Today

Well, we are rarely just sitting around...as you may already know. Those days are few and far between...at least in the summer. Now it's time to *do* things.

This morning was a slow start (as many of us stay up till the wee hours of the morning...)(as I type it is 1:00 am and both boys are still playing together)...so we started today around noon. Jeff and Kade went on a bit of a shopping spree. Kade is really into his tie up shoes and they are getting a wee tight. Today he came home with a snazzy new pair of Nikes. Jeff was on the prowl for new work clothes. He nicely bought shirts that are 'iron free'. (Can you see me dance a happy dance?) and was really stoked that Kade was truly helpful at the store. I think Kade was helping the salesman and maybe even another customer. Anyway, they were having a great time together. Meanwhile, Kai and I were hangin' together. Jumping from computer fun to tv fun as he tried to conquer and unlock all the characters in this one game.

Once Jeff and Kade returned, it was time for some Kai and Jeff time. Kai had asked for it since we are planning on going to see Harry Potter tomorrow with Annie while Jeff and Kade stay home.


Well, Kai asked to bike downtown to Jamba Juice. So after Jeff got some grub and changed into some comfy clothes, the bigger boys headed out on their adventure downtown. They ended up finding a great little market I'm supposed to check out. They also peeked into the used book store.

Meanwhile, this left Kade and I alone.


Naturally, we made cookies! Kade had taken the butter out last night, too late for cooking (the oven is right next to the room we sleep in, so would potentially keep Jeff awake) so today was the day.


He chose cookie press cookies. It's been forever since we've made this kind. Having only wheat flour can make cookies a bit thicker and a different color than white flour does. This is especially true for ours, today, since we also put in a bit of almond flour.


We melted some chocolate to put on top. Of course, this led to some wanting them to have faces...smiley ones at that. Here is what we came up with...


Kade's favorite.


My favorite.

After the cookies, we realized that the guys had forgotten to take the gate key with them. Kade suggested we gather a few blankets and head down to the gate to wait for them.


We gathered a few things and headed down. It was such a beautiful afternoon, too. Perfect. So we settled in and I started a henna design. Kade was having fun getting ready to hide once he saw them coming down the road...all the while talking with me without stopping to breathe...or so it seemed. I thoroughly enjoy his his banter as it lets me see a bit of what is going on in his mind. Anyway, the boys did arrive. Kade hid and was found. Then Jeff stayed a bit with Kade as Kade rode his turtle. So much fun was had!





The videos are still downloading on vimeo...so you'll have to come back to see them here... (tahdah)

Turtle fun July 2009 part 1 from Beachbum on Vimeo.

Turtle fun July 2009 part 2 from Beachbum on Vimeo.

Turtle fun July 2009 part 3 from Beachbum on Vimeo.

Once the henna was done, this is what I ended up with. Happy Mama, I am.


Inside we chilled for about half an hour. Then the boys played more on the Mario game they are borrowing from friends. Jeff agreed to join in after Kai and he had a sock war.

Before we knew it, it was time for Jeff to head to snooze land. Kade stole a book reading or two with his Daddy. I got to tuck my love in and come out with the gang. Now it's been a few hours of catch up with the blogs I haven't been reading.

And I guess I'm ready to post my own things again!

The longest post ever, continued.

I can't say enough how much I truly appreciate Prana. He has helped me so much along this healing journey. If you are looking for someone who can use essential oils, massage and cranio sacral work, he's truly amazing. Shazia is a wonderful woman, as well. I am grateful to have them in my life!

As an aside, they are looking for someone to buy their storefront. They are still going to provide the healing services (both restorative yoga and Prana's list of healing arts) and wish to sell the store part of their business to allow them to focus more on the afore mentioned healing arts.



****

There is a discussion about love and understanding going around with a few friends of mine. It brings up an interesting point. Are we ever truly understood? We were talking about this statement someone made :

"No one will ever understand you. Realizing this is freedom. No one will ever understand you—not once, not ever. Even at our most understanding, we can only understand our story of who you are. There's no understanding here except your own. If you don't love another person, it hurts, because love is your very self."

We progressed and a friend said :

"I was thinking that so many people's ideas of marriage includes feeling "understood." However, what if this idea is an illusion? What if we are working with a false dynamic?....What about love? Love, for me, goes beyond pheromones, lust, parental attachment, shared interests or even mutual respect. I have always believed that love was a choice, actually a series of choices made each and every day. As each day is filled with more gratitude, awe and joy-- I find it more and more difficult not to love. Love no longer feels like a decision, more than it is a daily certainty."

Heavy stuff. But important to think on once in a while. I wanted to put here what I wrote. More to explain how I operate and to show where I am on this journey through life. Here is what I responded :

"Two things on this.
First, I don't think we understand anything. For me it is about accepting and allowing a fluid-ness to that accepting. Understanding isn't a part of what I do, I guess. I can see progressions of things and see how someone got from point A to point B, but I don't understand it. Does that make sense?
Secondly, for me, love is just a part of me. It doesn't come from loving myself. It doesn't even come from my choices (for I can and do sometimes hurt those I love without even knowing/intending it). Sometimes my acts of 'love' are not good for other people. I don't feel like I choose to love. I do choose to follow it, or not.
Loving people has always been an amazing phenomenon to me. As I said, I can't control *if* I love, I can only control how I respond to it. How much I allow my thoughts to concentrate on it. How I interact with it. I have always loved everyone I see, first thing. I don't *understand* why. I just have accepted that it is. Sometimes I see that someone is unhealthy for me to be with, or who's choices I can't accept. My love is still there - it just is in a holding pattern, so to speak.
Maybe this is connected with my 'cup is half full' - usually more than half full personality? Don't know.
What it has meant in my interactions with others is varied. Many disbelieve I actually love them, that I am truly this happy a person, and sometimes they react in fear. Some have said they see it as a 'glow' or as just happiness showing through. I'm sure some see me as the 'princess' of insufficient light.
Thankfully, Jeff sees it as a good thing!

No matter how you see love, it is real. Understanding can be varied in so many ways. We all see things from our own perspectives. This allows for so many versions of the same thing. Emotions are real. How we describe emotions will be as varied as those who are asked to describe them.



****

Jeff and I were talking about my blog a bit back. I have been meaning to write down here how I feel about our discussion. Jeff was saying he expected this blog to be more about unschooling.

I have purposely left out the 'definition' of unschooling simply because I feel there are many others out there who have defined it. For more in-depth information one can look through Joyce's page or Sandra's page. They have spent years collecting unschooling information.

I haven't felt the need to define it here on my blog. But I consider my blog to be about unschooling. I talk about our passions, our pastimes and about how we live or lives. I show how involved we are in each other, how happily we support each other in our pursuit of what we love to do and I feel as if I have shown how following my own passions help my family members see that it is an important thing to do. I read in front of my kids, I knit in front of my kids, I blog in front of my kids, I henna in front of my kids. My kids follow their passions in front of me. Annie even dyed my hair! We are all a fluid part of each others' lives and we get involved in the excitement and joy of each other. Is that not what unschooling is truly about? For me it is. I can see the world get bigger for my kids every day. I see more of the world through their eyes. We each learn something everyday. Our life brings never ending possibilities.

So, in essence, this (to me) is very much an unschooling blog.



****

We need to see Auntie Mary. It has been far too long. Kai was saying this week how it just is not good for us to go this long without a visit. We miss her so much! So...the calendar will just have to clear enough so we can go!



****

Jeff has to go out of town on business every once in a while. We miss him much when he goes, but also know it's just part of the corporate game we play right now. Jeff and I are different in so many ways. I have a love/hate relationship for how he prepares/packs for things. He is a last minute packer. I am not. So I have a tough time when we pack as a family to go places. When he is traveling alone, I truly love to watch him buzz around packing at the last minute. I find it quite precious that he has me clean his glasses for him and how he needs to get the tiny screwdriver out to tighten the glasses hinges before he leaves for the trip. These are endearing things.

Mainly I love counting down, with the kids, the hours until we get to see him again. Kai started the hour count when we had 9 hours left. The minute count started 3 hours before. I'm sure he would have included seconds if there was a clock that showed those readily!

It's nice to have everyone under our roof now.

I have been known to say that even if Jeff was home 24/7 it still wouldn't be enough time for me. Crazy in love still after all this time.



****

Kai went to a karate seminar this week. I love his passion for this. He came home saying it was the best seminar he has *ever* been to. How cool is that?! I didn't take the camera, but saw Sensei Michelle with one. As soon as they post pictures on their site, I'll see about getting some for here, too.

These seminars are a great way for Kai to learn more about his art. He is loving every moment of his learning. So cool.

There will be another seminar in March. I'll be sure to take the camera to that one!



****

I have started knitting again...watch out!



****

Annie has now passed all her tests for completing core! She is a happy girl. I was able to go down and sit and be her 'test subject'. We were both worried that my hair (although nice) is very thin. However, she has played with it before, so seemed to have no trouble dealing with it during the test. She started out with the dying testing. They were given shaving cream to demonstrate the application of dye. She did great on the parting and the actual application. After showing she knew how to do four types of tinting/dying, she went on to rolling for perms. She mentioned afterwards that she was glad I had a straight cut, because there were only the wispy parts of my hair to deal with and not layers, too. Plus, since I don't have a ton of hair, she ended up not needing all the rollers! How cool is that?! Anyway, after the "perming" I was treated to a hair washing/massaging and then, was gifted to a blow dry and curling session. All in all, it went from 9:30 to 1:50. It was a long time to test, and it was only the hands on testing that she had to do. Yesterday they tested the written stuff. So far, she seems to be happy with the results. And I'm proud of how well she did.



****

I wanted to post a follow-up mehndi picture. Here is the last design I did a full week after application. I am so pleased with how well the stain stayed. I am getting comfortable with how I like to mix it and what I like to add. Hopefully it wont change a lot when I get another bag of henna powder. I am liking how well the sifted henna applies. No lumps!

Tonight we have weather

Special weather statement came through : damaging winds, possible hail, heavy rain, lightning strikes to the ground. So where is my husband? Well, he is out on the patio, waiting to see it all. How strange it is to see this man who is usually so safe, be fascinated by strong weather.

Now, when I met him, he didn't enjoy walking in the rain. We then lived in Monterey. Although it doesn't rain a ton, it does rain during the winter months. I kept saying : I don't melt. Finally he stopped asking if I really wanted to go out. Now...somehow this means he can and should be in weather.

When in TN, he used to love sitting on the porch swing and just watch it pour down. There is nothing like that.



Tonight he was outside. Very fascinated and was almost disappointed we didn't get the hail. We did see the interstate on a mandatory slow down - with highway patrol setting the pace. At least we know they have systems in place to help keep the drivers safe.

Proof of rain today...

Tonight I finally got a chance to work some Mendhi magic. I am interested in researching the 5 petal rose...it's supposed to have mother earth goddess symbolism attached to it. Shall research it more. Here is my version.

Park day

These days are like a rejuvination of spirit. It's hard to explain. They are fun and it's great to see friends and talk and play. But we have also charged our positive emotions and see life with more enthusiasm and enjoyment. Crazy, huh?

Well, Kai and Kade had a blast. Kade managed to play inside a car. Kai managed to play with friends and run and have quite time with those he wished. We missed some of our regulars (you know who you are) but really had fun with those we did spend time with...

Which leads me to this : I have been blessed, yet again, to put henna on a baby belly! Thanks, Jen!! Here are all the pictures she so nicely took...







Anne was at the park with her 3 plus Soren (6 days old)!!!

OK, more henna

I hate to waste it! So here are a few pictures of what I did last night. However, it is past its prime, so the stain is not too dark on the back of my hand. I wanted to do a design that supported the one I did on the palm. I also included a new picture of the palm to show how dark it turned out this time! It has reached its peak in color, I think.

I also have great life to report! I am wearing these... From dream to reality.








***As an after note: I wore these shoes for 4 hours today. Granted, most of that time was not spent on my feet. What I have noticed is our counter tops don't appear to be as tall as they do normally *and* I can reach things on the second shelf of the cabinets without getting the stool! Secondly, wearing heels is like roller skating. It's a bit of an adjustment when you first start out, but you get used to it. Once the heels come off, there is still an adjustment time. My physical aftermath is minimal and consists of the normal sensations experienced when one wears shoes that are new and have pressures in places one is not accustomed to. Structural, not electrical. I'm a smilin'!

Today and more...

OK, so I can't say enough for our Dentist. Dr. Baha is the best. We all had our teeth polished last week. Well, the digital xrays they took of the boys showed Kade had 2 cavities in between 2 sets of teeth - making 4 teeth total involved. Before we left, Dr. Baha pulls out these cool race cars and lets Kade know he'll put his name on them (big gifts go for the big jobs, and stickers for the polishings). Anyway, Kade was really excited about getting the race cars, but not too keen on the 'spicy' gel they used last time. So, Dr. Baha said he'd try it without the gel and they'd take it step by step. Before he did anything today, Dr. Baha talked about how if Kade was nervous and tense that he would feel a lot more pain. If he was relaxed, then he probably wouldn't feel any pain. He explained that if Kade raised his hand, Dr. Baha would know he was feeling something more than the vibrating the drill would do. He also made sure Kade was cool and comfy watching Sponge Bob (get this - *with* headphones on!) before he started. Kade lifted his hand 3 times. When he raised his hand, Dr. Baha just switched to another tooth. When we checked with Kade, he said he wanted to continue. Dr. Baha checked to make sure after each set, and let Kade know when he was done with the drilling and was then just sealing and adding the composite. When the tooth is hot, it may hurt, so that is why he moved to another tooth to work on. Tooth cools, no pain! Anyway, Kade made it through the entire drilling/filling without any numbing stuff! Wow, I say. We have played with the race cars (it was a package of 2)...

When we got back, I wanted to put some henna on my hand. So, here is what I did. I like the modern/traditional combination of this design. I found this one online. However, I had to skip some 'rings' simply because either my hand is smaller or their lines are smaller than what I can do with the tip I have. I like how it turned out. The paste was only on for about an hour and a half before life called me back to play. Still, it is darker now than it was when I took the paste off. Crazy.























Annie came home earlier than we expected today and I was able to do this on her back. She wanted the center design (made by a stencil that came with the last bag of henna powder) in the center of her back. I asked if I could do some more and she was nice enough to let me. She was laying down for this, which is easiest for me. Next time I know to lean over her back to do the center so it's straight!





Last week I snagged these from Annie's facebook page so as to have a log here of what she is practicing. The mannequin heads are a bit creepy for me, but I will just have to hang. She will finish 'core' mid February. Right now they are touching on all the things they will need to know and they will go over them in more depth later.


Annie, Hannah and Merissa working on their mannequins.
























Annie's french twist.




















Annie's, Hannah's, and Merissa's handiwork.

















Annie and Hannah

Henna baby belly

Well, I was gifted today. Honored, actually, to be allowed to henna a mama to be. Baby is hanging out for the full 40 weeks and is welcome to arrive any time. Anne mentioned she thought of birds with this bun-in, so she wanted one on her belly someplace. Since I hadn't planned on what I was going to do, I did this. I am so thankful it turned out so well! Thank you, Anne! Blessings...



























Thanks go to Anne for being such a beautiful expecting mother, to Mandy for taking the pictures of the design in progress and to Annie for putting henna on others while I was doing this, for pushing Kade in the swing (which he does to connect) and watching the boys play.

There were other henna designs, too. I didn't get all of them, but here are a few.



Juliet with her beautiful butterfly.



Lizet's sun.

The boys had fun today, too. Here is Kai finding a nook to be with friends and swinging.





Then we have the happiest girl in the whole world right here:


Zippy is patiently waiting her turn to get Annie...






"T" is looking the cute pixie fairy girl and talking to Annie. Annie is in heaven holding this little one. I know Jeff saw these pictures and is j-e-a-l-o-u-s, yup, Jealous. He even said that although he may not be taller, he is still bigger, and therefore should get to hold the baby more than we do. Heehee. I think Annie will be on this baby holding high for a while. Maybe enough to last for, say, almost 2 weeks. Almost, so that she will want to come back to the Monday park days!

Kade brought his bike and was happy showing it and riding it around. Here he is riding along the path and with our friends.





Last, but certainly not least, Kate and Jonas :



These are, once again, just samplings of our park day. What a truly wonderful group of people. We had many new families come today, which is very cool. New friends! Who can ask for more?

Once again, I am taken to Kade's level of pleasure : "I LOVE MY LIFE!"