Merry Christmas!

New Year, New Name, New Look

I know I'm about two weeks early, but the right name came to me finally. So, the Denney's blog is now "Party of Five". That's what we are. A party of five. And with a new name, I decided it was time for a new look. 2010 here we come!

Introducing

The December student of the month!

90

Major league baseball bases are 90 feet apart. 90 is the latitude of the north and south poles. 90 is the international number for calls to Turkey. Cuba is 90 miles off the coast of Florida. According to Wikipedia, 90 is a Harshad number, a Perrin number, is semi-perfect, pronic, and unitary perfect. It is also a nontotient. Whatever. Most importantly, 90 is the birthday my grandpa just celebrated.

When my grandfather was born on November 24, 1918, Woodrow Wilson was president. World War I had ended just 13 days earlier. Warner Brothers Pictures was incorporated, and an influenza epidemic killed 20 million people world wide. Jazz music was gaining popularity, and the average family income was $1518. A pound of steak cost about 37 cents.

He was born in Arizona, one of nine or ten children, and orphaned around age 5. He remembers being sent away on the train with one brother after his parents died. In high school he worked as a soda jerk at a lunch counter where he was paid 25 cents a week. He played football at Arizona State University. Luckily, he stole my grandmother's heart away from her fiance, and she married him instead. He was by her side when she died of ALS in 1980.

During World War II, he served in the Air Force, working on planes in the relative safety of England. While he was away, my mother was born. They didn't meet until she was two years old. They moved to Medford, and my aunt came along. Thanks to the GI Bill, he went to college and studied education. He served as principal at several elementary schools until his retirement about 25 years ago.

On Saturday, over 120 people showed up to wish my grandpa a happy 90th birthday. Although I literally knew a handfull of them, I was amazed at who came. There were former students, teachers, Rotary club friends, church friends, four great-granddaughters and of course retirement home neighbors. People had traveled from as far as Eastern Oregon and Portland ("by train, since my children don't allow me to drive this far anymore") just for the event.


My favorite memories of Grandpa are of spending days at school with him while he was principal, and fishing trips. I would shadow him through his work day which included hours in his office, lunch duty, and visiting classrooms. The students were amazed he had a granddaughter. I was amazed he had a career. Fishing trips began with breakfast at 4:30 in the pitch dark followed by the rituals of getting the boat into the water and baiting my own hooks. He was master on the Rogue River. A professional guide for years, he knew all the best spots. I'll never forget his pride when I landed a 37 pound salmon in front of a bunch of his buddies. He rowed his drift boat with power and ease well into his sixties.

Grandpa's a lot slower these days. Everything's slower. His memory. His body. We have to constantly repeat things. When I send him the more than fifty pictures I took on Saturday, he'll get to enjoy them for the first time over and over again. He's allowed. 90 years is a really long time. We should all be so lucky.

And, just so you know what you've got to look forward to, here's a picture from outside the dining room at his retirement home at 5:00.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

 

It was perfect day to get our tree. We had a great time traipsing around the frozen mud at our favorite tree farm! The view was amazing, but it was clear and really cold. After two quick picks and hot drinks, we headed home to decorate. More photos to come!

Another Slide Show!

More from the Bucket List

Who knew you could cross so many things off your bucket list in one long weekend? Broadway shows: check. Carriage ride through Central Park: check. Yellow taxi and subway rides in New York City: check. Empire State Building: check. And, Ground Zero: check. That deserves a whole post of its own, but it will have to wait for now. You can click on the images in the collages to enlarge them. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. For me, these only begin to tell the story. Enjoy!

Ellis Island

Diana and I spent the time at Ellis Island pretty much on our own. We enjoyed exploring the building were so many immigrants entered our country. Diana found both Beattys and Denneys. I have no idea if we're related to any of them, but it was still cool. The upstairs rooms were filled with items brought by immigrants. There were so many photos, pieces of clothing and personal items. It was fun to look at them all. Outside is a wall covered with names of immigrant families who contributed to the restoration of Ellis Island. Amazing to walk through such a historical place!

The Statue of Liberty

One of the most moving experiences of the trip was seeing the Statue of Liberty. Not that it's massive or gorgeous or unusual. It's just what it is, and it touches you. Security was exceptionally tight. Airport style, twice. But worth it. The views of the city are amazing from the 300 something steps up just the base. Inside is the original torch and a detailed museum of the building and restoration of the monument. I'm not typically a patriotic person, but there are no words to describe being there. Proud is close. Kinda.

Images of New York City Day 1

Philadelphia

I arrived without any difficulties in Philadelphia, proud of myself for getting all the way across the country, spending the night in the hotel and meeting the tour group. We spent several hours (of a very warm, humid morning!) exploring Independence Hall and the Constitution Center. It was amazing to be in the rooms where our forefathers discussed, debated, wrote and signed The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution. The Liberty Bell is impressive up close, and there was an added bonus of an exhibit of Princess Diana's memorabilia which included her wedding dress, jewelry, many ball gowns and outfits and some personal artifacts of hers. Mom, Diana and I skipped the gift shop and sped through. Beautiful! That afternoon: the bus ride to New York City! What an adventure...

Fall Tradition

Today, the annual trip to the pumpkin patch. Tonight, the annual blog about the pumpkin patch. It was a warm afternoon (hence ice cream instead of hot chocolate), everyone came home with the perfect pumpkin, and a good time was had by all. Even Laura enjoyed herself after recovering from the fact that the pumpkins were already picked. It's not a real trip to the patch unless they're still on the vines apparently. Now for the carving!

Mary, Mary...

We spent two and a half hours at Discovery Meadows this morning. It was beautiful and peaceful, and a good time spent with old friends. The moms visited while the kids played. Hard. We barely saw them except to occasionally dole out band aids and flush sand out of the eyes. Hours later, Mary stood up from the couch where she had been playing Wii for a bit. Left on the couch cushion was half the sand from the sand play area at the park. Confused, I went to investigate. This is what I found:



"Mary, how many times did you slide down the sand hill?"
"Oh, about a hundred."
Obviously!

Apologies

I apologize for the terrible text on this afternoon's post! I sent it from my phone while sitting out in the beautiful sunshine, watching Laura try out her new skateboard. I did take the opportunity to change things up a bit. Hopefully that will inspire me to blog a bit more often...

Laura's New Hobby

Laura is so much like her dad. She is a saver and a shopper. First,
she saves her money. For a long time hates to part with it even when
it's for something she loves. When she finally decides what to spend
it on, she shops around. About a week ago, she decided she'd like a
skateboard. After several hours online comparing colors, prices and
styles, a trip to Walmart for baseline information, and checking the
Sunday ads, we came home from Big 5 this afternoon with all the gear.
So not how I operate! But, after almost 15 years married to Steve, at
least I get it. I'm proud of her! She wouldn't get any pink gear
though they do make it. The pink helmet has a special place for a
ponytail even! Oh well, I guess they can't be girly girls all the
time. And doesn't she look darn cute in her new stuff? Watch out Tony
Hawk! Here she comes!

You know summer should be over when...

the kids are really excited to play in the rain. They splashed,
stomped, and got soaked in a huge puddle out front. The boots and
raincoats sure didn't stay on long!

Big Girl With Sparkly New Braces!

A Perfect Day

The Girls of Summer

Finally! Here we are!

San Juan Vacation Photos

Warning: There are lots! If you've got something cooking or a child in the tub, don't start this. It takes awhile! On the other hand, I'll never know if you don't look or if you tire of it half way through. We had an absolutely amazing time. I hope I captured some of it in pictures. Enjoy!

Greetings from Friday Harbor!

This is the only orca we've seen...

Kendra and Felipe: Post Number 100!

I've been watching my number of posts creep toward 100 for a few weeks, wondering what what the big 100 would be about. Kendra and Felipe's day yesterday was 100% perfect. The flower girls were 100% adorable. How fitting their pictures get to be post number 100!

Lemonade

We're making gallons of lemonade in the Denney family this week. Life has given us tons of lemons lately. What I have learned is that when life gives you lemons, if you look close enough, you'll find plenty of sugar to sweeten it. I saw the corner of Steve's mouth turn up from his hospital bed for the first time in days when I told Diana that I felt a long blog coming on. Here goes! Feel free to skip or skim...We left McMinnville Thursday afternoon for what was supposed to be a long weekend in Gold Beach followed by taking the girls to Roseburg for the week. Steve and I planned (after months of discussion!)our first real child free vacation since, well, since children. We had reservations on Capital Hill in Washington DC for five days of sightseeing. Life had other ideas. Steve's aunt died of cancer about two months ago and a memorial was planned for the 4th of July morning in Gold Beach. The day before, Steve's brother took their mom, Steve and two cousins up the Rogue for several hours in his boat. It was a gorgeous, hot day, and the five of them had a wonderful time. Unfortunately as Steve got out of the boat, his back went out. Bad. He was frozen. He took it easy the rest of the day, but it was worse the next morning, so off to the ER we went. Yes, Gold Beach does actually have a hospital with an ER. In fact, they have two stoplights there now so don't be dissing it anymore. He was diagnosed with a "back sprain", given drugs and sent home. Big ol' bag of lemons. We made it back just in time to shower and leave for the memorial. It was a lovely service, up on a hill overlooking the ocean. My niece sang "Amazing Grace" as Aunt Sue's ashes were scattered on her father's grave surrounded by 23 family members. Each family left a red rose, and we went back to my in laws for good food and lots of shared memories. It was an emotional day. It pains me to see my mother in law so sad. She confided in me that it feels like a huge part of her soul is missing having her twin sister gone. Wow, big bag of lemons. I was struck by the sense of belonging I had there, though. The connectedness of the group was palatable by the end of the weekend. I am part of that family even though I wasn't born into it. Sugar! Somewhere in the middle of it all, I received word from our dog/house sitter that our first baby girl, our 12 year old yellow lab Ginger, had had two really bad seizures. More lemons! The next day, Steve was worse so I spent several hours on the phone canceling all the DC reservations. Lemons. Around 2:00, we somehow got Steve into the car and made the trek to Roseburg. My dad met me at the door with the best gin and tonic I've ever tasted. How did he know I needed that so badly? The next morning, Mom and I headed to Medford to be with my 89 year old grandpa while he had his pacemaker replaced. He was thrilled to have my mom, my aunt and me around him in the pre-op room, and we laughed a lot at his silliness after whatever they put in his iv kicked in. The surgery was a success, and I could see the improvement on the heart monitors afterward. Sugar! As mom and I made our way home that night, Jeanita (who kindly took my girls to her pool before the ambulance took their daddy away) called to say an ambulance was coming to take Steve to the hospital. He had gotten to the living room floor and couldn't get up. We flew the last hour (thanks, Mom!) home and she dropped me at the hospital. Watching Steve writhe in pain on the gurney was surreal to say the least. I wondered a little if that's what it's like for a husband to watch his wife give birth. I felt so helpless, but unlike labor, there sure wasn't going to be a sweet baby in a few minutes... In fact, I couldn't really see the light at the end of the tunnel for a while. Diagnosis this time: sciatica. More new and stronger drugs, specific directions not to ride in the car and we headed to my parents' house about 11:00. 25 pound bag of lemons. We couldn't be in a better place for this disaster, though. I'm enjoying my dad's cooking, Mom doing laundry and entertaining the girls. We're swimming every afternoon, getting dressed whenever we feel like it, and I've already finished one book. Sugar, sugar, sugar! I'm carefully documenting the muscle relaxants, pain killers and steroids I dose my husband. Lemons. But I'll finance our next trip by selling the leftovers on the Black Market. Sugar. So, in a week or so, when we're finally home, come on over. The Denney's will have the biggest vat of lemonade you've ever seen. And, we'll share!

Beatiful Inside and Out

Laura has always had pretty hair. She has gotten compliments on it her whole life. It is a perfect blend of several colors with natural highlights and gentle curls at the end. Although she has never said it out loud, I suspect what she loves most about her hair is that it's so different from her sisters'. She has always kept it much longer than theirs. A couple of months ago, she mentioned she'd like to grow her bangs out and have the rest shorter. I suggested we donate it if she got it cut. One look at the Locks of Love website, and she had a mission. There are beautiful photos of donors and recipients both before and after. Some little girl who needs it will be so lucky! We had to wait for the cut until after the ballet recital (a perfect bun is a must, right?). Today was the big day. She insisted she wasn't nervous but squeezed my hand tightly as we went into the salon. My hairdresser, Ami, did a fantastic job! I cannot tell you how proud I am of her. She is thrilled with her new look (which is amazingly grown up!) and she glowed all afternoon. She is truly beautiful inside and out.

Before

Feeling nervous!

After

Notice the new earrings!

Close to Home

Anyone who knows me at all knows how much I love to travel. A friend teased me the other day that Steve should know better than to even mention a trip. I'm online planning before he finishes the sentence. It's important to me to always have the next adventure on the back burner. (Hello, NYC in October!) Today though, surprisingly, I enjoyed a new adventure right here in Mac. After a very lazy morning in pj's, a breakfast of homemade waffles with fresh strawberries, and a movie (If you haven't watched E.T. with your family yet, do it now! We got it at the library on DVD. I had forgotten what a great movie it is, and the girls LOVED it!) we headed all the way to Airport Park. It was beautiful and perfect! And right here. Last time I was there was in college for a late night sorority thing about 20 years ago, but that's a whole nother story...Tons of work has been done at the park. The trails are clear with fresh barkdust and new bridges. It's lush and green and cool. And so quiet! We could hardly believe we were minutes from home. It was completely the perfect afternoon walk on a sunny Sunday. We stopped for ice cream and hanging baskets for the backyard on the way home. Who knew you could have so much fun so close to home?

Feels like summer III

Nothing like a red popsicle on an 85 degree day!

Feels like summer II

Watering the baby tomatoes together...

Feels like summer!

Barefoot finally!

What a gorgeous afternoon! We've spent it outside. Happiness for us
girls!

Happy Mother's Day!

from the windy and chilly Oregon coast!

Truly the happiest place...

Sorry, friends. I just set up my mobile blog account and have to play
with it a bit. Now I can bore you with the details of our life
anywhere, anytime. Lucky you!

Lovey Laura

Merry Mary

Abby

If you know me at all, you know how much I adore Abby. Today, while Mother's Day shopping at Walmart (I know, but Mom wants a hand mixer...), some pink princess crocks jumped into the shopping cart. Just her size. Sorry, John, they're definitely not Stride Rite. We'll keep them at our house so you never have to know. Abby's idea. For real. When we got home, she was eating her macaroni and cheese (who cares if she has it every day at my house?)and we had this conversation. I'm writing it moments after so I never forget it:

Abby: You knew me at my grandma's house before I was born.
Me: Yes, I did, Abby. In fact, I was the first one to hold you after you were born.
Abby: Really?
Me: Yes, and I loved it.
Abby: Well, I wuv you, Teresa.
Me: I love you, too, Abby.

One of those days...

Ever have one of those days? I had one yesterday. It started about 7:45 with the van's alarm inexplicably honking for 20 minutes or so at Allison's house. After rushing the kids to school (late; our first ever tardy slips!) in her not-honking van, getting totally drenched and just barely making it to my classroom before school started, I thought it couldn't get much worse. Fast forward to about 12:42. I'm supposed to be in the gym at Linfield observing one of my student's PE lessons. The only parking is about 9 miles away. Drenching number two. I'm walking as fast as I can down Linfield Avenue. You know those metal bumpy square manhole covers? They're textured so they're not slippery when wet. Well, they don't work. You know what a hurdler looks like when they clear the hurdle? One leg stretched out, the other bent back and under? Imagine me doing a beautiful triple axle on the wet metal textured manhole cover, then ending up on it like a hurdler: right leg stretched out in front, left bent back and under. Hi, man in little red truck! Thanks for slowing down to see if I'm okay. I am, just feeling really stupid. Anyone around with a camera? No? Crap. I'm sure that could have won $10,000 on American's Funniest Home Videos. Second place at least...So I pick myself up and continue rushing into the gym, pretending that little stunt never happened. Okay, so how am I going to explain my really wet butt and soaked left pantleg to my students? Plan A: just admit it. Plan B: sit on the floor against the wall with my legs crossed and clipboard in my lap. Sneaking into the gym, I opt for Plan B. I smoothly remove my jacket and use it as shield while I get myself settled on the floor. At least I'm not in charge today. As I observe the lesson (well planned and delivered, I might add) I get a chance to inspect the damage, discreetly of course. Left knee: red and sore, big bruise on the way. Right shoulder and left "sit bone" (Hi, CB!) sore from absorbing impact making sitting on the gym floor more than slightly uncomfortable. Left foot: two bloody cuts. Cool. I have no idea what I cut myself on, but it doesn't matter. At least I've got some bleeding to show for my acrobatics! And the worst of it? A hole in the left knee of my new pants! Only wore them once before. Damn. And today? Still sore and still feeling stupid, but at least I can laugh at myself about it, right?

American Girls (and their moms and grandmas) Who Love American Girl

 

Disneyland!

Kites!

My Babies Are Seven Today!

This afternoon, in a rare free moment, I pulled Mary and Laura's baby albums out of their closet. All day I had been reminiscing about babyhood and aching to snuggle my girls as babies again, just for a moment. My memories of their first few months are vague at best. It's a sleep deprived haze of nursing and diapers. Looking at pictures of them as newborns is almost shocking. How could those tiny people have become the amazing girls they are now? They make me so proud. They cried if they weren't in the same bassinet. Mary wore two hats, jammies and two pairs of socks and still had to go in the warmer. Laura was jaundiced and they had to keep drawing blood to check her levels. I wanted to find a picture of the three of us on the day they were born to post with one of the three of us today. Shockingly I don't look so great in any of them. My husband was kind enough to point that out even as he scanned one for me. He shut up after a gentle reminder about which of us actually squeezed those two out. Now, due to the late hour and some technical difficulty, you won't get to see me holding the twins, looking not my best, half an hour or so after they were born. It was fun looking through the albums today, though. Diana looked at a picture of her, with Steve and I before we left for the hospital that day. "Ah, those were the glorious days," she said, tongue in cheek. Turning the page, pointing to one of Mary and Laura in the hospital: "That's what ruined it all". Luckily I know how much she really loves them, even though they drive her nuts in the way only little sisters can. And, lucky her, she got two at once. The world became a happier, noisier, crazier, prettier, smarter, sillier and better place on March 19, 2002. I am humbled to be their mother.

"How to Overstimulate Your Children", or "Happy Birthday, Girls!"

First, pack five first graders into the back of a van for 45 minutes. Next, arrive at the arcade, crammed with people, lights flashing, bells ringing, kids screaming, and music playing. Feed aforementioned children plus four more who arrived in the back of another van (thanks, John and Allsion! We couldn't have done it without you!) root beer, two bites of pizza each and more root beer. Follow children into insanity that is arcade and watch them literally ricochet (oh so happily, I might add) from one game to the next. Give them unlimited rides on the "Frog Hopper", then ice cream sundaes. Cap it all off with 30 minutes or so in the gigantic play structure. Finally, spend about eight hours helping each of nine children "spend" their tickets on junk toys before piling back into two vans for the long drive home. (knock, knock joke, anyone?) Overstimulated yet? Oh yeah. Best birthday party ever? You bet!

Possibly The Wettest Soccer Game Ever!

 

Introducing...

The Columbus Elementary School Battle of the Books Champions!

Just Because

I don't think I've ever posted about my first baby girl. Here she is, sound asleep with a Valentine heart sticker on her nose. I have no idea how it got there, but she was so stinkin cute I had to run and get the camera. I have to share this just because I adore her.

What do you do when....?

the man from McMinnville Water and Light comes to check the fire hydrant on the corner? You watch in total amazement and awe while the whole street floods in front of your eyes. Then? Grab your boots, of course. And bikes. And scooters. And balls. And you get totally soaking wet. And you have absolutely the best time! Even though it's February and the water's freezing.

What have we been up to?

Today went something like this:
7:00 rushing, yelling, hurrying to get the house ready for the cleaning lady, and be on time out the door (oh, yeah, it's snowing hard outside,too)
7:20 drop the girls off at Allison's
8:00 rush and hurry to get set up for the Greek "Olympics" with 220 sixth graders
8:30-9 have Olympics: lots of fun!
9-12 teach, then prep, then get James and Abby
noon come home to a not clean house; the cleaning lady couldn't get off her hill due to the snow
lunch with James and Abby, then laundry and dishes that didn't get done in the morning, and collecting six shin guards, six cleats, sweats, socks, 3 swim suits, towels, and packing "dinner" for Diana who won't be home until after 7 tonight
2:00 watch Nick Jr. with James, while Abby sleeps, maybe nod off during Wow Wow Wubbzy
2:25 rush to Columbus to pick up the big kids
2:26 rush home to get Diana's bag of soccer/swimming/dinner gear that I packed then forgot
3:00 make snacks for 5 (Diana's at talent show practice at Maddy's house)
4:30 Mary and Laura head off to soccer practice with Steve; I go to Walmart to buy my class treats for our Greek party tomorrow
5:25 Diana calls that practice is over because the coach is too cold
6:00 inhale soup, rush, hurry, and yell to get everyone into swimsuits
6:30 swimming lessons for all three girls
8:00 finally sit down

So, I haven't blogged for awhile. Now you know why.

Three Totally Unrelated Things

Thing One:
Here are my sweet girls at ballet class yesterday. I love it all: leotards with panties hanging out, "ballet buns", not knowing right from left and having your best friends in class with you. Plus, the room where they have class is beautiful!



Thing Two:
Mary's quote of the day. Steve went to Winco after the girls had gone to bed last night. Mary walked in to the kitchen this morning and found a bunch of big, beautiful bananas on the counter next to the fruit bowl. Her reaction: "Wow, this is a freakishly large banana. Can I eat it?" Freakishly large?? Who says that? Oh yeah, I think it's Allison. Pretty funny coming out of a five year old's mouth, though!

Thing Three:
I love the first day of school. I love school period. Sunday night I was trying to figure out how many first days of school I've had. It's a lot. 13 as a student. A few really memorable (Scotland, Linfield) and all really exciting. 18 first days have been from the other side of the classroom. They all blend together but were really exciting. And yesterday, another first day of school for me. My first day as Linfield College instructor. Just me and my six students. "A proper lecturer" as my Scottish friend Debbie says. Before hand I wasn't sure if I was going to throw up or pass out. Turns out I was just holding my breath. Once I started breathing regularly I felt much better. The verdict?? I loved it! I get to talk about school for an hour and twenty minutes with a captive audience. And, they're just kids! My favorite question of the day was, "Do we have to turn this in?" What was I worried about? I had just the right amount of stuff planned, and it all went really smoothly. What a rush!

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Wednesday nights are a challenge around here. The girls' school sends home "Wednesday Folders". Inside the folders are newsletters, completed assignments, parenting tips, fundraising forms, and homework. Usually it's just a couple of pages, but when you multiply that by three, it adds up. Tonight we had handwriting, math and more math. Mary told me on a previous Wednesday night that she likes "word" homework way more than "number" homework. Sorry, kid, I think you got that from me. I couldn't agree more. The frustration tonight began upon opening the Wednesday Folder. One of Mary's math pages was different from Laura's. I put on my best teacher voice and gave the speech about how it's not about easier or harder. It's about different: what each brain needs to learn. Blah, blah, blah. I don't think they bought it. Anyway, Mary's page involved subtraction using a number line. It wasn't clicking. Diana tried hard by making these nifty "fact family" charts. I thought they were cool, but it still wasn't clicking for Mary. I opened the art drawer to find something to use as manipulatives. I was looking for beads or something like that which she could use to do the subtraction problems. What I found easily was a little baggie of googly eyes. You know the little white ones with the black wiggly pupils that you glue on crafty things that need eyes? Perfect, I thought. So I dumped them out and modeled for Mary how to use them to subtract. That worked and she went off on her own to finish while I helped Laura with her "not harder, just different" paper. I could hear Mary talking away to herself while she worked on her subtraction. Eventually I realized it wasn't math she was talking about. I think it was, "and the Mom flew off to Tennessee leaving the children and the dad at home" that caught my attention. In the, oh, 12 or so seconds since I had turned my back, Mary had turned the pile of googly eyes into a family and was creating a whole story around them. Tennessee?? I had to laugh out loud. Mary's response to me asking her what she was doing? "I made them into a story, Mama." What can I say. The child has wanted to be an author since she was two. And, she likes word homework way better than numbers.

The Week in Review

Nothing has been blogworthy lately. Life has just continued on. We are happily in our regular groove after a bit of adjustment from our extended vacation. Here's what we've been up to, in pictures:


We have played with our dog.


We have read books to each other.




We have tried on our beautiful flower girl dresses.






We have baked cookies.


And we have spent hours digging for "ice crystals" in the "iceberg" which is still in front of our house! Life is good.