Life
I drove to school this morning to the soundtrack of giggles from the back seat. I can’t remember what they were laughing about – probably something to do with poop – but it made for a nice start to my day. The sunshine and spring flowers didn’t hurt either.
These photos are very blurry (I couldn’t move fast enough), but they provide an excellent visual accompaniment to my giggly morning.
This week is shaping up to be a doozy. I need to work around some childcare issues which means interrupted workdays, I’m heading to Seattle for a day trip on Wednesday and that’s on top of the usual Karate/Soccer/Swimming insanity. My brother is coming to visit for the weekend so I’d better squeeze in time to tidy up and clean the bathroom and, to top it all off, I’m taking photos all day Saturday at TEDx Portland. I’m already exhausted and the week has barely begun. I’m just thankful I had the foresight to schedule a couple of May vacation days as a little birthday present to myself. I’m going to need them.
On the upside, the sun is shining and I have a billion photos of tulips to share. I know you’ve been eagerly awaiting them so I’ll just get right to it. I’d apologize for the number of photos in this post but what would be the point? 🙂
P.S. I’m thinking about submitting a photograph to the TulipFest photo competition but I can’t decide which. Please let me know in the comments if you have a favorite.
Photo by Thomas.
Photograph by Thomas
Photograph by Kei.
Part of me wishes I could turn off the TV and the internet and hide under a rock somewhere just to avoid bad news. It’s been overwhelming and I don’t know if it feels closer to home because I live in the States now or if it’s because I am a mother or that I as I get older I simply witness more. I’m sure the barrage of media coverage doesn’t help. There seems to be no escape and I am not even sure there should be.
I’ve been thinking a lot about how the world seems to be going through a bad patch with disasters and poverty and wars, but I’m not sure it’s any different to the way my Grandparents must have experienced the world in the 30s and 40s. The difference might be that they didn’t know everything and they didn’t hear about it immediately and then again and again and again – the same sad message in 30 different ways within the space of a minute.
It’s exhausting.
So today I want to share a  few things that are making me cry – but in a good way. Reminders of kindness and sunshine and color.
Even before we started our family, I knew that I was not going to be that mother who scheduled an endless number of activities for her kids. The thought of spending the weekend driving children from one location to another would make me break out in hives (ok, maybe just a mild sweat).
So it came as quite the surprise when I realized that we currently have an activity scheduled on every single day of the week. Soccer practice on Monday and Wednesday. Karate on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Swimming and Soccer on Saturday. Soccer on Sunday. It’s insane.
I’m already looking at the activities we can sacrifice for a little family (and homework) time. Are two soccer practices a week really necessary for a group of seven year olds? I’m going to say no… and then start counting down the eight or so weeks until Summer vacation when we may find ourselves with a little more breathing room.
This past weekend was beautiful in so many ways.
The only down side to all of this outdoor activity was the inevitable side effect of spring allergies. Kei looked at me last night and told me I looked all puffy. Nice.
So, while I would love to sit here and write a beautiful long essay about the weekend and all the fun we had, I’m afraid I am finding it difficult to pull my head out of this fog long enough to string more than a couple of sentences together.
Oh, and I took about 3 photos over the entire weekend. I was too busy up to my elbows in fertilizer to risk pulling out the camera. So, instead, I’ll share a couple more photos from my downtown adventure with the boys last week.
Photographs taken in the Pearl Room at Powell’s City of Books.
We’ve been on a reading and writing frenzy in our house lately.
Thanks to Pre-K, Samuel has discovered a new passion with writing and our evenings are often spent spelling out words so he can write us a love note or two (or five). He loves periods (puts them between every word) and his favorite words to write are like and love.
For Thomas, the second half of first grade has seen an amazing improvement in his reading ability. Now, anytime we leave the house, we have someone who reads every single sign, headline or menu out loud. It truly feels like he was struggling with his reading one day and the next day he suddenly just got it. I’m sure Pokemon has a lot to do with this improvement, as much as I hate to admit it. (Ever read one of those books as a bedtime story? Painful.) The Pokemon character names are often spelled phonetically and Thomas has spent months learning the details of every single one. I’m so excited that he has this new skill. I just know Thomas will love reading and this opens up a whole new world.
While we’re on the subject of reading and writing, I want to share a couple of signs that I found posted to the boys bedroom doors a few weeks ago. We had a bunch of people over for the Super Bowl and Thomas decided that it was a good opportunity to set some ground rules for his guests. Â I love how he put’s the “can’t do” list first and then follows it up with the “can’s”. For the record, jumping was accidentally put under the wrong list (he has a bunk bed and low ceilings).
Samuel was a little more direct.
“No girls in my bedroom”.
Here’s to making things crystal clear thanks to the written word.
Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to have a whole three hours to myself. Thomas was at a birthday party and Kei took Samuel to the hockey giving me some time to do… well… whatever I wanted.
I could have used that time to clean up the house or do the laundry, but instead I decided to take a little trip downtown to soak up some photography inspiration. It began with a Vivian Maier exhibition at the Blue Sky Gallery (highly recommend), continued with an unexpected stop at the Charles. A. Hartman Gallery next door to take in some Danny Lyon and, after a stop at Peetes to pick up a truly indulgent cup of coffee, ended in the photography book section of Powells.
After three hours I felt fully recharged and inspired. I’d say that’s time well spent.
First, let me begin with a little story. Last year, while we visited Australia, my dear Sister-in-Law Emma decided to sew up a couple of quick kangaroo stuffies for my boys. I was impressed, as were the boys. In fact, it sparked this little comment from Thomas…
“Mum. Will you please make something for me so I have something to remember you by?”
Of course this initially made me consider my own mortality and then defensively declare that I take lots of photographs and make him photo books dammit! (OK, I didn’t really say dammit, but I felt like it).
But it did start me thinking about a few things I could potentially make with these craft-challenged hands of mine… you know, so I won’t be forgotten.
A couple of months later I came across a site that sells fun digital cross stitch patterns and, drawing on memories from the cross stitch phase of my late teens and early twenties, I made these…
Cute, huh? Â After much deliberation, I gave the superheroes to Thomas and Star Wars to Samuel (his new obsession).
They were pretty quick and easy to make and the most expensive part was getting them framed. (Seriously, why is framing so expensive?!) The best part is that the boys loved them and were incredibly impressed that I made them all by myself. I’m pretty sure they were more impressed by Auntie Emma’s stuffies but at least it’s something to remember me by… if only I’d remembered to sign them. Oh well, next time.
When you have two children, how do you choose a best face for the year? This was the dilemma I faced when searching for a photo for the latest I Heart Faces challenge. It seems unfair to make me choose, but if I must…
I chose this photo of Samuel because it reminds me about how much fun it is to have a four year old in the house, even if it can be really tough at times. It reminds me about the value of imagination and how 2012 was the year of superheroes and ninjas and magic and trolls. It reminds me that, while I often wonder about how different my life would be with a little girl in the house, I am so very very lucky to be the mother of two fun, smart, creative boys.
Nicole Ishida Photography 