All Tied Up

I took one look at the shoes and said there was no way. There was no way I was going to be responsible for tying her shoes every day. No way would I watch her trip over constantly untied laces. I didn’t want to deal with her inevitable frustration with learning how to tie the shoes. I really didn’t want to deal with any of it.  

It took me a couple minutes to realize though that my line of reasoning didn’t really add up- that my need to keep things simple just wasn’t fair (or conducive) to her attempt at growth.  It wasn’t fair not to at least give her a chance.

So I said yes and we came home with a brand new pair of sneakers with shoelaces.  She was ecstatic and determined. I only had to remind her once as she was practicing to not give up and just keep trying.  By the tenth try she had it down. 

Wow. I couldn’t believe it. No fits, no whining just perfectly tied laces and a grin from ear to ear. I’m so proud of that girl. And I am reminded nearly every day how much I still have to learn about this whole parenting thing.

 

Playing Catch up

After a couple of days of struggling with the passing of my blog friend Susan- I got a sinus/ear infection. Then Lily and Martin got colds. Now they've both passed their cold onto me and I still haven't gotten the sinus/ear infection cleared up. Needless to say I've been barely keeping up with the day to day. Luckily we're kid-free this week so I should have some time to rest and recover.

Here's some other stuff we've been up to... beside's blowing our noses, popping cold medicine like candy, and hacking up our lungs:

For Valentine's Day we made home made crayons shaped like hearts. What was I thinking? It was like a weeklong project because we had to make enough for both classes (50!) and I only got one mold that held 8 at a time and I kept running out of crayons having to scrounge for more. Then I forgot to take a picture of the final product. Booo! They were attached to a little card and the girl's each signed their names. Kendra said one kid thought it was chocolate and took a bite- probably the one made out of brown crayons. Ha ha- oops! Didn't see that one coming.

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This weekend we finally redeemed the Groupon to the Children's Museum I bought last February that was going to expire on Monday . They've definitely outgrown most of the exhibits there but they were entertained for several hours and I paid half price so...not too bad I think.

 

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Check these out. The first is when we visited the Children's Museum for the first time in November 2009. It was Kendra and Lily's first official play date with Martin and myself. They are just as goofy as ever- obviously... except much bigger now! You can't even see the turtle they are sitting on in the newer picutre! Dang. How did that happen?

Another post coming shortly...Lily has some good news!

Whymommy

I'm in a strange state of grief. Susan passed away on Monday. I never met her or even heard her voice but she has spoken to me through her blog for the last two years. She set out to document her battle with cancer but really left us all with so much more- forever changed by her words.

I honestly can't imagine a more dedicated or courageous person. Her ability to put her struggles into words always touched me deeply.  Her love of her life, children and family shined through in every post she wrote.

Bon from Crib Chronicles said it way more eloquently than I could possibly dream of- she said "i am glad there is no more pain, for her. but it hurts me to think there will be no more words. she put so much of herself – so much beauty and thoughtfulness – into her words." She wasn't, I'm not, ready for Susan's words to stop.

That is how I feel. I don't want her story to be over. But I'm having a hard time knowing how to grieve someone I've never met.

Cabin Fever

After the snow we just had to get out of the house so we decided to take the girls bowling. Lily had never been before but she did pretty well doing granny bowling and using the bumpers.  

Kendra actually managed pretty well copying what Martin and I did. She threw a couple good throws and used those bumpers a few times to get some extra pins.

Both Martin and I were extremely out of practice but did ok anyway. I don't remember it being so expensive though! My goodness!

Then we went to my youngest brother Alex's basketball game- he plays varsity at his high school. Go #50! The girls brought their pom poms and dressed in school colors. Lily was too shy but Kendra stood up and cheered quite a bit- using her newly learned cheer skills.

The next weekend the girls performed at a girl's basketball game half time. Both girls got up in front of everyone in the bleachers and did their cheer- more following the cheerleaders than actually remembering the routine- but still good. I was very proud of their courage and lack of stage fright! I would have been so nervous!



Now we're gearing up for another week. Lily finally has a long term substitute starting Monday. We've got Valentine's day parties to get coordinated and Martin is starting his busy season with more hours at work. We did have a very nice "spring preview" this weekend though- with temperatures in the mid 50's. What?!? Martin wore shorts and sandals and the girls rode their bikes at the park. Come on Spring!!!

The days all run together

I'll be better after January.

Time keeps marching forward whether I am ready or not.

Ready or not here comes February.

February will show the promise of spring, won't it?

Spring and Summer I am anxious to feel on my skin again.

Until then the days keep running together.

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Sometimes I look at Lily and wonder if somewhere along the way she got mixed up with someone else's baby and somehow I just didn't notice. I wonder how she could have gotten so tall. Surely someone will be dropping off that wee toddler any day and say they're so sorry for the mix up.

But then I smell her hair. No one else in the world smells as familiar. I just find it all hard to believe.

Her adult front teeth are about to break through and her bangs are almost grown out. Her socks keep getting holes from growing feet. The jackets I thought would last the winter are looking quite short in the sleeves.

She says she wants to be a librarian. She wants to read books all day. How could she be anyone else's but mine?

Growing up and letting go and holding on tight for dear life. It feels like the listing of a boat, a constant push and pull, righting itself and always, always seeking balance.

Catching Snow



The snow catching jar



Snowflakes on noses

Bundled

Are you having any adventures in the snow?

Cheer Camp

It took Lily a few minutes to warm up

She did a great job learning the routine

It started to snow just as the camp ended- Fun!

They both did an excellent job and had a great time. Since it is a snow day today maybe I can get them the practice the routine they learned. They are excited to perform on Thursday at the basketball game but we'll see how that goes when we get there...well, with all this snow, IF we get there.

Wake up call.

Lily: Mom you want me to be perfect all the time and I can't!

Reality slapped me hard in the face this morning as Lily exclaimed her frustration with me. Whoa. That hurt. I need to process this one. I think its going to take some time and a hard look at myself. I'll keep you posted.


Here's Kendra on her first day last week:

Here's us girls passed out nearly the whole way to Shelton last weekend. Luckily I didn't have my ugly sleep face on at the moment the driver (Martin) and his accomplice (his sister Katie) decided to take the picture. Bless them. To be fair though I have been getting extra car sick lately. Knowing that I was going to sit in the back for the long drive I doubled up on the Dramamine and passed the heck out.

This weekend we are sending the girls to a short "Cheer Camp" where they will learn a routine then perform it at a girl's basketball game next week. One of my biggest fears before becoming a mom was having a daughter who wanted to be a cheer leader- I just didn't know how I'd relate to that. But now, even though I still can't relate, if it makes them happy (they are literally bouncing off the walls with excitement about it) I'm all for it. Anything they feel passionate about, I am on board to support. Now if we could just move to the other side of the city so they'd be cheering for the *right* school.

1st Day (Back)

Today Lily and Kendra went back to school...Kendra's first day in her new school with Lily. Everything seemed to go off without a hitch. We'll see what the rest of the week (month, year??) brings. Both girls have Parent Teacher conferences at the end of the month- which seems like perfect timing for us to be able to check back and make sure Kendra is adjusting well and Lily too.

They were so cute- last night they picked out matching outfits and laid them all out on the floor (matching literally down to the underwear). They had their hair done the same way with a clip and were excited to see they got the same food for lunch. If it weren't for the fact they are in different grades, you'd think they were twins. And some of the matching heads off the extreme amount of competition they seem to be in.

I am happy to be starting back into our routine. It feels like a really long time since we've been on our normal schedule. Getting two ready in the morning instead of one will be a challenge but I think we're up for it. This morning they were so excited it was easy...we'll see what happens when the newness wears off.

Martin took some pictures...hopefully I'll get the motivation to stop reading my Kindle long enough later to upload them : )

Holiday Blur

I got a Kindle Fire from Martin for Christmas. It can do pretty much anything my laptop can do except blogging on it would be a huge pain....so....I haven't posted anything in forever. The Kindle is my new best friend though, seriously love it. So here are a couple of pictures from our Christmas Holiday which went by so fast it all still feels like a blur and I still feel like I am recovering.

Put a mustache on it.

Do you like our cozy fire??

Snugglin' with Papa

Pillow Pet mania.

OMG. More matching jammies!

Deven loved the flashing lights!

Kendra "fainted"...Disney Sing It was a hit apparently

Famly Photo...why could't we get one this good *before* sending out our Christmas Cards?

What a whirlwind. Now we're onto bigger and better things for 2012! Bring it on.