Hugs

The kids were playing a wrestling, hugging, kissing game the other night. No real story behind this one - I just thought that it was a sweet picture. They spend so much time arguing, it's really nice to see them getting along.

The Ladybug Invasion

Two nights ago I came home from work to the announcement that we were being invaded by ladybugs. The day before, there wasn't a single ladybug in the house. The next morning - dozens. I rounded up and released almost thirty ladybugs that night before the numbers got low enough that I could ignore the rest. Carter followed me around the house, serving as my "ladybug spotter". She's got sharp eyes.

Subtle Differences

So we are about to start the goodnight show for the kids' bedtime wind-down, when Sean says "Mom, where is my milk?". Lori is outside getting the dogs to come in, so Carter says to him "I will get it for you, Sean." She brings it to him as he's watching the show, and he distractedly mumbles to her, "Thank you, mommy". To which Carter replies "I'm not Mom, silly." So just to keep it going, I say to her "Are you sure? You look like Mom to me!". She looks at me and says "No....I'm not Mom. I have a different shirt!" As though she thinks that the only way that I can tell my daughter and my wife apart is by their wardrobes. So cute!

Autumn Leaves

Lori took the kids out to play in the leaves last Thursday, and she caught two especially good photos of the dynamic duo. She said that they had just as good a time as it would appear from these pictures. I wish I could have been there. It was good timing for them though - I blew all the leaves off of the lawn over the course of the weekend.

Dinosaurs!

Carter and I were out at Michael's (the store) last weekend, when I came across some of these wooden-bone dinosaur kits. Does anybody else remember doing these as a kid? A grabbed a stack to do with Sean - ther were about a dollar apiece, and I can't resist a deal like that. We made the Triceratops Sunday night, and had a blast. A brief aside about this picture, though: I think it's hilarious that when I asked him to smile for me, he technically did - but his eyes are still fixed on the computer screen. Heh.

Weekend Hikes

I've been sticking to my plan to go for a hike every Saturday morning. It's been about six weeks, and the only Saturday I've missed was the morning of Carter's birthday party - there was just too much stuff to set up at the house for me to squeeze a hike in. But other than that, I've been going every Saturday, rain or shine. I'm really starting to get to know my way around Maudslay a lot better, and don't bother bringing a trail map anymore. To be honest, it isn't a very accurate map and really wasn't much help anyway. I plan to keep this up all through the winter, as well. I eventually plan to branch out and add other parks to the pool, but for now, I am enjoying Maudslay that I don't have much of an urge yet to go elsewhere.

42 Words of Wisdom: #14

"You live and learn. At any rate, you live."

- Douglas Adams

I read an article this morning about new research showing that you have to make mistakes in order to learn. Seriously? This is considered "new research"? This is what I have always believed, and is one of the fundamental principles of the way I raise my kids. To quote the article: "For years, many educators have championed 'errorless learning,' advising teachers (and students) to create study conditions that do not permit errors." To me that doesn't sound like learning, but rather memorization. And how long does memorization usually last? Just long enough to pass the test - that's how long. Being afraid of making mistakes just means that you will never really learn anything.

Carter’s Third Birthday

We had Carter's third birthday party last weekend. We rented a moon bounce and had it at home. We had looked into doing it somewhere else - like Party Playland or Chuck E. Cheese's, but at most places you only get an hour and a half, and then they toss you out. I've been to a few of those parties, and they always feel so rushed. And renting the moon bounce for the whole day was the same price. Every had a great time - even the adults. The kids were all starting to 'help' Carter open her presents, so I went in the moon bounce with all of the kiddos to distract them. I was tossing people off of the walls, flipping them over, starting pig piles - even the kids I don't know as well got into it. Carter got lots of great presents, including a toy mailbox that she's had her eye on for a long time. The weather was cooperative, the food was great, and glorious, glorious fun was had by all.