serious addiction here.
with feta & lime juice
olive oil & salt
sour cream and capsacin sensation
with beets on rice tortilla
with cumin, garlic, onion, chilli powder etc... and white corn tortilla chips.
cold. plain.
i. love. quinoa
Thursday, January 15, 2009
edge. verge. brink.
Im right there.
not as in- im on the edge of a cliff. no.
as in, im on the edge of a MAJOR life event here. Im on the edge of figuring something out. I can feel it.
kind of like when you are 10 feet from your 8 month old as they are about to fall and smack their head on the tile. You are watching it happen, you are attempting to move. you are frozen. but you are absorbing every. single. second.
absorbing it in a way that would allow you draw a frame by frame by memory alone.
one hundred thoughts fly threw your brain and your catching snippets of each.
"shoulda been closer if you only..."
"damn desert and tile being...."
"why is she growing...."
"please dont fall near that, oh no.."
"stoopid me and this juicer..."
"that apple is the reason..."
and so on....
i feel that way today. all. day.
Im hearing my words as if i were my own 3 and a half year wise child.
i see the hope in her eyes as she brings me a picture to make me feel better.
I snapped at her today.
because she didnt want to go to the park.
why on earth would anyone try to FORCE a child to the park.
why am i standing here trying to pretend i know her needs & desires anymore than she does?
she has built herself a car out of an old wooden rocking chair & three croquet bats. she is content to stay here and drink the lemonade I made this morning.
"but i made plans."
"but i said we would"
"I have cancelled too many times this month"
"i"
"i"
"i"
and then i see it. from her side.
I have three hundred crafts waiting for me.
three novels begging to be read.
laundry to be put away.
why am I rushing about?
soon enough, the heat will return to the desert.
the sun will beat relentlessly down upon our bodies and send us running from a/c to a/c.... trying not to let our flip flops melt on the 250 degree asphalt.
Why am I worried about anything at all?
today is perfect. 77 degrees.
sunny.
we have three jars of lemonade in the fridge... with lavender, rose hips, hibiscus and nettles.
im seeing this all
its all making sense.
My child is my teacher.
Ive been a horrible student.
"
Im right there.
not as in- im on the edge of a cliff. no.
as in, im on the edge of a MAJOR life event here. Im on the edge of figuring something out. I can feel it.
kind of like when you are 10 feet from your 8 month old as they are about to fall and smack their head on the tile. You are watching it happen, you are attempting to move. you are frozen. but you are absorbing every. single. second.
absorbing it in a way that would allow you draw a frame by frame by memory alone.
one hundred thoughts fly threw your brain and your catching snippets of each.
"shoulda been closer if you only..."
"damn desert and tile being...."
"why is she growing...."
"please dont fall near that, oh no.."
"stoopid me and this juicer..."
"that apple is the reason..."
and so on....
i feel that way today. all. day.
Im hearing my words as if i were my own 3 and a half year wise child.
i see the hope in her eyes as she brings me a picture to make me feel better.
I snapped at her today.
because she didnt want to go to the park.
why on earth would anyone try to FORCE a child to the park.
why am i standing here trying to pretend i know her needs & desires anymore than she does?
she has built herself a car out of an old wooden rocking chair & three croquet bats. she is content to stay here and drink the lemonade I made this morning.
"but i made plans."
"but i said we would"
"I have cancelled too many times this month"
"i"
"i"
"i"
and then i see it. from her side.
I have three hundred crafts waiting for me.
three novels begging to be read.
laundry to be put away.
why am I rushing about?
soon enough, the heat will return to the desert.
the sun will beat relentlessly down upon our bodies and send us running from a/c to a/c.... trying not to let our flip flops melt on the 250 degree asphalt.
Why am I worried about anything at all?
today is perfect. 77 degrees.
sunny.
we have three jars of lemonade in the fridge... with lavender, rose hips, hibiscus and nettles.
im seeing this all
its all making sense.
My child is my teacher.
Ive been a horrible student.
"
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Library Books
we got some lovely lovely books this round.
I think I already updated some of them, but I am just typing these out really quickly without links because we are returning them and I want a log of all the ones we love (and dont love) for when bdays and such pop up and we are thinking of titles....
Loved List: [bolded ones were especially loved]
Little Night
by Yuyi Morales
a monkey among us
by dave horowitz
my first ramadan
by karen katz
the shortest day
by wendy pfeffer
Chanukah lights everywhere
by michael rosen
Growing up with tamales
by gwendolyn zepeda
annies chair
by deborah niland
the gigantic turnip
by aleksei tolstoy
anansi and the magic stick
by eric a. kimmel
on the first night of chanukah
by cecily kaiser
the three armadillies tuff
by jackie mims hopkins
off we go to mexico
by laurie krebs and christopher corr
the not as loved for various reasons list:
Feliz Nochebuena
by maricel e. presilla
[it was great for information & older children, kinda lost ira's attention after the first 5 long word heavy pages]
Diez Deditos
selected & translated by jose-luis orozco
[I can read music, but im not so good with spanish pronunciation... it was too advanced for me ;)]
How music came to the world
retold by hal ober
[i loved it. ira said it was a little scary]
I think I already updated some of them, but I am just typing these out really quickly without links because we are returning them and I want a log of all the ones we love (and dont love) for when bdays and such pop up and we are thinking of titles....
Loved List: [bolded ones were especially loved]
Little Night
by Yuyi Morales
a monkey among us
by dave horowitz
my first ramadan
by karen katz
the shortest day
by wendy pfeffer
Chanukah lights everywhere
by michael rosen
Growing up with tamales
by gwendolyn zepeda
annies chair
by deborah niland
the gigantic turnip
by aleksei tolstoy
anansi and the magic stick
by eric a. kimmel
on the first night of chanukah
by cecily kaiser
the three armadillies tuff
by jackie mims hopkins
off we go to mexico
by laurie krebs and christopher corr
the not as loved for various reasons list:
Feliz Nochebuena
by maricel e. presilla
[it was great for information & older children, kinda lost ira's attention after the first 5 long word heavy pages]
Diez Deditos
selected & translated by jose-luis orozco
[I can read music, but im not so good with spanish pronunciation... it was too advanced for me ;)]
How music came to the world
retold by hal ober
[i loved it. ira said it was a little scary]
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
kitchen campout
ira set up a camp site in the kitchen, and played in there allllll day......
it had a tent, dinner table, picnic blanket, chairs, firepit, hammock for a sleepy kitten & clothesline to hang wet clothes from swimming in the lake.
all ira designed & implemented. the lake was an unauthorized development..... she had forgotten to apply for that permit, so we haulted construction.
this is a crocheted tomato turned one eyed monster.
it had a tent, dinner table, picnic blanket, chairs, firepit, hammock for a sleepy kitten & clothesline to hang wet clothes from swimming in the lake.
all ira designed & implemented. the lake was an unauthorized development..... she had forgotten to apply for that permit, so we haulted construction.
this is a crocheted tomato turned one eyed monster.
Monday, January 12, 2009
the rhythm is gonna get you
I hope this song gets stuck in your head for days...... because try as i might- i cannot get it out of mine.
But, to be serious for a moment... bringing rhythm into our daily living has done more for the quality of our lives than any other single thing we have implemented.
In the past year we have-
In case anyone is interested, ours goes something like this.
I started for ira- to give her a solid routine she could rely on. turns out- i needed it too.
It works for us....
But, to be serious for a moment... bringing rhythm into our daily living has done more for the quality of our lives than any other single thing we have implemented.
In the past year we have-
- gotten rid of all plastic toys (except playmobile.... i cannot imagine my life ...erm..... ira's life without playmobile). It has all but squashed the "disposable toy syndrome".
- cut back on how much & what quality of media ira is exposed to. Im not a huge fan of absolutes... i dont like to deal in extremes..... so tv, tv stays, and a healthy relationship is being established. Id rather not have my child turn into a tv addict in her teens/twenties when she discovers HGTV.... oh.... wait... im talking about me again.
- daily arts & crafts.
- RHYTHM. this has changed sooooooo much. it feeds our need for consistency, alternating quiet & active times, outdoor play, etc. We are not strict about specific times, but sticking to a general playbook just WORKS for us.
In case anyone is interested, ours goes something like this.
- Wake, brush teeth, start laundry. Pick up kitchen, listen to music, cook breakfast, free play.
- After about 2 hours, liv goes down for a nap. we have quiet time, books, quiet play, etc.
- Two hours later- we are up and i make lunch while ira & liv are playing. This is when we run errands, i clean, we go outside, etc. If we do not go to any activities, we do a craft of some sort. Sometimes we do a long hour of library books/circle time. Puppet shows. Bake.
- Nurse liv to sleep, quiet play/rest time. Usually lasts an hour.
- Nature walk, park, etc. Lasts anywhere from an hour to three depending on when we head out..
- Come home by 5, Dinner prep, dinner.
- Bath, story time, bed by 9 ish.
I started for ira- to give her a solid routine she could rely on. turns out- i needed it too.
It works for us....
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Butterfly magic....take 50
We went yesterday to tucson botanical gardens.... ira, liv & i go weekly, if not more.. but jared rarely gets a chance, It was a great day for it too! Sunny, but chilly in the 60s.
The butterfly house was a hot, humid 88 degrees... i was in heaven. I really should live somewhere else. i think.
in the west
here, in the west... specifically the southwest.... there are a lot of tourists and "seasonal residents" lovingly (sometimes) called "snowbirds".
they flock to the major cheesy tourist spots and eat up all the cowboy/tombstone stuff that is Tucson, Arizona.
and, well, quite frankly, we like to join them.
Not just because its mostly free or ridiculously cheap, but also- because we support our local artists, actors, and establishments.
We have a blast EVERYTIME we go to pinnacle peak. EVERYTIME.
partly because this clan could find fun in a white square room with bare walls and no furniture.... but mostly because there is a lot of charm in all that goes on there.
We tried to go friday night, but missed everything but the train ride:
sooooo, saturday night we went back ;) :
they flock to the major cheesy tourist spots and eat up all the cowboy/tombstone stuff that is Tucson, Arizona.
and, well, quite frankly, we like to join them.
Not just because its mostly free or ridiculously cheap, but also- because we support our local artists, actors, and establishments.
We have a blast EVERYTIME we go to pinnacle peak. EVERYTIME.
partly because this clan could find fun in a white square room with bare walls and no furniture.... but mostly because there is a lot of charm in all that goes on there.
We tried to go friday night, but missed everything but the train ride:
sooooo, saturday night we went back ;) :
unicorns
we are reading, crafting, playing UNICORNS.... a loooot lately.
unicorn puppets, unicorn playmobile, unicorn puzzles, etc.
So the other night at the bookstore she found this book on the bargains rack:
we used colored pencils to stencil the shapes....
painted & glued the pictures:
and the beautiful results!
unicorn puppets, unicorn playmobile, unicorn puzzles, etc.
So the other night at the bookstore she found this book on the bargains rack:
we used colored pencils to stencil the shapes....
painted & glued the pictures:
and the beautiful results!
Fridays Neverending Nature Walk
Walking "polka dottie"
watching all the ducks chase after us- we did not bring duck food, but they were not convinced.
We walked around the lake, looked at fish, went on the swings. Took pictures of the rising almost full moon.
Two & a half hours later, we went home and had a craft night.
watching all the ducks chase after us- we did not bring duck food, but they were not convinced.
We walked around the lake, looked at fish, went on the swings. Took pictures of the rising almost full moon.Two & a half hours later, we went home and had a craft night.
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