A Little Help

Yes, I know my blog needs lots of help, so to avoid getting overwhelmed with all that needs to be caught up on, I'll just give a tiny book recommendation. I'm almost done with The Help and it's the best book I've read in a while. Let's just say that I've read 350 of 450 pages since Friday afternoon. The characters are engaging, the storyline engrossing with interweaving tales set in a pivotal point in American history (Jackson, Mississippi 1962), and the author offers multiple mysteries and tidbits that keep you reading to find out how everything resolves. Go here for a synopsis and get on the waiting list at your library because it's been named on multiple reviews as one of the best books of 2009. Let me know if you've read it and what you thought, or if you're waiting for your chance to dive in. I've spent many a cozy hour in my bed or on the couch this weekend curled up with my copy.

Have you read anything else good lately? Any favorite books of 2009?

Card Shark

Now that the weather's getting cold we've had to find more indoor activities. We've discovered that Ben is quite good at Uno and although he's only four, he's a worthy opponent. I think he got that Haws game-playing gene. He does lay his cards out on the table so he (and everyone else)can see them, so it's not really a surprise what card he'll play, but fun, nonetheless. He likes to collect all the Wild cards and then try to slip them into his hand before we notice.

Ben's Fort and Restaurant

Ben has been very busy lately, setting up a fort and a restaurant in his room. The fort came first, set up in the corner behind his reading chair.

Some of the indispensible treasures Ben put in his fort: Five dice, clothes and socks, reading material, a map of the fort, some cars and trains, a rock collection, blankets, pillows, and colored pencils.

The fort with its sign welcoming friends.

The sign on our play kitchen, a.k.a, the restaurant. He wrote the first line of letters himself and then I told him how to spell "restaurant."

The little table is set up next to the restaurant as a combination door and serving area. I had a delicious meal comprised of a chicken sandwich, mashed potatoes and gravy, lemonade, and chocolate cake at Chez Ben. I love that he's having so much fun being creative. If you need a cheap (imaginary) meal, come on over to our house!

What have your kids done that has surprised you with their creativity? Or what fun and creative things did you do when you were little?

I feel like I don't have much of an imagination and am not great at "playing" on a kid level, so it always amazes me to see what they come up with. I don't have any vivid memories of concocting elaborate games or pictures like Ben, or playing lots of make believe. I do recall that when I was four or five, my older sister Nanette organized "school" for me and my younger brother. She was called "Mrs. White" and sat us down in our bedroom where we used little filing boxes as desks while she molded our young minds. At our house in Oregon we did use our old spider-infested shed as a clubhouse and when we moved to Washington we dubbed the crawl space under the stairs the "laboratory," where we played amidst our mom's canning jars, spare boxes, and wrapping paper. Now that I'm thinking about it, Nanette and I also had fun playing paper dolls and coloring together (she was my coloring idol), so I guess we weren't that boring after all.

He Came with the Couch

RIP: Our leather couch. After getting almost four good years of use out of our fabulous Craiglist find, we finally had to put our trusty furniture staple to rest after the wear and tear of being secondhand and serving as a trampoline for an active boy became more than it could bear. As you can see in the picture, the springs totally collapsed on the left side and there's a noticeable sag from one end to the other. We tried to fix it (pictures below), but finally decided it was time to stop life support and and get a new sofa altogether.

Out with the old, in with the new - a green sectional.

A few weeks after Lucy was born, we knew the leather couch was on its last legs so we asked a member of our church to come help us see if we could make it useable for a bit longer, thinking at least another year. We got another good month out of it, when a few energetic teenagers put the final nail in the coffin.

Andy's attempt to save the couch: With experienced guidance, he cut away the bottom cover and folded back the leather to reveal the innards. Here he is using a high-powered staple gun to reinforce the fabric.

He hammered the frame back into place and then rolled the springs to their original position, with the help of my mom. Wood glue and zip ties held the coils to the frame.

Even though the couch is in a sorry state, it will make great seating in our playroom. The matching loveseat is still fine and is now up in our bedroom, which we'll rearrange to create a cozy reading area. The coordinating chair is staying downstairs since it's also in good working condition and looks nice with the couch.

Now comes the eternal question: How long can you keep a new piece of furniture looking new? We purposely picked a fabric that wouldn't show dirt or other marks easily, but you never know. When I was four, our family bought a new VW Vanagon and my dad quickly instituted the "no food in the car" rule. With a passel of little kids, that didn't last long. Here's hoping the couch survives our growing brood.

While the Cat's Away

On a boys' golf trip to balmy 80-degree St. George, Utah,

The mice will...

*Find mysterious packages on the doorstep

Filled with tokens of gratitude

*Get a snazzy new haircut

*Have a movie night full cuddled up on our busted couch with Kung Fu Panda and a bowl of popcorn

* Eat Frosties on a beautiful fall day

*Discover a fabulous new park and explore with friends

*Engage in numerous new art projects that involve drawing cars, numbers, and lots of tape
(we currently have beans taped to our wall)

*Hold silly photo shoots in our PJs

*And just chillax in general because we can

We stayed busy with lunches/dinners with friends, doctor's appointments, trips to the gym (free babysitting!), and lots of baseball outside with Lucy strapped in the Baby Bjorn. I was worried about being alone for five days, but honestly, the time has actually gone by fairly quickly. Andy's had a fabulous time basking in his favorite hobby, but we're excited for him to come home tomorrow.

Kudos to all you moms out there who are alone much of the time due to husbands' work schedules or other personal reasons. You're better women than I. If this is the case for you, what do you do to make the best of the situation?

The Big Game

After two and a half years of living in Ohio, we've reached a major milestone. On Saturday we attended our first Ohio State football game and were inducted into the world of Buckeye mania. You can shake your head and marvel at people's almost religous devotion to the Bucks, but I have to admit that stepping into that stadium full of 105,000 cheering fans made me feel like we are finally true Ohioans. OH-IO! Save for Ben we don't own a stitch of bona fide scarlet and gray parahphenelia and had to borrow all of our OSU gear. Our friends even had a pint-sized onesie proclaiming, "Smallest Fan" with matching socks.

Not thinking, or not knowing any better, we were crazy and took Lucy to the game with us. Besides forgetting her jacket and keeping her bundled in our arms for most of the game, she actually did pretty well. She slept for two hours, through the cheering crowds, raucous halftime show, and the band's drum section playing right behind us.

After the photo shoot, we ditched the flower for some more practical (and warm!) headgear.

It was cold, but not as bad as it could have been. Like I mentioned in an earlier post, we got the tickets from Andy's boss and it came with a VIP parking pass. We had a snafu finding our parking lot, following the directions Andy got from his boss instead of the directions on the back of the pass. So we got there right at kickoff and missed seeing the band come out and play before the game. Pooh. At the beginning when we were trying to find our lot, we were on the east side of campus near all the students and harried policemen kept directing us in circles. When we entered from the correct side, away from the rest of the teeming masses, the traffic people were much more friendly.

The game was a bit of a blowout and Ben was tired about halfway through, but hung in for three quarters, thanks to the burst of energy from a box of overpriced popcorn.

By far the best part of the game was the band's halftime performance. No surprise to anyone who's been to a game. Since it was Oct. 31, they did a Halloween-inspired ensemble complete with tombstones burying the Michigan "Ghoulverines," a Ghostbusters spoof, the band forming a variety of shapes and words, and, best of all, a rendition of "Thriller," complete with the choreographed dance. A-MA-ZING. I can't imagine how much practice goes into those halftime
shows.

Next time Andy and I decided we're going to go sans-kids and be there half an hour early. Now we just have to find a way to score some more tickets!

Light up the Silver Screen

Sometimes you just need to relax and unwind with a good movie. Here are some I'm itching to see. Disclaimer: These are not recommendations, so if you have different taste in movies and watch any of them and hate them, don't hold it against me. :) If you've seen any of these, are planning to (or not), or have any other recommendations, pass them on!!! I feel like this summer there was a serious lack of worthwhile movie options.

P.S. I took the synopsis of each movie from IMDB.com. Click on the pictures to link to each movie's website to find out more.

"The Brothers Bloom are the best con men in the world, swindling millionaires with complex scenarios of lust and intrigue. Now they've decided to take on one last job - showing a beautiful and eccentric heiress the time of her life with a romantic adventure that takes them around the world." You can Redbox this one. Rated PG-13.

"A look at life for Nelson Mandela after the fall of apartheid in South Africa during his first term as president when campaigned to host the 1995 Rugby World Cup event as an opportunity to unite his countrymen." We saw a preview on TV and I'm sorely tempted to pay full price to see this one in the theater. Word on the street is that it's an Oscar contender. I'm such a sucker for these. Plus, it's directed by Clint Eastwood and we are huge fans of Million Dollar Baby. Rated PG-13.

"A coming-of-age story about a teenage girl in 1960s suburban London, and how her life changes with the arrival of a playboy nearly twice her age." This movie has gotten rave, rave, rave reviews and is another rumored Oscar contender. Rated PG-13.

"An unflattering look inside America's corporate controlled food industry. Tagline: "You'll never look at dinner the same way again." Loved SuperSize Me and reading Fast Food Nation and The Omnivore's Dilemma. Gotta love a good controversial muckraking flick. Rated PG.

"The drama based on the three-year romance between 19th century poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne, which was cut short by Keats' untimely death at age 25." Also well-reviewed and it looks like interesting subject material, like Becoming Jane, which we really enjoyed. Rated PG.