Pop! Pop! Pop!

I love popcorn! Actually it is my new favorite food. I love the salt and the crunch, it is the perfect afternoon snack. As a kid my mom would make popcorn for dinner every Sunday night. My family is not that enlightened to the benefits of eating popcorn and apples on Sunday nights, (trust me I have tried and tried again) so we have popcorn at least one afternoon a week and then again on the weekend.

Abby doing the I love popcorn dance. The problem with popcorn is thatI could eat a whole bowl by myself, but I don't get to. Once the kids hear the popper working its magic they come running. Which results in this...

A mess from another day, but still point made.

And this...Have I mentioned his nickname is "Mike TV".

I am not sure if I should be concerned about the mess or the blank vegetative state of my child. At least it is Thursday, homework is turned in, practice spelling test practiced, come on mom it is practically the weekend and the cleaning lady comes tomorrow (start popping!).

By the way, if you are looking for a great popcorn popper get the StirCrazy.

It is the best! Happy snacking!

Moving on Up...

For those of you who are wondering how we are handling the death of our little beagle- Copper. See below...

Abby is making sure that she spends lots of extra time with Max, whose living arrangements have changed drastically. Max always looks this sad.

Abby and Max, best friends forever!

Shot down...

I am a horrible pet owner (hence #13 on my 25 Random Things about Me). I love puppies but I am allergic to puppy spit. I like having a dog around but I don't always remember to feed them on time. I like to watch my dogs play with each other but I don't take the time to play with them. And I always forget until the last minute about getting someone to feed them when we go out of town. But who could turn away a face like this???

She came to live with us in July 2004. She loved to bark at people on canal. She killed squirrels and most recently a neighbor's chicken. She stole the kids Popsicles, hamburgers, and hot dogs. She liked to play fetch and run around like a crazy dog. She refused to be housebroken, so she was banished to the yard. She was smart and efficient, she could figure out that invisible fence was down or the batteries in her collar were dead in no time flat. She once snuck out of our yard and ate a 40 pound bag of dog food, it took a $600 emergency vet bill and some antacid for her to recover. She would eat fruit off the fruit trees and take vegetables out of my garden (it makes the lawn a disgusting mine field). She loved to sit in the sun with Max and watch the clouds roll by.

On Friday "Jack's Copper Pup" died, but she is in our hearts forever.

Opposites...

My children are the textbook examples of Alfred Adler's birth order theory (one of my favorite AP Psychology teaching days). While I know I may live to regret this one day the morning routine is a perfect example of Adler's birth order and personality traits.

Jack is forced to wake up by 7:07 (or as he would say he is rudely pulled from the comforts of his bed) to get dressed. Clothes that I have selected the night before, Jack usually puts whatever I have selected for him to wear as slow as possible. Abby is allowed to sleep in until 7:30, when she gets to mosey out of her room with a blanket over her head demanding that no one look at her (I think she has x-ray vision).

Jack gets no breakfast until he is dressed for school. Jack eats Cheerios nearly everyday. If I let him he would still eat them like a toddler, I make him eat them with a spoon and milk. Abby dines in her pajamas, with her blanket and is usually accompanied by a doll or stuffed animal. Abby is guaranteed to demand pancakes or waffles with extra syrup for dipping.

After a trying meal, Jack and Abby are sent to clean up for school (or that day's activities). Jack is forced to do much of the prepping on his own or to turn to his father for help (thank God for that guy! What is that lady with 14 children going to do with all those kids every morning???). While I bathe, dress, and get Abby ready. Guilt sets in because I remember making Jack dress himself for school when he was 3 and his sister was a new born- poor kid, his sister is kind of a P.I.T.A.

The last 10 minutes of the morning before everyone heads off to their respective places. I try to remind Jack that he should always do his best, listen to his teacher, and to have a good day at school. While on the days that Abby goes to school I basically push her into the classroom with thoughts of "don't bite anyone" running through my head.

My poor kids... they have no hope with me as their mother. At least their dad has the foresight to start a college fund and a therapy fund for them both.

You say it is your birthday...

My mom turned 60 on Friday. She is not one to call attention to herself or require a party but definitely has felt neglected on several of her past birthdays. Not so in 2009! My sister and I (with the help of my brothers and the financial support of Dad) decided to throw her a party she would never forget. Two of my aunts, a great aunt, and my grandma decided to "drop in" Friday night for dinner to surprise her all the way from Concord, California, Colorado, Iowa, and Virgina. The reaction was priceless! (I have to have Steve work on the video- because it is priceless!!!). The surprises continued with the presentation of a Wii and Wii Fit for the birthday girl (something my brothers had told her at Christmastime she was too old for).

Any birthday is better when you have TWO parties! Saturday my siblings and I invited old family friends, church friends, work friends and Bridge buddies over for an Open House. We all had a fantastic time and enjoyed spending time together reminiscing about when we were kids (the best story was the one Aunt Sharon told about spanking my brother Ben on a road trip from Iowa to California the summer my mom broke her arm- I had the flashback to the backseat of the Ford station wagon) and of course playing games.

I don't think that my mom can complain about her birthday ever again (well at least not for another 12 months). Happy Birthday Mom!