Tuesday, November 29, 2005

how many Rains does it take to change a light bulb?

Only two, thankfully; one to be tall and one to hold the flashlight; but it does require a number of tools. Namely, pliers, a washcloth, and a potato, in addition to the aforementioned flashlight. I'll leave the scene to your imagination.

recent freecycle posts that cracked me up

[CRFreeCycle] WANTED - PLEASE READ....TV WITH A LARGER SCREEN FOR DISABLED MOM

OUR TV IS DYING (AND I HAVE A TUMOR BEHIND MY OPTIC NERVE SO I NEED A TV WITH A BIGGER SCREEN)SO WE NEED A NEW ONE. PLEASE HELP US. I HAVE 2 CHILDREN WHO LOVE TO WATCH TV AND WE HAVE NO INCOME TO PURCHASE A NEW ONE. I HOPE SOMEONE CAN HELP US. THANK YOU AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

[CRFreeCycle] Wanted: Outdoor Antennas
Hello everyone. I am attempting to build my first "antenna farm" and am in need of any type of outdoor antenna you might have. TV, UHF, VHF, CB, Shortwave, etc... Any condition, any size. Thank you.

[CRFreeCycle] WANTED Camcorder
Needed to take video for Extreme Makeover Home Edition. Thanks!

[CRFreeCycle] OFFER: Fruit Sitter Clock Set - Latham
This was a free gift with purchase and the outside of the box says "Fruit Sitter Clock Set".It is a clock shaped like an apple with various fruits and veggies around, with seperate extra fruit/veggie pieces that go on the wall around it. Kinda cute in it's own way, would probably go well in a country motif kitchen, still in plastic in box.

[CRFreeCycle] WANTED: DOS .62 OS
Looking for the DOS .62 or .622 OS. Thanks.

Thursday, November 24, 2005


C dressed up for Thanksgiving. Posted by Picasa


C made the best Thanksgiving picture ever. Note A walking by with her pushtoy. Posted by Picasa

Tuesday, November 15, 2005


Sorry it's dark- she blinks if we use the flash Posted by Picasa


We'll only see wild cranes and and storks, though. My friend Mala kept these rehabilitation center friends in her barn during the latest hurricane Posted by Picasa


We bought our tickets to Florida! We're already looking forward to seeing the horses. Posted by Picasa

Monday, November 14, 2005


Spike the class mascot helps C invent Posted by Picasa

evenings with A

C is off to bed around 8:15; A usually is up until at least 9. Since we're barely functional past 10, we need to use at least some of this time to actually converse without 10 interruptions per minute. So we toss a bunch of Oatios (wheat-free organic Cheerios) on the coffee table and sit back while A sings her happy-Oatios song, munches, and roams around the downstairs. It's our most relaxing time of the day.

I bought Oatios for her without poring over the package; I gave them to C so I knew they were fine. But then noticed a little sign on the front saying, "new! better tasting!" Why are they better tasting, you may ask? Because they added sugar to them. (Note that the sign on front did not say "new! with added sugar!") The ingredients list tries to hedge by calling it "evaporated cane juice." The grams of sugar per serving are HIGHER than regular Cheerios. I'm rather annoyed, but since it's the only prepackged food we feed her, and she LOVES them, I think we're going to let it slide.


A Posted by Picasa


birthday cake (her raspberry agar agar jello is in the background) Posted by Picasa


clapping with monkey Posted by Picasa


boxes are fun Posted by Picasa


turkey boy Posted by Picasa

Sunday, November 13, 2005

Freecycle works!

So Dan tried to drag a moldy wool blanket with multiple holes to the dump. Oh no, I said! I will Wash the blanket to eliminate the mold and then we can donate it to an animal shelter! (Dan rolled his eyes, sighed, and spent 2 more hours loading the to-the-dump trailer.)

I wash and dry the blanket until it is no longer Moldy, merely Musty. Too "musty" for puppies, though; puppies deserve better.

I figure Freecycle is worth a shot, and post a completely honest description of the blanket. Within an HOUR I get a reply. (It has no punctuation and is in all-caps, but that's fairly par for the course among Freecyclers, unfortunately.) The respondent says something enigmatic about "its condition is ideal for my use." I find this somewhat curious, wondering if it will be used to transport bodies or what, but as pickup arrangements are made it becomes clear that he's a Civil War re-enactor, and musty holey blankets were likely de rigeur on the battlefield. (Or maybe only for transporting bodies.)

And, wonder of wonders, he actually picks it up within days. Hurray for Freecycle!

(And no, the blanket was not from Camp.)

Friday, November 11, 2005


Birthday baby with ribbon - the best part to play with first... (click for larger image on all photos) Posted by Picasa


Garrrr...babies! Posted by Picasa

A's walking for her birthday!

Tonight, A started really walking! While she had taken up to 4 clumsy steps at a time before, this evening she started to get the hang of it, and was really proud/enjoying herself. She kept smiling even though she'd take some steps, then trip or even spin and do a little flip (on the rug usually, luckily), she'd get right up again and try it again. Over and over... And she learned to clap today too (as Sarah joked, A must have a little checklist she wants to accomplish by her 1st birthday tomorrow).

C had a blast along with us, watching and laughing along with A at her first walking antics. She didn't have a very happy day today, so it was great to see her in such a good mood tonight. Maybe she's been especially cranky because she wanted to walk and hadn't quite figured it out until now. Watch out world, she's going to be going places now...

For her birthday, Sarah read about a nice tradition of creating a wreath, in this case out of grape vines, that would hang in her room. Each year for her birthday we'll make or buy things to hang from the wreath that remind her of that year of her life (small things, mind you, ornament sized, or it will fill up too quick). She made the wreath a few days ago, and it came out really well...

Sarah decided to make a tiny fleece sling to hang on it out of the same material she made A's real slings out of, that she loved this first year so much (and still likes to be in for comfort, even though she really doesn't fit any more). You'll now understand the pirate father with baby in sling photo--C wanted one for his pirates after seeing how cool A's ornament sling was!

C made a very creative little book, with about 10 pages total, modeled slightly off of the "Happy Baby 1-2-3" book that was her favorite for part of this year. His book had different pictures and different numbers of items on the pages, but also had hidden objects and activities "can you find the green and black heads?" and so on...

I made a tiny swing, the wooden outdoor kind that she loves/is obsessed with right now. It's made with popsicle sticks, and isn't quite finished, but should be by tomorrow.

We decided to let her open the presents from my parents today, as tomorrow will be busy with a Roots and Shoots meeting in the morning (we'll be outside a good part of the time, weather permitting, so A should enjoy it), and then a party for her at Sarah's parents in the afternoon. As you might expect, she enjoyed the ribbon/wrapping first and foremost, but then got into the toys and book eventually too :)

-Dan

Monday, November 07, 2005

A just took 4 steps! Her goal- to get to the walker/push-toy so she could go FAST.

Our Roots & Shoots group is progressing well. Its site: http://home.nycap.rr.com/rootsandshoots/


I told Dan that a picture's worth 1000 words.... Posted by Picasa


Just the "witch" Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, November 02, 2005


C the good witch, and his assistant, the cauldron stirrer... We had a great time trick-or-treating... Posted by Picasa