Well, it's not a day at the park...

Zhara masters the monkey bars.

Actually, it is...

Today was Park Fun Day. Winnie picked it. We had so much fun.


Wednesday and Angus and I spent the morning watching They Might Be Giants music videos on YouTube, and playing board games. They have so much fun with those videos. We have the cds, but they adore watching them on the computer.

Now, I knew TMBG back in the day. Like smashed under the stage in Columbia, MO as a screaming freshman in college, circa 1994, back in the day. Wow, that makes me feel really f-ing old. But anyway, now TMBG have aged, as have we all, and reproduced, check here, too, and so now they are a totally awesome kick-ass kid's band. My post-funky punky self finds it wonderful that my little punks now listen to the same band that I rocked out to in college.


Zhara slept in, and when we were all ready to go, we packed a picnic lunch and headed off to the big park in the middle of Lehi for Park Fun Day. We ate, swung, climbed -- it was fun. The kids must have climbed over the top of the tube slide 100 times each. I think we strike fear into the hearts of the reserved Mormon mothers at the park, but my children are just daring free spirits, not to be constrained by piddly park guidelines. I even got to knit some in the shade of a tree.

It really was one of those magical days with kids when you think, "oh, yay, I knew there was a reason that I had procreated, but I couldn't remember why, and there it is." It was lovely. Warm, my kids running and playing together happily, swinging in and out of the dappled sunlight. We probably looked like the picture of the happy, contented homeschooling family with all the other moms thinking, "my kids would never act like that if I homeschooled." And, of course, 98% of the time, neither do mine. In fact, they are downstairs now fighting over who gets to sit where on the sofa, but I'm still in my moment of delight at the park.

Cool, it really looks like poop when they aerate the soil!

This afternoon, the high even lasted long enough for Zhara to teach Angus how to use the computer some. She worked with him on using the mouse, and set him up a StarDoll account like hers, so that he can play dress up on line with a guy he designs, and then can interact with her online. Of course, somehow my cursor is now a sparkling bunch of purple grapes, but you have to be thankful for small blessings.


Sometimes, somedays, it works. You understand why you do it. It all comes together and there you are, in the park, answering your kids questions about aerating the soil, pine needles, and dappled sunlight. And for one brief moment in time, you really, truly appreciate what you have, in the moment that you have it. You are completely present and grateful. It doesn't happen often, especially not as parents. So often someone has spilled something, or eaten something, or scraped something, or peed on something, and you're too busy cleaning it up, or patching the boo boo to be present. But every now and again, I get it. And then, I am very thankfully that we found this way of life.

She's a cheese head -- get it?