Kids

Malakai Turns Four

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As Malakai gets older, more boundaries are set on how motherly I can be. From both of us. His constant reminders that he is not a baby while I’m trying to get him to sleep in his bed. The need to nurture and the reality that he can’t get everything he wants the moment he asks for it. In a way, things were easier when he was a baby. A time when he used to crawl around, take naps, and sleep wherever we put him. It’s silly, but our relationship is a catch-22, Malakai and I both want him to grow up and not be babied, while both of us are stuck from breaking away from the babying habits. 

This year, we had a SpongeBob birthday. Krabby Patti wall streamer, featuring little paper and plastic jellyfish. The temporality of it all irks me. We would all have SpongeBob Birthdays after this if only the plastic decorations lasted more than one go. (Next time, I’ll get more sustainable decorations and switch my Tupperware from plastic to glass. I know these are the changes I need to make.) Water-themed tablecloth, with a net table runner. The fake tattoos and lollipops, all SpongeBob themed. It’s not that Malakai watches SpongeBob much, even though I’m sure he’s seen it before. We are just settling back from a family trip to Hawaii with my husband’s parents, so the theme of the ocean seemed to match. 

Malakai went through his presents on his own time while waking up. He was less interested in the presents and more interested in relaxing on his day home from school. Each grandparent called him throughout the morning, and as he answered, they tried to tempt him to open their present sent in the mail, some in rectangular gift bags, others in Amazon sacks. Getting his attention wasn’t easy, but one grandma managed to coax him into opening her present. Malakai received Nerf guns, Legos, a Monster Truck, and some nice clothes. He played for a while before resorting to a screen.

At least until his best friend came over. It wasn’t an immediate excitement, like I’d like to type out. It started with him hiding, and then rejecting, and then finally wanting to show off all his toys and play. She announced, “He is Mountain Love! And I am Dennis.” I’m going to refer to her as Dennis. They ran around with the bug catcher and built their terrarium. Malakai was satisfied with just bugs, but Dennis decorated it with grass, leaves, and flowers. They jumped on the trampoline and practiced slamming down on their butts, running from soccer balls that dipped to them when they jumped, and crack-the-egg to see whose jump was stronger. We sat down at the table and enjoyed SpongeBob Pineapple sodas, along with brisket and chicken. Malakai’s dad came home right in time to sing Malakai Happy Birthday, and Malakai blew out the candles- all four. 

The next morning, Malakai fought us to go to school. This is a regular morning routine where he doesn’t enjoy getting up and going to his daycare. Once he’s there, he always has fun, and when I pick him up, he is often very happy. I feel safe at the school he’s at, and I worry about the next step. I’m worried that he will fight even harder at a new school, which will make it harder for me to drop him off. When he fights me about going to school, I think of all the ways I can keep him home. What kind of work can I do while still giving him all the benefits of going to a school? In the long run, I’m going to have to let go, and again, the push and pull of not wanting him to grow up, and also being ready for him to grow up. The beautiful fours. 

Mushroom Identification in Humboldt County

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Happy Winter Solstice! 

December has come, and rain has poured, which, to us enthusiasts, means the mushrooms are popping! We have done some local exploring over the past two weeks, and I have some pictures from Redwood Fields to share with you. We did not forage these mushrooms (#takepictures, #leavefootprints) but spent time locating and identifying them with our two-year-old helper, Malakai! 

They say kids are better at finding mushrooms because their eye level is closer to the ground! All the reason to take your young ones out mushroom hunting! 

If you are interested in the basics of mushroom foraging please check out my blog post Foraging Mushrooms in Humboldt County.

When entering Redwood Fields, we turn right to the back of the parking lot where the trailhead begins. When hiking this trail, it’s easy to get lost in time and space, so note where you’re going. This trail is less maintained than others and has a roughness that I appreciate. Many fallen trees aid in the production of fungus and flora. Here is what we found. 

All of these fungi are inedible to my knowledge. 

Hypholoma fasciculare, also known as Sulphus Tuft, grows from wood, stumps, or roots and is a beautiful reminder to check tree growth for clusters. 

Above is another photo we got of the Sulphus Tuft.

Clavulinopsis Laeticolor has a solid yellow ochre color and has a wiggly alien look growing in tall, thin towers coming out of the hardwood undergrowth.

Hygrocybe Punicea are related to agaric, meaning they are gilled and part of the Hygrophoraceae family. They are locally known as scarlet waxy caps. They are beautiful in color and shape. 

Here is a scarlet waxy cap whose gills are upward; this is to release all of its spores at the end of its life cycle before decomposing back into the earth and reiterating the ground around it for the new generation of mushrooms to sprout. 

This is also a Hygrocybe Punicea!

This slimy, narly orange mushroom pouring out of the ground (to the left) is the starter of a Hygrocybe flavescens, also called a golden waxy cap. As you can see, this mushroom pushes up from the ground to disperse spores in its fruiting body; this part of the cycle is called the primordial formation. To the Right is the Hygrocybe flavescens in its midlife progression. 

We came across a little patch of Infundibulicybe gibba al, a common funnel. This mushroom may resemble a Clitopulus Prunulus (the Sweetbread mushroom), but you can tell, unlike the Sweetbread mushroom which has a thicker lip, the Common funnel reaches its name by concaving inward with a thin lip. 

I could not correctly identify this mushroom (#10). I believe it is a Lepiota. As you can see in this photo, it is an older mushroom. Not all mushrooms curl up at the end of their life cycle, or they could have died before it was ready to dispense their spores. Mushrooms are more identifiable when a picture of their gills, stems, and overside is captured.

I couldn’t even get close to identifying Mushroom 11. 

The Alice in Wonderland mushroom, scientifically known as Amanita muscaria, has a minor toxin and can be dangerous. I don’t recommend processing it without extensive knowledge. It is known that North American medicine healers would gather the urine of reindeer that took on the hallucinogenic properties of the Amanitas and drink the substance to create a spiritual journey. 

I’ve identified this mushroom as the Russula Xerampelina, or the Shellfish-scented Russula. Many types of Russulas can easily be identified by their deep rose color that varies in shades and thick white gills. 

The mushroom above (Mushroom 15) remains unidentified but feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments!

The tall, thin fungus on the left side is the Tremellodendron pallidum or Ttremellodendron Schweinitzii; its street name is the Jellied False Coral. It is not actually in the coral family but in the Jelly because of the microscopic structure of its spore-producing basidia. The centered mushroom in its late stage is not remarkable anymore, but looking at the next photo, I assume they are the same fungus species. 

This beautiful white mushroom is the Cuphophyllus virgineus, also known as the Snowy waxcap. This cap is rounded until it ages and flattens as it is exposed upward. In this photo, it resembles a blossoming flower. 

Interestingly enough, this mushroom is devastating the forest. It’s called Heterobasidion annosum and causes root rot commonly in pine trees. It is responsible for one billion US dollars annually, according to Wikipedia. This virus usually is infected with fresh cuts in the tree and spreads through the roots to neighboring trees and by insects. It causes large cavities in the roots and lower stems, and when the tree dies, it creates gaps in the canopy, affecting the area’s moisture and the sunlight, impacting the lives of the forest critters. After the tree dies, the fungus lives in the stump and spreads. ScienceDirect.com says this fungus originates from Laurasia. This fungus is hard and dark brown, which can turn black with white polypores on the underside.

Tyromyces chioneus, whose common name is White cheese polypore, is the cause of white rot in birch trees and most hardwood trees. It is also necessary as a deadwood decomposer. A polypore is a shelf-like fungus (instead of a mushroom’s stem) that’s spore-producing cells line pores. This white shelf fungus can be found individually or in clusters of 2-3. 

Thank you for reading and I hope this information is accurate and helpful while you explore Humboldt County forest!

References:

https://www.mushroomexpert.com/

https://lostcoastoutpost.com/nature/

https://en.wikipedia.org/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/

Learning Curves with a Nine-Year-Old Girl

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(My Amazing Daughter)

My nine-year-old is my joy and learning curve to life. She needs to be treated delicately and with emotional support. She does not have tantrums, and she mimics what she sees in adults. For a while, I had to let her make her own decisions to learn from her mistakes. I could only tell her so many times a day not to do this or that before our relationship wasn’t fruitful. Then she will run with the reins, and I have to take them back, slow her down, and set boundaries and rules for her to follow again. We have made some significant changes lately.

Her doctor told her she had high cholesterol and glucose levels. She recommended a dairy-free diet and informed us that she was sensitive to eggs and wheat. My daughter likes candy and hates her greens. I didn’t want to make her eat anything. I felt uncomfortable knowing she would close her mouth and refuse, but something changed when I had the doctor on my side. Now it was something she had to do.

I began by feeding her kale, bok choy, and broccoli. We integrate green foods into everything we eat. She has switched to Almond Milk (she prefers the vanilla flavored.) They will not give her dairy at school, which includes many bread options (biscuits, waffles, etc.). She drinks the Silk milk and is now hungry enough to eat her fruits and vegetables. Even if the doctor made up the dairy allergy to change her diet, I am glad she did.

My daughter got kicked out of her rideshare for being rude to the elderly carpool. As much as I want to protect my daughter and stand up for her, this brought immediate changes. I assured her that we greet those who help us, ask them about their day, and say goodbye, even if we’re having a bad day. I had her write an apology letter, but these are things anyone would do. What hit home was that I took away her television and electronics for a month and refused to buy her anything that she wanted (not that she needed.) This method was very effective, and I’m looking for more changes, like saying hi to the cashier at the grocery store by name.

My daughter felt like a friend wronged her at school, and she felt vengeful. My friend and I explained to her that this was not the proper reaction and that just because someone had made her feel bad, it wouldn’t make it right to make that friend feel the same pain. She apologized to her friend. I got her The Self Regulation Workbook for Kids. She is working on managing her feelings, and I’ve noticed she hasn’t been fighting with her peers.

My daughter does chores. Her tasks include personal hygiene, cleaning her room, picking up poop, doing her workbooks, and doing the clean dishes. She is struggling in school, and even though she is in 4th grade, we work on a 3rd-grade spelling book. She reads daily and works on multiplication three times a week.

My daughter is very bright and creative. She has to match her clothing rather than wear new clothes that do not. She brushes her teeth and helps her little brother brush his every morning. She writes me letters when I am mad and always offers to pay for her things even though we won’t let her. She has proven to play with all ages and quickly talks to kids in new settings. My daughter is perfect and weird, and I am so proud to watch her grow and adjust herself when she learns a lesson. Please check out my Tiktok and IG @the_glowing_expectant to see the progress of a nine-year-old big sister and how she supports her brother and mother.