'tis the season

halfway though 2014 is a good place to review your word for the year. my word is season.

this is the season we are in:
the season where I stay put and everyone else
comes to me
because home is too much work to leave,
especially when the work is finally
beginning to pay off.
(we had a potluck last week--30 kids and
34 adults--and I hung pictures on the wall
ten minutes before the first guest arrived.
four years in this house, but
the season for settling has only just arrived.)




this is the season we are in:
the rainy season, even though it is really
always rainy here.
I've just never had to pay such close attention,
I suppose. "when will papa be home?"
let's check the sky for clouds.

this is the season we are in:
the season of bug bites and briar scratches.
I have the legs of an eight-year-old
and my children are catching up.
this is the season of almost big kids
where we can hike
and jump off rocks
and slide down waterfalls
with independence in the air.
this is the season of playing together
rather than just playing along.
we are almost there.

this is the season we are in:
change comes slower than I would like,
at least the changes I thought I wanted.
life around us buzzes with other people's news of
new babies
new jobs
new places
new ideas
but I am frozen in place amidst the swirl of new
and that itself is new to me.

this is the year of season: rhythm and time frames and "this is not forever." to season is to make something suitable for use, to flavor. the timing, the intensity, the flow of life: it is all here, all in fullness I haven't seen before.

thumbs it up!

my children are huge fans of pandora. their love for this smartphone app has lead to some interesting phraseology around our house. jamin and cora both strive to be the first one to notice when we are listening to a song we haven't heard before. after a few moments of careful consideration one will say, " this is a good one, mama. I'll thumbs it up."

getting to engage the "thumbs up" button on the touchscreen is definitely part of the appeal, but I think there is also an element of being able to have visual recognition of their own opinion and approval. there is something to be said for a platform for expressing what you like and what you don't, what you want more of and what just won't do. I think about it in terms of energy flow, or even just behavior: what we pay attention to is what we get more of.

so I've started saying it back to the kids, only not about musical selections. "jamin, cora is being so gentle with your lego building: thumbs it up!" or "cora, I love it when you use you big voice: thumbs it up!" and then I notice it for myself, too. what am I giving my attention to? what am I thumbsing up? is it really worth a thumbs up after all, or should I turn my attention to something more worthy?

enough metaphorical rambling. to make up for too much waxing philosophical, I offer you the MUDFLOWER SOUNDTRACK TO SUMMER. you are welcome. feel free to have a dance party in your kitchen in our honor.

(ed. note: I didn't watch all these videos all the way through. if you have kids jamming out with you, keep another browser window open just in case. jam on.)

my silver lining- first aid kit (okay, so really only I love this one, but still. totally worth a listen.)
five years time- noah and the whale (I love to clap my hands. it (and any other receptive noise) made my mother crazy, so I always love finding a song with lots of clapping so I have a good excuse to clap along.)
I'm alive- michael franti (the little rap part in the middle is the song we wash our hands to these days. just the right length for plenty of suds making.)
dog days are over- florence and the machine (I feel like I might be too old to like this song as much as I do, but I just can't help it.)
royals- lorde (hearing jamin sing this song while he is splashing in the creek or chasing chickens is hilarious to me. I can't believe I let my children listen to a song about bloodstains and grey goose.)
all arise!- the decemberists (jamin loves this song because he is eager to learn to play the intro on his fiddle. we've agreed to take lessons together in the fall.)
against the grain- city and colour (cora loves this guy. she asks for this song and "the girl" over and over and over when we are in the car.)
ho hey- the lumineers (the kids sing this one to me when they want something. they know it melts me every time.)
no one's gonna love you- band of horses (I have had a crush on tyler ramsey since eric and I saw him at LEAF eight years ago. what can I say? I am a sucker for a good beard.)
all the trees of the field will clap their hands- sufjan stevens (a friend from our summer adventure last year introduced us to sufjan stevens. total trance in the backseat when we play it in the car.)
messages- xavier rudd (there aren't too many xavier rudd songs I don't love. this one just happens to be a household favorite right now.)
west coast-(coconut records) (jamin loves the idea of packing someone you love in your suitcase)
riptide- vance joy (go ahead and roll the windows down. just do it.)

what are we missing? what songs do we need to add to our set list? what makes summer groovy in your house?

a wish for wendy

the drink tastes as good as she looks.

the days are longer in june.  and it is finally hot.  hot enough to drink a dark and stormy and eat watermelon and splash in the creek (maybe at the same time, maybe not. depends on the day).  but june also welcomes the most highly anticipated day of the year.  june five.  wendy's birthday.

jamin and cora have been counting the days down on a board in the kitchen for ten days.  in the caverns of chaos created by kids, a rumble of excitement bellows.  i have been pacing in and out of the house for days trying to construct your birthday present.  jamin winks whenever he wants to work on it with me.  we want to celebrate you.  

you're lucky i didn't send this to cat fancy magazine.

i celebrate you for always having a different book next to your bed, hanging clothes on the clothesline, your yogini musculature, for answering the call when rhodie starts tap dancing at five in the morning, your newest garden skill: wrapping up fruit and berries to prevent frost, hot biscuits from scratch, camp wendy, the way that only we hold hands, the time you put a sweater on the cat, all the times you dance hard in the kitchen, hearing you sing at church, your laughter when we realize i put dish soap in the dishwasher, that you feed, water and let out the chickens every morning before i am awake, and i am so very grateful for your manner banners.

every day is a silly day at mud flower. 

i am excited about the year ahead with you. i want new experiences and laughter and more and more time together.  i want you to write, and to read, and to love your friends from near and far.  you are the beginning and end of my day, when our feet mingle under the sheets.  you are my yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and as the sun sets on your 34th year, my wish for you is to feel grounded in the decisions you make and the risks you take, and to be led by love.  i wish for you a summer filled with smiles and swimming and something sweet.  i wish for all of your friends, family, and followers from afar to post their wishes and blessings.  come one come all, and celebrate the beauty and wonder and birthday that is wendy.  do you have a wish for wendy?

happy birthday, slick.  i like you ten billion more than last time.