Hiking Twin Falls

 When you hike with kids, you never know what to expect. You certainly don't expect to speed up the trail. Sometimes, though, you must stop quite frequently. Especially when one kid brings a magnifying glass to "explore" every inch of the woods. Josiah's pockets are always loaded with gadgets and treasures, and his magnifying glass came out frequently last Sunday as we hiked leisurely towards Twin Falls. He and Naomi and Anika were calling themselves "The Explorers!" and racing zig-zag across the trail to examine different things. At some point the magnifying glass was put away for a few minutes and we gained a little ground... that is, until the dads decided to try a little fishing.

 Needless to say, we did eventually make it to the Falls, which were beautiful. As long as it took us to get there was the blink of an eye compared to the time water has been falling through space at this place on earth. We had to stop and contemplate the continuity- year after year, water never ceases to pour down these rocks. It gives the onlooker a little perspective on the passage of time.

 The hike back down went a bit faster. The kids had fun scampering around, though they were getting a little tired. There was still plenty of energy for silliness and smiles.

 We stopped by the river- I guess it was fishing time again. The kids challenged themselves by jumping from rock to rock. Yes, they all got wet, but that means they were really doing something! Josiah spent a good amount of time collecting "weapons."This is one of his favorite pastimes- as steady as the waterfall itself, the boy is picking stuff up to bring along in hand or pocket. I asked if he could put down a few of them, as they seemed to be hindering his movements on the slippery rocks. He replied that he, in fact, could not. "I need these weapons!" he said. "I am the guard! The guard of The Yellow Princess!" It took me a second to note, but of course; The Yellow Princess was his beloved cousin Anika, all splendid in sunny plastic rain garb. She ventured across the rocks fearlessly with her loyal guard behind her, ready to  defend her against any enemy with his vast arsenal.

Despite wet feet, everyone felt refreshed and renewed by the time spent with family outdoors, surrounded by beauty. We plan to go back another time, when all those blueberry and huckleberry bushes are covered in fruit, and maybe the fish will be biting, too.

Lovin' some Tom Sawyer

I love sharing great literature with my family. Part of the fun of reading a great book together over a few weeks is "living in it" during that time; pretending to be favorite characters, making up voices, or reminiscing over comical or poignant scenes.

This spring we read Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer as a family. It made for a lot of laughter, and also an awareness of satire and irony, which I truly appreciate in my kids! The one thing that was a mixed blessing, though, was that the mischief factor seemed to go way up during our time with Tom. For example, as I have shared before, Josiah decided one night to lock the bathroom from the inside and shut the door. It took us quite sometime to unlock the aged lock from the outside, and we asking him irritably why he did such a thing. He shrugged, of course, and said, "Seems like sumthin' Tom Sawyer would do." There were other antics involving creatures, bare feet, scaring girls, etc. Anyway, Tom was somewhat of a hero to the boy, apparently, as he lived an enviable life of adventure.

I had kind of forgotten this aspect of the book when I checked out the audio version (unabridged and dramatized!) from the library the other day. The kids started listening to it while drawing, and were once again  laughing and enjoying Tom's world. After an hour listening period today the girls came into the dining room for lunch. "Mom, do Becky Thatcher and Tom get married?" said Eva. "No, the book doesn't go that far, don't you remember?" I said. "Yes, I remember, I just thought there would be a sequel." she said. "No, there is just Huck Finn, which is not so much about Tom Sawyer." "Man, I really wish there was a sequel. He should write one." "Mark Twain?! He's been dead for many years!" At this point Josiah came into the room. "What!!" he said, looking truly alarmed. "Who's dead?!!" "The author." I said. "Mark Twain." "Oh." he said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Whew! I thought you meant Tom Sawyer!" I didn't say anything- just smiled! We have never believed in Santa Claus around here, but Tom Sawyer... at that point I just couldn't break it to him! Let his literary friend live on forever.

paranoid, or just libertarian?

A conversation that took place this morning... I just had to get it down.

Josiah asked me where Daddy was hunting today. "He's down near Olympia." I said.

"Olympia!?" he stared at me. "Isn't that where the GOVERNMENT is?! He's gonna get killed!"

"What?" I say, "Why on earth would he get killed?"

"Well they're gonna shoot 'im!"

Naomi overhears and comes over to set things straight. "Josiah. Don't you know that the president in Olympia is a LADY? Can you really imagine a LADY shooting a gun at a big man like dad? Pshaw."

"Naomi, you must mean the governor, not the president. The governor of Washington," I say.

"Oh, yeah that is what I meant," says Naomi.

"Her name is Christine Gregoire," I add.

Josiah gasps... "Aahhhh! I know that name! Chris-Teen-Greg-Wah. When we were out on the boat and I wanted to keep shrimping, SHE was the one who said we couldn't get any more shrimp!! Dad said so!"

if you were looking...

Josiah, Bo and I took a walk together the other day in search of some small salal plants to dig up and take home. We found a few on the road side that looked small enough to remove, and started digging. He told me that daddy taught him the best way to dig, and made a circle around the desired plant with his shovel blade to define the digging area. We poked our fingers into the dirt, looking around for the plants roots as to carefully remove them.  We chatted about dirt, planting, and the mysteries of living and growing things. I took the liberty of reformatting one of his little "imaginings" into poetic form, as it seemed suited. In his usual helpful spirit, he kindly told me;

"If you were looking,

for what was beneath-

if I were a worm,

I would pop up and tell you!

But just if I knew

that you were looking."

jokes and such

A little snapshot of current "funnies" at our house...

Eva is obsessed with "The Phantom of the Opera" and can often be found singing at the top of her lungs, "COME TO ME ANGEL OF MUSIC!!!! I AM YOUR ANGEL OF MUSIC!!!! AHHHHHHHH!!!" It's quite intense. The other day she was switching it up though with little snippets of quiet "Beck" thrown in there too. "COME TO ME ANGEL OF MUSIC!!!! See the Vegetable Maaann in the Vegetable Vaaaan..." Oh, and then there is a little "It's a Wonderful Life" in the mix, too. "COME TO ME... We'll have a wonderful life if I! Have! You!" It would be more bizarre if you could hear it, but believe me, it is quite the cornacopia of sound coming from a powerful nine-year-old!

All the kids are into telling jokes, and making up their own. It is pretty hard to get it right, though- make up a joke that is funny, and then tell it correctly. So Naomi gave it a half-hearted try this morning.
"Mom, wanna hear my joke? It's not really funny though." 
"OK Nomes."
"OK. What do you get if you have a dog, and you live in a house made of dog treats?"
"Ummmm- not sure."
"You have no house, and a dead dog. (pause) See- I told you it wasn't really funny." 

And last, Josiah had some personal objections to cleaning his room today. "Mom, I really don't think I should do that. My New Year's revolution was to stop doing my chores, so...." Gotta respect the strategy there, but this "revolution" is not going to happen.

wouldn't it be nice

Today was crisp and cool, a lovely day to be outdoors. The girls, dog and I went up to the Lake Youngs Trail; I ran, Bo ran, they rode bikes. It is quite a hilly trail, and muddy this time of year, which makes it challenging. After riding about four miles, Naomi spent some time contemplating who was doing work. Eva was up ahead riding hard, I was running with Bo's leash in one and and the other hand firmly pressing Naomi's back to give her some extra momentum on the hills. She was pumping her tired legs hard as she could, and looking at her drink holder. "We are like a machine, mom, all of us working to move together. Except my water bottle. Wouldn't it be kinda nice to be a water bottle, except alive? Just sittin' there, in your container, not doin' anything, but not gettin' thirsty or hungry. Just seems like it would be nice."

the arts and the outdoors

Well, I only have a few more days to blog if I am going to post anything at all for December. Neglecting my blog as I have gives the impression that we haven't done much for the past few months, when quite the opposite is true. Too much to tell, in fact! But the pictures will show a little of what we've been doing. I am having a lot of trouble arranging them the way I want, but this will have to do.

Above, Naomi is all ready for her first choir performance of the Christmas season. She "designed" her outfit herself, coming up with the idea of using my scarf as a sash for her black dress. Both of the girls sang beatifully, and also did a great job in the character roles in the Christmas musical.

Nomsi snuggling Bo by the Christmas tree.

Sarena and I took our girls to the Pacific NW Ballet Nutcracker. It was fun to see them enjoy it. Naomi and Eva enjoyed talking about the costumes afterwards, and little Anika could not help but dance in her chair during the most beautiful scenes.

Andrea and the boys had Josiah over while we attended the Nutcracker- he had about a million times more fun dressing alike in camo and elk with little Timmy and shoving popcorn in his mouth than he would have being quiet at the ballet. He also enjoyed a few games of checkers and Uno.

Here is Eva at her Christmas piano recital. This was a special one because she chose to play "White Christmas" from some sheet music that Grammy used to play. It was a little challenging to learn, but she did so well. She was pleased that Grammy came to hear her, too; that was a real honor.

Daddy was so proud of Eva's hard work.

We have been spending a lot of time outside- exercise and fresh air for me and the kids and the wild dog too. Here Josiah and and his friend Cole are suprised and then delighted as a tree they were climbing broke and sort of slowly crashed to the ground. After they took in what happened, they laughed hysterically for about five minutes.

Hiking around Peterson Lake- a new favorite spot.

Here is the scene at partially frozen Shadow Lake... Bo was entertaining us by jumping wildly onto the ice, sliding around, falling in the water, scrambling to get back onto the ice, and then ripping off chunks with his teeth so he could drag and shake them around. His enthusiasum for frigid water is astounding.

Our Christmas picture.

An attempted Christmas picture. It was later determined that Bo was not a subject suitable for "just so" photographs. Getting the three kids to "look at me!!" is hard enough. With the dog, it's just too much! I am pretty happy with that crazy picture above, though. It is reality, these days!

halloween at the woodmark

This year for Halloween we went to The Woodmark, where Nana lives, to visit with the ladies and pass out some candy. It was kind of a last minute plan amidst several busy days, so the costumes were created after the soccer games, and right before leaving. The girls wore "fairy" dresses, put some glitter on their faces, and made wands out of dowels and aluminum foil with ribbons taped on the end. Josiah- usually not one for costumes- just put his Jedi robe on over his clothes and called it good.

Nana and the other ladies were pleased to see the children, as usual, and enjoyed all the chocolate. All three of the kids are finally getting more comfortable at the Woodmark, and more understanding of the people who live there. Even Josiah patiently answered Marilyn, who asked him about four times, "What is your name?" "Josiah." She told him it was a good, strong name and he would go a long way with that name. He was even willing to hold her hand- a big development!! The kids also enjoyed playing with Aunt Leslie, who is a great liaison between them and the residents, as sometimes it is hard to know what to say or do with them... She knows them all well and can get through to them much better than we can.

Nana was tired, as she is becoming so more and more, but she still made us laugh with her silly faces and hand motions. She just loves to be a little clown now and then.

I won't pretend that the visit was completely pleasurable, because there is a lot of sadness there and it is so difficult to see. But the kids ended up feeling like they helped bring a few smiles to these ladies, and they had a good time overall as well.

bedtime?

Just went upstairs to tuck in the girls, who were supposed to be in bed with lights out... As I creaked up to the top I hear a scuffling, and see Naomi leaping onto the bed, saying "Oh no-the paparazzi!" The covers couldn't hide that, other than her pajamas, she was wearing rhinestone sunglasses, lots of bracelets, a backwards cap, and holding a plastic neon echo-microphone. Eva was lying in bed giggling, and had just put down a used up disposable camera; she, apparently, was permitted to photo the celebrity- I, however, was an unwelcome intruder. Guess she has an agenda other than sleep, that superstar.

poetry by Naomi

Found some poetry scrawled on a scrap of paper next to Naomi's bed the other night... Apparently she's been writing acrostics. Here is a humble verse she wrote using her own name- first in her quick spelling, then a translation, if needed.

Naomi:

Nevr bedr
Apsulootll grate
Olmost betr
Masiv strakth
Inposibl to bet

Never better
Absolutely great
Olmost (almost) better
Massive strength
Impossible to beat

talking Bo

Always feel like adding a picture to each post, even though this has nothing to do with my anecdote... Naomi and Eva with our hair stylist, Kim. They have wanted Kim to cut their hair for years, and she finally decided she would cut for kids too! They were thrilled with the whole experience, and Eva even rehearsed her instructions regarding her cut till they sounded very grown-up. (This happened about a month ago- I'm a little behind.)

OK- so anecdote for the memory book- Eva and Bo. Jason has decided that Bo chews too many things, and that instead of continuing to by him stuffed animals at Goodwill ($1.25 and he LOVES them) he should have rawhides exclusively. These are a lot "neater" than the stuffies, but Bo Bo is quite missing his soft victims. So the other day I walked into the living room to see Eva standing guard in the coat closet, holding a plush puppy high above her head. She was speaking to Bo, who was negotiating with whining and sad eyes, in a low, loud serious voice much like what an Indian would sound like in a old movie. She told him, "ME. NO. TAKE. STUFFIES... BIG. MAN. TAKE. STUFFIES... ME. NOT. INVOLVED."

He must have understood.

soccer jamboree

Last weekend was "jamboree" for MV Youth Soccer- the season starter in which each team plays two short games. Got a few shots of Naomi and Josiah- I ran back and forth between their fields- Jason was with Eva in Ravensdale so we'll post pictures of her another time. Naomi was surprised by being asked to play goalie for awhile... She was great! When the ball came near she had no fear at all of reaching into the kicking swarm to snatch it up. Amazing!

The Strikers vs. The Pink Flamingos. Naomi likes the name Strikers, but her idea (one of many) had been the Red Attacking Apples.

Josiah had a few questions before his first game: 1, "Do you think I'm stronger than a rubber band?" and 2, "What, exactly, is a rind?" Both had to be answered promptly.

Siah scored the first goal of the game- way to start the season!

Warming up with dad for game two.

Every time he came out of the game he had to tell me, "I'm sweaty! I'm the sweatyest kid out there! Man, I'm sweaty!"

The "Green Gators" plan their strategy.

Here goes the season, with three cheers for the Wildcats, the Strikers, and the Green Gators!

camping in the dungeness rec area (July)

A beautiful and eventful camping trip with our friends the Ebys... We "stayed" at a Clallum County Park, Dungeness Recreation Area (a beautiful and well-maintained campground), but we didn't exactly stay there... Here the kids are all taking a break in the Olympic National Forest near Sol Duc Hotsprings. We were about to go swimming, but first had to explore a little.

Below- trying to wake up the kids in the trailer. Puffy little camping faces!

On Saturday we all piled into the Eby's moterhome and headed to Olympic Game Farm- where "wild" animals are held captive in makeshift pens and turned into docile, slightly pathetic creatures who shamelessly beg for Wonderbread handed out by gawking tourists (like us). It's slightly disturbing, but it is still cool to feel a buffalo's tongue and an elk's velvet, all in the comfort of your vehicle.

In the petting zoo area, Naomi spent the entire time with this fellow. I told her it was time to leave, and she wanted a few minutes to say goodbye. She said they had become friends because she notice that he took "a very long time to eat," just like she does.

Naomi and her buddy Bria, who went around loudly calling each other "Girl-fren!" the entire time. Notice the bling around Bria's neck? Well when I asked her about it's origins, she told me solemnly that it was the "key to Lost Angeles." (Sort of a mix-up of LA and Atlantis) And Naomi and Josiah loyally believed along. A few weeks later, while in Home Depot, Josiah spotted something hanging on the wall- "Mom! It's Bria's key to Lost Angeles! FOR SALE!!" He was shocked and horrified that someone would STEAL her key and SELL IT- as a paint can opener, of all things!! Is nothing sacred?

The view from the high bluff, looking down towards the Dungeness Spit- at seven miles out, it is said to be the longest sand spit in the U.S. We only ventured down a bit- not all the way down to the lighthouse near the end.

It was surprisingly chilly for July- the winds from the Straights blew constantly.Eva loved the waves, and would have jumped in had we been any closer to a warm change of clothes for after.

Josiah doing his Great Horned Owl impression, as usual.

Naomi making pizza in her "sand kitchen."

Jason was studying the rules and regs intently to figure out if he could take crabs or oysters from even a little sliver of the beach, but no luck.

Josiah tried to be a gentleman and pull Karen up the hill when she mentioned it was steep.

Bo was delighted to have a buddy along- he and Copper played / fought the entire time. In fact, they stirred up so much dust in the campsite it was a constant coating on everything.

Naomi- proving that you CAN have it all- playing badminton while eating s'mores.

In the sugar zone...

Josiah and his buddy Levi.

Gorgeous sunsets are the glory of this place.

Got a flat on the trailer about two miles from home... Fortunately Jason is handy and quick, and we were back on the road in no time. I watched, so I just might know how to change a tire now... But I still have that roadside assistance number handy just in case.

There are so many beautiful places in Washington alone to explore- we could move on to a new place each time... But Dungeness is too appealing to visit just once. We'll be back.