In a Cast

Chickabidee fell off a zipline and broke her arm this summer. Radius and ulna, clean break. I was right there, standing beside her when she fell to the ground, watching her arm snap, holding her with all my might as she crumbled in sobs of pain. We got her to the ER within 20 minutes, x-rayed and arm set in a hard cast within 2 hours of the break. No running, no jumping, no swimming, while the cast is on.  I know husby is right about keeping things in perspective, that kids get hurt, kids heal. But as a mom, my magical thinking that "as long as I am present, watching, I can somehow protect our chickabidees from harm" was shattered...

So here are a few things that we've found a chickabidee CAN do with a broken arm: hula hoop, draw, write, paint, read, go on walks, picnic, blow bubbles, peer at the summer night sky through a telescope... Any suggestions welcome!

Getting There and Back IS The Fun

When google maps tells me a family roadtrip is going to take 2 hours, I mentally add another 2.5 hours. And that's just on-the-road time.  Actually getting out of the house and on the road for a trip that lasts for more than 2 nights with the chickabidees is, well, as husby once remarked, "We're a thundering herd of snails!"
So that's to say I've learned to relax a little about "getting there," and try to make the  journey to and from as much a part of the vacation as the destination itself. To that end, for our weeklong trip to the Carmel coast, Em and I made a nifty berry picking pack---actually, it was for the the u-pick berry farm stop on the return trip home at the end of vacation. How funny it felt to be planning so far in advance! We took a standard milk carton, covered it in leftover shelf paper (the sticky kind), tacky glued on burlap strips for straps.  We first saw the idea for this here.

Measure, Cut

Peel...

Stick

Add straps

Voila~Heading Home From Vacation !

After a leisurely amount of time picking berries on the way home, there were enough berries to make a dozen jars of jam when we got home. 

All in all a delicious way to end a trip!

Super Moon, Super Fun

It's been awhile since the last post because of course the end of summertime with the chickabidees is busy busy! I've really missed writing and posting, so here's one:

Super Moon Over Water

Extra Super Jumbo Moon Sighting!  This past weekend was jam-packed with fun get-togethers and it was nice to end it with a mellow moonlight stroll along the water near Grandpa's boat. The chickabidees were thoroughly wow'd by the beauty of the moon reflected on the water, with even the littlest one pointing from her stroller earnestly chanting: "boon, boon, boon!" (Yes, she was up waaay past bedtime, B+ parenting...) We walked happily in the peaceful stillness of the moonlight, a great reason to be together outside at night. I shared some moon facts, which Em gobbled up, and made plans for the next colossal full moon. There's another super moon on September 9~ some ideas to make the super moon super fun: make moon pies, watch Wallace & Gromit in a Grand Day Out, make a phases of the moon with cookies craft, or just get out there!