Seasons

On Being Persephone...

It is hot as Hades
As I sit with my love
On a sweltering Texas afternoon.

Elsewhere winter has begun
But not here
In my Southern paradise.

I eat hatch green chiles
Washed down with the tempting fruit
Of a strawberry margarita.
It provides sweet relief from the heat.

I like it here.
I think I'll stay.


On Being Demeter...

I lie in the grass
Side by side
With my beautiful child,
Watching the clouds
Pushed through the sky
By warm Spring winds.

She whispers sweet nothings in my ear.
"I love you Mommy,
I'll never leave you, never."
I smile, but I know
He will come for her soon
And my heart will break.

Over Exposed

Mark and I were in the car and the challenge was issued to "How many Newberry Award winners can you name?"

We were talking to each other, not to the kids, but Little Pitchers Have Big Ears. From the back seat Caroline pipes up. Confusing the Newberry Awards (for text)with the Caldecott Awards (for picture books), she rolls her eyes and says, "Let me guess... Jan Brett, Jan Brett, Jan Brett."


Actually, Jan Brett has never won a Caldecott, and in Caroline's book, Little Pictures Get Big Sneers.

Security

Mark took Caroline out for some things early this morning, telling Colin he was staying home with Mommy. Mommy, it should be said, was still in bed.

I hear the door close, then I hear little footstep coming up the stairs. I also hear Colin chanting under his breath "just making sure... just making sure... just making sure."

He comes into my room, on to my bed, and pulls back the covers.

"What do you need, sweetheart?" I ask.

"Just making sure I hadn't been left all alone," he replied, relief evident in his voice.

He got an extra large helping of snuggles from Mommy after that.

Contemporary Living at Disney World

I've never been really excited about the idea of staying at the Contemporary Resort in Disney World. It's futuristic look is looking pretty dated and it's the most expensive of all the resorts, so it wasn't very high on my list. However, Mark is staying there this week on a business trip, and he has sent me photos of his room. I've got to admit, it's pretty snazzy. He's in one of the most recently updated rooms.

It's got the latest and greatest in terms of technology, including an in-room computer and flat screen tv, which makes up for it's less than modern exterior.





Plus he's in a great room! He's got a view of Cinderella's castle from his balcony, and when he steps out of his room, he can see straight down the middle of the building and watch the characters at Chef Mickey's do their parade.

House Rules

Colin has been having difficulty following the rules in Kindergarten. Last week he got a note home saying he had been climbing on the table.

"What were you thinking!" I storm at him.

"Why are we not allowed to get on the table?" he asks in a sweet puzzled voice.

"Sweetheart, you could get hurt. You need to obey the rules in order to stay safe."

"But then..." he wonders, "why isn't that the rule at home?"

Lazy Mom

Colin was supposed to go to school dressed as a "community helper." I had several excellent (lazy and cheap) ideas.

Football Coach -- hand-me-down football jersey.
Karate teacher -- karate outfit he already owns.
Fireman -- he has a plastic fireman's hat. Add a stuffed toy Dalmatian.
Principal -- just wear a tie.

But the night before (it's always the night before) he announced that he absolutely HAD to be a dentist. Nothing else would do. He described in elaborate detail exactly what the costume should look like.

I should note that my neighbor Debi sews beautiful costumes for her son Alex. Since Alex is Colin's best friend, he is familiar with Alex's extensive costume wardrobe, often altered to Alex's specifications.

Tragically, I am not Miss Debi.

So instead I dug through the closet, and came up with a red bathrobe, two sizes two big. It wasn't a white lab coat, but it would have to do. I took an index card a wrote on it "Dr. Colin -- dentist" and hot glued it to make a "pocket" on the robe, stuck a toothbrush in it and called it done.

Wishing I had had the time to buy a white coat, I tried to impart the importance of giving Mommy time to get the supplies. I asked him "next time you want a special costume, you know what you need to do?"

Without hesitation, Colin replied "Ask Miss Debi!"