43 Things

Resolutions are tough.  On one hand, I love the idea of a new year and a new me.  I love the idea of working on things that I know I need.  But on the other hand, shouldn't every day be a chance to do this?  And honestly. . . how long do those resolutions last?  (Ask the blog I started when I resolved to read a book a week.  I got to Week 30-something. . . ) 

Recently, one of the teachers I work with challenged his students to make a list of "43 Things." (He got the idea here.)  And like every assignment he gives, he also completed it.  And then he challenged ME.  To which I whined:  "I've already done everything."  High school graduation, check.  College, check.  Career, check.  Own a house, check.  Husband, check.  Kids, check.  Master's degree, check.  That's it.  I've done everything I was supposed to.  To which he replied:  "Seriously?"  This teacher is about ten years younger than I am (How old did I feel when we determined he was in eighth grade on 9/11 when I was teaching eighth grade. . . ) and he's very worldly.  He's been everywhere and done everything.  (And might I add, he's single so I'm sure that has something to do with it.)  But he got me thinking.  I've done what I was "supposed" to do. . . what do I WANT to do with my life?  We get ONE.  ONE life.  And the older I get, the shorter it seems.  I hope nothing happens to me any time soon, but lately I've felt reminded of my own mortality.  Maybe it's because I'm getting older.  Maybe it's the month (January is a tough one).  Maybe it's because lately I've seen too many people I know lose loved ones or face death.  And it makes you realize that while we hopefully have eternity after this world, THIS is our only earthly life.  What do YOU want to do?  So. . . challenge accepted.

It was tough.  There were some easy ones: 
Retire on a beach in Key West with my husband, a sailboat, and a beach chair. 

Some felt like cheating because they're on the agenda for this year so if all goes as planned, I'll get to cross them off (you remember that I like that crossing off thing. . .):
Disney
stick my feet in the Pacific Ocean
get rid of the blue toilet (it's sitting in my front yard as we speak.  Yes, really!) 

Some will most likely never happen: 
have my own talk show
star in a musical (hard to do when you lack singing ability. . . )
write a best-selling YA novel
be a famous blogger 

Others are more manageable:
watch Gone with the Wind (never seen it!)
finish a book series (I'm horribly embarrassed that this librarian typically just reads the first book and never gets around to the others because there are SO many new releases!)
organize my digital photos 

It was really good for me to do.  It made me realize that while I've checked a lot off my list, there are still things in life that I hope, dream, and wish for.  And while the degrees, husband, kids, house, and career are a lot to be proud of and grateful for, who are we without dreams?  Somewhere beyond the wife, mom, and librarian is a soul who wants to go ziplining, learn to crochet, cruise the Vegas Strip in a convertible and read the Bible in its entirety.

So what's on your list?  Make it.  And then make it happen.               

Christmas Traditions

I can remember growing up and feeling sorry for my parents on Christmas morning.  No gifts from Santa, socks in their stockings and, I guess on the years when Dad was really good, a can of cashews.  I was so glad I wasn't a parent!  Christmas was awful for them!

Of course, as an adult, my perspective has changed dramatically.  A recent post I saw on Pinterest says it better than I ever could:  


How true is that.  I can't even explain how fun it is to celebrate Christmas with our girls.  Along the way we're creating traditions--some that we never intended to, which in my opinion, are the best ones!

Tradition #1:  Dove From Above
The big fad these days is Elf on the Shelf.  Now I'm not against Elf on the Shelf at all.  Nearly everyone I know has one.  But I'm not one to jump on board (which is why it took me forever to do Facebook and a blog. . . who knows maybe I'll have an Elf at some point too.)  What I don't like about the Elf is how it's become a "one-upping" EVENT every night during December on Facebook.  Whose Elf can do the most outlandish, original, funny, ridiculous stunts.  Honestly, simply remembering to move it would be more than enough for me.  I don't get how some moms have the time, energy and money to do what their Elf does!  And I really don't get why they do naughty stuff!  Aren't they supposed to keep an eye on the kiddos and report to Santa on the children's behavior?!  How are the kids supposed to be good if Elf is tp-ing the Christmas tree or wrapping the entire toilet in Christmas wrapping paper or having a marshmallow snowball fight?  (And honestly, I can't keep up with the normal messes around here let alone ones my Elf creates!)  At any rate, our household--quite by accident--has the Dove From Above (said in a really deep, dramatic voice.)

Last Christmas, we went to an Christmas party where there was an ornament exchange.  This is what I unwrapped:

Frightening.

Later during the car ride home, as I was venting about how ugly it was, a little voice from the backseat reminded me to be grateful for my gift.  Ouch.  Sometimes I forget to model the behavior that I preach and expect from the girls.  :(  Sassy then told me that someone had taken the time to pick it out and that it was beautiful.  Ouch.  Again.  At some point between that moment and the next morning, Ry decided to perch it on the light above Sassy's chair at the kitchen bar.  Pointed so that the little red eyes were shot directly at her when she came out for breakfast that morning.  We then started moving it every (OK, MOST days--I'm telling you, I'd be bad at an Elf!) and it's become a huge laugh in our house.  We've put the dove on the toilet paper holder, in the fridge wrapped around the milk jug, in the toothbrush drawer. . .  wherever the girls will be startled as they start their day.  It's never been a dove that checks on them, or flies on its own.  Just two dorky parents moving it around to scare their children.  Is that so wrong?  We laugh a lot and even funnier is when we're out in public and Keke sees a dove--on a Christmas tree or a lady's coat lapel (yes really!)--and she yells:  "Dove from Above!"

Tradition #2: Christmas Light Hunt
Our Christmas Light Hunt now includes a local park that is decorated and a house in a nearby town that would put Clark Griswald to shame.  But it's so cool.  The guy has set it to music on an FM station and we just sit and watch forever.

Somehow we always eat at a Chinese buffet before (I guess this is how traditions start!) and we end the night with a shopping trip where the girls choose gifts for each other.  This year we also let them shop for a seven year old girl and a three year old girl who needed some help at Christmas.  It was so fun to see the girls pick out what they thought the recipients would want.  Keke was a little young to "get" it.  She kept saying she wanted to meet the little girl so she could go play with all her new stuff.  But Sassy made me tear up in the middle of Walmart.  After she made her final choice and put it in the cart, she turned to me with twinkling eyes and said: "I wish I could see her face when she opens these."  I hope that she continues to know how amazing it is to GIVE.  

Tradition #3: Road Trips
We're fortunate to get to visit both sides of our family in our hometowns for Christmas.  This year we spent the weekend before in Daddy's hometown and while we were there, we got 8+ inches of snow!  What a fun memory to happen at Grandma and Pop's!  The girls and Cousin S got to sled out in the street and there were only a few wrecks.  :)

The weekend after Christmas we headed to my hometown.  It turned out to be a big weekend.  Aunt Moni found a wedding dress and on Saturday, we got a new cousin/niece!  We were so glad that JE arrived safe, healthy and perfect--and what great timing when we were all home to see her.  Especially the CA auntie and uncle!

I hope as the girls get older they have lots of memories of  Christmas with our families.  We've been so blessed with great grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins in our lives.

So now that I'm older, I understand the smiles on my parents' faces on Christmas morning.  They were never disappointed at the lack of gifts or the socks in their stockings because they'd already gotten exactly what they wanted.  Who knew that my perfect Christmas would involve packing the car twice for 14 total hours of driving, stuffing myself at a Chinese buffet, and sticking a beady-eyed dove in the silverware drawer?  It's like Santa knew exactly what was on my list.      

Fall Fun

Considering it's now 2014, maybe I should catch up on last FALL.  Holy night.  I used to think that just our summers filled up and the holidays flew because we always travel, but bottom-line, we're busy.  This homebody is adjusting.  Truth be told, I love my couch.  And my pajamas.  And days when I don't have to leave either one.  So much of my life is scheduled that I really like the days that aren't.  But on the flip side, we are SO blessed with friends, family, and experiences that are becoming the girls' childhood memories.

In September, we had the 6th Annual Memorial Softball Tournament for my brother.  It was the first year that we didn't have beautiful weather.  It was rainy, cold, wet, miserable, messy, and amazing.  I keep hearing that God doesn't allow anything bad to happen without something good coming out of it.  This is definitely something good.  Every year we are able to give numerous FFA scholarships to my old high school and I can't even explain the bittersweet support we continue to receive almost six years later.  Even when it was pouring and wet and miserable, not one of the ten teams backed out.  Everyone wanted to play.  And it's not like there's a cash prize at the end or a big-time title.  Everyone there PAID to play softball and support the scholarship fund.  It's a whole other level of dedication when you can't find the bases because they're buried in mud (yours truly) or "grounders" never make it past the pitcher.  I can't even explain what it means to our family.
 

This was the sky by the end of the afternoon. SO symbolic: after the storm, blue skies. 

Love the scary Uni--I mean, Photo--Bomber in the back!

The next weekend we camped with Grandma and Pop and guess what?  It rained.  Luckily we stayed in their camper and it cleared off by Saturday afternoon.  We stayed at a great site on a nearby lake and hopefully Grandma and Pop make a few more visits--Grandma retires soon!  We had a lot of fun--the girls fed the ducks and catfish, Grandma brought a cool skeleton craft, and Mama got in lots of reading by the fire.  Heaven!

Sassy made her debut at our town's annual craft festival parade.  She joined Girl Scouts this year and got to march with her troop.  She LOVES it and is now selling beloved Girl Scout cookies (insert shameless plug here) if you would like to order some!

Because we only had one free weekend night in October we decided to fill it up by taking the girls to see Shepherd of the Hills.  It's a local famous play based on a book that was written here in the Ozarks and performed in a beautiful outdoor amphitheater.  We probably would have waited a few years, but due to finances and health reasons, the owners were shutting down and it was the last weekend for production.  Did I mention that it was outdoor?  Yep, it rained.  The. Whole. Time.  A constant, heavy, not-gonna-let-up rain.  We did pretty well staying as dry as we could, but it was obviously less than ideal.  The girls took a little bit of time understanding the storyline, but then they were really into it and LOVED it.  And I loved hearing their giggles and gasps. It made the rain a little more tolerable!

We also went to our friends' annual pumpkin carving party which became a pumpkin painting party.  :)  Fine by us!  Usually we start carving, the girls are interested for about five minutes, then we're left doing all the work alone.  I kept meaning to get around to carving one here at home but I finally cleared said uncarved pumpkins from the front porch just in time to put up Christmas decorations.  (In my defense, I swear we just went trick or treating last week!)

Daddy and I got to join my siblings at a Kansas State football game at the end of October--and no rain!  In fact, it was gorgeous!  You never know with Kansas weather, but it was perfect for tailgating!  Add in some horribly fattening food and laughs with the sisters and it was a good weekend.

Halloween coincided with the 50th day of school so Sassy got to dress for 50s Day.  That night she was a rock star and after two casualties with Minnie and Merida dresses, Keke was a cupcake this year (thank you, Cousin B!) My favorite part of Halloween this year was going out to eat afterwards at a local Mexican restaurant.  Sitting there in this little restaurant with people who can order their own food and ask for refills made me realize how much I enjoy the PEOPLE my girls are becoming.  We can sit and enjoy a meal and actually talk and laugh with relatively little stress.  Of course, it probably would have been a good idea to remove Cousin B's costume before giving the Honey Badger cheese dip. . .

In November, we had a few visitors.  Aunt B, Uncle S, and Cousin S came and we did a local corn maze.  Going AFTER Halloween was brilliant.  It was dead!  The girls loved reading the clues and figuring out where to go and the weather was beautiful.  We had a really great day.  It's so nice to know they're just a few hours away now.

The next weekend, the W family stopped on their way to Branson.  We tried to do Lambert's. . .   uhhh 1+ hour wait at 3 pm = fail!  But of course, Bass Pro is always a hit.  :)  We had another beautiful weekend so the kids were able to run around outside and they had a blast together.

Finally, Sassy had her First Reconciliation right before Thanksgiving.  After worrying and stressing (again, hello Mini Me!) she did great and had the biggest smile on her face!  Thank you, God, for loving and forgiving us!  Each student had a little sheep pillow to represent God calling His lost sheep.  Afterwards at the reception, Father told R that Sassy was a smart young lady.  :)  I can't believe how big she's getting.  First Communion is right around the corner!

Seriously, I don't think we've had a free weekend since maybe last spring?  But it's all good.  Someday in the not-so-distant future, they won't be trick or treating on Halloween, they'll be the ones tailgating (gulp!) and they'll be catching pop flies at the tournament (hopefully more successfully than this generation. . . )  I keep telling myself I'll have plenty of couch time before I know it.  I wonder if Ry can put one on his sailboat?  

Just a Little Bit More

Parenthood is made up of a lot of "this won't last forever" moments.  Middle of the night feedings are replaced by picky eaters who see a fleck of something green and refuse to finish.  Diapers are replaced by big girls who actually wake up in the middle of the night to pee (FINALLY!) Hectic school mornings are replaced by kids who can totally dress themselves and brush their own hair (OK, so this last one doesn't always happen which is why we now keep brushes in the car. . .)

Lately bedtime is taking longer than usual at our house.  We tuck Sassy in, give her a kiss and hug, pull away, and then she says, "Just a little bit more," and she pulls us back in and we do another kiss and hug.  Most nights it's sweet and I want nothing more than to cuddle her a little longer.  But some nights, I'm counting down the minutes until bed time, there are way too many tears from everyone involved, I still have hours of laundry and housework to do before I can go to bed, and I'm ready to call it a day.  It's those nights when "just a little bit more" seems almost too much to ask.  But then I realize that in a matter of years, she may not want one kiss let alone two.  In just ten years she'll be graduating from high school and I'll be the one saying, "just a little bit more."    

And I've already blogged about Keke's cuddling but I now have an official title.  Cuddle Buddle.  Usually said in a high pitched baby voice: "I need my wittle cuddle buddle. . . . "  And while it's usually at bed time, being a Cuddle Buddle is not limited to night time.  Just whenever the Cuddle Buddle mood strikes.  And again, I have to remember that these days won't last. 

Last week, we were cuddling on my bed one afternoon--and again, with Keke, it's face to face, nose to nose, arms wrapped around each other, NO space to breathe.  (One night however, she put her head up on my elbow and when I asked what she was doing, she replied: "I have to put my head up here acuz your bweff weally stinks."  Oh child.. . ) Anyway, we lay like that for a little bit, and then she said, "I wish you were a little kid."

Me:  "Why?" (Expecting to hear that I would be more fun, we could play, go to preschool together, etc.) 

Keke:  "I not want you to die first."

And my heart stopped.  Where did this come from?!

Me:  "Oh honey, I hope I don't die for a really long time.  But only God knows that."

Keke: (sitting up, visibly worried) "Will we die at da same time?  Acuz I not want you to die wiff-out me or me to die wiff-out you."  

And the tears I was holding in spilled over.  Not only did I not know what to say, (seriously, why hasn't someone written a parenting manual?!)  I was also floored that a four year old worries about this.  And it also reminded me how short life is.  I know that we all die.  I know that there is a time and season for everyone.  And I know that heaven will be ten times more amazing than our best days here on Earth.  But I don't know that we're ever "ready."  There's always something left to do, people we don't want to leave, a life here that we can't imagine not having.  I pray that God grants me many more nights to tuck our babies in, many more years of being a Cuddle Buddle (and then years of laughing when we remember that Keke called me her Cuddle Buddle), and "just a little bit more" of this life that I'm so blessed to have.            

AR Friends

Ten years ago, I'd never been to Arkansas. I'd only been to our local "metropolis" once (and only because it was on the way to a vacation in Branson.) And I'd never even heard of where we now live or any of the towns surrounding us. Funny how life has changed. The Metropolis is where R works and we eat, shop, and play. We now have friends in most of these towns I'd never heard of. And two of those friends now call Arkansas home!

KM was one of my first friends in my current district. She worked at the intermediate school with me when I took my first library job. We were both young(er), both hardcore Royals fans (the definite minority around here) and both pregnant at the same time. She was my pumping buddy at work after our girls arrived--not at the same time, mind you--but we used the same room and read the same books, leaving them in the room for the next pump-fest. She left my district a few years ago and now lives in AR so we went down last weekend to spend the night with her family.

We had a great time. KM made some awesome chicken pitas and even my picky eater ate most of it! The girls ran around like crazy with their daughter, B, and their dogs. Then we hung out with some drinks, chocolate chip cheese ball, and late night TV.  We did breakfast the next morning (another recipe I had to have!) and hung out a while before going to see more friends.

Girls with B and her friend

Playing "Spy on the Neighbor." Apparently she's at least 85 so
I doubt it was too exciting. . .

KB was one of my first friends when we moved here. I'd gotten a teaching job at a nearby school and it was a big year for turnover there. Some were brand new to teaching, some like me were just new to that district, but we were all taking on a new journey together. And it was wonderful. We were all fast friends (along with two girls who had been there a few years) and even though most of us have moved on to different schools, different careers, or even different states (like KB) I'm blessed to still call these people friends. 

KB and her husband moved to AR when Sassy was born. Since then, they've had two kiddos (W is Keke's age) and our families have remained close.

They packed an awesome picnic lunch and we ate on the lawn of Crystal Bridges which we've been dying to see. What a beautiful museum!

There was a cool interactive kids' room where the girls designed sunglasses and played with all kinds of manipulatives.

I loved watching Sassy draw--she had to listen to instructions and then see if her drawing turned out like the painting at the end.

And she loved walking around and looking at the art. I'm so impressed with what her art teacher has taught her, and it was fun to listen to her and KB (an art teacher as well) chat about the different exhibits.

 

We spent the afternoon and did dinner, and all too soon, the day was over. It was wonderful to spend time with these friends I'm so blessed to know. It's funny to me that I met each in different towns, in different schools, at different times in my life and now they live about 20 minutes apart! I'm a big believer that God makes people a part of our journey for a reason and I'm so grateful that He placed these two in my path. I wish they lived closer, but now I have two big reasons to visit Arkansas!

Camping Fun

Every summer I get irritated that our weekends fill up. But then I look back and remember that amid all the crazy, we have a lot of fun. This summer we were able to camp six times! And yes, it rained almost every single time...go figure...

We spent the July 4th weekend at a campsite near Uncle S and Aunt B's new house. Grandma and Pop brought their camper down and met us. We had a great time! There was a pool, Grandma made snow cones, we watched the world's longest fireworks show, and of course, we hit the river.

We got to spend another weekend at my aunt and uncle's lake house. Air conditioning, beds, toilets, showers, kitchen....my kind of camping. ;) It's always fun to see my cousin's family and spend some time at the lake. 

At the end of July, we met up with my side of the family for the annual cousins' birthday bash. We stayed in the cutest cabins on a lake (again, my kind of camping!), every family was in charge of one meal, and we had a blast. Plus the kids had Christmas in July (complete with a Grandma-stuffed pinata!) so they were pretty happy.  I hope this is a tradition we can continue--so much fun!

We got to camp three times with some great friends who have daughters just a month apart from our girls. We have a favorite campsite where we've become regulars. :) Most of the time we just chill on a rock bar for the day but this past weekend we went floating.  Our girls always play so well together and we've had a lot of fun through the years.

It was like having six mini vacations throughout the summer. I love that our family and friends love the great outdoors like we do. I love the memories we're making for the girls. I love that we live in a place that has such beautiful scenery. And if I can't be on the beach, the river or lake is definitely a close second.