The Concert... Finally!

The craziness we went through a few months ago getting tickets to see Daughtry paid off on December 20th when we got to see him live at The Ryman. It's gotta be the best place to see a concert. I don't think there's a bad seat in the house.

Our original group changed up a little because Uncle was unable to go with Juli. Holden went with Juli in Uncle's place. His first concert! It was a good one for him because he likes Daughtry (maybe because I'm always playing in the car) and Daughtry's music while definitely being rock is also very PG.

The concert was one of the best I've been too. My only regret is that Holden wasn't sitting with me and Ben. We could see him and Juli from our seats though and we kept in touch with text messages throughout!

All in all a really fun night. And in true rebellious rock-n-roll fashion Holden skipped school the next day!

As a side note, there were two opening acts. In my concert going experience I know there are two kinds of opening acts. There are the ones that are on the brink top 40 stardom and the ones that are destined to be playing in the Holiday Inn lounge a year from now. Daughtry had one of each: You Are I Am were pretty decent; The Midway State not so much. I am not at all qualified to be a music critic so don't mark my words, but I do think you will hear from You Are I Am (even if you can't distinguish them from Coldplay or The Fray), but you've already forgotten the name of the other band.

Thankfully, I've Been Busy!

The last 25 days... I am ashamed to say... have been busy. We've dealt with several illnesses (Owen's first stomach virus was one of them... poor baby!). Made a long road trip with all three kids in tow. Helped out an ailing friend. Contended with some really late nights at work for me. All while keeping up our usual schedule... more or less.

Some things slip during times like these... dusting, folding socks, four course dinners and my blog. OK... the dinner thing never happens anyway, but you get my drift. Unfortunately, my blog is so new it can't really afford to be ignored or else the handful of you out there who take the time to read it will stop!

I wish that I had exciting and wonderful things to fill my post with tonight. Instead it's the boring and mundane that has kept me so distracted that I was unable to find the time to sit and write... something that I enjoy so much. OK... boring and mundane as well as sleep... I did forgo writing a few times because I desperately needed to sleep!

It's times like these in my life that I think of one of my favorite Rob Thomas songs. The first time I heard it, I cried... and every time since. This song is so precious that I have to share it with you all tonight. If you have the time to listen to Little Wonders, please do. Really listen to the lyrics and the message therein.

Whenever I get overwhelmed with my so-called busy life I try to remind myself that it's the all -nighter I pulled on the couch with Owen and a"puke bucket" by my side, the late night at The Peddler with some really funny workmates, the piles of mismatched socks, frozen pizza dinners and the occasional night out with a best friend or husband that make up the tapestry of my life. These are the things memories are made of no matter how boring or ordinary they seem to be at the time. Once you put them all together what you have is your life, your story and the realization that they may be "the little things" but they are wonderful.

I am thankful for each one of them.

A Winner!

Wednesday was 4H day in school. It was the big speech competition day. All of the students had to give a speech about what they want to be when they grow up. After much debate Holden chose teacher as his future profession. He wrote the speech all by himself and was very proud to recite it to me over and over and over...

Well, all of that prep must have done some good because he won FIRST place and now will compete in the county-wide 4H competition! He's bursting with pride...

Mission Accomplished!

Things have been pretty crazy since I took O-boy to the doctor two weeks ago. I had early deadline at work for Thanksgiving and had to work on a Friday. That always throws my days of the week off. Then, of course, Holden was off for Thanksgiving Break and Granny was down for a nice long visit. The house was full and chaotic and loud! But for a change, we accomplished something around the house while she was here!

Ben and I have been putting off organizing our master closet for over a year now. It seemed too difficult to hang the shelving ourselves, too overwhelming to choose the design ourselves and too expensive for our tight budget. But after months of mess I absolutely could not take it one more day and no fear of the unknown, no indecisiveness, no amount of money was going to keep me from the peace of mind an organized closet would bring me. We could procrastinate no more!

I have come to accept a good degree less than what my dreams were. This isn't as bad as it sounds because as I have found we can be just as happy with a little less. For example, I used to dream of owning a nice, new SUV. A big one for at least seven passengers like an Armada, Sequoia or LandCruiser. When Emeline came along I held onto that dream. Then Owen came along and I saw the need for a van, but a new one. Time flies and so does the money. So I downgraded my dream to something more realistic: a used van. We ended up with a 2000 Toyota Sienna that was much nicer than we imagined we could find, but no where near that initial dream of a brand new Armada. And you know what? I wouldn't want anything else.

So this is what I did with the closet. I downgraded my dream to something we could manage to install ourselves and afford. It's simple, but I can't imagine it being any more perfect. As usual, we wondered what took us so long. It wasn't very difficult at all and would have taken much less time to complete if Ben didn't have to keep checking the UK/UT game score!

Here's the finished product. We are pretty proud!

Wild Man

Owen is getting so big! He'll be 17 months old on Wednesday. Last week he had his "16-Month" Check Up. He hasn't quite broken the 25 lb. mark yet, but he's working on it! Besides physically growing by leaps and bounds I've noticed his mental and emotional development taking off in recent months.

Owen scored perfectly on the Ages & Stages Questionnaire the doctor has us fill out. It covers communication skills, gross and fine motor, personal/social development and problem solving. I enjoy filling them out because I get to concentrate on what Owen is doing these days. Unfortunately, there's so much going on in our lives I don't always take the time to stop and sniff the flowers along the path of developmental milestones.

Physically, Owen excels. He's been walking since he was nine months old so at nearly 18 months old he's got running down pat. Now he's become expert at climbing. Chairs onto tables. Floor to coffee table. Pillows to bed. His favorite? Scaling the toilet... first, he climbs to the seat, then to the tank. He tries to stand on the tiny window sill above the toilet, but hasn't gotten his "spidey" legs to figure that part out yet.

That's not to say he doesn't have his fair share of accidents, but he's pretty tough. Last week I noticed a little dot under his right eye. Initially, I thought it was dirt then I realized it was a bruise. Upon close examination I realized that his whole right eye was bruised. The little guy had gotten a black eye at some point during the day and didn't even make a fuss over it. When he got his shots last week he first had a finger prick for a blood draw (remember how bad those hurt?) then a shot in the left leg and another in the right and finally let out a wail.

Owen is also making social strides. He says "hi" and "bye" but not always when I want him to. He often says hi to strangers and then looks intently awaiting their response. He continues to prefer men often reaching out to them. I have also noticed that he's developed relationships with people outside of the family... people that he feels comfortable with and remembers.

He's become very talkative. When he chooses to, he can repeat anything you say to him. He understands it all. A few weeks ago we were eating hot dogs and he said "hot dog" clear as day, but I've yet to get him to do it again. Here are his most frequent words:

• Mom/Mama/Mommy
• Dada/Daddy
• Bubba/'Den
• Emmy/Dissy (sissy)
• Cat/Meow
• Duck/Quack
• Bible
• Sing
• Bus
• Car
• Bye-Bye
• Hi
• Dog
• Dink (drink)
• Bopple (bottle)
• Dat ("that" for pacifier because we say to him, 'you don't need that thing')
• Cup
• Bite
• Up/Down/On/Off
  

He'll say just about anything you get him to focus on so this list is just part of what he's says. And he's adding a new word to his repertoire every few days. He also says two word phrases like "Dada bye-bye"; "Bubba bus"; "Mama up".

I am so happy that he's developing normally and doing all the typical things little boys do. I guess I should maintain that positive attitude even though I detect terrible two behaviors starting. My gut feeling is that it's going to be a pretty wild ride with our wild man, Owen.

Emeline Says The Darndest Things

Emeline is so funny. She says the most hilarious stuff and when we laugh she insists that we stop laughing at her. We try to explain that we aren't laughing at her but at what she said. She's a comedienne, I tell her.

This past week she made me laugh lots...

Sunday evening, Granny called someone a "hillbilly". (That's ok because we're from Kentucky!) Emeline wanted to know what a hillbilly was. After a few explanations, I summed it up by saying a hillbilly was sort a like a redneck. That spawned the question, "why are they called rednecks?". So after another explanation and clarifying that those words were actually meant to be put downs, she thought for just a moment then came back with "what about 'pink-neck'?". The car broke out in laughter while Emeline sat indignant assuming that we were laughing at her. Apparently, in her eyes if being a redneck was a bad thing; being a pink-neck would certainly be better. To a four year old girl, everything is better pink.

The scripture at Mathew 21:16 came to mind after a conversation I had with her last week. "Out of the mouth of babes... you have furnished praise"...

Emeline and I were reminiscing about swimming at Gramma's over the summer and the subject the torpedo toy came up. She informed me that real torpedoes are bombs but she wondered who has real torpedoes. I tell her governments have bombs. So then she asks "does Jehovah's (God) government have torpedoes?". "No", I say, "God's government is one of peace, not war." Then she wants to know if God's government is the government that "took her runny nose medicine off the market" (her exact words).

Her questions are endless. She is learning so much even when we are unaware that she's paying attention to us. But her mind is so logical and she is retaining everything. I am so proud of her.

Haircut Horror

A picture's worth a thousand words. So the saying goes. But what if you take a picture to a hairstylist hoping that it will convey the haircut you wish to get and the stylist doesn't speak picture?

That's what happened to me on Friday. I have been in desperate need of a trip to the salon for a while now, but my schedule hasn't worked with my usual hairstylist in Louisville. After much trial and error here in Clarksville to find someone decent, I keep going back to Sandy. Her skill and price just can't be beat. Plus I trust her completely. She's been cutting my hair since I was 15. She was with me when I had long, straight high school hair; been there through shag cuts and red dye; keeping me up to date with side swept bangs and highlights. But desperation drives people to do crazy things... like try yet another Clarksville hair salon.

But this time I felt pretty comfortable. I was going off a second and first hand recommendation. These girls have nice haircuts with pretty highlights. How bad could a haircut (based on a picture) be? Especially when I needed one so badly.

Well, here's the cut I wanted...

Yes, I know it's Jessica Simpson. Ignore that. Cute hair, right? On the longer side of medium; nice style. I've been growing my hair out since I had a bob last fall and was looking forward to keeping some length but updating the style. Here's what I got...



Short. Choppy. Poofy in the wrong places. Weird bangs. Did I mention short? I don't know what she was thinking. She cut way too many layers in my hair and they are much shorter than in the picture. She cut it shorter than the pic and it looks even shorter (and thinner) with all the crazy choppy layers in there. You know it's bad when your 10 year old son is giving you tips on how to "fix" it by getting another haircut. Holden's recommendation? Cut it even shorter so it's not so poofy on one side and not the other. Guess I see his point.

Kids do always tell the truth. Emeline probably said it best when immediately after the cut she wanted to compare my hair with the picture. After examining me and the photo she says, "Doesn't look the same at all."

In the process of looking for a hairstyle I found a great website with lots of great pictures of hair. Check it out before your next cut... if your stylist speaks picture! BeautifulHairstyles.com

Chili Recipe

Thought I'd share my Chili Recipe in case you are in the mood for a chili weekend of your own!

1 to 1-1/2 lbs. ground beef
2 medium onions, finely chopped... this part is important! no giant pieces of onion allowed
2 cloves of garlic
1-14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1-8 oz. can tomato sauce
2-14.5 oz. cans of chili beans
1 large jalapeno pepper, chopped
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano or sweet basil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper (I usually throw in some crushed red pepper flakes too)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp dry mustard
dashes of Tabasco sauce to suit your tastes

Saute onions in a tablespoon of butter. Add garlic after a few minutes. Don't let garlic burn! Add ground beef. Brown beef then drain. Add all ingredients to a large pot. Simmer to allow flavors to combine. Chili is usually better the next day... if it lasts that long! Top with your favorite toppings or nothing at all (the way I like it).

Our Chili Weekend

We are all so happy to have Granny visiting us this weekend. It's been a long time coming... she hasn't been in Tennessee since September! That's a very long time for us. So our weekend was off to a good start right from the beginning.

Since she hasn't been here most fall, Granny was worried that her fall tradition of making a "leaf road" with the kids would be missed this year. Usually the leaves all fall off in October and then we have our grass mowed one last time for the year and the leaves are all gone. But this year has been strange and not only have the leaves not all fallen but half of them are still green on the branches! The problem this year seems to be not having enough leaves on the ground to start with. They made do and constructed some highways and byways using the few leaves out there. It was the perfect day for it... crisp and clear, bright blue sky and warm crinkly leaves.

So it's finally FALL or at least, for today it's fall. And what better meal is there for a cool fall day than a piping hot bowl of chili? I have to admit I am a little picky when it comes to chili. I love the recipe I have had since I started cooking on my own and have never tried another. It's a family favorite. Ben puts in his request for it like clockwork during the cold months. Holden downs two bowls easily. Even Emeline relishes doctoring up her kid-size dish with just the right amount of cheese, crackers and sour cream.

Cooking seems to be the theme of the weekend. In addition to chili, we've cooked and pureed two pie pumpkins (from Huber's) and roasted the seeds. Tomorrow we'll make the pie... yum! Tonight we assembled a French toast recipe that has to soak in the fridge overnight for an easy breakfast Sunday morning.

So much for my jeans finally being loose! I'll start my "diet" again on Monday...

So What Are You?

You Are a Black and White Cookie

You're often conflicted in life, and you feel pulled in two opposite directions. When you're good, you're sweet as sugar. And when you're bad, you're wicked!

What Kind of Cookie Are You?

Hand-Me-Downs

Let me just say, I love hand-me-downs. I love giving them. I love getting them. Our family couldn't get along without them. With three kids growing from year to year and sometimes several times throughout the year it would simply break the bank to outfit them in brand new clothes every growth spurt. Hand-me-downs allow my kids to not only have wardrobes with nice variety but they also allow us to have gas money for the van!

I love hand-me-downs for other reasons too. First of all, it's so amazing to be on the receiving end of the generosity of others. Like I said, I love giving hand-me-downs, but I will admit it: isn't always easy. I have a emotional attachment to my children's clothes (toys, blankets, books, etc.) so letting go of what feels like my memories takes some getting used to. For someone to pass down a box full of their memories to our family means so much. It truly is generous when they could just as easily take the things to consignment and make a little money for more new clothes!

Earlier this week, Holden's bus driver, Mrs. Leah sent him home with a bag of hand-me-downs for Owen. She goes above and beyond her required bus driving duties. That just made my day! This same week I uncovered a box of boy cousin clothes; a box that I'd previously thought was empty! Owen had only about two pair of jeans until I opened that box; now he has about 20!

This brings me to another reason I love hand-me-downs: sentiment. As I took the cousins' clothes out of the box, I took a stroll down memory lane. Remembering when Parker wore this outfit... or when I bought those pants for Wyatt's baby shower... and even reminiscing over a few things Holden wore back in the day. It brings me joy too when I see other kids wearing things that are tied so closely to the experiences we've shared. They become a walking photo album.

So keep 'em coming... I will too!

Owen's stack of passed-down clothes towers over him. He's stylin' now...

Laundry

It's 12:12 AM Saturday, November 3, 2007. The laundry is caught up.

Just thought I should record this momentous occasion in Parker Family history.

Invasion!

I made a disturbing discovery yesterday afternoon (two actually, but I will address the other one another time). In the hallway of our addition, I noticed a small worm type creature on the wall. Then another. Another.

Upon closer investigation, I see that they appear to be some type of insect in the larvae stage. Want to know what's worse that having bugs in your house? Finding that the bugs have used your home for their gestation. Knowing that there were eggs of some sort that these things were springing forth from was almost too much for me to bear.

A cleaning frenzy ensued. Sweeping, mopping, Swiffering the walls, washing the baseboards and windows. All the furniture. Pictures came off the wall. I felt better... cleaner. I was able to sleep without feeling like I was in the Temple of Doom.

But this morning instead of waking to a clean hallway, there they were again. Instead of following my first instinct and freaking out, I calmly call Amy of Servall Pest Control. She's so sweet and understanding. I love that about people in those types of jobs. Just like you can talk to a gastroenterologist about the function of your bowels without her flinching or a fellow mommy about being projectile vomited on without her face showing even a hint of disgust. Amy listens carefully to my description of the pest du jour and asks a few questions (probably more that the gastroenterologist would!). Then she matter-of-factly diagnoses the problem.

Indian Meal Worms. Larval stage of the Indian Meal Moth. It is a common grain pest. These were coming from a pet supplement (full of grains!) I had stored in the hall by the cat food. I had thrown out what was left of it during my cleaning frenzy the day before, but apparently there were more meal worms hiding out... plotting their invasion.

So I clean more and Amy comes to the rescue with a special glue trap. She brings with her horror stories of other customers and their invasions. I feel better and the larvae invaders have been stopped!

See how frightening...

The Joy of Parenting

Friday afternoon Holden pulled out an envelope with "Mr. & Mrs. Parker" written on the front in precise teacher handwriting. It was thick and sealed. That doesn't happen very often, if ever. Holden's been in school for five years and this is the first sealed thing he's brought home. "Must be important", I tell him. He's not worried though... he knows what's inside. His smile gives that away.

What's inside is a letter telling us that because of Holden's TCAP (standardized test in Tennessee for grades three & up) scores he is being screened for PASS class. The letter doesn't bother to explain what "PASS" stands for (it's obviously an acronym), but it does tell us that Holden's scores indicate that he's " intellectually gifted".

Attached to the letter is a form for the parents (mom) to fill out to document his abilities in these areas: creativity, interest, motivation, problem solving, memory, inquiry, insight, reasoning, and humor. There are 23 questions and you are to list examples for each! If he's so smart can't he just fill this thing out? This is going to be one tedious, thought-provoking exercise. I feel tremendous pressure to do a good job. This is the screening procedure! His acceptance into this special class hinges on how well I answer these questions and if my answers are the right ones.

But you know what? Holden doesn't even seem to care if he gets in or not which I love about him . Yes, he's smart, but it doesn't seem to effect him too much. He has a good sense of balance in his life. Maybe getting into a class that pushes you to do more isn't what he needs. Wonder if the pressure of that would throw his whole world off balance? I remember being carefree like Holden is now. Wanting to do well and make good grades, but not being consumed with it. That was second grade. The year before I was moved into the advanced program. From third grade on, I remember feeling like I had to keep up with the rest of the class all of whom were the smartest of the smart. Missing school was frowned upon even if you were truly ill. I was constantly comparing myself to this kid; always coming up a little short when compared to that kid.

I remained in the advanced program through the rest of my school years and graduated with an advanced diploma. My education was good and enjoyed it for the most part. I never found school boring. I actually had fun living up to the challenges. Holden will do the same in PASS Class. But when the choice comes up (like it did for my mom) as the parent you can't help but play out each scenario in full detail in your mind then still not knowing the just right thing to do. Guess that's the joy of parenting. (Along with having an intellectually gifted child!)

Worth A Look

This is a link to info about a movie coming out later this year called The Golden Compass.

http://snopes.com/politics/religion/compass.asp

Read it and make your own decision...

What A Rush!

Just purchased tickets for a Daughtry concert on December 20. It was an experience to say the least...

Tickets went on sale at 10am. Liane (awesome girl at work) and I are the "ticketmasters". At 10:02am there aren't even 4 tickets available together. Being the resourceful brainiacs that we are, we begin searching sets of two. We find several sets of two. Liane buys three sets! I have one set pulled up but when I go to purchase them... there's an error!

Uhoh... There are four couples we are trying to buy tickets for. And now no more sets of two.

The search for single seats near one another begins! I find two seats in section 12 row F, but not together (seat 5, 8). I purchase seat 8 then click over to purchase seat 5 and the window changes to a purchase confirmation. The ticket is gone! Great... what am I going to do with one ticket? My gut tells me that seat 5 is still there so I keep searching, but it won't pull it back up. The website is remembering that I had it and is giving me every other single seat available before it pulls seat 5 back up.

I call in reinforcements... Juli and Liane. Juli needs a plug-in... she's out! Liane is on it. Section 14... section 15...

Section 12! Row F! Seat 5! She got it! WhooHoo!

So we got all four sets that we needed, but now I need a nap.

Farmer O

We already had the cutest pumpkin in the patch!

Precious

On a recent visit to Huber Family Farm in Starlight, IN Emeline is all smiles even after a long, long day!

He's A Character Alright!

In Holden's school the counselor does character trait instruction. Every month has a featured character trait (honesty, helpfulness, etc). Each month every class chooses one student that best represents that month's trait. For five years now, Holden has been named a Character Kid. This year's trait they picked him for was goal-setting.

Report cards were sent home October 19th and Holden made ALL As! He is super proud and so are we! Forth grade is going great! He adores his teacher. We've heard nothing but good things about her and she's living up to her reputation.

Holden also joined 4H this year. All 4th and 5th graders join at his school. They hold the meetings in school once a month. He is excited to be the class secretary for the 4H meetings. It is a perfect job for him. He has had lots of note taking practice at our Christian meetings!

Another exciting thing for Holden is that he has a friend from our Kingdom Hall in his class this year. Since we do not celebrate Christmas, his teacher has decided to do one holiday craft and one winter craft instead of the usual two holiday crafts. (I told you she was great!) Holden and Kayla get to choose the winter craft, make it then instruct the rest of the class how to do it. Yet another perfect job for Holden.

Hard to believe he's 10 already! Does that make anyone feel old? Sure does me!

This Is a First

Well, this is it. I am officially a blogger. How exciting! I haven't become something new in a long while. I love writing, but don't take the time for it as often as I should. Recording my thoughts and activities has almost become a necessity because I can't seem to remember a thing on my own! This way I can record for myself and share with others.

The necessity of putting things is writing was demonstrated a few weeks ago when I was attempting to get dressed for work. Yes, I said attempting; it's a major undertaking in the chaos I call my closet. So I have chosen my outfit and I have the top part on, but I am out of underwear. I leave my room sans panties to retrieve some from the laundry room (clean, of course!). The laundry room is directly between my room and the kitchen. I head down the hall and wind up in the kitchen where I stop to ask myself the question I ask myself a hundred times a day, "what did I come in here for?". Seconds pass as I silently repeat this question in my head. What? Then it dawns on me. Maybe there was a draft. Underwear!

No major mental lapses today though. Things went rather smoothly despite Holden being unable to make it to the bus this morning and me having to take him. Ben was home because of rain. Usually my days are totally off when Ben is home during the week. They feel like vacation days and I loaf around. But today he did his thing and I did mine which was very important because my things were starting to pile up after doing the loafing thing Wednesday when he was home (another rain day).

We've had rain all week here in Tennessee so Ben hasn't worked. We are handling the rain days pretty good since these are the first in about six months. Little Owen probably wondered why in the world water was dripping on him outside because rain certainly is not in his short memory. Typically I'd be worrying about Ben not working. That is me. Taking life as it comes and enjoying the good stuff is my goal. So Owen getting wet in the rain for the first time in months is my silver lining.

And my first post wouldn't be complete without me mentioning my Baby Girl, Emeline. She is so full of life. I love talking to her. Four years old is the age you can begin having actual conversation. But sometimes she pulls out one of her lists of demands and I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Like this evening during Survivor: China and dinner (the two always coincide) she is consistently reminding me that I promised to paint her nails... when I am going to paint her nails... am I going to paint her nails... I'd better paint her nails! So I tell her for at least the 10th time yes, but that I need to get Owen to sleep first. Emeline proceeds to tell me without missing a beat, "No, let me tell you what need to do. You need to give me a bite of spaghetti, get me some more sparkling cider, take me to the bathroom and paint my nails." You must realize that this girl knows what she wants and she is not shy about letting you know it. She wasn't being disrespectful just stating what needed to happen in her world. That is all HER! She is going to be one tough dame in about 18 years.

So there it is... my first blog posting. Did I do it right? Is it too much information? Too long? Too boring? Guess I'll learn as I go. Remember... this is a first.

Thanks to Tara for pointing me in the blogging direction!