Christmas Comes Early in 2009

My daughter is expecting. That news alone would've been an excellent early Christmas gift. Then came the news that she was expecting twins! Another gift!

C has made Honor Roll, became the varsity boys basketball team manager, will be inducted into the SST National Honor Society, ran a successful food drive and has filled out several college applications. B sold a big service contract which earned a commission payable to him in Feb. 2010.

All wonderful early Christmas gifts!

Now comes the news that Michael has gotten a job! Yeah! At this job, he'll be able to use his skills and his degree, continue his training and education all while financially supporting my daughter (his wife) and the upcoming expansion of their family! He'll be making about as much a year as I do but since the cost of living in VA is lower than up here in NH, they should be OK. That news is the best Christmas present to me thus far.

What might top it?

T getting a drivers license and actually starts driving herself around and the Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box game for my DS (hint, hint C! On sale for $29.99 at Walmart).

Fried Turkey and Other Stuff

After last weekends turkey-fest with the Boy Scouts, B wanted to serve some to his parents. Tonight, we went to their home where he and Charlie heated up the oil and fried up a turkey and potato slices for dinner. Ruth prepared the rest of the meal and as always, the meal was tasty. The turkey was good too. However, even though the skin was super crispy and delicious, the turkey was not "off the charts" and so the ban on frying turkeys at our home will continue.

Beth joined us for dinner as well as C and Jimmy. I think everyone had a nice time. It was yummy for sure, followed by a chocolate cake. MMMMMmmmm!

The cats had a late dinner and are now running all over the house trying to catch and kill some bendy straws. The tree is still standing! C decorated it using only her unbreakable ornaments. I've done some online Christmas shopping this weekend. It makes me nervous doing that kind of shopping, but it beat sitting in traffic and standing in long lines!

I find myself drifting into baby departments more often. I look at all the cool new inventions that weren't there 21 years ago. Prices don't seem to be too high on many items. And then it hits me... I have to multiply that low price by 2! T is having twins!

What's This?

I am using my robotic eye to determine what is this alien object in my living space!

Huh? Did you just tell me to say Cheese? Mmmm, I like cheese.

Shhh! I think I see a bird.

Now, where is the ladder to climb this thing?

Peek a Boo! I see you!

Just a few pictures taken of Gracie and Zee checking out the Christmas tree. Enjoy!

T is for...

• T= tasty turkey, tiny twins by T & M, thankful heart
• H= home for the holidays, happy feelings, hot stuffing
• A= apple pie, aunts, anger-free day
• N= noise, nature, notes from kids
• K= kittens, kids, kind thoughts
• F= fun conversations, full tummy, fuzzy blankets
• U= unity, uncles, understanding
• L= love, laundered clothes, late night movies

I do have much to be thankful for all year round, not only on Thanksgiving. I remember making poems like this as a child and I felt like doing it today. Feel free to make your own THANKFUL list. You'll be surprised how much you can think of in just a few minutes.

Hope you had a great feast and wonderful day!

Cats and Christmas

Today, I began rearranging the family room to make a spot for our tree. This meant that I had to move the litter box ( I got a new one with a roof for privacy and stench control) to be sure it remains out of sight of humans along with a few pieces of furniture. The cats, were in FULL CURIOSITY mode during the whole process. Even when I vacuumed, they peeked around the corner from the safety of the next room to see what I was doing.

The Christmas tree should provide them with much to do and sniff as well as providing us with laughter and mirth as they play with the decor. The fragile stuff will not be on display. I'll be cooking some veggie dishes for Thanksgiving tonight and tomorrow. Good thing cats are carnivores or I'd never get them away from me. Even now, Zee has settled on my chest while I'm typing and Gracie is watching me close by. Am I away from home that much that they think everything I do is new to them?

Well, back to getting Christmas together. T, the books should be there Fri. or Sat. Love You.

Last Thanksgiving Craft 2009

Today was our last craft prior to Thanksgiving. Here's my camera phone photo of our Apple Turkeys! We made more Halloween crafts than Thanksgiving. Over the past weeks, we have made and played the Pin the Hat on the Turkey game, created Pilgrim hats and turkeys out of colored paper and paper plates. A fleet of Mayflower ships set sail and we spent several days talking about and hanging paper Thanksgiving cutouts from my stash. We also read several books about Thanksgiving.

Our favorite Thanksgiving song to sing: (Warning!! The author of this song is unknown to me. I learned it as a child)

Thanksgiving Day is coming. So Mr. Turkey said, "How very careful I must be or I will lose my head." The pumpkin heard the turkey. "I'm frightened too, oh my! They'll mix me up with sugar and spice then I'll be pumpkin pie!"

In case I get busy with the holiday...

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

I Think I May Have Peed A Little...

Ever have one of those days where you see or say or hear something funny or stupid and no matter how hard you try, you can't stop laughing? I haven't had one of those days in quite a while, T was good at making me laugh, so today's laugh felt good.

I now know where Santa keeps his elves when he's not using them. In ELF STORAGE! HaHaHa! No, really! On Rte 125 in Kingston NH, there's a business called, ELF STORAGE!

Ok, Ok, so the "S" was missing its light and it should've read SELF STORAGE, but with Christmas just around the corner, it struck me as very funny. Who knows, maybe they did that on purpose, just for me!

I've updated my Barnes and Noble card for another year, so those who like the discounts in the store or online can continue using my home phone number to enjoy the discount benefits. Just remember, I get emails from them asking me to "review" my recent purchases, so I will know what you bought and when you bought it.

I'm Back!

I came home early on Friday feeling dizzy, light-headed and very tired. I slept most of Saturday. I had a brainstorm to double up on my iron pills. Well, it worked! I'm anemic enough that I have to take 350mg of iron every day anyway, now with the added stress of 3-week long periods, my iron must have gone way down. I didn't enjoy the fogginess in my head at all. I knew the pain wasn't flu related.

It'll be a short work week due to Thanksgiving. We've decided to bring back a real Christmas tree to our home this year. We took a "tree break" last year because we weren't sure how Gracie would treat the tree. We have more confidence in our 2 feline friends. I hope to get the tree in the house on Friday. We'll decorate it on Saturday. Right, B and C?

I've started Christmas shopping. Don't bother looking C! I've hidden the gifts well this year. I'm not sure if my kids want PJ's for their Christmas Eve gift. I'm certain they'll let me know along with style, color and size. I need a Jimmy gift idea.

B spent last Friday night with the Scouts in a cabin at Camp Zion (Onway) in Raymond, NH. On Saturday, he and a few other leaders helped the Scouts DEEP FRY a turkey and had themselves a turkey feast. B will be frying one up for Charlie on Friday after Thanksgiving.

When we moved to NH 10 years ago, I heard too many stories of houses being lost to careless turkey frying. I have banned such a venture on our own property, but if others wish to deep fry on their own property and invite me to partake... I will.

A Walk in the Woods

With teacher-parent conferences today, Connor was home with us for the afternoon.

What to do?

I brought my metal detector and we went out through the backyard and into the woods.

Their neighborhood used to be a large farm, but developers got their hands on it and built stuff. So the "woods" are just a bunch of backyards that the owners kept "natural". One CANNOT get lost in these woods.

We did find some interesting metal things. First, we found a cigarette package. The aluminum foil under the plastic set off the detector. Boring! Next, a dangle-y earring, with a yellowish crystal. Kaya was excited. She kept asking me to find the other one!

We found a shotgun casing as well as a casing for another bullet. There were several trees that made the detector ping. Turns out the trees had grown over barbed wire fences. The boys kept hoping that we would find a treasure and be rich. It didn't happen... today.

Lastly, we found pieces of, what appeared to me to be, an old water bucket used for target practice. After washing, these pieces became interesting to the boys. They saw some ornamental work on the pieces and of course, the ammo casings were cool.

In A Blink of An Eye

Life can change so fast.

Yesterday, I was flying high with news that T was expecting twins. I was going to go down to VA, visit with them and perhaps stay awhile to help out. I had 3 months off at half pay (to insure that I didn't get a job elsewhere) while Krista was on maternity leave.

Today, Krista found out the baby she was to have in early May has passed away. She goes tomorrow for a D&C (or E) I forget, but it was sad news to hear. She seems OK with the situation. Brian appears to be taking it hard.

They told the kids the news.

Connor said, "Well it's sad but now we don't have to buy a van. We can save money."

Colin's' reaction... stay as close as he could to his mother for the rest of the day. He was very concerned about her.

Then there was 3 year old Kaya. I love this kid.

Krista told her that the baby had died and was living with Heavenly Father. She replied, "Heavenly Father will fix it and send it back, right?" Later on during a phone call with her mom, Kaya asked if the baby was OK. She was reminded that the baby had died so she said, "Mommy, you will buy a new one for us?"

I'll need to find a different plan for visiting T and the babes in April. This event may mean the summer trip to Ireland is back on. Too soon to bring that up though.

I need to get to bed early. I'm relieving their Gram-Gram in the morning. Brian has to go to Connors Parent/Teacher conference since Krista will be unavailable. I think he's nervous about that.

Zee is home, well and loud. She has a very tiny suture and a shaved belly.

Two, Dos, Twice, Double, Squared, Couple, WHAT?!

If you haven't guessed by the title... T is having TWINS! I'm still coming to terms with the fact she was pregnant at all and now comes the news that she is expecting TWINS!

WOW!

I only have 1 crib to give her. They know for sure that the babies are NOT identical and that 1 is a girl. The other was too shy today during the 3D ultrasound.

Good things come in groups of 2, right? Twinkies, cherries, 2 for 1 sales for example.

Wow, twins.

BTW, Zee did fine at the vets today, she's staying the night. Gracie seems to enjoy the absence and attention.

Kaya fell down a chipmunk hole up to her hip during our walk in the woods this afternoon. She's fine, but I was worried she had broken her leg, she was worried about her shoe.

ABBA DABBA, T is having TWINS! wow.

(abba dabba is Kayas way of saying abra cadabra)

Weird

I've been watching a strange miniseries called, "The Prisoner". I can't explain it or why I enjoy watching it because I'm not sure exactly what or why I'm watching. It reminds me of "Lost" and I hope that if I can get through it to the end, it may make sense to me.

I think that the show is actually a hallucination inside a bed-ridden woman's' head. Bedridden, because of pills she takes to heal her broken heart. I guess it's one of those things that unless you watching for yourself, it's hard to explain.

It's strange, weird and confusing yet, I enjoy it. Why is that I wonder?

Zee has her operation tomorrow. Kaya had her first play date invite from a girl in her dance class. Too cute! Krista doesn't want to get into the whole "play date" thing and rolled her eyes, but I think I may insist, even if it means I take Kaya there myself. C read the comments left by Uncle Larry and after looking up what the camera looked liked, she smiled, and said, "No Thanks." She also laughed at the old GPS unit he offered. As for B and whether he wants Larry's other goodies? He'll have to ask him. They sound very heavy though.

So? Did It Taste Like Spaghetti?

Honestly?

It was pretty close. The squash has a crunchy texture, like al dente spaghetti, but it didn't slurp or slide around like spaghetti does. It was short strands, like spaghetti that had been cut up before cooking it.

It was very easy to cook. I cut mine in half, seeded it, placed it "cut side" down on a jelly roll pan and put about 2 cups of water in the bottom of the pan. Baked it at 350 for about an hour. The squash has a tough skin, and when it can be pierced with a regular dinner fork, it's done. Under-cooked spaghetti squash is YUCKY!

Then I scooped it out of the shell, tossed in 2T olive oil and salt/pepper to taste.

The squash naturally goes into strands. Use a fork to separate it faster.

I topped mine with marinara sauce and meatballs. A sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and I took a bite.

Not bad.

I preferred to have the squash, meatball, sauce and cheese all in one bite. It didn't taste as good if an ingredient was missing from my bite.

Will I try this again?

Probably.

There are many other spaghetti squash recipes out there and I may end up loving one of them.

Spaghetti Squash

Tastes just like spaghetti!

Or so I'm told. I'm going to find out for sure tonight. It's in the oven now. I have marinara sauce for topping as well as some olive oil and Parmesan cheese. If this experiment works, I'll be able to have "pasta" again! If it doesn't tastes good, you'll be sure to hear about it.

Fantasy Football is still on. We have sunk to 7th out of 10. We had a 3 game losing streak followed by win, loss, win, loss. Our points are lower too, thanks to a terrible Chicago defense that managed to give us several weeks of negative points. Got rid of them and went with Miami. Much better results this week.

C has given us her Christmas list. We've managed to raise a daughter with expensive tastes. I hope she knows that we cannot get her everything on her list which includes: A hair straightener AND a curling iron (2 separate appliances). A North Face winter jacket, Uggs boots, Coach sunglasses, car insurance (July 2010-Dec 2010), Reef flip flops, new car speakers, a GPS unit for her car, a new laptop with a carrying case, rain boots, and XL twin sheets for college. Actually, she'll be lucky to get just one of these things from us. Property taxes are due in 3 weeks. I know she won't be getting a computer (until she leaves for college).

Haven't received T's list yet. Hopefully she won't be as expensive. B's asked for certain backpacking equipment for this summers hike on the Appalachian Trail.

Cold, Wet and Dull Day

I was awakened this morning to a cell phone being put in my face. C was showing me a picture proving that Jimmy had finally "bagged" his deer. Kind of gross to see. At least he was able to get back indoors quickly as todays rains have been steady and cold, though not as bad as what the mid-Atlantic states got this week.

I did dishes, went grocery shopping, packed a box to send to T, but didn't get it to the Post Office. I made some homemade beef stew to take the edge off the chill in the air. Played some computer word games to help pass the time. B was helping out with Scouting for Food and C had training seminars for the Rec. Dept. so I was alone most of the day.

T texted me that she felt her baby fluttering last night. She was excited. She is taking a poll about her baby name choices. She thinks either Evelyn Noel or Charlotte Nicole.

Gracie and Zee continue to bring smiles to my face. I love watching them interact. Zee's "operation" is on Tuesday. Shhh, don't tell her.

A First For Everything...

It took some bribery and I had him watch me make it from start to finish, but Colin ate his FIRST cheeseburger today! He liked it! He had tried a burger once before I met him and has never wanted to try one again. He and Kaya ate 1/2 of their burger. I made them thicker than what Kaya would eat at McDonalds. She LOVES cheeseburgers. I hope this means I can stop eating frozen chicken nuggets and fish sticks now!

Other than that... just a regular day.

This Weeks Goings On... So Far...

I heard from Lise, a French exchange student we hosted for 2 weeks in 2006. She says she's doing well at her university studying LAW. She called her type of law, Notaire, which she says is not glamorous or likely to make her rich but she likes it.

I organized Kayas' bedroom. I used "over the door" shoe pockets to keep her stuffed toys and got 2 of those 3-drawer plastic units and assigned each drawer a type of toy. Baby toys were moved to storage in the basement for her new sibling. I did other stuff too that I won't bore you with. Her room looks much better and now she has room to play IN there.

I bought some 90% off costumes for my dress-up collection. I purchased some Playmobil Christmas toys at Target and won some Mighty Max people on Ebay.

Oh, on top of all that, I sort of saw the ultrasound pictures of T's baby. They were blurry, but it was the thought that counts. She's trying to keep me in the loop. Sometimes being so far apart in miles is hard. I've decided to spell my "grandmother" name as, NONI. As I told T, it's hipper, more modern and makes me feel younger.

Just For C

As C went off to bed tonight, she asked if I had updated my blog. It turns out that she enjoys reading my blog before bed. I guess I still read to my kids at bedtime after all.

When did Gracie become QUEEN of the house and get the spot on the couch that has always been mine after 8pm every night? How did I not see this coming? Even T & C know that spot is mine!

And Zee? She's at the top of the basement stairs meowing loudly for C.

Life Will Be "Grand"

As you all know, my employer, Krista is expecting her 4th child in May 2010. B says it's job security for me.

What you didn't know is that T is also expecting! From what I understand, until today, she didn't know it either! She was very surprised to hear she was pregnant and just how far along she was too! Early April 2010 is her due time.

She has been expectant before, several times actually, and was unable to carry past the 1st trimester. I know that's been weighing on her.

This time around promises to be different. T tells me that today's ultrasound has shown a healthy baby (possibly a girl) and the heartbeat is very strong. T will be under the care of doctors skilled in the "high risk" pregnancy field.

I'm happy for her and Michael. I know they will have great love for their child. T will be the same age in April as I was when I became her mother so many years ago, so I guess she'll be ready.

Am I ready to be" NONI"? I think so. I hope so. Yeah, I know so. I do wish they lived closer. Stay tuned for Mommy updates in the next few months.

Today 11/10/2009

Happy 40th Sesame Street!

The trip to Christmas Dove went very well except for my dead camera batteries. Kaya cooed and ahhed just like I thought she would. She was drawn to the most expensive things in every collection. Colin... well, after the trains and villages, he became a miniature version of what it is like to shop with B. The sighs, rolling the eyes and "Can we go yet?" every few minutes.

They couldn't wait to get to my house to see the cats and play with ALL the toys. I gave them some treats to get the cats to like them. It worked. Both cats were very curious about these 2 noisy little people who played with tiny things. As you can tell by the pictures (I put new batteries in), fun was has by all today.

Too much fun I guess. The older boy was so jealous, I had to promise him he could come with his siblings to my house tomorrow! Hot dogs and Beans were requested for lunch.

Cute Pics Coming Tomorrow

Last week, I casually mentioned aloud that it would be fun to take the 2 young kids to a Christmas store while the older brother was in school. They remembered and wanted to go today! Alas, dance class was today and we didn't want to chance being late for that.

So, tomorrow I will take them to the Christmas Dove. I know the pickle won't be available, but there is so much for the little ones to see and do there, and purchase too.

A Santa statue to practice sitting on and having your picture taken, several villages with many buildings, venues and trains that do their thing when buttons are pushed by the kids. Toys, lights, ornaments, trees, angels, nativity scenes and decorated trees hung upside down from the ceiling.

I'm hoping to get a few pictures of the AWE in their faces. Then its back to my house for lunch and playtime with Gracie and Zee.

For our annual Thanksgiving movie (after the family meal) we will be seeing the new "The Christmas Carol" starring Jim Carrey. I love Christmas.

A Forgotten Summer Project

Here they are, modeling their nature shirts we made using nature items and a bleach solution in a spray bottle. We washed them prior to wearing. Connor still likes his enough to wear it. Kaya is still in her princess stage and won't wear it. Colin's is his favorite color, but since it doesn't match his brothers he won't wear it. But they were fun to make. Cell phone camera is not the best at focusing. Sorry.

In a Pickle

A few years back, I came across the tradition of "the Christmas Pickle". Basically, (though there are many versions of the tradition) it's a glass pickle ornament that Santa puts on your Christmas tree as a, Thanks, for the yummy snacks you left for him. Who(m)ever finds the pickle on the tree on Christmas morning, gets an "extra" present.

Well, during my summer vacation, when I was cleaning the house, I broke our pickle. Yes, I keep it on display year round. I love Christmas. With Christmas a few weeks away, I thought I should finally replace it. But The Christmas Dove in Barringinton, NH, the place where I bought the first one, only sells the "gherkin" size now.

I did buy the tiny pickle, but boy, this one will be hard to locate!

I didn't find any new ornaments for either of my kids or an ornament for Zee. I guess I'll shop online for them. Gracie got her ornament last year, a red jingle bell with a gray cat's head on it. Looks just like her.

Leaf Free!

As of 4pm today, our yard is leaf free! B has worked on them off and on the past 2-3 weekends and I started up the blower at noon today for the final clearing. B did come home and the 2 of us got it done. C said she'd cook dinner rather than rake with us.

I know .98 acres doesn't sound like much to rake up, but believe me... IT IS!! My elbows and back are killing me. I have callouses again. The yard looks good though. Maybe we won't need to do more yard work until it snows? Which won't be this week...70 degrees on Monday!!

Gracie was fascinated by the blowing leaves. She was in the windows the whole time watching us. Zee has a shorter attention span. She took a nap.

Neighbors across the street have put their house on the market. The asking price is $199,000. A red "cape" similar to ours and .98 acres of land, mostly trees. There was a young couple with a baby looking at it today. Maybe new neighbors soon?

My body hurts. I must lie down. Or is it lay down? Whatever it is, I must do it.

Food Crafts

TGIF!

Today we churned our own butter. We put 1 cup of heavy cream into a large Mason jar and screwed the lid on tight. Whipping cream works too but it takes longer to turn to butter. We took turns shaking the jar until butter formed, about 5-6 minutes. I drained out the buttermilk (though I hear it tastes good mixed into a pancake batter) then added some water. I shook the water and butter up to rinse off any remaining buttermilk. Then I drained the water off and slid the creamy, soft butter into a dish. I could have added salt or food coloring, but chose not to do so.

Then we made toast. And not just any toast. It was hand painted toast! I mixed a few drops of food color with 1 tsp of milk. I used brand new paintbrushes and mixed up 4 bowls with different colors. They each painted a Canadian White piece of bread, both sides. A quick toasting, then spread on our own butter. Fun and yummy!

Todays Crafty Thing and Zee!

Connor was in school. It was much easier on me today. We did a gluing project. Yes, I know they need to learn to cut paper themselves, but I wasn't in the mood for that, so we just glued my pre-cut pieces together to create a pilgrim turkey. Here's what the finished product looked like.

Zee's sister, Blackie, had her operation today to ensure no new babies! Zee's own operation is 2 weeks away. Our vet keeps them 24-36 hours following the procedure to prevent complications, at no extra charge. After seeing Blackie today, how "out of it" she is, sore and raw, and all the precautions they have to take with her, I've decided... I really like our vet!

ENJOY THE PICTURES!

Attendance

My girls had to go to school. I told them they were not allowed to stay home or go to the school nurse unless they were boiling, broken, bleeding or dead. Was I a mean mother? Is having a good attendance record in school important? Even in their elementary years?

Well, today, Connor, who missed 33 days of Kindergarden last year, (many of which were "I'm faking" days) missed his 5th day of 1st grade. Three of them were due to a family vacation, but the other two? In my opinion, he was healthy enough to go to school.

A little sniffle or stuffy nose with my kids? I would've sent them to school with some tissues. I think this H1N1 thing has gotten everyone a bit paranoid. Of course, I could be feeling this way because I'm in a grouchy mood today. But having him home 2 days (yesterday was election day, no school) in a row has been tough on me. He's so much louder, more demanding and bossier than the other two kids. If he continues having "sick days," at this rate, he'll miss about 20 days this year! I guess that's an improvement. He's not behind in his education/development, so maybe he doesn't need good attendance?

I'm going to bed early. Good Night All!

Thanksgiving Season Begins...

Today was my official start of celebrating Thanksgiving with the kids I watch. We talked about why the Pilgrims left England, conditions on the Mayflower and I tried to get them to understand the word "thankful". But like most kids today, they didn't get it. I have all month to teach them. We'll be making a turkey to "stuff" with written notes about what they could be thankful for in their lives.

Then, we made our own Mayflower ships. The real ship never looked so pretty, though it may have been filled with "nuts" too. Kaya liked every nut I cracked for her. Connor and Colin... not at all. Each put a Plymouth Rock next to their ship too. We made cornbread muffins for our snack.

I'm thankful that I didn't have to cook dinner tonight. We tried Lebanese grilled food tonight. Lamb kabobs with rice pilaf and a salad. C had a beef kabob. Is it normal for Lebanese food to over indulge their entrees with sage?

NH is Home to Worlds Largest Meatball

And NO... it's not named B! or JEN! maybe C, though. Just kidding... a little. Seriously, a restaurant in Concord NH just set the record for the biggest meatball. It weighed in around 255 lbs I think. My opinion? Why? Nuff said.

Today, memories of T came flooding back. What brought that on?

Long story, shortened a little bit.

Well, Colin's Bakugan present went missing this morning before I arrived. He met me at the door requesting that I bring him to Toys R Us for a replacement.

Smelling a rat, I told him that until I looked around the house myself for the missing toy, there would be no trip to the store. He burst into tears and screams which I ignored.

Instead, I looked for the rat, who was being uncharacteristically calm. Normally, if his brother was missing something, he too would be in my face, demanding that I replace the item. But no, he was very busy being too busy with "other things".

I questioned him and got a denial of knowledge as to the whereabouts of the missing toy. I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Colin said his brother would never lie to him.

His dad was running late and I needed to remind them to get Connor to school on time. Normally, Connor would care less if if dad got him to school ever, never mind ON TIME! But not today! "Come on, Dad, Let's Go!" I knew I would be busy this morning looking in his hiding spots.

After they left, I began my investigation. I searched the family and dining rooms. I went upstairs to the bathroom. The packaging of the toy was in the bathroom trash. Neatly opened. I looked in his bedroom for Bakugan storage box. No new toys in there. Then, I noticed, tucked in the corner of the room, under oddly placed toys, was the missing toy. I felt like Adrian Monk.

Colin was very happy.

I interrogated Connor when I picked him up from school.

The gist of our conversation went like this:

"Connor, I want to ask you a question. But before you answer, I want you to know that Santa, Mom, me and Heavenly Father will be remembering what you say. Did you take your brothers toy this morning?" I know, a bit heavy on the serving of guilt.

"No", he replied, looking away from me.

"Are you sure that's your answer?" I hoped he would say Yes, but he didn't.

"Oh, OK I took them. I really wanted them and he wasn't playing with them. Are you gonna tell Mom?"

"Yes, I have to. You stole from your brother which was bad. Then you lied about it which was worse."

"She'll only punish me for 1 day and then she'll forget." He's hoping that after his punishment, she'll get him his own toy anyway.

"Not if I give her some different punishment ideas." Which I proceeded to do when I saw her.

I'm not the favorite adult in his life right now.

She's taking his collection away for a week. He has to write a note to his brother apologizing for stealing and lying about the toy. She'll try to make sure that Connor doesn't quietly intimidate Colin into not playing with his collection of Bakugans during the week when Connor can't play with his.

I can't remember how many of those kind of "talks" I had with T about telling untruths and why it was wrong. I still have those talks with her from time to time, unfortunately. Hopefully, he's begun to learn that it's not good to lie. We'll see.

The Critique Corner

Well, I liked the Deer Stew. B used McCormick Beef Stew seasoning packet and cooked it like a normal beef stew. B likes HUGE chunks of veggies and I'd use more meat, but other than that... not bad. The meat itself was less stringy than the stew meat I usually use and had a slightly tangy taste. Best part... not getting a fatty piece of meat. Very lean.

Back to football. Our fantasy team is back on the winning track, for now.

Oh, Deer!

Well, it had to happen sooner or later. C's beau, Jimmy, is a hunter. He has, this year, gotten C to eat meats that I never serve. Not that I'm against hunting, but if I can't purchase it at a supermarket, why bother?

His dad bagged himself a deer yesterday (like the hunter lingo?) He needed room in his freezer for the meat. We, actually B, is simmering a stew made from last years deer. I'll let you know how it tasted. I've had bear, buffalo, ostrich, duck, octopus and lamb at least once in my lifetime. There's a place in NH that sells crocodile and kangaroo meat. Maybe I'll try those one day, but for now, I'm trying deer.

Jimmy is still sitting somewhere out in the woods, hoping to get himself a deer before heading back to school tonight.

Trick or Treat continues to be a DUD in our neighborhood. There was about 10-15 kids total that came a-knocking. Then there's that one kid that comes 20 minutes AFTER the outdoor lights have been shut off. Whatever happened to that universally accepted signal... When the outdoor lights are off, no candy is available at the house?