Word Fun

A couple of weeks ago my oldest daughter's homework included word making. She was given the word THANKSGIVING and was asked to make as many words out of the letters as possible. She started with the usual: an, in, thank. Well as she continued to work on it I was doing other things. I looked over her list later and these are a couple of the words she added, in this order: gin, sin....hmmm well at least she understands the assignment!!!

Our Jewish Santa

At school, my oldest daughter is learning about Hannukah. She has been singing songs about it for days. The other day she asked if we could be Jewish so we could light the menorah and so she could get presents for 8 days instead of just one! Well I told her we didn't have to be Jewish to light a menorah. She wasn't sure about that, she was concerned about being arrested. Well after we got that all squared away we decided to get a menorah and light a candle each night. Now my husband and I don't have any idea what we are doing but our girls won't know the difference. I thought it was cute of her to suggest it in the first place. So we will be lighting our menorah, which is next to the tree, which is by the nativity scene. I really hope I'm not screwin them up too bad!! It should be a very interesting 8 days.

Why teachers rule the world.

Well here I am, one more semester done. I always hope that I feel more of a sense of relief then I do. This is probably becuase, in the back of my mind, I know that I am SO far from being done. Well at least I can take a break right??? I am currently learning a lesson in payback. As a teacher, there is no way of knowing what impact you or your words have on a student. Well now that I am on the "recieving" end I can tell you- it is quite alot! The other day I was getting the girls ready for bed at 7:00. The oldest one looked at the clock and said "but mom it's only 7 and Ms. Trent says that our bedtime is 7:30-just like her and Logan." Now I know that what Ms. Trent meant was that the kids' bedtimes shouldn't be later then 7:30 (some kids in her class have bedtimes of 9 or 10). Well how was i going to explain this to a 6 year old. She heard what she heard. Well I said what any self respecting mom would say in response to this: "Do you see Ms. Trent here?" 36 hours of labor and this is what you get. Well I suppose it could be worse This same daugther spent 2 1/2 hours on her homework. Over one hour of it was spent drawing a picture for a math problem. The math took her all of about 30 seconds but the picture had to be just so-oye vey!! I blame it on her father. It makes me feel better. But it still doesn't get her work done any faster.

Morons and other mysteries of life

My youngest daughter called my oldest daughter a moron this morning. They did not know what it meant so I told them it was someone who was well maybe not so intelligent and that they were not to call each other or anyone else that. My oldest daughter then replied: "Well but aren't there people who are morons?"
Yes, there was a slight pause...I mean when you're right, you're right.

I didn't really have anything intelligent to say. I was, at that moment, a moron. I am sure it won't be my last.

A blog, finally!!

It has been one month since my last blog. Yikes, you would think I did not have a life, which, actually is the reason I haven't posted becuase sometimes life just gets in the way.

Okay now that that is out of the way I thought I would add my own favorite Pre/post thanksgiving rituals etc.
My favorite Thanksgiving morning activity: Watching the Macy parade-daughters are now into it. Quite enjoyable really!!
My favorite thing to make: Ambrosia(way easy).
My favorite day after thanksgiving breakfast: Pumpkin pie!!
My favorite thing to do on thanksgiving day(besides eat): Stay in my PJ's as long as possible.
My favorite thing about the day after Thanksgiving: The fact that it is over and I won't have to cook again for at least 1 week.

Oldest Daughter: "Mom, I don't want to sit on Santa's lap."
ME: Okay
Oldest Daughter: Does that make me a scardy cat, cause I don't want to sit on the lap of some old man??
ME(To self): Well when you put it that way......
ME:(out loud): No.
Youngest daughter: Well I want to sit on his lap, how else is he gonna know I want that Doodle Bear??
Oldest daughter: It's on your list.
Youngest daughter: Yea but that's still on our fridge.

I guess it is time to actually "send" the list...... there is a point in time where they just get too darn smart for their own good!!!

PhD Phun...

Okay so someone made a comment in my class that really purturbed me so I thought I would get other people's opinions...please share if you have any!! One of my peers was talking about PhD students and said "Yes, we are the best." Now what exactly are we supposed to the "Best"at? ( I know never end a sentence with a preposition so I guess you can rule out best at grammar). Any ideas as to what PhD students/professors are the "best" at or of??? I have a few of my own ideas but I want to hear what you think. I have run into many, shall I say, less than humble professors. So maybe we are best at thinking more of ourselves then we should???

Things that make ya go Hmmmm...

Well it has been forever since I posted. It's mostly because I don't really have much to say. This is new for me since I think, if it were possible, I would have talked in the womb. However I heard a conversation between my daughters that well made me go Hmmm....my youngest daughter was explaining to her older sister that she was a princess and that this meant she was no longer prone to experience normal bodily functions. For example she said: "Princesses don't burp or do other things.." Well that is useful information. The next day my oldest daughter and I have an interesting conversation in the car.

daughter: "Mom, I'm not into body jewelry."
Me: "What do you mean by body jewelry."
daughter: "you know, piercing my nose, tongue, lip."
Me: "oh really and what about the belly button?"
daughter: "oh no, not that either."
Me: "Where did you hear about that?"
daughter: "I just heard it and I decided."

Glad that's out of the way!!

My love/hate relationship

Since it is a Monday and I am in a crappy mood I decided to make a list of the things I love and hate about Phoenix.
1) I love the weather-from September to May. Where else can you wear shorts on Christmas day? No shoveling snow, frozen toes or scrapping windows.
2) I hate the weather-from May to September. I mean it's just not right for the temp. in your car to reach 135. I didn't even know car thermometers could get that high. And sweating just getting the paper. Yikes.
3) I love that some of my family is close.
4) I hate that some of my family is far away.
5) I love it that I live close to everything. Yes everything.
6) I hate it that I live close to everything!!
7) I love it that Matt Leinert lives in my neighborhood.
8) I hate it that Matt Leinert live in my neighborhood.

OkayI can't think of any more. I know there are more I just can't think anymore right now. How about you. What do you love or hate about where you live??

Vanilla Ice vs. Bob Dylan

Riding in the car today, I realized that my daughters 2 favorite songs on my Ipod are: IceIce Baby, by the Where Are They Now alum Vanilla Ice and I'll Be Your Baby Tonight by none other than Bob Dylan. I became worried about what harm I am doing to my girls. Is this type of musical hodge podge healthy for their developing psyches? So I decided to take a closer look at the lyrics of each. Here is just a sample of what I have come up with.

Vanilla:

"Something grabs a hold of me tightly,
Flow like a harpoon daily and nightly" and

"To the extreme I rock the mic like a vandal
Light up the stage and wax the chump like a candle." can't leave out

"...other DJ's say Damn, if rhymes were a drug I sell 'em by the gram."

Then there's Bob:

"Shut the lights,
shut the shades,
you don't have to be afraid." and

"The big ole' moon
is gonna shine like a spoon but
were gonna let,
you won't reget it."

Well I must say I think it's a close race. Maybe I haven't screwed them up after all........

Blog, Blog, Blog...

Okay after a verbal reprimand from Dr. Write, who sometimes doubles as my sister( older of course, is there any other kind?) I am blogging again. I did not realize how addicting this can be. I find myself lying in bed trying to remember if I blogged or checked my favorite blogs or I am thinking about what to write in my blog or how to respond to someone else's. Jeez!!! In between all of this blogging I am trying to read and do research. I am supposed to observe adolescents in their natural habitat. So my family and I are going to attend a local HS football game next Friday. I wonder, have things changed since I went to one of those almost 20 years ago? Does the head cheerleader look like Barbie and date the quarterback? What will they be talking about? Will they even be talking to each other or just texting the person next to them......I wonder if all those insecurites I felt in HS will come back even though I am old enough to be their mom. What will the girls see? I keep thinking I should warn them or something. Should be interesting!

Future plans and thoughts on Britney Spears

After reading Dr. Write's post I thought that I too should share about my oldest daughters recent plans for her future. She seems to have lost interest in boys for now and while I am sure this is a temporary condition, I applaud it. She knows that a "daddy" is required if one is to have a baby and yes we told her this is with a husband....I will break her in easy where that is concerned. So she tells her father and I that she will get married ie. get a husband, have children and then get a divorce because, she tells me, she wants to be a single. Then her and little sister will move in together and get cats. Well there you go. On a only slightly related topic, she saw a picture of Britney Spears the other day and called her the " girl that does inappropriate things". Pure poetry. I couldn't make this stuff up....

My obessesions etc.

Okay so I was thinking about several things I seem to be obsessed with lately. The first one is WIthout A Trace but more specifically Anthony LaPaglia...I mean I think he is old enough to be my well uncle at least but there is just something about him. Also the Food Network. Everyone makes the food look so darn good I just can't help myself from going out to the kitchen and trying it. Of course the food usually turns a bit different when I make it but fun nevertheless. I am also in love with Project Runway. I don't know if it's because it is something that I could just never ever do and I am fascinated by it or if I just like watching people be petty....maybe a little of both. The daughters sometime join me in watching this but I don't think they like it much until the runway part. The models, they so adeptly noted, look weird......maybe amaciated is the word they were looking for. I also happened upon The Girls Next Door, a show about Playboy bunnies. I believe this is one of the most disturbing shows I ever seen. Three young, bleached blonde girls with implants and spray on tans. Hugh was filmed rubbing the abnormally flat stomachs of one of the "bunnies". Oh heavens!! Then one of them flashed a group of construction workers and said" I think I just made their, made their like, life." And then did one of those airhead laughs...Oh yea, I am sure. If only I had known that's what it took!! Daughters will never ever see that show.

My vocabulary

Okay I always knew I had a weak vocabulary but listening to professors night after night only serves to reinforce my apparent gap in intelligence. (that and having had to take the GRE). So I get a Word of the Day on my Google home page. . He often appears supercilious when he uses those arcane words and refuses to surcease. I think he believes they give his story more versmilitude. Any idea which 4 words were on my webpage???? It sure makes me sound like I know what I am talking about and that I am more educated then I am. Maybe this is the key to being a professor...use big words that no one can remember the meaning to.

Here is the cute half of my family. This was taken at Mall of America during the summer. Don't go on a holiday weekend. Go on a Monday, then there will probably only be gobs of people instead of a gazillion. We are waiting for the merry go round. It was fun for the girls. Then we had to go buy Viking stuff to make our trip there really seem worthwhile. And we got a free drink at Caribou Coffee. It doesn't get much better than that!

Well I decided to join the rest of the world and write my own blog. I think I should write about my girls because they are much more exciting then I am. Dad in town so we are going to Ikea, this is an event in case you've never been to one. You should bring a compass just in case. Girls like the mac and cheese. Fortunately it is one of the only things Ikea sells that you don't have to assemble yourself. Going to bed.