Shhh....Duncan Is Sleeping

Happy Anniversary, Calvin & Hobbes!

The first Calvin and Hobbes comic strip was published on this day in 1985.

Below is Sascha's tribute to the daring duo, which she used to call "Jackson and Bob":





Hug your favorite tiger today!

Proposition Hate

This is a soapbox entry, so if you'd rather just look at photos of the kids, skip it.

Proposition 8 passed in California, banning gay marriage. As if that weren't abhorrent enough, gays had been allowed to get married in that state, thanks to a court decision in the spring. And now it's been taken away.

I could go on for pages about how sad this makes me and how I do not understand how gay people getting married affects my relationship with my husband AT all (all that "sanctity of marriage" nonsense that gets tossed around -- is a 50% divorce rate really what makes marriage so sanctified? Come on)....but Keith Olbermann says everything I want to say. Here's his commentary, on MSNBC.

You know, the Beatles had it right. All you need is love - so I wish people would quit trying to mess with it.

Welcome Duncan

Duncan is here, and fitting in marvelously. For a day or so there, it looked like we might get a different dog. I took the kids to a local airport to watch Animal Rescue Flights (volunteer pilots in small planes) fly in a bulldog/mastiff mix from the NYC area. Bowser was super sweet and gentle and "only" 80 lbs, and we all loved him. You can see some photos of the kids with him here, at the airport. Look under "photos" and then "11/9/08 - White Plains NY to Highgate VT".

BUT - turns out Bowser wants to eat small animals and is very dominant. Neither of those things will work for us, so we brought Duncan home for a trial run yesterday. The kids were a bit intimidated by his size, but by bedtime Zoe was throwing her arms around him, kissing him and calling him "Duncan-ee". He is very sweet and listens really well, although sometimes it takes a few repetitions for him to realize that you *really* mean "Stay."

Here he is sleeping in the office yesterday - he seems to purposely avoid the dog bed!

Halloween Fun

The kids went trick-or-treating on our road and the next road over - about 10 houses. I always forget how cold it is, tromping around in the grass....and how long it takes (over an hour). They had a great time, though, and most of the candy has disappeared.

The next day, they went to a party in Westford, where there were crafts, games, food, and a bag of treats (one lollipop was the extent of the candy).

Here they are - the dragon with vampire teeth, and Sleeping Beauty!





Sascha with her trick-or-treat bag on her tail

Now We Are Six

Well, next week we'll be six. Six family members, that is. Here's the newest addition - a Bullmastiff/English Bulldog mix. About 12-18 mos old and 120 lbs. He was found wandering around Boston. Having seen him jump over things (amazingly graceful, considering his size), I'm thinking he probably escaped from a fenced yard. He was definitely someone's pet at one point, because he is happy to let you mess with his feet, ears, and teeth. And he certainly knows what couches are for!

His name is Duncan; we may change it, we may not. He was very interested in Theo, but true to form, Theo just sat there and let himself be sniffed. Duncan will need some obedience training, but really...who couldn't use some of that.