Four Feet More

As you know, things have been a bit rough here lately.  With the weather getting a bit nicer, Jeff and I decided to take the kids to the beach for the day.  We haven't been in a while, and it was a much needed break.

We started out early, tired but excited.  Jeff packed his fishing gear, the kids brought some "beach toys" (including 4 lightsabers - a sand hill at the beach looks like something out of Tatooine), and I brought my knitting and a book.  We hit the rocky side of the beach first, where Jeff imagined himself catching a cabezon, eel or some other tasty fish to cook up for dinner that night.  He was not very successful.  But the kids and I were!  Not 5 minutes on the beach, Vika spotted a red starfish laying among the gravely rocks, just outside of the shore line.  At first we thought it was dead (things washed up on the beach generally are), but nope, it was still alive.  After taking a few pictures, Vika decided to "rescue" the starfish by gently placing it in a tidepool with direct access to the ocean.  There it sat, doing whatever it is that starfish do, for the next 4 hours.

In the tidepools we also found several small hermit crabs, some of which would come out and walk on our hands.  The bigger ones, older and more wise, lived up to the name of "hermit" and refused to come out and play.   Eamon soon became bored with the hermit crabs and went off to climb the cliff walls framing the beach.  At one point I saw him scaling a nearly vertical wall, looking for his next foothold about 20 feet up.  "Eamon!"  I shouted, "You're not Bear Grylls! Come down from there before you fall and crack your head open!" Thank goodness the boy actually listened (I probably have Vika's recent head injury to thank for that), and decided to explore the tidepools and caves instead.  He found a dark brown spider crab on the beach, which while still alive, probably would not be for much longer. it was kind of cute though, in an alienish sort of way.


Around noon, we moved to the sandy side of the beach for lunch and fun.  Vika set to work immediately digging a big hole.  She always does this at the beach, and I never knew why until this outing.  Apparently, laying in the hole makes her warm.  Eamon headed into the surf with a lightsaber to practice his Jedi moves.  The beach wasn't very crowded, but those walking the shore were quite amused by the scrappy kid attacking waves as if they were some oncoming invasion of battle droids.  And, not to brag or anything, but the boy's got some moves.  If there really were battle droids attacking our beach, he totally would have vanquished them.

I snuggled up on the blanket and read a book while Jeff continued fishing.  He actually caught a tiger perch later in the day, which he and Vika crammed into Eamon's beach bucket filled with seawater (we didn't bring a fish cooler - apparently Jeff's expectation of catching dinner was as low as mine).  The poor thing didn't look comfortable at all.  Jeff put the bucket in a hole in the sand, and much to the fish's relief, a rogue wave hit the shore not much later, washing both it and the bucket off to freedom!  And, I didn't have to eat perch for dinner (bony things). It was a win-win all around. 

The four of us had a great day together and were able to reconnect after the clashes of recent weeks.  Spring Break is here now, so hopefully this dratted rain will go away and we'll be able to enjoy some more family outings in the week to come.

For some insane reason, Jeff and I thought it would be a good idea to take the kids to the snow. Since we live in the Bay Area, we can't just go outside and play in the snow. For us, a snow day begins with a 4-hour trek to Tahoe on the border of California and Nevada. We got up early, packed the car, and hit the road. Fortunately, the kids were still tired, so they were quiet for the first 2 hours of the drive. However, at 2 hours and 5 minutes in, we began getting the incessant "How much longer?" questions. And when we stopped to buy our Sno-park permit at a Sports Chalet along the way, the questions became, "This is it? Where's all the snow?" I would have thought that us being in a shopping center parking lot would have tipped Vika and Eamon off to the fact that we had not yet arrived at our final destination. I was wrong. When we finally did start seeing snow along the side of the road, the kids could hardly contain themselves. Little squeals of glee and anticipation replaced all their questions. It was with happiness and relief that we finally pulled into the Sno-Park.

The day was beautiful. There were a few clouds overhead and the snow was white and powdery. Jeff showed the kids how to slide down hills on their feet and engaged in a snowball fight with Eamon. Then he found a green inner tube which someone had left behind, and immediately began trying to blow the thing up. His efforts were in vain though, because all the air kept escaping through the gaping hole on the side of the tube. This, apparently, is why the tube was abandoned. Never one to miss an opportunity, Jeff folded the tube-carcass in half and used it as a makeshift toboggan to slide down a hill. He gave Eamon a turn, and really, it was a pathetic sight. The thing only slid so far, and Eamon was trying so hard to have fun with it. Some other snow-goers took pity on us and lent Jeff their sled. Both kids took turns, laughing all the way down the slope and through the trees.

In the meantime, I began building a snowman. Growing up in Arizona and then moving to California has not afforded me many opportunities to play in the snow. In fact, never before had I built a real snowman. I made a small little lump of a thing once, but that doesn't really count. I set to work on this snowman with gusto. He was going to be life-sized, with a scarf, a hat and gloves. Sadly, the powdery snow made this task a bit more daunting. I soon learned that I had to hold my hands over the snow, warming and melting it slightly, so it would stick together. This made the project take MUCH longer than anticipated. The kids and Jeff helped out a bit, but they soon lost interest and went on to more rewarding activities. I was tenacious though and finally completed the snowman's body (which was life-sized, if you are a three-year-old). I sent Vika off to get some sticks and Jeff and Eamon to the car for accessories. Here's our family with the finished product:

We named him "Snicks" (a combination of "snow" and "sticks"), and several families came by to admire our handiwork. By this time, the clouds had grown thicker and it started to snow. My toes were numb, Eamon's hands were frozen, and we were all hungry. Scrambling up the slope, we rushed to the car and ate a quick lunch. Eamon buckled himself into his car seat declaring, "I'm done with the snow Mama. I'll just wait in here." The poor kid's hands were red from the cold and his jeans were soaked through (we really were not dressed for the snow). But Vika wanted to make snow angels, so the kids rushed outside, plopped down on a snow bank, and began waving their arms and legs furiously. The shock of the cold along their whole body did both kids in, and they were a shivering mess, barely able to walk back to the car. It would seem that their hardy Russian blood has thinned during these years in California.

Changing Vika and Eamon into warm, dry clothes proved to be quite an ordeal. I have never heard them moan so much! Little pansies. ;) After what seemed like an epic struggle, we had them stripped of their wet jeans and shirts, and changed into snuggly fleece. With the snow coming down a bit harder, we pulled out of the park, dodging snowboarders being pulled by other cars along the way (what's up with that?), and made the long journey back home. It was a fun, but exhausting day. My uncle, who lives in Chicago, commented that it was sad we had to make a special trip to the snow when his family lives with it "every friggin' day" from December through April. After how long it took my toes to defrost, I can't say I envy him. Although it would be nice to be able to make a snowman in our front yard someday. Even if it is just a small little lump of a thing.

This week, the kids have been in day camp, and it has been GLORIOUS! From around 8:30 am until 3 pm, they are at the local community center doing fun activities with friends. This week's theme is "Totally Talented," which translates to a lot of karaoke, camp songs, and talent shows. Although they did learn the dance to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" the other day. It was funny to see them dancing (jerking) around with their zombie faces on. Unfortunately, the video camera was not charged, and by the time it was, Vika and Eamon had forgotten most of the dance. *sigh*

The best part about camp is not that the kids get to be out of the house having fun, but it's that I have some actual free time to myself. I haven't had that for over 3 years now, and I'm enjoying every minute of it! I've been knitting my sweater (this little number,which I really want to complete in time to wear this Fall) and watching a lot of "The Tudors" on Netflix. Although I was a bit put off by some of the explicit scenes at first, I have come to love "The Tudors." I must admit that I am lured as much by my admiration of Henry Cavill as by my interest in English history - however fictionalized it may be for dramatic effect. "The Tudors" is something you definitely don't want to watch when kids are around, so having Vika and Eamon at camp has been a perfect opportunity to catch up.

Next week, we're off to Florida and Disney World. It may be hot and sticky, but since we haven't had a lot of hot weather in Northern California this summer, I figure we're about due for some heat. Although the poor kids did get a bit sunbured on their faces yesterday. I lathered on the sunscreen, but they went on a field trip to the waterpark and forgot to reapply later in the day. This prompted a mini-lecture from Jeff on the merits of sunscreen and why it's important to protect your skin. He did a wrinkle demonstration and then said that "once the damage is done, there's nothing you can do about it."

Eamon, ever the optimist, replied, "We could wish...on a star...."

Now, is that a kid who's ready for Disney World or what?

This week's You Capture theme was black and white, which I loved for vain reasons. Simply put, I look better in black and white. But, since I'm not vain enough to put a bunch of photos of myself up here, I wasn't quite sure what to photograph at first. Then I went through my photos from our recent beach trip. My two best friends and extended family were there to celebrate a birthday, and the weather was beautiful (not always the case at a Northern California beach). We made the most of the sunshine until the afternoon fog rolled in, and we all had to bundle up in our warm clothes.

Here I am with my two best friends, James and Mel. We were very color-coordinated that day, and it was entirely unplanned. I guess that's what happens when people hang together for too long - they start dressing the same (even though they couldn't be more different in other ways).


Vix and Eames on the beach. We have a photo similar to this one from their first summer home with us. I always call it "A Study in Contrast" because Vika looks so dark and Eamon looks so pale! At least this time the boy's got a bit of a tan, so he doesn't look as washed out next to Vika.

This is Mel's daughter, Madi. Or as I call her, Mad. This girl is cute as a button and more trouble than a fox in a hen-house. She saw another child's sand castle and gleefully smashed every single tower with her dainty little hands. Luckily it had been abandoned, so the architect of the castle did not have to witness its destruction.

It's been pretty crazy over here at Four Feet More. First off, Vika has turned 8 years old. I know! My little girl is now 8! She's moving into that preteen phase and is growing up way too fast. For her birthday this year, she asked for (and received) a pair of texting devices. This was her second choice after we told her there was no way she was getting a cell phone at 8 years old. On the up-side, the texters are Hello Kitty, and Vika wanted them primarily to text with me, so she's still my little girl. For a while, anyway.

My dad came out to visit from Tennessee again this summer and was here for Vika's birthday. It's become a bit of an annual event - him coming out in July. The kids enjoyed hanging out with their "Deydushka Joe," and it was good for him to meet my brother's baby Tyson as well. Even though my dad doesn't really do kids, he was pretty tolerant of Eamon's excessive manhandling and Vika's incessant chatter. He may have even enjoyed it to some extent. I think.

So, Vika is now 8, going on 18. She also, much to my dismay, loves country music. I blame my mother for this, and she gleefully takes responsibility for my daughter's crushes on Brad Paisley and Jason Aldean. Well, in an extreme show of love for my daughter, I am going to subject myself to 6 hours straight of country music this evening. Laurie, a close family friend (kind of a sister-in-law, really), managed to score us free tickets to see Kenny Chesney and Sugarland in San Francisco tonight. It's actually a big country music festival with other acts like Lady Antebelem, Miranda Lambert, and Montgomery Gentry. Whoever they are. So, Vika, Laurie and I are doing a Girls' Night Out, and I plan to get schooled in country. Hopefully Vika will have a great time and this will be a fitting finale to her birthday week!

Our You Capture assignment this week, handed down by Beth at I should be Folding Laundry, was Independence Day and food. This year we went to a 4th of July Festival which included a chili cook-off. My SIL's band was playing, so we were able to hang with Joe and Ty, and Mom and Ed for some music and dancing. There was a strange hula hoop woman dancing all by herself in front of the stage. Well, I use the term "dancing" loosely, since she was really hula hooping and swaying to the music. Wearing a long orange print skirt and a black tank-top, her gray hair in a bun, she looked more like someone who would be attending a Grateful Dead concert rather than getting down to "Pokerface" sung by a party band. But there she was, having a great old time.

The benefit of having hula-hoop lady there was that she let the kids use some of her extra hoops. That was all the encouragement Eamon needed. He got into one of those hoops and twirled until the music ended! And, though I've mentioned it before, I need to reiterate, that boy can hula hoop! I can't twirl the things worth a damn, but Eamon has some mad skilz! I think he impressed quite a few people (especially me). Between band sets, there were also some games, and the kids entered a water balloon toss competition. Alas, their time in the game was too short, as Eamon dropped the first toss Vika chucked at him.

When the show was over, we went to the chili cook-off where we ate tiny samples and voted on the one we liked best. Some of them were good, but others were entirely too spicy! The firemen had some chili that was insanely hot. Like, not even enjoyable hot. A few hours later, we were all feeling that chili, and not in a good way either. I think next year we'll skip the sampling.

After the festival, we headed to the cemetery to visit the grave of Jeff's parents. There were flags lined up everywhere, honoring the day, and it was very peaceful. Until Eamon said, "There sure are a lot of dead people here!" A quick explanation about sensitivity and loss followed, and then we were on our way.

There's no real way to sugar-coat this, but the kids are driving me insane! Sure, I enjoy spending time with them, but all those Summer projects I planned on doing... well between, "Mama, what's for snack?" and "Mama, Eamon's not getting out of my room when I asked him to!" and "Mama, can we watch TV?", not a lot of projects are getting done. So, when Mel invited us to play at a new park in her area, I jumped at the chance (even though it's more than an hour drive away). Anything to get the kids running around, and hopefully exhausted, so that I can have a little quiet time to myself later. Being able to hang with my best friends, Mel and James, was an added bonus!

School's been out for a week now, and finally I feel as if I'm beginning to relax. That anxious feeling that I have to grade papers or prepare lesson plans is gone and I'm getting into the rhythm of being home with the kids during the day. A few updates from my summer so far:

• I may be a Trekkie. I saw the new Star Trek movie on Mother's Day (and again since then), and absolutely loved it. I've always been more of a Star Wars fan than Star Trek, but I enjoyed the movie so much that I've begun watching episodes from the original series on Netflix. And let me tell you, they are HILARIOUS (probably not intentionally so, but that's besides the point). Seriously, if you have some time, you should check them out. "The Enemy Within" from Season 1 has some especially smashing acting from William Shattner (and I mean that literally) as well as an extraordinary space dog (some poor mutt in a shag carpet with dixie straw antennas).

• Lately, Vika is asking me to do her hair "like Uhura's" and Eamon wants his hair to be like Bones'. So I may be making my kinds into Trekkies too. Poor things. They don't really stand a chance. I'm making them into geeks already!
  

• Tomorrow we are going to see the King Tut exhibit in San Francisco. My parents visited it in San Francisco back in the 70's, and I remember as a child looking through the King Tut picture book they bought, amazed at all the treasures and the story of the boy king. I tried to see the exhibit in Chicago a couple years back, but tickets were sold out. So we bought our tickets for this one way in advance and are planning to take the kids (I hope they aren't bored out of their minds). We're going to see the exhibit on the same day as the Gay Pride Parade in San Francisco, so I hope it's not too crazy there. Nevertheless, I don't think we'll take public transportation. Seeing a grown man with his bare bottom peeking out of backless leather chaps is not an image that the kids need to have burned into their brains at this young age. ;)

For your enjoyment, and in honor of the occasion, I give you King Tut. Have a great weekend!

Ah, camp. That childhood rite of passage, which I did not experience until last week, at the ripe old age of 35. Every year, the fifth graders at our school go to Science Camp. As a teacher, I was also required to go to camp, and despite my dislike of camping in general, I had a good time. It was great seeing our fifth graders in a whole new light, experiencing things they had never encountered before. One student in particular, R, is a bully on campus and spends A LOT of time in the office. But at camp, R really blossomed! He conquered his fear of heights, worked well as part of a "survival team," and even showed impeccable manners at the dinner table! R comes from a poor, Hispanic family and had never even been in the woods before this trip. I hope it made an impression on him and he learned what a great kid he truly is.

Another interesting part of the trip was T, a girl whom I taught in first grade, but thankfully is in another classroom for fifth grade. T has oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). If you don't know what that is, look it up - it's very interesting. T was in my group, and she hit the ground digging in her heels. We started off with wilderness survival skills and a lesson on using a compass. T refused to differentiate between the arrows on the compass, and despite the intervention of several parents, she maintained her stance that the spinning arrow was the one she should follow. It was actually kind of amusing to watch parent after parent try to coax and persuade T to use the compass correctly. Finally, I intervened saying, "T, if that's the way you want to use the compass, go ahead. Of course, you may get lost in the woods, but I'm sure we'll be loud enough that you'll find us eventually!"

After that, T pretty much gave up the compass fight.

Then it became all about not stepping on any plants because either they were poisonous or she didn't want to hurt them (it's pretty hard to avoid plants in a forest). Or she wouldn't climb over a log because there was a single ant on it. Finally, all the parents caught on to her game, and it became a bit of a joke among us as to how T would react to each new situation. If the camp counselor asked everyone to sit down, T stood up. When she asked us to stand up, T sat down. Finally the counselor took me aside and said, "What is WITH that girl?!"

T wasn't the only stresser of the trip though. There was also the usual fifth grade girl drama, which for some reason, I became the mediator for. "Mrs. P, N is trying to steal my friends!" Or, "Mrs. P, I need to move out of that dorm because none of the girls are talking to me! They're all mad at me for some reason!" *sigh* It was exhausting! I don't think the girls appreciated the advice I gave them either, which was basically, "This is why when I was your age, I hung out with boys!" Oh well, my pearls of wisdom only go so far.

Recently I discovered "You Capture" (Thanks Saj!), a weekly photo challenge from Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry. Long-time readers of this blog may remember when I used to participate in "Stuff Portrait Fridays." That challenge has long-since ended, so with the summer here, I decided to recharge the Nikon and begin shooting images for "You Capture."

This week's challenge was "Nature." An easy one to jump in on, especially since we've taken quite a few hikes lately. Also, since I'm heading off to Science Camp with my 5th graders today (wish me luck), it seemed quite appropriate.

The first image comes courtesy of my husband Jeff (a true photographer - I just play at it). It's a dragonfly we encountered during a trip through Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.

Next are a couple of shots I took while on a hike in a local wildlife preserve with Vika and Eamon. Here we have the ever-present California Poppy. I love the Spring, when these orange blossoms are popping up all over the place!


As we hiked along the trail, we heard a hawk call in the distance. The bird began circling closer and closer until finally he was directly above us. The kids were very impressed since they'd never seen a hawk that close before. I'm just pleased the shot came out clear!

So there you have my images of nature. What did you capture?

Last weekend, in an effort to make the most of the beautiful weather, Jeff, the kids and I headed out to Golden Gate Park. We had a great time hanging at the Children's Playground, watching the terror/exhilaration on the kids' faces as they raced down the cement slide on a piece of cardboard, and shouting encouraging words as they made their way through the rope jungle-gym. Unfortunately, my stranger-magnet was in full effect, and I wound up being drawn into a conversation in which a man I'd never met before told me all kinds of random things about his life, including the time when he was driving drunk with his friend and hit a police car. Seriously - you get me out in a public place, and I guarantee you sooner or later I'll be trapped in an awkward conversation with a person who makes me a little uncomfortable.

Aside from that one incident, the rest of the afternoon was lovely. After leaving the playground and walking past a group of neo-hippies carrying a large pirate flag (not sure what that was about), we toured the Japanese Tea Gardens, taking lots of pictures and climbing a very steep bridge. Then we walked through the Botanical Gardens where we briefly became lost, scaring Vika who believed we may have to spend the night there. Eamon was just concerned about what we would eat.

We were able to get some cute shots of the kids during the outing; however, Eamon's self-haircut does tend to distract somewhat. Click any photo below to view it larger.

This year, for the first time ever, we took the kids to visit Santa. I actually was going to take them last year, but when we got to the mall, the Santa there looked kind of shady. I’m not sure what it was, but he just creeped me out. So, the kids didn’t sit on his lap.

This year, however, I realized that it may be the last time our kids want to sit on Santa’s lap, so Jeff and I made a point of going to the mall to visit the jolly old elf. Well, wouldn’t you know, it was the same guy from last year. He looked a little less shifty this year though, and their photo printer was down, so the poor guy was sitting there, all alone, waiting for people to visit him. Since we had our own camera, we walked right up to his Christmas Throne and Eamon climbed on to Santa’s lap. Vika also took a turn, listing all the things she wanted him to bring her for Christmas (most of it “American Girl” related. *sigh*). As the kids spoke with Santa, he kept looking over at me with a little gleam in his eyes. I didn’t understand why until a few minutes later.

When the kids were done, Santa looked at me with this sly grin and said, “Kids, you want Mommy to sit on Santa’s lap?” “Oh God” I thought, “NO!” But by then the Vika and Eamon were excitedly shouting “Yes! Yes! Papa too!” and Santa has his arms wide open, waiting for me to join him on his throne. I nervously walked forward, and gingerly sat on his leg, almost standing really, waiting for Jeff to come over so we could get this thing done. Santa boomed, “NOPE! Put both legs in the middle, Mom and sit DOWN on my lap!” I looked to Jeff for some help, but he was giving Vika a quick tutorial on the camera and completely oblivious to my distress. Seeing no way out, I turned slightly and sat down fully on the man's red-clad leg. When Jeff joined me on Santa’s other leg, I felt St. Nick’s arm slip around my side and rest gently on my ribs.

Then, Santa copped a feel. When Vika held up the camera to take our picture, Santa began tickling my ribs. I jumped up in startled laughter, but he pulled me back down with a self-satisfied leer. Only he didn’t stop there. He kept at it, saying, “Oh! I found Mommy’s tickle spot!” My discomfort with the situation grew.

Finally, after about four pictures, I twisted away from Santa’s grasping paws and tried to gather up my things in as dignified a manner as possible.

As we walked away, a boisterous “Ho! Ho! Ho!” trailing behind us, I asked Jeff, “Did Santa tickle you?”

“Yep!” He replied, as if there was nothing at all strange about a grown man tickling other adults while they are sitting on his lap. Jeff went on to explain, “He just did it for the pictures.”

Well, you know what? I’m 35 years old. I’ve had plenty of years practice smiling for the camera, and can do it pretty well without being prodded along by a complete stranger, thankyouverymuch.

My weirdness aside, Vika and Eamon had a great time and talked all the way home about how that must have been the real Santa, and not one of his Holiday Helpers. It was fun to see how excited they were to finally meet St. Nick in person. Although Eamon was a bit disappointed that there wasn't a slide (like in "A Christmas Story").

Now that I think about it, a tickling Santa isn't quite as bad at the "Christmas Story" one. At least none of us got a boot to the face.

Summer is officially over. Today, Vika and I go back to school, and for the first time, Eamon is joining us. He starts kindergarten today! Dang kids are growing up too fast.

In memory of summer, I leave you with this video from our recent day at the beach (on August 8th - hence the date in the sand) with Mel and her family.

Please take note of Eamon's superior hula hooping skilz!

This is my BFF, Mel. Mel and I met about 15 years ago when we were both working at The Pet Hospital (a highly dysfunctional place where I met my 3 best friends). Our first impressions of each other were not complimentary. She was hired to cover my position while I was doing summer school in London. Naturally, she assumed that I was a rich, spoiled, brat. After all, who else gets to study abroad? (BTW, I used school loans to pay for the trip, and am neither rich nor spoiled. The brat part is open to debate). When I returned to work and met Mel, she had this long, curly rocker-girl hair, and was wearing stretch acid-wash jeans. “Oh my, she’s one of those”, I thought (I was also a bit of a “rocker-girl,” but would NEVER wear stretch acid jeans. *shudder*).

Anyway, despite our first impressions and many differences, we soon became fast friends, and have been so ever since. We’ve been through so much together that Mel is more of like family to me now, rather than just a friend. My kids call her “Auntie Mel,” and her children are “cousins” to mine.

Yesterday, we packed the kids into the car and headed to the beach to meet Mel’s family. Mad and Chadly (Mel’s kids) are 1.5 and 3 years old – much younger than my kids. However, they still enjoy playing with each other, and Vika is a bit of a mother hen to them all. In fact, Eamon plans to marry Mad when he grows up, and Vika wants to marry Chadly (even though he's 4 years younger).

It was a typical gray, slightly windy, Northern California day. The kids ran around on the beach, ate sandwiches laced with sand, and rode a makeshift driftwood teeter-totter. Mel's husband, Chad, got some much needed rest (he's a stay-at-home dad), and Jeff got a nice break from the office. Of course, no beach trip is complete without Eamon falling into the water. We pack extra clothes every time we go for this very reason. The boy has not learned that when he looks down into the waves, he gets dizzy, loses his balance, and falls. At least this time he continued to have fun – in the past such falls would traumatize him. He was sure there was a shark in the surf, just waiting to gobble him up.

Even though the weather was less-than-summery, our trip to the beach was a great little get-away with good friends.

Here are some more pictures from our day: