The Age of Analogy

I doubt I'll ever catch up on the backlog of memories I hoped to impart via the blog.  I have the walks in the woods with Dad, our camping near Deception Pass with preschool, walks with Beezle, dinners out and various important moments in each child's life.  

However, if I am ever to blog again I must acknowledge my infirmities (that absence of time and will, that need to watch Grey's Anatomy or read another crime novel instead of blogging) and move on with the present which is still crisp enough to touch.

You know they write about the terrible twos and horrible threes.  Developmentally,  Wren at 4 has entered the Age of Analogies.  He has always been intense, creative and dramatic and has now learned that simile and metaphor in his speech adds intensity to his demands as in this morning's:

"I cannot find the iPad and that is breaking my heart into little pieces as small as germs!"

or the later 

"You are not listening and my heart is broken into millions of tiny pieces!"

Its not that I am a bad mother, playing Xbox while he withers with neglect.  Wren talks ALL THE TIME.  I asked him about it in the car after speaking firmly to him (a bit meanly, actually) asking him to Please.  Keep.  Quiet. for a few minutes.

"But if I keep quiet you will not know I am there!"  he complained.  Frost tries to win us a bit of time by encouraging Wren to play the Quiet Game where the person who stays quiet longest wins but really, its only 2 minutes max before he starts to ask if he has won yet.

Amidst the constant commentary on feelings and observations Wren is also fond of sharing his wisdom.  As we walked  to fetch Frost from the busstop Wren told me that he knew "baby trees are called saplings.  They fall from big trees and grow up into small shrubs you can plant somewhere else."

I was impressed.

"Did you learn that on your nature walks?" I asked, thinking that his Waldorf preschooling was bearing fruit. 

"No, I learned it on Minecraft!  In Minecraft if you smash up a tree for wood to make a block of wood then bits fall down and make saplings so I knew that baby trees are SAPLINGS!"

"See, computer games ARE Educational." said Frost, with some delight.

"You are giving me a headache making me sit here. ARRGH"

Wren with a large pop sculpture downtown on Dad's visit to Dahlia Lounge

  FACTS and FANTASIES

• I have lost my digital camera and can only take pictures with an old camera that is the size of an old SLR thus we have no new photos.
• Wren is going to school 3 days a week now, not 4.
• Wren is getting a neuro-developmental assessment in the weeks ahead (as recommended by his cardiologist before kindergarten),
• We are starting to look at Kindergarten's for Wren next year;
• Beezle is showing an interest in eating shoes but so far has only eaten paper, lego and plastic packaging, and half a chocolate donut Frost left in the car with him;
• I foraged the first 2 cups of chanterelles of the season but have not been on a serious forage since the rains WHERE ARE MY FORAGING FRIENDS & FAMILY!!!?????
• Halloween is coming up and we are considering creating a scene of zombies at our dinner table;
• My 19 year old sister has rubella;
• My step-mother fell off her bike and broke a rib but is still taking a business trip to China (or India);
• I am ready for Winter, almost.  I just need to repair the roof.  "Hey Josh.... we need to call that guy about the roof."

Dad's Visit: Golf at Chambers Bay

Thanks to one of Josh's colleagues, we booked Dad in to play a round of golf at Chambers Bay in Tacoma.  For those not in golfing circles, Chambers Bay hosted the US Amateur Golf Championship and is scheduled to host the US PGA Open in 2015.  It is a Links course, described on the website as follows:

"Centuries ago on the Linksland of Scotland where native grasses meander between the coastal sand dunes and the sea, the game of golf was born.   Providing both inspiration and challenge, the elements defined the experience.  That tradition continues today at Chambers Bay."

Both Dad and I like to rise early, and since it was predicted to be a hot day Dad took an early tee-time of 7.45am.  That meant leaving Seattle at 6.15am to get there in good time.  He borrowed Fred's father golf clubs and borrowed a driver, arriving in time for a shuttle bus to take him to the first tee along with 3 other players signed up for that time.  One of the men was a local celebrity (we have been unable to track him down but he appears to have been a pro or businessman of some standing, getting VIP treatment) and Dad enjoyed the golf a great deal.

Dad (figure on the right) warming up by the tee-off point.

Another view of the course as they move off.

The sun finally makes it over the ridge to light our walk.

While Dad spent 4.5 hours going around the course, Wren and I planned to take a small walk /scoot around a section of the golf course and then head up to the Chambers Bay Grill.  Unfortunately, I misheard the information about the trail length.  I thought it was 3/4 mile but it was 3-4 miles.  Wren and I bravely scooted and walked 3.5 miles up and down around the entire perimeter BEFORE BREAKFAST!!! 

Wren taking a break with injuries.

8am.  2.5 miles to go.

To make it worse, after a mile of scooting, Wren had a bleeding blister on his heel.  I told him to take off his shoe and carried it.  Every second person pointed out that my child was "missing his shoe!"  (Americans are very helpful and nosy and worried about bare feet so there was a perfect storm of helpfulness along the trail).   The bare foot made it hard for Wren who usually uses his shoe to drag behind him as a brake on the downhills.  And there were Some Steep Downhills!

"I have not dropped my shoe"

This hill is too steep to scoot UP!

Warning of the steep hill!  Will the bare foot be enough of a brake?

No!  This hill is too steep to scoot DOWN!

Thank goodness the food and coffee at the Grill were worth waiting for.  In fact, it was such a wonderful destination that I would consider driving down there one day just to do the walk and brunch again.  Wren ordered the kids bear pancake and it was one of the most entertainingly presented meals he has seen.  He ate it ALL up.  My eggs were great although I forgot to hold the bacon (or I did, but it came anyway).

Chambers Bay Grill - Kids Bear pancake 10/10

After the walk and breakfast it was only 9.30am so Wren and I headed over to Point Defiance Zoo (or Poindefine zoo, as Wren calls it), making it back in time to meet Dad for lunch again at Chambers Bay.  Dad enjoyed his meal of seafood but should have had the burger as they looked excellent.

Dad and Fred's Dad's clubs have lunch at the Grill

Dad and Wren at the entrance to the Pro Store

It was a very happy day and I am so glad we made it down there.  Now Dad has left I am looking back on it as one of the real holidays of his vacation.

"Mom, can you write a birthday list now."

Wren's birthday is many months away but he has asked me to write his birthday list.  Now.

He says:  "I will have for birthday a ghost yard, a graveyard and a moving zombie that crawls and maybe a carousel but they cost $200 or something.  I also want a cookie jar for Halloween and I would also like some dollars on money for the iPad Dragonville game because I accidentally deleted a dragon. 

I would like a Magic the Gathering deck builder box.

A kids' knife to do cooking cutting work.

A new hat from the hat shop because I lost my hat.

And a building structure like a castle that I can play in my room.

And I would like a 5 cents and that is all."

Where God Comes down

This morning the kids and I went on a walk on the way to school.   We passed an intersection in Wallingford where the community has painted a section of street with a large "street mural" of a turtle.

The turtle on Interlake and 41st

As Wren scooted past he looked at it and said portentously:

"That is where God comes down to meet the world!  Because it is bright with light.  God comes down there and he is part monster and part animal.  He is half of everything mixed up.  He is half a scooter and half a flower.  He is half and leaf and half a dog.  He is all things mixed up.  He comes down there because he knows all about who GOD IS and he even made museums [we saw Buddha and Ganesh carvings at SAM last week] because he is in museums and knows all about where god is!"

What can you say to that?  Perhaps we should avoid Catholic school.

Dad (who lives in South Africa) was visiting for 3 weeks and Wren and I enjoyed a great deal more culture, dining and recreation than usual (and somewhat less work and sleep).

Dad is very interested in Asian art, in particular in "Netsukes"
We visited the Capitol Hill SAM Asian collection in search of them.
Wren's favorite section of the SAM Asian Collection was the snuff box display.

Wren was very interested in all the Gods and Icons in the museum.
This is a very ancient bronze of a demon.

 Meanwhile, as the weather has turned colder and Beezle shivered from time to time, I took him to a dog shop in search of winter gear.

"I am not going out with Beezle in a coat."  said Joshua.  He is of the opinion that that is what fur is for.  I consider Beezle in need of another one, however, at the dog store all the coats were designed for shorter bodied dogs and they referred us to Weener Dog websites where we might find better apportioned clothing.   I am also considering cutting up a favorite OILILY sweater both boys have outgrown to make Beezle his own coat like this.

Devil Dog - Beezle Tries on a devil sweater that is too small.

Frost in his new hat

Dad bought Frost a hat for his birthday gift.  Frost had wanted this
hat a while ago but thought it was not the best style.  He disagrees.

Note the T-shirt "VIDEO GAMES RUINED MY LIFE
GOOD THING I HAVE TWO EXTRA LIVES"

This is Dad's favorite picture.  He likes the one eye visible.

I am not influenced by Justin Beeber.

And with a different look, Joshua is kitted out to
exterminate yellow-jackets (wasps) at night.  He received
multiple stings from a nest in our garden that was
disturbed during the house-warming.  The spraying succeeded
and we avoided having to call pest control.  YES!

Frost's First Day of Fifth Grade

Frost started fifth grade today.  Fifth grade is the final year of elementary school (like primary school) and after this he will go to middle school.  I have been told it is a year where the teachers start to expect more independence from the kids and for them to show they can manage their work.

Frost had the usual first week school bus woes.  The Seattle district is very short of money and are trying to save 4.5 million dollars so they have decided to pick up kids at group stops called "Community Stops" instead of the nearest major intersection or street corner.    Ours is 1.2 km (a bit over 0.7 mile) or 15 city blocks from our house.  It takes us about 18 minutes to walk there with Beezle and Wren.

We arrived a bit early and were the first people at the community stop.  After a while my Dad - who is visiting from South Africa - found another family waiting halfway down the block outside the school.  They said that was where the bus stopped last year.  The bus finally arrived 15 minutes late and stopped at our street corner.  I pointed out the other child waiting down the block but the driver waved his paper at me and said "only one pickup here" and drove off, past the other waiting family.

In the afternoon the bus was late again - half an hour this time.  A mother of a new second grader was wiping tears from her eyes when it finally rolled in.  Apparently they have to check all children on and off the bus with a roster while the drivers become familiar with the kids.

On the walk home from the bus-stop Frost and I talked about school.

He was starving because they get only 15 minutes to eat lunch and lunch is the only food break through the day.  Frost said that Ethan was fine because he had a squeezable Danimals yogurt and could just shoot it into his mouth.  Frost didn't manage to eat enough because I gave him food you have to chew.  He asked if he could have Danimals too.

His teacher is very sweet which "makes up for the lot of homework she gives us.  She said you get 10 minutes per grade you are in and and extra 10 minutes for being in an APP class."  So, he gets 1 hour of homework every night.

He forgot the Geography homework this evening.

Frost was interested to find a tame squirrel by the school path.  A staff-member said it was the school squirrel but not to touch it.  It was eating a choc-chip cookie.

I made cookies for desert and bought Frost sign-spotting 4 which is making him laugh despite the anxiety about the Geography.

The theft of numbers and a visitor

Dad has arrived on a visit from South Africa.  We picked him up yesterday on his Jetblue connection from JFK.   Today we are planning on taking Frost to D&D role-playing camp and to install the new house numbers in brushed nickel neutra font.

Dad is concerned that the numbers are too nice and "someone might steal them off the house."  He says that a quick lever with a crowbar is all that would be required.

I explained that house numbers are not often stolen in North Seattle.

On the drive home we followed the route of the light rail from Seatac through Columbia City (we went to the farmers market there on the way and Dad bought vegetables for a big curry we are serving at our housewarming on Saturday.

He thought that an eggplant vegetarian curry would go well with the Malay spice blend he brought us.

He mentioned that last month people stole the powerlines from the high-speed rail in Gauteng and so it wouldn't go for a while.

I don't think we've had that happen here, yet.  Still, sitting looking out my lovely big glass windows without any burglar bars, it does seem remarkably indulgent, like hothouse flowers, to live behind glass.

As I type, Wren calls "where ARE you?"  He is experiencing separation anxiety and likes to know where I am at all times.  Having a bigger house with many rooms is a big concern because he doesn't know if I am in "the office" or "Downstairs" or "in the bedroom" or "in the living room."

Yesterday, while I was cleaning the house in anticipation of Dad's arrival, Wren lost me for 5 minutes.  I had been in the 'formal' sitting room where he had not thought to look.  Crying, he declared "but nobody EVER GOES IN THAT ROOM!"

Ah, the luxury of space.  The tyranny of it.

About Frost

Being such a fitful blogger this summer, I feel in need of an update on each kid.  Frost is now 10 years old and going into 5th Grade this fall.  Fifth Grade is the final year of elementary (primary) school.  After that he goes to middle school for three years and then High School follows.

Forst chose to do no summer camps this year and so he has been at home a great deal, even more so since his best friend (Alexander) is in France for the summer.  At home, Frost has a narrow field of interests and holds to the term Geek with some pride, often wearing a t-shirt which says VIDEO GAMES RUINED MY LIFE.  LUCKY I HAVE TWO EXTRA LIVES. 

Dipping strawberries in chocolate for desert
wearing the EXTRA LIVES t-shirt.

He likes studying cards and playing Magic the Gathering, playing Halo Reach on the X-box, reading fantasy novels and FoxTrot comics, playing computer games, riding his scooter, playing running/shooting/lazer tag games around the yard and being left in peace.  He loves Beezle and tolerates playing with Wren (being shadowed by Wren) as a necessity of life.  Although he complains about it, when bored, he often seeks Wren out to provoke and play shooting with.

Frost playing "wrestle" on the lawn with Beezle.

His favorite TV shows are MAD, iCarly, Adventure Time and Expedition Impossible (which we watch together).  Last week I took him to the cinema to see a PG 13 light horror film called Super 8.  We both really enjoyed that too, especially since we went to the 10pm show and drove home from downtown after midnight.  It was a real night on the town.

Frost loves swimming in Greenlake and has recently learned how to do a somersault from the t-dock.  He is quite brave in the pool too - jumping from the high diving board and doing 'tricks' from the lower one.   Here are some shots of him and Nelson doing 'tricks' from the T-dock at Greenlake yesterday.  We went again today and enjoyed stopping at Zoes Frozen Yoghurt for a treat.

Frost was given some money for his birthday.  He still has it all and keeps wondering what to spend it on.  He has offered to buy presents for people, to pay for his own ticket to various things we were doing as a family and has dreamt of a Booster Box of Magic the Gathering cards (which we have denied as we have too many).

Other ideas are music for his iPod, a computer game (Assassin's Creed), MtG booster Box Innistrad series releasing next month, treats like candy and Microsoft points, an X-Box Live Gold membership and now we have to run to meet the new soccer team.

Did I mention Frost plays soccer?

Hair

Frost and Wren have become overgrown with hair.  Its a blessing.  Its a curse.

Yesterday, I cut Wren's with the buzzer and he is now less like a girl.  I confess, I told him that usually boys didn't have long hair but he could if he wanted.  He said he wanted long curly hair like Rowan but I explained his could be long, but not curly because his was straight.

So, he said I could cut it.

Frost has been getting compliments on his overgrown thatch of hair.  He has been told he has a Justin Bieber style.  See for yourself.  Both boys are before haircuts (including Wren).

"I don't know.  You say its long but everyone thinks its cool.  I don't
know why you want to cut it.  Well, you can cut JUST A BIT.  This
is SO embarrassing."

Wren with the face-paint from preschool.  He said
"I didn't know you could do it AROUND the eye
but when I saw Nates I said "WOW, I want it like THAT!"

Breaking out

I barely slept last night because I kept waking up afraid one of the kids would leave the house unexpectedly and set off the newly activated burglar alarm.

I know, its not supposed to be like that.  You're supposed to worry about people coming IN but I think its more likely we will lose money by excess police call-outs from kids leaving to scooter at dawn than from robbers.  Apparently the police charge $75-$100 per 'excess call'.

So, I finally dashed out of bed when I heard footsteps at 7.45am and turned the thing off.   Did I mention I barely slept?

Josh says we should just use it when we go out and he may be right.  I do love the door alerts though.

Meanwhile, our neighbor is alarmed by our increasingly wild poppies.  They are seeding everywhere (including in the cracks on the drive) and she has suggested that we harvest the seed stalks carefully to prevent them spreading.

That will be on my wishlist for today, along with dinner at M and a tour of the new school site, swimming at the public pool etc.   I should also walk Beezle before his big moment of isolation at home.

This morning, after the alarm was off.  Wren told me he was feeling the worst ever.  He had growing pains AND a headache that was very bad and I should "be worried".  I was.  I coddled him for a while.  He wrung out of me that he was too sick for school and promptly recovered.

He is such a con-artist.

It didn't help that I was feeling a bit guilty about him going to school today and tomorrow because I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow that he can't come to.   So, he is watching Frost play Halo.  Frost tells me its on the "non violent mode and I am just building a base" but I think he just tells me that and is really shooting everything.

Wren seems to know the names of all the mechs / aliens / ships / tanks.  See, I can't even categorize them in my ignorance.

Ask Wren what is the best tank in Halo Reach and he will talk for half an hour about Scorpions and modified mechs.