandma is doing it MUCH better, too. She was having a hard time keeping it going like she wanted.

Check her out!!! (Can I just say how much I love this picture?)



Grandma is so much better that she has taken to taunting our reigning champ. Let's just say Bear did not take the challenge lying down...



I'd say that Bear is probably safe in her title for awhile...

See ya around...

Hoopsi-Daisy...

For the last month or so I've been caught by the "hooping" bug. What's hooping you say? Well, hmmmmm, let's see...here is an example from a blog I follow...

(From The Happy Hoop)

Sara's Hooping Practice - 6.4.10 from Sara Janssen on Vimeo.

Basically it's dancing...hmmm...well, basically it's hula hooping...well, as you can see, it's sort of a combination of the two. As you look around for "hooping" on youtube and the like, you find scores of various styles of this...and it has intrigued me.

But because I'm a pretty frugal gal...and because I know that with three daughters NO hobby of mine will be independent from them for a few years yet, I'd put off buying a grown-up hoop. As a matter of fact...my mommy was scolding me just the other week because I hadn't done anything about my fascination.

And then I found this... How to Make a Hula Hoop. It's actually SUPER easy. On the first of September we made 5 hoops of various sizes...but we don't have tape for them yet...we have to shop around a bit...there are some really sparkly tapes that I have my eye on. Still black is OK for practicing...

And practice we have.



Now let me give you a run down on the skill level of each of us...This is only day 3 of actual hooping, mind you...

Monkey Face can sometimes get it going around her waist for a few twirls...


She can perch upon her momma while her momma is laying in the grass trying to get an up-shot of her sister...


And she can annoy the snot out of any sister in the middle of concentrating on learning a new trick...I am only posting this at full length so that you too can be amused by the face Bear makes as the camera stops...cracks me up...
(:33)



As of today Beanie is beyond me. But we started ABOUT the same.

-Neither of us had our hips (she totally does now...I do not)

-We both can do our arms and can switch hands...

-We are also both tall enough to swing the hoop over our heads and at least attempt to jump through it...the little girls aren't really tall enough to swing it and then swing it down and jump.

-And both Bean and I started on our necks at the same time...alas, she is much closer to perfecting the trick than I...

But then again, someone needs to hold the camera...so I guess I'm taking one for the team.



Both of these shots were just lucky, the first SHOULD have blurred but didn't, the second she SHOULD have dropped it...but for the first time, she didn't...plus I love her expression looking over her shoulder at me...very cool.


And then there is Bear. I won't say that she is better than any of us...but I will say, she has NO fear. And by nature of that fearlessness she will try ANYTHING and so far most of the stuff has worked. She started out with a benefit...she could already hoop at her waist...I don't know where she learned it...she just can. Of course now that I think about it, so can Grandma...huh...maybe it's one of those "skip a generation" thingies.

These were the up-shots I was working on before Monkey Face perched upon me...





So there it is. Our big "project" of the week. It really is so much fun. And yes, I'm hooping right along with them...and actually hooping when they are not looking as much as I can...it's nice to practice something that's just fun.



See ya around...