Brought to you by the letter “S” (with some birthday and stargazing thrown in)

We seem to be struggling with things that begin with the letter “S” lately – spelling, squash, sage grouse, and sickness.

Mr. A is out of town this week trapping Greater Sage Grouse for relocation to Washington State. And naturally, mid-week I came down with the stomach flu. The blessing was that I was mostly over it when Towhead became sick on Friday. We spent the first half watching TV and working on the basics – food, water, warmth. By noontime we all ventured outside for some fresh air. Does fresh air ever feel bad? It’s amazing how the world opens up when you head outside after being stuck in a house for too long. Funny enough, Friday then turned into one of those whatever-makes-you-feel-good days. As Towhead and Moose walked around the yard and enjoyed the swings I decided to check the spa.

“Mom, can we get in?”

“Please? Spa. We get in ‘pa?”

“Please mom . . . ”

How could I resist? I felt so guilty hopping in the spa. This isn’t what you do on a sick day, is it? It’s not like I can post it as my facebook status, “The sun is out and it feels so good to get in the spa.” Wait, my friends reply. Aren’t your kids home with the stomach flu today? My bashful blushing could probably be seen in southern Oregon where a sleep-deprived Mr. A would sit up, startled. “Is my girl blushing? Yep, there’s that red glow on the horizon.”

But really, when you feel that awful don’t you just search for something, anything that will get your mind off it and make you feel better? And Friday those things were called cream of wheat, movies, sunshine and a spa.

Now as a post-script to the thing that I am quasi-ashamed of (not really), let me move on to something I am much more proud of: Towhead’s birthday celebration. Last year, we celebrated owl-style here at the house with a treasure hunt, games, and a owl shaped cupcake-cake.  This year it was all about numbers, numbers, numbers: Towhead chose a math-themed birthday party.

Can you guess her favorite subject in school?

The challenge was thinking up games that didn’t make the kids feel like they were in math class.  Here was the final result:

The answer is 205 marbles.

The classic game of “Guess how many marbles are in this jar?” was a fun one that was quick and not too cheesy. (Although I should have let the winner take home the jar. What the hell am I going to do with over 200 marbles?!?)

Our second game was not math related but fit well with the snow on the ground outside. When I saw this on Pinterest I could not resist. How could you not love letting kids wrap each other up in toilet paper to create a TP snowman?!

Say “Brrrrrr” birthday girl!

We split the kids into two groups and they had to compete against each other to see who could wrap the victim lucky person completely in toilet paper and then finish it off by putting on a scarf and hat and taping on buttons. They had so much fun! Though the look on Towhead’s face seems to say it was more fun to watch than to be the dummy snowman. 🙂

This was followed by a math-themed treasure hunt. Last year’s treasure hunt was the highlight of the party. It was also part of the reason I think Towhead wanted to have her party at home again this year. The kids love trying to solve the problem and then running to the next location. It makes for temporary chaos, and with a group this age an adult to help supervise and solve the clues is a must. But, oh-so worth it! The treasure at the end of the hunt was their goodie bags and this:

Oh yeah, and these:

I am always amazed at the girl Mr. A and I have produced. She is quite a character. So resilient, so tough, gentle, and compassionate. She is as strong as she is sensitive. As insightful as she is goofy. I love sharing the world with this creature, even though she has a knack for finding my most sensitive buttons. Isn’t it always the case with the ones we hold close to our hearts?

For instance, her new love is the clock radio she inherited from her dad so that she’ll know what time it is. (aka “You may not come and wake me up until this clock says 6:30am, got it?!!). The freedom to play the radio station she wants to hear without interruption has created a new world for her. The evidence is written all over the door to her room.

“When you enter, music to your ears in Luci’s bedroom.”

Her spelling is atrocious, I admit. We’ve been working on this. A lot. (Talk about torture for a good speller and an English major! Oh, this hurts!) At the same time, I think I want to preserve these phrases in the back of my heart to share with her later: “No one can take music away,” “Music is the best in Luci’s bedroom,” “Beat of music rocks.” I can only smile, shake my head, and take lots of pictures.

And now, for the part I’ve been promising family for over a month . . . (everyone else, you can stop reading here)

Grandparent Bonus:

Here’s what she got for her birthday from the loving grandparents far away . . .

A stargazing book and a new duvet cover

A “Design your own Fairy” drawing kit, a silver fairy necklace (with a little silver tag that says “I believe”), and a kit full of nifty science experiments.

A new monogramed bag for carrying her goodies.

And here’s what she finally collected enough money (via grandparents and many many chores) to buy herself.

Ta-da! THE TELESCOPE.

Isn’t it pretty?? We’ve been putting it to good use so far. I can’t tell who’s having more fun, her or us.

Renewal

How do you know when it’s been a good year, full of smiles, chaos, afternoons in the snow, evenings by the fire, art classes, birthdays, and good friends?

When you haven’t had the opportunity or energy to blog since the calendar shifted into a new year . . . and now it’s March!

It has been a good year. And now it’s time to catch you all up on it. In the next few weeks I’ll try to catch you up on where we are, as well as where we’ve been.

To start with, I had a few ideas around the New Year of things I want to embody in the coming months. I don’t typically do resolutions. Anytime is a good time to make a change in my mind. So I’ll refrain from the “r” word and just say that I felt an overwhelming urge to incorporate certain things more fully into my life.

The first is gratitude. Numerous studies have linked gratitude to improvements in relationships, overall well-being, and perceived happiness. Think about it: when you express gratitude for something you have to first be able to notice the value in the people and things around you. And when you thank someone in your family, or they in turn express gratitude for something you’ve done, doesn’t it make you feel valued, loved, more appreciated and worthwhile? This article from Scientific American sealed the deal. It talks about “science of feeling good” and what can happen when you use things like gratitude to accentuate the positive in your life.

The second one is intimacy. I want more date nights with my hubbie. Period.

The last is inspired by a good friend of mine. Even though she is older than me I have watched her adventurous spirit with awe over the last year. After leaving her house I greet the world with new eyes. I want to treat everything like it is new and fun, to savor it all, and not waste time putting all those things off until “someday.” It’s a bucket list type of mentality that means simultaneously slowing down while also grasping opportunities to try new things and experience what is here, now, in this place and time.

One of my main goals this winter was to learn how to cross-country ski. After two seasons of being stuck in the lodge watching Mr. A and Towhead downhill ski, I was determined to find something Lil Moose and I could do outside together besides throw snowballs at each other. After a friend gave us an older pair of cross country skis, all I needed to do was get boots and poles, and a pulk the Moose could ride in behind me. A trip to the local ski shop and craigslist, in partnership with my birthday and Christmas money, got me set up. And I have been a happy mama ever since.

You know you’ve found something you love when all you can think about is when you can find another day to do it again!

Another friend was sweet enough to lend us a pair of small starter skis for Lil’ Moose that strap on to his snow boots. The up and downside to this new piece of equipment was that we figured out that one of the boy’s feet has a bit of an inward rotation to it. We called it to the attention of our doctor to get it on the medical radar and make sure that we didn’t need to do anything about it immediately. The consensus was to watch it closely until his third birthday, at which point if it is still there we will see about a gait analysis and treatment.

Another aspect of the blog I want to add in the new year (that’s not so new anymore) is a section called “What’s on the Table.” I’ve always known our lives center around that flat expanse of wood that fills one half of the kitchen, but I’ve also realized in the last few weeks that the books, objects and activities sitting at the far end of the table say a lot about us and what we’re up to at the moment. It’s a convenient way to give you a glimpse of those things that are often a big part of our lives, but not momentous enough to devote an entire blog entry to. As this week, it might appear as a book list from the ever-rotating stack of literature we’ve checked out from the library. It’s a space to highlight fun recipes and kitchen experiments I’m trying. Photos may appear of the spontaneous craft projects that have sprouted from my daughter’s imagination. The latest obsession of both kiddos lately is science experiments, either from our trusty little book, Pocket Pal Science Experiments (ed. Katie Hewat 2009) or from the Lab-in-a-Bag Smarty Pants Science Kit that Towhead got for her birthday.

What’s on the Table:

Poetry Speaks to Children     ed. Elise Paschen

Awesome Experiments in Force & Motion  by Michael DiSpezio

The Lewis and Clark Expedition  by John Perritano

A Picture Book of Lewis and Clark   by David A. Alder

play binoculars

Tell Me a Dragon  by Jackie Morris

How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?  by Jane Yolen