Rock Science

Amethyst geode.

After a half-hour in the school bus with Aubrey's class today, we ended up at Crater Rock Museum in White City.

It's this completely unassuming building on the outskirts of dumpy little White City -- and it's amazing.


A donor recently provided over $1 million to add room after room to the once-little museum, and other donors have provided millions of dollars' worth of rocks, crystals, petrified wood, and fossils.

A rickety little volunteer provided us with a slide show and commentary, as well as semi-crotchety nudges from room to room through the museum. To her credit, perhaps she was only crotchety because the information she had to share was way cool and she wanted those wiggly little third and fourth graders to hear it all.

She wanted them to hear that every geode in one particular display case was worth $10,000, and that one of the geodes hadn't even been given its spot in the display before a buyer offered $70,000 for it. (That rock's still in the museum -- and it's this huge red crystal coming out of a mound of shiny black jagged crystals.) She wanted them to hear that there was amber imbedded with creatures 40 million years old, and that the thunderegg is Oregon's state rock, plain on the outside, but when cut open it conveys a wide range of colors that look like liquid when polished.

And here's the other cool thing: those wiggly kids may have been missing some of the volunteer's lectures -- but only because they were riveted by the gigantic colorful sparkly crystals, the real saber tooth tiger skull, the mineral atoms dancing under black lights in a special dark room, the huge fake raptor, and the real fossilized raptor dung, lying right where'd you think it should be under the raptor.

Who could compete with that?

Aubrey Plans a 2012 Yard Sale

As Aubrey and I walked Sharkles today, she informed me she'd like to hold a yard sale.  Today.

After I told her I'd already cleaned out the place and took big loads to the Good Will this month, she was disappointed. So I suggested we start planning one for next summer, setting aside a big box to put things in all year.

"That sounds great," she said. "I'm gonna be the manager."

Then she got to the heart of the issue: "And I'm gonna need a fanny pack."

At least she's got the important stuff figured out.

First Week of School Catch-up

Day 1: Grade 5, Grade 4

When you get an email from Grammy requesting an update because blog posts have been few and far between, you know you'd better write back. You also know that the other two people who read this blog might want to know what's the what, too. So here's what I wrote Grammy:

Dane's in Fall Ball, which means practice from 3:30-6 on Thursday nights and two weekend tournaments this fall. He's also doing a pitching clinic that's from 4:30-5:15 2x a week for 4 weeks, and has started a basic skills clinic that's 1x a week for the next 5 weeks. This might sound like a lot, but it's really kind of like having 2-3 practices a week with an occasional game.

Aubrey started gymnastics again and has it 2x a week for an hour and 45 minutes each time. She loves it. She comes back all sweaty and happy. She also has 2 birthday slumber parties coming up and keeps getting invited to her girlfriends' houses after school, so she's nice and busy.

Each kid has homework and they usually do that after dinner and dishes, and then they basically get ready for bed and read there for half an hour.

I've been busy with PTO meetings, a meeting with the principal (for site council), a meeting with the librarian to get started with Battle of the Books, and an order at our local book store, Bookwagon, for 4 copies of each BOB book (at a 30% discount and PTO is paying -- isn't that exciting?) to go straight to Walker's library in about a week. Somewhere in there I've been cleaning/sorting all the stuff I took out of the kids' bedroom, which is piled in the spare room. It looked like a hoarder's room for a while. Well, actually it still does. RCC starts in a week and a half, so I'm also putting together my syllabus. Oh, and I started working out at the Y 3x a week in addition to running Sharkles every other day.

Mick's working away full-time and still gets home around 6:45 every night. Last night he went to the MARA ski club fundraising meeting, and found out he'll be expected to do that every Wednesday night until November! It's the Auction committee, and it meets right by his office, so it works out ok. It's our biggest fundraiser. We also recently got news from MARA that the club's been running at a deficit and they have to raise prices to actual cost. Kids will now have to pay $600 each. Yikes! Hopefully we'll find a creative way (raffles, more auction $, etc.) to actually offset it a little. Mick's currently reading a book called The Long Emergency. I haven't read it, but it looks like it analyzes economical and environmental situations and impacts in America and the world.

Oh, and last night Dane and Aubrey and I went to a rain barrel workshop. We can't wait to analyze our property and set up a couple rain barrels to harvest water! I'm going to see if the kids will document how they help me -- as a Science Fair project -- building it with me, taking notes on how they did it, notes on how it fills throughout the year, etc. It would take extra work, but I could see it being really great.

The dream barrel set-up.

Ok, hopefully that gets you up to speed for now. What have you been up to?

Bouncing with the B-52s

Kate Piersen's still got it! What amazing vocals - and so much fun to watch on the stage.

I was all set to head to the B-52s with a bunch of girlfriends, but when my kids got wind of it they begged to join us. They love that 80s band -- thanks to Mick's playlist on their iPods. So what started as girls night out turned into family fest (including Mick, who loves 'em too) and it was so much fun! The B-52s have such a great sound you can't even help but jump up and dance.

We attempted beehives - but oops they were mini!

With my pals Lisa, Kerry, and Aubs.

Nic! (Ducky?)

These kids started off with a bang, dancing like crazy to Men Without Hats and Human League, the opening bands in all their 80s glory.

Sawyer and Nic.

Dane and Nic.

Dane tearin it up.

Love Shack!

Rock Lobster

These chicks are so good!

I got me a Chrysler / it's as big as a whale / and it's about to set sail!

Loaded

Loaded up with perennials -- and a couple of kids.

Reunited!

Early in August I got an email from my Aunt Laurie that an impromptu family reunion would be happening in  a few days up in Tacoma. I'd already been thinking of heading up there, to divide up a bunch of my mom's amazing perennials for my in-progress little back yard, but decided not to make the drive up there because I only had a two-day window.

The pull to see family I hadn't seen in years was strong though. I did some soul-searching and some creative thinking, and canceled a Thursday night obligation so I could leave Thursday morning and stay through Sunday.

I'm so glad I did! Mick had to stay and work on such short notice, but the kids and I headed up there excited as could be.

We stopped at the Roseburg Museum of History and Natural History, a museum Aubrey and I had stopped at in May on another trip north. Aubrey said we had to go back with Dane because of its cool pioneer history, as well as its wildlife displays.

Here we are at the museum, a couple hours into our 8-hour drive.

Aubs finds a special book with a goodie inside -- which happens to be bear scat!

She's not touching it, but I swear she gets that inclination to push the envelope from her Dad.

Mr. Sincere.

Archaeologists headed out to dig through layers to reveal Oregon history.

At Spooners Market in Puyallup. He, um, asked me to take this picture...

And again.

And again.

Aubs in Mema's back yard with the Shasta daisies.

Practicing golf with Poppa's club.

Some of the perennials Mom and I spent 5 hours digging up.

More perennials.

Another view of it.

And the mini-reunion: the reason we came! Our Texas cousins had to stay in Texas, but their parents, my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Lorren were in town in their motor home, post-retirement. It was so exciting for all of the PNW Coopers to meet up with them.

Patrick and Peggy's son Zac shows some catwalk moves he learned at modeling school.

My cousin Deric chats with my mom, his sweet Aunt Sharen.

Deric's wife April, whom I finally met!, points somewhere while Dani and her birth-daughter Rachel look on and Patrick gropes Peggy.

Me with my sweet Peggy.

My cousin Patrick with our adorable Aunt Debbie.

Peg joins the kids with a kartwheel.

Then she tries a bridge.

I surprise myself, able to do it!

Aubsie does a back walkover easily.

My Peggy and my Dani.

I love my cousins!

Dani and her daughter Rachel. It was amazing to meet Rachel.

Hard to keep a dry eye seeing Patrick bring Gram in from recovery. She's been in assisted living for a year, but had a heart attack earlier in the week and was still in recovery. She got to come to the BBQ though.

Nic hugs G.G.

Gram with Uncle Lorren, her only son.

Dane can't stop giggling.

Aubs played a smart game of hide-n-seek that day: she sat under me at the grownups table while the seekers looked in vegetation, nooks, crannies, and pretty much everywhere but with the adults.

Everybody's chuckling about pictures of Aunt Sharen. Her cousin once referred to her as a Mack truck. Poor Big Share! She's come a long way!

Our beloved Coopers.