Happy (almost) new year!

You know what I've noticed?
When I stop making lists that include "update blog", updating doesn't happen.
Sorry about that, interwebs.
I resolve to become more obsessive about blogging in the new year.*

To tide you over:
Christmas eve I am trying to get Fion to GO TO BED. Mostly because we are rapidly approaching MY bedtime (yes, grown woman with a bedtime--oh the glamour) and I had endured a hair-raising drive home on icy/sleetly/snowy roads and had not yet had the opportunity to yell expletives into my pillow.
So I explain to Fiona: It is Christmas eve. Santa is coming! With presents! But he cannot come if you are still awake so laydownandgotosleepNOW.
And she responds: Oh! I have to get some sleep so Santa and Batman can come.

Santa and Batman: partners in law enforcement and gift delivery....

*This is not true.
I will blog when the blogging spirit moves me.

And now I'm off to the other blog to talk about the rediculousness of life.

where did the year go?

Hello--
did you know that it's December? I looked at the calendar and nearly fell off my seat. This year got away from me, that's for sure.

The kids are anxious for the arrival of Santa Claus.
Fiona wants a polar bear. (PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME A LIVE BEAR. I will not love you back.)
Adrian wants all kinds of stuff, but we are having a BATTERY-FREE CHRISTMAS.
(SOAPBOX: Batteries are bad for the environment, bad for my wallet, and stunt a child's opportunity to use their god-given talents:i.e. their imaginations!)
Either he understands my reasons or has come to terms with the fact that his mom is a fun-killing crazy lady, but has suggested that legos would be a good alternative to battery operated crap...er, I mean, toys.

And I want....nothing, really. All kinds of things would be nice, but what I REALLY want I already have.

No wait. That's not true. What I really want you can't box up. (Hoping, wishing, praying to avoid all nasty viruses brought home by my beloved school-aged children)

This past year started with 8 weeks of pneumonia. 2010 set the bar low for 2011. I hope 2010 gets a high-five on his way out the door.

A week...

A week is all it takes, really, for your life to change.

For the better: I got to spend time with the Lovely Karlee (whom I have known for 12 years). I have been instrumental in getting a book-writing photographer to come (in January) to where I live and photograph veterans of the Korean War & WWII. My boss is in Ethiopia in the process of adopting 2 children, doubling the number of children in his home that he will teach, and love, and guide.

For the worst: A dear friend's mother passed away after years of illness. And so there will be a wake, a funeral, and a luncheon. My kids are at their grandparents, so they will miss out on this opportunity to see the celebration of an amazing woman's life.

This week is when we as Americans are supposed to stop and take stock of all that we are thankful for.
I am thankful for a family (both through blood & marriage) that fills my children's lives with love and joy.
I am thankful for friends who pull together through good times and bad.
I am thankful for my job, which I love, and my boss who has given me the opportunity to pursue this dream.
I am thankful for strangers who open doors and smile at me on the street.
I am thankful for a full pantry.

What about you?

HELLO 6!

So, I am only 3 weeks late, which is better than never, right?
This guy I know just turned 6.... And in the annals of birthdays, it was another one for the record books. He got a party with his friends at the pet store and a party with his family at home. Both had cake and presents, so I say they are equal.

So far, I am liking six. He seems like a pretty cool number. Not too cool to hold my hand while crossing the street, but cool enough to rock the air guitar while listening to head phones. Still curious about his world, but the questions are deeper and more in search of explanation of social customs and our role on the planet. Six understands that whining doesn't get you anything (though he still tries), and Six understands that little sisters can totally play along. (It helps that little sisters like to pretend to fight bad guys, I guess)
Six is no longer a baby, but will still accept hugs and kisses (and even give them out). Six can read! Six can spell a few words, but hasn't quite mastered grammar.
Six draws pictures for his friends, cuts out hearts for me, and dreams of being all kinds of awesome when he gets big.
But you know what?
Six is pretty awesome right now.

Adrian: Hey Mom! Check out this slug I found! It totally pooped in my hand!

It's times like these that make me wish I lived closer to my family. Jono is out of hospital (hurrah!), diagnosis: he's no longer in remission (boo).

PHOTO RAMA

Because my brain is slow & not feeling in a narrative mood, I give you photos!
Make your own story....

It's been awhile...

And for that, I apologize. When life gets ahead of me the blog is usually the first thing to get bumped off the to-do list.
Since I saw you last, we have been reading A LOT. The kids each have their own library card and enjoy weilding its awesome power. As far as I can tell there is no check-out limit at our library. (sweet!)

Back in September, Adrian had his first day of school. Once Fiona realized she wasn't going to school she was no longer interested in dropping him off or picking him up....

But then came October (and toilet training!) and Fiona is now a school-going girl too. It's the quietest 3 hours of my day. And instead of blogging, I am walking the dog, painting, sewing, listening to music, and generally enjoying my grown up time.

I am thinking that once I have caught up on my unfinished art projects, there will be more blogging.

reading...

"When we deny our children nature, we deny them beauty"
Richard Louv
Last Child in the Woods

My blog, my rules!

Hey. I realize I didn't post last week, but the week went faster than I expected. It's like time is speeding up in anticipation of SCHOOL.
So last week, we painted, got school supplies, Fiona went to the doctor (for a check up), had friends over for dinner, went to friend's houses for dinner, went for a walk in the woods, stayed up late and made the most of the last week of summer. And I can't seem to remember to bring my camera along for much of it.

Adrian was in my studio & found my color wheel & wanted to make one of his own. Grand idea!

Fiona just likes to paint.

At her doctor's appointment we learned that she is 37 inches tall and weighs 35 pounds. (no wonder my back hurts at the end of the day!) 3 more inches & 5 more pounds and she'll be out of the baby car seat (and I will be dancing in the street). I plan on updating you on the first day of school...

This week...

On Sunday last we went to the Brookfield Zoo. It was hot. We saw all kinds of animals, including the super awesome new bear exhibit (complete with Bison!) which will only get better as the seasons roll on. I am looking forward to our annual freeze-yr-buns-off day at the zoo which we take the week before Christmas.
As a result of this jaunt Adrian is quite sure that he wants to be a zoologist. I was 5 when I decided I was going to be an artist, so I figure this could stick. He's been saying he wants to be a scientist and has been pleading for a microscope (but if he can't keep from using a magnifying glass as a hammer I don't think he's quite ready), a telescope, and an incubator. I keep pointing out the survival rate of baby birds in a house with 2 cats, but in his rosy view of the world the cats would know better. (Also, what do you do when you are up to your elbows in adolescent birds?)
And Fiona's take on the whole affair? She has been a variety of animals through the week: a seagull, a wolf, a tiger, a lemur. She's really into the whole pretending aspect of play and I am really enjoying it. Especially when she tells me that she is a tiger and would like tiger food. (What's tiger food? Orange ice pops)
As for me...I had a birthday. It was low key...I worked, Aaron worked. Adrian gave me 10 hugs & 10 kisses. Fiona said "Happy birthday! I'm 3!"

Tomorrow we (the kids & I) are going to the Bristol Renaissance Faire for 2 reasons: 1. It is scouts day 2. Adrian is going to receive the badges he has earned in Spiral Scouts this year (Geology, Cooking, Photography, Swimming, Hospitality) and Fiona is going to receive her Gold Club Pin (for learning scouty things. It's the pre-req for earning the other badges). As I am going to be single-parenting it I am NERVOUS. Adrian rarely leaves my side in public places, but Fiona will take off like a monkey with his tail on fire. And I can't imagine he'll have a whole lot of fun chasing his sister when there are scout-type activities at every turn. In all, I am just hoping that nobody gets lost and nobody gets hurt. Having fun will have to wait until next year.

As we wind down...

As summer draws to a close, I have been trying to do a project a week with the kids. Something different, something that draws them outdoors and gets them to really LOOK at the world, not just move through it. My greatest ally in this crafty nature parade has been a website. It's a collection of craft projects for kids and goes faaaaar beyond pine-cone-peanut-butter bird feeders & popsicle stick picture frames.
And that is where I nabbed this idea:

Flowers AS paintbrushes.

We paint regularly around here, using a variety of paints: watercolor, acrylic, finger paint. We have learned the character and limitations of each. It was fun to watch the kids explore a familiar media with an unfamiliar tool. We used black-eyed susans and queen anne's lace as that was what was in the vase at the table. This will be interesting to try again next year, with a wider variety of flowers.

The worst part

about having kids is that it turns you into a broken record.

My soundtrack for the past 2 hours: Bed. Now.

Fiona is a jack in the box and it is CRAZY MAKING to level hereby reserved only for ex boyfriends and late pizza delivery guys.

She's lucky she's so dang cute or she'd be on the first train to Birmingham.

Easy Peasy Apple Sauce

I was in the midst of trying to create a new & exciting dinner from leftovers when I realized that we had no veg dishes the kids would eat...so I decided to make applesauce. But the easy way--in the microwave!
You'll need 2-4 apples, peeled & cut into chunks. Throw that in a 4 cup-ish microwave-safe bowl.
Add 1/4 cup water (trust me you NEED this). Microwave for about 7 minutes (or until the apples are squishy when poked with a fork). Remove from microwave & mash the bejesus out of the apples. We add a teaspoon of honey and a half teaspoon of cinnamon to ours. Let it cool a bit, and then chow down....Ours never sits long enough to get cold!

Goodbye, July!

There was playing outside after dinner.... Trips to the library...

A trip to the beach (Kemil Beach, Lake Michigan)...

Fresh sugar snap peas from the garden--a green vegetable ADRIAN WILL EAT!

And a 12 week art project that I started. I am closing up week 2. There was also work, and play and hiking at Lake Katherine.

We are gearing up for August--and August 1 celebrates the first harvest. We will be celebrating with friends and food.

blurt

hey!
i have started a 12-week art challenge.
i was going to sit & tell you about it at length, but it sounds as though the children are bent on global destruction....
so, i'll be back later.

(kiss kiss)

So....really...

I haven't been blogging out of sheer laziness. Yes indeed, I have a case of SUMMER. We have been taking it easy, filling our days with outdoor play, library trips, and cookouts with friends.
And talking to friends who live really far away....

And Fiona is THREE. She is enjoying herself & the summer days. We've been swimming, out to catch lightening bugs, making home made ice cream & stopping by the farmers market.

Our own garden is SLOW GOING. We have had plenty of rain, but not too much heat...so the plants are taking their sweet time.

And now I have to go fold laundry before I head to work.

today's lesson: you should always have mayonaisse on hand for removing pine sap from little boy's hair.

TODAY FIONA IS 3!
And what did she want for birthday breakfast? Popcorn.

Aint that the way?

I am out of the habit of doing anything after the kidlets are in bed, so I find myself aimlessly shuffling through the house picking up discarded toys, mate-less socks, and wishing I had the energy to force myself downstairs into my lovely cozy studio.

The wee ones are off on separate adventures this weekend, so maybe I'll find some time to spend getting covered in paint, sewing, soldering...
That is in between the house-chore list, work, 2 meetings and a trip to the vet.

I forsee a lot of peanut butter sandwiches eaten off of papertowels in the coming days....