Simple Sunday – Where All Good Jack-o’-Lanterns Go To Rot

Posted on November 11, 2012 by Shoes

One of the many not much talked about benefits of living on a patch of land in the woods is the ability to set free the Jack-o’-Lanterns at the end of the Halloween hubabulub – a catch and release program for pumpkins, if you will.

Jack o lanterns 2012

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Marbles and Mixing Bowls

Posted on November 8, 2012 by Shoes

It is the simple things in life, right?  Take a handful of marbles and a nesting of plastic mixing bowls (there was no way I was giving up my nice glass mixing bowls for this), give them to your children and watch what they do.

Are they looking at you like you lost your marbles (sorry, I could not resist).  If that is the case then walk over, grab one of the marbles and give it a spin along the inner edge of one of the bowls.  Then if you are lucky like me, you can walk away and busy yourself with making dinner or taking a long peaceful bubble bath because that is pretty much how long your kids will entertain themselves.  At least if they are like my kids.  I don’t know, maybe mine are just way too easily amused.

Marbles and Bowls Collage

Marbles and mixing bowls.  Just don’t expect to get your mixing bowls back any time soon.

If you want to get fancy and watch their eyes glaze over, you can bust out with your knowledge of centrifugal force and centripetal force.  I did simply awful in both my semesters of college Physics so my knowledge of said forces is limited and probably mostly wrong (especially considering I passed because I hired a tutor, a friend who was an engineer that tutored for tequila, and the class was graded on the curve) but at least I sound smart when talking to my kids about it.

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Summer Toys. Winter Toys.

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Shoes

It has been past time for quite a while.  Finally on a not so rainy day last week I decided the time had come.  Cody was at school and since it was a Friday, Carter was home all day with me.  Carter was excited by the news and even wanted to help.  I did not know until later why.

Carter immediately got distracted from the work at hand by a huge semi circle of pinecones around one of the tall evergreens by our driveway.  He grabbed his rake.  The chipmunk, angered that someone would disturb his masterpiece pinecone mosaic, chucked the occasional woody fruit down upon Carter’s little blond head.

Raking pinecone collage

While Carter raked and leapt merrily about so as to be a more difficult direct hit for the chipmunk, I started filling a large tub with the colorful plastic reminders of a summer gone by; beach shovels, stomp rockets, water guns, gliders, bubble wands.  I was ruthless when it came to throwing away the broken and unwanted.

When I had worked my way across the lawn to the lilac bush adorned with small pails to catch rain water, pinwheels to catch the wind, and other random toys hung there for reasons beyond my comprehension, Carter came running over.  No, momma!  Not our secret office toys! 

For the past several months the lilac bush, aka their secret office, had been one of their most played in places.  Next to the lilac tall lilies and Dixie wood ferns towered making it a great place for little boys to hide and whisper and giggle.  Carter did not want their carefully planned out play area violated.  I explained to him again that it was time to put the summer toys away.  I distracted him with a Frisbee plucked from the branches of their secret office.  He was easily distracted.

Frisbee face

We played Frisbee for a long time then he helped me dismantle their secret office and take the toys into the garage where they would dry off and be stored away until next summer.  It was as we were driving the bikes into the garage that he piped up.  He jumped repeatedly into the air and every time his feet touched the ground he spoke; Now (bounce) do (bounce) we (bounce) get (bounce) to (bounce) take (bounce) out (bounce) the (bounce) winter (bounce) toys (bounce, bounce)?

Apparently he thought that somewhere tucked away in the garage or under the house there were toys to be take out and scattered around the yard for the winter season.  He looked up at me, eyes shining with the excitement of a four year old boy about to be given a whole slew of new toys.  I tried to let him down easy.  I told him that in the winter it was cold and wet and that it was not much fun to play outside.  He was sad.  I asked him if it would make him feel better if the soccer goal and the Frisbees remained out until it snowed and he said that it would.

Soccer goal and Frisbee

Posted in The Great Outdoors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Simple Sunday – Warlocks, Tigers, and Witches

Posted on November 4, 2012 by Shoes

There were classroom parties, costume parades, and trick or treating. The weather report spoke of constant rain. We dodged the rain clouds, stayed dry, and collected way more candy than we needed.

Halloween 2012 Collage 3

We were sad that Husband was not able to join us as he was attending the Microsoft Build conference all last week.  Between Skype and texting him pictures, he was kept up to date on all our goings on.

Husband was not here when the Switch Witch came. Lucky for him the Switch Witch was nice and saved him a piece or two from the vast quantity of sweets left out for her.

Switch Witch Loot

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Right Now

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Shoes

The kitchen was a total mess, the dining room table even more so.  Carter was sorting his trick or treating loot into two piles, one to keep and one for the Switch Witch*.  He was also in the process of using his new little pencil sharpener to sharpen a dozen or so Halloween pencils he got from his classroom party.  Pencil shavings were everywhere.  Cody was scarfing by the handful microwave popcorn that had been leftover from his classroom party as if I had not just fed them a dinner of roasted red pepper tomato soup with homemade cornbread rolls.  Sigh.

I had loaded the dishwasher but still needed to hand wash the pots and pans.  I hate washing pots and pans.  To put off the loathsome task a bit longer, I decided to grind the coffee beans and set up the pot for the following morning’s much needed cup or two of brew.  As I set about measuring the beans and scooping them into the grinder, my mind wandered to the list of tasks that needed to be addressed come morning.  Some squabble or another over the ownership of a piece of candy brought me back to the present.  In an effort to change the direction of conversation, I asked the boys a question I ask almost every evening; what was your favorite part of today?

For Carter it was easy.  Trick or treating and getting candy!  Ah, Carter you are so sweet and so like me when I was your age.  Cody did not answer right away and I was about to prompt him again in my exasperated are-you-listening-to-me mom voice when he spoke up.  My favorite part of the day is right now.

Wow.  I had never considered the possibility that the present, that moment we were all sharing when I asked that question, could actually be a favorite.  In my eyes that moment was the end of the day chaos, something to get through before bedtime.  But for Cody, his hands shiny with the butter from that move theater Orville Redenbacher microwave popcorn, that moment was love and family (and popcorn.)

I stopped grinding coffee beans.  I walked over to him and bent down.  I asked him for a hug and did not mind at all when his little hands smeared the back of my shirt with popcorn residue.  Suddenly the “right now” was starting to look a whole lot better and if I didn’t watch out, it just might become the favorite part of my day too.

*(In case you are unfamiliar with her, the Switch Witch comes in the night to takes the unwanted candy from a child’s trick or treating bag and gives in return a surprise. Our Switch Witch has been known to give tubes of glow stick bracelets and flashing LED rings. Our Switch Witch is lucky in that one of our boys does not like chocolate and the other does not like sour candies, yum.)

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Racecar Raven

Posted on October 31, 2012 by Shoes

A poem, by Cody (age 6)

Racecar Raven
on the roof

He appears
with a poof

His feathers, dark as night
guide him on his flight

Racecar Raven

During the springtime we had a large black bird visit our backyard feeders.  The boys and I fancied him to be a raven, although he most likely was just an ordinary black crow.  We named him Racecar Raven and Cody wrote this poem for him.  I thought it fitting to share it with you, on this day of All Hallows’ Eve .

Have a happy and safe Halloween!

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Rest in Peace Little Speedo

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Shoes

Tonight I flushed my first fish.  Speedo, the Tetra who just two weeks ago we bought a friend for, has passed.  Speedo had always been a little strange.  His beady little black eyes always had a look of panic about them and he spend most of his time hiding behind the pump in the right rear corner of his tank.  If truth be told, he was my least favorite fish.  He was, however, Carter’s favorite and he took the news of Speedo’s illness hard.

Speedo had been acting stranger than his usual self all day.  He would lie on the bottom of the tank and make awful frantic gasping faces.  It was horrible to watch and nothing I did made him stop.  A friend of mine who has more experience than I in fish ownership, looked him over and told me that she was pretty sure his time was up.  I debated leaving him to die of natural causes but I worried that he may be suffering.

When the boys and I finally got home from the typical school and swim lessons of a Tuesday night I told them that Speedo was sick.  Cody wanted to take him to a fish doctor.  Carter actually started to cry.  They both agreed that Speedo did not look well.  I gave them the option of saying goodbye and watching me flush him or having me flush him after they went to bed.  They wanted to watch.  Of course.  After dinner there were pajamas and teeth and stories and they forgot about Speedo.  I forgot about Speedo too until right before they went to bed.  I did not remind them and after they were tucked away in bed, I flushed.  I hope they forgive me in the morning.

We once again have one Tetra fish (and one Betta fish, as Finn still lives happily on in his own little fish bowl.)  My research showed that they do better with a friend or two.  So now I suppose I shall have to go back to the local pet store and buy a friend for Blub.  I see this as being a vicious cycle; two Tetra fish, one dies, buy another, repeat entire process.  The only way I see to get out of this is if the fish agree to a murder/suicide pact.  What are the odds I would be so lucky?

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Simple Sunday – Pumpkin Patches Through the Years

Posted on October 28, 2012 by Shoes

The last three years we have gone to the same pumpkin patch and have forced asked the kids to stand by the How Tall This Fall? sign so we could take their picture.  Cody is on the left and Carter is on the right.

Pumpkin Patch last three years collage

In 2008 and 2009 we went to different pumpkin patches but still managed to take some festive photos of the boys.  In these pictures Carter is on the left and Cody is on the right.

Pumpkin patch 09 and 08 collage

And then there was 2007.  Here, of course, Cody is on the left and Carter is on the right.

Pumpkin patch 2007 collage

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We Think of you While you are Sleeping

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Shoes

Monday through Friday Carter and I have lunch together before he heads off to his afternoon preschool.  Almost everyday over our meal Carter brings up “the people on the other side of the earth”.  I think he is quite enthralled with the idea that while we are awake, they are asleep.  He refers to their homes as “habitats” as if they are of a different species.  To him, it seems, the “other people” are of a nocturnal variety, for how can they be sleeping while it is daytime for us?  No amount of explanation or discussion on rotating axes, no amount of puppetry with globes and flashlights will change his mind.

He wonders about them.  He wonders about them frequently.  He questions what they may be doing.  He usually asks me a specific question.

carter:  Is there a little boy getting up out of bed for a drink of water because he woke up and is thirsty, on the other side of the earth?

me:  Yes, Carter there probably is.

carter:  Momma, is there a little boy who just woke up and is going pee in a toilet on the other side of the earth?

me:  Yes, I imagine there probably is.  Maybe it is even the same little boy.

Day after day, sandwich after sandwich, we sit and eat and think about you.  Assuming you are of the “other people”,  the nocturnal people, who reside on the other side of our great earth.

The other side of the earth

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Drunk with Power and Demanding Candy Corn

Posted on October 25, 2012 by Shoes

I think I may have mentioned in passing a time or two that I am room mom in Cody’s first grade class.  Actually I am one of three moms who signed up this year (although I was not planning on signing up and technically allowed myself to be talked into it.)  There are several things I like about being room mom.  I like being a part of Cody’s classroom.  I like getting to know his classmates.  It warms my heart every time one of his peers smiles and waves at me in the hallway.  I like knowing what is going on in the school.  I especially like getting extra face time with Cody’s teacher and I think it helps Cody to stand out from the other twenty-six kids in his class.

Cody and Mustache

I mean, really, how could he not stand out? How many other six year olds do you know that have a mustache?

I do not like having to nag the other parents to help out at various school run events and classroom parties.  I do not like relying on others.  I don’t trust people to follow through because last year when I was room mom in Cody’s kindergarten class I learned that a lot of people don’t.  And I understand.  Heck, last year I fell off the face of the earth several times when Cody had a seizure or when my dad’s Alzheimer’s worsens and he quickly passed.  Life is messy and things happen, I understand.  My understanding does in no way lessen the stress I feel when I have to rely on some random parent to bring the popcorn to make Halloween Popcorn Hands (I actually saved this link for an entire year just so I could remember to make them with the kids this year.)

Halloween Popcorn Hand

Photo courtesy of Colleen over at The Smart Cookie Cook.

I do not consider myself to be a natural leader.  I do not like asking for help.  I took on the role of room mom last year partially to force myself to socialize with the other parents and to step out of my comfort zone.  This year I vowed that I would not be room mom, but instead I would be the person who volunteered for many classroom events.  I would be the person the room mom would be grateful for.  Well, you know – the best laid schemes o’ mice and men go often awry, or gang aft agley, for you literary types out there.

I am trying a new tactic, one that makes me feel a bit evil and pushy but it seems to be working.  When a parent emails me, expressing an interest in wanting to help I reply with a direct request instead of giving them a list of choices.  If they say they can come in to help out for the Halloween party, I express gratitude and tell them to come in at 1:45 to help the kids get into their costumes (five minutes earlier than the scheduled time to ensure they are on time).  If they write to tell me they can bring something in for the party, I express gratitude and respond right away asking them to bring a specific item.

So last night I was happily typing parent names into my Excel spreadsheet (oh, yes I do – I love my Excel spreadsheets) next to the items we need for the classroom Halloween party and I laughed out loud.  I told Husband to watch out; I was feeling drunk with power. I had just demanded, albeit in a nice way, bags of candy corn from a complete stranger.

Candy Corn Collage

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