Rainbows

Today was not all rainbows... far from it in fact. But when a day ends with a walk/bike under a rainbow like this, I think life will be just fine.

Rainbows. Amen.

Folly - As Defined by our Day.

I will arrange my food, yes. But no, I will not eat it.

folly n. , pl. , -lies . A lack of good sense, understanding, or foresight. An act or instance of foolishness: regretted the follies of his youth.

A lack of good sense: Lucas. Why is it that the human brain takes so long to mature? Does it not seem logical that the offspring of each species be born with some intrinsic good sense, rather than acquire it by trial and error?

This is the bike park in Whistler. Grown-up boys were doing amazing things here. The picture does not do it justice, and I could not get a shot of our five year old riding it, because I was too busy running beside him in fear. Lucas persevered for three quarters of an hour. He bailed **BIG** twice. We will return tomorrow. A new bike and better helmet will need to be purchased.

Understanding: Ting and Rob. We are not five-year-old boys, and this has been brazenly apparent today. We do not understand why he is naughty at school. We do not get why he must tease his sister. We certainly cannot figure out why he is good at math. We see no appeal in bubble-gum ice cream. We fall short of understanding the need for a water gun. Why are parents not consistently able to understand their children? To *get* them; feel their emotions, ride the same bike bumps, as it may be. For those we love, why do we have the capacity to shut the door to understanding where they are at? Are we wrong or do we simply lack the sense?

Foresight: Um...yeah, that's us again. Why does it come as a surprise to us that our children are their own people? That they may not be mini-images of us? That Mia may never play field hockey, snowboard or love reading. That Lucas may never love wine, soccer or watching hockey? Ok, it's not a surprise, but we seem to continue to place our own values on their individual choices even though we know better. How hard for them to have such narrow-minded parents, wouldn't you say? Haha...

Folly: a day well spent, even if it meant relearning a few things about ourselves and our kids.

Cupcakes, cousins, caterpillars and close-ups.

This May has been fabulous, I'm sure most of you would agree. The weather; divine. My flowers; resplendent. The company; titillating. Hehehehehe... but it has been a good start to the month.

This last sunny weekend saw us gardening up a storm and sharing birthday cupcakes with family and friends. The picture above makes me reel with how big the boys have gotten. They look so grown up!

Mia and Lucas have been talking for weeks about it almost being caterpillar season and today we finally found one. It was really interesting for me to see how Mia received the joy of having a busy, fuzzy caterpillar crawl all over her. We've always considered Lucas to be our "bug" guy - and I think sometimes we forget that Mia has been just a bit too young to fully understand the experience. Today, that little caterpillar provided an hour's worth of sheer joy as the kids took turns having him explore them. When this afternoon's rain storm set in, Lucas was out in the rain building it a home with a roof so that he wouldn't get hurt. Sigh. Thank you caterpillar, for an afternoon well-enjoyed. :)

Why God Made Kids

Just in from doing some weeding with some "help" from Lucas and Mia. I was getting a wee bit irritated with the exposure of my spring bulbs and *may* have grumped at them.

"Mommy," interrupted Lucas, "God MADE kids for helping Mommies."

True.

Happy Mother's Day!