I Scream for Ice Cream

The recent spate of record-breaking high temperature days was the perfect excuse for a stop at our local ice cream spot for a refreshing scoop. Jack's usually a vanilla purist, but he went wild with a chocolate/vanilla frozen yogurt swirl, and judging from his expression, I'd say he was pleased with his choice...

Summa Cum Kitty

I tell you, nothing in my lengthy university career prepared me for the intellectual requirements of my current life. Knowing that it's for the aide and benefit of first grade math studies brings some honor to the task, but do you have any idea how challenging it is to draw a kitty face on a lima bean? Just try it, I dare you.

Meet Mr. Gingrich

We encountered this charming little newt on a recent stroll around Lake Lagunitas. He seemed very sleepy, but he was cordial nonetheless. Claire and Jack wanted to bring him back to our house, but we explained that he probably needed to get home for dinner...

Arty Party

Claire's early birthday party happened over the weekend, and of all the partys we've thrown for all the kids, this one was probably the biggest hit. There were eight little girls who spent a couple of hours at Art Start doing fabulous art projects -- sculpting, painting, glitter and glue. They were so wrapped up in what they were doing, it was hard to get them to stop at the end of the afternoon to have a cupcake and head home! See the rest of the photos here.

The Red Phone

On Veterans Day, my Grandfather was asked to speak about his experience as a career officer, and to tell a story of particular importance during that time -- something that marked his life in the military. This is what he related.

In 1963-64, during the Cold War, Grandfather (a Colonel in the U.S. Army) held the post of Commanding Officer of the 69th Air Defense Group. He was responsible for six HAWK missile battalions (about 3500 troops) in the NATO air defense belt covering a large part of Western Germany. Those missiles were pointed at Russia, so as you can imagine, the situation was tense.

His duties required a Red Phone, that ubiquitous symbol of power and fear, firmly planted on his nightstand (If the Russians started any funny business, Grandfather needed to be among the first to know). His boots were by the bed, and if the Red Phone rang, my grandmother was supposed to get my then-13-yr-old uncle in the car and hightail it to Italy. The gas tank was never supposed to be less than half full, and the bags were always packed.

His Red Phone was regularly tested, but it only rang for real one time, in the middle of the night. The call was from Cheyenne Mountain and the voice at the other end of the line belonged to an Air Force General with NORAD, so obviously, it was a matter of international importance. That General was my Granddad, and he had called to tell my Grandfather the news of my birth in Colorado Springs!

Now, that's a war story I can love.

(when Grandfather told me this story the other day, it reminded

me of another Red Phone story I saw in Smithsonian magazine,

entitled My Cold War Hang-Up. It's pretty funny,too.)

Back In the Blogosphere

Yup, tempus does fugit -- at warp speed, it seems. But I'm nearly back to normal, whatever that is. Here's a quick nod to the last couple of months in pictures...

Just after the start of school, the kids enjoyed a warm but windy ferry ride over to the city to meet Daddy for dinner. The gusts nearly knocked Jack off his feet!

In early September, we finally got notice from our contractor that he could come in and repaint/recarpet the whole house. We had about ten days to basically completely move out, and the TO DO list was understandably long...

Pease Porridge Tot: With all the toys in the house packed away, the kids were reduced to playing with empty instant oatmeal packets (James' clever idea). I especially love Claire's Picasso-esque faces.

Chloé gets a job! As soon as she was eligible for her Driver's Learning Permit, she decided she better earn some money to buy a car. She started as a bagger and has already been promoted to cashier.

Barely has school started, it seems, than the kids have a day off from classes. We flee the hotel where we're living for a few weeks and head to Point Reyes. There are several hundred steps down to this lighthouse, and even more coming back (!).

My beautiful, amazing grandmother, Gigi, passes away peacefully in her sleep on September 25th. I miss her so much, it feels like a light went out in my soul.

My elegant Grandmom, Mona, came to California for a visit and we celebrated her 88th birthday at a mini-reunion down in Santa Cruz.

October 12th: Angel Island, site of James' annual 4th-of-July camping trip, goes up in flames. We've moved back home and can see the great clouds of smoke from our house. Half the island burns, but none of the historic structures.

October 14th: What would have been my mother's 65th birthday.

I miss her, too.

My Grandfather (sitting next to me) turned 90 on October 23rd, and we threw him a surprise party with nearly fifty people at one of his favorite spots, Gibson's BBQ ("Too Much Pork for Just One Fork").

While back in Alabama, I had the happy chance to meet up with my own First Grade teacher, Mrs. Brown. She's still one of my personal heros to this day.

I missed Halloween all together, but the trip to the pumpkin patch was a huge success this year. James got into the spirit of things (and in costume) and took the kids out for two rounds of trick-or-treating! We're only about a third of the way through eating the sugary haul they brought home.

I was home just in time to vote in this historical election. Even though James and I both have permanent absentee status, he says he likes to go and get the sticker, so I proudly displayed mine, too.

Bloggin' Blues

I got the bloggin' blues, now, baby,

Ain't had time to write;
Thinkin' 'bout all the posts I done missed,
Well, it keeps me up at night.

I got the bloggin' blues, now, baby;
Oooooooooo, I got the bloggin' blues.

The tragedies and triumphs,
The plight o' the human race;
I'd write my bloomin' heart out,
But my young'uns set the pace.

I got the bloggin' blues, now, baby;
Yeeaaaaaah, I got the bloggin' blues...

School Daze

I can't believe it's the first day of school again! Claire was up and dressed an hour before it was time to leave. She was so insistent that it was time to go, we ended up being the first folks on campus. She's got a special reason to be excited this year, as all the same classmates and the teacher "rolled over" from kindergarten; it's a big reunion, and she handled it like a pro.

I'm not sure I'm handling it as well. I may have come back from Europe a month ago, but my brain was still on vacation until last Sunday. That's when the big-kids-are-back/back-to-school chaos hit me like a tsunami. I was up really late last night, trying to get all the paperwork organized and planning for lunchbox hell; we've reached epic levels of nobody-will-eat-the same-thing-for-lunch and I've finally caved in to the pressure -- as long as they'll eat something, fine!

Jack's a little bummed out that he's the only one who didn't get to go somewhere today, but he's not holding a grudge. He'll start preschool MWF in a couple of weeks, and that gives him some extra time to work on his back-to-school look...