Preschool Days

Sammy has been in preschool now for the last few weeks. She loves it because now she goes to school just like Abby. She had to have a backpack just like Abby and new shoes and clothes as well! This is the apple crown she made the other day.

Sammy's best buddy Chloe is in the same class. Here they are playing in the pretend kitchen.

Sammy loves her teacher. Here they all are gathered for "circle time." Sammy is such a big girl now. She certainly is a different child than Abby. On the first day of school, Abby would never have sat on the carpet with the rest of the children, she would be clinging to my side and would not say a word. Not only did Sammy sit on the carpet but she also had to comment on EVERYTHING her teacher said. For example, her teacher was introducing herself and said she liked the color pink. Sammy blurted out that she too liked the color pink. Her teacher said she had a cat, Sammy had to tell everyone that she did not but that she wanted a cat and two dogs (that ain't happening)! Anyway, it is so funny how children of the same family can be so different...

Eight Years Ago Today....

Eight years ago today, I woke up on a bright sunny morning in mid-town Manhattan (34th Street to be exact, about two blocks from Macy's department store). I had just moved to New York City for grad school at NYU on September 1st, 2001. I had already been to classes a few times and I was on our dial-up internet checking my email. As soon as I got off, I realized there were messages on our voicemail. The messages were for my roomate Lauren. She got off the phone and turned on the tv. To our horror, we saw on television what was going on outside our window not far from where we lived. I immediately called Charles (who was just a friend of mine at the time). He lived in Greenwich village (closer to the World Trade Center) and said he had seen the first plane hit the tower out of his window. We talked for a minute and then I decided to go up on the roof of our apartment building with my roomate Lauren. We stood up there with several other student residents of the building. We were all staring south and had quite a clear view of the two towers. We were all talking and relating our disbelief, when suddenly the first tower began to shake and rumble and then collapse and fall right before our eyes. I remember now so vividly that I leaned over the railing and felt completely nauseous and physically sick to my stomache thinking about the people now being squashed and killed as the tower collapsed.

We went back down to our apartment. I called my mom to let her know I was ok. Of course, she knew nothing of the whole incident since she was two hours behind us in Utah. Charles then made his way up to my apartment. We watched more television and then proceeded to return back down to the village to his place. My roomate Lauren who was from Westchester was going to try and walk home. She had contacted a sibling and was going to join the thousands already trying to cross the various bridges leading out of Manhattan on foot. It was her first time living away from home and she was not doing well.

Charles and I spent the day watching tv, staring out the window and talking to his roomates. We walked the streets a bit and were completely surprised at how eery and quiet it was. It was definitely unnerving. It got worse however that night. I could not imagine going home to an empty apartment so I stayed with Charles that night. The streets continued to be quiet and void of people. Occasionally we would see large military tankers and hummers driving up and down. I felt like I was trapped in the middle of a war zone. I could hardly sleep knowing there was a huge graveyard of dead or slowly dying people trapped not far from where I lay. It was afraid and I contemplated leaving grad school and NY and going home to Utah.

The next few days were a blur with no school, lots of news watching, pep talks from relatives to stay in school at least for the semester and quiet, empty streets. Even riding the subway was a different experience where people didn't dawn their usual icy stares, but instead talked to each other and expressed feelings of unbelief, fear and uncertainty.

My roomate Lauren never came back to our apartment until she moved out two weeks later. I now had the whole place to myself and she even felt so bad that she left me her brand new television. Charles and I used it our entire marriage until just last year when we got rid of it and upgraded.

Things looked up and I did stay in NY. I loved school even though it was (and still is) the most difficult thing I have ever done. Charles and I traveled to London together at the end of September in a very empty airplane. We loved the room to stretch out and sleep. Our trip was far from pleasant. However, we were engaged by the end of November and married in January. The rest is history...

Kindergarten

On Abby's first day of school, Daddy presented her with a German school cone or Schultuete.

"The first day of school is especially sweet and memorable in Germany. On this day each child entering the first grade receives a large cone decorated with paper and ribbon. Inside they find small gifts, school supplies, and lots of chocolate and candy. Often the entire family, including the grandparents, accompanies the child to school. Most families walk together to the school in their Sunday best. Once at the school, everyone enjoys a musical performance put on by the older students. The new first-graders are then sent off with their teacher to see their classroom. After a brief introduction, the students are allowed outside to rejoin their families and to take individual and class photos. Each child poses, clutching their cone and a sign designates the name of the school and the year. Some of the cones dwarf the five- and six-year-olds.

The tradition of the Schultuete, also called the Zuckertuete or sweet cone, seems to have originated in the eastern cities in Saxony and Thuringia about 200 years ago. They were originally provided by the child’s godparents and hung from a tree in the schoolyard. Children were told that when the “fruits” on the tree were ripe enough to be picked, then they themselves were ready for school."

Her school cone made her first day all the more exciting.

Abby adores her teacher, Mrs. Smith. She is one very impressive woman. Abby has been going to kindergarten now for two weeks and loves it. Kindergarten here is full day. She goes from 8:50am to 3:30pm. It is a long day but she seems to have adjusted well after we worked out a few kinks. The first day at lunch, she couldn't open her the straw for her juice box. She also couldn't unwrap her sandwich or cookie that were wrapped in saran wrap. As a result, she only had chips for lunch. Poor girl! You don't realize how much you do for them. She also still has an issue using the toilet all by herself at school. But she will soon get over it, I'm sure.

This is Abby and her new friend Kaela sitting at their table talking to their teacher.

On Top of Spaghetti...

The strangest thing happened this past Saturday, I got one of our library books out to read to Sammy and Abby called "On Top of Spaghetti," based on the song. As I started to sing/read the book, I noticed Sammy got a sad look on her face. I didn't think too much of it and continued. By the time the meatball "rolled off the counter and onto the floor," Sammy was kind of wimpering. I stopped and asked her what was wrong. She couldn't say. As I sang, "and then my poor meatball rolled out of the door," she was really upset. I realized then that she was literally upset about the meatball. As cruel as it sounds, I kept reading to see if in fact she really was upset about the meatball. I guess I was just really surprised.

As it continued, she did not like it when the "meatball" landed on the crossinus guard's head, nor on top of the pig's hotdog. But it didn't end there, the pig squeezed the meatball and it flew into outfield and by this point she was crying real tears. Was it that she wanted to eat the meatball herself or was she just sad for the dog who lost his meatball in the first place? I do not know. I am still pondering that now. I didn't even know she liked meatballs so much. She is our resident vegetarian. Abby is the meat lover and there were no tears in her eyes.

Unfortunately, I had forgotten that the worst part of the book had not even happened yet. "It rolled in the garden and under a bush. And then my poor meatball was nothing but MUSH." At that point, she was pushing the book closed. Ever since then, we cannot get her to open the book to read or even look at it. She tells us that she does not like that book and does not want to read it. If you act like you are going to read it to her anyway, her bottom lip turns down and she looks like she may start crying...

On top of spaghetti
all covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball
when somebody sneezed.

It rolled off the table
And onto the floor.
And then my poor meatball
Rolled out of the door.

It rolled in the garden
and under a bush,
And then my poor meatball
Was nothing but mush.

The mush was as tasty
As tasty could be,
And early next summer
It grew into a tree.

The tree was all covered
With beautiful moss,
It grew great big meatballs
And tomato sauce.

So if you eat spaghetti
All covered with cheese,
Hold on to your meatball
And don't ever sneeze!

Venetian Opera Night in Chicago

We went to the Venetian Night Gala at Millenium Park in Chicago this past Saturday night. The gala featured Rossini, Puccini, Verdi, Gounod, and Donizetti. We had a picnic and listened to the beautiful music.

Abby, Sammy and friend Elijah laying on Charles enjoying the music

Abby being cozy with Daddy


Jessica and son Elijah along with Abby and Sammy admiring their reflection in the giant shiny bean.

Taking pictures of our reflection in the giant shiny bean


City in the background of the shiny bean

After the concert we played in the fountain of one thousand faces of the people of Chicago while the fireworks were going off in the background.

Charles and Sammy getting all wet. Sammy was soaked!

Big hug for Elijah

Little Sammy's Three Year Old Birthday

We celebrated Sammy's birthay this past week. Her biggest present was a doll house that her and Abby were so excited about. We decorated the house with tons of crate paper and bought her loads of presents. The following day we had a little friend birthday party at the park with butterfly cupcakes for everyone. Her friends could make as big of a mess as they wanted since it wasn't at my house! Sammy felt so special and seemed to have a nice time.

Here is the pathetic cake I decorated for our little family party. She wanted a chocolate rainbow cake with glitter frosting (that is why you can't see the rainbow so well). It was a pretty easy request.

Happy Birthday little Boodgy! You are growing up too fast!

Two Great Movie Recommendations

When word reaches two elderly best friends, that someone in their tiny Irish village of Tulaigh Mhór (Tullymore) has won the Irish National Lottery's Lotto game, they go to great lengths to find the winner so they can share the wealth. After a chicken-dinner plot to narrow down their list of suspects, they pay a midnight visit to the only absentee: Ned Devine. They find Ned in his home, still holding the ticket in his hand, a smile on his face and dead of shock. Jackie is later convinced by a dream that the deceased Ned wants to share the winnings with his friends, as he has no family to claim the ticket.

A young FBI employee assigned to work undercover as a clerk to Robert Hanssen, a senior agent. Hanssen has been recalled to FBI headquarters. Hanssen has been recalled to FBI headquarters ostensibly to head up a new division specializing in Information Assurance.

Initially, Hanssen insists on a strict formality between the two men but eventually, Hanssen becomes a friend and mentor to the young FBI agent and takes a personal interest in him and his wife Juliana, who is suspicious of Hanssen and resents his intrusions.

O'Neill finds no evidence of Hanssen leading a secret double life and develops a growing respect for his boss, so he confronts his handler in the undercover assignment, who admits that Hanssen is suspected of spying for the Soviet Union and Russia for years and being responsible for the deaths of agents working for the United States. He learns that FBI Director Louis Freeh is personally leading the investigation.

Note: The movie is based on the true story of Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent convicted of spying for the Soviet Union and later Russia for more than two decades, and Eric O'Neill, who worked as his assistant and helped bring about his downfall. O'Neill served as a consultant on the film.