Happy Halloween!!!

No School Today!

I'm a free woman today!  That's right, NO SCHOOL--- for me or the girls.  So I did what every other self-respecting working mom would do on a free day----- woke up at the crack of dawn and cooked my beloved daughters a healthy breakfast rolled out of bed at 9:30 & took the girls to McDonalds for breakfast.  Just the drive through, mind you, because I wasn't about to put on real clothes on my free day.

So we're driving home happily eating our breakfast burritos and I hear this conversation:

Grace:  Those Indians sure were big people at the Pow Wow, weren't they Sissy?

Sophie:  Yeah, but Thai people are small.

Grace: Excuse me, I tooted  (then a cascade of giggles came from the back seat).  My people (the Indians) are big, huge, strong, huge, big people.

Sophie:  I bet they could crush a baby with their big feet.

Grace:  Crush it flat.  Smashed.  Like a pancake. Probably with guts squishing out.

(more giggles erupt from the back seat)

Sophie:  Excuse me, I tooted too (even more giggles).

Both:  Mooooooommmmm, would you roll down the windows.  It stinks in here.

Sophie:  Mom, Grace touched my hand.

Grace:  I did not.  Your hand was on my side.

Sophie:  See! She did.  She just admitted it.

This whole conversation took about 15 seconds to complete.  Somehow I'm exhausted and ready to go back to school to hang out with my 12 year olds......

Life is good.  ;-)

Ahhh--- the joys of being a kid

---playing barefoot in the yard with your sister.  Priceless!

When I grow up I want to be a.....

You mean you don't know what these pictures say???????

Let me preface this little surprise by saying that the other kids in the class all chose to be policemen, doctors, nurses, teachers.... well, you get the idea.

Both of my girls--- yes BOTH OF THEM want to be..... wait for it......  MASSAGERS.  Don't know what a massager is?  The correct Arneson girl pronunciation would be ma-saudge-er.  A massager would be the same thing as a masseuse or massage therapist.

In Sophie's world, the client drives to the "massager" building, lays down on a bed, and gets a relaxing massage with two big dogs to keep him/her company.

In Grace's world, the "massager" has blue hair and enjoys massaging in the great outdoors.  Wonder what those swirly things are?  Silly you--- those are the hand motions the massager makes.  Again, an animal would keep the client company, but this time it's a rat. 

Ahhh, I feel relaxed already.

On another note, Sophie got student of the month.   Must have been for her great artwork.

Crazy shower hair!

Is there anything more fun for little kids than making crazy hair in the shower?

So maybe Sophie's hair isn't the craziest in this picture, but I think her lack of teeth makes up for any hair issues.  That ginormous hole is from two, yes two, missing teeth.  ;-)

And Gracie has the Ed Grimley hair from Saturday Night Live going on..... Plus, those teeth..... THOSE TEETH!!!!  I don't know if she'll ever grow into those things.  ;-)                    

Another lost tooth!

Other than a dimple in a cute little chin,

What's more adorable than a toothless grin?

~Azu "Betty" Espezia 

Not much is more adorable than a toothless grin, and now my big girl has one of those grins.

Sophie almost looks like she is in pain in this first picture, but when she smiles only her bottom teeth show.  This was the best she could do ---  and she was sick of me asking her to smile.  ;-)

And here is a normal smile--- only bottom teeth showing.  I love my big girl!

What a fun day!

Wow! What a fun day we had today. Fred, Grammy, the girls, and I went to the Miami NOW festival and had a fantastic time!!!

We watched the kids' Fancy Dance competition, and it was amazing. The costumes were gorgeous!

Sophie & Grace made Indian bracelets and key chains.  A very nice lady taught Grace how to say hello in Navajo (Yá'át'ééh).

The girls later got their faces painted.

Sophie the monkey girl made it to the top of the coconut tree & got to ring the buzzer.  Gracie go so close but just couldn't climb those last few feet. 

Yay for Native Oklahoma Weekend!!!!

Today is the first day of Miami NOW, and I'm excited.  Very excited!  It isn't often that I am able to expose Gracie to her heritage (she is half Navajo), but this weekend will be the exception!!!  A full weekend of Native American dance, songs, storytelling and food has been planned in Miami and we're loading up and making a day of it tomorrow!!!  I just wish the Navajo Tribe was represented, but we're in the wrong part of the country for that.

The girls want to get there early because there are Dachshund races in the morning.  So what does that have to do with Native Americans, you ask?  Nothin'.  Nothin' at all, but it sure will be cute, won't it?

I'm excited to see the beautiful costumes worn by our area tribes.  The Stomp Dance should be fun to watch, and I'm really excited to see the Best Fancy Dance Championship.  I'm also really excited to eat the always-healthy (HA) fry bread!  Yum!

My plan is to take lots and lots and lots and lots of pictures!!!  :-)  And I'll be sure to braid Gracie's hair in her "Indian braids" that she loves so much.  I'm just thankful that my child no longer believes that she is the world's only living Indian (which is not only wrong in so many ways but also politically incorrect).

Fashionista Friday

What posers! ;-)