Playing Pretend

I'm standing in my kitchen today and I get a surreal feeling. Like, is this for real? Is this beautiful kitchen mine? Am I the lady of this house? How did I get here?

The lyrics of the Talking Heads song, "Once in a Lifetime" start playing in my mind. Part of it goes: "And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile. And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife. And you may ask yourself-well...how did I get here?"

Do you ever feel that way? Like you're just shamming; playing pretend; faking your way along? Today is that kind of day for me. Somehow I got to be the wife and the mom in this house. And I have to play those roles convincingly, even though I'm not always convinced myself that I can play them or even any of the other roles I play. I "coordinate" things for the church nursery and write up convincing sounding correspondence for my moms' group. I try to fake it in sales and marketing for my small business, pretending I've got a slick, professional operation when it's really just little old me at my computer banging out marketing copy and press releases.

I'm waiting for someone to find the curtain and pull it back to reveal...me. Just a simple gal, blowing all the bells and whistles to make it look like I know what I'm doing. Then again, maybe there is no curtain. Maybe I'm learning enough along the way that some of the things I'm doing are no longer shamming. And a saying I heard as a teen from motivational speaker, George O'Hare, still echoes in my mind louder than the Talking Heads lyrics. "Fake it 'til you make it", he said. Maybe he's right, maybe someday soon I'm actually going to "make it".

A Rush Hour Chuckle

About a week or so ago I had occasion to travel through our fair "city" during the evening rush hour. I was only making a short trip, but the long wait at stoplights was starting to get on my nerves (surprise, surprise). Then while I was waiting in a particularly long backup I noticed a movement of yellow in the window of a car a little ahead of me on the right. I watched the car carefully. There it was again!

At that moment traffic ahead of me moved slightly. I inched forward too, straining to see inside the car. When I got up far enough I could see it clear as day: an older gentleman, plaid fedora on his head, with a tiny white-haired woman in the passenger seat beside him. He was busily shaking a pair of maracas, apparently in time to some music. The steering wheel didn't seem to impede him in any way. And the traffic delay stole little of his joy. He just merrily shook those bright yellow maracas, barely pausing when the traffic moved along.

I sat watching him, chuckles bubbling up inside me, glad for the rush hour delay. I enjoyed this soundless concert for two whole traffic light waits. Then, still laughing to myself, I had to continue on my way. What a delightful moment where rush hour became something to enjoy.

Shopping Can Be...Fun?

Friday was a half day at school. It was also my day to get a few errands run. At the mall. When I told my children this you would have thought I'd suggested an outing to the stock yards.

"You're going to ruin my half day off!" LMH exclaimed.

I sighed. They'd caught my distaste for shopping. Perhaps it is not a bad thing in the battle to avoid materialism, but it's definitely un-American. And given the extra time we had together, I didn't want them to think their day was ruined. So I did what any sane mom would - I gave them cash. A dollar apiece to add to the bits in their wallets and the open invitation to spend what they had on whatever they wanted.

Naturally I also gave each child the option to visit a store of their choosing. We ended up at the Disney Store, Claire's Boutique and...that was enough. All three wallets were sufficiently drained in two shops and three girls were pleased with their purchases.

After a snack of Cinnabon rolls, they declared it a fun afternoon.

As for me? The company of my children was enjoyable. I took satisfaction in getting most of my errands accomplished and even in finding a nice outfit for a good price. But shopping? It's still pretty much a drag.

WBGL's First Day of School Photo Contest

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Celebrating Your Birthday...Mommy Style

A noise jolts you awake in the early hours of the morning. You struggle to listen and then remember the child that you put to bed with a fever. In a fog you stumble down the hall to the bathroom where you find your child, looking drawn and drained. You get the thermometer and sit down to wait. 102.9 degrees. Too high. Way too high. The tub won't fill fast enough as you frantically begin pouring warmish water on the child.

"Are you cold? Is it making you shiver?", you ask.

"No," the child mumbles, giving you a sad, but grateful look.

In a bit you return to your bed. The fever had spiked higher, but with some medicine and rest you're hopeful it has turned around. As you climb under the covers your husband turns and sleepily says, "Happy Birthday".

You sigh. You'd planned to spend the morning eating pastries and drinking coffee with the neighbor ladies while your youngest was at preschool. Then maybe you'd sit and read the novel you've been yearning to finish. And certainly it would be a day of no chores. Or few chores at the least. But plans change. And oddly, you're okay with it. 'God has something else in store for my day', you think. That thought comforts you.

Later as your sick child rests on the couch, you stand and stroke her hair.

"Hey, you get to spend all day with me on my birthday," you say. "If you weren't sick you'd have been at school instead. How lucky am I!"

Your child turns and gives you a weak smile.

"It's a good birthday," you say. And you mean it.

What's Missing in Our Microwave Society

Craver brought this up the other day, and then I encountered it in my reading this morning: as a society we have become all about the end result. Forget waiting! I want (fill in the blank) now. It drives our technology. We can get our emails (just think of that alone:instant communication, no waiting for postal service) wherever, whenever we want thanks to technology. We can see who's calling us on the phone without even answering it - no need to wait to hear their voice. Dinner in an instant. Get cash now.

And unfortunately this sometimes spills over into non-material areas of our lives. We want that tough relationship resolved NOW. We look for the fastest route to the top of our careers. We long to have our kids potty-trained in a day.

The problem is in valuing the end result we've gypped ourselves of seeing the worth of the process. We long for the finish line of the marathon without feeling the bone-crushing agony of mile 17 or hearing the encouraging words of spectators at mile 20. Waiting is hard. But what happens during the wait and our response to the wait can change us, for better or ill, and for eternity.

Here's what I read this morning that prompted this:
"It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way." (Proverbs 19:2).

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REMINDER:
Don't forget: tomorrow (September 20th) is the day. Place an order for Pampering Gifts and get a free beaded bookmark. And check out their website. They've got project photos, sample chapters, even downloadable templates.

Placemat Purse Pampering

Here's a fun idea that I got from a friend at church. It's a placemat purse (ie. a placemat turned into a purse/bag). We used it as a conference goody bag for guest speakers this summer and plan to use it again for our moms' group soon. It makes a great, inexpensive gift. And it's a lot of fun hunting the clearance racks to find cute placemats. After all, buying the orphaned ones is a public service, isn't it? And so many of them are ones I'd never put on my table but gladly sling on my shoulder.

I found the best instructions for this at Amy's Favorites. She shows the ribbons tied into a knot, but I've also just sewn the ribbon on straight (takes less ribbon if you're on a really tight budget). Also, there is no width specified on the ribbon, but I've found 7/8" to be ideal. Play around with patterned ribbons or different ribbon colors. They're super fun!

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ANNOUNCEMENT
Wordcrafter Communications has announced a special promotion they're running on the book Pampering Gifts this Thursday. Every order placed online (www.pamperinggiftsbook.com) Thursday, September 20th, will receive a free beaded bookmark (retail value $6). They're pretty cool looking bookmarks. If I can get a photo of one I'll try to post it here.

September Birthdays Can Be a Bummer...or not

Yesterday was the uber-princess's birthday. She'd been looking forward to it for...a year! At least that's what it felt like to her, I'm sure. The whole week prior everything paled in comparison to her approaching birthday.

"Are you excited to start preschool?", we'd ask.

"I'm excited for my birthday", she'd answer.

And each day that passed that no one left the house to shop for her she'd get more anxious. "You need to buy my presents," she sternly told her sisters. They laughed and meanly told her she'd get none, when in reality the presents were already wrapped and waiting.

So we celebrated heartily yesterday. Presents in the morning, presents and a balloon at Grandma's later, cake and more presents in the evening. But no kid party. She's only just started preschool and I wanted her to have time to make some friends that she could invite (little did I consider that she had a guest list already planned). And today she eagerly went to school remembering birthdays when her sisters were in preschool.

"I'll get a birthday crown," she said.

But there will be no birthday crown. They're slowly settling into their schedule and rituals. No parent helpers for another week. No birthday celebrating until then either. Hers is considered a "summer birthday". Bummer for her.

I know what it's like. In September you're still getting to know the other kids, the schedule, all that stuff. So when your birthday falls in September, it gets only sort of celebrated outside your home. When you have a party for school friends you can only invite the old ones, the new ones are too new. And if you're involved in an outside group, chances are it's too soon for doing birthday stuff at all. It's like a summer birthday, except you don't get the half-birthday celebration to make up for it.

I feel bad for the uber-princess: having to wait for her kid party, getting no crown today at preschool. But then again, I think September is one of the best months in the year. And so what if it September birthdays sometimes get overlooked in the transition. Having a birthday in September just makes all the excitement of a new school year that much more exciting. And not having to be publicly recognized for your birthday gets to be a better deal as you get older, especially if you don't want to discuss how much older that is.

All said, the uber-princess had a great birthday and since it's in September she's going to keep stretching it out for a bit. Tonight we'll be going to Famous Dave's in her honor.

Post Script: the uber-princess did get a crown at preschool after all. And she got a sticker and a card and the class sang to her. So okay, no bummer for her other than her mom not planning the kid party yet.

What to Do?

Llama Momma broached this topic a little while back. She raised the issue of churches providing childcare for events involving women. But what if your church can't even muster enough childcare for a Sunday morning? Then what do you do?

That's where we're at where I go to church. More particularly, where I run the church nursery and two-year old class. My team roster contains ten names of wonderful, committed people. The registration for those classes is currently at 14, but will easily go to 17 once the newborns get a little older. 10 adults. 14 infants and toddlers. Can you see why this doesn't work? Especially when those adults can only be in there once a month or less (nor would I expect many to be in there more often, it's demanding work and without a second service it's a huge sacrifice), this amounts to a severe shortage. So far we've had to schedule only two weeks a month to hold our nursery and two's class. Ouch!

So what do you do? Our pastor has put out an appeal for the past two weeks. It's summer. Attendance is low. So naturally we've had virtually zero response. Still our kickoff for Fall classes is one week away and we need to know what we're doing.

Now the children's ministry coordinator has put out an email asking the whole church to pitch in and help one time before the end of the calendar year. So this may get us through til then. But when January comes, then what?

I'm praying. I'm making phone calls (which ranks up there as the number one thing I like to do least. I have a hard time even calling friends to chat. Whether it was those years taking complaints in customer service or what, I don't know. But I'd so much rather email or talk face to face than use a phone).

When it comes down to it, our church has more children than adults. We're putting a bandaid on the problem now. But does that mean it will go away? And honestly, having different people in with these little kids is so incredibly less than ideal. Do that to a grade-schooler and they'll be jarred, but they'll roll with it. For little ones? I don't know. How secure will these children be feeling by January? How hard will it be for their parents to get them to come in there?

It's a bad situation. One that I've spent the last year trying to make the best of. I've tried hard not to run a co-op where all parents have to take their turn helping if they have a child in there. It's a model that works perhaps, but doesn't necessarily serve some of the neediest people in our church. Parents of little ones need a break. I've been trying to give that to them. But instead it looks like church is going to become the last place where they'll get it.

What would you do?

Postscript: Most of the people in our church are working hard. Some of them in two and three different places. And therein lies the complication to my problem: there are few people to turn to for more help.

We've scheduled almost through December with people pitching in for one time during the semester, so the crisis has been averted. But the long-term solution has yet to be reached, and I'm honestly just not sure what that is.

A Magical Zoo

Our house is getting busier by the day. We have the delightful company of our favorite dog. The girls are hoping he can stay for at least the remainder of their lifetimes the week. And the three betta fish are all still living, despite one thrashing about so wildly during a bowl change that she ended up on our kitchen floor TWICE. Plus about a week and a half ago two monarch caterpillars joined the fray.

We no longer have the caterpillars. We dutifully fed them milkweed leaves multiple times a day (boy, can those things ever eat). And we even did a container change to empty out all the caterpillar droppings. But then it happened. One of those caterpillars began hanging from the lid, in a "J" shape. Our astute now-third-grader knew what was up after her unit on butterflies last year. "He's going to become a chrysalis now!" she told us. Sure enough, the next morning we found a slimy, pale green blob hanging from the lid. A chrysalis indeed. A couple days later the other caterpillar followed suit. One chrysalis is now brown, soon to turn clear and then...well, we hope they both live for us to see.

So my husband and I were watching the second Harry Potter movie the other night. We were totally engaged in this world of magic and wizards, good versus evil, creatures being turned into objects, objects behaving as creatures. But we had to pause to take the dog for a walk before turning him in for the night. Thus it was in this magic-absorbed state of mind that I stepped into my kitchen and saw the once-caterpillars' again. There, I suddenly realized, was real "magic" taking place. Creatures turning into something different, right before my eyes. And I was amazed by it. Maybe because it wasn't something in a story book, but real, in my own home. Maybe because it really does border on the mythical.

I'm glad that my daughters love bugs and creepy crawlies. Thanks to their inquisitiveness about the creaturely world I'm able to witness to such a thing. What magic!

Habits

Parents swarmed about, each brandishing the mandatory camera, catching as many moments of this FIRST as they could. Some children stood stiffly in line, afraid to move or to even shift that new backpack. Others hopped from foot to foot, eager to start the day, the year. Down each line came the respective teacher, gently greeting the boys and girls and applying a nametag to each one. All too soon the process was completed. The bell rang. Parents stepped backward, some tripping over younger siblings in their effort to make way for the procession. Tears blurring their eyes. The lines began to stream around the corner and in the door. Then a line suddenly broke off at one child who'd become dazed and missed the movement in front of him. With a prod to his back he regained his focus. Where was the rest of the line? He raced straight ahead, aiming for the wrong door. For the old door. The door of kindergarten.

The rest of the line followed. Cattle. Lemmings. New first graders unsure of this new year of school. Someone waved and turned them around. Back to where they'd started. On around the corner and into the first grade door at last. Starting a new year. Building new habits.

This was funny to watch. And it was almost as funny to hear of third graders who, returning to their class after recess, accidentally went to their second-grade classroom. More than one of them, to more than one room. Oh, the laughter in that school. The joyful confusion of building new habits and new routines.

I'm glad for the new school year. I like the transition, the definite beginning point and a chance to start things new. Like new habits and new routines. Mine are still rough. I'm still returning to the old habits I'd like to erase. And I have to laugh and turn around to redirect my course.

I Love...

tulle. I honestly do. It's great stuff. And it's cheap. I bought like bunches of yards of it when it was on sale for fifty cents a yard.

I know, you're thinking to yourself, "but why?".

Well, first of all, tulle (otherwise known as "illusion" - see, another reason to love it) is different than plain netting. The holes are smaller, finer. It's what bridal veils are made of. But it comes in lots of colors other than white. It's poufy and girly. And you can use it for all sorts of things. Wrap it around a fake tree for a romantic touch; drape on banisters or along tables for party decorating. Pull it around a bonnet to tie under your chin like Mary Poppins. Or cut a length to tie up gifts. Cut it into circles, fill with Jordan Almonds, tie closed with a bow and Presto! you're ready to throw a bridal shower. A very versatile, and - did I say it before? - cheap fabric.

I write all this because I now have gobs of tulle at my disposal after using them to decorate for the previously mentioned book launch (if you were there, did you even notice? ...No? Aha! See why they call it "illusion"?). And I am so pleased about this. There will be no lack of romantic decorations in my household for years to come. No uber-princesses crying for lack of veils or tulle skirts. No bridal showers without favors. No more unadorned ponytails or packages. My friends, this is one happy, tulle-filled house.

Okay, maybe not. There is still one male living in our household. So the tulle is tucked away until needed (like say, tomorrow). But just ask, and I'll be happy to show you my stash. All five colors. It's stunning.

New Book (Warning: Shameless Promotion to Follow)

There's a new book being released later this week. It's called "Pampering Gifts: Crafting a Ministry of Treating People Well For Less". As you can see, the author has graciously allowed me to post an image of it here on my blog.

Now, before I tell you more about it, you must know that I'm a bit biased. However, so far five of five readers have liked the book, and one of them wasn't even a friend of the author. Must be good, right? So what's it about?

Pampering Gifts is a how-to guide on creating gifts for ministry events or even just to say thank-you to your babysitter (or somebody like that). The idea is to give people a place to start on coming up with inexpensive gifts or decorations, without having to reinvent the wheel. I mean, let's face it: those bridal/baby shower favor books almost always have you spending an arm and a leg. And when you're doing it for a non-profit, or wanna have just a little something extra for someone, that doesn't always cut it. Plus, there are actual instructions for fifty or so gifts and decorations (hey, pretty much like what you've been seeing here). And these are all things that have been used by a mom's group - they've been tested and approved! The author claims that most of them cost a dollar or less (for the gift ideas), with the more expensive centerpiece stuff running like five to ten bucks. With inflation, they might run you a little more, but still, that's pretty cheap.

Okay, so on to the promotion stuff: the author is having a book launch (an open house dessert event)Thursday evening at the CrossTown Church office. See "Upcoming Events" on her web site for details.

Oh, and you can get more info (even see photos of projects and get FREE instructions) at www.pamperinggiftsbook.com. Come book release day (Thursday), you'll even have the option to buy it online at her site.

Some Musings on Faith

I've been relatively silent on matters of faith recently. Not for lack of faith, but rather for lack of words and a fear of speaking negatively in the midst of trials. After all, who likes to listen to whining?

Faith. A big word. Sometimes too big to be accurate. But sometimes the only word.

"For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last..." Romans 1:17

By faith from first... - when the scales drop away from our eyes and we see our own sin for the nastiness that it is. When we see God for who He is. When we throw ourselves on Jesus work on the cross in taking the punishment our sin deserves. Then that righteousness comes from Jesus to us, so that our sin is gone and God sees the righteousness of Jesus when He looks at us.

...to last - by faith (dependence and trust in God) I am able to do right things, to live a righteous life. And so my faith continues to work out in me what God already sees to be true. Day by day. In the good times and in the tough times. Up to the last.

The way I understand it, I am not righteous in God's sight because I do the right. I do what is right because I am already considered righteous by virtue of my faith. Oh it is a slippery concept, but at times I catch a corner of it and get a tiny grasp before it slips away again.

Faith? What I know about it for sure is that it's a decision. Yesterday, today, tomorrow. I decide that what I read in the Bible about God is true. I determine to believe that God is good and faithful, even when I've fasted and prayed and yet the book I'd worked so hard to have done for a conference isn't completed by the publisher in time. By faith I watch for the different answer, for what will happen when it does come. And by faith I wait. It's a long hard road, but the journey is an adventure. And the company is great!

At the Bottom of the Food Dining Chain

(photo by Jason L. Gohlke, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

During our wonderful, relaxing vacation we had occasion to eat out. Three times. Once going there, once on the drive back, and once because A Musing Dad, who did a terrific job of grocery shopping and packing for our five days in the "wild", forgot a crucial dinner ingredient (and we forgive him, because, well he did so much to make the rest of the trip great). So we tried a new local-to-our-favorite-campground food joint. It was good enough. And the fast food during our car rides wouldn't have been memorable except for two things: I nearly got hit by a car while carrying food to our van across two parking lots (yes, the man was on his cell phone and never once noticed me as he backed within inches of me and two of my children, while I screamed at him to "STOP! ...HEY YOU, LOOK OUT! ...GET OFF YOUR PHONE & STOP! ...STOP!!!").

The other memorable part of that meal? The spork. Have you ever thought about what an ingenious invention this is? Two utensils in one! How much better can it get, especially for a clutter-buster like me? So I began musing about why it is that the spork hasn't really taken off as a household implement. Think about it: you can buy a ton of sporks and then never have to worry about having lots of forks when you really need spoons (while we're on the topic: why is it that we run out of spoons so much faster than forks when we own twice as many spoons to begin with?).

Then I thought about it more. And I figured out the reason the spork has been largely unused in households. It's because it's at the bottom of the dining chain. After all, when you're invited to a dinner, be it a wedding reception or other catered event, or even just a friend's house, what tells you how swanky the meal is going to be? Maybe the china, the crystal, the flowers. But really, REALLY what tells you the level of entertaining is the Amount of Silverware on the table. The more baffling the flatware array, the pricier and longer the meal. Enter the spork: one utensil where two could be. Is it no wonder then that the only place you ever find this eating implement is on the floor of your car? It is the essence of the bottom of the dining chain. You find a spork next to your plate and you know that there is not a seared ahi tuna or fresh foie gras to be seen for miles (then again, it also may just be that you're in Chicago). But mashed potatoes? Bean burritos? You'll find those a-plenty.

So I quickly abandoned my campaign to get the spork into every American kitchen. Heaven knows we all need to eat a little better than that day in and day out!

Just for WilyHacker...

who loves the Simpsons. Here I am in all my Simpson-yellow glory. Next time you see me on the street, I hope you'll say "hi".

Thanks to Jennwith2ns for cluing me in to the cool simpsonizeme site. I don't usually blog about what would I look like as (an Amazon woman, a Planet of the Apes character, or whatever other characterize yourself sites there might be). But with the new Simpsons movie just released and Wilyhacker's fascination with all things Simpson, I couldn't resist.

I'm Back

Sorry for the unannounced lull in posts. Between a big conference that I was involved in (decorations & gifts - wee ha!) and a five-day camping vacation, I've been largely absent from the blogosphere. But now I'm back and feelin' good. We arrived home on Thursday night and had just enough time to get most of the laundry done before packing the three girls off with their grandparents for the weekend! Life is good.

Can I tell you something that surprised me this weekend? I missed my kids. Not a ton, but like when friends invited us for an impromptu dinner tonight. My girls would have loved to have been there for some spontaneous fun with their friends. And I wished they could have been there. And church was easier, but different, sans kids. Otherwise...we had plenty of fun without them. And they had as much fun as three girls and their three second-cousins could have on a lake with their grandparents.

The other thing that surprised me lately: I'm a little sad about Timid Daughter starting first grade this year. It will be only the Uber-princess & I all day, most days. No sister coming home at lunchtime. It feels like the beginning of the end. On the other hand, sending Little Miss History off to first grade was great. It was the beginning of something else, something like freedom. I welcomed it. And I was sure with T.D. it would be more of the same, only better. But it's not.

Mind you, on the two mornings that I will drop the uber-princess off at preschool (her first year as well), I expect I'll be doing the freedom dance. Two hours to myself? Ah, the bliss! Grocery shopping...alone! Time at Starbucks, just me and my laptop! I'm nearly ready to count the days. But if I do, then it will be that much closer to First Grade. And I'm just not ready for that.

Forgetful

Note to self: when going camping, don't forget to bring the silverware that you took out of the camper for that big Christmas dinner. Camping might be "roughing it", but eating cereal and chili without spoons is asking a bit much.

Note to self #2: when taking three kids on a four-hour car ride, it might be a good idea to bring along a little more than one coloring book apiece to occupy them. Like how about those Game Boys their Grandma got them? Or books on CD? Or even car bingo. After all, the stakes for asking "how long until we get there?" are much higher than for trying to spot another cow if there are no squares to cover.

Note to self #3: when wanting to sight see, don't take three kids and a reluctant husband who's all too eager to call a barely functioning historical village with two covered bridges a good substitute for touring the Covered Bridge Capital of the World. It's kinda funny and makes for a good story later, but it's still real disappointing to realize how incredibly dull your interests are to your family. Go on your own. They'll never know what they missed and you'll never know how much they didn't.

Note to self #4: towels. Bring lots of them when camping. It's always sure to rain and if it doesn't they're still good for lots of things. Like drying dishes. And silverware... if you remember to bring it.

3 Fish & a Wedding

My sister-in-law got married this past weekend. The uber-princess was in her glory as the princess flower girl. She relished every minute of it from the lacy, twirly dress to the ride in the limo to...just being a true princess for a day. As I drove her to the bride's house before the wedding, she commented to me, "I'm so cute". And of course she was right, as many people reminded her all day long, especially after her adorable trip down the aisle carefully dropping the flower petals. So it was rough for her having to leave the reception - a total Cinderella at midnight moment. All of the splendor and finery were about to vanish and she cried miserably. That is, she cried until I pointed out that the tears would leave marks on her dress, at which point she turned them off in an instant. No need to ruin a perfect princess dress.

At the reception there were betta fish swimming in bowls in the center of the table (the bride has a thing for bettas). It was a neat way to decorate, but guess what the parents of the bride (my childrens' grandparents) sent home with us? Not one, but THREE betta fish - one for each granddaughter. Which means now A Musing Mom is left caring for Diamond the teal fish, Flower Girl the red one (guess whose that is), and Tuna Burger the blue betta. My track record thus far has been less than stellar in the betta department, but we'd been considering replacing Rhubarb in hopes we'd learned our lesson. Now he's been more than replaced. And so far all three have survived three days and one partial water change. But Flower Girl is not so active today. And Diamond is hovering near the bottom of his tank. And Tuna Burger rushes around in a huff when you get near his bowl.Oh, the worries of caring for three fish.

Would a dog be easier?

Up, Up, and Away

Yesterday I got the opportunity that most people will never have in their lifetime. I went in a hot air balloon - on TV!

Here's the story: like we have done every year for the past six or seven years, my family got up at 5:30am and drove over to the Lisle Eyes to the Skies Balloon Festival. We go to watch the balloons launch or land (depending on the direction of the wind). And it is a ton of fun! Well, when we got there we learned that the ground was too wet for them to do much of anything (the balloons are kind of like tents, except that once the sun is shining the wind picks up so they can't just be left out in the sun to dry before packing away in a bag). But there was a pilot sitting in his basket and he motioned us out on the field (a rare treat). Along with a TV cameraman.

This pilot was a real nice guy and told us all sorts of interesting stuff about ballooning. When he was done he invited anyone who wanted to climb in the basket for a picture. So my kids climbed in. Makes for a good change in my scrapbook pages from the annual shots of huge balloons in the sky and my kids all tiny beneath.

After that we wandered over to another balloon team where they'd actually spread out a balloon (were they going to towel it off after?). There we saw not only a cameraman, but also the local NBC weatherman, Andy Avalos, reporting on the festival. It was fun to listen to him do the weather update in front of a tiny screen showing the weather maps.

Then they put a big fan near the mouth of the balloon and began inflating it with cool air (standard procedure to get it ready for a hot inflation). Once that was done there was suddenly a flurry of activity. They were inviting people to walk into the balloon (not the basket) to give perspective on how huge these things are. So Timid Daughter, Little Miss History and I took off our shoes and walked on in. About twenty of us were in there. And we were on TV!

So there! I've been in a hot air balloon (without ever leaving the ground, thankfully). How about you?