ten year old taco

Y’all . . . that is one super old taco. Once again, this has been a year of changes for Lydia. The physical changes have not been quite so dramatic as last year, but they are visible just the same. The slow but inexorable turn towards teenagerdom has been at the forefront, especially the past […]

sputnik; 96 months in orbit

A little over a week ago Sam turned eight years old. Old Man Sam! Sam’s birthday falls right on the cusp of changes: his birthday heralds in the beginning of Kid Summertm and our annual changeover from one grade to the next. Now, Kid Summertm doesn’t really mean much in this household — we keep […]

christmas eve update

Sam is having an Arthur moment. _________________________________________________ Times the cat has eaten the tree and barfed: 0! This count is just no fun without Renton. Times the cat has launched off the tree skirt and irritated the stew out of Mom: 26 How many ornaments the kids have broken: 1 How many ornaments Mom has […]

stuck in a rut

Our little town of Chelsea has grown over the 11 years (11 years!!!) we’ve lived here. In 2006, there were some 4,000 people — now it’s a bustling town of some 11,000 residents. Sometimes, it seems all 11,000 people are on County Road 47 at the same time. For the past few years, Chelsea has […]

nine year old taco

Wow. I didn’t think nine would be a big change, but oh lordy. Look at this girl. Look at her! Now compare her with last year: Wow. Wow. Wow. I’m not sure what has changed more — her hair or her teeth. The hair change happened in January when Lydia decided to go for a […]

sputnik; 84 months in orbit

Wow, 84 months in orbit! That’s seven Earth years! Just before his seventh birthday, Sam finished up first grade, so he is now officially a second grader. First grade was Sam’s first year of real, bonafide school work and he did really well with it. The first few weeks were a bit of a struggle […]