long time no blog

Ah, it's exam time. For some bizarre reason, I've been very zen with my four papers, exam and grading in front of me. Although I realized on this cloudy day that maybe I've been in such a jolly mood because of the glorious spring we've had.

Though I continue to struggle with taking care of my body. The good news is that the kids are old enough now that when I have an hour I can practice at home with minimal breaks - just the occasional breastfeeding or help to build a lego fire station. I actually love the kids doing it with me for a few poses and giving me their version of adjustments.

It's just generally been rare that I feel connected to my "self" - thought it was really nice this week-end to spend a little time outdoors - yes, we've been out to plenty of parks and outdoor Boston activities (though Chris and hte kids more than I), but Saturday afternoon/evening we went out to a state park in N. Andover at a campground for a birthday party - it was a party for a 5 year old son of a kschool student (another n. californian burner). IT was so amazing to be at a hippy party again - wheat/dairy free cake, organic food, homemade pinata, and jam session. While I'm feeling incredibly sad about leaving/ending this year, I will not miss the uptight Hahvad scene.

That evening out was so different from a Thursday night dinner outing with the family. We met a few other families at this great cafe where they have a cool kid area. Unfortunately, never having been there for dinner before, it was mega-expensive, and by the time we got seated, Liam and eventually Kalian were oging bonkers. He has such a tough time with loud, noisy places - his system gets overwhelmed, and what was frustrating to us was actually, I see now, a coping strategy. 5 adults and 6 kids were crowded around a table, but Liam insisted that a big space was his and wouldn't let any cups or plates get into his "zone." I don't blame him now for creating that space for himself, but the unfortunate result was that it came across as very rude and whiny, and we had to leave early. Kids need quiet space - or at least my kid.

Last night, though, we went to a potluck picnic for one of my classes. It was a nice time playing in a playground at one of the student housing complexes. At the picnic site, there was a lot of space for the kids to run around, but I found it strange that noone came up to talk to me when I had the kids in tow. It was as if people didn't know how to interact with my bouncing accessories.

Alas, though, I had a lovely mother's day - at the library! Fortunately, I ran into Susan and I got a can of from the vending machine - it was ok - one more week til I become a full-time mom again (not that I'm not really that now) - well, at least til next fall...