You know, you hope and dream that your children will grow to love the same things you do, love the same life you live. And then you see that they do and it makes you feel so very good.
I am not sure how many parents embrace the idea that they know how to raise children. It seems in this day there is always some expert offering the latest way to do things or an explanation for why things are as they are. But how often do we hear that we do know what to do? That we are doing a good job?
Ha ha. I wrote the above a week ago, hours before our family was slammed for the second year in a row by some terrible virus. Let me tell you, I did not feel the above at all in the last 7 days. Alternately I felt like throwing one of them or myself or maybe even Tim somewhere. But I could not because I could not really get up long enough to do so. There is a particular kind of evil to your whole family coming down with something at the same time, its like being taken out by the knees. Not good.
Now we are almost on the other side of it, the boys are coming around and getting back to some semblance of sleep. We, the adults, are hacking up less stuff (and the stuff hacked up is becoming less disgusting in nature and color). Every time I wanted to cry and stop this week, I thought that if my throat feels like someone shredded it with broken glass, well, imagine how a the little people must feel. No wonder there was almost constant wailing and wake ups.
So, the post originally featured some adorable clips of the boys at snow play. And it still will. Because, now, a week after our fun and successful and chilly getaway, I am reminded to embrace the days that are just that. It ain't always sunshine and roses, but when it is, it sure is fun.
Showing posts with label action. Show all posts
Showing posts with label action. Show all posts
Monday, December 06, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
The Sound of The City
You would think from all the previous posts that my trip to NYC was all about Blogher. It really wasn't, just 3 of 7 days were spent traveling to and from the Hilton in the City. It was the traveling that my trip was really about. That and the sounds of the City.
It all started on the plane ride out when two funky cool kids sat down next to me for the cross country flight. I noticed him on his Macbook playing with Flickr and Twitter and was intrigued. We eventually talked for a few minutes and he invited me to see him play with his counterpart Sam. Friday night in the Lower East Side, my old neighborhood. It seemed like a good way to get back down there and he left me with a CD to check out.
I think I listened to it 10 times Thursday morning while trying to screw up the courage to venture out into the City... it was that good to me (and the City seemed that foreign). His name is Jim Hanft and he sings with Samantha Yonack and they really do make some alchemical magic up on stage.
It was really really good. The show was intimate and lovely and I am sad because they are headed to Sweden to record their next album. But I am happy because that means more of his music and an eventual return to L.A. where I can hear them again.
And then they were followed by a female Tom Waits/sex bomb who played some rocking good tunes with her Daddy playing harmonica and mandolin and an upright bassist named Ben who is a new Daddy himself.
They are Julia Haltigan and the Hooligans and they are NY based and you can find out more about her here. Her voice kills it.
So the music part fell into place and then I started looking for it everywhere.
There was just so much of it around; the street drummers and the African dance class I took in Chelsea, the people all around with their ear buds, insulated from the screeching of the city, the Mason Jennings I silently mouthed words to on the train. It was a balm and gift that I totally did not expect from this trip.
And the traveling? Ah, the trains.
(This is my scowling subway look waiting for the F train)
I spent half my trip on the subway, not the most pleasant of places when the city is steaming. If the outside temp is 95 you can safely jack up the underground temp 20 degrees or so and add some smells and wa-lah....you have the Metro transit in summer. I rarely rode the trains when I lived in the City, preferring the totally free option of walking. But this time I was way out in Brooklyn and the places I needed to be were a good 45 minute train ride in and the cars are air-conditioned so I spent a lot of time there. I actually liked it for the first 6 days. It is a great place to people watch.
On the 7th day I had a nightmare train day where we got stuck on a bridge for awhile, then underground for a longer while, then my train went express to 125th when I needed to get off at 72nd and then the train down took forever and stopped totally local...you get the idea. A 45 minute ride turned into 2 hours during which I felt like I would have a panic attack and I was done. Which was perfect because so was my 7 day Metro card. It cost 27 bucks and got me to every corner of NYC. I don't think you could catch a cab from the L.E.S. back to the Hilton for that price.
And how did the music and the train meet? A few times...
In the form of a gypsy seeking some coin...
And another time in the chanteur of the sax (right there at 42nd Street where I thought all the magic had gone)...
Ah, New York. You are making me miss you now. At least I brought a bit of you home in my Itunes.
My L.E.S. solo night on Flickr.
It all started on the plane ride out when two funky cool kids sat down next to me for the cross country flight. I noticed him on his Macbook playing with Flickr and Twitter and was intrigued. We eventually talked for a few minutes and he invited me to see him play with his counterpart Sam. Friday night in the Lower East Side, my old neighborhood. It seemed like a good way to get back down there and he left me with a CD to check out.
I think I listened to it 10 times Thursday morning while trying to screw up the courage to venture out into the City... it was that good to me (and the City seemed that foreign). His name is Jim Hanft and he sings with Samantha Yonack and they really do make some alchemical magic up on stage.
It was really really good. The show was intimate and lovely and I am sad because they are headed to Sweden to record their next album. But I am happy because that means more of his music and an eventual return to L.A. where I can hear them again.
And then they were followed by a female Tom Waits/sex bomb who played some rocking good tunes with her Daddy playing harmonica and mandolin and an upright bassist named Ben who is a new Daddy himself.
They are Julia Haltigan and the Hooligans and they are NY based and you can find out more about her here. Her voice kills it.
So the music part fell into place and then I started looking for it everywhere.
There was just so much of it around; the street drummers and the African dance class I took in Chelsea, the people all around with their ear buds, insulated from the screeching of the city, the Mason Jennings I silently mouthed words to on the train. It was a balm and gift that I totally did not expect from this trip.
And the traveling? Ah, the trains.
(This is my scowling subway look waiting for the F train)
I spent half my trip on the subway, not the most pleasant of places when the city is steaming. If the outside temp is 95 you can safely jack up the underground temp 20 degrees or so and add some smells and wa-lah....you have the Metro transit in summer. I rarely rode the trains when I lived in the City, preferring the totally free option of walking. But this time I was way out in Brooklyn and the places I needed to be were a good 45 minute train ride in and the cars are air-conditioned so I spent a lot of time there. I actually liked it for the first 6 days. It is a great place to people watch.
On the 7th day I had a nightmare train day where we got stuck on a bridge for awhile, then underground for a longer while, then my train went express to 125th when I needed to get off at 72nd and then the train down took forever and stopped totally local...you get the idea. A 45 minute ride turned into 2 hours during which I felt like I would have a panic attack and I was done. Which was perfect because so was my 7 day Metro card. It cost 27 bucks and got me to every corner of NYC. I don't think you could catch a cab from the L.E.S. back to the Hilton for that price.
And how did the music and the train meet? A few times...
In the form of a gypsy seeking some coin...
And another time in the chanteur of the sax (right there at 42nd Street where I thought all the magic had gone)...
Ah, New York. You are making me miss you now. At least I brought a bit of you home in my Itunes.
My L.E.S. solo night on Flickr.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Yoga and Motherhood
I know Mother's Day is somewhat arbitrarily declared and I do believe we should appreciate and embrace Mamahood on any given day. Having said that, initially I wanted to mark the day with a brunch celebrating the mothers in my life, a gathering at home with good food and good friends. I quickly scratched that idea once I realized that I did not want to be cleaning up the house for company the day before, especially as we have climbed into a state of disarray as we try to pack.
Then the loveliest of things came my way. I received an email from my yoga instructor about a planned gathering on Sunday...a classmate wanted to bring the yoga people together and sent out an open invite. My first reactions was, Huh? Who is this guy? I have been practicing for at least three years with the same folks but do not know many by name, just by sight... But then I took a moment to think about it and I realized I wanted to know these people more. Not to mention the Indian theme dinner would allow for me to make my favorite (not really) Indian dish of Tikki Masala (do not follow the salt measures, waaay too much). So, I said yes.
Yesterday rolled around and I had a lovely brekky of coffee and breakfast burritos from Bravo Burgers (killer good), then went to a long yoga class, met Andrew the host by name (turns out he is from Perth, a place not many have been, but that I actually have) and returned home to two raging three year olds and a dutch oven to fill with tikki goodness. We set out to the neighboring town a little after 3 and were welcomed into a home that borders the canyon and had a hugely sprawling backyard FULL of animals. Andrew has a little farm in the back of his regular looking suburban home :: goats and mini horses, big horses and chickens, rabbits, desert turtles, ducks and geese and alpaca.
(They do not look all that thrilled here but they were warming up).
The boys were in heaven as we wandered about the property finding animals to meet. And I finally MET the people that I regularly practice with.
They were all really lovely people and we talked and ate and did yoga on the lawn with kids rolling around our feet. I met the grandchildren of my yoga instructor, two rowdy but awesome boys named Jake and Dirk (8 and 6) and they turned into total twin boy monitors, guiding my boys up and down the steep inclines (right through the manure pile EVERYTIME) and teaching them how to gently catch chickens. Everyone was so gracious and connected...it made me realize how much we know each other just by the intimacy of regular practice, but the filling in of the gaps was wonderful.
It turned out to be just what I have needed, a reconnection to the concrete world, an opening to what is already there in front of me. A possibility for more kinship and deeper practice. I have felt so engaged in Life lately and that feels really really good.
Yesterday was a reminder to take that chance, accept that invite, extend that invite, embrace that not so strange stranger.
But don't think I missed out on Mama's day. I saw a tweet from Andrea at Superhero Journal about select necklaces for sale and the boys helped me pick (finally) and it came just in time. I find it hard to take off.
And then I received the most wonderful of packages from my friend Kat (also Australian, how about them Aussies?) chcck full of goodness including choc choc.
I do hope you found your day special whether you are the Mama or honouring the Mama. Much love and namaste. I'll leave you with one of my favorite moments in my Mama world...
Saturday, October 11, 2008
My Banshees
So, it has been a bit of a rough developmental time here at the Yates house. Amidst all the toddler fun that is occurring , well, the boys have gone pre-verbal and that is shaping up to be one of the bigger challenges we have experiences. I meant to go read up a bit before writing, mind you, I learned all this stuff waaay back in PT school, but I did not. So, as of right now, the boys have words (never counted, but not a whole lot), twin speak or toddlerese…you know, the unique language they seem to develop when they learn they have voices...and screaming.
Screaming, folks. Loud, loud screaming. Of which they can control but choose to use. And not judiciously.
I understand their dilemma. Their comprehension is through the roof, they understand receptive language almost too well. I have had to curb some of my less than stellar phrases and we spell quite a few things in their presence (like O-t-t-e-r P-o-p-s).
The limits of their spoken language, their need to tell us what they want, well, it must be frustrating. I watch as Mason now hesitates when he comes to a truck or bus in his books, wanting to say the right word and knowing ‘car’ will come out. He looks at us and tries, but then perseverates on ‘car’, gets pissed, and then screams. He has a pretty low threshold in the frustration area. That would be directly due to my genetic input. Sorry, Mace.
Owen is different. He does not hesitate at all when it comes to using his repertoire, casually throwing his words, identifying any and all animal as ‘dog’, oblivious to his generalization. But the kid likes to yell, then scream when he gets excited or wants to direct my attention. And that can be a lot of the time.
So, we muddle along. I have found using repetition and modeled conversation does help, at least to save some of my sanity. I usually start the conversation with a
“What do you need, M/O, water, snack, etc…”
“Yes, Mama, please can I have a ….”
“Sure, Mace, just let Mama get it out of the cabinet…etc”
Sounds pretty reasonable, huh? Now back up and read again imagining two screaming banshees screeching at the top of their lungs…yeah, the conversation can sound a little silly then. But it gives me a focus point. When that does not work, we do a ‘Time Out’ for excessive screaming. And not proud to say it, but I have shouted a few times. That really does get their attention, for the moment, anyway.
I do not want to paint it as total bedlam, but the last few weeks have been trying, those few ‘melting’ hours bringing forth a lot of their frustrated vocalizing. There is one thing it has also brought forward. I tend to think a lot during these times, during those moments of calm, about my Self and my parenting. I realize I can trend towards the thought…”If they would just…get through this, have more words, be able to speak, just not, um, scream”. But what that makes me realize is it can cause me to miss that Here and the Now…because they will pass through this and I want to remember it, painful as it may be.
To end on a lighter note, one neat part is deciphering the words they are using. For the last few weeks Owen has been wandering around saying “Abby, abby, abby, abby” at random moments. I tried to figure out what he was associating the word with, looking for objects or actions. Well, last night, Tim and I were watching them bathe, I asked Owen to swim and he laid down, kicking, laughing and saying ‘Abby’. I looked at him and asked him, “Are you saying ‘Happy‘?”. And he turned to me and smiled so big, so wonderfully, so happy, and nodded his head. I died.
(Yeah, I put that barette there? So?)(He is going to kill me someday).
And Mason, though occasionally hesitant to use words with books, has no such compunction during other activities. We have decided his running litany is in French and it sounds really, really interesting. He makes the simplest of actions intriguing, talks to and about his brother a lot, and cocks his head with this inquisitive look that just about kills me. The other day we were doing body parts and I asked him to show me “Mama’s nose” (he usually does his own body parts) and he looked at me like “Why?’.
So, I am trying to remember to embrace moments, breathe deeply and I ask, any advice out there for other strategies, Mamas? Leave it in the comments. Please.
Oh, in this vid if you listen carefully at the beginning, you can hear Owen saying "abby".
Screaming, folks. Loud, loud screaming. Of which they can control but choose to use. And not judiciously.
I understand their dilemma. Their comprehension is through the roof, they understand receptive language almost too well. I have had to curb some of my less than stellar phrases and we spell quite a few things in their presence (like O-t-t-e-r P-o-p-s).
The limits of their spoken language, their need to tell us what they want, well, it must be frustrating. I watch as Mason now hesitates when he comes to a truck or bus in his books, wanting to say the right word and knowing ‘car’ will come out. He looks at us and tries, but then perseverates on ‘car’, gets pissed, and then screams. He has a pretty low threshold in the frustration area. That would be directly due to my genetic input. Sorry, Mace.
Owen is different. He does not hesitate at all when it comes to using his repertoire, casually throwing his words, identifying any and all animal as ‘dog’, oblivious to his generalization. But the kid likes to yell, then scream when he gets excited or wants to direct my attention. And that can be a lot of the time.
So, we muddle along. I have found using repetition and modeled conversation does help, at least to save some of my sanity. I usually start the conversation with a
“What do you need, M/O, water, snack, etc…”
“Yes, Mama, please can I have a ….”
“Sure, Mace, just let Mama get it out of the cabinet…etc”
Sounds pretty reasonable, huh? Now back up and read again imagining two screaming banshees screeching at the top of their lungs…yeah, the conversation can sound a little silly then. But it gives me a focus point. When that does not work, we do a ‘Time Out’ for excessive screaming. And not proud to say it, but I have shouted a few times. That really does get their attention, for the moment, anyway.
I do not want to paint it as total bedlam, but the last few weeks have been trying, those few ‘melting’ hours bringing forth a lot of their frustrated vocalizing. There is one thing it has also brought forward. I tend to think a lot during these times, during those moments of calm, about my Self and my parenting. I realize I can trend towards the thought…”If they would just…get through this, have more words, be able to speak, just not, um, scream”. But what that makes me realize is it can cause me to miss that Here and the Now…because they will pass through this and I want to remember it, painful as it may be.
To end on a lighter note, one neat part is deciphering the words they are using. For the last few weeks Owen has been wandering around saying “Abby, abby, abby, abby” at random moments. I tried to figure out what he was associating the word with, looking for objects or actions. Well, last night, Tim and I were watching them bathe, I asked Owen to swim and he laid down, kicking, laughing and saying ‘Abby’. I looked at him and asked him, “Are you saying ‘Happy‘?”. And he turned to me and smiled so big, so wonderfully, so happy, and nodded his head. I died.
(Yeah, I put that barette there? So?)(He is going to kill me someday).
And Mason, though occasionally hesitant to use words with books, has no such compunction during other activities. We have decided his running litany is in French and it sounds really, really interesting. He makes the simplest of actions intriguing, talks to and about his brother a lot, and cocks his head with this inquisitive look that just about kills me. The other day we were doing body parts and I asked him to show me “Mama’s nose” (he usually does his own body parts) and he looked at me like “Why?’.
So, I am trying to remember to embrace moments, breathe deeply and I ask, any advice out there for other strategies, Mamas? Leave it in the comments. Please.
Oh, in this vid if you listen carefully at the beginning, you can hear Owen saying "abby".
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Action Shots
We finally purchased a new way to get the boys on video, our old p&s busted months ago and we were missing all the action. We went with the Iflip and love it, so easy to use.
Here are a few outtakes of our weekend with twin boys.
Just for clarification, we do not let them drink the beer, just play with it. Harhar.
Modification on the pants is coming along slowly, I am venturing into the world of linen bias tape and waistbands. Oooooh, sounds exciting, si? My sister is here with her sweetheart so time is going to family. Which can also be a welcome break at times. Getting some great time in with her and the boys is totally the priority. Oh, how I wish she never had to leave. I'll check back soon. Smiles.
Here are a few outtakes of our weekend with twin boys.
Just for clarification, we do not let them drink the beer, just play with it. Harhar.
Modification on the pants is coming along slowly, I am venturing into the world of linen bias tape and waistbands. Oooooh, sounds exciting, si? My sister is here with her sweetheart so time is going to family. Which can also be a welcome break at times. Getting some great time in with her and the boys is totally the priority. Oh, how I wish she never had to leave. I'll check back soon. Smiles.
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