10

Dear Grady,

So you decided to turn 10 on me this week.  I'm having a hard time believing that 10 years have gone by, but it's true.  

I stumbled into motherhood without knowing if I would be good at it or not.  I had a lot of self-doubt and made many mistakes the first few years of your sweet, precious life.  While I tried my best, I let you and your father down in a lot of ways.  Your father saved me and our family by selling the shop we owned and working so hard, so that I was afforded the amazing opportunity to be your stay-at-home mom.  It was the best thing that's ever happened to me and the best job I've ever had.

Sleepy Birthday Boy w/ New, coveted iPod nano

The past five years have been filled with public school, art lessons, new friendships, tree house building, Lego collections, Pokemon fever, lots and lots of books.

You are funny, smart, silly, interested in the natural world around you and you love to spend time with me.  We try to hit the library once or twice a month and you devour the books as soon as we get back to the car.  Thrifting at the local shops is one of our favorite pastimes.  Our trips to the beach have always been one of my favorite things to do and now you're old enough to run ahead, play chicken with the tide rolling in and climb the gigantic rocks that dot the coastline.  I love watching you enjoy life and hearing all of your tales, as well as questions.

Junior Scientist @ The Gladstone Institute
Extracting DNA from a strawberry + live mice tests

As an only child, you have many opportunities to try new things and a community of friends that cheer you on at every turn.  You are learning so much as an individual and also as part of a team this year.  Your coping skills and ability to fit in and be kind and polite always make me so proud.

And while this birthday has made me a little melancholy for your younger years, I do look forward to the next five years and seeing where your mind and creativity take you.  There is nothing you can't do and I can't wait to see what sparks your interest next.

Grady Long Legs + Fave Birthday Gift

This year you gained a little technological freedom and after serious negotiations (between you, me and your father), we allowed you to use your own money to buy an iPod nano, the model that didn't have wireless connectivity or video games.  It's been hard for me to see that you need more freedom, but your father has convinced me that I need to let go...a little...and so we shall see how it goes.

Post-Fish Fest Fun
Osmosis, Books, Magazines, Gifts from the Sea + Father/Son Shenanigans

Your birthday always falls around Fish Fest weekend and I'm tied up with my volunteering duties and I feel a small amount of guilt about it.  You take it all in stride and never make me feel bad.  This year we celebrated your birthday for weeks!  With the final wrap-up being fun over Fish Fest weekend.

Bed Head + Birthday Breakfast
10th Birthday Lego Cake

Linda Lou made you amazing Lego birthday cakes, per your special request, and you wanted to share with your classmates.  You are always giving and never stingy or gluttonous.  You always share and never seem greedy.

Linda Lou has made you a special cake every year for your birthday since you were four years old.  She is such a special lady in your life and ours.

Fish Fest 2013

I love you, Grady Salas Hecht.

I think you can do anything you want to in life and I can't wait to see the young man you become and grow into.

I'm your biggest fan.

Love you so very much,
Mom

Art Sale + Birthday Party!

Rooster hair in full effect

Steve went down to Southern California to visit his father and grandmother (who turned 91!) for a few days.  It was nice to spend a string of days with just Grady.  We found our rhythm with work, school and meals.  He read a lot, I cooked favorite foods and we devised a plan to sell his art prints.

Art Sale Compromise @ Gourmet au Bay

He received word earlier in the month that he was not accepted as an artist for the Local Art Tent at our annual Fisherman's Festival in Bodega Bay.  He was a little crestfallen and I was just hurt for him.  After a few days went by, we came up with a plan to sell four of his art prints at Gourmet au Bay (our former business).  He titled and signed all of his prints, helped create the email flyer above and we sent it out to dozens of our closest community friends and neighbors.  We were making lemonade out of the lemons we received.

Proud artist + his watercolor prints

His art was well received and he sold about 32 prints!  He received email pre-orders and on-the-spot purchases at $10 a print.  He was beaming and interacted with every customer in such a sweet way.  They asked about his process, what inspired him and which was his favorite and/or best-selling print.  His best friend was there to help him and when the clock hit 6 o'clock on the dot, they were ready to get out of there and get home to a video game marathon, homemade pizza & root beer floats + a sleepover.  What a full and fantastic day for our little artist.

10th birthday party extravaganza

The next day was the big 18+ kid birthday soccer party at Sports City, our local indoor soccer facility.  Almost everyone came that he invited, plus a few surprise guests!  It was the best kind of party.  The kids ran around and got good and exhausted.  They recharged with fruit, PB&J sandwiches & chocolate milk and topped it all off with the most delicious cupcakes from Sift Cupcakery.

This was the first real birthday party we've had for him, as all the others were mostly our friends and his god-sisters.  This was an all out bash with friends from all the different aspects of his life (preschool, soccer, his current 4th grade class + special friends from neighboring communities).  

You could tell it was a lot for him to take in, but he did it gracefully and enjoyed every second of it.   The big day is actually next week, but this boy is taking cues from his mom and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g out his birthday for a few weeks.  I wonder where he got that idea from? 

The effects of chocolate cream pie on G, Viv + Scott

This week was full of lots of cake, shenanigans with the neighbors & seeing how much fun we could have and not have a meltdown (any of us!).  It was a success in every way.

EArth Day 2013

We celebrated earth day by heading down the road to Bloomfield Farms and harvesting lettuce for the week.  They had a sweet craft table set up to honor the honey bee and G quickly sat down and got to work.  He looked so big in the little vintage school chairs.  He also planted a few complimentary kale plants to bring home and plant in our garden.  I do hope they survive...

Spring images at the Ponderosa

Flowers are blooming.

The grass in the fields are almost as tall as I am.

The guys scouted a location in the back pasture for their newly finished owl box.

I've been seeking comfort in food magazines & cookbooks, as the days draw closer to Fish Fest and my volunteer chairperson duties kick in.  I've been logging in several hours on the computer and then need a quick break on the deck to read & recharge.  It's just the fix I need to keep me sane.

Water Wars!

The father-son water wars have commenced for 2013.  G received a brand new small water gun pistol and doesn't quite connect the dots that giving his dad the older (read larger) one is really setting him up for failure.

He doesn't care.
He's living up the last days of his 9th year.
He's soaking up the water, the fun, the presents, the friendships, the adoration of our friends, the books & sweet treats.

Good-bye, nine.  What a year.
Can't wait to see what happens next for this amazing little fellow.

Calm before the Fish Fest Storm

I've been getting a little melancholy thinking about my boy turning 10 later this month.  I've been soaking up all the fun I can and indulging him at every turn - evidenced by the above silly photos.  I read a great blog post about another mama who has a boy turning double digits here.  She took the words right out of my mouth.

My little man has been all about origami lately.  He's made hundreds of small people and my favorite, clearly, is the three origami that feature our little family (above).  Don't you just love my hair helmet?

Sadness has fallen over our household, as Grady approaches the final chapters in the Harry Potters series - The Deathly Hollows, Book #7.  He's savoring the final chapters and distracted himself by a trip to the library to read to dogs & gather easy to read graphic novels.  He doesn't want it to end and just hit a really sad chapter in the book.  He started reading this series on the first day of summer after finishing second grade.  He was so eager and the he's matured and grown up with Harry.  It will be a bittersweet ending, I'm sure.

Last November, I "won" a U-pick membership to Bloomfield Farms during the infamous Valley Ford Pie Auction.  This weekend was their inaugural U-pick party on the farm.  The winds were high, but I had two little boys who I could put to work helping me pick.  We had the best time and the boys laughed, ran, gave wagon rides to each other and learned what elephant kale & spring garlic looks like.  We came home with a bucket full of greens and inspiration to cook all of it during the coming week.

On a different note, I finally figured out why I hate spring.  I hate all of the weeds and tall grasses that overtake our property after the March rains.  It's overwhelming, really.  I put a tiny dent in the weeds in the fire pit area, there is so much more to conquer.  It feels like its a never ending project.

The guys have been busy building an owl box.  It's pretty big and they just need to fill it with shavings and find a location to mount it behind our house.  I just love how they have been working on building projects together this year and solidified their father-son bonds.

We've been taking it slow around here this week with reading, painting, sleeping in and working on small house projects.  The 40th Annual Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival is just around the corner at the end of this month and I have the task of organizing over 500 volunteers!  Yes, 500.  It all comes down to the wire in the final days before the event and I liken it to a jigsaw puzzle, assigning jobs to volunteers and filling in the gaps.  Every year around this time I vow to take a step back next year.  I'm feeling that way right this very moment but must push through and get to the imaginary finish line.

It's almost here.

Spring Break

I don't remember my spring breaks as a kid.  I know we didn't travel anywhere.  My family didn't really take vacations, unless you count driving across the I-10 desert to visit family in South Phoenix in the middle of summer a vacation.  

G had big plans for his vacation and we made a list of projects and places he wanted to visit during his week off from school.  San Francisco for the night was one of our plans.

We hit the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on their Free Tuesday.  It was a bit of a hot mess of people and the museum was really warm.  We went up to the roof top sculpture garden to check out this Calder piece and then went to their museum store (which is one of the main reasons I like to visit this museum).

The Cartoon Art Museum was next on our list and just around the corner.  I didn't have high hopes for this little museum, but it really delivered.  A great Chuck Jones' exhibit and a small show featuring children's book illustrators.  Carson Ellis is one of our favorites and she illustrates the Wildwood series written by her husband, Colin Meloy.

The museum was interesting and not overwhelming.  G even got to watch a little Looney Tunes episode while we took in the exhibit.

The #1 thing our son wanted to do on our trip to San Francisco was to become a card-carrying member of the San Francisco Main Library.  Yes, it's true.  He signed up online, selected the artwork for his library card (very cool feature!) and then promptly walked up a flight of stairs towards the children's literature section and plopped 28 books into his bag.  He started reading them as soon as we got in the car.

They are due back in three weeks and it looks like we'll be getting another city fix later this month when we return them back to their rightful home on Larkin Street.

I love living in the country, but there is something about the energy of a big city.  The conveniences, restaurants and people-watching are fascinating.  We ran a few needed errands and stumbled upon good food & drink along the way.

A major farmers' market was happening just down the street from City Hall and the SF Main Library.  We each grabbed lunch (or a Nutella Waffle for brekkie) from different vendors and grabbed a table in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the market.

I was inspired to do my shopping here while the guys played a game of catch on the open green space in front of City Hall.  

We also took time to grab a few ice cream cones at Bi-Rite Creamery in the Mission and Oh. My. God.  Ever have a salted caramel ice cream cone?  Transcendent.  We'll definitely have to add that on to our day when we come back to return library books.

Art was ever-present this week.  G has been on an origami mission and has been creating hundreds of miniature origami yodas.  The faces are all unique and sweet.  He created this origami installation in his art studio that I absolutely love.

It must be like a quiet meditation for him.  He turns on his boom box, listens to Harry Potter books on CD and spends hours folding paper.

Lime Curd Tart
Spanish Frittata
Birds of a Lesser Paradise by Megan Mayhew Bergman

Upon arriving home from the city with bags full of fresh produce and a hosting duty the next evening for book club, I set to making & baking in the kitchen.  I can't believe I've never made a frittata.  We have an egg glut at the moment and it was a great way to whittle it down to a manageable stash.

I made this lime curd tart several years back and it totally delivered.  I used some of my frozen blackberries from last summer on top and it was beautiful and delicious.

G is working on paintings for his upcoming show this summer with Scott Van Cleemput.  He's studying with a local watercolorist and has painted about 10 canvases.  He just needs to put the finishing touches on them and spray with a UV coating.  I can't wait for the show to come together.

His watercolor "Their King" was exhibited in the art show & gala fundraiser kicking off the 40th Annual Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival.  He received word this week that he wasn't accepted in the Local Art Tent at the festival and was a little deflated, but having his work displayed at the gala seemed to offset those feelings (for him, not me!).  I'm really proud of his hard work and dedication to his art.

We packed in a little indoor fun on Saturday, as the days of spring break were coming to a close.  We hit up some indoor soccer and then an afternoon at Cal Skate with his buddy Keegan.  The boys are not the best skaters and fell quite often, but they didn't give up and had a really good time.

I saved the best for last.

Grady and Steve spent a good portion of this week working quietly, patiently and determinedly on the San Luis Obispo Mission project for G's 4th grade class assignment.  G led the charge with ideas of sugar cubes, popsicle sticks, barnyard animals and mini vineyard placement.  They used a lot of math skills in trying to make this model to scale, glue and creative energy.  They slowly problem-solved and it was a treat to see them so engaged with this project.

G woke up early yesterday morning, on his first day back to school after spring break, quickly dressed, ate breakfast and was anxious to hoist his mission into his very own arms and have his father take him to school and turn it in.

I hope they get a good grade on it. ;-)

The week before Easter

Birds are everywhere right now!
I sent an Emily Dickinson care package to my niece, Madison in NY

I hit a wall with my running last week.  I only logged 5 miles of combined running/walking.  This is about the time I usually quit.  I forced myself to get out, had Grady tag along and motivate me and I sluggishly finished two miles on Saturday.  I'm hoping next week is better.

We had two pieces of Grady's artwork professionally framed and I finally hung them this week.  I think they look beautiful.  The one on the left, "Their King", will be in a local art show next week to help celebrate the 40th annual Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival that is coming up at the end of April.  Grady was a finalist and placed in the top 6 (out of 38 entries).

The portrait on the right is of Steve and G painted this for him as his Xmas present this last December.

Left photo :: Before haircut
Right photo :: After haircut

Really.

Spent some much-needed girl time with my friends this week.  Coffee, thrifting, mani-pedi, champagne, lunch, haircut.  Oh, how I love my tribe of smart, funny, adventurous, amazing friends.

Easter kind of snuck up on us.  We kept it simple.  Decorating our eggs with Sharpies this year.  What an easy and lovely way to do them up.  We all participated while Steve made us an amazing breakfast.  The rest of the day was spent lounging, reading and working on G's 4th grade mission project (photos of that next week).

1. Sophia & Grady (upper left)
2.  Grady & another Sophia channeling their inner Buddha (upper right)
3.  Neighbor, Giovanni & G in the back pasture at sundown (lower left)
4.  Balancing cups on their heads in order to catch the rain (and entertaining themselves for 2 hours!)

We spent Easter dinner with the Rangel clan and had the good fortune to get treated to a meal caught by and cooked by Miss Sophia.  She is quite the ham lately and cooked, sang, played piano and danced  her booty off for us!

The best Easter I've ever had.

Silly String :: Good idea in theory.  A mess to clean up when it dries.

I keep waiting for Grady to tell me he doesn't believe in Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy, but he's holding on.  The Bunny is suspect, but he wanted to hunt for eggs and find his basket first thing in the morning.

I'm holding on to these traditions for as long as I can.

The little boy in Grady is holding on, too.

March :: Out Like A Lamb? Never.

Awesome sign painted by yours truly for the ceremony

Last week we attended the Tomales Elementary School's Honor Roll Ceremony.  G received the highest honor, Principal's List, for his straight A's and 4.0 GPA and he was beaming and so proud of himself.  He was one of two in his class to receive this honor and takes it quite seriously.  This is his second time achieving same this year and he's going for three next trimester.  

Books + Earless Bunny

We hit the mobile library last week and G quickly filled our book bag with graphic novels, a few movies and art books suggested by our amazing librarian.  I love when we leave the mobile library.  G can't wait to get in the car and start digging through his overflowing bag of books.  He opens a book and immediately is transported.  Once we arrive home (about 10 minutes later), he usually stays in the car, absorbed in the make-believe world he's reading about and emerges slowly from the vehicle, walking towards the house with his eyes firmly planted on the pages of a book.  I love library day.

My muses + birdie watercolors

These gals have been my painting inspiration lately.  They've been out roaming the lush, green hills surrounding our house.  They are quite the adventurers.

Me + Owl-loving Boy + Signs of Spring

After last week's blow-up with Grady and re-strategizing my parenting techniques with Steve, I worked on spending more time with my boy and really listening to him.  Sometimes I think just because I'm the parent that I'm right.  I'm correcting or rolling over his sentences with my words of wisdom and not taking the time to hear him out.  I've been snappy with him and loud with my responses for effect, too.  It's funny what you learn when you just shut up and listen to your kid.  He has a lot to say and I'm working on listening to what he has to teach me.

This was a week full of celebrations and art-making.

My little sister turned 39 yesterday and we sent her a care package last week and a special-ordered purse with a picture of her three kids on it from Snaptotes.  I hope she loves it!

Handmade Goodness by GSH

We also carved new stamps for our stationary endeavors.  G wanted to hand-carve his logo which consists of his initials and flames shooting out of the stop and bottom of the "S".  He did a fine job and even carved a really cool skull stamp.

We hosted a friend for lunch to celebrate her birthday (belated at this point) and the date ended up landing on the five year anniversary of her son's death.  G drew her a mourning dove and made fish tacos, rice and Grady's guacamole.  It was delicious and I think she really appreciated spending time with my boy on this hard, hard day.

We were honored and happy to attend the 75th birthday celebration of local birding legend, Don Toms.    This celebration also marked his accomplishment of seeing over 50% of the world's bird species (he reached this amazing milestone two years ago).

Mr. Toms has been kind enough to share his love of birding with Grady and they have gone on two summer birding expeditions in 2011 and 2012.   Their avian bond is really sweet and despite their 65 year age difference, they like hanging out together.

Best Friends 4th Grade CYO Awards Ceremony

Last week was also the CYO basketball award ceremony.  G's team ended up being the 4th grade  league champions and took home the coveted champion t-shirt and a trophy.  Calvin, his best friend, dressed up for the occasion and looked really cute in his all black suit.

I logged 11.5 miles last week on Middle Road Loop (just down the hill from my house).  I've been following a training schedule for a 5K, even though I'm not registered for any such thing.

I'm kind of a rule-follower-list-maker-goal-setting kind of gal and I figured I'd have more success on getting myself moving and exercising if I had a written chart telling me what to do.  So far, so good.

The sage is waking up from its winter slumber
My stack of "on-deck" reading

I've been trying to dive into my bedside stack of books and get caught up on my reading lately.  My stack is a bit schizophrenic with fiction, gardening and cookbooks, magazines, memoirs and a little creative self-help.  It definitely reflects what's on my mind right now and what I'm interested in at this very moment.

G spent a lot of time in his studio on Friday night and Saturday during the day.  He was inspired by the book Darth Vader & Son by Jeffrey Brown.  He drew almost all of the characters on this one sheet of paper and did a really good job.  He didn't trace but, rather, copied by looking at the images and drawing them on his own.  I'm constantly amazed by his artistic talent and admire the way he just dives in and starts a project.

A friend asked him this weekend was kind of medium was his favorite and he answered sketching.  This was news to me, as I thought watercolors were his current medium de jour.  Changing.  Always evolving.

And last, but not least, the guys attended the 50th anniversary of "The Birds" screening at the Bodega Bay Grange, along with Scott and Jill.  One of Steve's clients is an expert on Alfred Hitchcock and spoke prior to the film viewing.  There was also this really fun photo booth that Grady's art teacher put together.

I love where we live.

Crazy birds and all.  Feel free to replace the word birds with people, farmers, tourists, farm animals, ranch hands, neighbors, community members...