The bookmaker

I love how kids' fires burn so brightly that they can't be bothered to stop, even to do their bizness :) Right after we returned, P was pumped to participate in "Reading with...Ixe." Its an awesome premise, bringing older homeschooled kids in (to the Mulberry Street Library - P's Fave!!!) to read to other homeschoolers. Then there's a craft, cleverly inspired by the book. This craft was bookmaking itself, and the little man loved it.

Loved it so much, in fact, that after writing his book (titled "The BB Pencil") at the library, he made about half a dozen more books during the following week. There was "The Mole Hole" (which he is illustrating in the pic above :) and "Phoenix's Trip," amongst others (that I'm too tired to remember right now...) I need to take some photos of the books and post them for posterity's sake. Initially, he was completely intimidated by the concept that he was supposed to write or illustrate something, and therefore merely dictated "The BB Pencil." Within a few days, he was feeling more comfortable with his newly chosen medium and practically pumped them out. My personal favorite featured an egg hatching and a cat (Danda) chasing the newly hatched chick. To the untrained eye these first drawings appeared as spiraling scribbles. To me, P devotee, they were nothing short of brilliant ;) If I can only remember which squiggle is the cat, and which is the chick....

Good-bye Kansas

Each previous trip to Kansas, P has missed NY. Not so this time. He loved every minute of it. And, in fact, now has grand plans to live on a farm. He told E and I about it just this past weekend. He said we should live "surrounded by nature." That we'll raise chickens and grow tomatoes and pumpkins and onions. That he'll have a dog and go hiking everyday. Now, this doesn't actually reflect what our time in Kansas is like (no vast vegetable patch and the scuttle of chicks. Though there are plenty of dogs ;) And the wide Kansas plains have nary a hill to hike. But he's blended together a romantic version of his Grandparent's lovely setting, his days hiking in Colorado and a storybook farm ideal into an adorable dream that I feel partially compelled to turn into reality :)

So there was some disappointment concerning our departure this round. Nothing big and cranky, just some subtle foot dragging. Well, that and he tried to drag out his last evening for as long as possible :) We had a final family dinner with my fam, after which he pulled Uncle Cash around the farm doing who knows what.



Then he tried to con Maria into touching things he (nor she) was interested in touching, down some gross grate.



And finally, when the bigs told the little man they were all tired and ready to retire, he decided he just couldn't let Maria go, and took chase :)



They share a lot of loves and he is endlessly pleased with her shoe and jewelry choices, not to mention the loving attention she showers on him, so he felt she should stay with him. Forever. This was the second or third time he had attempted to retain her, tossing a tough luck to Uncle Cash. (Actually, it was a bit of a theme for him this trip. I don't know what sort of Viking like past life he's had, but he similarly tried to detain Greg's Kellie twice and then Aunt Nik one evening:)



At any rate, a game was initiated that eased the transition, and the king was eventually carried atop his throne towards bed.... (though he could not actually be called king, of course, since he is always "only Phoenix....")



And that, finally, finishes up our Kansas trip! Ahhhhhhh......

Larryville

Our dear friends live in Lawrence, Kansas, home of the University of Kansas and twice previous (both for very brief stints) home of E and I. On paper it appears perfect for our little fam, but it never quite sticks. However, visiting our friends there is one of my favorite pastimes - and P agrees :)

Hanging out with the girls and their kids reminds me of my childhood. Kids running around barefoot and happy while the adults chat. Watermelon eating, water-gun spraying, baby pool puddling, pizza party noshing; ease in a day. Typically, E and I have very little adult interaction with the little man around. He feels his place is beside us and will either interact with the other adults, listen quietly very briefly, or, last but not least, jump up and down yanking our limbs to receive all of our attention. So rather than fight the inevitable, we just skip the whole situation. But its somehow different in Lawrence. He's still more reticent than many four year olds to jump in the social fray, but he's also content to let me laze in the love of my girls. Maybe he can tell how much I appreciate it, maybe he's fascinated by the conversations, maybe all of the new toys just fill his void. Whatever it is, its a laid back, happy day for the two of us.

Reed requested a pic of his popcorn:)



The boys dangle their lines:



The kids had tons of fun together, but I only really pulled out my camera for the fishing expedition. The little pond in front of Reed and Ella's house begged to be bothered by a bunch of four year olds (well, little Oliver is three;) but there was only one fishing pole. Fabulous Uncle Allen fixed that fast with a couple of bamboo sticks and some string. Whalah, happy kids fishing for water plants.

It was funny though. As the other kids moved on to the hose or just running willy nilly, still P played with his rod. It was normal in my world, so I gave it no thought. But Uncle A laughed and said "Focus much?" And I remembered the truth: P is very much related to E :)

Ella is impressed with P's big catch:



Post note. Aunt D had tons of mint growing around her wee pond. P, being P, having P's nose and P's obsession with mint, smelled a million leaves of it and begged a few to take home too :) Aunt D, being Aunt D, gave P as much mint as he wished and then made marvelous mojitos with even more mint. Fast forward a month (I'm woefully, woefully behind here!) to today, and P and I were at the botanical gardens (I'll get to that post in another month or so :) We went to the smelling section and were going crazy rubbing leaves and sniffing our fingers when we came upon the mint patches. There were so many varieties! My favorite smelled like lemon, pineapple mint - it was Amazing :) P kept on smelling and then stopped. "Mama! Come smell this!" I did and was instantly taken back to the mojitos. Apparently, though drink free that day, P absorbed that particular strain too. "Mama! This is the same mint Aunt D has!" Its amazing how Everything is a part of Everything in a child's life. Its fabulous to see the threads unravel and cross and re-cross :)

The Sedgwick County Zoo

There was a new tiger exhibit at the really fantastic Sedgwick County Zoo this time home, so we headed across town to play with the animals for the day....

P was thrilled Grams had a stroller with which he could be regally rambled. (He's been on a Huge no walking kick for a bit now :( Just about the time I started occasionally turning down his request to be lugged about the city (almost 40 pounds in addition to the enormous day pack I cart around and his scooter and his bag... well, any Mama not sporting a mei tai for the day (or drinking mai tias all afternoon) remembers they only have two arms and one back. However, the child does not accept this as fact and feels immensely slighted, which has resulted in him pushing the preference at every turn. And, sans car, something has to give for us to go. I am usually that thing that gives, which is, of course, exactly what the little man is betting on.:) There was no deal making at the zoo though, as he was perambulated per his instructions from one creature to another....

He loved the numerous artistic renderings, and the water spraying swing. My mom caught a shot of us enjoying some of the art - it really is a lovely zoo.





He also loved the hippo skull. The hippo tank itself had been too recently blessed with hippo droppings to see through (though he patiently stood waiting for a dark shape to move through the murk!) so P amused himself with the hippo sculpture and comparisons between the art and the skull. The size blew him away. His obsession with skulls blows me away :)



But he really, really loved the tigers. They were laying against the glass wall in their new space, just lounging, mere centimeters from P's face. They were Huge. And Gorgeous. And the exhibit was masterfully done, chalk full of just the right details and tidbits. P soaked it up, twice repeating his favorite new knowledge: four inch fangs!!!

Poolside...

The weather was unseasonably cool for much of our Kansas visit, so P's dips in the pool were often interspersed with pops out to soak up the sun. The pose he struck this day, the serious sun soaking look, had me chuckling and reaching for my phone :) It must be hard to be so industriously going through life, always trying to figure things out and mimic what you've seen, with some fool constantly following you around thinking its all hilarious or adorable. I try to hide it my best, since P does think it very, very odd anyone would think what he's doing is at all out of the ordinary :) He is, after all, just a very small grown up.

(Have I mentioned the adorableness (see there I go again) of his short person question the other day? I'm guessing not since I've been too busy to blog for a bit now... At any rate. We were on a family walk when a dwarf walked past us. P's eyes were riveted and I could feel my stomach clench, wondering, is this it? Is this that moment where he says something wildly inappropriate and offends someone? But he just watched and watched as she walked slowly past us. I tried to carry on our conversation, but the kid wasn't listening anyway. Then, as she finally outpaced us (short, but fast legs - truly) P said, "Is that a short grown up?" As I bobble headed a yes of relief, that that was the entirety of his question, his face came into view and the query's impetus came into focus too. He had a look of satisfaction and affirmation as he nodded a slow yes to himself and smiled, just slightly. It was as if he was saying, "Yup, just as I expected. I am a short grown up, and there are others out there as proof..."

Photographs and Memories

This pic had me hearing Jim Croce in my head :) P has really taken to requesting photos for things he wants to remember. A toy in a window, a mushroom he doesn't want to destroy, a bug shell he's too nervous to move... Its a lovely solution he's designed. What was once a toddler's tantrums of disappointment that the world was not perfectly maneuverable, has evolved into peaceful photographs and memories :) Ahhh, have I mentioned that I really love Four?

Gramps' Pet Project

Gramps' passion is polo. It filled my childhood and defined our family time. (I should note here, since its a little less rare than, say, football, that playing polo in Kansas (or Vermont, Wyoming, Florida etc) is nothing like the Pretty Woman depiction. The jean clad horse lovers watch a sport they are passionate about from their trucks, talking intricate details of every hoof beat. Only on rare occasion are there fancy hats :) At any rate, I find it fascinating to watch my child's life be only briefy touched by situations that formed me. And while sitting through multiple chuckers of fast moving athletes isn't currently Phoenix's fave activity, he does like to check in on Gramps' bid'ness a bit :) So we've watched Gramps play (and score and win!) while visiting Florida, and we've petted the horses and hit balls around with P's child sized mallet. But we hadn't seen Gramps' pet project until this trip home...

He's been working on creating a school of polo in Wichita, in hopes of keeping the game alive (he reeeeally loves it :) And to that end he spends part of every day mowing fields and checking on the progress of said project. So, one day, P and I went to check on the progress too :)

The 100 year old barn has been beautifully resurrected, with the hitting cage in the old hay loft. I have a passion for anything old, wooden, or rusty, and this space was unspeakably beautiful to me.



Gramps showed P how to hit the ball, a surprisingly difficult task (they make it look so easy, running at crazy speeds down the field but let me tell you - its tough. Even standing still. Like, totally still on a wooden horse still :) Horsing around in the hay loft was another occasion that allowed me to prove to P that I am not perfection incarnate...



While Gramps settled up some work stuff, P and I explored the arena, newly built for student lessons.



And wandered around in the tall grass looking at machinery. It totally took me back to my childhood, the sounds, the warm wind, the smell of wildflowers and Kansas grass, the dirty climbing hands getting greasy from old machines. Just the aimless wanderings about a farm area. I love it - and so did P :)



Then Gramps was ready to check out the playing field and we went with him. P and I climbed the stairway to the viewing deck and watched the clouds roll over us.




As we came back down, Gramps was joined by one of his best buddies and they set to talking shop :)



I flashed back to childhood again, the many times my dad was busy and my little brother and I would finagle a game out of a stump and an old railroad spike that we'd find in the grass. Grown-ups busy, kids get busy with whatever. P, being an only, turned to BB :) His fleece formed, flouncy filled compatriot fills in for sibling. ( Which, basically translates as E and I operating as both parent and sibling (me as BB, E as Sock Monkey) since P isn't into solitary play.) It was an interesting realization prompted by an obvious comparison between our childhoods. And though P occasionally asks for a baby, and though some see having an only as a crime, BB (er, me;) and P whooped it up on the log we found, finding plenty of fun and games until Gramps was ready to go. The two sides of the damn baby question weighing in equally, time and again :) At any rate, we piled into his ride and waved goodbye to the pet project until next year....

Exploration Place with Grams

The dinosaur exhibit at Explorations Place sounded exciting to P, so off we went to escape the heat one day...

While the dinosaurs were pretty big, and they even moved a bit, I was surprised with how little information was given. P had lots of questions and there were very few answers lying around... But, did I mention they moved???

The T-rex's mouth opened, and P was caught between non-fiction and fantasy... He wasn't quite sure if he should be nervous or pleased :)




The children's area proved to be a big hit. P cooked Grams and I soup in the castle's kitchen....



and ran wild through the tunnels....



and focused forever on the bubble maker....



Then we went into the aeronautics room. Closing time was creeping near or P probably would have explored a lot more in this area. Here, there was a plane flying demo that caught his fancy. After trying (very hard!) to fly said plane, it crashed into a field. He popped out and looked at the nose, just to make sure it was all pretend :) Still quite a few examples these days that his grasp on reality is more fluid than mine ;)

The sandbox

Returning from Kansas, I'm always struck by how completely different living in Nyc is than where I grew up. Were it not so late, I'd ramble on that thought for quite a bit, but another day :)

Tonight - just a brief difference: sand pits. Gramps put the sandpit back together this summer and the little man reveled in the solitude of his own private sandbox. No grubby toddler hands grabbing his stuff, no big kids running through, crushing his projects and throwing sand in his face, no pre-schoolers begging him for his digger. All valid parts of life, for sure, but the sweet bliss of just getting to play in the sand without constantly maneuvering social morays was fabulous for Phoenix. And, he could make it as messy as he wished :)

And here, dear Grams opened the floodgates. As I traipsed back and forth into the house to fill buckets of water, she mentioned that there was a hose just beside P's palatial sandbox. Umm, probably not what he should have heard :)



"Just a wee bit of water" is a laughable phrase to a four year old. And so what started as a small pond, grew into waterways and eventually, the ocean. It was all part of the colossal plot P had hatched centered around BB excavating mososaur bones with his jeep. So, of course, it had to become an ocean, Mama, since mososaur bones would only be in Kansas from when it was all under the great ocean.... duh :)

P became unfathomably dirty. And itchy. And needed a bath directly upon exiting the excavation site. Grams' tub was just through the door and therefore won out over ours. And whoa, was some tub time! E came in on his lunch break (yup, all this before the sun had hit its highest!) and had to laugh seeing the little man lounging in such a large tub. Poor E. Here we'd spent the morning excavating dinosaurs, creating waterways and getting dirty and he'd had to work! Ahh, well, P keeps saying he's saving up so Papa can quit his job and play with us all the time :)

P: quite pleased with himself:

Monkey Man

Watching P perform on his swing tonight, I realized his relationship with his beloved twirler has evolved. Whereas days used to be spent whirling at lightening speed or demanding "push! Higher! Puuuush!!!", he's now much more into acrobatics and challenges. (Its so interesting to watch children's interactions with everything just evolve. Another shameless unschooling plug: This kid (er, every kid:) knows exactly what he needs to challenge himself, what he's driven to learn and achieve, despite the lack of curriculums or charts lying about. I love watching his natural fire burn bright, trusting that the sparks will fly and light up other areas, previously dark to him, until the right patch catches and whoosh - he's off burning a whole new streak!)

But I digress :) P's swing, while still good for swinging, has become a full fledged home jungle gym. He climbs it like a rope, gripping and pushing until he's reached the ceiling. He jumps off of the ladder and clings to it, swinging, until he slides down it like a fireman's pole (nasty, nasty rug burn can ensue from improper sliding maneuvers, come to find out....) He stands in the sling swing, flying through the air, screeching for me to watch, while he lifts one leg, then lets go with both hands, switches legs, hops... The combinations are endless :)

Fortunately, we hung a few moving trapezes in Kansas, so his days there would be flying filled too. We even unearthed the rope swing my brother and I hung, twirled, flipped and flopped on when we were kids. Of course, it had to be scaled and conquered by the newest generation :)

Power games at the pool

Another power game that P adored while we were away: pushing E into the pool. E would mock-beg while P chuckled malevolently, and then, Wham. In he'd go. Honestly, the sound of a four year old positively squealing in delight is magical. Yah, even under such evil circumstances ;)

Brownie Contest

P''s life is surrounded by Uncles. Sure, there are some great Aunts (and Aunts soon to be ;) but there are just So Many Uncles. And with them come all things boy. Par for the course: competition. They race, they wrestle, they dare. They eat brownies... in one bite.

And so my brother Greg challenged the little man, who happily accepted. Both, of course, ended up gagging, the little one more than the big. But both, quite uncharacteristically, turned down seconds....

Cicadas

E and I remember the same sound from our childhood: cicadas. They are so unusually loud on the open Kansas air that a dear friend, visiting from another state for our wedding, thought we were being taken over by aliens. Or some such :) We have these guys in NY too, but they are quieter, and their sounds are different and they are harder to find.

While we were in Kansas, P was pretty obsessed with them. We listened to cicada sounds from the world over, marveling at the variations. We read their full history on Wikipedia. We collected specimens and looked for burrow holes. We watched the stages of metamorphosis. I learned a lot :)

Apparently, so did P. I'm never sure what tidbits he's focusing on when we look up answers to his questions. Sometimes we have to look the same thing up months later (neither of us retained that tidbit:) Other bits flow out in his dialogue as if he's known it forever. Like when we heard cicadas in the park, here, upon our return. He noticed the difference in sound and asked if it was a cicada or a cricket. I guessed cicada, it sounded like the ones we'd heard from Japan. He said he hoped it was a cicada moving its neck, not a cricket, rubbing its legs. And then the sound stopped. "Oh!" He said, "it must have found its mate." Wow. What a little Wickepedia can do. This, from the kid who a month ago saw two ladybugs doing the dance of love and asked me if it was a double decker ladybug :) Ahh how the birds and the bees, er, bugs, slowly creep in....

But what he loved most about cicadas this summer, were their shells. Actually, how scared so many people were of their shells. He collected dozens upon dozens of shed shells, dried and slightly grotesque, and kept them on his shelf. Then, whenever anyone came to visit, he gave them away as going away prizes. Yah, a big hit with the ladies ;) Grams played her part (though she's actually scared of nuthin') very well, squealing and squirming each time he displayed his new finds. Ah, its the little power games that get him through the day!

I like quiet

Just a short funny from before our trip (yah, still catching up....) The day before our departure, some men joined us for breakfast on our fire escape. They wanted to move our little garden in the sky to do repairs on the back of the building. No problem.

P, at first, was overjoyed at the entertainment. Then, as I did my bathroom business, I heard him urgently bellow for me. I told him I was occupied and would hurry along. He ran into the bathroom, looking devastated. Truly, almost in tears. What could it be, my pet?

I know the kid likes me a lot, always wants to show me this or tell me that. But it had never really hit me how important this sharing was to him. Apparently, the gentleman had raised a platform on a pulley system (think skyscraper window washers) Right Outside our window and P was miserable at the thought that I would miss the scene. This realization has garnered added patience with the child. I love those moments. (Except for the obvious other side of the coin that points out my previous cluelessness....)

After the high of the men in the sky wore off, the power tools turned on. Only briefly. Then there was a lot of scraping noises. It really wasn't bothersome, to me, at least. The little man thought otherwise. At first he tried howling "Too Loud!!!! Too. Loud!" I put on some music, offered to close the blinds, started a game in the other room. No dice. He was, per usual, focused. We chatted about the men's comfort, their job, the possibility of no more shrieking :) I went to the dishes, the little man to his swing.

Then in a flurry he had a pen and a box top from the recycling bin. " Mama, how do you spell "like"?"



He, who does not like to write or draw established figures, sweated through his small sign and then held it, quietly, to the window :) It read: I like quiet.

Nature Table

Pics of the nature shelf (and nature shelf gathering walks) in Kansas....