Ginkyu

Rosalie stands far below the corner cupboard, lifts her arms up pleadingly and begs, "Ginkyu! Ginkyu!"
"Rosalie," I say, "they're not called 'Thank you.' They're called 'candy corn.'"
"Ginkyu! GINKYUUU!" she repeats, near desperation.
"Oh, okay. You can have three."
I hand them over.
She is SO grateful.
With a break in her voice that sounds like a chuckle she says again, and means it, "Ginkyu-u."
And walks off with her candy filled hands tucked under her chin and a smile of pure satisfaction on her face.

I'll never get her trained.

(She's had ME trained for too long now.)

winters in my childhood

We played in the snow as the winter twilight darkened from palest to deepest blue.
It felt as if the sky gathered down around the glow of our house lights, drawing us in toward warmth, noise, family.
But we stayed in the snow and the silence
just holding the moment
before going home.

Things I have done or left undone

Copy the list and highlight the ones that are true about you.

1. Started your own blog--my sister Kate started it for me.
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band--sixth grade concert band--clarinet
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland--but not with my kids, yet
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a Praying Mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped--thrill output didn’t outweigh fear input
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21.Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked--In Ireland, their transportation system was on strike
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse--of the moon
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted--see profile portrait
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in movie
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason.
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check--Bank’s fault=my really bad day
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy--for my kids to destroy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book--yet
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (we raised chickens. I watched and helped)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake--flood year = no floating =bummer
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Talked your way out of a ticket

That Low Golden Light

Everything looks beautiful at sunset.

My Favorite Age

So I really think that the most adorable age for kids starts right around a year and a half. For my kids, that's when their personalities really start to show. It's also when they finally move past the single words at random stage to the actual communication stage. This is the first time that I've actually felt a little sad at the speed with which my baby is reaching each new stage.
Just a few days ago Rosalie said her first sentence. It was "I want my binkie." It was slurred and sounded almost accidental, but she was reaching for her binkie at the time, so it was for real.



And today she came to find me just to tell me "Ginkie!" Which meant she was stinky. That's a good thing to know.

Have you ever had a one-year-old put their little moist hands on either side of your face and pat you repeatedly? Or be so glad to see you they plastered themselves to your front while repeating your name over and over? (Yes, "Mommy" is my name.) And then my cheeks are sticky and my front has more than baby plastered on it, but it's still my favorite age.

A bone to pick at the Love Feast

Okay, so Obama will be our next president. Unlike many of you, that doesn't fill me with pessimism or optimism. I am neither sure that he will ruin the country nor that he will save it.
And I thought he gave a very nice acceptance speech. There were just a couple of things he said that made me go "huh?"
The one I will mention is this: He said we were facing the worst financial crisis of the century. Now, either he means this century, as in the year 2000 onward, or he is saying we are worse off now than we were in the Great Depression. Um, maybe I am completely oblivious here, but I don't think so.
Are all of you out there really suffering that badly? If you are than I can understand why his platform of change is so very attractive. But really, this seems more like panic-mongering to me than fact.
I do believe that Mr. Obama has the best motives and that he really feels he will be helping us all by instituting whatever changes he can. But it all puts me in mind of the story "The Giving Tree."
--Yes, my child, you got yourself in a terrible fix with your greedy speculation and your desire to have it all. So now take my branches. Take my apples. Take everything I have to give you. That's what I'm here for. And don't worry about personal responsibility. There are no consequences because I love you. I will bail you out. I may be left a limbless stump in the end, but I will still give everything I have until there is nothing left and we are both old and fruitless.--

Oops, that sounds a lot like pessimism.

In fairness to Mr. Obama, I don't think this is his intention at all. But I think a lot of people in this country are expecting it to be.

Halloween Costumes

Anika has been most anxious for me to post about our Halloween costumes. Probably because she looked so gorgeous in hers. Here is Ani as a Rani (queen of India.)
Lissa went as a Vampire. And I was supposed to do some makeup--pale face, trickle of blood--but I never did. Oh, well.Anderson is a bat. You'd think we were trying to get rid of him by dressing him in all black to go trick-or-treating on Halloween night. But this was his costume of choice and he wore it for three days straight. Plus he had a hat with ears.

Meredith insisted on being this pink cat that is a size too small for her. But hey, she was happy, and I didn't have to do a thing except snap her up.
I made the first part of Rosalie's spider costume for Meredith to be a witch in three years ago. This time I added the extra legs and made a little hat with six googly eyes on it. She wore the hat for about 20 seconds and refused to put it on ever again.
I wore one yard of tulle draped around my shoulders and said I was a cobweb. Rosalie was my prop.

Autumn Wind

Lissa wrote this song called Autumn Wind for the Reflections competition for her school. She is very gifted at making up songs. Now if we could only get her spend as much time practicing her recital pieces as she does making stuff up :)