Aurora Borealis

Today took us to the quad at Oglethorpe, in front of the library.  (I felt like an old-timer.  I found myself referring to Robinson Hall as Faith.  Well, in the old days…)  We met up with Clan McG. and had a nice time.  Even had the added benefit of running into Dr. W. , who was on her way from the library to her office.  And we visited Lyndra’s tree, which is actually looking like a small bush these days.

Foster Mulan had fun playing with Laser Girl and Danger Dude.  Agent Murphy was very cooperative and good-natured during the picnic.  (He ate cauliflower-sweet potatoes.)  And the grown-ups had time to catch up some.

Summer camps were in full swing on campus.  I couldn’t help but think of H.  He’s probably thrilled he’s escaped to the Pacific Northwest with Walgreens!

We got home, put the Agent down for a nap, all got some water, and then I took a little nap, too.  Mr. Tldz had to do a little more (only a little more because he spent several hours overnight attending to pager issues) for work before calling it a day.  We are very much looking forward to his vacation next week!  (The pager gets killed.)

That was yesterday’s agenda.  We got together with N. and her family at the playground area at PDK airport.  I’d heard they’d put in a playground/picnic area, but hadn’t been to it.  Good to check it out.  It’s nice - a good option to have.

I think Foster Mulan enjoyed the opportunity to run around with A. and I.  She even went down the slide, she says.  I was feeding the Agent, so I didn’t see that; but I think we had confirmation of that from one of the other parental figures.  That’s progress - she used to be scared of the slide.  She’d climb up the stairs, then come back down the stairs.

Agent Murphy got to try some watermelon run through the food processor, which renders it not much more than pink water; so I thickened it up with some rice cereal.  Then at home yesterday and today, we’ve been giving him small chunks of watermelon to play with in his “big boy seat.”  With the first batch yesterday, he was mesmerized into silence. (!)  (Of late, he’s been exploring the wonders of his voice - at full volume - at the table.  Elsewhere, too, but it’s particularly ear-splitting when we’re all sitting at the table.)  But he viewed it really as a plaything.  If we’d put a chunk into his mouth, he’d look - I’m not sure, maybe perplexed, or worried, or put out - and then move it around his mouth for a while before letting it fall out.

Mr. Tldz made shortcakes today for the first time.  Excellent!  We had some blueberries and whipped cream with them after lunch.  And then I got a bit of a nap while Agent Murphy took his afternoon nap.  A good day.

We spent about 2 hours in the blueberry field this morning at Adams Farms and picked 2 gallons of berries!  We are now in the process of freezing them.  All three of us were a bit more efficient at picking this year than last, and Foster Mulan was once again a big help in getting to the low-hanging berries and collecting the ones that fell to the ground.  After our hard work, we rewarded ourselves with lunch at the cute little local restaurant we tried out that way last year that has wonderful desserts.  Following the drive home and getting things somewhat organized here, that certain tiredness from working outside for a while really hit me.  Bed will feel good tonight!

Today was Agent Murphy’s first lengthy stay with a babysitter.  Miss L., who is new to babysitting, had a trial run a couple of weeks ago for a few hours while we ran errands and grabbed a bite to eat nearby.  Things seemed to go off without a hitch today, so that’s good.  The Agent was napping when we got home, but he sure was glad to see us when he woke up - as we were him.

Foster Mulan arrived last week for an almost-6-week visit.  On the plane she sat next to another little girl who was also coming to visit her dad. ‘Tis the season, I guess.

Of note so far:

• She and The Dog are once again fast friends.
• Agent Murphy is mesmerized by her.
• She really tries to be a good big sister, giving Agent Murphy hugs and kisses, putting his bib back on him when he yanks it off, trying to comfort him when he cries…  Her little brother B. back home is very lucky.
• It’s obvious she still doesn’t get nearly enough of the right sort of attention at home.  (Shouldn’t a six-year-old be able to tie her shoes?  Or at least reliably tie the starting knot?)

The poor girl clearly needs glasses.  She had eye surgery back in August and was supposed to have a follow-up a couple of months later.  For some reason, that was canceled.  Now it’s been scheduled for the day she gets back home - and probably only because Mr. Tldz keeps asking Foster Mulan’s mother about the follow-up.  FM has a really hard time with normal sized print.  She eventually told us that at school they had to write her tests bigger so she could take them.  School must have been a big struggle for her all year.  Her need for glasses became obvious to us in the first day or two that she was here - just in the course of the normal interaction of reading stories, etc.  So how could her mother let it go on like this?!?

It is really frustrating having FM here.  On the one hand, she is a really good, sweet kid.  But she is normally encouraged in some bad habits, or at least not encouraged in good ones.  So we do what we can to instill some better habits and a sense of what family life should be like, but we’re left to wonder what the point of it all is if we have influence over her only 6 weeks or so out of the year.  It is so obvious she would be so much better off if she were just with us, but there’s no realistic chance of that happening.  And that, I guess, is the crux of the frustration.  There’s a system at work that treats Mr. Tldz like the “bad” or “at fault” party simply because he’s a man, while Foster Mulan’s mother can do (or not do, as the case may be) whatever she wants with no consequences.  And I guess I struggle with FM’s visits because they, by default, have her mother more involved in our life than she is the rest of the time (which is still too much).  I have nothing good to say about the woman.