Wedding Weekend Part 2....

So yes, the mountain air was chilly. And sweet and clear and moist. Wonderful to breathe. G'ma Carol snatched Oliver up and Cora started playing with Mary Grace. We stayed until dark and Cora played tag and hide and seek with flashlights in the dark. I reunited with some dear friends. None of us could sleep that night--we were too keyed up. Cora was awake until 11:30, much to our dismay.

After Friday's rain, Saturday morning came with a clear blue sky and a light breeze. Perfect weather. It reminded me of my second season at Omega when a group of Peruvian shamans came for their first workshop in the United States. The day before they arrived, a huge storm hit the campus. It raged into the night and we all had to sleep in one of the meeting halls for safety. Some large trees fell in the wind and it felt like we were in a hurricane or a tornado. The next morning, the sky was brilliant and the campus felt like it had been scrubbed clean by the storm. Then the shamans arrived. It's impossible to say for sure, but it felt like a supernatural storm, and these were supernatural voyagers. Perhaps they wanted to clear the energy before their arrival. It certainly felt that way. And perhaps someone was smiling on Anne and Nathan too, clearing the space for their ceremony.

Wedding Weekend Part 1...

Due to the epic nature of any road trip with children, this post will be written in several installments. Pictures will be coming soon. We neglected to take any of our own because we were having too much fun.

Rain greeted us Friday morning as we packed the car for the trip to Asheville. It intensified as the day progressed, buffeting the car on the highway and limiting visibility to ten feet at times. Tractor trailers in front of us kicked up plumes of spray that swallowed our car in a misty fog. Not a good omen for an outdoor wedding weekend.

The rain followed us sporadically all the way there. Whenever Cora needed to pee the rain would miraculously stop. Once we got back on the highway again the deluge resumed. This happened probably three times, and Cora found it quite amusing.

After almost seven hours in the car we pulled into Deerfields with the rain still coming down. But there is something so peaceful about the North Carolina mountains that rain seems more of an embellishment than a nuisance. As we left the paved road for the single lane dirt road into Deerfields I felt like I was in familiar territory. The little road led up to a lake flanked by two log cabins and ringed on one side with a white gravel drive. We unpacked the kids and joined the fray of wedding preparations. The rain continued to fall and water poured in rivulets from the unguttered cabin porch roof. The mountain air was chilly.

Road Trip coming up

on his own....just making sure
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

We're preparing for a grand weekend road trip to Asheville, North Carolina, for Anne and Nathan's wedding. We went by the library today and stocked up on CD books for the drive.

Ollie's New Shoes

Today Oliver and I (Kate) took a trip to Stride Rite to get him some new sandals for summer. On our last trip there, we bought him his first pair of shoes, insanely overpriced (I mean, these things cost more than MY shoes, for pete's sake!) but assured to aid him in his newest hobby, walking. The saleslady measured his feet on that first trip, and proclaimed him to be a size 5XW (the XW standing for extra wide). Well, his extra wide feet have worn those sneaks down, and now that summer is here, his piggies need to breathe a bit. So today, on our return trip, he again stepped on that cold metal scale I remember so well from my trips to the shoe store as a kid. Now he's a 5 and a half 2W, which, the saleslady interpreted, is one size WIDER than the XW! So his feet are only getting WIDER! I must admit, their resemblance to fat, juicy sausages is quite remarkable. Then she said to me, "They usually outgrow this (the wide-footedness) by the time they're 3 or 4. And if not, then you're really screwed." How reassuring. I assume she means we will be forced to continue to pay through the nose for these "special" shoes until he slims down. Don't worry, though -- we won't be putting him on a diet anytime soon. His fat feet are worth the extra expense....

Happy May

Happy May 1st to everyone. This marks Cora's last month of school and her last year at Abintra Montessori School. She has been there full time since she was two years old. It's hard to believe she is fast approaching five already. She practically spilled her cereal at breakfast when we told her she will be five in two months.

We went to a spaghetti dinner/fundraiser at the school we hope Cora will attend next year. It is a public school near us that uses an approach called Paideia. Kate has visited several times and I had my first experience there at the spaghetti dinner. The school reminds us both of our own elementary schools, back in those golden years, oh so long ago. The teachers are enthusiastic and all the parents rave about the school. Cora is 8th on the waitlist now and it looks likely that she will get in before the school year starts.

Unk!

Dan and Cora
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

Uncle Dan was in town for the weekend from California, and he was treated as visiting royalty. Cora ate him up, and Oliver acted like Dan was an old pal.

Both kids seem to have an intuitive feeling for family members, even ones they haven't seen in a long time. Oliver was only a couple months old the last time Dan was here, so it was reasonable to assume it might take a little while for Ollie to warm up to Dan. Dan came right in the door and snatched Ollie up, and Oliver never missed a beat. He was ready to see Unk as if Dan hadn't been in California all this time. Both kids loved having him here, and we did too.

Lizard attack

A friend of mine posted this clip on her website. A local anchorman at a news station is doing an animal segment when a lizard decides to jump him. His reaction is priceless. Best viewed with the volume up and friends to share the laughter with.

The Parade

The parade that Kate is helping organize is picking up steam. See the webpage here. Kate's organizing partner is Ms. Booty Homemaker. Stay tuned...

On another note, Sarah got some good press in a Nashville weekly--a review of her new EP and plug for this weekend's show. Go girl!

These days

mom and 'em
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

A snapshot of the kids these days:

Cora has been on a growing jag lately. We have a growth chart of pencil marks on the kitchen wall, and she has been excited to see her progress. Her legs look like skinny girl legs now with no remnants of baby fat.

Oliver, on the other hand, waddles around like a Hobbit. His growth spurt hasn't come yet evidently. He has six teeth and we've been waiting on the next round for several weeks.

Cora has really been enjoying books on tape in the car. On our way to school and basically any time she's in the car we've been listening to the Little House on the Prairie books. We're listening to "On the Banks of Plum Creek" right now. The books have sucked us all in, and Kate and I often sneak in extra listening time when Cora's not in the car and then rewind when she is ready to listen again.

Cora's imagination has also been very active. I imagine it's related to the stories but it's impossible to say for sure. She's afraid of the dark and we check her closet several times before bedtime. Normal kid stuff. I remember thinking that someone was coming up behind me on the stairs at our house. And I was probably thirteen at the time.

Cora painted a beautiful flower with watercolors last week. I had never seen her draw a flower and then she cranks out a beautiful picture. It's amazing how fast things develop sometimes.

Our neighbors have a new puppy named Abigail--a golden labrador mix. She's only a few months old, and Cora loves her. Abigail is still learning not to bite, so Cora hasn't been over the fence to play with her much. But she stands at the fence and watches Abigail play. Cora also talks to our neighbors and yard hops in the afternoon when they're outside.

The garden is looking great and we've already harvested green onions and radishes and enjoyed some mustard greens that we thinned out. G'ma Sally is the primary gardener but Kate has been out there a lot too with the great weather.

Oliver loves being outside--he explores all over the place, swinging his arms, exclaiming merrily, pointing at airplanes and birds.

Big weekend

yellow flag
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

We had a big time Easter weekend, with lots of family time and sugar consumption. We went to Cheekwood for their annual Easter egg hunt. It was our first time there for the hunt and didn't really know what to expect. It turns out they have "hunts" in several places throughout the day. They have truckloads of easter eggs. A Cheekwood employee threw out the eggs on the ground in an open field with cut grass. So there was no "hunt"--the eggs just sat there. The kids were held at the starting line and then set loose to swarm over the grass and snatch up the eggs. It was wild. Cora had a blast.
We closed out the weekend with a nice dinner at the grandparent's house, enjoying the breeze on the deck and the absence of mosquitoes. They'll be here soon I'm sure.

This weekend should be fun as Uncle Dan (Mark's brother)is visiting from California and Sarah plays a show in town.

Love to everyone!

Easter Bunny Humor

Easter and spring are here

swinging
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

It's Easter weekend, which means Daddy doesn't have to work on Saturday, among other things. We haven't cranked up too many Easter traditions yet, but I think we'll dye some eggs this year.

It was in the upper 80s today and the trees are pushing out leaves as fast as they can to soak up the sun. Just two weeks ago there was frost on the deck in the mornings.

I took my bike in to get tuned up at the shop today. With gas at $3/gallon this summer (and maybe for the foreseeable future) it is time to explore alternative means of travel. It's only seven miles from our door to my work, but there are some treacherous stretches along the way. Tennessee drivers are not really used to sharing the road--even with other cars--so I will be taking some back ways or using the bus. Or driving, after I get home once with my skin intact and swear I'll never do that again.

Ollie's new motto

Ollie's new motto
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

Anne and Grandma Carol were in town this weekend for Anne's bridal shower.

Grandma brought Oliver a great new shirt. He seems relieved that we finally understand his needs.

We're Okay!

Kate here. We've had a bit of nasty weather in these parts, as you may have heard on the news. Tornadoes passed quite near Nashville and did a fair amount of damage in some outlying suburbs, but thankfully, we didn't find ourselves in their path of destruction. Anne, Grandma Carol, Cora, Ollie and I were actually at the mall, of all places, completely oblivious of the tornado warning. We were on the upper level, en route to a store, when I happened to look down and see a man with a walkie-talkie motioning to us. He was some kind of mall security person, and was busily herding all the shoppers into an enclave of sorts under a large stairway and away from the massive skylit ceiling nearby. So there we went and there we sat, for about ten minutes or so, crammed in with a bunch of strangers on cell phones. Cora was pretty freaked out (I was too, but I had to pretend that I wasn't), but seemed to understand that we were in a safe place. Then, the walkie-talkie man said everything was clear and let us go. So what did we do? We kept shopping!

On a side note, I took Cora to an art class today at a local botanical garden and overheard a woman talking with the art teacher about the tornadoes. She actually said, "I mean, I keep thinking they'll find a way to control the weather," as if it's unbelievable that they haven't already. That's the last thing we need -- George Bush deciding, God-like, who gets the tornadoes, the wild fires, the hurricanes. Hmmm...Katrina...maybe they've already figured it out...

busy busy

wading feet
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in the momentum of things and forget to stop and take a breath. We've been in that mode lately.

Things are picking up for all of us. Kate just started a part-time job from home editing the website of an online high school, Compuhigh. That is keeping her busy, along with her growing involvement with local activists here. She is organizing a Mothers Day peace rally along with another local woman in conjunction with an organization called Mothers Acting Up. The ball started rolling when Kate met with Medea Benjamin from Codepink and momentum has continued from there.

I'm working on edits for my second manuscript and will have them finished by Monday the 10th (Hallelujah Praise the Lord). In July I'll be teaching a course in Myofascial Release along with my other duties.

Cora is eagerly anticipating her spring break next week. She loves school, but the five day week can be a grind.

Oliver is doing great--no major milestones; he just stays busy eating food and growing teeth.

We went to the park on Monday and enjoyed the spring warmth. Oliver and Cora waded in the frigid creek.

Phew....

I hit "send" this morning on the second of two manuscripts. Ahh...relief. I've been hoarding my words lately.

We're all passing around a springtime cold. Cora brought it home from school and it has slowly infested the house and our sinuses.

Our hermit crab Hermie has a new roommate--another hermit crab named Abigail. Abigail is the third in a procession of now-dead Hermie roommates: Clancy and Clancy Junior never survived more than a week.

Mommy Blogger!

Hello, Kate here. It's about time I added a few of my own words to the blog, especially because Brian is so busy with his own writing these days. Cora is home sick today. She woke up three times last night, congested and delirious, looking for tissues. This morning she put on her most pitiful sick-kid face, coughed a few times, and asked very sweetly if she could stay home from school today. Even though she was laying it on a bit heavy ("My throat hurts, my eyes are watering, I've got a tummyache..."), it was obvious that she really was sick, so we agreed to let her stay home. She got this look on her face, like she was trying to maintain her pitifulness despite being overjoyed to be allowed to miss school. I remember putting on that face myself as a kid...

Fresh air

We went to the park yesterday and enjoyed the warm weather. We've all been a little stressed so it was nice to get out.

cora and ollie

cora and ollie
Originally uploaded by Wingates.

pics from the park...

Shoe Relocation Program

Kate fell prey to one of Oliver's abiding interests this morning--shoe relocation. He likes to walk around the house with a shoe in his hand. The problem is that he manages to leave the shoe in an obscure spot that takes extreme searching to locate.

His other passion is toilets. Two mornings ago Cora used the bathroom and forgot to close the door behind her. A few minutes later, as I was preparing breakfast, I heard some splashing in the bathroom. I discovered Oliver playing happily at the toilet. He had dropped a shampoo bottle in the bowl and was stirring it in Cora's pee. When he saw me, he of course said "nuh nuh nuh."

Springtime is here and the kids have been playing outside. The Bradford pears are blooming and the daffodils are blooming. It's too early for mosquitoes, so it really is one of the nicest times of the year. G'ma Sally and Kate got the spring garden started and the radishes are already sprouting.