Eclectic Parent

Ever since the first viewing of the trailer for Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief, D has desperately wanted to see the movie. After hearing about it for weeks, C jumped on board. I finally found a copy at our used bookstore because I try to get them to read - or listen - to the book before seeing the movie. They love it. And it has inspired tons of google look-ups (Greek architecture, Minotaur and satyr images, descriptions of the gods and a family tree). While I sometimes struggle to get them to listen to a chapter a night, we’ve flown through half the book in three days - and that’s only because I couldn’t read anymore. We also found a copy of D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths today and were reading blurb about different characters from the book as reference.

B, who is too young for Percy Jackson, has been listening to her brothers. While they were debating whether they’d choose to be the god of the sky, seas or underworld, she decided she liked the sound of the beautiful goddess of love. So she found a pink scrap of cloth and made herself a toga to wander the house in. That’s the spirit.

Yesterday was taken up by a long snorkeling trip for the boys. They love seeing the sea turtles that this area is famous for. While they snorkeled B and I walked along the beach collecting shells with one of her cousins. The rest of the day was the usual eat, swim, snack, play in the sand, eat, swim. B and I took our second dance class. The staff always laughs to see her out there learning to salsa or merengue.

We haven’t been writing because we’ve been packing and moving and holidaying and just go, go, go. But then the 4th annual Mexico trip arrived and we luckily get to sloooow down. Travel took all day with two flights separated by a long layover and a 90 minute van ride. But we got here; here being about 90 minutes south of Cancun.We got here in time to see everyone, grab dinner and head to the show. Then off to bed.

Day two started with the boys going to archery. Then we lazily wandered between swimming, playing in the sand, eating and swimming again. B painted pottery while the boys played. After dinner all the cousins - plus an uncle and daddy - headed into their favorite Mexico game: manhunt. They came up with it a few years ago and it’s a cross between tag and hide-and-go-seek. They play boys versus girls with kids ranging from 5 to 19. That lasted until it was time to head to bed, which happens hours later here than at home. Just another thing for them to love.

Finally got the pictures uploaded. Halloween was the usual candy filled fun. Had a party the day before with our homeschool group and then went trick-or-treating on Saturday. Kids had a blast. Boys decided to wear the same costumes as last year because they’d outgrow them soon and B whipped together a quick cowgirl outfit mostly from things she already owned. Phew…that was easy.

And my personal favorite…when they got the giggles over switching headgear.

After spending Saturday at ASU’s Earth and Science Exploration Day, we headed to the Arizona Science Center today. The kids enjoyed the robot exhibit and spent a lot of time with pulleys and counterbalances. The liquid nitrogen demonstration is always a big hit and this time we saw the fire demonstration as well. I think their favorite this time was literally a bed of nails. After laying down, you pressed a button and 1000 nail lifted you up. Long explanation about weight distribution sort of passed them by - they just thought it was seriously cool.

I do wish everyone would spread events throughout the year. It’s bad enough that it’s so hot here during the summer, but nothing goes on either. Then every event and activity gets crammed into the cool months when we should be outside.

Today’s choices were Boo at the Zoo (Halloween event at the Phoenix Zoo), the Great Pumpkin Festival at the Desert Botanical Gardens, free admission to the Arizona Science Center and ASU’s Earth and Space Exploration Day.  We ruled out the zoo and DBG because it’s still 85 degrees outside and decided the science center would probably be very crowded. The usually science loving boys wanted to stay home; B voted for ASU.

They were very glad we talked them into it. Everything from seismology to rockets, Mars rovers discussion by someone who helps decide where it goes, panning for gold and geology, meteorites to outerspace. Far more hands-on booths that we could even visit, free planetarium show, and lots of college students and professors hyped up on science and excited kids. We were there for four hours and didn’t see everything they’d set up.

We really need to head over to the university more often. There is so much going on there. Now next weekend we have Halloween and multiple dia de los muertos fesivals…

This morning D, who  just turned 9, asked to learn to make scrambled eggs. The other two quickly followed. So we started an assembly line, each making their own scrambled eggs from cracking the shell to whisking, which is somehow considered much cooler than stirring, to cooking. C and B both grated their own cheese to make cheesy-eggs. Every person did each step separately so the counter was covered in bowls. I helped B with the stove, but otherwise it was all self produced. After going back to make seconds, breakfast took two hours, but they were very proud.

At dinner C decided to try putting pepper on his hamburger because he likes it on his eggs so much.  He then started joking that salt and pepper were like the light and dark side of the force and that they were so necessarily they somehow held the universe together.D countered that duct tape held the universe together. (Absolutely no idea where he got that one.) But topping them both was their almost-5 yo sister, who adamantly proclaimed that atoms held the universe together! I really wish I knew where they got this stuff…

While the rest of the US gets ready for autumn, leaving behind outdoor activities, we are ending our self-imposed hibernation. It is just too hot to do much outside all summer here. But once the temperature drops, we head outside and activities begin again.

The end of summer seemed to launch the beginning of the active season. The weekend of autumn equinox, we went to watch the Ballet Under the Stars. It’s an annual outdoor ballet put on by Ballet Arizona. Pack a picnic and have lots of fun. We met up with friends and the kids watched, danced and ate a box of Joe-Joes (for anyones not in the know, those are Trader Joe’s oreos). That same weekend there was the family party for our homeschool group, a BBQ with friends, a mom’s night out dinner, a casino night hosted by my mom’s group. The end of summer was upon us.

With the return of cooler temperatures (still probably not cool by most people’s estimation), we’re heading back outdoors too. After a summer of me walking the dog late at night so it was slightly less hot, we are now able to head out as a group. To accommodate all the different speeds, we use a variety of transportation devices: scooters, rollerblades and bicycles. We’ve been heading out after dinner to take the dog around the block. It isn’t the 3 miles I had been doing alone, but we’ll build up distance as we go; we’re very out of practice.

And gathering have begun again as well. In the last week we’ve been to the zoo with friends, been over to some friends’ house for dinner, had a random stop-by playdate and gone to a clothing swap. (Clothing swaps are a good, good thing. Rather than everyone donating their clothes to Goodwill, etc, and then buying new clothes, have a clothing swap. Grab a group of friends and have everyone bring your kids’ outgrown clothing. Make piles by size and then just take what you need. Then donate the rest. )

We’re currently out of town and about to go apple picking. We may have to drive a bit, but we can pretend it’s autumn.

I can’t believe I forgot to mention one of the best big words of all: defenestrate. My friend Em gave me that one. Defenestrate: To throw out of a window. Specific, to the point, and makes the kids giggle. A lot of the words that are no longer actively used have specific meanings.  We now use phrases to convey the same intent. But there is an eloquence lost when several words have to be used and one would have done the job.

Not only are big and fun words everywhere, but once people know you are looking for them, they are happy to add to your list. We went swimming with friends today. C said he needed to go inside to urinate, which started the whole big words explanation. They decided to add masticate and expectorate.

And beyond words themselves, we’ve been having fun with language. Homonyms and antonyms are concepts we’ve explored for a while. We went around the table last week each contributing a different words to describe D’s birthday cake - yummy, tasty, delicious, scrumptious delectable.My favorite, though, was B rubbing her tummy and saying that was sign language for yummy. And there are always opportunities for explaining new concepts. After accusing Peacock of poison on the patio, I explained the idea of alliteration. Kids have been having fun with beginning rhyming, as C called it.

The kids have been into big words lately. It started, oddly enough, with an argument between them over panties versus underwear. Somehow that evolved to all clothing having been called garments at one time and that the stuff underneath was simply your under-garments. From garments, we got to spectacles. That one developed during a discussion after a water balloon fight when B said my eye glasses had gotten wet; the boys disagreed and told her they were simply glasses. So I explained that rather than having to specify with drinking glasses or eye glasses, there was a specific word: spectacles. Epidermis led to the “I’ve got epidermis; you’ve got epidermis” song. It’s one of C’s current favorite to chant while running around the house. Saying I was going to walk the dog in the evening led to doggy hysterics, so we began saying perambulate. (And of course, that led to an explanation of the fact that, while we call them strollers - from stroll… to walk slowly - the British call them prams - from perambulator, which is from perambulate…to walk.) Grandma’s last visit added a few new ones as well: urinate and defecate. I’m guessing someone said they had to pee and she knew we were on the big word kick. And of course… that led to lavatory. Because as long as you are going for it, you might as well follow through.

They’ve been having fun with big words. It’s rather like speaking in code; many people don’t know what you mean. Big words are like a magical language. I hope they keep this attitude as they get older. For now it is fun to see people’s faces as you walk though the Costco parking lot and your 6 yo is singing and giggling, “I’ve got garments covering my epidermis as I perambulate.” Or the look on people’s faces as you leave the outdoor ballet and ask your 4 yo, who is zooming backward, “May I enquire as to why you feel your perambulation necessitates such velocity?” And she pauses, looks at you and says, “Just felt like it.”