Birthday Bash! Clash of the Dragon Slayers Apprentices

A birthday was celebrated last week with all the fanfare expected!



Nbear wanted to have a few friends over to play Capture the Flag (rules constantly renegotiated by all)




have a treasure hunt






have an appropriately themed cake



and slay the dragon.



and slay him some more.



and a little more.







you know, they don't make pinatas as flimsy as they used to...

Too much of a good thing.

I think it will be a long long long time before Nbear tries this again:

a cinnamon spiked shot of peppermint extract.

whew. took his breath clear away. (but he sure smells nice.)

Why

It has been an exciting week. There is something about a grand bit of ceremony that makes one feel proud and excited and yes, hopeful. I am usually wary of all that pomp and pageantry, but for some reason this year I was fully relishing it; even down to the little presidential seal flags on the trumpets.

I was explaining to the boys the events of the day on Tuesday - because I'm sure in their minds Obama has been the president forever by now. I was also explaining why so many people seemed excited about this new president.

"Not many people liked our previous president Bush." I started.

"Did you vote for president Bush?" Nbear asks.

"No, I didn't. I respect him because he is our president, but I don't really like him as a president."

"Why?" he responds.

and here I take a long breath. Where does one start here? And what can be digested appropriately by a newly minted 6 year old? I started some discussion about his environmental policy. That seemed to satisfy him, but it left me wondering a bit more. What exactly/specifically/precisely was it that bothered me the most about Bush?

One answer came to me on DAY TWO. President Obama reinstates our nations compliance with the Geneva Convention rules about torture. Our previous administration seemed to take the low road on this count. I can understand the anger and fear that followed September 11th, I really can. But that fear and that anger and that desire for revenge should not have seeped in to our dealings with other human beings. Terrorists? yes. But still human beings. I'm not saying we have to coddle them by any means, but there is a level of human decency that I had always hoped we as a race had evolved to. The policy of allowing torture just made me feel sad for all of us - it proved that we were no better than "them." And we should know better. But I am an idealist, I know. But it's a little like the parenting advice that comes from school - strive for perfection, know that you will not always get there and be perfection, but at least have in your sights what you are striving for.



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And now a birthday interlude! Complete with cocktails!







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In other notes, my hair passes muster with my mother. It was my intention to go to Houston last weekend and get the official "sniff-test." As a teenager in my house I could come down the stairs in the morning and my mom could take one sniff and ask "have you already worn that shirt? It's a bit stinky." Yes, I know as teenagers we are often stinky, but my mom's nose has always been very sharp. So I wanted to see if my shampoo-free hair was starting to reek. Because who else can honestly tell me? Smith, gawd love him, is cursed with a non-smelling nose, so he is no help. And most friends aren't going to pop up and say "gee, your hair smells less than terrific!" Close friends may count but, Sinda is on the same experimental hair ride so she's biased and Lisa (whose nose may rival my mothers) is far away in Colorado. (When WILL we get the smell-a-phone!?!)


"So what's up with you and not using shampoo?" my mom asks.

"Well, I'm using baking soda now, instead of shampoo."

"But WHY?" she wants to know.

and honestly, I have no good answer for it right off other than, "Why not?!" No better than my answers when I was a teenager. I suppose to most people my hair looks exactly the same. To me, it feels different. It feels better, but I can't say that based on anything. Perhaps I'm still in the throes of "my hair has so much more volume and shine since I started this new shampoo!" sort of honeymoon. But I like it. We'll see how long it lasts.







Lenny asks, "what's that smell?"

Boo Ya'll!

A little election diversion, posted while the rest of the world is literally glued to media outlets waiting for the news.



Trick or Treatin'
We had a full on police force for the night out, where we went door to door in a friend's grandparent's neighborhood where us anti-candy moms have planted Halloween "goodies" like granola bars! dried fruit! graham crackers! (when Nbear is old enough to read this, I'm SO busted!)




The full lineup. While Jbird seemed to have developed an oral fixation on those cuff-a-links, Nbear seems to be totally enamored with the snow white princess. aw.






and speaking of love, Smith and I also celebrated a stealth anniversary night out. He had free tickets to a book reading (lots of folks in town for the Texas Book Fair.) I didn't feel like forking over the big bucks for a sitter and offered that he should go with Sinda, because she would totally enjoy it and it would be a small token of thanks for the myriad cool things that Sinda does for us. Like this: She opted not to go because "um, isn't that ya'lls anniversary? and can I watch the kids for you while you guys go out?" see? isn't she the coolest ever? Without her, our anniversary may have come and gone unnoticed for our own self-absorption. So she did watch the kids and we saw (and heard) Peter Sagal and Scott Simon read from their latest books. AND! My bonus of the evening is we had a small, teeny tiny, brush with fame. Smith and I popped out for dessert post-reading and the waiter informed me that the person who had been sitting in my exact chair mere moments before we arrived was none other than Claire Danes.

somehow appropriate.

Nbear has been pronouncing some things lately that make us giggle. We've come so far from the days of saying "tanilla" milk.

now we are "manipplating" things.

Ditty

As Nbear put on his wrap ("coat" for the rest of the world) on backwards today, he piped up with a poem:

this is the way I wear my wrap
with a glove compartment in the back...

More Heinz 57 (ie catchup)

WINDY CITY STORIES
We have blown back in from Chicago. A visit to see Smith's sister graduate with a lovely velvet fob on her head. No flimsy nylon covered cardboard for this gal! Congratulations Alex and good luck on the bar [insert lawyer joke here.]



We are SOOOOO lucky to have family in Chicago. It is my favorite big city - made even more lovable by my in-laws. Alex has always had swanky loft digs across the street from Whole Foods - a corner spot with views of everywhere. Fourth of July was a cool time to visit as we could see dozens of fireworks displays - downtown to the burbs - bursts of light spanning the horizon. She and beloved spouse have recently moved to a 1900s 3-story brick apartment building. Cue the ivy covered walls, craftsman wood details and sweeping windows. Three blocks from the lake. A $10 cab ride to Navy Pier. How much does that suck? We really need to come visit in February to take the shine off of this place.

OH! and I almost forgot to mention the mafia princess bathroom: shiny brass and chrome fixtures, big mirrors, lots of glass and the piece de reistance: the have-a-party- (or a baby) inside jacuzzi tub! N could not wait to hop in and test out all the buttons. I merely heard the ensuing screams as the inaugural whirl came about as all the jets were pointed skyward and soaked Alex (i.e. the dry person outside the tub.)

And speaking of Navy Pier (yeah, I know, go back a paragraph), we looked admiringly up at its ferris wheel on our way in to the Children's Museum. And again on our way out, SIX hours later (we did break for lunch, but just barely.) It would be an understatement to say that Nbear really digs that place. He couldn't wait to get to work in their construction zone. It really is cool to see him in action like that, he has such focus and intense interest in some things. J and I had been through the museum several times (mostly sitting in the driver's seat of the real ambulance) while Smith & N just built away. J also proved his climbing prowess to the museum staff as he navigated the rope tube ladder to the crow's nest of the pirate ship.

The other offerings we enjoyed: a crazed Nordstrom's shoe sale, the FREE Lincoln Park Zoo (totally made the $12 stroller rental easier to stomach), the Nature Museum and the playground 2 blocks from Alex's place. Not quite as famous as the "Diana Ross" playground in Central Park**, but pretty darn cool. My brother-in-law opted to join me one afternoon. We were already barefoot in the huge sandbox and I could see his head scanning the playground searching-searching-searching for us with a lost look on his face. I had completely blended in to the setting of mom-ish figures wearing sunglasses with a cell phone to the ear. (Chicago doesn't seem to have as many stay-at-home dads. And I think Austin is completely lacking in Polish nannies.)

SO WHY DON'T WE DRINK PIG'S MILK?
At the zoo, N was very interested in the petting zoo. From there we visited the farm section. We spent a good deal of time looking at the cows and the milking machines and how that worked, pointing out the metal tubes, the udders, the works. Next he wanted to see the piglets. Mama hog was busy nursing one of her spunky litter and I could see N's little gears working up to an observation (please-don't-compare-me-to-the-cow-or-this-nursing-pig...) and then,

"Do we drink pig's milk?"

And so the conversation ensued. Big Smith & Nana piped up with their own experiences with camel's milk and horse's milk (two reasons you probably won't find me hiking across central Asia anytime soon). But yes. We drink or use the milk from so many animals, why NOT the pig?


**I realize that this trip was from back in the day (pre-blogging) when I'd send out my massive emails, remember those? Perhaps I will post that here soon.


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RECENTLY OBSERVED AT DINNER & OTHER CHILD MUSINGS

An entire jar of freshly mixed salad dressing applied to dress one salad.

"You cannot really love a pillow; you can love the shape of a pillow."

I got to witness N's first experience with chewing gum on the airplane ride. Interesting to see someone try to navigate the experience of chewing without swallowing for the first time, and figuring out what to do with all the extra saliva.


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SMITH'S NEW TOY, er... business tool




psst. it's really a new laptop. with a camera built in to the monitor. see how goofy we are when the kids are asleep? this is why we are married.

Beauty in small things

This is the egg from easter that N deemed "too beautiful" to eat. aw.

So it is t-minus 30 days to the TOUR. And we are making our list of things to accomplish. Garage Sale. Paint the shed. Landscaping. Build a sink. Hang closet doors. Hang bedroom doors. Finish the kitchen (will it include a place for garbage and silverware???) I won't even discuss a sofa here. I will be glad when we can look around the house and see the mess for what it is rather than as the tasks we must overcome.

Unrelated sidenote.
Small tinkertoy parts can fit in a small child's mouth, and yet have a hole in the middle from which air and saliva can pass through.