Go to Bed!!!

Okay, Lori and Mark and the person from Winston-Salem that lurks on my blog at all hours (I love you, whoever you are)...GO TO BED!!! It's 1am. What are we thinking?????? Stacy, are you the Winston person? I've been wondering for a while who the lurker in Winston is. Anyway, we're up waaaaaaay too late. I posted my last entry moments ago and my stat counter says that you have already read it. I order us to bed--unless you're just recovering from having 4 kids talk your ear off all day long. Come, come, WS person. Who are you?

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My Alter-Reality

I have this other side of me that I don't post about often. It has actually dominated my summer. Nope, it's not Sugar. It is the reason that I have not blogged as often. It fact, it led me to create 14 new blogs recently. Thankfully, I only have to post on two of them. It has also led to the mass destruction of my house. Ask my hubby. I thought I was behind when the baby was born. It got worse. (I can hear you groan, Mom). I finally got some relief today. Spent 4 hours cleaning (must have those genes in there somewhere, Nat)and it felt soooooo wonderful.

What has caused all the commotion, you ask? I'm directing a home school group this year called Classical Conversations. You see, it just wasn't enough to remodel the bathroom, paint the kitchen, go to my sister's wedding, travel to Florida, make up a month of school that was missed, and have a baby. It sounds like I don't enjoy it--I do, but I've had to keep up with so many details and it feels a bit like I never left school. My mind has stayed there and there is no end in sight. The outgoing director told me that the summer was going to be the most intense time for me, but that my mind will be on it all year. Oy, vey!

Last night I hosted my orientation. It went well. I have 23 families (36 children) enrolled this year. I have 5 tutors who teach classes ranging from K4-6th grade and another afternoon program that teaches 4-6th graders English grammar and writing. We also have two nurseries and an afternoon class for the younger kids. We meet every week for 12 weeks in the Fall and 12 weeks in the Spring. Getting the orientation done was such a relief. Now I feel the forward motion. Next Tuesday is our first day of classes. We're off and rolling!

Pray for me, not just to make it, but to soar through next Tuesday. I'm blessed to have the privilege of administrating for such a wonderful group of people. The families in the program have blessed me for years and I know that will only continue.

Anyway, that's where I have been hiding--with my head stuck in the details.

Crabby

Not the kind that comes with a bad attitude, but the delightfully crabby-ness that comes with my husband spotting king crab in the grocery store and thinking of his wife. This $12 feast was mine last night.



Two crab legs that weren't scant in meaty proportions. You can see me holding up what I took out of one section of leg. Two snow crab legs would only be an appetiser: this was a meal.



Mom and Dad, Em and Mark...I just wanted you to know that I thought of you as I ate each bite of buttery-lemony, crabby goodness.



Oh, and he brought me two dozen roses last week because he wanted me to have something pretty to look at. I am a well-loved woman. What a wonderful "crabby" man. You bless me, My Love. Thank you.

The Caped Crusader

I love those eyes!



My little caped super hero wore that to Office Depot and Staples the other day. I love it! We're enjoying the daily adventure of having 5 kids. It's stuff like my little super hero that makes me smile.

Sinatra Needed Some Attention

He needed some attention so we went outside and I took pictures. It's so nice to have a camera that can capture his expressions that are so him. Pardon the number of shots. I'm having fun with my new toy and love everything that comes out of the little black contraption. He liked being my guinea pig. I got lots of hugs and smooches during our little photo shoot.



He wanted to use his "cute" shovel (anything that is small is "cute"). He's making piles of pine needles--his castles.













This last one is just classic Sinatra.

Rototiller

Jon went thirty minutes south of town to pick up a rototiller for the campus. He can thank his mom for his love of yard/garden work. The rototiller conjures up all kinds of memories for him because he had a big one like this when he worked with his mom in her garden.



Now he's bringing this sentimental contraption to the college where he will put it to good use. They just put in a community garden, and a few weeks ago he started a kitchen garden for the food service provider. The provider is very good about buying from local growers, but the on-campus plot will grow herbs and a few veggies for seasonal use.

Next year, Jon is planning on plowing up a field that the campus owns and putting in a large organic plot and a greenhouse for growing hydroponic veggies. Should be a fun adventure for him since he loves it so much. He is, of course, excited about the benefits he will "harvest" for the college too.

Sugar and Shakespeare

Sweet as Sugar!



And then there's...



He's looking at a sunflower seed from the garden.



He looked at the first picture I took of him and thought he was pretty funny.



Hence, the comedy routine that actually succeeded in being funny.



Especially this gem!

My Surprise

Jon told me to be ready to go to our friend's house in 30 min. I got the kids ready. Jon got home and told me that he had to take a shower (he was filthy) before he joined us, but that I should just go on ahead because they were waiting. Then he backed the van out of the garage, turned it around, and parked it in the garage tail end first. Odd.

I forgot something so I dashed inside. When I came out, the kids were running all over the place. As I gathered my flock, Sinatra kept pointing to the side yard and yelling something. Finally I made out the little guy's words, "We got a Jeep!" I went to the side yard and there was a Jeep with a tarp thrown over it. They were not supposed to have discovered that. The surprise was ruined--just a little.

Jon came down and we loaded kids in the van, but my slightly dejected sweetheart took Sinatra and drove off to the friend's house without saying a word about the Jeep. Now I was wondering if I would forever associate the memory of getting a Jeep with the uncomfortable passive aggressive anger of my husband. We had talked about the possibility of this for years, but had always come to the conclusion that it would be way too impractical. Odd--he's not the passive aggressive type. I pulled out of the garage FORWARD, so as not to see the hiding spot, and joined Jon at our friend's house.

We dropped the kids because Jon had arranged for the two of us (and Sugar) to go Jeeping and to dinner while our friends babysat. We loaded in and took off with the wind in our hair. He still wasn't talking. I asked direct questions about the Jeep. It had 132,000 miles on it--how much did you get for your truck and how much did you pay for this? No answer. Did you buy it from a friend or somewhere else? Do we own this? No answer. After 5 min. my anger reached ticked off level and I told him what I thought of his silence. He didn't seem angry though. In fact, he seemed rather pleased with himself. He smiled at me and didn't say a word--smug little rodent. Odd. Odd. Odd.

I tried to calm down and enjoy the ride. It was, after all, a Jeep with the top down on a beautiful evening. After 10 min. of this, he finally broke. He laughed and told me that the Jeep was on loan from a friend who wanted to sell it. "Was that so hard, Jon?" I asked. "Why wouldn't you answer my questions?"

"I just wanted to see how you would have taken it if I had really pulled something like that--you did pretty good," (Unedited...I would have corrected that last little word).

Glare. Sneer. Laugh. Really enjoy the ride.

We went north of town to a Mexican restaurant. When we got out, Jon was going to leave his duffel bag in the car. He said that it would probably be okay. "What? No way. Take it in," I insisted. Towels and swimsuits aren't too expensive, but why risk it.

We sat down and ate. When I had finished eating, Jon opened the bag and started rummaging around--crinkling plastic. Odd. He pulled a box out and set in in front of me. It took a moment to register, then I dropped my jaw and was speechless. When I found words they were so eloquent--"No way. No way!! No way!!! I can't believe you got me one!"

Okay, let's cut to the chase. It's a Nikon D60 Digital SLR. It's a really nice camera for an amateur. I've wanted one for so long, but never could justify the price tag. Feed the kids for two months or buy a camera? It had always been a tough choice, but we'd always chosen the kids. Apparently, my husband thought that we just might manage to do both.

The camera came with a 18-55mm VR lens (nice and basic), but Hubs added a 55-200mm VR (telephoto) lens too.

I actually cried--no boo-hooing, but watery eyes and emotion. Then I smiled the rest of the night.

Of course, they don't make it so that you can play with the toy right away. I had to charge the battery overnight. And then the next day was one that I am glad I will never have to repeat. So I finally got out my camera tonight and started taking shots. The light had faded outside so these are all inside in the fake light. What an upgrade!!! I can't wait to snap away in the daylight.

About the Jeep--we're considering it. I think it's horribly impractical, but wonderfully fun.

What a nice, non-passive aggressive husband I have.



Macro setting.



Picture using pop-up flash--notice harsh shadows. Have a plan to remedy all that.



Picture set to no flash and high ISO (kind of works like the speed of film you would buy). A bit of blur, but really sharp compared with what I've been using. You can really see the difference between the flash and no flash shots if you click on the picture. Also, you could take my fingerprint from that macro shot--without a macro lens even!



Here's what Popcorn thinks--two thumbs up. He just can't wait to see the shots his mom gets when the sun pops up tomorrow.

Best Hubby in the World

He often brings me flowers--doesn't have to be a special occasion--though this time it falls especially close to our 13th anniversary (Aug. 7). He bought me a mountain bike last year. Today he outdid himself. Let me just say that the man is generous. I have wanted this for years but have not found a way to justify spending so much when what I have already will do. You'll have to wait until later to find out what he did. This is just a teaser. Full story to come. I will tell you that when he gave it to me I dropped my jaw and was speachless, then cried, then smiled...the rest of the night.

Siblings

We love Sugar!



This is what happens to babies who have siblings with a sense of humor.