Can I Help with Those Christmas Lights?

My husband took down the Christmas lights this weekend and it reminded me of the pictures I took a few weeks ago when he put them up. Once he gets started on a project, there's no stopping him. I wish I had more of that in me! I'm the one who works on ten things at once and I'm not sure any of them are ever completely finished. But can you completely finish laundry??? Just asking?

We were working inside and he was working outside.

The two oldest boys put the lights and ornaments on the tree, while Youngest, well, he,...ah...

You get the idea.

It's a good thing the Mortician was in a great mood, because it was cold outside that day, so...

I spent most of my time helping from here.

When he was finished we wandered out to see. My oldest son and I stepped out on the porch and immediately heard a mournful crying. We looked all around, but didn't see the source. We looked at each other and slowly looked up.

Yep, there's Sox the cat! That goofball cat!

As they say,..."curiosity killed the cat".

Do your cats come when you call? This one does not! She was an orphan and I shudder to think what she went through. It took weeks for her to come to us or let us pet and hold her.

So we pondered what to do as she paced in every direction except the ladder.

Since it was cold out and I'm a whimp, I gave up and left the kids to solve the problem. Just being a good mother and all, raising children with good problem-solving skills.

Middleman suggested to his younger brother that they leave the ladder up and hide. There's brilliance in that young mind. She was down within five minutes. I'm so proud!

Dialog in the Dark

On Saturday, we packed up the crew and headed to Kansas City. My mother-in-law was treating us to the wonderful Rockettes Show at the Sprint Center (more to come on that show soon). A few years ago we saw an exhibit in St. Louis called Titanic. It was truly remarkable. The KC Star included a recent article about a new exhibit called "Dialog in the Dark", produced by the same company that created Titanic.

My husband and I decided to run the premise of the show by our kids to see what they thought about touring it. If they seemed interested, we would go in the morning before the Rockettes show. They gave us the staring, puzzled, you-are-kind-of-strange look, which is a long way from "no way", so we ordered tickets.

The Dialog exhibit begins in a room like the one pictured above. My husband, my three kids and I all selected our canes and sat on our lighted cubes. We listened to a short audio tape that explained that the lights would be slowly dropped to "off". The soothing female voice added that many fear the dark, but that this was unneccessary as we would awaken our other senses as we moved through the exhibit with our guide. So...

...the lights faded to complete black. I'm not talked dimly light room, light around the doorways, clock-radio illumination...no, no, no... Total. Complete. Darkness. I could not see my hand a few inches in front of my face. My heart began to pound, my breathing became rapid and I began to sweat. Thoughts raced through my mind, "Where was the door? Could I get out? Maybe I needed to get out!" and I then heard a door open.

Our guide entered the room and began to speak calmly to us. My mother instinct took over and told me to get myself together! I was in here with my children! If I panicked what would it do to them? I began to hear Middleman and my husband whispering to each other. Middleman and I are cut from the same cloth. We experience everything with intense emotions and usually react with... intense emotions.

Our guide was a blind man. Todd was a 32-year-old newlywed. He reassuringly explained that he would guide us carefully through the exhibit and help us to bring our other senses to life. He asked each of us in turn for our name and whether or not we were ok. We each gave an affirmative (mine falsely buoyant, as I suspect Middleman's was, too). Todd kept his word and he clearly led us from room to room in the exhibit, all the while encouraging us to explore and guess what type of environment we were experiencing. We passed through a park and boarded a boat among other adventures. I don't want to give it all away. My youngest amazed me, he seemed completely unfazed. He frequently led us to new rooms and would wait in the new room alone while Todd returned to lead the rest of us! Middleman also became more comfortable even joking with Todd on several occasions. He wouldn't choose to do it over again, but was courageous and calm in facing his fears. As for Hubby and Oldest, they moved through with ease.

We ended by having a "Dialog in the Dark" with Todd, where he explained how he was diagnosed with diabetes as an infant. He added that he began to loose his eyesight 9 years ago and was close to being completely blind now. He explained that only 4% of the visually- impaired population experiences total darkness like the exhibit. However, the exhibit's power is in drawing your focus to your other senses, which is important to anyone experiencing an impairment. By the time we had reached this moment, I was having lapses of time when I didn't even think about the darkness. I just listened to his story.

The Dialog in the Dark experience will not soon be forgotten. I hope that I and my family have taken away from it a deeper understanding of what people with a variety of impairments must face. The difficulties and fears that they must overcome, and the adaptations they need to make. I had to reach inside to find the courage to continue and am glad I did. For more information on the exhibit, click here.

Watching B-Ball with the Boys!

Tonight I sat down with my four boys to watch a Kansas Jayhawk basketball game. They were all very excited about the game, so I decided to settle in with them and enjoy the match-up. KU was playing Syracuse in a tournament game. I can't tell you which tournament because I don't really know much about basketball.

I was determined to enjoy the game. It was being played at the Sprint Center in Kansas City and they sometimes showed shots of the city. I enjoyed that part very much. Anyway, I began to concentrate on the game. The anticipation in the room was intense. I watched the dribbling and the passing... some shooting and some scoring ...and then... I noticed a little curly-que in the back of Bill Self's hair. I also noticed that many of the audience members had on the same T-shirt and it provided a sea of Jayhawk blue as a background. I then began to notice all the tattoos! Oh, my, some of those players are covered in tattoos!!!

I commented that the uniforms were really cool! I think I saw an eyeroll.

Ok, back to the game. Dribble, pass, pass, pass, dribble, shoot and score! One of my sons commented on this being a re-match of the 2003 championship game with Syracuse. Yeah, they all cheered! I complimented my son on knowing this piece of trivia...he responded with an eyeroll.

More watching of the game...dribble, pass, pass, pass, shoot and score! Suddenly the room erupted with "FOUL!!! Why didn't they call a foul? That was definitely a foul! I saw a foul!" I was very tempted to add my observation, "I didn't see a foul," said with knowledge, experience and authority. However, I was certain that comment would have been met with yet another eyeroll.

After a few more minutes, I knew I was destined for reading a good book in my bedroom. Before I left, however, I had to make one last comment. "What do all those boys have tattooed on their arms? I bet it says, I love my Momma". You guessed it...a lot of eyerolls.

It's Just a Crazy Hair Day

Youngest had "crazy hair" day on Friday. After considering his options, he wanted a mohawk. I believe it may be every mother's nightmare that their teenage son will come home with a mohawk, blue hair or a piercing. For my nine-year-old, it's just adorable and funny!

A can of hairspray and some hot air later... and I don't mean to imply I talked his hair up, although that would be entirely possible ... wah-la.

He had a great day!

Oh, To Be Nine Again

Yesterday our youngest had two boys over for dinner and a sleepover. Since it was Friday night, it was easy-on-the-cook night. We had beef tips and noodles from the illustrious Banquet Chicken Company. I know we were living on the wild side with that beef...

Hubby went to the store to buy a second box, some cheddar cheese and some salad. The kids devoured the beef tips in record time and only nibbled at the Chardonnay Cheese Bread I made. We dined in opposite proportions. The bread was incredible, especially paired with that glass of wine!

The kids ran off to play for about 15 minutes and reappeared for more food. Off to play, more food, more play, more food...

Is it just boys???

We all settled into bed about 11:00 p.m. The three young men decided to sleep in the living room, just outside our bedroom door, rather than the downstairs family room. For the first fifteen minutes my husband and I were treated to an at-length discussion of farting and food, interrupted periodically with hysterical giggling. A brief rumble ensued with much more giggling and just when I was ready to get up to ask them to settle down, they became suddenly quiet and we heard not from them again.

I remembered I had this picture of the same three dudes from this last spring.

Oh, to be nine again!

William Allen White Children's Book Awards Celebration

On a crisp, clear October morning a sea of little urchins waited patiently to climb aboard two yellow buses. 64 urchins and 20 grown-ups to be exact. Where were they going? On an adventure to learn about the 2008 William Allen White Award winning authors. The yellow cruisers bumped and bounced into Emporia State University just after 9:00 a.m. The kids flowed out and joined children from around the state.

As they waited to have their newly purchased books signed by the authors, the young (and old) ones met a variety of creatures. Fascination filled their eyes as they reached out to touch an armadillo, snake and iguana.

After lunch a little time to play outside gave way to lining up for a parade.



A parade filled with chants of books, novels and reading.


The merry group walked down the mainstreet of Emporia to the auditorium where the honored authors would speak. Speak they did. Weaving tales of childhood days curled up with wonderful books, early attempts at writing and finally success. The authors added stories of the "real" people, animals and places that inspired the books they've written.

Winner 3rd-5th Grade

A Dog's Life

by Ann M. Martin

6th-8th Grade Winner

Airball: My Life in Briefs

by Lisa D. Harkrader

*A huge KU fan who lives in Tongonoxie.

What did these now weary creatures think over as they returned home on the great yellow buses. Reading can wrap you in an enchanting story - I hope. Writing may allow you to invent interesting characters, develop captivating stories and express yourself - for some. Going on a field trip, shouting one's lungs out with great chants, running at full speed to avoid being tagged and getting to drink soda is a blast - possibly every single one.

2008-2009 Nominees

The First Days of Fall

Last night the thermometer dipped into the 30s. No denying it now, the seasons are a-changin'. We've had a month of what my husband and I have been calling "resort weather". High in 70-80s, low in th 50-60s. Pure heaven. It's funny though how living in the midwest, with it's distinct seasons, leaves you restless if one goes on a little too long. Here's a sweet adieu to summer.

With much anticipation we put in a vegetable garden complete with raised beds and a wind-blocking wall. We've marveled all summer at the bounty.


The first signs of warm weather brought out the neighborhood buddies to wrestle around.

An early season basketball game got the boys fired up.

More fun was had this summer in the canoe on the backyard pond. Not only this hual of fish, but swimming, splashing and general mayhem. Oh, and how could I forget...the leeches!

It was a summer of learning with Oldest and Middleman mastering kneeboarding. Youngest also jumped into the fray fighting for his next turn on the tube.

Aaaah! The evenings of baseball have now been replaced with evenings of football. I have a deep appreciation for baseball's non-contact element. It's also noteworthy, in that it's reminiscent of my youth, when I frequently attended Cardinal Baseball games in St. Louis. Now, it's my boys playing which beats watching the pros ANY day.

We enjoyed watching our nephew, Marshall, play Lacrosse. Youngest longingly watched and wished to move in with his cousins so he, too, could play.


As for me and enjoying a summer evening with my girlfriends, no worries there, we'll just move those antics right inside!

How can we not enjoy the dog days of summer??? However, in the meantime, we turn our attention to those unique cold weather activities that conjure memories, comfort and fun. For me, it's making hearty foods like soups and stews, and anything requiring the use of the toasty oven. It's fires in the fireplace. It's seed catalogs in January and of course, the holidays and all the tradition and...craziness that goes along. Summer, until we meet again...

My Boys Enjoyed Clothing Shopping - I Think Not!

I've entered the Twilight Zone, when it comes to keeping clothes on the backs of my boys. It's a strange and eery place for a girl like me who begged and begged her mother for clothes. I'm a gal who enjoys shopping, not in a neurotic way, I just enjoy acquiring the essential items.

My boys detest clothes shopping. They will shoe shop any day of the week, but mention clothes and, oh boy, you will witness every form of resistance. If you find a way to get them to go, they don't like to look at the clothes, they don't like to tell you which they like, and they definitely don't like to try on the clothes...and about this time a mother's brain begins to melt.


In years past, this refusal to shop was not a problem. I would shop for them and they would wear the clothes. Something has taken hold of these boys. They will no longer grab just ANYTHING to pull over their heads and onto their legs. They have become selective...AWARE.


So what's a mother to do? It's a truly bizarre dilemma. I'm still begging. Now I beg MY CHILDREN to go shopping with me! To accomplish this I've first, laid down the law: an outfit is worn for only one day. You'll have to trust me when I say one day is MORE than enough. Next, I have explained that if they do not go, they will have to wear last year's jeans when it gets cold, even if said jeans are three or four inches too short. Finally, I was simply forced to explain to them they will need to wear what I select for them NO MATTER WHAT, if they refuse to shop!


They agreed to go yesterday! To my great fortune, their father was home and in a moment of weakness, he agreed to go, too! As we entered the mall, my hands began to sweat and my heart to pound. Would I leave this mall with my sanity? I tried a strategy designed to make it easier on both my husband and me. "I will take Youngest (the child who needed the most clothing) with me and you take Middleman and Oldest to the store they like and we will meet." The ole' "divide and conquer" strategy.


Youngest seemed to like this approach. When we arrived at the store, I began by asking him of the shirts in a particular display which color combo did he like best. He pointed. I quickly grabbed his size. Onto the next grouping. Same approach, same result. Whew, this was going well. Jeans...dreaded jeans. Who knew a slight color variation could be so upsetting to pre-teen and teenage boys? A stroke of luck, however. All the jeans displayed were very close in color...grabbed a few sizes and we headed for the fitting rooms. Youngest was beyond cooperative!!! We left the store with some new clothes that he liked AND agreed to wear!

We met the rest of the crew and found they also were successful...a pair of jeans for each boy. We were able to work Oldest into selecting a shirt and some boxers (sorry son, I have inadvertantly revealed your boxer/brief preference). I may have learned the most valuable lesson of all today. The time to go shoe shopping is when only one child needs one pair of shoes... ha ha ha, that happens a lot, hee hee hee ho ho ho...like almost never! Picking up that one pair was amazingly easy. We made it out of the mall alive.


My plan is too study what we bought today very, very carefully. When it is time for the boys to have more than one pair of jeans that fits, I will go to the mall ALONE and buy EXACT duplicates. By then they will probably prefer some variation... refuse to wear them... and I will check myself into the local mental facility.

Just Wondering

How do you convincingly explain to a boy that socks were not meant to be disposable?

Playing Student at Back to School Night

Last night was Back to School Night at the Middle School for Middleman. It started with a free hot dog dinner... if you serve free food, they will come. I pitched in a little in the meal prep and geez, that time was priceless. Lots of sage advice on handling teenagers flew around during the assembly line work. Thanks, ladies.


Following the meal and a welcome from the principal, the students with parents in tow completed a super-shortened school day. A bell rang and we headed for the first class...gym. The gym teachers worked hard to fill the 8 minutes and warned we may have to fill the extra time by running laps...huh? Isn't this pretend school? All concentration was lost as I imagined us old-fogies hoofing around the gym... thankfully the bell rang... onto the next class.


We moved through Middleman's schedule, sitting at his desk and glimpsing his view for a few moments. We heard the philosophy, guidelines and expectations of each of his teachers...got to size them up. They gave us varying ways to contact them and were quite sincere in their desire for us to use them. I couldn't help but be impressed by the number of teachers who off-handedly expressed a love for their subject! Their pleasure at starting a new year was leaking out everywhere. It was contagious. I even appreciated hearing the "new" late work policy - the third "new" late work policy in three years. They were not ashamed of improving it and working to pull the best out of the students. Not even a hint of a "this is the way it's always been done" attitude. I liked that.

We also gained an understanding of the amount of energy consumed by our son each day. He needs to hike from one end of the building and back no less than five times a day. Doesn't leave much time for socializing, daggumit! Must be why he loves getting to school early and eating lunch.


The demands on Middleman's time, energy and attention are great. Back to School Night helped me know caring people are in the building, willing to help...gives a Mom great comfort. It's going to be a good year!

A Freshman. Already?

Oh, mercy! Another milestone. My oldest son left this morning for his first day of high school! High school!!!

For years parents of older children have advised appreciating every moment as it goes by so quickly. I have smiled and nodded thinking they were overdramatic and sentimental. After all we are talking about 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for fourteen years!




At times over the years I have to admit to thinking, "oh, when they are grown up and we have the house to ourselves, we will...", especially when the boys fight incessantly over a game, track yet another pound of mud into the house, or dirty every dish we own.

But somehow those words would echo in my mind..."it goes by so fast". I would think to myself, don't wish this time away, just round 'em up and get them washing dishes. Ha! ...or sit and listen to their stories.. ...or watch them puzzle out a problem. ...or marvel at the 7th-8th grade growth spurt. ...or enjoy another sporting event.

Fumbling with the camera and a deluge of emotions, I watched him walk away. He's so ready for more challenges, more learning, more life. Am I ready? Yes, I think I am. I'm so proud of the young man he's become and am anxious to see him tackle, sometimes fall and get up again in all things high school. Go for it, Oldest!

*Incidently, those girls saw me lift the camera and teased him, so I'm in big trouble when he gets home!

Family Fun at The Ozarks

It was a foggy, mysterious morning... ha. Not really, it was blazing hot and suffocatingly humid, and my camera went into shock and fogged over. Perfect weather for a mini-vacation at the Lake of the Ozarks. No, really! The water is readily available for boating or swimming until you are exhausted and then you can collapse in the air-conditioning of the cabin.


My father has a cabin at the Lake. I was surprised when my brother pointed out that this is the fourteenth summer! As I thought back on those first getaways to the cabin, I remembered my oldest, now fourteen, swinging in a bear swing hung from a branch of a stately oak growing up through the middle of the deck. Yep, fourteen years.

We had the pleasure of traveling to the cabin this past Thursday. We were joined on Friday by my brother, Marty and his family. We did, however, face a few challenges at the beginning and end of this trip. We started with a boat that refused to run and an attack on my sister-in-law of a chigger army and ended with a blown-out tire on I-70 in east KC and lost keys that found their way to the inside bowels of the boat under the engine. I'm pleased to say, we managed to pack some fun into the middle.

The chigger bites may have had something to do with the two furry characters in this photo. Leslie and I were the usual escorts when these girls needed to go outside. She's definitely sweeter than me, as her doctor told her it's the worst case of chigger bites she has ever seen. Itch, scratch, groan...

We have a double-decker dock and the kids love to jump off the top deck... love, love, love it. They endlessly entertained themselves making up different ways to jump. I supervised...well, I read my book and sort of supervised.

Saturday brought boating fun...knee boarding, wake boarding and tubing (in my brother's boat). Saturday evening brought a boat cruise.

Boating is such a wonderful experience.






Not only does it style your hair...

It brings out your children's desire for world peace.






Talk about styling hair.

On Sunday we piled in the boat and traveled to Ha Ha Tonka State Park. On a bluff overlooking the lake, a man built a stone castle for his new bride. As these stories go, the man died before he was ever able to live in the mansion and the house later burned leaving only a partial stone shell. Park visitors may climb 316 steps or follow a meandering path to reach the castle. Bart and I climbed the steps, something we did years ago. Funny how it seemed as though they had added 150 steps and somehow thinned the air.




At the base of the bluffs is a frigid spring. How do I know? My nephew took us all to a spot where the water from the spring rushes by out into the big Lake. The adventure is to jump into this water and float out. Say what??? Not wanting to be a wuss or a sissy, I jumped in. Suppressing a scream as thousands of needles pricked my body, I floated out. Refreshing was how my sister-in-law described it! Refreshing? All the boys jumped in over and over and over...can you explain that to me?



It was a wonderful mini-vacation filled with moments of contemplation...

and silliness...



Thanks, Dad, for having the cabin, taking care of it and letting us come visit!

Garden Update

I just couldn't let you get away for the weekend without a garden update!!! You've probably been wondering, waiting with baited breath, dying to know...ha ha ha hee hee hee. I hope to not bore you, 'cause it's been so busy in the garden this week, like finding treasure every single day!

My youngest came along with me to the garden yesterday, at first to help pull some weeds, then he noticed some very red tomatoes. Off he went to the house and he came back with two very large bowls. He meant business.




It was fun to be in the garden with him, because he was very excited. He showed me the cherry and roma tomatoes he was picking several times as though they were jewels. I know that feeling! He was even a bit annoyed that I stopped the action for this picture.



He looked in all the good hiding places.

He also picked our last batch of green beans. We've had them at dinner four times in the last week or so.

Meanwhile, Mom worked on the weeds:

I had definitely neglected this particular bed, because look what I pulled up with the weeds.

Now the bed is ready for planting. It still has carrots, green onions and leeks growing...they need some company, I think.

Time to make Pesto with this basil. I hope I haven't waited too late as they are just showing flower buds. I learned from Susie this weekend that you can cut them back for regrowing several times in one season! All is not lost if it is too late as we have already enjoyed Ensalada Caprese several times.

Look at this beauty - Peaches and Cream. I was so thrilled to open this ear and see the beautiful corn inside. Stunned may be a better description of the feeling...no worms and lovely kernels. If an amateur like me can do it, so can you!

We boiled the corn up for dinner and it was spectacular!

Have a great weekend!