An hour spent at Neko's school on a glorious spring day.
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Now We Are Six
My dear Neko, today you turn six.
SIX.
The other day I noticed you no longer stand at my knees. Or my hip. Or my waist. Instead, your head comes my chest, and when I catch us together in a reflection, you look so much like A KID.
You're talking like a kid, too. There's clearly a certain dialect that goes on in kindergarten, words and phrases that get passed around. None of them bad, but they're clearly a product of you being part of a community of your own, one that doesn't include the rest of us. You come home sounding a bit like a stranger, and it takes me a while to catch up.
Today we asked you what you wanted to do for your birthday, and you chose the dinosaur exhibit. You had been with your class, but you were eager to show the rest of us what you learned. You were clearly paying attention during the trip because, even though you gave us the tour at lightning speed, you were full of names and facts.
Since that went so quickly, we visited other parts of the museum. The highlight was the man who was finishing up a small talk about giant cockroaches. I think you squealed with delight when he offered to let you hold one, and for nearly ten minutes the two of you sat and talked about cockroaches while it wandered from hand to hand.
It's been a grueling few weeks, so we bought a cake (which is unheard of in these parts). You wanted the cake you saw at the ice cream shop when we got haircuts, but, of course, it was gone by now. So I attempted to recreate it with a plain ice cream cake and butterflies from the craft store. I think you were satisfied.
As you blew out the candles, I thought how this day in particular really represents the essence of you at this age. Dressed head to toe in pink (skirt and tights, of course), you wandered between dinosaurs and insects, happy to push up your sleeves and dive into both. You keep blowing out the knees on your tights, and I just keep buying them. You are inevitably the dirtiest kid in the school pick-up line at the end of the day, which always makes me smile. I wish I could embrace life with the intensity you do. It is inspiring.
You're still struggling with some stuff. There are still tantrums and a short fuse. You rarely stop moving. But when I look back, I am awestruck at how far you have come. How far we have come. (We are a team in this, I do believe.)
Of all these things, I could not be more proud. Happy birthday.
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Haircuts
Getting Neko's haircut has always been a nightmare. She wriggles and screams and wraps her whole body around my leg, holding on with a death grip.
Recently both Nancy H. and I started getting the girls' hair cut at our mutual salon. But the experience? Still somewhat traumatic. This time around, Nancy booked appointments for both girls together. And it went off without a hitch.
Well, except for that part right after we got home when Neko complained of a tummy ache and then promptly threw up all over the floor.
Next time maybe we won’t eat candy at the salon AND get ice cream.
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Wanted: One Family
As the day approaches where I'll be hanging out my virtual photography shingle, I'm trying to flush out a few things. To that end, I'm in search of a family who would let me come photograph them in their home. You'll receive a disc of 20-30 images in return for your time and flexibility.
There a just a few catches:
1. You need to be comfortable with me using the images for promotional purposes.
2. The shoot would need to occur between 10am and 4pm on either April 1st or 8th, and will take anywhere between 1-3 hours. (My apologies to all the working parents.) The whole family doesn't have to be present, just one parent and some kids. I realize it's a work day for most folks.
3. I'll probably troll my way through your house, possibly shooting in bedrooms or bathrooms. We might paint, cook, have your kids take a bath, or take a walk, so I'm looking for someone who is flexible with how we spend our time. You don't have to clean, as I am perfectly willing to look past the dust bunnies if you are.
4. This will be more of a "morning/afternoon in the life" sort of shoot rather than posed portraits, so keep that in mind. I'm not saying we won't get some portrait-ish shots, but that won't be our focus.
5. The parent who is home will be part of the shoot as well, so you need to be comfortable being in front of the camera as well. I will be kind. I promise.
6. If you pick April 1st, there will be no April Fool's jokes. Zip. None. Nada.
Interested? Drop me a line or leave me a comment.
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Simple things
Noticing how much fun kids can have on a swing made of rope and a wooden plank is a great reminder that fun doesn't have to be complicated.
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Tractor graveyard
When we moved here, we noted the patch of woods to the side of the house. When we finally explored it for the first time, we made an amazing discovery. For years, the people who farmed the land parked their retired farm implements in the woods. It's an amazing collection of rust and gears and mechanical contraptions.
There are wagons with wooden seats, belts and gears, old chicken houses and an old barn that sits at a 30-degree slant. Some day I'll take more time to properly document, but I snapped a few when Ellery and I wandered in, looking for Neko, Shep, and Tom.
We found them later on the patio, with their treasure—an nearly complete skeleton of what we think is a deer. Documentation on that to come later.
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Bug season
I declare it officially open.
There is no ribbon cutting ceremony or anything, but we will share with you the first specimen of the season—a stink bug, also known by its more scientific name, Pentatomoidea.
