Pictures! Times four.

Hello! 

Did you know that I have four drafts of posts that never went live? I started a thought, got called away, and when I came back to it I discovered I had run out of things to say.

So I will regale you with photographs and short stories...

My superawesome brother and his superawesome girlfriend came to stay. When I walked into the room, my brother was using his girlfriend as a laptop desk and explaining something sciencey to the kids. He's like that. He also dislikes having his photo taken, so I think in the past 25 years I have 3 photos of him NOT pulling a face. The kids adore them, and it's always a major bummer to see them leave (Darn you, Connecticut! Why are you so far away?!)

Last week my sister in law had a baby girl! I'M AN AUNT! I'm pretty stoked about this because I had the two coolest Aunts on the planet growing up (even cooler than the ones in Practical Magic--hard to believe, but true). Aunt Carmela and Aunt Jan gave me some serious ideas about what it means to be an aunt, and I plan to live up to the title. 

Here's Fiona holding her cousin; Avery. Double the cute.

And here is Adrian, remarkably good with tiny humans. 

And here is the gruesome twosome at Lake Katherine. I took a dozen photos, and this was the best one. 

Our summer has been busy, near to over-full and I haven't gotten much rest. This week, the kids are with their grandparents so I am making art, riding my bicycle, going to yoga, blogging, and taking an online class. So I probably won't get a whole lot of rest this week either...

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

I was going to post an awesome retro photo of my dad, but I ran out of time and wasn't able to dig through the photo box.
Maybe next year, y'all.

But I thought I would provide for you a list of the 10 most important things my dad taught me.

1. Life's not fair. But it IS funny--so laugh often.
2. There's a place for everything, and everything in it's place. (Although I have learned that this only works if everyone plays by this rule)
3. Life's short--make it a priority to do things you love to do, and not just things you have to do.
4. Any time is an appropriate time to quote Shakespeare. I inherited my love for the bard from my Dad, for sure. When I was younger he frequently, and without provocation, would launch into a soliloquy whilst standing in the kitchen, making a sandwich. Also, he had this shirt that said: First thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. He IS a lawyer. This was not lost on me (see # 1).
5. Food is made to be appreciated. We would drive out of our way to have lunch as a family at a new restaurant on the weekends--and because of my dad I have eaten (and enjoyed): oysters--when I was 5, calamari--at age 7, haggis--at age 15. Even now, I make it a point to eat adventurously and with enjoyment (see # 3)
6. Make a point to travel. The world is a big place, and full of fascinating cultures, landscapes, and climates.
7. Make a point to meet new people. Because it's not what you know, it's who you know. My life has been so enriched by this virtue--I have such an amazing circle of friends across the States.
8. Be brave. And as I have found out--bravery is holding on to your fear while you move forward. From allowing me to fly on an airplane alone at the age of 7, to helping me move to Oklahoma to an apartment and a job sight unseen my Dad has always believed that I could do it. And that helped me believe.
9. Family is important. Friends are important.
10. Work is work. Nobody died wishing they had spent more time at the office.

Thanks Dad, for giving me a (twisted) sense of humor, a love of Shakespeare, food, history, and craftsmanship. Thanks for raising me to use power tools, change a tire, and lift heavy stuff. Thanks for our trips to the ice cream shop, family vacations, and nights at the theater. Thanks for moving me half way across the country in 48 hours, and thanks for giving me the freedom to make my own decisions--and make my own mistakes too. I love you.

It's Summer Vacation!

This past weekend, we went downstate (260 miles downstate) for a wedding, and to visit friends who had relocated there.

Breakfast was REAL bacon--from the butcher, not the grocery store. And farm-fresh eggs! 

After breakfast, we got to out and meet the menagerie.

This is Gracie Lou. She's a four month old Death Valley Burro. She lives with two goats named Jose and Cuervo (who would not stand still, thus no photos). I took a bazillion photos of her because she's so cute, but I'll spare you the vast majority of them.

Look at those lashes! She was shy, but curious.

Fiona was standing still long enough for me to take pictures of her face! That's Aunt Lydia behind her.

How do you haul water and feed? Miss Patti uses a golf cart! The kids thought this was the most excellent mode of transportation. Adrian has asked for one every day since we got home.

I think Miss Patti enjoys it, too.

Next, the kids got to go and meet Hobo, Miss Patti's new horse. He's not yet ride-able, but that is the goal for the future.

She had the kids up off the ground to pet Hobo, in case he got spooked.

But he seemed to really enjoy the attention, and the kids enjoyed it too.

These are some of the hens that Patti is raising. They aren't layers yet, but should be come fall.

This one is an Easter egg chicken. Guessing from the tail, I suspect it's a rooster not a hen.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Also known as: Pajama Day! I like to take very nearly any excuse to spend the day in my pajamas. After dinner (left overs smorgasbord) last night, the kids wanted to go outside to play. I was sitting in the living room reading when I heard Adrian making "karate" noises--I looked out the window to see him with a day lily leaf tied around his head.

Here he is, striking a pose. 

Fiona, meanwhile, was creating a nest. For tigers.

Check out these muscles.

Searching for more nest-making materials.

Adrian, Fiona, and the Mulberry tree.

In action!

And it was after 15 minutes of trying to achieve a photograph of Fiona's face that I reached the conclusion that I need a faster camera. My shutter speed is no match for a four-year-old on the move. 

I guess I know what's going on my birthday list....

Have a wonderful week!
We'll be outside, enjoying the weather.

Every new beginning...

Today, I have an interview at a new tattoo shop. I am cheerfully accepting all good-luck wishes. Friday will be my last day at the shop where I currently work. 

Over the weekend, I started a short story. I had started to read another book, and I couldn't because this other story kept pushing it's way to the front of my brain. When I realized that I had read the same sentance 5 times without comprehending it, I put down the book and began to get the words out of my head. Right now, all I can tell you is that it is a story about a journey, both physical and metaphysical, and there may be some magic in it. 

I also have been making appointments for the kids to fill out all of the necessary papers for their return to school in the fall, and trying to figure the best way to occupy them this summer...pool pass? classes? trips to visit family? All of these options hinge on my interview today.

And I have been working on a project, to be revealed June 1. It's kind of a big deal, and I'm excited.

Stay tuned.

April adventures

Hello hello!

I am experiencing a case of butt-sitting, so I thought I should make it productive butt-sitting. 

A few weekends ago, the weather was beautiful and we didn't have any plans on a Sunday so we went to the zoo!

The kids hammed it up.

And hammed it up some more.

Then we went into The Living Coast exhibit. It is pretty cool-it's indoors and set off the coast of South America. 

Look at the colors!

I had to resort to using my flash to get this guy. I'm sure I traumatized the lionfish in the background.

After The Living Coast, we went over to see the bears and the wolves. 

Everybody was napping.

Did I tell you about science fair?

Adrian and his "number one best friend" Chase made a volcano. At Chase's house. After the fair was over, we took home the volcano so that we could have an on-camera demonstration.

Oooh.

Aaron and Adrian prep the volcano.

In goes the vinegar...

And it looks like we need more baking soda...

Voila! Eruption!

Science is cool.

And now we are up to our eyeballs in Baseball--which Adrian doesn't enjoy as much as he thought he would. Two practices and two games a week are getting in the way of his "Lego time".

Sigh. 

Only 8 more weeks.

Hay y'all!

I'm not sure when last I posted, as I have been merely riding along the crazy train that has been my life for the past four weeks. (Four months?)

Big man is in baseball, which is a huge commitment compared to t-ball. Practices are twice as long & twice as often. We haven't even had the first game & he has already decided he doesn't want to play next year. He's decided he's more of a "science guy", which is totally cool, but we're going to try a few other sports (basketball, swimming) before we rule out physical activity all together.

Little miss is not involved in anything, because with my working evenings, there aren't enough bodies to shuttle two kids to two separate locations. She's really getting the short end of being a younger sibling, poor duck. Once baseball is over, we'll have them both enrolled in swimming and possibly another activity--because I don't know that I can handle all of the referee duties that come with summer break!

I have been working, and trying to find a new place to work, and making art, and teaching at a women's retreat, and getting ready to officiate a wedding, and getting the garden in order, and reading for book club.

Next time, there may be photos--if I get around to uploading them off of the camera. (We went to the zoo last weekend and I got a couple of good ones!)

TTFN--TaTa For Now!

Ostara for us, thanks!

A few weeks back, we celebrated Ostara with some close friends. Ostara falls on the Spring Equinox--it's a celebration of spring--birds eggs, rabbits, plants in bloom. Due to our unseasonably warm March the trees were in bloom and the kids were able to hunt eggs without hats, scarves, mittens, and winter coats. 

It started with confetti filled eggs that they were supposed to crack on each other (Fion decided to crack hers on her own head), then a race to grab the eggs off the lawn, and finally a spring feast. 

It was good fun and great weather.

This weekend the in-laws are coming up and the kids will get to hunt eggs again--they're pretty pleased with the double-festivities. 

And as Fiona told me last night when I tucked her into bed "Nana and Papa are fun. I'm glad they are are coming". 

Have a great spring weekend, whatever you celebrate!

Like a spoon with the forks

I have long felt completely out-of-place when surrounded by women. And when I look at images of women in ads, magazines, and on TV I really REALLY feel like I don't belong.

I like power tools and paint. I like digging in the dirt and reading books. I like dinosaurs and birds. I like Shakespeare and Neil Gaiman.
I wear make up when I remember to put it on, I rarely have on nail polish or high heeled shoes, or clothes without holes in them or paint on them.

Which is why I find it so frustrating when I take the kids to places where the toys are sorted into "boy toys" and "girl toys". WHAT IS THAT ABOUT? Who made that decision? When did we, as a society, decide that encouraging our children to explore all avenues of play was a bad idea? When did we determine that boys shouldn't learn to nurture or develop fine motor skills by working tiny clasps and buttons on dolls? Why did we decide that girls should have passive toys (dolls, cookware sets) instead of active toys (blocks, cars)?

In our house the work-load is shared equally between my husband and I. We both do domestic chores. We both care for the children. We both feel that it's completely ridiculous that our daughter is being quietly told that girls aren't supposed to like dinosaurs and archeology and that our son is receiving the message that cooking is for girls. Fiona was completely uninterested in princesses until this year when ALL of the girls in her preschool class are gaga for them. On pajama day, every other girl had princess pajamas. Fiona wore Spiderman pajamas. And I realize that I can't shelter them from the influence of their peers, however I want my children to explore what is interesting to them, and I want them to feel free to pursue those interests.

How do you keep your children open to the possibility of the world when the society around you is trying to cram them into a tiny little box?

Parenting is hard work. 

Watch how I procrastinate!

Last month sometime, when there was still snow, I got out the clingwrap and covered the windows.

Then I handed the kids tissue paper & glue sticks and told them to go crazy.

It took 4 days to cover one window and the result was a stained glass effect that I very much enjoyed.

Fiona took it down over the weekend because she wanted to wave to the mailman.

I have been up to my eyeballs with art. And Adrian is in desperate need of a haircut, so I haven't been taking photos. 

And now I am going to go do MORE art so I can meet some deadlines.

But first, I think I'll have a snack.

Take a walk

This winter has been CRAZY mild. I realize that it's not quite February yet, but usually by this point I'd have considered migrating south on a weekly basis. So far I've only seriously considered it once.

And right on schedule, the song birds are returning to the neighborhood. This week we will carve out some time to take a walk through the woods, make some birdseed treats, and generally enjoy the weather.

And then there's a really good possibility that we'll do this.

Because silly is fun.

Things to make you cheerful!

Hey!

It's 2012! And our good friend Mr. Bob is out of ICU, where he had been confined for 2 weeks with pneumonia. Our dear sister in law is expecting (but don't tell the kids! she wants to tell them), and I have mailed off a painting to be included in an invitational show (that means you have to get INVITED to participate)*. I'm feeling pretty cheerful about life.

I had a wisdom tooth pulled yesterday, and I am in love with my surgeon. It took him no time at all and I didn't feel a thing. I want to make him chicken pot pie and recommend his services to my friends. (See how I'm alternately an eighty year old and a twelve year old? I have no idea how Aaron puts up with it)

And I was talking to my little brother's cute girlfriend--we're in cahoots to relocate the lot of us to Connecticut--and she told me about the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company. I spent lots of time perusing and squealing like a teenage girl. I told her about Katrina Cottages.

When I was younger I would spend hours drawing houses, complete with floor plans and gardening plans for the lots they sat on. Usually this would happen in math class--I didn't understand what was happening on the board, so I'd create a little world where everything made sense. Now I love looking at houses for sale, I love looking at floor plans. I'm a special kind of special, I know. When I visited Aunt Carmela (back in August) and we drove by Mama Amaro's house, I wanted to march up to the front door and tell the people to pack their stuff, because I was buying that house from them--thankfully Uncle Steve kept the car door locked or I'd've had some 'splainin to do when I came back home.

Part of my grand plans include building my own house one day. I just have to take the baby steps to get there.

*If you are in or around Natchitoches, Louisiana go see my painting!

goodbye, 2011!

Hello to all!

I hope everyone is ready to say GOODBYE to 2011. It was a year filled with much too much bad news and much too little good news. 2011 set the bar so low that it made 2010 look like the height of awesome. (2010 was the year I had pneumonia for 3 months). I am far to old to write to Santa, but not old enough to believe that writing down my wishes for the coming year is in any way silly or futile.

 2012, here is my wish list: I wish for my friends and family to be healthy. I wish for my children to remember you in smiles and friends made. I wish for the perseverance to face my goals head-on. I wish for peace in our heads and forgiveness in our hearts and kindness in our actions.
Thanking you in advance,

Kara M DeCarlo

(Go and write your wishes down, too! I believe life is better when we can move towards what we want, instead of running blindly from what we don't want)

Wishing all of you beautiful dreams and a joyous New Year!

Pensive in the face of the New Year

Yes, I completed all my holiday presents. I plan to totally cop out of wrapping them by putting them in brown paper bags & stapling the bags shut. My holly jolly ho-ho-ho spirit left about two days ago and I am just ready for this season of gifting to be over.
To make it through the next few days of holiday go-round, I will be needing a designated driver. Luckily, I have a husband who will gladly take on that role. Thanks babe!

I also have to submit my 2012 goals list to my lovely friend who has agreed to hold me accountable to all of them. She is a therapist by day, so I do not expect to be able to wiggle my way out of them.
Which means that I have to be realistic in my aspirations and not go overboard with planning.

This is proving more difficult than I imagined. As it turns out, I am the Queen of Unreachable Goals--probably the reasons for this would require immense amounts of therapy, but we all know that's not going to happen. So now I have to weigh each goal against the reasons for putting it on the list, and the probability of achieving said goal. Doesn't that sound like fun?!

Not to me either. So I have been working in fits & starts, but there are only 8 days left of 2011.

Blah.

Happy New Year.

In case you were feeling rushed..

Firstly! There is free shipping at my etsy shop with the coupon code JOY2U. Happy Holidays!

Secondly, I am not yet done with holiday presents, because I have decided to do a handmade holiday for the second year running. Which wouldn't be so overwhelming if I hadn't added some people to the list. So far I have made hot cocoa mix, marshmellows, book pins, flower brooches, and upcycled journals. I still have to make bracelets for a gaggle of teenage girls, and fleece camo hats for boys.

I am running out of time and energy...but mostly time.

So I hope you all are enjoying this time of year, however you celebrate it!

LONDON, BABY!

Flying out of Chicago, we headed west over Lake Michigan. Hi Chicago!
 I flew from Chicago to DC, where I met up with my Mom and we flew together to London.

The view from our floor of the hotel. We were on floor 12, so it was pretty spectacular. That castle-looking building is the Renaissance hotel at St. Pancras. On the other side of that is the King's Cross underground and railway station (King's Cross is where Harry Potter left for Hogwarts).

That low-lying red brick building is the British Library. They had a fabulous exhibit on Illuminated Manuscripts. Also, I saw the Magna Carta and a First Folio of Shakespeare's works.

And there was food! I especially enjoyed this little treat: a rosemary & chocolate macaroon, a raspberry & basil mousse, and a lavender & citrus sorbet.

And of course we had to go to Harrod's to see the Christmas decorations and ride the Egyptian escalator. We also popped into the Harry Potter shop.

That's the dome of St Paul's (Where the old lady feeds the birds in Mary Poppins) and that bit of water is the Thames River)

We went to the Globe Theatre & museum. That's me with Will--I am a HUGE Shakepeare dork. I went to Shakespeare summer camp when I was in high school. True story. The theatre season runs April to October and groundling tickets are only 5 pounds a person!

And we popped over to Baker Street to catch a glimpse of 221B (Where Sherlock Holmes "lived". There's also a Sherlock Holmes Museum next door, but I didn't see the need to pay to look at an exhibit of a fictional character).

And then we came home. We crammed a lot into 3 days. I loved the public transportation, the museums, the weather, and even the food.

London--you rock!

Shop not!

As I am all out of cash and rapidly approaching a fabulous long weekend in LONDON, where I will be carrying and fetching for my Mom (which is totally cool, because 1. She's my Mom and 2. it's LONDON), I am not participating in any of the retail craziness of this weekend.
Instead I will be working, bidding farewell to my last Thanksgiving guest, editing/posting photos and repurposing old clothes into new clothes.

As we approach December, I have tasked myself with getting things crossed off the neverending TO DO list and instilling an appropriate sense of holiday cheer in the kids.

It's Fall

Oh my, is it ever. A few weeks back we went to the pumpkin patch, where Adrian tried his hardest to bring home a pumpkin three times the size we suggested.

The onset of Fall means all kinds of wonderful things. Yellow leaves against blue skies, massive quantities of baked goods, Halloween, Thanksgiving, crisp air, apple cider, sweaters, rosy cheeks and the smell of fallen leaves when I walk through the woods.

We are hosting Thanksgiving this year, which has resulted in a flurry of home improvement projects. Not all of them will be finished before people arrive in SEVEN DAYS, but enough that I don't feel like the house is falling down around my head.

And, yes, Dad. I will post pictures of the kids in their Halloween costumes. Eventually. When I don't have a kid standing on either side of me, demanding something.

Have a good weekend, y'all.
Enjoy the beauty before winter comes and chills your bones.

He's trying to do me in!

After this week I have decided two things.
1. Adrian should go into politics, because he is master of the spin.

2. I have to either join the french foreign legion or take up drinking.

Allow me to transcribe for you the two assignments that Adrian has brought home from school this week, exactly as they appear.

Assignment one:
One time I stole my sister's diperes and i got cought. I toled my mom I did it. And she spanked me. After that I never did it agen.

(Replace "one time" with "multiple times" and "stole" with "wore, urinated in, and then shoved in the back of my sister's closet")


Assignment two:
If I were a child in Heckedy Peg when the witch came in I wod stab her and take the gold.

(this little gem is complete with an ILLUSTRATION, wherein the child has a knife in the blood-red belly of the witch and is saying "this is esey")

So, yeah.
Parent/Teacher conferences are going to be awesome this year.

Do you think they'll let me bring a flask?