And Now, The Costumes

Starting with the youngest.... Kristen wanted to be a penguin. Actually, Alison talked Kristen into being a penguin. However, I didn't have time to make a penguin costume, and couldn't find one on Ebay. So, on a last-minute trip to Target, we found this:

Kristen loved it! She tells everyone she's a "no pin-cess" and loves her "muff".

And this is her class after the little costume parade on Thursday. (Yes, that is the best one I got. 14 3- and 4-year-olds are hard to catch on camera!)

Then, yesterday, it was Halloween party and parade time at school. Alison was "bat girl" (thankfully, she's not that into superheros, so I could get a bat "fairy" costume and have it be okay.)

Walking through the library for the parade...

And Caitlyn was a 20's gangster. (NOT a pimp.)

She's walking next to her teacher, Mrs. Harmon.


A couple more for good measure:


My costume is only understood if you've seen/read Coraline.

And, for the record, Megan didn't dress up this year. So sad.

More Halloween Fun

Russell went and got pumpkins while I was gone to Utah, and Tuesday night we carved them.




Well, some of us carved them. Others of us watched It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.

The final products:

(from left: Caitlyn's, Kristen's and Alison's)

Megan chose this one, carved the W and E, and then Russell did the rest.

And this was the "grownup" one. It's also proof that, when really tired, I can't spell.

Happy Halloween!

That Crazy Funeral Thing

So, I know everyone's been dying to see pictures from the quickie trip to Utah. Here they are:



This one is ALMOST all of the grandchildren. One of the best parts was seeing cousins I haven't seen in over 20 years (some of them, anyway). Fun times. I do hope someone has a better copy of this picture, because the other ones are really washed out.

This was after the funeral, at the church for the luncheon.

Second best part: the great-grandchildren playing together. Hey, it's easy to make friends when you're family, right.

We hung out with Cameron for the rest of the afternoon (I didn't get any pictures of Alia, Tanner and Elena. Oops.). Kristen made him happy. (He's SUCH a flirt.)


It was very cute.

And tiring. And fun. I'm glad we went.

The Early Bird

gets the letter out before the day gets crazy.

This week was spent 1) trying to catch up from being gone for four days and 2) planning to leave again. If you're on Facebook (or a part of my side of the family), you've heard this already... but my grandfather passed away on Monday. It was an odd experience: he was 96, my grandma has been dead for 27 years, it was time for him to go. And yet... I was still shocked and saddened, which surprised me. He's been holding himself together with crank and spittle for years now, but I guess I always just took for granted that he'd be around. It's just another reminder of our mortality, I suppose.

I wasn't going to go to the funeral, but my friend Karen (love her) insisted. Who knows the next time all the Madsens (or at least a majority of them) will get together? I have no idea who's going from the larger extended family, but this might be my chance to see cousins I haven't seen for years (and may not see again). So, she made this happen. She's taking the girls before and after school, because Russell can't take the day off, and I'm taking Kristen with me. That'll be fun. :-) I found myself -- aside from all the crazy last-minute preparations -- looking forward to the trip today and the funeral tomorrow. It'll be good to go and see everyone.

So. Aside from that, it was crazy catch-up (ketchup?) week. Monday, the girls were off school, and we had Merry over to play in the afternoon. Wednesday through Friday Alison and Caitlyn had half days due to parent-teacher conferences. Wednesday, we spent the afternoon in the doctor's office because Caitlyn tripped and fell on the playground (by the end of the day, the story had evolved into some sort of revenge plot against her) and did something to her arm when she caught herself. She had a bag of ice on it when I picked her up, and she couldn't move her fingers or bend her arm, so off to the doctors we went. I. Hate. Doctors. Anyway. It was good that we went... there's a tiny bone called the scaphoid (HA! I looked it up.) that she most likely broke. Nothing showed up on the x-rays (it usually doesn't), but if it's not treated, Caitlyn would have a lifetime of wrist problems. So, they stuck her in a splint, which she's supposed to keep on for two weeks. That's a party: she hates it. It's uncomfortable, it's ugly, it clashes with her Halloween costume. I almost wish they'd stuck something permanent on her that she couldn't take off and mess with. Sheesh. Anyway, we get to go back in November for another round of x-rays to see how it's doing (if they can even tell). Fun times.

Thursday and Friday were mostly normal. Friday, we had the elders over for dinner; the new one is absolutely hilarious and one of those people who like to egg on less-than-desirable behavior. Which is the long way of saying that Alison was being obnoxious and he totally kept feeding it. And we had Caitlyn's friend Maddy over for a sleep-over. (Caitlyn: our social butterfly.) Megan spent the day on Friday at the Central library with her social studies class doing research for her history day project. She's picked the Mormon migration and settling of the West (I think the theme this year is impact in history), and so she'll probably be picking some of your brains about thoughts on that at some point before February. Oh, and Friday was my semi-annual ego boost: I had parent-teacher conferences. Alison's doing great. Really. All the worries I had about reading: no problem. (In fact, we were at Sam's Club on Thursday, and she was sounding out the letters on the cart. I was amazed. And proud. Wow!) And Caitlyn's teacher, of course, adores her. Sometimes, I think it's a waste of time... but I suppose teachers like positive conferences. A reminder why they teach, probably.

And yesterday... yesterday, I got my anniversary/birthday present: we went to see Wicked. I've been putting off seeing the musical for years, mostly because I really didn't like the book. But, friends have raved about it, so when Wichita got the coup and announced it was coming here, we decided to go. And... well, the story wasn't all that great (not that it was bad, it was just choppy, and Russell who didn't really know the story going in was a bit lost), but the music was fabulous. Really fabulous. And the performances were good. And the play ended differently than the book which was nice (because the ending of the book is just stupid). So: worth the money.

Last night the Dumlers had their fall party. Which was a lot of fun (for Caitlyn, Alison and Kristen). I snuck off after an hour to play at a baptism (which lasted for 1 1/2 hours; long for a baptism, but it was good). And Megan went home; she doesn't like the parties at the Dumlers because there aren't any kids her age. Ah well, the joys of having parents who started having kids early?

And today, after Sacrament meeting, Kristen and I are getting on a plane to go to Utah. Whee!

Wicked Outing

So, we went to see Wicked yesterday -- brilliant music (check out my favorite song, Defying Gravity), okay story -- and Russell decided we needed a picture. So we took one. (That's our friends Mike and Karen Austin who we went with, but didn't sit by.)

Another Brokey Arm

Actually, it's her wrist. And it's not really badly broken -- it's just a small bone, but it's better to fix it now than let it go. Unfortunately, that means she has to wear a horrible, awful brace for the next two weeks. Ah, well.

Halloween Fun!!

I could put up two separate posts about Jack and the annual Haunted Gingerbread/Graham Cracker House, but I think (out of sheer laziness), I'm going to stick them together this year.

First, Jack:
You have to wad up lots and lots of newspaper...


Merry helped this year.

Then you stuff it into Jack's clothes.


Don't forget the head!

Voila! Jack.


We -- well, Megan and Caitlyn did, anyway -- decided to make a Haunted Hotel this year.




Amazingly, it's still standing, too!

There and Back Again

My week was divided into two halves: before Thursday and after Thursday. Before Thursday was normal: school, piano, errands (in which I found out that I much prefer Eddie Bauer clothes to Old Navy ones), library, girl drama, friends, chores, rain and cold, family home evening (in which we put up Jack; yes, I'll get pictures up. Eventually.)... nothing spectacular.

Then Thursday, I ran away.

Well, to be honest: I didn't run away; I've been planning on going out to DC for months and months, but by my mental state this past week and a half, I was running away. I had. had. it. Done with the kids. Done with the drama. Just drained. Good thing I had the escape preplanned. (Cheaper that way.)

Anyway. I got on a plane on Thursday morning and headed back east to the big city. Nominally, I went to go to a kid-lit blogger conference (a get-together for all those -- authors, teachers, librarians, fans, moms, whomever -- who are interested in children's literature), but I really (really!) went to see and meet friends. And to get away. (Did I mention that already?) So, Thursday, I hung out at my blogging friend Corinne's house (I've "known" her for three years, but just met her on Thursday!) and we talkedandtalkedandtalked.


(me, Kelly, Corinne, and Cami)

And then Thursday night, I met two more e-friends and we all went to the So You Think You Can Dance concert in Baltimore (after dinner at La Madeline, which used to be one of our favorite places to eat when we lived in DC. Yum.). Anyway. It was a LOT of fun.

(From the concert... not too bad for a dinky little camera and about half an arena away, huh?)




Maybe, next year, when they go on tour, I'll have to see if they get anywhere reasonably near us here and take Megan and Caitlyn. They would have had a blast.

Friday morning, I bummed around Corinne's for a while (yummy whole wheat pancakes, and was entertained by her three lovely children), and then headed down to Virginia (oh: Corinne lives on the Maryland side) to check into the hotel. I stopped by our old apartment building (still there!) and then made a pilgrimage (I'm such a geek) to the National American History Museum specifically to see Julia Child's kitchen. It was so cool.

(See?)

I totally want all her gadgets, and totally was amazed at just everything. I really should watch some episodes of the French Chef. (geeking out done.) Then, I spent the afternoon walking around DC in the rain talking (and eating) with Wendy, who was an absolute dear to come down from New Jersey for the afternoon. YAY!

(with Wendy!)

(The preamble on license plates that we saw at the National Portrait Gallery)

I'm not sure we crammed enough talking into five hours (we could have gone on all night), but she needed to get back home, and I needed to actually go to the conference. Sigh. We do need to get out there as a family...

So (I'll try and sum up from here, because I know y'all aren't that interested in the conference part), the conference: fun. Fun to meet new people, put faces to people whose blogs I read and love, and to learn. Fun to hang out with people who share my passion and geekery about kids books. Fun to just be a part of something like this. Fun. Fun. Fun. (And tiring. By the end of the day Saturday, I was wiped.)

However, amid all that fun, I realized that while I love people and I love talking, I am still an introvert, and big group events are tiring. So, Sunday, I bailed on the conference events, and hopped the metro to Old Town Alexandria. I did stop by the house at Fort Drive (they chopped down the Magnolia tree, Melanie: can you believe that?! I didn't recognize the place and walked past it before I realized where I was!). The people who were currently living there were outside and I chatted with them for a while. (But because they were out, I didn't take a picture. That would have been just too weird.)

Anyway, I walked the entire length of King Street marveling at the (minicoopers) all the places that have changed, and all the places that have stayed the same in the eight years since I'd last seen it.

(I don't understand it, but thought it was interesting. Found it in Old Town while walking around.)

And between the walking and the cool weather (no rain!) and the quiet brunch and places to read, I felt rejuvenated enough to come home.

So I did.

And I found that they had a blast while I was gone. Movies galore! Swimming! Sleepovers! Parties! Exploration Place! Staying up late! Eating junk food! More movies! We LOVE it when Daddy's in charge! Chores did get done, laundry did get done, some healthy food was eaten, but mostly they just had a grand old time. Russell was pretty beat when I got home last night, too. It's tiring being a single parent: I completely understand. The girls were really nice and got me flowers with a welcome home sign. And I did get hugs and kisses (from the two who were awake; my flight was delayed in Atlanta, so I got home later than I wanted). (I was missed.) I called every night and I loved talking to the girls -- they really are fun to talk to on the phone, even if you can only understand one in three words that Kristen says. :-)

So, we're back to normal now. Alison's a bit under the weather, and the girls are all home from school today, but I think I can manage without completely losing it. Perhaps I should run away more often (more often being more than once every six years!)....

The Problems With

writing your weekly letter on the laptop? Twitter, Facebook, Pandora,You Tube and blog distractions will keep you from finishing your letter in a reasonable time...

planning your lovely weekend camping and going to the Renaissance Fair too far in advance? That a cold snap will come along and completely ruin it. (We didn't go.) On the plus side, we probably spent less money not going than if we had gone...

taking four kids out to dinner instead of said lovely weekend? You won't be able to find a decent restaurant on a Friday night and instead will end up eating crappy pizza buffet at CiCis, but your kids will be happy and able to run amok (since everyone else's kids are). And it will cost less. So maybe that isn't a problem after all.

taking kids to the movies? at least one will cry because her older sister bought soda with her own money and dad won't buy her a soda, so she'll have to sit on dad's lap the whole movie. On the up-side (ha, ha, we went to see Up, which was excellent by the way, if you haven't.... squirrel!), the movie was wonderful, Kristen enjoyed hanging out with Porter (the Austins came, too) and was actually really good in the theater this time around. Also, it was at the cheap theater, so it wasn't that much money.

buying a new pair of sparring (not boxing) gloves the day before your boxing class (yes, once a week I punch a boxing bag for 45 minutes. Love it, too.)? Bruised knuckles and an aching pinky. Ouch.

of getting out all the Halloween stuff? You'll realize that you don't have enough Halloween stuff, and spend the last $15 you were supposed to spend on long-sleeve shirts on knick-knack Halloween stuff, just so everything could look just so.

not getting out all the winter stuff? Said cold snap. We actually turned on the heater yesterday.

not having enough go on in a week for an entire letter? You have to get creative! I painted a wall blue -- chalkboard paint -- downstairs. It finally cured enough to use today, and I took pictures (up soon!). It's going to be so much fun to have a wall that people can draw on.

leaving out of town for four days this coming week? Getting everything done (and finding subs who will also be in town and can play the hymns)! Thankfully, there's only a few things left on my list to do before I take off on Thursday for the great beyond (or Washington DC, as it were).

That's really about it for the week. Tuesday was book group, which was always fun. And the girls had a pretty normal week, too: piano, school, NAL's started up for Megan... and just work for Russell. This coming week, though, should be interesting...

Megan Makes Dinner

I actually feel a bit bad about this post. See, Megan's been cooking quite a bit lately. It's partially for her Young Women's Divine Nature project -- she's putting together a cookbook of all her favorite recipes and trying them out in the kitchen. Amazingly, she's learned to cook quite a few dishes -- everything from breakfasts to desserts. It's also because from the one publisher I've got an amazing relationship with, I got a Teens Cook cookbook. Now, in order to review it right, I told Megan that she needed to help me out -- not only look through it and read it, but actually see if it's usable and the recipes taste good.

So, she made dinner last week. (This is the part where I feel bad: had I known she was going to take pictures of the final product, I would have taken pictures of her -- and her sous chef, Caitlyn -- cooking the meal. Instead, I left them alone, since being in the kitchen would make me antsy and want to help!)

Anyway, this was dinner on Monday night:

Steak with tomatoes, onions and basil. And a salad (which we never have!)


It was really quite good, too.

My Best Sister

That's what Kristen calls Caitlyn, anyway.

Drawing On Walls

This was inspired by a few things.

1) The fact that Kristen can't stop drawing on walls (though she is slowing down). The walls in her room, the stair well and the basement are covered with her art.

2) I was in a decorating mood, after painting the front door. (What I really want to do is redo my bathroom because my parents got us lovely towels for my birthday, but that's going to have to wait until we can afford a new medicine cabinet...)

and 3) my favorite picture book author, Mo Willems (don't know Mo? Why not?!) has done this to his dining room. Yeah, I'll never be as good an artist as he is, but you know: it's a brilliant idea: why not paint a wall with chalkboard paint and let the kids have at it?

So $25 (it took two cans), three coats and one week later, we have this:


Which turned into this:

I think we're going to like it.

'Twas a Busy Week

This week wasn't supposed to be busy... but Alison was off school (DIAL testing for kindergarteners), and in order to keep everyone happy, it became busy.

Monday was Chavez day: we went to playgroup that morning and our friends, the Chavezes were there. After playgroup, Bekah asked if Alison could come over and play, which meant that Kristen needed to go too. (An unexpected free hour!) After lunch, we went with the Chavezes to the zoo for another couple of hours. It was a gorgeous day to be out -- not terribly warm, not terribly windy -- and we had a grand time. Granted, we were ALL a bit cranky by bedtime, but at the very least, we had a good day.

Tuesday was busy in the morning: Kristen had picture day at preschool (she took an old play hat and a purse, and INSISTED that they be in the picture with her. Very cute.) and Alison had her testing for an hour. I went and punched in the morning (Alison went to the "play class" which she declared was AWESOME), and hurt my pinky trying to punch as hard as the woman I was on the bag with. I need better boxing gloves... Anyway. The afternoon was lazy -- Megan had piano, and we got to go to the park (another beautiful day; it's been a really lovely Kansas fall week). Megan had a half day, and Tuesday evening I got to go to both Megan's Parent-teacher conferences (nice enough teachers; I really like her math teacher, who laid into her about reading in class -- "You could be getting 100 percents on all your assignments, but you rush through it to get to your precious books!" -- but other than that, they're just ok. At least the band teacher didn't get on my case about private lessons this year.) and Kristen's open house (she just ran around her classroom being her usual effusive self until it was time to go). Fun times.

Wednesday was normal. Wow. We went to the library in the morning -- storytime and checking out books. Caitlyn had piano -- we went to the park again -- and Megan had mutual. You have to have at least one down day in the course of a busy week, right?

Thursday, was Alison's last day at home. She and I went clothing shopping while Kristen was at school, primarily for clothes for me (I have no long sleeve shirts, having retired most of them after last winter), but also looking for a costume for her. Since it's October, that means we need to get Halloween costumes taken care of. Now. (She's been bugging me about them since my birthday, to be honest.) So, when Megan came home from school -- she had another half day -- (and after lunch) we went to Goodwill and Kid to Kid and Claires. Whew. We found clothes, and bling, and masks and shoes... it was fun. (Poor Caitlyn. She's the only one who had a full week of full days of school. She felt like she missed out.)

Friday, everyone was back at school. Kristen and I just laid low for most of the day. (You kind of have to after the week we had!) Then Friday night, it was Northwest's homecoming, which meant the 7th and 8th grade bands marched. Megan actually got to march (and play!) this year (since she plays clarinet and not oboe...) She had a good time. Two observations: 1) Is it legal for Northwest to use Hail to the Victors as their fight song? and 2) Any school that has dancing girls on the field as a halftime show instead of the marching band is LAME. Megan and Caitlyn finished the day with a sleepover at the Kitchen's house, and Russell and I watched Easy Virtue (which was predictable with moments of amusement... but then, I only watched it because Colin Firth is in it.).

Yesterday was busy, too. In between watching conference sessions we: tilled the garden, went shopping, went to the spa (me, to get a much-needed eyebrow wax), did chores, went to a birthday party (Megan -- ice skating, too!), painted a wall (with dark blue chalkboard paint -- I'll put up pictures as soon as I buy more paint; it needs another coat), dug up the herb garden, and dried herbs. Whew. Russell I went out to dinner to a fantastic Korean hole-in-the wall (starting to think that all ethnic foods follow the Mexican rule: the smaller, dingier and worse part of town, the better the food) and out for gelato afterward. It was nice to go out.

And this morning's been good. We enjoyed the morning session of conference, the girls were good, the talks were nice, the music was fabulous (crow moment: the last song -- Have I Done Any Good -- I picked for our ward choir to do last November. Made me feel like I have good taste in music.). And now we're hanging out, waiting for afternoon session to start. And trying to believe that it's really October. Where did the rest of the year go?

Meet Steve

Steve is a hedge.

Steve is a hedge on the way to church.

Steve is a hedge that normally "eats" Alison and Kristen as we walk to church.

Steve doesn't usually give back the girls until someone says, "Oh, Steve! Don't eat Alison and Kristen!"


We like Steve.