Seriously.

Out with my hobos

2012-02-20T15:27:00.001-05:00

The boys have a couple days off from school for mid-winter break. With the sun shining and snow gone, I managed to convince Ethan and Drew to get out and explore with me.

I've really wanted to try the town trails in the winter sometime. A real winter. With real snow. Instead, we maneuvered around a little mud and leaves. Still, nice to get outside.

It was fun to be out with just the older boys. No need for bathroom breaks or snacks. They were constantly making me laugh.

We saw two or three suspicious looking characters in the woods and they would shout out, "Hobo with a gun!"

We found a little pond, if you can call it that, in the Dinosaur Hill section of the trail.

It took the boys a little while to get used to the ice.

Every time it cracked a little, they would shout at me to get off saying, "But you're the heaviest!"

Ethan had grand schemes of ice-hockey. Which lasted until he stepped through a thin spot in the ice.

We headed home, had a few impromptu races on the trail. Not gonna say who lost every single one. Still fun.

With the needles

2012-01-31T17:03:00.000-05:00

Pattern: Capucine

Yarn: Malabrigo worsted merino, Deja Vu, a little more than one skein

Left off the tassel in the back.

Loved the pattern, love the yarn. Not sure if I can actually pull off wearing it. Maybe I'll get brave.

In the meantime I had to pay Ethan to model it for me:

He was thrilled.

Grandpa

2012-01-23T17:56:00.001-05:00

This morning, for no particular reason, I remembered the last conversation I had with my Grandpa S. He was about to leave his home in New Hampshire for a nursing home in Florida. Florida, with the palm trees he despised.

Keith and I were getting ready to move in and rent his house. I went over the night before he left to say goodbye. We stood, down in a dusty corner of the basement as he attempted to entrust his very particular home maintenance into my unskilled hands. He showed me the fuse box and how to empty the lint trap in the dryer.

We both acted as if he was just going on a short vacation. I think a part of him believed this. Cruel time put a lump in my throat. I tried not to let him see my tears.

Independent, stubborn, prickly, a fierce perfectionist, able to make us laugh until our faces hurt. I often see him in myself. A hard man to love. Loved deeply, nonetheless.

Social phobias go to Storytime

2012-01-12T17:52:00.005-05:00

Today I renewed my efforts to socialize our monster son. As we climbed into the car together, I turned on the cheer. "Adam, this is going to be fun! Just you and me!"

Adam, from the back seat, "When we get back home it will be more funner."

Yes, I had to silently agree. That's exactly how I feel. Let's go, get this done and get back home. Quickly. Preferably before anyone sees us.

I'm here to tell you there just isn't much of anything more tedious than Storytime at the library by the time you are attending with Child #3. It's like having to repeat Kindergarten three times. Who wouldn't get bored? Right?

Adam and I reluctantly joined the circle of fresh-faced young moms with their designer diaper bags, stilettos (yes!) and their precious offspring. These mothers ooze enthusiasm. Every utterance of their child is greeted with wide-eyed coos and delighted laughter. Every movement celebrated. I always marvel at their energy.

I grew so weary of trying to involve Adam on any level that we both sat and stared grumpily at the carpet. Mothers and newborn babies performed elaborate dance steps all around us and placed their beanbags appropriately on their heads. Adam growled and kicked me.

We stuck it out.

When the last repetitive page was wrung dry and the goodbyes handed out, we fled to the toy section of the library before the other horrible human beings could follow.

Adam played happily for about two minutes until a little boy wandered over. We moved away to a nearby mirror. Our new friend, apparently without a guardian, joined the shot.

"He keeps FOLLOWING me!" was Adam's outraged cry.

Oh, boy after my own heart. Why do I need to change you?

File this under useless information

2012-01-10T16:51:00.001-05:00

So, I've had this pomegranate that I picked up with a rare spirit of adventure sitting on my counter for a couple weeks, mocking me.

I remember having some of this fruit as a girl and liking it. But I also have a more recent memory where I tried to reproduce this childhood experience and something wasn't right. I wasn't sure if my trouble was cutting into the fruit, or just with the taste.

Either way, I thought I'd try again.

Believe it or not, there is a correct way to cut these and it makes a difference.

Cut vertically through the stem (core?). Also, it might be good, if you value your clothing, to wear an apron or possibly an entire hazmat suit. This baby is messy. Lucky for me, I have no clothes that aren't already covered with stains and holes. It's my signature look.

Make another vertical cut and then pull the seeds away from the membranes by hand.

One tip I read was to drop the seeds in a bowl of water and the membranes should separate and float to the top. Kind of a scam but worked some of the time.

My kitchen looked like a violent crime scene by the time I'd finished.

After all that, I didn't find the seeds that wonderful. Love the flavor but hate the chewy texture. They taste just like those berries you know you probably shouldn't sample while wandering around in the woods. The kind where someone yells, "Hey, don't eat those!" That kind.

But, you know who really did like them?

Innocent little children. They devoured those seeds and screamed for more.

Kids keepin' it real

2012-01-02T19:48:00.000-05:00

It just might have something to do with the fact that I'm their mother, but I'm fascinated by the pictures my kids take. I had way too much fun going through our little camera today, deleting most shots and finding a few keepers from as far back as October.

They pose for each other in different ways than they might for me:

I love seeing the world they choose to frame and the items they find important.

There were more than a few hideous shots of me in various degrees of Bad Hair Day. I reserve the right to edit in this case.

I realized while clicking through the shots: these blurry, gritty moments are a truer representation of my life than the carefully cropped, often edited bits I choose to show.

Because the truth ain't always pretty. The truth has a lot of bad hair days in this house.

Just in case you were wondering.

Hobbled

2011-12-19T16:02:00.000-05:00

For a couple years Ethan has been complaining, usually at the end of a soccer season, that the bottom of his heels hurt. At first we thought it might be a mild injury, and later maybe just his shoes. It subsided for a while and then returned.

Since his soccer time has increased this past year, the pain came back and didn't leave. We tried new shoes, new inserts and enforcing rest periods. It would seem to get better, I would forget about it and then glance out at the soccer field and see him limping like an old man.

Finally, a week or two ago, after a visit to a specialist, he was diagnosed with Sever's Disease. Not a huge deal and not terribly uncommon in young athletes.

Now it's just a matter of icing, stretching, good support shoes and possibly limiting some of the time he's on his feet. The first three we can do. Limiting soccer? Not so sure.

6 years ago

2011-12-18T08:00:00.000-05:00

All through my pregnancy with you, I held my breath. Every time a nurse was unable to find your heartbeat and wandered off slowly to find a doctor, I closed my eyes and turned myself to stone. It happened a lot.

The morning before you were born we headed to the hospital because I couldn't feel you moving. I tried everything- the orange juice, lying on my side. Nothing. As we drove to the hospital, I was almost able to convince myself that you were already dead.

Just as we pulled in to the sprawling Beaumont campus, I felt it. A kick, a punch, something. And I knew with sudden clear joy, I wasn't leaving without you. The car seat would have a baby in it when we left the hospital this time.

I'll never forget the sound of your first cries. Loud, insistent wails. Such a contrast to the silent delivery before yours. Relief and joy and sadness. And so much joy.

Drew. You are creative and fun. You make us laugh almost every day. You don't really like hugs but you occasionally endure them for my sake. You've loved your little sister since you first put your hand on me and felt her move. You are a little bit of a mystery.

We love you and are so glad you're here.

Happy birthday!

Friday foto

2011-12-16T10:54:00.001-05:00

Plans

2011-12-11T12:02:00.000-05:00

What may or may not be included in this day:

::Christmas projects
::Decorating giant gingerbread man (Trader Joe's was sold out of the house kits)
::Homemade pumpkin spice latte (info here)...without pumpkin puree
::Comforting sick, fussy baby
::Skipping soccer

Back on the grid

2011-12-09T12:06:00.001-05:00

Snow is falling, the kids are playing quietly for the moment, and both of our computers are back in working order. Finally.

Computer trouble began last week with my geriatric laptop, It hobbled, stumbled, crashed and burned. For years now its use has generated enormous energy just short of puffing smoke so I really wasn't surprised by its sudden refusal to function.

The PC was another story. It's a fairly recent acquisition and the most accessible, used unit in the house. Completely fried.

Keith scrambled around and managed to get the laptop up and working(for now) and backed up the PC before eventually installing a new hard drive. Amazing and a little scary how we missed it.

So, that's my excuse for no Friday photo last week.

But, I've got one today!

There are quite a few things I will not be sad to see my children grow out of. Sprawling block creations are not one of them.

The forest in spite of the trees

2011-12-01T14:51:00.001-05:00

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.
-James Oppenheim

I've been struggling lately with my own tendency toward discontent. I see my own feelings mirrored in the whining of my oldest son, so much my clone.

When Ethan reports in an aggrieved tone that so-and-so in his class has a new ipad and this other one went on a cruise, I don't react well. I become annoyed at him, angry at the entitled brats, and exasperated at myself. Five minutes later, I find myself wishing I could buy him an ipad.

I've been feeling a desperate need to teach him how to be content. But how can I model this, when apparently I haven't learned it myself?

Thanksgiving, I thought. That will do the trick. We'll count our (many!) blessings. We'll name them one by one! We'll feel better! We'll all get some perspective here.

We tried.

I try. I purpose to put aside all whiny, unattractive behavior. The seal breaks off the dishwasher (again) and through clenched teeth I mutter my mantra, "Give thanks". The little things become so heavy, unrelenting. My resentment stacking up like falling snow. A lack of cupboard space reduces me to tears.

Three things helped me a little this past Sunday. A Fernando Ortega song, better than any sermon. An article I read after googling for help. Is there anything more pathetic than trying to save your child's soul with Google?

This rather random article was full of so many good reminders. Once again, I'm measuring my success by the wrong standards. Money and possessions. Comfort and ease. Sometimes it is all I can see.

Contentment is not gratification. We don't have to have everything we want. It is finding satisfication in what we do have. In savoring what is ours.

Sunday night I turned on 60 minutes and there was a segment about homeless children in Florida. They interviewed a girl who lived with her brother and father in a truck. Every morning they try to find a new gas station bathroom in which to brush their teeth before heading off to school. Her spirit was so strong and hopeful in spite of her circumstances. I was ashamed.

So, here I am. Surrounded by good things, a recipient of so much grace. Getting my focus back on those savor-worthy moments whenever they arise.

Friday

2011-11-25T20:14:00.001-05:00

Friday Foto

2011-11-18T13:23:00.000-05:00

How to spell Thanksgiving

2011-11-16T12:22:00.000-05:00

I've been looking forward to the Thanksgiving season. It's good for my mental health. Actively replacing all my natural discontent and worry with the reality of what's good. So many good things.

We plan to do the ol' listing of blessings at some point, whether I find an original way to do it or not. In fact, we do a daily version of this but it does become pretty rote.

Recently I came across the word "Obrigado" in a book and it brought back a flood of mostly-repressed memories from intern days in Rhode Island. A time when I carried around Portuguese flashcards in my scrubs, hoping to communicate with patients. Really, it was my supervisor I should have worried about. Sadly, there were no flashcards to help me speak petty tyrant.

This, with another post I'd seen recently using pasta letters to make name-cards, gave me an idea.

A banner with "thank-you" in several different languages. Good for the fine motor skills, pre-reading skills and more!

Friday Foto (Ethan's latest obsession)

2011-11-11T10:45:00.002-05:00

Yarn it all

2011-11-10T18:08:00.000-05:00

I recently tried my hand at dyeing yarn for the first time. I wanted to make duck feet for Sadie's costume but had no yellow yarn the right size. I did, however, have yellow food coloring and an old skein of white yarn. The transformation was so satisfying, I knew it would be something the kids would enjoy.

With the long weekend in mind, I bought several packets of Kool-Aid. Each of the boys picked 2 different colors, Ethan found directions for dyeing on Knitty and we were off. Some of the process in pictures, both low and high resolution:

We survived a four day weekend!

2011-11-08T15:18:00.000-05:00

Ethan and Drew had yesterday and today off from school. Some teacher professional development business or other. It's made for a bit of a lull in the usual routine, if life with four kids can ever have such a thing.

I didn't have anything spectacular planned other than keeping my head above water. I've found that kids have a way of happily filling up time themselves. Ok, not always happily. But, for the most part, we have had two fairly laid back days together which were badly needed.

There was:
-lots of raking (including one of our neighboring vacant homes)
-reading
-at least one game of Bananagrams
-soccer games (always)
-visits with neighborhood friends
-yes, there were quite a bit of Mario Striker games and SpongeBob episodes, I admit.
-one blessed 45 minute period when Keith took ALL the kids voting with him. I vacuumed in peace (did I just say that?) and when I finished vacuuming, I enjoyed every last second of quiet. The cat and I looked at each other. And smiled. (did I say that, too?)
-a visit to the library
-haircuts for two of the boys
-homemade tattoos (not my idea) which eventually just turned into stamping themselves
-a little bit of knitting (after the kids were in bed lest you think me so indulgent)
-one fun craft project involving yarn and Kool-Aid (more of that for a separate post)
-lots and lots of coffee
-and, oh yeah, way too much yelling and screaming and general fighting

There was NOT:
-any driving to and from soccer or school (Bless!)
-hateful morning poking and prodding to GET READY, brush your teeth, get dressed already! In actual clothes, please!
-packing of lunches
-homework (!) Yes, you heard me, NO homework! What are elementary schools coming to these days? So lax!
-no need to dress a certain way (No, you can't wear shorts and a t-shirt to school again, Ethan. People will judge me!)
-endless scraping of frost from car
-waiting in the Kindergarten car loop (although, I really kind of enjoy those quiet moments)
-an abundance of patience on my part. But that's nothing new.

(Video after all the angst)

2011-11-05T12:18:00.001-04:00

It's one thing to know your child is delayed. Another thing to stand in a children's shoe store, picking out her overpriced orthopedic shoes and observe her among peers. The contrast could break your heart. Or mine, really. There she stood as two twin girls just a little older than her, literally ran and climbed circles around her in every way possible.

It took a couple tries, but I finally found an orthopedic surgeon who knew what to do for Sadie. Other than calling her "he", this doctor sized up the situation quickly, saying that her problem is severe pronation and nothing more. Instead of the barbaric night-time splint thingy another doctor fancied, this one recommended specific orthotic additions to good shoes. More than I've ever spent on shoes for myself but hopefully effective.

In the meantime, as we wait for these diamond-encrusted specimens to arrive, she makes very slow progress at staying on her feet.

I grabbed the camera yesterday when she was outside taking some steps. I realized I haven't videotaped her in a long time because her milestones might look like failure to others. Time to change that.

Music: Simon and Garfunkel, "Feuilles-O"

Friday Foto

2011-11-04T10:40:00.002-04:00

Friday Foto

2011-10-28T19:08:00.000-04:00

Wax on

2011-10-24T17:26:00.001-04:00

Thank you, kind readers for your words of support. I just meant to post a photo and it turned into a whine session. Guess I needed to vent.

This weekend I was able to squeeze in some craft therapy, between soccer games and parties. Thanks again to pinterest for inspiration.

While on a walk last week, I even stumbled (almost literally) on a large supply of crayons at a yard sale. Brand new and dirt cheap. With this project in mind, I snapped them up quite happily.

In fact, Keith stopped by a flea market later in the week and brought home even more crayons for me. Total and irrefutable proof that this project was meant to be!

I had an old canvas of Grandpa S's in mind. I'm quite sure this was not one of his intended uses for this surface. Definitely more Bob Ross than Degas. Sorry, Grandpa!

Ethan wielded the hair dryer for the first five minutes or so. The boys gathered round and oohed and ahhed.

The wax cooperated and began melting quickly although it took many minutes more to melt the whole crayon. I taped rather than hot glued the crayons on because I wanted to remove them after the melting. This had the effect of insulating them which prolonged the process.

Next time (!), less dark colors (as suggested). When the melted colors mixed, they turned out a little darker than I really like.

Otherwise, a masterpiece!

Bit by bit

2011-10-21T20:08:00.000-04:00

(Friday foto)

It takes a little time
To get around
To doin’ it my way.
I’m gettin’ around to it,
Bit by bit,
In my own way.

Sixteen months and she is just starting to take some steps on her own. Next week we have an appointment with the foot doctor. Sometimes I feel like I'm being eaten alive by the constant worries gnawing at me from every direction. Because that's not at all melodramatic. It's just life, I know.

Adam has flunked out of preschool. Ethan has heel pain that won't go away. Drew is just Drew. And Sadie...always with the issues. Always.

And life just gets faster and faster and I get more behind.

Wow, that was depressing.

Friday, already?

2011-10-14T12:59:00.000-04:00

Foto for Friday

2011-10-07T14:43:00.000-04:00

I'm going to take on a Soule Mama practice of posting a photo every Friday.
This is how she describes it:

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Drew and I watch fit people run by

2011-10-02T13:00:00.001-04:00

The Brooksie Way half-marathon and 5K shuts down our town for a few hours every October. The route passes very close to our house and every year I mean to check it out.

So, this morning I tried to motivate the boys to get out of the house with me. I announced there would be a PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST! SO MUCH FUN! And a PRIZE, even! A PRIZE for the best photograph!

Ethan demanded to know what the prize would be. All I could offer was a lollipop left over from his party favors. Not good enough for him.

But Drew was excited about getting his "own" camera and came along eagerly.

He took over 200 pictures.

We hung out around mile 8, clapped, cheered, and watched the hordes run, walk and stagger by.

I noticed Drew was really getting into his photography. He even got some shots of me.

Camera wars ensued.

Drew took at least 20 shots of paper cups and maybe as many of his own feet.

I was impressed by some of his pictures, though. And I loved watching his enthusiasm for the process grow.

Walking back from the race, Drew said, "Let's do this every year!"

I heart technology

2011-09-27T14:19:00.000-04:00

I have finally entered the modern world of smart phones. And just in time.

I'm most excited about experimenting with the various phone apps right now because I have to take a break from the Nikon. I managed to damage some of the nerves in my right hand using that very heavy camera.

Strange but true.

Iphone to the rescue.

Lonely as a cloud

2011-09-21T13:38:00.001-04:00

By some freak of nature, I actually won a book this summer. Kids' Crafternoon Sewing, part of a craft series for kids, thanks to a giveaway on Floating Ink. Pretty exciting stuff!

It's a colorful, fun book full of great beginner projects and ideas. Hopefully it will inspire Sadie to try out her nifty sewing machine someday.

Or the boys, if they so desire. It's just easier to think of in a far-off, dreamy sort of way. Everything is possible in the future. Just don't ask me to teach anyone to sew TODAY. I can barely wrap my brain around tonight's math homework.

I did give the cloud pillow a whirl. Just looked fun to me. Whimsical and weird enough.

I like to use 100% wool stuffing rather than the poly-fill stuff for some projects. It feels a thousand times better. I buy mine from a Mennonite farm in PA. Over the phone (how quaint!) but they are reasonable and shipping is quick. (Earl Woolen Mill: 717-859-2241)

It looks like what clouds are made of.

Sew, a needle pulling thread

2011-09-18T17:00:00.000-04:00

This summer I became the owner of a brand new sewing machine. Brought to me by birthday money and Craigslist. During a hasty exchange at a random gas station, a woman about my age took my cash and handed over the box. She told me with a look of mild disgust that the machine had been a birthday present to her. Her birthday loss, my birthday gain.

A few days ago, I finally got the chance to try it out. It's a Singer, like my old machine and a pretty basic model but definitely an improvement. It's smooth and quiet and has a few more options. I can't believe the difference it makes.

My first project was simple, basically just sewing pieces of elastic. The tutorial found here. (thanks for the inspiration, Shannon!) I was reminded of this idea while going through Sadie's old clothes. Old tights become knee-high socks. Simply by cutting and sewing elastic at the top.

A couple weeks before my Craigslist find, I dug through debris at a nearby estate sale to uncover a beauty of another sort. No one else in the family currently sees its potential. I'm hoping Sadie will someday will agree with me. Because it's for her.

I showed it to her today.

Not the reaction I was hoping for.

First she attempted to poke out her eye.

Next, she sampled the antique thread.

It's missing a needle but supposedly it really works. I hope she gets some use out of it someday.

Dont worry, be happy now

2011-09-09T20:33:00.000-04:00

I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought,
and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.
G. K. Chesterton

I'm feeling less than thankful at the moment. Really kind of sick to my stomach over some bad news today. Not earth-shattering-someone's-dying kind of news, just car-trouble-money-stressfulness. An ideal time to focus on other things. And hope that it helps.

Around noon today, the sun poked out. I assumed it was fleeting and ran to get my camera.

Trying to keep ahead of Sadie's ravenous wailing (if I let her she would eat every food item in the house, perishable and non) and frantic signs for "MORE, MORE!", I snapped a few pictures of my favorite flower. Who cares if they're a little brown around the edges? They manage a cheerfulness I could never achieve.

After getting Adam settled at the table with food, the sun was still around so I snapped a few more pictures of my latest knitting obsession. The boy hat. So far, so good. And the yarn (Malabrigo) is just right.

I'm looking forward to making a couple of these, maybe even three if I can stretch 2 skeins that far.

Even though I'm still getting the occasional tomato out of my own garden, it was nice to get 3 gorgeous, ripe ones all at once, along with some peppers, from a friend of Keith's.

Salsa came to mind and I tried this recipe, via Smitten Kitchen. It was perfect.

(A food photographer I am not)

Because we somehow had an excess of milk (that never happens), I made some yogurt today. It's really just a few minutes of stirring and keeping it warm for a few hours after that. Believe me, it tastes a lot better than it looks here.

Drew was supposed to have his first soccer practice on Wednesday but it was canceled and rescheduled twice since then because of rain. It is several miles away and I wouldn't even have attempted it myself without a car but Keith was home today and decided he could do it. By bike. With all the boys. He is braver than I.

I'm glad I recently finished my custom safety flag for our bike trailer.

Sadie and I hung out at home and listened to her cry for a couple hours. Idyllic. Like in the movies.

But I did manage to get a photo of her boots in the three seconds that she wore them.

Now I'm sitting here trying not to bite my nails as it gets darker and darker and the boys aren't home yet. Back to square one.

He's four!

2011-09-05T13:27:00.000-04:00

Today is his birthday. This week he starts preschool. I'm keeping expectations very low. It's going to be a crazy ride.

I get knocked down

2011-09-04T09:04:00.002-04:00

I'm regularly impressed by the life lessons soccer teaches. Ugh. That sentence. Sounds like something an overindulgent, overextended soccer mom might trumpet.

Although organized team sports weren't a part of my own childhood, I've heard all those "life lessons" cliches for years and knew there was some truth to them. Just how much truth is something I'm discovering through my own sons.

Yes, there are the usual ones: patience, determination, focus, discipline. All of which can be learned outside of sport. Still, there is something about learning to accept and recover from mistakes, defeat and embarrassment in a very public way, that is powerful.

It may seem cruel to thrust a child with a sensitive, emotional nature into this arena. A child like Ethan. But that's the beauty of it. Ethan wants to participate. The thrill and enjoyment are all wrapped up in lessons he can't get away from. He keeps going back for more.

Yesterday, during an intense tournament game, Ethan made an awful blunder. As his opponent took a shot on goal, Ethan attempted to jump up and head the ball away. Instead, the ball bounced backward into his own goal.

Oh, the groaning. And that was just me.

I knew Ethan would not react well and sure enough, he shuffled off the field, in tears. His coach, not unkindly, shouted words I was mumbling under my own breath, "Get over it, get over it!" and forced him to continue. And, just like that, he did.

The game was a 3-1 loss. Ethan was predictably a black cloud on the way to the car. And yet, by the time we reached home, he was mostly recovered, already full of enthusiasm for the next game. Measurably different from past years.

Even a joyful life is tempered by mistakes, adversity and things we just plain don't like. I want my children to respond with grace and resilience rather than wallow in the sidelines of shame and self-pity. Something I'm still trying to learn myself.

Angry Birds come to life

2011-09-02T14:47:00.000-04:00

I saw this idea on Pinterest several weeks ago and had to pin it for future fun. Pure brilliance, I tell you! Since then, we've been on the lookout for rocks the right size and shape. We picked up one or two in northern Michigan and a few more in NH.

We started painting the rocks this week. Ethan helped draw some of the pig faces.

While out shopping today for last-minute school supplies, we stopped by a dollar store and were excited to find the same water-toy slingshots used in the original post. They worked well, once the boys got the hang of them.

Elaborate structures for the pigs were soon springing up.

Angry birds began flying.

Kingdoms were destroyed.

The only thing missing, that distinctive mumbo-jumbo battle cry of the vigilante birds and their piggy nemeses.

Doing the next thing

2011-08-31T19:14:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe this month is almost over. A week of "firsts" is around the corner. Ethan starts fourth grade, Drew kindergarten and Adam heads to preschool. Soccer practices, already in full swing for Ethan, will become more of a challenge with Drew soon in the mix.

August has been busy- Ethan's birthday party (pictures here), soccer and our trip East (more pictures), filling up our days.

I keep waiting for life to slow down a little bit, to catch my breath, to feel caught up. Not gonna happen. Once school starts, life generally tends to get even busier.

Deep breaths. September, here we come!

A day at the museum

2011-08-14T15:27:00.002-04:00

Our city has been part of an exhibit sponsored by the DIA. In return, residents were offered free admission to the museum today. I've been wanting to go, but unsure how the kids would do.

This was the perfect chance to try it out, risk-free. We wouldn't have to feel bad walking away in case of major meltdowns since we hadn't paid a cent.

I knew by reputation that it was worth seeing and it did not disappoint. Ah, Detroit and its hidden jewels.

The boys did well, for the most part. Inside voices were strongly encouraged. No Picassos were defaced. Running and jumping kept to a minimum.

We let Sadie out of the stroller for a little romp and photo ops. She delighted us all by attempting to stand right beneath Van Gogh's self-portrait.

The cheering that resulted was not entirely appropriate for a museum, I'm afraid.

In the end, it was the usual hunger pangs that drove us out. Everyone was STARVING and I wasn't about to whip out goldfish under the watchful gaze of the Postman Roulin.

Culture. A little bit never killed anyone.

(More pictures here)

Guest post: Ethan blogs the Au Sable river

2011-08-06T13:05:00.000-04:00

The canoe trip was one of the activities we participated in while in Grayling. Drew, Daddy and I went on the canoe trip. It was 3 hours. Drew was sitting in the middle. He did not paddle.

The weather was perfect. When we were about 10 minutes through the course there was an overhanging branch from a birch tree. We all saw it. We started paddling away from the branch but the stream was carrying us towards the branch. Finally it came to the top of the canoe. It skimmed the end of it.

I tried to duck but it was too low. It happened all so suddenly I do not remember exactly what happened but the next thing I know I was lying in the middle of the boat with my head hurting.

After 3 hours of paddling we got to the finishing station. I had a great time.

Sun, sand and soldiers

2011-08-03T21:07:00.000-04:00

We've been home from our little vacation now for over a week but I still like to pretend I'm back there. Minus the bugs, thank you very much.

We tried a couple different beaches on nearby Lake Margrethe. The one time I didn't bring my camera was the only occasion we brought along our raft. It was later punctured after that one use.

Enough of that, though. We were able to gain access to a military base, Camp Grayling, in order to try out the beach there. It was largely empty and we enjoyed our long stretch of sand.

Keith filled me in on statistics about the base. Apparently it is the largest National Guard training spot in the U.S. It's not every day you glance behind your shoulder and suddenly become aware of several camouflaged men crouching below the trees, rifles up and pointed in your direction. A minute later, gone.

Very creepy.

Here's a little clip from the beach. If you watch closely, you can see a few soldiers running by in the far background.

Nothing like a well protected vacation.

Coming soon: Guest post!

Up North

2011-07-24T16:34:00.000-04:00

We've wanted to explore northern Michigan since we moved here. The furthest north I've been was Muskegon although Keith has traveled more. We generally try to reserve travel energy (and money) for our trips East and South to visit family.

But, this summer, thanks to a generous offer, we've been able to see some more of this great state. We aren't all the way north but close. A friend offered the use of his family cabin and we were excited to accept.

Discovery number 1: Northern Michigan has the coolest bunk beds ever. At least this place does. The boys are in heaven.

It's been a bit wet since we arrived but we've been able to check out the lake nearby (Keith and the boys have anyway) and visit an elk herd which was pretty spectacular, really.

The weather is looking good for the next couple days. I'm so thankful that the kids will have these memories.

Hot enough?

2011-07-21T15:02:00.000-04:00

It's hot. Too hot to think. So here's what we did.

Amazing what a little soap and water can do to cool things off.

And just how much kids can accomplish when they are having fun.

The boys ended up cleaning one Ford, one Little Tikes Cozy Coupe, one bike and each other. Not bad for a scorching hot, summer day.

Refreshment

2011-07-21T11:00:00.000-04:00

I didn't have a great camera yesterday but I still want to mention one of the ways we tried to beat the heat.

I saw a recipe for Watermelon Granitas on Pioneer Woman and with a watermelon sitting in the fridge, the timing was just right.

I didn't have limes so I used a lemon and it came out great. Watermelon, cut up, then pureed with a little lemon juice and a couple tablespoons of sugar. Freeze it and scrape it up with a fork.

Serve!

More fun than...

2011-07-16T22:12:00.002-04:00

I have a new blog favorite. Young House Love with all of it's DIY charm and intrigue. Inspiring and depressing as all good websites tend to be.

Clicking around the site I found a post in which the couple learned to make their own rain barrel. I've wanted one but never thought of looking into workshops. Behold, I did a search and there was one within reasonable driving distance.

Ethan was going to accompany me but sadly gave in to the lure of video games and stayed behind. Probably for the best since I got turned around about a hundred times on my trip, anxiety climbing almost to driving-in-Boston levels. Almost.

My biggest surprise, upon arriving five minutes late, was that no one even noticed. People were milling around, moving freely from one station to the next. No one was tapping their foot, pointing at a watch, sighing at my tardiness. Such are the fears of the neurotically punctual.

Armed with the world's worst cell phone camera, I managed to document the work of my helper who did virtually everything for me.

I picked out a barrel and put my initials on it. That's it. I overheard rumors that the barrels originally housed pickles or olives. Or both? Either way, for $20, they were a steal.

My young helper first covered the top with a screen.

Then he covered the back of a spigot (listen to my jargon!) with caulking (again!) and screwed it into a pre-drilled hole.

Too bad you can't actually see it. Just use your imagination.

Next, he asked where I would like the overflow hole to go, depending on where I planned to put it in the yard. Um, just put it...there. Whatever.

That was it. Done!

And then I was accosted by an inquisitive couple on the way to my car asking why I had that barrel and what I planned to use it for. DUH.

At home, Keith promptly hooked it right up to its final resting place.

Some statistics that might make you jealous of my new acquisition:

"After just one inch of rainfall, the average roof will collect more than 500 gallons of fresh, naturally softened water."

"An average family can collect 45,000 gallons of rainwater a year."

"Rainwater runoff can carry harmful chemicals, fertilizers, and pesticides into our city sewers. By collecting rainwater and distributing it on dry, summer days (when plants need it most) you are helping to keep our rivers and lakes clean."

Happy, Al?

A curious ancient pastime

2011-07-15T18:37:00.000-04:00

Goal: Freshen up this old, incomplete croquet set, found free beside the road in our ol' Birmingham days. A little crazy. Just an aside, people make their own toilet paper. I'm not so bad.

And nothing's crazy when you are stuck with four kids and no car for far longer than is decent. With the possibility of many more car-less days. Thank you, competent people of the mechanic world.

Although I actually kind of like the old muted colors, I thought some fresh paint might be fun. Transformation brought to you by paintbrushes, a rag and a rubber band.

Next step: learn the fine points of croquet. And make some hoops.

One (or two, or three) ingredient ice-cream

2011-07-07T19:48:00.000-04:00

One ingredient ice-cream. It couldn't possibly be any good. I figured it had to be one of those nasty, health tricks like substituting carob for chocolate or applesauce for oil. Especially when the one ingredient is bananas.

But I bookmarked it anyway. We always seem to have one or two random bananas hanging around and, at the very least, it could be a good way to use them up.

This morning I gave Ethan the task of reading the recipe and performing the first few steps while I was busy with something else. You'd think I asked him to decipher hieroglyphics. This child needs more time in the kitchen.

If you ever need a few (hundred) yawns, get your eight-year-old to cut two bananas into small rounds. Like watching the grass grow. S O S L O W.

Ethan was under the mistaken impression that we were supposed to then cook the bananas. Good thing I'd read the directions ahead of time. We stuck them in the freezer instead.

Late afternoon we took them out, popped them in my ancient food processor and chopped, as directed. Behold, creamy bananas! Delicious all by themselves.

Ethan insisted we add peanut butter as the link suggests and if he'd had his way we would have thrown in any other sugary substance we had lying around. I let him add some caramel sauce, we returned it to the freezer to harden up a little and after dinner it was done.

Quite good, really. Not ice cream but not carob either.

Try, try again and again and...

2011-07-05T11:46:00.000-04:00

Visual-spatial skills. I wish I had some. It would probably help a lot with the 'ol sewing ventures.

A few months ago, in time for Drew's graduation I managed to pull off a major sewing feat. Ties (purl bee pattern) for each of the boys and a dress and bonnet for Sadie. All in the same lovely Joel Dewberry(Chestnut branch eggplant) fabric.

That was before we found out that Drew would be wearing a "robe" of sorts (a white dress shirt of Keith's) for the ceremony. I still haven't photographed them all together.

The bonnet turned out to be pretty small (not to mention Adam's tie being a little large--that was on purpose, though) so I set about modifying the pattern to make a new one. How hard could it be? Just make the lines around the current pattern a little bigger, right?

Wonky. And still a little small to be truly functional. Cute, though.

A few days ago, I attempted the 90 minute shirt from Made. Only problem is, you make your own pattern.

I tried using a couple old t-shirts of Keith's. First try was a disaster. The arms were a puzzle to me. I stared and reread and stared at her detailed tutorial without comprehension.

I forged ahead. Behold:

Finally, on my second attempt, it clicked.

Not perfect but better. Also, a serger would help.

In the words of my wise A&P professor, "You don't have to be smart to be successful. You just have to be persistent."

U pick

2011-06-28T16:22:00.000-04:00

After years of meaning to get out and try it, I finally managed to take the boys strawberry picking today, just before the season ended.

The morning could not have been nicer. Warm but breezy, perfect for picking.

Ethan was our master picker. He got right to work and gathered the majority of berries and would have stayed longer if I let him.

In the meantime, I tried to juggle my camera and Adam and Drew.

Adam did really well. He didn't fuss at all. Mostly he just stood still and ate berries.

Poor Drew was the one somehow baffled by the whole thing. "But, how do I pick them?"

"Just grab one and PULL IT OFF!"

"But HOW?" Moan, whine, wail, groan, give up.

We spent about an hour in the fields before giving in to Drew's pleas and demands.

10 pounds of beautiful, red, deliciousness! Ethan is full of plans for what we can make with them.

How bout them apples?

2011-06-20T10:17:00.000-04:00

I almost never buy books new, what with this little thing we have called a library. Especially not recipe books, thanks to Al Gore's invention and all.

This book is one exception I treated myself to years ago after reading reviews on various blogs.

It is the happiest, most charming cookbook I've ever seen. Worth buying just for the photography. Almost makes cooking seem like something I'd like to spend time on.

The recipes? Oh yeah. I've tried a few. They've all been good.

The other night the cupboards were suddenly quite bare, the masses were grumbling and I went to this book for help. Apple bread. We had three apples left, one turned out to be rotten but only two were needed. Success!

Relatively healthy and really very good.

There were only a few crumbs left for us to fight over the next morning.

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-19T16:23:00.000-04:00

(Niles beach, Gloucester, MA, 1975)

I didn't go overboard

2011-06-15T19:26:00.000-04:00

For Sadie's birthday, I had visions of tulle and flowers and all things nice. I've never been a girly, frou-frou type and do not get me started on child beauty pageants. But. After three boys I seem to have this need for a little glitz.

On the way home from soccer practice, I stopped by Jo-anne's with four sweaty, red-faced, muddy children to pick out some tulle. I considered a lovely shade of purple or green but the boys insisted on pink. No lie.

I was going to use this tutorial (sewing required) but eventually chose the no-fuss, no-sew one here, bookmarked sometime during my pregnancy with Sadie. I'm glad I did.

At the craft store, I also found the perfect flower edging which helped finish the waistband. I made a headband to match. The flowers are just strips of white fabric sewn on elastic in a circular pattern.

Not a hit with Sadie.

It didn't help that she was miserable and sick on her birthday. She wailed and squirmed and yanked at the torturous accessories until I finally took pity on her and removed them.

Will save them for another day.

Browsing through other people's rejects at a thrift store a few days before Sadie's birthday, I noticed a particular candle-holder and remembered another project I've had in the back of my mind for a while. (Check out her other awesome DIY ideas)

A cakestand! I've been wanting one and there was the perfect candleholder for $1. I searched for a plate that seemed to match and found one for $2.

Glue them together, let dry and you're done.

Adds drama to any cake.

Birthday girl

2011-06-14T18:08:00.000-04:00

I am not one to romanticize phases of child-rearing. Least of all, the newborn drudgery. But I have found, not surprisingly, a growing confidence with each child and as a result, enjoyed Sadie's early baby days more than her brothers'. Long ago I threw out the stopwatch used to time feedings, the Babywise book that made me feel like a failure and only tried to take her temperature once in the first year of her life.

Armed with previous experience, low expectations and the memory of how quickly it passes, I resolved to enjoy every moment possible.

And here we are. One year later. I'm so glad I made a point to notice those squeaky baby noises while they lasted. To enjoy the excited discovery of older brothers.

That ability to sleep soundly surrounded by noise.

The sleepy smiles. The legs pulled up tight as she curled against my chest. That perfect fit under my chin.

I worked extra hard at that living-in-the-moment thing; anxiety, sleepless nights and clamoring siblings notwithstanding.

I'm also glad I took about a million pictures. Already I've forgotten so much.

Happy birthday to my baby. I can't wait for all the moments this next year brings.

Soccer envy

2011-06-10T15:11:00.001-04:00

I've been walking around with this quote in my head recently, "Comparison is the thief of joy".

I have almost always lived in communities where the general population is more affluent than I am. I'm kind of used to it. But it's something else to see it through the eyes of your own children. To demand contentment as I struggle with it myself.

We've been tying ourselves in knots this soccer season, wondering what to do for Ethan in the future. He has played this past year in a "developmental league", part of a popular soccer club he's been with for years.

Coaches have been telling us he is ready for the next level, a travel team. Of course, these coaches work for the club and are also salesmen. They offer dreams of soccer happiness and prestige. They make it sound necessary. I let myself buy into it.

Unfortunately, it's a pricey dream. I don't like to talk (whine) about finances on my blog. But it's a part of life and unavoidable sometimes. The best travel teams charge at least $1300 per year around these parts.

Yes, we are talking about a child playing a sport. Just a game. Which Ethan loves. Which Ethan is good at and passionate about. It's something we would like to give him.

I looked around for alternatives and thanks to a good recommendation, thought I'd found one. A team with the added benefit of including many of Ethan's school friends. I took Ethan to a couple practices to check it out. Unfortunately, our hopes were dashed when the projected price for next season was presented.

I must admit,initially, I thought we could do it and was ready to push for it. Then I slept on it and found some sense. Yes, it would be possible but not at all responsible. We have three other children. This is soccer we are talking about.

I got some perspective. Realized that this was probably more about my own ego, wanting to be part of the best, wanting Ethan to be among the best, than anything else. I was feeling the need to give my children what all the children around them seem to have.

We're not talking about feeding or clothing or educating my child. We are talking about kicking a ball.

And I had a good ol' ugly cry but now I'm done. I think.

We can still put Ethan back in the same league for one more year and worry about what to do later. It's a good league, with good coaches and honestly, when I get my head on straight, I realize it's more than enough.

Now, to tell Ethan.

Just add paint

2011-05-31T15:08:00.002-04:00

We had a giant concrete canvas and kids itching to make a mess. We had sunshine (finally!) and a hose for washing up the mess (and cooling off.) We had the internet for ideas and a three-day weekend to fill.

What more can you ask for?

It didn't take long before paint was being applied to body parts. I'm here to tell you that food coloring does not wash off skin as easily as you might think.

Sidewalk paint recipe here. Cornstarch, water and food coloring are all you need.

Crafting (with caveat)

2011-05-17T12:52:00.000-04:00

Drew missed out on a classroom project recently due to my neglect. Wouldn't be the first time I forgot to send in money for something. Ah, the guilt when he was the only student to walk out without a personalized plastic plate to treasure.

Drew takes these things very much in stride and probably forgot in minutes. Even so, I remembered making similar plates myself with my sisters many moons ago. We ate from them for years and had fun disparaging the primitive drawings. Nothing like a little mocking to make good memories.

I looked around online and found some kits. I then tried to weigh the possible evils of melamine against good old fashioned memory making. In the end, laziness won. Or the need to do some dishes.

A week or two later, I saw this craft over at Alpha Mom. Done by one of my favorite bloggers, no less. And it looked perfect.

I found a few plates, cups and mugs (dinnerware? servingware?) at a thrift store, dirt cheap. The paint pens were from Michael's, not so cheap. I told the kids about the idea and they were all pretty enthused. Good ammunition for a rainy weekend when Keith might have to work. Oh wait, that's every weekend.

(Which also explains the poor picture quality of most of these shots. Rain and lack of a good camera.)

Once primed, the pens worked like a dream and the fun began. The boys loved it. They would have marked up every dish in sight, if I let them.

Disclaimer: When all is said and done, I may just throw out the dishes that have writing on the inside. Either that, or use them to hold art supplies.

When setting the paint in the oven at 300 degrees, the house smelled like formula being made in China. Really bad chemical smell. I can't guarantee the safety of these pens on dishware. The label on the pens says simply, "Use on virtually any surface: metal, pottery, wood, rubber, glass, plastic, stone and more." No mention of safety.

Ah well, in the meantime, they are still great for decorating the outside of dishes.

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-07T10:03:00.006-04:00

"Life began with waking up and loving my mother's face"
George Eliot

Not just a salad with walnuts

2011-05-04T14:49:00.017-04:00

Play silks. Not much on my radar before. One of those vague, Waldorfy, peace & love kind of playthings. Something I could not picture my boys ever using.

Even so, I really liked the idea of dyeing them with Koolaid. I've been seeing this online quite a bit, and figured the boys would at least enjoy that process.

I found the most reasonable silks at this site. They come in a wide variety of sizes.

There's a whole ton of tutorials out there. We used vinegar, food coloring and Koolaid, bought specifically for this project (yes, I'm hippie enough to shun the stuff as a food).

It was a fun exploration of color. The boys enjoyed the importance of selecting their own hue, then mixing and measuring. We all enjoyed the results.

It really is amazing all the ways these little squares of color can be used.

Although, I'm not entirely sure a blood-red-battlefield-for-Playmobil-soldiers was one play scheme Rudolf Steiner would have endorsed.

Happenings

2011-04-21T10:22:00.005-04:00

I haven't reported about the syrup experiment because it was largely a failure. I'm really not sure what went wrong. We knew we wouldn't get much sap because it was late in the season. I was hoping it would be a good practice run for next year.

We had a little less than a gallon to boil and figured from research that it would produce about half a cup of real syrup. When it boiled down to that amount, I tested the syrup. It was sweet and starting to turn brown (a definite improvement over the sap itself which Ethan declared "tastes like watery tree") but still quite watery so I let it boil a little longer. Too long, in fact. It became impossibly thick.

The real tragedy is that, thick or thin, the syrup had a strange aftertaste and just didn't taste very maple-y. Sweet but strange. Maybe we have the wrong kind of trees or maybe they are diseased? I don't know. Disappointing.

In other news, we have started the process of getting Sadie evaluated for early intervention services. If she qualifies, she will receive services for free in the home, so, in spite of all the red tape, it's worth a try. Since my initial call to the program a couple weeks ago, she is rolling over and becoming slowly more mobile. We've been working hard with her.

Next Friday is her evaluation and really I'm not sure whether I want her to qualify or not.

Yesterday, Sadie clapped for the first time. For Ethan. She was sitting on the kitchen floor and Ethan was playing with her as I raced around throwing food together for dinner. Ethan called out, "She's doing it! She's clapping!" Drew and Adam came running and we all surrounded her, clapping along and exclaiming. Sadie screamed and gurgled with delight. One of those moments that makes you happy to be right where you are.

Just in time

2011-04-11T13:22:00.005-04:00

"A little madness in the Spring
Is wholesome even for the King"

We finally got a prolonged taste of sunshine and warmth yesterday. Like moles blinking in the sunlight, we emerged, pulled out patio furniture and basked. Ah. It felt good.

It's probably a little premature but nothing could hold back the flip-flops, shorts and bubble soap.

And, of course, the mud.

Anticipation

2011-03-31T14:11:00.012-04:00

We've got a lot to look forward to around these parts. Spring break starts tomorrow and hopefully, very soon, spring itself will pay a visit. One can always dream.

Ethan just finished winter soccer and will start the busy spring (did you hear me, spring?) season soon. Drew is excited to be playing micro soccer as well. I'm fairly confident he is ready, unlike the last time we tried. 4 days a week of soccer! I'm going to pretend that makes me really happy.

We are also excited about a new girl cousin, soon to be born! Any day now, right Claire? I can't wait to see pictures, and someday meet her in person. In the meantime, making stuff for her is the best I can do.

Of course, I'm going to show you what I made. Musn't disappoint.

I finally tried out Christine's Baby Booties, a popular pattern kicking around ravelry and the knitting world for years. Wish I'd tried it sooner for my own babies.

Had to make Sadie a pair after I finished these. They really do stay on better than any other sock or soft shoe she has. I used a combination of old stash sock yarn for Sadie's so they aren't beautiful but they are warm with room to grow.

Claire told me about a great product she had her eye on called a diaper clutch. It's a changing pad which includes a pocket for storing wipes/diapers and rolls up for easy portability. There are some really nice ones available on etsy and a whole lot of free tutorials and variations online.

I decided to attempt one, using a very straightforward tutorial found here. I found I had some vinyl in my stash which seemed perfect for the changing pad side and paired that with a heavy-weight cotton for the outside.

I liked it so much, I had to make one for myself. Quick, easy, cheap and practical. My kind of project.

Also much anticipated: Maple syrup, if we are able to gather enough sap. More to come on that if spring cooperates.

Lovely Limbo Land

2011-03-15T13:58:00.011-04:00

Back in August, as I prepared for Sadie's two-month checkup, my only concern was the possibility that she was developing a flat spot (plagiocephaly) on her head, just like Adam had at her age.

That appointment marked the end of any carefree Sadie days.

I haven't blogged about this because it is complicated and still far from being resolved but now I feel ready to try.

Sadie's pediatrician did confirm a mild case of plagiocephaly and recommended physical therapy which we later followed up on. As the routine checkup was ending, the doctor turned and asked if my or Keith's eyes were blue like Sadie's. At first I thought she was referring to the color of our iris (irises? IRI?) but finally understood she meant the white part, or sclera of the eyeball.

Mine were not blue so she said to check Keith's eyes when I got home and we could discuss it at our next visit. "But, what would it mean if his were not blue?," I asked. " Well, it could be a sign of a disease which effects the development of collagen in your bones. It is very rare so try not to lose any sleep over it."

Yeah, thanks for that.

Once home, I was not reassured by the color of Keith's sclera (which were normal) or by the ever so helpful elves of Google. The name of the very rare disease: Osteogenesis Imperfecta,(free nightmares found here) or brittle bone disease.

I lost a little sleep over that. And I began to handle Sadie with extra care. With fear and trembling, in fact. And tried not to feel robbed of my last-baby joys.

I had noticed one other thing about her since day one. Her joints popped frequently and easily. If I shifted her weight while feeding her, her shoulders cracked so loudly, I expected her to scream out in pain. It never appeared to bother her though and later her doctor said that could be normal for her age.

At her next appointment, Sadie's doctor recommended we see a specialist, if just to get some reassurance and rule out any problem.

We had to wait a couple months for an opening and in the meantime kept our seats in the roller coaster of fear, denial and optimism. If she did have a type of OI, it was certainly a mild one since she had no broken bones or other obvious markers.

Turns out there's a whole lot of fun and exciting syndromes that like to hang out in the blue sclera club. Deformity, pain and shortened life expectancy, take your pick! A doctor who was filling in for our usual pediatrician told me about another possibility called Elher Danlos (more good times, here!). She was attempting to give me hope, because a mild version of this disease is much more preferable to mild OI.

Like I said, complicated.

In November, we dragged all the kids, except Ethan who was in school, down to Detroit to see a specialist. For the most part, we left feeling reassured. The doctor said he could see nothing obviously wrong except for her sclera which were a little bluer than normal and could still change over time, generally by one year of age. With these kinds of diseases, the symptoms are the biggest diagnostic clues and until the time something suspicious presents itself, such as an easily broken bone, it is best to just wait and see. He didn't find our reports of her flexibility or popping joints impressive.

All good.

Sadie just turned nine months and as much as I try not to obsessively check out her eyes in every possible light, I still take note of them. They are still the same, as far as I can tell.

Her joints still pop, although maybe not as much. She is still hyper flexible.
In fact, almost every night she gets her legs caught up inside her sleeper because she pulls them up close to her chest. I keep trying to find things she can wear that prevent this.

She was slow to roll over and even though she finally did right after she turned six months, she still won't do it very often. If I put her down on her back, she's content to lie there for the most part. We work to motivate her to roll and to creep while on her stomach.

I worry about whether I should be worried or not.

Tomorrow is her nine month checkup and I'm hoping I'll get some answers. To be honest, I'm not even sure what the questions are any more.

Updated to add:
I realized after I posted this that I probably painted a bleaker picture than I meant to. We are not sitting around feeling gloomy, for the most part. We feel hopeful.

Sadie is not in any pain and seems happy most of the time. Other than the milestones I mentioned, she is developing normally.

It's just hard to have unanswered questions.

This little light

2011-03-13T14:19:00.012-04:00

I'm in the habit of heading over to Whipup whenever low on inspiration. Before I know it, I'm frantically bookmarking one idea after another. Tis a literal portal of crafty goodness.

A couple weeks ago, Whipup offered a digital "mini-mag", the Action Pack, full of creative, kid-friendly ideas, accompanied by beautiful photographs and step by step instructions. It has so many activities I know my kids would enjoy. All for $5.

Knowing that I had all the materials available, I was itching to try making our own beeswax candles since I bought it. This weekend, in spite of Ethan's almost constant work on a school project due tomorrow, we found some time to try it out.

I told the boys we were going to make candles and asked each of them, starting with Adam, how they thought we might do this. Good thing I had a voice recorder nearby.

Adam, "Mix the jellyfish(!) and put the candle in it and then put a salt in it and that's it."

Drew, "You get a jar and then a white thing and then a string and then a 'firematch'."

Ethan, " You take one of those white cup thingies and um, have that stick thingy sticking out of it and then pour the wax and then let it dry and then burn the stick in the middle."

Ok then.

I dug up a LARGE brick of beeswax and we began the daunting process of whittling it down to a more manageable size. The grater was tedious but the most reliable tool.

I think I might need a new one now.

We also grated some small crayon stubs for color although I think this might have been unnecessary, really. They were small enough to melt fairly quickly.

Ethan and I took turns with the melting. I used a double boiler method with a small saucepan and glass bowl, keeping the heat around medium.

We added essential oils for scents. Some choose peppermint, one lavender. Ethan asked if there was a bubble gum flavor.

Once melted, the wax was poured into little glass containers which we had already prepared with wicks (or white, stick thingies). That's it!

We were all pretty pleased with our accomplishments.

Now, for the clean up.

Winter bug hunt

2011-03-05T20:15:00.007-05:00

I recently stocked our "Chore Store" (story for another day) with items I grabbed from the $1 Target shelves. Some really great bug hunting paraphernalia. This week, Drew was able to "buy" the bug net with his well-earned chore dollars.

Of course I didn't really think about the detail that bugs would not be available for several more weeks.

No matter. We made our own bugs.

We cut them out and hung them with fishing line from the ceiling.

The preparation was a lot more satisfying than the actual execution. I hadn't really thought through what would happen after we hung the bugs. The boys took turns swinging away with Drew's net. (Of course I didn't get a decent picture of this) It didn't take long before all the bugs were "caught" and/or demolished.

Milestone

2011-02-28T20:56:00.006-05:00

All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence you know.
-Hemingway

It's hard to believe I've been blogging for six years this month. Six years! (Not seven as I alluded to in an earlier post. Um, oh yeah, math.)

I just looked back to my earliest posts to remember. Which, please people, I'm not recommending. Kind of like reading an old diary. From adolescence. When ellipses covered all my punctuation needs. Blerg.

Seems a bit self-congratulatory to throw oneself a blogiversary. But that's what we bloggers are. Just a wee bit self absorbed, right? And six years is a lot of blogging.

Thanks to Lindsay for inspiring me. Yours was the first blog I read by someone I actually knew.

Having just moved far from home, I was feeling isolated and, for a number of reasons, rather sad. I hoped to chronicle my adventures as a mother and keep in touch with family.

Three children, ten hundred braggy craft projects and a million photographs later, here we are.

It's hard to describe my feelings about blogging. There have been a lot of off times, facebook stole many of my readers (yeah, that's what happened!) as well as much of my own energy and focus. Yet, I find myself coming back here to create, express and even still, connect.

Thank you to those who have come along with me for the ride.

There will be tights!

2011-02-20T12:57:00.011-05:00

Imagine my excitement at stumbling upon this tutorial a few days ago. Tights! For babies! Almost as good as leg warmers, baby socks or baby Uggs. Possibly better.

A way to use up that old Benetton stretchy t-shirt I've had hanging around for years, waiting for magical weight loss to occur.

I'm not kidding, these things are easy to make. I made them in 6-12 mos size with a little extra room in the toes for the couple months of tights weather we have left.

I just might be able to dig up a few more garments that don't fit me anymore. Just maybe.

Heart day

2011-02-15T15:29:00.008-05:00

Bear with me and my blog, if you will. I'm feeling all sorts of design indecision lately. Wanting to go Word Press, change the name, find a focus, something. Seven year itch, maybe? More on that later.

I have been systematically plowing through old magazines. Really! Just not a lot to blog about. I've saved several ideas and happily thrown the rest away. I keep finding that many of the recipes or projects I save are also online somewhere.

One success was a recipe from an old issue of Living. Good for a little valentines day fun yesterday. Time consuming but simple enough and pleasing to everyone's palate.

The rolling and cutting is always a hit. We even got to poke holes with a fork in these cookies.

I'd have to say my favorite part of this valentine's day was not the ten pounds of Fun Dip and pre-fab cards Ethan carted home from school or the box of plastic bling and sugar contributed by Drew's classmates today.

It was an impromptu little tea party in the corner of our playroom brought to us by Sadie's longer-than-average nap. Sitting with Drew and Adam in a patch of sunlight, enjoying the fruits of our labor.

A pack rat goes digital

2011-02-12T10:31:00.011-05:00

If you have children, you have learned to ruthlessly discard stacks of "art" on a daily basis. Unless, of course, you prefer your house looking like an episode of Hoarders.

Eighty percent of the projects I'm tripping over are easy enough to part with.

And then there's the occasional charmer. This morning's masterpiece brought to you by Drew:

"Daddy's Brain. Out for a walk."

There are a lot of possible solutions out there for organizing and displaying the real treasures. (I worked so hard and got them all from the same site)

I've been wanting to try one I first saw here. Genius! Scan in your favorites, combine into one piece to have printed (snapfish or shutterfly, perhaps), frame and hang. AND THROW AWAY THE ORIGINALS!

Here's my work in progress:

Surrender

2011-02-10T14:10:00.007-05:00

"Death sets a thing significant
The eye had hurried by..."

I recently found myself traveling a once familiar path. From one file folder to another and finally to one labeled: Seth. Images tucked away because of their power, even now almost seven years later. Unique features, red hair, a person. Not just a dead baby. My son. I wondered why I had no pictures of him up on my wall.

Because, I suppose, it is disturbing. He is a full term, 8-pound baby with everything right where it should be. Still, he is dead. And his coloring is off. Blood was beginning to pool in his face, his lips were bright red. Blood on my hospital gown, my eyes swollen almost shut.

Also, these are all we have. A handful of pictures, ones that Keith and I took ourselves with our pathetic point and shoot. Even the three terrible polaroids shot by our pushy nurse are a treasure to me. I wish I had more. I wish we'd had professional shots. It wasn't even an option at the time.

I don't want to walk by the one good shot we have and not notice it because I see it every day.

*****************************************************

I've long admired the work of Nikki McClure, an artist who creates images with an X-acto knife. Really love her art.

I was reminded of her while reading a blog a week or two ago and decided to treat myself to one of her prints. Just a 5x7 note card, really, but big enough to frame and display.

It arrived a few days ago, I opened it and hung it in my kitchen. As I stood back and looked, I realized why it had so appealed to me. Beyond the universal appeal of mother and baby, it somehow spoke to me of Seth.

The baby hidden in red. The mystery.

I turned the card over to find any information I could. Written there was the name of the print, I hadn't noticed before: Surrender.

Blizzard baking

2011-02-02T15:14:00.008-05:00

My lofty February goal is to go through a few (purposely vague is good) old magazines lurking in dusty corners. We'll try out a few ideas that inspire, with reviews to follow here. The rest I will rid myself of forever.

The only exception being my Martha Stewart Kids magazines. Those are pure gold. I'll hang on to them for a little longer.

We attempted homemade pretzels today from the September/October 2004 issue. A good activity for kids warming up from cold snow play. The boys were happy to help with rolling out the dough and brushing on the topping. We made four salty pretzels and four with a sugar cinnamon mix. They were excellent.

This and that, for lack of anything better

2011-02-01T10:48:00.012-05:00

I admit I've been a little jealous of all the snowstorms they've been having out East. I love that Big Storm anticipation. Finally, it looks like we're about to get in on some of that snow action.

Probably a crazy fantasy, but I'm hoping to get some extra time for knitting while hibernating.

(Fiona's Top, size 12 mos, my first attempt at lace. Yarn from stash)

(Gaptastic Cowl, pattern on ravelry. Yarn: Zealana Eco Marino, elephant skin. Hopeful that I can pull off the cowl look.)

Also. I did it. A whole month of Bumbos. A lesson in perseverance, taught by a pink taskmaster. I really did find it surprising the way a goal forced my hand creatively. So many days I wondered how I could possibly come up with something new for a photo. And somehow, it happened in spite of me.

Goal for February to be revealed soon!

No cheesy pirate jargon, I promise.

2011-01-22T14:40:00.010-05:00

A pirate birthday party: a mother's dream come true. I am mostly serious about that. It's got to be one of the easiest party themes to work with. There are just so many possibilities.

Although when you give some thought to the bloody, barbaric origins of these characters, still around today, it does give you pause. How have we managed to romanticize violent criminals? Hmm. Will children of the future have "Crips and Bloods" birthday parties? Wear red or blue, dawg!

That said, I wasted no time wallowing in guilt. Instead, I got to work on some fun activities and decorations. A treasure map, a fabric garland, pin the patch on the pirate game, drawstring loot bags and a pirate craft. All things made very doable by the diminutive list of Drew's friends. We invited three boys. Two made it. It was relaxed and fun for all.

Keith and I came up with a fun game where the kids had to hunt for clues hidden outside, using his telescope and binoculars. The clues were letters, color-coded to make up a word which spelled out the location of hidden treasure. It was a big hit.

Truly the best part was later that evening when Drew said sincerely (and apparently, out of the blue), "Thanks for my party, Mama." Later, I learned Ethan had coached him to thank me but I was still impressed. There's hope for my little outlaws.

I should get paid for this

2011-01-19T21:04:00.007-05:00

Oh, the grand and laughable ideals I had before having children of my own. One was to play games with them as often as I possibly could. Ha, ha. I did play a lot more when Ethan was little than I ever have with the others but I can't say I enjoyed it much. There are only so many rounds of Candy Land a thinking adult can tolerate.

As Ethan gets older though, the selection is slightly less mind numbing. We have a good number of games that can be pretty fun if I'm willing to make the time commitment.

Sadly, there is always MUCH TO BE DONE. All the endless minutia that grows fangs if left too long. And, of course, facebook and blogs to read, pictures to edit. Down time to be fought for.

Enter Bananagrams. I hadn't planned to buy this game for Christmas but I saw it and remembered some positive reviews, so I grabbed it. Worth every penny.

It's a kind of informal scrabble. Each player works to use up their individual collection of letters before the others. One round can go quickly and the game itself is easily portable, a zippered pouch full of letters. It really is fun and there's the extra bit about it being educational and all. Like learning that "coved" is a word. Who knew? I didn't.

Ethan really enjoys it (when he's not losing) and it even managed to trump videogame time when he had a friend over today. Our less literate children play versions of their own, Drew spelling out his name obsessively and Adam making long lines of letters. Totally normal!

Sadie just watches from her perch and looks cute.

Once

2011-01-09T14:45:00.003-05:00

The number of times I was able to get Sadie's attention in spite of literal bells and whistles and many more attempts than what you see here.

She was watching her brothers play soccer outside.

For my next project

2011-01-07T19:35:00.004-05:00

It's been only a week and this whole Bumbo thing is getting old. I'm not at all sure why I thought it was a good idea to give myself such a narrow focus. Hopefully I can stick it out. Since it's so terribly crucial and all.

Fortunately, no one said the Bumbo had to have a baby in it.

Nearer to Spring

2011-01-06T19:35:00.006-05:00

"I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December
A magical thing
And sweet to remember.

'We are nearer to Spring
Than we were in September,'
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December."

- Oliver Herford, I Heard a Bird Sing

(Felt candle holder-or "Felt Fire Hazard" as Keith refers to it--pattern, and poem found here.)

On the island of Bumbo

2011-01-04T15:34:00.003-05:00

Bumbo down under

2011-01-03T19:46:00.003-05:00

Bumbo: Day 2

2011-01-02T13:02:00.008-05:00

Warning: pictures may cause cavities.

A few years ago, I tried out this pattern as a gift for a friend's baby. I modeled the hat on Drew, with one or two seconds of success. It was surprisingly quick and simple and, finding some yarn left over, I decided to attempt it again for Sadie. With matching boots, of course, so she can show her face in this town.

I ran out of yarn halfway through the hat and then found out it was discontinued. Typical. Ravelry to my rescue, once again!

Without further boring details, I bring you, Sadie, baby Uggs and Bumbo. All in one perfect storm of cuteness, if I say so myself!

Now if I can just knit myself a pair of these things.

Starting with a bang!

2011-01-01T13:37:00.009-05:00

I'm feeling depressed and dazzled by all of the day's opportunity for resolve. Dazzled is a little strong but there is something about hanging up a new calendar. A fresh start, another chance to meet those goals, lofty and mundane. I WILL run a 5K! I WILL clean my bathroom before mold grows in the toilet!

Something is telling me, a good place to start is the Christmas tree. Maybe it's the spider who has made his home in its branches. Or, the fact that much of the tree has migrated to the floor.

I've been noticing the 365 Project popping up in various forms all over the internet and can't help but feel the pull. This year, though, I am staying strong, standing fast against inspiration. I only made it 43 days last year and I am still mad at myself.

Instead, I plan to aim low. I do still want to improve my photography and love the photo challenges so, here's to more manageable goals on a monthly basis.

First, I bring you, "A Month of Bumbos". Because nothing says transformation and strength of character like a daily Bumbo shot.

A kitchen success

2010-12-19T19:36:00.006-05:00

Is it still considered blogging when you only visit your blog to mess around with the header once a month or so? Also, when I change the title font html, why does the change only show up on my laptop and not on other computers? Doesn't make sense. And is there any legitimacy to my feeling abused upon discovering another blog with the same super-original title as my own? Seriously. Because I have exclusive rights and all.

Deep breath.

There have been some halfway blogworthy events around here but not so much time, energy or motivation to make them interesting in print. Even reading some of my favorite blogs has been a challenge to my attention span lately. Ah, the shameful quick fix of facebook.

I can't let December slip away without some mention of festive times, can I? Today we conquered gingerbread men, in more ways than one and, unlike last weekend's pre-fab gingerbread "village", it wasn't a total disaster.

Our chief inspiration came from Drew's current fascination with the gingerbread man story which his teacher read aloud and gave to each student as a Christmas gift.

We followed the recipe on the back of the book.

I set aside expectations. All of them.

Which really seemed to help us achieve overall goodwill.

For all men.

Except for poor Mr. Gingerbread Man.

It's a long one

2010-11-06T14:37:00.002-04:00

Music:
"Everybody"-Ingrid Michaelson
"The Melendy's Go Abroad"-The Innocence Mission
excerpt from John Williams' Star Wars "Victory Celebration"

A little creative fresh air

2010-11-02T19:00:00.010-04:00

It's been a long time since I did any kind of fun project with the boys. Suddenly these activities must be penciled in months ahead, somehow sandwiched between possible osteogenesis imperfecta and potential whooping cough.

Today we managed to pull it off. Ethan and Drew had the day off and it was a perfect chance to try out something I had bookmarked back in the summer. The walnut boats from this post immediately captured my attention. I had to have them.

Apparently whole walnuts are not readily available. Even at WHOLE foods. Come ON! This past week, I finally struck it rich at Walmart of all places. Apparently they are a seasonal item.

My hoarding tendency served me well with the wax. Plenty of old candles lurk in my basement.

Ethan was honored to perform the grown up task of playing with fire, dripping hot wax into the shells.

We decided to get fancy and use pieces of felt, decorated with buttons and glitter for sails. Sadly, we learned a valuable lesson. When it comes to flotation devices, less is more.

One of the felt sails, unencumbered by decorations, worked fine. The others we replaced with paper.

Ideally, if I had met my target date of the summer months, we could have sailed these somewhere outside and possibly tried racing them. The kitchen sink was not what I had in mind but blue food coloring helped bridge the excitement gap.

Adam and Drew were immensely happy perched on kitchen chairs, getting wet up to their elbows. Heavy winds blew in, epic battles raged, ships sunk, transformed into submarines, sails disintegrated and masts pried loose.

It's the simple things.

The reason we hoped for a girl

2010-10-15T19:03:00.003-04:00

Leg Warmers. That's why.

(pattern here.)

Unpaid advertisement

2010-10-09T07:40:00.005-04:00

I'm becoming a grown up. I'm making my own bread. Regularly! If four weeks in a row counts as regularly. Really, I'm getting into a groove and it hasn't been that bad. Usually I do the baking on Sunday, using Farmhouse White Bread recipe and we are set for at least a week with 3 loaves. (We consume lots of sandwiches around here)

No more frantic bread runs to the drugstore where the bread tastes like ground up cardboard.

This recipe really seems to work for me and I'm even able to sneak in a cup or two of wheat flour without anyone noticing.

The biggest key to my success though, has nothing at all to do with yeast amounts or rising times. It is a bread slicer I found that does not turn my loaves into a crooked, crumbly mess. I cannot recommend a good bread knife enough. I am actually able to cut straight, evenly sized pieces of bread. It's a lot more motivating to bake bread when you know you'll actually be able to use it.

The truth about Andrew

2010-10-03T08:51:00.006-04:00

Quite recently, someone told me to my face that my brother's funeral was much too long. Also, it seems, we were "deifying" Andrew. Stunned, I dismissed it as the nonsense it was, even as my mind flew silently to Andrew with a Jim Halpert stare. I said, only, "Hmmmmmm." When it comes to confrontations, I have a rich fantasy life.

I was angry for a long time. But then, as I sometimes do, I thought (not to deify him or anything)-what would Andrew say if he heard this? "Yeeah, I'm gonna need you to go ahead and stop deifying me, mmm-kay?" Something like that. He had a way of diffusing rudeness with humor and just the right amount of sarcasm.

I may be a little bit biased but I'm not stupid and I'm not blind. Yes, sir, I'm remembering him correctly. All that good stuff you heard? It's true.

DIY leather

2010-09-26T10:01:00.004-04:00

I've been attempting fruit leather lately. After a couple batches my biggest problem seems to be spreading the pureed fruit evenly so that it dries at the same rate. Next time I may use two cookie sheets. Otherwise it is a pretty foolproof process and the end result is every bit as good as the store bought stuff, without any of the extra sugar and junk.

Here is a photo (and instructions) that inspired me. And one other tutorial here I used as reference although there are about a million more to be found, I'm sure.

Also, do not use wax paper. It sticks. Next time I'm trying parchment paper or buying some silpat. Hot fruit on plastic wrap scares me.

What I'm loving right now

2010-09-21T10:55:00.007-04:00

The color that is coming:

My recently completed Monteagle bag:

It expands to hold a large amount of objects and is deceptively strong. I used some yarn I'd had in my stash forever (Berroco linen flax) but ran out on the handle. Only then did I discover this yarn has been discontinued. Thanks to a kind soul on Ravelry who was willing to sell me a skein from their stash.

This top-down bonnet for Sadie:

I made it a little big, remembering that this pattern tends to run small. Little heads grow so fast. Used Paton's silk bamboo which is nice and soft but terribly unforgiving yarn. I dropped (and fixed) a couple stitches and it looks like a Tasmanian Devil had a party in the dead center of the hat.

Ethan's schoolwork: (I love that soccer has become a coping skill)

Finding the perfect color for Sadie's room. And making some progress there. (More to come on that soon...I hope.)

Beautiful weather and a nature walk with Adam and Sadie: (with Sadie asleep)

It's rare that I have any quality alone time with any of my kids these days. I'm trying to make it a priority. With Ethan and Drew in school, for a few mornings a week, I'm able to give more attention to Adam.

We had fun searching for little bits of nature to bring back home with us.

Soccer practice prep

2010-09-09T12:40:00.003-04:00

Five cleanish sweatshirts/jackets: check.
Two pairs of two different size diapers: check.
Wipes: check.
Trash bag for dirty diaper: check.
Four hats: check.
Snacks for two: check.
Water bottles for three: check.
Stroller: check.
Chairs: check.
Blanket: check.
Soccer ball: check.
Cleats: check.
Shin guards: check.
Toys to (hopefully) occupy two boys for an hour: check.
Four cleaned and dressed children....hmmm, check.
Pacifier: check.
Extra outfit for baby: check.
Keys, wallet, sunglasses, cell phone: check.
Basic grooming of self: maybe next time.

A year of Adam

2010-09-05T08:48:00.000-04:00

My little Adam is an intense creature. Like a southern summer day, all light and charm, then suddenly, thunder. The most affectionate of all my children and the most violent. Angry, stubborn and determined, with a smile that swallows you.

He dismays and delights. At times, despite my best intentions, I'm left panting in the wake of his will. I can't keep up. I understand his instincts because I recognize them as my own. He is so much like me.

How to help this boy learn to focus his determined spirit for good and not for monstrous selfishness? It's a tall order. I hope I'm up to it.

In the meantime, I'm going to treasure the prize of every single, chubby hug he has to offer.

"Baby you've got the sort of laugh that waters me
And makes me grow tall and strong and proud and flattens me."

(Sort of, Ingrid Michaelson)

One down, one to go.

2010-09-03T14:54:00.009-04:00

Phew! With Ethan's room (mostly) done, I feel like I can relax a little before diving into the next project (Sadie's room). The pace of life has been frantic around here lately.

Ethan's room (previously Keith's office) needed a lot of prep work before we even began to think about paint. It took weeks to clean out and organize the contents of the room. Some of which is still sitting around, cluttering up our bedroom. Such is the pace of progress with a new baby, I suppose.

Keith then worked on the walls which required hours of sanding and patching before I was able to paint them. After a couple coats of paint, we faced the daunting task of getting the world map mural onto the wall.

As I mentioned, I was inspired by a picture I saw on flickr. I loved the way the mural pulled the room together in a unique way and knew Ethan, with his interest in geography, would love it as well. I looked around online until I found a good deal on something very similar. The mural came in eight different panels, its original size was 13' by 8'.8" and it expanded even further after application.

Suffice it to say that the application of this beast was a true test of a marriage. Ours just barely passed but here we are. And it was worth it. Truly, Keith took on much of the project himself, doing most of the cutting and pasting, his perfectionist tendencies keeping him company.

I've been wanting to try a project I saw some time ago. I found an image online that I knew Ethan would love, printed it out, enlarged and made it into a stencil which I used to trace onto some fabric. I cut it out and simply applied to the wall with liquid starch. So easy! Now I'm thinking it should have been a little bigger.

There are a few unfinished details (closet doors,a dresser) and I would love to find different bedding at some point but it's already functioning quite well as Ethan's new bedroom. He's very happy with his own space.

Coming soon...

2010-08-18T17:19:00.005-04:00

Transformation! With primary inspiration coming from this photo.
Stay tuned.

Birthday like Beckham

2010-08-15T12:43:00.006-04:00

When Ethan requested a soccer-themed birthday party I wasn't terribly excited about the idea. I figured it would be pretty boring for kids to come over and play soccer-such an ordinary event around here. But I underestimated the simple love of the game Ethan and so many of his friends have.

I had planned a few variations on the game but we didn't get to all of them because the boys were so eager just to play plain ol' soccer.

As far as party ideas, I didn't have to look far online to find inspiration. I used the invitations and envelopes from this site which has a ton of great printables and free downloads.

We had a such a good group of boys. Eight years old, becoming more aware of themselves and others but still excited by the sight of cicadas in the grass and eager to watch a friend open presents.

Happy birthday to my favorite eight-year-old!

More pictures here.

A celebration of life

2010-08-09T13:57:00.003-04:00

The boys could not believe it when I told them Seth would be six years old today. This led to other calculations-how much older or younger he is than his brothers.

This year we enhanced our balloon tradition a little. The boys each drew some pictures of something for Seth and I cut some things out and we glued them to the balloon.

Happy birthday, Seth!

"Everything that has been broken you’ll mend,
throughout the morning of one day,
sleeves fluttering in the air, in the air,
and we’ll shout, shout for joy"

-Innocence Mission "Shout for Joy"

All together now

2010-08-04T10:56:00.004-04:00

Last Friday we managed a little family outing. Something which has admittedly become rather rare. We have a great network of trails in this area and it is a fairly easy ride to a popular cider mill. It's a great fall destination but they also have good ice-cream and the summer-time advantage of no crowds.

The men-folk took the bike trail and Sadie and I drove to meet them. I can't wait 'til she is old enough to sit in the bike seat behind me so we can all go together.

The weather was perfect and I think everyone enjoyed themselves.

We had one incident where Drew kicked off his croc in the swiftly moving river and Ethan fell and cut himself on the rocks trying to retrieve it. Keith saved the day by running down beside the water and grabbing it.

Also. There were goats. Or cows, as Adam insists on calling them. Loud goats. Adam worked up his nerve to visit them beside their pen, and was just getting comfortable when they let out the loudest "MaaaaHHHHaaaaaaa" you have ever heard. I think we all jumped. Adam threw himself face first on the grass beside them. He was not happy.

Lulled to sleep in her car seat, Sadie slept the entire time. Ah, peace.

Fun and games

2010-07-30T10:35:00.005-04:00

There are a couple low-maintenance crafts we managed to complete this summer. Ethan came home with the first idea from his end-of-the-year party at school. He begged and begged for us to try it at home. Fortunately, it's easy and cheap. Find a nice, smooth rock and heat it up in the oven for about 15 minutes at 250 degrees or so. Peel some crayons in the meantime. Take out the rocks and color them. The crayons melt and create interesting designs. Not great for Adam who would probably burn himself but fun for Ethan and Drew.

Another old favorite was perfect for this hot summer. Freeze water in layers and add little items (pennies, legos, beads..) every few hours as you add water. Bring it out on a steamy afternoon and you'll be amazed at how long this keeps kids occupied.

The TV helped me write this

2010-07-21T09:15:00.005-04:00

My blog. Like a good friend who I keep meaning to email, (no really, I mean it) it's been on my mind. As I rip a comb through my hair, throw on a t-shirt from the ground where I threw it the night before, a sentence pops into my head. Something I might use on my blog!

Then I'm changing a diaper and my only thoughts are what needs doing next. My only scheming, how I might catch up on life. I'm frantic with just the tedium of the day to day. I wonder how people possibly do more than what is basic.

All of this with the backdrop of constant, really I'm almost not exaggerating, screaming. Whether it's the baby who is unhappy in spite of being fed and changed, or the boys fighting over WHO HAD THIS FIRST or WHO LAUGHED AT ME or WHO HAD ONE MORE COOKIE or WHO GOT TO SIT THERE. I mean it. It's endless. Only consolation that it has to be temporary. I know it will be easier when Sadie's needs are less intense.

In the meantime, I'm losing my mind. I forgot my pin number, or part of it anyway, for the first time the other day. It always just comes to my fingers automatically, I've had it, um, forever, and I couldn't remember the first digit. After punching in the wrong number at the store, I gave myself some time to think and it did come back to me. Senior moment or sleep-deprivation?

I'm so tired. Lay-my-face-directly-on-a-sizzling-stove-top-sleep-for-hours-kind of tired. Of course, that's normal and nothing new. Just bone weary by the end of the day and utterly without one shred of patience. I hope my poor children have their memories wiped clean of this summer.

Yes, we've done some fun projects and Ethan is really lucky to have two good friends in this neighborhood who he visits almost daily. He can ride to their houses on his bike and they to ours so it's pretty ideal. I keep taking pictures and hoping to blog about them. Soon enough.

I certainly shouldn't be surprised by any of this. I've done it before. I'm always wagging my head in amazement when I speak to other mothers and we say to each other, "You really forget how hard it is!" But, mercifully, you do.

Sadie Ella

2010-07-05T22:21:00.004-04:00

A child is born and doesn't know what day it is.
The particular joy in my heart she cannot imagine.
The taste of apricots is in store for her.

-"A Newborn Girl at Passover"
by Nan Cohen

Hold the fort

2010-04-23T11:09:00.005-04:00

We seem to have a near-obsession with the fashioning of "forts" in these parts. Let us define fort: a collection of random objects (toys, a dirty sock, pillows, books) gathered together into four loosely determined boundaries. Systematic destruction of the living space taken to a new level.

And woe to him (or her, really) who mistakes this madness for a pile of junk. Any attempt to tidy up the eyesore is met with a warning scream, "That's my FORT!" I don't have the heart to stamp out this activity because it is probably a great creative outlet and can keep Adam and Drew occupied for some time. But, the clean-up!

As the forts migrate and the building materials add to the general litter of the household, I must decide if each little piece of something is worth bending over to retrieve. I could get stuck down there. Which brings to mind this post, without the neck pain.

Enter dear husband with the perfect gift: a long-handled-reacher of my very own! I haven't been this excited about a daily living aid since my stint working in rehab. These should be standard issue at every baby shower.

Totally unrelated note: I found a new granola recipe which I've tried a few times now and really like. The great thing about it is there is no oil required. Seemed strange to me but it's as tasty as ever. I add some form of dried fruit, usually raisins, when available.

Inspired by a memory of a baby blanket I'd seen some time ago, I attempted my own version with some fabric favorites I've had hanging around (thanks, Joanne's). Nothing fancy, just two pieces of fabric sewn together.

Working on

2010-04-03T17:38:00.004-04:00

Yarn hair is harder than I thought.

Prop hat by Kate Oates

A certain slant of light

2010-03-23T20:07:00.001-04:00

Goodbye

2010-03-19T07:53:00.004-04:00

Grieving the loss of our little nephew, Isaiah Michael. Weighing only ounces, he leaves a heavy hole. Pray for his parents and his brothers. Even when surrounded by love, losing a baby is a uniquely lonely loss.

That which we call spaghetti

2010-03-17T20:06:00.004-04:00

I don't have any of the fancy attachments or gadgets to crank out homemade pasta but it's something I've always wanted to try. Inspired by reports of those who did it all by hand, and aided by this book, I finally took the plunge yesterday.

The dough is really quite simple-just a mix of eggs and flour although the consistency is a little tricky. I think my dough was a little too tough because it was difficult for me to roll it as thin as I wanted.

After the dough sat for an hour it was just a matter of rolling it out and cutting. Something Ethan gladly helped me with. I knew it was probably going to be too thick in spite of our efforts to cut thin pieces.

The book was a little vague about cooking times but I approximated based on pasta of a similar size. If there is such a thing.

To be honest, it was disgusting. Really doughy and thick and almost inedible. But! I learned a valuable secret. If you call something spaghetti, my boys will consume it, love it and ask for seconds!

Although at one point, Drew did say, "Something tastes funny." Oh yeah, probably the garlic bread, Drew.

for Isaiah

2010-03-12T06:45:00.004-05:00

Tiny needles, tiny yarn and a smaller version of the smallest hat pattern I could find. I've been told his head is the size of a golf ball. I don't know many other details but I do know getting through each day is an accomplishment.

"Day by day,
Stone by stone,
Build your secret slowly."