Oops. Well, the Ten Days of Christmas, then.

I know I missed two full days of blogging, but was too busy and/or tired to fix that.

Saturday, we had company, and it was so nice. Me-Wa and Me-Tae came out to see the kiddos and visit. (We just don't get to see them often enough.) Zorak smoked pork chops and salmon for a delicious lunch. The guys hung out and Me-Tae and I got to visit a bit. The children were in and out, up and down, all over the place. They couldn't have been happier if we'd had Santa himself over for lunch. And then, they got to open their presents from Me-Wa and Me-Tae: Snuggies! Best pick, ever. The kids have lived in them since.

EmBaby even mentioned on the way to church Sunday that she should have brought her Snuggie with her. (Yeah, that'll help you stay awake, huh?)

We had another guest Saturday, as well -- a gentleman Zorak works with. Nice guy. He's been here since August, and his family is still back in Missouri. That's a tough gig, and I know he'll be thrilled when school is out and his family can join him. I'm guessing he was comfortable here, as he stayed until four o'clock. Sunday morning.

Seven-thirty and the Sunday Morning Routine came awfully early, after that. Zorak mumbled something about being tough when I fell out of bed and scrambled for some clothes and a toothbrush. (Or maybe he said, "That's tough." I'm not certain.) I tried to talk the kids out of going, but they were already dressed and ready to go. Not even the allure of baking cookies could talk them out of it. Sometimes, I wonder if maybe we're raising them a little too well. Seriously, what kid wouldn't rather stay home and bake cookies?? Goofballs.

Sunday afternoon, the boys had a friend from Scouts over. Great kid. Not even like having an extra body in the house. His Mom was really worried that he'd do Something Stoopid (I think we all worry about that, when our kids are somewhere without us), but really, even if he had (and they all do, at some point - that's why they can't live on their own yet), it wouldn't have been that bad. He's just a neat, neat boy, and the kids all enjoy one another so much. The big kids were great with the Littles, but sometimes it's nice to play Twister or Chess without random full-body tackles and mid-leg take-downs. So EmBaby, Jase and I made cookies that afternoon.

The little boy stayed for supper, and that night, the kids went to bed exhausted, filled with contentment and joy. So did Zorak and I.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

More Mackerel...

Right, so, as you can see, things were not moving along swimmingly. Thank God, Me-Wa had come down to stay with the children so we could go to the hospital. And now, here we were, sun-up, day's a'starting, and... oh, wow... *yawn* So tired. Me-Wa headed home. Zorak and I looked at each other and tried to focus long enough to figure out what to do.

John needed to see the dentist that morning to have a recalcitrant baby tooth forcibly removed. (He'd been waiting for this appointment for ages, and rescheduling with his dentist is hard, because his dentist is possibly the most coveted pediatric dentist in North America. So, when you can get it, you get in.) I needed to see the urologist. Both Zorak and I needed some rest. Neither of us had slept since Monday.

Zorak took John to the dentist and the kids to music.

I went to the urologist. He gave me a couple of prescriptions for oral antibiotics, and then a shot of Rosephin. Oh, holy mother of holy things! Even loaded with lidocaine, and administered by an amazingly skilled nurse, that is one Painful Everlovin' Shot! A week and a half later, I will still whimper and cry if you so much as look at my right hip. Is there no room for technology to perhaps take a look at this particular drug? I mean, I am thankful for it, but wowsa- it should come with a recommendation for a 3-week supply of cheap vodka and a leather thong to bite down on at random intervals. Ow.

Thursday (the 22nd), we recovered a bit. I think the kids played video games and ate leftovers. Not sure, and they haven't mentioned anything. So, *shrug* there's that.

Friday (the 23rd) - LB arrived!! The house was not ready, groceries not done, guest room only moderately put together (thankfully, Zorak pulled it off while I drove to the airport). But, you know, we'd lost Wednesday, which is when we were going to put it all together. She understood. And let me stop at WalMart for potatoes and a vacuum on the way home.

Saturday (the 24th) - mostly just picking up pre-surgery supplies and preparing for Jason's baptism.

Sunday (the 25th) - Baptised Jason. Camera still was not working, so we're waiting for pictures from others. I'll post them when I get them.

Monday/Tuesday (the 26-27), more preparation for the surgery, grocery shopping, going over the school schedule with LB, and finishing up the kids' Halloween costumes. James was the headless horseman; John, a Conquistador; Jake our latest Harry Potter; EmBaby put together a darling "butterfly princess" costume, all on her own; Jase was a soft-shelled turtle. (He had a darling turtle outfit, but would only wear it rarely.)

James' Webelos II Den finally had its Arrow of Light Ceremony. He's been attending the Boy Scout Troop, but is now officially recognized to call himself "A Boy Scout". Proud night for the kiddo. They also had the boys wear their costumes. All had a great time. Too much adorableness in one room, man. Just. Too. Cute.

And that night, we went to bed, ready as we were going to be for the big dental surgery. But that's another post.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

My-my-my-myyyyy Papaya!

John butchered a song, just for me, while we were making the fruit salad Saturday! I'm so glad I let them "help" in the kitchen back when they weren't much actual help. Now they really are a riot in the kitchen, and they like being there.

We had the boys' belated birthday cookout last night. We had rain for ages. Then it cleared up, with stray downpours on the various days we tried to have the cookout. I chose my words poorly at some point in the planning process, by referring to the get-together as a "BBQ", at which point, James decided we had to use the grill. So. There's that. (I can't complain. I'm the genius who's always telling them to be precise in their language. Obviously, I need to be a little more precise about "Mom's limitations" from time-to-time, no?) Finally, however, Saturday dawned dry and clear and glorious.

It was a small group, and a little disorganized (which is sort of our signature *sigh*), but a really wonderful time, regardless (hopefully, also, at least a little, reminiscent of "us"). They got to play with their friends, and see Uncle Wil, and shoot off fireworks and enjoy a small bonfire. Both James and Smidge feel duly celebrated, now. Good stuff.

We served fish tacos (those hamburger baskets for the grill work beautifully for fish, by the way -- we may be the last people to know that, but in case we aren't, now you know), tropical fruit salad (fresh papaya tastes SO much better than dried papaya! WOW!), beans (of course. If you're eating at our house, there will be beans. Always.), rice (again, sometimes we are just. so. predictable.) and homemade carrot cake (because there just isn't a mix that makes it worth it to not have to shred that many carrots).

The boys helped with the cake decorating by making the molded carrots to put on the cake. Oh, too cute! Thankfully, because they'd been working in the kitchen all morning, their hands were washed repeatedly and well by the time we got to the Making of the Carrots.

I'm still stuffed. They're still glowing. And it's raining again. :-)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

TOO MUCH!

Too much to post, and not enough time without people touching me, climbing on me, or digging their bony little elbows into my leg. I could blog regularly and well with a few minor modifications. All I need is voice recognition software, a laptop, a gilly suit, and a caramel launcher. Is that so much to ask?

Tomorrow, ask me about the cool new Grammar program for 1st and 2nd! It's awesome! We're going to use it, and we don't normally use a Grammar program at all. But this? This is cool.

We had a splendid Sunday, hanging with Me-Wa and Me-Tae. They met us at church. Actually, they got there on time. We slipped in even later than usual. But I *had* to mop. There was simply no way around it.

Death by Irony point: this, right after Zorak helped talk me out of mopping Saturday night, by whispering sexy things into my ear, like, "It's okay to drop your standards a little, just one more time..."

See what happens when you listen to the Siren's Song, people? You have to panic-clean before church!

After a typically fantastic service (we are SO fortunate for this church), they came to the house, where I did not have to choke down convulsions and horror, because at least the floor was relatively clean-ish. We ate a weird lunch (I don't remember what we made.) Then the guys sighted in a few things, the kids blew bubbles, and played the piano for Me-Tae, and just generally enjoyed the lovely afternoon and the good company.Monday was gorgeous, but we didn't realize that until about 12:30, because it's the middle of August, and seriously, who expects a gorgeous day in the middle of August in the South? Once we clued in, though, we hustled through the rest of our lessons and then got out and enjoyed it.

When, what we should have done was work in it. Because today it rained and rained and rained. And now everything we should have picked up, or mowed, or harvested, is all sparkly and highlighted by droplets of sparkling guilt. But it's beautiful enough that we really hardly felt the guilt at all.
Dishwasher's still not fixed, another part will arrive Friday. I'm running out of one-pot meals we can all eat straight out of the pot, with our hands.

And that, my friends, is the week so far.

Summer Antics

We finished the week strong and took off Friday to enjoy time with our friends.

This group is getting smaller, as some of the families are choosing to send their children to public school for high school. But we still enjoy our time together, even in our smaller ranks. And the high school aged children who were there yesterday, we enjoyed tremendously.

The biggest shock for me was seeing a canoe go by, looking up, and seeing, not Big Kids, but Smidge and two little girls his age maneuvering the thing across the lake. What?!? The BABIES are using the canoe? *sigh* Yes, they don't stay babies very long.

John made an alcohol stove at Scouts this week, and he's been dying to show it off. So, last night, we hunkered down on the front porch and he set it up.But just boiling water isn't that interesting. So he chopped vegetables, added spices, and made us a pot of soup. It was fantastic!

No, they sure don't stay babies for long. Even if they'll always be "my babies", I can't help but enjoy the growing up process, as well.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Home Again

We hung out the "gone fishing" sign, and then we went. Literally.

It's been a week of good food...

Beautiful scenery...

And relaxing time on the front porch...

Now, we're home. But I'll spare you any images of the laundry.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Nine, not just a daydream, anymore.

John is nine. He has never been so happy to be a new age as he is to be nine. It's funny, though -- in my heart, he sort of hovered at five-ish, or six. But, no. He's kept on growing, changing, maturing, all the way to nine. He's huge. And still wonderful.

To celebrate, we had a BBQ. We invited a few families over for the day, and had a truly, completely, utterly delightful day of it. It was such a success, actually, that Smidge said he wants, "the same people, the same, exact group," to come to his birthday BBQ.

We're so thankful for the friendships we've all made. Good friends, which take time to develop. New friends, slowly growing into Good friends. Roots, going deeper and growing richer.

The kids ran down to the creek, up to the meadow, all over the balcony. They played video games for a bit (it was 97 degrees, and eleventy-hundred percent humidity outside - they appreciated the reprieve from the weather), then ran back out and shot their bows for a bit, ran amok a little more. The kids were funny and energetic and polite, and they tumbled from one thing to another seamlessly, moving from one activity to another either in one large lump or a couple of smaller herds. We were really impressed with how well the kids meshed together, and I know Me-Tae and I had just as much fun watching them play, as they did playing.

Granny was still here for the party, and I'm sure it was nice for her to see that the children don't spend all their time locked in a dungeon, doing school work and sweatshop labor. Even when you know that's not how it is, I think you still worry a bit when you live so far, and your son and daughter-in-law have adopted some offbeat lifestyle quirks. So, it's probably nice to meet the friends who influence your children and grandchildren. Plus, we enjoyed showing her off. She's a Very Cool Granny.

So now, having been duly celebrated and christened into being nine, he's feeling pretty big. Pretty happy. Pretty good. Last night, as he drifted off to sleep on the twitchy haze of a great day, he told Zorak it was his best birthday, ever. That's always nice to hear. Every year is special and precious, but for a parent, it's more momentous than the children will ever know. One year older, one year wiser, one year closer to the fledgling years. *sniff*

Next up, Smidge. But I have a couple of months to brace myself for that, thankfully.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

A Truly Exciting Day

Zorak headed off this morning to keep the world safe, and the mortgage paid (he's got mad multi-tasking skilz) while the Small Ones and I got to lounge about, reading literature and discussing Latin declensions (we do not multi-task, which is why it took us all morning).

It got exciting later, okay?

We had one of those Gosh-Why-Can't-They-Schedule-Games-Around-Sibling-Groupings evenings, when Smidge had practice in town, and John had a game at the same time, out of town. Gargh. We have trouble finagling those even when we're both in town (mostly because Zorak and I waste a good hour trying not to make eye contact while we both pretend we don't mind driving "all the way down there", knowing full well we'd both rather be home in our sweats, watching Netflix - so, it takes us a while to draw straws and get on the road). Since there was only me to avoid making eye contact with... um, myself... I called on the kindness of John's coach to let John hitch a ride to his game in Falkville (the town that takes its baseball Very Seriously), so that Smidge wouldn't have to be abandoned at the park for some unknown period of time while I fine-tuned the Cellular Transporter and Astral Travel Machine.

OK, no, I don't have a Cellular Transporter. Or an Astral Travel Machine. Though that'd be pretty durned cool, wouldn't it? I do have a Cellular phone, though. And we hit the ATM. Oh, and starter fluid, which I pretty much need 80% of the time, now, if we actually need the Suburban to get somewhere. Anyway. After Smidge's practice, we headed down to catch what I thought was the last 15 minutes of John's game.

I was So. Wrong. They were at the top of the fifth (they only play five innings, so, theoretically, the end of the game). The field was muddy, the ball was muddy, the bats were muddy, and the kids were muddy. It was nasty, and I can't believe they played. (I told you they take their baseball Very Seriously!) The score was 1-0, Falkville. Dang. That's so... wait, what's this? Four runs! Wow. Nice!

Falkville came up to bat and got three runs. Score's tied.

(Does this mean we can't go home yet?)

Why yes, yes it does.

THREE innings later, the game ended with a single run. 5-4, victory for John's team. Even James, who pays NO attention to the games, was riveted to the fence. I don't think I've ever seen two teams scrabble so hard for every little run, every out, every play. I'm tellin' ya, every child on that field today should be proud of what he accomplished. It was amazing. We didn't get out of there until 8:30!

We piled back in the Transporter. And, it failed to transport us. The miraculous starter fluid even failed me. Finally, we had to get a jump to get going. Then, that wasn't enough - the Suburban choked and died backing out of the parking space, and we had to get another jump. Gah. How embarrassing. In the dark. 45 minutes from home. At night. With all those kids in the car. And did I have snacks? NO, we ate them while waiting for Smidge's practice to end! Talk about lack of foresight. We really must procure a replacement vehicle soon. And hide more snacks in the car.

I need to take some Thank You Goodies to the wonderful friends who hauled a child, and the other wonderful friends who bailed us out of a pickle. Yup. Wonderful People. We are Very Fortunate, indeed.

We have to go back tomorrow, for Smidge's game, and I don't wanna!

We came home, ate hummus and pita bread, and everybody crashed. I think Smidge may have fallen asleep with floss still stuck in his teeth. That was one tired bunch of kids! This Mama is tired, but wired, so I do think I'll curl up with some ice cream and a Netflix and decompress before turning in. Sounds like a plan!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Beautiful Day

I think we all needed this day. The weather was absolutely exquisite, and it felt SO good to get outside, roam a bit, and stretch those muscles...

LB was in heaven with all the wonderful bird sightings and fun things to look at.

We stopped to smell the roses (well, the bamboo and cornfields, actually).

The kids ran. And ran. And ran.

We took our time. (Last time, we got there too late and had to leave after only an hour or so, so they could close the gates. This time, we got there right after breakfast and stayed until well after two.)

We got scads of great pictures.

I'll post a few favorites in the morning. (Blogger won't let me put more than five shots in one post.)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

It's THURSDAY!

The sun is up. We've missed it. It's warm! (We've missed that, too.) Gah, it's been one cold, wet week here at the Forever Home.

Poor LB comes to get away to the temperate winter of the South, and we get hit with not-so-Southern temps. Ah. Well, today's a new day. A bright, sunny, supposed-to-be-warm day!

And, we're off to the Wildlife Refuge!

So Busy!

Oh, my. Well, my camera has developed some form of ADHD (auto deficiency hyperactive digital... something-or-other) and 99% of the pictures we've taken are fuzzy and/or grainy. WAH.

LB has been a Godsend in so many ways. (I napped this afternoon - didn't mean to, but man, was it nice!) She made eggplant the other night. It was delicious, and of course, we ate all of it. We are nothing if not appreciative of those who cook for us. There's been singing - lots and lots of singing. And plenty of kissing those babies.

We had a lovely time at church today. The potluck was so relaxing and enjoyable. Everybody was warm and welcoming to LB. She got to wallow in babies and delightful older ladies, kids running about all over the place, more good food. I'd hoped to get some fun outdoor shots, but although the light was *perfect* for pictures, the wind was straight-out-of-the-Arctic. *brrrrrrr* We've got cold and rain for two more days, and then we should have some good Outside Weather. Hopefully, that will also mean we'll get more pictures.

Although we haven't really even started on "the fun stuff", I don't think anybody's been bored. But we're definitely sleeping well at the end of the day!

I'm off to see the "kidney specialist" in the morning. Please pray that I will be able to be calm, concise, and rational. Pray that he will be willing to listen, and able to help me. Pray that, should the need arise, Zorak will be able to get me out of the building without incident if the first two don't happen.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Fun With Friends

HI guys!

We've got LB here (Needleroozer). We've just been lazy, hanging out, telling stories, playing with babies. We'll do something interesting and get pictures up soon.

In the meantime, have a beautiful Thursday!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

They're Going Out!

OK, no pictures. No cute, funny year-end letter. Just a card. And a personalized note. And the knowledge that I love you enough to just get it in the mail, already.

Aunt Jo Ann sent me an address book. What a cool idea, and yes, I needed one! Just one of those things I kept putting off - I have no idea why. So, I broke out my little box of envelope corners and bits of paper, and transferred everything into the book. I feel so grown up. *snort*

However, my stellar bits-and-corners method of keeping track of mailing addresses has proven to be somewhat lacking (to say the least), and so, if I *should* have your address (meaning, if I've ever had it before, but you haven't heard from me... or if you've moved since last I feasibly had it) it's safe to assume I haven't still got it, and would really like to include you in my New, Grown Up Method of Keeping Track of People I Care About. So, um drop me an email.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Good Monday Morning!

The cold snap is over. Everyone survived. However, I'm a little dingbat and didn't leave a faucet dripping enough Friday night (I thought I had, but I guess I didn't - or I shut it off at some point without thinking), so we awoke Saturday morning to a frozen pipe. Therefore, no water for us. Yeesh.

No worries, though. The kettle on the stove provided water for hot chocolate, and Zorak zipped down to the corner market, where the nice lady let us fill our 3gal. jug with water. Yay!

Zorak and the Big Boys went on the hike, and I took the littles up to Me-Wa and Me-Tae's place. Why? Because I am so, so, SOOO blessed to have wonderful friends who will let me shower at their place when I do something stoopid and leave us waterless. And they kept the littles fed and entertained, so not only could I shower, but I could shower In Peace. I'm going to count that as an early Christmas present. I just wish I'd known I'd have a draft-free shower, and I'd have taken my razor. It's been a while since I've been able to shave without goose bumps. Whole different outcome.

By the time everybody found everybody else (we don't have the most organized, communication-oriented Pack), the weather had warmed up beautifully and the picnic was quite delightful. We were only a block from one of Zorak's friends, at that point, so we stopped in to visit with him and his family. She showed me her rockin' food storage, and we discussed canning successes and failures from this year. (OK, she showed me her successes, and I shared my failures. But it sounds so much better the other way around, doesn't it?) Came home, tidied up, and collapsed in a big ol' puppy pile to watch a movie.

Iron Man. Have y'all seen that? WOW. Way better than I'd expected. Could'a done without the pole dancing in the airplane, but other than that, wow - great flick. James would really like to figure out how to make an arc reactor, and John's willing to wear the suit if James can make it work. (Help!)

And today, it's time to crack that whip. Back to work, everybody! (I'm kidding - it's the week of Thanksgiving - we are so just baking and eating and rolling in the leaves!)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Funday Sunday

Heh, you can mock. I couldn't think up a decent title. I'm beat. Happy, but beat. We had such a great time today. Ben and Claudia, et al., came over to carve pumpkins and have supper! I had helpers in the kitchen while we got ready for company...

Once they got here, the kids got to get messy and gross, and they worked quite diligently on their pumpkins...

And in the end, we had a lovely evening by the fire(s)...

Food, friendship, life... it's good.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy
(P.S. I figured out the watermark feature, but it seems to be a bit of a PITB to use. Bummer.)

Busy, Busy

Has it been four days? Sorry 'bout that. With Zorak out of town, and new schedules all-around, I lost track of time. However, he's back, we're all rested up, and we just had the best Saturday!

James and I headed into town early for his Citizenship badge service project. He picked the project, and put it together on his own - making contacts, getting all the legwork done. It was hideously difficult for me to let go and let him handle it all (and I didn't hit it spot on, at first, but eventually I did my part and got out of his way). He did his part and pulled it off splendidly.

We arrived in time to help unload the truck and set up (this was for Angel Food Ministries). Then we spent the next three hours putting together food boxes and assisting customers with hauling things to their cars. I didn't take any pictures because we were too busy learning the ropes and trying to stay helpful. Well, James stayed helpful. I hung out in my corner, drinking coffee and hauling heavy things when needed. He was the brains of this organization. He just took me along for the muscle and the driver's license.

From there, we headed to the downtown Fall Festival in Decatur. Nothing like sugar, costumes, sugar, music,

and a little more sugar, to make a day fun!

Yes, those are basically Pixie-Sticks, but the tube is the diameter of a Sharpie, and as long as a twirling baton. WEEEE! Interestingly, it was the church we've been attending that had this set-up. I think we may let the kids have their sticks for breakfast before church tomorrow... just as a thank-you to the Children's Minister. ;-) (I jest - she planned for the kids to eat them on the spot and then just ping up and down the street until the effects wore off, I'm sure.)

The weather was gorgeous, just cool enough to necessitate a hat for Jase. You know, those just don't work so well once they've been chewed on for an hour or two. Ew.

Ben and Claudia brought their kids. The sheer mass of children vibrating around created some serious momentum, so we adults just wandered along behind - it was like a cattle drive, but without horses, and it smelled better. Just as noisy. But, oh-so-cute!

Kiss those babies!

~Dy

Autumn Joy

We're breaking out the flannel sheets! That means the temps will probably be back in the high 80's at night sometime in the next two weeks! heh. I hadn't even thought of it, until James asked tonight if we could turn up the heater, and I realized we don't have the heat on. Uh, come to think of it, why don't you try wearing warmer jammies? Oh, and hey - warmer bedding! Ta-da! We don't need to turn on the heat yet, at all.

Zorak took all the kids to work on the barn and lower meadow Saturday, leaving me in relative peace and quiet (so there were no witnesses, should the whole experiment go horribly awry) to put up four jars of persimmon jelly and eleven jars of pear jelly. They haven't set yet, and that's okay. The pathetic level of enthusiasm I garnered just hearing the little "pop" of the jars as they sealed, one by one... that was worth it, right there. (I was somewhat certain the whole canning thing may be the homemaker's parallel to snipe hunting.)

Me-Wa is back! He'd been gone the last four months. Long months, for the kids. (Probably a lot longer for Me-Tae!) And today we were able to head up that way to visit. It was good to see him, great to visit. We got to meet the newest member of their clan, little Katie (a golden lab - oh, so cute!) The older dogs are not so fond of her, but she's sweet enough that I'm sure she'll grow on them.

There's a little boy who lives just up the road from them who comes over to visit - he's a sweetie. They play outside, go in to play pool, and migrate to the computer after a while. He hit me today with a doozie out of nowhere, though, and I had to laugh at how it all turned out.

Boy: You still homeschoolin' them?

Me: Yes, we are.

Boy: What's wrong with y-- uh, I mean, why don't you just send 'em to school?

Me: *aherm* WELL, we like the education we can give them at home.

Boy: Hmpf. Well, they're lucky, then.

He left it at that, and we moved on to an in-depth discussion of Dodgeball. I'm not entirely sure what the converation meant from his perspective, but it made me chuckle.

There's an awful lot going on right now, not the least of which is that I can't seem to carve out time during the week to be left alone for fifteen minutes or so. Long enough to compose my thoughts, find something humorous in it, and write it up. I've been able to compose my thoughts, but I could sure use a few more minutes to find the humor before having to move on to the next thing. Hopefully, a little more rest, and a better schedule will help. I'm going to give that a shot this week and see how it goes. The kids deserve a Mom who can find humor in the daily things. I'm sure Zorak prefers that, too, over the rather irritable alternative he's been presented with lately. So. Yeah, gotta work on that.

And in that vein, I think I'm going to sweep up a bit, lay out tomorrow's plan, and try to hit the hay before eleven! (Livin' large, no?)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

The Magnificent Mere! (More Photos)

OK, so here we have The Mamas, hanging out and watching over the masses. My utilitarian, yet utterly futile, attempt at keeping my hair from the Wee One's clutches is painfully evident in this shot (thanks for the heads up on that, Honey...) But look at Mere - so poised, so pretty, so in shape - and that necklace? She made it. Herself. With fire. She rocks.

AND, she made this little gem of a dress, which I've had a hard time getting off EmBaby long enough to wash. (Bless you, Mere, for making it machine washable!) Oh, yeah, and Em does have different shoes, but, well, where there are goats, there is goat poop. Sandals, not such a good idea. Once again, function wins out over form in our little clan.

But oh, that dress! I believe the fabric on the bodice, or actually, all the non-solid fabric - with all the swirly, lovely, flowery designs on it, came from our Donna (Quiet Life Donna - Donna of the psychotically photogenic children and the sweet wit). And that plum color - it's a perfect match. It swirls, it spins, it feels good to the touch. It fits perfectly. *sigh*

(And at this point, I just stand in awe, and feel kinda cool by association. Yup, I know incredibly talented people. That doesn't make me talented in any way, but it does mean I have really neat friends.) Thank you, Mere!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Trip Pics, Part A

Of the 284 pictures we took, a surprising number were somewhat blurry and/or grainy. That bums me out, but I'm not terribly surprised. There's a lot of edible sticky stuff crammed into the nooks and crannies and moveable bits of the camera. Add in the lightning speed with which children change positions, and I'm pretty much hosed on photographing this trip. So, please forgive the grains and blurs, but here you go.

This is SJ and EmBaby. Birthday buddies with uncanny similarities in mannerisms and habits. They saw an airplane...

And then they both - without even looking at each other - stuck their arms out and shouted, "Airplane!" (Complete with sound effects.) It was pretty funny to watch.

We kinda-sorta semi-managed to get the kids all rounded up to where they'd fit in a frame. The tree helped. SJ and Em both decided to cry the minute we started to take the group photos. Em's not in this one because she'd already given up and was somewhere behind me, snuffling.

We did manage to get a few shots on the sly, though, when she wasn't looking...

And SJ was sweetly compliant for an individual shot. Oh, so much Cute! It was hard to leave.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Basking in the Chaos

Me-Tae came and spent the day with us! See her there? Amidst all the movement? No? That's because she's buried beneath all the children, but if you could find her, you could see her beautiful smile, too. (This isn't the clearest picture, but Zorak and I liked the composition. And it was fun to play with. I know you don't come here for the mad photography skills. Or, if you do, that's kind of sad...)

I told Zorak it felt so good to be able to have someone out on the balcony and not be afraid. He said Me-Tae may have been afraid, but was too nice to say so. I said, "Not her, me! I wasn't afraid on her behalf! I knew she wouldn't fall through. That felt good!"

We had an epiphany. Y'all are going to laugh at us when I share it, but let me say now that IT WORKED! I'm so excited, I could just pee. I plan to ignore my children tomorrow afternoon in order to finish it up and make John document it with photos.

We ate well today. Of course, we had the obligatory Saturday Morning Cinnamon Rolls while we watched Saturday Morning Cartoons. That's a great way to start off a day. My favorite part was lunch, though. Grilled salmon, brussels sprouts, rice, corn on the cob, beans (the beans almost go without saying around here, there's always a pot of beans), fresh pineapple, and for dessert, ice cream -- that makes a lovely Saturday afternoon luncheon. It was so lovely, we didn't have to make supper! Double bonus!

And that's pretty much it. Only five-ish more days of July. Then we have to make it through August, and then we can start acting surprised that it's still hotter than Hades come September! Woohoo! Summer's almost, nearly, partially, halfway over!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy