Full Tilt...

Jack had his first Tilt-a-Hurl experience on Saturday, and my friend Alice was there to witness and record it all on her iPhone.

He started by eating all the requisite birthday-party food: pizza, Pepsi, cake, ice cream. Then he got on the ride, which lasted about five minutes. He and his buddy, Mark, seemed to love it, so they got right back in line and rode it again -- five more minutes of tilting and spinning. Wheeeee!!

And it was all great fun until about 10 minutes later, when Jack started looking a little green and told me he felt sick. We raced to the bathroom, then to the car to head home.

Poor little guy had a serious G-force hangover. Lasted about an hour or so. Not sure when/if he'll ride the Tilt-a-Whirl again.

My friend Kollen says he thinks his 4-year-old daughter -- who is "pretty bright, natch" -- is ready for some read-aloud chapter books. "Any good ideas?" he asked. "I guess 'Little House on the Prairie' is the obvious one, but she may not be able to follow or be interested in all that."

Have to agree there. I adored the "Little House" books as a girl, but when I got them back out to read to Hannah (she was about 5 at the time), I realized that some of the chapters went on and on and ON. I remember one that included a detailed account of Mr. Ingalls building a door, for example. Not exactly intriguing stuff for a preschooler. (Granted, it could have been me. Yawns did not help the presentation.)

In any case, I offered my friend some alternatives to consider. Then I put out a call on Twitter and Facebook and got a whole bunch of great suggestions. Here's the list.

** The Junie B. Jones series. (These early chapter books are sort of a love-it-or-hate-it thing. I happen to LOVE them with all my heart.)
** "Charlotte's Web" and "The Trumpet of the Swan" (E.B. White)
** "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" and "Runaway Ralph" (Beverly Cleary)
** Winnie-the-Pooh (the original A.A. Milne books, not the Disney stuff)
** "Because of Winn-Dixie"
** "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"
** the "Little Bear" series
** Amelia Bedelia
** the "Fudge" series (Judy Blume)
** Magic School Bus series
** Magic Tree House series
** the Captain Underpants series
** "The Boxcar Children"
** "James and the Giant Peach"
** "Harold and the Purple Crayon"
** the "Henry and Mudge" series
** "Flat Stanley"
** "Babe"
** the "A to Z Mysteries" series ("Canary Caper," "Quicksand Question," etc.)

More suggestions? Please add them here.

The Bunny Bread Saga (or Things We'll Remember About Easter 2009)...

Every year (since 2001, when the recipe graced the cover of Quick Cooking magazine), I have made bunny bread for Easter. We dig out the little belly area and fill it with veggie dip, put the bunny on a bed of lettuce and surround him with vegetables, and it's a pretty dang cute centerpiece for an Easter meal.

Up there is a shot of this year's creation, sculpted with care early this morning, brushed delicately with egg and baked to perfection. I put it on the counter to cool (posted a quick photo of it on Twitter/Facebook), and joined Randy in the backyard.

About five minutes later, Jack came screaming through the screen door yelling, "Izzy knocked the bunny bread down, and I think she's eating it!!"

Aaaaaaaand, cut to this scene:


I'm not making another one. This will stand as a crystal-clear reminder of Easter 2009: The year we got that stupid dog.

Things making me happy right now...

Sometimes, when you haven't updated your blog in almost two months and people start to hassle you about it, you gotta just jump back in and post something and not waste time explaining or apologizing for having been such a slacker. So there it is.

Some things making me really happy right now:

*** Cadbury Mini Eggs. They're not just my favorite Easter candy. They're my all-time favorite candy, period.
*** Watching birds at the bird feeder outside our kitchen window.
*** Listening to Hannah and Sammi play American Girl.
*** Running into former Eagle editor Jerry Ratts and his wife, Mrs. Ratts, at Dillons and chatting for 20 minutes.
*** Holiday traditions, like Bunny Bread.
*** A weekend off.
*** Goofing around with the Dance Moms every Monday and Wednesday.
*** Awesome neighbors.
*** Hannah getting into the Pre-IB program at Robinson and being so excited to start middle school.
*** Looking forward to Oma and Papa's visit in about a month.
*** Getting right back on that blog train. :)

Life list

Saw this here and thought it would be fun to play along. The rules: Bold the things you’ve done, and post on your blog!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo.
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (Still waiting to see Cuba, though.)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Ack!

This is my boy's latest school picture.

I've described his weirdo expression as "something between come-hither and creepy." But I think I prefer my friend Denice's take, after I posted this on Twitter: "I think he was channeling Hugh Hefner -- or maybe Heath Ledger -- just a little."

There's so much going on here that I absolutely love:

1. His hair. It's an overgrown surfer-boy/bowl cut, but it looks like some parent or photo assistant tried to sweep it to one side to make it look less unruly. Now it just looks overgrown and ridiculous.
2. His highwaters. I swear the boy grew about three inches in one night recently, but I figured we could make it to shorts season without having to buy new jeans. And then.... Picture Day. Curses!!
3. That cheesy bubble-letter name feature in the background. How fortuitous that Jack's head covered up the "J," resulting in a particularly fitting "ACK." My sentiments exactly.
4. Yeah, we're ordering the big package. We'll be needing these photos for Jack's wedding reception.
   

She speaks/writes the truth...