Science at it's Finest

Well, there is a good chance that sometime in the near future we will have a nice clutch of newt eggs to observe. As it is, the children cheerfully giggled as they watched Mander 'wrestle' with Sally. He really wrestled, too - flipping and flopping around. It actually was quite humourous.

Better than science is BIRTHDAYS! Today was Phin's 4th birthday; soon I will post some pictures from his super fun party. (I can't believe he is FOUR!)

Spring, Science and Rubber Boots

It is raining. That cheerless rain that inhibits outdoor play. The gray clouds are drooping down like limp, dirty dishrags hung out to dry after cleaning my one uncarpeted spot of floor. Well, the dishrags would be gray if indeed I cleaned that floor… But I was talking of the rain. In spite of the dripping rain, I have my flip-flops on. After all, it is spring! Not only have the robins returned, but the peepers have started peeping, we saw a brave dandelion flower, and my daffodils have poked themselves up and will bloom with only a wee bit more coaxing from the shy sun. I say the sun is shy because he has been missing for a couple days, hiding behind the droopy, limp, dirty clouds.

But the rain isn’t all bad – just ask Abigail. She is quick to proclaim to her brothers that “even though the rain makes it so we can't play a lot outside, the rain is watering the earth and soon flowers will be here - but now we have mud. Because dirt and water, mixed together, make mud!” Thank goodness (and the Carpenter) for new rubber boots! Even I got a pair! I haven’t had a new pair of rubber boots since I was in 7^th grade. Back then, I had yellow rubber boots and they doubled as my winter boots when I shoved wooly-sock laden feet into the bright yellow objects of my mother’s affection. My mom liked my yellow boots. I did not. Yes, they kept my feet dry, but they also kept me as a prime target for Jr. High ridicule – yes, my nickname was ducky. I laugh now and even tease my mom about the whole thing.

Anyway, along with spring has come a GRAND science project. On Sunday, we hiked up into the woods and visited a hidden pond. As we walked along the edge (and into the water, thanks to our new rubber boots) we saw scores of amphibious creatures fleeing before our waterproofed feet. I caught a couple (they were literally “a couple”) and brought them home and now we have two critters in a gallon jar on our kitchen counter. We couldn’t decide if they were salamanders or newts so I did a bit of research (thank you, Google!). I discovered that we have two Red Spotted Newts. And I discovered that newts are a type of salamander! We have adult Red Spotted Newts, which are actually olive-green. So, I’m now trying to figure out how to keep “Sally” and “Mander” (as Abbi named them) alive – and I am hoping that the couple of them will “couple” again and lay some eggs. I did find out that they eat earthworms so I am planning on delegating the job of obtaining food for Sally and Mander to Phinehas. I’m sure he won’t mind!

Well, hope you all are enjoying your rainy, drizzly, sometimes delightfully sunny (but not this week) spring!

Three Days in Review

Monday: If it weren’t for these new fangled phones, Andrew and I would have contentedly overslept in our nice cozy bed, completely unaware of the fact that the rest of America was an hour ahead of us. Then, Andrew would have been late for work – but we wouldn’t have known it till after the fact. As it was, we were in bed at 8:30 Sunday night… ehem… 9:30 and I noticed that the time on Andrew’s phone was ‘not correct.’ So, we Googled “Daylight Savings” and found that we had been totally oblivious. Well, THAT is nothing new! However, I DID enjoy a very leisure morning with the children ‘sleeping in’ since they function completely independently of any clock.

Tuesday: On Tuesday, the wonderful, kind, fun, creative Mama disappeared and I had a hard time finding her. In her place arose a grouchy monster that should have eaten breakfast a couple hours earlier than she did. Fortunately, after lunch, children’s naptimes, and a bit of honest prayer, the REAL Mama came back.

In spite of the wicked intruder, we managed to spend most of the morning, and well into the afternoon, outside in the delightful spring air! We raked piles of leaves, moved old, broken sticks, and crawled around looking at every fresh green leaf we could find. Unfortunately, that just added to my frustration as the things I was looking for I couldn’t find, and the things I could find I couldn’t identify. I need a plant identification book that differentiates one piece of early spring flora from the others that are oh! so similar! If I were smarter, I would design a web site to which you could upload a photograph of the plant in question. It would then tell you what you have found! Voila!

At lunch time, I couldn’t bear to drag my vibrant children into the house (where loads of laundry were… are… piled, waiting to be folded) SO – we had the first picnic of the year! Hooray for sunny, south-facing hills!

Wednesday: Today, we bustled outside even faster than we did yesterday (and I ate breakfast a whole lot earlier so the grouchy Mama stayed away.) We brought out our school work and read and drew in the sunshine! Abbi and Phin climbed trees – somehow they are far better climbers than they were in the fall and they now go about twice as high. I’ve put my order in for extra energetic guardian angels, each equipped with an extra set of arms and eyes on the back of their heads. The boys love digging – that is no surprise – but of course they like to dig RIGHT where Mama is attempting to dig and they don’t want to move dirt out; they would rather fill in the ditch that Mama is painstakingly attempting to create. I repeatedly had to remind myself that (for now) I can still move more dirt more quickly than they can, AND when Papa comes home he will straighten out all the rough edges anyway. (We are relocating the play set, incase you were wondering.) Again, we had a lovely picnic lunch and remained outside even longer than we did yesterday.

Presently, the children are napping and I am furiously typing a small fraction of the thoughts that have been flying through my head. Which leads me to the following entry (I guess you could call it 'previous' since I posted it first, but to make it easier to read in order ... )

“In the Grand Scheme of Things”

So much of the frustrations in a woman’s life could be eliminated completely if we would only learn to view our daily happenings in light of “The Grand Scheme of Things.” For example, “In the Grand Scheme of Things” what does it matter if the boys fill in the hole I am making? It is better for them to “help” then to be nagged and scolded to death by a wenchy mama. “In the Grand Scheme of Things” what does it matter if your car is running on fumes and your dear husband drives past the last gas station for the next 4,000 miles? So what if you run out of gas? (Note: this did not happen to me… not yet anyway!) “In the Grand Scheme of Things” so what if your kids drop a pile of bowls and two of them shatter all over the floor? “In the Grand Scheme of Things” what does it matter if, rather than using the bathroom sink, everyone uses the kitchen sink to wash their hands – usually when you are scurrying to get the last touches on tonight’s supper. Most of the things that irritate us women usually are completely meaningless “In the Grand Scheme of Things”. Most of the things that irritate us are things that cause us a little more work, a little more adventure, a little more craziness in our lives. For me, the things that cause excruciating irritation are usually simply affronting my SELF.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the Mathew 16:24-26 which says, “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (emphasis mine).

Denying my SELF is very central to my being a wife and a mama. There are some areas I have had much victory in; others are a daily struggle. There are a lot of things in life that are not bad, in and of themselves, but I find that, most of the time, when I give into them I am merely feeding the latent selfishness that hides within me. The days that I give up (lose) my aspirations and pour myself into loving, instructing, playing with, laughing with, LIVING with my children are the days that are filled with LIFE. On the other hand, the days that I just want to read my book, just want to write my letter, just want to [fill in the blank], just want to live my life (save it) the way I want to, those are the days that I lose it – sometimes literally.

Daily, I need to take up my cross. No – having a family, being married, having a handful of children is NOT my cross. The cross is a place I go to (yes, sometimes begrudgingly and belatedly) in order to put to death the selfishness that would otherwise rob me of fully experiencing the precious childhood years in the lives of my delightful wee ones; they won’t be ‘wee’ for long. The cross is something I willingly take up in order to put to death the selfishness that would exert my ‘rights’ over the beautiful relationship that I have with my beloved husband who cherishes me, oh, so much!

“In the Grand Scheme of Things” a lot of the irritations and frustrations shrivel up and die away once SELF is out of the picture. Then, amazingly, life becomes more full, more joyous, filled with more song, more laughter, more LIFE.

On that note, I have a little girl who would like a book read to her. “In the Grand Scheme of Things” laundry can wait… and so can this blog.

Now That Winter Is Almost Done...

...I'll FINALLY share a handful of pictures from the snowy months.

A Beautiful Sunrise:

Trees Outlined with Snow:

The Kids' Shadows - Sprayed With Blue-Colored Water

Liam:

Phin:

Abbi:

Phin's Crane:

Andrew's Train Track:

Little Lilly:

Lilly the Hedgehog:

The Possum Returns:

Early Spring Herbs

Even though our yard looks like this:

I still managed to find some eager young herbs stretching their fresh young arms to the warming sun. This thrills me to no end and I suddenly want to cast all duties to the wind (ehem… don’t I always?) and crawl around outside looking for more evidence of the new life stirring in the ground. I’ve been dreaming, day and night, of bitter dandelion greens cooked to Italian perfection; of pretty violets decorating a fresh spring salad; of tangy wood sorrel fresh on my tongue. I’ve even started thinking of hanging out my laundry to dry in the fresh air and the warm sun. Mmmmm. I have spring fever!!! Anyway, here are the herbs I found:

Mullein:

Mullein is one of my favorite herbs to have on hand in the winter. You can infuse olive oil with its flowers, or leaves if you lack the flowers, and then use the healing oil to aid in getting rid of earaches. The mullein expels moisture so that any ‘water’ that is stuck in the ear can be removed. I’ve used this on myself and the children effectively. We also burn mullein combined with coltsfoot and/or pine needles as incense to help break up chest congestion.

If you see these tall identifying stalks from last years mature plants, you will know where to look for the new fresh leaves of the mullein plant.

Dandelion:

Dandelion! I have fond memories of skipping around my Nonno (my Dad’s Dad) as he meandered around the yard picking the fresh leaves of this prolific 'weed'. If you then wash them, blanch them, then steam-sauté them with olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes, salt and pepper they are delectable – especially with crusty Italian bread (blanching is important as it helps reduce the bitterness). These are so very good for you, providing your body with lots of good vitamins and minerals. It is a natural blood purifier, a wholesome source of iron, and good for your liver. If you drink the water left over from blanching you are drinking a fabulous spring tonic!

Raspberry:

I also found the timid buds of the black raspberry peeking out from their thorny branches! For me this is more of a promise of the yummy things to come! My mouth is watering as I think of juicy berry cobbler or of fresh berries, still warm from the sun, sprinkled over creamy vanilla ice cream! Mmmmm!!

How To Be Certain You Won't Yell At The Children

Loose Your Voice.

Wishing For Smells of Spring... or ANYTHING!

I'm glad I got to smell spring yesterday. Today I can't smell a thing, let alone taste anything. Our nasty cold has redoubled and we are all hunkering down, resting, and drinking lots of liquids. So, I recommend staying far away from us! We'll make it though.

Off to get some more tea...

Smells of Spring

In spite of the thick blanket of snow that still envelopes the ground, the morning sun is bright and promising. Though it is not the brilliant burning yellow of a summer morning it is the shy brightness of spring peeking over the hills. Despite the fact that the air is still cool and even occasionally downright cold, it doesn’t hold the same crisp nip that makes you want to retreat into hibernation. Rather, it has an earthy softness, a whisper of new life beginning to stir beneath the melting blanket of winter. The bird songs are changing – twitters are joining the regular chirps and you’ll occasionally hear a full-throated song of a cardinal or a chickadee. I’m still waiting for the first robin.

The red squirrels have emerged. I don’t know where they were all winter, but I imagine they were sleeping; I would have been. But now they have joined their bigger cousins in scampering about. Yesterday a big ol’ black squirrel trotted across the yard, obviously too close to the domain of a fiery red squirrel. That little critter ran down a tree, chattering ferociously, and ran at ol’ blacky chasing him away. One attack wasn’t sufficient; little red jumped at him again, just to make sure he was understood. I bet red squirrels are Irish.

We have all succumbed to a nasty bit of a cold. Even poor Lilly is dripping with snot and blowing bubbles out her nose. She is still smiling, though – a real little trooper. We’ve been burning mullein and coltsfoot, drinking tea, eating chicken soup, and blowing noses (you think it is annoying to blow your own nose? Try blowing four other noses as well!!). We’ve been reading books, drawing pictures, and even playing outside – how couldn’t we welcome the first stretches of spring?! Today, Phin has decreed that we need to make more granola. He wants to make cookies, too, but cookies and colds don’t go well together.

So, off I go! Lilly is now awake, I have three wolf pups clambering to be fed toast and eggs, and I need to blow my nose.

Happy Spring!

(Oh! And happy birthday, Gramma Mary! What are you? 49? *wink!*)

The Big Snow

February has melted into the past. Actually, it hasn’t melted at all; rather, it has dumped great loads of heavy, wet snow that covers the world with a quiet stillness. The sentinel trees stand silently, their dark trunks poised as if waiting for something, while their lazy branches sleep under pristine blankets of freshly fallen ice-feathers.

In the stillness, laughter rings out, mingling with the twitter of birds that are ever present at the feeders. When the all is quiet, you can hear the rapid flutter of their wings as they dart from the shelter of the tree, quickly pecking up a tasty seed.

The snow doesn’t stop the squirrels. You can see their bounding tracks crisscrossing the open yard, connecting the walnut tree to the cedar tree, the cedar to the ash, the ash to the hickory.

Rufus is back. The chipmunk woke and came up from the ground a bit to early. His tracks scurry around the foundation of the house as he tries in vain to keep out of the deep snow.

Yesterday morning Abigail crept to the window with little cries of delight as she watched a mourning dove perch on a walnut branch. “It looks like a snow bird!” She watched it for a few minutes then flew off to the art cabinet where she hurriedly snatched some paper and colored pencils to draw for me what she had seen. She labeled her drawing: “WAL NUTT TREA” “MAMA [heart] I LOVE YOU” “TO: MAMA” “FROM [smiley face] ABBi” Then she mingled her imagination with her reality and added a queen with a golden crown riding on a donkey and leading a camel, a camel with only one hump. The camel was leading a baby horse, but you could only see its head as the rest of it was behind the ‘wal nutt trea’. I have a budding artist and storyteller!

Phinehas is starting to read. We are using “Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons.” I had seen the book a couple of times before (thanks Darla!) and had rejected it after a quick glance. But the thought of it kept nagging me from time to time so I got it out from the library and actually read the intro and looked through the book. I started Abbi around lesson 65 or 70 and she is loving it! I like that there is a tangible end in sight; before I was using a series of 6 readers. They are fun, but we are only in book 3. That was a l-o-n-g goal! We can still use the readers, but as fun reading – not just for lesson time. Anyway, Phin was intrigued by the book so I thought to try him out. We are on lesson 12 or so and he is doing VERY well. He isn’t bursting with pride over his accomplishments. He is kind of like, “Yeah… I’m reading. No big deal. I’m the man.” The easy step-by-step progression builds his confidence… and my patience.

Liam is teething – I think. Cutting some molars. This is coinciding with a nasty little cold so he is pretty miserable… but still cute as ever. Especially when he valiantly flashes his “I’m happy” smile, even though he is sad and snotty. We’re getting extra cuddle time and extra book reading.

Lilly is a gem. She is quite intrigued by finger food (peas, for now). She completely adores Abigail, grinning at her with that million-dollar toothless grin. I think she is teething, too, but it isn’t bothering her a bit.

The Carpenter and I are talking of gardens. We’d love to try our hands at a small one. Personally, I’m hoping that my sister-in-law, Lacey, will loan me one of her green thumbs. I think she has about 12 or 15, so she could spare one for me. I want to do potatoes, a salad garden, some tomatoes, cukes and peppers, ONE zucchini plant, maybe some winter squash, some herbs, and a whole bunch of swiss chard – my absolute favorite. We shall see, we shall see!!!

First, we need to get rid of the snow…