Sweetest Little Moment

Today my daughter had her first field trip of the year. I'd volunteered to chaperone, and was happy to have been selected. Arriving a few minutes early, I was asked to wait in the front vestibule of the school. While another mom and I were chatting, the school nurse happened to walk up, and the three of us spoke for a few moments. Behind the nurse, I could see a small boy approaching from far down the hallway of the lower grades, dressed in his gym uniform. My little boy had gym today also, and was of similar stature, so at first I actually wondered if it was Tommy coming down the hall. I hoped it was, because that would mean I could steal a mid-morning kiss and a hug. But once I could see his eyeglasses, I knew this little fellow was not my son, so I wondered instead if this was his classmate. He looked so small in his gym uniform, and wore a sweet little smile on his face as he approached. Instead of turning the corner, he walked right up to the nurse, took her hand and smiled up at her. "Hello, Joseph. Ready to take your medicine?" the nurse asked him. "Yes, Ms. (so-and-so; it's quite a long name and I am sorry to say I can't remember it)."

Something about the innocent gesture of taking the nurse's hand and patiently waiting for her to lead him to her office was so, so, adorable. I'm fighting a headcold and everything's making me hypersensitive today, but as I stood there I started to get a little choked up. The symbolism of the childhood innocence embodied in this small boy really struck me. Next year, surely he won't be reaching for the nurse's hand; by then, he'll have been shown by example or will have been told by a classmate or older kid that it's very uncool to hold the nurse's hand and walk down the hall together; but for now, in his mind, it was perfectly acceptable, and perfectly comforting.

My husband tells me I sometimes have the tendency of internalizing things; I couldn't help it here. All I could think of was my Tommy, and how he comes up to me at random times during the day and hugs me tight, and kisses my hand, and tells me that he loves me, and that I'm the World's Best Mom in the Whole Wide World. I know these days are drawing to a close, I just know it. That's part of life, the growing up part. And that's the part I'm still trying to come to terms with. To be loved, and needed, is such a powerful, wonderful thing. It's hard to imagine a part of that, however tiny, slipping away.

'Til next time.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I love my children. I love summer. But for most of the past 3 months, my children + summer = stress. Frustration. Loneliness, to some degree. That nagging feeling of being overwhelmed. Renewed efforts to save money resulted in no summer camp this year, which translated loosely into Camp Mom. And so with a barely-two-year-old, a five year old and a six year old in tow, most days were filled with craziness and wracking my brain for ideas of our daily amusements. Lots of beach. Lots of playground. And not enough evening cocktails. Because by the time I'd finally found some quiet time to actually look for the cocktail shaker, I'd either lost interest or forgotten about it completely.

And so it is with a bright smile and a cheerful voice that I welcome Fall once again. Oh, Fall, how I've waited for you, with your crisp school uniforms and bookbags, school lunches which I'll cheerfully prepare (it will be at least November before I'll start to grumble about this nightly--okay, last-minute-in-the-morning--task).

Yes, we happily traipse down to the bus stop just a few houses away every morning, sometimes before the sun is fully up, and wave goodbye to each other as the little yellow bus pulls away. My littlest guy and I still have our share of busy activities every day, but the mental workload is incredibly lighter. Three kids is a handful, and by the time the bus rolls up in the afternoon, I'm re-energized and (usually) ready for what the afternoon dishes out. Homework, soccer practice, whatever. Bring it on.

By the way...the leaves are beginning to turn, and tomorrow is somehow already October 1st! Can someone tell me what's going on? Wasn't it just Labor Day?

Cow Harbor Day 2011

Had so much fun at this village event yesterday! I was visited by lots of regular customers and some great friends and neighbors. And though the day got off to a cloudy, chilly start, the sun broke through over the water and the afternoon was absolutely gorgeous. Best part, my best friend Julianne was with me the whole day, shuttling back and forth from our vendor booth to the playground behind it. Joe brought the boys to visit me, and even my parents stopped by! The day had a real "old time" feel to it--the whole community comes out, it seems. Sales were fantastic, there was a lot of laughter in my happy little booth, Julianne drew me some beautiful pictures, and I was enjoying the opportunity to talk to customers and use my new toy: a credit card machine that plugs into the audio jack of my iPhone for instant processing. How cool is that? Here are a few pictures from the day.

typical night-before-an-event mess:

my booth:

a beautiful day at northport harbor:

my charismatic helper:

earrings:

A special thank you to the Mr., who came to the town green extra early in the morning to set up my tent and tables and get me prepped for a super day, and helped me take everything down. I know a lot of crafters go it alone, but Joe, I would be lost without you. Thank you for respecting my passion for this crazy stuff, you are my biggest cheerleader! XOXO

And thank you to my mom, who watched various combinations of children over the course of the day. I am indebted.

I can't wait to do this event again next year. Hopefully with the kids being a little older, I'll have even more inventory than this year. With this show completed, that leaves just three to go: a trunk show at a private residence next week; holiday craft fair at the big kids' school in November, and a handmade trunk show I'll be hosting in November. Yippee! Everyone who knows me, knows how much I love Etsy, but selling in person is just so much fun. I can't wait for the fall/holiday season!

Wanderlust ramblings

wanderlust:
–noun
a strong, innate desire to rove or travel about.

Such a great word. Something's happened to me within the last decade; I have this very sense of wanting to move every year or two. I'm not sure when it began although I guess going back in time, beginning with college graduation, I've had many addresses:

summer 1998 - college graduation. shared apartment on commonwealth ave, brighton. mix of friends and neighbors. fun times.
1998-2000 - first real job. shared 1930's house in brighton, ma. decided it was time to try life on my own. and enjoy the quietude.
2000-2002 - first real estate purchase, a 563-sq ft one bedroom in a south boston, ma brick row house. modest but all mine. great neighbors.
2002 - a few months living with my then boyfriend (now husband) in his condo in south boston while we house hunted. too much white.
2002-2004 - first floor condo of a lovely victorian home in needham, ma. wacky upstairs neighbors with noisy dogs. picturesque town.
2004-2006 - our first real house, a garrison colonial, in dedham, ma. pretty neighborhood but no one home. isolating. lonely. next.
2006 - three months living with my parents in ny while we house hunted. very generous of them but challenging with a newborn and toddler.
2006 - 2010 - four (four!) years in a cute brick cape on long island. wonderful memories but nowhere to expand with 3 small kids.
2010 - present - a larger brick cape two streets away from the water's edge on long island. major painting but solid home. taking a while to warm up to, though. still feel like it's not really mine. not sure why.

And have I been in love with any of my homes so far? I guess not if I have this constant desire to up and leave (with my family, of course) and set sail for another part of the country.

I had my first child within a year and a half of being married. I was so focused on starting a family that travel plans and newlywed adventures didn't interest me. That was then, and this is now--and those shelved adventures are piquing my interest.

My sister leaves for Germany in two weeks. Her husband's been transferred to a job near Frankfurt and they are committing themselves to the relocation for three years. Would I go if I were her? Definitely! Scary? Yes, perhaps a little. But exciting too, the idea of packing everything, every possession, and living somewhere you'd never imagined you'd be, and starting over. A fresh start. Who isn't enticed by that thought?

My brother and his wife, married about 2 years, are in the process of buying their first home in MD. Out of sheer curiosity I looked at homes for sale in that part of the state, and was amazed at how far money goes there. For what our humble home cost here, we could have a 3,000 + sf new construction home with 4 bedrooms and 3 baths, on a half acre of land. Kind of makes me shake my head and wonder why the hell we're here and struggling to make things work on one income. Imagine a family dinner time that actually included both parents! That's the happy experience that I grew up with, but it's far from what my kids are living today. Instead my husband's commute to New Jersey is two hours in each direction, and if he gets home at 8 pm that's early. By then the kids have been asleep at least 30 minutes, and I'm emotionally tired from my full time motherhood job.

Some days are a real challenge. Some days, it's hard not to feel resentful that I'm a single parent during the week. I'm sure for my husband, it's hard not to feel resentful that he has such a crappy commute and that his salary is being stretched to the maximum limit. We made the decision to leave Boston for NY for a bigger salary, better job title, more job responsibility. We didn't really consider at what cost.

While money can be tight at times, one thing we're fortunately not short on in our house is love for each other. Otherwise I can only imagine how quickly things would fall apart. As in, a house of cards. It's funny, I used to watch shows about house hunting and shake my head at the people who walk away from friends and family and everything they know, and take off for a completely new place, either for a completely different job or just a new way of life or new climate. Lately I've been wondering if these people had it right all along, and I'm the one who's crazy.

I feel like change is coming for us. I'm not sure in what form it will appear or where it will take us, but I feel like it's inevitable. Something has to give. This present lifestyle is getting old and we're not getting any younger.

Kids Really Do Say the Cutest Things

That's right, file this under: kids say the cutest things. Take, for instance, three nights ago. I'm tucking my older son into bed who recently turned 5 years old. He says to me, out of the blue, "Mom, I wonder why a genie only grants three wishes?" "Hmm, I don't know, Tommy," I answered, and then thinking aloud, "I wonder what my three wishes would be...maybe to have Daddy home for dinner every night, and--" At which point Tommy interrupted me and said, "But Mom! You already got your three wishes!" "You know what, Tommy? You're absolutely right!" I said. And wow was I smiling on the inside. My little guy is so bright. He had obviously been thinking about this for a while to have had such a quick analysis ready. I gave him a big, humongous hug, and I gave his brother and sister one, too. These are the moments where Parent is the finest job title in the world.

Woo hoo! More procrastination supplies!

One thing on my bucket list is Learning How to Sew. And actually make useful, pretty things. So, when I feel like taking a side trip from jewelry, I turn to fabric. If you think collecting gemstones can get dangerous (as far as the budget is concerned), then, well, so too can fabric. There are just way too many beautiful color collections. It's a true feast for the color-lover's eyes.

Here's my latest stash! Just dying to dive into this pile and make pretty things.

Warning: Proud Mom Post!

For all the grumbling I do, I really do enjoy motherhood (well, most of the time). Despite wanting to sell my kids to the gypsies half the time (two-thirds?), there are moments that are truly rewarding. Today I opened a sealed envelope that had arrived in the mail last week but had gone overlooked. Julianne took a bunch of end-of-the-year standardized tests in June, given to Kindergarteners across the United States. Well according to the contents of that envelope, it turns out she tested in the 99th percentile. Our little Beantown Binxie is quite a smart cookie. I already knew that, but now it's officially on paper. I'm smiling.

And today, we signed up for the summer reading program at the library. The big kids went in, armed with a book each to report on. Only one, because it's a one-book-per-day program. I stood and watched from a distance with a wriggling toddler as Thomas animatedly described his book to the children's librarian. And I also watched as she smiled and shook her head in disbelief, that this type of detailed report and congenial conversation was coming out of a just-turned-five-year-old's mouth. There he is, reading the story to her. Afterwards she pulled me aside and though most of my attention was spent on keeping James from running away from me, my ears heard "amazing", "very special", "unbelievable" and so on. Yup, that's my Thomas. Personally I think he's off the chart with his intelligence, but I'm in no rush to have him skip grades or anything like that. He has a lot of maturing yet to do and is probably behind the curve in some of those developmental areas. Childhood is fleeting enough as it is. All in good time, I think. But today, I am so proud of my two "big" kids. And James, I'm proud of you too, for playing quietly on the big wooden train and not having a meltdown upon departure from the library. Baby steps, right? Ole!

A newer, greener me...one plant at a time!

A former classmate of mine, going back many (30, to be exact) years has started her own business, planting container and box gardens with edibles for her clients. I love the idea of this as much as I love supporting fellow mom entrepreneurs, so enter Elizabeth. We worked within my budget and set up several pots along my front walkway. It's been a couple of weeks since the plants went in, and so far to my utter amazement, the plants are still thriving! I say this with surprise because quite frankly, I don't have the best track record with plants and flowers. Either I forget to water, or I water too frequently, or I go away and forget to ask someone to look after the plants, or I forget to do a little pruning...well, you get the idea. Fortunately children require different care than plants to grow, otherwise.....I shudder at the thought!

So what am I growing, you might be wondering? Right now I've got a potted heirloom eggplant, a potted tomato plant, a pot of cilantro, a pot of basil and parsley, and of course, because it's summer, a pot of mint for fresh cocktails. And I've tested the mint and muddled it myself with fresh lime and mixed up quite a phenomenal mojito.

~Here are a few pics of my container garden~
MINT

CILANTRO


and a few pics of what I've made with these fabulous herbs:

Tomato Mozzarella Caprese with Fresh Basil



And a fresh mojito!


To learn more about Elizabeth's fantastic Long Island business named Earl's Kitchen Gardens, please visit her Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Earls-Kitchen-Gardens/150548691683046

Time to put myself back into focus.

Okay. So I'm turning 35 next month, and I've just lately had a rude awakening: it's not as easy to lose weight now as it was at age 21. I know, I know--common sense, right? Whatever. I'm too immersed in the lives of three little people to even get to the doctor for a physical. When I called, they told me it had been three years. Years...I was way overdue. But, here I am, 30 pounds (30? really?) overweight since having my third child. Too many batches of cookies baked, too many takeout orders placed, too many late night dinners eaten with my husband, and not enough exercise, apparently. So, I'm turning over a new leaf--because there's no limit to how many leaves one can turn over--and I'm taking advantage of that. I've been at the elliptical for almost 2 weeks now, and I'm hoping to see some results soon. If nothing else, I'm setting a healthier example for my very observant and curious children. But let's face it...finding time is tough. Making time is harder. Especially when there are so many other craft- or shopping-related ways I'd love to use the few minutes of time I have each day.

Anyone else out there in the same boat? Anyone have any words of encouragement or advice that has worked? I'd love to hear from you!

Lawnmowers

It's been a very long time since I've checked in with my blog. Life happens and diapers happen and taxi driving to and from school happens...and so on. But the nagging feeling of having something to write, having something to say, also happens. So, here I am again, hoping to get this little blog going again. It's kind of like pulling at the cord of an old lawn mower. Will it start? And, if it starts, will it keep going?

School has just wrapped up for the year, and in the past 6 days, we've celebrated Tommy's 5th birthday with his friends at Chuck E. Cheese, Father's Day, Julianne's Kindergarten graduation, Thomas' Pre-K graduation, my 8th wedding anniversary, Thomas' 5th birthday and my parents' 38th wedding anniversary. Whew. The last two days, we've laid low--literally. Luckily the kids have been up at 7:45am; a nice change from our usual 6:45 am wake-ups (okay, fine--when I oversleep on a school day, it's more like 7:30!).

The kids have grown so much since my last post! Some updated pictures of my crazy bunch:

Thomas, now age 5 (five!!)


Julianne, 6 and missing her two front teeth now


and James, who will be 2 this summer


and for good measure, here's one of me with the mister. We both look tired, but hey, maybe you would too with 3 kids age 6 and under.


So now, on with the posts! :)