I love America for having such a colorful holiday festivities every occasion. It must have a deeper meaning than wearing green and leprechauns, but to this non-Irish Japanese and American family, it's all about having fun. I made sure that everyone dressed in green this morning. Alyson was very excited and she decked herself in all green, even her socks. Sean had a gray shirt with green writing on it so it was all good. Saya wore her green polka dot tutu and dressed the rest in pink. Noah wore his green dino shirt. I have a slow morning with Saya on Mondays, so I prepped for dinner in the morning. Of course, I have the volunteer duty at Noah's school in the afternoon, so I made sure I have enough time to simmer the corned beef.
Noah's teacher, Ms. Hubert, gives me all kinds of classroom materials to prepare for her class. I have about an hour and fifteen minutes to finish all of them and it usually becomes a big rush towards the end. I discovered that if I leave late, the parking lot where I park my car gets filled with parents lining up to pick up their kids. I got stuck in the pick-up rush a couple weeks ago and I couldn't get out! So, I have to make sure I finish everything on time so that I can actually leave school and get Noah off his school bus. Somehow my brain works better if there is a deadline and I get pretty creative in order to be more efficient. Of course, I don't want to do a mediocre job, so I don't skimp on quality. I do the best job I can in a most efficient way possible. It's a challenge a little different from everyday home situations, so I enjoy it very much. I get a good brain power boost from it.
Back to St. Patrick's Day... Sean wanted to make a Leprechaun trap after school. I had him finish his math homework first and helped him make a Leprechaun trap. Ever since he made one with Daddy two years ago, it's something he looks forward to doing. I gave him a plain paper bag, green construction paper, a pair of scissors and a glue stick. He started by cutting out a door and asked me how we can trap him inside once he steps inside. I thought about it for a few seconds and asked him to get two magnets from his toy box upstairs. Then I had him cut a strip of paper wide enough to go through the door. We laid the paper down and taped it inside the door. We made it so that once a weight is on the paper, the door flings up. We taped the magnets on inside of the door and the top of the wall where the door closes. Once the door comes up, the magnets shuts the door tightly. Brilliant!! I was proud of myself and Sean was pretty impressed with me. Mom's not so bad!
The girls also wanted to make one, so I helped them make their own. They used glitter glue sticks to make theirs look pretty. Now their traps are sitting under their chairs in dining room. I ran to Target after dinner and bought some small toys to put inside their bags. They will be stoked when they see that a Leprechaun came by and left a toy for them. Do they get presents for Easter, too? I don't think I will but I know many children in America do. My house is starting to look like the house in "Too Many Toys" by David Shannon.
We had a nice dinner with Nana in the evening and children were too excited about this whole ordeal. They were being noisy and a bit obnoxious during dinner. I made corned beef, brussels sprouts, gluten free Irish soda bread and green salad. They were ok. Oh and I baked gluten free cupcakes for the kids to eat in the afternoon. They put vanilla icing and green sprinkles on top! We had a quite an exciting day and I am exhausted again from running around too much. See you again next year, Shamrock and Leprechaun!
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