Wednesday, January 31, 2007
New pics
Just a quick note to accompany the two photos of Emma's new hair cut. BOTH kids were sick today and had to stay home from school. We went to the doctor in the morning, but since then Michael appears to have developed pink eye. So that may be another missed day of school (and work). On the positive side, the three of us enjoyed a nice two-hour nap this afternoon!
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Dilemma at the roller rink
It took awhile, but persistent cold weather and falling snow have brought a true Wisconsin winter to Eau Claire. Shoveling has always been Jon's thing, but long hours and a distant job site mean he's usually not around, so shoveling duty has fallen to a different crew... Mikey, Emma and I. And there's a lot to do: besides our driveway and both sides of our corner lot, we shovel our two next door neighbors' sidewalks, as well. We wouldn't have to, but one's elderly and one has a bad back, and Jon used to always snow blow for them, just to be nice. So now that he can't we're still doing it. The kids like the idea that they're helping other people.
Sunday we met some friends at a local establishment called Skate America. It's a roller rink, reminiscient of the old "Crystal Rock" in Rhinelander, where you can still rent roller skates with four sets of wheels. There's a big dance floor, and everyone skates in circles as loud music blares and strobe lights flash. Sometimes they do the Hokey Pokey or the limbo. They allow in-line skates, too, if you bring them, and lots of kids bring their scooters. There are other games and activities there as well, not to mention an over-priced snack bar, so it's kid paradise.
Emma was delighted and got right into it. She skated, scooted, and limbo-ed. Michael, of course, didn't care for the place at all-- too loud and crazy for him. He likes peace and order. After about an hour and a half, he insisted that we go; while Emma was still having fun, I gave in because he really seemed distressed. Of course, once she heard we were leaving, Emma became the distressed one.
She cried and lamented on the way home, but by that point I was glad we left. Despite her energy at the rink, in the car she was wreck, completely exhausted. Once home she took to the couch, and didn't leave it. She said she was cold, but she was sweating and feverish. At the rink she'd been saying that her mouth felt funny, and I realized (now that she was coughing) that she probably meant her throat was sore. It was wierd how all that playing seemed to sent her over the edge and reveal her illness.
I kept her home from school yesterday. Though still not 100%, she was better this morning, so I sent her to school. Hope she does okay... such is the inexact science of motherhood.
Sunday we met some friends at a local establishment called Skate America. It's a roller rink, reminiscient of the old "Crystal Rock" in Rhinelander, where you can still rent roller skates with four sets of wheels. There's a big dance floor, and everyone skates in circles as loud music blares and strobe lights flash. Sometimes they do the Hokey Pokey or the limbo. They allow in-line skates, too, if you bring them, and lots of kids bring their scooters. There are other games and activities there as well, not to mention an over-priced snack bar, so it's kid paradise.
Emma was delighted and got right into it. She skated, scooted, and limbo-ed. Michael, of course, didn't care for the place at all-- too loud and crazy for him. He likes peace and order. After about an hour and a half, he insisted that we go; while Emma was still having fun, I gave in because he really seemed distressed. Of course, once she heard we were leaving, Emma became the distressed one.
She cried and lamented on the way home, but by that point I was glad we left. Despite her energy at the rink, in the car she was wreck, completely exhausted. Once home she took to the couch, and didn't leave it. She said she was cold, but she was sweating and feverish. At the rink she'd been saying that her mouth felt funny, and I realized (now that she was coughing) that she probably meant her throat was sore. It was wierd how all that playing seemed to sent her over the edge and reveal her illness.
I kept her home from school yesterday. Though still not 100%, she was better this morning, so I sent her to school. Hope she does okay... such is the inexact science of motherhood.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Pinewood Derby Action
We went to our first Pinewood Derby with Michael on Friday night. I vaguely recall attending Bob and Don's Derby when they were Scouts, but think this was a much smaller affair. Only sixteen boys from Michael's school participated, with the first place winner then going on to represent the pack at a city-wide Derby.
They still roll the cars down a big wooden track, but now the track is computerized so that everyone's time is automatically recorded, down to the millisecond. The track has four lanes, and each car runs twice on each lane.
We all worked on the car together. Jon carved it and everyone helped with the sanding. Michael painted the black base color, and then I painted on the details, to Michael's specifications. He wanted a red stripe down the middle and flames on the sides. We added red snake eyes, nostrils and sharp teeth, so the other cars would know we meant business. We ended up buying special weights that break off (like sections of a Hershey bar) to customize. We weighed the car at home with a kitchen scale, and thought we were a bit underweight.
It turns out my kitchen scale is woefully inaccurate, and we were overweight. Luckily they allowed us to make on-site adjustments. Jon did some tinkering, and we were able to bring the car up to code in time for the race.
They take the whole thing VERY seriously. Once your car is weighed and accepted, it goes on a table and no one except the officials is allowed to touch it until the race is over.
Despite our bungling, Michael's car won second place (out of 16). It was surprisingly gratifying, because some of our competitors were really into it and had done all this fancy stuff to give their cars an edge. It puts on the pressure for next year, though!
I'll post pictures later, when I get a chance.
Lisa
They still roll the cars down a big wooden track, but now the track is computerized so that everyone's time is automatically recorded, down to the millisecond. The track has four lanes, and each car runs twice on each lane.
We all worked on the car together. Jon carved it and everyone helped with the sanding. Michael painted the black base color, and then I painted on the details, to Michael's specifications. He wanted a red stripe down the middle and flames on the sides. We added red snake eyes, nostrils and sharp teeth, so the other cars would know we meant business. We ended up buying special weights that break off (like sections of a Hershey bar) to customize. We weighed the car at home with a kitchen scale, and thought we were a bit underweight.
It turns out my kitchen scale is woefully inaccurate, and we were overweight. Luckily they allowed us to make on-site adjustments. Jon did some tinkering, and we were able to bring the car up to code in time for the race.
They take the whole thing VERY seriously. Once your car is weighed and accepted, it goes on a table and no one except the officials is allowed to touch it until the race is over.
Despite our bungling, Michael's car won second place (out of 16). It was surprisingly gratifying, because some of our competitors were really into it and had done all this fancy stuff to give their cars an edge. It puts on the pressure for next year, though!
I'll post pictures later, when I get a chance.
Lisa
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Greetings from Eau Claire!
Hi everyone! Welcome to my first attempt at blogging. I'm looking forward to learning more about this format, as well as the prospect of being "penpals" with a bunch of loved ones all at once. After all, anything that gives me a chance to show off my kids HAS to be good, right?
We're all well here. It's late at night, and the kids (and Jon) are all tucked upstairs, snug in their beds... which is a good thing, because it's freezing cold outside! Winter is finally upon us. Yesterday we had a snow day from school because it snowed five inches the night before. It's below zero and with the wind it's pretty nippy out there.
Tonight we had a Girl Scout meeting at the house. I'm the leader of Emma's Daisy troop, and I'm still very much learning the ropes. It's not easy to keep a group of kindergartners quiet and focused! But we had a good meeting tonight, and I'm starting to think I may actually get the hang of this after awhile. The main thing is that the girls are having a good time and (I think) learning something from the experience.
Tomorrow night I have to work "late" (till 5 pm). Usually I get to be done with work when the kids are done with school, but tomorrow night my boss has requested that I attend a building rep meeting and take photos. We need some good photos of members for the union's website (which I am now responsible for updating)! I also edit the organization's newsletter. Part of the fun is designing advertisements for people. But while that may sound impressive, I should also admit that I'm the one who counts out the newsletters, stuffs the envelopes, and carts the boxes over to the school district's mail room.
Thursday night is party time! Whoo-hoo! Actually, yawn. I'm having an "At Home America" party at my house, which involves snacking, visiting, and shopping from the comfort of my living room. My in-laws are coming over, as well as Aunt Margy and a few friends.
Friday night is the Pinewood Derby! Jon helped Mikey carve his racecar, and I helped paint the detailing (to Mikey's specifications). The car is black with a red stripe down the middle, and it has snake eyes and snarling teeth. This is our first Derby, so we're interested to see what goes on. Apparently they run the whole thing very seriously and it's quite the competition.
Well, you get an idea of what my days are like! Except add to that house cleaning, meal preparation, and homework supervision. And in case that sounds too unrewarding, remember that each day also has lots of hugs and funny moments and surprising statements from the kids.
We're all well here. It's late at night, and the kids (and Jon) are all tucked upstairs, snug in their beds... which is a good thing, because it's freezing cold outside! Winter is finally upon us. Yesterday we had a snow day from school because it snowed five inches the night before. It's below zero and with the wind it's pretty nippy out there.
Tonight we had a Girl Scout meeting at the house. I'm the leader of Emma's Daisy troop, and I'm still very much learning the ropes. It's not easy to keep a group of kindergartners quiet and focused! But we had a good meeting tonight, and I'm starting to think I may actually get the hang of this after awhile. The main thing is that the girls are having a good time and (I think) learning something from the experience.
Tomorrow night I have to work "late" (till 5 pm). Usually I get to be done with work when the kids are done with school, but tomorrow night my boss has requested that I attend a building rep meeting and take photos. We need some good photos of members for the union's website (which I am now responsible for updating)! I also edit the organization's newsletter. Part of the fun is designing advertisements for people. But while that may sound impressive, I should also admit that I'm the one who counts out the newsletters, stuffs the envelopes, and carts the boxes over to the school district's mail room.
Thursday night is party time! Whoo-hoo! Actually, yawn. I'm having an "At Home America" party at my house, which involves snacking, visiting, and shopping from the comfort of my living room. My in-laws are coming over, as well as Aunt Margy and a few friends.
Friday night is the Pinewood Derby! Jon helped Mikey carve his racecar, and I helped paint the detailing (to Mikey's specifications). The car is black with a red stripe down the middle, and it has snake eyes and snarling teeth. This is our first Derby, so we're interested to see what goes on. Apparently they run the whole thing very seriously and it's quite the competition.
Well, you get an idea of what my days are like! Except add to that house cleaning, meal preparation, and homework supervision. And in case that sounds too unrewarding, remember that each day also has lots of hugs and funny moments and surprising statements from the kids.
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