Navigating the hilly terrain of motherhood
On Sunday the four of us (plus Maggie!) hiked up Bradbury Mountain to breathe some crisp fall air and get a good view of the amazing foliage. It was very fun.
I handed Tess a leaf and was immediately reminded of the very first time we visited Bradbury Mountain, almost two years ago. She held onto that first leaf like it was the most amazing thing she'd ever seen. My, how our cuties have grown — but Tess still fits in that backpack!
On gymnastics days, Tess wakes up and puts on her leotard right away. She simply cannot wait for it to be time for her class. She participates with great enthusiasm, and seems to particularly like walking on the balance beam then jumping off into the foam pit. And when it's time for 'follow the leader' she is always right behind the teacher. She looks over every once in a while to make sure I'm watching, which of course, I always am — this is simply too precious to miss. And then we give each other a thumbs-up.
Tonight at bedtime, Gracie proclaimed: "I'm starting to really like boys a lot." She meant it in the I-no-longer-think-they-have-cooties-and-I-want-to-be-friends-with-them sense. But still, I'm getting a little worried about the teenage years.
The other day, Grace and I passed by a big garage sale, and decided to check it out (for no apparent reason other than it was Saturday, the weather was gorgeous, and everyone there looked so happy). We left with two books and two Spiderman figures, one for each girl. Of course, this prompted them to dig out their Spiderman shirts, which are extra cool because they have blinking lights — not that Spidey is at all lacking in coolness. Grace was so overcome by Spiderman mania that she was moved to pay homage to him in her latest work of art. I'm so proud.
On Saturday, Grace and I climbed nearby Bradbury Mountain with a partner in crime friend of hers from school. I really wanted a sweet photo of the two of them on the mountaintop, with the fall foliage in the background.
I was unsuccessful (although they did make me laugh).
I have no idea where I came up with this, but on Sunday I suggested that we get some pumpkins to paint. So at the apple orchard, I stood in the pouring rain while each girl chose her own pumpkin. (Little did I know that they would cost us $15! Seriously — when did pumpkins get so expensive?!) Painting really big pumpkins on a rainy Sunday afternoon was the perfect activity. And for the record, it was Grace's own idea to do it naked — thus eliminating the need for a smock!
We have been having beautiful, warm fall weather here. All week I felt like I needed to stay outside and soak it up as much as possible, because I know everything will change soon. So, I took the girls to get ice cream after school four times last week — and then on Saturday we went to Toots with friends. Because of the very wet and cold summer we had, I really feel like we didn't eat nearly enough ice cream. I suppose we're making up for that now. The bad news is, this was Toots' last weekend of the season, and because it rained all day today, they never even opened! So unless we have some warm weekends in October (I'm keeping my fingers crossed), this will serve as my annual end-of-season blog post to mourn the closing of Toots. Now where will we go for entertainment (and sanity boosts) in those difficult late-afternoon hours?!
Every Friday the Friends School has a school-wide assembly. This afternoon when I arrived, all of the students were standing around the school garden, holding hands and singing, "Inch by inch, row by row." The sunflowers were glowing, the kids were adorable, and it was just so very sweet. Afterwards, Grace ran over to me and proudly showed me the doll she had made using corn stalks, with a green bean for arms. I could go on and on about how much I love Grace and Tess's school, but I think you get the picture.
Grace has the most wonderful kindergarten teacher who puts a lot of thought into coming up with fun activities. Grace's "homework" (they really don't have homework) last weekend was to create a "me" doll, using a template, with help from her family. Of course, Tess wanted to make one, too. We used pasta for hair (and mouths, and Tess's nose), and the girls chose fabric for me to cut into dresses. Grace even gave hers a heart and underwear (obviously) under her dress. Then they put on a "me" doll performance: one invited the other over to play, and they jumped on a "trampoline" (the piece of paper in the above photo). Sadly, Grace's doll had to go off to school, and now Tess's is getting lonely.
Travelingjenny 