Turk-rant

Want to know a secret? I hate turkey. I don't care who cooked it, i hate the taste and texture of turkey and chicken. It makes me want to gag. I'll eat a little to be polite, but if you keep asking me over and over "how do you like it?" Eventually I might crack and actually tell you. I DON'T LIKE IT. I hate that we have to have it twice in 1 week because you don't like how my parents cook it. At least it is usually only once a year that we have to have this turktardation. Do you know what is worse than eating the turkey the first time just to be polite? The fact that I know I'm destined to be eating turkey dishes for the rest of the week. Oh, you're going to cook pork chops one night to break it up? Excuse me for not jumping for joy. I wish I'd married a vegetarian.

A visit to relatives

So my dad was going to Aunt Jean's house for a visit, and he wanted company in the car so he brought me along. I was half dreading it, but apparently the Aunties have mellowed some in recent years. Here's dad and his sisters:

And of course half the fun of bringing me along was that he got to bring his grandkids to show them off. Lunch was on the stove and they were trying to decide whether to wait for uncle Evan or just eat without him. This involved a lot of comparisons about how Aunt Jean's great grandkids can't wait for a meal and get really cranky, and how well behaved my kids were being. Finally Uncle Evan got home so Aunt Mary went to get a high chair while Aunt Jean set the table, and as soon as Eloise saw the highchair go to the dining room she started asking "eat? eat?" (Yeah guys, the baby totally needs a fancy placemat. Wouldn't want to be raising a heathen.)

After lunch the girls were being wild so Grandpa took them out to the yard to run off some steam. Aunt Jean owns the little tikes pick-up truck, because that is way superior to the cozy coupe. Eloise liked that you can put the tailgate down and pile more kids in the back.

Then grandpa decided Eloise's hands were too cold so he made her come inside and watch Fina play through the window.

The "best" part of visiting relatives is totally being forced to look at a bunch of pictures of distant cousins you will probably never meet. Eloise dutifully looked through the pictures of aunt Mary's grandkids. (I did too, even though I'd seen them already on facebook.)

And at the end, Aunt Mary brought a little dog and her suitcase out of the bedroom to load into her car. Fina was impressed and petted and petted the creepy little thing.

A picture story

Two little girls, walking along toward home, when suddenly the small one gets that shifty look in her eyes. She bolts off to the grass.

Her sister tries to herd her back to the sidewalk.

But she falls, and needs helped back up.

Sister tries to outsmart her by grabbing her hands and pulling her to the house.

So the baby lays down on the grass and grins like a fool, until her mother finally puts down the camera and comes and carries her into the house.