Drum circle

Do you know how long Mark can drum non-stop? 2 hrs and 5 minutes! And the only reason he stopped (we were at the Durham Life & Science museum) was because he fell down and scraped his knee.

And that's on top of whatever drumming he does at home (although not so much now since he figured that his toy drum is not the real thing). And on top of watching a DVD called "Blast" (more drumming) daily. And on top of going to concerts on most Thursdays and Sundays.

So I found out about drum circles in the area. Fortunately, there's a drum circle meeting every Wednesday evening at a park not far away. Mark absolutely loved it even though he never cared for african drums before.

Now, a drum circle is just that - a bunch of people of various ages and abilities drumming and/or trying to drum. Mark was the youngest, but that didn't bother him at all. Surprisingly, Chris tried drumming and got totally into it. He was really good too. I tried, but obviously Mark doesn't get his love of drumming from me :) Fortunately, they did have hoola-hoops.

Father's Day Weekend - Surf and Turf

Surf - Pine Knolls aquarium (Mark loves turtles and "big fish"), the beach (crowded and Mark didn't care to swim at all), and a dinner of fried seafood at Crabby Patty's on the way back (great shrimp po-boy).

Turf - a picnick at Duke Gardens, yummy watermelon, Mark rolling on the grass and playing chase with Chris.

More of the Marbles

Yep, we go to the Marbles pretty much every week now. Usually Mark spends all his time playing with a train set and drumming. But I guess after a few weeks of that he got bored and decided to diversify. It turned out very well:

Here Mark is filing away. He really likes playing with the real instruments - a handsaw, a file and a screwdriver. The file is the most manageable of all, especially compared to the saw. So he pretends that a file is a saw.

Here Mark is building a tower of blocks. Now, this doesn't happen every day! But on this particular day there was a little boy of about 4 building some pretty sophisticated towers in the blocks area and Mark wanted to join him. So he ended up building a pretty impressive tower all by himself!

Finally, Mark's playing with water! Again, not something that happens every day. For now he doesn't even want to go to the pool any more. When asked what doesn't he like about the pool, Mark says "Water!". But last time at Marbles he played with the rubber duck and other toys and didn't complain at all after getting his T-shirt all wet.

New Hope Valley Railroad

A couple of weeks ago we went for a ride on a New Hope Valley Railroad. Apparently, all this time we were in the driving distance from a REAL railroad with REAL engines that one can tour. The place is not a replica, nor is it a scale model. As I said, it's a real railroad and everything is real. It only runs one weekend a month and is staffed by volunteers which is even better since they are just too happy to answer questions and show us around.

The ride lasts for about an hour - 30 mins there and 30 mins back. It's not fast and not especially scenic. Actually, I guess it can be quite boring unless you're into trains. The most exciting things along the line are

• The train blowing a whistle at each railroad crossing
• The train going over a bridge that is so narrow that if you look straight down from the window, it appears as if the train floats on air. (I forgot the technical name of this kind of bridge)
• The engine getting disconnected from the train at the mid-point and then backtracking and reconnecting to the train from the other end, so that it can pull the train back to the station.

But if you're into trains like Mark is, there's a lot more excitement to be had - all the sounds and the rocking of the train car, a glimps of tracks through the floorboards and the swaying of the couplings between the cars.

And after the train ride was over, there was a giant model railroad to check out, bluegrass music to listen to and a hotdog to munch on. In short, it was a great experience!

A Day in Wytheville, VA

We had to drive to Wytheville, VA today to pick up Tim. It's about 3 hours from Raleigh. So I figured driving all the way there and all the way back, we might as well find something interesting to do there for a couple of hours.

The drive was pretty boring until we got to the mountains. The approach to Wytheville didn't look all that promising either - just more of the sprawl - gas stations, auto shops, Starbucks, etc. The historic downtown looked better and livelier with all the mom-and-pop shops. But we didn't stop to admire the downtown.

Instead, we drove through the town and out into the mountains... off the road and through the ruts... then steep left... a few more miles down a narrow gravel road... and we finally got to our destination - Beagle Ridge Herb Farm.

We had a little tour of the farm and its herb gardens and then had a picnic (yeah, we're really on a roll with the whole picnic thing). If we had more time (and were properly dressed), we might have went on a hike along one of the many trails. But by then Mark was pretty tired and it was too hot anyway.

So we got back on the road and drove a few more miles back into the town and onto the highway... off the main road... past some cows... then steep left (what's up with steep left turns in Wytheville anyway) and to the Pleasant Hill Farm - a pick-your-own flowers farm.

We spent over an hour there picking flowers and just walking around, admiring the views and the little baby duck and the white pigeons. Mark absolutely loved the place and kept running around it, smelling flowers and acting silly.

Funny Stuff Mark's Been Saying Lately

Mark is very talkative. Actually, he pretty much doesn't stay quiet unless he's asleep. Well, when we're out and about he's pretty quiet too, until he gets comfortable around new people.

He speaks both Russian and English equally well. It's really pretty amazing to hear him switching from one language to another effortlessly and without giving it a second thought. He speaks Russian to me and English to Chris. If he hears me speaking English to people, he speaks English to them as well. When I speak Russian to people, he speaks Russian to them too.

Sometimes he tries speaking English to me, but I always reply in Russian and sometimes even ask him to translate for me 'cause "mama doesn't understand English all that well". It works too! The other day all three of us were in the car and I said something to Mark in Russian. He immediately repeated it in English for his Dad.

Today we went to watch a train go by (something we do fairly regularly). While waiting for the train, Mark said "I wait for train every day! I want to wait for train every day!"/ Я ждать поезд каждый день! Я хочу ждать поезд каждый день!

A little while later, still with his "every day" theme he shared his ideal daily schedule with me: "I want тортик every day AND concert every day AND wait for train every day AND play with Sasha every day" (Sasha is a boy from Mark's daycare). / Я хочу тортик каждый день И концерт каждый день И ждать паровозик каждый день И играть с Саша каждый день.

On new - real - drumsticks: "Grandpa gifted Mark drumsticks"/Деда подарил палки Марку.

On a little bouncy ball he borrowed from his girl friend some weeks ago and re-discovered today: "This little big ball Maeli gifted to Mark" / Этот большой маленький мяч Майли подарила Марку.

A small mosquito bite on Mark's leg gets this commentary: "It's bruise... No, no bruise... It's bite... Small mosquito bit Mark... Not very good mosquito." / Это синяк... Нет, нет синяк... Это укус... Комарик укусил Марка... Не очень хороший комарик.

Mark loves pretend cooking, only prefers real ingredients. His favorite dish for now - cake and muffins. So he goes "I want one egg and two cups... want make muffin for Emi" (Emily is another one of his friends). / Я хочу один яйцо и де чашки... хочу печь кекс Эми.

But the top prize goes to his statement on the pleasures of drumming (and he drums every day): "This is good day for drumming! Very good day for drumming!" / Хороший день барабанить! Очень хороший день барабанить!

Another Weekend, Another Farm - Smith's Nursery

I love pick-your-own farms! They aren't much cheaper than buying the same stuff at the Farmer's Market, but they sure are so much more fun. We went to Hunt's Farm in Raleigh a couple of times this year to pick strawberries. It's a nice place and quite close to us. But Hunt's strawberry season is over for now. And since they don't have any other pick-your-own fruits or veggies, we'll have to wait until next year.
Fortunately, there are tons of farms within a short drive from us. Chris's co-worker went to the one in Benson last week and picked not just strawberries, but blueberries as well. Now, that sounded really cool since I've never picked blueberries before.
So this weekend we all piled into Mom's car (tight fit, but it worked) and drove for half an hour to Benson to Smith's Nursery. Ok, the place is totally awesome! I'm absolutely in love with it right now. The strawberries were practically over (this was, in fact, the last weekend for strawberry picking). Still, there were so many huge beautiful berries on the field that, all the pickers nonwithstanding, there were still lots of berries left for the bird and bugs to enjoy.

After picking two bucket-fulls of strawberries we took a short break at one of the carp ponds (see our calloused and berry-juice-stained hands?). And then we got another bucket for blueberries. Now, the blueberry patch is a bit of a hike - about a quarter mile down the dirt road. But it's nice because first you pass by all the nursery plants and then - through a little woodsy patch (we even so a fox there!).

The blueberry patch was pretty small, but it really didn't matter at all. There were just so many berries that we all stayed around the first 3-4 bushes and gathered a whole bucket in about 20 minutes. Yummy!

Here's a picture of all the berries we picked that day.

Memorial Day Weekend 09

Hooray, we finally had a real picnic! We've been planning to have one at the Museum Park (by NC Museum of Arts) for at least a year. It was great - we brought some sandwiches with us and OJ and strawberries and we picked a few mulberries from the nearby mulberry trees. Mark loved the idea of sitting down on the ground and eating. He also really liked that he could, no - was encouraged to - take frequent breaks to run around and roll in the grass.

Just as we finished our little picnic the rain started. But by then we were almost at the car. What a great timing, we laughed to ourselves. Hmm, except the rain had the final laught, of course. Later in the day (or was it the next day?) we went on a bike ride. Again, it was something we've talked about forever. So anyway, we went on a bike ride, but got cought in a pretty strong downpour half-way through.

Mark loves bike rides, but hates wearing a helmet. That's what he says, "No helmet!". And when, after much struggling, it's on his head, he cries "I'm stuck!". So we just have to get on with the bike ride. Mark's bike seat is on the back of my bike. And all through the ride I hear Mark complaining, first - about the helmet; then - about me sitting on my bike seat. So I start going real fast and then he gets all excited and just smiles.

Anyway, here are two more pictures - Mark with a pony (not a real one) and Mark at a BBQ playdate with his friends.

Picking Strawberries at Hunt's Farm

Last year we went to Hunt's Farm only once, at the end of the strawberry season. This year, we went 3 or 4 times. Which means we either have nothing else to do or the place absolutely rocks.

I'll spare you the guess work - the place rocks! Go there early in the season (I think the first time we went this year was at the end of April). And go during the week, if you can. The entire field will be yours for picking.

Rows and rows of delicious strawberries smelling so sweet in the hot sun. Kids eat them non-stop, but even the adults stuff their faces. Mark knows, in principle, to only pick red berries. But in practice, he just can't resist. Although he is getting better with each new trip.

And as we pick strawberries, Mark notices all sorts of things - birds flying high in the sky (мама, пица летит), chickens making their chicken noises (мама, пету), other kids (мама, мальчики собают кубику). Unfortunately, he doesn't want to go too far from "the house" - the little red barn that serves as a check-out point.

But who can blame him - they have awesome buckets there - round like drums and with big strawberries printed on them. And there is plenty of level ground to run around and be goofy. And there are dogs that have to be petted (мама, очень хороший собака). Finally, there's a little grove of pine trees with lots of pine cones and even frogs.

Homeschooling - Dinosaur Week

Mark goes to an at-home day-care once a week for 4 hours. He loves it because he gets to play with older boys (and boy do they have A LOT of fun toys!). I love it because everyone in this daycare - the teacher and all the kids - speak Russian. The teacher loves it because Mark behaves very well there. And the other two boys love it because Mark doesn't get in there way too much, plus he openly admires them (and who can resist that!).

At this daycare, kids mostly do a lot of free play. It's not structured at all, which is great. But usually they do some small art or crafts project and go for a walk in the nearby park. The teacher tries to introduce numbers, letters, shapes, etc. through each game and I think it works. Mark has learned a lot of words there.

The rest of the time it's just me and Mark. Again, usually our days are pretty unstructured. We drive Chris to work and stop by to watch the daily Amtrak train on the way back. We go to the Marbles museum, to different parks and playgrounds, feed ducks, pick strawberries, play in the yard, watch cartoons, read, ride a toy train and a carousel at Pullen Park, and cook and do other stuff around the house.

Then one day I decided that it'd be nice to introduce a bit more structure and learning into our daily schedule. So I figured, what's better way to kick off our homeschooling than to have a dinosaur week! Yeah, for now I'm really thinking about homeschooling at least through the elementary school.

So I've made lots and lots of different little games centered around the dinosaur theme. And I got some colorful dino books at the library. Unfortunately, Mark decided to renew his interest in trains that same week. Instead of being into dinosaurs (per my plan), he was and still is into drumming and trains (per his plan).

We still managed to learn a few new things:

1. New color - purple (and no, we didn't watch Barney at all). So now Mark knows all his basic colors - black, white, red, green, yellow, blue, orange, purple and can name all of them.

2. New word - dinosaur (ok, Mark can't say it quite right yet; he says "Divanos")

3. New letter - Д for dinosaur

4. A couple more words - volcano, lava

5. Food sorting into "fruits and veggies" and "meats" (when we fed dinosaurs)

6. Dividing and sharing - when Mark was dividing a hot dog and orange into pieces to feed each one of the 4 toy dinosaurs

Sure, that's not much for 2 weeks of dinosaur stuff (ok, my one week stretched into two). But again, we spent maybe 5-10 minutes a day talking about dinosaurs and playing dino-themed games. And some days we didn't bother with dinos at all.

And check out this really cool dino set I made out of an empty Tide box, some construction paper, tissue paper, an empty yogurt container, plastic plants, a piece of old carpet, a few rocks and a couple of toy dinosaurs. Can't you tell I'm really proud of it?! LOL

Marbles Rocks!

What would I do without Marbles? And why are they closed on Mondays anyway?! Marbles is the Children's Museum here, in Raleigh. And we go there A LOT. As a matter of fact, not a week goes by without us stopping by for an hour or so.

Thankfully, back in the fat times, we got the family membership so now we only pay for parking. And sometimes we don't pay for parking either, when the parking meter machine in the museum's parking lot is broken (which's been happening a lot lately). Of course, other times we pay way too much, like the other day when I got a $20 ticket for parking 6 inches too far from the curb. So unfair!

Anyway, back to the Marbles. Mark loves the place. He always asks me to go to the "zemey" (he can't or won't say музей). We already have a routine worked out. First, we go upstairs to play the drums. Here are the two phrases Mark now says very well:

Марк банит как дяди! (he also watches a video of a drum line at the Carnival in Rio)

Бабаны забили! (this is actually a line from an audio-book he listens to)

After he's done with drums, we quickly stop by the little Moroccan marketplace corner where Mark serves us some pretend tea. Then we're about leave, but not without watching some German pop videos. His favorite is Emanuela, because the video shows a marching band.

Then we move to the racing cars. At first Mark used to just watch other kids racing. But lately he wants me to build a car for him. Then he races it downt he track and excitedly toddles along.

Then I usually make a paper airplane for Mark to launch from the balcony and we move on to a workbench. Now, workbenches at Marbles have real tools - screwdrivers, hand-drills, hand-saws... Mark tried the saw the other day, but didn't like that once the a piece of wood was sawed off, there would be not way to stick it back on. So he prefers screwdriver and screws (which, by the way, are available by the bucket).

Then we go to the fitness exhibit. At first Mark used to go through a little obstacle course. Then he moved on to throwing plastic balls into the ball pit (but he never wants to get into the ball pit). Later he was into throwing plastic play foods into big buckets. And then finally he discovered the hockey rink. The rink is actually all plastic and the kids take shoes off before going in and slide or walk across in their socks.

Usually there are about 20 boys ages 4-7 wielding small hockey sticks in the rink (and the rink is probably 15 by 30 feet). Obviously, it's a very hectic place and is absolutely irresistible to Mark. He gets the smallest stick and walks around grinning widely and miraculously avoiding all the sticks and pucks. And obviously, it's impossible to hoax him out of this rink. The only way to get him to get out is to ... well... get in there, grab Mark, and drag him out. I try to stay away from the rink for now.

After exhausting our options upstairs, we move downstairs to play with Thomas the Train sets at a giant train table. Occassionally Mark also goes to the pirate ship. And he always makes his way to the pretend kitchen and the grocery store. He used to cook kasha, but now expanded his repertoir and offers soups, muffins, torts, pasta, egg, hot dog, pancake, or kasha.

Dad's 65th Birthday

We're back from NY. It's been a very short trip this time, just there and back. We left on a Thursday evening, after Chris's work, planning on stopping for the night in Fredericksburg, VA. Unfortunately, we didn't get to the hotel until after 9pm totally exhausted.

But we were able to get back on the road first thing in the morning (ok, almost first thing since we had to stop at a grocery store for breakfast). Anyway, we got to NY fairly early in the afternoon after a little detour to pick up Arkadik.

Mark was so excited to see his grandparents! He loved being around them so much that when Chris and I took him to a park, he kept asking to go back home to be with Deda and Baba.

And the next day it was Dad's big birthday party. It was honestly the nicest birthday party I've been to in years. It was just the immediate family (ok, most of the family). Mom cooked lots of food, as usual. The weather was warm and sunny and we all just sat on the deck and ate and talked. Then Mark and his 4-year-old cousin Alisa went inside to play with playdough.

Unfortunately, we had to leave on Sunday early in the afternoon. We didn't want to drive 9 hours straight. That would've been too much for Mark (and for us). So we stopped half-way, in DC area.