Oh, THAT'S what friends are for??

So tonight after dinner, Jake advanced on me with hands outstretched.

"Mom, do you know what a Wet Willie is?"

"Ummm...yes."

"Do you want me to do one to you?"

"Ummm...no."

"Well, Luke B. taught me how to do it."

Okay, Luke B.'s mom. You know who you are. Don't be surprised when your son offers to give you a wedgie tomorrow...

The Talking What Book?

Our usual dinner routine includes a lesson to Jake in how to properly sit in his seat. It goes something like this, two or three times per evening meal: "Jake, put your butt in the middle of the seat, with your legs under the table and your feet facing forward. Sit down and stay there while you eat."

Tonight he (finally) sat properly and looked...well, a little short sitting at the table. So I said (making the joke people always made with me as a kid), "Jake, do you need a phone book to reach the table?"

Jake replied, "What's a phone book?"

Silence. Utter silence. Ike and I looked at each other. Suddenly I saw the wrinkles on his face and I could tell he was looking at mine. I was reminded of my childhood, when we walked to school uphill both ways in the snow every morning...Oh wait, that was my dad's childhood.

I explained this bit of archaic history to our son. This phone book thing. "Well, Jake, it's a book people used to use in the old days before they had the internet to find phone numbers. It was just a big book of phone numbers."

Tomorrow I think we'll tackle the concept of a "rotary phone." Or perhaps a "walkman."

Ike, can you bring me my cane and my pills?

Renaissance Festival 2007

Today we ventured to Kannapolis, where the Renaissance Festival is held each year. A good time was had by all, as is the case in every family trip ever throughout history, right? You go, it sorta sucks, but is sorta fun, then you go home and tell everyone it was ALL GREAT. Even the part where your daughter smacked you in the face and yelled, "I ride elephant RIGHT NOW," and it took all your willpower not to feed her to that same elephant. And the part where your son pouted all through the butterfly ride that you made him ride so his sister wouldn't jump out (What self-respecting six-year-old boy wouldn't pout through a ride on a pink butterfly?).

In all honesty, it was how we expected it to be: fun for the most part. And Jake learned this from the day: "Like 8,000 years ago, people died a lot because they had that torture chair."

Yes, 8,000 years ago. The Renaissance.

Most importantly, we took pictures. So here you go.

A quote from Ike while at the festival. "I think it's the cold medicine making me irritable." Sure...we'll call it the cold medicine.


The kids already having fun before we even left the car.


Jake & Annie on the pink butterfly ride. This was the happiest face we could get him to make.


Jake standing with a cute fairy girl. I love the embarrassed look on his face.


Annie kept saying, "My wings! My wings!" when we passed this fairy wing vendor, but does she look happy to be wearing them at all?? I think tomorrow after she's gotten some sleep, the wings might be more exciting.

Renaissance Festival 2007: Part Two

Jake sitting in front of the winning knight of the Joust to The Death. Jake was really into the jousting, cheering and booing along with the best of them.


Since it's my blog, I can post the picture of Ike frowning (above) and then the one of me smiling, as if I was Sunshine Mom all day long. And I was...(Or maybe I'm smiling in this picture because we're almost at the exit...)


Happy kids, being cute. :)

Accidental Playdate Pictures & Annie's Lullaby

What happens when three out of six playgroup moms decide it's too cold for the park? They all end up at the Children's Museum at the same time. And I took pictures. :)




I thought I'd also share the song Annie sang to me as I put her to bed tonight. She's enjoyed going through the list of names she knows since she started talking, but last night she started adding "I love..." to some of those names. Tonight she added music to it. So after I said, "I love you, Annie," she sang

You love me
You love me
You love me
I love Jake
I love Daddy
I love Matthew [Jake's friend]
I love Lynda [Jake's friend's mom]
I love Jake

When I tried to point out that she loves Mommy, she stopped singing and started again with, "You love me, You love me."

I had no idea she'd stop appreciating me so early...

Do As We Do...

Our children are learning by example. I saw it in action with each child today.

While cleaning the kitchen after dinner, I opened the cabinet in which I keep pots and pans. It's Annie's favorite play place these days, and I discovered tonight that she's following in Mommy's footsteps. Her own pots and pans from her kitchen were stacked right inside mine.

I walked into the bathroom tonight to check on Jake during his bath to find him leaning back in the water, reading Bear On Wheels. When I asked what he was doing, he said, "I wanted to read in the tub like Daddy does."

See? We are good parents after all.

Wonder Twins Activate!

I promise I didn't leave the house with my hair in pigtails. But it was worth the ridiculous look to have Annie take my face in her hands, stare at me seriously and whisper, "Mommy, I like your hairs."

Stay tuned for tomorrow when we wear our matching pink tutus*.


*Just kidding. Mine's purple.

One of Life's Great Questions: Unanswered

So...on this day when Daylight Savings has ended, I find myself brewing a second pot of coffee by 8 a.m. and pondering this question:

How old does a child have to be before s/he looks forward to sleeping in that extra hour when we "Fall Back?" At what age does a child stay asleep, rather than awaking at his/her body's usual time...even if it is 5 a.m...?

I cannot yet answer the question definitively, but I can tell you this: A child must be older than (almost) 2 or 6...

Please pass the cream and sugar...

Two More Favorite Pictures

Okay, I couldn't resist adding these two of the kids from Halloween. I think each picture captures the kid.

Dreamy and introspective...


















Wild and ready for candy!

Halloween 2007

I know it's been forever since I've posted. And yes, there are several things I should have written on here, things that I've probably already forgotten.

Tonight I'm posting pictures from our night out last night. We had a great time trick-or-treating with Luke and "Omi" (Annie's name for her friend Naomi) in their incredibly kid-friendly neighborhood. I've never seen as much candy as Jake brought home in his bucket. If he eats one piece a day between now and his 21st birthday, I think he might just get through it all...

Annie didn't get quite as much candy, but that's only because she kept stopping to open candy and eat it. The child was sticky from head to toe by the time we got home.

Enjoy the pictures. :)

Our house, as decorated by Ike and Jake.


Green Lantern and Supergirl, ready for action. Or anyway, ready for candy.


The four kids, ready to go. I love the guys in their action poses. :)


The boys in action again.


Naomi striking a princess pose, while Annie wonders if she'll hand that costume down in a couple of years...