Jumping the Tracks

Twins Day

2012-01-22T22:30:00.000-08:00

Friday was Twins Day at school. The idea was to dress the same as your best friend.

We decided to bump it up a notch with wildly uncoordinated coordinating outfits. My idea, born of sheer desperation in trying to go matchy matchy at the last minute. Small wonder no one asks me for fashion advice.

Made even better with colorful umbrellas. C'mon, it's kind of catchy, isn't it?

Yard Work

2012-01-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

We've been sprucing up our long-neglected yard a bit. We had enclosed a dog run for Jax before we got him--a 20' x 8' area where we laid down pavers. The idea was to have a place where he could hang out and not get all muddy in the rainy season. Which still hasn't materialized.

ANYway, it quickly became clear that we needed a large, somewhat safe area to let him run around. Enter John, Mark's brother, who came down and helped enclose the ENTIRE 3/4 acre with stock wire.

While not completely dog proof (there are some low spots and a gap under the gate where a determined dog might escape), I think it should do the trick.

Next, Mark was re-stacking some siding he had buried under a tarp, and lookit what he found:

The markings look like a rattler, but the slim head and bare tail let us know that it was a big, fat gopher snake. Which made Mark want to capture it, of course.

Yep, probably five feet long! Mark was already putting together a grand plan to keep it, making phone calls to get an aquarium, etc., when I artfully suggested that if we were going to keep a snake, maybe we could buy a small one from a pet store, not capture a 5' wild snake and bring it into our home. Reluctantly, he finally recovered his senses and agreed.

He kept the snake until the girls got home from school, and we released it under the shed, where it could perform rodent control. Or it could scare the hell out of us by hanging out in the shed.

Aren't we just full of good ideas?

Christmas Day

2012-01-11T06:09:00.000-08:00

Mae woke up early on Christmas Day. She was so excited to look into the living room and see that Santa had visited. But rather than go down and really investigate, she wanted to get dressed, comb her hair, and make her bed, so that she was FULLY READY to enjoy the morning.

Weird, huh?

Next, we peeked outside to see if the reindeer had found their food.

Those reindeer made a mess!

Santa sampled the cookies, and left a thank you note, like the polite (and chubby) guy he must be!

Look at those beautiful (and full) stockings!

Mae made me an exercise ball for my hand. I have to admit, crumpled paper and packing tape are just as good as the little ball of sand I bought a few years ago. Who knew?

Next, per our custom, we all turned out for a round of golf on the back 40. Well...maybe it's closer to a driving range.

Dad coached all of us on our swing. He was dutifully polite about mine.

The cattle thought it was all a great spectacle.

Maybe it was. Just a little bit.

And after Christmas dinner, we retired to the pool room for a few games. Because nothing says "Merry Christmas" like a nice game of pool.

Another wonderful Christmas Day...what a gift!

Christmas Eve

2012-01-08T08:17:00.000-08:00

Twas the night before Christmas

And all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse (or a dog).

The reindeer food was set out with care

In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there.

Remnants of Christmas

2012-01-05T06:09:00.001-08:00

OK, I'm back. I've been gone in the figurative sense before Christmas, doing those very pressing Christmas things, and in the literal sense the week following, on a trip to San Diego. But now we are back, and back in the swing of school and "normal" life. Which includes my blog.

So, a bit of catch-up is in order. Here we are at a cookie decorating party!

Santa snacked on a few of these!

Santa Baby

2011-12-20T12:17:00.001-08:00

At the Foothill Elementary Craft Fair, the girls had a somewhat uneasy visit with Santa, who they recognized as Mr. Thomason (a family friend). I think they didn't really know whether they should share their lists, or confess their Christmas wants and prayers with their friend's dad. Poor Billy couldn't even get his own kids to go along...they got a little perturbed by the whole thing.

Ah well. I thought he made a great Santa. Especially with those cowboy boots! ;-)

Soccer Stars!

2011-12-14T07:52:00.000-08:00

Well, you might infer from the title that we had a victorious All Star game. Alas, we did not. We were simply outplayed. In fact, the whole league was outplayed. We won one of eight games. Yikes. But the girls did seem to enjoy the game, played well, and took the loss in stride, which made me proud.

Here are some dynamite pictures taken by C&C Photography in conjunction with team photos.

NOW you see why I called them soccer stars? Yeah...they are stars to me!

What the heck?

2011-12-09T06:09:00.000-08:00

That seems to be appropriate caption for this poor coach, as he deals with my girls in their tutus and shinguards.

The girls are practicing for the All Star game this Saturday, where we will play our mountain nemisis, Yosemite (really Oakhurst, but Yosemite High School is in Oakhurst, so it's ALMOST Yosemite). It will be the first time our girls play an all-girls game. Should be interesting!

Outtakes

2011-12-05T11:25:00.000-08:00

Just a few extra pics from our formal family photo op. Because after we've worn out the men and the children and the dogs, we do have some fun with these...

Yes, we can entertain ourselves indefinitely!

Family Photo Time

2011-11-29T06:06:00.000-08:00

Each year, Mark and I take a photo for our Christmas card. This year, we also took the opportunity to get one of the whole Kee clan. Actually, we got more than one, but you know how those things go...hard to get twelve people looking in the same direction at once, much less smiling!

I know what you may well be thinking: "Who was the photographer? Jax?"

No! My handy-dandy self timer!

Hey, if you've been good this year, maybe you'll get an autographed one in the mail! If you haven't been good, send a check or money order :-)

Meet Jax

2011-11-22T06:09:00.000-08:00

Well, we did it. We took the plunge. We have a new family member.

His name is Jax.

After all my angst about what kind of dog to get, and where to get it, things mysteriously fell into place from an unexpected direction.

My sister's neighbor used to breed English Laborador Retrievers. They are the "show" labs, smaller, blockier, and more calm than the American version. She had a female that she was considering breeding. Well, she did get bred, by some mystery dog. The litter was born in April, and my sister got one of the puppies. The owners kept one puppy for themselves...that was Jax. Ultimately, the owners felt like they weren't able to give him the time he deserved, and wondered if we might be interested. He is housebroken, trained, and a wonderful dog. You can see how pretty he is:

He is a little bigger and a little more furry than I would have ideally liked, but the socialization he's had is pretty wonderful. And the age is perfect. He has a good foundation, but is still young enough to have that addictive puppy sweetness. The girls are at the perfect age as well. They are taking the responsibility of pet ownership seriously, and are very engaged.

Once again in my life, I find myself crooning encouraging words for good and timely potties and poopoos. And I will surely be one of those people who is eternally coated with white hairs.

I'm OK with that!

Last game

2011-11-20T07:02:00.000-08:00

Last weekend was the end of the soccer season. Our team, the Hornets, ended up in the #1 spot overall, which was exciting for the kids, including Mark. Many of the games were very close, which makes it so fun to watch. To me, it is also a testament to the teams being pretty evenly drafted, which pleases my sense of fair play. Our girls really picked up their game this season, and it was exciting to watch them grow. Here are a few shots from their last game, which unfortunately was a little one-sided. Abigail played offense, which was where most of the action occurred, so poor Mae, on defense, spent most of her time standing around.

Abigail dribbling up the field:

Mae getting ready for a big boot:

Abigail made some pretty spectacular moves during the game.

AND she made her first goal!

Coach Schlaefer gathers the players in:

And they give their final cheer for the season:

The girls have both been selected for the All Star team, which will play against Oakhurst on Dec. 10th. So...I guess my season as Soccer Mom isn't quite over yet!

2011-11-11T06:23:00.000-08:00

Fall is a great time to go woodcutting. The weather is crisp, and motivation is high, because if you WANT wood for the winter, you'd better get it quick! My sister and my father both use wood for most, if not all their winter heating. Mark likes to get out there and help with the woodcutting, partly to be helpful, and partly because he just plain enjoys it. Last year, he smashed a fingertip, completely popping his fingernail out of its bed (very gross). This year, it was my brother-in-law's turn...he sliced his kneecap open with the chainsaw.

But other than that, boy is it fun. You can see the draw, right?

Mark and Scott were out a couple weeks ago, downing a dead tree and cutting it into rounds. As Mark was cutting the downed tree into 20" sections, Scott spotted something moving. They turned off the chainsaw and moved in for a closer look. Here's what they saw:

The center of the tree was hollow, and there was a little owl in there! This little guy just barely escaped getting chopped in half, but he still looked a little sleepy. Maybe he was stunned by the fall as the tree came down. Of course, the guys were also concerned that this might be the legendary spotted owl, which is endangered. Later research showed it to be a Western Screech Owl, common in these parts, and audible on any given summer night, when our windows are open. We were pretty positive of the ID after it flew away. It was about 10" tall, an excellent flyer (so presumably fully grown), with yellow irises and small "horns". Here it is in a tree:

We were all happy to see Mr. Owl fly away without incident, especially given our track record! And we collected enough wood to keep everyone warm and snuggly all winter. Looking forward to it!

Halloween in the Hills

2011-10-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Halloween and its associated challenges crept up all too soon this year. By challenges, I mean creating costumes, attempting to help room-mother parties, and negotiating the fine line between not enough and too many treats. Fortunately (for me), at least this is not an environment where the kids get a lot of high-density door-to-door trick-or-treating, so we don't have massive amounts of candy to deal with. I do have fewer problems than most, and for that, I am grateful!

Costumes are always my biggest challenge, and a lot of it is self-imposed. My kids come up with the concept, and then I have to figure out how to bring it to life. This year was actually a lot of fun. The girls told me they wanted to be a pickle and a cucumber. Now, isn't that a clever idea? In so many ways! They start the same, and end up as two very different things, don't they? Where did they come up with THAT?! As part of their concept, they planned that they would tell people "I'm not a pickle, I'm a cucumber!" and "I'm not a cucumber, I'm a pickle!" My sole contribution to the concept was to put these phrases on a sign of some sort, partly because I wasn't sure my final product would be identifiable as a pickle OR a cucumber! But I have to say...people DID seem to identify them, even before reading the sign, which warmed my heart. Here's what I came up with:

They had a parade at the school. Here they are, marching two by two behind their brave and groovy teacher, Mrs. Burton.

We had a little classroom party. We had four stations: The bag-making station, the spider-lollipop making station, the snack eating station, and the cookie decorating station. Here's Mae, putting big, furry legs on a lollipop:

I must say...my station was quite popular. It was the cookie decorating station. I even made the cookies MYSELF. FROM SCRATCH. Which means from more than two components. Not only were the cookies FROM SCRATCH, but they had sticks in them, like lollipops. They were not spectacular, but I grew to appreciate them more and more throughout the hour, because they were very, very practical.

I will not show you pictures of the children who, despite my warnings, piled the frosting so high that they slopped over in a drippy mess on the floor. That was not a happy time at my station. Fortunately, most of the kids were more interested in making a design, and happily enjoyed both creating and disposing of their designs in one sitting.

Saturday night, we attended a local carnival, replete with inflatables, kettle corn, haunted houses, and all kinds of costumes. In fact, I saw Jesus there. I think he even won a raffle prize. You'd think he'd let someone else win! Here are the kids in a contest where they strap on vests attached to the wall with a bungee cord. The goal is to put a velcro beanbag the furthest on the center divider. I won't say who won!

Tonight, a little pumpkin carving and car trick-or-treating should cap off this holiday, and we move our sights on to Thanksgiving!

Monterey Bay

2011-10-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

We had a holiday Monday for Columbus Day, so after the soccer game Saturday morning, we packed up our gear and headed for the coast. We brought along two cousins, Megan and Scotty, for extra fun. Because we know that cousins add extra fun to everything! The plan was to headquarter out of Morgan Hill, and venture to the ocean and Monterey Bay Aquarium. Ever since we went there last spring on a field trip, the girls have been intent on re-visiting with Mark, who had never been.

We headed out to the aquarium, and were met at the door by a man with a jar...of sumthin. Which he wanted to share with us.

Turns out it was itty-bitty jellyfish!

We went inside to see bigger ones.

Notice the big, fat flash in this picture? It is so very, very disturbing when, in the darkness of the aquarium a flash goes off. How rude!

Yes, it was me. Accidentally.

It is so difficult to get good pictures in darkness of the aquarium. I'll have to take what I can get.

Here's Abigail with a sunfish growing out of her head.

Part of my school looking at another school. They had a juvenile great white shark! But I didn't get a picture of that.

Abigail and the anchovies. Her mouth is slightly open--sympathetic response as they open theirs to catch some plankton? Or just amazement.

And a true highlight...LIVE SAND DOLLARS!

They look very similar to dead sand dollars, but they are covered with a furry looking coating. And if you look very closely, they are moving vvveeeerrryyyy sssslllloooowwwwwllllyyyy. I found this to be very cool, indeed. Yes, I did. No great white pictures, but half a dozen of the sand dollars.

And that was our trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Growing up in so many ways

2011-10-17T09:45:00.001-07:00

Yes, this is going to be another one of those sappy, sentimental ramblings about how quickly the children grow. With a little data thrown in...because we all like data. Don't we? So data first, and then..."the reveal".

The girls seem to have stretched this summer, their limbs becoming long and slender, although still muscular. I admit, I find myself staring at these amazing creatures, just struck by the beauty I see developing in them. And trying desperately to treasure every moment of their childhood as they so rapidly evolve into more independent, self-sufficient little people. This "treasuring" may be translated into babying and spoiling...so be it. I'm OK with that.

This weekend, we quantified the speed of these changes the old-fashioned way...with the yardstick. What you see below is a piece of wood we have moved from house to house, and now have permanently mounted in our utility room. Check out Mae's growth from August to October:

Is this normal?

Here's Abigail:

Pretty much the same, although she is just over 1/2" shorter. What the heck??!!!

This week we also got school pictures back. So finally I am unveiling the haircuts from weeks ago. Drumroll please....

Do you see what I mean? It's NOT just me, is it?! They are growing up, despite my best efforts! And isn't it funny how somewhat out of character they seem on this particular day, with Mae so girly and Abigail so sporty?

Holy moley...I sure got my money's worth for school pictures this year, I feel!

Yosemite: Day 2

2011-10-12T09:55:00.000-07:00

Day 2 started with a wonderful pancake breakfast to fill our bellies, courtesy of our buddy Mike. Then we packed up our gear and ventured off toward El Capitan. We hiked in to the base, where Mark and Mike looked longingly up at the climbs.

We entertained ourselves at length helping the kids start the climb, only to insist that they immediately climb down. Yes, we are deeply conflicted.

Next, we headed toward Sentinel Dome. Here is a cool pic from loomisadvetures.com:

Sentinel Dome is a large, stone cap atop a mountain at the edge of Yosemite Valley. Don't you just look at it and think "I just gotta climb that...and bring the kids too!" Yeah. Me too.

The hike is mild, about a mile long, but the destination is exposed and windy, and on this day, pretty chilly. After a few minutes, the kids all sought refuge in a sheltered spot among the bushes. You can kind of see three little blobs in the left side of this photo.

On the crest of the dome is what remains of a famous tree from an Ansel Adams photo. This photo, from berkeley.edu, shows the original tree, and a later, dead version.

This is how it looks today, with five people sitting on it:

Our last adventure was a trip to Glacier Point, for another perspective on the valley from above. Although not as exposed, the kids still find the hidey-holes mighty attractive:

And Mark and I took the time to get a pic with just us...as a couple. Kind of strange!

Hope you enjoyed our trip, and remember..."Speeding kills bears"!

Yosemite: Day 1

2011-10-07T06:07:00.000-07:00

Our first stop in Yosemite was the vista point just after the tunnel, where you get that first breathtaking vision of the entire valley. You already saw our family pic from there. Our next stop was Bridal Veil Falls. The volume of falls was meager, as you would expect this time of year, but still worth visiting. We scrambled up past this sign to check things out. Just in case you can't read it, it says something about rocks and danger and death, which we ignored, of course..."Get on up there, kids!"

Next, we stopped at the Merced River, which was also at low flow, allowing the kids to romp all over.

And there was fun for the bigger kid as well. Here is Mark balancing a large stick on his chin. Isn't he studly?

We set up camp in North Pines campground. The kids were excellent helpers, and worked well together.

Abigail directing Scotty where to put the firewood.

In a true display of Schlaefer OCD, Abigail sorts the wood into piles of large, medium, and small sticks. All you Schlaefers out there will recognize this as a compelling task that just needs doing! (C'mon...you know it's true)

Our last adventure for the evening was a hike to Mirror Lake. I'll confess...the first thing out of my mouth was "This is it?" I was expecting a large body of water, but instead found several shallow pools and marshes. Then I saw it...the mirror effect was just dazzling:

A little extra treasure at this spot was a cluster of cairns. I confess...stacks or piles of rocks hold a mystical fascination for me. Kind of an itty-bitty Stonehenge thing.

We made it back to the campsite just as night was falling. We started a nice campfire (composed of just the right mixture of small, medium, and large sticks), and cooked up a feast of Top Ramen. After toasting a few marshmallows, we rubbed our eyes and collapsed into our tents.

Can you guess?

2011-10-04T06:10:00.000-07:00

Hey, guess where we went this weekend:

Did you guess?

If you guess Yosemite National Park, you win! We went up and camped just for one night. Amazing that this is all just 2:20 from our house. We had a jam-packed trip hiking, exploring, and adventuring. More next time!

If you build it, they will come

2011-09-28T05:02:00.000-07:00

You may recall that late last spring, we worked on a project at the kid's at-the-time-soon-to-be-new school. We helped put in sprinklers for the kindergarten play area. Well, that area was still seriously underwhelming for the almost 90 kinder kids, so we reconvened to add a sandbox.

Mark is the lead of the construction arm of the VIPS (volunteers in public service), a local service group formed to help support our schools. He does a lot of smaller jobs on his own, but this was a biggie. FORTUNATELY, we had a nice turn-out, with 15 parents, grandparents, teachers and kids turning out over two days to help. Unfortunately, those two days just happened to be some of the hottest September days I can recall (104 the first day), but we can legitimately claim a bunch of sweat equity!

I'm proud to say, the kids were part of the effort. They kept asking to help, and finally there was a job that was just right!

As a final touch, the volunteers emptied their pockets, throwing all their loose change into the box and burying it in the sand.

I don't have a picture of the first day...yet.

I know. What a tease! But I'll get one and share it. I promise.

Big Girl Hair Cuts

2011-09-23T05:39:00.000-07:00

I finally decided the time had come. As much as I enjoyed cutting the girls' hair, the jagged edges and stray hairs were getting to me. They deserved better.

A little girl in their class always has a sharp little bob, and I asked her mom where she went. To my happy surprise, it was Danny, at Hannah's Hair, a little shop right up here in Prather. More than ever, I value keeping the business and money local if at all possible. So I made an appointment, the day before school pictures.

I expected I might be sad, seeing someone else cut their hair and realizing it was the end of an era. But strangely, all I felt was happiness and...relief. Now the girls would look as good as they SHOULD look. So it was definitely time to take this step, eh?

Abigail was the first to take the plunge:

Danny was very tolerant of the freakazoid mom snapping pictures at his every move.

Mae found it a little disconcerting.

But she settled in as well. You may notice her hair is shorter. Abigail wants to grow hers a bit longer for styling versatility. Mae wants shorter for ease of combing. So you see, their hair really is a window into their souls.

Thank goodness it's in better hands!

What did the final product look like? Well, you'll have to tune in next time! But I CAN say, I went back and got my own hair cut a few days later. And then I went back again and splurged with some highlights. Yes, I think we found a keeper.

Meet the Hornets

2011-09-19T05:56:00.001-07:00

It's that time of the year...

Mark is coaching again.

AND he's on the league board. AND he's a sponsor.

Yeah. We're into it.

Not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning.

Abigail took that last picture when I wasn't looking. I found it when I was reviewing the day's pictures. What a neat surprise!

Whine and Wii

2011-09-15T05:52:00.000-07:00

Over the last several years (i.e. ever since I left the Air Force), my level of fitness has been in decline. Predictable, I know. I just haven't figured out how to get things done, especially in a rural area on a limited budget. Yes, we do have the great outdoors, but it's either too dark, or too hot during my windows to work out. Plus, I can no longer run...my knee tells me that. I was riding the bike for a while, but these roads don't have much of a shoulder, so I feel like the risk is pretty high. There is a little workout studio 25 minutes away, but I can't see myself reliably going there, and it is not cheap. And then I started having some issues with my back...some pain, stiffness, and some disconcerting grinding when I moved certain ways, which really freaked me out.

Does this sound like a bunch of whining and excuses? YES, I think so too. So for Mothers Day, I asked for a Wii Fit. I suspected (hoped) the source of my back issues was a weak core, and I thought if I started to strengthen it, I'd feel better.

Did you notice I said Mother's Day? The one that occurs in May? Well, the Wii did not solve my back problems, and I ended up going to the doctor and physical therapy to help resolve it. I got two tangible goods from that process:

#1: I got an x-ray and gained some confidence that nothing is grossly wrong with my back (the grinding is a loose SI joint, probably from carrying the twins--creepy but not painful at all)
#2: After months of being really tentative with my back, the movements and environment in PT sparked the memory of how much I loved to work out!

I'm finally getting the "clearance" to go back to normal activities. Recently, I dusted off the Wii, and tried a program I hadn't before: "The Biggest Loser". Patterned after the TV show of the same name, you can choose circuit workouts, yoga, "challenges", and there are recipes, health tips, and videos to boot. I tried a workout and BAM, I was hooked! You can choose your intensity and duration for the workouts, and boy, did I really work up a sweat! Yeah! And I earned some sore muscles! Double yeah!

I'll let you know if this tidal wave of enthusiasm carries on into next week. :-)

A Whole Junk of 'Em

2011-09-13T05:12:00.000-07:00

When the girls were 3 or so, they used to mix up "bunch" and "junk". Or maybe they just didn't know "bunch"...only "junk". Anyway, we still use this phrase today to describe, as you might guess, a large quantity.

We had a whole junk of Schlaefers here recently, with Mark's brother Kent coming to visit. He and his wife, Katherine, came to visit from the outer banks of NC, coincidentally at exactly the same time Hurricane Irene was passing over their home. Fortunately, they had no major damage. They were in CA to visit adult sons Peter and Steven (both now CA residents), and the whole group, plus Mark's younger brother John and his son Zachary (our home-building helper), all came out our way for a visit. We greeted them with our signature ensemble:

Then for the next 36 hours we talked, ate, and drank...all at high volume. We hit the highlights of Tollhouse: burgers and shakes at the Tollhouse Market, my folks' pool, and our crawlspace.

As a host, I was torn between trying to take care of everything and have my guests relax, or allowing Katherine to do things in my kitchen, where I could watch and possibly learn from her. She is a most amazing cook. In the end, my selfish instincts won out, I invited her in, and she did do something magical with some fresh figs (which I just happened to have on hand), cream cheese, and walnuts on toasted sourdough. Which she just made up on the spot. See what I mean? I should also note that per his request, Peter was the master chef for breakfast both days. It was the first time he had cooked for his mom, so that was an event in itself.

All too soon, it was time to say goodbye. Here are the Schlaefer men:

And the next generation:

And that's what it's all about, isn't it?

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-09T04:53:00.000-07:00

Now that we're back in the groove of school, we had a bit of a summer flashback with a 3-day weekend. In fact, it was a LOT of a summer flashback because the temperature was 100+ degrees. And of course, the one thing the kids wanted to do was go to the zoo.

So down we went on Saturday, and you know, it wasn't so bad. The zoo has lots of shade, and when things get really hot, an ice cream or a visit to the reptile house really can hit the spot. In addition to the normal fun of animal watching, the girls practiced map-reading, directing us from exhibit to exhibit. It's Mae's turn:

Yes, you may notice the tutus are STILL in action. In fact, yesterday Abigail wore the green one WITH HER COWGIRL BOOTS! Several of the teachers got a kick out of that.

At the zoo, we also attended the bird show for at least the 6th time. And we still enjoyed it. We got some one-on-one time after the show, feeding the bird a dollar...he takes it from your hand and puts it in the bin. Very quickly. So this is what it looks like one second later.

Although I generally don't initiate conversations with strangers, the zoo is one exception. I will approach ANY PERSON who has a zoo badge, and start asking them questions about the animals. I love to hear their stories. Where did they come from? How old are they? What are they like, really?

- I learned that the sole, crabby-looking camel is at least 40 years old, and is the last of the "camel ride" camels from years ago. And he's actually quite friendly.
- The tortoise population is saturated, even at pet stores, so they have to get rid of 20-30 fertilized eggs every year. Hey, tortoises...haven't you ever heard of abstinence?
- I learned the ages and names of all the giraffes. The two mommies are sisters.
- We watched the two baby orangutans clinging to the backs of their parents as they climbed around the enclosure. Interestingly, the male was carrying one of the babies. We learned that this never happens in the wild...the females keep the babies from the males because they don't generally tolerate the babies well. It's nice to know that the primates are becoming so gentrified, isn't it?

The next day, we took a last run down to the lake, even daring to spend the night on the houseboat in the slip on a holiday weekend. Yes...I know. But it turned out the only noises after 9 p.m. were the wind and the water. Which was still plenty loud enough to keep me awake all night, but I'm a tough case.

On the way home from the lake, we stopped at a favorite spot along the stream to see if any wild blackberries had lingered into September. Score!

And so it was, that with berry-stained fingers, scratched-up skin, and full bellies, we bid farewell to the formal end of a fantastic summer.

2020 Olympics, Here we Come!

2011-08-31T05:51:00.000-07:00

Yes! I have found the girls' natural talent...a sport where they just might be child prodigy material.

The sport is: Bocce ball.

Maybe it's NOT in the Olympics now, but it could be by 2020, right? I mean, if curling could make it, the Bocce could too! They really did seem to have a knack for it. Check out that form!

We discovered this talent when we visited Merlo Park, in Stirling City for a weekend picnic. The park is a beautifully groomed 27-acre refuge, with a man-made waterfall & stream feeding three ponds.

The ponds were stocked with rainbow trout, although I don't think fishing is allowed. FEEDING the fish is allowed, however, and Boy are those fish FAT! The girls enjoyed watching the fish fight over pellets from the vending machine.

And what could be more fun than sending your Crocs floating down the stream?

We all found things to enjoy about the park...

The park was populated with bronze statues, and the girls had a great time hamming it up with their metallic counterparts:

What a wonderful afternoon!

Endless Endless Endless Entertainment

2011-08-26T05:31:00.000-07:00

Although the start of the school year hit me like a freight train, I did make SOME effort to prepare. There were some items, like backpacks and shoes, that really had to be purchased before school. Naturally, we went up to Paradise (near Chico), to visit friends Nick and Judy to do our school shopping. Why? Because I am a bad shopper, and Judy is very, very good, and she enjoys spoiling the girls.

We went to JC Penney as our primary target. Historically, the girls enjoy shopping for toys and anything that looks like toys, including jewelry and purses that look like stuffed animals hanging on a string. This trip was no exception. But I guess we don't often (i.e. never) really go clothes shopping. I hadn't really recognized this fact until we were in the dressing rooms. The girls acted like they had never been in one...they were just fascinated with the mirrors.

Their antics just tickled my funny bone. Here are these two girls, who are so nearly reflections of each other, enjoying endless sets of themselves, marching and kicking.

Dressing rooms--who knew they could be so fun?

Someone Took my Babies

2011-08-23T04:44:00.000-07:00

With the new, longer commute to school, a few of us have banded together to form a carpool. There is a bus, of course, but the morning bus carries K-12, and I'm not ready for my tender babies to go there just yet. They do a decent job of keeping the little ones up front, but...still. We are fortunate to have one of the only bus routes in the afternoon that carries K-6 only, so the girls will be riding the bus home most days--with the stops, it's about a 40-minute trip.

So yesterday was our first day of official carpooling. We walked down our driveway to meet our ride.

Then I had to zoom in and get a picture of these cute, cute dresses. Note that I figured out at the last minute that it is PE day, hence the tennis shoes. Kind of a summery, sporty look!

I didn't take pictures of them getting into the car, because I didn't want to make a big deal about it, but as they drove away, I realized that it was indeed a big deal!

This is the first day someone else is saying goodbye on the playground, someone who will not give them a hug and kiss.

They were ready, of course. But maybe I wasn't.

New year, new school

2011-08-20T06:45:00.000-07:00

Although I've been trying desperately to catch up from all our summer activities, I've been overcome by events. Specifically, school started this past Wednesday. Here are the girls, ready to go. Mae is wearing the SAME DRESS she has worn on the first day for THREE YEARS!

Last year:

TWO years ago!

I don't think it will make it next year...it was a little tight :-)

The start of the school year has been particularly bittersweet this year. I always feel sad parting from the girls after time together...I get the blues each Monday during the school year, and especially on the first day of school. This year, I had the added sadness of driving by Sierra Elementary to the new Foothill Elementary, about 13 minutes further.

You may recall that our district had to close its two elementary schools and consolidate to a k-6 at the former middle school, and 7-12 at the high school. The new elementary school is 630 kids, while our old K-3 was about 150. With so many changes, we knew to expect chaos on that first day, and were not disappointed. Check out the nervous excitement on the girls' faces:

Amidst all the hovering parents, the girls finally found their line, which finally meandered off to the classroom.

I'm grateful they are together this year, and am anxious to get involved. Maybe I will grow to love this new school too. I will try my best to keep an open mind.

To Hell and Back

2011-08-17T05:10:00.000-07:00

One of the "fun" things we did in Albuquerque was ride the passenger tram up to Sandia Peak. The tram is the longest of its kind in the world. The car travels 4,000 vertical feet across 2.7 miles in about 15 minutes. At one point, the car is almost 1,000 feet above the ground.

And I took my babies on it.

I think that was the source of the problem. Because there was a problem. I had ridden the tram years ago, and although it was a little freaky, I had no difficulty. But I'll admit going in this time, I was anxious. I tried to distract myself by taking pictures. See how everyone is having fun?

Not sure if I mentioned before, but my niece Megan was along on the trip.

I even took pictures of Mark and I. We even look like we're having fun, don't we?

Mark was, but I was not. I was thinking about what would happen if the cable failed. I was thinking that I wasn't getting enough air. I was thinking I might faint. Or vomit. Then I was pretty sure I was going to vomit, and started to think about where I was going to do it. My purse? No, too many important things could get ruined. I decided on Mark's hat. I readied myself to snatch it off his head.

Fortunately it didn't come to that, but not by much.

When we got to the top, I debated whether to tell Mark about my inner turmoil. Should I just try to tough it out and NOT tell him? But what about the trip down? How was I possibly going to face that? In the end, I did tell him. I told him I needed to see if they had any Tums available up there. Turns out, Megan was carrying her backpack in which she had a horde of Tums. I briefly pondered what kind of 14-year-old carries a bunch of Tums around, and then I downed six. Then we walked around and enjoyed the views.

During this time, I was considering whether I should ride the tram back down, or have Mark drive around the back side of the peak (an hour & 15 minutes) to pick me up. I decided to try my luck on the tram. Armed with a large Styrofoam cup (provided by the employee at the station, who said this happens all the time), I boarded the tram with my family. This time, I stood right next to the front window, focused on the fresh air coming in through it, and the interior of the car.

And we made it down just fine.

Finally...New Mexico

2011-08-15T05:41:00.000-07:00

I must briefly note that at this point I'm writing about events from almost a month ago. August, where have you gone?

OK, so day 3 we made it into New Mexico but chose to hang it up in Gallup, just two hours or so west of our final destination, Albuquerque. I can't say much about Gallup, other than that it has the most humongous, crowded Walmart I've ever seen (earplugs: check). It also has Red Rocks State Park, which looked really beautiful...from the freeway. And it ALSO has USA RV Park, which has mastered the fine art of billboard advertising from hundreds of miles away, so by the time you reach Gallup, you just give up and go there. It was a very well-run park, clean and well-priced, complete with an American flag on the bottom of the pool, an evening BBQ, and live country music. Well, one guy singing & playing guitar with an I-Pod backup...but he was pretty good! However, I would not recommend the fried catfish. We enjoyed our evening cocooning in this very safe spot, a decent distance from the trains, and then we marched on to Albuquerque.

I may not have mentioned "the big picture" for this trip...we really had two goals in mind:

1. Get out in the RV---no small challenge. We lived in that trailer for 19 months. Other than moving it from my folks' place to ours last summer, it hadn't been moved in almost 2 1/2 years. So there was a fair amount of inertia to overcome. But dag nabbit...the thing is paid off, and if we're gonna keep it, let's use it! Right? Right???? Right.

2. Visit the high concentration of family and friends in the Albuquerque area. Mark's parents and two of his sisters and their families. My cousins. Several long-term Air Force friends. It takes at least a week to do this well, so we planned on a week, which stretched into 8 days, but we did do it well!

I would say the top of our list was spending time with Mark's parents, who, despite some setbacks in this past year, are amazingly vibrant.

What a wonderful investment.

Seligman AZ

2011-08-07T12:17:00.000-07:00

The second day of our road trip took us across the Mojave desert, into Arizona, and ended in Seligman AZ. This little town was right out of the movie "Cars".

In fact, the rumor is that the town barber "Mario" was the model for the character "Luigi" in the movie.

Of course, I didn't research this very thoroughly, and the town was pretty much shut down by the time we started to explore. We had a decent but very overpriced dinner at "The Roadkill Cafe", then headed back to our campground.

The (expensive) KOA was pretty much the only available camping in town, but what I did not really notice until bedtime was that the campground was very close to the train tracks. And the route is very active ALL NIGHT! This was not the first time we'd run across this problem, but it WAS the first time we found such a poor location with KOA. The next day, earplugs were #1 on my list of needed items.

So...Seligman was a cute stop, but not on my list of adventures to repeat.

Reliably Unreliable

2011-08-04T20:48:00.000-07:00

So...perhaps you've noticed that it has been quite a span of time since I last posted. This gap was not completely without cause. I was out of town on an RV road trip for most of that time, but had optimistically predicted that internet connectivity would be robust and plentiful. Not so.

Therefore, I was forced into a bit of a hibernation, and I am just now shaking off the cobwebs. I'm thinking I might share a bit about my trip. And share some funny stories. But maybe starting tomorrow...not tonight.

I'll just leave you with our first night's lodging, an RV camp in Tehachapi, CA. See the wind turbines on the ridge? It was located right next to an airstrip, which made me a little nervous.

Fortunately, it was an airstrip for gliders, and they didn't fly at night!

I Wanna be a Cowgirl

2011-07-16T07:32:00.000-07:00

We finally made the long-overdue trip to Boot Barn and got the girls some boots. Boots are pretty much an essential here in the summer, due to the noxious summer weeds that coat and destroy shoes and socks if you venture anywhere in the field. And then there are the rattlesnakes. In past summers, we've just used the rainboots from the previous season, but this year, we (and Aunt Judy and Uncle Nick) decided it was time to upgrade. Predictably, Abigail was drawn to the pink boots, and chose some with a light-up heel. In a surprise move, Mae ALSO went for the pink boots. She wanted an all pink pair, but we eventually guided her to ones with a tan foot and pink upper.

We're all SO happy!

Now for the horse...

Pine Flat Lake

2011-07-13T05:30:00.000-07:00

Just days after braving the icy waters of Dinkey Creek, we retreated to the warm, comforting waters of Pine Flat Lake. The wildlife on the dock was abundant (look at the the momma duck with her baby ducklings, not my wild-looking children).

Not shown here is the rattlesnake, which met its unfortunate demise in our ski boat. It had crawled up onto the dock, and a helpful neighbor tried to throw it back into the water. Unfortunately, his aim was not good. Thank goodness none of us were IN the boat! In addition to the rattlers and duckies, there was the human kind of wildlife on the docks...the kind that parties loudly all night. Conclusion: if you're gonna spend the night at the houseboat IN the dock, don't do it on a Friday night!

I know, I know..."Duh, Connie!" Thank goodness the girls are heavy sleepers, or they'd have a whole new vocabulary.

The next day, we ventured up to the bridge at Sycamore. The lake is high enough to make a jump off the bridge a relatively reasonable thing to do. Here goes Megan:

And Scotty:

Not to be outdone, here goes Mark...DIVING. Because jumping was just too safe and boring!

And here is Casey, officially a jet-ski driver now that she is 16 years old. Doesn't she look happy?

It was shortly after this that she learned her first lesson of adult driving. The driver needs to keep an eye on the fuel gauge!

Not so dinkey Dinkey Creek

2011-07-10T06:46:00.000-07:00

Here is the "creek" part of our Dinkey Creek 4th of July adventure. We spent quite a bit of time hanging out at the river, which is running very fast with snow melt from the huge snow pack this year. Judging from the temperature, this water was snow just hours before! All the more reason to jump in, right? In our family, the answer is "Of course, and I'm first!" My crazy cousin Donald led the way this time:

Mark cannot resist the urge to make a dam in a slower part of the river.:

My sister Gail and her daughter Casey. Casey's style was a bit cramped, as you can guess. She was the only one of our crew who did not eventually douse in the water, but we feel she earned an honorary membership in our "polar bear club".

Even little Lily (Gail's new puppy) went in, and it darn tuckered her out!

Mark's rock-scrambling gene is popping out in this one...

Speaking of Mark, here he is, plotting his course down the river:

Suffice it to say, we found a much safer place for the kids (and me) to jump in. But, um, my camera ran out of power, so you'll have to take my word for it!

Big A*% Trees

2011-07-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

Usually I do a decent job of filtering what I think before I write it down for all the world to see. Because to be honest, some of the monologue in my head is more like a sailor than a room-mother. This is no surprise to those who know me well.

BUT once in a while, my filter is overwhelmed, and I have to say something like "Wow, that is one big-ass tree". This is just such an occasion.

See what I mean? C'mon, you're thinking it too, aren't you?

Over 4th of July weekend, my family, Gail's family, and my cousin Donald went up to Dinkey Creek and camped, just for one night. We had hoped to see fireworks at Shaver Lake, but our plan to approach the lake on the non-crowded side didn't pan out. Instead, we ended up just hanging out in the forest, exploring the creek, and taking a dunk in the icy stream. More about that later. We also ventured down to McKinley Grove, home to about 230 giant sequoias. The largest of these was over 20 feet in diameter, and some are estimated at about 2,000 years old.

I learned a few interesting factoids: the root system of the giant sequoia is very shallow and wide, generally no more than 5 feet below the surface

The bark of these trees is full of tannins, and is very resistant to fire, so fires actually help the trees by killing off the competition. The tannins also preserve the wood long after the tree dies. Interesting, eh?

Once again, I'm amazed that we live practically next-door to all this amazing stuff.

Abby's Blog

2011-07-03T07:19:00.000-07:00

My daughter, Abigail, told me she wanted to write a blog. She wanted to take her own pictures and write about them. So I showed her how to use my camera, and she busily started clicking away. Later that morning, we reviewed her shots. She chose her first subject, and I showed her the caption space where she could write.

Turns out, she was not satisfied with just writing captions...oooohhhh noooooo. She wanted lots of space in which to type her commentary. I was a bit skeptical, but kept it to myself and set up a word document, inserting the picture she had chosen. So here I give you...Abby's first post:

This is a picture of daddy. He works on houses. He is a pro at that. A pro is when you get paid for doing something. He worked on my friend Emma’s house, he worked on Mrs.Fellding’s house. He has planit Earth on his shirt. It has a rocket lonching. He has light blue eye’s. He has werdy fat glasses. Abby

I don't know about you, but I was pretty darn impressed!

My Mommy

2011-06-30T05:14:00.001-07:00

Last week was my Mommy's birthday. Is it possible that the older I get, the younger she gets? She is one of those amazing people with seemingly boundless energy. She loves to travel, and is always tackling some new project. And judging from the fact that her mother is still going strong, I'd say she'll continue to inspire us all for many years to come.

Usually we venture out to some "out of the norm" spot for her birthday. She likes the high country, so we'll take a picnic basket and go. But this year we switched it up and headed downtown to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. My dad and sister Karen were also there but had already headed out the door before I thought to take a pic.

When I saw this picture, several things registered in my brain:

1) Clearly I didn't get the memo on the floral theme
2) Just LOOK at how tall and lanky those girls are...where did my babies go???!!!!

Fresno's Storyland and Playland

2011-06-27T06:16:00.000-07:00

Last week, we made a somewhat impromptu trip to Fresno's Storyland and Playland. A friend's sister had tickets through Groupon, and we got to use the last two of the bunch. I had never been to this little park, so this was a real adventure. The girls put on their adventure wear (the Disneyland tutu dresses). We hit Storyland first. Storyland is a little wooded park with fairy tale figures and recorded stories.

Yes, I directed this spontaneous joyous display. Doesn't it just ooze with spontaneous joy?

Yes, I thought so, too. But Abigail did manage to ham it up with Mother Goose...

Here is the Groupon group, plus one infant. Thank goodness there were three moms and two grandmas to shepherd them!

Playland was a little amusement park, complete with a mini roller coaster:

There was a twinge of sadness as I watched my little fluffs of pink and green happily disappear on the big-kid ride.

Here they are, taking command of their own pink helicopter:

It does make me happy that they still enjoy a little spin on the merry-go-round, although ever since I told them the outside horse goes the fastest, they both want that one.

We ended our adventures with a little less sandwich and an escort of hungry geese!

I'm so glad we made it to this park. The girls are almost too old to enjoy it fully, but thankfully I think we made it under the wire.

Go Fish

2011-06-24T06:40:00.000-07:00

For their seventh birthday, my girls asked for fishing poles. They picked out their favorites, and my folks obligingly purchased them.

Abigail got a pink Barbie pole.

And Mae got "The Ugly Stick".

Just think about that. Did she choose it because of its contrary name, or in spite of it?

I think it was the vast array of accessories that caught her eye. Even if they weren't pink.

So for the past month, the girls have been anxious to get down to the lake to try things out. Last week, we finally made it down.

The Barbie pole came with a casting plug, so Abigail had fun practicing her casting.

When it came time to put on actual hooks, I got a little squeamish. I wanted the least committing hooks possible. I don't actually want to keep and EAT the bluegill they catch on the dock!

Fortunately (for me), they didn't have much luck. Except for this catfish, which Scotty caught just with the net.

It was tending its cache of eggs, so perhaps it wasn't very sporting, but pretty irresistible for a kid, I'd say! We let it go.

Hey, I might even get a license this year. It's looking kind of fun!

Promotion

2011-06-20T06:11:00.000-07:00

Another end-of-year event is the 8th grade "promotion". Can't call it "graduation" because people might get confused:

"What, you're graduating? I thought you were only in 8th grade!"

This major celebration is kind of a hold-over from years gone by when the elementary schools were K-8 and there was no middle school. We're returning to that again, in a way, moving to a K-6 and 7-12.

This event was a big deal for us because my neice Megan was in the 8th grade class. And it was extra special because she had a speaking part, as the ASB president. And it was extra, extra special because she won two awards: The Leadership award (a $500 scholarship) and the citizenship award.

Congrats Megan! Just over her shoulder, you can see my neice Casey, who broke her leg in softball. Actually, it was broken for her by a girl stealing home, and Casey was the catcher. Ouch.

So now my sister, Gail, has two girls in high school. Look out, world (and Gail!)

The Killdeer

2011-06-17T05:54:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of a killdeer? It is a pretty little bird that looks a lot like a sandpiper, but it lives up here in the foothills instead of (or maybe in addition to) the beach. Here is a beautiful picture of one posted by hart_curt on flikr. I love the big, reddish eyes:

The killdeer has some interesting habits, and we had the good fortune to observe a pair as they set up house. We knew their nest was in a section along our driveway, because they'd show up swooping and diving around us as we'd drive along it. The protective display got even more interesting as time went on. If we lingered at all in the area, one or the other would land and chatter, dragging a wing, pretending it was hurt. Just like Darzee's wife in "Rikki Tikki Tavi"!

So the kids went off in search of the nest, and when they found it I was amazed. It's a wonder I didn't drive on it or step on it...right next to the road! And the cattle are out there all the time too!

But you can clearly see why they chose that location. Boy, don't those eggs just blend in?

After about a month of this display, one day the eggs were gone, and the birds were too. My exhaustive five minutes of research tells me killdeer chicks hatch with eyes open, and as soon as they are dry, they are ready to run. However, there were no egg shell bits, no sign at all of the eggs, just a little bare spot on the ground.

Were the eggs just swallowed whole by a gopher snake, or do the parents somehow clean up the pieces? I will simply choose to believe the latter.

The Sprinkler Job

2011-06-13T07:40:00.000-07:00

Last month, Mark and I participated in the first major project of the VIPS (Volunteers in Public Service). This is a grassroots group whose goal is to support the schools in everything from physical labor to tutoring. This first project was to install the sprinkler system in the new kindergarten play area, part of the process of converting Foothill Middle School to a K-6. The school purchased the materials and did the design and trenching, and our group cleared the trenches, laid the line, and refilled the trenches. Oh, my aching back! But we did get the job done.

About a dozen people showed up throughout the day to pitch in. I wish I had gotten pictures of people working, but I was too busy...working! I do have pictures of the sprinklers on at the end of the day, and the girls testing them out.

As you can see, it is quite a large area...and this is only one half of it!

They approve!

Last Day

2011-06-10T06:54:00.000-07:00

Thursday, after the class parties, and ice cream, and cookies, and cupcakes, and clean-up, it was finally time--time to walk off the campus of our beautiful little school for the last time.

This last year, I've shed many a tear over the closing of Sierra Elementary, this beautiful little mountain school that has been such a wonderful experience for my children. Although my sisters went to school here, I did not...so I've really only had a connection here for two years while my children attended. I can only imagine how those who have a much longer history here must feel. Many of the other parents attended this school. Quite a few of the teachers and staff (like my sister, Gail) have long histories here too. In the midst of it all, I am thankful that many of those same people were involved in making these difficult decisions. Three of the seven board members actually attended here as well. While I've been involved in the budget assessment, my head understands and recommended closure, but my heart is in a different place on this one.

I put up the flags for the last time that morning. We walked by them waving proudly on the way out. They include the flag proclaiming Sierra as a California Distinguished School.

Someone snuck a poster up with a little prayer--it speaks for us all.

Amen, Sierra. Amen.

Water Play Day

2011-06-10T06:12:00.000-07:00

One of the highly anticipated end-of-school-year events is "Water Play Day". Our Booster Club sets up a bunch of activities out on the fields, and each grade gets to visit and go just a little bit crazy. This year was different for several reasons. First, the weather was very iffy...forecast for the mid-70s. Second, it was the last Water Play Day for Sierra Elementary, before it closes its doors, so there was a desire to make it extra special, and a bit of heaviness in our hearts. But just look how it turned out...

We set up a giant slip-and-slide on the hill:

A wonderful vendor, Bounce House Bonanza, gave us three inflatables for an incredible deal:

The kids enjoyed super soakers, shaving cream, and bubbles:

And adjourned for a tasty fruit icee:

I'd have to say...it was a grand "grand finale".

Giving birth

2011-06-08T06:07:00.000-07:00

My daughters are fairly prolific writers and artists. One of my favorite exercises they do at school is to write several descriptive sentences, and add an illustration. Here is one of Abigail's products, about seeing a cat giving birth. You should be able to click on it and get a larger version...if you dare.

Here is the translation, if you have trouble:

"We saw our cat Buttercup giving birth to a kitten. She was giving birth under a bush. It was her first time having kittens. She was not comfortable at first. But she found a perfect position."

This was an interesting event. I had never heard a cat cry while giving birth, but this one did. These were her first kittens, and I guess she didn't know what was going on. In fact, we found a dead one, and thought she lost the entire litter until about 4 weeks later. There were three fat, healthy kittens safely hidden away! Want one?

Anyway, aren't these stories and illustrations wonderful stuff? I'm afraid I save every story. They'll have to wallow through them all in 50 years or so.

Science Day

2011-06-06T05:22:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we went on a field trip to Shaver Lake, hosted by Southern California Edison. They have a large hydro-electric facility, and own a lot of the surrounding land. And maybe their PR efforts are successful, because now I believe they are pretty good custodians of that land. The kids really enjoyed the variety of "stations"...all very hands-on. Check it out!

They had firemen, who obligingly made some fire, then put it out.

We learned about meadows:

A weather-monitoring station (there's Abigail in the maroon top):

I love to see the interest as the kids reach out and touch these items!

A highlight for ME was getting to go down into the tunnel to view the actual plant:

The tunnel was a mile long, taking us 1,000 feet underground. This cavern houses the actual plant. The water is gravity-fed through the turbine during peak demand hours, then the turbine runs in reverse and water is pumped back up to higher elevation at night. Is that not SO COOL?!

And back out into the forest, we learned about trees.

Look at this huge round! 150 rings

What a wonderful day!

Morgan Hill Fun, Part II

2011-06-03T05:30:00.001-07:00

While we were in Morgan Hill, we were fortunate enough to attend the Mushroom Mardi Gras!

What, you haven't heard of the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras?

Much, much, much more of a family event than the actual Mardi Gras in New Orleans. In fact, the "Mardi Gras" part was maybe just the beer and wine, and some beads. The "Mushroom" part was this giant, inflatable mushroom!

And an educational booth on the wonders of the mushroom...a locally grown product of the area. Hey, lots of vitamin D!

Other than that, Mushroom Mardi Gras was your regular festival, with craft vendors, music, and people walking around on stilts. There was a tiny petting zoo

Frozen lemonade:

and fruit smoothies:

All in all, a very fun time!

Morgan Hill Fun

2011-06-01T06:24:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went to Morgan Hill to see our neice Amanda graduate from Valley Christian High School. What a proud event in a beautiful setting overlooking San Jose!

She is off to University of Pennsylvania this fall, and will continue her gymnastics there as part of their team. I'm sure she'll burn it up!

As part of the festivities, there was a party at John and Kim's house with a live band! Of course, I don't have any pictures of that. But what I DO have is this:

Yep, the whole Schlaefer and extended crowd, all gathered around the computer, enjoying a little "youtube".

If you haven't seen this clip, the "Ultimate Dog Tease" (sent to us courtesy of yet another Schlaefer, sister Mary Kay),...well, you just gotta! 38 million people can't be wrong, right? Or maybe it's just 1 million people who, like me, have watched it 38 times!

Forgiveness

2011-05-29T16:24:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I get angry with the kids.

I harangue. I scold. I yell.

I wish I had a better way to handle myself at these times.

And then I come across something like this:

Abigail put these flowers here for me to find.

I'm so grateful when they forgive me.

I have another chance to be the person I want to be.

The Party Grinch

2011-05-26T06:31:00.000-07:00

I gave away my true feelings in the title of this post, but I will do my best to keep things light and bubbly. Like it was really fun. Well, I can't lie...it was fun. Just not for me. And that is the truth. Once in a while I have to be a little painfully honest here.

Last year was my first dalliance with "the birthday party". We had a little swim party, and it was successful. The girls invited 3 kids each. So this year, I got a little more brave. I allowed them to invite 5 kids each. And then I invited one more.

I'll come out and say, birthday parties break my heart, because I think they break kids' hearts. It is one of the first times I can think of where the lines are so clearly drawn "You are invited. You are not." And although I can say "That is life", I also remember being on the "not" side enough to cringe when I am drawing the lines myself.

My girls have been dreaming and plotting and planning and listing what they wanted to do for their birthday for literally months. What they wanted was not Chuck E. Cheese, or mega-bounce-houses, or anything like that. They wanted to share the things they enjoy most...right here at home. They wanted to pet the kittens, feed the cattle, go up in the treehouse, and swim in the pool. How pure and sweet is that? I loved their idea, and I wanted to give them exactly that. Here's how it went.

The girls arrived and put on visors with their names on them. They weren't as pretty as I'd hoped, and I originally thought we'd let them do some decorating, but that went by the wayside. The names on the hats were an unanticipated stroke of genius because they helped Mark match names with faces early on.

We loaded up into the truck for a hayride/cattle feed.

Then we went down to the treehouse:

Uh-Oh...someone stepped in some you-know-what!

Then we went to my folks' backyard and had cake:

And swam:

It does look like fun, doesn't it? Maybe my heart will grow bigger in time for next year.

Yes, You Can!

2011-05-24T06:32:00.000-07:00

Once in a while, I look at the "stats" for my blog. Anyone who has been around here for a while knows that I'm just throwin' stuff out there for family and friends, versus trying to get my big break into the publishing world.

But it is interesting to see how people get here. First of all, I notice my most popular post has been "home made trim", followed by "Dents, Cuts, and Pony Walls". Clearly the building theme remains the most popular. But I do see the "mutton bustin" post creeping up the chart!

I can also see keywords used to find my site. Most of it looks like people actually trying to find ME, using my name, or the site name, in various forms.

But here is one I just had to share. Someone hit on my site with the following keywords:

"can i wear a tutu at disneyland"

Steve, fess up. It was you, wasn't it?

Little Flowers

2011-05-22T06:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, has anyone ever seen brocolli do THIS?

Kind of makes the lightbulb go on for me...brocolli florets. I get it now!

I'm participating in a community supported agriculture (CSA) program this year. It is a little local farm, and we pick up a box of veggies every week. All fresh, organic, and ripe. The brocolli is actually fresh and sweet, NOT bitter. And this one, which I let go a little too long, was my "A-Ha" moment for the day.

Sheds are Yummy

2011-05-22T05:58:00.001-07:00

I have mentioned it the past that cattle are very curious creatures. They give cats a run for their money. Anything new in their area, they swarm. The shed is a prime example. Take these two:

Is it me, or do they look a tad guilty?

Perhaps they know that eating the tar paper off the shed is naughty, but they just can't resist?

And what is going on over here?

Something is irresistible in there!

Apparently, the wood tastes good, because she is LICKING it.

Maybe they need more fiber in their diets.

Expanding the Homestead

2011-05-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

Mark is at it again.

He's picked up his hammer to build...a building!

This time, it is a shed to hold all our yard equipment, tools, bikes, etc. They made it through this winter housed under a ping-pong table, in the trailer, under the porch. You get the idea. The shed has a raised floor, and will have a ramp at the door to drive our riding lawnmower. When we get one.

Oooh, while we're out here, notice the sign on his truck? It doesn't have the graphics I slaved to create, but it DOES do the job, and I like the way it turned out.

Here is the layout of the homestead now. The shed is actually pretty big...for a shed. Let's pretend it is a barn, just farther away.

Should we paint it red?

Our Second Home

2011-05-17T05:38:00.000-07:00

It has long been Mark's goal to build a treehouse for the kids. The time came to follow through. In his typical style, Mark threw himself into the project, did a bunch of research, and had a grand master plan drawn up. It wasn't until he was actually at Lowes, looking at the lumber, that he began to question his concept. He had envisioned a fully enclosed little playhouse, nestled up in the tree. Can't you just picture it?

But, he started to wonder if that was the best way to enjoy the tree, in a closed-up box. And he started to worry that it might be too heavy for the tree, especially fully loaded.

So a new concept was born.

Kind of a deer-stand, observation deck sort of a treehouse.

Where one is fully in touch with the tree. And the fact that you are way up in it!

There is a custom stairway-ladder.

And a trap door.

Mark attached it to the tree in the most tree-friendly way: a single puncture of the bark with a lag bolt through the center of the trunk. The platform "rides" on top of these bolts, allowing things to shift as the tree grows.

We may put a partial roof on later.

I think we like it!

Mae's Battle Scar

2011-05-11T05:52:00.000-07:00

This is what it looks like when you fall off a sheep's back and he runs over you.

If you're lucky!

Mutton Bustin'

2011-05-08T15:03:00.000-07:00

Since we moved back to Tollhouse in '09, we've made attending the FFA Mother's Day Rodeo a key event of our Mother's Day celebration. This year was no exception EXCEPT...the event was on Saturday, not Sunday. Yes, after 62 years of hosting the rodeo on Sunday, they decided to experiment and see if they could draw more attendance by having it on a day OTHER than Mother's Day. As you can imagine, this was a hotly contested decision in our community. I understand they even had sponsors withdraw based on this move. Is that crazy, or what?

OK, so on to the actual event. For the past two years, the girls have gazed with longing at the kids who were participating in the "mutton bustin'" event. Wishing, hoping, dreaming they could join the ranks of the mutton busters.

Well, this was their year.

But wait, before I go on, you do know what mutton bustin' is, don't you? Well, just in case, I'll elaborate. It is sheep riding. The idea is to cling onto the back of the sheep for as long as possible. Kind of like bull riding, but the riders are children and the ridees are sheep. Now, doesn't that sound fun?

So here I am leading my babies to the gates like lambs to...well, you'll see.

Yes, another "Mother of the Year" award for yours truly. I'm so proud.

Post Field Trip Stress Syndrome

2011-05-05T05:48:00.000-07:00

Now, you know me.

I don't like to complain.

After all, I got a free trip to and fro to the Monterey Bay Aquarium!

That's, like, a 4-hour drive (one way)...for free! Jeepers, with today's gas prices, no small beans!

This may explain why there were so many chaperones on this field trip. Literally almost one per child!

OK, OK, maybe they wanted to share in their child's wonder as they observe the bountiful display of our ocean wildlife. That part WAS pretty spectacular! But there was far too little time before we had to pack up for the return trip: 4 hours with a dinner break at McDonalds.

42 first graders at McDonalds. Need I say more?

So today, as my tender sensibilities are recovering, I will share with you some of my favorite pictures.

The sea otters (these were the largest marine mammels they had--no sea lions or seals or orcas or humpback whales, but they do sight many of these things off their observation decks!)

Coral reef tanks with lots of beautiful tropical fish

Abigail really liked the moray eels :-)

A giant kelp bed tank with leopard sharks, sardine schools, and some very large, sinister looking black fish called "blacksmiths", to name a few. This tank was really amazing!

One of many seahorse tanks. They had an huge collection of sea horses, sea dragons, and their cousins, the pipefish. More on those next time!

The Party is Over

2011-05-01T06:25:00.000-07:00

My feet hurt.

My house is a wreck.

Laundry is piled high.

I haven't communicated with anyone in weeks.

But today is a different day.

Because our school carnival (which I chaired this year) is OVER! And yes...I'll say it out loud. I'm glad!

But I'll also say, it was a lot of fun. We had a perfect spring day, sunny, breezy, but not too hot. We were there from 8 a.m. to set up, til 5:30 p.m. to clean up. The girls were real troopers, considering Mark and I both worked all day. They earned us three cakes and twelve goldfish--yay!

Just look at all the fun we had...

Cake walk (which Mark ran for hours)

Face painting (big hit!)

Karate exhibition

The Von Trapp Family singers (from the upcoming local production of 'The Sound of Music')

Look at the crowd!

These adorable little performers were from the local dance studio (yes, we DO have one up here in the hills)

Here are the older girls, doing a routine to 'Takin' Care of Business'.

A real show stopper--literally the whole carnival stopped moving to watch!

The perfect batch of cotton candy

Hair Stripes

Inflatables (we had two bounce houses, an obstacle course, and a slide)

Piano performances

And a hula hoop contest (that's Abigail, second from the left). We had neck twirlers, hand twirlers, and the traditional waist hoopers. After three minutes, they all won.

So you see...lots of work, lots of fun. We'll see next week what kind of funds we raised for the schools. I have high hopes, and am already thinking about how we can do things better next year. And I'll leave those notes for whoever decides to run it :-) .

Different Strokes

2011-04-19T05:20:00.001-07:00

In this case, we're talking about different strokes as in different people AND different strokes of the pencil. Of different people.

Are we clear now?

Here is Mae's portrait of me. I am very pleased to be smiling and happy.

And of Mark. This is BEFORE I trimmed his beard. Obviously!

And here is Abigail's depiction of the haircut in progress. That's MY arm!

The expansive forehead is real.

The rainbow is creative license. And so is the "On the Mark Remodeling" T-shirt.

Isn't that interesting and cool?

Variations on a Theme

2011-04-19T05:06:00.000-07:00

Last night was dinosaur night.

First, Mae presented her creation of a T-Rex made from pipe cleaners.

Seeing the world through the dino's eye.

Then Abigail did some interpretive work, with big nasty fangs and small useless arms.

You should have heard Mark scream!

The Day of Rest

2011-04-11T05:55:00.000-07:00

On this relaxing Sunday, we undertook three major projects:

1. Mark took the tractor out and we tried to knock down dead trees. Years ago, my father had planted a border of trees along a portion of the property. I believe he was reacting to the construction of a home right on the setback on the adjacent property. Well, the trees were a bit too high maintenance, especially so far back on the property, and they mostly died. This means most of them died. Or most of them MOSTLY died, meaning they might have a little tiny bit of life left, but just barely.

Well, that house has changed hands at least once since then. And the row of dead tress is now our property. So...we'd like to take them out. Here was our first attempt. Mark tried running into the trees to loosen the root ball or break the trunk, whichever comes first. Then we chained the tree and lifted it out over the fence. This worked well on the VERY dead trees, but not on the ones that had more established roots. This whole process was made more awkward by the fact that there are fences on either side of the row of trees.

We eventually concluded that we'd come back later with a chainsaw.

2. I cleaned my car. My suburban mom minivan has become a dirt-encrusted farm vehicle. I cleaned the interior. I couldn't muster the energy to attack the exterior. So it STILL looks like a dirt-encrusted farm vehicle. But what the heck...I do live on a dirt road, you know.

3. We adopted 3 new baby kittens. My parents' cat, Sassy, had a litter. We had built a nest for her up here, hoping she would have the babies here. She had them in the bed of my parents' truck instead. Since they had to be moved anyway, we brought them up here. I hope they stay.

After all this, we did jump in the hot tub at my folks' house. That part was indeed relaxing.

Now...off to start a very busy week!

You want to do WHAT?

2011-04-10T06:49:00.000-07:00

Something strange is happening to me.

I find myself cruising strange, new websites, reading profile after profile.

Looking for something as yet undefined, but growing slowly more compelling.

I'm starting to feel a void in my life.

Something is missing. And I think it might be...

a dog.

And the funny thing is, Mark has started to bring it up, too.

What kind of dog would fit in with our family?

Not too small, but not too big.

Not too young (don't think I'm gonna do a puppy--I want a known quantity), but not too old (need plenty o' vigor left for two almost-seven-year-olds). But not hyper.

Minimal grooming.

This all is a big leap for me. After assuming for much of my life that I'd WANT a dog when I had settled, especially with the children, I haven't much felt the urge to open my brand new house to an animal.

But I think I might be changing my mind.

Farmhouse Lawn Care

2011-04-04T05:28:00.000-07:00

It is springtime at the Farmhouse. With all the rain we've had, and a few bursts of warm, sunny weather, we have some serious vegetation cropping up inside the fence. We seriously debated letting the cattle in to just mow it themselves, but had several reservations: - If we let them in once, they'll remember and try a little harder to invite themselves in for future meals - Cattle are curious and sometimes destructive creatures. They'll sniff, lick, rub on, lean against, and otherwise molest anything new. Like our house, porches, trailer, and cars. Those tail-light units aren't cheap! No thank you. Mark finally tackled the stuff with his weed-eater. After the whackin', Mark and the girls gathered the grass in the little red wagon, and carted it out to feed to the cattle. By this time, the cattle know what's coming...hurry up, already! Teamwork...quick, get the camera! Mark fends off a line-jumper. Looks like a well-mannered group. Well done, girls!

A Moon is Born

2011-03-31T22:05:00.001-07:00

Our neighbors' mare foaled last week.

Didn't I say that naturally, like I know what the heck I'm talking about? She foaled. That means she had a baby. A baby horse, really. Which is called a foal. NOT a PONY (Mark).

So we went to see the baby (foal). Here he is.

It is a "he", so in addition to calling him a baby, or a foal (and never EVER a PONY, Mark), you can also call him a colt, which is a young male horse.

This colt has a distinctive mark:

So now does the title of this post make sense? Yes, they MUST make some use of that mark when they name him. Luna? (no, that's feminine) Moonie? Um, I'm drawing a blank, but surely there is some perfect name for that little crescent!

Here are the girls, welcoming him to the world, and to our little corner of it. The girl with the longer hair is the owner's daughter, my girls' classmate and friend.

The mare's owner is the daughter of some folks who sold us their horse back when I was a teenager. So, this is kind of a little horsey cousin, twice removed.

Isn't family great?

An American Tradition

2011-03-29T05:47:00.000-07:00

This year we signed up as members of a Girl Scout Troop. The troop was just starting up, and it seems there was quite a call for it up here in the foothills...there are 35 girls in our group! Things are a little different than when I was a girl scout just a few years ago, but the core is the same. The girls are "Daisy" scouts, just beginners, and will be "Brownies" next year as 2nd graders.

Recently, scouting has brought the girls their first experience with sales, hawking the traditional cookies. Now, I'm not an excellent teacher of sales skills, because I STILL hate to approach people, or call people, or really even initiate a conversation, if I'm honest about it. Hopefully they'll imprint more from Mark in this area, because he does NOT share this handicap! Fortunately, Girl Scout cookies sell themselves. This was clearly shown in our ventures this weekend. We had a six-year-old and two five-year-olds as our sales reps. They may or may not be playing under the table at any given time, leaving us hapless parents to tend the store. But people walked up and plunked their money down, investing $4 in 15 Thin Mints, Carmel Delights, or Peanut Butter Patties. (OK, there may be more than 15, but when I mow through a box in one sitting, it seems like there can't be very many...can there?).

We set up shop in front of the local grocery store, breaking the day into two shifts. Abigail and I worked the first 2 hours, and Mark and Mae handled the 2nd two. Between play breaks, I tried to direct Abigail in addressing people's questions, giving them price quotes, and calculating totals and change. Big success! She did well, and people were patient and gracious. She also got experience in handling money. By the end of her shift, she understood and (mostly) practiced the concept of handing people their change, looking them in the eye and thanking them. I was very proud. Here are my little Daisies now!

We thank you for your support!

The Gift

2011-03-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

My house is officially warmed. My cousin Donald brought me a truly personal gift.

Here it is:

Exactly...what is it and what the heck is it doing?

Ah...THAT makes sense. Notice the matching stopper!

I have found a prominent place for it in my home. Now how could you not smile when you see that?

As a side note, the wine bottle is from Kumu Family Wines, a new label created by long-time friends of ours. It was VERY tasty! And you know you can trust me...I have exceptionally good taste! http://www.kumufamilywines.com/

Resurfacing

2011-03-22T14:47:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are still alive and well out here in Tollhouse--just not much in the communicatin' mode lately.

We have had the worst winter I can EVER recall in terms of illnesses here. We have all succumbed at one point or another. I've never had a sinus infection in my life, and I've had two in the last four months. Mae is still on two inhalers for virus-induced asthma after almost two months. And Mark had a stomach bug last week that laid him up for three days.

Just as we were recovering, it was time to go on a trip! We went to the wedding of Kristin Greer, daughter of our good friends Corrie and Monty Greer, to Blake Wiehe. It was a wonderful event all around. We have been stationed with the Greers three different times. At that point, you're pretty much family! Here we are:

Notice the lack of kids? They stayed home with Grandma and Grandpa! It made Indiana a very exciting and romantic place to be :-)

Now let's just hope we didn't bring home some new cold virus from the airplane ride!

Wordless Sunday

2011-03-12T06:24:00.000-08:00

This is my dad out feeding the cattle last week. Taken with my cell phone.

The End of Disneyland

2011-03-08T05:12:00.000-08:00

Well, I can't just leave it hanging with NO TEACUP PICTURES, now can I?

So...here we are going in to the heart of Disneyland: Sleeping Beauty's castle.

I just had to show the girls' cute little tutu outfits. I mean...if you can't wear a tutu to Disney, where CAN you wear a tutu?

Abigail and Scotty review their flight controls.

Anyone for a nice cuppa' Schlaefer?

CLEARLY the happiest place in the world (except for this guy on the right)!

I do look forward to heading back...after awhile. :-)

The Trade-off

2011-03-04T05:06:00.000-08:00

"Hey, today is Dr. Suess's birthday!" I said to my darling children. "They will have a cake at lunchtime. Do you want to have a school lunch? The meal is pizza."

"Well, I can't promise I'll eat the pizza, Mom" confesses Mae. I can always count on her to self-report. Abigail? Not so much!

So now, what's a parent to do? I think it is neat and fun that they have a celebration of Dr. Suess's birthday, but my children will likely eat only cake for lunch. And so, of course, I commit to making our own birthday cake. Because 15 pieces of cake at home is surely more healthy than one piece of cake and no pizza at school. Right???

Lunch is an interesting proposition anyway. The girls prefer to bring their lunches. Conveniently, I prefer to pack their lunches because then I know what they are eating (especially Mae, who hoards all her debris in the lunchbox for me to deal with later). On the down side, I am sadly lacking in creative lunch-making. The girls get an awful lot of PB&J...but hey...they keep asking for it! I have carved PB&J sandwiches into interesting shapes like dolphins and ponies and frogs. I feel so smug on those days!

OK, enough of that exciting discussion. Here is our own personal celebration of the birthday of Theodor Suess Geisel, whose legacy we've enjoyed so much. The cake was actually pretty good. Only 11 more pieces to go!

The Dark Side of Disneyland

2011-03-01T05:20:00.000-08:00

As I recovered my few cell phone pictures from our trip, it all came rushing back. Darkness pierced by garish lights. Dozens of mindless manikins kicking and spinning and mouthing their silent chants. And the music...the music! Over and over and OVER AGAIN. AARRRGGHH!

My family was stuck on "It's a Small World". For an HOUR! The dark, blurry blobs you are about to see very appropriately describe our physical and mental state during this time.

Here is the pile-up of little boats, stuck deep in the bowels of the (under)world.

My mom puts on a brave face for the children.

They're not fooled.

Mae was worried.

Mark did his best to reassure her.

I'm thinking about how I don't have to go to the bathroom. Really...I don't.

They gave us a pass to jump the line on any ride, which made up for our time, but not for the mental anguish and emotional trauma. I'm mostly joking, but I do not know whether my children will want to experience "It's a Small World" ever again. And that makes me a little sad, since I was so anxious to share it with them.

It used to be one of my favorites.

The Place Next to the World's Happiest Place

2011-02-25T06:09:00.000-08:00

We've been out of town for a week, so just catching our collective breath. I didn't post that information prior to our departure for security reasons. Because you never know when one of your readers will read about your upcoming vacation, and then break into your house because they know you're out of town.

But now I can come out and say it...we went to Disneyland. Well, first we went to Morgan Hill, which is always a very happy place in its own right, THEN we went to the Happiest Place on Earth (a.k.a. Disneyland). And THEN we went to California Adventure, which is the park next to Disneyland. We had quite the crew: our 4, my sister Gail and her two youngest, and the proud sponsor of our trip, my mom. I had three pieces of electronics with me: the camcorder, my new camera, and my cell phone. On Day 1, all three were failures. Well, maybe 2.75 were failures. I did get some pictures on my cell phone before it went dead. So we'll just look at pictures from Day 2 for now, and I'll work on getting some Day 1 pictures from the phone and my niece's camera.

California Adventure, while not infused with the fantasy nature of Disneyland, was a real treat. Lots of classic boardwalk-type games and rides, outdoorsy activities for the kids, a cool roller coaster for the larger people, and some pretty exciting "virtual" rides and shows. My very favorite was the "Soaring over California" ride, which was a simulated hang-glider flight over various points in California. Even the wait for the ride was fantastic for me, since it was decorated in a flight test theme, to include rocket engines and support systems that could have been right out of the Rocket site at Edwards AFB! But did I get pictures of that? No, I did not.

Here are the girls and Mark on the river rafting ride. A soaker, but very fun (to watch, ha ha!)

The girls on the rock wall and the zip line:

The girls and their cousin Scotty were amazed at all the coins in the simulated pond. They can find fun ANYWHERE! (check out the roller coasters in the distance)

And here are the girls in somewhat close proximity to Mickey Mouse.

He was off to an important business meeting, so he didn't have time to greet everyone. A little disappointing, but soon forgotten in favor of the Tuck and Roll Bumper Cars!

All in all, a wonderful trip. We still have one more day on our passes because two days in a row was just right. Let's go!

A New House

2011-02-16T06:23:00.000-08:00

Mark is thinking. Can you tell?

What could be on his mind? Could it be his precious babies up in the tree?

No.

He wants to build a new house.

In a tree.

Ostensibly for the girls.

But we know the truth.

Yes, look here...there will be ladders and trap doors...it will be really cool!

He's already researching and drawing up plans.

I'm sure the kids will love it.

All of them :-)

Not quite there

2011-02-16T06:16:00.000-08:00

Many blogs have a "wordless Wednesday". I can never get my act together enough to PLAN these sorts of things, I just have to blurt out whatever comes to mind whenever I come across it. But here IS a picture that really speaks for itself:

I guess the exciting part is putting it on the roll :-)

Pictures of poor, poor, Mae

2011-02-13T06:40:00.000-08:00

First, I need to point out that I have PICTURES of poor, poor Mae. Pictures from a camera. A real one. Well...a real point and shoot. The fancy dancy SLR is still in my distant future.

I got a Nikon Coolpix 12 Mp, $99 at Costco, and it is fantastic! So light and tiny, keeps a charge, and so MANY settings! All to explore! SO EXCITING!!!!!!!!!!!! (Thank you, Mom!)

So you'll see some of my edgy picture taking in the not too distant future. Now...on to Mae.

Poor, poor Mae has been "sick" for ten days now. A week ago Thursday I picked her up from school with a fever of 103.4 degree and vomiting. Fortunately #2 didn't happen until I got there, and was all contained in one receptacle or another. Which is good, because I don't handle vomit well. That lasted for a day, but the fever has persisted, along with cough and congestion. After a week, I broke down and took her to the doctor, where we found that she does NOT have pneumonia, but she DOES have asthma from this thing, which we are medicating. She has steadily improved, but each night, the fever returns, meaning she stays home from school for yet another day.

So each day, Mae and I hang out, play, and battle over school work. This is harder in many ways than you'd think. I have all these PROJECTS which I've had to put on the back burner, but they prey on my mind and distract me. And I do like to play...but frankly I have my limits. I have to meter it out. It's the school work thing that has been the real challenge. I'll confess that homework is routinely a battle, and this just ups the ante. The only "plus" is that I get her when she's fresh, vs after a full day of school. Probably the biggest lesson here is for me--as much as I've toyed with the idea of home-schooling, I don't think I could do it. Not well, and not to the benefit of my children, although the spontaneous field trips would be cool!

OK, here is Mae after a successful art project. Their science segment is studying penguins, art segment makes one out of "tear art", and then in math we measure it!

And here she is making pudding pops. Not a school assignment.

The instructions say to stir for two minutes. Keep going.

OK, two minutes is up.

That virus can't survive in frozen pudding pops, can it? CAN IT????

I'm feeling a little queasy.

A Wholesome Addiction

2011-02-09T05:35:00.000-08:00

Remember Charles?

Caroline?

Mary?

Laura?

Baby Carrie?

Mr Edwards?

And that HORRIBLE Nellie Oleson?

My sister has loaned us seasons one through six of Little House on the Prairie on DVD. We are through most of season two. And we are addicted.

Just about every night, we pack on the couch, and watch their lives play out on our high-tech flat screen TV. They labor, celebrate, grieve, befriend, tease, cavort, and in general mess with the whole spectrum of our emotions. Their lives generate some really great discussions with the girls. Jealousy. Sibling rivalry. Religious differences. Death. Love. Bullying. Deception. Loneliness. I must say, I don't remember Little House being THIS intense! There have been a few episodes that we've had to skip or fast forward, like the time Mr. Edwards gets mauled by the grizzly in front of his newly adopted son, or the story of the young boy suffering at the hands of his abusive alcoholic father, or the time Ma is alone and crazy with fever from an infection on her leg and prepares to amputate it herself. The girls have gotten pretty good at letting me know (by covering their eyes and screaming) when they've had enough.

OK, that's only happened a couple of times. MOST of the episodes are not only entertaining, but instructive as well. The girls identify strongly with Laura, and yes...I'm believing more and more that Mark and I bear a strong resemblance to Charles and Caroline. Maybe we'll even carve MS + CS in our fireplace mantle!

At this rate, we may never get DishNet! And that is OK with me.

The way they think

2011-02-03T09:51:00.000-08:00

Just an observation, today, about the different things the girls say.

Mae is still very much into role-playing, always as an animal. She'll often rope Abigail in, trying to direct what animal she will be, and what she will say. Abigail will play along about half the time. The other half she will insist on choosing her own character and putting her own story together. After all these details are worked out, the game begins with this announcement: "Ready, set, PLAY!"

You may remember many months ago, when I described one of Mae's intro's into her "game". At the time, she enjoyed being a kitten. I actually went back and found that post, and was surprised to see her description:

“I’m a one-year-old crazy kitten named Belle who likes to swim, and is very well trained, and she’s very shy because you just got her, and she just came out of her mommy.”

I was intrigued because there were so many similarities to her current line, a year and a half later:

"I'm an all brown puppy named Chedder, and I was just born but I'm not all slimy. I'm very shy until you get to know me."

Well, at least she's consistent! Mark continues to scratch his head and wonder if this is normal. I assure him it is, and that at one point, I wanted to be a horse when I grew up.

That IS normal, isn't it?

In other news, both the girls have an interesting new mannerism. They'll pose a question, and if I say "I don't know", they'll press me: "But what do you THINK?" And they'll insist on an answer or a "prediction".

Clearly, they've learned this in school, presumably because "I don't know" is an easy answer for first graders, and they need to be pressed to take a risk. My observation is that it's a lot harder for many adults to say "I don't know", even when they should.

One of life's little ironies!

Cookie Monsters

2011-01-31T05:12:00.000-08:00

Made some cookies with the girls yesterday...no bake cookies filled with sugar, butter, and some oats and peanut butter for a veneer of healthiness. But I saw what went in there. I'm not fooled.

Dang, they're good.

Mae: "Mom, can I try one?"

Me: "No, not until I get a picture of you guys with the cookies."

Abigail: "Mom, can't I please try just one?"

Me: "No, just make a face like you WANT to try one."

Abigail: "Mom, this is taking too long!"

Abigail: "Mo-om!"

And then I put down the camera(phone), and we all had one.

The Prize

2011-01-27T11:19:00.000-08:00

While visiting Mark's brother John & family over in Morgan Hill, Mark took the girls for a walk in the neighborhood. I LOVE this area, right next to Lake Anderson, teeming with not-so-wild wildlife--deer, turkey, etc. Upon returning from the walk, Mark and the girls proudly presented their find:

The little blob they're pointing to is "the find". A chunk of vomit. Owl vomit.

OK, maybe it doesn't technically qualify as vomit...it is called an owl pellet, which contains the remnants of the owl's dinner that he expels from his mouth.

To me, that is vomit. Which means that I don't want to pick it up and bring it home.

Or play with it and pick it apart. But Mark does.

There were all kinds of little bones in there, so we tried to speculate what bone went where, and what the animal was. I reminded the girls that this is what paleantologists do (they come up with that once in a while when asked what they want to do when they grow up).

I went online and did a little research:

How to Dissect Owl Pellets | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4444060_dissect-owl-pellets.html#ixzz1CGWTDeyD

Pay close attention to Step #1:

Don latex gloves, and a dust mask. Ideally, you should have obtained your pellets from a reputable dealer, who will ensure that these pellets can't transmit rodent-borne hantavirus.

I'm pretty sure neither Mark nor my tender babies had gloves or mask. I think Abigail is safe because she really wanted nothing to do with it. Mae...less safe...pretty sure she touched it, but I'm sure she washed her hands. She probably even used soap. For at least a few seconds before drying said hands on someone's face cloth.

While the contents of the "pellet" were actually kind of interesting, my summary of the experience is this:

No bones about it.

Tough Choices

2011-01-25T14:37:00.000-08:00

My heart

.....is breaking.

*********************************

Jan. 25, 2011

Dear Sierra & Auberry Elementary Families,

As a parent member of the SES School Site Council, I was asked to represent K-3 parents on the SUSD Budget Advisory Committee. This group was formed to take an in-depth look at the district’s funding crisis and make recommendations. I wanted to update you on where we are today.

The district is at a point where major changes must be made. Funding has decreased due to declining enrollment, and the state is currently only meeting 80% of its funding obligation per student. The governor has proposed a budget for next year which depends on voters approving the extension of current taxes. If this doesn’t pass, we can expect state funding to decrease at least another 5%. This is the scenario for which we must plan—a cut of $2M next school year. Unfortunately, it is likely that these trends (including decreasing enrollment) will take several years to reverse. With the failure of the proposed bond measure last fall, the district must make major cuts to resources and personnel going into the 2011/12 school year.

The committee is looking at several scenarios and studying the impacts. The most likely scenarios are:

- AES, SES, FMS, and SHS all remain open

o Class sizes increase to 27-28 at SES & 23-31 at AES with grade combos, no music or PE teacher, health services cut

o FMS class sizes at 26-33, health service cut

o SHS loses AP classes, drama, some ag/FFA & ROP, all small sports, & more

- SES closes, all K-3 move to AES, FMS remains 4-8, SHS remains 9-12

o Same as above except K-3 class sizes increase slightly (avg. 28 per class) w/o combo classes

o AES can accommodate with less expense on infrastructure repair

o SES goes into maintenance-only status, with power & limited water, no heating/cooling

- AES and SES close, FMS becomes K-6, SHS becomes 7-12

o K-3 classes average 21 students

o SHS programs remain intact

o SES & AES go into maintenance-only status described above

o Requires fencing & playground modifications at FMS

- AES and SES close, FMS becomes K-8, SHS remains 9-12

o Requires costly retrofitting of classrooms with portables or larger class sizes at FMS

Each of these scenarios saves $1.6-$1.7 million, so additional steps will likely be necessary. In addition to deeper personnel cuts, the board is considering a 4-day school week, retirement incentives, and selling or leasing the district office and various campuses, among other things. I will tell you that the majority of the committee is leaning toward the third scenario, which preserves programs and class sizes over “footprint” for these next few years.

The next several weeks are critical in the decision process. This Thursday, Jan 27^th, is a board meeting at 7 p.m. in the FMS multi-purpose room. It is the public forum for the community to bring their questions or make comments regarding the scenarios directly to the board. We will hold another budget committee meeting on Feb 1^st, which is an open meeting. Feb 10^th will be the board meeting where the budget committee presents their recommendations and the board intends to make a decision about which direction to take.

This process has generated, and will continue to generate, many questions and concerns. I am happy to give you as much detail as you would like, and would like to help bring forward any questions or ideas you have. Please contact me via e-mail at cnmschlaef@gmail.com, by phone at 855-7372, or send a note through Val in the SES front office. This has been a tough process, and we are all stakeholders in different ways: parents, home owners, business owners, employees, and alumni. I can honestly tell you there is a common theme among all the discussions: we need to do what is best for the education of the children in our community.

Sincerely,

Connie Schlaefer

SES School Site Council member

Out on the back 40

2011-01-19T06:40:00.000-08:00

Big news out on the back 40 is that Flash, our favorite heifer, had her first baby!

No name yet, but the BEST news is...it's a little heifer too! That's good, because that means my folks will keep her, instead of sending her down the hill to auction.

While we were out on the back 40, we stopped at the rope swing:

The girls twisted it many, many, MANY times. Mae was riding. Abigail didn't want to because last time she did (not with me), she said she got scared and cried.

But did alarm bells go off in my head? No! EVEN THOUGH Abigail is not usually a crier.

So finally the big release occurs. And that thing starts spinning. Mae was leaning back, looking up at the sky.

And it wasn't long before she started to cry. And scream. Not regular screaming. Scary screaming.

So I look at that steel cable whizzing around, and in the second before I stuck my hand in to stop it, I thought I might lose my fingers. And then I grabbed the cable.

It did hurt, but it didn't even break the skin. I stopped the swing, and rescued my poor child who felt like her head was going to explode.

So, while it LOOKS like fun to twist the swing a hundred times...BEWARE!

Lesson learned.

Icecapades

2011-01-15T06:52:00.000-08:00

During Christmas break, the girls attended a birthday party that included a visit to the outdoor ice skating rink. This is a seasonal set-up in Old Town Clovis, and it was our first-ever time on ice skates for the girls. Imagine my surprise when we arrived at the rink, only to find NO ICE. I didn't know the surface would be SIMULATED ice (a.k.a. plastic). Not to worry, the attendant assured me...hockey players skate on this all the time.

Oh. Now I feel better. Here's my money.

In their typical style, the girls had two very different approaches to skating. Mae was very cautious, and took her time around the rink. Abigail was convinced she could do all the moves, and she gave it a go. Time after time. She personally wiped up the entire rink with her pants. I couldn't even get a non-blurry picture of her!

Here's Mae:

Here are the three of us. Yes, I did go out there.

And here is my FIRST EVER video on my blog, so you get the full effect. This is after about an hour or so on skates.

Pretty impressive, eh?

And yeah, they made some simulated snow (a.k.a. soap suds) just to complete the experience.

Not sure what the girls will think if they ever encounter REAL ice!

Up to the Snow

2011-01-12T05:47:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, we had the perfect day to go up and play in the snow. The cloud layer was hanging from 2-4,000 feet, so our house was cold and foggy, but within a 30 minute drive, we were above the clouds and into a beautiful day. Of course, many other people had the same idea, so we had to drive another 20 minutes to a snow park that had some parking left.

This was our second excursion into CA snow country, and I'm proud to say we were much better equipped this time. Of course, we have lived in snow country before, so Mark and I were well outfitted, but we had cobbled together something for the girls on our first venture, just to play for an hour or so. We should have known better--galoshes just don't cut it in the snow, even if you have nice thick socks. They become nice, thick, wet socks in no time!

Even with those burbles, we were all excited to try our new sleds. Two of my sister's kids joined our troop as we headed up.

Abigail was the adventurer, climbing fearlessly...

And sledding endlessly.

Scotty, of course, was another fearless adventurer:

He and Mark are little blobs atop this large snow-capped boulder.

Mae's approach to the snow, on the other hand, was more low-key. After a few sledding runs, she was off to build a snowman.

Her favorite past time was making snow angels:

And of course, eating the snow.

The afternoon light on the snow was so beautiful.

Here is the whole crowd (minus moi):

And the Schlaefer four:

Thank goodness we're not football fans...we might have been sitting on the couch instead!

The Time Hole

2011-01-08T07:18:00.000-08:00

Yesterday marked a huge achievement. I finally finished the video for the school's winter program, held Dec 16th. You may well note that date was quite some time ago. All I can say is...I didn't just start this project this week. This as been a big black time hole, sucking away hours and hours of my life these past few weeks.

"Sure", I said, "I'll make the video." Heck, it was something I'd been wanting to learn how to do, literally for years!

And of course it was a lot harder than it HAD to be, since my computers are not top speed and couldn't take the first set of non-returnable software I bought (always read that fine print on the side of the box and know what it means!). And my camcorder records on a mini-DVD, which is old school and encoded in its own little way that has to be cracked open by some third-party software that took me sooooo long to find.

BUT I have triumphed over these hurdles, and produced a dang, good video! Well, it has some flaws, but it's mostly goodish. And it is on sale for $3. Yep, that's what they said at the program, so I'm stuck with it. Heck, I only have to sell 40 of them to make back the money I spent on software!

You may place your orders now!

Goodbye 2010

2011-01-01T06:46:00.000-08:00

We celebrated the last day of 2010 by attending a birthday party at John's Incredible Pizza. This is a California chain that takes Chuck E. Cheese to the next level. Oh boy.

Here are some pictures that, while not good photos, do capture the frenetic energy of the place.

There were rides and games. While many of the games were too sophisticated for 6-year-olds, my girls are HUGE fans of air hockey. And if we're talking about bang for the buck, it beats the heck out of many of the "games" like that toy-grabbing claw, that take a kids' tickets for a 10-second venture. The funny thing is...I think the game goes until someone gets five points. That takes my girls a good long time!

And lastly, there was the prize booth. Here are the big winners now!

When we arrived back home, the girls were understandably beat. We had plans to watch the ball drop in Times Square via the computer, at a reasonable 9 p.m. Pacific time. Mae went down in flames before 9, but Abigail hung in there. We watched and cheered and bid farewell to 2010. There was a bit of bittersweetness, as Abigail actually shed a few tears, saying that she really liked this year. I'm sure fatigue made her more emotional, but also she has become much more sensitive to saying goodbye. She asked if 2010 wasn't going to come around again, like the days of the week, and the months of the year. Isn't that an interesting observation?

Goodbye, 2010. I loved you too.

What is a smile worth?

2010-12-29T05:17:00.000-08:00

Now that trash day has carried away the wrappings, things are calming down a bit in the farmhouse. We had three different Christmas celebrations, one with just the four of us Christmas morning, one with my parents, sisters, and nieces/nephew that afternoon. We had a third when Mark's brother John and his family visited on the 26-27th.

Between Santa, family, and friends, the girls did very well on their lists. I'll have to get some follow-up photos, since I stuck more with video that day. Next time...

Right now, I have a story on my mind from bath time last night. Each of the girls took LOONNGG, luxurious baths, with a shampoo at the end. I admit, they are old enough to do their own hair, but we both still prefer it this way, so...what the heck! I was rinsing Mae's hair, and she was clowning around a bit, when all of a sudden her face broke into a huge grin.

"Yes!" she cheered, "I was trying to get you to smile!"

I was smiling at that moment, and I realized in retrospect that while she had been clowning around, she had been looking at me rather intently.

What had she seen? My lips pursed and unsmiling, intent on my task, or even a bit of a scowl since she was dragging things out and it was time for me to be fixing dinner?

Thank goodness she is persistent! She made my evening.

Winter Program

2010-12-22T07:02:00.000-08:00

Last week we had our Winter Program at Sierra Elementary. Sadly, it is quite possible it will be the last. The budget problems in the district are so dire, we may end up closing schools. There was definitely a bittersweet tone to the evening for all who are involved enough to understand this. Unfortunately, I think there are many who are unaware despite all the public discussion. Which, in a way, is even more sad.

Moving on to happier things! Here are the first graders, singing "Over the River and Through the Woods" and "Joy to the World". Mae is toward the right, in a dark dress with white sleeves. Abigail is toward the left in a red dress.

We took some pictures after the show. For once, the girls were cooperative, smiling and posing.

Maybe even a little TOO cooperative...this last shot was THEIR idea!

Where are my shy little babies now?

The Sweets and the Sting

2010-12-17T04:32:00.000-08:00

This season marks the second time we've participated in the Auberry Library Gingerbread House Construction Fest and Marshmallow Feed (I think they have another name for it, but it doesn't immediately come to mind). The girls were much more self-sufficient this year--yet another blow to my mommy neediness.

But I could share in their pride at the finished product!

Meanwhile, not to be outdone by my rural room mothers post, Mark HAD to demonstrate his ability to defend the home fort by shooting from the back porch. So...if any cans come to attack us, they'd better beware!

I feel safer now.

Dear Santa

2010-12-14T05:16:00.000-08:00

I asked the girls to write a wish list for Christmas. As is usually the case when I give them an open-ended sort of task, I was surprised by the results.

They didn't really look like lists. No, Sir!

They looked more like mosaics.

Here's Abigail's list:

I know it's hard to read...some print from the back shows through. I wish I had splurged on a FRESH piece of paper, but NOO-oooo. Next time. But could next time possibly be as special?

Here is the translation:

I would like a puppy that follows you everywhere I go (note: this is apparently a robotic dog)
I would like a doll house with and when you ring the doorbell the eyes open up and say “Come in”
I would like glow in the dark scorpions
I would like my very own cook book
I would like a clock
I would like some seeds
I would like some dolls
I would like my own dishes
I would like my very own kit with band-aids in it
I would like my own shopping basket
I would like a toy fish bowl
I would like my own radio
I would like some finger puppets
I would like my own laminator
I would like my own toy BB gun
I would like some stamps
I would like my own place mat
I would like my own TV Set
I would like my own Vacuum Cleaner

OK, now here is Mae's:

And the translation:

I would like the little puppy dog that follows you wherever you go
I would like my own shopping basket
I would like Hello Pony that has a diaper
I would like my own Rodeo play set
I would like my own Jenga block set
I would like my own cook book
I would like doll house that when you ring the door bell the eyes open up and say “Hello, come in”
I would like my own place mat
I would like my own picture frame
I would like my own candle
I would like my own pack of flower seeds
I would like a pirate ship and a bag of pirates beside it and make them loose
I would like a necklace with a clover
I would like my own pack of erasers
I would like my own movie: Lady and the Tramp 2 (but she meant 3)
I would like my own rocking horse

Clearly there was some cross-talk going on. Abigail was definitely the leader, tackling list-making with gusto. Mae was a little more free-form, happy to ride on Abigail's coat tails and ideas, although she threw in some of her own uniqueness (think pirates and rodeos).

I was struck both by the simplicity and creativity of their desires. Certainly there was some commercial influence--the dollhouse and toy dog seem to be something very specific, so I"m sure they've seen an ad.

But so many of the others...a placemat, a pack of seeds, my own kit with band-aids. I was touched by the simple nature of these things. Are they really representative of what these kids crave?

And then there is the puzzling presence of a few larger items: a laminator, a vacuum cleaner, my own dishes...do these really excite my little girl? Does she see them as grown-up trappings and want to speed things along by getting them now?

Here's my wish list:

Please, Santa, keep my precious babies young for just a while longer!

Views from The White House

2010-12-08T05:49:00.000-08:00

Every day I look out the windows of this house and take pause...there is always something to appreciate. I love the view out every window. And I love the fact that my kids will grow up with cattle grazing right outside the fence line, and think that's normal. Of course, they don't just graze. They play, they poop, and they...um...they mate. Which makes for pretty in-ter-est-ing dinner conversation. One morning not too long ago (but before I lost my camera), I noticed this little guy, settled down for a nap right by the fence. He was less than a week old.

He napped so hard and so long that when he woke up, mama was clear on the other side of the house, nowhere to be seen. They called each other and circled around in the same direction, keeping each other just out of sight. Finally they figured it out. I watched the whole three-minute drama, and the happy reunion. And to think...some people just get to see this stuff on TV.

Inspired, I also took a picture out one of my favorite windows. Although I realize this picture is less than compelling, you'll have to just take my word...it's great in real life! In addition to housing my scraggly basil plants, this window looks out over the ridges up into the high Sierra. They are now full of snow. The sun rises over these ridges, to the left in the summer and to the far right these days. That sight never ceases to bring me joy.

Are there really people who DON'T love mornings?

Rural Room Mothers

2010-12-05T05:09:00.000-08:00

So...the other morning, I'm standing around chatting with some other moms after we've dropped our kids off, and the conversation turns to guns...as in what kind of guns we own, what kind of recoil they have, and so on. Does that strike you as funny? It did me! It also got me thinking about other things that make this environment so different from suburbia:

- Any given day, but ESPECIALLY on weekends, you can hear gunshots ring out in our valley. And no one thinks twice. And usually no one calls the cops. Because there are a lot of things that need shooting up here!

- On "Bring your Pet to School Day", there were chickens, kittens, rabbits, goats, a pony, a mule, a miniature donkey, and of course, dogs. In fact, there were so many pets, they split it into two days: dogs and non-dogs.

- The school parking lot is predominantly filled with trucks

- 70% of the homes are heated with wood (I can't recall where I saw that data, so take it with a grain of salt, I guess)

- Nearly ALL the homes have a travel trailer. Many look like they are occupied. Hey, just a few months ago, that was US!

- There are many multi-generational families here. Now we are part of that, too.

Don't you just want to move here now?

Georgia on my Mind (part II)

2010-11-30T06:21:00.001-08:00

On our way back up to Atlanta, we were again hoping to explore a little of the "native" food. Our GPS was repeatedly leading us to clusters of fast food chains, so we decided to try a different approach, and just pick a city and head for the downtown area. Success! We stopped in Forsyth, about 20 minutes from the famous Whistle Stop Cafe, and happened upon "The Grits Cafe". While we were in search of a late breakfast, this was an upscale bistro-type of place, but we were starving and the prices weren't too bad, so in we went. We were pretty interested in tasting some down-home grits. This is what we got:

OK, maybe ordering a "grits martini" isn't the way to experience down-home grits, since it is really the shrimp, bacon, cream, and mushrooms that you taste, but DANG it was yummy. When we wondered aloud what real grits actually taste like (as opposed to the instant stuff Mark & I ate at the Academy thinking it was Cream of Wheat), the waitress obligingly brought out a little sample--delicious! Reminded me of risotto. Is that normal? Mark also had a BLT with fried green tomatos. Interesting, but kind of pickled-tasting--not our favorite.

After lunch, we ventured out east of Atlanta to Stone Mountain, a large granite dome that Mark identified as "the largest exposed granite face in the world". Turns out, this wasn't quite true, but it WAS a very large rock, and if you know Mark, you know that HE LIKES ROCKS. We did take the walk up to the top, just a mile in, 825 ft of vertical gain, but towering over the Atlanta skyline, and everything else as far as the eye could see. In the visitor center, we learned that Stone Mountain is a "monadnock", which is a rocky hill in otherwise flat land, so named for Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire. Just a point of interest for my NH compadres.

As it turns out, this place had some other surprises. I'm snagging a couple of pictures from Wikipedia here. According to Wikipedia, this is the largest bas-relief carving in the world. It was started by the guy who went on to do Mt Rushmore, although his work on Stone Mountain was later blasted away by a second artist.

It is a carving of three Confederate heros: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson. Apparently, this place was quite a rallying point for the Old South.

It was also the birthplace of the 1915 revival of the KKK. Hmmm...we didn't read about THAT in the visitor center! Apparently, Martin Luther King Jr even referenced Stone Mountain in his "I have a dream" speech. (thanks, Wikipedia)
I would have to say...as a visitor, I didn't know what to expect along those lines in Georgia. Would there still be a lot of bigotry and hostility? OR am I the one who is stereotyping and backward for even wondering this? But I have to say...EVERYONE who we ran across in Georgia was open and friendly. Which was quite a relief for my delicate California sensibilities.
So...this concludes my Georgia story. We flew home. The end.

Georgia on my Mind

2010-11-30T04:18:00.000-08:00

Just before Thanksgiving break, Mark and I launched off on an adventure, heading out to Georgia to attend a retirement ceremony for my mentor and friend, Maj Gen Polly Peyer. She officiated at my retirement, and it was important to us to be there to honor her at hers. AND, it was the kick in the pants that Mark and I needed to finally get away on our own, without kids, for only the second time since they've been BORN! Yes! So you can see--it was an important trip in many ways.

We flew into Atlanta, which we intended to explore at the tail end of our trip. I have to say...we still travel like a pair of geeks. Noses in books, with occasional breaks to investigate interesting propulsion mechanisms.

On our way to Warner-Robins AFB, we stopped in Macon, the home in Georgia that Otis Redding apparently left in favor of the dock on the bay. Our intent was to wander around and grab some local food. We took a long walk through the downtown area, enjoying the older homes, although there were quite a few empty. We stopped to enjoy a Nu Way hot dog, a tasty but disturbingly red meat product.

The slaw dog was our favorite:

At Warner-Robins, we attended a 60's & 70's party, which I CANNOT BELIEVE I DIDN'T CAPTURE IN EVEN ONE PICTURE. Argh!!!! ANYway...here we are with Gen Peyer:

OK, next time, the exciting conclusion!

Talking Turkey

2010-11-26T00:51:00.000-08:00

Well, everyone has to talk about their turkey, and I have to talk about more than one. First, the one we cooked and ate. It's here, all cut up into bits and ready for the eatin'!

I must publicly confess that at 44 years old, this was the FIRST time I've ever been lead chef on the turkey. I've hosted, co-hosted, and mostly visited others and drank their wine as they prepared the turkey (yes, many of you have witnessed this personally), but this was really my debut at the big dance. And it went just fine. My convection oven did a wonderful job making a beautiful brown bird. It cooked faster than I even anticipated, so that added a little excitement. As you can see, just a small group of hardy souls attended.

Now for the other turkey story...

I have lost my camera. This is seriously impairing my blogging, and general functionality. Actually, could it be that I"m more functional, because I'm less distracted by my camera? No...because I'm distracted by wishing and cursing because I don't have my camera. I finally just figured out how to download pictures from my cell phone via a USB cord. This is an extremely SLOW and tedious process because I have to re-save each picture individually on my memory card, then download it to my computer. Only to find that it was out of focus.

So until I remedy this little problem, the photographic element of this blog will be pretty limited.

I'll close with an exciting preview of our recent trip to Georgia.

Ahem, um, no...we didn't take the kids!

Let's make a deal

2010-11-23T06:54:00.000-08:00

Yes, I've been quiet for a while. Yes, I've got a lot of stories to tell. Yes, I'll do a better job of staying current!

But for now, just a quick story.

Have I mentioned that I'm a room mother for Abigail's class? Yes! Me!!! Mae's class has several very involved moms so I don't feel guilty about tending to one over the other.

So I was preparing for a party, and I asked Abigail: "Should I make cupcakes or brownies for the tomorrow?"

"Both", she answered.

"No...cupcakes OR brownies. Either, or."

Barely missing a beat, she replies "Oh...well after you make 'either', can you make 'or'?"

I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried!

A Different Kind of Service

2010-11-11T05:48:00.001-08:00

Heading into Veterans' Day, it shocked me to realize that it has been almost two years since I left the Air Force. It is one of those strange quirks of time--in some ways those two years have gone by in a flash, and in others, two years ago is a lifetime away. I can certainly say it is a lifestyle away!

Even though we don't have much income these days, the freedom to pick and choose what I do day to day is an amazing gift. And I HAVE been busy! Non-stop busy! It makes me wince and feel a bit guilty to think how I once (years ago) looked at stay-at-home moms whose kids were all in school. "What do they do all day?" I wondered. And while there were a few who I'm pretty sure were a bit uninspired and maybe even lazy, I see now what those moms were doing. Frankly, I work just as hard as I ever did. And my house isn't even that clean!

One of my big passions is our local school system. Obviously I have a vested interest in it, with two 1st graders! I spend a fair amount of time volunteering and puttering there. It has taken me a while to recognize that this, too, is "serving", just in a different way, and one that I find very satisfying. One of my day-to-day activities is raising the flags. Actually, this was my sister Gail's duty, and she passed it along. It is something I love and feel honored to do. Ironically, I spent almost 25 years in uniform, and never raised a flag until I was an unemployed volunteer mom.

I was raising the flag on Tuesday, and wondering if anything was scheduled for the following day to honor Veterans' Day. I seemed to recall the VFW coming last year and giving a little speech. When I asked at the office, I found there was nothing planned, and clearly it was too late to pull something together with the VFW. I offered to step in and do a little something, if there was a desire. Val, the amazing woman who holds the title of secretary but is actually Wonder Woman, asked if I would be wearing my uniform. I hadn't really planned on going that far, but then thought "Why not?"

And so it was that yesterday, I vacuumed the dust off my service dress, spent an hour looking for a tie tab, and headed to the elementary school for a flag-raising ceremony. As a last minute measure, I broke out my karaoke machine to use as both a microphone and boom box to play the national anthem. Worked like a charm!

Mark was in on it, too, playing the role of my lovely assistant.

The school is small, K-3 with about 160 children.

My sister Gail and I. When I introduced myself, most of the children recognized me as Mae and Abigail's mom, but you should have heard the uproar when I asked if they knew I was Mrs Stark's sister!

A sister is always there to make sure you don't take yourself too seriously!

Everyone needs someone like that in their life!

By the way, all you vets out there, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!

Two Tickets to Paradise

2010-11-10T11:45:00.000-08:00

Thank you, Eddie Money, for providing our theme music today. Not audibly...Just in our heads. Stuck there. All day now.

So yes...we took the train up to Paradise. Actually, we took the train to Stockton, then took the bus to Sacramento, then took a car to Paradise. We then reversed the process to get back home to beautiful downtown Fresno. But the car and bus legs don't have quite the same ring, do they? Nor does Fresno. So we'll stick with "Taking the Train to Paradise"!

Here are the girls looking down the tracks, waiting for the train.

No, wait a minute...the train should be coming from the right. Oh, here's the big excitement:

Oohh...I hear it!

Ooooohhh...I SEE it!

All aboard the train:

I take a picture of Abigail:

She takes a picture of me. I love those close-up shots.

Abigail takes a picture of Mae. If this shot wasn't so blurry, it would be fantastic!

Mae takes a picture of Abigail, which actually IS a real keeper!

The girls busily construct their conductor hats.

Exhausted from all the excitement, Abigail and Mae fall into a trance-like stupor:

Mark and I do, too.

Hey, Amtrak, I LIKE leaving the driving to you!