Dalmation Mollies - Here and Gone

February.

It's a big month in our house. Anna's birthday, Anders birthday, my sister's birthday, and 2 other family members birthdays, and a slew of close friends also born in this same month. It's such a packed 28 days. Oh, right, and then there is the wonderful Valentine's Day bonus!

At our house we are in the midst of cutting wooden dowels and painting magician wands. I bought 6 yards of black shiny fabric at the store today to make magician's capes, and Anna and I have found a 17 year old high school student who can do magic tricks who is willing to come and entertain five year olds. And I love all of it. You might think I am crazy, but the artist/mom/party planner in me gets such a kick out of bringing it all together. I might not always feel this way, nor have this much energy about birthdays, but I currently do, so I am going with it. Can you guess that the theme of Anders birthday party is magic. It was his choice and quite honestly, I am not even sure how he got fixed on it - but he did and so we are off and running.



His birthday was actually on Friday. It was simple and fun and celebrated by the four of us and Anders' Mor Mor. He got a 10 gallon fish tank from her and it's been thrilling for him. We are all learning about how to have fish and keep them alive. The first day he got 2 dalmation mollies and they died by the morning. We just replaced them with a guppie and another kind of fish recommended by the pet store, but that one looks as if it is also about to take a trip down the toilet as well. Keeping fish is more complicated than it appears and cleary we do not understand yet what factors are problematic. We thought it was the water temperature but that seems under control, so now we are on to problemsolving session number two. Anders is so happy about it all, even though his first two fish didn't make it. On the way home from the pet store the second time, Anders said "Mom, I think I am going to name these two fish before they die. I didn't name the other ones." I am so interested in watching his involvement and response to this experience. We haven't yet had any pets so the death aspect of life is new in our home. It seems with fish there isn't a lot of emotional attachment - scooping them in the net and flushing them down the toilet was just as much fun as choosing them at the pet store. But this will be continued....I am sure there will be much more to report on this as time passes. And if you only have a fish for less than 24 ours, you haven't had much opportunity to build a relationship. With names it might be different. Bumble (the guppie) is swimming up a storm right now, and whiskers (the other fish) is still in the same spot it was a few hours ago. Stay tuned.

Anders First Ski Lesson

Random Snapshots with Round Objects

Live By Example

I love the blog - Cheerio Road http://www.mommazen.blogspot.com/

If you haven't yet seen it check it out. It is written by the Zen Buddist priest, Karen Maezen Miller, who also happened to write the book Momma Zen. Both are lovely. I am going to copy and paste below a recent entry of hers called The Monestary of Mom and Dad. I loved it. It's just a great arrow of reminders for how to have a wonderful life with kids.

A cozy set of practical guidelines for mindful parents:

Practice in plain sight. Place your zafu, or meditation cushion, in a conspicuous place in your home, such as on your bedroom floor. As you pass by, let it invite you to practice meditation daily. Even five minutes morning or night can turn your life around.

Live by routine. Take the needless guesswork out of meals and bedtimes. Let everyone relax into the predictable flow of a healthy and secure life.

Elevate the small. And overlook the large. Want to change the world? Forget the philosophical lessons. Instruct your child in how to brush his teeth, and then do it, together, twice a day.

Turn off the engines. Discipline TV and computer usage and reduce artificial distraction, escapism, and stimulation. This begins with you.

Give more attention. And less of everything else. Devote one hour a day to giving undistracted attention to your children. Not in activities driven by your agenda, but according to their terms. Use a timer to keep yourself honest. Undivided attention is the most concrete expression of love you can give.

Take a break. Before you break in two. Designate a chair in your home as a "quiet chair," where you can retreat to decelerate conflicts. Or walk around the block and see how quickly your own two feet can stamp out the fire on your head. Suggestion: change out of bathrobe before leaving house.

Be the first to apologize. Practice the miracle of atonement and instantly restore household harmony. By your doing, your children will learn how.

Be the last to know. Refrain from making judgments and foregone conclusions about your children. Watch their lives unfold, and be surprised. The show is splendid, and yours is the best seat in the house.

Clay

We've been working with clay lately. Making a series of clay faces to hang on the wall. There is a difference between an almost 5 year old's ability to focus and concentrate and a 2 year old's. Anders was hard at work - and Kuba was not really willing to sit down. It was touch, poke, and go for him. It is all about the experience anyway. We are just plain old lucky that we get to use clay on a Friday night in our very own home, no matter what our level of concentration.


Here is Anders first face. Gotta love it!

Call me a Madwoman!

Okay, call me a madwoman! I thought Kuba looked so completely adorable this evening and all I wanted was one good photo...so I chased him with the camera...scaring him a little I think, and also catching nothing. I even followed him up the stairs. But he really was not cooperating...and so you just have to believe me that he was absolutely the cutest boy in the whole wide world tonight...ski boots on, onesie hanging out, Anna's hat on his head with the green dangling ball. He looked simply adorable.

TWO

I never did manage to post Kuba's second birthday photo....so here it is - and with last year's photo when Kuba just turned one! I feel like he has been so big for so long that I would hardly notice a difference in the two photo's, but clearly...he has grown.