Good with Chicks

Thankful Thursday: A different kind of A-to-Z

SnakeMaster presented me with a ribbon-tied scroll on Mother’s Day. I unrolled it and read, to my surprise, a very different kind of A-to-Z list than I posted yesterday. Here is my youngest son’s own A-to-Z:

Adaptable, come camping with me

Bland, don’t expect anything fancy of me

Careful, come rock-climbing with me

Dynamic, come swim with me

Economical, save money with me

Focused, pay attention with me

Generous, give away things with me

Healthy, don’t get sick with me

Inventive, make new things with me

Just, don’t break the law with me

Kind, don’t be mean with me

Loyal, don’t lie with me

Meek, be polite with me

Naturalist, don’t harm nature with me

Optimistic, think happily about the future with me

Peaceful, don’t fight with me

Quiet, don’t yell with me

Resourceful, don’t waste with me

Sensible, don’t go crazy with me

Thorough, don’t miss things with me

Unique, don’t laugh at me

Valuable, don’t harm me

Watchful, be alert with me

Xtra special, respect me

Young, have patience with me

Zest, be enthusiastic with me

Alice in Veggie-land

If you were to have been at SnakeMaster’s school on Friday, October 29th, you might have thought you’d fallen down the rabbit hole.

The 5th graders had just completed a Language Arts unit based on Alice in Wonderland, and the Harvest Day/Halloween celebration brought out all sorts of characters.

Click on the photos to embiggen and see the wonderful details these creative kids included!

Note the hookah. There were some pretty funny comments made by adults when out of earshot of children.

I wish I had taken a picture earlier in the day before this cat’s grin started to melt.

Bill the Lizard makes another appearance, times two.  The one on the left has a pepper for a tail. SM’s creation, on right, was modeled after his leopard gecko. Be kind about that tail. He created it, and he’s an innocent child.

The white rabbit began to yellow during the day, as the warmth of the room ripened the melon.

Hopefully Alice found her way home at the end of the day.

Sanity? I’ll rally for that!

A look ahead and a look back (because it is taking all kinds of craziness to put together a post today)…

1. I’m headed into The City tomorrow for a chance to take pictures and step out of my comfort zone.  My 19yo son thinks we are crazy (“you’ve never talked politics”  “DAD is going?!?”). While it’s true that neither parent is politically oriented,  the poor boy didn’t think his dad had ever been to a concert (he has) and wondered why the man would go and put himself in a big crowd of people.  MusicMan’s image of his parents has been shattered.
At least the 14yo approves of our “Indecision 2010” activity!

2. At 9:30pm last night, I was helping SnakeMaster sew and use a glue gun.  After all, isn’t that what you are supposed to do with green tomatoes, sticks, and cucumbers? This is the result:

Bill the Lizard

That stuffed cloth thing on the end? It’s his tail. Be nice. I didn’t design it, I just followed my instructions given by a 5th grader.

3. Today, SnakeMaster is wearing his father’s old military uniform for the elementary school parade.

4. This is what he wore for Scouts on Wednesday night. He designed the cape from old, worn-out jeans and the sword is his own creation as well:

5. This is our peak weekend for color, although the wind has already blown some of the leaves off the trees.

Enjoy your weekend!

Preparing for Halloween

SnakeMaster begins his Halloween preparations nearly a year in advance. This year he has 3 options for dressing up, but a few weeks ago, this was the favorite:

See the homemade "knife" and sheath? This kid is creative!

 

First Day of School

SnakeMaster, 5th grade

Humorous-Juniorous, 9th grade

Encyclopedia Blue, 12th grade

And now yesterday’s song makes me feel a little weepy…

Barefoot Summer

Those precious days of childhood
living in a different world
immersed in imagination

I snapped this photo of my 11yo as he intently watched The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.  His sword is his own homemade creation, a product of time spent in SuperDad’s workshop (a.k.a., the Bat Cave). The scabbard is what remains of a cheap plastic sword that lost a battle long ago, and “Tex” is the horse he received on his 4th birthday.
After 7 years, Tex is more likely to be a clothes horse than the faithful steed of a young knight, a prince, or a cowboy — yet here is proof of childhood hanging on to what is good and true, at least in our imagination.

This post goes with Carmi‘s weekly topic over at Thematic Photographic.

Leaping into summer

SnakeMaster and his friend wholeheartedly embrace the season.

These 2 boys (and the dogs!) are having a great time at the beach this week.

Carmi is focusing on summer this week for Thematic Photographic. Do you have photos to share?

Just floating along

SuperDad has the day off, and what a beautiful day it is! This morning he parked his donkey (that’s what he calls his Honda Element) near a river access and then we drove upriver about 3 miles to put in the raft.
Yes, that is a cat food tub; no, they are not taking cat food! It’s where they are storing provisions to keep them dry.

SuperDad and SnakeMaster will enjoy a few hours floating down the river today.

Hopefully they will be home before supper!

This is where they will end their trip.

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I enjoyed a lovely drive along the river and took this video to share:

Sorry about the road noise — I had the windows open on this beautiful summer day!

More Summer Nights

If you were a 10-year-old boy, wouldn’t you love to sleep here?

Of course you would!

Note to Grandma: he has never fallen out of the tree!