Poetry Friday - Tessa in Wonderland, Part 2

This snowy Friday, I bring you the second in a continuing series by my 13-year-old daughter.

Tessa in Wonderland

by KRM

Part II
When I awoke, I immediately knew
It was NOT a
Dream.
The headache
I’d acquired from my
Run-in with the tree
Was real enough
The scrapes on my knees
Were real
I pinched my arm
And felt it,
This was no dream.

I propped myself up
Watching a cart or two
Filled with
Human-sized frogs
Card people
Walruses and
Things like that
Pass by.
Wondering if
Maybe they noticed me.
I never realized
That they were trying hard
Not
To.

“What is this place?”
I asked passersby
Who ignored me
Completely
Like the others.
I kept asking
Until a
Chocolate-colored
Rabbit
Slowed his mules,
Reigns held tightly in
His brown paws,
One ear was flopped
Over his right eye
And it twitched slightly.
“Where am I?”
I asked.
He stared at me.
“You’re an otherworlder?” He said
In awe

“I guess.” I said,
Rubbing my scraped knees
“Well, Otherworlder
This is
The Spade Province
Of
Wonderland.”

MsMac is hosting the Poetry Friday Round-up over at Check it Out. So go and check it out!

Thursday Thoughts

It's snowing here.

Again.

But there have definitely been some bright spots in my week.

The sump pump not working as expected and causing a couple inches of water in the basement was not one of them.

But seeing my son's face as he got the bright-yellow 21-speed mountain bike he's been wishing for as a 10th birthday present was definitely one of them.

(I would post a picture of my son with his bicycle, but it appears my camera decided it wasn't necessary to save those pictures. Hmph.)

Another bright spot was the review I discovered yesterday at Not Enough Bookshelves. Go ahead and read the whole thing. My favorite line was:

You know when you've had a rough day and you just want to curl up on the sofa and devour a whole bar of chocolate, but you can't because of that pesky diet? Well, When Mike Kissed Emma, is the perfect alternative.

On the writing front, with one book ready to send out in the hopes of finding it a publishing home, I've started revisions on another story. This one is a time-travel Civil War story and should be a lot of fun to really dig into.

Lent has gotten off to a good start here - though birthday celebrations during Lent are always a challenge. Unfortunately with a birthday at the end of February my son will be celebrating during Lent more often than not.

And as a final thought, I leave you with a picture of my 10-year-old.

Tuesday's Proverb

Virtue directs toward life, but he who pursues evil does so to his death. (Proverbs: 11:19)

Poetry Friday - Tessa in Wonderland, Part 1

Knowing that I like to showcase her poems on Poetry Friday, my 13-year-old daughter has written me a series of poems specifically for Poetry Friday. Here is the first one.

Tessa in Wonderland

by KRM

Part I
I remember falling
Out of that tree’s
Strong arms,
The ground crumbling
Beneath me
As I fell into that
Sinkhole.
At least, that’s what I thought
It was at the time
Everyone
Told me that I had
Had a bad dream
But I knew it was anything but
A dream.

I fell through the hole
Yelling as loud as I could
Limbs flailing,
Then I hit the ground,
And I continued to yell
As I rolled
Down a hill,
Scraping my knees
Ripping my grass-stained overalls
My tumble only stopped
When a huge oak tree,
Ironically the same kind that I had
Fallen out of
Stopped my journey
After that
It was only
Darkness

Wonderland was a scary place
No one trusted the other
Rabbits talked
Flowers sang
Trees indulged in meaningful conversation
A girl from the otherworld,
Like me,
Is regarded like a freak
Because we hardly ever make it down there.
Wonderlanders had their own
Troubles,
It was surprising I made it out
Alive.

TO BE CONTINUED.....

The Poetry Friday Round-Up this week is by Irene Latham at Live. Love. Explore.

These Forty Days

I saw this video in a few different places and thought I'd share it too, for Ash Wednesday.

Tuesday's Proverb

The wicked man makes empty profits, but he who sows virtue has a sure reward. (Proverbs: 11:18)

Tuesday's Proverb

A kindly man benefits himself, but a merciless man harms himself. (Proverbs 11:17)

A Review to Brighten my Day

There's nothing like a nice review to brighten up a gray February day. And I found that today over at Bookworm Nation where Kathy gave a sweet review to When Mike Kissed Emma.

My favorite line:

This was a fun romantic read to help get you in the mood for Valentine’s.

That puts a happy end to the week! Bring on the snow!

Poetry Friday

It's Poetry Friday once again, and luckily I came across another poem my 13-year-old daughter wrote (I'm very lucky she likes to write poems or I'd have nothing to put up on Poetry Friday!)

Odd and Queer but not Strange
By KRM

Isn’t it strange
How
In stories they never tell
About how
The character
Flunked Civics
Because he was fighting
Crime?
Or how so and so
Fell asleep in Math.
Or how the hero
Couldn’t open his locker
When Evil Character was
Dropping books
On His head?

Isn’t it Weird
How
Fairy tales conveniently
Have villains and
Princesses in stock?
Or how Princesses
Hate to sew…
And get locked in towers?
Where do they find these towers?
I’ll bet they make
Great
Detention and
Suspension rooms.

Weird, isn’t it
How they completely
Skim over the structure
Of government in
La-La Land
Except to say that
It was
Ruled by a dictator
King or Queen
Everyone loved….
Why didn’t Everyone fight
For
King and Queen
Instead of going against them
When they were overthrown?

Strange how
You think about this stuff
When you should be
Studying.

The Poetry Friday Round-Up is at Great Kid Books.

Tuesday's Proverb

A gracious woman wins esteem, but she who hates virtue is covered with shame. (The slothful become impoverished, but the diligent gain wealth.) (Proverbs 11:16)

Soup on Saturday

It's not always easy to organize meals so that we can all eat together - and there are times - especially during baseball season - when it is just not possible. And Saturdays pose another problem for us. My daughter became involved in an archery league. It meets Saturdays from five to seven. It is forty-five minutes away. My husband takes her there. This means they are gone from about 4:15 until 7:45. Which of course leaves me with the question... um, when should we eat?

I solved this problem with soup on Saturdays.

I use my slow-cooker and whip up a batch of soup. And I try to make some fresh bread too - if I get the chance. My husband and daughter have a bowl before they leave and another when they get back (with the bread the second time). My son and I eat when the bread is done.

This has been working great in the fall and winter. We'll see what happens when the nice weather comes. Soup might not be so appealing then.

And if anyone is interested in my super easy soup recipe here it is (adjust as you see fit.)

1 lb ground beef browned (sometimes I chop up onion and garlic and cook it with the meat - other times I just use my trusty spice bottles).

1 28 oz can of tomato sauce, tomato puree or crushed tomatoes - any one of these work.

1 large potato diced

1 large or 2 medium carrots diced.

But it all in the slow cooker with one can of water (a good way to get the extra tomato out of the can). Add spices to taste. Stir and cook on low until dinner time.

Poetry Friday

For Poetry Friday this week my thirteen-year-old daughter is allowing me to share another one of her poems. Though, let it be noted, this poem is not going to get her out of cleaning her room.

Why Cleaning your Room is Bad
by KRM

Six inches High
Standing on my desk
Chubby hands on hips
Looking Fierce
“What did I tell you?”
He asks
“Why didn’t you listen?”
I sat at my desk,
Staring at him,
Confused, Scared.
“Well, human,” He snaps
“Now this is WAR!”
He jumps down
Onto a bed of s
Stuffed animals
Back to his
Tribe under
A heap of doll clothes,
Binders,
And Bags.
I should’ve known better
Than to clean my room
And disturb
The gnomes.

The Poetry Friday Round-up is being hosted by Anastasia Suen over at Picture Book of the Day.

An Interview

Eleni, over at La Femme Readers, has an interview with me up today. Go and read find out all kind of obscure facts about me, like why I don't go to horror movies.

Tuesday's Proverb

He is in a bad way who becomes surety for another, but he who hates giving pledges is safe. (Proverbs 11:15)

Poetry Friday

Yes, I know I haven't posted in almost a month. I'm going to try to remedy that. In the meantime it's Friday and my daughter wrote a new poem last night, so without further ado here is our contribution to Poetry Friday.

Jack
by KRM

I was no fool
The man paid me
Plenty more for that
Cow than it deserved.
And then he handed me
The beans.

Grinning, decaying teeth
Exposed,
He said, "Keep the change,"
Then he vanished,
With my cow.

I stood in the middle
Of the road for a moment,
Staring at the
Leather pouch
of coins, and the
Five beans in my
Palm.

Then I scampered home,
Tossed my mama the money
and planted those beans.

I never expected it to take one night,
But when the stalk grew
I had every intention
Of being foolish
And seeing what
Was beyond
The clouds it grew
up to.

The rest of course,
Is history.
And yet, I can't help
But wonder
Who would want a
Sickly cow
And part with
Magic beans?

The Poetry Friday round-up is at Liz in Ink.

Poetry Friday - Happy New Year

My daughter has kindly provided me with a New Year's poem just in time for Poetry Friday.

Happy New Year
by KRM

December 31st,
Trying to plan a time
For friends to get together
When
I looked at the calendar
Only to find that after today,
There were no more days!
The calendar had ended,
The Friday and Saturday slot were empty
The year was apparently no more
To my horror, I surmised,
That the world would end
Upon this day
December 31st.

How to plan
For the end of the world?
On facebook
I hollered,
“THE WORLD WILL END TONIGHT!”
The authorities were alerted,
The world sat in terror and fright.
Those lucky enough not to have heard,
Went to Times Square to watch the ball drop,
While the smart ones,
We who knew the world’s
Oncoming plight
Scurried to find
A good hiding spot.

December 31st,
The day the calendar ended,
The day that would not be followed by a new day
The day that people hid in terror and fright
The day that ended with KABANGS!
And POPS!
Of champagne bottles and fireworks,
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Those who hadn’t heard rejoiced.
I crawled out of my hiding spot,
Confused.
What?!
The world was not over?
We were not dead?
Heck, I’d watched 2012,
I knew how this was supposed to work.
But…
I watched my mom hang up a
New Calendar.
“Happy New Year, hon,”
She smiled.
I flipped through the new pages.
And realized that,
Hey! There was a New Year ahead of us!
I felt fairly ridiculous,
Until,
I saw the end of this calendar-
December 31st!

Happy New Year!!!!!!!

The Poetry Friday round-up is at A Year of Reading.

Things that Made me Happy on a Monday

1) Gingerbread houses and villages made by my own little decorators.

2) Finding When Mike Kissed Emma on this list of last minute gift ideas. I probably should have suggested it myself as a gift idea. And if it's too late to order it in time for Christmas, than it would make a great Valentine's Day present!

3) This review of When Mike Kissed Emma totally made my day. My favorite part:

the writing has clarity and sparkle and I can't wait to read other books by this author.

Go read the whole review!

Now back to baking and cleaning and wrapping and whatever else has to get done this week!

Disappointment

From this weekend:

Can you tell someone wasn't too happy this past weekend's performances of "Annie" had to be postponed due to the weather?

Thanksgiving - Day Two

The pilgrims celebrated Thanksgiving with a multi-day feast, so why shouldn't we? Day two was at my cousin's house and featured pigs in the blankets, a roaring fire, sing-alongs around the player piano, old home movies, and lots of great company.

Fun at the Rochester Museum & Science Center

Instead of shopping on the day after Thanksgiving we headed to the Rochester Museum & Science Center with friends and cousins (okay, one of the friends did hit some early sales first).

We were at the museum for seven hours, mainly enjoying hands on exhibits. We also got to see a visiting Titanic Exhibition which was very interesting. They give you a boarding pass with information about a particular passenger - at the end you find out if your person survived or not. I think the only one in our group who had the card of a survivor was my daughter. It's a very sobering experience.

Most of the time at the museum, though, was spent 'doing' things, including digging for dinosaur bones, scaling a rock wall and learning how things like combination locks work.