Oscar Wore Tights

Siobhan was amazed yesterday when I told her that we never really chose costumes growing up. My mom chose a theme and made the costumes. We always either matched or were a component to the theme. My Nina usually did our makeup. This is from the year we were Solid Gold Dancers. I always liked this picture of my sister Luisa, she looked so glamorous. I think I pulled off an aging drag queen. Maybe my mom intended on displaying the life cycle of a Solid Gold dancer.
My kids usually have their costumes planned ahead. Oscar presented me with several sketches of how his Zelda costume should look. Olive was actually pleased with her costume. I took this picture last night because I was afraid she wouldn't wear it by tonight. Oscar thought the yellow hair would make him look more Zelda. Despite his best efforts he was called, Peter Pan, Robin Hood and an elf. Hans had planned on being Superman, Big Grandma had sent him a cool costume, but it inflates with a fan and he was cold so he decided on the Ewok to stay warm.
Olive ended up still loving her cat costume and even let me add whiskers tonight. This picture would be nice if she had her sister to pose with but Siobhan decided to trick or treat with friends instead of her family. Something that would not have been allowed if you were part of the Sheppard Girls super group.
So now we're home with a lot of candy. That's why I have four kids. The more you have the more candy you get. I told them they could only have a couple of pieces tonight.Hans can't hear me and has his "to eat now" pile ready. And a few more, just because, hope you had a Happy Halloween!

Malachi,Malachi,Malachi

I have to apologize to my nieces and nephews. I am really bad about getting dates right. I have two nephews who turned a year old this month. My nephew Nathan turned one on October 21st and Malachi just turned one yesterday. I am sorry that I didn't wish them a Happy Birthday on the right days. I have yet to meet Nathan in person and am hoping that I will get a chance this spring. Malachi- you're old hat baby. We will celebrate at Grandmas next weekend. Hans will bring the whoopie cushions What a pace this week! I'm on a posting binge. After a month or so of agonizing ,I cut Olives hair yesterday. It was reaching all the way down her back and was out of control. She hated to have it brushed or to have any ponytail holders or barrettes and it is always just matted down in the back. I was a little worried how she would react, she has been known to cry for hours if she wakes up with the wrong color blanket on. She has thrown every glass in this house at Pete because he is just not smart enough to guess what type she may want. If I dare suggest time out she yells back " My dad will be so mad at you!" and repeats it over and over as she serves her sentence. Olive is what you might call difficult. Luckily, I was in the clear this time. She allowed me just enough time to finish although I still need to even her bangs out. Maybe she can pencil me in for that later this week.

Go Red Sox !!!

Pete and I have always subscribed to the newspaper. I have a soft spot for anything dealing with the paper. My Aunt Bonnie wrote for the Monterey County Herald for over 50 years, she was accomplished well beyond that, but that is for another day. My Dad delivered that paper as I was growing up and my sisters and I took turns"helping". My uncle delivered the paper for many years as well. When I had Siobhan I picked up a route and delivered for 5 years. No, it wasn't on a bike, I delivered between 400-500 daily. It was 7 days a week and I had to be up by 3 but I enjoyed it. I got to hang out with my dad in the morning when we picked up our bundles and then I got to enjoy the bay before most people were awake. So, I have always read the paper. Sundays are my favorite and I really look forward to that paper all week. Yesterday the big book for Toys Arrest came and Hans and Oscar spent the morning circling things they want from Santa Claus this year.
These pictures I promised to my Dad last night but fell asleep before posting them. I wish you could have been here, you have some awesome pumpkin carving skills. So, sorry Dad, but here you are(can't wait to see you)......

The one on the far right was the piece commissioned by Olive Jane, Pete did a great job getting Spongebob, or Sponge B as she calls him, on this tiny pumpkin.
He also put Plankton,Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Sandy, Patrick and the elusive Mrs. Krabs on it. This is a good medium for Pete.......
I just couldn't post without commenting on some recent news. I am a Californian through and through. I love the San Fransisco Giants, they are the team I grew up with. My kids on the other hand are more "sports influenced" by their Grandpa Fish who was born and raised in Stoneham, Mass. (home of Nancy Kerrigan!) So, in our house last night, this was exciting news. I imagine they will be wearing their Red Sox caps the rest of the week. In looking up the Boston Globe I came across something I was curious about. John has a strong accent even after 30 plus years in California. There are always East Coast terms being tossed about. My question to you John is, when did you drop the "wicked"?

Pumpkinhead

I have to say, I really love this time of year, but so far I just haven't been that into it. I still have some last minute sewing to finish the costumes. We just put up decorations today. There has been so much going on. Hans was sick all last week and I haven't been feeling well either. On the positive side, of all the pumpkins that grew, the four with the names were the ones that grew best.

So, we are all maybe just a little tired. It's the first holiday season in a new place. There are constant doctors visits. My mom and John are packing up to move here. My youngest sister is there now to help out and say goodbye to our childhood home. My other sister and I will be flying out in two weeks. Olive wrote all over our couch. Just all kinds of crazy. Siobhan slept over at school last night as part of her natural helper training. We picked her up at 11:30 this morning. Once in the door she went up to her room and slept a few hours. Then, she came downstairs and slept a little more. We'll eat dinner soon (no pictures!) and then she'll probably return to sleeping. I'm beginning to wonder if that's part of the training. You won't have to help if you sleep through everything.

Grave Killer

I really like old suitcases. I have quite a few and when we moved here I wasn't sure where to put them since we no longer have a basement. We do have an attic but I really wanted to have them out. Pete is a minimalist. He has said he would love to have a room with a chair and a TV and that's it. He's pretty tolerant considering that I am his polar opposite. Since Pete has been a merchandising manager he is very aware of what is new and "in". Not that he wants to be, but it is his job. I told him that I saw this look in a magazine. Hmm, it's very "Martha". The kids call it suitcase mountain. Usually Hans' papa smurf resides on top of it. Actually, that particular smurf is from Germany so we call him "Papa de Schlumpe". As I said, Pete is pretty good about me and all my "stuff". I save everything. I have amassed a large collection of ephemera, this is where the suitcases have made themselves useful. They are all full. Some hold extra fabric scraps and old clothes that I hope to reuse. The rest are full of old photos and papers. They are mostly sentimental, I have a stack of newspapers from the Monterey Pops Festival, which my parents attended. Earthquake of '89? have that paper as well. I have a collection of published letters to the editor from both Pete and I (we are prematurely both old and grumpy).I also have a million cards from over the years. Some things are really not that important or sentimental but I just cannot let go. Maybe, by commemorating them here I can say goodbye to the hard copy. This was in the Salt Lake Tribune in 2004, I cut it out and have shown it to everybody that comes over.
This is a notebook that Oscar was given on a trip to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts. Because it was a class trip and there were other boys around he used his club nickname " grave killer". The notebook only contains a few sketches of inspiration. It was quickly used to record the flight activities of his collection of paper airplanes. Things like: goes up straight, hits Siobhan, turns down, comes in for landing.
It also records a list of things Pete was going to buy me when we moved. When he was offered this position in Seattle it was quick. We moved the day after Christmas and Pete worked in Seattle the two weeks prior. When it came time to pack, a lot of things got tossed out. Every time Pete said he would buy me a replacement Oscar wrote it down. My favorite two things on it were "martene shaker"( did not take long to replace) and what initially appeared as steamy calender. I asked Oscar and he couldn't remember until I made pasta one night and couldn't find a colander. We did get one by the way as well as a "steamy" vintage pin ups calender. So I guess grave killer got it right after all.

May Force Be With You (but in the right form)

Apparently I am totally ignorant to the hierarchy of Ewoks. I made this costume in about 3 hours because it was that urgent. Let me advise anyone that is thinking of sewing with faux fur, don't. It is still in my nose, two days later. Back to the point, this is the color of a chief chirpa which does not possess the skills that Hans is wishing to emulate. He wanted an ordinary everyday kind of Ewok outfit. He knows they are "tannish, brownish" because he checked the encyclopedia. That's right, we have not one, but three Star Wars encyclopedias in our possession. That may be why I continue to capitalize the word Ewok. In this house Ewoks are considered a real species. And yes, I will be attending many bi mon sci fi cons with my boys. That is how Kharma works. On a more somber note I would love if you could please think good thoughts for my dear friend Brittney and her family. Brittney and I have been friends for a loooong time. Her husband Scooter, I mean Scott is in the Navy and is being deployed for the millionth time early in November. They are trying to spend their time together as a family but they live in San Diego and have probably been evacuated since I last heard from her. So please say a prayer for her and if you read this Brittney please let me know how you are.

Johannes

This weekend I was talking with my mother in law, whom I adore, and she asked if I had thought anymore about Hans and preschool. I was honest and told her that, for purely selfish reasons I cannot bear to send him. Really, I don't think it's entirely necessary. It would be different if we were still in Salt Lake and he was in a class with her. We do plenty at home to have him prepared for Kindergarten. I was told that as long as he can sit for a story and write his name he will be fine. Even Kindergarten is already causing panic for me. What will I do without my Hans? In addition to this blog I keep a journal. I think that there is at least one quote from Hans a day in it. Yesterday, he played Legos and the only part of the conversation I heard was one Lego guy having to "amend the contract", he keeps a running commentary on whatever he is thinking and says things like " my birthday will be better if we have a box of whoopie cushions" to no one in particular. I can't miss that stuff. He holds my hand when I have my blood drawn. He brushes my hair while he watches cartoons. He wakes up every morning and runs to tell me what he dreamt about before he forgets. He has been a pure joy. I have looked into homeschooling and even toyed with the unschooling movement. Should I follow Blair? I don't know. I guess for now I will just enjoy him and his imagination. I guess I should end here, we have a big day. Hans needs an Ewok outfit. "Not for Halloween mom, just everyday use."

I also keep a photo history of my Dads hairstyles.

Yesterday morning after Siobhan left for school I went upstairs to straighten her room a little. Siobhan hasn't yet figured out that if she has notes she doesn't want me to see she should tuck them away. She leaves them on her bed, or the floor, sometimes even the dining table. As I was making her bed I felt something under the mattress. She had a photo book with pictures and notes in it. I was hesitant to look in it, but I did. They were all pictures of her dad and I as well as some notes we had written. I found it kind of funny because I have the same exact thing with pictures of my parents. As much as Siobhan and I butt heads I understand how she feels a lot of the time. Pete is a great step dad and so is John. You don't want to hurt anybodies feelings so you feel the need to hide these things away. It's not always this way. I started out really disliking John. I know there have been times he really didn't like us either, for good reason. This is the cycle Siobhan and Pete are in now. I'm confident though that someday they will get along as John and I do now. Maybe, Siobhan will be Pete's favorite as I am with John, right?. If only he didn't call every single day though.... We both are lucky . We each have step parents with thick skin. They aren't hurt or offended that we want to sometimes remember what it was like when our parents were together. Sharon is especially good at pointing out that remembering them together doesn't mean we can't love her and John. They are kind to each other and spend time together. Pete and Pat once spent a night with Siobhan and Oscar in a seedy motel in Reno when Pete picked them up for Christmas. I hope someday Siobhan will appreciate that we really try at this, not all families remain friends and work so hard to make the kids happy. Also, Dad may want to try out the Abe Lincoln look again. So, if you were to look into my notebook you would find some of the previous pictures. Also you would find this note, one of my all time favorites. I love it because I can imagine my parents young, with a new baby. Not so long out of high school but already having a lifetime of memories together. Mostly though I like to imagine my mom reading this and being happy my dad left a note only to find the P.S. Could you maybe wash my maroon corduroys? and being totally put out.

Let me introduce you to my friend Rabies

This is a good friend of mine. He came with the house. He's very well behaved and while he will come to the porch for a treat he never dreams of getting too close to the kids. The kids love to watch him and he sometimes will put on a show for them. Just thought I'd introduce you. This is Siobhan. She is sometimes well behaved. Sometimes she likes to put on quite a show also. I'm very proud of her. She has done a lot of moving around. Everywhere she goes though she is well liked and quickly becomes the life of the party. At a recent rally when she was introduced as part of the softball team the gym went wild, she had the most cheering of anyone. Not just the 7th graders either, the 6th and 8th were just as enthusiastic and everybody was chanting, Bon Bon! Growing up I always wondered what it was like to be the popular kid and now I have the insiders view. Recently the 7th grade class took a survey and voted her the top person they were likely to go to with a problem. Siobhan is a great listener and very empathetic. The point of the survey was to choose kids to become Natural Helpers. So, next week she will start training. I have no doubt that she will be a great "Natural Helper", as that's what she is. Except with housework. I had an email after my last post asking if I had cut my hair. The last time I had my hair done was for my sisters wedding two years ago. I have not dyed or cut it since then. I think that may be a record for me. But, it was time and I am indeed rocking some bangs now. Hans has decided he will pick up where I left off and has decided not to cut his hair. We'll see how long that lasts. I also was able to finally get a clear picture of this. I have a great number of old patterns. Some I have found at garage sales and thrift stores, but I also have a whole bunch that belonged to my mom. She made most of our clothes when we were younger. Some of the patterns I can remember. The disclaimer on this one makes me certain this was most definitely not made for me.....

Where in the world were the Lindgrens?

I'd like to add both a preface and an addendum to this post. Obviously, first the preface. I'd like to wish Alex and David a Happy 2nd Anniversary. I am still in the honeymoon stage, I cannot believe that David is finally part of our family. I hope you two enjoy both your day and this Hallmark style photo I took for you.

We went back to Willapa Bay this weekend to stay in "our" cabin. The kids were so excited and we had much better weather this time around. These are some of Oscars friends. He was on crab patrol. The boys also found a huge mountain of Indian clay. This is something I spent hours and hours searching for when I was in elementary school. Pete had never heard of it, they must not have that yet in Utah. Oscar brought about 10 pounds of it home with us.
I think Siobhan initially was hoping for surfers. That's cool right now. Especially since I taught her the classic, "Rain makes water, water makes waves, waves makes surfers and surfers are babes." Alas, she was stuck with us as we were the only ones on the beach. This trip was a spur of the moment idea Pete had which happened to coincide with something I had been wanting to do this year, The Cranberrian Fair. It was pretty interesting. The first part was the museum. The town, Ilwaco is a pretty salty town. A lot of old, local fisherman. We did get to go inside a really old, restored rail car. It's only opened twice a year and I love old trains.
Then , you ride a trolley(actually a bus) out to the bog. I enjoyed this part a lot. Cranberries grow in 5 states. Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Wisconsin. Of these states Wisconsin produces the most. Those states do not however, have FOG or Five Old Guys. Pete especially enjoyed their covers of "Mustang Sally" and "Fire".
So, now we're back home. It was great to play at the beach for a few days and learn about the cranberries. Time to get serious about Halloween costumes. It's also time for atonement, a great many pigs laid down their lives to feed us this past weekend. I hope that everybody else had a nice weekend.

Now, for my addendum. I'm not sure if you say Congratulations or something else. Kim and Troy blessed both of the boys yesterday. I was sad to not have been there but I was thinking of them. So, I'll just say, God Bless You Cooper and Chase.

It's a Bird! It's a Plane!

Hi- I did post something new but it was moved to below my last post. So, if you're interested, just scroll down. Have a good weekend. We're off to the coast....

HIP HOP HOORAY

My mom has passed a love of cooking onto us. She is a great cook and a skilled baker. My youngest sister Alex is a baker for a living. It's not something I really enjoyed until later in my life but Oscar loves to talk about the baking he has done with Grandma. That and her Friday night dance parties. Did you know that my mom is a HUGE Naughty By Nature fan? Yeah, she's down with OPP.

Yesterday Hans really wanted to make a pie. He took out all sorts of pots and pans and ingredients. Nothing was going to stop this pie from being made. So, we made a pie. Hans and Olive did all the pouring and egg cracking and mixing. I just did the measuring and put it in the oven. It was delicious. Hans added some(a lot) of anise seed last minute and I thought it would be too much but it was really great. I was talking with Grandma Double R a couple of days ago and she had mentioned they did a cooking project at Grandma Day instead of an art project and what a hit it was. What a great idea. In my opinion cooking is an art project in itself. I enjoy cooking. Not when I have to, that's where Pete comes in. But, I really enjoy baking and I love cooking for the holidays. Oh yeah, and I like to watch television involving cooking. I think Anthony Bourdain is downright dreamy...... Recently Pete made a comment about me taking pictures of food. What's with all the desert pictures? I love when something I've made has worked out and looks good. It's something that the kids and I create, like an art project. It's satisfying for me to have a reminder of something done well. I don't carry them in an album or make people revisit past meals with me (except here). Is this weird?
Who knows, maybe other people do this as well. For now I guess I'll try and not take so many food pictures. Wait! The home brew is ready! Better get the camera........

The Kids Are Alright

I just wanted to say thank you to everybody who reads this blog. I don't always get comments on the blog itself but I do get emails and I really appreciate it. I wanted to keep this to update all of my family that I don't live close to. As time has gone on it has kind of turned into a journal. Since I have had cancer I am always thinking of what I want my kids to know and remember from me. This is how. I can say whatever is on my mind. They don't always want to listen to all my stories or opinions but someday it will be here for them. In the process maybe some of my friends or family will learn things about me they may not know as well. That's the beauty of it, if it's not interesting to you, you don't have to read it. No longing glances at your watch while I repeat a story you've heard me tell countless times. So thank you for indulging me in this and making me feel special by reading it. Now, onto another thought......
I get asked a lot about my tattoo that I have on my wrist. I got it just after Oscar was born. It's the Trojan record label and the title of a Toot's and the Maytals song. I know it's not an original idea, Pat also has it, as does our friend Rob. I love it though, the tattoo and the song. I recently noticed it's in the soundtrack for This is England . I really want to see this movie. I was 14 years old when I started hanging out with the skinheads and mods in my area. This is how I met Pat, a skinhead legend in the area. Most people many not know that original traditional skinheads are not racist. Just want to clear that up. As with most sub cultures, people grow up and get jobs and kind of drop out of these things, or they have enough hours to retire, right Pat? But it's in my soul and deep down I will always be a skinhead girl. My all time favorite band though? Bad Manners hands down. Also another tattoo of mine. I spent years trying to find a video of this, my favorite song. So here's a video that I know at least Pat and my Dad will enjoy.

Portrait of an Artist

I have busy hands. I can't sit and watch television or ride in a car without something to do. I love to embroider and taught myself to knit last year. I don't always have the time to complete a project but I keep a notebook in my purse of great ideas for someday when Olive's not crying ( not looking to be soon). I think that both of my boys have this also. They always have something with them to entertain themselves. Mostly, they both love to draw. I've always been impressed with Oscars drawing. He can spend hours drawing, the details are truly amazing. Hans has picked this up also. I keep a file for each of their pictures. I title them and date them. Sometimes, if they're not too happy with it, they'll say "You don't need to file that." I do this for the girls also but they are not as into it. This is "Spongebob Angrypants".
I know I'm probably biased but it's my blog so I can boast some. This one is "Gorilla at Medicine Tree" I think it's pretty good for a four year old and I hope he and Oscar keep it up. Who knows, they could end up professionals someday. Maybe, like my cousin, Josh. Here's the artist at work. He usually narrates as he is drawing. Sometimes even when he is alone. Like at night. When everybody else is asleep.

Drinks are on the Sculleys!!

After a year and a half of patiently waiting my Mom and John finally sold their house! They should be here by Christmas. I'm really looking forward to them being here. I haven't lived close to my mother for a long time. It's a little bittersweet to see the house I grew up in sold. But the benefits far outweigh the woe. I hope your ready Grandpa, Hans has some serious plans. Congratulations! Can't wait to see you!