I think Spring has arrived! Yesterday was a beautiful day. It was in the low 60's with a slight breeze. Very sunny. I took the kids to the park and we had the BEST time. Dallin especially liked the swing. Aiden made lots of friends, and he climbed up really, really high on the jungle gym. He was still too scared to go down most slides, but that's okay. Baby steps. We are going to another park today.
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Kid's joke of the day:
What did the pirate pay for his earring?
A buccaneer!
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I have decided that when we buy a house someday I want to be within very short walking distance of a park. Then it won't matter if we have a huge backyard or not. If we don't live very close to a park, then I want a huge backyard. So now I have these "requirements" for when we buy a house someday:
1. Within short walking distance of a park
2. A good back yard, fenced-in
3. Room for a flower garden in the front yard
4. Must be on a cul-de-sac
5. A full basement (doesn't have to be finished. We can do that)
6. A full attic
7. A living room and a family room (although if we have a full basement, the family room would go in the basement)
8. A music room with a piano and ample shelf space for all our music and CDs. And we can leave all our instruments in there without having to trip over anything. And we can teach lessons in there.
9. Cannot be haunted
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When we were kids, we had lots of wierd little car games that we made up. One of our favorites had to do with bridges, tunnels, and overpasses. Whenever we went through a tunnel or under a bridge or overpass or some sort, we had to hold our breath. We said it was for good luck. I don't know if it ever brought us any good luck, but it sure was fun! It was also a challenge, at times. When we were visiting our dad in Norway one summer, we were pretty excited that we got to go through so many tunnels. However, these were looooooong tunnels, and my dad thought it'd be hilarious to slow the car down. I don't know why he liked watching our faces go blue as we're madly gesturing "Speed up!! Speed up NOW!!" He really enjoyed that, however. Anyrate, we would come upon a bridge or whatever and yell "hold your breath!", then breath in very loudly, puffing up our cheeks with air. After we had passed under it we couldn't just let go. Oh, no. We had to blow out all the air from our puffed up cheeks with a loud "psssssshhhhhhhh" sound. It was all part of the ritual.
I have passed on the knowledge of "hold your breath!" to Aiden. He gets really excited at this one section of I-80 here in town. We get to pass under lots and lots of bridges and go through one tunnel. I don't think he's actually holding his breath yet, but he makes all the right sounds!
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You know, I mentioned in a comment not too long ago that we didn't study Dr. Seuss in high school. Sorry, Lura. I had forgotten this one little thing:
Sophomore year we had to write a paper about an American author and two pieces of that author's literature. I had a couple of ideas, and I went with a comparison of the symbolism in "The Red Pony" and "The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck. My other idea was to do Dr. Seuss. My best friend that year was Deborah, and she couldn't come up with an idea, so she did the Dr. Seuss one. I helped her do some of the research (heh. That meant we sat around the library and the computer lab taking turns reading Dr. Seuss books out loud and laughing a lot). I always wished I had actually done that paper because while I enjoyed the Steinbeck stuff, Dr. Seuss was so much more interesting. Oh well. Incidentally, I believe we both received "A's" on our papers.
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I hope Mitt Romney is able to run for president of the US. The more I read about him, and the more interviews and "discussions" I see about him, the more impressed I get. The big question remains: Is the United States ready for a Mormon president? In every article, in every discussion, that seems to be the main topic. Everyone seems to like him (Republicans and Democrats alike) or at least think he'll be a great leader, but no one is sure about the "Mormon thing". We shall see what happens.
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Quote of the day:
Happiness is the best facelift.
--Diana Krall, quoting Joni Mitchell
(thanks to the May 2006 issue of Reader's Digest for this one)
12 comments:
I hope Spring does arrive in Reno soon! We are heading down to Sacramento for my brother's wedding next month and we're hoping to drop by Reno to visit my husband's brother and his family. We always like visiting Reno, it's a great city!
We always did the tunnel thing too - but only for tunnels. And my dad did the same thing!!! It must be a "dad" thing. I still do it, lol. And I have shared it with my daughter, but she has taken up rolling down her window and yelling out "Echo, echo!" instead. I think she got it from her dad - who will slow down if he sees me holding my breath, lol.
I like Mitt. We lived in Massachusetts when he ran for governor. It was great to elect him. He has done a GREAT job in Mass. He had to make big decisions but he went into a nightmare and has turned their finances and education around. It really is amazing what he has accomplished. He is a terrific leader, I hope he runs too. Of course, I would have to see who else is running too before deciding for sure who gets my vote.
I've always done the tunnel thing too. However, when we visited Boston, where they are putting all the roads underground. We just couldn't hold our breath long enough. I gave up!
I love Mitt..I wish he were the gov. here. I think our's is a bit of a "whoever gives me the most money gets what they want." (If you know what I mean) However, his Republican running contestant for this year has "the chain-smoking grandma" in her nickname and slogan. Not a great field to chose from here. I hope we don't have to stay too long! :)
Congrats on Dallin signing!
We didn't do the tunnel thing growing up. Didn't have the opportunity to go through many tunnels, but we played a similar game. Mostly on away games. When you cross railroad tracks you had to touch a screw. I don't know what but it was always funny to watch the entire bus scamble to get their finger on a screw before we crossed the RR Xing.
i was going to tell the screw story too. never did the breath holdin' thing.
weird. i don't remember what it signified to touch a screw while crossing railroad tracks... and we only did that on away games too.
My husband also does the holding his breath through a tunnel thing. I nearly died in Hawaii on the Like Like Hwy...
All of those silly things are rooted in superstition:
When I was growing up we held our breath on bridges. Why? in case the bridge collapses you have air in your lungs and you don't inhale water.
We put our hands on the underside of the roof of the car when we went in tunnels. Why? To hold up the roof in case the tunnel collapsed.
And there are those of you who are compelled to touch a screw on the railway. Why? To be sure it is secure.
My sister used to hold her breath when we went past a graveyard. I think that one is rooted in a theory of "bad air" in the graveyard, going back to a time when many people died of communicable diseases. I've never heard of the other games/superstitions.
Um, noooo. We do not like good ol' Mitt in Massachusetts. He tried to fix things...but made a big mess internally (I know because I know people that work for the state). He was okay for a while, doing things that are good for the state (and gay marriage IS A GOOD THING here) but now he's trying to strengthen his conservative side and dig up archaic laws to assist him (A law from 1910 bans any marriages in MA that are illegal in the couples home state. He failed to mention that this old law pertained to INTER-RACIAL marriages!).
Yeah, so Romney annoys the heck outta me. He will run for office, we all know that, but he won't win. I wish Kerry could run again, I'd vote for him. But once you lose a big election...*sigh*
At least there's Ted Kennedy to vote for! :)
Oh, and Romney really hasn't helped Mass. education. In college terms, he's giving money to build dorms for a community college in FITCHBURG. First of all, who even lives in Fitchburg!? Second, if he wants to give money to a state school for dorms, give it to UMass-Boston. They're a 4 year school in the expensive city with no dorms. It's quite terrible.
The superstitions explanations comments--interesting. I always thought my kids made up the breath holding on their own--and both fathers liked to torture them by slowing down. Places with major tunnes (like Boston) would not only be difficult to "play" that game, but perhaps even dangerous!
Never heard of the screw over the RRXing before...
Mitt Romney is, I think, an accomplished polititian and an acknowledged leader, but he is the "Mormon"Al Smith.
Who? What? You say? Well, Al Smith ran for president a few te4rms before John Kennedy. nSmith was a viable candidate in all ways except...he was a (pause for dramatic effect) Catholic! That's right. A real , honest to goodness, church-going, pope following Roman Catholic.
People were hysterical over the idea of a Catholic for President--wouldn't he do whatever the pope said...well, he lost, so it was a moot point. However, he did pave the way for a Kennedy to be seriously considered. I think Mitt Romney will pave the way for someone else to be able to be taken seriously.
TC, I know you arein Boston (I'm sitting atyour desk right now.) I know what you've heard from your friend's parents. But I'll bet there are two sides to the story and that it is not quite so black and white. Also...Boston is not the whole state of Mass. Romney is gov for the WHOLE state.:)
I did the touch the screw over RR tracks with my friends in high school. Let's just say it was supposed to make you lucky that night. I never knew so many other people did the hold your breath under a brindge, though!
Erica, sorry, but I still think Mitt Romney is great. He got rid of the state's debt and now Mass. is in the total POSTIVE side as far as money... and he did it all without raising taxes. How good is that? I don't know much of how he's handled education, but I do know that if a university of college needs funds, then THEY have to petition for it. The governor doesn't just say, "Hmmm, I think I'll give money to this obscure college for no reason when someone else may need it." And education is FAR more than just colleges and universities. Oh, and I was there when Romney ran the SLC Olympics. He did a GREAT job. He has proven himself over and over to be a good leader. Don't forget, Erica. There is more to this country... and Massachusetts... than Boston. Honestly... Ted Kennedy? Never going to happen. Sorry.
Karen, I have heard of holding your breath next to a graveyard. Never done it though. I'm pretty scared of cemetaries... even in the day. Yes, i have silly paranoias.
I hadn't heard of touching the screw over the RR or holding your breath near a graveyard. Funny the superstitions that are out there, lol.
When I referred to the education that Mitt had benefited, it was with the youth. From what I heard, test scores had risen since he had been elected. I have no info on the college level.
As for Ted Kennedy... not a fan.
"Let's just say it was supposed to make you lucky that night."
maybe to you perv! heh.
you know i'm kidding. ;)
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