It's like this...

Today was full of goblins and angels and a major headache for me. Not that the costumed-candy-begging-hordes gave me a headache. It's just I had one and couldn't get rid of it all day. I still went out with the kids to look for sweets. Ashley got all decked out, including her fingernails. After I spent all that time gluing the spiderwebby nails to her, she said "I can't DO anything with these things on! Why do people like them? How can they DO anything?" I told her that the price you pay for beauty is sometimes not being able to do anything productive. Ha! She ripped them all off right there. Smart girl. We went to the Trunk or Treat in the church parking lot and there were so many adorable little people there, all decked out in various costumes. Here's my niece Nicole, Alli and her friend Mercedes. Ashley was cold so she put her coat on. Lance and Ashley handed out candy from the back of our suburban. After the Trunk or Treat, we went TRICK or treatin...

..you do silly, distracted things. Like...oh, I don't know, maybe putting a fortune cookie in your mouth before you realize you forgot to take out the fortune. For the record? That little paper thingy does not taste good. Also, that finger I thought was sprained, really isn't. It's broken. I have to wear the splint forever now because I've damaged my poor lil digit with all my attempts to bend it when it should have been kept straight. This really cuts into my typing speed. I took the girls to the gym this afternoon to see if it would make me feel better. Lance and I went there this morning as well but there was no exercise involved. We simply lowered ourselves gently into the jacuzzi and sat there. We were full of the pathetic. I exercised this afternoon. It did nothing to drive my cold/flu away. On the plus side? The kitchen is now spotless for the night. Or until The Boy decides to have a bowl of cereal. It's been about an hour since our penne pasta...

This is the speech I gave today for Wonderland Developmental Center's 40th Anniversary Celebration in a large ballroom in the convention center. Frist I want to tell you about a little girl named Cheri Lee, born in the late fifties. She was born healthy and beautiful. Big blue eyes, bright blond curls and she loved to run. Then one day she became terribly ill. Seizure after seizure and then apparently a stroke. She was placed in a bed. Her parents were told to put her in an institution. She was never given therapy or moved. She lay in a bed. For years she lay in a bed. Back then they didn't know you had to move so she lay in her bed. When I was seven months along with our fourth child, something odd happened. I felt my baby girl within me do something she'd never done before. I felt her have a seizure. At the time I didn't know it was a seizure---but it felt that way to me. Then I felt...nothing. For two days I did everything I could possibly do to make th...

Some I like...some I could do without. I try to follow what I'm taught about 'love one another as I have loved you' and that whole 'do unto others' thing too. Some people push your buttons until you're ready to pop. I've found myself posting on boards in less-than stellar behavior when some forum people intentionally nit-pick and argue the most ridiculous points. I stop myself and I stop myself and then....I just post what pops into my head. It may be wickedly clever and sarcastic--but it's probably not the nicest thing to do. Like I said...I know the Golden Rule and attempt to abide by it. Some people make it harder than others. Still, I do try. However one person on this planet today really pushed my buttons. No, it wasn't one of my teenagers--they've been remarkably well behaved of late. It was the person who hit my husband's car and caved in the driver's side door and then left. They didn't leave a note, they didn't w...

The old man is snoring. Well, he might be. I can't tell from here. It's been a busy week at Rancho Troeppl. Seems we hit the ground running on Monday and haven't stopped to take a breath. It's always a busy week for me during parent teacher conferences as I rush to dozens of interpreting appointments all over the district. I feel like a ping pong ball. Also, are any of you experiencing this? There is a ratty white panel van parked on our street. It's dirty, beat up and now it has a flat tire. As I walk the dog in the morning and evening I don't get a good feeling. A neighbor called last night to warn me that there is someone living in it. This isn't the first time this has happened here. There have been cars, mobile homes and trailers that have, for a time, lodged themselves on our street and been called home to the homeless. Last night as Ashley and I walked Cassie, I told her that this sort of thing just never happened on our street when I was a ...

I foolishly agreed to watch my great nephew this weekend. When I say 'foolishly' I mean that my pea brain had forgotten just how time intensive and sleep-depriving these small humans can be. Not to mention the odoriferous offerings ejected from their nether regions. I got no sleep last night as the wee one 'slept' with me. He woke up well before six a.m. and he was singing . How could you get mad at that? The answer is that you couldn't. It was so sweet. He snuggled in next to me and even when he discovered that I wasn't his mommy, he was fine. Here he is playing with his Papa Bob. I'd love to go take a nap but my father says that he's too old to watch kids. I dunno....look at this and tell me he's not doing a bang up job!

Has it been that long since I've been pregnant? The calendar says yes...my heart says it isn't possible that my baby is so old. I think she had a good day yesterday--despite some small disappointments. Mommy had to work late interpreting and couldn't call to say I was going to be late. Daddy picked her up at school and Alli baked her birthday cake after school. I helped her decorate it when I got home. Rosie loves her duckies and so her theme, if you will, was chock full of duckies. From her cake to her balloons. She's a duckie lover. Daddy and I took her to get her birthday present, a new iPod. Pink. At least I think it's pink. She was thrilled. Then later her cousins and Aunt and Uncle came over. We sang happy birthday to her and she blew out candles. Her Auntie gave her little ducky non-slip decal thingies for the bathtub. I loved this idea and gift as getting her in and out of the tub is a tricky business with her balance issues. Thanks Auntie Julie...

Spontaneity has been the name of the game for us lately. We generally go to the pool after school every day (and I go in the morning as well) but the other day I surprised the girls with a trip to the zoo. Actually we've gone twice in the past week. Once with Steph and Ash and then the second time with Ash and Alli. I walked my feet off. It was fun each time---but the two experiences were markedly different. One visit was on a Saturday and the place was jammed with people. The second visit was in the afternoon on a weekday and there was virtually no one there but us and the animals. I liked the second visit the best. Here's a slide show of our time there with Ash and Alli. Don't expect any pictures of me. You know better than that. This past weekend Lance finally had some time off and we took full advantage of his time with us. We were all sort of sick with colds and not feeling so well but we managed to enjoy ourselves. We began with a yummy waffle and sausage ...

Since the concert last week I've been anxiously awaiting the arrival of their cd that I ordered and it came! Lance brought it out to the school and I played it for my Spanish class. In fact we sang and danced to it the entire time. Here's the song we picked that the kids are going to learn and perform at the Expo for their parents. They're so excited. Turn up your speakers. I dare you not to chair dance to this! My Los Pinguos obsession has infected my girls and my husband. I thought they might not enjoy it as they don't fully understand the language, but they love it as well! Yay! Makes it nicer that I can have the cd blasting away in the stereo when we drive around. And boy do we drive around. I've been keeping up my twice-a-week gym visits. I've got an ugly cold right now and don't feel so well, but I did manage to drag myself to the pool this morning, hubby in tow. He wanted to stay in bed but he went anyway. He went right to the hot tub but ...