Life At The Circus

Scott taught him on Sunday evening…. and on Friday morning he did the whole thing entirely himself.  Got it out of the garage, started it up, mowed the ENTIRE back yard and put it away.  Wasn’t this just yesterday?

Our oldest daughter has been wanting to learn how to start a fire and how to use a pocket knife.  And Daddy has been looking for an opportunity for a little one on one time with his kids.  (a truly rare gift with 4 kids). Sooooooooo an overnight camping trip was planned to make both wishes come true.  The look of excitement when he told her his plan was priceless.  And I loved watching her pack her stuff for their night away. There is a state park not far from our house which made this very doable…. I foresee a few more Dad/Child overnights this summer as the other 3 are eager for their chance to have Dad to themselves.   They left our house around 6pm, got to the campground, set up camp and had a wonderful evening together… then woke up, made another fire, took a little walk and were back home in time for dad to go into work and still get in several hours of work.   I greatly enjoyed listening to them tell all about their adventure and looking at ...

Even though I have lived in MD for 30 out of my 35 years, I am not really much of a Marylander.  Can’t stand the taste or smell of crabs or any sea food….stepping foot on a boat sends me into an all out panic attack, and I am a die hard Steelers fan.  However, the one local tradition I fully stand behind is the Blue Angels show every May.  Growing up I only recall watching it from the field of our high school, as they soared overhead.  But, ever since I stopped working in 2004, I have made it to every single show.  And I love it. What an amazing show it is.   And this year the weather was PERFECT.  70 degrees, sunny… not a cloud in the sky. Family fun at its finest.   These are the moments I cherish.   Sitting in a grassy field, watching the kids play and then watching the jets swarm overhead. ha!  I love this picture… my youngest very seriously taking the pics on Dad’s phone, while I am excitedly pointing out the B...

This past week was insane.  We had our year end celebration night at the tutorial on Thursday.  This is the night when they proudly display their science and history projects, as well as present the recitations they’ve been memorizing all year.  This meant that Tuesday and Wednesday were spent feverishly working on completing those projects.  Throw in 2 trips to the pharmacy for strep throat medicine, practices, May the 4th celebrations, and Scott working overtime… and you result in one messy house…. and one slightly insanely stressed out Mom.  I am not exaggerating when I say that by Thursday we were out of all groceries and our house was a very literal disaster.  I don’t think it has ever been messier than it was this week. In honor of the 70th anniversary of WW II Victory Day in Europe there was a flyover of historic WW II planes.  We described it to the kids as a parade of planes. I had it on my calendar for a few months, but then Scott’s work sc...

The other night I was speaking with my child about her words.  What was of particular concern to me was the way she said things.   I told her she needed to apologize for something and she said “sorry” in that voice that didn’t sound at all like she was sorry.   I told her she didn’t sound sorry.  I told her that she needs to be mindful not just of what she says but HOW she says it.  And she replied, “Mom you don’t know how I feel.  You can’t tell if I am sorry or not just by the way I say it.  You think you can, but you don’t know.  It’s just like changing the font on a paper.  The words are the same no matter what font you use.  Changing the font doesn’t change their meaning.  And the way I say something doesn’t change the meaning.” I disagree completely with her on this.  But, once again she stumped me.  I decided to respectfully disagree and take up my point again at another time because it was late and I wa...