Stop and Go Hiking!
11.29.2004
Stop and Go Hiking
So - you go hiking with a two year old. Crazy? Maybe, but she invented the funnest (yes, that IS a word - sort of) game we've played in a long time! Everyone's walking and the 2 yr old suddenly says "stop". We all think she's tired of walking and wants to be carried like any other young princess her age. Wrong. She wants everyone to stop. right now. Then go. Then stop. Then go. When we'd stop in all kinds of goofy positions, she went into hysterics. It really was pretty funny. I was armed with the camera, so just kept clicking away while she nearly collapsed laughing at her super funny sister and brother. Dad got in the swing of it after a while too.
I recommend it!
(sorry about the captions being messed up - this is my first try at using pictures.)
I recommend it!
(sorry about the captions being messed up - this is my first try at using pictures.)
11.14.2004
movies movies movies
1. Polar Express - a little weird, but delightful for adults and older kids.
Little K spent much of the time on one lap or the other. She was scared a few times. But mesmerized most of the time. At least two families with younger kids - maybe not quite 2, left early.
2. The Incredibles - didn't see it, but the boys came back singing it's praises. There is apparently a reason it's been at the top of the box office for two weeks in a row.
3. From Netflix - Monster. Yikes. Charlize had me convinced she was a total nutjob scumbag. I'm still not too sure she isn't....
4. Also Netflixed - Whoo Hoo! Wiggly Gremlins! Now, anything with Whoo Hoo in the title has got to be fun. I liked it better than many other Wiggles DVDs. Good music - fun, catchy songs. The strange people are just a part of the whole package. I've gotten over it.
5. Netflixed, natch - Family Guy - season 1 or 2, who knows which volume. They're all the same. I can't stand these, but the boys in my family think they are hysterical. I can kind of see the humor, but I have this awful reaction to the PITB baby, who naturally is supposed to be one of the funniest parts. He irritates the crap out of me. So I try to avoid the room when it's on.
Little K spent much of the time on one lap or the other. She was scared a few times. But mesmerized most of the time. At least two families with younger kids - maybe not quite 2, left early.
2. The Incredibles - didn't see it, but the boys came back singing it's praises. There is apparently a reason it's been at the top of the box office for two weeks in a row.
3. From Netflix - Monster. Yikes. Charlize had me convinced she was a total nutjob scumbag. I'm still not too sure she isn't....
4. Also Netflixed - Whoo Hoo! Wiggly Gremlins! Now, anything with Whoo Hoo in the title has got to be fun. I liked it better than many other Wiggles DVDs. Good music - fun, catchy songs. The strange people are just a part of the whole package. I've gotten over it.
5. Netflixed, natch - Family Guy - season 1 or 2, who knows which volume. They're all the same. I can't stand these, but the boys in my family think they are hysterical. I can kind of see the humor, but I have this awful reaction to the PITB baby, who naturally is supposed to be one of the funniest parts. He irritates the crap out of me. So I try to avoid the room when it's on.
11.13.2004
panpakes and chrischris
I love the way 2 year olds talk. Sometimes it's super clear - so much so that you can't quite believe what you're hearing. Other times, they make the words their own. Little K wanted "panpakes" this morning. Y'know what the rest of us call them? yep - panpakes.
She's pretty excited about "Chris-chris" too. I usually try to repeat this one correctly to her - just think if she says it to someone else, they might think she's talking about her preschool boyfriend. (she might be, come to think of it...) She's super happy about Santa, and talks about him with the anticipation I didn't really think we'd see until next year.... until the part about sitting on his lap rears its ugly face. I fear we're destined to have pictures with Santa for her whole childhood with Daddy, or bigger K or Mom in the picture between child and Santa. I have a screaming picture of one of my children on Santa's lap. Cute as it is, I won't do that again.
Last year, one of the local newspapers ran a feature on scary Santas, complete with pictures of screaming kids. Scarred me. Scarred AND scared me. Some of these Santas were downright frightening to adults - why in the world would they be hired to don a Santa suit and scare the hell out of little kids? This isn't the article I read, but another one with the same theme. Can't find a link to the other one. But I was struck by the terror of the kids. If my little one wants to see Santa but needs a buffer - ok.
But back to the good stuff - "I like dis and I like dis and I like dis..." She can amuse herself with newspaper ads for a good 20 minutes. The toys she picks would be discarded in minutes, but she adores the pictures. Anything with Dora and Boots is a certain favorite. Doesn't matter what it is. But then, she likes the cars too. The only thing she skips is the dark pages where the "boy" stuff is. What kind of marketing is that? Boys get the dark pages, girls and babies get the bright pages... seems a little strange to me, but it's pretty darn consistent. So we like pretty much everything on the bright pages. It's all good. Gonna make shopping for Chrischris a snap this year.
She's pretty excited about "Chris-chris" too. I usually try to repeat this one correctly to her - just think if she says it to someone else, they might think she's talking about her preschool boyfriend. (she might be, come to think of it...) She's super happy about Santa, and talks about him with the anticipation I didn't really think we'd see until next year.... until the part about sitting on his lap rears its ugly face. I fear we're destined to have pictures with Santa for her whole childhood with Daddy, or bigger K or Mom in the picture between child and Santa. I have a screaming picture of one of my children on Santa's lap. Cute as it is, I won't do that again.
Last year, one of the local newspapers ran a feature on scary Santas, complete with pictures of screaming kids. Scarred me. Scarred AND scared me. Some of these Santas were downright frightening to adults - why in the world would they be hired to don a Santa suit and scare the hell out of little kids? This isn't the article I read, but another one with the same theme. Can't find a link to the other one. But I was struck by the terror of the kids. If my little one wants to see Santa but needs a buffer - ok.
But back to the good stuff - "I like dis and I like dis and I like dis..." She can amuse herself with newspaper ads for a good 20 minutes. The toys she picks would be discarded in minutes, but she adores the pictures. Anything with Dora and Boots is a certain favorite. Doesn't matter what it is. But then, she likes the cars too. The only thing she skips is the dark pages where the "boy" stuff is. What kind of marketing is that? Boys get the dark pages, girls and babies get the bright pages... seems a little strange to me, but it's pretty darn consistent. So we like pretty much everything on the bright pages. It's all good. Gonna make shopping for Chrischris a snap this year.
11.08.2004
dangers of reading blogs before sleep
So, I wasn't intending to spend any time at the computer today. My eyes hurt, and I've spent too much on it at work busily answering emails and fixing problems. But then I read my sister's post today and off I go down memory lane.
She talks about the Lawrence Welk show - it's a little horrifying to watch today - with our "beautiful little Mexican Seniorita from South of the Border" and other terrors. Truth is, way back when, I had a tough time watching this show... and my parents LOVED it. So, since I never particularly liked it, why did I am I still trekking down memory lane? Bobby and Cissy? The honky-tonk lady (I had to look her name up, cuz it wasn't coming to me) Joann Castle? Certainly not Myron Floren and his accordion - I hated that! And poor Arthur Duncan - I always felt sorry for him. I thought he deserved at least one other black performer to work with. I did love the Lennon sisters, though - I pretty much thought I might be Janet some day. It never worked out - that Janet thing.
But - Mitch Miller - THERE was a show! fun, bouncing balls across the screen with the words (!) so you could sing out no matter what your voice sounded like and be part of the fun. Kareoke before it's time! I couldn't learn to read fast enough. I am convinced that bouncing ball is responsible for some of my A's in reading.
So here I am reminiscing about shows from way back when, and typing on the computer with really tired eyes, all because I happened to read that post before heading back to my comfy cozy bed. Be careful what you read before bed. I'm sure I'm heading for some nightmares of some kind!
"Be kind to your web-footed friends, for a duck may be somebody's mother. Be kind to your friends in the swamp, where the weather is very very damp (pronounced "domp"). You may think that this is the end. Well it is."
How clever is that???
She talks about the Lawrence Welk show - it's a little horrifying to watch today - with our "beautiful little Mexican Seniorita from South of the Border" and other terrors. Truth is, way back when, I had a tough time watching this show... and my parents LOVED it. So, since I never particularly liked it, why did I am I still trekking down memory lane? Bobby and Cissy? The honky-tonk lady (I had to look her name up, cuz it wasn't coming to me) Joann Castle? Certainly not Myron Floren and his accordion - I hated that! And poor Arthur Duncan - I always felt sorry for him. I thought he deserved at least one other black performer to work with. I did love the Lennon sisters, though - I pretty much thought I might be Janet some day. It never worked out - that Janet thing.
But - Mitch Miller - THERE was a show! fun, bouncing balls across the screen with the words (!) so you could sing out no matter what your voice sounded like and be part of the fun. Kareoke before it's time! I couldn't learn to read fast enough. I am convinced that bouncing ball is responsible for some of my A's in reading.
So here I am reminiscing about shows from way back when, and typing on the computer with really tired eyes, all because I happened to read that post before heading back to my comfy cozy bed. Be careful what you read before bed. I'm sure I'm heading for some nightmares of some kind!
"Be kind to your web-footed friends, for a duck may be somebody's mother. Be kind to your friends in the swamp, where the weather is very very damp (pronounced "domp"). You may think that this is the end. Well it is."
How clever is that???
11.06.2004
changing the subject
Decided not to become a political blog, despite such astonishment at the narrow-mindedness of many of my fellow citizens. The one thing I am certain of, however, is that I will personally be more politically active in the future. The pendulum is swinging too far to the right, and I'm concerned about the consequences. What has to happen before the more reasonable of the "red" voters (I know you're out there) say, "oops" and decide we'd better put a stop to this madness. I know this last election did it for me.
Back to the title and changing the subject, Halloween was great fun - little K was a very cute CU cheerleader. She did go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood, but got tired of it on the second street. This is the first year in a very long time we haven't been overloaded with candy. I'm grateful! I have a couple of really cute pictures, but one of the maddening constraints of foster parenting is that you cannot publish any pictures of the child. All those foster care posters you see? Not foster children. Cute kids on the websites? Maybe adopted former foster children, but definitely not foster kids. When the local newspaper did an article on foster parents, they came over to my house to take pictures of us. Little K had to be facing away from the camera. Bigger K was in the background playing with her. Turned out cute, but she's such a cutie, I'd sure love to be able to share that. When I put albums out on Webshots, I have to protect them and only let people see them by invitation. At her preschool, when they take pictures, they have to be careful to select pictures without her for publication. (They can post the ones with her in the classroom, though)
Other restrictions? We can't use the neighborhood kids as babysitters. To watch a foster child, you must be 18 and fingerprinted or licensed by the county/state for child care. Even Bigger K can't babysit because he's not 18 yet. DDD has been fingerprinted, and is our only respite. But wait - she's at college. oh well. Good thing we don't go out often.
Let's see - we can't travel out of the state without written permission from the court. They don't even want us to go to Tahoe without permission. Truthfully, that has never been a problem - as long as we give them a couple weeks notice, they've never botched our vacation plans yet.
We were hoping for a finalized adoption by the end of the year, but that looks most unlikely now. I think she may easily make it to her third birthday (Feb) as a foster child. While it makes me angry and frustrated sometimes, I know that there is no difference in her life now than there will be once all the paperwork is complete. It's just those little restrictions we live with.
Back to the title and changing the subject, Halloween was great fun - little K was a very cute CU cheerleader. She did go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood, but got tired of it on the second street. This is the first year in a very long time we haven't been overloaded with candy. I'm grateful! I have a couple of really cute pictures, but one of the maddening constraints of foster parenting is that you cannot publish any pictures of the child. All those foster care posters you see? Not foster children. Cute kids on the websites? Maybe adopted former foster children, but definitely not foster kids. When the local newspaper did an article on foster parents, they came over to my house to take pictures of us. Little K had to be facing away from the camera. Bigger K was in the background playing with her. Turned out cute, but she's such a cutie, I'd sure love to be able to share that. When I put albums out on Webshots, I have to protect them and only let people see them by invitation. At her preschool, when they take pictures, they have to be careful to select pictures without her for publication. (They can post the ones with her in the classroom, though)
Other restrictions? We can't use the neighborhood kids as babysitters. To watch a foster child, you must be 18 and fingerprinted or licensed by the county/state for child care. Even Bigger K can't babysit because he's not 18 yet. DDD has been fingerprinted, and is our only respite. But wait - she's at college. oh well. Good thing we don't go out often.
Let's see - we can't travel out of the state without written permission from the court. They don't even want us to go to Tahoe without permission. Truthfully, that has never been a problem - as long as we give them a couple weeks notice, they've never botched our vacation plans yet.
We were hoping for a finalized adoption by the end of the year, but that looks most unlikely now. I think she may easily make it to her third birthday (Feb) as a foster child. While it makes me angry and frustrated sometimes, I know that there is no difference in her life now than there will be once all the paperwork is complete. It's just those little restrictions we live with.
11.05.2004
IQ and your vote
don't know how accurate this is, but interesting nonetheless. (click on the "IQ and your vote" title.)
11.04.2004
Hope you and yours stay healthy...
All I can say is I sure hope all you people who voted the current administration in based on "moral" issues like stem cell research and gay rights remain healthy and have wonderfully unchallenged lives.
The fact that research involving stem cells could improve, if not cure, many of today's health issues may not matter much - until it is you or your family affected. One day, you may certainly cheer to hear that a treatment now exists to make your little grandson with cystic fibrosis breathe normally and live an active life. Made possible by some forward thinking scientists and genetic research. think about it.
I'm struck by the constitution these days - the original, preamble and all. What foresight that group of men had at a time when they had no real guide, no template to follow. They had a goal that included a statement allowing basic human rights for everyone. The document they created seems brilliant in retrospect. It is vague enough to allow for growth and change of an entire nation, yet has some basic rights built in quite specifically.
Of course, as times have changed, "details" such as just WHO exactly gets to vote, and WHO exactly is included in that vague statement that "all men are created equal" has been debated, fought over and that apparently continues today.
For example - a marriage is between one MAN and one WOMAN? Well, we've done such a bang up job with that already, that 11 states decided it was time to make that an AMMENDMENT!! ??? If everyone is created equal, why not just two people, period? In fact, why is marriage included in a constitution at all? What the heck does that have to do with the running of a government? I was appalled when Dubya brought that up as a possibility with our national constitution and I am appalled at the states that decided they needed an ammendment in the absence of a national one.
Do you remember when mixed racial marriages were absolutely unacceptable? What is different about that issue and this one? The only thing I can come up with is time. Back in the day, we didn't have to worry about all those homos - they stayed in their closet where they belonged, but those negroes - we had to watch out for them. They will surely hurt our women and children. hunh??? So now, we realize it really isn't race so much that's the issue, but economics, opportunities and a myriad of other cultural issues. Gee, there are wonderful black, indian, asian, hispanic, whatever people out there along with the wonderful whites. Oh yeah, and there are some pretty nasty white folk out there too. go figure.
gonna have to take some time off from my soapbox. All I can say is, I hope you're right, you dubya folks - and I hope you and your kin stay healthy. sheesh. What I really hope is that something not too tragic will happen that will open your eyes to see beyond your little "morally constricted" world.
The fact that research involving stem cells could improve, if not cure, many of today's health issues may not matter much - until it is you or your family affected. One day, you may certainly cheer to hear that a treatment now exists to make your little grandson with cystic fibrosis breathe normally and live an active life. Made possible by some forward thinking scientists and genetic research. think about it.
I'm struck by the constitution these days - the original, preamble and all. What foresight that group of men had at a time when they had no real guide, no template to follow. They had a goal that included a statement allowing basic human rights for everyone. The document they created seems brilliant in retrospect. It is vague enough to allow for growth and change of an entire nation, yet has some basic rights built in quite specifically.
Of course, as times have changed, "details" such as just WHO exactly gets to vote, and WHO exactly is included in that vague statement that "all men are created equal" has been debated, fought over and that apparently continues today.
For example - a marriage is between one MAN and one WOMAN? Well, we've done such a bang up job with that already, that 11 states decided it was time to make that an AMMENDMENT!! ??? If everyone is created equal, why not just two people, period? In fact, why is marriage included in a constitution at all? What the heck does that have to do with the running of a government? I was appalled when Dubya brought that up as a possibility with our national constitution and I am appalled at the states that decided they needed an ammendment in the absence of a national one.
Do you remember when mixed racial marriages were absolutely unacceptable? What is different about that issue and this one? The only thing I can come up with is time. Back in the day, we didn't have to worry about all those homos - they stayed in their closet where they belonged, but those negroes - we had to watch out for them. They will surely hurt our women and children. hunh??? So now, we realize it really isn't race so much that's the issue, but economics, opportunities and a myriad of other cultural issues. Gee, there are wonderful black, indian, asian, hispanic, whatever people out there along with the wonderful whites. Oh yeah, and there are some pretty nasty white folk out there too. go figure.
gonna have to take some time off from my soapbox. All I can say is, I hope you're right, you dubya folks - and I hope you and your kin stay healthy. sheesh. What I really hope is that something not too tragic will happen that will open your eyes to see beyond your little "morally constricted" world.
11.02.2004
Election Day Madness
This is a real conversation this morning.
7:00 am ON THE DOT. ....rrriiinnnngggg...
me: "Hello."
MIL: "Are you up? I knew you would be."
me: "Oh Hi - yeah, I just took K to his early morning cross country practice. I'm still awake - sort of. "
MIL: "I remember he did that. I just wanted to make sure you read your email before you go vote. J (niece) just sent you both something that you have to see. I want to make sure when you vote, you vote the right way."
me: (growing curious and just a bit amazed - we're both 50, afterall...) "Oh?"
MIL: "You know, we can't have that monster in office - you know which one I mean... "
me: (fully awake now) "I hope you mean Bush."
MIL: "NO! Of course not - Kerry! You know what he did in Vietnam? And those things with Jane Fonda!? "
me: (ignoring the Fonda remark - I know better) "You DON'T mean the monster who ignored the rest of the world's advice and invaded a country? Not that monster?"
MIL: "Well, that doesn't matter. Doesn't anyone remember 9/11 anymore? Are 'people's" memories so short? Don't "they" remember Vietnam?" (my quotes - I know who she was referring to...)
me: "hmmmm." (I try to be the master of tact with my in-laws, and have a raw tongue from time to time to prove it) "But if you remember Vietnam and Jane Fonda, you surely MUST remember that the United Nations - that collection of people from countries all around the world, advised strongly against invading Iraq, saying there wasn't really enough evidence, and Bush did it anyway? That was only a year or so ago... "
MIL: "Well, anyway," (she's done with this liberal commie pinko) "I just wanted you to see that email, it's very interesting. "
me: "ok. I'll go see if S is awake. "
later that very same phone call.....
S did wake up to get the advice his mother needed to give her 50 year old son.... along with some other choice information. This is all second hand, but amazing nonetheless.
Did you know:
* that Kerry is a monster? (That was well documented in conversation above)
* that Teresa is Cruella deVille (still chuckling hours later about that one)
* that Kerry did something with Jane Fonda, Abby Hoffman and some Chicago 7 guy? Apparently, they were "thick as thieves!"
* that S's Uncle Al who is a "yellow dog democrat" (whatever that is...), wouldn't vote for that slime - he's a monster, you know...
* that Kerry went before a commission of some kind and said that some Americans were doing things that were against the Geneva convention back there in Vietnam?
sigh. These are real people, casting real votes. If the Cruella deVille thing wasn't so damn funny, I'd cry.
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