Eric Schlosser: Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market
Barbara Ehrenreich: This Land Is Their Land: Reports from a Divided Nation
Jonathan Kozol: Rachel and Her Children: Homeless Families in America
Karen Armstrong: In the Beginning: A New Interpretation of Genesis
Barbara Ehrenreich: Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America
Ben arrived back home safe and sound yesterday evening. He's a bit taller, I think, and a a tad more mature. Two weeks of individualized attention really helps this middle child. And his mama.
I leave you with a few parting shots of Country Ben goodness...
And my favorite "You are in Arkansas, now, child" shot:
Ben's at Papaw's for two weeks. He wasted no time getting into the country mode.
Everybody join in:
Well a simple kinda life never did me no harm
A raisin' me a family and workin' on a farm
My days are all filled with an easy country charm
Thank God I'm a country boy!!!!!!!!
(And you can thank John Denver, too. It might take days to get that song out of your head.)
I will have to launch into de-brainwashing mode once he returns. But for now, he's happy with the tractors, the fishing, and the fried chicken. Amen.
Joel and I took Grace with us on Saturday for our cupcake tasting at Kate's Frosting. We have a good idea of the cupcakes we want to serve at the wedding, but she has about 50 different options, so we decided to try a few more. The sacrifice....I know.
Here's the event in pictoral splendor:
Ready!
Cloud 9: White cake, raspberry filling, cream cheese/vanilla frosting, white chocolate on top
We all agreed with Grace. Yum! Definitely acceptable.
Boston Cream Pie: White cake, banana pudding, chocolate glaze frosting, whipped cream on top
Grace gave it a thumbs up, but Joel and I had to veto. Not a stunningly yummy cupcake, and stunningly yummy is our minimum standard. Next....
Pink lemonade: Strawberry cake, lemonade frosting with pink sprinkles.
Verdict: YUM! This is most definitely our favorite, which was a surprise. Quickly added to the list.
Contemplating the pink lemonade cupcake. It deserved a moment of adoration.
Chocolate expresso: Chocolate cake with expresso, chocolate/expresso glaze frosting, chocolate expresso shavings on top.
Grace was not allowed to sample this one because Joel and I both retain the vivid memory of the time about two years ago when we naively gave Grace a cup of hot cocoa and then watched her bounce off the inside of the truck like a rubber ball.
She did a bit of shopping, instead. We loved the cupcake and added it to the list.
Not long after all the excitement, she came crashing down off the sugar high and melted into the backseat.
And then collapsed into a sugar coma.
All for a good cause, little girl. Thanks for the wonderful day with you. ;)
Central Texas heat can be humid. Understatement of the year. What to do on a humid day? Add more water and call it good.
Joel's sister, Robyn, offered up the pool at her apartment, and we gladly accepted. (Miranda was off somewhere with someone WAY cooler than us. Who could blame her, really.)
Texas water bug
Waiting patiently for sunscreen.
Pretending he's not directly related to any of us. There were three cute high school girls in bikinis at the pool; as soon as he saw them, he headed for high ground. Aloof is his middle name.
Sadly, his mystique eroded under the oppressive humidity and he jumped in the pool. Happily, the girls followed him.
More waiting.....Mom takes FOREVER with the sunscreen.
Fun was had by all. The end.
I am occassionally in the mood to lose my mind in public.
And because this evening was one of those occassions, I loaded up the crowd and we headed to a restaurant and then to two different stores.
The restaurant was a mild success, but by the time we were leaving the 2nd store I must have had a crazed look on my face while four children of various sizes followed closely behind me chanting, "Mom...mom...MOM!" Like ducklings on steriods.
On the brighter side, we did manage to eat dinner, purchase crafts for B and G this week, a lamp for M's room, four rolls of duct tape in stunning colors (duct tape is the new wallpaper. word), find new soccer cleats for Noah, and finally, new heelies for Ben, because he needs to add even more speed to his current habit of running everywhere.
Since no one had a meltdown, threw up, or started bleeding, I'll consider the outing a success. And I have photo documentation to prove it.
Say goodnight, ducklings.
So, it's been a long time.
Life gets in the way of my best blog intentions.
However, I'm back with a vengence and at least 100 (more or less) photos from Noah's prom a few weeks ago.
And I dare you to find a more handsome kid, anywhere. I double dare you.
See, I told you. I could triple dog dare you, but you would not succeed.
Noah and lovely Emily
Noah, Emily, Suzy (who has the most beautiful voice I've ever heard. Ever) and Andrew
Andrew and the most handsome kid in the world.
I have no words for this one. Except, it's all about the black suits and the long hair this year. And sometimes about the white shoes.
One last parting shot, not for the faint of heart.
Spring has arrived in San Antonio, so we celebrated by planting our little flower garden, plus Steve, Ben's cabbage. Steve and the flowers seem to like their new home and I love the color in the tiny corner of our front yard.
Happy Spring from us and Steve.
The high school band had a "fun day". I can see that fun was had by all. Look how cute Noah and Todd are, holding hands. Awwwwww.
Two wild and crazy guys.
My favorite photo so far from Noah's concert last night.
Rock on!
