(2 + 2)2 Wheels

Who knows how long it would have been before the kids noticed the large, sheet draped shapes in David's office. Mid-morning, after all the goodies under the tree were unwrapped, David suggested Zoe and Vincent look around the house a bit. Then, at first peek, Zoe said "Daddy, you got a new bike!" Daddy's new bike is mint green, and about the right size for a five year old. 

Eve

The past three days, I've been stretching myself to keep us all in the Christmas spirit. That is, to keep us kind, caring, giving and sharing with each other. Both children are out of school. The weather has been inclement. We have head colds. There are too many sweet treats in the house. And the kiddos are excited. 

There's so much build up to Christmas. In stores, at school, all the parties, the preparations. We try to keep it low key at our house, and to keep the holiday focused on giving to others, as well as on gratitude for all that we have. We have received many packages, so we talk about how each gift represents the love and good thoughts of those who care about us and are thinking about us. 

A package of love is dandy, but our children are three and five years old. So: FUN STUFF. All those pretty packages contain love and FUN STUFF. Tomorrow we unwrap the love and FUN STUFF. Very excited about the love and FUN STUFF.

Really, the kids have been quite good about looking but not touching, interestedly examining but not fixating on, the presents that await. Even the dog has been good around the gifts and tree. But still, everyone is excited. 

This afternoon we got a few minutes of distraction out of a flowering tea ball. We gave these as part of our teacher gifts this year. The ball is a wad of leaves and flowers hand sewn together in an artful way, then shaped and dried. When steeped in hot water, the ball unfurls and reveals...something pretty. The lady at the store told me the tea was nice to drink as well, but Zoe and I didn't find it to our taste. 

And now, clad in their Christmas pajamas, these children are asleep in their beds, with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. Or maybe visions of FUN STUFF. As you open your cards and gifts tonight and tomorrow, please feel the love and goodwill that is tucked in the boxes and envelopes. We're thinking of you.

Feliz Navidad

This is the song Zoe performed with her class at the school's recent concert. We also sang it at Vincent's preschool holiday celebration. A song with a few repetitious lines works well for the littlest singers. Still, its a good idea to rehearse, right? Below, audio only as Vincent does a little multi-tasking in the bathroom.  

Party Ready

 We got spiffed up for David's holiday party at work yesterday. These kids enjoy their dressy clothes to a surprising degree. Zoe with her "fancy dress" and Vincent with his "Daddy shirt" and "wedding shoes" were quite festive.

Horse Pennies

There are many horses hereabouts. In fact, the town's welcome sign says "...where horses have the right of way." Makes it sound kinda cowboy hicksville, no? 

Today on the drive to preschool, as we drove by the fifth horse, Vincent expressed an interest in having one at our house. We had the same exchange every parent has with every child who inquires about horse ownership. Where would it sleep? What would it eat? Who would clean up its poop? How would we pay for its special horse blanket, equine food, and super-sized pooper-scooper? 

Vincent had reasonable answers to all these questions, of course. To buy horsey stuff, he offered up the pennies from his robot piggy bank. When I told him there weren't quite enough pennies in the robot, he said "Otay. I keep my eyes onna gwound." 

We Wish You A Merry Christmas

Christmas Tree Farm

There was a break in the rain, so we went to the tree farm. There are no big trees there anymore, as the place is now too well known. The trees don't have a chance to grow up! We found a nicely shaped little tree that suits us just fine. 

Zoe found a nice one as soon as she stepped out of the car. Vincent was willing to explore further afield. A highlight was the friendly, fluffy cat who approached us looking for pets. The kids were very willing to oblige. 

Once again, we enjoyed the tire swing and the porch swing and the cider and cookies. The wood stove was going on the covered porch, but it was too warm out to properly appreciate a fire. Our tree is up and simply decorated, just lights, tinsel, and a string of beads. It's too small to support much more, and besides, I don't want the dog to eat my favorite ornaments. 

Robotics

What is a robot? What does it do? Does it live? Who makes it? I wanna make one.  

Thankful

I am thankful for all the beautiful, healthy food that makes its way to our table. I am thankful for the friends, near and far, who think of us when they think "What the heck am I going to do with this enormous squash?" I am thankful for our little pumpkins, who obliged me by posing with the big pumpkin. I am thankful for all of you!

There's a story behind this squash. We got to see stages of its growth over the summer. Friends enriched a flower bed with a little organic matter from their compost pile. A small squash plant, quite recognizable, sprouted among the alyssum. They let it grow, curious as to what would develop.

A behemoth developed. We watched in amazement as it grew several inches per day. Vines stretched for yards, taking over the lawn. Several of the blossoms set fruit. The small squash grew big, bigger, biggest. They turned from yellow to deep orange.

From that accidentally planted seed grew thirteen lovely pumpkins, any of them large enough for Cinderella's carriage. And they're tasty, too.

Our friend sent me a message a few days ago: "Roasting another squash today. It's just too much. Will you take one?" Of course! David ended up bearing this beast home, along with a casserole dish and a half gallon mason jar, walking a few blocks in the dark and across lots. I'm thankful all the items made it home intact!

Zoe and Vincent are intrigued by the idea of growing their own pumpkins. We'll be saving some seeds from this big beauty, just to see what will happen...

Happy Thanksgiving, all.

Fall Carnival

School is well under way, so it must be time for fundraisers! We went to the Fall Carnival today. Our contribution to the cause got us two wrist bands for unlimited access to the activities (first stop: face painting) and an entry in the apple pie baking contest. I made an apple custard pie with streusel topping. It's crustless, because I don't much care for crust (even good pie crust, which my attempts rarely are). I figured the winning pie would be the one with the gorgeous lattice work top, perfectly golden. But I won! The prize is a gift card for dinner out at a Mexican restaurant in town. Good prize!

Zoe and Vincent gathered lots of prizes, too, for tossing rings and bean bags and picking rubber duckies and doing a musical book walk, and I forget what all else. The also decorated cookies and made fall leaf art and ate popcorn. 

Dressed Up For Halloween

Inupiat Mermaid

Zoe feels like a mermaid in this too-big kuspuk. Miss mermaid is home sick today. She wanted to go to school, but is still coughing a lot. She also had a fever yesterday afternoon. The preschool policy was 24 hours fever-free before returning to school. I don't know if elementary has any such policy, but Zoe could definitely use some more time to recover.

Giving In

Zoe said she wasn't sick, she just didn't feel good. Though she didn't want to play, or read, or do much of anything except sit on the sofa, she resisted napping. Here, she's trying hard to open those eyes, but can't quite do it. 

Pumpkin Project

Fake squash. Totally tacky, but ideal for the heavy handling they get around here.

Bicycle Built For Two (Kinda)

After School Snack

Finding Pinecones

The community parks and recreation department purchased a parcel of land just a few lots down from our house. No firm word on what shape the park will take, or when, as there is no funding set aside for development. But they did come in with heavy equipment this summer - some kind of monster bush-hog - and chewed through dense stands of Himalayan blackberry and Scotch broom. They left the big trees. Now one can walk, carefully, around the three acres. 

Edited to add: I forgot to mention the zap. Zoe was the first to notice all the zap on the ground. It was oozing from an owie high on the tree and dripping to the ground in a circle of gooey splatters. Zoe warned our party against touching the zap, noting that zap is super sticky. She suggested we go play under a tree that was not zapping. 

Hellooooo?

Anybody still checking this space for new material? I know, I know. It's been far too long. 

Fall is here, never mind today's hot sunshine. The cool nights and the ripe apples and pumpkins tell us what season it is. This morning I did apple stamp painting with kindergarteners, and as soon as the paint was cleaned up I headed to preschool for a field trip to the pumpkin patch.