And now for something completely different
Fierce pirate or Russian grandmother? You decide:
Also, my parents are back in town! They’ve come to help out while Dan chases elk through the mountains with a stick, I mean, his very powerful primitive bow. The kids are so excited to have Baba and Nana here. Rosie has been coaching herself gently and firmly. “And then we’ll go see Baba and Nana but we’re not just going to walk in and say, “so, can we have a present?”
~this time of year there is never not a zucchini on the table~
Also, if Col’s Lego interest could be charted on a graph, you’d see a tremendous spike for September, 2011. This weekend he was piecing together an alien-piloted plane with a meteor-proof, detachable windshield and was starting to mutter sort of loonily to himself. And maybe he was even drooling a little. And I wondered if maybe the Lego thing had gone a little too far, if maybe Col had spent a few too many hours on our living room floor snapping together flying submarines and impersonating meteor explosions which sounded strangely like beatboxing competitions, circa 1985. And then I read this post by Natalie, she’s brilliant.
Also, Rose’s new hula hooping prowess has spawned a video and the new household philosophy that if you practice anything enough you can get good at it. I am practicing being bored by Col and Rose’s daily shenanigans. She put your shoe in the compost bucket? Hmn. Bor-ing.
(I don’t know why the video blurs Rose’s face like the people getting handcuffed on cop shows – if anyone’s savvy to this, please let me know. Also, thanks to Row-Bear who gave me this Flip video camera last year)
Rose, hula hooping
http://vimeo.com/28913042
Oh. And this.
Also, a friendly warning: some of the aspens are throwing in the towel on summer.
What are you practicing these days?
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thank you so much for the link to Natalie’s post! so dang true!! fortunately or unfortunately, i am married to a psychotherapist who sings this song a good bit. it helps me to read it from someone else! send col on over…max, at 12, still obsesses over legos. my love for my children is measured in how many ‘arms’ i’m willing to save from the vacuum cleaner. i hate those little arms!
That girl’s got moves! Maybe when you go to teach your writing class or your fermenting workshop, Rose can host a hula-hoop demonstration one evening. I imagine it’s good for writer’s block and … yeast block??
So glad to hear that your parents are in town. Hi to them from the Nutley NJ grandparents!
Col with his legos is taking after his father: Dan was obsessively into that – and I think it contributed to his manual dexterity & his ability to focus intently – two major faculties for a hunter – and many other pursuits!
I was always amazed that Dan could look at a mountain of lego pieces and pick out the tiniest odd shape to fit into his design.
Judy – thanks for sharing this about Dan. Today at homeschool co-op Col found 2 deer antlers and some ancient rock-knife pieces. His friend Mathew said, “Col can you teach me how to find cool things?” Playing Legos is definitely good practice for someday finding elk in the mountains.
As a parent to a lego addict, I love this post. I worry sometimes, that he’ll forget the taste for the outdoors. That he’ll become gollum-ish and stroke his legos whispering quietly.’my PRECIOUS!!’….. but then we went to the beach and to a waterfall this weekend and he spent the whole time playing in the dirt and the rocks and stacking them…. sort of like legos. But he’s normal. My fears have been dispelled. Also, please tell Rose I’m inspired by her hula hooping. I’ve been torturing my family for months as I spin and throw my hoop around the living room. They’ve learned to duck and cover as soon as they hear dubstep on the radio.
Anyway, your life told through this blog is always entertaining and so incredibly endearing. Blessings to you all as autumn moves in.
Your garden is so crazy lush! Beautiful. And good luck with finding the kids’ antics boring. I would need valium to reach that state. :P Go Rose! Hula Diva.
Rose hula hooping is exactly what I needed to see as a break from my sometimes serious job. She’s perfect. Thank you. I am practicing… not talking too much in a class that’s partly about the fact that white people talk too much.
Practice boredom? Brilliant!
We’re giving the Critter LEGOs for his birthday on Saturday — a big box of second-hand Duplos from eBay. So very excited about all that will ensue!
That’s so funny about Legos. Yes, we drool and I think I’m such a patient mother. I will listen for hours as they explain their latest ship/submarine/plane invention. I get so fake into it. I’m such an actress. Love that hula video. So sweet! ♥
I’ve been reading a while and so finally thought it time to say hello.
Your writing is beautiful and I find myself drawn back checking for updates to satisfy my hunger for more land, chickens and places to store my fruit and veg.
Time is a wonderful thing. We are working towards it all, but in the meantime…your updates will sustain me.
Bernice
ha, a timely post as we, the whole family, are practicing hula hooping. one of those things I never mastered as a kid and it appears being 40 hasn’t magically bestowed any additional skill. inspired by your video, i’ll keep trying….
I so enjoyed Rosie hula hooping :o) and I loved the way she moved her arms with a different twist than I’ve ever seen :o) I kept saying “you go Rosie” she brought a lot of joy to my heart…and Col…his mind is working ..you don’t know what he will invent..leave him alone or should I say Leggo :o)
I now have a 17 year old who is pretty good at things like chemistry and music. I blame legos in part. Never enough legos. Love the posts as always.