I just clicked over to Shannon’s to read some more and OH MY! I’m a finalist!

Who would’ve thought that a little ditty written in the shower would do so well. Yes, really, in the shower. I even had Sister bring me a piece of paper and pencil so I wouldn’t forget it.

Anyway, take a moment and go vote, would you? The other limericks are great too so I’ll totally understand if you don’t pick mine … but I really hope you do.

I know you’re busy.  Who isn’t?  But take a break sometime today and head over here.  Shannon is hosting a limerick contest (with an ultra-cool prize!).  Even if you don’t win, you’ll sure enjoy reading some of the other entries.  They’re great!  I even tried my hand at rhyming.

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Ode to Motherhood. … Can a limerick be an ode?? Hmm.

Please state your name and tell what you do.
My name’s “Mom”.
I live in a shoe.
I have children galore
so it’s never a bore
… especially the parts with the poo.

*sigh*

(After watching the Max & Ruby episode where Ruby is out selling brownies for her scout troop. — think Girl Scouts and cookies)

Brother:  Mom, mom! Can we get Bunny Scout Brownies?!

Me (with sympathy): Oh, honey,  I’m sorry Bunny Scout Brownies are just pretend.

Brother:  Nonsense!

Sister:  Did he just say “nonsense”?

Me: Yes, he did.

Sister:  Hmm, pretty grown up word for such a little boy. 

********

Yep, they’re mine.

Do you remember these?  The playgrounds with the see-saws that would actually come up and hit your partner on the chin or slam them to the ground if you suddenly decided to leave for the monkey bars.  The ones that simply did. not. work. without a friend.  Do you remember the playgrounds with merry-go-rounds that could spin so fast you might fly off but that created the most amazing centrifugal effects on your cheeks.  Do you remember discovering the safety of the middle?  Or finally getting off and walking awry for several moments thereafter?  Perhaps your playground had one of those huge metal slides with steps that went up forever and a mirror like surface that reflected the sun like secret signals from one park to another.  In the summer those slides got so hot you were glad of the speed with which they sent you careening towards the ground.  And swings - what playground would be complete without swings.  The super tall ones with the black plastic seats bowed by gravity and hundreds of children’s bottoms.  The swings hung by thick chains over a dirt cavity so deep it became a small pond when there was rain.  Those long chains and some vigorous pumping would send you so high it seemed you were flying and the brave actually did - leaping from seat mid-air.

My favorite childhood park had a barrel that worked something like a never-ending hamster wheel.  Nine or ten kids would get inside at once all running together to make the monolith move.  Faster and faster until one by one we started falling out unable to keep pace.  As a teen I returned to that park with my now husband, then friend and we sat in the big barrel for hours discussing philosophy and religion and the state of the world and when all of those topics grew too heavy for words, we stood up and started walking, faster and faster until one or both fell out unable to keep pace.  Laughingly, we’d pick ourselves up, children for a little while longer.

The barrel was gone last time I visited, along with the merry-go-round that used to sit beside it.  Labeled too dangerous I suppose.  I have mixed feelings about that label. 

See Brother has been experimenting with a couple of new words this week: “Gautious” (as in look before you leap) and “Cragious” (as in brave).  He can’t quite pronounce them but he knows what they mean and he can use them in context.  They are big words for such a little guy but I know how he learned them.  Around here I am very frugal with the word dangerous and the label “too dangerous” is almost unheard of.  Around here I am more likely to utter, “Be careful.” than “Don’t do that.”  More likely to offer explanation of a possible consequence than “Stop that. You’ll get hurt.”  Why?  Because I want to affirm their explorations.  I want them to reach for things that are just beyond their abilities and in the reaching to stretch and grow those abilities so that in some unexpected moment they grasp the dream they are reaching for.  But I want them to be aware of the risks too.  Not shackled by fear of the danger but rather able to evaluate it in a distant contemplative sort of way.  Because someday they will encounter real danger and if I’ve never allowed them to look it in the face before, if I’ve never provided toys tools that teach them how to weigh risks, how will they recognize it for what it is?  How will they make the right choice: “gaution” or “cragiousness”?

I’m doing some house blogkeeping around here.  So if you were on my blogroll and now you are not, please know that I still like you and I am interested in what you have to say ‘cept I don’t have time to read it anymore and seeing your sweet little blog go unread day after day was just giving me more guilt that I need right now.  I know you’ll understand.

Wake up and set about building impossible towers.  Laugh ferociously each time they fall down.

Spend the morning practicing “Jingle Bells” so you can put on a concert when Daddy comes home for lunch.  Don’t forget to make a program and print out some sheet music so it will be authentic.  Roll your eyes and give your mom a death glare if she even thinks to say something silly like, “It doesn’t have to be perfect.”

Find a box of three piece puzzles and assemble them about the house with reckless abandon.  Oh, look!  They make words!

Create an elaborate story, in which every dinosaur toy you own will play a part.  The story should culminate in a dino stand-off on the kitchen table.  See if you can involve some of the Barbies too.  It’s a well know fact that Barbies love dinosaurs.

While your brother is seeing how fast he can slam his new scooter into the fridge skip on over to this website and print out five or twenty connect-the-dots pictures.

Retreat to your room and emerge after 30 min or so to totally astound your mother with this crayon drawing of Alabama’s state bird.

(click on any image for a larger view)

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Many thanks to Ann Kroeker who recently inspired dinner.

The time is 7pm at the Simple household. — Everyone has eaten.

Will: I’m really in the mood for pizza.

Toni: Oh?

Will: Do we have any of those French Bread Red Baron things?

Toni (who has not purchased “those French Bread Red Baron things” in over a year): Uhm, I don’t think so.

Will (dejectedly): Oh.

Toni (seeing the angst in her sweetheart’s eyes, lovingly offers):  You could use some of the Italian sausage I bought for lasagna and there’s plenty of cheese and some pizza sauce leftover from last time.

Will: But what about the dough?

Toni: Would you like me to make you some?

Will: You can do that?!

Toni (thinking of her secret recipe arsenal)  Sure.  It’s no problem.

Less than 30 minutes later this appears from the oven.

Couldn’t have done better with a phone and a delivery boy, if I do say so myself.

  I love a burning candle - the soft glow of a flickering flame, a light scent wafting through my home.  My kids love candles too.  At least they like blowing out my candles when they think I’m not looking. :)  I used to be a candle Scrooge, for lack of a better term.  I would buy candles galore or receive them as gifts and never burn them.  Happily I’ve mended my ways and discovered a few tips in the process. 

*Trimming the wick to 1/4″ before lighting is critical to candle life and prevents smoking but if you can’t (or don’t want to) buy one of these, use a spare pair of toenail clippers instead.

*A coffee cup turned upside down makes a good enough snuffer.  Of course you can always blow out your candles but watch for flying wax.  A wick dipper is the best choice for candle snuffing and you don’t even have to buy one if you have a wire hanger and a little imagination.

*Candles have a memory of sorts and will “tunnel” unless you let them burn long enough to create a pool of wax to the outer edge.  Also, most the the scent release comes from the melted wax so doing this can provide a stronger fragrance.

*Save yourself time searching for matches by placing small boxes or matchbooks near each of the candles you light most often.  (I use the candle on my piano almost every night so I’ve hidden a box of matches behind the sheet music stand.)

 *Candles made with paraffin are essentially made with petroleum and burning them releases carcinogens into your home.  Yuck!! Soy or beeswax candles are a cleaner (and healthier choice.)

*Soy candles though more expensive combine more readily with scents and will add fragance to a room even when they are not burning. 

*Beeswax candles though more expensive tend to burn longer and cleaner than any others and make the best choice for an emergency kit.

Other candle resources:

http://www.naturalhealthweb.com/articles/Nelson6.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beeswax

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soy_candle

http://www.candles.org/about_tips.html

Click here for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday ideas.

I’ve mentioned before that we like making smoothies around here but only recently have I felt confident enough to make up a recipe on the fly.  This morning Brother ate one bite of biscuit for breakfast so sometime around 11 it occurs to me that he may be in need of nutrition (y’know ‘cuz I’m a really good mom that way).  Anyway, a quick raid of the fridge yields some frozen blueberries and strawberries, Activa vanilla yogurt and whole milk.  Pull some wheat germ from the cupboard and agave nectar off the counter.  Toss it all in the blender and voila!  A yummy sweet treat that’s full of antioxidants, active enzymes, vitamins and other good stuff.  But most importantly, nutrition for even the most discriminating eater.

In case you’d like to create this yumminess for yourself I’ve provided the recipe below… at least as well as I remember it.

’bout 1/2 cup frozen blueberries

’bout 1/2 cup frozen strawberries

4 oz container of vanilla yogurt

2 big spoonfuls of wheat germ

1 long squeeze of agave nectar (maybe a tablespoon?) (You could easily sub honey here.)

whole milk (enough to almost cover the ingedients in the blender)

What sorts of quick treats do you make for your family?