

Heirs of the Magi Archives

Cassie's Journal 2011

By Steve Leggett

Published by Steve Leggett - Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2011 – Steve Leggett

Cover Image by Kayla Leggett \- Copyright 2012 - Used by Permission

Books by Steve Leggett

Heirs of the Magi Trilogy

Magi Sanctuary

Magi Master

Magi Ascension (Forthcoming)

Heirs of the Magi Archives

 Cassie's Journal 2011

 Cassie's Journal 2012 - Part One

Cassie's Journal 2012 – Part Two (Forthcoming)

The Catalyst Chronicles

 The Catalyst is Born

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

September 2011

October 2011

November 2011

December 2011

Notes

September 2011

Monday, September 5, 2011

We had another amazing long weekend to end the summer with, though this was quite a bit less eventful than it was last year. I'll need to get off to sleep soon, since I've got school in the morning, but I wanted to catch up on my journal after missing a few days while we were all busy with the Labor Day holiday fun.

The most important thing that happened since my last entry was what Ethan, Ehlana, and I did this afternoon while Mom and Dad had their nap. I'll do some research in the archives when I have time, but I'm fairly sure that what they can do with the Sight, and what we were able to see of our future together, is a much different use of the talent than has happened before. It's certainly much more than anything I've done before while training with Mom.

Seeing is normally like looking at all possible outcomes of future events and choices; which is why it's so fluid and unpredictable. Ethan and Ehlana use their Sight in tandem in a way that I don't completely understand, but the results are that they see what will happen; at least for the major events in their lives. They've apparently been able to do this to some extent since before their birth, though it wasn't something they were consciously trying to control. When they had me try using my Sight with them this afternoon, we were able to see even more than they could without me, and while I don't fully understand the how; we're all very certain that everything we are seeing of the future will happen.

The three of us had agreed that what we've been able to see together of our future should be kept between us for now, and that it's meant to help us to get ready for what's going to happen. I've been wondering about the 'why now' for a few hours, while thinking a lot about everything we saw. The twins are just two and a half months old, and all of this is more than they should need to deal with. It's certainly more than I was ready for, but it really won't be that long – just a handful of months – before we'll need to start nudging that future toward reality.

Fortunately for us, that will mostly be fun for now. The scary parts come later, and though we joked about it; our future love interests are really only a little scary by comparison. There was a lot that we couldn't see, and while Ethan is likely right that we don't need to see everything that's going to happen; I'm sure that there is much more that we're either not ever meant to see, or aren't supposed to find out about yet. We will continue to explore what we can do with the Sight, but the twins have much more important things to learn right now, so this won't be a priority for us.

Right now, what I see in my immediate future is a good night's sleep. Don't worry about what we see of the future – we'll be ready for both the good and bad, and we have the power to do what we must.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Today was the first day of Grade Six for me, Rowen, and the rest of our classmates; and it's hard to believe that summer's over already!

Mrs. Warren is going to be our teacher for the next two years! Jenny was as happy that her Mom wasn't going to be her teacher in Grade Seven this year as we were about having her in our class instead.

Now that Violet's gone home again, and the kids and teens are back in school, Mom was on her own to take care of the twins today; though she did have some help from her friends as they conveniently showed up around the normal feeding times for the twins. Dad was busy at the office all day, though that's pretty much how it always is for him after long weekends.

There's not much to talk about with our Grade Six class. Mrs. Warren gave us some homework, but that only took Rowen and I about five minutes to finish after school; mostly because Rebecca and Jenny have a new Grade Seven study group that includes boys. We'll miss hanging out with them, but getting to do our homework with a little Magi power is very cool.

Having Jenny and Rebecca cross over last winter was weird enough, but today we found out that about half the girls in our class are in the advanced stages of the infection, and a couple of the boys are showing all the signs of the goofy, guy version of the affliction. By lunchtime, Rowen and I had decided that if either of us come down with it, I'll try a Magi Healing intervention - unless Uncle Adam can help us with a prescription or immunization shot.

Dillon looked so sad this morning when I saw him; and I don't think my hug helped very much. Jake and Stephanie are doing their best to help him, though, and I'm sure there will be a trip to meet up with Violet somewhere, or they'll go to Woodvale to see her, very soon. For me, that's another little sad part about summer being over – with Violet back at home; Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie won't likely be around our house much for the next few months.

Alicia Jennings came over after school to start her first part-time shift working with Mom; and taking care of the twins. Rowen and I were nearly finished our special first day of classes snack and school recap by then, so we went on to do our homework, and play with Mandy in the lounge. Mom, Dad, and Alicia have decided that she would work two or three after-school shifts a week, and most Saturday mornings; and she'll have dinner with us on the weekdays she's working. Dad and I are waiting to see how that works out, but we'll get Mom more help during the day if she needs it.

After cleaning up from dinner, and once Alicia had gone home, Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over, and we spent the evening doing Magi lessons, and then having a question and answer time with Ethan and Ehlana while Dad, Mom, and I also worked in the office. Mom took a break to nurse the twins, with some help from Aunt Leanne, and this journal entry is my last job of the day. Time for the usual bedtime snack and telepathic story, and then it's off to sleep for the four hours or so I'll have until Ethan and Ehlana's three o'clock feeding.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

The big news on the town gossip network today was the arrival of the newest member of Witch Falls, Miles Sheldon. I don't know his father or sister very well, but his Mom teaches Grade Two at the school; though she's taking this year off to take care of her new baby. Ethan and Ehlana were fired up about the birth of their future friend and classmate, and kept Mom, Dad, and I busy answering their questions.

While baby talk was the hot topic at home, and around town; classes at school were a bit on the boring side as all of the teachers continued with lessons meant to refresh our memories after summer break. It was interesting for me to watch my classmates today, now that I know which of them are Magi. There were signs that I could now see that in hindsight would have been a clue for me before I found out about them, but then again, some of the non-Magi kids looked bored with the review too while one of my Magi classmates seemed to really need the little refresher lessons.

Rowen and I took care of the little bit of homework we had right after school; we took Ethan and Ehlana for a walk after that; and then played at the park until splitting up when it was time for dinner. I worked on the family business for a couple of hours after dinner, and then Mom did a new Transmutation lesson with me for another hour or so before combining a bedtime story with the evening feeding for the twins. The only other news is that we've decided that I'll do the three o'clock feedings each night so I can get on a schedule, and either help Mom with getting set up to nurse Ethan and Ehlana, or do a bottle feeding with Dad. Hopefully that'll work out for all of us for the next few months until the twins are ready to sleep a little longer between feedings at night.

Mandy's telling me that it's time to put the computer away and get some sleep. Sometimes getting to talk with her like this now that I can use my wards isn't much fun at all – she likes to tell me what to do more than Mom and Dad do. Since she is right, though, it's time to wrap up for the day.

Thursday September 8, 2011

I'll be keeping this short tonight – it's been a long, busy day! Rowen and I had fun at school; though nothing particularly exciting happened today. Mom did an after-school lesson with both of us while the twins were having a nap. They were tired out from an afternoon reading lesson. It's really amazing watching them go through all of that now and compare it to what it was like for me when I was their age. There are a lot of things that are happening almost exactly like they did for me, but they're learning to read a bit faster than I did, and they seem to understand new concepts better too. Mom and Uncle Adam think that might be because there was a lot more trial and error as part of my training. That's likely part of it, but Ethan, Ehlana, and I know that they each have a few special gifts that none of the rest of us have. We'll get around to telling them when it's time. :^)

So Rowen and I played with the elements, and Mom's lesson was mostly for Rowen while my part of it was learning to work with other Magi, and teach a bit too. When the twins woke up, we helped with the diaper changes and getting Mom set up to nurse; did our homework while she was doing that; and then took care of Ethan and Ehlana while Mom started to make dinner.

Game night at the Inn started tonight, and Rowen and Patrick came with us while their parents were busy at the store. They were still busy with the back-to-school shopping, but at least the store would be closed on Sundays again starting this weekend. Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam were the Game Night Champions for the week. Rowen and I had fun, but we didn't finish very high up in the Junior Champions standings.

A big part of my job with the family business right now is keeping an eye on what my companies are doing to get ready for Christmas. That seems weird, but it's amazing how much of the work for the holidays gets done so many months ahead of time. When we got home from the Inn, I worked on that for a couple of hours while Mom and Dad took care of the twins, and then worked in the office for a while too. Tonight, I started setting up a new division that I'm going to use to power buy bulk products and services that all of my companies use. That'll save a few million, but the best part will be getting those same deals for our charities too. If my friends at school really knew what I did for my job, they wouldn't wonder anymore why I find Grade Six math so easy!

Time to call it a night. Friday's going to be another busy day.

Friday September 9, 2011

The tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is this Sunday; so we had an assembly this morning in the gym, and had lessons about everything that happened for the rest of the day too. Rowen and I talked about it after school, and she remembers quite a bit about that day even though she was only about ten months old at the time. I remember everything – especially since Mom and I were still hiding in New York then. What seemed strange to both of us was the fact that the rest of our classmates had been too young to remember anything about the terrorist attacks – or most of them didn't. After talking with Rowen, I was fairly sure that two others would have personal memories just as we did.

Nobody is surprised that national security is on heightened alert for the next few days, or that there are reports of terrorist threats. Ethan and Ehlana had wanted to try using our sight to take a look, but Mom and I explained to them that it very likely wouldn't work for something like this. Even looking at such a narrow window of time, there would literally be trillions of little 'events' to sift through around the world without first knowing a specific location and the people involved. Thankfully, they conceded the point. I'm grateful that we're spared knowing more than we do – there is a lot of bad in the world, and it would be a terrible burden.

While the 9/11 anniversary was being commemorated at school, and talked about by the grown-ups; the top news story of the day for both the town and school gossip networks was the announcement that Heather and Adam Green had found out that Heather was pregnant. I never really even though much about news like that before Mom was pregnant with Ethan and Ehlana, but it's fun now. That's partly because Uncle Adam and I have our little research project to work on; and finding out if the new babies will be Magi, and when we'll be able to sense that if they are, will be fun.

While I'm thinking about that, we'll be starting an archive for those studies, but Uncle Adam was able to sense that the Carter's baby wasn't a Magi for sure. She's due in November, and on Sunday, I'll check to see if I can sense what level she'll be at for the latent group. Figuring that out this time took longer than it did for Hannah's baby, but there's still a lot we haven't figured out yet. For all we know, a strong latent could become a Magi while going through the stress of their birth; just as with the cases where Magi powers have been discovered during crisis situations.

Anyway, it's Friday night, and I'm taking a break from the work. Rowen's staying for our first sleepover of the school year, and we had the usual dinner and a movie with Mom, Dad, Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Aunt Deborah, and Nick. I'm doing this while Rowen's using the Jacuzzi, and then we're going to get some sleep – we've got the three o'clock feeding tonight, and tomorrow is a yard work day for me while Rowen's working at the store. Sometimes I wonder how non-Magi kids keep up without having the advantages we do!

Saturday, September 10, 2011

What a day!

Dad and I spent the morning working in the yard while Mom mostly stayed in with Ethan and Ehlana; taking care of them, and cleaning the house. Alicia was working her first Saturday shift of the school year, and was helping Mom until putting the twins down for a nap following their afternoon feeding. We didn't stop for lunch until nearly one, and I was set free to go play with Rowen for the rest of the afternoon.

Rowen's Mom had kept her busy with a major cleanup of the back rooms at the store; so we were both ready to take it easy after working so hard. We biked to the Emporium to get drinks and snacks, and then went over to hang out at the park. Baseball was done for the year, but some of the boys were playing football, so we sat in the bleachers with a few other kids and watched them while having our snack. After that, we rode our bikes all the way around the park along the path, and then wrapped up our afternoon with a little playground action. I biked over to the store with Rowen, but her Mom and Dad were busy with customers still, so I didn't stay long, and went home to help out with Ethan and Ehlana while Mom and Dad got dinner ready.

It was just the five of us for the night, and after dinner, Mom, Dad, and I did a Magi lesson and question and answer time with the twins. I remember what those lessons were like with Mom when I was a baby, but we definitely seem to have more fun now. We worked with the elements tonight, and Mom let me teach a big part of the lesson. I'm sure that she'll write about it more extensively in her own archive, but one thing that's very different is how Ethan and Ehlana discuss what they're being taught with each other before trying the lesson themselves. That does seem to help them, and they haven't really had any problems with losing control like I occasionally did.

We ended up doing most of the question and answer time while watching a movie in the living room; and Ethan and Ehlana had as many questions about the romantic comedy we'd decided to watch as they did about things that had happened during the day while Alicia was working and they couldn't talk with their parents or sister. Mom nursed them then too, and then Ethan and Ehlana were tucked into their cribs for a nap while Mom and I went to spend a little quality time with our Jacuzzis, and Dad worked in the office for a couple of hours.

Mandy and I are in bed, and she's telling me that it's time to get some sleep. My typing must be keeping her awake – it's not like she has to get up with me at three to help Dad with Ethan and Ehlana. Sunday mornings are always busy, and I am tired, so it is time to call it a night.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

The Angels Cried

I remember the day before it happened

The rain fell down, cleansing the city

Just another rainy day

As we went about our lives

If we could have this day back again

Would we have done anything different

If we had known

If only we had known

Chorus

But Heaven knew

What was going to happen

The gates were open wide

To welcome thousands

It wasn't just

Another rainy day

For on the day before it happened

The angels cried

I remember the morning that it happened

The sky was clear, the sun so bright

Then the world came crashing down

And so many lives were lost

If we could have this day back again

Would we have done anything different

If we had known

If only we had known

Chorus

But Heaven knew

What was going to happen

The gates were open wide

To welcome thousands

It wasn't just

Another rainy day

For on the day before it happened

The angels cried

 Listen to 'The Angels Cried' on Youtube!

Today is the tenth anniversary of 9/11, and like at school on Friday, it was what most everyone in town was talking about; just as it was the biggest news story of the day pretty much throughout the world. Pastor Lewis talked about it during his sermon, and the service was a lot like the one on the Memorial Day weekend.

Thankfully, though there were threats made, there were no terrorist attacks this weekend, but it was still a rather somber day. While the world mourns and commemorates the loss of so many lives, I'll end this short journal entry with my heartfelt prayer for the survivors, and the families and friends of the victims, to have God's comfort and peace.

Monday, September 12, 2011

The big news at school today is that Amy White and Jared Spencer got engaged on the weekend. Amy – Miss White – looked so happy today; and I was really glad that Jared finally got around to asking her to marry him. Rowen and I had our chance to congratulate Miss White at lunch time; though nearly everyone at school wanted to spend some time with her, so we only had a minute to admire her ring and share a couple of hugs.

Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana had heard about the engagement by the time Rowen and I got home from school, but that was still the top story during our snack and chat time. After that break, homework was next on the list, and then Rowen and I took Ethan and Ehlana out for a walk to the park while Mom worked on dinner. Rebecca and Jenny were there with some of their friends – apparently to watch some of the boys play football. The twins actually managed to distract them from boy-watching for about ten minutes, and then we let them get back to that while we played on the swings and at the fort with Ethan and Ehlana.

Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over for dinner, and after helping with the cleanup, Uncle Adam and I spent an hour or so working on our Magi research project. I'd spent a little time working on that before and after church, and we started by discussing what I'd found out about each person. The Carter family (Carter Construction, not the Ridge River Ranch Carters) is turning out to be an interesting case for us. Mrs. Carter, Ellen, is one of Eleanor Byrd's grandchildren. She's a Magi, and so is their three-year old son, William; so it's a bit surprising to find out that her baby not only is not a Magi, but only a moderate latent. Mr. Carter is a weak latent, but that doesn't really explain such a disparity in Magi potential with their children.

We decided to start archive files for each person in town, and Uncle Adam will take care of those records for us. My next job is to come up with some kind of a power scale that we can use in our assessments for the Magi and Latent groups. There is a 'normal' range too, though we probably won't have time to research that for a long time; and I'm not sure whether that normal range means anything beyond an indication of each person's abilities.

Mom and Aunt Leanne were busy with Ethan and Ehlana while we were doing that, and then Mom joined us for a healing lesson. She had a surprise for us tonight – a guest patient! I'll refer you to her archive for the personal details, but Uncle Adam and I each helped heal one of the senior members of the Magi Council; and Mom advised us that we'd be getting to do this with and for other Magi. It's too bad that we can't do that for everyone, but this is still going to be amazing!

I wrapped up the evening with a little family business work in the office after Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne went home. Mom, Dad, Ethan, and Ehlana were in the office then too, and we combined work, snacks, nursing, and the telepathic bedtime story so that we had all of that done by shortly after ten o'clock. There's always more work that I could do, but it's been a long enough day, and my Jacuzzi is calling to me!

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

We had the first classmate birthday of the school year today. Rowen and I don't really hang out with Karla and her best friends, but we did pick up a card and a little gift that we left on her desk before class started this morning. Mrs. Warren had a cupcake and candle for her too; and Karla seemed to be having a fun day.

Other than Karla's birthday, it was a pretty quiet day at school. Rowen was working at the store today, so I worked in the office after getting home; doing my homework first, and then spending a couple of hours on the family business. Having Alicia helping Mom with the twins makes doing that a lot easier, and I had everything I wanted to get done finished by the time dinner was ready.

Mom had me teach most of the lesson we did with Ethan and Ehlana after dinner. Tonight we worked on their Telekinesis, and though we do have them each practice the exercises, they naturally want to work together. It's amazing to see what they can accomplish in tandem, and the control they have is just as impressive as the raw power. We tested their limits a bit during the lesson, and by the time we were done, they were ready to nurse and then have a nap. I helped Mom until they were sleeping in their cribs; we got a snack and drinks ready; and then joined Dad in the office. While Mom and Dad both worked at their computers, since I was done my work, I just checked my email and surfed while chatting with them for a while.

News from the family tonight via my email included Violet's plans to meet Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie in Crystal Springs this coming Saturday. Dawn sent me an update on how she and Jillian were doing, and Mark and Grace both sent replies to my email to them without really telling me anything about what I wanted to know. Maybe I'll suggest to Aunt Leanne that we invite Mark to come here for Thanksgiving; though I guess he might be busy with his own family and work.

Since the twins were sleeping, we skipped story time tonight. It was nearly eleven when Mandy and I went to bed, and we've been having a little cat-chat as I took care of this and a couple of other archive entries. We're both ready to get some sleep, so I'll wrap this up and call it a night.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

We had a fairly quiet day here in Witch Falls today. Nothing particularly exciting happened at school; though most of the boys, and a handful of the girls, are getting pretty fired up about our football team's home opener this Friday night. Rowen and I won't miss watching that game at all while we're doing our usual dinner and a movie night instead.

Grandma Emerson was doing an after-school lesson with Rowen today; so I tagged along for that. This week, Rowen's grandmother has her working on a Transmutation of metals; changing different properties of a small alloy metal bowl. While it was something that I had learned years ago, getting to play Magi with my best friend is always fun; and Rowen really is very good with Transmutation.

After the lesson, Rowen and I picked up Ethan and Ehlana and took them out for a long walk. That included a little play time at the park, and then the twins and I walked Rowen to the computer store before going home again. Dad was there already, and he continued to work on making dinner while I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana.

I took the night off from work, and Mandy and I took care of the twins while Mom and Dad both worked in the office for a couple of hours. I helped Mom again with the evening feeding; had a shower; and am now in bed earlier than I've been able to manage in what feels like weeks. Even Magi Masters need a little extra sleep now and then!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

As I sat here in bed with my computer, I realized that this was really the first time that I'd stopped all day; and even now, writing this archive journal doesn't exactly count as not doing anything. It's been one of those crazy-busy days, and I'm going to try and make this quick so I can get a few hours of sleep before I'll need to help with the twins in a few hours.

Rowen and I had fun at school. Mrs. Warren assigned our first big project of the year – this one in science – and gave us time to get started on them. With a Gym class, lunch, and recesses added in; it was nearly non-stop fun all day! Since Rowen was working at the store after school, we did our after-school snack there, and then I went home and worked in the office on the family business until dinnertime. Mom had Alicia there to help her until then, but since Grandma and Grandpa were having dinner with us, Alicia decided not to stay and eat with us tonight.

Mom wasn't directly involved in the travel plans that Nancy Emerson coordinated, and though she was regularly kept up to date on everything, Grandma and Grandpa's upcoming trip to South America was the main dinner conversation topic tonight. There was still just over five weeks to go before they'd be going, but the final travel arrangements, and their itinerary, had been finalized now; and they'd wanted to talk about both the work side of what they'd be doing for the family business and the sightseeing and fun they had planned around the work.

Grandpa joked about taking me along as their personal translator. I thought it was a great idea, but Mom and Dad didn't think I should take a month off of school to do that, and vetoed the suggestion. Oh well – maybe they'll let me go on a summer trip with Grandma and Grandpa sometime. Anyway, for this trip, they're four weeks are going to be split up with a week each in Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. Most of their work will be checking out our business investments; though they'll check in on a few charity projects too.

We'd been able to take our time having dinner, and Grandpa, Dad, and I did the cleanup while Mom and Grandma got Ethan and Ehlana ready to go out to the Inn for game night. Rowen met up with me there, and we ended up hanging out with Rebecca and Jenny for most of the evening. Sometimes I really miss doing things like this with them all the time like we did before they 'crossed over'; but neither Rowen nor I miss it enough to join them on the other side. The good news for us tonight was that Rebecca in particular was having a 'boys are gross and stupid' day; though it was fairly obvious that her sentiment was directed at one specific boy.

I haven't mentioned this in my journal before, but Ethan and Ehlana are very popular at game night; and they love getting passed around – mostly among the Moms, Grandmothers, and teen girls. There aren't usually very many babies or toddlers at the Inn on Thursday nights, so that makes them a bit of a novelty. One concern that had come up was from the ongoing comments about how good they always were – never crying or fussing in public. We all talked about how to deal with that as part of Ethan and Ehlana playing 'normal baby', but decided not to have them do anything different. It was one thing not to talk or read in public, but pretending to scream and cry for no reason other than for show just seemed silly – not to mention noisy and irritating to all of us!

After spending a couple of hours playing games we went home, and I helped Mom get set up to nurse the twins while Dad went to work in the office. Ethan and Ehlana had a lot of questions for us while they nursed, but they were soon ready for a nap too. While they slept, Mom and I joined Dad in the office, and we worked until just a few minutes ago; when I came up here to my room and got ready for bed. For me, that extra work time was mostly because I'll be taking most of the weekend off from family business work. Now that's something to look forward to – one more school day, and the weekend will be here!

Friday, September 16, 2011

Today's school highlight was music class. We started our introduction to orchestral musical instruments, and it was a lot more fun than the recorders and ukuleles we've used in music classes up to now. While we're doing this unit of study, we'll get to try playing as many of the different instruments as we want, and then next year we'll get to pick one to learn how to play. I thought that the alto saxophone was cool, and Rowen liked the flute the best. No surprise that more than half the boys wanted to try the drums and percussion first. Not one guy would even come near a flute, let alone pick one up and try it. Boys!

Rowen and I did our homework right after school, and then we took care of Ethan and Ehlana while Mom worked in the kitchen. Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Deborah, and Nick were all coming over for our Friday night dinner and a movie, and Rowen would be staying too. It's been a cool, damp day, so we went upstairs to the lounge, watched a little television, played with Mandy, and Ethan and Ehlana told Rowen and I about what they'd been doing all day while we'd been stuck at school. Rowen was getting used to just how extraordinary my little brother and sister are, but she still looked a bit amazed whenever Ethan and Ehlana actually talked with us, or talked with us about how their education was progressing. I'm usually just amused – especially when they talk about things that bug them; like not having the physical abilities yet to write or type on a computer keyboard.

Those are problems that I definitely can relate to, and I had a suggestion for them about what they might be able to do about that – get Mom to install voice recognition software for them. My idea sent Rowen into the giggles as she pictured Ethan and Ehlana in their carriers wearing computer headsets and working on computers in the office. That did seem funny, but it would also work, and the twins were so fired up about the idea that they had us take them downstairs to talk with Mom about it right away.

Mom was fairly amused, but liked the idea too – especially since she was currently the person doing most of the page turning and computer typing for the twins. She was even more enthusiastic when Rowen suggested that a pair of iPads might be an even better idea for Ethan and Ehlana to start with. That way they'd be able to use the voice recognition software and probably be able to manage a fair bit with the touch screens too.

Since we were downstairs anyway, Rowen and I set the dining room table for dinner, and then stayed in the kitchen to talk with Dad and Nick while they took over cooking duties and Mom and Aunt Leanne went upstairs to nurse the twins. Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah joined us just before dinner was ready after having another busy Friday afternoon at the clinic; and Mom, Aunt Leanne, Ethan, and Ehlana came downstairs again by the time we had everything on the dining room table and ready to go.

My favorite part of our Friday night dinners is getting a chance to catch up on what everyone's been doing all week. I don't always get to hear about everything when we're busy with other things like game night, Magi lessons, or work. School news from a teacher's perspective is always fun too, and I'm really glad that Aunt Deborah and Nick are getting so close. I doubt it'll be all that much longer before Ethan, Ehlana, and I can adopt him as an Uncle!

After dinner, Rowen and I watched Ethan and Ehlana again while the cleanup was being done, and then we watched 'A Cinderella Story – Once Upon a Song'. We won't tell on them, but Dad, Uncle Adam, and Nick may have broken a man-law or two by actually seeming to like the movie. There were the usual, required chick-flick jokes, but I definitely heard Daddy humming one of the songs while helping to clean up from our drinks and snacks.

Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam walked Rowen home when they left, and they were going to meet up with Aunt Deborah and Nick at Sheldon's. Mom and Dad were invited to go too, and I offered to watch Ethan and Ehlana, but they decided to stay home and make it an early night. We had a little question and answer time with the twins while Mom nursed them, and once I'm done with this archive entry; Mandy and I are going to get some sleep. Even though Dad has to get ready for his week in Crystal Springs; hopefully we'll manage to have some fun to go along with the usual weekend work.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

The good news this morning was that the yard work was called on account of rain. Mom was happy to have us help her with housework until lunchtime instead while she and Alicia helped her with the twins and their usual Saturday work. I cleaned the third floor, and the second floor guest bedrooms and bathroom while Dad took care of the living room, dining room, office, and main floor bathroom. We had lunch shortly after Mom had finished nursing the twins at noon, and then Rowen came over to hang out with Mandy and me in the lounge for the afternoon.

We watched a movie and played until a bit after four, when we found out that I was going to be doing a sleepover at Rowen's house. Ethan and Ehlana were doing a sleepover too; though they weren't going over to Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne's house until after their nine o'clock feeding. Aunt Leanne and Rowen's Mom had set up the surprise for Mom and Dad so that they could have most of a night off before he'd be away for the week. I had time to pack my bag and make sure that Mandy had everything she needed before Rowen and I walked over to her house; getting there just a few minutes before her Mom and brother got home from the store.

Patrick was going to have Scott Faulkner staying overnight with him, and was sent upstairs to get his room cleaned up – or as Rowen advised me; stuff all of his junk into the closet and hope nobody opened the door. Rowen and I helped out with making dinner for six, and had everything ready by the time that Mr. Emerson got home after closing the store for the day. Dinner conversations at the Emerson's usually included a large dollop of computer talk.

Now that they were getting into a slow time of year for their business; Mr. and Mrs. Emerson were talking about things they could do to get new business. Building on their one-customer custom computers was one option; though since Owen was the only one who could build them right now, they were limited in how much they could do with that. I personally liked their idea for a data center. They already had a small setup that the school, town, and most of the businesses in the Ridge River District used; so it really wouldn't be all that hard to add capacity for new clients. I might even know exactly where to find a few big customers to help make that work out very well for them!

Patrick was usually very shy whenever I was around, but he and Scott were both fired up tonight, and acting like typical eight-year old boys. Rowen was more annoyed by them than I was, but Rowen's parents were able to mostly keep their goofiness to a minimum during dinner; and then the two boys went up to Patrick's room to play video games while the rest of us watched a chick flick in the living room. They saved their worst for after we all went upstairs to bed, and then they spent more than an hour trying to spy on our bedtime chat and spring pranks and practical jokes on us.

Rowen and I both did a little surfing and emailing on our computers while we sat up in bed talking; and that was when I found out how Violet's day in Crystal Springs with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie had gone. They'd done a little shopping, caught the late afternoon matinee, and then gone out for dinner before they all had to head for home. Violet also let me know that Dillon would be going to Woodvale for an overnight visit in two weeks; and when I sent her a reply, I invited her, Dawn, and Jillian to come to Witch Falls for the Ridge River Fall Festival – pending parental approval, of course.

Going back to the junior pranksters, sometimes it's very tempting for Rowen and I to use our special gifts to deal with things like annoying little brothers and their buddies. They'd likely be less enthusiastic about their tricks after a few creative applications of Transmutation or Telekinesis on, for instance, the rubber snakes and spiders they tried to scare or gross us out with. Speaking of the little troublemakers; they're back and at it again! Time to wrap this up, since it seems like the only way to stop them tonight is to call it a night and go to bed; so that's exactly what Rowen and I are going to do.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

It's been another rainy day; though there was at least enough of a break in the weather this morning so I could go outside for my morning Tai Chi. I was hoping to exercise with Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam, but they must've decided to skip today, or were busy with Ethan and Ehlana while I was out in Rowen's back yard. There was an audience of one watching me, but I pretended not to notice the eight-year old, second-floor admirer so he wouldn't be embarrassed.

Rowen and I helped her Mom to make breakfast, and then we were set free to get ready for church while the boys cleaned up. Mr. Emerson definitely got the worst of that deal; since his two helpers were a fair bit less enthusiastic about their jobs; and he probably ended up doing most of the work. The rain was coming down steadily by the time we left for church; so we drove over, and Rowen's Dad dropped us off at the front doors before going to find someplace to park. Mom and Dad were already there, and judging by their smiles, I really didn't want to know what they'd been doing with their night off from kids.

Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were smiling too when they joined us; and Ethan and Ehlana looked like they'd both had fun and were glad to be reunited with Mom, Dad, and me. After the rounds of hugs and kisses, Rowen and I got to each take care of one of the twins until it was time for us to go to Sunday school with the rest of the kids and teens.

The Emersons had family plans for the afternoon, so I was bff-less for the rest of the day. Dad needed to work in the office, so while he did that, Mom and I did a long Magi lesson with Ethan and Ehlana after lunch. They had an afternoon nap after the mid-afternoon feeding, and I kept Dad company in the office and worked on the family business for a couple of hours. We were meeting Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam at the Inn for the late buffet, so once the twins were up again, I helped Mom with them until it was time to drive over to the Inn.

We were a bit early, and there was a small line-up waiting for tables, but that gave me a chance to go back into the kitchen and visit with Rebecca, Jenny, Dillon, and Jake for a few minutes. Miranda, Jacob, and Stephanie were all really busy, but I did at least get to stop them long enough for hugs before they continued on with their work. Dillon still looked as happy as he'd been at church this morning after spending most of Saturday with Violet. Some of the other guys working with him in the kitchen teased him about hugging me first, but he ignored them, and had wanted to thank me for inviting Violet to come for the Fall Festival weekend. He was even happier when he found out that the invitation had been given full parental approval since the last time he'd talked with Violet.

The buffets are always great, and we all had fun for the hour and a half or so that we were at the Inn. Dad still had a bit of work to get done once we got home again, so Mom and I took care of the inevitable question and answer time with Ethan and Ehlana. They went to sleep after their nine o'clock feeding, so Mom and I both took that opportunity for some quality Jacuzzi time. Dad was finished his work by the time we were finished doing that, and we had our bedtime snack in the kitchen before he and Mom went upstairs so he could pack for his trip and wait for the twins to wake up for their midnight feeding. Mandy and I were sent off to bed, and once I have this archive entry done; I'll be ready to get some sleep. Mom and I do have lots of help with the twins this week while Dad's away, but we're still going to have five very long, busy days ahead of us.

Monday, September 19, 2011

The wet weather moved out of the Ridge River area overnight, and it was nice to see the bright sunshine this morning when Mom and I got up to take care of the twins before going outside to exercise by the river. We were all missing Dad as much as we did every time he was away, and the first morning always seemed the toughest. I tried to spend as much time with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana as I could before needing to leave for school, but it still didn't seem like very long before Rowen came over to round me up and we headed out for the day.

Sally Reynolds started our day and school week off great by giving Rowen and I invitations to her eleventh birthday party. She hasn't become a really close friend, but Sally will always have a place on my friends list just for being the first girl at school to invite me to her party after I moved here last year. Her invitation also reminded me that there was a fairly significant anniversary coming up in just under two weeks – two if you counted Mom and Dad's wedding and my adoption separately. I should definitely talk to Dad about any plans he might have for that weekend; and with Aunt Leanne and Grandma to see about doing something special for them too, and we'll definitely need to set up a date for going shopping.

While thinking about birthdays and anniversaries got the day off to a good start, and Rowen and I did have fun at school, there wasn't anything else all that exciting going on in our class – just the usual lessons and class work. After school, Rowen and I did our homework first, and then she helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana while I went outside and cut the lawn. Leaving it until the weekend had been an option, but with all of the rain we'd had, that would've just made the work on Saturday that much harder – especially if we'd needed to rake the clippings for the whole yard.

Rowen stayed for dinner, and we both helped Mom with the cooking and cleanup before she had to go home. Grandma and Grandpa were our evening volunteers, and they took care of Ethan and Ehlana for a couple of hours while Mom and I did a Magi lesson, and took care of a bit of work on the family business. We did the bedtime story while Ethan and Ehlana had their nine o'clock feeding; with Grandpa telling the story, and me providing the telepathic enhancements and imagery.

Except for writing this, my work for the day was done after that. Grandma and Grandpa are staying until after the midnight feeding, and they sent Mom to bed while they continue to watch Ethan and Ehlana. Since Mom will have to get up for the three o'clock feeding; they're going to bottle-feed the twins at midnight, and I'll help Mom nurse Ethan and Ehlana at three instead of the other way around like we've usually been doing the night time feedings. The best news there is that Mom and I should both get nearly five uninterrupted hours of downtime; which I'm going to get started on right now!

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Ethan and Ehlana were ready to party this morning; and the hour and a half that Mom and I spent with them until four-thirty or so pretty much offset the extra continuous sleep we'd been able to start the night with. We did have fun, but sometimes it'd be nice to have a little less fun, and a bit more sleep!

After that post-feeding nap, we were up and going again with the usual morning nursing, Tai Chi, and breakfast routine. I was running ahead of schedule and met up with Rowen at her house before we walked over to the school to get started on another fun day of playing normal students. I have to admit that spending the whole day learning about things that I was taught when I was a baby can be a bit frustrating, but at least I can spend some of that time thinking about my work on the family business and the Magi project that Uncle Adam and I are doing.

Rowen was working at the store after school, so I took care of my homework after school, and then worked in the office until dinnertime while Mom and Alicia took care of the twins. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were our support help for the evening. Mom did our healing lesson, and then Uncle Adam and I worked on our project for an hour or so before we wrapped up the day with a near-repeat of the nursing, telepathic bedtime story, and snack time. Mom and I were sent to bed again after that too, and as soon as I'm finished this; I'm going to take advantage of the extra down time!

P.S. I nearly forgot! Aunt Leanne and I are going to Crystal Springs this Saturday afternoon to take care of a little shopping. I get to invite Rowen too, so hopefully she'll be able to come with us. I know this isn't exactly information that you might think important to be saved and read about by Magi a millennium or three from now; but when you think about it, there is some value in knowing about the things that ten-year old Magi girls of our time love doing just as much as any 'normal' kid. You can include Magi women and teens for this, since they all love shopping at least as much as Rowen and I do.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Mom has had lots of help from her friends during the day all week, and almost always had a visitor over to help with morning, noon, and afternoon feedings. She and I both had help from our friends tonight. Rowen's doing a sleepover with me, and we'll be doing the three o'clock feeding so that Mom can sleep through until morning, and Patricia spent most of the evening with us, and is staying until after she helps Mom with the midnight feeding.

We had a fairly quiet day at school, and then Rowen and I mostly took care of Ethan and Ehlana after school to give Mom time to get some work done. That included a long telepathic chat time in the lounge while Rowen and I did our homework, and a walk to the park. There might have been some sharing of contraband Emporium frozen treats while we were on that walk, but we're fairly sure that all of the evidence from our 'spoil your dinner' crime was cleaned up; even if there was some unvoiced parental suspicion about our little ice cream caper.

Mom nursed the twins before we ate, and Rowen helped her with that while I kept an eye on things in the kitchen while the casserole finished cooking in the oven. We all pitched in to clean up, and then had time for a short Magi lesson before Rowen's Mom came over. Ethan and Ehlana weren't all that excited about having to play normal babies for a few hours, but they were very convincing. Their public progress was carefully worked out to be just a bit on the advanced end of the development range, and considering the special abilities that we shared; Rowen and I thought it was very funny when Patricia compared the twins to what Rowen had been like as a baby.

Speaking of needing to pretend, one of my least-favorite parts of needing to do that happens every fall – dealing with the hype over all of the new television shows. I love movies, and even a few of the more intelligent network shows; but sitting through watching some of the kid-favorite shows is more than a little annoying. Thankfully, Rowen feels the same way, and this year, we have the ability to get around that problem by doing just a few minutes of Magi-powered surfing to get the various episode synopses and some kid twitter and blog commentary to give us what we need to avoid being declared television outcasts at school without having to waste a couple of hours of every afternoon and evening. Tonight, Rowen and I didn't watch the premiers of X-Factor, H8R, or the ongoing quest that is America's Next Top Model; among others.

We did watch Up All Night with the Moms and twins, and since they can't talk with us about the show while Patricia is here, I'm sure that Rowen and I will be answering a lot of questions from Ethan and Ehlana when we do their bottle feedings at three. If there are actually parents out there like that couple, all I can say is – please seek professional help immediately!

After our little adventure into television weirdness, Rowen took advantage of the Jacuzzi opportunity. Patricia's helping Mom with nursing the twins, and Mandy and I got ready for bed and I've been playing on my computer while waiting for Rowen. We have a few more things to do before getting some sleep, and there'll definitely be a little telepathic girl and cat chat; but I've pretty much covers the major news for the day, so it's time to wrap this up and move on. Three days down; two more to the weekend!

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Ehlana and Ethan are three months old today. I didn't find out about it until after school, but the delivery of two iPads did help the twins have a really great day. They've already been playing with them every chance they've had since Mom finished getting them set up for them. I'm a bit jealous that they can now do things I could only dream about during my first months and years. Mom and I did manage, though, and it was really cool watching them read books and surf the net by themselves.

It was just another day at school, at least for me. Rebecca would probably disagree, since she appears to be on the way to officially having a first 'real' boyfriend. I won't bore you with the gory details; but at least there are advantages to having the Sight. This guy is so not meant to be 'the' guy for Rebecca. Anyway, let's move on; shall we?

Thursday after school is definitely turning out to be one of my family business work days while Rowen is busy at the computer store and Mom has Alicia to help her. Alicia thought it was funny that Ethan and Ehlana were given matching iPads. I wonder what she'd say if we told her that they're for a lot more than movies, music, and audio storybook entertainment. We had a snack and drinks in the kitchen when we first got home, and then I went to the office to do my homework before playing with my companies until dinnertime. We just went with a Mac and Cheese and hot dogs meal; and then it was time to head over to the Inn for game night.

With Dad out of town, Miranda drafted Mom to be on her team; and they went on to win the game night championship. I think that Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam were playing to lose, or at least come in second; but in a way, they did win too. Grandma and Grandpa were there for game night too, and they all came home with us to help out with Ethan and Ehlana. The nursing, chat, and bedtime story was fun, and we linked up with Dad so he could be with us, at least telepathically, for an hour or so. The twins showed off their fledgling computing skills, and even took turns reading us the bedtime story from one they'd picked out online.

Mom and I were sent to bed after that, and Ethan and Ehlana were going to stay up and entertain our grandparents, aunt, and uncle while we're getting some sleep. One thing that watching them has done is give me a real appreciation for Mom; specifically how well she handled doing all of this by herself with me. I'm also learning to appreciate having more than three hours of continuous sleep; and it's definitely time to work on that until Mom and I need to be up at three. We'll need the rest – tomorrow is dinner and a movie night; and Dad will be home from the city. No wonder I love Fridays!

Friday, September 23, 2011

Today's highlights were dinner and a movie with Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, and Rowen. Dinner talk included the iPad adventures of Ethan and Ehlana; news and gossip from the clinic; and a bit of planning for the afternoon shopping trip that Aunt Leanne, Rowen, and I are doing tomorrow afternoon. Dad actually made it home in time for the start of our movie; partly thanks to an early escape from the city, and because we were running late by the time we had everything cleaned up from dinner.

Rowen's staying overnight, and we've had fun all day. After school, we got our homework out of the way early; and then did a Magi lesson with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana until Mom needed to start making dinner. The twins wanted to go outside while Mom was doing that, so Rowen and I took them for a walk down to the falls and back. Aunt Leanne had still been at the office, but when we stopped in to see her, she was ready to close up; and she walked home with us once she'd done that.

It's getting late, so I'm going to keep this short. The post-movie nursing and chat took quite a while; and Ethan and Ehlana wanted to show Dad their new iPad-assisted bedtime story skills in person instead of telepathically. We've got a lot of yard work to get done in the morning, and that all has to get done before we can leave on our shopping trip. That's likely just a parental motivation gimmick, but even though I know that; it's going to work. Shopping and fast food just has that effect on me!

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Morning exercise is always more fun when we're all together, and Dad cooked up the full country breakfast for Mom, me, and Rowen while we took care of Ethan and Ehlana; and got ready for a yard work day. (Store work for Rowen) That made for a fun start to the day, but then the next few hours was all work and not really very much fun.

Ethan and Ehlana had offered to help us, but for some reason, Mom and Dad wouldn't let us use our telekinesis for the yard work. Mom and Alicia had work to get done around the house, but they did spend an hour working on the gardens while the twins watched on from their stroller. I had the lawn cutting to do first, as usual now; and then I swept the porches and walks; washed the front and back doors and windows; and helped Dad with washing the van and truck. That was my last job, and when we were done, I was set free to go have a shower and get ready for our afternoon shopping trip.

Rowen and I found out that we had two shopping buddies to take us to Crystal Springs when Aunt Leanne and Aunt Deborah both picked us up; me at home, and Rowen at the store on our way out of town. Note to self – get Aunt Leanne to borrow Mom's minivan for shopping trips! The back seat of her coupe isn't very comfortable after three hours of driving in one day, and watching movies are an option for when the older girls want to talk about boys.

We had a small shopping list to take care of for Mom, but were going to do most of that last; after we were finished at the Mall. Aunt Leanne wanted to play dress-up for a while before we took care of shopping for all of the gift-buying that had been the main reason for the trip. Rowen and I picked up a new outfit and some jewelry for Sally; several anniversary gifts for Mom and Dad; birthday presents for Nick, who is going to be twenty-four this Friday; and a few smaller gifts for other upcoming special days for various people. There was one other gift that I picked up; but I didn't even tell Rowen about it; hiding the purchase in plain sight with a few games and movies for the lounge.

A fast food dinner at the food court was fit into our busy shopping schedule between the jewelry stores and a half hour of bookstore browsing. When we had pretty much covered the entire Mall, we loaded up the car and headed over to Wal-Mart for another hour or so of shopping fun and excitement. Aunt Leanne needed just one last fast food stop on our way out of town, and Aunt Deborah, Rowen, and I picked up travel snacks to go too so that she wouldn't be eating alone. Rowen was scaring me a bit when she acted like she was worried about those extra calories, but I had both of us in giggles after quietly promising to heal her if that was ever a real problem. Hey – there ought to be a few advantages to being a Magi Master; and helping your friends should definitely be one of them!

The trip home was fairly unexciting, and Rowen and I were really glad to get out of the back seat of the car by the time we pulled into Rowen's driveway to drop her off first. We all helped to get her things into the house, and talked with Patricia and Owen for a few minutes before Aunt Leanne and Aunt Deborah drove over to my house next while I raced them on foot so that I didn't have to climb into the back seat again. We repeated the process there; though I had a bit more to unload than Rowen did – including everything that Mom wanted. There was another short visit, and then Aunt Leanne and Aunt Deborah moved on to plans they had with Uncle Adam and Nick.

I've spent the last couple of hours hanging out with Mom, Dad, and the twins. That included putting the supplies away, a long shopping story and telepathic question and answer time; and a bedtime snack. I'm doing this while taking care of a little telekinetic gift wrapping that Mandy is finding very entertaining as she tries to pounce on the floating paper, ribbons, and bows. That does make the job a bit harder for me, but we're having fun, and I'm almost done. My Jacuzzi and bed are both calling to me, so it's time to literally wrap this up and get on with some quality soak before sleep time. Hopefully we'll have a slower day tomorrow – I could really use the break!

Sunday, September 25, 2011

I was going to begin this entry with a comment about having a quiet day, but now that I think about it; that's only true by comparison and my own perception. Most people probably wouldn't consider a day that started out with non-stop action from about six o'clock through until bedtime about sixteen hours later particularly quiet or restful.

Our morning started out with nursing the twins; Tai Chi by the river; breakfast; and a race to get ready for, and over to, the church in time for the service. I'll not-all-that modestly admit that I looked awesome in the new dress that Aunt Leanne helped me to pick out yesterday. I thought that Rowen looked great too, and judging by the smiley-face votes of approval from Uncle Adam and Nick; I'd say that we were definitely four-for-four on our new Sunday outfits selections.

The Emersons had Rowen and I until we went to Sunday School today, and then I went home with them for lunch before we all met up again at my house for a surprise (for the kids) trip to the Ridge River Ranch. Patrick and Scott were going too; and this was the first time that Rowen's parents were going with us for more than travel support. This was also Ethan and Ehlana's first trip to the ranch, and they were going to be doing an introduction to horses with Mom and Owen while the rest of us, including Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne, were out on the trail ride.

Patrick and Scott hadn't done as much riding as Rowen and I, but they didn't need lessons before our ride either, and we actually had a lot of fun with them today; shocking as that might be to both our friends and theirs. Their temporary transformation might have been because of our guides for the day; though I'm not sure if it was John and Pamela's seventeen-year old daughter, Christie, or their laid-back, cool, fifteen-year old (going on 'about-to-be-a-new-driver') son, Cody. I'm just glad we didn't have an afternoon like we'd had the night of our last sleepover at Rowen's.

Ethan and Ehlana had a lot of fun too, though I didn't get to hear the details of that until our evening question and answer time back at home. We had the teen trail guides today mostly because John and Pamela both wanted to work with my brother and sister. They were both impressed with how well the twins handled their little ranch adventure, which included some up close and personal time with a gentle pony; a long visit through the main stable; a short buggy ride; and a little trick riding demonstration that Christie did for all of us in the riding arena after we got back from our trail ride.

The parents, aunt, and uncle followed up our ranch adventure with a back yard cookout at our house that Grandmas and Grandpas Emerson and Proctor joined us for. Grandpa's Olde Bakery dessert picks were the group favorites, but I thought that the Emerson's secret family recipe baked beans were great too; and parents can never go wrong when corn on the cob and jumbo hotdogs are on the dinner menu.

Thanks to Mom's decision to use our finest disposable dinnerware, the cleanup didn't really take all that long. We'd gone with an early dinner, and by the time the yard and kitchen were clean; Mom had finished nursing Ethan and Ehlana with help from Aunt Leanne. They were all downstairs in time for a long round of goodbyes, and by shortly before seven; it was just the five of us left; and we went into the office to combine the evening question and answer time with the work that Mom, Dad, and I all wanted to get done before bedtime.

Dad had gotten most of his usual post-trip work done while I was away shopping, and Mom and I mostly just wanted to check email and do a little puttering around on the family business. The one big difference to all of our previous family office times was that Ethan and Ehlana happily played with their iPads too while keeping a flurry of questions coming at us that were mostly about their afternoon at the ranch. I've mostly taken my own ability to multi-task like that for granted, but it was amazing to see my diminutive brother and sister doing the same thing.

I helped Mom with the next feeding when Ethan and Ehlana were ready, and then I had a quick shower before getting around to doing this while Mandy and I have our little bedtime cat chat. We didn't get that slower day that I'd hoped for last night, but I do feel relaxed now, and we had so much fun that I'm okay with that. Most of the guys in my class would say that we've got a full week of classes starting in the morning, and I could use that time to rest up from the weekend. A few of them actually try to do that; though not with any noticeable success. Since that's not really an option, and I have a three o'clock feeding coming up fast; it's time for a little quality snuggle and sleep time with Mandy – we've got a big week ahead of us; and Mom and Dad's anniversary next weekend is definitely going to be the highlight for our family.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Even for a young, generally hyper-happy Magi Master, Mondays can be long; and a bit of a let-down after the weekend. There seemed to be a lot of students, and more than a few teachers, who were feeling the same way about that. I did have a good day, and we even managed to have a bit of fun, but Rowen and I were both very happy when Mrs. Warren set us free for the day too.

We went to my house for the after-school snack time with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana; did our homework; and then headed over to the park for some quality play time before dinner. A lot of kids were already there; mostly split up in groups at the playground and football field. There was a good chance that Rowen and I were the only two kids there who had finished homework before going to play, but since we'd used a little Magi power to do that; none of our friends or classmates would believe that, and we certainly couldn't tell them either.

Rebecca and Jenny were sitting on the bleachers watching the boys play football – a group of mostly seventh and eighth-grade guys that were likely all wishing they were old enough to play on the high school team. Rowen and I stayed and talked with them for as long as we could stand the boy-crazy talk; vapid, adoring gazes; and empty-headed giggles before moving on to the playground. There was some giggling and guy-talk going on there too, but since both the talk and laughing was about how gross and dumb boys could be; we were okay with that. I'd have been happy to not talk about boys at all, but that conversation was happening, and ongoing, because there were a handful of boys hanging around the playground, and apparently having a lot of fun testing the limits of gross and dumb.

I was the last one home for dinner, and I was there just in time. We were going with a light meal so that we could have everything cleaned up and be ready for our Magi Healing lesson by the time Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, and this week's guest patient arrived. These sessions are definitely going to be my favorite lessons, and though none of our patient's ailments were imminently serious yet, it did feel great getting to do some fairly advanced healing that could be applied to extreme cases if we ever had the opportunity to do that for other people.

Other than doing an email check and writing this archive entry, that lesson was then end of the day for me; and I'm ready to get some rest now. Mom, Dad, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam are taking care of Ethan and Ehlana and doing a bit of work in the office too, but I decided to skip the bedtime story tonight – I can always get a replay from the twins during their three o'clock feeding. That's only a handful of hours away, and it just occurred to me that I'm now actually thinking about time in terms of feedings and other baby-related terms. How funny is that – especially when you remember that Ethan and Ehlana have already learned pretty much everything about time and calendars? Mandy just told me what she thinks about the whole human concept and need to keep track of time when it'll happen whether we do or not, and that's funny too, but she doesn't have to get up at three in the morning like I do. Maybe if she did; her perspective would be different!

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

I know the days are getting shorter as we move into fall, but they feel longer right now. The weather was sunny and beautiful, and we had a good day at school that even included some outdoor class time. Rowen and I were working after school, so maybe the way I feel is partly from spending my after-school and early evening hours cooped up in the office while I plugged away at the family business.

I mostly worked on a new retail project that I'm looking at starting next year, but spent an hour or so keeping up with everything else I have to do for my companies. Even dealing with our investments on the level we do still means there are a lot of reports and information coming in all the time. The CEO's and managers that I do work with are always amazed at how much I know about their operations. They'd be shocked to find out that I read nearly every report that they do, and probably half again more. I doubt they'd ever believe that I was only ten!

Mom and Dad both had work to do in the office after dinner, so we were all in there for another hour or so; with Ethan and Ehlana happily playing with their iPads while the rest of us worked on our computers. We all did a Magi lesson after that; followed by a nursing and question and answer time in the living room that lasted until after ten. Ethan and Ehlana were ready for a nap then, so Mom and I both took that opportunity to enjoy a little Jacuzzi time. Have I mentioned recently just how much I love my Dad for giving me such a great bedroom suite?

Mandy was already asleep by the time I was finished in the bathroom, and is currently pretending that I didn't wake her up when I got into bed with her. Since she obviously doesn't want to have a chat tonight before we go to sleep, I'll just finish this now and stop disturbing the royal feline.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

The beautiful weather continues, and everyone is very happy about that – especially the farmers that are busy with harvesting their crops. That extra field work does have some effect at school, with all of the farm kids. A handful of teens are missing classes to help their families, but nearly all of the farm kids, and quite a few teens from town, are working long hours before and after school. After seeing some of those students at recesses and lunch, three o'clock feedings with Ethan and Ehlana are looking pretty good by comparison. I've never felt the need for a nap in the cafeteria or out on the football field bleachers; but we're seeing that happen every day now.

Rowen and I had a good day at school, though I don't really have anything exciting to report about from our classes or the school gossip network. We did the after school snack at my house, and then spent the rest of the afternoon with the twins. That included another walk, and today we stopped in for a visit with Dad and Aunt Leanne before going on to the falls. Ethan and Ehlana both loved going to see the waterfalls from the basin platform, so we sat down there for a while and had a quiet chat before moving on to the school playground for a little swing and slide action until dinnertime.

Mom had evening Magi lesson plans for Ethan, Ehlana, and me, so once the kitchen was cleaned up after we'd finished eating; Dad took care of the twins so that Mom could do my lesson first. We went up to my room for that, and I spent a very entertaining hour learning how to control the pressures and temperatures needed to physically turn graphite into diamond. I've done similar lessons before, but this was definitely the hardest so far. (Pun intended)

That was definitely the coolest lesson of the night, but we had just as much fun when we did a lesson in the elements with Ethan and Ehlana after that. Mom had them work with heat and pressure too; though they worked with air and water instead of graphite and diamond. We had them boil water; create a bit of steam pressure; and then reverse the process to dissipate the heat and energy. Just another average Magi family play night!

Dad was into his work by the time we were done that, so I helped Mom with the twins, and then we joined him in the office for our bedtime snack and telepathic story. Three out of five of us were tired out by the time Dad had finished telling us another entertaining tale, but he and Mom still had work to do; so I took Ethan and Ehlana into the living room to keep them entertained until they were done, and we could all go to bed.

That took another hour or so, which gave us enough time to watch one show on television while Ethan and Ehlana played on their iPads and I did a little surfing and emailing on my computer. Some of my friends at school joke about how they sometimes use messaging with their parents, brothers, or sisters even when they're in the same room at home. I wonder what they'd think if I told them about doing the same with Mom, Dad, and the twins tonight while also keeping up both verbal and telepathic conversations with them – and with Mandy too! Then again, what does that say about me that I don't find it weird to have my three-month old brother and sister messaging me on their iPads?

Wait a minute! When did they learn telekinetic typing? I just realized they were messaging me without using the voice recognition software. Okay, that's very cute, guys; but you're supposed to keep your big sister in the loop on things like this. Well, it looks like I've managed to get to the end of today's journal with the very latest family news, so I'm going to finish this and take my giggling brother and sister up to their rooms on my way to bed. I definitely need to get more sleep to have any chance of keeping up with them!

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Today is Michael Stone's eleventh birthday. If Aunt Leanne was reading this, she'd definitely have something to say about why I might be starting this journal entry with that news, but let's not go there. It was bad enough getting teased about the happy birthday hug I had for him this morning before school started, and I thought that was dumb, since I do birthday hugs, and hugs in general, fairly regularly.

Fortunately, that teasing didn't last long; mostly because our classmates moved on to speculating about who had given Michael the anonymous, and very cool, birthday present that had been on his desk when we'd gotten to class. Rowen let me know with a glance that she was quite sure who had given him the gift, but she left it at that, and didn't even try to talk about it with me later. I really love my best friend!

The best news about a guy birthday in our class is that most of the guys are too distracted with the birthday fun to bother with their usual goofiness. A few of the girls – the ones who were crossing over already – did make some effort to hang out with the guys anyway; but were mostly unsuccessful. Rowen and I, and the rest of the girls in our class, were happy to enjoy the reprieve that would likely only last for the day.

It was an after-school work day, but I stopped in for a visit at the store with Rowen's parents; mostly so that I could avoid the gang of boys that were going home with Michael for his birthday party. Jake and Stephanie were supervising that party until it moved over to the Inn for dinner, but Rebecca and Jenny had gone straight to the Inn instead. When I did get home, Alicia was already there, and she and Mom were busy; so I grabbed a drink and snack and went into the office to get started on my homework.

The next couple of hours sped by, and the next thing I knew; Dad was calling me to come for dinner. We were having an easy-meal night, and then Dad and I took care of the cleanup after helping Mom get set up to nurse Ethan and Ehlana. We were all ready to go by the time Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam stopped by to walk to the Inn for game night.

Michael's birthday party was still going on when we got there, and judging by how hyper-active Michael and his friends were; they'd been having fun. That made for a rather strange game night for Rowen, me, and a couple of the other girls in our class who were there with their families too. Since Michael's party was guys-only, some of his friends were trying to keep it that way while we were all playing games despite the obvious fact that there were as many girls in the room as boys; and they did have to play some of those games against girl teams.

You didn't need to be a ten-year old genius to find their jokes and comments silly and annoying, but Rowen and I didn't take the bait that would have just made things worse, and tried our very best to ignore them. This was the first time that I was fairly glad to reach the end of game night, though; and the best part of the night was the walking home commentary about those boys that Aunt Leanne, Patricia, and Mom entertained us with until we split up outside of our house.

Game night had gone a bit long too, which threw off Ethan and Ehlana's feeding schedule. Dad and I both helped Mom with them, and we combined their delayed nursing with a question and answer session and telepathic bedtime story before we all went to bed for the night. That's pretty much all of the news for today, and since I'm going to help Dad with what will probably be a one-thirty or two o'clock feeding; it's time to shut down this computer and get as much rest as I can. I definitely don't want to be too tired for dinner and a movie night tomorrow.

Friday, September 30, 2011

Today is Nick's – Mr. Ayres' – twenty-fourth birthday. Rowen and I gave him a gift this morning before classes; mostly because we wouldn't be seeing him for dinner and a movie night. For some reason, Aunt Deborah had decided that taking Nick to the city for dinner and a show for two would be more fun than hanging out with her cousins, friends, and four kids at our house. I wonder why?

We had a good day at school, but Rowen and I were ready for a fun night that started shortly after we finished our homework. We had another walk and park play with Ethan and Ehlana before dinner, and then had fun with Mom, Dad, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne during dinner. Tonight's movie was Spooky Buddies, and then we had a telepathic chat and bedtime story and snack in the living room while Mom nursed the twins.

Rowen and I were sent upstairs after that; mostly because we're taking the three o'clock feeding again. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were staying until after midnight, and the two couples settled in to watch another movie; each of them getting a baby to cuddle with. While I'm doing this and an email check, Rowen's borrowing my Jacuzzi, and Mandy is sitting in the window alcove while we all chat telepathically. I don't really have anything else to write about tonight – the big news day this weekend will likely be Mom and Dad's anniversary on Sunday; since tomorrow is yard work day. That does feel a bit strange, considering how big this Friday night and Saturday were last year, but I'd say we've still managed to end September with a really great day.

October 2011

Saturday, October 1, 2011

I'm still going to put tomorrow's wedding and adoption anniversary at the top of my list; but the general consensus around town is that the top news story of the weekend is Nick and Aunt Deborah's engagement last night. Aunt Leanne delivered that breaking story early this morning after she and Adam were among the first in his family to find out about it from the happy couple. (Moms, Dads, and siblings were called first) In an early poll of town women and girls; Nick's birthday proposal is earning high marks for romanticism; though final grading will have to wait until Aunt Deborah can be grilled about the details of their night in the city.

Speaking of nights in the city, Ethan, Ehlana, and I are parentless tonight! Dad sprung that surprise on all of us at lunchtime; advising Mom that they were going away for the night to an undisclosed location, while Grandma and Grandpa would be at our house for a sleepover. They came over by shortly before two, and Mom and Dad were on the road not long after that. If Dad forgot, I'm sure that Mom reminded him that it wasn't actually possible to go somewhere and hide from their kids. We won't tell anyone else where they are, but know that they didn't actually go very far away at all. I hope they have a wonderful, romantic night; and that I'm not around when Aunt Leanne gets Mom to tell her all about it. Even Magi Master kids don't want or need to know things like that about their parents!

Mom and Dad weren't the only people in town going away for the night. Dillon worked his usual lunch shift at the Inn today, and then left for Woodvale. He's staying there overnight, and then will be back in time to work the afternoon buffet shift tomorrow. Violet is both fired up and worried, and anyone that knows Chris and Martin can guess why she might be concerned. I don't think Dillon will have any problems with my cousins – he's managed to keep up, and be best friends, with Jake Stone even through what I've heard were some very geeky years. If he can do that, Chris and Martin will be easy by comparison.

Rowen came over after lunch, and we stayed there until Mom and Dad left; then were set free to play while Grandma and Grandpa took care of the twins. It's been another sunny day, but a bit cooler, so we only played at the park for a couple of hours before going home again to get hot drinks and a snack. Ethan and Ehlana had napped while we were gone, and were mid-bottle feeding; having their afternoon bottles a bit later than usual. I put the wards up so we could have a telepathic chat, and after cleaning up from our snack, we went into the living room to watch television for a while until Rowen had to go home, and Grandma and I needed to start cooking dinner.

We've had a fairly quiet evening, with the highlight being the cuddle and video time after dinner in the living room. Grandma and Grandpa brought the videos, which were all about the South American countries they'd be visiting on their trip. Ethan and Ehlana were fascinated, and are thinking about asking Mom and Dad to let them go on the trip too – after all, they don't have to worry about missing school like I would. They did at least concede that there was a logistics problem with going on a month-long trip without your primary source of food; not to mention that they might not be ready to spend a month away from Mom and Dad quite yet.

I was advised that my bottle-feeding services were not going to be needed tonight, so after our bedtime story and snack, I went upstairs to end my day with a little Jacuzzi action before getting into bed with Mandy for our nightly telepathic cat chat, email check, and archive journal update. There wasn't anything new or newsworthy waiting in my inbox; Mandy's drifting off to sleep; and I don't have anything else to write about for today's journal. I'll be on my own for Tai Chi in the morning, but that's still about seven unexpected and wonderfully uninterrupted hours of sleep away; a gift that I am gratefully going to get started on enjoying right now!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

This morning started out great when Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam surprised me and came over for Tai Chi; to help out with Ethan and Ehlana; and join us for breakfast. Getting to do all of that with them, and with Grandma and Grandpa, was a lot of fun; and the day just seemed to keep getting better from there.

We got to see Aunt Deborah and Nick for the first time since their engagement before church; though everyone else wanted to congratulate them too, so we only had time for quick hugs and kisses. Aunt Deborah's new ring is beautiful, and I really loved seeing them so happy. It felt a bit strange being at church without Mom and Dad, but that only lasted until Rowen and I went to Sunday school. Pastor Lewis must have been on a roll, because church didn't let out until nearly a quarter after eleven, and our Sunday school class had mostly just been playing for the last half hour. That also meant that I didn't get a chance to talk to Miranda, Jacob, or any of the other people who had either already left before the service was over, or needed to move on right away.

Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne weren't in any hurry, and we were one of the last groups to talk with the Pastors before heading home. Grandpa and Uncle Adam were put in charge of feeding Ethan and Ehlana while Grandma, Aunt Leanne, and I made lunch. The twins were ready for a nap by the time we were ready to eat, and that gave us enough time to have lunch and clean up before they were awake again; fired up and ready to go.

Rowen was busy with her family for the afternoon, so I decided to work in the office for a couple of hours while Ethan and Ehlana entertained our grandparents, aunt, and uncle. Mom and Dad pulled into the driveway by shortly after three, so I took a little break to join in on the welcome home hugs and kisses; though it wasn't long before Mom went upstairs to nurse Ethan and Ehlana with help from Aunt Leanne that I'm sure included some girl chat that was hopefully not too explicit for the twins to handle.

While they were doing that, the rest of us got drinks and a snack, and then went into the office so that I could finish what I was working on, and Dad could take care of the work he needed to get done before going back to work in the morning. Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle Adam sat at the conference table and talked with us until Mom, Aunt Leanne, and the twins came back downstairs, and then they all moved into the living room for a long telepathic chat until it was time to get ready to go out for the late buffet at the Inn.

Grandma and Aunt Leanne had set up the dinner party, and they made sure that Mom and Dad were at the Inn early enough to welcome all of their guests. That included the local members of their wedding party and their families; though Jacob and Miranda weren't able to sit down with us until near the end of the second buffet sitting after the last batches of food had been sent out to the buffet tables. Terry and Angela made the quick trip down from Crystal Springs, and along with the Emersons, Aunt Leanne had invited Mom and Dad's closest friends; and our little party took up nearly a quarter of the tables in the dining room.

Rowen and I were put at the table directly behind Mom and Dad, along with Ethan, Ehlana, Grandma and Grandpa, and Rowen's grandparents. Mom and Dad had Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, Rowen's parents, and the Malloys with them; plus two extra spots for when Jacob and Miranda could join them. Before we all got in line for the buffet, Mom and Dad opened their anniversary presents; including the one that Aunt Leanne and Aunt Deborah had helped me pick out last weekend for Ethan, Ehlana, and I to give them. Other than staying with them while they did that, we were pretty much on our own during dinner; though we did have grandparent support and entertainment too.

We took turns getting our food so that someone was always with Ethan and Ehlana, and the conversation at our table was mostly about Grandma and Grandpa's upcoming trip, and the other trips that Grandma Emerson was working on – or the parts of those trips that they could talk about in public. Since we were at the late sitting, there was no rush to eat and make room for more customers; and it was close to nine o'clock by the time we started the goodbye hugs and kisses; mostly because Mom needed to get home and nurse the twins again.

It was while she was doing that after we got home that Ethan and Ehlana sprung their own anniversary surprise on us – they had decided that they weren't going to need the three o'clock feeding anymore! I suppose that doesn't sound like a big deal, but the cool part of it was that they'd learned how to control their metabolism to make that possible. I hadn't even considered doing that when I was a baby, but they'd apparently figured it out from watching Mom control her physical systems over the last few months while controlling how much milk she needed to produce for them. I thought that was the best present Mom and Dad got all day, though I am biased; since it also means that I'll be getting a lot more sleep from now on too. This weekend has really made for an amazing start to October!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Mom and Dad really appreciated getting more sleep than usual as much as I did; and Ethan and Ehlana were on the receiving end of some extra hugs and kisses this morning to thank them. I'm sure that Mom will keep an eye on them to make sure that they really can handle the feeding schedule change, but I'm sure they wouldn't have done this if they weren't sure that they could.

The first anniversary of my first school day as Cassie Proctor went by without any fanfare, but Nick's – Mr. Ayres – engagement was definitely the top story. The girls all wanted to talk about it, and though there were at least a few hot, single, young teacher crushes crushed; nearly all of us were very happy for him and Aunt Deborah, and his choice of a birthday proposal got very high marks too. The boys around school had a lot to say about the loss of another perfectly good bachelor, but their comments and jokes weren't very convincing, and I ignored most of them. While Nick and Aunt Deborah's news provided some bonus entertainment today, it was the introduction of Halloween-themed lessons and project assignments that really lifted everyone's spirits.

Rowen and I had a bit of homework to do after school, but once we had that out of the way, we took Ethan and Ehlana out for a walk that included some time at the playground, and a full circuit of the path around the park. Rowen went to meet up with her parents after that, while I took the twins home and helped Mom and Dad through until the dinner clean-up was finished.

Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over for the evening, and Mom did a healing lesson with Uncle Adam and me while Dad and Aunt Leanne worked in the office and took care of Ethan and Ehlana. We worked on our lesson until nine, and then it was time for a break that included nursing Ethan and Ehlana; a bedtime snack; and a long telepathic chat and story. I opted to go up to bed after that, and I've been doing my usual nightly surfing and email checks.

There were a couple of family business matters to take care of, and a few email to answer from Dawn, Mark, and Kaitlyn and Jaimie. Dawn and Jillian are getting excited about coming to Witch Falls for the festival a week from Friday; Jaimie and Kaitlyn mostly just like getting regular email, and wanted to keep that going; and Mark continues to avoid serious answers about anything that has to do with Aunt Grace. He did let me know that he was going away for a three-day weekend conference. I wonder if Aunt Grace has any long weekend plans? Anyway, I've had enough fun for today, and Mandy's telling me to put my computer away too. She must be getting close to completing my training; since as soon as I finish writing this sentence; that's exactly what I'm going to do!

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Sometimes even Magi Masters have days when there just isn't much news, and Sally's birthday party is tomorrow; so I'm going to keep this short and hit the pillows early.

There wasn't much going on at school, and after dropping Rowen off at the store and visiting with her Mom and Dad for a few minutes; I went home and got started on the usual Tuesday homework and Family business session in the office. Mom and I did a Magi lesson with Ethan and Ehlana after dinner; and then I watched them while Mom and Dad both got some work done in the office until it was time for their feeding. We did our snack and telepathic story time then too; and I'm here in bed before ten o'clock! Since this could be the last time that happens for the rest of the week; I'm going to take advantage of the extra down time.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Another mid-week hurdle has been successfully overcome; and thanks to Sally's birthday party, we had a lot of fun today too. Some of the guys in our class joked about crashing her party, but I'm sure that most, if not all, of them were glad that they weren't invited. After putting up with some above-average guy goofiness all day, I was definitely ready to get out of town for a girls-only evening.

Rowen's Mom drove us out to the Reynolds' farm after we'd finished our homework and gotten ready for the party. About half of the guests were there by then, so we played outside with the other girls while waiting for everyone else to arrive. Other than going riding at the Ridge River Ranch, I haven't spent much time on any of the farms around town; and this was only my second visit to Sally's home. The other girls probably thought it was funny, but I loved getting to play with the farm animals and the Reynolds' two dogs.

Farm work didn't stop even for something as important as an eleventh birthday party, but Sally's father and brothers seemed quite happy to be busy with chores while their house and yard were overrun with a bunch of pre-teen girls. Mrs. Reynolds had a few games for us to play outside, and then the party moved indoors for the rest of the evening that included dinner and a movie. Dad came out to pick Rowen and I up at a quarter after nine after helping Mom get set up to nurse Ethan and Ehlana, and by the time we got home; they were ready for more help before we all went downstairs for a little telepathic chat and snack time.

Ethan and Ehlana had wanted to hear all about the party, but by ten-thirty, they were ready for a nap. I went up to bed then too, but have been working on my computer since then; and it's after midnight now. There were some email waiting for me to catch up on that included nearly an hour of work for the family business, and then I played in the archives for a while to catch up on some of the material that Mom wanted me to cover to go along with the lessons we're currently working on. Uncle Adam had some new entries for our fledgling project archive, so I caught up on that too; and that led to another email to pass on a few things that I picked up on tonight at the party about what could be latent patterns among town and country kids.

Since tomorrow – today – is going to be a busy work and game night day, and Mom will likely want to add in at least a short lesson after skipping one night already; it's time to get some sleep. Mandy didn't even wait up with me, and has been curled up on her usual pillow for more than an hour now. Sometimes I agree with her that cats are way smarter than people – at least when it comes to enjoying life and understanding what's really important.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

I've been thinking about the Magi Council's concerns about having the Magi kids know about each other, like Rowen and I now do; and how that would affect our relationships with the non-Magi kids. That's mostly been because of Sally Reynold's birthday, or more specifically; going out to her family's farm for her party.

Now that I know who all of the Magi are – or at least all of the Magi I've met so far – it's been interesting to watch the interactions between both adults and kids. Other than going out to the Ridge River Ranch, I haven't spent much time visiting the farms around town; and Sally's is the only classmate's farm I've been to with today being the second time.

Though I haven't really been observing these dynamics for very long, it seems to me that other socio-economic factors have more to do with the development of friendships than whether the people involved are Magi or not. The kids in my grade are on the borderline, but with most of us, and all of the younger kids; gender is the biggest single factor. All of the girls in my class are friends, but of the groups of best friends, only one includes both town and country kids.

That changes with the teens, particularly once they can drive; though childhood best friends here are usually life-long friendships. Grandma has told us that Magi couples are in the minority, and that's definitely true with the current group of teen couples. Ethan, Ehlana, and I know that's going to start changing; but there could be unexpected consequences to go along with that happening. For instance, one benefit of single-Magi couples is that there are more families carrying strong Magi genetics; even if all of the children are latent. We'll have a lot to learn before even thinking about dabbling in Magi matchmaking.

Magi adults definitely make an effort to have non-magi friends. Common personal interests and social standing affect that just as it does anywhere else. Dad is probably the average example of that with his group of friends including baseball teammates and other business owners. One consequence of the Magi here being a comparatively small percentage of the town population is that groups have a bit wider age range than might be the case without that factor.

We haven't really discussed it much yet, but adding four Magi Masters to that Magi population percentage in the past year is significant too; and not just because of the things we can do or eventually teach the others. That's going to take generations to play out, though, so we have time to study and get ready to handle the changes that will be coming to Witch Falls.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

We had a fairly quiet day at school; or at least it seemed so in comparison to yesterday. After school work was much busier, and I got a lot done for the family business before it was time to pack up; have dinner; and head over to the Inn for game night. Mom and Dad won the senior championship tonight – her second win of this school year; and Dad's first.

After Sally's party yesterday, and reading Uncle Adam's new entries in our Magi project archive, I've been thinking a lot about what we're doing with that, and about the relationships between Magi and non-Magi. Game nights are an even better opportunity than Sunday church services for studying that; including my own interaction with our friends and neighbors.

One of the stranger, if benign, things that have happened since I've found out who all of the other Magi are is how some of the Magi – the ones who don't yet want to get involved with Mom and I on a Magi level – act around me. It's a 'they know I know' situation that they haven't figured out how to handle. For those Magi who also have kids, there's an added worry factor that I can't blame them for having when you consider everything that's happened over the past year or so. The rest of the Magi adults all seem very happy to have Magi Masters again, and they're mostly just impressed with what Mom, the twins, and I can do; even though we haven't really had all that much impact in their personal lives yet.

Rowen and I have talked about setting the example to show the council in particular that having Magi kids know about each other can be very positive. I really hope that even if that doesn't change for us between now and when we're eighteen that they do allow it for younger kids. From my perspective, I really don't think that it will have as much downside effect as the council thinks. In Rowen's case, for example, it might have actually helped her to know other Magi kids – especially in a case like hers where she's needed to hide her special gifts even from her parents.

Getting back to my game night observations; while the Magi council believes that the way they raise their kids is key to how well the Magi and non-Magi get along with each other, it's the socio-economic factors that affect every community that has the biggest influence on relationships. Mom and Dad, for instance, have a lot of non-Magi friends, but almost all of them are either business owners like they are, or have professional careers like teachers.

That's true for most of the Magi, but that's because nearly every Magi adult is a college graduate, and thanks to their family heritages; have financial resources that the non-Magi don't. I don't know how every family deals with that, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out that they all take care of their families the same way that Grandma, Grandpa, Dad, and Aunt Leanne have told us our family has done. The bottom line is that common levels of education; personal interests, like sports or children; and financial standing have more effect on Magi relationships with non-Magi than anything else. Knowing about other Magi during childhood would not likely change that at all.

I'm almost always studying the Magi, latent, and normal auras that I can feel now, and that's an ongoing process that includes correlating each person's place in their group with, in particular, talents that I know they have. Among other things, I've been looking to see if there is a calculable and definitive scale that would peg certain talents to points on each of the ranges in the three groups. For example, would music talent be at one place on each scale while excelling in sports would be somewhere else. Working that out would really be valuable with training Magi if we could pin down each person's capacity for the different Magi talents; and adjust their Magi education accordingly.

Since I'm thinking about this now anyway, and it's not really that late; I'm going to add a section to our project archive and pop in those data points that I have so far. Since we're also still working on defining the scales for each group; this might help with that too. Then I'll need to find out what I missed for tonight's television shows. The funniest part of that for Thursday nights now is keeping up with what's happening on The Secret Circle. Nearly all of the girls, and quite a few of the boys, in Witch Falls are already hooked on the show about a group of teenaged Witches. Rowen and I, and probably the rest of the Magi kids, find it amusing and more than a little weird; but then again, in our case, most people would think that our truth is stranger than fiction!

Friday, October 7, 2011

Ethan, Ehlana, and I finally got to spend some quality time with Aunt Deborah and Nick tonight for the first time since their engagement. Thankfully, Aunt Leanne had previously grilled Aunt Deborah about the details that the kids in the house didn't need to know about the birthday night in the city; but Ehlana and I were happy to hear the proposal story during dinner, and she opted for movie cuddle time with Deborah and Nick too while Ethan split his time between Mom and Dad and Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam.

Rowen and I had a good day at school, but she was busy tonight, so after getting my homework out of the way, I took Ethan and Ehlana out for a walk to the park for some fresh air, and then helped Mom with making dinner until Dad and Aunt Leanne got home from the office. I miss getting to go out to dinner and a movie night, but it really doesn't make sense for us to haul everything the twins need around just for a change of scenery when everything else is the same.

Since it's October, we'll be doing Halloween movies all month; and tonight's feature was Hocus Pocus – one of my all-time favorites. Is there anyone who doesn't love the Sanderson sisters - especially Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker? They definitely managed to put a spell on the group of Magi in our living room for a couple of hours!

Tomorrow is going to be an all-day yard work adventure at more than just our house, so when Mom needed to go nurse the twins, our company headed for home, and I was set free to enjoy a little Jacuzzi action before climbing into bed and working on my computer for a while. There wasn't much on the email or work front to deal with; I'll leave the entertainment news check for Sunday night; and once I finish this, it's definitely time for lights out. Dad keeps trying to convince me that fall cleanups are fun and exciting, but the only way that's actually true is if we're comparing it to something worse – like a year ago when we were all busy trying to keep a certain Dark Magi Master from crashing Mom and Dad's plane. Now that I'm thinking about that; yard work is suddenly looking really great!

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Sometimes there are some really cool, if mundane advantages to being a Magi Master. For instance, I'm happily up to my neck in hot, swirling water while working on my computer, which is sitting on the vanity; and Telepathically chatting with Mandy while she baths herself in the window alcove in the other room. The main reason that I'm multi-tasking like this is because I'm trying to get everything done so I can go to bed early after a very long day of yard and house work.

It feels like our Tai Chi by the river this morning was the last quiet time I had until now, if you consider chatting with Mandy; taking care of some family business email; and writing this journal entry quiet time. We're just barely getting started on what will be weeks of fall cleaning, but Mom and Dad reminded me that we'll be taking next weekend off because of the Fall Festival and Aunt Leanne's birthday; so we did need to get ahead of the work today instead.

My jobs for the day included the usual grass cutting; helping to rake the yard; work in the gardens with Mom when she had time to do that while the twins were napping or Alicia was watching them; and sweeping the porches, sidewalks, and driveway. We had a late lunch and later dinner, and after doing the dinner cleanup; Mom, Dad, and I spent an hour playing with Ethan and Ehlana before the feeding they're doing with Mom and Dad now while I'm in here.

The family business email tonight is mostly retail business reports related to the Halloween season. I need to keep up with all of those reports, but don't generally have to get involved with anything at the operations level unless I see opportunities that can help my companies. On the family front, I didn't get any email from Aunt Grace or Mark today in answer to my email yesterday. I'm sure they think that'll keep me from finding out what's going on this weekend; but I learned computers from a PhD tech genius, and just doing that wasn't enough.

First of all, if you don't want your family and friends to know where you are; either don't check your email, or don't allow read receipts! That nailed down the hotel where they were when they read my email; the times they respectively did that; and I'll just go ahead and guess that Mark and Aunt Grace only have one room there. The medical conference that Mark is supposedly attending has a very nice website too, but probably isn't quite up-to-date; since Mark's name isn't on the attendee's list. The only hard decision I have now is deciding whether to tell Mom and Aunt Leanne now, or risk their wrath for holding back on them and saving the fun for when we see Aunt Grace at Thanksgiving.

That reminds me to send another email to Dawn. With a little luck, she, Jillian, and Violet will be here next Friday in time to spend at least a few hours at the festival, but the early forecast for next weekend is for cool nights; and they'll want to pack accordingly. The good news is that Sunday is the only day they're calling for any rain right now; and Saturday should be the best of the three days.

I'm starting to wrinkle up; so it's time to wash my hair and finish getting ready for bed. The good news is that Rowen and I are both done our work for the weekend, and tomorrow is going to be a play day for us. We'll need the break to get ready for next week when we'll have rides to watch getting built and all of the Fall Festival fun to go along with our usual school, work, and play schedule. This week has definitely become one of my very favorites of the year!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Rowen and I spent the whole day together after meeting up for the walk to church this morning. We had lunch at her house, and then spent the afternoon going for a canoe ride, biking, and playing at the park. We took Ethan and Ehlana with us to the playground with an Emporium stop along the way to pick up an afternoon frozen treats snack and drinks.

Our parents had a surprise for us when we got home, and were putting together a barbeque dinner that Grandmas and Grandpas Emerson and Proctor, and Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam, were all going to join us for. Helping out with that, and with Ethan and Ehlana, kept us busy for a while; but that was a lot of fun too, and earned us a pair of get-out-of-cleanup tickets. Dinner out on the back porch was fun too, and after the kitchen was cleaned up again, we all went for a walk around the path at the park before it was time to say goodnight and head back to our respective homes.

I'd promised myself a full day off from work, but after helping out with Ethan and Ehlana's feeding and bedtime Telepathic chat and story; it wasn't long before my computer was calling to me just as strongly as my Jacuzzi was. Now I'm basically ending tonight exactly the same way as yesterday – right down to the lack of email from Mark or Aunt Grace. I'm sure they'll get around to that sometime after they get back home sometime later tonight. Hopefully they'll both do that before Aunt Leanne or Mom talk with them or send email too; since I did tell them about the strange coincidence of my emails being read at the same place by the attention-shy couple. A few extra hugs for Aunt Grace at Thanksgiving should smooth things over, and at least this will be old news for her by then too. Another déjà vu to last night is that I'm losing track of time and have spent a bit too much time in the water. Time to wrap this up; do my weekend entertainment check; and then head for bed.

Monday, October 10, 2011

We had rain off and on for most of the day, but though that did mean that we spent most of our time indoors; it didn't dampen spirits for any of the kids or teens. That was almost entirely thanks to the Ridge River Fall Festival being just days away now. Our teachers handed out the permission letters today for the school festival day on Friday, and not even our football team's Friday night win could top that; except maybe among the most die-hard football fans.

Rowen and I had our after-school snack with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana; got our homework out of the way; and then played with the twins until nearly dinnertime so that Mom could get some work done in the office. When Dad got home, it was time for Rowen to leave, and after seeing her out; Ethan, Ehlana, and I went into the kitchen to help Mom and Dad – two of us Telepathically supervising and entertaining the three-person dinner work crew.

Since it was the main news topic at school, the festival was my top story during dinner. Rowen and I had told Ethan and Ehlana all about it while playing with them in the lounge, though, so I really only passed on the news that Mom and Dad probably hadn't heard. The downside of having that going on this weekend was that Mom and Dad both needed to work harder between now and Friday so that they'd be able to spend the extra time playing with us at the park. When Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over after dinner, Dad was set free to work in the office while Aunt Leanne watched the twins, and Mom, Uncle Adam, and I went into the living room to get started on our Healing lesson.

We didn't do it very often, but Mom had us start with reading about our lesson in the archives first. There was a fair bit of technical information that she wanted me to know first, and while I read through the six hundred and seventy-three pages much faster than Uncle Adam could; he only needed to read the sections that Mom had already put together for him; since the whole being a doctor thing meant that he already knew most of the material.

For the main event of our lesson, we had another guest patient. All of the reading had been because we were going to need to keep an eye on a lot of little things that could be thrown out of whack during the healing process – so many that Mom wouldn't have been able to explain all of what was happening during the lesson. I'm sure that our patient appreciated not having ten or fifty new problems to replace the one ailment that she no longer has to live with anymore.

After our patient left for home, Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne stayed for a bedtime snack, chat, and story in the office so that Dad could keep working too. Mom nursed Ethan and Ehlana at the same time, and then Uncle Adam and I took them up to their rooms for diaper changes and naps before I went on up to bed too and he went back downstairs to mostly hang out in the office while Mom and Aunt Leanne worked on the family business for a couple of hours – or until Ethan and Ehlana were ready for their next feeding.

I've been doing a bit of work too after getting changed and in bed with Mandy; but I don't want to stay up too late, and there really isn't anything going on that can't wait until my usual Tuesday after-school work session tomorrow. I had new emails from Dawn and Violet; and they're both getting as excited about this weekend as I am. It's going to be so great to have them here for the weekend. I just wish it could be for more than two days – though probably not as much as Violet and Dillon do!

***

I was about to finish this journal entry when the email from Aunt Grace arrived; followed shortly after by one from Mark. Apparently working on the family business in the office isn't the only thing that Aunt Leanne and Mom have been doing. I'm good with not being in on that still-ongoing conversation, and though Aunt Grace is a bit annoyed; she and Mark are obviously amused too, and it's made for a really fun way to end the day. The best news is that they do definitely like each other a lot to be making these trips, and considering the future that Ethan, Ehlana, and I see for them; that's a fairly important development. I love it when a plan comes together – even if I may regret my junior matchmaking efforts.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

We've had another beautiful Fall day in Witch Falls, but Rowen and I were too busy with school and work to enjoy much outdoor time except at lunch and recesses. The good news there is that I'm well on the way to having all of the work I want to do this week out of the way so that I can take the weekend off to play.

There isn't any major news to report today from school or around town, and it was one of those teaching-only days in all of our classes. I'm pretty sure that most of the kids at school had their permission forms for our Friday at the Festival handed in today; and speculation about which favorite rides would be setup this year, along with making plans for the weekend kept most of us entertained in between classes.

I walked Rowen to the store after school, and then went home. Mom had an after-school snack ready, so I joined her, Alicia, Ethan, and Ehlana for a short visit before going into the office and working until dinnertime. My homework didn't take long, and the family business work was at least challenging and engrossing if not amazingly fun. Getting to watch my investment portfolio grow, and see how many more people we've been able to help with our charities because of that is great, and is definitely worth all of the work.

Dad was in the office again as soon as we had the kitchen cleanup done, and Mom and I spent a couple of hours working on lessons with Ethan and Ehlana. There's no point in me duplicating everything that Mom's keeping track of for their development in the archives; but we're both constantly amazed at how quickly they're learning everything. I know it wouldn't be the same for other Magi kids; but it does make me wonder if the right pairings or groups of Magi might end up with similarly accelerated learning by doing their lessons together. Rowen is probably learning a bit faster since we found out about each other, but that's not the same; since there's a big difference in our abilities.

We moved into the office after the lesson was over, and I helped Mom with getting set up to nurse Ehlana and Ethan before getting back to work on my computer. Dad joined in for the Telepathic chat and story time; and then he took a break to help put the twins in their cribs for a nap while I kept working. Rowen and I have after school plans at the park to watch midway rides being assembled – like most of the younger kids in town do – so I continued to work until Mom and Dad stopped for the night too when Ethan let all of us know that he was ready to be fed again at about a quarter past twelve.

While not nearly as important as Magi lessons or working on the family business, I've been getting up-to-speed on the latest entertainment news since climbing into bed with Mandy. I took care of my email as they arrived through the evening, and everyone I usually keep up with, except Mark, are long-since in bed and sleeping. One good thing about staying up late is that it is easier to find out what happened on Glee, Dancing with the Stars, or any of the other current Tuesday night favorites. Now that I have this journal entry nearly finished, and I'm ready to keep up with the usual morning, recess, and lunch conversations; it's time for me to get some rest too.

It's nearly one, so let's call it two and a half more sleeps until the start of the Fall Festival. This feels like a big holiday without the presents; though in Aunt Leanne's case, she gets the presents too. How cool must that have been getting to celebrate her birthday with midway rides, games, and everything else that goes on at the festival? Now that I think about it, her Grade Six, eleventh birthday would have been on the Friday school day at the festival. Hopefully her Thirtieth birthday will be just as great!

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

It's been raining on and off all day, but with the midway rides beginning to arrive at the park, the weather didn't dampen the excitement that helped keep everything we were doing at school fun. The rain was still coming down when Rowen and I walked home from school, but after having a snack and chat with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana; we walked over to the park anyway to check out the ride assembly action we expected to find there.

Quite a few kids were already there, and we joined the group hanging out under the protection of the pavilion. A handful of teens were there too, but they were looking to get the part-time jobs that were available to help out with setup, and then to work on some of the rides or concessions during the festival. While we were all fired up, the rain was definitely putting a kink into the midway setup schedule. The coolest rides weren't being assembled at all, and the work completely stopped for nearly a half hour while a brief thunderstorm moved through town.

Rowen had dinner with us, and though there hadn't been as much action at the park as we'd hoped after school, as the rain let up in the evening, the work pace really picked up; and we had fun watching some of our favorite rides start taking shape from the truckloads of parts. Half of the 'thrill' rides were different than last year; which Rowen advised me was normal, though there was always a Ferris Wheel included with those rides; and a Carousel was always one of the kiddie rides.

Watching the action at the park was the highlight of the day, but Mom didn't let me skip my Magi lesson; mostly because it would likely be the last one we had for the week. That meant that I had to be home by eight-thirty, and we did that lesson while taking care of Ethan and Ehlana. We worked through a batch of Telekinesis exercises, and though none of them were new, Mom incrementally increased the difficulty of each task. Since it wasn't practical to go out and train me by lifting and moving large objects, we instead applied Telekinetic force in opposite directions against smaller objects. I had the added responsibility of keeping whatever object we used from being crushed by those forces. If I could actually practice openly, the equivalent of tonight's exercise would have been like lifting a school bus twenty feet in the air and then moving it around from place to place for about a half hour. Ehlana's stuffed bunny was not harmed in any way by participating in the lesson!

Mom nursed the twins while teaching my lesson, and then we put a snack and drinks together before going to join Dad in the office for a combination chat, story time, snack, and continuing work session. For me, that's included a few work, family, and friends emails; a live chat with Rowen; my nightly entertainment news check; and this journal entry. Ethan and Ehlana skipped having a nap, and played on their iPads instead, but it's heading toward midnight now, and we're all ready to call it a night. Mom is sending Dad to bed, and I've been drafted to help her with Ethan and Ehlana. The diaper changes that go with that aren't always much fun, but the goodnight cuddles and kisses are definitely worth staying up late for.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Our teachers tried their very best to keep us motivated during classes today; but Math, English, and Science just couldn't compete with the now just hours away start of the Fall Festival. City kids and teens that are used to big State Fairs and regular visits to the major amusement and theme parks around the country would likely just laugh at us. I've been one of those city kids, and Mom and I have been to a few big parks too, even if I couldn't go on the best rides yet; but I think our little town's Festival is so much better because we get to share the fun with all of our friends and neighbors. If we ever do a major trip to a Six Flags or something like our shopping trips to Crystal Springs; that might just be as cool. Maybe I'll suggest that to Mom and Aunt Leanne for next summer!

Rowen and I were both working after school, so we missed out on getting to watch the ongoing midway setup; though a lot of the work was already done by the time we were finished classes for the day. Some of the other kids that came to game night at the Inn did bring us up to speed on what we missed; which included being among the lucky few volunteers that got to try out some of the rides during the final tests to make sure they were ready to go for Friday morning. That would have been fun, but making sure that I could take the weekend off was worth staying home and working for; and Rowen had the weekend off from the store too. Game night was a great way to start our three-day weekend of fun, and we were so fired up; we managed to place fifth in the junior championship!

I'm in bed early, and once I have this done, Mandy and I are going to sleep. The latest weather forecast is looking great, if still a bit cool each night; and I can't wait for Violet, Dawn, and Jillian to get home for the weekend. Rowen's going to stay with us for an all-weekend sleepover too; so we're going to have some late nights; and I'm going to need the extra rest.

Friday, October 14, 2011

The first day of the Fall Festival was definitely even better than I hoped it would be! Rowen came over to our house before school so she could drop her weekend bag off; we joined our classmates and Mrs. Warren for the regular start of school activities; and then all of the students and most of the teachers headed for the park.

It's been a beautiful, sunny Fall day, but it was also cool this morning and evening; and jackets or sweaters were definitely needed to stay warm. The cool winds couldn't put a chill on the fun, though, and Rowen and I had a blast all day. We knew that the rides would all be packed for a while after getting to the park, so we started out with a tour of the pavilions that were set up for the Festival contests and shows; played a few games; and had a snack before going on any rides.

I hadn't really paid much attention to it last year, but even after waiting for the first rush to pass on the rides, there were still small lineups for the favorites; and that was because there were busloads of kids arriving all morning from the schools in a half-dozen of the closest to Witch Falls. There were quite a few younger kids too, and Rowen advised me that the Festival was a big deal for area daycare kids.

Having a few different rides to play on wasn't the only differences from last year, and the best change was getting to spend an hour or so with Mom, Ethan, Ehlana, Grandma, and Grandpa when they came to the park after lunch. There were only a couple of rides that we could take Ethan and Ehlana on, but they were happy to go see a puppet show and then spend most of their time wandering through the exhibit pavilions.

They went home again in time for the afternoon feeding and a nap while Rowen and I stayed and played until meeting up with Mom, Dad, Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, and the twins for dinner at one of the food booths. Mom brought bottles along for Ethan and Ehlana, so we were all able to stay at the park; and were joined there by Violet, Dawn, and Jillian when they made it to town at around seven-thirty.

Dillon was working close at the Inn, so Violet played with us until he, Jake, and Stephanie met up with her after finishing work. Mom and Dad had taken Ethan and Ehlana home by then, and Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam had moved on too; so Rowen and I continued to play with Dawn and Jillian until it was time to head home for the night.

The fun at the park was still going on, and we can hear the music from the teen dance and the rides and everything from my room even though we couldn't see anything more than some light reflecting on the river and trees. My three sleepover buddies and I are okay with missing out on that dance, and I'm doing this and my email check while Dawn and Jillian are taking turns using the Jacuzzi and Rowen and Mandy are hanging out on the bed with me. We're going to wrap up the night with a movie in the lounge; though I'm not sure that any of us will stay awake for another couple of hours.

Mom's having a nap now, but that's mostly because she wants to do a short lesson with Violet when she gets back from the park. They'll only have time for a few of them this weekend; so she has to fit them in whenever they both have time. Speaking of time, I'm out of it for doing this; and our movie awaits. One amazing festival day down; two to go!

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Dawn and Jillian didn't make it through the movie last night, and Rowen and I went to bed shortly after they fell asleep. I was the only one to wake up in time to help out with Ethan and Ehlana when they were ready to be nursed, but Violet and Rowen were both awake and getting ready for the day by the time Mom, Dad, and I were finished our Tai Chi.

It was even colder this morning than it had been yesterday, so even though we were excited about spending the day at the festival; we were okay with taking our time getting ready; sharing bathroom time; and having a long, drawn-out country breakfast. Mom, Dad, and Violet weren't going to the park with the twins until later in the morning, so once we were all ready to go, Rowen, Dawn, Jillian, and I walked over to the park together.

Dawn and Jillian hadn't seen any of the little shows, or gone through the exhibit pavilions, so after warming up on a couple of very chilly rides; we picked up cups of hot chocolate, and checked out the exhibits for a while. Mom, Dad, and Violet joined us in time to catch a segment of the all-day talent competition, and we watched a magic show after that before heading back to the midway.

Violet was only with us until Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie finished their lunch shift at the Inn; but we had time to go on a few rides, play a couple of games, and have lunch together. Mom and Dad took Ethan and Ehlana home for their afternoon feeding and a nap, and though Rowen, Dawn, Jillian, and I were on our own again for a while; we did have a little cameo fun time playing a few games with Grandma and Grandpa, and then going on a couple of rides with Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam.

We had all of our favorite grownups with us for dinner, and then we played again until the country dance started at nine o'clock. By then, it was definitely getting cold again, and all of the kids in our gang, including Ethan and Ehlana, were ready to go home and get warm again by ten. Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa looked happy to go home too; and it wasn't long before we were having hot drinks and warm bakery apple pie for a bedtime snack.

Dawn and Jillian weren't in the loop for it, but while we went up to bed after our snack, Ethan and Ehlana advised Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa that they wanted to do a quick feeding and go to bed for the night instead of getting up again or staying awake until after midnight. Grandma helped Mom with that while Dad and Grandpa cleaned up from our snack. Dawn and Jillian were both sleeping on the sofa in the lounge before Grandma and Grandpa left to go home, and while Rowen and I are still chatting; she's cuddling with Mandy and starting to doze off. As soon as I'm done this journal entry and my nightly email check; we'll all be off to sleep too. Tomorrow is Aunt Leanne's thirtieth birthday, and with a special breakfast for her; church; another afternoon at the Festival; and a birthday buffet dinner at the Inn, we've got another busy, amazing day to get rested up for!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

What a crazy, busy, amazing day!

Getting to watch Aunt Leanne opening her presents – a few at breakfast, and then the rest of them during dinner – was one of the highlights. Morning Tai Chi with her and Uncle Adam was great too, and Dad and Uncle Adam cooked up the full country breakfast while the rest of us took turns getting ready for church, and helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana.

It was non-stop action from Tai Chi to Church, and the fun kept on rolling there; led by Eleanor Byrd teasing Aunt Leanne about being a year older than she was now. We had quite a crowd sitting with us for the service thanks to a combination of Aunt Leanne's birthday; our weekend guests and significant other; and the fact that this was going to be Grandma and Grandpa's last Sunday at home until Thanksgiving.

Dawn and Jillian took turns holding Ethan and Ehlana until they went to Sunday School with Rowen, Violet, Dillon, and me. Pastor Martha kept the service to just over an hour, and then we were set free to enjoy one last afternoon blast of fun at the park. We all needed to go home and get changed first, and then Violet and Dillon went over to the park with Dawn, Jillian, Rowen, and I while Mom and Dad took care of nursing Ethan and Ehlana before meeting up with Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam; and joining us for lunch.

There were more shows to watch, including a showcase of the talent show winners; we played a few more games that Grandma and Grandpa joined us for; and had time to go on all of our favorite rides at least one or two more times before we needed to go home again and get ready for the early buffet birthday dinner. Dillon had needed to go over to the Inn then to work the buffet shift; which probably explained why he and Violet had disappeared for a while before she met up with us at home again. She, Dawn, and Jillian also packed their bags and loaded her car before we went to the Inn. They planned on leaving for Woodvale right after dinner.

We still had a couple of hours to spend together, though, and even though Violet was already feeling down about having to leave Dillon again; Aunt Leanne managed to cheer her up, and entertain all of us as she let her inner kid out to play and enjoy her special day. Uncle Adam wasn't going to be able to take extra vacation weeks for a while, so Aunt Leanne didn't get any airline tickets to Arizona this year, but she did love the new clothes, jewelry, and toys that she was given. Miranda had a large birthday cake that she told us needed to be that big to hold all of the candles; but was really so she could offer it as a dessert option to about a third of her first-buffet customers. Dawn and I helped Aunt Leanne with the candles, and hopefully her wish will come true.

It was time to say goodbye to Violet, Dawn, and Jillian far too soon, but they needed to get on the road, and we needed to make room for the incoming customers for the second buffet sitting. Dillon could only take a break for a few minutes, and came outside with us so that he could share a sweet, tearful goodbye with Violet. We all waited to see Violet, Dawn, and Jillian on their way, and then there were more hugs and kisses as Dillon went back to work, and the rest of us got ready to head back to our respective homes.

Rowen came home with us, but only stayed long enough to pick up her bag before going on to her place and plans for some quality bubble bath time. Dad had some work to do before leaving for Crystal Springs in the morning, so I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana. That included some play and chat time; a Magi lesson; and their nine o'clock feeding before they decided to have a nap. Mom took that opportunity to visit her Jacuzzi for a while, and I've been in the office with Dad; taking care of a bit of family business work, catching up on email and the weekend entertainment highlights, and now, writing this journal entry.

My Jacuzzi is calling to me, and we'll all be up early to see Dad off to the city; so it's time to put a wrap on another great day and weekend. We may be in for a bit of a break from the non-stop fun; but the Halloween action around town will be starting in less than two weeks, and Witch Falls is definitely the place to be for Halloween!

Monday, October 17, 2011

Starting our day out this morning by saying goodbye to Dad wasn't much fun, but Mom and I did like the cuddle time in her bed with Ethan and Ehlana after he was on the road for the hour or so we had until it was time for their morning feeding. I helped Mom with that shortly after six, and then we all went upstairs, and the twins watched Mom and I exercise before we split up so that Mom and I could each get ready for the day. I took Ehlana with me for that, and we had fun chatting with Mandy while I got cleaned up and dressed; and then we met up with Mom and Ethan in the kitchen for breakfast.

School was a bit boring – especially compared to our Festival day on Friday. Rowen and I found out during afternoon recess that Jenny had handed out her birthday party invitations today, and we weren't on the guest list this year. The sad part of that was the confirmation that we have definitely been left behind by Jenny and Rebecca, while the good news is that she's having a girls and boys party; and we won't have to be there to watch our friends moon over boys or put up with a bunch of goofy-acting pre-teen guys.

It's been kind of a blah weather day too, so after school, Rowen came home with me; we got our homework out of the way; and then played in the lounge with Ethan, Ehlana, and Mandy until dinnertime. Mom and I had our dinner after she nursed the twins, and by the time we'd finished cleaning the kitchen; Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne had joined us, and it was time for another Magi Healing lesson. We all went into the living room for that, and while Mom worked with Uncle Adam and me; Aunt Leanne watched Ethan and Ehlana play on their iPads and she worked on her computer too.

Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne stayed for the bedtime snack and story that we included Dad for through the Telepathic link that Mom let me make with him while she was busy nursing Ethan and Ehlana again. By ten-thirty, Mom and I were on our own with the twins again, and we've been working in the office while they've napped. For me, that's meant taking care of a few family business issues; checking email; doing my entertainment check; and finishing up with this journal entry.

Ehlana's taking a turn with the 'we're awake and hungry' call. It's twenty after twelve, and doesn't feel at all like we've been working for nearly two hours. We won't get much sleep tonight, but starting and ending the day with some quality cuddling time with Ethan and Ehlana more than makes up for the long, busy hours.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Ethan and Ehlana really are helping out by skipping the three o'clock feeding, but tonight, they were also fired up and ready to party during their midnight nursing and chat session; and it was nearly one-thirty before they were finally ready to go to sleep again.

Mandy and I are in bed now, and with just over four hours to go until my adorable brother and sister will be up and ready to roll again; I'm going with the condensed daily report, and skipping the nightly entertainment and email check. It was another quiet day at school, and I worked on the family business after school while Alicia was here to help Mom. She stayed until nearly seven-thirty; and after she went home, Mom and I worked with Ethan and Ehlana on non-Magi lessons until their nine o'clock feeding. They had a nap after that, and Mom did my Magi lesson before we both worked on the family business until Ethan and Ehlana woke up again shortly before midnight.

That's all for tonight – time to get on with my little nap before it'll be time to get up and going again.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

We mostly had a play day today. The dreary and cold Fall weather may have been a perfect setting for the mid-week day that so many think of as the longest of the week; but it has seemed to fly past for me, and even our classes today were mostly fun.

There isn't any particularly exciting news to report today. Rowen and I came home after school, and since it wasn't very warm outside, after doing our homework, we played with Ethan, Ehlana, and Mandy in the lounge. I've been thinking about Rebecca and Jenny a lot this week, – probably because of Jenny's birthday on Monday – and while I do really miss hanging out with them, it is more fun for Ethan and Ehlana to just have Rowen here with us so that they don't have to pretend that they can't talk already; and we can use our Telepathy, and play and do things that we couldn't if other kids were here too.

Mom probably doesn't think that showing Ethan and Ehlana how to play video games by using our Telekinesis on the controllers should become part of the standard Magi training; but we did have a blast, and it is a cool way to practice both power control while doing several things at once. Dad thought it was hilarious when Ethan and Ehlana told him about it when we linked up with him for a Telepathic bedtime story while the twins had their nine o'clock feeding – especially when he found out that Ethan won two of the matches.

Rowen stayed for dinner with us, and then helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana's feeding while I cleaned the kitchen. She stayed for our Magi lesson, and then went home for the night. Mom and I mostly played with Ethan and Ehlana through until we put them in their cribs at twelve-thirty. That included some iPad reading time; the Telepathic chat and story with Dad; and some quiet cuddle time in the living room that included some music appreciation and related questions and answers.

It's now heading toward one o'clock, and I'm definitely feeling tired. The email check didn't take long, but I've decided to risk damaging my school rep by skipping most of my usual entertainment review. If it wasn't for the fact that everyone knows I have the lounge, and Dad's working in the city; I might have been able to get away with claiming ignorance because of the baseball playoffs. I haven't paid any attention to it, but tonight was game one of the World Series. The boys may even be impressed that I know that the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Texas Rangers three-to-two – not that I'm at all, even remotely, interested in impressing them. Now that I think about it; that is probably why Dad seemed a bit distracted tonight. He was probably working and watching the game while talking with us.

Anyway, it's time to get some sleep. Tomorrow – today – is going to be another long one, and we have a lot going on over the next few days – like game night; dinner and a movie on Friday; the start of Grandma and Grandpa's trip to South America; and another Fall cleanup day on Saturday.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

I haven't really written much about world issues in my journal, though I do keep up with what's going on. Since making the changes to how we run our family business over the past year, Mom and I have both talked about how great our companies and charities are doing; which I was thinking might seem strange to future readers if they compared our comments to the global news of the past few years.

Our family business isn't immune to the effects of the ongoing financial crisis; but we're also a diverse, private company that doesn't have many of the issues that other corporations do; and our goals are also very different. Having Aunt Leanne, Miranda, and I to help Mom now has actually allowed us to take advantage of the downturn in the economy; and also, more importantly, help more people when they really need it most.

That doesn't change the fact that there are immense problems in the world, or that hundreds of millions of people are suffering. Ethan, Ehlana, and I now know a fair bit about our future; but even we don't try to see everything. The point I want to make with this line of thought is that even though the top news stories always seem to be about the bad things going on everywhere, there are bright spots; and our family business is one of the brightest – even if we're also anonymous and unknown.

I was thinking about this today because of a problem I helped resolve with one of my companies that was about to lose a major supplier that was going out of business. It took a bit of high-powered Magi time, and that supplier's owners had made a real mess of things; but as they say in the commercials – I was so impressed with the product; I bought the company. Problem soon to be solved, and the added bonus of keeping a few thousand people working too!

Game night at the Inn might not be news by comparison, but Rowen and I had a lot of fun – partly because we had a few less boys there than usual while they were busy elsewhere watching game two of the World Series (the Rangers won two-to-one to even the Series at one game each). Miranda was going to recruit Mom for her team while Dad was away, but Uncle Adam had to go play at the office with Luke and Ashley Spencer; who were about to become first-time parents of a future classmate for Ethan and Ehlana. They're cousins of Jared's, and their family has a large dairy farm. Miranda wasn't too happy when Mom and Aunt Leanne won the Senior Championship for the night! As of my last email check; Ashley was still in labor, and Uncle Adam had a waiting room full of family there for support.

Ethan and Ehlana were ready for a nap after getting home for the Inn, so Mom and I worked in the office while we could until it was time for the midnight feeding. Mandy and I came up to bed as soon as my adorable brother and sister were in their cribs; and I'm about ready to snuggle in with her and get some sleep. While there isn't any news about the impending increase of one to the Ridge River population, there was some email news around the family.

I'd hoped that Violet might come home for the Witch Falls Haunted Halloween Walk, but she advised me that Dillon was working all weekend because of the extra business they'd have at the Inn; so she wasn't going to make the drive and not really be able to see him at all. They are going to meet up in Crystal Springs the Saturday after Halloween, and that three weeks between seeing each other will be the longest they've been apart since April or May. My cousins, including the Johnson family kids, are all getting excited about Halloween, and I had several email telling me about costume choices; reminding me that Rowen and I really need to get on with picking ours fairly soon. I'm not getting any specific news from Grace or Mark; but Jaimie and Kaitlyn have advised me that their Aunt has been especially happy every time they've seen her since her weekend away.

It's not surprising that Uncle Adam has some very bright cousins; and the college students in that group are all doing very well. When we really get going on studying the whole Magi-Latent phenomena as it applies to talents; his family might prove to be a very good sample group to work with – especially since they have a great mix of Magi, Latents, and normal people; and four generations.

That's definitely something I'm too tired to work on now, but with Thanksgiving and Christmas coming up, it is something to consider doing anytime Uncle Adam's family is home for visits. I'll talk to him about it the next time we're working on our Magi project. For now, it's time for some sleep. It's Friday, and along with Dad coming home tonight; we've got a special dinner and a movie night with Grandma and Grandpa joining us before the leave on Saturday morning. I still think it would be amazing to go with them, but I guess we'll manage to have fun around here while they're gone too.

Friday, October 21, 2011

Paige Spencer's birth was the top news story around town today, and Ethan and Ehlana were particularly excited about the arrival of another future classmate and friend. The only direct impact of her arrival for our family was that her doctor was exhausted by the time he got to our house for dinner, and he fell asleep about five minutes after we started the movie part of our dinner and a movie night.

Before we got to that, Rowen and I had a busy school day, and then we got our homework out of the way before taking Ethan and Ehlana out for a walk and to play at the park. The nice weather had brought out the boys to play football, and a group of girls that included Rebecca and Jenny that had gathered to watch the often-unsuccessful attempts to impress them. We stayed away from that end of the park, and though there were boys goofing off at the playground too, one of the advantages of having Ethan and Ehlana with us was that Rowen and I were never pestered by the boys when they were around.

Rowen wasn't doing dinner and movie with us this week, so after leaving the park, Ethan, Ehlana, and I walked with her to the computer store before going home. Grandma and Grandpa were already there, and took custody of the twins while I went upstairs to get cleaned up and changed. Aunt Leanne was home by the time I'd done that, but Uncle Adam was running late while helping the Spencers get ready to take their new baby home and dealing with the usual Friday afternoon walk-ins. Mom ended up needing to keep dinner warm until he could join us.

I'm as excited for Grandma and Grandpa as they are about their trip, but I'll miss them a lot too. Our dinner conversation was both vocal and telepathic so that Ethan and Ehlana could talk with us more easily than they can with their still-developing voices. They wanted to know all about Paige Spencer from Uncle Adam first, but the rest of the conversation centered on Grandma and Grandpa's trip. There wasn't really anything that we didn't already know about their travel plans, but they wanted to talk mostly with Mom and Aunt Leanne about the family business side of the trip; and Mom and I were both able to tell them a lot about the places they'd picked to visit on the days they had set aside for sightseeing.

As I mentioned above, Uncle Adam fell asleep shortly after we moved into the living room and started the movie; and he didn't wake up when Dad got home from Crystal Springs. Aunt Leanne stayed cuddled with her sleeping husband, and Grandma and Grandpa had Ethan and Ehlana with them, so while we paused the movie; only Mom and I went outside to welcome Dad and help bring in his work cases and luggage. That didn't take long, and when we went back to watching the movie; Mom and Dad had a sofa full of kids to cuddle with when Ethan, Ehlana, and I all joined them.

Grandma and Grandpa were going to be leaving for the airport fairly early in the morning, but they still stayed until it was time for Ethan and Ehlana's midnight feeding; mostly so they could spend the extra time with Dad. I took advantage of that, and cuddled with one or both of them while they sat and talked with Mom, Dad, and Aunt Leanne. Uncle Adam got his wakeup call to go home to bed then too; and there was a long round of goodbye hugs and kisses before any of us were ready to say goodbye to the ones we wouldn't see for the next month.

Dad was wiped out by then too; so Mom and I sent him to bed, and I helped her with Ethan and Ehlana. We had them asleep and in their cribs by one o'clock, and I've been sitting in bed and working on my computer since then; too fired up to sleep yet. I know we've got a long, busy Fall cleanup day just hours away, but I wanted to do a fairly thorough check of what the Hathornes were doing; and hopefully make sure that they wouldn't be making any trouble for Grandma and Grandpa while they were away. I didn't find anything to worry about; but there was some news about Gwyneth.

It wasn't being publicized, but she now had a full-time tutor on the payroll, and the first report the woman had submitted advised Gawain and Kellie that their amazing daughter was an off-the-charts brilliant child prodigy. I wasn't surprised about that, but it does make me wonder about what kind of public identity Gwyneth is going to have. There is no way that Ethan, Ehlana, or I would ever want the kind of attention that being a child prodigy would bring, and considering how well-known the Hathornes likely are among the Dark Magi; it could even be more dangerous for Gwyneth to do that than it would be for us.

There wasn't anything else specific going on around Hathorne Industries; though Kellie and Gawain have both been making some changes. None of those changes have been for the good – they're just doing some really bad things differently than Corwyn did. If my little gift for Gawain has had any effect on him at all, it is not showing up in how he runs the Centre or treats his people. Hopefully, that will change some day.

For now, I'll just be grateful that the Hathornes are leaving us alone; and now that it's past two – going on three! – it's definitely time to get on with the few hours of nap time I have left tonight. I'll need to help out more with the yard work today, but since I get to do the Halloween decorating too; it will still be a fun day.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Our house looks awesome!

Dad surprised me with some new Halloween decorations that he picked up while in Crystal Springs; the best one being a skeleton with glowing eyes.

The yard work came first, and I worked hard all day, but we did manage to have fun while we worked; and the two hours of decorating was definitely the most exciting. For the next week and change, we have a spooky graveyard in the front yard that has gloved hands or boots coming out of some of the graves among other props. The new skeleton went on the front porch next to the stairs, and it looks really creepy at night with the eyes glowing in the dark. There are giant bats and spiders, and a Witch that I made with old clothes and stuffed with leaves. She's hanging out in a lawn chair at the bottom of the stairs, and will have a few things to say and laugh about with the kids on Halloween night; thanks to a little motion-activated technology. Dad helped me with setting up a few spotlights, and he took care of the pair of ghosts on the porch roof too.

We didn't finish working until it was nearly dark out, and had a late, easy-work dinner. Rowen came over to hang out with me for a couple of hours, and we mostly talked Halloween and about what we were going to do for our costumes. It sometimes amazes me the peer pressure that we have to deal with for things like Halloween. A costume faux pas can haunt you for the rest of your life – especially in a small town like ours! Our bandit costumes last year worked, but Rowen advised me that recycling them for this year wouldn't be a good idea.

I loved her suggestion to do something with Ethan and Ehlana; and after talking that over with them, and Mom and Dad, we decided to go as twin baby ventriloquists with their walking, talking kid 'dummies' carrying them around. Ethan and Ehlana want to actually do their own talking, but Mom and Dad want to see if we can work out a way to pull that off or not first before giving us permission to do it. Option two wouldn't be as much fun, but Rowen and I could pull off the act too. The only other condition for our plan is that we need permission to take the twins to school with us for the Halloween party. I'm sure that won't be a problem; since everyone in town loves my brother and sister.

Rowen stayed until a bit after ten, and then I spent a little quality time with my Jacuzzi that I really needed for more than one reason after working all day. I've been in bed, playing and working on my computer for over an hour now, and as I'm writing this, I wonder what a non-Magi would think about a Magi of the Light being so excited over Halloween. The first thing I would say in answer to that is to point out that Halloween is now just a time to have fun and enjoy life with your family, friends, and neighbors. As a Magi Master, I can assure you that God has a sense of humor, and if you doubt me; just spend a day hanging around a group of Grade Six boys – you'll be convinced (and fairly annoyed too).

I wouldn't be able to add this, but Magi Masters do know the truth behind all of the legends, and the archives include extensive studies that Mom didn't even need to push me to read as she did with the less entertaining study materials. Some of those tails – I mean tales – are as awful as the Witch hunts were for the Magi of the Light; and just as wrong. What's important to the issue of Halloween, though, is that it is absolutely okay to go out and have fun.

Right now, my idea of fun is a few hours of sleep. Mom and Dad both have work to do on Sunday afternoon, but Rowen and I are going to have a play day; work on our costumes and act; and help out with Ethan and Ehlana. We'll need the break – the last week of October is shaping up to be one of those great ones.

P.S. Grandma and Grandpa are in Peru, and their trip went smoothly. I kept an eye on my link with them all day; which I'll probably be doing for a long time for everyone that I can do that with when they're away on trips. They'll be sightseeing for their first day in Peru, but we're going to try a link with them sometime after dinner. That should make for a fun telepathic story time for all of us.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

The weather really cooperated, and Rowen and I had a warm, sunny, and beautiful play day. Even though I've only been getting a handful of hours of sleep each night for the last week, I was as fired up as usual when I met up with Mom to help with Ethan and Ehlana with their morning feeding before we all went upstairs with Dad for Tai Chi. We went with a light breakfast, and took turns getting ready for church around the cleanup and taking care of the twins before walking over to the church with Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne.

Rowen and I sat with her family until we went to Sunday School, and after church, we had lunch at her house before picking up Ethan and Ehlana and taking them for a walk to the park. I'm not a football fan, but there is one thing that I like a lot about the sport – it directly affects the number of boys at the park on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. That's not one hundred percent effective, but it's also usually the rowdier guys that are also the biggest football fans. Two of the guys in our class figured out that they can watch and listen to the games on their iPods while playing at the park; thanks to the town WiFi network. Since that isn't quite the same as watching games on big screen televisions, though, I don't expect the idea to catch on.

We walked the path around the park with Ethan and Ehlana; played on the swings, slides, and fort at the playground; and wrapped up our visit to the park in time to have them home for their mid-afternoon feeding. Rowen and I went back out to play after that while Ethan and Ehlana had a nap, but we were home again in time to do a bit of work on our ventriloquist act with them until dinnertime.

My no-work, play day plan mostly worked out until I went to bed after spending the evening doing a lesson with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana; the bedtime snack and story that Dad joined us for; and another Jacuzzi session that I needed after a play afternoon at the park nearly as much as I'd needed one last night after doing yard work all day. After climbing into bed with Mandy, though, I started with my usual email and entertainment checks; and got caught up in a couple of hours of family business work. While doing that, I also watched the first episode of Once Upon a Time. I don't really watch all that much television, especially on my own, but the new series is a cool twist on fairy tales; and I definitely have the early symptoms of being hooked on the show.

Since the work and show watching has led to another late night, and I hear Mom and Dad wrapping up the midnight feeding with Ethan and Ehlana; it's definitely time to pack up and get some rest. Just seven more sleeps to Halloween!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Happy twelfth birthday, Jenny!

While Rowen and I weren't going to Jenny's party, we did have a joint present that we gave her this morning before classes started. That was a bit awkward for all three of us, but I'm sure that she'll love her first co-ed party, and we really are glad to not be going.

With party central at Jenny's house after school, the park was a bit emptier than usual; mostly because there weren't enough guys available for the usual pre-teen football scrimmage. Rowen and I split our after-school time between doing our homework; playing at the park; and working on our Halloween costumes and act. Mrs. Warren is going to let us know tomorrow whether we have principal approval for our request to bring Ethan and Ehlana along for the class Halloween party; but she didn't expect it to be a problem, and thought we'd picked an awesome costume idea.

As usual after his week in the city, Dad had lots of homework, so we did a light dinner, and then he went to work in the office while Mom and I cleaned up and took care of Ethan and Ehlana. Aunt Leanne took over watching the twins when she and Uncle Adam came over, and he, Mom, and I spent a couple of hours on a Healing lesson that included another guest Magi patient in need of what would have been arthroscopic surgery if our special talents weren't available to her.

That part of the lesson was fun, but the archive reading was a bit boring for me. Uncle Adam didn't need to study the procedure, and Mom taught both of us how to apply our power, and in this case, for me; how to use a phase-shift transmutation to remove the damaged tissue without needing an open incision. Since he can't do that, Mom did show Uncle Adam another way to deal with the tissue; but he's planning on having one of us help him if other cases like this one come up again instead of doing that.

It's been a bit too long since I've managed to have anything even close to eight hours of sleep, so after our lesson; I kissed everyone goodnight and came upstairs to get ready for bed. The email and entertainment checks are done, and it isn't even ten o'clock yet! Mandy's still downstairs hanging out with Ethan and Ehlana. She'll be surprised when she finds me already sleeping, but I've had enough fun for one day; so it's time to shut this computer down and call it a night.

P.S. I almost forgot the Grandparent update! They had meetings all day today; and visiting one of my company's head office was their third stop. They were mostly impressed; but I'll also be working on the suggestions they had for the company after school tomorrow. Their other meetings were with one of our charities; a land management interest; and a mining company. Mom's keeping up with the details of all of that in her archives, though; and I'm definitely going to sleep now before I decide to get a head start on that family business work instead.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Our twin baby ventriloquist Halloween costume/act has been approved for school. Ethan and Ehlana were more excited about that than Rowen and I are when I told them about it after school. They wanted to work on our act, but Rowen was working at the store, and I needed to work on the family business; so I promised them that we'd make time to do that tomorrow.

I had other work to do too, but some of the things that Grandma and Grandpa had suggested to me last night could be done nearly immediately; so I took care of the first steps of making them happen. While some of the proposals were company-centric; a few may be very helpful to some of the other businesses. I'll start working on researching that over the next couple of months if I can find the time with everything else I have going on through until Christmas.

While I was working in the office, Grandma checked in with me; and we exchanged a few messages while she and Grandpa were travelling between meetings. They didn't have anything going on with any of my companies for the rest of the week, but it was fun hearing about what they had been doing; and even with all of the work, they were both having a lot of fun. I am definitely putting South America on my list of places to go when I'm older!

Alicia didn't stay for dinner with us tonight; and Mom decided to go with a late meal after nursing the twins. Alicia helped her with that before going home while I helped Dad to finish the cooking in progress. We were doing a work night after cleaning up from dinner, and I was working on the family business again; but Mom did a lesson with me first, and we had an ongoing chat with Ethan and Ehlana as they used their iPads to do some reading that Mom gave them to work on.

When the twins were ready to be nursed again, I helped Mom with them, and then came upstairs and got ready for bed. I liked getting the extra rest so much last night that I'm going to make it two in a row; and get a few extra hours tonight too. The email and entertainment checks are done; tomorrow's an after-school play day; and we're one day closer to both the weekend and a few days of Halloween adventure. I definitely want to be rested up and ready for all of that fun!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

I've been going through my nightly email and entertainment check since climbing into bed with Mandy, and the biggest story tomorrow will likely be the one-day rain delay for game six of the World Series. The guys will be upset for the obvious reasons, and the girls will want to talk about how the change may affect their television viewing options – either because last night might have been the last game, or if a seventh game is needed on Friday too.

That won't be a problem at my house one way or the other. Rowen and I found out that we're having a large sleepover on Friday night while the parents are going to a Halloween party at Sheldon's Pub. Details are still being finalized, but one of the highlights is a Saturday morning breakfast buffet at the Inn. Rebecca and Jenny are among the confirmed kids; so that will hopefully be fun too.

There isn't any local news to report for today. It rained off and on earlier, but it was nice enough after school for Rowen and I to take the twins for a walk and play at the park for a while. We didn't stay out all that long, since it wasn't all that warm out either; and then we all went up to the lounge to work on our Halloween costumes and act. We need to have an ongoing routine for the school party, and we want to have enough material to take on the trick-or-treating road with us too. Ethan and Ehlana are going to wear matching outfits from their Sunday best wardrobe, though we may need to adapt for Halloween night depending on the weather. Rowen and I are going to dress up as teddy bear dummies. We've recruited help with the furry parts of the costume, and Rowen's Mom is going to do the makeup during lunchtime at school. Going as teddy bears is a bit of a risk for us; but it works great with baby ventriloquists; so I think we'll be okay.

Mom and I worked on teddy bear paws and hoods after dinner; combining that with a Magi lesson that Ethan and Ehlana loved getting to help out with. We all spent a couple of hours in the office with Dad after that, and he was sent to bed early after being caught dozing off in his chair. Ethan and Ehlana partied on through until their midnight feeding, and it was nearly one by the time Mom and I got them into their cribs and off to sleep. Getting some extra rest over the last couple of days made it easier to stay up late tonight; but I'm definitely ready for a nap now – especially now that the weekend is going to be even busier with the addition of the Friday night sleepover. It's a tough job to have so much fun every week; but it's a sacrifice that this little Magi Master is very happy to make!

Thursday, October 27, 2011

The Halloween excitement was growing at school with just two days left until what will almost be like a three-day weekend of fun. While Rowen and I did have fun at school, it was another work day for us too; and I kept busy right through until dinnertime. There's not much to report with my part of the family business; and even Grandma and Grandpa didn't have much to talk about during the little chat I had with them while they were travelling between their afternoon appointments.

During dinner, Mom and Dad had a few updates to pass on for the Friday night sleepover. Ethan and Ehlana were happy to find out that Naomi was on the guest list; and would be staying overnight for the first time. Claire Norton's daughter and younger son, Emma and Benjamin, were going to come to our house straight from school; and Scott and Lindsay Faulkner would be coming over sometime after dinner. Alicia had recruited two friends; and they would be 'supervising' us – Jenny and Rebecca in particular were too old for babysitters.

I wasn't thinking about it last night, but the World Series game delay had a big effect on game night at the Inn. There were a few exceptions – like Dad and Uncle Adam – but it was practically a girls' night out compared to normal while the boys in town were mostly home watching the game. While their boys were doing that, Sarah and Tracey Landry teamed up to win the senior Championship for the week, and even Jacob and Miranda managed a rare top ten finish.

With fewer competitors, we were finished at the Inn a bit earlier than usual, but since I didn't expect to get much work done until after Halloween; I wanted to work in the office for a while after we got home. Mom delayed that plan when she decided that Ethan, Ehlana, and I should do a lesson too for the same reason. We did multi-task, and do that while she nursed the twins, and then they had a nap while we joined Dad in the office for a couple of hours.

He was keeping an eye on the ballgame while working, but sometimes I think he does that for the same reason that I do my entertainment checks. We love playing baseball, or cheer on our friends and family when they play; but watching sports on television just isn't the same. The majority of fans in town seem to be on the Cardinals' bandwagon; so they're going to be happy about the come-from-behind win that tied the series with the Rangers at three wins each. Now that I know we'll have quite a few boys staying over tomorrow night; I'll guess that either my lounge or the sitting room will be baseball central for game seven. That may actually work out by keeping them distracted for most of the night.

We worked until Ethan let us know that he and Ehlana were awake, and then I went up to bed while Mom and Dad took care of them. I was going to write this and get some sleep, but I was checking our Magi project archive, and after reading Uncle Adam's latest entry that had to do with the checkup he did with Hannah Draper and her baby; I ended up spending an hour or so in the archives and thinking about the issue of Magi pre-natal development with a non-Magi mother. Uncle Adam thinks that Naomi and Hannah's baby would make a good case study to compare that, and also the post-natal development of their abilities. Since they are both going to be strong Magi, not to mention how important they'll be to Ethan and Ehlana; I think it's a great idea.

We'll work on that after Halloween. Right now, it's definitely time for a nap. One more school day, and the weekend fun will be here!

Friday, October 28, 2011

Times have definitely changed. Rebecca and Jenny opted to stay in one of the third-floor guest bedrooms instead of staying in the lounge and sleeping on the sectional sofa like they always did before. Emma, Lindsay, and Geraldine Sheldon were happy about that because they decided to camp out in the lounge instead. Geraldine and her brother, Jimmy, had been late additions to the list of campers after Lindsay made the request to have her best friend along, and Jimmy was included so he didn't feel left out.

The sleepover party got started after school when Emma and Benjamin came home with Rowen and me. Mom had a snack waiting for us, and after giving her the daily school update; the four of us took the twins over to the park to play for a while and give Mom a chance to have a break that included some Jacuzzi time to get ready for her date with Dad. We picked Patrick up from the store on the way home, and Rebecca and Jenny joined us there shortly after we got back.

Mom went with the kid-favorite pizza and wings for dinner, and got our Friday night fun off to a great start. Alicia and her friends came over just as we were getting started on the cleanup; and took over watching everyone except Ethan and Ehlana while Dad helped Mom with feeding the twins before handing them off too and going to get ready for their Halloween party. Most of the stores in town were open late on Fridays; but the rest of our guests were dropped off before Mom and Dad were ready to leave for the pub. Naomi was first, followed by Scott and Lindsay Faulkner; Jimmy and Geraldine Sheldon; and finally, Michael and Tim.

The girls outnumbered the guys, so the six boys (not including Ethan) were going to use my lounge for their baseball and video gaming entertainment while the girls and babies had the extra space in the living room for our movie night. They were upstairs and taking turns playing games before Mom and Dad went out, but we waited until after they'd been sent off with a round of hugs and kisses before starting our first movie.

Rebecca and Jenny seemed a bit bored, but we started out with some Halloween cartoons for the younger kids, and then Emma, Lindsay, and Geraldine picked Spooky Buddies for our first feature film. While they were borderline too-cool for little kid shows, Rebecca and Jenny were happy to hang out with Alicia and her friends and help out with Ethan, Ehlana, and Naomi.

Mom had stocked the lounge with the usual snacks and drinks, and Michael, Tim, and the other boys were well on their way to emptying my little fridge and the cupboards when we took a movie break; and Rowen and I helped Alicia get Olde Bakery treats warmed up and take plates upstairs for them. Our sleepover supervisors had checked in on the boys regularly, and I was happy to see that they hadn't totally trashed the room. Watching bakery treats being devoured by a pack of boys was Halloween scary, so we left them to do that and get back to their baseball game.

We watched two more movies in the living room before Alicia and her friends recruited Rebecca and Jenny to help, and started the lengthy process of getting the rest of us ready for bed and off to sleep for most of us. Ethan, Ehlana, and Naomi required one-on-one attention, so while Alicia took care of getting the six boys into the three second-floor guest rooms; Rebecca and Jenny helped with the babies, and Rowen and I had one teen helper to get the lounge cleaned up and ready for Emma, Lindsay, and Geraldine while they used my room to get changed.

Once that was done, and Rowen and I had gotten changed too, we sat in the lounge and talked with the three younger girls for a half hour before they were all either ready to sleep or were already out for the night. Mandy opted to stay cuddled with Emma when we went into my room and got into bed; and Rowen and I have been talking while I've been doing my usual nightly computer check. We can hear the boys still awake and fired up; mostly because the Cardinals won the game and World Series Championship. Naomi and the twins will be sleeping soon, though, so Alicia will likely put an end to that so the boys don't wake them.

We ended up watching another Halloween show on Rowen's computer while I've been working; so we were at least awake, if not prepared when Michael and Tim launched a late-night prank on us. The monster-masked duo did manage to successfully scare Rowen and I, but the boys probably got the worst of the deal when Alicia, Rebecca, and Jenny came to investigate the noises they'd heard from the living room and found Michael and Tim sitting on my bed while gloating over how scared we'd been. All four of us were teased about it, but Michael and Tim made a very hasty, red-faced exit. Rebecca and Jenny had a few more zingers for Rowen and me, but it was also as close as we'd been in months to a best-friends moment; so we were happy to just have fun with them before they went back downstairs to hang out with Alicia and her friends.

It's nearly two, and Mom and Dad probably won't be home for another half hour or more depending on when their party wraps up. Rowen and I are planning on being up in time to help them with Ethan, Ehlana, and Naomi, so I'm going to wrap this up and Rowen's already put her computer away and snuggled under the comforter. Up next on the fun schedule – the Haunted Halloween walk tonight!

Saturday, October 29, 2011

I was wrong about the Haunted Halloween Adventure Walk being next up on the fun schedule. Aiden Draper decided to surprise his parents this morning. That had also caused quite the scene at the Inn because Hannah went into labor about mid-way through the early sitting of the breakfast buffet that she and Nathan had taken a break for while getting ready to open the bakery for one of their busiest days of the year.

We missed out on that action; since Mom and Dad didn't have everyone rounded up and ready to go until a bit after eight, but at least we didn't miss out on the buffet like Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah did. All of our sleepover guests were reunited with their families either during or after breakfast; and then Dad and I went home to the yard work waiting for us there while Mom and Aunt Leanne took care of Ethan and Ehlana.

They all went over to the clinic later in the morning; and Ethan and Ehlana were especially thrilled to be there when Aiden was born; though Mom wouldn't let them talk with him Telepathically like they'd hoped. Only Uncle Adam did that while Mom and Aunt Leanne had taken care of the shielding so that Aunt Deborah and Nathan could concentrate on Hannah and Aiden. We already knew that he was a strong Magi, and though they could have managed without Mom and Aunt Leanne; their help did make the end of a tough delivery much easier for everyone.

We had lunch at one o'clock, and I loved hearing all about Aiden's birth from Ethan and Ehlana; and about all of the help Nathan and Hannah were given by their family and closest friends – especially with keeping the bakery going all day. Since Uncle Adam was going to be busy all day, after lunch I was reassigned to help Aunt Leanne with the yard work around their house for the afternoon.

Giving Hannah a Magi Healing boost wasn't an option like it now was for Magi mothers, so Hannah and Aiden were going to be staying overnight at the clinic; and Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah were taking turns keeping an eye on her with help from Nathan and their families. Aunt Leanne set me free in time for her to get cleaned up and go have dinner with Uncle Adam at the clinic while I went home to get ready to go out with Rowen and her family to the Haunted Halloween Adventure Walk before having dinner with Mom and Dad.

Rowen invited me to stay overnight at her house shortly after dinner, and armed with parental approval, I packed a bag; shared a round of hugs and kisses with Mom, Dad, Ethan, and Ehlana; and walked over to Rowen's house. Mom and Dad had decided to stay home with the twins instead of getting a sitter or taking them out on a fairly cold night. I had fun with the Emersons, but we had a different guide this year; and it was different without Miranda's storytelling flair. Some of the actors were different too, though I'd found out a while ago that the group putting on the skits did have at least a few different members that was mostly due to graduating teens or returning collegians leaving or joining the troupe.

We'd had an early time slot for our walk, and then we'd played some of the charity games and sampled a few Halloween treats before going home again. I wasn't surprised when Patrick had been given approval to have Scott stay overnight too, and while they weren't as successful as Michael and Tim had been last night with their attempts to scare us; they did earn top marks for being annoying by bugging Rowen and I on a regular basis until after midnight.

Other than little brother and sidekick trouble, we've had a good night; watching yet another Halloween movie with Rowen's Mom and Dad before going up to bed and having a nice long chat while surfing the net. The latest update from the clinic was that Hannah and Aiden were both doing well and would be going home sometime before dinner on Sunday. There wasn't much news around the family, other than that Mark was working a double at the hospital due to a big highway accident. Everyone else was probably just busy with their own Halloween weekend entertainment.

Somehow, we've managed to stay up until after one again, but sleeping in later than I usually do on Sunday is an option; so I'll be good to go by morning. Rowen isn't as sure that she will be, but I'll make sure that she is fired up by the time we go downstairs for breakfast; and we do have a comparatively quiet day ahead, so we will be able to rest up for the parties and trick-or-treating on Monday. Hopefully Ethan and Ehlana are getting a bit of extra sleep so they'll be ready for the big day too.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

My plan to sleep in didn't work out when I was awake at the normal time. It wasn't very warm outside, but I dressed accordingly and went outside to work through the Yang long form. Everyone else in the house was still sleeping by the time I was done, so I took my computer down to the kitchen and mostly played on it until Rowen's Mom joined me there.

I helped her with cooking breakfast for six until Mr. Emerson joined us, and then I was sent upstairs to wake Rowen, Patrick, and Scott. Rowen and I got cleaned up and ready for church before having breakfast, and then we took care of the cleanup while everyone else got ready to go out too. Even with the boys slowing us down, we had time to walk to church with a few minutes to spare for a chat with Mom, Dad, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne.

Rowen and I sat with my family until Sunday school. Ethan and Ehlana looked disappointed when they found out that they wouldn't get to meet Aiden today, but I wasn't surprised that Uncle Adam sent Hannah and Aiden straight home this morning. They did get to meet Paige Spencer after church, and though there wasn't much interaction between the three babies; I was interested in watching Ethan's and Ehlana's reactions to their future classmate and friend.

My perspective on the Magi Council's concerns about how Magi and non-Magi kids interact has mostly been shaped by seeing it from both a kid and outsider point of view; and by how great it is to have a best friend that I can share the Magi part of my life with. I'll ask them about it later, but I do see a difference between what I sense when Ethan and Ehlana are around, for example, Naomi than they were today with Paige or some of the other new, non-Magi babies. Since that is mostly just what I'm sensing, I'm not sure what it means; but I do hope that their ability to know who all of the Magi and non-Magi are isn't going to affect their relationships with their peers and neighbors. Knowing what we do about our future might have as much of an affect on that for all three of us, but that's definitely something to spend some time on for the Magi project.

We're not doing any work today, though, and after church, I went home with Rowen to get my bag before we both went to my house for lunch. Mom and Dad both spent some time working in the office, and we put the finishing touches on our ventriloquist act with Ethan and Ehlana until their mid-afternoon feeding. They had a nap after that, and Rowen and I went to the park to play for an hour or so. The Emersons had invited us over for dinner; partly so that the Moms could help us put the last touches on our teddy bear dummies costumes; so we helped with getting Ethan and Ehlana ready to go out, and then walked down to Rowen's house.

I hadn't really thought about it before, but this was the first time since Mom and I moved here that we'd all gotten together at the Emersons for dinner. That was mostly because of their seven day a week jobs during the summer, and our own busy schedules, but I'd been over lots of times, and having Mom, Dad, and the twins there too just made it more fun. Getting out of the post-dinner cleanup was a bonus when Rowen and I were put in charge of Ethan and Ehlana while the parents took care of the work; and then we spent an hour and a half playing with our costumes, including Patrick's; and the pumpkin carving that only three of us were surprised about.

Ethan and Ehlana let us know that it was time to head home shortly before nine o'clock, so after a round of goodbyes; I carried one of our jack-o-lanterns home while the other one rode in the stroller with Ethan and Ehlana. We set them – the pumpkins, not the babies – up on the porch before going inside; and then I helped Mom with the twins while Dad went into the office to finish getting ready for work on Monday. With a midnight feeding still ahead, an early night wasn't an option for all of us, but Ethan and Ehlana were ready for a nap, and I was sent up to bed once they were in their cribs.

My plan was to have a short soak in my Jacuzzi and then get some sleep, and I even started my email and entertainment checks while I was in the bathroom; but that led to watching the new episode of Once Upon a Time, and then I ended up spending more than an hour sifting through the Hathorne Industries' systems. The Hathornes had put on a massive Halloween party on Saturday night, and there was a lot of new information to read up on both from the party and some of the things that had happened since it ended.

The pictures of Gawain, Kellie, and Gwyneth dressed up as an Addams family-like trio were beautiful, and completely at odds with the much darker activities they were involved in. There was a lot of new information, and the flurry of activity on a Sunday said something about how efficiently Gawain and Kellie's managers and employees reacted to directives from on high; but much more about what they were willing to do for money and power. Stopping them isn't an option right now, but I wish we could; and it's tough to read about the lives they destroy without a thought; the factories staffed with child or near-slave laborers; the unbelievable damage they do to the environment in countries all over the world; or any of the other horrors they're responsible for.

Reading about all of that on the eve of one of the dark power days has been sobering, but it also reminds me of why we're doing everything with our family business and charities; and at least Ethan, Ehlana, and I know that the Hathornes' – and all Dark Magi – era of power is coming to an end. Mom's told me before that she doesn't like knowing about things that she can't change, but for me; knowing everything about the Hathornes strengthens my resolve to do everything I know I'll have to do to stop them.

Being ready to do that is still a comparatively long way away – at least it is for a ten-year old. Ehlana just gave Mom and Dad her 'I'm awake' call; it's after midnight; and way past time that I should've been sleeping. I'm going to get on with that, and worry about saving the world from the Dark Magi another day. For this Halloween, I'll just concentrate on bringing a little bit of Light and happiness to our family, neighbors, and friends.

P.S. I've skipped the Grandparents updates for two days now. They had a sightseeing weekend, and moved from Peru to Chile today. They'll be spending the first few days in and around Santiago, and then spend the last few days in Southern Chile before moving on to Argentina. Hopefully their second week will be as successful as their first!

Monday, October 31, 2011

The world's only twin baby ventriloquists and their teddy bears were a big hit both at school and everywhere we went trick-or-treating tonight!

We didn't get much actual work done during morning classes, but I'm sure our teachers expected that. Lunchtime was a whirlwind of action as nearly all of the kids and teens got dressed up and ready for the Halloween parties. Rowen and I had Mom support to help with our costumes and makeup; and they came over to the school after Patricia helped Mom with the noon nursing, and they'd gotten Ethan and Ehlana dressed and ready to go.

Ethan and Ehlana were disappointed that Mom and Dad wouldn't let them do their own end of the ventriloquist act in public, but we still had fun at our class party, and we won the best costume contest for our grade. Mom was staying for the afternoon; watched the twins while Rowen and I went with our class to the Haunted House in the gym; and took care of diaper changes that would have been tough to do with furry teddy bear paws.

After a few hours of scary good – or at least mildly spooky – fun it was time to go home. The twins were ready for a nap, and Rowen and I definitely didn't need a snack, so while they rested, we got out of our costumes and went to play at the park for a while. Rowen stayed with me for an early, light dinner, and then we got back into teddy bear mode and took our adorable little ventriloquists out trick-or-treating. Aunt Leanne took pictures and a short video of our act to send to Grandma and Grandpa, and Rowen's Dad took more pictures when we stopped in to see them. We had the double stroller with us so we could get to some of the houses we wanted to visit on the other side of town without carrying Ethan and Ehlana all of the time. That worked out great for carrying our Halloween candy, but Rowen and I still needed to carry Ethan and Ehlana a lot; and we were ready to head home a lot earlier than we did last year.

Mom and Dad were happy about that, and while we weren't going door-to-door anymore; Rowen stayed with us and we continued our little twin baby ventriloquist act while handing out treats to other kids and teens until Ethan and Ehlana were ready to go inside so Mom could nurse them. Rowen went home them too, and after helping Mom get set up in the living room; I stayed outside with Dad until the last few roving trick-or-treaters had finished their work on our street for another year.

Dad took over watching the twins after we went inside too while Mom helped me with getting all of the teddy bear makeup off before I hopped into my Jacuzzi to finish cleaning up. We had a blast, but even going with just teddy bear hoods and paws was very hot, and my hair was a tangled, sweaty mess. It was nearly ten-thirty by the time I was ready to rejoin everyone else in the office where Mom and Dad were working and Ethan and Ehlana were busy playing on their iPads.

We all stayed up until it was time to nurse the baby ventriloquists, and then we all moved up to Ehlana's room to do that and have a little bedtime chat. It's nearly one o'clock, and Mandy and I are in bed, but I finished my nightly email and entertainment checks earlier; so once I'm finished with this, I'm going to get some sleep. Halloween is officially over; and November is just getting started. I'd say that the fun is over for a while – at least until Thanksgiving – but there always seems to be something new and exciting going on in this supposedly sleepy little town of ours!

November 2011

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

It's been an absolutely gorgeous day – so nice that Rowen and I switched work days so we could be outside to enjoy a little near-summer weather to start November with.

We had another classmate turn eleven today, but Paul was having an all-boys party, so the only incidental effect it had on Rowen and I was that there were less guys at the park to get in the way of our playtime fun. We did get him a card and little gift – left on his desk anonymously to protect his reputation, of course – and he did seem to be having a happy day; but boys somehow manage to be especially annoying when they get together in party gangs.

Rowen and I took Ethan and Ehlana with us to the park, and that gave Mom and Alicia bonus time to get a little extra work done around the house while we were gone. Rebecca and Jenny were at the park too, and though they were busy boy watching with a bunch of the other Grade Seven and Eight girls on the bleachers next to the football field; we stopped by to visit for a while. Ethan and Ehlana always ended up getting passed around for a little cuddle time, but they were giving me the signals to let me know they'd had enough of the pre-teen goofiness after about fifteen minutes, so we moved on to the playground to take them on the swings.

The barbeque was fired up, and Dad was busy cooking burgers and chicken by the time we got home. Rowen was added to the dinner guest list, and we found out that Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne would be coming too. All three of those invitations had mostly been done so that Mom and Rowen's Grandmother could do a group Magi lesson after dinner.

They actually wanted to do several lessons. For the first one, Granma Emerson was the patient that Uncle Adam and I worked on for our Healing lesson. Aunt Leanne and Rowen joined us for a really fun Telekinesis lesson that was mostly for Rowen; but needed to be practiced in a group. Ethan and Ehlana watched both of those lessons, and then they were included in the group Telepathy lesson that we linked up with Grandma and Grandpa for; and included a long-distance bedtime story from Grandpa.

That chat had lasted for more than an hour, and since I'd held the link; by the time we were done, I was ready to go up to bed. Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Rowen, and her Grandmother all left then, while Mom and Dad took Ethan and Ehlana upstairs for their evening feeding, and Mandy and I came up to our room. I was going to do my email and entertainment check, but getting this done is about all I have the energy for. I guess the string of late nights has finally caught up with me. The boys will all be talking about Paul's party tomorrow anyway, so I'll survive not being up-to-date on the latest news. Rowen and I have a couple of long work days ahead, but taking today off was definitely worth the trade.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Time for another short journal entry.

It rained; we had a typical mid-week school day; it rained some more; I worked in the office on the family business after school through until now, except for a dinner break. Mom and Dad worked in the office with me, and Ethan and Ehlana split their time between a little iPad study and play time and a nap after their nine o'clock feeding.

Dad and I sent Mom up to bed an hour ago, and we're doing the midnight feeding. It's nearly time for that, so I'm wrapping up with this before Ethan or Ehlana wake up instead of doing it later. And as I type that, it's Ehlana with the call to action tonight. I'll catch up on the few business and family details tomorrow.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah have had a few busy weeks on the baby front, and they both missed game night at the Inn while taking care of Caroline Carter and her Mom, Ellen. Ethan and Ehlana's newest future friend and classmate was born shortly before six o'clock, after a day-long labor.

Caroline's birth was definitely the top news story around town all day; and the Byrd and Carter families in particular were very excited about the new addition to their collective families. I wasn't involved at all with the medical action today, but I did read the report Uncle Adam added to our Magi project archive; and the Carters are going to be another interesting family for us to study.

Ellen Carter is one of Eleanor Byrd's granddaughters. She and her three-year old son, William, are both Magi. Her husband, Chris, is a latent non-Magi, and at the low end of the range. Caroline is latent too; but at the high end. Neither Uncle Adam nor I have any idea why William is a Magi while his new baby sister isn't, but hopefully, some day, we will.

While Uncle Adam was busy at the clinic, I had a good day at school, and then went home to work in the office again while Rowen was busy at the computer store. There will likely be the occasional issue come up between now and Christmas, but over the last two days I have finished all of the holiday projects for my end of the family business; including some very cool new programs that will make a big difference for quite a few of our charities.

Miranda claimed Aunt Leanne for her game night partner; and they went on to win the senior Championship for the week. Rowen and I didn't even make the top ten for the juniors, but we had Ethan and Ehlana with us for most of the evening while Mom and Dad tried to give Miranda and Aunt Leanne some competition; and we did all have a lot of fun.

Dad had a bit of work to do in the office after we got home, so I helped Mom with the twins until we put them down for a nap in their cribs. I opted for some Jacuzzi time after that, and have been doing my usual nightly computer routine since getting into bed. It's after eleven now, and I thought about staying up to wish Dad a happy birthday after midnight; but I have a feeling that Mom has other plans for him after they finish the midnight feeding with Ethan and Ehlana that I definitely don't need or want to know about. In fact, I'm suddenly feeling very, very sleepy; and I really should get a bit of extra rest so I'll be ready for the birthday dinner and a movie party tomorrow night.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Happy thirty-third birthday, Daddy!

Ethan, Ehlana, and I gave Dad his birthday wake-up call in bed, and while I'm sure that he loved all of the presents he was given today; his favorite – and Mom's – was the no-more-midnight-feedings gift from the twins. They'll adjust the times when needed, but the rough sleep schedule will now be from ten until six. If they're like I was as a baby, Ethan and Ehlana won't need more than eight hours a night from now on. I'm sure they'll have lots of nights when they don't even need eight hours – I've been there, and tried my best not to wake Mom up whenever I was too wired to sleep. At least they'll have their iPads to play with when that happens to them. The best I could do back when I was their age was to have Mom leave a few books in my crib, and it wasn't particularly easy to flip pages or move them around when I was four or five months old without using my Telekinesis.

That got a bit off-topic - back to the birthday story.

Dad opened the presents that Mom, Ethan, Ehlana, and I had for him, and then we all got on with a fairly normal weekday morning routine. While I was stuck at school, Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana took Dad out for lunch at the Inn with Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, and some of their friends. Rowen came home with me after school, and we helped Mom with the twins, and with getting everything ready for Dad's birthday dinner and a movie party. Aunt Leanne had a couple of weekend rental moves; so she wasn't able to escape from the office early; but she and Dad were home for more than an hour before Uncle Adam, Aunt Deborah, and Nick could join us after a busier-than-usual Friday afternoon rush at the clinic was finished.

Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah had been talking about adding new clinic hours pretty much since taking over from their Grandparents, but now that it looked like they were about to get into the tougher part of their work year; they finally made the decision to put those new hours in place after talking it over during dinner. They picked Wednesday for their new evening hours; and the first Saturday of every month for morning hours that they only expected to need from November through to April or May.

The rest of the dinner conversation was mostly a birthday roast for Dad, and Aunt Leanne was happy to lead that effort. Mom, Dad, and the twins were given get-out-of-cleanup passes and sent into the living room while the rest of us took care of the post-dinner work. Dad picked an action flick for our movie; and we all enjoyed a couple of hours of brainless, fight and blow-stuff-up entertainment. It was time to nurse the twins again after the movie, and Mom had Aunt Leanne and Aunt Deborah to help her with that while Uncle Adam, Nick, Rowen, and I handled the living room cleanup and got our bedtime snacks ready.

Ethan and Ehlana were in their sleepers when they joined us again; and we did the snack and story time in the living room before saying goodnight to our guests and seeing them out. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne walked Rowen home, and I was probably changed and in bed before she'd even started giving her Mom and Dad the birthday party recap. Since Mom and Dad are getting to skip their first midnight feeding tonight, I strongly suspected that they were going to end Dad's birthday the way they'd started it less than twenty-four hours ago; and that was all the motivation I needed to opt for the comparatively early bedtime.

Tomorrow is going to be another long Fall cleanup day, so the extra sleep will help with that. Too bad I couldn't spend the weekend with Grandma and Grandpa. They have the weekend off for sightseeing and the move from Chile to Argentina. It's hard to believe that their trip is nearly half over already, but I've missed them a lot too, and can hardly wait for them to get home again in just over two weeks.

There wasn't anything newsworthy in my email tonight, and it was a light entertainment news night too. Mandy's telling me to get the extra sleep while we can, so it's time to wrap this up and do as I'm told. Sometimes, like when Mandy is mothering me, being able to do my own wards so we can talk Telepathically isn't as great as I thought it would be!

Saturday, November 5, 2011

We worked around the house and yard all day; had a few short breaks for meals; I spent some quality clean-up time in my Jacuzzi after dinner; and once I finish writing this sentence, I'm going to sleep.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

My batteries were fully recharged by this morning, and I feel great! It's amazing what nine solid hours of being unconscious can do for you.

Ethan and Ehlana were fired up this morning, and got to meet Aiden Draper and Caroline Carter this morning after church. None of us had much time with either baby; since nearly everyone in town wanted to welcome the two newest members of our town and congratulate their families. While the twins might not be any more excited about some of the things we see in our future; Ehlana seemed quite happy with her first impressions of Aiden – and with his cuteness factor – when we talked about him after getting home again.

Rowen and I were having a play afternoon with the exception of doing a bit of homework; and I went over to her house to do that before we went out to play. It wasn't all that warm outside, so we only stayed at the park for a bit over an hour before deciding to hang out in the lounge and watch a movie for the rest of the afternoon. We ended up having Ethan, Ehlana, and Mandy to cuddle and chat with for that while Mom and Dad took advantage of the break to get their work done in the office.

Rowen went home in time for dinner, and with the work out of the way; Mom and Dad spent the evening with Ethan, Ehlana, and me. Mom did a long lesson with me while Dad did a separate lesson with the twins; and then we watched television for a while before moving on to the new, early bedtime routine. Everyone else is in bed, and probably asleep by now; but I've been busy playing on my computer since getting into bed with Mandy.

I didn't even look at my email last night, so I had some catching up to do. Violet had sent me a recap of her Saturday in Crystal Springs with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie; and I had new mail updates from nearly everyone I kept in touch with – including Grandma and Grandpa; Grace and Mark (I'm counting them as a pair even if they aren't); Dawn; and Jamie and Kaitlyn. Violet's email was the most entertaining, but the most interesting notes were from Grace and Mark. They're not telling me anything specific, but they are definitely up to something. It's not time to start nudging them toward their future yet, so whatever they're up to; I hope it isn't anything that will make that harder for us to do.

After catching up on the email, I watched Once Upon a Time while also doing a weekend entertainment check. There wasn't anything pressing for my end of the family business, so once I get this journal entry done; I'm going to call it a night. It's going to be another busy week; starting tomorrow with the birthday party that Rowen and I are going to for our classmate, Marcie. Rowen hasn't been to one of Marcie's birthday parties before, and we've speculated that our invitations might partly be because most of Marcie's closest friends have crossed over ahead of her; and she wanted at least a couple of girls around who wouldn't be talking about boys the whole time.

We'll know if we were right about that by tomorrow night, but I really hope that we won't have to sit around and listen to hours of boy talk while we're there. Time to change the subject fast before I end up having nightmares. Think about pink bunnies!

Monday, November 7, 2011

Marcie had cold and rainy weather for her birthday, but that didn't keep us from having fun at school and then at her party.

I hadn't been to Marcie's home before, and hadn't spent much time with anyone else in her family. Rowen and I were right about Marcie's best friends all wanting to spend a lot of time talking about boys, and though we were having fun playing too, I mostly tuned that out, and spent some time watching Marcie and her family; and thinking about how they fit into our little town.

There aren't really any poor people in Witch Falls or even in the Ridge River area, but there's still a big difference between families like mine and Marcie's. Even Rowen would likely think that my perspective on this is a bit warped, not to mention that they'd think I was nuts to even be thinking about things like this at a birthday party; but she, and they, would be wrong. I've spent most of my life on the run, and Mom and I have spent more of those years living sparsely than like we do now; so I do have a fairly diverse set of experiences to draw on. Except for the running and hiding from the Hathornes, those years were all really good for us; and that's one of the things that so strongly affects my perception and perspective now.

One of the things that Mom pointed out to the Magi Council was the economic and social disparity that was primarily drawn nearly exclusively along Magi and non-Magi lines. That wasn't black and white by any means, since even the original Magi families usually had many more non-Magi members than Magi. (My new extended family is probably as good an example of that as any) Her early assessment of Witch Falls was that, if anything, the Magi Council intentionally keeps both the Magi and non-Magi from reaching their true potential – mostly because of their primary goal of protecting the secrets of the Magi.

My party-time musings today were mostly about how to change that, and help everyone in town reach that collective potential while keeping everyone safe and happy; and not losing the things that make Witch Falls so special. The way things are now, we could reasonably divide everyone into just a few groups. Virtually all of the Magi stay in town for most of their lives, regardless of the opportunities available to them here – or more specifically, the lack of them. Many of the best and brightest non-Magi are part of the group that moves away primarily because of that same lack of opportunity. Aunt Carrie and Uncle Duncan are perfect examples of that group, and that doesn't even consider the lost potential of what their kids and grandkids could have contributed to Witch Falls. I'd say that Marcie's family falls into the group of non-Magi that love our home and are happy with the life they have here; willing to accept the trade-off between what they might be able to gain living somewhere else for what they love most about their home.

Ethan, Ehlana, and I know that this is going to change, but we really do only know some of the details. There is definitely a gap in what we see of the future when it comes to the non-Magi; and we'll need to think about that a lot to make sure that we include opportunities for everyone in our plans. The really great thing about that is knowing that with our family business resources; the possibilities for doing that are virtually endless.

Getting back to the party, we played games until dinnertime; followed the meal up with the delicious angel food cake that Marcie's mother made for her; and she opened her presents before we wrapped up the party with a little girl chat time that was definitely not the highlight of the party for about half of the girls; including Marcie, Rowen, and me.

I was ready for an early night by the time I got home, but Mom wanted to do a lesson with me, and then advised me that it was time for me to do a bit more work in the archives than I'd been doing over the past couple of months. Fun, wow – NOT! After my lesson, Ethan and Ehlana wanted the birthday party report; so I did that while Mom nursed them, and then I helped with the diaper changes and putting them to bed before being set free for a little pre-bedtime Jacuzzi action.

My plans to be sleeping early tonight didn't work out; and it's heading toward midnight now. I did get caught up on my email, did the nightly entertainment check, and am about to put a wrap on this journal entry. I shouldn't bother worrying about losing a little sleep. With a heavy dose of archive studying in my future for the next few weeks; I'll probably be having little naps on a daily basis!

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Sometimes I think Aunt Leanne is right. Mom and Dad work too hard, and I'm learning to do that from them too.

Dad seems to be even busier than usual getting ready for his week in Crystal Springs; and there's always work that can be done on the family business. That was what I've been spending most of my time doing since getting home from school. For tonight, and maybe for the next couple of weeks, it's my retail stores that need my attention most.

I'm going to need to work on a little change in perception for some of those companies in the future. There is definitely an obsession with the Thanksgiving weekend 'Black Friday' that is a bit ridiculous. What's even odder is the stores that actually go into the red for the day because of their big sale discounts. There isn't anything I can do about that this year, but since I can see the big picture that the individual companies can't; I am able to help out with matching problems with solutions that they can help each other out with.

I'm sure that in a poll of my classmates, not one of them would think that would be fun, but I do love getting to help Mom; and it's definitely more challenging than my school work. I worked in the office until dinnertime, and then had a break while we ate and cleaned up. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over after dinner, and Aunt Leanne took care of the twins while Uncle Adam and I had our Healing lesson with Mom. They stayed until after Ethan and Ehlana had their bedtime feeding, and then they went home, and Mom, Dad, and I worked in the office until nearly midnight.

That brings me to my usual nightly wrap-up. There wasn't much on the email or entertainment front, and I'm definitely ready to get some sleep. Tomorrow is an after-school play day, and I wouldn't want to be too tired for that!

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Time to play catch-up on my Journal!

For Wednesday and Thursday, I fell asleep while doing my archive reading in bed, and last night; my computer was at home alone after Ethan, Ehlana, and I were surprised with a Friday night sleepover at Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam's to go along with our dinner and a movie night at their house. I'll pretend not to know why they wanted to give Mom and Dad a night without kids on the weekend before Dad would be away for a week.

The big news on Wednesday was the first evening hours and the clinic; and the schedule change was definitely a hit. We didn't go there, but Aunt Leanne kept us posted, and they had a good turnout that Uncle Adam hopes will relieve some of the usual Friday afternoon walk-in pressure this winter. Falling asleep while doing my archive studying sounds bad, but I did spend several hours both Wednesday and Thursday night doing that before falling asleep; and still covered about five thousand pages split between Healing, Transmutation, and Element studies. That can make for some fairly tedious, technical reading; and I'm only surprised that I didn't fall asleep sooner!

In hindsight, it's obvious why Aunt Leanne wanted to take our dinner and a movie show on the road to her house even though it was a lot of work getting the twins ready to go out for what we'd thought was going to be a few hours until getting the orders to pack for an overnight stay shortly before we were to leave. Aunt Deborah and Nick were joining us this week, and we had another great meal and evening together before they went out to Sheldon's. Mom and Dad stayed until Ethan and Ehlana had been nursed and put to bed, and then they were sent home while Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, and I sat up and watched another movie before bedtime.

Tai Chi for three and a big country breakfast was a great way to start the day on Saturday, but it was all work, all day after that. We only had two Saturdays left before Thanksgiving, and this was going to be the last big yard cleanup day; since next weekend was going to be more about getting the house cleaned and getting started on the advanced cooking and baking. Other than lunch and snack breaks, Dad and I were outside and kept busy until after dark.

We had a late dinner, I spent a couple of hours with Ethan and Ehlana before they went to bed; and then my Jacuzzi and I got together for a little quality time. The only news on the email front was from Grandma and Grandpa. They moved from Argentina to Brazil today, and will be doing a little sightseeing tomorrow to start off the last week of their trip. I know they've had fun, but I'm going to be really glad to have them home again next weekend!

I'm not quite archive-studying falling asleep right now, but it's time to call it a night. Tomorrow is going to be a play day, but that won't start until after our usual, crazy-busy Sunday morning rush. You know it's been a while since the last big family holiday weekend for me to be thinking that now. By the end of the Thanksgiving weekend, I'll be quite happy to get back to the quiet, slow Sunday mornings for five!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

I know I'm supposed to keep up with this every day, Mom, but it's been a busy week; and shocking as it may be, even I run out of steam sometimes!

With Dad in Crystal Springs, we've had a fairly quiet, if busy week at home. We've probably done a few more Magi lessons than usual; mostly because we won't be able to do as many next week over the Thanksgiving holiday. Mom and I had our hands full with Ethan and Ehlana, work, and for me; school. Everyone else had plans for Friday night, so dinner and a movie was cancelled this week. Rowen stayed for a sleepover instead, and that was fun even though we decided to go to bed early after finding out that we both had a lot of chores booked for Saturday at our respective homes to get ready for the incoming holiday crowd. Mom, Dad, Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, and I were also going to spend a couple of hours at Grandma and Grandpa's house getting it ready for them too.

Today was definitely the best day of the past week, and that was all because Grandma and Grandpa got home from Brazil. They barely made it back to town in time for the buffet, so we met them, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam at the Inn for dinner. Grandpa seemed happier to see all of that great food than he was to see us; but I'm pretty sure he was just teasing Ethan, Ehlana, and me about that. He did have amazing stories to tell us while we had dinner, and then we all went to their house to help them unpack and continue our little reunion.

So other than a bit more detail about my work on the family business, Magi lessons; the seemingly endless rounds of cleaning, cooking, and baking; and what little bit of playtime Rowen and I managed to fit into the week; you haven't missed much around Witch Falls. With just three days until the start of Thanksgiving; that is definitely about to change!

Monday, November 21, 2011

The good news is that we have a four-day weekend coming up. The bad news is that we all have about six days worth of work to get done in less than three.

As usual, after a week in the city, that means working late every night for Dad. Mom was mostly busy with Ethan, Ehlana, and the ongoing cooking and baking that she was fitting in around the rest of her usual work. I mostly helped her as much as I could today, and expect to be doing that for the rest of the week too; but I still have other work to keep up with, and that had to wait until after Ethan and Ehlana went to bed for the night. Staying up late with Mom and Dad wasn't all bad, since we did have an awesome midnight snack that left one of Mom's desserts a few slices short of an apple pie.

Tomorrow is likely to be a rinse and repeat of today; so I'm going to keep this short and get some sleep.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

It took until eleven o'clock; we had some babysitter support from Grandma and Grandpa; and there might have been a little Magi power thrown in to complete the holiday preparations, but all of the work except for stuffing the turkey is done!

Even though we were really busy, it was one of those amazing nights too. I know that Mom records all of the progress that Ethan and Ehlana are making in their education and development; but it was definitely fun to watch the twins impress our grandparents with just how far they'd come in the month they'd been in South America. Getting to look at that from Grandma and Grandpa's perspective really did make what they were doing more impressive than it was to watch it happen every day.

I also wasn't thinking about Ethan and Ehlana being five months old today either until Grandma pointed that out. Their physical speech was now nearly completely developed; though their vocabulary was far ahead of their ability to enunciate – a problem that I can relate to, and will get better as their teeth grow in. They can read nearly as fast as I can already, and their reading comprehension is developing at about the same rate as it did for me at their age. They're still at the very basic stages of learning to control their Magi power, but Grandma and Grandpa were still very impressed with their demonstration of what they'd learned over the past four weeks.

Ethan, Ehlana, and I were all happy to have Grandpa tell us our bedtime story, and it only took a few hugs and kisses – and a slice of Mom's apple pie – to convince him to do that for us. The work and bedtime story has managed to keep us all awake until midnight again; so I'm going to wrap this up now. One more school day, and it will be time for some serious holiday fun!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

I love holidays!

Especially when they come with surprises!

Okay, so the big surprise this year wasn't really a surprise for me, but it was for everyone else. Grace invited Mark to spend the Thanksgiving weekend with us; and their arrival tonight was definitely both a surprise and hit with the family. They were staying with Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne, and didn't get to town until after nine, but they did stop in for a visit at our house; since nearly everyone else had gathered here already too.

Uncle Adam's family was away for Thanksgiving this year, though Deborah was staying to spend the holiday with us and with Nick and his family. Since they had lots of room – and guest bathroom Jacuzzis – they were getting most of the family adults for the weekend while we had all of the kids. The only parental exceptions were Uncle Blaine and Aunt Alison; though they were offered the chance to stay with the grownups and keep Jayden with them instead.

The girls – Violet, Dawn, Jaimie, and Kaitlyn – are all on the third floor with me; and Dawn is staying in my room. Everyone else is on the second floor, but I won't be surprised if Chris and Martin spend most of their indoor time playing video games in my lounge. At least they haven't drawn a crowd of girls to the house so far! We'll see how long that lasts. I give it until Friday, and only because nearly everyone is busy with their families tomorrow.

Our family visit began to wrap up at nearly the same time that Dillon got here after finishing work at the Inn; and it wasn't long before he and Violet had the living room to themselves while everyone else had either gone home or been recruited to help out with getting Ethan, Ehlana, Jayden, Kaitlyn, and Jaimie off to bed. Dawn and I did have to sneak downstairs and catch them kissing once before cutting them a bit of slack, but that was only because it's one of those things that little sisters and younger cousins are supposed to do. The fun is just a great added bonus!

I've been doing this while Dawn's been busy checking out my Jacuzzi; but it sounds like she's about done, so I'll need to finish this too. Chris and Martin are still in the lounge playing video games, but we closed the doors between the rooms; and they're being reasonably quiet so far. I'm really glad that I remembered to charge up the gaming headsets!

It's nice to have a house full again, but I'm ready for some sleep. We're in for a crazy day tomorrow; and with three babies and a gang to feed in the morning, Tai Chi will likely be the only quiet time we have all day.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!

We've had an amazing, crazy, busy day. Our morning Tai Chi ended up being cancelled while I took care of Jayden when he woke up; and Mom and Dad were soon busy with Ethan and Ehlana when they joined the early morning baby adventure. With everything else we've done today; I'm fairly sure that we more than made up for the missed exercise even after counting in the Thanksgiving dinner.

The weather was beautiful, though it took a while for it to warm up this morning. Since working our way through breakfast, cleaning up, and taking turns getting ready for the day while taking care of the younger kids took several hours; the cooler morning temperatures didn't get in the way of the fun. Dawn and I spent a fair bit of the morning working as junior babysitters for Jayden, Ethan, and Ehlana while entertaining Jaimie and Kaitlyn too. Mom, Dad, Aunt Alison, and Uncle Blaine were mostly keeping busy in the kitchen; Chris and Martin got up long enough to eat their way through a few plates of food before going back upstairs to have a nap; and Violet was off to meet up with Dillon as soon as she'd eaten and gotten ready for the day.

The rest of the family began dropping in by eleven o'clock; and once we had grandparent support; Dawn and I were set free to play. Since Chris and Martin were still catching up on the sleep they'd missed during their nearly all-night gaming session; we were able to hang out in the lounge and play with Jaimie and Kaitlyn until lunchtime. Violet and Dillon joined us for lunch, but they'd be having dinner with his family after flipping a coin to decide which family would get them for the Thanksgiving and Christmas meals this year.

Chris and Martin came to life in time for lunch; and the start of the first football game of the day. With most of the boys happily immersed in watching football after lunch; Dawn and I were ready to get far away from that action; so we took Jaimie and Kaitlyn with us; met up with Rowen and a couple of her cousins; and went to the park to play for a couple of hours. There were a lot of kids at the park; including Rebecca, Jenny, and some of their cousins. We stopped by the football field to visit with them while they watched the pick-up football game; but didn't stay long before moving on to the playground after Jaimie and Kaitlyn's obvious boredom gave us an easy out to escape the girl chat.

We played at the park for a bit over an hour until Mom and Aunt Alison came over with Jayden and the twins; mostly so they could get out of the house for a little break from the work in the kitchen. Rowen, Dawn, and I took the three babies on the swings and slides for a while, and then we all headed for home. Rowen and her cousins stopped in long enough for warm-up snacks and drinks, and then needed to head over to her house while Dawn and I went up to the lounge to play with Jaimie and Kaitlyn until dinnertime.

Sometimes it's hard to believe that this is just the second Thanksgiving holiday for Mom and I with our new family, and while a lot of things were the same; there have been some changes for me too. For me, I think the biggest change is that I'm definitely one of 'the kids' now, and that puts me a bit on the edges of what's going on with the adults. That mostly meant that I didn't get to spend much time just visiting with Aunt Grace, Mark, or the rest of my grown-up cousins. The good news there is that Ethan and Ehlana were usually near Mom and Dad; and they'll be able to give me the weekend highlights on Sunday.

Mom, Aunt Leanne, and their kitchen helpers put on another amazing holiday dinner. Jaimie and Kaitlyn kept Dawn and I busy and entertained while we ate; and one really great thing about being in the kids group was when we were sent up to my lounge after dinner to play and stay out of the way while the major dining room and kitchen cleanup was in progress. There were exemptions from the work crew for Mom, Aunt Leanne, and Aunt Alison; but Chris and Martin were drafted; and I wasn't sure if they were more upset about the work or that they missed the end of the second football game. (The Cowboys edged the Dolphins by just one point)

Most of the girls eventually joined us in the lounge for a chick flick while the boys watched yet more football; and then it was time for a long round of goodnight hugs and kisses before Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne took their guests home; the parents and grandparents were busy with getting Jaimie, Kaitlyn, Jayden, and the twins into their beds or cribs; and Dawn and I were able to get ready for bed too. Dawn's already sleeping, and Chris and Martin have taken over the lounge to watch the rest of the last football game before moving on to some video gaming action. I need to wrap this up and get some sleep too. Today has been an amazing, whirlwind of fun, and with the big, town-wide sales and the breakfast buffet at the Inn in the morning; tomorrow is sure to be another one of those best-ever kind of days!

Friday, November 25, 2011

They should come up with a better name than 'Black Friday' for a day that is so much fun!

First of all, this is going to be an especially happy day for our family from now on; since it's the anniversary for when Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam were re-introduced to each other and the rest, as they say, is history.

The second annual breakfast buffet at the Inn was a great way to start our shopping day; and I especially loved that we were getting to spend nearly the entire day with Violet while Dillon was busy working at the Inn. I haven't mentioned it in my journal, but the Rice family is only here until tomorrow morning; and then they have to leave for other family commitments with Uncle Richard's and Aunt Melissa's families on Saturday and Sunday. That made having the time to spend with Violet even more special.

It was a bit hectic around the house while we all got ready to go out for breakfast. Chris and Martin weren't very motivated after only getting a couple of hours of sleep; but they also didn't want to miss out on the buffet either. We had lots of transportation help from the gang staying with Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam; and managed to make it to the Inn on time. The food was great, and Jaimie and Kaitlyn in particular did a great job keeping us entertained; but all of the girls were seriously ready to get out and start shopping by the time we were finished eating.

Abby, and Palmer's, won our votes for best holiday sales; and I'm pretty sure that all of us were set up with enough new outfits and dresses to get us through the entire Christmas season by the time we were ready to move on. We had time to accessorize with shoes from Taylor's before going home for lunch; and then we spent the afternoon wandering around town and hitting most of the other stores. The guys in the family had gone on their own shopping trip in the morning, and then went to the park to play football for a while before returning to our house to trade in playing the game for watching football on television.

Even with pre-cooked food and lots of leftovers, it still took a while to get dinner ready for the whole gang; and while the parents were busy with that; Violet helped Dawn and I with kid control in the lounge and my bedroom. Jaimie and Kaitlyn were fairly easy to keep busy and entertained, and Jayden was quite happy to sit on the floor with us and play with a couple of his favorite toys. Ethan and Ehlana could do that too – and a lot more – but were stuck playing five-month old normal babies instead. I've been there, and know how frustrating that can be; but they seem to handle it better than I did, and they really did like the extra cuddle time that Violet and Dawn shared with them.

Since the Rice family was going to be leaving after breakfast in the morning, instead of splitting up after dinner like we did last year; everyone stayed until after Jayden, Ethan, and Ehlana went to bed for the night. Chris and Martin had some of their Witch Falls friends over for a visit; and they took over the lounge while the rest of us mostly stayed in the living room.

Dillon joined us after finishing work at the Inn, and made Violet's weekend with the news that their parents and friends had surprised them with a day off from the Inn on Saturday and car privileges so that he could go with Violet in the morning; and wouldn't need to be back until his shift started on Sunday. Even if Violet had been staying all weekend, she and Dillon wouldn't have had much time to spend together while he was busy working; so they were both very happy with the new plan.

Violet didn't get to spend as much time with the rest of her extended family now that she was spending so much time in Witch Falls, so staying for the extra two days wasn't an option; and the downside was that she didn't have much time to spend on her Magi training with Mom. I'm sure they did a couple of late-night lessons after Dillon went home on Wednesday, and Violet got home on Thursday; but I've only seen them get a chance to work together once during the day. Hopefully, she'll get to spend more time with us at Christmas so she can spend more time on that. Sometimes I forget just how lucky I am to be able to do my lessons with Mom nearly every day. It must be much tougher for Violet; and even Rowen can only train with her Grandmother or when Mom does lessons with both of us.

Anyway, Dawn and I came up to bed after everyone else except Dillon and Chris and Martin's friends had gone home. We made a very short visit to the lounge to say goodnight to them; but that was fairly scary for both of us; and we escaped as soon as possible. Dawn's opted for one more visit with my Jacuzzi; so I'm getting this done now while she's busy. It's going to be a bit quieter around here for the rest of the weekend after she heads home with her family; but after the last two crazy days, a little quiet time sounds pretty good. I know, something does always seem to come up every time I say that; but we do actually get a break now and then. Maybe tomorrow will be one of those times!

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Maybe it was just a coincidence, but while the Rice family was getting ready to leave this morning, it started to rain; and the unusually warm weather that we'd enjoyed for the past few days came to a rather abrupt end.

We were all very busy for the first few hours of the morning; though for Chris and Martin, that was more like the last hour before they hit the road with Uncle Rick and Aunt Melissa. Dawn and I had been able to get to sleep despite the little party in the lounge, and that had ended by one o'clock; but the two boys had stayed up and played until after four; and weren't particularly motivated to do anything this morning. I helped Dawn to get ready to go as much as I could; but we both helped out with Jaimie and Kaitlyn too while the parents were juggling babies; cooking; and everything else they had on the go – like the loads of laundry that had been piling up since Wednesday.

Dawn's parents and grandparents came over from Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne's house by nine o'clock, and while Uncle Rick needed to get Chris and Martin moving and packed; Violet and Dawn were both ready to go, and it didn't take them long to get their bags loaded into the SUV. Violet was going with Dillon, and Dawn opted to head home with Uncle Richard and Aunt Carrie instead of spending a few hours stuck between Chris and Martin. Grandma and Grandpa stopped by in time for the goodbyes; getting to our house just after Dillon drove over to get Violet. The goodbyes didn't take much longer, and after watching the three vehicles disappear from view; we all went back inside and took a little mid-morning break.

I'm not sure in hindsight why I thought that we'd have a quieter weekend once nearly half of our family had gone home. Jaimie and Kaitlyn made sure that both Mandy and I were kept busy most of the day. When I wasn't playing with them, I had work to do – like the forty-five minutes it took me to clean up the mess that Chris, Martin, and their friends had made in the lounge. Maybe I should give them a refresher lesson using Mom's board-breaking demonstration. I'll keep that in mind for the Christmas holidays if it's a problem then.

Since it wasn't very nice outside, I invited Rowen and her cousins over for the afternoon. She'd worked in the store for the big sale on Friday, and spent the morning there today too; so she was way past ready for a little fun time even if that was mostly geared toward entertaining six and four-year old girls. The rest of our family came over for the afternoon too; and while the guys mostly took over the living room to watch college football, girl-central was in the kitchen. Rowen and I did get some Mom support now and then, and Kaitlyn curled up on my bed with Mandy and had a little nap for a while; but we were mostly left to play on our own until Aunt Leanne, Aunt Grace, and the grandmothers came upstairs to round us up for dinner and help with a quick cleanup of both toys and kids.

Rowen and her cousins had to go home to their own family dinner; and when we got downstairs, they had a parental chauffeur waiting to take them over to Grandma and Grandpa Emerson's. I may be missing out on a lot of what's going on with the adults in family this weekend, but even though Jaimie and Kaitlyn keep me busy during meals too; I still keep my ears and eyes open to everything else that's going on around me. Tonight, was seemed glaringly obvious to me was that Aunt Grace and Mark are definitely, totally in love. It's also obvious that they haven't figured out what to do about that; but it won't be all that long before Ethan, Ehlana, and I help them out with their little geographic problem. I'd love to spring that on them now, but there are a few other things that need to happen first; so they'll just have to work things out for themselves for now.

After dinner and the cleanup, football still ruled in the living room, but Jaimie, Kaitlyn, and I had some company in the lounge to watch a movie, and then my two adorable little cousins took turns using my Jacuzzi before being tucked into my bed for the night. Grandpa Duncan took care of their bedtime story, and once Jaimie and Kaitlyn were sleeping; I went downstairs to hang out in the living room until the party broke up and everyone either headed for their homes or up to bed.

I'll hop into bed with Mandy and my cousins soon, but I wanted a little time for myself first; and have been sitting in the lounge, playing on my computer since getting changed. Dawn sent me an email to let me know that they'd gotten home safely and to tell me all about their second of three family Thanksgivings. There wasn't any family business work that couldn't wait until next week, and I didn't miss much on the entertainment scene.

Considering our history with the Hathornes, Mom has probably been checking up on them this weekend, but tonight was the first time I took a look to see what they've been up to for the holiday. They had another big corporate party at the estate, and though it may not seem like a big deal compared to some of the really terrible things they do; I think that purposefully keeping families apart on holidays like this does do a lot of damage. There wasn't anything for us to worry about with anything I saw in the Hathorne systems, and the only interesting information was about Gwyneth's continuing, extraordinary development that rivals the accomplishments of the brightest baby geniuses of all time. I still really hope that she doesn't draw the wrong kind of attention by creating that public image for herself. Surviving fights with other Dark Magi is one thing, but it's also the jeopardy her soul will be in because of anything she does during those battles.

Somehow I've managed to lose track of time again, and it's past midnight. Time to call it a day and go join my little cuddle buddies. We only have one more day left in the holiday weekend; but even with a smaller group, Sunday mornings are always busy; and we've got reservations for the first buffet at the Inn to look forward to before the rest of our family heads home. That sounds like a recipe for another hectic, amazingly fun day!

Sunday, November 27, 2011

I really have been out of the loop for the past few days!

For one, I wasn't thinking at all about the fact that Grandma and Grandpa are heading to Arizona in the morning for a three-week vacation in the sun until the subject came up while we were at the Inn for the buffet. That reminder did at least come early enough for me to spend more time with them after Jaimie, Kaitlyn, and the rest of their family left for Granite Park; and Ethan, Ehlana, and I made sure that they had enough hugs, kisses, and cuddle time before they went home to finish packing after dinner to hold them over while they were away.

The holiday weekend Sunday morning rush was about as wild as usual, and Jaimie and Kaitlyn kept me busy while I helped them with breakfast and getting ready for church. It wasn't raining this morning, but it was quite cold; so Dad and Uncle Blaine drove us over and dropped us off before going in search of parking spots. The sanctuary was full to overflowing; and there wasn't enough seating for everyone until after the kids and teens left for Sunday school. I ended up staying with Kaitlyn for that when she found out that Jaimie would be with the first-graders instead of with her.

I missed getting to spend some time with Rowen and the rest of our classmates, but it was fun doing crafts with Kaitlyn and the other little kids too. After church, we had time to go home and have a little break before going to the Inn. Mom and Alison fed Ethan, Ehlana, and Jayden then before we loaded up into the van and SUV again and drove over to the Inn. Jaimie, Kaitlyn, and I ended up at a table with the grandparents; and it was during their conversation about what they'd all be doing between now and Christmas that I got the reminder for Grandma and Grandpa's trip to Arizona.

Grandpa Duncan and Grandma Mercy weren't quite ready to retire yet; but they definitely thought that spending time in the south somewhere during the winter was going to be part of their plans when they did finish working in a couple of years. Jaimie and Kaitlyn weren't much interested in that conversation, other than the potential for future winter holidays; so they mostly talked with me about Christmas, and everything from letters to Santa to ice skating and tobogganing.

These family buffets that wrapped up our long weekends never seemed long enough, and we were soon on the way back to either our place or Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne's again. I was put to work helping Jaimie and Kaitlyn get changed into comfy travel clothes and getting their bags packed to head home. Uncle Blaine, Grandpa Duncan, and Aunt Grace were all going to be in for a tough drive – especially for Aunt Grace with the extra side-trip to take Mark to the airport. We had everything packed into the SUV, including my cousins, within forty-five minutes; and once Grandpa Duncan and Aunt Grace pulled up in front of our house when they were ready to go, the goodbyes were short and sweet.

Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne all came inside with us after everyone else was gone; and they stayed until after dinner. Our first order of business, after getting hot drinks and getting comfortable in the living room, was to set Ethan and Ehlana free to get started on what ended up being an hour and a half long question and answer time that they'd needed to wait four days to have. I may be a bit jealous that they have things like iPads to use now that weren't around when I was a baby; but that also makes it a bit harder for them than it was for me when they have to play normal babies and can't use their favorite toys.

While Ethan and Ehlana cuddled with Grandma and Grandpa and entertained us with their ongoing queries; we also talked about the weekend highlights; Grandma and Grandpa's trip; and our holiday plans while they were away. A trip to the Christmas tree farm and the kid's Christmas shopping trip to Crystal Springs were at the top of my Christmas fun list. When it was time to make dinner, Dad and Uncle Adam took care of that while Mom was busy with Ethan and Ehlana; and then time seemed to speed up again as we had our meal; cleaned up; and then shared a long round of goodbye hugs and kisses when it was time for Grandma and Grandpa to go home. Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam went home then too, and the house seemed almost deserted by comparison when we were down to just five again for the first time since Wednesday.

Dad needed to disappear into the office then and get some work done. I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana; and we ran a couple of loads of laundry and got started on cleaning the second and third floor guest bedrooms and bathrooms until it was time to nurse the twins and get them ready for bed. When we had them sleeping in their cribs, we joined Dad in the office for a hot drinks and leftover apple pie bedtime snack; and then I came upstairs for a little Jacuzzi time before getting into bed with Mandy.

I wouldn't say that I can hardly wait to get back to school in the morning, but I am looking forward to hanging out with Rowen and our friends again. With just four weeks left until Christmas, we'll be having a lot of fun at school; but this week's highlights are going to be Rowen's eleventh birthday party on Tuesday, and Rebecca's twelfth birthday party and sleepover on Friday. What a great way to end November and start December!

Monday, November 28, 2011

I kept a mental eye on my links with Grandma and Grandpa this morning while they were travelling; and though there haven't been any problems with the Hathornes since June, I was relieved when they got to Arizona safely.

Rowen was as happy to be hanging out together again as I was this morning; and we had a really good day at school. There was a bit of bad news too when we found out that another classmate had 'crossed over' sometime during the holiday weekend. I've never really thought about it before, but that sort of thing does seem to happen more often during holidays. I have no idea why that would be the case – especially if the boys in my class were acting anywhere near the way Chris and Martin were this weekend.

It took until after lunch to get caught up on all of the weekend news around town – or at least all of it from the Grade Six girls' perspectives. Rowen came home with me after school, and we took care of Ethan and Ehlana until she went home at dinnertime while we got our homework out of the way and spent a little time talking about her impending birthday and party. After dinner, I had a Magi Healing lesson with Mom and Uncle Adam while Aunt Leanne and Dad worked in the office and took care of the twins; and then I was set free to go up to bed early.

I had to wrap Rowen's presents – one special gift that I was going to give her in the morning; and the present she'd get at her party. Since getting that done, I've been tucked in bed; doing my usual nightly computer routine. There were email from Grandma and Grandpa, Mark, Aunt Grace, Violet, Dawn, and Jaimie and Kaitlyn to read and answer; a bit of family business work to do; and I kept the entertainment check to a minimum before starting this journal entry. It's only nine-thirty, but since this may be my only chance for a bit of extra sleep this week; I'm going to call it a night and get right to that.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Happy eleventh birthday, Rowen!

I was up early, and made it over to Rowen's house just as she was finishing breakfast so I could give her the special, best-friend birthday present; and then we did a little extra work on her hair and played dress-up before going to school.

Rowen's come a long way from the ultra-shy girl I met when Mom and I first moved here, but she's a long way from being a social butterfly; and has no idea just how beautiful and amazing she is. The girls in our class definitely noticed the extra work and great clothes, and so did at least a couple of the guys. (No, Aunt Leanne, I am not crossing over; I'm just being observant) I was prepared to help make Rowen's whole day special, and that included Olde Bakery treats at recesses; a picnic in the cafeteria with more bakery goodies at lunch; and little birthday surprises while we were in classes.

I went home with Rowen after school with just a short stop at my house on the way so that I could get my overnight bag; the present I had for the party; and so Ethan and Ehlana could wish Rowen a happy birthday too. Rowen's Mom was at home by the time we got there, and it wasn't long before Rebecca, Jenny, and the rest of Rowen's party guests started to join us. We couldn't technically say it was a no boys party because Patrick was there, and had his best friend, Scott, staying overnight with him for support while his house was 'infected' with so many girls. Rowen was suitably annoyed by them, but I was the only friend staying overnight; and Patrick and Scott mostly left us alone until everyone else went home after dinner.

Other than needing to be alert for little brother trouble, Rowen had a really great party. Along with Rebecca and Jenny, she'd invited a few baseball teammates, and all of the girls in our class. That made for a full house, and a lot of noise and fun. We didn't exactly play games, but there were some little contests with prizes; we had music videos playing in the living room; and there was lots of time for girl talk. We didn't have dinner until after Rowen's Dad closed the store and came home; and then it was non-stop action until after we'd finished dessert and Rowen had opened her gifts.

It was past eight o'clock by then, and while Rowen saw her guests out as parents stopped by to pick them up, or they left to walk home; I drafted myself to help her parents with the monster dinner cleanup. Patrick and Scott were involuntary draftees; and the work probably would have gone faster without them. We were nearly finished cleaning up by the time that Rowen was done saying goodbye to our friends; and then we all went into the living room to relax and wind down for a while before going up to bed.

Rowen's birthday didn't rate a day off from homework for our class, so we had to do that before bed too; and that was when Patrick and Scott started their mini-campaign to irritate us as much as possible. I was mostly just amused, but they did accomplish their mission with Rowen. Even though it's a school night, we've been sitting in bed and talking while playing on our computers. Patrick and Scott finally settled down and went to bed a little while ago; and Rowen's parents are probably asleep by now too.

We aren't allowed to use our Magi abilities when we're at Rowen's, so that means no Telepathic chats, but sometimes I think that's a good thing – kind of like getting lost in a good book for a while instead of speed-reading like I do most of the time in the archives or with my school work. Rowen's starting to nod off, so it's time to call it a night. One birthday party down this week; one to go!

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Today, I've spent most of my family business work time digging through the details of the holiday weekend results for my retail companies. The news for the past few days was all wonderful hype about how great the biggest shopping weekend of the year was for business, but those sales and customer numbers often don't tell even half the story.

Most of my companies did have strong sales, but the retailers with the best bottom line performance weren't the ones with the top sales. Big discounts drew lots of customers, but it looks like those were nearly the only sales that were happening at some of my companies. We'll have to see if that translates into repeat customers buying other products through until Christmas or not. Bottom line is that it's way too early to know whether this will be a good Christmas shopping year or not yet – at least here at home.

One good thing that came from spending time digging into those report details was that I found a few charity opportunities that solved some inventory problems while making some clothes; winter coats; footwear; and even some toys available to be donated. Mom, Aunt Leanne, and Miranda are all looking for opportunities to help our charities now too; and it's really amazing to watch the most important part of our family business really take off and make even more of a difference now than ever before!

I stopped working to have dinner; help with the cleanup; and then do a Magi lesson with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana before joining Dad in the office and getting back to it. He took a break to help Mom with the bedtime feeding with the twins, and after tucking them into their cribs; the three of us worked until shortly after midnight. A little Jacuzzi time had been on my to-do list for tonight, but I skipped that; got changed; and climbed into bed with Mandy and my computer.

My email and entertainment checks were done already, but I studied in the archives for an hour or so, including catching up on Uncle Adam's entries into our Magi project journal. I really need to start doing more with that, but there just never seems to be enough hours in the day. The good news is that what little bit of help Uncle Adam wants from me right now I can usually take care of with a few meet and greets at church on Sundays. Since adding more to my plate between now and Christmas isn't going to work; I'll have to settle for adding it to my New Year's plans.

For right now, though, the only thing I want to do is have the slightly extended nap that I still have time for before it'll be time to get started on another long work day. Cue the lullaby music – nighty night!

December 2011

Thursday, December 1, 2011

There isn't much to report about school or my family business work today. Game night at the Inn was a fun break, but then I went back to work until nearly midnight after helping Mom with Ethan and Ehlana when we got home from the Inn. Dad was working in the office too, but Mom ended up spending most of her time dealing with email that were flying around about the Moms' Christmas shopping trip to Crystal Springs.

That was coming up on Monday, and as of tonight, she and Aunt Leanne had thirty confirmed shoppers by the time we all packed up to go to bed; and they were sure that they would have a bigger group this year than last by the time they had everything set up. Mom set up two more drivers and vehicles, and that gave them room for up to forty-five Moms, Aunts, and Grandmothers. She hoped that would be enough.

Working until midnight was enough for me, but I needed some Jacuzzi time too, so I've been multi-tasking again – doing that; my nightly computer check; and writing this journal at the same time. The only news from around the family was a confirmation from Violet that she and Dawn were confirmed to meet us for the kids' shopping trip a week from Saturday; and that Uncle Rick and Aunt Melissa were going to be there too. Chris and Martin had opted to stay at home and hang out with their friends instead. Mom wasn't working on that trip at all tonight, but the last update she did give me had the kid count about ten ahead of the same time last year; and she and Aunt Leanne expect to have a bigger group this year than last.

I need to get into bed. Thinking about Christmas and shopping is fun; but Rowen and I are going to need to keep up with Rebecca, Jenny, and the rest of their friends at the sleepover. Passing out by nine o'clock wouldn't be good for our reputations. Hopefully they won't want to stay up all night. Mom and Dad already warned me that Saturday is going to be a work at home day when I get back from Rebecca's party. That's the only downside about having so much on the go this month – it hasn't been a week since we finished the last holiday, and we already need to start getting ready for the next one. It's a good thing that kids get two weeks off for Christmas, or we'd never be able to keep up with all of the fun!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Happy twelfth birthday, Rebecca!

First of all, I hadn't really thought about it, but since moving here to Witch Falls, I seem to have a lot more of my journal entries start with 'Happy Birthday' notes for someone than I ever did anywhere else Mom and I lived. That's just another little reminder of why this really is home now.

Being a kid anywhere does have its fair share of strange, and Rebecca's birthday party sleepover definitely fell into that category for Rowen and me today. The party started after school; and Rebecca had some of her 'country' friends come home with her. Rowen and I checked in at the computer store and our houses first; visiting with parents, Ethan, and Ehlana; and getting our overnight bags and Rebecca's presents before going over to her place.

We don't normally think about being short – or vertically challenged as some kids prefer. Most of the kids in our grade are taller than we are too, but it definitely felt different tonight. Rowen and I were anywhere between six inches and a foot shorter than all of the older girls at the party; and we felt even more out of place than we normally had since Rebecca and Jenny had started to cross over nearly a year ago.

Miranda was at the house for a while after school before needing to get back to the Inn, but we did have Jake and Stephanie supervising until we all went to the Inn for dinner too. While we hadn't crossed over, Rowen and I could at least understand why the rest of Rebecca's friends had a tendency to crush on her big brother. Stephanie was amused by that, and Jake was either oblivious to the attention or he was doing a good job at pretending not to notice. Watching that going on did remind me of some of the stories Aunt Leanne has told me about how much her friends liked Dad; but it was weird to experience that from a kid perspective.

Michael hadn't been home after school, but he was at the Inn for dinner; and he had Tim Landry with him for best friend moral support. Miranda, Jacob, Jake, and Stephanie were all working, but they all spent as much time with us as they could; and Michael, Tim, Rowen, and I were all glad that Miranda had invited Rebecca's grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins to the dinner part of the party. I haven't mentioned it before, though Mom has added the Witch Falls family trees to the archive; but Miranda is one of Edward and Rosemary Bassett's kids, so Rebecca has quite a few Bassett family cousins. I wasn't surprised when Jessica Bassett became my personal dinnertime shadow from the time she got to the Inn with her mother, brother, and baby sister until we all left for our homes.

Having Jessica there to entertain us was fun, and the extra guests also kept the rest of the girls from talking about boys at all until we got back to the Stone's house again. I was fairly surprised when we found out that Michael and Tim were staying at home tonight too. Rebecca wasn't happy about having the two boys around – especially when they didn't just go off and play video games somewhere. It wasn't that they were purposely bugging us or anything; but they did spend most of the night hanging around the edges of the party.

It didn't take Rowen and I that long to figure out why Michael and Tim wanted to stick around for the party; and we were mostly amused to watch our two classmates as they tried not to be obvious about their appreciation of Rebecca (for Tim), and her friends. We were able to find that funny because Rowen and I weren't among the girls being watched; and because it's the first time we've seen them showing any signs of the guy equivalent of crossing over.

While Michael and Tim were physically on the outside looking in on the party, Rowen and I were figuratively on the outside too. We didn't want to talk about boys like all of the other girls did; they were too cool and grown up for any sleepover fun that we all would have thought was exciting just a year or two ago; and let's not even mention how out of it we were for anything involving certain physical developments that neither Rowen nor I can relate to yet.

Fortunately for us, Michael and Tim weren't our only entertainment for the night. There were a couple of decent movies to watch, and after Miranda and Jacob got home from the Inn; they let Rowen and I help out with making pizzas for a late night snack. After the pizzas were demolished with some enthusiastic help from Jake, Michael, and Tim; it was time to get changed before returning to the living room to watch movies again. That was a bit awkward, since Rowen and I were definitely out of place when it came to nightwear fashion; but watching Michael's and Tim's reactions to the twelve and thirteen-year old girls in nighties was absolutely priceless.

We stayed in the living room until sometime after two o'clock, and then we headed upstairs. Rowen and I were in the same guest room, and while Rebecca and Jenny had some of the other girls in Rebecca's room with them for a while; we wanted to have a few minutes to talk by ourselves before getting some sleep. I've been doing my usual nightly computer checks and this journal entry while we chatted; but Rowen's starting to fall asleep, and if I want to have time for Tai Chi before it's time to get ready for a breakfast buffet at the Inn; I need to get some sleep too. The bottom line for today is that Rebecca had a very happy birthday, and it's been a fun, if occasionally awkward and weird, day for me. What a great start to the first weekend of December!

Saturday, December 3, 2011

We've had a very rainy day – wet enough that Miranda and Jacob called in parent reinforcements to drive all of us over to the Inn for the breakfast buffet. Mom and Dad were among the recruits; and since they had Ethan and Ehlana with them, they brought both the van and truck. Most of the parents were meeting us at the Inn anyway, and word must have gotten around about another breakfast buffet because the dining room was nearly full by eight o'clock.

Miranda and Jacob had left for the Inn early while Jake and Stephanie were left to handle kid control; but I was up early too, and earned bonus hugs and a cup of hot chocolate from Miranda after she watched the last half of my Tai Chi exercise. I didn't get much sleep, but that little moment was worth getting up early for. Breakfast at the Inn was great too, and then it was time to get back to regular home life again, which for me meant a long house-cleaning day.

There was one big event going on in town, and that was the first Saturday morning clinic hours that Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah were doing for the first time. Aunt Leanne stopped by to let us know that they were busy enough, but that they weren't have quite as many patients as they were getting during the Wednesday evening hours. We'll see how it goes, but I won't be disappointed if Uncle Adam doesn't have to work one Saturday a month if it turns out that the Wednesday evening hours work out best for everyone.

I could use a few Saturdays off too, but then today would have been more fun if we'd been putting up the decorations outside instead of cleaning rooms. The weather wasn't cooperating, though, and with next Saturday out because of the shopping trip; we do only have two weekends to get ready for our Christmas weekend guests, including this one. The good news is that a lot of the hardest cleaning work is done now; and we're taking tomorrow off to go to the Christmas tree farm.

That pretty much covers the news for today. We worked until after six; had a late dinner; and then I spent some time getting de-grimed in my Jacuzzi while Mom and Dad were busy with Ethan and Ehlana. I'll be in bed before nine-thirty for the first time in I forget how long; and I definitely want to be ready for Ethan and Ehlana's first Christmas tree adventure.

Sunday, December 4, 2011

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Our Christmas tree adventure this afternoon made it feel like Christmas too.

Having Ethan and Ehlana to share the fun with this year has been amazing; but Mom and Dad had also invited the Emersons, Nick, and Aunt Deborah, and having all of them along made this trip even better than our first one. We left after lunch, and needed to take Dad's truck and Mom's and the Emerson's vans to have room for everyone. Rowen and I went out to the Christmas tree farm with her parents and brother; and Patrick had Scott Faulkner come with him so that he wouldn't be stuck hanging out with us by himself. Mom and Dad had the twins with them in our van; and Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne had Aunt Deborah and Nick with them in Dad's truck.

All of the rain we had yesterday had turned parts of the farm into a muddy mess, but there were still sections that had trees ready to harvest that were mostly high and dry; so other than taking the hayride through a few big puddles on the way out and back, we were able to stay dry and mostly clean. We had a bit of a wait this year before going to pick out our trees, so we wandered around the store while waiting for the next hayride. The place was really busy, and that worked out pretty well because we put in our orders for first Christmas ornaments – one for Ethan and Ehlana, and one for Aunt Deborah and Nick – and they were ready for us by the time we got back after getting the trees.

Aunt Deborah picked up quite a few decorations; though Uncle Adam had put together a box of lights and decorations to give her from the huge family collection that their grandparents had gathered over the years. Nick didn't want to haul a real tree up to his apartment, but I'm sure he spends enough time at Aunt Deborah's that he won't mind just having a little artificial tree there like I have for the lounge. That was probably a good thing for today too, because Dad's truck was full by the time we had four trees stacked up in the bed and tied down.

I loved getting to spend the afternoon with Rowen, and while the adults picked up lots of treats, we bought some apple cider and a couple of boxes of cookies too. We hit the road for home at a bit after four, with the only difference on the trip back being that Dad, Uncle Adam, Owen, and Nick went in the truck together so they could go around delivering the trees while the rest of us went back to our place or the Emerson's. I stayed with Rowen at her house until their tree was dropped off, and then I supervised while Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne's tree was set up in their living room. Dad and Nick helped Uncle Adam with doing that, and then we moved on to get the last tree into our house.

Nick and Aunt Deborah had tree-trimming plans at her house that didn't include company, but Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were going to stay to decorate our tree and have dinner with us before having Uncle Adam's family over to decorate their tree after his parents closed the Emporium for the night and had dinner too. By then, Ethan and Ehlana were way past ready for a telepathic question and answer time; and they entertained us while we all decorated the tree and living room. I'm including Ethan and Ehlana in that 'all', because they wanted to help out, and Mom and Dad were happy to let them. We all got to use a little Magi power, and while telekinetic Christmas tree decorating isn't something that will change the world; it is awesomely fun!

Dad, Uncle Adam, and I were in charge of making dinner while Mom and Aunt Leanne took care of the twins when it was time for Mom to nurse them; and then I was drafted for cleanup too so that Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne could get home to get started on tree trimming job number two. Once that was done, Mom and I played with Ethan and Ehlana while Dad went to hide in the office and get ready for work in the morning. Mom wanted to work with the twins on their motor skills tonight; so our games were all about things like hand-eye coordination. That certainly wasn't as exciting as telekinetic decorating, but we still had fun; and while their physical development wasn't as extraordinary as their Magi abilities, Ethan and Ehlana were still months ahead of normal babies. I loved getting to watch them go through these stages just like I did; and I really appreciate more than ever everything that Mom had to do for me back when I was their age.

When Ethan and Ehlana went to bed, I went for another visit with my Jacuzzi; took care of the little bit of homework I had; and spent two hours reading in the archives while cuddled in bed with Mandy. I've got my entertainment and email checks done now, and it's nearly midnight. The Moms' Christmas shopping trip is in the morning, and since I'll be helping Dad with Ethan and Ehlana tomorrow, I probably should have gone to sleep a couple of hours ago. I wasn't even thinking about that earlier, but Ethan and Ehlana should be in for a fun day. Dad's taking them to work, and though Aunt Leanne and Claire are both going to be away for the shopping trip; I'm sure he'll still have lots of company stopping by to help out while I'm at school. Mom booked Alicia to work Monday after school instead of Tuesday, so with Rowen and I to help out too; I'm sure my brother and sister will survive the day while Mom is away playing with her friends.

Starting and ending the week with Christmas shopping adventures – even for those of us who are only going on one of the trips – is a sure sign that this third week before Christmas is going to be great!

Monday, December 5, 2011

Mom and Aunt Leanne were on their way to breakfast at the Inn by shortly before seven o'clock this morning; opting to take Dad's truck for the day so they'd have the extra storage space for the trip. The final number of shoppers was forty-two, and they'd decided to go with nine drivers and vehicles. This year, Mom and Aunt Leanne were taking Aunt Deborah, Liz Seager, and Mary-Anne Sheldon with them.

I'm sure that they had more fun than we did today, but even with school and work; Dad and I managed to have fun with Ethan, Ehlana, and our friends. Taking the twins to work was an adventure for Dad, and though he'd only booked a couple of appointments; the office was apparently very busy with visitors stopping in to see Ethan and Ehlana all day. Those visits included help for the mid-morning, lunchtime, and afternoon feedings. The highlights of the day for Ethan and Ehlana were when Naomi and her Grandma Lydia stopped by in the morning, and then Hannah Draper came over with Aiden; bringing along bakery treats for all three of them.

Rowen and I had a fairly normal day at school. The Moms' shopping trip was at the top of the conversation topic list, and that generally included talking about what gifts we were hoping to get from Santa this year. Dad closed the office early so that he could have Ethan and Ehlana home by the time Rowen and I got home from school. Since Mom had Alicia working tonight instead of tomorrow, Dad had lots of help; and after having a snack, he and Alicia were able to get some work done around the house while Rowen and I took Ethan and Ehlana up to the lounge to hang out with us while we decorated my little Christmas tree and got our homework done.

Alicia stayed until after dinner; and Rowen didn't go home until shortly before her Mom was going to be home from the shopping trip. Ethan and Ehlana were ready for bed, and had their last bottles by then; but were staying awake so they could see Mom when she finally got home at a bit after ten. She and Aunt Leanne were likely the last shoppers to get home; mostly because they spent nearly an hour dropping off their passengers and delivering the larger purchases that had been packed into their truck.

For some reason, I was sent to my room shortly after Mom and Aunt Leanne got home while Mom was told to sit in the living room with the twins; and Dad, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne unloaded the truck at our house and theirs. We did all get together for a bedtime snack and story after that was done; and Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne stayed until Ethan and Ehlana were tucked into their cribs.

I've been working on my computer since coming up to bed. There wasn't much going on with email or my nightly entertainment check, but I spent a little extra time getting up to speed on the college football bowl schedule that the boys were already talking about at school today. I wouldn't bother with that except that Rowen and I do find it very funny to see the reactions from the boys at school when I can answer pretty much any sport questions - even if none of them know the answers. I've been studying in the archives for a bit over an hour, but I'm running out of steam now; so it's time to get this journal entry done. Tomorrow's another after-school work day, but with the kid Christmas shopping trip coming up on Saturday; I'm sure that every day is going to be fun for the rest of the week. Now I just need to figure out a way to get everything I have on the go done and get a bit of extra sleep at night so I'll be ready for that all-day adventure.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

The rain on Saturday had kept us from putting up the outdoor Christmas decorations. Since Dad's going to be in Crystal Springs next week, and we're busy with the shopping trip this Saturday; he decided to start decorating the front porch after work; so I happily switched from family business work to spend an hour or so as his assistant until we needed to stop for the night when dinner was ready.

Our evening entertainment included a Magi Healing lesson that Mom did with Uncle Adam and I; some play time with Ethan and Ehlana for me while Mom and Aunt Leanne spent a little time working on the kids' shopping trip; and a bedtime snack and story that we all shared before Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne went home for the night. I had more work to do in the office after Ethan and Ehlana went to bed, and ended up working until Mom and Dad sent me to bed shortly before midnight.

I've mostly been doing a little archive studying since then, but it's after one now, and time to pack it up for the night. Dad wants to try and get the decorating done after work tomorrow - later today - but other than helping with that and school; I'm planning on having a play day with Rowen. I'm definitely ready for a few hours of down time!

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Rowen and I ended up using most of our after-school play time to work, but since we were having fun anyway; that was okay with us. School seems to be get better every day the closer we get to the Christmas holiday; and there's something Christmassy going on somewhere around the school every day.

The after-school play day plans were changed when we decided to work on the outdoor Christmas decorations after having our snack. I mostly wanted to do that to help Dad. He was adding that work to an already packed schedule, and didn't really have the time to do all of the decorating too. We couldn't string the lights along the rooflines – okay; Mom wouldn't let us do it the only way we could – but we could set up the yard and front porch decorations.

We both helped Dad as much as we could with the lights when he did get home from work, and had everything set up by dinnertime. Rowen stayed for that before we went upstairs to get our homework done and mostly talk shopping strategy for Saturday. Having jobs and our own money this year does make a difference, and we both love the extra bit of freedom to make a few of our own decisions that gives us.

Mom gave us time to play for a while, and then we did a Magi lesson together before it was time for Rowen to go home for the night. I helped Mom with the twins until they were tucked into their cribs; spent a little time in my Jacuzzi; and hopped into bed by ten-thirty. The plan was to go to sleep after doing my usual nightly computing, but I got tied up in the Magi project archive, and doing some general archive research on some of the comments and questions Uncle Adam had written about. His information was specific to the Witch Falls Magi, so I found related archive writings about other Magi groups and added the relevant data to our project.

One thing that really pops out at me is just how unique our little town is – even when compared to millennia of Magi history. In ancient times, the Magi groups often lived segregated from the non-Magi. Sure, they 'went out into the world' a lot; but their home communities were either secluded, or if in cities; segregated. I certainly understand why my distant ancestors needed to be so careful – especially since that really hasn't changed all that much today – but maybe some day that will change. It would certainly be very cool if the rest of the world could be like Witch Falls.

Anyway, I've lost track of time, and it's past one o'clock again. Tomorrow is another work night, along with games at the Inn. I'll try to get a bit of extra sleep after that since Friday night is going to be our first dinner and a movie night in a month; and Rowen's staying for a sleepover. That's it for now, and hopefully that plan will work for tomorrow (to-) night.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

School; family business work; game night at the Inn; Ethan and Ehlana nursed and sleeping – check. Skipping everything else except this journal blurb – done. Bedtime: ten forty-five!

Friday, December 9, 2011

With the Christmas shopping trip now just a day away, school was a fun place to be. It's not like every kid and teen in town is going – though that would be cool if they were – but there were going to be somewhere between ninety and one hundred on the trip; not including parents and volunteers. I was as fired up as any kid about the trip, but I was also excited about having a dinner and a movie night with Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Aunt Deborah, and Nick; and having a sleepover with Rowen was going to make the day even better.

Rowen and I had to do a little running around after school to check in with her parents at the computer store and pick up her overnight bag at her house before going home. We had a little snack with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana, and then went up to the lounge to get our homework out of the way for the weekend. With a little Magi power, that didn't take long, and then we were free to play for most of the weekend. Ethan and Ehlana were with us for part of the time before dinner while Mom and Dad were busy cleaning, and we were all downstairs again once Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Aunt Deborah, and Nick got here.

Mom went all-out for dinner, and while that was great, and I loved both the food and getting to spend time with everyone, but the cleanup was a lot of work for those of us who hadn't been the cooks. We did eventually get around to the movie part of the night, and Beethoven's Christmas Adventure was the unanimous kids' choice. Since pop culture has a tendency to disappear from history, I'll add that it's a cute little big-dog movie; not about the holiday escapades of a famous classical composer. ;^)

Rowen and I hung around with everyone until after Ethan and Ehlana went to bed, and then we went upstairs to take turns in the Jacuzzi. We'd been talking about watching a second movie, but by the time we were cleaned up and changed, snuggling in bed with Mandy and having a little telepathic chat before going to sleep sounded much better. I'm doing this, along with my usual nightly computing; and Rowen and I spent a little time looking up a few of the gifts we want to buy tomorrow to see which stores at the Mall had those items in stock.

It's now after eleven and we do need to be up early to get ready; help with Ethan and Ehlana; and get to the Inn in time for the buffet breakfast, so it's time to call it a night. One more sleep to the biggest and best shopping adventure ever so far!

Saturday, December 10, 2011

We've had nice weather for early December, and though we did spend most of the day indoors, it did make the trips to and from Crystal Springs much nicer for everyone.

Starting the big day with the breakfast buffet at the Inn helped to get everyone fired up; though Mom, Dad, Rowen, and I had also been going non-stop since getting up just to get everything done before hopping into the van and truck when Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam stopped by and we all hurried over to the Inn. Mom and Aunt Leanne were then kept hopping as they made sure that all of the kids and teens were accounted for and put together with their drivers and chaperones. As usual, we were the last group of shoppers to head out of town, and Rowen and I were with Mom, Alicia, and the twins. Dad and Uncle Adam had three boys with them in the truck; Aunt Leanne had Mary-Anne Sheldon; her daughter, Geraldine; Lindsay Faulkner; and Jessica Bassett. With the three girls that Aunt Deborah and Nick were chaperoning, and we had the biggest shopping group; and that didn't even include adding Aunt Melissa, Uncle Rick, and Dawn when we met up with them in Crystal Springs. Dawn was with them too, but she was there to meet up with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie; and they were off on their own within minutes of getting together.

There were a few too many boys around, but Dad, Uncle Rick, Uncle Adam, and Nick were happy to take Ethan and the other three boys on regular side trips that made the shopping more fun for all of us. Speaking of boys, when you read this some day, Aunt Leanne, don't think that I don't know what you were doing when you assigned those particular boys to Dad and Uncle Adam. Quit laughing – it's not funny! Anyway, getting back to the shopping; Rowen, Dawn, and I had three adoring junior shopping buddies with Geraldine, Lindsay, and Jessica. That just made everything more fun, including doing a few things that we hadn't last year – like going to see Santa and get our pictures taken with him, Ethan, and Ehlana.

We all got together for lunch, including Violet, Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie; and then it was back to the shopping until four o'clock. Mom had needed to take an afternoon break to feed Ethan and Ehlana, and she timed that to end then too so we could load up and move over to spend an hour and a half at one of the big box toy stores before stopping for dinner. There were some adults that were randomly disappearing while we were there, and I have a feeling that a few Christmas wishes were filled while all of the kids were busy playing and shopping for friends or family.

Dinner was both sit-down and fast food, and then we said goodbye to Uncle Rick, Aunt Melissa, and Dawn. They could go to a Wal-Mart anytime, and decided to head home instead of making that last stop with the rest of us. Violet had driven her car too, and wouldn't be going home until later. The last shopping stop was as much to pick up the usual supplies that were on the shopping list for most trips to the city; but there were a few gift purchases too, along with some gift-wrapping accessories. By the time that Rowen and I helped Aunt Leanne and Mary-Anne get their three girls into the car, we were sure that they'd all be sleeping within minutes of hitting the highway for home.

Ethan and Ehlana napped most of the way home too, and when we got home; Alicia helped Mom to get them up to their rooms where Mom did a late, abbreviated nursing session before changing and putting the twins to bed. It was 'safe' for Rowen and I to unload the van, and we had that done by the time that Mom and Alicia were downstairs again. Dad and Uncle Adam had a handful of deliveries to make, and they didn't get home until it was nearly midnight. Aunt Leanne had come over after dropping off her passengers and unloading her car, and we had a bedtime snack and chat together before she and Uncle Adam left and walked back to their place.

I'm exhausted, but once I got changed and in bed, my computer was calling to me; and I've been working on it since then. There were email to catch up on after being away all day; a little surfing to do; and I needed to write up a few things in our Magi project archive that I learned and observed today. (No, Aunt Leanne – the real Santa may be a Magi Master, but the one at the Mall is definitely a non-Magi.)

With his week in the city coming up on Monday, Dad will be busy tomorrow, so I'd better get to sleep so I can help Mom with Ethan and Ehlana while he's stuck doing that. Other than some catch-up work, though, it should be a fairly quiet day. That's probably a good thing; since it may be the last break in the action until the New Year!

Sunday, December 11, 2011

My plans for a quiet day didn't totally work out, but by comparison to yesterday, it was at least quieter. Mom, Dad, and I all skipped Tai Chi this morning and slept in a bit instead. The rest of the morning went along pretty much as usual for a Sunday, and then we had a quick and easy lunch before Dad went to hide in the office for the rest of the day.

Mom and I did a little house work and laundry in the afternoon, and Ethan, Ehlana, and I did a little telekinetic gift wrapping in my room while Mom had a little afternoon nap. Dad took a break to have dinner with us, and then we all played or worked in the office until it was time for Ethan and Ehlana's bedtime feeding. For me, that included a little family business work, a short Magi lesson with Mom, and a little archive studying. Ethan and Ehlana did a follow-up to their telekinetic gift wrapping, and played on their iPads; and Mom did a bit of work in between her lessons with us.

I'm doing this while having my bedtime Jacuzzi session, and will be in bed and asleep by eleven tonight. With Dad in the city for the next five days, and less than two weeks to Christmas; I'm going to need the extra rest.

Monday, December 12, 2011

If working harder is one of the signs that Christmas is getting near then Mom and I can be sure definitely there!

With Dad away, Mom has extra help from Aunt Leanne, Miranda, and other friends all week during the day while I'm at school. I had Rowen with me to help with Ethan and Ehlana after school, and since her parents had the computer store open late from now until Christmas Eve day anyway; we kept her for dinner and the evening. We mostly played with Ethan and Ehlana until dinnertime, and Mom wanted to do some Magi lessons with all of us after we'd finished cleaning up the kitchen.

That took nearly until it was time for Rowen to go home, and after she'd left; Mom and I did the full bedtime bath and feeding with the twins before tucking them into their cribs for the night. She and I both went to work in the office after that, and I worked on the family business until nearly midnight before coming up to bed. Once I was changed and in bed with Mandy, I got back to work on my computer. This is my last job of the night, but I've spent an hour or so studying in the archives, and a bit over a half hour of email and surfing time before getting to my journal.

Now that it's heading toward two, and I'll only have time for about four hours of sleep, I'm a bit surprised to realize that I'm not really all that tired. It isn't that I don't get tired anymore because I do; but I'm going to start keeping track of this. I get the sense that something is changing. Maybe I actually won't need seven or eight hours of sleep a night like I have since I was a baby. Anyway, I do know that I need at least the four hours tonight that I can get, so it's definitely time to hit the lights and get on with that. Being able to do that little job with telekinesis instead of getting out of my nice warm bed is one of those things that make all of the work that goes along with being a Magi Master worth it!

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Day two of Dad's week in the city wasn't much different than the first. Alicia was working with Mom after school, so I could work on the family business in the office. Instead of having Rowen with us for dinner and a Magi lesson, we instead had Alicia stay until after dinner; and then Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over. Aunt Leanne played with the twins while Mom did a long Healing lesson with Uncle Adam and me.

I was set free after that while Mom, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam took care of Ethan and Ehlana until they were in bed. After a little Jacuzzi time, I climbed into bed with Mandy and have been splitting my computing time between more family business work; archive study; and my nightly email and entertainment checks. The news from around the family was mostly Christmas-related; and what everyone is or will be doing. It's been another very long day and I've dozed off twice now while studying the archives, so I'm going to keep this short; pack up; and get some sleep.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Okay, I'm officially tired tonight. It's after one again, so that's probably not surprising.

We had a busy, fun day at school, and then Rowen and I pretty much had a repeat of Monday except that she went home after dinner instead of doing a lesson with me. Mom did have a Transmutation lesson for me, which we did while Aunt Leanne took care of Ethan and Ehlana. She came over to hang out with us while Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah were working at the clinic, and she and Mom also spent some time working up their holiday baking and meal plans for the Christmas and New Year holiday weekends.

Uncle Adam stopped in for a visit before taking Aunt Leanne home, and I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana until they were happily sleeping in their cribs. I've been on my computer since then, and just like last night; it was the archive studying that's done me in. Thursday is another after-school work day, but at least we'll have game night at the Inn too. Anyway, that's all for now – catch you again later tonight or tomorrow.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

I haven't really written about any specific Christmas fun at school in my journal this year, but there is something going on pretty much every day now. Rowen and I aren't doing anything special for the Christmas concert next week, but every class does have to do a song, skit, or something for the show; and our class has had a handful of practices to get ready for the little medley that we're going to be singing; including the one we had today. Learning the music was easy enough for me, but if the boys in the school choirs and theatre groups act like the boys in our class do during practices, I have no idea why any girl would ever volunteer to join!

There's been plenty of real class work going on around the Christmas fun; though a lot of Mrs. Warren's lessons do have holiday themes too. Even with the occasional irritation from goofing off boys, we mostly had a great day, and I had more than a little Christmas cheer going on that continued while I worked on my homework and a handful of family business projects after school. Mom had Alicia helping her after school, and tonight, she stayed for supper and then came to the Inn with us for game night too.

Rowen met up with me there, and since this was the last game night until the New Year; Miranda and Jacob made it a bit of a Christmas party too. Miranda definitely was feeling the Christmas spirit when she and Mom earned the senior game Championship bragging rights for the rest of the year. I'm glad they had fun with that, but for Rowen, me, and most of the kids and teens, it was the awesome, Olde Bakery Christmas treats that were the best part of the night.

Mom and I were on our own to get Ethan and Ehlana nursed and off to sleep after getting home a bit later than usual. They were still a bit fired up, so that took a while to answer all of their usual post-outing questions and get them settled down, but eventually we tucked them into their cribs; and then we went downstairs to work in the office for a while. That's ended up being a bit more than two hours, and I'm doing this while Mom is finishing up her work. That's all of the family business work I'll be doing this week, but that's mostly because we've got our dinner and a movie night tomorrow, and then we'll be busy all weekend with getting ready for Christmas – including a lot of cooking a baking; housework; and getting Grandma and Grandpa's house ready for when they get home next Tuesday.

It's going to be crazy, and I'll love every minute!

Friday, December 16, 2011

Our last dinner and a movie night of the year was today's highlight. Rowen had other family plans with the grandparents, so she wasn't able to come; but everyone else was here, and we've had a lot of fun.

I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana after school while she worked on dinner and some baking that she had on the go; though we mostly stayed in the kitchen too so that we could talk with her and offer free taste-testing services. Aunt Leanne came over straight from work, and Uncle Adam, Aunt Deborah, and Nick joined us after closing the clinic for the weekend.

The dinner chat was mostly about the weekend plans, and though there was a lot of work to be done; Mom, Dad, and most of their friends were going to a Christmas party at Sheldon's on Saturday night, and Ethan, Ehlana, and I were particularly interested in the babysitting plans that had been set up for the night. Alicia and her friends had been hired again; and would have a total of eleven kids. Since we were only going to have a couple of days until Christmas after getting out of school for the holiday; Aunt Leanne had also let me know that we had hair appointments with Vicky and Liz for Monday afternoon; though their appointments were before classes ended for the day, while Rowen and I would be going there straight from school. With Grandma and Grandpa coming home on Tuesday, the school concert on Wednesday afternoon, and a lot of work to fit in around the fun; we were all going to be in for a very busy week.

Since Dad was still on the road, and the boys were outnumbered; it was girls' choice for the movie. We picked 'A Princess for Christmas', and though it is a total chick flick, our boys managed to survive; helped out by generous doses of cuddles, hugs and kisses from their favorite girls. I'd have felt bad about not picking something that they'd like better, but I was reminded all day by the boys at school that the football bowl season starts tomorrow; and that means that we'll have a bit over three weeks of nearly daily testosterone overload.

Dad got home when we were about three-quarters of the way through the movie after being held up in Crystal Springs because of a worse than usual traffic snarl. We took a break while helping to get his luggage from the truck and drink and snack refills before settling in to finish the show. Ethan and Ehlana needed some extra time with Dad, so it was nearly eleven by the time we said goodnight to our guests and went upstairs for the night. Mom and Dad are taking care of getting Ethan and Ehlana nursed and off to sleep now; and I'm already changed and snuggled in bed with Mandy. I'm writing this and checking my email, but it's going to be a long, busy weekend; so I'm going to skip the archive study that I should do tonight. I'll just have to put in a bit more time on that next week. Don't do an archive search on that – I'm sure that those famous last words have been written into my journal a lot over the years. Sometimes I even actually get around to finding time for that extra work!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

This is a weekend update. Rowen and I ended up with extra sleepover buddies, so my usual nightly routine wasn't possible while Lindsay and Jessica were with us. That was a last-minute change in plans, but let's go back and start with Saturday morning.

Tai Chi was the brief calm before the work storm. Breakfast was quick and on the fly as Mom, Dad, and I juggled getting ready for the day; taking care of Ethan and Ehlana; eating; and getting started on the work too. The weather forecast was for a beautiful weekend, though it was still fairly cool both Saturday and Sunday mornings. That worked out for Dad, Uncle Adam, and me when it came time to do the outdoor work at our houses and at Grandma and Grandpa's place.

The outdoor fun was booked for the afternoon, and my jobs until lunchtime were split between house cleaning and helping Mom and Aunt Leanne with the baking. Just for the record, not everything about baking is fun. If you don't believe me, go peel, pare, or otherwise prepare a peck of anything. A peck is a heck of a lot, and Mom and Aunt Leanne had piles of pecks to prep. The good news was that it wasn't long before they decided that a little Magi power was in order; and they even turned it into a lesson for Ethan and Ehlana that kept them entertained until they needed to stop and have late morning naps.

Aunt Leanne was part of the work crew that went over to Grandma and Grandpa's house after lunch. Mom stayed at home with Ethan and Ehlana to keep the cooking and baking going. We spent a bit over an hour there, then Dad, Uncle Adam, and I split the rest of our afternoon time working around both of our houses and yards. We brought Ethan and Ehlana out with us for a while, and though Dad and Uncle Adam were both working hard; I'm also fairly sure that Ethan hadn't been the one to set up ESPN on his iPad so that they could at least listen to part of the first bowl game of the day.

We wrapped up for the day when it started to get dark, and I was sent off to get cleaned up first so that I could watch Ethan and Ehlana while Mom and Dad got ready to go out. Dinner was a small casserole that Mom cooked up along with a much larger one that would be part of one of the holiday weekend meals. There wasn't much time to eat, and I took care of the cleanup with supervisory help from the twins. Alicia and her friends came over before Mom and Dad were ready to go out. (Their kids really don't want to know what was taking them so long!)

Jessica, Ryan, and Sophia Bassett were dropped off first. Naomi was next, followed by Scott and Lindsay Faulkner. Rowen and Patrick were last; mostly because their parents were going to Sheldon's with Mom and Dad. My bedroom and the lounge were playground central for the night. Patrick and Scott were happy to mostly ignore the girls and play their video games. They let four-year old Ryan watch them play too; but we – the girls – ended up having him play with us most of the time when the two older boys wouldn't let him try to play the video games too.

Jessica and Lindsay wanted to play with Ethan, Ehlana, Sophia, and Naomi as much as they wanted to play with the games and toys we had ready for them. We all had a lot of fun with Naomi – especially now that she was constantly on the go. I could tell that Ethan and Ehlana wished they could keep up with Naomi; but crawling like a pro or toddling around while holding on to furniture or someone's hands wasn't something they were physically ready for yet; even though they could do more than they could show off in public. Naomi wanted to play with them, and with Sophia; so a lot of her crawling and walking was in pursuit of toys and other things that she brought back to her three little friends for all them to play with.

Alicia had the boys stop their gaming so that we could all watch a Christmas movie together. Jessica and Lindsay picked the new Barbie movie – A Perfect Christmas. That didn't impress two out of four boys, but they were outnumbered and outvoted. Those of us who were paying attention also noticed that Patrick and Scott stopped complaining about the 'chick flick' choice not long after it started; and I'm sure that I heard at least one of them humming along to some of the songs in the show. I spent most of that time cuddling with Naomi; Rowen had Ehlana with her; and we had Jessica and Lindsay sitting with us for one big snuggle-fest.

After the movie, there was a long break while Ethan, Ehlana, Sophia, and Naomi were fed and put to bed. It was a bit crowded in Ehlana's room, but we had the spare crib and Ethan and Ehlana's playpen there to have enough room for Naomi and Sophia to be able to sleep until their parents stopped in to pick them up. Rowen helped out with that while I helped out in the kitchen where we kept the rest of the kids busy with making up and cooking a batch of personal pizzas. They were ready by the time the four babies were tucked into cribs or playpen, and after polishing off their snacks, the boys went back to their gaming; leaving us to finish eating in relative peace – and with the cleanup too.

Ryan was sound asleep on the sofa by the time we got up to the lounge; and Alicia tucked him into bed in one of the guest rooms. Jessica and Lindsay were second and third to go; and they were put into my bed with Mandy. Rowen and I mostly hung out with Alicia and her friends until they sent Patrick and Scott off to get ready for bed shortly after midnight; and then we decided to get changed and go to sleep too. Even with my Queen-size bed, we were a bit crowded with our two little cuddle buddies; but we must have made an impression on the parents while we were sleeping, because we were all still in the bed when I woke up in the morning to get ready for Tai Chi.

I ended up exercising alone instead of waking Mom and Dad, and then I took care of a couple of diaper changes before Mom joined me in Ehlana's room and I helped her get set up to nurse them. From then on, it was non-stop action. Jessica and Lindsay had been the only extra overnight kids, but they did manage to keep Rowen and I hopping as we all got ready for church and had breakfast in time to actually get to church for the start of the service.

We did manage to do that, and I was ready to sit down and catch my breath by the time Rowen and I sat down with her parents. That wasn't a very long break, and then we were busy having fun with our Sunday school class until nearly eleven-thirty. With just seven shopping days until Christmas, and a lot of weekend visitors around the Ridge River district; most of the stores in town were open for the afternoon. That left Rowen free to spend the afternoon with me; and we were both recruited for more work around the house that mostly involved helping with the baking; but included another round of cleaning for the guest bedrooms that had been used by Patrick, Scott, and Ryan while they slept until being picked up by their parents.

Mom and Dad had Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne to play with them too, though they left for home at the same time Rowen did; having dinner plans with his parents, grandparents, Aunt Deborah, and Nick.

Ethan, Ehlana, and I had Magi lessons after dinner while Dad hid in the office to get ready for work in the morning. Between then and now, we collectively had four baths in three Jacuzzi sessions; Ethan and Ehlana were nursed, changed, and put in bed; and Mom and I had our bedtime snack with Dad before she sat down to work on her computer for a while, and Mandy and I came up to bed. The entertainment check didn't take long, but I had a few email to catch up on.

The highlights were the family Christmas recaps that both Dawn and Violet sent me. They'd spent the day with Aunt Melissa's family, and it sounded like they'd all had a fun, hectic day. I'm sure that you can guess how excited Violet is about being just five sleeps away from coming to spend two weeks with us – and with Dillon. Mom and I really only have one family Christmas – it must be crazy to have four like Violet will have including the one today; ours, one with Dillon's family; and the Rice family Christmas on New Year's Day.

Anyway, I'm going to skip another archive study session and get a bit of extra sleep. With just five days left to the holidays; I'm going to need it!

Monday, December 19, 2011

After-school play time has been cancelled for the week; but Rowen and I did have our hair appointments with Vicky and Liz before she came home with me to hang out; and we both helped Mom with the work that mostly included baking and watching Ethan and Ehlana until dinnertime.

Rowen stayed for dinner too, and for the evening Magi lesson that Mom did with Uncle Adam and me. She was helping out with that by being our patient, and Mom showed Uncle Adam and I how to detect viruses, and then heal Rowen of the little flu bug that she'd just contracted sometime in the last day or so.

Patricia stopped by to get Rowen on her way home from the computer store, and she and Rowen stayed for our early bedtime snack and hot drinks before being sent on their way with treats to go for Owen and Patrick. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne went home then too, and Mom and I moved on to do the bedtime routine with Ethan and Ehlana.

I've been in bed since shortly after getting the twins off to sleep; cuddling with Mandy, and working on my computer. Mom and Dad went to bed too, but I'm fairly sure that they haven't been studying in the archives. Moving right along away from that thought, I read through the archives that Mom assigned Uncle Adam and I that related to our Healing lesson; caught up on the latest work that Uncle Adam had done on our Magi project; added a few notes that I had about that from the weekend; and wrapped up by spending some time doing some of the archive reading that I'd skipped over the past week.

How time flies when you're having fun! It's nearly one-thirty already, and past-time for me to shut down for the night – in more than one way. One day down; four to go until Christmas vacation!

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Today was likely the last day before the holidays where we actually did any real lessons at school. Tomorrow's the concert, and Thursday and Friday will mostly be play days – plus the class Christmas parties on Friday afternoon. The weather forecast had been for a bit of snow overnight and into this morning; but it didn't get cold enough, and we only ended up with more rain. It's not looking good for a White Christmas this year; but I'm still hoping!

Rowen was working after school, and I traded my usual Tuesday family business job for helping Mom with another few hours of baking and babysitting support. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne came over for dinner, and we'd been hoping to have Grandma and Grandpa back at home by then; but their flight was delayed, and they didn't get back to town until nearly eight o'clock. We took the family show on the road to their house; helped them get unloaded and settled in; and then had a long visit that included some fresh-baked treats and hot drinks. Mom nursed Ethan and Ehlana while we were there, and we stayed until nearly eleven before they finally ran out of steam and we went home again.

I've ended my night pretty much the same as yesterday. More archive studies; the email and entertainment check; and wrapping up with this journal entry. The only difference is that I'm calling it a night a half-hour earlier tonight – this morning. One more day, and I think I'll start counting down the hours until our family will be here for the holiday weekend. (and two weeks for Violet!) The great news is that nearly all of these last few days and hours are going to be filled with fun and holiday cheer.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

I didn't really think about it last year, but the rest of the town and even the Ridge River district can't have very many people around during the school Christmas concert. The gymnasium was full, and the only way they'd have room for more would be if we moved the show over to the church sanctuary. Even Jacob and Miranda came to watch Jake, Stephanie, Rebecca, and Michael. Some of the stores – like Palmer's and Emerson Computers were closed for a couple of hours while the parents were at the school. You'd never see that happen in a big city!

Mom and Dad brought Ethan and Ehlana with them, and Aunt Leanne and Claire closed the office so they could come along for the fun. We all did have fun too! The kids and teens that really loved getting to showcase their special talents had their chances to shine. Rowen and I were happy to mostly watch the action with the rest of the audience except for the few minutes we were on stage for the few minutes it took for our class performance.

My favorite parts of the concert were the skits, including the one that Jake and Stephanie did with some other teens; all of the songs that the school band played; and a few of the solo or group musical numbers that were done by some of the most talented kids and teens. Don't take this anywhere it's not meant to go (Aunt Leanne), but yes, I did think that the guitar and vocal performance by a certain classmate of mine was one of those favorites. I'm sure he got the musical gift from his father; though I hadn't known until today that he was such a talented musician. He almost seemed embarrassed by the applause when he was finished; and other than getting hugs from his parents after the concert was over; he did his best to stay out of the spotlight that most of the other show 'stars' were basking in.

Before any witnesses that might read this in the future can file a complaint; yes, I did hug him, and he got razzed about it by his buddies. I also hugged at least a hundred other people this afternoon too, so don't make a big deal about that either!

Rowen and I went home with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana; and we helped her with getting them nursed before putting them down for a short nap. There was more baking to do after that, and Rowen helped out with that until going home for the night after her parents closed the store and picked her up on their way by. I was part of the baking team until bedtime; and have been working on my computer since getting changed and snuggling under the blankets with Mandy.

I kept the archive studying down to just over an hour, and it's only a bit after midnight. There's more work that I could do, but I've had enough for today. I don't expect to get much rest this weekend; so an extra hour or two tonight and tomorrow night is probably a good plan too. It's time to switch to hours on the holiday countdown. We've got seventy-two hours until Christmas (plus a few more hours until the Christmas morning wake-up calls); about forty-three or four hours until the family starts arriving for the weekend; and just over thirty-nine hours until school's out for the holidays!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Ethan and Ehlana are six months old today. Happy half-way to your first birthday!

They weren't officially celebrating that, but Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana did go out to the Inn for lunch with Dad, Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam, and Claire and Karl Norton for a little office Christmas luncheon. I'm sure that was more fun – and tastier – than lunch in the cafeteria was for Rowen and I; but we did have a pretty good day at school even without food by Jacob and Christmas bonuses and gifts. Mrs. Warren mostly had us playing or making crafts all morning; and we spent over an hour outside this afternoon between last recess and the end of classes. That would have been more fun if we'd had some snow to play in; but there were quite a few teachers doing the same thing with their classes; and we all managed to keep entertained until we were set free to head for home.

Rowen was working at the store, so I was on my own after walking her there and having a short visit with her parents. Mom had enough work to keep me from getting bored without my bff around, and it took me until nearly dinnertime to do the last once-over of the guest bedrooms and bathrooms; the lounge; and my bed and bath rooms. The holiday baking – at least for this weekend – was nearly done by then too; and Mom put the last two pies in to cook after our meal entree was ready.

It seemed strange not to be going to the Inn tonight; but Mom and Dad both had work that they wanted to get done before the weekend, so that worked out pretty well for them. I took care of Ethan and Ehlana while they did that; and we watched three of the Christmas cartoon classics – Frosty, The Grinch, and Rudolph. You may think that it's strange to find out that I still love watching all of the Christmas shows even though my photographic memory does allow me to 'replay' anything, anytime I want – and in high-speed too. What's really cool, though, is that those memories let me remember all of the first-time feelings too; and now I've also got brand new memories of that with Ethan and Ehlana. I wish everyone could keep those special moments the way that we can!

When we finished watching Rudolph, Ethan and Ehlana were ready to be nursed and put to bed. I helped Mom with that, and then had a bedtime snack with her and Dad in the office before coming up to my room. I've multi-tasked some Jacuzzi time with my archive studying; finished the nightly email and entertainment checks; and will be sleeping within about a minute of finishing this journal entry – all of that done before eleven-thirty! Forty-eight and a half hours to Christmas; about t-minus twenty hours to inbound family arrivals; and let's just call it twelve and a half hours until school's out. The afternoon Christmas parties really shouldn't count anyway!

Friday, December 23, 2011

The Christmas holiday is finally here!

It was party time at school, and though the official class parties didn't start until after lunch; we played and had fun all day. Rowen wasn't able to hang out with me after school, but I did stay to visit with her at the computer store for a while before going home. We both wished that we could do a sleepover for our first night of vacation; but Rowen was going to be as busy with her family this weekend as I was going to be with mine – and she was going to help out at the store as much as she could too.

Ethan and Ehlana made sure that I wasn't bored without having Rowen around. They wanted the full school update first, and then we played in the lounge; listened to Christmas music; and had a long telepathic chat while Mom was busy with a little computer work and getting dinner started. We weren't doing a dinner and a movie night, but Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne were coming over for dinner. When Dad and Aunt Leanne got home, the twins and I joined the party in the kitchen; and from then on, it's been nearly non-stop action all night!

I was drafted and put to work while Ethan and Ehlana were put in charge of entertaining everyone before and during dinner. We didn't end up having all that much time to relax and enjoy the meal before the Rice family pulled into town a full hour earlier than we'd expected. The 'grandparents' were spending the weekend with Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne, so they went over to their place with Grandpa Richard and Grandma Carrie to help them unload their car and get settled in before coming back to spend the rest of the evening with us.

They had lots of time to do that, since it took nearly an hour to get Uncle Rick's SUV and Violet's car unloaded and everything moved up to the second or third floor. Chris, Martin, and Dawn were exempted from a fair bit of that work due to the nature of the packages, boxes, and bags being moved, and the boys were particularly happy to go play video games in the lounge after putting their own luggage in the room across the hall from the lounge that they'd be sharing this weekend.

Once that round of controlled chaos was finished, we had nearly another hour to visit and play before the Granite Park members of our family joined the party and we had to get back to work unloading two more vehicles. Jaimie and Kaitlyn were going to be staying in the third-floor bedroom across the hall from Violet; though I won't be surprised if Violet and Aunt Grace end up with cuddle buddies in their rooms instead. Jayden was going to be in Ethan's room again, and Uncle Blaine, Aunt Alison, and Aunt Grace were on the second floor with the rest of the 'aunts and uncles' (or parents).

Violet's day went from good to great when Dillon came over after work at the Inn; and he made it just as everyone was getting settled into the living room again and the work was pretty much done for the night. Ethan, Ehlana, and Jayden were very popular cuddle buddies, and they all stayed up later than usual. Jayden was wide awake because he'd slept quite a bit during the drive from Granite Park. It wasn't until Kaitlyn fell asleep. Dawn and I had been hanging out together and playing while the adults had been talking; splitting our time between the living room and lounge. We helped Uncle Blaine with getting Jaimie and Kaitlyn changed and into their beds while Mom and Aunt Alison took care of Jayden and the twins. 'Their' beds tonight did end up being Aunt Grace's and Violet's beds; though both of my little cousins were on their own for the first couple of hours after falling asleep.

Dawn and I got ready for bed then too, but we stayed up and hung out in the lounge with Chris and Martin for a while before leaving them to their all-night gaming plans; climbing into bed with Mandy; and having a long bedtime chat. I was playing on my computer while we did that too, but Dawn's sleeping now, so I'm taking care of this journal entry and a few other things before calling it a night too. We've got a busy Christmas Eve day, with morning shopping; afternoon family time; and the Christmas Eve service that the teens were leading this year.

Two more sleeps 'til Christmas!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Santa Claus has a fairly large group of helpers putting presents under our tree, and enjoying Olde Bakery treats, as I write this. I'm sure there are at least a few of my favorite people wishing that they could use a little Magi power to get that done – it's been a very long day!

Mom, Dad, and I started out with Tai Chi while Ethan and Ehlana slept in a bit after staying up later than usual last night. I wasn't surprised when that was pretty much the only quiet time any of us had between then and now. Dad and I were on the breakfast cooking crew, and we worked for nearly two hours from the time we started until the last dishes were cleaned and put away again. After our kitchen shift was done, I had time to grab a quick shower and get ready to go out before meeting everyone going on the Christmas Eve day shopping adventure.

Chris and Martin had made other plans by then to meet up with some of their friends, but all of the girls were going, and most of the guys were at least going to make a few stops – like to the Bakery, Emporium, and Fix-it shop. There wasn't going to be any snow for Christmas for sure now, but I guess there is something to be said for sunny, unseasonably warm days too. Shopping was more fun for sure, and we even went to play at the park after lunch for an hour or so. Try not to be shocked, but I only picked up some bakery treats for the lounge and a mistletoe to hang in the lounge too, just in case we might get the chance to tease Violet and Dillon; or even better – Chris or Martin.

That little purchase ended up being very entertaining for quite a few of us today, if occasionally weird for me. I certainly didn't expect to catch Jenny sharing a Christmas kiss under the mistletoe with Martin while she and Rebecca had stopped in for a visit while on their afternoon break from the Inn. I didn't witness Chris getting caught and kissed by Carolyn Landry, but Dawn and I were both around to see several other couple kisses while Chris and Martin were hosting their afternoon gaming party.

Our house was family central from lunchtime on. I was off-duty for kitchen work at noon, but Mom and Dad had Dawn and I both working before and after dinner before going to get dressed up for the Christmas Eve service at the church. I hadn't really thought about it, but there hadn't been a Christmas musical last Sunday like there had been last year, but that was mostly because the teens were putting on a service filled with music and short skits that was just as amazing as that show had been.

The Christmas Eve fun continued back at our house, with most of the action in the living room, kitchen, and lounge. Violet and Dillon went to his house for a while after church, but were home with us again in time for the bedtime Christmas story that Grandpa told all of us before Jayden, Ethan, and Ehlana were taken upstairs and tucked into their cribs. It took a while longer to get Jaimie and Kaitlyn wound down, and Dawn and I eventually had to help out with that by getting ready for bed too.

We'd planned on staying up later, but Dawn didn't last much longer after we climbed into bed with Mandy. That brings this journal up to the moment, and I've been playing on my computer since Dawn drifted off; waiting for my turn to play Santa once the grown-ups are finished their work. Hopefully I'll have enough time after that to get a little sleep before Kaitlyn and Jaimie are up and running again!

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas!

Our collective wake-up call came at five-thirty this morning, and I ended up getting a bit less than four hours of sleep. Before I get to today's action, I should mention that my Santa's helper act earlier this morning was witnessed by Violet and Dillon. I tried not to get in the way of their Christmas cuddling any longer than needed, but I did stay long enough to hug each of them goodnight and get a couple of the remaining bakery cookies for the road after finding places to put my load of gifts in and around the stacks that now surrounded the tree.

The kids of all ages had to settle for checking out what was in their stockings until Aunt Leanne, Uncle Adam, and 'the grandparents' could join the party. Dawn and I helped Mom and Aunt Alison with Jayden, Ethan, and Ehlana while Uncle Blaine and Aunt Grace kept up with Jaimie and Kaitlyn; and the rest of the parents and teens helped out with getting drinks and pre-breakfast snacks ready.

This was my first Christmas with the whole family home, and having it land on a Sunday made for a wild, non-stop adventure ride. We somehow managed to open presents; cook, eat, and clean up from breakfast; take turns getting ready for church; and have the main Christmas dinner foods cooking in ovens at three houses before rushing out and making it to church with enough time to get everyone seated before the service started at eleven o'clock.

The teens were doing encores of some of their skits and music during the service, and there was a short birthday cake and drinks reception that followed; though some of the cooks and helpers in our family headed home instead of staying for that. Violet and Dillon were having lunch and spending most of the afternoon with his family until dinnertime; but everyone else spent the rest of the day in and around our house.

I mostly played with Dawn, Jaimie, and Kaitlyn; though Dawn and I popped over to Rowen's house after lunch for a quick visit and a little gift exchange that we hadn't wanted to do at church last night or this morning. We took Ethan, Ehlana, and Jayden out for another walk to the park to play when most of the Moms really got busy with getting dinner ready. Dinner was another couple or three crazy hours of fun, and Dawn and I got out of cleanup by taking care of our five younger cousins or siblings while everyone else pitched in to clean up.

The rest of our evening was comparatively quiet. Chris and Martin played video games in the lounge with anyone who had the energy to make the trek to the third floor and hang out with them for a while. Dawn and I stayed in the living room, where we played with Jaimie and Kaitlyn, listened to music, and occasionally joined in on the quiet, relaxed conversation that the adults were having. Ehlana, Jayden, and Ethan were first to be ready to call it a night – in that order – and Mom and Aunt Alison had lots of help to get them fed and off to bed. Jaimie and Kaitlyn were tired too, but didn't want to go to bed until our trio of grandfathers advised them that they were going home to bed soon, and that they'd need to get ready for bed or miss out on story time.

Dawn and I still needed to help out by getting ready for bed then too; and I ended up without a sleepover buddy when Dawn fell asleep while cuddling with Kaitlyn in Aunt Grace's bed. That's had the bonus for me that I could do a bit of uninterrupted computer work after closing the doors between the lounge and my bedroom; and I've been doing that since climbing into bed an hour or so ago.

Tomorrow's Boxing Day, though, and while we'll be saying goodbye to the Granite Park members of our family, we also have some sales to check out, and the lunchtime buffet at the Inn first. The Rice family is staying until Tuesday morning; mostly to spend the extra time with Violet. I'll need to get around to writing more about the family and town news, but that can wait for a day or two. Right now, all I want for the rest of my Christmas is a good night's sleep!

Monday, December 26, 2011

I've officially hit holiday overload!

Dawn and I ran around all morning with Jaimie and Kaitlyn; helping them to get ready, have breakfast, and pack their bags before going out in search of Boxing Day sales for a couple of hours. Rowen joined us for that while her parents were busy at the store, and she came to the lunch buffet at the Inn with us too. Uncle Blaine and Grandpa Duncan wanted to get on the road right after that; so the goodbyes didn't take long, and then Dawn, Rowen, and I were set free to do whatever we wanted until dinnertime.

We played at the park for a while, and stopped in at the football field to talk to some of the girls that were watching a football scrimmage that Chris and Martin were playing in with some of their friends.

The two boys had some of those friends come back to the house with them, so we stayed out of their way except to deliver snack refills to them for Mom and Dad. Dillon was working the buffets at the Inn, so Violet spent most of the day with the parents and grandparents. There was a break in the third floor action for dinner, but by seven-thirty; Chris and Martin had all of their friends over – including Rebecca and Jenny.

Though Dawn and I weren't hanging out with them, having so many of my older friends over did mean that we couldn't go to bed early; though we were ready to do that by the time Mom and Aunt Melissa took Ethan and Ehlana upstairs for the night. The grandparents, Uncle Adam, and Aunt Leanne went home then too, so we ended up cuddling with our Dads and watching television for a couple of hours. Violet had Dillon to cuddle with once he came over after work; and Mom and Aunt Melissa joined us once the twins were sleeping in their cribs; and they'd admonished the gang in the lounge not to wake them unless they were prepared to babysit all night too. I was only a little amused when they advised us that at least a few of my friends had looked like they thought that staying and babysitting all night might be a lot of fun. I'm fairly sure that Dawn never wants to think about her brothers like that either!

Anyway, the party in the lounge did eventually wind down starting at eleven. Dawn and Mandy are both sleeping now, and even Chris and Martin decided that they'd had enough gaming for one long weekend; though they're currently raiding the pantry and fridge while I'm doing this. Hopefully they won't stay up too much later – their parents and grandparents decided to hit the road right after breakfast tomorrow; and Chris and Martin are not much fun to be around in the mornings after they've stayed up most of the night. Rowen and I have a busy play week planned that we're going to get started on shortly after Dawn and her family head for home, so I'm going to end this here, and catch up on a few weekend details with tomorrow's journal. Nighty-nite!

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

We're down to six in the house tonight – five, really; since I'm doing a sleepover with Rowen at her place. The Rice family was on the road by nine o'clock this morning, and after that first few hours of craziness; we've had a fairly laid back day. Before I get to that, though; it's time for the weekend updates that I didn't get around to writing about over the past few days.

First of all, Santa was very good to me this year. I don't want to make a big deal of that, but try to remember that I am only ten going on eleven. I love everything about Christmas, and being a Magi Master doesn't change anything except maybe to help me appreciate everything I have more than most kids my age. There were definitely some favorite gifts, but having my new family and friends to share every day with is what I love and appreciate most every day.

Moving on to family news, one of my favorite current events is anything to do with Aunt Grace and Mark. It was a bit disappointing to find out that they weren't getting together at all over the holidays, but he'd traded Thanksgiving for Christmas hospital duty, and Aunt Grace didn't go anywhere at year-end with so much to do at work. They did have a long chat on Christmas Day, and Ehlana let me know that some of the chats I missed out on over the weekend included discussions about potential future rendezvous for the reluctant but inexorably attracted pair.

With nearly two weeks to spend together, Violet and Dillon are happy campers, though being apart so much is harder for them than what Aunt Grace and Mark are dealing with – so far. They still have another year and a half of that to deal with, but the few of us who know how great their lives will be are sure they'll think that going through those months apart will be worth it! Ethan, Ehlana, and I don't know any real specifics about the future for Chris, Martin, or Dawn, but I should note that I sensed a couple of ripples this weekend when the boys were hanging out with their Witch Falls friends. There wasn't anything clear, and nothing that suggested a particularly important event; but it was the first time I'd sensed anything with the Sight that involved them; so it's probably worth noting.

Grandma and Grandpa will be leaving for their long winter getaway the same day that we go back to school, and they had quite a few members of the family interested in taking them up on offers to visit them sometime during their months in the sunny south. I'm sure that they'll have at least a few guests, though nothing specific has been set up yet that I've heard about. I'd like to pop down there for a visit with them, but I doubt that Mom would let me use a time-phase transmutation to do that for a weekend.

Moving on to some of the news around town, I'll start with the Green family. Heather was about half-way through her pregnancy, and though she'd had quite a few bad days during the first trimester; she had been feeling much better since Thanksgiving. While Adam and the rest of their family doted on her as she progressed through her first pregnancy, they were all also getting excited about the imminent arrival of their cousins' – Kyle and Emily – third child. Ethan and Ehlana were fired up about the birth of another friend and future classmate too.

Naomi is only a couple of weeks away from her first birthday, and though I only saw her a few times over the last few days; it looked and sounded like she's really had fun with her first Christmas. It's funny that I really didn't think about it until now, but Aunt Deborah and Nick spent a lot of time with Naomi, her parents, and the rest of their family this weekend. The twins and I may have adopted Aunt Deborah into our family, but she actually is going to be one of Naomi's aunts; and Naomi seems to think that her uncle has made a very good choice!

All of the business owners in town were glad to have the day off for Christmas, and though we don't have any Scrooges in Witch Falls; I do wish that our friends could have more time away from the unending work than they ever get to have. Maybe I'll work on that a bit and see if there's anything that a trio of creative little Magi Masters can do about that. The Stones, Emersons, Palmers, and the rest of my favorite business families did all seem happy with how their businesses were going this year. Considering what Ethan, Ehlana, and I have known since September, if they're happy now; they're going to love our future!

Rowen and I caught up on more of the weekend news with some of our friends while we played at the park this afternoon. Rebecca and Jenny were at the park too; and we stopped by the football field for a short visit while they were busy boy-watching with their usual group of friends. Santa did not bring Rebecca or Jenny a cure for their boy-crazy affliction like we'd hoped, but they also didn't get boyfriends for Christmas either like some of their friends had either.

With the Christmas rush over, most of the stores in town could expect a break in the action for the next month or so, but Rowen's parents would mostly be trading store sales time for a pick-up in computer services demand as their clients worked through year-end accounting. They did expect a couple of slow days, though, and that's why Rowen and I were having our first sleepover of the holidays at her house. Rowen thought that the even better news was that Patrick was doing a sleepover too – at Scott's house. Since playing their little practical jokes on us is a favorite past-time for the two boys, we're sure that parental involvement, and possibly bribery, spared us from dealing with that all night.

Rowen's Dad didn't have a problem with being outnumbered three-to-one; with the leftover surprise dinner for four; or a chick flick movie night before we all went to bed early after some really long days. I've been on my computer since Rowen and I climbed into bed, and we've mostly been surfing the net and talking about some of the holiday weirdness floating around in cyber-space. I knew from living in so many different places that the stories Rowen found most unbelievable were likely true, and while we were often entertained and kept laughing; other comments and a few rants were just sad and disheartening. If you're one of the kids, teens, or adults that are angry and hating on your family and friends because you didn't get a car, iPhone, iPad, or other 'must have' for Christmas – you've completely lost it, dude (or dudette). Are you serious? Ask Santa for some perspective for Christmas next year; and no, you won't find it at the app store!

Anyway, Rowen and I have a busy play day planned for tomorrow, so I'm going to wrap this up and call it a night. There may not be any tobogganing or snow play for us this week, but there are some good things about having such warm weather for the holidays too!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

I was on my own for Tai Chi this morning; breakfast was quick; and Rowen and I were set free by eight-thirty when her parents left for the store and we moved our holiday base of operations back over to my house for at least the next day or two.

Alicia was working extra hours over the holidays, but that was mostly working all day on her regular days, and she was off today. Mom had planned around that, and Rowen and I didn't have to help her out; but we did play with Ethan and Ehlana for a while this morning, and took them to the park for an hour after lunch. We also went for a long bike ride; had Olde Bakery snacks by the falls with Aunt Leanne; and played with some of our friends at the park again before going home in time for dinner. The top news by then was that Seth Green had been born after an all-day labor, and the twins were hoping to meet their future classmate on Sunday at church. Since the age cut-off for our school is in February; they'd know who most of their classmates would be within the next couple of months.

Mom and Dad both had work to do in the office tonight, so Rowen and I had Ethan, Ehlana, and Mandy to cuddle with for the first part of our double-feature movie plans. We let the twins pick the first one, and while Rowen and I had both seen Baby Geniuses; we were as entertained by the show as Ethan and Ehlana were – partly because of their running telepathic commentary and questioning about the movie. Sly and the other babies are amazing, but they've got nothing on my little brother and sister!

When it was time for Ethan and Ehlana to go to bed, we helped Mom with that; did a bedtime snack in the office with her and Dad; and then moved back up to the lounge for movie number two. We do at least try to mix in enough sleepovers at Rowen's house so that her parents don't get upset that we don't stay with them very often, but it's also true that we both prefer to have our sleepovers at my house now that I'm allowed to shield us so we can use our powers. Right now, I'm writing this telekinetically; Rowen, Mandy, and I are talking telepathically; and Rowen's in the process of floating a drink and bowl of popcorn over to us from the counter.

Hold the word processor – I've just had a really cool idea! I can speed up a movie the same way that I can work my computer, but Rowen can't keep up with what's happening on screen, and it isn't nearly as much fun to watch a show like that. Watching Rowen with the slow-motion telekinesis of the popcorn and her drink compared to my computing has me wondering what would happen if I basically took the whole room into a time-phase transmutation. Time for another break while I go see if Mom will come and play with us for a few minutes!

***

Okay, I'm back, and Dad wanted to come and play too. The answer is a resounding 'yes'; though the power drain to do that with furniture, four people, and a cat was enormous. Mom also had me try it with Dad staying outside of the space I was time-phasing once so that he could tell us what it looked like from the outside. I hadn't really thought about it, but apparently if you don't move anything in a time-phase; someone watching from the outside doesn't see anything different at all. The only change that Dad saw was on the television; and he said it was just like clicking from one chapter to the next except that the before and after were mid-scenes. Mom and I want to try that again sometime and actually move both the people and the furniture around to see what happens; but I'm too tired to try again tonight.

Between the two experiments, Rowen and I were able to watch about half of the movie, and that was a good thing because I'm wiped out now. Mom gave me some archive research to do for this, but she doesn't think there will be anything about time-phasing that will be quite the same as what we did tonight. Dad thinks that's because the VHS or 8-track tapes would've just broken at the speed of light. That does bring up the question of what happens to things like the internet, radio, and over-the-air or satellite signals; but that's an experiment for another day too. I'd better rest up so that I can have enough power saved up for all of the time-phasing I'll need to do to study all of that!

Thursday, December 29, 2011

If this is going to be winter at home, I have no idea why Grandma and Grandpa are bothering to head south! Seth Green's birth is still the top topic around town, but the awesome weather is a close second.

Rowen and I had a picnic lunch at the park, and spent nearly the entire day outside. While Mom and Alicia were busy around the house and with the twins, we were cruising around on our bikes; playing at the park or school playground; and we even went for a short canoe ride, though the water was so cold that it didn't take long before sitting in the canoe was uncomfortable. With year-end business to deal with, Aunt Leanne couldn't take too much extra time off, but she was taking the afternoons off today and tomorrow, so Rowen and I stopped in to visit her once too; timing our arrival perfectly to have a bakery snack with her, and then carry a couple of pans of lasagna over to my house so that Mom could put them in to cook while Aunt Leanne had her oven filled with other dishes that she and Uncle Adam would need for their family Christmas and New Year's weekend gang.

We haven't seen much of Violet over the past few days, but Dillon was working close tonight, so she spent a couple of hours with Rowen, Ethan, Ehlana, and me after dinner until it was time for Ethan and Ehlana to go to bed. Rowen and I are taking turns using the Jacuzzi now; Violet's gone to meet up with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie; and I'm doing this journal entry while Rowen's in the tub. Two more days left in 2011, and since we plan on keeping the fun rolling into the New Year, I'm going to keep this short; take my turn in the Jacuzzi; and then we're going to get a little extra sleep tonight so we'll be ready for our long weekend adventures!

Friday, December 30, 2011

Rowen and I got to spend most of the day playing again, but we did also go over to Aunt Leanne's house after lunch to help her for an hour or so with some last-minute housework while she was busy with another afternoon of cooking. We thought that the little box of bakery treats that she sent home with us for our afternoon snack with Mom, Alicia, and the twins was worth the time out of our play day plans.

The weather was beautiful again, and it still feels a bit strange to be out riding my bike and being outside in a heavy sweater-jacket instead of a winter coat. It's not like I didn't get to do that when Mom and I lived in Georgia; but this is way different than this time last winter in Witch Falls. Most of the kids and teens in town were having fun – even the kids who weren't getting to use winter-sport Christmas gifts yet.

Rowen had to go home – or to Grandma and Grandpa Emerson's home – in time for dinner with them, so I was bff-less for the night after that. We weren't having a dinner and a movie night at home, but Dillon was working again, so we had Violet with us; and Grandma and Grandpa came over for dinner too. Dad and Grandpa got into watching a football game after dinner, but since it was still nice outside; Mom, Grandma, Violet, and I took the twins out for a walk. We stopped in to see Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne, and they had about half of the McEwan clan there already. Tory, Kyle, Michelle, and Chrissy were in town too, but were getting settled in at Aunt Deborah's house before coming over to spend the rest of the evening with the rest of their family.

We only stayed for a short visit, and then finished our walk before returning home and hanging out in the living room with Dad and Grandpa until it was time for Ethan and Ehlana to go to bed. Violet went over to the Inn to wait for Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie then, and since Mom had grandparent support, I opted for a little quality time with my Jacuzzi and another comparatively early bedtime. New Year's Eve day is up next; and if the weather forecast is right, we've got one more really beautiful, warm day before we start heading back toward normal winter temperatures. The guys in town might want to waste all of that sun and warm while watching football games; but Rowen and I plan on enjoying ourselves with more biking and outdoor fun before we have to get ready for my first New Year's Eve party at the Inn. I see another best last day of the year ever in my immediate future!

Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy New Year!

Well, it is now 2012 as I write this recap of my last day of 2011.

It definitely didn't feel like the last day of December here in Witch Falls this afternoon – especially when the temperature briefly danced around seventy degrees for an hour or three. Rowen and I loved that; and we packed a lot of fun into our day. There were a lot of kids out at the park and school playground; and Rowen and I spent more than an hour playing with Kara, Eddie, and Nicole while they were at the park with some Moms and cousins. Mom, Violet, Ethan, and Ehlana came over to the park too; and Violet ended up hanging out with Chrissy for most of the afternoon.

The two older girls added to the fun for Rowen and me too by agreeing to go for a little canoe ride with us. Kara and the other younger kids weren't happy about that, but the parents and two doctors vetoed their going along because of the chilly water temperature. After our little river adventure, Rowen and I had time for a bit more play time at the park before we split up to get ready for the big New Year's Eve party at the Inn.

Jacob and Miranda were doing a single buffet dinner before the party, and Grandma, Grandpa, Mom, and Dad had picked up tickets for both the dinner and party. Dillon was working all night, but everyone working at the Inn also had lots of time to join the party too. He and Violet spent most of his free time hanging out in the section of the dining room that most of the teens had staked out for the party and dance while Rowen and I had a few friends from school and baseball to sit with; including Rebecca and Jenny.

Since it was the first question Aunt Leanne asked me when we stopped by on the way home from the Inn to wish everyone at their party a happy New Year; yes I went dancing, and no, I didn't dance with any boys that weren't related to me. I can't say that for New Year's kisses, but there definitely weren't any of those kind of kisses; so don't go there (I'm looking at you, auntie dear).

Violet and Dillon had said goodnight to each other at the Inn, mostly because they were going to be leaving first thing in the morning for Woodvale and the Rice family Christmas. She's using my Jacuzzi now while I'm cuddled in bed with Mandy; doing this; and winding down from the party. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne have the Johnson family Christmas tomorrow, and with Violet gone too; we're just going to have Grandma and Grandpa coming over for some afternoon football watching and dinner. Rowen's going to be busy with her family; so Mom, Grandma, Ehlana, and I may end up having a chick flick movie afternoon in the lounge if nothing else comes up instead.

It's nearly one-thirty now, and I've had enough fun for one year. Hopefully 2012 will be just as amazing as the last couple of years have been!

***Notes***

Thank-you for visiting the Heirs of the Magi world, and spending time with us in Witch Falls!

Cassie's Journals are originally posted on the Heirs of the Magi Blog, and will cover the time between the end of Magi Master and the start of Magi Ascension; which continues the Heirs of the Magi story from Cassie's high school graduation in June, 2018. Part One of Cassie's 2012 Journals is also available for free at my  Smashwords Author Page.
