No snow; snow; no snow

We've had a gray few weeks, warming up enough recently so that the first snow of the season is gone. With all the rain and cloudy skies lately, we've had to count on the six little cousins to provide sunshine. Some evidence:

Skype conversation with Frozen Princess Hannah (and a quizzical Elisabeth)

Vivi, reunited with her long lost puppy friend, Biscuit. Biscuit spent the last few months cowering under a bed in our house. I obviously don't vacuum under very often, or I might have found Biscuit sooner.

 

Westy, demonstrating the problem his super-hero alter ego was having: "I go like this (whoosh) and no powers come out." Eventually he got the problem fixed, and we were safe again.

  

When Miles got home from school yesterday, he went right to work on the cool Lego car kit he got from Great Grandma Helen. He and Tanner had started it the day before, and Miles said his dad gave him good advice about how to follow the directions. He was right!

  

Owen, K'nex Master! He built a HUGE rocket by himself, using a pattern in the K'nex set. Turn the rocket sideways and it's a fish!

Can you guess what the other K'Nex Master made? It's a GIGANTIC ice cream cone! I thought it was cool (pun intended) that the shapes that form the scoop of ice cream look like snowflakes.

The holiday season got off to a great start earlier this month with the Kids Korner annual Christmas concert. Westy sang with gusto, and Miles not only performed with the after school group, he also filled in as a camel in the Kindergarten Nativity. It was a non-speaking part, which made it particularly challenging for a guy who likes to talk as much as Miles does! Here we are with Grandpa Dave and Grandma Doreen in the theater lobby at Owatonna High School after the performances. Great place for a concert.

This year I am making the process of figuring out which gifts belong to which cousin a little trickier than last year, at least for the oldest four.

As it turns out, Vivian and Hannah-- a.k.a. "ANVIVI" and her sister, whose name I can't read because it's on the other side--got some practice with their alphabet block menorahs from Granmarge.

Hannukah will be over by the time Hannah and Vivi arrive, but we'll put candles in the menorah and ask Evan, H, and V to light them for us. The Minnesota cousins are waiting. And maybe there will be snow! Or sunshine! Or both!

More thematic ornaments

Holiday Whirly-gigs

These pretty origami whirly-gig pinwheels were made in TX by a friendly person who sells her paper ephemera on Etsy.com.  She and I have had twenty or so back-and-forth comments to each other since I ordered the pinwheels due to the order being sent to someone else by mistake. It's a long and not very interesting story to tell, but if I'd known ahead about how long it would take for the unintended recipient to send them to me, I'd have registered for a class and become an Origami Master myself!  

Wire Thing-a-ma-jigs

Ah, so THIS is what a thing-a-ma-jig looks like! These were made by a thing-a-ma-jig professional in Rolla, MO. 

I had the pro send me some little ones, too -- known in Spanish as thing-a-ma-jigitos -- to assemble into dangly-jigs, but they are much too "-ito" to use, dang it.

Here are a couple of shots of the craziness

 
This might be all that will go on the Let It Go with Gizmos, Gadgets, and Thing-a-ma-jigs HGE tree. Any more stuff and my eyes might cross!

Thematic ornaments

For the past few years, our scrawny Christmas tree has enjoyed decorations chosen to match the theme of the adult HGE. The decorations have been for the little kiddos, though -- paper farm animals and colorful superhero logos are some examples. The kiddos get one of each ornament to take home to play with, to squirrel away for the next year to put on their own trees, or to dispose of on reycling day.

This year's theme of "Let It Go with Gizmos, Gadgets, and Thing-a-ma-jigs" has required my brain to go in a different direction. Here's what I've put on the tree as of today: 

Triangular Swatchscollops 

(These are actually packing material from an online purchase 

I made. Not the usual Styrofoam peanuts. Fun ornaments!)

Gizmo Gears  
(I bought these paper ornaments because they seem to fit the 
merged HGE 2014 theme. They look like gears AND like snowflakes, 
making them a frozen, non-gassy sub-theme of "Let It Go!")

Thing-a-ma-bobs

(Not to be confused with Thing-a-ma-jigs or What-cha-ma-callits.
Hardware stores are a terrific source of potential ornaments.)

More ornaments will appear later in the week, and I'll do my best to make connections to HGE 2014.

Happy December Birthday

Annie!

We wish you a 

Happpppppy Birrrrrtttthhhhhday!

Love, Mom and Dad

Thanksgiving Weekend

My brain was busy thinking about the HGE, so I completely forgot to post a few weekend pictures of the MN cousins after they left our house on Saturday. Better late than never.

As soon as they got here, all four cousins sat down on the floor in front of the Christmas scene print I had gotten out to put on the wall for the holiday season. They launched into a serious discussion about whether the Pilgrims lived in the village, if one of the boats was the Mayflower, and other historical and art-related issues of interest to preschool, kindergarten, and second grade students.

The crazy boys had to find something physical to do, so they formed a herd and hog-piled Daddy/Uncle Charlie. Thanks, Annie, for the pics!

H and V were busy playing with their baby cousin in Baltimore, but we wish they'd been here, too, for the snow fun on the North hill. The kiddos were rosy-cheeked, soaking wet, and ready for hot chocolate and ice cream bars after their sliding adventure.

The cousins love to play "Telephone", that old-fashioned game we all played as kids (Yes, telephones had been invented when I was a child.). They often play it by saying just one word rather than a phrase, and Westy loves to be the guy who whispers the message first.

Poor quality photo here, but I need to give a shout out to Tanner, hammer in hand, and Charlie, hands on the wall, for taking down my framed alphabet,  rearranging nails, and hanging the Christmas print so I didn't have to put my life in danger to do it myself -- or put Dad/Larry/Gpappy's life in danger by making him help me. I'm not sure why there is such an eerie quality to this photo. It is partly because it's not a clear shot, but what's up with that strip of soft gray fuzz above Charlie's hands? Spooky. Thanks, TG and CP.

I can't resist this picture of H and V trying on glasses at the airport on their way to Baltimore on Thursday. When are they EVER this serious?!

 
An before I forget, thanks to Don and Janet for a relaxing and yummy Thanksgiving Day at their home in Forest Lake.

HGE 2014 is underway

It’s time to “Let It Go with Gadgets, Gizmos, and Thing-a-ma-jigs”. This year’s Holiday Gift Exchange (HGE) theme melds the thought processes of Evan and  Angie (by way of Charlie). I won’t venture a guess about what the intentions of these individuals might be, and I encourage the rest of you to keep your thoughts to yourselves.

 I think you'll agree that this gadgety gizmo has wind power capabilities,

making it my choice as the official LIGw/GGT HGE2014 logo.

As the HGE Coordinator for 2014 (henceforth known as the HGEC), I am hereby declaring these to be the official guidelines for this year’s HGE:

1.  “Let It Go!” can be translated as you see fit, and may or may not be guided by the gadget, gizmo, or thing-a-ma-jig you choose; and

2. “Gadgets, Gizmos, and Thing-a-ma-jigs” may or may not include

Whirly-gigs

Do-jiggies

Whizzpoppers

Whatcha-ma-call-its

Do-hickeys

Swatchscollops

or other similar entities.

3. Gifter will choose gift(s) not to exceed a total $37.49 for his or her intended Giftee. Limit is based on past years’ wishes and grumblings.

4. The HGEC will act as intermediary regarding questions Gifters might have regarding Giftees.

5. As in some previous HGE events, Gifters are encouraged to provide a song, poem, interpretive dance, or other creative or non-creative presentation format at the time of the HGE exchange. The purpose may be to clarify how the gift fits the theme, why it was chosen for the Giftee, or perhaps the sole purpose will be to provide a diversion from the events of the evening. 

6. Unless there is an objection, HGE Gifters and Giftees will exchange gifts on December 27, at a time to be determined based on Cousin activities/state of unconsciousness.

7. Gifters will receive the names of Giftees after the HGEC performs a random selection process, perhaps checking first to make sure no Gifter is given the same Giftee name as s/he received for the 2013 HGE.  Names will be sent to Gifters  on or shortly after Monday, December 1.

8. As HGEC, I urge you to report attempts at fraud, deception, or other criminal behavior relating to HGE 2014 to me at jpotts@gac.edu. Larry/Dad/Gpappy has already reported himself for attempted bribery of the HGEC to give his name to two or more Gifters. Fortunately, I was able to thwart his efforts before the criminal act was discovered by the rest of you.

Hop to it and get in touch if you have questions or concerns before I send out the names of the HGE Giftees via your email addresses.

Happy shopping for your Giftee! 

 

Those darn ardillas!

This morning Dad/Larry/Gpa and I chuckled over memories of Grandma Doodie doing friendly battle with the squirrels in her yard, trying every bird feeder design she could find to keep the critters out so birdies could eat safely and not run out of food during one of those infamous Buffalo winters. We have benefited from her extensive experimentation, managing to thwart the squirrels' efforts with one particular type of bird feeder. Until today.

Here is the culprit. Sorry you have to look through the screen, but this little guy would've fled if I'd gone outside.

The squirrel managed to problem-solve successfully because of the placement of the feeder. He could hang off a limb of the magnolia bush and pull the feeder toward him to release birdseed. That darn ardilla! So smart! Dad/Larry/Gpappy said he'd allow the squirrel to finish breakfast before relocating the feeder to a less accessible spot.

The title of this blog entry is a reference to a picture book Hannah and Vivi will recognize.  Those Darn Squirrels!  is known by its Spanglish name -- Those Darn Ardillas! -- to those of us who've read it with H and V. The squirrels in this story are ingenious. They use their understanding of physics to outsmart Old Man Fookwire's squirrel-proof bird feeders. I know a squirrel who must've read this story recently.

While I'm writing about squirrels, I have to mention Scaredy Squirrel. Scaredy has OCD and agoraphobia, but is loveable and cute.

 

And then there is Bushy Tail Squirrel, who could teach Scaredy a thing or two about venturing out into the world. Lots of squirrel facts in this book written by a St. Peter author and friend.

 

I feel like I'm putting together a book set to use for a methods class. Sorry, but I can't help it sometimes. Time to go check on our friendly squirrel. He's probably emptied the feeder by now. That darn ardilla! 

-----------------------
Within a few minutes of posting this entry, my friend Mary O. sent me an email-- and here it is!

Here's a poem to add to your squirrel entry:

Gray squirrel, gray squirrel, swish your bushy tail.
Gray squirrel, gray squirrel, swish your bushy tail.
Hold a nut between your toes,
Wrinkle up your funny nose.
Gray squirrel, gray squirrel, swish your bushy tail!

Another good piece of literature....
Squirrels by Brian Wildsmith

Love this book as along with the antics it shows our bushy tailed friends exhibiting, it provides "hard evidence" (something we seem to like), of the reasons behind those behaviors.