11/24/08

The Battle is On


The Battle of the Naptime Pacifier is upon us. We knew it was time when the little guy started asking for it . . . in his not-so-nice voice. To his credit, the nighttime paci has been gone for well over a year, but naptime was always a huge struggle. Now the pacifier must be eliminated . . . and we just hope nap won't be eliminated as well.

Score: Parents 2, Pacifier-lover 0

Naptime: 1:45 for 2 days

Warriors: Daddy Khan, Grammy the Great, Mommy the Weepy
The picture above is of the pacifier tree at the Skansen Zoo in Sweden. Apparently, there is a big ceremony where kids give their pacifiers to the baby animals. Hmmm . . . odd, but apparently effective.

11/20/08

Random-ness about me

So several months ago, my friend Erin tagged me for 6 Random Things about Me. It's taken me many moons to come up with 6 random things about myself, because, well, obviously, I am so un-random. I have NEVER been known to interupt some important conversation with an interesting tidbit of information about me. And I certainly have never had to be reminded that people are confused when I expect them to join a conversation already in progress . . .in my head. Anyway, to reward Erin for letting me play, I give you this little blast from the past.


6 Random Things about Me
I was tagged by Erin

1. I LOVE pumpkin. Even more than pumpkin, I love pumpkin flavored things. Pumpkin Lattes, pumpkin doughnuts, pumpkin bread, pumpkin dip, pumpkin pie, pumpkin custard, pumpkin creamer . . . stop me before I go Bubba on you (shrimp gumbo, shrimp etouffee, shrimp cocktail . . . )! Fall and I have a tenuous relationship. Several tragic things happen every year this time. Namely, daylight dwindles and cold arrives. But pumpkin products, they make Fall livable and, dare I say, maybe even lovable. We carve pumpkins every year and I even dressed Little J up as a pumpkin for his first Halloween. It's the best gourd I know.


2. My ultimate resource material is Wikipedia. I didn't really realize my dependence on the wiki wonder, until I presented a friend with my latest gem of knowledge and her first response was, "did you get that from Wikipedia?" Well, yes, yes I did. My latest research topics: the origin of the term "Black Irish" and the storyline for Will Smith's new movie 7 Pounds.

3. I am a fashion disaster. See exhibit A above. I am wondering if I thought there would be an opportunity to be in a Kris Kross video later. I try, I really do; but more often than not, I am standing in my closet glaring at all my clothes, willing them to morph into some magical outfit. Even more insulting is the fact that I work for the retailer who considers it its mission to dress middle America. In the words of my friend Randa, as we were waiting for our friends in a cutting edge fashion boutique, "my wardrobe consists of colored t-shirts".

4. I love to write. I love the power of expression through the written word. I am fascinated by how one can arrange words in order to share all the complexity that occurs in the mind. I am in love with how words can tumble together and take the reader on a ride through the highs and lows, the speedy and the plodding, the brilliant and the mundane. Someday, I hope to do something with all the words that are stored up in me, but until then I will settle for unloading them on you, my readership, of, what, 2?

5. I am cold . . .all the time. I consider anything below 80 degrees downright chilly. I wear a jacket 10 months out of the year . . . indoors. I consider long underwear and those hand warmer packets some of the best inventions ever. I am thrilled beyond imagination when I think about my heated car seats. Some say luxury; I say necessity, as steering is difficult when one's hands are shivering. The phrase "cold hands, warm heart" has ceased to comfort me long ago.

6. I love Calvin and Hobbes comics. I think it is a look into my future.


Tagging is serious business. There are rules. Here they are. And I tag
and anyone else with randomness to spare
Here are the rules...
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your entry.
(Yes, I can count. I'm being flexible.)
5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
6. Let the person who tagged you know your entry is up.
7. Best rule: only do it if it will be fun!

11/2/08

RAIDER POWER

WAY TO GO, RAIDERS!!!

11/1/08

Dino-mite Halloween

We enjoyed a lovely Halloween here in Jurassic Park. There were parties, plenty of people watching and minimal candy-induced meltdowns.

This was Jackson at the church Halloween party.


He let the Dino Wranglers come along this time.

We hit the local mall for our first trick or treating experience.


Halloween parenting lesson: the parent holds the candy . . .and later eats the candy! I had one moment of weakness in this and was quickly summoned to perform a caramel square extraction from the jaws of the dinosaur! He appears to be more herbivore than carnivore but the heartbroken roar was hard to ignore.