Sleds, Tubes and Breakfast Foods

Either they really love us or they are a bit unbalanced.
Or, adorably, both.

Our friends the Tecks once again left the golden warmth of Miami to visit us here, where the snowflakes have been coming at us sideways. The 30 mile drive home from the airport took three hours due to poor road conditions, so when they finally arrived it was already dark.
And Vince had been promised a romp in the snow!
So we outfitted everyone in wool and puffy nylon at nine o'clock at night and had a little backyard winter brouhaha.



In the two days that followed, there was much more snow play, a tubing excursion, and frequent eating of eggs. You should know that Breakfast with the Tecks is on my list of Top 10 Favorite Activities - right behind leading group dances at theme parties.

And speaking of favorites, and groups, here are a choice few of the many photos taken this weekend:













Vince wore his 'big brother' hat very well. He was patient and kind with Lilah and her endless inquiries. She was his constant companion; as a matter of fact, while reading Peter Pan together we compared Vincent to Peter Pan and Lilah to his shadow. I could have sewed her right on to him!



And even more fun than watching those two?
Would be watching these two...



A new Wii game entitled Just Dance was purchased Friday after a glowing recommendation from Jen. I have entirely too much dancing footage on my camera, and lucky for you I am having trouble uploading video tonight. But you must take my word for it: Jer and Bill jiving to 'Pump Up the Jam' left me speechless.

AL

I am a Toaster

Yesterday, my 'To Be Filed' folder was 5 times the size of any of the other folders in our file cabinet.

Jer was concerned that I didn't bring all of the necessary paperwork to our tax appointment.
He was correct.
And then he mumbled that I "used to be really good at this kind of stuff."
I agreed.
I think he also said something about "maybe if I spent less time on the computer..." But then my evil eye scared him into silence.

I swear I used to vacuum twice a week.
The bedsheets were changed weekly and the toilets scrubbed often.
I cooked every night (though some would say not very well) and always offered vegetables.

This house used to run like a well-oiled machine - comparable to maybe a paper shredder or a coffee maker. You get my point, right - something that rarely breaks down.

Lately, though, my caretaking more resembles an unreliable toaster - one that either leaves your waffles soggy or burnt.

I've spent the previous 10+ years being pretty good at the Stay-At-Home thing.
Now I'm ready to be good at something else.

I will still try make sure the kids eat and wash themselves occasionally.
I will never compromise our daily game of CandyLand or the 8 bedtime stories for Lilah.
I will continue to quiz Kirby about school and girls (and he will no doubt continue to make me beg for details)
I will shout out multiplication facts for Max to answer when we're in the car, when he's using the bathroom, and and other random times.
And I will continue to launder, fold and sort (though never iron) Jer's clothes.

But I cannot promise that their breakfasts won't be burnt.
Or, more likely, I'll just serve cereal.

And not even healthy cereal...

WE EAT LUCKY CHARMS EVERY DAY!!
There. I said it.
I am no longer ashamed.

AL

Classy

I mentioned to Jer that we should try and remove the massive icicles hanging from the house.

He agreed and went right to work.

After some careful pounding of the gutter with a hockey stick, those hundred-pound blocks of ice came down no problem.

See?



This is even better than the tacky snowman.

AL

We're All In This Together

In 1995, thanks to a special aunt and grandfather, I lucked into a car with an engine in the back. And consequently, a trunk in the front. With no junk.



Besides the elation of owning my dream car, driving around in this baby blue VW Super Bug also provided me with an automatic membership into the Bug Club.
Similar to the camaraderie that motorcyclists enjoy, sharing a smile and a wave with long haired ex-hippies puttering around in their tiny Beetles was truly groovy.

I felt a tinge of that old sense of fellowship yesterday on my way home from Akron and tried to share a moment with a fellow Taurus, but she got nervous and sped away.



See, I was already feeling nostalgic, having just delighted in hours of conversation with my high school BFF.
And then driving home on the highway, two oncoming cars frantically flashed their lights at me, warning of the Five-Oh straight ahead. Those kind motorists most likely saved me from a large donation to the Clerk of Courts. The grungy old police cars were completely camouflaged by mounds of dirty snow; even in looking for them they almost escaped my notice.

Later that same day, Jer, the kids and I drove to downtown Columbus and had a culturally enlightened meal at the North Market. We paid five dollars to park and only stuck around for an hour or two, so upon leaving we handed off our parking pass to a stranger just arriving.
This was Jeremy’s idea; I wasn’t sure this lady deserved our good karma. She pulled into a handicap spot yet appeared to be walking beautifully. So I asked my husband why he was feeling so friendly and he replied that it had less to do with ‘love thy neighbor’ and more to do with ‘stick it to the man’.
The ‘parking’ man, I suppose.

Both of these episodes, episodes so minor that you’re probably wishing you could get these last few minutes of your life back, reminded me of a bumper sticker, of my bumper sticker actually:



I’ve always thought of it as a nod to our combined global responsibility. But I think it also symbolizes how susceptible we all are to this unpredictably wonderful and simultaneously heart-breaking human experience.
For instance, mothers in Africa and Atlanta all gaze upon their newborn babies with the same blinding devotion. Men in Indonesia and Ithaca both want to earn their keep - to feel the sweaty satisfaction that hard work brings, as well as the resulting pride in feeding his family.
For all of the differences we have, we have just as many similarities.

And I’m willing to bet that Frustrated Families of Five in both Ohio and Oman don’t like to overpay for parking. Nor do they appreciate traffic tickets.

We Road Warriors are all in this together.

AL

P.S. I googled Road Warriors, because that’s just what I do, and I was bombarded with pictures of this 80’s professional wrestling tag team. That’s “Hawk” on the left, and “Animal” on the right.



See, you learned something new. I hope this wrestling knowledge helps validate these last few minutes of your time...?

Renovations

Ohhhhh. It has started. It only took seven years and three kids to get us motivated to do some home improvements. We practiced in our bathroom first. Craig scraped the ceiling of popcorn and put up knock down. I still need to rid the house of the last remnants of wall paper. We put it off long enough.

Craig has scraped the foyer and dining room ceilings. After I paint all the newly plastered ceilings, we are putting hardwood floors in. I'm not sure how long our house will be in turmoil but at least a few weeks. Craig is busy working overtime for a computer update so we only have the lucky few weekends he is off.

I can't wait to post pics of how everything looks. This was long overdue, the green carpet is fifteen years old and the white tile was crazy hard to keep clean.

Wish us luck!

Small Things

"If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way." -Napoleon Hill


So I'm off to do a GRRREAT job of cleaning this bathroom.
(Yes, just like Tony the Tiger.)

AL

She has Good Ideas.

Yes, the cabin fever is starting to set in.

And that is why, right now, I am going to go put on a tutu and eat the heck out of some Oreos.



AL

Rock Em Sock Em

More snow. And lots of it.

My head just might pop off.



Luckily, I have these three *darling* children close by, at all times, to push it back down for me.



Happy Monday,
AL

A (Much) Better Link

I just wasn't satisfied that my A-Z post from last week properly credited Amy K-R. Today I was over-the-moon-happy to discover a new link detailing her latest project.
It's like a cool club that anyone and everyone is invited to join; no secret password needed at this treehouse.
You will enjoy this video, I promise:



Any time strangers are thrown together and made to become something more, I get hopelessly starry-eyed.
I honestly can't verbalize how wonderful I think this is. The Free Online Thesaurus has failed me this time. :)

AL

Oh, and she IS on Facebook after all. I'm working on composing a proper Friend Request now.

Analyze This

What is this glove trying to tell me?

Happy Valentine's Day??

AL

Game Night at the Clevenger's!!

I'm so excited the girls are old enough for cards and games. We've played almost every night this week. We played a version of Uno and they love Bingo the most. Here is a short video on one night.

Emily

Al's A to Z

I am thoroughly inspired by Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life. This book is kooky, ridiculous and wildly entertaining.
The jacket quote: “I have not survived against all odds. I have not lived to tell. I have not witnessed the extraordinary. This is my story.”
Cue Law & Order intro music.

Mrs. K-R, whose married name can be rearranged into ‘Nasty Armhole’(page 37), has compiled an in-depth and expansive list of her life; including a timeline, cross-referencing, and tons of random tables (my favorite being THINGS THAT CONFUSED ME FOR MUCH LONGER THAN THEY SHOULD HAVE).
I was already a fan, due to her adorably witty childrens books, and now I have an especially strong desire to be her BFF. Sadly, we can’t even be friends; she’s not on Facebook - I checked.

Anyway, here’s my personal half-baked encyclopedia of thoughts and experiences thus far:

A – Affluent. Once while playing a board game at the Johnsons’, circa 1998, my duty was to prompt my teammate Jen to guess the word ‘affluent’. My clue was “when someone can speak a language really well, they are….” Right away Jen guessed it – affluent. One of those examples of how something can be right yet incredibly wrong at the same time.... there are so many.

B – Bacon. When I’m frying bacon and the grease splatters up and burns me, I imagine that the pig is getting his revenge.

C – Cash. Finding forgotten cash in freshly laundered jeans makes you feel like the luckiest person in the world. Despite the fact that it was your money to begin with.

D – Dude. This word is so 80’s Surfer Slang. And I didn’t even enjoy Point Break. WHY do I keep using it?!


E – Etienne Tangerine. When I taught at the little preschool in Miami, our youngest student was Etienne Tangerine (her real first and middle names). She had been a preemie and was still incredibly tiny, developing just a few months behind schedule. Despite my best effort, she was pushed around a bit by the bigger kids during her first week at school. Her sweet young parents were concerned and decided to keep her at home a while longer. I was devastated. I wish I had just carried her around on my hip at all times.

F – Fallon, as in Jimmy. Of course I like him. But in regards to his hosting of the Late Show, it is definitely not working for me/him. He’s lacking that borderline obnoxious confidence that I believe the job requires. It’s as if he needs an extremely gorgeous, equally intelligent woman telling him how amazing he is every single night, right before show time.
And I’m just too busy for that.

G – Game Shows. I feel that the continuous viewing of game shows is mandatory when you’re home sick. There is something about knowing that you totally could have won that Showcase Showdown that promotes healing.

H – Homely. This is a word that saddens me. Are they implying that the poor girl is unattractive to the extent that staying home is generally advisable?

I – Incomplete. A very bad word for me, instructors dish these out in college when you think you’re too cool for school, and therefore do not often attend. See also Regret.

J – Journal. Everyone should keep one, however NEVER write your name in it. If it’s ever lost, the anonymity will make it seem much more interesting.

K – Kenny Rogers. Teacher of important life lessons. You really do need to know when to fold ‘em, know when to hold ‘em, know when to walk away, know when to run.


L – My favorite, and only, letter to write in cursive.



M – Melancholy. This makes me picture a frowning melon – cantaloupe, specifically. As a result, I am no longer sad.

N – Numbers. Oddly enough, numbers have always alluded to a gender in my mind. For example, 6 is obviously very feminine, sexy even. 5 is male, brash and vulgar, probably scratches himself and is a baby when he’s sick.

O – Onomatopoeia. The only thing more fun to say than this word are all the words that it defines: boink, cuckoo, flick, plop, squish.
Now say them again, but faster.

P – Pencil. Many people are excited by new crayons, but I much prefer a freshly sharpened pencil. If I have one that is sharpened absolutely perfectly, I must write, write, write. And if I can think of nothing specific to write, obscenities are always my fall back.

Q – Quotes. I love sweet ones and funny ones, profound and silly. I have far too many favorites to choose from, though I recently discovered Yogi Berra and, as a result, the true meaning of redundant. For instance: “This is like déjà vu all over again”

R – Rooster vs. Roster. At 19 years old, I worked in a skyscraper in downtown Jax and continuously referred to a roster as a rooster. As in ‘There’s no one by that name here on my rooster.” My boss finally corrected me, while politely yet unsuccessfully trying to control her amusement.


S – School bus. Bad things happen on the school bus, yet all kids want to ride on one. Or maybe that’s why? An appropriate version of ‘Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten’ would be ‘Everything I Need for Juvie I Learned on the Bus’.

T – Tit for Tat. This expression has always bothered me.

U – Unitard. Horrible, horrible word, horrible garment.


V – Vintage. I am such a sucker for anything described as such. As a matter of fact, I am quite positive that you could sell me vintage gym socks and I’d think I had something really special.

W – Whistle. I honestly believe that a lucky few are born with the ability to whistle while others, like myself, find it physically impossible. This is where my irrational fondness of GNR’s Patience comes in.
Fortunately, what I lack in whistling I make up for in snapping.

X – It’s interesting how x’s symbolize a kiss: xoxox Yet also dead eyes:



Y – Yamaguchi, Kristi. A little-known fact about my husband: He wrote an essay about this famous figure skater on a college placement exam when asked whom he most admired. I wish I could get my hands on that masterpiece.

Z – I do not make this noise when I sleep: zzzzzzz, nor do I ‘honk-shoo, honk-shoo’; though I worry that you, my dear reader, might be currently doing just that.

Ms. Funny Face

I lost Lilah for a few minutes and later discovered these.
She received no assistance from the boys; I think she's just a technical genius.

And cute to boot.

AL

Caribbean Cove Choas!

It was a grand idea. My kids adore swimming and well, it's winter . . . so a waterpark birthday party it was! In hindsight, not one of my brightest ideas - worrying about 12 kids at the same time while inhaling the overwhelmingly toxic scent of chlorine are not the best combination! Overall, the kids were thrilled and I was so exhausted I slept through most of the Superbowl! We were so lucky to have such great friends join us and the kids could not be happier with their wonderful gifts. And yes, through the choas and chlorine I was able to take almost a hundred pictures - who could've guessed that?

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I'm Totally Fine With It

Of course I'm not mad at Jer for being in sunny Florida while I layer even my underwear.

Am I upset that it takes three people to dig the trash can out of the snow and haul it to a white area that we approximate as the end of the driveway?

Am I perturbed that Jer mentions taking a dip in the gorgeous crystal blue water while I gaze out at a freezing expanse of snow and ice?

Am I ticked that I've listened to the original Get Smart theme song 27 times, as Kirby has watched every episode ever made in the last three days?

No, nope and not really.

The single thing that has my layered panties in a bunch is this:



Jer says to just keep plunging. Yeah, well that's not working.
And the plunger part fell off the stick and is now floating around in there.
But the worst part?
Prior to making a sign, yet after explaining to the boys that the commode was off limits, Max decided to do the opposite of not use it. Oh, yes, he used that potty for all it was worth.

AL

What was that? You prefer snow pictures to stories of this nature? Okay, I've got more of those too...

Our Marshmallow World

For non-FBers:

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Love, AL

Speak Softly and Carry a Big Snowball

AL

This is for Al.....

Here is the no touching picture. I was trying to get them in the pjs mom made them and Taylor refused to let Brooke touch her. I don't know what kind of phase this is. I hope it passes before Easter pictures. They look like strangers posing in a foreign country or something.

:) Emily

Secret Life of a Shopaholic Mom and her Twins

Just kidding. I guess if anyone actually KNOWS me they know I am not the shopper. I'm the kid with the Nancy Drew Mystery sitting in the middle of the mall while her mother and sisters run from store to store in the mall. They would come and get me to move down a few benches every couple of hours. I'm actually being quite serious, I'm not even making this up!!!

Today was the first time I really took the girls shopping. Up until now, I've just bought their clothes, getting the same and equal clothes. They didn't necessarily wear the same thing on the same day but I bought equal outfits so no inequalities would happen. At the sisters' annual Day-After-Christmas Shopping Extravaganza, I bought two adorable dresses for Taylor and Brooke. Came home and realized that only Brooke likes to wear dresses. So she proceeds to wear one dress one week and the other dress the next week. Absolute madness.

So I realized that it is time for them to pick out their own clothes, the clothes they would actually wear. So I went shopping with my mini-Mary Lou and my mini-Alison. The girls were just at your expected; Taylor was fast and furious, get in and get out. Brooke took her time and looked around; making sure each shirt matched each skirt. We had a one meltdown over ballet slippers but other than that, they were pretty happy and I think we have a tradition started.

P.S. They actually both picked out the same shoes without meaning too. Thought that was funny.

:) Emily

Really, Really, Really Old

Okay. I have not been doing very well with pictures and videos. It all started at Christmas; I was too excited to see everyone and the camera went by the wayside. Then January came and I didn't get any better. Now its February and I have a scrapbooking date with the girls and no pictures to work on. What to do, what to do.

It doesn't help that Cody used to say 'cheeeeese' when he saw the camera and now he says 'nooooooo'. Also, for some strange reason, Taylor does NOT want Brooke to TOUCH her in any way for pictures. I could always get the cute-arms-around-the-shoulder-hug for a pic and now Taylor insists on just standing next to one another. I'll post that picture later.

We are doing well. I'm done teaching the extra writing classes and only have one more Saturday school before the big state test. Knock on wood, everyone is staying pretty healthy except I did wake up with a sore throat so hoping to down a bunch of OJ and keep it at bay.

So I vow to be better with the pictures even if it means alienating my children!!! :) Emily