time to spare

i blinked, and the summer was over.  poof.  just like that.  and ohmygoodness do i love my summers.  i love the slower pace ... the warm (even blazing hot) weather ... the freedom from routine ... and, of course, the break from teaching.

so what better way to relive my favorite season, than to try to catch up somewhat on the blog and post the highlights?  i'll start in chronological order and bring us back to june -- specifically, the day after school ended.

we've started a new tradition of celebrating the kids' success (straight A's for both on every report card this year, and more importantly, glowing comments from their teachers on their kindness, work ethic, and love of learning) by taking them bowling.  chris had a groupon for some hoity toity bowling alley that we could never have afforded otherwise, and took a half day off for the celebration.  since the public schools were still in session, we pretty much had the run of the place.

a toast to an amazing 3rd and 4th grade year, with raleigh's most expensive shirley temple.  (check out the lanes in the top right corner -- fancy lights and glowing gutters and all)

air hockey proved to be another favorite

another school year down.  i blinked, and it was over.  poof.  just like that.

a sweet thank you note from susanna.  funness and awesomeness ... doesn't get much better than that

the art of negotiation

i'm often asked if my kids always get along so well.  "for the most part," i tend to reply.  "there's really only one thing they tend to squabble over -- the back seat."

but it's not your age-old back seat issue -- you know, the one we all had growing up in our family station wagons, where our exasperated parents would draw an imaginary line down the cloth interior and threaten lima beans for dinner if either of the two seat sharers dared go past it.  no, our back seat issue has evolved with new car technology (shoot, we don't even have an imaginary line to draw, as the back seat is actually two captain's chairs.)  our back seat issue actually has to do with the air conditioning.

one of the perks that our SUV boasts -- or so we thought -- was the separate climate controls.  there is a control for the driver, another for the front passenger ... and then one control for all five rear seats.  so whoever happens to be riding in the back has to pretty much agree on how much (or little) heat or air is blowing their way.

and that's where the issue lies: they cannot ever agree.  liam is always hot (like his daddy), and especially so when he's clambering into the car after one of his gazillion sports practices, sweaty hair plastered to his flushed face.  he wants nothing more than to crank that a/c up full blast.  susanna, on the other hand, is always cold (like her momma), and has no interest in being blown away by frigid air.

after way too many arguments discussions over this issue, i finally decreed a new car policy: all rear passengers must simply meet in the middle.  while the front controls have a numeric thermostat (i like mine at about 78 in the summer; chris prefers his at about 60), the rear control simply has 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4.  i told them that they each have to decide which level is their preference, and then average the two.  when this plan was first put in place, it led to (as i hoped it would, being a math teacher) a conversation about what to do when the average is a decimal.  (solution: alternate between the two levels on either side of the decimal in five minute intervals.)

but very quickly, savvy susanna wised up.  much like goldilocks, her preferred level is always 2, but she realized that no matter what, her hot-blooded brother would always say 4.  so ... what is a clever girl to do?

she requests 0.  which means the average always works out to be 2 -- which just happens to be exactly what she wants.  so then the compromise, of course, isn't really so much of a compromise at all.

outsmarted by a nine-year old. i kind of wish i could just draw that imaginary line after all.

the divine nine

my annual birthday post ... two months late

dearest susanna,

most days, my life begins and ends with your warm little body curled up next to mine.  each morning, you climb into bed with me and we chat about the day ahead:  if there’s anything important going on at school; what you plan to do during recess; what’s on tap for the afternoon once i pick you up.  and then we realize how late the time has gotten, and one of us will count down from 10 to the moment where we both have to force ourselves to put our feet on the floor and part ways.  and then, thirteen or so hours later, i find myself back in bed with you – this time yours – snuggling again as we recap the day that is slowly coming to a close.  you tell me what was funny, or stressful, or perplexing while you navigated your world, and i try to answer your questions when you ask them and keep my mouth shut and just listen when you don’t.

i have to admit that there are some days when i’m exhausted and the kitchen still needs to be cleaned and laundry is waiting to be folded and there are high school math tests to be graded … in short, a myriad of reasons why i should simply kiss you good night and close the door.  but then i think of all those nights when you used to request me to rock you in the glider while singing “oh susanna”, and how those are but a distant memory … and i realize that much too soon, you won’t be wanting me like you do right now.  and so when those six words come from your lips – “mommy, will you snuggle with me?” – i realize that there’s really nothing i’d rather do.  and i crawl into your double bed and nestle myself next to you, marveling at how blessed i am to have you as my child.

you are just that – a blessing.  every day, virtually every moment.  i feel privileged to witness the relationships you’ve formed and continue to grow, whether it’s with your brother, or your grandparents, or your friends.

and goodness gracious, do you have a lot of those!   you seem to make friends without any effort at all – kids just gravitate to you like a magnet.  case in point: i walked in to pick you up from art camp the other day, to find another mother bent down to you with her phone in her hand.  “i was just getting y’all’s phone number from susanna,” the mom explained after introducing herself.  “my daughter has talked non-stop about her new friend susanna all week and i’d love to get them together to play!”  on our way home, i asked you how you do it.  i still would describe you as someone who’s sort of on the more reserved side (we try not to use the word “shy”) … so it’s interesting to me how quickly you make connections with people.  “i don’t know,” you shrugged from the back seat.  “i just like people, and i guess they like me too.”

the three amigas -- maggie, you, and lily, during one of your epic two-day sleepover playdates.  unfortunately you had to say goodbye to maggie as she moved to iowa in june ... one of the first truly difficult experiences of your life, i think

this year i’ve watched you start a new school – much to your dismay – and, thankfully, fall in love with it.  i’ve watched you continue to grow your talents in piano,dance, art, and singing.  you’ve taken up drama with a new passion as well, starring as both pastry peddler #3 and fish #16 in your first real stage production of aladdin, so much that your career aspiration is now acting.  (funny story: as we walked through the salad bar section of harris teeter the other week, you looked up and in all seriousness said, “i'm so glad i’m going to be a famous actress.  that way i will make lots of money and can spend half of it on olives.”)

i'm keeping the playbill for when you become known worldwide, so we can sell it on ebay

you still much prefer jazz to ballet, and enjoy choreographing your own routines at home for dance videos you make with your friends

you are also quite brilliant, in case you didn’t realize it – and, as humble as you are, you probably don’t.  you’re a voracious reader, devouring just about any book you can get a hold of, including your latest conquests of the hobbit and the fifth harry potter.  you whiz through your math assignments, produce impressive stories, and have a knack for remembering random science and history facts.  and last week at the beach, you picked up a book of adult-level logic puzzles (you know, the ones with a story and like six clues and a huge set of grids to mark up in order to solve.)  with just about no instruction from me, you emerged from your beach chair a half-hour later, having successfully solved one – and without even using a whole section of the grid.  (i still don’t know how you did it.)

seems the west coast got to your head -- sipping on a shirley temple in san francisco

there are certainly things you hate.  brushing your hair, for one.  (will there come a day that i don’t have to remind you – or that you know where your hairbrush is?)  you’re still not keen on most vegetables, save for olives, of course.  and you're just not a huge fan of wonder, or any dog -- despite her undying devotion to you.  

you think that wonder wanted to share the spotlight; i know that she just loves being near you

but those are small blips on the radar screen of an absolutely gloriously wonderful girl.   you are loving, and kind, and creative, and funny, and interested in nature and history and science and the world.  you are someone people absolutely love to be around. 

especially me.  at 6:45 a.m. in my bed, at 8:30 p.m. in yours … and any minute in between when i’m privileged enough to have the opportunity.  i love you so so much, susanna.  we all do.

you’re nine!  and quite divine.  and, thanks be to God, you’re mine.

infinity squared,

mommy

getting our fill of philly

chris sent this to me, with the note "this might be a tad overdue ...".  just in time for their upcoming venture, AND because today happens to be father's day, i figure it's actually sort of timely.  ~ sara

This year marked the third annual baseball trip I've taken with my dad and Liam.  We’ve done Atlanta and DC thus far, and the City of Brotherly Love was our destination for Memorial Day weekend, 2014.  We decided to drive to Philly.  

You can learn a lot about people by spending 6 ½ hours in a car with them.  

My dad and Liam talked … and talked … and talked the entire time we were in the car.  I’m an introvert, and one of the few things I enjoy about a long car trip is that I can get lost in thought and can listen to good music.  I could do neither for 6 ½ hours, and so was thrilled when we made it to the hotel.  Sara can attest that I get stressed about traveling, too.  I just want to get there.  And as soon as I get where I’m going, normally, the stress subsides.  But this time, as we began the check-in process, the stress didn't have much time to fade.  After much confusion, the clerk at the registration desk looked up from her computer.  “Oh, you’re at the other Sheraton.”  Stress level … rising!  We finally got to the correct hotel in a great spot in the old city, and life was good.  

The next day, we had a wonderful time touring around, seeing the Liberty Bell and all of your typical touristy stuff in Philly. One fantastic surprise was the “Chasing Dreams - Baseball and Becoming American” exhibit at the National Museum of American Jewish History, where of course, Sandy Koufax was featured prominently.

 We ventured to Chickie’s and Pete’s near the ballpark for Liam’s first taste of cheesesteaks and decadent crab fries, and then strolled over to Citizens Bank Park for the game. And oh, what a lackluster effort it was from the Dodgers. For the first time in our annual sojourns, the Bums lost to a pretty terrible Phillies team. The last time I had been in Philadelphia for a baseball game was in 1990 with my parents at the old Veterans Stadium, where I was fortunate enough to witness a no-hitter. I guess I couldn’t have expected any more baseball magic from the baseball gods.   

The next morning, we checked out a few more amazing museums, posed with the Rocky statue, and then started the long drive back home. We put on the radio broadcast of the early afternoon Dodgers/Phillies game. Reclamation project Josh Beckett was on the hill for the Dodgers, and my dad and Liam were there typical, chatty selves. As the game progressed, however, things got oddly quiet in the car, culminating in this magic moment. Josh Beckett’s no-no was the first and only of his career, and was the first for the Dodgers since ‘96. 

So whaddya know? There’s still some magic left in the baseball trip after all. 

gonna fly now -- ala rocky

the final san francisco post: the sights

this might be the longest post of them all, just because we crammed so much stuff into our six days there.  i'm having so much fun reliving our trip by looking at these (and trying to remember where all these pictures are from) ...

the highlight for sure: kate!  (in matching outfits, no less)

 chinatown, of course

honestly the coolest museum ever -- the exploratorium.  we could have stayed there for days

 i have to admit, much of what the exploratorium contained i didn't fully understand -- including a water fountain in a toilet bowl.  but the kids loved it

what made the beach ball float?  air.  this i understood.  sort of

we actually timed our trip based on the home schedule of the golden state warriors (no joke). chris's high school friend ben, a sportswriter for the LA times, came through big-time for us with two tickets.  doesn't stephen look thrilled to meet the mann men?

i threatened to lock them up at alcatraz for being so dang cute.  this is their look of forlorn

helping out a street performer with a magic trick

we spent our last morning at the Children's Creativity Museum, and the kids worked hard on two joint projects.  above is a behind-the-scenes look at the production that is loaded below

nineteen seconds that i think took nineteen hours to make.  we have newfound appreciation for animated movies

and in a very fitting end to my journaling of our most amazing spring break trip ever, the kids would like to close with their version of ... what else?  HAPPY!

san francsico: culinary delights

i'm on a roll -- and bound and determined to put this spring break series of posts to rest!  join me today as i recount some of our eating escapades ...

all our walking demanded a reward in the form of hot fudge sundaes at ghirardelli square

susanna and i dined at the cliff house with the elliotts ... and noticed that the beach looks slightly different from our beloved topsail

in a true "the world is so small" moment, after having dinner with my sorority sister misty, we walked out of the restaurant and ran into another college friend of ours who doesn't even live in san francisco

 enjoying our first taste of five-star california cuisine at in-and-out burger with richard, kate, & leslie.  i can now understand why leslie lives there

san fransisco: modes of transportation

i finally sat my hiney down to follow up my initial spring break post, and quickly got overwhelmed with the sheer number of pictures.  so i decided to divvy them up into loose themes.  today's focus?  planes, trains, and automobiles.  (we did take use all three of those to get around; sadly, i have no photo of the subway or uber car, so i'll supplement with other modes of transportation.)

 for susanna's first commercial flight, we had to snap a picture of her in the cockpit.  it's only now that i realize our captain was all of twelve years old

 notice how dark it is?  we boarded that plane at like 6:30 a.m.  but the early departure was so worth it, as it was a direct flight and we were walking around san francisco by late morning

this really doesn't belong in any themed post, as it is a picture of our accommodations ... let's just say we took the STAIRS to get up to our second floor.  we totally lucked out in our first experience with VRBO, winding up with a huge condo with full kitchen and laundry in a great location.  i even taught my 7th grade math class at 6:30 in the morning a few days from the breakfast table

 
we loved the cable cars and rode them every chance we could

y'all.  seriously.  some of the 10,000 roads we hiked were crazy steep

but -- not all are quite so crooked as lombard street

kate got to ride in style, with her two eldest cousins both vying for opportunities to push her stroller

crazy hair day on the boat (see the golden gate bridge the background of this picture?!)

san francisco, part 1

i find it quite fitting that my office -- where my computer sits, with its printer and writing tablet and headset and all the work that goes along with my two part-time teaching jobs -- is the exact same space as the laundry room.  in fact, it's sort of a three-in-one: an office/laundry/mud room combo; the hub of the house, so to speak.  every morning at 7:05 you can find me, chris, liam, susanna, AND wonder all standing in this tight 8x10 foot area, shrugging on backpacks (the kids) and grabbing car keys (chris) and wagging a tail (wonder) and lamenting all the clean laundry that sits in the dryer (me).

because the juxtaposition of this dryer and computer is actually a perfect summary of how i feel about this blog.  (work with me here.)  every day, i sit down at this laptop and am visibly reminded of this neglected webpage ... and do a darn good job of ignoring it as i turn my attention to more pressing matters.  just like i glance at our front-load dryer, with its clear window showcasing all the clothes and towels and sheets to be folded ... and do a darn good job of ignoring them as i turn my attention to more pressing matters.

but it's mother's day.  which means chris is cooking.  and the kids are occupied.  and the wave of guilt that i have abandoned one of my children's favorite things that i do (this blog) is larger than ever.  so ... here i sit.  with a list a mile long of things i've wanted to document, unsure of where to begin.

so i will begin with The Most Amazing Trip Ever: our six-day jaunt to san francisco for spring break.  (let's pretend that it happened just yesterday, and not almost two months ago.)  what made it The Most Amazing Trip Ever was, quite simply, the kids.  traveling's hard.  especially when you're changing time zones, stuck with your family 24/7, sharing a fold-out double bed with your sibling, and battling a very congested, hilly city either on foot or in cramped public transportation.  in fact, i'd actually like to start off with this image to give you an idea of what our days entailed:

my FitBit buzzed every day when i reached my daily goal of 10,000 steps -- at around lunchtime.  no joke.  we averaged 10 miles a day while we traversed the city

but this is my point: the kids never complained.  NEVER.  even on our last full day, when we couldn't catch a cable car and wound up walking an extra mile to another stop only to find a 45 minute-long wait -- they didn't whine or moan or even so much as expel a loud sigh.  (in fact, they decided to play some made-up game together while we stood in that line which caused them to crack each other up over and over again.)  and when we finally boarded that cable car and found ourselves crammed  shoulder-to-shoulder with like a gazillion other people, where liam and susanna had to just hold on to our legs because they weren't tall enough to grab the hand straps and we insisted on letting the elderly use the only available seats, they never seemed anything other than thrilled and excited to be on this adventure.

and they thanked us, unsolicited, several times a day.  they found joy and wonder in everything we did.  they asked good questions and wanted to learn more and were just thrilled to be in a place that was totally new and exciting and different.  and so we told them how we feel so blessed that they're such amazing travelers, and that we will continue to take them on trips like these.  (in fact, they don't know this yet, but we have the next two spring breaks already planned -- which will involve passports.  stay tuned.) 

by now you've been wading through this post for about as long as it took us to fly out to the west coast, so i will cycle off for now with one family shot.  i'll be posting more photos that truly sum up our california adventure (including my sister and brother-in-law and my most precious niece) soon ... and hopefully it won't take two months to do so.

in our six days, we traveled via car, plane, uber, bus, cable car, subway, boat (seen here) ... and foot.  (side note: we asked some nice woman to take our picture with the golden gate bridge in the background.  i'm going to go out on a limb and say she's probably not a professional photographer)

splitting hairs

we of the mann clan are not known for our luscious locks.  nope, we're all saddled with the same type of hair: thin, blond, and stick-straight.  we also seem to be saddled with a serious difference of opinions when it comes to how said hair shall be cut and styled.

i'll start with susanna.  susanna wants hers long.  i've tried to explain to her that long lengths work well for people who actually have some body in their hair.  we, of course, do not.  so hers winds up looking like a stringy mess much of the time -- just check out her yearbook picture from last year and i dare you to disagree.

 my beautiful angel, no doubt -- but her tresses need a good chop

last summer, as i yanked her comb through the way-too-long sandy-and-salty mess after yet another day of ocean swimming, she finally caved.  "fine," she sighed.  "i'll get it cut."  i celebrated and even confirmed with lainey, who was sitting with us, that she had indeed heard the same words i had.  i needed back-up in case susanna claimed to not remember making such a statement.  and then as soon as we returned home to raleigh, we headed to the salon.

i marched up to the front desk, eager to put her name on the list.   by the time i sat down next to her in the waiting room, i could tell her confidence was wavering, as the waterworks had begun.  "i've changed my mind," she whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks.  "this is not a good idea."

oh, but it was!  how cute she was going to look with a bob!  how much easier it would be to manage!  she was going to love it -- i just knew it, and she would surely thank me later for standing my ground.  and so there she sat in the swivel chair, silently sobbing as about six inches hit the floor.  she refused to even look at herself in the mirror when it was all over.  (i tipped the stylist extra that day.  eight-year old girl drama can turn expensive.)

when we got home, i couldn't wait for chris to marvel at her new look and help build her up.  instead, she hightailed it to her room and came down with a shirt over her head, defiantly refusing to let anyone see her new 'do.  "I AM THE UGLIEST GIRL ON THE PLANET!"  she wailed as i rinsed off asparagus in the kitchen sink.  "NO -- NOT JUST THE PLANET!  THE UNIVERSE!  I AM UGLIER THAN ALIENS!"  she paused for a moment to ask what i was preparing for dinner.  when i replied that we'd be having grilled shrimp, what was already a mind-blowing tirade escalated to levels i had never before seen.  "FIRST I TURN INTO THE UGLIEST GIRL IN THE UNIVERSE AND THEN I HAVE TO EAT SHRIMP FOR DINNER!  THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A WORSE DAY LIVED BY ANYONE!"

and i did the one thing no caring, concerned mother should ever do.  i looked at my pint-sized force, her eyes blazing, face red, hands on her hips, with an inside-out t-shirt wrapped around her forehead ... and i giggled.

and then -- well, then it got real.  "SOMETIMES I THINK I HATE YOU!"

ouch.

 okay, so not only did i giggle -- 
but i also took a picture to commemorate the event.  
no wonder she was livid

the men of the house had different reactions.  liam, who was an unfortunate spectator in all of this, came running to my side. "mommy, are you okay?  i love you.  i'm sure she didn't mean it."  (he was so traumatized by the exchange of words that he brought it up as much as a week later to make sure i wasn't emotionally scarred.  i wound up assuring him that mothers and daughters sometimes do this sort of thing and that everything was going to be fine.)  chris, who didn't have the pleasure of living this event firsthand, said, "well, sara, you laughed at her.  i can't say i blame her."  (and that was his response to MY retelling.  who knows how he would have felt if he had heard susanna's version?)

her hair has been cut only once since that fateful day last july, and only a small trim.  so it's back to being long and stringy -- just the way she likes it. 

and now, for liam.  liam, on the other hand, always wants his SHORT.  like, skinhead crew-cut short.  and in a funny turn of events, i like his longer.  this is a battle i also find myself fighting with him every time his bangs get even slightly too long for his liking.

so i'm finally getting around to the purpose of this post: i have found the perfect solution, and that solution is st. baldrick's.  magellan is the top local fundraiser for this important charity year after year, with roughly a fourth of all the boys at the school getting their heads shaved to raise money for cancer research.  and the girls have joined in the fun, with a bunch of them donating their hair to locks of love.  so THIS will be the answer to all of my PHPs (Parenting Hair Problems)!  once a year, in march, liam will go bald ... and will spend the next six months growing it back to a length of my liking.  and starting in 2016, every march, susanna will get hers chopped ... and spend the next twelve months growing it back to a length of her liking.  why i didn't think of this for the 2015 event, i will never know.

but the best part of all?  neither of our children have declared hatred on me since.  (at least, that i know of.  small victories.)

a roar of approval from the newly shorn liam

50 shades of snow

since the 13th of february, the number of full days of school the kids have had can be counted on one finger.  one.  (and what a glorious day that was, you february 23rd you!)

i'm just going to let the pictures and videos below provide a timeline of sorts to the wackiest (and most frustrating) two weeks in recent memory.

 tuesday, february 17: an icy snowy mix began to fall, just as predicted.  shortly after the school closing was announced, liam's 4th grade teachers sent out a list of "mandatory" homework assignments.  included was the task of emailing them a snow selfie.  (my favorite part of the photo: our sweet brown pooch airborne in the distance.  wonder LOVES the white stuff)

even on a not-so-steep incline, they could really gather speed.  what's remarkable is how solid it was -- notice how chris's shoes and wonder's paws are all totally on top of the surface.  that early in the morning on the first day, we were lucky that the light dusting of snow on top provided some traction.  it quickly became super slick

i could barely watch them sled most of the time, sure that disaster was mere seconds away.  (in fact, i soon turned into psycho mom and required them to wear bike helmets.)  but i must say there are some impressive acrobatics involved in this clip

sunday, february 22: after a week of record-breaking low temperatures (it's not often we're in the single digits in these parts), the driveway was still an ice rink, and we all had bruised bums to prove it.  OUCH

once the temperatures climbed into the lower 50s that day, after missing the entire week of school, we thought for sure we were in the clear -- especially since nothing else was in the forecast.  (sense the foreshadowing?)

tuesday, february 24: another round of snow hit -- beautiful, light, fluffy snow that no one had any idea was coming.  liam decided to show his best side when he noticed me taking pictures from inside the house.  also of note: among the many -- and i mean MANY -- frustrations of this recent weather, at the top of the list is the garbage fiasco.  they haven't picked up our recycling in almost a month

the kids returned to school for a half-day on wednesday -- hooray! -- and then we got another five inches that night.  this time it was the wet, heavy snow that resulted in our power being out for over twelve hours.  we huddled around the gas fireplace in the family room and used the back porch as our refrigerator.  

 thursday, february 26: introducing our snow girl Sunny.  
wishful thinking in choosing her name,  perhaps?

so we've had Sledding Snow (the first round), Snow Cream Snow (the second round), and Snowball Snow (the third round).  we're heading to wintergreen tomorrow for the fourth round: Skiing Snow. and that better be the final round for 2015 or i might just call the next one Asylum Snow.

Doll School

if you ever want to find me on a tuesday afternoon, get your shovel handy because your timing will coincide with Tuesday Folder day.  i will need to be dug out from under a pile of papers that come home; every activity they've completed in the past week -- every quiz, every in-class project, every practice sheet -- is crammed into those folders.  i usually give the contents a quick glance, sign my name that i have dutifully gone through them, and then, if i'm honest, put 99% of them straight into the recycling bin.

but recently susanna has begun requesting to keep many of her tests for Doll School.  so then that pile started adding up, to the point that i dragged down a plastic storage container from the attic leftover from my teaching days.  we relabeled the drawers to fit Miss Mann's needs so all these papers (and the necessary teaching supplies like extra pencils, paper, and rulers) now have a home.

today i lost track of susanna for a little while, until i heard her sweet voice coming from the dining room.  unsure who she was talking to, i found her in her educator glory, whiteboard in hand and globe within reach, hitting all the highlights of lewis and clark.  attentive students (and american girl dolls, fittingly) Caroline and Kit sat across the table from her, hanging on her every word.

the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, apparently.  (ha -- apple!  teachers!  how fitting.)

from the look on her face, the young teacher was annoyed at the interruption my camera caused -- but the students didn't seem to mind

wordless wednesday

one of my (many) new year's resolutions was to post on the blog at least twice a week.  one needs only to scroll a short way down to realize that hasn't happened.  (but i have been flossing daily!  score at least one upheld resolution for sara!)  so i thought i'd resurrect Wordless Wednesday, in an attempt to document our lives a little bit better than i have in recent months.

davidson joined richmond's conference this year in basketball, and while i don't know if this will always be the case, they wound up playing twice in january -- once at davidson, where they beat us by fourteen, and then two weeks later at richmond on a saturday evening.  months ago i bought tickets for the four of us to drive up and go to the game, arranging for us to stay with my college best friend / sorority sister alison and her family.  looking back, i now realize that chris accepted this proposal because he was confident it would be a fun game for him to watch; never did the thought enter his mind that his wildcats might lose to my spiders.

it was never even close.  the final score:  richmond - 89, davidson - 63.  (and husband - miserable.)

me with a spider headband (which garnered lots of compliments, i have to say), liam in his richmond shirt, susanna with a UR hairbow ... and chris with his davidson colors (and a forced smile on his face).  
yep, that ratio seems about right

susanna seems to have met her match in the creativity department with alison's three girls.  here are the winners of the air hockey "tournament" -- complete with medals around their necks and atop a makeshift three-tiered podium just like in the olympics.  elise won gold; liam, silver, and there must have been a tie between susanna and hunter for bronze.  
(and julia just joined the victors for a photo op)

roomies

i am in love.  with a dog.  more so than i have ever been before.  i feel sort of like i'm soulmates with little wonder wo ... even fourteen months after welcoming her into our family, i still feel the urge to shower her with kisses every time i see her.  if i ever happen to be sitting on the floor, she finds me and promptly reclines into my lap and flips for a belly rub.  and whenever we pull into our driveway, we always see her lounging on the front window seat, casually observing all the going-ons of the cul-de-sac -- and know that by the time we enter the house, she'll be standing in the mud room, her tail nub wagging as she serves as our welcoming committee. honestly ... is there anything better than a dog?

sadly, my children would say yes.  even though we've had dogs ever since they've been born, for whatever reason neither liam nor susanna are big canine fans.  this fact is always amplified whenever they have friends over who are dog lovers -- these other children dote on wonder, petting her and talking to her and even inviting her into their sleeping bags when they spend the night.  (she really is the sweetest thing.)  but liam and susanna hardly give her the time of day.  it hurts my heart a bit ... but wonder is undeterred.  she still follows them everywhere, attempts to coax them into playing with her, and yearns for their affection.  which, sadly, rarely comes.  hence my showering of hugs and smooches -- i try to make up for the lack of sibling love.

BUT -- we've recently made some strides, in a most unlikely way.  liam, for whatever reason, has recently developed a small fear of the dark.  the boy who has never once used a nightlight when going to bed all of a sudden is certain that someone is in his room.  right after we kiss him goodnight, chris and i are required to check his closet before firmly shutting the door.  he started requesting that the hall light be left on, and even after sweeping the premises for boogeymen, he is still convinced he is hearing things in the dark, unable to fall asleep.

so what is a frustrated pair of parents to do?  look no further than the four-legged brown friend in our midst, of course.  she lives up to her name: wonder wo mann to the rescue!

figuring that our superhero deserves a throne, we pulled in liam's old monogrammed stuffed chair from the playroom and set it up at the foot of his bed.  and now, every night after saying prayers, wonder crawls into it, curls up, and serves as liam's protector. a boy/pooch sleepover, every night of the week.  whether or not they fall asleep whispering about cute girls in his class, i'll never know.  

but the love is there ... 

liam decided to pretend he was asleep for this staged photo.  
for some reason, wonder wouldn't close her eyes on command.  must work on that