Thoughts for the day

• Why is Halloween getting so big? Catalogs arriving in the mail, candy and costumes out and it is over 2 months away? Oh wait, I even saw Christmas stuff today! ARGH.

• Again on Halloween, why do people have to be so twisted about it and try to scare kids? It is like they delight in terrorizing the little people. It reminds of going to our local toy store a while back. There was a guy in a big Curious George mascot outfit waving at kids. My children were not amused, in fact, they were terrified. I kept telling him to go away and telling them, "Don't worry, it is just a guy in a big costume." And then the saleslady kept saying, "Oh no, don't ruin the fun!!" What the???? What is her sick idea of fun. All this being said, we are trying to take back Halloween, I am not giving up on it!

• And lastly on this Feast of St. Augustine here's a quote for us all to ponder, "Do everything in your power to obtain the salvation of those in your family." Strong words. And if anyone can tell me how to balance that with "being in the world, but not of the world" I am all ears! What a fine balancing act it is.

Thanks for the thought!

Every night at bedtime prayers everyone says a litany of saints, each person says their patron saints, i.e. "St. John and St. Paul," and everyone else says "Pray for us."

Sometimes people improvise. So last night Beanie said her regular saints, then put them together as her regular non-blog-coded name, and then went on to say, "St. Mom and St. Meg, Pray for us!"

How quickly we forget....

P. got called into work last night around 1:30am and we haven't seen him since. The kids were all sort of confused as to what was going on. Since we moved south his schedule has been much lighter. (Except for that whole deployment thing!!) More dinners at home, church with us on Sundays, fewer weekend hours. They are sort of confused. The Conqueror kept insisting that Dad would be taking him to get a new tube in his bike when he got home. I kept explaining that he would be too tired, that he'd need a nap etc. and that I would take him. But he kept insisting he would, ending the conversation with, "But you don't know my dad." Oh don't I? I have been around long enough to know the differences between the Dr. Jekyl like "tired P. and rested P" as we jokingly call it. But C is right, P. would take him to the bike store if you asked him, despite being bleary eyed, exhausted and fried. But it is better that we don't ask and just go get it done before he returns, and that's what we'll do.

I too have forgotten that he's practically always on call now. I suspect as the patient base expands this will become more common but for now, I am not used to it! I am not used to praying for patients I will never know at all hours of the night and praying my husband didn't get into a car accident driving in when all the drunks are out. I forget that what P does to support us all is all encompassing in a way that other jobs aren't. Not that I would change things. It is what he does, he's good at it, and he's helping other people who are, as he puts it, usually having the worst day of their lives when he sees them. St. Luke, pray for us!!

Oh and for laughs, Beanie is constantly talking about everyone we saw on vacation. She convinced the marriage garnered her new cousins like Marnie and that her new BFFs are her single aunts and uncles. I overheard her talking on her cellphone (=rectangular block) to Aunt Lizzy and Uncle JoeB, "Oh Hi! I am just talking to you guys!" and when I asked what she was talking about she replied, "Baby Boomers!" Alrighty then! She also keeps insisting she's saved when we talk about Jesus. "I saved! I saved!" Hmmm.....I can't quite get her to say she's redeemed and working on her salvation. ;) But then again, she hasn't reached the age of reason yet either!

Re-entry

Ok, so we're back from vacation and we're not really rested at all. Oh well. We had a lot of fun, you were all worth it I promise, but forgive us if we say we're never leaving home again!!

I have lots to write about cousining and such, but for now, unfolded laundry calls.

Headed up north!!!

40 hours of driving for 4 days. I am nuts.

Thanks...I think.

Me: Reading my favorite blog and probably not fully paying attention.
Biki: Who's blog is that? Who is that lady?
Me: Oh, it is lady that is going to write a book.
Biki: You should write a book.
Conqueror: Yeah, you could write a book!
Me: Thinking to myself about all my hidden talents and glad my kids recognize them, "Wow, I should write a book?"
Conqueror: Yeah, you know, like an easy reader.

Motherhood, always good for the humility!

It is getting buggy around here!

We recently had the bug man out, as it was getting out of control around here. As a result, there have been surges of bugs as they all go crazy trying to get away from the poison. The bug man assures me this is normal and I tend to agree since most of them are sort of dying when we find them. There was the one who took up residence on the ceiling of dining room before P. got him, but that's another story.

Anyway, I was trying to have rest/prayer time this afternoon but of course everyone followed me into my room and started rolling around on the floor. Why, I didn't understand. But then I hear Biki talking about crabs and then Beanie yells over the conqueror, "YUCK!!!!!!!!!! A giant cockroach!!!!!!!!!" and then pretended to smash him. Yes, my kids play cockroach. It is that bad, but at least they have enough self-respect not to call them palmetto bugs!!