Ideas Flow

I'm super lucky to have a kid who is super flexible about allowing his mama's ideas to flow...even if they're flowing all over him.

Today my mom and her lovely boyfriend came over for a late Christmas celebration. As was the tradition each year when I was a kid, my mom brought out all sorts of ornament making supplies. Everyone sat down and diligently began creating ornaments.  Me?  Well, while I did not make an ornament, I did let my creativity flow.

I clipped sparkly bits in my little guy's hair. Then I stuck golden squares to his cheeks to create "freckles". Then I hung beads around his neck. Then I put a sparkly choker around his forehead.

I'm thankful for fun family events and for my awesomely flexible kid.


This painting is also an ideas flow kind of thing. I just did random strokes, then stared at it for a bit until things simply managed to appear. Such fun!

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The Journey

I save critters.  A lot of them.  Everything from ants to cockroaches (yes, but only a few) to baby squirrels, to baby possums, to cats and dogs.  I'm a bit of an Ellie Mae Clampett.  I like that about me.

The other day when I was driving through Zilker Park I spied a turtle on the side of the road.  I had a few thoughts go through my head, and they went like this:


"Oh, little turtle, don't try to cross the street."

"Oh, gee, if I stop I'll be super late to where I'm going."

"You're going to hate yourself if you don't go back."

"OK, OK, I'm looping around."


All that dialogue took about ten seconds and I was to the spot where I could loop around.  And I did.  I pulled past the turtle, got out of my car, and walked back to where it was...exactly where I'd seen it.  I was hopeful as I approached, but as I got to it it was clear that it had already been mortally wounded, long before I'd first passed.

As it was positioned just a foot or so off of the road I decided that being right near the road while cars zoomed past while baking in the heat was just too awful.  I picked this beautiful creature up and carried it down to a quiet spot near some water.  It was already dead so perhaps there was no point, but I told the red slider what a lovely creature it was and wished it well on its journey. 

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I Done Got Hip Checked

I got hip checked today.


Little guy:  "Hey mom, have you heard this song before?"

Me:  "No.  I like it."

Little guy:  "Here, I'll play you some more of their songs."

Me:  "You're the reason I'm so hip.  You keep me current."

Little guy:  "You're not hip. And don't say 'hip'."


..and I suppose his honesty would hurt if it were the slightest bit true.  Good thing it's so totally not!

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Overprotective...Me?

Found out it's never too late to learn...about myself, that is.  I've got "help with homework" duty every weeknight from 5:00 - 7:00, and last night I ended up reading an article that was totally about me and my parenting style.  Most of our style these days, in fact.  I'm not one to like fitting into any sort of cliché sort of thing, particularly when it was a style that the author thought was ultimately a bit damaging, albeit widespread, but that's kind of how it went.

What was it?  It was overprotective parenting and its effects on the kiddos.  When I was a kid I was pretty much of a homebody, but I was always allowed to be out and around if I got the gumption up.  And when I did I'd disappear for hours on end.  I'd be at the creek down the hill getting filthy, being too scared to pick up crawdads, loving playing with all the frogs I found, and often not returning home until my mom went outside, stood in the street, and banged a gong until I got home.  Embarrassing much?  Uh, you bet!

My own kids got to explore creeks, too, but I was always there.  They picked up crawdads and frogs, but I'd make them wash up right quick.  They could go places, but I had to always know where they were, and once they entered sixth grade and got cell phones, I'd expect them to pick up if I called them. 

I felt guilty at first after reading the homework article and went to my "go to" excuse of "well, something could have happened to them!"  And as I experienced having two men (strangers) pull up next to me as I was walking home from elementary school and demand that I get in the car with them, and I had the good sense to run as fast as I could to the nearest house and bang on the door for help, I know sometimes things do happen to kids.

So...I think I need to take my kids out this weekend, drop them off at a sweet little creek, confiscate their phones, and insist that they get covered in mud and touch and set free at least five critters each.

...oops, I think I just got controlling again.

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