How’s everybody holding up? I’m getting tired of the Olympics. Well, really, I guess my problem is that in our cable-free environment, the time to watch the Olympics is from 8 pm until the kids fall asleep. It’s a bummer, because we have these big, long days available, but of course it’s just the regular … [Read more…]
I got well just in the nick of time, because I’d signed up to make a fancy dessert for a dessert auction we’re doing at church tomorrow. I decided to go with chocolate mousse. The mousse isn’t absolutely gorgeous, but I know how to do it, and it’s freakishly delicious. Between J’s gymnastics and M’s … [Read more…]
The other day I walked down into the basement playroom and saw this: I knew right away who’d written it, because I have one daughter with boundless, verging-on-cocky confidence, and then there’s J. J, who recently came home with three tests marked 100%, 100%, and 95% + 3 bonus points, and moaned that she’d known … [Read more…]
Lately, I’m not allowed in the kitchen from 2:30 to 3 pm. That’s because J has been making us fruit snacks. Sometimes they’re two courses, frequently they’re accompanied by fresh-squeezed juice, and they’re always presented with flair. Honeydew melon in an orange peel with strawberry-sliver garnish (served with the orange juice): Frozen mango chunk with … [Read more…]
J’s first gymnastics meet of the season was today, and it was at the same Y as our first meet ever just last year. If you don’t remember, that meet ended with an excruciating awards ceremony in which my child sat hopefully and listened as many, many, many children’s names were called to receive the … [Read more…]
The fantastic thing about buying into the stupid, terrible Elf on a Shelf thing (or having your child buy into it for you) is that you can wake up and, first thing in the morning, realize that you have Failed As A Parent again. That was my morning. I woke up and headed downstairs and … [Read more…]
Last Monday, M and I attended a book discussion program at the middle school. We hadn’t been there long when one of the mothers smiled at me and said, “I hear you’ll be getting a turkey on Friday.” Umm, what? I didn’t know what she was talking about. I was told that after school on … [Read more…]
I drove over the crest of a hill today and there were a couple of people were standing in the middle of the road. It was unsurprising. They were taking pictures. This fall’s been so gorgeous that it’s tough not to stop in your tracks and try to capture it. I did it, too, walking … [Read more…]
Sunday was deeply dramatic. Long story short, M’s quit junior choir at church. There was not much explanation or communication ahead of time, so when we tried to force the issue, she ended up attending choir in such an actively miserable state that the choir director, one of her biggest fans, emailed me with a … [Read more…]
It’s J’s birthday eve–she’ll be 9 tomorrow. We’ve already kicked off the celebration because she’ll be at gymnastics all through dinnertime on her birthday, so tonight was her by-request dinner (Mrs. Seals’ chicken). She asked for brownies as her school treat, and I’m a little bummed about it, because I usually make Ghiradelli Double Chocolate … [Read more…]
