Chuck

First of all...no one should ever have to should have to enter a Build-A-Bear and a Chuck E. Cheese on the same day....much less the same event. But yes, I did. Aren't you proud of me? I should win mother of the year. I had to park on the grass at Chuck E Cheese because everyone, their mother and their least favorite aunt were at the place. It is so hot. If you're here you know that ad nauseum. For those of you who are not: the high yesterday was 111. Actual temperature. It's not India, but close. And judging by the number of orphan children at the Cheese. Well, I don't know.

Anyway, Lucy loved it. Her priceless monologue on the way to the palace:

"Chuck? I like Chuck. He's not afraid of me any more."

Translation: the first time she has NOT screamed bloody murder at the thought of a costumed rodent in the vicinity.

There's more I could say, but everything else in my life is a hidden mystery. No, not really. But welcome to life as an almost-lawyer. I can't say anything. I spent 182 hours sitting in court this summer; I loved the judge I worked for. The public is the public. That's all. Hope everyone else had a great summer. The end.

mouth sauna

The days of the kids saying crazy things are fewer and farther between. But I have two good ones.

Evan loves chocolate. Especially dark chocolate. You hand him a few semi-sweet chocolate chips and you become his favorite person (which is exactly what I had our house guest do when he was not warming up to her after she had been staying with us for a week). I've never had a problem using bribery with children.

He was taking forever, and dragging his feet about brushing his teeth. Josh asked him what was going on and he said "I'm just melting chocolate with my mouth sauna."

***

Lucy has a high range of emotions, and we were out yesterday with some friends something came up about being a "drama queen". Lucy asked what a drama queen was and Josh was trying to explain it. Lucy interrupts."I know what it is". What? Josh asked. "It means that you are demonstrative." Well said for a four-year old who is quite demonstrative herself.

Soccer Mom

The dreaded day has arrived. I put it off as long as I could. Children get older, and I'm gettin' older too. It was a cold but fitting start. Evan's first soccer game, which seems so foreign to me. There was only one kid at my school who played soccer and he was a little "different". But it's what all the cool kids do here--and Evan asked us if he could play this year. I think he was the only one on his team who had never played before. He did a great job and was a surprisingly good defender.

Lesson learned: 1) bring a chair and 2) a not-cranky four year old

So I have one child that gets snuggly and sweet when sick; and another that *most certainly does not*. The most-certainly-does-not-one has been home sick all week--and I've had to get creative. Or desperate. Or both. After approximately 1 million vetoes by the Lucilini I finally picked this on Netflix:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86vUaEkA5ic

And the moment it started, I remembered all the words to the songs. And caught up on two weeks of assignments by the time it was over (uninterrupted time is an amazing thing). And I now I share with you, so that,you too, will enjoy this song being stuck in your head for the remainder of the evening.

Quote of the Day

"You've had too much sugar when apple juice tastes sour"

-my friend Jenni

British Humor

Really enjoyed Death at a Funeral, the British version. Thanks Josh and Margo.

Some other humorous highlights:

Me, Evan, and Lucy in the TJ Maxx dressing room. Only there because we have no jeans. I think it has the most jeans of any place I ever want to go. So Lucy and I are in the hallway...the long hallway with LOTS of dressing rooms. And I finally get why he had been giving me a hard time about trying on clothes...he says quite loudly "But MOM, I'm free-birding it today. Do you still want me to try on the pants? I already have them on." [We had this problem in kindergarten...sneaking off to school with no underwear on...but hadn't been as diligent checking this year].

In first grade, they send home a book every night for the kids to read. Evan is doing great at reading, spelling tests, etc. His biggest complaint this year is that he's bored. I have to admit the stories don't have the greatest plots...and at the end he said "well I just kicked that story in the nuts, didn't I?" Thank you public school.

Some not so humorous highlights of the past few weeks involve surgeries, deaths of children, divorces and more divorces, suicide of dads with family to support. And I'm not talking about the law cases I'm reading. I'm not talking about strangers. I'm talking about people I know and love.

I haven't kicked that in the nuts just yet.

Lucy Strikes Again

Lucy: Do you want to be a cheerleader when you grow up?

Me: No, not really.

Lucy: Oh, I guess it's hard to go to the bathroom, but you can call the hogs and stuff.

Josh: Lucy, do you want to be a cheerleader when you grow up?

Lucy: Yes!

Me: Why do you want to be a cheerleader?

Lucy: (Big sigh). BECAUSE you get to call the hogs and stuff! (another sigh, like why in the world could I not understand) And because I want to. That's it.

Me: Ok, you can be whatever you want when you grow up.

So this post is not funny. I thought it would be. Oh well. Workin' my way back.