Animals. . . part I (A Confession)

I have not posted in sometime as I have been so busy. However, my mind has been turning lately to one on my most proudest posts. The post was about my frustration with an unusual breed of New England Squirrels known as Were-Squirrels. The post is a must read which you can link to above.

Many of you know that I am not a handy man and the very thought of fixing something broken in the house sends feelings of tremendous inadequacies through my spine. Well our dishwasher wasn't working properly and after Becky had done some of the dismantling I took some initiative to remove the dishwasher from underneath the counter. Much to my surprise the dishwasher was easily removed.

Much to my dismay behind the dishwasher was a hole in the wall the size of a dinner plate, coupled with an uncountable number of mouse turds. Oh Crap!

The story really started after we moved to New York. Becky was cleaning out the back shed to discover a family of adolescent mice. Posted here.

Not long after that incident I got a message from Becky on my phone one night while playing ball. Through the hysterics I heard, "Mouse, sink, garbage, and backyard." As I have few moments where I can truly be a hero to Becky I thought I would cut basketball short that night. I drove home and went to the backyard to see a mouse staring up at me from the bottom of the under-the-sink trash bin.

Pure hatred went through my vein as I thought, "No one scares my bride." I took the garbage sack that was freshly placed and contained only the mouse, and with my herculean strength and the advantages of centripetal force slammed the mouse to the ground, resulting in a quick and humane death.

Well now I know how they got in and with the help of Barrett's advice and some "Great Stuff" fixed the hole. And you know what else, the dishwasher started working.

Well the animals in New York are not as bad as New England, but they seduce you with being cute. Our backyard has 3-5 squirrels and 3-4 chipmunks running around constantly. With the added touch of cardinals and blue-jays it is actually quite nice--like a scene from a Disney Princess movie. Please be wary. I ended up more like Grumpy rather than Snow White.

Jack's birthday continued . . .

I went overboard in my desire to please my newly-turned 3-year-old. This cake took almost my whole day. But, Jackson was pretty excited!

Thomas the Tank Engine. He's always been popular at our house.
We all ate way too much frosting (check out Jack's mouth). I was glad I finally figured out how to make black frosting without using so much food coloring that it is completely nasty!

"Happy Birthday to You". Yes, the candles are in Thomas's smokestack. I know, I went a little overboard. Sitting next to Jack is one of our favorite babysitters, our neighbor Gabby.

I actually had a hard time cutting the cake after I spent that much time on it.

Then I got over it. It was very tasty!

Happy To You . . .

When our kids were little they couldn't quite get the word "Birthday" in the song. So, Happy To You Jack! Our little "miracle baby" as we called him is now 3 years old.

We started breakfast with balloons, a candle and waffles (Jack's request). So excited for the birthday to finally be here. More pictures later . . .

We can't celebrate a birthday with Jack without giving thanks that unfortunately will probably not get to the people who it's intended for, but:

Thanks to the anonymous donor/s who give to the University of Utah Miracle Fund for those who can't afford the full cost of IVF. I can't possibly express the amazing gift of this beautiful boy that you have given us through your generosity.

Thanks to those who spend their efforts in developing and performing amazing medical technologies that my brain can't even comprehend. Again, words can't express the potential that your work has created. The joy that you have given us and the life that is infinitely valuable.

THANKS.

The Help . . .

I finished reading this today. My bookclub is reading it, or I might not have read it. I've been "burned" a few times on picking up new fiction without knowing much about it!

Anyway, I think this is a very worthwhile read. And my review doesn't contain any spoilers!

I really liked this particular take on segregation. So many other books I have read that represent the viewpoints of African Americans are almost unbearable to read because they focus so much on all of the horrible things, which of course I don't want to downplay. However, I love that this book represents not just the bad times, although they are (rightly) represented, but also the resiliency, courage, and spirit of "The Help" and the few whites that chose to fight on their side.

If you want to check out other reviews of books I've read recently, I joined a sort of facebook for readers called "goodreads". If you read a lot, please join and share your thoughts.

Find it at http://www.goodreads.com/

Cinderella at the Ball . . .

Cayuga Medical Center's Charity Gala was tonight. I felt like Cinderella going to the ball! I got a fancy new dress and had my hair done. Jake looked good, too!

Heading off. Our neighbor Gabby watched the kids--they had a great time, too.
My friend Roo did a FABULOUS job on my hair! Quite an amazing updo considering that my hair is short.

Jake insisted on the full-body photo. It was fun to have such a long dress. It was great to get dressed up and go out. We had a nice dinner, chatted with Jake's colleagues, met new people, and listened to a great Jazz band (sorry, we don't dance . . . ). I, however, did not leave a glass slipper at the country club . . .

Back to School (and more) . . .

James went back to school on Tuesday. Finally. Not that we wanted to get rid of him, but it seemed strange to start so late, especially when everyone else we knew (outside of this area) started what seems like weeks ago! James had the normal first-day jitters, but was excited to go see all of his friends. This is the first time he has gone back to a school he's been in before. Hooray to not having to move this summer!

Of course we all had to walk him to the bus stop.
Waiting for the bus. Unfortunately we discovered as James got on the bus that Jack thought he was going, too. As he cried all the way home I wondered if I should have put him in preschool this year? Oh, well!

The day before school started we went to the mall in Syracuse to buy a dress for me for a fancy hospital "Charity gala" that Jake and I are going to on Saturday (stay tuned). The mall is aptly named "Carousel mall". This is what Jake and the boys did while I shopped.

Sorry the photo's blurry, my camera was running out of batteries! But I thought this was hilarious. We were just cleaning up after dinner one night and Jack came up the stairs dressed like this. He was also singing the Darth Vader "death march". It's been his favorite song lately. It's hilarious. I even heard him humming it in his bed as he was going down for his nap yesterday. Ah boys . . .

Putt putt . . .

So, a couple of weeks ago we decided to give mini-golf a try (first time for both boys). We went "galaxy golfing" at the Sciencenter. Most of the holes were science-themed, it was pretty creative.

It was a nice sunny day, as you can tell! It got a bit hot by the end.
Jake was by far the best golfer, although the fact that he plays real, actual golf (which probably helps more than a little!) made me feel better . . .

Jackson liked to hit the ball once or twice on each hole, then would just pick up the ball and drop it in the hole. However, about hole 6 he had a tantrum at every hole if he wasn't allowed to go first. 3 in 2 weeks, he still has a case of the "terrible twos" every once in a while!

James liked it, but got very frustrated with not being able to get the ball in right away.

This was a particularly difficult hole for everyone. Maybe if you stare down the ball, it will go in?

This was the longest hole, the solar system. You had to hit the ball down the long ramp but avoid the planets (some of which were LARGE--like Jupiter and Saturn). A bit tricky!

Synopsis: golfing with kids is a mine-field. By hole 10 we were just anxious to get DONE! But, it is always fun to hang out as a family (a pleasure that is getting more rare as fall sports are starting for Jake!).

Next post: Back to School (finally)!