Saint Nicholas

As any parent will tell you, things can change in the blink of an eye, as did our son's toothy smile in a brief moment of clumsy exhuberance yesterday at HAA. One fall (and I don't mean the season) and those two front teeth will never quite look the same. Of course, eventually they will fall out anyhow, but loose teeth give a parent some time to get used to the upcoming awdward grin and the lisp that accompanies it. Our change was a bit more sudden, a bit more bloody, and required an unexpected visit to the dentist. The teeth are still firmly rooted, though, and the dentist assures us that, not only will there be no permanent proglems, they might even slowly slide back into place. That would be good, because there are cookies to eat this season, and a play to perform in next week, lisp or no.

With an injury like that of course come tears and lots of hugs. I will say that for once I understood the "it takes a village" mantra, as the other mothers at HAA descended upon us with ice, phone calls to dentists, and a multitude of reassurances. With children of all ages involved in a homeschool gathering, there are mothers at all stages of parenthood available for advice, those who know what you are going through right now, and those who have been there before.

Calvin rebounded amazingly quickly. Though the dentist promised at least a week of needing soft foods and pain medication, as of yesterday morning it was like nothing had ever happened. Which was good because, or possibly encourage by, yesterday marked our annual celebration of Saint Nicholas Day. Oranges, pajamas, coins, and one gift (a Christmas felt set) in the ol' wooden shoe, Christmas songs galore, and dinner with family. The dates didn't align with the weekend this year so we're a few days off the official target, and we dropped the traditional fare for a more flavorful menu, but it was still the pre-party of our season, the kick-off to a landslide of events that will continue snowballing until they explode some time around New Years and we are left with the dark days of winter and an empty calendar stretching out before us for months.

Checkups

Doctor...

Dentist...

And one more makes nine

A happy anniversary to us.

Allosaurus

We are squarely in the Jurassic period around here now. We completed the species list and felt creatures for the Triassic, and then we watched Allosaurus, a special episode of BBC's Walking with Dinosaurs. Who could ever have believed a carnivorous Allosaurus could be a sympathetic character. We're all a little in love with Big Al now, so I know what felt creations are on my plate for tomorrow. This newest exploration we're on—the trip through evolution—is really the first time that I've utilized multi-media as a learning tool. When Calvin was younger we sometimes watched the Old School Sesame Street shows (volume 1 or volume 2), or sections of Planet Earth, but until now the TV or computer were merely rare bits of entertainment. I still don't view the TV as an educational tool, but entertainment is a part of learning, and vice versa, so when we found the BBC series that was kind of a match made in heaven, and we have two great iPad apps about evolution and dinosaurs as well now. They've been good jumping-off points.

Today we made Triassic felt and started Jurassic felt, we did a dinosaur puzzle, we played Allosaurus all morning. We both practiced the piano, and we did some math and map worksheets together. We practiced drawing, we sorted and shelved books in the library sale room. For Calvin the past few days have been full of sudden mental leaps, and even though phases like these always bring with them an over-tired, grumpy attitude, I have come to understand the cycle over the past few years: a sudden onset of grouchy, crazed behavior, even after plenty of sleep, has almost always been a sign of expanding mental capacities with him. He does this at least twice a year. In the past I've panicked, wondering what had happened to my usually cheerful son, but I've since learned to be patient and to look for the newest achievements.

Patience is something I am learning with motherhood.

Non sequitur?

Meet our oddly metallic purple and blue jumping spider. He was tiny and cute and very happy in our garden. Five years ago I would have rapidly fled the scene, but yesterday I used my own (gloved) hand to carefully coax him into a cup so we could get some pictures. This makes me happy.

And on an unrelated note, but entirely worth mentioning, about seven months ago Calvin became determined to play Monopoloy. At the time he knew his numbers, but we hadn't spent any time on math as a subject because it hadn't held much interest. The frustration of Monopoly without prior arithmetic sparked that interest and got us trying Math-U-See, which has served us well in its own way. Now, seven months later, Monopoly has made a comeback, and to drastically different results. The learning wasn't a rush—it was all on his own schedule, and of his desire and determination, and he is pleased with the results, or maybe he just takes them for granted. That warms my heart.

That is to say...life is going well.