There is nothing worse in this world than having a sick baby. Baby Boy Max has his first ear infection. Thought I'd post some pictures that reflect the current medicated mood.
Goodbye, Moon
By KAREN KARBO
Published: December 4, 2005
"Goodnight Moon," the children's classic by Margaret Wise Brown, has gone smoke free. In a newly revised edition of the book, which has lulled children to sleep for nearly 60 years, the publisher, HarperCollins, has digitally altered the photograph of Clement Hurd, the illustrator, to remove a cigarette from his hand. HarperCollins said it made the change to avoid the appearance of encouraging smoking.
EXCELLENT start, HarperCollins, but why stop there? The text of "Goodnight Moon" itself is laden with messages that are potentially harmful to our youngest readers. At a minimum, these changes should be made:
A. Huge gilt picture frames have no place in the nursery, especially those that are not properly secured. Should these three little bears sitting on chairs crash down during the night, Bunny risks suffering massive head trauma. Suggested change: digitally replace with piece of lightweight non-toxic fiber art.
B. The blue stripes are adorable, but the reader has no way of knowing whether Bunny's pj's meet current flammability standards. Suggested change: digitally alter to include visible "flame resistant" label, in accordance with recommendations made by the Consumer Products Safety Commission. Digitally removing pj's is not an option.
C. Tell me this rug is not made of the skin of a Siberian tiger. Suggested change: Digitally remove to avoid appearance of condoning hunting of planet's endangered species.
D. How long has this bowl full of mush been sitting here? A single drop of sour milk contains more than 50 million potentially fatal bacteria. At the very least Bunny is in danger of contracting irritable bowel syndrome. Not to mention mush is low in fiber. Suggested change: Digitally remove.
E. Balloons cause more choking deaths among 3- to 6-year-olds than any other toy. Suggested change: Digitally remove.
F. Given proximity and brightness of stars and moon, it's apparent that Bunny's room is in a high rise. Both windows lack either locks or any type of window guard or restraining device. Suggested change: To avoid the appearance of encouraging children to peer out of unsafe windows, and thus tumble to their deaths, digitally remove windows. Bunny can easily bid goodnight to a moon painted on the wall with nontoxic, lead-free paint.
G. Mice carry hantavirus, hemorrhagic fever, salmonella and Lyme disease. Suggested change: Digitally remove.
H. A fire blazing in the fireplace while Bunny sleeps? Suggested change: Get rid of it. At the very least, digitally add a fire extinguisher to the wall. And hello? Where are the smoke detectors?
I. The United States Fire Administration advises against using "alternative heating devices" like fires to dry clothing. Suggested change: Digitally move mittens and socks to other end of the room.
J. Clearly the bookshelf is unanchored to the wall. If an earthquake hit, Bunny could get squashed flat. Suggested change: Digitally remove. We can't see the titles on the spines of the books anyway, which might convey to children it's all right to pick up any old book and read it.
K. Who exactly is this rabbit? Bunny says, "A quiet old lady whispering hush?" But what do we know of her really? Suggested change: Digitally alter quiet old lady's apron with a message emblazoned across the front that says she was hired from a reputable agency, is a citizen and has passed a criminal background check.
L. Penetrating injuries to the chest by knitting needles are not uncommon. Also, someone could lose an eye. Suggested change: Digitally remove. The quiet old lady is not getting paid to knit, anyway.
Karen Karbo is the author, most recently, of "Minerva Clark Gets a Clue."
6 year old Matthew: I broke up with my girlfriend today, Mom.
Me: Really? Is it because you never see her?
Matthew: Yeah. I just decided today. So I broke up with her.
Me: Well, do you have a new girlfriend yet?
Matthew: No. Do I have to have one?
Background info:
About 2 years ago we had a yard sale with some friends of ours. That friend had a neighbor with a daughter who was Matthew's age (Margot). Margot's Mommy let Matthew play at their house all morning and then took them to the library where they saw some of the players from the Nashville Ballet perform. I heard tale that Matthew got up in front of the other kids and danced with one of the players (SO not my child). Then Margot's Mommy took them to eat at Provence (not a place that I would generally take Matthew). Matthew came back all a-chatter about his magical day. Fast forward a few months, they call us and invite Matthew over for the day. Matthew goes and has yet even more fun. That was the last time Matthew ever saw Margot. I don't even know how to get in touch with them anymore! It's amazing to me that after all this time Matthew remembers her and remembers that we Mom's had mentioned to each other that they would make such a cute "couple". Matthew and Margot. Matthew with his platinum blonde, straight hair and gorgeous (if I do say so myself!) blue eyes and Margot with her head full of black ringlets and huge green eyes.
Makes me want to peek into Matthew's future...just to see.
Whoever said that stressed spelled backwards has anything to do with something sweet should be drug out behind the woodshed and shot! Stress not only affects your life, it consumes your life. It starts out small, a little irritability here and there. Then you start to notice yourself lashing out at family members, or much worse, your 6 year old son. Then you start coming down with a cold. Then your insides start to shut down. And hopefully sometime before it gets any worse, you realize what the root of it all is. And then you do nothing but eat desserts. God Bless Blue Bell.
I recently decided to try a free trial of classmates.com. They have a free 7 day membership. I thought, well surely I can contact all the people I wish to contact in that amount of time. Well, it turns out that some replies are starting to roll in! It makes me feel all giddy thinking about the friendships I shared with these people from as far back as kindergarten! Here's a birthday party picture including one of my friends whom I have regained contact with. I'm sure she'll read this and feel oh so wonderful that this beautiful picture is now posted on the net for all my unassuming family and friends to see! It's a pretty old picture, so it has that really nice "vintage" yellow tint to it! After my wonderful experience with classmates, I recommend that you, dear readers, try to connect with some lost souls! It's amazing what it will do to your spirit!
This is it. Right now. The weather is perfect, temperature right where I like it, sunny, clear blue skies. The trees are are electric with color-the ones that are orange with a touch of yellow being my favorite. Sweaters are making an appearance; flip-flops give way to clogs. Football is in full swing. Halloween is at our doorstep....the first of a whirlwind of holidays sweeping us through to January. Somehow the air just tastes better this time of year. The smell of it too...the crisp smell of fallen leaves, distant wood burning, the wind bringing smells from miles away.
It's just such a magical time.
Check out the stack of cd's on my desk:
Random sampling of all that is our collection. We have hundreds of cd's...Mike is working on getting them all downloaded into our computer. By the time he finishes, I'll have bought him an IPod and all of his work will have been for naught. But oh well. It keeps the man busy. We've got some Guster, Jayhawks, Nick Drake, Gillian Welch, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Cure, Jeff Buckley, Townes Van Zandt, John Prine, James Taylor...and the beat goes on! I think Mike must have been downloading a genre there...hmmm. Maybe there's a method to his madness!
I do have to say, I feel very proud of the fact that my boys will grow up in a household of very ecclectic music tastes. There will be no boring music coming from our speakers and into our boys' ears. I will never forget I had Matthew, at age three, singing along to my favorite Dashboard Confessional cd! He knew all the words and had the whole cd memorized! He even chewed on the cd insert! Sadly, we can not find the cd...that would have been a nice momento, chew marks and all. Perhaps he ate it?
We're sticklers about concerts too. Although, we haven't been to many lately...which is SO sad. There have been some great shows come to Nashville. Matthew's first concert (while I was pregnant) was Pearl Jam! Max's first (once again, in my belly) was Nickel Creek and Howie Day! I will, one day, list all of the concerts I have ever been to. But tonight is not the time. That is for another post! Hmm...perhaps this weekend...
I just found out that my most very favorite neighbors (and friends) are putting their house up for sale. Sigh. Sadness fills my heart. I LOVE my street. I love my street because of the people that live on it. We are known as the street of boys here in the 'Hill. All told, including mine, there are 14 boys on my cul-de-sac, all but one under the age of 9. Three of those boys along with the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen live in the house that will now be up for sale. I have grown to love this family. It has become apparent to me that life will just never be the same without them on my street. Angel, Matt, Jacob, Clive, Hudson, and Isabel...I love you all!
We will miss you terribly. 
Who would have thought that eating cereal was so entertaining as well as time consuming? I made Matthew a lovely dinner of dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets and crinkle-cut french fries. A perfectly filling dinner for any six year old, right? Wrong. He asked me "Mommy, if I finish my plate can I also have a bowl of cereal, and if I finish THAT could I also have a dessert?" I think to myself, "Hmmm....just say 'yes' to avoid a fuss, remember what Mother always said, 'Choose your battles'. Besides, there's just no way he'll be able to eat all of that food." So he finished his nuggets and fries in record time. Then asks if he can pick out and pour his own cereal. "Sure!", I say. It's time to let the boy-child have some liberties. 
So my precious son decides to create what can only be described as "Hurricane Cereal". (Apologies to the victims of Katrina, Rita, and impending Wilma.) Do you remember when you were a kid and you would go to the soda fountain and put a little of every kind of soda in your cup? That was called a "Hurricane", remember? So here he was at the pantry door where he so painstakingly chose three 
types of cereal for his second course. Fruit Loops, Apple Jacks, and Lucky Charms. Why do I have so many types of sugary cereal, do you ask? Well, the answer is simple...I'm weak. I was hardly ever allowed to have those yummy sugary cereals as a kid, and to correct that blemish on my childhood memory, I am allowing my child to occasionally binge on horribly bad for you cereal. Shortly after finishing every last bit of his conconction he asks for a dessert. It just so happens that I had just finished baking a pan of Halloween brownies. 
How convenient! He finished his three course meal with a small piece of chocolate heaven. Of course, Max also enjoyed a spot of cereal...a little "gnosh" before beddy-bye. He tried oatmeal tonight (click on pic to see cereal mess!)...and seemed to really like it! No hurricane baby cereal for Max, though. I have to draw the line somewhere!
Well, I have finally decided to join the apparent blog craze.
Check back often for new, insightful comments on raising a house full of boys!
I only hope I can live up to my friends' blogs. Holly has the wonderfully written, beautifully done blog entitled Lyrascope for all things Lyra! Cinde has the Realm of Rohan, which never fails to entertain while always hitting home. Stacie has the Bauerle Blog where you can learn all about Joshua, the next president of the United States! I have a few that are friends of friends and those that I have found accidentally that I love to read as well!
Let's hope they can all be as entertained and informed with my humble blog as I am with theirs!
