Settling In For the Cold Snap

Home Theater

Fans, we we are at the start of some right proper Minnesota winter weather.  We're to have a streak of single and negative digit highs!  The temperatures began falling this afternoon, but by that time, we'd done our out-and-about-ing and were tucked into Raleigh House.  First thing was first: we broke out a board game.  While Clara napped, Ted beat Julie and Joe at No Stress Chess*, and then Julie and Joe (mostly Julie as Joe had abandoned her) bested Ted.  (Eat your heart out, Teddy Fisher.)  Joe learned the word "powerful," as in "the Queen is the most powerful piece on the board."  He could also be heard mumbling, "This is gonna be bad," mimicking Julie who had said the same after a particularly bad draw.

*No Stress Chess is awesome, Fans.  AWESOME.  We were introduced to No Stress Chess by Graham's mom, Sara.  Graham loves it.  No Stress Chess differs from chess only in that one draws cards before moving.  Each card has a piece on it, and that's the piece the player can move.  It's a good way to learn how the pieces move, even if it is not, as Ted pointed out, entirely stress-free.  One finds, for example, one's self wishing for a particular card to turn up.

Later in the afternoon, we watched Cars.  Ka-chow!  Clara slept late, but joined us once she was up.  She likes to grab a lock of hair and trace the rim of her ear with it, or maybe she's painting the inside of her ear with the ends of the lock.  We really don't know, Brigade.  It's like a throw back to when she used to twirl her hair while she sucked on her two fingers, and she's been at it ever since her hair was cut.  Ka-chow!

A Trip Down Memory Lane 

Another From the Archives

I Spy, A Vacation Addendum

When we were in Arizona, we often played I Spy to keep the bambini from driving us to distraction (off the road, in other words).  It's tricky, but hilarious, business playing I Spy with Birdie, because, for example, you might say, "I spy with my little eye something. . .red!"  Birdie might say, "The [traffic] light!"  If it wasn't what you had in mind, you would say no--and Birdie would assume you meant that the traffic light was not red, but some other color--very confusing to those who have spent some time getting these colors down.  But Birdie. . .oh she's clever.  She solved the problem by playing I Spy like so: "I spy something pink!  My shoe!"  Asked, and answered, Brigade.

A Vacation, in Quotes

Travel with preschoolers!  Such maddening sweetness!  In lieu of a blow-by-blow, we offer you this compendium of quotes which we feel capture that maddening sweetness in all its glory:

"Mommy!  We're gonna be quiet all the way to the airport.  We're gonna talk on the plane."  Joe, upon departing Raleigh House

"And listening ears on and listen!"  Clara, upon arrival at the airport

"Mommy!  Did you know the airplane's bathroom is really small?!"  Joe, upon landing, while grasping on to Clara's seat on the airplane from his, behind hers

"Clara, when I get to five, you need to stop saying holiday lights.  You need to stop saying annoying noise."  Joe, one way to dinner our first night

Joe, to Clara: "See!  Now you just broke a library book!"  Clara, in response: "No.  I just got to go potty."

"I want letters!!!!!"  Clara

"You gotta stop crying.  I'm trying to listen."  Joe, to Clara

Ted to Joe and Clara: "Do you want pancakes or eggs?" Clara, in response: "Cupcakes!"

"Mommy, the stars are following us."  Joe, to Julie, while in her arms, looking at the stars

"Clara Jane, if you do not take that rock out of your mouth, I swear to God, I'm going to pitch it. . ." Julie, to Clara, on way from Tucson back to Phoenix  (Aunt Kate, laughing, correctly guessed that Julie was about to say she was going to pitch the rock out the window.  However, such an action would not model appropriate behavior.  What is it about the bambini and rocks?!?!)

"Every time you talk this dinosaur will say 'Shh!  Shh!'"  Joe, to Clara, after a dinner at which two balloon dinosaurs were acquired

"My favorite race car is Lightening McQueen ka-CHOW!"  Joe

"No, I gonna push it!!!!!  NO I GONNA PUSH IT!!!!!"  Clara, to Ted, almost every time the sliding passenger door was opened because she was unable to reach the button to close the door until removed from her car seat (but you know, trivialities, Brigade, trivialities)

"I got boogers." Clara

"You have millions of boogers!"  Joe

"Boogers, boogers, boogers, boogers. . ." Joe and Clara, repeated incessantly until told to stop by exasperated parents

"Holy bonkers, Joe."  Clara

"Don't put your ball in the sand." Clara, in the middle of a game of I Spy

Joe: "Is someone else going to rent the car?" Julie and Ted, in response: "Yes." Joe, in response: "And are they going to go fast like a rabbit?!  Fast like a rabbit?  Fast like a rabbit?  Fast like a rabbit?. . ." (fast like a rabbit repeated incessantly until told to stop by exasperated parents who were also trying to figure out why the rabbit was being cited as the paragon of speed)

All Dressed Up And. . .

Fans!  Brigade!  As many of you know, we have been on a hiatus because we travelled to Arizona for Grandpa Tom's wedding to Lynn.  Most of you who would be interested in an eyewitness account of the proceedings were there, which is good, because this reporter is unable to provide such an account.  Brigade, Birdie had no more arrived at the church with her entourage then she threw up all over herself, her car seat, her ride (a silver minivan dubbed Silverado), and her father's hands.  (Ted had been about to take Clara out of her car seat and tried to catch the mess and prevent it from reaching Clara's dress, but it was not to be contained.)  Ted, Aunt Kate, and Nick were all participants in the ceremony, so they stayed at the church with Joe while Julie and Uncle Scott drove back across town to collect Clara's other fancy frock.  But, Uncle Scott had barely headed back to the church when Clara threw up again.  It seemed foolish to risk an episode in the church during the wedding, so they took Birdie back and while Uncle Scott cleaned up the car, Julie got Birdie cleaned up and in a bed.  Oh Brigade.  There she was, mumbling and sobbing in little bursts, "My dots!  I want to wear my dots!"  She'd been so excited to wear her frothy, beaded confection, and failing that, she was desperate to at least wear her polka dot dress again.  She had no temperature, Brigade, but she slept for four and a half hours straight--!!!!!  She woke up right as rain, and made an appearance at the after-after-party at Grandpa Tom and Lynn's house.  It was not an occasion for dots, but she did get to wear her aqua blue Mary Janes again, and see Grandpa Tom and Lynn.

The Dynamic Duo, bringing their usual dynamism to posed shots.  Clara is in her "dots."

Inside, before the barf.

Outside, before the barf.

Probably their best shot from the shoot.

Cheers!

The dinnertime conversation is indeed sparkling around here these days, Fans.  It's hard to believe that anyone might doze off, but Julie did put her head down--briefly--on the table toward the end of dinner tonight.  Clara promptly bellowed, "GET UP!"  No rest for the wicked 'round here, Fans.

Our longtime readers and savvy observers of Raleigh House minutia, will note from the picture here that our seating arrangements round the table have changed.  Thank goodness as the lopsided feng shui was throwing off Julie's equilibrium.  Joe used to sit at the head of the table so that Julie and Ted could flank him on either side. When Clara arrived, Joe remained at the head of the table, with Clara to his right, and Julie to her right. Ted also continued to flank Joe on the other side of the table, across from Clara.  Julie felt rather adrift, frankly.  When the Christmas tree was up, Joe wanted to be able to gaze at it while eating, so he displaced Ted, who moved down one position, across from Julie.  When we took the Christmas tree down, we kept the same arrangement.

The only possible drawback of this arrangement so far as we can tell is that when we raise our glasses to toast the day, as we do most nights, Joe and Clara cannot actually touch glasses because their arms are too short to reach each other.  (This toast to the say is very charming, by the way, Fans, because Joe, usually, leads us off, and at least 50% of the time, he gets the day wrong--but with such endearing gusto!  Joe: "Well, here's to Thursday!" Ted: "Here's to Tuesday!")

Because the bambini cannot touch their glasses, we have had to teach them to say "Clink!" as they gesture toward each other with their cups.  This practice arose out of necessity, but it might not be altogether bad since it may avery overzealous clinking resulting in spilled milk.

Cheers, Fans!