keen and unkeen

Yesterday, I took the kids to REI. The purpose of the trip was to buy Charlie some new slippers for Valentine's Day, but it turned in to a shoe shopping event for the children. Because once I saw that Keen shoes were marked down as much as 50%, I couldn't resist buying a pair.

Or two.

Or three.

Unfortunately, only the red pair were on sale and Elizabeth and Carolyn insisted on having pink and purple, respectively.

I also bought a couple pairs of Merrell slip ons (marked from $40.00 to $16.83), because I have discovered that buying shoes that your children can put on themselves is a good thing.

A really good thing.

Particularly, once they learn how to put the correct shoe on the correct foot.

I've also discovered that when it comes to shoes, it's better not to go cheap. Actually, that philosophy applies to anything important.

After I spent a long and miserably cold night in a $35.00 Coleman sleeping bag on my first geology field trip, I quickly learned that you get what you pay for.

I would prefer that our children out grow their shoes before they fall apart - and even though our kids play hard - I suspect that the $15.00 red Keen's I picked up yesterday will still be intact for Henry to wear. Hopefully, the $44.00 purple and pink Keen's will still fit the girls when they are in first grade (because I bought two sizes larger and their feet grow slowly). But if not, I'll save them for my granddaughters. Or baby #5. If it's a girl.

Speaking of great shoe deals, I also picked Henry up a pair of moccasins through LL Bean this past week. Considering I just spent $14.00 on a pair of Target Robeez knock-offs, I was pleased that I found these LL Bean Robeez knock-offs for only $8.95.

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The only reason we ventured out yesterday - even though the sky was totally ominous - is because I trusted the weather forecast that predicted "Partly cloudy, warm in afternoon." It was only when we were walking from REI to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory that the winds kicked in, the skies opened up, the temperature dropped 15 degrees and we were pelted with driving rain and hail. During the news last night, the meteorologist indicated that the conditions yesterday were from the worst storm of the season. There were hundreds of vehicles stranded on icy roads in our east county.

With an average temperature of 70 degrees and less than 9-inches of rain a year, just about every day, a weather forecaster in San Diego could predict "Partly cloudy, warm in afternoon" and they would be correct. So, I think that this 'storm of the season' that they missed by a mile yesterday, just goes to show that the meteorologists in San Diego are sleeping on the job.

If I hadn't been stranded in a chocolate store waiting for the storm to pass, believe you me, I'd be writing a letter to someone. Anyone.

How dare it rain in San Diego, when I'm not expecting it to rain!! That's almost as bad as expecting to find a brand new carton of Haagen Dazs ice cream in your freezer and instead, finding a frost covered carton of nonfat lime sherbet.

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I'm still sick although definitely on the mend. Even though I've had what I think is the flu for the past twelve days, I am standing by Zicam. My neighbor had similar symptoms, and she has been sick for almost five weeks. She missed an entire week of work and a month after her symptoms started, still sounds like she is going to cough up a lung.

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According to Charlie, he simply told William "You are a big boy now and I don't want to change your diapers anymore. You need to go pee-pee and poo-poo in the potty. You can only wear a diaper when you go to sleep for a nap or at night. The rest of the time you are going to wear big boy underwear. Ready? Set! Go!"

And that was that. Although why it didn't work for me when I told him that exact same thing is a mystery. For the most part, William is doing great, although he is in the bathroom at least five times more frequently than the girls.

But potty training isn't over, yet. My moment of glory from the other day was short lived, since all three of the kids pooped in their underwear the very next day. I have taken to putting them all in Pull-Ups for nap time and then putting a pair of underwear on over their Pull-Up, so that following the nap, I immediately remove the Pull-Up without having to get them fully dressed again. Considering it takes me about three minutes per child to get them dressed ... I've started knitting again with all my free time.

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The couch in the picture I took yesterday isn't new - it's the infrequently sat upon and hence infrequently photographed couch from our living room. But speaking of couches...

My mother, who rents an ocean-front condo and spends the winter months in Florida with her fiancé, Jim, is currently hosting my sister, Beth, and her seven-year-old son from Massachusetts for the week. Because my father is in the midst of his second divorce from a 25-year marriage and has been having some significant health challenges lately, my sister invited my father to come along with her on the trip to Florida. Of course this invitation was extended only after it was cleared with my mother.

I don't think that paragraph flowed very well, but in a nutshell, my parents who have been divorced for 28-years are now spending a week together in Florida. I don't know if I'm more impressed with Jim who is allowing my mother's first husband to sleep on the pull-out ... of if I'm more impressed with my mother who is welcoming my father in to her life after everything that she has been through. They are both remarkable. And I'm just as proud of my father for going on this trip because he really needed a good change of scenery.

Hopefully, it will be a good week for everyone.

I had more to write about but the kids are now up from their nap.

I've got to go pull off Pull-Ups.