SEVENTEEN

Inside the basically finished chicken coop after I water-resistant stained all the wood.

Our roses have been glorious this week. The honeysuckle is also in full bloom and they are competing with my roses to be the most fragrant. 

On Thursday we drove and hour plus away to Good Earth Organic Farm to pick strawberries. 

Theo was actually really helpful and didn't eat any strawberries in the field. He did chase every spider he saw and picked quite a few underripe strawberries but that's just fine. We came home with 10 pounds of strawberries. By Sunday afternoon they were all eaten. Luckily I was able to get three pounds of them into jam before the hoards descended. They were some of the most tender and flavorful strawberries. They tasted just as they did in my childhood memories of strawberry stands along the roads in California. 

On Friday we went to have an early birthday lunch with Veronica at school. It was Careers on Wheels day and so we had to make a quick stop to pose with the Fire Fighters and watch the electrical company do a demonstration of what a live power line does to a hot dog. Theo was mesmerized. 

I was late getting in to do lunch and so we only had 15 minutes to eat with Veronica. So I completely forgot to take a photo. I had to track her down at recess with permission from the principal to make sure I got a little photo. She was very excited to have lunch with us and she was very excited about the Chick fil-A cookies I brought as her class treat. 

On Saturday she had a combined birthday party with her cousin. V wanted it to be science themed, the cousin wanted it to be doctor themed. So it was amazing. This is V's blueberry science cake. (It tasted much better than it looked.) 

Blowing out the candles and dry ice smoke. 

We had a doctor station where the kids administered shots to oranges (with real syringes) and then had free access to gauze and bandages and medical tape.  We also had a science station where we made slime and everyone got to take theirs home as a party favor (to be promptly thrown away by parents I'm sure). Later we went to the cousins house for a wild trampoline water balloon fight and glitter tattoos and tacos. It was probably the best and most fun birthday V has ever had. 

From Mama

Dear Veronica,

I am so happy you were born. You have so much strength and patience and curiosity. But you are also a fighter. You fight for what you believe in and what feels right to you. You want justice and equality. You are silly and goofy and funny and so ridiculously clever. You love rhyming games. You have so many big ideas that it is frustrating to you when you can't pick and direct the games you play with your brother and your friends. You are sweet and tender and always giving hugs and kisses. You love to sing and to run wild and free. You are loyal and fiercely love the people who are important to you. You are so beautiful and love to beautify the spaces around you with your ideas and your art and your designs. I got a hand me down dress this week that didn't work for me. You cut it up and resewed it to make yourself a shirt and a skirt. You follow your vision and see things through to the end. You are brave and wise and you try new things.

Your Papa and I love you so much more than we can tell you. You are amazing and I'm sure we take you for granted at times. I'm sorry for that. But we love you, and will always love you.

I love you.


Quotes

Theodore

When we were playing a rhyming game I asked him for things that rhyme with "right." The first two words he chose were "spite" and "Semite." It may have just been coincidence but those are pretty advanced words for a 3 year old. 

Theo points concernedly toward my legs, "Mama, are you turning into a boy?!"

Veronica

"I'm glad I wasn't born an animal because they don't get fun exciting birthdays."

"Well, now I am six so I can probably read chapter books." Takes out my copy of Beadle the Bard, "I'll start with this one. I'm sure I can read it now."