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| We did the Easter Egg thing a week early this year. Jon, Lindsay, et. al came to visit and the time seemed both appropriate and propitious. Barbara added six dozen eggs to my shopping list but, being the frugal miser that I am, I only procured four dozen. Barbara, being female, has the gene for deviousness and ordered an additional six dozen eggs from another source, such that we ended up with ten dozen. On the one hand, I like seeing grandchildren enjoy themselves (as in discovering the location of hidden eggs), but on the other I don't have any particular love of left over hard-boiled eggs (or hard-boiled people for that matter). Again on the one hand, that quantity of chicken embryos divided between three functional Easter Egg hunting grandchildren seemed a bit excessive to me, but on the other, if the price marital harmony were 100 dozen eggs, I would buy two years supply and think it a bargain. The bottom line is that I am in a position to offer any of you a really good deal on a high protein, exquisitely decorated, dietitian approved, food source. Any takers? |
Fading sunlight sometimes plays funny tricks on the human eye, and I was quite taken by this image of "Big Rock."
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| Jon and Lindsay's vacation took them through Disney Land on their way here. The boys were quite impressed with their "Ear Hats" to the point that they wore them even without coaxing. |
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| Daniel is about the same as I remember him from our trip to Washington, but Kaleb is still constantly changing. His locomotion skills are much improved, as is his ability to open doors. Daniel "HELPPED" Grandma keep Kaleb safely inside by locking the door immediately after Grandma took out the trash. Unfortunately Grandma neglected to take her key and Daniel was unable to reverse the process. After panicking for a few moments (then realizing the scope of her impending notoriety if she called the fire department) Grandma climbed the ladder barefoot with her nightgown flapping in the breeze, crossed the roof, pried open an upstairs window, and traversed the tons of "material blessings" stored there. Daniel met her at the top of the stairs with the insightful comment that, "Momma and Daddy have a key..." That was, in fact, true but the problem lay in the fact that Momma and Daddy were not scheduled to arrive for another six hours. |
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| Barbara watched the boys for a couple of days, and her machinations to keep them both contained and entertained were amusing. I think we all had fun while they were here. |
Jon is preparing for a return to Iraq. I wish he didn't have to go. I suspect that wish is universal among those who know him.
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| While he was here, Daniel managed to fall on to the stove in the front room (probably the last time we ran it this winter) and came away with some fairly serious burns. The one on his chest was impressive enough, but the ones on his arm appeared even more severe. One of the nice things about being a child is that time moves quickly, and by the next time I saw him, he seemed to have forgotten about both sets. I hope they have healed by now. |
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| The next weekend, Barbara watched Ethan while Nathen, Terre, and Kyle engaged in an unsuccessful hunt for housing in the Snowflake/Taylor area (to my surprise, Nathen accepted an offer to work at the pulp mill there). Barbara bought a $1 kite at the Dollar Store (an unusual event in spite of the name), and Ethan obliged her by enjoying it. |
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The kite was small and diamond shaped, and I was surprised that it was willing to fly as well as it did. Then again, this is spring and the East is experiencing its yearly absence of air. I don't really understand why that should be, but I do know great quantities of air are being continuously rushed there.
We supplied a long cloth tail for the miniature kite, but even so it occasionally turned side ways and then upside down before seeking out some thorny cat claw in which to nest. About thirty yards of string were all that were on the reel, so retrieving it after these mishaps was not particularly problematic.
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AJ was at one time planning on attending the Winter Formal, but somehow that failed to materialize. However, social and developmental forces being what they are, he succumbed to the Senior Prom. At my suggestion, he bought a new suit (circa $300) instead of renting a tuxedo (circa $90). I suspect several of his friends considered that to be absolutely gauche, and others thought it a blatant faux pas, but it made sense to me and for once the young man took my advice. When we finally got it home AJ took me in with one of the classic line from MIB when he asked, "Dad, do you know the difference between you and me?" Thinking we were still discussing the relative merits of purchasing vs. renting, I allow that I didn't, and he tagged me with the punch line, "I make this look good!" Ah, to still possess the arrogance of youth...For those of you who haven't met her, Brittany Smith is AJ's current flame. Isn't the difference four inch heels make amazing? AJ has had Brittany over on a number of occasions, and after observing and listening, I have concluded that either she does not like my cooking or she has the metabolism and appetite of a hibernating ground sloth. I have yet to see her consume a meal comprised of more than four bites. Still, she seems nice enough, and liking my cooking isn't a criteria for much of anything... |