Task 1: Learn How to Use a Potter's Wheel

I have officially completed the first of my 35 tasks of 2014; I learned how to use a potter's wheel.  Little Man and I went to a family open studio time at Burlington City Arts and learned how to use a potter's wheel.  I hate to admit it, but my 5 year old who does not like to get his hands dirty, is a far better potter then I.  He knows it too!  I had to let go of my first failed attempt and the second one, although not perfect, is a keeper, at least for memory sake. Of course I blame the first failed attempt on the 5 year old who kept telling me I should let him finish it because it would turn out better.  I am glad this made my list of goals for the year; we had a blast, and are planning on going back in the near future.  I just hope the other 34 tasks are as much fun as this one. 

Sometimes I Wonder

Sometimes I wonder if trying to save money at the expense of time is worth it.  Let me explain.  I get my hair cut and highlighted at a cosmetology school.  It is significantly cheaper than going to a salon, and let's face it; they are being graded on your hair, they are not going to mess up.  In fact, I would say I have had less hair disasters at the school than I have at an actual salon.  The cost of this; it takes significantly longer to get my hair done.  A simple cut can turn into a lesson plan, or teachable moment.  Don't get me wrong, I love teachable moments (I am a teacher), but every time I get my hair cut! It is a bit much.  However, $10 for a good hair cut vs. $30+  for a hair cut is a big difference.  Some days it might be worth it. 

Much More Exciting

The further into motherhood I get, the more exciting and interesting my life has become.  This is not necessarily because I am doing anything different, but because I have a little person to share things with.  To watch a child's reaction to something they find fascinating, interesting, or just plain cool is amazing.  To see them discover something for the first time is one of the most amazing gifts.  There are days I would rather watch his reaction to a performance or demonstration then actually watch it myself.  It is a lot more fun that way.

 

Lately we have had several of these occurrences as Little Man is getting older and can tolerate staying out later every once in a while and has a much longer attention span.   For starters, we took him to First Night this New Years.  Almost everything we did was interesting and exciting to him (except for maybe walking around in the cold from building to building).  We rode a shuttle in; this was very exciting.  We went to a pottery studio, and while he had no interest in creating his own pot, he sat watching someone else create a cup and later a vase for a solid 45 minutes on two different occasions (he made us go back later).  We went to see Circus Smirkus and he was thrilled to death by the clowns and acrobats.  The we finished out the evening with two different performances by people that he knew.  The entire evening was amazing and one with reactions and excitement on his face that I will never forget.

 

This past week we once again had another incredible night on a whim.  It was too icy to run outside and I had resigned to running on the treadmill after Little Man was snug in bed.  This opened up my evening and when I noticed that there was an early basketball game and a Celebrate the Arts night at the school I teach at, I decided to pick up Little Man and bring him back.  This was his first basketball game and he really got into it.  He was their biggest fan and moved himself to the bottom bleacher to he could be closer to the action.  He was into it.  Afterwords we wandered around the halls checking out all the amazing artwork students had created.  When we arrived at the engineering classroom, I thought we were going to be stuck there forever.  Things I would not have thought would have been remotely interesting to a 5 year old held him completely captive.  Of course, when I finally did manage to pull him away, we quickly found the cafeteria where the rest of the engineering students has planted themselves.  At that point, I resigned to a shorter run and let him sit and stare for a while.  They had made robots for a competition they had just competed in and were demonstrating the series of tasks that needed to be performed at said competition.  He sat so still watching that several people almost tripped over him.  It was amazing. I can't wait for our next big adventure.

 

Purge

I am not a pack rat by any means.  After watching my parents and in-laws clean out the homes of loved ones who have passed and seeing those things that were saved for a later date and never used: I have determined to never do that.  Rather I want to give the things I am not using to others while I can see those items enjoyed, rather then wasting away in a basement somewhere. This has actually been really cool with a few of Little Man's items that have been passed on to friends children.  I also want to give my excess to those who may not have anything; lets be honest, the jeans I wore in high school are never going to fit again.  

Because of this need to purge, after every holiday, birthday and during vacations, those areas that collect items not being used are cleaned out, and a reality check of "Am I ever really going to use this again?" is completed.  Below is my post Christmas pile, ready to make it way to various new homes.  The ice skates were the hard one this round.  I had saved them thinking that some day I would do something with Little Man's first skates (the larger ones had been saved because of pure laziness).  Let's be honest, I am not crafty and they are really just going to collect dust. As I pondered, I realized there are some friends of ours that have a little girl, who is going to be a hockey player weather she likes it or not.  Her parents are fanatics, and her mom a hockey player.   They are very excited about the new skates and this is probably the year she will begin her journey on ice.  I can't wait to watch her skate circles around the boys some day.  There is a great satisfaction in cleaning out the things you no longer need. 

As a little side note, I did make a list of 35 things I want to do in 2014.  I am not sharing them, although I am going to blog about them as I go.  Stay tuned for the first one to be completed.  Hopefully it will be an interesting one.  I'll make a tab on the side for my things and you can follow me in my journey, if you want to.  Don't worry I am not jumping in any frozen lakes this year, it's been done twice, and I have other things to move on to.  All you need to know for now is that there are 35, some are interesting, some have been on my bucket list for a while, and some just need to be done. 

Confessions of a Food Addict

Let me be the first to admit that I am a serious food addict. I love to eat! The problem is that I tend to be an all or nothing type of person.  I either have to completely deny myself of cookies, or I will eat the whole darn batch of cookies straight out of the oven.  This past year, I went all of cross-country season (mid-August to mid-November) without eating any sweets.  I lost weight, felt great and the second cross-country season was over I came down with a vengeance.  That brings us to January; I am doing a reset diet with some friends that starts out with a 7 day detox (no wheat, dairy, meat, refined sugars or processed food).  The first day was horrible, I was craving salty crunchy food all day.  About halfway through the day, I wandered into a health food store searching for something to satisfy the craving.  I found the chips below (green peas and salt).  They were horrible, yet I kept eating them throughout the day.  I finally had to march over to the trash can and throw them out so there was no way I could possibly eat another one.  I am like an addict coming down off a high and not dealing without my food vices.  I just need to make it to Saturday and then I can gradually start adding things back in. My poor husband. 

Reality Check

I recently read a fact that the average cup of milk can have samples from thousands of various cows.  Considering most creameries have several farms that send their milk there, I am not sure I like that statistic.  My lazy butt headed back to the Davis Farm last week.  There are only about a hundred cows there, all from the same farm, and raised by one amazing family.  That sounds so much better to me.   

Domestic Goddess

As mentioned in an earlier post, when vacation comes around I feel the urge to become all domesticated.  Unlike the celeriac pancakes, this project is going much better.  Little Man wanted a Darth Vader-black scarf.  Still a long way to go, but it is on its way.  I have a little slave driver to keep me moving, and check in every two minutes to see if it is finished yet. You see, I do have a few domestic bones in my body. 

Hidden Perks of the Farmers Market

My son has severely protested spinach in the past.  When Andy has joked about him hiding it, I have often commented on the fact that he would rather us suffer with him; the dislike is just that dramatic.

 

 However, on my last visit to the Farmers' Market he asked me to pick some food up from the Pakistani man.  Specifically, the spinach-samosa-like things.  The spinach is by no means hidden in these things, but Little Man loves them.  Thank you Pakistani Man for getting my son to love spinach.

New Year

A great way to start off the New Year.