Things That Matter

We are working and working on settling in....I keep taking more things out to the garage again, we keep finding spots for things to live, this week I put up some pictures on the walls and the boys and I bought bulbs (science, you know) and double used them as biology lesson and garden improvement. The garden has suffered, the whole yard has from vigorous tiny-male use and motherly neglect while I have been working on the inside. So many balls to juggle.

Last night something gave and I stayed up....way past my bedtime...I snapped and washed every single dish in the whole house, then swept the floor, then wiped down the counters and polished the stove. And then, I had a cup of tea.

And then I got out my paints in the quiet glow of the office and I made colors swirl together and image magically appear on the blank page...until about 3am. So beautiful, so feeding, so irresponsible. Tonight I am going to bed early.

Boxes matter, dishes matter, gardening matters, school work matters....but painting in a silent house with a mug of tea beside you matters too.

Wednesday Goes Like This

When A goes away suddenly I get all night owl-ish and want to stay up late every night, usually blinking wide-eyed at the computer screen while I dream and write and sketch and research. I am on a travel bender right now and keep digging up new obscure facts about Morocco and places to stay for a pittance in Finland. I usually stay awake until the first kid has a nightmare or has to go to the bathroom and stumbles down the hallway to the office squinting.

Once that kid is tucked in again I put myself to bed, resisting the urge to read a nip or two from a bedside novel in the midnight stillness. I just pat the book stack and tip A's alarm clock over on its face so the neon green numbers can't stare at me all night and drift off. The only catch with this habit is that I find it harder and harder as the week goes on to get up at my scheduled time and have my early riser solo hour in the quiet dawn.

This morning I was a positive stone, sleeping leadenly the recycling truck collection and the school bus arriving for the neighbor kids. When I pulled the curtains I saw that it was a dove grey morning with mist rolling up the hill. What light there was was muted and cloudy. The boys and I had tea at breakfast (green and mint!) and ate slowly, passing the bowl of blueberries around several times. It is a luxury to just eat. To breathe and realize that we can go as slowly as we like since there is no train to run after, trying to make sure Daddy makes his connection for his commute.

A luxury until the smalls start taking their time, eating one blueberry every 10 minutes, putting their feet on the table and giggling uncontrollably about it and asking for fourths and fifths of tea. So then breakfast was over and we were off on errands and read-alouds and Picasso lessons. The good news is, the car has nothing wrong, the brakes are great + the oil is changed, the girls in our book started a new adventure and it does look like Michael will marry their favorite auntie after all and the pressing has been all dropped off at the cleaners. Now on to kid's club, registering for chess, signing up for a mommy yoga class, and a quick early dinner before a friend drops by! Whew.

I'd say we're a go...time for a Thursday.