What's Up Duck?

Huh you say? Yep me too... Here is how it happens each year. First we hear the loud and long laborious quack followed by a loud splash...then two minutes later we hear it again.
We know it can only mean one thing...the ducks are back. Each year the ducks from the park fly over and land in our pool for the day. I guess it is their equivalent of a quick weekend getaway. Personally when I choose a quick getaway I like it to be kid free. Each year they land and each year they figure out our yard is full of kids and cats...the head over the our retired neighbors quite relaxing pool.

First Science Contest

Okay so while I am rather kick back with most things, everyone once in a while I come across something that brings out the competitive spirit in me. Welcome to the Kindergarten Science project. Objective: Make a house for an Ice Cube. Goal: Keep the ice cube from melting. Lesson Learned: Don't know don't care---just win!
So MeiMei and I decided we would raid Mr T's glass packing supplies for the house. The house cannot be a cooler or larger and 12 x 12. So we found some old packing supplies and built a seven layer rectangle house composed with an inner layer of foam, a second layer of thin blue ice and five more layers of foamy paper stuff we grabbed out of the recycle bin.
Well when we were done, we ended up with a very small house with a little trap door at the top. Not all that impressive at least to a five year old. Mei Mei was NOT a happy camper with her "house" she wanted a pretty house with a roof and chimney and such. She started crying and complained that her house looked like an EGG. She would not even take it too school.

So the day before the big event, I went into the classroom for some espionage on others homes...Holy Smokes...there were some SERIOUS houses. It turns out that one can do Internet research on building these houses and several parents had done such research. Boy I must admit, I never thought of that--Dang! So after leaving the class, I knew there was NO way we would win the ice cube contest, but we might stand a chance at the popular vote contest.

I thought if we can't win, we can at least be darn cute. And if we had an EGG house then an EGG it will be. I asked MeiMei what protects its eggs in the winter? And she knew right away. A Penguin. So a penguin it would be. We drive to the thrift store and found the perfect penguin. We took out his bottom and placed him over our egg house and voila...the perfect penguin ice cube house.

We took him to school on the morning of the contest and of course knowing my audience of 5 and 6 year olds they LOVED MeiMei's penguin "house" as everyone wanted to pick it up and hug it. What came as the total shocker was that WE WON! OUR HOUSE LASTED THE LONGEST. So not only did MeiMei win the popular vote we won the Science Project. Fifty entries and we won. I was trilled...and MeiMei was in disbelief since it was not "pretty" So I present to you the winning March of the Penguin Ice House.

The verdict is in

I have Pneumonia. After four months of being sick, I finally went to the doctor and whatdaya know I am really sick. Somehow I feel much better knowing that I am NOT crazy. I should be feeling better in a week. I am looking forward to having more energy and the ability to get back to doing five things at a time.

Feb 15th and the Pool is Open...

For those that actually read this blog, you will remember last year that the swimming pool officially opened in Mid March and I had commented that each year that we have lived here the kids keep moving the opening of the pool up by month month. Well this year it stands to be true once again. Where the first year year we started swimming in May, this year it is February and they are NUTS! Yes it is a gorgeous sunny day but warm? Uh not quite. It is around 69 degree which is no where near what I consider pool weather. So while people all around this US are FREEZING, my yahoos are swimming in the pool. Now that's a crazy Californian for you. And no, for those wondering...our pool is NOT heated...hense the life jackets incase their hearts stop when they jump in!

Yikes, Somebody Knows Me

So a couple weeks ago I was at one of my favorite shopping stores which for this post will remain anonymous... and I see this woman about my age with the most adorable looking little daughter who was about 18 months old. We were in the same isle at the store and I was looking at her noticing that she was Caucasian with an Asian daughter. Now, I walk a fine line with approaching people that fit that description and with making the assumption that the daughter is adopted especially since I now know enough families with bio kids who have one parent that is Caucasian and one the is Asian--we have three such families at school--(the same families assumed Mr T was Chinese).
So anyway on with my post... I asked her if I could be rude and ask if her daughter was from adopted from China and that my asking was because I had just returned myself from China three months ago. Well imagine my surprise when she said yes and that she was in China when we were in China and get this...when I told her my name she said..."are you the Big Tomato?" ....uh Yep ... that be me. She knew all about me the yahoos and our journey to China. Small world..but we all know that don't we.

Hello Out There

Yes, I am here and we are all fine. Relatively speaking. I tell you, I understand this is the season of flu's colds and all other things not pleasent...but dang! I have been feeling puny since we got home from China in November. I cannot seem to kick whatever it is that has me operating somewhere between 35% - 65% of my usual capacity. If it is not once thing it is another. It seems to be a cycle of sorts. Feel bad -- don't sleep well -- get run down -- get sick again...and the cycle repeats its self over and over again.
I feel like I need some warm sunny weather to warm up my soul and spirit to kick this darn WHATEVER I have. Three and a half months is TOO long to be feeling puny. The yahoos are doing okay. They have each been sick once this season but nothing that lingered. Just me the lucky one. I am ready for Spring. I know I should not complain when so many people in the
Midwest and east coast are being hit with monster storms and we just have our typical February 60 degree grey foggy days. Here is to dreaming about warm sunny days sitting in the shade by the pool drinking a cool beverage...

Earth Shaking News....

So this afternoon, Mr T is out by the pool and notices something unusual....the water is moving but there is no one in the pool and the filter is not on. Hummm so he calls me out to look and see. Yep the water was swelling 6 inches and rolling like the ocean. As a native Californian, I knew it could only be one thing.... EARTHQUAKE IN CALIFORNIA! With the size of the swells I figured it had to be over a 5 on the ricter scale. The question was where was it happening. Here in the Tomato we are out of the so called official earthquake zone---meaning we do not feel most of them....but while we could not feel it standing in place...it was very clear the earth was moving. San Francisco? LA? Central Coast? North Coast? Where.... Well here we have it...http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_14157524?source=rss&nclick_check=1
Eureka California located in the far northern coast of the state had an earth quake today of a 6.5.