Mom Evolving

The "Season"

The "Season," that "Christmas Season," that wonderful time of the year is finally, well over- including the epiphany for even you purest.

Finished with the madness, the frenzy to fit it all in. The staying up all hours of the night making wrapped present costumes for a bunch of second graders and a massive Christmas tree costume that could fit a 6+ foot man, complete with lights for a parade.

Finished with "Cookie Fest 2009" a three day, massive cookie adventure culminating with the grand delivery on Christmas Eve.

Finished with the school events, various social events and running from one event to another to try and "squeeze" it all in- all amidst trying to still work. Work? Yes that too.

Finished with the wonderful time to enjoy my family, admire the lights and the time when everyone seems just a little bit nicer.

Finished with my mini-vacation to a winter wonderland-being delightfully snowbound in a cabin with family, puzzles, games and a television that only got the weather channel- which is how we watched the ball drop to ring in the New Year.

Now it is time to look forward. Forward to a new year and a new decade. Although each day brings with it new opportunities, I am looking forward to what this whole year has to bring.

So what is my mantra for this year? This is my year of taking it up a notch. What does that really mean? I don't know yet. But I do know that I want to do everything better- especially balancing my life.  As a mother I tend to give everything, my entire being, to my kids or the work I do to help support them. Consequently, there is often little left for me and I become frustrated at "who" I used to be pre-kids and wonder how I can retain more of "My" identity and the things that fulfill me- other than raising my children.  I believe that there needs to be a balance, and am on the eternal quest to find that balance. This is my year of taking it up a notch, and I am determined to do it all better. Here's to a great new decade!

Sheer Brilliance

With the days left until school starts diminishing, I am now on a quest with my children to quickly finish all of those "fun" activities that we had hoped to do to fill our otherwise boring summer days.  I am absolutely amazed that the summer is nearly over. Yes I do realize that it s only the end of the first week of August but when school starts on the 24th of August, the summer really is almost over! 

This afternoon we visited The Painted Cone (www.thepaintedcone.com).  This place is sheer genius. What an absolutely brilliant concept. One half of the establishment is a pottery painting studio and the other half sells all natural ice cream and coffees. This may sound odd, but it is perfect for birthdays and what a fantastic alternative offering to anyone doing the pottery painting.  As I sat there this afternoon I watched as group after group painted and then finished the outing with ice cream.  If it were just an ice cream shop or just a pottery place I don't think it would do nearly as well as it does, but the combination works wonderfully. 

As I sat there with my children for almost three hours I just watched as they, and all the children there, used their imaginations to create their little pieces of art.  Perhaps more fascinating was to watch the parents interaction with the children.  Some parents let the kids pick their own colors and create disastrous combinations, but the combinations were uniquely the child's.  Others micro managed every line in the attempt to create the perfectly painted piece, even going so far as to replace the colors that the child had chosen with others that they thought "worked" better. 

As for us?  There were parts we did together and parts they painted on their own. I tried my best to reign in my desire to make sure that every line was filled in and let them just create whatever moved them and as a consequence KC's fairy has a very interesting dress, but the important part is that it is KC's creation not mine.  Then when CJ asked me what I thought of his lizard and what would "I" do, although I had a design scheme all laid out in my mind, I refrained and asked him what colors he most liked and encouraged him to just go with those.  Yes I do admit that when they were both done I looked the pieces over for any remaining unpainted spots and helped them fill them in but after all, I am still learning too...