A Colorful Reminder

Savoy Elementary School, Washington DC

The Local Rink

I spotted them on the drive home. 

I urged Noah to look out of his window, but he found Spider Man more compelling than geese. I pulled into our driveway, ran inside to grab my camera, and made a final attempt to interest Noah in a goose viewing adventure, but he was still snarled in Spider Man's web and barely raised his head. So I headed down the path by myself.

And there they were. Like hockey players: big, chunky, and confident on the ice. Strutting about, ruffling feathers, impervious to me, until one of them slipped a bit on the ice and I giggled. I couldn't help it. It was like watching one of the cool kids stumble and it gave me a geeky thrill of pleasure.

Slumber Party Envy

Tonight I wished I was an eleven year old boy. 

This weekend we are hosting a sleep-over celebration for Noah and his buddies. So far it has been a success. With a nod to the Sochi Olympics, we organized our own series of timed events involving a huge number of straws, q-tips, m&ms, plastic cups, candy boogers, and laughter. And during dinner, I couldn't keep from grinning in the kitchen as I listened to the boys break into detailed book discussions about The Hobbit and Divergent. It was every geeky mama's wish for an enjoyable evening with a house full of boys who are on the cusp of middle school, but still so sweet, so funny, and still so into Legos. 

But in addition to enjoying the wild and raucous evening, it also stirred up some unpleasant memories and made me wish I could travel back in time to re-do the traumatic slumber parties of the 1980s.  The ones where scary movies twisted me up inside. The ones where all of the other girls had Strawberry Shortcake sleeping bags while I had my homemade rainbow quilt which lacked the sophistication and polyester I yearned for so dearly. The ones where Bloody Mary, Ouija Boards, and Light As A Feather, Stiff As A Board freaked me out. And the ones where I always fall asleep first which resulted in being "slumbered"...waking up with toothpaste and shaving cream caked on my face, marker drawings on my legs, and the embarrassing bloody nose (why did I get so many bloody noses as a kid?). I hated slumber parties.

Makes me happy and a wee bit jealous to see my boy enjoying slumber parties so much more than I ever did.

Sweet Love

Valentine's Day 2014

Cookies made by Camille and Emee, homemade valentines made by all of us, Lego hearts made by the adults, and a very special snow surprise made by Adam (a huge heart in the back yard with A+L made out of twigs in the center). It certainly was a very sweet day.

Eleven

Happy Birthday, Noah!

Sunday Morning in Rock Creek Park

We found an owl pellet. We spotted four deer. We raced each other. And Noah begged and whined to skip Sunday school. I didn't cave, but I was tempted. It was so darn nice to be out in the woods with my kids. Just the three of us, without long johns or gloves, tromping through muddy,decaying leaves.