Sherry Ellis's Blog, page 115
April 22, 2012
Tornado Expert
Today I took my seven-year-old son to the museum. While we were there, we saw a couple of high school kids putting on a tornado exhibit. Of course we had to investigate.
My son watched as they spun up some tornados in their two-liter pop bottles. "I can do that, too," he said.
"Oh yeah?" said one of the teenagers. "Let's see."
He did a great demonstration.
"Do you know how tornados form?' the other teenager asked.
"Yeah," said my little expert. "Cold air meets hot air and creates an updraft."
"Whoa!" That teenager was impressed.
Then he proceeded to tell them all about the difference between F1 tornados and F5 tornados.
"Little man, you know more than I do," said the teenager. "Maybe you should do this job."
"I am going to be a storm chaser when I grow up."
Oh boy. Something else for me to worry about!
My son watched as they spun up some tornados in their two-liter pop bottles. "I can do that, too," he said.
"Oh yeah?" said one of the teenagers. "Let's see."
He did a great demonstration.
"Do you know how tornados form?' the other teenager asked.
"Yeah," said my little expert. "Cold air meets hot air and creates an updraft."
"Whoa!" That teenager was impressed.
Then he proceeded to tell them all about the difference between F1 tornados and F5 tornados.
"Little man, you know more than I do," said the teenager. "Maybe you should do this job."
"I am going to be a storm chaser when I grow up."
Oh boy. Something else for me to worry about!
April 20, 2012
Cleaning Vomit
Doesn't that title just want to make you read more?
So the dog must've eaten something disgusting outside. Because when he came in, he vomited all over the floor. Of course I was on the telephone with my dad.
My husband came out of his home office to see what just happened. What he saw was the dog trying to eat his vomit.
That made my husband almost vomit.
I had to act quick. I shoved both of those boys out the door.
Then I got the big Shamwow out. (Yes, my husband got me one of those one Christmas as a joke. It's come in handy on quite a few occasions.) While still on the phone, I cleaned up that mess. I tried to run it down the garbage disposal, but apparently there were big chunks of something in it. The garbage disposal made a horrible racket.
"What is going on over there?" my dad asked.
"Oh, nothing. The dog just threw up, and I'm cleaning the mess."
I knew I had to clean out that garbage disposal. So I searched the house for a pair of latex gloves. (I was not going to shove my hand into a pile of bile!)
I cleaned that digusting thing. Then I washed my hands. All clean. And all done while I was on the telephone.
Am I good or what?
So the dog must've eaten something disgusting outside. Because when he came in, he vomited all over the floor. Of course I was on the telephone with my dad.
My husband came out of his home office to see what just happened. What he saw was the dog trying to eat his vomit.
That made my husband almost vomit.
I had to act quick. I shoved both of those boys out the door.
Then I got the big Shamwow out. (Yes, my husband got me one of those one Christmas as a joke. It's come in handy on quite a few occasions.) While still on the phone, I cleaned up that mess. I tried to run it down the garbage disposal, but apparently there were big chunks of something in it. The garbage disposal made a horrible racket.
"What is going on over there?" my dad asked.
"Oh, nothing. The dog just threw up, and I'm cleaning the mess."
I knew I had to clean out that garbage disposal. So I searched the house for a pair of latex gloves. (I was not going to shove my hand into a pile of bile!)
I cleaned that digusting thing. Then I washed my hands. All clean. And all done while I was on the telephone.
Am I good or what?
April 19, 2012
Brace Face
My daughter is officially a "brace face." She had the shiny silver bands placed on her teeth today. She was pretty nervous about getting those things on.
"Mama," she said. "My friends tell me it's going to hurt for the rest of my life."
"The rest of your life?" I said. "Nah. Only about a year or so."
"But my friends say it's worse than getting spacers."
"Listen," I said. "I had braces, and I don't recall braces being worse than spacers. You'll have some discomfort, but it'll go away. I'll give you some Motrin when we get home."
So she went into the office and sat in the chair. The orthodontist clamped her mouth open and went to work. Two hours latter she was sporting a silver smile.
"Look, Mama!"
"Pretty cool," I said. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"
At first she didn't answer. "Well, they feel funny."
"Yeah," I said. "It's always funny having metal stuck in your mouth."
We left the office and drove back to school. On the way, my daughter inspected her new grin. "Um, Mama," she said. "There's a piece of my hair stuck under a band."
"Pull it out,"
She did. "Owwwww!" she hollared.
Uh oh. I guess that was the straw that broke the camel's back!
"Mama," she said. "My friends tell me it's going to hurt for the rest of my life."
"The rest of your life?" I said. "Nah. Only about a year or so."
"But my friends say it's worse than getting spacers."
"Listen," I said. "I had braces, and I don't recall braces being worse than spacers. You'll have some discomfort, but it'll go away. I'll give you some Motrin when we get home."
So she went into the office and sat in the chair. The orthodontist clamped her mouth open and went to work. Two hours latter she was sporting a silver smile.
"Look, Mama!"
"Pretty cool," I said. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"
At first she didn't answer. "Well, they feel funny."
"Yeah," I said. "It's always funny having metal stuck in your mouth."
We left the office and drove back to school. On the way, my daughter inspected her new grin. "Um, Mama," she said. "There's a piece of my hair stuck under a band."
"Pull it out,"
She did. "Owwwww!" she hollared.
Uh oh. I guess that was the straw that broke the camel's back!
April 18, 2012
Star Struck
I don't know if you watch American Idol, but one of the contestants not too long ago, was a young man from my town, Eben Frankowitz. Here's a Youtube video of him and his audition. Anyway, we see this guy quite frequently in our neighborhood. The other day, he was in line right behind us at Subway.
"Mama!" my daughter whispered excitedly. "There's Eben Frankowitz!"
"That's nice," I said. I'm not really one to gawk at celebrities.
Then Mr. Frankowitz came to my daughter's elementary school (he used to be a student there) to sing for a father-daughter dance. My daughter was on cloud nine.
Then today, he was at the school again to make a PA announcement thanking everyone for their support. My daughter ran into him in the hall. She was all giggles. In fact, she was so giggly, she made Eben Frankowitz giggle.
"Mama," she said when she came home. "I made Eben Frankowitz laugh!"
Cool. I wonder if he'll remember that.
"Mama!" my daughter whispered excitedly. "There's Eben Frankowitz!"
"That's nice," I said. I'm not really one to gawk at celebrities.
Then Mr. Frankowitz came to my daughter's elementary school (he used to be a student there) to sing for a father-daughter dance. My daughter was on cloud nine.
Then today, he was at the school again to make a PA announcement thanking everyone for their support. My daughter ran into him in the hall. She was all giggles. In fact, she was so giggly, she made Eben Frankowitz giggle.
"Mama," she said when she came home. "I made Eben Frankowitz laugh!"
Cool. I wonder if he'll remember that.
April 17, 2012
The Sunshine Award
Hey, guess what? I was nominated for this really pretty Sunshine Award, not once, but twice! Woo Hoo. Thanks to Melissa Kline and inluvwithwords for bestowing this honor on me! The rules for this reward are as follows:
1. Thank the person who nominated you.
2. Answer 10 questions about yourself.
3. Write a post about it.
4. Pass it on to 10 other bloggers.
Here are the questions with my answers:
1. Favorite color? Red. Ruby red. It has to be dark. No bright fire engine stuff.
2. Favorite animal? That's a tough one! Maybe orangutans. Just because I like that word. Hmmm. Maybe I'll add one to my collection of pets. I'm sure my kids would be thrilled!
3. Favorite number? Thirteen. Who says it's unlucky?
4. Favorite drink? Okay. I sat here a full five minutes trying to figure this out. I don't know. I like water. I like milk. I like juice. I like silk milk. Anything healthy. Just don't give me pop or alcohal. My body rejects that stuff.
5. Facebook/Twitter? I used to be a big Facebook fan. It's nice catching up with people I don't see regularly. I have to admit though, I'm liking Twitter better. It's faster, and I find all kinds of useful information on it.
6. My Passion? Teaching the violin and viola. I love sharing my knowledge with students and watching them improve and gain self-confidence. Plus it keeps me on my toes. I have to keep my skills sharp, and figure out new ways to teach things for each individual learning style.
7. Getting/giving? Would I be bad if I said "getting?" LOL. I like both. I enjoy giving, especially if it is appreciated. But I have to say, I do like being on the receiving end once in a while.
8. Favorite pattern? Favorite pattern? Seriously? Like polka dots? Yeah. Polka dots are cool. But I don't think I'd want a polka dot theme in my house. I really have no idea what my favorite pattern is. Whatever looks good, I guess.
9. Favorite day of the week? Sunday. It's my only day off. Sort of. I still have to do mom stuff, but generally, I don't do anything else.
10. Favorite flower? Roses. Although, I like all kinds!
And now for the other sunshiney bloggers:
1. Jessica
2. Super Earthling
3. Pat Hatt
4. Belle
5. Debra Harris-Johnson
6. Empty Nest Insider
7. Elizabeth Twist
8. Nikki
9. Lynn Proctor
10. Crack You Whip
I hope you have a chance to visit these bloggers. Thanks again, Melissa and inluvwithwords! Hope y'all have a sunshiney day!
April 16, 2012
Crazy Trip
Okay. I'm back. In case you wondered where I was, I took a little road trip to visit my dad up in Cleveland. Let me tell you about that trip.
First of all, it rained from the moment I left Cincinnati, to the moment I got to Cleveland. I mean, we're talking downpours all the way! It's not like I can't handle that sort of thing. I'm from Cleveland, after all. It's just not fun. Especially when you have two noisy kids in the back seat arguing about Pokemon.
The real fun happened when I got to the Columbus area. It's a catastrophe there. Every conceivable road is under construction. And to make matters worse, the freeway was shut down, due to "severe construction." Yeah. That was the exact terminology. Now you would think they'd have plenty of detour signs for us folks who aren't that familiar with Columbus. Nope. What they had was one of those big electonic signs that said, "650 W to 315 N." Okay. At least I saw it, even through the pouring rain.
650 W was no problem. 315 N wasn't even that bad. Until it took me smack dab into downtown Columbus. Which of course was under construction. There were no further detour signs indicating where the heck I should go to get back on the freeway to Cleveland. Of course, I took the wrong way. I have a special knack for doing that.
I knew I was messed up when the sign said I was heading for Wheeling, West Virginia. It was time for a stop. I saw a Wendy's sign. Good. I was getting hungry, and it's never good to be lost when you're hungry. I asked the worker how to get on the road that would lead me back home. At this point, I was ready to forget about this little trip. She had no idea. "I'm not the one to ask," she said.
"Okay, then," I said. "Can you find the one to ask?"
She thought about that. "Just a minute."
Out came the manager. A nice Indian lady. I explained my predicament. "No. I can no help you," she said in fine broken English. Then she called out to another Indian worker. This guy had a clue.
"Take the first light. Go right. Then two lights down. Go left. You'll find it."
Great. It was broken Englsh, but at least it made sense.
Of course I screwed that up. I took the second street rather than the second light. I was hoping my kids wouldn't notice. Didn't work.
"Mama," my daughter said. "You"re going in circles."
Yeah. The story of my life.
So I looped around past the Wendy's and did it correctly this time.
Except the freeway I wanted was closed. Imagine that.
But I did find the freeway to Cleveland. I hopped on that. Three hours later we arrived at our destination.
Did I mention it was raining? A lot?
The good news is, my son picked up three new tadpoles at Grandpa's house. So now we're back up to 29 pets. (Is that good news or bad news?)
Oy!
First of all, it rained from the moment I left Cincinnati, to the moment I got to Cleveland. I mean, we're talking downpours all the way! It's not like I can't handle that sort of thing. I'm from Cleveland, after all. It's just not fun. Especially when you have two noisy kids in the back seat arguing about Pokemon.
The real fun happened when I got to the Columbus area. It's a catastrophe there. Every conceivable road is under construction. And to make matters worse, the freeway was shut down, due to "severe construction." Yeah. That was the exact terminology. Now you would think they'd have plenty of detour signs for us folks who aren't that familiar with Columbus. Nope. What they had was one of those big electonic signs that said, "650 W to 315 N." Okay. At least I saw it, even through the pouring rain.
650 W was no problem. 315 N wasn't even that bad. Until it took me smack dab into downtown Columbus. Which of course was under construction. There were no further detour signs indicating where the heck I should go to get back on the freeway to Cleveland. Of course, I took the wrong way. I have a special knack for doing that.
I knew I was messed up when the sign said I was heading for Wheeling, West Virginia. It was time for a stop. I saw a Wendy's sign. Good. I was getting hungry, and it's never good to be lost when you're hungry. I asked the worker how to get on the road that would lead me back home. At this point, I was ready to forget about this little trip. She had no idea. "I'm not the one to ask," she said.
"Okay, then," I said. "Can you find the one to ask?"
She thought about that. "Just a minute."
Out came the manager. A nice Indian lady. I explained my predicament. "No. I can no help you," she said in fine broken English. Then she called out to another Indian worker. This guy had a clue.
"Take the first light. Go right. Then two lights down. Go left. You'll find it."
Great. It was broken Englsh, but at least it made sense.
Of course I screwed that up. I took the second street rather than the second light. I was hoping my kids wouldn't notice. Didn't work.
"Mama," my daughter said. "You"re going in circles."
Yeah. The story of my life.
So I looped around past the Wendy's and did it correctly this time.
Except the freeway I wanted was closed. Imagine that.
But I did find the freeway to Cleveland. I hopped on that. Three hours later we arrived at our destination.
Did I mention it was raining? A lot?
The good news is, my son picked up three new tadpoles at Grandpa's house. So now we're back up to 29 pets. (Is that good news or bad news?)
Oy!
April 14, 2012
And Then There Were Twenty-Six
Twenty-six pets, that is. Bad news here at my abode. Do you remember the test tube tadpole that arrived in the mail? He died. I found him floating upside down in his habitat today.
My poor son was devasted. He shed quite a few tears over that little guy.
"Can we get another tadpole from Grandpa's pond when we go to visit him?" he asked.
"Buddy, I don't think we'll be transporting a tadpole four hours in the car. I think we'll just leave that tadpole at Grandpa's house."
He wasn't very happy.
Poor kid. In the last couple of days, he lost a frog and a tadpole. I hope the hermit crabs don't get any ideas!
My poor son was devasted. He shed quite a few tears over that little guy.
"Can we get another tadpole from Grandpa's pond when we go to visit him?" he asked.
"Buddy, I don't think we'll be transporting a tadpole four hours in the car. I think we'll just leave that tadpole at Grandpa's house."
He wasn't very happy.
Poor kid. In the last couple of days, he lost a frog and a tadpole. I hope the hermit crabs don't get any ideas!
April 11, 2012
Soap Ring
I bet you're thinking that I'm talking about a ring of soap around the bathtub- kind of like a dirt ring. Nope. I'm talking about a bar of soap transformed into a ring. This was done by none other than my super-creative seven-year-old son.
The boy was taking an extra long time in the bathtub. I assumed it was because I told him he needed to scrub up real good because he was extra filthy. I assumed wrong. Most of that time was spent carving a hole in the middle of a brand new bar of soap.
When he came out of the bathroom, he had a big grin on his face.
"What's the smile for?" I asked.
"I made something," he said.
"What?"
"Go in the bathroom. You'll see."
That's when I saw it. "How in the world did you do that?" I asked.
"Oh, I just kept the soap in the water a while. Like about two hours, 'til it got soft. Then I made the hole with my finger. It's a soap ring. Do you like it?"
"Um, well...." I wasn't quite sure what to say. So I said, "It's very creative, but next time, spend a little more time scrubbing and a little less time carving soap."
"Okay, Mama."
We'll see if he listens.
The boy was taking an extra long time in the bathtub. I assumed it was because I told him he needed to scrub up real good because he was extra filthy. I assumed wrong. Most of that time was spent carving a hole in the middle of a brand new bar of soap.
When he came out of the bathroom, he had a big grin on his face.
"What's the smile for?" I asked.
"I made something," he said.
"What?"
"Go in the bathroom. You'll see."
That's when I saw it. "How in the world did you do that?" I asked.
"Oh, I just kept the soap in the water a while. Like about two hours, 'til it got soft. Then I made the hole with my finger. It's a soap ring. Do you like it?"
"Um, well...." I wasn't quite sure what to say. So I said, "It's very creative, but next time, spend a little more time scrubbing and a little less time carving soap."
"Okay, Mama."
We'll see if he listens.
April 10, 2012
Technical Difficulties
Okay, so I wanted to let you know, I'm having major problems with blogger. I'm managing to get this post out by sneaking on to draft blogger. (Of course this is right in the middle of the A-Z challenge. Ugh!) Hopefully my sneak job will work for further postings. If not, and I disappear off the face of the blogosphere, you'll know it was due to technical difficulties.
Now for the funny of the day: Schultz meets Sunshine. As you know (or may not know if you're a new follower), Schultz is my giant, loveable, completely obnoxious German Shepherd. The beast is no less than 102 pounds. Sunshine is my teensy weensy green parakeet. She's my good pet.
Today, Sunshine was attempting to eat her breakfast. She sat on her cup by her cage door, and cracked away on her seeds. Schultz had to be nosy. He went right up to her door and stuck his big nose against it. He sniffed.
Sunshine stopped cracking and looked. What the heck is this thing? she thought.
Then he licked the cage.
Sunshine got a little nervous when she saw that big pink tongue.
"Schultz," I said. "Leave Sunshine alone. She just wants to eat her breakfast."
Apparently Schultz wanted to eat her breakfast, too. He used his big snoot to open the cage door.
Poor Sunshine nearly had a heart attack. She flew to the other side of the cage in a big hurry!
"Schultz!" I said. "Go to your crate!"
He complied, and Sunshine was able to finish her breakfast (after a little coaxing).
I hope the bird isn't traumatized for life!.
Now for the funny of the day: Schultz meets Sunshine. As you know (or may not know if you're a new follower), Schultz is my giant, loveable, completely obnoxious German Shepherd. The beast is no less than 102 pounds. Sunshine is my teensy weensy green parakeet. She's my good pet.
Today, Sunshine was attempting to eat her breakfast. She sat on her cup by her cage door, and cracked away on her seeds. Schultz had to be nosy. He went right up to her door and stuck his big nose against it. He sniffed.
Sunshine stopped cracking and looked. What the heck is this thing? she thought.
Then he licked the cage.
Sunshine got a little nervous when she saw that big pink tongue.
"Schultz," I said. "Leave Sunshine alone. She just wants to eat her breakfast."
Apparently Schultz wanted to eat her breakfast, too. He used his big snoot to open the cage door.
Poor Sunshine nearly had a heart attack. She flew to the other side of the cage in a big hurry!
"Schultz!" I said. "Go to your crate!"
He complied, and Sunshine was able to finish her breakfast (after a little coaxing).
I hope the bird isn't traumatized for life!.
April 9, 2012
German Shredder Strikes Again
I think the dog is off his good behavior streak. He's been getting in a lot of trouble lately. This morning he was busy shredding a cloth lawn chair. Yep. My husband and father-in-law were hanging out in them only yesterday. They neglected to put them in the garage. Big mistake. Beasty boy went out there and gnoshed on them for breakfast.
"Schultz!" I yelled when I saw the blue fabric all over the lawn.
He knew he was in trouble.
He spent a couple of hours in his crate . Then, after I thought he had repented, I let him out. I went about my business. Suddenly, I heard a crash.
"Schultz!" I ran downstairs. The telephone was on the ground. No, he didn't eat the phone, but he did eat a little duct tape man my son had made for my husband. It had been resting against the phone. The duct tape man's body had been completely dismembered. And he was missing a head. I don't know where that went, and I probably don't want to know.
What I do know, is that the beast is grounded for a very long time! Bad dog!
"Schultz!" I yelled when I saw the blue fabric all over the lawn.
He knew he was in trouble.
He spent a couple of hours in his crate . Then, after I thought he had repented, I let him out. I went about my business. Suddenly, I heard a crash.
"Schultz!" I ran downstairs. The telephone was on the ground. No, he didn't eat the phone, but he did eat a little duct tape man my son had made for my husband. It had been resting against the phone. The duct tape man's body had been completely dismembered. And he was missing a head. I don't know where that went, and I probably don't want to know.
What I do know, is that the beast is grounded for a very long time! Bad dog!
