Gingerbread Houses

Oma and I took the boys to make Gingerbread houses on Sunday. The Assistance League of Wichita organizes the event, and proceeds benefit the Wichita community.

We stood in line and "oohed" and "awed" at the elaborate and impressive gingerbread houses made for an auction, which sold for between $25 and $150. There was a haunted house, church and Santa's workshop, just to name a few.

At the end of the line we received our supplies: pre-cut graham crackers, candy, frosting glue, base and stabilizing square (to place inside the house). Volunteers helped us get started and then the creativity began.

Zach used almost all his little candy pieces and covered the entire area around his house. He also made a "shed" and placed a few kernels of popcorn around. Once we got home, he used more candy to complete a dizzying, random design, with no apparent rhyme or reason to it. His gingerbread house could be described as "controlled chaos."

Adam's house is orderly, logical and systematic. His fence is straight and tidy. He carefully chose candy to ensure the roof had a pattern to it. He covered his house and the base with frosting so it looked like snow. Here is his house, in progress.

And the finished masterpieces.

Joining the Pack

Are you Team Edward or Team Jacob? Do you know the Cullens? What about the legend of the Quileute Tribe? What happens to vampires if they go out in the sun? If you don't know what I'm talking about, just stop reading now.

The Twilight Saga is a four book series by Stephenie Meyer that chronicles the love triangle between Bella, Edward and Jacob. Except Edward is a vampire. And Jacob is a werewolf. And Bella is a human.

I admit it. I am part of the Twilight madness. And I have brought at least three friends down with me. I blame it on my sister-in-law, who introduced me to the books a couple of years ago. At the time, I had never heard of the them.

Twilight, the first installment in the Twilight Saga, arrived in theaters in 2008. The second movie, New Moon, opened on Friday. I didn't get tickets to the midnight showing, namely because I didn't think I could get anyone to go with me (think again). And could I really stay awake until 2:30 am to watch a movie? (Yes!)

I won't make those mistakes again.

I bought four tickets in September, the day they went on sale, for the 6:45 pm showing on Friday, Nov. 20, a good 18 hours after the first showing.

We arrived at the movie theater an hour before the movie, and the line was already out the door. There were girls of all ages: young tweens and teenagers with their moms, groups of 30-somethings and even a few baby boomers. We entertained ourselves by debating whether a werewolf or vampire was a better match for us. Some girls were sporting New Moon t-shirts, and there was lots of giggling and "OMG's!" flying around (and not just by us). Once they opened the theater, we even saw a few fans running to secure the best seats. We did not run, although I think there was some shoving involved. I won't name names.

There was a sprinkling of testosterone...lucky males who (I'm assuming) were dragged to the movie by a female, a normally level headed wife or girlfriend who is now the equivalent of a squealing 14 year old girl. I'm wondering if this is similar to the old footage I've seen of the Beatles...like this YouTube video from 1963.

And was the hype worth it? You betcha.

The third movie, Eclipse, comes out in June 2010, and Breaking Dawn, the final installment, in 2011. You can bet I'll be there, and this time I won't have any trouble finding a few Twilighters to go with me...to the midnight showing.

If you're not sure if you're a Twilighter, visit this site.

The Yearly Stats

Annual report of Adam and Zach's yearly check up:

Adam (as of 10/20/09):

45 lbs (15%), 44.5 inches (4%)

Zach (as of 11/5/09):

41 lbs (16%), 41.5 inches (1%)

Doctor: "Zach, do you ride a bike?"

Zach: "Yes."

Doctor: "What do you wear when you ride your bike?"

Zach (pause): "Clothes."

Doctor: "Well, that's good to know. We should always wear clothes when we ride a bike. What else do you wear?"

Zach (pause): "Shoes?"

Doctor: "Yes, another important thing to wear when you ride your bike. What do you wear on your head?"

Zach (pause): "Hair?"

Doctor: "Yes, we all wear our hair all the time, don't we? What else goes on your head when you're riding a bike?"

Me: "You know, we clip the strap under the chin?"

Zach: "Oh, well a helmet of course."

Trick or Treat!

Back row: Batman, age 3; Spider-man, age 6; Storm Trooper, age 5; Red Ranger, age 6; Red Ninja, age 6; Anakin Skywalker, age 8; Yoda, age 2.

Front row: Skeleton, age 7; David Beckman, age 8; Pokeman Pikachu, age 9.

Later on we met up with Amelia Earhart and a policeman, and Robin Hood and a princess.