All you'll ever need to know about the economy.

I heard a story about this the other day on NPR while I was picking T. up from school. I had to shush Tillman a bunch of times (not easy to do...he physically CANNOT stop talking sometimes) so I could hear it.

Apparently a TV producer got together with an Econ professor from George Mason U. ,who puts out a weekly podcast, to lay out the fundamentals of modern Economics. The prof. jokingly suggested they make a rap video.

Accurate AND hilarious.

I was laughing pretty hard in the car, and thought: THIS is perfect for Mitch-darling. Economic theory (Keynes vs. Hayek) + RAP = what could be more awesome? Married to an econ/finance boy, I've developed a hobby interest in economics (purely theoretical. I don't understand a thing Mike says about investment mechanics, tools, etc.) One of my favorite documentaries of all time is Commanding Heights. But this is even more sweet. Nerd-rap.

Noble-ism: Big Head

From last night: Don't think I haven't thought about all the sweet moolah that could be made selling t-shirts of the stuff he makes up. There's got to be a way to harness genius like this. Hahahaha.

Where do I start?

Wow.

THAT was a cool trip. I've been wondering since about half way through last week how best to chronicle our adventures. I don't know what else to do except to launch into a full explanation... follow the links to see the pictures. Sorry this is long...

A little background - (in case you were unaware): my sister and her husband are archaeologists. Bruce has a project going, in its second year in Chiapa de Corzo. They've been down there for almost 5 months, with about 4 to go. So we went to stay with them, hang out with our little niece and nephew, see the site and do lots of off-the-beaten path stuff.

We stayed at Holly and Bruce's beautiful colonial era (17th or 18th Century?) house in Chiapa de Corzo for several nights (more photos here). They made a space for us in the hallway/courtyard. Their house is a few blocks from the center of town. Which was very convenient for visiting the markets, historic buildings, and enjoying the month long festival of St. Sebastian, going all night, every night we were there. Two of Bruce's assistants, Carlos & Hoover, live at the house with them. Nice guys. Hoover has a habit of singing early in the morning.

Chiapa de Corzo is an old, old city - predating the Spanish, though they made it a colonial city when they came. Our first day we walked around a little before Carlos drove us up to Tuxtla in the NWAF suburban, dropping us off at the Regional Museum of Chiapas. We saw lots of cool artifacts, one of them: The earliest example of the Mayan long-count, found at the site where Bruce is excavating (8th Mayan cycle). Day 1 photos.

The next morning (after trying to sleep through an entire night of fireworks right above the house) I went with Holly down to the open-air market to buy produce. Later on Hoover drove Mike & I and Holly& kids up the plateau into San Cristobal, the town Holly and Bruce just moved from. San Cristobal is more of a resort town: more well-to-do. A few dozen gringo ex-patriots live there and some dreadlocked touristas were hanging around, for the proximity to native villages and the Zapatista/Che Gavara atmosphere.

We had a great time in the textiles markets there, good food, colonial churches. We stayed in a great little hotel, and Mike and I went to a performance of Palenque Rojo. Bruce's project artist, Ayax, wrote the production about war between Palenque and Tonina, and designed the costumes. Bruce pulled a few strings, scoring some sweet seats for us at 1/2 the price. Day 2 photos.

We began day 3 with breakfast at a little bakery with really good croissants, as well as the usual Chiapan chocolate. Holly and I made a second visit to the textile markets, then took a taxi to meet Mike, Bruce and the kids at the New World Archaeological Foundation (NWAF) - where Bruce gave us a tour of the lab there & showed us a few artifacts from last year's dig. From there Bruce drove us deeper into the highlands along a very windy road, scattered with tope's (speed bumps that the kids got a great thrill out of whenever we slowed down suddenly and then lurched over, screaming "Tope! Help! Tope!") to Tonina. Tonina was AWESOME. It sits out in the middle of large tracts of ranch land, pretty isolated from much else. Not too many tourists make it out there. The museum is great, and there's a little mom & pop restaurant at the edge of site serving beef from their own cattle ranch. After a few hours at Tonina, we drove on to our stay for the night: the Santa Maria Guest Ranch, a 19th Century ranch in the middle of nowhere converted into a cool 8 room inn with top notch service. We arrived late at night, starving. The staff informed us that the restaurant kitchen had closed - but then offered to warm up some soup for us. That sounded perfect. The next thing we knew the guy was carrying a table on his back out onto the veranda in front of our rooms, then chairs, then candles, steaming bowls of outstanding vegetable soup (made from the veggies in their own gardens), tortillas, fresh squeezed OJ, & Chiapan chocolate. If there was ever a meal that hit the spot... (Day 3: NWAF, Tonina, dinner at the Santa Maria Guest Ranch)

Sunday we left the guest ranch, went to church in Comitan, then on to hike up El Chiflon to see the falls. Beautiful aqua blue water.

Stuff you see in Mexico: truck load of clowns on the way back into Chiapa de Corzo

We had to hurry to drive back into Chiapa de Corzo that night so we wouldn't miss the Parachico dancers. The St. Sebastian festival goes on all during January, the Parachicos dancing a couple of those days. Parachicos dance in commemoration of the rescue of the Chiapanec townspeople from famine by a grateful Spanish colonial woman who's son had been healed in Chiapa de Corzo. When she heard that the town was suffering from famine she sent her Spanish servants with food; when they arrived they danced to make the children happy. The blonde fro wigs and masks with facial hair and blue eyes are supposed to be the Spanish servants who danced (para chico). It is a really cool festival. Check out this quick video of one of the small processions. It was tough getting into town with all the traffic, and the house was right in the thick of the festivities. We were swarmed by thousands of them after dark. So cool. (Day 4 photos)

We spent Monday morning visiting Bruce at the site in Chiapa de Corzo. It was nice of Bruce to make time to show us around - we loved it.

Down in the famous axe pit of last year

The site is pre-Mayan, Zoque around 700 B.C. Afterward, Holly and the kids went with us down to catch a river launch up the Sumidero Canyon - a spectacular canyon with 3,000+ ft. walls, alligators, spider monkeys...etc. Our last night we took the kids down to the center to ride on a few carnival rides and to sample some sweets from the local vendors. It was great to relax with them... Again the music went strong and loud until about 2 AM - but with an iPod in you can sleep through almost anything. More pictures from this day.

We left the house at 5:30 the next morning to catch a 7 AM flight out of Tuxtla to Mexico City - and then home.

Thanks Holly and Bruce. We had an incredible time.

...Like a Pollo With it's Head Cut Off...

...that's me (Mike will have to correct my Spanish if I used the wrong word for chicken).

You cannot believe how complicated it is to try and leave 5 kids, 3 pets, a house, church callings, job, volunteer demands at the kids' school, etc. for a week. Well, maybe you can believe it...and you're also thinking "That is why parents with young kids should NEVER leave town on their own." Still I have to say, taking 5 kids with us to the backwaters of southern Mexico would be even MORE complicated (& scary). By the way, thanks so much to all who will be helping out with it all so we can go.

Before next week I have a list about a mile long to get through, including a birthday party for a six year old boy - the obligatory Star Wars themed party that somehow we have avoided till now. I just couldn't refuse him...he has always been such a good sport about having kind of an unfortunately timed birthday (i.e. right after Christmas when I'm all partied/gifted out). He's put up with years of kind of lame, last minute birthday recognition...and I've been promising him this one for more than a year. (You're awesome, Tillman.) Today he and I took some time and transformed a basketball pinata into the Death Star (to be destroyed in a triumphant battle on Saturday by eight enthusiastic 5-6 year old boys).

I don't know how much it actually looks like the Death Star...but close enough.

My favorite part was listening to him repeatedly use the correct Spanish pronunciation of the word "pinata", emphasizing the "t".

Anyway, hopefully I can get through the next few days without forgetting anything critical. I may not be posting for a little while. Until then...(I just thought of the song they always sing at the end of the Lawrence Welk Show - you know what I mean.)Auf wiedersehen!

Kicking Back for a Week

Jupiter in heaven - snowshoeing with the fam

It's been quiet our last week of Christmas/New Year's break (actually it's been the opposite of quiet - with 5 kids around the house). We did some sledding (both the downhill and vehicle-towed varieties), enjoyed a little more time with Grandma Tiede before she heads back to New Mexico this next week, saw some movies, ate out, watched a little football, shot some guns (Mike's dream date. He's watching Ted Nugent shoot guns on tv right now - I'm laughing my head off.) - stuff like that. Mike and I rung in the new year at home listening to our neighbor fire off seriously illegal fireworks (our house was shaking from the concussion with each launch), and waiting for midnight to go pick up our daughter from HER New Year's party (I guess when you get to a certain stage in life you switch places with your kids). Today we broke out the snow shoes for the first time this year - just a quickie up Yellow Fork. Even though we weren't out long the kids and Jupiter had a great time.

It will be tough to get back into our routine next week: school, music lessons, etc. I know a few kids who aren't happy about that. But in some ways I'm looking forward to it. Sleeping in is great and everything...but having a schedule has it's benefits too (like getting more done). Happy 2010!

Simple Food

BEETS!

(This batch came from my mom's vegetable garden this fall.)For some reason when beets are mentioned lots of people turn their noses up - including a few of my children. (I remember a little children's book my family used to have about a kid who refused to eat his beets until he had a bad dream about a giant beet coming to eat him.) I can't figure that out - because if ever there was a vegetable that was sweet, yummy & easy to make, this is it.

People seem to get all fussy about removing the tough skin, and so end up avoiding them all together because if you're trying to peel them first they're tricky and really messy. I deal with them the way I deal with new potatoes: scrub 'em, chop 'em, steam 'em - and then add a little butter at the end. Plus, beet greens are super nutritious. I like to saute' them with a little butter and garlic, just until they wilt a little. The kids actually love the greens. (go figure?)

Beets + quinoa for dinner. That's what I'm talking about.

A Very Merry Christmas and A Botched Good Deed

Merry Christmas all!
We decided to make the holiday a little more interesting this year by taking in an injured bird intending to nurse it back to health. The afternoon before Christmas Eve the kids and I rescued a dove from the clutches of our cat Pluto, who's lately had a taste for wild birds (she can't help herself when the evergreen in our front yard is the winter residence of every bird within 10 miles). Typically we find out that she's been hunting when we find a pile of feathers at our door in the garage. This time we caught her in the act...and the bird was still alive. With kids crying for me to save the bird, what could I do? I could tell that she was badly injured, but I just couldn't walk away and let the cat kill her. I found a shoe box, gently put the bird in and carried the box upstairs to my bathtub. We gave her food, tried to clean her up & I gave her water from an eye-dropper.

When I told Mike over the phone what I'd done he was very doubtful, but nice. The dove actually seemed to be doing better over the next 24 hours - and I was beginning to wonder what to do with her long-term until she could fly again.

Christmas Eve...

We went to Mike's parents' to have Christmas Eve dinner and open some gifts with them. We had a good time and awesome food over there (as usual). It was great to see everyone. Two of Mike's brothers, Tim and Gary, were in town.

Afterward we headed over to the Sullivans' for the annual nativity. It's always a highlight at Christmas. This year my mom was calling our production a "journey to Bethlehem."

The cast suiting up.

I seriously LOVE my niece's face in this one.

Shepherds in their fields.

Meanwhile...

We returned home Christmas Eve to find that the dove had died. I felt really bad knowing that I had only managed to prolong its suffering...poor thing. Mike was very sweet and refrained from telling me, "I told you so." The kids soon shook off their sorrow because it was Christmas Eve after all...and the bird had gone to a better place.

Christmas morning brought all the usual excitement, and kids begging us to get out of bed so they could go see what Santa brought.

We made our way through lots of wrapping paper. And then our parents and lovely grandmothers paid a visit to see the kids in the morning. We are so happy to have both of them here this year. We finished out the day at the Sullivans with a big Christmas dinner. All in all it was a wonderful Christmas. We have so much to be grateful for... especially Christmases like this when our kids are young.

Festivus...and more

You gotta love Noble... Christmas Nativity on the ice planet, Hoth

We've had a BUSY week. In general, I try and avoid scheduling so much...but at Christmas time it's hard not to. In contrast, this is how my sister and her family spent the week. (Can't wait to get down there for a visit next month.) The rest of us (most of the rest of us) toughed it out in the cold with our own Christmas fun:

"All the cool kids at the back of the bus..." On the train at the Pioneer Village

We got together with the Sullivans (including my Grandma up from Silver City, New Mexico) at This is the Place Monument (the Historic Pioneer Village) for Candlelight Christmas. Christmas as it was observed on the 19th Century frontier: colder, darker, quieter. I think stuff like this is pretty cool. (I'm glad my kids do too... so far). We ran into my cousin Brian, who is the biggest Civil War reenactor junkie of all time (and apparently does the pioneer thing on the side - here he is as a shepherd outside the live nativity).

The kids had their Christmas Sing-Around at school on Thursday...and that's always kind of a big deal because Christmas excitement is thick in the air.

Here's Grace (shortie on the left) singing with the second grade. I only got off a few decent shots because I was crammed in the very back corner of the room with Sully. The place was packed with parents and grandparents.

I also finished up the Christmas shopping, did 8,000 loads of laundry, helped the kids make Christmas gifts for their friends and teachers & went with all our 19 Activity Day girls (including Jessie) for a Christmas/skating/pizza party at Classic Skating. (I have to tell you, you'll never see more heavy eye-liner and badly fitting ratty tank tops ANYWHERE.)


And, of course, I snuggled as much as possible with Sully.

Here he is attacking me in the kitchen this week. My favorite part of this picture is his teeth visible through the binky...grinning.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The Christmas cards are sent. Most of the decorations are up. We missed putting up any outside lights this year (it snowed on us before we could get to that). We were looking into some solar powered lights this year. Maybe we'll have to wait to put them up next Christmas.

As Christmas trees go, ours is no designer creation. It's full of all the gnarly preschool/hand-made kid ornaments we've collected over the years. Plus we strung some cranberries this year. Messy but so pretty. We even have MY kindergarten ornament, which my mom gifted back to me a few years ago.

10 more days... of Sully pulling all the ornaments off the tree & smacking the angel on the Little People Nativity to hear "Away in a Manger" all day long... love it.