Halloween party pics & video

You know... you end up making decisions about what part of the American Culture you want your child to be exposed to... and then sometimes, it just happens without really thinking about it. That's what happened with Halloween. We just thought it would be cute to dress her up and let her do it. The first year, she would walk up to the door and (barely) say "Trick or Treat" and people thought she was so cute, they started out giving her several pieces of candy rather than just one. (I tried to stop them, but I was outnumbered by Kenzie and Daddy.) It was done so often that by the time we finally got to a house that only gave her one piece, she looked at them like "Where's the rest?" and said "More". She learned quick.

This year, since we are expecting rain tomorrow, we made sure we went to a Halloween party put on by my husband's place of employment. And she picked the costume - a witch. The outfit was complete with dark purple nails, black lip gloss, a plastic cauldron for her candy (which I put one of those battery operated jack-o-lantern lights in that changed colors - gave it a nice glow coming out of it and I think every kid in the place her age just HAD to see what was in there!) and a glow stick for her magic wand. She was cute as can be. And for a cheap outfit, she won 3rd place in her age category - although I like to think it wasn't so much the costume as it was her "being in the role". She kept waving her magic wand at people, casting spells.

Daddy's Girl

A couple of weekends ago, we went to eat at a favorite downtown pizza joint. This place has been in business since 1953, and serves some really great pizza!

Kenzie loves this place - and started goofing off for me so I began to shoot photos. She so dearly loves her daddy. But she began saying, "Hey Mama, take a picture of this" and then she'd "pose" for me.

What will your epitaph say? Here's a few I like for me...

I coudn't choose which one I liked the best. They are each apropos in their own way.











Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

Piss Ass: This had to happen sooner or later...

I picked Kenzie up yesterday from daycare, and we were having a lively debate (I thought it was friendly... guess it wasn't from her point of view) about who "owned" the blankies (two very old linen towels that I had bought at an auction years ago). When I sat down on the driver's side, she said, "You're a piss ass."

What the?

She'd never heard that term from me nor my husband (who doesn't use any profanity or vulgarity at all).

OK - here is the moment when I either do it right or do it wrong. I asked her one more time to clarify what she said... and she looked me straight in the eye and said "Piss ass". Clear as day. Grinning. I even questioned it to be sure...

I just glared at her and told her that that was a bad word, that I was not happy she said it.... and I didn't want to hear another sound from her for awhile.

Not... another... sound.

Several sniffles later, she starts to talk...

I told her the only thing I wanted to hear from her were two words: I'm Sorry.

OK, technically that's 3 words...

By the time we got to the pharmacy, she asked if she was going inside. I told her I only wanted to hear "I"m sorry" - and I guess she'd had enough time to think about it, so she said "I'm sorry, Mama." And she actually sounded like she meant it.

I then told her that we don't call each other names, and that what she said was very bad. I also told her that I know I sometimes seem mean, but I am responsible for making sure she grows up to be respectful, considerate and knows that she can say she's mad and state why she is mad without calling people names.

I know that when she was 2 and even through most of this past year, if she said a word that was (in our home) considered a bad word, I could ignore it, and if we didn't repeat it or use it, she would drop it. But she is now at a point where she is beginning to have a better understanding about words, their meanings, and how to use them.

Time will only tell if I handled this one right. I guess this can be the trial run for when she's a teenager and calls me a stupid bitch because, as we all know, teenagers are the smartest people in the whole wide world... right?

Wonder how I'll handle it then.

OH, and by the end of the day there were lots of hugs and kisses and "I love you"s. I never go to bed mad at her... She always gets the softer, sweeter side of mommy at the end of the day.

Where is that dialect from?

Here lately, Kenzie has been doing something that is driving me crazy. She has been talking like a backwoods hillbilly. Living in South Central Indiana, a lot of people here have the typical southern Indiana dialect... but we dont' speak like that in our home. I am sure there are certain things we say (such as how we say "greasy" or the word "that") that would place (at least me) in the southern region of Indiana, but I do not have a [strong] Hoosier twang to my speach unless I affect it... on purpose.

And normally, Kenzie speaks very plainly, without any noticeable dialect (at least for this portion of Indiana). But here lately, sometimes she has been saying things with a definite dialect that I am trying to place. I thought perhaps, being in a college town, she would have heard it from someone she is in contact with daily at the daycare... a lot of the younger women working there are college students from all over the U.S. But that is not the case... none of the women I have talked with have this dialect.

I can't tell if it reminds me of Arkansas... West Virginia.... ?????? I just have no clue. I mean... there is only one syllable in the word "help"... but Kenzie is saying it so it sounds like "heyalp". She has this dialect down to an art... "Yeeou wanna put lotion on mah laigs? I kin heyalp yeeou."

Then I got to thinking.. one of the favorite movies at the daycare is a Goofy movie. Hmmmmmm.... Goofy kinda talks like this... maybe she is imitating that.

Wherever it is coming from... she can switch it back and forth between strong dialect and no dialect in an instant. I'll hang in there and hope it's just something she is going to grow out of.

And then again... If this is something she is doing on purpose, she is going to make one really great little actess.

IU Campus Walk

Indiana University has one of the most beautiful campuses in the U.S. I took Kenzie on a walk through the campus... she got all excited to see the squirrels and chipmunks scurrying about looking for food.

It was a perfect fall day. I'll try to get back to the campus with her in a week or two when the leaves are in high color.

I got the biggest kick when she saw the bronze statue of Herman B. Wells - she kept stepping on his foot to check and be sure he wasn't real. When she felt comfortable, she sat beside him.

The Multicultural Festival

Our fair city has a Multicultural Festival every fall. On October 1st, we went to the complex where they were holding it. We always like going to this festival, especially to hear the different musical pieces.

Here is a demo of martial arts from China.































Here we were sitting down and resting. It was hot that day - in the 80's. Indian Summer has come and on that day, we were sweltering, except in the shade where a nice breeze would cool you off. Unfortunately, it was nothing but asphalt where all the events were taking place, so the ambient heat was increased by the radiant heat... or something like that. Gee, I almost sound smart...

Here is Kenzie playing with a Chinese yo-yo. Well, that's what I've heard them called. She was good at it - Mommy just made a mess of it every time I tried to "throw" it.




















Here she is listening to - and loving - a type of African music and dance that was imported to South America with the Portuguese slave trade. (I have forgotten what it was called - if I find the paperwork on it, I'll change this post and put the correct name for it here.) Surprise, Kenzie really LOVED this. It also incorporated a type of "dance" that involved martial arts. She began beating her balloon with the yo-yo like it was a drum, "playing" along with the musicians.




































They asked that they get volunteers to come up and form a circle. The group was to clap their hands and to sing a musical phrase after every time the one singer sang something. Then they got up and walked in a circle , stopped and watched the martial arts dancing. Kenzie just had to participate - she couldn't wait to get up and join in the group.























Of course, instead of clapping, she was making her yo-yo work. I think she might have been trying to imitate the way they have held teh musical instruments here... She has her own style, and she follows no one. I really love that about her. Probably until she is 12 and begins to think she knows it all... and then "her own style" will drive me crazy.






The last event of the day involved group dancing to Eastern European music. Again, she just had to join in. She got the biggest kick out of "dancing" with the group. The smile she has is worth a thousand hot days in the sun.


I'm looking forward to next year's event. I think Kenzie will enjoy participating in more dances as she gets older.