May is over and that means my tiny baby daughter is 6. Biologic age doesn’t really line up with capability so if we’re calling 6 the next milestone, she hit it a couple months ago. When Moriarty was born I read tons about newborn learning and there is a theory that kids go through major brain changes and are cranky and extra difficult, then a new skill appears. That seems to hold for 6 year olds too. All of a sudden Lorelei’s language changed. She asked longer, more complicated questions, gave more descriptive answers, and started trying to use vocabulary she’d heard from us. She doesn’t always get the meaning of the words right, but I’m so impressed with how she tries and continues to ask what words mean. For years we’ve been working with her on eating over her plate and using napkins, and that finally seems to have clicked. She’s bragging about it and showing us so we’ll compliment her. It’s cute. She’s also picking up our values. We went out for a fancy pancake brunch for her birthday and had so much fun. When we got home she handed me 4 wrapped pads of butter she had brought home so they wouldn’t go to waste. OMG. The Spirit of Mary has passed to the next generation. (context for non-Lafleur/Langes, my mother Mary was very frugal so when one of us makes an extremely frugal choice others might think ridiculous, it’s brought on by the Spirit of Mary)
Lorelei’s birthday party was at the same park/beach/playground as the last few years. It’s a great space and the weather was perfect this year. She had many friends come celebrate and invited the babies (my friends’ toddlers) and of course her cousins. My favorite picture from the day is Sofia Roberts with her legs covered in sand and her and Lorelei grinning ear-to-ear. For her cake we designed a dolphin extravaganza. I took her to the cake decorating store for a shopping spree and came home with 2 large candles, 6 bags of sprinkles, a crown (for the dolphin), and plastic princess rings to give to her friends. She helped me bake the cake and I made the dolphin out of choco-krispy treats and fondant. Then she put every single type of sprinkle ALL over the cake. It was so festive.
Spring is the time for new growth, and around here that’s chickens and plants. We got four baby chicks to fill out our flock. They’re Snowflake Elsa Glitter (nicknamed Sno-gli), Bellatrix, AKA Trixie, Amber Spud the second, and Penguin. Amber is a replacement for Moriarty’s favorite chicken, Amber, who went to the roosting bar in the sky. We’ve tried much harder to socialize this batch of chickens. We hold them most days and give them lots of attention. It seems to be helping and they let us pet them instead of running away. The garden is more slow growing. The slugs are out and they like to eat new plants. But the kids helped us plant, and they help water, and hopefully something will grow this year.
Another new spring feature is Spring Camp. The kids new school puts on a 3 day, 2 night, camping adventure. Many parents and all the staff put on classes for things like drawing plants on a hike, playing with giant bubbles, an outdoor pillow fight, learning about animal communication, shooting water balloons from a trebuchet, and D&D. Pip and I both attended and stayed in cabins with the kids. He helped with groups of kids and I worked in the kitchen. Heading into this trip Lorelei was very nervous about food. She’s been in a very picky phase and she was anxious there wouldn’t be any food she could eat. But we encouraged her to be brave (and brought a case of granola bars just in case). But she was brave. She tried many new foods and (re)discovered cantaloupe and loves it now. Moriarty had a blast. He ran around, ate everything, and was his normal charming self. What surprised me, but shouldn’t, several parents and teachers came up to me to tell me how much they like my kids. They appreciated Lorelei’s energy and friendliness, Moriarty’s engagement with the course material, and their overall great attitudes. I wish Pip and I could take ALL the credit for this, but sometimes it feels more like they’re balls in a pinball machine chaotically learning from friends, school, TV, us, and mostly my job is to smash the flipper at the right time so the ball doesn’t go in the drain. It was enlightening to be in a cabin with 5 other sets of parent and 6 year old. We expect a lot from the kids. We expect them to listen when we tell them to do something, or stop doing something, and we expect them to be respectful of other people. That was not the case for all the other sets of parents and their 6 year old. Particularly the boy who was turning the lights on/off repeatedly, interrupting people, and making fun of the kids using pull-ups. That would not fly in our home, but that kid didn’t get corrected by his mom. He did get corrected by me. I couldn’t take it.
Seeing other families at camp really helped me appreciate the children I got, the husband who helps raise them with me, and the community of people here and in the ether who support us. Thanks.
New Photos, password mal
New Videos
Moriarty doesn’t like whiskey. This is a throwback to a video he made with Moriarty tasting beer when he was 2 and I was out of town.
Lorelei talking to a beetle she found
Lorelei’s dance recital (from a class that’s more fun than serious dancing)
Kiddos playing together on the couch (they timed their jumps so neither kid got hurt!)