Not the only one

You know you are tired when you awake at 3 am with an infant in your arms and you have no idea how she got there, how long she has been there, or if you have fed her recently. And the next morning, when you find the completely warm milk still hanging out on the counter hours after breakfast, and the washer still full of laundry you started three days ago, well, then you not only know you are tired, but you feel like an idiot too.

But then, when your three year old comes to tell you how silly he is for throwing the baby's clothes in the garbage instead of the hamper like you asked, you know you are not alone, and you don't feel so bad.

Nerka and Noddy

My three year old's new favorite game involves naming an animal and then thinking of another animal whose name starts with the last letter of the first animal. Confused? It works like this: Addison says Alligator. Alligator ends with the letter "R" so Mommy says Rhinoceros. Rhinoceros ends with the letter "S" so Addison says Swan. And you get the idea....

(We got this idea from an old Tucson Citizen article - It seems they found the idea at www.pbs.org where it appears to have originally come from the U.S. Department of Education.)

Anyhow, it seems like a lot of animals' names end with the letter "N" and the only N animal I can ever think of is Newt. After polling my husband and my sister, the list didn't get much bigger. So I did what any non-educated schlep would do; I Googled it.

And the results are:

• Nabarlek
• Nag
• Naga

• Naked mole rat
• Nandine
• Nandoo
• Nandu
• Narwhal
• Narwhale
• Natterjack Toad
• Nauplius
• Nautilus
• Needle fish
• Needletail
• Nematode
• Nene
• Neon blue guppy
• Neon blue hermit crab
• Neon dwarf gourami
• Neon rainbow fish
• Neon red guppy
• Neon Tetra
• Nerka
• Nettlefish
• Newfoundland dog
• Newt
• Newt Nutria
• Night crawler
• Night heron
• Nighthawk
• Nightingale
• Nightjar
• Nijssenis's dwarf chihlid
• Nilgai
• Nine banded armadillo
• Noctilio
• Noctule
• Noddy
• Noolbenger
• Northern cardinals
• Northern elephant seal
• Northern flying squirrel
• Northern fur seal
• Northern hairy-nosed wombat
• Northern pike
• Northern sea horse
• Northern spotted owl
• Norway lobster
• Norway rat
• Nubian goat
• Nudibranch
• Numbat
• Nurse shark
• Nutcracker
• Nuthatch
• Nutria
• Nyala
• Nymph

How many of those popped into your head? And who wants to come over for a game of Scattergories now?

Is it bad...

...To live vicariously through your daughter?


I used to wear my hair a certain way, a lot. Until my husband ever so delicately* told me it was unflattering, unless I was a thirteen year old. So now that Charlotte's hair is long enough, she is going to wear this hairdo every single day*.


*Note to reader: italics = sarcasm

Homemade Halloween

Can you guess who we are?

When Jocelyn was born, Keith took each of the other kids out on a one-on-one date, hoping to ease the transition and give them a little individualized attention. After seeing Toy Story and Toy Story 2 as a double feature, in 3D, Addison decided he wanted to be Buzz Lightyear for Halloween. Being the cheapskate that I am, I wasn't willing to fork out $45 for the Disney approved costume, or even $20 for the cheesy Target version. So with an inexpensive sweatsuit, cardboard boxes leftover from a trip to Costco, and some ribbon and paint I had lying around the house, we came up with a pretty darn good outfit. And since Keith is a big believer in themed costumes for the whole family, Woody, Little Bo Peep and her sheep all came along for the ride. I may not be the next top designer on Project Runway, especially since I never even touched the sewing machine (hallelujah for fabric-tac!), but I am pretty proud of myself!

To infinity and beyond!