Special visitors

So much fun with Deb and Yvon!

We had some very special visitors this week - "Deb" and Yvon got here late on Thursday afternoon, and it was non-stop partying until the left (amidst some very heartfelt tears) yesterday morning.  Let me give you just a sampling o what went on:

Friday: Trip to Boston!  Really, this means a trip to the Boston aquarium.  It was an especially exciting visit, as the penguins were FINALLY back from vacation, and Myrtle the Turtle came especially to say "hi" to Juniper, as she always does.  Then that night, Clark and I went out to supper at a relatively fancy restaurant ALL BY OURSELVES. So awesome.

(Ok, tell me these garden eels aren't creepy)

Saturday: The morning started out with breakfast at Persey's Place (a regular favourite), followed by a long, energetic swim in the hotel pool.  Then in the afternoon, Juniper got to take Deborah to her weekly knitting and movie event at the Wood's Hole Library, which made her feel pretty big.  

Persey's Place breakfast

Then, in the evening, there was a big dinner party at Fiamma and Rosalba's new house.  An enormous amount of fun was had by all.  At some point, the non-stop music samples on the electric keyboard were turned on, and there was a dance party to end all dance parties.  i would have to say that, based on  creative moves and long-term commitment to the dancing, Juniper won the evening.  Here is a sample with Ben, Liz, Juniper, Linden and Kea:

Sunday: Day #2 in a row with Persey's place and a swim.   Then, after packing everything up, Deborah and Yvon left shortly before noon.  This was very emotional for Juniper, but luckily there was a birthday party at noon to distract her (held at a dance studio - what could be better?)

Swimming REALLY tuckered these kids out

And finally, I just thought I'd add this little anecdote:

So a few days ago, Linden came to my bed in the morning, and instead of saying "I NEED A BREAST", or "I NEED A HUG", he crawled up, snuggled into me, and said "I need my girl". (except it sounded much more like "I need my grill")  So, either he's been listening to too much of The National  (which is a possibility), or he really felt like some BBQ, or he thinks of me as "his girl".  Maybe it is some combo of the three, but I like to think it is the latter.

See you next Monday!

Monday!

levitating

Welcome to your first weekly Monday post!  Not all that much has happened of note since last Friday, so I'll post a couple of pictures, and regale you with snippets of just general life as it is right now.

Linden, now well into his "terrific" twos, is as much a handful, a sweetheart (and at times, a terror) as he has ever been, but his ever-growing ability to communicate makes him relatively hilarious at times as well. More than just mastering sentences, he is also incredibly expressive - a complete facial, body, intonation package. He also makes sure that he is heard and understood.  For instance, we were watching the Nutcracker Ballet the other night (on YouTube), and at one point he queried, "where did the horses go?"
"Ummm - backstage?" I guessed.
"No - went back to the farm. Eating grass, yum yum yum. Neigh!!! Yummy hay, too".  Not getting enough of a reaction, he placed his hand on Juniper's shoulder, put his face directly in hers, and announced "HORSES GO BACK TO THE FARM, JU-A-PER. EAT GRASS." We all acknowledged this clearly important truth, and he went back to studying the ballet in peace for another minute or two.

post-ballet snuggles

He also often expresses himself in needs:
(every morning): I NEED A BREAST!  (to which I usually respond "Linden, I don't think you actually do.  How about we go down and have breakfast?"  But so far, he has managed to convince me, often by placing my head in his hands and repeating himself with his eyes inches from mine that he does in fact "NEED A BREAST")
(often throughout the day): I NEED A HUG! Sometimes this is because he is sad or hurt.  Often, however, it is just because he randomly feels the need for a hug, which is perhaps one of the most endearing, heart-warming things I experience as a mom.  He also, however, likes to test just how much I love him by declaring ardently that he needs a hug right when he is at his messiest during mealtime. These hugs I postpone until after he has been cleaned up… I'm not sure what important subtextual message I am inadvertently sending, but I can only do so much laundry!

you take one from the bottom...

The other (really annoying) trend that has been happening lately is Linden's complete denial of wrongdoing. For instance, I watch Linden touch the computer.
Tara: "Linden!  Don't touch the computer!"
Linden: (indignantly) "I didn't!
Tara: "yes you did!  I watched you do it!"
Linden: "No I didn't! Didn't touch poo-poo-ter. See?" (proceeds to touch the computer with his nose, rather than his hand). "No touch poo-poo-ter".

Juniper teaches a dance class

Juniper right now is obsessed with being a ballerina.  Obsessed. Every single day (often twice a day), she sheds whatever clothes she is wearing, and dons a fancy/sparkly dress, some sparkly tights, and requests to have her hair put in a bun.  Then she puts on the Nutcracker Ballet (always the Nutcracker), slips on her imaginary toe shoes, and dances her little heart out. If she is lucky enough to have an audience, we all have to pretend that we had never seen her dance before, and that we are amazed at what a beautiful ballerina she is. Part of me thinks we should sign her up for real dance class, and part of me thinks that she is having so very much fun on her own terms that we should just keep letting this play itself out.  We'll see.

Citrus sun-catchers

Juniper is also obsessed with being "big". This takes many forms, a large number of which involve helping with chores.  Folding laundry, washing dishes, making super - she is often eager to take charge of them all. Every night it is her job to set the table, and increasingly she has also been trying to be the one who serves everyone their meal.  This means that a) we are currently all eating off of the kids' plates and bowls; and b) there is an exponentially larger mess factor that before. Ah well. She has also been having some serious talks with me about how she feels she is outgrowing her nap, and perhaps this is true. But we have not yet crossed that hump where is goes napless and remains civil toward the end of the day. I'm sure this is just a transitionary thing, and that we will eventually find our way into napless territory.  Sigh. I must admit, that hour or so where both kids are down at the same time in the afternoon is something I have grown very fond of.

Anyway, that's all for now!  Don't expect anything on Friday, but I'll see you back here next Monday.  Have a great week!

Birthday Week!

Mama-Linden Beach Day!

What a week!  This past Wednesday, I turned the big 3-4. Now, I'm sure that 34 isn't usually the most momentous of occasions, but Juniper is now at the age where such events are VERY important.  There was a lot of preparation, some grand decorations, a lot of baking and cooking, and a number of different events.  Juniper even informed her preschool teachers that she wouldn't be able to make it in that day, as there were "special things going on all day".  That wasn't entirely accurate, but I was treated very well!

Stage 1: Breakfast in bed.  I was brought a delicious breakfast, a lovely card (where Juniper told me all the reasons she loved me), and I got to open my gifts from Juniper and Linden. Clark had taken them to the local thrift store, where they got to choose whatever they wanted to give me.  Apparently there was a *little* guidance… Juniper initially chose a "party shirt" that was a particularly garish shade of electric blue, and involved a lot of pirate-esque ruffles, and Linden chose a toy truck.  But they eventually settled on these, both of which I quite enjoy!

Cermaic tea/coffee canister, and a good sturdy wire basket.

Stage 2: Run/Beach hang-out. So, Wednesday was GORGEOUS.  It was warm and sunny and calm, and it even smelled like spring.  Though it took some doing (Linden was being less than cooperative), Linden and I managed to get ourselves out the door.  Clark had taken the car to drop Juniper off in the morning, so Linden and I went on a jog down to the beach. I thought we might stop there briefly, and then keep on going into the village, but the lure of the beach was too strong.  I got to do a bit of yoga while staring wistfully into the serene ocean, and Linden got to throw rocks to his heart's content. Blissful! 

This might be Linden's very favourite activity. Top 5, at least.

Stage 3: Thai food! So after the beach, Linden and I made our way up to WHOI, where we picked up Clark and the car, and then we went to the Child Centre to get Juniper, and then we booted it down to the neighbouring town of Mashpee to dine at the Thai restaurant. It was a very yummy treat.  Here is Juniper trying a lime (and Linden telling me about how he had just had a nice big poop in the restaurant bathroom).

Stage 4: Afternoon to myself!!!  Clark spent the afternoon working from home while the kids napped (and preparing some dinner/cake for the evening to come), so I got to do WHATEVER I wanted.  In the end, I decided to just start walking.  It was too nice a day to pass up.  So I walked into Falmouth, and then just kept going until I reached the local health food store.  It may seem like a funny destination, but there are very few opportunities to just browse a store like that on my own, and I felt empowered to treat myself to some very nice things, such as a yummy beeswax pillar candle and some new shampoo and conditioner. Then I walked back into Falmouth, and found myself very thirsty.  Somehow this led me to the boulangerie, where I managed to forego the delectable pastries, and opted for an over-priced but highly-satisfying sparkling pink lemonade. Then, just as it was time to call Clark and see if he could maybe wrangle the kids and come pick me up (I had walked for over 2 hours at that point, and it was dark), my neighbour Mak popped into the boulangerie, and offered me a ride home!  It was pretty perfect, all said and told.  But I have no pictures. So instead, here is a random one of Juniper doing a young-Tara-esque head-tilt.  See, mom?  It's genetic. (I got a lot of flack for my propensity towards tilting my head whenever the camera came out in my early years).

Head tilt!

Stage 5:  Dinner and Cake! Upon my arrival home, I was treated to a beautiful meal, and some lovingly prepared and decorated cakes.  Yes, cakes.  Juniper did a mini one just for me, and then there was a bigger one to share.  Chocolate cake with mint buttercream icing. YUM. I spent much of yesterday making sure no one else had to be responsible for finishing it up.

Juniper's individualized mini cake (she used a pan from her play kitchen to bake it…)

And the big cake!

Stage 6: Stage 6 was supposed to involve a movie and perhaps a glass of wine after the kids were in bed.  I, however, didn't even come close to being up to this. Basically as soon as the kids were both tucked in, I dragged my sorry, tired, 34-year-old body upstairs, and collapsed gratefully under the covers.  I'm getting old, folks!  But it was a very happy, nourished tired.  I had had a truly great day!

And on a side note….

So, speaking of my birthday (and Christmas), there have been some wonderful people who gifted me contributions to a pottery course that I have been dying to take.  I just went to my second class last night.  I LOVE it.  I am frustratingly not nearly as good at it as I used to be (10 years ago now - eep!), but perhaps I will be by the end of week 12.  Anyway, this course is on Thursday nights, so I believe I may just have to switch these weekly blog posts to Monday, rather than Friday.  I would often spend Thursday evening putting them together, but that just isn't currently possible.  So to all my devoted fans out there (all 10 of you, maybe?), move your blog-checking to Mondays.  I'll even endeavour to post something this coming Monday. Bonus!

The two pieces I didn't destroy this week.  I think they will both eventually be mugs.

January Begins

Snow play is clearly more exhausting than it used to be

Ahhh… January.  I know we are fully into January at this point - closer, in fact, to mid-January than we are to the beginning of January as the title of this post might suggest.  But this past week has been the first one that has truly felt like we are starting a new year - settling back into a routine; looking forward; and incorporating some new or tweaked practices.  My dear friend Erin told me that she likes to pick a word for the year, rather than set specific goals or resolutions.  I ruminated on that for a bit, and found a word that seemed to resonate with me for right now: intention.  I have been trying that one on for size this last week, and I think it will be a good guide to try and live by for the coming months.  Anyone else have words or goals they want to share?

I don't have all that much for you this week - there is much less, it would seem, to fill a blog post when the fairies aren't coming daily, and there are no grand events for which to prepare.  But we did have some fun in amongst the new routine….

SNOW! The storm brought us a beautiful dump of snow - enough to (mostly) cover the hills of the Woods Hole golf course. We had a grand sliding party.

Liz and Ben channel their inner child and join us on our sliding adventure

 KNITTING!  Yes!  Knitting can be THAT exciting.  At least it can when it's a brand new skill, anyway.  Juniper got a couple of knitting towers for Christmas, and we finally took them with us on a girls night, and taught ourselves how to use them.  Juniper actually took to it surprisingly quickly - I only had to show her once, and then she was able to keep going completely independently.  She has so far knit a scarf for her doll, Honey, (this is what she is working on in the picture), and is currently working on a bracelet for her dad.

A natural knitter

 MORE PRESENTS! A gift arrived in the mail yesterday from Judith and Simon, which included these adorable kid-sized hand puppets.

"Oh, Hello little fellow…"

And finally, a few little video clips.  Happy friday!

On our own

SNOW! Hanging out in our brand new quinzhee

Happy New Year!!! Clark was actually in charge of the blog this week, as I was off on a solo trip galavanting around Nova Scotia. It was an EPIC trip, which involved staying with some wonderful people (Zsofi, Will, Sylvie and Eva in Lunenburg; and then Toni, John and Isabella in St. Margaret's Bay); attending the super classy New Year's Eve wedding of our dear friends Martha and Josh; seeing a tonne of old friends; and making my way home amidst a pretty spectacular blizzard. The fact that I am even typing this from home right now is truly miraculous - no one had any expectations that I would be able to make it back to the US any sooner than Sunday. Somehow, however, my flight took off as scheduled yesterday afternoon (really and truly, the only flight that wasn't cancelled - they literally closed the entire Logan airport after we landed), and Clark decided at the last minute to make his way out to pick me up from the airport (knowing that all the busses were being cancelled as well, meaning otherwise I would be stranded in Boston for an undetermined amount of time).  This involved lining up our saintly friends Ben and Liz to put the kids to bed and look after them while we were gone, and borrowing our other friends Peter and Kelly's 4-wheel drive with two working headlights to do the harrowing drive.

Anyway.
I'm home!  And I have very few pictures, as I was travelling as light as humanly possible, and therefore didn't bring the good camera.  I did, however, want to post a pretty awesome "now and then" shot involving two photos of Zsofi, me and Erin on a hotel bed, almost 20 YEARS apart.  Can you imagine??? (kudos to Faye for digging the picture out from my photo album at my parent's house today and then scanning it for me, despite being quite hung-over).

Zsofi, Tara Erin, Hotel Bed c.1994

Zsofi, Tara, Erin, Hotel Bed 2014

So, without further ado, here is Clark:

We had a pretty good week, though I don't have a large amount of photo documentation to accompany it. It's hard to have enough hands to take pictures and make sure Linden doesn't jump off of something high enough that he might injure himself. I shot a few short video clips at various points during the week, and I've slapped them together below.