Flathead Summer 2010

While Andy went to Peru, the kids and I took the train out to Montana with our dear friends Betsy, Karl and Olivia. Unfortunately my camera ran out of batteries on the first day and I forgot the charger. So although I took pics with Betsy's camera and my phone, I will do my best to record the trip in words so it can be remembered in the future.



Betsy and the kids spent 3 days on the train (wow!) while our trip was a merely 26 hours. It was fun. We found train people to be laid back and very understanding. The space was good and it was fun to be with friends and be able to move around a bit. The kids even got to sleep flat on the floor and slept OK I think, all things considered. At least better than the adults! An added bonus was the "rails to trails" program which brought on a Native American musician and story teller going through North Dakota and a Park Ranger in Montana with all sort of cool stuff and info about the land we were travelling through. I was particularly surprised with the size of a grizzly bear pawprint that she had, like 18 inches across! Really amazing!



Of course I packed a plethora of healthy snacks but the kids only wanted sugary stuff. Oh well, the poor things were tortured with dried fruit, nuts, cheese and pita briead after the good gorp, peanut butter balls, and Betsy pringles were gone. They were in good spirits for most of the trip, just got a bit testy toward the end but were happy to watch movies in their movie theater fort. I had packed the bota of wine for Betsy and I which worked perfect (although I think I drank most of it) since we never would have been left alone to have a complete glass together. One or the other of us was needed by some kid or another pretty constantly so I tried to savor the moments that we were granted.



Jake and Donna's place on flathead lake was beautiful in so many ways. Just the layout of the house was smart and not excessive. The view from the loft, where the guest bedrooms were, made you feel like you were on the bow of a cruise ship. The house is so close to the shore that you can't see the land outside the door from that height so you almost feel like you should be rocking with the waves. Flathead lake is cold and clear and has the most colorful beautiful rock bottom I have ever seen. I wonder how many of varieties of rock are there, I came back with a collection! They have created a very warm place and welcomed us into their ever changing family. The gardens were amazing. Donna has a beautiful flower garden outside her kitchen window (no better place!) full of interesting and dazzling plants. They are growing tons of vegetables as well to feed the family who come there for pilgrimage every summer. I was there to share in the large amounts of spinach, kale, potatoes, and cabbage that were ready to be eaten. Unfortunately I left before the raspberries and cherries came in, but I took some spinach seed and will put it in my garden as a remembrance of theirs.



The rhythm of the days at Flathead lake was restful. Our kids were always the first ones up although they did eventually adjust to the later nights. They started out waking at 6 am but it was down to 7:30 by the time we left. I tried to keep them quiet with varied success but Donna and Jake were usually up early as well. I want to remember the sight of Jake out weeding the garden in his bathrobe at 6am. When not weeding or exercising the morning activity for "Grandpa Jake" was the puzzles in the paper. Somehow he managed to draw everyone in to the solving of it. Some of the puzzles stayed out all day (Betsy solved that one after lunch) and some were "too easy" and took less than 5 minutes. Regardless, it was a fun conversation topic over coffee in the morning sunshine. In the second week I would steal away to the lakeside for a bit of yoga "sun salutations" which I found to be the best way to start the day and it gave me the patience to deal with the kids. Donna also likes to exercise in the morning and I respect how she manages to carve out a little time for herself. She keeps the house to the highest standards and is always putting something away or cleaning. She creates the most amazing meals for an always flexible number of guests and seems to enjoy the quirks of personality that everyone brings to her table.



The kids played the morning away while we chatted, knitted, read (I read most of "The Spectrum" while there) or did chores. After lunch all kids had some quiet alone time -they usually needed it- and Isaac and I got in a nap, heaven! After naps we took turns helping Donna with dinner and supervised kids in the lake throwing rocks, playing in the sandbox, swinging and creating drama. After dinner was usually spent cleaning up, enjoying a campfire or more free play. One evening the kids put on a "show" for us. Although that was fun it was not repeated due to conflict in the production and directing staff.



Sofi and Olivia and Karl and Isaac played pretty well for the most part but there were often issues. Someone wouldn't let someone else play or took someone elses toy....but actually that only happened a few times a day which wasn't really bad considering they were together constantly. The girls developed elaborate stories and dramas with the polly pockets and princesses and holed up in forts, gifting each other various toys to express their love. Isaac followed Karl around and worshiped him. Karl read to Isaac and included him in all sorts of games, mostly involving superheroes. Although I did pack 3 days worth of clothes for everyone, with the intention of washing, I couldn't get Isaac to wear anything other than his batman shirt (no surprise really). When I did manage to convince him that it needed to be washed, he did agree to wearing the superman shirt, with cape, that he got from Karl. When the big cousins came and Isaac had to share Karl's attention, often losing him temporarily to golfing and water sports, Isaac had a bit harder time breaking into the girl's games and fort. But he proved to be flexible and hold no grudges, welcoming any attention he could get.



The first weekend we were there we travelled to Butte for the National Folk Festival. The drive was a bit long (3+ hours in a full van) and was an additional challenge because Karl was carsick. Looking back we must have looked like a cartoon with Karl in the front seat throwing up halfheartedly and continously in a sloppy big plastic bag, Donna driving frantically, me trying to help from the seat behind, Isaac asleep, the girls glued to a DVD player and Betsy trapped in the middle of the back seat trying to stir up excitement for the festival by reading bios of the groups. I finally just had to ask her to "please stop", even though I know she was trying to help - sensory overload I guess. This experience inspired me to be perhaps hypersensitive to whether or not Karl had dramamine and a good bucket before long trips in the car.



It was a treat to stay in Betsy's uncle's 19th century hunting lodge tucked back in the hills. It was heavy and gorgeous, decorated with antiques and set in beautiful landscaping with horses right outside. Isaac was very excited to feed one and Sofi enjoyed climbing on the rocks surrounding the house with Grandpa Jake. There we were treated to sourdough pancakes made from 100 year old starter that has been kept alive by Pete, Donna's brother, who is a good oldfashioned Montana outdoorsman.



The folk festival was a bit challenging to navigate with 4 children. The first day we went from scorching hot sun to the wind whipping up the sand and storm showers. The kids enjoyed a melodrama about mining on Montana in the early 1900's and Betsy and I got to dance to a couple zydeco tunes (the great Gene Delafoze! So Tight!) while the kids sat down on the dance floor in protest. There were so many people there that it was difficult to find cover from the wind and rain and so we ended up leaving earlier (rushing through the rain and then resting in borrowed shelters) than we had wanted and going out for pizza. The next day at the festival was more enjoyable with less people there and better weather. We ended up splitting up and that went better as well, I think there was less to negotiate and it was good to spend some time alone with Sofi and Isaac. We saw and heard some great Native American song, drumming and dance and enjoyed mining for gold, decorating hard hats and browsing the arts and crafts. The kids got great body art (Sofi an angel mask and Isaac a spiderman arm) and I bought a beautiful silk scarf.

Betsy and I stole a morning to visit "Mission Mountain Winery" just down the road from Jacobsons house. We walked there and did some wine tasting, had a fried food lunch at the local watering hole and went back to buy a case of wine. We both enjoyed their "Cocoa Vin" dessert wine and their Reisling. The time with her was wonderful, chatting about the past year and the coming one. The kids, the family, and all that goes along with that.

The kids and I also enjoyed a little outing to play miniature golf, see some buffalo up close and then the kids got to eat some too (in the form of buffalo burger)! I know, leave it to the vegetarian mom to point out the connection, but it didn't faze my carnivore kids!

I often miss Betsy, but especially during Wednesday night zumba classes and on Saturday mornings during rummage sale season. We got to attend a great sale at a little town on Flathead Lake, Lakeside, which was fun. They have this huge festival with a rummage sale (no clothes -I mean no clothes for sale, not that everyone was nude :-) , silent auction, and crafters. We all had a great time and everyone got some treasures. I got a great necklace for $2 that I am particularly fond of...

The airplane ride home went remarkably well. Doug drove us through some beautiful country early in the morning (3 hr trip to Spokan WA) and delivered us safely to the airport in good time. We checked in and breezed through security. The kids were very well behaved the whole day, and it helped that Betsy made sure I was well stocked with an assortment of bribery candy :-). They loved the airplane take offs. People around us laughed as they expressed their excitement in roller coaster type vocalizations. We had no trouble with ear pressure on the first flight to Denver and the kids enjoyed a movie. In Denver we got some pizza and ran off some energy in the airport before getting on the next flight. I gave them some new coloring books (Toy Story for Isaac and Princess and the Frog for Sofia) which amazingly occupied them through the whole second flight, which was a treat. The last landing was a little rough because Sofia and I both had lots of ear pressure pain, but Isaac was fine. We were happy to see Andy and Grandma Diane at the airport, and got some subway to eat at a park before the drive home. It was a long day but we were happy to be reunited with Dad. We all missed him, especially when he was back in LaCrosse and we were not.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to spend some full on time with the kids and do some travelling to a remarkable place. I am grateful for the hospitality which was such a gift and our friendships with all in the Jacobson-Holtz clan. I am grateful for all the ways in which they enrich our lives. And I can say that in this case absence does makes the heart grow fonder.

A Reason to Kiss

Just overhead this conversation while Isaac and Sofi were talking together in the family room:

Sofi: I did kiss Zander once...
Isaac: You did?
Sofi: Yeah. But it isn't like he's my boyfriend. It's just my way of saying I like you, I think you're silly.

Dressing Up

So I went to the cities on Friday to watch a demo at Macalester College about how to prepare surfaces for painting. Which meant I wouldn't be in town to pick Sofi up from kindergarten. So I asked the grandmother of one of her friends to watch her until Mary was able to pick her up. The grandmother graciously agreed.

The friend is Zander, a boy that Sofi is very taken with.

So taken that, in preparation for towards play date with Zander after school, Sofi picked out a very specific outfit: pink pants, and a shirt with hearts on it... in other words, she dressed herself to look like a valentine.

At least she likes him for a very good reason; asked why she likes Zander so much, and she will reply "Because he's so funny!"

Signs of Needing Chocolate

"If my cheeks are red, that means I need hot chocolate."

~ Sofi, upon climbing into the mini-van after playing hard after school outside in the cold.

The Bunny Hill

I took Sofi skiing today at Mnt. La Crosse. From the very beginning it was quite the endeavor for Sofi, as it took us a full hour and fifteen minutes just to wait in line for our rental gear. Once we finally got all our gear fitted and on, we joined a ski lesson for beginner skiers.

Of course most of the class was older kids and beginning adults, so Sofi had a hard time keeping up. But she kept at it: first learning how to put her skis on, and then how to turn around while standing in her skis, and then how to get up from a fall, and then how to point the skis in a "v" to control her decent down the hill. It was while practicing her "v" and struggling to climb up the slight incline she was practicing on that she fell behind the rest of the class. And when the rest of the class moved on to learn how to turn and practice turning, she was still practicing her "v", and missed the lesson on turning. So when she finally got the point where she was suppose to be showing an instructor her turns, she didn't really know what she was suppose to be doing, and continued to practice her "v".

Thing was, this was the last step to the bunny hill. Show the instructor that you could turn, and he'd send you on your way to give it a go on the bunny hill. So as the class slowly became smaller as more and more fellow classmates were given permission to go to the bunny hill, Sofi found herself being asked to repeatedly try to make turns as she skied down this small incline. And just getting back up the small incline was a struggle for her. Thankfully she wasn't the only skier struggling with their turns, so she wasn't completely alone in her frustration. This was hard for me as her dad, trying to walk that fine line of frustration—I didn't want to help her to the point that I was doing everything for her (helping her get up all the time, helping her up the incline all the time), because then she would end up relying on me and not learning how to do it herself. But I didn't want her to become so frustrated that she decided she never wanted to ski ever again.

But eventually a breaking point was reached, and Sofi eventually collapsed on the snow, in tears. Since it took so long just to get our rental gear, it was pretty close to supper time anyway, so I encouraged her to take a break and we went inside to eat a couple of hotdogs and chips.

Refreshed from our meal, we brushed off our lack of teacher permission and hit the bunny hill anyway. Sofi was both excited, and a little scared. But with her between my skis, we both grabbed onto the tow rope, kept a wide stance and our skis straight, and yanked ourselves to the top of the hill.

This is where I took a tip from a childhood photo my parents have of me. It's a photo of me probably at the age of two or three, on short little skis, standing between the legs of one of my parents. So with Sofi between my skis again, we headed down the hill, holding her close, coaching her on how to bend her knees, point her skis in a "v" and lean forward.

Immediately she was ready to go back up; more excited about the tow rope actually then going downhill with Dad. But eventually her trips down began a pattern that I suspect I will see more and more as we both grow older: Sofi went from skiing between my skis, to skiing next to me and holding my hand. And then eventually from holding my hand to letting go near the bottom. And then letting go closer and closer to the top. And after many falls, and stops involving her butt dragging along the snow, and many tears of frustrating about how everyone else wasn't falling (which isn't true, but she felt like it was), Sofi persisted and in the end she was going up the tow rope all by herself, and skiing down all by herself, several times without falling.

She was visibly happy and proud of her accomplishments as we walked back to the chalet. I was proud of her too; she went from being someone who had never skied and needed every bit of assistance, to someone who was willing to try to do it by herself and to not give up, and finally to someone who succeeded in doing it on her own, without assistance—all in one afternoon.

As we walked she said she wanted to go skiing again. And when I told her that Papa, Grandma D and Aunt Michelle were all good skiers, she said that she wanted them to take her skiing.

As we walked back to the car, she noticed someone taking their skis and boots to their car and cried out "Dad! They forgot to return their stuff!" And I told her that some people own their skis and boots, and don't have to rent them. Sofi replied, "I want to get some skis... but not 'standers' [poles]... standers make things too difficult". And she wants to take another ski class—so she can show her teacher that she can turn.

A Book About Feelings

Opening up Sofi's school backpack today revealed a workbook that she must have been working on in her kindergarten class at Coulee Montesorri. It was stapled packet of copied worksheets, and the cover page reads "My Heart, A Book About Feelings, by Sofia". The contents were very interesting. She didn't write them all out herself (only the first one is written in her hand), but all the words are clearly of her choosing. I found the list of feelings very insightful into Sofi's personality as it is right now. So for posterity, here it is:

I feel happy when... my dad tickles me on his bed.
I feel sad when... my brother gets toys.
I feel silly when... I tell jokes.
I feel angry when... Isaac broke my ornament.
I feel scared when... there's a bump in my bed.
I feel good when... when my brother plays with me.
I feel bad when... my brother won't play with me.
I feel loved when... mama puts the radio on and snuggles with me.

Waiting Through Winter

"It seems like summer is taking forever... I'm tired of waiting.
I'll be 18 before summer comes again."
~ Sofi

Snow Allergy

Sofi: [loudly and dramatically] "Dad! I'm allergic to snow!"

Dad: [with a hint of mock-concern] "Really! How do you know?"

Sofi: [seriously] "Because every time I go outside I get a cold."

Dad: [smiling] "I think there may be other reasons why you 'get a cold' outside in the winter—"

Sofi: [matter-of-factly] "Well, it's true. I know it."

Girls Night

One more blog post from my sister in regards to the weekend with her neice....

I have started a tradition with Sofi since she was two of having a "Girls Night" around the Holiday season. This is a time when Sofi and I get to hang out by ourselves...no rules, menu, snacks and movie of choice finished with a trip to Macy's Eighth Floor Exhibit the next day!

We make a trip to Blockbuster to pick the movie out. Of course, when in line, she asks for some candy. She shows me the coolest sucker ever....it comes with a container for your sucker so you don't have to eat it all at once! I give in....it IS girls night after all and what is a good girls night without candy? Upon purchasing it I notice that it has a Hanna Montana sticker on it. I give it back to Sofi and tell her I know why she has purchased it. Of course curious, she asks why. I tell her it's because it's shiny and pink and Hanna Montana is selling it. She smiles and tells me she isn't going to tell her dad about the sucker and she's going to hide the container from him. I laugh.

After we get home I ask her why she isn't going to tell her dad, I say there is nothing to hide concerning the sucker. It's girls night and I'm in charge!

She tells me that her dad doesn't like Hanna Montana. Of course, curious, I ask why.

Sofi says; "I don't know, he's picky....and weird".

I laugh and smile and think to myself.... I knew it!

The Nut Cracker

Sofi spent the weekend with Aunt Michelle. Here is Aunt Michelle's blog post about the weekend:

It has long been a tradition that my family goes to a production of The Nutcracker during the Holiday season. Mainly because I performed in so many but it was also the love of dance and culture my parents were always trying to influence my brother and I with. Since Sofia was born, my mom and I have talked about not IF but WHEN would Sofi be old enough to go see The Nutcracker. Much to our delight, sometime in the late summer of 2009, Sofi—just 5 1/2 years old—ASKED to go see it! Of course, my mom and I were not going to deny such a request.

This is the weekend my mom and I thought we'd continue the tradition and were quite excited to go see my old school and company, Ballet Minnesota, perform their rendition of The Nutcracker. Dressed to the nines we venture to the theater. We find our seats and the music begins...all is going well, what little girl doesn't want to see Clara dance?

Upon arrival to the theater, we notice Ballet Minnesota is staging Sleeping Beauty for their spring performance. Of course, my niece and her love of princesses thinks this is a MUST for her to see. We talk about it and tell her we will try our best to get tickets. Again, my mom and I are trying to hide our pleasure in her actively seeking out dance performances!

Act one, goes without a flaw! Intermission and we head out to the lobby where Grandma D purchases a Nutcracker for Sofi, Isaac and myself! We ask Sofi if she is enjoying the performance and she says yes with a twirl! As intermission comes to a close we head back to our seats.

Most of us know, that the first act of The Nutcracker has all the children dancing and the second act is a little more professionally performed. A few scenes into Act two, I overhear Sofi ask my mom, "can we leave now?" My mother polity answers in all the same tone I remember, "we can leave when its over".

Sofi then turns to me (assuming I've heard nothing) and asks me the same question. In much the same tone I remember hearing - I respond; "we can leave when it's over".

In order to amuse herself, because we have asked her to sit still, Sofi begins to hum along with the orchestra...I (and my mom) hold off a bit in telling her to be quiet because she is amazingly in tune! Eventually, the gentle hand finds her arm and does it's job of quieting her (I think to myself...how did I get the parental moves down)?!

Towards the end, the most beautiful pas de deux of The Nutcracker with the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Prince, I again overhear Sofi say to my mom; "I don't want to go see Sleeping Beauty". Again, assuming I've heard nothing, Sofi leans over to me and says; "I REALLY don't want to go see Sleeping Beauty" (add an exasperated eye roll). I look over at my mom and she has the slightest smile of amusement on her face.

As we're walking to the car, we ask Sofi if she has enjoyed herself. She kind of looks up at the both of us with a weak smile and says yes.

Classical Barbie

On the way to kindergarten today we were listening to 88.9 FM, Minnesota's Public Radio station, and Sofi asked me to turn it up. They were playing Peter Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty: Waltz being performed by the Vienna Philharmonic.

Expressing some surprise at her interest, Sofi replied: "This is what Barbie dances to!" Of course, I should have expected; where else would her interest in classical music stem from!

She's probably referring to one of her favorite DVDs, Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses. And to Sofi's credit, she may actually be correct; that DVD, along with several other Barbie DVDs, has classical music (or what at least sounds like classical music) as part of its soundtrack.

While I'm not a big fan of Barbie (I've been known to ban her from being checked out from the library) due to impression she can leave regarding physical appearance on the mind of our young, impressionable daughter, I will give Barbie this credit (and my Mom has said this before): she does a good job of promoting the arts.

Home Sick

Sofi is home sick, again. She asked to watch TV, so I turned on PBS. The last few minutes of Sesame Street were on, so she watched that, but after a few announcements from sponsors it changed to a show about southern Gulf states; not exactly kid-fare like Word Girl or CyberChase.

Listening to the show in the background I was thinking it sounded pretty dry, and was about to get up and show some sympathy and put in a DVD when I heard "Wow! Mississippi is a BIG state!" and looked up to find Sofi engrossed. So I let it go, went outside to rake, and let Sofi continue to soak up the trivia being dispensed about our Gulf states.

While raking outside Sofi came out later to tell me what she wanted to do for her birthday. Knowing PBS, I quickly figured this was leading to another birthday party at Chuck E Cheese, since they are a frequent sponsor of kids programming on PBS (talk about hitching a rotten wagon to an excellent horse; utter marketing genius). But instead she surprised me: "For my birthday... can we go to a museum... with a mastodon?"

Thank you, PBS. My check's in the mail.

You May Be a Red Neck If...

So we are driving home from school the other day, and I look into the rear view mirror to find Sofi flossing her teeth... with her hair.

And then on the weekend we were raking up the leaves in our front yard, when suddenly I realize I've lost track of Sofi. She isn't anywhere to be found. I look around a bit... and find her under the topper of our pickup, which is currently off the pickup and leaning against the house—a make-shift shelter. A make-shelter that is perfect, it turns out, for copping a squat... because I look up just in time to see her bare bum, yanking up her pants.

'Suppose I should be grateful that she at least had the decency to seek out a little privacy under the pick-up topper.

Possesive Punctuation

Sofi's discovery: "Hey Mama! Did you know that you can get whatever you want? All you have to do is write your name and add a capostrophy s!"

Mom: "Where did you learn that?"

Sofi: "On TV somewhere...:

Big

On the way to Sofi's dance class at the YMCA I overheard this conversation in the backseat:

Sofi: "...and some day Isaac you'll be really big." [makes a gesture of tallness with her hands above her head]

Isaac: [matter-of-factly] "I am big."

Sofi: "No, you're not. Not like Papa. But someday you will be... if you eat all your vegetables."

Power to the Pedal

This one is for Papa....

While biking on the way home from church today, pedaling hard on her trail-a-bike behind mom, Sofi declared: "Checkered flag, here we come!"

And What Did You Learn In School Today?

We were biking home today from Come for Supper, and Sofi declares:

"I want a pet chick....

"And when it gets old—and isn't cute anymore—I want to eat it."

What would cause Sofi to make such a bold (and Mary would say morbid) statement? She informed me, after stating the above, that chicks visited her class today at school. She said she learned what you feed them, and based on her statement above I can only assume that she also learned what becomes of them. Leave it to Montesorri to not gloss things over, I guess.

Sofi then closed our discussion with one last statement:

"Actually I want a farm... and a really fat chicken."

The Sleeping Beauty

Despite the fact that she spent the night sleeping on the floor (or as she puts it, sleeping in her "fort"... read: sleeping bag on the floor surrounded by toys and boxes) when Sofi woke up this morning, before she even moved a muscle, she declared "I LOVE SLEEPING!"

She then followed that up by adding "I wish I didn't have to go to school or daycare, so I could just sleep!"

That's our Sofi: five going on fifteen.

For the Record: Best Friend

This post is strictly for the record:

This morning, while getting ready for preschool, Sofi declared that her brother Isaac was her best friend.

For the Sake of Argument

I have long viewed my sister and I as opposites. Polar opposites even, at times.

There is the obvious:

• I'm a boy; she's a girl.

But there is also:

• She wanted to play "house" together; I wanted to be left alone to play G.I. Joe or Star Wars
• She's outgoing; I'm shy
• She was popular in highschool (she was a cheerleader after all); I had only one friend (just kidding, but I certainly wasn't as popular as a cheerleader, maybe as popular as an art geek... they're not popular? Oh, right, anywho...)
• She is concerned about how she looks and what she wears; I am perfectly content looking scruffy and have been known to wear ropes as belts, two different colored shoes and pajamas to school
• She liked listening to New Kids on the Block; I liked listening to The Cure
  
• She wanted to watch Little House on the Prairie; I wanted to watch Robotech
• She exercises, pretty much daily; I am lucky if I think about exercising weekly
• I enjoyed having a green AMC Hornet as my first car; she complained if I tried to drop her off in it too close to the main entrance of the high school
  
• I found highschool math easy enough; she struggled
• I struggled in college; she blossomed
• I'd much rather go to an art museum; she would much rather go to a hockey game

Despite all these differences, we managed to get along for the most part, and as time has gone by I think we find it much easier to do so. I know I certainly enjoy her company. And, naturally, there are things we do have in common. Politics, for example. Turns out we both voted for Obama (although I had made up my mind during the primaries, while she was still considering her options a few weeks before November 4th).

Which brings me to political opposition between another brother and sister pair I know. It happened over breakfast this morning. I'm sitting there, eating my generic version of Frosted Mini-Wheats, with a Newsweek on the table displaying the candidates on the cover. Sofi starts talking something about Obama and McCain (she got to vote between the two in a pretend election in preschool), and the next thing I know I'm listening to this volley of candidate support, with Sofi stating "Oh-bama" (a surprise considering her vote in preschool: she voted "M" for McCain... perhaps she thought she was voting for "M"ontana) and this declaration from Sofi is followed by Isaac stating "Mah-Cain" (where he learned that McCain is the opposite of Obama I am CLUELESS). And before I know it, Sofi is leaning in, Isaac is glaring, and the candidate names have gone from declarations to shouts that are well beyond our acceptable level of "indoor voice": "Ohbama!" "MahCain!" "OHBAMA!" "MAHCAIN!" "OHBAHMAAAA!" "MAHCAAAAAAAAIN!" And just to be heard I have to yell to tell them to stop yelling because: 1) it was getting WAY too loud, and 2) annoying and 3) not only are they both at least 14 years too young to debate how they are going to vote but 4) they're also too late---the election has come and gone already! Talk about arguing and shouting for the sake of argument!

And, if they couldn't oppose each other enough and argue about something even more senseless: the following morning they did the EXACT same thing... but TOOK THE OTHER SIDE! Sofi's yelling "MahCain!" and Isaac's yelling "Bama!" Could a brother and sister be more opposed?!?