An Evening Out

It was a beautiful evening.  The kids were all sleeping over with my mom, so Michael and I had the evening free.  Our friends, Joey and Michelle, invited us over for dinner and a movie.  The food was great, the movie was okay, and the company entertaining.  Finally around 11:30 we pried ourselves off our friends' couch and headed out.  We climbed into the van and waved goodbye.  I put on my seat belt and settled in.  I felt a strange lump under my leg.  I reached over to dislodge what was most probably a child's plaything.  I felt something fuzzy.  I wondered how one of the kids' Zhu Zhu pets got in the car and on my seat.  Then my fingers detected not just a firm, furry object but moisture.  Moisture!  Toys aren't moist.  Animals are moist!  I'm sitting on some sort of animal that crawled into my car and onto my seat.  A RAT!  It's a rat!  In my car!  Under my thigh!  I then proceeded to arch out of my seat (while still buckled) and start screaming and squawking incoherently.  Michael had no idea what was going on.  He thought it had something to do with the fact he had just turned the key in the ignition.  I finally manage to eek out something like, "Animal...seat...arrrr....ahhhh....fuzzy....eeee"  loudly and with a great amount of squealing.

Michael looked over and saw something grey and white on the seat and realized why I was screaming.  He glanced at it and said, "Oh! It's a kitten!".  My body started to relax.  A kitten.  I like kittens.  Kittens sometimes climb into cars.  Kittens are not wild animals that have no reason to be on my seat.  I started to un-arch my body and try to arrange myself so I wouldn't hurt the cute kitten.  Then Michael got a better look and said, "Uh, nope! It's a bird."  A BIRD!  Not as bad as a rat, but still a wild animal that did not belong in my car.  And why had I sat on it?  Why was it there?  Did I kill it?  Or that would have been what I was thinking if I hadn't immediately arched up and started squealing again.  I then decided the best course of action would to be to vacate the car in a calm and orderly fashion.  All I had to do was open my car door and step out.  Instead I proceeded to climb over the center console, climb over Michael, open his car door, and run from the car.  Because apparently birds are terrifying.  It was at this point all my screaming brought our friends from their house to see what was going on.  All they saw was a crazy women mauling her husband.  They weren't sure if there was an emergency or if I was giving Michael a hard time.  They quickly realized something was going on as I fled down the driveway and stood panting on the sidewalk. 

Michael wrapped the bird in toilet paper we happened to have in the car as it was drawing its last breath and placed it in the trash.  It had apparently broken its neck upon entering our vehicle through the partially-opened passenger window.  Meanwhile Michelle was asking me if I was alright.  I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry so I comprised and snorted.  It went like this.  "Katie, what happened?"  "I sat (snorrrrttt) on a (snorrtttt) bird (snooooorrrrrrrttttt)."  I was classy.

I may not freak out all that often but when I do, I go the whole hog.

Eclipse

I realize the eclipse tonight may not be big news.  If you live in the U.S. you probably saw it. I don't even have any cute stories to share.  My kids did not say anything earth shattering or giggle worthy but it was amazing nonetheless.  My brother in law procured some welding mask lenses and happily shared with us. We were then able to share with a couple neighbors.  We all hung out in the front yard taking turns looking through the lens.  The pictures don't do justice but this was Michael's first time photographing a solar eclipse.  It's not something that is easy to photograph, nor a skill one has much occasion for.

At one point Michael turned away from the sun and noticed the shadows.  All the shadows coming through the trees were in an overlapping crescent moon pattern.  It looked like waves in the ocean or scales on a fish.  Everywhere the shadows were dappled it looked like an underwater scene. 

It was a 90% eclipse which is the largest I've ever seen and I am so glad we took the opportunity to see it.  It was amazing.

Mother's Day/Michael's Birthday

The day started out with breakfast in bed.  The night before, Michael baked a coffee cake with a pecan and brown sugar topping.  I was a little disappointed it didn't involve berries, or lemons, or chocolate but I decided to hold my peace - or is it piece?  I really have no idea.  So Sunday morning I was allowed to sleep in, which amounted to lazing in bed while Michael got the kids ready for church.  At some point I've lost the ability to stay asleep if the kids are up.  After a bit the kids and Michael came in with coffee cake and really expensive, but oh so tasty, sausages for my breakfast.  At that point I took back all my bad thoughts about the coffee cake.  It was divine.  Probably had something to do with the cup of butter in it.  Butter makes everything better.  Ethan also proudly brought me the gift he made for me in Cub Scouts.  Ignore the strange photo angle that makes me look deformed and just revel in the leather bracelet stamped with the word Mom.  He was so proud of his masterpiece.  I proudly wore it all day, even to church.  The mom in front of me was wearing hers as well.

During church my kids made flowers and cards for me.  I came home loaded with treasures.  We stepped in the door and the day shifted.  Mother's Day was over and Michael's birthday began.

He had a nap while I made dinner for us and our friends.  At Michael's request I made cha gio (Vietnamese eggrolls).  I also made fried rice and Vietnamese cabbage coleslaw so it felt like a complete meal.  Michael would have been happy with just the cha gio, but I wanted to pretend it was a healthy dinner.  For dessert we had a homemade ice cream cake.  It might not look like much but my taste buds didn't seem to mind.

By the time the day was over we were tired, weighed 2.4 lbs more, and felt our day was thoroughly celebrated.

We did much better than the last time Mother's Day and Michael's birthday landed on the same day.  That year we were camping with Michael's family and woke up to his mother wishing me a Happy Mother's Day and Michael a Happy Birthday.  We both looked rather shame-faced until we realized the other had forgotten as well.  We did much better this year.

All She Wanted...

All she wanted was a pink helmet, a Pookie book, and chocolate cake with white icing.  Oh, yeah, I can handle that.  It's not everyday you turn three.

We ended up going to four different stores to find her a helmet.  It turns out Grace has a huge head.  I never noticed it but the helmet manufacturers made it clear.  Here is Grace's fitting helmet.  It is for kids 5+.   The straps are to long but they can be shortened.  She wears the same size helmet as Ethan and Libby.  It's like an orange on a toothpick.

 There are books in the bag.  Grace can't function without books.

 Mmmm.  Cake!

I know it's not his birthday but he wanted his picture taken too.

See how big she is now?

Under Control

It was early and cold and wet and rainy.  Sam wanted to go outside.  His mean mother told him no.  He didn't think that was a good answer as he stood around in only his pajama shirt.  Then he realized the problem.  He wasn't wearing shoes.  Shoes would solve everything.

 

He's a born problem solver.