Cozy scenes

Sometimes lessons stick and sometimes they just don't. The lesson about not calling for mom across the house or yard if it's not an emergency is a particularly difficult one. And even if we used glue to get the kids to stay in their chairs at meal time, they would probably just walk off with the chairs attached. But somehow Benjamin has somehow managed to hold onto the rather difficult lesson that sometimes hard things are more fun than easy things. He will repeat this to himself when we are working on something hard. Not that he is always able to stick to it, but the idea is there and it seems to appeal to him. 

A long hike is one of those hard-but-fun things

The lesson about effort is one that I am constantly learning as an adult, of course, too. And maybe as I get older, I'm more selective about where I want to put my effort--what challenges I want to take on. Hosting a big meal at our house is a challenge that both Jb and I find really gratifying.  Although it is a lot of work, we have grown to really enjoy hosting Thanksgiving in our home, which we've done for the last three years. At the end of Thanksgiving day, around 11 at night, after pie, games, and a still-pretty-messy kitchen, JB concluded that it went well and that we did a good job of making it seem effortless. I just about collapsed on the floor. 

But it's true. We are getting better at all the planning ahead that needs to happen to make food from scratch and still enjoy the day. It also helps that Rosa (Eliza's Friday babysitter) and her husband have joined us each time--Rosa contributes mightily to the Thanksgiving feast. This year we were so happy to welcome Heidi, a friend from grad school, and her family and a few college students. 

And now, here are some cozy scenes that did not involve a lot of planning, forethought, or effort. Or maybe they are just seemingly without effort. It's actually a least-favorite chore to keep the couch in the next photo in an even semi-respectable state of clean : )  And think of all the work Ben has done in the last year to be able to curl up on the couch by himself with a chapter book (I know!). I do also have to plan ahead to get books like that from our weekly(ish) trip to the library. 

And even the kind of play that Eliza and Ben are doing below--painting, building with blocks, pretend with a box--are a work of the imagination as it interacts with things in their world. At the Montessori school Ben goes to, things that look like toys--lots of blocks and interactive materials--are very deliberately called "works." Good preparation, I hope, for finding gratification in the much harder challenges that they are sure to face as they grow. 

I love Eliza's face when she is focusing on her work.

Focused on her work again.
It was so sunny and quiet on this particular afternoon while Ben was at school.

Blocks are still some of her favorite toys (works?).