Money In, Money Out

Both kids earn money  - taking part in studies, walking dogs, tutoring, and feeding hens.  Each one has his/her own style of saving and spending, but they are both good at saving for a goal.  This past weekend A. reached his goal and today we went to spend the money.

Sydney Opera House - 2989 pieces!

Having spent a lot on this set he earned extra money to spend in the store.  The money was burning a hole in his pocket (did your mother used to say that you?) and he almost bought three mini figures he created himself, but decided to save it to spend in Cleveland, where his patient grandmother will take him shopping.

Study

Initially I was disappointed that R. was not selected for a special class that met at UCLA once a week, but having driven there and back on a weekday last month I no longer had regrets.  It is almost beyond my imagination that anyone could do that daily.

For the second part of the study we were able to schedule testing on a Saturday.  The traffic was fine so it was only an hour+ on the freeway!  Because they were paid in cash both kids thought it was worth it.

One part involved an electroencephalography (EEG), which the kids said did not make them feel like a cyborg.

The other part was magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).  Even though they could watch a video (when they weren't listening to alien voices and staring at a plus sign), it was not a pleasant experience.

I hung out and filled out questionnaires describing the children's behavior (when they were four or five years old did they point to things to get my attention?  do they keep their closets clean? etc., etc.,  ad infinitum).  It will be a while before enough subjects have completed the study for any results to be published, but I'll let you know when I do.

UCLA humor - A. told his friend we were going for the afternoon.  "Which team will you see?"  His friend could not imagine going and not seeing a sporting event.

Walking

Now I can say I take care of a toddler.

Reality television

Thanks to one of my favorite bloggers, I had my first experience with both reality television and binge watching.

She had recommended the PBS show Frontier House, which was made following the success of 1900 House (and more House series were made).  The show follows three families (chosen from more than 5000 applicants) as they live as homesteaders in Montana in the year 1883.  Some parts are easier (only two days to get to their land, hired hands drive the teams of horses) and some parts are just as challenging (no toilet paper, taking weather as it comes).  Having cameras in your life all day long were part of the experience, but it does not seem to inhibit anyone.  There were only six episodes, but I enjoyed seeing how the people changed over five months.  I would love to see an epilogue now that it is almost thirteen years after it was filmed.

I hope I enjoyed it because of the survival aspect and not the joy of watching people bicker (my daughter said if she wanted that she didn't need to watch a dvd).  Maybe I'll check out another series.

Are we ready for this?

What would happen if we didn't get mail one day?  How would I know if the mail were late or if we just didn't get any?  With a teen who takes standardized tests in the house there is no need to worry about that!

Sometimes the teen's mail is about summer programs.

Sometimes it is traditional college mail.

And sometimes it is from down the road and has pictures of your father's students!

Offspring

When A. was little we discussed how living things survive and how they defend themselves.  He often asked about plants and I reminded him that they put out lots of seeds in hopes that at least some would grow enough to put out another generation of seeds.  I am busy breaking the cycle.

Every day I am in the yard pulling up trees of the future.  It seemed like a good idea to offer money for each one pulled, but A. pulled over 60 in about five minutes so I ended that deal.

At first I thought we had so many seedlings because the changes in the yard, but I have seen seedlings all over so maybe because of the drought the oaks have produced more acorns in hopes of finding fertile ground.

Beta Tester

Look what D. got to check out of the library!

Not being an iPhone user and not having a data plan made it a challenge for him to use, but it was good (?) for taking pictures.  This is a small sampling (and excludes the self portrait with the urinals in the background)!

We each had a chance to try it and the youngest was definitely the most adept.  We have no plans to purchase it at this time.

Spring Break, take two

Our trip to Boston was fabulous, but we came home on Wednesday night so it was almost like we had time for a second bring break.  Activities included (but were not limited to)

• finishing taxes (J)
• roaming around International Festival (A)
• roaming around the Festival of Books (R)
• hosting Nano Days at the library (D&J)
• soccer camp (A)
• gardening (J)
• getting a driver's permit (R)!!
• lab meeting (R)
• sleepover (A)
• pizza potluck (R)
• hosting favorite baby (D&J)
• enjoying progress made on tree carving - all!

Now it is back to routine, until the next adventure.

Things Not Seen in Claremont

Just a few more random pictures.

We enjoyed this view as we ate lunch at the Museum of Science.

vintage New England bubbler

vintage bath toy that has been at my aunt and uncle's
house as long as I can remember (fish not pictured)

I love the quilt my aunt made of their house.
Maybe we can commission a quilt of our house for its centennial celebration.

Title Town

Boston College won't win the Frozen Four this year, but the city has seen more than its share of championships.  In addition to seeing every third person wearing Red Sox paraphernalia, a lot more wearing Bruins clothing, some supporting the Patriots, but not one person promoting the Celtics.

Other sport sightings

pick-up hockey in the driveway

at Whole Foods

pick-up lacrosse at Bunker Hill (edited to get players closer together)

frontyard lacrosse wall

Travel widens our world!

Another Great Day

I have no idea how many times I have been to Boston, but I had never been to Harvard's Museum of Natural History.  Even with restricted vision my uncle did a better job driving and parking than I ever could have.  It is easy to see how Boston drivers got their reputation.

a favorite in the museum

Yes, this is really all glass.

There were about three rows of glass flowers, other plants, and cross-sections.

The museum was amazing, but also a little overwhelming with so many birds, so many beetles, so many mammals, so many minerals. 

A. had a chance to play at my uncle's squash club (formerly a mansion) and R. and I went to the library.  Twice.

a whole section of maps

and a whole drawer of bicycle maps

My aunt cooked a fabulous meal and the first and second cousins hung out.

Sorting cars by make

and graphing the results.

All the cousins played Apples to Apples.

There was time to watch some Harry Potter and then it was off to bed before our last full day in town.

Spring Break

our plane on the way to Kansas City

It was a little risky to plan a visit to Boston in early April (and it felt like a polar vortex outside the airport even though I am sure it was above freezing), but we had glorious weather and were very glad to have taken the trip.

See the bricks marking the Freedom Trail? 

Here is the view after climbing 294 steps (they were labeled).

Day one started with a visit to the Bunker Hill Monument, where I learned a lot, including the fact that Boston used to be an island.  And maybe will be again one day?

We followed the trail to the U.S.S. Constitution.  It was great to have sailors on the different levels to tell stories and answer questions.

Which of these rooms would you like to sleep in?

Our next visit was to the MIT Museum, which allows photos as long as you don't put them up on any websites.  Their own website has plenty to see, so I recommend taking a peek.  We enjoyed the clever Gestural Engineering, but I think we spent the most time at this entertaining interactive piece.

From there we could walk to Toscanini's, voted best ice cream in Boston.

It was a fabulous day and I enjoyed the company, the activities, and the signs of spring.

I am not sure I had seen pussy willows outside of a vase, but there were many doorsteps with pots of plants.  Now I am wondering if they were just stuck in there for the pre-flower season or if they are actually growing.  It doesn't really matter because they made me smile.

Back home for time to hang out and gather energy for day two.

Childhood

Yet another thing to blame on their parents!

This isn't peanut butter, but I have such fond memories of being the person to destroy/ruin/mess up a brand new jar of peanut butter.  We eat the kind that has only peanuts and salt so when a new jar is opened instead of a beautifully smooth surface to deface, the person (usually D.) has to stir it up to mix the solids with the oils.

At least there is still mayonnaise.