Posted in Everyday, Ruthie, Things on Jan 18th, 2011 1 Comment »
Yesterday Ruthie told me she was writing a story at school about visiting her Auntie Jody’s farm in Iowa. It was 2007 when we last visited the farm. Ruthie was only 4 years old, but she still carries the memory of that magical summer. So do I. We were on our way to the mall [...]
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie, Thomas on Jan 3rd, 2011 1 Comment »
I honestly don’t know how I manage to parent these children sometimes. Between Thomas’ obsessive hoarding and Ruthie’s creative body art, there’s 101 different ways these kids could end up institutionalized. I’ve quit trying to prevent the madness. It’s more fun to embrace it and laugh.
Posted in Everyday on Jan 2nd, 2011 No Comments »
I took down the tree yesterday and gathered all the Christmas decorations from around the house. Today it will all be boxed up again and put in the attic, but for now my dining table looks like the holiday clearance section at Fred Meyer. One of my favorite memories from this year was watching my [...]
Posted in Comfort & Control, Depression, Everyday, Introspect on Dec 15th, 2010 1 Comment »
I’m a little crazed these days. I think I’ve had something on the calendar every night since the beginning of December, and that never goes over well with Introverts like me. I’ve definitely hit a wall. For me this looks like oversleeping, over eating, over drinking, and writing blog posts when I should be working [...]
Posted in Everyday on Nov 30th, 2010 4 Comments »
Right before Thanksgiving Bryan bought an Apple TV because he had to “study the interface for work.” Studying the marketplace is how we come by most of our technology at the ZugHaus. Carpenters buy hammers, we buy gadgets. The day after Thanksgiving I woke up with a sore throat that spiraled into a full blown [...]
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie on Nov 24th, 2010 1 Comment »
My irrational question: “Why is it so hard for you to just be NICE?!” Ruthie’s answer: “I don’t know mom. I think I’ve gone over to the Dark Side.”
Posted in Everyday, Family, Ruthie on Nov 22nd, 2010 1 Comment »
Kayden: “I’m the leader of flowers, Thomas is the leader of soccer, and Cannon is the leader of firemen.” Ruthie: “Yeah, and I’m the leader of them all!”
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie, Thomas, Travel on Oct 31st, 2010 No Comments »
The picture to the left is Thomas’ vision. He was very concerned that Bryan could pull it off, given that it turned out a bit small in relation to the size of his pumpkin, and he was very adamant that the pumpkin have a pucker. Bryan, of course, pulled it off with his eyes closed. [...]
Posted in Everyday, Travel on Oct 28th, 2010 No Comments »
This is a working vacation for Bryan and I, so we’ve been swapping the kids back and forth every few hours so we can each check in on our projects. Yesterday afternoon I sat in a comfy chair on the back patio looking at this view while I responded to all my emails from the [...]
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie, Thomas, Video on Oct 24th, 2010 2 Comments »
We probably shouldn’t have watched School of Rock right before bed. And maybe the marshmallows were a bad idea. But Ruthie’s fits of giggles over Jack Black’s silliness was worth every minute of delayed bedtime. And this encore presentation? Awesome. I recommend you turn the volume down or your speakers might blow. Also, stick with [...]
Posted in Everyday, Thomas on Oct 24th, 2010 No Comments »
I worried a little how Thomas would fare as one in a classroom of many. He is full of questions about how things work, how they’re put together, how they came to be, and when he’s on a mission to discover the answers he will not let go until he has them. With Thomas there [...]
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie, Video on Oct 21st, 2010 1 Comment »
At least she’s not singing about the mail man anymore. But then again, something tells me there’s more to beating the crunchy ice than chilling a lemonade.
Posted in Comfort & Control, Everyday, Until Death Do Us Part (and to the Death it will be) on Oct 18th, 2010 1 Comment »
There’s a running joke in the ZugHaus about spontaneity – I claim to have some when we all know I don’t. For the longest time I pegged Bryan as a curmudgeonly old man with no flexibility or zest for the spontaneous. I just wanted to run! Be free! See what the day held! But no, [...]
Posted in Everyday, Ruthie on Oct 10th, 2010 1 Comment »
Ruthie: “Mom, can you sign me up for soccer?” Me: “Do you want to play because you like the game, or because you like the outfits?” Ruthie: “I like the socks and shoes.” Me: “You realize you’ll be expected to run around a lot and kick the ball.” Ruthie: “Yeah. I don’t mind.”
Posted in Everyday on Sep 6th, 2010 2 Comments »
This is how people without kids live, with lamp cords dangling right there for anyone to reach. I find this fascinating. Can you IMAGINE life with dangling cords? I certainly can’t. I mean, when you’re gettin’ busy without the birth control you don’t really consider the possibility that you’d one day experience culture shock when [...]
Be warned: what you see here is not my best work. It is what Anne Lamott describes in Bird By Bird as a series of “shitty first drafts.” Blogging dragged me kicking and screaming out of creative constipation by getting me to actually write. So I do that. A lot. Without worrying about every word choice or comma placement.
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