Family News

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve written here.
A lot’s been going on, but I’ve waited because none of it “stable” enough for me to write about it; to set in stone as “reality.”
But now I figure if I wait till it’s all at that level I might not remember enough to record a bunch [...]

Monday: last chance to walk if I want to meet my 4x/week goal before my WW meeting
Tuesday: 3 extra kids from 7:30 - 4:30
Wednesday: my kids visiting friends in a.m. while I work a to-do list for my mom– finish getting her house ready for long-term guests
Thursday: p.m. the long-awaited return to “bonkers” indoor playground [...]

A long time ago I wrote about how I was careful to change the way I told Cinderella to clarify that work is not abuse. (I was not going to train any attitudes to a false martyrdom. Yuck.)
Anyway, when we watched the R&H Cinderella last week I was delighted when one of the girls leaned [...]

I wrote about Elisha’s first protective act here, but there have been three more in the last few months that were clearly deliberate, and I want to remember them too.
Back before Jay returned from Antarctica I would send Natasha out with Joule to hold the leash and make sure the dog did its business in [...]

We started Annie with the kids while I was folding clothes last week.
I turned it off after the “We Got Annie!” song, because I was growing more and more convinced now isn’t the right age for that movie.   But it was a terrific up-beat ending for their introduction to the movie, and the girls [...]

Ever since introducing the concept of homonym to my 3- and 4-year-olds last year, discovering new examples has been a source of delight for them.
Knowing a bit more now about the difference between homonym and homophone I’ve considered introducing the new word… but haven’t yet.
Natasha has been experimenting with the idea of heartsick (very sad) [...]

I went and auditioned last night for a play I know next to nothing about.
It felt a bit like an ethical quandary, truly:
Is showing up like an eBay bid, where if you “win” (are selected) you are bound to follow through and roll with whatever’s given you?
I resist being bound, but understand the thinking that [...]

Melody: I was playing with the cat!
Me: Was he enjoying it as much as you?
Melody [slowly]: NnnooooYeah!

I have this game I bought a couple years ago to use for the storytelling class I was developing at the time.
Looking for something new to do with the girls (I’m experimenting with letting Melody skip naps) I pulled it out and tried on the fly to see if I could adapt it to their [...]

Two weeks ago, now, Jay and I droe to Anchorage and back, leaving Friday afternoon and returning Saturday night.

The next weekend the Renaissance Faire got rained-out, but the girls still got to wear their costumes:

On Saturday to Papa and Grandma’s, and Sunday to church.  Yes, Melody wore a shirt under that vest.
I find I didn’t [...]