Spring Returns

Time for a picnic.

Winter Returns

We didn't mind.  Well they didn't.  I didn't mind spending another day by the fire.

Weekend Highlights

~ Boiling (40 gallons) of sap
~ Friends over to play
~ Seeing Grace's performance twice this weekend
~ Sewing
~ Having a relatively clean house tonight to start our week with
~ Time to plan and dream
~ Eating microgreens with everything
~ Looking forward to day tomorrow with nowhere we have to go

Microgreens + Eggs

= Yum.

Opening Night

{Grace is 5 over from the left}
            Snow White

Yes

Today Jackson woke up with a smile on his face for the first time in a long time.  I felt hopeful in that moment but, I was still holding my breath.  A few hours later when he was still sitting up I felt even more hopeful. Several hours later when I looked out the window and saw him wildly riding bikes and scooters outside with Grace and Nora I finally let out a cheer.  He was better.

The conclusion was that he initially had some sort of virus, but then the virus went away and was replaced by a spinal tap headache (which is incredibly painful and can in of itself be something quite serious).  But because he was acting the same in both cases (laying down and complaining of a horrible headache) the doctors were concerned it may have all been one underlying mystery illness.  But thankfully not, and now we know.



I do not handle these sorts of situations well and my parenting over the last few days has reflected that immensely.  Yesterday in a pure state of fear and exhaustion I found myself angrily yelling at the one person I was most concerned about...  But you haven't brushed your teeth in three days, you haaaave to brush your teeth!!  



So aside from practicing self-forgiveness, I (we) are also growing micro-greens.  One day last week Jackson arose from the couch and pointed to the bag of seeds that had been sitting untouched on our kitchen cabinet for the past 5 months (because they were suppose to supply us with fresh greens all winter because of course I would plant them every week starting last November) and asked "Can we plant these?"  Oh my gosh yes!!  I can't fix your headache or figure out what is wrong with you but by golly YES we can plant these!



So... we did.  And now Jackson is better AND we have micro-greens.

Weekend

Barefeet. 70 degrees.  Blue skies.  Digging in the garden.  Boiling sap.  An Irish concert.  Mud pies.  The return of Frankie and Frieda.

Jackson still isn't feeling better.  Thank goodness we had these things to momentarily distract us (Jackson included).  Every so often he would pop up off the couch and resume his cheery nature and run outside to play.  At which point Ryan and I would conclude that this time he must finally be on the mend.  But inevitably a few hours later he would end up right back where he started.

I think one of the hardest things about being a parent is knowing something is wrong and not knowing what it is.  We are going to the doctor again later today so perhaps we will figure it out then.

Sun and Fevers and Laundry

It has been in the 50's and 60's here for the past several days.  The kids have been running outside directly after breakfast to play in the mud and explore the temporary "stream" that appears here every spring.  Yesterday we had school outside.  For the second day in a row I woke up and hung the laundry on the line in the early morning sun.

Aside from our happy spring fever, we had a little scare with Jackson last night having to do with a fever of a different sort.  He had been complaining of a headache and then last night he spiked a temperature of 103.2.  Then he said his neck hurt and of course all we could think of was meningitis.  So he and I spent 3 and 1/2 hours in the ER and several tests later we found out thankfully that all is well.  Today his fever is gone but he is in a lot of pain from the tests and there is a small part of me that wishes I just would have waited until morning to make a decision.  Hindsight I guess.  But in any case he is okay and of course we are so grateful for that.

Our dryer has been broken for a month or so and Ryan and I thinking very seriously about not ever fixing it.  While it does add one more thing to my to do list, I love the idea of being freed of one more appliance and moving just a tiny step closer to our 10 year plan (someday I'll write about that here).  Plus about 50% of the time I really like hanging the laundry up.  I think if I work at it I could increase that percentage.

Everyday when I walk out to let the chickens out I gently tap my boot on one of the garden beds to see how much it has thawed.  I think a few more days of this weather and I'll be planting peas and lettuce.

Outside Art

Alone...

at one of my favorite places.

I found myself with five and a half hours all to myself today while I waited for Grace to finish up at rehearsal.  I started out my morning in my coffee shop drinking tea, determined to spend the day writing.  An hour and half later all I'd accomplished was a short nap (not that that is anything to complain about).  But the sun was shinning and the awakened lady bugs circling the warm windows were insisting that spring had arrived.  I finally listened to them and packed up my things and headed to the park.  Not surprisingly, five minutes of being immersed in warm sun on my face and the sound of snow melting and I couldn't put my pen down.  Next time I need to remember that.

Snow Lion

Out

{snowy wonderland}


{Their tepee from last fall}


{All of the burrs were wearing snow "hats"}


{While it appears otherwise I swear she asked me to take this picture- it's of her "tiny igloo"}