Sat Nov 01 2003 10:52 Fright Night: Samuel came down with a pretty bad cold last night, so Dave stayed home with him while Atticus and I went to a "Trunk or Treat" at the church, with carnival to follow. Atticus, dressed as a knight in shining armour, or "prince," was in awe of the whole experience. I guess he doesn't remember much from last year, because he seemed surprised that people kept throwing candy into his bucket as he walked from car to car. He won a few prizes at the bean bag toss, and ducky grab, and even had Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles painted on his face. His favorite part of the evening was attacking the young men with his pretend sword, though. They were good sports to play along.

Right now Atticus is sorting through his candy bucket, exclaiming over and over, "Look at this, Mom!! Look at this! Taste this one, Momma, it's so yummy!" What joy.

Sat Nov 01 2003 11:55 Rotten Luck: My keys have been lost for almost a week now. A certain little resident of this apartment, about four feet tall, is the main suspect for the crime. Been searching all morning. I've found three old pacifiers that I thought were history, but no keys.

Sat Nov 01 2003 12:39 Lost Keys: Guess my culprit was more 5 foot 4. I found my keys, right where I'd put them last.

Sat Nov 01 2003 17:55 Hear Ye, Hear Ye: Dave has updated our family photo log. Check it out at www.matkin.com.

Mon Nov 10 2003 22:09 Somewhere in the Middle of America: I went to Omaha for the week with the boys. Dave had two literature review papers due, as well as two other more minor papers. Not being able to abide the thought of an entire week by myself with my restless children, I left for a stay with Dave's cousin, Anneli. It was a nice visit. We really enjoyed a couple trips to the Omaha Children's Museum, and it was fun to chat and catch up with Anneli and Steve.

Mon Nov 10 2003 22:11: Tonight I insisted that Atticus let me brush his teeth. Trying to use the logic of a three-year-old, I said, "Atticus I HAVE to brush your teeth; there is dirt on them." To which he replied, "It's not dirt, Momma--it's chocolate!!!"

Tue Nov 11 2003 12:18 One Year Old: I can't believe that Samuel will be turning one on Monday. That is less than a week away. I love the age of one-year-olds, because they are so cute--little walking babies. They eat heartily, they sleep well, and they still love to snuggle lots. And they grow more and more exploratory. How fun it is to watch them figure out the world around them.

Today Atticus, by some miracle, took a nap--at 10:00 in the morning! When Samuel awoke from his morning nap, he searched around for his brother. Not finding him, Samuel went to the closed door to the room where Atticus slept. He began to bang and call for his buddy. It was fun for me to see that Samuel missed his brother.

Wed Nov 12 2003 14:25 No Small Miracle: I am pleased to report that Samuel slept last night for the longest stretch of his life. He went to bed at 7:30 and didn't wake up until 6:00 am, and then woke only for a feeding. He went back down until after 7:00. I am very hopeful that he might at last begin sleeping through the night.

(8) Wed Nov 12 2003 14:52: I just found out about a knitter's circle that meets every Saturday afternoon here in Lawrence. Horray!! I might actually finish that sweater I started for little infant Samuel after all. Too bad HE won't be wearing it. Any announcements out there that might benefit from a small sweater due to be finished sometime NEXT winter? :) At my pace, I'll be lucky to finish it by 2005.

(3) Thu Nov 13 2003 20:30 Maybe some prayers are better left unanswered: We read a story in Atticus' Friend magazine about a little girl who lost a cat but prayed to find her and did. Well, the lesson learned in Atticus' mind was that he should pray to get a kitty, and he will. Hmmmm. How do I explain the harsh realities of a landlord and life as a renter? Besides, I'm not ready to clean kitty litter.

(1) Sat Nov 15 2003 12:07 Friday "Date Nite": Dave and I worked on a crossword puzzle and watched all the new movie trailers that came up on apple.com last night. Pretty funny date night if you ask me, but just right. Graduate school poverty is sure leading us to discover new ways to spend an evening, but we are having more and more fun together all the same. One of these weekends I'd like to check out this really nice used bookstore called The Dusty Bookshelf on Massachusetts street, downtown. That would be another fun date.

Sat Nov 15 2003 20:23 Kitchen Cupboard: You'd think we have a little Harry Potter in residence. Samuel has lately been interested in digging out garbage from the trash bin, which we keep in the cupboard under the sink. I became so weary of this game today that I took the garbage and moved it into the laundry room and closed the door. Instead of playing in the trash, now Samuel hides out in the cupboard. That's okay. I prefer this much more sanitary practice.

(2) Sat Nov 15 2003 20:34: Today I was describing to Dave the new grocery store, Extra Foods, that has recently opened in Dave's hometown. Atticus was wandering mindlessly--at least appearing to be--about us. I was clarifying that Extra Foods sells much more than groceries, and was trying to name other non-food items that are in the store. I knew there was more, but I was stumped, and "clothes," was the only thing to come out of my mouth, when Atticus chimed in "flip flops," and he walked out of the room. Random. We didn't even think he knew what we were talking about, IF he was even listening. The funny thing is that he really had an obsession about flip flops when we were visiting this summer, and our shopping escapade looking for a pair must have really stuck out in his mind. Maybe you had to be there to catch the humor in his tone of voice, but this was really funny at the moment.

(2) Mon Nov 17 2003 20:08 Happy #1 Birthday: I have a sinus infection, so Samuel's birthday bash was quite anticlimatic. We sang the happy birthday song and helped Samuel blow out his candle, and then took a few photos of him devouring his cupcake. I didn't even get out today to buy his birthday present, I was so lacking in energy--we will buy him a big ball tomorrow. That is the one thing that will really make him smile.

Mon Nov 17 2003 21:24 When it rains, it pours: Fall in Kansas evidently means rain. We enjoyed another torrential rainstorm tonight. I love thunder storms.

Mon Nov 17 2003 21:25 New Pics: If you want a family update in color, check out our family photo log.

(3) Tue Nov 18 2003 22:07 Divine Chocolate: I just got home from the most marvelous cooking class with a professional chef and pastry chef at the Merc. It was a chocolate class where we learned how to make ganache, a wonderfully rich chocolate sauce, chocolate mousse, truffles, and chocolate gingerbread souffle cakes. You should have seen people come alive, and become inebriated with pleasure as Chef Sula brought around a chunk of ganache and spoonful of the finest cocoa for each attendee to form his own truffle. Some had small chocolate mustaches from the cocoa, a woman with braces caked thick with the ganache, others with chocolate crumbs around the mouth. A high school aged boy a few seats down from me went all out, rolling the chocolate in his palm and fingertips. This scene reminded me of one in the French film, Babettes Feast, when all the townspeople are brought together at the end of the movie by Babettes feast, hence the title. Also like in Chocolat, which, come to think of it must be inspired by Babettes Feast.

(4) Thu Nov 20 2003 21:45 Which has to go: onions, or mascara?: I have discovered a solution to all the tears that spill forth while I'm chopping onions. On Reading Rainbow, LeVar once had a cooking episode. The guest, a chef, gave LeVar sunglasses to wear while chopping the onions, and the glasses served as a barrier keeping offending vapors from his eyes. I finally tried the trick tonight. I actually wore a pair of swim goggles, and they worked!! I didn't cry!

Thu Nov 20 2003 22:03 WWF: The first birthday must be more of a milestone than I thought, because Samuel has assumed a new personality. Now, he really protests things with a defiant grunt, as if to say "How dare you remove me from my bath?" Or "I want the cookie, not the carrot!" Where did this come from? Moreover, this afternoon we were all playing in Atticus' tent. Samuel was diving in and out of the door, literally. Then, suddenly, he turned to Atticus and pounced on him, using a wrestling move he had fallen prey to so many times before. What happened to our benign little infant?

It is an entertaining change for all of us, though.

Fri Nov 21 2003 22:25 Ahhh, Friday: We went on our usual bus trip up to campus to have lunch with Dave. After lunch I took the boys to visit the KU Natural History Museum. I've taken Atticus three or four times before, and he really loves that place. The exhibits are larger and more sophisticated than at the Bean Museum on BYU campus, so Atticus is pretty enthralled with this new experience. His favorite parts are the panorama of six or seven different climates and their ecologies, the bee exhibit (with a microscope where one can closely inspect a bee antenae or leg), the few dinosaur bones, and the rattlesnakes (only because we happened upon a rattling rattlesnake once before). It was a good outing.

Mon Nov 24 2003 14:52 Batman Visits the Grocery Store: Atticus has been wearing his batman cape all day--even to the grocery store this morning. He has proclaimed me "Batgirl." We bought some groceries in anticipation of our holiday visitors. My mom, Julie, Michelle and Lorna are coming to visit on Wednesday.

(1) Tue Nov 25 2003 14:36 Arachniphobia: I saw a very fat, large spider--the size of a silver dollar--on my window frame this afternoon. Most bugs that I find inside my apartment I gather in a cup and transfer outside, but spiders and mosquitos don't get the same treatment. Mosquitos get squished, and spiders get flushed. I don't mind killing the mosquitos, but I always feel bad killing spiders, especially when my son is standing by reminding me that James (of James and the Giant Peach) is friends with a spider.

Tue Nov 25 2003 20:55: Today, Atticus was sitting at the kitchen table eating his lunch and looking out of the window into our backyard. We live in a second story apartment--one of four--and the two top apartments have large sliding glass doors that open onto small balconies. Anyway, he was watching the trees and he spotted a small woodpecker. Up until that time we had only seen squirrels, puppies, and cats in our yard.

Wed Nov 26 2003 22:27 Peter Pan Visits the Grocery Store: On Monday Atticus would correct me every time I called him by his name, and not by Batman. "I'm Batman, Mama, not Atticus." Well today he was Peter Pan, and would not answer to any other name than that. While we were driving to the grocery store for some last minute Thanksgiving meal shopping, you wouldn't believe it but all the Lost Boys, Tinkerbell, Wendy, John AND little Michael showed up in our car and accompanied us on our shopping trip. And "Peter Pan" was extremely distressed when he discovered, as we were driving away from the store, that we had forgotten the Lost Boys! I am sure another boy will pick them up and take them home from the store when they are discovered tonight.

Sun Nov 30 2003 21:32: What a great holiday! Dave essentially took five days off; we may pay price for that this week, but we'll see. He's been working his tail off up to this holiday, so I'm sure he'll be fine. Anyway, I enjoyed seeing so much of my husband for a change.

We ate a delicious feast: turkey from a local farmer, gravy, sweet potato souffle, stuffing, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, hand-made rolls, the you-gotta-have-jello side dish with strawberry gelatin set with mashed strawberries and bananas, crushed pineapple and a middle layer of plain yogurt. Dave, the pie-man of the family, baked two delicious apple pies. The food was all very nice. The company was even better, with my mom and sisters Julie, Michelle, and Lorna. Julie was in charge of the rolls, Michelle made the stuffing, Lorna helped core the apples for the pie. My sisters each enjoyed participating in the food preparations.

Jennifer Taylor, my close friend from high school, had her first Thanksgiving deep in the heart of Texas with her in-laws in Lufkin. The Taylors serve "catfish stuffing" as part of their Thanksgiving meal. I am interested to hear her report on that one tomorrow.