Fall Randoms.

Some things we did this fall:
Went apple picking!


Made applesauce!
Rode camels!

Went to Halloween parties!
Carved pumpkins from Grandma and Grandpa K's garden!

And some of us went here:



Trick-or-treating pictures to come...

Politics.

This morning I was watching the local news and Ruby was playing on the floor next to me (pretending that two school buses were crashing into each other, if you must know) and the commercials on television are all related to the upcoming election. If this isn't happening where you live, please tell me so we can come hang out there until next Wednesday. At one point an ad caught Ruby's attention and she asked if that's who we were voting for and I told her, NO!, we're NOT voting for Tom Emmer (I might have even made some puking noises). And then she said the funniest thing:

"Oh, yeah. Cici told me."

I wanted to know more about this, so I asked for some details and she went on to explain that the other day they saw some political ads and that Cecilia had explained to her who Mom and Dad were voting for and what the ads were about (i.e., persuading people to vote for that particular candidate). I was shocked.

We've never been shy about sharing our political ideologies with the girls, but it strikes me as a little bit hilarious that they are now having their own conversations about politics and that Cecilia has this level of understanding about our current gubernatorial election.

I guess I should have had an inkling when, at Ruby's 4-year old check-up, our pediatrician asked if she was going to go to preschool. When she said yes, the doctor asked if she knew what school she was going to. And Ruby responded, "Yes. It's the place where we go to vote for Obama."

Namesake

I'm currently sitting in the San Francisco airport and missing my children terribly, so here's a picture just for the fun of it (recently emailed to me by mom mom -- thanks!). Cecilia is named after my maternal grandfather -- her two middle names are Manuela and Martinez -- who, until the girls came along, was probably my favorite person of all time. I miss him but love that we could honor him through our daughter's name.

As for my grandma, she continues to be a part of the girls' lives in significant ways. In fact, it was just Friday that they had a sleepover at her house. Family is a beautiful thing, and I can't wait to get back home...

Movie Quotes.

Responses to the movie Dinosaur.

Ruby: Dinosaurs used to be my favorite animal, but now they're extinct, so I don't see them anymore.

***

Ruby: I feel like I just saw this movie yesterday!
Cici: It was yesterday.

Dear Friends and Family.

We appreciate those of you who keep giving Ruby bags of dead snakes, but we probably have enough now. Seriously.

Short List.

Ruby [to Momlissa]: You know, Mom, you should really root for the Packers instead of the Vikings.
Momlissa: What? Never!
Ruby: No, you should, because Wisconsin is really great.
Momlissa: What's so great about it?
Ruby: Six things - I went on an airplane ride there, there's a good view, Grandma and Grandpa live there, there's deer there, it looks pretty, and I like it.
Momlissa [a little astonished]: Oh, really?
Ruby: Yep. Deer, airplane, good view, like it, Grandma and Grandpa, pretty.

The Reader

Not long ago my dad, Chris, told me that he and my mom were watching old home movies and had a good laugh at my expense. While my younger siblings were being filmed doing cute kid things, the camera would pan over to me, sitting in a corner immersed in a book. This was sort of my m.o. during those years. To be fair, if you were in 3rd grade and had siblings that were just babies or toddlers, what's the alternative? I loved to read as a kid, I love to read now, and I think it's a hobby that has served me well. Ahem.

Then you have Dadam. He reads at family functions while everyone else is watching football. He reads on the commute to work (he's not driving, of course). He reads while the girls are at swimming lessons or baseball practice. He reads next to me in bed while I do homework. It's just his way, and I think it's a habit that has served him very well.

So what do you get when two book nerds have children? Something like this:

Was this a long trip to visit family or perhaps a photo from our summer road trip to Chicago, you ask? Ah, no. It was an 8-minute car ride from our home to a nearby restaurant.

She might be a pretty little nerd, but she comes by it honestly. And it will serve her well.

B-Ball

Cecilia is on a basketball team starting in December. She is thrilled about this.

This means we will spend Saturday mornings in rec. center gymnasiums instead of watching cooking shows on PBS and drinking coffee. I am not thrilled about this.

But I like to see my big girl so happy.

A Friday Morning List.

Here are some recent goings-on, now in list form:

1. Cici is sick. She had the pukes during the night (fun!), but thankfully all of it made it in either the toilet or in a bucket. She doesn't feel well but managed to still be her terrific self this morning:

Cecilia [on the couch, whimpering]: Mom, Pluto is still trying to make it through the year.

Momlissa: Oh yeah? What does that mean exactly?

Cecilia: It takes 2,774 Earth years for Pluto to make 1 year. And did you know it takes Mercury only one and a half days to make a year? It rotates faster than it orbits the sun.

2. This morning on the way to school, Ruby and I passed the mother of one of her classmates, who was wearing a cute cap (the kind with a stunted brim that are fashionable for ladies these days). Ruby waved hi and then turned to me with this: "That's Aidan's mom. She's wearing a hate that looks like she's riding a horse." It took me a second or two to realize she is talking about this:

And she's right, of course, but how does she know what an equestrian's hat looks like? Where do they get these things?

3. Cici earned her first Cougar Paw this week at school (that's their mascot -- the whole cougar, not just the paws). It's an acknowledgment of going above-and-beyond, and she was pleased with herself for this, rightly so. She earned it for helping clean up a mess in the cafeteria that she did not make. I love her for that, but I would be even happier if she didn't then go on to -- later that same day -- completely freak out on me when I asked her to clean her own bedroom.

4. Last weekend we again took part in the Twin Cities marathon family events: me with my first 10K an the girls both running the 1-mile (Cici ran solo, Ruby ran with Dadam). It was a beautiful, brisk fall morning, and if my race wouldn't have started so darn early (7:30AM!), it would have been perfect.