Because- yes.
That's Smidgen's straightforward answer, when I ask HER "why?"
I'm a strong believer in turning the tables on your children, as soon and as often as possible. Since she's well into the age of "why?' - she gets it right back. "Don't tickle me!" "Why not? It makes you laugh and wiggle. You like to laugh and wiggle, you do it all the time, all by yourself. Why not?"
"Because: don't!"
Strikes me as quite wise- and generally irrefutable. I hope to use it often.
It has happened a few times that I have been asked "why"- why are you doing "this"- meaning living this way? My answer is simple. For the children. Mine, yes; but all of them, really. We need to leave our children a world that has a future to offer them. And it seems obvious to me, that if your children are desperate- my children will suffer. So yes- for all of them (whether you actually have any, or not.)
So I'm taking the time today to put these self-indulgent bits regarding the journey so far together. Smidgen does get a kick out of seeing herself on the web, of course- hope you enjoy these too.
Because: yes.
This is where we started- Smidgen, age 1 day.
(all these photos can be clicked on for larger versions.)
Smidgen, age 3-days. My hands, and hers.
Death by carrots. The Way is not smooth.
First ocean experience- well before dawn, due to jet-lag.
Ocean-shmocean, now THIS is really interesting. (with big brother Beelar)
Ok, yes, waves are cool.
So are big brothers, and tree roots.
(you really need to see the bigger version of this one)
Some tourist attractions can be interesting...
Limits.
Enough tom-foolery. This is the plan.
(Bigger version recommended. Note how precisely I hold the stylus,
and ignore that bit of chocolate at the corner of my mouth.)
Happy Birthday, Smidge.
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24 comments:
Too cute!
Happy Birthday, Smidgen!
I totally love that carrot picture - I noticed that you (smartly) are feeding her outside... she looks like a carrot-grenade about to go off.
If you look really, really closely in the last photo, you'll see she's drawing up a finer, grander outhouse.
Like father, like daughter.
Happy Birthday Smidge, and congratulations Greenpa!
Kerri
Happy Happy Birthday!!! What a lucky kid to be growing up with such a family!!!
Crunch- outside? um, nope, that's inside. Just dark.
Kerri- oh, I think her ambitions stretch further! I think she's planning the take-over of some major political unit. France, maybe.
We _were_ drawing maps. I started with a map of the beach we were on; I don't remember what that was a map of. I think she did put her house on one of the maps, which makes it either a map of the farm or (if it included the beach as well, which was possible) the hemisphere.
Looks like a happy child. Gives you lots of motivation to keep on doing what you're doing. Because - yes.
Happy Birthday, Smidgen!
A meme from me to you (Happy Birthday) http://love2bgreen.blogspot.com/2008/02/meme-between-sneezes.html
L-G - bless you. In both senses. :-) Alas, I swore off memes- too much time! But many thanks for the thought, and the birthday wishes.
Smart guy, that Greenpa. I'm real close to swearing off them after having two plus an award in that many days. It's flattering, to be sure, but it does take a lot of time.
OTOH, I could just maintain a list of people who don't do memes and always tag them....just to stop the chain mail effect. And annoy the anti-memers. ;-)
Real Wealth indeed! Happy birthday Smidge!
Great pics!
Happy Birthday Smidgen!
And congrats to you all, for the treasure of time to spend together, and the wisdom to know its worth :)
Heather G
Thanks for this little slice of your life. You positively have to do the more plain vegetables before you move on to the sweeter stuff, otherwise their palate will be stunted for decades. Keep up the good work.
My son, now 14, loved carrots and squash so much as a baby that he turned yellow. Our pediatrician, upon seeing his new shade of skin, commented that he either had liver failure or really liked yellow vegetables.
I have often thought of writing a book titled, "Raising Children for Fun and Profit." The profit of course in measure more in the intangibles than in the paper money. Although paper money is pretty intangible already...
But I digress.
Excellent blog and excellent entry.
troy
Happy Birthday Smidgen! May you always remember the wisdom of "because: yes".
death by carrots, because, Yes! lol, thanks.
Happy Birthday Smidgen! Those pictures are so cute.
perfection.
Greenpa thanks for sharing the great pictures of smidgen! Happy Birthady Smidgen-your one lucky little gal!
Happy birthday to Smidgen! Great photos. The kids have it all figured out: eat, sleep, play, enjoy the moment. It makes me think of a poem by the Indian poet laureate Rabindranath Tagore entitled "Playthings":
Child, how happy you are sitting in the dust, playing with a broken twig all the morning.
I smile at your play with that little bit of a broken twig.
I am busy with my accounts, adding up figures by the hour.
Perhaps you glance at me and think, "What a stupid game to spoil your morning with!"
Child, I have forgotten the art of being absorbed in sticks and mud-pies.
I seek out costly playthings, and gather lumps of gold and silver.
With whatever you find you create your glad games.
I spend both my time and my strength over things I never can obtain.
In my frail canoe I struggle to cross the sea of desire, and forget that I too am playing a game.
Thanks to Smidge for reminding me of what's important.
Troy, someone has beat you to that book title. This is hilarious, by the way:
http://tiny.cc/HHmMn
Happy be-lated birthday Smidgen! We share the same birthday, alas, 37 years apart!
Jo, way down south
I hope her birthday celebration was loads of fun...and relaxing. :) She sure is getting big!
Living here in the San Andreas CA area and knowing scads of simple living off the grid folks I was overjoyed to come upon your blog and only wish you would write more.~Beth
"Treat our earth well for it was not given to us by our parents, it is lent to us by our children."
My husband took a philosophy class in college and they spent the semester yaking about the meaning of life. When the final test came around the class was stunned to get a piece of paper with - "Why?" on it. And that's it.
Everyone went to town for the two hours trying to write out their answers. But one guy handed his paper in within the first two minutes of class and left. His answer? "Because." He got an A...
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