The Long and Short

Ani was growing her hair for two reasons: to see if she could get her hair as long as her friend Lindsey's, and to donate it to Locks of Love (minimum of 10 inches-) She had reached both goals when spring arrived, and suddenly everyone wanted short hair.


Lissa didn't have 10 inches of hair to cut off, but I learned that they will take shorter lengths of hair and sell them to offset the costs of making their wigs for kids.

I hope red hair sells for a lot, because it breaks my heart to chop it.



I also cut Anderson's and Casey's hair.

"I want my freakin' awesome hair back, Mom. Why'd you have to cut it?"


And Handsome Man is still handsome.

Meredith cut her own hair not long ago--the same haircut she gave herself last year. (I give her a bob, then she cuts the sides off when I'm not looking.) I guess that's how she likes it.

Mission Impossible

Rosalie likes to take off vent covers and look down into the creepy depths.
Yesterday, she dropped in a 2 inch jingle bell. It rolled just like a ball about three feet down the gentle incline. We thought it was gone for good.

And that's when Gadget Man appeared!

Using only some tape, a vacuum attachment, a magnet from a Relief Society fridge decoration, two flashlights, a tape measure, and a webcam, he constructed a retrieval system the likes of which you have never seen before!

The remote image on the laptop screen showed every last detail of his triumph. The bell surrendered-- scooting toward the magnet before its position could be taken. It was Fully AWESOME!

The kids were enthralled. Gadget Man/Dad was the hero of the day.

It seems a waste to disassemble it--anyone swallow any pennies lately?

My Little O. C. D.arling

I love it when my kids can find something quiet and non-destructive to do to entertain themselves. Though sometimes I do wonder if this kind of repetitive behavior is normal. You should see what she does with blocks.
We had to get rid of all the really small elastics (the half-inchers) after I caught her with dark-purple hands a few times.



She had already moved all the elastics onto one hand before she started the transfer to the other. I wanted to see how long it would take her--in real time, five minutes. The soundtrack is "Bagdad" played by Lissa.

Give us a (spring) break!

March has come and March has gone.
But still the snow is on the lawn.
The birds are here, they sing their song.
But something still is very wrong.

The bikes are out, they lie about.
The kids are in, they sit and pout.
The snowpants have to be got out--again!
Poor Mom! Just hear her shout.

April's here, but still we fear
That her intentions are not clear.
No buds are open on the trees.
No flowers wait to greet the bees.
We're begging! We're down on our knees!
Oh, Springtime! Come to our house, Please!

Major Bed Head

A few mornings ago I suggested to Anderson, "You might want to brush your hair today."

He took a look in the mirror and said, "No way! It's freakin' AWESOME!"

The Plan of Salvation

This is what we did for family night last week. It's always fun to draw on the wall.
For more information, go here.

Got me some soul

In India, the saying goes, "A woman without jewelry is like a body without a soul."

The pearl and emerald necklace and blue blouse are just some of the pretty-pretties Casey brought me from India. I also got two other blouses, two silk scarves, one Kashmiri scarf/shawl, and a sequined maroon skirt.

I love them. But mostly I'm just glad to have him back.