Farewell, dear Fusion

While the blue car was away at the "spa," the Crabbes spent the weekend tooling around in a brand new Ford Fusion loaner car, courtesy of Bo Beuckmann Ford.

We've never had a car with this many bells and whistles... HD radio, satellite navigation, seat warmers -- even mood lighting!

It goes without saying... we all loved it. Just ask Allen about the "noise"!

It was hard to say goodbye today as we welcomed home the blue car. The blue car we bought in Kentucky when our other blue car died. The blue car with enough miles on it to have made it to the moon. Good blue car. Nice blue car... If ever it should leave us, well... we know where we'll go to shop.

Science Night !

Well, we were away from Sorrento for a year, but Allen gets things started all over again with another great Science Night!

Allen got started with the fun right away, getting a bracelet made of UV-sensitive beads... Then, the gang made yellow goop, extracted DNA from strawberries, inflated a balloon with dry ice, got the iron out of cereal with a magnet, played with circuits and teased their brains with tangrams! Whew!

Emilyn, as you might remember, got to hold a scorpion two years ago at Science Night. Well, the Reptile Guy was back... This time bearing an alligator and a skink! (I grabbed his card; he does birthday parties!)


Stacy, mom of Allen's friend Nate, runs Science Night, and I put a bug in her ear that Allen and Daddy would like to run an oobleck table next year! We'll see what happens!

For the rest of our great photos from Science Night, click here.

A rough week for the boy

Allen started acting funny last Sunday, when he woke up Steve and me and complained about feeling sick to his tummy... Nothing happened, but he did spend the day a little more clingy than usual. Finally, we got up the energy to go out to Panda Express and Walmart -- and then every parent's nightmare: He got sick in the restaurant. Actually, he got sick as I had my hand clamped over his mouth and dragged him to the bathroom of the restaurant! And I got to clean up the bathroom -- which, let me tell you, is a delightful experience.

So, Monday was a holiday anyway, and he seemed to be feeling a lot better. No more sickness. He went back to school Tuesday and Wednesday with seemingly no problem. Then Wednesday after school, during his walk home with Steve, he started complaining about his tummy again. He worked up a little enthusiasm for his new Beyblade that came all the way from Korea, Basalt Horogium, but that was short-lived. He started getting whiny and tantrum-y as he fought off the nausea, but it came back with a vengeance. TWO DAYS LATER!? That's a weird 24-hour bug, for sure.

After he got everything out of his system the second time, he curled up asleep on the couch. Awwww. He's a kid that never acts sick until he's sick in a BIG way.

Now, after his unpleasant experience with that peanut butter sandwich from Wednesday's lunch, he's refusing to eat peanut butter. That was seriously his main source of protein! I think we'll try turkey sandwiches for a while...

Turning 40 at the Loop Ice Carnival

If you'll recall, somebody got to go to Prague when he turned 40.

So, it seemed like the pressure was on for my big day to be that big, too. But, come on... Steve had to work, I had to work, and let's face it: There weren't going to be any passports involved!

But that was just fine with me, because my dear little family and I ended up at the Loop Ice Carnival, and we had a really great time! Right here in River City! Well, University City...

For starters, I had a bowl of happiness at Ginger Bistro... delicious bulgogi beef, a fried egg and just the right amount of Sriracha sauce! (heeheehee) The kiddos and Steve even won stuffed penguins by shooting baskets near the bar area of the restaurant. There was fun for everyone!

While we were eating, I couldn't help but notice the crowd across the street at the Craft Alliance... Well, heck, that explains it... they were making free s'mores over there! Oh, yeah!

The weather really was just perfect for an ice-themed street festival. About 33 degrees, periodic sun, and no wind to speak of.

Nearly every business had an ice sculpture out front... Even the local head shop, Sunshine Daydream, and the nearby Smoothie King (filled with real smoothie)! "What a looonnnnnng strange trip it's been..."


We headed around the corner to Dough to Door, where you can get a custom dozen fresh baked cookies with any dough and mix-ins you want. Ummm, yeah! They were just opening as we walked in, so they could take advantage of all the extra foot traffic for the ice fest. Our cookies took a little while, but they have games that you can play while you wait! And then they were out of the oven... piping hot! Mmmmmm. I got chocolate dough with peanut butter cups, peanut butter chips and chocolate chips. I could only eat one and a half!



When we waddled back outside, we saw the warmest guy in the place, juggling torches... and the coldest guy in the place, covered head to toe in slush while working on an ice sculpture of an eagle. I had to go to work, but the gang stayed and watched, and Emilyn got a picture of the finished product.



For all the rest of the pictures from my big birthday, click here.

Well, the choir thing . . .

... was a big bummer, because we showed up on the wrong day, and Emilyn missed a chance to sing with the
All-Suburban Choir. But we did see these totally ginchy half-picnic-tables!

And, OMG, it converts into a bench! If Dad had seen these, he would have to have built one.

As Christmas wanes . . .

It's time to pack up Mary, Joseph, Jesus and the rest of the Playmobil "farm set" for another year... The tree came down and went to the curb... and the weather was so warm (we still haven't really had any winter to speak of) that Daddy tried out his new cycling jacket! He's oh-so-visible!

A resolution

So... I can't help but notice that 2011 was the slowest -- by far -- for posts on The Crabbe Trap. There are probably a number of reasons for that...

I started out 2011 on the Luxe 365 project, and taking pictures for that really burned me out on using the camera. Plus, with both kiddos in school full time, there just isn't as much going on around here! And, as they get bigger, their tolerance for Mommy and her camera is waning.

But I do resolve to take more pictures in 2012, and to keep chronicling our stories. There are big things ahead this year. Our 10th trip to the beach. Another two-week summer odyssey. Allen will have a kindergarten performance in April. I'm hoping they do another Mother's Day Tea. Emilyn will have another concert in April, too... And I will be bringing the video camera this time!

The one thing I do not want to do is let these memories slip away. So, let's make a pact to keep them going through 2012 and beyond. Thanks for reading!