52:48 The Cat Who Sniffed Glue by Lilian Jackson Braun

Who would have ever guessed that Koko's new taste for glue would lead them to discover the identity of the murderer that is killing off the Fitches' of Pickax? Once again, Qwill with the help of Koko and YumYum manages to pick apart the tangled webs of love and danger to solve the case.

52:47 Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips

What happens when you have twelve bored Olympian gods trapped in a small house in London? Lots of bickering, backstabbing, and a rocking good book. What starts out as a minor tiff between Apollo and Aphrodite ends up almost destroying the world and only with the help of Alice (the cleaning lady) and her would-be boyfriend, Niel, does the world survive and the gods see their powers start to revive.

I admit I bought this book just because of the premise, not knowing a darn thing about it but I read it in two days as it was just too fun to put down. The writing was fast-paced and the plot entertaining and I would definitely recommend it for a quick, fun, fluff read.

Current week-end to do list

So far it looks short but it's all time consuming stuff so I have no idea how much I'll actually get done, especially since Mark has 4 computers to fix and wants to get all 3 oil changes done too. So let's write it down here and see how I do, shall we:

• School with Jonathan (2 science, 1 phonics, 2 music)
• Banking (we have deposits to make and the odds owe me some money from their accounts)
• Hair cuts (yes, I'm actually getting ready to bite the bullet and cut Nico's hair for the first time and the other boys all need cuts as well and Chris wants to dye his hair blue which we are still negotiating)
• School paperwork: lesson plans, grade papers
• Desk work: pay bills, June & July Budgets, balance checkbook
• More desk work: weekly menu, grocery game, clip coupons, enter menu into WW, get points sheet for boys printed
• Update wall calendar
• Feb2006Friends graphics: June, July, & August
  
• Make Summer MOTH Schedule
• Make Chore Packs
• Get packages ready to mail: Crystal, Kristine, Kim & Josie
• AYSO ref stuff: emailing/calling about clinic, bug for people to start signing up to ref games
• AYSO board stuff: keep up on the hotline
• Clean and restock little pantry
• Clean out fridge and reorganize
• Clean off breakfast bar (the huge hot spot of my house)
• Clean off desk (ok, I'll totally settle for making a dent on this one *sigh*)
  
• Make list of bigger projects that need to get done this summer and start prioritizing
  
• Not lose any more sanity points (not holding my breath on this one)

The boys also need to work on their room which we currently can not walk in again. I really need to find some time to do that with them but it doesn't look like that's going to happen this weekend.

So now everyone knows, if you don't hear from me for a few days, I haven't dropped off the face of the Earth, I've dug myself a hold too deep for cell signal to penetrate.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend-or a meaningful day.

Ahhh yes, it's soccer time!

Well, the summer soccer season is officially starting and all the joy that comes with it. Being on the board for the AYSO has really made me appreciate how much work it is to pull something like this off and it's amazing how many people volunteer to bust their butts to make soccer happen for the kids on the coast. I just wish we had more people so we could spread things around further, kwim? I took on the job of Ref Admin Assistant last season and have stayed on in that capacity and it's now time for me to start my daily task of nagging asking people nicely to come ref our games. It's not such a huge deal in the summer but the fall is always fun since we need a full complement of refs for the upper division games which leaves us woefully short for the U10s where it's really good to have them so they know what to expect as they head up.

So this weekend I get to spend a few hours emailing and calling everyone to remind them of the upcoming ref clinic and try to get them to sign up for games and then this week we'll go onto the daily fun. I'm just glad the board has approved the use of bribes to entice more people to ref. Here's hoping it helps.

Oh yeah, and just cause I'm that stupid, I've also said I'd help with the region hotline. So far I've dodged the bullet and not had to actually talk to anyone but I'm sure that now they know I'm gong to be more on top of it that won't last long and I'll get to deal with irate parents too. What fun!

I definitely need more chocolate.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
We cannot feel desire and hatred at exactly the same time toward the very same object. We can certainly have those feelings at different times, but not in the very same moment, which shows that these two attitudes function in contradiction to each other. When one of them increases in strength, the other decreases.

52:46 Legends of the Dark Crystal

Yeah, ok, this one is a manga but I figure I don't read that many of them and I'll be reading enough other books that it won't matter if I count this one.

This is a story that takes place 800 years before the movie when there are still villages of Gelflings roaming around but the Skesis have already been rounding them up with the aid of the Garthim. This first installment sees Lahr's and Neffi's villages destroyed but puts them together at a new village that is facing attack. They help the village of Gelflings to defend itself and turn the Garthim back for the first time in history. The question now is what will the Skesis do next?

52:45 Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

Wow! Just an amazing read. Very well written characters and a great plot. Grabbed you as only a werewolf could and didn't let go until you finished. I'm definitely heading to the bookstore when I have a chance to pick up some more of her "Women of the Otherworld" series as this was just a fabulous book. If you like werewolves, run to the store and pick this one up. It's a howling good read!

52:44 Homeschooling with a Meek & Quiet Spirit by Teri Maxwell

While I don't see eye-to-eye with Teri (& Steve) in matters of religion (going to happen between a Jew and a Christian, just kind of one of those things), I really enjoy reading their books. They have btdt and don't hide from the problems they've had but rejoice that they have found some solutions and want to share those solutions and help others. Yes, much of their solutions have come from or been dictated by their faith but there is also so much common sense in what they say. They are patient and understanding in their explanations and sincere in their desire to help others who are going through similar frustrations. No doubt about it, homeschooling is not for the weak of heart. It is a hard task that some of us have felt called to do but so worthwhile in the end but so frustrating in the doing. We love our children, and their love for their children is very clear throughout all the books, but it's a different path than most others choose and leads to a very different set of difficulties for the family, particularly the mother. I appreciate all the help they offer to us.

In specific regards to this book, I really felt very deeply down that she has been through what I'm going through. I actually bought this book at their seminar that I attended and actually "heard" the book in her voice as I was reading it because so much of it was the same as what she covered in the seminar. She is so right on target as to what steals the joy and happiness from the day to day homeschooling journey and has very good ideas on how to bring things back on track. Today of all days, I really needed to hear it and I know that this is a book I will refer back to often.

52:43 Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton

The latest Anita Blake book. I have to say I was much happier with this book than many of the middle books. Like The Harlequin, there is more plot than the previous porn books. The sex is there but not overly done. It seems like LKH has finally found a good balance in Anita's world. The Marmee Noir plot is continuing to move along, slowly, but that's ok. Anita is actually growing a little bit and while we are still rehashing some of the same character points, it seemed like Anita is figuring herself out a bit more so it was ok and not overdone.

All in all, a decent Anita Blake book.

We have molar sighting!

It's so weird. Even after having btdt with 3 older kids, Nico will still manage to make-up his own timetable. In this case, his 2yr molars. Memory tells me that Christopher got his in right around the 2yr mark while Matthew had his in just before turning 2 and Jonathan had his by 20mos. So Nico decided to be different and hold off on things. I've been holding off pushing the weaning until they showed up knowing that if they started popping through while we were weaning, it would just mess things up. I've been checking every chance I get but the little stinker managed to get one almost entirely broken though and another one has a good sized point up when I finally saw them yesterday. Only 3 mos later than I was expecting them to come up. LOL So the bottoms are cut and we now just need to wait on the tops which are likely not far behind (oh please, oh please, oh please) which means that we should be able to get him weaned this summer which is perfect timing as far as I'm concerned. Yeah!!!

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
If we compare the mental and physical levels of happiness, we find that the experiences of pain and pleasure that take place mentally are actually more powerful.

Back from the con!

Exhausting but fun time was had by all but boy is it good to be home. Mona and Julian ended up joining us for the entire convention to help get their mind off the recent loss of his grandmother. It worked out nicely as we had extra hands for Nico duty (always exhausting) which meant that Mark and I actually got some time sans kids.

The 2 oldest were able to gopher for the convention and while neither managed the 18hrs to get next years badge paid for, they both did well and several people commented on how well they behaved. Always nice to hear.

All 4 boys got to go to the boffer wars both nights. The 3 oldest stayed about an hour both times while Nico grew bored after about 20min, or once he figured out that he really wasn't going to get to cause death and destruction but just a parody of it. It was hilarious watching him swinging away at adults on their knees with a sword bigger than he was. I have to admit tho, the boy has talent as some of his moves were right out of a jedi sword fight tho at one point instead of swinging at his opponent, he put down his weapon nicely on a chair and then asked for his opponents only to put that down next to his own before picked up his again and charging back into the frey. I'll have to keep track of his friends to make sure no one starts feeding his ego and turning him farther to the dark side. I think I've got him at least considering a path of light but it wouldn't take much at this point to push him the other direction again. LOL

Mark and Mike held Whiskey Bros. parties Sat and Sun. I was a little nervous for them and I know Mike was very dubious about it but they were a hit and the boys made enough money to cover all their related con expenses, give a nice donation to the Coastside Adult Day Health Center, and rather than try to get any reimbursement for all their additional start-up expenses, they are going to get their paperwork filed for a full business and open their own checking account under the Whiskey Bros. name with the last bit. I'm very proud of them and so happy that things went so well.

So in all, a good con. Now for the fun of unpacking and getting everyone back in the groove.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

Third day down, now getting ready for the weekend

Well, we made it through day 3 with no casualties I'm happy to say. Managed to actually get some schoolwork done before heading out and got to the city early enough that we could walk to one of the chocolate stores before dropping Matthew off for his focus group and finished up with the second store right as Mark arrived. Had dinner with Mike and Rita which would have been more pleasant if a) I hadn't had to take Nico for a 20+ min walk and b) Mark and Mike hadn't been talking Whiskey Bros. crap the entire time. *rolling eyes*

The funny part of the day was getting recognized at both chocolate stores (gee, think I'm there a little too often LOL) and talking to the young woman at Cocoa Bella's about the convention this weekend. She can't make it because of work but will be trying to make the one in October. Small world sometimes. She also asked when I showed up with just 3 what had happened to the other one to which I replied I had sold him into slavery that he was at a focus group and I'd be picking him up later. The nice man at Teuscher's gave the boys a little chocolate bee again as we were getting ready to leave because "they are so well mannered and know how to spend their money so well". Yes, truly, that is what he said.

Matthew had a good time tho and was happy to have some cash in his pocket. He paid me back for his I-cy Penguin and has spending money for the convention this weekend so that's really nice.

Bummer was coming home tho and finding out that the focus group I was supposed to participate in today had their requirements changed by the client (again) so I'm no longer eligible. I was hoping to become a rep for one of those companies where you sell at parties and the money from that would have just covered the start-up costs. There are no other reps in this area that I can find (looking on the company's website) so I was very excited about the opportunity. I'll just have to go easy on the chocolate and books for a month and save it up somehow.

So today is a quieter day trying to finish up the laundry and get a bunch of schoolwork done and then do all the packing tonight since we have to be out of here tomorrow at 9:30a. Tho, then again, I guess quieter depends on your perspective of things. I've already had to strip Nico's bed because he managed to pour his entire cup of tea all over all his bedding so that is in the wash and I've talked to Jonathan's teacher to make sure our attendance will be taken care of tomorrow on time if I forget in the morning since they are running the reports in the afternoon while we'll be on a field trip. The neat thing in that conversation tho was that since Jonathan is doing extended school year and is already past 80% in Math2 (remember, he's in 1st grade currently) that she can order Math3 for him and we can work on it this summer if we choose. I decided to go ahead and have her order it with the understanding that there is no pressure to work on it, it's simply there if we want to but you should have seen the look on his face when he found out that he was getting the next level of Math. LOL

I'm trying to look forward to the convention but it's hard knowing that Mark is going to be working at his party Sat and Sun so our time together will be limited. Since the whole purpose of the party is pouring whiskey and other drinks, it's not really where I want to have the kids hanging out. kwim?

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
Altruism and forgiveness bring humanity together so that no conflict, however serious, will go beyond the bounds of what is truly human.

Second day down, 3 more to go

Ok, two down. Not so bad. I still have all my hair and there seem to still be a few brain cells kicking around so I haven't been banging my head against the wall too much. The whole debacle with the playtest being off and then on again kind of threw things for a loop and we didn't get as much schoolwork done as we should have but them's the breaks. We got out of here around 3p and got Christopher dropped off right on time for his thing. Then I took the other three boys to B&N to exchange Jonathan's book (he bought a 2nd copy of a CG book with his birthday GC, confused yet? LOL) and we ended up spending an hour at the train table upstairs which kept Nico occupied while I talked to a lady who is looking into homeschooling her daughter. The bummer? There were a couple of books I was hoping to find and Nico was completely uncooperative. I know, big surprise there. I did find a couple on the way to check out with Jonathan's new book and with Nico kicking, screaming, and having a total meltdown because train time was over. That was fun.

From there we picked up Mark at work and headed over to Fresh Choice for dinner. Nico, of course, wanted nothing to do with food (did I mention that he didn't nap all day?) and only wanted to get out and run around. Mark took him for a few rides around the restaurant in his high chair during dinner and we managed to get through it all with only a little of his shrieking. I count that as a success.

Oh, wait, it's now 7p! We have several errands to run and need to pick Christopher up in an hour! Time for diving and conquer, a technique you learn well when you have multiple children. We headed to the bank and then Mark dropped me off at Costco to start the shopping there while he took Matthew to go get his red I-cy penguin thing at Target and then went to go pick up Christopher from his playtest. I think he got the way better end of that deal. Yeah, he had to run around more but I got to enjoy trying to push a cart while my hands were constantly being licked or bitten, try grabbing items while Nico managed to continually worm his way out of the straps on the cart no matter how tight I had them, and then throwing the groceries out of the cart. I also got to deal with Jonathan who seemed to be walking around in a clue-free zone all day: walking into people, pushing the cart into people, encouraging Nico's bitting, running right in front of the cart containing 1000lbs of food piled up about 6' (and since I'm only 5'4", yes that means I can't see over it). Oh yeah, good times. Can I do that every day? Please?

We got home around 9:30p and, of course, Nico had fallen asleep in the car. Thankfully he went back to sleep easily after I got him changed and he nursed. I'm not sure my hair would have survived had that not been the case. Mark and the big boys got the groceries in and he got them off to bed though of course they were arguing and bickering when I went to check on them.

So, we survived the second day of this crazy week. I also found out that Jonathan's speech teacher has a memorial service to go to this morning so no speech for him. I'm not happy about the reason she has to miss but my heart isn't breaking about having one less thing going on today. That means I don't have to leave the house until 3:30p when we head up to the city for Matthew's focus group. Of course, the secret reason I was all good with this group is that I get to go chocolate shopping while he's occupied. Mmmmmm...chocolate.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
One can solve a problem quickly with force. At the same time, however, such success is often at the expense of the rights and welfare of others. As a result, even though one problem has been solves, the seed of another has been planted.

Ugh!!! Say what you mean already!

So remember how I was saying Christopher had a playtest on Tuesday? Well, that's because the email I got said "Game Test on Tuesday" and the first line of said email said "Just a reminder about the playtest on Tuesday" but apparently what they really meant was to look at the one place where it said "4 PM – 8 PM Monday, May 19th". I saw all the Tuesday stuff and like a moron did not read every single thing in the email since I was really just scanning emails at that time. If I'd known it was going to be Monday I never would have even bothered signing up for it since I knew Matthew had his Drs appointment which would have interfered with it. As crazy as I am, I know that a 2:30p Drs appointment in one town and a 4p playtest in another town 20 miles away are just not compatible. Especially when you can pretty much guarantee that the Dr will run late as always.

*sigh* So now I have a grumpy teenager on my hands because the last survey he went in for, he was excused because they had enough participants and now this on the dates got messed up. Hate to tell you this buddy, but that's life.

*****UPDATE*****
Just got a phone call from the guy in charge of the playtest to say that the Monday was a mistake and it really is tonight. It's hard to think of when I've seen Christopher happier but suffice-to-say there was much hooting and hollering and jumping around going on here when I relayed the message. So now, commence crazy schedule again.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
We tend to indulge in religious favoritism by saying "I belong to this or that religion," rather than making effort to control our agitated minds. This misuse of religion, due to our disturbed minds, also creates problems sometimes.

One day down...

only another 4 super crazy ones to go before I can rest a bit. Got Jonathan and Nico to therapy this morning, dropped my car off to be smoged, and went to Curves for my workout. Picked up kids, picked up car, went home to try and do a little teaching. Took all the kids out to lunch at BK on the way to the Drs. Spent over an hour at the Drs office (yet again) so they could take an x-ray, tell me everything looked fine, and they hopefully won't see us again. I laughed and told them I'd definitely be back. 4 boys....Jonathan (aka Monkeyboy)....Nico the Destroyer....yeah, I'll be back.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
There are many kinds of violence and nonviolence, but one cannot distinguish them from external factors alone. If one's motivation is negative, the action it produces is, in the deepest sense, violent, even thought it may appear to be smooth and gentle. Conversely, if one's motivation is sincere and positive but the circumstances require harsh behavior, essentially one is practicing nonviolence. No matter what the case may be, I feel that a compassionate concern for the benefit of others, not simply for one's self, is the sole justification for the use of force.

52:42 Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

So I've been hearing a lot about these books on Shelfari and they keep being recommended to me on Amazon since I read LKH so I figured, wth, I'll give them a try. I have to say the first one was ok. Nothing spectacular. I actually had to force myself to keep reading after the first chapter because it was slooooooow and the writing style was grating on my nerves. It did get better towards the middle and the finish was ok so I'll continue to give this series a chance for a few more books to see how things go. I remember I felt the same way about the first Anita Blake book and while I think in some ways the series has now gone downhill and the author lost her way with the character, the middle books were very good and it's showing signs of getting back on track a bit so maybe there is hope for this series too.

52:41 The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare by Lilian Jackson Braun

Lot more going on in this book with a bit more character development on the secondary characters which was refreshing to see. I think having the setting remain the same in a small town is helping the reader get to know the cast of characters better rather than having them change in every book. Now that some of the small town secrets are out, I have to wonder what is going to happen in the next book.

Just how crazy am I?!

You know, I think I'm coming to the realization that I make myself crazier than I need to. I mean I know I'm nuts. Who isn't at least a little nuts with 4 kids, let alone choosing to homeschool them all. I got that. I've always been at least slightly insane and I accepted that long ago and learned to embrace it. It's cathartic really to know that you are crazy and enjoy it rather than struggle to conform to societies expectations. I'm totally down and cool with that.

Now I will admit, when I thought about 4 kids I never imagined homeschooling them all. I always thought I'd be packing them up and shipping them off to public school during the day with a packed lunch and a kiss. I'd clean, volunteer in the classroom, and maybe take some college classes while they were at school but be home in time to pick them up, help with homework, and take them to an after school activity or two. Dinner, bath, and bed to follow promptly.

Well, I knew that things would be very different when we started on the homeschooling path. Gone were the days of shipping the kiddos off and hello to hours of working with them on their schoolwork while trying to figure out how the heck I was going to get the laundry done. I also said hello to a lot more activities in order to keep my kids out and about with other kids who shared similar interests so they wouldn't feel isolated. What I had no idea of at the time was that there would be a fourth entering the picture that would never sleep. It's been a long hard road but one we are sort of fumbling our way through to at least a workable middle ground.

What I never would have imagined entering this year would be how many other things would crop up to keep our lives interesting. Cars breaking down, Drs appointments every month since Sept, broken arms, constant therapy, etc. along with all their fun activities to get them out and about all wreck havoc on trying to have or maintain any type of schedule or keeping up with schoolwork. It's not like we are seriously behind or anything but it's enough that I'm not happy with the progress (we've never been behind like this before so I admit freely that part of its a pride thing) and we are doing extra work whenever possible in order to see that pesky progress bar move a bit faster.

So why on earth would I continue to go out of my way to sign my kids (and myself) up for consumer surveys?! But yet again, I filled things out, answered questions, and got them (and myself) in. But wait, my stupidity knows no bounds. We've got 3 of them this week along with yet another Dr. appointment and a field trip! I can't plead ignorance on any of this. I had plenty of foreknowledge on the field trip and Dr appointment but when I got the call for Christopher to participate on Tues, I said sure. We can handle that. It's a little crazy but it shouldn't be a problem. Then I found out about a digital photography focus group for moms ages 25-35 with a child under 3 (hmmm...sound familiar?) for Thursday. They had filled their quota by the time I called in but then they called later and said they suddenly had an opening. Hey, I could use $125 for 2hrs of my time. Who couldn't? (well, obviously someone who is used to making $100/hr but that's not me) So I said sure, I'll do it. And then I found out the time of it. Late afternoon, before Mark can get home. We are still trying to figure out how we are going to make it work but we will. But the kicker comes when I see in my inbox today that there is a focus group for Matthew's age on Wednesday. Our only day without something out of the ordinary happening. So what do I do? I fill in the questionnaire and send it in. Of course he got accepted.

So if you see me at Baycon and wonder why I'm drooling on myself, you know the answer. I fully expect the men in the nice white coats to pick me up there.

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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
We believe that there are four types of rebirth. The third is one who, due to past spiritual attainment, can choose, or at least influence, the place and situation of rebirth. The fourth is called a blessed manifestation. In this the person is blessed beyond his normal capacity to perform helpful functions, such as teaching religion. For this last type of birth, the person's wishes in previous lives to help others must have been very strong. They obtain such empowerment.

52:40 The High King by Lloyd Alexander

The conclusion to the Chronicles of Prydain. Arawn has stolen Drnwyn, Gwydion's power sword, and is launching a full out assault on Prydain in an effort to bend all to his will. Taran, Gwydion, and all the rest must recover the sword and bring the battle to Annuvin and Arawn himself if the race of men is to remain free. Will Taran and his friends conquer the enchantments of evil and if so, what will the final cost be?

Truly an amazing end to the series. Riveting and powerful, Alexander brings home the culmination of Taran's growth into a man and the horrors of war while putting every character deeply into the hearts of those who read this series.

A full moon every night at my house

Ahhhh...yes. 2yrs old...the age of undressing. Nico has figured out how to get off his diaper and is now rapidly figuring out how to strip off just about everything else, even overalls. So we are now in the age of the constant full moon. And of course, thanks to his brothers, he insists on shaking his booty as soon as it's naked. Doesn't matter if the diaper he just removed reminds one of the Bog of Eternal Stench, he's still gonna shake it at you, again and again and again.

The new twist on this (since as we all know, Nico must do something new to all the age old tricks) is that he is also learning the fine art of pantsing his brothers, particularly Jon. I can see this going over really well at Park Day.

Ahh...the joys of raising streakers.

Freaking hot!!!

Just not used to this type of heat where we live so it's beastly. I ended up freezing a bunch of otter pops and juice pops for tomorrow since it's supposed to be at least this hot again and sent the boys out in the backyard in their swim suits to go play in the wading pool while I made ice tea. With the help of our fans and open windows, we are surviving but oh, man, is it HOT!

The one nice thing tho is the the heat wave is that the warm air currents produced the most amazing sunset last night. I was able to grab my camera and get a few shots so I played around a bit with my white balancing:





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Insight from the Dalai Lama:
If you and I find common ground as human beings, we will communicate on a basic level. If I say, "I am a monk," or "I am a Buddhist," these are in comparison to my nature as a human being, temporary. To be human is basic, the foundation from which we all arise. You are born as a human being, and that cannot change until death. All else - whether you are educatred or uneducated, young or old, rich or poor - is secondary.