so how was YOUR thanksgiving?

Mine was delicious.

Every year gets a little easier. Some years I have been HUGELY pregnant. Some years, I spend the whole dinner sitting on the couch nursing. Other years, sticking Gerber's pureed turkey and rice into a squalling baby's mouth. Or keeping a toddler from falling down the basement stairs.

This year, all my kids can feed themselves, drink out of cups and navigate the stairs. They ate what was on their plates, put napkins on their laps and even asked to be excused from the table.

I am a living testament. IT DOES GET EASIER!

The extended family dynamics, however, never seem to get easier. EVERYONE is an expert on how you should be raising, disciplining, feeding, hairstyling your kids. So let me just say it here:

I LOVE YOU. NOW BACK OFF.

You can read more about the unexpected trip we took over at DC Metro Moms.

winner

We have a winner!! The A Very Monkey Christmas video goes to comment number 15, Mexmom! You Your son will enjoy watching it. *wink, wink* (I can't resist that little monkey either!)

Send me an email at laundryforsix AT gmail DOT com because I can't access your Blogger profile and I will send off your video!

Thanks everyone for playing!

thankful, with less snark

I have everything to be thankful for. This has been a hard year on so many people I know, but we have been blessed with good fortune.

Healthy kids. Healthy us. Steady income. Solid house. Fabulous neighbors. Amazing friends. Loving family. Dreamy vacation. Happiness. Success. Everything we need and lots of what we want. And a giant feast waiting for us, a roaring fire, good wine, great conversation. And I barely had to cook a thing. And? A rousing game of boys vs. girls Taboo where the girls will win... AGAIN. Seriously, who can outtalk the girls?*

Blessed.

* My favorite line so far from Kirtsy Takes a Bow. "If talking were an Olympic sport, the guys would be the Jamaican bobsled team. They just would." (Katherine Center)

totally just like hollywood

Two funny stories.

So I've mentioned that we are having some ISSUES with Shout staying in her carseat while I'm driving and how it scares me to DEATH when I look back to find she is not buckled in. (Not to mention the times she is attempting to climb into the front seat and grab the steering wheel from me. I KNOW!)

Anyway, after I had to use a charger cord to actually tie her hands together once because I HAD to keep driving to get the other kids at school, I stuck a roll of duct tape in the car. It's a little easier to use than a cord and after just a few uses (only on her arms and only over her clothes, not on her skin), it seems to have solved our problem. All I have to do is hold up the roll, and she buckles her carseat right back together. (I know that sounds terrible, but the thought of her flying through the windshield is SO MUCH MORE TERRIBLE. Right?)

And I mentioned yesterday that we have quite a few old Curious George books. So last week, we were reading one... Curious George Goes to the Hospital. He swallowed a puzzle piece and they have to get it out.

Shout saw this picture



Let's take a closer look



And said, "Oh look, mom! That doctor has duct tape on him too!"

Ouch. Although I SWEAR, I have never put duct tape on her mouth! PINKY SWEAR! (If I was going to put it on anyone's mouth, it would totally be Cheer.)

Second funny story.

Years ago, when my niece (the one that graduated from college last year) was the only grandchild in the family, she asked for an Ernie Telephone for Christmas. And as a family, we were a bunch of adults with time and money and only one child to shower it all on. So we SCOURED the EARTH for an Ernie Telephone. (This was before online shopping, unfortunately.)

Alas, no Ernie Telephone could be located. Every store had a Big Bird Telephone, but not an Ernie Telephone. After searching every toy store in the entire Washington Metropolitan region (you may think I'm exaggerating, but I AM NOT)... we bought the Big Bird telephone and crossed our collective fingers that she wouldn't completely lose it on Christmas when she opened it up.

The moment came, she tore off the wrapping paper. She took one look at Big Bird. Then she turned a little dial, up popped a picture of ERNIE and she shouted "ERNIE TELEPHONE!"

And then all of our heads exploded.

The plot of A Very Monkey Christmas follows a similar theme. George wants SOMETHING for Christmas, but darn if the Man with the Yellow Hat can figure out what.

You can watch it on PBS on Wednesday (here it's on at 7:30 AM on MPT and 3:00 PM on WETA). Or, you can try to win the video I'm giving away by leaving a comment here.

The fabulous PR people that work with PBS asked me if I would host a movie premier party for A Very Monkey Christmas. And what part of that doesn't sound fun? OF COURSE I said yes!

So yesterday was the big day.

There was a red carpet... because WHEN will we ever get to walk the red carpet again? Probably never, right?



Although RUN the red carpet was a little more like it



Sunglasses, because movie people always wear sunglasses



There was SWAG for the guests



And popcorn



Coloring



Tattoos



And even a hired performer



And best of all, a bunch of kids who love Curious George!



Thanks PBS and 360 for a great afternoon!

monkey business

Is there anything cuter than Curious George? I don't think so. I mean, if I were the Man in the Yellow Hat, I would have been locked up in a padded room a LONG time ago, but George is always so... earnest. And contrite. But seriously, why is he ever left alone? The Man with the Yellow Hat is in need of a really excellent Mother's Helper.

I still have some of my Curious George books from when I was a kid... I have a funny story about that tomorrow... but the point is, George is timeless. Not many of the kids' books we have today are, but I'll be saving these for my grandchildren.

Did you know that on Wednesday morning, a brand-new, never before seen (unless you've been at my house....) Curious George MOVIE will premier on PBS? Where I live, it will be on at 7:30am on Maryland Public Television. You can check your local listings here. So get that coffee brewing, plop your kids in front of A Very Monkey Christmas and start working on your pies. Or, if you are like me, bring your laptop into the family room and check your email (while you are laughing with your kids) because your husband bakes the Thanksgiving pies.



And, as my (and PBS's) gift to you, I have a DVD of A Very Monkey Christmas to give away to one lucky reader. (And a $2 coupon to buy the video for a runner up. It will be available at Target, Amazon and the usual places during the Christmas season.) Just think, if you are driving to visit relatives for Christmas, this will keep your kids quiet for 58 WHOLE MINUTES!

No complicated rules or tweeting required. Just leave me a comment, tell me your favorite Thanksgiving dish and make sure I can get in touch with you.

I'll pick the winner on Wednesday at noon! (My favorite is sweet potatoes. Hands down.)

bittersweet

Half empty? Half full?

I am vacillating between being grateful and being annoyed. Actually, I AM grateful. And annoyed.

I'm vacillating about which one I should write about. So I'm writing about both.

I am grateful. So VERY grateful for good health. Mine and my kids. We have had our scares and worries. Laundry Dad and his heart. Shout and her heart. But we are 6 very healthy people. I am thankful for that every day.

A few nights ago, I had a dream that involved me needing to get on a plane to Europe. Except I had no one to watch my kids. So my plan was to just abandon them in the airport and figure that somehow, someone would find them and watch them for me until I got back.

Their little faces, watching me walk down the jetway away from them, shook me to the core. I was distressed for days. Why would I have a dream like that? I can only imagine that it was a subconscious fear of not being there for my kids while they are still so little. (Shut up! Even though some of them have bigger shoes than me, they are STILL LITTLE!)

As a mother, I have to say, I have taken safety so much more seriously than I ever did before. (Not that I was a daredevil in my past life.) But I ALWAYS wear my seatbelt, I get my Paps and mammograms (at least until the government tries to tell me I can't), I always cross with the light. I HAVE TO BE HERE. For AT LEAST another 40 years.

But no matter how hard we try, we don't control the universe. Sometimes we are at risk even though we've done everything right.

Like Anissa. She had a stroke the other day at 35. Her SECOND stroke. She's the mom of 3 little kids. One of whom JUST celebrated a year of being cancer free. SHE IS NEEDED. SHE'S ESSENTIAL. She's a cancer mom. She CAN'T be sick. And yet, she is. She's in the ICU and her family and the internets are praying for a sign that it's all going to be ok, but no one knows.

So pray. For you and your kids. And Anissa and hers.

So yes, especially in light of what is happening to Anissa, I am grateful. But I'm also annoyed. Annoyed because things like this shouldn't happen to mothers of little kids. And I'm not sure what to do with that annoyance, but there it is.

I'm also annoyed that Shout has already lost one of her ear tubes. The ones she JUST GOT in the spring. And by "lost," I mean, it's trapped in the waxy swamp of her ear canal. The thought of which REALLY makes me want to try to get it out. (Compulsive picker.) So far, I have refrained. Even the ENT left it there, I guess I should too.

We just finished paying the bills for the first set of tubes and now that our deductible is DOUBLING, the next set will be EVEN! MORE! EXPENSIVE! (And there WILL be another set. That's a given.)

I'm also annoyed that the good news I was hoping to get on the tuition front the other night was not nearly so "newsy" as I had hoped. There was lots of "It's going to be just fine." and "Don't worry." and "It will all work out somehow." And not a lot of "Here's a piece of paper with what you will need to pay next year." Which is kind of what I need.

So the search for a possible new school goes on. As does the application process for financial aid. Which is stupid, because in the spectrum of people who need financial aid, we aren't even NEAR the top of the list. It almost embarrasses me to apply for it because I personally KNOW so many families who are in much greater need.

BUT, when your tuition will rise by two and a half times in one year, and the fact that you actually LISTENED to all those lectures about BIRTH CONTROL in Catholic school and had a BUNCH of kids, who have traditionally been educated at a discounted rate because HOLLA, I WILL HAVE 4 KIDS BETWEEN KINDERGARTEN AND 7TH GRADE, and then a higher authority, such as one that rhymes with the words LARCH-WISHOP, who actually doesn't have ANY CHILDREN, decides that even though we are supposed to pop out as many kids as humanly possible*, dudes, you better have a hella lotta cash if you think you are going to put them all in Catholic school, well then, yes. Hand over the financial aid forms.

So despite the fact that I live in a beleaguered public school system, that PUBLIC SCHOOL RIGHT DOWN THE STREET is looking pretty darn good to me.

(So that's the big secret.)

I'm trying to be a "person of faith" and trusting that it will "all work out," but even if it all works out for this year, how long is that going to last? If my kids are going to end up switching schools, I'd rather just get it over with, you know?

So there you have it. I am grateful, BEYOND MEASURE, that I am alive and conscious and able to be pissed off about these things. I am grateful that my kids are healthy enough to GO to school, whatever school that may be.

I am grateful that I do have insurance, no matter how sucky it may be, because I know what the ACTUAL cost of ear tubes are, and even though we paid a fortune, it was only a fraction of what they actually cost.

In this season of thankfulness, I am thankful. It doesn't mean that sucky things don't happen. But those things help me appreciate the non-sucky even more.

Thanks for celebrating it all with me.

* That is a quote from one of my college theology professors (a Catholic brother, by the way)... I know it's not what the Catholic church ACTUALLY teaches. This post is already too long or I would explain the context of his very funny comments. But let's just leave it at, I have a big family because Laundry Dad and I grew up in big families and we grew up in big families because we were Catholic. I do understand the basics of the female fertility. And I personally, don't have a problem with birth control. I also think God wants me to be able to feed the kids I have. Even if He's a little more iffy on whether or not they attend Catholic school. Just so we're clear. ;-)

AND P.S. Tomorrow, I'm changing things up entirely and doing a GIVEAWAY! Check back.

olefactolicious

Do you remember the smell? The smell of a brand new fancy book? Not a cheap paperback, but a glossy, color-filled, coffee-table worthy book?

A mix of paper, ink and glue.

On our way out the door to church last week, I grabbed a handful of kids' books from the bookshelf in the living room. I tried to find ones we hadn't read recently so they would be SURE to hold their attention. One of them was a really nice hardback picture book that came from a used book sale.

When Shout opened it up during the service, both girls immediately wrinkled up their noses.

"What's that SMELL?" Bounce asked.

I sniffed the air.

"THAT is the smell of a good book." My kids have hundreds of books, but not many of them have The Smell.

And honestly, I read so much more online than I read on paper anymore. Even the newspaper, that it's been a long time for me.

But today, I have been obsessed with a new book. It has The Smell. I keep burying my nose in it.

But even better than the smell... the WORDS. It is AMAZING. It's the words and the pictures and the tweets from writers and photographers that I love. Some I have read before. Most I have not. It's a tasty, frosting-covered wedge of the internet that you can stick in your bag and take with you. You don't need a charger or wifi.

If you are a fan of falling down the rabbit hole and losing yourself in blogs and essays and photograph, and following one shiny link after another, this is a book for you.

I was thrilled to get out of the house last night for a few hours and attend a launch party for Kirsty Takes a Bow. And to meet the fabulous Laura Maynes, one of the Kirtsy* founders and the editor of the book.

I saw this trailer on Friday Playdate and I knew I had to be there. Now watch this and then go buy the book. (Don't forget to smell it.)


* What is Kirtsy? Read this.

not so much thankful

To read about my dinner with Loralee, go here.

Ok, ok. I said I was going to be thankful this month. But after two posts full of thankfulness, I have a few things to get off my chest, mkay?

Mean Girls. I am NOT THANKFUL for mean girls who are torturing Bounce at school. I still have a lot of pent up RAGE from middle school (omg, you all, it was BAAAD... no, really... I know everyone HATED middle school... but I think I just may win the prize). Why is it that later in life, women are the ones who keep the social glue of our society together and yet in middle school, they are evil and hateful? It's hard to find the balance between being sympathetic and giving perspective. ("I know it's 8 years away, but by the time you go to college, you totally won't care about this at ALL.")

For now, Bounce is miserable and I hate it. I'm teaching her my one crafty skill - the art of making voodoo dolls!

School Projects. Tell me which of these things a first grader can do:
1. buy poster board
2. divide up poster board into 4 equal sections
3. find pictures on the internet to illustrate 4 different weather conditions
4. research each weather condition
5. glue pictures onto poster board
6. using your research, write two sentences about each weather condition under the picture


If you guessed number 5, you are CORRECT! So who gets to do ALL THE OTHER NUMBERS? The first grader's MOM! Woooo! Anyone want to know what constitutes a blizzard? I totally better get an A on this project.

Last week, I had to make a Statue of Liberty out of recyclable materials. Cute idea, but I don't get the point. AND? It was given as a weekend project when Bounce was gone for the entire weekend. (She made the plan and I just executed it. And by the way? If I thought the project was important to her understanding of the Statue of Liberty, I would have made her do it herself. But? I totally didn't get the point.)


Homework. Does NINETY math problems sound excessive to anyone but me?

Christmas. I'm already stressing. I can't help it. Just let me get it out here and I can move on.

Ok, whew. I'll try to go back to being thankful tomorrow.

thankful, 2

Things I am thankful for today:

Awesome teachers. Like really, really. We had parent-teacher conferences yesterday, and I am so impressed with the teachers at our school, including all three of the ones my kids have right now.

There are a handful of teachers in your entire school career who make a huge impression on you (hello Miss Smith and Ms. Cox!), and there are several of them at our little school. Including one that one of my kids has this year.

Solutions. There may be a solution to our school issue for next year. I don't really know what it is, just that a little bird whispered a song in my ear and told me that good news is coming this week. Fingers crossed.

Yard Sales. Oh my, I got some good stuff today. To be featured in an upcoming post. Most of it needs a coat of spray paint.

Time ALONE. Laundry Dad has had the kids out of the house all afternoon and I have cleaned, spray painted, switched out dressers, decrapified (an entire LARGE garbage bag for donation) and also watched some HGTV.

I rarely get long stretches of time at home alone. I am thankful.

thankful

Things I am thankful for today:

1. Rain - I love a day or two of rain to huddle inside with blankets and magazines (ok, yes, and chocolate chip cookies). After a day or two, I'm done, but for now, it is nice.

2. Options - I have been majorly stressing over school issues for next year. I can't actually write about everything that is going on just yet, but for now, let me say, a change is quite likely for at least some of my kids. I'm not happy about it, but I am thankful that I have good options. Because I really do. So I need to just shut up and B R E A T H E.

3. Mortgage rates - we are refinancing, and am quite thrilled at how much lower our payments will be.

4. History - my mom is at the bedside of another of her sisters, who is quickly declining. She is in my prayers, but I know that it is all in God's hands. I am thankful I have been able to know and love the many family members in the generation above me. They are slowly slipping away, but I see how they live on in the faces of my children, my brothers' senses of humor, and my ability to cook. (Ok, just kidding on that one. Somehow that did NOT get passed on.)

5. Auto-pilot - did I tell you that Laundry Dad saved a guy's life last week? I didn't? Well, he did! A guy's heart STOPPED BEATING right in front of him and he and a co-worker did CPR until the paramedics arrived and shocked his heart into rhythym again. If you know Laundry Dad, you know that he is sort of... um... germ-sensitive. But he didn't think twice and started artificial respiration immediately. How cool is that?

savory

Don't you sort of feel like as soon as Halloween is over, you are dropped straight into some kind of luge track hurtling towards Christmas?

I HATE THAT.

How do we slow it down?

I've been looking over recipes, trying to find something new to try this Thanksgiving. My brother made this fabulous appetizer last year with pheasant soaked in red wine, wrapped in bacon and deep fried.

Oh. My. God. It was amazing. Except for a few stray pieces of buckshot, because he killed the pheasants himself. (I don't let myself dwell on that part. Except when I bite into a tiny bullet.) He already has his dead pheasants in the freezer for this year, so I'm expecting the same dish. (Are you reading?)

I've also decided to make this winter (and by winter, I mean this weird season where it is 70 degrees in NOVEMBER - but? still not complaining!) the Season of Soup.

When my kids were younger, they would not eat anything with food groups TOUCHING EACH OTHER, so casseroles and soups were off the table. But now, everyone but Shout is pretty much over that. I've managed to slip in a few casseroles (and really, can anything topped with fried onions or Ritz cracker crumbs taste bad? NO!), but I hope to expand my soup repertoire. Which right now consists of vegetable beef soup, and Campbells soup. (Plenty of room for expansion there, right?)

If you have a great soup recipe, I'd love to try it.

I'd also like to try my hand at some fall pies. Pecan. Pumpkin. Sweet potato. Apple. Believe or not, Laundry Dad is the pie maker in our house, but maybe we need to have a bake off. (And can I ask you all? Is sweet potato pie a dessert or a vegetable dish? Because I totally count it as a vegetable. And for that matter, pumpkin should count in that category too, right?)

I read the most AMAZING post about mincemeat pie recently from Jaelithe at The State of Discontent. You really HAVE to read it. I'm not a great cook, but I love great food, and well... this post is about so much more than food. (And? If you have a kid with ANY issues, read the post before that one too.)

And then, turn off the radio station that is ALREADY PLAYING CHRISTMAS CAROLS and sit down and find a way to add a pinch of love to your Thanksgiving.

For me, I am going to start posting about what I'm thankful for this month. (Since I have officially flunked out of NaBloPoMo.)

weekend

This weekend could have been extremely tedious, with Laundry Dad out of town after being out of town (different town) all week, and four different sporting events to drag everyone to attend for Tide, but it was actually a lot of fun.

Mostly because of three star players.

One, the weathah. OMG you guys, it is GORGEOUS here. We spent as much time as possible outside, I broke out the capris (which are still not yet put away for the winter) and short sleeves. There was sweat. We started raking leaves but decided to stop because you just should not sweat as much as we were while raking leaves. IN NOVEMBER. But whatever the cause, global warming, the Rapture... I'm thankful. It made for a great weekend.



Two, my fabulous team of babysitters who came to watch my kids on Saturday night. (Minus Bounce. She was travelling with Laundry Dad.) They motivated me to clean my ENTIRE HOUSE (because I didn't want anyone to see how we really live). And? They put Shout and Cheer to bed, with NO FUSSING MIND YOU (wtf?) and even brushed out Shout's hair which was a tangled nest of nastiness.

I seriously love them.

And three!!

The REASON I needed babysitters?

The internet's own, Loralee Choate (from Loralee's Looney Tunes - one of my FAVORITE Loralee posts, right here... beware, it's about Brazilian waxes)(and her equally fabulous husband, Jonathan and her sister and brother-in-law, who's awesomeness I regret I didn't get to experience personally because I was at the other end of the table) were in town to kick some HEALTH CARE REFORM ASS, and meet with Valerie Jarrett AND PLAY WITH BO. (Yes, THAT Bo. The First Pooch.)




Valerie Jarrett, Bo and ME all in one weekend. I'm seriously not sure how the Choates could stand it. Heh.

And it was Loralee's birthday, so a celebration was planned. Also celebrating were some of my favorite internet crushes, Sarah from the Goon Squad, Kristin from Mommy Needs a Cocktail and PBS Supersisters (this is the 2nd time we have crossed paths and yet STILL our most lengthy conversation has been via Twitter - again, wrong end of the table), and Laurie from Laurie Writes. (And by the way? Laurie writes REALLY, REALLY well.) I also met new friends in Scary Mommy, Grad School Knitter (OMG you all, she made the most awesome mittens for Loralee) and Supa Dupa Fresh, from Fresh Widow, and her husband.

It was SO! MUCH! FUN! Admittedly, I don't get out much. I could go pick up garbage on the side of the road as long as I got out of my house ALONE and I would have fun because, HOLLA, I have been home A LOT with the kids and no Laundry Dad. (Don't worry about my safety though. We only feed the pit bulls every 3 days or so, so they are nice and ALERT.) But this? Was so awesome. There is something about meeting other bloggers that is so easy and comfortable. Maybe because all the intimate details of our lives are splashed all over the internet. We can skip the small talk. "So how's that rash?" Am I right?

On of my favorite parts of the evening? Right at the very end, outside the restaurant, Loralee and Sarah did a duet of Shenandoah. A-MAZING. Seriously. I knew Loralee was an opera singer (I just typed Oprah singer. Ha.) but I had NO IDEA Sarah was too.

Someone needs to plan a talent show at the next BlogHer. Srsly. These girls have skilz.

My other favorite part of the evening? The explosion of loveliness on my tastebuds when I ate my butternut squash ravioli with apples, spinach, toasted pecans, and sage cream sauce. It was one of my top 10 most delicious restaurant experiences. Yum. If you live in the DC area, get thyself to a Clydes and order this. Order two and bring one home. Or order three and call me and I'll come meet you there.

I have this fabulous team of babysitters...

photo of Loralee from her blog... photos of our evening to come

i guess the restraining order against me has expired

Do you all remember this post? When I asked everyone to do a random act of kindness for my birthday? And then, for my random act of kindness, I gave flowers to a lady who works at the grocery store who shares my birthday?

Except, she doesn't share my birthday? Because she's from Europe, so when she said her birthday was 4/11, she meant November 4th, not April 11th? And everyone who works at the grocery store looked at me like I was crazy and I had to beat it out of there before the police were called?

Remember?

Well.

I have never seen that woman again.

Ever.

I used to see her every single week when I went grocery shopping. She was ALWAYS there.

But never again after April 11th. That ill-fated day when she joined the witness protection program. Or something. Because she had a crazy stalker at work.

Well, you'll never guess what happened yesterday? I went grocery shopping, as I usually do on Wednesdays. And she was THERE! She lives! And isn't in hiding! And you'll never guess what I realized as I was going through the check-out line, contemplating whether or not I should say "Hi" to her. I realized it was NOVEMBER 4th. Her ACTUAL birthday.

(Also my father-in-law's birthday. Happy Birthday! He's not scared of me.)

What are the freaky odds of that?

I decided not to say "Hi" or "Happy Birthday"... I didn't want to further traumatize the poor woman. But I did think good thoughts for her and hope she had a happy birthday.

halloween pictures and i'm already a NaBloPoMo failure

Ok just a day or two later than I intended.

First up, we have Cheer. He is all about the GORE. He's been talking about this costume since LAST Halloween. It drips blood all around the face. He wore it for his school party and parade.



But then decided that the mask smelled funny (he's part of my bionic nose contingent) and it's hard to see while wearing it. ALL things his MOTHER mentioned when she BOUGHT the mask, but whatever...

So here's what he ended up wearing for trick or treating



A Redskins jersey and a Bengals helmet. Lame, but it didn't stop people from giving him candy.

Then, there was Bounce. Very cute - Candy Cane Witch. The costume is a little uh... revealing, so we added the black velvet jacket. Because, I'm sorry, my 9-year old daughter doesn't need to dress like a ho to get candy. She's cute all on her own.



Next up, Tide as Ozzy Osbourne. Except I'm pretty sure that wig came off right after the picture. And, you know, those glasses make it hard to SEE in the dark. Which I believe Ozzy's mother MENTIONED when she bought the glasses. Whatever. I don't even know if he had any elements of a costume on while trick or treating. I do know he will be going trick or treating with ME next year or not at all. That is a post for another day.



Then there's Shout. She wanted to be Taylor Swift. Her mother found a cheerleader costume in her closet instead.

Gimme a C...



Gimme an A...



Gimme an N...



Gimme a D...



Gimme a Y...



What's that spell?



Dude. I have no flipping idea. I'm only 4. Just gimme some candy, ok?


The first trick or treater to our house showed up too early and met with a rather unfortunate end.


He bears a freakish resemblance to George Bush. Weird.


And here is our pumpkin. Laundry Dad is the pumpkin mastah. I, however, cannot hold the camera steady. You get the idea.