My Girl!

This is my girl. My pink princess. We are having a "Girl's Weekend." Troy and Luke are off on a boys' road trip and so we are spending time together. I just had to post this photo as it reminds me of the innocence, the wonder and the beauty of my little girl. I know how fast it all goes by and I wish I could capture each moment like I did this one on the beach. I think part of growing up for me as an adult is realizing how fleeting life is, how little time we have and making it all count. Not just surviving, but living fully in the moment.

Pancakes, Poop and Priorities

The first day of school is a wrap! The photos were taken, the lunchbox was packed, the hair was combed just so. I made my famous 1st day of school homemade pancakes and my son made it through the 1st two days of third grade with no complaints. He said the day went really fast and he couldn't believe it was done. Ha! I thought it went slow and that maybe I had the pick up time wrong. He is managing without his best friend in the class and he likes his new teacher, who happens to have the same 1st name as me.

I finished the 1st edition of the School Newsetter, which goes out tomorrow (Wed) on the third day of school. I am the PTA newsletter editor and yes I'm cringing as I type that but it was a commitment I made LAST year. Before you start to worry that I have pulled out my "SuperMom" cape, let me say that to tell you the truth, I enjoyed doing it for 6+ hrs on Saturday night (and again for 2+ hrs yesterday). Nothing to it. (Um, yeah, right!!) I learned a whole new software program, (MS Publisher) designed the layout, edited the copy and put the whole thing together. I felt like I accomplished something real. Something more than cutting up the chicken nuggets or wiping a toddler's bottom. Funny because as I type that I sure do know that those other things are just as "real," just as important, just as meaningful as a school newsletter. Those other things ARE the things that truly make up a SuperMom. I think Captain Underpants was inspired by a Mom, truth be told. We are the true captains of poopie diapers and all things bathroom related, after all (and like it or not!)

I see how fast this time with my children is flying by, and I sometimes wish I could just put time in a bottle. Just freeze things as is on a perfect day. Like that day on the beach with my Mom and sister, our feet in the ocean, big smiles on our faces. Surrounded by love. My mom passed away 6 months later, and that is a moment in time I will always cherish. I am so thankful I made the time for that moment. I wish each day could be like that and we could really fully live our lives. Come to think of it, why can't we? I think I'll go shove this cape to the bottom of my closet and do my darndest to give it a try.

What was that I said about Band-aids??

OK, OK. I know I said "What's the worst that can happen? We always have band-aids in the car." I know I tell me son (like everyday) try something new, don't be afraid to fail. But this took it a little bit too far. My 8 yr old son flipped a quad. He survived. He's battered and bruised but he's ok. He was out riding a quad (a type of dirt bike for those that don't know) at his cousin's house. He was having sooo much fun and feeling so brave that he started going a little faster, revving it through the turns and simply enjoying himself. Well, next thing I know I don't hear the quad and I see Luke limping up the hill, my husband running to him and one shoe off. Thank God he was wearing a helmet. He had shorts on, so he did get really beat up. His leg was ripped up pretty good. He had all kinds of welts, cuts all over both arms, and his abdomen was red. The redness on the stomach scared me the most and I was ready to take him to the ER fearing some internal bruising. An icepack quieted it down though. The best I can gather is he flew off the quad when he went around a turn. The quad actually flipped over completly and landed right side up again. It is for the best that he was thrown from it as I just can't imagine what would have happened if it had landed on him. It was a terrible moment. Though he was crying, I think he cried worst of all when my husband put neosporin on the wounds. Ouch!

About 30 minutes later, he was back out there, riding again. And he even had two of the ladies as his passengers!
Even Emma rode with her big cousin Kohl on a smaller quad. What was that about letting go? Getting back on a horse? Whatever the case, he is MUCH braver than me, that's for sure.

Can there be anything cuter??

Than little girl toes??? I painted Emma's toe nails this morning so she could be like Mommy.
That's all for now.

Coming Soon: Camping Post

We did it. We had a great time. There is so much more to say but I just can't blog about it tonight. So coming soon: our adventures in the great outdoors. Sneak Peak: worst Emma moment--As she sat crying, "I want to go home. I thought it would be funner. I thought it would be funner"; Funniest moment: Watching Troy eat smores. Funniest moment #2: Luke flying down a hill on his scooter, no helmet or knee pads, wearing shorts, yelling, "Look out, look out."

Teeny Tiny Tennis Anyone???

Emma played tennis today. OK, this was so cute it shudda been illegal. Pictures will be posted and you'll see what I mean. And I don't gush (well not THAT much) at just anything. But the little sneakers, and the little tennis type skirt and the tiny racket. And she just wandered about on the court a bit unsure of why she was even there. Poor thing only hit the ball once but she looked good doing it. More on our tennis adventures later in the week. Luke's lesson is tomorrow and I think he'll have more success getting the racket to actually make contact with the ball.

Take me out to the Ballgame

Our first family trip to Major League Baseball
We decided to take Troy to a baseball game on Father's Day. What better way to celebrate?? The time was right, since this was Luke's first year of Little League, and Troy has been one of the 1st base coaches most games. So, there's lots of interest, bonding and the like. The Giants were playing a home game on Father's Day and playing none other than the A's. It was the Battle of the Bay series. And we were able to get seats just a couple days ahead of time. It seemed meant to be.I did all the required pre-planning, picking the right seats, finding out about parking, etc. We arrived in SF right at game time, so of course we didn't get to our seats til about the 2nd inning. But like a nice gal said in the parking lot: you get 9 innings of baseball!

The Giants, well, they just aren't very good this year. And Luke says he's an A's fan, so that worked out. Our seats were acceptable. View Reserve. I have to say the view is pretty outstanding. You're looking at the TransAmerica pyramid, the Bay Bridge and to our right, the bay. Lots of guys in little crafts out there trying to catch a foul or home run ball. We could see but we were def. in nose bleed territory. You took a couple escalators and climbed a bunch of steps to get to our prime location. But still, we were close to home plate and could see. No matter that for an almost 40 something the ball looked like the blur of a tiny ant.

Luke watched the game intently with Troy. Emma did a lot of dancing around and looking cute in her hoodie while using her pink binoculars to see better. But for the kids, the game was not about the seats, who was on first, or who struck out. Guess what: it was all about the gi-normous Cotton Candy, licorice ropes and assorted other sugary, sticky, yummy treats they could muster before feeling like they'd throw up. And luckily we never got to that stage. But they'd have kept eating if we'd let them. It seemed like there was someone going up and down those steps hawking yet another taste tempting treat every 5 minutes or so.

The Giants lost, the kids got a sugar high, there was oodles of cute adorable father/kid bonding and we made it home with no melt-downs, still smiling and determined to go again. It was that much fun.

Conversations with a 4 year old

Tonight, just before she went to sleep, Emma asked me a few simple questions:
"Why is God invisible?"
"Is him a person or tv?"
"What does him look like?"

She also asked me how God made her.

Just a few easy questions from my technically not yet 4 year old!
I needed to jot these down before I forget!

Something new to the blog: Book Notes
So, I'm in this book club, and on an entirely other note, this week we talked about "On Chesil Beach," by Ian McEwan. I had a few more thoughts that I just needed to get out and express, and just didn't get a chance to fit them all in over dinner and wine. Most of the other women held a certain degree of hostility towards the female main character but I didn't. I thought it was ok that she did not do what was expected of her. She broke out of a role and went for her own happiness. PLOT TWIST: at the expense of her husband. (Thus, the hostility, me thinks). To say I liked the book is not to say I agreed with or even liked the story, but the message was there, bigger than the two characters and their happiness or unhappiness. Leave it to a former English major to make that statement--we live in shades of gray. At the end of the book the husband says: "This is how the entire course of a life can be changed--by doing nothing." A statement I agree with profoundly.

Other recent book club reads that I recommend: "Three Cups of Tea," by Greg Mortenson. I was inspired and learned so much and when I opened the book, I thought I would NEVER like it, because it's non-fiction, which isn't my genre. You can find out more at threecupsoftea.com or ikat.org. As I read, I kept thinking: look at what one person can do if they stop watching TV, get up off the couch and just live. I think you'll be inspired, too. It's the opposite of Doing Nothing.

The Purr-fect 4th Birthday

Emma had a kitty cat themed 4th birthday party. A girl kitty of course. With as much pink and purple as we could manage. Her friends were here to help celebrate and it was lots of fun. Mr. Rick, who does gymnastics classes at Emma's preschool, came and entertained the kids in our backyard, with lots of silly games and even a water battle at the end. My baby is growing up. I wish my mom was still here to share this day. She sure loved birthday parties. She would have been as touched as I was to see Emma surrounded by love and laughter and friends. Here is a slideshow from the special day:

Beach Day

This is Point Reyes National Seashore on Memorial Day weekend.

Why I Smile . . .

Mother's Day and what I always ask for--a picture with my two angels. These two keep me going when I think I'm done and when I've had a tough day they know just what to do or say or how to giggle to bring out the smile in me.

Summer, Swimming & Turning Four . . .

Turning Four
This is my birthday wish for Emma; it's a song by Yusuf Islam, or Cat Stevens. Since I started this blog as a type of journal for my kids, I'll post this here and hope that one day down the road when she needs to hear this message, she'll find it. Right now at almost 4 she seems to get this, but there's going to come a day, when she needs to be reminded of it. Like when her bestfriend won't talk to her, or she breaks up with a boyfriend, or if, try as we might as parents to prevent it, that she doubts herself. So here it is, a wish in a song.
To Emma:


Love is better than a song
Love is where all of us belong
Don't be shy just let your feelings roll on by
don't wear fear or nobody will know you're there
just lift your head and let your feelings out instead

Summer
We are officially on summer break. We just finished the first full week of vacation for Luke, its been 2 wks for Emma. We spent most of it at our swim club, aka, "The Pool." We joined a pool club here and to us, it's like living the high life. And it helps that we know a lot of the other families there, so it has a block party feel much of the time. We were there 4 hours one day, 5 hours the next and it was really relaxing. The other day we were sitting on some lounge chairs in the shade, eating the lunch we had packed, as a breeze came in and it felt so great to be able to be in that moment with my kids. No running to baseball practice or camp or even the park or a playdate but to just sit at the pool and eat lunch in the shade with no stress. Just enjoy my children. We are very fortunate. Poor Troy was working but he comes when he can. He's like a rock star when he is there because the kids love swimming with him.



Swimming
And now Luke can swim. He was swimming last summer but his confidence level just took off earlier last month after our 1st week back at the pool. He's diving in, doing cannon balls and working on perfecting his strokes. Next, we need to get Miss Emma past her fear--or is it just dislike ?--of putting her head under water. She too is getting there. She had 2 weeks of lessons and made some progress. The big thing is they are enjoying it. And so am I. I wasn't sure really if I could manage it--watching 2 kids at 2 different ability levels, sometimes even in 2 different pools, but I can and I am and we are having lots of fun!

Comments feature: Not just there to take up space. I'd love to get a comment or two on the blog. Just to know someone is out there. So, if you visit, post a comment and let me know. This means you K.A.

Random notes mostly to self: Wishing I could learn how to do a few things on this blog faster. But I'm the student here and need to keep patience in mind and remember that I'll get it sooner or later.

Golden Gate Bridge: Now THAT'S a Field Trip

Last week, Luke and I walked across the Golden Gate Bridge together, along with 59 other 2nd graders from his school, some of their parents and their teachers. The kids had worked all year on the Golden Gate Heart Walk during PE. They logged the miles they walked, with a goal in mind. Walking the bridge was the culmination of their hard work. There was magic in the air. Really. Here's the thing. It was 90 degrees--on the Golden Gate Bridge--in San Francisco. That NEVER happens!!! Kids were walking in tank tops and shorts. We were hot. That is about as atypical a day as any of us had experienced in the Bay Area.

Even though it meant we had to arrange a special babysitter for Emma, and Troy had to miss a few hours of work in the afternoon, I really wanted to go on this field trip with Luke. I am so glad I did. It was an incredible experience to walk the Golden Gate Bridge with my 8 year old son. As I walked, I thought, "Wow, I'm an adult doing this for the 1st time, some people will never do this in a lifetime, and here's my son doing this at age 8." Incredible.

Now we are all caught up in the end of the year madness. There's school plays, talent shows, Fine Arts Day, Field Trips and the Big Daddy of them all the OPEN HOUSE and Ice Cream Social. That was Wednesday night. On Tuesday, I was at the school for 2.5 hours putting up bulletin boards, decorating the classroom and simply helping our teacher get ready. That was a drop in the bucket for the number of hours she prepared and the various other parents who also helped. Even Troy came in and helped hang some gallery panels (see photo) that displayed some of the outstanding art projects the kids did this year. Luke was very proud to escort us around his classroom and show off a little. We now have the end of the year picnic next week, followed by a few stray days in early June, and 2nd Grade is complete. I committed to making a "Memory Book" as a class gift for the teacher, so I have some work to do. The students did half the work themselves, though. They wrote out their "favorite second grade memory," and now I'm going to add their photos. I adored Luke's teacher this year, so I'm happy to do this and know I'll enjoy the project. It gives me a chance to use some of those photos I've been taking all year!

Our school had a fantastic year, due in no small part to our new principal. We are quite possibly the envy of the other schools in our district, because we got the cool new guy this year. He's in his 30's, not burned out, full of energy and enthusiasm, the Dad of young kids himself. He introduced inventive new programs, like a monthly award ceremony where students are recognized in several areas for their positive achievements. He shakes their hand and gives them a certificate and there's a lot of pride in that accomplishment for the student. You can see it on their faces. He added "Monday Morning Meetings," where the whole school (all 18 classrooms & the teachers/a total of 400 students) gathers on the blacktop to kick off the week with announcements, recognition of achievements and the school pledge. He invited parents to attend these meetings and it is fabulous to see this type of community building in a public school. He initiated an enrichment program during school hours, taught by the teachers. Both teachers and students (temporarily) got to leave behind standards, assessments, testing, & the failure of NCLB, and do something they were passionate about, like photography, cooking, yoga, gardening, rocketry, etc. These types of multi-sensory learning experiences are so vital to higher learning and just plain fun. And he even plays Ball Wall with the kids. I like the guy!

Hanging out with the Boys. . .

Luke's 8th Birthday Party

Luke had his birthday party at the park on Friday. Here he is in the middle of his "boy crew", with Ben and Alex to his left, and Miles and Jacob to his right. He knew exactly what he wanted this year and we pretty much did just that. We had pizza, chips, and orange soda. The boys played, ran around, acted crazy and yet managed to be so COOL!! Because we all know that being 8 and being a boy is just about the coolest thing ever! That and squirting your friends with water balloons and turning the play structure into a water slide! Other highlights were toasting each other with orange soda, riding scooters and just having some extreme fun! I knew the party was a success when I heard him tell his friends, "This is so much fun. Isn't this the best birthday party ever!" After the party "wrapped,"at the park, the after party got started with a sleepover, to keep the fun going. Luke and Jacob stayed up watching movies until almost midnight. Yawn!!! As a Mom, I have to step back and realize how much Luke has grown up. He is turning into a 'tween, he knows who he is, he's confident and likes to have a good time. What more could a Mom hope for?? We've got a great kid!

Favorite Princess Moment

Emma meets Snow White. Here are a few photos that capture some of the moments from our trip to Disneyland. Unexpected moments were the highlights for me, like this day when we were walking along and saw Snow White sitting outside her cottage. Riding Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain with Luke was also cool. Nothing makes you feel more like a kid again than roller coasters and log flumes!

More Disneyland photos in this album:

Family Adventures

Monterey

We went to Monterey to celebrate my birthday in January. We managed to ask a passerby to take our photo so we could all be in it together. A cute pix, even if Troy does look like he's just escaped from San Quentin. We had great weather and on this particular day the kids explored the tide pools and then ended up in the ocean. Luke is a natural when it comes to getting wet, sandy, & messy. Emma on the other hand, well, she plays the diva. Once her pants were wet, she had to change them. When sand was in her shoes, the shoes had to come off. But after wiping off her sandy toes for her, the shoes needed to go back on. Ok, yes, she is a little high maintainance. It can come as a surprise to me and Troy, since we've had years of boy energy where being wet and dirty are not only the norm, but big pluses!

Experience Change

Note: YouTube says the video is no longer available. What's that all about??
Check out this video clip from Thursday's Democratic Debate on CNN. I think Hillary makes a strong case that she's the candidate with the experience to lead. I've been volunteering for her campaign by making phone calls to absentee voters in California. It's been exhilarating (and exhausting) to be part of something like this. On Friday, Feb 1st, Troy & I were at a Hillary campaign fundraiser at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco. I was impressed with her warmth, her intelligence and her strong commitment to move our country forward. She communicates her plans for our country very clearly and YES she does come across very likeable! Go to hillaryclinton.com to find out what she proposes to do if elected, & how she'll do it.

Carlos Santana in Training

Luke had his first "real" guitar lesson on Wednesday with a real music teacher. And he proceeded to master "Brother John" (Are You Sleeping) in one night. He's loving it. His guitar teacher is also his school music teacher--"Mr. V." Luke thinks that's way COOL! He's finally old enough to have the hand & finger coordination needed to attempt lessons, although still on the young side. To say he was excited would be an understatement. Mr. V gave him some homework that was suppose to take a week to finish but Luke finished it in 2 days time. Amazing how he can focus when it's of interest to him. Since he's been playing guitar for a while, (ok, since he was 3.5!) he'd already figured out a few of the basics. And not to mention he's got that crazy confidence typical of the younger set that allows him to say things like "I'm the best guitar player in 2nd grade--probably my whole school." Kids are so fortunate that way! They have an inherent belief in themselves. Now if we could only bottle that up and save it for him for those "awkward" middle school years . . .

Oh, and for you observant types, yes, that's a Bass in the photo, and no, that's not the instrument he is taking the lessons with. He's learning on an acoustic guitar.

On the campaign trail . . .

16 Jan. '08 Wednesday was my first HC campaign event. I attended a speech by Bill Clinton in Napa. It was fan-tas-tic! It was made all the better by the fact that it was a day before my birthday. He is an unbelievably gifted speaker and my heart was pounding as I listened to him talk, share stories & inspire the crowd. You should have seen him work the rope line and shake hands. The crowd turned into a mob with shouts of "I love you Bill" from all around. One of the great things about it was the diversity: seeing so many young people there, 18-22 year olds, along with the 90 year old grandmothers in walkers. I got some fairly good video and will try to post it later.

The kids came along for a lesson in democracy in action and off we all went to the event. The line reached down and around two city blocks for about .5 mile. We ended up in the overflow crowd but they brought out a speaker and we were able to hear the speech. Bill Clinton is a Rock Star. You have to be in his presence and among REAL people, not the talking heads on T.V. that do a fairly good job controlling us all, and then you can see and feel the reaction of the crowd, of ordinary Americans. You're swept up in the moment and the enthusiasm. It was clear that THIS crowd on THIS day LOVES President Clinton. His support of Hillary will matter in California.

My Birthday Dinner in San Francisco

12 Jan. '08: San Francisco for dinner and a show. Dinner at Kuleto's. Favorite dish: the baked clams appetizer. We saw the play "Speed the Plow" by David Mamet at ACT. What a great birthday surprise: A date with my husband!