Ummm...Pancakes

Matt was out with the boys and I didn't really feel like cooking, so it was pancake night. Lots and lots of pancakes. Like maybe 40. I had no idea the recipe would make so much, but can you really have too many pancakes?

And.... you may want to check out the March 2010 issue of Somerset Studio. I know it's a few months away, but I'm just sayin'...

The Egret

The creek is low, and the egrets are enjoying easy pickings. We observed one fishing the other day.

 

The kids were amazingly patient and quiet. They found a good spot to watch him, down by the mint. We observed him for about half an hour, following his progress up the creek. Then our tummies told us it was lunch time.  A good morning.

Marsh Creek, November

Marsh Creek winds its way along at the end of our street, and it is my favorite source of inspiration and solace. I have taken photos of it every month this year, and for this installment, I played with two of my favorite apps, Camera Bag and Toy Camera. Maybe tomorrow I'll actually take the SLR with me, but the year's documentation has all been taken with my iPhone. Amazing what that thing can do.

The kids are excited about having tomorrow off to play at the creek. I told them of all of the birds I spied today, and the big fish I was able to see because the creek is running so low (rain, please). It's everyone's favorite place to play, even the dog. After finishing Last Child in the Woods the other night, a book every parent in America should read, it has become even more important to me. It's our little slice of wilderness in this suburbia, an experience that is slipping away from our kids. I remember building a tree "house" (really just tree benches, because enclosed structures invite all sorts of nefarious creatures in the Arizona desert) and playing for hours in the wash behind our house as a child. I was about as afar as you could get from being called a tomboy, yet outside play was still the norm for everyone, then. Now video games and simulated play on the TV are.  Why, in heaven's name, would you want your preschooler to ride a plastic bike hooked up to the television when they could be actually riding one outside? Come on, get up and go play outside. Just remember to take your coat.

More Halloween Bits

Halloween Bits

Just a few bits from around the house today...

At a Crossroad

I am taking a great online course about being an online artist, by the wonderful Marisa Anne of Creative Thursday fame.  And while I have struggled to keep on top of the weekly lessons and responses (it started right before we went on vacation, so there was some catch up involved), she has also left me with much to ponder. Recently, Max has had some reactions that I think are due to artificial colors (discovered this on vacation, since we really don't have any foods around here anymore that aren't all natural), so we are trying the Feingold diet as well, and I've been trying to get the kids more motivated about the OT exercises, and thus I've produced very little in the way of art. Most nights, I end up falling asleep with the kids or catching up on Project Runway. It's been a tug of war lately - should I even try to make a go of it right now? The kids need so much, with diets and therapies, that I feel guilty. And overwhelmed. Then the next day I get something done (like two entries sent off to Somerset - yeah for me) and make elaborate plans in my head, that never seem to get realized right now. It's a constant back and forth.

So that's where I stand - exactly nowhere. I feel like Alice. I have gone down the rabbit hole, but no matter which way I walk, I end up back at the mushroom.

We're Back!

We had the best vacation ever this year - six days at Disneyland, one at Legoland! Finding gluten free food at Disneyland that the kids would eat was somewhat of a challenge (new goal - get the kids to eat hamburgers! Our lives would have been so much easier if they would!), and they ended up eating a whole lot of fruit. We all dropped a few pounds! Crazy as it seems, we had the longest stay ever, but I got the fewest drawings done in this year's book! I guess now that they are older, we spent less time napping (okay, no time napping) and bedtime became later and later. I'll have to catch up on it this week. I didn't bring the Nikon, either, only my iPhone for pictures, which worked out really well. All of the shots were uploaded to Shutterfly before we even got home! I also downloaded three Dineyland apps while we were there, which kept the kids busy while we waited in line or for food. The Hidden Mickeys one was a real hit - Max LOVED looking for them! What did I ever do before the iPhone?

Legoland was really great - so mellow, no crowds, lots of play areas, not just rides. It was also gluten free heaven - no special orders, no talking to chefs, they just had GF buns for hotdogs, and cookies, snacks and even cereal in their little snack market! For most people I now this sounds like no big deal, but when you are on a restricted diet, it means everything. I did get sick once from Storyteller's Cafe in the Grand Californian, and Matt accidentally glutened Max with Crunch ice cream bars. They were supposed to get ice cream while Madeline and I went on the Haunted Mansion ride, and when I got off and saw what they were eating, it was like one of those slow motion bits where you're running and waving your arms, "nooooooo." Too late - full rash that night, and lots of carrying him the next two days (he get fatigue from gluten). Overall, though, I'd say we did pretty well.

Now the house is in a state while I decorate for Halloween. I have come to find this year that my regular art work seems very appropriate for Halloween decor. Hmmmm.....  I'll post some pics when the place is back in order.