Friday, August 28, 2009

Hands off, Ladies

A note to the general public: do not touch my baby. I do not care that you are a grandma and have a grand daughter in Oklahoma. It is still not okay to touch my infant without an explicit invitation. Have you seen the news? There is this tiny thing called the swine flu going around. If you have just gotten off an airplane and have been in close quarters for any period of time I do not want you to touch my baby while we wait for our luggage. I really don't.


If you touch her you can expect my eyes to narrow and flash, and I will yank her away. If you persist I will walk away. When I say, "Please don't touch her" that is what I mean. I know she is cute. But she is not yours for the touching. And I know you are a nice person who likes cute babies. But touching babies during a flu pandemic is a bad idea.

Please, don't touch my baby!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Empty

My house has been empty. Quiet, empty, eerie, a house unfamiliar to me.

Three of my children have been gone for a week, the longest period I have ever been away from them. They are having fun, they are safe and happy. But we left at home are out of sync, and our family rhythm is gone.

I wanted them to go. Now I miss them and want them back.

Go, come back. Go, come back.

Soon, too soon, they will just Go.

Marie Osmond

In early July I checked out Marie Osmond's new book, May as Well Laugh at it Now. She has eight kids so I thought it might be interesting, although I am not a huge Osmond fan. Anyway, it sat in my kitchen near the coffee pot for a long time, long enough to owe, well, let's just say a lot, at the library the next time I checked out books. I finally returned it unread. Marie, I'm laughing with you. I'm just not reading you.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Turbo Charged




Turbo is a funny word, isn't it? Turrr-bow. Lots of lip movement going on to say that word. Movement, in general, is how Emmeline earned the nickname Turbo. So feminine, don't you think? While Emmeline might be the most beautiful 10 month old around if I do say so myself, she is also turbo charged from dawn to dusk. Examples? Today she slept a whopping 45 minutes. People, that is not even an hour. All. day. long. And our day was kinda on the big side: shopping, playing outside, swimming. She keeps on going. She nurses, gazes at me, and BOOM ready to go again. Required recharging time? About 5 minutes.

So. Now I have done what I had previously thought barbaric, cruel, unnecessary, and old fashioned. I have never done this before with any child. But she is no typical child. At ten months she climbs to a stand in the shopping cart in .05 seconds; ignores toys and instead chases the cat; lives to zip under the dining room table where it is hard for me to reach her and where she usually bonks her head, and likes to stand behind her high chair to push on it so it rolls. One of her major thrills happens when the dishwasher door magically lowers and beckons her to (successfully) climb up and on the inside of the door. All this would be find IF SHE WOULD TAKE A DECENT NAP. But she doesn't, and I have a house to run and five other kids to enjoy. Here it is, my moment of maternal shame:
I put her in a play pen.









Oh, dear readers, do not be fooled by the shine of happiness in her eyes. The picture was taken before she knew I was going to walk away and, I don't know, maybe tidy up the house a bit? The older kids were mortified; I couldn't stand the whining and calling of ma ma ma ma ma; she seemed like an animal on display at a zoo. And I took her out. And ignored the house, and watched my baby be a happy baby, going after puzzle pieces and lego animals.
We might try again another day when I get desperate for a bathroom break. Or when she ::: shudder ::: starts really walking.



Sunday, August 16, 2009

Back in the day

This picture is from years ago, taken in Seattle at a party. A lot has changed since then.


Monday, August 10, 2009

long weekend travels

Three months ago I rented a cabin in eastern Oregon for this last weekend. It was a long drive, but quite a memorable trip:



Inside the Red Lion in Pendleton



Our cabin was charming



T

The creek behind the cabin





Normal traffic in Joseph






Devil's Canyon, Oregon ... deeper than the Grand Canyon, but smaller overall. And waaay more boring. Seriously, don't go here. Long drive, small reward. Trust me. Don't do it.



Cutie




On tram to Eagle Cap Wilderness Area. Wallowa Lake seen above.



Everyone enjoyed the alpine scenery





The hills are alive ... with the sound ... of mysixkids ...




He's on top of the world at 8100 feet



Waiting for chipmunks to climb up on them

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Late summer fun

I usually am a gigantic party pooper when it comes to my kids playing with the hose. I just don't like it; seems like such a waste and then the hose is almost always left on to at least a trickle. BUT due to our 10 days of 90+ weather I have loosened up a bit. Or the kids are ignoring me. It couldn't possibly be that.

Anticipating the burst


What have I done??? She's going to cream me!


Yep, she got him good (using my souffle dish - long missing, how did she find it? You know I would have been making make souffle from scratch once a week)



She who rules the hose will be obeyed


Why sure I'll fill your bucket for you
His fate is sealed
A wet recovery


An attack from the back

All's fair when it comes to soaking your sibling

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Note: I can't get the spacing right. I type it correctly and it publishes wonky. Driving me nuts and I don't have time to fix it!









Sunday, August 2, 2009

Kamping Kraziness

Let me begin by stating two things: First, Emmeline does not like to ride in the car. She thrashes her body about like a trout out of water, and *loudly* complains. The ride to the beach was no exception.

Second, kamping at a KOA sends kamping into a whole new dimension of krazy awesomeness.
Here is an older man katching some sun outside the office. Scratch that, he is actually a pasty mannequin strategically placed to terrorize young children.

Our 350 sq. ft. kabin was kute; just the thing for eight people to eek into
(note to self, rent two kabins next time)


Nolan made friends with every child at the kampground. I realized we were becoming the notorious Kabin Four when, while walking to the restroom, I heard him announce he has four sister and a brother, and his big sister starts high school this year. By every early morning he was dressed and outside, rounding up everyone for badminton (by knocking on kabin doors). He sang in the evening sing alongs. He played every game they had. He came in third in the limbo kontest. He had ice kream at the ice kream social.
He was the very definiton of a Happy KOA'er.


Kute Kabins
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Oregon beaches

Oregon beaches are beautiful; windy, rugged, cold.

Two boys and sand caves. Nothing else required.


The Ladies

Daddy's girls


Sisters and friends

Emmeline's second trip to the Pacific Ocean

One adored little baby, lucky thing

Looking at tide pools one morning

Poppa gives the best rides

Our son





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Eight Vagabonds

We just returned from an action packed weekend at the Oregon beach, where it was a lovely 73' instead of Portland's blistering 105'. How lucky for us that last January I booked this weekend at a coast KOA (we had never tried a KOA before!), so while many Portlanders were trying to find places to stay we had a *cozy* KOA cabin awaiting our arrival. Ahhh, fog and mist! Wind, I have missed you so! Moe's clam chowder? Filler up!

No pictures to upload yet because dad has the camera, and HE is STILL at the beach! I drove home early with baby and biggest sis because poor little one was having a devil of a time there. After dinner she got so sleepy I made the ultimate decision to just drive home while she slept. It worked -- she slept all the way back and is asleep now in her crib, a little angel.

Pictures coming soon .... I know that is the real reason you are here!