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Monday, June 29, 2009

A Secret Message

Flipping through one of my yellow notepads for a blank page, I came across this cryptic message, in all caps and written in pencil:

Attention AGENT
THE PSA IS ALMOST READY
TO QUESTION THE
CRAB
F.UR.THER INVESTIGATION
COMING SOON
P.S. THIS MISSAGE
WILL SELF-DESTRU
CT
_______________
THE RED LIGHT
SPELLS "YOU ARE
"COOL" IN MORSE

I think the kids have been reading spy books. Or are planning a coup.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Summer Sunday Afternoon


What could be better than hanging out on the hammock and eating popsicles? (the popsicle is obscured by Pippi's foot, but it's there.)
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Summer Fun

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Thursday was the last day of school and, amazingly enough, it wasn't raining. And as an added bonus The Princess and Spiderman were spending the night at Ammy and Grampy's house. So after school we piled into the car and headed to the start of summer.

Celebrating the Good Times

We went to a wedding yesterday.

We didn't have far to go, the church was down the road and the reception was next door, in our neighbor's backyard.

Everything about it was fun, the Mass was lovely, the party was fun, the weather (after what seems like endless rain) was gorgeous. But what really made this party special is that it was so long in coming.

When we first moved into our house we met our neighbor who was living with his elderly mother. We also met his girlfriend (who didn't live there). She told me that they'd been dating for about ten years.

We moved in almost fifteen years ago.

Yes, this was a marriage twenty-five years in the making.

All of their friends and relatives were so happy to finally be able to say they were at Lou and Kathy's wedding. (Because, quite reasonably, some of us never quite expected that day to come.)

We hung out with our other neighbors, and danced and drank (and yes, despite what one of my neighbors insisted, you can have too much Sangria). The kids ran back and forth between the food and our backyard where they ran around and played on the swing set and generally had more fun then if they'd had to keep out of the way around the grown ups.

It was a night to remember. As it should be. After all, it was twenty-five years in the making.

As an aside: Anyone else ever think it odd that an iconic song for a generation, a song that everyone knows all the words to is "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" by Meatloaf?

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Tuesday's Proverb

The lips of the just know how to please, but the mouth of the wicked, how to pervert. (Proverbs 10:32)

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Toys for the Ages

There's been a lot of talk lately in the kidlitosphere about kids and if they are being pushed to read books that are too advanced for them to early. Don't push kids away from picture books too early, is one bit of advice, let them enjoy things that are designed for their age. Some of the best links to this discussion are here at Jen Robinson's Book Page.

Then yesterday the kids got out the marbles and the marble machine pieces and were having a blast playing with them. "Maybe we can get another set and add to this," Pippi suggested. That's when I realized I had bought the set for Harry about 5 or 6 years ago when he was in pre-school. I considered it a pre-school toy - but they are having just as much fun with it now, maybe more, then they did when we first got it.

There are a lot of toys we've kept through the years (there are also things we've gotten rid of or passed down - space is rather limited after all.) Every now and then the kids get out the Thomas the Tank Engine set or all the Fisher Price Little People and have a blast. Pippi still loves playing with her doll house and setting the rooms up. And I even find her playing with the Barbies now and then (something she never actually did in pre-school.)

Our neighbors are always quick to throw things out (their house must be so much more organized than ours!) but their daughter was only about five when the play kitchen went out with the trash. All I could think was that she probably could have enjoyed that for several more years.

But are we too quick to move kids up and through toys. Give them Barbie when they're two and then by the time they are six they will feel too grown up for it. But do we really want our kids to feel too grown up for toys by the time they hit double digits? Isn't it as bad as pushing them past picture books as soon as they can decode words on their own.

People lament how children grow up too fast. But what if we didn't make it seem that once they were in school they were too old for dolls or trains? What if we encouraged them to play like kids even when they were well into elementary school - or beyond?

Just something to think about.
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Tuesday's Proverb

The mouth of the just yields wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut off. (Proverbs 10:31)

Friday, June 12, 2009

Monkey Boy

When one of my brothers was about three he was told he could be anything he wanted to when he grew up. He said he wanted to be a monkey.

I think my son takes after his uncle. Not 0nly does he regularly climb doorways and walls today he was getting his kicks by shimmying up the legs of the swing set in the park, hanging from the top bar and jumping down.

If I didn't know better I'd think he was part monkey.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

Forty-four years ago two young people pledged to love each other forever. So far they're doing a pretty good job of it.

My parents got married while my dad was in law school. I was born the next year - a year before he graduated. This year he retires.

My parents showed us by example how to live a good life, how to be good partners to each other and how to be good parents. Hopefully we'll live up to the example.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Tuesday's Proverb

The just man will never be disturbed, but the wicked will not abide in the land. (Proverbs 10:30)