Easter without sugar...

The best part was keith making rainbows...

Easter without sugar.  Since discovering Eli's eczema was related to sugar and gluten we decided to have a super low-key Easter with just our nuclear family and no distractions of other kids getting giant chocolate easter bunnies and jelly beans.  We kept it simple by giving raisins and money.  After adding up all the money they got we went to the health food store and stocked up on lara bars.  It was probably 10 x's more expensive, all said and done but Eli was rash-free and not running screaming through the house like banshee. 

March Madness Part 3: Camping Trip Sans Keith

    I have to say that as independent and strong as I once thought I was, driving 6 hours and camping for 7 days with the boys felt a daunting task.  I remember being struck by the feeling of vulnerablity after having Hudson in a way that shocked me. I had lost so much muscle tone after being pregnant that I never remembered being so weak.  (Even though I just rocked out a natural birth)  I remember feeling fear that I wouldn't be able to protect him if I were attacked.  I felt like prey,  a very hormonal, natural response to motherhood.  After, having Eli those feelings tripled and didn't like being out of my house much.  I remember being invited to beach trips and other things and feeling I just couldn't handle both kids on my own if their was an emergency... So I didn't go anywhere  beyond Lexington/Berea with them for 5  years.

     This March I felt stir crazy for a Spring Break and Keith had to work.  I decided it was time to take off with the kiddos.  Alot of my worst fear scenarios happened and the universe tested me and it exhausted me fo' sure but in the end I felt I had my power back.  I felt a little more like my old, fearless, laid back self.  The car broke down, it poured rain, our flashlights didn't work, the boys and I got sick, camp stoves wouldn't light, and I managed to only cry once and then drink a few much needed beers around the fire and laugh at myself and the fact that I am floating in space on a giant rock and I think I have control of my universe...

The best part of hanging with Lily is she has fairy dress ups!

The Smokey Mtns were beautiful and we were with beautiful people...

The kids doing stage perfomance, "Why you shouldn't feed Baby Animals"
It was riveting.

Easter in the woods... Probably not smart in bear country...

"I just threw my shoes in the river."



"I'm the good son. I still have my shoes on."

Andri and Amanda, good buddies 'o mine.

Eli and Lillybelle...

The boys giving into pressure from the girls...

March Madness Part 2: Graffiti and Grandee

Thank goodness for my mom, she is the best grandmother in the world to my children (minus a few breaches in breaking my rules, which apparently all grandmother's are supposed to do).  She very graciously makes herself available to school functions, babysitting, etc.  Sometimes we don't know what we would do without her...  We snapped a few photos of her at Grandfriend Day at the Waldorf school and in front of some of our favorite neighborhood graffiti art...

March madness Part 1 Tae Kwon Do

The boys are ninjas. It can't be helped.  Here's the proof! 

Stomp kick successful!

Stomp Kick... HIYA!!!

Hudson ducking for cover

Eli dodging a deadly blow...

February, Five, Forty, and Food Allergies

       Its time to blog again,  I have much to catch up on, just trying to stay afloat these last few months... Enjoying being present to my children, my art and my husband.  So to catch up quick lets just say February was a big month. Hudson turned 5, Keith turned 40, and we discoved Eli has food allergies...
Still wrapping my brain around it all, Hudson with his new big boyisms, Keith with his mid-life crises, and Eli trying to figure out what he's allowed to eat...

Very long story short, Hudson is adjusting well to new abilities, new found friends and freedom and looking for a bit of autonomy.  Keith needs to do something more fulfilling in his life.  What that means we are not sure. Knowing we need to finish our house so he can move on with other aspirations, ie. going out on his own, building more community around him and being able to use his gifts to help others.  Eli is showing intolerances to gluten and sugar.  Skin rashes and erratic, frustrated behavior are the markers for his intolerance.  It is good to finally have answers for some of his behavior. He is finally starting to seem peaceful, at times.  We still have some growing up that will help him with his frustrations  He is difficult for other children to understand and he wants to be a leader.  That isn't a good combination, unfortunately... We are all adjusting to being unadjusted and riding the ride for now and hopefully more will be revealed...

       

Minivans: Practically Humiliating

"Do you drive a mini-van?!?'", the voice of an old college friend on the other end of cell phone exclaimed.   "Mmmmm. Its hard for me to imagine you driving a mini-van!"

 I've tried to take this comment as a sort of misguided compliment.  Of course, I am the epitome of cool and edgy why would I be driving such a.... let's face it,  Mom-mobile.  However,  a couple of weeks later I ran into a friend on the street whom I  hadn't seen him in a while and we're comfortably pulled up driver's side window to driver's side window, when he blurted out, "Wow!  I didn't know you went to the darkside."  Immediately mind started flashing  back to images of things I'd done that no-one  could possibly know.  Could they?  I might of yelled at Keith for eating all of the eggs this morning.  So what? What?!?  Is he perfect?  After the paranoid flashback I came back to the conversation and realized he was a little offended by my mini-van.  WHAT THE F@#!? is everyone's problem with my new ride?
What did I do that was so hipsterly incorrect?  Didn't we all give up on being cool?  That's what I thought we did.  I thought we made decisions based on having money for soccer crap, room for it and the new "best friend" of the week.  Aren't we supposed to be making those kind of decisions? 

Apparently not.  This summer was the love affair with my mini-van the symbol of my love for my children, the giving up of the person I used to be, the ego removed, to reveal unconditional love, man....
This was the summer the mini-van rocked all the way to MAINE, man.  This was the Christmas there was room for presents, the dogs, the luggage, the cameras, the-just-in-case clothes, the cooler filled with beer, MAN!   But noooooooo!  Now, this is the winter of noticing the scratch marks, the cracked headlight, the stained carpet, and the faint musty sent of smoke from the previous owner.  This is the winter when I pull up at school and the mall with my eyes downwardly shifted, careful not to make eye contact with the Lexus owner next to me.  This, is the winter of shame.

Storytime with an Engineer

        Keith as surprising as this is for me is THE storyteller in our house.  I really thought that with my background in stage and performance that I would be the natural choice. But no it is Keith's methodical attention to detail that keeps the boys coming back for more.  I work  2 nights a week so I miss a lot of "The Adventures of Hudson and Jet" but last night I was getting cracked up listening to them in bed.
The First thing that cracks me up is that Hudson likes to tell Keith how to tell the story while Keith is making it up off the top of his head.  So, listening to the interruptions, "No daddy, he was wearing a green power ranger outfit with 600 swords attached but no axes and no daggers because daggers are not good in a sword fight because swords are long and daggers are short.... etc".  Keith handles the interruptions for awhile and then his desire to get the words out and the kid to sleep takeover.  "This is my story. Let me tell it. "

So once the interruptions stop and Keith's magic begins its like getting sucked into an adventure in building, engineering, and the basics of jet engine propulsion.  FASCINATING!  Truly.  I learn so much stuff I never thought of before. 

Here's a little snippet of what puts our little angel boys to sleep at night and excited for bed the next time...

      "... So, Hudson and Jet had to go down to the river and build a bridge by collecting trees limbs that had fallen down and sliding them across the river to get away from the alligators that our trying to bite there feet.  Once they get across the river the boys have to find the large pieces of aluminum in order to build their jet...  "Once the jet is built the boys are on the runway. Jet pushed a button. The button started a series of fans, the air generated by the fans is then compressed so that when the air gets to the engine it tiny explosion can get the engine to start. "

I don't remember that verbatim and I'm sure I'm not describing jet engine propulsion correctly.  Excuse me.  However, you get the gist of bedtime with Keith.  I think he needs to write his own children's book series.