STORY

--Mom

Reading a story with Raggedy Andy.

Ben always loved hats.






(edit, Alyssum: he still does)

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--Tara
Experiences in the Kitchen

So we cooked some crazy meals, including ones with exotic ingredients like banana leaves(?!) Having that big old house to share, esp. with a great kitchen, was such a blessing. Ben: I noticed the spray bottle of water in the background and it brought to mind the "fire extinguisher incident"--I'm sure you can imagine what happened after the dinner party when Alyssum and I had already gone to bed..Ben wanted to see what would happen if he blasted Phillip with the fire extinguisher (edit (phillip): I blasted him back) What happened was that everything in the entire kitchen (open shelving) was coated in white! Luckily, they spent the remainder of the night/morning washing every single thing! Never again... (edit (phillip): we'll see)

More fun after the girls have gone to bed! This time with singing crystals.

We had so many good dance parties at the Woodland house. One night the staff of Cafe Joseph Beth came over to a party and Ben got inspired to have an impromptu waltz lesson. It was amazing to see my co-workers have so much fun learning to dance together. That was one of the most fun dance memories--you were awesome for making that happen! I am so happy that you are teaching more and more now :)
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--Alyssum
Your stories are the tunnel that most people look for when they are getting to know you. They might not even realize that they're waiting to hear them, but once you launch into one of your tales, everyone LOVES it. I remember the first time you told me a story, we were driving back to Hueco campground from Juarez and you were telling me the story of your crazy German busdriver who hated all the kids on your bus because you were obnoxious, and how he drove around and around in donuts faster and faster til the bus was teetering on 2 wheels to get you guys to shut up and behave. That was the first time I was really interested in you. I realized how great you were, and immediately knew I wanted to spend more time with you.
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--Ruth
Maybe it's because I'm a teacher, but my favorite story ever that you tell is the one about the "Rube Goldberg" machine you "created" with your friend in high school. Your recounting of that incident is impeccable in it's hilarity. You are a true raconteur. Even just thinking about it now makes me laugh out loud.