Been a while

Two weeks ago we went camping at Kitsap State Park in Washington. Gage held a live crab with no hesitation at all. We talked with a family that had their own Aiden. The mom nicely held onto Gage so I could take pictures of the amazing clouds. Elina played with the family's daughter at the playground and tried the monkey bars. Connor hung upside down.




We decided to take a ferry on the way home. It's not often we get up that way and after all..it's the best ferry system in the world! The older kids and I walked onto the ferry because they wanted to see the salmon mural we could see from the parking lot.
While we were waiting I asked Connor if I could get a picture of him. One that showed his fabulous eyes. I mean..I can't keep using the one I took in Cincinnati as my official Connor picture, it's two years out of date! So we went through the usual routine: Connor looking so serious you'd think he was posing for either a mug shot or a military portrait. I say "come on, smile like you love your mother" which sends him cracking up. No inbetweens. He's always been that way...it's either black or it's white. Maybe it was prescient that we gave him the middle name of Grey?? A forshadowing of this parent's desire that her child find balance. I know he's exploring the middle ground a bit more often lately. I know this because sometimes I meet him there.

Ballet Girls

For the past two years, Aiden has bought season tickets for herself and Elina to go to the ballet. Ballet days have their own rituals: getting dressed up together, mom taking pictures, our special drop-off/pick-up place, the cell phone call to say when it will be over, and the intermission snack (a pretzel and waters). But what I like best is the drive home. They excitedly recount the evening "OBT has the BEST bad guys mom!". They laugh and exclaim, their voices rushing in and out and over each other, coming together then apart, deferring certain story points to each other in a dance of their own. Aiden tells of the moment in the dramatic opening when they realize that the tree in the set is really dancers as it deconstructs into the bad guys "minions"....."it was SOOOooo cool." Elina laughs so riotously as she tells of the little minions and pantomimes a chase where "they were running and running and running!" The retelling lasts all the way home with lots of "remember when" and "oh YOU tell this part!" Their sisterhood entrances me and I realize that I'm getting the best show of the evening.

Day THIRTY-ONE! <>

Sometimes things are solidly on the ground but look out of balance. Today I was out of balance but thought I was solid. You know when you start to fall and think you've righted yourself, and then you just keep falling and think NOW you've righted yourself... and then you just keep falling? Yeah. And everyone looks and you feel like you should take a bow. But you bounce up and say "I'm ok! Everything's fine!! Nothing's happened" but you have the bruises to show that you really did fall!


And it's a Thursday. The busy day of our week. Aiden usually works, volunteers at the therapeutic horse barn and goes to an institute class. I'm her transportation. Somehow I also squeezed in cuddling with the kids, falling like a dork in the library, hanging out with a friend, sweating, doing dishes and book club!
And somewhere in there got a picture. It would have been nice to finish May with something spectacular but I am quite happy with the month. It's been fun!

Day Thirty

I'm so grateful to have curious, observant children. Getting out of the car at the library Elina asked "they're purple????"
Yes. Juniper berries are purple. And very beautiful. Thank you Elina for noticing them.

Day Twenty-nine

Looking up into trees has always been something that calms my spirit. These ones at a rest stop along the Santiam were really cool, because the new leaves made circular patterns!



Went to Eugene with my friend. We stopped at rest stops and walked Gage about so he wouldn't get TOO tired of his car seat! He has just started that phase where he doesn't want to bend his body to sit in his car seat. What fun! Here he is walking with Donna, but wait! What happened to his head?

Day Twenty-eight

This duck has been at our pool every morning. I went to take his picture and along came the cat! The duck didn't care at all, in fact when the cat walked along the edge, the duck followed him!!

Day Twenty-seven

Sunday! Ended up taking Tim to an urgent care. He got two antiobotic SHOTS!
Connor likes this picture. He says it is "owlish"

Day Twenty-six

These flowers are next to a garage here in the apartment complex. I was up early dealing with Tim who has an abcessed tooth. Poor Tim. Then I helped a friend with her broken down car. We snapped my tow rope twice!LOL A wonderful man from our church works at a car parts store and helped us out big time. I jacked up her car, got underneath and located the part I needed to change out but just didn't have quite the right tools to get a good purchase on the bolts. Luckily, the same guy had the needed tools and was able to accomplish the task quite handily. My friend was so amazed that I would get under her car and that I would assume that I could maybe fix it myself. Just think how amazed she would have been had it been Aiden. Aiden traded out the solenoid in the chevette all by herself when she was fourteen!

In the evening I took Aiden to a parking lot where me met a man and made a transaction. Sounds shady doesn't it? I found a sweet deal for her on a 5 qt red kitchenaid mixer on Craig's list!! Maybe she'll let me use it until she eventually moves out..........

Day Twenty-five

Today was Aiden's 20% off day at work! So Gage and I went down during her "lunch" break (at 6 pm) so she could load stuff in the van. Then Gage and I went for a walk. I've seen these beautiful flowers when out driving and have been wanting to get a pic of them. From the complex where Aiden works there's a nature walk, so I just kept Gage in the shopping cart and off we went! We saw lots of beautiful wild roses, blackberry blossoms, and a frog. Then our walk took us through an apartment complex with amazing landscaping with dark red rhodies, pink azaleas, some really cool striped flowers I haven't seen before and a glorious dogwood. Then along the road with the flowers in the pic of the day. We also saw a red-winged blackbird and a pair of geese with their babies. Then the trail back to the shopping complex. It's amazing how this wetland is tucked right in the middle of our little township. On the trail were purple vetch and daisies and something that might have been bachelor buttons.


Ok...sometimes I have two pictures. I thought I'd explain that the first is the picture of the day, the second is one that is more journaling in nature, usually of the family. It's hard to pic just one picture sometimes!! But I faithfully stick to one Day in May picture. That's why there's not two flower pictures in one day for example. But here is Gage in the shopping cart on the path back to the complex.

Day Twenty-four

Kilroy was here.







"I'm so glad when Daddy comes home..."

Day Twenty-three

Gage loves to take a bath in the sink. Here he is doing the eensy weensy spider. He likes that song and tries SO hard to do the fingers!

Day Twenty-two

Tim and the girls went and saw the new Spiderman movie. I went for a walk with Gage and then watched Idol. I've been thinking for a while now it will be Jordan Sparks . Not my choice...just who I think will win. On the walk we passed the True Value harware store. They have a big lot out back with huge planters and garden stuff. I've always liked the way they look out there. It's not an artful display for customers the way it might be at Fred Meyer or The Garden Spot. It's just big pots on pallets in a gravel dirty weedy lot. I lifted the camera up over the chain link fence and took this picture of garden..um...balls? Then Gage and I went on to the library where he pushed his stroller around inside up and down the long switchback wheelchair ramp. We talked to our favorite Tualatin librarian (our FAVORITE librarian is in Salem!)

Day Twenty-one

To start this post I had to look up the rules for writing numbers. I was pretty sure I knew them, but I like to double check things. That's just the way I am. That used to cause some interaction problems when I was in the work force. They usually cleared up when a person got to know me because they realized that I wasn't just checking up on them but that I also check up on myself. That it CAN cause problems is something I try and keep in mind though.
I took a nap with Gage today during the time that I usually go and take my photo. It was just kind of a blah day in many respects.

Day Twenty

The weather changed. Just kind of a hang out day. Didn't even take a picture until really late at night, after Gage was asleep. I was tired and ready for bed, so I quickly grabbed anything that looked visually interesting. This is a crystal candle holder..I placed a piece of sparkly blue cloth off Tim's dresser under it, took a picture and went to bed!

Day Nineteen

I attended a church women's conference this morning. Actually, I was one of the speakers and was also in a skit. The wild thing is that Gage was in the primary room with a bunch of other children being watched by some husbands and older boys...for THREE hours! I wasn't really all that surprised. He likes to play, and he's pretty secure when he doesn't see me, unless he's very tired. When I left him there he was already deep into playing with the mega blocks with WHEELS. He really likes things with wheels.

This is the guitar that the family got me for Mother's Day.

Day Eighteen

We walked to Elina's ballet class. I love watching her concentrate as she works to get things "just so". She stands tall and lifts her arms in the air and balances on just the balls of her feet. At first this meant wobbling all over, but now she can hold this pose with measured elegance. A girl waiting for her class to start played with Gage as he rolled a car and a train on the floor. Her smile was the kind that lights up everything around her.
As we were leaving we ran into our friends who were going out to their new property. So we got Gage's car seat and went with them. The new farm (which is actually very old) was so peaceful. The fields were covered in little purple vetch, the scotch broom was brilliantly yellow, and the sky dark blue with fluffy white clouds. My friend's boys showed us a salamander they found while the troughs were being cleaned in preparation of the delivery of their first cows!

Day Seventeen

The sky is so amazing. I find myself lately thinking of that song "The Bluest Skies You've Ever Seen Are In Seattle." So I'm not in Seattle...but the sentiment holds for most of the coastal North West. So there.
Tim, Gage and I went for a nice walk. We didn't take a stroller or sling. Tim said he was fine just carrying Gage. I think he was more than fine. He really savors their time together. They worked at stair climbing and going down stairs. Tim showed him the leaves on trees, and seed pods. They spun around and tickled and put their heads close together in secret confabs. I was content to be along as a witness, an outside observer of the father son moments. After all, I get so much of Gage to myself.

Day Sixteen

I've been having disk space problems!!

Aiden called from her walk home from work.
"Where are you?"
"I'm almost to the Donut King...No..I'm at the lupines."
"You're at the what?!?!?"
"The lupines! They're my favorite part of the walk!! They're so pretty!"
"Hmm..I haven't taken my picture of the day yet."
"Oh Mom...come meet me! This light is so pretty...hurry!"

So I hurried.

Day Fifteen

Aiden had the day off from work and really wanted to go to the Japanese gardens in Portland. We went last year on our "in between day" in April. Then the cherry blossoms and magnolias were in full bloom. This time it was rhododendrens and azaleas. It is so beautiful and peaceful there. Getting Gage's stroller around was interesting as the walkways are sometimes uneven stone pathways. I should have taken the sling! But then he probably wouldn't have spent as much time exploring around on the ground and I wouldn't have gotten this photo. He loves stairs and when he saw this pathway...oh boy!

Day Fourteen

Gage raises his eyebrow. The weather has been amazing. Connor took Elina to the pool for nice long swim in the evening. He didn't swim. He didn't take a book. He stood. So that his little sister could swim.

Mother's Day

Yay for weekends and free cell phone minutes! I spent most of the day with my family, and then in the evening I had a nice, long talk with my friend who lives in New York. Usually it would have been too late with the 3 hour difference. But it turned out she was in San Francisco as part of a vacation! Lisa always makes me laugh, and now that she has a baby that is about 6 months older than Gage, she reminds me of the stages coming up so I can be more prepared!LOL
My family made the day very special... They got me out the door early (choir practice before church (I am NOT an early person.) I wore the outfit that Aiden had got for me a few days earlier..it's great having a nineteen year old "dresser". Connor took charge of Gage at church, which makes things so much easier! Elina was so excited to just celbrate Mother's day: she blew me kisses all day, gave me candles, candy bars (almond joys). But she could hardly contain herself when she drug out "the present". They got me a little guitar! It's SO cute. We spent some time online looking up chords. I can now play a C, A, G, and E!!! Pretty good for the C.A.G.E.mom!!!!!
It seems like the whole world is in bloom right now. I'm so thankful for the photo project..I had never looked that closely at rhododendrons until they're in full flower. The buds are quite beautiful! For some reason they make me think of pineapples. Which reminds me that when I go to the bank today I want to show Elina the pineapple plants in the nearby florists...I noticed them a few days ago when she wasn't with me. We don't often get a chance to see one actually growing. In fact I don't remember ever having seen one before myself!

Day Twelve

Ok..so this picture is NOT very good technically but it captured one of those moments in our family that make me love this life so much. Then they brushed their teeth together. I went to a lovely brunch this morning at church with Elina. Then she and Connor walked to the library while Aiden and I listened to music and picked up in the living room. Aiden dropped a stitch in some knitting today and asked me to fix it. I said "do you want me to show you how I'm doing this?" "No...I just want you to fix it for me." She is making a throw. I hope she leaves it out in the communal area so I can slowly usurp it as my own....bwa haaa haa haa haa (evil laugh.) Some parents would be frustrated that she had no desire to be taught how to fix the knitting for herself. But I know that she is capable of figuring it out. And SHE knows that she is capable of figuring it out. I was glad to do it for her and free up her time for what she wanted to do. It turned out that while I worked on the knitting she wrote a LOVELY post at her blog all about ME! How sad if I would have missed reading that because I felt she needed to know something right now.

Day Eleven

Aiden dressed for a date. She is so incredibly beautiful. One of the basic joys of unschooling is staying connected through every age. We talk about all sorts of things.... I can't say here just everything that we talk about. It's private! But you can check out her blog at: http://www.russianseamonster.blogspot.com


Gage "helped" me with the laundry today. First I had to put him on the floor because when he sat up top he would throw everything ELSE onto the floor. Then I had to shut the laundry room door so he wouldn't escape. Luckily there is a window above the dryer I was working at so I could see if anyone was coming that might open the door and knock into him! Tim was at the pool with Elina, and we joined them and let Gage get his little toes wet. It's going to be a hard summer with Elina wanting to be at the pool and Gage not able to go into it.

Day Ten

My boy has such beautiful blue eyes. Here's one of them.

Day Nine

Ok...so I didn't take a picture until I was on my way to bed. More playing around with tripod. It is SO cool!! I was able to take this picture at a shutter speed of 3.2! I was getting shake even with the tripod until I figured out to put it on timer so that my hand wasn't involved at all. I really want a tomato now so that I can redo that seed shot. I think that red might work better at the slow shutter. Because in most of my "snapshots"...it's terrible. Ever try and take a picture of a red rhododenren?
Oh yeah..this is a detail on my favorite rocking chair that I got for 20 bucks once at the D.I.

Day Eight

We met Aiden when she got off work last night and tried on clothes. She had earned an extra discount and for Mother's Day wanted to get me something nice to wear. She was also shopping for an outfit to wear to her best friend's wedding. Elina was in her swimsuit under her clothes wanting to go to the fountain, but she enjoyed trying on clothes (kind of) and Aiden got her a new pair of capris too. Watching her put them on this morning I could tell that having her sister shop with/for her was special. She put on the capris and lovingly stroked them and said "I looooove my new pants...or whatever they're called". Elina has always been very concerned with calling things by the correct name. And correcting others who don't seem as concerned. Me: "Hey Elina, did you like that movie we watched last night?" Elina (looking very harassed): "you mean the DVD"....
We did go to the fountain. We just didn't make it there until 9 pm. But I had said we would go and it's important to me that I follow through on my promises. Important to us. I made sure that she got to the fountain earlier today.
Elina showed me the tomato she was eating "Mom...look at what the seed area looks like when it's whole!" I thought it looked pretty cool, too! I think I could have gotten a better pic at slow shutter speed but when I got the tripod out Elina had already eaten the tomato and it was the last one... she really likes tomatoes!

Day Seven

Gage and I went for a walk last night as the sun was low in the sky. It made everything shimmer and glow. But I had a very hard time getting a photo that captured the magic of it all. This is a frustration I just have to live with when I have a little guy who doesn't want to sit in a stroller or in a sling while Mommy spends time getting things just right. And that's ok. There will be years of time later when I will be able to spend hours if I like setting up a shot. But this time when he is as he is right now is so brief. So he calls me away from the picture I see in my mind and urges me on to the next. I know I won't have time to get that one right either and it's not only OK...it's fantastic!




Then while Aiden was at FHE I took Elina and Gage to the fountain on the Commons. The evening was warm and lovely. As we got there a family was just leaving, but their dog was getting a few last drinks in.

Day Six

It's the sabbath...and I haven't taken any pictures. I've enjoyed my family and my friends. Made chocolate chip cookies and went to an awesome choir practice. Connor came with me...which was very exciting! I love his awesome baritone voice and have always secretly hoped he'd do more singing. A highlight of the afternoon was tickling Gage to savor his delicious laughter.
So it's a good thing I took pictures last night so late that one can technically count for my picture for today. I was playing with what I could do just based on a full spectrum lightbulb I have. I saw this colorful toy of Gage's and thought....'what does HE see when we're playing with this toy together?'

Cinco de Mayo

Spent the morning with Elina and Gage. We looked at all the pets at PetCo. Gage says "oohhhhhh" "oooooooww". He wants to touch the fish. Elina and I were laughing SO hard watching the mice running in their wheels. tumbling head over tail, over and under each other. Then Elina enjoyed some activities at our local Haggan's grocery store. We ate enchiladas and nachos. She did a sketch of me that was quite good. She made a paper sombrero and colored a village on it. She would have spent a lot more time decorating it I think but she could tell that her little brother was getting cranky to go home. She's a wonderful sister and Gage repays her thoughtfulness with lots of loving hugs. He loves us all but he expecially hugs up his Daddy and his Elina.

I really like Aiden's new plant.

Birthday!!!!!

Day Four and Gage is one year old. I can hardly believe it. We had a lovely day visiting with his friend who is 2 weeks older. I got lots of nice pictures of her but not so many of the birthday boy. His bald head is sometimes a bit too reflective! I don't think it would be cool to post public pictures of someone else's child though without their permission! Gage walks now, and on his birthday he finally got the hang of waving at people! Aiden liked this picture...she said he looks like the "captain of his own destiny". There were cows across the road behind him. At one point it poured rain and we had to go under cover. But then the sun came out again and was so warm we had to take our coats off. I just love the crazy spring weather in the North West!

For my every day in May picture I chose this lily that Aiden bought. I picked her up after work and while she ran into the apartment to get different shoes I sat in the car and used the evening sunlight (what was left of it) to take pictures of her new flower. I threw my sweatshirt over the steering wheel as a backdrop. The picture isn't very high in resolution but I still like it.

Day Three

Yesterday we took down the feeder, and today we saw a hummingbird! Finally! It went to Aiden's new fuscia so I hope it still got something and will come again. We will put the feeder up again...just higher than before. I wanted to get a more colorful shot today, but I took a nap and then it's been very overcast. Connor took charge of Gage so I could go out and try and get some of the stormy sky, by it was kind of past the moment. That's the thing with photography. I like this though. They look like they're dancing.

Aiden bought this fuscia last week and then walked all the way home with it at arm's length. "And boy, were her arms tired!" ba dum dum..rim shot!

Day Two

We had to remove this feeder right after I took the photo. He was drinking the sugar water out of the spout like a straw! My sweet little hummingGage.

This project is helping my confidence in my photographic instinct. So far I've liked best one of the very first photos of the day.

This picture was taken in Black and White.

First day of May

I saw an interesting idea on French Toast Girl's blog. Last year she decided to paint every day in May, and she's doing it again this year. I've taken the challenge and will be taking a photograph every day in May. Here is my Day One photo. And yes, it's in color.

We were watching a television show that showed polygamists. In one scene they were making taffy. Elina says "if you want to cook with someone, just take a class."

false start?

I started this blog yesterday, and that first post was almost the last. Today I couldn't for the life of me figure out my account name and password. But using my highly honed problem solving skills I prevailed. Ok...what I did..and it's served me well in this circumstance before is go through the initial steps of creating a new account. Sometimes that holds a clue as to what the constraints of the password are, and that helps to figure out what the password most likely is.
Now....since I have found that kind of thinking to be of such value now and at other times, do I have an obligation to pass that skill on to my children? An interesting thought.
As a courtesy I think I should at least make it available to them...or at least the opportunity to witness such thinking. So I get frustrated that I can't get in...and I share my frustration with them. And I say the things I've tried so far. And then they see me continue to work on the problem after it appears that solutions are exhausted. They hear my jubilent shout! My Eureka moment! They share in the satisfaction of a puzzle solved.
Did I "teach" them a lesson? No. Not really. But I've seen them approach problems that others would walk away from in frustration. A cultivated patience. Thinking outside the box. Would they do that without my example? Maybe. Maybe not. What I do know is that sharing these little moments with them is fun. It's precious. It's where we want to be and it shapes us all.

why the cage?

How many times I've needed to create an account somewhere and put in some simple thing that would easily mean something to me... "MLewis", "MaryLewis", "MaryMath" are a few I've tried. And the dreaded message comes: "We're sorry, that name is not available". Arghhhh. Anyone else know that frustration?
My lovely son Connor got so worn down a few years ago trying to come up with an email address that wasn't already taken that in his frustration he saddled himself with "killer_of_men2001". He was just joking when he typed in "killer_of_men" and he gathered the "2001" portion meant that "killer_of_men" was already taken and he finally gave in. It's still his account to this day.
So....what about the cage? Well, I wanted something that meant something to me. And nothing means more to me than my children (and my husband, of course.) For ten years I had three children and I used Acemom for many things (another name that is usually taken already!) Get it? Aiden, Connor and Elina = ACE mom. Ah! But now we have Gage...what to do?!!?!? Ok...so they're not in order by age anymore but Connor, Aiden, Gage and Elina = CAGE mom!!
Kind of ironic I suppose for a radical unschooler to identify herself as CageMom. But I find it to be a reminder that I get to define things the way I want them. And being Mom to C.A.G. and E. is what my unschooling journey is about. Without them I wouldn't BE unschooling! So CageMom it is. And it's the bestest, most beautiful cage ever.