senior center

I took the boys to a park in downtown Issaquah the other day, situated right next to the Senior Center. Brighton was curious what went on at a Senior center and so I did my best to explain what purpose they served and what kind of people could be found there. Well, the next day, we were in a public restroom and  I was helping Seth tinkle. Brighton was right outside the stall waiting for us and noticed someone emerge from the neighboring stall and head toward the sink. I didn't see her but I sure did hear Brighton proclaim in a not so reverent voice, "Mom, I think that lady lives at a Senior Center!" Luckily I was still partially hidden and was able to avoid the awkwardness. I know she heard him. She had to have been deaf not to. Which I guess is a possibility if Brighton's estimations are accurate...

thoughts on writing

I've never enjoyed writing. Well, I guess there was that one time in 1st or 2nd grade when I carried around a manila envelope full of short stories I had written, begging anyone and everyone to let me read them to them. But since then, I have had a distaste for constructing sentences and fitting them into paragraphs. In fact, in college, once I had gotten myself through the core English and History classes, I had a system. Since I was a math/stat major I didn't have to worry much as far as those classes went, but there were still a lot of religion and elective requirements I had to fulfill. So, back to my system. After registering for an elective class that looked interesting, I would attend on the first day, collect the syllabus, and scan it for any potential papers or writing assignments. If there were some (or even any) I would then drop the class and attend a different one. I added and dropped LOTS of classes during the add/drop time period, searching course outlines for the right no-papers fit. I wasn't kidding when I told one of my English professors one day that I'd rather take a 4 hour math exam than write a one page paper.

So why did I feel the need to compose the above paragraph? Because just like I feel guilty for never having kept a journal, and just like I feel guilty for not documenting my childrens' lives, I feel guilty about my pathetic efforts to keep this blog alive. And maybe if I give a reason or an explanation or an excuse, I'll feel less guilty? Probably not but it was worth a try.

how can it be?

Took a few pictures this morning as we headed out the door to preschool. We decided last minute (as in 4 days ago) to enroll Seth as well. He's technically a month too young to be on a typical preschool schedule but a lady in our ward who runs her own gig was happy to take him. I felt a little guilty and sad dropping them off today but, ain't gonna lie, it was awesome roaming Costco by myself. I can't believe they have Christmas stuff out already.

Anyway, back to preschool. I swear, when I picked Seth up today, he seemed a whole year older. Where did my baby go? How can it be?

(No, I didn't get any pictures of them looking normal)

unwanted houseguest

Was playing with flashcards on the floor with the boys this morning and saw something out of the corner of my eye. Perched on the wall, not far above our heads, was this:

(not my picture. stole it from the internet.)

I freaked. I don't do insects well. Especially when they're 4 inches long and look like spider meets mosquito.

My effort to remain calm in front of the kids was shot when the thing started to fly around in our little living room. I sent off some frantic texts to Brent ("Hellllllllllllp!" "It's HUGE!!!" "My heart is pounding!"), stuff like that. I don't know what I was expecting him to do for me, haha. My boys were wide-eyed and I was left to my own devices.

The thing landed on the blinds and I knew I had to act quick, before it started flying around again (which would surely have stopped my heart). My own devices, unfortunately, didn't include a long-armed flyswatter, so I grabbed a hot wheel track and stunned it long enough to suck it into an outstretched vacuum hose. I feel bad murderizing the thing but boy oh boy it felt good to breathe again.

Did some googling afterward and identified it as a "crane fly," which are extremely common in the Pacific Northwest. Hopefully I won't freak out next time, because there will surely be a next time.

Oh, and it turns out they're completely harmless. Physically, anyway.

some sabbath day pictures

Sure do love my boys.