Noah's first ski lesson

Reluctantly taking an all day lesson that he made it through until 2 pm before insisting  in his expressive Noah way that enough was enough away from Mom.

Here he is after 2 runs on the " fork lift - the lift that scoops you up" with Mom; well, and a hot chocolate with whipped cream.

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October Newsletter » Mt. Whitney: Spooktober!

What Noah's class was up to in October:

Hi Preschool Families,

With Halloween approaching, we thought it would be a great idea to dedicate the month of October helping our Mt. Whitney explorers conquer their countless fears and anxieties. We began by having an open discussion of what we were afraid of, challenges and worries. We then dissected it and explored each concept.Eee our Monster

Here are a few things the children shared:

Noah T: "Skeletons.. scary noises and a dog eating my hair."

Lily: "Ghosts... my kitty eating my shoe and biting me"

Eli: "In the dark and when the garage is open"

Noah G: "Bears"

Colt: "Spooky spiders and fire"

Taavi: "A dog eating my face" (Taavi has a great sense of humor)

'E'eeeeeK!

One fear which stood out most was the fear of monsters. We spoke of why we were frightened of them and had some suggestions to overcome it. Taavi even comforted his friends by telling them "Monsters are not real. They are just silly looking and ugly." With that being said, the children chuckled and began pretending to be monsters with nutty mannerisms. To further explore these creatures, we made our own... a huge "whatchumacallit" hanging on our door. From the three eyes to its long sharp tongue, the children were involved in eveNoah observing Sergeant Dauer's carry aspect of this creative process. They all worked cooperatively to brainstorm, paint, cut regonizable shapes to see this rightfully named ,"Eeek" monster come to fuition. You can even catch some of the children staring at the monster and say "Oooh I'm not afraid of you (Noah G.)"

'F'act, Fiction & Fibbing

Having newfound knowledge that monsters were not real and were just figments of our imagination, we then opened a new conversation about the differences between fact and fiction. We read many books about our favorite fictional Halloween characters including the the folktale "Abiyoyo" and explored facts ab"Thank you for the surprise" Taaviout space.  This topic then led to a discussion about the importance not fibbing. Although it is fun to use our imagination to create things, we learned that telling the truth can help keep friends safe. The children connected with this topic when Sergeant Dauer of Emeryville Police Department stopped by for a special visit. He spoke of Halloween safety and of different approaches when encountering strangers who fib. The biggest highlight of this presentation was when Sergeant Dauer allowed the children to climb in his police vehicle (in front, of course) andColt & Eli experiment with the gak by placing it in a metal basket. "Look at it drip" Colt gifting them with goody bags.

'G'ooey Glowing Guts!

During week "G", we had fun with many sensory experiences including making gak and cleaning our slimy pumpkin. With a little bit of trial and error of getting the correct consistency, we made gooey green gak. The children found the consistency fascinating as it felt like a solid, yet stretches and drips down like a liquid."Hey there's no fishies in there. Haha, I was just kidding" Lily

Although it may seem like a simple task when cleaning pumpkin guts, most of the children were a bit apprehensive about touching it's "guts." Like with anything new and unknown, we had a discussion of what we thought may be in the mysterious pumpkin. Before carving, Lily mentioned "I think there is fish bowl in it with little fishies and sharks swimming." We then carved it, touched it, smelled it and for some even tasted the ooeey gooey slime/seeds. Afterwards, we took the theme of pumpkins and made our own puzzle pumpkin patch. We continued working with fine motor development, letter and name recognition by writing our names and piecing them together to create our very own pumpkin.

Noah writng his name

Taavi gluing his pumpkin together.

Colt with glowing whiskers and fangsAs previously mentioned, Eli has been a little weary about the dark so we had a glow in the dark party. Experimenting withOur pumpkin patch light, darkness and shadows we made glow in the dark t-shirts, painted our faces with glow in the dark paint and danced in complete darkness to the tunes of "Monster Mash." No signs of fear was present during this party, just rambunctious 3yr olds dancing and howling!

H'alloween is finally here!

The children had a blast collecting treats from the much anticipated Halloween parade through Clif bar...wishing everyday was "dress-up" day, which is!

Firemommy Colt, Super Girl Lily,, Space Commander Taavi, Batman Noah, Pirate Captain Eli & Hobo Noah

Saying Good Bye to Jayden

This month we also had some difficulties saying good bye to everyone’s best friend – Jayden. Many of us haveNoah G. giving his last hug to Jayden. grown with him and his family since the infant room (Mt. Hood) and were sadden of his move. His jovial and sweet presence is truly missed in our classroom.

Q: What would you miss most about Jayden?

“Read a book to him… and he has a happy face” Eli

“I will miss his body and he makes funny faces” Noah T

“His body because I want to give him hugs” Taavi

“I want to squeeze his body and kiss him. I like to play with Jayden” Colt

“I read to Jayden and Jayden is a funny face” Noah G.

“His smile. He’s nice to me” Lily

We wish Jayden, baby sister – Layla, mom- Christine and dad – Vivek the best on their new journey.

Eli with Pirate Lolo and Suki GiraffeyNew Friends..

After saying good bye to Jayden, we had the pleasure of welcoming several new additions to our classroom. Suki Giraffey and Pirate Lolo (stuff animals) have found their way into our classroom and hearts. They have given the children great enjoyment while teaching them responsibility, to be better comminicators and gentle with friends. A major plus with these new friends is they're "allowed" to have sleep overs at our Mt. Whitney explorers home!

Colt's fear of bugs was immediately conquered when we adopted another new friend - Biggety Boo The Praying Mantis. Colt had to collect bugs for her to eat the first day; Although fearful at first, and with a little motivation from Lily, he was completely ecstatic when he finally allowed an ant crawl up his hands. Way to go.

With sudden appreciation and fondness of insects, the children then became interest in butterflies. Coincidentally, in the mail (Thanks Ms. Lani) came four caterpillars. While observing our new friends, we learned the life cycle of these insects as they curled up in chrysallies and patiently waited as three of four emerged in to beautiful monarch butterflies (one had been eaten by ants - which also led to another topic - death). A few days after enjoying their company, we released out new buddies into the vegetable garden hoping one day we will meet again.

Next month...

We will explore all things we are thankful for. We will emphasize using kindness amongst friends & family, and reach out to our community to help others in need. Thank you friends for being so brave and helping eachother overcome their fears. It has been an eventful month!

With love, Ms. Mylee

Noah's pre-school activities

September Newsletter » Mt. Whitney: New Beginnings

Hi Preschool Families,

After an unforgettable exhilirating summer...

camping,

making human bubbles,

painting in the dark,

time traveling (49ers panning for gold),

.

meeting mountain biker - Teal,

fishing,

visiting the moon (exploring "moon sand"),and playing with snow,

... it was time to start the new fall year.  With a new season comes a new classroom.  As our eight 4-year olds transitioned to Pre-K, it left our Mt. Whitney classroom with seven preschoolers to make their newly downsized classroom their own.

Before a long weekend, the children came together to discuss their likes and dislikes of the classroom. Suggestions were made; Come the following Tuesday, to their joy, the classroom was different - rearranged furniture, new rugs, plants, family photographs. The sparkle in their eyes and wide grins showcased the absolute joy of seeing their classroom as they imagined days ago. You had to be there... They were most excited to see their silhouettes mounted on the wall and used as a growth chart; which they track daily.

Can you guess the silhouette?

Fall 2013

As the new fall season starts, the children now begin the fun introduction of the ABC's.  Keeping it emergent and child-focused, many conversations of "what do you want to learn about" are initiated weekly. Their ideas are then connected with the letter of the week. The children have the power to guide their curriculum.

Letter "A"Taavi multitasking - eating & working

What better way to learn about the letter "A" than to explore all things apples?  Since it was apple season, it made the topic very relevant; interest was easily gained once they found out about making one of their favorite foods - APPLESAUCE!

Using their gross motor skills the children worked hard peeling the fresh fuji apples.  As they twisted the "machine," they discovered that the apple skin resembled "apple hair and apple noodles". They became very fond of it. Some ate the skin, while others got creative and used them as necklaces, earrings etc. Many skills such as: counting one to one correspondence, math (measurement) and social- emotional (taking turns) were observed. The children also practiced delayed gratiJayden counting apple cores.fication during this cooking project as they waited hours until the applesauce was cooked in the crock pot. All woul"Come see what I made" Noah Td agree that it was the worth the wait because it was sooooo yummy!

As an extension to learning all about apples, many children then became very interested in writing the letter 'A'. You can find A's written all over their new art/writing journals; which were introduced to them the same week to jott down ideas, thoughts and create masterpieces! Way to go guys!

Busy "B's"

Our Mt. Whitney bees kept busy the following week. They learned about pollination and honey. They even made the very complicated banana ice cream (just blended frozen bananas) and continued practicing delayed gratification by baking bread! It was an amazing experience for both myself and the children. Being our very first time baking bread, we were careful reading and following the directions. When one thing failed, we tried again. For example, when we sat and waited for the yeast to foam and it didn't, we didn't fret. We shrugged our shoulders and asked eachother what we could do differently. Jayden mentioned, "we can put more honey." So we did, and the yeast activated. After waiting patiently for hours until the dough woke up (rise), we had the opportunity of punching and moulding the dough into various shapes. Once completed, we popped them in the oven and awaited to eat them as the irresistable warm toasty aroma of fresh baked bread trickled through the hallways of Base Camp.

 The oh so good, lavender, rosemary sweet bread!

Field trip to the train tracks'C'olors of Fall

With leaves falling and unpredictable weather, we decided to closely examine the colors of Fall for week "C". Using four of our five senses, we went on nature walks to collect leaves and record our findings. We even went as far as leaving Base Camp during one of our trips. From what started as just visiting the bochy ball court, to an emerged interest of "what's that sound?" It was a "choo choo train." Walking a few blocks further with the cool breeze carressing our faces, we found the railroad tracks. But where were the trains? Nowhere to be seen, the children waited patiently and took in their environment. They waved to passerbys, made new friends with a "man and his monster truck", searched for the only cloud in the sky (which turned out to look like a fire breathing dragon) and made some drivers dance in their cars! Unbelievable. Minutes passed, distracted by others, the children then heard the ticking of the train signal. Immediately, they jumped up with pure excitement as they saw the train quickly pass by. Although only witnessing it for less than 5 seconds, you could tell - it made their day. Nonstop chatter/arguments of where the train was going, or whether it was really a train echoed through the streets as we walked back to school. This simple siting made my day, week and month. It was absolutely worth the impromptu trip. 

Next month, to coincide with many of our friends' favorite holiday - Halloween, we will continue our ABC curriculum with an emphasis for all things "scary!" EEEEK! It's going to be spooktacular!

I look forward to making more memories and reaching new milestones with our Mt. Whitney Preschool class of 2013/2014! 

With love,

Ms. Mylees

Let's make a deal

Upon learning a bath or a shower was the choice he had to make if he wanted to watch cartoons, Noah exclaims," That is not a fair deal!! I want a better deal!!!"

Three years old and already able to identity that THERE MUST BE a better deal.

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Batting practice

New batting cages in Alameda!

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Scooby doo

Noah found his place today as Scooby.

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Home

Every summer we come home to Montana, where soda is pop, the sun is up til' 10pm, and the kids run barefoot in the grass, climb trees and make new friends.

Montana living is different and making a home and life in California makes it even more easy to see. Things seem more simple. Fewer people, distractions, or places you think you need be or things you think you should be doing.....or maybe that is just vacation.

Hylite outside of Bozeman. Photo Credit: Aunt Kathy

Sometimes

Even if it was almost a year ago, this picture is proof that Momma and Dad do clean up on occassion.

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Sugar bugs

This brave boy had to have two fillings today. There were definitely tears but he handled it like a  champ and nursed a smoothie for lunch while snuggling in his comfort position on Momma's lap.

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Eric's seventh birthday

September 2013

 Eric asked me, "Is your birthday  always on the day you were born?" Yes Eric, your birthday http://bit.ly/157iAdo is always the day you were born and oh is it a special day for everyone.

Right now, turning seven years old, your birthday is about presents, cake, and fun times with family and friends, and oh yeah, more presents!

For your parents, grandparents, and close grown-up friends your birthday is MOST importantly about celebrating all the little and big steps to this day, your 7th birthday! It is day of reflection on your precious face and all those beautiful features that have grown from preemie, to baby, to boy. It is noting that you have grown from 14 inches long to 47 inches tall and that tomorrow you will be a fraction taller still. It is remembering every bottle, feeding, and meal between 1 pound 15 oz and 48 pounds. Its looking in those eyes and knowing those eyes are the very same eyes that opened to me for the first time seven years ago and the see the world so beautifully and have changed the way I see it.

September 2006

Same smile pre-teeth 2007

You are so excited to turn 7! Tonight you were talking about where the seven candles will be placed around your baseball diamond cake (one candle at first, one at second, and third, right field, left field, etc) . When I asked you what your favorite thing about being six was, you didn't say starting kindergarten, playing farm league baseball, getting a big bike,  changing from a car seat to a booster seat, or learning to read and write. You said "losing your teeth" top front and bottom front to be specific. You have lost 5 teeth to date and the 6th is hanging out. Losing your teeth for the first time is pretty cool, especially when it pays big dividends. By-the-way, I owe you money I borrowed to pay the babysitter. Don't worry, I'm good for it.

Curly hair 2008

Watching you grow and become even more of that special YOU that only you can be is blessed gift. You are so kind and considerate (yeah, you grab things out of other kids' hands' but were working it on and that excitement "just gets ya sometimes). You notice everything. Today you looked at my feet and said, " You got new shoes." Your sense of humor just gets better and better and hearing your deep-belly chuckle (the same one a heard for the first time 6 and a half years ago after giving you bath and drying you off)  to slap-stick comedy or the ridiculous idea of a driving cat ( yeah, Toonces is funny!) puts a smile on my face like nothing else.

Your birthday is a day for you and its significance is marked as it should be with birthday booty, bounce houses or, by playing pinball all day with your closest friends! For Momma and Dadda it's celebrating you growing and being blessed a million times over to be a part of it. Happy Birthday Eric. We love you.

Throwing rocks in the crick 2013

Smeers camping 2013

Quotes from Montana visits

Eric  "I have only seen pigeons, not ever a bald eagle."

Noah "this isnt soda. It's called pop"

Noah at Shakespeare in the Park "they talk funny"

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Ridge run fun approaches

I wrote this before the Ridge Run and didn't post it. I will recap the adventure but here's the before story!

In the tapering period of my training I told Noah I was heading out for a short run. He says, "No you're not. You will run far." He just couldn't believe that after all the long runs it was even possible to go for a short run. The miles are logged. The shoes a tried, tested, and trained in along with every other bit of even potential gear. I've read every blog at http://bridgerridgerun.wordpress.com/. I have studied the elevation and determined where I will walk to climb up rather than run, and where I can let'er cruise. I have written down the rogue directions given at http://winddrinkers.org/ridge-run/. I know what I will eat and drink, how I will arrive at the start by 6am, and exactly what socks I will wear. I have interviewed Ridge Run finishers with an obsessive amount of questions. Branch Brady has run this race twice already and happens to be my cross-town high school cross country coach from back in that day. After talking with him I know am as prepared as I can be (patting myself on the back right now). I also talked with LUNA sponsored athlete and friend http://teamlunachix.com/sponsored/athletes?athlete=797 who ran this rugged race with her untrained (what!) husband in 2012 after competing in the ITU Long Course Triathlon Championships in Vitoria, Spain (what!)the weekend prior to the Ridge Run! She filled me with confidence and assured me that "if I enjoy this kind of stuff"  I will have a blast! She also gave the advice of stopping, taking pictures, and looking behind me to see what I just ran.

After talking with these experts I determined that my estimated finish time might just be 5 hours and 30 minutes. This is with quite a few assumptions! First assumption is that we make it to the starting line without bottoming out the car on Fairy Lake Road. I ran 20 miles in 3hours 18 minutes so estimating this will take me nearly 2 hours longer than that rolling hill trail tells you a lot! My estimated time assumes I don't have to work more mountains than I thought, that I can handle the terrain, that I don't hang out for 20 minutes at a check point talking and enjoying the view, that I don't have to bandage a blister, bruise, or scrape, and that I don't have to take care of ...well, "girl stuff" that so conveniently coincides with the same point in the month as the run. Irritating, yes, but at least I am not pregnant!

I have been practicing my downhill running skills and tried different shoes with different approaches to tackling the technical stuff. Approach #1) nimble, small, flexible, support shoes, and #2) fat, thick, roller, support shoes. I am going with the fat. They oddly seem to help me run down hill better even though the take up more space. Running downhill on a trail is quite different from the road so I have learned. It's comparable to downhill mountain biking and downhill mogul skiing. You pick your line, you follow it, you bend your knees down low, and hold your arms out like you are holding ski polls. I have discovered this keeps you in the best control and you kind of "dance" tip-toe even down the hill. Notice I said hill! These are mountains and I am a nervous nelly coming down hills. So that is another assumption, that I am confident enough in my skills to not put on the breaks the entire 9500 feet net descent down the mountain.

And then there is the elevation. It must be respected and if it tells me to slow waaay down well, I slow way down. What more can I do? Nothing more than I have. I live at sea level and have had the added bonus of tapering for the past 10 days at 3500 feet so maybe I gained a few extra elevation points for that.

This is an adventure for me but keep in mind there are people who do this year after year. There is even someone running this rugged mountain race barefoot for, from what I can tell, the third time! I am looking forward to the adventure and the camaraderie with fellow Ridge Run enthusiasts and Montana natives. While my bib number says Alameda, California. I run this race to celebrate being  Montanan (almost born, and definitely raised). The sky will be as big as this race in the town of my alma mater. I am also so excited to run the same course as Branch Brady. My admiration for him as a runner and a coach make me feel honored to "hang" with him. His words of support and encouragement during my days of competition  still ring load and clear 23 years later!

In the words of Eric and Noah, Wee Haa!!

Time to start family vacation

Eric is literally watching the clock and letting me know the time every minute we get closer to boarding time.

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Writing

Noah has the O and H down and is recognizing the letters of his name in other places. He is also asking how to spell certain words. Yesterday he wanted me to spell "glitter "

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Slow and steady

People always look at my little boys and reflect on how big  they have gotten and exclaim the time goes "so quick " . Then they  will follow that up with a comment something like "someday you too will look back and wonder where the time went." I am so depressed by the thought that I have to think there is a better way that doesn't let time just slip away unnoticed.

I was told I would harldy remember our wedding day or my children's birth but it is not true. These moments are imbedded so deep in my remembery that I not only remember the details of the events but I also remember thoughts and feelings. In all their experience and wisdom there IS something they have missed. Our life is a journey and in that journey is story after story. My Grandmother new it and she remembered her stories in such fine detail should could have written a memoir from the homesteader's account.

Time is slow and steady. It is however, always moving forward. It is too easy to let it slip away unnoticed and I am thankful that many perfect strangers have alerted me to that ease.  It is this knowing that helps me stop, pause, and take notice of the many small minutes that give me the totality of time where I am now, a mother to a six year old and three year old who are as young as they will every be right now. In our now increasingly busied-on-the-go-society it becomes more challenging to pause. I must defend against invaders so I am not overtaken by "shoulds" and before I know it saying "oh it goes by so fast". My defense is to block out "noise" and prioritize the musts and limit the shoulds.

I didn't grow from my Grandpa's little Tara to grown-up-mom- career- wife-Tara overnight. Nor have my boys been birthed, nurtured from babies to school-aged children overnight. If we fill our lives with so much busy and too much on-the-go we don't have time to pause and take the journey until ....puff everyone is grown up. I remind myslef to pause, soak it all in and note each small victory, milestone, or conversation. What did I do today? I slowed down the morning rush so we could all watch the garbage truck. We all met the garbage man, Mario, and learned that he worked for Clif Bar some 18 years ago and knows many of the old-timers there. I encourage everyone to slow down just for a second and meet their garbage man!

With that, we are going camping this weekend to isolate from musts and shoulds and just be.

Mommas ridge training update

At the 3 hour mark with 4 miles left back to my car. Then picking up recovery au lait on the way home! Redwood Regional Park is a trail oasis!

Gearing up

Running the Ridge

It's official. I am signed up for the Ed Anacker Ridge Run in Bozeman this summer, August tenth. They have a selection process and after they have hand selected folks based on a 50 word compelling reason, the others are by lottery.

Here were my 50 words:
I run for many reasons. The main reason I run? Because I can. This race is pinnacle. A MT raised MSU grad, this challenge is a stunning celebration of MT running & turning 40. PS: I work in nutrition @ CLIF BAR & have FREE bars,gels, bloks for ALL!

I am fairly certain it was my free product offer that won me one of the 250 spots in the race. At this point my long-term relationship with running I have run four marathons, two under four hours, and more half marathons than I can count. Running and I have broken up for various reasons over the years but always seem to get back together. We have had a love-hate relationship from time to time.

When I was pregnant with the boys I didn't run. My body had far more important things to expend resources on then. I remember my first run after Eric was born. It was February and I ran five full blocks before I had to stop, turn around, and walk back. I set my sights on running the Nike Women's Half Marathon and moved myself forward toward the goal.

After Noah was born and the sixth week of post-partum cleared the calendar I bought my first Nike pace band. I wanted to run Nike again, but this time I wanted to run it faster.

I have never been so grateful to having running in my life since the boys were born. I run for them. I run for me. I run for all those times I couldn't run and for all those who can't run because of struggles in their lives. Running is something you do when things are good and I am thankful to have it. No run I ever do will be more challenging than pregnancy, a preemie, and parenting two active, beautiful, competitive, athletic, and smart boys.

Twenty-miles in the Bridger Mountains supported with aid stations is an attainable adventure for me. It  gives  something to work towards that is all my own, all about me, and my needs. Moms need to have something that is their own, and I love the feeling of having the support of Eric, Noah, and Aaron. Seeing them during a run and knowing Aaron is having his own marathon of getting them all there means the world to me.

The rest of the family thinks I am crazy. A sure sign that it is just the right adventure for me.

A marathon was crazy, back to back marathons were crazy, running at 2am on the side of a road in Oregon after only 3 hours of sleep in 24 hours was crazy. There are loads of athletes who do far crazier adventures in pursuit of personal satisfaction from feats far greater than a mere 20 miles over 6500 feet of climbing and 9000 feet descending in the Rockies.

Call me crazy and I will say to you, I'd be crazy not to.

Pregnancy, childbirth, and becoming a mother have reinvogerated a more balanced love of running. We are all built for it. Train, get good coaching, good equipment, and good support and you can do it.

Let the training begin.

Blue jays

Heart, speed, natural ability, huge smile, and love for baseball. That is what coach Steve had to say about Eric and  his first season in Alameda Farm baseball..

We're going to get there

"Everyone relax. We're going to get there. Take a deep breath. Now do you feel better Momma?" This was how Eric responded this morning on the way to school when I was stressing out about the stand-still traffic across the island.

You see, as we later found out, the tunnel - which is known to Alamedians as the tube and still after nearly 5 years of living here refer to it as the tunnel - was closed. This happens a few times a year during morning commute and causes everyone to transverse the island to one of the two bridges on the East side.

At first I thought, oh no I am showing my son poor behavior, but then I thought again. He was repeating back to me what I have taught him about handling frustration or overwhelming situations.

We take deep breaths together and practice stillness when we need to calm and take things down a notch. Apparently he recognized Momma need to take a breath and calm her body, AND he new just what to say. Pat, pat my self on the back.

Money

"Mom, I don't need to use my money for an electric train. I am just going to ask Santa then it will be free!"

Bob's

Noah's first trip to the counter of Bob's Donuts. The best donuts in San Francisco and the world.

Silverfish

Eric is making progress towards learning to swim. Today he graduated from Seahorse to Silverfish. Earned a ribbon and everything.

Silverfish

Eric is making progress towards learning to swim. Today he graduated from Seahorse to Silverfish. Earned a ribbon and everything.

Amazed

We have had a stop-start time with Noah and the potty. His recent move from junior preschool in room Mt Rainier to preschool in Mt Whitney has helped to inspire him a bit.

With organic jelly beans as incentive, he eagerly stood at the potty and peed. Eric walked in on the event and exclaimed, " I don't believe my eyes!"

Winding down to wind up

Spring break has come to a close and tomorrow marks the day that we go back to the "routine". We had a week of no routines and it was just the liberation sanity ordered. Everyone has been delightfully happy (so long as Noah is fed every 90 minutes) and my sweet boys could not be sweeter.

I almost feel renewed. Now if I would have just gone to bed earlier I might just feel fully renewed.

Tomorrow it is back to school, back to base camp, back to work, and back to feeding, dressing, and herding these two boys out the door in the morning. The trick is going to be in maintaining schedules and logistics without getting sucked into a routine that stifles our attention to what is really important, each other.

The thing a liked most about my spring break was spending focused and free time with the ones I love.