Being that I am the queen of analogies (often bad ones...)

I love this -

THE DAILY GROOVE ~ by Scott Noelle
www.enjoyparenting.com/dailygroove

:: The Wild Child ::

Domesticated animals confined to farms, zoos, and
similar unnatural habitats lack a certain "spark"
found in their wild counterparts. They've been bred
or trained to live apart from their nature. They've
adjusted to their lack of freedom.

Put a wild animal in a cage for the first time and
behold the fury! What else would you expect from a
creature who still knows it's supposed to be free?

Children are born free and wild, and they don't
readily submit to "domestication." And thank Goodness
for that! Because those who retain that spark are the
ones who will uplift humanity in generations to come.

Today, look for evidence of the spark of wildness in
your child... and *celebrate* it! Trust that s/he will
civilize in due time. And in the meantime, let that
spark ignite the flames of an authentic, passionate life.

Talking to myself

Recently in therapy my therapist offered her thoughts on our/my decision to homeschool. Her intentions were all good and she was just offering perspective with the thought of my sanity and "me time" in mind. Helping me find a balance in my world is part of her job that I am hiring her for. I listened and thought about what she said and agreed with some of it but we are homeschoolers through and through.
We are a busy homeschooling family. My husband works full time, goes to school full time (although he is finally taking the summer off) for his undergrad and I have always worked opposite shifts or creative emplyment to make ends meet. It has not been an easy road and there have been many stumbles along the way but we make it work.
Only fleetingly have we thought about putting the kids in school but no serious conversation has ever been had on the subject. Usually the fleeting though has come from our self doubt in our ability to "teach" the kids or just plain frustration (and that has not been infrequent over the years). We grow and change and the kids grow and change and with growth comes growing pains. No it is not easy, actually it is damn hard. It has been a huge leap of faith and a huge lesson in trust in my kids, their abilities and that they actually do know what is best for themselves a lot of the time (but not always ;) but really do any of us)
Recently I have made a professional shift in hopes to be more present for my kids and my family. It had the desired effect and I am so grateful. We are still shifting from old ways to new. It will be another few months of adjusting but this new shift and the bean turning five (!) my heart swells and my mind is open to all the amazing fun and growth we will be sharing together as a family and with our new friends we made this year in the homeschool communities.

~Today the monkey's face looked different, his tanned skin and rosey cheeks under his ice blue eyes, slimmer in the trunk, taller. He now does not want to cut his hair, he is growing it out or wearing it shaggy I guess. He is getting older. As beautiful and smart as ever my wonderful son. I will still curl you up on my lap and sing you "hush little baby" as you snuggle into my shoulder although your legs dangle over swinging your Frodo feet.

~My lovely daughter struggling through four almost to five. Looking for her place in the universe. Loves her hair done (although not brushed), taking her red purse to the store (which can be quite a production), making lists, likes things just so, and is so loving to others. In a couple of weeks she goes to Safety Town a big mile stone in our house. Her brother has been preparing her. This coming year will be full of dance classes, piano, and other activities along the way. I still wake up to the sweet smell of her head every morning "i love you mama" *wiggle*wiggle*wiggle* "its mo-ning time"

I am learning to enjoy the slow although we are very busy. To breathe and enjoy - maybe even forgo many ideas, goals and hopes I have until later. I will always have later but now is slipping away. I want my now with the three of them - every minute of it.

Perceptions

For a long time I was embarrassed to tell people where I grew up. I never felt like I fit in there as a young person and could not identify with much of anything or anyone there. I grew up in Birmingham, Michigan. More specifically I grew up in Beverly Hills, Michigan.

This weekend a woman I have known for a few years asked me where I was from and I answered honestly. I am from Birmingham. She paused and looked at me, I could almost see the wheels turning in her head. She replied "Really?". She went on about how she is very surprised to hear that and it may take her a bit to adjust. I laughed. She went on to tell me "...but you are so Ypsi.." I am not sure but that is but I took it as a compliment.

I am used to hearing "Really!? You don't seem like you are from there" when folks eventually find out where I am from. I am not going to get into what folks are like there because I know some wonderful folks in that area and do not want to stereotype but Birmingham does have a reputation. As does the town I live in now, but we will not go into that here.

As a young person I was resentful of not fitting in, I judged others frequently for being so "Birmingham", and it was painful most of the time growing up there knowing I just couldn't feign the airs of my peers. As time has past, I have settled into myself as a person and taken steps (stumbling along) to figure out who I am. Time has brought me the gift of acceptance and empathy for other perspectives no matter how different they may be from mine. I realize that I judged others because I was judging myself. I was not secure in who I was enough to be comfortable with others who were different or who believed different than myself.

Be it the woman with the highlights, liposuction, boob job, perfect make-up and nails dressed to a T or the man in the $1500 suit driving the Hummer or the homeless man on the corner with the sign that says "homeless need work" or the check out person at Kroger or the bus driver or the milk man or the owner of an upscale restaurant or a drag queen or my Jehovah's witness who visits me periodically - all of the people I come across in my life have something to offer me. It may be something about themselves they offer me, they may help me better understand myself or my perceptions or my behavior. They may test my patience and empathy. They may show me I am not as accepting as I would like to be or they may show me that love and beauty come in all different kinds of packages.

Every person I come across every day is a gift (including the guy who flips me off while driving down the road) :) and an opportunity to be a better person. No journey is easy or pain free - growth hurts, it is uncomfortable and it takes time but you do end up standing taller.

Great Book for the soul of an unschooler

On of the lovely ladies of HOG-WARTS had purchased this book - Raising a Free Child: An Unschooled Life.

At a get together I started reading it and did not want to give it back. I did. Then went home to order my own. This is one of those books you want on your shelf to reference when you need a little boost.

So much of it resonates with how we feel about learning and family. It is nice to have a familiar voice to easy my inner beastie.

building blocks

as time passes i am letting go more and more. learning lessons of being, perceptions, listening, feeling and finding peace.
today was a wonderful visit with judy ramsey, an amazing healer. i knew when i went in that it was going to be not what i expected so i left my expectations open. it was a remarkable session of brain work and heart healing therapy. with this visit i have greater peace and a better understanding of myself and my place and how to incorporate it into all i do. i am looking forward to working with her more, and she is an inspiring rolemodel as a healer.
i feel like i am putting together puzzle pieces for a grand picture of my lifes work.
one....piece...at....a...time. and time it will take so breath in deep and be patient.

not in the mood to share

oh my goodness it is may. i have been quiet and introspective much lately. like the winds of change are coming and i am not quite sure what to do with that. it is a good thing though.

the gardening front is going well. the beds are in herbs are planted. strawberry patch in. greens to go in this wee.

homeschooling is great. i am starting to accept that we are built to be unschoolers although i have been reluctant. i want order but chaos is more our thing. it has been a huge leap of faith but so far it is panning out more amazingly than i could have ever imagined. it is so much easier now that the weather has perked up though. AMEN!

i am going for a craniosacral appointment tomorrow which is very exciting. this woman is booked two months in advanced and i called today to get on the waiting list and she had a cancelation for tomorrow and no one else on the waiting likst could take it so i am in. the universe likes me today. whoohoo!

i found a therapist which is wonderful although it will be out of pocket which is not so wonderful but i am worth it golly-darn-it. ;) i am very much looking forward to what that path may bring.

i have been invited to sing in a monthly womens group which is so good for my soul. i happened to be at a gettogether on friday that was specifically for recording old circle songs. i thought it was a beltane potluck but it was a singing potlatch, luckily i am easy going. well after i was complimented on my singing *blush* and invited to join a revival of this sining group of ladies. that night i also learned about threshold choirs of which there is one in ann arbor that i am going to look into. my heart warms at the thought of being able to sing.

then saturday i went to what i thought was going to me a herbal talk with Loren Cruden but ended up being this amazing spiritual talk with Loren Cruden. i came away from it with insight and tools for the spirit. she is an amazing woman, and funny.

the last night at a potluck at a friends house i found someone to lend me a cello to take my lessons. i was considering if the cost of rental would be too much, but then the universe stepped in an lent me a hand. i am very excited to start this barter for cello lessons thing. *geeky smile*

so if you cant tell this is a season of me taking care of myself and stepping away from the chaos of spiraling out into the vast everything at warp speed. i still run at warp speed but my mantra is now "stir it back into the pot". it is like the milky way with its tenticles flying everywhere but i am learning to keep it like spaghetti noodles in a pot.

stir it back into the pot...with love.

I *heart* power washing

It is almost 70 degrees out today. Maybe winter has broken but I do live in the wonderful state of Michigan so I am not holding my breath.

Today I was planning on delaying power washing the deck but I could not resist. So here I sit with cold toes, one pass done on the deck. Next is to soak and scrub then another pass. Soon it will be set up for proper lounging.

Also this week is seed ordering week. Meeting on Thursday for some garden love. I have been saving toilet paper tubs for seed starter pods. Trays are in the garage ready to go. Game on! I have been told the tiller is lined up and whoohoo - the fun begins. The kids and I are going to be heading out to the farm with the dog so the poor dog can run off his winter energy and we can help get the property ready for the weddings lined up there this summer. I am hoping to try out Big Daddy's waders in the pond, to do what... I dont know but I think it will be fun.

Cans are also on the list to start purchasing and a deep freezer. We are waiting for the tax return to roll in and for the garage to be a little de-cluttered. That is a whole other story.

Today was also the spring trip to Value World. Looking for puddle boots of which they had none but I didn't think they would but we got hiking vests for the kids and some spring clothes for them too. The bean has chosen some interesting dresses that I attempted to return to the rack but she cought me and she is wearing the red white and black polkadot and stripe ditty right now. She has jumped out of the 80's but that is in style now right????

Looking for Spring

A bit of summer while waiting for spring.

The botanical gardens indoor conservatory is free on Wednesdays so we met some homeschool ladies there after we all had lunch at Pizza Hut.

Now imagine being the waiter at a table of 13 kids and 5 adults. Poor man. He was quite a trooper and the kids did relatively well. Luckily it is a kid friendly place.

Luckily it was a fairy day at the conservatory. The kids spent the afternoon looking for fairies, making scented pouches, books, necklaces and running around trying to stay out of trouble.

Fortunately it was not one of our kids that knocked the large banana branch, banana'a and all, off the tree. Whew!

Going Home

Going to Julies last night was like going home. We had a garden meeting with much wine and lovely conversation.

This year it will be three families going in on the plot and the best part is that the two other families I adore with all my heart. It really felt like we were having an meeting of extended family last night. I was feeling so wonderful when I got home. To do projects like this with folks you love nothing could be better.

So there is the garden plot, the melons and squashes spot, butterfly garden, an herb garden, sunflowers, maybe even some amaranth on the drawing board. Also getting the pond ready for swimming - that is for the man with the waders.

We wandered through the beautiful seed catalogs dreaming of heirloom and rare varieties. We talked of road side stands, maybe bees to make mead (for big daddy), camping sites off in the woods, chickens (even pickled eggs), compost piles, cherry liquor, canned peaches and pears from the property, the FROG FEST in September and so much more. Some will happen this year and others someday down the line.

There is so much to look forward to - good people, good food and good work.

We also decided to go in on a quarter cow for the year and are looking to split a pig with one of the other families if we can find someone with an extra pig that they are raising. I need to call Old Pine Farms in Grass Lake to see if they have anything. Big daddy mentioned at one point maybe hunting this fall so that would get us venison and summer sausage. I have also been day dreaming of doing something with dear skin. So buying a freezer is in order in the near future which will motivate me to really clean out the garage (again).

In our own home we are hoping to have a worm compost system going soon. One of the books we have says that 70% of all first time worm bins fail and oddly that makes me feel better about attempting it. I would also like to get a three bin system going in the back yard - we have a lot of organic output here so i think more than one system would be good.

And today is Calder Dairy delivery day. I get to see Stan the delivery man.
"No butter or sour cream today please but what do you have for ice cream....oh and do you have eggs?"
"We only have Vanilla and do you want brown or white eggs?"
"Vanilla is great and brown please?"
"How are you doing?"
"Doing good. What are you up to today?"
"Getting ready to go to Chicago"
"Really what are you doing there"
"Taking a girls trip. Going to the American Girl store and the Aquarium"
"Oh, I have been to that Aquarium. It is great there."
"You just going for the night?"
"No, the whole weekend."
"Well have a great time and I will see you next week. You can tell me how your trip went"
"Thanks. See you next week. Take care."

I love chatting with my dairy guy. It makes me happy about my food.

Altruism is the word of the day

Today it finally happened. I left my coffee cup on top of the car. I made it about a quarter mile from my house when at a stop sign some crazy thing comes tumbling down my windshield spewing brown fluid! I immediately thought of one of the many zombie movies I have seen in passing while living with Big Daddy. Alas it was only my favorite big Chicago coffee mug with freshly brewed coffee. I stopped the car laughing at the moment and ran back to pick up the shards of my mug. Once back in the car there was a thick layer of frozen coffee on the windshield. The kids and I took this moment to reenact the moment, the monkey likes to do reenactments of most anything. Once I arrived at dear Stacia's house, for breakfast and a kid watching swap for the day for work, I got my cup of coffee with a soft boiled egg and toast. I find I do prefer my coffee maker coffee over press pot. Never thought much of it before now.

Now I need to find a new favorite giant coffee mug.

This was one of those moments that I noted could have made me very grumpy at another time or if I were in irritated mood.

Yesterday I was called by a dear woman who had met a couple of times. She was not a client or anyone I knew well but I did give her my number and told her to call me at anytime is she needed anything. I do this for many folks but few actually take me up on it. She had just had her baby an felt she needed someone to call about some hospital stuff that was going on. I finished up my two massage appointments for the afternoon and headed up to the hospital. She had a complication that needed procedures for resolution. I sat with her and her family helping to navigate the medical professionals and the system. I stayed until the mom was taken for her procedure. I called this morning and they were able to resolve the issue and she was feeling much better and baby is great.

I love my work. I am also happy to say that my "work" is not always for pay. Sometimes I use what I know just to help another person just because. My work helps me keep perspective on the world and life. It is one thing to help a friend or family member for no reason or reward but I want to teach my kids (and myself) that it is also important to help strangers. Sometimes that means more than sending a check to an organization, which is a great thing, but to sit and be with with the people you are helping to understand that we are more than one person we are many people, many different kinds of people with different beliefs, ethics, lifestyles and attitudes. We do not always have to like those we are giving out time to, or agree with them and especially not to expect anything in return including kindness or appreciation. And we do not always have to do something for something be it monetary or personal gain.

The flip side of this is to be able to ask for help or assistance when we need it. We have come to exist in a society where we are all these little individual floating orbs. Cash for services and goods are the name of the game. I personally like the pay it forward mentality. If I do a favor for you just do a favor for me or someone else down the road. Yes, there would be glitches in this system but show me a system without glitches. My dear friend and I have worked on this philosophy for a few years now with childcare and other aspects of work. I am sure there may be an imbalance of who has done what for whom but what does it matter?

There is something much bigger out there, much bigger than me and my cup of coffee.

Thought of the day

I cannot stop thinking about DIRT! Black dirt, brown dirt, dry dirt, mud, worms, bugs...the whole thing.

Over the years I have come to appretiate the seasons of Michigan. They are like the seasons of life. The smaller cycles and the larger cycles. As we are rounding the tail end (I hope) of yet another long winter I sit with my thoughts a bit more than usual. With the holidays passed and birthdays behind us for the winter we are left to wait and think.

I have come to love the hard dark times for what they are which is a learning experience and a wonderful opportunity for growth and change. I do not particularly like them while I am in them, really they are awful and gut wrenching, but I now understand that I can hold on to this blind faith that this too shall pass. Even better I understand now that this too shall pass and if I step back and take time to listen to the universe I may be a better, maybe wiser, or a stronger person on the other side of the darkness.

I used to plow through life head down blinders on pissing and moaning not realizing that I was creating the negativity of which I was reacting to. Kind of like a dog chasing its tail....for what? I thought - to make a difference, to save the world, to.....who knows. What I am finding is that simple kindness to strangers and friends alike and all the other little things make such a difference and to be able to teach that to my children is such a gift.

Sometimes the louder you yell the less people listen but a kind voice with a smile can travel to someones heart with the strength of a tidal wave.

tHE bRAIN eXPLOSION

This winter has been a huge developmental leap for the bean. It has been so cool to witness.

I don't remember so much when this happened to the monkey. I do clearly remember when his drawing skills were beyond his motor skills and he had to stop drawing for a bit - that drove me crazy. But he turned a corner and picked it up again.

The bean is all about letters, numbers, writing, and wanting to read since just after christmas. I am told by friends that it is a girl thing to be interested in such things earlier. It is crazy. One day she hated even drawing and the next she is writing down letters and numbers all over the place. Also all of a sudden she is drawing full on detailed pictures. It is so cool!!!!!

The Monkey's Sketch Book

The monkey has always been my drawing boy as my bean is my collage and glue girl.

This weekend I gave the monkey a hard cover big sketch book. He was really excited but admitted he was nervous about it. I told him it was his and he could do whatever he wanted with it but he seemed to feel a great importance about what goes in it.

This morning he came to me and asked if I wanted to read his poetry that he had written in his book when he took a break from drawing. The poetry goes along with the picture he drew. here is the poem:

in the outdoors
where the birds
sing with the winds
call to summer and spring
the animals come
out of their dens
and come out of their houses made of scratch

I am a proud mama this morning.

Language Arts through Mad Libs

Count Dracula is the most famous of all knives. He trips during the day in a coffin. The Count is never seen without his black dentist which he drapes over his tummy. When he flaps his plants, he turns into a bat and flies off into the president in search of mommies. The Count can only remain immortal by sucking kefir out of human humans. He does this by biting them on the bird with his gooey teeth. Superstition has it that people protect themselves from a vampire by holding up a store or wearing a clove of sister around their neck. It is also believed that the only way to kill a vampire is to drive a wooden fence through his hair.

Birth

I haven't posted about birth in awhile. I am not quite sure why but I needed to step back for a moment to think, observe, ponder, assess the freight train I have been on for the past few years in helping families in their path. I have come to realize that I had to take a step back to take three steps forward.

Recently I have realized great peace and personal growth that has come out of the chaos of the past few months of stepping back.

Last night I was back in the saddle - at a birth that is. I have only attended two births since September quite a change from my 2-3 a month that I had been doing along with teaching, homeschooling and a small massage practice.

This birth was perfect - really as perfect as could be. The couple is adorable and charming to spend time with. The mother incredibly strong and partner terrifically supportive. She was present and amazing. It was a pleasure and blessing to be able to be there with them.

Over the night, witnessing the coming of this new person into the world, I observed the scene - the birthing mom, her partner, the midwife, the apprentice, the cats and myself. The cats were female and very interested in the goings on during labor and not too sure after the birth when the sweet little baby cried. The midwife and apprentice we present, aware, assessing, charting and doing what they do. The partner was calm, quiet, trusting, loving and in awe of his wife and her amazing strength in her journey. The laboring mom was working hard, trusting the process, opening to all that is, moaning that baby down, leading us all down the road scared at moments but plowing forward towards the unknown. As for me- I offered my hands in helping her stay in her body then backing off when she asked, I offered kind calm words of support and strength to be a gust of wind in her billowing sails, I offered my heart full of love for the process and all the women that have come and will come down that rocky road, I offered my mindful presence to their experience and mine.

This crazy life is more than words, numbers, conversations and thoughts. There is something so large and amazing in the feeling of life and being able to experience the simplicity of life in its purist form. I love the unexplainable part of it all.

On the flip side of this time we call life, when I was present for my grandfathers passing last year it was very similar but instead of where are we headed it is where have we been and of course the presence of the unknown. The unknown that will forever test our blind faith.

I am starting to embrace my blind faith. I have a long way to go but I will always have a long way to go. I embrace not only the blind faith of it All but also the blind faith in myself. There is a path out there for me and I say now that I am open to the unknown. I let my mind drift to enjoy the moments between the surges that bring me forward on this rocky road.

We can choose to make it hard and tumultuous or we can choose to ride the wave.
For now I am choosing to ride, open and at peace with all that may come.

Today is the Day

Today is the day we try something new. Obama.

I am having folks over and even baking a cake for this historic day. I am excited, scared, apprehensive, hopeful and so much more.

He will not be perfect, he may go back on some of his campaign promises, he will mess up but i do believe he will try his best which, is all i can ever ask of myself so it is all i can expect from others - including our new president.

I am excited for a new world view on the United States of America. I like the man we have chosen to represent us to the world.

I have hope.

Religious Education

For the past 3 years I have been attending off and on the Ann Arbor Unitarian Universalist (AAUU) Congregation. I went alone for awhile, then with the monkey, now the whole family goes (including my mother sometimes).

This past Christmas 10:30pm service (I have always loved the Christmas candle light service) I went solo. I cried through the entire service. Most services I tear up a bit but this one was full on. It was lovely and emotional. The next Sunday service I could not attend due to illness so it was a bit until I went back again. (This year I have been going almost every Sunday) When I did walk through those doors again it finally felt like home. Many of my friends were now going there also so I now had a community there. Going to church felt like a warm hug.

Now I have decided to take the next step and dive deeper into what this religion is all about. More than once I have heard the snarky comments about UU and it has been offensive but I acknowledge that there is much misunderstanding/misconception about what UU is.

I signed up for the Intro to UU class. My first class was this past Thursday. I will share with you a bit of what I learned. (i love the historical backgroud stuff)

History Factoids:

Unitarian beliefs have been around ince the first years of the Common Era (CE or AD) but they were forced underrgroud. There were the trinitarians and the Unitarians. The unitarians did not believe in the holy trinity.

In the Universalist history it was in 185-254 CE an early church father Origen was a proponent of theological universalism (all will be saved/no original sin). In 544 CE Council at Constantiople declared Universalism heresy.

In Unitarian history Unitarianism (known as Arianism at that time) was declared heresy in 325 CE

This was a time of fear mongering and control by those in power. The bible was only read by priests and the lay person waas told what to believe. The bible was read in service in Latin and only the wafers were given to the congregants and the priests only got the full communion if any communion was shared at all. Religion and politics were closely intertwinded the era of Constantinople was the time where free thinkers or an inclusive religion would hinder the powers of the state and church.

1425 - The Czech priest Jan Hus was burned at the stake for serving the communion wine to people and saying the mass in the language of the people reather than Latin

1498 - Pater D'Aranda, condemned for denying hell as everlasting punishment

1539 - Katherine Vogel, Krakow Poland, burned a the stake for denying the trinity

1553 - Spanish doctor and Bible scholar Micheal Servetus was burned at the stake by order of John Calvin with his book The Errors of the Trinity strapped to his leg

1568 - King John Sigismund of Transylvania issued an Edict of Tolerance, having been persuaded by Francis David, his chaplin, that God is one, not three, and that no one should be persecuted on account of religious belief. Thus was founded Unitarianism as a public religion rather than simply a private belief.

1620 - The Pilgrims founded Plymouth colony, incorporating government by covenant, seperation of civil and religious authorities, and congregationalism (the beginnings of the UU congregational polity)

1759 - "Union" a statement of Universalist theology stressing universal salvation, was sritten by James Relly and published in England.

1770 - John Murray, convinced my relly, came to America and preached a Universalist message from the meeting house Thomas Potter had hopefully built on his New Jersay farm.

1774 - Theophilus Lindsey began the first Unitarian church in England

1779 - John Murray organized the first Universalist Church in America at Goulster, Massachusetts

1782 - John Freeman takes King's Chapel into unitarian position.

1791 - Joseph Priestly, a unitarian minister and scientis in England, had his meeting house and laboratory attacked by a mob on account of his radical beliefs; he immigrated to Philadelphia and had major influence on Thomas Jefferson and the founding principles of his country.

1805 - Universalist Hosea Ballou wrote the "Treatise on the Atonement" arguing that human beings do not need a savior such as Jesus to save them from damnation for their sins, but that instead Jesus showed by example that sin can be overcome by love.

1819 - Unitarian minister William Ellery Channing gave his foundational " Baltimore Sermon" on the unity of god, the Bible as written by humans and subject to interpretation through reason, and religious tolerance.

1825 - The American Unitarian Association formed with 125 ministers, most of them educated at Harvard Divinity School

1838 - Ralph Waldo Emerson gave a Harvard Divinity School address that became another foundational expression of Unitarianism as well as Transcendentalism, stressing that direct intuition of God is available directly to each person, and that Christianity is not the only path to truth.

1841 - the third foundational expression of Unitarianism was Theodore Parker's South Boston sermon on "The Transient and Permanent in Christianity"

1863 - The Universalists ordained Rev. Olympia Brown , the first woman ordained by any religious organization in the United States.

1865 - The attempt to prganize Unitarians (not just ministers) through the National Conference, led by Henry Bellows, led the dissenting independent thinkers to form the Free Religious Association, with Emerson as the first signer of their "declaration of independence" from anything resembling a creed. Emerson then left the Unitarian ministry for a life as a writer and lecturer

1887 - William Channing Gannett wrote his "Things Commomly Bleieved Today Among Us" a significant attempt to bridge the chasm between the institutionalists and theists on the one habe and the atheistic free religionists on teh other, the latter group seeing themselves as both firmly non-creedal and believing staunchly in a strictly ethical basis for religion.

1893 - The Chicago Unitarian congregation of ministers Jenkin Lloyd Jones put on the first Parliament of Religions, associates with the World's Fair; this revolutionary event introduced to the Unitarians (and others) the wisdom of the world's religions, especially Eastern religions, so that "universalism" began to take on a new meaning, and American Unitarians began to be universalists in their thinking.

1933 - The Humanist manifesto was formulated in Ann Arbor, with many unitarian and Universalist ministers as signers. It stressed the universe as self-existing and evolving, science and reason as not seperate from religion, and the betterment of human conditions here and now as the purpose of life.

1937 - Sophia Lyon Fahs wrote the first ground-breaking curriculum for Unitarian religious education for children.

1940 - The Unitarian Service Committee was formed to launch efforts to bring out of harm;s was Jewish people, homosexuals, and others being persecuted in Nazi Europe. After merger, the USC became the UUSC, which partners around the world and in this country with groups working for the well-being of people who are persecuted or otherwise suffering.

1961 - The American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of America merged to form the Unitarian universalist Association of Congregations.

The following is "Unitarian Universalism - The Religion" as prepared for the UUMA Convocation by Daniel O'Connel 03/08/02

=many scriptures, not one
=here and now, not the hereafter
=freedom, reason, tolerance,love as overarching values
=deeds not creeds, show your work, live your faith
=evolutionary theology, language changes
=we are saved by love, we are made holy by character

We share withother religious liberals:
=no original sin, God is Love
=unity of experience: faith & knowledge, sacred & secular
-non-creedal, authority of conscience
=need for religious community
=congregational polity, democratic methods
=a spark of "divinity" or the "highest good" in every person
=a destination: an earth made fair, all her people one, we co-create the world.

~~~~

This concludes my report on my class on Thursday.

One thing I feel is intersting to note is that Thomas Jefferson thought that Unitarian religion would become the popular religion before the end of his generation. This did not occur to any fault ar flaw in the religion but the fact that other religions started becoming more open and liberal in their practice.

Also there is a new book out about Joseph Priestly called The Invention of Air I heard an interview on NPR yesterday. Sounds fascinating.

Deciding to be happy

Deciding to be happy was my undeclared New Years resolution. Undeclared because really I just decided to do it. Clean up the crap and emotional and mental clutter in the house of my brain, body and spirit. I decided to really live the saying "if mama happy everybody happy" - now I realize that is a simplistic statement because some are very comfortable with mama being a train wreck and are not fond of change but they can learn to deal with the new ways.

I have been working out everyday for a week and a half and it has been wonderful. I get it now when folks have the NEED to work out. I think it was just not my time to be like that until recently. We have our homeschooling schedule that we try to keep to in a scheduled unschooly way (yes I acknowledge the conflict in that statement) We are still working out the kinks. But on the whole it is all good in the hood. Everyday we do our journal, reading, math from 9-12 and have something going on at 1pm regularly. Sometimes things get high jacked for example we have two very large boxes in out house right now so some things may fall to the side for a bit as we take on making a sarcophagus for the monkey pharaoh.

We are truckin' through Story of the world learning about the fertile crescent and Osiris and Isis and mummy's and pyramids and .....it is so exciting. We are also working through the Children's Illustrated Bible that I got at church this past weekend. I was raised in a great church but I never knew much about the bible. My husband knows it well as do my in-laws. It has left me with a great desire to learn the stories and teachings. It is an amazing piece of literature that I would like my children to know. I am very excited to learn more myself.

To compliment our path with the Children's bible I am independently reading Living Christ, Living Buddha by Thich Nhat Hahn. I love most all of his works including this one.

Amazon.com Review
If you have always assumed that Christianity and Buddhism are as far apart philosophically as their respective founders were geographically, you may be in for a bit of a surprise. In this national bestseller, Zen monk and social activist Thich Nhat Hanh draws parallels between these two traditions that have them walking, hand in hand, down the same path to salvation. In Christianity, he finds mindfulness in the Holy Spirit as an agent of healing. In Buddhism, he finds unqualified love in the form of compassion for all living things. And in both he finds an emphasis on living practice and community spirit. The thread that binds the book is the same theme that draws many Christians toward Buddhism: mindfulness. Through anecdotes, scripture references, and teachings from both traditions, Nhat Hanh points out that mindfulness is an integral part of all religious practice and teaches us how to cultivate it in our own lives. Nhat Hanh has no desire to downplay the venerable theological and ritual teachings that distinguish Buddhism and Christianity, but he does cause one to consider that beyond the letter of doctrine lies a unity of truth.

The monkey has very interested in working through his spiritual side for the past year and a half. It has been wonderful to walk with him on this road also looking at my beliefs. One great book that has helped me open my mind to this kind of philosophical wandering was Little Big Minds by Marietta McCarty

Amazon.com Product Description
A guide for parents and educators to sharing the enduring ideas of the biggest minds throughout the centuries-from Plato to bell hooks-with the "littlest" minds.

Children are no strangers to cruelty and courage, to love and to loss, and in this unique book teacher and educational consultant Marietta McCarty reveals that they are, in fact, natural philosophers. Drawing on a program she has honed in schools around the country over the last fifteen years, Little Big Minds guides parents and educators in introducing philosophy to K-8 children in order to develop their critical thinking, deepen their appreciation for others, and brace them for the philosophical quandaries that lurk in all of our lives, young or old.

Arranged according to themes-including prejudice, compassion, and death-and featuring the work of philosophers from Plato and Socrates to the Dalai Lama and Martin Luther King Jr., this step-by-step guide to teaching kids how to think philosophically is full of excellent discussion questions, teaching tips, and group exercises.

With MLK day coming up there is much to talk about. Not to mention the inaguration. what a great time to be.


In absolutley amazing news - the monkey went to his first theater audition last night for a Midsummer's Night Dream throught the Ypsilanti Youth Theater and He did great! The best part is that he loved it and had a really great time. We will find out this weekend what part he will get. Being that it is his first go at theater he is hoping for a nonspeaking part although once i explained to hime that in the play if you have lines you have to memorize then and not read them off of paper he was more open to a speaking part. (he is reading but just not super confident yet and Shakespeare is not exactaly Dr. Seusse) I am a giddy proud mama. I have waited a long time to get the monkey into theater he has it in him if he chooses to pursue it.

Yesterday I got two books out of the library that I am very excited to dive into. Both books I have heard much about and come highly recommended. Hold on to your Kids I think is a must read for any parent. The Teenage Liberation Handbook is for those adults and kids open to the idea of homeschooling and the concept of learning over schooling.

The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn

Amazon.com Review
You won't find this book on a school library shelf--it's pure teenage anarchy. While many homeschooling authors hem and haw that learning at home isn't for everyone, this manifesto practically tells kids they're losers if they do otherwise. With the exception of a forwarding note to parents, this book is written entirely for teenagers, and the first 75 pages explain why school is a waste of time. Grace Llewellyn insists that people learn better when they are self-motivated and not confined by school walls. Instead of homeschooling, which connotes setting up a school at home, Llewellyn prefers "unschooling," a learning method with no structure or formal curriculum. There are tips here you won't hear from a school guidance counselor. Llewellyn urges kids to take a vacation--at least for a week--after quitting school to purge its influence. "Throw darts at a picture of your school" or "Make a bonfire of old worksheets," she advises. She spends an entire chapter on the gentle art of persuading parents that this is a good idea. Then she gets serious. Llewellyn urges teens to turn off the TV, get outside, and turn to their local libraries, museums, the Internet, and other resources for information. She devotes many chapters to books and suggestions for teaching yourself science, math, social sciences, English, foreign languages, and the arts. She also includes advice on jobs and getting into college, assuring teens that, contrary to what they've been told in school, they won't be flipping burgers for the rest of their days if they drop out. Llewellyn is a former middle-school English teacher, and she knows her audience well. Her formula for making the transition from traditional school to unschooling is accompanied by quotes on freedom and free thought from radical thinkers such as Steve Biko and Ralph Waldo Emerson. And Llewellyn is not above using slang. She capitalizes words to add emphasis, as in the "Mainstream American Suburbia-Think" she blames most schools for perpetuating. Some of her attempts to appeal to young minds ring a bit corny. She weaves through several chapters an allegory about a baby whose enthusiasm is squashed by a sterile, unnatural environment, and tells readers to "learn to be a human bean and not a mashed potato." But her underlying theme--think for yourself--should appeal to many teenagers. --Jodi Mailander Farrell

and Hold on to your Kids by Gordon Neufeld PhD, Gabor Mate MD

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Like countless other parents, Canadian doctors Neufeld and Maté woke up one day to find that their children had become secretive and unreachable. Pining for time with friends, they recoiled or grew hostile around adults. Why? The problem, Neufeld and co-writer Maté suggest, lies in a long-established, though questionable, belief that the earliest possible mastery of the rules of social acceptance leads to success. In a society that values its economy over culture, the book states, the building of strong adult/child attachments gets lost in the shuffle. Multiple play dates, day care, preschool and after school activities groom children to transfer their attachment needs from adults to their peers. They become what the authors call "peer oriented." The result is that they squelch their individuality, curiosity and intelligence to become part of a group whose members attend school less to learn than to socialize. And these same children are bullying, shunning and murdering each other, as well as committing suicide, at increasing rates. The authors' meticulous exploration of the problem can be profoundly troubling. However, their candidness and exposition lead to numerous solutions for reestablishing a caring adult hierarchy. Beautifully written, this terrific, poignant book is already a bestseller in Canada.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

It is time for me to clean up and get ready for my day with the monkey and the bean. Soon I will post a bit more on the idea of homeschooling high schoolers. It seems to be something on peoples mind lately. Homeschool kids can go to college and do very well in the world in general. Also I would like to eventually cover the idea of parental rights and civil liberties in homeschooling.

BTW did anyone notice the artice in this past weeks Ann Arbor News Sunday paper about the Michigan Virtual High Shool.

Life Learners we are (Yoda style)

Life Learners is the verb-age I prefer when speaking of our home schooling style. We do workbooks and daily school-y tasks but there are a very small part of our day.

we try to get things going by 9am but it does not always pan out that way. Sometimes I am a bit pokey or the breakfast conversation is too good to rush through to start stuff. Most times we are done in an hour and a half with the "stuff" then it is usually an open day for projects, play dates, books on tape, playing outside, hiking, running errands, etc.

We are not big on "teaching" our kids but rather learning with our children and living with our children. I believe that children can learning (at their own pace) without being taught if exposed to information. Yes, I believe workbooks like our Singapore Math workbooks are ways of exposing out child to math. But I do not test him on the information acquired. I do give him opportunities to apply the information in real life situations. Sometimes he loves it and sometimes it is overwhelming if he has not completely grasped a concept yet so we try again later.

One thing that I talk about with my kids is how it is not easy growing up and learning about the world and how things work sometimes. Along with "learning" kids are figuring out social structure, the ways of the world, and they are figuring out their own emotions in their fluctuating states among other things. That is a lot to take in and not all children take in that information in the same way on the same schedule. I do appreciate being able to pay attention to my child's emotional cues with learning. If he is not in a good space emotionally then it is not a good time for some things. Both of my kids will have enough time and opportunity in life to "toughen up", I hope I am giving them a good foundation to navigate difficult situations with mindfullness and empathy for others.

This is a blog by the woman who is the editor of Life Learning Magazine and Natural Living Magazine I agree with most of what she presents about life learning.

I was asked about statistics of home schoolers the other day. Being that I am not a big fan of statistics I did not know off hand what they were but here is a link to the HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) about some studies done on home schoolers in the academic sense. Mind you the studies are 10 years old and even older but really how much can change with home schooling? Well since I asked here is a link to a more recent study from 2003 about the numbers of home schoolers on the rise.

There was also the question about the " repercussions" of my children not attending traditional high school in regards to their ability to go to college. At first I did not understand the question but stepping back I realized the question was asked from a place of misunderstanding the truth about home schoolers, of which there are many. Like that we are not right-wing bible thumping or move-to-the-country anarchist goat-herders, although the later is more likely. We approach our home schooling on a year to year basis and the kids are part of the decision making process. I am a firm believer in informed consumerism and consent which I try to apply in every aspect of my life and my families life. The monkey has taken classes at a local charter school one semester and has public school, charter school, private school and once schooled now home schooled friends of whom he has asked about their school experience. So in this light as we get into the high school years the kids will be a part of the decision to continue home schooling or not. There are many resources available to them for their education be it tutors, online high schools like Oak Meadow ,classes at local colleges, mentor-ships, apprenticeships, volunteer work, etc. For more information about college admissions and home schoolers I found this great link to the Journal of College Admissions from Fall 2004 . Two particular articles I will link to are Homeschool Recruiting: Lessons Learned on the Journey and Homeschoolers on to College: What Research Shows Us

In general I think it is hard for most to understand what we do everyday and why we do it. What we do everyday changes and why we do it is that it works for us. We are not super religious but we are spiritual seekers. We are not politically motivated but we do have opinions. We do not hole up everyday or shelter out children from the world, we encourage interaction with all different kinds of folks in all different kinds of settings of all different ages. We don't believe this is the only good or right way but it is working for us for now and we like it.

As the "stay-home" parent I have learned so much from my kids in this journey - my limits, my faults, my prejudices, how to be comfortable saying "I don't know, but maybe we can find out",my curiosity, that I can learn so much from my children and there are so many different ways to look at the world.

There are many assumptions that we have about much in life. I cannot count the number of times that the monkey or the bean have asked "why?" about something or other and my assumptions or ideas about things were challenged because I knew the "why?'s" would go deeper and deeper as I gave my answers. I have to stop and ask myself why do I think that way? Becoming humble and embracing my ignorance has been a wonderful gift.

All I ask is that you look at your assumptions and ask "why do I think that way?"

A wee update

I do find when I am off call it is a lot easier for me to focus in on the homeschooling part of our lives. There is something about the looming phone call that throws me off whack.

We are working on The Story of the World Vol. I. The monkey is working on his family history book. In this project it asks for pictures to be taped or glued on the information page of the family member but he like me cannot choose which picture to sacrifice to the project so we have decided to draw a portrait of the family member for now. He drew an absolutely awesome self portrait (unfortunately it was too large to fit in the box allotted in the book) I am also very into reading books by Audrey Wood at the moment. A very sweet one was When the Root Children Wake Up. I also loved Heckedy Peg.

The Monkey is also working on a landscape project - possibly for his playmobil but I am not sure. The base is a pizza box and other boxes are buildings. Yesterday at their recital the snagged those cone cups for trees.

Speaking of the recital - the kids had it yesterday. They were awesome! They were asked to participate in a project for students at the University of Michigan School of Music. It was a lot of fun. They were in the Christamas Carols group and even acted out T'was the Night Before Christmas. I was pleasantly surprised at the beans acting ability :) This winter the monkey will be old enough to do the local theater. We both are really excited for that. He has been wanting to do something like that for a long time. He is a super ham.

This morning we are off to swim at the A2 YMCA that I am considering joining but I am still on the fence. The kids love swimming and the more I get them in the water the better they will get. The monkey has until this summer to learn how to swim so he can take his scuba diving class. He is great under the water and can hold his breath for a long time it is just swimming on the water that flusters him.

Recently I was asked about homeschooling and our path. It brought up some of the misconceptions about homeschooling so in the near future I plan on talking a bit more on this topic.

But for now - We swim.

Yesterday we got our christmas tree and today was decorating day. Although a wee bit stressful, the tree looks lovely. We are now officially in the holiday spirit.

After some crazies and grumpiness we settled into the day about 1pm. I want to rearranging and cleaning and big daddy was cleaning out his closet. I went down stairs and the monkey was listening to a book on tape looking out the front window drawing a still life of the items on the front porch. For some reason this was a proud moment for me. With my back ground in art it warms me to see my son voluntarily finding an artistic moment and acting on it. It was on a lined notebook and a loose sketch but none the less it was wonderful.

While the monkey was doing this my lovely bean in true form was breaking stuff. Unfortunately today she hurt herself but bounced back quickly.

I am thinking I may be a person who needs to map out my week. I have traditionally been a fly by the seat of my pants kind of gal but that was more conducive to my on-call lifestyle. As I step back from that craziness I am finding that it is easier to plan things and actually preferable. So now I need systems in place to get things going and working. But first I need order and cleanliness. On that note I am off to clean.

I know my limits.

Wednesday I had a fairy playdate for the bean.

We decided to make cookies - me and three 4 year olds making cookies. I am aware that I have control issues occasionally but they are usually not focused on doing things with the kids. Writing, art, even cleaning their rooms - I am pretty chill. But I have met my limit with cooking. I cannot cook with my or other children without getting twitchy. I love to cook and bake. I cannot even cook with my husband most of the time without a little bickering.

There was flour everywhere, everyone wanting to use the rolling pin and roll everything paper thin or cutting out monstrously thick cookies so some burn and some are underdone. Oh my goodness.

Luckily, I was able to identify my twitchies and step away and let the ladies do their thing. I came back to a mountain of flour and some messy ladies but they had fun. And inthe end they were all totally jacked up on sugar from the frosting.

A good day.

Tuesday Free Day

Every other Tuesday I get four hours without my children whom I love dearly but eventually need a break from. Today is my Tuesday.

It has given me something to look forward to everyday. It is like a mini christmas.

Today I am going to go sit in the dry sauna and read (maybe fall asleep since i hardly slept last night). I am going to try to get a chunk of the kids Christmas shopping done. Go to the bank and if there is time slowly peruse the racks at Value World.

Ahhh....quiet sanity for a time.

side note - almost the entire time i have been typing this the monkey has been giving me his dissertation on Playmobil weaponry

Life Learning - I like that better then Homeschooling

This fall seems to have been the season for me to get into my "homeschool" groove. It has helped tremendously to have met some lovely ladies with boys my age and to have found a group that meets weekly for regular activities.

I realized that like most things homeschooling is so much better when you have a tribe, for me and for my kids. I especially have been blessed with a little fairy who has taken my by the hand and made this year so enjoyable and shown me so many resources like this wonderful one. I linked it to the page with the awesome educational card games that I want to start collecting.

We have gotten into the groove of books on tape which has been wonderful. The monkey and I really love them and the Bean.....not so much at this moment. We have listened to The Penderwicks (i loved this one), How to Eat fried Worms (an oldie but a goodie), Pipi Longstocking, Superfudge (i was disappointed to find that they de-bunk Santa but I think the Monkey missed it) , Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great, Ramona Quimbly Age 8, Ramona and her Mother, Toys Go Out (al three of us liked this one), I feel like a am missing a few but right now we are listening to Whittington.

We are also working our way through the Little House series. We started with Farmer boy as suggested by a friend. We are about to finish Little House in the Big Woods and move to Little House on the Praire by Thanksgiving. It is very inspiring to go back to simple living.

I recently made an order to Singapose Math. We got the first math text and work book that was way to simple for the Monkey when we got it so the Bean is working on it. It is going well, she likes ot have her own workbooks. I also ordered their English Grammar book that we are working our way through and seem to like. The Monkey does a journal entry every morning and I pick 2-3 vocabulary words for him to copy from his entry. I really like this exercise but he does not feel so fondly about it to say the least. (oh, the drama) I also picked up a collection of basic science books that is good at covering the basics and filling in some holes that the Monkey may be missing.

We have also found the best website ever for kids - BrainPop and BrainPopjr. We signed up for a year and we have already gotten our moneys worth. We are a family that uses the computer and I feel it is a great tool for learning. The monkey will spend good chunks of time just wandering through learning about this and that. It is a great jumping off point for many topics of discussion. In the Health category there is a section there are many topics that you would think would be there but there are also bits on internet safety, relationships and even divorce. The last topic I really appreciated how they covered this topic. I have talked to the Monkey before about the divorce but it seemed to sink in a bit further with the websites presentation. (it was very well done)

As always the Monkey is asking for more and more science. BrainPop seems to fill that need when he has an itch for new information. This winter will be the season for busting out the microscope and discovering the micro world around us. I am reading Good Germs, Bad Germs by Jessica Snyder Sachs. It has my brain buzzing with amazing information and I am still on chapter one. I am slowly going through this chapter because it covers the initial colonization of the human body at and after childbirth. So cool and fascinating how the system has come up with its own perfect way of working and protecting itself over time evolving with microorganisms. I am taking the time to let it sink in and work through in my head how this process is getting completely thrown out of whack by modern obstetrics. Maybe just maybe it could be one of the reasons we have chronic immune disorders, so many more allergies, and who knows what else. It covers beautifully how the body is built to fight against the infection of Gonorrhea, Clymidia and Group B strep in the newborn at chilbirth - the wonderful Lactobaccili which feed on the sugary glycogen that the vaginal environment starts producing midway through the pregnancy. There is so much more in this book that is opening so many new strains of thought for me. It is mind candy :)

In other exciting kid news we have discovered the wonder of Playmobil. I am in love. One thing that is great is that both kids can have their sets and build on them be it princesses or roman warriors but they can be played with together and interchangeably. We had done that with our mishmosh of toys over the years but it works better when they are all the same kind of toy. I may be a toy snob here but it just flows better. AND they are affordable! I feel like I can pop out and get the kids a treat of a new Playmobil thing for $8.

My plan is to update here on our travels as Life Learners and for the family update thing. I should try to update everyday - I make no promises but I shall try.

(btw- if you read the last post you would have noticed that i did not quite follow my "curriculum" that I came up with- we ditched time4learning and then found BrainPop. This is an ever changing path for us and we seem to be taking awhile to get our sea legs but my homeschool fairy has helped greatly! We did finish the Bone series as far as it is available at this time and are eagerly awaiting the release of book 9 in 2009)

our homeschooling

this year i am trying to get more organized and having a "curriculum" this year that i wrote. nothing big but some jumping off points. Aesops Fables, The Story of the World, the Little house series, time4learning, journaling, some science books but the coolest thing about this year is that we have fallen into graphic novels. the monkey and i are on the third book of Bone. we love it!

the bean picked up and Adventures in OZ which looks really interesting.

I was excited to find that the library had Hayao Miyazaki's -Kiki's Delivery Service, Spirited Away and My Neighbor Tortoro in "picture book".

I even found an adapted Moby Dick graphic novel. I am going to try to order this from the library or if anyone wants to get this for us for christmas that would be cool too....wink wink ;).

Link to a list of graphic novels for young readers.

Zombies and Logic

Before I met Big Daddy zombies rarely entered my mind. During our courting period I was told that I had to watch Cemetery Man, Big Daddy's all time favorite film at the time(it still may be but I do not want to make any assumptions on his behalf). At the time my favorite films were those about the Holocaust and Roberto Benigni movies. I thought Cemetery Man was campy and did not appreciate it as I might now being more acclimated to zombies. I can still picture the flies suspended by fishing wire.

Since then I have only been subjected to watch a few other zombie flicks. I am usually not able to sit through the whole thing. The most recent was Zombies Anonymous.

In the evenings Big Daddy will relax by playing Resident Evil on the PSII. Not something I would deem relaxing but to each their own. I usually need to leave the room when he plays. What can I say I am a delicate bird. ;)

Being that we had a boy first it did not take long to our fair child to find a love for zombies like his father. The bean has recently become aware of the zombie undertones in our lives. A few months ago the bean came into the TV room upstairs where Big Daddy and I were hanging out and she was worried about zombies getting her. She was genuinely concerned.

We could not convince her that zombies are not real. So Big Daddy resorted to logic.
-He asked the Bean how zombies walk.
-The bean held her arms out straight and did the zombie walk, she even moaned like a zombie.
-He then asked her "if zombies walk like that how would the open a door to get in the house?"
-She realized that zombies could not open doors and felt better.
-She then trotted off to bed.

Parenting is not as I thought it would be but it makes it that much more interesting.

Next I will post about my children's obsession with amputees. Oh, the conversations we have ;)

What a weekend!

Thursday I had a hankering for La Fiesta so the kids and I walked down for lunch. While there an old friend from the Zing days walked in with his wife. I always thought Ian was Big Daddy's little brother in another place and time. I invited them over for dinner Friday evening as a surprise for big daddy. Dinner and an exciting game of Clue! Big Daddy was pleasantly surprised. It was really nice to hang out with Ian and his wife(plus he was homeschooled so I got to pick his brain)

Saturday I was up early to head off to Julie's to help get ready for the wedding she was catering that evening. I had a really good time. I miss working in food. Julie is an amazing cook and my car has smelled amazing since Saturday. I was supposed to help through the entire event but my client called at 6pm-ish cookin' in labor. A couple of phone calls after the initial call I headed out to her house and she was in transition. She was very chill- so smiley and sweet. When we got to the hospital she was complete. The baby was born a few hours later but she had a bit of trouble stabilizing after delivery- nothing big but I didn't feel comfortable leaving. I got home about 3:30am.

Sunday morning my sister-in-law was coming out with my nieces to hang out. Big daddy was off to help a friend build a fence. Mom had talked about going to the Heritage Festival but I was soooo not up for it. My sis-in-law sensed that and suggested we just hang out. I was beat and very thankful to just chill at home. My sister-in-law lectured me on my life and how she is concerned about me and my well-being. It was very sweet but what could I say?

I am feeling recovered today. Yesterday was a bit funky but today is good.

simple gifts

The other night I had a prenatal and a postpartum visit. I ended up driving all over town after a day of driving to Auburn Hills (the Monkey, Nona and I took the Bean to go see The Wiggles).
I was actually able to keep my visits to one hour each so I was not gone until really late.
As I was driving home I reflected on the simple gifts in life. My family was one amazing gift I have. My wonderful friends, chosen family was another. An unexpected great gift were kind clients who gave me gifts of cucumbers and home brewed beer at my appointments.

Simplicity is my mantra. Balance is my goal.

summer flies by

summer flies by in a flurry of births, teaching, gardening, hanging out with family but i feel like we have done nothin' extra ordinary. other than the Massachusetts trip which was awesome.

We had three birthdays two of which were in the birth marathon week. three clients went in a seven day period. so i spent my bday at the hospital slightly sleep deprived. It usually takes a bit to recover from that so big daddys bday was spent quietly but i did go to the va-jay-jay sewing party and yes i did sew a va-jay-jay. but it was an early night-big daddy stopped by the party for food then we snuggled up at home and had a quiet night in. we took a day trip to bad axe to see my pregger sister-inlaws which was wonderful. been hanging out with some good old friends two of which just moved home (YAY!). we hit beer fest for the first time and had some good beer. I got issue VII of the birth project out just a little late but done. I had a complete melt down and sent the kids to my dads over night and spent every minute working to catch up on life and it felt great! btw - THE BIRTH PROJEC TIS NOW CARRIED AT CRAZY WISOM BOOKSTORE AND NICOLA'S BOOKS IN ANN ARBOR! we are still working on shamen drum, the buyer tyler seems to be ignoring me. but he will hear form me again. and i worked as an extra one night for the movie whip it! in detroit. that was an experience.

i feel like i have been busy but i am not sure with what. lots of laundry that is for sure. writing a schedule/cirriculum for the kids for this year, power washing my deck, and trying to pull $ out of thin air.

as usual when i get bored i need a new project so i have decided to attempt to write a screenplay. yes that is right i am jumping into those merky waters but i think i have a great idea so i am going to give it a shot. i have talked to some folks already about how to do it and off i am running. plotting scene sketches. character background and development and learning the craft and rules of screenwriting.

so folks that is it. the update. so i will now follow with a random photo update for my dad since he always likes the photos. ;) oh, and i cut 14 inches off my hair. like it?

Benefits of having a spontaneous mother.

Today, after dropping off the dog at the groomer for his annual hair chop, the kids and I decided to go for a bike ride.

Well, this bike ride turned into quite an event - We rode the B2B route from our house to Zingermans Deli in Kerry town and back. That ride is 17 miles. 17 miles that my awesome 7 year old completed. Without a peep of negativity or complaint he took the challenge on with the heart of a super trooper. The bean rode shotgun on my bike and also embraced the event with enthusiasm. She saw it as a good time to practice letters and sing rubber ducky (solo mind you - shhe nixed mom joining in the singing).

About half way through the ride home I was wondering if the monkey was hanging in ok. I stopped by St. Jo hospital for a break and decided to call my mom for a kid pick up and as soon as he heard what I was doing he hopped back on his bike and said he wanted to ride. He got his second wind.

He got a blister, another owie on the bottom of his other foot, scrapped his ankle on the petal and plowed on through it all.

He dropped his chain on the path behind my neighborhood. He said that it was a nice break. I tried to fix it then two nice ladies were walking by and they stopped to help.

It was a good day. The dog is lookin' good. Sam is feeling enormously accomplished. So am I and the only bad part was the sunburn on my shoulders from not expecting to be riding for 3.5 hours. Whoops :)

Cocktail of the hour

fresh squeezed raw rhubarb juice (sugar added)
with fresh squeezed apple and carrot juice
on ice
with Jack Daniels
and melon pieces
with a straw

The Big Trip

In three days we will be going on our first family trip. We have taken small trips to Bad Axe to see the in-laws and the like but nothing like a true family vaca.

We are leaving Thursday on the high speed road trip to Massachusetts for one day of the North American Amphibian Conference and back Monday for me to go back on call.

We will be going via Canada to see Niagra Falls. That has been the first destination on the "take the kids" list. Thursday evening we will be staying with some friends in Buffalo.

Friday morning we will be up and off to Massachusetts to camp for the night. The camp site says black bears are common visitors to the site. Big daddy told the kids and now they are a wee bit freaked out. I must admit I am too a bit tweeked but I am trying to be rational about the fact that they will most likely leave us alone even if they come around.

Saturday we will take big daddy to the conference to suck in some knowledge, schmooze a bit and get some new creatures for his collection. The spawnlings and I will go to the hotel to dink around for a bit. Maybe check out some local museums or attractions or just play in the indoor pool :). Big daddy will join us sometime later that night.

Sunday we are off to see the dinosaur tracks south of Erving Ma. The monkey is super geeked about it! Then we round it back home vis States side, maybe staying Sunday night in Buffalo at our friends or driving straight through. Not sure yet.

Whew! Home again Home again jiggity jig.

And I go back on call until September.

I Love Dirt!

For my fathers birthday yesterday he took my kids for the day and over night. It was his idea. They came up to see his soccer game (they got creamed again but they had fun), we went to Aubree's for pizza and off they went.

For my free afternoon I had made plans to go out and work on my friends garden. They had 10 beautiful acres and are working a big plot this year for vegetables. Maybe adding an herb garden at some point this year. The long term plan is for a hearty farm going in a couple of years. She has other awesome ideas for the land that I am excited to see grow. For two hours we weeded about 300 sq. feet and planted about 80 tomato plants. I got so dirty, it was great.

I got home, we grilled up some chicken with out North Carolina BBQ Sauce (we may have converted to the south side), lit up the fire pit and later watched the rest of LOST. We are now officially caught up and have to wait months upon months for our next installment.

Update and Thunderstorms.

I got the tooth out on Monday. I hated doing it but it is what he wanted. I will post a pic tomorrow. The root was huge, I doubt it would have come out on its own. Since the extraction his adult tooth has been moving forward. It is crazy to see the change day to day.

Tonight FINALLY the thunderstorms came. I feel better now. Plus my garden gets watered. ( i love planting, pruning, and gardening but hate watering.) My inner water conservationist is at conflict with my gardener. (donn has brain washed me!)

Mommy Resume

Among the many skills that I have acquired in my career as a mother I am now adding Amature Dentist.

You may remember a few months back I posted the monkey's front tooth that is coming in shark style (behind the still intact baby tooth). Well that baby tooth was not budging. I gave the monkey time to try to work it out on his own since he is terrified at the idea of a shot in his mouth. Finally I made the executive decision to call the dentist. I made an appointment for the extraction but did not tell the wee man about it. A few days later wee man came to it on his own that we should call the dentist, I later found out he was not completely convinced of his idea.

I did end up taking the monkey to the dentist, unfortunately it did not go as planned. He freaked out. It was frustrating because I just wanted to get it over with. He asked me to pull his tooth out because he really didn't want the shot and did not want to go to a dentist that he didn't know (a pediatric dentist).

Ok, I need to mention here that I was kind of peeved at my dentist during this visit. After I told the monkey that he was going to be getting his tooth pulled today and we dropped his sister off at a friends house, I told him I would be in the room with him - holding his hand or feet and sing to him if we wants. We talked about not looking at the shot and that it would not really hurt. We were waiting in the dentist office for our turn and they came and told the monkey it was his turn. We both stood up to go in and he walked on with the hygienist and the dentist stepped in front of me and told me to wait out here. I tried to tell her that he had had a traumatizing dental experience when he was three that he very much remembers and was anxious about this visit. She informed me that things go better without the parents which I understand but I told him I would be in there with him and they didn't let me talk to him about it. I found the poor communication with myself and my son disappointing and slightly infuriating.

Back to my career as an amature dentist. The monkey was serious when he asked me to pull his tooth out so that afternoon I got to work while watching noggin for a distraction. A yank here, a twist there, then I really put some weight into it and leveraged against his other tooth and *snap* part of whatever was keeping the tooth stuck gave. He yelped for a minute then looked at me and said "that was a good one mom!"

We are still working on it but it will come it seems.... soon. We will keep you posted.

ebay phobic and big daddy steps in.

right now my young boy is into Heroscape
i found him the marvel set on clearance and he and his dad decided they needed a bigger set to play. i researched it and found the Master Set.
ok, so we really want to buy it but we could not find it in town. so smart big daddy checked it out on ebay AND WE WON IT!
i am an ebay phobe big time but it was so exciting to watch it down to the clock (which apparently you are not supposed to do)
ROCK ON!

ps. we are buying it because the monkey is getting a tooth pulled on wednesday. poor guy. but he is being a mini man about it.