Ella's First Year

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ClaresFirstYear

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Clare logged hours of tutoring today. She did her very best to teach her unwilling sister about knock knock jokes. Here's her favorite:

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Cow.
Cow who?
Interrupting cow. MOO!

She was relentless. Only Ella didn't relent. So it sounded like this:
"I'll say 'knock knock' and you say 'who's there?' Then I'll say 'cow' and you say...Ella! Are you listening?! Can you SAY interrupting cow?! Ella!"
And Ella had her fingers in her ears the ENTIRE TIME. Every now and then, she would grin and say "NO."
After thirty torturous minutes of this (during which time I had half crawled up ONTO the front dash in my efforts to escape them and listen to NPR), Ella finally gave in.
"Knock knock." says Clare
To which Ella replies "Moo who?"
"Ella! You say who's there!"
"Cow."
"No! You say who's there!"
"no. Gock gock."
"No! Ella! 'Who's there?'"
"Cow."
"ELLA! You don't say 'cow'!"
"Inneruckik cow."

Ecology Action

Supercool Preschool went on a field trip to the downtown recycling center. We learned a lot and got really dirty in the process. It was super hot and super fun.


First we had to learn about the forklift, since it does the majority of the work around there.


Ella was not too keen on her hat or the plastic sorters.


This was our sweet guide and teacher who helped us to learn about all the great ways things can be reused once they've been left here.


He taught us how to discern between aluminum and steel by using a magnet and stomping with our feet. We were interested to learn that we don't really use tin.


It was fascinating and super hot. Did I already say that?!


Here's my girl, putting away some glossy.


This is block is hot off the crusher. We watched it get removed from the machine with the forklift. So so cool.


My favorite part of the day was when he asked what cars are made of. He was trying to teach us about steel. But Clare kept guessing everything else. Rubber? Plastic? Glass? His point lost, he validated her smarts and laughed heartily. Loved that guy. He was really great with the kids and very good natured, which is remarkable given how hot it is there. Oops. I may have overstated that point.

Did you notice Clare's filthy knees? I wanted to dip Ella in a vat of Lysol when we left. Blech.

I'm am seriously impressed by all the people that work in the recycling industry. You have love and believe in trash to be there. You have to accept on some level, that all that funk has beauty (or at least function) left to give. This mama just doesn't get her hands that dirty anymore. I'm am grateful for the efforts of those dedicated to the process. Our planet is so much greater for it. I hope that as we all grow, we'll get to dig in even more.

Location:Austin, TX

Abby's Last Day

The girls and I take a music class at Music Together. For more sessions than I can remember, we've had the same beautiful teacher, Abby. We take our class with several families that we know and care deeply about. We love every minute of it. So you can imagine our dismay when we found out that our sweet Abby is going off to grad school in the fall.







We are so very pleased for Abby. And so very, very sad for us. Even though we weren't in session for the summer, we crashed what would have been our last class so that we could celebrate with her and enjoy one more sweet moment in her fairy-good, better-than-peanut-butter presence.












We danced and sang and giggled and wiggled.












We drummed and hummed and we grinned until it hurt.











And when it was time to sing goodbye, none of us made it through the song. There was not a dry eye in the room. Except, of course, for the children, who just couldn't quite grasp it all.











But for the adults, who understood the gravity of this last class together, it was bittersweet (as it always is with such things). And it occurred to me that this parenting thing is always becoming more complex than I thought it was just a moment ago. It is a series of new experiences that are so intriguing and fun. At the same time, it is a long string of goodbyes as we all grow and pass through time together, each of us touching on what we need and moving past what is no longer for us. The blessing is that we keep finding such beauty in our experiences and such amazing people with which to share them. The sadness is in the passing on of those times and people that we wish would linger just a bit longer. So we will stop for a moment and remember what we were given.






Then we will find gratitude, shed a tear and share a hug. And we'll remember that life is such bliss. May we walk it with grace and more love than we know what to do with.

Fairy Gardens

When you're gardening, it's very important to select your attire carefully.


Pants, apparently, are entirely optional.



Our tiny garden has sputtered, but has not died. We only had one tomato and one tomatillos plant make it to actual size. So now we don't have fruit. Nevertheless, they are gorgeous plants and fun for the girls to care for. We are learning how to weed, water, and watch for bugs. All very important things. Today we added some seeds to the bare spots.



We're hoping we got these in the ground in time to make a big, fat Jack-O-Lantern. Fingers crossed for fresh pumpkin pie...



If nothing else, we'll learn to spot fairies. Giggle.

Suburban Snapshots: Why Having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party*

Suburban Snapshots: Why Having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party*

Voting Yes

We rode the light rail today. In March, the MetroRail started running at commuter hours. We've been dying to ride it, but if we get up early and ride it, we have no way home. This week, Cap Metro ran an appreciation day. The trains are open all afternoon into the late evening. What a great chance for us to say "Yes!" We want that train open and running on the weekends so that we can have access to downtown without having to park. So off we went. We showed up early and bought our tickets. With great anticipation, we got to the platform in plenty of time.

We went over the rules, talked all about trains and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, the train arrived and the girls were squealing with delight and scrambling to get on. We were right up front to watch the doors open and were greeted with a car stuffed full of crabby people unwilling to let us in. We pushed and shoved and tried and worked it. I was holding both girls and looking at Allen, still on the platform as the door began to chime (not one inch of room left). Wondering what to do, I looked around me, bewildered. A man piped up and said "There is another train coming right behind us. Fifteen minutes, tops." "Thanks. That sounds like a better option." I said, extricating myself from the smelly mass, happy with the solution. What I found, to my dismay, was that the next train wasn't for an HOUR. Liar.

By this time we're staring down the barrel of lunchtime hunger and poised to miss our delicate nap window. But we'd bought tickets and the girls were tearing up at the very idea that we wouldn't ride. So we hopped the next train that drove by, going north. The point, after all, was to ride the train, right? We'd just make the north end of the loop and get off where we started. This would give us a nice 30-45 minute journey and put us a wee bit late for lunch. No problem.

The train was smooth and lovely. It gained speed as we passed Lakeline and rode through the wildflowers west of 183. We had comfy seats and the people around us were sweet and helpful. They loved our kids (who wouldn't), gave them train whistles and all was well. At 12:45 we pulled into Leander. What a great station. At the very north end of the track, it was built to bring the suburbs in direct contact with the city by mass transit. It looks very well planned.

The conductor came over the air and announced in a cheerful voice that we were right on schedule and that we would be departed at 1:23. WHAT?! As I stare up at the sign that says "no food or drink on the train", it sinks in that we will be stuck here for over half an hour. I let go for the 20th time that day and pulled the backpack with our lunches out of the stroller. Not very covertly, we ate our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bananas and Pirate's Booty. Happily, we munched the time away and didn't even make too much of a mess.

Soon enough, the conductor announced that we would be leaving for Lakeline and Howard, our stop. Our return trip was just underway when we came to a sudden stop and the announcement was made that we had to stop for the northbound train that was running late and headed straight for us. UGH. By this time, Ella had soaked through her diaper and I through my patience. With a final burst of tolerance and grace (and I mean last), I changed her on Allen's lap while we waited. I was suddenly aware that we and our children were not quite as cute as we were an more than an hour ago. We managed to get ourselves reordered and recovered by the time we got moving again and our return trip was uneventful. Praise Jesus.

The view back was just as beautiful, the trip completely worth it. As we got off the train, I asked the agents that were on the platform if they would be running on the weekends. "Not anytime soon," they said. Disappointed and relieved, I sat down on a bench next to a sleeping Ella to get a last photo of our journey.

I think we will all need a little more practice before we tackle major public transport in this state. It's worth the effort, though. Even after a clearly annoying journey, I'd still vote yes to more resources headed that way.