No, it’s not something cute that Felicia said, it’s much more important … It’s “code” for two classic parental predicaments that might strike in the same month:

We have ventured perilously proximate to the bewitching hour for these two of life’s big topics. Queries on both topics have emerged periodically from the elder sibling, and we have so far been evasive with the precise answers. But we are trepidatious that both mysteries will be unshrouded in the coming weeks.

As for the big guy, she’s been pondering the science behind the delivery system, casting serious suspicion on the minions that might be liable. On the other hand, she’s been certifiably duplicitous in towing the party line in front of more impressionable youth.

The call of nature will be more difficult to side-step. Essentially, the progeny procurement procedure is a frequent topic. While I have assured her that no additional siblings are forthcoming (and never will be), my extreme level of confidence begs additional questions.

Suggestions? Anyone? … remember: this weblog is public.

We’re spending Thanksgiving in Roseville, where Uncle Geoff and his family have joined Grandee & Grandpa for the weekend.

Felicia, Brayden, Camden, and Jocelyn have been having a great time climbing on playgrounds, scootering along the sidewalks, playing computer games, and helping with the cooking.

We almost didn’t get together for the holiday, as Grandpa’s mom (everyone’s beloved “Granny“) passed away earlier in the week. They had traveled to Utah to attend to details and spend some time with family there. Fortunately, they were able to make it back on Thanksgiving Day, in time for dinner.

This picture is also available on Flickr.

Look at that Turkey!

Kiana invited me to be her “special person” at her Kindergarten class’ “Grandparent Day” celebration today, and Felicia joined me for our fun visit to Carleton School.

We got to watch some singing performances, make a hand-in-hand craft project, and play on the playground. We also got to meet some of her friends’ grandparents, parents, uncles, and babysitters.

This picture is also available on Flickr.

“Good-bye and good riddance to the Passat” Karen’s original title

Well, the Passat served me well for 7 years. But, over the last several weeks there has been one issue after another. I borrowed Mom and Dad’s hybrid Excape for a couple of weeks. Then I borrowed Ange’s Hybrid Civic for a couple of weeks. But in the end the Toyota Prius won out.

I finally carved enough hours out of a day to get it purchased today. So, we are now the proud owners of a Seaside Pearl (that is a light blue) Prius Touring with package number 6 (that means it has all the bells and whistles). Hopefully, David will post a picture for me shortly.

When we got home, Felicia put her cheek against the door and chanted “I love you, Prius” over and over.

We’ve had friends from preschool visiting our house this week, but we’re not talking about actual friends. Felicia has been playing host to Jesse Bear and Otis over the past few days.

Jesse Bear is the main character in Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?. Otis is the super-clean pig in the book by the same name. The children in Felicia’s Three-Day class bring the animals home on a randomly-determined, rotating basis.

The back-to-back visits were a coincidence, much to the pig’s dismay. You see, as the first visitor, Jesse Bear got to go to soccer practice, ballet class, Elva’s Coffee Stop. The bear even got to meet Uncle Timmy. But the novelty had clearly worn off for Otis, who mostly spent time “sleeping” in Felicia’s room while we went to soccer games, visited with friends, and went out for lunch and dinner.

Jesse Bear even got the full-color treatment in the book that Felicia created about the visit. She used crayons and stapled pages together to make a colorful recounting of the experience. Poor Otis’ story was rendered in plain #2 pencil, with very minimal pizazz.

These pictures are also available on Flickr.

We’ve been enjoying an extra special treat this week … a visit from Uncle Timmy. We’d like to thank the rest of the Nashville Martins, who have graciously allowed their dad to come out West for a few days. Mostly he’s attending a conference hosted in downtown San Jose, but he’s been joining us for dinners and stuff.

He joined Karen and Aunt Jenni is preparing a largely “locavore feast” on Sunday, and we’ve been having dinner and fun times together since. Tim and I went to the Sharks game last night, and at least we got to see Mike Modano set the record for points by an American-born player.

He leaves tomorrow, but not before we get some more playtime tonight that will include Cousin Kiana. Special thanks to Oakley, Aspen, and Lindy for sharing their Daddy …

In honor of her ninth birthday actually falling on a Saturday, Jocelyn wanted to host a party that would really be unique.

She invited enough friends to represent each of the planets, added a sister and a cousin, and she had her own birthday solar system. In addition to having her friends design and install a custom-built night sky in her room (made of glow-in-the-dark stars), we hosted a surprise field trip to the De Anza Planetarium.

Here’s a picture of the party, in front of the Konica Minolta Infinium S Star Projector.

This picture is also available on Flickr.

Happy Birthday, Jocelyn!

My tradition of giving Jocelyn a stuffed animal that represents the past year continued with today’s birthday gift: I’ve dubbed 2007 The “Year of the Wildcat” … although perhaps technically I gave her a plush cheetah.

This year’s selection was a very easy choice, combining our total obsession with High School Musical (and HSM2, of course), our participation with the U10 Girls (no longer coed) soccer team, and our Memorial Day Weekend visit to Safari West.

For those who need a brief primer, the East High Wildcats won the championship as the backdrop to Disney’s High School Musical franchise, our Willow Glen PAL Soccer team is called the Wildcats, and we saw some incredible cheetahs in Santa Rosa. And I’m pretty sure that cheetahs are a subset of the wildcat genus, or whatever.

This picture is also available on Flickr.

Felicia’s preschool class spent the morning at the Youth Science Institute at Sanborn Park, above Saratoga. The gang from SJPPNS got to see and touch a number of small animals, including a toad, a tarantula, and newt.

Actually, Felicia didn’t want to touch any of the animals, no matter how many times we encouraged her. This is a picture of her not touching the gopher snake.

This picture is also available on Flickr.