Baby Wood Ducks Fell From The Sky - and other campfire tales

Little baby ducks fell from the sky!

Or so it seemed...

Our second day of camping at Lake of the Woods, these little fuzzy brown ducks dropped to the ground from way up high in a pine tree at our site. One of them even fell on my shoulder. Which, I'm sorry to say, was gross. Especially if, like me, your first thought would be that the fuzzy creature was a rat.

So, seven little wood ducks, stunned from their fifty-foot drops, flopped around at the base of a giant pine tree as four kids and a mom (not me) doted over them. (I was still thinking it could've been a rat.) My friend Kerry and the kids then gently picked up the baby ducks and ran the fifty yards down to the lake to put them with a duck they believed was their mother. (I think she was.)

After they left, a final duck fell from the tree. Not on me. In a scientific experiment, I watched it.

And I'm happy to report, that little fuzzball made it's way in a diagonal beeline - confidently skirting tied-up dogs, fallen logs, and picnic bench legs - to reunite with its mama and siblings!

We had no idea these were wood ducks at the time, but had to do some research after we got home. Dane's buddy Logan made my day when he said with a huge smile, "Now I know what I'm writing about my summer on the first day back to school!"

And here's the other stuff he might also want to add...

Logan and Dane with their moss-staches.

In Kerry's big ole tent.

Fending off mosquitoes in a most fashionable way.

My dandy boy. ("Mom, can I go to water's edge?")

S'mores, of c'ores.

Cork guns and a song: sha-pa-pa-pa pa-pa! Pop!

Sharly and Cherry Pie: the baby ducks were cute,
but these are the BEST fuzzy camping pals.

A Couple Slices of Heaven

Here's where the kids and I are headed for the night with my friend Kerry and her two boys: Southern Oregon's Lake of the Woods.



Here's where Mick's headed tonight, cashing in on his Father's Day gift certificate of a haircut and pedicure: Lotus Hair, Body and Soul (Baby!).


I'm dying to know if he goes for the French Pedi... And of course I'll post, if he does.

Anyone else tired of blogging?

I am.

I don't want to upload pictures, write up descriptions, or sit at the computer. I just want to teach my ScienceWorks classes, camp with my kids, go to concerts with Mick, and dream of the new yard that the Regenesis crew is sweating over every day out my back door.

I'll blog again soon. But, really? Anyone else tired of it?

Quick Nerdy Update for the Nerds Who Love Us

It's so hard to write up a blog post without giving ample details and photos. I'm always afraid that if I just mention something -- instead of going full-force in detailing it -- I won't return to it and it'll be underrepresented down the line when the family reads it.

Such a sad, sad life for a little blog post.

Nonetheless, I'll drop this quickie in the blog and hope I come back with juicy posts later this week:

*We went to Crater Lake and Bend with Mike and Jan and the fabulous Mimi (Mick's grandmother from Delaware) when they were visiting a couple weeks ago.

*Mick and I took the kids to a Mariners game in Seattle last Thursday. Mema joined us. The M's played the Cubs, who only come to Seattle once every four years. The M's may have lost, but it was an exciting game on a sunny day -- and the kids insisted on staying for all 13 innings. (Yes, it went into extra innings, tied 2-2 in the 9th.)

*We stayed with my parents for the long weekend, visited friends like Jordan West, Dave Lane, and Karen Urlie; we also saw family like Gigi (my mom's mom), Vi and Gran (Don's parents) and Aunt Laurie and Uncle John.

*We went to Mick's 25th High School Reunion at Cheers West.(Curtis '85) and Mick didn't even break out in a cold sweat.

*I started teaching Sticky Slippery Messy Mix-y Texture Camp at ScienceWorks this week, with Dane and Aubs as my helpers. Today we did puffy paint on aprons and then sculpted with shaving cream. Tomorrow it's Ooblek and Homemade Bouncy Balls.

*Wednesday night, my writer pal Maya Creedman Ho (from Mill Valley) and her husband and two kids will stop over on their way home to Marin.

*Friday night Mick and I will go to the Black Crowes at Britt Fest with our friends Marigny and Goody.

That's all for now.

Smooches!

Someone's a Hot Shot

For eight months, Aubrey's been asking the gymnastics coordinator at the 'Y' what she needs to do to move up a level in class.

She's been taking gymnastics off and on for over a year (taking breaks for ski season and baseball season) and she's always been told that she needs to improve something. (I never told Aubs this, but she was always told to work on some random skill she'd already had checked off -- it almost felt like the coordinator had too much on her hands and didn't want to think about at the time. But that's okay! I kept that to myself and encouraged a good go-getter attitude.)

And, bless her heart, Aubrey's always said, "Okay!" Sometimes she'd tell me she thought she'd already done that skill well for them, but she'd keep practicing.



So this girl practices gymnastics ALL the time -- even in ski boots on the ski slope when her skis are off. She does hand stands on the living room floor all afternoon and evening, practicing push-ups from the hand stand position against the door. She also does back bends with these crazy high arches where her hands are touching her feet and her ribs look like a table top -- and then she does a kickover.

Let's just say she has some serious skills and persistence that I look at with great admiration.

Now her hard work and persistence and passion have paid off -- and she's a Hot Shot! (a.k.a. Intermediate gymnast.) Her classes will go from one hour once a week to 1-1/2 hours twice a week. And we're up for it.

Way to go, Aubrey!

Last Day of School

Aubrey made this card for her teacher, Inge.
Inge's very stylish and pretty.

Dane made this card for his teacher.
Debi's very natural and outdoorsy -- and loves birds.

Throughout the year, I continually evaluate whether I think Dane and Aubrey are being pushed hard enough in school. I often wonder whether they're up to speed with what children their ages in other schools or states are learning -- in terms of spelling, math, and science.

But one thing I always notice is that they love their teachers, they love their peers, and they love going to Walker. For that reason, I'll continue to gauge their academic skills, and supplement a lot from home, but I'll keep sending them into that happy, healthy learning environment -- and remind myself that a child's developmental growth isn't only measured by academics.

Bye-bye, 2nd and 3rd grades! Hello 3rd and 4th!

She Sings AND She Reads! Guest Blogger Soprano Karen Urlie weighs in on her favorite first lines

I was kind of excited that Anjie (hope she wasn't joking…) suggested that I guest blog about some of my favorite books' first lines. I'm definitely not a writer, but I've always been an avid reader.

Over the past year, I've been trying to assemble my lifetime reading list, but it's nowhere near comprehensive. I truly wish that I had, like Anj, kept a lifelong list of books I've read. I'll admit that this is most likely because I seem to only ever recall stories (yes, and people) that, at some point, I actually liked. Reading is absolutely an escape for me, an oasis for my busy mind and fully scheduled day to day existence.

Generally I choose my books this way: first, if recommended to me by a trusted reader friend; second, I prefer my books to be FAT, with small print - I read fast, so I want big bang for my buck and the fatter the better; and third, I want to be captured in the first page, so I always read it before I buy or borrow.

What I notice from the list below, though not a complete surprise, is that I want a strong and vivid description to carry me instantly away from my real world and into the story. This list of first lines from a few favorite books (that span my reading life) has been a great reminder of what were some incredibly good stories, which I recommend you read, if you haven't already.

When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home.

-The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton

Even in high summer, Tintagel was a haunted place; Igraine, Lady of Duke Gorlois, looked out over the sea from the headland.

-The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley

“When your mama was the geek, my dreamlets," Papa would say, "she made the nipping off of noggins such a crystal mystery that the hens themselves yearned toward her, waltzing around her, hypnotized with longing."

-Geek Love, Katherine Dunn

Captain Ahab was neither my first husband nor my last.

-Ahab's Wife, Sena Jeter Naslund

In the shade of the house, in the sunshine of the riverbank near the boats, in the shade of the Sal-wood forest, in the shade of the fig tree is where Siddhartha grew up, the handsome son of the Brahman, the young falcon, together with his friend Govinda, son of a Brahman.

-Siddhartha, Herman Hesse

The wind being fierce and the tides unobliging, the ship from Harwich has a slow time of it.

-Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Gregory Maguire

She woke at midnight.

-Palace Walk (book one in the Cairo Triology), Naguib Mahfouz

In a broad valley, at the foot of a sloping hillside, beside a clear bubbling stream, Tom was building a house.

-The Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett

For the first fifteen years of our lives, Danny and I lived within five blocks of each other and neither of us knew of the other's existence.

-The Chosen, Chaim Potok

Once upon a time, sixty years ago, a little girl lived in the Big Woods of Wisconsin, in a little gray house made of logs.

-Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder

There was no possibility of taking a walk that day.

-Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë

In 1972 I was sixteen – young, my father said, to be traveling with him on his diplomatic missions.

-The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova

I could hear a roll of muffled drums.

-The Other Boleyn Girl, Philipa Gregory

***

Now you know Karen can read! Listen to Karen sing here.

Quick! Another Lovely!

(Now I don't feel so lame about the post below.) The Writer's Workshop Review just notified me that they've accepted "Tree," one of my favorite short-shorts, for publication in their next issue. I'm so glad it found a home in the Pacific Northwest, which is where its heart is.

I'll be sure to post when it's published -- and, yes, this makes me six for six in my year of publishing monthly!

The Lame, The Lazy and the Lovely

Alright, I'll start with the lame:

Two love letters this week. One from Skirt! rejecting an essay I wrote for their F-Word issue (Feminist/Fashionista/etc.) about facial hair, and another from Brevity, rejecting "Write in the Attic," a short nonfiction piece I hoped they'd love.

For the record, my work has been rejected by both of these publications on more than one occasion. I'll keep submitting to them, though -- maybe someday I'll get it right. I'll also keep submitting those pieces to other publications, because I think they're really good, and maybe someone else might think I got it right.

On to the lazy:

This one's mortifying: I submitted a flash fiction piece to SmokeLong Quarterly this morning - and I forgot I'd taken out a word to replace it with something amazing later! So yes, I didn't proofread well enough - until after I sent it - to put the amazing word in! Yeah, I'm mortified. I'll be expecting an immediate rejection from SmokeLong - and won't be submitting to that mag for a while. (They limit one submission per quarter, I think.)

Time for the lovely:

I finally got the hard copy of (and payment for!) my essay in Underwired's April issue - and it's gorgeous. The layout, the ads, the font -- it's all spectacular and I'm so happy about that publication. I'm going to frame the cover for my home.

And a final note:

I read recently that I should have at least a dozen, if not two dozen, items "out there," submitted at any given time. I'm sitting at seven out there right now, so my goal today is to submit to another four (woops, five, bad math) publications by afternoon.

Then I have to squeeze in house cleaning, grocery shopping, and caring for a little guy at home (for the third day in a row!) who in all likelihood has Fifth Disease, which has been running rampant through our school. (This sounds scarier than it is. Look up Fifth Disease here.)

First Lines of the Morning

In Writing Life Stories, by Bill Roorbach, I'm studying how to make memories into memoirs, ideas into essays, and life into literature. That's the book's subtitle, by the way.

These were my first assignments:
1. Clear a writing space for yourself. (Still working on that one.)
2. Set aside an hour a day to read something challenging - something that's been on your list, but you know it'll take extra effort to get through. For me, that's something like a novel by James Joyce or a book of nature writing by Edward Abbey or a book of science writing like The Moral Animal.
3. Form a writing circle to meet a couple times a month. (Done.)
4. Set aside scheduled time to write daily. (Done, but will be even more intentional.)
and
5. Find 10-20 "first lines" that work.

I was going to skip that last one, but then I decided I'd better play this game full out - and let me just say, it fed my soul to search through my book shelves to find my favorite books and essays, and then to type up their first lines.

Some of them, like Cormac McCarthy's The Road made me cry just to type them up. McCarthy nails the theme of love between his two main characters in that very first line, and that fierce desire the father holds to do whatever it takes to see his son to safety in a dangerous post-apocalypic world.

When he woke in the woods in the dark and the cold of the night, he'd reach out to touch the child sleeping beside him.
-The Road, Cormac McCarthy

Others, like Richard Selzer's "The Masked Marvel's Last Toe-Hold" and Lucy Grealy's Autobiography of a Face surprised me to start with such simplicity. When you finish their stories, though, you understand that Selzer's giving you another day at work - which is not just another day at work, and Grealy's giving you the shock of what it is to survive face cancer and be subject to the standards of beauty our society holds.

Morning rounds.
-"The Masked Marvel's Last Toe-Hold," Richard Selzer

Ker-pow!
-Autobiography of a Face, Lucy Grealy

And I got to re-visit Cannery Row and how that first line is pure poetry about the contradictions of the simple but complex life on Cannery Row. I remember stopping at the end of that first sentence the first time I read the story, and re-reading it for what it felt like.

Cannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream.
-Cannery Row, John Steinbeck

And here are the others, including the ones above. I'll let them all speak for themselves now:

lake level: 4206.00'
Mimi passed away this morning at 5:10 A.M., June 27, 1989.
-"Screech Owls," Terry Tempest Williams

By nightfall the headlines would be reporting devastation.
-The Transit of Venus, Shirley Hazzard

Nine months Landsman's been flopping at the Hotel Zamenhof without any of his fellow residents managing to get themselves murdered.
-The Yiddish Policemen's Union, Michael Chabon

My desert-island, all time, top five most memorable split-ups, in chronological order:
1. Alison Ashworth
2. Penny Hardwick
3. Jackie Allen
4. Charlie Nicholson
5. Sarah Kendrew
-High Fidelity, Nick Hornby

Suppose that you and I were sitting in a quiet room overlooking a garden, chatting and sipping at our cups of green tea while we talked about something that had happened a long while ago, and I said to you, "That afternoon when I met so-and-so... was the very best afternoon of my life, and also the very worst afternoon."
-Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden

When I teach a beginning class, it is good.
-Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within, Natalie Goldberg

When he woke in the woods in the dark and the cold of the night he'd reach out to touch the child sleeping beside him.
-The Road, Cormac McCarthy

Morning rounds.
-"The Masked Marvel's Last Toehold," Richard Selzer

Not dead, yet: We found him where he had tried to die in his car -- a huge old Mercedes pulled to the side of Reservoir Road, a washed-out dirt track encircling, what else, a reservoir.
-"The Dead Man," Justin Cronin

At daybreak Billy Buck emerged from the bunkhouse and stood for a moment on the porch looking up at the sky.
-The Red Pony, John Steinbeck

Ker-pow!
-Autobiography of a Face, Lucy Grealy

He came after Homer and before Gertrude Stein, a difficult interval for a poet.
-Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse, Anne Carson

Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood.
-The Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan

The line gets drawn, and the line gets drawn again.
-"The Line Is White, and It Is Narrow," Beth Kephart

My father and mother should have stayed in New York where they met and married and where I was born.
-Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt

In the town there were two mutes, and they were always together.
-The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Carson McCullers

That last one just kills me. McCullers nailed it there, too. What the two mutes mean to each other is just going to explode as that story unfolds.

If you've read this far, do you have a favorite book with an opening that nails it? Add to my list...

Soldier Stories

If Memorial Day reignites your appreciation for the sacrifices our soldiers make to serve, consider reading my friend Marcus Brotherton's book, A COMPANY OF HEROES: PERSONAL MEMORIES ABOUT THE REAL BAND OF BROTHERS AND THE LEGACY THEY LEFT US. It's filled with the never-before-told stories of the The Band of Brothers.

* * *

In other news, some Americans are upset today because President Obama won't be at Arlington National Cemetery to recognize Memorial Day. Instead, he'll be in Chicago at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, honoring America's fallen.

Well, guess what I learned?

He's not the first president to be away for Memorial Day! Presidents Bush, Bush and Reagan were away from Arlington on Memorial Day during their tenures in office. President Clinton, however, never missed a year.

Read the article here at snopes.com for the full scoop.

And Happy Memorial Day, wherever you're celebrating it.

Just Some Good Old-Fashioned Family Morels

With Craig, a family friend and expert in fungus among us, six Reynolds kids and six adults headed out the Green Springs Road yesterday to the Hyatt Lake area to gather morels.

Kai drove us out in the Death Star along some forest roads and we spent a couple hours trying to find the delicious morsels among dense trees and decaying stumps. The kids searched for a few minutes, but mostly played in swampy muck with sticks and rocks while we adults combed the hillsides.

Dane and his cousin Indi are ready to swamp stomp

Aubs gets ready aboard the Death Star

Ultimately, we discovered we were a bit early in the season, and only found eleven morels. However, we kept up group morel by harvesting mushroom jokes.

Needless to say, when we didn't find any mushrooms, morel was low.

Kai realized his disappointment in not finding a single morel could be considered mushtrating, but he was going to be a good spore(t) about it.

Mick said that with twelve people and two dogs in the Death Star, every space was filled, not leaving mush room for anything else.

And Craig told us at the end of the day that although he may have seemed a little serious during the search, he really is a fungi.

Aw, what a lucky strike.

Go ahead, cringe. Then tell me what would you have said.

The Daykeeper's Grimoire RELEASED!

My new writer-pal Christy Raedeke just published her debut YA novel, The Daykeeper's Grimoire, from her Prophecy of Days series.

In the book, punchy and smart teenage narrator Caity MacFireland takes on an old secret brotherhood that's attempting to sustain a sinister and conspiratorial world order. At her new home, an inherited castle in Scotland, Caity finds out she's an integral part of a prophecy to save the world, and uses the Mayan calendar and other ancient concepts or texts to interpret the prophecy and thwart the brotherhood's plan.

The book is an exciting, well-written and intellectually-stimulating adventure. Kids these days are so lucky to have this in the reading nook.

And the second one promises to be equally good.

I wasn't in the writing group when Christy wrote this first one, but she was kind enough to let me revel in her victory as one of her "Writing Group Buddies" at her recent Bloomsbury reading.

As a group, we were the proudest, giddiest folks in the audience, appreciating the tenacity and talent it took to get there.

From Left to Right, you see Jennie Englund (in green), me (chewing gum, woops), Julie Inada (Christy's long-time friend who gave a kickin' intro that night, referring to becoming hooked on Christy's writing back in 5th grade when Christy would leave notes for Julie in the Girl's Bathroom), Christy herself, and another writer, Marcia, who currently is taking a break from the group.

Christy's from Ashland, and Bloomsbury was packed - with family, friends, and even her former teachers, including her fifth grade teacher who was absolutely beaming.

For my Washington pals, go be inspired at one of Christy's upcoming readings!

*Village Books in Bellingham on June 5th at Noon
*U Village Barnes and Noble in Seattle on June 5th at 5PM

Tell her "Anjie sent me!" if you go - and tell her you'd love to hear more about Mr. Papers, the monkey who communicates through origami.

Just for fun, I've included some pictures of some hubbies and offspring.

If The Dog Could Read, She'd Have To Settle For Book 3

Oh, my poor little neglected blog. Neglected for a few baseball games, gymnastics practice, walks with the dog, field trips with the kids, and... a really engaging book.

I'm nearly finished with Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief, which I was finally allowed to start reading after Dane finished it for his book report, and then after Mick and Aubrey tag teamed possession of it during their waking/sleeping hours for a couple weeks.

That book is a fun ride. You have a kid who thinks he's different (in a bad way) who finds out he's special (in an amazing way) and you're pulling for him to successfully complete a quest - because he's actually genetically linked to the gods of Greek mythology, and is mixed up in a complex plot among them.

It's an amazing, fast-paced, educational adventure - and, like I said, Percy and his series are a huge hit in this house.

Currently, Dane's reading Book 5: The Last Olympian, Mick's reading Book 4: The Battle of the Labyrinth, Aubrey's reading Book 2: Sea of Monsters, and if Sharkles could read, I'm sure she'd be on Book 3: The Titan's Curse because she probably would've beaten me to access to Book 1 long ago, too.

I also have to add that it was really tough to put Percy away for a night so I could read Cheaper By The Dozen for book club. Ultimately, I found Cheaper to be a charming. if not slightly overly-anecdotal, book about an unusual family: psychologist (mom) and efficiency expert (dad) raising twelve kids in the early twentieth century.

I may have found the father's chauvinist ways bristling at times (when he's courting his future wife, he stops conversation to pick her up and set her on a book shelf because she "looks prettier there" - and then no longer contributes to the conversation!) but I took it with a grain of salt and mostly found him to be a fun-loving, mix-it-up kind of guy who loved education and family.

Wonderful things that stayed with me: Teaching his children Morse Code by painting code on the walls, teaching the children (ages 3 and up) to multiply double digits in their heads by memorizing squares and then adding differences (or something like that -- I have to figure it out; my parents didn't teach me that!), and hanging the solar system from the house ceiling. Every situation was an opportunity to educate in this family, and it was inspiring, although a little heavy-handed.

Ultimately, I'm glad I read it, but Mr. Frank Gilbreth couldn't really hold a candle to Percy Jackson. But comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges. Or Humans and Half-Bloods. It's really not an even contest.

TWENTY IS THE RULE NEAR THE SCHOOL

Dane made up the above logo after working really hard to come up with "Drive Twenty-Five - Keep Kids Alive!" which was a good idea, if, um, a bit inaccurate for a school zone.

Walker Elementary won a "Safe Routes To School" grant this year - the only school in the district to snag the grant, thanks to their four years of "Walker Wednesdays." (Kids get to enter drawings for prizes when they walk, bike, or take the bus on Walker Wednesdays.)

Since we walk or bike to school every day, I responded to the coordinator's email and said we'd be happy to make signs over the weekend and help out before school.


So the kids made these signs on Sunday and we walked to school an hour early last Monday. At the corner of Iowa (our street) and Walker (the school's street) we stood with Officer Steve, recording speeds and license plates and vehicle makes and driver gender. Officer Steve would then be mailing those folks notices that they were speeding and the next offense would be a big fat ticket.


While we were out there, a couple drivers got clocked speeding TWICE that morning and a couple drivers had been clocked speeding the week before! (In a school zone, for crying out loud!)

Officer Steve and the other coordinators said that drivers slow down for a couple weeks after speed traps like that - especially if they haven't had speed traps in the zone for a long time.

I'm still trying to figuring out if two weeks is considered successful, or a crying shame... Whatever the case, remember

TWENTY IS THE RULE
NEAR THE SCHOOL

and if you obey that law, we'll say:

WAY TO GO!
KEEP IT SLOW!

Tag-alicious

I've been tagged. This is a big deal to me, because I love to be included! (I've been over this before in this post and this post and this post...)

So, let me begin:

Question 1 - Where were you 5 years ago?
1. May of 2005 we were starting to look ahead to dental school in San Francisco - moving in June, starting school in July;
2. Dane and Aubrey were 3 and 4 and chubby-cheeked and young in ways that only hindsight can reveal;
3. Mick and I were about to drive 30 hours round trip to Marin City (at the edge of Sausalito) over Memorial Day Weekend to apply for an apartment - we were nervous and thought it would be really tough to get in, but it turns out it was no big woop;
4. We were about to have the biggest garage sale of our lives (mostly Mick's quiver of wakeboards) so we could downsize from a 3 BR, 2 BA, 2 car garage to a 2 BR, 2 BA 1 shared garage that cost twice as much;
5. We were about to pack everything we owned into a Hertz rental (with no small help from our focused and fabulous friend Eric Friesen when Mick just stood in the garage turning circles unable to determine where to start) - and the truck would be so full we'd leave our kitchen chairs because they just couldn't smoosh in.

Question 2 - Where would you like to be in 5 years?
1. I would like to have my healthy, loving, brilliant family - Mick, Aubrey, Dane, Sharkles and me - all living in peace and harmony with each other and our environment (I know that sounds cheesy but it's true);
2. I'd like to be teaching in some capacity and writing a lot - with a hundred essays or poems or short stories published in major literary markets and a hot novel I've written in the hands of a publisher;
3. I'd like to possibly add a foster child or an exchange student to our family - which also means I'd like to have a little more room in the house (this one or another snazzy one);
4. I'd like to be fit enough to play ball, ride bikes, hike, camp, run, and climb trees with my kids;
5. I'd like to go places and see things with my family and friends.

Question 3 - What is on your To-Do list today?
1. Pick up In Brief, In Short, and Cheaper By The Dozen at the library;
2. Write, and then study a few good essays;
3. Walk/jog the dog, break a sweat;
4. Make dinner;
5. Blog.

Question 4 - What snacks do you enjoy?
1. Chocolate chips from a bag - the whole bag;
2. Apple slices with lime juice on them;
3. String cheese;
4. Frozen berries with agave and milk;
5. Chocolate chips from a bag.

Question 5 - What 5 things would you do if you were a billionaire?
1. Take in as many kids as I could emotionally care for - and donate money to care for foster kids around the world;
2., 3., 4., 5. I don't think I'm going to get very creative on this one - because I think I'd just keep living the way I do, with maybe a bigger home, a few more clothes, and a bigger travel budget - but other than making sure my kids were adequately taken care of in their education, I'd donate to any cause I felt worthy. Any time. A billion dollars is a lot of money.

Now I'll do some tagging - if any pals feel like playing (remember, I know how nice it is just to be invited):
First, I'll tag Nia Sayers at Summerland Style because she's so freakin' creative and amazing and inspiring that her work deserves a big nod;
Second, I'll tag my pal Jennie Englund because she's my fabulous writer-pal (even though she was already tagged by KJR, who tagged me!);
Third, I'll tag my love bug Shelby Friesen over at Shelby's World because she writes the most spectacular birthday posts - for each of her children - that make me laugh and cry no matter which kid, which year;
Fourth, I'll tag my friends Colin and Angie over at Tadhana - who haven't been posting much since they got married(!);
And Lastly, I'll tag my BFF Karen Urlie, even though she doesn't even have a blog, but she deserves my tag if only because she's read EVERY SINGLE POST I'VE EVER WRITTEN.

PROJECT BREAK-A-SWEAT

Yeah, you read that right. I'm on a new kick: I'm going to start breaking a sweat. Daily.

I don't break a sweat very often any more. I don't belong to a gym, and even though I exercise every day by walking or biking, I can't tell you the last time I had sweat running down my face from a good run, stair climb, or jump rope sesh.

That's just plain lame.

Enter Project Break-A-Sweat: somehow, some way, every day.

I'll let you know how that goes.

For now, I'm going to lie here in bed and wait for breakfast to be served. Mick just returned from some sort of clandestine mission that I think involved buying breakfast groceries.

Can't wait to find out what I'll have to sweat out of my system today.

Happy Mother's Day!

How often do YOU break a sweat? Wanna join me?

Sun Letter

The Sun rejected a poem I sent them. It's my third rejection from them in ten years. That's okay, it's just a love letter. And besides, I'll never forget how wonderful it felt the one time they accepted something - so I'll keep flirting.

Nickel Slots With Mom

After sticking a nickel in my crack as I got a trash bag from under the sink, Aubrey drew this picture of me.

What a lovely girl.

A boy, a book, a bag

PERCY JACKSON AND THE LIGHTNING THIEF
A 3rd GRADE PRESENTATION BY DANE REYNOLDS

Dane had a month to choose and read an Adventure or Mystery novel, write up a Summary/Setting/Character/Opinion report, and put together a bag of representative items. He spent the last four days dialing in the report and bag - and here's what he finally came up with for his project.

Click on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuK09mfng28 to see it.

Update: Dane presented this to his class today and totally rocked it. He blew his teacher away and earned an A+!

The Christmas Chronicles, 2009 - Part I

I can't believe I didn't blog about Christmas -- at all.

And this blog is supposed to be the family album; it's the family scrapbook! What kind of mother misses Christmas???

It must have been that we had such fun just being in the spirit of the season, and entertaining house guests (a future blog post), that I just didn't hop on the computer much.

So let The Christmas Chronicles 2009 Part I simply be this:

WE LOVED GOING TO THE NUTCRACKER.

Dana, Jan (Grammy), and I took the girls. First, we went for the traditional pre-Nutcracker meal at Red Robin and then we headed to the Ginger Rogers Craterian Theater for some Nutcracker. I think the guys all stayed at Kai's and put together the Wii, but we don't have photo dox of that... so we'll just stick to The Nutcracker.

At Red Robin:

At the Craterian:

And going home happy:

See ya next year.