Fall Funnies

Henry met me after school one day with the news that he intended to wear a tuxedo with a bow tie and slicked back hair for his school picture.  I said we didn't own a bow time, and he reminded me that he once found and tried on the the one that Daddy wore in his wedding.  He told me he could make it super small to fit his neck.  A neighbor heard us and whispered that her son had a bow tie Henry could borrow.  They delivered two options, and Henry set off to his closet to select an ensemble.  He chose khaki pants with navy dogs embroidered on them, which I call his Doggy Pants. He wore a chambray tie with a blue plaid shirt under a navy sport coat.  He looked dapper.  Evelyn gave him trouble about his decision, and he got nervous the morning of Picture Day.  I talked to him about being an individual, and he proceeded with his plan.  I can't wait to see his photo!

I spoke with a woman yesterday with five grown children.  When her three-year-old son started preschool she was asked to stay after school to speak with the teacher about something her little boy had said.  When asked to say the magic word before receiving the snack, the student said to the nun who was his teacher, "You're thin. You're beautiful, and I'll love you forever!"  This was shocking to the teachers, but it made perfect sense to the mother.  She taught her little boy those magic words.  I shared the story with Henry at bedtime.  This morning, as he combed his hair for school, he said, "Mommy, you're fit, you're beautiful, and I'll love you forever!"  He's so sweet.  I liked the change he made in the statement, as having strong, healthy bodies is our emphasis.

He's also witty.  On a recent drive with the family, we got behind a large group of very slow bikers going uphill.  Robbie said, "What kind of biking group is this?"  I jumped on him.  "At least they are outside on a beautiful day getting some exercise!"  Henry chimed in, "Yeah, Dad.  At least they're not lying on the sofa looking up trees."  Robbie has been on a multi-week, too many hours of iPad time to count, research effort for the perfect shade trees to plant in our backyard.  Robbie's tree hunt has been a joke in our family lately.

The big girls baked a from scratch, three-layer, vanilla/carrot cake/chocolate cake for Uncle Ryan's 39th birthday dinner last weekend.  Evelyn interviewed him on his likes, then they selected recipes and baked/decorated for three hours on a Sunday.  Everyone loved it.  They have developed a wonderful reputation for their baking skills.  I'm so proud of them.  Evelyn said, "Baking is my joy."  I used to joke with friends that baking muffins for my kids always made me feel like a better mom.

Vivian has been providing her 1st grade teacher with an endless vase of garden Zinnias.  When the flowers die, Vivian brings home the empty vase, takes scissors to the garden, clips away, and arranges another bouquet.  She's such a sweetie.  She gets to try a gymnastics class soon, and she is ecstatic.  She's the only child not in an organized activity.  All day school has taken a toll on her after-school mood and energy level.

Our fall Saturdays are now packed with 5th and 8th grade cross-country meets for the big girls (they each placed top 10 in their last races), 2nd grade flag football for Henry (which he LOVES), and a first season of soccer for Miss Evelyn.  Her improvement from novice to an aggressive and more knowledgeable soccer player after only three games has amazed us.  Grandpa Mike is helping coach cross country, so that has been wonderful.  He went to a Royals game with Robbie and the big girls last night with great tickets Robbie was given by a friend.  They had fun.

Pickle Stick's Life of Luxury

"Ev, you should be able to wear that jersey your whole life!", Henry just told his sister.  She came home from school with a soccer jersey so huge that it hangs out of her shorts when tucked into them.  It fits me.  The kicker is that it even fits her dad!!  This morning, at age 10 and in the 5th grade, Evelyn will have her first soccer game.  It rained a lot last night, so I hope the fields are ok.  She's excited because after being inspired by the story of the KC Royals lucky streak after discovering a praying mantis in their dugout, she obtained one for her new team.

Evelyn is my little thinker.  She searched online and found an insect seller.  The cost of purchasing a praying mantis was rather significant.  The shipping alone was $8.99.  I went through my usual rationalization with her..."That doesn't seem like a good value."  She was undeterred.  She wrote me a letter.

Please Consider

The reason I should get a praying mantis:

* It would make me happy.
* It would make my team happy.
* It would give the company some business.
* It would help our garden.
* It has very good reviews. (on Amazon)
* It had a 5-star rating.
* It is super cute.

Evelyn is super cute.  I encouraged her to search her yard for an insect pet.  I researched the life span, and explained that adults only live 3 to 6 months.  "Three to six months!!!  That's long!"  She wanted one, and she was willing to foot the bill.  She ran a pop-up flower stand with bouquets from our garden this summer, and she has had some babysitting jobs helping Olivia.  Plus, she saves the portion of spending money that is reserved when grandparents send birthday money.  I decided, well, what can it hurt?  I told her that insects are very fragile, and I expressed concern that the praying mantis could be accidentally killed by Henry.  "Mom, if it dies that will teach me a lesson about wasting money."  I was sold.  Ev was ecstatic.

My poor gal ran a fever over 102 this week, and she was home sick from school when the special delivery arrived.  She pulled out all sorts of praying mantis habitat items, coconut fibers (We still don't know what they are.), greenery, leaves, and a jar of live flies.

This new Overlease pet, Pickle Stick, has been a total hit.  I found the kids in the loft with Vivian's Pet PAWlace.  The praying mantis was in the golden sparkle swing and got to climb on the palace slide.  They said he rode the fake plastic giraffe.  They even put him in a Loving Family doll house double stroller and wheeled him across the carpet.  This morning he was on the the mini iPad screen, and he appeared to be moving through a Minecraft "world".  Pretty hilarious!  He eats live fruit flies, which is pretty disgusting.  They recorded him and put him in a Video Star movie, complete with effects and music.  He also got to climb a hot pink Eiffel Tower that I brought home from Paris.  He is living the high life.

Evelyn intends to take him to her soccer game.  We'll see how much luck he brings to the girls.  Thus far, he has brought joy to these children.