Fridays With Kimball!

Due to Kimball's early exposure to the fine arts, he has emerged as the world's latest child prodigy. Please turn off all cell phones, curtail the noise of cellophane candy wrappers, and enjoy the show!

Coming soon: The complete Kimball Kollection, Director's Cut Edition, containing never-before-seen footage! Place your order now--this offer is for a limited time only and is not available in stores.

Ick

I heard some disturbing news the other day: A live-action feature-length movie based on "The Jetsons" cartoon is due to start filming in November. For the love of Pete, leave George Jetson and Jane-his-wife as they are, k? We don't need another cartoon-to-live-action disaster like that trainwreck, "Speed Racer." Wish I had that bubble that encloses Jane and vamps her up in about one one-hundredth of a second. That would leave me so much more time for important chores like Internet shopping and stuff . . .

I'm Not a Traitor, But . . .

Thanks to Kat, Christian and I were weeping with laughter the other day while watching this video. I don't mean to

betray my own kind but, holy wrecks, this is funny!

Having a Wonderful Time . . .

I've got to hand it to Christian--he sure indulges me at the peril of enduring great embarrassment to himself. A big boatload of brownie points for Christian!

So Christian was messing around with the stop-action feature on our computer, and I persuaded cough,forced,cough him to make a kooky little featurette starring the two of us. Make sure you have the volume turned up as you play this, because that knocking sound that you hear at the 00.02 mark? That's the hollowness in my head, indisputable evidence that I should never, under any circumstances, be asked to balance a checkbook. Are you listening, Dave?

Thanks Christian! You are such a sport!

Fridays With Kimball!

"Little Sprite"

Check out this sleeping little "sprite."  (Ashley calls Kimball her little sprite on the days when this wee laddie be wearin' o' the green.) So Ash and I spied these adorable shorts at the store the other day, and, of course, I couldn't conquer my inner demon aka my shopping compulsion, and I had those shorts purchased before you could blink a shining Irish eye.  I love how the shorts are actually more like kicky little capri pants since Kimball isn't so long in the limbs quite yet :) 

Before Ashley left Kimball to head out for her day at the salt mines (thesis torture), she helped Kimball jot down a little birthday wish for Uncle Seanie on a big poster that I'm making for him.  Now I ask you, isn't my grandbaby a perfect candidate for Mensa?  Uh, yeah.

FTD Delivers Again!

FTD (From The Darndestgreenthumbever) comes this beautiful bouquet.  I stopped by Mom's house and offered a Krispy Kreme or two, and I came home with something that smells as good almost as good as Original Glazed, although not quite as tasty going down.   Thanks again, Mom!

Live Long and Prosper

The group, Without Arrogance & Categorically Kooky Every Day, has given the movie, "Star Trek," three and one-half  Roddenberrys for its excellence in casting, wit, special effects and retention of just enough campiness to satisfy the old-school trekkies everywhere.  Great summer flick.   Warp speed. 

Fridays With Kimball!

Um . . . I guess you could say that I have been having more than just a teensy bit of fun with Kimball during my "Fridays With Kimball!" days (and Tuesdays! too).   And bless Christian's heart for being my cohort and indulging me in my wild schemes and admittedly wacked-out ideas.  But you must agree, the following video is hijinks at its best. Please heed the warning message at the end of the video.  It may save a life.  (Make sure you watch to the very end.)

She Has Such a Green Thumb!

My mom can grow ANYTHING! She once tossed a seed from a lemon used in her dinner into a pot of dirt. Up came a lemon tree! Bam.  Just like that. Same thing with a regular old peach pit. Threw the pit into her yard, and now she has a ginormous peach tree. Same goes for her apricot tree. Crazy. The other day she told me she was going to try to grow some sweet potatoes. So she just whacked off the end of a sweet potato and plunked it into some dirt. No doubt, she'll be overrun with the things before the end of summer.

I visited her for a few minutes the other day and came home with this simple but beautiful display snipped from her yard. I could have gone crazy with all that she has growing, but I settled for minimal beauty this time around. I feel so pampered having my own personal florist who doesn't mark up her prices 400% (merely 200%).  jk, mom :)

The cloudy water in the vase is due to air bubbles from the tap, not from gross "ferrous and ferric iron compounds" from old rusty pipes . . . I'm  hoping . . .

Fridays With Kimball!

Christian dubbed Kimball "Little Johnny Appleseed" when somehow this measuring cup Kimball was playing with while lying on his blanket ended atop of his cute little head.   Kimball doesn't seem to mind his new name, or his new look.  Apparently, sporting plastic kitchen utensils is the hippest trend in the baby social set at the moment.  Quite dapper.

And speaking of dubbing, Dave has christened our little porta-crib-thingy-gig the "Kimball Coaster."  Dave tells me it is because he is quite certain Kimball goes for wild rides in the Coaster when our backs are turned.  I don't blame Kimball because, after all, the Coaster is tricked out with some pretty studly wheels and a nifty GPS system.  (GPS stands for Grandpa Pledges his Silence, just as long as Kimball keeps everything on the downlow and his mama doesn't get wind of any of this riotousness . . .

And the Beat Goes On . . .

Christian was given the honor of receiving one of three "Outstanding Percussion I" awards presented at the annual awards night at his high school.  That squealing and woo-hooing that was heard in the audience making Dave sink down into his seat?  Yes, that would be me.   I am so proud of that boy!

Hey Fellow AI Fans!

Kris? Seriously? KRIS? I'm just sayin'.

Fridays With Kimball!

This particular "Friday with Kimball" ended on a high note at TGIFridays!  How appropriate. Haven't been there for a couple of  years. 

 After being seated, Kimball contemplated his order and finally settled on the triple stacked burger, cooked rare with extra bacon, extra sharp cheddar and extra onions. But sadly, his mama said no. Hmmph! He sucked it up though and made do with the Similac Special. His tummy will thank his mama for being so wise. (Sometimes it is just so hard to make these tough decisions and stand up to the pressure in order to be a good parent. Way to go, Ash!)

AND NOW FOR THE REST OF THE STORY:  Only hours after returning home from our outing at TGIFridays, we tuned in to our most trusted and reliable source of unbiased news,  Late Show with David Letterman, where we learned that a man recently eating at a restaurant in upstate New York found a snake head in his broccoli.  The restaurant?  TGIFridays.  Of course. I'm sure you will be kind enough to excuse me now while I, uh, have a moment . . .  

A Future Project for Sean and Christian . . .

Probably because I am a bit (understatement alert!) lonely for Sean, and probably because I'm a bit lonesome for the sounds of Sean and Christian jamming in the studio downstairs causing the paint to peel off of the ceiling, and probably because I adore watching my boys collaberate on their music and take such joy in each other, this piece (see video below) totally spoke to me. I can't say I'm really a Taylor Swift fan, but I really like Cold Play. I always think of Seanie whenever I hear Viva La Vida because he loves it so. And the lyrics mention "missionaries in the foreign field . . . " so I'm sure you can guess that it rips at my heart with each listen of that song.

So, this video is pretty cool. I have very high hopes (meaning, they better do it if they know what's good for them) that Sean and Christian will tackle this when Sean returns from his two years of awesome service. What a sweet duo that will make, I'm quite certain. And I'm also quite certain it will make me cry. Please enjoy.

Thank you new-mommy-to-Cole-Kristen for passing this along.

Happy Mother's Day!

Fridays With Kimball!

Ring, ring. (Caller ID: "Out of area" no phone number)

"Mmmffgaaahhh?"

"Hello."

"Aaaaoooggff?"

"Hello!"

"Gaaa?"

"Hello. Do you know who you are talking to?" (Static, static)

"Muncle Hawnie?" SHREIK! "Gurglegaaahhhh!"

Kimball was thrilled beyond words that he was here when Uncle Seanie made his surprise phone call (see previous post) on a Kimball Friday!

Happy Early Mother's Day to Me!

Ring, ring. (Caller ID: "Out of area" no phone number)

"Hello?"

"Hello."

"Hello?"

"Hello. Do you know who you are talking to? (static, static)

"Uh, hello? No, who is this?"

"This is Elder Sagers."

SHREIK! "What? Uh, wha . . . Seanie? . . . SEANIE!!! SEANIE, I LOVE YOU!", gush, gush, etc., etc., hyperventilate, take a breath, SHREIK again . . . immediately think the worst, receive assurance that all is well, jump up and down, SEANIE!

Just a mission-approved pre-Mother's Day phone call from our awesome missionary making sure we had the correct phone number and time we are to call him on Sunday! Thank you Alexander Graham Bell.

The Teacups, You Say?

(I'm not naming names, but for those of you who need to, double click on the article to make it larger . . . )

For a sociology assignment, Christian was required to write a letter to the editor of a local newspaper.  He knew his stance on the topic he chose would not be a popular one in our little community so ensconced in its own unique culture and way of doing things.  But, holy peacock, I am proud of my boy and his mature insight and understanding with an eye to his future and that which will ultimately be best for him.  (It is amazing how much a parent's rants about something will actually settle into the minds of her children if repeated often enough, say, maybe a gazillion times . . . .)

Fridays With Kimball!

Now seriously, does it get any sweeter than this?

Just Double Checking . . .

Last week I thought I would challenge my memory to make sure I wasn't making things up when I so confidently told people that one of my all-time favorite novels was "Silas Marner, The Weaver of Raveloe" by George Eliot.  So, after about a three-year lapse, I reread the book.  Bingo!  I was right.  It ranks right up there near the tippy-top of my list with "Pride and Prejudice," "Emma," "Sense and Sensibility," "Persuassion," "Middlemarch," "Jane Eyre," "The Gun Digest Book of Conceal and Carry," yada, yada, (you know, the best of all of the chick lit--just kidding about that last one, I just haven't gotten around to reading that one yet).  One of my favorite quotes in the book isn't by George Eliot (aka Mary Ann Evans) at all, but is by Wordsworth, quoted by Eliot:  

A child, more than all other gifts

That earth can offer to declining man,

Brings hope with it, and forward-looking thoughts.

Love it.