10-NOV-2006
Tender testosterone
These two are constantly fighting, arguing and competing. Moments of kindness and tenderness are rare.
Bigger brother wanted littler brother to see a light saber he found on the internet. You can find anything on the internet, kids have a new frontier on the internet.
Competition, comparison, battle, inclusion, rivalry, admiration, continual and constant power struggle and balance.
I treasure these small and infrequent moments. Not the best picture but absolutely the best moment.
05-NOV-2006
Fall Garden
Things I did today;
Mowed the front, side and back yards. Cleaned out the riding mower blade
deck, lots of old grass and crud inside.
Used the trim mower on the side yard and back yard. Mulched down the green
bean plants.
Removed tomato baskets from dead plants. Brought up to garage for winter
storage.
Emptied bags of leaves that kids gathered last week and put them on the
garden for mulch.
Took a few pictures of garden and various pretty weeds in yard.
Planted 12 tulip bulbs and 48 small Iris bulbs, the Irises were done
quickly. Watered them as directions said after planting.
Washed both dogs, treated both dogs ears and trimmed mats from both.
Did approximately 6 loads of laundry, can't remember exactly how many.
Washed kids bedding that they took to slumber thing last night, smelled suspect.
Washed all dog bedding and replaced.
Made 48 cupcakes for birthday girl to take to school tomorrow for her birthday in
school. Packaged them and put them in car for transit.
Prepared insurance claim for flu shot, addressed envelope.
Did lesson plans and parent letter for the week.
Bathed and/or supervised showers for all five kids.
Put away some of the dried laundry.
Made dinner, baked chicken, rice with broccoli and garlic bread. Did dishes
after.
Made three lunches and mine. Two are having school lunches
tomorrow.
Did one more load of laundry with kids clothes, they were near to a
neighbor's leaf fire and all their clothes smell of smoke.
I am sitting down to the computer and hoping to have no interruptions during
Desperate Housewives.
25-OCT-2006
Soybean Sky
I surely missed the corn this year. Crop rotation, I guess is necessary. Corn is much prettier than soybeans, even when only the stalk is remaining.
Wolf Awareness week has passed and Halloween is near. Jerry Springer is not dancing anymore and now crying. Such a gallant person. Love this show as much as cornstalks.
Onto the Tigers, may they bat better tonight, the rain stop and the kids quit coughing.
24-OCT-2006
It seemed like a good idea at the time.
I have rarely done impulsive acts and have always suffered the grief of to do or not to do.
Not so this child. He's teaching me and I'm teaching him some dance of balance.
He put his lip on a bare lightbulb in a small table lamp much abused by various children here.
I asked him why he thought that might be a thing to do. I put no adjective "good" or "bad" before the word thing, just wanted to know his thoughts.
The same day a good friend sent him this shirt.
My oldest son once put his tongue on the freezer container in the local grocery market. That's another story but similar experience.
14-OCT-2006
Sent to me
I believe that God sent me this beautiful morning sky because she knew I was having a hard few days and she wanted me to notice something pretty.
This time of the year is so hard for me. Despite all plans I made mentally to reduce anxiety and stress, here I am again.
My Dad would say that when you are down, there is nowhere to go but up. I try to remember this but he would also tell me that there is no such thing as a split end (hair, he was a barber). I remember showing him my split ends in the table lamp light, he was amazed. Or maybe he just placated me because his eyes were in the same advanced state as mine are now?
It was so cold this morning, gave global warming a scare. Probably temporary and next week the kids will be looking for their flipflops and shorts again. Don't know.
I did feel the cold wind of ghosts this week.
06-OCT-2006
Last Glory
The kids noticed the frost on the ground this morning, it was lovely despite our feelings of agony and pain at having to get up, get ready and get going for school. The white on the green was striking. I've been covering up my Morning Glories on the fence with an old blanket but this won't work for long, the edges of the glories are marked with the future.
Before something comes new, something else must die a frosty end. How to reconcile the flames of beauty, glory and short time? Each year they are more beautiful than the last even when the weather is not kind and they are small in response.
If you could keep them, freeze them as they are, the beauty would not be as striking, the absence and time in between is what we forget and cherish.
04-OCT-2006
Great Lakes Homework
I get a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon emailed to me each day. The last few days Calvin has been very distressed because his evil teacher wants him to do a leaf collection. He has to collect fifty leaves. Hobbes tries to tell him that this is no problem. Calvin says yeah but his teacher wants each leaf to be different. Hobbes again tries to convince Calvin that this will be easy if he starts and gets a few leaves every day. Of Calvin only wants to live in the present and sees this as a great waste of his time.
I have a Calvin here. Homework is an evil machination to take away his time and soul. Doing a little bit at a time and managing responsibilites takes overwhelming effort. I've tried to get him to a little bit of this project each day, it is due on Friday.
It has been an overwhelming effort on MY part to get him to do it.
I did see a faint, ever so slight smile on his face tonight as he reaches the end product.
Sigh, that feeling of accomplishment is so cool but so hard to get to.
02-OCT-2006
October storms
Lighting spread across our skies this morning, we left for school in the pitch dark and pouring warm rain. It thunderboomed all morning as my computer weather alert went crazy up and down.
We discussed security at our staff meeting after school in regards to all the crazy new items this week. I thought the kids were actually in more danger waiting at the bus stops this morning standing under a tree with their shiny metal umbrellas. But they all made it safe to school and safe home.
The sky opened up in spite of the clouds and we saw some late day sun, this after a way too late nonsensical meeting.
25-SEP-2006
Late summer melon
Our neighbor brought a shiny green watermelon over for the kids tonight. I've never liked watermelon and prefer canteloupe or "muskmelon" as my mother called it. Watermelon is tasteless to me. And sticky. And has all those seeds. I've seen seedless watermelon in the store, but that seems a trick of some sorts and does not appeal to me either.
But the kids love it. They were caught spitting seeds at each other till I hollered at them. Fall is way too early this year. My petunias have all gone to seed and have that paler green color. Maybe this means winter will be stronger? I am the strongest one of all was how a first grade story went in our last basal series, somewhere on my shelf at school.
24-SEP-2006
Red light minutes and too many spy kids.
All weekend I was planning to write about the massive time I've spent waiting at red lights this week, too much driving. But then the weekend came and a cold followed me. Had a 102 temp on Saturday morning, so after medicating with Miller Lite, which I should not have done, I did nothing much. Little brother looked at me and said, "are you going to have another baby?" (does he associate illness with pregnancy? too much tv, I suppose.)
Big brother said, "no way, five is enough kids. We don't want to be like those
people who had twelve, you know, Cheaper by the Dozen?"
Little brother, said, "yeah".
Kids played flag football, big sister came and got them and saved me, again. Today I was going to lay down the law or holler alot and make them clean but decided against that as well.
They watched Spy Kids for the millionth time and made messes and enjoyed their day. Tomorrow is "ghoul" as the little brother says, he has trouble with his beginning sounds. Loved Bree's description of an orgasm, too, too funny.
How did it get to be fall so quick? Spring will be quicker, right?
15-SEP-2006
Do you remember, the very first September
Second week of school is over, finished and gone. Dibels are done. Lawn is mowed. Big Brother is over. Momma's birthday is passed.
One of my new firstgraders informed me that George Clooney is our president. We can dream, right?
Mornings are brutal, days fly by though. Messes are in large quantities, evening hours are in short supply.
September status report.
08-SEP-2006
What are you doing for Wolf Awareness week?
I was asked this way too early (for me) this morning. As I was helping kids get started on their day and finishing their school breakfasts and ordering lunches and taking attendance and assigning student account numbers to classroom computers to new teachers and greeting sleepy children and their parents.
I try to be patient and polite but I know I had a very glazed over look on my face. Wolf Awareness? Huh? There is something I should know about wolves this early in the morning? Surely all the wolves are sleeping in now as all the little human children are back in school and the zoo keepers and farmers are doing something for the wolves. Aren't they?
October sometime is Wolf Awareness week. Do I have any plans? Actually I am still wondering how I am going to teach the kidlets how to do centers and discern who knows their sight words and who is ready to read Dickens/Tolstoy, I have no plans to raise awareness for wolves at this moment in the morning.
We did see some Mexican wolves at Binder Park this summer, did they know that October was their awareness week?
Probably just a collision of brains that are still in sleep modes.