Adventures of Jill & Clan

End of the School Year!

2010-06-14T21:01:00.000-07:00

Lydia's 3rd grade class has had a whirlwind of events. As things are still a bit crazy with me finishing up in my classroom and the kids in their last week of school, I'm just going to post some photos.

Battle of the Books winners:

Read Across America winners. Lydia is in the middle

Project Recycle Runway:

I also had the end of the year Drama Production that we put on at my school. It is a lot of work, but the kids and parents love it, so it is well worth it. Ryan is well, but I haven't been able to take pictures of his most recent school events, which have been mostly field trips. So, sorry, no pictures of Ryan this time. He is a slugger in baseball. Catching...not so much his thing, yet.

Queen of the Laundry

2010-05-08T20:57:00.001-07:00

My mother is queen of many things, but if I had to pick one household thing, this would be it. Here is my mother in her kingdom, or queendom as it may be. Look at this, she even looks like she enjoys it. If you want your clothes to look good, even 15 years later when they are out of style, then my mom is the laundress for you. Everything neat and the same color and size as when you bought it. I do not have the patience to do laundry as well as my mother. I would say I don't have the time, but even when she was much busier than I am, she was still the queen of laundry. I currently have about as many clothes ready to wash as my mom has in this picture. I'll try to force a smile on my face that matches hers and attempt to be princess.

Documentary

2010-03-13T07:06:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to Legoland's Sealife Aquarium documentary on Ryan's 1st grade beach trash project.

Beach Trash

Trash-A Whale of a Problem!

2010-02-21T13:05:00.000-08:00

The first grade classes at Ryan's elementary school have been collecting trash at the beach since the beginning of the school year. They have been learning about the impact of trash and pollution to our oceans and animals. It has been a wonderful experience that culminated in a program put on by the First Graders singing whale songs and unveiling "Little Gray." Little Gray is a whale created by the kids and a local artist made with all of the trash the kids collected. Little Gray will soon live at Legoland's Sea Life Aquarium. This was an amazing project!

Lydia's Brownie Troop participated in Thinking Day. Thanks to the help and donations of Uncle Phil and Aunt Martha, the troop created a fabulous display about Malaysia. The girls had a great time, and learned about many different countries. I am the Troop leader this year, but it is really the work of many moms coming together. Thank you to all the helpers this year that are making it a very special experience for our girls.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-03T11:54:00.000-08:00

Here are the picture highlights of our year since Ryan's birthday. Our trampoline has added lots of fun and excitement. We don't have to make the kids play in the street as often, we can now have them try to knock their teeth out on the trampoline.

Below is a picture of Ryan's Thanksgiving Pow Wow. The Native American head dresses on Ryan and a friend were supplied by Aunt Connie and Ryan was very excited and proud.

Lydia was Molly in Annie. She was wonderful, of course. I saw the show 4 times. My mom came out and went 3 times, and Joel and Ryan also went multiple times. She had so much fun, and cried when it was over.

We also celebrated Christmas with my Mom, which was wonderful. Joel did a Lifetime movie, Amish Grace. Doesn't he look great with his fellow cast members? He even drove the horse and buggy. I used to love the Lifetime channel. It was a staple for me in the 90's. Ahh, the days of hanging out with a Lifetime movie. Looks like we all have something to look forward to in Amish Grace!

Christmas was very relaxing and fun, too. All of Marguerite's sons (my cousins) and family came out. It was great to see them. Everyone came over Christmas Eve, and then Christmas itself was quiet, peaceful, and glorious. I even took a nap. Lydia was up at 3am, announced to us that Santa came and we had 3 more hours to sleep. Below is a picture of the kids putting out their reindeer food made with oatmeal and glitter.

Any New Year's resolutions? Well, I'm back to getting up at 6:15 instead of 6:30, so I can be on time in the morning. As I watched my gas tank in the car go down to zero, I thought should I resolve to be one of those people who get gas when the light goes on with 25 miles to go? I think not yet. I'll continue to let it go to zero before I get gas. I can even go up to 3 miles after it hits zero. I'll start this year by resolving to not chance those 3 miles and definitely not try 5. I also need to walk our crazy dog more, oh, and floss EVERY day. Well, let's see how it goes! Happy 2010 to everyone!

No Posts

2009-10-27T19:28:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I'm writing my thesis, or not writing my thesis, depending on what day it is. I feel that I shouldn't do anything else, but write in my spare time. I actually haven't done all that much writing because there is little spare time, but I feel that I shouldn't blog or other such things, like do laundry. You won't hear much from me until December (I've been so prolific otherwise).

I read a story last night to Ryan that had some Halloween facts. One was that 9 out of 10 parents sneak candy from their children's stash. He was truly shocked and distressed. I must keep that book from Lydia.

Here are a couple of birthday pictures. It was fun and easy. Ryan had a wonderful time and so did his friends. I sure did fight the Chuck E. Cheese birthdays to begin with, but they have been OK. This was probably the last year, and I might miss the old rat.

First Day of School

2009-09-06T13:24:00.000-07:00

Apparently, my very busy, but relaxing summer passed without a blog post. We all had a marvelous summer that included a visit from the Greens, beach trips, soccer camp, horse camp and many days just swimming in the pool.

My first day of school was a couple of weeks ago, and the kids started last Wednesday.

Ryan was too excited to pose. He was very wiggly. The kids both had a great first week and like their teachers.

We celebrated Lydia's birthday with multiple parties. Following are miscellaneous pictures.

This is after the pinata broke. Kids sure do love a pinata. I suppose I would, too, if it were filled with adult treats, or even fine chocolate.

This is taken on our new trampoline. You should have seen Joel and me putting it together. The box said 1200 pieces. I know that was a typo, but it felt like that many pieces. We amazingly did it, though, and the kids have been loving it.

Ryan has been taking pictures with my camera and I think the lens might be dirty (based upon the looks of these pictures). The kids watched Lassie last night. Ryan cried for over an hour because a dog, Toots, died in the movie. Both kids were sobbing hysterically at one point.

Sadly I think our cat has been snatched by a coyote. I saw a coyote in the backyard Thursday morning, and we have not seen the cat since Thursday afternoon. We should have kept him in, but we have also always had the coyotes and Kerry had a kitty door to the garage and escaped to it. He spent the nights in the house. I think the coyotes are getting hungry and they are out at all hours now. He has never been gone for more than a day. The kids don't know yet, because Joel and I keep hoping he'll show up. He was a wonderful cat, and loved everyone. We will all miss him very much.

Summer!

2009-06-26T08:13:00.000-07:00

Hello! We have been enjoying a marvelous summer. We returned from our MN family lake vacation. It is always so nice to hang out at Gull lake with the family. Putting worms on the hooks is not so nice. I drew the line at leeches. I am not going to purposefully touch a leech.

Here are a few pictures from Lydia's talent show and her 2nd grade show "The Big Sing-Colors of Our World"- both great successes.

Lydia is doing a musical theater camp this week...they are doing "Working" in a week. Good luck to them. I like to drop her off and say, "Best of luck." Quite an endeavor. She and a friend are doing the "Neat to be a Newsboy" song. Should be fun.

Ryan is doing a three sport camp next week and Lydia is doing a soccer camp. We are going to try to paint their bedrooms this summer...which is a pretty big job. Last year, when we painted the office, I dropped the gallon of paint on the carpet. Let's hope it goes a little better this year.

Let's see, other news...Lydia shot another commercial for Mattel's Splatster. That name rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? She did a great job. She worked 9 hours and maintained focus. I was impressed. She really enjoys it, so that is good, too. Ryan swims from early morning to late at night. His hair is chlorine crispy, but at least it isn't green yet.

I forgot my camera when we went to the lake, so hopefully my mom will send some pictures!

More later!

Ryan and the Talent Show

2009-05-27T13:54:00.000-07:00

I believe Ryan is our new Simon Cowell. I was watching the talent show auditions with him, and he couldn't help but comment on every number. At first he was loud, and I quickly shushed him and asked him to only say nice things or nothing at all. He couldn't help himself, though, and whispered (thank god) the rest of the comments in my ear. Comments included: That was awful! Way too long. Oh boy, she can't sing. Whoa, what are they doing? He did have nice things to say too, such as: Wow, they can hula hoop and I liked that.

Funny thing, is he was so right with all of them. He doesn't watch American Idol, or any other shows with us where we make comments like this. It is his own thing. I must channel it, or help him to know when it may be appropriate to say these things...like the privacy of your own home!

But Wait, There are More!

2009-05-23T10:54:00.000-07:00

The Barbie commercial where the hardest thing she did was give the panda a shot one handed with her left hand

and

the aquarium commercial where she had so much fun and kept telling producers, "I'd do this for free!" She would really do them all for free because she has a great time. Her parents would probably not drive her around kingdom come for free. College fund!

Now Ryan, he is a boy about having fun on his own terms. If his friends are doing it and it looks OK, then he is in. Otherwise, he is not so sure. He watches, and then decides if he will do it or not. Not so great for auditions, but he is more cautious then Lydia, which is a trait I truly appreciate!

Commercial Links

2009-05-22T20:41:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to Lyd's water slide commercial...shot in the winter.

Commercial Link

2009-05-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to Lydia's Sempra Energy commercial. There is a picture of Lydia on the homepage. Scroll over the pane with the little girl's eye bottom center and click on the Everyday campaign link , and then on the TV to watch the commercial. They played it during American Idol here in San Diego last week. It was fun to see!

Breaking news - Celebrity Swine Flu Fatality

2009-05-15T12:05:00.001-07:00

And we all know who gave it to him.

*News forwarded to me via email

He's Got the Moves

2009-05-01T12:13:00.000-07:00

Watch Ryan at Rock n Roll night at school.

He is in between two friends whose dad is filming. I'm sure he was trying to film his boys, but Ryan was into it with Power Ranger infused moves.

Jill

2009-04-28T19:50:00.000-07:00

Brindy is forced to play pirates with Ryan.

The kids were sobbing in the other room. I went to check on them and they were loudly bawling, but not injured, thank goodness. I asked them what was wrong. They are watching Air Bud, and apparently it is very sad. I can't convince them that it will be OK and couldn't calm them down with hugs, but they wanted to keep watching, so I left them sobbing. Who knew Air Bud was a tear jerker?

Ryan came home very excited today saying, "Mom, guess what I learned in school today?"
I, the ever proud mom, said, " What, Ryan?"
He said, "I can burp anytime I want now, even when I don't really have to!" It's good to learn some useful skills in school.

The Movie

2009-04-11T07:18:00.001-07:00

We went to see Hannah Montana: The Movie. Ryan really didn't want to go, but I made him come with us. When the movie was over he was wiping real tears from his eyes and said, "That was so great, it made me cry. Can we buy that one?" That's my sweet boy.

Happy April Fools Day!

2009-04-01T21:46:00.000-07:00

Lydia traded the cereal in two boxes this morning. I let Ryan pour his cereal out and he was so mad that he burst into tears and went back to bed. Don't mess with Ryan and his food.

That darn dog!

2009-03-30T21:53:00.000-07:00

Our dog thinks she owns the back yard. She chews absolutely anything that is left out there...and I mean anything. Door mat, lawn chairs...anything. It is ironic that the bones we give her to chew on are quickly buried. She also keeps digging holes under the fence. She has become an escape artist. Any tips, especially on the escape artist issue? I really don't want to crate her while we are gone, but it isn't looking good.

Keen Observation Skills

2009-03-23T20:57:00.000-07:00

A car like this goes by us the other day and Ryan says, "There's one of those cars with the funny tops." I said, "What do you mean?" He said, "You know, the ones with different color tops that the old ladies drive."

Well, there you go.

Another Commercial!

2009-03-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

Lydia shot a commercial yesterday for Sempra Energy. They own SDG&E down here and I think they are doing a big natural gas push. There will be many different scenes with people using natural gas. Lydia and other kids are running to a bus to get on and then the camera focuses in on the CNG symbol on the back of the bus. It was a fun day. Lydia had a blast and I continue to get exhausted by watching her work. What is that about? I needed a nap by the time we got home.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2009-03-05T21:35:00.000-08:00

Today was my dad's birthday...and I forgot to call. I was working nonstop from morning through a 5:30-8:15 class and he goes to bed at 9pm MS time. I almost called anyway, but thought a better present would be to let him sleep.

So, Happy belated birthday, Dad, who used to purposely change to put on your ugly shirt and insist on driving the old, rusty, party color truck to drive me places. These days, I'd actually ride in the seat instead of on the floor and ask you to come in with me instead of drop me off a block away. Thanks, Gollott and I love you Gollott. I'm still relieved that I finally got the Gollott joke.

1966

2009-02-13T17:24:00.001-08:00

Here we are: Linda, Ron, Ted, Gail and little no neck.

Supposed to be Writing

2009-02-08T08:23:00.000-08:00

I am currently writing my thesis. Chapter 1. That is as far as I've gotten. Joel says he knows when I have a project due because the house is suddenly clean, I'm doing laundry, and all sorts of other things that I never get done start getting done. I'm thinking I should walk the dog, but it is raining. I haven't blogged in a while...

It may be a little late to be sharing the event, but we had a fabulous Christmas! Thank you to all of our holiday hosts, but we owe an especially big thank you to Phil and Martha who provided us with a beautiful, comfortable suite of rooms complete with delicious meals and incredible company. Good thing they shopped at Costco. Following are some photos from the visit.

Ice skating was fun for Lydia and stressful for Ryan.

I think there is something in the coffee.

Beautiful Mary.

Ryan, Connie, Donna, and Bruce opening presents, and enjoying Evan's toys.

Martha and Phil: Hosts extraordinaire

Chris and Karen

The Royal Family above and below with Grandpa Ed.

I got food poisoning before I got on the plane and was very disappointed that Delta stopped putting the vomit bags in the seat pockets. Bad move. The airports also don't have enough bathrooms, I might add. Joel dragged me along, much to the dismay of other passengers and any pride I might have had. Thank goodness we made it, though, and have wonderful memories of Christmas 2008.

A Day in the Life of Lydia

2009-01-25T10:49:00.000-08:00

After a good night's rest, Lydia gets up to play a few Chopin Mazurkas.

A nice breakfast and then ready to practice her dressage.

She comes home and plays a little Webkinz, and then begins baking. I assist her in the kitchen a bit while wearing one of my favorite wigs.

Dinner and then off to bed to do a little reading of the classics before falling asleep.

Too Much

2009-01-13T14:17:00.000-08:00

Oh boy. I am overwhelmed at work with too much to do. I feel that I don't have time to teach because I have too many issues to deal with and other responsibilities. Enough of that.

I don't believe that I ever posted about Lydia's other commercials and Ryan's print shoot. They were all before the holidays. Lydia did a Little Tykes water slide commercial. Haven't seen it, but it was fun to watch them shoot. She did an especially good job when she and another boy were chosen to have buckets of water dumped on their faces from above as they looked up into the bucket. The Director was trying to not have them flinch around the 10th time as they began to anticipate the freezing bucket of water dumped up their noses, so he started telling them, "We aren't going to really dump it this time, just look up." Of course, he dumped it on them. They fell for that 2 times before they caught on. At the end of the day, a bug flew into Lydia's eye and she freaked out. Luckily it was the end, but she was traumatized by the bug. She was ridiculously dramatic about it, but I vaguely remember sprinting crazily in and out of my house for a couple of years around 2nd and 3rd grade because there were some plants around the front door that the bees liked. Here is the group of kids who were in the commercial. They let them warm up in the hot tub at one point.

A couple of weeks later, Lydia did a Born Doll commerical that will probably be seen mostly in Europe. She and another little girl worked hard all day, but had a fun time. Amazing all they do for 1-3 minutes of finished product. On the same day, Ryan did an OshKosh/Carters print shoot. Very exciting. Neither Joel or I had cameras for any of it. We are slackers. Another mom emailed some photos. Strangely, Lydia is most excited by the food selection all day. Hmmm.

I plan on doing some Christmas posting, but 1st things first. Do you know what this is?

Lydia spent the night with a friend Friday night...a very clean friend, I might add. The mom called Sunday night to say her daughter had lice. After very close inspection, I found one on Lydia's head and then we stayed up until 11:00pm doing the treatment, combing through the hair, washing everything washable in the house. It was a personal nightmare. I found nothing on Ryan, thank goodness. I took us all into the school nurses office Monday morning and she checked all of us. We are clear, but I'm still checking Lydia daily and I have to treat her next week, too. I'm also washing sheets every night for a week. Thank goodness the friend's mom caught it when she did. The friend has very thick hair that was hard to go through and her sister had it, too. The sister was like Lydia, though, and it looked like the little bug had just recently moved in. We can only assume it came from school. Ugh.

Here is a miscellaneous picture of the kids working in the yard. Their yard work gear is very interesting.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-08T17:37:00.001-08:00

We have had a fabulous month of festivities. The kids walked through the airport like this on New Year's Day and then through the hotel as well. The only problem was that Ryan got upset that people were looking at him...but he wouldn't take the hat off. I'm not allowed to post anymore until my Christmas decorations are down. Let's hope I post again before February.

Halloween and the Dog

2008-11-22T18:03:00.000-08:00

Just catching you up on past life. We have been very crazy busy. So, last month, we trick or treated in a friend's neighborhood for Halloween and then attended a fabulous party the next evening. In our pictures, you see the dog. She is a mess, and she is ours. Obedience school, here we come. Everyone says that we should watch The Dog Whisperer. I would prefer if he would just come here and whisper to the dog. That would be much easier.

Mood Music

2008-11-17T21:00:00.000-08:00

This morning, I asked Lydia to get her snack for school. She walked into the pantry and came out and said with a straight face, "Mom, can you sing this?" She hummed some classical tune. She said, "That is good music for when a chef comes out with all this food." She is seriously asking me to provide background music for her everyday life.

A few minutes later, she fell into the pool fully clothed. I had some good background music for when we were all late for school. It was a little Carmina Burana.

2008-10-26T18:41:00.000-07:00

Ryan spent his day looking like the above picture. Stores, friend's house...and he couldn't figure out why people kept looking at him. His friend then joined him in an equally powerful, warrior-like outfit.

The rat helped us to celebrate Ryan's birthday.

Ryan began the dressing as a pilot and Lydia thought he looked so great, that she joined him.

No Pictures

2008-10-17T19:20:00.000-07:00

I keep not posting because I don't feel like loading the pictures. So, pictures will follow. We just had a very nice visit with Aunt Connie. Unfortunately, Ryan was still sick, I had residual cold, and Lydia had a two day 104 temp (that did come down with Motrin). Poor Aunt Connie. She took care of Lydia and Ryan at different times and fought the cold. We all enjoyed her very much, but I'm thinking no one will want to visit us because of the germ fest.

Ryan's birthday was fabulous at Chuck E. Cheese again. He was beginning the sickness at that point, sadly. We had a grand time and hopefully didn't infect any unsuspecting families.

After 7 trips to the Animal Shelter, we got a dog. She is very sweet. Lucky for me, happened to be potty trained. She weighs 43 pounds, which is a nice medium size. But, she has started chewing everything in sight. Alas. So far, it is mostly when we leave her and we leave her outside because we have a big yard, shaded area, and beautiful coastal So CA weather. We have only lost some outside toys that were a little weathered, but it is trouble. If she would only chew her bones and other treats instead of burying them, we would be much better off. Her name is Brindy and she is definitely an odd mix of something, but, once again, very sweet and good with the kids.

Lydia has a print ad for the Care N Cure Wild Animals on page 152 in the toy insider special advertising section of Redbook Magazine. We just happened to hear she was in it from another family. It is fun for us to see it.

I wish my mother a very happy birthday, today! Love you, Mom!

Soccer

2008-09-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

I keep taking my camera to take pictures at the soccer games, but somehow I never take them. Ryan is very strong and hits a baseball amazingly, as well as a golf ball. He has a strong kick. Put him on the soccer field, and he is just frustrating to watch. He picks flowers, he races with the other boys (oblivious to the ball at all times), he chats with any child who will listen, he makes underarm noises, he plays in the mud, he slides on the grass, and flops on the goal. Yesterday, he accidentally kicked a ball because someone kicked it at his feet. He spent the next 5 minutes laughing about that with anyone who would listen on the field. I believe he is having a good time, but it is hard to watch. At other times on the field, he'd just run up to the boys on the other team yelling out the score of the game. During all of this, the other boys are actually playing soccer. He is just turning 5 this weekend, but Joel is pretty sure that soccer is not the game for Ryan. It is true that he is not very fleet of foot. I guess if you look at a picture of him from when he was a baby, you might have guessed that speedy may not be his nickname.

He has lost all of the rolls on those legs, but he is still thick, and his feet are as long as Lydia's, but much wider. When he hit a ball far out of our yard the other day, he said, " Mom, maybe you should put me in baseball." He is probably right. I thought that soccer would be good exercise.

Now Lydia is very fast. She is on the short side for her age, but is as fast or faster than those long legged girls. She is a natural defender and hangs back. When the ball comes anywhere near her goal, she chases it down and clears it. Any goals that have been made against her team have been when she has not been in the game. Her games are fun to watch, as she has good and fun team mates, too. You may say, Lydia is older and has been playing longer. When she was his age, she had the same qualities. Her skills have improved, but she has always been involved in the game.

Our Saturdays are filled with soccer because we have two games. We also have 2 practices apiece per week. I'm thinking that I should start playing for the exercise, too. That would be a fine idea to have practice for the adults at the same time as the kids. I'm usually so pooped by the late afternoon. Where do the kids get all the energy?

Peace Walk

2008-09-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

We did a Walk for Peace and Friendship Festival with the Kids for Peace organization in Balboa Park on Sunday. It was really a wonderful event and truly peaceful and full of love. The kids really enjoyed it and are learning to be global citizens.

Peace out.

Update

2008-09-07T17:24:00.000-07:00

This will be the short and succinct update.

End of summer at MN. Tons of fun. Glorious for the kids and me as well. Joel couldn't make it and we missed him, but did some tubing for him. Now, I tubed this year because the kids begged me too. I went with a young cousin who is a crazy tuber and went over and under that thing...thinking for sure my fall was a back breaker, but somehow I was just fine. The kids and I also knee boarded. It was great to see our MN family and I am grateful we have this yearly time to spend with them in such a beautiful spot.

Lydia had a 7th birthday pool party at our house. She had a Webkinz pool party. She printed out all of the games, refreshments, and activities from Crafty Critters on Webkinz World. Have I ever mentioned that I am not crafty? We drew and crafted and cooked to a grand successful party. I was up late creating this mess of a cake, but the kids loved it.

First day of school was great. Ryan entered the Kindergarten classroom. That alone was remarkable (that I didn't drag him in kicking and screaming). The kids like school and everyone is healthy and happy.

When picking out 1st day of school outfits, Lydia rejected many because they didn't make her look smart. Apparently, that is the smart outfit.

Ryan still says "f" for "th". He has had a couple of funnies with that. One was during soccer camp. I had heard he was not well behaved during the first day at camp, so I talked to him quite a bit about it, and was also in close contact with his coach to make sure he did better. This was an Irish run soccer camp and on the last day, the parents were invited to play games with the kids. The coach was yelling directions to us with his great accent and said, "Now, run around the ball t'ree times!" T'ree for three. Ryan looked at me and said, "He means free. See, that's why I can't follow directions. I don't understand a word he says."

Gustav Update

2008-09-02T15:49:00.000-07:00

My parents are back at the house. They had 7 feet of water in their yard, but no damage. Electricity went back on today around 2:30. Not bad for a hurricane.

Gustav

2008-09-01T18:54:00.000-07:00

My parents have weathered another hurricane. They went to a home of friends of the family about 30 minutes north of Gulfport. They were fine there and will find out tomorrow if there was much damage to the yard. This hurricane went ashore further west and was nothing like Katrina with her 23 foot storm surge in my parents' area. We were all a little worried because they just got back into their home in June, but, "Phew!"

I'm sure many on the Gulf Coast are breathing a sigh of relief, and were having flashbacks to Katrina. I still think of my parents and Marie and Abigail driving around during the hurricane in my dad's F350 trying to find a way through and escape rising water. They were out in it twice having to change houses two times because of the water. They ended up in a house on cinder blocks that my mom was sure was going to float away. Thank goodness Gustav did not pack the wallop of that Katrina. I'll update if they sustained any damage to the house, but everyone is OK. Linda and Heimana stayed at her house, which was fine during Katrina, so they were fine as well.

The Boston Strangler: The Untold Story

2008-07-31T10:28:00.000-07:00

This is not my typical fare, but I have good reason for enjoying this movie which is now out on DVD. Joel has a song that he composed and recorded with DC musicians in 2002 in the movie. The entire song, except for the intro, is in the movie. It is a little difficult to enjoy the song, because it is during a strangling, but it is perfect music for the scene. Andres Boulton did the movie underscoring, but this is a featured song that he wanted to subcontract. He and the director talk about it in the commentary. The commentary was especially fun to listen to. The movie is very well done, even though it is a lower budget movie (1.5 million). David Faustino (aka Bud Bundy) is really good in it. So, watch the movie...try to ignore the bad acting of a couple of female victims with bad accents, and enjoy what Joel's song adds to the scene beginning: January 4, 1964. It is about 1/3 of the way through and the song is supposed to be on the radio or record player in the background during this strangling. If you would really like to enjoy the music, you can close your eyes like I did.

Little Miss Mattel

2008-07-27T13:53:00.000-07:00

Lydia shot a Mattel commercial last week. After many Mattel callbacks for other items, and two callbacks for this spot, we were very excited for her to get the commercial. It is for a new toy called the Cure and Care Endangered Animal. There will be a panda, spotted leopard and polar bear. Lydia's commercial was for the panda and spotted leopard. It is a jungle scene and with one other girl. There is also an arctic commercial they shot the day before with two other girls.

Lydia had a fitting the day before and then waited until 5:00 pm for our call time for the next day. Because they didn't finish the commercial from the day before, our call time was 10:00 am. We had been holding off deciding if we were going to spend the night in LA or not, but then gave up around 3 pm and got a hotel room. Joel is a Priceline King and got a very nice room at the Airport Hilton for $89. The other family with the little girl in the commercial paid $149 for a La Quinta sort of place. Ryan stayed with Tony and Marguerite and continued at soccer camp.

Although the general rule is for one parent to attend, Joel and I both went. Both of the parents of the other girl were there, too. I think production was a little surprised, but they accommodated all of us. There is a fine line between keeping parents happy, yet out of the way. During shooting we were behind a black screen where the kids couldn't see us, but we could watch on monitors. I did stand in another area where I could see her live at one point, but was soon directed to my chair. They did 5 different shots. and we were there 10 am-7 pm. That is a very long day for kids. They had lots of breaks, but had to be very focused during shooting. The girls were amazing. The director would say things like "be natural" to them after the 10th take and I would think they had no idea what that meant, but sure enough, then they would be natural. They were so great that you would forget they were acting as they played so nicely and smiley with their animals, but then the director would say "Cut" and both girls would collapse.

There was one shot where Lydia had to pretend to give an injection with a play syringe using her left hand. It was a little difficult for her because she is right handed and had to also do it all one handed with the other girl holding the leopard. In the commercial, you will only see the other girl's face during that shot, because Lydia had a great look of concentration on her face and her tongue hanging out. But there will be her beautiful left hand giving the injection perfectly. I was very proud of her.

It is also a little difficult having to watch her work and not be able to say anything. The director would direct the girls to do something and I would know they had no clue what he said. He would figure it out a few takes later, but it was painful to watch. Another time, the whole crew was waiting for Lydia to say, "Ready," but she didn't really get that she had to say it out loud, so we just sat and waited and waited with me muzzled wanting to scream, "Lydia, say ready!" Another time, they had all of these toy accessories in front of the animals and told the girls not to touch them. The other girl couldn't keep her hands off of them, and they kept telling her to put them back. Lydia was being great, keeping her hands to herself. Right before they started shooting, no one was looking and Lydia grabbed a big green bandaid and put it on her panda. I was, of course, the only one who noticed this. They started shooting and a few minutes later..."Cut! Did someone want the bandaid on the bear?" There was much discussion between production while Lydia was sweetly quiet and then someone came and removed the bandaid. Painful.

All in all, though, she really amazed me. She is such a little pro and follows direction surprisingly well. The girls had to do a variety of things with their animals ("playing" with them) looking natural, all the while keeping the animals facing front and not covering their faces. A friend of mine asked me why they don't just put the kids in an area with the toy and film them playing with the toy for the commercial. One of the many reasons is that when a child naturally plays with a toy, you don't generally see the toy itself.

We met the design team who take the toy from conception to the shelves. They were even a part of selecting the girls for the commercial. They were very interesting to talk to. The girls also had stand-ins there (other 6 year olds the same height and coloring) which was a little surreal. The whole experience was a lot of fun. Joel left early to go to work, so he missed a bit. Lydia was very tired by the end of the day. I was also beat from the stress of watching her!

Dancing with the Stars

2008-07-16T10:02:00.001-07:00

Check out the new show HERE at the Followspot! Too many favorites to choose one.

Harriet the Spy

2008-07-14T15:58:00.000-07:00

Today would be my sister Gail's 48th birthday. Wow. In honor of Gail, I will review one of her favorite childhood books, Harriet the Spy. Lydia and I read Harriet a few months ago. I remember loving it as a child, but as I read it as an adult I realized what a different child Harriet is. She is a girl walking her own path who never really seems to fit in. She is true to her self and has strong opinions that she finds release by writing about them. It is a great book for today's youth (even though I occasionally thought Harriet might be unbalanced) because it is about a girl who loves herself as she is who learns through the story's events to be a bit more compassionate toward others. She is bold, funny, smart and quirky. These were qualities my sister had as well, and I can understand why she loved this book. Gail even went through a period where she looked like Harriet. Whenever I see this book, I think of her. Lydia can't wait to read the next one.

Get Smart

2008-06-26T10:08:00.000-07:00

Joel has a role in Get Smart...that didn't get into the movie. He went to the Premiere which was quite the event he reported. He was the Obstacle Course Instructor. That part was shot during a day that the fires were next to Warner Bros. studios. Our car even got bubbled paint on the door before crew came and took everyone's keys to move the cars. That film was probably very smoky and in the movie they only show a few closer shots of Steve in his fat suit on the course. Joel also is a Control Room Analyst, but no lines made it into the movie, although you can see him in shots. I am hoping that these bits will be in the deleted scenes on the DVD. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I was a huge Get Smart TV fan. Can't wait!

Lovin' Summer

2008-06-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

We have been keeping too busy still, but summer is great. Next week, more relaxing and fewer appointments. I have no pictures, but you can check out the new Kids for Peace link that shows our recent trip to the beach for cleanup, fun, and eco tips. Lydia actually stood up on a small wave on a surfboard. I'm the bad mom without a camera. As a matter of fact, my kids didn't even have shoes because they hopped in the car without them and I didn't think to check. The sun has been shining so hot here, that was a bit of a painful walk to the beach from the car. Why do I think my kids won't remember that as a lesson? More of a lesson for the mom...check for the shoes.

Civil Rights Victory

2008-06-16T22:17:00.000-07:00

Yea to the state of CA for providing equal rights to its citizens as couples of the same sex may marry beginning Tuesday, June 16. The people of CA need to support this state Supreme Court ruling and uphold it in November elections.

Kids

2008-06-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

Following is a picture from the 1st Grade trip to Sea World. Kids are funny. Most were more interested in the photo booths and machine that flattens your penny than the amazing animals. "Yeah, yeah, I saw the killer whale." They did enjoy the bat rays and sea stars that you could touch.

When I asked Ryan to stop whining this morning, he said, "But mom, this is how kids talk when they are crying." Yup, it is. No more crying allowed.

It is the end of the school year and things are crazy at work and with numerous end of the year activities for the kids. I might break down. I keep telling myself that there is only one more week. I repeat, one more week.

Here is a photo of Lydia and her friend Nicole opening up the school's talent show with "Right Here in Your Arms" from Barbie as Island Princess. It was very sweet. They sang a capella and were right on.

We had a lovely visit with Aunt Martha and Uncle Phil this weekend. They are now traveling cross country back to VA. I would love to do the trip...without kids. I remember those trips when I was a kid. Painful. I suppose if you are not traveling with my 2 minute pit stop if you have to throw up do it now Dad, it could be better! I am considering driving to MN this summer, though. Weighing the cost of gas, hotels, kids trapped in the car and absurd airfare.

Phil and kids in disguise. That moustache was on the back of Ryan's pajamas when he woke up the next morning. I was sure it was a horrible bug.

All I have time for now. More when we are out of school. YEA! Out of school!

Kids for Peace

2008-06-01T11:05:00.001-07:00

The kids and I have joined an organization called Kids for Peace. It is good to be part of this outreach group and helping to teach the kids that they can make a difference. They had a performance for a fundraiser for another organization at a Dinner Club in La Jolla a few weeks ago. We were kind of new to the group and still meeting people, but Lydia and Ryan took part. Lydia, the little pro, had a couple of lines and the song memorized. Ryan, on the other hand, was just excited to be there. Very excited. As they were going inside to head up on stage for the Kids for PEACE show, he pulled his little pretend guns (finger and thumb always handy) from his pockets and started loudly shooting his friends. "Pow! Pow!" I am a few people away from him and trying to grab him before he goes on stage with a Kids for Peace shootout in front of a large audience. I finally get to him and explain that he can't do that. He is saying, "Mom, it's just pretend." He agrees to stop, so I allow him on stage where he punctuates everyone else's lines with karate chops and pulls on Lydia's arms to entertain himself. She spends much time with a frozen smile trying to shake him off. I was too horrified to take pictures. All in all the show was very cute, the audience enjoyed it, and there is nothing better than hearing kids talk and sing about creating positive change in the world beginning with themselves. Maybe some will rub off on my gunslinging boy.

Pretty cool!

2008-05-18T15:25:00.001-07:00

http://www.maniacworld.com/frozen-in-grand-central-station.html

First Grade Play

2008-05-04T08:19:00.000-07:00

Time for the first grade play again! This year Lydia was a narrator and a sea monster with her class. She was fabulous, of course. It was a big production again with 130 kids and incredible costumes. The Big Splash was a great sea adventure about how to be a good friend.

Ryan has been enjoying dressing up lately, too. Daily, he works his way through costumes. He is a Power Ranger, Superman, Spiderman, or a pirate depending on his mood. He dresses up more than Lydia ever did. Funny.

For those of you who know about the crazy CA teacher credentialing process I have been going through the past eight years, I have finally cleared my general education and special education credentials. My portfolios are submitted and I'm just waiting to receive papers from the state. Phew! It has been tiresome, and I'm incredibly relieved to have it over.

Sharks

2008-04-25T21:35:00.000-07:00

Lydia has been studying the ocean in school and when we were in the book store chose "Shark Attacks" for her book. She read the book and has been giving me all sorts of info like don't urinate in the water because sharks are attracted to it. All along, I've been assuring her that she didn't have to worry about sharks while swimming here at our beach. Now, our beach is closed because a great white (probably) killed a man nearby. Never get too comfortable with the ocean, I guess.

Ranunculus!

2008-04-16T17:59:00.000-07:00

What are ranunculus you might ask? Well, these are Tecolote® Giant Ranunculus and the largest growing field for them in the US is here in Carlsbad, CA. My mom, dad, Ryan and I visited the fields a couple of weeks ago and had a fabulous time. Each seed is planted by hand and there are 50 acres of them. They are really beautiful and I look forward to them every spring. We had a great time with my parents when they visited.

See the old fashioned tractor pulled wagon ride we are on? When I was teaching in 2000, I took my class of 12 kids with more severe disabilities to the Flower Fields and we took a wagon ride. While going down a very big long hill, the tractor popped out of gear and we were "runaway" for what seemed like an eternity. The driver was able to get us back into gear and slowed down, but not before I was sure we were goners. Luckily the kids didn't really know what had happened, and were all safe. You would think I wouldn't still recommend it to the family, but I love a good thrill. This year they accidentally didn't put a ramp up, so we rammed into the loading dock. It was very loud and jolting. When we were coming back to the dock, Ryan asked if we were going to crash again. For a little excitement, take the wagon ride!

*This post is in response to Krissy!

The Future

2008-04-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

Ryan: Mom, What's the future.

Mom: Well, it's what is going to happen tomorrow or next year.

Ryan: Can we go to the future?

Mom: No, we can't go to the future.

Ryan: Won't tomorrow be the future?

Mom (starting to think she is out of her league): The future is always what hasn't happened yet.

Ryan: You said tomorrow is the future. I'll be there tomorrow.

Mom: When tomorrow is happening, it won't be the future anymore. The future is what is to come.

Ryan: So, next year is the future?

Mom: Yes.

Ryan: I'll be in the future next year. The Bionicles live in the future.

Mom gives up.

Gypsy

2008-02-19T20:50:00.000-08:00

Joel and I went to Phoenix Entertainment's production of Gypsy on Saturday night in lovely Escondido, CA. It was a lot of fun! I've always loved Gypsy because it was one of the first shows I was in. I played Baby Louise, and then, when I was a Junior in High School, I played Dainty June with the Mclean Community Theater. I started singing "You Gotta Have a Gimmick" at age 6, and have been perfecting it since. I think I learned to play trumpet in the 6th grade to fulfill my dream of being Mazeppa. Anyway, back to the production at hand...It was great. We had excellent seats, the show was well cast and performed, sets and costumes were good, and it made for a wonderful evening out. I have to say, the strippers are still my favorite. Also, Jeffery, who played multiple roles well, did a turn as a Newsboy believably. Who knew he could still play 18? Dancing and choreography were well done. I give it two thumbs up. Thank you to Mark and Jeffery for the evening of entertainment!

Toothless

2008-02-15T17:20:00.001-08:00

February?!

2008-02-03T17:31:00.000-08:00

Wow, how did January go so quickly without a post from me? Everyone is watching the Superbowl right now, so I have a minute. We said a sad goodbye to cousin Karen who moved back to VA with a great new job. Chris and puppies are soon to follow. We will miss them here on the west coast.

Family is fine. We wish the writer's strike would end. We have been having to wear socks for the last month. Now that is cold. Lydia is losing teeth and looking cute but snaggly. She got a great report card full of excellents. Ryan growls at us when he is mad, or sometimes if we just look at him. We are still hanging on to the hope that he is normal. No matter what, he is fun!

What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?

2007-12-31T10:49:00.000-08:00

This is our omen for good luck for the New Year. A heron friend came to visit. He was looking for fish in our big pond, but satisfied himself with a few geckos instead before moving on.

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! We had a wonderful one here with my Mom and Dad visiting and lots of cousins here, too. It was just fun. This week, we have been hanging out at home and quiet. I began a Tom Clancey book, Executive Orders, at the end of summer. I am generally a fast reader and love reading, but this book was not really capturing me. I am also a bit persistent, and would not give up on reading it, even though I was not enjoying it. By the beginning of this vacation, I was only half way through. Finally, I decided to read something else...although Tom's snore still sits on my nightstand. I read Janet Evanovich's Lean Mean Thirteen. I love those Stephanie Plum books. They are quick, fun reads that make me laugh out loud. Then I read a T. Jefferson Parker mystery. Now I am reading The Other Boleyn Girl. That is great, too. Who knows if I will every go back to Tom. Will I be able to remove it from the nightstand without finishing? I just don't know.

We will be playing games this New Year's Eve after going out for dinner. Lydia made an African mask to scare away the evil spirits for next year. We will celebrate the New Year on east coast time (9:00pm here). That way my Dad will make it to bring in the New Year!

Following are a few Christmas pictures. Lydia was worried that the adults hadn't been very good this year because we didn't have much in our stockings. The kids were cute as could be and lots of fun. It was a wonderful and blessed day. Ryan is Superman Power Ranger in the picture, if you are wondering!

Cookies and milk for Santa!

Big brother Ron and Dad.

Nephew Ronny and Mom.

Happy New Year to All!!

'Tis the Season to be Jolly

2007-12-16T14:55:00.000-08:00

We are very busy here preparing for Christmas. The above picture is indicative of the energy level and excitement of the kids. We went to see The Grinch at the Old Globe yesterday. We sat front row center and it was great! The kids loved it and were quiet and a good audience, thank goodness. Unlike the child behind us who screamed and cried every time the mean Grinch came out, all the while clutching his Grinch doll. When his Mom finally decided to take him out, it was at a time that the Grinch also left through the audience. She was about half way up when he came running up behind them. I think the child may be traumatized for life.

Ryan wouldn't let me take his picture before the play, but below is Lydia who auditioned for The Grinch this year. She had just turned 6 the day before the auditions and the age range was 6-14. She is so little, she could only play Cindy Lou, which is a large part. The children who played her this year were 8 & 10. But...Lydia did very well at the audition. She was so excited. Afterward, someone from the production staff called us and told us she was just too young, but that we had to promise to bring her next year. That was very kind of them.

Lydia has been a bit of funny trouble lately. She came home from school and told me that Mckenzie was going to "ditch" her. I asked her what that meant and she said Mckenzie owed her $2 and she didn't think she was going to pay. I asked why a child would owe her money. She explained that her white Cheezit snack is very popular and she was selling it. I explained that she could not sell things at school and that it was against school rules to take money from other kids at school. She came home the next day and said Mckenzie would mail it to her. Lydia was not very happy when I said we would have to mail it right back. On Lydia's letter to Santa this year she asked for a reindeer fur coat. Hmmm. I had to explain that you had to kill the animals to get the fur. She thought maybe Santa could just trim some fur and make it into a coat.

Ryan is his normal fun self. We built Gingerbread houses and Ryan had a lot of fun and it looked very sweet, but then he constructed this skinny thing that stuck out of the roof. When I asked him what that was, he said it was the shooter in case the wolf or fox came after the gingerbread man. Our non-violent household hasn't affected his excitement for guns and swords at all. He constructs them out of gingerbread.

Enchanted

2007-11-21T14:07:00.000-08:00

We saw Enchanted today. It was so much fun. It left me feeling much better than all of the depressing but well done movies I've been seeing like Gone Baby Gone. I also enjoy THIS!

Note for you East Coasters

2007-11-18T10:03:00.000-08:00

I was at Lydia's school on Friday and I heard a teacher saying, "No running in the halls." This may seem like a perfectly normal statement to all, but to me it always seems funny here on the west coast. You see, all of the "halls" are sidewalks. All of the classrooms here have a door that is outside. The schools are generally not buildings with halls, so if a student is going to another class or part of the school, they walk outside to wherever they might be going. They also eat lunch outside. On the rare occasions that it rains, they may have a covered outside area where they will eat, bring tables into an auditorium, or just eat in the classrooms depending on the school. It seems funny to me that they call the sidewalks "halls", but they do.

Halloween

2007-11-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

Lydia wanted to be scary and Ryan stuck with the Superhero theme. They were cute and a lot of fun. Lydia is protective of her candy and counted it the minute she got home. Ryan has only eaten one piece, although we have given him many opportunities. His parents, on the other hand, have enjoyed it immensely.

We have reached the end of Lydia's soccer season. She was a big scorer on her team this year. Her biggest assett, though, was her crazed obsession with protecting the goal. As soon as any member of the other team got the ball, she ran as fast as she could back to the goal to stand in front of it. They don't have goalies on the little teams yet, but next year, I'm thinking she might be a natural.

Au revoir!

Birthdays

2007-11-04T20:47:00.000-08:00

Before I can address Halloween, I must post some birthday pictures. Lydia's 6th was a double party with a friend who has a similar birthday at a Horse ranch. It was great fun.

Ryan's 4th was at everyone's favorite, Chuck E. Cheese. I never let Lydia have her party there, and I gave in with Ryan. It was easy and the kids had a blast, so I'm glad I relented.

Also posted is Lydia's 1st day of 1st Grade. It was a very exciting day. I think the boys have cooties.

I now feel a little caught up. Maybe by Christmas, I'll tell you about Halloween.

Wildfires

2007-10-26T10:24:00.000-07:00

Hello to all. The Schmidt Family is fine here in San Diego. The fires did not come too close to our home, and all immediate friends and family in the area are fine. We went to LA for 2 days and 1 night for a couple of auditions for Joel and Lydia and to get out of the ash. It's a sad day when you go to Los Angeles for better air quality. We had fun, though, playing at parks, swimming and seeing a movie that cost us $50 for a family of four.

The fires here have been horrible, but for the damage they have done, there has been little life lost. Most are 50% contained now. The schools have been cancelled all week, and the high school around the corner from us has been an evacuation center which is closing today. Today the skies are blue, but you can see the smoke in the periphery. There is also not so much ash swirling around. We were just in a cloud of smoke and ash before. It was like you were sitting on the wrong side of the campfire. The pictures are from the back yard the morning after the ash started falling. It got worse after this. The last are the tracks from the pool cleaning up ash and some leaves because it was very windy. There is usually nothing on the bottom of the pool, so that is mostly ash. We are very lucky to just have ash, and to have clearer skies today.

Driving back from LA, we saw a couple of fires on Camp Pendelton. The flames were high and moving. It was a little frightening to all except for Ryan who has wanted to be a firefighter and said, "At last, I get to see the fires." The next morning, he came to me with his gardening gloves on and said, "I think firefighting is boring. I want to be a trash man." I would like to post a picture of our trash man right now wearing Lydia's dance costume from last year, but I'm afraid it would become an internet sensation and he may never live it down.

Interesting

2007-10-13T09:26:00.000-07:00

Try this!

Which way did you see it?

2007-10-03T19:15:00.000-07:00

I never really was into Shaun or David Cassidy, but I loved The DeFrancos. They made Tiger Beat worth reading.

I Was a Brady in Another Life

2007-09-27T14:35:00.000-07:00

Fun!

Grand Nieces!

2007-09-06T21:19:00.000-07:00

Regular nieces...

We also have a new Grand Nephew. I must get permission to post a photo! Should I start giving everyone waivers and photo releases to sign? I can eliminate the use of names to protect the young and innocent. My new Blog name will be Adventures of Joan and Clan featuring family members Jonah, Lilia, and Ryder.

My Very Original List of 9 Things I Love

2007-09-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

1. Family...All of them!

2. Summer

3. Children in general...all of them most of the time.

4. The water...lakes, ocean, pools. Everything but swamps.

5. Eating out. So nice. No cooking or cleaning up, no disaster on the floor from Ryan...or at least no disaster on my floor.

6. Finishing a project. As a procrastinator, this usually happens around midnight. It is such a relief.

7. Water skiing. I'm getting worse and worse as I get older, but I still love it.

8. Reading. I can get lost in a book. I'd like to have a quiet week where I could just read anytime I wanted. I used to love plane flights because it was uninterrupted reading time. Then I had kids. Did I ever blog about the time that Ryan kept throwing everything I gave him (toy, food, book) at the angry man in front of us who then decided to keep the toy as punishment? Nightmare flight for all. No reading.

9. Games. I love a good game. I'm pretty competitive, but can contain my competitiveness as an adult. If you ever saw Monica on Friends during a game...that is really what I'm holding in.

Oh Boy!

2007-08-24T23:40:00.000-07:00

Now, when you don't post in forever, you just get months and months behind in news. I'll just say we are busy. I'm back in school teaching and taking a class, and in our crazy world, the kids haven't gone back to school yet. This causes a child care nightmare. Sometimes Joel is home, and sometimes he is not. His schedule is erratic and unpredictable. We are making do, though. Lydia starts first grade on Wednesday and Ryan starts preschool again Sept. 10. Things seem to be working out.

My cousin Jon very kindly sent pictures from our time in MN to me. We always have a wonderful family fun time in MN and a huge thank you to the MN family for welcoming us year after year. Today is my Aunt Beth's 80th birthday, and I'm sending out lots of hugs to her especially.

Below, Ben and I are helping out with fishing. I believe that neither Ben nor I are really fisherpeople. Ryan spent his entire first day doing nothing but fishing. That means that someone had to constantly put a worm on his hook and untangle his line. Thanks to all who helped.

Below is Cindy getting out a splinter. Her audience got larger and larger as she worked. It was quite the enterprise. She soon had the group you see above gathered around all with those concerned looks.

AND Happy Birthday to the beautiful "Cousin Karen" as we call her around here. Happy Birthday Wendy, and tomorrow is Lydia's Birthday, too! Congratulations to Erica and Chong for the birth of their handsome, healthy son...Evan! So many exciting August birthdays and births.

Ahhhg!

2007-07-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

Summer is coming to an end. This is awful. I start back at school August 15. I started painting in the house and I still have rooms to go. I know if I don't get it done before the end of summer it will never happen. I'm not sure about the colors, but I'm just going to go for it. People keep telling me, just paint over it if you don't like it. I didn't paint for 7 years, do they really think I'll paint again so soon?! I'm just going to be stuck with whatever I put up, at least for a year. I really hope I like it. Everything sure does look fresh with a new coat of paint!

Ryan did summer preschool...camp we called it to make it seem special. Lydia did Dancin' Feet camp and then Soccer Camp run by an Irish group that comes here. The soccer camp was amazing. 9-2 and she came home filthy and exhausted. Now that's a good camp.

The kids have been swimming a lot. Ryan is starting to get braver and actually swim around. He kept telling me he couldn't swim, but the thing is...he could if you made him. He was just afraid. Finally, desire to play with the others has overcome the fear. It is funny, because he is extremely cautious about some things and ridiculously reckless with others, such as walking under this horse he is brushing.
So, I never updated about other events, such as our visit with Uncle Ron, Dance recital and MN trip. I have no new pictures because I dropped my camera in the lake in MN, so it is better to stick with past events after all. The visit with Uncle Ron was a lot of fun because Ron is always fun, and he now has a couple of horses to add to the fun. How exactly he has acquired these horses, I'm not sure. He cut up tons of apples and carrots for the horses, which Ryan also enjoyed. The kids, my Mom, Ron and I all rode the horses around the corral. Before this, Ron fed us sausages and then when we got back to his house he made us some delicious pancakes. He is quite the pancake chef. It was a grand time, and the kids really wanted to spend the night.

Lydia's dance recital was very interesting. This is the first year that she took from this teacher. I did not watch the classes, so the recital was my first real look at the program (through our city's parks and rec.). Oh my goodness, some of these poor girls had been taking 8 years, and someone forgot to tell them to point their toes. The ballerinas were flopping around like they had flippers on. I couldn't take my eyes off their feet, but when I did, I saw flopping arms. I'm not much of a dancer, but I watched with my mouth open aghast through the recital. Lydia's group, being 4-5 year olds, was adorable, but we are quickly finding a new dance class. The poor older girls. Didn't anyone notice that they weren't improving? It would be better to not take any classes at all, because the kids thought they could dance.

Oh, and just as much fun, was being stage mom backstage for the second performance and a little girl started vomiting after her number. She was in a different group from ours, so another mom held her and soothed her (and we all walked around the vomit on carpet covered with paper towels). But then I guess they thought she was OK, so they led her on stage for the curtain call, for which she vomited all over the stage. Poor thing. All the girls around her just stepped out of the way while she was led out. Not one, ooh or ick.

Summer Days

2007-07-15T14:48:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from our glorious yearly family reunion at Gull Lake, MN. But before I post about that, I must update you on other summer events. We began our summer with Ben Ruemke graduating from UCLA. You heard that right. We were all so proud. This is us looking proud.

I learned that UCLA is the most applied to school in the nation. Ben majored in history as did the graduation speakers, UCLA graduates Kareem Abdul Jabar and LA Mayor Villaragosa. I am not so sure of the spellings of the names, but isn't it enough that I am posting? I've got no time to research name spellings and my spellcheck doesn't do it for me. While I apologize for mispellings, I will also say that I like to start sentences with "But" and end them in prepositions without an object. Please note that I recognize problems in my writing, but I just trudge along.

Back to the graduation...Ben lived in Inglewood while at UCLA and decided that he didn't love living in LA. He is now thinking of going to law school and is looking at interning in DC next year, possibly at the DC public defender's office. That sounds a lot like living in Inglewood to me. Will it be the law offices of Ruemke & Ruemke? We shall see. Oh how time flies. It seems like just yesterday that Ben was Tiny Tim with his "crunch" (AKA crutch) in Christmas Carol or pivoting on the "A" tables at the West End during Oliver. Some things never change, though, Ben is still always ready with a smile and a big hug. Congratulations, Ben!

2007-06-29T14:36:00.000-07:00

TAKE A STAND
by Geoffrey Canada

Maybe before we didn't know,
That Corey is afraid to go
To school, the store, to rollerskate.
He cries a lot for a boy of eight.
But now we know each day it's true
That other girls and boys cry too.
They cry for us to lend a hand.
Time for us to take a stand.

And little Maria's window screens
Keeps out flies and other things.
But she knows to duck her head,
When she prays each night 'fore bed.
Because in the window comes some things
That shatter little children-dreams.
For some, the hourglass is out of sand.
Time for us to take a stand.

And Charlie's deepest, secret wishes,
Is someone to smother him with kisses
And squeeze and hug him tight, so tight,
While he pretends to put up a fight.
Or at least someone to be at home,
Who misses him, he's so alone.
Who allowed this child-forsaken land?
Look in the mirror, take a stand.

And on the Sabbath, when we pray,
To our God we often say,
"Oh Jesus, Mohammed, Abraham,
I come to better understand,
How to learn to love and give,
And live the life you taught to live.
In faith we must join hand in hand,
Suffer the children? Take a stand!

And tonight, some child will go to bed,
No food, no place to lay their head.
No hand to hold, no lap to sit,
To give slobbery kisses, from slobbery lips.
So you and I we must succeed
In this crusade, this holy deed,
To say to the children of this land:
Have hope. We're here. We Take A Stand

Summer Fun

2007-06-27T16:08:00.001-07:00

I do love summer. I have always loved it, even when I didn't have summer vacation. Somehow, I always resented working in the summer, though. We are having a wonderful time swimming, going to the beach and playing with friends (my friends included). Sometimes here in coastal SoCal we have what they call May Gray and June Gloom, but it has really been beautiful here this year.

The end of the year was crazy. Lydia had three performances of "The Kindergartner of Oz" and her Dance Recital in the same week. The next week was the end of school for all of us. Cleaning out my room at school was a big undertaking because it hadn't been done for years and closets and shelves were full. I started late in the year and was the new person, so I didn't go through all the junk and purge, but I felt that I could by the end of the year. We had file cabinets full of the old carbon copied worksheets in no specific order as well as a large amount of collected stuff like 7 umbrellas, piles of baskets, shelves of curriculum in Spanish that we are no longer allowed to teach, broken games, puzzles labeled "pieces missing," and piles of dust. Crazy.

The Kindergartner of Oz was another fun and crazy event. A mom from Lydia's class adapted this play and directed it. She included all 120 Kindergarten students and volunteer moms did the costumes, sets, etc. I helped with costumes and did the program which ended up to be a lot of work. All of the costumes were spectacular, but the mom who did the monkeys and lions was very talented and created as if the kids were going on Broadway. She also insisted on makeup, and of course we all helped her because she was otherwise going to do all the kids herself. The director did a marvelous job, teachers guided the cast, and the kids were marvelous. We ended up having to do a bit of fundraising to pay for the Broadway costumes, but it all worked out in the end.

Lydia was cute as can be as Dorothy and sang "Somewhere in the First Grade" solo. At the first performance, things were kind of rushed and crazy getting so many kids into costume and makeup. While I was putting on Lydia's makeup, I realized that I had a bad color of lipstick and then I accidentally went outside her lips, so I just kept making them larger and larger. I didn't want to make her self conscious about her clown lips, so I didn't say anything. I'm sure all the parents were wondering why I did that to her lips, and I keep getting pictures from other families of Lydia and her big lips! She was still beautiful.

Now, I still have to catch everyone up on the Dance recital, Ben's big graduation from UCLA, and much more. Grandma has gone back to MS and Grandpa Ed leaves on Friday. It was great to have them here for all of the fun, and they were a big help, too. Happy Summer Fun to all!

Too Much!

2007-06-12T16:59:00.000-07:00

There is so much going on and no time to post! So stay tuned for more of The Kindergartner of Oz, Recital, and the visit to Uncle Ron. Here is a preview.

End of the School Year

2007-06-08T14:48:00.000-07:00

It has been so long since I have posted. The end of this year has been crazy. Finishing up things at my school, and then Lydia's end of Kindergarten. She was Dorothy in The Kindergartner of Oz and then there have been all of the parental volunteer things to prepare for this extreme extravaganza. It was quite the production. I will do much more posting on this later. We were very proud and she was quite the sensation. Here is a photo of her and her very dear friend from her class who was a flying monkey.

Mother's Day

2007-05-12T20:21:00.000-07:00

I hope that I will be as fine a mother to my children as my mother has been to me. My mother always thought I should be the star...even when I knew I shouldn't be. Holidays are her specialty. No one does Christmas like my Mom. When you go to my Mom's house, you know you will always find plenty of food and lots of love.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! Sorry for all those years I made you eat cold toast and runny eggs in bed before your coffee on this special day.

Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful Moms out there!!!

Happy Belated Easter

2007-04-22T12:47:00.000-07:00

Easter was delightful. We began the day with an egg hunt at 6am in pajamas and the finding of Easter baskets.

Later, we went to brunch with Tony and Marguerite and the Huebner clan. Karen, Chris, Ben and Corrinne joined us. We came back to the house for another egg hunt. Ryan had been clutching his found eggs from earlier in the day, and refused to let them be hidden again, but Karen and Chris hid plastic eggs.

The hunt was followed by the annual Easter swim. It is kind of like a polar bear swim. The pictures make it look deceptively warm. Karen took part last year. She did not make that mistake again. The swim is led by Lydia. Ryan jumped in, screamed, jumped out, and watched the rest of the gang. Kudos to Ben and Corrinne for the fun.

Tony and Marguerite then took the kids to a barbecue and another egg hunt. Lydia said that this was the best day ever- even better than Christmas or any other Easter.

The rest of us played Cranium, which was a lot of fun. Joel and I were very sad artists and now know to never play Pictionary with Karen and Chris. Good thing that there were acting and singing opportunities in our game.

Following is the flyer for the Walk of Ages this year. Karen does the Graphic design for ElderHelp. Her designs are always wonderful, and look who she put on the poster for this year (it's Ryan on the top).

Disneyland!

2007-04-14T18:59:00.000-07:00

We finally went to Disneyland! It was a grand day. There were a lot of people there because of Spring Break, but we only waited in one truly insane line. Joel, Ryan, Lydia and I went with friends Sue and Aja. Sue knows the park well, so she acted as our guide and made things very easy. She knew the lines to avoid, the events the kids would love and generally eased the way.

Lydia and Ryan both loved getting the character's autographs. That would be $12 for an autograph book that you only know is a kid necessity once you are there. Ryan was a bit overwhelmed and wanted to be held a lot while around all the people, but none of the rides scared him. He is definitely a roller coaster sort of boy. He also passed out before dinner.

Ryan's favorite event was meeting Mickey Mouse. That was our one truly long line. We waited an hour for Mickey, and the only one who didn't mind was Ryan. They wound you through the mouse's house for the line and then you ended in a cartoon screening room. They let about ten people in at a time to meet him. Ryan was in awe and it was just too cute. He said, "See you real soon!" to him when we left. Lydia was half asleep as we were headed out of the park and the fireworks were beginning, but she woke up enough to ooh and ahh, and say, "Awesome!" before she passed out. It was just an incredible day.

We spent the night at the Marriott which was right next door. Joel is a Priceline expert and got the room for 1/2 of what the cheapest deal was. I highly recommend Priceline for hotel rooms, but there is an art because if you are refused for the first bid, they make you change parameters before bidding again.

The next morning, we saw Lydia's commercial on Playhouse Disney. That was very exciting. The show is My Friends Tigger and Pooh. It begins next month. They have plain animated commercials, and then the exciting ones with real live children like Lydia. Below is a picture of her with one of the other girls.

We swam in the pool, checked out, and then Lydia, Ryan and I went to the Disney desk to ask directions to Downtown Disney (shops). I was chatting with the lady and Lydia was taking brochures, as usual. She had one in particular and asked me if she could take another.

Jill: No, you already have one.

Lydia: Please, Mom, just one more (as she reaches for it).

Jill: Lydia, put that back. One is enough.

Lydia: But Mom, look.

She shows it to me, and it is a big picture of her! It was a brochure for annual passes, and she is on it riding in the teacups with her fake mom. I let her take another, and asked the lady if I could have more. I showed the lady that it was Lydia, and she said that maybe she was in the other brochure she had. Sure enough, she was in that one, too.

Then we get in the car and this Disney bus pulls up alongside of us. And guess what? There is Lydia on the bus! My camera was in the trunk, so we got it out, and then I made Joel chase the Disney buses. Luckily, there are a lot of them.

2007-04-04T16:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Joel!!!

We celebrated on Grandpa Ed's last day here in CA, but today is the day. Joel turned 40 on 4/4/04. Any numerologists out there? Interesting that 4 has always been my favorite number. The other child is Lydia's friend, Aja.

Celebrity Look Alikes

2007-04-03T14:27:00.000-07:00

I have been having way too much fun with these Look-a-likes. My one question is...Why does every male look like James Van Der Beek? If you follow my link to The Follow Spot, Mark has two look-a-likes posted, and they also supposedly look like James. As I uploaded Karen's photo, I started thinking that she looked like Christy Turlington, but that didn't come up as a match. Someone actually told me that I looked like Kathleen Turner before. I'm hoping I don't look bloated. I think I'm going to start talking like her, too. I did Lydia, but didn't post it. Her matches included Shelly Winters and Dakota Fanning.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

2007-04-03T14:23:00.000-07:00

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

2007-04-03T14:19:00.001-07:00

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

2007-04-01T15:19:00.001-07:00

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

2007-04-01T15:18:00.001-07:00

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

2007-04-01T15:15:00.001-07:00

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

Spring Break!

2007-03-28T11:34:00.000-07:00

I am on spring break! YEA! There are so many things on my list to do. I have my BTSA (Beginning Teacher Support) where I have to jump through a gazillion hoops to clear my general education credential, there are the courses at Cal State and my web based portfolio to clear my special education credential, and then my out of control house with crayon on the walls. So far, I have surfed the web, cooked some dinners, spent time with the kids running around, got my hair cut, Lydia's had some playdates, and I've done nothing on my list. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time off, though.

I did buy Ryan goggles the other day in anticipation of swimming weather. He has been wearing them ever since. He gets quite a reaction at stores and other events from kids and adults. He just tells them they are "diving goggles" like that explains everything.

Yesterday, we spent the day chasing and attempting to contain the neighbor's dog who was loose. I put him back in his run twice, I guess hoping that he would decide it was more fun to stay in then escape. then I tried him in our backyard, which he easily escaped. He was not easy to catch, either. Finally we had him in our house. When the neighbors came home, Ryan ran up to them and said, "We don't have a dog, so we had to borrow yours today." Funny.

If you are a reader who calls my cell phone, don't bother. I can't find it.

For He's a Jolly Good Fellow

2007-03-05T21:26:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Dad!

In honor of Al Ruemke's Birthday, everyone should tell a funny, but kind of sick joke. I love you Gollott, Dad!

Ryan and Pajama Day

2007-03-02T10:04:00.000-08:00

Ryan was crying a few weeks ago because he wanted to wear his Superman pajamas to school. When I brought him to school unhappy, his teacher told him it would be pajama day soon. Since then, Ryan has been talking about wearing pajamas to school "soon." Yesterday, on the way to school as I'm running late he says, "Soon, it will be pajama day." Yikes, today was pajama day! So I called Joel, who was about to leave for the airport, and he kindly ran to school and dropped off Ryan's pajamas. Anyway, all was well, and here is Ryan in his PJs. Not Superman, but pajamas. What is it about pajama day that even a 3 year old gets excited about it?

Our Star

2007-03-02T08:23:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, Lydia has an agent in LA who occasionally gets her auditions. We had a crazy week about a month ago where she had a callback for a Target commercial, an audition for a Disney commercial, and an audition for a company who hosts photo images for sale for advertisers or other campaigns (I think) called Getty Images.

The Disney audition was funny because they wanted the kids to sing a song. Lydia wanted to sing "You are my Sunshine." I thought she didn't know that song, and when I asked her to sing it to me, I realized I was right. So I told her to sing another song. She said, "I'll sing Happy Birthday, but the Cha Cha Cha version." I told her to sing another song. She decided on "Old McDonald". When she came out and I asked her how it went, she said,"I only got through the pig and they stopped me!" I'm sure they really wanted to hear the horse, cow, and chicken, but you only have so much time when seeing hundreds of kids.

We didn't hear anything for two weeks after the auditions so we assumed she didn't get any of the jobs. Then we got two calls in one day saying she got the Disney commercial and the Getty Images shoot.

Disney was on a Saturday at 6am at a beautiful house in Pasadena. It was for a new Winnie the Pooh and Tigger show on Playhouse Disney. Lydia is on a bike with 2 other little girls saying, "Anytime, any place, the Super Sleuths are on the case." It was very early and 46 degrees and Lydia was in Capri pants and a T-shirt, so when the props guy pinched her under her chin with the bike helmet strap, things were a little rough. Joel was with her and said she did recover, and was eventually great by the time they were saying their lines. We forgot the camera...Bummer.

The Getty Images shoot was in the Hollywood Hills. These are very skinny, windy roads through the hills with beautiful, expensive houses smashed into or on the edges of the hills. I had my Mapquest directions, but one of the skinny, windy roads was closed because of a water main break, and I was thoroughly lost. We finally arrived 20 minutes late and a very nice production assistant came out to greet us as an irate neighbor was telling us he was reporting us to the city because they didn't notify the neighbors that there was a film shooting. I referred him to the production assistant, but told him it was a photo shoot. He suddenly turned nice and the pretty young production assistant smoothed things over. Lydia was not in the best of spirits or looking particularly glamorous after our 3 hour drive and being lost.

She began working immediately. First they had her in two different outfits playing the piano. First playing nicely for about a half hour. And then another half hour where they had her hands up high, a fan on her, and asked her to shake her head back and forth. Then she did a shot with a "Mom" who was working on the computer while Lydia colored. At this point, another little boy came and he wanted to play with Lydia, but also let her know that girls were disgusting. The boy also made a big deal that they were "chosen" and "made it". This was too bad, because we blur the lines between "interviews" and jobs and never talk about getting the job or not getting the job. We just talk about having fun and doing your best. She didn't really understand what he was talking about, but he kept talking about it, so she finally got it. Hopefully, it won't make a big impression on her.

Then they had Lydia in a little equestrian outfit up in a room decorated with horse paraphernalia. I didn't see many of the actual shots because I like to stay out of the way, and Lydia follows all of their direction. I wish she listened to me as well. She was so amazing at doing what they asked her to do, and I was quite proud. The other children (2 boys) were harder to manage, and they had their Moms in there bribing/coercing them to do what was being asked. Many people came up to me to tell me what a professional she was. Now, you would have no idea that this would be so based on her behavior when the camera wasn't rolling. When she was with me, she was a chicken and a donkey (who only made the appropriate animal sounds-no talking), or was doing baby talk. I kind of think that what she was doing required a lot of concentration for her, even though it was fun, and that this was her form of release after following so much direction. So, I spent some time telling her to keep her hee-hawing and bawking down. Thank goodness, in her little down time, she was happy to color and eat.

The pictures I took were quick, and we didn't have much time for posing because they really were bustling her around. Next, they put her in pajamas and she did have a bit of a hard time pretending to sleep because she couldn't stop smiling. After that, she was in a little apron for a baking scene. She stood with baked goods, holding them out, looking tired after baking so much, etc. That was the end of the day, but she worked 5 hours straight with 45 minutes for lunch and another 20 minute break. It was really a lot of work for a 5 year old. She was remarkable. I hate to compare her to other kids, but I will say the boys were much more difficult to get good shots with, and they kept having to tell them the same direction over and over. Well, it would be like trying to get Ryan to pose for shots. He is a little pig headed and flat out says, "NO", quite often! I'm sure this will change...I hope. Other times, he really loves posing, but he is entirely unpredictable.

Lydia was happy at the end because they gave us her favorite pie, pumpkin, and cookies to take home. It was fun, but tiring for all.

Also, Joel shot a golf commercial with Phil Mickelson. He said that it was exciting to putt and hang out with Phil. After Phil left, Joel was his body double and had to wear extended shoes and putt left handed for the extra shots. What pressure. Similar to when he went in to golf on the Don Johnson show that didn't make it. He got there and he had a trailer that said, "Golf Pro." Don Johnson kept asking him for golf tips, and Joel gave them! Well, he was playing the part of a pro.

Poor Abe

2007-02-15T16:43:00.000-08:00

Lydia and I were talking about Abraham Lincoln yesterday because of our President's Day holiday coming up.

Lydia: Is he still alive?
Me: No, he has been dead for a long time.
Lydia: Oh, I remember. He was shot.
Me: Yes, while he was watching a play.

Silence for a minute.

Lydia: So he didn't get to see the end of the show?

2007-02-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Much love to all!

No time for real blogging. Things are kind of crazy busy with work, university, beginning teacher programs, loving husband, and kids. Just wanted to wish everyone a day filled with love and laughter.

2007-02-03T18:23:00.000-08:00

Welcome Home Marie, David, and Abigail!!! Back from a tour in Guam and now off to South Dakota. Let's hope it's not too much of a shock!

Career Day

2007-02-03T17:37:00.000-08:00

Friday was career day at Lydia's school. The kids were all quite cute. Lydia was a veterinarian and one friend was a cowgirl. Another friend was a cheerleader. Oh, to want to be a cowgirl for a living...I miss those days. The cheerleader's mom said that she hopes that she attains that career in high school and can move on.

My own career at the elementary school is OK. I had a problem with a colleague that turned into a big mess that took a bit of joy out of my job. I am one who really dislikes conflict. I'm taking a training right now on conflict resolution which looks at conflict as a growing experience. Makes me think of the cliche, "A day late and a dollar short." Ah well, it is a good training and I am trying to learn something. I really enjoy working with the kids, and that is really what it is all about. I just have to keep reminding myself of that.

Following is a picture of our lovely cat Kerry. He is still very crazy, fun and loving. We have magnetic letters on the refrigerator and he pulls them all off to play with. He will basically bat anything around the floor. We still have the litter box in the bathroom and he still plays in it. When we let him outside, he just goes into the rafters in the garage. He is not very adventurous when outside. That should keep him safe from the coyotes, but not good for the outdoor potty trained cat.
Last is a picture of Ryan's Christmas present to us. Our son is quite the artist. I picked him up from school last Thursday and asked him what he had done that day. He said that he made me things. I looked at the things that he brought home and they all looked like plain white pieces of paper. On closer inspection, I noticed each had a small cut on them and some very small pen mark. I might send them to my sister Linda. She really appreciates Ryan's art.

Kerry

2007-01-19T10:20:00.000-08:00

Kerry is a great cat. Although, maybe we chose too affectionate and playful. We alternate between purring at our heads and flips on the bed at 3am. He is keeping us up a bit. Another little problem is he has started taking his poop out of his litter box and playing with it like a toy. This is rather disgusting. We have one of those covered boxes, too. I'm quickly cleaning out the box, now, but do hope to have him outdoors as well. Then we could remove the litter box for the daytime. I'm a little worried about the outdoors thing, thinking he might run away or the coyotes might get him. I've seen them during the daytime. We shall see.

The New Year

2007-01-13T18:07:00.000-08:00

Here we are in FREEZING So. Cal. Boy, it got down to 27 degrees last night. We spent the day looking for a new cat. Our other cat, Gypsy was a wonderful cat. She was sweet and fun. She never scratched the kids, even though they each spent times carrying her around in highly uncomfortable ways. She never went to the bathroom in the house and we never had to keep a litter box inside. She would follow us on walks. She had either heart disease or cancer, and they couldn't even figure out if they could possibly help her without extensive surgery so she was put to sleep. It was very sad and we miss her. She was put to sleep last summer. Below is a picture of Lydia and Gypsy 3-4 years ago.

Today we decided to go to the animal shelters to see if we could find a new cat. We went with the criteria that it be a female who was around a year or a little younger. Lydia's criteria was that she could take her home today. 5 hours and 3 sites later, we came home with a 4 year old male. It was the only cat with no skittishness at all who was also playful. His name is Kerry and he was named by Lydia. She had the name "Custard" picked out, but Kerry is black and white, so she didn't think the name went with our new cat. He has been exploring the house this evening, and even visiting with us. He seems to be a good and affectionate cat. Let's hope he uses the litter box.

Oh, and Ryan just introduced me to his toy frog, "Fluffy." Yup, Fluffy the frog.

More Christmas

2007-01-03T18:34:00.000-08:00

Before our delightful trip for the holidays, my Mom visited for a week and we celebrated Christmas here in CA with Tony, Tony Jr., Marguerite and Ben.

The elves were very busy working in Samtas Wroksop, and were a little wild throughout this season.

Ryan received many a Thomas train and tracks AND a train table from the Grandmas and Grandpas. He was very excited, especially about having a bridge...for whatever reason he had been longing for a bridge.

The visit to Santa showed a very, overly loving Lydia and Ryan. Lydia had pushed Ryan over right before we left the house. Against my normal judgement, I used the old "Santa sees everything, and we are headed to see him right now." Ryan was then driven crazy by all of the hugs and kisses from Lydia. We had a good visit. Lydia wrote letters from her and from Ryan that we delivered.

Lastly, is a picture of a sunrise from my backyard that my Mom took. Whatever were we doing taking pictures of a sunrise? Craziness. It was so nice to have my Mom here to really begin the holiday season.

Snow!

2006-12-30T14:00:00.000-08:00

Lydia was so sure that she would see snow this Christmas after all the Christmas shows and commercial images, but I'm afraid this is as close as we are going to get. Someday, we'll go see some snow for Christmas.

We went ice skating today. It was the first time for Ryan and second for Lydia. We spent a lot of time on the ice, like knees and hands on the ice. After a few big sprawls and slides, Ryan liked to sit for a bit after every lap. We had a great time, and now the kids are with Erica and Chong at Chong's sister's house with other nieces and nephews. It is so peaceful.

Last night, Joel and I dropped the kids at Martha and Phil's house where Jeremy and Rufaro were official babysitters. We saw Dreamgirls. It was so good. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire show from music, to acting, to costumes and dancing. It was just fun, and moving in many parts as well. I hadn't put Jennifer Hudson together with American Idol until I was watching the movie. She was great. She didn't age as she should have, so that was a little more difficult believing, even though she probably was only supposed to be a little older than her actual age at the end. You just couldn't believe that she had the life experience she was supposed to have at that point. Beyonce was also wonderful, but had a few acting moments that didn't have much power behind them...although she was altogether powerful. She is so beautiful. I enjoyed the entire cast. I never saw the stage show, only knew the music. It was highly entertaining.

I also saw Happy Feet with the kids. Fun, Fun, Fun! Cute show that had me laughing and tapping my feet. Two movies in a week...I think I only saw two movies the entire last year.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2006-12-28T10:19:00.000-08:00

Oy! It has almost been a month since I last posted. Of course, that is still more recent than my Mother's blog.

We have been very busy with holiday excitement all leading up to a wonderful Christmas spent in Richmond, VA. The Schmidt Clan (although there are truly not many with the last name of Schmidt...) gather yearly at Donna and Tom's

for a delightful celebration. I believe that there were 20 this year.

Not everyone was seated for the photos, and I was eager to eat the delicious meal, so not everyone is pictured...but you can count 20 place settings if you please.

Below is a picture of the kids on the Cousin Joe Monster Couch. As you can see, lots of entertainment.

Thank you very much to the Greens and the family for a very special and happy time. I hope all friends and family had a joyous Christmas Day.

PEACE

Poor Ryan

2006-11-30T19:14:00.000-08:00

Is there anything to say?

Thanksgiving Day

2006-11-25T17:11:00.000-08:00

We had an absolutely delightful Thanksgiving with the Cox cousins in Newport Beach. Craig, Joel's cousin, wife Sue and kids Eric, Kevin, and Sarah are always fun to see. We do not see enough of them. Ben was able to come as well. They have a beautiful home that is also quite comfortable.

Sarah kindly entertained Ryan and Lydia for most of the time we were there. Note the marble game that Ben also helped with. That is a long marble track. The Cox kids are a good looking and enjoyable crew. Eric is in his freshman year at USC. How time flies.

The food was delicious, and there was a lot of it. Joel made his tasty sweet potato dish and I made an undercooked pumpkin pie (the two I left at home were perfect, but I chose the undercooked one to take) and a good pecan/chocolate pie that the crust stuck to the bottom of the pan. Lydia helped me with the pies, so we had fun even if they weren't perfect. Sue made a number of delicious items including brussel sprouts that even I liked. Her turkey was also wonderful. She made a pumpkin pecan pie that I loved, too.

Joel and Ben talked about the Redskins

and Joel played the piano a bit.

Thank you very much to our fabulous cousins for hosting us! Lydia and Ryan didn't break anything or hurt anyone, so that was one more thing to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving From Sunny SoCal!

2006-11-20T08:31:00.000-08:00

It is warm and beautiful here, but not feeling much like Fall! Lydia had an inkling to Hula yesterday, so little Mr. Me Too joined her. They were all at Lydia's friend's house in the friend's pink pajamas yesterday, too. Ryan is also enjoying playing with Lydia's princess things. He is in touch with his feminine side, in between being Superman and throwing balls at everything and everyone.

Ryan's new nickname is Pigpen. Linda took a picture of his clothes one day when he came home from school. He is generally caked with dirt and a variety of other things. If he has any skin showing, it is brown, too. The day the picture was taken, his face, including forehead, was also filthy. I said to the teacher, "Wow, he is always pretty dirty." She said, "Oh, everyone is". I closely scanned the room and did not see one other filthy child! Not sure what she was seeing.

Lydia had her last day of soccer last week. It was a lot of fun, and Lydia did well. She was very aggressive and scored many goals. This is simply a random comment to go with the picture. The next picture is the "Princess Pirates" which was the name of the team, and then the hair dohickies which were the most imp0rtant part of the uniform.

We all have this Thanksgiving week off. It is such a treat. On Thanksgiving Day, we will head off to the Cox cousins in Newport Beach for what I'm sure will be a wonderful day. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving and lots to be thankful for. We certainly do. Love to all!

Baby Ella

2006-11-18T09:06:00.000-08:00

I have been remiss and not shown any pictures of the beautiful Ella, Madelaine's daughter. She is cute as can be. Madelaine, Andrew, and Ella have moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas where Madelaine is going to pursue her Master's in some sort of Biology. They seem to be doing very well.

Happy Halloween! A Little Late...

2006-11-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

We did have a marvelous Halloween here. Ryan was really into it. I only wish people would hand him the candy, though, instead of giving him carte blanche to take handfuls. I know they didn't think that he would take HUGE handfuls, but he did. I would try to catch him and really worked on him only taking one, but just when I was successful, the next person would say, "Only one? Oh, you can take more than that!" So two handfuls later, we would be on our way. By the end of our evening, Ryan was leaving a trail of candy behind him from his overflowing bucket with me trying to clean it up...at least the chocolate bars. Lydia would have trick or treated late into the evening. She wanted to go to every home in the neighborhood.

We got around 5 trick or treaters at our house which is an all-time high. Joel bought Skittles and Now-or-Laters and we have lots left over. Not a fan of the fruity candy. I should be happy he didn't buy candy bars, because I would eat all of those. This candy will last forever!

In my school district, we can only have 2 parties a year that involve any sweet foods, chips, or other non-nutritious foods. Otherwise, we are not allowed to give out any junk at all...ever! We have a list of approved foods. I gave the kids apple juice on Halloween and had other teachers asking me if that was allowed?! Don't let anyone catch you handing out a fig newton.

Some of the kids I teach did not trick or treat because they did not have a costume. I didn't realize that they weren't going to be able to put any sort of costume together until after Halloween or I would have provided something. It is hard, because I need a translator to talk to their parents and I don't know if they would have gone out even if they did have a costume. I need to learn Spanish.

But...Halloween can be an awful lot of fun when you have young kids. So many things are magical.

Voting

2006-11-08T14:28:00.000-08:00

I have become a Democrat. It used to be that I thought I had no real party affiliation, and would vote for the "person" not the party, but I have to now admit that I am a Democrat. I do support Arnold, our illustrious Governor, but otherwise can vote right down the party line. I also find myself calling certain politicians names and getting angry over elections. I never thought that I would feel so strongly and get so upset, but here I am.

Here in CA, we have a bundle of Propositions every election. This election, we voted for 34 offices and 17 Propositions. The Propositions require quite a bit of homework as they can be wordy and confusing. I have to go in with my filled out sample ballot if I don't want to be voting for 30 minutes while I try to remember which way I was going to vote. I don't remember it being like this in VA which was the only other state I voted in.