<thursday november 20, 2003 - 10:29 a.m.>

I just got back from the dentist. Emma came with me. She was pretty good the whole time I was getting my teeth cleaned. She looked at a book, coloured a bit, and then chased a spider out of the crayon box and followed it along the window ledge.

On the way back I stopped in St. Vincent de Paul to look for some old art magazines for making envelopes. Emma got distracted by the toy display and told me she wanted a Barbie. The one she picked was in pretty good condition, but it wasn't the typical Barbie. It was a Pocahontas doll.

Emma's also mentioned the need for a boy Barbie.

"But I thought you didn't like boy barbies?" I asked.
" But you need someone to marry!"

I couldn't argue that one.

There were two male dolls at the store. One was a GI Joe type of doll action figure. He was wearing loose-fitting boxers. He was well-built (in real life perhaps 200 lbs, 6'2") and very muscular, right down to the rippled abs. He was very posable, with lots of joints. This one had my vote.

The other option was a skinny, naked (yet showing no obvious pen!s), semi-posable Ken, whose hair was unkempt and even patchy in some places.

Guess who she picked?

Ken is now riding in the Barbie car. He's still naked. Pocahontas is driving. At least they're wearing their seatbelts.

a

<wednesday november 19, 2003 - 9:05 p.m.>

And now on a more serious note, an important public service announcement. Those of you who know us personally may recognize someone. :)

andrea

<monday november 17, 2003 - 10:05 a.m.>

Ah - the second milky coffee of the day. What a treat.

There must be something about the particular pitch of our vacuum cleaner. I often find myself breaking into song while I'm hoovering up the dustbunnies. The singing doesn't come from the fact that vacuuming puts me into a great mood, but the droning of the vacuum resonates in my ear and reminds me of something akin to music. The vacuum also does a good job of drowning out any bad notes that I may hit along the way. The vacuum, much like the shower, actually makes me sound good. :)

Friday afternoon I found myself singing (of all the lamest things) a song from the Flintstones. It is from the episode in which Fred has a big dream sequence of Pebbles and BamBam becoming rock stars. Their fame and fortune was based on one song, and it was that song that I found myself singing while the vacuum droned... well, at least the chorus, because that's really all I can remember. (Full lyrics here.) Argh. Now that's a bad song to get stuck in your head.

Both our girls have never been the kind of children who name their toys. All their dolls, teddy bears, and the rest of the plush animals (including one battery-operated tabby who meows and hisses) are completely nameless. If she's pressed to do so, Emma will make up a name, but it will be something like Zeepamalazorp and she will forget it two minutes later. Sarah, on the other hand, will almost always give the same name when she's asked about any toy or other thing or animal that deserves a name. And clearly, it's a name that belongs to someone who is familiar and loved.

This came up again this weekend.

Mark's parents were visiting and the six of us went to see Super Dogs at the Corel Centre. (It's like a dog circus ... dogs of all sizes jumping, running and running through tubes etc etc) Sarah was impatient during parts of the show. In a lame attempt to distract her I instigated some conversation.

"Sarah, if you had a dog like that, what would you name it?"

Sarah answered without hesitation, but I had to ask her to repeat it because it was lost in the din.

"Sarah, if you had a dog like that, what would you name it?"
"Auntie Leah."
"Sarah, if you had a beautiful, graceful, lovely white swan as a pet, what would you name it?"
"Auntie Leah."

If she had a horse, she'd name it Auntie Leah. If she had a pet rabbit she'd name it Auntie Leah. Some of her dolls are named, you guessed it, Auntie Leah. I am not sure if there is anything that she wouldn't name Auntie Leah.

In fact, Jeff, Leah and Devon were at the dog show as well. And here is a picture of the happy threesome. :)

-

Otherwise, the weekend was a good one.

Mary and I went shopping. I bought a sequined top for an upcoming Christmas party, and she bought me The Best Socks I Will Ever Own. She also brought some scarves and hats for the girls, knit out of this wonderfully fuzzy yarn, and I got a hot orange/red scarf made out of similar stuff. It is my new favourite!

As for today, I'm gearing up for the usual combination of work and domestic duty. This time it's laundry. How does the pile always manage to grow so high?

a.