Ballet, rainbows, magic, fairies, and jewelry

Sometimes it feels like we’re continually being hit up for money via the girls’ kindergarten.  What I don’t like about it is the sense that the school or the PTA are using the kids for fund-raising — invoking the nag factor to get us to pony up.  If they wrote directly asking if we could [...]

Bass fishing with pink Barbie rod

I was very into fishing here on the pond in Maine from about age 9-14 or so.  Partly because it was the only way to have any time to myself, I’m sure.  As I recall it, there was a lot of dedication and work expended per fish in those days.  I was always fussing about [...]

Down East Flying Trap-eze Girls

The girls were invited to perform as Down East Flying Trap-eze girls on a lobster trap float in the Southwest Harbor annual Pink Flamingos day parade (supposedly a resident invented the pink flamingo, although I have an idea this is one of those contested copyrights).  This was perhaps the highlight of the Maine experience for [...]

Lost Teeth

We’ve already lost two teeth here in Maine in the last week or so.  (These are lost teeth #2 and #3 for the twins – Iris lost one a couple months ago).
Celie lost hers last week.  We put it in a plastic baggie, thumb-tacked to the wall for safe-keeping, but she had to get it [...]

Jacopo’s song/ single-parenting it

Last day of single-parenting it.  It’s gone pretty well.  They were at school for 2 1/2 days of the end of the week, so we just had yesterday and today (until 5 or so) as pure daddy-daughter time.
One funny incident.  We were biking on the new, really nice “B-line” bike/walking trail downtown this morning (this [...]

Silk moths

I parent-taught at the preschool for three mornings in the last 10 days or so.  We had to do five this semester total, I was doing three, and I just saved them all for the end, partly so most of them could be during the week after classes end, and partly b/c I like to [...]

Hunting for Toads

Jack invited us out to his house to look for toads.  The toads are going crazy out there.  We brought a little terrarium and immediately stumbled upon two on the way to the house.  I announced, “I’ll get him, I’m good at catching frogs;” got between him and the big puddle; slowly, slowly brought my [...]

Pin the Tail on the Cat

The girls and Sarah volunteered to make the Pin the Tail on the Cat for Keith’s 5th birthday party.  Or Pin the Tail on the Pot Luck as they referred to it.  I thought it was pretty great.
Btw, I finally bought myself a snapshot camera, so prepare for a new visual emphasis on Moonraking.  Sarah [...]

Flea Circus

We all went to this Lotus Blossoms kids’ fair event yesterday.  (Lotus is the big Fall world music festival, and it has occasional spin-off events throughout the year).  I was charmed and impressed.  A big elementary school gym filled with booths offering different crafts & activities from world cultures.  Some pretty neat stuff: making masks [...]

Pony, Moth, Kitten, Mouse

Two new stories.
Iris, a touching tale of the overcoming of cross-species prejudice and divisions:
One day there was a little mouse.  And the mousie once found a cat.  And the cat said that it wanted to be the mousie’s friend.  So they went to the park.  And they went on the slides for a long time.  [...]