Girl Power

Yesterday was the culmination of a two-month project. I (yes, me) had volunteered (I need to stop) to oversee a table at Codman Fair for the Girl Scouts. I thought it would be wonderful to have the girls create bracelets to sell. My plan was to gather girls regardless of grade level and interact with each other as oppose to having to do an activity within their troop. Great premise and equally great results. I was proud of their achievements and the bracelets were selling furiously. Some scouts were sadden when their bracelets sold before they had a chance to buy it. But all were pleased that they sold.

Here are some pictures of the bracelets.

Evidence

Of Tomatoes and Eris

Two things.

Forget about the zucchini as of my previous post. The tomatoes are taking over. Cherry tomatoes and Romas are everywhere. Who has a good tomato sauce recipe?

2003 UB313 is now a planet. They kicked out Pluto and upgraded 2003 UB313 to a planet. Eris they call it. Eris the goddess of chaos and strife. Sigh. Couldn't they name it after the goddess of peace and harmony? How about Bacchus, god of wine and partying? Or Minerva, goddess of wisdom? How about Vesta, goddess of hearth and home? Or Vulcan, god of smithing? Star Trek, anyone?

The Zucchini Invasion

Colin is away. He's the zucchini gatherer. So it is up to me to keep them corralled, keep them from growing into Jurassic Park behemoths. As I free myself from the fuzzy elephantine leaves to cut (yet another) zuke, I can't help but see the parallel between my life and the zucchini.

Colin built our kitchen garden about three and half years ago. He designed it just so with the garden beds just so and the pathway just so. It is a beautiful garden and I'm so proud of him. We planted many kinds of vegetables: green beans, eggplants, peppers, heirloom tomatoes, and zucchini. I love zucchini but... They are out of control. The moment I harvest one I know that there's another growing. Inch by inch during the day. It could be about 5 inches long in the morning but at the end of the day it will be twice as long.

The parallel. When I scheduled the girls' activities and wrote in my calendar, the words were harmless scratching. Reality, however, is another matter. Monday, I picked the girls up at the bus stop, drove to ballet, practically throwing snacks to the backseat and put Emma's beautiful hair in a bun. Tuesday, I picked the girls up from school, drove to piano lesson with me throwing the snacks to the backseat then an hour later drive back to school, park so that Lauren can change into her soccer gear and drop her off then drove home with Emma. Luckily one of the coaches lives next to us and dropped her home. Today, my neighbor convinced me that running is good for you and I pathetically ran with her. Now my body is sore (but a good sore). But the day is not done yet. I have 20-something girl scouts showing up for a jewelry class, Lauren to drive across town for piano lessons and dinner to conjure up. As soon as I'm done with one activity there is another to attend to. Just like the zucchini. A bit overwhelming.

There are glimmers of hope. I have, at the moment, 2 gargantuan zucchini. They are destined to become breads and cakes. I just have to think that all these activities will end at the end of the day and the girls will benefit from it. I do enjoy watching them do their lessons and practices. Colin will be coming home tomorrow and he could gather the zucchini, too.

Top Ten

Back to school. Sigh. Part of me is celebrating. True, I now have more alone time: alone time with the laundry, alone time with vacuuming, alone time with reading (the bills) and so forth. No, I'm definitely not celebrating that. I'm celebrating the fact that Lauren and Emma have new bookbags, cute pants, pretty shirts and new pencils. They are happy to go back to school, to see their friends and meet their new teachers. I'm celebrating that.

The other part of me is sad. Our summer is now finished. We loved our summer. This Summer.

Here's our Top Ten Summer Favorites:
10. Swimming lessons at Codman Pool with the lifeguards
9. Sleeping late at night and sleeping in late in the morning
8. Snorkling in Turks and Caicos (or in Emma's case, riding on the boogie board)
7. Reading Harry Potter Books 1 to 6 (over and over and over again)
6. Waking up in the cold morning in Yellowstone and starting the campfire
5. Being on the beach with no other people - just us
4. Hiking in the Geyser Basin (Upper, Mid and Lower)
3. Playing a four-man card game with six and sometimes 7 people
2. Eating dinner by campfire
1. Soaking in the Boiling River even with the Danger Sign posted by it

Honorable Mentions:
A. Swimming in the warm ocean in Turks and Caicos
B. Swimming in the warm pool after we got tired swimming in the warm ocean
C. Finding buffaloes in the picnic area so we had to find another table
D. Making up silly stories that got more weird as it got passed to the next person

Lauren and The Crocodile Hunter

Lauren lost her hero today. She admired Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter. When she discovered Animal Planet awhile ago, she zeroed on his show. (Truthfully, I was relieved that she was watching a show about animals than cartoons.) He and his show sparked such a fire in her. She was already deeply interested in animals. She can remember minute details about snakes and crocodiles and can spout facts from books by heart. In Steve Irwin she found someone else as passionate about animals.

When we took six weeks last winter to travel to Asia, we decided to do a detour to Brisbane, Australia. As we drove up the coast, Lauren marveled at the many billboards of Australia Zoo and Steve Irwin along the highway. She counted the hours until we can visit the Zoo. Finally on her birthday, we drove to Australia Zoo. She knew the names of the turtles and the crocodiles. She told us stories from the show about those animals. We patiently waited for the crocodile show in the Crocoseum in the hot sun not even guaranteeing that Steve Irwin will be there. But he was. Lauren's face was full of awe, excitement and disbelief. There he was talking about crocodiles and she was in the edge of her seat. She was seeing her hero in person. What a treat!

He is a hero to Lauren. She will miss him.