November and December, eh?
***
I prepared a new recipe that I found in the newspaper, an "apple-chicken skillet." I had the ingredients on hand. Time to liven up the rut!
After a few bites, Josh said, "Now I get it! The sauce is like blood and the chicken is like a skull!"
Uh. . .
But, then: Oh! "Skillet"= "Skeleton" and "Skeleton" became "Skull."
Imagine his confusion when he thought he heard Mommy say we'd be eating apple-chicken skulls.
The dish wasn't good, by the way. Let's not knock the rut after all. 7 great meals eaten 4 times each a month might be better than new and different meals that suck.
***
But if anyone has a new and different meal to suggest that is also great, I would be glad to add it into the rut. Hey, if I can get 7 new ones, I could make a 14 day rut and possibly even reduce my grocery shopping to once every 2 weeks.
Here are the rules: It has to be delicious.
And. . .well. . .given who is reading this and apt to respond, I probably don't have to state any other rules. If you can do it, I can do it. Probably.
***
Gemma came in from playing and said, "I'm not trying to tattle on Josh, but he threw a rake at my face."
Good work, Gemma. This is indeed something you should tell me. Particularly as he was guilty of chasing her with a shovel the day before.
I called him in and asked, "Did you throw a rake at Gemma?"
"Yes."
"Then you're done playing outside. Please go to your room."
Moment's pause. Then a contorted face. Then, "What the heck?!"
(!)
"Gemma lied!"
"But, Josh, you just said that you threw the rake."
"When I asked why she was going in, she said it was to make potty, but then she tattled on me!"
He still had to go to his room. They sorted it out later. Had Gemma lied to Joshua? No, she really did have to make potty, and after making potty, she came and told me that Josh had thrown a rake at her face.
This phrase is now in our family lexicon. Whiny, exasperated, brief: "What the heck?!"
***
Gemma turned 8 in late November.
This seemed the right year to do a tea party.
I won't put up photos of Gemma with her 3 guests because it's not my place to put other people's kids up on the web. But here, enjoy the lovely table display I put together. . . The fruit cabobs were my own creation, the cupcakes, alas, a friend made for us.
No boys allowed at the party, either. Daddy got home from work early to whisk Joshua away. And you'll note that even I dressed up for the event. . .
***
We did Thanksgiving at a friend's house. Several other friends and newly-met friends were there, too. Then, one of them pulled out a game. The kind of game that says, "For 13 years and older" not because of "mature content," but because it's so frickin' complicated.
Loved it.
Thankful for: Bryan, Gemma, Joshua, Benziger, our home, our minivan, our health, and our friends who like to play games.
***
I haven't written much about our van, have I? I don't plan to start because it would be fawning, drivelly sort of stuff. But that van. Ooh, that van. . .
***
Hey, pet peave: When, at a dinner or party, parents let their kids eat crackers or chips plain when they have been served along with a dip or cheese or meat that the kids don't want to eat.
The chip or cracker is a vehicle for the stuff it's served beside. How are people supposed to eat the dip or cheese or meat without a vehicle? It's less than ideal.
A couple of chips? OK. One cracker? Sure. But, people, don't let your kids screw up the vehicle-to-stuff ratio.
***
Christmas in Story, Wyoming, to visit our friends, Aunt Helen and Uncle David. Here's what makes WY such a nice prospect for us (aside from our friends there): It's an easy, delightful 7 hour drive. Not a painfully boring drive that some Interstates offer.
North of Denver, every view is gorgeous. There's no traffic. The road is in terrific shape.
The other part is that there's something about being in Nowhere-ville that isn't anywhere close to Somewhere that is very relaxing. There's no agenda in Wyoming. There's nothing you "should" be seeing. There's no crowd as you go from here to there. It's peaceful.
Of course, this time, we drove the day they opened I-25 following a storm and a few of those hours were a little less than "peaceful."
Benziger liked it, too.
I was reminded that he is a small dog.
Aunt Helen gave Gemma pierced earrings, which required making 2 new holes in Gemma's head. Sorry I forgot to turn the photos.
Yes, we planned this ahead of time. But it was a surprise for Gemma. She was 100% brave about it.
Then we went to see The Adventures of Tin Tin in 3D. I told my people not to smile so we would all look cool. It worked, right?
Christmas Day sledding in Helen and David's meadow.
Josh loved it, too, I promise.
By the time we finished lunch, the temp had reached 45 and the snow had gotten wet enough for packing. Bryan shovelled up an igloo for them and they dug like a couple of prairie dogs to hollow it out. Can you ifnd Benziger in this photo?
He stood atop the igloo the whole time, jumping after the snow Bryan tossed up.
Cosy enough for 2.
High enough for 1.
It was a merry, peaceful Christmas, indeed. And then we all went out to a Chinese buffet for dinner.
