Monday, May 29, 2006

in remembrance

"Today many of them are here among us. Oh, they may walk with a little less spring in their step, and their ranks are growing thinner, but let us never forget; when they were young, these men saved the world."

-President Clinton, U.S. National Cemetery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1994 (50th anniversay of D-Day)

Friday, May 26, 2006

poor, sad baby

Ms. Bee apparently had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. It started off all wrong because her teacher was out for the day and there was the dreaded substitute. (Not the borderline retarded one who left all the kids on the playground, thank heavens.) Beebs came out of class and leaned against me. I am forbidden from showing any affection to my big girls when in public -- no hugs or head skritches, and a kiss would cause the end of the world. So I let her lean against me and asked what was the trouble. She kind of sighed and the sub came over and said, "Elizabeth fell on the playground and scraped her hand a bit and banged up her knee," and she took Bebe's hand and there was the faintest red mark on her palm, "but I think she's OK." I thanked her and we collected Lou and started the walk home.

Bebe snorfled a tiny bit and I said, "You know, it's very sweet that the sub even knows your name. She seems very nice -- I saw her talk to you this morning when you were dropping off your backpack." "Mommy! How do you know that? That was after we got out of the car!" "I know, but Cha and I watch you two walk to class sometimes, that's all." "Don't do that anymore. I'm not a baby..." and then there was some more snorfling.

After we'd walked a bit, she said, "We were supposed to watch 'Ira Sleeps Over' but instead we watched 'Charlotte's Web' and now we'll never see 'Ira Sleeps Over'!" "Sweetie, you've seen 'Ira Sleeps Over' approximately a thousand times. Just tell your teacher on Tuesday and maybe she can reschedule it, OK?"

"She won't believe me!" I don't know where that came from -- but I just said that her teacher would believe her and left it at that. Then there was a tummyache later in the afternoon. Then she passed out on the couch and I had to carry her to bed.

Poor girlie. Hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day. And she won't have to move to Australia. (Although I'm sure Isabelle would put her up, right Isa?)

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

thank you, steve nash

And the rest of the Suns, too. A game that wasn't a nail-biter was a nice way to end the day yesterday. And then it was a bit of a pounding at the end. But, you know what? Yay! It's nice to be able to breathe. Really, really nice.

On to the conference finals.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

the suns are killing me

Oh, my God. Could they just win a game easily, without all the drama?

Also, I'm watching way too much pre-game and post-game commentary and it's turning me into my dad.

Commentator: What do the Suns need to do to win this game?
Me, screaming at the TV: Score more points than the other team! Morons!

Sunday, May 14, 2006

mother's day

A few days ago, Archie asked me what I wanted for breakfast in bed on Mother's Day. "Lunch!" He didn't quite get it. "You want a sandwich for breakfast?" "No, I don't want to get out of bed until lunch." Heh.

So, this morning, about 9 or so, the girlies came in bearing breakfast and gifts. I got coffee and bagels and scrambled eggs. ChaCha climbed onto the bed and said, "Happy Mother's Day! Can I have some of your eggs?"

I recieved flowers. Bebe made me a magnet at school. Lulu made a candle holder. And I also got a lovely pair of pearl earrings from all the girls, with a little help from Archie. Then I just relaxed and went and had my hair cut and we had pizza for dinner.

A really nice day. A shame it only comes once a year. Hee.

Monday, May 08, 2006

another milestone

I just realized, of course days after the fact, that at the birthday party something really fantastic happened. All my kids are old enough that I didn't have to tend to someone or constantly scan and be aware where one or the other was at all times. I didn't have to take a little person to the bathroom or monitor for the bouncing pee dance. When we left the house, for the first time, I didn't take the Badtz-Maru "diaper" bag stuffed with snacks and toys and assorted ungents and bandages. I had conversations that lasted more than a sentence or two -- uninterrupted talking and listening. I had a really fun time myself, not just because the kids did.

This is huge. I came home a little tired, but it was because I had 2 beers, not because I was on high alert for 4 hours. That is a nice feeling.

Sunday, May 07, 2006

i should've wished for a pony

That wish that the Suns beat the snot out of the Lakers? Hell, yeah. Bye bye L.A. Really, I should make better wishes. But that was a good, good thing.

A friend of the girls had a birthday party yesterday. Oh, the fun! The bouncy house, the gigantic pack of children squealing and jumping and running about. The relaxation of the parents eating delicious homemade tamales and drinking beer. The beating of the pinata! The scramble for the candy! Cake and jello!

The best part is when the tired, sugar-super-saturated, slightly crabby children fall asleep in about 3.2 seconds. I wish I could bottle that. Because that would make me a small fortune and then I could buy myself a damn pony.

Friday, May 05, 2006

they say it's your birthday

Well, it's mine, at least. So, happy birthday to me and happy Cinco de Mayo everyone.

The girls gave me a thoughtful present -- an oatmeal tin they'd decorated filled with little slips of paper detailing things they'd do for me today. Not fighting, not being crabby, cleaning up -- that sort of thing. Very sweet, right? I showed it to Archie, who said, "So, they're going to do all the things they should do anyway and call it a present and you're buying it? Sucker."

In other good news, the Suns beat the Lakers in OT last night in L.A. Take that, Kobe. Now, if they can just beat the snot out of them in Phoenix on Saturday.

Nothing much is going on here, right now. Minor illness, grumpiness, hilarity, and just regular day-to-day stuff. Which is all better than major sickness, no laughter, and on-going crises. I'll take more of the usual, please, and putter along.

(Also, the twins have made a new friend. This isn't really remarkable, except for the new friend's name. Gigi! Hey, here comes Bebe, Lulu, and Gigi! I could just die from the cuteness. I told Archie and he said, "You know, I'm not as big a fan of the repeating syllable nickname as you are." Whatever. Gigi fits right in and I think we need to find a Fifi or Mimi. The twins had a friend named Trixie last year, which was also fantastic, but Trixie moved away. To Hawaii. I think it's a punishable offense to be envious of a 5 year old. Hee.)