we're just a tad bit obsessed

Sometime within the last six months our family has grown to love a game we play whenever we're in the car, without fail.

A game most affectionately titled: "YELLOW CAR!"

I wasn't there, but I'm told that it started when my Beloved and Sauce were on a somewhat long drive together.  They, in their matching competitive natures, craved beating each other at something, so the game came to life.

The (unwritten rules) are these:
1.  The game starts over each time we start a new ride, i.e., each time our car is turned off and back on again the scores reset.  No one needs to officially start the game, it is always ON.

2.  The first person to actually see a yellow vehicle yells out "YELLOW CAR!" as loudly and obnoxiously as possible with absolutely no regard for anyone who might be speaking at the moment.

3  The first person to call the YELLOW CAR gets one point.

4. Construction equipment does not count.  It must be a vehicle that can actually drive on the road.

5. Due to his age, Squirt gets every point regardless if he is the first to call it out.  We all just respond with, "Good job Squirt!"

6. The game grows and morphs the longer we play it.  "Slug Bug Yellow!" now earns an extra point.

7.  If you call out "YELLOW CAR!" and the car you've called is so far in the distance that you only thought it was yellow (and took a chance because your kids were winning by an embarrassing number of points), and the car is not actually yellow in color, you then LOSE a point.

8.  If a sibling argument results from calling a YELLOW CAR, both arguers lose a point.

So, now that you know the game, you can understand why a sight like this might make us get into a fender bender of some sort.  :-)

And why watching movies of any kind will have us screaming, "YELLOW CAR!" from the couch at the slightest glimpse of one in the movie, hence distracting us from the actual dialogue and general plot of the movie.  Because c'mon, we can't willingly lose a game!!!

Enter our current problem:

I just thought you should know in case you catch a ride with us somewhere or come over for a movie night.

twas the night before school

Twas the night before school started and all through the house,
Not a boy was stirring because the Melatonin knocked them out.
The backpacks were tossed by the door without care,
With hopes that no homework tomorrow they would bear.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
With the memories of sleeping late still stuck in their heads.
And Mom at the counter, and Dad on a trip,
Both prayed hard that all boys will flourish.

When out of the folders that came home from open house,
Came such a stack of papers Mom was forced to fill out.
She found her favorite pen and a comfortable seat
Because filling them all out would be quite a feat.

Names, grades, parents, and allergies,
Phone numbers, addresses, and who to call in emergencies.
Not so bad if it was just one,
But the three copies ruined the fun.

But she made it through every single last page,
Even though her wrist cramped like someone twice her age.
She let the dog in and locked all the doors,
Then prepped for breakfast so they'd be sure to want more.

She then climbed the stairs with the dog right behind,
And checked on each boy with kisses to remind
That these years are short, though days are long for the parentals,
And someday she would look back and be quite sentimental.

She collapsed into bed and gave a big sigh,
And drifted to sleep to a fan turned on high.
But when the alarm rang, she wiped off her drool,
And said, "GET UP SLEEPYHEADS!!!  IT'S THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!"

don't make me come up there!

My man and I were fumbling with an attempt at hooking up a television antenna on our roof(something we're absolutely not qualified to do) between dinner and bedtime last night.

Mistake number one.

At first, the boys were just playing in the yard, screaming and laughing and having a sword fight with the weapons they were awarded as party favors at a birthday party earlier in the day.  Cut a pool noodle in thirds, stick a two-foot PVC pipe in the end, and ta-da, you have hours of entertainment for boys.

It started to get dark outside and we hollered to the troops to get PJ's on and brush teeth (as we were balancing a large television on the edge of a mantle, while managing marital harmony over a wire that was too short to reach where it needed to go).

I'm sure you can imagine that we were not able to actually follow through and reinforce our instructions until we finished the project-that-we-should-not-have-started-until-AFTER-the-kids-were-in-bed.

As instructed, the little angels trotted up the stairs and did exactly as they were instructed to do.

N.O.T.

We heard squealing, yelling, running, stomping, thwacking, giggling, whining, thumping, hollering, and screaming.

My beloved and I returned fire with threats of what would happen when we got up there if they didn't knock it off and do what we told them to.

Suddenly we heard the ruckus silence and drawers opening and closing and water running.

N.O.T.

This is why threatening does not work with parenting.  We were stuck to the problem television and they knew it.  They called our bluff and continued on with the wild rumpus.

We finally man-handled the wires and finished our project.  I headed immediately upstairs to man-handle my children, but was met with this:

To which I busted out laughing and went and got their dad. 

And the camera.

I don't even know what to say about the snake skin tucked into The Hunter's pajama pants.  There are no words, so I will just stop here.

a debt

I decided to get decked out this morning with my three pieces of baby jewelry. The gift I received from my beloved after our little blond Rufus was born is a gorgeous sapphire and diamond bracelet.

The Hunter noticed it immediately because I don't wear it that often (I don't know why. I am vowing to wear it more often). He asked where the bracelet was from and I explained the story.

"Daddy gave it to me to thank me for giving him Rufus." I explained.

"What did you give him?" he asked.

"His boys!" I explained. "You all grew in my body and I gave birth to you."

"Yeah, but mom, he gave you the sperm!"

"Oh sorry, you're right. I should get him a thank you gift for that,
shouldn't I?"

I guess I am glad my nine year old still thinks sperm contribution is a big sacrifice for creating a family.

one week left - summer highlights

One week from today marks the first official day of classroom school for my little men.

Ever.

I really have no idea what to expect.  I think they are going to like it and that they will have a great experience.  But, I have no idea how much homework will be brought home each night, how busy I will be during the week with school involvements, or whether it will be a great choice or a royal failure.

One more week of summer vacation, but today is a cold, rainy day making me appreciate the fun we had in the last couple of months.

 

Our stream was roaring this spring and the boys came up with the idea to float down it in an old inflatable baby bath tub.  Keep in mind that this water is snow melt, in other words, no matter how warm the summer gets, the stream is always ice cold!!!

The stream is behind our house, but off the front of our house across the cul-de-sac is a city golf course.  Our street borders one side of the fifth fairway and the other side is bordered by a historical and beautiful farm property with the ski resort right behind it.  We had some great sunsets this summer.

our little lounge lizard

Rufus got the dancing genes.

I will leave you guessing which side of the family he got them from.

I'm thinking we're going to have to watch him closely in the coming years.

what cartoons are good for

A conversation my beloved and I overheard in the car tonight:

Sauce:  "I know what a record player is."

The Hunter:  "Oh yeah?"

Sauce:  "It's something that's on Tom and Jerry."

The Hunter:  "Oh yeah!  Tom turns it on to play music!"

Who said cartoons are a waste of time?  Our kids are learning history!

Industry Changes

Please keep my beloved's job in prayer as the industry is having obvious changes. Take a moment to read this recent press release - we hope this madness stops now!!


PFIZER TO CUT WORKFORCE 120 PERCENT
NEW YORK, N.Y. (AP.com) - Pfizer will reduce its workforce by an unprecedented 120 percent by the end of 2008, believed to be the first time a major corporation has laid off more employees than it actually has. Pfizer stock soared more than 12 points on the news.
The reduction decision, announced Wednesday, came after a year-long internal review of cost-cutting procedures. The initial report concluded the company would save $1.2 billion by eliminating 20 percent of its 108,000 employees.
From there, said a spokesperson, “it didn’t take a genius to figure out that if we cut 40 percent of our workforce, we’d save $2.4 billion, and if we cut 100 percent of our workforce, we’d save $6 billion. But then we thought, why stop there? Let’s cut another 20 percent and save $7 billion.
“We believe in increasing shareholder value, and we believe that by decreasing expenditures, we enhance our competitive cost position and our bottom line,” he added.
Pfizer plans to achieve the 100 percent internal reduction through layoffs, attrition and early retirement packages. To achieve the 20 percent in external reductions, the company plans to involuntarily downsize 22,000 non-Pfizer employees who presently work for other companies.
“We pretty much picked them out of a hat.”
Among firms Pfizer has picked as “External Reduction Targets,” or ERTs,are Quaker Oats, AMR Corporation, parent of American Airlines, Lockheed,Boeing, and Charles Schwab & Co. Pfizer’s plan presents a “win-win” for the company and ERTs, said Chris, as any savings by ERTs would be passed on to Pfizer, while the ERTs themselves would benefit by the increase in stock price that usually accompanies personnel cutback announcements.
“We’re also hoping that since, over the years, we’ve been really helpful to a lot of companies, they’ll do this for us kind of as a favor.”
Legally, pink slips sent out by Pfizer would have no standing at ERTs unless those companies agreed. While executives at ERTs declined to comment, employees at those companies said they were not inclined to cooperate.
“This is ridiculous. I don’t work for Pfizer. They can’t fire me,” said Kaili Blackburn, a flight attendant with American Airlines.
Reactions like that, replied the Pfizer spokesperson “are not very sporting.”
Inspiration for Pfizer’s plan came from previous cutback initiatives, said company officials. In January of 1998, for instance, the company announced it would trim 18,000 jobs over two years. However, just a year later, Pfizer said it had already reached its quota. “We were quite surprised at the number of employees willing to leave Pfizer in such a hurry, and we decided to build on that.”
Analysts credited the short-term vision, noting that the announcement had the desired effect of immediately increasing Pfizer’s share value. However, the long-term ramifications could be detrimental, said BearStearns analyst Beldon McInty.
“It’s a little early to tell, but by eliminating all its employees, Pfizer may jeopardize its market position and could, at least theoretically, cease to exist,” said McInty.
The spokesperson, however, urged patience: “To my knowledge, this hasn’t been done before, so let’s just wait and see what happens.”