More Christmas

This is turning out to be a very fulfilling Christmas. I'm reading The Christmas Carol (original version) with K -- I had forgotten just how beautiful Dicken's language really is. G doesn't have a lot of patience for the flowery words, but he does stop in and listen once in awhile. We also read (and re-read) some other Christmas classics: The Nutcracker, The Night Before Christmas, and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, as well as some winter themed books (like The Snowy Day -- very artistically inspiring).

We had a wonderful time choosing our giving tree gifts. The food drive was a success as well -- over 450 meals were put together for children in the local school system. The boys were really excited to participate in this, and had a lot of fun choosing nutritious food.

Oh, and K and I learned about one of our Christmas gifts early -- R is taking us to see Blue Man Group in February! He arranged everything, including babysitting for G and A. Yay!

On a different note entirely, A has become a complete Elmo freak -- he HAS to wear something with Elmo everyday, usually his Elmo pajama pants (that he got for St. Nick's Day, fortuitously). He also loves Dora and Biscuit, but Elmo is his favorite by far.

Now I'm off to plan some Christmas food for when we visit my ILs next week, and to get the boys ready for ice skating.

Holidays

R took K to the Holiday Pops concert on Thursday night. They reported that it was a wonderful experience, and particularly enjoyed the Christmas sing-a-long. This Sunday, I'm taking K to see Oliver!, and I'm excited to say that we have good seats. Yay! It sort of makes up for missing the Nutcracker this year.

We've finally shaken off the sickies for the most part, and so are getting back into the swing of things a bit. K has been reading about Laura Ingalls Wilder, and also about Australia. He and G have been way into playing with their Wikki Stix:






and are also way excited about the wizard capes that my mom made them for St. Nick's Day. K's cape is a deep maroon with a shiny star burst pattern; G's is a watery blue with iridescent swirls; and A's is a dark purple with sparkling butterflies. To say that they are smitten is a serious understatement.

I had my showcase performance for my Improv class last night, and it was AMAZING!!! It went very, very well, and I can't wait to take another class. I'm not taking the 201 class until after the babe is born, though, because I'm getting big enough that it makes doing some of the comedy a little awkward (being visibly pregnant during some scenes can weird people out a bit -- kind of like being visibly pregnant and barefoot while stage managing a production of Hurlyburly). So, instead, and for a lovely change of pace, I'm taking a storytelling class starting in January. Yippee! I may also be starting the ESL training in February, but I haven't decided -- I may hold off until the fall.

Random Thoughts

We've decided (well, I decided, and then convinced my family, lol) that we're going to the Macy's Day Parade next Thanksgiving (2008). So, I've started to loosely plan that, though it's too early to reserve rooms and such just yet.

We chose our angels from the Angel Tree yesterday, and hope to do our shopping this weekend. We chose three boys age 7,4, & 3 (are you really surprised? ;)), and K and G are soooo excited (A says that he is, but frankly, with him, excitement is contagious). We'll also buy groceries to give to a local school breakfast/lunch program that makes certain that kids have enough to eat over the 2 week holiday break.

We're buying tickets to see the Nutcracker this year, too. Last year, I was stage managing a show, and so we missed the few performances that were in town. K is way excited about finally getting to see it on stage. We also hope to catch a performance of Oliver when we head back home for Christmas.

There's a lot going on in the homeschooling group this time of year, too, and I'm hoping that we'll be able to fit some of it into our schedule without going crazy.

A completely different thing (I did say these were random thoughts!): I love how imaginative and creative G is; how he'll be singing "Leaving on a Jet Plane" softly to himself, and then start acting out a story about planes and leaving. Or how when he "reads" his Winnie the Pooh stories, he uses different voices for every character. It reminds me of when he was barely a year old, and would sit on the front step of the porch swinging his little legs and trying to sing "This Old Man".

I'm also writing more and more. Some flash fiction, some short stories. I've started countless projects over the years, but as with my cooking, I've committed myself to really writing and seeking publication. I've been writing my entire life, but sometime in college, I lost the ability to write for the pure joy of it (a history major with English and Computer Science minors can do that to a person -- the reading/writing/computer time involved was huge). I have to say, though, don't judge my ability to write by the state of my blog entries -- when blogging, I write like I talk. :) Endlessly, and often incoherently.

Such Fun

Well, ice skating is going splendidly. It's officially K's favorite sport. K is a speed demon to say the least. He loves skating, and his goal is to get good enough to start hockey lessons. G is loving it, too. By the end of his first lesson, G was up more than he was down, and was picking up some momentum. And as some of my dear friends know, the fact that both kids skate out onto the rink without looking back is huge to me. They haven't always responded well to new situations (and I'm still a bit scarred from a dance class that K took when he 3/4, even though he hasn't done that for a long, long while), but now at 7 and 4, they're taking everything in stride (better than their momma, I might add, who still mentally freaks out on her way to Improv class, *every* time).

Here are some pics. They're not terrific, as I was having trouble capturing action shots with the poor lighting (couldn't use a flash because of the plexiglass around the rink), and the distance (I was at the far end of the rink from them most of the time), and the sheer number of people on the rink at any given time. K's class was a bit quieter than G's, since it's at 2:00pm. G's 4:45pm class is peak time, when the number of people at the Sportsplex is overwhelming. So, these were the only two shots that weren't blurry:

I'm in LOVE

It's pretty corny to fall in love with a vehicle, but it's especially corny when the vehicle in question is a van. I'm more of an off-road vehicle kind of gal, or a BMW or Corvette woman, or even a cute little VW Bug girl. Sadly, though, I am totally smitten with our "new" ride -- a silver 2003 Odyssey EX-L. It isn't new, but it was well cared for, and it has lots of wonderful bells and whistles: heated leather seats, built-in DVD player, power everything, CD/Cassette/stereo (and a nice one at that), and so much more room than we're used to having. We have definitely lost the nice space in the back that was great for the dogs, and we're not sure how we're going to work that out yet. But it's roomy, easy to use, and it's easy on the eyes. And it didn't break the bank -- it was a chunk of change, but with no financing, we're loving it! And the boys love being able to stretch out and to see everything out the huge windows.

Speaking of the boys, I promised an update on G and A. I'll try to keep it short! G is learning how to ride his bike without training wheels, and is soooo very close!! One ounce more of confidence, and he'll be flying around the yard. He does the monkey bars like a pro now, and there is absolutely nothing that is too high for him to climb. NOTHING. We're seriously thinking of getting him involved in a climbing group. He's totally into anything with Curious George -- very appropriate, I think. He loves games and puzzles, and has started building cities out of his wooden blocks. He's also adding and subtracting, and his reading is progressing steadily. He tends to hide a lot of his progress from us, so I find out what he knows on the sly. Luckily, I'm a sneaky person by nature. :) If I can get our in-laws to stop quizzing him, we'll be golden! My MIL tried to convince me that he was skipping 7 whenever he counted for her, but not only does he not skip 7 when he counts around me, I had to wonder why in the world did she have him count for her??

A is speaking SO MUCH now. He loves to call my mom and brother, or R's parents or sisters and chat. He has the unfortunate habit of just hanging up without saying goodbye when he's finished, but I'm hoping manners will come with time. He is way into sharing everything with his brothers, and loves to play games, especially Candy Land and Tell a Story, with G and K. He also likes to build blocks with G, but when he's finished, everything, including whatever G has built, goes flying. He's counting some, and if you need to find something in the house, ANYTHING, he's the one to talk to -- he can find just about anything, anywhere. Even if it's somewhere he can't reach (and there are literally only about 2 places that he can't reach), or can't get into, he knows what's there.

K sped through 2 volumes of Spiderman (the original Stan Lee, about 20 comics) in about 2 days, as well as a 341 page book in 3 days. He's a reading machine. 2 days ago, he got a Top Secret Adventures package from Highlights. It contains 25 pages of puzzles and codes that you decipher to discover who, what, and where. He's almost finished and can't wait to do another. The country of focus is Japan, and he's starting to learn some Japanese with R (who took Japanese in college, but is wayyyyy rusty now), as well as some cultural/geographical information. We've also been watching some biology and evolution dvds; some lean more heavily towards history, some towards science, and some towards the social impact. It's made for some very interesting conversations!

K has decided that telling children that Santa is real is an "evil, wicked trick." I can't say that I disagree, though my feelings are less intense than his, I think. I've often wondered why people go to the lengths they do in order to keep little children believing in something for so long. There's real magic and beauty all around us -- do we really need to invent it? A story is one thing -- a societal ruse, however well intended, seems to me to be something else.

Ah well, they don't call me the grinch for nothing! (Shhh... don't tell anyone that I've been listening to Christmas music, reading Christmas stories, and planning Christmas food/desserts for 2 weeks now -- it'll ruin my image!)

The Demise of Santa

Well, it's finally happened. K has officially admitted that he doesn't believe Santa is real, but since he wanted him to be, he didn't say anything for a long time. He's not upset about it at all, though. He's just working extra hard to make sure that he doesn't say anything to ruin the secret for G and A, and his 3 yr old cousin. G himself has had his own doubts (see previous post), but has rallied against them as we enter the Christmas season. Now, more than ever, he wants Santa to be real. He can't wait to go to the mall and tell Santa what his Christmas wishes are.

Who wouldn't want such a magical being to exist?

Inspiration

I rarely (if ever) post my admiration of John Holt, so today I will. Mostly though, I want to post this link:

Common Objections to Homeschooling

I also highly recommend any of John Holt's books, as well as those by former teacher John Taylor Gatto.

Síochán!!

Reading, Reading, Reading

I'm reading: Fitzroy: The Remarkable Story of Darwin's Captain and the Invention of the Weather Forecast; Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea; and La Telaraña de Carlota.

K's reading: The Little House series; The Sign of the Beaver; Encyclopedia Brown; and Treasure Island.

G is loving (and reads a bit): The Frog and Toad series; the Mercy Watson series; How the Grinch Stole Christmas (every day!); and the Mercer Mayer books.

A is loving: Anything Dr. Seuss but especially Fox in Socks; anything Bob the Builder or Clifford; most things with fish/dolphins or other animals.

R is reading: The Selfish Gene (and a dozen other things that I don't know about, lol).

Now if I could find the book that would make me stop missing my family and friends, my house (does it really belong to someone else now?), and my dog, Jaka (and Wicket, for that matter). R has adjusted; the boys have adjusted; the dogs have adjusted. One of these days I'll adjust, too, right?

Mr. Rogers and other great fun

These are from R's cell phone, so aren't as great as we'd like, but here ya go!






We had a marvelous trip to the Marbles Museum today. Best of all, G and A and R were thrilled to meet Mr. McFeely from Mr. Roger's Neighborhood; they got his autograph, and we have a photograph of G and Mr. M that is quite adorable (but unfortunately not yet uploaded). It's a great little museum, and well worth visiting again, especially on a less crowded day. ;-)

Another treat was listening to/watching the puppeteer/actor for Lionel (Between the Lions) read "Click, Clack, Moo" during a special story hour at the museum. G and I were ecstatic to get a behind-the-scenes look at one of his favorite characters (and the guy is really good at what he does!). He was less interested in the costumed manifestations of his other favorite show, Super Why!.

I'll post a picture of G and Mr. M later!

Speaking of Wonders

I'm totally amazed by my new love of cooking. I've always *known* how, though my results have been far from consistent, and I've tried to plan nutritious meals on a regular basis since before I graduated from high school. But I've always failed -- always. I've been the yo-yo cooker. Until now. Really, I can't wait to plan my meals each week; can't wait to shop for the ingredients; and can't wait to put Nora Jones or the Eagles or George Winston or Enya or Pearl Jam or Solas (on and on, ad nauseum) on the stereo and make dinner. I don't know if it's ds #1 and #2 and their love of cooking (my own mom is a great cook, as was her great-grandmother, but we come from a long line of definite non-cooks), or my entire family's love of trying new foods, but I'm smitten. It's right up there with theater and reading, and more consistent than my knitting as of late. I've always had a ton of cookbooks, and now I'm actually using them regularly. This week, we had an Asparagus Tart with ricotta cheese and steamed kale with garlic and parmesan on Monday; Chicken Enchilada soup and side salad (with Romaine lettuce, carrots, walnuts, grapes, cheese and dressing) on Tuesday; Baked Butternut Squash, Three Cheese Mashed Cauliflower and Kale, and side salads on Wednesday; and Avocado Pasta w/cilantro and Pan fried Tilapia tonight. We usually go out to eat or do something simple on Friday, and then R cooks on Saturday and sometimes Sunday. I make a dessert a couple of times a week, and somehow it's working out well and consistently for the first time in my life.

I had my first improv class on Monday, and por supuesto, I was a nervous wreck the whole drive there. But it was awesome, and I secretly (haha) wish it were three times a week. I wish that I could cut myself more slack, and not expect to "get" everything the first time I do something. Sigh. But I'm counting the days until Monday when I can throw myself back in.

We are going to see ComedySportz for kids this Saturday, as well as visiting the Marbles Museum in Raleigh. And, hopefully, this is our last weekend to look at vans. I absolutely cannot wait to separate the kids -- driving with them crammed together has been more than challenging as of late.

Basta por hoy, R and G are making spice cookies, and I need to get one while they're still warm (and not in anyone else's mouth!).

Wonders Never Cease

When K was 2 1/2 - 3 years old, he drew a rather convincing Elmo and Big Bird using his stuffed animals as guides. But, honestly, since then, he hasn't drawn much of anything. He wrote early, but it usually involved letters and numbers. Only when he really felt inspired did he spontaneously draw pictures for fun. Until the last few weeks. Over the summer, I had him put entries in his journal (something he really likes doing), and he started putting illustrations in along with his words. Over the last couple of weeks, he has started drawing convincing animals, and this week has started making his own comics. I haven't asked him to do any of this, and I've never pressed him to draw or color (though I must admit I've lamented his lack of doing so because drawing/coloring/art was my favorite pastime next to reading throughout my childhood/teenage years). Suddenly, almost overnight, he draws almost as much and as well as he reads and computes. Exciting how these things happen! FWIW, my dh, who has scored no less than the 99th percentile in math/science/logic and the 95th percentile on verbal on ANY test he's ever taken, has only drawn a handful of things in his entire life. Most of them involved buildings and architectural type things. He spent his childhood reading, taking things apart, writing computer programs, listening to music that my mom would have died before allowing into our house, and making movies with his friends (along with a GREAT amount of work on the family farm). A rock-n-roll geek with muscles! ;-)

K is also teaching himself to write in cursive. Yay! G and A are doing wonderful things, too, but I'll chronicle those in another entry. :)

I wish that parents wouldn't pigeonhole their children. I wish that if they don't see a certain trait develop before a certain age that they wouldn't decide that that their child is deficient in that area. It has taken me years to develop confidence in my ability to sing, for example, and I still can't do it in public because of very negative comments that I received from key people early in my life. I hope to overcome this eventually, but until then I urge everyone to maintain an open mind about loved ones, and keep negative, non-constructive comments to yourselves. :)

Slowly getting there

We're slowly putting together a life. We have library cards (and books), have signed K and G up for ice skating, have joined a Sportsplex (with a pool, ice rink, and more!), have found a piano/violin instructor (the boys will start in January), have signed up for the homeschooling group (well, we've sent the form, lol) and have located a church. We still need to find a dojo and figure out the massive parks and rec. system so that G can take an art class and a gym class. Eek. But we're getting there. Hopefully, we'll have decided on a vehicle before Thanksgiving. We think that we've decided that we'll stay in the rental house until after the baby comes. The choices out there right now are crummy (have been actually for months), and the interest rates aren't likely to jump up any time soon. But we'll see.

Estudio español. No es difícil, pero trabajo muchas horas cada día. Espero hablar, leer y escribir muy bien antes del próximo verano. Por supuesto, el ejercicio hace al maestro. :)

¡Basta por hoy!

Happy Birthday A!!!

Okay, so how in the world did my tiny babe turn 2?? When did he start saying words/sentences so VERY clearly that a perfect stranger can understand him?? I knew this day was coming, but frankly, somehow didn't believe it at the same time. But he's here, and he's 2.

I'll post some pics in a few days when Dh gets home.

We're back...sort of

Oh my. This will be a short entry, cause I just don't have the energy to chronicle the past three weeks. Seriously, as anyone who has ever done it knows, moving sucks. Period.

But, we're here. Except that Dh is at a conference in Florida. And my mind is back at home, unable to settle in this strange place. I managed to sign up for an Improv Comedy Class, and to start my appointments at the Birth Center, but we have yet to locate a suitable Tae Kwon Do studio and piano/violin lessons for K, art and gym classes for G, and a vehicle worthy of our hard earned dollars. Though, we did decide to buy a little less van (meaning 4 years old instead of 2) in order to not finance it. We've yet to make a car payment in all of these years, and don't see a compelling reason to start now. That money can be better spent on all of the other things that we want to do, like traveling, classes, and cool activities for the kids and the whole family.

I also discovered that the private university employing Dh has a great continuing studies program for getting an ESL (English as a Second Language) certificate, that I can start in February. It's comprised of evening classes, as well as some one day (Saturday only) workshops.

Well, since being here, we've attended the State Fair (which is held rather late in the season, if you ask me), gone on several hikes (we live .5 mile from a large state park), and generally tried to find our way about. Tomorrow, we're off to the fabric store to gather materials for our halloween costumes. So far, ds#1 wants to be a wizard, ds#2 wants to be Ron from Harry Potter, and ds#3 is going to be Gizmo (in a costume designed by me, yippee!). I'm most concerned about the Ron costume, though G does have that Northern Irish look going on. If his hair were red, he would actually resemble Rupert Grint. Hmmmm, I'm not sure if I like that or not. ;-)

Oh, and perhaps most important of all, we've been creating and enjoying homecooked meals that are about 90% organic, at least 98% of the time. The real difference has been having a very loose plan for the week. For whatever reason, designating Monday as casserole night, Tuesday as soup and bread night, Wednesday as leftovers, Thursday for seafood, and Friday as salad has made all of the difference in my ability to plan. So this week, we're having 4-cheese lasagna, broccoli and blue brie soup with French bread, Shrimp Paella, and grilled chicken salad. Breakfasts and lunches are simple, with staples such as fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, oatmeal with chopped nuts and raisins, waffles/pancakes, and smoothies for breakfast, and things like beans and rice with cheese and tomatoes, quesadillas, sandwiches, chopped veggies with dip, and soup for lunch (all made quickly and from scratch). We're not perfect, but we're definitely getting more consistent.

More transition

Okay, two posts in one day, scary!! ;)

But I had to share the conversation I had with my 4 year old last night. We were watching Santa Claus is Coming to Town (yes, in October -- I've figured out that I'm not really a scrooge, I just get excited about Christmas about 2 months too early, and have unrealistic expectations of the holiday in general). It went something like this:

Ds#2: Mom, does Santa really bring us presents, or do you and dad wrap the presents and put them under the tree while we're asleep?

Me: What do you think?

Ds#2: I think that you and dad wrap the presents and put them under the tree while we're asleep.

Me: What makes you think that?

Ds#2: I've stayed up at night and watched you doing it when you didn't see me. And Santa isn't real. He's made up, like wizards. Magic isn't real.

So, there you have it. I seriously doubt that he's caught us in the act of playing Santa's elves, but you never know with this kid. FWIW, ds#1 strongly believes in the possibility of magic, and refuses to disavow Santa (though, I know, from conversations in the past, that he knows the "truth", but actively chooses to continue to believe).

Transitions

What we're reading now:

Me: The Story of Chicago May by Nuala O'Faolain
K: A Wrinkle in Time (he loves Madeline L'Engle now! he read an interview with her at the back of the book, and was extremely excited about the things that interested her. He was disappointed that she didn't like math, though... ;))

Well, in just a few short hours, we'll begin our packing/moving adventure. While I'm not excited at the prospect of a rental, it's not a bad one, and the landladies are very agreeable. And, as soon as we find the house that's right for us, we'll move.

I'm pretty certain that we've already chosen names for this babe, which isn't really surprising considering how much practice we've had doing this! ;-)But, no announcements now...

I found a cool comedy club that has improv lessons and Theatresportz... Very cool, and very exciting. Classes are usually once a week and in the evening, and registration includes seeing all of the comedy shows for free (while enrolled in the class). I can't wait to get there, and sign the boys up for music and Tae Kwon Do, and art classes again. Not to mention dropping in on the homeschooling group and the Holistic Moms group. Sigh.... Now back to the boxes and the cleaning, and waiting to get Dh from the airport.

Miscellaneous Updates

Okay, this will be a whirlwind update. ;-)

My nephew, Ethan, was born on August 24th! We think he's absolutely adorable, and are still in shock that there are now 5 boys. Eek! It's horrible that it took me a month to post that!

The gender pool may change in May, though, due to this:



Also due to the above, I won't be signing up for kickboxing once we move, but for a membership to an indoor pool instead. Ah well, spring will be here soon enough. Also due to this development, I'm shaking the dust off of some of my personal projects, including the one woman show that I mentioned oh, about 30 blogs ago. I found a cool storytelling guild in my new area, and they're having a festival in November and a weekend workshop in late winter/early spring. Yay! I do come back to everything eventually, it just takes me awhile sometimes because I get seriously sidetracked (by life and my own self). Of course, I often just change my direction when my parameters of existence change. Journalism school is something that I wanted, but I wasn't willing to stay here just to finish it. Some may call me a flake (for good reason), but I prefer the term "dabbler". Hopefully, my children will be more grounded and have more direction. ;-)

Speaking of moving, we're doing that in about a week because, hold on to your hats, the house is sold (pending inspection and appraisal, of course). We were going to head out soon regardless, but this development allows us to breathe a little easier as we go. This also means that as soon we arrive in our new state, we will be getting a new vehicle!! Woohoo!! We haven't decided yet just how "new", but since we intend to have this one for as long as possible, we don't want something more than a couple years old. I'm just pleased that I managed to keep the current one for a full year longer than I said I would when we bought it (grumbling during that year notwithstanding).

I *think* that's everything. If not, tomorrow is another day.

K's Birthday Dinner

We had K's birthday dinner tonight. He chose grilled salmon, twice-baked potatoes, steamed broccoli with Romano cheese, yeast rolls, iced tea and birthday cake. We played the game Sand Castles. It's a cool, cooperative board game in which everyone works together to build the sand castle before the waves come in. His birthday cake was chocolate with lemon-coconut icing, in the rough shape of Hogwarts Castle (I don't recommend googling Hogwarts Castle in order to see what the castle really looks like, as this is an artistic interpretation):



A good time was had by all, but especially the birthday boy, who managed to blow out all of his candles in one breath!

Homeschool Pictures

We took our "school" pictures today. If there's one ritual of the traditional school experience that I like, it's the yearly fall photo. Ours was a "successful" photo shoot today. I won't put the pictures that we've chosen to use on here, but here are a couple of the outtakes just for fun:

Fall Reflections

A friend was talking about fall and how much she loves it, and I just have to agree. Fall is absolutely, hands down, the BEST season of the year. Apples, crisp air and jackets, colorful leaves, pumpkins, hot chocolate and apple cider, soup and pies...Yummmy and gorgeous.

Fall also happens to be our season of birthdays. From August to October, we have 10 birthdays in our family and near immediate family. My oldest just turned 7, a fact that along with the naturally reflective season of fall, causes me to look back.

My great-aunt was born and died in fall (October), and fall was always when we visited her in the woodsy/artsy house that she and my great-uncle designed and built themselves. When the air grows cooler and the trees start to change, her spirit moves closer to mine.

This fall, however, I've realized that I've allowed my own insecurities to overcome my desire for a change of spirit. One thing that I want more than anything is a spirit of generosity and goodwill, but my progress toward this is being thwarted by a gradual decline into judgment and intolerance. I've always been secure in my position of tolerance for all viewpoints and most personal, non-harmful choices, but lately I've found myself being bitter about the choices others have made. So, I've decided to make a list of affirmations and say them daily, both to affirm my own choices that I believe in, and to develop a generous response to the choices of others.

I truly believe that the only way to make positive changes in this world is to share with the world a strong, generous, and loving spirit.

On a completely different note, we're having my 7 year old's birthday dinner tomorrow night, and we're making a Hogwart's castle cake for the occasion. Since he's started reading the series on his own, he's become even more interested in magic, wizards, dragons, and the like. I earned some points with him (heehee) by finding a black hoodie sweatshirt with silver dragons on the front. Yay! And just to prove that magical, mystical fairy tales and such can peacefully coincide with a belief in G-d, he's also learning the ten commandments on his own. I had a little trouble explaining the one about adultery without making it sound like talking with a person of the opposite gender who isn't one's spouse is bad. Hmmm...

Apple Works

Apple Works is this great little orchard, farm, and petting zoo near Trafalgar. They serve killer apple chicken sandwiches on the weekends, and all kinds of delicious apple goodies. The apple slushies were particularly yummy on a hot day! The petting zoo had mules, donkeys, peacocks, goats (who could climb a "cat" walk stretching over the various pens), sheep, a calf, and the largest llama I have ever seen.

The boys really enjoyed the live guitar music while we had chicken sandwiches and apple cider. We headed over to the petting zoo, picking up some poison ivy on the way, then back to a little barn with a great slide. They made their way through a maze, and then rode the little train (ds#3 INSISTED, :)). One more trip to the petting zoo, and then into the shop. Aahhhhh, the sweet, delicious first apples of the season. We chose our apples, our cider, and a couple of slushies for the road. Mmmmmm!!

Okay I lied

I often do. ;-) But today's post will not be about Apple Works, though I promise that's coming soon. Instead I wanted to post this:



A friend exercised creative license to create this unique piece of walking art. Luckily it's washable -- if my children had done it, they would have used black Sharpies. LOL

Frescoes

Okay, so here are two of the frescoes. Ds#1 is demonstrating the agony the Cretes must have felt when their island was destroyed by a volcanic eruption. Or perhaps he stubbed his toe as I snapped the picture.

I feel like a real homeschooling family now that we own a HUGE container of Plaster of Paris (haven't had any in the house since before ds#1 was born), and large bags of leaves, dried ragweed, acorns, and twigs.

We hung out in the backyard this afternoon, reading Robert Frost (I found my copy of his poems downstairs last night), and talking about the wind, rain (and lack thereof), and the fallen leaves.

We're so sad to be leaving our good, dear friends behind, but I can tell that the boys are anxious to get involved with another homeschooling group, and to start their extracurricular activities again. Looking back over the past several years, it amazes me that my once resistant-to-leave-my-side-for-a-second kiddo is the confident nearly 7 year old who will go anywhere and do anything without me.

Tomorrow, I'll post pictures of our trip on Sunday to Apple Works, a really cool orchard in Trafalgar. The boys had a blast, especially since Dh was able to come along.

Correction

I've been instructed by Ds#1 to issue a correction: he did not win a Game Boy Advance. He won a Game Boy Advance SP. Very important difference, or so I'm told. :)

Said Game Boy Advance SP arrived today (oops, need to go leave feedback!), and the games should be here tomorrow. Let's just say that there's more than a little bit of excitement in the air around here.

Ds#2 is FOUR!!! Woohoo!!! We celebrated with our friends at the park with cupcakes and pizza. He's soooo excited to finally be 4 (it really seems like he's been four for so long already). I've told him the story of his birth several times, and the park we went to today (by accident, we tried to go to another one first) was the one that I labored in the day he came.

Well, off to read some stories and get some sleep. My new niece or nephew hasn't arrived yet. We thought that s/he might come in time for Ds#2's birthday (the way that my nephew did with Ds#1's 4th birthday), but now it looks like s/he might be closer to my MIL's b-day. Only time will tell!

Who knows

what this blog is becoming? It began as a theater blog, morphed into something personal, segued into personal exploration, and is teetering on the brink of homeschooling. Sigh. Apparently, I'm not so great with decisions. :)

Yesterday, we started reading and talking about ancient Crete (from which my favorite non-abusive insult comes), and learned about how the Cretans decorated their walls with frescoes. So, today we're going to make some frescoes of our own. I'll post some pictures when we're done.

We're also studying birds and our bodies in science. Ds#2 has rediscovered mazes, and Ds#1 has been working with bubble math puzzles. Ds#2 got a marble construction game (made in Italy, fwiw), and the game Tell a Story for his birthday, so those were great fun yesterday as well.

Speaking of Ds#2's birthday. We celebrated it on Saturday with my family and Dh who was "home" for the weekend (where is home now, exactly?) with barbecued chicken, homemade potato salad, hot yeast rolls, and chips and salsa (all his choice, as the birthday person chooses everything). Instead of cake, we had homemade banana splits, with fresh strawberries, pineapple, bananas, chopped cashews and almonds, chocolate syrup, and homemade whipped cream. Yum! My kids have great taste! ;-) I can't believe that he'll be 4 in a couple of days. My physical dynamo can't wait to sign up for swimming classes as soon as we move. I realized the other day that he doesn't just enter a room, he bounds into it. He doesn't leave it so much as he leaps out of it. He focuses when he needs to, but really, the kid is rarely not moving. :)

Ds#1 has a birthday in 2 weeks. So, he and Dh spent the weekend bidding on a Gameboy Advance (lots of good ones available since the new one has come out and everyone is upgrading). Ds LOVES ebay and the process of bidding. He won a red one (his favorite color), and is expecting it to arrive later in the week. He also won 2 games and will probably get more from my mom and brother. I think that he learned a lot from the process (he actually "lost" 2 gameboys before winning this one, and lost scads of games), and had a great deal of fun, too.

He really is growing up. This morning, with my direction, he made cream of wheat on the stove. He helps me take the dogs out every morning with nary a grumble. He hasn't argued as much lately, nor been so hard on his brother (he never fights with ds#3). On second thought, maybe he's coming down with something. ;-) There are cycles, of course, but this one gives me a beautiful glimpse of the responsible, generous person my child is and will continue to blossom fully into.

There are Worse Things I Could Do....

than drink a glass of tea or two (or three or...) :-) No soda, lots of organic tea... Has to be good right?

What a great full first day of homeschooling! We've been easing back in for the past week or so, and jumped in full strength today. I love that we chose this route for our family, and I love that the boys love it, too. It doesn't hurt that at least 75% of the time they wouldn't call what they're doing "school". :-)

We had yummy, easy to make food today, too, which I think lowered our stress levels quite a bit. We even have a yummy tomato and bean gulash simmering in the crock pot (I have to savor every minute and aspect of a day that goes well! LOL). All of this house stuff has really taken a toll on the whole family, and we're finally starting to get into a bit of a groove. I even boxed up a TON of toys (I feel as if I've been doing that for the past year). We're talking about downsizing, at least for awhile, and purchasing an investment property, so anything non-essential and clutter producing should probably find a new home...

Oh, and we're anxiously awaiting the birth of a new cousin (my 2nd niece/nephew). We can't wait to find out whether there will be five grandsons, or whether a girl is going to change things up a bit!

So many books...

So very little time...

I'm reading:

The Politics of Hate (John Weiss)

Teaching Kids to Love the Earth (Marina Lachecki Herman, et al)

The Art of Teaching Art to Children in School and at Home (Nancy Beal)

The Storyteller's Start-Up Book (Margaret Read MacDonald)

I'm listening to my son read:

Island of the Blue Dolphins (Scott O'Dell)

Melancholy

I'm making a plan to simplify my life. I consider every bag of clothing that I donate (I donated 4 bags today, plus two armloads of coats and jackets), every bag of recycled paper that I cull from my stashes of stuff, every time I choose not to buy something new to be a significant step in the right direction. It's hard -- I've been sifting through 15+ years of stuff for months. Some things, like the books and notebooks, and the boys' school supplies, and my craft/art supplies, are non-negotiable. But oh the rest. The scribbles on paper, the mountains of clothes, the old magazines, a thousand unused (and never to be used) coloring books, the broken crayons and colored pencils; well, you get the idea.

I'm cooking more, and buying less food. I haven't bought a box/bag of cookies or chips in months. I still treat the boys and myself when we do go out, but at home the bar has been raised significantly. It seems like a form of slavery to manage so much: the toys, the laundry, the food, the house itself. There have to be ways to cut back on the intake of stuff so that more time is spent doing cool things and visiting with and learning from awesome people. The rest really doesn't matter.

One of the main things that I've always LOVED about acting and theater is the sheer simplicity. You don't need anything but people to make astounding, gorgeous theater. It's amazing to just bring oneself to the stage, and simply DO.

I want that kind of simplicity in every part of my life.

Ever feel pulled in a million directions?

There's a story from the 70's called The Fire Cat. The cat in the book is described as being not a good cat or a bad cat, but a mixed up cat with big paws who wants to do great things.

The book irritates me on some levels, but for some reason I identify with the cat. Not good, not bad, but mixed up with a strong desire to do something truly important.

Dum di dum di dum di doo

I'm not really twiddling my thumbs but it feels that way sometimes. The open house went well, but not well enough, in that it hasn't resulted in an offer. It's only Monday, but ya know. Though we did have an impromptu showing this afternoon. They only stayed 20 minutes or so, but that doesn't mean they didn't like it, I guess.

Ds#3, 21 months, is really trying to learn to use the toilet, especially with #2. He much prefers to put it in the potty, but can't always get there. Pee is a little more random. I think he'd rather put it on the floor than anywhere else (it makes such a nice puddle), but since that's out, he doesn't seem to care where it goes.

Ds#2 is trying to learn to read. He has always loved books and stories as much as Ds#1, but he learns from doing rather than from seeing, so we're trying to find a different approach for him since he's very anxious to learn. He knows a few words, including all of the important ones that he's known since age 2 (his own name and those of his brothers and family, as well as some words like "book", "foot", "the", all of the letters, upper and lower case, etc.) Ds#1 was reading simple words like on, no, a, and, etc. when was he was 2 1/2, and reading full sentences by age 3, but he's a very visually oriented learner. He now reads at about a 6th grade level (we recently did some informal but fairly accurate assessments with him) at almost age 7, even though he didn't even say the whole alphabet until about age 4. Ds#2 does sing with perfect pitch, is very physically oriented and has been speaking and singing at an advanced level since at least 12 months. He seems to have acquired the same clarity of speech issues that ds#1 had, and so we're working with him on that a bit. They get this ignoble trait from me. I've battled mush mouth my entire life, but never thought that it could be hereditary (it's a physical thing apparently -- they have no trouble distinguishing between the sounds, but rather have difficulty physically making them). I always assumed that my issues were a result of the many ear infections I had as a child, but apparently not. None of us is perfect, no not one. ;-)


It's interesting to see the difference in learning styles, and personality, between otherwise equally intelligent children. It will be interesting to see what happens with ds#3. He's quite the corker already!

I'm going to sign up for kick-boxing when we get settled in. I had to skip the zoo bike trip that ds#1 and I were getting ready for, since we got so incredibly busy, and because with any luck we won't be here in September. But, I'll keep cycling, and hopefully kick-boxing will prove to be a fun outlet for my crazy, stressed energy. It definitely looks like fun!

I'm also hoping that I could start tutoring at-risk children and teens once in awhile. I had trained with the adult reading program at the library when ds#1 was a babe, but instead of getting an adult learner, they wanted to put me with the special needs/severely learning delayed classroom. I was too young and unassertive to tell them that this group wouldn't be for me, and I felt too guilty to tell them that I wanted to do what I had signed up to do (teach otherwise developmentally on-target individuals who had lacked the support they needed to learn -- there are many of these individuals waiting for tutors). As a result, I tried to tough it out for several weeks before I finally stopped going. These days, I would approach the situation in a very different manner. I'm not sure what has sparked this interest again, but I'll probably check out the opportunities once I get settled. I'm also interested in ESL work, so we'll see.


Too many plans, so little time. If we could get a little land, the boys are very interested in chickens, goats, and Holland Lop bunnies. Of course, we could easily save that until ds#3 is 7 or so. Everything will be a little easier by then (one can always hope!). (ETA: ds#2 wants to have horses, too, despite ds#1's assertion that horses are too much work, cost too much money, and take up too much space)...

Whatever

I have so many more important things to write about, not the least of which is the passing of my pooch, but alas, I'm going to bitch about today's showing. They showed up 35 minutes early for a 2:30-4:30 showing (the larger block of time usually means that they're seeing more than one or two houses) -- so not only were we the first on their list for the afternoon (which means we were probably the "least"), but they graced us early. I'm guessing that the realtor was not very experienced, or just silly. When looking at houses, we've always gone on to the next house if we could see that someone was still home (especially if we happened to get there early), and come back later.

I was just loading the dogs in the car, and had planned a final walk-through (which would have included putting the laundry basket of clean clothes into the car instead of the closet, would have caught the cereal bowl of mushy flakes that had been smeared on the desk in the office while I was vacuuming in another room, would have found the clothes that had been thrown on the boys' bedroom floor in a last minute clothes change, would have put a new roll of toilet paper on the holder in the master bath, and would have hidden away the ant trap that was resting so nicely beside the recycling can in the kitchen -- don't ask what I was doing the rest of the morning that I wasn't able to get to those things before anyone arrived). And never mind the fact that I didn't get to clean the kennel before anyone came. Hopefully, they were suitably horrified by the congealing cereal and dirty laundry and decided not to take a close look at the outdoors. Or maybe they were frightened enough of my crazy, un-showered self trying to load my three monkeys into the car that they decided against the house before they even went in.

Whatever, whatever, whatever.

So, we have a showing tomorrow, and an open house on Sunday. And we have another person who has yet to see it, but is interested. He mainly wants to rent, and to buy in a year (he's a student), but who knows, it could work out.

I LOVE selling my house! I LOVE selling my house! I do, I really, really do.

Well, ya know...

Ahhh... My show is over. I successfully ended my theater career in this community... The three shows I directed went off splendidly, and my turn as a Jewish New Yorker was none too shabby, either. I'm thrilled that I did it, but just as happy to be finished.

As for the house, well, I'm trying not to think about it. In some ways, it's like trying to get pregnant or like waiting for labor to begin. You know that everyone tells you that it might take awhile, but you secretly hope that you'll be the exception, the lucky person who gets knocked up the second you throw out your BC, or the fortunate person who goes into labor the second she hits 36 weeks (this fantasy also includes a fully mature set of lungs for the babe). Every second past those magical points feels like torture, until you resign yourself to the fact that your experience is most likely going to be "normal". It's worse, of course, if this isn't the first time you've tried to get pregnant or gone into labor or sold a house. You're either assuming that it will go just as swimmingly as last time, or praying that the nightmare you experienced before doesn't repeat itself. The advice for all of these scenarios (usually from well-meaning folks who are not trying to create life, birth life, or unload a bothersome house) is to, well, RELAX. It's usually the last thing anyone wants to do. But, having not done so through the conceptions, labors, and births of three kiddos, and two previous housing transactions, I'm going to give it the ole college try. Why not? I'm all for changing things up a bit.

One thing I'm really worried about: My pooch. She's not feeling well, and I may have to take her to the vet on Monday. She was fine two weeks ago when we took the dogs in for their check-ups and boosters, but the last couple of days, she just wants to lay in the yard. No kong play, no sniffing the flowers, no kissing the boys. She turned 10 in January, but despite being somewhat overweight, checked out just fine. I hate that she still has to get her rabies booster (especially since her titers are most likely off the charts after all these years), and I hope that it wasn't the vaccination that made her sick. If it were up to me, pooches would only get vaccines every 2-3 years, but I'm sure that wouldn't fly, politically.

Sanity

Oh my, I could use a little sanity right now. Usually, while I love everything to be squeaky clean and magazine picture worthy, I don't have the time, energy or wherewithall to keep it that way, so I make do by keeping things mostly clutter free and moderately clean. Whenever I try to get and keep it super, company clean, I become an obsessive bitch, running around shouting about yogurt and urine and shoes and dog hair. I hate that side of me. So, now, when I have three spunky kids (not a laid back boy in the bunch), an inside dog, a largish house, no time, and a need for a nearly squeaky clean house, I'm in a tiny hell. I want to be relaxed about everything, but I simply can't, and while the boys are doing their best to help (and the poor pup is spending a lot of time outside or in the garage or riding along with us in the car) by cleaning their room and picking up their toys and putting away their laundry, I feel my inner bitchy woman emerging at the drop of a hat (or a milk cup or a half-eaten peach or plum or half a bag of crunchy cereal). Add to it the need to clean the garage and our outside dogs' kennel, and I'm a mad, sad woman.

But, in the overall scheme of things, this is nothing. We will or won't sell the house quickly, at a good or medium or bad price, and life will go on. In the meantime, I'll work on taming the inner beast, who wants nothing more than pull little white hairs out of the couch cover...

We're back!

Wow, so we just had a whirlwind experience in D.C. It was wonderful, except for the part at the end. We had a 4:30 flight out of Reagan International, so we got there around 2:30 to allow for security and check-in and to have a late lunch (lunch was great, btw, as was all of food on this trip), only to have our flight inexplicably canceled at 4:00pm. They claimed weather (weather being the only excuse for canceling without compensating the customer in any way), but for this particular flight, that reason was unlikely. At any rate, the airline was totally unhelpful to its plane-load full of displaced customers, telling us that we could try to get on the next flight to Indy at 7:30 (which had 6 open spots) or wait until 6:45 am, but closing two of the lines available for such services right as we needed them. We got on a 6:00pm flight to NY (by calling while waiting in line), but that was canceled at 5:20 due to real storms in the NY area. Eventually we made it onto the 7:30 flight, but it turned out that they had a plane but no crew to fly it. So, we waited hour after hour (A was a trooper!), as they pushed back the flight time just as we would get to the boarding time. We finally got a crew from Burlington, VT and left D.C. at 1:30 in the morning. We got home and picked the boys up at 5:00am, and crashed until mid-morning. Not the best part of the trip!

The trip itself was awesome. On Sunday, we got to D.C. around 12pm, had a light lunch, and went to the Hirshorn Museum and the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum -- which is currently housing a great exhibit called American Traditions (usually in its own space, but it's homeless while the space is being renovated). So, we saw the hat Lincoln was wearing when he was shot, a a piece of the script from The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy's red slippers, Ben Franklin's walking stick, and so much more. We walked around the Mall, and checked out the Washington Monument, and got a sighting of the landing of a D.C. VIP -- couldn't see who it was, but the helicopters landed and limos sped off to the White House. Pretty cool. Then we went to Hank's Oyster Bar for dinner -- seared scallops and fried oysters with yummy beer, seasoned fries, and cole slaw... Yum! A loved every minute of everything, particularly the escalators and the metro trains.

Monday, R had an all-day meeting at the Library of Congress, so we took the metro there and then went our separate ways. A and I took a tour of the library (very amazing) including the visiting exhibit of Japanese prints, walked around the Capital building and the Supreme Court building, and toured the Botanical Gardens. By this time we were ready for lunch (more than ready -- it was 95 degrees, and quite the walk), so A and I headed to the National Museum of the American Indian (celebrating all native peoples of the Western Hemisphere). They had an amazing cafeteria with food from all the major regions of the West. Hemisphere. We had chicken tamals and grilled veggies from South America, and a cranberry nut cookie from the Northwest, and herbal tea. There were so many things to try, but A was heavy and fell asleep, so I finished up and toured the museum while he slept on my shoulder. We saw many cool things, but my favorites were the native dresses and shoes from the 1800's, as well as the money, jewelry, and other artifacts from the 1400's to the 1900's.

We headed to the Mall to wait for R. A chased pigeons and drank lemonade until R joined us at 5:20. Then we went back to the hotel to change clothes (R was dressed up, and A and I were dripping in sweat), and went back out to see the Lincoln Memorial (did you know that the Reflecting Pool is covered with duck and goose pooh?). Long trek, but beautiful. We also walked around the White House (the Dwight D. Eisenhower building is HUGE). Next time we're in D.C., we'll take more comprehensive tours (R went through the White House about 20 years ago with his parents, but this was my first glimpse), but it was a nice taste of the city. Then we ate at a lovely Asian place (I had a shrimp Pad Thai, plum wine, and pineapple juice -- and about a gallon of water. Did I mention it was hot?). Then back to the hotel to rest. You can walk quite a bit in D.C., even with the trains.

On Tuesday (was that really only yesterday??), we had an expensive and average tasting breakfast at the hotel (quite disappointing), and then went to the Holocaust Museum. It's an amazing and humbling place. I know quite a lot about the Holocaust and of WWII, having concentrated in them for my undergrad degree, but there was so much there. Photographs, newspaper articles, personal diaries and quotes, artifacts, Nazi films of the camps and the research, bunks from the camps, one of the train cars that transported families to the camps, rocks that workers were forced to carry up and down a mountain until they died of exhaustion (literally), and so on. It wasn't easy to go through. To think that there are honestly people who deny that this happened, and that there are others who are perpetuating this kind of hate around the world is mind blowing. One of the moving films was one taken after the liberation of one of the camps -- German citizens were forced to tour the camp because of their complicity with the Nazis; well-dressed men and women walked through the buildings and the grounds, covering their faces with handkerchiefs and gasping at what they saw. A woman ran out of one of the buildings, a look of horror on her face.

One low point at the museum was a personal one. I was sitting outside the main exhibit area, in an area designated for resting, nursing A, when two women walked past. Bear in mind that I had just viewed horrifying Nazi research films, and was feeling vulnerable and angry. They walked past me, and actually gasped out loud and covered their mouths when they realized that I was breastfeeding A. They pointed me out to a couple of their friends, and shook their heads. I'll be honest -- if they had said anything, or stopped long enough for me to get up and talk to them, they would have gotten a serious piece of my mind. I was flabbergasted that they could be offended by my discreet nourishment of my child after having viewed what was to me the most offensive of human behaviour. Some people truly have no sense of perspective.

So, that, in a very large nutshell, was our D.C. trip. Now it's on to putting the house on the market, and planning our house-hunting trip. Whew!!

Moving Along

Well, folks, we're moving along. We finished the downstairs bath, and the laundry room, and I've finally stripped every last bit of glue and paper (two layers!) from the office walls. We're nearly done with my craft room and the bedroom downstairs. I have to do some heavy cleaning, and Ryan has a few more outlets/switches to change out, but we're in the home stretch. The realtor is coming next week when we get back from D.C., and then it's full-on showing time. Should be interesting taking three dogs and three kids out and about while the house is being shown. I'm still not sure how the big girls (Jaka and Lily) are going to respond to a 13 hour car trip. Of course, I don't know that they'd handle flying any better. Perhaps hardest of all will be our weeklong "vacation"/house hunting trip in July -- mom will look after them, but they will have to stay in their kennel during showings, and that makes me nervous. It would be ideal if mom could watch them at her house, but our three plus her two makes for dog overload.

So, I'm playing Esther in the same small showcase for which I am directing (there are 6 scenes total; I'm directing three of them). I never thought that I would have the opportunity to play a Jewish woman from New York City, but it just shows to go ya that you never know what roles life might bring you! ;-) And, who knows when the next show will be -- I have other interests that are emerging. I'm trying to decide what to do about the journalism degree that I began last semester. Mostly, though, I think that I want to concentrate on the boys and writing. At any rate, it will take some time to get into the groove in a new place, and who knows when we'll actually get there -- the housing market is pretty slow right now.


I'm optimistic, but too busy and tired to be jump up and down excited.

Getting there!

Wow! It has been a busy few days. I finished painting the master bathroom (in "Orchid Ash"), and then I cleaned out the walk-in closet (disposing of stuff that was over 10 years old, yikes), and painted it the same soft lavendar as the bathroom. Both rooms look really cool with my chocolate colored bedroom. Yay! We won't talk about how many other projects we have on the list. But, I think that we have decided to put hardwood (or perhaps laminate) in the bedrooms. If we stay, the whole house will eventually be carpet-free.

Our curriculum arrived yesterday. Ds#1 was super excited when it arrived. And, he brought the books to me this morning (before I had finished my coffee even), ready to go. We spread the work out over the day, partly because we were feeling our way through, and partly because he and Ds#2 had music classes today. It went really well, and I'm happy to say that he can't wait until we do more. He also spent some time practicing Alouette on the keyboard (my mom bought us a new one, with 88 weighted keys, yay!). All in all, even with the normal craziness of having three boys, it was a great day. And a great week, even if I didn't fit in everything that I had hoped to do.

Siochan!

I've started the baby hat, in a yummy sand (with the slightest hints of cobalt blue and peachy pink -- so very light)...

The directors of the show that I was set to do in July/August have backed out due to other commitments. It's just as well, really. It would have been a great part, with a great cast, but I'm not really in the mood, and we have so much to deal with this summer. Dh is full-on looking for jobs, in case he doesn't want to extend his current position (which is set to end in August). He loves his current position and we love our town and our house and our neighborhood, and our friends, but life has a way of moving you along whether you want it to or not. And, who knows. We may be firmly planted where we are for quite some time. Either way, we have to spend some serious time making the house liveable (the upstairs is mainly done, minus a couple of 20 minute projects, and the inevitable touch-ups, but the downstairs needs to be finished, and we need to paint the garage and put the new door on the back).

Ds#1 and I have started "training" for a 15 mile bike ride. The ride is in September, starting from the zoo (about an hour from our house). I know that I'll be ready by then, but we'll have to see about Ds. The registration goes until mid August, so if he's not ready, I'll do the ride, and Dh and the boys will provide support (by hanging out at the zoo! ;)).

And I'm editor of the theater section of a small, local culture mag. Pretty cool, but I have to get my rear in gear on that, too.

I'm love, love, loving summer!

My priorities are shifting. I can feel it as I plant snapdragons beside my mailbox, and weed the marigolds and violas that I planted last week. I can feel it as I prune the roses that I planted in my indoor flower box. It overwhelms me as I pull out my book of knitting patterns filled with baby hats and sweaters, and make plans to create a cute cable knit hat for a friend's baby due in November. I am stunned to find that I *must* buy the yarn *today*, and that I can't wait to tell another knitter friend of mine and show her the pattern.

I've felt the pull for awhile, but have fought against it. It's a strange sensation. An odd need to be domestic and activist at the same time. A strange urge to immerse myself fully in life and the earth and just live. Don't worry: I'm not going to be whipping out gourmet dinners any time soon, but I did try to bribe my husband with regular warm meals if he would buy a new vehicle. I know, sometimes even I am surprised at my shamelessness.

So, I don't know where this is going. I know deeply that it's a positive shift, especially as I feel my great-aunt's presence as I clip the edges of the flower beds with long handled shears. She always used a long scythe to cut the grass in the field behind her house, and I felt her in my arms as I gently guided the earth.

You Are a Dreaming Soul

Your vivid emotions and imagination takes you away from this world So much so that you tend to live in your head most of the time You have great dreams and ambitions that could be the envy of all... But for you, following through with your dreams is a bit difficult You are charming, endearing, and people tend to love you. Forgiving and tolerant, you see the world through rose colored glasses. Underneath it all, you have a ton of passion that you hide from others. Always hopeful, you tend to expect positive outcomes in your life. Souls you are most compatible with: Newborn Soul, Prophet Soul, and Traveler Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

This is how you eat a drumstick!

Something new

No, I'm not actually in a show requiring me to color my hair. And, yes, I did actually pay someone a lot of money to make my hair this color. And, yes, I LOVE it. The intensity will fade pretty quickly, leaving me with a very warm red (the fiery red is largely due to the white-blondness of some of my sun-induced highlights). And I didn't get my hair cut, which makes me very, very happy.

Ds#2 did ask who "painted" my hair. On the way home, I was contemplating the idea that we all take ourselves a little too seriously; my new do helps me remember that whenever we can make our lives a little more fun, and remember that hair color (or fill-in-the-blank) isn't serious, and that poverty, war, and crimes against humanity are, then we should go for it.

Here's a final thought, in the realm of seriousness: My 18 month old just used "Diet Coke" in a sentence, something which seriously makes me look like mom of the year.

Happy day!

Headaches

I've had a headache for about a month and a half. It's self-induced, and I've found the solution: cut back on commitments outside of the house for a bit. Unfortunately, since I just starting saying "no", it will be at least the beginning of May before I feel the positive effects of refusing to over-commit. Yikes.

In one of my first posts I wrote about the importance of being able to say no. I'll say it again, as my head throbs in agreement: Learning to say no may be one of the most important skills a person can acquire. March, April, and May seem to be the key months here for overcommitment.

The problem for me is two-fold: I like to stay busy at the end of winter in order to not fixate on the cold, and there are so many good projects to work on this time of year. A lot of these projects are not full productions, making them even more seductive because they give the illusion of not requiring as much time as a larger show. Since the beginning of February, though, I have done a "Death by Chocolate" murder mystery fundraiser; performed in a staged reading of a new musical; played a lonely woman unable to speak but desperate to communicate in a 40 minute tribute to silent cinema (aptly named "Silent Cinema"); taken a 6 week acting class (the showcase performances of which are tonight and tomorrow); begun co-producing the next Evening of Monologues; been cast in Amadeus; turned down acting in a Directors Symposium and in the same Evening of Monologues that I'm co-producing; written an article for Culture Week; and begun writing a short play for submission to a playwriting workshop. Add to that the fact that I'm taking a 3 credit class (which includes a major photo assignment that I turned in on Sunday, and a paper due tomorrow), homeschooling my kids (which includes, but is not limited to, helping my son learn about Australia for his International Fair on Thursday), and just finished helping my mom move, and it no longer surprises me that my head hurts.

I'm a Capricorn, and I've long suspected that this is what contributes to my inability to follow my own sage advice and set firm boundaries to protect my sanity. The rub is that I like to feel as if I'm accomplishing something. I enjoy being busy, and I enjoy having control over my own schedule the way that I do. I like looking back over that list and seeing how much I've done (and forgetting the headache that accompanied it). The problem is that I have to learn to choose. Because I haven't been choosy enough, I've had to turn down projects that I really wanted to do. I simply don't have the time or energy for them. Had I been choosier, though, I would have been more than able to handle the important projects that came along.

That said, I'm totally psyched about my small, non-speaking part in Amadeus. Several of the major characters are seriously professional actors and it is beyond awesome that I'll get to share the stage with them in a such a low-stress manner. Also, since it's a period piece, the costumes are most certain to be amazing. Add to that the fact that I'll be paid for my work, and I'm in total heaven.

I'm also thrilled that the work that I've done this winter has helped me to grow as an actor. The role of the mute woman, in particular, was challenging. I rely heavily on my voice (most actors do), and this role helped me become more aware of my physicality on stage. So don't despair, I suppose; if you do over-commit, take comfort in the fact that you have plenty of interesting work to keep you busy, and to hone your skills. Start being more selective, and hopefully you'll feel the effects sooner rather than later. As for me, I'll be slowing down right as summer starts heating up. Perfect timing!

Abundance

The semester has started. I’m only taking one course: a seminar in visual communications. There isn’t a lot available to me until I take the so-called Journalism boot camp in the fall (a 6-credit hour course), but this seminar is the perfect way to segue back into school. I have always enjoyed photography, both as a consumer and as a creator; at age 8, I posed my brother and our fuzzy brown terrier in as many different ways as possible. My black and white photography class was my only successful class my 2nd semester of undergrad. I was rebellious, and tired, and rarely made it to any class except that one. In fact, I didn’t make it there as often as I should have, but I always turned my assignments in. My teacher, a talented photography grad student, loved my work so much that I received an A despite my spotty attendance – she was my saving grace that semester!

I have since grown up, and missing class is the last thing that I want to do. I also know exactly what I’m good at, and what I don’t care about. This is an enormous help. I think that another factor separating my experience this time around (though, I will say that getting married and then finishing my undergrad was the best thing I ever did – 2nd semester I wasn’t married, 3rd semester I was. Enormous, positive difference. But, I digress.), is that I understand the value of time. I wonder what in the world I did with all of those undergrad hours? Now, with 3 rambunctious boys, a busy husband, 3 dogs, and occasional theater obligations, I know how full life can be. And I know that a person can do what she wants in her life and not go crazy. The trick is only doing things that one is passionate about (obviously, this advice does not apply to the daily maintenance kinds of things – I’ve met very few people who are passionate about cleaning around their toilets), and exercising every day.

How would I describe my life right now? Overflowing, in the very best sense of the word. Is my house clean? Mostly. But it isn’t spotless; not even close (though I do try to keep the toilets clean – living with 4 males, that’s no easy task). Are my kids well fed, decently clothed, learning and thriving? Yes. Do my dogs need more attention? Certainly, but they, too, are well fed, have warm, dry beds, and the company of their own kind. I do exercise every day. My husband is moderately well fed, and he feeds me, too. In fact, we all feed one another; like good actors in a well made play, we give and take energy in a way that helps the whole family remain dynamic.

I’ve stopped trying to figure out what I’m going to be when I grow up – I don’t have to pigeon-hole myself in that way, and so I choose not to do so. I’ll follow the paths that I like, and reject those that rob me or my family of energy, hope, and faith. What else can any individual person do?