Happy May Day

1. Maypole, 2. May Day in Annapolis, 2009, 3. Maybe, 4. Maypole

May 1st is May Day! I'm not talking about the politicized holiday of organized labor and not even so much the pre-Christian, neo-pagan, Celtic, or Druid festivals. No, I'm talking about just silly dancing and being happy that it looks like spring may actually happen. We've had a pretty rough April weather-wise and I'm hoping and praying that things settle down.

Image via Birmingham St. George's Association

I can remember making paper baskets as a kid in Casper, Wyoming, filling them with flowers, and sneaking off to the neighbors' houses. We would hang the baskets on the front door, ring the bell (the ONLY time children were allowed to do that), and run away to hide some place where we could watch the recipient's surprise. I only remember dancing around the May Pole once and that was during a phys ed class in first grade.



Image by Jippolito via Flickr


But somehow the sound of "May Day" is pleasing to the ear and the soul. It makes me think of polka music on the accordian, skipping, and laughing. It makes one smile and think of getting out in the sun and the garden. I'm not going to do a big ol' dissertation on May Day- I'm just going to share some pictures and wish you all a Happy May Day and encourage you to get outside for some fresh air and sunshine. And be sure to skip and laugh some too.



Image via Skip To My Lou Includes a tutorial for the baskets.





Image via Homeschooling Happy Honeybee. Includes tutorial on making these flowers.



Image by Frank Gruber via Flickr



Photo by Will Merydith via Flickr



Happy Spring!

My Token Valentine Post- sort of

Look at that magnificent under bite.

This is Remy, my daughter's two and a half year old Rat Terrier. Ratties are an American breed, popular in the first half of the 1900's. Bred from a mix of strong, fast hunting dogs with good sniffers, Rat Terriers were used to control the rodent population on farms. They mostly lived in the barn and for a while, your farm wasn't a farm if you didn't have at least one Rattie living in your barn. Our Remy will dig up half the yard trying to catch a chipmunk or mole. I've seen him climb straight up one of our apple trees after a squirrel (I mean straight up and into the branches), and he will stake out the stove for an entire day if a mouse runs underneath it.

I do mean an entire day.



Both photos from Terrierman's Daily Dose



Teddy Roosevelt had a Rattie named Skip and is thought to have "started" the breed, but it's sort of a long-ish story and not pertinent to our post today.



Via PopArtUK.com



This is also Remy, from the Disney movie Ratatouille. He's a rat too.

Get it? Remy the Rat? Remy the Rattie?

Anyhoo...

A couple of years ago, Zippy's class had a Valentine Box contest: make your own box to hold all of the class Valentine cards, bring it in for the party, and there will be a box judging contest. Pretty straight forward stuff. Oh we love a good creative challenge like that at our house and at our house "Make a Valentine Box" means "Build a Valentine Box."

This is Robo Remy: a small shoe box with cardboard legs and docked tail, covered with papier mache and painted with Remy's piebald markings. Then Zippy cut the lid back off of the shoe box so she could get to the cards inside and, more importantly to my sweet mini-Chocoholic, the candy. Then she cut the slit on top for the cards, added the photo-face and heart collar and she's ready.

Oh wait, no you're not because this is a Robo Remy.

Hot glue Robo-Boy to another shoe box and glue down some doggie treats. Ready? Nope!

Strapped to the inside of the green shoe box is the motor and chassis of one of the countless remote control cars that my daughter (yes, daughter) owns.

So that year, Zippy's Valentine cards came when called and if you didn't get the goods delivered quickly enough, Robo Remy could chase you down!

First prize- Best Use of Technology.

Way to go Zippy!

To all of you fabulous folks building relationships with your family one remote control car, one recycle craft, one tree fort, one finger paint heart greeting card, one whatever giggling fun you get cooked up at a time ....

New Year's Resolution

The top New Year's Resolutions, year after year, according to USA.gov, are:

•Drink Less Alcohol

                                                  •Get a Better Education
                                                  •Get a Better Job
                                                  •Get Fit
                                                  •Lose Weight
                                                  •Manage Debt
                                                  •Manage Stress
                                                  •Quit Smoking Now
                                                  •Save Money
                                                  •Take a Trip
                                                  •Volunteer to Help Others

If you click here you can visit the site and check out the links provided for each resolution. There is a ton a helpful and enlightening information for each resolution.

I'm not one for New Year's Resolutions. I know my limits. Approximately 30% of New Year's Resolutions are abandoned within the first week, and a full 97% are never achieved at all. I fall somewhere in that continuum.



via The Wardman Wire

But it is helpful to set a goal that is realistic and personally meaningful. Those are the keys to achieving success- realistic and meaningful. I gave up trying to lose 20 pounds this year (it wasn't a New Year's Resolution) and instead focused on losing 1 pound. And you know what? I did it! AND, I've done it 10 times now. No, not the same one pound ten times- ten separate, independent pounds. It has taken 10 months but I'm not complaining. I'm the tortoise of weight loss!

But it's been quite some time since I've made a true New Year's Resolution. Instead, a few years ago I made a Life Resolution. Sometimes- let's be honest- things just stink. I'm not talking about the big losses and heartbreaks that happen in life- that's an entirely different post. I'm talking about the ka-gillion events and situations in life that simply stink and over which we have zero control. But what are you gonna do? Wallow in it?  Refuse to be happy? Let it define who you are? Do you want to be known as the complainer?



via Cartoonstock.com

Zippy and I had one of our "big conversations" the other day and the title could have been "Things Are What You Call Them." We were discussing attitude and I was telling her about a dear friend who has a not-so-dear habit of calling every little bump in the road, every unexpected or unplanned blip, a disaster. Generally, they aren't disasters. Clean up the spilt milk, re-schedule the appointment, get the tire fixed, pay the late fee-- whatever. But it's not a disaster. Someone else got your dream job, your kid didn't win the cross-country meet, you don't like the new benefits package your work is providing. Why let that define you? Get over it.

I've gotten to the place in my life where I've figured out that life is hard enough sometimes without reinforcing the difficulties, without collecting and saving the memory of those difficulties. I try to let it go, even though that has not been an easy road to travel. I like to get my way and I'm a fretter by nature. Worry, fret, stew, stress. It's been a twisty path of re-learning my responses to life and I rely a good bit on my faith to get my over each bump and around each curve. Well, I have to rely completely on my faith because I can't do this on my own. And my faith gives me a reason to be happy, to move forward.



by Gregory Williams via Fickr



Don't get me wrong, there are some truly crushing events in life that make it difficult to move forward. But not impossible. And don't you think that how we respond to the smaller disappointments and loses in life gives us practice for the bigger ones?

So my Life Resolution has been to be happy in spite of it all. I don't mean that we have to be a Pollyanna (that's not realistic) but after awhile you begin to see that there really are things to be happy about: your kid ran their personal best in the cross-country meet, it's good to have a job, your husband may not do laundry but he comes home to you every night, the milk may have spoiled but the yogurt it delicious.

by qlinart via Flickr

So I issue not a New Year's Resolution but a challenge: look for one small thing today (remember, we're keeping it realistic and meaningful) that isn't so bad after all or something that turned out better than expected even though you expected it to be pretty bad. Look for something than is a pleasant counterpoint to and gives relief  to whatever frustrations you feel: a sparkle of sun on the snow, the flash of a cardinal at the feeder, the great wacky fun your kid had while dumping all the beans on the floor.

by ericarhiannon via Flickr

Just stop-

          take a deep breath-

                                 and say "Oh well."

And then do it again tomorrow.

I wish you a peaceful and happy new year.

Anyway.