Sagetribe- Adventures From Our Village

A Book for Mom

Today I received one of the best gifts ever, a book written about me from the not so wee one, whose perspective made me laugh out loud, quite loudly, in public, and maybe shed a tear or two. 

According to Clark-

I'm special because I'm a good reader.

He loves it when I cook dinner.

He wishes he could buy me a crown (I do too, I mean, why shouldn't I have a crown!).

It bugs me when his sister screams (oh, yes).

My favorite t.v. show is Cars 2 (of course- how could I not love things about secret agents :)

The very best thing I cook is cereal...or as he spelled it surreal, which his father thought was quite right when describing my cooking (not sure how to take either of those!)

And do you know why I'm so good at cooking cereal? It's because I put it in a bowl and pour milk on it (jealous of my skills, aren't you cooks out there!)

But perhaps the best page, besides the cover as seen above, which I think bares a very close resemblance to me, was

This list...it made me day, my week. While I strive for these adjectives daily, there is one... I struggle with at times.

I'm so thankful he sees it in me enough to think of me in this way.

And I'm so thankful that my surreal cereal cooking rocks!

One for the memory box for sure!

Mother's Day

Today, two little people snuggled 

and trampled 

across my smushy body

as I lay half asleep

so they could explain just why

they put My Little Pony stamps and frogs

on my I LOVE MOM handmade cards. 

 

Today, two little people grew only a little impatient

while our food took a little longer than usual

since everyone and their mother wanted brunch, 

but they held it together long enough for me to OVERDOSE 

on handmade tamales and iced coffee with extra whole milk,

so I can keep my smush for them to bounce on.

 

Today, two little people held my hands as we hiked through woods, 

found stick forts, followed blue painted trees, and listened while birds

called out, maybe to their mothers.

 

These little people, they sung "Happy Mother's Day to YOU!"

to strangers 

and to me in random bursts,

and they were kept at home so I could find my way to clothes racks

and dressing rooms without worrying about strangers being flashed 

because someone crawled out of the stall.

 

Today these little people, much like every day that I've been blessed 

to be in their presence, 

reminded me how it is quite nice to be thanked

and doted on, 

but it is I who am thankful

to them

for making me a mother. 

 

Happy Mother's Day to all, especially the wonderful mom who let me climb all over her to deliver my handmade I LOVE MOM cards, the mom who took me into her life when I was 21 and loved me despite my crazy apparel, and the grandmas (here and far) who made it possible for all of us to be here, and who taught us how to be mothers. 

 

Recharging

- a new spot to discover

-friends who happened to be there too

-a couple more weeks to hike with my love

-thinking about how I will hike with two, alone...

-thankful good friends won't let me be truly alone

-frogs not scared by squeals (or maybe too scared)

-snack breaks with cheddar bunnies and dried seaweed

-poison ivy keeping the wee one in her carrier (b/c when Mama says NO, it's fun to do the opposite)

-snake skin found and taken for treasure table

-a quiet reminder to say a quiet "thank you"

-Mama's 25 year old Cabbage Patch loved again 

-a weekly recharge: ready for due dates, meetings, teenagers, and the unexpected. 

-a chance to slow down

 

Back Again

Sunday we headed back to a trail we'd hiked just six weeks earlier. Decked out in winter gear we'd spotted eagles and a couple early shoots of green, but mainly we saw leftover winter. 

This week, however, winter (oddly enough) seems to be behind us. Sunday started out rainy with bolts of lightning flashing through the sky. We watched the radar saying a silent "Please let up." At nine o'clock we decided eleven would be  better.

The sky was still dark when cars started pulling up in our driveway, but we decided to brave the chance of more gray clouds. This has become a necessary weekly breath for many of us. 

Some kids were decked out in rain gear. Not ours- ours had trash bags stuffed in the pack just in case, because apparently raincoats are not something we think to buy. Nor are rainboots, so snow boots were adorned, coffee cups filled, and cold homemade pizza passed to backseat passengers.

Spring welcomed us with drops of rain, large puddles perfect for leaping over or into, and a sun who began to peak through clouds. 

The more we walked, the more the heated rays began to scoot the grayness out of their way. They dried the slippery boardwalk beneath our feet and encouraged the life we knew was hiding just under the marsh to emerge. And OH did they emerge.

 As the animals found their way into the sun, so did our children, who quickly shed their layers to embrace the warmth.

Sundays have become my favorite day of the week because I'm not sure there really is anything much better. 

Embracing

the green!

Have you?

Green (Call it Goddess- You'll feel all sparkly with kale bits in your teeth) Smoothie

-Any fruit

-Any juice

Honey, nuts, yogurt optional

-Ice

-Handful of kale or spinach

BLEND!

This was apple juice (like a swig), orange, half of banana (the left overs from my kids' snack) and kale. 

Feeling goddessy, healthy, and closer to only having ONE chin! 

Blend on!

Sunday Unplugged

Recently I found Heather from beauty that moves and Unplugged Sunday- both these blogs are filled with all the things I love- chats about moving simply and being joyful. Reading through them each couple of days just makes you feel ahhh....

Unplugged Sunday- (name says it all) got me thinking. Even though we don't have cable or really TV for that matter (except Netflix through the Wii- watched maybe 30 minutes a day), Clark and I do have Smart Phones, Facebook, this blog, endless emails, work, research, and it all adds up to too much time in front of a screen. 

Yesterday was our first "Unplugged Sunday"- With the exception of two quick phone calls and a check of the forecast, we spent the day without checking our phones or emails. The kids pleas to watch their two cartoons with breakfast were quickly forgotten, and they moved on to legos and making thank you cards. 

And Clark and I couldn't make excuses to them or each other as to why we needed to go off and work. Our work requires computers.

The best part of the day though- by far- was what being unplugged allowed us to have time for.

- 1 1/2 hours of hiking with good friends, crossing creeks, climbing muddy banks, throwing rocks into waterfalls, and exploring hollow trees.

Unplugged- this mama could do it everyday. Not possible right now, but Sundays are going to have a whole new routine. 

Gentle Reminders

I've been reminded, as the bright orange hues sprinkle our yard, the heat kicks on a little more each day, and darkness makes snuggling in warm beds that much easier and that much harder to wake from...

as invites to holiday parties are starting to come, vacations and long trips to see family are planned, presents are made, grades are coming due, and a stack of projects and narratives sit in my bag waiting to be read and reread...

that I need,

my children need,

my partner needs

MORE

lunch dates with just us grown ups

good friends over for dinner even though the house hasn't been dusted in...I don't remember when

to run (in the house) and throw balls (soft) and be LOUD

to make messes and leave them

to make mistakes and know things will be OK

to zone out, watch the fish, just sit

to watch movies on a Tuesday and eat lots of air-popped popcorn with extra butter

to give and recieve extra reminders KINDLY

to embrace extra hugs

to embrace extra pj time

to embrace extra sit on the floor, drink fake tea and real coffee, while Transforms zip by our heads time

YES- MORE!

We do a pretty good job just BEING with our children- turning off technology from the time we leave school to the time drowsy heads hit pillows- so family dinners, walks and bike rides around the block, playtime, bath time, book time, snuggle time, and extra book time, can be just about THEM- about US. 

But days are still too packed full-

Time is still flying by and there is nothing that can be cut out to make time slow down

We can only add MORE-

more PRESENCE in our moments-

more time with the TV turned off, the computers in sleep-mode, the phones charging

more moments when we LISTEN to our children's stories and babbles and let them tell their stories, sound out the words, as slow as they may go, and find joy in made up games that make sense because we allow them to.

All this I know- but gentle reminders are so appreciated. Gentle reminders like Tara's, from Organic Sister, sharing her 3-Secrets-to-Raising-Happy-Healthy-Confident-Kids- who are WHO THEY ARE not who we decide they will be, which you MUST listen to- maybe in your pajamas with a cup of something warm, and  most definitely with a journal by your side because you'll have so very much to think about once you do!

Gentle reminders like Amanda's at SouleMama  whose posts bring confirmations of good living daily. 

Gentle reminders like Hannah's JOY UP, Erin's exhale.return to center, and Catherine Newman's stories and recipes.

Today as I sit, having accomplished very little, I know I have accomplished quite a bit! And I know when things start to get heavy, stressful, tired, and long- these words, MY words, and the words of mothers and women who KNOW how I feel, will be here and there, gently reminding me to come back to the present- where things are Good! 

 

A Rehab Day

I am so good at putting impossible to be reached expectations on...well...most everything, but especially myself and my better half. My career and parenting are where I cut myself the least amount of slack, so it was perhaps not surprising to others when, after three days with zero time to breathe or pee or take care of me, I dropped.

All our Saturday plans, a packed day, were canceled, and I spent the day zombie like in bed, depressed and suddenly quite ill.

I had no choice but to take care of me.

Sunday, feeling a little more alive, began with no expectations other than to hopefully make it out of bed.

I did 

and was welcomed with a book written by my five year old, so full of words and a love of writing, lots of drawings on homemade wrapping paper, and a big box

with a new toy we are so excited to use- dried fruit, homemade spices, and fruit leather are in our future! 

My body, although still needing rest, needed something else-

to be outside! So we traveled through gravel roads, twists and turns more familiar to old homes than this one, and found our way into orchards of apples, fields of pumpkins, apple cider donuts, hot cider, and wagon rides. 

Covered in mud (not them, me) and with perfect pumpkin in hand, 

we headed to marvel at strutting turkeys, goats, lamas, fuzzy cows, and of course ponies.

After walks in the woods, pork bbq, a miniature train ride, laughs with friends, and a lot of fresh air,

I felt whole again. 

There were no expectations, for the first time in a long time, and so the day was rather perfect. 

Perspective is sinking back in...

Feels good to be back. 

 

JOY UP DAY 3

Today is day three of JOY UP- a group of women, from all over the country, seeking joy in all moments of the day.

Today joy looks like

a new vision board* (part of it anyways, because part of it is a little too racy-- created unintentionally but quickly pointed out by BC- ahem...)

a new skirt for a new school year

or three :)

a mama who is trying a little too hard to hold on to this last week before the new year starts, but who knows once it does, things will still be joyful, just in a different way.

 

*a vision board or treasure map is a great way to physically see the things you love, want, or need. It can be on any subject or just on you. The point is to find pictures or words that reflect the theme of your vision so you can continue to see it daily, and so, as you do, it will unfold. I've had my students make them as a way to reflect on goals for the new year or when graduating. The process of making them is at times the real treasure.

JOY UP DAY 2

Today is day two of JOY UP- a group of women, from all over the country, seeking joy in all moments of the day.

Today I am joyful for

CREATION

WONDER

DISCOVERY

JOY!!!