This I Know...

La Petite Artiste

2009-05-24T11:49:00.013-04:00

i can be pretty crafty.

i love to scrapbook, paint, sew, create....

unfortunately, i haven't had much time to devote to my hobbies since E arrived.

in the hopes that some of her interests will eventually coincide with mine (and my days won't always be spent pretending to be a dog or cat), i am encouraging art in all of its forms.

she goes to Kindermusik and dance classes, but for now, the "arty" side of art has been left for us to explore at home (smart art class instructors wisely set the age limits of most local classes at 4 and older).

so, every once in awhile, when we are feeling particularly adventurous, we break out the art supplies.

playdough and painting are her two favorites.

both of which seem to require more time to set up and clean up than she actually spends creating.

we dig through her dresser to find an old tshirt for her to wear, cover her playroom table with newspaper, carefully arrange all of the necessary supplies, and grab a roll of paper towels.

when she finally gets the green light....she is off.

i've learned to accept the fact that in her little world, dogs can be blue with red spots and purple tails and have large patches of unfinished surface.

when you are only three years old...to be a true artist, it's the process more than the end product that matters most...this i know.

Listening to: "When I Paint My Masterpiece" Bob Dylan

Computer Geek

2009-05-21T11:47:00.008-04:00

someone has taken a sudden interest in my little blog.
she has become quite the expert at scrolling through the stories and clicking on the photos to enlarge them.
her favorite story to revisit is her birthday party.

she can spend quite a bit of time looking at all "her people" and telling me their names.
as a result, i sometimes have to fight her for computer time.

she usually wins.

i figure the practice is good for her, and anything she learns is good for me.

technology is changing so quickly i can hardly keep up...it is only a matter of time before she is showing me how to do things...this i know.

Listening to: "Little Computer People" Little Computer People

What's for Dinner?

2009-05-19T11:46:00.007-04:00

tonight i made an old standby...a recipe i saw Rachel Ray prepare on one of her shows, and one i was sure that husband would like as it is a combination of two of his favorite things~ buffalo wings and chili.

it is super yummy and allegedly good for you (more info here).

i used ground chicken breast (which is a little more expensive), and i made my own tortilla chips.

truth be told, this actually tastes even better the next day.
Buffalo Chicken Chili with Blue Cheese Chips

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 pounds ground chicken
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4 ribs celery with leafy tops, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon smoked sweet paprika
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup hot sauce
1 can tomato sauce (15 ounces)
1 can stewed, fire-roasted or crushed tomatoes (15 ounces)
1 sack whole grain tortilla chips, lightly crushed
3/4 pound blue cheese, crumbled
A handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped

Preparation

Place a large pot over medium-high heat with the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan. Add the ground chicken and break it up, lightly browning it for 5 minutes.

Add the carrots, onion, celery, garlic, paprika and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 7-8 minutes. Add the chicken stock and scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pot.

Add the hot sauce, tomato sauce and the stewed, fire-roasted or crushed tomatoes to the chili and bring up to a bubble. Simmer for 8-10 minutes more to let the flavors come together.

While the chili is simmering, pre-heat the broiler.

Spread the chips out on a cookie sheet. Top with the crumbled blue cheese and transfer to the oven to melt the cheese, 2-3 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.

Top each serving of Buffalo Chicken Chili with a few blue cheese chips.

as the summer months approach and the heat becomes unbearable, this recipe (along with all of my favorite soups and stews) will be filed away, but at the first sign of cold weather (otherwise known as January in these parts), i'll be digging it out...this i know.

Listening to: "I'm on Fire" Bruce Springsteen

This Summer...

2009-05-18T11:45:00.008-04:00

I want to:

~carve a basket out of a watermelon rind and fill it full of fruit salad

~stir up a batch of fresh lemonade complete with floating lemon circles and serve it in a frosty jar

~make a batch of pickles or my Grandpa's pickled vegetables

~turn my patio into a place for "outdoor living" ala HGTV... and spend some time there together as a family

~fill some large decorative pots full of flowering plants

~plant a vegetable garden

~learn to barbeque different cuts of meat on the grill and find new summer recipes for side dishes

~finish decorating E's "big girl" bedroom

~read some trashy novels cover to cover and finally get them off of my bookshelf

~have evening picnics on the beach as the sun sets

~hit some of the local thrift/antique stores to look for hidden treasures

~complete the "great garage clean out" that i have been working on for far too many years making sure to donate or dispose of all of the excess that seems to accumulate there

~let go of the anxiety i feel about having the kitchen remodeled and focus on the finished result

~choose/enlarge/reduce photos to frame for picture wall

~continue working on traditional scrap booking while attempting to learn digital

~spend time with my family and friends

i'm a list-maker...always have been.

i might not check off all of my summer goals, but writing them down is a good place to start...this i know.

Listening to: "Sunshine and Summertime" Faith Hill

Strawberry Season

2009-05-18T11:41:00.011-04:00

i bought the most amazing strawberries today.

every once in awhile you luck out and get a package bursting full of fruity goodness.

berries so yummy you can eat them just as they are...no sugar necessary.
so perfect in their color, shape
and juiciness...
that you're literally dripping...

luckily E is resourceful, and our paper towel holder is just the right height.
oh, and can i just give a yummy shout out to a recipe i found in this lovely little magazine that graces my mailbox monthly?
Strawberry Pretzel Squares?
yes, please!

Prep:

25 min

Total Time:

4 hr 55 min

Makes:

20 servings

What You Need:

2 cups finely crushed pretzels

1/2 cup sugar, divided

2/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

1-1/2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

2 Tbsp. milk

1 cup thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

2 cups boiling water

1 pkg. (6 oz.) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin

1-1/2 cups cold water

1 qt. (4 cups) strawberries, sliced

Make It:

HEAT oven to 350°F.

MIX pretzel crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and butter. Press onto bottom of 13x9-inch pan. Bake 10 min. Cool.

BEAT cream cheese, remaining sugar and milk until blended. Stir in COOL WHIP; spread over crust. Refrigerate.

ADD boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Stir in cold water. Refrigerate 1-1/2 hours or until thickened (spoon drawn through leaves definite impression). Stir in strawberries; spoon over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm.

although mine may not look as picture perfect as the one in the magazine...it was good to the last piece and the perfect summer dessert...this i know.

Listening to: "Strawberry Fields Forever" The Beatles

Rain, Rain...

2009-05-17T11:37:00.013-04:00

the summer rains have begun, and i have to say, i am LOVING it.

the darkening of the skies

the distant crackle of lightning

the rumble of thunder as the storm moves overhead

the way the house feels all cozy and safe

i try not to think too much about the dangers...i've seen up close the fires that a strike can cause...i know the possibility of tornadoes exist...i recognize the start of hurricane season and dread the uncertainty the named storms will bring.

so, in these first few weeks when the drops start to fall, i try to just enjoy them.

the temporary pause they bring to my sometimes busy afternoons

the way the rain seems to wash away the dust and dirt and ever-so-slightly change the temperature for the better

the happiness i feel when the afternoon storms carry on into the evening allowing me to fall asleep to the soft pitter patter on the metal roof

although my personality leans more toward the sunshiny, happy end, i really enjoy a good thunderstorm and the solitude it can bring...this i know.

Listening to: "I Love a Rainy Night" Eddie Rabbit

To Dance or Not to Dance...

2009-05-12T11:35:00.019-04:00

today was E's second and final ballet class (at least with that teacher).

i had been waiting for her to turn three anticipating the day when she would be able to take a dance class through our local parks department. i thought that it would be a good way to introduce her to dancing before pursuing more formal classes somewhere. E LOVES to dance, so i figured these lessons would be right up her alley...and the fact that there are other kids her age in the class? well, that just sends her over the moon.

she was thrilled the first day we walked into the community center gym/dance studio.

i was surprised to see so many students flitting around.

as i walked into the gym, the teacher headed over to the bench where a few of the new parents were seated (apparently this class had been ongoing, and there were five new students including E joining on this day). without even introducing herself, she briskly stated, "parents of new students, just so you know, parents DON'T watch my dance classes. i find it too distracting for the students. the class will end at one, you can pick them up then." as E had already made her way over to the group, i didn't even get a chance to tell her that i was leaving for a bit. i scooted out of the gym as one of the other new moms said, "uh, um , excuse me...his name is T." i added, "her name is E." i have to say....this struck me as odd...the way we were "greeted." i have been to a lot of kiddie classes, and this was a first for me. i planted myself outside the gym doors. it didn't seem very secure. there were 2 entrances to the gym, and seeing as the teacher had done absolutely NO kind of sign-in or introduction, it seemed entirely possible that E could basically leave with anyone out the other door if i wasn't right in there when class ended.

the gym was divided in half by a large dark green plastic curtain, and although i could not see what was happening through the gym door windows, i could hear the teacher's directions and the different songs the students were dancing to. it seemed to be going well. i pictured E dancing to the butterfly song and laughed at the image in my head. at one point the teacher told the students to put on their tap shoes. i could only imagine E looking around trying to decide what to do next. if i had known that this class had been ongoing, i would not have signed her up for this very reason. if it were truly the "first" class, maybe we would have received some kind of information like, oh, i don't know...that we needed tap shoes?!?

in any case, i tried to remember that this was her first class, and even in the best of cases the first class of anything we have tried is never the best indicator of how the rest of the lessons will go...sorta like the first day of school in my former career.

at one o'clock, i headed into the gym and peeked through the grommets in the plastic curtain to see the students practicing tumbling. when i walked around the curtain, E was happy to see me and show off the lollipop she had received at the conclusion of the class. i decided to walk up to the teacher to ask her about the tap shoes (since she still had not addressed any of the "new parents" with any kind of information). i waited for her to hand out the rest of the lollipops.

"so, i, um, do i need to get her some tap shoes?"

"no, i'll measure them after the next class, and you can order them from me. they are $34."

"oh, okay, thank you."

now, i am a pretty good reader of people, and i still was not getting a great "vibe" off of this teacher. E seemed happy with the class (or was it the lollipop? you can never really tell with a three year old), so i put it out of my head and put the next class on my calendar.

later in the week E and i headed out to the local SuperTarget for some dancing clothes. normally i would have already had her all set up to go to the first lesson, but i feared that she would show up all decked out and all the other kids would be in regular clothes, and i would be "that mom"....the one who always goes a little overboard. so instead she wore a cute outfit and sneakers only to find out that most of the other children were sporting the latest in kiddie dancewear (and one had quite a tutu going on). armed with the knowledge that she could, in fact, wear dance clothes to dance class, i had to restrain myself here because the picture of E in these cute little leotards made me want to snap up every style. we settled on two pink leotards with attached skirts and some footless tights. then we grabbed some itty bitty pink ballet shoes at Payless.

today she headed off to her second class looking the part of the prima ballerina. she was so excited to be "in her dancing costume." she had even talked me into a Tinkerbell backpack to tote her non existent tap shoes in because she had seen the other girls using one for this purpose.

this time when i dropped her off, i broke the rules just a little. i decided that since the teacher's reasoning for not having parents watch the class was because it was too distracting (a somewhat valid point), as long as i was out of eyesight, it wouldn't be a problem. so, rather than sit out in the hallway (no benches for that purpose anyway), i sat near the door inside the gym on the other side of the plastic curtain...completely out of sight. another one of the new moms joined me, and we chatted a little before the class began. we had talked last week and seemed to share the same concerns about the way the teacher greeted us. as the class began, we listened to the start up songs and were surprised to hear her tell all the new students that they needed to "sit over here and be the audience because they had two weeks left to get ready for their program and they needed to practice." the other mom looked over at me and raised her eyebrows. hmmm...interesting. this class is only 45 minutes long to begin with, and now you are asking 3 and 4 year olds to sit and watch while other 3 and 4 year olds get to dance? then came the "tap shoe" part...new students would have to sit again because...no tap shoes. then someone had to go potty. seeing as there were like 15 students in the class and no assistant teacher and no parents allowed, the teacher put her off for a minute with an "i told you that you have to use the potty before class" finally giving in and escorting her, along with the rest of the class, out of the gym and to the hallway bathroom. now in order to do this, she had to bring them all past the plastic curtain and out the gym doors. i commented to the other mom..."somehow i don't think that she is going to be happy to see us sitting here." the class exited, attended to the business of letting the one student use the potty (can't believe it didn't turn into a chorus of "i have to go potty, too! me, too! me, too!"), and headed back inside the gym. as the class passed by us, Miss Congeniality made a beeline for the two of us and stated, "i'm gonna need you two to wait outside the gym. otherwise all of the other parents are going to want to know why they can't wait in here, too." now this was a rather humorous statement seeing as there were really no other parents around. let's just say that we were in a part of our town where many people would be perfectly okay with dropping their 3/4 year old off without question and leaving. also, i think that many of these students attend the on site daycare that ends at 12, and so some of them were enrolled in the dance class as a way to extend the care until 1.

in any case, the way that this teacher had chosen to deal with things in the two lessons made it pretty clear that this class was not for us. keep in mind that i was a paying customer...she was not doing me a favor, and her attitude did not seem to reflect this. also, although through the parks department, dance lessons were not cheap...$59.08 for 4 classes.

i left feeling unhappy with the way things were going. E didn't seem to notice...free lollipops sort of smooth over any concerns with her. i discussed it with my family, and they were annoyed (of course....they are pretty overprotective...."what?!?! E had to be the audience? she went to a dance class and wasn't allowed to dance?").
as i am not one who enjoys confrontation, i spent a week trying to decide what to do.

E may not have been learning any new moves, but she was, at least, having fun being in a room full of children.

she was rockin' the dancewear (and now that we had purchased it...didn't we need to put it to use?)

there were only 2 weeks left anyway.

should i just let her finish out the session?

i got online and researched real dance studios in my community and was quite surprised to find that their rates were actually less than the parks and rec program....AND they had real springy dance floors in their studios (apparently this is important in the whole dance equation), offered a variety of dance styles, had specific, published information about dress codes and viewing classes, and actually requested that parents of students younger than 5 stay on-site in case the potty situation arises.

it became quite clear that i needed to listen to the little voice in my head and get E out of the parks and rec program (thereby preserving the last 2 weeks of tuition as a credit on my account). i took a deep breath, called the community center, and relayed my concerns to the site manager. i always feel the need to explain that i'm not some random crazy mother (maybe because as a former teacher i have been on the receiving end of "concerned" phone calls). she seemed to listen to my suggestions especially as they related to the whole child safety issue. i don't know if it will make a difference for the rest of the students or for any future students, but i felt nothing but relief when i got off the phone.....relief that i wouldn't have to deal with that teacher any more.

incidentally, i ran into T's mother the very next day at the grocery store. i felt the need to explain why we weren't in class that day only to find out that she had also called and removed him from the class. somehow this made me feel a little better. they may have been able to write me off as some random crazy mother, but two of us? maybe they will need to reevaluate the class a little, and maybe future students and parents will be treated with a little more thought.

on a brighter note, i have just received word that some summer classes are opening up in the dance studio i found online, so it is only a matter of time before E is moving and grooving and breaking in her ballet shoes...this i know.

Listening to: "Tiny Dancer" Tim McGraw

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T11:34:00.019-04:00

we didn't do anything particularly special today. i woke up to cards and presents from husband and E. we went to church then tried rather unsuccessfully to find a place with a reasonable wait time to have brunch together as a family. we soon abandoned those plans after it became clear that E was NOT in the brunch kinda mood (someone must have forgotten to tell her that it was Mother's Day). instead husband and E headed home leaving my mom and i to wait...which actually turned out to be rather nice (forty-five minutes and a couple of cups of coffee later).....two moms enjoying omelets and pancakes on a holiday set aside to honor mothers.

E spent part of the afternoon with her Grammie...which is really the best Mother's Day gift...for me{time alone} and for my mom {time with her only granddaughter}.

later we all met up for dinner at my mom's.

there is so much that i could write about being a mom, but really, it all comes down to this...

every day i wake up grateful that i am her mother and every night before i go to sleep, i thank God for this gift that has been brought into my life.

motherhood is the hardest job i have ever known (and i taught elementary school!), but it is the best job i have ever had...this i know.

Listening to: "In My Daughter's Eyes" Martina McBride

Push Pops and Popsicles

2009-05-08T11:25:00.013-04:00

last summer we spent quite a bit of time at the aquatic center making use of their kiddie pool.

it was HOT outside...Florida HOT!

luckily there was a snack shack (a sorta ice-cream-truck-minus-the-truck but not the display board) full of frozen concoctions from which to choose.

E sampled them all over our many visits, but by the end of the summer, there was a clear winner.

the girl LOVES her pushpops (aka push ups).

nowadays as the summer heat begins to toast our little world, we often hear her declare, "Mommy, Daddy....I know, I know....
they PUSHHHH and they POPPPP....
I know....a push pop!
I want a push pop!"

doesn't matter if it's the Scooby Doo, rainbow, or plain ol' dotted wrapper brand...she is some kinda happy when she gets one of those freezer treats in her hands

and some kind of messy when she is done.

on days that we are not feeling up to the challenge of trying to remove colored dye from her chin, arms, and chair, she'll settle for a mini slow melt popsicle (or two...they're small) and the [popsicle/ice cream cone] [holder/drip catcher] really does work (boy, when we were kids, we had to hold our pops by the little wooden stick, and there was no such thing as "slow melt"...on a side note, they make them "slow melt" by adding a little gelatin to the pop...wonder what genius finally figured out that handy little trick...i'm guessing a mom).

summer has just begun, and it is sure to be full of pushpops and popsicles and maybe even a snow cone or two...this i know.

Listening to: "Cold as Ice" Foreigner

Crazy Cat Lady*

2009-05-01T20:31:00.024-04:00

*i'm concerned i might be her.

but i prefer to think of myself as "the cat whisperer"

or the cat version of Kevin Costner's movie, Field of Dreams ...only my tag line would be, "if you feed them, they will come."

but i'm getting ahead of myself.

let me start at the beginning.

this is my cat, Penelope:

when she came to live with us, we already owned two dogs....two LARGE dogs, a 50lb+ black lab and a 100lb+ golden retriever.

my sister's ex-boyfriend found her abandoned under a BOBCAT in his construction shed.

she was teeny tiny...eyes barely open...hardly able to walk on her wee wobbly legs.

sister and boyfriend had dinner plans that night, so this little newborn kitty was dropped off at my house so I could kittensit.

she never left.

i spent weeks feeding her out of a itty bitty kitty bottle (thank goodness the Walmart sells kitten milk) and worrying about her while i was at work...rushing home to pick her up out of her makeshift-cardboard-box-kitty-playpen and gently cleaning her with a washcloth the way her mommy might (not that her mommy would use a washcloth, but you get the idea).

i can't believe i fell in love with a cat!

i had never owned a cat.

i was convinced i was a "dog person."

Penelope, nicknamed "Peeps," became a force to be reckoned with.

as she grew, she made sure to let our two (eventually three) large dogs know who was boss.

in some ways, she was our first little girl and a nice change from the immenseness of our masculine canines.

i began to recognize and admire her cat qualities.

she was concerned with her appearance...forever bathing herself with long licks (and then coughing up hairballs...the part of cat ownership i could DEFINITELY do without).

she liked to curl up and take long naps (with me).

she sometimes wanted to be alone and if you messed with her, you would get a snarl and a swipe (i can relate).

she was obsessed with whipped cream and would stand by the refrigerator and purr loudly if you even looked in the direction of the kitchen (desserts?...i get it....yummm!)

she always ran down the stairs and jumped on the back of the couch whenever we arrived home greeting us with at least five minutes worth of meowing (perhaps trying to tell on the dogs and let us in on what they REALLY did while we were away).

she was very self sufficient. this is the biggest difference that i noticed between owning dogs and owning a cat. in fact, if she could pour her own food and water into her bowls and change her litter box, she might not even need me at all. in a world where it seems there is always too much to do, this was a nice change from the constant walking, feeding, bathing, etc. associated with our big dogs.

and so it was, with this wee little kitten, now 12 year old cat, that my heart was softened a bit to the feline population.

Penelope is a house cat...always has been, always will be. i don't think she would even know what to do with herself outside these four walls (and i know that she doesn't care to see what is outside...let's just say she made that clear when i tried to take her out on the front porch one day...the claw marks don't lie).

apparently other people's cats don't feel the same way.

we live in a rather rural area and unfortunately have too many irresponsible people who let their unneutered/unspayed cats outdoors to roam and romp and make sweet cat love with the rest of their wandering species

resulting in kittens...lots of kittens...who then grow up to become feral cats, and the whole cycle starts all over again.

at some point in time, one of these frisky felines decided to raise her litter in a clump of bushes in our yard (maybe she'd heard how we'd took in the stray dog that had lived on our street for 2 weeks, our now beloved...and only remaining... mixed breed girl dog, Lucy).

in any case, i watched these cats grow,

and i put out water,

and i put out food,

and before i knew it, i had named them...

Precious

Patches

and Momma (on the right next to Precious), so named not because she is their Momma (she was part of the same litter making her a sibling) but because she was the most protective of the group.

these three have been hanging around here for years now.

things went smoothly for awhile...

then the babies started coming.

yep, they were all girls...lucky us.

there are many fields around our home, and it is pretty easy for them to hide their litter for awhile, but eventually they all seemed to make their way to our driveway.

husband, although VERY tolerant of my need to take care of these abandoned animals was NOT loving the idea of more cats in the driveway and yard and neither was new neighbor...he set a trap last summer.

he caught a few, some moved on, and one friendly child stayed with the three.

i'm not sure which one is his mommy, but i named him Baby (he wouldn't look at the camera, but he is on the right).

i should mention that husband and i have tried to take care of this kitty situation, but there are not many options.

the cat rescues that do exist are filled to capacity.

the most animal control will do is set a trap, and once they are caught, if they are caught, it is almost certain that they will be euthanized. i just can't be the one to send these sweet cats to the death chamber.

they've made it through hurricanes (stashed safely in my detached garage), managed to avoid the cat trap and have gone from being quite skittish to very friendly. they would make excellent pets, but i just can't take them into my house right now...one cat, one dog, one three year old, smallish house=no room...

and so, i try to look out for them while they live on my property, and in an effort to be part of the solution, we took two of them, Precious and Patches, to be spayed and vaccinated last year using a coupon from the cat rescue organization. it still cost us $75 each to have this done which is why we did not take all four. some people in our town are trying to get the county to adopt a trap, neuter, release policy, and i really hope that it passes at some point because clearly the way things have been done all of these years IS NOT WORKING. trap, neuter, release is humane and will eventually really decrease the feral cat population.

the main reason we took Precious and Patches to be spayed is because they trust me enough that i knew i could catch them to transport them to the vet. Baby is a boy cat, so at least he wouldn't be bringing his litter to our yard, and Momma doesn't get close and would not be easily trapped. We also limited it to two because $150 is a lot of money to shell out to help stray cats especially when you are already providing cat food on a daily basis.

unfortunately, Momma lived up to her name a few months ago, and i found a new litter of kittens in the garage.
E is THRILLED to see the kitties on the driveway and loves to talk to them and swing their cat toy. husband and i aren't so happy because now we're back to "what are we going to do about this?"

i wish i could find them all homes.

don't you want one?

don't you know someone who would?

better yet, i wish i could move to a small farm where cats could roam, free and happy, to live out their days.

i can't help myself....i feel for them....even the mean ones (like Morris below) who stop by now and then to fill up on food and water.

it's a tough world out there, and everyone can use a kind hand now and then.

to think it all started with this one little cat...
actually, it may have started a bit before that. the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, and my mom is no better when it comes to detaching...as evidenced by the photo below:
these are the neighborhood ducks clustered together outside her front door as they do each day awaiting their dinner.
and so, little E, if you someday find yourself surrounded by dogs or stray cats or ducks needing a free meal and a little love just know that you got it from my side of the family...we're all a little animal crazy...this i know.

Listening to: "Black Cat" Janet Jackson

April.....These were a few of my favorite things....

2009-04-30T11:34:00.002-04:00

anniversaries
love
faith
commitment
my in-laws
a husband who cleans
outlet malls
Gymboree's cute clothes and accessories
pennies in the fountain
clean mall play areas
Jello disasters
colored eggs
Easter egg hunts
bounce houses
lunch with my girls
moving church services
Sunday brunch
funny faces
Easter baskets and bonnets
family dinners
my mom's carrot cake
Russell Stover pectin jelly beans
finding what was lost
good samaritans
happy endings
new shorts
nick-free days
the ability to laugh at myself
good friends that laugh with me
scrapbooks
photographs
memories
good music...there really is a song for EVERY topic!
birthdays
streamers and balloons
fancy birthday hats
sundaes for lunch
Chuck E Cheese's...where a kid can be a kid and a couple of adults can be kids, too!
Carvel ice cream cakes
having a family who loves our little girl almost as much as we do
looking back/looking forward
kiddie classes
watching E grow and learn to follow directions
the number three
going to other kid's birthday parties
invitations
goodie bags
inspiring baking blogs
a well planned day
celebrating with family and friends
self-cleaning party venues
squeezing every last drop of fun out of a special day
being comfortable in your own skin
backyard patios
beautiful weather
memories of "The Flying Fish"
kindermusik
talented teachers
overcoming fears
a high pitched voice coming from the backseat
singing together in the car

The Music in E (and Me)

2009-04-29T16:28:00.043-04:00

every once in awhile you stumble upon something that just works...

E loves kindermusik.

i love kindermusik.
maybe because

-it fits my personality and holds E's interest for more than 10 seconds.

-it is organized and efficient and really encourages her to sing and dance and listen and play.

-i have tried a bunch of kiddie classes around town, and i know quality when i walk into it.

-the teacher is amazing and manages to instruct a whole roomful of little people (and their personal assistants) with such ease.

whatever the reason....in our little world

kindermusik rocks!
we have completed 5 sessions already: feathers, do-si-do, away we go, milk and cookies, and today was the 15th and final class of fiddledeedee .

E has changed so much since we signed up to do these "mommy and me" classes way back in 2007.

i wasn't quite sure what to expect the first time we walked into the local "center for the arts."

in that first 45 minute class, we sat in a circle and sang songs with our children, danced a little, played a few instruments, snuggled a stuffed animal and cuddled in the dark, heard a story, and learned the goodbye song.
i left feeling...a little weird.

we had already been to many a gymboree class, so we weren't completely inexperienced in the ways of the kiddie class, but still, these kiddie classes didn't come easy to me.

after 13 years in an elementary classroom, i was used to being the leader.

while i had NO desire to be a leader in a "mommy and me" class, i had never been in the role of "follower" before, and it felt...uncomfortable.

i'm a planner....it's very hard for me to be in unfamiliar settings.

i don't like doing things i've never done before.

i especially don't like doing things i've never done before by myself (even though E is with me, i have to be "the adult"...blech...at times i'd happily give that role over to someone else),

BUT

there are so many things that i want to do with her i've really had to push through my own insecurities.
and so, we came back

again and again.

when the first session ended, we signed up for another

and another.

E went through changes...

she learned to sit around a circle

and how to wait her turn.

she learned how to clean up and return instruments without freaking out about having to give something up before she was ready.

she eventually outgrew her absolute need to have the giant Winnie-the-Pooh for cuddle time and started settling for any animal.

she started mimicking the dances at home when i put on the accompanying music.

she requested the songs by name as we drove around town running our errands (and my car CD player soon filled with children's music).

she went from wearing diapers to Pullups to using the potty after every class.

she wanted to be the one to give her teacher a little gift at the end of the last class.
and i grew up a little, too.

i learned how to deal with new situations and groups of people.

i remembered how to have fun...whether dancing around the room with scarves pretending to be butterflies, pulling her in a laundry basket/sleigh ride while she played jingle bells or sharing pretend cups of tea...i stopped thinking about it so much and just enjoyed every moment.

kindermusik has become familiar and routine and has inspired me to sign up for other things.

with each new class we attend, i am becoming better about doing things for the first time...jumping in with both feet knowing that the uncomfortable newness will soon wear off.

more and more i am realizing what a gift this is...to spend time with my daughter...to be there as she meets new people and experiences things for the first time...to grow myself right along with her.

already these opportunities are slipping away.

in the fall when classes start up again, i will drop her at the door....no more "mommy and me"...she turned three...she is in the next level now.

she will run into the music room and happily greet her teacher barely noticing that there are no parents hanging around (i am thankful that she is so unlike me in this way...not at all hesitant to meet new friends and try new things), and i will stand outside for a minute forgetting how i felt on that first day in 2007 and wishing that i could go in and sing and dance and be three years old myself for awhile longer...this i know.

Listening to: "I've Got the Music in Me" Kiki Dee

Nakey

2009-04-26T16:22:00.010-04:00

confession....

our girl likes being naked.

but only in the backyard

and only when there's a water source involved.
it started the first time she took a swim in her new kiddie pool.

she suddenly decided that she didn't like the way her bathing suit felt when it got all wet,

so off it came.
skinny-dipping must have worked for her because from that point on, the backyard patio was "clothing optional" with her opting for no clothing whenever possible.

as our backyard is rather secluded, this policy is okay for her...for now.
it's hard not to smile when you watch her running around back there, squirting the hose, sliding down her slide, blowing bubbles, playing in her sandbox, and floating on her blow-up toys, water beading up on her tanned skin and ringlets forming in her hair.

she looks so happy and so....well.... so free.

it takes me back to when i was a little girl growing up in the HOT Florida sun

to a time when my cousins, sister, and i practically lived at my Aunt D's pool.

i know there was occasional skinny dipping involved, and i'm pretty sure i have photographic evidence of my sister (aka "The Flying Fish") at the tender young age of 4 or 5 stark naked, passed out on a raft, being guided around the pool by one of the older cousins.
when you are a little one, you can get away with things like that...in fact, it's kinda cute...look at the lil nakey all zonked out on the floatie raft.

as you get older, this becomes much harder to explain, so it's best to enjoy it while you're young....this i know.

Listening to: "Shiny Happy People" R.E.M.

Party Time!

2009-04-25T15:58:00.075-04:00

with her actual birthday behind us, we moved into full-on party-prep mode.
there were goodie bags to stuff

and party favors to make.

(how cute are these? thanks Bakerella blog!)
finally, at long last, the BIG day arrived.
E was very excited as this was her first real birthday party.

on her first birthday, we went out to dinner with Grammie and Aunt C followed by a Publix Mickey and Minnie cake and presents at home.

on her second birthday, we had a dinner cookout with Grammie, Aunt C, Uncle Rene, and Cousin Sami. this time the cake was homemade cherry chip in the shape of Rocket from "Little Einsteins."
but this year?

this year we stepped it up a notch.

you see, she is starting to catch on to the whole "birthday party" thing.

her favorite shows dedicate at least one episode to celebrating a character's birthday.

we have attended several wonderful parties over the past three years.

and last month when she got another invitation in the mail??

well, it was all she talked about for a week.

it was then that husband and i started "the discussion."

me- "i think we're gonna hafta throw her a party this year...a real party...with people outside her immediate family.."

husband- "good. i think we should throw her a party."

translation=you figure it all out, and let me know when and where

....i kid, honey, i kid....

.....thanks for listening to all my crazy pre-planning questions and for working so hard to pay for everything
(nowadays birthday parties don't come cheap).

after much discussion, we decided on a local kiddie amusement park (of sorts)
...the kind of place you wouldn't have caught either of us in before we had a child.

it's amazing how much more appealing this place is once you realize it means that you don't have to try to prep your own house and figure out how to keep everyone entertained for a few hours.
this worked out well for us as we had a variety of ages attending, and i think there was something for everyone (well, maybe not cousin M, but she hung out and looked cute which is pretty much your only job when you're 3 months old).

for the more active guests...

there were rides,

go-karts,

and even a place to cool off.

we ended with an early dinner (it wasn't gourmet, but it came with the package),
and the second cake of the week...this time a chocolate mousse filled vanilla creation with gobs of brightly dyed icing (cutting this cake so that you can serve the exact requested balloon color to each adolescent guest proved to be a little tricky...it got quite a hack job).

although there was much to do, the absolute BEST part of the day was spending time with family and friends.

at last the party was winding down...most of the guests had gone, the presents had been opened, admired, and stashed in the car, the garbage can had been filled to the brim with cups and plates and wrapping paper,

but before we headed home, we returned to the "midway" with E's good friend, C, for one last go-round on the kiddie rides.

as we drove home, from her first third birthday party, the sun was a magnificent circle of orange in the sky.
i don't know how much she will remember about this day, but i will never forget the look on her face when we walked up to the castle, her pure joy at riding these sad little rides (anorexic horses, anyone?) over and over again, how small she looked sitting next to her daddy in the go-kart, how quickly she got off the tire swing in the splash park when the water started squirting her in the face, the slow smile that stretched ear to ear when she heard the birthday song sung
just. for. her.
her attempts to blow out the candles, the chaos that ensued when everyone "helped" open her presents, how excited she was that C's Uncle J kept her there long enough to ride a few more rides, the balloon-packed present-packed car, the quiet request from the backseat for a "nice, cold milk from old McDonald's", and the fireball in the sky that followed us home...this i know.

Listening to: "Happy Birthday" NKOTB...or for you oldtimers...New Kids on the Block....who knew they recorded this song?

The New Mary Lou?

2009-04-23T15:57:00.012-04:00

E went to her first gymnastics class today

at the ripe old age of 3 years and one day

(the class is for 3-5 year olds, so we just made the cut).

in an effort to stay busy, we have tried out a variety of classes all over town.

it's been hard to find quality affordable classes for children her age.

i'm hoping we're turning a corner now that she is three.

three must be one of those milestone ages like 16, 18, or 21.

it seems to be the minimum for many of the activities we've tried to get involved in.

i drove her to the community center not sure what to expect.

we've had a variety of experiences when it comes to preschool classes.

i was hopeful.

to my delight, it was quite enjoyable.

this is the first class she has taken that has not had a "mommy and me" component.

in other words, she was on her own.

there was a bench along the wall, and i plopped down with the other parents to watch.

my never-met-a-stranger kiddo went right over to the mat to join the teacher and the other kids with nary a backwards glance.

i alternated between complete amusement and tear-producing sadness (must NOT cry in gym class) as I watched my little girl follow the teacher's instructions.

it was THE CUTEST thing to see all these little three and four year olds warming up to "Head Shoulders, Knees and Toes" and "Tooty-Ta,"

but at the same time it made me a little misty-eyed to see my little girl off on her own....doing her own little thing....without. her. mama.

as parents, this is what we wish for.

we want them to grow into strong, confident individuals.

we want them to become more and more independent.

we want them to have their own interests and friends.

BUT

she is my first child, and as her mommy, there is a part of me that still wants her to need me...just a little bit....this i know.

Listening to: "Miss Independent" Kelly Clarkson

A Look Back

2009-04-22T23:42:00.014-04:00

April 2006-"Birth"day
April 2007-One
April 2008-Two (and apparently NOT happy)
April 2009-Three
It really does go by so fast....this i know.

Listening to: "Forever Young" Rod Stewart

Three.

2009-04-22T21:01:00.042-04:00

you turned three years old today.

our precious baby girl.

the birthday fairy snuck in while you were sleeping and "fancied" up the place.

it's amazing what a few streamers and balloons can do...

(thanks, Mom, for always taking the time to do this for us...even when you were really tired and just wanted to crawl into bed....it mattered....and i know it will matter to her, too).
the next morning,

the presents were wrapped and waiting,
but they would have to wait til later.

we had a full day of fun ahead.

you were dressed in a snazzy new outfit and ready to roll.
first stop.

Kindermusik class where you got to wear the coveted birthday hat and receive the special birthday certificate.

next stop.

California Pizza Kitchen.

lunch with Aunt Carri (who took the afternoon off to mark this milestone and lasted all the way through dinner).
lunch was passed over for dessert.

the grilled chicken and side salad just didn't cut it when a hot fudge sundae was waiting in the wings.
if you can't have a sundae for lunch on your birthday, when can you?
third stop.

Chuck E. Cheese's.

on a weekday.

it was empty,

and mommy had coupons to get 120 tokens for $15.
you rode rides

and played games,

and even caught a glimpse of the mouse himself.

i think mommy and Aunt C might have had more fun than you earning tickets, but as a result, you got quite a little haul of prizes.

you were most excited about the lollipop.

you just LOVE a good lolli!
last stop.

back home for a special birthday dinner with daddy and Grammie.
there were presents to unwrap

and wishes to be made.
and suddenly it was time for bed.

we had a great day.

we never could have imagined three years ago how much joy you would bring into our lives.

you are such a special little girl.

watching you grow and learn each day is the greatest gift we have ever been given.

we can't wait to see what the future will bring (although we wouldn't mind if you stayed little for awhile longer).
you are loved more than words could ever say...this we know.

Listening to: "Born At The Right Time" Paul Simon

Scrap Happy

2009-04-17T20:31:00.015-04:00

i'm behind on my blog.

again.

it's already May, and i'm still finishing up all of these April posts that i started many weeks ago,

and i need to finish them

because a lot happened in April, and i'm not quite ready to close the door on it yet.

so why am i behind?

well, sometimes....most of the time, really, i feel like one of those plate spinners in the circus.

it would be ideal if all the little plates could spin furiously and simultaneously on their posts,

but in reality, when i start spinning one plate, another plate slows down,
and for awhile there in April, my scrapbooking plate was rotating at an amazing speed while my blogging plate slowed to a crawl and eventually stopped completely.
National Scrapbook Day (yes, there is such a thing) was April 18th, and i had committed to 12 uninterrupted hours of scrap booking (and chatting).
i'm finding that the day itself was not as important as the preparation for the day as i was actually motivated to finally finish putting all the pictures in E's 2007 album in the hopes that i could spend NSD working on her 2006 album (yes, i'm THAT behind and THAT out of order)
so i devoted my limited free time to "catching up" a little and covered my kitchen counters with background paper and photographs.
i'm still not quite where i want to be, but i'm further than i was.

i want to get these pictures in their proper places, and i want to record the memories that go with them before i forget.

i want to actually finish her baby book.

i want her to have albums to look through as she gets older instead of boxes of mixed up photographs
(don't worry, Mom,
i'll get my childhood pictures in order and in albums eventually...
...at least you took pictures...
...celebrate the small things...).

i want to try out my new digital scrap booking software and be up-to-date with my work so that my thoughts are fresh.

but mostly i want to keep making memories with my family and friends....i am blessed to have TOO much to cut and paste, TOO many stories to tell...this i know.

listening to: "(You Want To) Make a Memory" Bon Jovi

Unglamorous Mommy Moments (#1-3)

2009-04-15T20:29:00.023-04:00

there are mommies out there who are glamorous.

they look completely pulled together and polished at all times.

they say and do all the right things and fit perfectly into whatever social situation they find themselves in.

and they are not just in the J.Crew or Gap catalog....they exist.....in real life....i've seen them.

i, however, am not one of them.

not for lack of effort, mind you.

i strive, not to compete with someone else, but to be my best self.

i often fall short.

especially in the wardrobe department (something i am determined to work on...as soon as i can figure out how to spend a whole day alone...shopping).

and sometimes in the social situation department as evidenced by the following three stories i like to call "unglamorous mommy moments".
unglamorous mommy moment number one.

this one actually managed to encompass both the wardrobe department and the social situation setting.

E joined a new kiddie gym, and i, as her personal assistant, accompanied her to her classes.

as fate would have it, the kiddie gym was off to a slow start, and for the second time in two weeks, E was the only student in her class.

the instructor suggested i let her play on the equipment for awhile and bring her back later in the week to try to catch another class, one with actual students.

as we circled the room, E tried out the various pieces of equipment....trampoline, ball pit, climbing wall.

then we came to the uneven bars....little did i know they would be my downfall.

E liked to be lifted up so that she could grab the bar, hang for awhile, and then drop...over and over again.

on the fourth or fifth round of this activity, i bent down to pick her up, and heard/felt a rip....straight up the back seam of my apparently over washed jean shorts.

oh my.

this was bad.

but how bad?

maybe it was an outer seam.

i tried to make my way around the room with my back to the wall...inching ever so slowly toward the full length mirror.

E and i were alone in the "gym" with the exception of the owner and the teacher neither of whom seemed to have noticed my dilemma.

maybe it was just a small rip, and i could make it out of there with my dignity.

i reached back to casually feel the fabric,

and

i felt thread....strings really....where the back seam used to be.

by this time i was near the mirror.

i stole a casual sideways glance,

and

i saw underwear!

as i was near the swinging half door that separated the entrance area from the equipment area, i pondered my next move.

could i grab my purse, use it to cover the offending gap, and carefully make my way out of the gym backwards?

or should i confess and share my embarrassment with the two employees?

"well, i can't believe this, but i think i just split my shorts open!"

i decided that it would be worse if i didn't say anything, and they saw and thought that i left not knowing.

"i'm really glad no one else showed up today....guess i'll go now!
come on, E...say goodbye!'

thankfully E must have sensed something was up, and she exited without complaint.

in my short's defense, i hadn't been shopping since i had E, and these shorts had been around a LONG time.

obviously TOO LONG.

i know what you're thinking, but they weren't too tight (in fact, that is why i wore them so much, they fit well).

they were so loved that they were over washed, and clearly the integrity of the seam thread was seriously compromised.

E had a membership there, and i had to return eventually.

i am convinced that from that day on i was "the mommy who split her shorts straight up the back" at least to the two people who witnessed it and anyone else they decided to share the story with, and how could you NOT share that story?
unglamorous mommy moment number two.

another classroom setting.

on this particular day, in my rush to shower, dress, eat breakfast, and get both of us out of the house and to class by 10:30AM, i had managed to cut myself while shaving my legs.

it was more of a nick, really, but man can those nicks bleed!

i put the requisite minuscule piece of toilet paper on it and carried on with my morning.

it wasn't until i was seated around the Kindermusik circle that i noticed that the toilet paper was still there.

great.

how many mommies had seen that lovely little "band aid"?

i reached down, quickly pulled it off, and shoved it in my pocket.

i looked around to make sure E was behaving then glanced back down.

to my horror....a drop of blood was running....down. my. leg!

apply pressure. apply pressure.

attempt to make way to Kleenex box.

grab Kleenex.

apply pressure. apply pressure.

oh great....class is starting.

sing "Welcome" song while simultaneously holding Kleenex wad on leg....covered by hand so as not to be noticed.....and corralling daughter in lap.

finally, eventually, succeed in stopping blood.

stuff bloody Kleenex into pocket.

look at hand and realize that it is now blood stained.

no sink in room.

make way toward hand sanitizer.

use a few squirts and a couple of Kleenex's to remove blood stains.

continue singing while saying silent prayer that leg nick remains stable.

pray nobody noticed.

unglamorous mommy moment number three.

monthly scrap booking night with my great friend, B.

plop myself down in my assigned seat and get busy...chatting and working on album pages.

sniff. sniff.

intermittently smell offending odor.

sniff. sniff.

is it me?

sniff. sniff.

what is that?!?!

turn sideways and casually sniff armpit
(oh, come on, you know you have done it!).

nope...all clear...only powder fresh deodorant and traces of Happy perfume.

continue working.

sniff. sniff.

is it the scrapbook glue?

nope.

how come i keep smelling that?

the scent is somewhat familiar, but i can't quite put my finger on it, and i can't figure out where it is coming from.

sniff. sniff.

can B smell that?

does she think it's me?

should i ask her about it?

how come i'm only smelling it every once in awhile?

sniff. sniff.

"attention, attention everyone....time for announcements."

i turn around in my seat so that i can see the consultants.

sniff. sniff.

there it is again!

i look down in my twisted position at my now crossed legs, and i spot it.

there on my shoe, or more accurately, in the crevices that make up the bottom of my shoe.

animal feces!!!

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

quickly exit room with no explanation and make way toward bathroom.

too many witnesses.

remember emergency baby bag and head for car.

wish i had not removed beach bag with extra flip flops.

locate baby wipes and attempt to remove offending odor.

find that offending odor has now hardened to solid clay mass.

think. think.

wrap car keys with baby wipes and forcefully pry offending odor out of shoe.

fifteen minutes later return to scrap booking.

find it absolutely necessary to share entire story with B.

laugh so hard tears roll down my face and B almost chokes on her reheated dinner.
i guess i'm just not destined to be a glamorous mommy.

it's not my place to show E perfection and polish.

instead, hopefully, she will learn a different lesson from all of my shortcomings..it's okay to laugh yourself.

ironically, when i was teaching school, we had to fill out a teacher questionnaire.

one of the questions was, "What is your most embarrassing moment?"

i couldn't think of a single thing to write.

i've named this post "Unglamorous Mommy Moments #'s 1-3" because it's only a matter of time until i have #4 or #5 or #6...this i know.

ps. these pictures have nothing to do with the story.

i just like them,

and they're a little glamorous,

don't ya think?

listening to: "The Glamorous Life" Shelia E.

Target.Home.Target.Home.

2009-04-14T20:28:00.012-04:00

today was one of those days.

in the midst of running a million errands with a little one in tow, i lost something.

again.

i am going to have to start keeping a list of all of the things that i have lost since having E.

this never used to happen, so there must be a connection.

our first casualty was a plastic figure from her Winnie-the-Pooh collection (funny...it really bothered me at the time because it meant that the set would not be complete, and now i can't even remember which one it was...Piglet? Tigger?)

it was dropped on a shopping trip to Publix, and although i noticed it was missing almost immediately, it was no where to be found.

later a coveted Mommy doll went missing at the EXACT same store (note to self: toys are forever banned from grocery shopping).

then there was the day i left an entire bag of sand toys at the playground....just walked right out without them.

crazy me felt the need to drive back there a couple of days later when i realized that they were gone in the hopes that they would still be sitting in the same spot undisturbed by parents who had been through this themselves or at the very least in the lost and found at the park office.

no luck.

i hope the person who ended up with them REALLY needed them.

on the plus side, E scored a brand new plastic wagon full of beach gear...much nicer than that which we had lost.

over spring break, husband bought E a stuffed lion on a trip to an outlet mall.

approximately an hour and a half later, we left it on or near the table in the restaurant we had chosen for dinner....focusing instead on the promise of a free balloon at the end of the meal.

arghhhhhhhh.

i HATE losing things!

mainly because i hate wasting money, and what could be more wasteful than perfectly good items left haphazardly around town because i am too distracted to even remember that i had them with me in the first place?

today started out productively.

i crossed a number of items off of my list fairly quickly as we cruised around town hitting various stores.

E was well behaved and happy.

we successfully navigated the joys of potty training in public places
(no more diapers=constant trips to public restrooms=FUN!)

we had even managed to squeeze in lunch out with no complications.

our last stop was Target.

it was here that things took a turn for the worse

because i decided to shell out $5.50 for this DVD:
i figured that it would buy me at least 30 minutes of quiet time once we got home, and that seemed well worth the small investment.

E clutched it happily as we made our way up and down the aisles.

when we reached the bakery, she loudly reminded me that she had been promised a cookie for being such a good errand runner/lunch eater.

ugh.

Target doesn't give away/sell individual cookies like our beloved Publix.

E quickly pointed out her pick.

i had to buy a whole box of yellow-frosted, rainbow-sprinkled sugar cookies (well, i guess i didn't HAVE to, but i did).

blech...not my sweet of choice (although truthfully that was part of their charm...i was pretty certain i wouldn't have to worry about snacking on them late at night..i do have SOME standards).

we made our way to the checkout line where E started her routine chant of, "the man is going to put it in the bag....the man is going to put it in the bag....."

she has serious issues with her chosen items being packaged once they have been purchased and makes sure to let everyone who will listen know that she wishes to have said items returned to her hands immediately after being scanned (most likely because she is told that she may not open anything until we have purchased it, so once she knows that it is ours, she is finally free to bust open the package...even if the package contains nothing more than a plain ol' DVD that really isn't all that exciting minus the required DVD player).

"Clifford's Doghouse Adventures" was promptly scanned and returned to her, and i attempted to pay, gather up my bags, tuck my receipt away for safekeeping, zip up my purse to prevent spillage, and make my way to the car.

halfway across the parking lot, E remembered the cookies.

she was fading fast after a long afternoon of running around town, and she REALLY didn't want to wait for her cookie.

i put her in her car seat and scrambled to open the cookie box figuring that she could eat one while i loaded the bags into the car.

mission accomplished.

i started the car and headed for home.

E finished her cookie and fell asleep before we were even out of the parking lot.

i was happy to have the radio all to myself and quickly switched off the kiddie music.

twenty minutes later as i was turning on to my street, my mommy mind kicked in.

E's not much of a napper unless she is in the car, so i figured she'd be wide awake the minute i attempted to remove her from her car seat.

i had a whole carload of stuff to unload.

no matter.....i'll just pop in the Clifford DVD.............

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

the minute i thought about it, i KNEW i didn't have it!

the last time i had seen it, she had been clutching it in her hands.

when i lifted her into the car, her hands were empty eagerly anticipating the promised cookie.

had i taken it from her and put it in the bag?!?

OR

had it slid down in that minuscule little gap between the shopping cart child seat and the side of the cart?

i was pretty sure it was the later.

i pulled into the driveway, jumped out, and checked the bag.

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

my mind went back and forth on this one.

E's was still sleeping....do i drive allll the way back there in the hopes that the $5.50 DVD will somehow miraculously still be sitting in the basket in the shopping cart corral?

do i chalk it up to one more lost item AND risk listening to E asking me for it for the rest of the evening (that girl NEVER forgets a thing)?

i REALLY didn't want to drive all the way back there.

but i did.

and when i swung into the parking lot, the shopping cart corral was still full of shopping carts!

could this be my lucky day?!?!

i whipped into the closest parking space and began frantically searching the carts.

nothing.

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

the shopping cart rounder-upper guy noticed my frantic search and suggested i try the customer service desk.

i debated.

what were the odds?

E was still sleeping....was it worth waking her up to march all the way in there?

well, i had driven all the way back, may as well exhaust all avenues.

woke E up, plunked her in a cart and headed inside.

made my way to customer service, receipt in hand, started to explain what had happened and was promptly interrupted by E who clearly understood that something was amiss...something involving her Clifford DVD.

"Where's my Clifford DVD? Where's my Clifford DVD?"

by some small miracle, the customer service girl's expression let me know that she knew EXACTLY what i was talking about...she began to fumble around the counter mumbling, "now where did i put that?"

could it be?

HALLELUJAH! HALLELUJAH!

someone...some saint, no doubt....had found it in a cart and turned it in!

i can't even tell you how thrilled i was!

it wasn't the cost of the DVD but the time and effort that had been put into trying to locate it that made it so valuable.

i wish that i could say we are turning a corner with this little story, and from now on i will be more focused and nothing else will be added to the "forever lost" list, but it is only a matter of time before it will happen again, so it's best to celebrate the happy endings when you can...this i know.

listening to: "Happy Ending" Sugarland

Spring Has Sprung

2009-04-13T22:35:00.035-04:00

our first full week of April was somewhat scattered....like the toys on her playroom floor.

husband had to work 40something hours straight at spring break junior deputy camp which left me in the role of single parent.

God bless single parents!

it's amazing what a difference it makes to have an extra set of eyes and hands at the end of the day when you are the most tired.

husband usually arrives home before four. he spends the majority of the next 4-5 hours entertaining E while i prepare dinner and try to complete a few of the tasks that i find almost impossible to do when i am alone with her (okay, so sometimes i read a magazine from cover to cover...a luxury i never appreciated until i had a child).

in any case, he is also the bath giver, pajammie dresser, and all around mr. fun,

and E misses him when he is not around,

but not as much as mommy.

you see, he is also the playroom picker-upper ( i know, i know...his duties never end! believe it or not, i also work around here, but my jobs seem to be slightly more invisible...note that the mail is sorted, the bills are paid, there is food in the refrigerator...oh, and that toliet paper and toothpaste? it doesn't just magically appear in the bathroom, but i digress.....)

i may have been the brains behind the playroom design...with all of its special cubbies and bins for organization, but husband....he's the brawn....and when he is not here for a few days in a row, it pretty much looks like this:

i just do not have the patience to continually clean a room that will inevitably return to its pre-clean state in a matter of mere minutes.

at some point, she will be required to clean it up herself each time (we are making strides in this area...albeit gradually) and will think twice before completely destroying the place.

but for now, she seems to take great pleasure in dumping out as many different toys as possible until there is nothing but a sea of scattered baby dolls, plastic food, dress up clothes, books, figures, and game pieces.

i pretty much let her do her thing for the first two days of husband's absence, but i did attempt to restore it to its original condition before he walked through the door lest he think that i am incapable of doing so.....for future reference honey, i can.....i just don't want to....so in case i haven't said it before, thanks for being such a super playroom picker-upper (and an even better daddy...we missed you!)
playroom restored to its pristine state, we decided to spend Thursday, his first full day off, together.

we hit the local outlet mall in the hopes that i would be able to find a presentable outfit to wear on Easter morning. i have done very little shopping for myself since having had E....no real alone time anymore, and even littler patience. i would much rather shop for her, and the majority of my wardrobe now consists of shorts, solid colored shirts, and sandals.

i was on a mission for at least one "dressy" outfit for myself.

somehow i still managed to end up here:
in my defense...E was in need of some new summer clothes, and Gymboree has some of the cutest styles for kids....and it is an outlet.....oh, and i scored $50 in Gymbucks to use on a future purchase.

E made a few fountain wishes
and checked out a sweet new ride.
the person who first started incorporating play areas into shopping centers is a genius!

happily i did walk away with 2 new dresses....didn't manage to find shoes or accessories, but there is always next time.

the next day we began our Easter preparations.

we started out attempting to make Jello Jigglers using the egg shaped molds i inherited from my mother a million years ago.

they have been sitting in my kitchen cabinet for quite awhile now(along with the popsicle maker, heart shaped sandwich cutter, cookie press, baby cheesecake pans, and other items i'm just sure i'm gonna need someday).

my mom made them once when my sister and i were younger.

they were cool-looking, but seeing as Jello isn't really at the top of my must-have dessert list, i had never made them myself.

i thought E might enjoy the process....she loves anything that has to do with cooking.

naturally, i could not find the booklet that i have been hanging on to forever which explains exactly how to do this and includes pictures of all of the advanced Jello eggs (yes, there is such a thing...you can even make them rainbow-like).

instead i looked it up on the internet, and we winged it.

you'll note that there is no final picture of the completed eggs.

yeah, um...turns out i may actually need that little booklet.

after all the stirring and pouring and measuring and refrigerating, we basically ended up with grape and lemon flavored puddles of Jello....more like plops of Jello really.

on to egg coloring....

i haven't done this in many many years.

it was fairly successful despite the coloring company's attempts at sabotage.

note the colors of the included plastic bowls below:
now i'm no scientist, but it stands to reason from the colors of said bowls that the dyes would be...some purpley shade, green, yellow, blue, and pink, right?

not so much.

imagine our surprise when the dye in the pink bowl turned out to be orange, and the dye in the purple bowl turned into a chalky mess because it was really the pink tablet...the pink tablet that you are not allowed to add vinegar to...who knew egg coloring had so many rules?

and don't even get me started on hard boiling eggs....apparently i am the one person on the earth who can't master this simple task....of course it didn't help that each "recipe" i had gave different steps/times for doing so.

eventually we ended up with eggs that could at least be dyed....maybe not eaten, and thanks to an old box of food coloring at the back of the spice cabinet, a purpley shade to use in place of the pink chalky mess.

we ended up with 11 colored eggs (one didn't make it through the process...someone forgot to tell E that she wasn't allowed to crack them on the counter).

E was happy, but i am convinced we can do a better job.

next year, i will have to read up on this.
before i detail the rest of Easter weekend, i must comment on this:
i made the mistake of buying disposable bowls with animal prints....Zoo Pals, i think they're called,

and husband made the mistake of showing the stack to E and letting her chose which one she wanted the first time he opened the package.

thus beginning the ritual of her "choosing a bowl that is just right for me" every time she wants a snack.

as if that is not bad enough, she often must also "chose a bowl that is just right for Biscuit (her stuffed dog)."

that girl sure knows how to maximize her opportunities.

on to Saturday morning.

we had a big day planned.

not one but two egg hunts....back to back.....Aunt C's idea...which i agreed to as long as Aunt C was up to the challenge of taking the lead role on the second hunt.

we started off at the hunt closest to our home.

we arrived about 15 minutes before the official start time.

i had warned Grammie and Aunt C that if they wanted to see it, they'd better be on time because we'd learned from past experience that it starts at 10:00 and is over by 10:05.

in fact, the waiting for the hunt is longer than the actual hunt.
finally the signal was given...and the 0-2 group was off....
E broke ahead of the pack
and began plucking eggs like an old pro.

she scored about half a basketful,

and this year, she did it all by herself.
we opened the eggs to check out the loot,
took a few minutes to make a bunny craft,
and enjoyed a sweet treat.

then it was off to hunt number 2...also known as Bunnymania.

i'm not gonna lie...it was quite a rush to make it halfway across town in 40 minutes (not to mention the fact that we had to park off site and practically run to the ticket line all the while carrying E and her basket).

despite a looooong line of incredibly slooooow moving people and a clock that kept ticking closer and closer to the 11AM start time, E and Aunt C managed to make it inside the fence with a few minutes to spare.

Aunt C outlined their strategy as E listened intently.

Grammie and i watched from behind the fence (daddy decided to sit this one out and headed home after the first hunt).
the starting call was given, and she was off again....

it was another successful adventure.

E was so excited to be hanging with her Aunt C.
once again we sat down to sort through the loot

and found one of the slips we had been hoping for....a visit to the "prize" table.
E picked a new friend to love,
had a quick meeting with the Easter Bunny,
and skipped off to the bounce houses.

E was feeling the love.

she scored some free chicken,
spent time talking to a cow,

and managed to squeeze in one quick slide as we headed out of the park.
it was HOT....and we were STARVING.

we avoided the inevitable mall crowd and cruised on over to the Red Lobster where i dare say we were the youngest diners.
more egg sorting

more lovin'

a final goodbye to the death row lobsters,
and back home we went.

it had been a great, busy, day.
Easter morning we donned our yellow and navy outfits.

i had every intention of getting some good family photos and had coordinated our clothes, but a breakfast strawberry spill kinda killed those plans.
off to church we went to meet Grammie and Aunt C.
after a moving service and some beautiful music, we enjoyed a yummy brunch at the Cheesecake Factory.
E entertained us with a game of "funny faces."

she went around the table one by one and made us display our best funny face....

"now you" (pointing at daddy)...."now me"
"now you" (pointing at mommy)...."now me"
"now you" (pointing at grammie)...."now me"
"now you" (pointing at Aunt C)...."now me"
ever the director, once she had made her way around the table, she piped up with "okay now, put it all together..." which made us all burst out laughing.
after brunch, E headed to Grammie's house, and husband and i went home to relax for awhile and see what the Easter Bunny had left.
around dinnertime we headed over to Grammie's and found E wearing Grammie's Easter bonnet.

she was quite excited to see what the Easter Bunny had left for her.

we had taken a family vote and decided to forgo the traditonal ham and fixin's for grilled steak, baked potato bar, veggies, and Aunt C's famous salad.
naturally E had chicken just like her Aunt C.
we ended the weekend with a DELICIOUS carrot cake that we guilted my mom into making.

this was the cake my mom made almost every Easter when we were growing up, and we started talking about it the day before when we found out that she was planning on making orange juice cake.

bless her little heart, she dug through her piles of cookbooks and found the original recipe. i can't wait to get a copy....it's so good it deserves its own post.
we had such a nice holiday.

the weekend may be over, but the jellybeans will linger on for a few more weeks...this i know.

listening to: "Here Comes Peter Cottontail"

54 Years

2009-04-09T20:14:00.007-04:00

that's a whole lotta together time.
these are the parents i inherited when i married husband.
truly i couldn't be any luckier.

from the beginning they made me feel so welcome and such a part of their family despite the fact that i was not their first daughter-in-law.

it has been a joy to share vacations and holidays with them through the years....to see their love and devotion to their family.....to watch them in their relationship with God and each other.

sometimes i wonder if husband realizes how lucky he is to have two parents...still healthy...still in love.

sadly it seems to be the exception these days.

they will be the first to admit that it hasn't always been easy...that marriage and family are work...sometimes hard work.
but here they are....54 years later....still working at it....still loving....still serving as role models of faith and commitment.

their 3 children are lucky. their 8 grandchildren are lucky. their 1.5 great grandchildren are lucky.

and i am lucky...to know them, to be a part of their extended family, to be able to call them Mom and Dad.

Happy Anniversary!

your marriage is an example to me...this i know.

listening to: "Through the Years" Kenny Rogers

March.....These were a few of my favorite things...

2009-03-31T23:15:00.001-04:00

home improvement projects
hired help
birthday parties
goodie bags
new recipes
baked ziti
roasted veggies
homemade tortilla chips
pineapple upside down cake
brand new family members
cousins
yellow roses
matching shoes
holiday hair bows
corned beef and cabbage
updo's and ponytails
fruit trees
freshly polished nails
a clean pantry
art museums
free family days
knee socks

YOO HOO, March...Wait For Me!

2009-03-31T20:45:00.069-04:00

what?

you have to go?

so soon?

but you just got here, and i'm not finished with you yet!

you sure kept me busy!

at least that's what my calendar says happened.

i spent most of the month finishing up saved February posts.

i'm not quite sure how i fell so far behind.

i think it may have something to do with the time change. it's been harder to get E to sleep on time. i keep thinking that it is earlier than it is. our bedtime routine has been happening later and later, and by the time i read that last book to her, i'm pretty much ready to collapse myself...no late night writing for me this month.

it could also be the new television schedule. i find myself having actual programs to watch at night which severely hinders my desire to sit in front of the computer. let's face it...if it's a choice between mindless tv viewing and stretching myself by trying to form words into coherent sentences past 10PM, the idiot box is pretty much going to win every time.

luckily i have photographic evidence (193 pictures on my camera, to be exact) that proves the month was not a complete loss.

so, what have we been up to around here?

well, let's take a peek (i promise to spare you all of the pictures).

to begin with, we've finally decided to dip into our savings and have our 80's kitchen remodeled. the best part about this decision is that we are going to let someone else remodel it. as husband likes to say, he has pretty much had to rebuild the whole house from the inside out (with me as his trusty sidekick) since we moved in 13 years ago. we are in no way, shape, or form qualified to have done this, but my think-we-can-do-it-ourselves-and-save-lots-of-money attitude and his willingness to give it a try have gotten us pretty far. still...we know our limitations. we did our own "kitchen remodeling" a few years back....painted the plain grey formica cabinets white, replaced the grey formica countertop with a "wood-like" (only slightly better than it sounds) formica countertop and purchased great new appliances (to hopefully distract from the rest). but now, the time has come to address the fact that the white paint is peeling and flaking, storage and use of space is still an issue, lighting needs improvement, and, well, we just want a new kitchen. i'm sure i'll hyperventilate when we start writing the checks...along the way i've come to learn that everything that you do to improve your house somehow enables you to see all the other things that need to be done thereby creating a whole new set of projects and bills. for now, i'm going to focus on the fact that i'll have real wood cabinets, granite countertops, plenty of storage, and lighting that lets me see it all. i'll post before and after pictures when we finally get started (in early June when husband has a week off and can assist....sadly he didn't get out of this project completely), but here is a sneak peek using some of the samples:

in other news...we had a birthday party to go to the first weekend of the month.

E got to wear one of her preppy little outfits.
the party had a Thomas the Train theme...E was thrilled the minute she got the invitation in the mail ( i'm pretty sure she didn't know all that much about Thomas, but she sure understood the words "birthday party"....i don't think i'm going to be able to get out of throwing her one of her own this year...she is starting to catch on, and another family party just isn't going to cut it....plans are already in the works for April).
this party was held at our local park.
E parked herself at a table the minute we arrived. i had to do quite a bit of convincing to get her to leave her spot and play for a bit on the equipment. she didn't want to miss the singing of the birthday song and the cake.

we had a good time, and E was thrilled to receive a goodie bag at the end.

"for me?!?!? oh, thank you, thank you!"

one of the blogs i follow inspired me to be more creative in the kitchen this month. i couldn't resist when a link for baked ziti appeared. i love to order it at restaurants but had never been able to find a good recipe....until now.

it was yummy!! (even if i did go a little overboard on the basil)

.....i will definitely be making this again.
i also stepped outside of my comfort zone on the veggies. it's interesting how we just get set in our ways. i've always cooked broccoli the exact same way (microwave steamed with a little butter and seasoning) in the exact same bowl.

on this night, i decided to branch out and try roasting it. WOW! sooo good...
sooo good i did it again the next night...this time with some added cauliflower.
later in the month, i made my own tortilla chips (so much cheaper and better for you + you can flavor them however you want) to go with chicken taco stew.

i like to cook, but sometimes i just get stuck in a rut. it's fun to have new recipes to try (especially if they turn out good and are actually edible...which doesn't always happen....no offense to Rachel Ray, but "Leek-y Chicken and Couscous" is a mistake you only want to make once... am i right, husband?).

E and i also did a little early morning baking one weekend.

we made a pineapple upside down cake to take to a "Welcome New Baby" brunch at my mom's house
where we finally got to meet our new cousin, M.

i didn't take as many pictures as i should have...i was so busy catching up with my family.

we had such a great day! M is just the sweetest baby, and it is so much fun seeing my cousin as a new mommy and my aunt as a new grammie. i hope that we will be able to get the girls together often as they grow.
later, we took some time to smell the flowers,

and suddenly it was St. Patrick's Day.
grammie came over for dinner.

i served corned beef and cabbage, of course.

a few days later, E and i sat outside eating grapes waiting for husband to come home.

another day we hit the backyard for some quick snaps,

and a little orange picking.

the month would not be complete without at least one of these surprises:
clearly E knew i would not be too happy to discover that she had found some highlighters as she promptly hid when i ventured into the playroom at the first sign of quiet (why is it that "quiet" is a sure sign of trouble when you have a child?)
i spent some time painting fingers and toes one day when E located the nail polish set Santa had stuck in her stocking.

she had very specific color choices...red on one foot, green on the other, and pink fingernails.

this color combination goes against my very nature (i need everything to be symmetrical and matching), but since i want her to develop into her own person (and since i know kiddie polish rubs off fairly quickly), i decided to indulge her.

she has since become a little fixated on the whole nail painting thing, and i'm almost regretting having done it.

i am not, however, regretting these cute little pictures:
i actually accomplished something this month...cleaning out the pantry. E insisted on being in the photo, but let me assure you, she was of no help with this project (see highlighter incident above). i am still amazed at how long it now takes me to do even the simplest of tasks, so much so that this actually seemed photo-worthy!
we ended the month by dressing E up in what can only be described as her "Rainbow Brite" look

and heading off to our local art museum for a carnival themed family fun day.

ironically, the art museum does not allow you to photograph any of the art in the museum (apparently the "art" of photography is lost on them), but i was able to get a shot of these beauties as we entered:

i wish i had thought to look at the nameplates.

inside, one of the galleries was featuring Norman Rockwell. it was an interesting display but since it was quite crowded (and since E hasn't quite mastered art appreciation), we didn't linger too long. we later concluded that with the exception of the Rockwell covers and the blown glass display, husband and i have not mastered art appreciation either because a lot of the paintings we just didn't get.

back outside E and husband had some fun playing the games,

and i decided that colorful knee socks are my new "must have" kid accessory! let's see how long she can rock this look.

all in all, it was a good month...this i know.

listening to: "Don't Blink" Kenny Chesney

February.....These were a few of my favorite things...

2009-02-28T23:22:00.003-05:00

unexpected flowers
watching husband get so excited over certain snack foods
E's imagination (even if it occasionally means more work for me)
unanswered prayers
high speed internet
county fairs
elephant ears
church services
Sunday School
Sunday breakfast
pajammie days
patience
family hugs
E's funny phrases
20+ years of friendship
photo albums
songs and movies that remind me of times gone by
mailboxes full of valentines
fancy once-in-awhile donuts
one-of-a-kind mommy/daughter aprons
Patti-cakes
family dinners
my hometown
strolling 5th avenue
teacher friends
the little things
kiddie pools
playgrounds
tea cups and saucers
quilts
Boyd's bunnies
Raggedy Ann and Andy
starting new collections for E
E's admiration of husband's job
watching E grow
laughing through frustration
E's cute girly girl outfits
Krispy Kreme donuts (in moderation, of course)
quiet playtime
sunsets

The Sunsets...Oh, The Sunsets!

2009-02-28T22:24:00.041-05:00

i'm not much of a beach person which is rather unfortunate considering where i live.

i guess it's because i'm just not a big fan of sweating, creepy creatures in the unseen parts of the ocean, water pruned, over burnt skin, and sand in the unmentionable parts of my bathing suit.
this wasn't always the case....when i was little, my mom, sister and i often spent our whole weekends at the beach. all of my mom's friends would join us, and we would make sandcastles, drift for hours on floats and have huge cookouts at sunset. my skin was golden, and my hair was streaked blonde. i had a ton of bathing suits, and i liked every one of them.
as i got older it became harder for me to enjoy the beach. building sandcastles lost its appeal. a pool seemed to be a better place to float than a creature filled body of salt water. i found that i really didn't enjoy the taste of sand on my hamburger. sunscreen suddenly became necessary, and i realized that i could get the same tan while working in my garden. my highlighted hair can be created in a salon (for quite a bit of money). oh, and the bathing suits? now i try on a million and am lucky to find even one that i kindasorta like.

thus the beach visits were pretty few and far between.
eventually....finally....along came E.

now that i have a little girl who happens to love the beach, i find that i am making more of an effort to go.

sometimes we visit during the day. we pack a lunch and truck on down to our favorite beach access. E totes her little wagon of sand toys to the perfect spot. i slather her with SPF50, and we park ourselves there for an hour or two. she digs and creates and runs and splashes....and i spend most of my time chasing her along the water's edge...making sure she doesn't go too far in. it's not very relaxing, but i don't mind.

however, my absolute favorite time to visit the beach is in the evenings....about an hour before sunset.....together....all three of us.
bathing suits and sunscreen are not required.
sometimes we pack dinner, sometimes we pick something up on the way home.

we tote our toys and our beach chairs.

E still runs along the water's edge.
we look for dolphins

and watch the palm trees sway in the ocean breeze.

E builds castles...

as the sun slowly sinks.

the beach may not always be my favorite place to visit, but the sunsets are spectacular...this i know.

listening to: "Sunset Grill" Don Henley

Learning How to Play

2009-02-27T20:07:00.014-05:00

sometimes i catch her....in the playroom....by herself.....doing her own little thing, and it just makes my heart stop.
this little person who started out as a floppy, can't-even-hold-her-head-up baby has grown into this amazing little girl with her own thoughts, feelings, and actions.

it shouldn't be so surprising. it happened to all of us...growing, changing, learning new things.....but getting to witness your own child go through these stages is just such a privilege.
i'm no stranger to watching kids learn. i taught elementary school for 13 years before i had her, but i spent most of my time in third grade. i didn't get to see a lot of the "early" learning. i didn't think i was all that interested in early childhood education.

but now that i have a toddler, suddenly i want to know....

what makes her tick?

what can i do to help her become her best self?

am i doing everything i can to help her develop all of her special gifts?

and i worry.....

should i be taking her to more classes?

am i taking her to too many classes?

will i know when to step in and when to back off?

but then i remember....

she isn't quite three yet.

~b-r-e-a-t-h-e~

learning and growing doesn't happen over night. it's a series of small steps.

every day doesn't have to be planned for maximum outcome.

it's okay to just be sometimes.

in fact, it's quite necessary.

if we are lucky, there will be many years ahead to learn all the lessons the universe has in store for us.

for now, it's okay for her to spend some of her time just learning how to play...this i know.

listening to: "My Little Girl" Tim McGraw

Temptation

2009-02-26T22:08:00.011-05:00

one of the schools that husband works at had a fund raiser.......but......not just any fund raiser....a Krispy Kreme fundraiser.

husband bought two dozen.

uh, HELLOoooooooooo! there are only 3 of us in this household!

husband can resist. he is more of a salty snacker.

E won't want what she doesn't know we have (and is somewhat hesitant when it comes to bread products anyway even if they are coated in liquid sugar).

but me? i could eat a whole box.

sure, maybe i'd regret it after, but by then it would be too late.

we had a conversation about it before he even brought any home.

husband- "guess what? they are having a fund raiser at school."

me- "we don't need any (whatever the item for sale may be)."

husband- "you didn't even let me tell you what it is.... your favorite......Krispy Kremes. $6 for a dozen."

me-"ohhhhhh, why'dyatellme?!?! you know i can't resist the power of the Krispy Kreme!"

husband-"i know...that's why i ordered two dozen."

me-"WHAT?!?! two dozen...are you crazy? i can't eat two dozen donuts!"(well i can, but i shouldn't)

husband- " they're for all of us."

me- "uh, yeah...even so, we don't need more than one dozen. just one dozen, okay?" (too weak at the thought of heavenly donuts to completely cancel the order)

husband- "okay."

me- "K, seriously....don't get more than one dozen...pleeease!"

apparently husband forgot this conversation because the following week, he arrived home with two green dotted boxes each containing a dozen of the softest, sweetest, yummiest donuts.....

arghhhhh...what to do now?

i pawned a few off on my mother (despite her repeated protests...i wasn't going down alone).

that still left 21.

husband ate a few.

i set my limit....no more than one per day.

i was determined to outlast these donuts.

it was HARD.

one disappeared so quickly with my morning coffee, i hardly even believed i ate it.

the others called from the kitchen.

i thought about drowning them....putting the whole extra box under the faucet and turning the water on full blast until nothing remained but a soaking wet green dotted box full of sugary water and swollen white dough.

that didn't seem fair. it wasn't the donuts fault and what if suddenly a whole bunch of people stopped by for breakfast?

so, i did the next best thing.

i ate my one per day, and i waited.

within a few short days, my soft yummy donuts turned hard and somewhat stale. finally i was able to throw the rest away. i may be a sucker when it comes to sweets, but i do have some standards...this i know.

listening to: "Pour Some Sugar On Me" Def Leppard

Girly Girl

2009-02-25T21:01:00.009-05:00

i love having a little girl.

i love the accessories (even if i don't really love the extra 10-15 minutes it takes to fix her hair each day...tangles weren't fun when i was little and being tortured/combed by my mom, and they still aren't fun now that i'm the torturer/comber, but the bows and clips and bands and assorted doodads almost make up for it).
i love love the outfits!

seriously...why do they make such cute clothes for little girls and why does it stop at some point in your early 30's (when the 20something clothes no longer look right and you're not quite ready to make the change to elastic waistbands and printed housedresses...where are the clothes for people in their 30's and 40's?!?! why are they so hard to find?)

i would rather shop for her than myself any day of the week. it's so much easier. no trying things on. no combing racks for the latest style. almost everything is cute, and if the size corresponds with your age, it pretty much will fit.

most of all, i love love love dressing her up in a new outfit.

it really is like having a living doll (which is probably sooo wrong, but since she doesn't seem to mind, i'm not gonna question it).

don't be mislead....the wardrobe battles have already begun. earlier this week, she threw a fit because she didn't want to wear green (i let her change her top...no biggie). she wanted to wear a long sleeve pink sweatshirt to Kindermusik (with temperatures in the low 80's, i won this battle...sometimes mom really does know best). she would wear her Wall-E tee every day of the week if we'd let her. she has decided that her backyard splash pool is "clothing optional", and she often removes her shoes in the car when we're on our way somewhere.

but for now, most of the time, she still lets me have my way and i get to pick out some really cute outfits.

someday soon, my opinion will no longer matter and she will make her own wardrobe selections. i will try my best to let her express herself within reason, but we are bound to have many arguments as she grows older about clothes and hairstyles and makeup and all the other fun things that come with being a girl....this i know.

listening to: "Just a Girl" No Doubt

What Now?

2009-02-24T21:52:00.006-05:00

so i'm trying (rather unsuccessfully what with the constant make E breakfast, clean up breakfast, take to E potty, get E dressed, comb and secure E's hair out of her face, pick up E's toys, investigate strange sound of silence coming from playroom, make E lunch, clean up lunch, another trip to potty, etc.) to organize my pantry and make a shopping list so that we can actually get out of the house and go to the grocery store before the sun sets.

at some point after eating a fairly decent lunch, E strolls back into the kitchen to check my progress and spies some Little Debbie zebra cakes that i have tossed out of the pantry and onto the counter (leftover junk food purchased for dog sitter to eat during our Disney vacation).

naturally, she wants one.

since she did eat a real lunch on this particular day...and since i could use a few uninterrupted minutes to finish my task, i relent and hand one over along with a big sippy cup full of milk so that it at least seems to have some nutritional value.

not five minutes later, i hear E's chirpy voice, "Mommy, I'm alllllll stickkkkkyyyy!!!"

i turn around from my stespstool perch (i'm nearing the top shelf of the pantry at this point), and this is what i see:

what in the world?!?!?
after snapping a few pictures (so that someday when she complains about her own children, i can whip these photos out...'nuff said!), i couldn't help but add, "well, that's great....i sure hope the ants don't get a hold of you."

suddenly having zebra cake smashed all over her forehead didn't seem like such a good idea, and she hightailed it into the kitchen to get herself some paper towels...
...but couldn't resist giving me one last "ants or no ants, i'm totally okay with having this cake all over myself...i did it, and i take complete ownership of it" face.
i figured i'd better assess the damage in the playroom.

nothing a few paper towels and a quick vacuuming couldn't take care of.
all i can figure is that maybe, just maybe, she was attempting to imitate a dog or cat again and missed her mark when she went in for her first hands-free bite.

what gets into her mind sometimes...this i wish i knew.

listening to: "I'm Crazy For This Girl" Lifehouse

Nuggets, Nuggets, and More Nuggets

2009-02-22T22:39:00.007-05:00

Monthly Profile of E

name: knows she has 3 names...first, last, and middle, but when you ask her to tell you her 3 names, she gives you the first one and then splits the last one into 2 syllables

nicknames: butter(as in buttercup), cookiepants, booboo, kookey, pumpkin, baby

alias: currently masquerading as Puddles the cat...gets very offended if you tell her that she is a (insert adjective here-nice, helpful, big, etc.) girl and insists that "i'm not a girl, i'm a cat named Puddles" then rubs up against you, purrs, and occasionally licks you for emphasis. spends much of the day handing Mommy a wand and asking her to "spell me into Puddles the cat, please."

age: 2 1/2 but tells people that after her birthday, she'll be 3 1/2

accomplices: an imaginary dog named Beasley who is apparently a bit of a troublemaker...when you ask her where he is, she usually states that he is chasing Wall-E (movie robot character friend) and then proceeds to yell at him

occupation: full time entertainer

hobbies: singing, dancing, painting, play dough, making messes, tag, hide and go seek, soccer, watching TV/DVD's, cooking with Mommy, swinging, playing in the kiddie pool

favorite toys: dollhouse and dollhouse family, puzzles (can put 24 piece puzzles together completely independently which surprises and amuses us), V-tech V-motion game (is finally figuring out how to use this on her own), Polly Pockets (really any teeny tiny toys....she LOVES miniatures), play food and dishes (has recently become interested in serving tea with her tea set), any and all animal toys (especially puppies and kitties)

favorite foods: NUGGETS RULE! would(and sometimes does) eat chicken nuggets 7 days a week! cheese is a close second. not fond of breakfast foods but will eat an occasional bowl of cereal or oatmeal, cheese omelet, sausage or breakfast potato. hot dogs, salsalito turkey, ham cubes, meatball soup, mac and cheese (sometimes), Cheez-its, jewjees (her name for fruit snacks...her favorite treat), shredded lettuce and/or cucumbers with Ranch dressing, LOVES most beans~black beans, red beans, lima beans, baked potatoes, Mommy's spaghetti and meatballs, breaded pork chops, Daddy's chicken and rice, likes pretty much all fruit, is a big fan of desserts (just like her Mom)......this is pretty much her whole menu right now, but we keep trying to introduce new things

dislikes: being told she is a girl when she is clearly a cat, having her hair rinsed or combed, going to bed before she is ready, sandwiches and anything else that is not on her preferred menu, having to leave a place or stop an activity when she doesn't want to, hearing the word "no."

likes to go: to Kindermusik, shopping (even to the grocery store), on bike rides to the end of the street to throw rocks into the canal, to open gym (to jump on the trampoline), to the beach, to the playground, to the library, on adventures

she is changing so much from month to month. i think that i need to stop every once in awhile and record all of the little things that she is loving and doing before she moves on to new things and i can't even remember a time when she had an imaginary dog and seemed to eat nothing but chicken nuggets and cheese. next month will no doubt bring a whole new set of stories (and hopefully a few new foods to add to the list)...this i know.

listening to: "Isn't She Lovely" Stevie Wonder

Throw Away the Key

2009-02-21T22:36:00.005-05:00

each day when daddy comes home from work, E likes to take a few minutes to admire his uniform.

she especially likes to look at his name tag, badge, American flag pin, flashlight, and whistle.

on this particular day, she was reviewing her favorite accessories when daddy surprised her by removing the handcuffs from their black leather pouch.

E got very serious when we showed her how they worked.....like she knew exactly what they were used for.

luckily for her, her little hands slip right out...no key needed.

while this made for some funny photos at the tender age of almost three....i NEVER want to see a picture like this again in her future.....this i know.

listening to: "Smooth Criminal" Michael Jackson

How One Becomes Many

2009-02-20T22:29:00.016-05:00

i am a collector....of people (i've come to discover).... and things.

i try very hard not to hold on to too much "stuff" lest i risk turning into my mother who can be something of a pack rat, and both of my grandmothers who were definitely pack rats.

but every once in awhile, i come upon something that catches my eye.

most of my collections center around my love of the sweet little shops we visit when we vacation in those small country towns near the beautiful Smokey Mountains (did i use enough adjectives in that sentence?!?)

the antique stores and general stores are such a hodgepodge of unique and interesting items. i love the way the merchandise looks all grouped together in different nooks and crannies.....i can spend countless hours in those stores.

when we vacationed in Black Mountain, i bought these cup/saucer racks at a downtown store just because i loved they way they looked hanging on the wall. i didn't even know where i was going to put them, but, after a quick coat of white spray paint, they eventually ended up in my dining room. they finally gave me a reason to buy all the dainty cup and saucer sets i had always admired, and they spawned two other collections...ceramic tea pots and lemon tea tins.

i've always loved quilts. i love the history of them (even if most of the ones i own were most likely made on a machine instead of in an old time sewing circle). i bought my first quilt when we bought our house because it seemed to fit the country style of the home. even when i change the decor of the rooms, i always keep the quilts.

Boyd's bunnies......don't remember exactly how this collection started, but i know that it was when husband and i got our first apartment. these bunnies are all tagged/named/dated, and for awhile there a few years back, i really got into collecting the ones that had "retired." i haven't bought one in years, but the 15 or so i do have peek out from several shelves in my hallway.

assorted Raggedy Ann and Andy items.....purchased over the past decade from the craft show that comes to the civic center several times a year. again, i'm not sure why i started this collection....maybe because as a kid, one of my talented distant relatives made my sister and i life size Raggedy Ann dolls (so we could actually wear the clothes....they made great Halloween costumes...wish we had kept them all this time so that i could have passed them down to E.....hey talented Aunt J, are you looking for another project?).

i haven't added to these collections since E was born. i didn't realize this until i sat down to write. i have already started some collections for her.....dated character pins from our Disney vacations and, of course, dated Christmas ornaments (this particular collection was actually started by her Grammie who unbeknownst to us had been colecting ornaments since the year we got married for her future granchild....i don't think she thought that she would have to wait 10 years to finally give this gift!) i have put all of my previous collections on hold and am now busy collecting the most precious thing......memories. someday these stories and pictures will mean more to me (and hopefully to E, too) than any other material thing....this i know.

listening to: "This Is Me" Faith Hill

The Playground

2009-02-19T22:20:00.002-05:00

on an unusually cold and breezy day earlier this month, we found ourselves, along with Aunt C, at a downtown playground.
E was all smiles running around and playing on all of the equipment.
she is such a happy child.....we are very lucky.
i know i say it again and again, but i just can't believe how much she has grown.
it seems like only yesterday i was holding a helpless, floppy baby in my arms.
now i watch my toddler run and jump and skip and slide and explore her world.
the playground seems to be the first place outside the home that a child gets a little bit of freedom....sure the mommies and daddies are hovering, but the kids don't seem to notice once they climb onto the play structure. there they are in a world of their own....observing and often copying others, inventing games, practicing patience waiting in line for the big slide.

i didn't realize the value of community playgrounds until i had a child.

i drove by them every day and never gave them much thought even though i had spent countless hours of my own childhood climbing, swinging, and sliding with my sister and friends.

now, i have come to know each of the local playgrounds quite well.

we are fortunate to have so many to choose from all over the county each offering something a little different from the others.

when the weather is too nice to be inside, there is no place like a playground to spend some quality family time...this i know.

Pool Party for One

2009-02-18T19:48:00.002-05:00

sunny day, plastic pool, favorite swimsuit, garden hose...E's idea of a perfect afternoon....this i know.

C is for Cookie...

2009-02-17T23:56:00.001-05:00

...it's good enough for me.

E's gotta agree with Cookie Monster on this one.

daddy came home one day last week with a little treat for his special girl.

she was so excited when he walked in the door...as she always is....but when she spied something extra in his hands, the excitement reached a new level.

daddy (in his most mischievous sing-song voice)- "i've got a surprise for you.."

E- "for me? ohhh....whatizit, whatizit?" (jumping up and down and all around him)

out from the bag he pulled the most girly looking cookie ever....pink frosting and rainbow sprinkles galore....E's idea of the perfect snack.
she took a few little nibbles off the end before generously offering me a bite.

then she retreated to the sunlit coffee table to relish the remainder in quiet.

sometimes it really is the little things that make you the happiest....this i know.

Mrs. P

2009-02-16T22:34:00.001-05:00

President's Day

no school.

husband has day off (and can stay home with E) + teacher friend has day off= a grown up lunch date for me

Mrs. P and i met at our favorite spot (and by favorite, i mean a charming little coffee bar/soup/sandwich place where you can chat away for several hours without feeling bad about occupying a table in someone's section....counter service, so no waiters/waitresses...the perfect place for us to meet every few weeks to catch up on each other's lives).

i don't call her Mrs. but i do call her P (her last name). it started when we were teaching together and found ourselves with two D's (her first name) on our third grade team.

the easiest way to get the attention of DP was to call her by her last name.

it helps that it is a four-syllable word that sounds pretty cool when you shout it across an empty classroom.

Mrs. P and i met when she was transferred (under rather challenging circumstances) to the elementary school where i taught.

it took awhile (and a classroom reassignment) for us to get to know each other well, but i liked her from the start.
she, like many of my friends (and my husband), is not afraid to tell it like it is.

i admire this about her (even though it has surprised me on occasion.....i can't count how many times i have said,"you didn't really say that, did you?" to her).

she is funny and smart and interesting.

she tells great stories and can always make me laugh.

she is slightly...ever so slightly...older than me, but you'd never know it...

i love to hear her advice because i know it is based on her own life experiences.

she often makes me think about things in a different way.

she is just a really great friend....a friend i have had for over 8 years now.

i spent 13 years teaching at the elementary level in this town and taught every grade except for kindergarten.

over the years i worked at 4 very different elementary schools and made many good friends along the way, but the best place i worked was the very last one....partly because i finally got to stay in one grade for an extended period of time (7 years in third grade) and partly because of some of the people i eventually got to work so closely with.

our team added and lost people over the years, but in the end, it was the year with FF, JC, NK, DP, KP, and DC that was my favorite.

these lovely ladies, so varied in ages and life circumstances, and i had lunch together almost every single day.

we talked some about school and teaching but more about our own lives. we sorted out problems and shared in joys and sorrows together. we weren't all always the best of friends, but we were united in more discussions than i can even remember. i think we all felt the power of our own little team and were very protective of it. the camaraderie i felt with this group of women made the demands of teaching a little more bearable. these women made me laugh on a daily basis.

leaving teaching for me was not a difficult choice. i always knew i wanted to be a stay-at-home mom, and in the end, the challenges of teaching were beginning to wear on me.

the thing i truly miss the most are the people.

the students i taught....well, some of them :-)

the families who truly appreciated and assisted with their child's education,

and most of all...my lunch ladies...my own personal little version of The View..complete with daily hot topics and occasional guest stars (substitute teachers).

while it's not possible to recreate scenes from the past, i am so grateful that i get a chance now and then to visit the lunch table with one of my buddies and hear about her life and all the latest school news.

so thanks, Mrs. P, for always making the effort to schedule our get togethers. i miss seeing you every day, but i'm glad we are still in touch.

oh, and since i forgot to mention it....congratulations on becoming a Nationally Board Certified Teacher! (i stole your picture from the newspaper) you worked so hard for it, and you deserve it....your students are lucky to have you....this i know.

Mainstreet...Anytown, USA

2009-02-15T19:26:00.000-05:00

husband and i had a post Valentine's day lunch at one of the fancy little restaurants on our town's swankiest street.

it's a part of town we don't make it to very often.

the street itself is BEAUTIFUL....all redone and fabulously chic and trendy....very unlike us (hence the infrequent visits).

though now very much on the far southern edge of the main route through town, it was, once upon a time, a true downtown.

like so many streets in small towns across this great country, it used to serve a very real purpose.

in a time in which malls did not exist, it WAS the shopping and banking destination of the city's residents.

my husband remembers visiting the sporting goods store for new sneakers and grocery shopping at the supermarket.

my memories center more on browsing around the small, locally-owned drugstore that just dripped with old Florida style, checking the time and temperature on the giant digital clock that stood on the corner by the bank, choosing my favorite flavor at the ice cream parlor (one of the few original businesses that still exists in its same location), and taking my grandfather to get his haircut by Ollie at the two-seater barbershop.
as the town grew, new shopping centers and malls opened up in more central locations.

many people stopped visiting "the avenue" for their day-to-day needs.

somewhere along the way, someone came in with ideas on how to revitalize this historic part of town.

it's gone through several transformations over the years.... but, like pretty much everything else in our town, what was old has been made new again.

some miss the ambiance and businesses of the original downtown......the sporting goods store, supermarket, and drugstore have all closed (the drugstore held on the longest but eventually conceded its defeat....high rent and competition from the chains forced it to finally shut its doors).

the beautiful palms are still there lining the streets, but many of the buildings have been transformed from one story commercial buildings into two-story shopping/dining/business/residential destinations.

although i am usually a fan of refurbishing structures in their original style, i have to say that i just love, love, love the look of the "new" downtown.

it's so pristine and picturesque.

there are beautiful cafes and coffee shops and trendy restaurants with outdoor seating. there is a lovely little inn fronted with an awning under which glass doors open onto the street's heavily traveled sidewalk. there are specialty stores with well planned window displays.

the busy-ness of the street coupled with its parallell parking make it seem like a scaled down version of a big city.

in season, it is a difficult street to travel down as it is almost bursting with cars and people. restaurants with fairly expensive menus are packed full. parking spots are hard to come by.

on holidays, residents and visitors alike line both sides of the street to watch parade floats go by. it is a joyous, festive atmosphere....very unique to our no-longer small town.

in the summertime, it quiets down some, but these are the months most frequented by locals.

the "avenue" is perpendicular to the "street"...another revitalized area of the same caliber.

it is connected to the waterfront area, a combination of remodeled and new establishments developed to capitalize on the back bays that ultimately lead to the gulf.

all three of these areas are simply charming.

i think that because i live here, i do not fully appreciate their special features.

the restaurants are not on our list of favorites (we haven't even dined in most of them). we don't think to throw E in the car and take a stroll down the avenue. it never even occurs to us to shop its interesting little stores.

instead, it seems more like a place for visitors to appreciate.

i'm not sure why this is, but i think that i need to change my perception.

i won't always live here.

i want to move away someday to a place where i can more fully enjoy the seasons....a place near the mountains.....a different state.

when that day finally comes.....the day that we are no longer Floridians..... i am sure that we will come here on vacation and stay at that gorgeous little inn in the heart of the "new" downtown, eat in the fancy restaurants, browse the unique shops, stroll to the nearby beach, and walk the wooden pier.

it is strange that i can see this as part of my future but not part of my present.

this needs to change.

while i am still living here, i need to spend more time exploring and appreciating these interesting areas of my hometown and making memories with my family.....this i know.

Love Is...

2009-02-14T23:15:00.042-05:00

a heart-shaped lollipop

someone to share it with,

special breakfast treats,

mailboxes full of valentines,

and making a cake from scratch for daddy.

{special props to talented Aunt J for our made-with-love Christmas gifts....matching mommy/daughter aprons and oven mitts....they were just BEGGING for a day of baking!}

E thought mommy was taking a little too long gathering the

ingredients (a word she took great pleasure in saying the day before as we shopped for them...."mommy, we have to get the in-greeee-deee-ents.....{and once we were home}...daddy, we are going to make you a cake.....these are the in-greeee-deee-ents."

we made a Patti-cake...named not for the song, but for my cousin, Patti, from whom this recipe came.

this cake was the one most requested by my sister and me during our childhood...a cake we only saw on special occasions.

this is the second time i have attempted the recipe as it has quite a few steps to it, and the first time i made it, i quickly learned why it had only been served on special occasions.

for those of you who love a challenge and loathe the idea of boxed or store bought cake (is it possible to loathe cake?), here is the recipe:

Patti's Chocolate Cake
3 eggs, seperated

1/2 c. Hershey's cocoa
1/2 c. water
2 tsp. baking soda

2 1/2 c. sifted Swan's Down Cake Flour
1 3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. Wesson Oil (i used Canola...seemed to work fine)
3/4 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Separate eggs. Beat whites until stiff, set aside. Mix cocoa, water, and baking soda, set aside. In large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, oil, buttermilk, and egg yolks. Add chocolate mixture and mix well. Fold in egg whites. Line two 9" round greased cake pans with the wax paper used for sifting the flour. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 35 minutes. Leave in cake pans for 10 minutes then remove to racks to continue cooling.

Frosting

1 1/2 c. milk
6 tbsp. all purpose flour

Mix flour into cold milk (as for thickening). Boil mixture until thick stirring constantly. Set aside to cool to room temperature (or cooler...i put it in the fridge for awhile).

2 sticks butter or margarine
1 1/8 c. granulated sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter. Gradually add sugar. Cream well while slowly adding milk/flour paste mixture and vanilla. Beat 5-10 minutes at high speed to fluff.

The secret to making the frosting is to put bowl, beaters, and paste in the freezer for 10 -15 minutes right before you start to make it so that everything is really cold.

it also helps to have a really cute assistant.

although this is a chocolate cake, the cake itself is not especially chocolate-y. there is just something about the flavor of the cake and icing together that takes me straight back to my elementary days.

growing up, it always seems like you want what you don't have. my sister and i would look longingly at the store bought cakes mainly because, for financial reasons, our cakes were almost always homemade.

i laugh when i think about the first time i made a cake for my stepdaughter's birthday, and her and her brother's excitement over the fact that it was not a store bought cake.

later that evening, we took some of our precious cake and headed over to Aunt C's for dinner. she prepared a lovely Valentine's Day feast of chicken (big surprise) parmigiana, vegetable lasagna, and assorted green veggies.
E spent the evening dancing to the jukebox, singing with Elvis, and trying to bust open the gumball machine...Aunt C's house is a real blast from the past!

Grammie came over, too, so E was happy to be the center of attention. i was just happy that i didn't have to make dinner.
love is.....baking with your daughter all day and spending the night enjoying some really good food with the people you hold most dear....Valentine's Day or not.....this i know.

PAAAAAAAL!

2009-02-13T23:10:00.043-05:00

it seems like i have a special greeting for each of my friends. i don't always remember how they started....these little phrases we use, but they make me smile each time i hear them.

in the case of LS, "PAAAAAAL!" is our preferred way of saying hello. it seems like once upon a time, there was a poster given by me to her outlining the specifics of being a pal, but that may have been because of our greeting rather than the cause of our greeting.

in any case, she is most definitely my pal.

she came to town with her beautiful family to visit her mother, and we got to spend a wonderful evening together chatting away for hours on end....first over dinner....then over coffee in a cozy little shop....and finally in the parking lot of her hotel...until the fog rolled in and husband called wondering where i was and we realized that it really was too late to be going on and on......especially since we could have sat there til morning and not run out of things to say.

although i took my camera, i didn't take any pictures that night, and now that i am finally sitting down to write this, i'm kinda glad i didn't. instead, i dug out the old photo albums and revisited scenes from our past and laughed out loud at the memories.

we have known each other more than 20 years.....over half of our lives! how did this happen...this passage of time? i am constantly amazed by it.

we met when she moved down the street from another one of my dear friends, M. they rode the same bus, became neighborhood friends, and that's how i came to know her.

i don't remember the specifics of our first meeting, but it seems like it may have been at M's 16th birthday party.
we went to M's sister's house and rode ATV's around the yard and pretty much pretended as though we were in the middle of nowhere (because at the time we sort of were). it's funny that i now live in the general area where we were, and it is no longer the middle of nowhere...how this town has grown!

we bonded fairly quickly...maybe because our families were pretty similar...all three of us were being raised by divorced mothers.

we shared many of the same likes and dislikes, but our personalities were quite different. i like to think that we complimented each other.

from that point on, the three of us spent so much time together both in school and out.

we had a small group of friends who would join us on our many adventures,

but many times it was just the three of us....doing all of the things so typical of high school girls (at least in the 80's before the world got so high tech, crazy, and complicated)....

....
we went to football games on Friday nights, had sleepovers, spent hours shopping and talking on the phone, watched movies, gossiped.....

and at one point, all worked at the same frozen yogurt shop (the setting for so many of our favorite stories).

we were together for the big events....

like special birthdays....

.....and Halloween.....

.....Christmas......

....and New Year's......

.... proms....

and eventually, graduation.

M and i went off to one college, and LS went to another. our senior year had been hard....not so much because of the academics but because it seemed as though it was easier to get pulled in other directions....... families, boyfriends, growing up, future plans.......things happened....feelings were hurt......the three of us just didn't spend as much time together that final year.

i remember being sad about that.

i'm the kinda girl who likes things to stay the same....who likes, maybe even needs, stability in my friendships.

it was hard to grow up and move on and let go.

it's not that we stopped being friends...more like we stopped being the kind of friends we had been.

i guess we needed to find out who we were on our own....needed to have time to make new friends.

LS and i never lost touch (i think we even exchanged a series of audio tapes in the mail.....can you believe that?!?! we had too much to say to write it all out, so we would tape record "letters" back and forth to each other....i can't believe i just remembered that...in fact, i may even still own some of those recordings!)

she was able to visit me more than once at my college across the state, and once or twice when we were both home at the same time (and someone was in need of a colorist....).

and now?

i'm just so grateful for this friendship, in all its forms, that has been around for so many years.

we all have our quirks that make us who we are....they either drive people away, or draw people to us.

i love LS for all her little quirks.

she is the kind of friend who makes me laugh so hard i cry.

i love that she is brutally honest and says and admits to things that have, at times, made my mouth drop open.

i love that she has been through things and has shared those things with me.

i love that we have stories together that no one else gets.

i love that she continues to question and wonder about every topic under the sun.

i love that we can go months without talking and when we finally see each other, it seems like it was yesterday.

i love that she can talk as much as i can and can keep up with our conversations even though they jump all over the place.

i love that she knows and appreciates all of my little quirks....all of the things that make me, me.

it's nice to have friends that have grown with you, even if you have grown in different directions....friends who value your differences instead of judging you for them.

for, oftentimes, in spite of your different choices, your lives end up remarkably similar.

it's nice to have friends who understand your background because they are a part of it....it helps to hear their perspective on life's challenges, and it allows you to better understand the choices they have made along the way.

it seems like more and more lately i have been given the opportunity to reflect on my friendships and to truly evaluate the impact they have had on my life.

i am surprised by how deeply they have touched me and helped me to become the person i am.....

i am lucky to have such wonderful friends.

i hope they know how much they mean to me, and i hope they feel like they can count on me to be there for them.

i hope that i can be worthy of their friendship.

i hope that we will continue to grow together and that one day we will call each other up to share stories about our grandchildren.

LS, your friendship means so much to me. i'm blessed to have you in my life. thanks for taking some time away from your family weekend to spend with me.

you make me laugh and think and question. i'm really glad we met all those years ago, and i can't wait to see what the future holds. we're gonna be some rowdy old ladies....this i know.

p.s. there are 3 songs on the playlist especially for you....i'm sure you know why......oh, and i can't possibly stop without leaving you this:

Dear Mr. Vernon,

We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it is we did wrong, but we think you're crazy for making us write an essay telling you who we think we are.

You see us as you want to see us, in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions.

But what we found out, is that each one of us is

a brain,

and an athlete,

and a basketcase,

a princess,

and a criminal.

Does that answer your question?

Sincerely yours,

The Breakfast Club.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2009-02-12T22:21:00.012-05:00

is there anything quite as wonderful as listening to your child speak?

the first word...so anticipated, so momentous.

then, before you know it, they are forming whole sentences and carrying on conversations and putting their own unique spin on the English language.

here are some of my recent favorites:
____________________________________________________________________
"You hafta believe!"
____________________________________________________________________

as in...."daddy, i want to go outside."

"not right now, E."

"yes, daddy, you hafta believe!"

....to give credit where credit is due, she totally stole this line from Alicia Keys in Elmo's Christmas Countdown once she figured out how to best use it to her benefit.

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"Is it Christmas Eve yet? Not yet, but soon!"
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uttered pretty much from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day

now being used for any impending holiday..

"Is it Valentine's Day yet?" has just been replaced with "Is it Easter yet?'

i don't have the heart to tell her that she is forgetting St. Patrick's Day (clearly we haven't been reading books about St. Patrick's Day).
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"Christmas is ruined!"
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actually learned after one too many viewings of Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas in December 2007

it's most memorable utterance occured on a day no where near Christmas when i refused to give her any more cheese (that girl would eat cheese all day if i'd let her).

upon hearing that her cheese request was denied, she threw up her hands in disgust, collapsed onto the living room chair and declared, "Christmas is ruined!!"
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"Oh, what'd you say?!?!"
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this high-pitched phrase pops up whenever she hears something she would rather not hear...

"E, come on, let's go potty."

"Oh, what'd you say?!?!"

"E, pick up those blocks."

"Oh, what'd you say?!?!"

"E, don't pull Lucy's tail."

"Oh, what'd you say?!?!"

"E, time for bed."

"Oh, what'd you say?!?!"
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"I okay."
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her response to my questioning whenever she is out of my sight and things seem a little too quiet in the playroom.

"E, are you okay?"

"I okay."
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"I know! Mommy/Daddy can do it!"
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most frequently heard when she spots something that she wants to play with that has been purposely placed out of her reach.

{E spies playdough}

"Oh, playdough! I know! Mommy can do it!"

{E spies paint}

"Oh, paint! I know! Daddy can do it!"
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"There's a crab in my pants! There's a crab in my pants!"
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translation=

some piece of my clothing or tag is itching me!!!

you MUST fix it immediately!!!!____________________________________________________________________
"I NEED my purse!"
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pretty self explanatory...

can't leave the house unless the girl has her purse!

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"You like to play tennis racket, guys? I need a person."
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recently got a new jr. tennis set and figured out pretty quickly that it was a two person game

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you think that you'll recall all of these cute and mixed up things they say, but time marches on, and i've already forgotten how much i anticipated hearing her first word.....was there REALLY a time when she didn't speak?

i'm writing these down because i WILL forget what i so much want to remember...this i know.

Auntie E

2009-02-11T23:05:00.026-05:00

we had some extra special company today.
my stepdaughter, K, and her adorable 1 1/2 year old son, E, (guess I'll have to call him EP for clarity...we just LOVE those "E" names) came all the way from Canada for a too short visit.

as they have a lot of family to see while they are here and limited time to see them, E and I picked them up after our Kindermusik class so that they could spend the afternoon with us. K and her husband, B are expecting a second boy in June, so it may be awhile before she can make it down here for another visit.

stepfamilies being what they are these days, E is lucky enough to be an Aunt already at the ripe old age of 2 1/2. I'm not quite sure that she understands this role as it relates to EP.

she WAS quite surprised to see another carseat strapped in the backseat next to her's and was pretty pleased to see that its occupant is a HUGE Elmo fan (as evidenced by the...not one..but TWO Elmos he brought along as his traveling companions).

when we arrived back at our house, she was quick to show him her playroom and even quicker to point out that all of its contents were HERS, HERS, HERS! I think K spent most of the afternoon playing referee. Why is it that kids always seem to want what other kids have even if they had absolutely NO interest in it five seconds earlier?!?

eventually (after a LOT of negotiating), they came to an agreement that the Elmo couch was neutral territory and could be easily shared by two. EP was happy, but E looked like she still had her doubts (keep your hands where we can see them, missy....no illegal pushing or pacifier stealing...we're still watching you!!)

at some point, daddy/grandpa arrived home with hugs, kisses, and tickles for all.

E figured that anyone who was worthy of snuggles from her daddy must be worthy of snuggles from her, too. from that point on, it was a regular hugfest (which apparently cannot be done properly unless you close your eyes).

EP wowed us with his impressions (think Austin Powers/Mini-Me)

and showed off his hula hoop dance moves.
a game of chase left them both breathless (and husband terrified that someone was going to slip and fall).

E showed EP her new rollers ( a gift from Grammie who had stopped by to visit), but he wasn't too impressed.
A few more hugs....

...and a smile or two....
...and someone started to get sleepy....

...it had been a long day....

...and it was time for Momma and Elmo.

it's too bad K and EP live so far away and the visits are few and far between. Auntie E would love to grow up playing with her nephew and celebrating with him on special occasions and holidays. instead, we'll have to make the most of the times we are able to spend together however short they may be...this i know.