Meadow's Birthday!

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore

We watched "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore". It was fine, if you can stomach watching a fantasy world where dogs are remotely as smart as cats.

YaYa's Schoolwork

A Trip to Ikea

Back from an unplanned road trip to IKEA (90 min away) w/ the family. We didn't buy anything, we just wanted to take the kids somewhere new, Got lost on the way home, thanks to road construction that shut down a highway, went through 2 tolls w/out paying (1 by accident, 1 cuz the attendant wasn't there to take payment), and brazenly broke traffic & safety laws on 5 occasions. A great trip for all.

 

Smiley's K5 School Picture

IKEA

In Schaumberg, eating @ IKEA

One Summer Day

11:57 am: I'm sitting in the kiddie pool w/ Pdiddy [Smiley] & Ginger, reading a bk & soaking up the sun. 'seems the possum is again residing in our yrd, judging by the poop pile & a fat chipmunk just ran up 2 me, realized his booboo & did a 180.

12:21 pm : Update: make that a family of chipmunks. Once the scout returned with our location, they all came out & raced around the outside of the pool like a Commanche raiding party, then stopped and glared as if to say "Whatchu gonna do about it big man?" before running off under the shed.

Sept 1st through the 6th

September 1st

Lisa and I just finished watching the complete first season of "Big Love", a drama about a polygamist family in Utah. It's well written with top notch acting. We'll be sure to watch the other seasons.

Don't believe that crap that you're as young as you feel. Your feelings lie.

[RE: David Garrett, a classical violinist who plays renditions of rock songs] I like his album but I recognize it's a gimmick. If he wants to elevate the commercial appeal of his instrument, then he should compose pop/rock music for the violin, instead of just adapting old hits.

September 2nd

How you can tell Farmville has taken over your life: Lisa and I were in the produce section when she asked me if I'd ever heard of a sale item called an asian apple pear. I stared at her for a second in disbelief, then answered - unintentionally - in valley girl upspeak: "Uhhhh, *yeah*, I raise them on my farm."

September 3rd

Women are the repository of personal details in the lives of all who intersect their worlds - Sara Paretsky

This is one of 4 sunflower plants Smiley and I planted this summer. He really loves gardening.

September 4th

So my Escort got a flat last night when a friend borrowed it, returning it to my parking slab with the rim damaged. Sigh. This morning, the same car won't start. It is inevitable - my cars work only in summer. At the onset of cold weather I should just think ahead and buy a bus pass.

LuLu got the 1st tomato from her Topsy Turvy Tomato Plant today.

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Yes, I own Ke$ha's album 'Animal', and yes, Lisa and the kids play this song whenever possible. "D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R a dinosaur, an O-L-D man, Old man, At first we thought that it was kinda ill/ when we thought that you were like a billion And still tryna make a killing/Get back to the museum"

We're watching my Godson TJ today. Here we are on the front porch, along with some candids we snapped later.

We just saw Justin Beiber on SNL, and called the girls down to watch him perform. Olivia is well and truly in love w/ the guy, and Lauren says his name so cute. Anywho, while the Haters Hate, the kid produces enjoyable music with a radio friendly hook. Also of note: he did a fine job replicating Luda's rap from "Baby".

September 6th (Labor Day)

Any job is better at time and a half.

Mass and Legion

Saturday night Lisa and I took the Bookends with us to Mass (Lu was ill and Smiley was at Grandma’s). As expected, our Feral Child was less than perfect, but still did OK :) 

I’ve also finished reading Legion, a novella by Brandon Sanderson. It’s a hoot, and features a character that deserves to return in a longer format. Unfortunately, its size prohibits me from listing it among my “read’” list for the year.

LuLu's 2nd Grade School Picture

W on O

Watching Dubya on Oprah. I adore that man, I truly do.

What Now?

The CMA's are advertising they'll feature "the country music debut of Oscar winner Gwenyth Paltrow" Really? C'mon now, that's a joke, right?

A Bad Evening

The kids were awful tonight. Junie picked up her dinner plate & chucked it across the table; we put her to bed w/out supper. Meanwhile Smiley's had 7 or 8 crying fits (no exaggeration), YaYa was moody, and LuLu was a demon before she fell asleep before supper. All the kids are now in bed for the night. I don't care if it is 6pm, or if homework's done - enough.

SMH

It's a beautiful, warm November day and Smiley and LuLu are outside w/ me in the backyard. They are playing a game called - can u believe this? - "Fartchicken"

August 25th - Sept 1st

August 25th

Lisa's mildly p.o.'d at me (what a novelty, eh?) because she dyed her hair a deep, dark red at my request. Uh, a) she doesn't listen to me about anything else, so y start now? b) it's not *half* as dark as I had hoped, so it's not like she 'caved' to my demands c) it looks hot against her pale skin. C'mon - I work hard to look THIS freakin' hot for her, it's only fair she returns the favor. ;)

Lemon law - it's gonna be a thing! - How I Met Your Mother's Barney

August 26th

Ok, saw the Percy Jackson movie and thought it was top notch. The kids enjoyed it a lot but I don't dig PJ murdering his step-dad after the credits rolled (WTF??- glad my kids had already left the room; don't need them getting [more] ideas). Also saw JLO in "Back Up Plan", which was entertaining and featured a fine supporting cast. Easily her best rom-com since "Maid . . ."

It [Marc Cohn's Listening Booth 1970] is a mighty fine album. Pick up a copy.

For no good reason I was up until 5 a.m., then woke up for good at 9:30. It is now just shy of 1 p.m., and I am already a right mean bugger. It's gonna be a doozy of a day.

A Muslim soldier who enlisted in 2009 is refusing deployment to Iraq, citing a conflict with his religous and ethical duties. No comment.

August 27th

WARNING: All my kids have Pillow Pets, courtesy of the various grandparent's, but it turns out that Grace's is a *knock off* , sold fraudulently at a kiosk at Southridge. We'll be contacting the mall officials tomorrow. Despite what the workers tell you, they are NOT pillow pets.

I have come to the conclusion that the sight of a woman wearing capri's and open toed sandals is a gift from God on par with sunsets, kittens, and Oreos. Well done Lord, well done.

August 28th

[Following news of yet another Mexican atrocity] Mexico is a good and proper mess right now, and it's only going to get worse. BTW, the State Dept has ordered the children of American diplomats out of Monterrey citing the danger in Mexico.

Lisa purchased, transported, and set up a twin bed set for Ginger today while I was at work. [thanks!] That means we have a) no more bottles b) no more diapers c) no more cribs [the last of which was converted to a toddler bed for her a year and a half ago]. All milestones, & all good news - but I must admit I got nostalgic walking thru the baby aisle at Pick 'N Save today.

August 29th

It is now 403 am. If I am not hungover in the morning, then I did something wrong.

August 31st

This record [John Mellencamp's "No Better Than This"] is growing on me. "No one cares about me" is a memorable song, and there is, to my ears, a mature Buddy Holly vibe to some of the album.

Finished " The Automatic Detective" by A Lee Martinez; a fun read. I finished it here in a dr's waiting rm on a Nook. Answered several ?'s about the unit. Think I sold one, actually.

[this one only makes sense if you know the kids true names, but it's sooo cute] True story: As you know YaYa is my oldest, but her younger brother doesn't quite grasp the dictionary meaning of her name. When I said the Hail Mary with Smiley the other day, he balked at the traditional wording and came back with "Hail Mary, full of Smiley . . . "

September 1st

It's 3 in the morning and me, Lisa and her friend are sitting on the front porch watching the rain come down.

YaYa's 4th Grade School Picture

A Dance Intensive

 Grace is up in Wausau at a two-day dance 'intensive', a seminar that includes a solid 6hrs of dance tomorrow. Pics of her departure were posted earlier. Here's an email from her to Lisa (I didn't warrant one apparently

" hi mom we're at the motel, havin lots of fun.... syl !!!! love u gracie i would write more but only got 20 mins!!! your daughter gracie/gracye"

nervous much Grace? LOL....the kid peed three times in 15 minutes!- Lisa

The Dead Path by Stephen M. Irwin

I finished "The Dead Path" by Australian writer Stephen M. Irwin. It's a ghost/horror novel reminiscent of Straub's "Ghost Story", and it's quite good; intelligent, well written, and disturbing in all the right places. BTW, I first saw the book advertised here, on FB, on one of those sidebar ads. So I guess they do work sometimes :)

Splice

I just finished 'Splice' , a horror film about a genetically engineered humanoid. It wasn't terrifying, but it was intelligent & raised some valid concerns about that line of research. It also featured the oddest sex scene I've ever seen in a mainstream film. BTW,  I found the female researcher morally repugnant, start to finish. In another life she would have been sewing kids together in a concentration camp.

"Little Lisa's" 1st Day of School Ever!

On September 1st Ginger, our youngest, had her first day of K3. After trying (and failing) to get our first three children accepted into a Montessori program, Ginger got the nod. :) Note that she looks apprehensive in some of the photos, proof that sometimes a still image lies. She was happy and very excited that day, and never showed a whiff of fear or trepidation.

Toy Story 3 and The Girl Who Played with Fire

In non election news, Toy Story 3 was great, if a wee dark for the younger kids. Kudos to Pixar for crafting a fine trilogy. 

Later Lis and I watched the Swedish film  "The Girl Who Played With Fire". Bleh. It was so slow we didn't even watch it clean through. Weird - the bk was better than the over-hyped Dragon Tatoo, but the movie version of that blew this sequel away.

Family Night

Family night in progress: pizza and garlic bread, followed by homework and a rental of Toy Story 3. YaYa and LuLu are even getting along, chit chatting, helping each other with chores and homework and standing up for one another. That last bit just isn't right. The world seems somehow . . . off.

Voting and a Playground Visit

Our polling place is at the park pavilion . . . 

The New Brewers Manager

The Brewers have hired virtual unknown Ron Roenicke as their new manager. Roenicke was the bench coach of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. There are rumors that he got the job only after $ caused talks with Bobby Valentine to break off, but the club denies that they wanted anyone else. True or not, best of luck to him.

Another Nightmare

Yet another whack-a-doodle nightmare last night.

I was living my current life, with the kids and Lisa and a house of our own (although it seemed to have the layout of the upper flat of my Grandma's house). There was a mishap with our national defense, some minor but fatal flaw that allowed a enemy nation to invade us from the South. No, it wasn't Mexico. If I remember correctly, it was an Arab nation located in Latin America.

Don't ask.

Because of this flaw in our defense the invasion was succeeding, and it soon became obvious that Milwaukee would fall. I began to make plans to evacuate and head up North but Lisa pointed out that all roads out of the city were hopelessly jammed. I thought of of using our bikes and the bike stroller, although the thought of making all the way to Lisa's friend Jolene's house was daunting.

Then another shot to the heart: Jolene refused to house us, even if we brought a tent and stayed in the yard. We were stuck in the city.

The enemy arrived. Reports came that they were on 7th and Center, then 16th and Greenfield; ridiculous, as both locations imply invasion from the north. Anyhow, the clincher was when local radio station 102.9 changed it's frequency to 106.9 - for some reason, going up on the dial was a clear sign the city was doomed. Reports were coming in that every house was being searched, ransacked, and worse.

Lisa and I were a lost cause. Even my friend Tre, with his additional cash reserves, couldn't find a way out and was running out of time.

I piled clothes in the front closet, piles and piles of clothes and told the kids to hide behind them. I handed them bottles of water and some food, and begged them to be quiet. At the last moment I handed YaYa a hammer with a prybar at the end - a tool that I inherited from my paternal Grandfather in the real world - and told her to use it to defend her siblings. If the worst comes to pass, and all hope is lost, I said, use it to spare the kids from the horrors of capture.

There was the sound of boots on the stairs, and I woke up.

Yeah. Not a restful night of sleep.