Forts

When I was growing up, our greatest quest was to build the ultimate fort. We spent hours and hours exploring, building, searching, starting over, etc. We lived in Colorado, so we spent the winter time trying to build an igloo-type fort, and the summer time tyring to build a regular fort. We never had use of any materials besides what we found in our woods. This proved rather challenging as the pine straw we used for our roof never really held for long. We never achieved that ultimate fort, but sure had a lot of fun trying.



My kids are now in this fort-building stage. They want something that is just theirs. Something they created, that is not part of the house. They started with a bunch of old chairs, blankets, sheets, rubber bands, etc. and had it all set up in the garage/basement. This lasted until we needed the various blankets for guests. They were craving something more permanent. Sophie got a HUGE tarp for Valentine's Day with the intent that it would be the perfect start to their own fort. With a little help from The Daring Book For Girls and A Kids' Guide to Building Forts, they were on their way.



Alex and Sophie with Tools of the Trade

I held back once again from trying to make sure they did everything perfect. This has been my m.o., and I'm trying desperately to change. I did fairly well and just gave my opinion as to what structure I thought would work best, as well as a list of materials and supplies they might want to gather before heading out to their chosen spot in the woods. They wanted me to check out their progress, but I decided to wait until they were completely happy with what the had created before I took a look-see.

Alex and Ella in Fort
Sophie, Ella and Rosie in Fort


They did an amazing job. I am so glad I didn't stick my nose in. This is the fort I always dreamed of as a kid...and they did it, by themselves. I hope this fort brings them many days of joy and autonomy, togetherness and satisfaction.

Sophie in the Lookout Tower
Ella in the Lookout Tower

Blogging Rut and Madeline's Tag

I have been in a serious blogging rut. Several big things have happened in our lives, but none which I can truly write about in a public forum. I don't know what to do with that...so I haven't written because writing about anything other than these things feels trivial in comparison. Sigh.

Madeline tagged me so I am coming out of rut-dome to write some things about a friend. What friend? I am really perplexed. I hold myself very close and don't always let people in to my inner sanctum. I have many friends, but very few who I love, trust, and to whom I feel really close.

The rules:(1) Link to the person that tagged you.(2) Post the rules on your blog.(3) Share six things you love about a friend, doesn’t have to be the same friend who wrote about you, really!(4) Tag other random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.


John: Because he is my one true love, and my very best friend
1. I love that John laughs at my jokes.
2. I love that John tries to give me everything.
3. I love John's passion for good food.
4. I love that John lives his truth and is not afraid to be who he really is, all the time.
5. I love that John doesn't let me get too self-absorbed.
6. I love that John will listen to me ad-nauseum when I need to talk...and I need to talk A LOT!


I'm going to tag Gail and Jesse and Gillen.

Computer Trouble and Rich Lives

We have been having some computer issues, so I have not felt like blogging. It is a real hassle...the cursor randomly stops responding and shoots up to the upper right corner of the screen, the screen simply blacks out, etc. So frustrating! Other than that, our lives have been fabulously rich lately.

John just received a promotion at work. This will definitley change the flow of our lives, but will set us up in a more secure financial position. It will also allow us to realize some of the aspirations on our vision/passion board.

The kids have started the "out-and-about" cycle...but I'm finding it easier than in the past. Alex, Sophie, and Max have been taking a "Potions and Concoctions" class through the Creative Discovery Museum. They absolutely love it. While they are there, Ella and I go across the street to see a movie...a regular, not $1 movie...pretty exciting stuff. We saw Hannah Montana last week. Max has also started a gymnastics class. He loves it and is thriving in that environment. In addition, we found out last week that one of his friends from class is not only a homeschooler, but we share a mutual friend in Madeline! How cool is that? They're coming over to hang out next week. Max can't wait. Sophie and Ella are taking a cheerleading class at the rec center, and Alex continues attending meetings for the Teen Advisory Board at the library. His task this month is advertising, so he's coming up with all the places he wants to hang flyers. Alex has also discovered his love of cookbooks. He has been taking them to bed and deciding what recipes he wants to try. He made a delicious honey orange chicken the other night, and can't wait to try more.

I have just been going along for the ride. I love seeing the sparks fly when the kids are actively pursuing their passions. Even though it seems like we are doing more than humanly possible, we actually still have inordinate amounts of down time at home. This time is filled with lots of bionicles, gamecube, xbox, DS-ing nintendogs and animal crossing, movies, favorite tv shows, and trying to train the dogs with the new invisible fence.

I have been working on my own stuff as well, but will save that for a future blog!