Disney Security

I realized that, in my posts spewing forth Disney Joy, I failed to touch on a topic that I thought would be of some importance. This has to do with Disney's Security, and the fact that they take each person's fingerprints as they enter the park.

I anticipated problems with this because, although I do not feel I ought to give anyone my fingerprints, I am far less likely to make a fuss than Steve. Steve is confident that Disney will sell his fingerprints to the government and fifty years from now, when he happens to pick up the wrong suitcase, he will end up in a government prison because they had his fingerprints on file. So I was sure that, when asked for his fingerprints, he would begin speaking loudly about constitutional rights and shout "Live Free Or Die" as they dragged him off.

But I need not have worried. When we entered the magic Kingdom with adult tickets, Steve and I had to give our fingerprints. I even had to give my fingerprint for Nick when he used an adult ticket. This is supposedly done so that we could not then leave the park at noon and hand the tickets over to another couple. Some of the tickets are for multiple days. It would be less expensive to buy a ten day ticket and then use five days and the let a friend use another five days. The fingerprinting ensures that the same individual is using a ticket for the life of that ticket. Who knows how much money they could use otherwise? But this was only at the Magic Kingdom.

At the other parks the technology had been installed, but either wasn't working or was being ignored. We simply weren't asked to do it, and one lady even told Steve he didn't have to when he tried.

At no point did we give our names. We just gave our fingerprints. So unless they already had them on file - such as when I was fingerprinted for certain jobs I held - they had no idea who I was. I wonder if they are connected to any police databases, so that dangerous criminals could be caught entering the park, if any dangerous criminals ever have the desire to go say hello to Mickey. I'm sure they must, at least a few of them.

When I last went to Disney World, we just waltzed right in. But now they check bags, and take fingerprints, and you end up standing in three lines just to get into the park itself. I understand that corporations and businesses want to be secure and all safe and all that. But part of me also thinks it's sad. Especially about the fingerprinting. That seems to me to be a little over the top.

Bedtime

Ever since we got back from vacation, Nick has been asking when we are going to bunk his and Nathan's beds. It can be done. The reason we got those particular beds was because they could be bunked. But I don't want to do it yet because the younger boys are... so young. And I know Nathan will start jumping off the top bunk immediately and will keep going until he jumps through the floor into the dining room. I told Nick we could start talking about it when he turns five.

Last night I went in to check on the boys and I saw that, after I had tucked them in, Nick had gotten up and dumped out two of the small toy bins. He had placed them on the floor next to his bed, side by side, and in them he had carefully placed Shane and Strawberry Shane, his babies. He was putting them to sleep in their own beds.

It breaks my heart because it's more care than I ever gave any doll of my own.

Sunday Blues

I would like to rant, for a moment, about our School Board and the stupid Public School System.

Our town has no public kindergarten. Which is stupid. But apparently putting one in wasn't a priority for the town because A) most kids attended private kindergarten anyway and B) the town didn't have it's own High School, and that was more to think about.
A few years ago a bill was passed that made pubic kindergarten mandatory. Our town got an extension. And here I was, scanning the local papers for news because the extension meant that Nick would be in the very first public kindergarten class.

Well, nothing, nothing, and more nothing. The first thing I read about it was Friday, where one of the free papers reported that they had, indeed, decided to go ahead and implement the pub;ic kindergarten. But they didn't know where the money was coming from, or where it would be located, although it was a safe bet the class would be in trailers at one of the existing elementary schools. And they weren't sure how they were going to deal with the transition into 1st grade... And all I could think of was COME ON! For the past two years even I have known about these issues. I don't have answers (well, I have some) but at least I knew they had to be addressed. And our stupid school board puts it all on the backburner until the last minute. I don't get it. I just don't.

Fall Rain

One of the things I have NOT yet mentioned about our trip to Florida is our visit with family. The last time I had seen my Aunt Myrtle was right after Nicholas was born, around 4 years ago. We drove up to see her and my cousin Andy, and also my cousin Scott and his wife, Stacey, and his two little boys, Kaylor and Carter. Kaylor looks just like Scott did when he was small. I have the pictures to prove it. Well, pictures of a young Scott. Not pictures of Kaylor because, true to form, I did not actually pull my camera out while we were there. Hooray me.
Our visit was one of the highlights of our trip. It's always nice to visit with family, especially people you haven't seen in a while.

But now that it's raining and chilly up here, I feel comfortable saying I miss the heat.

Digital Pics

I still take pictures as though I had a film camera. Which is to say that I don't take very many pictures. I take a couple of shots, then I put the camera away. A lot of the pictures I take are either not very good or... well, I never take out the camera.
Steve, on the other hand, is fully aware of the miracles of digital cameras. He starts taking pictures and then keeps going, hoping for that perfect shot. Which means that we end up with 10 pictures of the same giraffe, and 10 more of what is, apparently, a tree. (No, I wasn't talking about THIS tree. This tree is a special tree. I was talking about a real tree.)
This was just something I noticed on vacation. I think I should be less conservative with my picture taking, but mostly I should remember to pull the camera out more often.

Under The Weather

We've all got colds. I am pretty sure I mentioned that. And today I tried keeping everything low key, but couldn't help the day from being draining.

Nick and Nate spent all afternoon packing their backpacks with small, apparently indispensable items, such as blocks, small books, and small animal figures. They then took a "trip" to someplace called "Lexus" which is apparently in Japan. While there, they visited the Japanese Disney World, where they rode the Star Wars ride, AND the Power Rangers ride.

When I realized Nate's nose needed wiping for the 57th time that hour, I asked him to go to the bathroom and bring be some tissue. The readership of this blog can be divided into two categories: those who have been to my home and those who have not. For those who have not, let me just say that the downstairs bathroom is some distance from the living room. When Nathan appeared in the living room some thirty seconds later, he had not only three squares of toilet paper in one fist, but the rest of the roll in the other, trailing out behind him, all the way through the kitchen and back into the bathroom, where it had finally run off the roll.

Doesn't Buzz Lightyear look scary in this picture?

Happy Birthday Jamie!

It's Jamie's Birthday, people! He's Twenty Five! I love him! Now, back to Disney Comments:

I know that everyone is so tired of hearing about our Disney Vacation. And to tell you the truth, I'm kind of over it myself. We've all got cold here, with fat, heavy heads, and brains leaking out our noses. (Except Nick, who is oddly healthy). So babbling on about a vacation that is over and fading seems silly. Except that this blog is also supposed to record our memories, and since I didn't blog WHILE I was there, I feel I need to get everything down, so I don't forget. So today I talk about our "Resort."

We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It is called a "resort" and this prompts me to aske the question "What is the difference between a Hotel and a Resort?" Anyone?

I chose this place because we had the chance to see giraffes and zebras our our balcony. And we did indeed get to see animals! Unfortunately, we were facing a rather small area of the "savanna" and had an empty gated area directly in front of us. But it was still cool. There were lots of viewing areas with rocking chairs and binoculars.

The Lobby was huge. The room on the small side. This is to be expected. There are over 1200 rooms in this resort alone, not to mention the individual "villas" for those who needed a little more room and had more cash. But our room DID have a bunk bed, and the boys loved it. They climbed up, threw toys over the edge, climbed down, threw the toys back up, again and again.

The hotel also had a pool. A HUGE pool. Not deep, but graded on one side, so that the depth started at one inch. Even Andy could splash around. It was heated to a ridiculous degree (think warm bath) and had a water slide, which the boys loved. They slid down again and again until we physically pulled them away for dinner. There was also a playground for the kids, and a wading pool, a hot tub... I could use that hot tub about now.

Speaking of which... the place could use more food options. There were three restaurants at the resort. The upscale one, Jiko, we didn't even try to get into. Boma was a buffet, and it was fabulous once we were able to get in (one night we had reservations, but their computer broke down, and they "restarted" the list but made no announcement. We found out after an hour of waiting and finally just left.) The only other place to eat was a "fast food" type place called "The Mara" which served soggy burgers and something called "African Stew" for ridiculous amounts of cash. At two fifty per milk and seven dollars per waffle, we probably spent more there than at any other eatery. It got old, fast. What they really needed was a Dunkin Donuts or a Starbucks, or just one other place to get "reasonably priced" food. Because with 1200 rooms, three restaurants is not enough.


Since we stayed at the resort we could take advantage of "Magic Hours" at the theme parks, and we got free transportation to and from the parks AND the airport. All in all, I'm glad we stayed there. It was an experience. But next time around we may just opt for a less expensive option, maybe right outside the park. Or maybe... not?

Disney Rides Again!

I like the rides the best. But there are so many I couldn't possibly go into detail about each one. So here are my thoughts, park by park. In Alphabetical Order. Just because.

Animal Kingdom: My least favorite of all the parks. Why? Well, it's a fun place, but it's really kind of a glorified zoo. Oh, the safari was fun, and we saw tons of animals on the trails, too. We saw gorillas up close. And Steve loves zoos and animals. But there weren't very many RIDES, and the kids got restless. We skipped the water ride (Nate was too small), but Steve DID go on EVEREST, a roller coaster the boys were too small for, and he said it was really cool!

Epcot: I think Future World looks dated. Soarin was really cool! We were told the line for that could get up to 120 minutes, but it was 10 when we showed up. We didn't get to do Test Track (too loud and we're too small). But we did see Nemo (not Crush - the timing didn't work out).


Hollywood Studios: This park is more about going to watch shows, and we weren't much into doing that. But we DID see Playhouse Disney Live Onstage! Waiting in line they played theme songs from about 109 kids TV shows... and I KNEW ALL THE WORDS. We also went on TOY MANIA in 4D, which is combination 3D movie/ video game/ ride, and was VERY cool! This park also had the Star Tours ride, which Steve and Nick said were cool (I stayed with Nate'n Andy), And of course I took Nick on Tower Of Terror, and I am SO SORRY! I made a mistake. I liked the ride, loved the ride, but of course he was scared. I would have liked to go on the Aerosmith roller coaster, but it was hot and late and the kids couldn't go, so I spared us. It's on my list for next time.



Magic Kingdom: My favorite. Always. This park has the most rides and is the most fun for me. Most of them are old standbys - the Haunted Mansion, Small World (which is Nick's favorite and we went on three times). Steve took Nick on Splash Mountain. There were a few new rides - Buzz Lightyear, which is fun, and Winnie The Pooh... well... I like Winnie The Pooh... and the ride isn't bad. It's just... for very young children. Like, Andy. Who was actually asleep during that entire ride. I took Nick'n Nate on the Astro Orbiter, which is like Dumbo, but way, way up high. The lines were not long at all, which surprised and delighted me. We walked right onto the boat at Small World and right onto the Teacups. We skipped the showy rides, where the boys would have to sit and be still. But we DID manage to see Mickey's Philharmagic, a 3D show I had never seen, and LOVED. I didn't know 3D could work so well. Nate and Nick were actually reaching out to touch some of the 3D items!

Ten Tips for Enjoying Disney World

1 - If at all possible, leave your children at home. If you have no children, go now, quickly, before you grow any.

2 - If you HAVE to bring your children along, bring them before they turn three. Because children under three are free.

3 - Plan your trip for mid September. The lines are shorter. Think ten to fifteen minutes per ride.

4 - Purchase the right ticket for you. The "Magic Your Way" ticket allows one park entry per day - a 1 day ticket allows you one park, and a 4 day ticket lets you get into all four theme parks. OR, you can purchase a "Park Hopper" ticket which will let you go into any of the theme parks for 1 day with a one day ticket, or for 2 days with a 2 day ticket, etc. Of course, if you are doing that you might want to add access to other things with the "Water Parks and More" option. The price per day goes down as the number of days on your ticket increases. Children 3 - 10 are less expensive, but Park Hopper Tickets are more expensive and the final price is determined by rolling the dice and multiplying by the date of your birth. We avoided all this by having tickets given to us as a gift. Hooray!

5 - Choose the parks you want to visit. When I was a kid there was only the Magic Kingdom and Epcot. But now there is Hollywood Studios and the Animal Kingdom. There are also two water parks at Disney World, Blizzard Beach and the Other One I Can't Remember. There is also an area with shops called "Downtown Disney" which includes an indoor amusement park, and there are also two mini-golf courses. Disney World is 47 square miles. There's still room for a lot more.

6 - Get to the park early in the morning, when it opens! Lines are shorter (we walked right onto Peter Pan, Small World, and even Soarin), and a special show to open the park.

7 - Just because your 4 year old is tall enough to go on Tower Of Terror does not mean you should bring him on Tower Of Terror.

8 - Plan your meals three months in advance. That way you can get at least one good meal a day. I strongly recommend Tucker House at the Animal Kingdom, or Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. (Boma was better, but out of the park.) Also, kids under three eat free at buffets. Their loss, because Nate is a big eater. If you choose to stay at the resort, I recommend selecting Disney Dining. That way you have more choices on where to eat if you get stuck like we did.

9 - Choose where you stay wisely. We chose a Deluxe Resort, the Animal Kingdom Lodge, as we were gifted the park tickets. I shall describe the resort in detail in a later post, and mention it here only to say it was $$$. If you're watching your pocketbook, consider staying at the Ramada nearby. You could end up saving money even if you took a cab to the parks both ways.

10 -SO. MUCH. FUN.

Tomorrow: the best and the worst of the rides and attractions.

We're Baaaaack!

Yesterday we got home from our Disney World vacation. It was fabulous.

The flights both there and back were the most eventful flights in forever, for me, simply because they both took off and landed ON TIME, and they took us WHERE WE WANTED TO GO. Imagine that!

The photo above is Nick and Nate with Wall-E. We SAW Mickey, who was in the same room, a living, breathing Mickey, who was meeting with children and having photos taken, but our kids took one look at this cardboard cutout of Wall-E and ran over to him instead. We had a hard time with the characters, because both boys wanted to LOOK at them, and it was tough getting them to turn and face the camera. Cardboard Wall-E was no exception.

I have tons of stories and much to say, and photos and posts will stretch out over the next week.

Packing Up

I've gone on quite a few trips with the boys, ranging from a few nights to a couple of weeks. But this vacation to Disney is the first where we won't have access to a washer.

It wouldn't matter, if we were all grown ups. You figure you're gone for five days, pack five outfits, right? But wrong. Because the boys are not grown ups. There have been times I've packed what I thought was an appropriate number of clothes, and only half of them got worn. There have also been times I've packed what I thought was more than enough and had to do laundry within 48 hours.

And there is only so much room. I can't shove everything into a suitcase. I also have to pack toys, books, sunscreen... favorite stuffed animals to sleep with, bathing suits, camera... it gets very full and very heavy very quickly. A week's worth of stuff is a lot to begin with.

The thing is, I don't know if I'm packing too much or too little. I guess by the time you are reading this, I will know, because I'm pre-publishing a week's worth of posts. This one is scheduled to publish the day I get back!

Playing Dress Up

I hate clothes shopping. For the life of me I can't find what I'm looking for. And I'm not just talking about size. I'm talking about style. I'm talking about clothes that I look OK in. Instead of a nutjob. Not only am I horrible at knowing what looks good, I'm not the best when it comes to matching. Sometimes I get dressed and I know that I look funny, but I can't tell what it is or how to fix it. The shoes? The socks? The pants?

Next time I'm taking someone with me to be my clothing advisor.

WORD GIRL!

I really like finding TV shows I can watch with my kids, especially kind of quirky ones, like WORD GIRL. It really makes me wonder why people spend time watching Dora and Diego, because quite honestly, Dora and Diego are quite boring, annoying, and it's gotten to the point where I want to steal Dora's map and see if she makes it over Chocolate mountain and through Letter Forest or wherever she's getting to today. Of course someone would find her. She shouts all the time, and her head is so big it looks like she's about to topple over. Word Girl, on the other hand, is funny, and smart, and has a sense of humor. Dora has a monkey as a sidekick. Word Girl has a chimp. But Word Girl can fly, and fights bad guys obsessed with food simply by using good vocabulary.

I Scream etc.

Curious Andy

Hmmm, what's this over here?

Japanese Robot Men

Steve brought Nick and Nate Robot Action Figures from Japan. When you press the buttons on the back, they make noises like gurgling drains and laser blasts. The boys love them. They just had to learn that robots need to get along, and not bonk their brothers in the face. Both boys began crying at the same time. But Nathan's nose began spurting blood both from the outside and the inside, and the lip Nick was clutching seemed fine. Nate got better quickly. Hence the band-aid making him look like a boxer, and the slightly timid expression.

Peek A Boo

I still see you!

He's My Brother

I know I've mentioned Nick's imaginary friend, Mario.

Steve has finally gotten a copy of MarioKart for the Wii. It's fun! And it can be played online, too! So anyone that has a Wii, get MarioKart, and we can play together, even if you're say, in New York, Seattle, LA, etc.

Nick and Nate love to play, too. But ever since playing the game, Nathan has adopted a new "friend" of his own.

The other day I heard him yelling. "No! Stop! I mad at you!" and I caled out "Nathan, why are you angry? What's going on?" to which he replied "I'm not talkin to you! I talkin to Puigi!"

Yes, we've told him it's Luigi, with an L, but he doesn't seem to get it. Puigi it is. Mario's brother.

.

Good News

I love getting news about my friends, especially good news! So... you know, send it in as soon as you get it. Or I'll send Nathan after you.

The Cure

On a day where I am feeling kind of down and frustrated and hopeless, one look at this smile and I've got one of my own.

How Things Go

Just in case I haven't mentioned it, we are taking a trip to Disney World in the near future. One might say I am excited.

So it should come to no surprise that with our departure date fast approaching, Andrew has come down with a cold. Not just ANY cold, but a cold with a rash. A speckely rash, which the doctor assured me was normal, and would go away in a few days.

And in a perfect world, a world where luggage showed up on the conveyor belt and flights took off when they were supposed to and landed where they were supposed to, this cold would be a non issue. It would infect Andy for a few days, then fade away until, one day, we noticed there was no longer a steady stream of snot running from his nose.

But we live in THIS world, the Anti-Traveling World, where, when one kid gets sick, he stays sick for TWO WEEKS, and then his BROTHERS get sick, and they get HIGH FEVERS and maybe even THROW UP for NO REASON. And all this might happen ON THE PLANE because I WILL NOT let this illness interfere with my vacation. The boys might be feverish zombies, but they will be dragged around the Magic Kingdom regardless.

The worst part about all this is that I am very tired. Andy is probably tired, too. But he can try to sleep whenever he wants, and no one expects him to shop or make dinner. So being up half the night doesn't seem to get to him the way it does me, Little Miss Snappy.

PS - Steve woke up with the kids this morning, by himself, with no prompting from me, just so I could have a little extra time. I cannot tell you how great this was. But I am also still snappy.

Andy Has A Cold

So I didn't get anything done today.

Getting Dressed

You would think getting dressed would be simple. How many issues could possibly arise?

Well...

With Andrew, it's a matter of... well, he's mobile. And there are always other things he wants to do besides getting his diaper changed. So getting him into a new diaper, let alone a new outfit, requires placement, replacement, distraction of several kinds, and finally good timing.

With Nicholas, it's a matter of supervision. Because he is MORE than willing to pick out his own clothing and dress himself. But sometimes he chooses inappropriate clothing, such as long pants when it's 90 degrees, or dress shoes with his gym shorts, or a t-shirt he outgrew two years ago. I might also find his discarded PJ's in the toy bin, or stashed under the bed.

But either of the above is actually fine. Even together, I could get through it with few problems.

And then, there's Nathan.

Nathan will wander into the room to get dressed, and I will find him in there reading a book. He will refuse to get dressed because he is reading a book. I ask him to get undressed. I take the book away. He then tries to get ME to undress him. But I am trying to get him to do these things himself. I tell him he can do it himself. Then I tell him he's right, he CAN'T because he isn't a superhero. Then he says he IS a superhero, and undresses in ten seconds. Then he is naked, and gets distracted, etc. I help him get dressed, but he stands three feet away and I feel as though I'm chasing him around the room. When I finally start helping him, he shouts that he wants to do it himself. He insists on wearing his underwear backwards so he can "see the picture" of batman that is supposed to be on his bum. He can't find the waistband of his shorts. He gets his sleeves tangled up. Overall, it takes five minutes to get the other two dressed, and twenty for Nathan.

I love this boy. But he is a handful.

I need a case for my basket

I am a hormonal basket case.

I know people tend to use this term loosely, especially me. I blame practically every mood, argument, and accident on hormones. But this time, I know it to be true. Not only because I have been a little down in the dumps. Not just because I find myself gritting my teeth while I'm trying to get Nathan into his clothes, or out of them, or to do anything (this deserves it's own post, so check in tomorrow.) No, I know I am a victim of hormones because I have been breaking out like a teenager. Specifically, my face has decided to act the way it did when I was in middle school.

If you met me in college, or after college, you might be surprised. Because when my skin cleared up, it cleared up. I was very lucky that way. But some of you knew me in middle school. If you are one of those people then you know that I had a LOT of zits. For years. I was very embarrassed and tried a number of things to get rid of them, and also to hide them - make up, combing my hair in front of my face... Until... well, I don't know. It all cleared up my senior year, I think.

But now... well, I'm back to having pimples all over. I haven't changed any of my habits to cause it. I have no idea what's going on. And I'm very cross about it.

One, Two, Skip a Few...

I skipped posting yesterday because my computer had to be taken back to the shop to get fixed - same problem, but like anything else, it takes at least two trips and fourteen people in line ahead of you with Ipod questions before anything useful happens. Lucky for me, Steve went and took care of it, and all I had to do was wait here at home.

Yesterday evening Pam and Larry came over, relatives of ours who live close but we never see because I am horrible at keeping in touch. It was so good to see them. And the boys had a great time, even though they got confused and were calling Pam "Larry" and Nathan insisted Larry was "Pam." Which is, when you think of it, kind of funny.

And Andrew... Andy cooperated by taking three consecutive steps for the first time. I can see him balancing, his little body swaying, and I know it's only a matter of days before he's unstoppable.

She's So Bad

I am NOT a political person. I usually avoid political banter at all cost and I don't think I have ever made political commentary on this site. It's not what it's about, and I recognize the fact that my readers (all four of you) hold different political views, and have the right to. Personally, I find politics confusing and boring, and kind of like a game of "Responsibility Hot Potato" where they take all of it if it's a good thing and none of it if it's a bad thing, and it's hard to tell who did what because our system is practically built on red tape. I usually find that one politician is much like another, which is why I marginally supported Obama over McCain in the elections, and mostly because McCain seemed closer to what we already have.

Then McCain chose a running mate.

At first I thought it was a joke. It had to be a joke. I simply couldn't take it seriously and joked about it because not only did I think Sarah Palin was a poor choice, but she seemed to keep getting poorer and poorer by the day. By the HOUR. And I smiled and shook my head and wondered why McCain was throwing the election.

But at the playground today I overheard some women talking and I realized... those crazy screaming people on TV? They aren't being sarcastic. They are simply deluded. And McCain and Palin? They might actually run this country.

I am not sure why I hate Palin so much. It's not that she's a woman - I like women. I am one. I disliked Clinton, wouldn't have voted for her, but Clinton simply left me with the feeling that she was lying to me, and not the "Run Away!" feeling I get from Palin. And I know I stay at home but I feel that is a choice I was lucky enough to have, not an obligation, so the fact that she has an infant at home, one that requires special care, that's not it either. Not even knowing that no one with a Toddler can be 100% sane. I can't even say for sure that it's becasue I disagree with her on every single issue, even though I probably do, because I haven't been able to watch her for longer than two seconds without being overcome with nausea and panic. All the quotes I have read are either bashing Obama for bashing her, or explaining that she's super excited her seventeen-year-old is going to be a mom. I seriously wonder how the seventeen-year-old feels. Did she want to have the kid? Keep the kid? Get married? I don't suppose any of the politcians care. After all, she's not old enough to vote.

I just couldn't understand why someone in their right mind would think Sarah Palin would be a good choice to run our country. Because as the VP, that would be a major job function: running our country if the president can't, i.e. in a time of crisis. And I can't fully explain it, but I feel like I'm in that movie, all trying to warm people "Soylent Green is PEOPLE!" and "The Pod People are taking over! They're everywhere!" I'm terrified, because I've just realized that there is an actual possibility that enough people will get brainwashed into voting for McCain and Palin, and when that happens Palin's head and her pink suit will crack open, and her true Evil Spider self will crawl out, her huge red eyes flashing, and she will eat McCain, and then she will laugh maniacally, and move on to destroy the rest of this country, and while she's at it, the Earth.

Once Upon A Time...

Andy took his first step today.

Oh, don't get TOO excited. He didn't exacting stick the landing. He lifted his foot and immediately began falling forward, and his foot hit the ground a moment before the rest of him. But the point is this: he knows what he wants to do. And he knows how to do it. He just needs the balance.

Strike

The other day we took the kids bowling.

First of all I must clarify the term "Bowling." Where I am from, bowling pins are kind of curvy and look a little like bottles. The bowling balls are about the size of a head, and have holes in them for your fingers. Here, in New England, bowling pins are shaped like two plastic cups taped together at the open ends, and bowling balls are the size of... well, a small heavy cantelope. Everyone I've met from here insists this is "Real Bowling," and apparently ignores the fact that all TV shows and all movies with bowling in them has what they refer to as "Big Ball Bowling." Apparently they just think the balls are bigger because they are props, like fake money in a play. I think the "Big Ball Bowling" should be called "Bowling" and that the other kind, the candlepin kind, should be called "Imposter Bowling." And I can't explain how I ever developed such string feelings about bowling in the first place. Except that I know I'm right.

Anyway, we took the kids Imposter Bowling. Not just regular Imposter Bowling, but Glo Bowling, which is apparently bowling in the dark, with loud music and disco lights flashing. They gutters were blocked off, so you couldn't loose. But it was still kind of hard for the boys to roll the balls. While Steve and I would fling those suckers down to the pins, Nick and Nate would roll them, and then we would all watch as the ball slowly, slowly rolled, rolling... still rolling... Other people bowling would finish entire turns, throwing the ball six times, and we would still be waiting for Nate's ball to reach the end of the lane. And finally knock over a single pin.

As soon as a pin fell over Nate would turn and do a victory dance that would make a football player proud.

Because the boys took so long, it took us over an hour to play one game. But it was lots of fun. I'm glad I at least know another place we can go when things get snowy and cold.

House Rules

We're all sitting on the couch watching Sid The Science Kid, and since it's cool here in the mornings, we've got the blankets pulled up on our laps. Nate is snuggled next to me, and Nicholas has crawled next to Nathan. Nicholas leans into his brother to get warmer, and he gently puts his arm around Nate's shouler in a brotherly sort of way. Without taking his eyes from the TV screen, or even moving away, Nathan says" No hugging in the house."

I am pretty sure this was not one of MY rules.