Category Archives: Education

Getting Away From It All Some Of It

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We want Bean to enjoy nature, and it can be a challenge to find unsullied open spaces close to home. Last weekend we went to Los Gatos Creek Trail to walk. We decided to try the trail head in Los Gatos proper. Well, first parking was a challenge. And then the many people biking and running made it difficult for Bean to pursue her own meandering path. But what was most intrusive was the traffic. This part of the creek trail runs alongside Highway 17, which at this location is a six lane highway.

So, Bean did get to see trees, smell flowers, and — thrill of thrills — stand at the creek side and throw stones into the water. She loved the ker-plunk sound and the splash. But it certainly wasn’t a pastoral experience. I believe I’ve hiked another part of the trail that was quieter; I need to find out where that entry point is.

Last night at dinner with some friends, a woman mentioned Penitencia Creek Park. I’d driven by it on my way to Alum Rock Park but not stopped. This morning on a whim I took Bean. This park, too, resides in the midst of urban life, but what a difference location can make! While we still heard traffic, sirens, and airplanes, it was all in the distance. The weather was gently warm and sunny. The creek burbled cheerfully as we walked by. Bean got to throw stones into it and to test what happens when you throw leaves into the water. (They rapidly float away!)

There is a pond in this large, green open space as well, and it is populated by Canadian and white geese, American Coots, and white as well as Mallard ducks. The pond is fringed with thick cattail plants which make a great landing spot for red-winged blackbirds to sit and sing. We saw a robin red-breast hunting for worms, and many fat squirrels chasing each other. And, while the trail was well-populated by people, it didn’t feel crowded. Bean found a large white duck feather which she used “to tickle the water” of the creek. And the best experience of all for her was an encounter with a small black caterpillar on the paved path. She enjoyed the feeling of it crawling over her fingers and declared, “Her name is Sam.” She put the caterpillar in the grass so it wouldn’t get squished.

As for me? For a change I felt my body relax with the release from all agendas; I was content to meander and look with Bean at whatever caught our eye. We spent a lovely hour there and came home content.

Clever and Cute

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This morning I went to retrieve Bean from her crib. She’d awoken moments earlier and I heard her talking quietly.

I opened the door, and was greeted with:

“Oh, Mommy, please go back to bed! I have to tell my friends about the time Piglet and I forgot to go to the grocery store.”

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She watches a show called Word World. It’s a neat concept; all the nouns consist of their letters shaped to look like the actual object. The main characters are Bear, Sheep, Pig, Frog, Duck, Ant, and Dog. Yesterday Bean kept coming into the kitchen asking me for cups of water and straws. First Sheep was thirsty, then Pig, etc. Soon the little table which serves as her “buffet” was strewn with these cups and straws.

At one point she said, “Bear is very sick. I bring her a cup of water to help her cough go ay- way.”

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Yesterday, we were waiting for our realtor to meet us at a house we were going to see. Bean’s barrette fell out. She asked me to fix it “so it will look nice.”

snack with friends

A Future We Can Change

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Life is competitive around here. It is everywhere, but I feel it especially here — in the play group, among other parents in general, especially when the topic of education comes up. Last year, four Gunn High School students in Palo Alto committed suicide by stepping in front of trains; already one child committed suicide the same way this year. Granted, Palo Alto manifests “the best of the best” — affluent, highly educated, highly successful Silicon Valley players who want their children to succeed and exceed the norm. Not all school districts are as packed with scrambling over-achievers.

We want a good school for Bean, but more than that, we want a good learning experience for her, and a good life. I want to see this movie when it comes out. And I want to be part of the solution.

If you can’t see the movie trailer, click this link.

Last Day To Bid

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Today is the last day for the To Haiti With Love auction. While I’m pleased that my items have had some bids, I’d like to point out some other products for auction in case hand-knits aren’t your wish.

There is a wide array of books — inspirational books, children’s books, poetry — offered.

Are you looking for a grown-up indulgence, such as a ski weekend in Telluride, handcrafted soaps, a creativity coaching session? Look here.

How about some artwork to hang on the wall in a beloved toddler or baby’s room, or a handmade wood toy, or lovingly crafted clothing? You can find some here.

There is a wide selection of gorgeous fine art photography to bid on.

Perhaps you’re looking for a new journal to write in.

These are just a few items available. Check out the site! All proceeds go to assist St. Joseph’s Family of Homes.

Bidding is easy! Just leave a bid in the comment section for the item you want. More details are here.

Toe-Tapping Music

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On this rainy Saturday, with a feverish, coughing child, I stumbled across this peppy little video. For more of Kristin Andreassen’s music, lookie here! I learned about Kristen from a blog that’s new to me — One Person. Everyday — which, of course, I found via Patti Digh, of the blog called 37 Days.

If the embedded video doesn’t work, click here to see it.

Dyed Rice

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While Bean napped, I started a new endeavor. Last week we dyed pasta for making projects, and she helped. But the rice was going to be much messier, so I waited until she napped. I wanted to make her a surprise (which I will give her Friday morning).

I did some research and found helpful instructions. You can go to The Forester Clan for instructions.

I used food dye and rubbing alcohol, and here are some notations:

  • I started using watercolor from my set, but the rice hardly absorbed the color. I used scarlet red, but the rice turned out pink (which is fine, but I realized then I should use food color and alcohol). It took longer to dry, too.
  • At first I used only two teaspoons of alcohol in the zip-lock bag, with 20 drops of color and two cups of rice. This produced a batch of lighter colored rice with variations — some grains light and others dark.
  • By using more alcohol — about two or three tablespoons — the rice took the color more thoroughly.
  • I dried the riced in the oven on baking sheets at low heat, around 180-200F.
  • I made some colors according to food coloring box, and in all I ended up with 14 colors: white (no dye), pink, red, watermelon red, raspberry, light orange, dark orange, light yellow, dark yellow, green, jungle green, teal, blue, indigo.
  • I put it all in a bin of low height to make easy scooping. I kept the colors separate so Bean can have the fun of blending it all.

And here are the results.

wet rice waiting to be dried
in the oven drying
rainbow rice

Day 1

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We spent the day doing a marathon tour of houses with our new realtor. She now has a sense of what each of us really looks for in a home. We’ll probably go on another tour soon. We feel optimistic. Bean got to spend many hours with a friend whose parents graciously offered to have her over for a play date.

The really good news is that our landlord, who typically only works with 12-month leases, agreed to let us go month-to-month as tenants! That gives us much more flexibility with our search and timeline.

Tomorrow we need to go to Bean’s nursery school and help clean it. It’s a parent cooperative, so all the parents take a turn doing projects to maintain the building and grounds.

What’s In Your Queue?

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In 2009 I read many more books than one might expect a stay-at-home mother of a toddler to read. However, this came at the expense of physical fitness. Ah well, maybe 2010 will be more active. Then again, here’s my current stack. Only two books are holdovers from 2009: Raising Freethinkers and The Last Child in the Woods. The rest are all holiday gifts, and I am looking forward to delving into them. The lower half is nonfiction and the upper is fiction.

Next Year's Reading

Pangs

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I’m having an ego moment. Cruising the Internet, I find so many sites by people — especially women — who are creative and generating a living (or at least some income) from it. Friends are making and selling their art. Friends are designing clothing and selling the patterns, and knitting up gorgeous garments. A friend is starting fitness accessory business. Friends write books and hold retreats. Acquaintances are life coaches, writers, have award-winning blogs, make and sell jewelry, and so on.

And I’m here in my little corner of the world, dabbling away. I suspect I’ve always been a dilettante. I walked away from a fledgling career as a professional counselor with her own practice to move here with Husband. (To get licensed here would require almost going through the whole process again — at a cost in money and time that I just won’t spare.) Sometimes I think about setting up a life coaching practice, but what is that, anyway? Everyone seems to be doing it; Google produced 42 million hits for the term. Plus, I’ve been out of the work world long enough that I feel rough and rusty.

One reason I go through sporadic periods of creating is that once I’ve got something made, the question arises of what to do with it. I’ve got knitted stuff stored in my drawers. Art I’ve made sits in a portfolio. Space is limited, so I create less often, and it depresses me to create only to have it sit in the dark. Yes, I could knit for charity — and I do. But there is something satisfying in being compensated monetarily for one’s efforts, and it is validating and heartening to be recognized for one’s work.

I’m not complaining so much as I am musing aloud whether I could be doing more, if I am wasting precious skill and talent by not generating income in some way with all this creativity.

And I’m wondering where these women get the energy. Some of them, in addition to being mothers, work outside jobs, and yet still find a way to create, often at the expense of their sleep and perhaps health. Maybe they can actually function this way. I did it for years in my 20s and 30s, but I’ve found that I’m a crappy mother if I’m exhausted and sick, and I want to be a good mother. I don’t enjoy life when I’m barely able to move or think. There are no sick days available.

So I struggle a bit with… envy? Or maybe it’s worry… a fear that I have retreated into a passive state, almost infantile, in that I don’t generate income, especially from all the dabbling I do. I’m getting to play, while Husband is out there bringing home cash. I don’t have currency in a world where the question, “What do you do for a living?” is unanswerable because I don’t make an income. There was no place on the U.S. Census form that I filled out for our household for me to write that my current job is Homemaker and Mother and that no, I wasn’t laid off and seeking work. It — I — just didn’t count.

I know, wah wah wah. But I do wonder.

Art Every Day Month – Day 11

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Some days — heck, most days — all my child wants to do is be read to, all day. I think in part it’s because it’s cozy and close, and she’s avid to understand the world. When we are around other kids, she likes to play with them. But her main favorite activity is to take little adventures through the worlds between two covers.

discovery - art every day month 2009 - day 11

Discovery / 2.5 x 3.5″ card stock collage with fabric, ink, and embellishments

Art Every Day Month – Day 1

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This is my fifth year participating in the monthlong event. I’ve been ambivalent about it this year; every year I feel a butterfly rush in my gut, but this year I’ve waffled about doing it at all. What stymied me is my personal requirement that I create one complete piece every day. AEDM is not structured this way — Leah (the originator of AEDM) particularly encourages rule-breaking — but I don’t want to relinquish this one goal. However, with travel in late November, how will I create and upload daily? Well, I decided to break one rule. Since I will be gone the last 8 days of the month, I’ve spent the last 8 days of October making art for those dates. This way, I will have made art for 30 days and still have work to share for the month.

I decided to work in a very small format — 2.5 x 3.5 inches, also known as Artist Trading Cards or Art In Your Pocket. These mini canvases call for simplicity, and one would think they would be quick to make, but they aren’t for me. Just as writing a short, concise document requires careful thought and editing (and therefore time), working with space constraints presents challenges that take time to work on. As Leah said,

“A lot of people have mentioned being a little nervous, a little jittery. Me too. It happens every year. And I think it’s interesting, but also telling because I think those things that give us a bit of the jitters are also those things that are very important to us. So notice if you feel those jitters and know you’re on the right track. And then go create.”

Without further ado, here’s my first piece.

art every day month 2009 - day 1 - house

Home / 2.5 x 3.5″ collage on card stock

A Toddler’s Perspective

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Bean and her Dad took a walk to the mailbox tonight. On the way they saw the moon. And then Bean noticed the stars. She raised her arms and said she was feeding the stars.

“What do they eat?” asked her Dad.

She replied, “Peanut butter. And they open their mouths up wide like hippopotamuses.”

Daily she comes up with some creative and startling associations and narratives!

Less Mess

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While I love getting the paints out for Bean, sometimes the paint cups are more ambitious than I want to tackle. They are spill-proof, but they are big and messy, and I am constantly moving them around so she can reach them. The other day we took a preschool field trip to a pumpkin patch where she got to paint a mini pumpkin; they used small plastic boxes with dividers in them to hold paint. The boxes held many colors and yet contained most of the mess. So we went to Michaels yesterday in search of something similar. I looked at the bead storage boxes, and most of them had moveable dividers, which meant the paint would seep into the other spaces. But I did find one that had 12 little containers, each with its own screw top, all of which can be nestled into a box. I filled them this morning and look forward to using them frequently.

paint box

Pumpkin Fun

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When we went to the pumpkin farm a couple weeks ago, I decided not to buy big pumpkins. Bean picked out a teeny one for herself. Since literally no one comes to trick-or-treat at our house in this town home complex, I haven’t carved a pumpkin — especially since my last attempt (in 2007) ended up with a slashed thumb due to my overtired condition.

I want Bean to have the fun of pumpkin carving and lighting, but I’m not sure I’m “up” for it yet; besides, she’s still young. The other day I saw pie pumpkins on sale, so I bought four for Bean to paint. It’s washable paint, which means after Halloween I can wash, bake, and puree them for pie (and for Bean, who really likes to eat plain pureed pumpkin).

She is still a little under the weather — she got an ear infection in the past week — so she spent the day in jammies and stayed inside. Here are the results:

painted pie pumpkins