Sea + Prairie

fishing lessons

When S is gone, I do my best to stand in for him, trying to be both mother and father.  I taught all three boys to ride their bikes without training wheels.  I taught the older two how to lay a fire in the fireplace this past winter.  It think I do a pretty good job of it most times.

However, this was not the case with fishing.

Each boy got a new rod and reel this Easter next to their Easter bucket.  They were all so excited they wanted to skip church and head for the nearest tank.  (Read that pond, for those of you not from the South.)  I let Ian open his rod first and in less than five minutes we were all a tangled mess and one mama was in tears with the mess.

We put the rods up on top of papas surfboards in the garage and headed to church and I prayed for forgiveness for the ugly thoughts that had been floating around in my head on a less than holy Easter morning.

And then S returned.  The rods were out again.  Lines were untangled...with patience this time.  Bobbers and weights and hooks were attached, with one parent instructing and one playing safety patrol.  Aaahhh...It worked so much better this way.

The lesson of the day for one of my boys was catching his first fish, a little white crappie (that's pronounced cr(o)ppie, not cr(a)ppie).  And this lesson for me had nothing to do with how to hold a rod, or about how fast to reel in a spinner.  It was all about the fact that there will be more and more things that only he can teach them.  And Im supposed to just sit back, let go a little at a time and watch them grow into men.  Hopefully, a lot like their papa.

spring break was...

: a little brother's birthday party : piles of dirt : their first 3D IMAX movie with the cool glasses : The Marine Science Museum where we got to meet Brady Barr from National Geogrphic : a nature walk : a visit to the zoo : a skype conversation with the orphanage kids from Nicaragua : a day at the beach with friends :

I think the older two boys will have plenty to write about today at school when their teachers ask them what they did on their spring break.  Don't you?

It was a really fun week, but this mama is really excited to get back to the regular routine.  Yeah for one on one time with my little buddy.  Yeah for time to work in the garden.  And yeah for some needing time in the sewing room.

Happy Monday!

dirt - the best birthday present ever

I would like to say that Wyatt's favorite birthday was the silly string he received from his brother, or the print I got him from Sarah Jane Studios.  It wasn't even the police helicopter lego set his friend Joey got him.  Nope.

It was the pile of fill dirt delivered right in front of our house...and then the rain that followed.  Oh, and you see that interesting (and kind of pretty) swirling pattern we've got going on in our man made lake there?  Yes, that would be pollen.  Which explains why we're all feeling stuffed up and yucky right now.

All three boys have been playing in this pile for the past week.  They have spent many hours making bike ramps down the pile as their mama turns her head, sifting through the earth to find pieces of brick and rock...treasure to these three.

So, you know how a toddler opens the present, but plays with the box or the ribbon instead? 

Yes.  The same works with a huge dirt pile.  And my little guy thinks it was delivered just for his special day.

So, I offer my apologies right now If you try to email or call and we don't answer.  We're busy.  But don't worry, you know where we'll be.

P.S.  If you are in the midst of trying to play a little boy's birthday.  Stop planning immediately!  Simply order a large pile of dirt to be delivered in your driveway.  You'll be a hit with all of the neighborhood kids.  Promise!

milestones and giveaway

Just because everything is different doesn't mean anything has changed.  ~Irene Peter

I've been thinking a lot about milestones these days.  For me, its not big milestones - the first word spoken - that gets me.  Its not the first lost tooth or even the first day of kindergarten that brings on the tears.  Its the quiet milestones, that might get overlooked if I'm not paying attention, that hit me straight in the soft mama heart.  It is watching one of the older boys read for the first time to their little brother.  Its bike ramps and crashes and tears being forced to stay in their eyes now, when before they would have cried like a baby.  Those are the milestones that just move me to pray that time stand still.

Earlier this week the boys and I went to a local JV baseball game.  There is this great kid, named Zach, who volunteers in the older boys' Sunday school class.  And well, my boys think he is the coolest thing since sliced bread!  Zach invited us to watch him play ball sometime.  And it just worked out that on Tuesday, after homework was done, we were able to make it.  After a quick stop for necessities - sunflower seeds, Bubble Yum bubble gum and drinks - we were at the ball park.

And the boys were in heaven.  They couldn't help but wave to Zach each and every time he entered the dugout.  And bless his heart, Zach shyly waved right back each time...trying not to look too glad to see his littlest fans.  Watching them spit sunflower seeds and blow bubbles as they stared at the batter made them age right before my eyes.

They watched intently and asked a gazillion questions.  

"What does a foul mean?"

"But mama, where is fourth base?"

"Why do they call it stealing second?"

"You mean you are really going to let us spit...in front of all these people?"

And then on the way home, it came.

"Mama, can we play baseball too?"

Of course you can.

It is an amazing thing to be truly inspired by someone else, some one older, someone cool as all get out.  Inspired by an experience, a scene played out before you that seems bigger than life. 

I hope you don't mind much Zach ( I know you don't).  But you've got three little people who are making bets as I speak that you will win the World Series next year.

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And not to switch gears on you too quickly.

But, speaking of milestones.

I don't know if you have noticed, but the Vintage Chica blog has hit a few smilestone of her own.  She's growing up too.  There is now a new fancy navigation bar just under the header to help organize some of the information (and most popular) pages, along with a nice easy way to contact me.

Also, I have been asked a few times about what chapter books we read aloud to our boys.  And I get it.  Boys are toughies when it comes to a longer book that will hold their attention.  So, I have added the list of books we have read aloud so far  about half way down on the right sidebar.  I hope you find one that you think your little guy (or gal) will enjoy.

And finally, after much (much, much) thought, I have decided to open the blog up to sponsorships.  This was a hard decision.   So much of what I write about in this space has to do with our family and our little life here.  And making a buck off of that just didn't seem right.   That is until I talked to a small business owner a few months back.  She told me  about how it is becoming increasingly difficult for small cottage industries to make it.  How they are getting overlooked and bypassed by much larger companies with more advertising power.

At that moment, my answer was very clear.  I decided to welcome the opportunity to help out some of my favorite small child friendly, mama friendly, eco friendly, etsy friendly businesses.  And who knows, maybe I'll make a little egg money in the process.

And please know, that you will never see a product or site advertised here that I do not support myself.  So, at the beginning of each month we'll be introducing our new sponsors and having a little giveaway.

Sound fun?  I think so too!

This month's giveaway is sponsored by Beebee Mod, who happens to be owned by one of my favorite photobloggers, Jen.  The Beebee Mod shop has some of the coolest, hippest things for little people you'll find on the web.

You know how much we are loving birds these days, and well...I about flipped when I saw these little birdie doodle notebooks.  And these Colors and Critters coloring books...I've already ordered three of the  of them along with some crayon rocks for the boys Easter baskets.  Ssshhh! 

To be entered in the drawing for a $25 gift certificate to the Beebee Mod shop, just pop on over to Beebee Mod, poke around a bit and then come back here to leave a comment telling me just what you plan to buy with your $25... should you win.

 

Entries will be accepted until Friday evening and I will post the winner on Monday morning.

Good luck everyone.

And here's to milestones!

a sunny weekend afterall

After reading the weather report on Friday, we had expected the weather to be rainy, rainy, rainy.  And this mama was racking her brain to come up with yet more inside activities to keep the troops busy.

However, the weather man turned out to be wrong.  But we're not blaming him.  It was a nice surprise.

Instead of netflix movies and hangman, we had a lovely weekend full of...

:: an all boy sleepover (plus one sweet little girl) with home made pizza and good friends to play "army guys" ::

:: building beaver dams...still, one of our favorite past times ::

:: and target practice with the sling shots mama brought back from Nicaragua last summer ::

I've got lots of great things coming up on the blog this week including a giveaway, another great way to upcycle drop cloths and news on the summer unschooling project. 

So, how was your weekend?

fresh flowers are like a shot in the arm

I was at the market the other day and saw this bunch of delphiniums looking a tad bit less than fresh.  They were marked $1.99 each...I guess someone else noticed they had passed their prime.  But their cornflower blue color was so pretty, I just couldn't resist.  I brought them home, gave them a good cut (3 inches) in water, added a tablespoon of lemon juice, 1/2 tablespoon of sugar, and a cap full of bleach.

They were still blooming away pretty as ever when I got back home on Sunday afternoon.  I guess the magic potion was just the boost they needed.

And I am feeling like I got a big boost too.

It is amazing what a weekend away can do for your soul.  The last time I got away from home by myself (meaning without husband and kids in tow) was last summer.  On Friday afternoon, I was frantically putting together the information for my workshop on Mindful Mothering and ...  well, freaking out.  Just a little bit.  OK, a lot.

You see...I think I have found my voice here in this space.  When I sit down to write, it usually flows pretty easily.  Most of the time.  Here, I share bits of our day.  My thoughts on this or that.  A recipe or a kid craft once in awhile.

But standing up in front of a group of women, most of whom I know in my real everyday day-to-day life, and "teaching" them about mindful mothering is a whole different ball game.  Terrifying to say the least.

But I think all went pretty well.  There was much laughter, and a few tears.  I think that is always a good sign when a group of women get together.

The art of motherhood, and believe me it is in fact an art, is a tough one.

Im not sure if I'll share everything that I said on Saturday morning.  But who knows.  I never thought I would have been blogging this long either.

One thing I know for sure is a weekend away with good girlfriends, the time to finish sentences without being interrupted by little people, good food, lots of chocolate are pretty nice shots in the arm.

Delphiniums in the kitchen make me feel pretty good too.

out of the 1950's

I swear, it was like a movie from the 1950's - watching my boys that afternoon, as a timeless scene as old as boyhood itself unfolded before me.  Boys big enough to say "But mama, we can do it by ourselves."  And a mama not quite ready to let them go past eye-shot yet. 

A recent storm had blown down lots of pine tree branches in our neighborhood.  And one of them had seen several "big ones" down along the bus route.  "Can we go get them mama?  I have an idea." 

My industrious little boys saw this as a grand opportunity spread out before them.  The plan was this...ask people to pay them for the removal of the branches, drag them back to our yard where they would build a fort with said branches.  And buy candy (that mama won't let them have) with the money.  I know...industrious little ankle biters. 

So in the blink of an eye they were off, with Scout the wonder dog hitched to the wagon and a mama following 200 paces behind, camera in tow.  Close enough to warn them of cars at intersections.  Far enough behind to let their imaginations run where they might without interference.

Belive me, it took all I had in me to resist stepping in and helping them drag those huge branches back to our yard.

And I watched in amazement as they entered a world of their own creation.  They wrote a story where they were the generals.  And the heroes.  A world where pine cones were armed missiles and a few sticky pine branches protected from all that was bad in the world.  A world with its own language and its own rules.  A world without mamas telling you to pick up after yourself or wash the sap off of your hands.

I felt privileged to witness time stand still that afternoon. 

Thank you my sweet boys for letting me tag along.  For giving this mama a tiny glimpse of what your worlds really will look like someday...the valiant men you will become.  I hope you know you taught me a valuable lesson that day about how to stand back and let go a tiny bit.  To watch from afar...just close enough to be thankful of the little men before me.

**And yes, we now have $1.75 burning a hole in our pocket.  Swedish fish anyone?**

taking control of our education: resources

As promised here are a list of book links and resources that have been useful in my thought process regarding our education.  I say "OUR" education, because I feel like this is a search to come up with a solution that works for all of those in our family.  I am learning right along with the youngest in our family.

I do not want to give the idea that we are pro or against anything regarding education with these links.  But here are some of the resources that have struck a chord with me.  If you would like to add any links that you feel are valuable in this conversation, please feel free to do so in the comments section.

This orationfrom Sir Ken Robinson...its been awhile, but I keep coming back to it again and again.  It was the first thing I saw when my boys were just in pre-school that made me want to dig in more.  To find out how our schools are teaching and how my kids would learn best.

The Unschooled Mind: How Children Think and How Schools Should Teach by Howard E. Gardner - This was the first book I ever read on the topic of how our little ones learn.  In my opinion, it gets a bit deep, but I still find myself going back to it once in awhile to look up a particular thought.

The Unschooling Handbook: How to Use the Whole World as Your Child's Classroom by Mary Griffith

The Sudbury Valley School Articles especially their Underlying Ideas topics and the Parent Experiences were shared from Sarah

Give Kids Good Schools - full of good information for those of us wanting to make the most of our children's public education.

Should I Homeschool  - a blog post from Lori of Camp Creek Press...really, her whole blog makes me think.  Especially her info. on Reggio Emelia.  Something seems to ring true to me when I read about the whole project based learning style.

The Hundred Languages of Children and subsequently Bringing Reggio Emelia Home.  I checked the first book out of our local library, but they did not have the second book, recommended by Lori.  She kindly sent a second copy she had to me and Im still reading it.  I can't put it down and I find myself re-reading certain parts.

There are probably many more articles that I could have posted here.  The internet is an amazing resource when it comes to educating our kiddos.  There are many different opinions and trains of thought on the subject.  These are just some of the resources that have been introduced to me along our journey.  But, its a start.  And to be honest, the opinions I value the most are those of my family including my children, and other mothers with whom I share a great deal of respect.  Also, if you are having questions about public school like I was, I can not stress enough how important it is to jump in feet first.  Getting directly involved in the boys classrooms has been invaluable.  I have learned to so much about my kids and where their teachers are coming from.  If you have the ability to get involved in your child's public school setting...please, do so.  You will not regret it.

Let's continue this discussion...shall we?

Oh, and I have had a few comments and emails regarding our "summer unschooling" project.  Would anyone be interested in learning along with us?  I would be happy to organize us in some way and provide a forum to share info.  Please let me know if you would be interested through the comments or email and I will put something together.

taking control of our education: part 2

OK, so I have been avoiding writing this post for several months now.  But it seems the previous post regarding our education choices struck a chord.  I heard from homeschoolers and public schoolers alike...all of us just trying to make the best decisions for our kiddos.  And I am encouraged to be a part of the conversation.  It seems like there are many of us in the same boat.  Weighing options.  Praying we don't make the wrong decisions.  Praying we don't screw our little ones up.  Its tough.

I wrote part one back in oh...November?

I left off with "So, I started contacting my resources".

I left shortly after that post for Texas to visit family for two weeks.  There I talked to my parents quite a bit about my feelings.  I talked to my Aunt who is an amazing teacher and runs a special reading program that uses volunteers in the community to read one on one with students.  I to my Grammer who worked in the public school system for years about her experiences.

When I got back to Virginia I threw myself into researching online every night.

• Are there different school options that I am not aware of?

• Are public and private our only options?

• What would homeschooling in Virginia look like?

• How hard is it?

• How would we go about it?

• Am I nuts for even entertaining the idea.

I emailed and chatted with Lori, who is a wealth of knowledge.  She was able to answer many of my questions that honestly came down to confidence.  I need to trust my instincts and know that I know my kids better than anyone else in the world.  Stefani offered some insight as always *smile*.  I know a few homeschoolinging mamas at church and talked to them.  I have a few "go to" moms in my community that did not home school, but I have admired their parenting styles and solicited their opinions.

I made a list of "action steps" that included:

• get more involved in the boys classrooms...check...two days a week in Zane's class and one day a week in Ian's class
• speak to the principal
• continue to educate myself

The direct classroom involvement was invaluable.  INVALUABLE!  I found two amazing teachers doing a bang up job with the resources they were given.  One was a brand new teacher right out of college who was thrown a curve ball just before the school year began and was just beginning to learn the ins and outs of discipline in the classroom.  Saying she had her hands full is an understatement.  But she had an amazing heart for her students and a never give up attitude that was contagious.  The other teacher was in her second year...a seasoned parent and wonderful at pulling the resources that the public schools offered.  Watching her teach was a joy.

The conversation with the principal was worthless.  He thought that since I have the unique experience of having two, same age, boys in seperate classrooms, that I was just comparing them.  He enouraged me to see them as individuals and not as a whole...which is a bunch of twin mom crap.  I have always seen my boys as individuals and have always known each's strengths and weaknesses.  However, I do think that having two in seperate classrooms does provide an interesting twist and one that has been a challenge for me this year.  He sent me away with a pat on the shoulder and a back handed compliment about him knowing what a great mom I am.  Which only frustrated me further.

However, this did not solve my problem.  But it did help me nail down where exactly the problem lies.  It lies in teachers having to teach to the SOLs.  It lies in teachers having to teach to too many children to realize right off the bat where each of their students strengths and weaknesses are.  it lies in a principal who is part of the good ol' boy network of educators happy he has tenure and riding his time out to retirement.  The problem lies in an old school system that still teaches for a 1950s world.

So, then it was time to wait for S to come home and have a heart to heart about how everything I had learned, and how we want the boys to be educated.  It was a long wait.  Let me tell you.

But while on this little day trip, we were able to have a long chat about it all. 

Unfortunately, we were on different sides of the fence.  And we couldn't find middle ground on this one.  It was frustrating to say the least, but I know from experience (and from the advice of others) that when it comes to big decisions like this, there HAS to  be agreement.

Private school is out for financial reasons.

I did discover this part time school (thanks Alicia!) and I was thrilled to find it.  We went to visit and found that even this "tuition" was a bit out of our reach.

Which leaves us with some form of homeschooling and public school.  And no final answers.

So I sat.  With the boys still in the public school.  And me trying to fill in with whatever I can in the few extra minutes before baths and on weekends.

I continued to read.  And read.  And read.

I have to admit, the more I read the more frustrated I became in my own head.  I trudged forward, holding on to my belief that knowledge is power.  It almost hurt to be stuck in that place of being lead one way, but holding tight for the time being in an educational system of which I am not fully supportive. 

I am slowly learning to be ok in that place.  Lord knows I have been there enough in the past several years.

We finally decided to leave the boys where they are for the rest of this school year.  Incorporate some unschooling into our summer, like we always do.  Unschooling summer school!  Sounds fun doesn't it?And revisit this whole concept before the beginning of the next school year.

And I was ok with it all for the time being.

That is until a three page stapled document came home in the boys' school folders last week...

(sorry to keep dragging you all along...I just can't seem to get it all into one post)

signs of spring: soccer readiness

We are actively looking for signs of Spring's arrival here.  So, this week I decided to post a "signs of Spring" post everyday.  Hopefully this will lift a bit of the February funk that always seems to seep in this time of year.

Anyone want to join me?  No flickr group to post photos to...just a quiet focus on our blogs of the tiny bits of Spring that are given to us this week.  Who knows, we just might bring a bit of Spring's arrival to our Northern neighbors who won't be seeing daffodils for a few more months.

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Spring soccer season must be approaching.

Because

New (to us) soccer shoes found at the kids resale store...

plus some customization via sharpie markers...

equals three happy little kickers with shoes that are super fast and are able to kick the ball over large buildings.  At least that's what the boys are telling me.  We shall see in a few weeks.