Christie and I have been lighting Hanukah candles together for over a decade now, and she's got the blessing down pretty well. When we first started, I would say a word and she would echo. Then I would say a phrase or so, and Christie would echo. Now she knows the blessing as well as I do. Mostly, we say the blessing in unison, but sometimes she leads or sometimes I lead and, when we're feeling playful, she'll say a phrase and I'll say the next. By the time we hit night six or so, the prayer over the candles sounded like this (apologies for the phonetics):
E & C: ... lehadlach ner shel ...
W: (with tremendous glee and enthusiasm) Hanukah!
Monday, December 20, 2004
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
No Assembly Required
But you still have to remove the toy from the flipping package! To remove Wrigley's Hanukah gift from the package this evening we used scissors to snip at the 5 plastic strapping things. We tugged at the toy. Still firmly attached to the packaging. With all the tape attached to the outside, we couldn't even figure out how to open the cardboard. We ripped it open to find 10 noncuttable plastic twist ties. Tug.Tug. Still firmly attached. At this point we're turning the toy round and round and upside down looking for where it could still be attached. This is when we discover the sound. We keep whacking the toy against our knees, setting off the 95 decibel sound effects, commands (pull the lever!), and music.
Christie - Here let me try
Ed - careful for the buttons
Toy - indecipherable blaring
Wrigley - puts hands over her ears
We eventually find the 8 of the 12 screws we need to unscrew. They require three different screw drivers. The first 4 are a piece of cake. Numbers 5 and 6 need a skinny screwdriver. 7 and 8 require a long screwdriver. The whole while either Ed or I are saying a variation of, Is this right? Maybe this part is supposed to stay attached. I know you couldn't really play with it then, but maybe they aren't supposed to come apart. Remember every so often Wrigley chimes in with Is it my turn yet? and the toy chimes in with its blaring.
Finally, we are successful! Wrigley gets the toy, and I am left with a mountain of mixed garbage and recyclables. Thankfully, Wrigley loves it. She was completely engrossed the whole time I was cleaning up.
Oh, and we end up with 4 AA batteries!
Christie - Here let me try
Ed - careful for the buttons
Toy - indecipherable blaring
Wrigley - puts hands over her ears
We eventually find the 8 of the 12 screws we need to unscrew. They require three different screw drivers. The first 4 are a piece of cake. Numbers 5 and 6 need a skinny screwdriver. 7 and 8 require a long screwdriver. The whole while either Ed or I are saying a variation of, Is this right? Maybe this part is supposed to stay attached. I know you couldn't really play with it then, but maybe they aren't supposed to come apart. Remember every so often Wrigley chimes in with Is it my turn yet? and the toy chimes in with its blaring.
Finally, we are successful! Wrigley gets the toy, and I am left with a mountain of mixed garbage and recyclables. Thankfully, Wrigley loves it. She was completely engrossed the whole time I was cleaning up.
Oh, and we end up with 4 AA batteries!
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Future Career: Boardroom Negotiator
Wrigley does something new when she is furious. Unfortunately for her it makes us cover our mouths and try really hard not to bust up laughing as we snicker away.
If I don't get some of that cereal, I am going to take all my clothes off.
And then she does. She rips them off with great grunts and angry noises. Sometimes she steps on them too. Then she's just cold, naked, mad, and her parents are laughing.
If I don't get some of that cereal, I am going to take all my clothes off.
And then she does. She rips them off with great grunts and angry noises. Sometimes she steps on them too. Then she's just cold, naked, mad, and her parents are laughing.
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Who is this Hippy Painting at my Kitchen Table?
W: This is a good painting that I'm making.
D: I think it's a good picture, too. What makes you say it's a good picture?
W: (after thinking a bit) All the love comes out of me and into my picture.
D: I think it's a good picture, too. What makes you say it's a good picture?
W: (after thinking a bit) All the love comes out of me and into my picture.
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
From the Department of Awwwww
W: I want to be a man.
M: Why? having thoughts that ohmygod, she's already interalizing cultural images that women are inferior!
W: I don't want to be a girler. I want to be a man. Then, with the sincere desparation of a 3 year old, I want whiskers.
M: Oh, you like whiskers whew!
W: I want to be like Daddy.
M: Why? having thoughts that ohmygod, she's already interalizing cultural images that women are inferior!
W: I don't want to be a girler. I want to be a man. Then, with the sincere desparation of a 3 year old, I want whiskers.
M: Oh, you like whiskers whew!
W: I want to be like Daddy.
Monday, November 22, 2004
Can you ... Buy Nothing?
"For 24 hours, millions of people around the world do not participate -- in the doomsday economy, the marketing mind-games, and the frantic consumer-binge that's become our culture. We pause. We make a small choice not to shop. We shrink our footprint and gain some calm. Together we say to Exxon, Nike, Coke and the rest: enough is enough. " adbusters.org
Buy Nothing Day is Friday. We plan to go for a hike to find pinecones for ornament making and bird feeder making. We'll also make paper ornaments and decorate the tree. What do you plan to do?
Saturday, November 20, 2004
Give
Here toward the end of the year, I'd like to share with you a list of the groups we enjoy giving to. Perhaps you'll find one you'd like to support as well. In no particular order:
Growing Gardens - http://www.growing-gardens.org/ They help low income families, communities and schools start food producing gardens with expertise, materials, plants and money.
Commercial Alert - http://www.commercialalert.org/ a national organization based here in Portland with a grassroots campaign to establish a culture that can't be bought. They are particularly concerned about the aggressive way advertisers target children.
Center for a New American Dream - http://www.newdream.org/ They help Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice.
Oregon Cultural Trust - http://www.culturaltrust.org/home/index.php Give money to the cultural trust AND to your favorite participating arts organization and get an Oregon tax credit. See their site, but if we give a $100 to the Trust and $100 to an arts organization, we get a $100 credit. So you give $200, but it only costs $100.
Jefferson Dancers - http://www.pps.k12.or.us/depts/arts/dance/ We give money every so often to this great group that does a whole lot for a decent sized group of kids, many of whom don't have many advantages.
The Dougy Center - http://www.dougy.org/ - They help families deal with the death of a family member. Ed has had some students significantly helped by this organization, and a couple counselors from the organization gave a presentation at a preschool meeting last year, and they do good things for really very sad children.
The Haven Project - http://www.havenproject.org/ This isn't quite the baby project it was when we first learned about it, but boy is it neat! They get a group of underserved kids together with a group of professional actors and writers, send them off to camp to write and produce short skits that are generated from the kids' ideas. They've grown, and now they're able to give kids even more significant theater experiences. Everything they do is pretty cool!
Fanconi Anemia Research Fund - http://www.fanconi.org/aboutfa/FA.htm A crummy hereditary bone marrow disease that impacted Ed's extended family. Recent advances give an excellent prognosis for Ed's family, but always more research is needed and support for families.
Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital - http://www.dovelewis.org/ They were very helpful in the treatment of Taz many years ago, and with many such organizations it seems always in desperate need of money!
Community of Writers - http://www.communityofwriters.com/ A cool organization with an unfortunate acronym, that brings writers and teachers together to improve the writing skills of students.
NW Earth Institute - http://www.nwei.org/ - they develop programs that empower individuals and organizations to protect the earth. They focus on encouraging individuals to take responsibly for the earth help them to make changes in their practices to tread more lightly. They have developed curriculum and a mentoring program for six discussion courses designed to build community and raise environmental awareness. I am pretty darn excited to begin my first discussion course through them this weekend, Healthy Planet, Healthy Children. They have a national network, http://www.nwei.org/pages/national.html, so you may lave a local group where you can take your own discussion course.
Friends of Trees - A Portland/Vancouver organization that plants, cares for and teaches about urban trees. They have numerous community tree planting events every spring and fall. http://www.friendsoftrees.org/home/index.php
Tell us about some of the groups you are passionate about.
Growing Gardens - http://www.growing-gardens.org/ They help low income families, communities and schools start food producing gardens with expertise, materials, plants and money.
Commercial Alert - http://www.commercialalert.org/ a national organization based here in Portland with a grassroots campaign to establish a culture that can't be bought. They are particularly concerned about the aggressive way advertisers target children.
Center for a New American Dream - http://www.newdream.org/ They help Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice.
Oregon Cultural Trust - http://www.culturaltrust.org/home/index.php Give money to the cultural trust AND to your favorite participating arts organization and get an Oregon tax credit. See their site, but if we give a $100 to the Trust and $100 to an arts organization, we get a $100 credit. So you give $200, but it only costs $100.
Jefferson Dancers - http://www.pps.k12.or.us/depts/arts/dance/ We give money every so often to this great group that does a whole lot for a decent sized group of kids, many of whom don't have many advantages.
The Dougy Center - http://www.dougy.org/ - They help families deal with the death of a family member. Ed has had some students significantly helped by this organization, and a couple counselors from the organization gave a presentation at a preschool meeting last year, and they do good things for really very sad children.
The Haven Project - http://www.havenproject.org/ This isn't quite the baby project it was when we first learned about it, but boy is it neat! They get a group of underserved kids together with a group of professional actors and writers, send them off to camp to write and produce short skits that are generated from the kids' ideas. They've grown, and now they're able to give kids even more significant theater experiences. Everything they do is pretty cool!
Fanconi Anemia Research Fund - http://www.fanconi.org/aboutfa/FA.htm A crummy hereditary bone marrow disease that impacted Ed's extended family. Recent advances give an excellent prognosis for Ed's family, but always more research is needed and support for families.
Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital - http://www.dovelewis.org/ They were very helpful in the treatment of Taz many years ago, and with many such organizations it seems always in desperate need of money!
Community of Writers - http://www.communityofwriters.com/ A cool organization with an unfortunate acronym, that brings writers and teachers together to improve the writing skills of students.
NW Earth Institute - http://www.nwei.org/ - they develop programs that empower individuals and organizations to protect the earth. They focus on encouraging individuals to take responsibly for the earth help them to make changes in their practices to tread more lightly. They have developed curriculum and a mentoring program for six discussion courses designed to build community and raise environmental awareness. I am pretty darn excited to begin my first discussion course through them this weekend, Healthy Planet, Healthy Children. They have a national network, http://www.nwei.org/pages/national.html, so you may lave a local group where you can take your own discussion course.
Friends of Trees - A Portland/Vancouver organization that plants, cares for and teaches about urban trees. They have numerous community tree planting events every spring and fall. http://www.friendsoftrees.org/home/index.php
Tell us about some of the groups you are passionate about.
Friday, November 19, 2004
From the Department of Woo Hoo!
Ed's poem Leftovers won 2nd place in the Arizona State Poetry Society contest! http://grumo.blogspot.com/2004_08_01_grumo_archive.html#109142756241590486
and I sold a dress! Not counting all the costs (why would I do that?) I made $6 on it!
front
back
A Mom really tried to get her daughter to want this one, but the kid had no taste!
front
back
and I sold a dress! Not counting all the costs (why would I do that?) I made $6 on it!
front
back
A Mom really tried to get her daughter to want this one, but the kid had no taste!
front
back
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