Thankful

(Do you notice that I don't post as many pictures of the older kids?  I do.  Notice, that is.  It's because they are so busy and so rarely in range of a camera.)

Our thanksgiving was peaceful and relaxing and wonderful.  I am so thankful for Jason, my husband, thanksgiving day chef, best friend, resident comedian, and partner.  Today it was only the three of us home.  The older kids went to football games with friend while we cooked and watched the Patriots.

Andrew is home from college.  He is doing well, academically and socially.  He loves it. He played soccer (reserve team) and did great.  He is toying with the idea of not playing next year but being a founding father of a fraternity... should I tell him that I am not ready yet for him to give soccer up?  Didn't he get the memo that "He is a soccer player"?  All kidding aside, he has transitioned from soccer player, jock, to what do I want to do with the rest of my life-effortlessly. Thankful for this boy!

Eliza loves school.  She did cross country and is gearing up for winter track.  She has made two new friends who are sweet and beautiful.  She went to a seminar last weekend taught at BU on neuroscience.  She came back talking about dopamine and brain stems... She is advocating within our walls for a little boy name F. Thankful for this girl!

Zach is Zach.  He made the Olympic development team for our region.  Key word is region.  It means we have to drive an hour and a half to his 5 hour practice (no, that's not a typo).  I do this because this is my kid who said he was going to play for the EPL when he was 5.  He loves the middle school and until recently after a ding dong ditch episode...traveled in a posse of 8-10.  Now, he is limited to smaller get together.  Group think at any age is dangerous. Thankful for this boy!

Bella is a joy.  She recently ran her first turkey trot (100m race)  Uh, oh!  No where to go but down.  She came in first. As Bella says, "I 'tended that Zachy was going to pinch my bumm."

She is fun and a riot and keeps me on my toes.  She goes to bed and we continue to chuckle with the latest Bella-stories.  "But I love you" is her get out of jail card for everything.  (ie:I will tell her no screaming and she pulls out her .."But I love you.")  Thankful for this girl!

So thankful for my friends and family.

Duck Duck Goose

This may be my one and only rant.  I don't do confrontation.  I sometimes write a post and then delete because I am nervous about what will people think, so here goes.

I have decided that I hate the game of Duck Duck Goose.  I guess I never really gave it too much thought until the other day.  Bella is in a 45 minute Ballet class.  Let me repeat...Ballet.  I watched it the other day from a little window.  It is really very cute how intense she is about it.  I am biased, but I think she is the most beautiful ballerina.  Having said that, she is in a class of little girls that have blond bobs.  Do we really have no brunettes or red heads in this town???  She has a good friend/best friend in the class too.  So back to Duck Duck Goose.  They played Duck Duck Goose for 16 minutes.  Really???!!!  Can I repeat it's a 45 minute ballet class?  My heart started to hurt when other little girls had been picked a second and a third time and Bella had not been picked once.  Really????!!!!  I don't blame the kids, I do blame the teacher.  The little girl with glasses, also was not picked.  These kiddos are too young for this and a good teacher should help the kids manage the landscape of fairness and inclusion.  I wanted to go in there and never have Bella return.  You don't get the joy of knowing this kid.  She is awesome.  She is fun.  She is smart.  She is kind. No I am not biased....but if you aren't going to be nice....you don't get to know her.  Thankfully, I grew up before she got out of class.  She loves this class.  Will I sign her up for this class next year?  No way!  But all week, I was formulating what I was going to say if I saw the same thing this week.  Someone must have said something because this week....no Duck Duck Goose.