Update

I know it's been a long time since I've updated my blog, but I do keep THINKING about my blog. About what I should say, cute things the kids do. Then I forget what they do and what I should write about. What a loss!

Anyway, there aren't any really big things to talk about. This morning, Raiden was OOOOO-ooooing. Then he said, "Mom, I sing 'Radioactive.'" Ha! Then Sasha got in on it, then Sabrina. (Btw, "Radioactive" is a song. If you listen to it, you'll understand the OOOOOO-ooooo part. Also, Raiden's favorite word is "no." 'Cause he's 2.

Sasha can read. It's crazy. His preschool teacher told me he was brilliant. Oh thanks, I said. No really. He can read. Oh sure. Well, he sure can! He can sound out words, and not just "cat." He sounded out "grassland" the other day. I think we'll put him in a kindergarten prep class, and then he'll go to kindergarten the next year. He definitely needs the extra year to grow up a little, but he'll also be the smart kid.

Sasha is also playing indoor soccer. He's a little ADD, so sometimes he spends time making sure the walls go all the way around the indoor field. They do. Today he must have been worried that the walls would fall down since he spent the last 10 minutes holding them up. Still, he's the youngest person on the field and today he dribbled and even did a little trick. So. There's that. Also, he's adorable.

Sabrina is doing great in school and was so excited to start reading chapter books. She's not very fast yet, but she's getting very confident in her reading. I can't believe she's seven weeks away from being done with first grade! Little T-bone. It's hilarious to hear her explain things like capitalization or have her ask, "What do you call a fish with no eyes? Fsh!" I've hear that about ten times in the last week.

Mom and I gave a talk at USU last Monday. It was largely populated with frat boys and their sorority girlfriends, so they were extremely polite but also not super into giving up their Monday night to a cancer talk. Oh well. It was fun anyway, and I got candy from the Bluebird and a USU mug. Score!

I'll try to keep you updated!

In Which We Save a Cat

We've been noticing some very small kittens near an empty house in our neighborhood. Being the kind souls we are, Spencer went to try to get the cats to see if they were okay. Yesterday, he came home with one of them. He handed it to me, it gave a weak mew, and then basically went unconscious. I thought it had died. However, after a few hours in front of the fire and a few droppersful of water, Lucky revived. It is now lying in front of the fire (again), having used the litter box a few times and eaten our cat food. Our other cat, Achilles, is not impressed.

We (mostly Spencer) have been over to try to get the other cat (which we have preemptively named Hobbes), but it's faster and less almost-dead. Also, it doesn't want to be caught. Have you ever tried to catch a cat that does not wish to be caught? Not easy. So we've left food and water, and maybe Hobbes will survive. Lucky seems to be doing great, though.

I'm not sure about Lucky's future, but she's making herself at home for now!

Six-Word Biographies

Over Christmas, Mom wrote six-word biographies for each person in the family. Here they are, preserved for posterity.

Raiden: Run, jump, roar, careen, spill. Repeat.
Zane says the only problem with this characterization is that there are spaces between the words.

Sasha: Don't want to snuggle! Make me.
Sashimi is a sweet, loving boy who also throws some pretty good 4-year-old tantrums. But when those tantrums are winding down, he needs very little urging to snuggle for a long time.

Sabrina: I love everybody. Everybody loves me.
True.

Spencer: Oldest of 4. Twice. Great expectations.
Can you believe Spencer, an only child until he was 7, now has five brothers and a sister? Maybe instead of "Great expectations" it should be "Great responsibilities."

Molly: Except in soccer, comports herself well.
This statement comes from when I had to get a c-section with Sasha. The anesthesiologist told me I "comported myself well" in the process. I would argue, however, that "comporting oneself well" in soccer involves a certain amount of...aggression.

Zane: Oldest of eight. Lawyer. Debate, anyone?
Really, what more is there to say?

Embarrassing Cliches

The truth is, I hate cliches. I mean, I hate BEING one. But I couldn't help it today. This morning, the day before Thanksgiving, here is what was in my shopping cart.

6 boxes of stuffing
3 gallons of milk (this is a near-weekly buy for our family)
1 quart cream
1 can pumpkin
1 pie plate
parchment paper

Can you tell what I am doing today? And what I am making for Thanksgiving dinner? Ugh. Cliche.

Thanksgiving Program

Sabrina had her first grade Thanksgiving program today. Of course, it was at 10 am. Why? I mean, everyone that could make it at 10 could also make it at 2:30, which is when MY school gets out. Instead, I had to throw myself on the mercy of two different teachers to watch my class during part of their prep, and my principal who kindly allowed me to go to the program. That's kind of the teacher equivalent of uphill-both-ways-in-the-snow. Still.

The program was totally worth it, however. Sabrina sat next to her cousin Star. The little girls were wearing paper pilgrim hats and collars, and the boys had Indian headbands with feathers. Sabrina promised me I would laugh so hard I would ROLL ON THE FLOOR and that I would CRY. Well, the floor is dirty in an elementary school gym, but I confess to laughing pretty dang hard. I didn't cry, but the "Go my son" song was really sweet. If I can figure out how to upload my videos from my camera I'll give you that song. It's Sabrina's favorite.

I'm so glad I work close enough to get to these things even though I'm working!

Random Update

I know it's been a long while since I posted. Instead of trying to catch up, here are a bunch of random thoughts.

Sasha, at school, has been learning about Native Americans. You know, with Thanksgiving and stuff. His Indian name is "Strong Buffalo." Seems appropriate. I think Raiden's should be "Screaming Badger."

Sabrina is doing great at school. She has really had a leap in her reading ability, and just recently a leap in her math ability. It's so great to see her truly learning!

I'm 37. Zane is 40. I remember when Dad turned 40 someone at our family reunion gave him a shirt that said, "40 isn't old...for a tree." I was 10. I thought it was mean. It's funnier now.

I'm coaching NAL. We've won one game. Hooray! We won a game!

My 7th graders are fantastic. They all passed English 1st term! Seriously amazing. I'm not convinced that will be the case this term, but we can hope. C'mon 7th graders!

Mom hired cleaners for me. Everyone I tell is SO jealous. And rightfully so. What's a better gift for a daughter than cleaners? I can answer that. There is nothing. Nothing.

I'm going to try to be better about blogging. Starting now!

Family Party!

On Saturday I went to a fabulous family party, in which I was reminded what awesome genes I share with other people. First, I crashed Allie's house at 11:30 with a I'm-out-of-Lexapro incident. She saved me with a telephone and car phone charger. Phew! Then it was back to Allie's at 5:00. This time I didn't break into her house in desperation, but instead waited for the greeting party of my mom and auntie.

It was so great to see my fabulous cousins! I haven't seen Annie for a really long time. It's also been awhile since I saw Julianne. Last time I saw her she was bald. Now she has 1/4 inch (or so) of hair! That's a great feeling. I remember when the first tiny little fine baby hairs came in. I stood at the bathroom counter and petted myself and wept. The end of the trial was in sight. Soon I wouldn't be that lady with cancer, but instead that chic lady with the short hair. Honestly, though, I think Ju pulls off the supershort hair better than I did.

Although Sasha had to stay home because he was sick, Sabrina and Raiden had a great time playing with cousins. Raiden, the youngest that wasn't a baby, managed to make both Owen (age 4) and Bennett (age 3) cry. He's a monster! His favorite game is "wrestle," combined with "roar like a dinosaur." For some reason, the other boys cried when confronted with a tiny body that wasn't afraid to take 'em down. I think it helped (Raiden!) that his head is on the level of the other boys' jaws, so when they bonked heads it was the thick part of Raiden's skull. Sorry, family.

Anyway, it was lovely to see all my family! We should do it more often than every two years.