Just batty!

It's Halloween, and that means Bat Brownies in our house!

It seems so strange how these traditions start. Three years ago I bought a Betty Crocker bat shaped cookie cutter. Spyder and I used it that year to cut out cookies to decorate. They got eaten before Halloween, so Spyder and I decided to bake more. We decided to go for Ultimate Chocolate Brownies instead of plain old cookies though, and the traditional Halloween Bat Brownies were born!

This year I let the children decorate all of them, so they're a little more -- ahem -- free form. I usually take about half and outline the bat in decorating gel. They were having a blast with the frosting and sprinkles though, so I decided to let them do all of them. If I had realized that they'd like it that much, I would have bought more than one kind of sprinkles!

Sometimes the simplest thing works best

I've been trying since June to get Spyder to memorize his multiplication tables. He knows the concept and can answer almost any problem given enough time. But that's just it. He took FOREVER to do his multiplication problems.

We've tried graphs and charts. We've tried card games. We've tried problem drills and flash cards. *sigh*

Last week I got out a pair of dice and one of the graphs. He spent a happy hour or so throwing the dice and filling in the graph. The second day, he got the dice himself and started throwing them and writing down the problems on a sheet of paper.

About four hours of work total, and -- voila -- Spyder knows his multiplication tables for 1-6. I'm on the search for 12 sided dice so that we can do the rest of them. A local shop was supposed to have ordered them, but the ones that I "picked out" were backordered. They can't seem to realize that I don't care what they look like, as long as they're readable!

Fall weather and the kitchen

What is it about cold and rainy days that makes me want to cook? Every time that the temperatures turn cooler, I find myself in the kitchen making whatever I can put together with the ingredients on hand.

It has been so cold and rainy -- the cold rain that gets you chilled just walking outside -- and I've been in the kitchen for two days. Yesterday, I made potato soup and cornbread for us. I also made a meaty stew for the doggies that they must have liked. They were licking the splatters off of the floor!

Even now, I'm thinking about what's in the pantry. I'd like to make party mix, but I don't really have everything. I could cobble together something, but I don't think it would taste the way I really like it. I think that's going to have to wait until I can get to Britt's to pick pecans. I do have the ingredients for double chocolate chip cookies though!

We're thinking about heading to the bargain theatre for a night out, but I think I'd prefer to just stay in tonight. I think I'll make Thai noodles . . . .

Schedules

I have a love/hate relationship with schedules.

On the one hand, I love waking up and knowing what is happening that day. It makes it easier to plan and sometimes I'm able to get everything done more efficiently. Knowing that we have to get A, B, and C done before D comes along gives me a deadline to work with. Plus, I live by my calendar. If it's not on the calendar, I'm not likely to remember it, so I absolutely must write everything anyway. Why not make some sort of schedule around all of it?

On the other hand, some days I'd just like to have some free days to do . . . whatever! Play in the yard, or walk over to the park, or head to the children's museum or the zoo. Currently, we have one "scheduled" free day -- Fridays -- and even then we've developed a routine.

I'm trying to facilitate experiences that are "new and different" instead of just the routine "same old, same old." I've been on the couch for an hour with my little legal pad trying to figure out how I can schedule and be free at the same time. I haven't come up with a solution yet.

At least he knows what he wants

SPYDER: I'm thirsty.

ME: Go get some water out of the fridge.

SPYDER: I don't want water.

ME: Well, I think we're out of juice, so water is just about the only option.

SPYDER: I don't want water. Don't we have soda? I want something artifically flavored!

New Beginnings

Skeeter is starting his new job today. He wasn't supposed to start until November 20, but they needed him sooner.

Truthfully, he wanted to leave his previous job. He wasn't crazy about it. It wasn't challenging at all, and Skeeter was one of the few people who really cared about how well he did his work. It's not easy working with apathetic co-workers.

The new place seems nice. He's been doing consulting with them since March, so he knows the boss already. Still, it's always exciting to start something new.

I'm anxious to hear from him to see how it's going!

Renaming

Sass has a friend named Rose. She's part of our homeschool group, about a year older than Sass. They've been buddies for a while now. Sass has never actually called her by her name though. When they met last year, Sass started calling her "Summer." No idea why. Rose seems to answer to the name Summer though, so I suppose it's not a problem. Rose's mom and I just shrug at each other when we see it happening.

This random renaming isn't an isolated incident. Sass has also decided that the guy in the electronics department at Target is the spitting image of Mr. Tumnus (from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe). So, every time we're in Target, she calls out, "Hi, Mr. Tumnus!" We don't see him very much any more. I think he probably hides when he sees us coming.

Sass has finally started calling her friend Olivia "Olivia" instead of "Sophia" so I suppose it's a step in the right direction.

A new era in homemaking

I made homemade dog biscuits today. Somehow I feel like that was turning a corner and sauntering down a street that wasn't even on the map.

They were quite easy, actually, and it felt just like baking scones. If we liked chicken flavored scones, with a little bit of powdered milk thrown in.

At any rate, they turned out quite well. The dogs seem to like them anyway.

Stormbreaker, again

Spyder and I are so disappointed. Tomorrow is supposed to be the American release date for the movie Stormbreaker. However, the movie is in limited release, and it's not playing anywhere near us! We have three different movie chains in town, so we can usually find some theatre that is showing what we want to see. Not this time! The best we can hope for is that it does well. Maybe we'll get it here eventually!

Praise the Lord!

"Praise the Lord" is not a phrase I use lightly. I didn't even realize it until recently, but when I say something as powerful as "Praise the Lord," I really want to mean it.

Spyder had said it one evening last week, as a response to something very minor. I don't even remember what it was that made him use the phrase, but it was something equivalent to finding a toy. That night as I was tucking him into bed, I asked him what he's meant by it. Was he truly giving a praise to God, or was it just a glib remark? As I suspected, it was just something to say. He didn't mean it to be superficial, but in the context, it was. He wasn't truly thanking God for whatever it was. We had a wonderful, enlightening conversation about words, meanings, and intentions. I love these conversations that Spyder and I have as he's getting tucked into bed. They almost always leave me in a thoughtful, usually God-centered, frame of mind.

Until then, I didn't realize that it was so important to me to use "Praise the Lord" as a true praise, not a blithe remark.

A mile or so into my drive home from work tonight, another driver ran a red light and hit my car. I was more than halfway through the intersection, and he came racing through, tires squealing and weaving madly. He clipped my back bumper, hard enough for me to feel and hear it, but glancingly enough that the damage is minor. The driver never even slowed down. He gunned his vehicle and left.

I pulled over just after I cleared the intersection, into a church parking lot, of all places. At first, I was mad. How could someone do that and not even care? He knew that he had hit me, and he drove on anyway. What about the insurance claim? I decided to drive home -- it was almost 11 pm, in a not-so-nice neighborhood -- and call the police from there.

Less than a block into my drive, I realized that I didn't need to focus on being mad at the other guy OR being worried about the car insurance. I needed to thank God that he had kept me safe. There is absolutely no doubt about it. If that vehicle had hit me full on, I would have been severely hurt. I wouldn't have been able to walk in and kiss the children in their beds, or go snuggle next to Skeeter and put my cold feet on his warm ones.

My Lord deserves sincere, honest, heartfelt praises for keeping me safe tonight!

Avian aversion

I don't like birds. Most everyone knows that about me. That's a very broad statement though, and it's not wholly true.

It's more true to say that birds scare me, particularly birds that fly at me. Chickens flock around your feet and legs when they think you have food. Ocean birds fly around your head when they think you may possibly have some tasty morsel for them. Even the sparrows that hang out near the zoo picnic tables are little daredevils when there's food involved. All of those scenarios make me cringe.

This morning, I saw a cardinal in the tree outside. I sat on the bench and watched him for quite a while, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. He and the resident bluejay were having a lively discussion, probably about the cardinal invading Mr. Bluejay's territory. Mr. Bluejay is a very territorial bird. He has fits about the dogs, who have been there longer than he has! He generally stays away from us though, and he very seldom ventures near us when we're outside.

Soon the pinecones will start dropping, and the children and I will make bird feeders. We do it every year. It seems like an odd thing for someone who has such a distaste for birds, but my aversion to them is very complex.

I actually do like to watch birds, and I like to hear birdsongs, but I have no desire to actually interact with birds. That's the heart of it: it's the interaction that I don't like rather than the birds themselves. The skittish songbirds who peck away at the birdseed are welcome in our yard. The overly brave ones will do well to stay away.

Case closed!

Spyder has solved another of his Nancy Drew games, Mystery in a Haunted Mansion. Some days, he can spend hours on one of these games. And really, I don't mind at all when he plays them. It's not mindless. There are logic puzzles throughout, and it's a mix of mystery, critical thinking, and problem solving, all in a fun package.

This is the fourth game that he's solved, and he's getting better with each one. I'm really proud of him!

Not exactly restful

Today hasn't really been all that restful, but it has been productive. I went through Sass's closet and the tub of last year's "too big" winter clothes. There were several things that she didn't need and/or still couldn't wear, so I invited my friend Brenda over to go through them. She ended up taking two bags full of things for Olivia. The rest of the stuff that we aren't keeping has already been taken to the consignment shop! WOOHOOO!!

I also rearranged her top two dresser drawers. One is supposed to be for sockies and undies. The other is supposed to be for pajamas. They had gotten all muddled, and it was driving me crazy. They're now neatly organized as they're supposed to be. Tomorrow I'm going for the other four drawers!

I also took a box full of miscellaneous stuff to the thrift shop. I've started keeping a box on the extra rocker, and I just put things in as I go through the day. When the box is full, I take it over. I've taken about 10 boxes in the past week that way!

Restful is good I suppose, but productive is probably better overall. :o)

Catching up

This week has been a wreck for me. I've had a horrible cold all week. The urchins caught it around Wednesday, when I was feeling the worst, of course. Thursday I was much better. Today it seems as if I've begun round two. I've felt worse today than I did on Wednesday. I think I probably overdid it on Friday and Saturday, thinking that I was in the clear.

We attempted to go to an arts and crafts festival on Friday. Everyone got up super-early. We drove to the bookstore to get my paycheck. Things took longer than they should have, and we all decided to get a snack (and a coffee for me, of course). As I was getting into the car, the coffee spilled all over my lap. A large coffee. A large coffee that I hadn't even sipped yet. At that point, I figured we'd just turn around and go home.

I worked both Friday and Saturday nights this week. I really wanted to go home on Saturday night, but the other bookseller was also sick. We decided to stick it out together, rather than debating who was sicker, then putting all of the burden on one (sickly) person.

Today we visited my parents. My sister and her boyfriend were there, and we all had so much fun. We played Hot Seat with them, and Skeeter and I lost bad! It was Skeeter's first time playing though, so he's forgiven. He roasted me at backgammon tonight. I chalk it up to my illness. :o)

As usual, Spyder spent the day shooting the BB gun. He's getting really good. Of course, his targets are aluminum cans, and they don't exactly evade the shot. :o)

Playing in the dirt is Sass's favorite activity, and she spent most of the day with a cup, a hoe, and a whole lotta dirt. Playing is dirty work!

It was just gorgeous outside today. Not too hot, slight breeze. Just perfect. I love sitting outside on the porch at my parents' house anyway, but today was just about as perfect as I could imagine. (Excluding my sniffling and coughing, of course.)

We got home incredibly late, but it was most certainly worth it! Tomorrow is supposed to be a restful day. We'll see how that turns out.

A laugh out loud funny

Spyder has formed a club, The Mystery Solvers (TMS for short). Tonight, Sass informed Skeeter that she had now formed her own club -- girls only. No Boys Allowed.

Its name? The PMS.

giggle, snort, laugh

No, I'm not making this up.

A classic boy stunt

Today we visited my friend Carla. Spyder and her son Zachary are best buddies, so they were thrilled to have unexpected play time. They were playing outside when Spyder poked his head in the door and gave Skeeter the "come here" motion, round eyes and "oops" expression in place.

Skeeter came back in and said, "We need to go home. Soon." I used my superior interrogation techniques (aka "The Look") and found out that Spyder had climbed the privacy fence -- 6 feet solid wood privacy fence. As he was going over the top, his pants got caught on a jagged portion and ripped. Not just a small tear either. They were torn all the way from the seat to the waistband, along with his underwear. The entire right side of the seat of his pants and underwear were flappin' in the breeze.

Good heavens.

After the incident with Sass, I wasn't even upset. I was just pleased that I didn't have to take him to the doctor for a big ole splinter in his bottom. :o)

And don't forget

Today is Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Celebrate in style!

Autumn is on the way!

Autumn is absolutely my favorite time of year, and I can feel it coming soon! This morning when I went out to get the paper, it was chilly with that cool-weather-is-coming sort of feel. I can't wait!

A few random thoughts for this lovely morning:

• I'd like to build a fire pit in the back yard. I LOVE the smell of a wood fire, and I think that the urchins would like to be able to roast marshmallows over it.
• Sass has decided that she wants to be a mermaid for Halloween this year. We already have a mermaid costume, but she has specifically asked for a tail, so I'm on the search for appropriate fabric to make one.
• Spyder is having trouble narrowing down his costume. He has several ideas, but hasn't made a decision. Whatever he decides, I hope it's soon.
• I'm a bit ambivalent about quitting my bookstore job. I'll miss it, but it will be nice to have more family time. When Skeeter and I talked about it, I realized that what I'll miss most is discussing books with people, not the job itself. My friend Britt and I have been kinda, sorta talking about getting a book discussion group together. Not really a book club where everyone is reading the same thing, but more of a "what are you reading" type of group. I'm not a "book club" type of person, so the open style would work much better for me. Still, I like the way that the bookstore gives me the opportunity to be aware of so much more.
• Interestingly, I won't really miss the discount. I can usually find what I want online for the same amount (or sometimes less). The cafe discount is another thing though. THAT is something that I'll miss.
• Christmas is approaching, and with it, all of the gift buying. I was talking with a friend yesterday who said that she spends about $200 per child for Christmas. HOLEY COW! Maybe I'm a big old skinflint, but we usually do about $50 per person -- $200 for the whole family! This year may be slightly more because I have a few ideas that I'm not sure I can do as inexpensively as usual, but I can't imagine spending $200 per person. Plus, I don't have very many gifts stashed in my gift closet like I usually do.
• We've finally decided upon the date for Space Camp. Skeeter and Spyder will be going around Spyder's birthday next year. We haven't decided if Sass and I will go and stay in the area or if we'll stay home. That's still at the wait-and-see point.

The weekend recap

The antibiotic is working, and Sass is MUCH better! There wasn't really a lot of improvement on Saturday morning, but it wasn't worse, so we decided to wait before taking her into the doctor's office. By Saturday night, the redness was noticably less, and tonight it was almost gone! I noticed this evening that she was just beginning to put pressure on the bottom of her foot again, so I think all will be well without another doctor visit! :O)

I was supposed to go on a women's retreat with my church group, but I missed it because of Sass's foot. I just couldn't leave her like that. She absolutely wasn't herself, and she just wanted Mommy. I'm sure that Skeeter couldn have managed, but I certainly wouldn't have been at peace about leaving her. As it was, we had a really nice weekend, so I can't regret not going.

Spyder got a brand new pair of tennis shoes on Saturday. He's really beginning to grow up. He chose these shoes, and before he's never cared what they were. This year's tennies aren't the light-up style either; they're just plain old Adidas. Tonight he got dressed for Awana, and he looked so grown up! He's in Truth in Training now, the class for the older boys.

I went to a great consignment sale, and I found loads of stuff. Sass didn't really need much, but I found some pajamas and a couple of dresses that I couldn't pass up. I got a Halloween t-shirt for Spyder too, but alas, the arms are too short, so I'm going to end up selling that one. It's a size 7, and I don't want to leave it hanging around here for Sass to grow into. Spyder went with me to the sale, and he was such a joy! It was very nice having time with just him. We don't do that often enough.

Spyder spent most of today studying for Truth in Training. I was really proud of him. He said three sections tonight. Next up is saying the books of the New Testament. He learned them last year for Sparks, so this is just review. He should be able to get that done with no problem!

Skeeter cleaned his desk tonight! He put away all of his papers and filed everything, and his desk actually looks clean and neat! Mine is looking pretty bad in comparison, so I have a mission for tomorrow.

Spyder cleaned Sass's room tonight while she was in the bathtub, and he did a really good job. I'm not really sure why he decided to clean her room, but I'm certainly not going to complain. He uncovered a few toys under the bed that are now in the Goodwill box, plus he found her pajama top that's been missing for a week!

I bought a pair of the new Mary Jane style Crocs. I love them! They're just as comfy as my old ones, but they look a little nicer. And this time I got a nice basic brown (rather than purple) so that I can wear them to work without anyone fussing at me. :o)

Sass

We went to the doctor this morning, and she is now taking an antibiotic to fight any infection. She's felt decently well for most of the day. No fever at all, and she even played outside for a bit.

Now for the bad news. The doctor thinks that there is still a bit of wood in her foot. Unfortunately, he couldn't really tell anything yet. Essentially, we're at a wait-and-see point. If it gets worse while she's still on the antibiotic, we have to go back in for them to see if they can find any wood inside. That poor, poor girl. I think I'll be crying right along side her if it comes to that.