What's The Real Reason ?

The view of Colorado Springs from the Sky Ride at CMZoo

Myra's 'break down' happened to
coincide perfectly with the lion
feeding schedule

Our mini 'family reunion' at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo yesterday was a complete disaster, including crying, whining, hurt feelings, anger, pouting, and some selfish, very childish behavior ... and that was just from the adults!

Right time, right place

In fairness, some fun was had by everyone who attended, and after we took a food break, spirits were much higher.  But even in that sentence it is evident that something was the real reason for the travesty of this get together.

It remains to be debated for ages, but the two primary arguments are that one of the following was the true culprit:
- the sheer size of the group (we had to be 25-30 people)
- just a lack of prior planning combined with poor organization of the activity

I am 100% in support of the latter theory.  Most families are not the best planners, especially when bringing together 5-6 separate family units, but I think my in-laws are less adept than most in these situations.  There is also the factor of every adult feeling like they could be the primary point person in charge, but none of them stepping up to actually TAKE the lead to organize things.

I would have gladly filled that role except for two key factors:
- I've come to dread going to the zoo (or any public area other than a city park) with a group this size.
- I'm a 'married-in' member of my wife's family ... so I would lose some group members just because of my bloodline.

At least I got some cool pictures.  :)

Song Of The Day:
I'm featuring an a Capella song titled "When The Day Met The Night" by the Tufts Amalgamates (originally performed by Panic! At The Disco) with today's post for two reasons.  First, the original plan for attending the zoo suggested we'd only spend part of the day there - but it sure felt like the day met the night while we wandered the expansive grounds at the zoo.  And second, the lyrics in the song suggest a mix of love and confusion in this joining of the day and the night.  That perfectly describes this zoo trip.

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Are You Ready For This ?

Today marked the last day of school for my kiddos for this school year.  This is an occurrence every year, and usually signals all sorts of upcoming events that I'm very excited about: backyard barbecues, Popsicles on the front lawn, trips to the swimming pool, little mini-vacations, and even working in the yard on family projects together.  Karen even has some great plans for a summer schedule to help keep the kids from either extreme (being sooooo bored or just playing video games and watching movies all day).  All in all, it should be a great summer vacation for everyone in the Case household.

But that's not what has me in a reflective mood.  It is what happens after this summer that has me nearly paralyzed with fears of inadequacy, both my own and that of my children.

Here are the BIG changes coming our way in early August:
- Josh Jr (our oldest) will begin High School.  Not only that, but he will also begin attending early morning seminary which starts before 6:00am.  I am NOT a morning person!  I think he will adjust just fine, but time certainly goes faster once they're labeled by school year names: Freshman.
- Ben (2nd oldest) will be in TWO different advanced classes (8th grade math and Honors English) in only his second year of middle school.  He's plenty smart enough, but I'm running out of things I can help him with when it comes to his homework!
- Brooklyn (our oldest girl) will begin Middle School.  She is ready for this, but I am NOT!  She's still my little girl but 6th grade brings with it the start of becoming a woman and I am NOT ready for her not to be my little girl any more!
- Savannah (our middle child) will now be our oldest, and therefore most relied upon, kid at the elementary school.  She's up to the task but watching out for her and her younger sister(s) (especially that crazy Catalina!) will be a challenging change for her.

Myra, who turns 4 this summer

- Myra (our youngest daughter) will begin attending pre-school.  This would be just exciting except that she is still not 100% potty trained, which always fills parents' heads with trepidation about being judged as horrible parents.

As with anything else, I'll try not to worry too much about the changes until they get here, but the gloomy cloud of possible problems seems just a short ways down the horizon.  Wish us luck!


Song Of The Day:
I heard "The End Of Innocence" by Don Henley on the radio today and it just felt fitting for the post I had in mind.  It's probably more related to my oldest son and oldest daughter switching to completely new schools, but it also seems like the innocence of all my kiddos is disappearing so fast.  I'm really not sure I'm ready for this, but I guess I have to be.

Which Pair Are Real ?

Apparently my kids like to organize and straighten things just like their old man.  Proof positive is the photo on the right, which shows two sets of glasses on my nightstand.  Just for fun, try and guess which pair are mine and which pair are toy glasses.  Look closely if you're struggling to figure it out ... there's a fairly big giveaway for the keen eye.

Give up?  Okay, mine are NOT pink.  :)


Song Of The Day:
I have four daughters.  When I hear the song "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison, I often think of them, even though only two of them are truly brown eyed.  I am certain it was my youngest, Myra, who set my glasses up this way, but all of my daughters do things that are thoughtful, unique, and maybe a little OCD.  I sure love 'em!

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What Is A Yiddeyl Tawr ?

Sometimes you need to stop whatever you are doing and just enjoy life.  You need to pull your head away from the tv or computer or video games or homework or chores or whatever else has your attention and just watch and listen.

I did that the other day, and was fortunate enough to take some video of what I enjoyed.  Below is a link to one video of my youngest daughter, Myra, doing her best to practice her piano (she has never had any lessons - obviously) and singing.  If you pay close enough attention, you will recognize the popular tune.  I know she is singing about a 'pider' and not 'dee yiddeyl tawr' but when you hear the one you can easily guess the other!

Myra singing Itsy Bitsy "Pider"  ... click the highlighted link ...

Song Of The Day:
Stevie Wonder's classic tune "Isn't She Lovely" is fitting for so many scenarios.  I haven't used it yet so here it is today.  Of course, I think Myra is amazingly lovely!

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How Do You Get You Chin Back?

While feeling my 'scratchy' goatee with her little fingers, my youngest daughter Myra asked me that blog post title question this morning.  Of course I laughed and then tried to have a logical discussion with her about how my chin was still there underneath the whiskers.  Silly daddy, you can't reason with a 3-year old!

She is obsessed with my facial hair and often tells me to 'shave it off' or 'grow it back' ... but the most amusing thing is that she actually means the opposite thing when she says this.  Like today, she wants me to grow back my chin and when she tells me to "shave you beard back" she means grow it out so it is longer or more full.  It has taken me about a year to figure that out.

Man I love that kiddo!  :)


Song Of The Day:
People often say that daughters have their daddies wrapped around their little fingers, but I think the title of Garth Brooks' tune "Wrapped Up In You" describes my feelings better.  My little Myra still shouts "Daddy, you home!" whenever I come walking in the door.  I love it when she wants to wrap her little arms and legs around me in a hug.  I love all four of my daughters and they will all eventually find out how much I want to just hug them and hold them all the time!

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But, But, But ... Wait, What ?!

My niece and her boyfriend Michael

My niece graduated from high school today, which made me feel super old!  Congrats Brittany for being in the Top 5% of your class!

The main reason I felt so old is this ... during the graduation ceremony, I was trying to keep my youngest daughter Myra (almost 3) quiet and sitting still.  Brittany was younger than this when I first met her!  And it feels like just yesterday that I was tickling and teasing my cute little niece, listening to her funny mispronunciations of words and watching her act absolutely crazy, just to make us 'big people' laugh.

Now I've got a daughter who is doing those same things!  (This doesn't even account for the other three older daughters I have who have already gone through that stage).








So here's a cute little experience I had on the drive home from the graduation with my 'little Brittany' a.k.a. Myra:
Myra grumbles disapproval of something from the back seat ... "Ahh!  UHHH!"
     I ask "What's wrong?"
Myra says "Dere an ant in heeya."
     I explain "No there's not.  You'll be fine.  Stay strapped in please."  Thinking 'there's no way ONE ant is in my car!  Silly little girl.'
A little time passes, when I hear Myra complain "Dere it is again.  I don't yike dat ant daddy.  Why you have dat ant in heeya."
     I make up a little story and say that he is my pet ant and he's really nice, all the while thinking 'There's no ant you silly girl!  What an imagination!"
     Ten minutes later I hear Myra begin to shriek.  I look back in time to see her legs and feet shoot way up in the air and a look of terror shoot across her face.
     I pull the car over and turn around to help her ... and sure enough there is a HUGE ant crawling very quickly across the seat toward her.
     So I told her to calm down and then I squished the ant with my thumb.  She still won't put her feet down until I have wiped his ant carcass completely off the seat.  She seems satisfied and calm, so I turn around and begin driving again.
"Daddy.  Why you 'quish dat ant?  Dat was my favit ant and now he gone.  You 'quish him an' now I gon' haftoo fin' anudda ant.  You made me sad daddy.  I yoved dat ant an' now he dead 'cause you 'quish him.  Dat was NOT nice daddy!  Him was a good ant.  A nice ant."

Aaargh!  You make no sense ... but I sure love you!  :)

Song Of The Day:
I know I just barely used a Dave Matthews Band song, but
"Ants Marching" is just too perfect for this blog post
since it was Myra's 'favit ant dat got 'quished.'  :)

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What Are You Doing ?

Kids are great.

Sometimes.

I often see my children doing things and wonder this blog post title question aloud.  The answers I get from my kids are almost always amusing, while also often being remarkably poignant.

Here is a picture I took of Myra, who was using a toy mirror to "yook at mah teef an' see if dey are why my mouf huwts."

I did not see that the toy she was holding was a mirror, so it was odd to me that she was making such silly faces while staring intently at a toy.
When I asked her what she was doing, her reply was as I typed it above (I've tried to match the phonetic spelling as best I can to capture the way she said it ... keeping in mind that she was still making the faces in the mirror as she explained to me what she was doing).


This was one of those "sometimes" when kids are great.  If only for the entertainment value they provide with their creative view of the world.

Song Of the Day:
I agree with the late Whitney Houston when she sang that "the children are the future" and that we need to "teach them well and let them lead the way."  Of course these are lines from her song "Greatest Love Of All" and I think the love of a parent to their child certainly is the greatest love of all.

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Guys, Is It A Party Upstairs ?

While finishing dinner at the table this evening with my beautiful wife Karen, our youngest daughter Myra was watching some show on Karen's iPad.  She was mesmerized with the show.  So we decided to conduct an experiment.

I offered her some candy.  I offered to take her to the store.  I asked her if she wanted to go get ice cream.  I told her I was going to have to throw away all her toys.  I made up a short story about an elephant trying to teach a monkey to fly.

No reaction from her whatsoever.

Then Catalina came upstairs to get a drink of water.  She saw Myra watching a show on the iPad and stopped next to her for a minute.  Then two minutes.  Then five minutes.  And then ten minutes had passed.  She got caught in the same gravitational pull of Netflix (I think that's what they were watching).

So I conducted the same experiment with her as I had with Myra.  Not so oddly, the results were exactly the same.  I even offered her money and to go bowling (which is something she always asks to do).

Nothing!

Another 5 minutes passed and then her older brother Ben and older sister Brooklyn came up the stairs.  They both eventually made their way to the iPad and got sucked into the same black hole.  After another minute, Cat was finally able to step away from the screen.  I pulled her in for a hug and told her all the "offers" I had made to get her away from the screen.  The shocked look on her face was priceless.

And then, as she headed downstairs to watch a movie, she shouted back toward her brother and sisters (who were still huddled around the iPad) ... "Guys!  Is it a party upstairs?!" ... like she hadn't just been captivated for half an hour!

Karen and I did not stop laughing for a long, long time!

Song Of The Day:
The words of the song might not be related to the post, but "Look Away" by Chicago came to mind as I struggled to get ANY of my children to look away from the iPad.  It's a great song regardless of the seemingly random use in this post!

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Why Are Those Angels So LOUD ?!

On Thursday we spent almost the whole day in Pensacola, FL.  It would have been the whole day but we're still on the 3 1/2 hour timeline for travel (see my prior blog post for any needed clarification).

We were fortunate to catch the Blue Angels for their flight practice (which is more like a demonstration because there are always huge crowds to watch the 'show').  Several things were amusing about the show (if you look closely at the photo to the right you will see a vendor selling coffee, water, danish, and ... earplugs! ), but the sheer volume (sound, not mass) of the planes was by far the most noteworthy!

Every year for the Air Force Academy graduation, I have the privilege of watching the Thunderbirds perform their air show for the Cadets and their families.  But even up fairly close, the sound never seemed anywhere nearly as loud as these aircraft.  I thought my ears would actually start bleeding.  I was holding a clingy Myra to my chest while she covered her ears with both hands ...
but who was going to hold me and cover MY ears?!  :)

Song of the Day:
I'm not sure that it was ever released for radio play, but "Hear You Me" by Jimmy Eat World is a great song that actually references angels, asking in somewhat prayer-like fashion "may angels lead you in."  Although loud, these 'angels' were a great lead in for the day!

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Sweetie, What Are You Doing?



Catalina was the "Statue of Liberty"
Myra is looking over the water on the left

We spent several hours today (Monday) aboard the USS Alabama, which was a highly decorated ship during several wars in its heyday.  The whole ship is so massive you could easily get lost in hundreds of different areas.  Our kiddos had a blast turning knobs and dials all around the ship.  They also loved the fact that it was easier for them to climb and descend the tiny stairs inside the cramped quarters of the vessel.  It is NOT easy to go up or down these stairs when carrying a toddler, an issue I am certain the sailors who worked on this ship never had to deal with.

My favorite experience was when we were getting ready to leave.  Myra, 2 1/2 years old, wandered off and crawled into a very cramped (but perfectly sized for little kids) mechanical room.  I caught up to her and asked her this blog post title question.  She replied "But we nevuh go'n see dis pyace agayin ... So I wiz sayeen goobye."  It was just so sweet.  As I collected her in my arms to carry her to the car she sniffled a little and said "Bye bye big ship.  We go'n miss you.  Tanks for da fun."

Song of the Day:
I keep thinking of "Orinoco Flow" by Enya.  Most people refer to it as the "sail away" song because that's the refrain in the chorus ... Sail away, sail away, sail away.  But the song title is Orinoco Flow and its fitting for visiting a big war ship memorial.

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Why Dey Haftoo Go Home ?!

That was the question that my youngest daughter (Myra, age 2 1/2) asked tonight as our guests were headed out the door to their house (after a few hours of hanging out and playing games).

She was beside herself in tears and filled with devastation at their departure.  It was like she thought she would never see them again (in fact a short while later she made that very comment - "I nevuh gonna see dem agayin.  Dey nevuh gon' come back agayin!" )

Of course she was overtired and within 15 minutes was asleep in her bed.  But it was a very cute experience that I wanted to make note of so I can tell it to her when she is older and can appreciate her youthful reaction.

Song Of The Day:
It's a bit of a stretch but today's song is from Maroon 5 and is titled "Won't Go Home Without You"   This is probably my favorite of all their songs (and they have had LOTS that are pretty sweet!)

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Can We Stay Up Just A Little Longer ?

I normally detest this question.  It puts me in a very awkward position.  If I say yes, then I could be setting my kids up for failure (at least in terms of their sleep patterns and waking up on time, etc.)  If I say no, then I'm the "bad guy" who "never let's us do anything we ask!"

Yesterday evening it was a much easier situation where everyone wins.

My four daughters and their Aunt Jodie
(L-R: Myra, 2; Catalina, 5; Savannah, 7; Brooklyn, 9)

You see ... my oldest daughter Brooklyn asked the question because she had been reading scriptures to her younger sisters and wanted to finish the chapter they were on.
Cue the tears of joy.

Me:  "Yes.  Of course you can.  But after you finish that chapter you really need to go to bed."

My girls: "Thanks dad.  We love you."

Me:  "I love you too."
(long pause in the doorway)
"And I'm happy you like to read your scriptures."

Song Of The Day:
I don't listen to country music all the time, but there are some moments that are best captured with a twang-in-yer-voice kind of song.  "I Loved Her First" by Heartland is one of those songs and it was on my mind last night as I was leaving the Bunk House (that's what we call the huge room all four girls are sleeping in nowadays).  I know the day will come (not for at least a decade, but sooner than I'll ever truly feel ready for it) when I "give away" my daughters to their respective sweethearts.
For now, I'll cherish these special moments as long as I can.

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What's a Fok-a-guyal ?

My apologies for what is by far my most crude-sounding blog post title in history!  It is NOT what you think!!!  But it is spelled phonetically so you can appreciate the laugh I had yesterday.

Myra, our 2 1/2 year old, is at that great age where her speech is just too funny not to share.  She also loves it whenever I get home from work.  She will come tearing through the house from wherever she is screaming "Daddy home!  Daddy home!"  Then when she sees me and I pick her up in a big ol' hug, she always points at me and says "Daddy!  You home!"

Yesterday, right after I set her down from our obligatory (and often quite lengthy) hug, she pointed to the wall and said "Dat a fok-a-guyal."

About 95% of the time I can understand what she's saying ... this was part of that other 5%  It was especially difficult considering she was just pointing at ... a wall.  So I asked her to say it again.  She moved closer to the wall and said "See?!  Dat a fok-a-guyal!"  I looked at her, still bewildered, and so she pointed to another spot on the wall and said "Dat him tay-ull.  See?!"

Ohhhhhhhh!

A "crocodile" !!!

There was a shadow being cast on the wall from some books and Karen's purse on the ledge between the hall and the dining room ... and sure enough, it actually had the rough shape of a crocodile.

I took video (on my phone) of her saying this ... but I'm not sure how to load it to this blog so I may just do a separate post on Facebook to share it.

Song Of The Day
In honor of my no-longer-baby-since-Spencer-is-here-now daughter Myra.  Tonight's song is "Baby" by Bobby McFerrin.  I loved this song even before I had my own kids, but now I sing along to it as a parent of 7 ... the music is still just as awesome, but now the words mean even more to me.