I am such an unbelievable geek

The part of my thesis that I'm writing on right now is on the legal ramifications of Exodus 22:17.  I followed an article's footnotes to discover a possible legal parallel to the Code of Hammurabi, which I thought was exciting.  Even more exciting was that I found the exact source listed, in The Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor.  Even more exciting than that: there's a free download of the book online!!

Chaos theory. AKA things bouncing about in my head.

- Xander told a story yesterday that cracked me and Jonathan up.  He held up a plush toy and said, “This is the red dinosaur.  He’s very scary.  When people come close he says RAWWRR and they say, 'ahh, it’s a dinosaur’ and they run away.”  But when he said RAWWRR he did it in a deep voice, and for the “ahh, it’s a dinosaur,” he did it in falsetto.  I only wish we had had the video camera.

- The show "Thirtysomething" hit too close to home, so I've moved onto "Parenthood."  Those characters are not me now, but in five years - so it's still relevant, but not as painful to watch.

- We went to the Cincinnati Museum "Holiday Junction" to see all the trains with my friend Nicole S. and her kids.  Xander thought all the trees were pretty, which amused me.  They were pretty.  But he had no idea they were Christmas trees. Another thing he didn't notice, that I did, was the hard-core Christmas music.  It's one thing to have a "holiday junction" that's all about Christmas (Hanukkah or Kwanzaa anyone?) but at least only have songs about the non-religious Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, or Frosty the Snowman. I'm not a fan of loud "Christ will be reborn" lyrics piped in over the loudspeakers at public, city-run venues.  I will say that lunch was awesome though - Xander will eat any sandwich that comes out of the below Tupperware container.  Sometimes the best finds are in the $1 Target bin.

 

It fits the shape of a standard bread slice perfectly.

- I'm on page three of my thesis.  And I have an outline for the rest of the chapter.  I found it really hard to start, so I feel like I’m making progress.  A grad student friend, Matt, took me on a tour of the University of Cincinnati campus and came with me to their Classics Library, so I was able to get a ton more books.

- Baby Bird Saga continues:  Jonathan bought a pack of white balloons, blew one up, and put it in Xander’s room when he was sleeping.  Xander is now convinced that Baby Bird Egg hatched overnight. It's adorable.

- Sleep still eludes me, because Ari is STILL teething.  There are numerous white bumps on his gums, but no actual teeth as of yet.  With Xander it was so much better after that first tooth broke through; I’m hoping it will be the same with his brother.

- This Sunday a home-birth-network friend hosted an Arbonne make-up party.  A make-up artist put seven different products on my face, and I looked... nice.  Polished.  Professional.  But not "worth the $300 I would need to spend on their products to replicate it"-type professional.  So suggestions: I know I need to at least buy a tube of lipstick and mascara for placement interviews.  What else do I need?  My husband says I look beautiful as is, which is wonderful but not particularly helpful.  People who read this: what make-up items should I buy, and are there any brands you recommend?

Ari in autumn, alliterated

Behold Ari:

Behold autumn:

(We had three loads of leaves before we were done)

Behold restful relaxation after raking:

Autumn

Pretty trees in our backyard.  

Cold = snuggling.

The saga of Baby Bird Balloon

Once upon a time, Xander went to Yasha's birthday party.  At that party, there was a goody bag.  In that goody bag, there was a white balloon.

When Xander got home, Mommy blew up the white balloon.  It became big and round and full of air.  When Daddy took the end of the balloon and moved it in and out, it squeaked.  Xander said it sounded like a baby bird.

White Balloon therefore became Baby Bird Balloon.

Baby Bird Balloon squeaked and squeaked. He asked to fly.  We let go of Baby Bird Balloon and whoosh! Baby Bird Balloon flew all over the room.  Xander loved Baby Bird Balloon flying.  He flew, was blown up with air again, and flew again.  We did this many, many times.  Many. Many. Times.

Then Xander encouraged Mommy to blow up Baby Bird Balloon even bigger.  "Bigger, Mommy, bigger!  Make him a Big Squeaky Bird!"

Mommy blew up Baby Bird so much that he popped.  Baby Bird Balloon became Baby Bird Burst Balloon Bits.

Xander cried.

Mommy said she couldn't fix Baby Bird Balloon.  But she rolled all the bits together and together and over and over in themselves, until Baby Bird Balloon was a thimble-size bundle of latex.

Baby Bird Balloon thus became Baby Bird Egg.

Baby Bird Egg slept with Xander last night.  Baby Bird Egg had breakfast with Xander this morning.  Baby Bird Egg, according to Xander, will hatch soon.

How, you ask?

If and when you figure it out, please let me know.

What a difference an election cycle makes

 Xander voting for Obama

Xander voting today

Instructions for how to have a fun weekend

- Give an invitation to Devin, Xander's classmate, to come over to play. When his mother prompts him to say goodbye after dinner, he shouts, "Bye Xander! Bye Xander's Mommy! Bye Xander's Daddy! Bye kitties!"

- Have the doctor tell us that Ari is in the 90th percentile for height and 50th for weight. Realize that Xander's recent growth spurt has been up but not out: he's now only in the 18th percentile for weight. Laugh uproariously later as he eats his own mass in macaroni and cheese for dinner.

- Be sleep-deprived last night due to teething crises, but give out mental Best Husband award as Jonathan takes both boys until 11am this morning.

- Edit two of my sister's English papers. Be utterly grateful that my days of mandatory compare/contrast are over.

- Go to Yasha's birthday party at Totter's Ottersville. OD on pizza and cupcakes, and try not to giggle as Xander asks the event coordinator on the train ride to "please get out. That's Daddy's seat."

- Rake leaves. Mow lawn. Blow leaves. All as a family, with everyone pitching in. Xander "helps" by blowing with his bubble blower, but then really does help significantly by raking piles of leaves. Ari coos in the wrap and then tries to smush leaves with his fingers.

- Praise every deity ever invented as children all fall asleep by 8:30pm due to Daylight Savings time, and their bodies thinking it was an hour later. Jonathan and I watch a WHOLE movie with no interruptions. It's a miracle!

Xander-isms, part umpteenth

Me:  I had a very frustrating day.  I looked for some books in the library and I couldn't find them.
X:  Did you need a flashlight?


J:  How old are you?
X: I'm three!
J: Do you know how old I am?  I'm forty-one.
X:  WOW!!!  That's a whole LOT!


Waiting at the pediatrician's office for the 3 year old/6 month well checkups, X and I play ring around the rosy.  We do it so many times I get dizzy.  I say, "Do we have to fall down?"  X says, very perplexed, "Yes, we fall down.  It's ring around the rosy.  We HAVE to fall down!"  Then he stares at me. Like, duh... that's the whole point of the song.


Overheard, X to A:  "Fire trucks are not for eating!"



J gives X a kiss on his cheek.
X gives J a kiss on his cheek back, with dripping pizza slice in hand.  J's cheek is very wet and has a red smear.
J looks at X askew as he wipes his face.
X laughs and says, "I gave you a sauce kiss!"

And a sad little voicemail message, not from or about Xander, but relating to Ari's teething and proving that I need more sleep.  From Holly to me:  

"Hi, Michal?  You left a message on my phone for the gas company, saying you needed to reschedule your Friday appointment.  Um, just so you know, you obviously didn't reach the gas company.  You might want to call them again."

Sigh.  Yeah.  Don't really have much to say about that one.  

How to play firefighter, by Xander

Give a visiting friend, in this case Aaron, the special red fire hat. 

Tell him, "You squeeze the fire extinguisher while I talk to everybody."

Yell as loud as you can into the bullhorn, "GET OUT OF THE HOUSE, THERE'S A FIRE!!!" while your friend makes "psshhhh" noises while working the fire extinguisher, and your little brother looks up all confused and intimidated by the sudden noise.

Have Mommy help rescue people on the second floor of your house using the fire truck ladder.  Don't forget to have everybody still make "pssshhh" noises!

Be serious at the end, and wonder why the grown-ups are laughing.  You did a great job, you put out the fires and saved the world!

(Additional useful information:  fire-fighting should also consist of running in circles around the house multiple times putting out imaginary fires in every room.  Lastly, ignore Mommy, Daddy and Aaron talking about rabbinic placement, and tune out Mommy telling Daddy all about the class she co-taught on "Death and the Afterlife" as part of an interfaith panel for adult learners.  Who cares that the Protestant representative turned out to be Dennis, her mentor from CPE two summers ago?   Man, grown-ups can be boring!)

Halloween!

Eden as Bob the Builder and Yasha and Xander as firefighters.

Moms and boys posing in front of the haunted house on our block, while the dads took pictures.

Spooky scary neighbors!

Back at the house with our LOOT.  The first priority was separating out peanut and non-peanut candy. Oh no, Mommy's forced to eat all the Snickers and Reese's Pieces.

Ari the monkey chillin' on the couch.

Trying a Twizzler for the very first time.  It was a bonafide hit.

Lollipops require intense focus.

Ari, de-monkey-fied, wants candy too.

Post-candy calm-down time was spent watching YouTube videos of how to use a fire extinguisher.  It all ended at 9:30pm, which really wasn't bad for all the sugar Xander consumed.  He was so taken with his costume that he insisted on wearing his "fire jacket" to bed over his pajamas.  We said okay... but that the fire hat, bullhorn, and fire extinguisher had to sleep by themselves in the toy bin.  Oh what cruel parents!  We also just barely convinced him that a firefighter costume was not the outfit to wear to school pictures the next day.  I don't know if he'll ever forgive us.