Thursday, October 23, 2014

Whittling and Weaving

There are times when it feels like I am doing it all wrong. I wonder when the last time Gus ate a vegetable was. I hope that I reminded them to brush their teeth that morning. I am loathe to really imagine how many hours they have spent staring at one screen or another. And then I start I wonder if I ever read to them enough or if I am to blame for the fact that they complain about boredom. Maybe I didn't foster their creativity. Maybe I stunted their intellectual development. Sure, they are smart, but maybe they could have been smarter. There are times when they pick at each other and the words coming out of their precious little mouths are just a little too snappy for my taste, and they don't sound very nice, or patient, or caring.

But there are other times when they find their way to the porch in the sunlight of autumn, and they talk to each other with kindness as one whittles and one weaves. They plan Christmas presents for their aunts and uncles. They encourage each other and let out little giggles, all of which I can hear from the open kitchen window.

Those are the times I like.


For any mother of a boy who has a hard time finding hobbies, I highly recoomend whittling. Gus likes his crafts to have an air of danger. 


4 comments:

  1. They look so lovely! My little boy is only 2.5 years old,but I'm bookmarking your advice for whittling as a craft for him. I know for sure he will love it!

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    Replies
    1. Everything is more fun when there is the constant threat on an emergency room trip.

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  2. And then there was last night, when Gus tried to beat up his Dad for identifying with a hippy character on the Wonder Years.

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  3. In fairness, that character is a d-bag.

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