sara skates

I rejoined a CSA this summer after figuring out that I could take on a ‘core’ position (a group of about 15 people who run the CSA – each with distinct manageable jobs) in lieu of doing farm and distribution shifts. This CSA has built into it a principle that every member should experience the ‘work’ of vegetable farming and distribution so they know where food comes from etc. I love the premise though the farm work doesn’t work so well with a kid in a wheelcair and walker – but that’s another story.

We have been getting a lot of chard and kale. My meal of choice with this (aside from winter stews and it’s SO not the season to make those) is chips.

They are easy peasy to make. I cut each leaf off the stalk, and spray one side with olive oil and cut into chip-sized pieces. I spray one side with olive oil (I have a mister – if you don’t, put leaf chips – from the whole bunch – into a bowl, add a Teaspoon or two of olive oil and toss/mix to coat). I place them on a cookie tin – in a sinle layer with the oiled side down, and then mist the other side. I sprinkle a bit of salt on top-and pop into an oven at 250deg. for 10-12 minutes.

Out they come and then I proceed to inhale them

I have been tossing the stalks into the compost bin though if anyone has a better idea I will try it!

I was driving home from the dentist today, and ended up on this long road that has a lot of apartment complexes -right behind a lower elementary schoolbus. So it was a slow drive with lots of stops. One stop had four parents waiting for their kids; three with younger siblings.

The bus doors opened and two of the sibs (probably each about age 3) started hopping up and down with their arms over their heads – pure glee. Their respective sibs got off and smothered them with hugs and kisses.

It was totally sweet! And a nice reminder of the bonds that Hannah and Toby have – even if neither is willing to show it in their current teen and pre-teen stages of life.

I got Toby on the bus this morning, kissed him goodbye, stood up and said ‘Bye, sweet stuff!’. Then this:

Bus driver: ‘Bye Sara’
Me: ‘Bye John!’
All the kids on the bus: ‘BYE SARA!’

Apparently I am a noticable part of their day

one of the really cool things about having siblings is seeing their versions of doing the same school projects. Hannah did a weaving project in 4th grade (on the bottom), and Toby just brought his home (on the top).

Their different personalities shine forth pretty loudly in their work! Toby’s is all even and planned and symmetric; Hannah’s more freeform and artsy . I love them both!

So…I wrote the teacher in question, who filled in some extra history.  She confirmed, that yes, there was a huge level of “give the poor crippled kid a goodie” going on.  The cafeteria worker in question is 87, and while the teacher had spoken to her, clearly the message didn’t sink in.

I suggested (and the teacher agreed) that at most, she should bring it up with the administration.  She didn’t want to get this lunch lady in trouble (she’s underpaid and 87…).  But it would be easy enough to summarize the situation without names, and have the admin issue a policy/letter.  And she heard that I thought it was really inappropriate to give Toby the responsibility to manage this one.

Moving right along to the next thing…I’ll consider this one done

testing testing 123

photo test, check out IT dudes freeing my computer from combination lock. Yes, I have forgotten the combination…

So the backstory.  Toby came home from school today summarizing this inequity.   Apparently one of the lunch ladies at school likes to bake, and has taken a liking to Toby and slips him a slice of cake (or whatever) occasionally.  Such that the other kids notice.  The inequity (for Toby) is that one of the teachers has decided that the way to deal with this is to work with Toby on refusing these gifts.  So, today the lunch lady started to pass him a slice, and this teacher glared at Toby, shook her head and frowned at him to say “no”.

Now, I get this issue is multi-layered.  There’s a level of “give the poor crippled kid a treat” (it happens with some frequency.  Some lady handed Terry a dollar at McDonald’s once, “for the boy”. Toby was rather taken with the idea that random strangers would give him money.  He was about 6 at the time).  There’s a level of unfairness to all of the kids at school.

But call me crazy – is this not just stupid?  IMO the teacher should talk to the lunch lady if she has an issue with this.  It is not fair to put Toby in the position of refusing something like this.

But moreover, I’m just shaking my head.  How on earth does someone respond to this?  I’ll email the teacher and ask for her side.  But there’s a limit of my control over misguided people.

I know, I have been a seldom blogger lately.  My sabbatical is winding down, June is shaping up to be quite busy.  Things are going well.  Adolescence is calming down   Knitting is happening (always a good sign, though I’m trying to finish this baby sweater and the i-cord bind off is just endless).  Skating has gone great this spring, though that’s worth of another post (complete with video).

While I have been sporadic at best for months (couple years even?) I still blog in my head and haven’t given up the idea of blogging. Partly – life has just been kinda unbloggable for a bit – which ok, certainly there are bloggable bits, but some big unbloggable bits too Those things (both on the work and relationships front) seem to be calming down – so – no promises, perhaps blogging will uptick again.

It’s Hannah’s birthday today. It astounds me to parent a teenager. It’s been a bit of a learning curve – holy cripes it’s not like parenting a baby, toddler or child! Hannah herself has had a rough go of it this year too – 7th grade sucks in many ways. But as I look at her photos today she just astounds me. She’s stunning and smart and just a great kid.

Toby continues to be a sled hockey enthusiast. The team is small and he’s the smallest on it (the rest are adults) but we get on there with him and it’s really kind of a blast. We got Hannah out there last week too – it’s a rare thing to find some sort of recreational active thing that we can all do together. Toby’s birthday is next week and at that point – both kids will be in the double digits.

I have been on sabbatical some of this year – and while this quarter it isn’t feeling like a sabbatical much just yet due to some tussling over whether or not to toss my hat into the department chair slot for the next couple of years – mostly, it’s been a good year.

Skating is going well. I am gearing up for Adult Nationals, and while the elusive double jumping is still – well, elusive, I have made a lot of progress in other areas this year. (Video of Sectionals this year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIsD-Fd4q2A – that’s about as good as I skate though yes, I am tweaking things for the next round). Knitting continues in fits and spurts – I started and finished a Kitty Pi cat bed in under two weeks for the kitty of friends Amy and Alyson, then promptly started a second for my kitties – months later it is about an evening away from completion. It’s looking like it’ll be done in time for warmer weather LOL!

This will do for putting my toes back in the blogging water – besides, it’s really kinda late at night

was fun and candy filled –

Toby went to school Friday as Moaning Lisa:

which is actually pretty funny and it was a totally easy costume to make – black pants and shirt, “witch” long hair wig, and cardboard frame covered with paper and glitter. He also had a small picture frame with a printout of DaVinci’s Mona Lisa strapped onto his walker handle. He was hemming and hawing up until the last minute about what he wanted to be – this idea was from a whole list of them he came up with while getting on the bus on Thursday morning. I told him that of his list, I’d work on one of them – and I was able to whip this one up in about a half hour on Thurs evening with Toby’s help.

Hannah did a crazy hair day thing with her friends, though her crutches garnered quite the haul of candy. Both kids did well in that department – though Hannah has eaten way more of hers than Toby has of his. Speaking of which – I’m hoping that the end is in sight of her days with crutches – she still has a way to go on her feet/shins/knees healing but I’m not sure the crutches are helping her out much.

I finished a pair of “booties” for Toby (as he calls them) – thrummed slippers. He wanted a pair of shearling-lined ones – so I added baby camel (soooofffftttt) thrums every four stitches or so and every three rows and voila, sheepie-feeling soft slippers. I used some handspun that was sitting on a shelf in the living room – it was spun pretty tightly and thus created a rather firm fabric – these puppies will wear like iron. They stay on his feet though – even with his toe-pointing

For trick-or-treating, Toby insisted on a different costume – I was done with creating and he wanted a Star Wars character (with light saber – which I believe was the crucial component) – he ended up spending his own money on a light saber, and I bought him a Clone Warrior costume from a halloween store. (I know, apparently clone warriors don’t carry or use light sabers – but the Star Wars thing is a very new obsession for Toby and he has yet to see any of the movies). He greeted folks passing out candy saying “I am a clone warrior! I bring peace joy and happiness.” Hard to argue with that as a wish….

I mean wool insulation for housing construction – walls, attics, floors, etc. Check it out!

I’d much prefer installing it to working with fiberglass. Aside from the obvious “awww, there’s sheep in my walls” factor.