My pumpkin’s in the patch

It’s big and orange and round

I hope it’s not too heavy

I drop it to the ground

SPLAT!!!!

the ferryboat is coming!!!!  waves crashing, fog horn sounding, seagulls calling, cousins laughing, fireworks booming, shells clanking, memories forming…

We recently adopted three chicks and are enjoying imitating their sweet mannerisms such as pecking, peeping, waddling, and flying to the song “Run, Run!” by Octavio Pinto.  There are so many wonderful movement activities to do with children in Spring.  I love using scarves to explore a seed’s journey from the dark cold earth into a beautiful flower, or a caterpillar spinning a cacoon and transforming into a colorful butterfly.   Classical music is a wonderful resource to accompany movement.  I enjoy bringing out Antonio Vivaldi’s Spring concerto from The Four Seasons and act out the many forms of the season with my children.  On the main chorus of the song we imagine we are on a walk in the woods enjoying all the signs of spring.  As the verses come we fly like birds, move like a stream, blow like a storm, shine like the sun, and grow like a flower.  Sometimes I have the children draw out the parts of the song according to what they imagine to be happening.  Happy Spring!

The beautiful snowy days we had last week inspired all sorts of wintry songs in our home.  Our favorite lately is a Japanese school song called “Kon Kon”.  In music class we bring out the big scarf and hold the ends.  I put white feathers inside and we bounce them up and down and watch them fall.

Snow is falling kon, kon,

Snow is falling kon, kon,

Falling, falling, kon, kon, kon.

Yuki ya, kon, kon,

Yuki ya, kon, kon,

Futewa, futewa, kon, kon,  kon.

My husband and I recently played a few songs at an evening event at Mina’s Beana’s in Siler City. It was well past Rowan’s bedtime and he was wanting to be close to his mama. Teary eyed, I took him in my arms and sat him in between me and my guitar. He immediately calmed down and layed his head on my chest. He stayed that way the entire time we played. It reminded me of the days when I was pregnant and playing shows with a four piece band. I remember thinking about how amazing it was that my baby was experiencing the songs while in utero. I imagine that feeling the vibration of my guitar and my voice brought him great comfort that night. There on my lap with guitar and all, he and I were perfectly content.

My Pumpkin’s in the Patch

It’s big and orange and round

I hope it’s not to heavy

I drop it to the ground

SPLAT!

This is a song sung in a minor key that is so much fun to act out. We look around for the perfect pumpkin and then pretend to struggle as we lift it up. It’s fun to drop our imaginary pumpkin and make a big splat sound. It could also just be spoken like a poem.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BLAST OFF!

Up like a rocket

Down like the rain

Chugging along like a choo choo train

Twirling and whirling like a spinning top

Now fall to the floor with a gentle PLOP!

what better way to celebrate fall than dancing with friends to live music.  it is a blessing to be in an area where music is cherished and supported.

these past weeks i’ve enjoyed listening to rowan hum his own little tunes around the house as he plays with his blocks or stirs up the veggies in his pot.  we’ve been admiring the moon and stars in the night sky and singing the classic “twinkle twinkle” at bedtime.  mark and i melted as we listened to him sing “tinkle, tinkle, litla sta” as he sat at his table making shapes with his playdough last night before bed.

i did not realize how much i missed the quiet mornings and starry night skies until we spent our first days in our new home in chatham. i feel inspired to create, to write music, to get my hands dirty. my little guy dances, hops, runs, and twirls through the space with pure delight. we haven’t turned the television on since we left our little home in carrboro and have had no desire to even open the tv cabinet doors. instead we read, write, sing, and watch the bugs and bunny rabbits outside. it is our little paradise. i feel truly at home.