The Farm Report

  • New Year’s resolution

    New Year’s resolution

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    So clearly my New Year’s resolution should be to check my Yahoo email account more often. It’s an account I keep for all my online orders and it’s what I put down whenever I don’t want someone spamming me.

    Okay, with that said, let’s backtrack.

    Some time ago I read this thing about LG and YouTube having this contest. Pretty simple really…put together a 30 second video about why life is good. You upload it, people vote, blahblahblah.

    So I compiled a 30 second version of this video I had made of Neko when she was about 4 or 5 months old. I uploaded it and never thought about it again. Except I checked my Yahoo email today and found this threatening notice from LG saying if I didn’t respond by November 20th, I would be disqualified.

    From the contest? What?

    Apparently I’m in the 20 finalists and they needed my info. Whoops.

    So if I’m not disqualified, go vote here!

    I’m now wishing I’d spent a little more time on tight editing. Oh, well. Bygones.

  • Thankful

    On this day of thanks, I keep encountering sad news. I keep vowing the day is going to turn around, and then I hear something even more sobering. So this year I suppose I’m a little extra thankful. Especially for those who share my home. It’s all very sentimental and schmaltzy, but I want it written down somewhere, so bear with me.

    Ellery, sweet Ellery. Even as your teeth break through and you’re stumbling through those first few adventures of mobility, you always have a smile on your face and a sunny disposition. You climb on board each day and sail along without a complaint or worry. As long as we scoop you up and welcome you in, you’re blissful and content.

    Shep, my little rock star. You’ve been carefully studying the moves of the characters on Guitar Hero, because from behind, I could mistake you for a member of an indie band. And somewhere in between all the craziness, you always remember to say “please” and “thank you.” I can’t take credit for that, but it warms my heart. But nowhere near as much as my double kisses you give each night. First one cheek, then the other, followed by a peel of giggles. I know this routine will go on hiatus in your teens, but I plan to reclaim it in your twenties when I visit you on tour.

    My Neko. It used to be I couldn’t get you in regular clothes because you were always naked. Now I can’t get you in regular clothes because you’re always in costume. Today you celebrated Thanksgiving in full turtle gear (nearly having a coronary when you spilled cranberries on your shell), and tonight I looked up to see you drawing in PJs, a Dora backpack and bug antennae. How can I not admire your spirit and fierce independence, even if some days it brings me to my knees?

    And Tom. There’s no way I could do all this without him. Not just because he gives the kids baths and makes Sticky Mouse pancakes and maple scones. Not just because he takes time out of his morning to make sure I have coffee and the dishwasher is unloaded. He humors my organizing neuroses and patiently waits while I do “just one more thing.” But mostly, because he is just so there in our lives. So very present and completely engaged.

    For this, and our many other family and friends, I am thankful.

  • Sound asleep

    Sound asleep

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    Apparently, we should have only bought him half a bed.

  • Favorite things

    Favorite things

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    Something amazing happened when Neko turned four. All of sudden she became this person I could hang out with, and she’s starting to like to do the things we like to do. Don’t get me wrong, I love that baby stage, but I’m loving having a new friend to hang out with.

    Tonight Tom had class, and Neko managed to squeeze in a nap, which meant she’d be up late and I was on my own. And what that really meant is that it would be well after 9pm until I got to watch Oprah’s Favorite Things episode, which aired this afternoon.

    But then I started thinking—Neko is all about Christmas and presents and surprises, and, hey, she might really dig this show!

    So after Shep and Ellery were in bed, we cracked out the nail polish and painted her fingers and toes while we watched Oprah unveil her list. As each new box appeared, Neko would squeal, “What’s in THAT box?” And when they previewed this enormous box, she could hardly sit still until they revealed the biggest box of all, which held an LG refrigerator with built-in television. “Dad would really like that!” was her review.

    And, like Christmas morning, it was over too soon. She sighed as the credits rolled and said, “Mom, that was really great.”

    Okay, so maybe it’s not singing carols or hanging holly, but I feel as though this will be a holiday tradition for years to come.

  • Birthdays, germs, and castles

    Birthdays, germs, and castles

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    First of all, happy birthday to my sister Susie. For 35 years she has let me tag along after her while she imagined, invented and explored. I feel so lucky that after all these years, here we are, back in the same town, watching our kids run around together. That beats the Colorado mountains, hands down.

    In not-so-fun news, Shep is sick. Way sick. Pathetically sick. Snot is pouring out of his nose and he’s so congested that he’s drooling, too. So he’s just one big mess. I took him to the doctor and discovered that he’s got an ear infection to boot. Poor kid. You just want to scoop him up and hug the germs out of him.

    I dropped Neko off with my dad so she wouldn’t pick up germs at the doctor’s office, and when I returned, she and my dad had built this fabulous castle.

  • Dress-up friends

    Dress-up friends

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    Neko loves to dress up. And for ages, she has been trying to con someone else into dressing up with her. Thankfully, Shep is now sometimes on board.

    Today they kept disappearing into Neko’s bedroom and then reappearing as new characters. Pictured are my personal favorites, the twin turtles. It should be noted that Shep is squeezed into a costume meant for a kid who’s not even two.

    Thanks to Chris, who grabbed my camera off the counter and started snapping back at these turtles.

  • Lentil sandbox

    Lentil sandbox

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    I’ve been meaning to do this project for a while now, but when Shep and I had an hour to kill this morning, it seemed like a good time to crack it out.

    A bowl of lentils and a bunch of kitchen items can produce all kinds of pouring, funneling, sifting and organizing.

    We had so much fun that I had to put together two additional set-ups for Neko and Chris in the afternoon. (We had to introduce some rice since I was out of lentils.)

    If you try this one out, though, be prepared. If your kids are like mine, you’ll need your broom and dustpan when the day is done.

  • Weekend away

    Weekend away

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    I met Marlo and Nancy back when our first children were barely rolling over. Now the kids are just a jump away from kindergarten, and they have seven younger siblings following in their footsteps.

    After all these years, it was high time we get away for a weekend without kids. It was fabulous. (Although, next time, we’re doing it on a beach, umbrella drinks in hand.) These women have seen me fumble through my early moments of motherhood, the taming of Neko, and the progression from first one, then two, and three. I can’t imagine this journey without them.

    Although, they may not be my friends anymore after I post this photo. But in my defense, it was the only one I took all weekend.

  • Kickin’ it

    Kickin’ it

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    One of our town’s best kept secrets is the local sports auditorium. There’s an unspoken agreement with the folks that work there. Feel free to come run around in our space while it’s not in use as long as your treat it gently. So where, during games, the area surrounding the arena is full of fans and food vendors, we get to use it for soccer and running in circles. As the weather gets colder, we go here more often.

    Today was kind of cold and grey, so with Neko in preschool, we took the boys and the babies. Shep and Chris ran and kicked balls and Ellery and Alex crawled to their hearts content without an obstacle in their way.

  • Mission: Hair Accessories

    Mission: Hair Accessories

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    What is that under all that hair? Do I see? A face?