cheese!

Well, that's actually pink yogurt.


There's the Say Cheese smile, both of them. That blurry spot is from my fingers, apparently from the cheese string I unwrapped right before this.



And a little video for fun. Julia's eating a bowl of leftover hamburger helper heated up in the microwave. When I asked her how it tasted, she said, "It's delicious-- a little noodle-y and very chicken-ish." Okay, there is no chicken in that. I asked no further questions.

This morning he was tired, so I tucked him in for an episode of Couch Potato Grandma. That's is how I get him to sleep--get on the couch with a lot of pillows, the remote, a beverage of choice for each of us, and a blanket. He kicks back in the crook of my arm, usually with his right leg purposely dangling. And then he gets sooo sleepy watching Arthur or Ellen Degeneres or whatever, that he can't stay conscious.

So there we were this gloomy, cool morning, sacked out there dozing, and I thought of his OTHER grandma. She does not indulge in any episodes of Couch Potato Grandma. She bundles him up the stroller and walks several blocks for coffee, walks him back again, points out sights, talks to him.

(I might walk as far as the kitchen for a cup of cocoa, but whoa, no further.)

She's a slim as a teenager and she gets her grandchild out into the invigorating fresh air.

And then there's me. I felt guilty, and like the true bed-hair slug I am. The good part is that b.g. does seem to happily love us both. Awww. Happy Thursday. love, Val

back when we were us

I came across this picture tonight while I was cleaning the dining room. It's someone jumping in the air at Green Lake, but it made me cry and I don't know why.

Back to your regularly scheduled lives. love, Val

okay, this is the story

of Dannell.


We left John off at the university, and a few weeks later when he was home for the weeekend doing his laundry, he told me this:

"All the cute girls are in the elementary ed program."

Okay, then. Good to know.

Next time he came home, he had her with him. (And she was cute, it's true. Not gonna lie.)

After Christmas that year he asked if she could stay with us. She lived with her grandparents who had gone south for the winter, and it was just her alone in the house over there--a little scary, a little lonely... did we mind?

No, of course not. She could bunk with Maria and that'd be fine.

I honestly thought, given the loud and somewhat obnoxious family that we are, that she'd probably run screaming from the place within 24 hours.

She never left.

She continued to bunk with Maria for weekends and school breaks, summer vacations, all the way until she, John, and Dan got an apartment in the weeks before their wedding.


Every night about 4 am, James used to come and get his dad to warm his bed back up. After half an hour or so, I'd hear the dad snoring and go to fetch him back to his own bed. There he'd be crowded into the (full sized) bottom bunk with Maria and James, stuffed animal shoved under his head, snoring. Dannell would be asleep (maybe faking) in the top bunk.

More than once I thought, if this isn't the definition of the family bed, I don't know what is.

Dannell is kind and conscientious, determined, diplomatic, and completely devoted to John and this whole family. She takes beautiful care of our grandsons--even makes sure they are polite. She's been nothing but nice to Jay and me for over a decade now. Who could ever ask for more?





I'm dying to bake her a birthday cake this week, if we could only figure out a time to sing and eat. (The first week of school is a little hectic for preschool teachers.)

Happy Birthday, Honey. We do love you so. love, Val and Jay

labor day

joe and heidi cutting flower in the garden

We had a great weekend with my parents, got to see my grandma, and Saturday the big kids came. Very nice.

Some pics for fun:

the driving range behind the barn

badminton


playing dress up in the log cabin--the dark haired child is dannell's sister's daughter m.c.

t.c. at the door





on the swingset



john and great-grandma



a tractor ride



a little love

sunday morning, julia woke up crabby. even her feet look cranky from here


see what i mean?

yeah,well




Tim however, was not cranky at all. He was scouring the property for bear tracks and told us this half chewed zucchini was evidence bears had been there. We didn't argue. Neighbors do see bears, though I don't know that they eat zucchini.



And you know how we snicker about the way he talks? Well, this is a perfect example. He wanted to pick beans, and this is what he said to my mother while she looked for a bucket to put them in--keep in mind the deep voice and extra round vowels:

"Yes, I would like to do it, but first you must guide me to the bean aisle."

(oh yeah, much snickering--she did it, showed him where the beans were.)



And here are a few people I love. It's my mom with Kari beside her, then my grandma, Maria, and Julia perched on the rail. Onward to September then. Much love, Val

hey you

in the brand new letter jacket!


She's pretty happy. Can you tell?

She's run cross country for a couple years now, and she does weight lifting. But the letter is for academics. She could kick our butts and also out run us, plus she's smart I guess. Oh yeah, it makes me laugh.

Happy you, Maria. You are something else. love, Mom

we're doing great

Yeah, welcome to babysitting by Grandma.

Okay, b.g. arrived here early in the morning, and he and I were hanging out in the family room, watching the news.

They had a story about some little chubby two year old in Indonesia who smokes three packs a day and went to rehab to quit smoking.

???

!!!

The video is disturbing, to say the least, and now I have a lot of questions about a number of things.

I turned to see what b.g. was doing and there he was:

Smoking.

No, no, no. I made that up.

But he'd quietly tipped over my can of diet Coke on the end table and was sucking the puddle of soda.

Oh, that's cute. I mean, it wasn't BEER or something. Diet Coke has way more chemicals. Plus I can't really say how clean that table top is. It's wood. I dust it with polish, but let's not eat off there.

Oh dear. b.g. you little madman, I sure do love you. love, Grandma

a phone call

Okay, yesterday while I was in the shampoo aisle at Target, there was a call. It was James. "Hi, Mom. It's James. Denise is here."

Me: "Denise? Right now? What's going on?" (What am I doing at Target right now buying dog food and shampoo? My life is so lame. I should be at home. Grrr.)

(http://well--yeah.blogspot.com/2010/03/oh-friends.html

That's an previous entry about Denise and Dan.)

James: "I dunno." (James, always informative.) I said to put Denise on the phone.

So she stood there in my living room, and she's funny. She started out with this--"Yeah, I brought back your wine bottle, and your Tupperware." Jay makes wine, and we bottle it in empty bottles of wine we previously happily consumed. Tupperware? Puh-leeze. These are plastic dishes. I haven't missed them. Plus, they've been at her house since last December.

I thanked her. I mean, who is this conscientious? Well, she is, but that's even going a bit far.

Then...

She told me the actual reason she'd stopped by, which had nothing to do with any wine bottles or Tupperware...

She's gonna be a GRANDMA!

And then she told me both her sons wives are expecting in the same month. Grandma times two. AAAAHHHHHH! Are you kidding me?

She and I go way back, and they were responsible and appropriate and had two kids, while we extravagantly and irresponsibly had ten. They've been nice to all our squirrels, from the first to the last, and then we had grand kids, and they are nice to them too while they wait for their turn.

Their turn has arrived.

Oh, yes it has. Let the party begin. love, Val

denise hugging l.c.