November 2016

Early-Out Week
Per the usual in early November, the kids had a week of half-days due to parent/teacher conferences. It could’ve been all screens, all the time, but we managed a few things: We did a nice long family playdate at Alana’s (their youngest kid is now big enough to participate!), we went with Annika’s friend Kaia & her mom to Vasona Park for some Pokemon hunting and playground time, Annika had a mega-playdate over at Anna & Ella’s while Lukas and I met up with Lawson at AVAC open swim, and we watched Big Hero 6 about a dozen times together. 

PT conferences
The conferences with both kids’ teachers went very well (as expected, heh). Ms. Bingham says Lukas is a sweetheart and behaves very well in class, plus he’s learning everything he needs to be. Mr. Dinh invites the students to the conferences, and he loud-talked at all three of us with many compliments for Annika and some general advice for more practicing on math. She’s reading really far above her grade level still — grade 7.6. 

Lukas’s fifth birthday!
He’s FIVE! We had to time the little guy’s party based on the number of parties likely for his classmates (all 26 birthdays in Sept. - Nov.) and avoiding Thanksgiving, so we had it at Pump It Up on Nov. 12. All of his favorite little friends came, jumped themselves silly, and ate the icing on his somewhat-improvised PJ Masks cake (a Spider-Man design w/o Spidey, on which I put a set of PJ Masks figurines). Then, on his actual birthday, he came into our bedroom at dawn, per the usual, and we told him he was five now — to which he replied, “Actually, I’m not five until I eat my cake.” Per his request, that was a chocolate cake with raspberry filling and a chocolate glaze, which Annika and I made. It was also the last day before the Thanksgiving break, which was the day of the TK/kinder music performance; Lukas’s class were Pilgrims (other classes were either Pilgrims or “Indians,” still). He reallllly hadn’t wanted to do the show (we think he thought he would be up there alone, or something?) but he ended up doing such a great job — stood right there in the front row, singing all the songs, doing the arm movements, cute as all get-out. Later that evening, his presents ran heavy to Nick Jr. and Star Wars toys, since those are his major enthusiasms at the moment, although he did get a large Emperor Zurg talking figure to go with the large Buzz Lightyear he got at Disneyland. Hard to believe the “baby” is five already — he’s a combination of total love bug (always wanting hugs and kisses and cuddles) and insane energy dynamo, sharp and funny and sweet and wild. He’s the little brother this family needed and just the man for his era. 

Thanksgiving
We did Thanksgiving at home again this year (my preferred way, heh), with a big turkey, the Macy Day Parade, deviled eggs (mostly done by Annika), etc. The pies didn’t really work, but other than that, all the food was good and the kids even had regular plates (some of which they actually ate). Good times!

November randomness, good & bad
—Election Day: Started out so great, with me in my Nasty Woman pantsuit and the whole family going to vote. Ended worse than we could have imagined. The less I say about this, the better, except to note that the hardest thing I’ve done as a parent so far was not allowing my black depression to ruin Lukas’s birthday enthusiasm, and it took everything I had to make that work.
—Lukas the party guy: Everybody’s birthday is this month, it seems, and Lukas went to several parties, including Brayden’s (which was at a joint called “Uncle Buck’s Fish Bowl,” apparently what the bowling alley in Bass Pro Shop is called?), and Sean's party, at Rockin’ Jump, which R. took the kids to, solo, because of:
—My trip to Tulsa: We got the word that my Uncle Ronnie has cancer and is refusing the major, invasive treatments that might buy him a little more time (on grounds of he’s 80 years old and not interested in all that expense and bother for so little gain). So we did some shuffling and Internet-searching and all the siblings converged on Tulsa for a day. It was really great to re-meet my cousin Monty (who’s now 24, and whom I last saw when he was 7) and to spend some time with Ronnie while he’s still able to visit with us. So it was a little sad but also a good trip. 

Quotable
Lukas, observing the preparation of turkey-roasting on Thanksgiving morning:
“Is that a real turkey?”
“Yes.”
“Why isn't it moving?”
“Well, it can't move anymore, buddy.”
[moment of contemplation] “Where is its face?”

Lukas, slightly conflating a couple of his new obsessions: “Can I watch PJ Ninja Mega Turtles?”