All Those Stamps

Just Makes You Smile

2012-02-12T19:41:00.001-05:00

Really liked this blog post. A very sweet commercial about making dreams come true...

http://momoutnumbered.blogspot.com/2012/02/best-superbowl-commercial-you-never-saw.html

George the Cat?

2012-02-01T10:10:00.000-05:00

Jill pointed out in the comments to my last post that it was "only a cat-sized space to a cat." True enough. Even worse, George is our cat with the heart of a dog. Or something. He does cat-like things, but he does dog-like things, too. Just the other day, JC and I were in the dining room, and JC commented on how both cats were lying on the table in the sun. George decided to streeeetch - and promptly fell off the edge of the table. What cat does that?

Now, I'll admit that a dog won't usually jump up in your cabinets.

And hopefully, you don't get the "copy cat" effect from your dog - but this behavior is because he likes to follow me around and be in the same room. The printer is right next to my computer chair. What cat follows their owner from room to room?

Ok, this is pretty cat-like. Find an open container (box, bag, suitcase, notebook, newspaper) and make yourself comfortable on it. Especially if you're in the way.

But this? George does this ALL THE TIME. In the middle of the floor. I've never had cats that let it all hang out like this except in the hottest of weather. George does this year-round, in the middle of the floor where you are most likely to trip over him.

That's not a cat. That's a small dog with pointy ears. (That doesn't bark)

Still January?

2012-01-29T18:15:00.001-05:00

Except for the fact that it is dark when I get up, and dark before dinner, you would never believe it is January. Our weather has been... bipolar, or at least seriously disturbed. Little or no snow (maybe 3 inches, which melted within two days), largely warm (I think between 45 and 60 is warm for winter, don't you?), and quite rainy. Not the norm, really.
But January it is, and I am feeling the holiday rebound. Despite the fact that we kept the holidays pretty simple, I still spent the first two weeks of January feeling like I was recovering. But things are slowly looking up, and i think I am up for Rachel's birthday party at the end of the week. She's inviting a dozen friends for pizza and movies. Given that we survived a previous invasion, we should be ok. But it is time to firebomb the house and get it actually cleaned up.

So since I have so little to actually entertain you with, I give you amusing pictures:

Turns out, if you're cleaning out a cabinet and leave a cat-sized space, you get a cat.

Reliably - he had to make a pretty good jump to make this one. Yes, Rachel is standing, so he jumped almost 5 feet.

And finally, yarn porn. I actually spent some of the weekend updating my stash on Ravelry. And it looked naked without pictures, so I took and uploaded pictures. Not done yet, but did a good chunk.

The Zombie Invasion

2012-01-18T15:43:00.001-05:00

I bought some weights the other day. Fairly lightweight (3lbs) with the intention of working on strengthening my wrists. I've been doing a yoga class at the gym and have discovered that my wrists are what gives out first (although I'll admit that it's a race between my wrists and my upper arms during downward dog).So William came home from school today and discovered the weights. "Mom, if we welded spikes on these, wouldn't they be awesome for fighting zombies? Hey, if you were running from the zombies, you could throw this through the sliding door and then you wouldn't have to stop to open it." There were a few more suggestions for zombie fighting with 3 lb. weights, and I admitted that none of these ideas had occurred to me."You would totally want me around in case of a zombie invasion, Mom."Yes. Yes, I would.

A Hoard of Locusts

2011-12-28T22:11:00.000-05:00

5 1/2 cheese pizzas
4 bags assorted chips
1 jar salsa
1 lb. M&Ms
1/2 lb. peanut M&Ms
at least 6 12-packs of soda
2 lbs of Twizzlers
a couple pounds of leftover Halloween candy
5 1/2 doz. homemade chocolate chip cookies
~4 doz. assorted other homemade cookies

17 teenagers (including JC and Rachel)
10 hours
Only one item left behind (so far)

No casualties, no breakage, only a couple of spills. But I think I might be slightly deaf.

Post-Christmas Chaos

2011-12-28T16:26:00.001-05:00

We have a dozen-plus teenagers in my house right now. JC asked if he could invite all the members of the Role-Playing Games (RPG) club to our house for a Christmas party.

They're heeeeeere.....

I can't complain, really. These are the same kids, current generation, that I hung out with when I was in high school. (One of the girls is wearing knee-high boots with buckles all the way up the front and 4 inch platform heels. At least, she came in with them on, there's a huge pile of shoes in my front hall.) The dress is both different and the same (one of the boys has a knit hat COVERED with buttons (the kind with sayings. I had a coat like than in high school)). These are the gamer girls and geek boys that freak out parents and make teachers assume they are stoners. For the record, I don't get that vibe from any of them. They're actually pretty polite, and several of them have mentioned they think our house is awesome. And they're including Rachel and tolerating William.

There was a short period of time when William got out his Nerf guns that got a little chaotic, but now they have settled back into a role-playing game. This is actually about the third or fourth game that has been played, and most of them have really arcane, complicated rules that seem to require arguing and evil laughs and such. I'm sitting down in my craft room, "cleaning", but really eavesdropping and occasionally coming out to "check if you need more food". It's a little noisy, but all good so far. They inhaled a bag of potato chips in about 5 minutes, and I think we'll be picking up multiple pizzas later, but so far I have enough chips and cookies and such out that they seem to be happy.

I wish I had the nerve to take pictures and post them, but I don't think they'd say yes if I asked, and I'm not going to post without permission.

I may need a very very quiet day tomorrow to recover, though.

All Kinds of Awesome

2011-12-22T23:05:00.000-05:00

A week or so ago, we had a family experience that ranks up there with THE BEST EVER. Maybe even number one on the list.
Last year (so, more than a year ago), we bid on and bought the "Behind the Scenes tour at the American Museum of Natural History", at the charity gala that I've been working on. One of my friends had done it through another charity auction and raved about it. I thought it would appeal to everyone in our family, and we ended up being the only bidders so we paid the minimum (which was still pretty pricey).

Well, when I opened the envelope, I found out it needed to be after 5 pm on a weekday. That's a challenge during the school year, so I put off contacting the museum. And then I didn't get around to it all summer. And then the school year started again. And then.... eventually my friend contacted the guy again about offering it at THIS year's auction, and nudged me to get it together. So I did.

I don't know that I can adequately describe our tour. Our guide was Carl Mehling, who was absolutely delightful. He's a research assistant who manages the fossil collection in the Paleontology Department. Imagine someone with the enthusiasm of a 5-year old for dinosaurs, and you'll be close. We went up to the prep lab, where we took no pictures because most of it hasn't been published yet, and got to talk to one of the museum's preparators. He was absolutely fascinating and answered all of our questions, including, "what do you major in for college to get a job like this?" (Art and biology, actually.) We saw fabulous specimens in various states of prep, saw the tools, talked about the different kinds of rock and challenges that preparing fossils can present, and how very LONG it can take. Months and months - the most important skill for the job is patience. If you watch this video from the museum, we saw that very ankylosaur skull in its "finished" state in that lab.

From there, we went downstairs in the world's biggest elevator (not really, but it was REALLY big), to the "Big Bone Room". I do have a few pictures from there, but I need to contact Carl to see if I can "publish" them. However, I found this video on the museum website, so you have to imagine us there in that storage room. (the 2nd video on the page has better views of the Big Bone Room, though we weren't in the room with the T-Rex model) Those shelves are on tracks in the floor, and have cranks to move them because they weigh thousands of pounds. William got to turn the cranks - gears are your friend! Some of those bones are absolutely huge, I kept telling the kids, "stand next to this so I can take a picture." We absolutely grilled Carl with questions (Poor guy. JC adored dinosaurs when he was younger so we've actually read a fair amount on the subject). He was great, though. I'm sure we kept him much longer than he expected, but we did eventually wrap it up and head back up to the public part of the museum.

After we said good-bye to Carl, all three kids said something to the effect of "that was SO COOL!!"

They were right.

23 1/2 Hours a Day

2011-12-15T09:28:00.003-05:00

I found this very moving. Thanks to The Yarn Harlot for tweeting about it and providing the link.

I will add that I recently joined a new gym - I've been going to a gym for years, but had fallen off in intensity and frequency. New gym, better equipment, yes, a little more time per session, but...

The back issues I've had for several years now? Much reduced.
The knee issues that had popped up again after several years of little trouble? Virtually gone.
I've been going 2+ times a week for less than 3 weeks.

Better than any drug.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

2011-12-14T12:22:00.002-05:00

...which means I'm feeling behind. The challenge of having family spread across the country is that you lose a week or more of shopping - because you have to save time to ship. I got smart and ordered a number of things online and had them shipped directly, but there are still a couple of boxes to go out.

That's what I'm supposed to be doing right now. I'm blogging. Procrastinate much?

I have some much belated pictures from William's birthday to share. We went with a Star Wars theme. Pipe insulation light sabers (customized with colored electrical tape), origami Yodas and Darth Papers (inspired by the books of the same names), light saber cupcakes, and the piece de resistance, custom stormtrooper balloons decorated by Rachel. They were all different - she googled stormtrooper images and we had everyone from the Clone Troopers to Forest Scouts to Darth Vader himself.

The weather was surprisingly warm for a November birthday, so we threw the boys in the backyard with their light sabers, and tied the balloons to weights all over the yard. You'd be surprised how much they got into "attacking" the stormtroopers - although poor Darth Vader, after 20 minutes or more of painstaking work by Rachel, ended up an early casualty. One of the boys whacked him repeatedly and enthusiastically, and he popped quickly. The others lasted longer - one was accidentally released to the wild, and several actually survived the battle.

After pizza and cupcakes, we plugged them into a Lego Clone Wars DVD. Worked well as a time filler while the parents trickled in.

Seems like just yesterday... but it was the middle of November - which may explain why I'm gobsmacked that Christmas is so close.

The Beginning or the End?

2011-12-01T08:57:00.000-05:00

Saturday is the Band Parents Craft Fair. This marks the last of the major volunteering I've been doing this fall. There are a few ongoing projects, but they're mostly on autopilot now.To say that I am relieved would be an understatement. I haven't worked (for pay) outside the home for over 15 years, and while these commitments haven't added up to a full-time job, it's been a significant part-time job since September. I am no longer used to having this much committed time, and yes, my respect for working parents has only gone up. I think I will endeavor not to do this again.

I've always volunteered, but this was enough to make me not enjoy the process. If it's adding this much stress, and I feel like I can't do a good job, I really have to learn to say "no". It's hard, but it's got to start happening.

So now the Christmas season can begin, for me at least. I'm having a bit of a conflict this year-I'd like to spend a little less and clutter up the house less (mine and others), and I'd also like to shop more locally, support small artists, and otherwise spend responsibly.What's the problem, you say?There is SO much cool stuff out there! Etsy is a seriously dangerous site for me. Got a daughter who's into Japanese anime and manga? This site has pins and earrings from her favorite comics! Got a son who's into video games and online comics? This site has t-shirts! Got a family member who's into bacon? Somebody on Etsy has a whole shop dedicated to bacon accessories.If I had to search out each little store and drive all over the place, it would seriously curb this. The Internet is an enabler.But if you're on my Christmas list and you like something obscure? Let me know - the hunt is afoot!

In Which We Discuss Snow, and Volunteer Work, and Malaise

2011-11-15T12:02:00.001-05:00

I love that word. "Malaise". Just a general out-of-sorts, not quite right, not-feeling myself kind of feeling. It sounds so... indulgent, like a Victorian lady who is retiring to her salon suffering from malaise. Seems like it should require a fainting couch and maybe a bon-bon or two, right?

I'm feeling a bit of malaise myself. Nearing the end of the volunteer marathon this fall - yes, I know I could say "no", but that's hard, too. I'm not Catholic, but I'm really really good at guilt. Just one more event - anybody interested in a Craft Fair in Central New Jersey? Wanna run it?

Combine "busy" with "time-change" and "lousy weather" and all I want to do is curl up in a warm place with a cat and a book. Chocolate would be acceptable too. Saturday is William's Birthday Party, so I do have to find some motivation eventually. I find that deadlines are excellent motivators, but I'm one of those hypocrites that has to get right up under it before it takes effect. We're not there yet, but I'm trying to do what I tell the kids and not leave it all until the last minute.

And just in case you thought those pictures of snow in October on the East Coast were exaggerated, here's how we looked here:

This was fairly early in the day, too, so there was more. We ended up with about 6" total (although my neighbor said 10"), and tons of branches down in the area. Rachel was out of school for 2 days, because they had no power; William had school on Monday, they realized the building had partial power from the solar panels but not enough to fire the boilers, and then HE was out for 2 days. Poor JC had no days off, but he figures karma will resolve itself when the other 2 have to make up days and he doesn't. We still have brush and debris partially blocking roads in the area, 2 weeks later. And I saw a truly disgusting pile of dirty snow still in a parking lot yesterday.

Perhaps when I shake off this malaise, I'll manage to post more. Or perhaps not - November around here is usually grey and cold and rainy. Sounds like the cat and the bon-bons may win after all.

Random Bits

2011-10-27T13:34:00.002-04:00

1. I said "yes" to too many volunteer "opportunities" this fall, which is why there's been so much silence on the blog. Sorry! I am ticking them off, one by one, and I'm down to the last two. They are, unfortunately, also the biggest two, so posting may continue sporadically.

2. Marching Band is over (basically). There was supposed to be a competition this weekend - only 6 bands signed up for what should have been a regional. It got cancelled, I guess it really wasn't feasible to sign up for something else at this point, so we're done! JC has texted me three times today confirming that this afternoons' practice is actually cancelled - we do have two more football games, but no more practices. Good thing - the weather has decided to go early November on us, and it's about 45-50 degrees and schmutzing rain. Ick.

3. I am really kind of hoping soccer gets cancelled for this weekend, too. Forecast is for rain on Saturday morning - Rachel has an 8:30am game, so NOT having to sit in the cold at that time in the morning would be a really lovely thing. William's game is at 2:45, so that's ok, except that they've lost twice in a row. My morale is low. Hopefully, his isn't.

4. My house is a pit. On top of too much volunteering, I've been scrambling to make a print for a print exchange (send in 12 and get back 10, all different). I'm almost done, but there is dirt in every corner and finding a clear place to do homework or eat is getting...challenging. I'm hoping that no band and maybe no soccer will provide me with minions to help with the cleaning. We'll see - they're pretty good about disappearing when they smell housecleaning.

5. Even though my house is a pit, what I really want to do right now is curl up with a blanket and a cat and take a nap. Rainy fall days are bad for me that way. I have 45 minutes before I have to pick up JC. Not sure what's going to win.

iCon

2011-10-07T16:23:00.001-04:00

I've been thinking about what to say about Steve Jobs for the last few days. I've heard him compared to Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison. I think the Edison analogy is apt - both men weren't necessarily the ones doing the innovative work, but they were both heavily involved in the vision and direction of that work. Steve Jobs' Apple didn't invent the personal computer in the same way that Thomas Edison's lab made the first light bulb from ideas and glass and wire, but the early Apple computers fundamentally changed the way that computers were perceived by the general public. Jobs created computers that were for regular people, that were simple and intuitive to use, that had a consistent interface across programs. That seems so obvious now, but at the time, it really wasn't. It's hard to remember now how clunky computers were in the 70's and 80's, and how few people actually used them in their personal life.

I wrote my Master's thesis on a Macintosh SE 30, and I don't remember once having to look at a User's Manual while formatting it, creating the charts and graphs, or any of the programs I used during the process. And then he did it again with iEverything products, revolutionizing what we assumed computers and electronics could do and what they looked like.

RIP Steve Jobs, and prayers for his family.

Halloween AWESOME!

2011-10-05T12:02:00.000-04:00

Now that the weather is finally turning cooler (and maybe not so rainy this week), it's actually possible to think about Halloween. So as I'm poking around the Internet avoiding washing the dishes, I checked out The Martha Blog. And somewhere on the page they had a link to the Daily Thred, which had a link to this:

100 Halloween Pumpkin Carving Ideas

Oh. My. Goodness. Now, I'll certainly admit that some of these are far beyond my capabilities. But how much fun is this?!

And this one, this put me over the top.

Isn't he GLORIOUS??!!

What Is It About Babies and Knitters?

2011-10-04T08:48:00.001-04:00

I'm convinced there is some kind of cosmic link between babies and knitters. Our neighbors' daughter just gave birth to a girl (Awwwww....!), and while I know the neighbors well, I hardly know their oldest daughter. She's much much older (early 20's) than the daughter we know well. That one is a year younger than William. We've met the older daughter a few times, but she mostly lived with her mom, or was away at college.

But...

Upon hearing the news of the birth, and seeing some pictures (Awwwww.....!), I am overtaken with the urge to knit a Baby Surprise Sweater for her. To the point where I took time yesterday (which was a very busy day!) to pick some yarn for her while I was at Michaels for something else.

Maybe it's because baby items are just so darn cute! Or small and quick? Or both...

Never Too Many Legos

2011-09-27T22:53:00.001-04:00

My kids love Legos. I love Legos - I'm not as creative as they are, but I've done my fair share of "Mom, can you help me put this together?" Rachel keeps threatening to buy me one of the bigger sets for me to "put together by myself" (fortunately, her budget is small).

But I love this. It's a Ford Explorer, made of Legos, of course, recently completed for the opening of Legoland, Florida.

Florida? That's a LOT closer than California, or any of the other Legolands. Hmmm...

Random

2011-09-21T15:53:00.000-04:00

Last night was back-to-school night at the Middle School. Our middle school was originally one of two high schools in town, then as the demographics changed, they added on to the other high school and turned this one into the middle school. Along the way, there have been a number of renovations and additions to the Middle School to create the spaces they need for the students.

Long story short, there are three 2-story wings off a very loooong central hall (sort of "E" shaped, with a really long spine on the "E"). And of course, whatever classes your child has will be spaced and timed in such a way as to require them to walk the longest distance possible.

So I went to BTS last night for Rachel. John stayed home to drive to the various activities and wrangle the kids. At some point in the evening, he texted me, "How is BTSN?". I texted back, "One more class." He replied, "Wow-still at it?"

I was walking (fast) down the hall at the time, so I texted my reply to him without looking too hard.

No, I accidentally texted to Twitter.

So the next time something really random pops up on my Twitter feed? Don't worry that you feel like you missed half the conversation.

You did.

Settling Into a Routine

2011-09-12T23:05:00.000-04:00

We made it through the first Monday of the new school year. Everyone was a little slow this morning but got where they needed to go. I made it to the gym and to printmaking (trace monotype, I'll try to put up pictures in a few days when it's dry!). Rachel had her first dance class of the year. William opted to play before he did his homework, but all his friends did theirs first and then wanted to play. That meant he had just started when the doorbell rang. I'm hoping he's learned his lesson and will get his homework done early tomorrow.

In honor of Monday, I made a chocolate cake. All three children and John asked what it was for. I guess I should bake for just us more often, eh?

Second Day of School

2011-09-08T09:40:00.000-04:00

Again started WAY too early in the morning - this time with thunder and torrential rain. Having a deja vu moment back to Irene. Didn't we just do this?

JC drove to school in the rain. It had slowed down a bit, fortunately. Another traffic zoo - hoping that calms down in the next few days as the seniors get their parking assignments.

Rachel got out the door on her own, on time (with lunch!). Her bus was even mostly on time. She spent 30 minutes sitting on the bus at school yesterday afternoon because the driver couldn't get it to start. Here's hoping THAT doesn't happen again today.

Got a robo call just after Rachel's bus came (on time) that buses were expected to be 10-15 minutes late because of road flooding. Hmmm. Made the choice to get William out the door at the regular time, figuring he'd noodle around up at the bus stop for 10 minutes. Nope. Bus was smack on time - the girl next door missed it because her father believed the message.

Now I'm puttering around the house, planning lunch with a friend, avoiding going to the gym. THIS feels like the first real day of school.

First Day of School

2011-09-07T09:08:00.000-04:00

Everyone got off on time, sort of.

John had an early morning flight cancelled, so he got up at 4:45am to sit in the airport for two extra hours.

JC and I left 5 minutes late to drive him to school, so we hit extra traffic around the school, which meant that ...

Rachel was at the busstop when I got back, so I stopped there and hung out with her for a while. But her bus was over 20 minutes late so I left her there and went home to wake up William - and realized just after her bus came that she had left the oh-so-important computer and weapons "contracts" and her info form on the counter at home.

William's bus came exactly on time. Then I drove to the Middle School and brought Rachel her forms.

And now I have 30 minutes before I have a volunter meeting, which I will leave early to bring JC lunch at school before Marching Band practice this afternoon.

Somehow, I think tomorrow will feel a little more like the REAL beginning of school.

And the Rains Came Down and the Floods Came Up

2011-08-29T09:51:00.000-04:00

The rain, it did come down. In buckets. And the floods, they are still coming up. I haven't been out and about (the governor and the mayor both said, "stay home." I've stayed.) but there are pictures up online of our town and area. Not good. It's not just the usual places this time; there is much flooding beyond the expected. My favorite grocery store - the parking lot is flooded (hoping the store isn't too damaged). The roller hockey rink JC played at - you can just see the edge of the boards around the rink.

Two nearby towns are severely affected, but according to this website, one of the rivers has crested and is dropping, the other might be soon. (Check it out! The colored dots take you to river level graphs. I assume there are maps for the rest of the country, though I haven't looked.)

Fortunately, the rain stopped earlier than predicted. Also fortunately, we did not lose power. There are numerous power outages in the area, mostly from trees taking out lines. But not us. Thank you, God. It was bad enough having three bored kids in the house yesterday. Three bored kids and no electricity and Internet? ... I shudder to think.

We are still better off than when Hurricane Floyd dumped on New Jersey in 1999. We had MUCH water in the basement then. This time? Just a bit. Got the fans and dehumidifiers going and it'll be dry soon.

It could have been much worse.

Shake, Rattle, and Roll

2011-08-26T21:17:00.000-04:00

(I was going to title this "I Feel The Earth Move Under My Feet" but now we're under a hurricane warning and it wasn't inclusive enough.)

This is one of those weeks that you start to wonder if Mother Nature really does have it in for us, or perhaps the Mayans had a little math error in their calculations of the end of the world. I really did feel the earth move on Tuesday - of course, I initially thought I was having a moment of vertigo and it was just me. Then John called and said it was an earthquake, so that was vaguely reassuring.

JC was at marching band practice - nobody quite fogged in that it was an earthquake, but everybody stumbled at the same point in the drill, and couple of people fell down. They all thought that they just "had a moment" and started the drill over.

And now Irene is causing evacuations in coastal New Jersey and major issues in NYC. They're shutting down the subways at noon tomorrow. Do you have any idea how big that is? They are SHUTTING DOWN all the subways in New York tomorrow. I'm not sure they even did that for 9/11, people. Atlantic City is a ghost town under a mandatory evacuation order. It's creepy, is what it is.

Of course, here in beautiful suburbia, sitting on our hill, we are merely under a tropical storm warning. I'm expecting buckets of rain and some impressive (if not hurricane-force) wind. We did take the precaution of actually picking up all the junk strewn about the yard and putting the (new!) shade umbrella in the shed. We had one snap in a storm last year, so no taking chances this time. And if nothing else, I finally got the kids motivated to help pick up the yard.

And of course, this Sunday I volunteered to host coffee hour at church. I have a feeling attendance is going to be a bit thin...

Gotta Love New York

2011-08-19T11:44:00.000-04:00

On Wednesday, JC and I went to New York City. You would think, seeing as how we don't live so terribly far away, that we would do this on a regular basis. But no, going with all three kids always turns into a production. So going with one kid? Easy peasy.

It started out a vague plan of "let's wander around Greenwich Village", but the night before I actually sat down and figured out some places we might want to go. SO glad I did. Having some destinations was a good thing - we might have walked a little more than otherwise, but we found some really cool places.

#1 (highly recommended) The Evolution Store
Oh. My. God. (sorry, there's no other word for it). In the heart of SoHo, this store specializes in "natural specimens". Um, yeah, what? Think skeletons, taxidermy, bugs, minerals, fossils, and all manner of cool, slightly creepy stuff. Tiny place, jam-packed (there's a taxidermied alligator attached to the ceiling, upside down. JC dubbed it "spider-gator"). Wanna buy a Utah raptor claw (replica)? Whale vertebrae? Human skeleton (either real or replica)? The cave bear skull (real, not a replica) will only set you back $7995!
We spent a long time there going through the whole place. If you have kids that are creeped out by taxidermy or skeletons, they might not like it, but we loved it. Can't wait to go back with William (not sure if Rachel's going to like this one).

#2 The Strand Bookstore
For kids who have grown up on a suburban diet of large chain bookstores, this is a wonderful opportunity to see what else is out there. It doesn't quite have the ambiance of a cozy little neighborhood bookstore (the place is HUGE!), but when they have a whole table of "odd books" including V is for Vampire and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, it's a winner. They also had classic book t-shirts (we got Fahrenheit 451 for JC and A Clockwork Orange for John) and really neat tote bags and all sorts of other stuff. We could have spent even longer in there, but I spent enough money as it was!

#3 Molly's Cupcakes
This was complete serendipity. We were walking from Christopher Street PATH station towards the Evolution Store, which is a bit of a hike. It was right about that "mid-morning need a pick-me-up" time, and Molly's was in the right place at the right time. Absolutely fun decor (shelves of board games for you to play!) and very friendly staff (not a given in the City). I had the 7-layer bar, which was classic and huge and I couldn't finish it. JC had the cake batter cupcake, which actually did have a soft center of cake batter (he said it was fabulous), and they have coffee too, of course.

#4 Union Square Greenmarket
When I saw we were going to be near Union Square, I looked up when the market was open. We didn't buy anything except cider for JC (he was thirsty), but if I lived nearby I would TOTALLY shop there. Everything looked gorgeous and delicious.

#5 Washington Square Park
We just walked through, but if you're a people-watcher, it was fabulous. Didn't hurt that it was a warm, beautiful day near noon. And for a WTF moment, this:

It's a piano. Covered, on a dolly - under the arch in Washington Square. Performance coming? Just past? On it's way somewhere else? Don't know.

#6 recommended BareBurger
This was lunch, and it was yummy. JC had an elk burger piled with stuff, I went classic beef with just grilled onions, and my friend (who came with us) had turkey burger with Mediterranean flavors. Great onion rings and fries with interesting dipping sauces (curry ketchup, chipotle mayo, etc.). Not too crowded, pleasantly cool, interestingly funky. And the bathroom was clean.

Sorry this got long, and there are a couple of other places we stopped, too. But these were the standouts - if you're going to NYC and going to be down in the Village/SoHo/Flatiron district looking for something to do, check 'em out.

Really?

2011-08-10T18:04:00.000-04:00

Can I just say that the fact that the 20 pounds of tomatoes from last weeks' farm share gave me a paltry 4 quarts of canned tomatoes packed in water (and a quarter of each jar seems to be water) just is totally disproportionate to the amount of effort it took to process the aforementioned 20 pounds of tomatoes?

And Barbara Kingsolver wants me to provide all my family's food this way?

Really?

Progress?

2011-08-09T11:00:00.000-04:00

We delivered Rachel to camp last night - despite the fact that she had thrown up that morning, slept for 3 hours during the day, and looked pretty iffy in the car on the way down.

But as we were walking up to the office to check her in, one of the counselors saw her and said, "Rachel! I'm so glad you're here!" And the director took several minutes to chat with her on the porch of the office, and 2 of her cabin-mates came into the nurse's office while we were there and echoed the "glad you're here" sentiment. And on the way to her cabin, two or three more people said the same thing and clearly knew who she was.

Big grin on her face as we left, and she was putting a bandanna in the back of her shorts for the running game they were having that evening. Even though she claimed she wasn't going to run much.

So while I think there was some real stomach issue in the day or two before camp started, and definitely on Saturday, I wonder how much of Sunday and Monday's troubles were nerves layered on top of that?

Poor girl. I hope as she moves through her teenage years, her body disconnects that GI connection a bit. Because her "gut" instinct? Is to worry. And it makes me miserable to watch it make her miserable.

.....

Of course, if I find out she spent today and the next two days continuing to throw up, I'm going to feel like the worst parent in the world for sending her. Somehow, I think she comes by that worrying thing naturally.

Best Laid Plans

2011-08-07T22:09:00.000-04:00

We made it through the concert. I won't say that we were perfect (far from it!) but for a week's practice, I thought we did pretty darn well. There is a recording, and the director promised to make CD's for anyone who wants one - if that ever happens, maybe I'll put a bit on the blog.

So with all the expected craziness, it even got a little worse. Saturday morning, the kids are all packed for camp, I woke everybody up on time, we're getting ready to go...and Rachel threw up. Several times.

Ummmmm....now what?

We ended up putting her in the car (with bucket) along with everything and everyone else, and driving down to camp. We had to drop off William, after all, and after talking to the director, we brought Rachel back home with a plan to bring her down when she felt better. We even made up her bunk and left all her stuff. I had hoped she would feel better today, and she almost did - and then she threw up again. But she seemed to feel much better after that, and the plan is to take her down tomorrow.

Of course, John is flying out for business tomorrow morning, and JC has an SAT prep class at 9am, and I did have plans to go print - but I'm driving 1.5 hours (each way) tomorrow and getting back before JC's class ends at 4pm. Just when you think you have a plan, you have to come up with a new one.

We'll see if this one works.

It's Official

2011-08-05T12:58:00.001-04:00

I have officially lost my mind. Let me tell you the sequence of events.

It's been a relatively quiet summer for us. All three kids have participated in summer activities (one week each), and the only conflict has been that William's got moved to the same week as Rachel's, and had the same starting time. Which turned out not to be a conflict because they were 5 minutes apart and I could drop one off a bit early and the other on time in one trip.

This week (tomorrow, to be exact), Rachel and William leave for 2 weeks at sleep-away camp. JC has an all-day SAT prep course all next week, but again, no conflict because the other two are away.

SO....I guess things were too quiet.

About 2-3 weeks ago, I got an email from the former choir director at our church. He's moved up to a larger church with bigger choirs, so we don't see him any more. But this summer, he's experimenting with a summer choir event - one week of practices, then a performance Saturday night. Would John and I be interested in singing with them? I checked the calendar of rehearsals, nothing jumped out at me, so ok! I love singing with J. W. He's (in my opinion) a fine teacher and a fun director that gets results. Sure!

First complication - we went camping for 5 days last weekend, and had to leave on the early side Sunday to make the first rehearsal. No big deal. Except that we're singing Vivaldi's "Gloria". All of it. All 12 (twelve) movements. Yes, some are solos and some are very short, but that's still a LOT of music to learn. In Latin. Monday rehearsal, no problem - until J. W. announced that he was adding a rehearsal on Thursday night. Um. John was already going to miss Wednesday, and we both had a conflict Thursday as well. Ohhhkaay. I actually left my other meeting early to catch most of rehearsal - this stuff is challenging! And I realized (after committing to the event) that we're dropping off Rachel and William for camp on Saturday. At 1pm. Saturday rehearsal starts at 3pm. These two locations are 1.5 hours apart.

Then, just to make it really fun, I spent all week procrastinating packing for camp. And then realized that my one and only black skirt doesn't really fit any more, and all my black pants are winter-weight. So add in shopping for a black skirt/pants and white top (I pretty much NEVER wear white). Not to mention William and Rachel just MIGHT need a few more socks and underwear to make it through 2 weeks of camp. And I didn't count until...yesterday.

Oh, and Rachel really wanted to tie-dye some items to bring to camp - so we did that, too.

Now, since I woke up this morning at 6am with my mind SPINNING from all that needs to get done today, remember that this whole choir thing was voluntary. Really! We're doing this for fun! And all the procrastinating was voluntary, too (including the time to type this. Where's my fabric marker? I have socks to label!)

Nevertheless, I have (mostly) complete confidence we'll pull this off. And if you like baroque choral music, and live somewhere near Central New Jersey, contact me and I'll let you know the details of the performance. Seriously, it's going to be fabulous.

It's Alive!

2011-07-23T15:44:00.000-04:00

Thursday, my computer died. I had shut it down the night before, and starting up that morning it couldn't find the boot disc, did a couple of other strange things, then gave me the Blue Screen of Death.

Uh oh.

John, of course, was in Florida for business (where it happened to be significantly cooler than here, go figure). We did a little diagnostic over the phone, and he agreed that the best solution was to order a new computer and he'd take a look at the old one when he got home.

I ordered the new computer online (local stores didn't have the configuration that we were looking for) and saved enough on taxes that I sprang for overnight shipping. Goody! New toy on Friday!

Not so much. It didn't ship. Should arrive Monday.

John got home today, and almost immediately started checking out the dead one. Although I had told him on the phone that it didn't do ANYTHING, he was surprised that it really didn't do anything when you pushed the power button. Really. No fan, no nothing. It was a brick.

That, it turned out, was the key.

Clever bear that he is, he replaced the power supply. Voila! It lives! (cue maniacal laughter and lightning flash).

So I didn't lose anything (back up your computer! Now!) AND I get a new, spiffy computer. And the kids will get the old one, which will reduce bickering somewhat. Of course, we are spending money on a new computer, which we hadn't really planned on. And I just had to have the stove repaired and the Suburban needs new tires. But ... I'm really excited about getting a new computer.

Yay!

Reductive Relief Printing Final

2011-07-19T21:55:00.000-04:00

I am finally done (and contemplating the next one). It was really fun to learn a new technique, and I've decided there are things about the process and it's limitations that I actually enjoy. Having limits can actually help with the decision paralysis of wide open possibilities!

This is a 6 color print - white, red, yellow, black, blue, light blue. Ready? Here we go!

Red on top of white (paper)

Yellow on top of red

Black on top of yellow

Blue on top of black

Light blue on top of darker blue

The bottom one is the finished print. I ended up with an edition of 12 and a couple of proofs. Remember, the number of prints I did of the red is the maximum number I can end up with - every one I use as a proof or screw up is "gone" forever from the edition. I'm carving more away on the stamp for each color, so you can't print more of the previous color.

This is all that's left of the block (top is block, bottom is print).

So yes, I am thinking about my next one. And the studio is hosting a swap - send in 12 prints, get 10 different ones back. So I'm trying to figure out whether to do a relief carving (which I know how to do) or something else yet to be determined...

Lack of Talent

2011-07-19T21:33:00.000-04:00

It seems that when I make an effort to post on Facebook and Twitter, I don't manage to post on my blog. I guess that's an indication that I'm old - I can't manage ALL the Social Medias all at the same time.

Freshening Up the Place

2011-06-25T22:16:00.001-04:00

We completed construction on our renovation about 5 years ago. This spring, John finished the deck (more on that later). Last fall, we realized the foundation plantings in front of the house were looking...tired. To say the least. So we (actually, John) pulled them all out, and he built a raised bed in front of the picture window. After a few weeks, we still hadn't planted anything so he covered it with a tarp for the rest of the fall. And winter.

And there it sat until about a month ago, when I realized I was going to miss the spring planting season as well. Time to just bite the bullet, even though I had little to no idea what I wanted to put in there. A friend of mine bought a nursery last year, so I went up and said, "help!".

Never underestimate the power of being clueless. It took us a couple of hours of laying things out at the nursery, but we came up with a plan. A low maintenance, deer-resistant mix of flowering and evergreen shrubs and the long shot - a dwarf crape myrtle.

When we pulled off the tarp, there was a toad. JC was standing about a foot from it when Rachel spotted it. JC kept saying, "where?" because it blended so well with the dirt.

Here's our toad - isn't he lovely? I felt bad disturbing him.

We have a butterfly bush, a dwarf blue spruce, a low-growing evergreen called "Blue Pacific" and at the end is the Crape Myrtle. There's another blue spruce and blue pacific to the left, making for nice symmetry. Except for the Crape Myrtle.

Unfortunately, something has been eating the Crape Myrtle. It's looking a little better but I'm thinking of getting some hardware cloth and making an enclosure around it. It could be deer, rabbits, or even the chipmuncks, I guess. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

A Little Bit of Culture

2011-06-24T21:01:00.001-04:00

We didn't go camping for Memorial Day Weekend. Ever since JC joined marching band, he's had to march in the Memorial Day parade in our town (an event so large and well-attended that when I posted about it on Facebook, a friend commented, "We have a Memorial Day parade?").

Since we couldn't camp, we needed to do something besides hang out in the house. We chose the Grounds for Sculpture. Rachel and JC had been there on school field trips, and John's parents went last summer, but the rest of us had never been.

If you live anywhere nearby? Go.

The kids loved it. We loved it. We had great weather until about 4pm, when the wind picked up and the sky got dark, and we ran for the car. 30 more seconds and we would have stayed mostly dry. We didn't get to do the whole park so I think we'll take my mom down there next week when she comes.

I think Rachel is striking a particularly sculptural pose in this picture.

I liked "King Lear" - he was very tortured.

I believe this one was titled something like "Sleep".

I'd say this was the wierdest one we saw, but I'm not sure that's actually true.

It's called "Henry Moore in a Sheep Meadow". And it is. Sorry about the shadows.

Bring a hat and/or sunscreen, there isn't a lot of shade in much of the park. We didn't check out the food available so I can't tell you if it was reasonably priced (probably not) and I don't think you can bring your own, so plan accordingly. But it was really neat and something the kids actually all enjoyed. A miracle!

Finally, some progress

2011-06-23T21:50:00.000-04:00

The last few weeks of school were slightly crazier than usual this year, but we are finally in summer vacation mode - evidenced by the fact that I was able to sleep past 7 for the first time since school let out. It always takes me a couple of days to reset the internal clock.

I have made some progress on the fish print. Not as much as hoped - I started over with a new block, and did much better on registration this time. But I still have one more layer of color to print.

Currently, the block looks like this:

Next, I will carve away everything I want to keep black, and then print with blue ink. That's part of why it's been taking so long - I need to let the top layer of ink dry thoroughly or I don't get a pure color (see the yellow layer above). Here's hoping I get good coverage!

New Post, New Skillz

2011-05-23T23:26:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the vacation. Blogging felt more like an obligation recently, plus I was feeling uninspired. But now you get something new!

I've mentioned before that I've been learning to use a printing press at a local printmaking studio. I've been going every Monday and meeting with 3-4 other people with the stated purpose of using and promoting the letterpress machine. However, we've decided that our "mandate" is quite broad and as long as we might eventually use it for letterpress, anything counts. Last week, a member offered to teach the rest of us a new skill (that may come in handy for the letterpress).

So our new skill for the day was block printing. Well, for everyone else the new skill was reductive block carving. They all did block printing in high school and college. I'm the newbie when it comes to all these things.

Regular block printing requires one block for each color you use. Each block must be carved to only print the areas you want that specific color, and getting the registration (how the images from each block overlap on the print) can be tricky. However, you can always go back and print each block to make another print.

Reductive block printing uses only one block for all the colors. You carve the areas you need for the first color, print all the copies you want of the print, and then carve the block again for the next color. You can never go back and print with the first block again because you've changed it. But you use less material this way and it's easier to line up your layers.

How about a picture?

This was my first print. I carved away everything that I wanted to stay white, then printed in red. The inks are opaque so I can cover up the excess red(mostly). The black lines are from the pen I used to draw the image on my material. :( They weren't suppsed to transfer but they did.

This is the image of the block after carving away everything that will stay red. See the differences with the red print? This layer will print in yellow, but on top of the already printed red.

When I printed the yellow block on top of the already printed red, this is what I got. It's a little orange - we didn't wait for the red ink to dry, but I liked the effect anyway. Next up will be black, and then blue.

Of course, the reality was that I screwed up the printing of the yellow layer on almost all of my red pieces, so I only have two good ones and two more layers of ink to follow. But I have lots of pieces to practice on! And the main purpose today was to learn the process, and in particular, how to think about seperating the colors and what order to print. I might carve another copy of the first layer so I can print some more and have more good ones at the end. But that is the challenge of this method - your images always line up (if you print carefully), but it is truly a limted edition.

Overall, it was a lot of fun, and I'm hoping in the next few days I can finish the print. I'll post it when I do!

Still Here

2011-04-25T22:57:00.000-04:00

I'm here, really I am. Just not feeling much inspiration to blog. My church consignment sale is this coming weekend - I've decided I really am going to say "no" if someone asks me to run it again in the fall. I'm done - my heart isn't in it, I'm not doing a good job, I'm just burned out on it. Time to step away - which probably means it won't happen again. I feel bad about that, but I'm still done.

We just finished Spring Break. We did some of the things I hoped we would, and not others, and I didn't accomplish much. But that's OK - I caught up on a lot of sleep and talked and played with my kids, and I kind of needed that break.

So hopefully next week, with the sale over, I can post some pictures and do some things that need to get done and some that want to get done. The weather has improved (somewhat) and that helps everything be better.

Happy Sunshine and Flowers!

Someone Has Too Much Time on their Hands

2011-04-12T23:09:00.000-04:00

Legoland Windsor launches their royal wedding diorama (Getty Images/Dan Kitwood)

Getty Images/Dan Kitwood

I know. It's SO cool.

The whole story, and more pictures, are here.

We Are All Connected

2011-03-30T21:24:00.000-04:00

I'm a nerd. I haven't worked as an engineer for 16+ years now, but it's still how I think. I'm still fascinated by science - right now it disappoints me that JC doesn't need more help with his chemistry.

So when I checked out Knitting to Stay Sane tonight, and she had a post about "Geeking Out", I was highly amused. And then I watched the video that she embedded.

I love this. I love that all of these people of science - that cold, dispassionate field of study - are really REALLY passionate about what they are doing. I miss it, a bit.

But this helps.

March Madness

2011-03-24T13:38:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to avoid complaining about the weather. I spend way more time than I should complaining about the weather on this blog. So the lack of posts lately is somewhat related to this goal.

BUT.

This is just a little nuts. John snapped this picture from the bus stop on Wednesday morning, which, may I remind you, was the 2nd full day of Spring.

Really?

We are so DONE with winter. Even William, die-hard sled and snowball enthusiast, has been taking this as a personal affront. "Doesn't Nature know it's SPRING?!"

So instead of planning and planting the front bed for the house, which we tore out last fall, I was scraping my car this morning.

Happy Spring.

Words to Live By

2011-03-17T09:18:00.000-04:00

I'm a news junkie. I'll admit it. (Hi, my name is Ann, and I'm addicted to knowing what's going on.) I feel very cut off and isolated even going a day without watching or listening to what's going on in the world, and our local paper isn't enough (even though I generally read almost all of it every day).

But lately? It's a little overwhelming. The whole Egypt thing (sorry Tunisia, we didn't get as much coverage about you), which of course segued into Bahrain and Libya and Yemen and who knows how many countries in that region. That "little" earthquake in Christchurch, protests in Wisconsin, our own very combative governor in New Jersey (he's a jerk. There are even some of his policies I grudgingly agree with, but the guy's a jerk).

And now Japan.

It would be heartbreaking enough to see the pictures of the aftermath of a HUGE earthquake. Then you add on a truly biblical tsunami. We could stop there, thank you. I can't imagine the horrors those people are living through right now.

But no, now they have impending nuclear disaster to deal with, as well. And while I know (here in my safe suburban intact house) that the worst case scenarios you are hearing on the media are more than a little on the sensationalized side, they are living with even more fear and uncertainty and a justifiable mistrust in what their government is telling them.

Whatever religion or higher power you believe in, or even if you don't believe, take a moment and think prayers/good thoughts for all the people struggling right now, whether in Japan or Libya or New Zealand. I don't know that the world is more tumultuous than it was 100 years ago, but we are certainly more aware of it now.

I did receive a little ray of hope today, though. When I was filling out the online donation form for Doctors without Borders, the captcha (security words) that came up were "ndstedi calm".

And steady calm.

Something to remember.

Maybe I Should Do This More Often

2011-03-09T08:54:00.000-05:00

William has been home sick for three days (Sunday he woke up with a 102F fever), so he's been mostly living on the couch in our family room. This morning, as he was looking for his shoes (which he hasn't worn in three days), he walked into the front hall and said, "Mom, why is the front hall so...clean?"

When your 9 yr old boy a) notices that something is clean and b) realizes that it's a change, I think it might be a signal to clean more often.

Random Stuff

2011-03-04T13:18:00.000-05:00

1. I have a cold. It started Monday with that little scratchiness in the back of my throat, and now has progressed to coughing fits that would make strangers stare in alarm, if I were going out of the house. No fever (or at least, not that I've really noticed), no major body aches. Just stuffed up and coughing.

2. It's my first real cold of the season, so I guess I shouldn't complain. It is kind of a bummer, though.

3. The kids got their report cards in the last couple weeks. I have one who is on the verge of failing some classes because s/he doesn't do his/her homework. I have one who missed straight A's by one B+ (and is really annoyed by that) and one who's trending kind of upper average.

4. Does this mean that I'm trending upper average in parenting skills? Or am I assuming too much guilt/responsibility for the brilliance and/or laziness of my children? It always amazes me that three such different people should have come from the same parents.

5. The weather has finally decided that it could think about moving towards Springtime. This means that it is sunny and cold instead of snowy and cold. And it's windy of course. It is March, after all.

6. At this point, I'm very happy with sunny and cold. Even though the season of Mud has arrived.

7. My front entry is filthy (see #6).

Change of Seasons

2011-03-02T16:52:00.000-05:00

Yes, the weather has improved a bit (although tomorrow will be back below freezing for the high), but the true sign that Spring is approaching?

Road Construction.

Everywhere you go (at least, that's what it felt like today!).

February Swap

2011-02-10T12:34:00.000-05:00

OK, technically it was January 31st, but it was supposed to be February. Thank the snow for that - we decided to be proactive based on the weather report. We figured we had to go for the day that we were pretty sure would be OK - if we waited until the next week, who knew what we would get?

As it was, everybody pulled it together on short notice and we had a great time. A few had conflicts and couldn't come, but the cards were great! I hosted and kept the food super-simple - we're all too busy stamping to eat much anyway.

Ruth's card was simple and elegant, and had the most amazing blue/purple paper (it has a shimmer you can't see in the scan). Shows what you can do with one graceful image.

I told everyone the cards had to be 10 minutes or else! Grace went for super simple, but the glittery embossing powder really added some glitz.

Janet did super-cute. A little color, a well-placed eyelet, and you've got a multi-purpose card good for adults or children.

Nancy went above and beyond for her cards - I think I scared her with the 10 minute threat, so she pre-stamped all the images. We colored them in and assembled, and it's beautiful card. We've had chickadees at the bird feeder, so I loved this.

Cathie got such a good reception for her bookmark last time, she did it again. Wouldn't it make a lovely gift along with a book?

Sharon came up with the cleverest easiest "curtains" I've ever seen. It's a wide ribbon, cut in half, and attached on either side of the square punch out. It's layered between the green and the white so the inside is clean. The snowman is inside, and I LOVE the saying.

Sue didn't think she could pull a card together, but I convinced her she HAD to come, it would be fun. Little did she know we had a cake for her birthday! She came up with a fabulous spotlight-technique card. I should have scanned the one Rachel made, it's much better than mine. But it's such an effective technique anyway!

This is one where the scan truly does not do it justice. Shona designed this card, and while I think she went over the 10 minute limit, we all loved it anyway. The large white piece is run through a die cut machine, the center "cloud" removed, and then die-cut the outside piece again to enlarge the cut-out area. Then run it through with an embossing folder, then brayer it all with a rainbow pad, then coat everything (the cloud twice) with embossing powder so it's got a shine to it. Wow!

I think Dale gets the award for most versatile. You could use this simple but elegant card for a birthday (male or female), get well, sympathy... I think it's lovely.

I have to admit I had Spring on the brain when I made this one. Can you blame me? Bugs and flowers and Spring-ish colors. Just stamped and matted, but I did add the option of a dimensional paint on the flowers, ladybug spots, and dragonfly. Just a little shine.

It always amazes me what comes out at these things. I'm not sure any of these cards even share a color-scheme! And the variety of techniques we can squeeze into a 10 minute card is really astounding.

In some ways it was easier having the event two days early. I focused on having the house presentable instead of making food that not many people eat anyway. Some chips and dip, M&Ms on the table, and Sue's birthday cake was plenty. And then the house was cleaned up for Rachel's birthday party on Friday. More on that later.

I'm SORRY!!!

2011-02-09T10:03:00.000-05:00

My poor neglected blog. I have pictures! And updates! And snow! But at the moment, I am off to the gym (it's already 10am here, if I procrastinate any more I won't get there today.) (And lest you be proud of me for going to the gym, I haven't managed more than once a week since early December.)

Soon!

Winter Wonderland

2011-01-27T20:34:00.000-05:00

Final total? Somewhat north of 13" here. A friend said 17", but not from what I measured. No school today. JC used the snowblower to clear most of the driveway. Note that the snow is higher than the mouth of our baby-sized snowblower. But I'm still glad to have it.

Rachel tried to jump over the pile of snow by the road - and failed. It was above her waist, and after floundering around for a while, I had to pull her out because she was stuck.

The deer out front, last night.

They were even more buried this morning.

William and our neighbor, digging in the front yard.

The only casualty seems to be our mailbox. Hard to tell in this picture, but it's open because the snow pushed up around it has warped the body of the box. The door is sitting straight - the box itself is not. We're still ahead of the neighbor across the street. During the last storm, the plow took his off completely - snapped the post.

And Still More Snow

2011-01-26T22:09:00.000-05:00

We already got the call for a delayed opening. I think there's a chance of a closure - it would be a certainty if we weren't on our last snow day.

I am sorry for all this blogging about the weather, but it has been an unusually snowy winter for us. I will take a picture in the morning - it's too dark now, but my car has accumulated more than an inch of snow in an hour and a half.

And it's still snowing hard.

Gratuitous Tuba Shots

2011-01-25T09:11:00.000-05:00

And here's the tux shot, just before his winter concert for school. Yes, I know. He needs to shave. Apparently excess facial hair is fashionable among tuba players, though. John said all the tuba kids they saw at the audition were on the fuzzy side.

And just for fun, he spent an evening on the streets of Westfield, NJ before Christmas, playing Christmas music for shoppers. The dad of one of his band friends has a quartet that plays every year, but their tuba player was sick this year. I wouldn't say JC was happy to help out, but he ended up having fun. I think. It was kind of cold that evening.

Random Tuesday

2011-01-25T09:03:00.000-05:00

Too many things I've been meaning to post but haven't, so I'll smush them all together.

1. Rachel got an "A" on her mythology mobile.

The cards are color-coded by "generation" and have a picture of the god/goddess on one side and a brief description on the other. Gods with multiple children have them hanging from a seperate rod suspended under them. You can't see her, but way in the back is Venus/Aphrodite on a purple card with no parents because she (myths vary) pretty much appeared out of nowhere.

You really can't tell from the picture, but John showed Rachel how to cut the brass rods with a hacksaw and polish them up with a Dremel tool. I don't have a picture of Rachel with her goggles on, polishing, but she was really into it. She got them super-shiny.

2. JC made the All-State Band. Perhaps I should say it again.

JC MADE THE ALL-STATE BAND!!!!!!!!!

Yes, we're just a wee bit proud of him. To audition, you had to first audition for and be chosen for your regional band (there are 3 regions in NJ). There were 8 tubas chosen for each region, so there were 24 total that were allowed to audition for All-State. Out of all of New Jersey. And then 8 were chosen. !!!!

I have a great picture of JC in his tux, but Blogger has decided "no more pictures!"

3. The weather continues to be Winter. We have been 20-30 degrees below normal, which may not sound so terrible to those of you in the Frozen North, but it's been challenging. Rachel missed the bus yesterday because John said he would drive her - because he didn't want to stand at the bus stop at 0 F. Today has "warmed up" all the way to (maybe) 35F, but now we have a 90% chance of "significant accumulation" on Wednesday night. We have one assigned snow day left in this school district. Thursday is the first day of midterms for the high school. Please. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

4. John is leaving for Florida tonight and staying until Friday evening. Have no pity for him. I have to refill the gas can for the snowblower today.

It's Getting Old Already

2011-01-21T09:44:00.000-05:00

Ok, we've had two snow days and a delayed opening and it's January 21st. This is going to be one of THOSE winters, isn't it? One of those where we use up all our snow days and have to steal days from Spring Break and add some onto the end of the school year (which already goes into late June and makes me crazy).

And let me tell you, having a federal holiday and a snow day the next day makes parents crazy. EVERY parent I talked to yesterday said, "Please, let it just be a delayed opening tomorrow. I can't take having the kids home another day!" It didn't help that Tuesday's snow day was really an ice day - we had freezing rain and extremely slick roads and you couldn't even throw the kids outside to play in the...slush? Sleet? Muck?

New Jersey is right on the edge of snow country. We have some winters that have little to no snow, and we have others where we get hammered. And just when you think you know what to expect, well, no, you didn't.

Ok, finally time to shovel the last kid out the door. I'm just glad we're out of the Intermediate School. With a two-hour delay, the bus didn't come until almost 11. And then the oldest would get home at 2:30. Yippee.

Snow Day Anyway

2011-01-12T22:24:00.000-05:00

We were closer to 6" than 18", and even 6" is being generous. But they cancelled school last night about midnight (we get robocalls, which is actually awesome. Sure beats trying to watch for your school to scroll across the screen.), because the forecast was for the heaviest snow from 2am to 10am. Can't say as I blame them, it could have been nasty. But we woke to blue skies and light and fluffy snow. John cleared the driveway and went to work. The kids and I mostly hung out, although we did manage to undecorate the Christmas tree.

But whatever I have been doing lately has messed up my back (I have arthritis in my lower back, and while there's always a low level of pain, it's usually not bad) and I can barely move today. I did some stretching, which helped a little, but I'm thinking that Zumba at the gym may be to blame and perhaps I shouldn't go tomorrow. Just when I was getting into a groove.

Snowmaggedon, Yet Again

2011-01-11T15:23:00.000-05:00

I'll let you know tomorrow if we were closer to 6" or to 18". Yes, that really is the range, depending which weather station you favor. The kids (and teachers) are convinced there will be a snow day. I maintain my scepticism.

Contrasts

2011-01-08T23:41:00.000-05:00

We celebrated JC's 16th birthday today. It was a decidely different party than the one for William's 9th back in November. This was JC's show, as much as it could be. He decided what he wanted to do (go out to a Japanese Hibachi restaurant and then hang out and play video games). He decided who to invite, and did so (after only a little nagging from Mom to follow through). He invited friends that we didn't know (which was fine).

We provided transportation, dinner, and cake (which, besides requesting yellow cake with NOT chocolate frosting, he had surprisingly little opinion about). And we tried to be unobtrusivly present throughout the evening (not that any of these kids were trouble). I think they all had a good time. I'm pretty sure JC did, which is what really matters, after all.

I enjoyed watching my son growing up. And also the fact that I didn't have to plan the party.

A New Year

2011-01-04T16:57:00.000-05:00

Ah, January. After all the bright lights and hustle of the holidays, January can be a bit of a let down. Or a breath of fresh air. Or both. Fits with the namesake of the month, Janus, the Roman god of doorways, or looking both ways at once.

We spent the break at home, hanging out with friends both at home and at their places. There were intentions of heading into New York City to do something "cultural", or at least, "consumer", but with the snowstorm and subsequent slow cleanup, it didn't seem to be the best week for that. So we stayed home and did our best to put a dent in the cookies, candy, and other holiday goodies that somehow accumulated.

We also had a couple of school projects do (and yes, I say "we" on purpose. Many of these are impossible for the child to do by themselves). William had to do a timeline of his life, with pictures. Rachel had a rather open-ended project for Latin that ended up being a mobile/family tree of the major Roman gods and goddesses. I have pictures of the mobile and will post them later - unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the timeline. They both came out really well.

And while I don't have any specific resolutions, we are doing the usual of trying to eat more healthy foods, which also incorporates eating out less, more exercise, more sleep, etc. Results are mixed so far, but then again, it's only the 4th. We'll see.

I Suppose

2010-12-20T08:35:00.000-05:00

I suppose I should change my blog header to something more seasonal. Marching band is OVER.

I suppose I should ~~finish~~ start wrapping presents.

I suppose I should pack up (and mail) the boxes for my mother and sister and sister-in-law if they have any hope of arriving by Christmas.

I suppose I should clean up my kitchen so I have room to bake the next batch of cookies (sugar cookies for William's class by Wednesday - soy, dairy and peanut free. I think I'm going for 2 out of 3).

I suppose I should dig out my dining room, currently filled with wrapping paper scraps and shipping supplies, in the vain hope that we could have a nice dinner at the table. Or at least it won't look terrible if anyone comes over.

I suppose at the very least I should run out and get the last few presents on the list. Any ideas for husbands? Any at all?

But there's a heating vent under my desk, and the heat is on and it's wonderfully warm and cozy after the bus stop (22F and a bit of a wind), so I'm not feeling very motivated.

Mixed Blessings

2010-12-15T09:18:00.000-05:00

Well, the old dishwasher motor works, so the dishwasher works. Yay!

But it's really REALLY loud (think small jet aircraft) in an open-plan kitchen. Boo!

But I'm not washing dishes by hand. Yay!

I have no faith that this will last longer than a few months. Boo!

But I'd rather shop for a dishwasher in a few months than right before Christmas. Yay!

But the microwave is getting flaky, too (it sometimes turns on the light and fan when you close the door). Boo!

I've decided my appliances hate me. But that's ok because I'm not too fond of them at the moment. And I have a lingering feeling of "what's next?"

Not Firing on All Cylinders

2010-12-11T09:53:00.000-05:00

I was going to tell you about the craft fair (although I forgot to take pictures, so not as interesting as it might have been). But yesterday was a DAY (not even Friday the 13th!)

Started the day by taking my car in to the mechanic. The check engine light was on, and blinking, which is apparently NOT GOOD. The good news? It made it to the mechanic, they had a light enough day to actually look at it, and it turned out to be the ignition coils which were under a recall notice. One of my coils was actually cracked, so it really was firing on only 5 cylinders. The best news? Free! Because it was under the recall notice. Yay! The bad news? You really need to replace your rear brakes, at a cost of several hundred dollars. Ouch.

Showed up to help with the book fair at William's school. Sat around for 30 minutes before the mom who was authorized to handle the money showed up. Having rushed through the gym and Costco to make it on time, this was not appreciated.

The day was taking a turn for the better until we started the dishwasher after dinner. It ran about 10 minutes, then chimed the "help me!" sound and turned off. After looking up the error code, taking it partially apart to look for obstruction, and spending some time on the Internet looking for wisdom, it still doesn't work. We think it may be the motor. This would be less annoying if it wasn't already the 3rd motor in 5 years (original plus replaced twice). This is WRONG, people! 10 years, ok. Then I would expect to be doing some work. But the racks are already rusted through in spots and it's gotten progressively noisier (again). I'm ready to throw in the (dish)towel on this one and just get one that works. John wants to pull it out and put the motor that we took out this summer back into it. He says it's worth a try - fine, but I'm still going to start reading reviews and shopping around. Because even if the old motor works? It's only a matter of time.

Still Here!

2010-12-03T08:51:00.000-05:00

I (stupidly?) signed up for a booth at the Band Parents Craft Fair this year. It's tomorrow.

I signed up about 3 weeks ago.

I don't have much to sell (letterpress cards and handmade journals). I'm frantically trying to make more stuff in a week when I should have been stocking up for several months.

Can I just pretend that I have more stock underneath the table and if I run out, go home? Given my past history with craft fairs, I have more than enough for the 2 people who will actually buy something.

Your Patience Has Been Rewarded

2010-11-18T09:58:00.000-05:00

Pictures = William's 9th Birthday Party.
Theme = "How to Train Your Dragon"
Goody Bag = A copy of the book How to Train Your Dragon, by Cressida Cowell. Highly recommend for 8-10 yr. old boys and girls.

Step 1:
Make your equipment. Shields and helmets.

Step 2: Dragon Training. Dragons are tricky beasts, and fighting them takes quick reflexes. You have to be able to attack them, and defend yourself against attacks.

Step 3: Relax and enjoy the fruits of your victory.

Is it Worth Waiting?

2010-11-17T16:13:00.000-05:00

I keep putting off posting so I can download pictures, edit them, and then upload fantastic blog posts with pictures.

Um... not so much, yet.

JC threw up all night Friday night, to the point where John called the airline at 2am and booked both of them on a flight home in the morning. JC actually pulled a chest muscle from vomiting. They got home Saturday afternoon, not long before William's birthday party. JC hid in his bedroom and slept. John helped with the party, which went very well. Six guests, all boys, lots of foil and ping pong balls, and a totally awesome cake (How To Train Your Dragon theme, pictures soon, I hope).

Turns out our band missed semifinals by two places, and barely a point. Given the competition, I'm so proud of them! But since JC and 7 of his band mates spent Friday night puking, it may be just as well they didn't have to perform Saturday morning. As you might expect, the adults took it harder than the kids, and apparently the kids had a great time at the mall and then the finals Saturday evening.

They have one last performance on Friday, since the football team won again. I think that will be it for the season. Hoping they don't freeze their fingers off.

I have committed to a booth at the band parents craft fair in early December. Given how little I have to sell, I should be committed.

Pictures to follow...(eventually)

Disappointment

2010-11-12T21:53:00.000-05:00

They didn't qualify for the semifinals. They're out of the competition. :( Too many really fabulous bands with experience on the national level, and our performance today was mediocre, really. No spark, kind of flat. Probably nerves, but that's part of the challenge.

And poor JC threw up twice tonight. Could be something he ate, could be a bug, could be stress. Could be all three. I suppose that's the silver lining - he doesn't have to march tomorrow feeling sick.

Small comfort, really.

Slightly Breathless

2010-11-12T09:08:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy couple of weeks here - William's birthday party is tomorrow, John and JC are at Bands of America Grand Nationals in Indianapolis right now, I've got a big charity gala next weekend (I'm on the committee), and I bought a table to sell stuff at an upcoming craft fair in early December. There are not enough hours in the day! Oh yeah, and Thanksgiving is in two weeks and then we crash right into the Christmas season. Take a deep breath, here we go!

But I feel remiss not posting anything about Veteran's Day, so here's a great post from Suburban Correspondent about her military service. I think it's an interesting perspective on military service.

What Does It Say About Me...

2010-10-25T09:01:00.000-04:00

What does it say about me that I'm really amused that the "Knitters Without Borders" button on my blog overlaps the border of the page?

Bad Puns 'R Us, I guess.

Hurrah! Hurrah!

2010-10-24T22:10:00.000-04:00

They won! The marching band won their division and the overall competition! Another State Championship!! (I'm just a little proud of them.)

Actually, I'm a LOT proud of them. They spent yesterday, from 6:15am until 2 am traveling to and competing at another band event out of state. (Where they also did very well.) And one bunch of kids did not make it home until 6:15 this morning because their bus broke down (thankfully not my son). That's 24 full hours of marching band for those poor kids. Who got maybe 5 hours of sleep and then went back to rehearsal and then competition.

The parents in the stands decided that the band director must have given them Red Bull. It's the only rational explanation.

Hurrah for them!

Blog Redesign!

2010-10-22T10:54:00.000-04:00

Yes, it seemed the Summer theme was getting a little... out of season. And since I didn't have any good fall leaves pictures for the header, you get the marching band! It is marching band season, after all. JC is the 2nd sousaphone from the right.

Wish them (the band) luck this weekend - they have a big regional competition out of state on Saturday, and then the NJ State Band Championships are Sunday. Oh, and it happens to be Homecoming today, so they are playing a pep rally during school and of course the game tonight.

All marching band, all the time! At least for another 3 weeks.

10-10-10 on 10-10-10, part 1

2010-10-19T23:01:00.001-04:00

I've mentioned before that my stamping friends like to swap cards - specifically, cards that we make that night at a shoebox swap. Our group, however, likes to call it a 10-10-10. This name originated with an event I ran when I was a Stampin' Up demonstrator. I designed 10 cards, that were to take 10 minutes or less, and charged everyone $10 each to attend. It was fun, although way more work for me designing all the cards, and I got a lot of flak about cards that took longer than 10 minutes (hey, I tried!).

So we don't do it that way anymore - everyone designs one card. Much better. But we still call it that, and Ruth very cleverly offered to host a 10-10-10 on 10-10-10. There were 10 of us there, although we did 11 cards (Cathie couldn't attend but sent hers).

This is my card. My goal was to use a stamp set that I hadn't used before. I love these little birds, but sometimes it's hard to build a card around a small image. This technique would work with a variety of small stamps. Not very seasonal, but I liked it.

Ruth went monochromatic again, and did it very nicely. The fuzzy stuff is Mulberry paper, and it adds lovely texture. And I think this is a great use of the funky paper clip.

Nancy designed this card. It is very elegant and would make a smashing Christmas card. It's hard to see, but the deer is embossed with tinsel, so it has a lot of glitter. The gold layers are sparkly, too.

Sharon came up with this lovely, simple card. It's the sort of card that stands very well on its own, or is easy to bling up a bit. Again, a good use of an odd-shaped stamp that can be hard to build a card around.

This is Susan's card. She kept apologizing for how simple it is, but we all loved it. This is the sort of Christmas card that you can think about making for 50 people without having a nervous breakdown!

Blogger is insisting that's enough pictures for one post, so I'll break this up into 2. Stay tuned!

10-10-10 on 10-10-10, part 2

2010-10-19T23:01:00.000-04:00

Ok, if I do this right, I publish this first so part 1 is at the top of the page. Yes, I know, it's taken me years to get so sneaky. Onward to the cards!

Grace went for Halloween, a holiday I rarely make cards for, but I always love the Halloween stamps. She had us stamp wonderful spooky clouds in the upper right corner that totally don't show up in the scan. Try to imagine all that stark white with shades of grey. Totally Halloween.

Shona's card also didn't scan well. The central tree image is done as a resist, then cut into the 4 pieces and popped up on foam tape. Great in person, not so great on a scanner. The sentiment is actually stamped behind the rust layer, with a window punched and torn out to show it. Very fun.

If there's anyone who thinks outside the shoebox, it's Cathie. She couldn't come, but sent this charming bookmark - we all said, "hey, I never thought of doing something besides a card!" It's slightly out of focus because of the button. But aren't the fibers great?!

I think Janet got the award for the most oohs and aahs. The trees, grass, hills and leaves are all stamped seperately (not each individual leaf, it was a grouping and a rainbow pad). This card works for any occasion, including the bane of our existence - men's birthdays.

Sue came up with this one. She said she had to dust off her stamp pads, she hadn't used them in so long, but the card is great. More mulberry paper, behind the map image.

Last, but certainly not least, Linda also thought outside the box. This is a black and white version of a picture she took. We colorized it with distressing ink for a very very cool effect.

Where Does the Time Go??!!

2010-10-18T22:59:00.000-04:00

I have new cards, and a book, and marching band, and who knows what else to blog about - but I haven't had time to sit down and actually put a post together!

Maybe tomorrow? Or sometime?

Rachel's Lament

2010-10-04T16:37:00.000-04:00

(sung to the tune of the Toys'R'Us jingle)

I don't wanna get up
It's too dark and too cold.
It's too soon to turn the heat on, that's what I have been told.

It's 6 a.m. and much too dark,
I don't care what the weather is.

I don't wanna get up
It's too dark and too cold
Gonna stay in bed 'til the day's old.

Recovery

2010-10-04T16:27:00.000-04:00

As I may have mentioned before, my church holds a consignment sale of kids clothing and stuff twice a year. As I'm sure I've mentioned at least once, I run the sale.

The sale was this weekend.

I'm exhausted.

But it was a good sale, or at least, better than the one before. We don't know the total net, yet - we have to pay the consignors first, which involves counting all the cards. One for each item sold, and labeled with which consignor brought the item. The church keeps 30% of the sale price. We also take a small fee for advertising if you sell enough. So that counts towards the church total. And we do get some items donated so the church keeps 100% of that.

As you can see, figuring out how much we made is a little complicated. Fortunately, that's not my job. Somebody else has a complicated computer database all configured to calculate everything, so I am happy to offload.

All the consignors seemed happy at the end, and we got everything picked up, donated, cleaned up, etc.

Are we going to do it again in the spring? Don't ask me that yet, my feet still hurt.

Really?

2010-09-28T13:19:00.000-04:00

Did you know that you can go to My Kleenex Tissue and design your own tissue box?

For the low, low price of $4.99 each plus shipping.

Yes, I checked out their designs (you could make a "Happy Birthday" tissue box for someone! What kind of message does that send?), and you can even upload your own pictures and art work (I blow my nose on you?).

But considering I buy my Kleenex in bulk, on sale, ideally with a coupon as well, I don't think this is coming to my house any time soon.

(OK, in their defense, you could cut out the bottom of the box and make it refillable. But it seems like it should come that way for that price.)

Bad Sign

2010-09-24T09:09:00.000-04:00

I think it's a bad sign that we've only had two weeks of school so far - and I'm already sick to death of getting up before the sun.

My oh so helpful husband pointed out that it's just equinox - so I have about 6 more months of darkness to look forward to.

Thanks, dear.

Parenting, For The Win?

2010-09-21T09:58:00.000-04:00

Let me start with a disclaimer - the following post is not a whine, nor is it a "look at me, I'm such an awesome parent!" I'm fully aware that there are many parents facing much more daunting issues, and I'm truly grateful that the problems I encounter with my children tend to be those of privileged suburbia.

That said, last night was one for the small moral victory column.

The scenario - Monday night. As of this week, Monday includes a tuba lesson (5:25 to 6:10), and two one hour soccer practices at 6:30 and 7:00pm. Quite doable, on an average Monday, albeit with a fair amount of driving and back and forth. Dinner will not be a family affair, unless everybody wants to eat at 4:30 pm. But it's only one night a week. (There are other activities on other nights, but Monday is the big pile-up.)

This Monday, however, was not only the first soccer practice for the season for Rachel and William, but happened to be back-to-school night at the middle school. I'm a big believer in back-to-school night. Since I don't get to drop my children at the door of the classroom and get a little face time with the teacher anymore, this is my one big chance to meet their teachers. Especially at the middle school and high school. So...at least one parent will be going, at 7pm.

Enter the wrinkle - only one parent is home. John had to fly out for business yesterday afternoon. Now, as much as I've been telling the kids that I'd like my superpower to be the power to be in two places at once (with car, of course), it has yet to happen.

So, do you blow off the first practice of the season? It's only in-town soccer, the kids probably wouldn't care much either way, it wouldn't be a big deal. Except that we encourage our kids to participate in group sports to teach them responsibility to a team.

So I made the phone calls and emails and found the rides for the children, planned the low-cook dinner at home for everyone in stages (frozen pizza, but, hey, beats fast food!), got the equipment together and issued detailed instructions for who was going where and when.

And it worked. I got to the middle school early enough to park decently close (as opposed to the off-site parking and shuttle bus!), all three kids were on time to all three activities, and everyone got fed an adequate dinner. And they all got home and were safe and headed for bed by the time I came home (having a built in baby-sitter has been AWESOME). And the homework even got done and instruments practiced.

I'd call that a win. Sometimes it's the small victories that are sweet.

Antagonistic

2010-09-15T16:20:00.000-04:00

We have a large oak tree in our front yard. It provides wonderful shade in the summer that makes a noticeable difference in the temperature inside the house, and I think it looks nice, too.

But...

Autumn brings a challenge. Autumn brings...acorns. Lots of acorns. Lots and LOTS of acorns (it's really quite amazing how many). So many acorns that the yard and driveway under the tree go "crunch" with every step. And if you are standing under the tree?

Watch out.

We have all been clonked by acorns, and my day is punctuated by the "thwack" of acorns hitting the car in the driveway (or the trailer, at the moment). This year has been particularly dangerous, and there are times it almost sounds like rain, there are so many falling (a hard rain, get it?).

It doesn't quite reach the level of aggression of the Whomping Willow from Harry Potter, but it does sometimes feel as though the tree is deliberately pelting us. It's a good thing it doesn't have better aim, but it's best not to linger underneath.

Or wear a helmet.

Not Like Any Other Day

2010-09-11T19:27:00.000-04:00

September 11th has become an interesting day in our country.

It's not a holiday - while there are remembrances and ceremonies (much as Memorial Day has), there are no celebrations. No cookouts and picnics and fireworks.

And yet it's not a regular day, either. For my family, it usually coincides with the beginning of school, and all the resultant chaos that entails. It usually seems that I spend the day alternating between thinking about the history of the day, and just doing the normal stuff. And yet, when I do stop and think, it feels a little strange just being normal on this day.

I want to respect the memories of those who died. Living so near to New York City, many of those people were my neighbors - I am lucky and perhaps unusual here that I didn't personally know anyone who was killed, but I have friends who lost loved ones. Our small downtown has a memorial, and I know some of those names etched there.

I don't think I want September 11th to be a day off, a day of only remembrance. We run the risk then of it gradually morphing into a holiday, and forgetting, as with Memorial Day, just why we have the day off and the mall is having a sale. While I suppose that would mean that the terrorists haven't won (what could be more American than shopping?), it feels disrespectful. People died that day, people who were innocent victims, people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time, and also people who knowingly ran into the burning building, or stormed the cockpit to crash the plane. Is there any difference between them and the soldier that runs out into the line of fire to pull his buddy back? They were all faiths and many nationalities, rich and poor, men and women.

As a nation, we owe them a day not like any other day. Their tragedy should remind us of what the United States is really about. We may not agree with all the different ways people remember this day, but they died because we have the freedom to choose those different ways.

And however you may choose to go about your business today, take a moment and remember that it is not just a regular day. September 11th will never again be like any other day.

New Adventures

2010-09-08T21:15:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, in our end-of-summer countdown, we went with our church to a local amusement park. By "local", I mean not 6 Flags, not an hour away, and not $60 each to get in. By "with our church", I mean about 6 families from the church who met at the park and hung out with each other while the children rode and ate and otherwise competed to see who could reach nausea first. (Actually, to the best of my knowledge, no one threw up or came very close.)

This is one of those smaller, older, slightly seedy looking places that probably did a good business before the larger parks went REALLY large-scale, and now eke out a living catering mostly to birthday parties and school groups. (This one seems popular with Hasidic schools, last time we were there it was a boys school, this time, a girls school. Makes for interesting people watching.) Weeknights are usually pretty uncrowded so the kids can ride the same ride over and over if they want.

JC declined to go, as I recall, he was hanging out with a friend. John was working late. So it was Rachel, William and I. Rachel's plan was to "be the big kid" and help ride with younger kids so parents didn't have to (yay Rachel!). William's plan was to slide down the big slide (on the burlap bags). And that was it. "I don't like rides, they make my tummy feel funny." This has been the case for a couple of years now, so I didn't really expect much.

Except...

One of the little girls, when we got there, was riding the "Drop Zone" over and over (and over) again. She's about 3. William watched her for a bit, and then I think he decided that if this little peanut of a girl could do it, maybe he could to.

He's in the center seat.

It was like the floodgates opened. He rode more than half the rides, including most of the ones that make me sick, and especially the roller coaster.

This one was mellow. Peanut is in front of him.

You can just see the top of her head. William was the Big Kid on this one, she was too short to drive.

This one makes ME feel really sick. He rode it about 5 times in a row. Or more. Rachel's on the left side of the back row, William is on the far right of the same row.

Don't ask me what changed, but he was a maniac. It was like he finally conquered the fear and all that was left was fun. I was happy for him, and also glad he's grown up some.

Best part? He was tall enough to go on every single ride by himself. I didn't have to go on any.

The Storm Before the Calm

2010-09-07T17:26:00.000-04:00

Yes, I'm still here, still blogging. The last few weeks of summer ended up being a little crazy, with camping and day trips and band camp and the unexpected death of a friend (that one was hard). A little break was in order.

So it has felt somewhat stormy here, with bursts of activity and long lulls and some wild gusts too. But tomorrow is the first day of school, and while the kids' activities will start up again in earnest, and there will much juggling to get it all done, it will be organized juggling.

Tomorrow is only a half day, but there will be more than 3 hours where no one else is home, and no one else needs me for anything. I can't wait. I have a coffee date with a friend I haven't seen in ages, and not too much that HAS to be done while they're at school. After all these years of having kids in school, I'm finally learning not to overschedule the first week! I need a little time to relax too, you know.

And to impose a little routine on our days? That's a fine thing. In three months, when I'm sick of getting up before the sun, you can remind me I said that, but right now it sounds great.

Bad Knitting Karma and a Belated Birthday Wish

2010-08-10T16:39:00.000-04:00

So, I have a knitting dilemma. I have finished one lace sock, and it looks good...except that it is rather big. I knitted a swatch, I got gauge, I measured my foot, and chose the size that would give me a bit more than an inch negative ease, and, well, it's a bit big.

It fits, it just doesn't fit as snugly as you might wish a sock to fit. I'm afraid it's going to bunch up in odd ways when I wear it with shoes. And I ended up shortening both the foot and the toe from the recommended length, or it would have been even bigger! And yes, I double checked on the stockinette sole, and I was at the right gauge.

So what do I do? Do I knit the second sock the same, and have two socks too big? Do I knit the second sock smaller (maybe go down a needle size, or knit the next size down in the pattern), and risk having something that's too small, and then also have to tear out and re-knit the first sock?
I'll admit to being a bit stumped on what to do next. Suggestions?

In happier news, it was Elizabeth Zimmermann's birthday on Sunday. For the non-knitters out there, Elizabeth Zimmermann was an extremely creative designer of knitting patterns. Not just pretty stitches, but some pretty amazingly innovative ways to construct garments. Exhibit A of her creativity is the Baby Surprise Jacket.

Yes, it's an amorphous blob. I've heard this referred to as "the obligatory amoeba shot".

This is for my nephew, and no, on this one I did not knit a swatch and therefore this came out somewhat larger than planned, which I suppose for a baby beats it being smaller, eh?

(Why is it that when I check gauge, it comes out too big, and when I don't check gauge, it also comes out too big? Something's wrong with this picture.)

But, you say, it doesn't look like a baby sweater! And what's the "surprise" part of the title?

Ta dah! Fold it right, and sew up the shoulder seams, and surprise! It's a jacket! (I have yet to actually sew it up and still need to get buttons, but I'm still charmed.)

Knitting this was actually really, really fun. It's a bit of a scary pattern - it assumes some amount of knitting knowledge (not much, really), and you have to have a LOT of faith in Elizabeth, because, while you're knitting it? It looks like the amorphous blob. She actually says in her original instructions, "Work will start to look very odd indeed, but trust me and press on."

Indeed, if you follow the directions (I did watch portions of the available DVD just to clarify a couple of sections), and just trust her, you get a very charming little jacket. Well worth the effort, and truly, I found it very fun to knit. I would highly recommend it.

So, a success at Baby Surprise, and mixed on the lace socks. What do you think, same again, smaller, ??? Help me out!

So Much for Quiet

2010-08-01T19:19:00.000-04:00

Really, it was getting a little TOO quiet with Rachel and William gone. Don't know what I'm going to do when they're all off to college.

We picked them up from camp on Saturday. Sunburned, sandy, and very happy. Happy to have been at camp, and happy to be heading home. They appear to both have had fun (except for the sunburns). We've been prying out stories gradually, indulging them with junk food and soda (both were not fans of camp food), and allowing semi-unlimited video game play.

But tomorrow, ah, tomorrow it's back to a rudimentary routine. School is 6 weeks away, and time is flying by. There's still fun to be had, but it's time to inject a hint of discipline in our days.

Just a hint. It is still summer.

Lace!

2010-07-30T23:44:00.000-04:00

My first lace attempt. Just finished the leg - waiting to start the heel until tomorrow. I fixed the color as best I could (John took the picture with his cell phone), but, sadly, I really am about that pale.

The bobbin is just the excess from the long tail cast on (I either make my tail WAY too long, or just a bit too short), I just haven't cut it yet. I'm hoping I have enough yarn. I have two 50g balls of KnitPicks Essential in Grasshopper Kettle Hand-Dyed, and it seems like I'm cranking through the first ball really fast.

Pattern: Lace Rib Socks from The Little Box of Socks by Charlene Schurch and Beth Parrott. More pictures when more progress.

Letters from Camp 2010

2010-07-26T12:45:00.000-04:00

We've gotten a couple letters from Rachel and William at camp. Actually, we've gotten a couple of letters from Rachel. She's mentioned a new friend and some funny incidents at dinner, and that she hasn't liked the food much (no surprise there).

We have gotten one (1) letter from William. It says, in its entirety:

"To mom, hi. blah blah blah blah blah. from will"

Apparently John told him he should write at least a 10 word letter. So he did.

Library Love

2010-07-23T17:47:00.000-04:00

We don't use our library as much as I mean to (and yes, I do chronically incur fines for not returning things on time, but a friend described overdue fines as a donation to the library. Guess I'm doing my part).

But I do love the library, and I loved this article I came across. Libraries as the next big trend? Sweet!

Free As a Bird

2010-07-21T09:12:00.000-04:00

As I was walking back to the common area to give Rachel and William their almost-forgotten water bottles, I passed a mother dancing (yes, dancing) towards the parking lot. As I passed her, she practically sang, "I'm free for a month! Free for a month!"

You know? Much as I love my kids, I'm a bit jealous.

Flown the Coop

2010-07-18T22:08:00.000-04:00

Two of my little chicks have flown the coop. We dropped off Rachel and William for 2 weeks of camp today.

Two WEEKS.

I can't believe my youngest is going to be gone for two weeks. It's one thing to have JC gone for a couple of weeks - no offense, but he's 15. I missed him, but I didn't particularly worry about him. I had faith that he has some basic common sense, nightmares were not an issue, he'd remember to brush his teeth and maintain basic hygiene (well, he's a teenage boy. Mostly basic hygiene.). William? I am sure the counselors will have him brushing his teeth and at least walking through the shower periodically, they tend to do those things as a cabin. But his common sense is still developing, and not even a week ago he showed up in our room in the middle of the night after a nightmare. And William is still cuddly with Mom. JC, not so much.

But he was very much, "bye, see you later" when we left. No weeping with that one.

Even Rachel, who's entered the moody and sometimes oddly clingy pre-teen years, gave me an "aren't you gone yet?" when I went back to give her the water bottle she'd left in the car.

I'm quite sure William will be fine, it's just weird that he's older than I think he is. Hazard of the youngest child, I guess.

And There Was Much Rejoicing!

2010-07-16T10:16:00.000-04:00

I unplugged the dryer, plugged it back in, still nothing.
I unplugged the dryer, shimmy-ed it out a bit, tried to get the front panel off (felt like it should come right off, but it didn't), moved it out some more and looked at the back to see if that was easier (not), shimmy-ed it back into place, plugged it back in...

It worked! I'm thinking there's a loose wire or connector (ALWAYS check for loose connectors first, that's John's first rule). But I don't really care, it's working now and I've got the important loads done for camp.

And JC's home, just fine. All my chicks safe in the nest.

For now.

One Thing After Another

2010-07-15T15:42:00.000-04:00

Warning - There may be a bit of "woe is me" in this post. Nothing serious, just accumulating.

The dryer has died. I'm hoping John's right and it's just a belt, but he's diagnosing from work and I haven't dragged myself back down there to open it up and check. We're in the middle of washing all of Rachel and William's clothes so they can pack for camp, and I was a bit behind on laundry from the weekend camping, so this is a serious crimp in our packing.

We're packing for camp. Everything - EVERYTHING - needs to have their name on it. Some things are labeled from last year, but the new underwear and socks we bought yesterday (to make it through 14 days of camp) are not, and they are in the washer (see above). Along with most of the shorts they both own, which are a size larger than last year. I'm starting to see an all-nighter with the laundry marker in my future, not helped by the fact that I am royally procrastinating this task. Because I love it so much, you know!

We did get the brakes on the Suburban fixed. Yay, credit cards? Pile this expense on top of vacation bills and hopefully NOT new appliances. Budget, smudget. Actually, the real killer is the property tax bill due beginning of August. We just LOVE New Jersey!

And there's a couple of other things going on, just adding a little ~~joy~~ stress to my day.

On the bright side? JC is on the plane, winging his way to Houston and thence Newark, right now. I can't wait to hear all about his adventures with Grandma. Yes, we've talked on the phone -he's much more voluble in person. Just keeping my fingers crossed that his connection is smooth.

All right. Time to go dissect a dryer.

Crisis Averted

2010-07-05T12:22:00.000-04:00

As you may have gathered from the extended silence, we have been away for a while. The day after school let out, we left for Idaho to celebrate my mother's birthday. All my siblings and their families came, we had a great time and a lot of fun. The trip deserves its own post.

This is about what DIDN'T happen. You see, we flew home Wednesday with the intention of turning right around and going camping with friends over the 4th of July weekend. Thursday, we got the trailer out of storage, de-winterized, bought groceries, and did laundry. Friday morning, we packed the food and linens. John took our truck out to get the oil changed, I stayed home with the kids and was about to get clothes packed.

John called. The Suburban had lost all brakes. After I stopped hyperventilating, he went on to explain that after the oil change, he'd gotten in to start it in the parking lot, and the brake pedal went clear to the floor. And he got out and saw that the truck had discharged all of its brake fluid in a puddle in the parking lot.

Um. That's not right. He limped it slowly to a Chevy dealer that was just down the road (thank goodness!), and after a few ~~nasty~~ carefully chosen words ("can you get me the number of a towing company so I can take my truck to a mechanic who cares?), got them to actually take a look at it that day. Turns out, one of the brake lines had rusted out, and the rest were in the process. Changing one probably would break another, etc. No, it was too big a job to fix by this afternoon or even the next morning.

We didn't go camping this weekend.

We also didn't cause a massive pile-up or any fatalities by losing our brakes on the road while towing the trailer. Of course, that meant we didn't make the evening news.

Strangely, I'm ok with that.

And They Wonder Why Americans Don't Watch the World Cup?

2010-06-18T13:24:00.000-04:00

It's Over

2010-06-15T08:48:00.000-04:00

Spring 2010 Soccer season is officially over. There was supposed to be a tournament next weekend, with each team playing three short round-robin games "for fun." But the notice came late, there was an entry fee (we play town "rec" soccer, the league for those who don't care much), and not enough teams signed up. They had Rachel's 6th grade team playing 4th graders, so we pulled out. They had William's 2nd grade team playing 2nd grade boys, 3rd grade boys, and 4th grade girls. ??? His team was going to play, but last night the whole thing got cancelled. Too many teams unhappy with the format, I think.

Can't say as I'm disappointed. This means that for the first Saturday since early April, we have NO soccer games to attend. We can legitmately sleep in.

Ahhhh.....

Of course, we still have Rachel's 2nd dance recital. But that's not until 6:30pm. I think I can be up by then.

The Song in My Heart

2010-06-08T11:15:00.000-04:00

Printed on a VanderCooke proofing press. Hand-carved image, Font is Kaufmann 30pt. Hand-mixed ink color (from what was around).

Can you find the error?

There Is No Remedy for Love But to Love More

2010-06-04T18:30:00.000-04:00

That's the Thoreau quote that our friends used on their wedding invitation. Very sweet, eh?

So, as promised, pictures! Alas, I did not take "before" pictures, but I will try and explain all the pieces.

I tried to take a picture of it hanging, but, you know, it moves. The pink bird on the tag is a punch-out from the save-the-date card. It was stuck on a cool sepia-toned picture of the old mill that was the venue - but I could NOT figure out how to include it. So I peeled off the bird and used that.

I made a memento box for them as well, from a Club Scrap kit I've had hanging around for ages. The paper didn't match their theme at all, but it had that same vintage-y feel to me. I made the card to match the box, it says "Love is the master key that unlocks the gates of happiness" on the inside. The couple's initials are on the spine of the box, same paisley paper as the card. Cut out with my Wishblade.

So I put the mobile in the box and laid the card on top. I debated wrapping the whole thing, but was overruled by husband and daughter. I did put it in a plain white gift bag to make it easier to carry.

I sort of wish I had not left it in the bag - it looked very plain on the gifts table. However, it was apparently a big hit with the couple. She recognized that everything was from their invitation (except for the wire!) and really loved it.

Yay!

I have to say, as craft projects go, assembling and covering the box was WAY harder than assembling the mobile. The mobile was a little finicky - after you tie everything together, you just slide the strings to the points where everything balances. Then add a drop of glue on each knot. But it wasn't hard. When we're talking projects, the part I find hard is content (and little tiny things you have to manipulate are always frustrating). But I don't really think of myself as an "artist" and so things I write or draw or collage always feel a little pretentious. I'm working on it.

However, I've picked up a new art form. You'll have to wait until the pieces dry, though. :)

Tuesday Update

2010-06-01T09:23:00.000-04:00

I will upload the pictures of the wedding present as soon as I figure out where John put my camera. We brought it to the wedding, he had it in his pocket (since, you know, men's clothes actually HAVE pockets), and I don't know where it got to.

We had a lovely time, the weather was lovely for an outdoor wedding, and the whole event was very fun. I shouldn't have worried about what to wear so much - the dress ran the gamut from fairly casual sundresses to backless halter mini dress with 4 inch heels. And everything in between. My dress was comfortable enough (a ~~little~~ lot warm in the sun) and I actually ditched my stockings half-way through the cocktail hour. I wore flats and was glad of it - the ground was slightly damp from rain a day or two ago, and all the women in spike heels were sinking in.

The event was at a historic mill (state park) right on the Delaware and Raritan Canal, so we were treated to kids jumping off the bridge to go swimming and lots of bicyclists passing by. Ceremony was non-religious, outdoors in a grassy area next to the canal. (They wrote their own vows, so sweet!) Cocktail hour was in the basement of the mill (and just outside), with lovely appetizers that just kept coming (prosciutto on toast with some cheesy stuff and balsamic vinegar was a fave). Dinner was outside in a larger grassy area with an excellent band playing quiet music, and also very good (at least, the fish I had was excellent, John said his steak was a little overdone). Then dancing, inside the Mill, to the same excellent band + the rest of their members. If you ever need a band for an event nearish Philadelphia, or see them playing at a local club, I highly recommend The Philadelphia Funk Authority. They were incredible.

I will admit to being a little sore and tired on Sunday (we weren't up THAT late, but haven't been out dancing in, oh, say, forever?). Ok, ok, I fell asleep on the couch in the early afternoon. But we had a really good time. And now, it's Monday equivalent again. And I'm procrastinating going to the gym (which I really need given the vast quantity of good food I consumed at the wedding). Onward!

Fail Whale

2010-05-26T20:28:00.000-04:00

Just saw the infamous "fail whale" on Twitter for the first time. I know, so lame to be excited, but I am.

I was GOING to tweet that John's car failed on the way home from roller hockey (so maybe the fail whale is more appropriate than I thought...). He and JC caught a ride home with another hockey parent, and now he has called AAA and gone back to meet the tow truck. With his dinner in a Tupperware, poor guy.

So with this, whatever it may be, and John going out and buying a suit (and a 2nd one for $100, and some shirts and ties and a pair of shoes (I should NOT let him go shopping by himself)), and the money I spent on a dress and necklace for the wedding we're going to this weekend, not to mention the gift...

I think the budget is shot for this month. Does this mean I can just give up and stop cooking at home and talking myself out of buying things (not that I'm good at that anyway)? I keep hearing about how Americans take on too much credit card debt and spend more than they make. Can I just be like everyone else?

Don't yell at me, of course I know better. I'm just tired of turning the A/C up to 80 and sweating today. And cooking, somehow cooking has become a real chore instead of enjoyable. Doesn't help that it was 92 degrees today and I didn't have anything in fridge or freezer that I could grill.

Oh, and I am still making something for the happy couple. We bought them a gift, but I am also using parts of their "save the date" card and their wedding invitation to make a mobile. A little different, I know, but when I pulled out the invitation to contemplate using part of it for a book, I had forgotten that the illustration on it was an old-fashioned hot air balloon. (It was a funky, cool invitation, I wish I had thought to scan it before I cut it up, to share with you.) That said "flying things" to me, and with all the pieces of the cards it seemed perfect for a mobile. I promise I will take a picture when it's done (I'm close).

And I've discovered yet another obsession. Carving my own stamps. It is ADDICTIVE, I tell you. Yet another thing to spend money on, though. But there always is, right?

What to do, what to do...

2010-05-17T19:57:00.000-04:00

No, no moral dilemmas here. Just that we have a wedding to go to in 2 weeks. The daughter of a long-time friend of John's from work. The parents (our friends) are delightful, interesting people. The daughter we have only met once, but she and her fiance seem delightful and interesting, too. The sort of people that make ordering something from their registry feel like a cop-out.

Not that I have anything against getting them something useful, but I'd like to MAKE them something, too. I'm thinking about a mixed media piece (also known as collage), with a love/marriage theme. Or a little book with the same idea. Feels a little pretentious to give them art they should hang up, a book they can choose to display or tuck away if they don't care for it. But... I'm torn.

Suggestions?

Fail! (Kitchen Edition)

2010-05-14T08:59:00.000-04:00

I made Macaroni and Cheese last night from my new Alton Brown cookbook that I got for Mother's Day. Or rather, I tried to make macaroni and cheese.

I followed the recipe, really I did - even buying whole milk because that was specified. But somewhere during cooking the sauce "broke" and we ended up with noodles and a grainy, nasty-ish sauce. Edible, but not good eats. I think I must have overcooked the cheese sauce during the thickening phase. My stove burners run hot, and "Joy of Cooking" says to cook a bechamel sauce slowly over low heat. Alton said "medium", and I over-browned the roux (although I don't think that was the main problem) and probably overheated the milk. I think I tempered the egg correctly, the sauce seemed ok after that point. But it was NOT cheesy gooey goodness, although the panko breadcrumbs on top were a big win.

Sigh. At least the dinner we cooked for John for his birthday the night before came out well. He requested a home cooked meal, and suggested the kids should help. So Rachel made the cake (from a mix, but she did well), JC made the potatoes (Crash Hot Potatoes from the Pioneer Woman, yummy!) and helped grill the steak, and William helped make biscuits from Alton's cookbook. Those were a big win, by the way, because even with his "help", which I'm SURE made for more working of the dough than the ideal, they came out tender and yummy. And I made my first ganache (I know, what took me so long?), which was fun although really really rich on the cake. Easy enough, and made us feel fancy (way faster than frosting, I'll say).

So it's a mixed bag, but I still love Alton. Surprisingly, the book did not include any warnings or fixes about the cheese sauce breaking, but I'm betting if I could watch the episode, there would be some little comment that would make the difference. John LOVES baked macaroni and cheese, so any help would be appreciated!

Sweater Quest by Adrienne Martini

2010-05-11T22:03:00.000-04:00

I went to the bookstore to buy something for John's birthday, and came home with TWO books for me. (Yes, yes, and something for him)

I didn't open the book until sometime just before 3pm. I finished it about half an hour ago, and that includes supervising homework, making dinner, a band parent's organization meeting, and MULTIPLE interruptions from my (beloved) annoying children. Can't they see that I'm reading?

I know I'm a fast reader, but it really is a quick book, and pretty easy to pick up and put down. And I enjoyed it thoroughly. She's a mom, a knitter, a writer, and a college professor. She likes many of the same things I do (NPR! Terry Pratchett! The Yarn Harlot!) and is clearly about the same age I am, so I identified with almost everything in the book. Except the Type A personality thing. Adreienne challenges herself to knit an insanely complicated Fair Isle sweater - and finish it in a year. The last bit is the really hard part.

The book is not just about knitting, though, she goes a lot into the WHY of knitting. Why handknit something that you could buy for much cheaper with less effort? While she doesn't pretend to answer that question once and for all, I thoroughly enjoyed the journey she goes on to explore answers.

Good book. Probably even for non-knitters (she translates).

Yay JC!

2010-05-11T08:44:00.000-04:00

JC made Wind Ensemble! That's an honors-level class at his high school, by audition only. You're required to take private lessons (which he already is), try out for region band (which he did last year, but didn't make it), and be at school ready to play by 7:10am. Grooooaaaaannn...

He won't get his driver's license until 17.

But we're very very proud of him.

Green Things and Hallucinations

2010-05-02T13:57:00.000-04:00

When I was in High School, my friends and I thought it was funny to greet each other that way. But as we are in the season of green things, it seemed appropriate.

We have started Spring Sports season here. Practices, games, lessons, it's all fitting into the calendar reasonably well, although there's a lot of driving going on. And it means that our formerly quiet (for the most part) evenings are over as of now. But that's ok. The kids are enjoying their sports, and so far, all teams are performing well.

But it also means I spend a lot of time waiting for game/practice/lesson to finish, and as I'm too cheap to spring for internet access for my phone, my computer time is more limited than before.

Some might say that's a good thing...

Greeting and Salutations to you and yours. Happy Spring!

I Think I Might Have a B-

2010-04-14T22:01:00.000-04:00

I think I get mixed grades on parenting this evening. One the one hand, I took them out to dinner, I let them have dessert, and I didn't make the two older ones practice their instruments (and I never actually checked the youngest's homework).

On the other hand, we spent 45 minutes or more all curled up on the sofa listening to classical music. It started with a discussion about the marching band show for next year, which is all Aaron Copeland music. That led to "who's Aaron Copland" from Rachel, so we had to actually turn on the CD player, listen, and then that led to an exploration of neighboring CD's (we have one of those big changer things), including several Copeland pieces, Grofe's "Grand Canyon Suite", and Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf," which William and I listened to all of. And after they had all wandered off, I put on Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons", which closed up the evening quite nicely.

I think it rather balances out, don't you?

Lego Mania

2010-04-12T23:17:00.000-04:00

Hey, look! The Legos we saw at the Philadelphia Zoo were just in the process of being installed. We only saw the polar bear and the gorilla picture. Apparently there's many more now.
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/04/lego-artisan-creates-endangered-species-for-zoo.php

Tied Up in Knots

2010-04-12T09:11:00.000-04:00

The church consignment sale is Saturday. I have a volunteer coordinator who is scheduling everybody and (I think) has it all under control.

The usual suspects got the racks to the church yesterday, and put the signs out.

We don't have as many consignors as I would like, by definition that limits the amount of money we can make but there's not a lot I can do about that at this point.

Our advertising volunteer has been ON it, and while we probably never have enough flyers out, we have more than last time. And we have 2 new signs out, so better advertising than usual. I spruced up the big sign for the front of the church and got it out on time yesterday. I have 6 real-estate type signs that I'm supposed to repaint this week and we'll put them out Friday night/Saturday morning.

And my stomach is all tied up in knots and I have a feeling of dread and soul-sucking fear that's making it hard for me to get anything done. There isn't any real reason for it, and certainly doing stuff this week would be more useful than being paralyzed, but it's like I'm dragging myself through molasses. What if we don't have enough consignors? What if we can't get set up in time before the consignors arrive? What if nobody comes to shop the sale? What if we can't get rid of the leftovers?

I know, I know, deep breath and get back to work. Remind myself that it's not just about the money, we also perform a ministry to poor families in the area both through an opportunity to shop and donations afterwards. But, oh, would I like to make a BIG slug of money for the church!