the way my kids relate to time passing, i’m pretty sure they don’t know if school is hours or weeks away from ending.

but we have been hearing that the “kids are going crazy” with the school year nearing summer break.

i have a different theory, the kids are going crazy from field trips every other day, movie and popcorn parties and forced quiet time to allow their class mates to focus on their eogs (end of grade tests).

for the second year in a row, ethan has volunteered to assist with “neighborhood cleanup day” this is when a collection of adults, and ethan, get together to trim back trees, weed and generally clean up common areas in the neighborhood.

the neighbor who organizes the event sent this to me afterwards:

ethan is such a nice boy. it is always a pleasure to have him join us. and it is very nice that his father includes him. it is very apparent that you and natalie are such good parents to both children.

both natalie and i were asked to come down to the school to have a discussion about an “issue” with ethan in his class.

over the past week while our house has been painted, logan has built a gallery of photos like the following.

guess its time to re-evaluate our parenting strategy…

in case you’re unsure, it reads “once upon a time”.

hopefully its a testament to her mother’s curious accent and not how she will perform in future spelling bees…

yesterday was “demo day” at logan’s gymnastics.

the kids all get to show off their talents on beam, bars, floor and the parents get to ooh and aah. like every other children’s event, when its all over a prize is awarded. a gold medal with an olympic torch on it.

natalie told logan when she was a little girl she would have to demonstrate some level of proficiency in an event and then she would be given a star that could be sewn in to her leotard.

logan laughed at this and said “i just have to be there”.

a few of my own ideas…

“i’m only stepping on 3/5ths of the constitution”

“you can’t expect me to clean up every mess you leave behind”

nothing upsets white, middle-aged men like minorities or someone down on their luck crashing the party…

we surprisingly came in to two baseball tickets last night and so i took ethan to the game.

of course logan was disappointed she couldn’t come too, but worse yet, she tried to stay up until we got home, because in her words

two people aren’t enough for a family

she was elated in the morning when we were a family of four again.

my forty-one year old neighbor, who has a new baby in the house just rolled one of these in to his garage (a 2012 ducati monster 1100)

i’m thinking my request for (just about anything) starts looking pretty reasonable in comparison…

when i was almost four years old my second brother came home. i wasn’t much interested in having a second brother, and even less interested to come in from playing to meet him when he came home from hospital.

the day logan came home from hospital after her surgery, she had to wait all day for her brother to come home. she asked repeatedly when he would be home.

when they finally got to see each other after a concerned day and a half apart it was as if each had been given the drink of water they needed after a long, hot day in the sun.

not having had that type of affection with my own siblings, i am beyond elated to see it between ethan and logan.

i’m ready for my hugs

logan’s reason for wanting to return to school.

and her classmates didn’t disappoint.

i believe the notion of “quality time” with your family and kids in particular is a myth.

i don’t think its possible to orchestrate the intimate, vital moments with children that are the most rewarding to both yourself and the kids.

over the past few weeks, my time with the kids has been limited more than usual, but is now beginning to return to normal.

last night every minute, including those spent parenting (serving dinner, taking showers and finishing homework) was quantity time and priceless to me.

i didn’t complete ninth grade.

i don’t talk to my living biological mother.

when i was twelve and homeless, i used to sleep in a boat that was stored on the bottom floor of a parking garage.

so, when i got this in my email:

BTW, did Natalie tell you we share the honor of being 9th grade high school dropouts? I almost never mention that to new acquaintances but natalie said you’re not shy about it. I should adopt that attitude! Looking forward to trading stories sometime.

i responded:

all ninth grade drop-out stories that end up with the delinquent an honorable and productive member of society should be shared, and proudly.

i’m looking forward to hearing your story.