Bathroom Graffiti

It was a(nother) rainy day and Gaby was bored.  He had the bathroom and Mommy's makeup to himself.  One person's paraphernalia is another's drawing instruments.

I saw what looked like a drawing on the !*&! pedestal curtain.

Oh. My. Gosh. It looks like lipstick.

I checked my lipstick.  Gaby -- I knew immediately who to blame -- had used my favorite lipstick for his drawings.  Oh, but there was another drawing on the shower wall.  This I didn't take pictures of because by now I realized he had used my mascara and eye shadow for that piece of artwork.  He also decorated Jojo's hair with my hairspray.

My initial wave of anger slowly gave way to curiosity about those pictures.  Who are those people, Gaby?  That's me and Jojo, and that's Christian over there.  Are you and Jojo hugging?  No, we're not hugging! We're walking together.

I texted the evidence to Mike and, of course, he laughed and commented, "At least they're happy pictures."

And they are!  Look at the hearts, the whimsical drawings.  They are indeed happy depictions of his feelings, perhaps.  Or of his love for his brothers -- I'm getting carried away now. 

I was reminded of Randy Pausch. I never met him, but he was the type of person I would've liked to have known, and I know I would've learned much from him.  He gave his last lecture four years ago at Carnegie Mellon University, and I always remember this:  a photograph of his childhood room. His parents let him draw and paint on the walls of his room.  Two paintings that struck me were of an elevator door and a secret passage to Venus. Here's a video of his sister showing Randy's room.

In Randy's last lecture, his childlike demeanor and wonderment come through as he talks about his dreams.  And what dreams this Ph.D. had, many of which he achieved.  The heartwarming talk can be seen here.

Gaby doesn't take himself too seriously and I am glad that he and his brothers don't -- this in an age where we're supposed to be uptight, education fussbuckets because that is what is valued more than anything. I want them to value learning, yes, but also beauty, friendship, and dreams. Dreams are worthwhile, and that's what Randy teaches.  It's the journey of reaching our goals that is the most important part of learning, not just learning for the sake of a degree or Ph. D.  Watching the movie 'Rudy' the other night reminded me of this, too.  Rudy was on the mediocre end of the spectrum in comparison to Randy's natural academic abilities. And Rudy met lots of brick walls, which, Randy says, are there for a reason. Both had dreams that were probably not within the realm of their natural abilities, but their determination led them to places they never believed they could get and inspired countless others.  But I digress.

Gaby's a pretty smart kid, but he is also imaginative, creative, oh so funny and, at times, frustrating.  After I got over my anger and asked him about the drawings, I praised his work and reminded him to ask for paper, crayons, watercolors -- whatever -- when he decides to work on his next project.

Taco Man

The other day Gabriel heard me speaking with Tio Alberto on the phone.  Gabriel later gave me his impression of Spanish being spoken:

"Do you have a taco?"
"Yes, I have a taco."
"Do you have a taco?"
"Yes, I have a taco."
"I'm the taco man!"

His inflection was pretty accurate.  Later in the week he told me that a person who was dressed up in a taco costume was at school.  It didn't make sense to me either.  But I still had to ask his teacher.  Remember how Christian's 'small camera' story back in kindergarten was lost in translation?  So, I took my chances when I confirmed with Gabriel's teacher the upcoming parent-teacher conference.

Hello!

That time is good for me!

Gabriel was running a fever yesterday, so I'll keep him home today. I've left word with the attendance line.


Thanks,
Elena


p.s. Was there a 'Taco Man' at school?

Yesterday I told Gabriel that I'd written to Mrs. W to ask about the 'Taco Man', and that's when he and Christian told me that they were just joking.  I still haven't heard back from Mrs. W.

I blame Mike -- he always tells the boys tall tales.  Like when he told the story about how their Latina mama met their dad.  Or how he tells the kids to go along with a joke to pull on their mama (see 'comments' in the story below.)  Oh boy.

I
should've
known.

Blessing of Pets

Today our pets were blessed by Fr. Dan for the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.  There was quite a menagerie of animals: a bearded dragon, all sorts of dogs, some cats, a bird, frogs, a turtle, and Jojo's panda bear that he brought along.  Lucas, Jumpy, and Climby all did well, although Lucas became quite chirpy and some other dogs were yappy.  Two big black dogs began growling at another dog, but things went smoothly other than that.  Christian enjoyed talking about his firebelly frogs with some interested people -- and we thought he was shy.

There was a lady holding a box that I assumed must've been a creature quite small.  I asked her what she had and her eyes welled up.  I asked if it contained her deceased pet's ashes, and she showed me a picture of her shih tzu that she'd had for 14 years. She said she never thought she could become attached to a dog, and the loss still stings.

I commented my surprise at becoming attached to our little bird.  Who would've thought?  A dog or cat I could understand, but a bird?  I love Lucas and everyone who meets him falls in love with him, too.  He has such personality, and he talks constantly. I haven't quite warmed up to the frogs yet, but they are cute.  I don't mind holding them and listening to their high pitched squeaks occasionally. 

I held up Lucas for the Holy water.  And then Fr. Dan blessed Jojo's panda bear -- Mike was unable to get a photo.

Christian speaks animatedly about his firebelly frogs to his captive audience.

Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen


P.S. -- Daddy caught this fish, according to Christian.  Christian said that Mike reached into the water and pulled it out!  The real story is there were some fishers at a dam who offered to cast their net and catch a fish for the boys. Quite a catch.

Woller Wink

Last night the boys' school had a skate party at the local rink.  They have never skated before, and I hadn't gone in over 20 years. But I pressed on and rented skates for each of us. 

It was comical, really.  People around us were chuckling as they saw me trying to control squirmy Jojo and Gaby who kept falling on their popos as I tried to keep from falling on mine.  Jojo's feet had a mind of their own; it was as if he was trying to to walk instead of uncontrollably rolling. Christian made it to the wall of the rink and hung on for dear life. 

Gaby, Jojo, and I finally made it safely to the wall of the rink.  I had forgotten how to balance on my skates nor did I have much control over myself, much less two boys, and thought of Wile E. Coyote on his ACME skates.

It took me one trip around the rink to wise up and take off those rolling shoes of terror.  I was able to walk the boys around.  After about an hour, Gaby and Jojo had more control over their skates.  Gaby and Christian went by themselves around the rink while holding on to the wall, and Jojo and I went around the rink by ourselves.  No broken bones, only torn jean knees for Gaby.

It really was fun!  We were all sweating and tired after a couple hours, but we hope to go again.  I wish I'd had my camera, though. The image of Jojo's feet and legs scrambling beneath him in the tiny pair of skates is something I'll never forget.

A Mouse in the House

Yesterday, Christian came bearing a gift for me as I worked furiously on the computer.  He and his brothers and friend were outside and found a disgusting, dead mouse that his friend's cat had already found.  It may have been slightly alive, but I'm not sure. Stuart Little it was not. 

Christian: "Look what we found, Mom!" And the critter was curled up in his hand.

I realize now that the boys like to see my reaction. I still do not touch bugs or gross critters (like toads or caterpillars), but I am not as afraid of them as I used to be.  Earlier I had found a loose cricket that Christian failed to put into the froggy cage and I trapped it under a cup. I'll do things like that: save bugs under a cup for Mike or Christian to dispose of outside.  But bring a nasty thing like a mouse into the house? Well, that just about did it for me. 

I jumped out of my skin and screamed.  They thought my reaction was soooo funny and ran away laughing.  I was fuming.  I made them place the thing into a plastic bag, then I placed it into the garbage, which was then thrown outside into the can.  And then they each had to make a trip to the bathroom and scrub their hands with soap and water.  One of my worst nightmares is finding a surprise in the washer, dryer, or toilet. Or finding a mouse or raccoon in the house.  Or head lice on one of the kids. My skin is starting to crawl.

Cub Scouts Popcorn for Sale Until November!

I've been asked how to make sure that Christian receives credit for the order.  Please go to this link and then in the green area it may say "You are supporting no one. Change"  Click on Change and then type in (or copy/paste) Christian's Scout ID number:  16051753.  Click 'continue'.

Once you do this, make sure that at the top right this appears: Supporting Scout Christian C.  You are now ready to place your order for Christian's Cub Scouts den! You can click on any of the items on the red toolbar:  All Products, Signature Snacks, Microwave Popcorn, Other Treats, or Military Donation.  If you do not wish to order any of the items for yourself, you can have an order shipped to the military so the Cub Scouts den will still receive credit for your order. 

We'll receive immediate confirmation of your order, and you will then receive a 'thank you' from Christian so you'll know that the order was placed correctly.  This is the only way I know who placed an order in Christian's name; there is no other way to track orders otherwise.

Thank you!

Nana Came to Town

Nana came to celebrate Jojo's birthday.  The boys went to the Halloween store and found this year's costumes: Transformers.  Christian, who is scared of the scary masks, did not go inside so he had no choice but to dress as a Transformer this year. 

We walked to the car show down the street.  I imagined riding in this car and waving my hand like Mrs. Bucket (That's "Mrs. Bouquet" to the commoners). 

Gabriel

Jojo

Christian wanted to do "something fun", which means anything outdoors.  Mike and Brenda took them to the park and to the creek.  They were worn out afterwards.

We went to the German Festival and had our fill of frankfurters.  There was a park for the kids to jump around in blow up trampolines, go on manual train/airplane rides, and face painting!  The live music was the best -- if you've never heard a polka-ized version of 'La Bamba', you don't know what you're missing!  The costumes, the food, the craft booths were so much fun. 

Nana and I also took Christian to the ER on Sunday night, but other than that, we had a good time with Nana! 

Anything involving Christian is usually a long dramatic tale.  I only add this so I'd remember:  right side pain could be the appendix, pain on the left side is probably gas.  Never take Christian to the ER when he has pain on the left side.  Never take him when Nana is in town the night before school when he's the only one who has school the next day.  Remember that his hip could hurt due to growing pains, though, just like Uncle Jimmy, somewhere around puberty.  Remember to look at all surrounding circumstances before taking him to the ER (Is Nana in town?  Is Monday the next day? Make sure Christian sleeps in his own bed the night before school when Nana is in town.)

Fall is in the air.