Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Who is Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

November 4th - Election day!

My son Victor also casted his vote today but not for Obama or for McCain but for the Big Bad Wolf. He told me that he had heard the wolf's side of the story at school today (The Three Little Pigs) and then he was asked to cast a vote for either the pig or the wolf. After "careful consideration," he decided to vote for the wolf. He did believe that it all had been a tragic misunderstanding. He also told me that most of his friends voted for the pig and thought the wolf was lying but that he stuck to his guns and casted his vote for the wolf. I personally tend to believe the wolf was not entirely truthful in his account but I do respect the guts it took for Victor to stand by an unpopular decision. I was happy to see he was excited to cast his vote and make his voice heard and I was proud to realize my kid has found his own voice and is not afraid to vote accordingly. I trust that we all had the courage to get out there and vote today - whichever way we decided to vote, as long as it got done!

Here is the account of the wolf on the three little pigs case for your enjoyment:

SOMERSET PA (AP) -- A. Wolf took the stand today in his own defense. This shocked and stunned the media who predicted that he would not testify in the brutal double murder trial. A. Wolf is accused of killing (and eating) The First Little Pig, and The Second Little Pig. This criminal trial is expected to be followed by a civil trial to be brought by the surviving Third Little Pig. The case has been characterized as a media circus.
His testimony is transcribed below:
"Everybody knows the story of the Three Little Pigs. Or at least they think they do. But I'll let you in on a little secret. Nobody knows the real story, because nobody has ever heard my side of the story. I'm Alexander T. Wolf. You can call me Al. I don't know how this whole Big Bad Wolf thing got started, but it's all wrong. Maybe it's because of our diet. Hey, it's not my fault wolves eat cute little animals like bunnies and sheep and pigs. That's just the way we are. If cheeseburgers were cute, folks would probably think you were Big and Bad too. But like I was saying, the whole big bad wolf thing is all wrong. The real story is about a sneeze and a cup of sugar.
THIS IS THE REAL STORY.
Way back in Once Upon a Time time, I was making a birthday cake for my dear old granny. I had a terrible sneezing cold. I ran out of sugar. So I walked down the street to ask my neighbor for a cup of sugar. Now this neighbor was a pig. And he wasn't too bright either. He had built his whole house out of straw. Can you believe it? I mean who in his right mind would build a house of straw? So of course the minute I knocked on the door, it fell right in. I didn't want to just walk into someone else's house. So I called, "Little Pig, Little Pig, are you in?" No answer. I was just about to go home without the cup of sugar for my dear old granny's birthday cake.
That's when my nose started to itch. I felt a sneeze coming on. Well I huffed. And I snuffed. And I sneezed a great sneeze.
And you know what? The whole darn straw house fell down. And right in the middle of the pile of straw was the First Little Pig - dead as a doornail. He had been home the whole time. It seemed like a shame to leave a perfectly good ham dinner lying there in the straw. So I ate it up. Think of it as a cheeseburger just lying there. I was feeling a little better. But I still didn't have my cup of sugar . So I went to the next neighbor's house. This neighbor was the First Little Pig's brother. He was a little smarter, but not much. He has built his house of sticks. I rang the bell on the stick house. Nobody answered. I called, "Mr. Pig, Mr. Pig, are you in?" He yelled back."Go away wolf. You can't come in. I'm shaving the hairs on my shinny chin chin."
I had just grabbed the doorknob when I felt another sneeze coming on. I huffed. And I snuffed. And I tried to cover my mouth, but I sneezed a great sneeze.
And you are not going to believe this, but the guy's house fell down just like his brother's. When the dust cleared, there was the Second Little Pig - dead as a doornail. Wolf's honor. Now you know food will spoil if you just leave it out in the open. So I did the only thing there was to do. I had dinner again. Think of it as a second helping. I was getting awfully full. But my cold was feeling a little better. And I still didn't have that cup of sugar for my dear old granny's birthday cake. So I went to the next house. This guy was the First and Second Little Pig's brother. He must have been the brains of the family. He had built his house of bricks. I knocked on the brick house. No answer. I called, "Mr Pig, Mr. Pig, are you in?" And do you know what that rude little porker answered? "Get out of here, Wolf. Don't bother me again." Talk about impolite! He probably had a whole sackful of sugar. And he wouldn't give me even one little cup for my dear sweet old granny's birthday cake. What a pig!
I was just about to go home and maybe make a nice birthday card instead of a cake, when I felt my cold coming on. I huffed And I snuffed. And I sneezed once again.
Then the Third Little Pig yelled, " And your old granny can sit on a pin!" Now I'm usually a pretty calm fellow. But when somebody talks about my granny like that, I go a Little crazy. When the cops drove up, of course I was trying to break down this Pig's door. And the whole time I was huffing and puffing and sneezing and making a real scene.
The rest as they say is history.
The news reporters found out about the two pigs I had for dinner. They figured a sick guy going to borrow a cup of sugar didn't sound very exciting.
So they jazzed up the story with all of that "Huff and puff and blow your house down"

And they made me the Big Bad Wolf. That's it The real story. I was framed. "

Monday, November 3, 2008

Mama Mia!

Mama Mia! that's the new phrase Frankie has been using to address me. At first, I thought it was a one-day thing but it has lasted over a week. This morning he tapped my shoulder and said "you are Mama Mia" - it was soooo funny! I responded repeating that back to him with a question, "I am Mama Mia?" I asked and he said, "YES!" Victor claims he taught him to say this but he has never called me that before and Rebecca says he is copying this from her singing the ABBA song but I have never heard her singing it. Everyone wants credit for Frankie's smart remark but I am not sure who gets the medal on this one. Either way, Frankie reached so many milestones with this phrase - he has been able to identify me with the expression and today he used pointing, eye-contact, name recognition, answered a question and all with a great smile in his face....in my book this deserves a loud MAMA MIA!!!!!!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Thank you Lord for our Daily Pumpkin!


Autumn is in full swing in the Pacific Northwest and we newcomers have "to do as Romans in Rome" or is it as Washingtonians in Washington?  whatever the case, we are adapting and enjoying every bit of it.  It's not like we don't have pumpkins in Miami but our kids here are taking a worshiping attitude toward these pumpkins since the beginning of the season....I am not sure if it's the weather, the smell of pine trees in the air, the color of the leaves or just a little bit of everything that makes this time of the year a true "harvest time" for all, farmers and city dwellers. Well, for us city kids there is always the chance of a field trip to complete the experience.  Recently, Victor and his class had the chance to go to a real farm nearby and pick their own pumpkin (kid sized and all) from the pumpkin patch.  The patch looked more like an Easter egg hunt field but I am not complaining, they made it easy for the kids and it was lots of fun!  Frankie and I tagged along and recruited my sister, Gaby, who was visiting at the time; Ms. Rebecca is too grown up for preschool field trips, so she said, so she did not come along in our adventure.  Frankie and Victor enjoyed every second of the foggy day, petting the animals (I wasn't happy with that but I took my antibacterial so it was all good), learning about farming from our "tour guide" and of course, picking their pumpkin.  I loved how Frankie followed Victor's lead interacting with other kids in the group and the "social ritual" of the field trip experience could not have been more fulfilling than it was - we scored great and even got pumpkins to prove it!