Summer is here

Its true we were hibernating in the winter (which was until just a month ago) and now have suddenly turned extremely active. Our day begins and end with checking weather.com and that should say enough about the importance of weather. Weather is such a centric thing out here in US. Major conversations center around it ("gorgeous out there") , simple courtesy exchanges involve it ("Howz the weather?"), mood swings are associated with it ("It is depressing"), picnics planned, birthdays dropped, break-ups happen, you name it, weather is everywhere. 

Spring is the best time in Texas( alas best times don't last, soon it will be too hot) and we have been loitering in the parks most of the waking moments. The kids have been biking and using the play areas. They have been playing soccer in the now lush green fields. They have been chasing the birds which are omnipresent. They have been having intellectual conversation about the roots, stems, leaves and fruits of plants and very excited about having planted Lima beans in school in their individually marked pots. Water is now an integral part of their play and there are swimming pool promises in the air mingling with the sweet scent of oak buds.They have been wearing shorts and running barefoot. Oh, for all the photo opportunities I have missed. I can see all the 'kodak moments' in my mind right now as I type but cannot share as I never clicked them. I was too busy just being with them and enjoying this bliss. Sometimes camera free is carefree. Still let me list two of them.

1. Manav and Arnav sitting on the green grass with flushed cheeks (they have been running and it is warm) and inspecting the grass and their roots and the yellow/black ladybug scampering in it.

2. Manav and Arnav on the lakeside, throwing rock bits in the water and watching the 'circles grow'. A neat backdrop of the fountain and ducks swimming.

Manav sings and sums it up

"Summer is here, Summer is here, Summer is here at last"

To restrain them at home at this time of the year is a crime.

Today I went to the doctors office (nothing serious) and told the boys the same when I picked them up from school. Manav said

"What did you get Mommy"

"Nothing"

"Why do only kids get toys to take home from the doctor's office?"

"Because adults don't like toys" I couldn't think of an appropriate answer and the right answer couldn't be shared.

"You don't like toys? " the disbelief showed in his eyes

On way back the conversation again got back to which planet we should live in. Manav said

"I am tired of living on Earth, I want to live in Neptune as it is nice and windy there"

"I want to live in Earth" replied Arnav prudently

"I don't want to live in any planet" said Manav

"Then where do you want to live?"

"In a rocket ship"

"But a rocket ship doesn't have a play area, no toys, why would you live there?"

"There I can wear white clothes just like the astronauts, that is why" . Fair reason

I exclaimed minutes later "Boys, today is Friday and why is Friday so special?"

"Because it is treasure day" said Arnav. Ms Foley lets the kids take a little toy from a treasure chest every friday and Arnav also gets to pick.

"Because it is somebody's turn on Friday" said Manav. Every week day they( Manav, Arnav and Caunteya) take turns to decide which way to turn for school (they can either go straight or left) and that makes them very happy.

Yesterday they got hold of the plastic shovels and rakes and 'cleaned' the living room and kitchen. They raked the dirt ( bits of paper, cheerios, cloth etc), put them in the shovel, dumped the shovel contents in the dump truck and emptied the truck in the trash can. Actually, I had been butter fingers and spilled quite a few cheerios on the kitchen floor and they did a good job of cleaning it up. Today they continued but asked for a good dirty area and we decided it would be under the sofa. So we moved it and they got their prize catches - an unreturned library book ( not sure how much fine we have incurred), a miniature lego block, special rocks from the playground (turtle eggs ahem !!), a teeny tiny blue underwear and lots of socks and cheerios. 

There has been interesting bits and pieces of conversations but I forget. Lots of things happening. Like Manav telling me today while biking

"You should keep an eye on Arnav. There is a pipe ahead (on the sidewalk)"

"Oh yes, thank you Manav" I made a great deal of it

"Thank God I saw it. What could have happened Mommy." Manav exclaimed.

And the other day he was playing with his toy laptop. He had to fill in the numbers in a sequence, like what comes after 3 and before 5. He has played this many times and always scored a 100 and that used  to amuse him a lot. But now he wanted other ways of getting his bit out of the laptop. He purposefully answered the questions wrong and giggled profusely when the laptop would say "Uh-oh that's not right. The answer is 4. Try again". After finishing all questions he turned to me triumphantly and said
"Look Mommy I scored 0" and proceeded to score yet another 0.

What matters to him, I realized, is not the score or the right answers ( those he has conquered), it is the various responses the laptop comes up with and his control over the score. First step in 'if-then-else' loops? I am ashamed I still think code.