sound/garden

if it were below 90 degrees, I probably would have caught them....


don't stick your hand in there!


discovering a gypsy moth caterpillar:(


toads off roading


children chillin'


Last night I had a dream I was skiing in south america. I guess it kept me cool enough to sleep through the wave of heat and humidity we're "enjoying." I'm looking forward to our annual pilgrammage to the sawyer cottage and taking a long swim in the cool lake. Not to mention the fresh blueberries, grilling, reading books, daily beach trips, climbing the dune (but mostly running down at full speed hoping Kola doesn't bite the dust.)

The boys have tolerated the heat pretty well. I was impressed that they clocked 7 (sweltering) hours at the arb the other day. The excursion was facilitated by our resident environmental educator - grandma - who gave them lots to observe and think about. She also brought a handful of baby toads from her home's driveway, which were relocated in a beautiful, shady, damp spot in the woods. The lucky buggers probably thought their doomed fate was sealed in the tupperware and honda they travelled in, but they hit greener pastures just before their soggy paper towel dried up.

"Monster" took new variations as I chased the boys throught the animal houses on exhibit there. Usually, I was a fox chasing squirrels and beavers, but they seemed to like it best when I was a skunk, go figure.

We've been on a sound kick here lately. I've been subjecting, er exposing, the boys to my music collection and it's fun to see what they latch on to. Most people would think brainwashing is involved, but they were truly drawn to English Beat (several tracks), Smashing Pumpkins (rhino.), Pearl Jam (black), some of my all-time favorites. We zip through radio stations, too, and have compiled a list of about a dozen songs I'll put on CD for them, ranging from Rush (spirit of the radio) to Led Zepp (over the hills and far away) to the violent femmes (blister...). "Mom, do you have this one?" Several selections are in the boxes of cassette tapes stowed in the basement. iTunes here we come. Kola is drawn to the drums and guitars and organized beats with hooks. Ethan seems to like abstract sounds, time changes, and I think might appreciate some of my dad's jazz fusion CDs like weather report - we'll see.

E is interested in making his own sounds, mostly for the sake of making train announcements as we drive beside a track. He's able to name upcoming train stations correctly (Next Stop...) and uses his empty stainless water bottle in the car to imitate the pre-recorded messages, right down to the tinniness and attitude (Doors Open on the Left at LaSalle. Transfer to...) He uses a sound maker we have to ID different signals for his train layout and Kola is supposed to follow the sounds to make the trains back up or switch or slow down, with mixed results. Maybe if the foreman paid his employee, we'd have a better hit rate on that.

Ethan asked for details on how songs on the radio are made. Kola asked for details on why we can't watch it. We discussed sound engineers and sound boards, levels, base and treble. Does anyone have an 8-track recorder I can borrow??

We're hitting the yellow brick road soon, and will post our vacation journal upon our return! xo b/s/e/k

summer, anyone?

Sweet backhand

 

Walking the dog

 

Forehand as a lefty

 

Football: the holy grail

 

His favorite new skill - the snap

 

We're getting into the swing with summer camps, even tho it still feels like mid spring around here. The boyz are in the perfect storm of park district age groupings, 4-6. They're able to do just about everything together, except football (Kola, ages 3-5) and junior naturalist (ethan, 6-8). They both seem just dandy about not having to share those two activities. Ethan said nervously, "I don't have to do football do I?" While Kola has been waiting for this moment for approximately two years. His reward for a dry night diaper (TMI?) is earning jersey shirts, which are handed down from cousins andrew and jennifer. He would wear them 24/7 if he could.

The boys are also getting some great tennis instruction, and it's good for me to watch all these activities to figure out how to practice with them and give them pointers. I can show them how to be social chairman or how to efficiently multi-task, but throw or catch a ball, they'll have to teach me that some day. xo b/s/e/k

jumping into june

girls getaway in galena


thelma, louise, and her other sister louise


met upon my return...


a hit!


a single becomes a double with an overthrow to 1st


april: weeding the field...june: shagging with zeal


ta da! a happy gym kids 1 graduate.


First off, I definitely want to make note of tomorrow being Kola's two-year anniversary at home with us. It's sometimes hard to see from one day to the next the changes our family, and especially the kids, go through. It's great to step back and see what a difference 20, 100 or 730 days can make. We've all learned, loved, laughed a lot in those 730 days...

A robin has been nesting on our front porch for a couple weeks. Kola and I walked out one day and saw mama Robin on the lawn and I asked Kola, "what do you think she's doing over there?" He said, "looking for her babies. She's going to find them and bring them to her nest to live." That's as good an explanation of it all as I've heard;)

I was lucky to be invited and able to go on a girrrrrls weekend in Galena. I realized there's been only one night in the last 730 I was without both of the kids. Now, affectionately I say, I was out with 3! We had a great time, and at the ripe age of 45, I took my first crack at karaoke with Blister in the Sun by the Violent Femmes (had to be at least 2 hours from home for that to happen!) I was surprised to learn that you actually do need to be able to carry a tune in register to pull that one off - thought I picked an easy one! It was such a fun time and a group of ez to travel with friends, I had a smile that lasted a few days after the trip.

School's been out for Kola for two weeks already, but he'll be going back to the same teacher, M/W/F mornings in the fall, so it really just feels like a hiatus for him. Ethan wrapped up a great kindergarten year and we were both very sad to see it end. He had a terrific class and a wonderful teacher who really helped him spread his wings. The first day I dropped him off for KG, I wore sunglasses and expected security to be showing me off the property, hysterical, but that day was surprisingly easy. Picking him up on the last day though I was pretty weepy. Thanks to Shelley for sharing some wine on the porch that night. Ethan has stopped crying, too, and now we're all thankful for a great school year and hope they remember how sad they were to leave it when it's time to go back...

Only two weeks left of t-ball, and the playoffs are looming. This means crunch time for some teams who are battling for the top spots. It means crunch team for our Blue Jays as we only have a few games left to socialize, remember to bring the video cameras, and see if we can catch our 6th fly ball of the season. Shots I missed: Ethan's turn to bat - as the coaches are calling his name and looking for him in the dugout and near the parents' area, the porta-potty door flies open and Ethan strolls on up to the plate to grab the bat...Patrick in the infield filling his cap with sand - when he's busted, dumps about 80% of the sand out before he flips it on letting the rest drizzle onto his shoulders...Ethan picking dandelions in the outfield, failing to notice a fly ball sailing over his head...the base runners who are left on base, not noticing or not sure why the other players have returned to their dugouts, and are eventually retrieved by a coach...We've actually made a lot of progress in two short months, but most importantly a good time is had by all.

The boyz start their summer schedule this coming week, including a camp together two 1/2 days a week, tennis, kola's doing pee wee football and t-ball, ethan's doing junior naturalist at the conservatory and gymnastics camp. Our block is doing a stay-on Wednesday afternoon where we pull up the lawnchairs and lemonade...hope it's warm enough for the slip-n-slide soon!!! And we're planning a few weekends away, and a one-week lake vacation. I'm looking forward to a great summer! And the boyz keep asking - is it here yet? The pool's open, when can we go in it? keep in touch;)xo b/s/e/k

2 + 1

Here's a video we took of Kola, the very first time we met him, two years and a day ago. The woman's voice you hear is his teacher, and the man showing him the blocks is the Dr. we brought from Kiev. Haricho = good; molodyez = good boy. Seems like a short but a long time ago! This week I need to get cracking on the annual report we provide to the Ukraine Consulate, but for now I'll just enjoy the moment.

This morning I said to Kola, "It's a miracle!" And he replied, "North aMiracle or South aMiracle?" He keeps us laughing and smiling;)

new life!

pennies from head'in


re-leaf


pad tie


kids, carp, and chihuly


a field of jewels


expecting an arrival


welcoming committee


our newest neighbors


We're all anxious for spring to settle in and lead us into summer. We've traded in the cords, boots, and down-filled outerwear for shorts, sandals, and light coats. No matter that most days barely achieve mid-60's. We'd rather shiver and huddle than take a step back towards winter. We've had our share of rainy days so we enjoyed spring infusion at the conservatory. There are more face and finger prints on the windows in the house as we watch new flowers come and go, nesting robins and jays, and new baby bunnies hurdle the tall grass in the yard.

Also new and exciting are our new neighbors across the street - twin 5 1/2-month-old boys adopted from Ethiopia. It brought up all kinds of memories for me, some aspects of our adventure I haven't thought about in quite a while. We look forward to getting to know these little guys!!

spring colors

X-treme coordination


The hunt


Easter booty


note the Blue Jay on G'pa's lap


orange and blue scrimmage


I-L-L-


I-N-I


We (especially Kola, my friend Kelly and I) were pretty excited to attend a free Illini scrimmage a couple weeks ago. It was a little chilly and hard to follow a non-continuous game, but it was interesting to see the team work on plays and Kola liked the tackles and the helmets. I figured my old boda was encrusted with peppermint schnapps, so i didn't bother unearthing it from the basement. The hot starbucks coffee kept me just as warm;)

On the topic of sports, I am thrilled to be a t-ball mom. I've been hooting and hollering at practices, you'd think it was a late september Cubs game (in a good year.) Ethan is a rookie on the blue jays, and since one started nesting in our yard a few days before we got our uniform, ethan was pretty jazzed about the pick. His favorite position seems to be catcher. He has a predictable area he can manage (see organization - top photo) and places the ball on the "T" before each play. What he really wanted to be was manager, but since his baseball resume is a bit light, this is the next best thing. He hangs back with the umpire, who holds the batter's bat for safety while Ethan ducks in and out. He doesn't wear a facemask, but he does get to wear the helmet. Since we've only had one game, there's been no play at the plate, but he did get three doubles his 1st time out. All would have been singles but for overthrows at first base. Another highlight for him is snack time - far better "goodies" than we have at home. Kola also gets some of the stash and a playdate with one of the player's 2nd grade sisters. Last week they were climbing trees;) Let me know if you're in the neighborhood and I'll send you a schedule! More photos to come, no doubt.

I'd be remiss if I didn't detail the top photo - where Ethan is lining up Metra schedules to match the Trouble board while wearing his CTA t-shirt. Trains continue to be an area of interest, which was pursued this week as we followed my brother's family's travels throughout Europe. He sent us emails of which cities they were visiting and we were able to study the Amsterdam trolley, bridges across Luxembourg, trains along the Rhine, and canal boats/ferries in a few of the cities. Such fun for both of us to travel vicariously - a few nights Ethan was carried way enough to skip Wheel of Fortune!

happy springing - more soon;)

xo b/s/e/k

What's new with you??

Homework deductions


Road construction


Captive audience


Storytelling apprenticeship


Letters to know


Room to grow


Great news on the career front. Kola has decided to abandon his plans to become a girl (Sara, in particular) and become a doctor. He will be "Dr. Joe" and will only give checkups and see how people are feeling, but not give shots. At first Ethan was worried. Previous plans have had them both working in the transportation field, so Ethan wanted to know if he and Kola could still be family if they have different jobs. The good news is yes, but explaining to him how or why Kola might change his name to Joe was a little trickier.

Their train hobbies persist and they managed to ride trains for 3 out of 4 days this week. The train is not always the most direct or convenient way to get where we're going, so sometimes I'm dropping the boys and sig off via car and picking them up on the other side. Other logistical challenges were Christmas, where they took the train and I drove the presents, and a potluck brunch, where I needed the car to transport the food. Ethan's binder of train maps and schedules from around the area and world is really fattening up, and some days he'll walk around the house with a timetable, letting me know what trains are entering and leaving various stations.

Recently, the boys had their 4 and 6 year checkups. Ethan came in at a towering 4' which floored me, since I started high school at 4'11". A few years ago my dad said he was glad that of the houses we shopped, we picked a victorian with high ceilings;)

I was very honored a few weeks ago to receive a Citizen's Achievement award from the Illinois Park and Recreation Association for the environmental work I've done in the past year-ish with our park district. I've just re-upped for another three years with the park district's citizen's advisory group and will work again this year as the chair for the Greening Advisory group. It's rewarding to see this venture grow as we continue to implement our environmental policy with the launch of a zero waste initiative and a park stewardship program this spring.

We'd love to see and hear what's new with you. Thanks for checking in! xo b/s/e/k