It's November!

     The first thing I'm thankful for is that Halloween is over, and went smoothly.  This year Mario stayed home, a red shiny skulled skeleton handed out candy, and I took Darth Vader, the mystery glow-in-the-dark-butterfly-masked princess, Snow White, and Spiderman trick or treating.  The weather was perfect!  Maybe  a little too perfect.  It was an 1.5 hours before their legs were tired enough to head home.
     Once home we sorted through their loot, collected a 2 piece of candy per child parent tax, a one piece of candy per child big brother tax, allowed them some time to eat their favorites, and put the rest of in a gallon zip-lock bag with their name on it.   This candy is their treat food for the month of November, 2 pieces per lunch. 
    We turned off the porch light, and skeleton boy came in.  He hadn't suffered too much with his portable DVD player outside with him.  He said only one kid was too scared of him, or maybe his pet skeleton Sheldon, to take candy from the bowl.   Everyone rounded out the evening with hot chocolate and was off to bed.
     So what's the second thing I'm grateful for?  It is November 2nd now after all.  I'd have to say the extra down time we have for most of November.  It's kind a lull in kids sports and school activities, so we get to breathe for a bit...even spend a weeknight at home once in a while.  With six kids, down time is always something to be grateful for.

Orange Pumpkin, (orange pumpkin)....

     Probably my favorite preschool song from the past is "orange pumpkin" sung to the tune of "are you sleeping, farmer john".
   
     Orange Pumpkin, orange pumpkin
     Soon you'll be, soon you'll be
     a smiling jack-o-lantern, a smiling jack-o-lantern
      just for me, just for me.

     Yesterday we were carving our smiling jack-o-lanterns, or coloring depending on the age of the child.  I'm not sure what's scarier, a nine year old with a carving saw or a 4 year old with sharpies.
     The youngest three had a ball.  Si Guy put green stripes down the creases of his pumpkin.  Miss P made a work of abstract scribble art with all the colors of the forbidden markers.  Miss D painted a "scene"....a purple unicorn drinking out of a lake.  The blue marker made a muddy lake on the orange pumpkin.  Maybe next year I'll get her a white pumpkin.
      The Ethanator went the scary route, multiple eyes, noses, and a few less teeth than he originally planned.  Funny how those things change when you're doing your own carving.  E1 did your classic, kitchy, smiley pumpkin face.  Our oldest had scout and homework stuff, so he's carving his today. 
     It turns out E1 is recarving his today too, because who knew squirrels liked pumpkin?!  So his non-scary pumpkin now looks a little zombie like with scratches and one eye chewed out.   He was at a party when the fat, bushy-tailed invader struck.  We pulled into our driveway to see the culprit at work, perched on top and chewing away.   His siblings took squirrel sentry duty for the rest of the evening for their "pumpkin protection patrols."  While grateful for his siblings efforts, he didn't care for the um, improvements....so he's redoing his today.

Breathe.

Yes I'm breathing.  That sums up today pretty well.  This weekend was the last game for E2's football & Miss P's green eagles.  Both kids had good seasons.  E2's last game was a tie.  Princess P's team learned how to kick the ball the right direction.  Sports are a wrap.  I'm kind of sad, kind of relieved.  Things slow down for a bit, but it never quite stops.
* We still have Friday night dance class w/ E1.
* There's a choir festival November 1.
* Our oldest has been cast as Othello in I Hate Shakespeare.
* There's a science project due in November.  Lasers and gelatin and teens oh my.
* There's still scouts and AWANA and kids choir at church.
* Then there's the other category:  parties, field trips, the grocery store gauntlet.
     This weekend was sports, kidz world, and shopping.  Tonight we have scouts.  Today I  drove a kid to school, ran the dishwasher, did two loads of laundry, swept/picked up the living room, cleaned a bathroom, played at the park, picked up my other kids, and crashed at the computer in between...because some days just breathing is good.

Happy Birthday to Spike!

     That's our eldest child's self selected nickname.  I find it funny because it doesn't reflect his personality at all, except possibly in a mario-type dino character kind of way.   When I think of our oldest, I think funny, cuddly, companion...not hedgehog.  Maybe Sonic is where he got the nickname from.
     Yesterday, I became the parent of a resident teen.  I'm so glad I get to experience the teen years with a laid back kid first.   I'm also glad he's letting me get away with it being a minor event amongst the overly busy fall schedule this year.  It's not necessarily out of the kindness of his heart, given what he's scheming for next year, but elaborate rube goldberg type  plans are what adolescence is made of.
      I love this kids heart.  He literally jumps at the opportunity to serve.  He's volunteered w/ Boy Scouts, PTA, and our church.  His first youth trip was a service missions trip that he earned by selling $1 food at Old Shawnee days.  It involved sleeping on a tile floor, wasp spray, and a lot painting.  His regular volunteer activities both involve working with younger children.  He's a den chief with scouts and a preschool volunteer with AWANA.  He really gets our family theme of "a heart to God and a hand to man."
    I love that, despite being a teen, he still is very open about his affection for us.  The other night I quipped at him "What am I, a pillow?" as he was headbutting his way under my arm on the couch.
"Yes, you're the pillow and Dad's the mattress." hee hee, was his reply.
   His Dad, the mattress.  This tiny baby that slept on Dad's chest, and nowhere else if Dad was anywhere in sight, who loved his crib gym and almost never cried.  That baby is thirteen?  Really?
Really.  I couldn't be prouder.

So what do you guys eat anyway?

     This is a common question.   To a lot of people,  preparing gluten free, soy free, dairy free,  meals seven days a week seems impossible.  Really it's not.  It's just something we get used to.  It does mean the days of frequent fast food and "convenience" foods are loooong gone though.  Let's look at this last week of dinners though.  I think you'll see we're a lot more "normal" than you thought.
     Tonight, brisket braised in draft cider w/ roasted carrots, salad and mashed potatoes.  (Mashed potatoes we split up and do some non-dairy and some w/ milk.)  Snack tonight was baked apples stuffed w/ cranberries.
    Yesterday I made my version of sweet 'n sour and served it with rice.  It's not breaded and doesn't have ketchup in it, so it's not anything like a chinese restaurant...but it is tasty.  ( peppers, carrots, onion, garlic, w/ pineapple chunks in juice, w/ ginger as the predominant spice.  Throw in some brown sugar and either lemon or orange juice.  Beyond that, it varies.  This time it featured chicken and coriander.  Sometimes it's a dash of clove & red pepper flakes w/ pork, etc.)
     Sunday I didn't make dinner.  We had a pot luck lunch at church & I took taco meat w/ diced tomatoes & black beans, and all the other stuff for taco salad.
     Saturday we were without a few kids, so we broke the rules & had pizza.  Doesn't happen often though, and yes, I paid for it dearly.
     Friday night we had company, so we had tacos. 
    Thursday was lemony chicken spinach artichoke heart sautee. 
    Wednesday we had smoked sausage skillet.  (Cajun seasoning, rice, tomatoes, onion, smoked sausage, green pepper, kidney beans, broth)
We also eat spaghetti, burgers, meatloaf, and breakfast for dinner.  We love our grill.   Our family is far from starving.  I'm rarely bored with what I cook.  That's because of instead of focusing on what we can't have, we enjoy what we can. 
Does it work?  Most of the time.
Are there times it's frustrating?  Sure.  Especially when money is extra-tight.  We can't live on ramen and mac and cheese for a week.  Not because we don't want to, but because we really can't!  That means that we have to sacrifice other parts of our budget so the food money is there.  So sometimes a haircut gets postponed, like two months.  Isn't that what hats and pony tails are for?
Overall, we eat well,  even if it is different.  Compared to Hamburger helper and mac & cheese, I think different is good. 

On to high school auditions at 11?

     Today boy child number two is auditioning for the main stage musical at my Alma Mater, with the same drama teacher that was my drama teacher when I was there, and the same choir director I was under in Chorale and Lyric while I was there.  Somehow, this makes me feel like I'm in high school again...but this time it's not about me.
    I'm having those same stupid adolescent fears and insecurities for my child, maybe so he won't feel them.  Maybe it's because I remember crashing and burning at auditions....and I know he doesn't take failure well.   So why let him go?
    Well, first of all, because he wants to.  He wants to enough to give up mathletics, even though he's really good at math and wins/places regularly.  He wants to more than he wants to be on safety patrol after school.  He's willing to give up six to ten hours a week of recreational time for it.  If he wants it that badly, then I feel he deserves the chance.
    Secondly, his choir teacher referred him...and only one other kid from his class was referred.  She wouldn't set him up to fail.  She's been teaching him music since kindergarten & directed a play with him in it.  She knows his talents, downfalls, and quirks.  I don't think she'd set him up to fail.  I have to trust her.
   And lastly, because he is good, and whether he succeeds or fails doesn't change that.  An audition is a single moment, a snapshot.  Sometimes it's your best.  Sometimes not.  He's already proven his performance abilities in other venues, and I can use those successes to bolster him if he doesn't succeed here.  And if he does succeed here, then I know I've succeeded in raising a child who's better than me.
  

How a 10 minute errand turns into 3 hours.

Yesterday as I was doing some cleaning, (yes it happens on occasion), I decided we needed a new tablecloth.  Part of my sanity preservation plan is we don't use real tablecloths.  We use el cheapo flannel backed vinyl ones from our favorite local store.  I checked my cabinet I keep my reserves in, and it was empty.
"C'mon Si.  We need to go to stuff-mart."
"Yeeahahahah!  Stuff-mart!"
"Sure."
First is the great shoe hunt.
"I want to wear THESE!" declares the four year old boy in pink princess snow boots.
"Sorry bud, you could if we were going in the car, but we're walking...remember?"
So the great shoe hunt commences.  After locating the appropriate shoes and getting them on his feet, we head outside.
"SCOOTER!"
"Fine, but you have to wear a helmet."  So he puts on his sister's purple helmet w/ pink flowers.  Good enough.  We're just going to stuff-mart after all.  He then proceeds to scooter up and down the driveway while I find my wallet.
Finally, we're on our way, but so is a playground.  Eventually, we get to the store.
"Si, you have to leave your scooter outside. Right here."
"K.  No one will take it?"
"I don't think anyone is going to take a four year olds scooter and helmet.  It's not a twenty-year-old's bike."
"K"
Inside the store...."Halloween!  Trick or treat."  So yes, we have to look at every aisle in the holiday section.  That's okay.  I found something I needed for the yard.
Then we proceed to home goods, and Si Guy picks us a new table cloth.  Mission accomplished...except mom remembers the new Rick Riordan book has been released, so we head to the books/magazines.  On the opposite side of the aisle is greeting cards...
"Look, Halloween!"
"Yes..now put them back."
By the time we get out of stuff-mart it's time for lunch.  So we walk/scoot over to the Bell.  We eat inside, and then it's time to head home, walking by the police station and the park on the way.
Once home, I get littlest man set up on the computer and the new tablecloth on the table, and wonder why I didn't get more done that day.