Here we are at the 3rd installment of my friend Kerri’s take on raising a kid crafty and ethically. I had the good fortune of accompanying K to a local Greek festival last Friday where he told me to “behave” and to not “act too crazy.” We also ate too much baklava and drank too much apple juice. Before talking to Kerri’s husband, Daren, on the phone on Wednesday, Kaleb and I had a hot debate about what goes best on tacos.
Regarding the 2nd, somewhat random photograph, Kerri notes, “The pic of the Linkin’ Log houses is one K insisted on sending although I didn’t mention them in the blog, he made them himself Tuesday.”
Wow! Here it is Friday and I’m still trying to catch up on sleep from last weekend and feeling rather pathetic about it. My sister-in-law and I took the kids (5, 4, 4 & 10 months) apple picking camping in the mountains. There was bear poop in the apple orchard and the kids could not have been happier about it. We could see seeds in the poop which really seemed to strike the boys as funny. We laughed so much at silly nothings like this all weekend that my sides and cheeks hurt for days. If nothing else we are all sure now that laughing at ourselves is much better than pouting and fuming.
Wednesday Kaleb and I visited a relaxed homeschooling group’s play day at the park. We had to drive 40 minutes out of the city to get there, but enjoyed it much more than any group we’ve checked out in the city. Go figure live in the city so we don�t have to drive everywhere only to discover all the homeschoolers are in the ‘burbs. Kaleb played with a girl from his gymnastics class and a 6 year old boy named Darrin. They took turns on the tire swing and occasionally Darrin’s 9 year old brother came over and pushed them all at once before returning to his friends.
I sat at a picnic table with the other mom’s and talked while keeping an eye on the kids getting up to play at K’s request from time to time. Many of the moms were knitting which is something I find everywhere I go. Sometimes my rebellious nature rises up and makes me want to do some more obscure craft instead.
Yesterday we stayed home taking care of many neglected chores and toys. After lunch K and built a balance out of a couple of train supports, a ruler and some paper plates tied on with string. Acorns and beans were easy enough to balance, but we found the train track was too heavy, causing the whole thing to fall apart. Later on our friends Duncan and Preston stopped by. K and Duncan ran around like maniacs for awhile before settling in to build the marble tower. We finished the day at my grandparents eating apple pie made from the apples we picked on Sunday.
I am so glad we made the choice for me to stay home. So happy to be here to enjoy all of life’s joys watching K grow and learn everyday. Glad I went through the identity crisis and feminist/misogynist challenging upon deciding my “career” is my child for now. It isn’t always easy or exciting but it is very rewarding. Daren and I are much more awake, pay more attention and make more conscious choices about our lives now than when we were both working before Kaleb was born. We acquire so much less needless stuff. We are still trying to take control of our time better, ensuring that Daren and I both get much needed time of our own, but it gets easier as we go along.