I never got around to much Halloween decorating this year. So D2 took matters into his own hands.
Using his favorite artistic medium, LEGO bricks, he spelled out "Haliween" (spelled it himself, too!), and built two skeletons, two pumpkins (on the right), and a yellow leaf (leaning against the W). They've adorned his windowsill most of the month.
He's so resourceful.
Speaking of resourceful, check out the costumes we wore to the Trunk or Treat.
Scoot needed some white fur and hairspray to be
an arctic werewolf,
but the other boys used things they found around the house. D2 wore Scoot's old Buzz Lightyear costume, augmented with wings. Rollo borrowed Dandelionslayer's robe, some of my jewelry, and Scoot's werewolf expression to be a sorcerer.
When the S family moved away last summer, they left us some things to remember them by,
including a pair of sturdy armchairs, and a matching footstool. The Caterpillar immediately began using them this way:
Considering that his friends had probably done the same, and that the chairs had been loved by at least one other family before that, it was not surprising that the upholstery was a little the worse for the wear. So I decided to replace it.
I took apart the original covers and used the pieces as patterns to cut this lovely Spruce Green Brushed Bull Denim from Fabric.com. I sewed it up more or less according to the original plan, and now the chairs are renewed.
I admit that I was tempted by many other materials. The fabric store and websites are full of fashionable fabrics that are expensive, unwashable, and feature patterns that I like, but would make Dandelionslayer cringe. So I decided to be safe, and go for something plain and comfortable,
then accesorize with pillows. The chairs are a little deep for some of the less-tall members of the family (like me), so I made a couple of supporting pillows. Then I used some printed cotton and yellow satin from my stash to make pillow covers. Now I can change the decor easily, if I want to. I'm already planning Christmas pillows...
Dandelionslayer earned his master's degree in the middle of nowhere. Socorro, NM, is the county seat of a mostly empty county. It's perfect for studying astrophysics, but a little dry in other ways. Fortunately, past presidents of NMT recognized the difficulty of luring quality faculty to such a place, and took steps. Trees were planted, lawns watered. A golf course was installed. A performing arts center was built, and a pretty impressive series of artists were invited to perform. And when we were there, at least, student tickets were cheap or free. So we took in quite a few shows.
Preferring cheap and free ourselves, we usually took the tiny Caterpillar with us. We became known to the lady in charge of the performances, and she regarded us more or less favorably. As she introduced one concert, she mentioned that she was pleased to see some children in the audience. "If," she warned, "your baby should happen to cry"--and the Caterpillar wailed, right on cue. Everyone laughed, and I spent most of that show in the lobby.
I remember leaving him with a babysitter for a particular show. Some Celtic-type band was supposed to come, but at the last minute they couldn't make it. Instead, a young fiddler from Cape Breton Island arrived to entertain us. Okay, she's our age, but we were young, too. And Natalie MacMaster certainly did entertain us. We were hooked. We went to see her again when she made a quick stop in Albuquerque, a few days before Scoot was due. We caught a free show she did in Savannah. Dandelionslayer and I went to see her Christmas concert in Seattle. So we were excited to see that she was coming to the area again last week. This time, we took the Caterpillar along, because we knew he'd love the concert, too. He didn't wail once.
The music she plays tugs on my Scottish roots, but what I really love is the sheer joy and energy that she radiates while playing. Here's the Volcanic Jig. It's one of Natalie MacMaster's own compositions, but she plays the traditional tunes with the same fire.
The boys have been in a Catty mood this week. We're all going around with classic Webber tunes like "Memory" and "Macavity" stuck in our heads. But here's another that I like:
I feel like I can identify with the Old Gumbie Cat. Okay, maybe not with her outfit. (The costumes we saw in a local production were far superior to the Broadway set and their clones.) But I have my own "tiger stripes and leopard spots." I was born bald, of course, and then grew blonde hair, as is the custom in my family. When my sister Vae's hair changed, it went from blonde to brunette almost overnight. But I just started growing hairs of many colors, which yields a striped effect in braids and such. Some people refer to me as a redhead, but I think that has as much to to with my "leopard spots"--freckles. It's all good camouflage, anyway, for a cat who may seem quiet in order to get along with the important things in a home: music, crocheting, baking, training boy-scouts...
Here's the original poem, which I like even better:
I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
Her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots.
All day she sits upon the stair or on the steps or on the mat;
She sits and sits and sits and sits--and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!
But when the day's hustle and bustle is done,
Then the Gumbie Cat's work is but hardly begun.
And when all the family's in bed and asleep,
She tucks up her skirts to the basement to creep.
She is deeply concerned with the ways of the mice
Their behaviour's not good and their manners not nice;
So when she has got them lined up on the matting,
She teaches them music, crocheting and tatting.
I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
Her equal would be hard to find, she likes the warm and sunny spots.
All day she sits beside the hearth or on the bed or on my hat:
She sits and sits and sits and sits--and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!
But when the day's hustle and bustle is done,
Then the Gumbie Cat's work is but hardly begun.
As she finds that the mice will not ever keep quiet,
She is sure it is due to irregular diet;
And believing that nothing is done without trying,
She sets right to work with her baking and frying.
She makes them a mouse--cake of bread and dried peas,
And a beautiful fry of lean bacon and cheese.
I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
The curtain-cord she likes to wind, and tie it into sailor-knots.
She sits upon the window-sill, or anything that's smooth and flat:
She sits and sits and sits and sits--and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!
But when the day's hustle and bustle is done,
Then the Gumbie Cat's work is but hardly begun.
She thinks that the cockroaches just need employment
To prevent them from idle and wanton destroyment.
So she's formed, from that lot of disorderly louts,
A troop of well-disciplined helpful boy-scouts,
With a purpose in life and a good deed to do
And she's even created a Beetles' Tattoo.
So for Old Gumbie Cats let us now give three cheers
On whom well-ordered households depend, it appears.
Six years ago, D2 was born on the first day of school. Very early on the first day of school. A friend received his brothers in the middle of the night, packed their lunches, and walked them to school the first day.
This year, his birthday was on the first day of first grade.
Which wasn't a very good day for having company, so D2 invited friends over a couple of days earlier, for a penguin party.
Scoot took them fishing in the real pond. The koi knew to stay out of the way.
They tried to feed stuffed fish to this penguin. It wasn't particularly hungry, unless people stood at very close range. Rollo and D2 painted the penguin, and D2 helped Dandelionslayer build the supports.
They tried to transport their eggs safely. I thought it would be fun to see them waddle, but they quickly solved the problem by hopping.
The Caterpillar led them in an iceberg-hopping game. The icebergs were very slippery.
Dandelionslayer taught them a silly penguin song and dance.
We took a break for igloo cake, before the big water balloon battle. It was a fun party.
After school on D2's real birthday, he was tired and a bit cranky. "It was boring," he declared when I asked about school, "and too long!"
But things got better. Here he is, full of birthday ice cream and energy. Well past bedtime. What a fun little boy!
We have a visitor this week. Though she seems to be sleeping so demurely beneath the computer desk, this little pooch has great energy and stamina, and a distinctive voice, particularly in the middle of the night. She's a definite daddy's girl, and quickly accepted Dandelionslayer as a temporary idol. The little boys idolize her in turn. To attract her attention, they fill the air with whistles and claps and cries of "Hey, Lucy!" Which inevitably brings this song to my mind:
I'm afraid it's true. I was thinking about the main characters in a good book I'd read recently, reviewing their adventures and their personalities, speculating about their futures . . . and realized that I knew them better than I know most people.
Well-written characters share their thoughts, feelings, and motivations in ways that I can understand, even if I don't agree. Fiction helps me explore the consequences of choices I wouldn't ordinarily make, shows me times and places I don't inhabit, and exercises my brain as I puzzle out plot twists and learn new words.
Fictional people don't care about my thoughts and feelings, of course. But that's okay. I'm an introvert. And if I don't like the people I meet in a book, I can just send them back to the library. Maybe someone else will like them.
I do try to read non-fiction from time to time. I just finished a biography of James Madison which was interesting and educational. But I think I learned at least as much from Elijah of Buxton, the historical novel I read afterward, in a tenth of the time.
So I'm excited to join the Summer Book Trek. This is a challenge to read fiction by LDS authors, with the opportunity to win fabulous prizes (More books! Sign up today!). I've found quite a few enticing volumes in my local library catalog, and I look forward to visiting some old friends and making some new ones. I'll keep a list of the books I read on the sidebar, under the Trek button.
Of course, I'm not the only reader around here. As soon as the Caterpillar heard about the Summer Book Trek, he hit his bookshelf upstairs. He's read at least four novels in the Tennis Shoes Adventure Series in the past two days, racking up the points. But he'll be out of town on a real adventure next week, so I might catch up.
