today is bananas b-a-n-a-n-a-s....

so, little sweet baby nico is growing. fast. at 5 months now he wears 9-12 month old clothes. he's on the go, not exactly crawling but so, so close and in fact this pulling/pushing/pivoting thing he is doing now is probably more efficient than actual crawling. he can get up in the correct position on his hands and knees and even coordinate himself to move a few paces but at this point he feels dragging himself everywhere works faster. and where is this baby off to in such a hurry, you ask? oh, why to any electric cord that is plugged into an outlet of course. if not that he is very good at finding those little lost pieces of paper and tasting them throughly before someone has to fish them out of his gooey mouth. and why oh why is his mouth so juicy these days? because we have teeth, people, teeth. not one but two have popped through in this past week. can you see those little white pearls in this blur of a picture?



and of course he has to balance this frenzied activity with a bit of yoga. the plank pose:


between him and his brother, i am stretched thin. thankfully, i have chocolate and coffee on hand. we are going to be super busy soon. two jobs, two kids, one borrowed mini-van. at least one of us will be working everyday of the week this summer and somedays both of us work with just a moment in between to relay the kid-watching responsibilities. i'm really excited and nervous about my new position that officially starts monday. and of course besides for the parenting and part-time teaching, i've got to buckle down and study for the jlpt 3 that takes places at the start of december. and jason is taking the test too because that is part of the deal. you see, he's planning on taking a trip to japan in feb. 2008 with some friends and i said i wouldn't voice my jealousy as long as he takes the exam. so he's motivated. i'm motivated by the grad programs with applications due at the beginning of 2008.

and then there are my art+craft pursuits....

i am super happy that jason has basically settled on getting a bfa in printmaking. i am utterly selfish in this happiness but it means that i will have access to knowledge and resources that i intend to use in my textile design self-education. the postcard project is my way of practicing printmaking and keeping in touch with friends near and far. win-win. again, if you wish to be added to my mailing list, just send me your address via email (there's a link in my profile). i'm already prepping for postcard #3 so just let me know.
i will be updating papermoon this week. i am working on baby gift sets for a few akachans this weekend then i'll start on the mother day presents. with all these things going on, i'll probably be slowing down on blogging but i will aim for one post a week with maybe a few pictures in between. okay, i hope all is well with everyone. take care. xo

feeling very quiet here lately. will be back soon.
xo

school + thoughts

so, preschool. i just got the call today that sebastian was accepted into the neighborhood preschool. he'll start in august and go five days a week from nine until noon. at one time, this was not an option because i was very attached to my idea of how i wanted to raise my sons, an idea that certainly did not include the catholic preschool three blocks away. and yet there was this (small) voice that kept echoing school, school, school. those big yellow buses and plastic lunch boxes would trigger the voice but if a gaggle of small children was spied, then the nagging became insistent: "i want to go to school, mom". so, i am listening to my son. this is his path. i support him. i also know that i was damn lucky because the school we chose due to practicality (you know, the whole not having a car thing) uses the montessori method for its preschool classes. and since florida now has voluntary preschool (aka it's free) this means the school gets government money (and thus separation of church and state meaning the preschool can't teach religion) and i don't have to worry about explaining god and such until i think sebastian is ready (the registration form had a question "are you catholic ___ non-catholic___." i checked the latter.). and if he doesn't like it? then he can stay at home. the foundation of unschooling has been laid; school is merely supplementary at this point. sebastian gets his kids ("my kids, my kids are at the park/school/museum") and we can have four hours a day with just nico. it doesn't hurt that nico will probably nap for half of that time and thus giving whomever is home a chance to, um, i don't know. what do people do with two hours of quiet? probably something exciting like the dishes. ( franny, i don't have a way to respond to your comments so if you want to email me, there is a link in my profile...:))

and now spring cleaning is complete. such a relief. i can focus on other aspects of my life.


discovered aleksandro kasuba through dwell magazine. the article on the tokyo home in this issue was also captivating. we are subscribers to this fantastic magazine and have just renewed for two more years. it is one of the few things we are willing to commit to.
checked out zorba the greek from the library and borrowed birth. i saw zorba a long time ago but that was before i read the book countless times while i was in japan. so much is missing in the movie but it is still an amazing film. birth had the quality of a good short story; a dynamic yet subtle way of demonstrating the fragility of perspective.

today's playlist: archer prewitt wilderness, beth orton comfort of strangers, isobel campell & mark lanegan ballad of the broken seas, bright eyes collection of songs 1995-1997, mum finally we are no one

(picture taken by sebastian while we were filming finger puppet t.v. with sancho and hand)
i've been reading the path is the goal by Chogyam Trungpa and this book has really clarified so, so much for me. i am actually considering doing this MFA program instead of the applied linguistics program. my natural impulse is to avoid more institutional educational experiences but i have kept naropa at the back of my mind for many years and since i believe i will need a masters to do the work i want and support my familiy, this might be a way to go. but it is just a way. one of many.
p.s. i will be updating papermoon throughout the week

peeping out to say hello

my tiny contribution to color week: red friday:

spring cleaning is still underway but there is some progress...
a bedroom for sleeping only. no lamps, or computers, or tables, or drawers, or dirty laundry. just clinched eyes, dreams, and a few pillows to rest our heads on.

the other bedroom is now our "rec room". a corner for sebastian...

a corner for me...

a reading corner...

now, to tackle the living room where everything that has no other place is piled in the middle of the floor. but first i must clean out the haunted coat closet and the space beneath the stairs with the hope of finding some extra storage space. i keep reminding myself that in the end everything will be sparkling and lovely and thus worth the chaos. anyway, happy weekend friends. i'll post something decent monday, i promise.
xo

m.i.a.

we've been caught in a whirlwind of activity lately (relatively speaking for us quiet souls) and i am now picking up the pieces. spring cleaning has begun and chaos has descended upon our tiny abode. i'll been offline for a few days longer to devote myself completely to this must-be-done project then i'll be back to catch up with you lovelies and hopefully share a poem or two, my preschooling decision, and maybe even have something for papermoon (that's a big maybe, mind you). hope all is well with everyone. take care. xoxo