dec 8 - 2 hours at a time

i had the oddest day today - sitting here now at almost 11pm i realize that i spent my day in chunks of 2 hours..........

- got the kids to school and had 2 hours before i had lunch duty (i managed to cut the greens and berries i needed to make my wreath - but never got a chance to actually make it!)

- went to school where i had lunch duty for 2 hours

- ran a quick errand then had 2 hours before i had to pick the kids up from school

- managed to squeeze a 3 hour chunk in before i took the boys to basketball - where i sat for 2 hours

- came home and sat and watched the biggest loser finale (my guilty pleasure) which was - you guessed it - 2 hours...........

i had high hopes of getting stuff tonite after everyone went to sleep.....and now everyone is in bed - and i find myself exhausted. but i'm gonna give it a shot. i'm throwing on some lady gaga and getting to work - think i can last 2 hours???????

dec 7th - still hanging on

there is still a little bit of snow clinging to the trees and shrubs. tomorrow i plan to walk around my yard and gather greens to make a wreath for my front door. i've spotted tons of berries too and will gather some branches for more decorations.

we are supposed to get more snow tomorrow too. i don't believe it though. every year we get predictions for snow that never come. but just in case - i'm getting out there early to gather my materials.

i'm pretty excited about it too. i made a simple fall wreath that i absolutely adore and i am hoping this one turns out just as nicely.

dec 6th - snow

my plans for a family christmas in philly got twarted by icky weather. it started raining on our way down....and it was cold....and oldest was miserable and more than happy to let everyone know about it.

we didn't get to see much

but we did manange to see the light show at macy's

where it snowed in led lights

and when we walked outside - the rain had turned to snow - which is much nicer to walk in then rain. we ended our afternoon by seeing a christmas carol at the walnut street theatre.

we drove home in this

and woke up to this

its already melting and should be practically gone by tomorrow. but that's ok - we know it will be back again. for now its so pretty....looking outside and seeing it clinging to the evergreens....watching the birdfeeders become a flurry of activity.

...a perfect day to start the fire and decorate the house...and hopefully squeeze in some baking of millet muffins - which i've been craving big time lately......

'tis the season - for snow

dec 5th - my special date

friday nite was supposed to be family nite....but by the time evening came 2 out of the 4 made other plans. that left just me and my youngest to hang out together.

we started our evening with a cub scout event. all the scouts brought gifts and made cards that will be delivered to the children with cancer in the hospital.

afterwards we hit the village for some pancakes for dinner. as we walked out of the diner we spotted a huge tree lit up with large beautiful bulbs. we ran across the street to see it.

and stand under it

and look up into it

then i was told we just had to take a picture of it

but my camera was in the car.

so i was told we needed to go get it and come back.

so we did

and it was worth it

by now the shops were closed

that is all except one

we went inside and looked around

and got to talk to the owners

and hear their story

i was told i absolutely needed to buy this really cool windmill for $180

that didn't happen.

tis the season for magic..........

dec 4th - city scenes

this past weekend we spent time visiting our friend in NYC. we are quite lucky to have a friend who lives in Manhattan (Roosevelt island actually) who enjoys having us come up and visit. the boys loved taking the tram into manhattan in the morning and the subway back in the evening.

(look at that view from our friend's living room............)

because we've been to nyc quite a few times and have done the touristy stuff - i myself spending this trip totally engrossed in the daily scenes of city life....

i was constantly lagging behind everyone trying to snap a picture of this and that........

the hardest was trying to capture the colors in the subway cars without upsetting the passengers. how many people take the colors for granted? one side of the train was plastered with blue ads - the other with red......and these amazing orange seats right in the middle..........

people are still my favorite to shoot......i just can't figure out how to take pics without freaking them out. my zoom capability is pretty pathetic. so i basically keep it low and shoot up........

and then - of course - the city lights.......

as usual the trip ended too quickly. because we had an amazingly warm weekend - we did manage to squeeze in a lot of stuff...central park, times square, bryant park, the intrepid, museum of natural history, rockefeller center.....yet there is still so much to see.

this weekend we are visiting philly. once again i'm hoping to try and capture the scenes and the spirit of our own city.

dec 3rd - undo pressure.......some thoughts on schooling

my boys go to public school. i have many friends who homeschool their children. there are pros and cons to both. part of me really wishes i could homeschool. the other part is glad i don't.

tonite i wished i did.

my oldest is very independent and he is very smart.

he does his work on his own and he gets great grades. we don't put pressure on him to excel - just to do his best and use mistakes as a learning tool.

tonite he showed me some classwork. he had received a check +. the teacher had written some comments basically showing where he could have expanded his answers. he was very upset that he received comments. even though his paper was basically perfect he didn't see it as such.

that upset me - to see him get upset over something that wasn't even wrong.

my youngest son is not so independent. he needs me to sit with him and keep him focused on his work. he is also only 6. i don't blame him for not wanting to sit and do homework....esp on nite's like tonite - when we don't come right home after school. tonite he was pretty tired. he didnt want to do his work. i had to work hard at keeping him focused. he did the bare minimum he had to do.........i was ok with that.

it's nites like tonite where i wish they didn't have the pressure of being a student in the public school system........and in one ranked high to boot. there is plenty of time to experience pressure in one's lifetime. i just hate when its put on young kids....especially when you aren't the one applying it......in a time and an area of their lives where there should be a natural rhythm to learning. its so much more effective to teach children when they want to learn. i'm not against out of the home-schooling by any means. i was a teacher myself and i really enjoyed it. its just that at times i wish i could put them in the system and take them out as needed or when it seems best for the boys.....take little learning breaks throughout the year.

the boys are already over it. they aren't upset anymore. they are playing and watching tv. i think i am over it already too. i do this a lot - the grass is greener thing between homeshooling and public school. nothing really gets resolved b/c is there really anything to resolve? both boys love school. clearly the issue lies within me. that is fine. i actually appreciate moments like this - they remind me of my values and desires for my boys. they renew my energy for teaching - not the book stuff but the life stuff...things that really can only be taught at home

dec 2 - well worth the wait - the christmas cactus........ and a soup

i started to notice the first signs the first week in november

every day more and more would appear

until finally the plant explodes!

sadly some blooms are already starting to die. i absolutely adore the christmas cactus! all year i basically forget about it. its just another green plant i faithfully water. then in november i'll catch a glimpse of a bud and suddenly i remember that it will soon explode into a firework display of blooms! its crazy really - how it just knows when to come out and does so without being coaxed. then when its done blooming - it goes back to sleep until next year......

i think its pretty cool.

the easiest butternut squash recipe in the world

i overheard someone talking about this soup this morning and i thought about it all day. i couldn't get to the grocery store fast enough to buy squash.

• 1 pkg peeled and cubed butternut squash
• 1 32 oz carton of veggie broth
• 1 apple
• 1 onion
• seasonings (i used salt and nutmeg)

throw everything into a pot and cook until soft. puree and eat.

i have a huge bag of dried shitake mushrooms in my pantry. i grab handfuls of them and throw them into whatever i'm cooking. i grabbed a handful and threw it in this soup too. i liked it - b/c i love mushrooms - but honestly i think it would have been just as good without the mushrooms.