Eat Your Peas

Mystery, wonder and awe. What makes your jaw drop these days? Reality TV? Extraterrestrial encounters?  (whats the difference?) As adults who control their own destiny (right?) what knocks your socks off? Is there anything that puts you over the edge anymore? Or have you experienced everything and suffer from a case of mental synapse relapse? You're just worn out from the consistent downgraded economic chatter?
Here's something with some flavor to get you thinking...

How about your kids? Do you see awe and wonder from them yet? Do they come home from school like mine, initially high but suddenly dazed and drawn out? I ask them how their day went at school and get a distant gaze - with no reply. What did you have for lunch? Same gaze and lack of reply.

Then the next day as we drive back from soccer practice - out blurts something about the first 13 stars and stripes and Betsy Ross and history and some book they're reading in class. Or how about after their first day at Spanish lessons, you walk out of the school with them and ask how it went and get something in Chinese (from last year and you've never heard before "oh I was just counting"). Yes you were, now lets see what happens after a year of Spanish...

I am trying to live for my kids. My wife and I are trying to avoid living for ourselves (we are both Gemini and this is difficult for us). There is balance somewhere, though much of the time it favors the kids to some extent. On a daily level, at least one of the kids seems to wind up satisfied.
  
Though I realize the realities of day to day living - I see awe and wonder in my kids and that keeps me pushing. They are mesmerized by the little things that they learn. It is their time and we work at creating that stable environment for them to do that learning confidently. We are fortunate (ear your peas, kids are starving somewhere...) to have this wiggle room or "space".

Realistically, we are finding that we have to push them a bit - to try new foods, to say hi to the kids at the park, to give a little offering at church - to think beyond themselves and their immediate circle. Surely they will find their way and ride the wave wherever it takes them and being inquisitive never hurt.

Touch and Go

Off to those far off places so exotic and east
Up into a soft white cloud and above the level
Deep beyond the point of mediocrity
and ease back to civility

To discuss or to let go
if it lingers it may fester
and become a hole that isn't tight enough to fit
let it go next time

the curves are there
the warmth is there
the eye contact isn't
so the quick pulse diminishes to a listless melody

touch and go - no go

Thriller and Aliens

An interesting series of events.

The other day the boys were dancing to Michael Jackson. Which happens often in our household (God bless the man...) that's what I call a lasting legacy. Thriller is the album of choice these days and especially the song "Thriller". From what I know they haven't seen the video, which is good because we don't have to deal with the resulting nightmares yet. But, they do love the song and will do so even more as we head towards Halloween. Anyhow, they danced after dinner until they were sweating and what good exercise!

That night before bed, we read a book about planets and space. The book explained the basics of the solar system and on one page showed all the planets lined up from the sun - and I wonder if they are able to realize this yet? That there is something beyond the big blue and the starry stars that fill the sky. And what fills their mind? Questions - and lots of them. Lets pray they have their lifetime to find answers.

Recently saw this article - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44511308/ns/technology_and_science-science/. Folks are beginning to pick out a few planets that may potentially harbor life and within my boys lifetime and probably mine, we may find some signs of life - outside of ours - extraterrestrials (E.T.) Makes the grown up in me wonder...

What would aliens think of earthlings if Michael Jackson's Thriller were blasted into deep space?

In February, 2008 The Beatles - Across The Universe was blasted into deep space:

Words are flying out like
endless rain into a paper cup
They slither while they pass
They slip away across the universe
Pools of sorrow waves of joy
are drifting thorough my open mind
Possessing and caressing me

Jai guru deva om
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world

... 'cept my kids.

Enjoying the Quiet

I love my house in September and October - slightly chilled, sunny (my house has lots of windows) and there is nothing on.
You can hear the sounds of the trees and birds.
The cars driving by on the freeway near my house.
The hammering of the neighbor working on something.
Nothing electronic is turned on except my laptop.
No music. No video games. No TV.
My husband just took my oldest to watch a high school soccer game.
My two youngest are sleeping.

OOOOOhhh ya....sigh.
It is amazing how much peace and relief it is to have this quiet.
It re-energizes me.
Makes the air I breathe flow better through my body.
My shoulders feel lighter.
My brain doesn't feel so full.
Many people don't know but I am a secret introvert.
I need this quiet to rejuvenate my soul from the crazy thing I call my life.
It just makes me feel better.

Then I hear a cry from the baby monitor. Just a bad dream???
Then I hear some babbling.......someone is up.
The quiet was sure nice while it lasted even if it was just 15 minutes. . .now I can take on the world.
Or 3 boys and a husband.

Sneak Peak

As of late, our oldest has started getting sneaky. There have been a few instances that come to mind and apparently seem to be the start of some new secret spy kid thing going on. Has me wondering if there is a parent attention deficit going on - as in pay attention to me and my interests and "I'm bored."

The first instance started happening this summer during break from school. The sun comes up earlier and the kids started getting up really early. With anticipation of playing games - on the computer or the X-box. Having recently learned the ability to turn these machines on, the kids have figured out that mom and dad aren't getting up right away - if they don't have to. So, there is the easy ability to rise and shine and play games for an hour before mom and dad get up and get their coffee on. We have our computer set up for Kidzui, a kid-friendly activity site. At this time the X-box has only kid friendly games... but where will this go?

Another instance involves the older brother coercing the younger into his stash of cookies or even money. Using the promise of letting the younger play with his Legos at some point in the future. The trouble is, this never happens and suddenly the older brother is gobbling down an extra cookie or has more money for which to purchase the next Ninjago.

The third involves the oldest sneaking things to school. Pokeman cards or Lego figures or money. All of which are smaller and somewhat difficult to detect. My concern is that school is school, a place where you are kept busy learning and experiencing. This involves complete interaction with other kids - who might have their little Lego figures there at school, but can't they wait until they get home to play these things together?

We can see the older brother is getting clever and smarter, his interests are changing, he is growing like a tree, he is getting street smarts from other kids at school - all things I understand and wish to foster to his benefit. My concern is whether this sneakiness goes away or just blossoms into something bigger... or that he is genuinely bored and searching for the next thing. Or that he is starting to grow out of us and this is the start of some natural independent streak. Is this something that all oldest kids go through?

Nobody Moves, Nobody Gets Hurt

"Stop it. Don't do that. Stop. Don't. Stop."

Often I could repeat that over and over again. Especially as I watch them nitpick each other to death. But lately the first thing that comes to my mind as I break up a skirmish between the loyal minions is that famous quote "Nobody moves and nobody gets hurt!"

I don't recall where I first heard this infamous line, I know I used it when I was a kid playing cops and robbers - although I don't recall whether I was a cop or a robber. But I'm finding that although I don't yell it out at the kids as they are about to poke each others eye out, it is the first thing that comes to my head.

And so my action from that point is to pull them apart and let them cool down a bit. Start the interrogation to get to the root of the problem. Figure out what the issue really is that's creating their discontentment... poor little fellas.

When they are tired, their fuse is even shorter so that it takes just a minor act to light the little kegs of dynamite. And that again is where my quote comes in "Nobody moves, nobody gets hurt!" "Put your hands up where I can see'em!" And then read them their rights and so on.

I could come in yelling like that great opening scene from Pulp Fiction...

What would my kids turn out like if I played the role of robber rather than cop?