This is Home......

We are moving in about 72 hours. I am excited about our new digs. The school system is great, rent is cheaper, the house is smaller. In a quiet moment, I started to reflect on all the goodness this house holds for us. First day of school, cribs turning into big boy beds, learning how to ride a two wheeler, losing teeth, cutting teeth, first birthday, first steps, first 100 on a spelling test. I am not one to be sentimental about a place. Its just four walls. But I will in this moment remember the great times at this house. Our fire pit where friendships strengthened and even broke apart never to be fixed. Where stories, tears, laughter, stresses, joys were shared over toasted marshmallows and spirits. An extra room for my big brother to sleep in when he visited. A world of exploration in our backyard. Yellow spotted salamanders, tree frogs, snakes, birds, coyotes, the groundhog who loved our garden. Mama snapping turtle laid her egg two years in a row and my husband lovingly brought her offspring to the wetland out back. The winter wonderland that provided snow forts and great sledding. Our summer of the intex pool that all the neighborhood kids loved. Our neighbor Sam who always has an ice cream for you even if it is 10am. In these four walls we have fought together, loved together, broke bread together, held each other, pushed each other away. How quickly three years has gone. How full those three years have been. New jobs coming, old jobs going. A broken window, baseboards chewed by the new pup, a rock in the basement that stretched from one side to the other. A kitchen with the best dance floor I could ask for. Now its time to pack it all away and start again. Change is good. Keep us on our toes.

Apples and Old Friends

Ahhh the traditional New England pilgrimage to the orchard. Oh so cute pictures of kids amongst pumpkins. There are lots of cider donuts to be had and stinky farm animals to pet. This year my dear friend from art school and her awesome hubby were in town for a wedding and were able to tag along. I have spared them the embarrassment of posting a picture of them next to an apple tree. Although it is adorable. Here we are 13 years later wandering through an orchard. We spent most of our time at art school together being grumpy. Making grumpy art. My friends hair was blue or green or whatever mood she was in. We hung out with other grumpy art school students. The grumpier we were the cooler we were. Art school seems like a world ago. Now people tell me I am crafty. ((cringe)) I can hear my ceramics teacher sighing from hear. Someday I will be back to land of pit-firing, raku, photography, paper, the dark room. Does anyone even use dark rooms any more??? Usually this is the point of the blog were I delete everything I just wrote because it sounds a little angry but I am honoring my feelings today and letting it flow. I miss making art. I love making art! Til next time.....

Summer Wrap Up

This post has been a long time comin'. End of summer and the start of a new school year. We were blessed with a totally blissful summer. I feel so lucky to have been able to stay home with the kids and get some good down time in with them. No schedule, no plan.....just chill time. I went into seasonal depression when I had to go back to work. Don't get me wrong, I love my job but this year was the first year I felt like "they are never going to be this young again." Maybe it is the realization that I am not going to have any more babies. That is ok. I plan to hold everyone else's babies when they need a break. So a big trip to Storyland as our last hoorah for the summer. My husband reminds me that I go nuts when I stay home with the kids. This is why summer is great, just enough time to decompress. This is my second year at my new job and I feel much more settled in. We are adjusting to a new nanny or rather she is adjusting to us. I have started drinking coffee. Something I have avoided for most of my life because it always makes me a bit nutty. My energy level has been below standard so I thought a new zip in my step might be nice. I like it! Maybe too much. Hmmmm what else to report? Ah I have a great new friend. Actually he is my husband's friend too. He really deserves a blog post all of his own. Let's say he has had a great positive influence on our little family pod. Already counting the days til summer vacation........

Dance.Dance.Dance

Sometimes, I just crank the music and dance. Put the ol'ipod on shuffle and throw caution to the wind. Usually, Elizabeth will say "oh no, not the dancing again mommy!" Jude happily obliges me with a dance. His latest 'Fire on the Mountain.' I am by no means a good dancer. I just need to shake the bones once in awhile. When I say music runs through the veins, it truly does. I remember my mother spinning Joni Mitchell on vinyl when I was like 5? What strikes me as odd is when people say 'I can't dance.' I usually respond with 'well no one can really dance.' I mean whose to say there is a right way to dance? I grew up in a dancing household. Mom and dad can be caught dancing to this day on their lawn or in their kitchen. I dance with my brothers. I used to dance on my dads feet when I was little. I knock knees with my husband. I have a hard time letting him lead. I spent years perfecting a routine with my best friend. Who, I know, to this day would fall right back into the groove with me. I actually get excited about weddings because it is such a great excuse to dance with my husband. Even to songs you would never admit to liking but at a wedding who can be picky. Dancing is such an important thing to do....teaching your children to dance is teaching them how to take a risk. So dance, dance, dance. Dance with the babies in your life, dance with the old people in your life, dance by yourself, dance with your dog, dance with your lover. When is the last time you danced?

7/?/2010

I love that I have no idea what the date is today. I know it is somewhere in the 20's since my mother's official birthday was Monday. So much to do and nothing to do lately. I realize I am back in my classroom setting up on August 20th. Crazy there are 4 weeks of summer left for me. My biggest goal was to read a book just for fun. I can read about 4 or 5 pages and then zzzzzzzzzzz. I am eating Eat.Pray.Love. I know its cheesy, fluffy, about to be a movie but it works for me at the moment. Gotta love a 30something in crisis! I can relate. I had big expectations for the summer. Lots of field trips planned but I quickly realized how important it was for us to stay home. Little art projects, trips to the beach, smore's on the fire pit, soaking up the quality time. I am loving it. The kids are in heaven. No schedule, just chill time. They do, of course, drive me nuts. Jude is 2 and 1/2 and living it up. I just need a recording of myself saying "Jude is that a good choice?' "Jude is that helpful or hurtful?' "Jude do you need a timeout." and then the heated version "Jude leave the dog alone!" "Stop doing that now!" "Go sit on the steps, you are in a timeout!" I managed to regroup after hitting rock bottom yesterday. I have to remember a pile of play-doh makes this little guy happy or mud pies or my favorite game 'car show.' Which is us essentially lining all his matchbox up for a show. Its a good time. Then there is my sweet Elizabeth. Hand on one hip, leg out, eyes rolling, "Mom, please you know all I want to do is play video games!" It would be easy to plug her in and say "see ya in 2 hours!" I make her earn it, weekends only. We have no media days where the tv, computer, and video games are off limits. I stay strong. I curl up with my book and hope she follows suit. She does sometimes. Mostly she mopes and asks for something to eat. First children are incapable of entertaining themselves. Its my own fault. So as laundry piles up, dust bunnies are making colonies under my furniture, half chewed dog toys are strewn across the house, I am going to put my bathing suit on, read my book, listen to MY music, and maybe take a dip in the intex pool. Its summer, all else can wait! Oh and I am sneaking in one night away before summer is over....alone with no children, no husband, no phone, no computer. It is long overdue!

Mom's Birthday Dinner

My mom is 65 years old. Isn't that crazy?! She looks amazing. I only hope I can look that good at 65!. So out to eat we went on Saturday Night. I brought my camera and everyone squawked about it. Apparently, no one likes getting there picture taken. I did snap a few but of course, I can not post them. I did take a few exterior shots. They are just ok. Anyways, dinner was great. We toasted with champagne and finished with a roasted peach with fresh blueberries and vanilla bean ice cream. My favorite part of the dinner. Happy Birthday to my mom!

Artsy Fartsy

This is our attempt not to spend the entire summer in front of the tv or in the pool. I have implemented a craft time into our schedule every day. This one, well I think is pretty self explanatory. Jude will hunker down and craft all day with me. It is a little hard for me to swallow 'crafts' like this one. I am not sure it is the most creative or self expressive project. It is more of a craft than art and it was super fun!

Furthur

I love love love going to shows! Summer is my favorite time of year for this love. Outdoor shows are the best. It is always a nostalgic experience for me. I have been going to shows since I was thirteen. I fondly remember my dad bringing me to the local outdoor arena to see Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians. We spread a blanket on the lawn and just kicked it. I couldn't even count how many I have been to since. This past week I headed to the Furthur Show which is the guys who are still alive from the the Grateful Dead. I think my favorite part of shows now is the fact that we are all so old! Its definitely not the same madness it used to be. Everyone moves a bit slower and uses manners. We drink less because we have to work the next day. We cook food because we know what if we don't eat every five hours our blood sugar will drop and we will be fussy. I went with my dear old friend from fourth grade and my big brother. We met my other brother, his girl, and his best bud at the show. It is so awesome that the three of us like the same music and each other enough to go together. We are all so different but love to cut a rug together. I love my brothers. I am super lucky. So anyways, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir are ancient. BUT they still sound amazing.....Sugaree, Fire on the Mountain.....just to name a few of my favorites. There were lots of little kids at the show which freaks me out. On the other hand, I am looking forward to passing down this rite of passage to my daughter.....maybe next summer?

Happy

We have been having a blast the past couple of days......Nothing major to report but good times. Spending tons of time in the intex pool. If you have contemplated getting one, do it! It has been such a treat because the last couple of days here have been hot hot! Tomorrow I head to the Furthur show with my brothers and a few assorted friends. Excited to kick up the heels again! I am hoping my feet will recover from a bit of a late night of dancing on the pebble stone patio by the firepit. We ended up having an awesome impromptu "Name that Tune" which turned into a dance part which turned into *cough* 3 am bedtime. Its not often I really get a chance to let loose which is crucial when doing the mommy juggle!