Snake as tall as a Mom.

Last week Jamie and Henry had a very fun and snakey week at reptile camp at the Cincinnati Nature Center.
http://www.cincynature.org/
They both had a wonderful week learning all about reptiles in their natural habitat, and happily traipsed about the woods and fields looking for snakes.

Jamie and a buddy showing me how tall their snake was compared to this birdbox.

This kind of search terrifies me and I am very happy that this is an element of parenting that can be contracted out... the great 8 hour snake hunts. 

The highlight of Jamie's small group happened when they came across a thieving, greater than 5 foot black rat snake.
The boys excitedly pointed out that their snake was "taller than a mom," if it was stretched out which is absolutely correct and easily measured by the over five foot tall bird box that it was visiting.
 Mrs. Snake was sneaking into the birdbox  to steal the eggs while the mama and papa bird flew around and screaming and cursing him.

I am telling myself that there were eggs and not baby birds in the nest only because eggs are not as cute as baby birds, and so less troubling for me to think of their sad departure via snake tummy. 

photo courtesy of Green Acres foundation...  http://www.green-acres.org/

This is a photo of another very tall black rat snake from a nearby camp.... as you can see she is indeed as tall as a mom but a much better tree climber than most moms I know. 

Instagrammy lovely.

While I was finishing out the school year with the home kids, my oldest dear was finishing her junior year with a couple of weeks in England and Scotland.

And while I was happy for her to be trekking about...thanks to some wonderful Instagram photos, I was also a bit jealous.

Because while I was doing mom stuff, I would periodically get Anna updates full of instagrammy loveliness of adventure girl perched in cute boots on craggy rocks amongst the heather and splendor.

 

 Here too.

Thank you dear Druids for this.

 And while prehistoric burial grounds are very cool and dramatic, even more magical to me was this photo.
PONIES!

I love this photo so much.
I think that the only thing that would make it better would be if Anna in cute boots managed to include herself it it.

Crafty Cards for Grown-Ups.

Inspired by the Mother's Day card that Rosie made for me (with a ton of help from her kind teachers) my dear husband decided that his dear dad was also in need of a cute crafty card from his oldest son.

I offered to find the poem with the message of,

(I'm paraphrasing)

...be nice to me when I am little, because someday I will be big and you will miss having me around messing up your house with adorable little fingerprints.

He declined.

But he did include his age (Karl -age 48) and remembered to date his crafty card. 

I'm still not sure why he chose to use multiple paint colors.... but who am I to question artistic intent?

Here he is before he climbed into his little red car and hand delivered his hand card to his delighted (I'm sure) 

father.

He was even good enough to smile and pose even knowing that his Dad's day card would show up on his wife's silly blog.

And here is Rosie's little handprint that inspired her dad to bust out the poster paint and get crafty to celebrate Father's Day.

Our Single Lady.

Rosie's most often requested story is the one about our earliest days together.

She loves to hear about her babyhood in Ethiopia and then how she came to be a part of our family. She is the babystar of the story and she appreciates that.

So I often tell her about all of the nice ladies at the orphanage who took care of her...how these loving and sweet ladies fed her bottles, changed her diapers and gave her lots and lots of hugs while she waited for us to come get her.

And Rosie always asks the same question about these orphanage nannies...

Did they teach me how to to dance?

And I always answer yes.

In Rosie's optimistic and glamorous mind, the NICE LADIES that I have told her about have became the SINGLE LADIES who happily groove and wiggle along side her beloved Beyonce waving their left hands and pointing out that someone really  "should'a put'a ring on it!"

Rosie really loves that video.

I think that the orphanage nannies in Rosie's mind would put Mary Poppins to shame. 

Rosie's nannies spent all day and night taking care of babies in addition to filming videos with Beyonce and thoughtfully gave dance clinics to every kid in the orphanage before they met their forever family and moved on.

Those single ladies were very busy but dedicated to their craft as well as caring for the children. 

  

  Not too long ago, Rosie was fresh home from dance and still in her leotard when she threw on her go-go boots (as one does) and ran upstairs. 

"Wait," I said, "let me take your picture" and grabbed my phone before she could run away.

She stopped, turned to me, struck this classic single ladies pose and said...

 "I think you want to take my picture because I look so much like the NICE SINGLE LADIES who gave me baby bottles and hugs and taught me to dance."

Exactly, Rosie.

While I certainly mean no disrespect to the women who took care of our girl in a loving way, (though not likely a manner that included Beyonce inspired dance moves), I am ok with Rosie remembering them in any positive way that she chooses. 

Life will teach her otherwise soon enough.

And while her details are a little fuzzy, Rosie is pretty sure that her earliest years were

 spent drinking baby bottles and learning to dance with the nice single ladies/orphanage nannies, who  had side jobs as Beyonce's back up singers. 

Which could definitely explain Rosie's strong and sassy attitude and also her sense of innate style.

Shiny New Graduate- Class of 2013!

Our Mary is an official graduate of Summit Country Day School class of 2013!

(she has the diploma and rose to prove it)

She did a little dance down the steps that she has climbed every day for 14 years...

as you can see- our girl was very, very happy and not a bit shy to show it.

Then she spent a few fun moments cracking up with one of her best pals Meg, who has climbed those steps right next Mary for just as many years.

However, this was one occasion that these two girls were wearing dresses that were both designed by future famous fashion designer Meg Matilde.

Meg developed and sketched each dress and then had another seamstress friend sew each fabulous graduation dress. 

Isn't it terrific to have such talented pals?    

If there was an "issue" with your high school credits, then instead of a diploma in your little blue folder, there was a note to see this man... Dr. Malone, high school principal, to get your service hours, or gym credit or whatever worked out. 

Happily, Mary did not receive such a note and is clutching her shiny new diploma instead.

And here is the proud family of our newest graduate...parents, grandparents, and little sis Lilly who as a middle school sibling, was able to serve as an assistant in the ceremony.

Because Mary's graduation was a historic event for our family, we really had to dress our concrete pig for the occasion. 

Here is Miss Mary in here brand new DePaul Blue Demon sweatshirt getting ready for the next chapter of her life- like the cheesy yard sign says... You Go Girl!