Gallery

Sometimes I wonder how the refrigerator became the hanging spot of choice for children's artwork. Of all the other places in the house that scotch tape or push pins could make into a display area, perhaps the magnetic appeal of a giant swinging door simply won over the favor of mindful mothers afraid or doing damage to their home's walls. In any case, our gallery filled up quickly after a couple hours of coloring Friday afternoon. Ruby insisted that I hang mine with theirs. Can you guess which ones they are? 

Songsmith

olivia and the girls were off school earlier this week due to icy roads and general bad weather conditions. The solution? Download the Songsmith demo and make some music. The girls are usually great singers but it seems like they got a little performance anxiety knowing the mic was there. All the same, it cured the boredom...temporarily.

Memories of Color

So Sailor colored on the big screen television last week. No big deal. There was a time under this roof when my reaction to such a thing would not have been so calm. In fact, it reminded me of a previous post from the early days of this blog. Here it is, from December 16, 2011. Enjoy.

Coloring

Ruby likes coloring. She is just now getting to the point where she can stay (almost) in the lines. For a long time she would just make scribbles and furious lines in varying colors all over the paper. When paper got old she started coloring on other things, like the fridge or the couch or her toys. Nothing was safe from her waxy touches of self-expression.

I woke up Wednesday morning and was going about my normal routine. Things were going well, nothing out of the ordinary. Hot coffee, breakfast, computer on, olivia was out the door and Ruby was content with her cereal. Maybe I am partially to blame for what happened. I get distracted by e-mail, facebook, twitter, blogs, etc. I'm going to tell the rest of the story through the text messages that went back and forth between me and the wife. I apologize for the lack of pictures...I was a little distraught and it slipped my mind. For clarity, my texts are in yellow, my wife's in red.


     Me: Ruby colored on the f#%*ing tv...

     olivia: Oh no. 

     Me: Going.to.kill.her.

     olivia: Deep breaths.

     Me. Going

     Me: To

     Me: Kill

     Me: Her.

     olivia: Do I need to come home.

     Me: No, you'll need to be as far away as possible so you don't go down with me. 

     olivia: Remember she's only two. 

     Me: She's about to be zero...

     olivia: You better not hurt my baby. 

     Me: She hurt mine...

     olivia: lol. I'm gonna hurt you.


Thankfully it came out with a paper towel, water, and a little elbow grease. I'm glad we buy the washable, non-permanent crayons and markers. Never a dull moment... 

Calvin and Hobbes

As we were cleaning out the house this past weekend I came across a box in the top of my closet. It was not labeled and as I shook it, it emitted a deep, rough rustling sound. The photo above are the books that were inside. Unlike most of the texts from my childhood that have already made it onto the bookshelf, this collection somehow remained isolated. Maybe it is because these were some of my favorite books growing up and I had a deeper fondness for them than some of the other volumes I held onto. There are certain strips in these that I remember clearly reading for the first time like people remember where they were during the JFK Assassination or 9/11 took place. Not that reading Calvin and Hobbes is in any way on that level but the point is that something about Watterson's art, whit and wisdom really stuck with me. Since so many other things I hold sacred in addition to the Sunday comics are disappearing or have lost all of their charm and luster, it was important to me to hold a little of the magic back to share with the girls. I am waiting a few more years until they will appreciate them and I look forward to seeing them read them for the first time.

Letter to Santa

So the "letter" had actually been around the house for a while but was more or less misplaced with all of the toys and other drawings. I guess in Ruby's head, since she couldn't write out what she wanted she would just draw a picture. No, she doesn't want a giant creepy eye...it is a trampoline. I found an address on the net to send it to that supposedly sends something back close to Christmas but we'll see how that plays out. Until then, we are waiting  for the Holiday to arrive. The next big jump will be the arrival of the elf on the shelf next month. I've already had to start thinking of places to put her. Last year it got to be a little challenging and a couple times we forgot to move her. It was interesting at times to say the least.

Artwork

     The girls have started producing a lot of their art. They color with pencils, crayons and markers or just about anything they can. In addition to paper, I've found color on walls, furniture, the carpets, the fridge...its pretty much everywhere. I can think of at least one previous post on this blog where I had to clean crayon off the the big screen tv.
     I used to try and clean it all immediately. I guess part of learning to be a parent is learning not to freak out about everything because believe me, there can be a lot to freak out about. In a few years when everything settles down a bit and the girls learn better control, self and otherwise, I'll have to spend a couple week going over everything in the house with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.  Until them, I'm just going with the flow...and learning to live in a house covered in color streaks.

Bill Watterson

Via Slate.com:
"On his cartoon blog Zen Pencils, Gavin Aung Than turns inspirational quotes into comic strips. For his newest strip, he illustrated a quote from Bill Watterson’s 1990 speech at Kenyon College in the style of Calvin and Hobbes, which Than considers “the greatest comic strip of all time.” The comic strip below “is basically the story of my life,” Than writes, “except I’m a stay-at-home-dad to two dogs.” You can read more at Zen Pencils, where this comic originally appeared."

Custom Harley

     Earlier this week before nap time, Ru wanted a new book to read. I asked her if she would like one of daddy's. Contrary to popular belief, I don't have many books that are just pictures but there are a few. I've let her read this one before but thankfully she didn't remember. Funnily enough, the bikes on the cover are all stock but the contents are about some of the older, well known custom bike builders.
     Before I had even left the room, Ru decided when she woke up she would draw a motorcycle and put it into the book for me. Chalking this up to the pre-nap grandiose ramblings of a groggy 4 year old, I honestly didn't think much about it. I finished tucking them in and I left the room.
     When I got back later in the evening, I saw the book on my desk. Thinking maybe she got bored with it and didn't know where to return it to, I grabbed it to put back on the shelf. That was when I noticed the paper peeking out from the cover. Apparently, Ru had enlisted olivia's help to do exactly what she had said she would. According to the wife, she did all the work, taping included. I'm a lucky man with an awesome family. Hopefully her interest in bikes will continue.

Passing the Buck Failure

     This story is coming through second hand so forgive me if I butcher the details. Ru and Sailor are really into coloring right now and especially markers. They will find a coloring book, choose a page, ask us to rip it out and then spend a little time coloring in whatever is on the page.
      Occasionally, the marker will get on other things. Nothing major, just the couch, the walls, skin, food, etc. My how far we have come. Anyways, olivia was home with them when she noticed a pair of yellow rain boots had received the marker treatment. It was pretty clear to see who the culprit was.
     olivia got onto Ruby and told her to keep the coloring on the paper. Her quick response was that Sailor had done it, not her. Unless we missed a quick advance in Sailor's writing skills and her ability to spell her sister's name, I feel there must be a little fibbing here. I guess its never to early to learn that if you are going to do something against the rules, make sure you don't leave a trace that it was you. At least she has someone to blame things on. As an only child, there were only so many times I could blame the dog before my folks got wise.
 

Loot

     I didn't talk about all the awesome stuff I got on Father's Day in my other post so here is a quick breakdown:
A framed photo of me and Ru from the girl's Baptism
A "Dad's Sippy Cup" tumbler
An excellent book about Bluff Park that is full of killer old photos
A Fahrenheit wrist thermometer for my watch
A hand colored and laminated tie bookmark (I guess, Ru made it at school so it is pretty rad no matter what it is)
A Bluetooth keyboard for my phone
Cash
An awesome lunch that yielded enough leftovers for an awesome dinner.

     I'm a lucky Dad. I hope all the Dad's I know had great days and fared as well as I did.  

Monster Spray

     When I was a kid, I had a bout with monster paranoia. My young mind raced vividly each night with visions of otherworldly creatures who were waiting to spring out once my parents left the room or the lights went off. At some point, my folks decided enough was enough and picked up a bottle from who knows where called "Monster Spray." I'm not sure what the liquid actually was but I remember it was red and had a sweet scent. I also remember the label had a drawing of a happy child, in bed under the covers with his eyes closed. I'm pretty sure the fact that I remember is so well is a testament to how effective it was.
     Ruby is having a bout now with the same paranoia. I overheard olivia trying to reassure her earlier this week and rushed to grab the spray bottle. I took it into Ruby's room and announced what it was, much to her and olivia's surprise. It just has water in it, no color or scent, but it got the job done. Ruby was able to get to sleep that night and every night since.
     The only downside it that everything in her room has to get a little misting before bedtime. I decided to label it yesterday in an effort to increase its placebo effects. Ruby asked why it had a skeleton on it. I told her it was strong stuff as it had to be strong enough to keep monsters away. Last night she was sure that I didn't spray anywhere near her and spent the duration of my spraying under the covers.
     I wonder how long it will take her to realize that since we are using monster spray that we have in some small way confirmed a bit of her paranoia. It is questions like this that you will wonder about as you get deeper and deeper into parenthood. It's crazy but it is also an immeasurable amount of fun.

Fairy Godmother

     Uncle Greg was in town visiting this past weekend. The kids love him and we enjoy having him around too. Ruby has been drawing fairies a lot lately...fairies with wings, wands, etc. She drew the above picture on her Etch-A-Sketch Sunday morning and we got some big laughs out of it. Ruby kept talking about her big "wings." Greg said "I wish I had a fairy godmother with wings like that." I'm not sure she understood why we were laughing so hard but she had fun laughing with us. 

The Band

So Ruby, Sailor and (possibly) Chopper have a band. Ruby will give everyone an instrument and they will play songs that she counts off. Most of her part is the flamboyant rock&rolling and occasionally singing while Sailor keeps time and Chopper...well if nothing else he is there for moral support.

After their last performance, I asked Ruby what the name of the band was. She quickly said "rock&roll." I explained to her that that was the style of music that she played but to be complete, the band needed a really good name. She looked at me, completely deadpan and said "Sophie Makes Fire." She then walked to her room and onto other things.

You can't make this stuff up. It's always good to get some verification that you are raising your kids right. I don't know where the name came from but it sounds to me like the title of a late 70's B-movie you would see Elvira presenting at 3am on local television. I'm thinking something like Carrie but a lot grittier. Anyhow, here's to a successful future for SMF, heaven help us when they get their hands on real instruments.

Wall Art

     It's funny to me how much has changed in the past year. When I first started this crazy stay at home gig, I was very intolerant of things like this and had a fuse so short you'd hear the bang before your foot got down on the first step away. Now, well I wouldn't encourage the kids to be drawing on the walls but I'm not going to flip my lid either.
     I've come to realize that kids are kids and they are going to be kids despite my best efforts. Things like this will happen. Walls will be written on, carpet and furniture will be stained, things will get broken, etc. They are my most prized possessions so as long as they are intact, I don't have much to worry about. I do understand that due to our laid-backness that we will likely find ourselves living with the girls on a pile of demolished rubble by the time they enter the teenage years.
     I took the magic eraser into her room the other day to clean the art off and I couldn't bring myself to do it. Something about it, oddly enough, just made me happy and proud. I think we'll leave it for awhile. Part of me thinks it will be a form of delayed punishment. I imagine that in her teenage years it will be kind of embarrassing for her, almost like we won't have to bother pulling out the baby photos.   

Blue

The ladies that run the Rec Center daycare were nice enough to give the girls some ink stamps to take home to play with. They had a blast with them, inking all over paper and then their arms. Well Sailor thought she would do with the stamp what she does with everything else: put it into her mouth.

We should have known something crazy was going on because when it get too quit, you know you are in trouble. olivia came in to check on them and found blue ink all over Sailor's hands, on her lips and covering her tongue. Thankfully everything for kids is non-toxic these days and we don't worry too much.

For a couple days, you could see it when she would open her mouth, laugh, etc. Kids are awesome.

Fine Art

Ruby has come a long way in her evolution as an artist. Now all her people have arms...
Seriously though, it is interesting to me the way her mind is developing and her recognition of things shows up in her work and she at least has the concept, though not yet the practice, to get her ideas on her canvas of choice.

Above is a picture of the girls and olivia on the swings in our back yard. Even though the swings are not there, the chains coming down are there and I think she gets the idea of how to convey the idea into a picture.

This is a picture of her inside our house. Again, you can see the wheels in motion. She could have just drawn the house and said it was a picture of her in the house but she drew herself to convey the complete concept.  

This is a drawing she did at school with chocolate. There isn't any big concept there, I just dig it. It was hanging a little too low on the fridge and the family dog helped himself to a little.