Ryvre is 8!

Here's one that REALLY makes me feel old...my oldest is 8 today!



2 months



6 months--the day he learned to pull up in his crib



1



2



3



4



5



6




7



8

*sniffle*

Ember is 4!

My baby is 4 today!  You know what that means...photo montage time!

10/26/05
9 lbs, 6 oz



First Birthday



Second Birthday (at Grandma Mona's)



Third Birthday



Last Week

Eureka Springs Pics, pt 3

We spent the last day of our vacation walking around town.



Far in the distance (above the smallest child's head) you can see the famous Crescent Hotel



Yes, that would be a giant Jesus statue--is it just me, or is it proportioned strangely?  My theory is that it's supposed to create an optical illusion that causes it to look bigger from the distance



Part of the Berlin wall; this is kind of cool, but also very annoying, because the other side is covered with cinder block, which suggests that they just didn't want anyone to see the graffiti or whatever was on the other side--and personally, that's what i *want* to see.



Two of the kids in Basin Park while the third has yet another tantrum off camera.



Posing with the kids.  I really don't like how i look here, but i can't speak against the cuteness



This one is even worse, plus blurry, but too funny--Dale told them to eat Mommy's brains, and they were all too eager to comply.

Eureka Springs Pics, pt 2

The last three days have been very slow-paced; being away from home is causing a spike in the frequency of tantrums and other less socially acceptable behavior that is best kept locked up in a condo with cable and fresh-baked brownies than in the general public.  It feels more like hanging around the house in someone else's house than it feels like being on vacation, but at least the messes are smaller here.

On Tuesday, Dale and Ember went to the grocery store, and i caught up on character creation for various games.  When they returned, the weather was nice, so Dale and i had wine on the back porch.

Wednesday, we played Endango, which we purchased at the craft fair, and then went to feed the geese and check out the cool playground by the Elks lodge.







It must have all been very tiring.




Yesterday was cold and rainy, so we stayed at the condo again, and the kids rode their scooter through puddles in the parking lot.  Today?  I don't know, it's our last day here, it's cold and rainy again, and the girls are being really grouchy.  I think maybe i'm ready to go home anyway.

Eureka Springs Pics, pt 1

We're still on vacation, but it's a slow-paced kind of morning, so here are some pics!



War Eagle Mill--the grounds are the site of a HUGE craft fair for four days each October.









Quigley's Castle--a registered historic site, which is basically the rock collection of some eccentric old woman; it was the kids' favorite tourist spot so far.











There are two foundations, with 60-year-old plants growing in the dirt between.  The whole wall behind the smallest kid is a floor-to-ceiling butterfly collage.

Wild Strawberries

Gifts from nature!



Tiny little wild strawberries!



Ryvre spotted them to the side of the yard, next to the wild black raspberry bush that blessed us last summer.  Willow got a closer look and identified them.  Sadly, the neighbor children then descended upon them and probably crushed most of the plants under their feet. *sigh*  My own children were gentle and mindful as they picked the tiny berries; the others were not.  But we did manage to get a little bowl full; i hope i can pick a few more in the morning, without the neighborhood wildebeasts on my heels.

Our theory is that, since we're kind to our yard and let the wild things grow as they will, nature blesses us with little gifts from time to time.  I've never been able to nurture a plant from seed to fruit, but i can stay out of the way while Nature does it's thing, and i think it appreciates my not meddling, hence berries and pretty things throughout the year.

Update

Goodness, it really has been awhile since i've posted!  Family members keep telling me so, but I hadn't fully realized. Homeschooling is going well; as always, i lack in organization, but the kids keep learning anyway.  That's the biggest lesson for me in the whole thing: Kids will get what they need if you only pay attention.  No amount of planning or forcing will get things accomplished better than that.  Ryvre is reading very well, i think.  He's still sounding out some words, but he's tackling books like Harry Potter because he wants to.  He's also a wiz with a gameboy, but i suppose most traditionalists wouldn't see that as a good thing. I really don't mind; the games he plays are helping with his math, reading, and critical thinking. Willow is writing more, and teaching herself to spell a few simple words, like people's names and "love" so she can write short letters.  She constantly hovers over Ember, correcting and trying to help her write letters as well, but Ember doesn't seem to mind the attention. A couple of nights ago, all three took part in their first role-playing game session.  It was a simple game, but they were amazing!  They each created a character with unique abilities, and worked together to defeat a group of monsters and save a damsel in distress.  They seemed to understand the rules and did their own math to determine outcomes in combat and skill usage.  And of course they were imaginative and had fun! I do still have some readers here, so i will try to be better about updates.  I use facebook a lot more lately, so if you would like to add me, please send a message with your info--my profile there is friends-only, but for the sake of convenience, this blog is not, so you will have to ask for my name and location privately.