Thankful for 12/23/15

Stop and smell the roses or...save the Earthworms!

Because when you clear your schedule of all obligations you can take the time stop and save the Earthworms from the treacherous sidewalks on a rainy day!

This year Christmas falls on a Friday. My girls have been out of school since last Friday. That is a whole week of non scheduled nothingness. For this gift of time, I am thankful. I enjoyed December 23, 2015 more than any other year. Gifts are wrapped, the house is clean and the laundry is folded and put away. That left me with nothing but time to spend with my kids.

That leaves us with time to try our hand at homemade Iced Sugar Christmas Cookie for the first time.

 That leaves us time to sit and listen to Reese read a chapter book while the cookies are in the oven (not pictured).

That leaves us time to get out the watercolors and learn new techniques for painting Christmas trees. Painting below by BOO.

 That leaves us time to sit around together and enjoy screen time.

And, yes, that leaves us time to walk in the sprinkling rain to Chick-Fil-A to hear a neighbor sing, but stop and save the Earthworms!

I soaked in these sweet faces on December 23, 2015 and for that I am a happier, more fulfilled person. 

I am guilty of over scheduling myself. But yesterday reminded me that more isn't always better. So I hope to empty my schedule a little so that I can save Earthworms again soon. 

PS- all that may even energize you to allow them to be free of rules the following morning (even if it creates quite the load of laundry).

Granny's Gifts

gift

ɡift/

noun

noun: gift; plural noun: gifts

1. 1.

   a thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present.

   "a Christmas gift"

   synonyms:

   present, handout, donation, offering, bestowal, bonus, award,endowment; More

   • an act of giving something as a present.

     "his mother's gift of a pen"
   • informal

     a very easy task or unmissable opportunity.

     "that touchdown was an absolute gift"
2. 2.

   a natural ability or talent.

   "he has a gift for comedy"

   synonyms:

   talent, flair, aptitude, facility, knack, bent, ability, expertise, capacity,capability, faculty; More

verb

verb: gift; 3rd person present: gifts; past tense: gifted; past participle: gifted; gerund or present participle: gifting

1. 1.

   give (something) as a gift, especially formally or as a donation or bequest.

   "the company gifted 2,999 shares to a charity"

   • present (someone) with a gift or gifts.

     "the director gifted her with a heart-shaped brooch"

     synonyms:

     present, give, bestow, confer, donate, endow, award, accord, grant;More

   • endow someone with (something).

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After my Granny passed, those in her house were hesitant to open cabinets, look through photo albums and look in her storage in the basement and all the bedrooms. My Granny did not like you to touch her 'stuff'. She was so important to all of the family that gathered that we didn't want to ruffle her feathers even if she had passed earlier in the week, even if it had been months since she was in her house, we wanted to respect this respectable matriarch. 

But we did open those cabinets, as most of us were from out of state. Not much was taken though. Mainly pictures, and lots of memories. Granny had a knack, or gift some would argue, of saving and upcycling. She was a child of the Great Depression after all. Some may also argue whether this gift was passed on to her descendants. But I don't want to make her out to be a grumpy hoarder because that she was not. Granny was a pistol but in a loving way. One of her ways she showed love was through her gift of cooking, another was her gift of sewing. I remember receiving the gift of a handmade clown doll and knowing even as a child they were special and made with love.  Granny's gift of sewing was passed down to her youngest daughter, who in turn passed it down to her youngest daughter, me. 

Therefore, Granny's greatest gift she ever gave me was her passing down the gift of sewing. 

So in that basement closet, there were wooden spools of threads gone brittle, computer paper boxes full of lace, shoeboxes full of zippers new and old, suitcases full of naked Barbies waiting to have a outfit made for them, a cardboard box full of felt of all colors, etc. I said to my mom and Uncle John, "I need to buy felt to make a banner for my Girl Scout Troop, do you mind if I take this box instead?" Of course they agreed, and then my Uncle piled in some other sewing supplies. So therefore Granny gifted me with a box of felt. We know that Granny doesn't like us to go through her stuff, so this gift of felt is being used in a way Granny would see fit. I will honor my Granny the best way I know how.

My Girl Scout Troop marching in our local Veteran's Day parade with that banner made from Granny's felt. The girls carried that banner proud, as for they traced and cut out the flowers themselves from Granny's felt. 

But this banner didn't use up that box of felt, so when a previous neighbor wanted ornaments for an angel tree for her son that passed earlier this year, I dug out some felt. The ornament was to represent my greatest memory of her son. I choose to represent his smile. It felt poignant to use felt from my Granny that passed at 96 this year to represent a little boy who passed at 8 this year as well. Both deaths were hard to swallow and both lives (and deaths) impacted me deeply. I made his mom a smiley face ornament for her white angel tree.

But of course my box of felt is still quite full. 

One of my closest friends son is turning two. This friend of mine loves to reuse and not waste, it is one of her gifts much like my Granny. She doesn't want her son gifted with noisy electronic toys that flash and beep. Usually her kids' gifts are for charities not their family. But this family is super special and I want to show this to them with a meaningful gift. This family loves to travel, as they are about to spend a month in Germany and then shortly after move to Japan. So I thought this newly two year old should be gifted with a toy for all those airplanes rides. I can then see my friend gifting this toy to a child in Ethiopia. I used Granny's gift of felt and Granny's gift of sewing to create this gift. 

Can't wait to see what else that box of felt has to offer. Thanks Granny, I hope I am doing right by you and making you proud. 

This is how she rolls!

 Literally, this is how she rolls now that she is seven! This first day as a seven year old has been great, amazing really. And, she didn't want it to end. But my eccentric Reesey Poo still is true to herself even as she finished yet another journey around the sun. Her request tonight... To ride around the neighborhood to view the Christmas lights with her birthday balloons trailing behind her. I love this kid!

 Proof she hasn't changed... She wore Halloween leggings on her Birthday celebration for the second year in a row. She LOVES holidays, she loves them year round. So here she is wearing a birthday shirt and halloween leggings to a Christmas themed birthday party. Did I mention I love this girl?!?!?

 I forgot to bring candles to her birthday party in Williamsburg, but this classy mature seven year old didn't whine one bit. So we blew out a candle on her 'real' birthday during our weekly Girl Scout meeting today. I love her so much my heart could burst.

She lives in the moment with full intensity. She is present and making the most of what the day has to offer. May I learn to live life as fully as she chooses to! Happy Birthday Seven-Year-Old Reesey Poo!

The Girl with a Curl

There was a little girl

BY HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW

There was a little girl,

            Who had a little curl,

Right in the middle of her forehead.

            When she was good,

            She was very good indeed,

But when she was bad she was horrid.

Like Mother Like Son

My in-laws visited us this year for Thanksgiving. I asked my MIL if she ever saw the photo of her and her son from last Thanksgiving. It was a great photo and she needed to see it.

I searched on my phone and brought up this photo... and immediately started laughing.

I told my MIL that I caught her. She was wearing the EXACT same shirt. We laughed together, and she commented on how she had very few 'fall colored' long sleeved shirts. But after looking at the photo again, we got an even bigger laugh.

This is the photo from THIS Thanksgiving...

And no, I promise this was not staged. 

HGH

Elli has been doping. There is no other possible explanation. 

I marked the growth chart with her 3.5 year old height because tomorrow she officially three and a half. That mark went right beside Brady's. Except one difference, it was Brady's FOUR and a half year old height. Elli has four inches on 3.5 yo Brady!!!!  That is crazy talk y'all. 

My baby is no baby. 

On the stage

I really think my girls' happy place is on the stage. The older girls both had a chance recently to perform at school. And with both girls, they were chosen to have a special part in the performance.

For Reese, all the first grade had a resident artist come in and teach African Dance. They performed what they learned for the whole school. The first video is the part where the class danced as a whole. The second video is the part where kids got to dance in small groups and do dances they made up themselves. Reese was chosen to be the soloist. She took her choreography seriously. I was a proud momma in the back row that day!

 The girls are really at an amazing school this year. They are doing so many neat events. Recently, they had international day where each cluster of classrooms transformed into a country then students flew around the world (or school) and experienced the culture. Brady's area was Russia. Her class learned a dance and performed it for the students. My little babushka made me so proud!

Orthnernisms from a higher power

Elli comes running into the room that her mom and dad are in. Grabbing her bottom she says "Ouch it hurts."

I say "it hurts?".  Her response is "yea, because Jesus made it too much!"As I hold back my giggles, "Jesus made too much?". Very seriously, Elli looks at me and states "Yes, Jesus made me too much bottom!"

There you have it folks! I couldn't make this stuff up!

That's Why We have Kids...

No, this isn't going to be some soupy post about how great motherhood is, but motherhood is my everything. This is about getting to experience something new to me by joining my child on her preschool field trip.


St. Mary's County, Maryland has a large Amish community. We regularly pass horse and buggies on the main roads when we are driving west. I always am so thrilled to witness such a different culture right in my own county. So, when Elli's preschool asked for chaperones to the Amish Farm, you best believe I was first to volunteer.

The first part of our farm tour included the kids getting to each throw a fist full of chicken feed into the pen.

 This inspired Elli to start dancing like a chicken!

Next stop, the barn. There were cows, calves, goats and HUGE work horses. While the kids  observed the farm animals, I couldn't help but watch the beautiful Amish children as they shadow their daddy. I heard (but can't be held to) that often Amish children don't learn English until about 6 years old. 

 I don't know what kind of horse this is but it is easily the largest horse I have ever seen. The cows next to it were half its size. I would say its hind legs alone were six feet tall.

Next stop, horse drawn hay ride. Elli was one of the first to hop on and was very eager. I love that her hair and the horse tail and indistinguishable. 

 I stayed behind with a child that was too nervous to ride, so I witnessed the horses getting stuck in the mud from afar. All adults had to get off to lighten the load and they gave the horses a little extra push from behind.

There was pumpkin selection and snack, which inherently lead to Elli needing to use the restroom. Yes, this Amish farm has no electricity and running water. Yes, Elli got to use the outhouse. She wanted to know where her pee pee disappeared to. I was surprised how much nicer the out house was than a port-a-potty. 

 As we were wrapping things up, the Amish mother and her three children were off to run errands. I had to snap these next two pictures (even though I probably shouldn't have). The young (most likely one year old) girl was in a five point harness carseat installed into the carriage.

 But then the older two kids (likely 4 and 6) were free to move around in the back.

I could have stayed all day on the farm, observing and learning. I love having kids so that I can keep learning with them. 

Crazy Cousins Congregate

Guess who drove up to Maryland to visit!!!!

Let's just say the crazy cousins congregated in California (the city in Maryland that is) and cheerful chaos commenced. Here is what this crazy chaos included....

high fives

flying like a birds

Yet another rendition of "Let It Go"

Eating Yogurt by hand

Cousins loving each other, well, like family

A little cheerleading

UnC-Kle Karl and his best nephew, Will loves him some Unc-kle Karl

toe-grabbing, Christy loves her some squishy Elba

fence climbing

HUS-a little but louder-TLE

ah-oo-ga

squeaky clean duckys

eyelash admiring

sibling dress-up/ dollhouse session

cousin rock out session at which Elli specializes in the Moccasin

Biggest and Littlest Cousin Reading Time

more cheering

barrel rides

hay pile jumping

little bunny fo-fo petting

more barrel riding

pig pen climbing

Elba's game of peek-a-boo

CUPCAKES!

Will's excitement for pending firetruck ride

those eyes

stuffing of corn kernels in all nooks and crannies

but most importantly there was bonding... lots of cousin bonding!