impromptu field trip

On the way home from our DI meeting today, we encountered some roadside construction. When Robin saw that the cement mixer truck was about to pour, he heaved a heavy sigh and lamented that 'we never get to see anything because we're always driving by.' This is untrue -- we walk a great deal and our little corner of the city usually has some kind of construction or destruction to observe -- but I felt his pain so we parked and got a closer look. The crew was rebuilding part of a curb, and we watched for about 20 minutes. As we left, Robin kept turning around to wave at the crew, and finally the guy operating the mixer truck honked his horn for us, which was the crowning glory for Robin. J was home for lunch when we got in, so Robin had the added joy of telling daddy all about our adventure. Robin's future plans have long included owning and operating both a cement mixer truck and a crane, and now he's even more determined on this course. I'm to have the privilege of making the drum go round, whether by pulling a lever or pushing a button or however it's done, whenever I want to.

Dinner tonight: Chicken paprikash over egg noodles, chocolate cupcakes for desert

Seasonal Table

Our seasonal table is spare these days, as early spring is spare, but with just a hint of green and growing things. We'll soon have pretty little glass bottles with buds and blossoms, and some pastel eggs dangling from the dogwood, but for now it's just my baby Bay Laurel, eager to go back outside, and some dogwood blossoms we forced (thereby triggering poor J's allergies, but what can you do?) brightening the living room corner. It looks quite nice in with the afternoon sun pouring in, but today was cloudy with the threat of snow, so the picture looks a little forlorn. We escaped the snow (my deepest sympathies to Ohio) but I fear for my fig tree that I uncovered last week, and Justin has threatened to bring the snow shovel back from the shed to the front porch 'in case'. I refuse to consider the possibility of more snow, and expect winter to retreat quietly into a corner by next weekend at the latest.

Dinner tonight: Beef Stew, quite possibly the last of the season!

Making connections

My 10th grade American history teacher was renowned for her endless tangents; the grade-grubbers hated her for them, but most of us enjoyed the free-form discussions that replaced textbook-based lectures. We joked after class about how cleverly we'd sidetracked Ms M, but I imagine she knew exactly what we were doing and, indeed, that she was pretty clever herself. I was reminded of her today when Robin's search for a particular clip on Starfall inspired a lunch of Asian Noodles with Peanut Sauce, served to the accompaniment of Chinese Chamber Music, and followed by a reading of "White Wave" (a Chinese folk-tale). To see the clip that inspired us, go to Starfall, click on the 'ABC's Get Ready To Read' link, then click on the 'x' and watch the full animation.

Major joy and excitement: We finished the 'spare' bedroom last week, moved the kids in, and turned their old bedroom into a schoolroom:

Robin does his first addition

Robin and I did a few simple additions today with the unifix cubes. It's interesting to watch him count the cubes very deliberately to arrive at the sum --- Wren has become so intuitive with math that I'd almost forgotten how concrete the foundation has to be. I'd also forgotten how sweetly serious little children are when attempting big things.