the Family Dog

Yes...it begins.
we all recall the little girl in her pig-tails dressing the dog in her bonnet and...UNDOE-PANTS!
there must be some truth to the fiction because Nataile yesterday had Max sitting in a corner and was putting a yellow washrag on his head and changing its shape.
"Now you're cornflower"...washrag changes shape, still on dog's head-
"Now you're getting married"...another change-
"Now you're Jewish..."

Jewish!
I'm going to have to watch that show again. Where are the Jews in there? Can I get a Jew verification please? Oh, I can feel the grey hair a-comming. Oye Veh!

Halloween 2010

Civility

[re-post from 10-April-10]

Natalie was asked to clean her 1/4 of the closet where she keeps her stuff. she'd just cleaned it last night. Upset, she cried,"No one knows about civilization in this closet!"
It's nice to know that a clean closet indicates civilization...

High Standards

the other day, Jessica (11) was playing in the courtyard of our apartment complex and two hispanic boys (both 12) were asking for her to choose one of them to be girlfriend to. she couldn't decide so she came home to ask me. She talked to me for a bit then I said,"Why don't we think about it tonight and then talk about it tomarrow." she agreed and went to bed.
I ran into my bedroom and dialed that most Yoda of Yodas re: girl raising...my dad.
"Dad! Dad! I need help!! Jessica is being asked to be girlfriend to two yahoos living in our complex. What do i do!?"
"Well son, I think the best thing for you is high standards."
"Please explain."
"Well, she needs to find out if those boys are going on missions, if they're going to college, and what they're going to do with the rest of their lives (AKA: How are you going to take care of me and the kids)." He said.
OK. The next day I talked to Jessie about it and after I was sure she understood the concepts, she went to school. Later that day, she came in and related the results of her conversations with those boys.
Jessie: Are either of you going on a mission?
Both together: Huh? What's a mission?
Jessie: Are either of you going to college?
Both together: What's college?
Jessie: What are either of you going to do with the rest of your lives?
Both together: Uhhh...play video games?
Jessie: That's it! You (both) are out!
The young men were confused and asked how to meet the standards. Jessie told them that they needed to talk to the other two young men in suits who ride through the complex once in a while.
Then she told me that I needn't worry about those boys as they weren't meeting the minimum standards.
Ahh! Relief at last!

Blogfodder

Matt & Jill on the couch. Mom tickles matt on the back. He gets goosbumps & says to mom, "You gave me the poka-dots!"--now when someone is excited we ask if they have the poka-dots.

Birds, Feathers, and Molting

I've caught the Avian Flu (No, no not the real thing!). I've decided to get some chickens for our home...I'm just nervous about having not just one furry friend, but a whole flock of fickle feathered fiends. all the kids want birds, they just love auntie Tara's. I'll admit I've taken a wait and see approach for a while and I'm impressed with the work Tara's done.

anyway, i went to the feed barn the other day and looked at what I thought were large striped chickens. i was informed that they were turkeys. I was amazed at how much bigger the baby turkeys are that the chickens. i played with them for a little while and watched some of them just fall asleep in mid step and fall on their beaks.

I just couldn't buy any at the time or I think I'd have went home with a few of them. thank goodness i didn't because when i got home, i realized I'm just not ready for any more kids, nor am i ready to add on a room to the house (AKA make a chicken coop).

From Obedience Gardens to the real thing

Well here we are again. Us vs. the 3 C's of AZ dirt (i.e. caliche, concrete, clay) Now I know we've all broken our shovels, hoes and (husband's) backs on this dirt, but we're nothing if not consistent. Well, I was in the Ace Hardware the other day looking for a new hoe to do some weeding with and got Ye Olde generic style hoe for around $10. I went home and promptly hurt myself trying to scratch the surface of my dirt patch.
Enough of this I said. I got out my grinder and noisly put a mean edge on the hoe (Q: Why don't they ship them sharpened? A: Lawyers). I went out and hurt myself again. By this time, I was hot and sweaty and I had 2 scratches in the dirt to show for it.
Now I was righteously indignant. For my $10 I should have SOMETHING to show for it. So, I cut the hoe handle in half and presented the shortened tool to my 5-year-old son. "Here son, a new hoe for you to dig in the dirt with!" Eeks of glee erupted and he beelined for the dirt patch. All is solved I said to myself, I get a tilled up garden and a nice tired 5-year old who will sleep tonight. Alas, the youngster came in all breathless and said, "Dad, the dirt is too old, it won't dig well."