Monthly Archives: October 2011

mischief managed

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It was a great day and night of Halloween hijinks, joy and mischief.

Lumpy Space Princess announced that she is, indeed, pregnant, not just lumpy; and we were just as surprised over her announcement as we are about Jessica Simpson’s happy “surprise” announcement. But the Lumpy Space Princess one-upped Jessica because she announced that today is her last day of work…let the maternity leave commence. Whoo-hoo!!

Meanwhile, it was time to carve Hazel’s jack-o-lantern. Scary eyes and a happy smile is what she asked for.

So be it.

And while they waited for the trick treating hour, my boys made spectaacles of themselves.

While Hazel burned off some pent up energy and excitement with some heavy lifting.

At last it was time to put the costumes on and get ready!

Princess Rapunzel

Harry.

Sister…Waldo.

And time to practice.

And pose for an awkward family portrait.

Oh yeah. Awkward!

FINALLY! It is time!

The Wizard and the Princess covered the whole neighborhood and came home with heavy bags full of treats. Treats like these:

We tossed the Easter candy and Sister Ben took the tract for the good sister’s own personal stash…I think.

Mischief managed.

Happy Halloween/Reformation Day and Happy All Saints Day one and all!

in black and white

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  • I know that my son has not been growing.
  • I’ve known this truth since he was a 6 month old infant (two months adjusted age) and the working diagnosis on his medical records I had to submit to his social worker stated “failure to thrive”.
  • I knew he wasn’t growing when his former pediatrician in San Jose suggested that perhaps he was having feeding issues and not growing because of something I was or was not doing.
  • I knew he wasn’t growing after he received a gastrostomy tube and was stuffed with more calories a day than the average adult should take in. I knew he wasn’t growing when started to take him to preschool…to kindergarten…to elementary school and he was literally head and shoulders shorter than his classmates…who all happen to be a year to nearly two years younger than he is.
  • I knew he wasn’t growing when he wore the same size clothes and shoes for nearly two years.
  • I knew he wasn’t growing when he would wrap his arms around me to hug me and the top of his head…his 9 year old head would only come up to my waist.
  • I knew he wasn’t growing every time he has stepped on the doctor’s scale and had his weight and height checked…at least I knew he wasn’t growing like a boy his age should.

But as I gathered all his medical records and growth charts as requested by his endocrinologist I see it all here in black and white.

He has not been growing or at least growing normally, like a normal, healthy child and there I see…in black and white…little dots indicating his growth that SHOULD be somewhere in between those curved lines not BELOW them…and, forgive me, I am going to cry just a little once more.

thank goodness for laundry

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There is laundry, always laundry, going on this house. Even though two of my circus clowns have grown up and ran away from the circus there remains, always, laundry to be done.

Zoë, her boyfriend, their dog and laundry came home for a visit. Laundry was definitely welcomed because it costs $1.50 just to wash one load and nearly twice that to dry that load at their apartment complex. That in of itself pretty much guarantees that they are “starving students”. It takes awhile for them to do their laundry which means I get even more face time with this girl. It’s a win-win situation all around. I get to help the kids out in a small, yet big way even if I no longer have the disposable income to help them in other ways. They always visit with a mountain of laundry crammed into “Lindsay Lohan”…that sounded really wrong didn’t it? Relax, it’s a car!… It can take a whole day…or two to get all that laundry done. It really is a small price to pay for priceless time with my darling daughter #2; who lives 150 miles away from the Big Top.

Thank goodness for laundry!

bump watch: 36 weeks

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The Coming Attraction 2.0 is 36 weeks and packing on the weight at about an ounce a day. At this point she is around six pounds, nearly 19 inches long, head down and all systems go for her big debut. She has been shedding the lanugo…that downy covering of hair all over her body as well as the vernix…that white, cheesy stuff that has been protecting her skin while she was floating around in all that amniotic fluid.

The baby has not dropped yet, which is very typical in subsequent pregnancies. Holly definitely is exhausted and as uncomfortable as a woman in her 9th month of pregnancy can feel. Because of that she has served her baby girl with a 30 day eviction notice. Meanwhile, Holly has three more days of work left before she goes out on maternity leave…those living in the Central Valley who are anxious to be made beautiful will just have to wait until the end of December or so. It is now time for Holly to put her feet up and just rest until that baby comes…because that is what a pregnant woman with a very active and demanding three year old does…right? In all seriousness, it is good that she will have some time off to get some nesting done and prepare to welcome the much anticipated newest member of the Scarborough and Jacques clans.

As anxious as some family members are posting on Holly’s Facebook wall to bring on the labor and get this baby out, she still has more than a week to go before she will be full term. I sure can’t wait to meet this new baby girl and as anxious as I am for my NICU’s census to be up so that I can work, I would very much prefer that she stay inside her bed-womb until she is full term…but that is just my professional opinion. Besides Holly still must decide what will be this sweet baby girl’s coming home outfit. Here are the three options…feel free to leave your choice in the comments. I know Holly wants your opinion.

Coming Home Outfit # 1

Coming Home Outfit # 2

and Coming Home Outfit # 3

precious autumn sunshine

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I cannot endure to waste anything as precious as autumn sunshine by staying in the house. So I spend almost all the daylight hours in the open air.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

While Fall is bringing bursts of glorious color along with the cool, crisp air and boots and sweaters in other parts of the Northern Hemisphere, here in our neck of the woods the only indication of it being Fall is the rumbling of the trucks loaded down with pumpkins from local farms just south of us. Daniel is still wearing shorts to school every day that he can get away with it and with temps in the high 80s this past weekend, he took one last dip in the hot tub…after we turned the temp down for him.

But I am so happy to report that today I am wearing a cozy, albeit light sweater over my usual uniform of t-shirt and jeans while I am enjoying this precious Autumn sunshine.

Wordful Wednesday is like Wordless Wednesday, only WITH words. It’s for those of us that can’t contain the chatter, but in a good way. Have something to be Wordful About this Wednesday?  Head on over to Seven Clown Circus and Parenting by Dummies to link up and share.