Shandro's Presentation 2013 Homeschool

Art

 

 

Songbird

 

 

 

 

Scarlet Macaw

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Toucan

 

 

 

Apple

 

 

Tropical Snowman

(I couldn't find snow!)

 

 

 

Science

 

 

 

We are making lightning at Telus World of Science.

 

 

We are controlling this robot.

 

 

 

Refraction

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sea Urchin

 

 

 

Sea Urchin environrment

 

 

 

Matero's first term of Grade 2

Here is a slide show of Matero's school work for the first term, September to January of 2012-13.  He is in grade 2 this year, and we are still homeschooling in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Mexico. 

School for Shandro and Matero for the past few months

Savage Birthday Cake

I (Allison) had a great birthday complete with savage birthday cake.  We've been talking about savage cake since before Mother's Day.  Today was the day!  We got a big chocolate cake and took it to the beach and ate it with no utensils - only our faces and hands!  I was the first to bite into it - and I think it is the first time in MANY years that I have had chocolate cake up my nose!  It was such a blast!  The kids were totally laughing at me.  Then they dug in too!  We even fed Chilko some.  We had to swim in the ocean to get all the cake off ... 

Merle is Back!

Well, Merle is home now, safe and sound from his northern adventure. He returned a few days ago now, but we've been having so much fun with him that I forgot to let you all know he is safe!
He had a great adventure, loved seeing those of you he managed to see in his 'work from dawn till dusk' schedule! And we are still very grateful for the love that poured out of you, both online in the form
of help offered and also in person with places to stay and big hugs.  And many times, over the course of his adventure, the universe helped him out in ways we could never have imagined, as is often the case.

So this is a Big Fat Thank You - all the way up and down the coast, as far north as Williams Lake, BC, Canada! - to those who helped Merle on his journey. Thanks to Richard for packing the big heavy dinghy for us, and doing the crazy re-route that made Merle's northbound journey so much easier! Thank you for the delicious food, Haru (and the books!), and Alice, thanks for being so cool about Merle taking over
your V-berth, and for babysitting little Grenadine! And of course Tona for the car insurance, and Javier and Tara for a place to sleep and good company. And thanks Manny and Lola for the crazy gum; always
something to keep us laughing! And Fito and Hilda for being so kind to us, whether our boat is there or not! Thanks Victor and Andre for just being you! And thanks Dan for offering connections, even tho you
are so far away! And Wildflower for the sweet offer of a berth. And Merle says thanks for the hugs all around; in delivering hugs, he was almost overwhelmed on the other end - receiving them! I am sure I
have forgotten some thank you; I know that the universe has it's own way of saying thank you, and I am sure it will!

Thank you thank you thank you.  Muchicimas gracias!

Well, it is the beginning of summer here in La Cruz, Mexico. It is hot here early in the morning, and lasts till late at night. In fact, Chilko stays on the boat in the shade (we have half of our boat covered, and what a blessing it is!!) unless she has to get off, because the dock is almost too hot to walk on! We are going to try
frying an egg and see if it really frys! The boys did an experiment the other day with some pieces of wax. They hung a wick in a glass jar, and tossed in some old pieces of wax around it to see if it would get hot enough to melt it into a candle. It did! I could hardly believe it! Anyway, people say it doesn't get hot here until August, so this tropical summer will be a good experiement for us.

We are grateful to have a car now. Grenadine made it down the road a-okay after Merle replaced the seals on the tranny (a one-day job in Nogales for about 1/10 the price it would have cost in the US!) and a
few other small things that make a big difference, like windshield wipers and an oil change. What a sweet car, she is! Thanks again, Michael for pointing us in her direction! We still marvel at her ability to take a lickin and keep on tickin!

Last night (it is cool enough after 7pm to go out and play), we played a game of baseball. Our field was the gravel parking lot - which made the whole sliding thing a bit hard on the knees! But there was not one sob despite many slides into home plate! The boys are stoked to have discovered the game. And Merle and I like it too, so it is a family event.

Well, it is the full moon tonight! I wonder what kind of fun that will bring? Maybe some drumming. We keep a pretty close eye on her.

Luna llena (pronounced Luna Yayna). Nice!

My Merry Mother's Day

I've just gotta tell you about my Mother's Day. For Mother's day, the boys served me chocolate fondue with fruit for breakfast. Delish!! Made with everything raw and yummy. Then we walked to a berry tree and picked berries and read stories and drew with chalk on the sidewalk in between trips to the ice cream store. And after that, we came back to the marina, all gor dressed up in our glad rags and went to a little restaurant here that has GREAT chocolate cake. So we had that with tortilla soup, chips and salsa and shrimp quesadillas. It was an awesome day!

I did everything I wanted to do!! There was a lot of discussion leading up to mother's day about chocolate cake. We couldn't decide if we wanted to dress up fancy and each eat a piece of cake at a restaurant, or if we wanted to buy a whole big cake and take it to the beach and eat it like savages. The boys chose the dress-up option - imagine?! - so the savage chocolate cake will be for my birthday. I can't wait!!

For some moms, it's a day to be without kids - read a book or get a manicure - but for me it's a celebration of being a mom, and how better than to play with my kids?  And play we did.  It was so fun!  We laughed a lot and every time I said maybe we could do something - the boys agreed wholeheartedly!  What a great day!
 
Thank you God for making me a mom!

News Time!

Well it's News Time!!


Merle says:

We are becoming 'Mexicans'!! The weather vane is pointing to Banderas Bay for our family this summer and coming winter. After much angle viewing spreadsheet comparing and soul searching we have decided to remain in the tropical zone for a season and further complete Kenta Anae in preparation for even grander sails abroad. We have been toying with a circumnavigation and this is a partial step in that direction. How to mix the "balance" of Mountain Ripppers and Ocean Trippers?? Well hell if I know but for now it's going to be Hot and wet. Bad if your in the jungle, ha, we are on the sea.

We are field testing that the energetics of our world can bring all that we need and more to extend the storyline on or current adventure. We are living simply and happily while the ocean rocks our floating yacht into the nights.

Allison says:

Yup - we are going to experience a tropical summer this year. It is true; and it was not an easy decision, but we are doing our best lately to listen to our hearts as much as possible, instead of our wallets. So we are putting our trust in the universe. Should be interesting...

So far, so good. The sun is hot during the day, but it is still cool and breezy at night so sleep comes easily. No mosquitoes, no bugs at all actually. Living on the sea definately has its perks! On the land, they burn coconut husks to keep the black flies at bay. The boys are going for a tour of a local school this week. I hope that they will learn a bit more Spanish one way or another! They sold palm frond art that they made (grasshoppers, bracelets, fish, and centipedes) at our local market this past Sunday. It was really sweet to see them running their little booth. The only kids at the market.  It was Shandro's idea, so we helped him get there and he did the rest.  Next week, I get to join them doing face painting. I can't wait!

No other news at the moment, but lots of things up in the air waiting for decisions to be made, so there will be some more news soon!

Meanwhile, love to you all. Sending you many blessings and as much sunshine as we can muster. The boys say hi to all of their friends and relatives. And so do we. We are always so grateful for news from home, so thanks for all the news - especially the baby news (congratulations new Moms and Dads and Grandmas and Granddads to be)!!  Love that! No baby news on this end ...

Also a funny note - we almost sent this on April Fools Day, and then thought better of it ...

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Just a quick note to let you know that we are safe and happy here in Bandaras Bay again, anchored in La Cruz and enjoying the sunshine. We have been waving goodbye to some friends as they head off west to do the Pacific Puddle Jump - 24 days at sea to the Marquaises in the South Pacific. Amazing!


Tsunami sucked a few docks apart in La Cruz, and we rounded the cape of cabo Corrientes with light winds and manageable seas. A beautiful day and night at sea, with some crazy swordfish or marlin chasing us part of the way! Also saw turtles galore, rays, one million jellyfish, and a humpback whale breached just off the starboard side of Kenta Anae.

Anyway, another email in a while. Love you all! Happy Saint Patty's Day! Have a guiness for us!

Decisions in Paradise

Just a little note to let you know whats going on in our heads at the


moment. We will just keep this amongst ourselves until a decision is

reached ...



We are going to sail towards Bandaras Bay (Puerto Vallarta and La Cruz

area) late today or early tomorrow. Should be there Tuesday sometime.



Merle says:  *OK so IMPORTANTE Decision Time *


I have a applic in ar the Capital POwer gas plant in WL, inside line,

porbably have to promise to do a instrument apprenticeship too. $$35 per

hour two weeks holidays 100k per year MTB, enduro, backcountry with the

bros, kids learn to rip the mountains, etc


OR


I do marine elect in Puerto vallarta unkown revenue 50 to 100 per hour and

Allison does yacht tending during the summers here for 130 per monthe each

yacht (approx) live in La Cruz kids go to spanish school and we sweat out

a 35 deg summer on the beach sail lasers and soccer and such



The more I think about it the harder it gets ...

Gold Coast or Bust!

Kenta Anae is on the move again, but more slowly and leisurely this time. We are heading south from Bandaras Bay (home of Puerto Vallarta) to see more of the Gold coast. We hope to head south to see Chamaela, Bahia Navidad and maybe as far as Manzanillo as well as a few charming places in between. We hope to leave today or tomorrow (Wednesday or Thursday), and we will be gone for a couple of weeks or so.


It has been very fun here, with visits from Lilka and Erica in the beginning of February, and Crystal and Tony yesterday. Great to see the Cariboo crew again, and feel some of that magical vibe that transcends earth and sea!! Love you all. We have had amazing weather here - full sunshine every day, and the heat to go with it. And with the sun comes the great thermodynamics in the bay here, so sailing has also been wonderful.

We have taste-tested some of the taco stands here in La Cruz, and are continuing to eat hoards of fresh tropical fruit and vegetables. Whenever the boys get their way, we head into the ice cream shop to have paletas - essentially frozen fruit smoothy on a stick. There are heaps of different kinds of fruit, and I have a different kind every time. Delish! For the more discerning tastes, there are also creams (made with real heavy cream), and for a refreshing change, we often have a water instead. The waters are flavoured, including jamaica and horchada, and then more familiar tastes such as fraisa (strawberry), (limon) lemonade, (limonada) limeade, alfalfa (the same!), pina colada (pineapple and coconut), barley (and cinnamon), and naranja (orange). Very nice and refreshing on a hot day.

The boys have been doing their home school in the mornings so they can play in the afternoons. We made some friends, Kathy and Mark, who are building a home near here. And out their front door is a huge maintained but deserted freshwater pool, so we go and play there once in a while. Feels like we are at a spa, but we are the only people there!! That has been nice.

Chilko is doing well. She has adapted easily to this life, and enjoys lying on the deck of the boat oscillating between the sun and the shade. She loves swimming and goes in unprompted. And she sticks so close to us that we don't even need a leash anymore. She is such a great dog, and we all love her to bits. She was in heaven while Lilka (her Godmother) was here. Just soaked up all the snuggles and wagged her tail all of the time. She eats any and all fish, which has been nice for her coat. And she still loves to chase cats, and now iguanas, and she goes crazy to watch dolphins and flying fish. All in all, a very happy dog!

As we sail this time round, Merle and I are going to ponder keeping the boat here in the Bandaras Bay this summer. There are a few options we need to explore before we head back north. Next summer (2012) we think we will spend in the Sea of Cortez, for a change, so we are planning for that.

Anyway, that's all for now. Hope that all is well in your homes and boats. We are sending you as much heat and sunshine as we can muster! Love and light to all ...

Trying to Go South ...

Well, we did try to depart today, but the world would not have it.  With everything aboard, and almost everything stowed, we headed over to the fuel dock only to find that there was no fuel!  And that they were expecting the fuel truck, but they had been expecting him all day.  So ...

... we turned around before low tide made that impossible, and headed back to our slip for a nice dinner, and then up to the top for one last soak in the jacuzzie and one last cold dip in the outside pool.  The universe is very determined that we need to take our sweet time!  No rushing.  This is very Mexico!  Now to sleep, perchance to dream of unseen shores and the magical adventure ahead of us.

We are heading straight to Cabo offshore the whole way, where we will touch base with family before heading farther east to Puerto Vallarta.  We hope to be there by Dixie's birthday on January 27th.  We'll see if we make it by then!  It depends on the wind, and also if we decide to hang out in Los Frailles fishing before continuing east.

We have a friend named Alice who is joining us for this leg of our adventure.  We are excited to have her along, and I think she is just as excited to join us!  She is very musical, so hopefully we get to do some music as we sail along.

Hasta pasta, as Rick would say.

I'm loving the eating raw. I am not disciplined enough to eat raw all the time, and I do cook for my family. But when I eat raw, it feels really good. And Even just eating alive food, I notice such a huge difference in energy when comparing it to a box of something. Unless it is homemade something. The bought stuff is very low energy in almost every case. We've almost completely abandoned the big grocery stores and gone to markets. It's just better. My kids say they can actually taste the difference. Merle too. I am lucky to be part of such an aware family.

Speaking of that, we ALL just went through some sort of transition between Christmas and New Years. Everyone was sick with a flu - mostly sleeping - during this time. We didn't even want to eat. Not sure exactly what it was, but there is some interesting shifting going on. We have NEVER all been sick at the same time. I hardly ever get sick. We are preparing for something. Merle says it is a large-scale shift that we are experiencing. Affected both Merle and I in balance, which is interesting considering we live on a boat and are in constant motion, balancing every second ... Hopefully now we are fresh and new and ready for whatever enters into our lives ...

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Well, today is Mom’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom! I hope that she’s doing okay. This is her second birthday in the nursing home. Dad was going to see her today. I'm glad. What a crazy life it must be, to have no recollection of some things. Or perhaps the memories are there, but there is no way to access them in any recognizeable way, or to express them. I hope that we have more pain about that than she does. I pray for her to have happiness, and be free of frustration.

And here, we had a bonfire in her honor. Complete with singing even. And drumming. And a little release ceremony. She’d have loved that. It was the dark of the moon tonight – first time we’ve done a drumming night with no moon! It was nice. And I’m glad we started early because it began to rain on us by 8pm, so we retreated out of respect for the instruments, and were back here and in bed by 9pm. That’s better than last night!

One more thing. A sweet lady here on the dock, Kristen on sv Bristol Blue, gave me the fertility goddess in the form of a necklace - almost identical to the one I gave Rea when she talked about being a mom. Interesting that this should have returned to me at this time. I know you get what you give, but to this accuracy? Amazing. And do I need this right now? I guess so ...

Happy New Year!!

January 1^st, 2011.

First New Year’s Eve I’ve slept through since I was about 10 years old!! It was nice to do it differently this year, and just wake up to the new year already humming along without any help from us!

We did learn about some great New Year’s Eve customs this year, that are worth putting down here. Buy new yellow and red underwear and wear them through New Year’s Eve. The yellow symbolizes wealth, and the red brings love. Green clothes attract a year of good health, and dressing in white invites good vibrations and assures a good year spiritually. Just before midnight, some people walk around their houses with brooms and they sweep out the old cobwebs and clean up, ready for a fresh start. New Year’s Eve dinner is a very late feast, that often includes tamales and grapes, 12 grapes each to be exact. As the clock bongs the 12 bongs at midnight, we gulp down the 12 grapes, one at a time, to assure luck in each of the upcoming months. (I like this tradition best. I think it’s a grape idea.) Another interesting tradition is to pick up an empty suitcase and walk around the house with it, so we will get to travel in the upcoming year. And of course, there is always kissing and hugging anyone close, to pass on wishes of health, happiness and prosperity. The tradition that landed closest to (and farthest from) home, I read in a Mexican newspaper. It talked about the most important Canadian New Year’s tradition (which I have sadly never even heard of until now, never mind experienced) of running a hot bath and have a soak in the tub as the clock strikes 12 !?? I think it was the same guy who wrote that the Polar Swim was a farce ...

So, we did the Polar Swim today, from the Jacuzzie to the cold pool for us Canadians, and back again. It feels good to be a Canadian, even if our traditions do get a bit twisted in translation!

This evening, my family and I decided to focus on spiritual awareness this year. It was a late-breaking, spontaneous decision, but it seems like the right thing to do. I feel pretty good about it. I also feel surprisingly laid back about it, like it’s not a huge task, but a daily ritual instead. We shall see how it plays out in the long run!!

Happy New Year Slide Show

Happy New Year!!

This is a little slide show of 2010 and the McAssey household's whereabouts since the last entry! The year was jam packed with lots of activities, both in Canada from January till April, and in Ensenada Mexico from May till December. It was nice to be in both places.

Enjoy!! This is 3 minutes of happiness! Just click on the link.

http://animoto.com/play/3pY8pqYCykh35FyHrvEyCQ

Our gift to you.

Goodbye Ensenada, Hello Canada!

June 3rd ( I think). The past few days have been a blur. That’s an interesting and even foreign thought!! I haven’t thought that for a long long time – about a year or so. The past year has not been a blur, but as we get closer to living in the ‘rat race’ again, time seems to be speeding up a bit. We had thought we would depart here by the weekend. Now it is Wednesday, and we are finally leaving tomorrow, and flying to Canada. We have prepared Kenta Anae for our time away from her. Merle has washed down the decks, stowed the gear in appropriate places, removed sails and canvass and she is ready for a hurricane essentially. Except that they don’t get those here. Our fridge is empty, the laundry is clean, and the boys have packed toys and clothes, and are really excited about flying in an airplane – a big one!! It’s good we will be able to fly at least one leg in the day light so they can see what it looks like up there. Thanks, Love Song. We’d never be going home this way if it wasn’t for you!! We are very grateful! I found, as I was packing, that I am taking way less stuff home than I brought. And I notice that I am less concerned about it than I used to be. Just throw in what you think you’ll need, and what you love, and the universe will take care of the rest.

I never did write about what it’s like to cook in the galley when you are at sea. When the boat is healed over, and I am cooking, I stand on the cupboard wall. Sounds crazy, but its true. Chopping stuff is funny because after you cut something, it wants to slide right off the cutting board (because the cutting board and the rest of the boat are at about 30 degrees off horizontal). So you have to chop stuff so it slides against the cupboards rather than off the counter and onto the cabin sole (floor). Getting the chopped food into the pot or pan is also a good challenge (much like pouring a liquid, see below), but once in the pot, as long as the stove is gimbled, that’s the safest spot for it, as it is level with gravity. So I can cook soup no problem, but pouring the soup – well that’s a completely different story! Pouring liquids is like being on another planet. As you pour, the liquid does not go where it looks like it should go based on previous experience. Rather, it goes down with gravity which is not straight down, but on that 30 degree off-kilter slope that doesn’t match the way the counter sits, and if you actually do hit the catching container (which you have to hold with your other hand or it will slide off the counter), the liquid often zig-zags its way down, depending on the movement of the boat. If I am lucky, the funnel will catch my eye before I begin pouring, and using it increases my chances of hitting the container by about 300%. If not, the sink is the drip tray. I always think how good I will be at pouring when we get back to land and how I’d love a photo of that process because it must look just hillarious! Don’t have one yet. I will put it on next year’s list of things to do while sailing.

I found Shandro and Matero’s wish list two days ago of the things they wanted to do while sailing. All four of us stopped what we were doing and read them – and smiled at each one – until we made our way to the bottom and discovered that we did every single thing on the long lost list. That was a very satisfying few minutes that we all shared. This is the list:

Things to do while we are sailing
1. Go swimming (at night too).
2. Take pictures of fish and go snorkeling.
3. Find an island while sailing.
4. Find treasure.
5. Find a good beach.
6. Find a coconut palm tree.
7. Make music.
8. See a shooting star.
9. Throw anchor into ocean.
10. Sail at night.
11. See flying fish.
12. Taste new fruits and new weird things to eat.
13. Play lots and lots of games.

Goodbye Marina Coral and Ensenada. Goodbye friends. We have truly loved your company and are grateful for the ways you have shaped our lives.

And Canada, we are looking forward to being there again, mostly to see our family (yes, Chilko!) and friends we have so missed while we have been gone. I get a warm fuzzy feeling just thinking about it. See you soon!

June 1st - the boat threw up!

June 1st. The boat looks like it threw up, and I have no mind to do anything about it tonight! I have just returned from a lesson on the unconscious mind, provided by Mark Bagnall on sv Horizon, just across the water from us here in Marina Coral. He is Victor and Andre’s neighbor, and working on much the same things as we are – manifesting, improvement of self, reaching for a higher consciousness, so the sharing has been fun. Tonight we did a ‘float’ along my timeline, to discover my first experience of anger, and hopefully dispel the anger in my life by acknowledging that. The first time I experienced anger was the day I was born and the doctor slapped me on the bum and I was mad at him. And the lesson was about forgiveness. I can forgive him now (as I could have then, but I chose anger instead), and get the lesson without the anger. I could see other anger events along the timeline, and they all blew out their anger out the side door as I watched. I wonder how this will affect my life now and in the future!! How exciting!! I want to do the releases for sadness, fear and guilt now. Mark says we should do all 4. Also learned a little how to talk to the unconscious mind, and how to ask it questions and receive answers. Could be amazing for teaching my kids, or for releasing bad habits, or for creating good habits, or for changing my perspective on something!! Excellent!! Will try it now before I sleep and see how I do.

I went to the gym this morning. Every time I go, I think of you Trina. It’s very cool how people come to mind with different activities. I don’t know if I will ever go to a gym in this lifetime again without thinking of you. Isn’t that so neat? I love it. Anyway, you’d love this gym. It is surrounded by glass that looks out onto the courtyard with pools and grass and a few patios. It’s beautiful to go there and be in nature while you are at the gym. I can’t believe we are here at this spa-resort hotel. It’s just way over the top. But it’s totally competitive price-wise right now, so here we are!

Yes, the boat. We have everything scattered everywhere. It’s hard to live in here right now. There is no food in the fridge (hooray! No waste!), stuff to take back to Canada is strewn about, the bags for the stuff are outside (Merle bought them today – and he got some nice ones for cheap!!), the clean clothes are in bags on the settees, the electronic devices are covering the chart desk about 8 inches deep all over it. Every surface has something on it. What a mess!! But slowly it’s coming together. The shrouds are clean, we’ve been through the big storage lockers to figure out what stays and what goes. Merle wants to move the boat and clean it tomorrow. I want to pack and finish with food storage and fridge cleaning and toilet cleaning. Hope we can get it all done tomorrow. Might be a very long day. Or might stretch into Wednesday. Guess we will see. Flights are available both Wed and Thurs, so we have some give. Now I have to sleep. I was going to try to burn some music tonight, but am too sleepy. Good night!

May 30 - Happy early birthday, Dayton!

Friday, May 30th. Happy early birthday, Dayton! Hope that you have a great day tomorrow!!

Today we pulled down our genoa (the front sail) and dumped our holding tanks. (Sails have to come down in case there is a storm with high winds while we are away. The sails are the first things to unravel and rip apart in high winds.) As we left the marina and headed out to sea again, Merle and I looked at each other, and he said to me, ‘I love it out here!!’ ‘Me too!!’ Imagine how much we will love it in November, when we haven’t been on the sea for so long! It’s been less than 3 weeks!! Then I went to the dentist for my final appointment. He did an excellent job, at a fraction of the Canadian cost. I am very happy with my tooth!! The only thing that could make it better in the future would be if I could grow a whole new permanent tooth myself, which I believe is possible. I just haven’t figured out how to do that yet. Perhaps some part of me doesn’t believe it’s possible yet. I’m working on it.

I have been inhaling Ensenada the last few days. I am going to miss this place! I love the people here, where we are. We attract great teachers. Lucky for us, the lessons are relatively gentle – mostly internal. Victor and Andre (moored here) are the sweetest ever, and they are a few steps ahead of me in the higher consciousness department, so I get to enjoy some of the reading materials they have that helped them get where they are now. Mark (also moored here) is a very humerous and delightful British fellow who is hungry for new information to help him advance. ‘Give me the juice’ he says. David Hawkins is a very interesting author, who has written many books on this subject. He experienced ‘enlightenment’ many years ago, but stayed on earth to teach about it. His writing is extremely interesting. I am ready and indeed eager to hear some of it. But some of it makes me itchy because he challenges my current beliefs – which are holding me here in this mindset – and in order to release these beliefs and shed some baggage requires some stretching, to say the least. Excellent!! Might as well stretch. What else are we here to do, besides enjoying this big old earth and all of her beings great and small? Like the movie ‘One’ says: The meaning of life is to live!

Walking up to the hotel and back today with Shandro and Matero was a joy. Matero rides his bike wearing his own helmet, and using Shandro’s helmet for a ‘baby carrier’ for his monkey. Shandro is very patient with his little brother. My children are here to teach me, and I hope I am open to all of their lessons. I hope I can be a good mom and ‘get it’. We did play at the playground this afternoon for a while. Shandro said, ‘You’re going to play with us, Mom?? Really?? You’re finally getting it!!’ The ‘bum bumper’ slide was the worst – as the bumps are in all the wrong places. But we had to do each thing once, so we did it, follow the leader style. The curly tube slide was the best. At the end, Matero pushed Monkey on the swing for a while and Shandro ran around in the sand chasing a football and helped a little slightly unstable toddler slide down the little slide. On the way back, Shandro and Matero both picked flowers and tucked them into the baby carrier with Monkey. By the time they finished, you could hardly see Monkey in there! Then they decided that it made Monkey super happy, not because of the flowers themselves (the ‘stuff’ as Shandro calls it), but because of all the love that accompanied each little flower gift. That was pretty amazing, for a 4 and 6 year old. Kids are really very astute. They ‘get it’ right away. If it wasn’t for us adults teaching them to ignore all that they already intuitively know, they would grow up to be loving and wise and happy spirits. I have to work on that.

May 28th

Wednesday, May 28th. Today, Merle went to San Diego with Shona to do some of the errands we needed to have done. And I did an Ortho-Bionomy session for her husband Mark. Hope he feels better soon! Merle's back is feeling better he says.

D(entist) Day

May 25th. Today was dentist day, and there will be at least one more. I have had a crown loose for about a year, and have tried to heal my tooth under it metaphysically, but no go (although the dentist seemed amazed that it was in such good condition given the circumstances, so maybe all the positive thinking was not lost). All I can say is that I’m glad I enjoyed last night’s dinner so much!! Over and out.