One Up

"Hey, mom, can you help me zip this up?"

"Sure, buddy, come here. Hey, can I tell you something?"

"Okay, what?"

"I love you."

"Oh. Well, I love you more!"

"That's impossible, because I love you more plus one!"

"Um... well, I love you more PLUS FOUR!"

Happy, Happier, Happiest...

May your celebrations be full of memory making moments! From all of us to all of you we wish you the happiest of holidays.

A new year awaits.

We interrupt this Holiday Season with an important announcement regarding the whereabouts of Jenn which may explain her lack of blogging lately:

Shopping.

click here for the rules.

'tis the season... Hope yours is merry and bright.

1. Goofball

2. Jill

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Beginning to Look

I am not sure it is Christmas for me until the tunes are on. I have my favorites of course, and then there are the songs that annoy and irritate more than get one in the mood. But, Christmas and music are the must do coupling before THE SPIRIT arrives for me.

I remember putting the LP's onto the turntable and carefully placing the needle into the first groove. And then came the scratches and the pops and underneath all of that the magical sounds of Christmas tunes. Ah, me, the memories. I could, and did, sing along for hours.

So, lights, candles, music, it's all happening here. What is helping you set the stage for the Christmas groove?

Sing it out to me, baby.

Music Monday hosted at Soccer Mom in Denial

Where in the world is Jenn?

Vienna.

click here for the rules.

Catch you on the flip side with photos. Happy weekend!!

1. Jill 2. Goofball

3. Anneke 4. Flower Child

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First Wave

And this post will publish at 00:46.
Which is the very moment he was born.
15 years ago today.

Happy Birthday son.
Mama loves you to the moon...
and back.

Ode to Friendship

This morning as I was cycling into school with Andrew on the seat behind me, we stopped at the light next to another parent from school (his kids were loaded into the large wooden box in front of his bike--we call it a bakfiets around here and the design originally was for deliveries from the bakeries etc. Nowadays, it delivers kids). He mentioned that he wanted to swing by the office to talk to me sometime because he had been surfing the internet and had stumbled across this blog. He said some very nice made-me-feel-all-warm-and-fuzzy things about it and then mentioned that he was very interested in blogging himself. So, of course that's all the lead in I needed to wax poetic about how much I love blogging and what an incredible avenue it is for meeting people all over the world and for forming deep connections and building great friendships and making communities happen and supporting causes and, and, and....

And I ran on at the mouth, effusively bubbling over with the great things that blogging brings.

For instance?

A bestest friend I met through this avenue and bonded with by word, and then by hobby, long before I met her in person.

And that person?

She's having a birthday today. (It's kind of a big one... but I won't give away which number--she might though, just check out her post!)
So, in celebration of blogging, of community, of friendship and bonding, join me please in wishing Allison of Soccer Mom in Denial the happiest of Happy Birthdays!

(If you sing it out loud at your computer, it totally counts for Music Monday celebration too!)

Happy Birthday, my friend. Ik hou van jou.

Pakjesavond (Sint Eve)

Success.

click here for the rules.

Jumping for joy too? Leave a comment if you love me, and your link if you're playing!

1. Anneke 2. soccer mom in denial

3. Flower Child 4. Goofball

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Rhyme Time

This is it folks. The time has arrived! One more sleep before the Sint delivers his sack! To say that a certain someone among us can hardly, hardly wait is actually to say nothing at all.

The boy is jazzed.

The mama still has a lot of work to do.

Among the tasks remaining is the wrapping of all gifts in proper Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet paper specific to the season. Then stuffing the burlap bag to burgeoning capacity. Also, there are the poems...

Ah, the poems.

Traditionally, the Sint writes a poem attached to each gift. They are clever, witty, and generally (as the brits say) are meant to take the piss out out of the recipient. For instance, last years poem to Don mentioned the fact that he comes to bed with his socks on, this year's poem will mention something about the way he, *ahem*, keeps his wife up too late every night.

I am The Sint is tinkering with altering lyrics to songs for each member of the family.
Don's holds echoes of Billy Joel's "Piano Man" and Andrew's poem will be set to the tune of the theme song from FIREMAN SAM, just in case you were wondering.

But I am running out of time and inspiration for Ian and Emma.
If you've got some bright ideas (I know you do) about easily alterable lyrics or brilliant poetic stanzas for my teens, please, please, please email me or leave thoughts in the comments.

C'mon, help a poor poet out here!

After all, that last sleep is upon us.

De Lieve Goede Sint

Wordless Wednesday

(and only 2 sleeps until the Sint drops by!)

Covering

Music Monday hosted by Soccer Mom in Denial

**********************

Without a doubt the winner of the generation gap music quiz is my friend Karen, who is probably the single biggest influence on Emma's music vocabulary in the first place, and the fact that she is local and I save the shipping costs to send the winner's chocolate in the second place is nothing but my big bonus.

For reference purposes here, I recap the game and give you the answers. It was fun wasn't it? We should do it again sometime, only with songs that I can recognize...

ONE: Rhianna: Disturbia
No more gas in the rig
Can't even get it started
Nothing heard, nothing said
Can't even speak about it
I'm a light on my head
Don't want to think about it
Feels like I'm going insane

TWO: Coldplay: Yellow
I swam across I jumped across for you
Oh what a thing to do
Cause you were all yellow
I drew a line I drew a line for you
Oh what a thing to do
And it was all yellow

THREE: Lazlo Bane: Superman (the theme from Scrubs)
You've got your love online
You think you're doing fine
But you're just plugged into the wall
And that deck of tarot cards
Won't get you very far
There ain't no hand to break your fall

FOUR: Rembrandts: I'll Be There For You (the theme from FRIENDS)
You're still in bed at ten and work began at eight
You've burned your breakfast so far... things are goin' great
Your mother warned you there'd be days like these
Oh but she didn't tell you when the world has brought You down to your knees that...

FIVE: Jeff Buckley: Hallelujah (yes, from Shrek)
Well there was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show that to me do ya
But remember when I moved in you
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

SIX: Enrique Iglesias: Hero
Would you swear, That you'll always be mine?
Or would you lie? Would you run and hide?
Am I in too deep? Have I lost my mind?
I don't care... You're here, tonight.

SEVEN: Katy Perry: I Kissed a Girl
No, I don't even know your name
It doesn't matter, You're my experimental game
Just human nature, It's not what, Good girls do
Not how they should behave
My head gets so confused Hard to obey

EIGHT: One Republic: Mercy
Angel of mercy How did you find me?
Where did you read my story? Pulled from the papers
Desperate and hardened
Seeking a momentary fix

NINE: Pink: So What
I guess I just lost my husband
I don't know where he went
So I'm gonna drink my money
I'm not gonna pay his rent (nope)
I've got a brand new attitude,
And I'm gonna wear it tonight
I'm gonna get in trouble
I wanna start a fight

BONUS QUESTION: (MY song)

Ladies and Gentlemen I give you: JAMES TAYLOR!!

Oh, yeah... roll on over.