Pig Tails

Tenley looks fabulous in her pig tails and Halloween kitty shirt. We
are on our way to the Pumpkin Patch!

God Makes Them Cute so You Won't Kill Them

We celebrate all the Jewish holidays with our friends and travel-mates Scott & Gaynor and their adorable daughters (and Ten's China Sisters) Lauren & Amanda. Scott loves anything with peanut butter, so it was no surprise a couple weeks ago when I started making a Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie to take over to their house for "Break-Fast" aka Yom Kippur. Now, the running gag is that I'm not allowed to set foot in the house unless I have a pan of Crunchy Peanut Butter Bars - which belong only to Scott, are immediately hidden, and which he does not share- hence the Pie which was to be shared.

Since I worked both jobs on Wed, I only got the Pie made- but I wasn't concerned because I had plenty of time on Thursday morning to make the bars. So the well timed plan was: get up, breakfast, grocery shopping, make bars, lunch w/ Aunty Kim & Jaxon, leave for Scott & Gaynor's house approx. 5 billion miles away.

All was well...except that I desperately needed a shower & Ten needed a bath. I worked it out: bake the bars- cool slightly- glaze; then shower while the glaze set, throw Ten in tub, do chocolate ribbon while Ten plays in bath, bars will finish cooling and icing will set while we have lunch- voila! ready to cut & transport before we leave!

Everything was going according to plan. Ten helped mix & bake the bars, and was coloring happily while watching "Wow Wow Wubzy!" while I did the glaze- she even got to lick the spoon.

I jumped in the shower.

15 min later I was out & Ten was in the tub.

I decided to make sure the glaze was set enough for the chocolate before I started the double boiler.

and THIS is what I found:

What the? Oh no. Horror. Cat?? No, wait....those look like little finger trails.....

"TEEEEENNNNNLLLLEEEEYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!" People at the other end of the street probably heard me. I storm into the bathroom & demand an accounting....and she LIES!!!!!

"Tenley! Did you drag your grubby little fingers through the glaze on Uncle Scott's Peanut Butter Bars???"

"No."

Must. Control. Fist. Of. Death.

"Really. Then who RUINED them?"

No reply. She starts looking at her feet poking out from the bubbles.

"Did you do that?"

She nods.

I give her the speech about how disappointed I am in her behavior, that she ruined Uncle Scott's special dessert, what "double dipping" is and why it's gross, and tell her that she has lost the priviledge of lunch with Jaxon. (It is difficult to do this with a straight face when the person you're admonishing has soaped their hair into bunny ears and has a bubble beard a'la Colonel Sanders.)

I call Gaynor who laughs so hard she snorts, and assures me that Scott won't care. I call my Mother to confirm that my proposed method of fixing them will work- she laughs so hard she chokes, and tells me it will. I send a picture from my cell phone to Jeff - he calls me and all I hear is laughter. :::sigh::: I call Aunty Kim to cancel lunch- and she takes my side- she'd be really ticked if Jaxon did it too! Thank you!

Truthfully? It's funny....now. My own fault, I know. I just didn't think she'd bother them. She'd never done anything like that before. I learned my lesson, and if I had a chalkboard, I'd write it 1,000 times:
I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old I will not trust a 4 year old.....

The Big Chair

Here is Tenley trying out a big chair at Crate and Barrel on Saturday.
She had the best time going from chair to chair.

Blue Ice Cream

This is Tenley's favourite ice cream from Basking Robbins called Wild Ride. It's a blend of apple and blue rasberry that is very, very tart. She would eat a gallon of it if we would let her.

Today Tenley Said....

Today while getting ready for school, Tenley said.....

Tenley: "Daddy, did you know Uncle Dan is a Police Officer?"

Daddy: "Yes I did know that."

Tenley: "Are you a Police Officer??"

Daddy: "No"

Tenley: "Oh (thoughtful pause)...Uncle Dan is really cool!"

Nice. Not even 8am and already dissed by a 4 year old.

Tenley Turns 4!

A couple of weeks ago, the Tenster celebrated her 4th birthday. Being the award winning parents that we are, we’re just now getting around to telling you about it!

Having just recently discovered that starting next year in Kindergarten I will no longer be able to bring cupcakes to class for my little girl’s birthday, I went all out and made ice cream cone cupcakes this year. The reason this is “all out” is that you really can’t make these things a day ahead of time- the cone gets disgusting. So this necessitated me getting up at 4:30 in the morning to bake-cool- and frost with the star tip in the pastry bag so they look like real ice cream and we could take them to school at 8:30. They were a hit.

The big day began with opening presents from Mom & Dad while waiting for Grandma & Grandpa to come over so we could go to breakfast. She was underwhelmed with her Sonya Lee doll, liked her Map of the United States puzzle, very excited about the Barbie watch (she’s been asking for a watch for a couple of months- and no, she can’t read it accurately or tell time), and over the moon with joy about the plastic knight’s sword with sheath I bought for her at the $.99 Only store. Go figure. Grandma and Grandpa arrived, and were greeted at the door by the birthday girl clad only in Tinkerbell underwear with a sword stuck in the side of them. We eventually managed to get the sword out of her undies and get clothes on her so we could go to Ruby’s for breakfast.

We returned home and Ten went outside to play on the swing set that Grandma & Grandpa had given her as a present. It had arrived before her birthday (actually it arrived the day after we left on vacation, and the giant 150 lb. box lived on our porch the whole time we were in Atlanta) so it was already set up and in daily use. Then Grandma Suzie arrived with her present…and we all trouped out to the front yard for the presentation & to see how it was received.

From the moment my Mother saw that Tenley sized Formula 1 car, she knew she was going to get it for Ten- just as soon as they had the Team Ferrari red one back in stock. And now here it was (it had been in it’s box in our garage for 3 months) all put together, charged up, and absolutely adorable. We were a little worried about her reaction, because best bud Jaxon has a Power Wheels 4x4 Jeep that she’s afraid of. Turns out that we had nothing to worry about. She jumped right in and with minimal instruction she was on her way up the street. She spent the better part of an hour going back and forth and doing donuts in the neighbor’s driveways. The thought of her 16th birthday causes me to shudder. The only way we actually got her out of the car was to remind her that we were going to the fair. That was sufficient motivation to step out of the vehicle – but only after reassuring her that it was staying at her house and she could drive it again when she got home.

It was a very tired and already over stimulated Tenley that arrived at the LA County Fair. She actually handled it pretty well, but the were several times that I kicked myself for not bringing the little stroller so that she might have been able to sneak in a cat nap. Her unlimited ride wristband let her hit all her favorites – although she was very put out that she couldn’t ride the Tilt-a-Whirl (not even with an adult) and that she was still too short for some of the more thrilling kids rides. There was also the annual trip to the cows (and drinking of the world’s greatest chocolate milk), she got a henna tattoo just like Mommy’s (ruining her shirt in the process), and we took her to the Winter Wonderland building where she played in the “snow box” and went sledding with her Dad. I foresee a trip to the snow this winter.

Eventually everyone was exhausted and we decided to call it a birthday. Ten ended her special day by blowing out the candles and feasting on the giant chocolate cupcake we bought her. She collapsed into bed not an hour later, and the first thing she wanted to know when she woke up was if it was still her birthday.

Happy Birthday little Warrior Princess!

Dragon Con

My favourite author in the world is Anne McCaffrey. She has more than 100 books to her credit, is now 82- lives in Ireland- and has broken both hips- had a heart attack and a stroke. So when I found out that she was “crossing the pond” to attend Dragon*Con, there was no way I was going to miss what might be my last chance to meet this woman and get her to sign my books.
Dragon*Con is a 4 day sci-fi/fantasy/pop-culture freak fest that takes place over Labor Day in Atlanta. I actually went to DC back in ’94 (for the same reason, but Anne fell and broke her hip and didn’t get to come) – and my has it changed! It is now the second largest convention of its type in the US (right after ComiCon), and it focuses on science fiction and fantasy, science, gaming, comics, literature, art, music, and film. It is attended by all manner of fans. Some who are merely interested and some who live the life! Can I just say that the people watching was amazing. People dressed up as their favourite characters, authors, actors, aliens and even some original ideas (DO see the pix below).

There’s so much to see and do- and now that the Con is so big and so crowded there’s very little time to do it. I had no trouble getting a 3rd row seat for the reading that Anne did on Friday, but I had to get in line 2.5 hours before her book signing session on Sunday (and I was still #67). Lines meant we had to make some choices about events. Since I was in line for the book signing, I missed getting to attend the Miss Klingon Empire beauty pageant (www.trektrak.com/2008/08pageant.htm) because the line to get into the pageant started at about the same time. Jeff, however, used the 2 hours of down time as an opportunity to do something good: he hit the blood drive and opened up a vein for the Red Cross- netting a t-shirt and winning a lightsaber in a donor raffle in the process. We also had to divide and conquer: on Sat. morning Jeff went and watched (and photographed) the parade, while I went and got in line (1.5 hrs early) to get seats for the Torchwood panel (apparently there are A LOT of women out there who are warm for James Marsters form).

We did make it to the Mr.Star Wars contest, the MST3K panel and viewing, the Ghost Hunters panel, a random reading of a script by an author who commandeered actors from the audience, the art show, the build-your-own-droid demo and contest, all three dealers rooms and a concert by a “darkwave” band called The Cruxshadows and found that we really liked the Goth/NewWave/Sudo Vampire music. We even bought the current CD. Most of our time was spent happily wandering around with large drinks in our hands taking pictures of the various costumed freaks.

The weekend was made more interesting by the fact that we weren’t the only people in town. Chick-Fil-A decided to hold a pre-season bowl game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Clemson University. So the town was awash in 70,000 normal unsuspecting people swathed in red or orange circulating among the various fairies, cylons, jedi, etc. These poor people had no idea about the Con, and clearly didn’t know what to make of it. It was also Black Gay Pride weekend. Need I say more?? Clearly, this was the city to be in if you were looking for a photo-op.

Jeff had a great time and says he’s totally willing to go back. I’d love to go again and do the Writer’s Track…we’ll see how this year goes. Watch the slideshow below to see some pix we snapped during our weekend. Enjoy!

1st Loss

Beeps McNutt

Sept. 3, 2003- Sept. 11, 2008

We came home from vacation (which is a post & Flickr album all by itself) on the 2nd, and noticed that something was seriously wrong with Beeps. She was always a skinny, dainty little thing; but she was incredibly thin, her eyes were gooey and looked sunken, and she was obviously really really dehydrated- despite the fact that she was drooling and vomiting

As soon as the vet opened on the 3rd- her 5th birthday- we rushed her in. She was indeed dehydrated... and jaundiced. They admitted her and began administering sub q fluids, antibiotics and tube feeding. A blood panel revealed that she was experiencing liver disease/failure an an alarming rate. Unable to get her re-hydrated and to keep any food down, they began IV fluids on Friday the 5th.

A new blood panel on Monday the 8th showed that we had arrested the liver deterioration, but she was still drooling and vomiting. She would not eat or drink on her own.

On Wed Sept. 10, our vet explained the full situation: liver disease in kitties is a tricky thing. It can take weeks (sometimes more than 10) to get it under control -if it can be controlled and managed at all. Beeps was now beyond the ability of his clinic- she needed a specialist, a little kitty internist.

The practical problem with this is that the nearest internist is 35 miles away, is $100 just to examine her, $1000 for a sonogram of her liver, and God knows how much per day as a hospital inpatient...we were already trying to figure out how on earth we were going to pay her $100ish a day bill at this clinic. The emotional problem is that even if we won the lottery, we could put her through all the things the internist would try...and still be in the same place. Her prognosis was not good to begin with, and we could do weeks and weeks of treatment and still get nowhere. We were really left with no choice. I was up until 2am Wed night crying, and the tears started as soon as I left Ten at school on Thurs. morning.

She was happy to see me as usual, and for the first time in a week she "spoke". We had a nice long scratching and ear rubbing session- and when I would stop, she would stretch out the paw that didn't have the IV and rest it on my hand and gently hold my hand with her claws and purr as loud as she could manage without choking. I just stood there sobbing and petting, telling her I was sorry.

When the doctor came I asked if there wasn't anything else we could try. No, there really wasn't- and he wasn't at all convinced that an internist could save her either. I told him that I felt as though I was just giving up on her, and that I had failed her as an owner. He tried to make me feel better, and assured me that this was hardly giving up- and that were this his pet, he would be doing the same thing- it came down to the poor prognosis and the quality of her life.

Jeff came from work to say goodbye, and after they had a nice little lovefest we moved her to a place where I could hold her... as hard as it is for me, I refuse to let anyone cross The Rainbow Bridge alone. The IV made it easy, and it was only a matter of moments before I felt her go limp and her heart beat ceased beneath my hand. I just held her and sobbed until even her light little body got heavy for me.

I miss her. She was only 5- far too young for her little life to be over. I still look for her on the end of my bed, in the bathroom window sunning herself every morning, and I still check to make sure she isn't asleep in Tenley's bathtub before I close the bathroom door.

She was Mr.Smudge's (our 11 yr. old male) favourite. He adopted her, and gave her a thorough bath every day and cleaned her ears at least once a week. Sadly, this probably explains why he has it too. We think one of them got it, and shared with the other. So despite my grief over losing my soft spotty girl, this isn't over yet- I'm still medicating my old kitty and trying anything and everything to get him to eat.

We didn't explain all of this to Ten- she doesn't understand. We explained that Beeps died, and Ten says she misses her...and wants to know when she's coming home. I wish she was.

Rest in peace my sweet friend.
We will miss you always.

Bowl-A-Rama

Weeks ago, during the great Internet Crisis of '08, we got a bee up our butts on a Saturday afternoon and decided to take Tenley bowling. As random activities go, bowling is pretty Tenley friendly: minimal down time, minimal parental assistance, special Tenley type devices like a ramp and bumpers, and instant results of her actions.

We secured a lane, had the bumpers raised, got a ramp, a Ten sized 4lb. ball, and some shoes and heavier balls for Mom & Dad. Tenley was extremely bitter that there weren't any shoes small enough for her- she really wanted those, and we heard about them for all 3 games. I predict that I will find stolen bowling shoes in her closet by high-school (not that her father or I would ever have done that...)

We let her go first (of course). She insisted on carrying the ball herself, and her dad lined up the ramp for her.

We taught her to give it a good shove...which she did with greater and greater flourish as the game went on.

Thanks to the handy-dandy bumpers, she usually knocked down several pins- and even got a couple of strikes!

Despite the fact that there were only 3 of us playing, and she got to go first, it was apparently (in her mind) still too long between her turns as during her Dad's turn she would always climb into my lap and complain "Daddy's not being nice. He's not sharing. He's not taking turns." I would patiently correct her and explain that he was taking turns: it was her turn, then mine, then Daddy's- and it was her turn again next. My explanation fell on deaf ears.

Now, we had the bumpers up and Tenley is only 3...and we - the adults who have gone bowling since childhood- LOST TO THE 3 YEAR OLD!!! Not once, mind you, but twice!!!

Oh, the shame......

Questions of a Three Year Old

Last Saturday morning I was watching TV. An old James Garner movie "Support Your local Sheriff" was on so I thought I would watch. About 15 minutes into the movie Tenley got up and came out to see me. She jumped up on the couch and sat next to me to watch the movie.

Then the questions started. They came fast with not time to answer...

Why does that man have a gun?

Is he going to shoot someone?

Hey look daddy a horse!

What is the horsey’s name?

Is he a bad horse?

Why is that man riding the horse?

Where is he going?

Does the horse like the man?

Does the horse eat donuts?

Why is that lady running in the mud?

Oh look, another horsey.

Does that horse like the mud?

How come that horse is stopped by that fence?

The questions continued like this for another 5 mins or so. Finally she had to take a breath and I tried to answer one or two of the questions which obviously led to more questions. The movie was ruined.

I can't remember the last time I watched something all the way through without stopping for questions, snacks, potty breaks or stopping her from killing the dog. It was probably 4 years ago but that is like 15 years in toddler years.