Simple Sunday – Just Google It!

Posted on September 22, 2013 by Shoes

Carter has his very first loose tooth!  My youngest son, the baby of the family.  Soon the landscape, the morphology of his sweet little boy face will forever be changed with the loss of his first baby tooth.  There will be for a short while, oh the shortest of whiles, a gap.  The gap will quickly be replaced by a solid reminder of the passage of time and Carter’s movement forward towards adulthood.

Carter first loose tooth

The day after tomorrow it will be picture day at his school.  Carter’s kindergarten picture.  Will he still have that tooth or will there be a gap in his sweet and charming smile?  I do not know.

Tonight as he was wondering about the number of tooth fairies and how each one knows where to go and whose tooth to collect, he was getting frustrated by my vague answers, his great problem solving mind presented.  With authority he strode towards our computer, looked back at me and asked, “Why don’t you just look it up?”  Oh dear.

Some things just can’t be Googled.

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Simple Sunday – Playing with Fire and Cooking Quotes

Posted on September 15, 2013 by Shoes

Alright I will be totally up front with you all – the quotes and the pictures in today’s post have nothing to do with each other.  But whatever.  I do what I do.

Yesterday morning we made waffles at Cody’s request.  This is what he had to say about it.

cody:  I could almost faint when I smell waffles because I just love them so much!!!

After eating the waffles and partaking in what I referred to as “Morning Math Madness” (we all three had math homework so we all did it together) we made mini banana bread muffins as per Carter’s request.  As normal he got to lick the mixer beater because Cody does not like banana bread or its batter.  This is what he had to say about it.

carter:  Momma, this is my most favorite kind of licking batter!!

And since this is a Simple Sunday (and these almost always includes a picture – in fact they may always include one but I am too lazy to fact check that) here is a photo or four.  They do not relate to the above nonsense but I feel that you will not judge me too harshly.

Playing with Fire Collage

Posted in Food Glorious Food, Simple Sunday | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

A Bird and a Book

Posted on September 14, 2013 by Shoes

I love driving around conversations.

The boys and I were driving home yesterday from Cody’s physical therapy, a short drive of ten minutes or so, when Carter piped up from the back seat that he was going to have a pet store when he grows up.  As we drove, the pet store in his mind took a very definite shape.

Carter’s pet store would sell birds.  Only birds.  And some of those birds would be free for people who could not afford a bird.  Half the pet store would sell books.  But only books on animals (including birds, of course) and trees and grasshoppers.  Oh, and some of those books would be free too, again for those people who did not have money.  He would offer a reward program for people who took good care of their birds, supplying them with a small bag of free bird food.

As I drove along listening to him construct his perfect bird/book store, I was impressed at the details.  And the fact that he was so aware of providing for people who may not have the money to buy a bird or a book.

And then some of Carter’s control issues started to seep into his bird/book store plan.

Anyone who bought a book HAD to take a free bird.
Anyone who bought a bird HAD to take a free book.
Anyone who bought two books DID NOT get a bird.
Anyone who bought two birds DID NOT get a book.

He was very clear on these rules; they were not to be broken.

Then the topic of pricing came up.  Carter wanted to sell everything for fifty cents.  Cody, who had been listening to all of this but had not said anything, spoke up and told Carter that two dollars would be a “more appropriate” price.  Carter, knowing that 50 is greater that 2, scoffed.  They had a heated debate on this topic for a couple minutes.  Cody explained that two dollars was more that fifty cents and he would make more money if he priced everything at two dollars.

Carter thought about it for a minute and then said that if he charged two dollars, less people would buy since it would cost them more.  Wow!

In the end since it was Carter’s bird/book store, it was decided that all items would be priced at fifty cents, unless they were those items that were free.  Cody thought he might branch off and run his own store where everything was two dollars.

So if you are in the market for ONE bird and ONE book, I know of a future store for you.  If you are decadent in your bird and book acquisition and desire TWO books and TWO birds, well then please take your business elsewhere.

Posted in Little Feet | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Anything but a Simple Sunday

Posted on September 8, 2013 by Shoes

It has been almost two and a half years since I have spoken with my sister.

Our relationship has never been easy but up until the moment we stopped talking, I continued to try.  She is family, after all.  I will not go into detail, it is enough that you know that I love my sister but I can no longer do it, it is too destructive, too painful, and simply too much.  It hurts.

In the two and a half years that we have had this vast and deafening silence between us she has been through a divorce, dated some unsavory characters, and has spiraled downward into a mire of self-destructive behaviors.

It is sad and scary to hear about.  She has always been the solid one of us, my sister and I.  She was the salutatorian of her class, flew through veterinarian school, and has had a successful career.  I plodded along, graduating somewhere in the middle of my high school class, switched majors in college numerous times before dropping out to run off with Mr. Asshat, before finally getting myself out of that negative relationship and back into school, graduating and starting a family.

I don’t want to write about the details, the guilt I feel for not trying to reconnect, the guilt I feel for feeling relief for not having to carry this weight, for remaining at arm’s length.

I feel sad for her.  I feel the helplessness of the situation, for she does not believe she is out of control.  She pushes away help and refuses to admit there is a problem.

And sometimes it leaks out, the feeling that I am not being a good sister, that I am not doing what I should.  But I can’t.  I know it would break me down, I would let it.  And I mustn’t.

And so I keep the silence in place, firmly, while I cry behind it’s uncomfortable protection.

Posted in My WordPress Therapy Couch, Simple Sunday | Tagged , , , , , , | 30 Comments

Simple Sunday – Up to the Top of the World

Posted on September 1, 2013 by Shoes

They shimmered in the sun, whirring and spinning non-stop while we waited in line for our turn.

Crystal Mountain Gondola

Up, up, up.  At the top was a breathtaking view.  Ladybugs – four, five, half a dozen or more – alighted upon us, staying for a moment or hitching a ride until we gently brushed them off.  We found folding chairs to rest in, ice cream treats to nibble, and wildflowers and butterflies splashed across the edges of dusty trails.

Across the expansion of green meadows, oh how I never knew the many colors that singular green could be, and blankets of seemingly Lego sized trees, she rested heavy and substantial.  Shrouded in white, old and wise to the ways of the world, she demanded a silent respect.  And she got what she demanded.

Mount Rainer

And then it was time to go.  And so we went, back down to the bustle and busy of life in the foothills, life in the shadow of such magnificence.

Gondola at Crystal Mountain

It was a good reminder of the vastness of nature and the oldness of time – this on the last weekend before the start of a new school year.

Posted in Simple Sunday, The Great Outdoors | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Simple Sunday – Camping/Glamping

Posted on August 25, 2013 by Shoes

Yesterday we did some pseudo camping.  This is basically where a person is too tired to full on camp so they just meet up with their friends at the campground and spend the day.  We packed our camp chairs, some firewood, and Carter’s stuffed owl named Hool (a mix between the words hoo and cool) – you know the basics for slacker camping.

Here is Hool – morning, noon, and night.

Day Owl Night Owl Collage

Our friends, who were actually camping had already been there one night and so had their campsite all set up and functioning.  They also treated us to lunch, dinner, and s’mores. It was awesome!

Whittling Woman Preparing the Sticks

Whittling

We had a troll’s feast for lunch consisting of meat grilled on sticks, along with delicious veggies, dips, and cheeses.  Dinner was beef, chicken, and a variety of garden grown veggies grilled over the fire paired with salad.  It really was a cross between camping and glamping.

Camping or Glamping?  – Evidence #1

Camping or Glamping Collage 1

Camping or Glamping? – Evidence #2

Camping or Glamping Collage 2

We went on some lovely nature walks in the park.

Twisty Paths and Horsetails

Camping Nature Collage 2

Wildflowers and Wetlands

Camping Nature Collage 1

As the light faded and the evening stretched into night, we found it hard to say goodbye.  Cody and Carter had made friends with the daughter of my longtime friend and right before we broke camp (and by broke camp I mean packed up our four chairs, the stuffed owl, and made sure we had one dog and two children in the car before driving away) I took this picture of the kids.

Evening firelight

It was a sweet, sweet day filled with old friends, conversations in the forest over tasty morsels, times remembered, and the creation of new times to reflect upon.

Posted in Simple Sunday, The Great Outdoors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Full Disclosure and Gettin’ Lucky

Posted on August 22, 2013 by Shoes

Yesterday Cody was finishing his lunch when this conversation occurred, completely catching me by surprise.

cody:  Is a baby alive while inside the mom’s tummy?

me:  Yup, babies grow bigger and bigger inside their mom’s tummy until they are ready to be born.

cody:  How does the egg and the boy stuff, um, sperm turn into a baby?

me:  (In previous conversations of this nature I have tried to and successfully been vague.  I don’t know why I do this other than it is a delicate topic and I don’t know how much to say.  So again I bust out with my question sidestepping techniques.)  If everything is just right, the sperm can go into the egg and fertilize it.  This starts all sort of activity inside of the egg.  The genetic make up from the dad, that came from his sperm, and the genetic material from the mom, in the egg, come together and a baby can start growing.

cody:  (Frustration leaks into his words.)  But how does the sperm get to the egg?

me:  (Ah, well, here it is.  A pointedly direct question deserves a direct and clear response.  But I try one more time to be vague.)  The mom and the dad have sex.

cody:  But what is sex?

And so after I take a deep breath, I tell him.  I tell him that this is something only adults do with each other and not something kids should ever do.  I use anatomically correct language and explain what body part goes where.

cody:  (After a brief pause).  Wow!  That’s kinda cool…and kinda gross too.

me:  (Trying not to laugh and at this point grabbing the closest piece of paper to jot this down so I can get his wording just right for my retell to Husband and you, my lovely readers.)  Well, yeah, it is pretty cool.  It may sound gross to you because you are not an adult yet.

cody:  So…how does the sperm get to the egg from the mom’s magina   (Man, this kid is very detail oriented, even if he can’t quite get right the correct pronunciation of lady parts!)

I discuss the path the sperm takes to get to the egg and how the conditions need to be just right for the egg to get fertilized by the sperm.  I say something along the lines that the mom and dad have to be pretty lucky for all this to happen in order for them to have a baby.

At this point, Carter who has been in the room quietly looking at a Captain Underpants book raises his head and provides his two cents worth.

carter:  Momma!  That means you got lucky two times!!  Because you have two sweet boys.

Yup.  So there you have it.  I, and I guess under Carter’s definition Husband, got lucky two times.

Posted in Little Feet | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Our Furry Family Members and the Memories They Give Us

Posted on August 20, 2013 by Shoes

As I mentioned, our family got a little big bigger (Ha!  When I typed the word “bigger” it came out of my fingers as “better” and I would have to say that works well too) with the addition of our sweet rescue dog, Haley.  And so it would be negligent of me not to write my next newspaper article about animals, specifically pets of my childhood and the ones that will be a big part of Cody and Carter’s childhood.  So I did.

Haley on the couch

Without further ado here is my latest article that ran in The News Tribune yesterday.  I hope you enjoy it.

Please remember that I want to keep my blog and identity hush-hush.  I love comments, Facebook recommendations, and tweets on the newspaper’s website (Love them! – thank you to those of you that did so on my other articles!) but try and refrain from calling me Shoes or mentioning ShoesOnTheWrongFeet.  Thanks!

Posted in Blogging/Writing, Furry Feet (and fish) | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Simple Sunday – Sometimes Words Take a While

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Shoes

It has been one of those weekends where Husband takes the boys out of the house on a fun adventure so I can stay at home and work on school work.  Good times.

So I had been struggling on my 500 word portfolio entry on where I am with the standard of effective teaching, making sure I could supply concrete evidence to support my assertions when the boys came home.

500 word.  They had been gone for hours.

I was feeling frustrated.  I also had one more 500 word portfolio entry to work on that I had not even started.

Carter came bursting through the door chatting about their trip to the nature center.  I spied on his shirt a small button and asked him what it said.  He informed me that he had found it in the parking lot and that I could have it.  I reached up to take it off his shirt, only reading it once it was resting in the palm of my hand.

Sometimes words take a while

Yes, yes they do.  Sometimes words take a while.  After a late lunch or an early dinner –whatever you want to call it – Husband and the boys left again, this time to go swimming at the Y.

I wrote on.  I am now finished with my 1,000 words, but they sure took a while!

If any of you know what this button is talking about, please let me know.  I am guessing it is a grammar thing regarding awhile vs. a while but I am too lazy to look it up.

Posted in Blogging/Writing, Simple Sunday | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Simple Sunday – Through the Lens of a Child’s Camera

Posted on August 4, 2013 by Shoes

Every month or two I transfer the photos from Cody and Carter’s camera onto the computer.  Lately Carter has taken a great interest in photography and actually captures some pretty nice images and moments of our lives.  I thought I would share.  Perhaps this will become a “thing” I will do from time to time.  Why not?

Self Portraits:  

Ahhhhh…

Carter Self Portrait Collage

Cheese!

Cheese!

Still Life:

Crazy Pillow Collage

Cody and Carter each spend $10 of their own money that they made at their lemonade stand this summer on these cute huggable pillows.  On the left is Mr. Cuddles.  On the right, Owl.

Banks Buttons and Dog Collars

The round globe objects are ceramic money banks made by Cody and Carter’s Grandma.  The button collection is one I used to play with when I was a child.  We have added to it and occasionally the boys like dumping it out and sorting buttons.  In the middle are Rosy and Dexter’s collars.

Rocks in a backpack of course

What’s in the bottom of your backpack?  Well, now you all know what is at the bottom of Carter’s.

Family:

Backseat photographer

Carter – what a backseat photographer you are!

POW!

Show me your mean foot, papa.  POW!

Big Cheese

Big, crazy CHEESE!!

And My Favorite:

Haley noshing on a toy bone

Here is Haley girl noshing on her Nylabone.  That is one happy puppy!

Posted in Simple Sunday | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments