Dizzling, and quotes

No, that's not a typo in the title. My Daddee, the kids' PaPa, used to use that word to me often whenever I was woolgathering or daydreaming or putzing around. Feel free to insert your own term for it. I'm sure you have more than one.

This post doesn't have much of a point or a plot. The pictures and Blogger don't appear to want to cooperate much lately, and I don't feel like fighting through it right this minute. It's bad enough that the printer is already on junior-high-girls-not-speaking status with the laptop. And they claim technology makes our lives easier.

So, while the toilet bowl cleaner soaks into the porcelain thrones and the clean laundry tumbles in the dryer and the bathroom rugs get sudsy, I figured I could justify a few minutes of blogging. The clean dishes will continute to wait patiently in the dishwasher until a big kid is reminded to put them away, and the dirty ones hogging the kitchen sink will just have to wait, patiently or not.

Damon is rocking in the big chair, humming and chanting and sometimes singing along to the Irish music station I have playing. We've heard Celtic Woman, the High Kings, the Dubliners, and others already this morning to get ourselves in a cleaning and dancing mood. He's been hollering, "AGAIN" at the top of his lungs when his favorites end. He doesn't quite understand the difference between a CD that I can hit repeat on an infinite number of times and the radio that plays what it wants when it wants.

This week Care Bear endured two days of the OAA tests. Big, standardized tests that torment elementary school children all this week. She's put in her time and today they're having a read-athon. She hauled her pillow, favorite stuffed animal "Tino", and my silk sleep sack along to school. She didn't wear pajamas, though they were allowed. They've earned some fun downtime. Liam is jealous.

I've been running across funny quotes scribbled on the backs of receipts and school papers. Our quote board is full and I haven't tracked down whether we have any more fresh ones to put up or not. I will give you a few of the ones within reach here.

One of the fourth grade projects was a science experiment followed by a science fair. Carrie chose to shake up cans of pop and document how high they then fizzed. Her hypothesis was that sugar made a difference in fizz height, so she tested regular versus diet pop. The kids had corresponding tri-fold cardboard displays on which they had to decorate and show their findings. They were given directions, naturally, on what needed to be displayed, including their scientific method findings. Of course, it's getting down to the wire and she is running out of time to accomplish all this work. Carrie being Carrie was arguing the need to follow said directions and her conversation with Dada went something like this:

Dada: It says right on this paper what you need to do.
Carrie: Why?
Dada: Why do you think?
Carrie: Why now?
*L-O-N-G pause, in which parents contemplate all the reasons, including homocide and name calling...
Dada takes the high road: Because I said so.

***

Right before the OAAs, Dada told Carrie to "use that beautiful thing above your shoulders."
Carrie replies: my neck?

***

Dada to Mama, who's making her list: Get a rotisserie chicken or two.
Mama: I don't know how to spell row-tiss-er-eee...
Dada: H-O-T, J-U-I-C-Y...

***

Mama: Quit nibbling me! I am NOT a noodle!
Dada: Ah, but you ARE "al dente!"

***

Mama: Liam, do you want a bath or a shower?
Liam: A bath. Always a bath unless it's a hurrying occasion.

***

Damon: IIIIIIIIIIII, right dewe, have some! (May I have some, please?)

***

Damon: I need a BO-NA-NAAHHHH!

***

Damon: This is EWW! Pizza! To no these beans!
(This is probably exactly what I sound like in a foreign language...)

***

Dada: Ohhh, poopy!
Damon: Well, yeah.
Dada: You coulda warned me.

***

Carrie, pre-school dash: I know EXACTLY where my ChapStick is. *DASH* *LOOOONG pause* Oh. It's not there, either.

***

Chattering nonstop, Damon sandwiches between Mama and Dada, who are standing up and trying to talk to each other. Dada: The fruit of your loins is talkin' to ya.

***

Liam, admiring Mama's new scarf: Ohhhh, yours is so SOFT. Mine is like... *p a u s e*... a pineapple!

***

Mama, squishing Damon: Mmmmm, I love you.
Damon: Yah. Me too. Meee too.

***

Mama, admiring Damon: What will you look like when you're 7?
Damon: 8,9 10, 11, 6!

***

Carrie, chattering, yakking, chattering, yakking, chattering, etc.
Dada: Stop talking! I'm going to start calling you Brook!

***

Damon: I not a cutie pie! I Damon!

***

Carrie: I don't WANT a cute butt! I want a BIG butt!

***

Dada to Carrie: Use your experience, not your brains.
Mama: Where's that from?
Dada: Kurth 101.

***

Nina to Rita regarding Damon: Tell Mr. ChubbyCheeks he's not going home with us!

***

Damon: Huh oh. It's whoopsydown. (Uh oh, it's upside down.)

***

Y'all are never going to believe this, but he just put himself to sleep in the big chair and it's only 11 AM. Yesterday, he slept for THREE AND A HALF HOURS at naptime. Can you say "growth spurt"? I should probably mention that his favorite sentence is, "Mama, I hunnry." That's followed by every possible combination of the words "Mama", "I" and "hunnry", I kid you not. With increasing volume.

Okay, laundry's done and so the quote board and I DID find a new one, so I must be off. Have a wonderful day, all!

Uncle Kelly's ordination service

First of all, let me apologize for the fuzziness of these pictures. I don't claim to be a photographer, and even though I was in the front row, I hate feeling like I'm being a distraction to others by taking pictures. These will give you the general idea of uncle Kelly's beautiful ceremony in his beautiful new church with his SWEET congregation. I was so impressed by the friendliness, warmth, and helpfulness of these people.

Anyway, here's uncle Kelly being asked to kneel so everyone can pray over him. The picture below this one I took because I loved how Lizzie was watching so intently. Everyone else is bowed in prayer, and she is watching every single thing that is going on with her Daddy. She was the best-behaved little lady you could imagine, but I love how she's displaying the heart of a child with her attention and pride for her dad.
 

 

 

This one, is of course for MY Daddee, who has been an organist and/or choir director for longer than I've been alive. Did I mention this congregation SINGS? They sounded fabulous and confident and it swelled my heart.
 

 

 

 

Reception

Grandma Barb, looking really nice for the ceremony and reception.
 

Somehow Damon managed to poke his legs through the open back of the chair and got stuck facing forward. Here is Dada to his rescue.

And here he is, displaying the excellent shiner he achieved 10 minutes before we were leaving uncle Kelly's house to head to the church for the ceremony. Cement steps -1, Damon-0.
 

 

Uncle Kelly's new church family got him Communion-ware since he's now officially their Associate Pastor and is allowed to use them. What a special gift! We're so glad we could be part of his day!
 

Cute cousins

There was a good bit of goofing around by the cousins at the reception. Of course there were cookies to get into, and some chocolate truffle egg candies, and just the sheer relief of not having to sit and be good anymore.



Noah, beaming at big kids.
 

 

 

 

Liam absolutely adores Lizzie, and always has. I think it's partly because they're so close in age. He wants to be with her all the time, unless he's kissing baby Noah, and just can't get enough of her sweet, sunny disposition.

Damon says this picture features Cair-way, He-um, and Wheezy.
 

 

Road trip home

The kids were beat on the way home. They'd been up late every night of the weekend and played hard with all those cousins. You can't even see Carrie because she is sacked out in the very back...

 

 

Sights of spring

This is my 2666th post! How funny.

Dada did a fair bit of spring cleaning outside, including denuding our Rose of Sharon tree and pruning the trees in the driveway back enough that they don't molest the cars everytime someone pulls up to our house. The sparrows, while quite bewildered about where the Rose of Sharon tree went, have been hopping happily about in the pile by the curb. Enjoy it, guys, because it all goes away next Monday morning.

 

There's the pretty Easter oggs. Sorry, thought I'd included that in the oggs post. I did in my head...

Since we forgot to have Grandmama get an Easter shot of all of us, Theresa was more than happy to get a few. We're certainly not in our Easter finest, but it captures the kids pretty accurately. Dada, as ever, is so handsome, and I'm dressed up for something you'll read about a few posts lower down...
 

 

Spring cleaning

Do you see this cheeseball? The one with the big eyes and the big cheesy smile and the, "what, who me?" look on his chubby little face? See those precious chinny chin chins and great big squishy cheeks?

This is what he did after I confiscated his Easter basket, twice, while I was trying to get ready to go out. In the time that I got one eyelid shadowed and mascaraed, he'd found the baking soda and proceeded to dust himself and the entire JUST MOPPED KITCHEN FLOOR with it.
 

 

Now see the guilty party's footprints? And THAT face, my friends, shows not one ounce of remorse. Not one ounce.
 

Celtic Woman concert

Our sweet friend Theresa invited me to join her for a Celtic Woman concert. It was incredible. There aren't enough positive adjectives to describe how fun and impressive and enjoyable it was. If you ever get a chance to go, GO!

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, click this and you'll get a glimpse of what I mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DquA6KyHTos

The best part, for me, was to watch the performers clearly having a good time themselves. They seemed to really enjoy each other's company and the putting on of the whole show. Would that we could all have jobs to be passionate about!
 

Theresa also likes to take pictures, so she snapped some of us before the concert:
 

 

 

Easter morning with Grandmama

 

Damon displaying his cream cheese mustache, Care Bear snuggling her Grandmama, everyone mobbing Grandmama, and Damon showing her something important, apparently. She got to visit us Thursday through Sunday. Thanks for sharing her, PaPa; we sure had a good time! Glad you made it home safe, Grandmama. Thanks for coming to play with us and help Mama out with Stuff.
 

 

 

 

A tisket...

Since Damon's not the best reader yet, the big kids decided to help him out a little bit with his first year of clues. He only had two. He had to find his shoes, and then find the bathtub.
 

 

Which he did with ease. Next year, tougher clues for this guy!
 

 

 

A tasket...

Liam's turn had him scampering from the basement to the garage and back down again, with a trip upstairs to dig through his underwear for good measure.