nuggets :: redirect yourself before you wreck yourself

nuggets :: little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week

I get a bit melancholy at the end of January.  We certainly didn't get our usual winter weather and the transition from December to January was less than eventful.  No major storms, flooding or power outages and I found myself a little wistful about it all.  However, I still had February...

February is my favorite month of the year.  The hills are usually such a bright, fluorescent green and the trees are bursting with plum, peach, cherry & magnolia blossoms.  Driving on Highway One is a show.  The daffodils reach skyward and happily dot the landscape around our plot of land.  And the mustard.  Oh, how I love the sea of yellow I spy on my drive to and from Tomales to pick up the boy from school.  Yes, February is my favorite month and this year we get a bonus 24 hours for Leap Year, helping to extend this lovely month another day.

nuggets.

Doran Beach, Bodega Bay, CA

I took myself to the beach on Friday with grand plans of reading and playing with my camera.  I ended up talking for over an hour on the phone with my best friend.  Our phone date got postponed earlier in the day and I'm so glad we carved out the time to catch up about life and the kids while I stared out at the sparkly, vast ocean in front of me.

I always have these grand plans of reading when I get to the beach, but the pull of the ocean and the natural beauty surrounding me makes me pause, pay attention and want to savor the experience.  I could read later.  It was a nice punctuation to my week and a great way to start the weekend.

February 2012

Emotions have been running high at our home and the boy has been challenging me at every turn about his clothing, bedtime, book choices and the like.  Struggling to get through the emotions and setting boundaries has been a bit of a challenge for me this week and I realized I needed to step back and look at what was really going on.

Control.  I had it and he wanted it.  Motherhood 101 was just about to teach me another lesson.

When I told him the Harry Potter Book #4 was off limits, he resorted to sneaking it into his backpack.  Oh, dear boy, are you new?  Did you really think you would get away with that?  I majored in sneaking during my childhood and, as my grandma used to say, this was not my first rodeo.  When I found the book and took it away from him, hot tears fell and mutterings of the meanest mom ever left his little chapped lips.  I wasn't forever banning the book but, upon the recommendation from a friend, merely postponing the emotional roller coaster and mature content of this Book #4 until the boy was a wee bit older and I could read it with him.

This book confiscation unleashed his stubborn streak and every. little. thing. became a battle he wanted to wage and win against me.  I ended up taking away books, his favorite hat and desserts.

The funny (and wonderful) thing that occurred next was that he started the Percy Jackson series and was devouring the first book.  He also got resourceful unearthed a never worn skull cap he received from his grandfather from two years ago and could care less if he gets his other favorite hat back.  He received a set of used roller blades and is mastering the art of staying vertical.

Redirect thy child.

Yes, my motherhood lesson of the week was that I had to listen to myself and not give in to the wailings of an eight year old boy.  Book #4 was off the table for now and it was my job to help open him up to new authors, experiences and hobbies.  It was a tough, tearful week and we got through it just fine in the end.

The Russian Diplomat, Mac the Knife, Former Bodega Bay Sheriff & our very own Lady Gaga wannabe

Well, it's a good thing we got through all of the hard stuff during the week because we had big, fun plans for the weekend.  We attended the third annual Bodega Bay Cabaret and it was a hoot!  I previously participated back in 2010 and channeled my inner Tammy Wynette!

Laughing it up for the crowd onstage with Natasha - Photo of me courtesy of Grady

Grady was called up by the Russian Emcee, Natasha, and was real proud of himself.  He even asked to stay for the second show and was called up again to perform, if you will.

Steve did the sound for this show, which is a community fundraiser and the acts were funny and good-natured.  This event helped to kick off a string of events leading up to the 39th Annual Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival.  This year we are celebrating the 200th anniversary of the Russians landing in Bodega Bay on their way to build Fort Ross.

I have a friend that loves to celebrate all of life's important occasions with a little party and some ice-cold bubbly.  She throws an annual Oscar Pajama Party every year for her girlfriends and it is not to be missed.  We donned our evening wear, a little bling and shared our definite opinions on the fashions of the night.  I left with a list of movies to put in my Netflix queue.

The warm spell from last week has left us and the clear, cold nights and frosty, crispy mornings are reinforcing the need for flannel sheets to stay on the beds a bit longer.

Daffodils are coming up all around us, so we set out to cut and display over 100 blooms this week.  Bringing that hint of spring into the house has elevated my mood and beautified my daily surroundings and it didn't cost a penny.

Grady had the opportunity to meet a wonderful woman last week that was born in 1907.  He brought her flowers and took notes while we chatted about her life.  He learned that she is an artist, loved to take photographs and her favorite color is green.  She also once held a bear cub on a train ride and was nicknamed Little White Flower by local Blackfoot Indians.  She had a horse named Fly and her father was a blacksmith.  It was a beautiful afternoon and he is going to turn his photos, words & copies of her artwork into a presentation for his third grade class.

Have you listened to the interview of Maurice Sendak by Terry Gross on NPR's Fresh Air?  You should.  It's so good.

Live your life.
Live your life.
Live your life.
- Maurice Sendak