FRIEND OR FOOD?

Friday, August 31, 2007

THE ANSWER IS: 8

Thursday, August 30, 2007

The question: how many school days could Becca last without clocking some kid on the playground?

Well... on the one hand, bad! We got a green slip yesterday instead of a smiley face. The good thing about this is that it's embarrassing for her... all her peers turned in their yellow cards today and Becca noticed she was the only one with a green.

On the other hand, this might be some sort of a record for her... 8 days is a long time in some respects...

HOLY SMOKES!

Monday, August 27, 2007

My cousin Neal found this. Apparently lightening CAN hit your bed. If you have a metal bed. Zounds.

BEST BECCA MOMENT: THE SCRUNCHIE

Sunday, August 26, 2007

So the first day of school, Becca wanted to take her teacher a present. Despite Sarah's advice that teachers like apples, Becca decided to bring the teacher one of her scrunchies. It wasn't dirty, so I figured, what the heck, nice gesture. Better than a sharp stick in the eye.

The kids were all lined up and Becca was staring hard at her teacher and then looking at the scrunchie in her hand. I could see what was going through her mind: this teacher had short hair. Hmmm what to do.

As they entered the classroom, Becca marched right up to the teacher. She said:

"Hi Ms. Wilhelm, I'm Becca Dykshorn. I am going to be in your class!"

"Yes, Rebecca, welcome! It's so good to meet you."

"I have brought you a present. It's a scrunchie for your hair. But you do not have any hair. Would you like to maybe wear it as a bracelet?"

And she did! Now that's spin control.

FLASHBACK #3: CHICAHHHHGO

Saturday, August 25, 2007

This is how Chicago looks at this very moment. The rainstorms there have been absolutely biblical! Crazy!

Here are some trip highlights from our vacation to our hometown. Before this August trip, I was back briefly last fall for a seminar, and Don was back when we closed on the house last April. The kids have not been here since last February when we waved goodbye and got on the airplane for San Diego. So it was a vacation unlike any other, really. A vacation to our recent past.

The good.

Our wonderful family - We spent a lot of Dykshorn time (we went to attend a wedding, after all) and got to visit with the kids' nanny Ewa and her husband Mitek and see their house. We saw a couple friends, hung out with our old neighbors, and really mostly haunted our old life, if that makes any sense.

Potbelly's sandwiches - mmmmm hot sandwiches. drool. In fact, ALL the food. Chicagoans know how to use butter.

The Lisle pool - a lot of the public pools in Chicago are tricked out with water slides and such. Around here, the public pool is for the few of us who don't have our very own hole in the ground. Of course the ocean is a big public pool, but I digress.

Dr. Whitney - our old chiropractor, who had to fix me up after I threw my back out dancing the Twist with Becca at the wedding. Never do the Twist while holding a 5 year old. I had a couple drinks in me and hear the *SNAP* and figured that wasn't normal. Next day I was walking like an Egyptian. Way oh, way oh.

The bad.

The new owners have cheezed up our old house. Isn't this the way? You never think the new people are taking as good of care of your house as you did. In this case, what that means is overgrown landscape, spotty grass, and a lot of garden tzozches.

The ugly.

The traffic.

The weather.

The smokers.

We came away not wanting to move back, but definitely happy to visit. Highlights film below.

Music: Sweet Home Chicago with Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Vaughn - what a concert THAT would have been!

FLASHBACK #2: THE BIG ONE-O (OR, EVIL DOLLIES REPRISED)

Friday, August 24, 2007

The wedding we attended in Chicago fell right on Sarah's 10th birthday. All kids make a big deal about the Big 1-0, because the next time you break through a digit barrier, you're 100, and you aren't really that excited about the whole birthday thing anymore. So Sarah was very bummed that the wedding eclipsed her birthday.

I was able to more than make up for it, though, when I told her we'd go to American Girl Place in Chicago 2 days later for a real birthday celebration.

This was a hard-thought decision. American Girl Place is a destination I had successfully avoided lo those many years we LIVED IN Chicago.

The first time I heard of American Girl dolls, Sarah was way too young to have one. A catalog arrived at our house. Inside were these large, very innocent looking dollies, each with their own history and clothes nicer than mine. More expensive than mine too! I thought to myself... oh brother. What a racket. Like the US government with Osama Bin Laden at that time, I pretended American Girl didn't exist and vowed to myself never to mention it. The catalog met an untimely death.

Sarah's friends in Chicago were not into American Girl, nor were their older sisters, so we were able to live our entire existence there in peace.

Then we moved to California. And into our house. And started meeting friends and neighbors.

American Girl dolls loom large here. There is a sort of trancelike state that all the 8-to-12-year-olds fall into when you even mention it. They carry these dolls around in public. By age 10, I would venture to say, I would not have been caught dead carrying a dollie around with me.

Some of the girls buy clothes so that they can MATCH their doll.

This is quite a phenomenon, and has led me to believe that we have girls in this particular generation pegged wrong. They are more innocent, more sensitive, and actually younger inside than we give them credit for. Everyone thinks kids are in a rush to grow up, and hence the invention of Bratz and other teen girl-looking stuff. But American Girl dolls look like they're about 9 years old. Go figure.

Anyway. Yah we got her a Samantha doll last Hanukkah. She about peed. Becca even started playing with the American Girl babydoll that one of our crazy friends in Chicago gave us. They could sit and play for hours with all the stuff.

So when it was time to go to Chicago, I knew that she would near-faint to go to the actual store. There are only 3 stores in the US... most of the business is catalog based. So the store is a-somethin'. There is a beauty salon where your dollie can get a new hairdo, a doll hospital where they remove ink stains and other violations, a cafe... like I said before, what a racket! PT Barnum himself would have grinned.

It's fair to say that I was completely unprepared for the American Girl experience. Mostly, I was not prepared in advance to set realistic limits regarding the shopping trip. And I was not prepared for the utter retail assault of this place... it doesn't feel as if it's in the real world.

Samantha got a hairdo that cost as much as the kids' haircuts. I did sign us up in advance for the birthday party lunch, which as you can imagine, hits you right in the wallet. If Don had not fished us out of there, it just would have gotten worse. Because these dollies are very needy.

"What were you thinking?" was my hubby's very practical question on the ride back to the hotel.

"Thinking? This did not involve any sort of thinking" was the only thing I could say.

After we returned to San Diego, we were at our friend Chris and Allison's house, and Chris and I had a little mini-meeting of American Girl Anonymous. He revealed to me that he encountered a Personal Shopper at the American Girl in LA. She "helped" him carry his stuff. This is deadly because the stuff is bulky, and that's how I knew I was sort of done... I was like Santa lugging around an unwieldy amount of girl crap and could carry no more. So removing the carrying aspect was probably even more damaging. We commiserated. It felt good.

Here's a little film of the highlights from the trip. It's set to Hannah Montana. Cuz why should I have to go through this alone?

Music: The Best of Both Worlds by Hannah Montana

FLASHBACK #1: KAPPY

The first week of school has come and gone, and mostly, we made it through.

Sarah needs a dresser to get her ready in the morning. Being as we aren't English or of royal descent, I am not sure we will be able to secure one. It's possible that I'll have to wake the kids up earlier in the morning. As it is, we are flying out the door still eating breakfast, brushing hair, and tying shoes right at deadline.

Becca didn't bite anything except her lunch all week. She told me today that there are more people living in Africa than any other continent, so she is listening to something in class.

Today I am getting my act together finally and putting up our summer pics. I was able to get over the learning curve on Windows Movie Maker... voila, my masterpiece, Sarah's equestrian camp movies. For a kid who can't seem to get dressed in under 30 minutes, she sure gets the saddle on this horse QUICK...

Music: Ratatat by Lex

GRADE SCHOOL: THE DRAMA

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Look at these wonderful and sweet children. Are they not angelic and adorable to the core? Are they not ready to face the challenges of a new school year, neat as a pin?

OK... so here's the backstory.

4 a.m. Saturday morning. I awaken with a start to find 2 eyes peeping at me by my side of the bed. It's Becca. She is fully dressed.

"Is today kindergarten?"

"Umph. No. Today is Saturday."

"When is kindergarten?"

"Monday. That's in 2 days."

"But I want it to be nooooooowwwwww."

"Becca. We could go to school now. But it's dark. It's the middle of the night. And plus, it's a weekend. Nobody goes to school on the weekend. And, the school year does not even start till Monday."

She begrudgingly goes back to bed. It's 5 a.m. and well, I'm awake now, welcome to Saturday morning.

8 a.m. The kiddies are stirring. It's going to be a relatively warm day in San Diego and I want them to throw on some of their fall clothes to see if they still fit, before they start complaining it's too hot and sticky to do this. Heaps start getting created for Goodwill, hand-me-downs, the tailor... suddenly there are lots of empty drawers and mounds of clothes everyplace.

10 a.m. I ask Don to take the girls to their swim lessons so I can find the floor again.

10:30 a.m. I am alone in the house... for the first time since we moved into it? Wow this is great! I love this place! Put on the iPod and enjoy my folding and organizing in peace. Gizmo is keeping me company.

11:45 a.m. The kids are back, but I'm a happy and fortified person! In just an hour and fifteen minutes, I've gotten the clothes all organized, made a shopping list of clothing and school supplies, found all my coupons, addressed thank-you notes, done some work, made a few phone calls, showered! Wee-hee! Damn I'm good.

1 p.m. Lunch is over with, Don and Becca are settled into their afternoon work (mowing, walking the dogs, reading, arguing) and Sarah and I are off to tackle shopping for her clothes. Sarah is in need of everything. She has grown out of everything she owns except for her underwear and a few shirts. Her body is changing... she's taller, thinner in some places and fuller in others, and her feet are bloody enormous.

2 p.m. Sarah and I are at Old Navy. Jeans aren't fitting, but we are finding some cute things. This won't be so bad after all.

3 p.m. We have tried on 14 pairs of jeans and nothing works. Sarah's giving me the evil eye whenever I hand her a new pair to try. We're somewhat resigning ourselves to just buy skirts for this year.

5 p.m. We're at Limited Too, where the prices seem to have gone through some sort of rampant European style inflation. Finally a pair of jeans that FIT! I talk to Sarah about her need for a camisole or a training bra or some such thing... tears, accusations that I want her to grow up too quickly, major protesting. After 20 minutes of hysteria, she agrees to wear camisoles with shelf bras. She's satisfied. I'm exhausted.

6 p.m. OK I need to leave the friggin' Limited Too before I stab someone with a hanger. I hate Hanna Montana. I hate the cheerleaders at the checkout. Thank God for the 25% off coupon.

6:45 p.m. I'm at home. My feet are now bloody enormous. The dogs stare at me sympathetically.

We take the kids out to dinner. They of course MUST wear some of their new clothes, which they promptly stain with their dinners. No problem. I love doing the wash after 5 hours of mostly unfruitful shopping.

9 p.m. I'm sitting alone in the dark in a stupor in the living room. Gizmo is keeping me company, as if to say, "remember your happy place...."

4 a.m. Sunday morning. Here's Becca.

"Is it Monday?"

"Hmphg. No."

"But I want to go to kindergarten, Moooom!"

"Becca, kindergarten's tomorrow."

She's at least back in bed by 4:15 this time, and I'm so wiped out that I am able to fall back to sleep.

8 a.m. Today I have to take both kids for their school shoes. They are arguing already. I am thinking I should have a cocktail for breakfast.

They go to swim lessons, have lunch. Now I'm Bracing For It.

Sarah goes to put on one of her new outfits from Limited Too. One that fit perfectly and she loved immensely the day before.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

"Sarah? What's the matter?"

STOMP STOMP STOMP "What's the MATTER is that these SHORTS don't FIT ME ANYMORE!?!?!?"

"Sarah, how can this be, we just bought them yesterday."

"I know" (tears are spurting sideways as if from an in-ground sprinkler) "but today the legs are so TIGHT and the waist is TOO BIG and it feels like they are going to FALL DOWN."

"If the legs are tight, then they won't fall past your thighs, so you'll be ok."

This was not a very good thing to have said, I learned.

What ensued could only be called a Clothing Freakout. There was pacing and loud talking and wailing and pulling and tugging. There has not been a Clothing Freakout of this magnitude, I believe, since I was in the 7th grade and my friend Melissa beat the snot out of a boy at middle school for making fun of her red overalls.

This is where my dear husband can be so useful sometimes. "Sarah, your body changes all the time. Everyone's does. That even happens to me. Some days some clothes feel better than others. Why don't you put on another pair, and try that one some other day."

And she did. And it worked. And so off we went.

With every other parent on the planet who waited till the day before school started to get school supplies. You would think that I was stupid for doing this, but we only got the lists on the Friday before, so not much one can do. Lines lines lines. Becca is not good with lines. Here are some of the things she asked/told the adults who were standing in front of us in various lines.

"Hey I like your hair! How did it get that color? It matches my shoes."

"Hey, do you know my name? I know your name! It's Poopycaca."

"Can I have a sip of your diet coke?"

"Why is your nose all crinkly like that?"

"Tomorrow is when I wake up next. And it will be kindergarten."

It was one of those days, too, when you just can't get anything on your list accomplished quickly. The store has this shoe, but not that shoe, so you have to go to a 2nd store. Target is sold out of clipboards, so you have to go to OfficeMax.

At the end of the day, it all got done. Everyone had a backpack, everyone had a lunch box, and everyone was happy.

I am still vibrating.

AND A COUPLE DAYS EARLIER...

Monday, August 20, 2007

The other car died! (Legitimate-ly... not out of no-gas idiocy.) At least the part that needed replacing was relatively cheap.

SCHMUCK AWARD OF THE DAY

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Yes indeed. Ran out of gas taking the kids to camp. Had to call Roadside Assistance and my friend Tammy to take the kids to camp. Duuuuuh.

WENT TO THE ANIMAL FAIR

Sunday, August 12, 2007

The circus came to town, so we went to see what we could see. It was really fun! There were lots of well trained dogs, people on stilts, and men in tights from Argentina hanging from 1 leg. It was cool, but honestly I remember the circus being so much more spectacular when I was little, with real stars like Gunther Gabel-Williams and the Flying Wallendas. But through the eyes of our kids, the modern version was spectacular nonetheless.

Becca's dream job
(either as the elephant, or the chick)

Look! They are shooting a pair of realtors out of a cannon. (Well not really, but it's a fun fantasy for me.)

CAMP: LEARNING AND GROWING

Friday, August 10, 2007

Lookie at what Becca learned at camp!

Fashion sense... and hula hooping. The hula hooping was learned in 1 day and I supposed from these shots, learned a little better than the fashion sense...

EVIL DOLLIES TOOK MY MONEY

Monday, August 06, 2007

All about our Chicago vacation soon. Today we went to American Girl Place. They are laughing at me now.

MIDWEST MOMENT

Sunday, August 05, 2007

One thing you definitely miss in San Diego is an intense thunderstorm. First of all, I cannot remember the last time we had a good rain. In fact, any rain at all. Once I was driving down the highway and I thought we were having rain, only to find out the pool cleaning truck in front of me was spritzing a little water on me. And that's my story.

for all you people over 50 out there... some comfort food from the Weather Channel

So when we got a huge thunderstorm while visiting Don's brother Dave, the girls were all excited. They played in the rain. They put a cup outside and wondered how long it would take to fill up. They laid in a puddle. They screamed whenever the thunder boomed. Becca asked me if lightening could hit your purse? could it come in your room? could it go sideways instead of up and down? Anyone that can answer those last 2 definitively, let me know.

Here is a video of the cute girliness. Unless you are related to these people, you will not be able to watch more than 20 seconds of it. I am a parent of some of them and I can't make it all the way to the end... still, an injection of cuteness in your day.