Raising Maine

Snowshoeing and 'guy' things

The girls did some cross country skiing at Fuller Farm yesterday before having a snowshoeing adventure in the backyard with Fino.

L.'s friend made a jump on the hill and L. thought it was really fun. Its great to see how at ease the girls are on their 'skinny' skis.

Fino borrowed two pairs of snowshoes from his friend Amy and we had one pair of our own. Since I was feeling under-the-weather yesterday anyway, I opted out of the backyard adventure.

I was crashed on the couch for about 30 minutes (two hours of skiing wiped me out) before G. came flying in to the house.

"Mommy! Mommy! Daddy fell in the river!"

(It's actually a narrow stream about two feet deep at the most.)

In my groggy, not quite functional state I asked, "Is he still stuck?"

"Well no, but he says his foot is hurt."

"OK, but is he walking back home?"

"Yeah he is but he says he can't feel his foot. You have to help him!"

G. watched me slowly pick myself off the couch (abdominal pain does not lend itself to fast movements) and decided I wasn't going to be much help so she darted back outside again.

A few minutes later Fino walked in the door just as I was reaching for my coat.

His snowshoes and boots were covered in a thick layer of snow and ice and he was making the ooooh and aaaah sounds of someone in pain.

"What happened?" I asked, still at little out of it.

He recounted the events leading up to his icy tumble that included "joking around," "teasing the girls," "they warned me about the water but I didn't listen to them" and "I jumped on the log without checking it out first."

Once he finished, my sympathy for his plight waned and I continued to watch him fumbling with the equipment straps while walking around on the hallway carpet.

"Fino, you're going to rip the carpet with those snowshoe spikes. Take those things off."

"I can't get them off. My feet are frozen."

So I reached down and pulled off the snowshoe straps and his boots while the girls were twittering around him.

"Mommy, will daddy's feet be OK?"

"Yes, his feet will be fine. Are you ever going to do what he did?"

"No way mom."

"No, daddy didn't make a good decision today."

As I ran warm water in the bathtub for Fino to soak he reddish/purplish feet, he summed up the incident.

"Sorry mama, it was a guy thing."

A brainstorm while canoeing

It's cliche, but it's true. You simply never know what your kids are going to say.

While canoeing on Friday, we were discussing which dance costume the girls were going to wear in the parade the next day. L. couldn't decide and started to drift from the original topic at hand to a costume idea she had for her dad.

It involved wearing a brown hat, brown pants, brown shoes and having a wooden cut out.

Do you have a guess where she's going with that?

It's an L. idea all the way, which is why I'll leave it to her to explain.

And after seeing this grin once she shared her dad's costume idea in the video, I realized she helped me to live up to the LOL costume suggestion this morning.

But when it came time for her sister to suggest a costume idea for HER, it was a whole new story. She decided it was time to stop the brainstorming session.

Fishing and fillet ... with girls

Fino took his brother-in-law and his older neice and nephew fishing the other day.

They found a quiet spot off Route 114 in Standish.

It turned out that C. caught the fish.

They caught two small fish on this particular trip and our nephew V. decided to fillet one of the fish for dinner that night. Unfortunately for him, he had to contend with not only the fish, but his two youngest sisters along with G. and L. begging him to 'save the other fish' so they could keep it.

But they didn't win that argument and suprisingly, all of them decided to stay and watch V. fillet the fish.

While sitting at the counter with V., G. decided to recount a video clip she had seen on TV about a man about to eat a fish head before he noticed the fish's gills still moving (it was an animated telling with arm gestures).

There were a hefty number of "EEEEEEWWWWWWS" and shrieks during the fillet process and all but our niece S. ducked when V. chopped the head off (with a dull knife so it took a couple of tries to do it - not a pleasant sight). S. was basically horrified with how that happened.

Then L. had an idea about what to do with the headless fish.

And I wonder if you can guess who ended up with the head in the end ...

[NOTE: This video is graphic and not for weak stomachs.]
The Unfortunate Fish

Daddy to the rescue

In November Fino offered L. some advice while she was sewing her doll a dress. But this week L. needed help with her doll's frizzy hair due to an over-useage of the doll brush so she asked for some assistance again.

Not only did Fino help L. with a web search on the best way to care for doll's hair, he also washed and conditioned the doll's hair.

Note: There was some debate in our house about posting this video but the males of household (Fino and Toddy) decided they were manly enough to agree (and I think Fino suspected that they would be outvoted anyway). But really, his research on doll hair paid off and L. is happy with the results. Although I did hear them discussing a hot oil treatment for next time...

Reason 999 not to wear a coat in January in Maine

The girls know how to dress for our outdoor adventures but when we're in and out of the car during the day there are multiple reasons why a winter coat in January is unnecessary. This was one of the more creative reasons I've been told recently.

"It gets in the way and I'm not cold when I'm hoola hooping!!"

And when the kids are desperate to play in the snow, they will settle for whatever winter-like stuff they can find. It's amazing how a patch of ice can entertain a group of kids for more than a half hour.

Bubble-nosed reindeer

L. had a brainstorm last night for our family Christmas card this year (the other photo with the Toddy saga was for Grandpa's card).

"We should all be bubble-nosed reindeer Mommy."

"What is that?" I asked.

"We can blow a bubble gum bubble and then stick it on our nose. It would be so funny for our family Christmas card picture."

After trying really hard not to laugh, I told her I would suggest it to Fino.

"Oh you have to tell him to do it Mommy, it would be so funny!"

Later I asked Fino...

"Are you serious?! She really suggested that?"

Yup, and I have a photo of her demonstrating the idea.

A new use for duct tape

Never at a loss for new ideas to do things, L. (with Fino's help) came up with a solution for relieving the pain of pricking herself with the needle she was using to sew a doll dress.

Apparently the duct tape worked great but later she was looking for help to remove it. Just FYI if you try this at home ... the tape goes on a whole lot easier than it comes off.

Hey diddle diddle is that an orange eraser?

A little nursery rhyme based on an accident yesterday at the Wildlife Park.

Hey Diddle Diddle
The peacock and eraser-iddle
The accident mom couldn't stop
The little girls gasped to see such a sight
And the chipmunk ran away with the top!

The girls felt awful about the accident but it all turned out OK in the end (and the rangers were very understanding once they stopped laughing).

Some creative thinking

Just as I was getting ready for bed last night, G. came running into my bedroom with a camera to ask me a question. Apparently she needed to wash her favorite pants and wanted help running the washing machine (which she does occasionally when she has a clothes "emergency").

What impressed me was that (1) she knew I was tired and would grumble about going downstairs to run the machine for her, (2) she recognized the fact that she has trouble describing things and turning knobs in the correct direction (she's a lefty with dyslexia) and (3) she figured out a way to ask for help without me having to actually do anything.

Her solution -- to take a picture of the machine's knob then show me on the camera's LCD screen to clarify what setting she needed for her clothes.

Now if only I could get her to put away her laundry afterwards...

An impromtu dad game

Yesterday we drove to Topsham to drop off some projects the kids made for the exhibit hall at the Topsham Fair (the fair opens tomorrow and runs through next Saturday).

Realizing it was going to take a while for the tags to be printed by the hall officials for their exhibits, I asked Fino to take the girls outside to grab a snack from the car. I knew they'd get antsy waiting around with me.

Everything for the exhibit hall was settled about 20 minutes later so I went in search of Fino and the kids and found them running around and laughing under one of the tents.

Bless those dads, they come up with things moms would never think to do.

Case in point -- flip-flop frisbee.

"Daddy's flip-flop flies wicked good mom. Look!"

Counting the ways to don the glasses

Yesterday afternoon the kids and I joined the fun in breaking the Guinness Book of World Records for the most people wearing Groucho Marx glasses at the same time, in the same place.

We took some photos for the Seen Team and then the kids decided to see how many ways it was possible to wear the silly glasses.

A self portrait

A rough climb for daddy

When we set off to find letterboxes on Douglas Mountain on Friday afternoon, we knew we had to bring a lot of water. With the temperature at almost 90 degrees, Fino decided to pack several frozen water bottles in his backpack.

That made his pack heavier than usual, and since he was still recovering from a head cold, it was a tiring climb for him.

The girls and I set out the picnic blanket once we reached the top of the mountain so he could lay down for a few minutes while we ate our snack.

Fino decided to get more comfortable and used one of the water bottles as a head rest. The girls thought that was pretty funny and decided to add to the silliness.

It probably would have been more refreshing if we'd had a couple of cucumbers with us.

A swinging celebration

Every year we splurge on a trip to a water park. This year we decided to go to Aquaboggan in Saco with some friends yesterday. I was downloading photos of our visit this morning when I ran across these photos on the camera taken by G. the night before we went. As usual, the photos were entertaining as well as plentiful. There were more than a dozen of this subject.

I think they were a little excited about our trip to the water slides.

A creative approach to chores

The girls were sorting their clean socks from the laundry basket. Generally, the girls don't care if their socks match, but every once in a while I like to do an inventory.

So as I was checking email, I heard a lot of laughing and then some crying while they were supposedly organizing the socks.

"Girls, what's going on," I yelled from the other room.

"Nothing, we have it figured out," G. replied.

A little while later they were laughing loudly and I went to see what exactly they had "figured out."

Swim goggles?

Their solution to not getting hit in the eye with a flying sock during their sock fight.

Nice.

The house breach

With all the rain and spending the past week sewing mermaid dance costumes for the kids' recital, I'm all set with this whole water theme going on right now.

So this morning I downloaded the photos from my camera to grab one I took for this blog entry. And I admit, it was nothing exciting.

But then I saw that there were a bunch of photos on the camera that I knew I didn't take. G. had obviously been working on her 4-H photography project yesterday.

Then I looked through the photos...

Well G.'s perspective is always interesting, including photos she chooses to take of her visiting Flat Stanleys. And I know I shouldn't complain about the fact that the girls were actually doing their chores and washing the dishes, but I didn't need to know they flooded the sink and kitchen floor to do it.

G.'s theme for her project is "action/motion" so my guess would be that she was going for dripping and/or spraying water. Still, it's an artsy-type photo and OK in my book.

Now this one, for so many reasons, is so NOT OK that it will require a serious chat when I get home.

I've told the kids a million times not to let the chickens on the porch and not to feed the chickens the cats' food even though they like to eat it.

So this is like the double-rule breaker -- without the house breach.

And what were the girls thinking when they took this picture, that I wouldn't see it?

It's a good thing they're cute...

A creative solution for muddy socks

We went hiking on Douglas Mountain with a friend yesterday and had ourselves quite an adventure on another gorgeous spring day.

The Eagle Scouts have developed a section of trail at the new trailhead off Douglas Hill Road. We usually take the Woods Trail to the top of the mountain but decided to check out the new trail instead. That was a bit of a mistake at this time of year.

We were hiking through a particularly muddy area (actually that trail was mostly mud) and L. lost her shoe without realizing it and took a couple of steps in her socks. Let's just say that it was quite a messy affair.

I found a little stream and cleaned off her shoes and washed out the socks. The shoes were fairly new and a bit stiff and she really wanted another pair of socks. I didn't have any in my backpack (I have lots of other random things but socks weren't one of them) so I jokingly suggested she wear the knit gloves I had. She thought that was a great idea and put them on. She's special, that kid.

I tied her wet socks to the back of her sister's pack in hopes of them drying. The socks never did fully dry during the hike but the kids were amused by it all.

At some point I realized that the Eagle Scout's trail was leading us all the way around the mountain instead of to the stone tower at the top. I may have missed a trail marker leading off to the other trails but my guess is that maybe they haven't posted all the markers yet.

So since we had some bushwhacking experience under our belts this spring - and the ticks aren't out in full-force yet - I turned on the GPS and we made our way up the side of the mountain.

The woods weren't thick but the incline was steep so I bribed the kids with jelly beans. It was hard work and it seemed to me that they needed some incentive to keep going. Even Flat Rover got a treat during one of our many water/candy breaks.

We were all breathing hard and had bright red faces by the time we reached the stone tower about a half hour later.

What cracked me up was that after our picnic lunch the kids suggested playing Tag.

"Are you serious," I asked. "After all that hiking (almost 2 miles, with 1/2 mile being a very steep elevation gain) you want to play Tag?"

"Yeah mom. Tag is fun and we're not tired anymore," said L.

And here I was feeling badly because it was tougher hike through the woods than I had planned. And I plied them with all those jelly beans and words of encouragement just to get them to the top of the mountain. And then they wanted to play Tag? Go figure.

We chose to take the short way down the mountain on the Woods Trail. It's only 1/4 mile to the old trail head and a short walk down the road to where we parked our car. Except for the couple of patches of ice we found, it was much easier than our hike up.

We've been spoiled this week by all the warm, sunny weather. It's going to be rough when the rain and cooler temperatures return.

Saturday: Mostly cloudy. A chance of showers in the morning then showers likely with isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 50s. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70 percent.
Sunday Through Monday: Partly cloudy. Highs in the lower 50s. Lows in the mid 30s.

Mismatched sock gene

I'm an after-holiday bargain shopper. I keep a particular eye out for socks because the kids love the various holiday designs and I can usually pick them up for less than a dollar on sale. And it doesn't matter the holiday - Halloween, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter - the kids like them all.

I share this tidbit only to explain the reason G. has so many kinds of socks. She really likes them and in the past few months, she's developed her own special style in wearing them.

Now I may have perpetuated G.'s new fashion statement because I don't match socks from the laundry. Clean socks go in a basket for the kids to rummage through to match themselves. I think G. got tired of looking for a matched pair one day and it went from there.

She may have also gotten the notion from her genetic makeup. I went through quite a few years in junior high (and maybe even high school), wearing different socks, which my mother reminded me about recently after seeing G.'s feet.

There have been a couple of disadvantages with these socks though. Like the time she had an imprint of a Christmas tree on her leg from her downhill ski boots.

But that hasn't stopped her from wearing them with other sport equipment, like this past week when we went ice skating.

"My skates fit better with thin socks Mom. Plus, they do really match today. They both have snowmen."

Kids, cars and cameras

Heading home from G's violin concert yesterday (I know Mom, there's another one in June), we decided to make a quick stop at the grocery store in Standish for some milk.

But whoa... there was a lot of hoopla in Standish when we pulled into Colonial Marketplace. About 5 police cars - and some unmarked Crown Vics (a clear give-away that there's something big going on) - surrounded the Gorham Savings Bank there.

As we drove by....

Me: Silently thinking about what was going on and deducing it was likely some sort of bank robbery.

L.: "Look at all those police cars mom! I didn't know there were so many in Standish."

Me: Thinking the same thing....

"Well honey, I think maybe someone tried to rob the bank."

Click. Click. (from the back seat)

"What are you doing?"

L.: "Taking a picture of the bank. (pause) Mom, did he steal my money too?!"

Click. Click.

Me: "Well the bank has insurance so if he did, you don't have to worry about your money."

G. "Well he better not have taken MY money. I'll have to kick him if he did."

Ah yes, outrage at the prospect of someone stealing their money from the bank. And I know, G.'s tactics need a little work - she clearly has a real desire to kick someone.

But what is most interesting is the fact that the first thing L. did was reach for the camera in my backpack to take a picture (well about 10 actually). Clearly our Flat Stanley project has taken on a whole new dimension. Now it seems the kids are documenting our local news....

Photos take by L.

Speak Francais? Not exactly....

Last night the girls and I were chatting during dinner and a turn in the conversation lead to a discussion on strangers.

I've spoken with the girls before about not talking to people they don't know unless they are with an adult they DO know. My usually more reserved child, G. said she had a new plan to deal with a stranger asking her to help him find his lost puppy....

"First I'd kick him in his privates like daddy told me to do."

"Well honey, you don't kick everybody. Just someone who tries to touch you."

"Yeah mommy, I know that. "

"Good."

"Then I'd say (to the stranger), 'Monsieur. Pas de Bourree Francais. (Then in a really inaccurate French "accent") I do not speak English Monsieur.' "

"What!?"

"Mommy, it's French. I would pretend I didn't understand him because I speak French."

"OK. But honey you don't know how to speak French. And don't you think the English words might give that away?"

"No! I'd speak like a French person so he would think I was French."

"Honey, if you're going to pretend to speak another language, why not Spanish? You at least know words in that language. The only French you know is from ballet class." (Pas de bourree is a ballet step.)

"Yeah mommy, but it's not as weird."

"So you're going to scare off the stranger by speaking in French to him?"

"Yes!"

Once I picked myself up off the floor from laughing, I suggested she stick with our original plan when dealing with strangers - find mom or dad or another adult she knows and leave the "French talking" to her weekly drama class at the theater.

Flat friend almost eaten by pig

Scenario:

G. is taking pictures of her flat friends from New Zealand at Wolfe's Neck Farm after hiking at the state park.

Decides to stick the flat friends on the pen to get a shot with some Maine pigs.

Pigs sniff out the situation.

Pigs decide flats are suitable for eating.

Flats rescued by L. in nick of time.