Thursday and Such

I finished my library books yesterday morning.

We've been getting ready in increments for Grant's birthday barbecue. Today, we brought the necessary grocery items. At least, that was the plan. Naturally, we are going to have to make a second trip.

Tomorrow, Molly is going to come over and save me from a moderate panic attack of the I Don't Know How To Make Kabobs!! type. We are going to prep food together. Well, after I bathe the kids and clean the bathroom and accomplish some other housekeeping tasks.

Grant and Abbie's toys were making marriage proposals today:

"Hey, come back! I wanna marry you!" says the stuffed alligator.

"I don't want to marry you. If you marry me I'll tell my friends to bite you up!" says the plastic alligator.

Should I tell Grant that this "proposal" was the result of Abbie deciding that she wanted to eat a wedding cake? Who needs love when you can have gluttony? It was pretty funny. Abbie's turtle was dressing up in a crown and dress and Abbie was looking everywhere for another turtle to be the "prince". She settled for a lizard with a hat on his back.

Yikes! It's after 2 already. Tonight I'm going to taiko, but first I will need to drop the kids off at Josh's mom's house. I might pick up Michelle, too, if she decides to come along, but she just got back from France today. Plus, it's her birthday. She might stay home.

Josh says that second shift is slow, and that third shift is probably slower. He's still hoping to get on the permanent third shift (however, if first shift had an opening, we'd love it). He still likes work, work still likes him.

Well, I hope you are having a good week. The secret word of the day is parsnip. If you have, in fact, read this blog and are about to leave a comment, please begin by repeating today's secret word.

Happy Thursday!

And It Begins

We are officially within sight of the "Busy Season". I remember last year thinking that August was just a small island of Busy, and that afterward, things would calm back down. It wasn't true, though. August is busy, September is busy, October is busy, November is busy, December is insane, and January is busy. The next time I will have the chance to be bored is after Valentines' Day. I don't mind.

Tra-la, tra-la!

Did I tell you that my mommy is home from Canada!? I missed her. And my Grandmother called to tell me how much she thought of me when she was having High Tea. It sounds like they had a wonderful trip! The only bad things I heard were that my dad got sick with a fever on the second half of the trip, and that he filled his camera's card and replaced it, but then lost the first one. Also, Gran said the second Tea was less wonderful than the first. I got post cards from both Gran and Mom yesterday. It certainly looks beautiful in the post card!

We watched Night at the Opera the other day, and since then I have researched the Marx Brothers. I'm sorry that Chico was such a horrible gambler, but at least he was good natured about it. Groucho had an incredible thirst for the written word, but was sort of a pain. Harpo was my favorite. He taught himself to play the harp, was a happy person, had only one wife, and adopted 4 children. Doesn't he sound like someone you would love to know? I am interested in watching something that was based on their original vaudeville stuff, now.

It's been a while now, but after that Hitchcock mystery, I watched Murder, My Sweet, which was extremely good! If you haven't seen it, it truly is the point of departure for all those Private Detective movies and the origin of lots of stock mystery characters. Great stuff.

Grant and Abbie are both healthy and happy and doing well. Grant might have a new cavity, this time in a front tooth. I'm sad about that. He's getting taller, too. Good thing it's not pants season yet, or I'd be tearing my hair out trying to keep him in clothes. Abbie is still learning all the bathroom stuff, and doing very well.

This weekend is Grant's birthday barbecue. It might rain, so Josh has cleaned out the garage. That way, he can cook the food in there if it is necessary. And we have tidied up the basement for the kids to play in if they can't be out in the sprinkler. We are going to make kabobs, hot dogs, corn on the cob and cupcakes. Mom is going to bring a cake shaped like a soldier and maybe some potato salad. We are also going to have a watermelon. I think I will make some iced tea, too.

My hair is starting to inspire negative emotions. I have to leave it until after the Japanese Festival, though. It's just getting long enough to put up. Another thing that is causing me grief is the fact that my eyelids are flaking again, like they did when I was a child. I don't know what causes it, but it bothers me. One of the many things I've been putting off is a trip to the eye doctor. Probably by the time I save up the money to go, the problem will have stopped. Oh, well! At least I will be able to get new glasses.

Question: Do you sometimes get the feeling that the other person in the conversation is entirely mistaken about the degree of friendship the two of you share?

I will not be at taiko tonight. Kinda bums me out. I got all ready, but then Andrew said I needed to be at Thursday's, and Josh's mom and dad will only be watching the kids one day this week, and one day next week. Boo. Not to worry, though. This will be over after next week. Then, on to a new shift. Possibly, a permanent one.

Speaking of taiko, I know what I will be playing for the J-Fest set. I will be on Zoku again, Omiyage, the new song Kagura, Hiryuu sandan Gaeshi, shaker for Ashura, and I'm playing shime for Drunken Matsuri. I still have never performed the front of Drive. Sheesh. That weekend is going to be complicated. I wonder what I can arrange....

But I still need to keep focused on the most immediate project: Grant's birthday weekend. Then the next thing is to prepare him for school! ...oh, and that echocardiogram.

I'm reading more Agatha Christie again. I read Spider's Web, and I'm about to start A Caribbean Mystery.

It's not rainy today. I might rush out and spray my trees. Oh, never mind. Here comes the thunderstorm. HA!

Hope you are all in high spirits and sanguine moods. I believe I might just make some tea. Happy Tuesday!

Wednesday Morning

Guess what I have. Did you guess? Did you? Well...did you guess New Windsheild? If you did, you would be correct. It even has a rear-view mirror affixed to it. Soon, the truck will be inspected and the license renewed. Ta-da!

I also read a book called The Forgotten Garden, by Kate Morton. I liked it much better than the Stieg Larsson book, but it was sad. It was sad the whole way through, pretty much.

I wonder if my mom is enjoying her trip in Canada. I miss her.

And also, also, I watched a really old Alfred Hitchcock film called The Lady Vanishes. It was kinda...inconsistant. Too slow in the beginning, some supporting characters can't act, a couple of entirely pointless scenes... But I did think it was funny how they made fun of the British pretty much beginning to end. Not that I think anything negative about Brits. I like them. But the jokes were funny, and told by British actors, so I figured I was allowed to be amused.

I made a jambalaya on Sunday for Josh to take to work, and I'm making another one tonight.

I also might be getting a cold, but I took vitamins and am going to try and get lots of rest. I'm ignoring my headache and sneezes. I am officially NOT sick.

And there is some other fantastic news, too: I can stop having a complex about Abbie and the potty training! She has made real progress. On Saturday, it was still as it had been before: we put her in underwear but spent most of the day cleaning up after her. And I talked to her. I said everything I could think of. I reminded her that her younger friends had already figured this out. I reminded her of all the bribes we'd made. I told her how big she was. I asked her if there was a problem. She told me she was worried that she would get splashed, so I assured her that we would just clean her right up. Sunday I went to taiko, and when I got there, Josh sent me a text that she used the bathroom correctly. And she has been ever since! Well, at home. And I still put diapers on her at night, but that's mostly because I don't have anyone to give them to. So - amazing and sudden progress. But that's typical Abbie. Everything she acheives is sudden.

Grant has been very sweet and nice lately, too. Life is good. Except that I have a sore throat. But I'm not sick!! Anyway, I'm trying to start planning his birthday party. It's so close! And so is the start of his kindergarten! Ack! If it weren't so darned hot, I'd be wishing for a few more weeks before August.

Anyway, now I want to hear how YOU are. How are you?? I hope you are having a happy Monday

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson

Well, I finished reading the book, finally, and here is what I think:

On a sentence/paragraph level, Larsson is a clear, successful writer. He even occasionally achieves something like charm. The structure of the book is segmented, which is acceptable, and not too jarring. At least, the changes in perspective are not more jarring than they are intended to be. It reads easily, like a tv drama.

Very like a tv drama.

Larsson has created several characters of moderate likability, and many with considerable unlikability. I would not say that the reader gets to know any character well, but one recognizes who it is one is meant to pull for, and it isn't difficult to persuade one's self to do.

However, on the whole, I'd say my reading experience was neutral, leaning toward unpleasant. It has several very rough moments, which I can handle, but that didn't seem entirely central to the story for plot development, character development...or any reason, really. It struck me as a chance to up the rating from PG13 to R, if you will. In fact, the villains of the story had a real "Bigger! Badder!" kind of feel to them. They were definitely designed for shock value, and their repulsive qualities pile higher and higher....

But is that necessary?

I find that if you author is really that good, even criminals of the ordinary variety can be intimidating or fearsome or whatever is required of them. And I am a little tired of the trend of making the evil deeds more evil in order to have a more memorable book. Really, it was trite. I was not impressed. The most interesting part of the story was the setting, and that could be considered semi-accidental, when one considers the author's origins.

I haven't any intention of spending energy toward hunting down Larsson's remaining two mysteries. Now I know, and that was all I was really going for, anyway.

At the risk of slight spoilers, please read my recommendation:

Please refrain from reading this book if you are adverse to violent sexual assaults. If you want something ridiculously sensational with many slow spots for economics and foreign politics that is just a quick (although by no means short) read, feel free to indulge.

Dull...

Okay, just kidding.

We haven't exactly been sitting around. This weekend, especially, was nice and full. But let me back up:

Last week, Grant and Abbie had their doctor appointments here in Warrenton. It was only the second time I haven't taken them to Rolla for their appointments, and the first time they've been vaccinated here. The nurse was amazing. Because of her, Abbie's favorite part was getting her blood pressure taken with the "bear hugger". She insisted on having it done twice! She is small for her age, but based on the fact that my mother was always small-ish, and Josh has at least two small-ish sisters, I was not concerned. In fact, I was more surprised that Grant is not small. He is very thin for his age, but I'm sure that is only because children aren't as thin as they used to be, and he's actually in the 65 percentile for height. Hmmm. And speaking of Grant....he has a heart murmur, according to the doctor.

Isn't murmur a snuggly sounding word? Doesn't it call to mind pastoral brooks or newlyweds watching movies in one another's arms on a very comfortable-looking couch, or babies talking in their sleep? Just wait until it comes out of the mouth of a pediatrician. It completely ruins the affect.

What is a Flow Murmur, anyway? I looked it up when I got home and couldn't find anything. Fortunately, my dad (pharmacist, you know) asked the doctor he works with and she happened to be researching flow murmurs for her Continuing Education. According to her, they are benign, usually outgrown, and don't necessarily indicate any pathological malfunction whatsoever. They are also present in 5-85% of children. WHAT? Isn't that a crazy statistic? It would seem that they are not as easily detectable in larger children, but scrawny kids like Grant are easier to hear. I get the impression that it is believed that the vast majority of kids have noisy hearts.

Majority or no, benign or no, I have been told that I must take Grant to the city the day after his birthday for an echocardiogram. The lady on the phone could confidently rule out the $1200 one, so it will either be the $570 one or the $840 one. That news caused me a bad day. Why is it that even though Josh is finally about to make "enough" money, I am not going to be able to enjoy any sort of security? Then, I talked to the financial lady, who told me that since I am paying for it myself (nope, no benefits from Josh's new job) I qualify for a discount. Not so bad.

We helped the Frankes move on Saturday! It was fun. Abbie had a great time picnicking with Amelia on her new deck, and we got done faster than anyone had planned, which is a good thing. Grant helped carry for a while. Later, he tried to lie down on the cat and got attacked. This is why I always tell the kids to ask the animals parent's first.

Sunday, I took the kids to Rolla. We had lunch at my mom's house and then got our pretty clothes on to go see Annie at Ozark Actors Theater. It was the first musical they'd ever seen live. They were pretty good for their ages, a little squirmy, but not loud. Sadly....we didn't see the end of the musical. That's right, we were evacuated to the basement instead!! Tornado sirens were going off in Rolla. Even after the sirens had stopped, they couldn't get the power to come back on. Those who lived close enough got vouchers for the next week's show, but we just left. Before we did, though, we went and said thank you to "Annie", whose real name is Maggie, and Abbie gave her a hug.

Later that evening, the fun continued as we discovered that the strange sound we'd heard was baby birds that had fallen down the chimney into my parents' fireplace. Armed with a shoebox, a wire tie and a ladder, my dad rescued them and fixed their nest. For his pains, the baby birds scratched the &*@# out of his arm.

In the morning, we took a walk down the road and saw Ms. Reba and her horses. She was just finishing a lesson, and let Grant and Abbie walk in circles on her horse, Hollywood. Wish I'd taken a camera!

In the afternoon we went to the Splash Zone in Rolla. We stayed a long, long, long time. The kids had fun, of course, and were reluctant to leave, but seconds after we did, and even before we were in the car, it started to rain! I was going to wait until around bedtime to leave, so I could be sure that the kids wouldn't nap all the way home and then keep me up late, but when I called Josh, he said he'd rather I wasn't out so late, so I packed up right after dinner and came back home....in another horrible storm.

During all this, my poor cousin has had a pair of sick horses and, worse luck, they are her show horses. Poor thing. I believe they have colic that might be, in fact, colitis, but they are at the University being taken care of, and I am hoping that they are on the mend.

Did you see that for my last blog, a comment was posted that says, "Failure is the mother of success" ? I agree. However, I don't see how it is applicable to that particular blog. Where is the success? Where is the failure? I think a more befitting thought to ponder would be, "Celebration is the mother of disarray."

Today, we watched Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. We borrowed it from my mom. I have my own copy, but can't find it anywhere. It's really bugging me. At least the kids can watch mom's until it is located. Also today, we got on youtube and watched a bunch of kids sing different songs from Annie. Abbie is officially interested in the theater as a hobby/career. Grant just wants to learn how to work the lights.

Mom is also lending me her copy of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I just started it and have no opinion yet. She leaves tomorrow for her latest trip! She and her brother and mother are going to Canada. And Michelle is in France, and Julie just got back from Italy and Eddie went to Mexico this summer....I am very behind in my world traveling, it would seem!

Josh is doing classwork this week. He's already learned the general dispatch stuff from air traffic control, so it isn't as fun, but he's still doing well, and still on day shift this week.

YIKES! I'd better run along and shower if I want to get everything done in time to go to my taiko meeting. Sorry if this is cut off in feeling.

Bombs Bursting in Air

The holiday weekend is over now, and with this many mosquito bites and leftovers, it must have been great!

Friday evening we went as scheduled to Josh's mom and dad's house. It was a little crazy there. They were leaving for the lake, and we caught them as Josh's dad was re-packing the car to fit Austin and Sydney, my niece and nephew, who were added to the group at the last minute. Josh's mom was supposed to already be there, but wasn't, so there was some serious high blood pressure on the part of Josh's dad. Eventually she did show up, and they left to join the reportedly miserable traffic. We had Popeye's fried chicken and macaroni salad and Pringles and popsicles and s'mores and vanilla ice cream for our root beer, orange and strawberry sodas. Strawberry soda and vanilla ice cream is not quite as yummy as it sounds. There was swimming with Johnny and Becky and Baby Wyatt, and then we started shooting off our fireworks. Heather and Renee and J showed up, too. After the fireworks they stayed and we played games and had more unhealthy desserts. It was great.

Saturday morning there was a little picking up here, but not enough to call it "cleaning". But we did get the week's grocery shopping done. We went to Amelia's birthday party in the afternoon. The kids hopped right in the kiddie pools right away. And Abbie stayed there forever. She missed the singing and even missed eating cake and Amelia opening her presents. Hee. I was sitting around eating fruit salad all night. It was yummy. I still had the headache I had since Thursday morning, but it was more fun than sitting home alone with a headache. Eventually Abbie got cold and I re-dressed her. She spent the remainder of the evening charming party guests. Grant and Amelia share a passion for dinosaurs, so they were happy, too. We left when it was Amelia's bedtime, promising to come back Saturday to help the Frankes move into their new apartment.

We had actually planned to stay home on Sunday, but ended up shooting fireworks off with the neighbors. During the day, I made a fancy fruit dessert, the one where the crust is sugar cookie, and then you make a cream cheese icing and top it with blueberries and strawberries. And for dinner, Josh grilled brats and pork steaks. Around 7, we cut up a watermelon and carried it to the neighbors' house. It wasn't quite as ripe as it could have been. They'd made cookies, so we (Josh in particular) had some, and then started the fireworks show. It was fun. Abbie did...okay. She's sensitive to the noise, and once she got used to that, she was still afraid of some of them that had spark trails. She didn't want them to "get on" her. She loves fountains, though. So do I.

I called over at my grandmother's house. I didn't get to talk long, but it sounded like they were all having a great time.

The last thing we did was to watch the Warren County Fair's fireworks display from our deck. They were great. We could see nearly all of them.

Now I have an army of mosquito bites on my feet, two filthy children, and my kitchen is trashed. Josh ate almost the whole pan of fruit dessert already. He's working today, too. I need to do a load of laundry for him. And I need to pay bills. Is the mail running today? Anybody know?

This week has no special plans. I have taiko on Tuesday and Thursday, of course, and on the weekend we are helping Ryan move.

My brother, by the way, is looking for work.

I am going to start that laundry. Hope you have a wonderful day, whether you are at work or at home or on some fantastic vacation.