If only...

More from my little writer:

This time the prompt was "If grown-ups all turned into kids . . ."

His first concern, of course, would be about meals:

If the kids had a recipe they could make dinner and cereal breakfast and sandwiches for lunch.

Then recreation:

and play on the computer without permission they would be happy and they would have to

Turn the page . . .

mow the lawn with scissors.

Musical Monday

Last spring, the Caterpillar's band class performed a couple of nautically-inspired numbers.  Charmed by the music and its piratical associations, he did some research on the individual shanties used in the pieces.  In no time, he and his brothers had this one memorized:

Yes, even our four-year-old knew exactly what to do with a drunken sailor.  This song was our constant companion during our fabulous island getaway.  The boys sang it often as we traveled.  When we arrived at our cottage, we found a neighbor sitting outside playing his banjo.  And guess what he played?  The charm has worn off for most of the boys, but Rollo still bangs this tune out on the piano.

Mother's Day Bouquet

A cluster of tulips,

all from one stalk.

Like my sisters and me,

or my bundle of boys,

with bewildering variety,

but so much in common.

We come from good stock.

Thanks, Mom!

Musical Monday

The Caterpillar has been studying US history this year.  This song came naturally to mind when he reached the War of 1812.  Everyone loves it!

Garden Invader

I found this growing next to my blueberry bush.  It is about two inches tall, shaped like a pine cone, pale yellow and sort of waxy in appearance.  I think it is blooming. 

What is this thing?

Plant?  Tree?  Fungus? 

Alien life form that is planning to take over the world?

Whatever it is, it does not belong next to my blueberry bush.

Maybe I'll plant it elsewhere to see what it does.

What would you do?

Update:
This is called a groundcone, a parasite that preys on things like salal and huckleberries.  So, hey, why not a blueberry bush?  I'm glad I moved it.  You can learn more from Parasite of the Day or Wikipedia.

Musical Monday

For educating young boys in the musical history of their complex culture, no tool is equal to YouTube.  Okay, so it also gives 13-year-olds unnecessary access to information regarding explosives.  But when an interesting song comes to mind that is not found in our library of recordings, we appreciate being able to share it, on demand, with our impressionable youngsters.

And impressionable they are.  The greatest hits will be sung, whistled, played on piano, guitar, and marimba, and requested over and over again when serious work needs to be done on the computer.  Therefore, you need to hear them, too, don't you?  To give you something to hum when you think of us. 

This one was all the rage a few years ago.  Scoot favored it particularly, and will still quote its profound lyrics.  Enjoy!

Stash to Treasure: Spring Green Hat

Spring is here, and our schedule revolves around baseball.  We've been lucky so far with games set on pleasant days.  But even the sunny days turn cool in the evening, and our main field always seems to be breezy.  So, seeking warmth and hair control without winter wooliness, I crocheted a spring hat.

The green is a yarn I keep around for froggy baby presents; the soft white is left over from a hat I gave last Christmas.  I mostly followed this pattern from Design Adventures.  The pattern yields a child-sized hat, so I used a larger hook and added some increasing rounds.  It was fun to make, giving me something to do (and redo) during a Court of Honor, and something to relax with after Rollo's party.  The hat was ready to go for a Cub Pack hike yesterday.  It kept me cozy, but not hot, and all the other mommies said it was cute.

Incidentally, my smile is sincere because I had just figured out how to use a mirror to take a picture of myself.  Maybe you know the trick already, but I see many shots on the internet that could be titled "Self-portrait with Camera."  Instead of taking a picture of my reflection in the mirror, I faced the mirror, pointed the camera at myself, and looked at the reflection of the view screen to get it right.  So simple!