dreams

i occasionally have some pretty bizarre dreams. some hilarious. some whacked. and some, even, prophetic. (like that one with the wagon wheels and red ball. how crazy was that?!) but last week, i had a series of really weird ones. even for me.

the first: (this was before the "swine flu" drama.) there was a crazy pandemic. everyone had to wear masks in public. they closed all schools and churches. and everyone was freaking out. since the schools were shut down, john paul couldn't find a job teaching. so he found employment as a truck driver. i was talking to one of my friends and she was saying how crazy our economy was that a man with a phd had to drive truck. i replied, "we just feel so blessed that he has a job at all." the next scene was john paul in the driver's seat of a huge 18 wheeler singing the avett brothers at the top of his lungs, pounding his fist on the stearing wheel, wearing the typical "professor" jacket. you know the one. tweed thing with wood buttons and elbow patches. i woke up smiling.

after i got max back to sleep, the second dream began: john paul was hired at a small university near kansas city, so we were looking for a house. and although i usually love small, cottage-type houses (smaller carbon footprint, close ranks with those i love best, not so "showy", you know what i mean) we kept coming back to this one house that was really much bigger than what we wanted. (i do not like excess...of anything, but you probably already know that about me.) so after much thought and contemplation and prayer, we hesitantly settled on this grand house, with a loft and spare bedrooms and a hidden staircase. we were getting settled in, and then somehow became aware of a verrrry slowwwww burning fire on both coasts. friends and family were calling us, scared and nervous, not knowing what to do. so we offered our house. i remember saying, "we have tons of room. and the fires will be out by the time they could reach us." so grateful we could help people in need.

my last dream was far less detailed, but much more emotional: for whatever reason, families were being split up. i don't know if it was war or illness or what, but these women came to our house and were crying and upset and (for a reason i can't remember) couldn't take their babies with them. so we set up cribs in the dining room and took on some precious new additions to our family. the only details i remember were our dining room table (pathetic, i know) and that the babies were all different races, and that i was rocking them in my rocking chair, telling them about how much their mommies love them. broke my heart.

when we woke up that morning i told john paul all about my series of crazy dreams. i think we were brushing our teeth when we overheard on the news (for the first time) about the swine flu outbreak. john paul was like, "NO WAY! you're starting to freak me out with this dream business."
totally bizarre, i know. so if john paul ever has to drive a big rig, or we have adorable, precious new babies, i'll be ready. bring it.

mad libs

did you ever do mad libs as a kid? where the story is written and you fill in the blanks (with a little guidance)? noun. verb. adjective. john paul and i did this one and it had us rolling in the aisles. (and questioning if adverbs only end in "ly".):

episode 23: BEAR and the BELLICOSE BEES.
scene: interior of sunny's BLOOD RED apartment. chip knocks on door.
sunny: WHAT?! i wasn't expecting anyone! i hope it's chip with a HORSE or a TOOTH.
chip: (enters room) hi, sunny! hope you're feeling SIMPLE. i THOUGHT all the way here! did you know pepper is SWIMMING in the SLED this afternoon at the NEW YORK?
sunny: really? we should pack some GRANDE PICKLES and rush over to SMILE with him. that will be really LOUSY! i'll bring the CHAIR. that's pepper's fave!
chip: cool. i'll call hal on my new TACO and have him LICK us.
sunny: yay! i love when we all LISTEN together and EAT for a silly cause!
chip: okay, sunny. i'll LEAVE you outside, and we can go in my RECORD.
end of scene.

now that i read it back, it may only be funny to us. maybe it was really late. or the hilarious voices he was doing. or both. in any case, there you go, jape. it's blogged for our posterity.

unanimous

the little man slept through the night for the first time last night. (seriously. he's 14 months old. it's about time.) the night before that, he woke up only once. that was enough cause to rejoice, since lately it's 3-4 times a night that we get to see his sweet little face. but not only did maxwell rees sleep through the night, so did every one else! i'm pretty sure that's a first. there was no peeing in beds. no nightmares to hug away. no sick tummys to soothe. nothing. just precious little tiny breaths, a silent rearranging of blankets, and a random word whispered. (i think it was "butter".) and how do i know this? because while everyone else was snug in their beds, i was up checking on them every couple of hours, wondering if something was terribly wrong. i do believe i am turning into my mother.

john paul's getting nervous

you know those people that are just too beautiful for their own good? and then smart and funny and kind to boot? don't we secretly hate them? but this girl...this girl is impossible to hate. in fact, she is the easiest thing to love. and she has recently informed us that she is "half way to 16". so john paul is making plans for what he will say to all those boys that will inevitably come calling. be afraid. be very afraid.