the backwards video ...

Have any of you seen this music video that went viral a few weeks ago? We call it the "backwards video" and my little ladybugs are still asking to see it, they're spellbound by the "how" of it all ... these guys filmed all of the scenes while singing backwards so that when they edited the scenes into a video, they could play the action backwards, which caused their mouths to then be singing to be forwards with the song ... does that make sense?! Just see for yourself ... it's kinda cool ...

And if you want to see what some of the scenes look like running forwards (the way they were filmed) just click here. Hours of entertainment for my bugs ... especially that little one of mine, she's always got to know how things work! Remember that video production camp she did in August? Her camp video also relied on editing tricks and thus had a similar "wow" factor - after seeing this, her wheels are turning ... no doubt she's gonna blow the roof off that place next summer!

and now it's Fall ...

I think I'll make Columbus Day weekend the official start of Fall for me, the timing seems to be just right. September is just too early for me - not only am I buried by the back-to-school craziness, but September is often still too warm to really feel like Fall. But now it's October 11th ... and this last weekend has been one of those picture-perfect early Fall weekends with a chilly breeze, a brilliant blue sky, early sunsets, and a few trees starting to turn colors - so not only is it starting to feel like Fall, it even looks like Fall. Between the perfect Fall weather, the relaxed weekend schedule, and today's Monday holiday thrown in as a bonus, I finally feel ready for Fall. Unbelievable, but true ... I made the switch from this at our front door:

To this:

On Saturday, my big ladybug and I went down to the local Farmer's Market that runs in our town every Saturday from May through October ... and all around us was a sensory overload of Fall ... the colors of the autumn veggies and flowers, the smell of warm cider, the feel of that cool breeze ... it was all there. And, although I know it doesn't exactly follow the rules of a 10 on 10 (all of these photos were taken in the same hour on the 9th rather than over 10 hours on the 10th), at least it's a close cousin of a 10 on 10. So here are my 10 photos to show that we really have turned the corner into Fall around here ...

Oops, I actually see that I've put 11 photos up - but since I can't decide which one to take down, I'll just leave it as my "11 on 9" ... I'll get the math right one of these days! Happy Autumn, everyone!!

something from nothing ...

I've written a couple of times before about my littlest ladybug and her clever mind ... her Plan B to capture a butterfly comes to mind, but there are a million other instances as well - her mind just doesn't ever sit still. She seizes any opportunity she can to create something from nothing, to solve a puzzle, and to essentially never leave 'well enough' alone. It's just who she is - her gears are always moving.

So yesterday after school, I was really excited to make Kim's mini chocolate chip muffins - that's one recipe we could really use around here, so I was ready to rock the kitchen. And since baking is essentially creating something from nothing, my little bug is always an enthusiastic helper in the kitchen - so she's always ready to rock the kitchen. So we're moving right along, adding dry ingredients together to set aside ... then we started creaming the butter and sugar, all was well ... then it was time to add the eggs, one at a time. This is where things took a turn. Eggs fascinate this little girl - maybe it's the texture, maybe it's the versatility, I'm not sure ... but she just loves to work with eggs - cracking, mixing, separating the yolk, you name it, she loves it. But yesterday, just when you think you've seen it all from this girl, this is what she did after adding the eggs to the batter ...

She made a miniature baby carriage out of the empty egg shell. You can see the 4 wheels taped onto the bottom as well as 3 decorative pieces (egg shells turned upside down to show white) to adorn the canopy that protects the sleeping "baby" (seen inside the egg/carriage in that bottom photo). This is all that was left at her work station after she finished ...

She used literally every piece possible to create her eggshell sculpture ... talk about something from nothing! Love that her mind works like this ... love that little ladybug so much ...

btw ... the muffins were terrific, thank you so much, Kim! Over a dozen were gobbled within minutes - this easy and healthy recipe is going straight into regular rotation, we love it!! And one last note, thanks for all of the compliments on our little flowered plates in yesterday's post. They were from Target during their Liberty of London collaboration last Spring ... tiny black and white flowers on top, bright sunny yellow on the bottom, adorable, practical plastic everyday plates - we love 'em too, so thanks!

eat your crusts ...

I never used to eat my sandwich crusts when I was a little girl, and my little ladybugs don't eat theirs either - and that's fine, I get it - no problem. But will someone please tell me why the little ladybugs won't even eat the "crusts" on an eggo waffle?!

The plate on the left belongs to my little ladybug, she eats the regular homestyle eggo minis - the plate on the right belongs to my big ladybug, who eats the cinnamon toast minis. Their rationale about crusts reminds me of those dogs we see on AFV who still paddle their legs whenever they're held over or near water ... it's like some kind of deeply wired remote control thing. I mean, are their really crusts on an eggo?? What's next? Pancakes? Muffins? Will all edges fall into the crust category?! **sigh ... it's like having mice at the kitchen table ...

back from the big reunion ...

So I guess I let things go cold over here, a whole week has passed?! And how is it that my calendar says October sixth today?! I left for a few days and came home to find not only the usual backlog of household mail, email, laundry, etc ... but it's also October 6th?!? ... what?! It's enough to give me the chills ... so was my trip worth the overwhelming backlog-headache I'm facing now that I'm back in my 'real' life? You bet it was!

I don't know what it is about my high school class - was it that we were all girls? was it the fact that we lived together 24/7? was it the impressionable ages we all were during those years? Or maybe it was the supportive setting - even though we had niches of students just like any high school (athletes, bookworms, artists, rebels, etc), we all had a lot of respect for one another. Whatever the reason, the bottom line is that we formed a sisterhood back in the days of perms, shoulder pads, and Duran Duran ... a sisterhood that's stood the test of time.

So over the weekend we picked right up with one another as though no time had passed. Within seconds of our initial hugs, we were all finding funny stories to share ... some old, some new, joking and laughing just like when we were sixteen. Yet we are as diverse now as we ever were ... those athletes, bookworms, artists, and rebels grew up to become doctors, art dealers, business owners, teachers, lawyers, artists, mothers, scientists, investors, musicians ... and that's only from the 40 of us who were there! So different, and yet we have this bond that keeps us as close today as we ever were. And how many people get to say that about high school? So, yeah, it was a great reunion weekend ...

Truth be told, I'm looking forward to tackling my backlog and getting caught up - both in my real life and in my blog life - and if you can believe it (trust me, I'm taking a deep breath as I type these next words), I'm actually ready to turn the page and step into Fall. Crazy (like krazy crazy), but true - stay tuned ...

for the love of high school ...

Did anyone ever watch this show ...

The Facts of Life was a goofy little show set at an all-girls boarding school - it aired in the early 80's, when I was just starting middle school. Does anyone remember the original cast of FoL (which included a young Molly Ringwald)? ...

Young and impressionable, I used to dream that someday I'd be a part of it ... that I'd go to a fancy girls school, wear a cute uniform, live in a dorm full of giggly typecast girls, throw in a kooky grandma type like Mrs. Garrett and crazy hijinks would ensue. I fancied myself as a Tootie ... young and silly, a bit nosy and gossipy, always wearing those roller skates and spouting sassy catchphrases like "there's gonna be trubbbuuulllll" ... cue canned audience laughter. Can anyone relate? Is any of this even ringing any bells? Well sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction because the punch line is that I actually did end up attending an all-girls boarding school for my high school years. And although there were definitely a few crazy hijinks, the real thing was a long long way from the Facts of Life cliché ... no uniforms, no Mrs. G, no silly script or audience applause.

I was barely 14 when I arrived, with about 90 pounds on my pre-pubescent 5'2" frame. The school was over 1300 miles from home in an age long before cellphones, emails, internet, or even computers - total isolation by today's standards. Now that I have daughters of my own, I know how much my mother's heart must have hurt as she hugged me goodbye on that first day. But despite the distance from home and my complete lack of sophistication, somehow it all worked and not only did I survive boarding school, I flourished. Speaking literally, I grew 5 inches taller that first year (yes, it actually hurt) ... but more importantly, I went from a lost and awkward middle schooler to an engaged and self-reliant teenager. Happy joyful years ... by far the most challenging, most fun, most difficult, and most rewarding experience all at once. And a sisterhood to boot. It was the right school at the right time. Lucky lucky ladybug, right? I do know that - and I will always be so incredibly grateful that I got to be a part of it.

(photo courtesy of Molly Merrick)

Tomorrow I'm driving down to my alma mater for 3 nights, it's my Reunion Weekend and I can't wait to see my peeps because I already know that we'll pick right up as though no time at all has passed ... just like the generations behind mine are already singing about ...

oh, the denial ..

I was walking with my bloggy-turned-real friend swooper yesterday morning and it was one of the most beautiful days imaginable ... bright and sunny with blue skies as far as the eye could see and a light breeze to maintain a perfect 72 degrees. Glorious. But just like the needle that scratches across a record when the party's just been busted, she suddenly exclaimed that it was, in fact, at that exact moment, officially Fall. I think I might have blacked out ... she saw the distress on my face, the nausea that surfaced, I had to stop and take a deep breath. Yup, the denial continues ... and like a reluctant child at the edge of the pool, I just can't jump in.

Is my denial because those sweet little backyard pumpkins that we had just discovered were torn out days later by the neighbor on the other side? Or maybe I'm just drained from the back-to-school bam-pow-wham? Could it be the piles of household desk work that I've fallen so far behind on? Or is it the Floridian in me, plain and simple? Whatever the reason, I just cannot seem to find my balance since school started ... every time I feel like I might be gaining some small semblance of control, it eludes me. The perpetual to-do list is killing me ... 3 things checked off, 5 things added. And until I scale back on the to-do's, I just can't add "Fall" to my list!

I find myself actually longing for a weekend of steady pouring rain - the kind where you stay in your jammies until noon and never open the front door ... I'm desperate to sit down, organize myself and this house, and get control back! The forecast?

Perfection. Glorious sunny perfection. Just like the first official day of Fall when I walked with swooper and just like the 104 perfect days of summer we had before that. Don't get me wrong, I know I'm lucky as a ladybug to be blessed with this kind of weather - Lord knows it sure doesn't stay this way in New England. So I plan to soak up every minute while I can. Yup, the denial will continue until I find room on my to-do list ... no Fall for me, not yet anyway ...