The 12 Days of Cat-Mas

If you tuned in yesterday you saw my (slightly nerdish) version of the 12 Days of Christmas, put together for writer's group. Well, my kids started reading and they wanted in on it, so here's their creation.

I give to you...the 12 Days of Cat-Mas!!!

The Twelve Days of Cat-Mas

On the first day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

A sparkling silver collar just for me.

On the second day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Two kitty treats,

And a black and white checked collar just for me.

On the third day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a red and green striped collar just for me.

On the fourth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave me

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a rhinestone studded collar just for me.

On the fifth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a pawprint printed collar just for me.

On the sixth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a glitter covered collar just for me.

On the seventh day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a yellow and black collar just for me.

On the eighth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Eight mounds of cat hair,

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a blue sequined collar just for me.

On the ninth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Nine fuzzy cat beds,

Eight mounds of cat hair,

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a purple safety collar just for me.

On the tenth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Ten wet tongued kisses,

Nine fuzzy cat beds,

Eight mounds of cat hair,

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a diamond-crusted collar just for me.

On the eleventh day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Eleven catnip mice,

Ten wet tongued kisses,

Nine fuzzy cat beds,

Eight mounds of cat hair,

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a pink and white swirled collar just for me.

On the twelfth day of Cat-Mas my kitties gave to me

Twelve muddy pawprints,

Eleven catnip mice,

Ten wet tongued kisses,

Nine fuzzy cat beds,

Eight mounds of cat hair,

Seven cricket corpses,

Six jingle bell balls,

New litter boxes,

Four black and white kittens,

Three dead mice,

Two kitty treats,

And a sparkling silver collar just for me.

The 12 Days of Christmas

Writer's group tonight. What does that mean? It means it's time to finish putting the polish on the rewrites of The 12 Days of Christmas I've been working on! Posting them here: All comments welcome!

This particular version was inspired when I walked into a Borders with my shopping list in hand and realized most of the titles I was looking for had a number in them somewhere-and most of my Christmas wish list was made up of books!

The Twelve Days of Christmas

On the first day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the second day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the third day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the fourth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the fifth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the sixth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the seventh day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And the Power of One by Courtenay.


On the eighth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
The Sixty Eight Rooms
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And the Power of One by Courtenay.

On the ninth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
Nine Kinds of Naked
The Sixty Eights Room
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the tenth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
Ten Little Zombies
Nine Kinds of Naked
The Sixty Eights Room
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the eleventh day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
The Eleven Comedies
Ten Little Zombies
Nine Kinds of Naked
The Sixty Eights Room
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my bookshelf gave to me
Twelve Mighty Orphans
The Eleven Comedies
Ten Little Zombies
Nine Kinds of Naked
The Sixty Eights Room
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Six Sigma Handbook
The Book of Five Rings
I Am Number Four
Three Seconds
A Tale of Two Cities
And The Power of One by Courtenay.

For Those Who Doodle

I used to like to doodle while on the phone, back before motherhood demanded that all phone calls be accompanied by cleaning. This, however, elevates doodling to a whole new level... Grab a cup of tea, some pen and paper, and have a mathemagical time!

http://www.crainium.net/jdjArchives/2010/12/doodling_in_math_class.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+WithinTheCrainium+%28within+the+crainium%29

Native American Games and Cheap Popsicle Sticks

Breaking news: The boys have found a way to entertain themselves. How? By re-creating a Native American game using popsicle sticks. This game is actually cool enough I felt the need to share.

Here’s how you play:

1) Each player takes 3 popsicle sticks.
2) Color one side of the sticks red, the other side yellow.
3) On the red side of ONE stick, draw a snake.

So by the time you’re done setting up each player should have 3 popsicle sticks, red on one side, yellow on the other, one with a snake on the red side. EACH PLAYER GETS A SNAKE. This was actually remarkably vague in the initial directions-it took us a few minutes to put the pieces together and realize that if every player didn’t have a snake, it wasn’t going to work.

All the players sit in a circle on the floor and take turns throwing their sticks.

3 Red Sides Showing=3 points
3 Yellow Sides Showing=2 points
2 Red Sides and 1 Yellow Side Showing=1 point
2 Yellow Sides and 1 Red Side Showing=0 points

Snakes add two points to the initial score. So 3 red sides showing would be 3 points, plus 2 for the snake=5 pts. 2 yellow sides and 1 red side, if the red side has a snake=2 points. You get the picture.

First player to 20 points wins.

My four year old is currently creaming his brother. It’ll be interesting to see how long this can last 

Tortillas for Breakfast

You know you’re overdue for a grocery run when you’re resorting to cold tortillas for breakfast because you’re out of bread and cereal, and before your first cup of coffee making, say, pancakes and eggs is completely out of the question!

Because really, while there’s an abundance of ready-made breakfast food floating around out there, there’s a serious lack of cheap, healthy pre-made breakfast food. You can only live on Pop Tarts, muffins and granola bars so long before your jeans start crying about it, and even if you don’t gain weight too long on a junk food diet just leaves you feeling icky. (No, I’m not going on a rant about losing weight. I have my own issues there, none of which I’m getting into today.)

So the question is, what kind of easy, ready-made breakfast foods can you keep in stock that are reasonably healthy and the kids won’t consume within five minutes of their introduction to the pantry shelves?

In other news, I find myself at home with my two boys today-an interesting circumstance, all things considered. L is spending the weekend with my aunt. I understand there were going to be Christmas cookies involved, and the little girl next door was coming over to spend the weekend. Sleep wasn’t on the agenda, so I have a certain amount of sympathy!

What to do with ourselves? That’s another question altogether. I have a to-do list as long as my arm, but it’s a rare weekend where the adult-child ratio is actually 1 to 1, and the boys don’t seem inclined to just spend the day hanging out anyway. Contemplating a trip to the movies later this evening; we’re supposed to take all of the kids to see “Tangled” next weekend, but “Megamind” calls.

**No, I’m not interested in Harry Potter. Loved the books, but I hear they cut a lot out of the movie. I also hear, however, that the special effects were wicked. I’ll probably pick it up when it comes out on DVD solely for that. I also pre-ordered “Eclipse”, because (and I’ll deny it to my last breath) I actually enjoyed the movie.

To take a completely different side route, I’m also gearing up to start the last in my fanfic trilogy, but not having seen the movies or read the books in a while I’ve kind of lost touch with the story. There’s a Twilight marathon in my future at some point, probably next weekend, to catch myself back up. Let’s just hope my stomach can handle it…**

Hmmm….what time is Megamind playing, again?

Holiday Crazies

Dear hearts, when is it too early and/or too much? Honestly, I appreciate anyone with the drive to start decorating for the December holidays the second the sun rises on the day after Thanksgiving- Xmas isn't even a full month away sometimes, and it's fun to have the decorations up as long as possible. The other holidays in the month, well they have a rotating beginning, so decorate early and often, right?

Yes! Why not? I'm beginning the search now. Last Xmas I remember reading about a decoration that stopped traffic- a dummy was rigged to look like a person who'd slipped off of the roof while hanging decorations. I am daring myself and the world to find the best and worst of this year's decor and post the most exciting of each and to comment on just when enough is enough (if ever!). Happy holidays and happy hunting!

Are We Getting a Little Crazy about Social Media?

I’m starting to think we may be going a little batty with the social media. Yes, I know, I know. It only took me how many years to figure this out?

But here’s the thing. It never seems real until you catch yourself doing it. In this case, I caught myself hopping on to Facebook the minute I finished a project I’d been working on sporadically for the past three weeks just to announce that I was going to see how much homework I could grind out before bed.

Really? Is this my life? That the most exciting thing I have to share with the people I know is that it’s time to do my homework? Or is it just indicative of how the Internet is curing our innate need for privacy through social media sites like FB and, oh, say…this blog? LOL!

Review: Speak Now, by Taylor Swift

Last night's illustrious stop to Wally World (the one that yielded the knowledge that the entire hat industry needs to be fired) yielded other goodies as well. Namely, an extremely cost-effective version of Taylor Swift's newest album, "Speak Now."

My daughter-L-has a huge thing for Taylor Swift. And by "a thing", I mean she begs me to put on Taylor Swift the minute we get in the car. Since this is the first Taylor Swift CD I've actually gone out and bought rather than just using and abusing the power of YouTube, it's driven me nuts on more than one occasion!

But she's been stalking this album since we heard it was going to be released, so I told her we'd pick it up. I approached it with a grain of salt at first, then dove whole-heartedly into the deep end.

With tracks like this one on the album, who can blame me?




Now, this is a big swing for the normally upbeat Swift. Her songs have a much more organic, homegrown sound to them this time around, as opposed to the heavily flavored techno, pop and country that have been so prevalent on her other albums. Some of them, like this one, tickled me right to the bone. Others missed the mark. And there's a number of times where she warbles like a bird when she should have held the note, as though she was taking her voice for a test drive. Not very Taylor.

But fans who are willing to set aside the memories of some of her other songs and appreciate this album for what it is-a unique step forward for a young woman flexing her songwriting muscles on her own for the very first time-will really enjoy this. And a number of people who haven't cared for her earlier works will find this a huge step forward.




Tracks

1) Mine
2) Sparks Fly
3) Back to December
4) Speak Now (Truthfully, easily my favorite song on the album)
5) Dear John
6) Mean
7) The Story of Us
8) Never Grow Up
9) Enchanted
10) Better Than Revenge
11) Innocent
12) Haunted
13) Last Kiss
14) Long Live

Hellos and Hockey Games

Taking my oldest-I'll call him C-to the hockey game tonight. Now, here's a lesson for all of you out there with kids. When you're tempted to let your husband make all the arrangements and just fill you in, fight the urge. Seriously. As we almost found out, it can end very, very badly. Like, wind up in wrong stadium 2 hours away from the city you're supposed to be in badly.

Why? Because C and his dad thought they were going to see a whole other team play. And until midnight last night they had no idea whether or not C was supposed to be spending the night or if he was coming straight home after the game.

Have to love the grown-up version of telephone.

Of Hats and Hyacinths

I'm thinking today is definitely a day for a warm spiced chai. Or maybe an apple cinnamon. Why? Because it's COLD! I don't know about where you are Vee, but up in New York there's a wind whipping by my window and a healthy layer of frost thinking about taking shape on my windshield.

That healthy layer of frost led me to a whole new dilemma today: What to do about the fact that the kids have managed to lose most of their winter wear? That question drove me to the sacred walls of WalMart at o'dark hundred to scout the aisles for some thermal hats and ski gloves they'll be able to wear when the snow finally stops thinking about it and decides to dump down en masse.

I live in the snow belt of New York. Snow gear should be easy to find, right? Right?

That foolish, foolish conclusion led me to my second dilemma of the day: The realization that 90% of the people who make hats don't live anywhere where there's actually snow. I have tissue paper that's warmer than some of the hats I saw!

All right, so that might be a teeny, tiny exaggeration. But the hats I saw that weren't a lovely shade of puke brown wouldn't have stood a chance against the 20 degree weather and whipping winds (and 3 feet of snow) we can reliably count on every winter. It was a complete waste of time and money.

Bottom line? When did winter wear stop being about staying warm and start being about looking nice while your toes turned blue? I'm holding out for the thermal wear. There has to be a ski shop around here somewhere. In the meantime, it's scudies and mitten clips for everyone.

Is There Anything Better Than Hot Tea and Cool Friends? Yeah, We Didn't Think So Either.

I'm sitting here, in the dark, with the laptop backlit and a cat pretending to snooze at my feet. All in all, not a bad way to spend the evening. But there's something even cooler than snuggly cats and the power of the Internet sitting at your fingertips, and that's having the chance to share those experiences with friends.

Welcome to Tea's 4 Two, where Rae and Vee and anyone else that wants to join in get together to talk movies, food, books, politics, husbands, children jobs and tea. We hope you'll join us often. After all, tea's 4 two...but tea 4 three is so much better!