Budding Artist or Vandal?

All I wanted was a couple of minutes. Just a few minutes to get in a little bit of exercise. And I thought I had all my bases covered. Luke had ample pages of Star Wars printouts to color, he had snacks, and he didn't want to join me in the exercise room. Maybe that should have been my clue right there that really he had something else up his sleeve:


And this doesn't even truly capture the breadth of his artistic endeavor. It covered over two-thirds of the kitchen floor. And as I sat down to write this post I noticed it extended to several cabinets, as well. In all, a well thought out and conceived bit of graffiti in my kitchen.

I'm still not sure if, as he sat in time out for quite some time, he was repentant or defiant. And I'm really wondering what the future holds. Will I next find him hanging from an overpass with a can of spray paint in his hands next? Its quite possible. Particularly in light of what both of my boys accomplished within the span one minute only half and hour after the graffiti incident:

Yes, every hanger in their closets and every bucket of toys in their rooms dumped out for the purpose of.....I don't know and apparently neither do they because when questioned all they could answer was "I don't know.....because we wanted to." Mitchell, at least, understood that this meant the end of an afternoon without constant supervision. But in Luke, again I sense a little defiance and even glee for his escapades. I think we may be in a spot of trouble with this one.

The Little Man is Three

Luke is great!
Give him some chocolate cake!

This was the rhyme that the boys were chanting all day on Luke's big 3rd birthday. But when it really came down to it, Luke didn't want chocolate cake. Instead he wanted white cake. White cake? YUCK! But it was his birthday so I made him white cake....sort of. It was a sort of white cake but with a little lemon flavor and of course chocolate frosting so really I gave him just what he wanted but he didn't know that was what he wanted. So I camouflaged it a little by simply
making it into a race track which Luke loved except when he saw the coconut that I had dyed green for the grass, then he thought it was "disgusting" so after smearing chocolate around he decided that really the cake was alright, as long as he could eat it without frosting. But I think a few days later he had a change of heart because he actually started eating the cake and frosting, well sort of, he kind of scraped off the frosting and went back to that delicious sort of white, sort of lemony cake. Maybe next year I should just break down and buy one of those white cakes at Albertson's. But then what would be the fun in that. I mean, really, should kids always get exactly what they want on their birthday, right? And obviously I do just what my kids want? And I make a mean lemony white cake with chocolate frosting cake. Except that if truth be told William didn't really like that particular chocolate frosting, so maybe I'll have better luck all around next year.....if I just purchase a white cake.

But all in all, I think Luke felt it was a very good birthday. He scored lots of loot thanks to Jane and Mitchell and their stealthy moves at the toy store where they would slyly walk around with Luke and "discover" things he was interested in
which wasn't really too difficult because he would yell at the top of his lungs "I want that!" and "that is awesome, I want that!" and "That is so cool and awesome and I want that!" and so forth. At any rate, he did get some awesome stuff including his "car." Luke is now the proud owner of a "plasma car" and everyone (with the possible exception of William) thinks it really is awesome.
























What? Did you really think I wouldn't try it out?






So in honor of Luke on his big day, a poem:

On the day that he turned three
I found him dancing wild and free
Like a monkey swinging tree to tree
Running, laughing, filled with glee
Typical Lukey

That day he also yelled at me
And stomped and sneered and disagreed
And needed hair snuggles for a skinned knee
Because he jumped around so jubilantly
Typical Lukey

He colored, puzzled, and played for a lengthy degree
And, as always, refused to go the the potty to pee
But he did jump off the ottoman feeling gutsy
And I got lots of hugs and kisses as he said he loves me
Typical Lukey

Get your groove on

Some days you've just got your groove on.......

Star Wars: Episode III House In the Tundra

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away......

Episode III
House in the Tundra

Turmoil has engulfed the Athay Republic. Although the surface may look somewhat put together,boxes still line the walls of many closets and storage rooms in the outlying house in the tundra. Many cookies have been overcooked due to lack of understanding the way the double oven cooks. Organization is slow to come to Princess Jane who wants to set her room up on her own. And two Jedi Knights are constantly battling forces that are willing them to settle down and stop smashing each other and the walls.......



On this day it appears things are calm but an uneasy feeling is in the air as the Jedi patrol the house in the tundra.





The Patrol reveals that Princess Jane is busy working to increase her knowledge and excel at her schooling by keeping up to speed on intergalactic mathematics.


But suddenly calm gives way to an epic battle between Obi-Wan Luke Kanobe and Anakin Mitchell for control over the tiny stickerbook forces they have been playing with much of the day.

This battle is sure to end as battles of old......with a chipped tooth.

Vanity has not kept Obi-Wan Luke Kanobe from smiling, or maybe its just that he doesn't realize he should care just yet. And the Athay Empire hopes it has squelched the rebellion by posting pictures of the outlying house in the tundra.

The End

A whole lotta bull

(photo credit: Lisa Powell)

So maybe I've acclimated to my new home a little too soon or a little too much or a little too whole-heartedly but last week we had a fantastic Idaho adventure. Now I know that some of you will think that I'm being sarcastic but truth be told there is not one bit of sarcasm in this when I tell that you that we went to a bull auction at the Riverbend Ranch and it was one of the most fascinating events I have ever been to. There were over 700 bulls auctioned off and I have never in my life seen someone with so much verbal talent (no disrepsect to all my lawyer friends and husband) as the autioneer. Really, in my next life, I think I want that talent or maybe I really just want to be one of the bidders. After watching a "real" cowboy bidding on bull after bull after bull I think I finally got the hang of how the bidding works so next year William had better watch out because I might just register for a number and we may become the proud owners of a bull. I wonder how that would go over with our homeowners association? Anyway, the kids thought it was amazing that we saw "real" cowboys because Mitchell swears he had no idea they existed anymore except that he did tell me that he saw a tumbleweed and that was a sign we lived in the wild west so there must be real cowboys somewhere and he was so relieved he finally saw them. So who knows but maybe we'll become "real" cowboys or bull owners or potato farmers while we live in Idaho but whatever we become we're having quite an adventure finding our way.

Finally Home

Tonight I might finish a post. I might not, we'll see. And there probably won't be any photos which is sure to make some of my family very unhappy because many a request has come my way to see our new house, not pictures of us in the house mind you, which should actually make it a whole lot easier because we seem to be running off in so many different directions, but just the house. However, as so many other nights over the past several weeks, I am just too tired. Don't worry, I'm not pregnant. Whew! Just tired. It could have to do with the fact that I finally spent an entire week in Idaho Falls without driving down to Salt Lake at least once and because I spent this whole week here I was determined that I was finally going to move in which means that I didn't just rid my home of boxes sitting in the middle of the floor but rather I moved them to closets. And then I hung up pictures and painting and wall hangings and all of a sudden it feels like my house.

So I had these great intentions of writing a poem about what "home" really means and truly it might have been great. It was there, in my mind, while I was scrubbing and scouring and polishing our old house for the last time after it was emptied of all the things that made it ours but my pencils and paper were all packed and moved away and it didn't feel like my house anymore, except when I looked around and remembered the first time William and I saw it and knew it was the place for us and the first time the kids ran around the empty house on that awful teal carpet and then all the things that had happened there over the past few years and I knew that house was no longer my home but I would always carry with me those things, those memories, that would help make my new house our home. So I've found meaning in home but expressing it in some kind of wonderful, meaningful poem just hasn't found an outlet in me. I think I'm only meant for trite, flippant poetry. So in light of that I offer this:

Home is great
Home is good
Home is made of more than wood
It's happy laughs and lots of love
And kids who scream and push and shove

Like I said, trite. But really we are making this our home and its beginning to feel comfortable and nice and like it ours. Which is also kind of nice considering the limbo we found ourselves in for so many months. Our trips to Salt Lake have been a little tough on Mitchell transitioning to our new home, but I think he is finally starting to feel normal and happy and even content at times in our new digs. And now when we drive to Salt Lake it doesn't feel like our town anymore. Which seems a little strange since Mitchell and Luke and I have spent so much time in Salt Lake lately and we weren't doing anything fun, just taking care of business so to speak so that should seem normal. But really when I think about our trips we did have some fun seeing how fast we could make the trip and we did have our excellent visit to the Dinosaur Park and I do have pictures from that excursion and Mitchell really wants those posted so we'll put those up really soon. But the good news from our Salt Lake visits is that even though Mitchell had a couple of unpleasant tests he's OK and he's being treated and we shouldn't have to worry on the same level anymore. But I still worry, because I'm a mother and now I'm settled so I actually have time to research and think and read and wonder and worry. But I can do that in my own house so that's comforting and now this adds to memories we're forming here, making this our home. And even though I don't have pictures to post tonight, I am sitting on my sofa hanging out with the man I love so much, looking around at the things we have accumulated over the years and thinking of the memories I carry with me that help me settle in to my new place, but a place that makes me feel right at home.

Flippin' Frogs

Some of you might think that we've dropped of the face of the earth. I mention this only because I have, in fact, been accused of this due to the lack of blogging going on. So today I write simply to reassure one or two of you that we, indeed, are still kicking and screaming and making our way through life in transition.

So in my update efforts I offer this as evidence that we are actively enjoying life:

Yes, that is a plastic frog and Luke and I have spent countless hours flipping the frog back and forth to one another. We are certainly living! And what an exciting life it is! In reality, Luke is adjusting to life without Jane and Mitch for much of the day because we have now finished our homeschool experiment and they have been enrolled in school, albeit different schools, but that is an issue for an entirely different time when I decide to rant about the difficulties of moving and a somewhat unwelcoming school system that readily splits families into different schools and offers few, well really zero, alternatives. But, yes, homeschool has finished and I don't really think that anyone except Luke misses it.

But if I think for a moment I guess I can actually offer a few glimpses into other activities that have occupied our time in the cold, snowy tundra while we wait to move into our new home which thankfully will finally happen next week. With the cold and snow have come some fun times sledding. We discovered the perfect hill for our little adventurers and Luke even decided that maybe the second day we headed out for this adventure he would sled, too. And after he finally tried it he never wanted to stop. Instead, he cried on the drive home that we were quite mean parents to cut his fun short. After all, we only sledded for over two hours.






And of course we have ventured to the newest exhibit at the Museum of Idaho: "Wheels... Are We There Yet?"


And with this visit finally we could actually take pictures in the museum. Mitchell was thrilled, in fact he may have been more pleased with this than with the actual exhibit which he, and really all the kids, just ran through so they could make their way to the children's area. I'm not sure I'm doing such a great job instilling a love of museums and exhibits, just children's play areas. What happened? Oh, I stopped homeschooling and now they think they only need to learn at school which I suppose makes life easier for me as a parent if I simply shift all responsibility to shoulders of the public schools. But somehow I'm just not sure that's entirely in my nature.

And so with this little glimpse I will simply leave you eagerly awaiting more installments.......