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| (Thanks for the good gear, Tim and Eric!) |
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| (look familiar, Jules?) |
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| (Rani Arbo and Daisy Mayhem doing songs from "Ranky Tanky"--a current fave) |
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| (Julie, once we'd talked about it, it had to be done immediately!) |
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Happening these days in and around the purple house
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Great blue herons to the rescue
We conquered the sleep-deprived grumpies today by getting out into nature. (Is it just us, or do full moons drastically affect sleep in your house, too?)
A friend recently told us about a hike we had to take, to a great-blue-heron rookery, from a downtown neighborhood, of all places!
The last time we went (a few weeks ago), we saw the herons building their nests. Today, Lucy and I returned and found them all sitting on the nests.
It's so bizarre to see these big huge birds perched high in the trees like that!
Right next door to the herons is a bald eagle, also nesting.
It's a truly amazing sight.
Closer to earth, we saw a garter snake,
a tuft of unidentified fur (a mystery to ponder), lots of animal holes, big fat bumblebees, some butterflies, red-winged blackbirds, wood ducks, and heard many, many different bird calls.
It was amazing to see that the brown woods we'd visited so recently was now lush and green. (And completely full of poison ivy! We kept our bodies small and centered on the path.)
Later, we went out to dinner with friends, followed by dessert and dandelion-blowing in a little park in the center of our town.
And when bedtime came and went by an hour, with no sign of sleep, I got Lucy back out of bed and into the car and we went in search of the "supermoon." We caught glimpses of it through the trees in all its huge orange glory, and continued looking for a good viewing spot as it rose, lightened, and got hidden by clouds.
It was well worth the extra-late bedtime.
My best cure for a difficult day--take it outside and breathe in the wonders of nature.
A friend recently told us about a hike we had to take, to a great-blue-heron rookery, from a downtown neighborhood, of all places!
Closer to earth, we saw a garter snake,
Later, we went out to dinner with friends, followed by dessert and dandelion-blowing in a little park in the center of our town.
And when bedtime came and went by an hour, with no sign of sleep, I got Lucy back out of bed and into the car and we went in search of the "supermoon." We caught glimpses of it through the trees in all its huge orange glory, and continued looking for a good viewing spot as it rose, lightened, and got hidden by clouds.
It was well worth the extra-late bedtime.
My best cure for a difficult day--take it outside and breathe in the wonders of nature.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Bird cat toy: Lucy's project
Lucy (observing our cat, Eliot, at the window, birdwatching): "Cats like watching birds, just like I do! We should make a toy bird for the cats. And put that stuff that cats like in it."
me: "Catnip?"
Lucy: "Yes!"
me (rummaging around in the cabinet): "It looks like we don't have any catnip right now. I can put it on the grocery list."
Lucy: (going into the studio, and finding some colored cellophane): "We can use this."
me: "That would make a good sound inside the bird. I think the cats would like that."
me: "Can you draw what you want your bird to look like?"
Lucy:
(the drawing picked up a few stray squished water beads along the way)
I lay Lucy's drawing on the light box, with fabric on top, and traced her design. With her permission, I added a line to the beak (the line on the far right), to make it more triangular, explaining that it needed to be wider for us to be able to cut it out and sew it. I cut out two bird shapes, pinned them together, and showed her how to sew the edges together. She sewed some, I sewed some, and we passed it back and forth until it was mostly sewn together. We were careful not to sew the beak shut, as she wanted it to be able to open. A friend helped her cut the cellophane and stuff it in.
The finished bird (now with an eye she added after watching me trace her drawing:
Proud of her finished toy, Lucy offered it to Austen:
He showed his approval by rubbing it with his head.
Afterward, Lucy had second thoughts. She didn't want the cats to tear her bird, so she decided that instead, it could be a "band for cats" (as in, it makes music, so we can play it for them like a band). She offered me pots to clang together and paraded me through the house, crinkling the bird, a band for cats.
me: "Catnip?"
Lucy: "Yes!"
me (rummaging around in the cabinet): "It looks like we don't have any catnip right now. I can put it on the grocery list."
Lucy: (going into the studio, and finding some colored cellophane): "We can use this."
me: "That would make a good sound inside the bird. I think the cats would like that."
me: "Can you draw what you want your bird to look like?"
Lucy:
(the drawing picked up a few stray squished water beads along the way)
I lay Lucy's drawing on the light box, with fabric on top, and traced her design. With her permission, I added a line to the beak (the line on the far right), to make it more triangular, explaining that it needed to be wider for us to be able to cut it out and sew it. I cut out two bird shapes, pinned them together, and showed her how to sew the edges together. She sewed some, I sewed some, and we passed it back and forth until it was mostly sewn together. We were careful not to sew the beak shut, as she wanted it to be able to open. A friend helped her cut the cellophane and stuff it in.
The finished bird (now with an eye she added after watching me trace her drawing:
Proud of her finished toy, Lucy offered it to Austen:
He showed his approval by rubbing it with his head.
Afterward, Lucy had second thoughts. She didn't want the cats to tear her bird, so she decided that instead, it could be a "band for cats" (as in, it makes music, so we can play it for them like a band). She offered me pots to clang together and paraded me through the house, crinkling the bird, a band for cats.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Vintage book surprise
Look what arrived in the mail this weekend!
25 books from Burgin Streetman, author of the fabulous blog Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves. She's clearing out her shelves, and I won her resulting giveaway!
Burgin's blog is dangerous for me. She makes me want to run out to a library book sale right now, and adds new must-have books to my wish list on an almost-daily basis. When I first came across her blog, I went right back and read all the archives, and knew I'd love her new-t0-me recommendations because I loved what she had to say about the books I did know. When I'm at a library sale or thrift store, I love it when I come across a book she's reviewed, and grab it up like it's an old friend. I've discovered many wonderful authors and illustrators this way (and greatly endangered my already-groaning bookshelves).
So what a thrill to open that box and see what was inside!
So far, this is my favorite new discovery:
Doesn't look like much from the outside. But check it out inside:
So much to see! So much to talk about.
And the kind of slow, detailed storytelling that makes me think of a grandmother sitting beside you, telling you all about what life was like when she was a girl. They describe just the sorts of things a young child would be interested in, so that you can almost feel you are there: "But a farm in the country is not quite as deserted and quiet as it seems. Listen carefully. Cows moo. Dogs bark. The sheep complain. Cocks crow. Geese gabble. The cats meow. The tethered goat is bleating. A combine whirrs and rattles. A door slams. A shutter creaks. The wind gossips with the leaves."
She included lots of science and nature books. I love the illustrations in this one, and the interesting way that the animals are presented, with predator and prey together on a page ("polar bears and seals," for example):
(One of the reasons I love vintage science books is the way many of them rely on very detailed realistic drawings and paintings rather than on photos. Gorgeous and inspiring in a way not usually found in newer books.)
This one made me want to get out a magnifying lens and start studying stuff I'd never thought to before. I look forward to sharing it with Lucy some day:
There were some for sharing with others, too. This one was perfect for my horse-loving niece:
(I remember loving the cat book in this series way back when.)
And I had this one, but I have another niece who's fascinated by bodies, so it's for her:
That just barely scratches the surface of this big pile of books!
Thank you so much, Burgin!
25 books from Burgin Streetman, author of the fabulous blog Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves. She's clearing out her shelves, and I won her resulting giveaway!
Burgin's blog is dangerous for me. She makes me want to run out to a library book sale right now, and adds new must-have books to my wish list on an almost-daily basis. When I first came across her blog, I went right back and read all the archives, and knew I'd love her new-t0-me recommendations because I loved what she had to say about the books I did know. When I'm at a library sale or thrift store, I love it when I come across a book she's reviewed, and grab it up like it's an old friend. I've discovered many wonderful authors and illustrators this way (and greatly endangered my already-groaning bookshelves).
So what a thrill to open that box and see what was inside!
So far, this is my favorite new discovery:
Doesn't look like much from the outside. But check it out inside:
So much to see! So much to talk about.
And the kind of slow, detailed storytelling that makes me think of a grandmother sitting beside you, telling you all about what life was like when she was a girl. They describe just the sorts of things a young child would be interested in, so that you can almost feel you are there: "But a farm in the country is not quite as deserted and quiet as it seems. Listen carefully. Cows moo. Dogs bark. The sheep complain. Cocks crow. Geese gabble. The cats meow. The tethered goat is bleating. A combine whirrs and rattles. A door slams. A shutter creaks. The wind gossips with the leaves."
She included lots of science and nature books. I love the illustrations in this one, and the interesting way that the animals are presented, with predator and prey together on a page ("polar bears and seals," for example):
(One of the reasons I love vintage science books is the way many of them rely on very detailed realistic drawings and paintings rather than on photos. Gorgeous and inspiring in a way not usually found in newer books.)
This one made me want to get out a magnifying lens and start studying stuff I'd never thought to before. I look forward to sharing it with Lucy some day:
There were some for sharing with others, too. This one was perfect for my horse-loving niece:
(I remember loving the cat book in this series way back when.)
And I had this one, but I have another niece who's fascinated by bodies, so it's for her:
That just barely scratches the surface of this big pile of books!
Thank you so much, Burgin!
Monday, February 20, 2012
Scenes from a long weekend
Time to tap the trees! (Actually, with this strange winter, I think we could have been sugaring for a long while now.)
Reach,
snatch,
slurp!
Repeat.
An afternoon walk with Alexa, visiting from Michigan.
With gliding!
A morning at the children's museum, especially to see the ambulance (a current interest of Lucy's):
With climbing,
and big bubbles.
How was your weekend?
Reach,
snatch,
slurp!
Repeat.
An afternoon walk with Alexa, visiting from Michigan.
With gliding!
A morning at the children's museum, especially to see the ambulance (a current interest of Lucy's):
With climbing,
and big bubbles.
How was your weekend?
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