Wordless Wednesday: my littlest fellow

With whipped cream and a cherry on top

No... I haven't been cooking up a good time today - I've been reading about the Senate runoff race here in GA! And hoping to cap off a good run with the final death blow. Only GA is still struggling with a step toward the inevitable on-rush of the future. The future that holds change!

“Georgia,” she said, “the eyes of America are on you.” says a NY Times article. Oh Lord. Not again. Last time all eyes were on GA, it was when Rep. Broun of GA was comparing Obama to Hitler a month ago. Eek. We don't need that kind of press, right? Then Saxby rang in with his declaration to oppose President-Elect Obama as he "supports GA values." Let me get this straight Saxby. You're going to run against the wind in this move that is sweeping the nation, a move that created a historical change in America with the election of Barack Obama? And you're going to state that publicly, as though you are a majority? As though hope, courage and vision as upheld by Obama supporters cannot also be GA values? Oh-la-la. Tres backward, my friend. Take a breath of the fresh air coming your way.

It's about time for GA to join the culture of progress and critical thinking, and take a look at who is supposedly defending our values in Washington. And though it may not happen this go-round, the balance has shifted, and the voters want results. You may squeeze in again Saxby, by the skin of your chinny-chin-chin, but you haven't heard the last from the 50% of GA who did not support you. And I have it on good report that many of the ones who have had your back, are none too pleased either. None too pleased, I tell you! :)

Do you like her?

Isabella: Cole, do you wike Natawie?

Cole: Who's Natalie?

Isabella: In my cwass at pweschool. I don't wike Natawie, she messed up my hair.

Cole: NataLEE?

Isabella: Yeah. Natawie.

Cole: You mean like this? She messed your hair up like this? Then I don't like her either.

Isabella: Mom, do you like Natawie?

Me: I don't know her very well, so I can't say.

Cole: Well you shouldn't like her. She messed up Isabella's hair.

(Isabella nods seriously, content that Cole's got her back. All is right with her world.)

Jadyn: What about me... should I like her?

And on and on it goes. This poor 3 year-old classmate, with the brisk swipe of a hand, has the whole clan out to get her. Such is the pack mentality... :)

Quick! What are you thankful for?

Cole: My family.

Jadyn: (silently points to me) Mommy.

Isabella: Underwear.

Phoenix: Milk. Always Mommy's milk. Day & night.

Rick: Kids, beautiful children, beautiful family.

Bethany: Well now, you didn't think I could say it in one or two words did you? :)

Oh, where will I start...

Moms. I am thankful for Moms. Don't they come in all varieties, every one of them necessary.

I am thankful for 2 grandmothers that raised me on good food, that I still think of each holiday.

I am thankful for a capable Mom that loves projects as much as I do. And reading. And tea parties.

I am thankful to be in the midst of holiday memory-making for my brood.

I am simply thankful today that we are all healthy and well, with the wide open world in front of us.

And now I leave you with a song. Courtesy of a well-spent preschool education. Take it away, Isabella!

Thankful Tuesday

I know. I'm running early. That's just the way I roll. Either early or forgotten. :)



But I was feeling so thankful for a coupla things, I just had to start the love.



1. Jon Stewart. No explanation needed. I just get him. Anyone who plays "Devil Went Down to Georgia" in reference to the current Senate race just rocks. Full stop.

2. NPR. It's like a mantra of calm in my car - the antithesis of the house!

3. Cheese. My favorite part of the holiday season is hors d'oeuvres. Cheese-based ones. Cheese-based dips. Cheese Krispies. Cheese logs and cheese balls and gimme more cheese.

4. Ornery, rambuctious 7 year old boys who write notes about me in their journals, when they are sent to their rooms for being (and I quote myself) "disobedient, ill-mannered and disrespectful!" (I have copied these exactly as written.)

I hate Mom! Mom is stupied! Dum MOOOM!

and then:

I Cole Lear pleag (pledge) that I will hate my parintse forever! (Characterized by a drawing of a boy with his tongue sticking out.)

Ooh, the angst of adolescence... and the atrocious spelling of a mad boy! I am saving these journal entries, for sure. :)

Tune in tomorrow for more thankfulness. I'm chockful.

Tasteful, thoughtful and... Titillating??

My husband brings me treats. Not all the time, but often enough to assure me that he is indeed thinking of me while he's traveling. And every week he brings me the USA Today from his hotel room. My connection to the outside world.

Over the years the treats have ranged from a tiny box of mints to a gorgeous handmade glass flower and vase. And in each gift I can see his thoughtfulness, his taste that echoes my own, and the time he took to choose something he thought I would truly enjoy. I appreciate every treat and have composed a couple of exhibits to demonstrate some recent gifts.

In "Exhibit A" you will see a lovely hand-painted pendant, trimmed in genuine gold. I really like necklaces, since my neck is always out there bare, having no hair to cover it. This particular beauty came from Columbia, SC and was an anniversary gift.

"Exhibit B" hails from Gatlinburg, TN and is a tree of life pendant. I like trees, I like necklaces, can't go wrong with this choice. It even has a lovely card describing the tree of life and it's meaning. Even better.

But get ready!

Next up is today's gift, an unexpected twist to say the least. I have entitled it "Exhibit WTH??!?" As you will see, this gift differs greatly from the previous two. Like divergent paths in a forest, the difference in gift-sentiment is clear. This shirt clearly lacks in both thought & taste and leans heavily towards "free."

Yes, it does indeed say "Race Angel by Day," "Race Devil by Night" with accompanying characterizations of said Angels. Oh. My. Freak.

Step in for a closer look of this bad boy.

And guess what! It's a SLEEP SHIRT! Woo-HOOOO!

Super-Hot, superstar, hot-mama; I cannot come up with names appropriate for this treat. :) It arrived from my home state of NC.

Actually, the funniest part of this is that one of Rick's clients gave this to him, for me, in all straight-faced honesty. Yeah. Racin' is big business up in 'em parts, ya oughta know. And Rick had to receive it in all straight-faced honesty, because really, you don't want to lose some big Nascar tee-shirt bidness account. That there is some primo race-fan-sleepwear, yeah boy. The other funny part is that Rick asked me not to blog it, because his customer might see... so "Sssh..." and if you have to rush right out & get one, well, don't tell him you saw it here first! :)

Me? I only know that racing started during prohibition as a way to run liquor. And anytime mama needs a drink, ya'll better get it here fast.

So think of me in my sleepshirt this weekend... And for the sake of holding strong at 4 kids, let's hope I stick with being a Race Angel.

Wordless Wednesday: End of a Leafy Era

B. v. Board of Education

Since you asked, here ya go! The letter-writing campaign has begun! Here is #1, submitted this morning:

School Board
Planning Commission

Re: redistricting plans for elementary schools

Dear Sir/ Madam,

In reviewing your recent map proposals, a glaring inconsistency has come to my attention. I have looked closely at the boundaries and neighborhoods included in the MO Elementary (MO) zone, trying to determine which plan would be most equitable. Yet the inconsistency I see in each plan is this: while the MO zone has many, many multi-family homes included – there are comparatively few single family home neighborhoods in this district.

That raises red flags in my mind as to what the future will hold for the student body of MO. First of all, having lived in and around this immediate area for over 5 years, I have been in many of the neighborhoods around Alpharetta. There is great diversity in this area. And according to the recent map proposals, the majority of said “diversity” would attend MO. The other schools (A, CW, SH) will be effectively homogeneous across the board – coming from similar upper-middle-class neighborhoods.

Each elementary school should get a proportionate amount of multi-tenant housing, single-family homes, and upper-middle income neighborhoods. Only by dividing the areas fairly can each school support the needs of those attending, and maintain a high standard of education.

I feel strongly that this new map will adversely affect MO. So many of the neighborhoods contain blue-collar families, with both moms and dads working, and therefore less available volunteers for PTA, classroom needs, media center requests and other voluntary parent involvement. Also, all the multi-tenant housing skews the student body towards those that are more transient. Class field trips at MO are already affected negatively, because the amount of voluntary field trip donations is dropping.

MO needs the demographic that it stands to lose in these redistricting proposals – single family homes. MO already bears a heavier weight of ESOL students than any other school in this area. That number would only rise with the proposed redistricting. Also, of the closest area schools (A, CW and SH), MO has the lowest number of students in the TAG program.

Finally, MO bears the highest percentage, by far, of students in the free/reduced lunch program – 24%. The previously mentioned other schools nearby have free-lunch enrollment percentages at 12%, 2% and 3% respectively. All of these statistics point to a potential downturn in the school’s quality.

Please continue to consider the input of local parents, as we all work together to come up with a map that would be the most equitable for our children.

Sincerely,

Bethany

Our school currently has a great mix of students from all walks of life, and we have been pleased with every teacher. However, it is already on the statistical low end of all the scales the schools are rated on. It is a simple matter of fair distribution of all the types of homes that make up an area.

Simple, right?

If the board moves forward with any of the current proposed maps, the housing values in our immediate area will most likely fall. Because with the stroke of a pen, our school will be determined as less desirable than others very close by. Ah, politics you whimsical mistress. With one hand you achieve the finest national measure of equality in my lifetime, while with the other local hand you proclaim there are biases based on socioeconomic standing.

I'm up for the challenge!

And if you have any strategic suggestions, send 'em over.

Writing for a cause

Well friends, today I turn my penchant for wordy words and rambling sentences toward a good cause.

I will be MIA as I write letters to the school board concerning the redistricting of our elementary schools. I will try to bring my current passion for politics into the letters, and channel my activist tendencies. I will also try to channel calm competence and not screeching outrage!

Yes, I will be sitting criss-cross and chanting "ohmmmmm" while writing said letters. No I will not be burning patchouli incense. Yes I may use the phrase "in the all-encompassing spirit of our recent presidential election" when addressing the board and its seeming bias in drawing districts. :) Yes I may also use the phrase "boots on the ground" when referring to actual real life knowledge of considered neighborhoods. No I will not chant "Build here! Build now!"

I am really aggravated at the board and their collection of what passes for school grouping criteria.

Before I get side-tracked and write a long tedious post about the situation, I am logging off! :)

Flashback Friday: In which I return to my bread 'n' butter

I have been told that my kid stories are my bread and butter.


However, these comments come from a variety of people that (*ahem*) choose not to (*cough*) "join a blog" as though I have in some way attempted to recruit them into the proverbial communist party.

Or, to make it politically relevant, socialist party; pick your poison. (Poison? Matter of opinion, again. Ever been to a socialist country, ye who proclaim it cometh nigh? I have. Good ole Americer don't resemble one in the least, nor will it in 4 short years. Promise.)


So, for the record, creating a username so that you may comment & express your particular delight over a post does not constitute a change in party affiliation. Promise. And while today I return to ye old bread & butter, tomorrow you may not be so lucky. :) (I mean, really. I couldn't even avoid political diversion and analogy for one flippin' post. Take heed.)

Back to B'n'B...


Today's flashback is made up of a few photos, one of which was taken 30 years ago (eek) and one of which was taken yesterday.


Me, age 2-ish, Atlantic Beach, NC near Uncle Chip's beach motel, I think. Correct or corroborate me, Mom.

Whether this was a set-up or not, my parents aren't saying. Regardless, it has become a catch-phrase for my family, though I swear I don't make this face anymore. Much.


But my youngest girlie does. Frequently. And always in conjunction with a banned activity, such as touching my computer, as seen below. She timidly wiggled the mouse, caught my eye, grinned a la "keep off the grass" and while she held my eye, wiggled the mouse again.

Daredevil. Remorseless heathen.

This is the face of the child that silently climbs on the counter, tears open a box of cookies as though a rabid squirrel got into the kitchen, eats her fill, replaces the box, and denies it ever happened.







Jady-jade-jade. The girl who named her new stuffed puppy not Blackie, Snowball, Fluffy or Puppy as most 3 year olds would, but who immediately smirked "Donk-a-doo-doo" at us when asked what she would call it. "Donkey-doo-doo?" we replied, hesitantly smiling, and silently hoping she would not take this puppy out in public and call for it. "DONK-a-doo-doo!" she crowed, unapologetically noting our raised brows.


So Flashback Friday is dedicated to the child I once was, and may still be, but certainly bequeathed directly down the line. Betcha I know where it came from in the first place.

And if you want to bet to, guess you'll just have to daringly join the party & leave a comment. Heh.