This Vintage Chica

writing thank yous

Sometimes I have more ideas in my brain than there is possibly time to complete. However, I know I'm not the only one out there with bigger plans than our hands can keep up with.

Fill-in-the-blank thank you notes for the boys is one of those ideas that have been on my mind for a full year now. Last year I had this idea as a way for the boys to practice their writing and continue the gratitude theme that is so precious to us during the Christmas holiday. Not to mention that I think thank you notes are becoming a lost art.  So this year, thank you notes were at the top of my list!

It was such a wonderful exercise in thankfulness.  The boys (and I) were really amazed at just how many gifts they had received from teachers, family and friends.  One of Ian's notes to his brother said this, "it was a great gift because you were the one who gave it to me and I love you." 

And now I am thinking I need to write a little thank you note of my own.

Dear Sweet Friends,

Thank you for the gift of friendship this past year. It was a great gift because it has meant so much to me. Everyone should be so blessed to have such an encouraging and supportive group of people around them. I never in a million years would have thought I would have found such a community through blogging.  And like Ian said, your gift was from your hearts and I love you all for it.

I excitedly look forward to the year ahead and what all adventures it will bring.

Much love to you all,

Eren

P.S.  A better peek at our full thank you note can be found here.  Feel free to use it as you may.

back to the real world

sun, originally uploaded by eren | thisvintagechica.

Hello world! That's pretty much how I am feeling after being in Texas with family for the past several weeks- no internet, limited cell service and very little TV.  

Ahhhh....it was nice to unplug for awhile. A bit hard to get used to at first.  And now, is a bit of an adjustment getting back into the bigger, noiser world again.

We are settling back into our old routine of school, friends, church, activities. Unfortunately, I am having some problems posting from typepad. (This post is generated from flickr) So, just popping in quickly to say hello...and we are back...at least physically.

Right before we left the boys and I watched a few of the youtube.com videos of Andy Goldsworthy's art.  Thanks Amanda for the link.  Goldsworthy uses only the things he finds in nature to create breathtaking pieces. How amazingly stunning it all is. Last week my sister-in-law and I went out to see a movie and when we came back Wyatt had made this little sun out of sticks and fossils. He is gifted Im sure. Im calling expensive, presigious art schools as I type this.  

Hope all is well with each of you. Im looking forward to catching up on what you all have been up to.

Many blessings friends!

contribution to still: body

 

I took this photo last week and I have come back to it again and again. So, when I read that Martha would be hosting a week of s t i l l : body (still life photos with little bit of a person spying through) I could not help but share this one. Wyatt and I had been making dough for cinnamon rolls and we were waiting very impatiently for the dough to rise before we could roll it out.

When I look at this photo I can't help but think about how little bits of our children seep into every part of our lives no matter how "child free" we try to make them. They can't help it. It IS their nature...their job.

Feel free to contribute your own photo to s t i l l: body to the flickr pool.  I just love this one by storygoil.

And thank you for all the comments on the education post below. I should have known that it would jar such reactions. That was not my intent.  It was just me journaling out my thought process. But I do love a good healthy debate...especially about something as important as educating our kiddos.  I promise to now keep you in suspense long. I will post part two as soon as it is finished.

The boys and leave tomorrow morning for Texas, so I am frantically packing. Im looking forward to lots of quiet time walking to the creek and looking for fossils. We might even have an opportunity to get together with some long distance friends. See you soon!

taking charge of our education, part 1

I say "part 1" because I do not think that everything that has been swishing around in my head regarding the boys education can be put into one post...at least it I haven't been able to do it yet.  So, this is how my questioning (or at least thinking a lot about) the our public school education started.

Last year in kindy, the older boys went half days.  At first I thought I would really want them in full day, but after we hit our groove, I loved it!  They went in the mornings and I picked them up at 11:10.  We ate lunch and then had the afternoon to follow their interests (what we considered unschooling).  We went to the beach, we gardened, we played games, we took walks, cooked, etc.  I relied greatly on our homeschooling friends for ideas and guidance on how to follow the boys interests and loved tying in whatever they were learning in their public school classroom with things we were doing at home.

So, then we entered 1st grade...and all h-e-double hockey sticks broke loose.  I knew shifting to full day in a classroom would be a change (and a challenge) for both boys.  I was ready to greet them off the bus and allow lots of playtime outside to run the energy off that had built up over the day.  But what I was not ready for was the two hours of homework that followed their already full school day.  They would get off the bus at 2:45, have a quick snack and I would discuss their day with them.  And then we would start homework in between 3:15 and 3:30.  Not finishing homework until 5 or 5:30.  Seriously!  Each of them bring home a math worksheet and then have a list of word wall words (sight words) and also a list of spelling words (that fall into word families...like all -an, -ap, -at words).  There were sentences to write with their sight words and sorts and more copying of words.  And each of the boys had different sets of words I had to keep straight.  Ugh!  And the teachers were not very good at communicating exactly how homework was to be done...as a first time first grade mom, I had no idea what "rainbow writing" was or what the difference was between a word community was and a word generalization.  I still don't for sure. 

But all of this left little or no time for outside play.  Which any mama of little boys knows they need as much outside time as you can give them.  I worked hard to move homework time outdoors on a quilt in the back yard.  I came up with outside games to help them get their homework done...like putting their homework at the end of the driveway and having them skateboard from their homework to the other end of the driveway, come back and then write their word.  But this took up even more time and to be honest, was exhausting.  Not that I didn't continue to work my behind off coming up with clever ways of disguising their work in play.  But it was starting to take its toll on my energy and my emotions.

Zane was saying he "hated" school because it wasn't any fun.  And Ian even made a comment during homework one day that he just wanted to have time to play with his legos once in awhile.  I heard them...and I agreed completely.  But I didn't want them to think that everything we do must be fun...there are lots of things I have to do each day that are not fun.  But we have to do them anyway.  We all have responsibilities.  But at 6 years old, why shouldn't learning be fun?  In kindy, I just wanted them to like going to school, enjoy the learning process.  Why should it be any different in first grade?  Why should be any different in any grade for that matter.

So, I started contacting my resources.  Stay tuned for part 2.

a woodsy kind of pick-me-up

I am flying solo again here.  And to be quite honest, I was a bit down.  I have done this a million and one times now, but it still seems to catch me off guard.  Not that I can't do bedtime and dinner by myself.  I can.  But every time he leaves, it just reminds me how much more fun things are with him around.  I tend to be the taskmaster, the "do-er".  And he balances me out, reminding me to have a little fun now and then.  Everything is more fun with him around.  Heck, cleaning the garage can feel like a birthday party with him leading the charge.

We missed him the minute he was not here for breakfast.  And the day got worse from there...boys arguing despite my turning on the TV,  whining at every my every suggestion, the day was misty and cold and all I wanted to do was curl up in the quiet.  Maybe sit a spellwith the new flickr group Amanda and Stef have started.  However, despite it all, we put on our rain jackets and went for a walk in the woods.

We were treated to the most amazing display of shelf fungus (bracket fungus) we've ever seen.  The orange and yellow specimen above is called sulfur shelf fungus or "chicken of the woods" and is edible if you are ever stranded in the woods.  Luckily we brought trail mix and apples.

 

 

There has been a lot of talk about paths lately.  Which has me thinking about the paths we have chosen for our family.  But even more about the paths we have chosen NOT to take.  Especially with regards to educating them.  More on that once I snap out of my funk.  Maybe we need to go take another walk.

Much love to you all.

autumn busyness at the farm

 

For our forefathers back in the day, autumn was a very, very busy time I imagine.  The days would have been filled with harvesting the last of the crops for the farm animals, canning and preserving what was left in the garden and chopping wood for cooking and warmth through the winter.

 

We don't live on a farm now of course, we are city folk (unfortunately).  But you can still feel the busyness - the hustle and bustle of getting as much out of the last few warm sunny days before the cold rains begin here (snow in other parts of the country).  This week has been no exception here with three field trips to two different farms and an apple picking excursion.  And the fall festival at their school is tonight.

 

Oh and those of you with chickens...please know how hard it was for both Wyatt and I to leave these sweet birds.  I swear we'll have chickens someday.  (When is S scheduled for deployment again? As I deviously rub my hands together and laugh.)

I will be looking forward to a much more quiet weekend where I can get to some preparations of my own.  Happy weekend everyone!  Im off to bake a cake for the cake walk tonight.

evidence of autumn's approach

I know the first official day of Autumn is not for another 10 days.  But all week I have been given little reminders of Autumn's quick approach.  So to those of you in Texas and other states still facing upwards of 90 degree days...I promise, it is coming.

 

-- Coconut Custart Pie from this super easy recipe.  No, I did not make the pie crust, I bought it.

-- The leaves are just barely starting to fall on the maple in our front yard, but after having a much needed drink from tropical storm hannah I think it will hold off a little longer.  I continue to be so glad we decided to plant a maple and am looking forward to its leaf piles getting bigger and bigger every year.

-- From our front porch, you can hear the local high school band practicing and on Friday nights, you can listen to the entire football game.

-- I met Z and I at the bus stop on Thursday and Ian couldn't wait to show me these acorns.  He found them on the playground and despite the teachers telling him that he shouldn't play with them, he tucked five of them into his pocket.  Holding on to them all day.  "Look mom, five!  One for each of the people in our family.  There is even a little one for Wyatt".  Love this kid!!!

-- The muck boots I lived in all autumn and winter are back out.   And I am thinking in need a new pair...you know, just in case.

-- We've started noticing geese flying over head in their tell tale V's.

-- I find myself having photos to contribute to this flickr group.

Happy Weekend!

a heart from hannah

The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.

-- Anne Frank

Find more hearts in unexpected places.  And more heart rocks from some other peeps.

Tropical storm Hannah left this heart shaped rock in the very place where she knew we would walk last night on the beach, the very place where she knew we would find it and bring it home.

Happy monday all!

get on the bus

 

Summer has officially ended around here.  School started today.  Z and I loaded the bus for first grade...all day!  Man, where did the summer go?  Last year I was SO ready for school to start.  Ready for some order and routine.  But I'm not feeling it this year like I did last year.  We have had a great summer.  A really great summer.  And to be quite honest, I am sad to see it go.

But routine and schedules are always good for me.  So, today I welcome the return to structure, the return to homework and making lunches.  I even welcome getting up at 5:30 a.m.  I welcome all the learning that will happen this year, more reading, fractions, addition and subtraction and the brownies that will be eaten immediately after getting off the afternoon bus.

I'm sending a nice stiff cup of coffee (or tea) to all you mamas who are getting back into routine with me.  Have a great day everyone!

Summer is...lemonade

My boys have been wanting to have a lemonade stand all summer.  Well, Ian has been wanting to make a lemonade stand all summer. It is not a bad idea, because also this summer we have been learning about money.  I tried to guide them, as mamas do, to have the most successful lemonade stand they could.  I explained, the work that had to go into the product, pricing, marketing and staging.  But Ian just rolled his eyes and said "Mama, can't we just do this?!?!"

So a few days ago we did. 

And if your little ones are wanting to have an end of summer lemonade stand, and are not listening to their mama's brilliant ideas...Here is a little advice from my boys.

1.  Advertising is important.

2.  You have to have a good product.  You should test it often to ensure quality stays high.

3.  Pricing is important.  And sometimes you have to have a sale. (yes that would be $10 a glass we started at, then $5 and then settled on 50 cents.)  Finding the right price point is sometimes difficult.

4.  It helps to have friends who can help you with a custom logo design.

5.  Sometimes it takes awhile for your product to catch on.  You have to be patient.  Magic tricks from tricks from your next door neighbor can help pass the time until your product really takes off.

6.  Going into business with family is difficult as well.  If you are not careful, your little brother can drink most of your profits away in mere seconds.

7.  But seeing your satisfied customers smiling from behind their cups of lemonade makes it all worth it. 

*** And this mama learned to let go a bit.  And to let her young entrepreneurs learn on their own by doing.

summer begins

I have tried at least a million and one times to write a certain post about an upcoming trip to Nicaragua, but it just isn't happening.  I want to tell you about how excited I am and scared to death at the same time.  And how I love that feeling of being uncomfortable and comfortable at the same time.  I want you to know how much I have wanted to return since I was there three years ago.  I just can find the words to express the heavy and emotional thoughts swirling around my head and the possibilities that this trip brings.  So, until they come to me I'll focus on our transition into summer.

Summer is official now that the boys are out of school.  And luckily I have learned that these changes often bring upended schedules, late night bedtimes, naps in the middle of the day, lunches at 2 p.m. and dinners at 8 (or 9).  And that it is all ok.  We will settle into our summer routine in a week or so.  And I will feel more organized, more grounded.

So this past week has brought:

-- veggies from the garden, more zucchini and now Chinese eggplant too

-- the beginning of our summer art classes, getting acquainted with our materials and tools

-- an entire morning devoted to watching okra flowers open right before our eyes

-- a kitchen filled with the smell of gardenias from the neighbor's yard

-- a boatload of silliness

and last night the most wonderful pot luck dinner with friends - pesto chicken on the grill with roasted veggies straight from our garden, a salad from Christine and her girls, my boys favorite chocolate chip cookies in the world from Ambre and her kiddos, and a glass or two of wine while standing barefoot in the back yard.  Talking about and missing a few families from our community: Joe and Maggie who are in Nicaragua, Jamie and Lou who are back in the states (welcome back Nebels!) from Guam and Alicia who is tending to family business in Ohio.  And strangely, I think of many of my blogging friends who seem like they belong at this gathering just as much as the others.  Oh, what fun that would be! 

Aaahhhh....I am inhaling deeply as summer begins.

he's three

My youngest is three today. How in the heck did that happen?  OK, quick...before I get all weepy...

A few things about Wyatt:

• Wyatt is so adventurous. He does everything his older brothers do (climbing, skateboarding, swimming) despite being just shy of three years younger than they.  I swear he'd get on the school bus and ride it all the way and back again if I let him.
• Wyatt is brave, oh so brave! He is the first to volunteer for anything - no fear baby! He was the first to go off the diving board at my Aunt Karen's house last summer, the first to ride the horses, the first to climb at the Rock Gym a few weeks ago.
• Wyatt looks more and more like his daddy everyday (only with that blond hair). 
• Wyatt is funny and so silly. He tells goofy knock, knock jokes. His joke this morning: "Knock, knock?" "Who's there". "Orange". "Orange who?" "Orange you glad you don't have orange juice in your hair?" Yes, I am Wyatt.  Goofy kid.
• Wyatt has started ACTING like three as well.  And boy is he a great actor.  He often gets caught bugging the heck out of his older brothers and then playing the victim after one of them puts him in his place.
• Wyatt loves, loves birds and tells me all the time he wishes he could fly like a cardinal.
• Wyatt's prayer at every meal since S's deployment has been "Dear God, I love my dad. Amen" Every single prayer.
• And finally, he loves his brothers more than anything in the world and still crawls into bed with one of them when he wakes up in the night.

We're waiting to have his party when his papa gets home (which should be soon), but have been celebrating for the past week just between the four of us.

Happy Birthday Wyatt, my funny, sensitive, soulful, snugly bugly, awesome, adventurous, brave...oh, so very brave, beautiful child!!! I cant wait to see what the next year brings. Thank you for choosing me to be your Mama!

changing my name

These days I am starting to feel a bit like Noah's wife.  That poor, poor woman.  How on earth did she manage to keep her sons occupied and not at each other's throats for forty days and forty nights while it rained?  And without coloring books or Curious George. 

Our backyard was starting to resemble the swamps in Florida despite the french drains that were installed a few years ago.  Needless to say, after six days straight of rain, it was getting a bit scary back there.  The boys were starting to make up stories about an alligator names Gus who lived back there and was just waiting for little boys to stray too far off the patio and CHOMP!  They began taking bets on how big the alligator would be when it finally swam by our back kitchen window.  Ninety one-hundred feet was Ian's guess.

But on Thursday the clouds parted and the rain finally stopped.  So on Friday evening I had a lot of mowing to do.  Mowing the front and back yard, edging (yes, I have learned to do that too!) and lots and lots of weed pulling.  However all of the yard work has left us with itchy eyes and the sniffly noses - yep, allergies!  Poor Wyatt seems to be getting the brunt of it.  We're all doped up on benedryl now.  So hopefully we'll be back to our regular blogging schedule (like there really is such a thing!) soon.

Until then, please have your inflatable boats and swamp buggies at the ready, we might need a rescue.  It just started raining again.

Oh, and just one last thought.  I think I know why Noah's wife is not named in the Bible.  If she was like me, she got tired of hearing "Mama, mama, mama he's not sharing" and "Mama, somebody spilled applesauce down the stairs" and "Mama, where are the sharp knives?".  I told the boys yesterday that I changed my name and I wasn't going to tell them what I had changed it to.  I'm guessing Noah's wife did the same. 

ties that bind

I finished Amanda's book late last night. If you are a reader of her Soulemama blog, you will be very happy to know her book has the same "having a chat over coffee" feel to it. It is filled with some of my favorite projects she has shared previously, plus many new ones.

But the main idea I am walking away with is how handcrafts tie the generations together...especially us women. I found my mind wandering this morning to thoughts of my dad's mom, my Grandmother Hays, who sewed and crocheted afghans. She made me pretty nightgowns and matching Christmas outfits for me and my brother. She taught me how to single crochet. And my Grandmother Williams (hi grammer!) who showed me how to make rag rugs from scraps. She also taught me how to clean a fish...but that is a post for another time.

It made me think about my mother, who is an amazing seamstress. In fact, so good she made most of my prom dresses and even my wedding dress. She is the one who taught me to sew (or tried to).

In typical Eren fashion, my first sewing project was a skirt pattern way too advanced for my new skills - complete with pockets and a zipper. She tried to talk me into a more simple pattern that had an easy elastic casing at the top. But I was too cool for elastic! I couldn't show up to 6th grade wearing an elastic waist skirt and exclaim "Look what I made!" No way, Mom!

I'm not sure how my mother remembers this story, but I remember it being pretty much a nightmare. I wasn't the straightest sewer ever to chair up to a machine. And she made me rip out each seam that didn't meet her high standards! She probably remembers it something like an impatient young girl wanting to be an expert at something without the effort it required....who, me?

Needless to say, she tried her best to help me. Explaining why it was important to be so exact. Now that I am participating in this little quilting bee, I get it. Mom...twenty something years later...I GET IT!

Passing down a skill like crochet or sewing connects us of who we are and where we have come from. It ties us to the amazing women who have come before us. Women who also had little ones pulling at their aprons asking for juice. Women who also had to tend a garden, do the laundry and take a meal to a sick neighbor.

So Amanda's book has me feeling a bit nostalgic today. And it moved me to get out five unfinished Dresden plate quilt pieces that I brought home with me last summer. They were with some patterns and fabric of my great-grandmother Hays's. So, we are assuming they were hers. I have laid them all out and carefully ironed them thinking all the while about their original purpose. Each one is amazing in itself. And am now dreaming up ways to use them in our home.

Thank you Amanda for your book! For reminding us how handcrafts not only bind us to our families but to eachother.  And even more, thank you Grandmother Hays. Thank you Grammer. And thank you Mom! I am who I am because of you all.

climb every mountain

You see, my ever climbing boys have outgrown the small trees in our front yard, a crepe myrtle and a three year old maple.  They climb as high as they possibly can.  Resulting in them standing precariously on the little, thin branches at the top.  And this sends me into a screaming fit yelling "if you break the branches off my poor little trees, I will sell you to the gypsies!"  I should probably be more concerned with their safety, but I swear the Lord above has genetically designed boys to climb trees.  So I guess he'll protect them if they fall.  But my poor trees!

Our Spring break was last week, and we took full advantage of the time off.  We visited The Rock Gym three out of the five days off.  We had a blast the first day just bouldering around. 

And then the other two days we were on the ropes the entire time.  I say "we" like I was included in the climbing part of the expedition.  But really, my role was to stand in the wings and say things like "hold on, wait your turn, your brother will be done in a sec." and "leave your helmet on or they'll have to make us leave".  I adjusted harnesses and generally supervised, etc.

S and I used to climb before we were married and then together for awhile before the older boys were born.  I was even certified to belay, but these days I wouldn't remember a figure eight from a frog's leap.  But this outing was very encouraging.  Maybe the boys have hit the age their papa has been waiting for their whole little lives.  The age when they get to share in the things that truly give joy.

He'll be so very excited to take them next time!

on inspiration

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and your discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”
--unknown

I don't know why I ever thought a stay-at-home-with-her-boys mother, wife, friend, daughter, sister, neighbor was not at liberty to use this word - inspired. Why did I ever think only artists and craftspeople owned the use of this word. Why I had to be creating in the most traditional sense of the word.  Should I not to be inspired in what I do as well? Even if it is a new and creative way to dust the pollen covered furniture? A different way to play with my children.  Shouldn't that be the miracle of being inspired?  Finding unexpected joy in the everyday? If that is the case, and I believe it is, we should all be inspired!

Today I am wrapping my arms around this word. Opening myself up to seeing old things in a new way. Open to all possibilities.

And I am inspired by:

- an amazing friend who went out of her way
- Texas bluebonnets blooming, even though we will miss them this year
- Spring and new growth, watching our seeds sprouting in our garden
- the thought of camping this summer when papa comes home
- Amanda's book is out TODAY!
- vintage books about shell collecting and display
- terrariums
- The Crafty Crow brimming with ideas for us to explore
- stories from the past...as always
- Erin's animal quilts
- and this book, which I keep coming back to again and again.

What's inspiring you these days?

gone daddy gone

Last week I got an email from Nicole in France.  It read:

I have been visiting your blog for quite a long time...
I have been asked this question : how can I prepare my young child and explain the absence of his father for 4 month.

I remembered that you seem to live the same situation and I wandered if you could share your experience???
How and what do you say to your childrens??
I am the mother of five(triplets number three) but my husband always stayed home...My father was away alot but it was for books and I know it was a "fête" when he came back..that is all I remember.
It is This young mother's first child and she was looking for a book or experience ...
Can you help us?
Thank you
Nicole (from France)

I get emails similar in subject to this at least once or twice a month.  I have always just replied back to the email and have never posted much about how we deal with S being gone.  But I am finding it is time to share what our family does and how we cope with him being away. I think there should be two parts to this.  One, how I help the boys deal with his absence.  And then two, how I deal with it myself.  And I do not want in any way to say that this is a complete list of ideas or that I have the perfect answer to every family's situation.  So please, feel free to add information in the comments section.  Oh, and we are a military family, but many of these ideas and links would be helpful in any family where either parent is away for extended periods of time.  Here we go.

1.  Talk about Daddy. Don't ever be afraid that by talking about him you will upset the kids or make them miss him more.  They need to know that he is still apart of the family and WILL be coming back.  I find that when we haven't mentioned him in a few days or so, the boys will start asking things like "I wonder what Dad is doing right now?" or "Can I draw him a picture?"  I take that as my cue that they are missing his presence in our home and that I need to provide some activity that will bridge the gap between them. 

2.  Make a care package.  We do this about once every other week making sure to include gluten free snacks, artwork from the boys, and anything else they want to send.  Zane has even sent one of his rescue heros to S.

3.  Magic mailbox.  When we took our old mailbox down because it wouldn't stay closed and the mail was getting wet, I this idea for a magic mailbox.  The idea is that the boys put letters, pictures, schoolwork, into the mailbox and overnight it magically is sent to Dad.   The next morning (or whenever) a reply message appears in the mailbox from him.  (The low down:  I take the items out of the mailbox and send S an email describing the items.  He sends an email back thanking the boys for whatever it was they sent and includes and encouraging word or a detailed description of something he is planning to do with them upon his return.  I print the email off and place it into the mailbox for the boys to find the next morning.)  This has been an amazing tool for us.

4.  Daddy dolls - These would be so easy to make with printable fabric.  And they have more ideas for Beating Deployment Blues here.

5.  Keep your routine (as much as possible).  I know it is harder to get out the door without an extra set of hands.  But keeping your routine as close to the same as when he is home is crucial in my opinion.  Soccer and birthdays and holidays are not put on hold just because he is gone. 

3.  Take care of yourself.  No one else will.  Of course if you have family and friends around to help you in his absence, YES, by all means enlist them.  But you are ultimately the one who has to hold it all together.  More on that in the next post.

4.  Read books about daddy. Some of our favorites are: 

I Love My Daddy Because..., by Laurel Porter-Gaylord.  My two year old especially loves this one.  It talks about all of the wonderful things Daddies do for their kids.  They keep them safe, they teach them how to climb, etc.

I Love My Daddy, by Sebastian Braun

My Daddy and Me, by Amy Skylansky

The Magic Box, recommended by another military mom friend 

A Paper Hug - A boy finds that the best gift he can give his Daddy while he is away is a paper hug.

Night Catch,  - This is my older boys favorite book to read when they are thinking about S.  It talks about a special game to play with your daddy when he is away using the stars.  Really great.

5.  Count down the homecoming! - My friend Ambre has a calendar similar to an advent calendar with one pocket for each of the weeks her husband is gone.  You could do the same thing with a pocket for each day he is gone, but for a regular Navy deployment (six months), that would be a lot of pockets (and gifts).  I saw an idea from anothe mother in Wondertime magazine that she had made a paper chain with the same number of paper loops as days her husband would be gone.  Then she and her son would take one loop off of the chain each night before bed.  I think anyway to make the passing of time more easily understood is great for little ones, even if it is just marking days off the calendar.

6.  Get together with other families whose daddies are away. - One of the best things about living where we do is that the boys are surrounded by other kids with parents are gone from time to time.  In their classrooms they hear from their friends that their dads are leaving and coming home.  We celebrate homecomings with other families and my boys know it is just a matter of time before we are celebrating their daddy's homecoming.

7.  Use photos! - We have photos of each of the boys with their dad framed and in their room.  Wyatt's is on his dresser.  Ian keeps his in one of the cargo pockets on his bed comforter and Zane keeps his in the playroom.  You can make books from photos about what things you have done with dad and things you look forward to doing upon his return.

8.  Map it - We have a large world map in our playroom with a pin on the country S is currently in and a photo of him next to it.  We have gotten online and looked up what children in that country look like, what they eat, etc.  I think this helps them have a better picture in their head of where he is.

More resources:

Parents Magazine - Dealing With A Parent's Absence
Sesame Street - Talk, Listen, Connect - Sesame Street has put together a really great video for children who have a parent away.  It was put together for military families, but I think any family could benefit from the information.  They also have a free kit for families who are separated.

I know there are a million things I have forgotten and other parents who have wonderful ideas.  So, really, if you have an idea that other familes need to know about, please feel free to post them here.  I will put together a master list and post it in my sidebar.

P.S.  I would have taken some photos of our mailbox, map, etc. but the camera is broken again.  Ugh! 

all you need is love

Our dining table has been valentine making central for the past several weeks.  I knew from last year that if we wanted to hand make all of our valentines, we needed to start early.  Since the lists came home from school, each night we have made a few.

We kept is simple.  Cut hearts out of paper, glued to the front of card stock and then turned them into different animals, robots, people with pencil sketches.  And whatever we thought the recipient would enjoy.

Zane went for crazy half man, half animal characters. Nnadozi is getting "dangerous duck man".

Ian did a sweet drawing of a ballerina in fifth position for Ella.  Zane says Ella is Ian's girlfriend.  I love how he drew the ballerina's ////hair.

And then this afternoon, there was a last minute request for a mail bag to aid in delivery of the valentines.  *not to girly and no pink, please*  I made Wyatt a similar style bag to carry the twelve matchbox cars he insists on hauling all over the house.  This way he can free his hands to hold on to important things like stair railings.  I think it works quite well for mail too.

Do you all remember Mr. Mc Feely of Mr. Roger's neighborhood?  His voice has been playing in my head all day saying "speedy delivery" over and over.  So speedy delivery to you!

happy things january, part 1

The words are not flowing quite like I would like them too.  Ideas, thoughts, phrses are coming hard and fast and incomplete.  And lots of mundane things going on like refinancing the Wisconsin house so we do not loose our shirts in this market, getting paperwork together to file taxes to pay for said refinance, lots of care packges getting ready to go out, and lots of laundry.  So, I am posting just some notes and photos without much thought to sentence structure and points being made.  I like how Amy is doing things these days.  Hey, I always love how Amy does things.  So I am doing my own version here.  Hope you don't mind Amy.

--Our eggs from A Wing and a Prayer Farm arrived yesterday.  Seven dozen of the most beautiful eggs you have ever seen were hand delivered to our house.  Thanks Kellie!  No wonder Martha Stewart was inspired to create a line of paint from chicken eggs.  These are so pretty I couldn't bring myself to crack and eat one this morning.  I am loving this eating local thing.

I

-- This morning I realized that I have become THAT mom.  You know, the one that walks the kids to the bus stop in her pj's with coffee in hand.  A far cry from my Anne Taylor suits and heels of my 20 something's.  So ironic.

--I finally finished Zane's pillow, my embroidery from his drawing.  It has been in the works since August, but is now completed and he loves it!  The pillow already has drool stains to prove it.

--News from the "sandbox".  Papa is well and Zane is completely amazed with the postcard he sent showing the "most ginormous sancastle I ever seen mama!"

I wish I had more to share in the way of sewing projects.  There are a gazillion things on my list.  Maybe next week.  Happy weekend all!

so much for planning ahead

Thank you for all of your well wishes and mama-don't-get-sick vibes.  But alas, I got "the strep" as we have been calling it around our house.  Yes, the mama, the one who helps with homework, the one who gets milk in the middle of the night, the one who stacks cinnamon toast like Lincoln logs was stopped dead in her tracks.

Trying to remain positive, I attempted to take it as an opportunity for some serious couching on Saturday.  Using the time to finish some of the hand crocheted gifts on my Christmas to do list.   And when my temperature was 103.8 according to the thermometer, I was still in denial about the whole thing -thinking that I could will myself into not getting sick.   Finally on Sunday morning when I didn't even have the strength to make the coffee, I waved my symbolic white flag in surrender and went back to bed thinking about all of the previously planned projects that would not get done. 

Projects like this comfy-cozy patchwork blanket by Leslie that has had my head spinning.  And Jen's clever wreaths.  And these scrappy fabric ornaments from Blair remind me of these Easter ornaments we made last year...only hers are better and much easier for little hands.  This is a great button use idea from Beki.  And finally, I had planned on making these great fabric chains from The Small Object.  But it all wasn't in the cards.  Who knows how much I will actually get done.

The only thing we have actually gotten done between doses of the pink stuff is putting together the winter nature table.  We kept the shells, the bark, the sticks and the pine cones.  But added a dusting of snow...and a dusting of snow is being extremely hopeful for where we live.  We stowed the hickory nuts and acorns away under a log for the squirrels and birds to eat. The owl stayed at Wyatt's request but he keeps insisting that he is cold and needs a blanket.  Hmmm...maybe we'll have to crochet the poor little thing a blanket for Christmas.  And of course some wee folk, souveneirs from our outing to the Swedish St. Lucia celebration.  For more details about the elements on our nature table see this photo for the flickr notes.

According to my mother, who knows me best, the only time I EVER get sick is when I am just plumb worn out.  So I guess I should take this as a huge frying pan up side the head hint that I needed to take a break.  To have lots of time to be thankful for doctors with hours on Saturday, for dear friends who have called to check on us and offer to bring food over (we waved them off with the comment "stay away...far, far away") and for antibiotics.  Yes, antibiotics.   

And that my friends is the lesson in all of this for me.  To remember that it is not the crafts that get done, or don't get done.  It is not stressing myself and my family out in a crazy slew of holiday field trips.  It is not about the obligatory photo with Santa.  Or even the Christmas cards that haven't been addressed yet.  It really is about more than that.  So much more.

And I know that you know this already...really, I do.  You do not need a speech from me about the "reason for the season" or how to put the "Christ back into Christmas".  We all know deep down that the holidays would still be wonderful if the lights didn't get hung or if the Christmas cards did not include the most perfect photo.  That is if we stopped long enough to truly think about it.  Its about a quiet time of reflection.  About comforting each other when we need it.  About the healing touch of a mothers hand.  About a papa who is home and able to read a book with his son at 2 a.m. And about lending a hand to a friend when you can.

Some of us just need to be flat out on our backs in bed to take the time to remember this.  I guess I am that person.  Thanks, I got it now and I'll be remembering it for the next several weeks and hopefully well into the new year.  Stay well my friends!

 

thankfulness

The concept of being thankful is one that I want my boys to really "get", but a difficult one to teach to wee ones.  I have said this before, but I want thankfulness to ooze from every part of our family.  Spilling out into the world around us.  A few weeks ago, I was tagged by Selena to post five things for which I am thankful. 

And by the way, I am barely resisting the strong urge to type "to post the five things I am thankful for". Which would be bad grammar, but completely correct in Texas where I grew up. But in Texas we also say we're "fixing to go for a dip in the tank".

Oh, thankfulness...yes, thankfulness. Thankfulness for me seems to fall into two categories. Big, overarching ideas of thankfulness like my close friends, my family, our great house, my faith and my children. But there are also many small, almost insignificant things. Things that might go unnoticed if not given their proper time in the spotlight.

Things like homemade cinnamon rolls from Alicia's recipe, still warm from the oven. Finding the sun pouring onto our bed at 4:15 p.m. every afternoon and stealing my youngest from his sword fight to share it. Like listening to the older two sound out each letter of every letter every word of their Little Bear book. And being so excited about it I want to jump out of my skin.  Thankful that S will be home for the Thanksgiving holiday in a few days. Watching the leaves turn yellow on the maple tree we planted four years ago. Reconnecting with old friends after 20+ years. A glass of wine after a crazy day. Meteor showers. Listening to Robert Earl Keen and Kasey Chambers on Pandora. A thank you note sent by someone for something you didn't even remember doing.

One of the ways our family tries to make thankfulness more tangible is by keeping a seasonal thankfulness journal.  A place where each year our thoughts, drawings and inspirations about thankfulness are recorded.  Here is a link to last year's post about it.   This year, I wanted it to look a bit different on the outside. So, I made a journal cover out of soft brown felt leftover from the leaf garland and used Ian's handwriting from a school project for the lettering. I am still in love with the way they make their S's and N's and use every opportunity to capture their penmanship just where it is. And there are five trees for the five of us. Zane's tree is yellow because his favorite color is yellow and I think always will be. Wyatt's tree is the circle tree because he is so into drawing those shapes lately. S's tree has branches because he continues to push me out on a limb *pun intended* and get me out of my comfort zone. I spent a few moments last night reading over the journal entries from the past few years. And being thankful all over again for those things that were important to us then and recording these new not-so-insignificant small items of thankfulness as well.

So, if you feel so inclined. Please share a few of the little things you are thankful for these days. Perfect timing to do so don't you think?

P.S.  And yes, I am most certainly thankful for the people who lived in this house before us who installed the wonderful oven so many of you commented on.  And believe me, it will be used to its fullest this week.  We are expecting twenty two thus far for the Thanksgiving meal on Thursday.  But who knows, we may find a few more people between now and then who might need a table to sit around and a place to share the things in their life for which they are thankful.

fall at the beach

This is my most favorite time of year to be at the beach. Autumn. The ocean water is still warm from the sunshine it has soaked up all summer. The tourists have gone back home leaving us the only crazies on the entire stretch of beach. And storms out in the Atlantic wash up amazing things providing us with great treasure hunting. And the waves. Well, any surf worth surfing is good surf on this side of the US. It has been raining off and on for the past four days, but we were able to quickly get a beach break in yesterday between the scattered showers.  Wyatt even had a brief snooze.

My crochet hook is back out again in a pre-season warm up to my favorite winter sport. I have the ongoing project of the family history rag rug. But yesterday, I started working on a scarf to go with my newly thrifted orange trench coat. There will hopefully be a hat to match when I find just the right pattern.

The dolphins even showed up and gave us all a show with their tails slapping at the water.   It is a special thing to see them off the Virginia coast as late as almost November.  By this time of the year, most of them have started their yearly trek South to warmer waters.  I am sure we have our unusually warm temperatures this year to thank for their presence at this late date.  So it was even more of a treat that we got to watch two pods spalshing about and catching a few waves of their own. 

It was such a great few hours, the clouds broke just enough to give us all some special time doing what we love to do at the beach.  Ian and Zane digging a hole the size of Texas, papa catching some waves, the smallest of us taking a brief nap and then waking just in time for a salty dip.  Scout chasing birds and helping with the digging.  And me, crocheting, feeling the sand on my feet, serving as the designated treasure keeper.  Inhaling it all.  Perfect.

Hope your weekend was as relaxing and full of fun as ours was.

fall nature table and school update

Just popping in quickly while S and the boys are watching taped episodes of Survivorman upstairs to say how overwhelmed I was to receive your comments to my last post. Each one arriving in my in box with well wishes and prayers for lots of good family time. Thank you friends, from the bottom of my heart.

I have had a few emails asking how I find time to homeschool or what curriculum I use.  Well, first of all, I do not homeschool.  But we have incorporated many unschooling principles into our regular family life.  So, I thought it might be nice to share a bit of an update on our schooling situation. Remember back in April I was debating out loud about our education choices for the oldest boys about to enter kindergarten? Well, I wanted to let you know how kindy has gone so far and if I feel we made the right decision by designing our own hybrid of public school and unschooling principles.

Here are a few observances so far:

* I am glad we went ahead and sent them on to kindy despite their being young 5s. They are doing very well and seem to be right in the middle of their class. But more importantly, they are really enjoying school in general. They have made lots of new friends and really enjoy their teachers.

* Their teachers are really great at communicating what they are studying in class. So in turn, I take their school subjects and find ways to reinforce them with crafts and activities here at home that really tie into what the boys are interested in. Example: The teachers have started talking about patterns in their math block. AB patterns, AABB patterns and ABC patterns. I took it one step further. Zane has been interested in knights for the past several months, so while helping me design and sew his Halloween costume (a knight of course), we used stripes in an ABC pattern for his tunic...pictures to follow when it is completed.

*One interesting observance: The boys are really only in class from 8:30 to 11:10. That's not even three hours. And by the time the teachers get everyone settled in the morning, throw in a 30 minute PE class, a few bathroom breaks and a snack, I honestly do not know how they can get much done. But they do, and with big smiles on their faces. Now part of it is that they send at least an hour's worth of homework home with the kids. Yes, homework in kindy. (I am sure those of you with older kids are grinning at this and saying, duh! But it was a surprise to me.) So the only way the teachers can teach to standards is to send work home and rely heavily on the parents to help. Which is fine by me, but I can see single mother or father having a rough time with this.

* The first day of school I was biting my nails as to how they would do in separate class rooms. They have been great!

So for us it is working beautifully. The boys are getting time apart in separate class rooms, time to shine on their own without competition from one another. They are benefiting from two really wonderful and caring teachers, and I am enjoying the other half-day to explore their own interests while tying it back to their formal school work when I can. And to top it all off, I am getting a little one on one time with the youngest. In some ways, I wish first grade was only half day. (Did I really just say that?)

And not to say that our decisions about education should be everyone's decisions.  I do not think there is a "one size fits all" way to see kiddos and their wee minds.  Public school, private school, unschool, homeschool...I think they are all great.  And who knows we may have to shift gears at some point down the road.  But right now, for us, this is working beautifully.

And the photos in this post are of our new nature table. I have wanted to do a nature table for quite some time, ever since reading about unschooling and the Waldorf philosophy. When I started arranging the living room in this house, I purposefully left space for such an area. And now those bits and pieces, rocks and sticks, pine cones and shells, pieces of bark and leaves can be enjoyed and appreciated as they truly should.

I came across this little ABC pattern one of the boys made all on his own with the nature table items we have been collecting. Acorn, shell, leaf, acorn, shell leaf. Incorporating a concept he learned in public school to make a bit of pattern art with items we feel are connected to something bigger than ourselves in our home. This significant little action by one of the boys is a perfect snapshot of how we have taken our children's education in our own hands, incorporated our faiths and values and molded it into what works best for us. Making up our own version of a partnership between public education and unschooling. For me this is huge, I am taking this little scene as a sign that we have made the right decision and I couldn't be more proud of my boys.

More inspiring nature fall nature displays here:

Sarah's table
Amanda's nature table
Amy's nature shelf

he's home again!

Our house is a much different place when our papa is home. So very different in many wonderful ways. I picked him up at the airport on Wednesday and we went straight to pick up the older boys from school. And needless to say, they were over the moon to see him standing at the end of the hall waiting for them with arms open. As they ran down the hall with arms as wide as his, their teachers' pleas for "walking feet" were completely ignored. And tears welled up in my eyes to see them together again. Then off we all went to pick up Wyatt at Mrs. Alice's. This time papa was greeted with a familiar game of "monkey face" that is only understood between the two of them. I inhaled it all. And counted my blessings for all the many ways our home will be different for the next few weeks with him home. His presence is almost immediately noticeable.

- There are flowers on the table that I did not buy for myself.
- The candy jar is full again.
- The house is noisy with tickle fights and extremely loud games of hide and seek.

- The skateboards are out and ramps are being made.
- Home repair projects are in full swing.
- And nightly bedtime stories are being acted out in full with papa as the growling big bad wolf.

I know should take full advantage each and every time he has the boys occupied.  I should run like a mad woman to the sewing room to finish something on my project list, to make a coffee date with a friend, to take a walk by myself.  These times are far and few between, and I know that.  But in these first few days of having him home, all I can do it sit back and watch my boys relationships with their daddy pick up right where they left off two months ago.

Welcome home again papa!

flickr fall favorites

So, so busy today. You see our papa is coming home on Wednesday for a two week visit! Yippee! There are lots of preparations to make. (translation: I'm crazily running around doing all the things I should have been doing the past few months like unboxing my sweaters, organizing his closet, mailing out overdue boxes, you know)

We had a busy weekend of a trip to the zoo, a birthday party, making a spider web in the front yard, picking out pumpkins, superhero capes were made, and even more. I took lots and lots of photos, but no time right now to even blog them.

Until I get to post again, here is a mosaic of some of my fall favorites from flickr.  And don't forget to visit Six One Way on Mondays (or anytime of the week really)...Stefani's photos this week blew me AWAY!  Love her shot of her little one licking the beaters.  The stuff childhoods are made of I tell you!

Yeah, our papa is coming home, jiggidy jig!

finally fall

Oh, the cooler temperatures have arrived finally!  Thank you all for sending some of your Fall our way.  We were going to continue with our regular Autumn rituals anyway, but it has arrived just in time.  And we are celebrating!  Wyatt took an all too rare morning nap so that I could have a quick moment to enjoy my traditional pumpkin spiced latte and a magazine.  Also a rare thing these days.  I picked up Mary Engelbreit's magazine while at the grocery store yesterday.  I don't subscribe to this one, or even read it off the racks normally.  I find it a bit to sweet sometimes for my taste, but with a cover article called "Rock Your Rooms", I was intrigued.  I loved the curtain fabrics in the photo above.  The dining room is not the only room that needs curtains you know. 

And I also fell in love with a little pillow on the Halloween decorating spread.  On the second page, top photo, do you see the black pillow with the white botanical silhouette?  Love that!  Although I can not imagine decorating my whole house like this for Halloween.  Yikes!  I looked the pillow up in the back of the magazine and it referenced Target for all of the pillows in the article.  Hmmm...I haven't been to Target in several months.  I think a trip there is in order soon.

Ian has been dying to make some Christmas sugar cookies.  What?  Is the entirely-too-early Christmas marketing all around us seeping in?  Not in this house!  So, we compromised with some leaf shaped cookies.  Flour was scattered, dough was rolled, dough was tasted, sprinkles were sprinkled, and dough was tasted again and again and again all the way up to the point of popping them in the oven.  We are lucky we ended up with a full plate in the above photo.

And I even wore my new owl on a limb t-shirt it.  New only because of the continuing wardrobe redo.  Plain yellow Old Navy t-shirt + owl embroidery from Sublime Stitching + a little rough edge applique for the branch and this is what you get.  It was perfect yesterday with a chocolate brown long sleeve underneath!

Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

gallery opening

I thought I was prepared. I had read several articles in parenting magazines. I have heard my friends with older kids talk about it and their options for dealing with it all. I thought I was ready for the slew of paper and art projects that come in your child's backpack from kindergarten.

I had hung a very large cork board in the explore room (our play room) to hold some of it. I had a folder for each child to hold papers, thinking that ever so often I would go through them and do the ol' pitch and keep.

I thought I was prepared. I was wrong.

This is the pile of papers and artwork that have come home in the first month of my oldest two being in kindergarten. Just one month! And actually this photo was taken about a week ago, so believe me when I tell you there is more.  I also do art projects here at home with them that pertain to a current interest or theme we might be exploring.  And those projects need to be stored and displayed of course too.

The boys have started tacking their drawings on the wall above their bed, just high enough that they are out of little brother's reach. (And yes, thank you for noticing.  It is a messy bed.  But Ian says he likes it like that....ahem, sure you do Ian!)

I have framed some of my most favorite pieces -  now that their drawings are actually starting to resemble what they were meant to resemble.  Not that I don't love those two year old abstract works, but you catch my drift (wink).

And now we have a vintage drying rack (purchased from an Ebay seller) in the living room currently displaying a summer watercolor, a johnny Appleseed tree and a "letter T" kindy worksheet among other things.  I really love this drying wrack idea because the "gallery" folds down or back against the wall if not in use. So handy!

We used to hang a clothes line in the boys room to hold artwork.  And I am thinking of doing that again.  I guess the boys got accustomed to that (see photo number three).  I am thinking of using these type of clear containers to store papers under the bed.  Here are a few more options that we might have to put into use.

I am sure I am not the only mama who wants to validate their child's creativity by hanging their artwork for all to see.  Im sure I am not the only one who looks at each little signature and wants to save them all, but knows there is not a storage unit big enough to keep all of the papers and projects that will be coming home in the next 12 years. 

So here is the question...How do you sort through the piles of papers and artwork? How do you store it all? How do you decide what goes and what stays?  And how do you display those deemed most precious?

Let's share, shall we?

------------------------------------

Before I forget, a quick birthday shout out to one of our adopted Grammies.  My friend Maggie's mom turns 60 today!  But she is not a day over 30...she is still body surfing with the grommets.  The boys and I made a little zippered linen bag, hand embroidered ocean pattern for her to keep her keys, sunglasses, etc. while she is catching some waves.  Hope you enjoy your day Grammie!

Executing Plan B

The wardrobe makeover has been temporarily postponed as the t-shirts and a half finished skirt are scattered in various stages of completion in separate locations all over the house.  We must have needed some quiet downtime because, I am sad to say, we have been hit with the sickies. 

When I picked up Zane and Ian from kindy on Tuesday, Zane said that his head hurt.  So I gave him a little Tylenol and he took a nap (which rarely happens anymore).  That night, about 1:16 a.m. to be exact,  the vomiting started and continued most of the early morning.  Yesterday, Ian went to school by himself.  I wasn't sure how he would do, but he was a real trooper...later confessing he didn't mind going to school by himself because Giovanna (a really cute 8-year old) sat with him on the bus.  It starts early I tell you.

Wyatt went to Ms. Alice's for the morning, and Zane and I went to find out what was going on.  I am not one to rush my kiddos to the physician, realizing that most of the things we get are viruses and have to work their course.  But, I was afraid it was Strep as almost everyone we know around here has had it in the past few weeks.  Only complaining of head and stomach issues, no throat pain as you would expect.  But after a strep swab and a thorough exam, we think it is just the stomach flu.

Plan B kicks in immediately...

:: a quick run in to Walgreen's on the way home for Gatorade, ginger ale, and saltine crackers.

:: call the soccer coach, tell him we will not make it to practice.

:: call the school to let them know we have the flu.

:: find the coloring books that were ordered from Dover Publishing's sale last month which had quickly been put away for a rainy day, or in this case a sick day.

::  pick Wyatt up a little early from Ms. Alice's and thank her for the Berenstain Bears movie she lent us, knowing we were going to be down for a few days.

:: pick Ian up a little early from kindy, being very glad that their Scholastic book orders came in, more reading material.

So, yesterday was spent coloring, reading, popping echanacea, eating peanut butter and crackers, and sipping clear fluids.

Today, Zane is on the mend, but now Wyatt is sick.  Looks like more of the same for us today.

perserverance = grannies

grannies, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

I have a lot going on in my head this morning after reading several posts on mothering. A definite reflection of my own search to find my new parenting groove without S (he's still in Chicago and will be until December). I know I am not alone in being sans spouse from time to time. But it is hard. And hard now that we are in the world of the "beautiful people" of the beach. You know those people...the people who pay for a tan, pay to have things sucked and tucked, who drive hummers and consume way too much gas to drive 6 blocks. You know...THOSE "beautiful people".

I have been journaling in wordpad before bed and have a few half finished blog entries, but until I resolve it in my own mind, I thought I would share my major accomplishment of the weekend.

GRANNY SQUARES!

You all know by now, I have been granny square challenged. Probably because I can't read or follow a crochet pattern to save my life. And when I spoke to Erin, a knitter, who said she had taught herself to crochet in a weekend and had already done a dozen granny squares, I was insanely jealous. Game on!  Not by Erin, who is as sweet as the come, but in my own mind.

As a joke, a friend of mine (who doesn't blog, but reads mine) sent me one of those crochet kits you get at Michael's meant for 12 year olds learning to crochet. She thought this was hilarious!

But it worked. Look! Do you see them? Granny squares! Four of them...from a goofy little kit with a cheap, hollow, plastic crochet needle. Granted, the grannies are a little wonky. And the three double crochets and three chains they suggested was not working and I changed it to three shells and two chains. But they are there...and there are more on the way. I think I have concluded that it was the yarn that was not working for me. I think the tacky nylon yarn that came with the kit slides easier than the cotton I was trying to work with. And when you can slide the double crochets around, it is easier to see the holes the chains make.

With the new confidence in my granny making abilities, my mind started thinking of huge projects like afghans and wall hangings. But I am resisting. And reminding myself to keep it small. Maybe a baby blanket for my friend Perrin's new girlie on the way. Or maybe just a pillow.

providing for artistic opportunities

feeding the artists, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

The boys playroom is coming along nicely. And after a trip to town to replenish some of our art supplies, the boys immediately went to work using the new brushes and paints.

And while I was debating whether these vintage nautical curtains were going to actually be used as curtains in the room or as puppet show curtains, I heard Ian talking about his paintings being in a sequence...using words like, "and then" and "next". Realizing this was a rare window of opportunity with a munchkin who is usually jumping, running, climbing and generally not sitting still long enough to do lengthy projects, I quickly (but very quietly and gently) came along side him. I asked him to tell me about his paintings and he indeed had connected them all into a story.

"Ian, do you know what you just did?"

"No mama, what?"

"You just wrote and illustrated your first book".

"I did?"

"YES! You did, and I love it."

"I love it too mama. I love my book."

Here is is, written and illustrated by Ian:

There once was a young boy who loved a meadow.  And in his meadow there was a purple flower.

The young boy saw a beautiful sun, and grass touching his toes, and the most beautiful sky. (I guess he likes the word beautiful.)

The next time the young boy visited the meadow, the nest was still there.  But the eagle was gone.  She flew up in the sky.

THE END

***my wireless connection is giving me fits right now, so check back for Ian's book***

But I guess the moral of the story is that if the space is set and the supplies are stocked, then even the most bouncy of kids will eventually sit down to paint and quite possibly illustrate a book.  And I am so glad he did.  I am sure there is a lesson in there somewhere about having a space to create, to sit down, to focus, but I seem to be lacking one myself at the moment because I am ready to throw my computer through the window for not letting my upload these photos.

a good dam and others who rock

The past several days, the cardboard packing boxes have been accumulating outside our house next to the curb. And we watch as slowly they disappear...some scavenged by the neighbors, some taken from our ad on freecycle for free packing materials, and some disappear over night and we never know. But we make up stories about night animals like racoons who take the boxes to make new homes for themselves. Fun!

But last night after a trip to the local bookstore, and a water gun fight when returned home, the boys decided to try their hand at building dams with things in our yard and a torn up packing box.  I have no idea how these ideas come to them, but we go with it and I love watching their creative process at work.

It was really a joy to watch them and hear them yell to each other. "Ian we need moooooooore pine needles". "The dam is about to break!!!!! Get more rocks!" They had a blast. And so did I. Because all the while, me behind was sitting on a blanket catching up on emails and perusing my new purchases.  I have a lot to catch up on you know.

Well when Kirsten listed me last week for a Rockin Girl Blogger I cringed. I always cringe at these things because they remind me of my middle school days when there was always one girl who wouldnt get picked because her dress was a hand-me-down or her pony tails weren't tied with the perfect ribbon. You know how middle school girls are. And when I list my 5 who rock, there will be someone left out. And I don't like that. It makes me uncomfortable. So it has taken me this long to find a way to make this work for me.

First of all, I take it as a huge compliment Kirsten...coming from a mama of 3 who can make such wonderful things and give her kiddos the individualness that each needs. Amazing woman! For Ian and Zane's birthday I knew I wouldnt be able to handmake everything I wanted to because of time. So I ordered two of Kirsten's shirts with their initials on them. But she went over and beyond and included one for Wyatt as well...knowing that he would need one just like his brothers. Those shirts are now their favorites and the boys call them their abc shirts because they have THEIR letters on them. And she sent a rockin kiddo cd for us to listen to in the car while we traveled. It is still in the car K!

So here goes...Have you ever have a thought or an idea running around in your head (my thoughts tend to read like blog posts these days) and you just can't find the words to communicate those thoughts as eloquently as you would like? And then you read someone elses blog post and think to yourself...man, that is exactly what I was trying to say. Only she said it much better and used prettier words. Maybe I should just post with a title of "um...Yeah, What She Said..." and a link. Well here are my 5 rockin bloggers. Of all of you I could say, "yeah, what she said".

Stash Studios - Cheryl is a sister Texas chic and her sense of style is exactly what mine wants to be when it grows up, she has some great margarita recipes on her blog...oh, and her flickr photos are to die for.
Blue Yonder - Stefani is a kindred spirit and amazing mama, funny as all getout...and a new friend.  Check out her bandana garden pants tutorial.
WriteMamaWrite - Beth writes about mothering with the insight I wish I had and could communicate and she isnt affraid to say she makes banana bread.
Mayfly - Alicia is another kindred spirit that doesn't mind digging through the muck to find a gem, and she has a great back yard.  I WILL make these rolls this week!
AfricanKelli - Kelli who always makes me think about the world differently and the impact I can have on it.  She motivates me politically, which I need.

Thanks all! 

tuning in and connecting

cowboy camp, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

The past few days have been very challenging in the parent department. In reality, all the three boys have been troopers - shuffled in and out of the car, living out of our suitcases and generally being homeless. And my family has gone over the top to provide lots of activities like swimming time at Aunt Karen's, homemade ice cream and fresh peaches, little trinkets and toys being brought home as special surprises, field trips, movie nights and cousin time. And although this will always be home to ME in many ways. It is not home to my boys, I realize that. And they have made this increasingly clear.  Their home has their beds, their toys (rescue heroes to be exact) and several pieces of dress up clothing that didn't make it into the suitcase. Home has the "cool" markers. Home has sweet Scout and Reggie kitty. And home has our Daddy.

Having moved so many times, I know that their less than desireable attitudes are clear communication to me that they are needing a little more attention, a little more of a connection, a little more cuddling, a little more playing and a little more just being there quietly and available for when they want to talk. So yesterday we unplugged and did lots of nothing...a Sabbath if you will. We played with my first cousin Wade's children Ethan and Eryn (hi guys!), who we tried to explain are also the boys' cousins. My guys are still trying to wrap their brains around this whole extended family thing and proceeded to call cousin Wade, Uncle Wade. And luckily he was perfectly OK with that. I guess Uncle Wade works as we also have Uncles and Aunts that aren't even actually related to us in any formal way.

Connecting with the natural world is always a healer for us.  After rest time back at my parent's house, we built a tepee in the shade of the vitex trees in the yard. The boys made up a whole storyline about a cowboy (Ian) sleeping in his tepee when he hears an Indian (Zane) outside and shoots the Indian because he thinks the Indian will scalp him. *thanks granddad for explaining the intricacies of scalping to us*. When the cowboy goes to investigate the injured Indian, he finds that the Indian was only hungry because there are no more buffalo and was hoping the cowboy could spare some beans. The doctor (Wyatt) comes to patch up the Indian and the cowboy shares his beans and coffee and the two are fast friends from then on. The End.

Of course I realize that the story is not historically accurate and the real ending to the cowboys and indian stories weren't as neat and tidy as ours.  But I love that they are listening to the bedtime stories we have been reading and are using parts of them to create their own little scenes. In the evening, we took a walk down to the pasture to see the cows. We always find treasures when we take a walk. This time the list included more fossils, a pretty thistle in bloom, a shed snake skin, sticks, rolly-pollies, another lizard, a rabbit sighting, a cicada shell and lots and lots of butterflies.

Yesterday, was a good day. Cousin/Uncle Wade and family, thanks for being such great family and such good sharers of your time and your toys. Oma and Granddad, thanks for being so hospitable and making this time so precious and memorable. Boys, we'll be in Virginia in less than a week with the beach opening its arms to welcome us back. Hang in there guys.  Dear S, thanks for hanging in WI to wrap up all the loose ends and for being such a great daddy that we miss you like crazy.

We'll probably be doing a lot more of what was described above this weekend. Hope you are able to do the same. Blessings friends!

pure junking joy!

junking joy!, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

Yesterday was hot, hot, hot here in Texas! The humidity was a steamy 85% and my mom and I already felt sticky by 9 a.m as we left the house. But Aunt Karen had offered to watch the boys and take them to Ft. Worth to see the new Shrek movie giving my mom and I some needed one on one time, so we prepared for a day of junking. And not just an ordinary browse through the goodwill kind of junking...no, this was a special day. A day that would require close toed shoes, clothes that we didn't mind getting grubby, and possibly gloves. With water bottles in hand, we headed to Mineral Wells...a neat (although a bit run down) little town full of history.

If you have ever wondered how antique dealers get the best deals, the real secret is that they have connections. As the old saying goes, its not what you know, but who you know. And luckily my mother shared one of her secret connections with me yesterday. Joann's shop used to be a lumber yard, but she is slowly transforming it to a real gem of an antique shop. She mostly sells to dealers...and luckily to daughters of dealers.

Joann said she was pretty picked over. But if that was the case, I would have hated to see how much we would have found a few weeks ago. Because I found more than my tired, hot little brain could process. Aisle after aisle of vintage booty...dishes, linens, books, furniture...all at incredible prices. And many pieces were half off!

My mom was ahead of me most of the time being a much more seasoned junker than myself. And it was hard for me to stay focused looking for things on my list while listening to her call out items that she was finding that I might be interested in. But how great to have someone along who already knows your tastes and serves as a second pair of eyes...especially when there was so much eye candy to behold.

And then Joann mentioned that she had a friend names Mark who had a shop before. My mom had met Mark before at Joann's shop. Mark has an antique shop in downtown Mineral Wells too. But he had not been open in quite sometime. But to our luck Joann mentioned that Mark would be at his shop today working and possibly she could "get us in" before he officially opened again.
My mom and I looked at each other with the same exactly look of "can we possibly be dreaming" as sweat was dripping down our backs.

Mark's shop was...well, heaven. Packed to the ceiling with vintage Christmas decorations, kid's books, linens, western boots, old postcards, 50's chrome kitchen tables, and more, and more, and more. Now, Mark's prices were not near as good as Joann's, so we had to deal a little bit. But its always fun to haggle a little, isn't it? There was no air conditioning in his building and at one time I thought Mom was going to fall out from pure junk induced heat exhaustion. My mom found more at Mark's than I did, but we both decided that it was most definitely a place that will require a second visit on a day that was not 96 degrees Fahrenheit.

Another day of junking joy (heat and all)! After yesterday I have concluded that I would be in big, big trouble if I lived here permanently. S, count your blessings we will be in Virginia Beach at the new house in a few days.

P.S.  The pile of jumbled fabric (the second photo) are all aprons and will be blogged at The Apronista tomorrow with individual apron photos and descriptions.  Stay tuned, the story goes on.

a texas safari

gazelle, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

If you are ever even close to the Fort Worth, Texas area, one place you do not want to miss is Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose. I have been to Fossil Rim once before when I was about 8 or 9 and it made a huge impact on me then...and it did again today.

Fossil Rim is more than a drive through, feed the animals, get pecked by a crazy ostrich tourist trap. Much, much more. The landscape is gorgeous with amazing views of some great Texas hill country and I can not say it any better than their own philosophy as it states the following.

"Modern culture, with its emphasis on economic and technological values, tends to threaten the quality and integrity of nature.  Fossil Rim strives to provide a model and stimulus for alternative ways of experiencing and relating to animals and nature as a whole."

I left Fossil Rim with such a different feeling than I did from the last zoo trip in Chicago.  Several times today I caught myself thinking, now if I were an (insert animal name here), I would certainly want to live here.  There was just so much room for these animals to roam.  Too bad all zoos can't have 1,500 acres to roam freely.  Too bad all children can't witness antelopes jumping in play and a wildebeast heard running at full speed like we did.  It was breathtaking.

Read more about how they are helping many species like the black rhino, the prairie chicken and the grey wolf return from the brink of extinction.  And if you homeschool and live in the area, they have some really great programs for homeschool families that I would sign up for in a NY minute if we lived here all of the time.

It is an amazing place and one I will want to go to again.  And a little side note, if you do like crazy ostriches who poke their heads right into your car and peck at your steering wheel while you are desperately trying to throw some feed pellets out the window and hit the up button to roll up the window...well, about 3/4 of the way through, your guy is waiting for you.

wip - too many to count

I have so many works in progress, I can't even post them all.

:: pen pal cards for the boys' friends with our new address on them :: packing up the important papers, jewelry, etc. that will not be packed with the other boxes :: finishing up a skirt :: finishing up a baby quilt :: showing the house :: organizing, organizing, organizing ::

I have been trying to think of what projects I should try to take along with me when we travel. You know, to save my sanity while driving cross country with three kids. Everything else will be packed up in boxes for several weeks before it gets to Virginia. Sewing requires too many supplies. Embroidery? Hmmm...I have all of those little stitchettes begging to be made. However, loose needles in the car might not be such a good idea. How about I take the five piles of magazines to go through and put them all in a nice neat little notebook. I think S might have a heart attack. Crochet? I think a stripey blanket for my new nephew might be the perfect project. Any thoughts from those of you who craft while traveling would be greatly appreciated. What works for you?

the sabbath

“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature — trees, flowers, grass — grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.” - Mother Teresa

I read an article a few years back about the importance of building times of rest into our week...a sabbath.  Whether you are religious or not, attend a church or not...we all need to rest, to be quiet, to just be in each other's presence without the noise and commotion.  Such a time is a rare treat in our house of three, em...four, energetic and loud boys.  But today was an exception.  Our sabbath was spent outside in the woods.  In our favorite place, our secret forest.

Having S home the past two years has really been such an amazing blessing to our family.  It has allowed us to just be together.  And I am trying to hold on to these moments as tight as I can with both hands.  I do not want to let go yet.

Nine days until we move, and after that we give our our papa back to his work.  His work of giving others peace of mind and time to be with their own families.  To celebrate their own sabbath...whatever it may look like or how they choose to spent it.  Quiet times like those we experienced today are holy and worth every minute we are away from him.

new artwork

Lately Ian has been drawing these shapes where he starts drawing curvy lines that go in and out then end up right where they started. The shapes reminded me of the leaf shapes in Jenn of swallowfield's amazing collages. Finally, when I saw one she had done with a touch of orange (my fave color at the time), I snatched it up. It came in the mail this week.

With the most perfect timing, Ian was there when I opened it.  I was telling him about how I loved this particular collage because her shapes remind me of his work.  And then it hit me.  What a great project it would be to have the boys do a similar collage based on Jenn's piece. Here is what they came up with yesterday afternoon.

:: strips of vintage 70's wallpaper :: strips of a three little pigs coloring book page :: circles cut out of yellow construction paper :: wyatt's handprint in orange :: an orange fox instead of a bird :: those leafy shapes :: and some dark blue ones too ::

Currently both pieces are on exhibit in our living room, one right next to the other.

I just checked Jenn's etsy shop and she only has two pieces left.  Hopefully she will be restocking soon and you can get your own swallowfield!

Happy Birthday Wyatt!

This morning Wyatt woke up next to me like he does lots of mornings.  He crawled into our bed sometime between 4 and 6 a.m.  I immediately knew this morning was a special morning and snuggled him in a little tighter.  Our ritual is for me to say "good morning Wyatt" and he says, "good morning mama".  Then I respond with "no-ooooo, good morning to YOU", and he answers back with "Nooooo....good morning to YOU."  At some point he smiles so big I just want to eat him up with a spoon.

This extra special morning I asked him if he wanted cupcakes for breakfast.

"Nooooo."

"Do you want cake for breakfast?"   

"Noooooo."

"Do you want special pancakes with chocolate chips for breakfast?"

"Nooooo."

"Wyatt, what DO you want for breakfast?"

"Amburgers". (hamburgers)

So, this morning we ate hamburgers with ca-shup (katsup) for breakfast and thought of applicable W words while we ate.  Wonderful Wyatt, wagon rides, wiggles, washing hands, wish, and wrestling..although there was some debate as to whether W-R-E-S-T-L-E was a W word or an R word. 

Tomorrow is the small celebration with just a few friends over for dinner....hopefully some more hamburgers out on the grill, some handmade gifts from two adoring big brothers, a cake (still not decided), one sock elephant and lots of hugs and kisses.

Happy Birthday my love!  My sweet smooshy love.  Thanks again for choosing me to be your mama.

april snow

I promise this will blog will not become completely about the weather...but, it snowed today! How can I not post pictures of that, I ask you?  I am taking it as Wisconsin's farewell to us, treating us to one last day of snowball fights and snow ice cream. Thank you again Auntie Jamie for the great snowman kit. Here are a few of the photos from today. There are many more in a flickr set here.

Oh, and yes.  Our snowman DOES have two scarves on.  Wyatt kept saying that he was "choo cowd"...translated to mean too cold.  So Ian ran in to borrow one of mama's warmy scarves for the freezing snowman.  Too funny!

And I love this little sun Zane drew in the foggy window this morning.  Apparently, I am not the only one thinking about warmer weather.  No crafting today. Just snuggling up with snacks and hot coco, warming up from the outside play, and watching movies.

learnin' and growin'

I have written and re-written this post about five times now.  I had wanted to include the appropriate links to this and that post that have influenced my thoughts.  But it just isn't happening. So here it is...feel free to move on to the next blog on your bloglines.

Last week I met with the older boys' pre-school teachers for a little mama-teacher conference.  This time of the year they show you examples of each child's work at the beginning of the year and toward the end so that you can see how much they have changed.  I have been muddling over the whole pre-school, kindergarten, unschooling, homeschooling decision and I was anxious to hear what they thought.  If they would recommend that the boys go on to kindergarten.   S and I do a lot with them at home, so I know which way I was leaning, but wanted to get a full picture before we made a decision. 

In true me fashion, I prepare and think about things way more than really warranted.  But with the move to Virginia upon us and the whole kindy decision has been taking up a large portion of my brain.  Man, this has really snuck up on me.

Now before I met all of you wonderful creative mama bloggers, I think my decision would have been much easier to make.  Not that I would have rushed them right into full day kindy without a care, again I think about things way too much to do that.  Remember?  But before I started reading blogs, I had never heard the word unschooling and had never read the book The Unschooled Mind by Howard Gardner.  I had never heard of Steiner or Waldorf or even knew those were alternatives to the public/private school issue. I did know of Montessori...S went to a Montessori school when he was a kid.  I even visited a Montessori school and seriously considered it after last.

I have a huge heart for boys and how they learn and have read almost every book I can get my hands on pertaining to the subject.  I watched my brother struggle with school and saw how his frustrations poured over as behavioural issues into our whole family.  He was finally diagnosed with dyslexia.  His first comment after the diagnosis still rings strong and clear in my ears.  "See, I told you I wasn't stupid".  Not that any of us had told him that, but that is how he felt, the feelings he got from the teachers and other students.  Even at nine years old, it made me want to cry my eyes out for him.  S had some similar frustrations with school (although never diagnosed with a learning disability) and I can see some similar threads in his educational background.  All of this to say, I desperately want to be an educational advocate for my boys.  I want them to feel smart and valued and more than adequate.  I just don't want to screw things up for them. 

I have to say, the whole Steiner- Waldorf approach appeals to me in almost every way.  It really does.  The strong connection to the natural world, the use of activity and movement, and how they provide such a variety of ways to learn a particular element.  This way of thinking makes me want to go back to elementary school myself.  However, after checking, there is not a school in the Va. Beach area.  There is a summer camp in Chesapeake, but that is it.  OK, no Waldorf school then.

Home Schooling/Unschooling...I gave this a brief thought (my irl friends are cringing about now), but quickly slapped myself into reality.  The two boys have been side by side since birth (really in utero) and compete over every little thing.  When one starts to excell at something, you can clearly see the other start to get discouraged over that same something and get frustrated.  It is almost like they can not both be good at the same thing.  They are both in need of some room, room to shine on their own and do their own thing.  I think giving them some apart time will be good for them, and good for us.

So that leaves public kindergarten.  The school they would be going to is a good one.  A really good neighborhood school with good teachers and staff.  A good curriculum from what I know, and lots of room outside (grass playground as opposed to asphalt) to run and explore.   I know a few of the teachers there and they have had nothing but wonderful things to say about their school. 

I come from a long line of public school teachers.  Both grandmothers, an aunt, my father was a math/algebra/trig.  substitute while I was in high school.  I could go on and on about our family's connection to the public school system.  I also stronly believe in pitching in and making your school better if there is a problem.  Not jumping ship as soon as there is an "issue" and leaving all of the other children there with said problem.  But that is a whole other blog post. 

So, here is where I am.  The boys will be attending kindergarden everyday for half of the day.  There was a full day option, but I think being seperated for the first time plus the move will be change enough.  I want them to be successful and love going to school their first time out.  So I think this is a good start.  And then the other half of the day, I will try to plan other activities (in unschooling fashion like we have been doing) with a lesson in there somewhere...exploring at the beach, museum visits, park play, cooking at home, painting in the back yard, planting in the garden, etc.

I am happy and relieved.  I think we have made a good decision.  I hope so.

In honor of their achievments so far, I am taking one of the drawings from their progress folder from pre-school and turning it into an embroidery pillow.  Ian's best drawing was a self portrait of him riding his snowboard back in February.  I am also loving how they write their names right now and want to hold on to that in some way.  So their signature are included as well.  Yesterday, Zane wanted to go with S to take Scout for a run, so Ian and I finished his pillow. Ian picked out the fabric (which is a thrifted green/yellow geometric towel) and the shape he wanted for the patch.  We stuffed it together on the back steps and had a good chat about how proud I am of him and all that he is doing.  He loves how soft it feels.  And I love that it gives him a sense of accomplishment.  Zane's pillow is up next.  We can't decide which drawing to use.

And not to be outdone in any way by his big brothers, Wyatt is experiencing his own milestones.  The photo below should say it all. (please ignore the dirty floors)

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

Also today, my Grammer is going home from a physical rehab facility after a nasty fall a week or so ago.  This is my grandmother who taught in the "at risk" classroom in a public school for many, many years.  She treated these runaway, knife carrying, alcohol abusing, teenagers with a firm hand and a warm heart, she and my Papaw often inviting them to their home to see how their garden was growing, to feed the cows, have a home cooked meal.  She is an amazing woman and I am very proud of her this past several days.  Grammer, you have worked hard to get strong again and I am very proud of you.  I love you and can not wait to see you and Papaw next month! 

spring is...

green grass...
barefeet...(even if they are rather hobbit-like)
linen aprons...
rolled up jeans...

climbing trees...
garden seedlings...
yellow rainboots...
snacks outside...
birdwatching...

daffodills...
cool mornings...
a return to cotton sheets...
and (please continue if you wish)...

Late Winter Offering

offering, originally uploaded by thisvintagechica.

Just a quick note today for the birds....the feeding of the birds that is. This time of year, especially in the Midwest, many birds find the berries and nuts of winter are gone and new growth and blooms are at least a month away or more. Which makes this a perfect time to feed the birds and get them through the next several weeks until food sources become more prevalent with the arrival of Spring.  Songbirds are especially fond of fruit.

The sun was shining which made it feel much warmer than it really was. The boys (the older two that is) had a blast returning to tree climbing after a long winter while placing these little offerings in one of our trees.  It was so nice to see them able to re-connect with the natural world in a more tactile way - without the mittens and hats and scarfs.  Not that we do not love our snow, but this was a nice change.

And here is a link to another great bird feeding backyard project from our favorite Enviro-Explorers using oranges and other fruit.  I did not see this until later, but I think we will try it and thought you might like to as well. What little bird wouldn't love to a eat a late winter meal out of handmade fruit bowls?

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P.S.  Zane has learned how to whistle and we have not heard him speak in over a week now.  Apparently he likes whistling better.  We have worked out a series of long and short whistles similar to Morse code so that we can continue to talk to him. 

P.S.S.  Etsy has decided to no longer support a "vintage" category.  So, my new little shop that has already done so well, will now have to find a new home.  I am not so worried about myself, but for the many people who have substantial vintage businesses through etsy, this could be devastating.  My heart goes out to those now feeling displaced. 

Sledding Sunday

sledding, originally uploaded by erensanpedro.

Sledding on Sunday mornings has become a bit of a routine these days. And yesterday was no exception. The temps were up into the 30 degree F range and it felt like a heat wave. Im trying to get myself organized today, so not much other information than a quick photo of the munchkins.

Happy Monday all!

P.S. Thank you for all of your wonderful comments in the post below. I am slowly getting through all of my emails. I will get back to you, I promise.

post valentine's day breakfast

Valentine's Leftovers, originally uploaded by erensanpedro.

:: leftover flourless chocolate cake for breakfast before the boys get up ::

followed by a relatively civilized real breakfast with three of my favorite guys.

Of Knights and Queens

There is not a whole lot here to write about today.  Well actually there is.  There is always one form of craziness or another going on around here.  But the words just arent flowing today.  I guess one of our latest happenings is the possible end to our fireman/firetruck obsession.  We are starting to see glimpses of knights and kings and castles.  And believe me, this mama is loving it!  Partly because I think we are at our maximum knowlege capacity of pike poles and nozzles and guages.  But because when we play knights, guess who always gets to be the queen?  Me!

So, here are a sampling of our latest creations with this new, much more fun, theme.  We downloaded the pages from Kiddley via The Small Object and printed them out on the printer.  I love these sweet, simple little blank characters.  Then it is up to the boys and their imaginations to go on from there.

Snow Day = Kids and Crafts

On Friday morning we woke up to about 8 inches of snow here in SE Wisconsin.  And by noon had around 14 inches total!  The big boys were supposed to go to pre-school, but all schools were canceled...in Wisconsin, that is a big deal.  So, it was a snow day for us!

Luckily the night before we had made sure the snow gear I bought last year on clearance, including bibs and boots were going to fit.  And they all did!  Wyatt of course is set.  Having two older brothers, this kid is going to live in hand-me-downs for life...poor guy.  So, even before breakfast and before it was done snowing, they were dressing out and ready to go out.  Zane even said "bring it on baby" as he headed down the back steps.  Wonder where he gets that?

Wyatt obviously got hungry and decided to have a little snow for breakfast.

Then back inside for hot chocolate (warm chocolate milk to the boys) and breakfast for the rest of us.  Man, getting 3 kids ready for the snow really takes it out of you.  After pumpkin pancakes, a little craftiness was in order.

We started our own version of the sweet winter villages that have been showing up all over.  The boys have been playing with the criss-cross cardboard dividers from a case of wine we ordered for the past week or so.  We used the pieces that were left to cut up into walls and roofs.  I can't guarantee our villages will look anything like the others, but luckily 4 year olds have incredible imaginations and so does their mama.  They really loved this and spent almost an hour painting every inch of this building that they decided was the fire station.  Oh yes, we are still into fire fighters.

S came home early.  He went in at usual time (read that o'dark thirty) even though the base was closed.  The little car-that-could made it all the way to work and back (well almost back).  The snow plows had come through our street, so he got stuck getting into our driveway.  The whole family went back outside for more snow eating and to dig a path back into the driveway.

And Jalaine, our baby sitter who conveniently lives across the street, joined us for some snow angels.

She stayed most of the afternoon and helped with another little project.  I have been meaning to make these little snow globes out of mason jars and little holiday items picked up from the thrift store.  But our track record of breaking things on the tile floor lately made me want to think of an alternative.  This is what I came up with. 

Does anyone else have gazillions of these little tiny bowls overtaking your tupperware cabinet?  They are the bowls from the individual servings of oranges or pineapples.  I keep them around because they are great for mixing paint or as a snack bowl for Wyatt.  But lately we have way too many of them around.

We cut a circle of cardboard and felt using the bowl as a template.  Then we glued these tiny wooden ornaments, yes another thrift store find, onto the felt and let it dry.  (insert more warm chocolate milk and a cookie here)  While the glue is drying, I put some packing popcorn into a plastic zip-lock bag and let the boys smash it up into tiny little pieces.  After the glue was dry, we put the popcorn, er...snow, into the bowl and glued the cardboard/felt piece on top and let it dry again.

Add a little paper clip hanger on the top (not shown here) and you have a snow globe ornament that is much safer than the glass ones I had originally planned.  Whew!  It was a busy, busy day.  Everyone was completely worn out.  Everyone including S were in bed by 7:30 p.m.  I made a cup of coffee, bundled up and took a walk around the block..all by myself.

A Visit From Oma and Grandad

::apples picked::

::recipes copied::

::pumpkins carved::

::nature collected::

::and pictures colored::

not pictured, but stories were read, pumpkin was cooked, magazines were perused, dinner was enjoyed, drinks were drank (drunk...I can never remember that one), brats were nibbled on, and most importantly, company was enjoyed.

We love you both!

Cookie Crayons

Cookie Crayons, originally uploaded by erensanpedro.

We went through the boys' craft bins, buckets, and boxes consolidating and organizing it all. We ended up with lots of markers without lids, dried out playdough still in the baggies and broken crayons. Most of it was tossed, but I had remembered seeing these cookie crayons done on Kiddley by way of Ten Ten.

And also for your viewing pleasure, a quick photo of the product of all our efforts.  All of the boys crafty items all in one place.  We used a kids wooden tool box to hold it all with recycled tin cans inside to keep the markers and scissors together.  The boys really like it and Im loving it all being in one place with an easy way to take it from the kitchen to their room or outside...wherever the creative urge strikes us.

From Grandmother Florence

The book is entitled New Stories of the Old Plantation, Told by Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris.  One of the past few times I was home in Texas, my Dad asked if I wanted it.  And I said with much excitement, "O course!"  Since then, it has been put away from curious little hands that might bring harm to it.  It was extremely brittle and in major disrepair.  Just opening the pages made me cringe that they were going to disentigrate into tiny little pieces.  But illustrations were amazing and beautiful and the stories timeless and valuable.  Ms. Dorothy, our next door neighbor, used to be a bookbinder and restoration artist at the local museum, so I had her take a look at it.   She offered to restore it for the cost of her materials.  And after about two months, she brought it over to return it. 

I can remember my grandmother Florence reading this book to me and my brother when I was a kid.  We would stay a night or two at her house.  And after listening to the Lawrence Welk Show, she would put us in bed and read to us from it.  She read the stories of Brer Rabbit being caught by Brer Fox and asking "not" to be thrown into the briar patch.  Of course Brer Fox throws him into the briar patch and well ... apparently rabbits like briar patches and Brer Rabbit gets away.  There are many other stories in this great old book which are really African proverbs.

Here is just a tad little bit from the famous Tar-Baby for you to read. 

"Didn't the fox never catch the rabbit, Uncle Remus?” asked the little boy the next evening.

“He come mighty nigh it, honey, sho’s you born—Brer Fox did. One day atter Brer Rabbit fool ’im wid dat calamus root, Brer Fox went ter wuk en got ’im some tar, en mix it wid some turkentime, en fix up a contrapshun w’at he call a Tar-Baby, en he tuck dish yer Tar-Baby en he sot ’er in de big road, en den he lay off in de bushes fer to see what de news wuz gwine ter be. En he didn’t hatter wait long, nudder, kaze bimeby here come Brer Rabbit pacin’ down de road—lippity-clippity, clippity -lippity—dez ez sassy ez a jay-bird. Brer Fox, he lay low. Brer Rabbit come prancin’ ’long twel he spy de Tar-Baby, en den he fotch up on his behime legs like he wuz ’stonished. De Tar Baby, she sot dar, she did, en Brer Fox, he lay low."

Thirty-five complete stories can be found here to download if you want to read more of these great stories.

Weekend Wrap Up

I did not have high hopes for this past weekend as S did not get home until late on Friday night and then was to have duty most of Saturday. Rain was forcast...again...and the thought of sitting at home with three restless boys didn't thrill me. On Saturday morning even before breakfast, I packed the three boys up and we went to the farmer's market. That's always a sure way to pick my spirits up. We spent way, way too much money there. But when the cash is going to local farmers and crafters, I don't really feel too bad. The aroma of popping kettle corn filled the air and as it was the first tent we came to. We had to stop to watch the man stir the huge black kettle and of course sample. Next was a table of locally grown fruits and veggies and an older Mandarin woman gave each of the boys an apple to try. They were so good and crisp and fresh, we bought 4 bushels of them. Luckily we had the wagon with us. So, we all four had orchard fresh gala apples and kettle corn for breakfast...not the healthiest I know, but it sure was good!!!

While Zane was asking for his 3rd apple, a nun with the local Catholic Church selling baked goods commented on how nice it was to see kids asking for fruit instead of candy. I had to laugh a little bit inside. We do pretty well with that whole issue of healthy vs. unhealthy food, but we'll see how well I hold up with Halloween and the holidays coming up.

We bought yellow squash and zucchini, red potatoes, the last of the sweet corn and leeks too. Wyatt got a fabric book about firetrucks of course. He has inherited his big brother's fascination with firetrucks. I dont think he really had a choice. We got some lavender and hemp "knight and dragon" soap Ian and Zane spotted. Lastly, we (read that I) checked out a great little booth that I've seen before earlier in the summer called Stranded Sisters. They are two local sisters who make the most wonderful handmade felted and knitted items and Im so glad they have a blog for me to share. I found a great little felted flower pin that will look nice on my black winter coat from last year. Isn't it fun?!?! Check them out and leave a little comment if you get a chance.

After all of the farmers market sightseeing and with full bellies, we waddled over to a great little park and the boys played and played and played. Then home for a nap for the boys and I cleaned and put away all of the fruits and veggies. It rained and rained and hailed. But it was nice.

S got home right after naps were over...perfect timing. Everyone had a little snack of the little leftover kettle corn and more apples. Lord knows we bought enough to supply the entire neighborhood. Ian and Zane have been asking for weeks to visit the "enchanted forest" that we always drive by on our way to pre-school. The rain had ended so we put on the hiking shoes, packed up the climbing gear and Scout and headed off for an adventure.

When we entered the " enchanted forest" (aka Petrifying Springs Park) mushrooms were everywhere. Now, Im not a mushroom expert, so if any of you know what kind these are or if they are edible, let me know. S and I always plays a little game with the boys called "And then what happened?" where he or I start a story and then say "...and then what happened?" and let the boys continue the story. So we started, "There once was an entire world of little people who didnt live in houses. But instead they lived in mushrooms. And rode on ladybugs instead of cars. And they what happened?". The yarn they spun was so great, I should write it down in another post at sometime.

The boys ran and ran and ran, got muddy, whacked things with sticks they found, climbed, jumped and screamed. S hooked up a rope and zip line between two trees and taught the boys how to buckle themselves into the harness and zip down the line. I dont think that I need to even go into details about how much they loved this. Even 18 mo. old Wyatt got to try it out and smiled the whole way down. And S and I sat back and watched it all. It was exactly what the Dr. ordered after a crazed week of S and I feeling like two ships passing in the night. Its never ceases to amaze me how just the act of being in the world that God created seems to heal and reconnect us as a family.

Sunday was a lazy day of sleeping in, more rain, and pumpkin pancakes, cleaning and finishing up this.

I loved the last one I made for a swap, so I decided to make another one for a friend of mine as a birthday gift. And lastly, I promised Kelli a pumpkin recipe last week to go along with her fall pumpkin baking post so here it is:

Pumpkin Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegegable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar

In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt, stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium high heat. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Or here is an even easier one for mamas of three boys who are pulling at your apron strings saying they are STARVING:

Prepare pancake batter as directed on the back of the Bisquick box. Add 1 c. of pumkin and a tablespoon of sugar and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Prepare as above.

So, all in all what looked like a royal yucky weekend, turned out to be exactly what we needed.  Gotta run again...the boys are all three napping today which is a treat for me. Ive still got to fold two loads of laundry, post Ms. Darla's newest podcast and visit a few of your lovely blogs to see what you are up to. Adios!

** edited so that the Stranded Sisters link works now.  sorry! **