What the What?

I Salute You!

2009-09-28T09:11:00.002-06:00

In Kindergarten Aidan has learned the salute to the country flag and the state flag. He does the state flag salute in English and Spanish.

First Day of Kindergarten

2009-09-01T10:02:00.003-06:00

Aidan's Fathers Day Card

2009-06-18T14:30:00.002-06:00

Click on the image for notes.

The Gummy Bear Song

2009-06-18T13:27:00.002-06:00

Thanks from a tip from California Slims (Cousin Simon) Aidan is obsessed with this video:

I don't get it and it hurts my brain. Aidan sings along and does all of the moves. He'll say, "You don't like it, but it sounds good to me." So the other day after singing along to the video for 10 minutes or so we had this exchange:
Aidan: Mommy, are we going to have a singing contest?
I have no idea where he even heard of such a thing.
Mommy: I'm not sure, do you wan to have one?
Aidan: Yes!
Mommy: Ok. I'll be on the lookout for one.
Aidan: Do you know what I'm gonna sing?
Mommy: Singing in the Rain?
Aidan: No, I'm going to sing the Gummy Bear Song. It will be totally hilarious. No one's ever heard that song before.
He then shows me his act. It's pretty good. I'm trying to get a video of it.

GORGAK

2009-06-17T14:50:00.002-06:00

Gorgak is a popular name in our house. It's from Futurama. In Futurama it's the name of the Prime Minister of Trisol (My Three Suns). In our house you get called a Gorgak if you're being a grumpy guy or acting jerky. It's a pretty useful word when explaining someones actions. It doesn't mean that you're a bad person, it just means that you're acting a little monstery.

Mommy: How was camp today?
Aidan: Nice, but Oliver was being a Gorgak.
Mommy: Yeah, sometimes he can be a Gorgak. Did he get better?
Aidan: He started to be nice, so he wasn't a Gorgak anymore.

Mommy: Have fun at school. Don't be a Gorgak.
Aidan: I wont.

Aidan: I want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Daddy: I love peanut butter and jellyfish sandwiches.
Aidan: It's peanut butter and jelly. You were wrong. (teasing) You are a Gorgak.
Mommy: That proves it.

Backyard Rainbows

2009-06-16T14:09:00.002-06:00

Something out of Nothing 2

2009-06-16T11:14:00.007-06:00

Aidan wanted to have a Titanius Anglesmith (Fancyman of Cornwood) costume for Bender. He wanted this:

He got this:

Blog? What blog?

2009-06-11T10:00:00.001-06:00

Oh how I have neglected my blog. Aidan hasn't been any less adorable or hilarious so I've got a stockpile of stories.
Aidan is really into the Futurama movie Bender's Game and has been quoting from it liberally. Here's a conversation we had while playing in the car (with the car parked in the driveway):

Aidan: We're going on an adventure.
Mommy: Watch out for the other cars.
Aidan: (leaning out the window and yelling at fictional traffic) Hey you. Don't crash my car! You are no match for my dragon style!

More snippets:

Aidan: (closing the air vents in the car) I'm turning off the oxygen.
Mommy: What's oxygen.
Aidan: The stuff you can breathe.

Mommy is laying down and daddy jokingly sits on her stomach,
Aidan: Daddy get off of mommy. You'll smush her bowels.

Aidan's Favorite Cartoon

2009-04-16T14:25:00.003-06:00

He loves this cartoon and can recite and act out the whole thing. My favorite lines that Aidan says are:
"Thanks for the sour persimmons cousin" and "Gee that's swell. Ho ho ho that's rich I'll say."

I'm Not Immune

2009-04-16T12:39:00.001-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Quickie

2009-04-16T11:31:00.002-06:00

Aidan bonked his head and said,
"Mommy, I just hurt my ideas."

Aidan Writes his name

2009-03-17T15:09:00.003-06:00

It's Snowing

2009-03-13T12:49:00.003-06:00

Weird, but beautiful!

Treat Yourself

2009-03-09T09:55:00.002-06:00

I am a low maintenance gal. If it takes me longer than 10 minutes to get ready in the morning, I'm doing something wrong. This is why I love mineral makeup. It makes everything so much quicker and easier. I recently came across this new brand that I am loving. It's called Everyday Minerals. They have a billion base shades and 4 different finishes. In addition to quick and easy, I love FREE. These guys are combining all of my loves. They are currently offering a free sample kit. This includes 3 foundations of your choosing, a blush, and a concealer. This is a great way to find your shade or just experiment with different finishes. C'mon ladies, 5 pieces, sample size of course, for free. You do have to pay shipping, which for me was $3.13. Totally worth it. So, treat yourself.

Martha Speaks

2009-02-12T10:16:00.002-07:00

It's not all Futurama. Aidan thinks this PBS show is really funny. He especially loves the theme song:

It's his morning wake-up show. Something about the talking dog strikes him funny.

What I've Read

2009-02-11T09:40:00.000-07:00

It’s been forever since I updated my reading list. Here's what I can remember. Bear with me:
My rating System:
*****Lawrence Block and Ross Macdonald (THE BEST OF THE BEST)
****Double Thumbs (GREAT!)
***I liked it (GOOD)
**It's not that bad (OK)
*It's Bothering me (BAD)

*** Summer of Fear by T. Jefferson Parker
**** L.A. Outlaws by T. Jefferson Parker
**** Silent Joe by T. Jefferson Parker
*** The Blue Hour by T. Jefferson Parker
*** I'm The One That I Want by Margaret Cho
***1/2 Redwall by Brian Jacques
**** Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher
**** When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
*****Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling (A reread, but totally great)
**** The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
**** The Deep Blue Goodbye by John D. MacDonald
*** A Purple Place for Dying by John D. MacDonald
**** Nightmare in Pink by John D. MacDonald
*** Bright Orange For the Shroud by John D. MacDonald
****1/2 The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly
***1/2 The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
*** Mattimeo by Brian Jacques

Something out of Nothing

2009-02-06T11:29:00.018-07:00

My special skill is the ability to create something out of nothing. If I want to make a a second hanging bar in my son's closet, I am able to make one using things found around the house (PVC pipe, thick wire and clamps). Done and done. If I want to make a curtain for my son's theater I'm making, I use an old duvet cover, wire and screws. Beautiful. It's my gift. I find joy out of not having to buy anything to make my project happen. The other key is being able to produce the final project in 10 minutes or so. Being painstaking takes all of the fun out of it. My son has figured out this gift and he abuses it to the fullest. He'll say, "mom, can I have an antenna like Bender?" I'll say, "probably" and then I'll figure it out (headband, aluminum foil, a ping pong ball and a glue gun). Adorable. Lately he's been having me outfit his Futurama characters. His favorite episode lately is "Less Than Hero" when Leela, Fry and Bender become superheroes. His favorite is Bender's character, Super King, pictured here:

He asked me to make a crown for Bender and using things around the house this is what I came up with in about 10 minutes:

Materials used: Sequins, old burgundy pants, old dalmatian puppet and gold material.

Aidan was thrilled. It's fun to be creative with my son. He believes that I can make anything. The other day he asked for a marionette. I told him I didn't know if I could do it. He said, "Sure you can. All you need is string and some plastic." I ended up putting embroidery floss on a long limbed stuffed animal and that worked just fine. No plastic necessary.

After the the Super King success, Aidan wanted me to come up with a costume for Fry when he is Emperor:

This took about 5 minutes:

Materials used: old burgundy pants (I always mine the Goodwill bag for material), sequins and gold material.

Knitting

2009-02-05T09:59:00.018-07:00

I’ve been knitting a lot lately, but I can’t remember the last time I knit something for myself. I mostly knit or crochet for others. These have been my projects in the last 2 months. There has been this for my mother in law:

Four different variations of this for ladies in my life:

Two of these:

A pair of these:

A set of these guys:

And countless scarves of my own design. I don't think I've knit anything for myself in years and when I did I'm sure it was something simple, like a scarf. I was just about to cast on a project for my nephew when I came across this pattern (sorry Slims) :

I had to have it. For me and only me! I've decided to knit it with this:

A nice deep black cotton so I can wear it everyday. I can be an ambitious knitter, but never have I taken on a project like this for myself. I cast on last night. It feels good to be selfish.

Snippets

2009-01-22T09:50:00.003-07:00

Aidan is showing me his backside,
Mommy: What is this?
Aidan: It's my butt.
Mommy: What do you want me to do about it?
Aidan: Get some underwear for it.

*

Mommy: Aidan, could you turn that light off for me?
Aidan: (exasperated) Very well.

*

Aidan in bed,
Aidan: Mommy, I need some lovings.
Mommy: Where?
Aidan: Everywhere. C'mon, let's snuggle.

*

Watching Wall E
Daddy: There's the captain. What's his name? Captain Flabs?
Aidan: No, it's Captain Boneloss.

*

After brushing his teeth,
Aidan: Mommy look at my teeth! They're all clean and sparkly!

*

Playing with a light saber,
Aidan: I'm gonna get 23rd century on your ass!
Mommy: Aidan, don't say ass.
Aidan: But ass is funny.
Mommy: It's a naughty word and people don't like to hear it. Especially from a little boy.
Aidan: Ok. I'm going to get 23rd century on your (pauses for an acceptable substitution to ass) giblets.

My End of the Day Boost

2009-01-14T15:38:00.000-07:00

Aidan's Round Table

2009-01-13T09:13:00.003-07:00

An actual conversation over dinner last night:
Daddy: Aidan, who is our President?
Aidan: George W. Bush. He's bad.
Mommy: Yeah, I don't think he's been a very good president.
Aidan: Me either. He talks bad.
Mommy: Yep, and he doesn't have good ideas.
Aidan: No he doesn't. Obama has the good ideas.
Mommy: Yes, that's why I voted for him.
Aidan: Me too.
Mommy: He's going to be our president soon, in 8 days.
Aidan: Yay 8 days!
Mommy: Bush's turn is almost all done.
Aidan: And then Obama gets a turn. Daddy calls him Barack Obama, but we just call him Obama.

Toilet

2009-01-12T11:36:00.002-07:00

Aidan has created a new game called "Toilet." It's easy and fun. The rules are simple, someone flushes the toilet (after being used) and whoever is playing (usually mommy and Aidan) run for high ground. This means we usually jump onto a bed or a couch. We have to make it to high ground before the flushing cycle stops making noise. If we don't make it in time, then we lose. If we do make it, then we are winners in the game of toilet. That is how you play Toilet Classic. There is a new version that I'm naming Extreme Toilet. This is when the toilet flushes when you aren't expecting it. It usually takes Aidan a few seconds to hear the flush and then call, "Quick Toilet!" This is the call to high ground and you better be quick. I suggest you try it, it's gonna be huge.

Playing Favorites

2008-12-19T12:42:00.003-07:00

This shouldn't make my day, but it does.
I went to Aidan's school this morning to deliver some Christmas gifts for his teachers. They were nice handmade scarves (perfect for a cash-strapped mom). I thanked the teachers and told them how much we appreciate all that they have done for us. The Head Teacher took me aside and told me how great Aidan is and how much he is progressing. Then she told me that "even though I love all of my students, Aidan has a very special place in my heart." Yay, he's a favorite. This shouldn't bring me joy, but it does. Aidan is the favorite of the class. He's totally great and it's nice when other people acknowledge it!

Outer Space

2008-11-25T09:21:00.002-07:00

Aidan and I went in the front yard last night. We live in a very dark neighborhood (no streetlights) with virtually no pollution so at night the sky is littered with stars. It's really beautiful. It led to this exchange:
Aidan: Mommy, when the sun goes down our planet is in outer space.
Mommy: I know. The sky looks really neat.
Aidan (to the sky and loudly) HELLO OUTER SPACE. I'M AIDAN AND THIS IS EARTH.
Mommy: Aidan not so loud, our neighbors are sleeping.
Aidan: (whispering) Goodnight outer space.

Babies

2008-11-24T08:43:00.002-07:00

Aidan and I were driving in the car and had this fun exchange:
This song was playing on the radio, check out the wonderfully dated "video"

Mommy: Aidan, when mommy and daddy got married we had a party. This was the first song we danced to after we were married.
Aidan: Yeah, you had a big party and you ate lots and lots of food. When you went home you found out you were pregnant.
Mommy: Because of the food?
Aidan: Yeah. Then when I was big enough you went to the hospital and BAM, Aidan. You were so happy to meet me.
Mommy: I sure was.

Obsessed

2008-11-21T13:26:00.002-07:00

This is what I've been doing nonstop for the last three days:

obsessed

I refresh it every 5 minutes. I can't let the election go.

The Grumpies

2008-11-21T13:20:00.003-07:00

Aidan: Mommy I'm feeling grumpy.
Mommy: I think it's because you're hungry. Let go get some food.
While eating dinner
Aidan: My grumpies are going away.
Mommy: That's great.
Aidan: Yeah. My grumpies went out of me. They went over my brain and then out of my ear.

Halloween

2008-11-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

Quickie

2008-10-27T14:27:00.001-06:00

Aidan: I need to take these jammies off. They're freaking me out.
Mommy: Freaking you out?
Aidan: (taking off said jammies) Yes, see (showing me the jammies). They freaked me out.

Hurty

2008-10-09T13:02:00.003-06:00

Aidan hurt his finger yesterday. He was closing a door while his hand was on the floor. The bottom of the door scraped his middle finger. Boy was he pissed. It hurt and he cried and cried. As I comforted him we had this sweet exchange:

Aidan: Mommy, my finger is so sad!
Mommy: How about some medicine, that will help the pain.
Aidan: No mommy, my finger doesn't have a fever.

Scary Uncle

2008-10-07T11:04:00.001-06:00

I've been slacking on my tales of woe. It was a really bizarre week where bad things kept happening. Where we last left off, I had just lost my horrible job and was looking for another one. My parents were visiting me from California which eased the pain...

So, my parents drive home on Saturday. Aidan was sad, well devastated is more like it. He was teary all day. He loves his Nonna and Papa a lot. It was a dreary day all around. We picked up Ratatouille at the video store as a pick me up. So Aidan's watching the movie and the phone rings. I NEVER answer the phone, but for some reason I did. (names are changes to protect the scary):
Me: Hello
lady: Hi, are you Karen Smith?
Me: (reluctantly) yeeessss
lady: Hi, my name is Jessica and I work at the County Assessors office in Santa Barbara County.
Me: Okaaaayyyyy.
Jessica: Do you have a relative named Ronald Smith?

Me: Noooo, oh wait.

I do have a relative named Ronald Smith. It took me a few seconds to remember it. He's my scary uncle. Now it's my theory that everyone has a scary uncle, well Ronny was mine. He's kind of my double scary uncle. He's my dad's brother and he was also married to my mother's sister. Weird stuff. My father was never fond of his brother, so they never spent much time together. Ronny was a loud, fat, drunk and boorish man. I never spent much time with him, but when I did, I was very uncomfortable. He could be funny and nice, but he always seemed like the crazy was about to explode out of his brain. He had two kids and I liked my cousins, but I never saw them. I don't even remember them being at our house and I think I was at their house once. The only time I saw that family was on Thanksgiving at my grandmothers house. Our sole relationship was passing the turkey.

Me: Oh wait, I have an uncle named Ronald Smith.

Jessica: Are you aware that he has passed away?

Me: No, I didn't know that.

Jessica went on to verify some personal information just to be sure we were talking about the same Ronald Smith. We were.

Jessica: Well, the reason I'm calling is that he passed over two months ago and nobody has claimed the body.

Me: Excuse me? Nobody knows he's dead?

Jessica: That's right. We're trying to track down his next of kin. Did he have any?

This is so weird. Uncle Ronny died within 20 miles of his children, his sister and his nieces and his nephew. He was geographically close to the bulk of his family, but nobody knew.

Me: How did you track me down? I can't imagine my name is associated with his on any document. (Did he use me as a reference on a boat loan?)

Jessica: I did a search on the last name with association in California and your name came up all the way in New Mexico.

Me: Weird, so you weren't able to find family in California?

Jessica: No, does he have any?

Me: Well his two kids and his sister live nearby. Also my dad is his older brother and he's in California as well.

Jessica: Oh that's great. I need to get the family informed so we can figure out what to do with the body. It's been at a mortuary for 65 days.

She wanted my dads number, so I gave it to her. She said she would follow up with him directly. Fine with me. I had no intentions of claiming the body.

That was one of the weirdest phone calls I'd ever received. So now I have to call my dad to tell him that his brother is dead. I wasn't sure how he was going to take this. They weren't in contact and I personally hadn't seen him in over 10 years, but you never know. But before I called my dad, I talked to every public agency in Santa Barbara County to try to learn the cause of death. Being the niece, I'm essentially a nobody. No one wanted to give me the information. It wasn't until I called the morgue that I learned what happened. My Uncle Ronny died (at age 60) of septic shock brought on by pneumonia. He also had a heart condition and a destroyed liver due to alcoholism. He was in the hospital for a couple of days before he died and no one knew that he had family around. He clearly wasn't close to any of his family, even his children had no idea he had died.

Now laden with information, I had to call my dad to break the news. He was in the car driving home to California (an arduous 12 hour drive). He took it in stride. He wasn't particularly moved by the information. He thought it was sad that his brother died alone, but it was a situation that was created solely by the actions of Uncle Ronny. He wasn't a great guy. He was a criminal and treated people badly. I don't blame people for not wanting to be around him. But still, it's sad to die alone.

That's my Scary Uncle story, probably not worth the wait, but I must purge my tales of woe. Up next...Rattlesnake.

More knock knock fun

2008-09-18T09:21:00.005-06:00

Aidan was riffing on some knock knock jokes:
Aidan: Knock knock
Mommy: Who's there?
Aidan: Banana
Mommy: Banana who?
Aidan: Banana head!

Aidan: Knock knock
Mommy: Who's there?
Aidan: Banana
Mommy: Banana who?
Aidan: Knock knock
Mommy: Who's there?
Aidan: Orange
Mommy: Orange who?
Aidan: Orange I didn't say banana!

Poetry

2008-09-18T09:21:00.002-06:00

Aidan has the new Classical Baby DVD: The Poetry Show. I highly recommend the whole Classical Baby series. Aidan has watched it several times and has come away with it with an interest in poetry. I have an anthology of children's poetry and rhymes and I read him several a day. His favorite, by far, is Edward Lear's The Owl and the Pussycat:
I
The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are,
You are,
You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!'

II
Pussy said to the Owl, 'You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?'
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.

III
'Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.'
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.

Aidan has me read it over and over. His favorite part is when the pussycat calls the owl an "elegant fowl." All last night he was saying, "Mommy, you elegant fowl!"

Aidan's first knock knock joke

2008-09-17T11:44:00.002-06:00

You all know the classic knock knock joke that goes like this:
Knock, Knock!
Who's there?
Banana.
Banana who?
Knock, Knock!
Who's there?
Banana.
Banana who?
Knock, Knock!
Who's there?
Orange.
Orange who?
Orange ya glad I didn't say banana?!

Here's Aidan's version:
Knock knock
Who's there?
Banana.
Banana who?
Knock knock
Who's there?
Orange.
Orange who?
Orange banana!

Frankly I like his version better

A hot tip from Nonna

2008-09-16T09:03:00.001-06:00

A great website gets even greater:

Free Rice

Routines

2008-09-12T08:52:00.005-06:00

Aidan has this routine when drinking out of his sippy cup. He twirls his hair while he drinks. Last night he had a sippy cup right after his bath and his hair was wet. He had his cup, but he didn't drink. He was watching a night night show (Futurama) so I figured he was hypnotized. About a minute later he said:

Aidan: Mommy, I'm going to wait for my hair to dry so I can drink my baba.

Mommy: Why is that?

Aidan: Because I swirl my hair when I drink and it's too wet now.

Mommy: That's right, you twirl your hair when you drink.

Aidan: Yeah, that's what I like to do.

He knows what he likes.

Do you Walk?

2008-09-11T09:13:00.003-06:00

I walk. I'm a walker. I work downtown, so I walk a lot of my errands. I walk to the post office, the library and to lunch. I like to know the mileage I've walked, and I sometimes drive my car on the route to check the mileage. Now I've found the perfect website. It's the website that I've always wanted, but didn't know existed. Map My Walk awesomely lets you draw your walking route and then it calculates the mileage for you. I walked .34 miles to Kinko's and back this morning, good to know.

Feeling Down?

2008-09-10T08:27:00.002-06:00

I have a surefire way to knock the blues right out of you. I guarantee that if you sing the backup part of this song you wont feel bad anymore. It's important to sing it as loudly as possible (in the car is ideal). The video is a little creepy. Please avert your eyes when Huey Lewis looks into the camera and says, "I wanna love you all over." You may have to bathe your eyes in holy water.

Feel better now?

The Cat

2008-09-09T09:42:00.005-06:00

Yes, the cat. His name is constantly evolving. Here's the evolution as it stands now:
Snaz
Sniz
Snizzles
Berlioz
Snizzle Bizzles
Ickle Bizzles
Icky Bizzles
Little Icky Bizzles or Little Icky Biz or just plain Bizzles

That's what we call him now, Little Icky Bizzles. He's a clever cat. We let him go outside once or twice a day. Aidan calls these his adventures, "Mommy, Bizzles wants to go on an adventure." And we let him out. Lately he's been bringing back a "present" everyday. He's brought home 2 grasshoppers, 3 lizards and 2 field mice. They're all alive of course. So far we've managed to let the "presents" free before god knows what. We live in a fairly rural environment. We see owls, snakes, quail, rabbits and coyotes regularly in our neighborhood. I'm just waiting for the time Bizzles shows up with a coyote in his mouth.

Here's Bizzles on our back wall looking for prey:

What I've Read

2008-09-08T08:26:00.003-06:00

My rating System:
*****Lawrence Block and Ross Macdonald (THE BEST OF THE BEST)
****Double Thumbs (GREAT!)
***I liked it (GOOD)
**It's not that bad (OK)
*It's Bothering me (BAD)

I have this habit of picking an author and reading all of their books from first to last. I've done this with Lawrence Block, Tony Hillerman, Ross Macdonald, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Sue Grafton and so on. I've enjoyed reading books this way. But lately I've been reading authors that are good, not great. The latest author I've been reading is Ian Rankin. He's good:

*** Strip Jack by Ian Rankin
*** The Black Book by Ian Rankin
*** Mortal Causes by Ian Rankin
See, good, but not great. Then, one of my favorite authors came out with a new book and reminded me what great was:
***** Hit and Run by Lawrence Block
And it occurred to me, why am I wasting time reading authors that are merely good. I need to find great again. I need to find the kind of book that I can't put down and that I bring in the car with me so I can read at red lights. I love having a book like that. I decided to give Ian Rankin a rest and try out some new authors and and old stand by. I've been fairly successful:
**** Down River by John Hart
**** The Triggerman's Dance by T. Jefferson Parker
**** Cold Pursuit by T. Jefferson Parker
***1/2 Where Serpents Lie by T. Jefferson Parker

Dinnertime

2008-08-26T19:22:00.002-06:00

Aidan: Mommy, I'm gonna eat you up.
Mommy: I'm not for dinner.
Aidan: Yes, I will put ketchup on you and you will be my dinner.
He pretends to eat Mommy.
Mommy: What do I taste like?
Aidan: You're juicy and predictable. Like an apple.
Predictable?

Favorite Olympic Moments Part 2

2008-08-15T11:51:00.002-06:00

My favorite Olympian-
I don't know why, but I love me some Michael Johnson. Here are a few things I like about him:
-For his final races in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, he wore custom made golden shoes. He donated one of them to charity in 2000.
-He looks like an unlikely sprinter with his upright style and short quick strides, but he's fun to watch.
-He won a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics in the 4x400m relay. In 2008, after learning that his teammates in the relay had admitted to using steroids, he voluntarily returned his medal. He was never implicated and never tested positive, but since he was the only clean racer on the team, he felt betrayed and didn't think it was right to keep the medal. Classy.
Let's go to the tape.
Here he is winning the 400m in Atlanta. Notice his gold shoes and how he blows the field away:

Here he is breaking the world record in the 200m in Atlanta. Again he blows the field away:

Favorite Olympic Moments Part 1

2008-08-14T11:06:00.002-06:00

Get out your tissues, these are good ones.
Remember the 1992 Barcelona Olympics? British runner Derek Redmond was favored to medal in the Men's 400 m. About a quarter of the way through the semi-finals, his hamstring tore. He goes down, the stretcher bearers run on the track, but he decides he wants to finish the race. He gets up, clearly in pain, and limps to the finish. Not tearing up yet? As he nears the finish line, his father runs to the track and assists him the rest of the way. He finishes, with a snapped hamstring, to a standing ovation. If this doesn't make you tear up, then you have a cold black heart and you can't be helped.

Okay crybabies, ready for the next one.
Kerri Strug, Atlanta Olympics 1996. The American women were in the lead for the team gold medal, it would be their first gold ever in that event. But then Dominique Moceanu fell on her two vaults. The last vaulter to go was Kerri Strug. She needed to nail her vault for the women to win. On the landing of her first vault she fell and hurt her ankle. She had to go again. On a bad ankle (she was later treated at the hospital for a severe lateral sprain and tendon damage) she attempted her next vault. It was great, and she landed on one foot. It scored a 9.712. She was hurt so bad that she couldn't make it off the mat without help. The women went on to win their first ever team gold in gymnastics.

Olympic Fever

2008-08-12T09:37:00.003-06:00

I am knee deep in Olympic land. I love the Olympics. I love everything about them. I love that India won it's first gold medal (shooting) and that Togo one its first medal ever (single kayak). I also love that Michael Phelps is kicking ass all over the place. I'm easily moved by feats of greatness and sportsmanship and that's what the Olympics are all about. Did you see the Opening Ceremonies? It was far and away the greatest ever. It was incredible. I honestly can't get enough. If you're not watching, you probably should be. Great things are happening. If you've been living under a rock, check out this video. It's honestly one of the most amazing Olympic moments ever:

Men's 4X100 Relay

Since I've come down with Olympic Fever I can't be bothered to write about anything else. So I'm starting a new series, "My Favorite Olympic Moments." You'll indulge me won't you? It's a very serious disease.

Futuramaisms

2008-08-08T10:06:00.002-06:00

The kid loves Futurama, what can I do.

Mommy: I have to go to the store, I'll be right back.
Aidan: I want to go.
Mommy: No, you have to stay here because Grandma is coming to see you.
Aidan: Oh, I'm boned!

Randomly while playing with his Bender toy:
Aidan: That's not a monster, that's my ass.
and
Aidan: Yeah, like you don't have crap in your neck.

Fortunately he only uses language like that when he's quoting Bender.

Levity

2008-08-08T08:56:00.002-06:00

Aidan: Mommy, I love Sniz.
Mommy: I know, he loves you too.
Aidan: He scratches and bites.
Mommy: That's how he plays. How do you think cats show love?
Aidan: (thinking) Well, I like to pretend that he loves me.
Mommy: He does loves you. He purrs when he's happy. That's how he shows love.
Aidan: Oh

My new obsession

2008-08-06T14:38:00.002-06:00

An obsession that's a good cause:

Free Rice

I'm obsessed with the vocabulary level. I read that it's rare for people to score over 50, so of course that's my goal. My highest level is 46. It drives me batty that I can't get past it.

Unemployment

2008-08-04T08:57:00.002-06:00

Time to continue the tales of woe-

So. I worked for a venture capital company for 5 years. It was a particularly weird place to work, but it suited me. They treated me well. They were a lucrative company and they tended to throw money around. This was great because sometimes they threw the money at me. We had fancy black tie parties, catered breakfasts every Friday, field trips and so on. They were also really flexible with my schedule. When I came back to work from maternity leave, they promoted me and allowed me to work 30 hours a week and still retain my medical benefits. I could also bring Aidan to work, which was a great perk. Sounds great doesn't it? Well it didn't take me long to realize that the reason the company was so generous with money and perks was that the CEO, we'll call him Henry, was truly and clearly insane. I've unofficially diagnosed him with Narcissistic Personality Disorder. He's brutish and abusive and as it turned out, a horrible businessman. As the company had tons of money, we could afford to have principal employees who would guide his business decisions. As the money began to dwindle, so did the principal employees. This left Henry to make the majority of the company's decisions and ultimately to the company's undoing.

It was very strange to work for someone with essentially no conscience. I could regale you with stories of working with this madman, like the time he held a company meeting in his house wearing only a polo shirt and underwear or the multiple times he went hunting and had his taxidermied trophies delivered to the office and then hung them on the walls or all the times he made people cry in his office. I'll save those stories for later.

This work environment also affected the other employees. Either Henry attracted morally bankrupt people or after years of working for such a man, their moral compass began to shift. In my five years we caught 2 employees in my office embezzling money. One embezzled 10K while the other embezzled 140K. This is an office of 15 people, so we were all pretty close. It was shocking to learn of these crimes.

Things took a turn at the office about halfway through my tenure. Henry was always nuts, but he began to be nuts with the company's money. He started to spend his money on extravagant hunting trips to Africa and he bought a gun company in another state. No money was coming in at this point. The tens of millions of dollars that were in the bank were spent in 3 years. We poured at least 10 million dollars into this gun company and then it had to file for bankruptcy. He's still holding onto it even though it's a money pit.

For the last year I was the sole accounting department. I was privy to all the banking information. I could easily see that there was no money left in the accounts. We would typically have $500 total in cash. This is a company whose rent was nearly 11K a month. When payroll rolled around, Henry would beg, borrow and steal to cover it. He cashed out his 401k, borrowed money from friends, took money from the gun company, he refinanced his home loan and he even forged his wife's signature so he could take out a loan in her name. He was always able to make payroll, but just barely and this also meant that there was no money to pay anything else. The loans he took out never got paid and all of the essential office bills were paid at the last possible moment. Rent wasn't getting paid, his RV was repossessed, and the company's Amex bill was defaulted on. It became an incredibly stressful place to work. There was no money, so employees were getting laid off. What was a company of 15 employees became a company of 3. Our jobs were basically fending off creditors, begging for our medical insurance to be paid and commiserating in each others offices.

The writing was on the wall for over a year. I knew that at some point, Henry wouldn't be able to pay me and I would be out of there. I was surprised that I was actually one of the last three standing. Thinking about how toxic a place it was to work, I shouldn't have been reluctant to leave, but I was. I was paralyzed into inactivity. I was prepared to go down with the ship, but the ship kept puttering along in a really painful and depressing way. About a week before I was "let go" I started sending out my resume.

In an odd set of circumstances, see "hospital" post, my parents were in town for a visit. They arrived on Friday and I was let go on Monday. It was weird and depressing and the unknown is always frightening. I spent that week with my son and parents and I sent out resumes to any job I was qualified for. It was great to have my parents in town. What makes them great is that they worry about me the right amount. They're not nonchalant and they don't panic. They are appropriate with their concern, which makes me feel good. They know that I'll be OK and that I'll make the right choices. Their confidence in me was a real boost during that week. I'd love to tell you how it turned out, but I'm writing my tales of woe chronologically, and coming up next is-
Scary Uncle

State your name and butt!

2008-08-01T12:21:00.004-06:00

If this video isn't working, try this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_Jh1EKTTYo

Robot update

2008-07-18T08:48:00.002-06:00

So last night Aidan said,
"Mommy, could you put that movie on with the robots." and to preempt me he added, "It's great, it's beautiful!" I put on a DVD of shorts. After watching it for a minute or two he said, "Mommy, can I see when they are in the spaceship." Which means the opening credits. The shorts didn't have the opening credits and apparently he remembered this part from the one time he saw it the day before. Crazy.

Robots

2008-07-17T11:21:00.006-06:00

I know I promised more tales of woe, but those aren't fun to write. Instead I'll write about Aidan's love of robots (it knows no bounds.) His favorite robot is that lovable scamp Bender:

Isn't he cute? Aidan loves this guy. His love for Bender has translated to other robots. His latest

robot buddy is Wall E. I took him to see the movie and we loved it (****!).

Well his robot love took an odd turn yesterday. I received some birthday presents in the mail

yesterday from my lovely sister (thanks!),

Mommy: Look Aidan, I got some birthday presents from my sister, your Aunt Julie.

Aidan: Oh yeah...why?

Mommy: Because she loves me.

Aidan: I love her too.

Mommy: (reading the card) It's from Aunt Julie, Uncle Michael and Simon.

Aidan: Yeah, Simon is my Big Face.

Anyway. One of the gifts was a Mystery Science Theater 3000 video. Aidan saw the robots on the cover and demanded we watch the movie. These guys:

So I put the movie on. It's totally not anything that kids would be interested in, but those damn robots are there. I had to leave it on for the entire 2 hours. He wouldn't let me stop it or put something else on. He wasn't even watching it. He just wanted to know that it was on. The first time I changed the channel he protested,

Aidan: No mommy, put it back.

Mommy: But Aidan, it's not that great.

Aidan: No, it is great! It is.

So I had to put it back. Every time I changed the channel he would say, "mommy, it's great. It's really great. See the robots." He didn't need to watch the show, he just found comfort in knowing they were there.

Fire

2008-07-16T16:12:00.002-06:00

Here's a little snapshot of my life:
It's midnight. I'm sleeping when I hear an alarm go off. It takes me about 10 seconds to realize it's the smoke alarm. I'm not worried because these things make a similarly loud sound when the battery is low. I stumble into the living room and the first thing I notice is all of the smoke in the living room and nearby kitchen. Yikes! I panic a little now. I see that the source is in the kitchen somewhere. Once in the kitchen I see the problem, there is tons of smoke by the way. Husband was cooking. On the stove, just pouring out smoke, was a tortilla burning in a frying pan. The thing was black and tarlike. Nothing was actually on fire, but the smoke was incredible. I turned off the stove and went in search for husband. I find him asleep on the couch in the living room with smoke swirling all around him. He's literally sitting up (not leaning back) and snoring. I wake him up and apprise him of the situation. He turns off the smoke alarm and proceeds (very groggily) to make another quesadilla. What? Here's the problem. He was in the emergency room the night before for a bad reaction to some medication he's taking. The doctor prescribed him Ambien. All well and good, but husband took the Ambien before the quesadilla extravaganza and he fell asleep where he was sitting. Not a comforting thought. Fortunately no damage was done, but the house smelled like burnt toast for a couple of days.

Ouchy

2008-07-16T16:04:00.003-06:00

Aidan cut his foot. Nothing major, but a little slice on the bottom of his foot. There were tears, the need of the Band Aid and this sweet little gem,
Mommy: Do you want me to blow on your foot?
Aidan: No mommy, that would make me even sadder! I just want some lovings.

What I've Read

2008-07-08T11:50:00.004-06:00

It's been a while since I posted, so I'll just give a quick update. To make this easier I've devised a rating system using a few Aidan's key phases:

****Double Thumbs (GREAT!)
***I liked it (GOOD)
**It's not that bad (OK)
*It's Bothering me (BAD)

The Books:

*** Storm Runners by T. Jefferson Parker

**1/2 Little Saigon by T. Jefferson Parker, *** if you're interested in the Vietnam War and its refugees

*** The Judas Goat by Robert B. Parker

** Nothing To Lose by Lee Child. I was disappointed as this is one of my favorite authors.

**1/2 Hide and Seek by Ian Rankin

***1/2 Tooth and Nail by Ian Rankin

Hospital Photos

2008-07-03T19:07:00.007-06:00

Here are some pictures I took at the hospital. That poor sweet guy.

Hospital

2008-06-30T11:21:00.003-06:00

One of the worst things a parent can hear is that your child needs to go to the hospital. This has happened to me twice in Aidan's 3.89 years. The first time he was 16 months old and had the flu (the first diagnosed case in Santa Fe, NM in 2005) and croup. That was terrible. The second time was last month.

Aidan had been experiencing classic flu like symptoms, fever, vomiting and zero energy. We cared for him at home and he was getting better until...One evening he started screaming in pain. He was throwing up continually and writhing in pain. It was horrible. We couldn't figure out what was ailing him so we took him to urgent care. While we waited an hour and a half to see a doctor, Aidan got weaker and weaker. He wasn't in pain anymore, but he was still vomiting and listless. I was worried that he was dehydrated. Once the doctor saw him, she was concerned. She said that a nasty stomach flu virus was going around and that Aidan was the worst case she had seen (great). His belly was also distended, which concerned her. She wouldn't tell us why, but she said we had to take him to the ER immediately. Yikes! She even wrote a prescription to get us to a doctor faster. The worst part is that she wouldn't tell us what she was so concerned about. I'm thinking it could be appendicitis or an obstruction. I really wish she would've said something to ease a worried mother's imagination, but she didn't.

The drive to the hospital was the worst of my life. Kevin sat in the back with Aidan and tried to keep him responsive. I tried not to break every traffic law known to man. I really tried to keep it together and for the most part I did, but your imagination can be a terrible thing.

We got through the triage fairly quickly. The nurses were so sweet that it made it impossible not to cry. Once nurse sang "I Want To Hold Your Hand" to him while she did some tests. That did me in. At that point I was just trying to breathe. He was so listless he couldn't keep his head up. He had a high fever, high blood pressure and a less than desirable pulse ox level. When they put him on the scale to weigh him (33lbs) he laid down and tried to sleep. The nurses seemed to be concerned and sent us to the ER treatment room right away. Luckily there was a bed in there. Once I put Aidan down he fell asleep. I was relieved that he was no longer in pain, but worried that he had zero energy.

So there we sat for TWO HOURS waiting to see a doctor. As the time ticked by I got more and more angry. So far no one had told us what was going on with Aidan. Nobody had checked his belly. We were still thinking possible appendicitis or something. Thankfully Aidan slept the whole time. After two hours of no action, I went to talk to a nurse. I simply asked how long we were expected to wait to see a doctor. She seemed surprised that we hadn't been seen yet. I was pretty cool. I told her I didn't mind waiting for TWO HOURS if I knew what was going on with my son, but I would like him to be assessed in case there was something that needed immediate medical attention. It was here that Kevin's calm bubble burst. He went into his bad cop routine. He wasn't yelling but it was close. He was basically saying everything I felt, but in an aggressive manner. The thing that was so frustrating was that we weren't asking for immediate treatment. We understood that there could be more immediate concerns in the ER. All we were asking for was a doctor assessment. Look at his stomach, tell us what's going on and then put us in the queue. Here's another frustrating thing, 15 seconds after we raised a ruckus we were told that a doctor was on his way. What? How terrible that we had to be pissed before we got any attention. Kevin was so mad that he left the hospital to calm down.

Finally the doctor arrives, SIX hours since we left for urgent care and 30 seconds after our outburst. He was very attentive and Aidan woke up while he was being examined. His Pulse Ox was still low and his heart rate was high. He determined that he was dehydrated (duh!) and would need an IV of saline solution. As Aidan slept his protruded belly receded. The doctor determined that it was probably a build up of gas that he passed as he waited in the ER. Thank god it was just gas, but wouldn't it have been nice to be told that?

So now Aidan's awake and it's IV time. The nurse was really great, but she still had to stick him with a needle. I had the job of holding him down and whispering in his ear. After preparing Aidan for the pain he was about to feel, the nurse began. My poor sweet Aidan looked at the nurse and her assistant and said, "wait wait, that's too sharp!" and then he cried. It was awful. He looked at me and said, "mommy, the doctor is bothering me! She's bothering me!" It broke my heart. Once they got the catheter in his arm, they took blood for tests. They taped it up and it was done. Aidan wasn't screaming anymore, but he didn't like having a tube sticking out of his arm. The nurse then taped his arm to a board so he couldn't bend it, but Aidan seemed to be comforted by this. He was wide awake now, but still listless. I was much calmer myself as action was finally being taken.

Next came the saline solution. This was a breeze. They simply connected the saline tube to the catheter in his arm and that was that. By this time Kevin had returned and Aidan was growing in energy. They gave him a chewable anti-nausea pill and Aidan was so hungry that he asked for another one. It was a good sign that he was hungry. The nurse promised him some juice once the saline bag emptied. He blood tests came back and his sugar level was really low, thus dehydration. The doctor upped his saline intake from 300mm to 500mm. He also brought Aidan some orange juice and a popsicle which he devoured. He was getting color back and he was talkative again. His heart rate was back to normal and his Pulse Ox was at 100. It was amazing to see the transformation.

We were finally able to take him home at 3:00 AM. Our adventure began at 6:00 PM the night before. I had never been so happy to be home. We all fell asleep immediately, all in the same bed. I think I held onto Aidan all night. I was hoping that all would be smooth sailing, but he woke up at 6:00 AM and said, "mommy, I think I need to see the doctor again." I rushed him to the bathroom and he threw up. Fortunately he felt OK and was able to go back to sleep. When he woke up he said, "mommy, those doctor were working so hard on me." He was still sick and couldn't eat for a couple of days afterward. In fact, it took a good 7 days before he could eat regular food and beverages. He survived on popsicles, watered down apple juice and bananas. But he eventually prevailed.

The whole experience took a toll on me, but with all the other crappy things going on, it helped put things into perspective. It also caused an odd domino effect. My parents were supposed to visit us from California the week he got sick. We decided to postpone the trip until Aidan was better. That meant that they were in Santa Fe several weeks later than they had planned. Making them present for my next Tale of Woe...Unemployment.

Lawyer Lawyer Denver dui attorney attorney dui denver jewelry money credit credit credit

Blogless

2008-06-30T11:18:00.001-06:00

I took a little blog break. Nothing good was happening and I couldn't bring myself to share. Things were going downhill pretty fast there for awhile, but now they're getting better. All the bad started when my dear friend Robert died. Since then it's been bad luck city. I'll try to get a few of the worst events off my chest to make room for more lighthearted Aidan related posts. You can look forward to the posts: Hospital, Rattlesnake, Unemployment, Crazy Neighbor, Scary Uncle and many more tales of woe.

Slimin' Simon

2008-06-11T10:48:00.002-06:00

When we were in California visiting family, my adorable nephew Simon drooled on me. Aidan thought this was hilarious. He reenacts this event and it never fails to crack him up. He even imitates my sister's (Simon's mommy) response, "Slime, you got slimed." He was reminiscing about it yesterday,
Aidan: Mommy, remember when Simon slimed you?
Mommy: Yes, that was so silly.
Uncle: Who slimed you?
Aidan: My baby slimmed mommy.
Uncle: Your baby?
Aidan: Yeah, my baby named Simon. (He turns to mommy)Mommy, I love Simon.
Mommy: I know honey. He loves you too.
Aidan: Yeah.

Aidan Speak Good

2008-06-11T10:38:00.003-06:00

Aidan somehow skipped the caveman stage, "me hungry. Me mad," and went straight to complete sentences:

When Daddy was pestering Aidan to do something,
"Could you please just leave me alone."

When he received a new toy:
"I'm so happy to have this new Mack truck toy."

On the imminent arrival of his beloved Nonna and Papa,
"I'll be so excited to see them."

On our cat's flatulence,
"Hey Sniz, did air come out of your butt?"

On his baby cousin,
"He's growing up, but he's still just a baby."

This is How I Handle All the Stress

2008-06-06T09:55:00.003-06:00

Aidan Makes Me Laugh

2008-06-06T08:33:00.003-06:00

Aidan's coughing like Snizzles,
Aidan: Mommy, I'm coughing up a hairball.
Mommy: You don't cough up hairballs silly.
Aidan: Well, then I'm coughing up a skinball.

Aidan: Mommy will you get me some juice.
Mommy: Sure.
I bring Aidan his juice,
Aidan: Thank you mommy. I waited so patiently.

Making Cinnamon Rolls,
Mommy: I think they're ready. Let's open the oven.
Aidan: Hey, where's my big hand. (Aidan looks around and finds his oven mitt). There.

Who's the Mommy?

2008-06-05T09:51:00.001-06:00

Snizzles is meowing like crazy,
Mommy: Snizzles, shut it.
Aidan: No mommy, say zip it. It's nicer. Shut it isn't nice.

Sweetie

2008-06-05T09:01:00.002-06:00

Mommy: OK Aidan, I'm going to run to the store. I'll be right back.
Aidan: Can I come?
Mommy: I'll be right back. Stay with daddy.
Aidan: Please can I come?
Mommy: No honey.
Aidan: But I asked really nicely.
Mommy: You sure did, let's go.

Aidan and Snizzles

2008-06-02T00:12:00.001-06:00

Aidan: Snizzles, I will take all of your powers.
Mommy: What are Snizzles' powers?
Aidan: Biting and scratching.

What I've Read

2008-06-01T12:19:00.000-06:00

I just finished reading three books by T. Jefferson Parker who is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors.
California Girl
Pacific Beat
The Fallen
These books are all mysteries that take place in Southern California. My favorite thing about his writing is also my least favorite. He creates these really interesting characters that come to life, but most of his books are stand alones. I'm a greedy reader. I get attached to the characters and I hate the thought of not revisiting them in another book. That's why I love to read series. I highly recommend his books. I give them Aidan's highest praise, two thumbs up (which he calls "double thumbs.")

I also just read Promised Land by Robert B. Parker which was just OK. No great recommendation here, but if you're trapped under something heavy and this book is within reach, it will pleasantly pass the time while you're waiting for the ambulance to come.

Baking

2008-06-01T10:44:00.003-06:00

I love to bake. We recently got our oven fixed (it was broken for over a year) so I've been baking something everyday. Lasagna, cookies, muffins, casseroles. I've been baking up a storm. I do have a peculiarity about baking though. I typically will only bake with the ingredients I already have in my house. I wont make a special run to the store. This makes baking a challenge, but I'm usually able to find a recipe which can accommodate my pantry (thank you Internet). I come up with some pretty good recipes. Sugar cookies without eggs. Muffins without milk or butter.
Aidan is a super helper, "Mommy, can I mix the ingredients?" I usually put the measured ingredients in tea cups and let him pour them in one at a time. Typically as he pours in a new ingredient he says, "Bam!" Of course this is from Elzar (Futurama) and not Emeril. Speaking of Futurama...
This morning Aidan found a pirate tattoo and asked me to put it on him,
Aidan: Mommy, will you put this tattoo on?
Mommy: Sure. Where do you want it?
Aidan: On my butt. (naturally)
So on the tattoo went. He was happy with the results. He looked in the mirror and said, "Hey I've got a tattoo of pirate Bender on my ass!" That's my boy.

Stress

2008-05-27T14:01:00.002-06:00

Everything about my job is stressful. The work, the finances, the people, the environment, the future. It's all bad. I tell people how stressful it is, but they don't quite get it. Here's a little fact to illustrate my point. Three of the four people who work here are currently on Lexapro. FYI -Lexapro is pill for major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. This includes the CEO. All three have just started taking Lexapro within the last 6 months and say that work is the number one reason for their depression and stress. I'm the lone hold out. weird huh?

Scatological Post

2008-05-23T12:17:00.002-06:00

Aidan yelling from the bathroom,
Aidan: Mommy, look what I got.
Mommy goes to the bathroom,
Aidan: Look Mommy (lifts butt off the toilet seat) Poop.

Aidan pooping on the toilet,
Aidan: This is all the stuff my body doesn't want anymore.

Need a Boost?

2008-05-22T08:50:00.001-06:00

Who's the boss?

2008-05-21T11:35:00.002-06:00

Mommy is talking to Aunt Julie on the phone,
Aidan: Mommy come here. I want to show you what I made.
She puts the phone down and follows him into the living room.
Aidan: There, now you're off the phone.
Sneaky!

Surreal

2008-05-21T11:31:00.002-06:00

Aidan picks up Snizzles and puts him on the bed.
Aidan: Oh, wait. I forgot to say Alley Oop.
He gets Snizzles off the bed and picks him up.
Aidan: (getting Snizzles on the bed) Alley Oop!

What I'm Reading

2008-05-20T20:05:00.004-06:00

I am an obsessive reader. I read about 3-4 books a week. I don't have much time to read, so I try to fit it in after Aidan goes to sleep. That gives me an hour or two a night and it's my favorite time. My time. I also try to fit it in while doing other tasks. I read while knitting and cooking. With introductions out of the way, here is the first installment of 'What I'm Reading.' Well, since this is the first it should actually be 'What I've Read.'

I just completed The Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander. It was husbands favorite books as a child so I decided to hear him out. I enjoyed them very much. It's basically Lord of the Rings without all the painstaking lore. Don't get me wrong, I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but nothing makes a book come to a complete stop like a poem in a middle earth language. The Chronicles of Prydain tell the adventures of Taran the assistant pig-keeper. He loves, he laughs, he learns and he saves Prydain for certain destruction.

I also just finished two books from Jason Goodwin, The Janissary Tree and The Snake Stone. These novels take place in Istanbul in the 1830's. Our hero is Investigator Yashim, the friendly neighborhood eunuch. Jason Goodwin is a great writer. The mysteries are well plotted and interesting and reading about Istanbul in the 1830's is fascinating. I highly recommend his books.

FYI

2008-05-19T09:52:00.004-06:00

I bought my coffee this morning based on a Futurama episode. Any guesses?
Julia guessed it-

Aidan Shorts

2008-05-19T09:36:00.003-06:00

Snizzles is on the kitchen table,
Aidan: Look. My brother is on the table. Snizzles the table is not for kitty cats. It's for plates and food.

Holding a magic wand,
Aidan: You don't want to mess with the Aidan Fairy!

Aidan's sitting on the kitchen counter,
Mommy: Aidan get down.
Aidan: (stalling) Well uh mommy. Listen listen, I love you because uh well. There's something I got to tell you about banana pants! Banana pants, that's so funny!

Aidan sticking his foot by my nose,
Aidan: Smell this one. It's not that bad at all.

Cat Talk

2008-05-14T09:02:00.004-06:00

Mommy: Look at Snizzles in the corner.
Aidan: Snizzles O'Connor? No, it's Donald O'Connor.
><
Aidan: Cats don't talk like us, they talk with meows.
><
Aidan: Snizzles, do you have a .... snooty booty?
><
Aidan: Snizzles is having a booty conference.

Snaz no more

2008-05-12T10:59:00.000-06:00

I just realized that the title is a little misleading, but I'm lazy so I'm keeping it. So as previously reported, Snaz has become Sniz. Well now Sniz has become Snizzles. I like this better than Snaz. It reminds me of Sizzles, the hilarious dog on "Charlie and Lola."

Fighting like Brothers

2008-05-12T10:56:00.003-06:00

Aidan tries to pet Snizzles and Snizzles bats him in the head with a paw,
Aidan: (crying) Mommy, Snizzles hit me.
Mommy: Snizzles, that's a no no. No hitting.
Aidan: Thank you for telling him that Mommy. Maybe you should give him a time out so he will never do it again.

Aidan spying Snizzles laying on a chair,
Aidan: Look Mommy, he thinks he's people.
Spotting Snizzles on the same chair the next day,
Aidan: Someone thinks he's people. Who could it be? Oh right, It's Snizzles!

A few comments about Snaz

2008-05-02T09:00:00.002-06:00

Aidan calls him Sniz. It's actually preferable to Snaz (which I can't help not saying ironically). Aidan also initially called the litter box, the glitter box. Makes it sound so purty.

Snaz gets Cheeseburgered again!

2008-05-02T08:55:00.003-06:00

Snaz gets the Cheeseburger treatment

2008-05-01T11:49:00.002-06:00

Courtesy of my lovely sister:

One Door Closes....

2008-04-30T10:40:00.003-06:00

Things have gone from bad to worse around here, so I thought it was time to manufacture some good news. We adopted a cat. Aidan and I went to a couple of places Sunday until we found the cat that Aidan said, "wants to come home with us." The cat adoption process in Santa Fe is serious business. You don't get to take the cat home that day. It often takes a week. I had to fill out an extensive application and provide three references. All of my references were called, sometimes twice, and my old vet was called too. They interviewed me in person and on the phone and on Monday night (record time) we got the good news that we could come pick up the cat. Aidan was so excited. He said, "you will be the mommy, daddy will be the daddy and I will be the big brother!" The only downside to adopting a cat is that they come with a name and this sweet cat has a really lame name. Meet Snaz:

Snaz is a super sweet 2 yr old grey tabby. He is super loving and just what the doctor ordered. We could all use a little unconditional love.

Who is your sweetie?

2008-04-29T10:22:00.002-06:00

Aidan: Mommy, you're my sweetie.
Mommy: Yep, and who's my sweetie?
Aidan: I am!
Mommy: Who is Daddy's sweetie?
Aidan: Cisco!
Mommy: Who is Simon's Sweetie?
Aidan: ME!

Sad

2008-04-29T10:12:00.003-06:00

Well, my sweet Robert passed on Friday. The doctor removed the ventilator and he was gone within minutes. He was very ill with no chance of recovery. It doesn't make it any easier though. He was my angel. Do a good deed today.

Are you down with the Water Babies?

2008-04-28T13:12:00.003-06:00

This is Aidan's new obsession. I used to love this cartoon when I was a kid. Now I've passed it on to my son. He loves to dress up as Tom (complete with red tie and cut-off brown pants). Here's a sample:

Smooooooooooooth

2008-04-28T10:56:00.002-06:00

Mommy: Aidan, you're smooth.
Aidan: No I'm not.
Mommy: What do you mean you're not smooth?
Aidan: I'm not smooth at all.
Mommy: Well then, who's smooth?
Aidan: Donald O'Connor and Gene Kelly. They're smooth.

Talking about Nonna

2008-04-24T08:44:00.001-06:00

Playing with a toy Nonna gave to him,
Mommy: You know that Nonna gave that to you.
Aidan: Yeah, because she's a good girl.
Mommy: She sure is.
Aidan: Nonna's my friend. She loves me, but I love her!

Bobby

2008-04-21T09:12:00.000-06:00

So our friend Robert is in the hospital (very sad, say a prayer). He's in ICU so Aidan couldn't visit. I asked Aidan to paint a picture for him and we would take it to the hospital for him. Aidan drew a nice watercolor. After some discussion, this is what Aidan told me to write on the picture,
"I made a picture for you Bobby. Give it a try. Feel better!" It now hangs in his hospital room, but Robert hasn't been awake to see it yet.

Bobby's Art

2008-04-21T09:07:00.001-06:00

Bobby is an amazing artist. Here is a sample:

Potty Mouth Futurama Style

2008-04-19T20:50:00.002-06:00

Playing with Bender,
Aidan: Ow, my ass.
Mommy: Aidan.
Aidan: Ow, my ass.
Daddy: Aidan, don't say ass.
Mommy: Yeah, say butt instead.
Aidan: (as Bender) Bite my shiny metal butt!

Never read the fine print

2008-04-18T10:05:00.005-06:00

So I was making (defrosting) a corn dog for Aidan. As a vegetarian I am often curious about meat products. I'm especially curious about novelty meats and any meat in "dog" form is definitely a novelty meat. I decided to read the ingredients to find out what meat(s) I was feeding my son. The first two ingredients: pork and mechanically separated turkey. Yum. Two meats that apparently taste great together. Aidan, who doesn't miss a trick, heard me talking about it which led to this exchange,

Aidan: Mommy (holding out his corn dog) wanna taste.
Mommy: No thank you.
Aidan: No try it. It's good.
Mommy: No thank you Aidan. I'm full.
Aidan: But it's turkey. You like turkey.
Mommy: No, I actually don't eat turkey.
Aidan: Yes you do (putting the corn dog in mommy's face) you like turkey. Here, try the turkey. Just eat this pine cone. (Looks at mommy and starts laughing).
Mommy: (Laughing too) Eat the what?
Aidan: I said pine cone. That's so silly. It's not a pine cone, it's a corn dog. Here eat it.

And speaking of corn dogs (how often do you get to say that?) Aidan knows how to cook them. He puts a dog on a plate, opens the microwave, puts it in, closes the door and pushes 7 and 0 and then presses start. Kinda amazing and sad.

Feet

2008-04-18T09:56:00.003-06:00

Sitting on the bathroom sink,
Aidan: Look mommy, I've got my twinklers twinkling up here. Oh, they stopped.

Taking off his boots,
Aidan: I've got boot feet. Look at my stinkers.

Funny Guy

2008-04-17T10:12:00.001-06:00

Aidan: Mommy, I will marry you so I can be king.
Mommy: You're gonna be a king?
Aidan: I am a king. See (puts spoon on head) here's my crown.

Charming

2008-04-16T11:18:00.003-06:00

Aidan has been super charming lately, a sample:

Mommy: Aidan, let me get that for you.
Aidan: You don't need to little princess.
Mommy: Who's a little princess?
Aidan: You are of course.

Leaving mommy in the bedroom to get a baba in the kitchen.
Aidan: (on his way out the door he turns back to look at mommy) Stay beautiful.

Smarter than Mommy

2008-04-14T09:27:00.003-06:00

I really swear that Aidan is smarter than me. Not that I think he'll get higher SAT scores than me, but he is way more on the ball. For your consideration,

Yesterday--
It's night time. Aidan is watching a night night show. Of course it's Futurama and it's the episode where Bender grows to be 500 feet tall. So Aidan is watching this on the laptop on my bed. I'm sitting in a chair reading. Suddenly he comes to me looking for a flashlight. I find one for him and continue reading, figuring he's done with Futurama. He then starts turning out the lights. I start to pay closer attention because now I can't read my book. He then props the flashlight on the bed and stands in front of it, casting a shadow on the wall. He adjusts himself so that the shadow is really giant. "There," he says. "I'm 500 foot Aidan," and he proceeds to act out the episode. This kind of stuff just kills me. In my feeble brain, I think he's finished his original activity and moved onto the next, but no. He isn't switching activities, he's enhancing it. He wanted to be 500 feet and he figured out a way to do it.

Guessing Game

2008-04-14T09:10:00.002-06:00

Aidan: It's yellow, very cute and wrinkly. What is it?
Mommy: I don't know, what it it?
Aidan: It's a caterpillar.

Aidan: What is it? It's melon, it's red, it's juicy and it's yummy. It's a watermelon!

Saturday Morning One-Liners

2008-04-12T18:39:00.002-06:00

In celebration and holding up his sippy cup,
Aidan: That calls for a drink.

Looking at the few pieces of dog food on the kitchen floor,
Aidan: It's a total dog food mess.

Wanting mommy to open up his can of apple juice,
Aidan: C'mon mommy, you gotta pop my top.

Eating Beans

2008-04-12T18:34:00.002-06:00

Aidan: Can we eat those beans?
Mommy: Yeah.
Aidan: No, because they're too magicy. If we eat them, then a beanstalk will grow in our belly.
Mommy: Where would the beanstalk go?
Aidan: It would come out our noses. It will look like a trunk.
Mommy: A what?
Aidan: A trunk that hangs down off an elephants face. That's what a trunk is.

At the Office

2008-04-11T12:53:00.002-06:00

In mommy's office, there is a desk for Aidan. Complete with a computer. He calls this his office and he does his work by randomly punching keys on the keyboard. Typically the computer is used to entertain Aidan while mommy does work on her computer. Aidan like to watch cartoons on You Tube. His favorites are Donald Duck, Pluto and Chip 'n Dale. Yesterday as I was logging off his computer he said,
Aidan: Mommy, don't touch that computer it's my computer. You'll get your germs all over it.

Night time

2008-04-09T21:00:00.001-06:00

Aidan's in bed,
Aidan: Mommy, do you wanna snuggle?
Mommy: Yeah.
Aidan: Well, come on.

Hilarious Lunch Bag Picture

2008-04-09T13:29:00.002-06:00

Aidan's daddy sent him to school with this hilarious lunch bag