He did this

Robert did this...


He mowed the whole front and back yards. I was right next to him, of course, since this was a HUGE first for our family. His first effort was not efficient, nor thorough, nor timely, but he was really, really proud of himself. For the rest of the day, he would kinda say out loud at random times, "I mowed the lawn today." Like he could hardly believe it himself.

I have been wanting and waiting to get Alice behind the mower for some time. She's always shied away from it, though, and I found myself thinking, "If only we had a quieter mower, or a smaller lawn, or [fill in the blank], she'd take to it and love doing this really cool, really big-kid thing for our family.

Nope. Not yet, anyway.

Robert simply said, "Hey, I want to make money. What can I do?"

Half-joking, dreading the task on my to-do list, I threw out, "Ha, you could mow the lawn."

"Is that something you'd pay me for?"

"I guess so."

"And you do it every week, right?"

"Mostly...kinda depends."

"Yah! I'll do it!"

When the opportunity came, I let him know, and he managed to peel himself away from his Scrooge McDuck comic books. Away we went.

My first child to mow the lawn was Robert, not Alice.

This realization was mind-blowing to me. Why? Because up until this point, I guess I had been secretly, subconsciously saving that milestone for Alice. And when Robert hit it first, I was a little surprised.

Oh well. We'll see how this goes over the summer. His drive to read the Harry Potter series on his own inspired Alice to take on Book 4, then 5 for the first time. She's so happy she did. Maybe she'll give lawn mowing another chance, too? Then again, she hates driving the vacuum and she's already bringing in a good amount of income through her Toddler Time and Kid Camp ventures. Maybe I should prepare myself for the possibility that she may never want to mow our lawn *sniff*.

Preschool Graduation

James graduated from preschool last night. He was positively beaming with joy! Was it because he doesn't like going to preschool very much? Maybe. Kinda. He likes it while he's there, but he's not always excited to leave home to get there. Know what I mean? He loves his teachers, as well as James "loves" anyone outside of family: he's comfortable enough to be himself around them, instead of shying away. He tells them stuff he's excited about. In fact, Erin was able to come to his graduation and both Ms. Rohrer and Ms. Julie were delighted to FINALLY meet the amazing Aunt Erin they've heard so much about.

The ceremony itself was short and entertaining. It's hard to go wrong asking preschoolers what they want to be when they grow up: police officer, ninja, cow, princess, inventor in the rain forest with lots of animal pets, vet, scientist (James), pilot (Matthew), and Batman to name a few.

James later confessed that he didn't really want to be a scientist. He wants to be a scientist ninja. The scientist is his cover story for all his super ninja stuff at night. I wondered where he even came up with "scientist" as a desirable profession until Matthew started talking about how the Hulk was a scientist.

Ah, yes. James does want to be the Hulk, too.

Here is a picture Bobby took of the kids on the stand:

James is in the blue shirt on the front row. Matthew is just to the right of him. Ms. Rohrer at the microphone.

Matthew looked really, really small surrounded by all those other kids. James looked really, really big. He's standing next to the only preschool friend he talks about, G. Both will be going to Yankee Ridge next year.

Congratulations, James!

P.S. All the preschool kids got to participate in the "graduation", regardless of age.

Kickapoo Rail Trail

Our family rode the Kickapoo Rail Trail for the first time this week. It's a 7-mile bike trail connecting Urbana to St. Joseph, IL. It will eventually connect all the way to Kickapoo State Park (24 miles). The kids have had a lot of fun playing with its name, by the way. We biked to St. Joe, got a treat, and biked all the way back.

I asked them what their favorite parts were:

Alice: Ice cream
Robert: Biking. And the ice cream.
James: Ice cream!
Matthew: Um-uh. Eading ice cweem.
Bobby: the bike ride

At the finish! Which was actually halfway...

My favorite part was seeing the kids do something they had no idea they could do. Alice and Robert are so strong! James just kept chugging on that little bike, no gears. Matthew fell asleep in the trailer, but didn't complain about how long it took. Quite the feat!

2 Root Beer Floats, 1 vanilla cone, 1 ultra Oreo cone, and 1 pineapple Fanta

Happy trails!

I thought we'd be paying for it in sore legs for a while, but no one is sore. Not one! What?! Bobby and James did come home with some battle wounds after a collision, but not so bad.

GLASSES!!

I took Alice and James to the optometrist for routine, school-required exams this week. It was unclear whether James needed glasses or didn't know his letters very well (maybe both?) but the doctor decided not to push glasses this time around.

Alice, however, hit the jackpot.

Finally.

She's wanted glasses since kindergarten.

Congrats! This picture is from Alice's most recent piano recital where she performed "The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy." Her account of the experience is as follows: "The rhubarb bars were delicious."

Like Having Two

Since my sister moved to town, Alice and Robert have been spending a couple afternoons a week at her house. They just walk/bike to her place after school and stay until dinner time. This week, I finally got used to it and discovered one final benefit that I hadn't predicted.

Anticipated benefits:

I think it's great for the big kids to have some time with another loving adult who cares for them and wants to be part of their life.

I love how this arrangement gives us practice with independence and time management. Both for the kids and as an adult.

I figure it's been great for Erin, too, since she suggested it and has allowed it to continue.


Unanticipated benefits:

James and Matthew get more time and attention from me.

I get more time and attention from Matthew and James.

I feel like I only have two kids again. With only two kids in a short age range, I can be a little more spontaneous. I can tailor activities and errands to maximize our time together. Yesterday is a great example of this.

Yesterday, a part arrived in the mail that would allow me to pull the kid trailer behind my new road bike. It was 2:30pm. Normally, that close to the time when Alice and Robert would be coming home from school, we would be locked down at home waiting. When Alice and Robert arrived, we'd have to get everyone a snack, ask about homework and music practice, and decompress after a hard day at school. The kids would fight a little, get involved in a game outside or a book inside. If I wanted to try out the new trailer attachment, we'd have to negotiate with four kids how long of a bike ride and where and who was going and who would lead. I would worry about three kids in the road with me, especially James who doesn't have ANY experience on a bike ride. To save energy and sanity, I would have put it off or settled on the cul-de-sac being enough practice. And everything would have been fine. That's just how my life is these days.

BUT!

This time, with dinner in the crock pot and the big kids at Erin's, we had all afternoon ahead of us! No need to snack or decompress or negotiate anything. James loved the idea of a bike ride. Matthew did too. I threw out a couple destination ideas and they cheered for the first one. We rode out there. Still had energy, so we rode to the next one. Played for a while. Then the next one. Only two kids! Fewer voices and relationships to navigate. Only one kid on the road to worry about. Played and played and biked until it was time to go home for dinner.

That was lovely. James felt like such a big kid. We all came home happier for the experience. I could use more afternoons like that.

Totally loves his bike, this one.

Next week is the last week of school. I hope our summer schedule includes afternoons like these, but summer comes with an infinite number of variables. Add that to the fact that I never seem to feel as spontaneous and energetic with four kids as I do with two, and the chances fall to near zero :(

I remain hopeful, however, that this summer will be an exciting one. I feel a burst of firsts coming on ;)

Long Ride

This morning I rode my bike 23 miles at an average speed of 16mph. It took me 90 minutes. That's my longest and farthest ride yet...almost as far as a marathon run. The wind wasn't too bad today.

I loved it until the last mile heading home when there was a little hill to climb, my body ached, and I suddenly regretted going so hard for so long.

I parked my bike, stretched a little, and walked in to the kitchen where the older kids were just getting ready to go to school. James cocked an eyebrow and asked, "Why are you all wet?!"

Wet? Huh?

I looked down at my t-shirt: belly, back, and armpits were soaked with sweat. I also had sweat dripping down my forearms. The ride was kinda muggy this morning. I felt strong, though, even if I looked a little slippery.

If you had described this scene to me 5 or even 2 years ago, I wouldn't have believed you. I don't normally enjoy sweating.

Anyway, it was a good ride. I didn't know I could do something like that. I could probably do more without hurting myself. It got me thinking again about my next training goal. Could I train for a 30 or 60-mile bike ride this summer? Could I compete in an Olympic distance triathlon (0.93mi/1.5k swim, 25mi/40k bike, 6.2mi/10k run) next year? In all honesty, they sound like really exciting and really lonely goals.

Why lonely?

Because I don't have many friends who enjoy training for triathlons. Or 30-mile bike rides. Or running at all. Swimming laps isn't exactly something you can share with someone, either. The further I go into this exciting realm, the more I crave people to enjoy the experience with. And to learn from.

I have invited friends to bike with me. Another friend got me to join a local running club. Both are helping. Relationships take time, though, and building new relationships is a whole different kind of exhausting for me.

At the triathlon in April, there were two pretty big triathlon clubs in attendance. Their members wore matching jerseys and they cheered each other on. There appeared to be every level of experience represented, too. Many ages. I would love to join something like that in my area, but I haven't found one yet. The running club seems the closest fit so far.

I dunno. Just thinking about things. I love it, but not enough to do it all alone. Yet. We'll see.

Firsts and Lasts

This is the first summer all four kids can ride a bike (Matthew has a balance bike).

This is the first summer Alice has been allowed to bike or walk somewhere with friends unsupervised. They've gone as far as the school playground and a nearby park. Makes me nervous, but I'm so glad God gave me Alice first...training wheels, dude. Had James or Robert been my first...yikes.

This is the first summer our house will be generating enough electricity to cover our energy usage (yay for solar!).

This week was Robert's first Pack Meeting as a Cub Scout. Bobby and I have mixed feelings about all of this. Robert appears to love it! He's certainly motivated to earn awards to wear on his uniform. It may even convince him to wear a pair of pants with a button and zipper (he needs belt loops for his uniform belt which he plans to bedeck in the belt loop awards he will earn).

It's the first time anyone has called Poulson pebble teeth a birthmark. James is quite taken with the gaps between his front teeth. He thinks it looks like he's already lost a couple teeth, so he can pass as older. His teeth gaps and his hairline swirl are two "birthmarks" he adores very much.

Firsts often accompany lasts. And while I don't like to linger on lasts, or wax nostalgic about them, I do like to notice them. They are meaningful in their own way.

This is the last summer Matthew will need help pushing his Pop Ice out of the plastic. I usually love to see him gain independence. I don't know why this thought leaves me a little sad.

This is the last summer before James goes to school full-time. Normally, I'm thrilled about that thought, too...he's so ready to move up and on to real school. He even has his first loose tooth! I know, though, that once he's in school, the time I need to maintain my relationship with him will get pretty tight. Things will have to change. I understand that better now after Alice and Robert.

More to come in firsts and lasts this summer, I'm sure!

Matthew's mad that I'm taking a picture of him.

"Strong guy" poses atop their tower of couch cushions and blankets.

Robert's piano recital a couple weeks ago. He's on the far right, first one in the middle row. Blue shirt. Not even looking at the cameras. Totally disgusted that pictures are a part of this stupid torture device.

Bare feet and zombies eating popsicles. Sweet, sweet spring.

Alice pops in for a cameo.

Farm Love

Another great morning at Sola Gratia. How can 4 hours slip by so blissfully?!

I got there an hour earlier today. The temperature and the work load is picking up significantly. My manager was out at another field already, so I took a peek at the swiss chard and kales we transplanted last week. They're twice as tall now! It feels like a miracle every time, watching something grow according to its own instincts/patterns/DNA/environment. Water, sunshine, and time. I dinked around pulling weeds in the greenhouse and chatting with another volunteer. People come in all flavors. And opinions. Interacting with folks outside my usual routine reminds me of that every time. I recently heard a TED Radio Hour (NPR) broadcast about the benefits/techniques of venturing outside of your comfort zone. There's a technique called fear-setting (just look up Tim Ferriss, kinda like goal-setting) that I'd like to try. Anyway, it was on my mind as we spoke.

My manager got back and put me to work seeding mid-to-late-season tomatoes: wet the potting mix, fill the flats, seed, label, and water the flats, then deliver them to the "germination chamber" (a dark walk-in cooler with a space heater in it). He asked about my previous farm/garden experience (apparently not many volunteers ask the kinds of questions I do) and offered me a farm hand job, if I could make the 20 hours minimum. That made me happy. It's nice to have skills, even if I don't have 20 hours a week to spend working on them. It'll be another few years before my summers free up. In the meantime, I'm happy to learn what I can n the time I have.

Seeding didn't take very long. The rest of my time was spent laying drip tape in the field to water baby pea and carrot plants. Dirty work. Lots and lots of walking up and down the looooong rows laying tape, connecting hoses, repeat and repeat again. It's a lot of work right now for a huge advantage later. No one wants to hand-water acres of anything.

And then my time was up. Picked up kids and got on with my day a much happier person. This is good for me in many ways :)

Prayer Totem

We take turns saying family prayer each night. When it's a kid's turn, they get to sit on my lap. I don't know why this is such a special privilege, but there you have it. We were feeling silly one night and devised this nifty arrangement so everyone had a comfy lap to sit in. All except Bobby and me *sigh*

Day 2

Yesterday was my second day volunteering at the farm. It also happened to be the day before their first appearance at the Urbana Farmer's Market. And the day a local TV news crew came by to do a little community piece on the farm's mission. Kinda busy.

I got to work in the hoop house harvesting 2 varieties of radishes and a bin of mixed leaf lettuces. I got to taste napini fresh off the plant (heavenly!) and decided that this little farm is my Garden of Eden. I get to tend it after all the really hard work has been done ;) I did not till the soil, build the hoop house, prep the beds, plan the intricate planting sequence, lay down the drip tape, nor connect it to irrigation lines. Neither did I plant, weed, water, and monitor these crops for pests. Neither did I purchase the harvesting knives and bins and industrial sinks and walk-in coolers necessary to take this quantity of produce from field to market in top condition.

This is one reason I'm so happy to work there: ANY amount of work they ask me to do, whatever the chore, cannot possibly match the countless hours I did NOT spend to make it the way it is now. It delights me to no end. My little slice of heaven.

We washed the lettuce in industrial sinks, then spun them dry in a modified washing machine. No joke. Real washing machine that got re-engineered. I weighed and bagged the lettuce, then moved on to leeks. Other folks had already washed them and trimmed the greens the day before. I just got to clip the roots a bit and put them in 1# bunches. Heaven!

I was asked to rip out the arugula that was past its prime, and I gladly accepted the task. Unfortunately, the news crew showed up just as I got started and I didn't want to be in the background. I was tasked with watering seedlings instead. Thousands of seedlings. Peppers, lettuce, squash, herbs, and fennel were the ones I recognized.

Can't wait to go back.

Spring Promises

Our red pear tree is blooming for the first time in 7 years. I'm pretty sure it was because I didn't prune as heavily this year. Almost didn't manage to prune at all ;)

We've spotted cherry blossoms, too, and the strawberries flowers are out in full force. The peach trees aren't loaded this year, but we've got a fair bloom going on. It makes me happy, even though I know they are only suggestions of fruit, not promises. So much time, so many variables, between now and something edible.

Today was my first shift as a volunteer at Sola Gratia Farm. I was part of a team using a tractor to transplant hundreds of rainbow swiss chard and kale seedlings (5 varieties!). I felt inexperienced, but capable, and wasn't afraid to ask questions.

At one point, we were waiting for the tractor to refuel, so they sent us to work in the onion field. We were replanting onion sets where the previous planting hadn't gone so well. Onion sets are tiny. They're about 2-3mm at the widest, and they come in bunches of 100. As I scrabbled in the hard, dry dirt to create a home for each tiny wisp of life, I thought of that $0.89 bag of onions sitting in my pantry at home. I shook my head. All this effort seemed so pointless when I could get perfectly ripe onions any time, anywhere. But then I realized that someone else had to sprout each seed and transplant every single wisp for every single onion I've ever eaten...or thrown away. All this work has already been done for me for YEARS!

Just had to pause for a moment to appreciate that.

Alice has planted snap peas, thyme, and a few brassicas in our garden. Bobby's dad transplanted a pile of onion sets and baby leeks into our garden, too. Robert planted parsley. I transplanted garlic. It's a bit of a mish-mash, but we'll get something in the end :) I hope.

Thoughts

I was writing an email to my mom and realized that all the stuff I was telling her was stuff I was wanting to record on the blog. So here it is:

My pans in the fire...

Now that the triathlon is over, I'm revamping my schedule to fit in volunteer farm work. There's that church farm nearby, Sola Gratia, that I'll be working with this summer. My first day is tomorrow. I've been assigned to work with the head planting guy, but he might just show me where to weed. LOL. 

The tri also introduced me to road cycling, which I like a lot. It's super practical in some ways (biking to appointments/errands) and just plain therapeutic in others (long stretches of quiet time outdoors). The extra large garden was therapeutic last year, but the garden is Alice's this year, and I'm mentoring a young couple nearby through their first growing season *sigh* I don't feel like any sort of gardening expert, but I do know that you don't plant 8 packets of seeds into 4 unlabeled trays and promptly throw all the empty seed packets away. Maybe I can be helpful to someone after all.

My mind's eye is already turning to the summer months with kids out of school in 25 days. That's a rough transition for me. For all of us. It's great in some ways, and really hard in others. I've planned out the skeleton of the whole summer (trips, camps, bucket list activities) but the day-to-day running of the household with everyone home is something I can't really prepare for. The kids will fight. They'll play. They'll want to go out and do things or stay home and read, but not always when I want them to ;) Thankfully, Alice and Robert are old enough for me to leave home alone for short periods of time. I won't have to convince all FOUR kids that they want to do such-and-such right now.

It's a big summer for us this year. Alice has a mile-long list of projects she wants to organize (Toddler Time, Kid Camp, garden produce stand, bake sale, babysitting), and I get the feeling I'll be shuttling her here and there quite a bit. Fortunately for me, most of her friends live close by and she's a confident biker. I'm pretty sure she and Robert will be biking themselves to and from piano lessons, at least. We'll see about play dates.

I get to begin my 40th year this summer (turning 39). I've been thinking about what I would like that to mean. What do I want my 40th year to look like? I can use the whole year to celebrate and appreciate and try new things. I did something similar with my 30th year, and that was fun. It gave me permission to do things a little out of the ordinary. I was a little more daring, I think, because of it. And since I had all year, I got to be more deliberate with what I did and with whom. A few things I'm thinking about for my 40th year: 40 handwritten thank-you notes to others, 40 hours one-on-one with each of my kids and spouse, training for another physical endurance event (triathlon, long cycling race, or 10k run), traveling off the continent, riding in a hot air balloon, taking a girls' weekend with old friends. I welcome your suggestions :)