The Jury is Out

So on the morning of the Haven window replacements , I discover that I've forgotten to check in on my Jury Duty for the month, and I'm supposed to be at the courthouse. Tell me I'm not the only one who forgets to call in? Actually it's easier for me to go to the website and check there. Either way, I end up rushing downtown and arrive an hour late. Whoops!

A lot of people dread jury duty. It's tough for a lot of people to put life on hold. We ended up sending Emma to Welenco with Todd while I went, since we don't have a babysitter. While it was inconvenient for me to do it, I had to sympathize with the judge (a Glenn Beck lookalike), who had to listen to some of the bizarre reasons people think they shouldn't be on the jury. It was almost worth it to be there for the entertainment value. Here's some examples from my morning in court:

Judge: "You know the prosecuting attorney?"

Mr. H.: "Yes."

Judge: "And how do you know her?"

Mr. H.: "Well, she's a public figure, so I know her."

This guy was blatantly trying to get out of it. He had the same answer regarding the defense attourney. Hello? Obama is a public figure -- should I claim I know him??? Then the prosecutor was questioning the jurors on kinds of reading material. She discussed books, newspapers, etc. She tried to talk to different people, not always the same jurors. She turned to one younger guy:

Prosecutor: "Mr. S., what kind of magazines do you like to read?"

Mr. S.: (was hard to understand) "Hot Rod and _______"

Prosecutor: "And what does that magazine have in it?"

Mr. S.: "Well, like cars, ... fast cars, and ....parts, and .....pretty girls, and...."

Prosecutor: [cuts him off] "So it's a men's health magazine?"

Mr. S.: "Um. Yeah."

Here's another--a woman:

Prosecuting Attorney: "And what is your disability that prevents you from sitting in the courtroom?"

Ms. B.: "Um, well..... see, I can't like, um,... sit? Like for less than 15 minutes at a time."

Of course, she MEANT to say MORE than 15 minutes at a time. Slip of the tongue! The other physical problem guy said:

Mr. J: "I have [he named some disorder acronym that I can't recall]. And it makes me all jittery and my legs are all jumpy and I have to get up and jump around and yell and swear."

Hmmmm. I have the same thing, it's called frustration with my kids. (Actually not, so maybe his disorder was real. His description sounds a bit like Tourette syndrome, but that's not what he called it.)

Anyway, to make a long story short, I was seated in the gallery and when the judge broke for lunch, he gave people different times to return, based on whether or not he wanted to personally question them. I was in the last group, so didn't have to return until 4:30, and by 5:00 they had selected their 35-person panel, and I wasn't considered. From the 35 people, they choose the 12 trial jurors and 1 alternate.

The obnoxious Mr. H. from above, who had many issues that morning, did not return, so I assume ONE of his extensive list of excuses finally got him out of it. He is a college professor, and it sure made me question the kinds of people that can teach our young people!! I am just perverse enough that I would have kept him as a juror, just because he DIDN'T want to be there!

Odds that I would still have to report this month are almost nil, as this trial should last 2-3 days, so I am probably off the hook this time around. I had postponed this jury duty from last year, when Emma was brand new, and it would have been impossible to be there. You only get one postponement, so this was my jury month for sure. Now I'm heaving a sigh of relief. (I'm hoping they convict the guy -- 10 counts of lewd conduct with a minor -- who was back in court after the original trial was thrown out on a technicality. He's still guilty.)

Have you ever heard (or given) a wild excuse for not sitting on a jury?

Let the Sun Shine In

Sometimes, we discuss, debate and think things through. Other times, we just plain make a decision and jump on it. We didn't debate very long on the latest Haven window replacements: it was a no-brainer.

The old 70's windows are in bad shape. Many have lost their seals, or leak around the edges. At one point, Todd suggested simply jerking out the ones in our bedroom, and eliminating them. (NOT going to happen!) But they looked pretty bad:



They're not dirty -- that's the water marks from dried condensation between the panes. You really CAN'T see through them!!

The new ones have a panel at the bottom for ventilation, which we really needed in the room.

We only replaced 5 windows, and a sliding glass door on this round; these were the ones that really needed it. Todd ordered 3 more that he will do himself, for in the family room, which are probably the worst ones in the Haven.

And one of the perks is that our utilities company has a rebate program for upgrading your weatherization, and new windows will count. Just the laundry room window alone will get us a $48.00 rebate. But really, having decent windows is going to make a huge difference for us, so we're excited!

Molly Mormon can KEEP her Pedestal

Despite any pre-conceived notions you may or may not have about me, let's get one thing perfectly clear: I am less domestic than most people think. (A few know me well enough to know better!!) For some strange reason, there are those that seem to think I'm really crafty, bake a lot, and excel at all manner of domestic arts.

This is SO not true.

I apparently have just one really amazing talent, and that is to be able to pull the wool over others' eyes!! I did not grow up doing these kinds of things, nor did I watch my mother do them much. Regarding the kitchen, well, my mom didn't want me in the kitchen too much, because I never left it as clean as she wanted it. We had two different versions of "clean up after yourself". I thought rinsing and stacking the dishes & pans I used was fine. Mom felt I should wash, dry and put them away. Kind of the "leave-no-trace" approach. Crafts were unheard-of in my home, unless they were of the needlework variety. Since I'm not a fan of creating needlework (but really love OTHERS' creations!!), I never went far with that. Someday I'll post about how I got started painting.

So whenever I actually DO something remotely domesticated, it shocks me so much, I tell people about it, in a "can you BELIEVE it???" attitude. People mistakenly think, "Oh, so that's what she did TODAY. She must do this kind of stuff constantly."

NOT.

I'm not Molly Mormon, and she doesn't need to worry about me usurping her pedestal any time soon. Having said that, here's what I did -- and please don't think I run around doing this stuff all the time!!

One thing we inherited here at the Haven when we moved in, is our grapes. Since we haven't used them like we should, we actually considered ripping them out, but because they weren't encroaching on anything, and we had other stuff to do, we left them alone. They're seeded, so they're not the greatest for eating, but they're wonderful for juicing. Not having a juicer, I never did much with that...... until now.

Last summer, I bought a juicer. (It was on sale, what can I say?) It's not one of those mash-it-up, upscale blender things. This is a steam juicer. It looks like this:

Ok, well it has a lid, too. The bottom section holds the boiling water. The top section is a perforated piece that holds the fruit. As the steam rises through the open cone of the middle section, the grapes release their juice, and the juice drains out of the top, into the middle section. These are the same grapes as the first photo, I didn't add or take any out, but this is after they've steamed a while. The tube coming out the side siphons off the juice. There's also a clamp on the tube that you can't really see... it allows changing jars without the juice running all over. After filling the jars you process them in your canner. (Although as hot as that juice is, I don't think you really need to process - the jars would seal fine on their own. Don't tell the USDA I said that.) I am a bit of a rebel in the canner department, because I use a steam canner -- not a steam pressure canner, just a steam canner. This is not an "approved" method, so don't tell the USDA about this either!!

These are the three full quarts I got as they finished processing. There was most of a 4th quart that I didn't process, because it was going into grape jelly. If you're really going for quantity, you can get even more juice by stirring and pushing on the grapes, but since I was going for a reallly clear juice, I didn't do that, and therefore had less juice overall.

These pictures are from my first juicing session. Since then I've done another batch, made jelly with some of the juice from this first batch, Todd's parents have picked grapes for their own juice, and there's still more grapes out in the yard, but I don't think there's enough left for yet another batch. Why are we picking so late in the year? Well, Peggy (Todd's mom) has been juicing for years, and she tells me that if you wait to pick until after the first freeze, the grapes can set their sugar. I'm all for it. (And as a non-domestic, city kid -- I didn't know that about grapes!)

Colonel Mustard did it, with the Lead Pipe, In the Hall

Well, Haven Improvement is an ongoing thing, it's just that usually it progresses in spurts.

Right now, the current [indoor] project is the boys' downstairs bathroom remodel. I cannot express how desperately needed this project has been. The room was seriously a health hazard down there. With Brandon in Jamaica, this puts Cameron as Todd's right-hand man and official (only) construction go-fer.

(This latest photo shows the new framing for the walk-in shower-to-be, including the shampoo nook. After putting in the walk-in shower in the mud room remodel, we are sold on the thought of no doors & no shower curtain. Note the angled wall and the tankless water heater already installed. The shower entrance is on the left, by the ladder.)

Cameron is a big fan of finishing off this room, because it's directly across the hall from his bedroom. While it's out of service, he has to go down the hall & upstairs for showers & etc, so he has a direct stake in getting this bathroom done. As go-fer, he's running back and forth from the garage to the bathroom with tools, cut boards, and anything else Todd asks for. So, while he's not complaining exactly, he does have one wish, which he expressed to me numerous times the other day. He said,

"We need a secret underground passage from the bathroom to the garage."

The image that came to my mind was my old "Clue" game board that had secret passages to other rooms! I told Cam,

"Ok, but you'll lose a turn if you use it."

C: "It would be worth it!"

Later, our conversation went like this:

C: "We need a secret underground passage from the bathroom to the garage." (I did say he was repeating himself)

M: "You realize, of course, that if there WERE a secret passage to the garage, that it would have to go right through YOUR bedroom."

C: "All the better!"

I'm hoping this remodel can continue without any "got-too-busy-for-it" delays. Todd and I are in discussions for colors and styles for this room. Our challenge is to make it look masculine without being overly dark, since it has no window. I'll keep you posted.

Steady as She Goes!

As promised, here is the video of Emma's first steps!

I would have liked to post the finished video that Cameron edited for us -- in its entirety. Cam added music for me, which really turned out well. However, being the good kid that I am (cough, cough), I don't want to violate Blogger's TOS -- Terms of Service.

Several months back, when Cameron & his cousin were taking their Video Productions class in school, they made a video from our family sledding day at Field's Spring State Park -- Brandon's last snowy experience before 2 years in a tropical paradise. They did a great job on it, titled it, "The Sledding Chronicles," put special effects in, and put some music behind it. I thought it was pretty cool, so I uploaded it to Facebook. It was less than 2 weeks, and Facebook sent me a notice for violating their TOS and they removed the video. The violation was because of the music being used "without permission from the copyright owner." Whoops! I didn't even think that it would be a copyright violation.

Well, with my Facebook experience in mind, I don't want to make the same mistake with Blogger, which has the same phrasing in their terms. So this video is sans background music. For the full effect, I recommend either emailing me for the music-ified version, or -- find "Walking on Sunshine" by Katrina & the Waves, and play it while you watch this.

At any rate, Em, like most toddlers, has taken to walking everywhere now, picked up some speed, and gets steadier every day. Unsurprisingly, she also is getting into things more than ever... more on that in an upcoming post.

Enjoy!

One Year Ago...

One year ago today, our little Em came into our lives.... shaking up life as we knew it!

Thinking back, I can tell you that Emma's birth was different than the others in a few ways, but much the same in others. My best summarizing statement was: my body forgot how to do childbirth. Sure, some people claim that your body "remembers". HA!

I did feel a sense of relief, knowing that it all went smoothly, no complications, no drugs, and our little girl was healthy and sleeping, well, ...... like a baby. But when the labor nurse commented to me, "That was fun!", I just couldn't quite manage to think of it in those terms!!

She did follow suit with the others, making her appearance in the morning hours, and we had a very pretty sunrise just after she arrived.

I can't express the joy we feel with Emma joining our ranks. While we've been getting jaded and cynical, she just has to toddle over and hug us, and we smile again -- in situations that otherwise would never have brought a smile. Don't you just love the long eyelashes???

So these photos are from tonight's birthday party for her. Sorry for the bizarre reflections off the glass tabletop. I was impressed how well she figured out how to unwrap gifts. (And in 2 months, we'll have to KEEP her from unwrapping those gifts she finds laying around under pine trees!)

She got the whole cake idea right away too-- and couldn't keep her hands out of it, even before it was sliced.

We missed having Brandon there for her party, and I'm ready to pull out the videos we made of Brandon reading books to her. I don't want him to be a stranger to her.

Heading into our next year with her, we can see that she will bring all sorts of adventures (and reminders) to the Haven!!

Plotting and Planning

It's been a long time since we've planned a birthday party for a young child. Planning for teenagers is different.... they want expensive things, or just plain don't know what they want -- a sure sign they already have too much.

Planning for Emma's upcoming First Birthday Party is just fun! When I started thinking about it, I realized that while she could always use a few more clothes to wear, what this child REALLY needs is entertainment. The poor little thing has to make do with our old leftover toys, cast offs, and items-that-aren't-really-toys-but-get-used-that-way-anyway. Yes, I give my baby empty cardboard boxes on a regular basis. One day, she was playing in the pantry and had a bondage moment with the chair:

So last night, we went toy shopping, and it was such a kick to see her eyes light up as she was totally transfixed with real toys. (My policy is to always take small toddlers toy shopping with you, especially if you've got time before the gift date. They show you exactly what they really like, and by the time they receive it, they forget they've ever seen it before.)

I can't wait until Sunday, for her to open gifts (well, ok we'll help her open stuff) and find some of the coolest stuff she's ever seen in her life! Isn't it wonderful how small children are easily impressed? Now if only I knew how to impress jaded teenagers!