Eleven: 52

 

 

 

the 52 project.
Portraits of my main squeeze(s) every week.

 

O, this week you…

…spent a weekend morning getting the taps in, and enjoyed your first cup of sap for the season.

…said the words “I hate you” in a fit of tantrum rage. I guess we made it nearly nine years without that phrase, and even though I knew you were just trying to get me to change my mind about something and you didn’t really mean it, and you sobbed and looked pretty miserably sorry about having said it, man…it just sucked. It didn’t happen again any of the other times you didn’t want to go to school this week, so maybe a lesson was learned about saying things we don’t mean. It’s ouch, yeah buddy?

…in contrast, lost at Catan and didn’t get upset or want to play again immediately. All smiles and hey, maybe next time. That was nice.

…received a pretty stellar trimester report from your teacher. We’re proud of you, but more importantly, we hope you’re proud of yourself. I thought I caught a wee self-satisfied grin when you overheard me reading it out loud to Papa.

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Three: 52

 

 

the 52 project.
Portraits of my main squeeze(s) every week.

 

O, this week you…

…left little bits of yourself in random places. You always do that, but for some reason, this week, it was extra comforting.

…thought Fluxx was magical when we each, in turn, won a game.

…were so into your library books that you wouldn’t set the table, put your pajamas on, or come up to bed without lots of asking and reminders and several degrees of frustration on both sides. I LOVE that you love books and I, too, wish I could sink into them and let the rest of the world slip away from my consciousness for long stretches of time…but, alas. There is always something to drag us back to reality eventually. Time for you to discover the joy of reading books by flashlight under the bedclothes when we think you’ve gone to sleep!

 

C, this week you…

…finally got to spend a day baking. I really love to watch you knead.

 

Forty-Eight: 52

the 52 project.
Portraits of my main squeezes every week.

O, this week you…

…asked me about 50 times what the word “lasagna” means as you were reading your most recent acquisition from the library. I felt like a terrifically irresponsible Italian mother by never having introduced you to one of our native dishes, but you know…the gluten thing. I explained that it’s quite delicious and comforting and I would look for g-f lasagna noodles next time I’m at the Co-op. “But Mama,” you said, “Why is it served in a litter box?”

Clearly, I don’t use a casserole dish often enough.

…pretty much had your mind blown by the idea of mixed media on canvas. You were upset by the way your watercolor painting was going, so I suggested giving the accidental blob some shape by outlining it with pen and turning it into something else. You used to be a strictly pen-and-ink OR watercolor guy, and now you can be both at once.

I’ll leave it here, as there’s catching up to do. What a crazy weeeeeeeeeeeeek.

Oh, and btw, I did contact a winner for my giveaway. Holly Eqq is the lucky duck this time around. If you haven’t gone to my biz Facebook page, I do a giveaway every 100 likes. Share it up and there will be another one very soon!!! Thanks so much for playing and sharing your thoughts and gratitude with me. xoxo

Forty-Six: 52

 

the 52 project.
Portraits of my main squeezes every week (okay, squeeze singular, again)

 

O, this week you…

…let me take pictures of you with bed-head so I could get a project done.

…had such an insatiable appetite for reading that you started reading aloud the instruction manuals for our kitchen appliances.

…finally admitted it was time to wear long woolen underwear. Today’s high was 17 degrees, and it took some strong encouragement to get you to put on a hat.

…went out on a date with me to see our neighbor’s awesome band. You were as reluctant a dance partner as I would have been at your age (and still am, sometimes), but we had lots of fun and felt very adventurous leaving our little village to go out into the cold, dark night.

Twenty-Nine and Thirty: 52

 the 52 project.
Portraits of my main squeezes, every week.

With our summer schedule being what it is, the days slip away, each resembling the other. No camps this year, so I cram my internship work into the wee hours of morning and night, leaving only a precious few reserved for sleeping. We juggle one car, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t. My days are rather hazy, due to my sleep-deprived zombie-state, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I won’t write the words now. There is too much to accomplish between now and then and when I see how little time there really is for All of the Things, I may lose consciousness (and therefore, precious minutes).

The load will ease a bit with the opening of The Intelligent Optimist’s Summer Auction this Friday evening. This is my wee-hour (and most of the other hours) project until Labor Day and what happens after that is still a mystery.

O, for the past two weeks you…

…have continued to be so very patient with my workload and divided attention.

…gave me a bite of your well-deserved chocolate ice cream after an all-day round trip to the DMV (this is Vermont: drive 5 hours, wait 30 minutes. this is California: drive 30 minutes, wait 5 hours). I still don’t understand why you chose to accompany me on such a banal errand instead of taking up the invitation to go on a field trip to a bog, but I love your company and am always glad to spend a day with you.

…made huge improvements in your reading skills. I’m looking forward to you reading chapter books out loud to me sometimes!

…have been finding your interests diverging from those of your closest friend and it’s been so hard for you. Common ground is so much more specific at eight than it was at six.

…spent a lot of time in your sketchbook. Your drivers are always so happy. They love their Seuss-ish machines as much as you love creating them.

C, this week you…

…almost finished the new chicken palace. You hate the word almost.

…almost finished the chicken palace because I wasn’t able to perform my usual functions in zombie-state, and you covered for me. Thank you.