tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69258556359303556742011-10-28T23:19:28.937-07:00Bedlam and chaos in the Butterfield house, which has been certified as experiment in rapid entropy.Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.comBlogger421100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-41811115341856837772011-06-28T10:30:00.000-07:002011-06-28T11:25:16.700-07:00

Here is it, the end of June in 2011, and I haven't written for a year. I think facebook is to blame - I started this as a way to stay connected with family far away, but I've been remiss...Not that much has happened in a year. It's been quiet around here... peaceful... changeless... NOT!Last fall (November 1, 2010, to be precise) Satchel went to New Zealand with his backpack, a few dollars, and a

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-55518137160681086622010-08-08T18:15:00.000-07:002010-08-29T21:33:29.434-07:00

This summer has been a little short on camping, because of various things (trips to Colorado for all the boys, a wedding, a very sick (now better) dog, having to pay for college) but we did manage to go up to Kyburz for a few days and stay in the cabin and play in the Silver Fork of the American one day, and up at Lake Tahoe another day. (Then later we squeezed in a few days at Standish Hickey.)

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-68076900621602499152009-11-03T13:21:00.000-08:002009-12-11T20:20:21.903-08:00

The last time I posted, it was summer. Will was preparing for college by sleeping all the time, Satchel was working hard and vague about his plans, and the younger boys were ready to head back to school - Carson to middle school for the first time, Reed as a second grader.Now it's early December, and Will is almost done with his first quarter at Evergreen (and loving it!), Satchel lives in

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-78766566346277609732009-08-22T09:51:00.000-07:002009-09-03T09:33:20.589-07:00

One of my favorite places to camp is in Yosemite, not down in the valley but up on the Tioga road. We frequent a campground there that's 'unimproved' which means you have to bring or sterilize your own water, and the road is rough, but that just makes it better in my opinion. Ponderosa pines, wildflowers, granite boulders, a clear mountain stream - it's kid (and me) heaven. Industrial strength

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-32178453804092410652009-08-07T08:01:00.000-07:002009-08-07T09:21:37.168-07:00

On Friday morning we packed up the tent and headed off - hitting the road by 7 a.m. - to Arches National Park, where we planned to have lunch and spend a few hours (not nearly what Arches merits, but better than skipping it). Another beautiful drive with a sleepy kid, and we were soon in the crazy gorgeous canyonlands region. When we got to Moab, it was blistering hot, but we had our water

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-9576675715372932662009-07-31T09:52:00.000-07:002009-08-03T09:19:53.255-07:00

On Wednesday morning we got up fairly early and continued our trek eastward. We had the hang of the long drives, and the miles just flowed by as we listened to audiobooks and admired the desert. We took a very short break at 4 Corners so that Carson could stand it four states at once (I didn't tell him that a new survey places it a little ways away from the marker), but it was hot, touristy and

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-26121049872026988672009-07-29T22:14:00.000-07:002009-07-29T22:51:53.399-07:00

On Tuesday, after a yummy breakfast of french toast in the garden, we headed up to the Grand Canyon. I was thinking, "If we're this close, we really ought to see it," but I wasn't sure how much Carson would get out of it. Well, he was blown away, loved it, took a ton of photos, and it was totally worth the day. He also got to see what a really popular park is like in the middle of tourist season.

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-54692250152805495222009-07-28T08:01:00.000-07:002009-07-28T09:28:36.238-07:00

On the second morning of our trip, it was up and on the road early before the desert got too horrible. It was a gorgeous drive through the early morning. We had flipped a coin on which direction to go out of the park - we could go north, east, and south to Kingman, or south, east & north to Kingman. We opted for the former, which worked beautifully until we got to the intersection where we were

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-568355182704129822009-07-26T21:51:00.000-07:002009-07-26T23:01:12.041-07:00

Because Carson is 10, and because Will & Satchel got to go to Holland when they were 10, I promised him we'd do something special this summer. Not being able to afford India, I suggested we set out and see Mesa Verde & points in between in the Southwest. So on last Saturday afternoon, we loaded up into the car and headed off. We spent the night at good friends' in Merced, to give us a head start.

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-11189780278087562332009-07-03T08:24:00.000-07:002009-07-17T14:17:29.602-07:00

I can't decide whether summer is flying past us on wings of a dove, or whether school is approaching like a freight train (with puberty on board). It's only three weeks into summer, but it's already feeling too short. And we've packed in a lot in these weeks already...Satchel is due back tonight from his trip to Europe - he went to London, Paris, Brussels, and Holland - finishing up his trip with

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-50328992727979457322009-05-09T13:01:00.000-07:002009-05-30T11:11:13.150-07:00

I thought about making this into several posts, and back-dating them, but instead I'm just going to throw the calendar to the wolves and post randomly. Good luck, historians of the far future! (Hah!!)In no particular order:-- We have a new dog! It's now a two-dog house, which I thought might be completely nuts (but it didn't stop me) but is actually working out beautifully. Our new addition is

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-11308318065403968952009-02-20T20:10:00.000-08:002009-02-20T20:39:15.997-08:00

It was that time again, time for the requisite journey to the snow - so on Monday night Carson and Reed and I packed up the car and headed up to the mountains. It was raining here, so I knew it would be snowing there, but my little car has 4-wheel drive and we were only going to Kyburz (not so high up) so we went for it. The journey was uneventful, and we arrived to a warm cabin a few hours after

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-15610283121284386562008-12-22T21:36:00.001-08:002008-12-30T16:24:28.490-08:00

So I guess this year clinches it: I'm not really capable of writing a holiday letter, at least not BEFORE the holidays! But I was thinking of you all - and trying to get to it!Dec 21:Life continues at its mad pace here in the Butterworld - the pace madder than usual (is that even possible?) in December. But now we've survived the birthdays (Will & Satchel are 18, Reed is 7) and vacation is here,

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-87017592811644840312008-11-22T22:25:00.000-08:002008-11-22T23:15:31.086-08:00

First, a story from the teen front: Satchel and Will were talking late the other night - and Satchel was telling Will about how he and a co-worker were trying to bean each other with something (socks?) in the warehouse - the co-worker couldn't believe that he could never, but never, ambush Satchel. Satch laughed at him and said, "You didn't grow up with brothers, did you?" Will cracked up on

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-86615810752220918352008-10-15T12:18:00.001-07:002008-10-15T12:21:33.769-07:00

I didn't take this photo, but I sure do love it. I think some of the practicing that they were doing for their dance in the school pep rally seeped through into the game...

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-87590585238390738442008-09-16T14:39:00.000-07:002008-10-01T21:08:55.383-07:00

It seems so long ago already, but a couple of weeks ago my mom asked me, "Would you like to take the kids to see the Indian Warriors on the beach?" Being, as usual, highly attuned to the cultural landscape & happenings in the Bay Area, I answered, "WHAT? Indians? Huh?"It turned out to be a wonderful art installation at Ocean Beach in San Francisco. So we planned to take Carson & Reed on a Sunday

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-11986760960099700542008-09-16T14:36:00.000-07:002008-09-16T14:39:03.042-07:00

At Carson's 10th birthday. With brothers.

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-66501888464589776602008-09-10T22:37:00.000-07:002008-09-10T22:41:46.664-07:00

No, really, I'm not a soccer mom! I don't drive a mini-van, I work, and I coach... um... soccer. But only for the little guys.But today Reed had soccer from 3:30 to 5, Carson had soccer from 5 - 6:30, and Will had a game at 4:30. Somehow I managed to fit in Reed's practice and part of Will's game. So I guess I have to face facts... for at least a few months each fall, I'm a soccer mom...

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-20797303134794688462008-09-08T10:32:00.001-07:002008-09-08T10:42:36.251-07:00

It was quite the weekend, as usual. (But when isn't it around here?)Carson turned 10 on Friday, and planned for himself a "medieval sleepover" party with 4 friends. They had a blast - I think their favorite part was dinner, followed closely by the treasure hunt. But they loved the pie fight too, and swimming, and making shields, and dressing up, and playing, and just hanging out. Carson always

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-90718344539786256062008-08-16T15:49:00.000-07:002008-08-16T21:22:19.328-07:00

Two camping posts in a row - it doesn't get better than that, in my book!This time, we headed up the coast. My mom in Emma's car with Emma and Julia, and I with Carson, Reed, and Carson's friend Tony. We headed west from Fairfax, and then up Highway One. We were concerned about fog (a California coastal hazard in summer), but went for it anyhow. As soon as we hit the coast, we hit the fog too. It

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-60435523959638251512008-07-27T17:35:00.000-07:002008-08-01T08:28:43.081-07:00

A favorite place, some favorite people, no phones or computers - how could we go wrong? We had a wonderful 5 days at Standish-Hickey, swimming, sunning, and relaxing. Britton, River and Mage, Jolie and Nio, Emma and Julia, and Carson's friend Kevin all joined us. We had a wonderful time, and it was especially wonderful to have such good friends there. It was a little more adventurous than usual

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-78942231925196447392008-07-09T19:54:00.000-07:002008-07-09T21:44:55.479-07:00

This last Friday was the 4th of July, (for those of you who haven't looked at a calendar lately, or might not have noticed due to being in, say, India). We had oodles of fun over the weekend, starting with the annual picnic out at Skywalker Ranch. It's huge fun, totally old-fashioned and wonderful. I usually describe it as the small town 4th of July picnic that we all wish had really existed.

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-31432816849323751062008-06-21T22:26:00.001-07:002008-06-21T22:26:50.613-07:00

Yesterday was another annual ritual - picking cherries from Bev's remarkably prolific little tree. It was a scorching hot day, but nice in the shade of her yard. We picked cherries, ate, cooled our feet (and the dog) in her metal tub (a repurposed cattle trough that she keeps cool water in for humans - not to drink!), picked more cherries. Now today I need to pull out the industrial pitter and

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-39731090250137701062008-06-14T07:15:00.000-07:002008-06-14T23:28:04.443-07:00

Today was one of my favorite "gosh I love my hometown" events of the year: the Fairfax Festival & Parade. If you live in Fairfax and are involved in the local community in any way, chances are you'll get invited - perhaps by more than one group - to be in the parade, and it's worth it. In the 10 years since we bought our house and got involved at the grade school, I haven't actually seen the

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-60099617218382599062008-05-28T09:22:00.000-07:002008-05-28T09:32:27.651-07:00

Two photos here that should speak for themselves...

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-61275398624287385522008-05-14T18:32:00.000-07:002008-05-15T08:55:29.711-07:00

On Sunday Will and I headed out to catch the plane and go to Santa Fe - Will to visit my college, and I (ostensibly) to accompany him, but really to see my old home town and visit friends that I had neglected for far too long. It turned out to be a fantastic trip - only two days, but a true vacation.We started out, when we arrived, at a pasta dinner that Melissa and Ron had thrown together - very

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-71170382863640742562008-05-05T19:09:00.000-07:002008-05-05T21:50:15.696-07:00

Two snapshots from my day, sans photos. You'll see why:1) Late afternoon. Carson & Satchel are reading books on the couch. Will is working on something for school. Reed is eating a snack, (and talking, of course) and I've got my music playing while I think about dinner. The dog is just sleeping. The light is soft, coming in off the back lawn, and the pines are waving in the breeze.2) At dinner,

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-13241256177171102322008-05-04T21:00:00.001-07:002008-05-04T21:08:44.233-07:00

Photos by WynnSo Will has been starting to look at colleges... but I'm not sure he's really big enough yet.Maybe he needs to grow a little more before he heads off into the big world!

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-7295521314885207902008-04-22T09:36:00.000-07:002008-04-22T10:15:10.248-07:00

On Saturday I got up early and headed down to Monterey, to meet up with Satchel (and Conner, Dan, Hannah, Ari & Matthieu) at the Sea Otter Classic - one of the largest bike racing events in the world. It was nice weather in Fairfax, so even though I knew better, I didn't pack my wool hat, gloves, long underwear, and fleece pullover. I knew better, because I have frozen my behind off in Monterey

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-69220821302737836872008-04-10T19:46:00.000-07:002008-04-15T22:59:12.489-07:00

It's been a rare and rather wonderful week - I've taken three days and done stuff that I really wanted to do, and wasn't just for my kids (though one was with a kid).On Sunday, I took the ferry into the city, wandered around the embarcadero for a while, then went to an alumni seminar at a restaurant right on the waterfront. The book we had read was Henry V, which I've always loved - I'm very fond

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-73788587195812313352008-03-26T20:00:00.000-07:002008-03-26T21:52:59.944-07:00

Well, okay, the title of today's blog is slightly sarcastic...There's been a big dog-sized hole in the house this last month, and remembering that before Cinder got sick we had been thinking it was time for a second dog - one that liked the little guys too - we started to talk about what kind of dog we'd like. Geoff and C & R really wanted a lab, but I really loved having a border collie. We said

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-15905202512365053642008-03-14T09:46:00.000-07:002008-03-14T10:01:43.681-07:00

Just a short post here... it was Crazy Hair Day at school, which meant it was Crazy Hair Morning at home. (Which is a huge improvement over Crazy Teens Fighting over the Bathroom Morning, of which we've had a few lately.)Carson's hair was fairly easy, and we got the spikes to stand up well. (My secret? A lovely little product called Hair Glue!)But then we started on Reed's hair - that was

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-79596686057932089172008-03-08T19:38:00.000-08:002008-03-10T22:44:45.856-07:00

I've often said that being a parent with kids who play sports is a long exercise in being completely clueless - and often, it seems, deliberately kept in the dark. I can't even say how many times I've heard things like, "oh, Mom, we just found out there's a tournament tomorrow after school... in Healdsburg!" Or, "Mom, I need track spikes/cleats/underarmor/fill_in_name_of_sporting_equipment by

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-47697736158564578752008-03-02T12:45:00.000-08:002008-03-02T13:09:26.431-08:00

CalTrans in action. They're doing major construction on the freeway just outside my mom's house, and the tunnel that goes the freeway from her street is closed for 6 months. So Caltrans put up these very helpful signs for the 9 houses on her street (there's one more sign that's not in the picture.) Zoom in and look at the arrows, and you'll see why these make my day every time I'm there.Reed has

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-81205466253449358712008-02-25T16:39:00.000-08:002008-02-25T17:23:44.805-08:00

We said goodbye to Cinder today - after 12 1/2 years with us. It's going to be very strange without her around. For those who wonder, she was 13, and had gotten Lymedisease. By the time we noticed, it was impacting her kidneys, and was no longer curable. She did her best to hang on, but her time was up.She was an amazing dog - too smart to train, you just had to ask her to do what you wanted and

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-10368354826899183082008-02-22T18:26:00.000-08:002008-02-22T20:34:36.688-08:00

Last year's ski trip.A year ago, I took Satchel, Carson & Reed skiing for two days during Ski Week (officially "President's week" but who does the school district really think they're fooling?). And it snowed, and snowed, and snowed on us. But we showed our true colors, and skied anyhow - we also learned on that trip that it really IS cool to have 4WD, even if it's a cute little Rav4 "chick car"

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-61579019960523770352008-01-28T22:16:00.000-08:002008-01-30T10:10:39.563-08:00

I title my post today "herding cats" because that's the best description I have for life with these 4 boys. Every time it seems like things are under control, everyone is happy & taking care of business, they all break free, meowing madly, into out-of-control chaos. It turns out that homework isn't getting done (or, more importantly, turned in), classes aren't good, friends are not nice,

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-83497915599359983052008-01-23T21:26:00.000-08:002008-01-23T21:30:19.048-08:00

It must be hell, having two older brothers...Carson decided to take things into his own hand, and invented himself some Tickle Armor...Sadly, the results were mixed - but it did make Satchel laugh so hard that he couldn't really tickle Carson effectively, so maybe it did work after all!

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-50331989717119207292008-01-17T22:20:00.001-08:002008-01-21T11:16:32.106-08:00

Today, as I was sitting on the hard plastic bleachers (I forgot my padded seat), watching the 3rd hour of a wrestling meet, and STILL waiting for Will to be up for one of his bouts, I decided I needed a motto...I want to make a sweatshirt that says, in Latin, something like "Bleacher Endurance Team" or "Clueless but Still Rooting for My Team" or "Numb Butt Club" or "What Just Happened? Did We

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-76146548944090718312008-01-01T21:21:00.000-08:002008-01-02T08:19:53.828-08:00

I think it's just about the best thing to do around New Years, going to the beach at Limantour and letting that clear, clean sea air blow away all the cares of the past year. Today it was just a small bunch of us - Carson, Reed, Geoff & I. (I realized too late that instead of asking sleepy teens if they wanted to GO, I should have asked if they wanted to DRIVE THERE!) Reed didn't want to go, and

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-87795759039693609902007-12-15T08:41:00.001-08:002007-12-19T10:15:09.726-08:00

I find myself in this position every year, it seems... December comes, bringing with it in a hurry Sinterklaas, my mom's birthday, Reed's birthday, and Will & Satchel's birthdays. After a feverish week of celebration, baking, shopping, organizing, cleaning, and planning, all the birthdays are successfully navigated and... WHEW! All done! A chance to relax and start to think about Xmas - oh, wait

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925855635930355674.post-85326477280777071562007-11-09T19:49:00.000-08:002007-11-09T19:50:07.506-08:00

Feeling somewhat behind the times here, and without any exotic locations, I've still decided that a blog would be a good way to keep folks who ARE in exotic locations up to date. Not that they deserve it! ;-)So on a dark Friday night, with the teenagers "out", and the younger two having their bath and finishing the last of their Halloween candy, I've got the template looking like it ought to and

Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18156004741221780703noreply@blogger.com1