Happy Halloween!

in my little world, ain't that the truth?

Praying for all the Anglicans out there...

After listening to the news recently and then reading this article, I'm wondering what events will unfold for our Anglican brothers and sisters who have loved and served their church. I'm praying that those who are searching will find a new home soon.

Putting my head down on the desk

That's what I feel like. A bit low-energy, high discouragement. Cayna's school is done for the day, except for the art project which I was foolish to order only one. Joe is taking a "recess" and I am blogging. It's cloudy, chilly and windy outside. Perfect day for a hot chocolate, which I will attend to momentarily.

Tonight is Moms' Group. I'm glad God uses me to encourage others once in a while even when I'm down in the dumps-ish. Father John (same Father John from the Target unmentionables aisle) is coming to our group tonight to share his testimony, the role of his mom in his life, and talk about vocations. I can't wait, but it would be hasty to go sit at the church now - eight hours early. Though with a babysitter and an enormous thermos of hot chocolate I think I could pull it off.

Wonderful Wonderful Wonderful Weekend

By wonderful I mean just the right combination of alone time and family time.

Saturday was my monthly day out. I took my time getting ready and even --- believe it or not --- painted my toenails! Quite a time luxury.

I went to Church and sat reading The Privilege of Being a Woman, by Alice von Hildebrand. I finished it, which means now I'm reading only three books instead of four. Had some prayer time and mostly just reveled in the quiet. So nice.

From there to Target. The distance seems far spiritually, but not geographically (a new Target just opened days ago right below our church) - and why can't Jesus hang out with me at Target? He can. As I was heading for an unmentionable aisle, I spotted Father John and decided not to say hi. Call me shy. Do you want to run into YOUR Priest or pastor near the unmentionable aisle?

One quick stop at the library to check out an armful of design and decorating books before I landed pleasantly at a seafood restaurant patio table at The District. THAT was perfect. You can't beat a book full of photos, a plate of scallops, and October weather in Las Vegas.

Yesterday after Mass my dad brought his bike trailer and we loaded up five bikes and a baby-trailer to head to the UNLV campus for a meandering bike ride. It was so much fun. The hills and the grass and trees and endless pathways to follow (plus no automobile traffic) make the place a bike riding heaven. We spent a couple hours, but easily could have stayed all day.


Dad bought us Buffalo Wild Wings takeout on the way home, so that meant NO COOKING FOR TERI! Perfect way to end the weekend.

Dusting

I was getting my dusting done. Today's chore. And BOY was the computer desk in need of some Lemon Pledge and a dustrag. And then I saw my blog sitting there looking lonely...

Okay, OKAY. Back to dusting. See you tomorrow.

"No one's gonna steal HIS lunch money!"

That is what John's dentist said to me following the 45-minute scream-fest in the procedure room. Despite the constant high-decibel hollering and thrashing about, this man was able to "install" two crowns and fill two other cavities in my two year-old's mouth this morning. Actually, he did three fillings because he accidentally knocked one out thanks to John's kicking and had to re-do it. They velcroed up the papoose at that point, which is also when I had to take a breather and sit for a moment in the waiting room. (Note: John did, believe it or not, have sedatives in his body but they didn't have the desired effect, hence the quote in my title. Dr. Bybee handled the difficulties with kindness, patience, and two "thumbs-up" signals directed at me in the midst of the procedure.)

Bottom line: we both survived. John calmed immediately when I held him afterwards and shows no evidence that he minds all the new material in his mouth. God reminded me of his constant presence during the visit, and I really do recommend Ryan Bybee, DDS to anyone in the Vegas/Henderson area. He is my hero for today. So is John.

It's Wednesday!

You heard it here first, fellow insomniacs!

11:11

My favorite time!

NOT my favorite time to have a bit of insomnia, but normally my favorite time.

John has an early-morning dentist appointment and I have to leave the house about 6:30 - ick. So of course I can't sleep. I came downstairs to... well, blog, I guess. Maybe I'll play Tile Towers on Joe's Webkinz.

66 Shopping Days

Tonight I bought my first Christmas present. One down! Somehow it makes me feel MUCH more accomplished than it should just to have one present bought. Reminds me of doing papers in college. Even deciding the topic gave me a sense of having "started working on it". What a joke. If anyone has any ideas of what to get my husband, please send your suggestions.

Today we became a caterpillar murdering family. Who decides to put such delicate nature in the hands of young children? There is one poor little guy still clinging to life, but his chances are slim around here. I see myself ordering more. Geez o Pete.

To complete this random assortment of thoughts - during evening prayer tonight I prayed for some of the people we know who don't know Jesus and then asked the kids to name anybody they wanted to pray for. Bethanie replied: "God, please help us get lots of lovely tasting candy at Halloween."

Sunday

I started off the morning sleeping in a little. Kevin and Joe were camping in Utah (the rest of us drove there and spent the day Saturday), so we planned to go to evening Mass and that meant we got to have a slow morning and be lazy here at home. Cayna crawled in bed with me a little before eight o'clock and stared at the ceiling fan for a few minutes before starting this conversation:

Cayna: Did Jesus have seven disciples?
Me: No, he had twelve.
Cayna: Oh. Why twelve?
Me: (Deciding to skip the deeper explanation) Because that's how many he wanted.
Cayna: Oh. I'd pick one. That would be easier.

Then I'm sure she progressed through a maze of six year-old thoughts, but I was stuck on what on earth might have led her to question the number of disciples.

Anyway... in other news:

Joe and Kevin had a great campout with the Cub Scouts. They spent two days and two nights in Snow Canyon, Utah - just outside St. George. We made the two hour drive Saturday morning to be with them and it was just beautiful there. We went on a family hike including a tiny bit of rock scrambling and cave exploration and spent the rest of the time in a meadow playing catch, sitting and chatting with other families, watching the kids play kickball, and riding bikes. It was dreamy. Sadly, I forgot my camera so the only evidence I have of the trip is the dune-worth of red sand piled by the shoes in the living room.

Joseph retold a joke he heard by the campfire. He was cracking up so hard when he told it, I couldn't help but laugh. Where does a king keep his armies? In his sleevies!

Once all our divergent paths met again, we attended the evening youth Mass and then went for dinner at Chipotle. That was good times. Cayna did a mean Homestarrunner; (homestarrunner.com) Bethanie laughed at everything; John ate chips and salsa in adult quantities; and Joe and Kevin told campfire jokes.

After a weekend like this, I'm ready to take on another week!

Seeking some adventure.

I think I'm headed for the hills in search of some adventure. I'm taking my gun and a canteen. Hoping to meet up with some wildlife and maybe a celebrity or two. Either of those would seem exciting.



Note: NOT intending to shoot anyone or anything except if necessary in self-defense. It's just that you need a gun for protection when you head for the hills. Just wanted to clarify.

My Week in a Seven Sentences

1) Some caterpillars arrived today.

2) Figuring out medication is tricky.

3) John needs expensive dental work including two crowns.

4) I joined a diverse homeschool group.

5) Third grade math is difficult for 39 year-old me.

6) Of course Father John knows my cousin Ginger, doesn't everybody?

7) Now that the new Target opened, I never have to leave my zip code again!

Vietnam, Mary, & Being a Woman

I usually make a real effort to only read one book at a time.

Somehow I'm currently reading three. I'm not sure how it happened, but it's going to confuse me.

I'm reading the first Vietnam book mentioned in yesterday's post, plus The Privilege of Being a Woman, by Alice von Hildebrand and Mary Mother of the Son Volume 1, by Mark Shea. Can you see how this might make my thought life quite interesting until I'm finished with all three?

This Mary book is the first I've read that I'm really getting into. I've read good stuff, but Mark Shea knows the perspective of a former Protestant, plus he's smart and freaking funny. Smart and funny is the best combination for a writer. Add truly Catholic, scripturally sound, and well-researched and I think I'll be recommending this book!

Aren't all housewives doing this?

Reading about Vietnam, I mean.

I'll admit I appreciate my diverse interests, but every now and then I feel unusual. Does anyone else find this stuff interesting?

It all started with an episode of Man vs. Wild, a show Kevin and I love. Bear went to Vietnam and in between his death-defying stunts he mentioned a bit of the history of the war over there. I never knew it included France! So I asked my dad (who literally knows everything) and lo and behold he had three books about it! He delivered them to my house within 48 hours along with a syllabus. I have to read the intro to one book, another one cover to cover and a third to whatever extent I'm still interested. All three of these books are covering the conflict BEFORE the U.S. even became involved. Sheesh. There were guys over there suffering in the heat with leeches and barely any idea what they were doing for DECADES before our country even jumped in! I never knew.

Now... what good this learning will do me, I will never know. Maybe one day one of my daughters will ask about France's involvement in Vietnam. You think it could happen?

Just for fun, here's a great quote from the Foreword to Street Without Joy - the French Debacle in Indochina (page 10):

The fragmentation of organized society into a host of small nations, mostly former colonies, without political experience and with little or no hope of ever attaining economic viability, but fiercely nationalistic nevertheless, has provided rich ground for the seeds of an ideology which promises an easy and profitable retreat from the cul-de-sac of political ineptitude and economic stagnation.

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it!

Favorite Item From the Grocery Store

I just spent $160.00 at the grocery store for the next week.

I admit I spent a little extra on those ready-made refrigerated cookies for Halloween. And a little MORE extra on a couple of decorative gourds. Plus the Smart Balance peanut butter Mike Nalley told me about.

But my favorite item? The orange marmalade. Every now and then you gotta have a jar of that in your refrigerator.

Monday, Monday...

Today was a true Monday. After ending last week with five fevers in our household, we started out this week behind on school, housework, and confidence. Kevin took a long lunch and swept us all away to the park and McDonald's and that helped me reclaim some perspective. So... back to "normal" tomorrow. My "normal" is figuring out how to NOT catastrophize things.

In other news, I have an attractive sunburn on the left side of my face and neck from standing in the sun and 55 mile an hour gusts yesterday for our parish festival. Why no sunblock? Sheer neglect.

Bring on Tuesday!

Diary Entry for October 2, 2009

Dear Diary,
Today we are home sick. Not homesick. You have to be away from home to be homesick. And we have not been away from home in days. On the up side of this, the minivan gets a long rest.

Joe seems to be over his fever this morning. Cayna is still medicated and has a weird cough, but not too bad. And John woke up with a fever. Somehow, I've escaped having three kids sick at once until now. And, really, it's not that bad. They watched TV earlier while I cleaned the bathrooms, truly my activity of choice.

Once again, we have a two year-old in the house. For an illustration of what this is like, see this photo:


John climbs onto the countertops as well as all the furniture. He also enjoys jumping off said furniture, which is really more of a problem than the climbing. He's taken two nosedives off the tall kitchen chairs, and regularly bangs his head on the light fixture above the kitchen table when he's up there dancing and taunting me.

Spitting is his all-time favorite hobby. It sounds funny, but believe me, on day three of constant John spit, it gets more than a little annoying. Imagine a cute little group of us at the school table: Mom patiently trying to explain math to Joe, Cayna diligently working on handwriting, Bethanie drawing a picture of her pet mouse. Enter John. In the midst of our idyllic school moment, he climbs on top of the table, dancing and spitting for all the world to see. Sigh. That two year-old would keep me on my toes if he weren't wearing me out.

Well, T.G.I.F. is all I've got to say. And a busy weekend ahead, IF the fevers are gone. For today, I think I'll go watch a little TV with the kids, ignore the dishes, maybe snooze on the couch a little. Not so bad, really.

Woolly Mammoth For Sale!

Why not purchase a woolly mammoth skeleton as a unique piece of decor for your family room or foyer? For the price of a small house in the Midwest, this beauty can be yours:


Day after tomorrow there's a "natural history" auction at the Venetian Hotel so we recently went to see the "preview". Joe was the photographer, and he got this shot of John and me with the Triceratops (I think it's a triceratops - it's been a long time since I studied dinosaurs.)
Don't you like how it seems to be poking me in the head with it's horn thing?

Mammoths aren't your thing? The real centerpiece of the auction is a T-Rex. They're hoping to nab a few million for the thing. Decoratively, it boggles my mind to think where I'd put such a specimen as that. Apparently, they're hoping it's purchased by a museum, but if not, I really hope to read about who does get it.

Profound Outcome of a Week Without TV

It was Kevin's idea.

I look forward to turning my brain off and crashing on the sofa night after night when the kids go to bed, but I'm always up for something different.

So here's what we've done instead: sleep.

Hm. I guess I've kept up on e-mail better and done a little reading, too.

The real question is whether the "week off" will include tonight's episode of "The Office". If so, I'm thankful for the DVR.



And - off topic - I'm home right now with two kids with fevers. Pray for us.