Ex Patria

Saturday walk

The weather forecast is grim: snow showers, colder temperatures.  So when we had a perfect spring day yesterday, we dragged the boys out for a walk. 

They always complain.  They moan and groan and nearly always manage to spoil my mood and enthusiasm for going on a walk.  They claim they are tired, they are bored, they hate walks, that our walks are always too long...  but then, miraculously, they skip along as soon as we get on our way.  So I bite my tongue and try to be stoic while the complaints rain down on me, pushing kids out the door - knowing that within minutes, I'll have happy kids.  Well, almost always.  Yesterday, Alan had a grumpy day.  I think one is entitled to grumpy days.  He wanted to be left alone, and he very adamantly wanted to be left alone with his Nintendo and not interact with the outside world.  We dragged the grumpy one out nonetheless, and even though his mood didn't brighten much, he did walk lots.  He was mostly half a mile ahead of us and kept to himself but that was okay.

So we walked through town, stopped at the bakery for snacks, visited the fluffy chickens, and then hiked along the path that ultimately leads to Bohemia.  We didn't go quite that far (hah! A pet project of mine - walk all along that path.  500 km or so. Hm.) but we walked for a good two and a half hours. Moods were improved by sunshine and spring flowers, newborn sheep on the pastures and lots and lots of sticks in the woods. (Sticks play an important role in my boys' lives.)

On the way home we stopped at our friends' house for trampoline jumping and coffee and cake. The boys went off bike riding in the school yard, and we enjoyed the sunshine tickling our noses.

Bucolic in the bestest sense.

Spring skies.

Boys will be boys

Last Friday, we had the Fall Fest at Alan's school.  The Fall Fest is sort of a politically correct Halloween party and some of the parents also dressed up, including myself.  Now, I don't like dressing up (other than in fancy clothes), and in fact I don't even own any costumes, so I wore my dirndl.  When I came down the stairs, the boys were all sitting on the steps, reading books.  There is a cubby in the wall there which has some of Jacob's favorite books and the older boys had joined him, waiting for me to come and take them to their party.

As I came down, they looked up.

Jacob said, "Oh-oh!"

David said, "Mommy, you are awesome!"

Alan said, "Cool!"

Their dad, whom we met a little later at the party venue, said, "Boobs!"

Really.  What more can a woman ask of life?