Reaching for a blogburn post...

Do three unrelated thoughts, a blog post make?

Marital bliss = two copies of The Economist

Tonight when making cookies, I finished off the eggs, the oatmeal, two bags of chocolate chips, the box of butter, the baking soda, and a tupperware of walnuts. Exact quantities called for in the recipe. How cool is that? I love completeness.

I also mowed the grass this evening, which I haven't done in a LONG time. I really enjoyed it. Outside, the smell of the grass mixed with the smell of fuel... All that time with your thoughts, no one can interrupt, it's too loud to hear them if they try. I recently realized that in the last couple of places I've lived, I haven't known anyone that does their own yard work, here I don't know anyone who does not.

Quote of last week : I helped Dad lawn the grass! - N after following Phil around with his toy lawn mower for over an hour, as Phil mowed.

Bluebonnets it Ain't

Bluebonnets it ain't. Front yard it is.

Free is Good

Day Trip to Arches!

We were happy that the government shutdown didn't materialize and we were able to proceed, as planned, with our national park day trip this past weekend.

We pulled up to the little booth, wallet in hand, only to have the helpful ranger tell us, "National Park Week, free admission." What?

Poor policy? Maybe, but besides being the week before Easter (and national parks being packed with spring breakers) it was also tax weekend and we were feeling a little ill used by Uncle Sam. Free admission helped.

It lasts all the way through the 24th, so visit a national park, and get yours.

March Madness

It's been a rough week.

A black eye and a fractured arm.

In separate incidents.

Go Cougs!

And Wildcats and Tigers. And Bulldogs and Hoyas. And Spiders.

S filled out a bracket this year. He choose based on mascot. Turns out he prefers fierce sounding animals, and spiders. Maybe that was due to the NOVA he'd just watched about venomous animals? Long segment on spiders.

K: Fighting Illini or Running Rebels?
S: Fighting Illini, those other guys sound like they're running away.

S: Terriers? Ha!

K: I'm not sure what a buckeye is...
S: It's the eye of a buck.
(Apparently quite cool)

The Craziest Thing

Quite possibly the craziest thing I've ever done? 12 hour drive to my parents,and back
Minivan's occupants? Myself, my three kids, my cousin, my cousin's two kids, my aunt
(or as my uncle said, "a driver and two prison guards")

I haven't spent much time (okay any) with my aunt and cousin in years. We were traveling with 5 children, 4 carseats, and a maintenance required light that insisted we were reckless. In the end, no damage done, except for what results from watching Chip and Dale cartoons over and over and over again. More than no damage done, it was FUN. And hanging out in the sun on the new deck with my parents was just what we all needed.

First Grade Fundraiser

S brought home his Jump Rope for Heart form recently, all pumped about the rewards you can get for fundraising. You know, you remember, the awesome "speed" jump rope, the super cool tee shirt, the...

Does anyone else see these and think, exploitation? I mean how hard is it to get a bunch of kindhearted first graders all excited about "saving lives"? And who's going to turn their earnest little souls down when they come knocking on your door? I did a quick search on where the money raised from jump rope for heart goes. $0.64/dollar to research, $0.32/dollar on fundraising...

Or am I just a scrooge? Or is grinch the more appropriate term?

At least there is some good in the physical activity encouragement. Though in asking S, he wasn't all that clear on where the jumping rope came into it. I remember in Jr. High, the magazine sale fundraiser with all these little fuzzy... were they called weeples? as rewards. 12 year old girls are suckers for little fuzzy things. Not much good in that one.

So, I'm faced with a decision: Try to talk him down, convince him that the jump rope isn't that cool and I don't hate people with heart problems, or go the "I don't know what happened to that sign-up sheet..." route. Or I guess I could just let him go for it? Nah, not this year. Maybe next year.