4 Hour Distraction

So, I read a book yesterday.
Yep, that's right.
A Book.
In a day.
Actually, I started it at 5:45 when I put the girls in the bath (they had an extra long bath because I lost track of time...) and finished it at 10pm. I read while making dinner...Obviously I couldn't put it down!

Oh, you want to know what the book is?

#2 in the series

This is the second in the series. Start with the first one. It's in the Young Adult section - I've been mining that section for gems lately and, let me tell you, there are a bunch! (more reviews later?  Maybe...)

#1, Start Here!

The short (short!) summary is that this is a dystopian United States where Love, yes, the emotion/action of love, has been declared a disease "deliria". A surgical procedure has been developed to eliminate that emotion with the idea that the elimination of this disease will solve all of the problems in human society. There is, of course, a resistance to this idea...

The only problem?  I have to wait a year for the third one to come out! Boo! (this, at least, is a good problem to have!)

(I got the images off of Goodreads.com but the links are acting weird...so if you can't click directly you know where to go!)

Ladybugs Hike Too

We've been housebound for too long and, with the rain warming up (that's my criteria around here. If we waited for dry days we'd be out of luck!), we're looking for outdoor activities. So, back to the ladybug walks again. (I thought I'd blogged about these before, but perhaps not. Or maybe my title was so vague that I didn't recognize it when I went back through the archives - definitely a possibility.)

Ready to explore!

Ladybug Hikes are put on by the Parks Department for preschoolers. Every Friday, two staffers lead a group through a park looking at whatever happens to be in season, rain or shine. They move from park to park around the city and, since it's Portland, some of these parks aren't so much cultivated grass and playground equipment  as small forests within the city limits.

Science is FUN!

Each kid gets a ladybug backpack with all sorts of "equipment" inside. Animal mask, magnifying glass, digging spoon, magnifier box, brush (for "painting" with water or brushing away dirt...), and a color matching necklace. On one walk the kids spent most of the hour digging up mole hills, on another we crossed over onto an island in the middle of the Willamette River and looked for water bugs, this time we examining raindrops and collecting slugs...

Mud!

All of this to say that the fresh air was wonderful and my goal to focus on science and math with The Princess (and Sweetpea, since she's rabidly observing on the side) is easily subsidized by this exciting adventure!

Lunch to cap off the morning.

"Rooted Remains"

Writer's block. (yes, I think I've realized this is cyclical... not the first post and probably not the last one on this subject!) I don't know if I qualify for the "writer" part of it (that feels rather presumptuous), but the "block" part fits nicely. Yes, yes, I've been sick, the husband has been sick, the small ones have been sick (twice!)...but I don't like that feeling. The feeling of things rolling around inside me, unformed and fluid; nothing I can wrap a hand around. It makes me anxious because there are hints of ideas, small nuggets that could be something if I could just hold on to them for more than five fleeting seconds. But then, as I'm fumbling for paper, shoving a thermometer in a mouth, or trying to unload the dishwasher for the third time, it disintegrates into a lingering essence; haunting and wisping around me.

It's ironic that it took a WitFit prompt for me to even write that currently I'm stumped!

stumped, but there's potential for growth...
(Via danheller.com)

I get an email every day with a prompt to use for writing. I'm challenging myself to use at least one prompt a week and write something, anything... I'll be posting some of them here on the blog. I have no idea where they'll take me. You've been warned. (The prompt word will be italicized in the text.)

Snack Time

Hummus. Sweetpea wanted her own bowl of it, The Princess wouldn't even sniff it...

Rainy Day Blues

My most favorite days, even with small children demanding attention! and snacks! and games! and kisses!, actually the kisses are okay, my most favorite days are the cool, cloudy, rainy ones. Not the flat gray ones but the kind where the clouds curl up on each other; thick quilts of fluff in various shades of pewter, silver, and slate. This day, this break from the grind and excuse to cozy up at home, is rare. It is no ordinary wet rain, it is a day when fairy tale diamonds drop from the sky, silver rivulets wind down the glass, castles build in my imagination and the world is transformed.

The rain comes down in a steady plunk against the windowpanes, a background percussion that insulates and provides a steady rhythm for life happening inside. Somehow, the green walls become a hideaway with secret happenings shielded from the outside world. Bread baked is homier, stories read are more engrossing, and songs sung are sweeter and tunier (I know that’s not a word).

I slip into my running clothes and run through the drops, now the pitter patter of rain on the plastic stroller shield accompanies my dash. The water rinses away the sweat so that I feel as clean on the outside as the inside when I get back, eager for a warm shower to seal in the freshness.

Soup bubbles, tea kettle whistles, the fire winks cheerfully (it’s gas so I pretend that it’s crackling). We have laughter and creativity and chocolate chip cookies. There is no fear of rainy day blues; this is a day I cherish. It's a day I wish I could store away in a shiny little bag, waiting to be pulled out and sprinkled like fairy dust over the harsh, unrelenting sun to give a little relief and refreshment.

I get an email every day with a prompt to use for writing. I'm challenging myself to use at least one prompt a week and write something, anything... I'll be posting some of them here on the blog. I have no idea where they'll take me. You've been warned. (The prompt word will be italicized in the text.)

Survival of the Fittest

Survival of the fittest...If the past week is any indication, we might not make it.

Fun facts:

• There are 3 empty boxes of Kleenex in the recycling bin.
• A twenty-month old can, indeed, sound like a 30-year smoker.
• There is an infinite amount of Kipper and Madeleine videos on Netflix streaming.
• Kipper gets old fast.
• Christopher Plummer, aka Captain Von Trap, narrates Madeleine.
• Christopher Plummer's voice is very soothing when you're feverish on the couch.
• Four-year olds, when done with their own fevers, are not terribly empathetic towards others with the same malady.
• I ate potato soup for two meals a day for 3 days straight. It had a 1/4 cup of garlic in it. I hear that garlic is helpful in fighting germs. It probably didn't make me any more desirable to be around, but I think I'd already lost that fight...
• 80 degree weather, while probably helpful in fighting germs, fills me with dread for the summer. But, I hear that rain is coming back on Wednesday!

Those Deep Dark Trenches

Today it was Sweetpea's turn...  I won't be posting a picture of myself on the couch because, while I may be pathetic, I haven't mastered looking cute at the same time.

100.7