mellow creme pets

Wes Anderson's New Movie: Moonrise Kingdom

2012-01-14T16:02:00.001-08:00

Best Films of 2010

2010-12-27T14:31:00.000-08:00

I wasn't ecstatic about any films this year (of course I saw only a handful of films). The neurotic, affluent, white urban worlds of The Kids Are All Right, Please Give and Greenberg were among my favorites. Winter's Bone and I Am Love, both of which I liked at the time, faded into the background, the emotional resonance didn't last.

I"m looking forward to seeing Black Swan, Carlos, Another Year, Blue Valentine and Tiny Furniture.

Roger Ebert's Best of Films of 2010
The Social Network
The King's Speech
Black Swan
I Am Love
Winter's Bone
Inception
The Secret in Their Eyes
The American
The Kids Are All Right
The Ghost Writer

Stephen Holden's List
1. THE SOCIAL NETWORK
2. INSIDE JOB
3. INCEPTION
4. CARLOS Olivier Assayas’s 5 ½-hour docudrama about the life and times of the notorious terrorist Carlos the Jackal is a study of swaggering, lethal narcissism with an imposing lead performance by the Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramírez. Its great set piece reconstructs the kidnapping of OPEC oil ministers in Vienna in December 1975.
5. ANOTHER YEAR The English filmmaker Mike Leigh is a contemporary, cinematic offshoot of Charles Dickens. His newest group study portrait of humble working-class lives is one of his best movies and features indelible performances by Jim Broadbent, Lesley Manville and Ruth Sheen.
6. VINCERE Marco Bellocchio’s portrait of Ida Dalser (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), Mussolini’s mistress who claimed to be his first wife and was imprisoned in a mental hospital, is a tragicomic little opera of a movie that savagely mocks the vainglorious Italian dictator.
7. WHITE MATERIAL In this Claire Denis film, Isabelle Huppert gives a typically crackling performance as the white French co-owner of a coffee plantation in an unidentified African country, who refuses to leave when civil strife erupts.
8. THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT What does it say about our changing times that Ms. Cholodenko’s portrait of a nontraditional clan headed by a lesbian couple is the most believable and heartfelt film about an American family of the last several years?
9. TRUE GRIT Not a remake of the John Wayne classic, the Coen brothers’ adaptation of the Charles Portis novel leaches out most of the boisterous humor to treat the story as a stately black comedy with breathtaking cinematography by Roger Deakins.
10. MY DOG TULIP Narrated by Christopher Plummer, the exquisite hand-drawn screen adaptation of J. R. Ackerley’s 1956 memoir chronicles his late-life 15-year relationship with a beloved dog, devoting much attention to her bathroom and mating habits.
RUNNERS-UP (in no order): “The Ghost Writer,” “Fish Tank,” “A Prophet,” “Mid-August Lunch,” “Greenberg,” “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” “The Secret in Their Eyes,” “I Am Love,” “Toy Story 3,” “Winter’s Bone,” “Lebanon,” “Animal Kingdom,” “The Tillman Story,” “Boxing Gym” and “Blue Valentine.”

AO Scott's Best Films of 2010

1. INSIDE JOB (Charles Ferguson) The crisis of finance capitalism as a great crime story.
2. TOY STORY 3 (Lee Unkrich) The triumph of consumer capitalism as an epic love story.
3. CARLOS (Olivier Assayas) The failure of global revolution as farce, melodrama, erotic thriller and music video.
4. SOMEWHERE (Sofia Coppola) An eccentric, perfect poem about fame, loneliness and cross-generational need.
5. THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT (Lisa Cholodenko) An eccentric, perfect comedy about love, betrayal and cross-generational confusion.
6. GREENBERG (Noah Baumbach) A deliberately imperfect comedy about an eccentric fleeing from love, running from betrayal and wallowing in cross-generational confusion.
7. 127 HOURS (Danny Boyle) It’s all fun until someone loses an arm. And then, strangely enough, it’s even more fun.
8. LAST TRAIN HOME (Lixin Fan) The future of global capitalism, in China and elsewhere: a family tragedy in the form of a documentary, as full of anger, dignity and pathos as a play by Arthur Miller.
9. SECRET SUNSHINE (Lee Chang-dong) A family tragedy from South Korea, in the form of a melodramatic crime story. As dense and gripping as a great novel.
10. EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP (Banksy) All of the above. None of the above. Everything and nothing. An elaborate art-world stunt in the form of a documentary. Or vice versa.

RUNNERS-UP “And Everything Is Going Fine,” “Another Year,” “Black Swan,” “Boxing Gym,” “The Father of My Children,” “The Fighter,” “A Film Unfinished,” “Fish Tank,” “Four Lions,” “The Ghost Writer,” “Howl,” “I Am Love,” “Let Me In,” “Please Give,” “Solitary Man,” “Tangled,” “Tiny Furniture,” “Vincere,; “White Material,” “Winter’s Bone.”

More Built In Bookcases

2010-11-18T17:35:00.000-08:00

Blue + Green

2010-07-22T14:29:00.000-07:00

Learning to Love You More - for Kids

2010-07-20T14:28:00.000-07:00

Launched in 2002, the Learning to Love You More project is both a web site archive (it's no longer actively archiving) and series of non-web presentations comprised of work made by the general public in response to 70 assignments given by artists Miranda July and Harrell Fletcher. In 2005, I saw the LLYM show at Bumbershoot and was impressed by these ordinary yet odd, sincere, lovely and goofy responses. Completely inspiring, raw and full of humanity. I did a few of the assignments after seeing the show (take a flash photo under your bed), but lost steam soon after (my results felt shallow and lackluster). I came across the site again recently and thought these assignments would be excellent summer projects for the kids.

Here are 10 assignments I'm asking the kids to try:

Assignment #1 Make a neighborhood field recording.
Go from door to door and ask at least four neighbors to sing a song or play one on an instrument. Record their song. Also take a photograph of each neighbor, sitting or standing in their home or yard, with their instrument, if they played one. Give each piece an audio caption: "Sam Looly, my neighbor to the right." You can add information that you think is pertinent, but never forget that you are a professional and do not steal the show with your own antics. Your job is to catalogue the songs of your neighbors.

Assignment #2
Photograph a scar and write about it
Photograph a scar on your body or on someone else's body. Make it a close-up shot so that it shows just the scar. Include a story about how the scar happened.

Assignment #3
Take a picture of the sun
Take a picture of the sun. Just a picture of the sun, nothing extra or fancy. Please make sure the sun is visible in the photo, we won't accept reflections of the sun or photos where the sun is not visible. Please be careful not to look directly at the sun through your camera's viewfinder; looking directly at the sun could damage your eyes. If you need to, just point the camera towards the sun and shoot the photo.

Assignment #4
Make a video of someone dancing
Make a video of someone dancing to DJ Brokenwindow's Don't Dream It's Over dance mix. We asked DJ Brokenwindow to make a dance mix of "Don't Dream It's Over" (by Crowded House.)

Assignment #5
Act out someone else's argument
Choose an argument and act it out with a friend or relative. Memorize your lines and make it as real as possible. When you are ready, videotape the argument. This can be done with the camera on a tripod, or with a third person shooting. It should be shot as simply as possible. Make sure the voices of both people can be heard clearly. Do not shoot any titles or credits, only the argument itself

Assignment #6
Take a picture of your parents kissing
Take a picture of your parents kissing (or at least hugging). Do not send us an older picture of your parents, we are looking for a new picture taken specifically for this assignment.

Assignment #7
Describe your ideal government
Describe in a paragraph or two how your ideal government would function.

Assignment #8
Give advice to yourself in the past
Sure everything turned out ok, but maybe you should have quit that job five years earlier, maybe you should have had children when you were 27, maybe you should have flossed, maybe you should have gone to the alternative high school, or not said that thing to your best friend. Tell yourself what to do in clear, specific language. Do not write an essay, make it in list form.

Assignment #9
Make a protest sign and protest
Make a protest sign and publicly protest something that you deeply and sincerely feel needs to be changed. It could be the mistreatment of chickens at KFC or the lack of rights for children in our society. You can protest alone, with a group that you assemble or with a pre-existing protest group.

Assignment #10
Take a family portrait of two families
Go to a park, beach or other public place and locate two separate families who are having a picnic or barbeque. Ask the two families to join together so that you can take a group picture of them. Try to find two families who don't know each other and who look different from each other.

Mary Cassatt

2010-07-12T13:53:00.000-07:00

under the horse chestnut tree. the coiffure. mother's kiss. the bath.... under the horse chestnut tree is so stunning, it always sucks me in to the scene.

In April 1890, an exhibition of Japanese woodcuts at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris inspired Mary Cassatt to begin experimenting with different print techniques. Using aquatint, drypoint, etching, and hand-coloring, Cassatt attempted to capture the flat planes and simple lines of Japanese woodcuts. After painstakingly overseeing the execution of each print, Cassatt exhibited the resulting series of ten at the Durand Ruel Gallery in Paris the next year. Together, the prints combine the spare beauty of Japanese woodcut designs with innovative color patterns and finely tuned drawing. 'The Bath' was Cassatt's first effort in the series, and the only one, according to her, in which she truly tried to imitate Japanese design. She produced seventeen different states for 'The Bath', more than for any other print in the series.

Selda Bagcan - Turkish Singer

2010-07-12T11:48:00.000-07:00

Cozy Bed Alcoves and Bed Nooks

2010-06-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

Built In Bookcases

2010-06-22T15:34:00.000-07:00

Christina Bothwell - Lucid Dreaming

2010-06-22T11:05:00.000-07:00

Amazing clay and glass sculptures by Christina Bothwell.

How to Make an Ocean Diorama

2010-06-21T13:09:00.000-07:00

Love this idea from Martha Stewart:

Conceiving a diorama is an adventure in scale and spatial relationships. Choose a container, then put yourself in the shoes of one of its future inhabitants.

Tools and Materials

Sardine tin (well washed and dried)
Cardboard
Nautical map
Blue paper
Shells
Twigs
Toy Birds
Cutout images (from sardine label)
Cheesecloth
Fish cutout
Card stock
Sand
Rope

Ocean Diorama How-To

For background, trace bottom of well-washed sardine tin onto cardboard and a nautical map, and cut out; glue map onto cardboard, then glue inside tin.
Cut waves from blue paper, making tabs on bottom and sides for attaching to can; glue in place. Glue on shells, twigs, toy birds, and cutout images photocopied from sardine label, and cheesecloth for a net.
To make free-floating fish, glue fish cut out to one end of card stock strip folded at each end; glue other end to background.
Brush glue on floor of diorama; sprinkle with sand. To hang diorama, tape rope to back.

Unpaved Gravel Courtyards

2010-06-18T13:15:00.000-07:00

I'd love to take on a backyard landscaping project this summer. My vision is to remove everything but the plantings lining the perimeter and install a flat, unpaved, crushed rock and sand courtyard. Think Parisian parks and French country courtyard cafes. No weeds. Low maintenance. Environmentally sound. Fill the edges with color and potted plants, plus colorful seating perhaps?

Asher's Summer Ideas

2010-05-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Feed some ducks
Finish the skeleton puzzle and the glow in the dark stegasaurus puzzle
Make a strawberry bush
I want to eat a smore and go camping and listen to this american life
We need to buy a tent and some sticks
Pick some raspberries from our raspberry bush
Plant an apple tree, instead of buying apples we could pick an apple from our tree
Take a boat ride at greenlake where we get off is right near peets because I was hoping you wanted a coffee
Eat some doughnuts and crackers and lime popsicles

Maira Kalman: Illuminations

2010-05-28T18:33:00.000-07:00

I'm hoping that our August vacation to Los Angeles will coincide with the Maira Kalman: Various Illuminations (of a Crazy World) exhibition at the Skirball. In her TED talk she said she was a dreamy child who was ignored by her parents which was really the best thing in the world for her development.

"How much truth do we tell? What story are we actually telling? How do we know when we're our real selves? How do we know if the sentences coming out of our mouths are real stories or real sentences or fake sentences that we think we ought to be saying?"

Ten Reasons Not to Buy Factory-Farmed

2010-05-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

I could say that I've been a conscientious vegetarian for 25 years, but really, I've eaten at least two dozen fish during that time and I've bought many leather products too (leather shoes, couch, chair etc.). What I have done is not eat red meat or poultry during the last 25 years (bacon hasn't tempted me one bit). However, I haven't thought deeply enough about why I'm vegetarian and what choices I can make that will be more in line with my values.

Eating Animals is such a persuasive book about the choice not to buy / eat animal products because of Safran Foer's personal ethical evolution as well as the way he frames the issue around factory farming as a destructive environmental force. Of course big agriculture is destructive too. If you have the resources, the best solution is to abandon grocery stores for farmer's markets or ethical local sources of produce. If you must eat meat, eggs or dairy, carefully consider the source.

Here are 10 reasons not to buy factory-farmed meat, poultry, or fish. The quotations are from Eating Animals:
Factory farms …
1. Use antibiotics to raise sick genetic mutants in crowded, filthy conditions

In the typical cage for egg-laying hens, each bird has 67 square inches of [floor] space [or less than ¾ the size of a sheet of typing paper]. Nearly all cage-free birds have approximately the same amount of space. (p 79)

2. Send animals to slaughterhouses where cruelty and even sadism are routine

Animals are bled, skinned, and dismembered while conscious. It happens all the time, and the industry and the government know it. Several plants cited for bleeding or skinning or dismembering live animals have defended their actions as common in the industry and asked, perhaps rightly, why they were being singled out. (p 230)

3. Produce highly infected animals

Scientific studies and government records suggest that virtually all (upwards of 95 percent of) chickens become infected with E. coli (an indicator of fecal contamination) and between 39 and 75 percent of chickens in retail stores are still infected. Around 8 percent of birds become infected with salmonella…. Seventy to 90 percent are infected with another potentially deadly pathogen, campylobacter. Chlorine baths are commonly used to remove slime, odor, and bacteria. (p 131)

4. Contribute to the creation and spread of new viruses (think influenza)

Breeding genetically uniform and sickness-prone birds in the overcrowded, stressful, feces-infested, and artificially lit conditions of factory farms promotes the growth and mutation of pathogens. The “cost of increased efficiency,” the report [by the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, which brought together industry experts and experts from the WHO, OIE, and USDA] concludes, is increased global risk for diseases. (p 142)

5. Contribute to antibiotic resistance (think MRSA)

In the United States, about 3 million pounds of antibiotics are given to humans each year, but a whopping 17.8 million pounds are fed to livestock—at least that is what the industry claims. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has shown that the industry underreported its antibiotic use by at least 40 percent…. Study after study has shown that antimicrobial resistance follows quickly on the heels of the introduction of new drugs on factory farms. (p 140)

6. Destroy species

For every ten tuna, sharks, and other large predatory fish that were in our oceans fifty to a hundred years ago, only one is left. (p 33)
[Shrimp] trawlers sweep up fish, sharks, rays, crabs, squid, scallops—typically about a hundred different fish and other species. Virtually all die…. The average trawling operation throws 80 to 90 percent of the sea animals it captures as bycatch overboard. (p 191)

7. Pollute

Farmed animals in the United States produce 130 times as much waste as the human population—roughly 87,000 pounds of shit per second. The polluting strength of this shit is 160 times greater than raw municipal sewage. And yet there is almost no waste-treatment infrastructure for farmed animals. 174
Conservative estimates by the EPA indicate that chicken, hog, and cattle excrement has already polluted 35,000 miles of rivers in twenty-two states. (p 179)

8. Contribute to climate change

According to the UN, the livestock sector is responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, around 40 percent more than the entire transport sector—cars, trucks, planes, trains, and ships—combined. (p 58)

9. Violate the human rights of their employees

[Undocumented immigrants] are often preferred, but poor recent immigrants who do not speak English are also desirable employees. By the standards of the international human rights community, the typical working conditions in America’s slaughterhouses constitute human rights violations. (p 131-32)

10. Change or ignore regulations in order to make more money

High-speed machines commonly rip open intestines, releasing feces into the birds’ body cavities. Once upon a time, USDA inspectors had to condemn any bird with such fecal contamination. But about thirty years ago, the poultry industry convinced the USDA to reclassify feces so that it could continue to use these automatic eviscerators. Once a dangerous contaminant, feces are now classified as a “cosmetic blemish.” As a result inspectors condemn half the number of birds. (p 134)

Olive Kitchen Palette

2010-05-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

Toxic Sunscreen Ingredients

2010-05-20T11:39:00.000-07:00

Para amino benzoic acid...
Octyl salicyclate...
Avobenzone...
Oxybenzone...
Cinoxate...
Padimate O...
Dioxybenzone...
Phenylbenzimidazole...
Homosalate...
Sulisobenzone...
Menthyl anthranilate...
Trolamine salicyclate...
Octocrylene...

Top 10 Best Places to Be a Mother

2010-05-18T16:54:00.001-07:00

Houses in Australia and Sweden.

Among the top 10 best places to be a mother:
1. Norway
2. Australia
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. Denmark
6. New Zealand

7. Finland

8. the Netherlands

9. Belgium

10. Germany

Among the bottom 10 places: Afghanistan ranks last, preceded by Niger, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Sudan, Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea.

The

United States

places 28, down from 27 in 2009, primarily because its rate for maternal mortality – 1 in 4,800 – is one of the highest in the developed world. The

also ranks behind many other wealthy nations in terms of the generosity of maternity leave policies.

More Reasons to Buy Organic Produce

2010-05-18T16:03:00.000-07:00

From the Shopper's Guide to Pesticides, presenting the Dirty Dozen:

Celery
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Bell Peppers
Spinach
Kale
Cherries
Potatoes
Grapes

Quick. Name 5 Women Artists

2010-05-17T16:39:00.000-07:00

diane arbus
frida kahlo
mary cassatt
fay jones
dorothea lang
alice neel

Those are the artists that popped up for me, the top three sprung from my earliest exposures to women artists. No georgia o'keeffe. no nan goldin. no barbara kruger. I had just read about Dorothea Lang so that's why she's in there.

From the film, Who Does She Think She Is? 70-80% of visual art students are female, but 80% of the artists in galleries and museums are male.

Mothers' Words Have Healing Powers

2010-05-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

Mothers’ words have healing powers. That’s the conclusion released yesterday by researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. More specifically they found that a stressed-out daughter will calm down as effectively after talking to her mother on the phone as from getting a hug from Mom in person.

Researchers first asked 61 girls (between ages 7 and 12) to do something stressful, like give a speech or tackle math problems. Then one-third of the girls were reunited with their mothers for 15 minutes of hugs and soothing talk. Another third got no hugs, but spent 15 minutes hearing soothing talk from their mothers on the phone. Both of those groups then watched a chatty, nonstressful movie for an hour. The last third had no contact with their mothers, and watched the same movie for 75 minutes.

The levels of cortisol (a stress-producing hormone) and oxytocin (a stress-reducing hormone) were measured both before and after the stress test. Those who had contact with their moms showed a decrease in cortisol levels and a decrease in oxytocin levels, while those who had no contact showed had cortisol levels that continued to rise even while watching the movie, and they showed no increase in oxytocin.

I imagine many of you want to jump in here and point out that dads can soothe their daughters, too, or that sons respond to their mothers, thank-you-very-much. I know that. But this study happened to be done with mothers and young daughters. Yes, I’d like to see one that includes some men, but the one I would like to see even more is a measure of the stress levels of these parents who are doing the long-distance soothing. I would bet that their cortisol levels jump when a stressed-out kid is on the line. And I would also bet those levels remain elevated long after the child’s have gone down.

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/a-word-is-as-good-as-a-hug/#more-11949

Water Skirt

2010-05-13T11:46:00.001-07:00

Esther Pearl Watson

2010-05-12T11:43:00.000-07:00

Open Shelving + Chalkboard Walls

2010-05-09T17:28:00.000-07:00

Done right.

Mellow Creme Pets Word Cloud

2010-04-30T15:28:00.001-07:00

SF Poladroids

2010-03-02T12:00:00.001-08:00

San Francisco 2010

2010-03-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

Mom + Vincent

2010-02-26T14:27:00.000-08:00

Idea for Displaying Kid Art

2010-02-26T14:23:00.000-08:00

Found this idea at: http://decor8blog.com/

Asher's Poem

2010-02-25T18:37:00.000-08:00

dinosaur dinosaur

I wish you were home
I love you

she thinks she's taller than me but no. she says think what you think. mine is better. that's what I say. we have a little fight about it.

the stars explode when you come near.

trees and flowers that grow
the great sun
wait in the sun
a trick to get out
they disappear
it was done growing but one thing was wrong
it wanted to grow more but it could never do it
it could get bigger if it waits
before they knew it, the trees were everywhere
a human being walked outside and he saw the beautiful stuff outside
she said what lovely things in my backyard

the end, is that a good story

Recess, then Lunch

2010-02-25T13:53:00.000-08:00

Can something as simple as the timing of recess make a difference in a child’s health and behavior?

Some experts think it can, and now some schools are rescheduling recess — sending students out to play before they sit down for lunch. The switch appears to have led to some surprising changes in both cafeteria and classroom.

Schools that have tried it report that when children play before lunch, there is less food waste and higher consumption of milk, fruit and vegetables. And some teachers say there are fewer behavior problems.

“Kids are calmer after they’ve had recess first,” said Janet Sinkewicz, principal of Sharon Elementary School in Robbinsville, N.J., which made the change last fall. “They feel like they have more time to eat and they don’t have to rush.”

One recent weekday at Sharon, I watched as gaggles of second graders chased one another around the playground and climbed on monkey bars. When the whistle blew, the bustling playground emptied almost instantly, and the children lined up to drop off their coats and mittens and file quietly into the cafeteria for lunch.

“All the wiggles are out,” Ms. Sinkewicz said.

One of the earliest schools to adopt the idea was North Ranch Elementary in Scottsdale, Ariz. About nine years ago, the school nurse suggested the change, and the school conducted a pilot study, tracking food waste and visits to the nurse along with anecdotal reports on student behavior.

By the end of the year, nurse visits had dropped 40 percent, with fewer headaches and stomachaches. One child told school workers that he was happy he didn’t throw up anymore at recess.

Other children had been rushing through lunch to get to the playground sooner, leaving much uneaten. After the switch, food waste declined and children were less likely to become hungry or feel sick later in the day. And to the surprise of school officials, moving recess before lunch ended up adding about 15 minutes of classroom instruction.

In the Arizona heat, “kids needed a cool-down period before they could start academic work,” said the principal, Sarah Hartley.

“We saved 15 minutes every day,” Dr. Hartley continued, “because kids could play, then go into the cafeteria and eat and cool down, and come back to the classroom and start academic work immediately.”

Since that pilot program, 18 of the district’s 31 schools have adopted “recess before lunch.”

The switch did pose some challenges. Because children were coming straight from the playground, the school had to install hand sanitizers in the lunchroom. And until the lunch system was computerized, the school had to distribute children’s lunch cards as they returned from recess.

In Montana, state school officials were looking for ways to improve children’s eating habits and physical activity, and conducted a four-school pilot study of “recess before lunch” in 2002. According to a report from the Montana Team Nutrition program, children who played before lunch wasted less food, drank more milk and asked for more water. And as in Arizona, students were calmer when they returned to classrooms, resulting in about 10 minutes of extra teaching time.

One challenge of the program was teaching children to eat slower. In the past, children often finished lunch in five minutes so they could get to recess. With the scheduling change, cafeteria workers had to encourage them to slow down, chew their food and use all the available time to finish their lunch.

Today, about one-third of Montana schools have adopted “recess before lunch,” and state officials say more schools are being encouraged. “The pilot projects that are going on have been demonstrating that students are wasting less food, they have a more relaxed eating environment and improved behavior because they’re not rushing to get outside,” said Denise Juneau, superintendent of the Office of Public Instruction. “It’s something our office will promote to schools across the state as a best practice.”

Children’s health experts note that such a switch might not work in many urban school districts, where lower-income children may start the day hungry.

“It’s a great idea, but first we’ve got to give them a decent breakfast,” said Dr. David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital Boston. “A lot of kids skip breakfast and arrive at lunch ravenous.”

And for a seemingly simple scheduling change, it can create some daunting logistical problems. Children often have to return to hallways and classrooms after recess for bathroom breaks and hand washing and to pick up lunch bags. The North Ranch Elementary School regularly fields calls from schools in colder climates with questions on how to deal with coats, hats, galoshes and mittens. “In Arizona, we don’t have to deal with that,” said Dr. Hartley, the principal.

Many school districts say such problems make them reluctant to switch. A 2006 study in The Journal of Childhood Nutrition & Management reported that fewer than 5 percent of the nation’s elementary schools were scheduling recess before lunch.

But at the Sharon Elementary School, the principal, Ms. Sinkewicz, says the challenges have been worth it. In the past, children took coats, hats and mittens with them to the lunchroom, then headed outside. Now they have time to return coats to lockers so they don’t have to carry them to the lunchroom.

“For some reason, kids aren’t losing things outside,” Ms. Sinkewicz said. “The lost-and-found mound has gone down.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/26/health/26well.html?scp=1&sq=lunch%20and%20recess&st=cse

Behavior: Napping Can Prime the Brain for Learning

2010-02-25T13:49:00.000-08:00

It turns out that toddlers are not the only ones who do better after an afternoon nap. New research has found that young adults who slept for 90 minutes after lunch raised their learning power, their memory apparently primed to absorb new facts.

Other studies have indicated that sleep helps consolidate memories after cramming, but the new study suggests that sleep can actually restore the ability to learn.

The findings, which have not yet been published, were presented Sunday at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Diego.

“You need to sleep before learning, to prepare your brain, like a dry sponge, to absorb new information,” said the lead investigator, Matthew P. Walker, an assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience at University of California at Berkeley.

The study recruited 39 healthy young adults and divided them into two groups. All 39 were asked to learn 100 names and faces at noon, and then to learn a different set of names and faces at 6 p.m. But 20 of the volunteers who slept for 90 minutes between the two learning sessions improved their scores by 10 percent on average after sleeping; the scores of those who didn’t nap actually dropped by 10 percent.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/23/health/research/23beha.html?em

Pied Beauty - Gerard Manley Hopkins

2010-02-24T16:23:00.001-08:00

Another one of my favorite poems - I'm hoping Elliot will memorize it for his poetry assignment at school: GLORY be to God for dappled things—
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;
And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim.

All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:	1
Praise him.

Something (even human voices) in the foreground, a lake

2010-02-24T16:10:00.000-08:00

Something (even human voices) in the foreground, a lake

A definite mountain (the upper with tableaux), foul water.

The air was back of the house, my knee sweet, intervening roses and
heavy-hanging apricot boughs as the morning advanced, an imposition of
isolated will upon the deck chairs, the docks and fragments (even human
voices), the watery glitter of bits of food afloat on the water's surface. That
hole, the size of fifty cents in someone's childhood. You always called
"Here, little fishy" when you dropped the orange and green flakes into the
round opening. I often looked for a dead one. Even a light bulb fooled me.
"You are glad it wasn't what you thought it was," you told me. You were
accurate but on another morning, I noticed, while sitting in a chair, listen-
ing to you speak a halting Italian on the borrowed telephone, a small silver
fish with clouded eye lying back-to-back with its reflection. Anything is in-
terchangeable with a small net. You know that.

One of my favorite poems by Kathleen Fraser

List of words for how they sound or look

2010-02-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

1. palindrome
2. fragments
3. radiate
4. smooth
5. betwixt
6. taut
7. marigolds
8. inertia
9. periphery
10 palanquin
11. languid
12. effervescence
13. elude
14. quince
15. dogwood
16. cellophane
17. goldenrod
18. passerine
19. nest
20. fold
21. capellini
22. clavicle
23. anodyne
24. cure
25. waxwing
26. spinneret
27. mettle
28. spoon
29. convivial
30. insouciance
31, frisson

Asher's Bestiary

2010-02-09T20:40:00.001-08:00

Mom is a mouse who is very cuddly and small. Dad is a jaguar because he's fast. Elliot is an eagle. I am half dinosaur, half bear and half squirrel because I'm cute and can kill anything. I'm invincible.

Amy and I have a problem. When we go outside she's taller. When we go inside I'm taller. Something different is going on.

Childhood Songs

2010-02-04T17:15:00.000-08:00

I asked Elliot what songs he remembers from the glory days of his early youth, and he said, "highway to hell." Ha. I reminded him that he hadn't heard that song until this year. I told him how he used to make me play certain Neil Diamond and Johnny Cash songs over and over again. He said he still likes Johnny Cash. Oh well. These are two songs I remember loving from my pre-5 days.

Alef Bet Song

2010-01-31T20:15:00.000-08:00

A rap version:

Book List 2009

2009-12-26T09:54:00.000-08:00

2009 MK List
A Gate at the Stairs - Lorrie Moore
My Name is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok
Absurdistan - Gary Shteyngart
The Russian Debutante's Handbook - Gary Shteyngart
Don't Cry - Mary Gaitskill
And then we came to the end - Joshua Ferris
The Brief Incredible Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz

2009 Read Aloud List
The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
Ramona the Pest, Beverly Cleary
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Kate DiCamillo
From the mixed up files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Holes, Louis Sachar
Little House on the Prairie (series), Laura Ingalls Wilder
Harriet the Spy
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
The Gypsy Game
The Saturdays
Tuck Everlasting

Elliot's Reading 2009
Stinky
Runaway Ralph
Ramona Quimby, Age 8
Henry and the Clubhouse
Henry and Ribsy
Henry Huggins
The Mouse and the Motorcycle
Knights of the Lunchtable
The Plant That Ate My Dirty Socks
Strider
The Swamp Monster in Third Grade

Poladroids

2009-12-22T09:20:00.000-08:00

Ashersaurus and the Dinosaurs

2009-12-18T15:01:00.000-08:00

Asher now has 15 dinosaur books and can identify at least 50 dinosaurs. Last year when he became obsessed with dinos, unfortunately I taught him the incorrect way to pronounce nearly all of his favorite theropod dinosaurs (actually pretty much all dinosaurs). Now that we have a textbook size Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and use the Internet to research - we are re-learning the correct way to pronounce. For him, it's no sweat, he picks up the new sound so fast. But it's taking me a while to remember to say kar-kar-o-DON-tuh-SAWR-us instead kar-char-odontosaurs....CARCHARODONTOSAURUS.

Deinonychus: Pronunciation: dye-NON-ick-us

Giganotosaurus: Pronunciation: JYE-ga-NO-toe-SORE-us

The audio file at DinoDictionary is my friend.

Cookie Monster Metal

2009-11-24T13:58:00.000-08:00

Inspiration

2009-11-20T16:12:00.001-08:00

Asher's To Do List:

2009-11-11T13:50:00.000-08:00

1. Go fishing - Get me a net
2. Relax
3. Play catch with you
4. Have a party with a gluten free cake
5. Look for creatures in the woods
6. Learn how to read
7. Help mom clean up the toys
8. Go to California because I haven't seen Grandma Judy in a little while
9. Go to a baseball park where we can play baseball
10. Run into your arms and hug you - isn't that the cutest idea? Do you like it?

Now that's enough of ideas, Mom. No more ideas. No more ideas. I don't want ideas. No more ideas.

Snapping Cobras - 2009

2009-11-07T14:14:00.000-08:00

Asher the Biker

2009-05-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

Asher decided last week that it was about time for him to start riding Elliot's old bike. After we finally got around to lowering the seat, all he needed was a push and off he went. Excellent balance that boy. A week later and he's an old pro, turning around in the driveway and racing down the block. Whooopeeee!

The Story of Stuff

2009-04-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

Our kitchen trash can is now a compost bin thanks to Seattle's expanded composting guidelines which includes meat and food soiled paper such as pizza boxes. Our tall curbside trashcan has been nearly empty for the past few weeks. I'm amazed by how little trash we really generate.

Palace Music - Palace Brothers - Will Oldham

2009-03-20T14:50:00.000-07:00

Puerto Vallarta 2009

2009-03-06T02:03:00.000-08:00

80s Indie Music

2009-03-02T15:17:00.000-08:00

I recently heard a journalist talk about how interesting music in the 80s was nearly non-existent. My hackles went up! I could name a dozen more bands, not including some more mainstream music like the police that were interesting.

The Feelies: Crazy Rhythms 1980

B-52s: Wild Planet 1980

Siouxsie and the Banshees 1981

Black Flag: Damaged 1981

X: Wild Gift 1981

The Salvation Army: Mind Gardens 1982

REM: Murmur 1983

The Smiths 1984

The Minutemen: Double Nickles on a Dime: 1984

Sonic Youth: Evol 1985

Husker Du: Candy Apple Grey 1986

Dinosaur Jr: You're Living All Over Me 1987

The Pixies: Surfer Rosa 1988

Sonic Youth: Daydream Nation 1988

Last Snow of February

2009-02-24T02:41:00.000-08:00

I love waking up to snow falling, the trees white. Two minutes later, we got the two-hour school delay call. The boys got to throw a few snow balls before school.

President Obama

2009-01-20T15:47:00.001-08:00

This morning the kids and I watched the inauguration until it was time for school. Asher ignored the ceremony and read his Sea Monsters book instead, but Elliot was fully involved. He decided he didn't want to be President anymore because it looked like a really hard job. At least he's realistic.

McSweeney's and 826 Valencia asked kids to submit advice to President Obama and compiled it in this book: Thanks and Have Fun Running The Country.

Here is Elliot's advice to President Obama:

"Don't let anything get in your way. Always be nice to your guards because they're protecting you and will give their lives for you. And if you like Star Wars, 'May the force be with you.'"

One of my favorite letters to the President from the book:

Dear Barack Obama,

I have a great idea for you: you should set up a special phone, a special place just for kids to call the president if they ﬁnd things that are dangerous and can affect people, like someone smoking. This would be a special place for kids to talk to Barack Obama and let him know what's going on.

Another important thing that I want to talk to you about is cars and buses. There is a bus called the Galactic Wizard which runs on biofuel or vegetable oil. I think, instead of polluting the environment, scientists should work on those buses. You should make it so that everyone turns off any light whenever they are not in the room—that way we can save the environment and also pay less on our electricity. We can't just use up the environment until we have nothing, or we will starve to death. Nobody wants that, do they? I want to tell you, Barack Obama, if one day I could travel around the world and help people, I would deﬁnitely do it.

Dhamaril Nunez, age 9
Boston

Chinatown on the Metro

2009-01-14T21:14:00.000-08:00

We took the metro from North Hollywood to Chinatown with Asher on a rainy Monday afternoon. Our public transportation aficionado gave it the thumbs up. The round trip journey took 5 hours - including time we spent waiting for a train that wasn't running and lunch at the Plum Tree. Asher called the dragon/lion his best friend.

National Day of Listening

2008-11-27T15:02:00.000-08:00

NPR's National Day of Listening is November 28, 2008. I asked Elliot to write down three questions he'd like to ask his family.

Elliot's Questions for his mom

1. How do you find dollar coins?
I have collection of silver dollars that I received as gifts from my grandma over the years. Silver dollars are special so most people keep them and don't spend them. But you can get the coins from a bank.

2. How do you keep stuff so long?
Why? or How? You can't save everything. I moved a lot as a young adult, but saved a few boxes of things from my childhood - my coin and postcard collections, my Japanese curio collection, handkerchief collection that includes many of my great grandmother's handkerchiefs. I saved them because they're special to me, they represent memories of people I loved.

3. I don't know if you know anything about your Dad in the war, what do you know?
I know that he was wounded in the war and he was lucky to have survived. He was an officer in the Army and led a platoon of soldiers. One day he stepped on a landmine and it exploded and hurt him badly. He recovered in Hawaii and lived with the pieces of metal called shrapnel in his body for the rest of his life. He didn't talk about the war a lot, but I know he was proud of serving in the Army and it made a major impact on his life. You can ask Grandma Judy if you want to know more.

Elliot's Questions for Grandpa Victor

1. What did your mom and dad look like? What were they like?
My father was short with a light complexion. He lost his hair young. My mom was very pretty. She had dark hair. She was very smart, she read a lot and was fun to talk to. My mother and I would talk for hours. She liked to play tricks on people and had a good sense of humor. When she was growing up the librarian told her she had read every book in the whole library.

2. What was your favorite day in your life?
My favorite day was the day Elliot was born. Also the day your dad Danny read to me for the first time.

3. Do you remember the first time you lost your tooth?
I don't remember losing it but I remember putting my tooth under my pillow and waking up the next morning and finding a quarter in its place.

Elliot's Questions for Grandma Judy

1. What is your earliest memory?
One thing I remember is waiting in the car with my dad to visit my mom who had just had Uncle Leonard in the hospital. I remember looking at the crib where my brother usually slept and another baby was in the crib. It was my neighbor's baby.

2. What is your favorite memory of me?
I was very excited when I held you when you were born. You were so healthy and darling. You were a very clever little baby. You liked music a lot. We would sing to you and you would stop crying because you liked music so much.

3. How would you like to be remembered?
As someone who loves her family, was kind to her friends. Someone who loves beautiful clouds and trees and nature. Someone who loves laughing. Someone who really loves her daughter and son and grandchildren.

Little House on the Prairie Dinner

2008-11-26T13:24:00.000-08:00

For the past few months Elliot and I have been reading the Little House series of books. I watched the TV show as a kid, but somehow missed the books. Lucky for me, Elliot really loves the stories. We both fell for Laura's crisp and direct descriptions of prairie life, her curious nature and honest voice come through loud and clear. The Ingalls's adventures with outdoor dining, random fires, locusts, screaming prairie grasses, ruthless blizzards and endless snows, encounters with friendly and unfriendly native Americans appeal to his seven year old's notion of excitement. Life can rough, disappointing and unpredictable, but if you keep your wits, persistence and hard work will pull you through.

We just finished On the Banks of Plum Creek and celebrated with a Little House Candlelight Dinner. The menu designed by Elliot included pan fried steak, corn bread, corn, milk, and carrots. I bought my first steak ever. The boys were not terribly impressed with steak and the corn bread wasn't ready until dinner was long over, but the corn was a hit.

Autumn Seattle 2008

2008-11-15T13:10:00.000-08:00

Obama Cake + Barackoli

2008-11-08T16:09:00.000-08:00

I was on the edge of my seat until the last minute, but Obama pulled it off. We won! Elliot masterminded our Obama victory party featuring a red, white and blue Obama cake and "browned barackoli." We invited our neighbors and Grandma and Grandpa to celebrate with us Wednesday night. Dinner was excellent, especially the broccoli. Yes We Did!

Halloween 2008

2008-11-02T12:23:00.000-08:00

Asher wore his fantastic Fire Dragon costume that Grandma Judy made. He wore it four times before Halloween, so it saw a lot of use. Elliot wore his wizard costume twice and then decided on Halloween to be a Demon Ghoul. Good times. Take a look at the Obama mobile.

The Jaguars

2008-10-26T08:14:00.000-07:00

Congratulations on finishing great fall season Jaguars!

What Sound Does a Zebra Make?

2008-10-23T14:59:00.000-07:00

I've compiled a few questions the kids have asked me about recently that I've been promising to research for them.

Asher: "What sound does a zebra make?" I guessed that it might sound like horse's neigh, while Asher suggested that it made no sound at all. Answer: A cross between a donkey's bray and a small dog's bark.

Elliot: "How old is the world's oldest living person?" Answer: According to wikipedia, the oldest person is 115 year old Edna Parker of the United States. There is a Japanese man who is 120, but his age is not confirmed. The previous oldest living person record holder was Jeanne Calment, who died at age 122 and 164 days.

Elliot: "What makes storm clouds dark and white clouds white?" I looked up the answer on wikipedia, but the answer was a little too scientific for me. Here are the answers compiled from a few sources:

White clouds are white because: Clouds are illuminated by light from the sun, and light from the sun is seen as white by our eyes, a mix of all the colors of the rainbow - which produces white. Clouds are made up of many small water drops and ice crystals. Light reflects and scatters so many ways from and in a cloud that when illuminated directly it ends up looking bright white.

Dark clouds are dark because: Clouds can also look dark or gray due to perception by our eyes. A light gray cloud on a bright white background will look much darker than the same cloud on a dark or black background, in which case it might look white and bright. A cloud can also look dark or gray because it is partially transparent and the blue sky behind it can be seen through the cloud.

What Do You Wish You'd Learned as a Kid?

2008-10-15T13:51:00.000-07:00

As a parent, I want to give my kids rich, diverse life experiences. I want them to be passionate and find things they love. I saw this post, what do you wish you'd learned as a kid? and most of the responses were skill based: cooking, sewing, woodworking, fluency in another language, gardening, how to play an instrument, how to fix a bike, how to save money...

I had opportunities to learn most of the above skills, of course I can't say that I mastered any of them.

Here is my list of skills that I wish I'd learned/had been taught as a kid:

- how to practice active listening
- how to practice critical thinking
- how to turn moods around by changing my thought patterns
- how to practice good time management
- how to not be intimidated by anyone
- how to listen to my body and make healthy diet/exercise choices
- how to live with long term perspective

Kids for Obama at Green Lake

2008-10-13T21:29:00.000-07:00

We took the boys to a Kids for Obama one mile walk this Sunday. The Bubble Man and Fire Eaters performed a rewarding finale for the kids. Asher quietly walked the whole way. Elliot ran off joyously with dozens of his school friends. The parents got to feel good about introducing our kids to aspects of democracy: yeah free speech!, yeah people power! I found myself in this video below:

Vote for Survival

2008-10-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

I love Nikki McClure's paper cut art, Buy Olympia is giving away free McClure Vote posters. Check it out.

Good Sportsmanship

2008-10-05T02:24:00.000-07:00

Elliot needed a few reminders at his soccer game on Saturday about the rules of good sportsmanship. Thought these were great pointers for cultivating a good attitude overall and playing sports with dignity and grace.

Sportsmanship is defined as:

playing fair
following the rules of the game
respecting the judgment of referees and officials
treating opponents with respect

Tips for practicing sportsmanship:

Learn as much as you can about your sport. Play by its rules. Show up for practice, work hard, and realize that on a team, everyone deserves a chance to play.
Talk politely and act courteously toward everyone before, during, and after games and events. That includes your teammates, your opponents, your coaches and their coaches, the officials presiding over the game, and even spectators (who can sometimes be loud about their opinions).
Stay cool. Even if others are losing their tempers, it doesn't mean you have to. Remind yourself that no matter how hard you've practiced and played, it is, after all, just a game.
Avoid settling disputes with violence. If you're in a difficult situation or someone's threatening you, seek help immediately from your coach or from an official. Remember, too, that if you respond with violence you could get penalized, which could hurt your chances of winning.
Cheer your teammates on with positive statements — and avoid trash-talking the other team.
Acknowledge and applaud good plays, even when someone on the other team makes them.
When officials make a call, accept it gracefully even if it goes against you. Remember that referees may not be right every time — but they're people who are doing their best, just as you are.
Whether you win or lose, congratulate your opponents on a game well played.

Sarah Silverman and the Great Schlep

2008-10-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

Vote for Obama gonna visit Grandmama...You'd think someone named Manischewitz Gooberman might understand.

Birch Bay Vacation

2008-09-17T21:56:00.000-07:00

I asked Elliot if he'd rather go on a trip to Washington D.C. to see the White House or the southwest to see the Grand Canyon and the Anasazi ruins, he said he'd rather go to a small town. Some place like Birch Bay, where you can play games with your family and go to water park and hang out at the beach....

H.A. Rey

2008-09-16T11:05:00.000-07:00

From the Writers' Almanac with Garrison Keillor, September 16, 2008.

It's the birthday of the childrens' author and illustrator H.A. Rey born Hans Augusto Reyersbach in Hamburg, Germany, in 1898. When Hans was a boy in Hamburg, he lived near a zoo, and he loved visiting the animals there he would imitate their noises and paint them. And in Hamburg he met a young girl named Margret Elisabeth Waldstein, but then she left to go study art. Hans served in the army, he went to school for a while, and he supported himself by designing posters for the circus. But the economy in Germany was bad, so he went to Rio de Janeiro to help his brother-in-law sell bathtubs. Hans changed his name from Reyersbach to Rey because it was hard for Brazilians to pronounce. In Brazil, he met up with Margret, who was all grown up, and they fell in love and got married.

Hans and Margret Rey returned to Europe in 1935, but they were Jewish and they couldn't go back to Nazi Germany, so they settled in Paris. Hans drew some cartoons of a giraffe for a newspaper, and a French publisher liked them and he asked Hans to do some more work like that. So the Reys started writing a book called Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys (1942), one of its characters was a monkey named Curious George, and the Reys thought he was the best character and that he should have a book of his own.

They were happy to be living in Paris, happy to be working on more children's books and translations of nursery rhymes, but in June of 1940, they discovered that Hitler was about to take control of Paris and that they were in huge danger. As fast as he could, Hans constructed two bicycles from spare parts he found, and on the morning of June 14, the Reys biked out of the city with some food, warm coats, and five manuscripts. One of those manuscripts was Curious George. The Nazis took control of Paris that afternoon, but the Reys were safely out of the city. They biked for four days until they reached the Spanish border, and then they sold their bikes for enough money to buy train tickets to Lisbon.

Over the next few months, they made it from Lisbon to Brazil, and then eventually to New York City. Curious George was published in 1941, and the Reys wrote and illustrated six more stories about him stories like Curious George Rides a Bike (1952) and Curious George Goes to the Hospital (1966).

In Memory of David Foster Wallace

2008-09-15T11:25:00.000-07:00

Excerpts from his commencement speech to Kenyon's graduating class of 2005...

There are these two young fish swimming along and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says "Morning, boys. How's the water?" And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes "What the hell is water?"

Here's another didactic little story. There are these two guys sitting together in a bar in the remote Alaskan wilderness. One of the guys is religious, the other is an atheist, and the two are arguing about the existence of God with that special intensity that comes after about the fourth beer. And the atheist says: "Look, it's not like I don't have actual reasons for not believing in God. It's not like I haven't ever experimented with the whole God and prayer thing. Just last month I got caught away from the camp in that terrible blizzard, and I was totally lost and I couldn't see a thing, and it was fifty below, and so I tried it: I fell to my knees in the snow and cried out 'Oh, God, if there is a God, I'm lost in this blizzard, and I'm gonna die if you don't help me.'" And now, in the bar, the religious guy looks at the atheist all puzzled. "Well then you must believe now," he says, "After all, here you are, alive." The atheist just rolls his eyes. "No, man, all that was was a couple Eskimos happened to come wandering by and showed me the way back to camp."

It's easy to run this story through kind of a standard liberal arts analysis: the exact same experience can mean two totally different things to two different people, given those people's two different belief templates and two different ways of constructing meaning from experience. Because we prize tolerance and diversity of belief, nowhere in our liberal arts analysis do we want to claim that one guy's interpretation is true and the other guy's is false or bad. Which is fine, except we also never end up talking about just where these individual templates and beliefs come from. Meaning, where they come from INSIDE the two guys. As if a person's most basic orientation toward the world, and the meaning of his experience were somehow just hard-wired, like height or shoe-size; or automatically absorbed from the culture, like language. As if how we construct meaning were not actually a matter of personal, intentional choice. Plus, there's the whole matter of arrogance. The nonreligious guy is so totally certain in his dismissal of the possibility that the passing Eskimos had anything to do with his prayer for help. True, there are plenty of religious people who seem arrogant and certain of their own interpretations, too. They're probably even more repulsive than atheists, at least to most of us. But religious dogmatists' problem is exactly the same as the story's unbeliever: blind certainty, a close-mindedness that amounts to an imprisonment so total that the prisoner doesn't even know he's locked up.

The point here is that I think this is one part of what teaching me how to think is really supposed to mean. To be just a little less arrogant. To have just a little critical awareness about myself and my certainties. Because a huge percentage of the stuff that I tend to be automatically certain of is, it turns out, totally wrong and deluded. I have learned this the hard way, as I predict you graduates will, too.

Here is just one example of the total wrongness of something I tend to be automatically sure of: everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe; the realest, most vivid and important person in existence. We rarely think about this sort of natural, basic self-centeredness because it's so socially repulsive. But it's pretty much the same for all of us. It is our default setting, hard-wired into our boards at birth. Think about it: there is no experience you have had that you are not the absolute center of. The world as you experience it is there in front of YOU or behind YOU, to the left or right of YOU, on YOUR TV or YOUR monitor. And so on. Other people's thoughts and feelings have to be communicated to you somehow, but your own are so immediate, urgent, real.

Please don't worry that I'm getting ready to lecture you about compassion or other-directedness or all the so-called virtues. This is not a matter of virtue. It's a matter of my choosing to do the work of somehow altering or getting free of my natural, hard-wired default setting which is to be deeply and literally self-centered and to see and interpret everything through this lens of self. People who can adjust their natural default setting this way are often described as being "well-adjusted", which I suggest to you is not an accidental term.

Given the triumphant academic setting here, an obvious question is how much of this work of adjusting our default setting involves actual knowledge or intellect. This question gets very tricky. Probably the most dangerous thing about an academic education -- least in my own case -- is that it enables my tendency to over-intellectualize stuff, to get lost in abstract argument inside my head, instead of simply paying attention to what is going on right in front of me, paying attention to what is going on inside me.

As I'm sure you guys know by now, it is extremely difficult to stay alert and attentive, instead of getting hypnotized by the constant monologue inside your own head (may be happening right now). Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal arts cliché about teaching you how to think is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed. Think of the old cliché about quote the mind being an excellent servant but a terrible master.

This, I submit, is the freedom of a real education, of learning how to be well-adjusted. You get to consciously decide what has meaning and what doesn't. You get to decide what to worship.

And the so-called real world will not discourage you from operating on your default settings, because the so-called real world of men and money and power hums merrily along in a pool of fear and anger and frustration and craving and worship of self. Our own present culture has harnessed these forces in ways that have yielded extraordinary wealth and comfort and personal freedom. The freedom all to be lords of our tiny skull-sized kingdoms, alone at the center of all creation. This kind of freedom has much to recommend it. But of course there are all different kinds of freedom, and the kind that is most precious you will not hear much talk about much in the great outside world of wanting and achieving and [unintelligible -- sounds like "displayal"]. The really important kind of freedom involves attention and awareness and discipline, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them over and over in myriad petty, unsexy ways every day.

That is real freedom. That is being educated, and understanding how to think. The alternative is unconsciousness, the default setting, the rat race, the constant gnawing sense of having had, and lost, some infinite thing.

It is about the real value of a real education, which has almost nothing to do with knowledge, and everything to do with simple awareness; awareness of what is so real and essential, so hidden in plain sight all around us, all the time, that we have to keep reminding ourselves over and over:

"This is water."

The Lemonhead

2008-09-06T12:03:00.000-07:00

Elliot and I sat down to write a story, but soon enough he informed me, "Mom, we're not writing a whole story right now, we're writing a summary of the story for the back of the book."

Once there was a boy named Leonard who really liked lemonade. He made a club for all the kids who liked lemonade. The all liked it so much that they got sucked into a world of lemonade. They made a new friend whose head was shaped like a lemon. His name was Lemonhead. But the world of lemons is about to collapse. Everyone in the real world stopped drinking lemonade. It's up to the lemon club to save the world of lemons.

Chicago 2008

2008-08-04T21:03:00.000-07:00

Ballard Sunday Market Photos

2008-08-03T14:53:00.000-07:00

Boys wearing Chicago Cubs jersey shirts eating turkey dogs. Elliot snapped the other pics below. The raspberries are delicious!

Low Tide at Carkeek Park

2008-08-02T16:44:00.000-07:00

Low tide meant that we got to sneak a peek at the exotic creatures usually under a blanket of sea. Some of my favorites: Sea Lettuce, Sugar Kelp, Turkish Towel, Aggregating Anemone, Moonglow Anemone, Sunflower Star, Gunnels, Purple Sea Star, Sea Lemon, Limpets, Frilled Dog Whelk, Periwinkles, and Moonsnail. Also, I finally saw a Geoduck - Gooeyduck.

Ultimate Family DVD List

2008-07-29T11:31:00.000-07:00

Andrew O'Hehir, the self-proclaimed "pretentious art-film snob" critic for Salon, asked his readers for family film suggestions that were off the beaten path, and likely to be enjoyed by both kids and parents. It's a great list, I plucked a dozen of the suggestions off and added them to our Netflix queue. Many films aren't appropriate for the under 8 set...Awesome Kids' Video Project

Top Four Family Films

1) The Iron Giant
We own this movie, Elliot loves it.

2) My Neighbor Totoro
Another great movie we own, both kids are big fans.

3) The Princess Bride
This is now in our queue.

4) Time Bandits
For older kids - 9+.

Feist on Sesame Street

2008-07-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

Family Dinner Magic: Yet More Reasons to Eat Together

2008-07-15T12:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, now I'm convinced. No more kid only meals while I wash dishes and Dan cooks our dinner while talking on the phone. We're all eating together. What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

From the Slate article, The Mac and Cheese Effect: Why the family dinner is good for parents. The family dinner is ambrosia and nectar and manna, too, researchers have long told us. It helps prevent teenagers from abusing drugs and alcohol or smoking, and it protects them from stress, asthma, and eating disorders. It boosts kids' reading scores and grades. By the time all the virtues of dinner togetherness have been extolled, you can only feel that if you love your kids, you have to get home in time to sauté the stir fry. You might even cut back to working part time to force-feed them falafel, as law professor Cameron Stracher relates in a book he published last year.

Happily, according to a new study, family dinner appears to be good for parents, too. The research by lead author Jenet Jacob of Brigham Young University found that among 1,580 parents who worked at IBM, those who said their jobs interfered less with being home for dinner tended to feel greater personal success, and success in relationships with their spouses and their children. The working parents—both mothers and fathers—had all of these buoyant feelings if they made it home for dinner more regularly, even if they still worked long hours. They also felt more kindly toward their workplace. Parents who missed dinner at home because of work, on the other hand, felt gloomy about their professional futures. "It is noteworthy that although longer work hours predicted significantly greater perception of success in work life, work interference with dinnertime predicted lower perception of success in work life," Jacob and her co-author write.

Summertime Photos 2008

2008-07-14T12:40:00.000-07:00

Here are some recent picture of our family for some people to view. They are, by and large, pictures of a trip to Discovery Park. Elliot got stung by a bee 15 feet from the completion of our sojourn. A couple of pictures are from a toy sale that Elliot instigated at 6:30 on a Wednesday.

Bubble Calendar

2008-07-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

I know the boys would go nuts over this bubble calendar. Pop a bubble daily for a year. I bet they'd pop the whole year in one day actually. Cute idea.

Summer Solstice

2008-06-23T22:25:00.000-07:00

Summer is here, the sun is out (in the afternoon). On the second to last day of school, Elliot's class had a picnic at Greenlake and all the kids ended up in the lake.

Piano Man

2008-06-01T20:29:00.000-07:00

When a coworker of mine announced he was giving away his piano (we had to pay for it to be moved) I jumped at the chance. It's not in terrific shape and Elliot ruined part of the wood by hiding a corndog under the cover (grrr!), but I love having a piano in the house. Asher is our most avid piano player. Even when he's banging out crazy Russian avant garde sounds, it's a nice feeling, the house feels alive.

Boys Not Better Than Girls at Math

2008-05-31T07:36:00.000-07:00

Thought this was interesting. In countries with gender equality (Sweden, Norway and Iceland are examples) girls do just as well as boys on standardized math tests. In Turkey, not such a gender-equal society, the average difference is 23 points. Researchers examined the test scores of 276,000 children in 40 countries, found that this pattern held around the world. "Average girls' scores improved as equality improved and the number of girls reaching the highest levels of performance also increased." So more equality leads to ... more equality.

"The research also found a striking gender gap in reading skills. In every country girls perform better than boys in reading but in countries that treat both sexes equally, girls do even better." The global average difference is 32.7 points. In Iceland, another country noteworthy for its gender equality, girls' average scores were 61 points higher than boys.

Hamster Dance

2008-05-21T12:10:00.000-07:00

We have a new addition to the family - a small white and grey hamster named Fuzzy. Last night Danny assembled the purple and yellow hamster habitat while we had many discussions with the boys about pet care and the importance of washing hands. Pet rodents are not my cup of tea, but as far as rodents go, it's fairly cute and not at all mouse/rat-like. At the pet store the sales clerks were encouraging Dan to buy a rat, apparently they're very smart, like human interaction and will respond when you call their name. Sorry no way am I housing a pet rat. Hopefully Fuzzy will help Elliot understand the importance of caring for another soul, and help him learn to be more responsible.

Keep Them Occupied
In their native habitat, hamsters have to travel great distances to find food, a fact that explains domestic hamsters' need for lots of exercise. Exercise wheels can provide hamsters with a good bit of activity, but they should not be the only source of physical activity. Complement the hamster's home gym and entertainment center with chewables such as a dog biscuit or pesticide-free twigs from beech trees, maples, willows, hazelnut bushes, or fruit trees; these will also help keep the animal's incisors worn down. Cardboard boxes, toilet-paper rolls, and paper-towel rolls are also safe for hamsters to burrow in, chew on, and play with. Wooden ladders and branches fastened securely to the inside of the tank can help hamsters show off their climbing agility.

Practice Good Housekeeping
Hamsters can be cranky if disturbed during their daytime sleeping hours, so try cleaning, feeding, and handling in the late afternoon or evening. Be sure to clean out the hamster's bathroom space every day. Hamsters like to amass treasure chests of tidbits, so check for stockpiles of perishable food. Also clean the water bottle and sipper tube daily to prevent buildup of food, algae, and bacteria; check to be sure it is working properly as well.

Change all the bedding twice a week, disinfecting the tank and letting it dry before laying down fresh bedding and replacing the hamster's chewing, nesting, and climbing toys. If you must remove a hamster to clean her tank, you can hold a small box near her and she will probably run right in. When handling a hamster, always hold her over a surface such as a tabletop in case she manages to wriggle out of your hands.

Delicious Treats
Besides the basic hamster mix, you can also supplement your pet's daily diet with a moderated amount of treats. Below are some delicious and healthy treats for your hamster.

Dog biscuits

Chopped hard boiled eggs

Broccoli and cauliflower

Plain oats

Health food (usually oil free and salt free) products such as museli, nuts and seeds.

Cheese and other milk products for strong bones

Cereal

Bread (you can spread a thin layer of peanut butter)

Diluted honey fed with a plastic spoon

Foods to avoid

Sticky/sharp food as these may cause trouble in your hamster's cheek pouch.

Sweet and oily food as they causes obesity.

Vegetables and other high moisture content food should be fed in moderation to prevent diarrhoea.

Although hamsters are omnivorous, it is better and healthier to stick with a vegetarian diet. Some books had also suggested that consuming meat encourage the cannibalism of young by adult hamsters.

Rock Climbing Elliot

2008-05-18T14:56:00.000-07:00

Liam held his 7th birthday at the stone gardens rock climbing gym. Elliot took to rock climbing like a fish to water. Fearless, he scrambled up to the top then pushed off the wall like a crab on the way down. Rock climbing summer camp?

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T15:40:00.000-07:00

This morning I luxuriated in bed then woke up when the boys delivered a beautiful bouquet of flowers and pastries from Pike Place Market. Then we spent the afternoon at Carkeek Park scouting out the spot for Asher's birthday. Of course the kids had a blast. The Bubbleman surprised us just as we were about to leave, needless to say we had to stay and enjoy the show. The kids went wild for the bubble craziness. Happy mother's day!

The Hamster Song

2008-05-05T12:57:00.000-07:00

Elliot has been pestering me to add this to the blog -- his new favorite disco song!! Hamster Dance.

Spring in Seattle

2008-05-04T16:06:00.000-07:00

The Red Balloon

2008-04-25T13:10:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months we've taken to watching films from the 50s and early 60s together as a family. Both kids seemed to like The Sound of Music, Dr. Seuss's The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T, and Bye Bye Birdie. The Red Balloon perhaps because it's only a half hour or perhaps because there's no dialogue, really held Asher's attention. I loved seeing this young child walking confidently alone in a big city and the striking contrast of the red balloon against the grey buildings. The bludgeoning of the poor balloon was a shock, but the transcendent ending made sense. Believe in yourself, the power of imagination....

I want to show the boys Zazie Dans Le Metro but it's not out on DVD.

Tips For Teaching Emotional Intelligence

2008-04-16T10:52:00.000-07:00

From Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child, John Gottman and coauthor Joan DeClaire encourage parents to use "emotion coaching" to teach children how to analyze their feelings and handle conflict, particularly when they're angry, sad, or frustrated. Here are the steps they recommend.

1. Try to be aware of your child's emotions.
Kids don't always tell you what's going on in their lives. If your child seems sad or upset for no obvious reason, it's wise to look at the big picture and think about what might be troubling him. Did you and your spouse have a bitter argument within earshot of the child? Young children often give clues to what they're thinking during fantasy play. Gottman recounts that his daughter said to him while playing with her doll, "Barbie is really scared when you get mad." He says that in the important conversation that followed, "I assured Barbie (and my daughter) that I didn't mean to scare her and that just because I get angry, that doesn't mean I don't love her." A child's fearful reaction may also be a clue that you sound too loud, scary, and unpredictable, giving you the opportunity to apologize for not handling your anger better and assuring her that you'll try to talk more softly and control your anger better in the future.

2. Look at negative emotions as opportunities for intimacy and teaching.
You can use all your child's feelings, negative as well as positive, in teaching him how to deal constructively with his emotions. Some parents, hoping to help their children avoid suffering, will make dismissive comments ("That guinea pig was getting old anyway"). What the child may learn, though, is that his feelings aren't seen as important. Rather than minimizing your child's feelings, try to listen and sympathize, even if it makes you anxious or uncomfortable ("It's hard when a pet dies, isn't it?").

3. Listen with empathy.
Listen carefully to your child, then mirror back to him what he has said, naming the emotions for him. Gottman gives the example of a boy who's dejected because his next-door neighbors have refused to play with him. If his father responds by telling him to be a big kid and just forget about it, his son will most likely think that he is a big baby and deserves not to have any friends. It would be better, Gottman says, for the father to open the discussion by saying simply, "I bet that hurt your feelings." His son will feel relieved that his father understands what he is feeling and doesn't think the emotions are out of place. It also gives him an opportunity to talk about the situation and think about what he might do to change things.

Listening to your child doesn't mean solving the problem for him, dismissing it, or joking him out of a bad mood. Use examples from your own life to show him you understand what he's said ("I used to feel bad when my neighbor wanted to play with the big kids instead of me.") This tells the child that he is not alone in feeling the sting of rejection, and that those feelings can be dealt with.

4. Help your child find words to express his emotions.
Children often have trouble describing what they feel. You can help your child develop an emotional vocabulary by giving him labels for his feelings. If he's mad, you might say, "You feel angry about that, don't you?" or at other times, "That must have been a disappointment," or "Did that make you feel shy?" You can also let him know that it's natural to have conflicting emotions about something -- for instance, he may be both excited and scared during his first week at school.

5. Set limits while you teach problem-solving.
Part of helping your child to solve problems is establishing clear limits on his behavior, then guiding him toward a solution. For example, you can say, "I know you're angry at your little sister, but you can't hit her. What could you do instead?" Give him a set of options to choose from. Anger management specialist Lynne Namka advises telling your child to first check his tummy, jaw, and fists to see if they're tight, breathe deeply "to blow the mad out," and to feel good about getting his control. Then, Namka says, help your child use a strong voice to talk his anger out, beginning with something like, "I feel mad when you _____________." Children should know that it's okay to be angry, as long as they don't hurt other people for that reason. Your child might also want to talk to you about why he's angry, draw pictures about what makes him angry, or act out the story of his "mads" with toys. Use plenty of praise to promote behaviors you'd like to see more often.

6. Try to respect your child's choices, unless they would endanger safety or health. Honor small requests that you may not agree with; this will help your child make decisions on his own.

7. Read books together. Many parents stop reading to their children once they learn to read on their own. But the stories your child is reading give you more to talk about, and you can draw on them to bring home emotional teaching.

8. Encourage your child to play sports or get involved in after-school activities. Both of these help them relate to others.

9. Avoid engaging in behavior you don't want your child to imitate. It's important not be verbally harsh when you're angry. Try saying, "It upsets me when you do X," rather than "You drive me crazy." The problem is his behavior, not who he is. Be careful to avoid mean or sarcastic remarks and excessive criticism, which chip away at a child's self-confidence.At this stage, children often show their independence by being disrespectful and sassy. Don't take the remarks personally, but do set limits and enforce them, and always tell your kids when they hurt your feelings.

10. Avoid siding with "the enemy." When teachers or other authority figures are insensitive, children often seek sympathy from their parents. Be sure to find out what happened before you make judgments.

Mexico!

2008-04-13T16:05:00.001-07:00

The Great Purim Easter Egg Hunt

2008-03-22T17:08:00.000-07:00

We've been preparing the kids for our Mexican cruise (tons of kids! swimming! fun on the beach! endless activities!) but I was surprised when Elliot's interest spiked about the prospect of eating nightly in a formal dining room, "Mom please, please will you buy me a tuxedo?" I bought Elliot a black suit and when we got home he requested that we stick a white handkerchief in his pocket as well as a carnation. My dapper son.

On Thursday night Dan and Elliot went to temple to hear the reading of the Megillah to celebrate Purim. Elliot wore his new suit and crazy hat (which he later took off even though everyone else was in costume). He had fun running around with the kids from his Hebrew school class. Elliot what is Purim about? "I don't know, I was busy playing with the kids."

On Saturday, we drove by Cowen Park which was blanketed with pastel plastic eggs and flanked by two huge inflatables. When we got home, the boys next door told us they were going to the egg hunt, so we decided to pop over there as well. Of course there were hundreds of children at the egg hunt. The boys shoveled eggs into their Halloween bags without knowing why they were picking up eggs. Asher was shocked when he discovered chocolate in his egg, "Look what I found Mom!" Elliot had collected a pound of candy. When we got home we tossed out half the candy, but let the boys have a sugar orgy anyway.

Family Films

2008-03-15T18:25:00.000-07:00

In 1976, my mom took me to see Freaky Friday at the Picwood Theatre (I must have been 5), the mother/daughter storyline thrilled me and I was completely blown away by the big screen / big theater experience. Elliot has seen a few movies in the theater over the past few years, but Asher who could care less about TV (The Wild Thornberrys Movie is his sole exception) had never seen a big screen movie. We took the boys to see Alvin and the Chipmunks in December and the outing was a huge success. Asher sat through the whole movie. Both kids loved the chipmunk music and laughed continuously; my expectations were low, but I actually enjoyed it a little.

We were excited to see the Dr. Seuss movie Horton Hears a Who, which just released this weekend, so we swept the gang over to the theater this rainy afternoon expecting a repeat of the Chipmunks coup. However, Asher was not amused. The animation held little draw for him and he shouted, "When is this movie going to be over?" about ten minutes into the movie. So Danny ended up buying two bags popcorn throughout the movie to entertain Asher and escorted him out of the theater when he forgot his quiet voice. Good times! But Asher was right, the film was awful. The story was hard to follow, it was talky, unfunny and full of smirky pop culture references. It was boring. Even Elliot thought it was dull. Too bad, the story has a good heart, much more integrity than the chipmunks movie.

Elliot Pics

2008-03-09T12:49:00.001-07:00

Mother's Little Helper

2008-03-09T11:56:00.001-07:00

Spring!

2008-03-03T20:31:00.001-08:00

It rained today, but we've had lovely sunny weather for the past week. Elliot decided it was about time to break out his grass green crocs and shorts even though it's rather chilly. Love this photo of Elliot the music man in his frilly spring frock. Seems like a good way to welcome spring in.

Play Builds Serious Skills

2008-02-21T09:14:00.000-08:00

NPR had an excellent report this morning on the business of play. We've known that "quiet play time" for Elliot is an absolute essential part of his day, otherwise his head seems to explode and he turns into a wild thing. I love spying on Elliot and seeing him choreograph his "guys" knights or action figures in these elaborate situations (while he's whispering in a high pitched voice). This activity seems to put him in a Zen like zone. Asher gets into the zone by mutely running puzzle pieces on the floor and pretending they're cars (he's our special fellow). Maybe the quiet play time will help them improve their self regulation in the end.

From the report:
It turns out that all that time spent playing make-believe actually helped children develop a critical cognitive skill called executive function. Executive function has a number of different elements, but a central one is the ability to self-regulate. Kids with good self-regulation are able to control their emotions and behavior, resist impulses, and exert self-control and discipline.

We know that children's capacity for self-regulation has diminished. A recent study replicated a study of self-regulation first done in the late 1940s, in which psychological researchers asked kids ages 3, 5 and 7 to do a number of exercises. One of those exercises included standing perfectly still without moving. The 3-year-olds couldn't stand still at all, the 5-year-olds could do it for about three minutes, and the 7-year-olds could stand pretty much as long as the researchers asked. In 2001, researchers repeated this experiment. But, psychologist Elena Bodrova at the National Institute for Early Education Research says, the results were very different.

"Today's 5-year-olds were acting at the level of 3-year-olds 60 years ago, and today's 7-year-olds were barely approaching the level of a 5-year-old 60 years ago," Bodrova explains. "So the results were very sad."

Sad because self-regulation is incredibly important. Poor executive function is associated with high dropout rates, drug use and crime. In fact, good executive function is a better predictor of success in school than a child's IQ. Children who are able to manage their feelings and pay attention are better able to learn. As executive function researcher Laura Berk explains, "Self-regulation predicts effective development in virtually every domain."

Herman Dune - I Wish That I Could See You Soon

2008-02-21T06:57:00.000-08:00

Just discovered Herman Dune, they're Swiss/French and have been around for a long time. Love the pink hood. Fun music.

Affirmations for the Ages - Developmental Psychology

2008-02-16T13:02:00.000-08:00

When I first heard these affirmations (from HELP! for Parents), they really resonated with me. Keeping them top of mind and repeating them to the boys as appropriate, has a way of magically diffusing a situation and getting to the emotional heart of a struggle. The birth to 6 months affirmations are appropriate for any age.

Being: Birth to 6 months

I'm glad you're alive
You belong here
What you need is most important to me
I'm glad you are you
You can grow at your own pace
You can feel all of your feelings
I love you and I care for you willingly

Doing: 6 Months to 18 Months

You can explore and experiment and I will support and protect you
You can use all of your senses when you explore
You can do things as many times as you need to
You can know what you know
You can be interested in everything
I like to watch you initiate and grow and learn
I love you when you are active and when you are quiet

Thinking: 18 Months to 3 Years

I'm glad you are starting to think for yourself
It's ok for you to be angry and I won't let you hurt yourself or others
You can say no and push and test limits as much as you need to
You can learn to think for yourself and I will think for myself
You can think and feel at the same time
You can know what you need and ask for help
You can become separate from me and I will continue to love you

Identity and Power: 3 to 6 Years

You can explore who you are and find out who other people are
You can be powerful and ask for help at the same time
You can try out different roles and ways of being powerful
You can find out the results of your behavior
All of your feelings are ok with me
You can learn what is pretend and what is real
I love who you are

Structure: 6 to 12 Years

You can think before you say yes or no and learn from your mistakes
You can trust your intuition to help you decide what to do
You can find a way of doing things that works for you
You can learn the rules that help you live with others
You can learn when and how to disagree
You can think for yourself and get help instead of staying in distress
I love you even when we differ. I love growing with you.

My Perfect School

2008-02-03T15:18:00.000-08:00

Elliot often says he wants to be a teacher when he grows up (along with professional air hockey player) but he grumbles about going to school, "it's too much work!" So I asked him to tell me what types of things they'd do in a school he'd like to attend.

"The teachers would listen to the kids about what they want to do. First we would go to a professional basketball game and then come back for a Mexican fiesta with lots of snacks like chips and salsa. We could learn about Spanish and Mexican culture. Then our parents would come to the school and we'd have ice cream. Next we would play video game wars, where everyone in the school competes for a prize."

Meeting Mischa

2008-02-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

The boys were so gentle and sweet with Mischa, pretty in pink. She slept the whole time, but we got plenty of cuddle time in with her before we left. Elliot was primed for the LA heat pledging to wear shorts and t-shirts everyday, luckily we got our respite from the Seattle freeze.

Tooth Fairy

2008-01-13T18:36:00.000-08:00

We were watching the Meerkat Manor documentary and Elliot screamed, "It's out! It's out! It came out!" We had no idea what he was talking about. We thought he was reacting to one of the meerkats who had just crawled out of the burrow, but then we saw him holding his bloody little tooth. Finally it came out. After 3 months of wiggling this loose tooth, during which time a completely grown tooth grew in behind it months ago, Elliot has lost his first tooth.

Interview with Elliot:
Do you believe in the tooth fairy?
Yes. She goes to people who lose their teeth. I'm kind of sad that I lost it, I'm going to miss wiggling it.

Description of the Tooth Fairy:

Blond hair
White skin
Pearl necklace
Silver dress
Reading glasses
Silver tiara
Red shoes
Size of a potato

Leonard and Lucille

2008-01-06T17:12:00.000-08:00

My grandparents with their neighbors circa 1947. I love the feeling of community, the focus on family. Goofy kids. Tired parents. Classic Americana.