Saturday, March 31, 2012

A weekend full

Lucy needed a little encouraging from Grandpa Jim and me to actually pick up the eggs! 

A full basket!

Relaxing on a park bench enjoying all their finds!

I'm thankful for our weekend.  So far it's been wonderful.  I'm thankful  Grandpa Bill came for a quick visit and helped me clean up the front yard, Christy came for a visit and took the girls for ice cream,  we were able to go to a fish fry with friends,  we were able to say yes (and totally shock and delight the girls) when at 7:00 last night they asked to go on a sleepover with some friends, we had perfect weather for our church Easter egg hunt, we got a quick visit with Grandpa Jim and Grandma, we had a picnic lunch at the park, everyone got to dance on time, clothes are on the clothesline, Kevin is fitting a run in and I'm next.... and it's just 2:00 with lots more fun headed our way.  So much to feel blessed by.
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Wednesday, March 28, 2012

The zoo

Getting just a little bit closer to those tall giraffes!
I'm thankful for the St. Louis Zoo.  It's free, it's close and it is really outstanding.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Is it the 27th already?

It is, which means I have 9 things to write about.  Yikes, don't have that much time, I'll see how far I can get before nap time ends!   I have not been so on top of this challenge this year!  Still enjoying it though.

Today I'm really thankful for the ordinariness of my days.  I wake up every day and am thankful to be exactly where I am doing exactly what I'm doing.   Not that it's always perfect, easy, fun, exciting, etc. but it is where I long to be.  In particular I'm thankful...

2.) that I get to walk my kids to school every day and pick them up every afternoon.
3.)  for the library!  We have such wonderful libraries in St. Louis.  Lucy and I love story time.  She's now hooked on dum dum lolly pops and sits down on the floor of the library and says "lolly" even when we're there and it's not story time. 
At the library working on her first bead necklace.   She was so excited to show Emma and Eleanor!
4.)for Forest Park and that we live so close.  After dropping the girls off at school Lulu and I often run in the park.  What a treat.  Lucy has lots to look at and when the going gets really tough there are swings to stop and swing in.  Yesterday I was so entertained by Lu's cute"tweet, tweet" and arms raised trying to catch the birdies.
We've already lost one shoe this spring when she threw it out of the stroller.  Barefoot running is more her style.

5.) our swing set.  We'd be at the park most of the time if it weren't for our swing set.  I like the park but it's nice to come home.  Lately, unless she's strapped into the swing, she's climbing two stories and sliding down the big slide by herself.  Of course there I am praying at the bottom.  When we went to the shoe store to buy her first pair of shoes, and she was barely able to toddle around but headed straight for the slide, barreling down and laughing all the way, the saleswoman asked me, is she your third or fourth?  I asked her how she knew and she said "she's much too brave and you're much too calm for her to be the first or second".  Ah, so true.
6.) our clothesline.  Our dryer is just under 3 years old and it is not working for the second time in its short life.  Last spring it had a $200 repair.   I've not called the repairman yet, I'm too irritated.  So, I'm doing what I really should have been doing considering this incredible weather, and I'm using our clothesline (purchased last year during the dryer outage).  I'd forgotten how much I enjoy using it.  It's not fast but it's simple and doesn't require any energy...other than my own!

I'm being paged! 

Sunday, March 18, 2012

4 more!

Today I'm thankful for-

RAIN!!
Yesterday was a great weather day in my opinion.  A lovely warm morning just right for a run in the park.  After lunch a rain storm settled in and lasted all afternoon which made leaving the house seem like a terrible idea and snuggling under a blanket with a cup of hot tea and a movie seem so much smarter.

36
I'm thankful for 36 wonderful years.  I'm looking forward to at least 63 more.

Nice words
Words have power, they can make you feel happy, sad, small or important.  I like people who use their words for good purposes.  Last night when the girls and I were getting ready to cuddle before bed Emma said "mom, you get in the middle" Eleanor added "Yea, you're the good stuff, like the fig in a newton".  Such nice words.

Raffi
 I've logged a lot of hours listening to Raffi and I don't regret a single one.  Lucy is loving him right now and I'm thankful that my big girls have such affection for him from their own memories that they sing and dance right along with her.   I give at least a bit of credit to Raffi for my girls strong literacy skills.  Parents who don't sing with their kids are missing so much fun.

"When you wake up in the morning and it's a quarter to four, and you think you hear a knock on the door you brush your teeth.  Chhhh, chhh, chhh, chhh, chhh, chhh, chhhhh, chhh, chhh"

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Days 14-21...Say it ain't so

A whole entire week behind. Sounds about right.

I'm thankful for...

Day 14: Our yard.  It is just wonderful; big and growing and full of opportunities for little (and big) gardeners, explorers, readers and dreamers.

Day 15: Viva Las Vegas!  Kevin and I have just returned from our second trip to Vegas this year.  That's pretty comical if you know either of us well.  I enjoyed both trips but this one especially.  I've not counted the number of hours I slept but it was a lot.  Two times I laid down "just for a minute"  only to awaken an hour later.

Day 16: Grandparents.   Our girls have 3 sets of grandparents.  They are 3 very distinct sets of people, which is really a nice experience for our girls.  One thing they have in common is a gigantic love for their grandchildren.  Kevin and I are so thankful that they all chipped in to watch the girls while we were gone this weekend.

Day 17: My own grandparents.  I had the best grandparents a girl could ever have.   They were fun, wise, expressive, loving and lit up when I entered the room.  I know they believed I could do anything and so, even though they're all gone, when a day is tough, or a problem can't seemed to be solved I still rely on them and their positive thinking to get me through.

Day 18: Emma Josephine- She turned 8 and a half yesterday.  My stomach is still in a knot over that.  When I was pregnant with Emma I was teaching 4th grade.  I was so excited to be having a baby but so nervous to actually take care of a baby.  I remember thinking, if she'd just arrive as a 9 year old I'd know exactly what to do.  How can she be 8 and a half?  How?    Emma is quick as a whip, thinks in ways I do not and loves me like crazy.  I'm so very blessed God gave me that girl.

Day 19: Eleanor Dahlia.  She is so much like me that sometimes I feel like I"m talking to myself.   She loves BIG, feels BIG and never misses a thing that's going on around her, even though if you happen to be a loud mouth you probably think she's aloof.  She reminds me to listen, really listen and to wait.  She is a gift to my soul.

Day 20: Lucy Adelaide.   She brings absolute joy into our home.  We wondered for a couple of years if we'd have a third child.  Every once in awhile I'll think of that and my heart skips a beat.....God knew we, no, the world needed her.  This baby girl is amazing, she lights up our entire home and helps make it my favorite place in the whole entire world.

Day 21: Dinner made yesterday.  I made dinner for tonight last night so all I had to do tonight was heat it up!  Hip, hip hooray I thankful for that today!

Monday, March 5, 2012

Day 13: Kyra

Today, I'm thankful for Kyra.  She's one of my very best friends, someone who I'd trust with anything (and I often do) a person I ask for advice, who listens to me long after I've become boring, who encourages me and is on my side.  You'll not find someone more generous, don't even try, you can't.  She'll get you out of a bind, and smile the whole time.   We've been close from practically the moment we met, 20 years ago.   Happy birthday!  I love you!

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Days 9,10, 11 and 12 Still thankful, just behind

I'm thankful to love my home.   It's cozy and comfy and full of my favorite people and things.  It's not big or fancy but it's my favorite place to be.
The other night I was struck by this perfect little corner in our living room.  Not the crazy pintrest/Martha Stewart perfect, perfect in the "made for me" sense.  The chair( a beloved piece of my mom and Gordon's that was given to us after their move) the quilt (made by my Great Grandmother) the mug(a gift to Emma on her 6th birthday)  the Japanese writing(Emma and Ellie's names, written by a friend from DCC, who a year ago returned to Japan) the stained glass( designed by the girls, made by Atril)  the basket of books to be read over and over, the silly murder mystery (no brain cells required).  Perfect, indeed.
I'm thankful for the school our girls attend.  It's truly amazing.  I try not to talk about it too much, it feels like bragging.  A couple of weeks ago the annual Black History Night was held.  It is one special evening.   The children sing, read their own writing, dance and display incredible art work.  I've cried every year.  It's that beautiful.   This year in the middle of the chorus singing  I realized I'll be attending Black History Night for the next 10 years, at which time Emma will be a senior in high school and Lucy will be in 5th grade.  Bring on the tissues.
I love this photo!  El must have dictated this to someone.    It says "my baby sister's seat"  but the fabric was actually her baby sister's sheet.  What a precious memory of the sweet way our Eleanor speaks.  

























I'm thankful for PBS.  So many good shows.  I'm just waiting to have someone who will watch Thomas the Train with me again.  I'm missing him.  In the meantime I've loved Downtown Abbey and soon enough Doc Martin will begin again.

The GatheringI'm so thankful for our church.  I could write about it all day.  ALL DAY.  Don't worry I won't.  We searched for 10 years.  No joke.  We stopped a few places along the way but they never felt quite right.  I love that our church is a place for everyone.  No one proclaims to have it all figured out or the answer to every question.  It's a place that makes us think, makes us wonder and for Kevin and me, a place where we've become more purposeful about how we use the time we've been given.