why walk? (a movie)

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in which isla decides scooting is easier.

little walker (a movie)

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in which isla lou walks!

found

after i returned home from a neighborhood meeting on a recent evening.

biker girl

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in which isla speeds around the slab in the backyard, and also makes funny lips.

rainy day

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this one has a surprise ending!

on belay

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in which noah enjoys swinging around in his harness during his rock climbing class at the ymca.

mah jong

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in which noah and isla go crazy with aunt irene's mah jong tiles.

foundation pour

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aaron, his dad and two friends work on smoothing out the cement for the shop foundation.

more noah-isms

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"thank you. than-kyou. you said, 'Q'!"

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"in. in. 'in' starts with 'N!'"

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upon checking out a dead snake in the street.
me: what did the snake feel like?
noah: what?
me: how did it feel? slimy? rough?
noah: it felt...sad.
me: it felt sad? (trying not to laugh.)
noah: sad like, 'waaa-waaa-waaa!' (pretend cry.)

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for some reason we are sitting on the kitchen floor, and i am feeding noah and isla bites of applesauce.
me: you guys are like baby birds! or like owl babies.
noah: you are the mama owl.
me: who will you be?
noah: i'll be the biggest one.
me: which one was that? sarah, or percy, or bill?
noah: sarah.
me: which one will isla be?
noah: bill.
me: then we need someone else to be percy. how about isla's dolly stella?
noah: okay! (runs to get stella. brings her back triumphantly. sets her down next to us.)
me: here, babies, eat your applesauce! (i feed them bites of applesauce. they eat.)
me: noah, would you like to have another sister or brother someday? do you want to have more than two kids in our house?
noah: yeah! i want to have three little sisters!
me: wow, really? would you be a good big brother to all of those little sisters? would you help them?
noah: i would give them each a car. isla could have a car, another baby could have a car, and the last little baby could have a truck.

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planning isla's birthday celebration.
noah: isla should have a clean party, because i already had a messy party.

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at 8:30am saturday.
noah: is it tomorrow yet?

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we are walking down our street.
noah: what does that sign say?
me: no parking.
noah: it doesn't say 'no parking.' it says 'no parking this side.'

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at the kitchen table, after noah asked for some food and was served.
noah: no, i don't want it.
noah: 'honey, you asked for it!'

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listening to a piano concerto on NPR.
me: what's this fancy music?
noah: it's not fancy music, it's old-fashioned music.

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on fiddling with the underside of the vacuum and finding a roller part that flips up.
noah: look--it's dolly wheels for a vacuum!

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after putting the board book "baby faces" on his new tractor trailer truck.
noah: look--i made a book truck. a library truck. a bookmobile!

and you shall teach them

last sunday st. paul's began our godly play program--to a room FULL of children! i am really happy to be part of this program. i can't imagine a better way for noah to begin learning about our faith. i wasn't sure how he'd do in the 45-minute class, where quiet listening is a big part of what needs to happen. but it looked like he was interested in the story and then in the craft he chose to work on afterwards. he also seemed intrigued by all the other kids, and happy be part of something with the bigger boys.

there's a pretty informative video about godly play here. and this is from the godly play website: "Godly Play teaches children the art of using religious language - parable, sacred story, silence and liturgical action - helping them become more fully aware of the mystery of God’s presence in their lives." it is not about learning the answers; it's about wondering.

on sunday those of us who will "teach" in godly play and other programs were commissioned by our congregation. this is from that service:

the words which i command you this day shall be upon your hearts; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

v. we will recount to generations to come the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the lord:

r. and the wonderful works he has done.

skuut skuut skuut

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in which noah skuuts along the interurban trail on the way to woodstock farm.

silverware crash (a movie)

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in which isla helps unload the dishwasher.

breakfast conversation

me: daddy might drop you off at school today. would you like that?

noah: i will show him the tractor-trailer dump truck.

me: it's not a regular dump truck?

noah: it's a tractor trailer dump truck. the dumper is hooked to the trailer.

me: oh. is there a hitch?

noah: no. there's a rope. the hitch is lost.

me: oh. i wonder where it could be?

noah: maybe it is with lucy.

me: lucy? what's that?

noah: the doggie kate used to have.

me: ooohh. and where did lucy go?

noah: where?

me: did she go to heaven?

noah: yeah, lucy went to heaven.

me: and you think the tractor-trailer dump truck hitch might be in heaven too?

noah: yeah, it is in heaven.

me: how do you get to heaven?

noah: on an airplane.

me: can you go on a boat?

noah: no. just an airplane.

first first day

today was noah's first day of preschool! i can't believe what a big boy he is becoming. he was very excited for school today--packed up his backpack and hopped in the bike trailer, saying, "mama, ride!" when i dropped him off he checked out a few rooms and settled on... you guessed it, the cars and trucks area. he kept asking if certain toys were the preschool's, meaning, am i really allowed to play with all this stuff? he is in awe of how often they say yes at loving space.

check it out here. the website is lovely and does a nice job of explaining their educational philosophy, which they've taken from a variety of sources. basically, it's this: Together we celebrate what childhood should be: a time to explore the world unhurried, surrounded by friends and encouraging grown ups in an environment filled with endless supplies and opportunities for creative play. it's much more play than school, but i do not doubt that lots of learning will happen there as well. and another plus: it's in our neighborhood! i'm looking forward to the walks there and back as times to process what noah has been busy with at school.

when we signed noah up, we were asked what our hopes and fears are for noah as he begins school.

i fear that he will be hurt, or that he will hurt others. i fear that he will learn things that he's not ready to learn (or that i'm not ready for him to learn). i fear that he will lose his gentleness, that he will become a rough, wild boy, a member of a pack. i fear that he will no longer need me.

i hope that he will laugh heartily. i hope he will make friends, and feel welcomed, and feel ownership, and feel safe. i hope he will be challenged--to get messy, to play in ways outside his comfort, to express his feelings, to protect his needs, to share. i hope he will learn positive ways to resolve conflicts and to work cooperatively. i hope he will grow confident, strong and capable. i hope that he will have lots and lots of fun.

happy birthday, little girl!

happy one to my lovely little girl!

noah and i took isla on a birthday adventure to fairhaven, where we hit up the bookstore, the toy store and the pastry shop. then we had a leisurely playtime at boulevard park and a nice walk home. it was a beautiful day to turn one!

the birthday princess waits for the bus

on the bus

much fun at the park

noah tried out the pirate's life

new birthday ball

crab crawl along the boardwalk

an attempt at candle-blowing-out

noah took over candle-blowing; this is hilarious

she's a fan of the cream cheese frosting, not so much the cupcake

new birthday artwork
(see http://www.idapearle.com/)

oh happy one!

hello?

isla right now

* says "uh-oh," "ma-mum," and "up." "uh-oh" usually accompanies the throwing down of her pacifier or a snack she's done with.
* signs "milk" and "more," but only when she feels like it.
* scoots all over the place, on her bum with one leg in front. is beginning to pull herself up on furniture.
* follows me and/0r noah around the house. is literally underfoot most of the time. (i have to be careful not to step on her!)

* mastered the "snack trap" in a matter of seconds. munches thousands of veggie booty puffs via said snack trap.
* goes through about five outfits a day.
* is very interested in books. turns pages and says, "oh!" (the cutest thing ever.)
* loves the coffee grinder. bops and claps when we grind coffee.

* loves the beach, and water of all kinds. crawls right up to the sprayers at the spray park.
* loves beach sand, sandbox sand, and dirt of all kinds. also leaves, sticks, grass, rocks.
* loves the bath and focuses on trying to drink bath water.

* has seven teeth, one of which still looks a bit like a fang.
* eats everything she can get her tiny hands on. except shredded spoonfuls cereal. these she does not like.
* loves her new sippy cup, and drinks with gusto. then coughs.
* has probably eaten about a thousand blueberries this week alone.

* loves to unpack the diaper bag, the laundry basket, noah's shoe box, the book shelf, etc.
* does not want to sleep anymore. especially if noah is not in the room.
* loves balls. taps them together, rolls them to noah.
* loves her daddy and claps and waves when he comes home.

lately

spray parks:

berry picking:
munching:

and digging:

mid-july

means:

the freezer is full of strawberries.
raspberries are on the counter in bowls, ready to be processed.
blueberries are ripening.
we have peas on our vines, finally.
the cilantro has gone to seed.
the green tomatoes are heavy.
the lawn needs to be mowed.
we are jet-lagged.
our dear friend steve got married.
we had lots of fun in new england.
our suitcases are still packed.
clean laundry is piled up on the living room rug.
isla says "uh-oh."
she scoots everywhere.
she wrecks noah's train set-ups.
she sits up in bed.
she eats tons of food.
noah does not wear diapers anymore.
he spends hours every day reading quietly.
he loves the beach.
he can't wait for preschool this fall.
trees have been chopped down in the backyard.
plans have been approved for the garage.
this weekend we'll dig.
the sailboat has been sold.
now we kayak.
and walk in a stroller with lovely seat covers.
i dream of many creative projects...
and fall asleep at 8:30pm.
i am slowly uploading pictures to flickr.
and trying to blog less, write letters more.

happy summer to you all!