The Fable Game

Enzo Mari - The Fable Game

It’s not a book to read or to leaf through but to make, unmake and build up: a never ending adventure, played and invented anew each time by the endless possibilities at hand. The animal and vegetable pieces fit together in Enzo Mari’s inimitably elegant style to make a framework that can stimulate the imagination of old and young. The opportunities are countless and the limits unlimited in an enchanted world that can be brought to life and inhabited alone, with friends or the whole family. Show Mom and Dad what fun it is to let your imagination run wild!

This is a reprint of the game he made during the 1960s.

You can find this fantastic piece several places, here are two:
Kid O
Modern Child

I found this game at Anthropology On Sale (P.S. They have the best sales ever!...in the home department)! There was only one left and it was tucked back behind other miscellaneous books. e loves playing with it. When beginning a story it goes something like this, "Okay, one day....". The "okay" part is very pronounced and "one day" puts you on the edge of your seat.

This is one piece I get out with him from time to time and manage its playtime. This is definitely one piece I want him to pass down generation to generation. It's lovely.

"One day"

e: "Mommy do I have a baby brother?"
me: "No honey you don't."
e: "Why?"
me: |pause| "Maybe one day e."
e: "I want a baby brother one day Mommy, okay?"
me: "Okay, e."

I love you my boy.
Maybe one day.

Cuckoo

I remember as a little girl going over to my Grandma and Grandpa's house to spend the night and hearing the cuckoo clock cuckoo every half past and hour. I would get lucky if it was later in the day to catch the cuckoo flying out of his nest. Where some would find this hourly bird utterly annoying, I looked forward to it.

Last year I went to an estate sale with my dear friend Andrea. In this house we counted 4 cuckoo clocks. They were all different sizes and some would even sing a tune accompanied by a wooden band. Each purchase came with a card of authenticity. Both Andrea and I walked away with two German beauties. Our clock choices were small in size and simply cuckooed.



I chose the one with a squirrel on top and when e got a glimpse of it, especially after the first cuckoo, he was in love. He would run so fast to see our yellow beaked friend appear. It's since been silenced...not that either one of us found the cuckoo part annoying but rather I couldn't keep up with it's timing. I'd leave for work and the pine cone weights at the end of the chains would be on the floor and the clock stopped. Perhaps one day I'll start it up again.


When finished this clock will be set at e's time of birth.

So where did this soon-to-be orange clock come from? Thank you Grandpa. Grandpa's clock no longer works. It's been sitting in a box entirely too long and some parts have lost their way. Yes, this German antique isn't meant to be sprayed the brightest orange ever but it isn't meant to be rotting in a basement either. In helping e's Grandma move, she gave it to me. As seen in the photo, I am slowly revamping this memorable piece. I look forward to adding it to e's room. I have just the place especially when we get our rooms switched. I think it's super special that this piece will live on in my son's room.

e's looking forward to the finished piece. It's his "special surprise" and he reminds me of this daily.

The design of these clocks are stunning!

e Updates

1. No more pacifier.
2. Night two after sleep doctor and already a bit more difficult but we're pushing through.
3. Doing wonderfully on the potty, checking in with his body from time to time (not for coffee but rather if there's anymore in there).
4. Still eating wonderfully. Favorites such as Sole, Tofu and hummus. However, I was very American tonight and we splurged heading over to Blueberry Hill in the Loop. We both munched on chicken fingers, fries and cheese balls. No, I'm not depriving him of good ol America, I'm just allowing it once every...say...6months.
5. We're traveling soon to see our family out West and I'm already starting to pack our bags I'm so excited. e is looking forward to it too. You say with enthusiasm, "we're going to the beach Mommy in May"!
6. The ABC song has made its way to the top 5 of your favorite songs.

Your Welcome

Tonight is the first night after the sleep doctor workshop. I am already using my techniques and so far so good. If I write another entry tonight around 11, 1 or 3am...that won't be so good...baby steps...

So tonight we had a great night. A wonderful dinner, a walk around the neighborhood, playing outside until it was time to go to bed. We went through our normal routines and then out of your room I went. I told you I'd come back to check on you. This is a technique I've used before so when I heard the sleep doctor supporting this I knew I was on the right track. To your surprise I would come back in just as I said I would and we'd discuss this. So with the last check in I simply shared it was the "last time" and after one shout out to me there was silence.

Ok, so I've already shared enough about the sleep doctor this entry is titled "Your Welcome". Checking in with you the third time you were elated that I actually returned you gave me the biggest hug ever. I leaned down to give you a kiss and your arm wrapped around my head tightly, the one arm sling over.
In your bliss you began thanking me...

e: "thank you Mommy for coming back, thank you Mommy for playing with me outside, thank you Mommy..."/...for something, by this time I was noticing just how tired you were...your words slurring/"your welcome Mommy for making me dinner"/you've now grabbed my face so that you have my full attention yet so sleepy/"your welcome Mommy, I love you".

Your welcome e. Thank you e. I love you e.

Sleep Doctor

Elliott's school is great with hosting workshops and play dates. This evening I attended a discussion on children's sleep habits, they brought in a sleep doctor.

They ordered in pizza and as I stood in line the anxiety wore off as the number of parents increased, I knew I wasn't the lone "bad mother" who sneaks you into her bed from time to time. It's silly how alone you can feel in the world of parenting until you stand in a pizza line. We all stood there grabbing our bottled water, plate, napkin and cheese slice not quite looking each other in the eye. Then you catch a glimpse of that parent who looks like he/she has it all together and think, "you too...you have this problem too? NO"!

Scott was going to attend, I think just for my mental support cause he doesn't have the middle of the night wake-ups like I do from time to time. Logistics of not going to see e prior to entering the discussion got in his way. No kids were allowed and e wasn't about to watch him walk back out the door, so he took e home (it's a Daddy night).

I could have filled the entire workshop with questions but I sat back and listened to some stories familiar and some even (yes, perhaps even) worse. There were some parents with multiple children where they do the same rituals and one child snoozes without a peep and the other up three times a night. It was nice to hear that all these books you find don't factor in a lot of in between. The answers aren't black "cry it out" and white "be at their beckon call". Oh yeah and the best part, I'm not a bad Mommy! (kidding)

So I did find out that with two households one can have another sleep pattern than the other and this doesn't go as deep as just nightly whines. I have experienced a few times what they call "Confusional Arousal" and this can be in just my home. I was talking myself out of the possibility cause I was suspecting that if it was that deep it would happen in both households, not the case.

What is Confusional Arousal? Occurs in children 6mnths to 6yrs. within the first and sometimes middle third of the night. The child appears confused and agitated, may progress to crying, thrashing, back arching yet remains asleep. The child often doesn't recognize parents and it may be difficult to console for they'll push you away. Lasts 1-10minutes but can last up to 40minutes. It terminates abruptly with a return to deep sleep.

e has done this with me a few times. I noticed something quite different because he wasn't calling out for me but rather crying and when I made it to him he would push me away, crying acting very anxiety ridden and say he wanted me. When he'd come to this is when the "milking" began. He'd wake, know he was safe with me and then ask for this, that and one hundred more things. I thought for sure it was just bad behavior. Nancy Birkenmeier, the sleep doctor assures me it's something real and it's simply him waking to seek comfort and asking for everything he is comforted by.

She offered some techniques and of course to make an appointment if I find myself at a loss. One pattern I'll be working even harder on is tucking him in and then leaving. I have always rocked e to sleep. I have always come to his call. A good way to help one which in turn will help the other is saying good night while he's awake instead of waiting until he's out. I do this from time to time. e doesn't get worked up anymore when I leave him to fall asleep on his own so you might be asking, then why don't you do it every night? Well, pretty certain it's cause I'm used to it too. I enjoy that time, I enjoying snuggling and looking at his sweet slumbering face.

I will do better to help with managing his bedtime routines and adding to his required sleep number. We're not doing too bad but I could do better and I promise to work harder on this my boy. What I did learn is that I don't have to go to extremes. We can both be eased into proper habits. It's closer than I think to perfection...kidding again...all kinds of factors will sneak up on us from time to time. Vacation, illness, a special night out and simply you getting older and testing the waters can give us yet another parental hill to climb.

If I were to describe this hill it would be lush with the most beautiful flowers and I'd be on top of it yelling at the next challenge, "bring it on", no not "king of the mountain" that's your line e...mine is welcoming every challenge to mold you into the bestest boy ever! With help of course!

Art Director

The areas of open space are for label design.

On days like today I truly feel like an Art Director.

Anymore budgets are cut into tiny little pieces and I'm lucky if I get a pinch for stock photography. When a client allocates an amount for true studio shots, I feel like a little kid invited to Disney Land. Today I was that kid and it felt great working as part of a team to produce some fantastic new product shots.

I am working for a great client who has a new product line coming out. I'll share more later, for now I show stunning photography. A local photographer Steve Adams and his team shot the product, the client and a food stylist worked with the recipes and I offered help with concept and layout, dancing between food prep and photography. I truly work best in a team atmosphere. I feed off of others talents and when surrounded by respect my creativity shines.

The success of a good shoot isn't just the end product but the relationships forming in between. The Photographer, Food Stylist, Art Director and Client walked away today proud...not proud in an ego way but proud in humble talent.