I've been feeling a little nostalgic today as I unpack boxes and try to reassemble my home.
I miss my neighbors. I really adored my Homestead Village neighbors. Do you think I will grow to love my neighbors here as much as I loved my neighbors in Metuchen?
I miss New Jersey weather. Everyone warned me that the weather was awful down here. I need to go buy mosquito repellent. And I just need to force myself outside. I love outside. One of our last evenings in New Jersey before the packing tumult sticks in my mind. Bardo had gone to bed early and I had promised Pippi a walk, so we walked to the Campbell School playground. We had fun playing on the equipment. The slide was by far the fastest slide I've ever been on, not including water slides. And, much to our delight we saw bunnies hopping in the baseball field. We almost got close enough to pet one of them. As the evening grew darker, we saw fireflies (or lightening bugs, as they say in New Jersey.) Pippi discovered that she could catch them. A lady saw her catching them and brought her a jar so she could take some home.
I miss Pippi being able to play with her friends every day. I can't wait for her to make friends here. She will love it here so much more with friends to play with.
I miss being within walking distance of the public library, post office, train station, drug store, and dry cleaner.
But I love my house, everything about it. And I'm excited to be here and to make more friends, it's just that I forgot how much emotional strength moving entails.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
An Empty House, But We're Here
We're here!!! After staying at our dear friends' house (The Pace Family), for three days we are now "out of their hair," and staying in our own beautiful new home. Right now, it's completely empty, but at least we have internet access, right? I'll have to type more later because Pippi is terribly bored....
Oh and everyone was right, Bardo's adjective is "hot."
Oh and everyone was right, Bardo's adjective is "hot."
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Bardo's Adjective
Bardo has a new word. He says it when he sits in his carseat. He says it when I blow on his food. He points at the stove and oven and says it. He says it when he sees steam coming off of a bowl of soup. He says it while I take my shower. Can you guess what his new word is?
Packing with Pippi
Over the past couple of weeks, I've been so pleased with Pippi. Our home has been in complete uproar, I haven't been the best Mom in the world (you should have seen some of my dinner creations), and she's had to watch and help as we've packed up all of our stuff, little by little. Here are some of the things that she ended up doing to entertain herself.
-Watching TV--At one point she was very upset and said, "Mom you let me watch too much TV today, and now I have a headache!"
-Painting--Before we threw away her paints, Pippi had one last whirl painting to her hearts content. Thank goodness she's five and can paint cleanly, sort of. After we threw away her paints, she wanted to paint again, I told her the paints were packed up, and she held up a bottle of my nail polish and a terra cotta pot we were getting ready to throw away. I shrugged my shoulders and said sure.
-Packing--I lovingly compelled Pippi to help me pack away her tea set, showing her how to carefully wrap each dish so it wouldn't break. After that she decided to gently pack her favorite rocks in multiple layers of sandwich bags. I told her we would not be sending her rocks with the movers. She said she would just put them in her backpack in the car.
-Biking--She spent hours outside riding her bike.
-Playing--She also played with her neighborhood friends.
-The last day, Pippi wanted to help with the spackling. She was very determined, so I let her give it a try.
The day the movers came, she left the house to go and play at a friends house, and that was it. After everything was packed and loaded, Nick and I picked up the kids. In the car I told her that many of our friends stopped by while we were moving to say goodbye. She said, "Well, they say goodbye, but I say, 'Texas, here I come!'" She's been saying goodbye all week to them in her own way, I guess. One boy gave her a rock, one girl gave her money, and one day, they all had a snack on the lawn together with cookies and cake and popcorn. It's been a good final week, and as always, life is ten times more fun with Pippi.
-Watching TV--At one point she was very upset and said, "Mom you let me watch too much TV today, and now I have a headache!"
-Painting--Before we threw away her paints, Pippi had one last whirl painting to her hearts content. Thank goodness she's five and can paint cleanly, sort of. After we threw away her paints, she wanted to paint again, I told her the paints were packed up, and she held up a bottle of my nail polish and a terra cotta pot we were getting ready to throw away. I shrugged my shoulders and said sure.
-Packing--I lovingly compelled Pippi to help me pack away her tea set, showing her how to carefully wrap each dish so it wouldn't break. After that she decided to gently pack her favorite rocks in multiple layers of sandwich bags. I told her we would not be sending her rocks with the movers. She said she would just put them in her backpack in the car.
-Biking--She spent hours outside riding her bike.
-Playing--She also played with her neighborhood friends.
-The last day, Pippi wanted to help with the spackling. She was very determined, so I let her give it a try.
The day the movers came, she left the house to go and play at a friends house, and that was it. After everything was packed and loaded, Nick and I picked up the kids. In the car I told her that many of our friends stopped by while we were moving to say goodbye. She said, "Well, they say goodbye, but I say, 'Texas, here I come!'" She's been saying goodbye all week to them in her own way, I guess. One boy gave her a rock, one girl gave her money, and one day, they all had a snack on the lawn together with cookies and cake and popcorn. It's been a good final week, and as always, life is ten times more fun with Pippi.
Friday, July 20, 2007
On the Road
I'm sitting in a hotel in Inwood, West Virginia. Texas, here we come!
The older I get, the goodbyes seem to get less tearful. I guess we all know at this point that life just plugs along, no matter who lives in your ward. And we also know we can love people from a distance, through email, Christmas cards, and blogs!
The older I get, the goodbyes seem to get less tearful. I guess we all know at this point that life just plugs along, no matter who lives in your ward. And we also know we can love people from a distance, through email, Christmas cards, and blogs!
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due
Thank you Auntie Lollipop for spending time on my beautiful new header. You rock!
How to Make your Good Kids Bad
All you have to do is neglect them--you know, feed them at irregular intervals, make them travel by plane and car all in one day, and in doing so keep them from their regular sleeping times.
This past week has been somewhat rough. Packing and all the phone calling that I have to do to make sure our move happens and our closing happens has really stressed out the kids. Additionally, we've all been sleep deprived from our travel marathon.
To reduce our travel costs this last vacation we decided to fly into SLC, crash for the night at the Warlock's brother's house, and then drive the 7 hours or so to Montana. Pippi, because she was so exhausted and Continental Airlines decided to serve fried chicken sandwiches at 9 PM, puked on and off all through the flight. Thank goodness for barf bags. The Warlock took care of this while I took care of Bardo. Honestly I can't even remember how he behaved on that flight. All I know is he didn't puke all over me which is an improvement over the last time I flew to SLC with him on my lap. But we survived. Unfortunately, the flight home was pretty bad, too. Pippi cried the whole time we were in the check out line (we were taking the red-eye scheduled to leave at 11 PM). Bardo cried during the first part of the flight before he went to sleep. At one point, The Warlock mouthed to me, "Make him stop!" I just sat there. What am I supposed to do? Stuff a sock in his mouth? Uh, no. So I just held him and let him release all that stress we inflicted on his one-year old body. While he "slept," I "slept." But when we arrived home early Sunday morning (5:45), last week, we were hashed. We fell into bed and slept all the way through church.
I tried to be patient this week I really did, but with all the packing and telephoning, I snapped a few too many times. Pippi was tired this week too. Bardo just wanted to be where Pippi was, outside that is. Unfortunately I just can't send him out by himself, mostly because he runs into the street, fall every 10 feet or so, chases the neighbor's cat, and eats dirt.
I have high hopes for this week. We actually went to church, and it's amazing the difference it makes. Pippi came home insisting that she help with the packing. My sweet Pippi is back again! Yay!
So wish me luck you guys. The countdown is on, over half the boxes are packed, all (hopefully) the arrangements have been made, and we're movin' to Texas. All we have to do is keep from killing one another.
This past week has been somewhat rough. Packing and all the phone calling that I have to do to make sure our move happens and our closing happens has really stressed out the kids. Additionally, we've all been sleep deprived from our travel marathon.
To reduce our travel costs this last vacation we decided to fly into SLC, crash for the night at the Warlock's brother's house, and then drive the 7 hours or so to Montana. Pippi, because she was so exhausted and Continental Airlines decided to serve fried chicken sandwiches at 9 PM, puked on and off all through the flight. Thank goodness for barf bags. The Warlock took care of this while I took care of Bardo. Honestly I can't even remember how he behaved on that flight. All I know is he didn't puke all over me which is an improvement over the last time I flew to SLC with him on my lap. But we survived. Unfortunately, the flight home was pretty bad, too. Pippi cried the whole time we were in the check out line (we were taking the red-eye scheduled to leave at 11 PM). Bardo cried during the first part of the flight before he went to sleep. At one point, The Warlock mouthed to me, "Make him stop!" I just sat there. What am I supposed to do? Stuff a sock in his mouth? Uh, no. So I just held him and let him release all that stress we inflicted on his one-year old body. While he "slept," I "slept." But when we arrived home early Sunday morning (5:45), last week, we were hashed. We fell into bed and slept all the way through church.
I tried to be patient this week I really did, but with all the packing and telephoning, I snapped a few too many times. Pippi was tired this week too. Bardo just wanted to be where Pippi was, outside that is. Unfortunately I just can't send him out by himself, mostly because he runs into the street, fall every 10 feet or so, chases the neighbor's cat, and eats dirt.
I have high hopes for this week. We actually went to church, and it's amazing the difference it makes. Pippi came home insisting that she help with the packing. My sweet Pippi is back again! Yay!
So wish me luck you guys. The countdown is on, over half the boxes are packed, all (hopefully) the arrangements have been made, and we're movin' to Texas. All we have to do is keep from killing one another.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Bardo and Stairs
I've been trying for months to teach Bardo to climb down stairs. He had a long crawling period, so I thought for sure he'd learn before walking, but he just kept on trying to shimmy down head first for a long time. No matter how carefully he shimmied, his efforts would end with me catching him (or me sometimes letting him fall down a couple of steps). This week Pippi used the water balloon technique to get him down the stairs safely. She'd show him how to crawl down backwards and then say, "Come on. Come get the balloon." I've shown him several times how to do this and I've even put his body in the proper position. I never thought to use a water balloon, though.
Note: The water balloon survived the entire trip down the stairs. Phew.
Note: The water balloon survived the entire trip down the stairs. Phew.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Preschoolers and Piano
Over a year ago a friend of mine called up and asked me if I'd like to have Pippi (then age 4) join a pre-piano class. I jumped at the chance. So, once each week, for several weeks I took Pippi to a class taught by Kathryn Tuttle. Pippi loved going to this class; every week she'd bring home pictures of what she'd learned (quarter notes, whole notes, half notes, . Kathryn's class focused on learning the basic music skills needed to read music, feel the beat, and just love music. And all of us moms decided that the fact that Kathryn wore beautiful earrings and jewelry didn't hurt in earning our children's complete adoration. Anyway, Kathryn proved to be a very fun teacher for Pippi, and we were so sad when she moved right before we were going to start private lessons.
I wasn't going to let a little thing like a teacher moving away keep me from continuing Pippi's music education so I spent some time searching for a new curriculum. I found a great series called Sing and Play Piano by Ann Collins and Linda Clary, especially for preschoolers. It starts out teaching children in a group, just the way Kathryn did. So I recruited a girl from church to be in an informal "piano class" with Pippi. I warned her mother that I would be experimenting on her child and my child.
Sing and Play Piano has been great. The first book teaches the keys of the piano, loud and soft, and just generally how to have fun with music. Twice during the course, the children are asked to play a picture. Pippi, with her vivid imagination, lit up when she was asked to make the sound of a bird singing or a rock splashing into a pond with the piano.
By the time the girls started the second book I had to separate them. For some reason, they were getting very competitive with one another. (My Mom would say that this is because Pippi is like me at that age. I think it may have been because their strengths were just so different, and that they lacked patience waiting for each other to catch on to something new.) But, though Pippi was not ready for private lessons 2 months before, she was ready when it became necessary.
The Sing and Play book starts children playing in the closed hand position. I found that this was especially good for Pippi since her fingers weren't quite strong enough to hold a good hand position. Slowly we transitioned from a fun crazy class to a fun traditional lesson. The transition happened very naturally. By the middle of Book 2 the children are doing technique exercises trying to strengthen each finger before playing the practice songs. Sing and Play also provides pattern cards in the back that really helped Pippi with her music reading. The book introduces notes so naturally, that the kids just seemed to figure it out. The book also has a song that teaches finger numbers. And did you know that doing all 5 verses of "Where is Thumbkin" helps the fingers to learn to work independently of one another?
The Sing and Play books do move quite slowly through the skills. It may seem very redundant to some, but I really liked it for this age group because they don't have the patience to practice something 300 times before getting it to sound right and because I don't have the patience to sit with Pippi while she struggles. Each song stretches the child just a wee bit further, so little that they barely even notice they are progressing.
I also noticed that Pippi liked to practice frequently (but not for a long period of time) as long as I pushed for practice at the same time every day. Once we got into a habit, piano practice was as much a part of the day as brushing our teeth. And once we got out of the habit I had to struggle so hard to get her to the piano. She really only practiced 5-10 minutes 3 to 4 times a week when we were in the groove, but it was fun to see how quickly she progressed with such a small time investment. You've got to love those young brains.
Tonight Pippi and Amber had their recital. Pippi insisted on wearing a brown suit (hand-me-down) with a pair of giraffe print tights. Each girl introduced her own musical numbers. Both girls played two songs and then each a duet, Amber with her mother, and Pippi with me. I was so pleased with how much the girls loved doing their duets with their Moms. I gave the girls 11 roses each at the end of our recital. And though they'll have other recitals in their future, on grander pianos, in concert halls, I feel happy that I taught piano this year. Even though I probably wasn't the best teacher on the block, I feel like I didn't hurt their musical potential at all, and that I nurtured a little seed.
I wasn't going to let a little thing like a teacher moving away keep me from continuing Pippi's music education so I spent some time searching for a new curriculum. I found a great series called Sing and Play Piano by Ann Collins and Linda Clary, especially for preschoolers. It starts out teaching children in a group, just the way Kathryn did. So I recruited a girl from church to be in an informal "piano class" with Pippi. I warned her mother that I would be experimenting on her child and my child.
Sing and Play Piano has been great. The first book teaches the keys of the piano, loud and soft, and just generally how to have fun with music. Twice during the course, the children are asked to play a picture. Pippi, with her vivid imagination, lit up when she was asked to make the sound of a bird singing or a rock splashing into a pond with the piano.
By the time the girls started the second book I had to separate them. For some reason, they were getting very competitive with one another. (My Mom would say that this is because Pippi is like me at that age. I think it may have been because their strengths were just so different, and that they lacked patience waiting for each other to catch on to something new.) But, though Pippi was not ready for private lessons 2 months before, she was ready when it became necessary.
The Sing and Play book starts children playing in the closed hand position. I found that this was especially good for Pippi since her fingers weren't quite strong enough to hold a good hand position. Slowly we transitioned from a fun crazy class to a fun traditional lesson. The transition happened very naturally. By the middle of Book 2 the children are doing technique exercises trying to strengthen each finger before playing the practice songs. Sing and Play also provides pattern cards in the back that really helped Pippi with her music reading. The book introduces notes so naturally, that the kids just seemed to figure it out. The book also has a song that teaches finger numbers. And did you know that doing all 5 verses of "Where is Thumbkin" helps the fingers to learn to work independently of one another?
The Sing and Play books do move quite slowly through the skills. It may seem very redundant to some, but I really liked it for this age group because they don't have the patience to practice something 300 times before getting it to sound right and because I don't have the patience to sit with Pippi while she struggles. Each song stretches the child just a wee bit further, so little that they barely even notice they are progressing.
I also noticed that Pippi liked to practice frequently (but not for a long period of time) as long as I pushed for practice at the same time every day. Once we got into a habit, piano practice was as much a part of the day as brushing our teeth. And once we got out of the habit I had to struggle so hard to get her to the piano. She really only practiced 5-10 minutes 3 to 4 times a week when we were in the groove, but it was fun to see how quickly she progressed with such a small time investment. You've got to love those young brains.
Tonight Pippi and Amber had their recital. Pippi insisted on wearing a brown suit (hand-me-down) with a pair of giraffe print tights. Each girl introduced her own musical numbers. Both girls played two songs and then each a duet, Amber with her mother, and Pippi with me. I was so pleased with how much the girls loved doing their duets with their Moms. I gave the girls 11 roses each at the end of our recital. And though they'll have other recitals in their future, on grander pianos, in concert halls, I feel happy that I taught piano this year. Even though I probably wasn't the best teacher on the block, I feel like I didn't hurt their musical potential at all, and that I nurtured a little seed.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Hillbilly
Pippi's smile is so funny lately. She has a tooth that's almost ready to fall out. Its roots have disintegrated, so the tooth has floated all the way to the right, snuggling up with another tooth. I was hoping I would get to play Tooth Fairy tonight.
Sorry if you find these pictures gross. I'm trying to enjoy this funny smile for the few days she'll have it. And I'm keeping a record so that The Warlock and I can look back and remember why we spent thousands of dollars on braces for Pippi.
Yoko by Rosemary Wells
Yoko is one of Pippi's many favorites by Rosemary Wells. Yoko is from Japan, and one day at school her classmates discover that her lunch is different from theirs. The story shares how a loving teacher tries to help her, and how it only takes one friend to help someone feel better. This general plot is sweet, but the details in this book make it a delight to read to Pippi. We love how Wells describes everybody's lunch, and we love the description of the classroom atmosphere. Mrs. Jenkin's plays the Clean Hands Song and the Friendly Song. Yoko sits under The Learning Tree. I usually don't say this about children's books, but in many of Wells' books I feel like I'm right there. And it such a sweet place to be, where children are learning and growing and teachers and parents are so very very kind to them. I also recommend Yoko's Paper Cranes, Yoko's World of Kindness, Max's Dragon Shirt, Noisy Nora, and Ruby's Beauty Shop, all by dear Rosemary Wells.
Sunday, July 08, 2007
Things That Make Me Come Alive
Playing in the Water
Helping a Friend
Teaching a Child
Sharing the Gospel With Anyone
Playing the Piano
Doing Something Special for the Warlock
Cooking a Healthy Meal
A Nice Clean House
Going for a Walk on a Crisp Morning
Spending Time Outside (as long as I'm wearing a hat, sunglasses, and drinking lots of water)
"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs are people who have come alive."--Howard Thurman
Helping a Friend
Teaching a Child
Sharing the Gospel With Anyone
Playing the Piano
Doing Something Special for the Warlock
Cooking a Healthy Meal
A Nice Clean House
Going for a Walk on a Crisp Morning
Spending Time Outside (as long as I'm wearing a hat, sunglasses, and drinking lots of water)
"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs are people who have come alive."--Howard Thurman
Friday, July 06, 2007
Vacation Wind Down
We're leaving tomorrow. The kids are in bed. The Warlock is in bed. I'm just doing that last load of laundry before we head home. I feel so refreshed. Before the beginning of the vacation I was dreading this next week because I have to pack up my life again and get ready to move. Moving is a lot of work. But now, I feel ready to get back into life. One week for a vacation is just long enough.
The Fourth of July was really fun. If you ever need a fun place to spend the Fourth, I totally recommend rural Montana. Aunty Lollipop and Aunt Kissy slaved all day preparing a wonderful dutch oven dinner: chicken, potatoes, and pineapple upside-down cake. The Warlock and Aunt Pru's husband, Snap had a great time four-wheeling in the morning. And at night, we celebrated being free, free to put on our own fireworks show, that is. The Warlock was thrilled to be able to set off fireworks that could actually leave the ground. Snap ran after the fireworks and snatched them right after landing (he was wearing gloves) so the clean up was, well, a snap. I was glad that I spent my youth in Montana setting off fireworks so I could just sit back and be content to enjoy the show. I loved lighting fireworks when I was a kid, and the Fourth of July was my favorite holiday.
Bardo likes fireworks, too and he demonstrated his comprehensive knowledge of sign language (the more sign) several time throughout the show. Pippi was SO glad that we had our own beautiful fireworks, and she said so several times. Her favorite was the fountain in the pink box that she picked out herself.
And I remembered something about Stacy that I had forgotten. When she was about Bardo's age we went to Deer Creek Reservoir to watch fireworks on the Fourth. She loved the fireworks, and as they burst in the sky she called them flowers.
Today we shopped in Downtown Helena and ate lunch at the Parrot Confectionery. After lunch Dad took The Warlock, Aunt Kissy, Snap and me to the Missouri River (the area between Great Falls and Helena) so we could float on the raft. We weren't white water rafting; it was just a gentle relaxing float down the river with lots of swimming involved. Auntie Lollipop took excellent care of Bardo while I was gone, but Bardo was still glad to see me when I returned. He makes me feel so loved. Mom took Pippi and Fiona hiking.
The Fourth of July was really fun. If you ever need a fun place to spend the Fourth, I totally recommend rural Montana. Aunty Lollipop and Aunt Kissy slaved all day preparing a wonderful dutch oven dinner: chicken, potatoes, and pineapple upside-down cake. The Warlock and Aunt Pru's husband, Snap had a great time four-wheeling in the morning. And at night, we celebrated being free, free to put on our own fireworks show, that is. The Warlock was thrilled to be able to set off fireworks that could actually leave the ground. Snap ran after the fireworks and snatched them right after landing (he was wearing gloves) so the clean up was, well, a snap. I was glad that I spent my youth in Montana setting off fireworks so I could just sit back and be content to enjoy the show. I loved lighting fireworks when I was a kid, and the Fourth of July was my favorite holiday.
Bardo likes fireworks, too and he demonstrated his comprehensive knowledge of sign language (the more sign) several time throughout the show. Pippi was SO glad that we had our own beautiful fireworks, and she said so several times. Her favorite was the fountain in the pink box that she picked out herself.
And I remembered something about Stacy that I had forgotten. When she was about Bardo's age we went to Deer Creek Reservoir to watch fireworks on the Fourth. She loved the fireworks, and as they burst in the sky she called them flowers.
Today we shopped in Downtown Helena and ate lunch at the Parrot Confectionery. After lunch Dad took The Warlock, Aunt Kissy, Snap and me to the Missouri River (the area between Great Falls and Helena) so we could float on the raft. We weren't white water rafting; it was just a gentle relaxing float down the river with lots of swimming involved. Auntie Lollipop took excellent care of Bardo while I was gone, but Bardo was still glad to see me when I returned. He makes me feel so loved. Mom took Pippi and Fiona hiking.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Vacationing in Montana
Our vacation is not over yet, but I've just got to post some of our pictures. This is the first true vacation our family has had for a long time. In fact, the Warlock is unemployed (for a week) right now. Imagine life without a Blackberry to constantly be checked.
We flew into SLC and drove up to Montana Saturday. We managed to arrive just in time to meet my sister at the Helena airport. Pippi and her cousin, Fiona embraced when they saw each other. They've been inseparable since we got here.
We flew into SLC and drove up to Montana Saturday. We managed to arrive just in time to meet my sister at the Helena airport. Pippi and her cousin, Fiona embraced when they saw each other. They've been inseparable since we got here.
Bardo thinks that the dirt is especially tasty here in Montana and takes every available opportunity to grab large handfuls of it and shove it in his mouth. If I turn my back for a second...
Monday we rode the tour train in Helena. It was fun for the kids for about 10 minutes. Luckily the Warlock brought water to pour into their mouths and candy for them to eat. Bardo started out sleeping and slept through nearly the whole thing. After the tour train we picnicked in Lockey Park. Pippi didn't wipe her hands after finishing her greasy fried chicken, and did a face plant from the monkey bars into the wood chips, hard, dry, jagged wood chips. She scraped up her gums pretty badly, but they are healing just fine.
Tuesday we went to Spring Meadow Lake with a canoe and small pontoon raft. Everyone had so much fun. Of course Bardo had to be closely supervised with all the delicious sand everywhere, but he loved being outside, playing in the water, and being able to eat (real food, not sand) whenever he wanted.
Pippi loved riding in the canoe, but mostly she just wanted to swim. She loved it when the Warlock swam to her while Auntie Lollipop was giving her a ride on the pontoon raft and allowed her to swim the rest of the way to shore. Vacations rock! And this one is only half finished.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)