Disclaimer for the Disclaimer

I'm not sending out Christmas cards this year. Please forgive me.

Disclaimer for The Paper Experiment

I forgot to add that nice Christmas and Holiday cards do NOT fall into the category of paper that irritates me. So keep those coming!

The Paper Experiment

I'm constantly frustrated and antagonized by one of my biggest enemies, PAPER. The paper that comes in the mail, the paper that comes home with the kids, the paper that gets left around the house in between art projects, etc. In the list of things that drive me batty, cluttered paper is second only to the stickers placed on the glass and plastic surfaces of picture frames, glasses, etc., but that is a whole different post for a whole different day.

I thought it would be fun to see what it would be like to let the paper pile up for a week. Here is the result!

MONDAY:

TUESDAY:

The Maupin Family Christmas Card is HAPPILY displayed on top!

WEDNESDAY:

THURSDAY: FRIDAY:

I should add that this pile is not accurate because we had a snow day this week. I would expect at least another inch or two of paper had we had a full week of school.

Awww, look at our new puppy!

Isn't she adorable?

She is made of pure Sheltie. I haven't seen her get up and move around yet, but I'm waiting. I think she is just an adorable fur ball!!! LOL!!

Updating the update on the boots

So, I returned the boots. I took the cash I got for the boots and bought Pizza Hut for the family.

PRIORITIES STILL OUT OF WHACK!!!

Update on the boots

I took them back. Just typing the post and looking at the picture made me realize what a dumb purchase it was.

Backwards fashion priorities

I haven't bought new clothes or shoes in months. I'm seeing clients regularly, so I need to be staying on the path of dressing professionally. In a moment of weakness last night amidst the ice storm, I bought boots that look very similar to these:

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME??? They are not even ladies boots! But I loooove them.

"You've got to party hearty, Marty!"

The kids have discovered "Scrooged," a movie that I used to watch with my brother during the Christmas season. Joe and I showed it to them last night and they loved it. I immediately called my brother after we watched the movie and called him a butthead - one of our time-honored sibling traditions.

I hope my own kids race to call each other buttheads when they are in their 30's.

He blinded them with science.

S C I E N C E !!!

Last week, it was Dylan's turn to be the "Traveling Scientist" for his class. Each week a different kid is chosen to demonstrate an experiment of their choice. While perusing the experiment books, I asked him to choose something that was "easy, not messy and can be done in two minutes." Some of the experiments involved growing something. I figured if he was dead set on growing something, I'd just cut a piece of our biohazard-level carpeting (it hasn't been cleaned in months because frankly, it's a waste of time and money when the clean carpet is trashed again in a week) and let him take that to school.

Thankfully, he decided to do an experiment called Chromotography. This involves mixing red and blue food coloring to make purple, squirting it on to a paper towel, and then squirting water on the mixture. The red and blue mixture separates when the water hits it. He was quite proud of his performance. His teacher shared the pictures with me, so I thought I'd share some with you.


Dylan reported that his class thought the experiment was "great." Now being that "great" is Dylan's standard response to all evaluation-type questions, I'm not sure exactly what "great" means. It could mean that the class gave him a standing ovation and carried him around on their shoulders singing "We are the Champions," or it could mean that they simply sat there and listened.

Either way, I'm sure it went great.

"Mom, listen to the LIFE!"

This is what Dylan said to me the other day when we were playing our favorite board game, "Life." I can't even remember what rule of his I was disputing, but he wanted to make sure I went along with whatever "Life" was telling me to do. You'll notice a large, glass bowl sitting next to Lauren. This is because she had just puked at the grocery store about 1 hour before this picture was taken. Being the trooper that she is, she did not allow her vomiting to interfere with her ability to play good "Life."

Saturday we bought our Christmas tree. The kids had a great time shopping and playing hide and seek at the tree farm.

Normally, we get realllllllly tall trees that require a ladder to decorate. This year, we decided we would have a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. A Charlie Brown Christmas tree to Joe and Kara means it's 7 feet tall instead of 10. Joe is doing his best Vanna White to display the glory of the tree. He is quite skilled, don't you think?

One last thing. The dog doesn't like it when we leave. Usually she does some angry barking that seems to say, "YOU MEAN PEOPLE! WHY ARE YOU LEAVING ME??" I thought I'd take a picture of my very P.O.'d dog and share it with you. Apparently, she is embarrassed by her behavior because here is what she did instead:

Isn't she adorable?

OPPOSITE IS OPPOSITE!!!!!

I took the kids and their friends to Wonderscope today after school (it's a kid's museum). Lauren invited her friend Will. Will is very adorable and sweet. Joe has had some discomfort with the fact that Will has called our house a few times (he is, quite understandably, not ready for Lauren to have relationships with boys other than her own brother), but he is getting over it.

Anyway, I realized that any boyfriend/girlfriend tension between these 2 little kindergartners was relieved when I observed them singing an alphabet song in the back of my car. They aren't boyfriend and girlfriend. They are each other's gender-opposite!! As Joey from "Friends" would say, "OPPOSITE IS OPPOSITE!!"

I will try to post video of the two of them singing this song at a later date. It is adorable.

Happy Accidents

The trip to Wichita went well. Although we didn't spend enough time there, I realized the blessing in being able to spend time with a side of my family that I've been separated from for a long time. I didn't even realize how much I'd missed them all over the years since my grandfather died.

In addition to the trip, we had some other happy accidents. I made a quiche last week and here is what it looked like when I cracked the eggs:

I love those happy eggs! And the quiche was good.

Our other happy accident was finding this pair of sunglasses in the back of my car. If you recognize them and they are yours, you can't have back because Dylan has already claimed them for his Willy Wonka costume for next Halloween. Can't you just see him with the little black wig and the purple coat? HELLO STARSHINE! THE EARTH SAYS HELLOOOO!

We all think the glasses are super cool!

Much Needed Vacation Day

Our family has not had one full day together in months! My grad school schedule, the work I do for my dad (which I know is lackluster, sorry Dad), Joe's job, and Joe's second job do not afford us much time in the same room. My early morning client didn't show up today, and although I growled and was frustrated that I dragged myself out of bed for nothing, I had the rare opportunity to come home at 10AM and hang out with everyone. Normally, Wednesdays are 14 hour days for me, so this is beyond luxury. We took the kids to lunch and then we went to see "Fred Claus." Vince Vaughan is funny but looks like he has been partying a little too hard. He had double bags under his eyes. Double bags!!

Tomorrow is a bittersweet Thanksgiving because we can't go to St. Louis like we originally planned. My sweet, precious Great Aunt Dell died last week at the age of 94 and the funeral is Friday. It's hard to mess up holiday schedules like this, but Aunt Dell deserves it. She was an awesome person who loved to laugh, she loved me and she loved her Peppermint Schnapps on Christmas Eve. I've never heard a better laugh than her Schnapps-laden giggle.

Tonight we are having hot chocolate (Joe and I have spiked ours with Peppermint Schnapps in honor of Aunt Dell) and watching "Jurassic Park. The kids laugh hysterically every time Samuel L. Jackson says, "Hold on to your butts."

In case you were curious, I'm really am holding on to my butt. I'm thankful for you!

The Thompsonian Institute - Inaugural Edition

I'm realizing that the "days to remember" are hard for me to remember, and they're going by way too fast. So as much as this blog is for you to know what is going on with us, it's also for me to remember what happened during this crazy time in our lives.