but the kids just started singing, spontaneously, to the tune of Adele's "Rumor Has It": LD: Just whip it! BM: oooooh! And repeat.
Having trouble getting LD out of bed and on task this morning. He was really tired yesterday and slept hard. I opened the blinds. I spoke softly to him, "Good morning, sunshine!" I asked him if he was hungry. No, Papa. I asked him if he wanted a freshly baked biscuit (Grands, don't kid yourself). No, Papa. I asked him if he wanted a fried egg. No, Papa. I just want bacon .
Not sure what game this is, but the rules are shaping up like so: LD: The big mummy has 10,000 lives. BM: No. Only two. LD, sweetly: How about 10? Sounds like a long game to me.
So, the other night at bedtime, I was hanging out with LD after lights-out, and asked him about his day at school. To my great surprise, he told me that he had learned about whole notes in his music class. I was delighted! I asked him if he learned about any other kind of notes, and he thought for a long time before finally answering that he had learned about half notes, too. So, I asked about the difference between whole and half notes, in reply to which he promptly started singing and waving [...]
I've had three (three!!) successful meals this week, at least as far as the boys go. Can you believe that? They must be growing and eating whatever is put in front of them. Sunday night was Toad in the Hole , the classic British dish which is sausage baked in a simple flour/egg/milk batter. BM ate two adult servings, and let me tell you, one serving was enough to fill me up. I should have poked his belly afterwards to see how stuffed he was. (Cook's note: I'm sure I didn't [...]
Hi, all. Yes, I know it's been a long time. Since April, for Pete's sake. Let's summarize by saying that: 1) our summer was great. It was both too short, and too long. 2) we now have a tiny little sailboat, currently lacking its main sail (mainsail, in the lingo), and I'm greatly looking forward to teaching the boys to sail. 3) it is now Autumn, my favorite season, and we are getting ready for our not-quite-so annual Oktoberfest shindig with friends we never see anymore.* Anyway, I thought i [...]
From the very first minute we met our children, they have loved to dance. LD in particular. In that first minute, they both ran to the middle of the room and started to do these half-formed handstands, in their excitement. It was surprising, and cute. They hooked us like walleyes. Anyway, last night, movie night, BM had no say in the choice of the movie because he blew all his "eyeballs" (points, in our reward scheme) at school yesterday with a couple of incidents of bad behavior. I thought it was a foregone conclusion that LD [...]
Cows One of my dear friends from college sent our family "Dinner Games" for Christmas. A tin box is filled with cards, each card describing a game that you play as a family during dinner. My favorites so far have been "Dinner Detectives", "Magic Hands", and "Trick or Treat". Usually we just played one game a night, but a few nights back, we played two at one sitting. The first game, "The Big Moo", was to each make the sound of an animal (a cow, for example), and then the vote on who made [...]
BM has had his fair share of trouble on the bus this year. In his defense, it's an exciting environment - lots of kids, no parents, and basically no supervision. He has also told us on occasion that it reminds him of being in the orphanage. But, really, after 6 months, there's no good excuse for not staying in your seat. Not only is it "against the rules", it's clearly a safety issue. So, imagine how if felt when the bus driver informed me the other day that she had to stop the bus to get BM back [...]
We drive right past a Burger King, LD and I, when I pick him up after school and head home at the end of the day. His speech is so much better than it used to be, now that he has had a set of ear tubes that have stayed in for a good while. But, he still has trouble with some consonants. And I think he just chooses not to say the ones he has more trouble with. So, you can understand why he said, as we drove past the BK, that he wanted to [...]
I was informed, in no uncertain terms, that I had crossed the line with LD the other day. I believe I had just had the pleasure of reminding him, yet again, that he had elected to misbehave and give up some reward or privilege, when he planted his hands emphatically on his hips, thrust his chin out and declared: I'm gonna tell Mama on you!
These days, dinner is often accompanied by a request from BM, LD, or both, for me to make up a story. It's more complicated than it would at first seem. First, there are the characters. Depending on what we're reading or watching at the moment, Pokémon and Star Wars are the leaders currently, you may be called upon to make up a story with, for example, Pikachu , Raichu , LickiLicky , and Darth Vader, where each of those four is one of our family. Then, just as you open your mouth to [...]
[Update: I wrote this post a week ago, and at the time, I thought we'd seen the last of winter. We actually got up to 50 degrees here on Sunday - it was fabulous! But now, they're calling for between 5" and 15" of snow in the next 24 hours! So, instead of singing in the rain, we might indeed be singing in the snow. At least, IMHO, the music will be good!] We've had a ton of snow here in the last couple of weeks, with two big fat Nor'easters blowing up the East Coast [...]
Friends, sorry to have been away so long! We had great holidays and there are plenty of stories to tell. However, we just got a new House DVD - we're up to season 5 - so I really don't have time for all that great news right now. Really, sorry about that. However, before we move on, I just wanted to wish 2009 a very fond farewell. What a great year! Musically, my own personal highlights were catching Wilco in concert, the new band XX, the Crystal Method CD, a half-way decent CD from U2, and [...]
Marge I amuse myself by saying things to my kids that are either double entendres , or at least parodies of common, and generally vulgar, expressions. I suppose I prefer parodies. They come more easily to me. For example, at night, when we are just doing a quick "wash cloth" bath, I usually say "Show me your pits!" I have never been to New Orleans, and there's really no need for them to wash their arm pits, but for some reason we do it. It's a good excuse [...]
Christmas music is a bit of a sub-hobby of mine, to the point that I have to rein it in sometimes. I have strong opinions on the subject, although in general the strength of my opinions is diminishing as the years start to accumulate. The last time I made a Christmas mix CD was in 2006, and since then I can't say that I've heard very many new Christmas recordings of note. Mostly, I've seen pop artists releasing holiday albums, and the occasional retro-type collection from Starbucks or some other well-respected purveyor of fine music. Since [...]
For 30 years, I have been unable to watch a Christmas special that I loved as a child, A Christmas Together starring John Denver and the Muppets . The music was available on CD , and I bought a number of copies, not only for myself but to give to my friends and family. I am sure they are all eternally grateful. I scoured the internet looking for a VHS or DVD version, but to no avail. For whatever reason, this show has never been transferred to DVD for release. I [...]
I learned tonight that BM had a dream last night inwhich I was made out of cheese puffs. Or maybe pop corn. It's hard to tell as the stories shift like sand around here. I personally prefer the cheese puff version. We have been eating a lot of cheese puffs lately, and I honestly can't complain, even if they do have a whiff of trans fat. They are delectable. Truly, the height of modern processed food. My long time favorite is Jax . Together with a buddy, while in grad school (see the previous [...]
Imagine being a lowly grad student, whose life and career basically depend on your thesis advisor. Then imagine watching him blow a gasket after getting the reviews back from a manuscript you wrote and submitted on your life (i.e. your research). And, just like graduate school, it's easier to watch when you know how it ends.
Having seen sheep dogs at work at the local Scottish Games, I am inclined to believe at least 25% of this. Knowing a Scot or two makes me inclined to believe another 25% more. Or less, depending on how much we've been drinking.
Are You Embarrassed Easily Too?
The Shins: “September” (b-side of “Simple Song” 7”)
St. Vincent - 'Cheerleader'
Jay-Z & Kanye West - Ni**as In Paris (Explicit)
OK Go - Needing/Getting - Official Video
M.I.A. - Bad Girls (Official Video)
Lana Del Rey - Without You (Kill Paris Remix) [Dubstep]
Download: James Blake Live Album (Unofficial)
My Funny Valentines
Miike Snow - “Paddling Out” Jacques Lu Cont Remix (MP3 Stream)
Iron & Wine and Patty Griffin
