Happy Hallo....

Notice the matching pumpkin!

SEE WORLD

(Sea Lions, Tiger Sharks, and Polar Bears- Oh My!)

On my recent trip to Florida, I began to notice that the older I get, the more easily amazed I am. It's not that anything can impress me- it's just that as I gain more experience in life, I am able to recognize what really is amazing and what isn't and try to focus on the more amazing things the most.

The highlight of the kid's and my vacation was our visit to Sea World. Now even if the kids didn't thouroughly enjoy this place, I sure did. And to say the least, Shamu, and all of his underwater friends, are truly amazing. The problem with my children is that they are so young, and therefore they don't have many experiences to relativate other experiences with. For this reason, their little brains have not yet been accurately calibrated to gauge what is cool and what is not so cool. So sometimes, for them, very mundane things (like the word "boo") seem quite remarkable. And very unmundane things (like a gigantic black and white whale flying through the air) isn't even worth looking at if there is a piece of popcorn on the ground. That is OK, and they still enjoyed Sea World, but mostly only because they both got temporary tattoos and Shamu water bottles.

While I considered Sea World to be extraordinary, what was even more impressive to me, was the way every generation of my family, blindly accepted, and even loved, me and my children. And even my children were able to tell that this was something really neat. This unconditional love was truly heartwarming. Maybe it wouldnt be that way if we actually lived nearby.

Mural Website

I recently created a website to showcase my murals. This way I don't have to deliver my mural photo album to everybody who is interested in having a mural done. It also makes me feel really cool, and I can show off to my friends and relatives. Here is the link:

http://naomipaints.tripod.com

I know it is a very amature web design, but it is a start!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROXANNE!

Roxanne turned three years old on Sunday. The day was filled with all kinds of kitty goodness. It took her a while to realize that it was her birthday and not Rockets, because she thought that only Rocket had birthdays. When she saw the cake, she understood that this day MUST be about her. When asked how old she is, she will say "Roxanne" or "present" or "five".... usually anything but "three". If you ask her what her name is you are more likely to hear "three", but you might also hear "hello kitty" or "mommy". For this reason, she will be having her hearing checked on Wednesday. If those results show no problems, we will be looking into speech and cognitive therapy. However, her snuggling, kissing and hugging skills are right on par. She knows when to hold back (most of the time) and when to dish out, which makes her the most adorable little three year old I know! Happy Birthday Roxanne!

Insights on Spiritual Health and Nutrition From Rocket

• If you eat all of your vegetables, your boobs will go away.
• Jesus has a hole in his heart that needs to be filled with broccoli.
• Jesus made drive-thrus and loves them.
• He also loves vitamins and protein.

An Update On Charlotte

This weekend, we decided it was time to release Charlotte from captivity. Although we enjoyed our time with her and her babies, we thought that she might be happier raising them in the wilderness (actually, to tell the truth, there was one member of our family that wasn't exactly "tolerant" of her differences). So we drove a couple blocks from our house, into the mountains, and set her free. I laid her down on a rock, and we all said our goodbyes. I could tell that even that one family member (I wont mention any names) was getting emotional during the fairwell. Then we walked back to our car and buckled the tearful kids into the car and before driving away, that one family member and I decided to go back and say one last goodbye. But she was gone. I haven't heard from her since then, but I imagine that she is happily carrying around her quickly growing offspring around on her back... occassionally eating one or two... but being a good mom for the most part. Before she knows it, they will be big enough to crawl off her back and start lives of their own. I can only hope that one of them will come back to visit me. And if they do, I will catch them and trap them and release them a month or two later.

This is Charlotte on the evening that we released her.

Hello, Kitty.

While I was in Colorado, with Rocket, for my mom's birthday party, Matt stayed behind with Roxanne. He spent the weekend romancing her in every way. They went on dates, snuggled, and then he bought her a kitten. When I came home, I met the new family member that no one knew much about. No one knew his name, his age, or even if he was a he or she. But Roxanne didn't care, and Daddy was her most favorite person in the whole world now... well, except for Kitty. We still haven't named the little rascal, but here were the kids' ideas. Roxanne came up with: KittyMine, MineKitty, NoNoNotRocket'sKitty, DaddyGetItForMe, and ILoveDaddyMoreThanMommyNow. Rocket came up with: Booty, Jerry, Jack, Booty, Pirate, PooPoo, Hello Kitty, and Booty. Feel free to cast your vote.