Note: I think we need to spend less time on phonics.
Here is Signa’s handwritten plan for last night (note that we didn’t actually do any of them except “speshl treat” and “moovey nite”, so they are carry-overs to today):

Pinkone tircey (make pinecone turkeys)
Pumpkin corving (pumpkin carving)
Eat boans. (eat bones made out of breadstick dough)
Eat mumee hot dog. (eat hot dogs wrapped in dough)
Gost Ptatos (eat ghost potatoes- baked potatoes with sour cream and eyes and mouth out of chives)
Holuwene cookie (make –and eat- Halloween cookies- thanks to Britta!)
Moovey nite (Watch Nightmare Before Christmas)
Speshl treat (eat popcorn balls with candy corn)
Bed
The End.

We started today with swamp gut waffles:
Frozen waffles
Syrup (aka mud poop)
Powdered sugar (snow snot)
Bright green sprinkles (Swamp guts)

And before hand the kids were complaining about having to have waffles…

Off to the pumpkin patch and maybe a “moovey”.

(and laundry and cleaning and crafting for holidays)

The kids have been planning a show for 3 days. There have been signs posted all over the house that tonight was the night. So after dinner, they handed out tickets to “The KCoon” (the cocoon) and gave us the Introduction Sign which read:

In this plae the stori will bee ibowt to katpilers that bee kom frnes and they mace theer kucoons at the saim tiem."
Translation: In this play, the story will be about two caterpillars that become friends and they make their cocoons at the same time.

They came out from the playroom area with regular clothes and Will had a hat on. They held up a sign:

Then they went under a blanket and argued for a long time about what they were supposed to do. Then they came out in these costumes as butterflies. And the dog was put in a cape and eyeglasses. The Three Butterfly Friends. Because, really, what kind of self-respecting butterfly would be seen without a white face mask or a red cowboy hat?

Dear Signa,

Today is your 7th birthday. Only the sixth time we’ve officially celebrated the day you came into this world. Or, more truthfully, were dragged, pulled and coerced into this world. So officially, the sixth time we have celebrated, but you know that we really celebrate you EVERY day.

You continue to be a beautiful person on the inside and out. We are so thankful for every single thing about you. I love that you are part Daddy (you are artistic, you are happy, you are easy-going, you are beautiful) and part me (you are anal-retentive, detail-oriented and you love lists… hey wait… maybe you are more Daddy, as these things are not necessarily good things…).

You are a good friend, a good sister and a good daughter. You are so sweet to the pets, wiping the dog’s eyes in the mornings, taking pictures of the cat with you when you travel. All these things mean that you are a good person with a good heart and no amount of teaching can MAKE someone be these things; they are things that just ARE. And you ARE these things.

We are proud of how much fun you have at all the things you do. You try everything with excitement and joy and never, ever stop smiling. Kids pick up on that and question “Why are you always smiling.” They do this because they aren’t used to seeing it. They aren’t used to seeing pure joy, like we are. It makes us smile too. Every day.

You still do and say funny things, but it’s changing now to where the things you do and say are more brilliant than funny. Sometimes your brilliance and goodness catch us off guard and we can’t help but wonder how you can be only six (now seven) and know and understand these things so naturally. You are amazing at how quickly you learn and how much you retain. You are actually amazing at just about everything.

I’ve written a birthday letter to you every year and every year I just go on and on about you. I don’t even have to try at this, Signa. It comes naturally and flows out, as you really truly are an amazing person. And you bring us more joy and happiness than you can ever understand.

Love,
Momma and Daddy

For the first time ever, Signa spent the night away from us. It was with Gramma, so we knew it would be okay, but we were traumatized and missed her like crazy!

She and Gramma had made a list of the things to do together over the past few months (yes, months) and as I was unpacking her things, I found it, but it's marked up:

Signa and Gramma's Weekend

SATURDAY
Go to Signa's soccer game (then there is a check mark that looks more like a backward "L" so I know Signa did it)
Have a picnic on the porch/PJ Fluff & Banana (check/backward L)
Go to the park (check/backward L)
Go to the duck pond (check/backward L)
Go to the Palo Alto Airport for "Airport Day" (check/backward L)
Go to two pet stores (check/backward L)
Go to the mall/Build-a-Bear (check/backward L- an owl named Lulu)
Have pizza for dinner (check/backward L)
Go to Cold Stone for ice cream (check/backward L)
Watch the movie Coraline (check/backward L)

SUNDAY
Have pancakes for breakfast (check/backward L)
Bake cookies (check/backward L)
Do art project (no check)
Go visit Auntie Karen (check/backward L)
Go visit Austin's house (check/backward L)
Go visit Momma and Daddy (check/backward L)

And then in Signa's writing: "The End (check/backward L)"

It’s been so long since I’ve written on Mascot Manor, that my fingers are all rusty. I’m going to shake them off and try to get back on track here.

To start, let me tell you about the kids’ activities. Will just finished up a month of gymnastics every Saturday. He loved it and did great with listening and following directions, but the music petrified him and he would refuse to do the prancing that the little ones all did. By the fifth class, he was finally prancing gingerly. Signa is taking karate (called Kempo or Kenpo- I still haven’t figured out how it’s really pronounced). She is to an orange belt now and it’s fun to watch her in class, as she is completely focused and serious about it.

Which is very different from how she plays soccer. In the one game (of 2) that I’ve watched, she played only hard enough to not get in trouble. When the ball came anywhere near her, she quickly moved away enough so that someone else could step in. She didn’t hustle or hurry down the field and generally looked uncomfortable and like she hated every hot moment. But after? “That was so fun! I love soccer!”

Whatever. We will let her do her own thing.

She is also in an art class once a week and does AMAZING work and then a physics/art history class once a week. One week will be physics and the next will be art history. (Home)School officially starts next Tuesday for us, but we sort of never stop some of it. Just don’t tell Signa…

We just finished our move and even though we’d been in the new house unofficially for a few weeks, the final drive home from old house to new was traumatic for me. I sobbed all the way, despite the hollering from the backseat, "Momma, your crying is NOT awesome! Why are you crying? Why is Momma crying- it's not fun!"

So all my old neighbors? If you try to drop from my world, just remember that I know where you live.

I keep putting off updating, as I don’t have time to write everything I want to write. So instead of putting it off and waiting until everything I want to say is obsolete, first our exciting news: we are moving. Still will be in the same town, just a bigger house and across town. We move on the 15th with the Uhaul, but will start moving some stuff over later this week. First move in 10 years, so I’m just slightly stressed out (as in I don’t eat or sleep very well).

We’ve taken several trip and done many cool things, but I don’t have time for those, so here are some fun children items:

Signa got her orange belt in karate on Saturday. They don’t let anyone watch the tests, so I’m not 100% sure how it went, but she was VERY proud. And so are we.

William started gymnastics on Saturday. I signed up for it so long ago that I was sure the 3-5 age group would be good, but as the date approached, I worried that I should have put him in 2-3 instead. In 3-5 he goes out there by himself and has to pay attention. I worried he wouldn’t and got myself ready to switch to the other class. Instead he did just fine and we even have friends in the class!

Signa and Marc went to Comicon in San Diego and had a great time.

William is learning to potty train a bit and thinks he’s a big boy. We keep telling him that he needs to be more consistent, but apparently “consistent” is too big of a word (and concept) for a 3-year-old as he is completely random.

While Signa and Marc were gone, I took Will to the zoo. I reminded him that he wasn’t big enough for the rides, just the merry-go-round and the train and he responded, (loudly) “But I *AM* a big boy because I go pee pee on the potty!” Much laughter all around us. But then I put him next to the measuring signs at the rides and, low and behold, he actually was big enough for the rides. Unbelievable, as we were just there a couple months ago and he was far from it.

Also at the zoo, we were sitting on a bench watching the apes and I looked over at Will and he had half of a cookie in his hand taking a bite. I looked past him and saw a littler boy on the other side of him, looking at William with wonder and holding half of a cookie. I scolded Will for taking the boy’s cookie and Will’s answer (loudly) was, “But I *SAID* please!”

Signa made a big poster with houses along the bottom, clouds all over the top (and some birds) and a cutout of words glued in the center. “Possibly Sims3 tumoroe.” All of this in response to this conversation: Signa- “Momma, can we play Sims3 tomorrow?” Me- “Possibly.”

I’ll try to be better about posting things as I go. Especially pictures of our new house!
-Debbie

Why religion doesn’t work so great in our house:

Us: Some people believe that when you die, you come back as something else.
Signa: Yeah, like a ghost.
Us: (stifling a giggle) No, like other things.
SIgna: Oh, like zombies!
Us: (barely holding back) No, more like cows and cats and dogs.
Will: When you are a dog, Momma, you are going to bark and I’m going to spank you.
Us: -------(silently start William’s future therapy fund)
Us: Other people think that when you die you go to heaven.
Signa: (with joy and excitement) OR HELL!!!!
William: Or DAMMIT!!!!!