summer 'beries

We are off to the library where I will inevitably pick up some fresh Newberies (I took a break for a month or so, but I'm ready to jump back in.) So, in the mean time, some reviews:

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse (1998)

A gut-wrenching story of 14-year-old Billy Jo growing up in the middle of the Oklahoma dust bowl. As if that weren't hard enough, Billy Jo, her mother, and unborn brother suffer through a terrible, maiming, guilt-riddled accident that permanently alters the course of our heroine's life. Told through a series of free verse poetry, the book never dips into sentimentality, but simply and elegantly crafts the standard tale of hope triumphing when it seems that all hope is lost. But this time there is nothing standard about it. I would love to read more by this author.

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (2002)


The first Newberry winner about Korea! Woot woot! Sadly, not a super awesome one but still pretty solid. Just like a kimchified version of Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze but not quite as funny, despite it's more recent publication date. A young orphan becomes an apprentice to a grumpy vase maker and hopes to one day get the chance to design his own masterpiece. Kind of bugged that the author used names like "Crane Man" and "Tree Ear" for her characters instead of their traditional Korean names. Smacks of orientalism, which is weird since the author is herself Korean. We do have one of her picture books, however - Bee-Bim Bop! - and it rules the school.

Criss Cross by Lynn Rae Perkins (2006)


I had a love/hate relationship with this book. I loved the characters - they were quirky and funny and were an achingly sweet reminder of early adoloscence. I loved the dreamy, contemplative tone of the book - it really seemed to capture the essence of the self-absorbed, universe-expanding ruminations of a thirteen-year-old. Now that I think about it, I really did like this book quite a bit so maybe "hate" is a strong word to voice my objections. I just really have a thing about gimmicky literary techniques and this book is FULL of them. A whole chapter written in haiku, another written in a question-answer format; cutsie little hand-drawn illustrations scrawled in the margins. Seemed a little try-hard and little late to the post-modern party. But now that I think about it, this is exactly the kind of thing a tweenie reader would get a kick out of. And while it is geared toward an older audience - the main characters are 14 - it is honest, thought-provoking, and beautifully written. With the wealth of trashy tween books out there that hightlight cliques and crushes and vampires, Criss Cross stands out as an example of what these kids could be reading instead.




Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byars (1971)

I don't particularly care for this brand of 70s book. Seriously, did you see the cover? Don't these kinds of books give you the creeps like they do me? Maybe it's just because I have such a Pavlovian response to The Bridge to Terabithia, and this book is cut from the same cloth. I just hate the descriptions of the hair, the clothes, the sneakers, the cars, the TV shows... I can almost see it with the same grainy sepia quality that all movies from the 70s are steeped in. This book just felt like a made-for-TV movie or after school special. Teen Sara is the middle child between a gorgeous older sister (of course) and a mentally handicapped younger brother (okay, I didn't see that one coming, but I applaud Byars' taking it to the next level!) She hates her gawky body (no!), doesn't know how to talk to boys (suprise!), she resents her parents' divorce (shocker), and lives with her surly aunt? grandma? Whatever. The book covers one day in Sara's life - a day that her little brother wanders off to find the swans nesting on the lake for the summer and doesn't return. By the end of the book, the brother is found and Sara learns to care about someone other than herself. The book ends as she departs for a party at a boy's house. Mission accomplished!




Smoky, the Cowhorse by Will James (1927)

While the title of the book provided plenty of laughs, the book itself did not so much. At first, I was astonished at how boring it was. And then I was astonished at how depressing it was. Though the book does gain some significant street cred when you learn that Will James was an actual real-life cowboy in his youth. And then it loses some when you learn that his real name is Earnest DuFault and that he is Canadian. Oh well. Easy come, easy go!

school's out!

Hooray! School officially ended last Friday and I am so excited to spend this summer with my kiddos. They all seem big enough to really do things with and, if we have another little one, this will be the last summer like this for a few years. The kids are pretty excited, too. They have cooked up all sorts of plans - craft projects and science experiments and campouts and recipes to try. Should be fun.

They even said they wanted to do some sort of homeschool-y type thing with me (their idea, not mine, I assure you!) so I have an elaborate plan in the works that should take shape by the end of the week. I'll post more on that later. Or, if it's a total flop, I will never post about it and we will pretend this paragraph never existed.

In the spirit of all this excitement, we decided to throw a little "block party" on our cul de sac for all the neighborhood kids on the last day of school. Nothing big - we had popcorn and popsicles and lemonade, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, and a water balloon fight. I have to say, it was pretty awesome and a perfect way to usher in summer. We cranked some summer tunes (Bob Marley) and let the kids eat their way through 5 boxes of popsicles while running around like maniacs.

I have now earned my Mother of the Year patch and can now be a total slacker mom for the rest of the summer. Go watch some TV, kids!

Eleanor and friends cooling off in the back of the van, post-water balloon fight.

Sam and buddy, Gabe. They wear their goggles everywhere.


Eleanor and neighbor/friend K munching on popcorn

Eve demonstrating how pipe cleaner bubble blowers rule the school. They work way better than the ones that come in the bottle. So easy to make, too.


And when the party started to die down and the heat got to be too much, what did the big kids do? They did what all hot-blooded American youth would do! They came in to play chess and Legos.

My one over-achievement, but they are so cute I had to post a picture. I made little party favors shaped like rockets - they say "Have a blast this summer!"

I'll admit, putting this together did take some effort and it would have been easier not to. But it was so worth it when Eve pulled me aside and gave me a sticky popsicle hug and said, "Thanks for throwing this party, Mom." Rare words from my undemonstrative eldest! And then when Eleanor ran up to me, soaking wet from water balloons and beaming from ear to ear, saying "This is the best party ever!" I hope it's a good omen of the happy weeks to come.

memorial day fun

This year we made our annual Memorial Day pilgrimage to MacGregor Park, a fun spot right along the Rogue River. It has a cool nature walk right next to the water, an interesting interpretive center, and a killer playground. And it is about 40 minutes away, so it feels "trippy" without having to drive too far. A perfect combination!

Sam was recently hired by the coast guard.

A bird's nest

We ended with a stop by Sonic for some happy hour slushies. They were well-received.





And then a BBQ with friends.

A really great Memorial Day weekend and such a fun way to kick off the summer. Now I just need the weather to get the message....

on raising a feminist

A few days ago I installed some new hardware in the kids bathroom (which is looking great, by the way - I should post some pics!) I used Jared's drill, which Sam found extremely impressive.

Sam: "When I grow up, I am going to be a mommy and use tools."

Possibly my proudest parenting moment. *sniff sniff* Next he will be reading Margaret Atwood.

a texas-shaped hole in my heart

My dear friend Aimee moved last week and it has been a major bummer. I have handled my funk by vascillating wildly between extreme busy-ness (organize closets! Paint bathrooms!) and extreme lethargy. I pretty much either want to be so busy I can't think about how sad I am, or asleep. Our little town has had such a rough time with the economic crisis and, one by one, I have seen too many friends pack up and leave Medford. This move was just almost too much to handle.

But it has been a week now and I am feeling better. Better enough to blog, at least! And while I miss my friend, I realize that this is a great thing for her family and I am so very happy and excited for them.

I also realize that just because you don't live next door to someone doesn't mean they aren't your friend anymore. I have tons of friends! They just happen to live in Texas and Washington and Maryland and Virginia and Kansas and Utah and Arizona and all over the place. I love and miss all of you wonderful friends!

So in honor of my friend Aimee and of my own turning point today, I would like to post 10 Fun Facts about Texas. Hopefully some of these facts will fill that Texas-shaped hole in my heart. (It really IS the biggest state! Ouch!)

Ten Reasons Why Texas Is Awesome

1. The armadillo is the state mammal.
   




2. The first word spoken from the moon on July 20, 1969 was "Houston."
   




3. King Ranch in Kingsville, Texas is larger than the entire state of Rhode Island.
   




4. Dr Pepper was invented in Waco, Texas in 1885.
   




5. Even their state capitol building is the biggest! It is 8 ft taller than the U.S. Capitol building. And it's kind of fruity looking.








6. In Texas, it is still a "hanging offense" to steal cattle. (Also illegal: putting graffiti on someone else's cattle. Hopefully not a hanging offense.)
   




7. It is also against the law to shoot a buffalo from the second story of a hotel window.
   




8. The Mars plant in Waco Texas produces 75% of the world's Snickers bars.
   




9. Rodeo is the official state sport.
   




10. Texas was an independent nation fron 1836 - 1845. Surprised, no?
    

Mostly, Texas is awesome because my friend Aimee lives there. Do you know any more fun facts? Feel free to share!

how-to: friend moving away edition

A general how-to if you find out your dear, sweet, wonderful friend who was supposed to move to Houston in June is now moving in less than two weeks:

1. Cry your sad little eyes out.

2. Glare in the general direction of Texas.

3. Eat some chocolate.

4. Sigh gustily, pick yourself up out of your sulk, and acknowledge that this is really what is best for your friend.

5. Offer to watch her kids every waking minute of the next 10 days so she can get packed.

6. Tell your friend you love her dearly and will miss her so much it will hurt, but you are so happy her family will all be back together again. And ask her please not to wait too long before she visits.

Love you, Aimee!

easter fun

Good times yesterday! We had a super Easter. Just the usual stuff, but it seemed extra fun this year.

We dyed eggs Saturday night, of course:

Sam tried to ...surprise!... eat the eggs. While still in the shell. I asked him after I took this picture what he thought was inside. "Chocyate," he whispered back, all reverently. No wonder he thought this was the most incredible activity ever! After I enlightened him by peeling an egg, he was still pretty into it and started calling himself "the egg controller." He gave himself the job of arranging the eggs in the carton after they had dried. I can't blame him - there is something so magical about handling those rainbow eggs.

Next morning, we had a candy hunt:

Don't you love the curlers? Their hair looked pretty darn cute after I took them out. Sadly, no pics. I even made them cutsie little tulle-rosette headbands and still didn't take a picture! I had to leave early for meetings before church and peeled out of there pretty fast.

I will admit that I was annoyed at having meetings on Easter Sunday, but it all turned out pretty great and was one of the best Easter services I've ever been to. In fact, all three hours of church were really amazing. How often can you say that?

After church, our friends came over to share Easter dinner with us. It was so nice, in the absence of any family in the area, to spend the evening with people we love and that have become our family here in Medford. So glad the kids can have substitute cousins to play with!

And Eleanor dressed up like the Easter bunny:

We always do these scripture eggs the week before Easter. And, while there was the usual wrangling and noise, this was the first year the kids - the girls, especially - really got into the story and understood it. It was really cool to answer their questions and see their little testimonies germinate. So glad all that Primary tuition isn't going to waste!