Barack the Vote!

Mary and I went to the Obama rally in La Crosse this morning. We arrived around 8:15 (the gate opened at 8am), and discovered that the line to get into the event went was 4+ blocks long, winding it's way from Main and 2nd down to Riverside Park, where it then folded back in the opposite direction because Riverside Park wasn't long enough.

When we finally got to the security check point, we discovered that we couldn't bring in our thermal mugs (which lots of people brought because it was so cold so early in the morning---you should have seen the number of metal mugs thrown into the garbage can at the check point). Which meant Mary was about to go back to the car and chance missing the rally, something neither of us were too happy about. Thankfully a volunteer quietly suggested trying some check points further down... that oddly didn't have any thermal mugs in their garbage. That tip paid off, but due to all of this we went through different check points and got split up for the rest of the rally.

Neither of us got very close, and spent most of our time looking at the back of a heads. But we were both glad to be there, and we enjoyed talking with people we bumped into afterwards.

Mary and I both were moved by one particular statement: when Obama asked the young adults in the audience to serve in the armed forces, to serve in the Peace Corp, to serve in Americorp... in short to serve their country. And in turn he promised that the United States would make it possible for each them to afford a college education. For use that hit home two things we were glad to here Obama reinforce: that college tuition is getting out of hand for the average American, and that we could use some help with that, but at the same time we need to be thinking beyond just ourselves, that we need to be serving others.

How many people were there? The Democratic headquarters in La Crosse printed 14,000 tickets that they handed out to attendees as the waited in line, to be turned in at the security checkpoint. But they ran out. One volunteer after it was all done said she'd heard there was 16,000 in attendance. The La Crosse tribune is currently posting 15,000 in attendance on their website.

For La Crosse Tribune reports on the event, click here.

Pickin' Plums

Tis the season to harvest. So today the kids, Ardelle and I ventured all the way to our front yard to pick our plum tree clear. The kids had been sneaking them for the past couple of weeks when we'd hang out in the front, even when they were more tart than sweet. Sofia really really wanted to climb the ladder, so this is the first year that she actually climbed up and picked. I enjoyed her confidence and her willingness to help out. Even Isaac was willing to help out, by picking up the ones that fell to the ground, even though what he really wanted was his turn on the ladder.

All the credit for this activity goes to Ardelle, because this was all her idea. Just one of the many blessings of having grandma live right next door.

White Dogs with Black Spots

Mary had wanted me [Diane] to document some of the conversations I have had with Sofia. Here is a recent one. am afraid there are many I am not remembering.

Papa and I arrived in La Crosse around 8:30 PM on a Friday evening. Sofi was still awake and ran out to greet us, requesting that I come and sleep in her room when I was ready to go to bed. I did that, attempting to bring Jake to sleep with me on the trundle. That did not go very well, as Jake was more interested in crawling underneath Sofi’s bed to find various toys hiding there. I could hear a lot of chewing going on so banned Jake to the living room to sleep with Papa for the rest of the night.

In the morning, while the trundle was still pulled out, I asked Sofi to help me retrieve the toys found under the bed. She was able to drag out stuffed toys, books, colors, and “little people” belonging to various toy sets or play houses. Then came a flat, oval piece of red plastic which neither of us could identify until another little people was found. This one, though, wasn’t intact. The hair was missing (now recognizable as a flat, oval piece of red plastic) and the spindle once holding the round head to the body was loose allowing the head and body to be pulled apart. The head was covered by teeth marks.

We both knew who the destroyer had been.

Sofi: “Jake is a bad dog. She ruins toys. You should take her back to her owner."

Gma: “I should? But I am Jake’s owner.”

Sofi: “She needs to go back. Those white dogs with the black spots are trouble. But you could get a black dog. They are good dogs. But those white dogs with the black spots aren’t good.”

The Christmas Program

Tonight was the church Christmas Program, Sofi's first. She wore a halo and a cute little white robe and stood hanging on the altar (as she had been specifically asked NOT to do) just staring at all of the people staring at her. Which is actually not so bad for her age, At least I did not see her pick her nose or poke her neighbor or lay down on the floor (oh wait, she did do that during rehearsal this morning).

I (Mary) am involved with the church Christmas program teaching the songs and helping to get the kids to do what the paper says they should do. It is a bit like herding cats but harder mainly because everyone is watching you try to do it. Also it's their little darling that you need to coerce into doing something they don't see a need to do, and you must do the coercing extremely kindly and sweetly, even when you feel like just hog-tying the child and propping him up against the pulpit.

Parents love it. If not for the beautiful time tested story, or the cute costumes, then just for the hilarity of watching it all. Tonight I overheard the spectacle being compared to a movie. Hmmmm perhaps something by Mel Brooks along the line of "Airplane". The rehearsal room before the show closely resembles the set, almost as if someone cued the little boys with fake swords chasing each other around the piano or the little girls in angel wings running and screaming their heads off. The kids were literally bouncing off the walls in their excitement. I believe it was physically impossible for them to stand still and be quiet, so singing a calm melody and inviting them all to join in was my only ticket to sanity.

Ah the Christmas Story. I'm sure it's always been exciting, "Did you hear?! They say a king is born! A King! In our town! Can you believe it?!" Perhaps people were bouncing off the walls and crowding in that little cave to visit the baby and see what all the fuss was about that night too. Sharing stories and gossip, gawking and dreaming of what this might mean. After all it was pretty busy in Bethlehem that night...and I imagine poor Mary just needing to rest!

We all need a rest after tonights re-enactment of the spectacle of that miracle.

Visit Flickr for a few more non-family photos of the Christmas worship service.

Thanksgiving To Do List

In order to prepare for Thanksgiving tomorrow, one of the first things Mary did this morning was make a list of what she wanted to accomplish today.

Mary really should be the one writing about this, because she was nice and generous enough let me sleep in, and I wasn't there when the above list was created.

But as you can see, at some point the list was taken over by Sofi. Not only did she add the figures on the paper, but she also added lines to which Mary notated Sofi's agenda items that she wanted added to the list.

On Mary's to do list:

• Clear Hearth
• Put Up Nativity
• Put finish on floor
• Vacuum floors
• Clean Bathrooms
• Clear Ping Pong table
• Grocery shop (finish)
• Get flowers
• Pumpkin fluff
• Cut up pumpkins
• Vacuum basement & stairs
• (Mow Lawn)
• (Spread Compost)

On Sofi's to do list:

• Get a new kite
• Sofi kite & Isaac kite
• Go to the Museum
• Go to the Circus
• Eat Gingerbread man
• Pick up toys & dog
• Clean Sofi's room & vacuum
• Clean the dishwasher
• List the chores to do
• Write note to Santa
• Go to the zoo and see the Lions & Tigers & Monkeys
• Go to the Puppet Show
• Clean sofa
• Wipe TV

Mary and I accomplished everything on our list except for the last two items. Sofi actually accomplished about a third of her list...

• Eat Gingerbread man (which she worked on throughout the day)
  
• Pick up toys & dog (not sure where the dog part comes in, this may be referring to her new flash light which looks like a dog, but she did pick up her toys)
  
• Clean Sofi's room & vacuum (This may be more Mom than Sofi...)
  
• Clean the dishwasher (she put away the silverware, which has become her part of emptying the dishwasher everyday)
  
• List the chores to do (which she obviously accomplished right away simply by dictating this list to her mother)
  

Just before bedtime Sofi did point out however, in a tone of shock, that "We forgot to go to the zoo!"

In regards to her drawing, I was informed that this is a picture of her and Isaac. Isaac is on the left with a "spider kite" and she is on the right with a "kite box" with an "owl inside, with eyes looking out".

what else does a girl need?

Tonight Sofi and I (Mary) attended a Show Choir Show in our town. I knew she would enjoy it with the singing, dancing, and costumes, but was interested to find out exactly what her reaction would be. When the High School girl's group came on dressed in red sequins, white opera gloves, and white feather boas she was extremely interested. She turned to me and said "Wow Mom look at all the princesses!". She also mentioned that she saw one fairy (I think she was referring to one of the smaller girls). I few minutes later she announced to me that when she grows up she want me to buy her a pair of "clippety clop shoes" (high heels)..........and a treasure chest.

What else does a girl need? Perhaps she is destined for the stage!

Bagel

"When you were asleep, I snuck a bagel!"
So I was informed after I woke up this morning.
"I kind of wondered about that", I answered, noticing the plastic bag that held our last bagel empty on the kitchen counter. "So where is this bagel?" I asked, thinking I'd get an answer regarding her tummy.
"There are crumbs all over my bed!"

Painted Toes

Sofi decided to paint her toes and feet today, with glitter markers.



Thankfully they weren't permanent marker... though this time of the year I suppose it wouldn't really matter.

I've told her repeatedly that markers, and all art supplies, are for paper. To reinforce this the markers were thrown away (though I retrieved them later to give them to the church art room). Seeing them thrown out didn't bother her at all.

Does this mean I will being seeing tattoos in my future?

Happy Trick or Treat!

That's how Sofi greeted everyone at the doors she visited this year, if she wasn't too shy—"Happy Trick or Treat!"

And what a happy Halloween it was!

The day started with a trick about treats...

I woke up to find Sofi already dressed in her costume, which is Jane from Disney's version of Tarzan. We had just checked the movie out from the library, and she saw it with "Papa" and Grandma D when they visited the other weekend, so when Mary and Sofi went to the Goodwill to look for costumes and found the Jane costume, that was an instant winner. Any Disney leading lady will do. At least I can have some peace of mind knowing that Jane was a proper English lady, and not a princess.

So as I was saying, Sofi is in her costume first thing. And as I come out the bathroom after doing my morning routine, I'm almost run over as Jane goes literally racing by, straight into her bedroom.

It isn't until I'm well into making breakfast for Isaac and I that I realize things are, once again, too quiet. So I head in the direction that I last saw Jane.

The bedroom that I believe I will find Jane is closed off—the door is shut. I open the door. I don't see Jane anywhere, but I do see a Jane-sized mound underneath the blankets on the bed. I run to get the camera, and as I snap the picture Jane reveals herself—and the plastic jack-o-lantern that she already had candy in it from trick-or-treating at the local farmers' market last Friday (the plastic jack-o-lantern is not seen in the photo because it is still covered by the blankets).

So that is how Halloween started. With a rush to and from the sugar.

We had storytime at the library in the morning, so I got Isaac dressed up in his jack-o-latern outfit and we all went and had a good time, as we usually do every Wednesday. Below is a photo of Isaac enjoying himself with an older boy who was very taken with the baby jack-o-latern at the library.


In the evening I stayed home to hand out candy and Mary and the kids did the rounds, with Isaac in a different costume, that of a lady bug (Mary also had a lady bug costume to match). All the photos are below. When they came home, even Isaac had his own candy—a full size 3 Musketeers to be precise. While there was no way we were going to let him eat it, he certainly had a tight grip on it for the rest of the evening.

One more snippet to close this Halloween story. The next morning, while I was blogging about Sofi's reaction to grapefruit at breakfast, Sofi found our pumpkin carving knives. Thankfully these are designed so that there is no sharp edge and are extremely dull (and yet they cut pumpkins amazingly well—I love them and wish I'd had them when I was a kid... perhaps I never would have needed stitches!), so I had no need to worry. What Sofi had discovered was a great exercise in fine motor skills. She literally carved the pumpkins to pieces. One of them the top was completely cut off (much like the cup cake a few days earlier!).



For more Halloween photos visit Flickr...

Cut the (Cup) Cake

My cousin Christina is getting married this weekend, so I've been working with Sofi on manners. I've been reviewing with her, when the opportunity presents itself, what are good manners and what are bad manners. We've also been reading a several library books about manners. We'll see how the weddings goes. I'm pretty sure I'll blog about it, as it will be Sofi's first wedding where she can actually move about on her own, and it will be Isaac's first wedding period.

One of the good manners we've been talking and reading about is sharing. We got to practice this when the entire family went to the deli at our local coop (one of my favorite places to eat out because it is family friendly, not fancy (in case the manners aren't good), and healthy). Feeling generous I let Sofi pick out a frosted carrot cake cup cake for dessert. When she'd finally eaten enough of her supper to have dessert, she agreed to share the cup cake with her mother. This of course meant cutting the cup cake in half. Sofi was perfectly fine with that, and she even went and got a plastic table knife from the coop counter, came back and all by herself cut the cup cake in half. Once cut, she quickly gave Mary her half.

I must admit I was impressed that she was able to tackle this all by herself. But I must also admit I was surprised at how she went about doing it. You see, even though she did cut it in half, she cut the cup cake horizontally in half. That is to say, she basically cut the top off.

And you can guess which half she gave to her mother.

So I reviewed with her that it's good manners for the person who cut the dessert to let the other person choose which half they want. Sofi just looked at me... having already licked some of the frosting off her half.

If this is any indication, Christina's wedding should be lively and fun.

The Apple Corer, Peeler, Slicer!

Sofi Coring Apples

Thanks to the apple trees at the cabin, and to Mary for going to pick them, we've plenty of apples! Mary's been trying to make apple sauce as much as time allows, and thankfully Sofi has become really good at helping, as the photo above and the video below attest to!

October is Good for Sprinklers

At our house we've been blessed with an underground sprinkler system. And it is still going, thanks in part to a podcast Mary heard that said one should continue to water into the fall. I've set them to go off early, around 5am. At about 7:30am it is almost done with the entire lawn, and it is doing the last section, which is the front yard.

The front yard is what Sofi sees out her bedroom window, and when she woke up and saw the sprinklers going she got all excited, put on her swim suit and asked to go outside. She hadn't even had breakfast yet!

It has been unusually nice for October, so it isn't as frigid as it sounds, but it was close, but the sun had yet to show itself over the bluff, and the water running through those sprinklers is mighty cold. It is amazing how resilient kids can be! She wanted me to join her. Isaac and I did go outside to watch, but it was cold enough just to watch Sofi jump in.

Love of Books

Sofi is getting to this very cool stage where is starting to memorize books. She'll just sit down on her own and page through books for quite some time, reciting to the best of her ability the story for that page. She does a very good job of paraphrasing, and occasionaly gets it word for word. In the video above she is "reading" Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh. She'll occasionaly recite entire passages of Dr. Seuss out of no where, without the book. Today she was "reading" a book about Arthur getting the hiccups, and what impressed me is that the book is a library book that we picked up just yesterday, and it has only been read to her two times, and already she is able to recite the basic story line on each page.

What's That Noise?

It's 7:15pm, and I go to the computer to check out the YMCA website, to see what their hours are for child care, with the idea that maybe I'll try to work out a bit on Friday.

So I'm online, checking it out, when I hear this odd sound. It sounds soft, and sort of like bubble wrap being stepped on, but really small bubbles, not large ones. Kind of like what is being laid under the new floor that we are currently have installed. So I don't think much of it... it's probably one of the kids crawling/walking over some exposed part of the under layment for the unfinished floor.

It is proceeded by laughter. Thankfully I hear both of them laugh, so I figure they are enjoying themselves and I don't get too concerned.

I then I hear that odd sound again, followed by more laughter. And again. And again.

Now I'm suspicious.

I go into the kitchen and no one is there, so it isn't the under layment I'm hearing.

I walk towards the bathroom and what do I see? Sofi standing there with the sink stop down and full of water, a sopping wet sponge in her hand, which she is holding over Isaac's head and squeezing the water out (which is the sound I'm hearing). Isaac is sitting there in a puddle on the bathroom floor, his clothes sopping wet, loving every second of it.

Sofi Trilogy

Today's post it appears will be a trilogy featuring Sofia, as she has managed to do three interesting things today.

WET HAIR

We're all in Isaac's room, and I'm sorting through Isaac's clothes when I look up and notice that the back of Isaac's hair is all wet. So I wonder out loud "How did Isaac's hair get all wet?" To my surprise (though I really shouldn't be), Sofi replies without even looking up "I spit." "What?" I say, not believing what I'm hearing. In turn she replies by making a hacking sound at the back of her throat and brings salava bubbles to her lips, obviously deciding that a visual will clarify things better for her dad.

It goes without saying that I put her on a time out, though it felt like I was putting her on a time out for telling the truth, since I didn't actually catch her doing it. I have a feeling she felt the same, but she was still willing to apologize to Isaac when she was done with her time out.

CLASSIC SCISSOR INCIDENT

Later I was in the kitchen while Isaac was napping when I realized it was too quiet. Sofi was still awake, and it just shouldn't have been so quiet. This means two things: 1. Sofi died or 2. She's doing something she shouldn't.

So I walk to Sofi's room and look in and don't see her. But it is still too quiet and I can't think of any place else she would be, so I go into her room and sure enough, there she is sitting on the floor in the corner, looking up at me, arms behind her back, and little pieces of yarn all over her lap.

"Sofi, what's behind your back?"

"Nothing," she says, even though she pulls out her left hand voluntarily and shows me the doll it is holding. The doll has yet to become a Sinead O'connor look a like, but was on its way.

"Sofi, what's in your other hand?"

"Nothing."

"Oh, I don't think so. Give the scissors to me." At this point she pulls out this small pair of scissors that she found in Isaac's personal care kit, which are meant for cutting his nails.

LIVING WET

This last one is short, and one Mary will appreciate. Today at lunch out of no where Sofi started singing "Living Wet", which is the baptism song that Mary teaches at Sunday School, and the one Mary wrote. Sofi even added the jazz hands at the end, though the motion was more in the arms than in the fingers.

Dog Tales

So Jake will be leaving tomorrow. She's been here a total of six days, and has pooped in the house six times, and peed in the house at least as many. The grossest by far was the pile she left on the floor next to my side of the bed, just before bedtime, which I discovered as I was crawling into bed with the lights out and nothing on my feet. Three feet is about how high I jumped, and I cursed pretty loudly too, loud enough to make Mary jump.

Mary thinks we are just missing Jake's cues for wanting to go out. Personally I don't think Jake gives any cues, unless you count managing to see her sniff around on your floor to find a spot to go. That's not a cue in my book however. A cue is a dog sitting at the door barking or whining. A dog sniffing around my house is simply a dog trying to find a way to do it's thing. And there is no chance that I'm going to spot a "cue" as quiet as that when I'm trying to tend to the needs and desires of a three year old and a nine month old.

And then there is the compost pile in our back yard, which Jake discovered one her second day here and has concluded is her own personal buffet.

Oh, and then there is the jumping up on the table. Not just jumping up on a chair and then putting the front paws on the table, but actually jumping onto the top of the table and walking around in search of food. Very gutsy on Jake's part, to be sure.

To read these posts would make one think the dog has been nothing but trouble. To be fair there are some sweet moments, like when the dog is extremely mellow in the afternoon. She fits right in with nap time thankfully. And Isaac has really taken to her, crawling up to her and stealing her toys, which she steals back. And when Isaac sits on her, she doesn't bite, but just lies there and takes it. Here's a video to give you a good idea...



To be fair, I haven't always been the best dog sitter, as there was one day that I thought I was only going to be gone for four hours and it ended up being nine.

None the less, it will be nice to be able to focus on only two kids again. I'm not ruling out dog-sitting in the future, but "Jakie-Brakie" will need to be able to but a brake on the bladder and communicate her need to go outside before she can vacation here again.

Dress Rehearsal

Sofi was reading a book in which a little girl uses a sheet to become a ghost, and as soon as we were done reading she said she wanted to do that. Why not, I thought, and we headed to the basement to find a sheet.

We had a difficult time lining up the eye holes, so she wasn't to crazy about her costume in the end. But I enjoyed the spontaneity of it all.

Mary found the cat ears for Isaac the other day while she was looking for a new season of clothes to bring up into his room.

Emptying the Dishwasher

Today I handed Sofi the silverware basket from the dishwasher and asked her to put away her and Isaac's utensils, which she has done in the past easily enough. But she ended up going above and beyond my expectations, because when she finished putting those utensils away she continued putting the rest of the utensils in the basket away. And not only was it gesture, but she actually did it correctly. The forks went with the rest of the forks, the knives with the knives, etc.

The entire basket was put away, and in the correct places! I was very impressed! It is the little things like this that amaze me.

Ear Plugs can Plug More than Ears

For some reason ear plugs have been a scarce resource in our household. Which is unfortunate because I use them every night.

I've been suspecting that there is an elf, one that is three years old, that has been finding them and squirreling them away. Who knows where. Could be anywhere. I've often found Disney princesses hiding in my shoes. This makes sense I guess, at least for Cinderella. But where my ear plugs go I'm not certain.

In reality they are probably falling under the bed, because I often misplace them when I wake in the middle of the night and take them out to take care of Isaac.

Well Mary has discovered that if they truly had fallen under the bed, they aren't there anymore. This evening, as Mary was making a trip out to our compost pile behind the garden she noticed some poop... some very colorful poop. Blue and purple to be exact. The colors of the ear plugs we use. Upon closer inspection, sure enough, that what was in the poop. Almost the exact same size of the poop.

And not just one or two. Six total. And this isn't a trial thing either I'm told. Mary's found Jake on our bed leaning to reach the book shelf where Mary keeps her ear plugs.

Thankfully these ear plugs aren't plugging anything else, though I wouldn't mind really, because I certainly didn't enjoy cleaning up the pile left in the front room this morning.

Table Set

At lunch today Sofi actually set the table for three... herself, me and Isaac. She actually got out two settings of silverware (she did get herself an adult setting... is she trying to tell me something?), and two bowls and plates. The amazing thing about the bowls is that we actually needed them, as we were having soup. Did she actually notice this without me telling her? And she got out two spoons for Isaac (baby spoons too, not adult ones)... as she put it: "One for Isaac to chew on, and one to for eating".

Anyway, I was impressed to say the least. It was a little act that meant a lot.

Isaac is enjoying the dog sitting. He wants to be on the floor to chase the dog, but Jake gets right in his face, so Isaac doesn't often ends up getting more than he bargained for. Jake is starting to mellow (thankfully!)