Not so patient...

Around here, we've been waiting for spring to arrive.  And we're not being very patient anymore.  So yesterday, with the thermometer barely hitting 47 degrees (which actually is pretty warm), the kids took matters into their own hands....

"We're going outside mom, " Henry yelled as he and Anna headed out the door.

Oh, how I've been waiting 5 long months to hear that sentence!!



In spite of cold toes, Anna couldn't resist wearing her spring rain boots.





The kids also couldn't resist the huge puddle (or "lake" as they called it) in the front yard.













Spring fishing....







Wet clothes, slimey brown dead things, mud and puddles, soaked boots and socks.... Bring it on!  I'll take it all, if it means we're finally heading towards something warm and fresh and green.

Firehouse session...

My Saturday photo shoot was at my local fire station and I was so excited.  I felt like a third-grader, going on a field trip....



This is Katie.  She is eight years old (almost nine - - her May birthday is around the corner!)  Katie's dad is a long-time volunteer firefighter in our community and we were lucky enough to be able to take our pictures at the firehouse.   (A photographers dream - - talk about great light!!)



This is Frank.  He just finished up his hockey season, and is gearing up for baseball soon.  Frank really wasn't too excited about getting his picture taken.  He made me work for every shot....But when I did catch one, I swear he had a smile that would light up a room....



Katie, on the other hand, would have posed for me all day long....And with gorgeous shots like this, why not??



I think this is one of my favorite shots from the day.  I just love these smiles.



Okay, look at that toe point.  Any chance you'd guess Katie is a dancer?  Oh yeah....and a hockey player and a pianist.  Talk about a well-rounded kid!  (and busy parents!!)



Love this one!



Katie decided I needed my picture taken.  Click!



Despite any hesitancy that Frank showed in getting his picture taken, it completely vanished when mom suggested he put on the fire gear.  Just look at that smile.  Clearly, as son to a firefighter, you can just see how proud he was to put on the jacket and hat.  And considering his dad's nearly 20 years of service to our community, I understand why!!





I think this was the ONLY quiet moment I caught the entire session.







Thank you so much Annette, Frank and Katie!  I hope you had as much fun as I did!!

(Just admit it Frank....you had fun too!  Ha!!)

Old grandpa....

Henry and Anna's great great great grandfather is Eugene Field. 

Hmmm....the name doesn't ring a bell?  Well, it didn't for me either, until I became part of the Cox/Atwood/Field family when I married Ray. I have since learned that Eugene Field was one of the more prolific and well-known poets/writers of the mid to late 19th century.  He was particularly well known for his children's literature and was often referred to as "The Children's Poet." 

Ever hear of the poem "Wynken, Blynken and Nod?"  That is Eugene Field.

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
Sailed off in a wooden shoe---
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
Into a sea of dew....

Or "The Sugar PlumTree"

Have you ever heard of the Sugar-Plum Tree?
Tis a marvel of great renown!
It blooms on the shore of the Lollipop sea
In the garden of Shut-Eye Town....

A few years back, I found Eugene Field's collected works on Ebay. It is a beautiful set of first edition books. Most often, the books sit on the shelves in our living room looking studious and well, bookish. But from time to time, the kids will take them down, mostly so they can look at "Old Grandpa."   









Henry and Anna will stare at the picture of "Old Grandpa" in the front of each volume. They ask questions about his life and his writing, and I tell what I know, as little as that may be.



I can just see how amazing they think it is for one of their own to have written so many books. To have written ALL the words on ALL the pages. To have been famous in his time. They are connected to him. They could be like him. A writer. A poet. Well-known, respected. Doing what he was meant to do.

I try not to push the lesson too hard, but it is always there, each time we pick up the books....I just can't help myself:

Be who you are.
Do what comes natural to you.
Become your best self.
Everyday.



Henry will usually just thumb through the book, and pick up what words he can on the pages. But Anna will recount full-blown stories. Her own interpretation, that is. I'll tell her the title of the book or of a poem, and she will run with it, sharing what she imagines is written. On and on she'll "read," turning the book to her audience (me) from time to time, so I can see the page as well.





I think Old Grandpa would be pleased.







So, I have to share one more amazing thing I learned while I was doing a little Eugene Field research tonight. This is from Wikipedia:

"Field's father, attorney Roswell Martin Field, was famous for his representation of Dred Scott, the slave who sued for his freedom. Field filed the complaint in this famous case (Dred Scott vs. John Sandford [sic], referred to as the lawsuit that started the Civil War) on behalf of Scott in the federal court in St. Louis, Missouri, which is how the case got to the U.S. Supreme Court."

Really? The Dred Scott attorney??? SO cool! Now the kids have even more to live up to!! Tomorrow morning's breakfast conversation just took on a whole new life, for sure.