The Downside of Sports

Charlie, last night, driving home from a 7-8 pm baseball practice: You know what the bad part of sports is? You have to take so many showers. Like, even if you just took one the day before, you have to take a shower again if you played sports.

"Idol" Chatter

David, pointing excitedly, as we drove past a Ford dealership: "Look! American Idol! American Idol!" (That's our little future VP of Marketing and Sponsorships!)

Sarah, at bedtime, requested "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." After I sang it, she said, "Mmm, that was pitchy." When I told her that was rude, she said, "Oh, well I didn't mean that kind of pitchy. I meant the nice kind."

Existential Dinner Chat

At the dinner table tonight:

Sarah: What's hell? Griffin and Andrew kept talking about it today.
Me: What did they say?
Sarah: They said, "You don't know what hell is??"
Me: Oh. Well...
Sarah: It's where bad people go when they die, right?
Me: Right. It's like the opposite of heaven.
Sarah: Yeah. Daddy just told me that part.
Me: OK. Well, God wants everyone to be with him in heaven after they die. But if they choose not to, then they go to hell.
Sarah: So it's like death jail?
Me: Exactly. That's a good way to put it.
Allison: Mommy, can I go to heaven with Jesus?
Me: Yes.
Allison: Good. Because I want to say hi to God. ... But how does God give us food when we're in heaven?
Me: Well, you don't need food after you die. Your body doesn't go to heaven, just your soul.
Charlie: I'll miss the food.
Allison: So you're like a little ball?
Me: Not exactly.

Smart Money

Today we went to the mall to buy a birthday present for Sarah's friend Alice. Sarah wanted to get her a Webkinz.

While we were looking, Allison saw a pink poodle Webkinz. She asked if she could use her birthday money from Pop and Liza to buy one, so I said yes.

After we left the store with two Webkinz, Charlie said, "Next time we come to the mall, can I use some of my First Communion money to buy a Webkinz?" We turned around and went back to the store, and he picked out a Webkinz lion.

This was the first time he spent any of his First Communion money. The money all went into his college fund, but in the card from Granny and Grandpa they specified that it was not for college and should be used for "something fun." Over the months since his First Communion, he hadn't decided on what he wanted to buy.

One time a few months ago I said to him, "Charlie, have you decided yet what you want to do with the First Communion money from Granny and Grandpa?"

Charlie: No.
Me: Well you should think of something that you want and then we'll buy it.
Charlie, non-commitally: Mmmm.
Me: Remember, they said they want you to do something fun with it.
Charlie: Well, it's fun to have money!

Valentine's Day

We continued our annual tradition of Mommy decorating the children's doors for Valentine's Day. It's not exactly a surprise any more, but they love waking up Valentine's morning to see all the hearts and the candy.
When I came home from work, Daddy said it looked like a little raccoon had attacked the lower portions of the doors, eating the candy and discarding the wrappers on the floor in the hallway. David the raccoon had gotten in a little trouble for foraging. The bottom half of David's door was de-candied, and the tempation was removed.

Ice Skating Outing

Sarah and I and the rest of the Brownies had a blast ice skating.

A Princess Turns 4

Princess Allison had a fabulous time turning 4!

The day started off with a special "cake" ...

Then, she invited her whole class to come celebrate in her bouncy castle. She picked out a cake with Cinderella and Prince Charming on it. She has been looking forward to her birthday for months, and it was so much fun for the day to finally arrive.

Hangin' With Cousin Amelia

While in Myrtle Beach, the children had a chance to visit with their cousin Amelia Grace. Aunt Ginny and Aunt Kelli very graciously watched the children for us for the morning. After all, what work is four more when you already have one (or something like that!).

We kept hearing about how cute baby Amelia is and I finally got to see her for myself. Since we didn't have a camera, you'll have to check them out on Amelia's blog:

http://ameliagracemerritt.blogspot.com/2008_01_01_archive.html

January - Uncle Comes to Town

We were so excited when Uncle included Hot-lanta on the book tour! He got up really early for an interview on "Good Day Atlanta." Then we went to the book store that evening for the reading. It was so cool! Charlie and Sarah came too, along with Sarah's friend Samantha and her mother who took them all home after the reading so that the grown-ups could go out with Uncle.

There was a live band after the reading, so we had some rockin' music to keep us entertained as Uncle signed books and chatted with his adoring public.

Several of our friends came out to hear the reading, meet Rob, and get their books signed. We went out for a late beer with my friends Ellen and Rob G.

Uncle finagled the next day off, so the children had a blast playing in our playroom with funny uncle.

Basketball

Charlie and Sarah are playing basketball again this year and they are both doing great!

Charlie's team, coached by Daddy, is unstoppable. So far they are undefeated. Charlie and his friend Matt are both powerhouses -- tall, with really good awareness of where they are on the court and how to advance the ball quickly. Charlie's shooting, passing and dribbling are really impressive.

Sarah's team, coached by her friend Griffin's dad, has been stopped a time or two... well okay, they haven't actually won a game yet, but they are playing hard and learning a lot of the fundamentals. And last week, they scored in the first half, which I think was a first for the team. Sarah plays very well. She has applied the "my ball" concept from soccer to basketball and is good at going for the ball, both on offense and on defense.

Last week she played against her friend Samantha's team. In the car on the way to the game I said, "Now if you and Samantha end up covering each other, remember what you do when you're playing against one of your friends?"

Sarah: "Be nice and don't try to take the ball away?"

Me: "No! Play her like you would play anyone else, and be friends after the game."

Her answer was so off-base I said the same thing to Samantha when we arrived. They weren't initally supposed to cover each other, but Samantha traded with a teammate so that they would. They actually both played great, and covered each other well.

January - Selling Cookies

Our little Brownie hit the neighborhood selling Girl Scout Cookies. Who could resist? Especially when she brought her own little "tagalongs": Allison wheeled the twin dolls, Tracey and Jack Rowan, in her double stroller, and David brought Snoopy.

Sarah the sales girl was very knowledgeable and polite. Our little entourage enjoyed a lot of success, despite the cold weather. Then we came home and had some hot cocoa.

Even with her door-to-door success, a significant portion of her sales were to her loyal blog readers like you. Thank you for your support! The cookies will be coming in March.

January - Snowflakes in Southtown!

Snow fell twice in a week during January. The first time was on a Wednesday late afternoon, and all the kids in Atlanta were outside until after dark to savor the experience of making snow balls.

Amazingly, on Saturday the weather obliged again and we got some good, substantial snowfall. Everyone was so excited to have a whole day to play in the snow. Our family enjoyed snowball fights, making snow angels, and making 2/3 of a snowman.

The neighborhood kids experience a real live snowball fight!
David makes a snowball as big as his head!
Sarah makes a snow angel - just like Gallagher!
The dogs get in on the fun.

January - Sarah's "Bugz" Play

The first graders at Sarah's school put on a wonderful production of a musical called "Bugz." It was a great show. Sarah was the Bug MC, and she was fantastic. Here are some pictures of Sarah and a few of her friends. But really, the best part was the singing!

Granny and Grandpa were so excited to see a dress rehearsal the day before the production (since they were leaving before the show). They talked it up, and I thought it was just grandparents being proud and excited. But the show surpassed all the hype.

We have the whole show on CD, and our family music critic gave rave reviews to "Let's Have a Picnic" and "Be a Lady." Be on the lookout in karaoke bars across New York.

My favorite line: the kid who stood at the microphone and said, "I'm a maggot."

January - Granny & Grandpa Visit

Well we're a bit behind on our blogging ... it's been a busy few weeks. But we really enjoyed having Granny and Grandpa come visit back in January. We had nice weather and had a great time! They got to attend the awards ceremony at Charlie and Sarah's school, and a dress rehearsal for the first grade play, "Bugz."