Starting the New Year

It's January and time to get back to the routine. The kids had to go back to school Wednesday. Ben thought their first day back was Thursday and he was a sad little boy Tuesday when he learned the next day was back to business.

SNAKES ALIVE, NO DEAD. Mom called me at work Wednesday morning with a tale I would never have guessed in a million years. She caught and killed a snake in the house. It's a strange enough tale as I don't recall there ever being a snake in the house, but this is the time when all self-respecting snakes are hibernating due to the sub-freezing weather.

At any rate, Mom spotted a snake beside the dryer. At first she tried to step on it, but the snake was not so easily squashed. Then she threw a towel over it and using her foot drug it with her to the phone to call Kenny since I was at work. By the time Kenny got there and Mom had slid the snake to the door to let him in the poor thing had expired. It was a young chicken snake, about eight inches long.

ALL I WANT FOR NEW YEARS IS TWO NEW TEETH. Ben told us all thorough the holidays he had loose teeth. Wednesday morning he was really complaining about one of them while eating breakfast. Vicki looked at it and with his permission plucked it right out.

Then, on Thursday evening, Ben showed me another one where the adult tooth was pushing it aside but the gum hadn't let go of it much. I guess I'm a chicken, but I didn't feel like this one was far enough along to pull, but after consulting his mother he must have felt it was time because he pulled it out himself. Now Ben's two bottom canine teeth are gone and he claims to have a couple more loose in there somewhere. Nate is getting a little jealous because he only has one slightly loose tooth right now.

CINNAMON ROLLS. Our Upward Basketball season began today. The boys are at the right ages to play on the same team this year so we only have two games to make on Saturdays. What was funny was that at practice the other night the boys' coach made reference to their team name, the Seminoles. Nate was among several other boys who misunderstood and was wondering what sort of name "Cinnamon Rolls" was for a basketball team. We told him they were the Seminoles if they won and the Cinnamon Rolls if they lost. They were the Seminoles by one point today.

Jenna’s team, the Lady Tigers, played a nail biter of a game tonight, winning by two points. Jenna sunk a beautiful goal from the free throw line near the end to tie the score.

NEW DIGS. I am amazed at the resilience of our fish, 36. We've had him for over 16 months. Goldfish won from the fair normally don't live this long. He appears to be about four inches long now, practically tripling in size since we got him.

When we came home from Georgia we noticed the pump for 36's tank was not working. Since he is too large for a 1.5 gallon tank we have upgraded him to a 10 gallon tank. For now he continues to live alone behind our kitchen sink, but I'm not sure if he would enjoy some buddies or eat them. He looks small in his new home.

I LOVE LUCY. I think anyone who has ever seen very much of Lucille Ball's work will have many favorite scenes from her TV shows that come to mind. Jenna got a set of I Love Lucy DVDs for Christmas and we have enjoyed watching them. Jenna even took them with her when she spent the night with her friend, Mackenzie, last night.

ONE RING TO RULE THEM ALL... Last weekend I was in the mood to watch The Lord of the Rings and decided it was time to let the kids watch it as well. Normally we require the kids to read the book first for things like this, but decided to forego that this time. I remember really enjoying The Hobbit when I first read it, but having a difficult time when I got to The Fellowship of the Ring. I think I must have been WAY behind in my reading level back then. Ultimately I read the books twice, then read the Cliff's Notes, and then read the books a third time before I came to appreciate what Tolkien wrote. (Vicki agreed that these are hard reads, recalling how she struggled through the books when she proofread this.) I don't want my kids to have that struggle like I did if they ever decide to pick up those books.

All that is to say that we've been watching Frodo on his quest to destroy the one ring. Every time the orcs or ring wraiths appear on screen Nate pulls a blanket over his head but quickly drops it to see what's going on. And periodically both boys say, "Hey, that's in the video game!"

Now we'll be ready to watch The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey when it comes out in December.

Joe