the boy
Deck Plus
The deck is finished -- more or less.
The zucchinis, too.
A couple hid under leaves until they got ridiculously big.
Mount Mitchell
K took the kids to meet with their Polish/American "cousins" to spend some time hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains, specifically hiking up Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi.
Late June Wednesday
If it’s late June and we’re in Poland, we might be celebrating Babcia’s birthday in one form or another. Probably not a lot of celebrating happening the day of it (at least not until later in the day) as Babcia, lacking any social media whatsoever, spends the day talking to people who phone her with birthday wishes.
As it is, we simply got everyone up early and phoned ourselves. It was hard to get through, though. Everyone loves Babcia.
If it’s late June and we’re not in Poland, I’ll probably be on the back deck, applying water sealant.
And of course, there’s the evening game of hearts.
Two nights in a row — how do I do it?
A Perfect Day
In the morning, a bike ride. The kids don't really want to go, but it's supposed to rain on and off throughout the day, and they need exercise, so I all but force them. L fusses about one thing; E has a wreck (due to his own carelessness) and ends up fussy for some time; I fuss about their fussing. It's easy to get caught up in the negative and let it chart the day's course for you if you're not careful. Not deliberate.
So I try to make things a little more careful, a little more deliberate. We get back and spend a fair amount of time, just the three of us, working on our bikes' brakes. They're all squeaking and squawking like feral hogs tied to deranged cats. For each bike, we loosen everything -- cables, brake pads, centering screws -- and recalibrate everything. As we're working, I like to think that the kids are enjoying learning something, but I'm not sure. In fact, I rather doubt it. But there's still some value in this, even if it's just spending time together solving a problem.
After dinner, the Girl decides she wants to play Hearts with Papa, K, and me. E is across the street playing with neighbors, and he's not able to follow a game with tricks and trumps just yet, so we play just the four of us.
We play eight hands, and in a surprise -- I never win at games -- I destroy everyone. L is the nearest to me, and she has almost double the points I have.
After the Boy comes in, he suggests War -- he's just learned it, and he likes it. One of two card games (Uno being the other one) that he enjoys.
I take the opportunity to take a few pictures. In the end, I can't decide between three action shots, so I include them all. And the other two shots? They're winning hands the Boy is particularly proud of. In the first one, the Girl gives him rabbit ears; in the second, he's wised up.
Once I put the Boy to bed, I grab L and take her down to watch a movie. It's the second night we've done this. Last night, I showed her The Help. It's a good sign when she wants the movie paused when she leaves to get a snack; last night, she paused it herself. Tonight we watch a quirky British romantic comedy, About Time. It's about making the most of life by looking at each day as a treasure. We all need to be reminded of that from time to time, especially a thirteen-year-old and her cranky father.
Helping
Sunday
A Fire
A Ride and the Creek
In the morning, a ride with the kids:
In the afternoon, some creek play.
Flint and Steel
The Boy wanted to try to start a fire with his flint and steel from the survival pack he bought earlier this year. He didn't get it started, but he enjoyed chopping at a half-rotten (but dry) log to get small chips to try to catch a spark.
I tried to explain to him that that would not be sufficient, that he should try other methods. We tried using a small planer to produce some thin strips, but nothing worked.
In the end, he just got some matches.