Chronicles of Chaos
July 6, 2011
Oliver rode his bike for the first time last week. He pulled his red hand me down bike out of the garage, put his foot on the pedal and started to ride. It was that simple. After two years scooting around on the LIKEaBIKE he was ready, the bike came easy. Wyatt had the same seamless transition at five years old, just as they outgrow the LIKEaBIKE. I’m still amazed.
Our first go around with Amelia learning to ride involved training wheels and a lot of running behind the bike, falls on the grass, and scraped knees. Training wheels are helpful but they rattle and the bike dips from side to side and I never knew how much I didn’t prefer them until once again I’ve avoided them. Or the achy back from hunching over to hold the back of the seat while she learned to stay upright. The first few days Oliver sometimes wanted a little help holding the handle bars straight as he started out, now he’s completely on his own.
I love the LIKEaBIKE for preschoolers, hands down the boys’ favorite. The fact that it also teaches them to ride a bike makes it even better.
June 8, 2011
Today is the last day of school and I’m thrilled. The kids and I need to go nowhere for awhile–right now I think we could do nothing for the entire summer. Allegra Goodman (The Cookbook Collector) wrote a short story “La Vita Nuovo” about a young woman looking after a boy one summer in Boston. The first day they decide to do nothing and from there whimsically explore the city, eating ice cream, riding the T, walking along the river. Their freedom reads like a fairy tale.
For some kids, camps are a great escape, an adventure from routine. We fall into the one or two week of camp max category. The rest of the days we hold a loose schedule of waking up, checking our energy level and then formulating a plan. We bike, hike, take swim lessons, go to the library, make picnics. Often summer themes develop, last year most days we walked our puppy to the coffee shop for late morning eggs and afternoons rode bikes up and down the same hill.
I book some babysitting time, play days with other kids to keep the mood positive. The kids still fight and they also build forts. We go to bed a little later and wake up slower. And as much as I can’t wait to begin, by the end of August I will long for the arrival of the morning school bus. Summer is perfect that way.
June 1, 2011
We are all creative in our own ways, teacher gifts have not been my forte. I spend weeks pondering and debating ideas and then scramble the last day to assemble. I’m so thankful for teachers and their care for my kids that I struggle to find the best way to honor them. After five years of this pattern, it’s dawned on me that whether I’m looking for a gift to buy or the kids to make, I’m going for illusive perfection.
Last May six hours into canning raspberry jam with berries picked from our garden, homemade labels by the kids and a kitchen stained red, I looked at the four tiny jam jars on the counter and thought, is that all? Surely after reaching this extreme we should have jars and jars, enough to stock a Whole Foods shelf. I made a silent vow to go small next time, think simple.
This year, the kids and I talked about potting a plant, making bookmarks, finding a special book. We’ve decided on fruit from the Sunday farmers market. We’re not sure yet on presentation, maybe a basket or decorated tote or even paper bag, with a handmade card–paints with potato or sponge stamps, coloring pens or pencils, or crayons. And once the craziness of the end of school settles, I’m going to write a note to the teachers sharing my appreciation for their work and sparkle with the kids. I’m surprised at how much I enjoy writing these letters, to reflect on the year and what it’s been about for the kids. As school years start to speed up, I love how the letters slow time for a moment.
May 2, 2011
The boys and I cleared out their shelves this weekend for a school book drive. I’m amazed at how many books we stacked into bags, after so many years we parted with some of our favorites.
I thought about picking a few to save, and then imagined carrying the books with me for the next 20 to 30 years until a grandchild might open them again. I will likely save one or two, but to remember them all I quickly emailed myself a list. Here are some of our best-loved. I’ve starred the ones that I could read over and over and those that had a way of bringing tears to my eyes.
A Friend for Growl Bear by Margot Austin
Pelle’s New Suit by Elsa Beskow
*Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Fuzzy by Sandra Boynton
Stone Soup as told by Marcia Brown
*The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
*Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney
*Eight Animals Bake a Cake by Susan Middleton Elya and Lee Chapman
*Stella Princess of the Sky by Marie-Louise Gay More
April 11, 2011
In the Sunday paper I notice the article, “Older Parents Find More Joy in Their Bundles” and immediately think, Aha! My suspicions are correct–mothers 40 and up are happier compared to the unhappy women in their 20s and 30s slogging it out with career and kids.
My theory has been that women who have kids in their 40s have achieved certain milestones in career and life, except and perhaps notably for some, having children. They’ve seen the world and advanced their piece. Older moms also have reached an age where pregnancy becomes more challenging, giving the joy of bearing or adopting or surrogating a child greater resonance.
I read through the article and discover the new research has more to do with parents in general in their 40s and older who have children than my older first time parent definition. In other words I might be happier in my 40s with my 10, 7 and 5 year olds just like my happier 40 something neighbor with her newborn. My happiness may come from the liberation of the 8 to 3 school day, while hers originates with a six month old’s smile. More