Another One

I just put this last picture on because it's cute

The Retun of The Spiders

The boys and dad loved trick or treating, although dad says they were shy and had a hard time remembering to say "trick or treat" and "thank you". Tod said they got many comments on how cute they looked. After they came home and got their costumes off, they almost had more fun helping dad answer the door. It was great to watch them run when the door bell rang and say "trick or treat" and "thank you" then - much to dad's chagrin. They got lots of candy, didn't eat any of it and were still hyped up for quite a while before bedtime. The extra candy is going to work with dad. Happy Halloween. I'm tired.

til later....

THE night

Spiders, spiders. Creepy crawlies. That's what we have tonight at our house. Our eight legged friends (and their dad) are still trick or treating. Who knows how long they will last. It's a beautiful evening and lots of costumed children and adults on the sidewalks. I told Tod he should have dressed like a big fly! The boys don't really care for candy that much. Ethan likes to sit down and open every single piece and not eat any of it. Dylan will eat the suckers until they get too stuck on something and then he finds another. Tod is so happy to be taking them out tonight. Last year he was in Taiwan for Halloween and so disappointed he wouldn't be able to go. Luckily for me, Aunt Gerrie was here and she handed out candy while I took the boys out and met some of the neighbors. I think that's the first and last time I've spoken to most of them.
I'll write more when they return.

til later....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

This monster from Ethan is the harbinger of Halloween fun! Look for pictures and stories later today from our favorite holiday and favorite Halloween monsters! Ooooooooo....

Poor Ethan!

I had to pick Ethan up early from school today. He vomited in the classroom. When I got him home, he had diarrhea really bad. He asked me for a band-aid like he does when he has an ouchie. He never tells me where the ouchie is until I have the band-aid unwrapped and ready to go. This time, when I took the paper off, he had me put the band-aid on his belly button. It's still there. He's asleep on the couch now, poor little guy.

til later....

Monday, Monday...

The boys are off to school. Tod is at work. I am waiting for the cable guy and listening to my iPod. Got a copy of Tim and Maggie's entrance in the iPod contest. They wrote and performed a wonderful song which I'm sure will win them another iPod like they won last year. Good Luck Magnusons!!

Nichole was here yesterday, so Tod and I got to go to a movie. We saw "Good Night and Good Luck". Great movie! David Strathairn was wonderful as Murrow and the supporting cast was ..well, excellently supportive. If you don't know much about the McCarthy hearings this is an entertaining way to find out.

We also got to eat out, which we don't do very after. Carry out is our thing. We found out that there is a great Japanese restautant with carry out just up the road next to our pharmacy. We thought it was just a sushi bar, but oh my, their vegetable tempura is to die for! We also had Udon noodles and beef sukiyaki with sticky rice. Yummy, yummy! We're still looking for a good pizza place. Californians don't know how to make pizza. This is especially obvious when you're from the Chicago area or have ordered pizza from Linos or Johns or Primos or Marias in Belvidere and know what good pizza is. Even their Pizza Hut pizza tastes nothing like it does at home and costs a lot more! All food costs are high, groceries, too. Our biggest expenses are rent and food. A realtor came by to try to talk me into selling the house. I told him we rented but he gave me the seller's packet anyway. Get this - during the past 3 months homes in our neighborhood sold for an average of $935,000. All those news stories about SF and silicon valley having outrageous housing costs are true! Anyone who has been here knows that we have a pretty small 4 bedroom home with an eat-in kitchen, two baths, small front room, small family room and fenced in yard with patio. Nothing worth close to $1M. Not to me anyway and I really like this house.

I've been working on the boys' halloween costumes. They have their partys at school this Friday which is a 1/2 day and they trick or trick Monday which is teacher's institute or whatever they call it here. I will definitely get a picture up here sometime.

The cable guy is still not here. I have errands to run and things to buy for the costumes and for the show I'm doing in December. Well, it's not really a show, it's a shopping day at Dylan's school. You donate money to the PTA for a table and then you get to keep all your profits. This is only the second year they have done it, but last year they had 40 vendors and lots of buyers. You can sell anything from crafts to Discovery Toys. It's my first venture into selling on the west coast so I hope it goes well. I know the one year I set up a table at Fairview during lunch hour (which Ms. Bev so kindly set up for me), I did really well. So here's hoping for the best and hoping I can get my butt in gear and get everything done.

til later....

Bunk Beds - AAHHH!

Yes, it's true, Tod turned the boys' twin beds into bunk beds. They really need another dresser in their room and there is no other way to do it. They were very excited about the bunk beds and practiced climbing up and down the ladder all evening. The hardest lesson they learned, though, was that you cannot jump on the bed any more. Both of them bumped their heads on the ceiling really hard. But it only took a couple times before they became very aware of the small space between their heads and the ceiling. Ethan decided the top bunk was his since Dad put his bed on top of Dylan's bed. And Dylan agreed that he would keep his same bed. I was up all night worried that Ethan would try to crawl out of bed half asleep and not remember he was up in the air. He gets out of bed at least once almost every night. He got up at 4am and I got to his room just as he reached the bottom rung, so he did just fine. I hope he does as well tonight. Gosh these guys are growing up so fast.

til later....

Friday!!

It's Friday at last! It has really been a long week. Our sitter was in a car accident (she's ok, but had to spend the night in the hospital) so she hasn't been here all week. Every day seemed to move at a snail's pace. Plus we had trouble with our email. And I was a klutz all week and ruined everything in my path it seemed. We were worried the sitter wouldn't be able to watch the boys tomorrow because of the accident, but she is coming. It will be nice to have some time away. We are going to California's largest flea market in San Jose. Eight miles of crafts, antiques and junk. We'll have to wear our walkin' shoes!

Dylan has been doing really well lately. His language and connectedness have improved tremendously. He is saying full sentences "LaLa has an orange ball" ... totally self initiated. He is following directions " go get your shoes and bring them here" and answering questions, "do you want to get out on this side or that side?" and he'll answer "that side". These are some things Ethan has been able to do for a while, but are pretty new for Dylan - especially so consistently.

Ethan is doing well, too. He has so much homework in 1st grade. I don't remember having any homework. It comes home on Friday and has to be turned in the following Friday. He has math - simple addition, greater than and less than - concepts like "color all the living things red" and language homework - "name parts of a car, throw pennies in a jar and name an animal for each penny you get in". Plus! 4 small books each week to practice his reading out loud and we have to read him at least 18 books a month. This doesn't even include the OT, APE and
Speech assignments. He's a trooper, though and tries really hard.

Tod found out this week that they are sending him to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, January 2-9. He is so excited, but trying not to show it too much. This is the huge show where they exhibit all the new, state of the art electronic devises. It's a big deal. Bill Gates gives the opening speech. I would love to go out there for a night or two, but I don't trust the sitter with the boys overnight. This is where we really miss Jeni!!

til later....

Quote of the Day

When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.
- Mark Twain

Not Much Happening Here

We are all ok. School is going well for the boys. Ethan and Dylan have both lost 3 lower teeth. Ethan still hasn't lost the black one on top.

Tod had to go into the city Saturday to fix some equipment at the new store for their opening day, so we didn't see much of him this past weekend. He will probably have to go back again tomorrow. Fortunately the BART stops just 4 blocks from the store so he doesn't have to drive in. I don't see how people drive over those bridges everyday going into the city. They are scary enough on their own plus they are always congested. No Thanks! BART works for me.

This weekend we have a sitter for Saturday. We're not sure what we want to do. The Pumpkin Festival is going on in Half Moon Bay this weekend. But this is the first time the new sitter has been alone with the boys and I don't know if I want to be gone that long, especially since, if there was an emergency, it would take a long time to get back home. There are only 3 ways to get in to Half Moon Bay....along the coast from the north, along the coast from the south and across the peninsula. All roads will be packed that day. They get about 250,000 people every year for this festival. I think the best way to get the most from the festival would be to get a B&B the night before. Now wouldn't that be fun! Although you would probably have to reserve it now. So we may go to a movie or down to San Jose where they have a huge flea market. We're not sure.

We like the new sitter and she is working with the behaviorist and that is really cool. She can work on things with the boys and will know a lot about schedules and stuff for when she is here alone with the boys. I won't have to teach it to her - she will be learning right along side me.

The leaves are starting to change colors here. Fall was so pretty here last year and the colors lasted a long time. Right now we get about 80 degrees in the day and 50 at night. So no air conditioning or heat - which helps with utility costs. Especially since natural gas is supposed to go through the roof this winter.

til later...

More Bus Troubles

Dylan's first bus day was horrible. He got off ok in the morning. But in the afternoon, none of the bus drivers would claim him as being on their route. The poor kid stayed at school 50 minutes before a bus driver could take him. To makes matters worse, there was something wrong with our phone line so they couldn't get through to call me to have me come pick him up and they had our Rockford cell phone on file (even though we've turned in a new form at least 3 times) so they couldn't get through to us that way either. Fortunately the teacher had my cell and called me to let me know what was going on. Poor kid! The last 2 days have been better and he smiles when he gets on the bus.

I saw the geologist today. He had the results of the analysis of the stone I passed....calcium phosphate. I guess that means my kidneys glow in the dark. Perfect for halloween! He gave me a powder to put in water and drink twice a day. He also told me to cut back on my salt and meat. They've been telling me to do that for my heart for years. I don't go back for 2 months and then he'll schedule a CT scan to take a look inside.

The new sitter started yesterday. She did really well with the boys. Tomorrow she's coming while the behaviorist is here. We're going to work on potty training Dylan. Like Tod said, now there's a scary story!

til later....

Famous Birthdays

Since today is the birthday of both Groucho Marx and the Marquis de Sade, here are some quotes by both:

Groucho Marx

Those are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others.

I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception.

A man's only as old as the woman he feels.

Military justice is to justice what military music is to music.

I must say that I find television very educational. The minute somebody turns it on, I go to the library and read a book.

I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it.

I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members.

Remember, men, we're fighting for this woman's honour; which is probably more than she ever did.

Time wounds all heels

Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.

Quote me as saying I was misquoted.

the Marquis de Sade

What is more immoral than war?

"Sex" is as important as eating or drinking and we ought to allow the one appetite to be satisfied with as little restraint or false modesty as the other.

Social order at the expense of liberty is hardly a bargain.

The imagination is the spur of delights... all depends upon it, it is the mainspring of everything; now, is it not by means of the imagination one knows joy? Is it not of the imagination that the sharpest pleasures arise?

To judge from the notions expounded by theologians, one must conclude that God created most men simply with a view to crowding hell.

Snipets

Birthday Fun

I had a great time on my birthday date with Tod. We saw Corpse Bride and then shopped the resale and thrift stores. Then we had an early dinner downtown at a great Mexican restaurant. Tod also gave me a coffin purse that I really hoped to have when we saw the movie. It will still be great fun for Halloween. The boys gave me remote locks for the van and Tod installed them on Sunday. It was something I've wanted since we bought the van. I got flowers and a check from Mom and Lou and an iPod from Tim and Maggie. It was really a great birthday weekend!

The Bus, The Bus

Ethan has been doing well taking the bus to and from school. His bus is so full, it takes about 45 minutes for him to get home. Dylan starts on Monday so we'll see how that goes. We still don't know what his pick up and drop off times are.

Tod

Tod has a new boss at work and he is very pleased about that. In fact his boss's boss lives in Chicago and was born and raised in Rockford until he was drafted. Tod still doesn't remember his last name so I don't know if any of you would know him. He has a very poor opinion of Rockford, though.

Halloween

I'm getting geared up for my favorite holiday! Looking at all the decorations at the stores (and picking up a couple). I still don't know what the boys are going to dress up as. Ethan was looking at a clown costume but I don't know if that's definite. The neighbors go all out for halloween decorations, so that will be fun, too.

Pleasanton - North Hollywood???

I was reading in the paper today that many westerns were filmed in Pleasanton from 1917 to the early 30's. Lillian Gish in Rebecca of Sunnybrook farm was one of them. Also The Lemon Drop Kid. Hollywood loved Pleasanton's Main Street as well as the surrounding hills and rivers. Plus, since rodeos and horse racing were a big thing, many of the stars liked coming here. (Seabiscuit raced here, too). Hollywood stopped coming when Pleasanton paved Main St. No dust!

In Memory of Pish

Pish is dead. When I sprinkle food on top of the water only one fish came up to eat. I looked and looked for Pish and finally found her finless body buried half in the rocks at the bottom of Fish's side of the tank. Nancy says that beta's fight to the death, so I guess Fish drug her over the divider again and finished her off. I'm not sure if we will get another fish or not, but if we do we'll put them in separate tanks.


til later....

Reflections on a Birthday

Today is my birthday and, as usual, I have mixed feelings about it. I love birthday cake for breakfast. And Tod never fails to make sure I get it. Even when he used to go to work when I was still asleep, there was always a birthday cake for me when I got up. My favorite time was when he drew flames on little pieces of paper and taped them to the wicks of the candles. What a guy. I love getting e-cards - Thank you Mom and Lou, Tim and Maggie, Gerrie. And e- cards from people I haven't heard from in a while, but never fail to send a card - thank you Rich. I love getting to pick the movie and restaurant if we get to go out. I love getting cards signed by the boys and packages in the mail. I love hearing "Happy Birthday Mommy" like I did this morning. Unfortunately, it was just Ethan, Dylan was sick in bed. I love letting my kids dig into my cake with their hands. Ethan ate all the words off. I love that it is the beginning of fall, the end of 90 degree weather and allergy season (although I don't know if it's the end of snake season). I love remembering all the "libra babe" parties we had in Rockford, although that is where the mixed feelings start. I miss those times more that I can say. I remember my 40th birthday. "The Usual Suspects" got together and I was pregnant with the boys. I was not depressed at all about turning 40. How could I be with this whole new life ahead of me. My friends were all around. Things have changed so much since then. Now, when I tell people how old I am they don't say, "I never would have guessed you to be that old. I thought you were in your 30's". They don't say anything. There's no parties and we're just lucky we got a sitter for tomorrow afternoon to have lunch and see a matinee (I still get to pick, though).
There's another "birthday" this weekend. Last year at this time we were looking for houses in Pleasanton because of Tod's new job. It was a bittersweet time.... filled with the excitement of a new life. A new job for Tod, better schools and more services for the boys, a bigger, nicer house. The thought of leaving friends and family was a something I couldn't think about. It was a decision Tod and I made together. He told me he wouldn't take the job if I just said the word. But when would this opportunity come again for him or the boys? Most of my friends couldn't even understand why I would hesitate. So now it's been a year. And Tod still has a good job making more money and the boys are getting incredible services from both the school and the state. Pleasanton is a wonderful, beautiful town in it's own right. Plus it's close to everything. We've seen and done so much in the Bay Area already. I am so happy about all those things. So here it is my 47th birthday and a year later and I'm feeling melancholy. Can all these things replace the boys seeing their grandparents several times a week, or my Wednesday date with mom...my sister coming to Rockford for frequent visits...Uncle Tim taking the boys to the park....unbirthday parties for the boys in our backyard or our parties with "The Usual Suspects"? Was it the right decision? ....we're still here.

til later......

The Bus Trials

Ethan took the bus to and from school today. We have been having a rough time with the SD and the bus co. getting the boys home within a reasonable timeframe. 90 minutes to and 90 minutes from school is way too long. Anyway, we started a trial bus ride today with Ethan. The bus got here about the same time Tod usually leaves the house with Ethan, so that was cool. I made Tod follow the bus so he could make sure Ethan was ok when he got off the bus at school, too. He seemed fine, Tod said.

I picked Dylan up on time today because I didn't have to get Ethan first. Dylan seemed very pleased about that. We got home and waited and waited for the bus to bring Ethan. I waited, Dylan had snack and played. At exactly 1 hour from when school let out, the bus pulled up. I ran out to get Ethan and you know what he was saying when he got off the bus? "Mommy, you found me!" He seemed to be fine with it. Still haven't heard about Dylan's trial on the bus. We'll see what happens.

til later...

I Am Shirley's Kidney

Yes, my kidneys have been a real pain! Last night was so bad, I took a percacet at bedtime. This morning I was in so much pain and so hung over, Tod would not let me drive the boys to school. I hate this. It sucks so big!

Another Visit by the Tooth Fairy

This time Ethan lost his first tooth. A bottom tooth he had been telling us was loose came out during lunchtime at school. I was hoping it would be that top front tooth that was damaged when he fell a couple years ago. It's getting so dark, now, that I have to touch up his pictures on PhotoShop.

I Have My (Snake) Eyes On You

There was a snake on our driveway yesterday. I walked around the back of the van and stopped at the door. Is that what I think it is??? I turned around and it hissed at me - in my own driveway. I walked closer to get a better look and it hissed again. What nerve! It was gone by the time we got home from school, but I checked the mailbox really well before I reached my hand in there to get the mail. (If you want to hear how frantic I really was, you'll have to ask Tod or Tim.)

til later...

The Geologist

I saw the geologist yesterday for my post surgery check up. He said... drink more water, keep straining my urine and sleep on my right side and come back in a month. The stones would pass. He was a little worried about the big one on the left because it was right by the exit of the kidney and he is afraid the "gravel" has pooled there. I guess sleeping on my right side will make it pour out. He took no responsibility for reanimating my uterus...said the 2 weren't connected. I find that difficult to believe.

til later...

Got Milk?

Yesterday I had just started dinner and sat down on the sofa to read the mail. The boys came in from outside and sat on either side of me.
"Ice cream?" Ethan asked. "No, I just started dinner." "WWWWAAAA" He runs screaming through the house and then sits down next to me.
"Cake?" Dylan asked. "No, I don't think..." "WWWWAAAAA" He runs screaming through the kitchen and then sits back down next to me.
"Goldfish?" Ethan asked. "Well, maybe with di...." "WWWWAAAA" He runs screaming through the house and then sits back down next to me.
"Milk?" Dylan asks. "Yes, you can have milk. It's on the table." "Yeah, Milk!" they both scream and run to the table.
Good thing I had milk.

til later.....

HOORAY ETHAN!
Ethan's teacher has informed me that after less than 2 weeks into the school year, Ethan has a friend! An NT friend from one of the typical first grades! I know that the aide facilitated the friendship, but Ethan reciprocated and that is the coolest! And now they look for each other on the play ground during recess! Every time I say (or write) about this, I get more than choked up, tears just pour down my face. This is something that I so want for my boys, but have always been afraid to hope for. A friend.


DYLAN
Dylan hasn't been having any seizure activity lately that we've seen. He is still enjoying school. Smiling when he gets out of the van. He will even allow the aide to get him out of the van instead of me. His language is getting better, although we have some really tough moments when he is trying to tell us something and we can't understand it. He becomes so frustrated and goes into a total rage sometimes. We are working on this with the behaviorist.

DON'T READ THIS IF YOU'RE REALLY SQUEAMISH ABOUT "FEMALE" MEDICAL ISSUES
Or why I haven't written in so long
The lithotrypsy turned out to be worse than I had expected.... lots of pain, blood in my urine, not many stones passing. And then something odd happened. You may or may not remember back in May when I had a "uterine ablation". It was supposed to cauterize the inside of my uterus and relieve all my menstrual problems by relieving me of having a period. Well, 5 days after my kidney stone procedure, I started my period again! So, I don't know exactly what part of my insides are hurting and I can't tell if I'm passing stones, cuz there is blood everywhere (sorry!). It seems the radio waves from the lithotrypsy "reanimated" my uterus. Tod calls it "Frankenwomb". Anyway, I feel awful still, I'm in pain still and I'm still waiting to see both the urologist and the gynecologist... and wondering when the villagers will be arriving with torches.

FISH FIGHTS
I went to feed the boys' fish the other day - two Betas, Pish and Fish - and found both fish on the same side of the tank. If you know anything about Betas, they are Oriental Fighting Fish and you never put them in the same tank because they will beat the crap out of each other. So Aunt Nancy bought our Betas a tank with a see through divider, so they can make faces at each other but not do mortal combat. I don't know if one of the boys moved the Pish into Fish's side or if Pish jumped or if Fish grabbed her and pulled her over. Anyway, Pish got the crap beat out of her. She is pale (she was the red one), not eating well and her fins have been pretty shredded. Fish, on the other hand, looks gorgeous with dark iridescent fins that make him look like he's strutting around the tank. It will be interesting to see if there is a rematch.

WEATHER
Really cool here lately. I was getting so tired of 95+. It's 75 during the day and low 50's at night. No air conditioning. Jeans and sweaters in the mornings. Beautiful blue skies, nice breezes, no bugs. I love this.

til later.....

The Stones Have Been Blasted

They went ahead and did the lithotripsy procedure yesterday. And everything went well. Tod picked the boys up from school before he came to get me. It was so nice to have them there. The car ride home was pretty rough, but fortunately since it was 3:30 in the afternoon and holiday traffic wasn't too bad, yet. I've been drinking lots of water and taking lots of drugs. But I'm feeling better and better as each hour goes by. Glad it's a 3 day holiday. I'm sure I'll be up and running by Tuesday, especially since I don't have a choice ;-) Tod, in the mean time has been a great nurse and also wonderful at intercepting little boys who want to jump on their mom's bruised kidneys.

til later...