We went to the beach! Twice!

Way yonder back in May of two thousand and fourteen, we drove to Seagrove Beach, Florida, and rented a house near the beach. We liked it so much that we rented the exact house again this year for spring break, which happened to coincide with the husband's FORTIETH birthday. Both times, we drove to my parents' house, which is on the way. We dropped off the dog and spent the night, and then we got up at 4 in the A.M.  (and this year it happened to be on the Sunday of Day Light Saving Time, so THREE in the A.M.!!!!!!) and drove across Louisiana, Mississippi, a tiny bit of Alabama, and into the panhandle of Florida. It takes around 11 hours. This year we listened to The Black Stallion. I think it was My Father's Dragon in 2014. It was a little chillier going in March instead of May, but the kids didn't seem to mind. We spent most mornings, and some afternoons, on the beach. We ate in twice a day, and ate out once a day, rode in the golf cart at BREAKNECK SPEED to the nearby Seaside shops (Sundog Books!) and generally relaxed. I had checked out a stack of never-seen-by-us movies from the library in case of rain, and we did end up needing them a couple of days. We watched "My Neighbor Totoro" (love!), "Pollyanna," "Finding Nemo," (They were FANS.), "Sleeping Beauty," and "Hugo," (weird, but beautiful!). Oh, and the girls and I watched the Gwyneth Paltrow "Emma" which happened to be on t.v. one evening. (Hudson chose to play FIFA soccer on the Playstation instead of joining us. WHO can account for taste??) I had to pause it about every two minutes to explain the vagaries of British social structure to Helena, but it was still delightful.

 Here are some pictures. First, 2014. We celebrated Harper's 9th birthday while we were there:

 Oops! I see that my chin is being sun-exposed! DANGER! (Love, The Covered-Up Family)

Compare/Contrast with March 2016. The husband spent MANY hours throwing the Frisbee with Hudson. We took miles of walks along the beach and came home with a large bag of sand dollar pieces. The Destin-area beaches are not known for their shells, but it is still fun to search. I didn't read as much this trip as I did last time, and I am not sure why. Though I did buy a pair of reading sunglasses at Sundog Books that I will be thankful for all summer long. The kids got some "mad money" to spend this time and they bought snowcones and ice cream and Silly Putty.

The years really are like sand through the hour glass, aren't they?

Helena Jane is SEVEN: the interview

1. Helena, at what age does a person become a grown-up? "Twentysomething."

2. If you could be invisible for one day, what would you do? "Go to the beach! Actually, maybe a battle. So you could kill bad guys without them seeing you."

3. What is something that makes our family special? "We get to go on vacation. We go on family bike rides."

4. Are you a good friend? "Yes: I have Georgia, Adelaide, Robin, Hannah.."

5. How would the world be different if animals could talk? "You could talk TO them. Talk about food!"

6. What is the best thing about being a kid? "We get to go to school. We don't have to do as much work. We get to play a lot, ride bikes, ride scooters.." The worst thing? "You have to pick up!"

7. Where is your favorite place in the world?  "Russia! Because it is so big. And ballet dancers."

8. If you could give one gift to every child in the world, what would it be? "Food and water. A doll and a truck."

9. What are five words that describe you? "Nice, kind, ticklish, silly, generous."

10. If you could invent something, what would it be? "A jet pack that could go around the world infinity times!!"

11. If you could make one rule that everyone in the world had to follow, what would it be? "Don't sin. Don't fight. Don't have battles."

12. What is your favorite...
Color? Green and blue
Smell? Lavender and peppermint
Food? Pasta!
Book? Five Children and It and the Peedie books
Activity? swimming and playing outside
Sound? The dog barking!
Animal? horse
Bird? hummingbird

13. What does Daddy like to do? "Bike riding. That's pretty much all. And eat out with us."

14. What does Mommy like to do? "Go to church. Go to the Arboretum and watch birds."

15. What makes you special? "My hair! Everybody says that!"

16. What so you most want to do? "Go to the ballet tomorrow and eat out with you." (We went to see Houston Ballet's "Sleeping Beauty" and ate at Cheesecake Factory. Magical all around.)

17. What would you like to write a book about? "If I got a bird and I would write about my bird and me."

18. What is your favorite thing to wear? "Dresses."

19. Describe what you look like. "Curly hair, round face, little. I eat more than my brother. Almost weigh more!! Arched feet."

20. What are you looking forward to this year? "Going to Florida. Also, that I can carry my knife around."

21. What is your favorite song? "Fox Went Out On a Chilly Night" (the Nickel Creek version)

22. What are some things you accomplished as a six year old? "I learned to ride my bike, do ballet, and read!"

23. What is your favorite part of school? "Lunch, history, and P.E."

Practice resurrection

I have been reading this book about how to fill your home with meaningful traditions. So this morning we made hot cross buns (I think this is the third year I have managed this) and we came home after church and had a real meal, prepared by me, with some help from the kids. This is a big deal for me. Food is fuel, and not delight. But I want to be different! I hope I can continue in joy.

Helena frosted the buns while the other two were out with Daddy riding their skateboards. The frosting, as usual, was too runny, and the buns a smidge too hot, so the crosses were more Van Gogh than Caravaggio.

 I realize that Harper looks really tall in these pictures. It is because she is wearing her first pair of high heels!!! And because she is my daughter, they are actually Dansko clogs, because that is about as fancy and high-heelish as I get:

Helena can't wait for the day when she too can wear such grown up lady fanciness. She was thrilled with her beautiful new dress from Grandmother Pate, which invited swirling and twirling and just the tiniest bit of vanity.

He is 40.

On this day in 1976, my dear husband was born. I was five at the time, and doubtless would have found him adorable.

I made a cake and there was apparently an earthquake while I went to pick the kids up from school. We got home to continental SHIFT. It did still taste okay. Is it a Y? The Ganges delta?

 He is the dear one with whom I get to navigate the fault lines. Isn't that a gift?

The kids all spent their own money to buy him presents at Gander Mountain. Harper got him a utility knife sort of thing to put on his keychain, Hudson got him a folding knife ($32!!! of his own money!),  Helena got him a box of Tic-Tacs (he LOVES them, she said firmly), and I got him some throwing knives to replace the ones he lost on our last camping trip. So, it was a Weapons-Intensive Birthday. You never know what a new decade might bring.

We are thankful he is ours.

Harper turned 10! (8 months ago)

I had some issues with my asthma last week and had to take a round of steroids. Which made it hard to sleep. Which meant I spent several hours late one night reading back over this blog. I know blogging has been overshadowed by pithier, more photogenic modes of sharing, but blogging still makes me happy, even though I don't actually post very often. I finally did Helena's birthday interview this weekend (3 weeks late, and I didn't do it the previous 2 years), have yet to do Hudson's (one month late, and counting) and never did Harper's back in May. So, instead of letting myself be consumed with regret, I will just carry on as I am able.

So, just a random assortment of pictures taken from the day of her birthday, and also some of the crafty creativity she has been up to lately. That last treasure is the box she made for her Valentine party. She disappeared for a few hours the day before, and knitted a charming woodland scene. Also, I included one of her holding her friend Hannah's pet chicken.

A museum of cedar waxwings outside the library

We were walking into our library a few weeks ago and heard an unfamiliar twittering. We were delighted to discover a flock (or museum, or ear-full--but who wants to think about wax and ears in the same adjective phrase?) of cedar waxwings having a feast of red berries in a yaupon tree. I am sorry to report that once inside the library I told one acquaintance (who had her five kids in tow) and one absolute stranger that they should RUN outside and behold the waxwings!! The Crazy Bird Lady pecks again.

I tried to paint it this morning, and would like to contrast my cedar waxwing with a pair of cardinals Harper painted over Christmas break. She is officially better than I am. She has a gift for animating her creatures that I don't think can be taught.

We have entered the world of team sports. Hudson is on a basketball team with some friends from school. He scored his first basket on Saturday (along with a free throw) and the Grandparents Pate were here to watch, which made it even more exciting. He has a birthday coming up this week, so we went to Escalantes before the game to celebrate. Our waiter figured out the birthday, plopped a velvet sombrero on Hudson's head, and crooned out a birthday ballad en espanol. Hudson was MORTIFIED (which proves birthday aversion might be genetic) and even the tres leches couldn't assuage his consternation. (sidenote: I can't eat tres leches, because while I love cake, I can't abide wet cake.)

When we were doing school at home Thursday, I found this note. My mom gave Harper her old typewriter last time we visited, and I gave her some replacement ribbons in her stocking.

"TOP SECRET DDSTROY AFTER READING!
Hudson,
something bad is going to happen.  That is all I can say. Because I do not know what the bad thing is. But I DO know whom it will happen to:

ERNIE

But, as I have said before, that is all I can say.

SINCERLY,

YOUR LETTER WRITING FRIEND."

I am most tickled with her proper use of 'whom' obviously. ERNIE is this little stuffed Ernie that was much beloved by Hudson when he was 2, but the poor guy has now become the much abused subject of many a shenanigan at our house. He gets blamed for the most unlikely things, and then his punishment is always exponentially more severe than it ought to be.

In closing, I got mistaken for Hudson's grandmother at the playground at school this week. Granted, it was a 5 year old, so it didn't sting VERY much. And as we walked away, Hudson, to clarify asked, "Wait, you AREN'T actually a grandmother, are you?" which made me laugh and reveal my wrinkles in all their glory.

Do you hear what we hear? (our 2015 in audio books)

Our school is an hour away from our house. This sounds crazy, I realize. However, they only go two days a week. The husband takes them, because it is in the general vicinity of his place of employ, and I pick them up. Before we started all of this driving, I had never been very keen on audio books. We had listened to our memory work, and some Story of the World (our history curriculum), but in general, I struggle with auditory input. However, I have come around. The husband buys digital copies (he has an audible account, because he is a long-time audio book listener), but I check out the cd's from the library--cheaper, but occasionally frustrating if the cd is scratched.

 The husband tackles the adventure sagas on their way to school. They have listened to:

1. The Hobbit
2. My Side of the Mountain (and the sequel, I think?)
3. The Sword in the Stone
4. The Wingfeather Saga
5. The Ranger's Apprentice (I think they are on book 8)

And here is what we've heard on our drive home so far:

6. Ginger Pye
7. Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
8. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
9. Trumpet of the Swan
10. Half Magic
11. The Indian in the Cupboard (plus 2 sequels)
12. Gregor the Overlander

The absolute favorite has been the Wingfeather Saga. The least favorite was Five Little Peppers and How They Grew, because the reader's voice was pretty cloying and annoying. A good British voice is the best for audio books, we generally agree (and male over female, though the author of The Indian in the Cupboard, Lynne Reid Banks, is terrific. Probably ONLY because she is British), although we didn't mind when Andrew Peterson took over the reading in book 3 of Wingfeather. And there is nothing more endearing and charming than E.B. White's voice on Trumpet of the Swan.

I am still keeping lists of all the books we read, and I have real hopes to do something useful with them at some point. Which I have been saying since 2009. How about a few random pictures to wrap up?