Robindcr8l

Belladonnis, are you talking about bringing a food item? A dessert? Hmmmm

Robindcr8l

And by the way, welcome back!

Qsilv

Well, just as a suggestion -- I make up coloring books.

They travel well, and are surprisingly tempting to kids and grownups alike.
The whole family can join in on one picture, each getting a part or a special color... or each person can get a fresh copy of the same drawing and color it wholly his/her own way.
Also it's rather pleasant to color and chat casually at the same time (uses different parts of the brain) while waiting for dinner.

I do mine from scratch, but hey... it'd be easy enough to print out versions of some of your strongest drawings here ...that's the "Cover", which offers suggestions on colors.

Then make a handful (or more) of inner pages that will be just line drawings for THEM to color in as they please.
For every inner page in the "book", print out an enlargement and do a TRACING in strong lines of the drawing's main parts.
You can ink those lines; I don't. I like to do a little pencil shading and let people decide for themselves where the "edges" are... but some kids really want strong boundaries and just fall apart without 'em, so I generally have a few of those too.

Make enough xerox copies to go around and some extras too.

Assemble the "books" in pocket folders or manila envelopes...
Add the recipient's name in a bold flourish...

Bring one huge box of crayons... or colored pencils... or a small box for each "artist".

You may all wind up with some surprisingly fun keepsakes!

; >

Robindcr8l

I love that idea, Qsilv! That's along the same lines I was thinking when I asked if she meant food, because I was thinking a specific game or activity might be more fun and appreciated than another dish or dessert. There is a game called Apples to Apples. They have an adult version and a kids version, but I would recommend the kids version. It's still just as fun for the adults, but with words the kids will know and recognize. It's a fun group game and brings out lots of laughs. You can follow the rules as they're written, or just make up your own set.

Robindcr8l

Today was a milestone day for my 12yo son! Ever since he was small he ahs argued about taking showers. It's something I just don't understand. His dad and I both have impeccable hygiene, so don't know what his opposition is to it. He will also argue about brushing his teeth. I've even tried to explain the whole "pick your battles" thing to him, saying that it seems weird that he would choose a ten-minute shower as a battle. But still it continues. Until today!

Yesterday he asked a girl, Zoe, to the dance tomorrow. The dance is during school hours in the morning before early release. Lo and behold Zoe said "YES!" He is floating on air. Tonight he said to me, "Mom, can you make sure to wake me up early in the morning so I can take a shower?? I want to look GOOD for Zoe at the dance!"

Ahhhh, so there ARE some positives to adolescence! I bet he'll even brush his teeth without an argument!

matthew

ANSWER: I am an expert marksman... How did that happen...

... I was 5 years old when my father took me hunting for the 1st time... (squirrel hunting)... I used a 4-10 shotgun and missed badly the 1st time I took a shot. My dad had to shoot it for me... From there, I began to practice a lot until I became a VERY good shot with a rifle by the time I was 10...

... Funny thing is, I have not hunted since I was 6 or 7 because I just hated killing the animals we hunted... I still practice with my hand gun at the range when I can... Shooting with a rifle is very easy in my opinion...

... Marksmanship does not transfer to billiards... Marksmanship focus' on relaxing breathing and stance and squeezing the trigger without loosing aim. Billiards is muscle memory, consistency in stance, body position and stroke. Knowledge of geometry, physics & pattern play and much much more... Perhaps with laser guidance or a scope on your cue stick would help...

matthew

FYI: You can adjust a rifle's sites to fit any consistent shooter... For example, if you always miss your target low and to the left, you adjust the site left & down to force your aim to come up and to the right. You keep adjusting until your shots are on center... So consistency is the end all of marksmanship...

Login

With reference to your bisness going bust, matthew ... there's no need to feel shame ... BIG businesses are going down; it's a sign of the times. I wish you better luck in 2010.

Login

- bisness + business

marius

LOL Robin, "Never mind the dogs, beware of neighbor!" If you find that spell book, would you do for my neighbors with the yappy dog? (giggle - but kind of serious!)

matthew, thanks! That was fascinating. All six men in my family hunted, but only two still do it. Apparently the others feel the way you do about killing animals. I also thought shooting with a rifle was easy but am guessing now a shotgun is not a rifle? As for billiards not being like shooting, that makes sense. Thanks for explanation. (And now I know one reason I'm awful at pool - use of geometry and physics!)

Do not know what Login is talking about, but prayers for you, your family and your business. Times are hard for lots of folks I know right now. One couple I know are caring for their three grandkids as the parents have gotten lost in a world of drugs/alcohol. My friend injured her back and cannot work, then her husband lost his job. Mercifully friends stepped in and the kids will have a Christmas anyway.

Wishing comfort, strength of spirit and much love for all who are struggling out there.

Normal

Missed the spell discussion. I have done with & without appurtenances such as candles, feathers or what all. The Universe simply supplies us with what we carry in mind. (Think YIPPY DOG and you get more; think NEIHBORHOOD HARMONY & away she goes.) That is the short version, but it's worth a try and you don't have to unpack any books.

Re Robin's son - had a dentist once who proclaimed that the sure sign of male pubescence was the change in sanitation procedures!

Normal

Also just noticed Sheftali's time remarks. "Halb acht" IS 7:30, which is quite the same as half-way to eight. Normal was confused while living in Germany by Brit friends who said "half-eight" and meant 8:30! Don't get that at all.

marius

Normal, enjoyed reminder of idea: "Think YIPPY DOG and you get more; think NEIHBORHOOD HARMONY & away she goes." Reminds me of scene in "Autobiography of a Yogi" where the teacher says to the student, "You look poorly today." The student says, "Well, now that you mention it, I do feel poorly today." The next day the teacher says, "You look well today." Student says, "I do feel well, guess I recovered." Next day the teacher says, "Guess you didn't recover afterall, you look really poorly now!"

Student gets quite sick, and then it dawns on him that the teacher says one thing one day, a different thing the next. The student confronts the teacher and the teacher says, "Yes, I've wondered why you are making yourself sick one day and well the next." : )

Also, chuckling at Robin's son with new standards of cleanliness!

marius

This was kind of fun. Got it in an email. (Will post answers in Baldur's answer column.)

A QUIZ FOR PEOPLE WHO KNOW EVERYTHING.
This is a quiz for people who know everything!
I found out in a hurry that I didn't.
These are not trick questions.
They are straight questions with straight answers.

1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.

2. What famous north American landmark is constantly moving backward?

3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. all other vegetables must be replanted every year. what are the only two perennial vegetables?

4. What fruit has its seed on the outside?

5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe and the bottle is genuine; it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?

6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters 'dw' and they are all common words. Name two of them.

7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?

8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.

9. Name six or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter "S."

matthew

I used a small shotgun when I was 5... Shot guns are good when you are needing something that targets an "area" not just a "spot"... A shot gun shell contains a bunch of pellets that spread out as they leave the barrel of the gun...I graduated to small caliber rifles a year or two later... Rifles fire a single bullet and you must be much more accurate with your shot...

For example, when using a shotgun, you need just shoot at center mass of the target... With a rifle, you are aiming for the heart or bullseye...

matthew

I only know #3,#6, #7 & came up with 5 items that fit #9 off the top of my head... will have to peek at the others...

Dragon

I'm just guessing at some of these,

1. Figure Skating? (Maybe)
2. Not a clue
3. Cabbages and Cauliflower (seriously just guessing this one)
4. Strawberry
5. They put the bottle over the bud and grow the pear inside it.
6. I could only think of Dwindle and Dwarf
7. exclamation point, period, comma, semi-colon, colon, parenthesis, question mark, quotation mark (I put 8 because I wasn't sure about parenthesis)
8. Lettuce
9. Socks, slippers, sneakers, stockings, sandles, shoes

matthew

Figure skating was the 1st thing to come to my mind as well, but you get the scores after each skater... So that is out...

matthew

I will go with Boxing for #1...

matthew

#2 would be something erroding like a coast line or water fall???