mathmom's blog

Eleanor is took a DIY (do it yourself) craft summer class. As soon as I saw the description, I knew it was just right for her, especially since it was taught by one of her beloved kindergarten teachers. In the class she made many things, including: a hat a water bottle holder a ring a bracelet a lunchbox a pencil holder a school bag many other things... The crown jewel was a "checkers board" made from a metal cookie sheet, with pink and purple squares hot glued down to them, with foam markers hot glued to magnets for the pieces. There were only rules for 7 across, and about 10 down, so it's not the standard game but still fun. My favorite was when Eleanor came home from the first day of camp. "I got to use a hot glue gun! I only hurt myself once! Or maybe a few times. Do we have a hot glue gun?" (I answer yes.) "Can I use it?" This week she's in a "keyboarding" camp (not a "typing" camp", apparently). They have ...

So if I don't even cook the gruel (oat bran) that my middle daughter eats for breakfast, does that make me a cruel mother? She asked for dry oat bran and salt this morning for breakfast...

I haven't written about the gardens for a while, so here's a small update. We planted pumpkins in the back garden. We started the seeds in little cups and then transplanted them into a newly weeded garden with "soil conditioner". They have taken off, and are now almost as big as Eleanor. No blossoms yet, but humongous leaves that threaten to take over the garden. It's very rewarding. Michael managed to hook up a spigot to our irrigation system, so the hose now reaches all of the plants (we've got two dwarf plants that didn't get enough water in the beginning) and also we don't get charged sewer fees for watering the plants, a great improvement. I also started a compost pile. I really don't know what I'm doing, but through reading I've come to the conclusion that contrary to popular opinion, compost doesn't just happen, it has to be engineered. However, nature keeps working and something is happening in that compost pile. In the ...

Eleanor just tied 6 plastic grocery bags together with a ribbon and made a "parachute". She tied one of our small plastic toys to the end of the ribbon, threw it over the railing, and watched as it floated slowly to the ground. She then untied the toy and threw it over the railing alone, and it fell very fast! She's unwilling right now to tie heavier things to the parachute to see what the weight limits are. But I'm still proud =)

The book Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram has two rabbits competing to see which one loves the other more. I don't like the book---it doesn't seem to me that the big rabbit always has to prove that he loves the little one more---but it is fun to play a game with your kids to describe how much we love each other. Eleanor and I came up with a new one recently: I love you more than reading. The best part is that Eleanor and I feel the same way about reading, and we each know that "more than reading" is quite a compliment.

I've been trying to get the kids to do chores around the house---it's "good for them" (TM) and I know that it's easier to get them to help out now than later. Today I asked Amanda to help take out the garbage and recycling. We took the trash bag and recycling out to the bins. Amanda dumped one of the recycling containers in to the bin, I dumped the other one in, and then I went inside to get a last piece of garbage for the trash bag. By the time I got back, Amanda looked at me proudly with the empty trash bag in her hands. "All the trash is in the trash bin!" I managed to get the garbage back into the bag, and Amanda and I had a little talk about recycling. She was just trying to help, I know. Isn't there some easier way to teach them? I am constantly amazed by how much Luke likes to help out, and how competent he is. When he clears his dish, he doesn't just take the dish to the counter, he scrapes the excess food off into the trash and ...

Scott Simon is my all time favorite radio host, and his commentaries on Saturday Weekend Editions are my favorite minutes of radio all week (when I get to hear them). I especially enjoyed this commentary about his wife's job as a stay at home mom, and how he contributes---I felt as though he'd been watching my life. My favorite line: "She has four minutes a day to herself and eats only Cheerios that fall on the floor." I also like the recognition that there is no vacation from being a parent. Hope you like it!

We love going to the park near our house. There is a playground with shade. There are birds. There is a pond. There are walking paths. There are turtles, fish, ducks and geese. My biggest problem with the last set is that for many children, the highlight of coming to the park is feeding the animals. They love to go onto the bridge and dump crackers and bread and whatever into the pond and see what eats it. It seems harmless enough, except that there are big signs at either end of the bridge saying "DON'T FEED THE WILDLIFE!" The pond gets messed up since the animals don't eat the algae. The animals get messed up from eating human food. The geese don't migrate. And the guests at the park are bothered by pushy ducks who chase you along the paths if you don't bring food. (Ever since I watched "The Birds" I've had a bit of a bird phobia...) I admit that I once liked to feed the turtles. It is very convenient that they hear footsteps on th...

Ever since the day I sent Eleanor and Amanda to school without their shoes (kind teachers let them wear dress up shoes, if I recall correctly) I have tried to find a way to make sure that we don't forget necessary things when we leave the house. My solution has been to use a checklist: a short list that includes the things we would be really sad if we forgot. The checklist has to be automatic to function, or something gets left at home, so I find myself repeating it out loud as the kids are getting into the car: "Shoes! Jackets! Drinks! Bags! Snacks!" The other day as I was getting into the car, I heard Luke start to yell out, "Shoes! Snacks!" I think he gets it.