Who Is This for, Really?

We get to go to Disney World very soon! I am so excited. We will celebrate Luci's birthday a few days early, and wow, she is getting the Princess treatment!

We've got an appointment at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for nails, makeup and hair...A birthday lunch at Crystal Palace with Winnie the Pooh and friends...Breakfast with the Princesses in the Norway Pavillion at Epcot...

I am so excited, probably more so that Luci. I got off the phone this morning with our Disney helpers at Disney Vacation Club and jumped for joy at getting the birthday lunch figured out.

(If you look into Disney Vacation Club, tell them we sent you, we'll both get a reward!)

Mickey picture from here.

It Must Be the Global Warming...

Boise gets earliest snow on record

This was a headline in my parents' newspaper on Saturday. Here's a picture from the paper, The Idaho Statesman. They got 1.7 inches of snow on Friday! No big deal to them, but that's enough to shut down schools and churches around here.

Must be something about Boise...on my niece's birthday in June of this year, they had the latest snowfall on record! Wow, I wish we could have some of that cool air. I really miss the cold weather.

Things I've Learned Since Moving to Alabama

Possums sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air.

There are 5,000 types of snakes on earth and 4,998 live in Alabama .

There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,0 00 live in Alabama, plus a couple no one's seen before.

If it grows, it sticks; if it crawls, it bites.

Onced and Twiced are words.

It is not a shopping cart; it is a buggy.

People actually grow and eat okra.

'Fixinto' is one word.

There is no such thing as 'lunch.' There is only dinner and then supper.

Iced tea is appropriate for all meals and you start drinking it when you're two. We do like a little tea with our sugar!

Backwards and forwards means 'I know everything about you.'

DJeet is actually a phrase meaning 'Did you eat?'

You don't have to wear a watch because it doesn't matter what time it is. You work until you're done or it's too dark to see.

You don't PUSH buttons, you MASH them.

You measure distance in minutes.

You'll probably have to switch from 'heat' to 'A/C' in the same day.

'Fix' is a verb. Example: 'I'm fixing to go to the store.'

All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit, vegetable, grain, insect or animal.

You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.

You carry jumper cables in your car . . . for your OWN car.

There are only four spices: salt, pepper, Tabasco and ketchup.

The local papers cover national and international news on one page, but require 6 pages for local gossip and sports.

The first day of deer season is a national holiday.

100 degrees Fahrenheit is 'a little warm.'

We have four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, still Summer and Christmas.

Going to Wal-mart is a favorite past time known as 'goin' Wal-martin' or off to 'Wally World.'

A cool snap (below 70 degrees) is good pinto-bean weather.

A carbonated soft drink isn't a soda, cola or pop. . . it's a Coke, regardless of brand or flavor. Example: 'What kinda coke you want?'

Fried catfish is the other white meat.

We don't need no stinking driver's ed . . . if our mama says we can drive, we can drive.

Just some pics

Playing in the leaves Tuesday night. I think this was the first time ever that Luci has played in a pile of leaves. There weren't many, but John managed to rake a nice little pile for her. War Eagle!

I Thought Someone Broke In

It's 1 am, and strange noises woke me up. Someone was in the basement--or so it seemed. I was scared! The alarm was not on, the first time ever we've gone to sleep without it being on. A burglar with good timing!

I turned on the alarm...John was fast asleep through it. At least, he looked like he was asleep. Turns out this morning he said he wasn't asleep, why didn't I tell him about the noises? Because he'd get up and check and it would be nothing (it always is).

There was a funny smell--not a bad smell, but nothing I could figure out. I went to Bryan's room to see if it was just him walking around the house, but he was fast asleep, too.

I sat on the couch with Luci, scared stiff, with the telephone right next to me.

This morning, Bryan admits to being awake when I went into his room--he was just playing 'possum. Turns out he found a frozen pizza and cooked it. No wonder I thought the "burglar" was an Italian.

I told Bryan that next time, he'd better wake up and talk to me.

Halloween Treats

Here are two items I found at our Walmart store that have no artificials in them--they are perfect for Feingold Families, who want to give treats to little spooks. I also have a bunch of non-food items from Oriental Trading.com to hand out.

Deploying Again?

This week John got word that he got "Involuntarily Deployed." That means he didn't volunteer for it. You can volunteer and have a tiny bit of control over deploying time. Almost all of his engineer group have been deployed this fall (they are being pulled out of this group to join bigger units). One got word on a Monday and was deployed by Friday. It took about 2 hours to get into John's work email from home and find out just when his deployment is. I even offered to drive John (who was dog-tired) back to work to get into his email there! Finally we had the date: not until January 10. John's retirement date from the Army Reserves is June 2, so either he'll only be deployed about 5 1/2 months or they'll decide to deploy someone else all together. There is an outside chance to keep him for the entire 12 month deployment, but that is extremely unlikely.

5 1/2 months sounds really easy to those of us here at home. We've done a 6-month and a 12-month deployment.


Of course, John's safety is in my mind foremost. But these other things ran through my mind in the 2 minutes following John's phone call:

• JT will get his gerbil (the indoor pet promised if Daddy gets a 2 month or longer trip)
  
  
• The boys need to take their cell phones to Disney World in 2 weeks so they can go on scary rides without having to spend the whole time in line getting Princess autographs with Luci
  
  
• Bryan can get his license and drive Dad's truck while he's gone (Bryan's 16, but hasn't finished his driver's ed materials)
  
  
• I can sleep in the big bed, not in Luci's little bed--still having major sleep/abandonment issues
  
  
• Luci will be completely potty-trained when John gets back
  
  
• No birthdays missed this time!
  
  
• Another Christmas missed-this would be #3 (this was before we knew the Jan 10 date)
  
  
• I'll finally get all the ironing caught up (most of it is John's work shirts)
  
  
• JT's gerbil will have to wait until after Thanksgiving, when we go see John's folks for a couple of days
  
  
• Thought of who I could call at church to give me a "kid-break" once in a while
  
  
• There will be some extra cash to let the boys do all the teen stuff at church--doing everything is just out of the question now
  

It is kind of funny, because I wasn't panicking. We've done this before and know that it just happens. It's a necessary thing. (Now, please don't hit me with politics.)

Something worth fighting for:

Friday at the Park

Renee from DaySpring Academy set up a park day for this morning. It was nice to meet someone else from DaySpring--she's the first mom from there that I've met! She and her kids left for home before I got any photos of her children--two very nice kids about the same age as Bryan and JT.

I did manage to snap my own family. John was in town, so we were lucky and had lunch with him.

Riding a dinosaur with Luci.

Discussing a video game with Bryan. JT flying high.
All three Musketeers.

I love this one, I'm not sure why.
Can you guess? This is JT's gorgeous hair.
A beetle. If you know the type of beetle this is, please let me know. The closest thing I could find is one from Madagascar...I kind of figure it didn't migrate that far.

Grammar, as Learned by a Three Year Old

Luci: I love you!

Mama: I love you, too!

Luci: I love you most.

Mama: I love you most, too.

Luci: I love you most-er!

Grands' Birthdays

John got to celebrate birthdays with the Grands this summer. Sophia is 4, Sara is 1 1/2 and Maggie is 4, too, and Haley is almost 2.


I'm sorry these photos are late...I just got them from John. Also, Audrey--these are what your Dad gave me, I'm sorry they are old photos. At least they show how cute your girls are. :)

When the Chores Don't Get Done....

Bryan's chore for Tuesday is doing his laundry. He was out of pants, so he came to school in this! How funny. And then, Luci and JT wanted to get in on the act. Luci's Batman suit is one I made for Bryan eons ago.

Watch for Luci

If you have a little one who watches Sprout TV (channel 295 on DirecTV), watch for Luci's picture! And send in a photo of your little one in a costume--they are having a contest and showing a "Special Sproutlet" every day in October between 11:30 and noon, ET.

Sprout 's Sprouterrific Costume Contest here.

(You don't have to tell them that this picture of Luci is from last Christmas Day!)

I Thought We Had Made Such Progress...

and then today, John took the kids to town so I could have some time to myself. They had Luci's swim lesson at the YMCA, lunch, then perhaps a visit to the park. I left the house when they did, and told the kids I was going to get groceries and come back before they got home. Luci walked away from me, so sad, and then came back to me...she was worried that I would not come back home to her.

I can't remember ever seeing her this upset with me.

Truly a heart-breaking little face.

QotD--Show Us Your Favorite Person in Uniform

My favorite picture from John's travels with the military. Kabul, Afghanistan. John and his group of engineers aided an orphanage. Here's a little man getting a toy from this kind soldier.

I'm Gonna Blog All I Can Now, Because....

Father of the internet: 'web is running out of addresses'

Some details: First of all, Al Gore is not the "Father of the Internet"--it's this guy, Vint Cerf. Here's what he says:

The world is about to run out of the internet addresses that allow computers to identify each other and communicate, the man who invented the system has told The Times.

Vint Cerf, the “father of the internet” and one of the world’s leading computer scientists, said that businesses and consumers needed to act now to switch to the next generation of net addresses. Unless preparations were made now, he said, some computers might not be able to go online and the connectivity of the internet might be damaged. . . .

It is estimated that IPv4 addresses, each of which is a series of 32 binary digits, will run out in 2010 and possibly as early as next year.

A new system, called IPv6, has been ready for implementation for more than a decade.

Under IPv6, each address has 128 bits and so provides 340 trillion, trillion, trillion different addresses - that is 340,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. It is assumed that this will meet humanity’s needs for decades to come.

Monday at Starbucks!

Teachers (including homeschool teachers!) can get a free cup of Pike Place Roast from Starbucks on Monday, Sept 29.

I wish we had a Starbucks in town! Find a Starbucks near you by clicking here.

Here's the link and post from Homeschool Legal Defense's website.

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Starbucks Offers Free Coffee for Homeschool Parents

This coming Monday, September 29, homeschool parents will be able to pick up a complimentary tall size (12 fl. oz.) cup of Pike Place Roast from Starbucks.

This promotion is part of Starbucks “Great Start for Great Teachers” promotion, and is now open to all teachers.

HSLDA intervened when we were alerted that homeschool parents were not included in the promotion.

We are pleased that Starbucks is recognizing the contribution of homeschool parents by extending their program to us.

In order to pick up your free cup of Pike Place Roast you will need to present evidence that you are a homeschooler.

Any one item on the following list should be accepted by Starbucks:

• Home School Legal Defense Association membership card.
• Membership card from a state homeschooling organization.
• Notification from a school district or state government recognizing compliance with compulsory attendance.
• Paperwork submitted showing intent to establish a homeschool program.
• Paperwork showing the establishment of a private school.

If you don’t have one of the items on this list be creative and try to provide other proof of homeschooling.

Please note: the final decision about whether to accept proof of homeschooling resides with Starbucks.

We hope you choose to take advantage of this offer.

I Don't Miss This....

Raking and burning leaves! It was such an annual chore, taking up much of October and November. And hoping that, as they burned, only the leaves would vanish and not the woods adjacent, nor the house.

We have woods on one side of us here, and two trees in the front and two trees in the back. But somehow they don't make a problem for us. This is our Camelot!

Arthur:

It's true! It's true! The crown has made it clear.

The climate must be perfect all the year.

A law was made a distant moon ago here:

July and August cannot be too hot.

And there's a legal limit to the snow here

In Camelot.

The winter is forbidden till December

And exits March the second on the dot.

By order, summer lingers through September

In Camelot.

Guinevere:
And I suppose the leaves fall into neat little piles?

Arthur:
The wind whisks them away all together!

Camelot! Camelot!

I know it sounds a bit bizarre,

But in Camelot, Camelot

That's how conditions are.

The rain may never fall till after sundown.

By eight, the morning fog must disappear.

In short, there's simply not

A more congenial spot

For happily-ever-aftering than here

In Camelot!

Shoes...Luci Has More Pairs than I Do

What is it about boys and shoes? I sent Luci to church with John and the boys last Wednesday while I stayed home, babysitting a migraine. Luci was fully dressed when she left. On the way home from anywhere, Luci often shucks her shoes and socks off in the van...so when I couldn't find her tennis shoes late this week, I assumed they were under something in the van. Moved everything, still couldn't find them. I get to Sunday school today with Luci, and there are her shoes! Sitting out in the hall, waiting for me to pick them up.



So, why didn't John, Bryan or JT notice the child was without shoes when they picked her up, and took her out to the car? I asked John,

"Would you notice if I didn't wear shoes?"

"Of course!"

"Then why didn't you notice Luci's bare feet?"

"Her feet are way down there!"

"My feet are right next to the floor, just like Luci's!"

"You're lucky we remembered to bring her home."

I think that last line was a joke. I hope. Now I want to know where her cute pink socks ended up--they are still missing!

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Just wanted to include this picture that Luci drew Saturday. It is a self-portrait. I thought the inclusion of teeth was pretty cute, since she's never put teeth in a picture. It struck me that there is no outline of the face (she has always drawn a circle to hold the eyes and mouth), and today there is a hairbow (which she never wears). Bryan thought her neck looked weird but I told him that part was her legs. You try it. Look down at your neck--you don't see your neck, but you can see your legs! Makes perfect sense. That class of Dr. Doran's at Harding came in handy yesterday!

Kalyn is Three!

Well, she will be on Sept 22. Here are pictures from her oh-so-fun party!

The Birthday Girl Kalyn and her daddy Greg
Waiting to pull the Pinata strings
Hugging goodbye got a little out of hand
Luci not helping Kalyn open her presents this year

Question of the Day

Vox blogs asked this question today: What is the best news you have ever received?

my answer:

The best news ever was finding out who Luci is. We got word of Luci on my birthday! The very best birthday I've ever, ever had. I can't imagine anything topping this news!

Our first pictures of Luci: