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Today was the last day of school for my girls. The end of second grade and the end of preschool. And, sadly, the end of daily interactions with the three women below. They were my girls' teachers this year (Elizabeth had 2 for preschool) and they made a difference. They nurtured them, they educated them, they loved them, they supported them and encouraged them - they so made a difference in the girls' lives. And in mine. Many tears were shed today. We will miss them so very much.
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New flower beds all done! We spent all day Saturday digging out the overgrown shrubs and dead perennials (kinda scary that I can't even keep perennials alive :p), planting all the new ones and then mulching all the beds.
Here are the results (mostly they're pictures of Andrew - tee hee - he was Head Gardener). :D
Oh, and I forgot to change the white balance on the last one. I'll have to PS that one.
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In case you're looking for me, I'm out searching for a green thumb. My track records with plants is horrendous, but I've got to do something because the front of the house is looking pretty scraggly. We have a beautiful burning bush by the front door, but it's so overgrown that you have to move it aside to get up the front walk. And I took out 2 dead shrubs 18 months ago along the same front walk and never replaced them, which means that there have been 2 gaping holes for 18 months. Sigh. Off I go. Here's what I'm starting with.
Some lilac bushes, a couple of boxwoods, some hanging baskets, impatiens to help fill in the gaps while the plants are still young, and a new, smaller, less scary burning bush.
If you have any tips on how not to kill these guys, feel free to leave 'em for me!!!! My plants will thank you. :p
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Made ya look, didn't I? =)
Okay, well they're not human babies, but they are babies. Baby parakeets!
I would have never, ever thought that I would be a bird person, but this year has completely changed that. Elizabeth's pre-K class has been studying birds all year long. And I mean really studying birds. She can tell me the difference between flight feathers and landing feathers, migration patterns of hummingbirds, the wing span of virtually every bird I've ever heard of - and she's always right. Seriously. It's amazing. Her class has raised 2 parakeets this year and hatched 3 baby chicks and hand fed them from their hatching. They have met with naturalists, gone on many, many field trips, drawn and painted and molded bird models, written entire books on their favorite birds, done research online about birds - you name it - they've done it if it's about birds.
They have earned the nickname of bird nerds from the rest of the school and they wear their bird nerd t-shirts with immense pride (after learning that nerd = expert).
So, along with all of this studying and learning and having fun has come a tremendous amount of love - for their teachers, their classmates, and their birds. Having to say good-bye to their baby chicks and parakeets next Wednesday is going to be harder than any of us could ever have imagined.
In an attempt to lessen the blow (and because we've also become bird lovers over the year), we have added these beautiful baby parakeets to our family.
Meet Sky and Daisy!
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rarely make history.
That's the title of Sherry's circle journal. And here's my entry in it.
I'll add the journaling below, but will have to edit a bit for privacy.
For most of my life I’ve been struggling with anger.
Anger towards a controlling, overbearing parent.
Growing up, it was my father. He left my life, for the most part, when I was 14. I didn’t allow him back in until I was 25. Until I had learned that anger was not my enemy, but was my friend. And that anger was not necessarily a bad thing. Anger could be productive and it could teach me a very valuable lesson. It is an honest emotion. It tells the truth, if you listen to it. And I learned to listen to it. My father was allowed back into my life on my terms. I had to take back the control. It worked and I’m glad I listened to the anger inside of me.
For the past 13 years, I’ve been dealing with a manipulative, controlling [deleted here]. And it’s time to listen to that anger again. Even if the waves it makes may threaten to drown me. I won’t do this anymore.
I WON’T do this anymore. I WILL stand tall and I will no longer do things on [deleted] terms. I will take back control. Now. Today.
There is a song that was recently released by Rascal Flatts whose lyrics sum this up for me.
“Cause when push comes to shove
You taste what you’re made of
You might bend ‘til you break
Cause it’s all you can take
On your knees you look up
Decide you’ve had enough
You get mad, you get strong
Wipe your hands, shake it off
Then you stand, then you stand”
Today, I listened to the anger and got strong. I stand.
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Wow.
First, The Scrapbook Zone rocks! I love going there and I love Kelley - the owner of The Zone. She is a class act and The Zone is a fantastic store! I am so excited to see all the new things Kelley has in store for The Zone.
Second, Ali rocks! For the second time in 2 months, I was lucky enough to take a class from Ali and just being around her makes me feel creative and free. She's an excellent teacher and even more, she's a truly genuine, caring, down to earth, fun person to be around. Thanks again, Ali, for doing what you do best. And for making me laugh, think, create, and cry. Yes, cry. Again. I cried at CKU. And I cried at The Zone. Sigh. I'm blaming it all on Ali. =)
And third, friends rock! Too many to really name, but Sharyn, Amanda, Lin, Jamie, Steph, Deb, Julie, and on and on - I am so glad to have spent time with all of you! Such a fun, fun time! Can't wait to do it again!!!!
Finally, some pics.
I love Amanda! So happy to be roomies with her. =)
Ali and Kelley.
Sharyn and Ashley intently listening to Ali. This was before the cry fest. ;)
Lin. Simply love her.
And Steph!!!! I am such a dork. Steph and I have been email buds for months and months and I didn't freakin' recognize her when she walked in. After she walked away from me, I looked at her profile, realized who she was and ran off after her to hug her. I was so excited to see her, but so silly that I didn't recognize her. :p
And Ali. Simply the best.
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My kids have caught onto the idea that I'm probably going back to work in the fall.
I had to get dressed up in a suit for a reception for Tom's firm tonight. Andrew kept saying, "Mommy, you're so bootiful." And Emily finally burst out, "No you're not! I hate it when you're dressed like that!" Terribly rude and terribly grumpy. I asked her why on earth she was being that rude and why did it bother her to see me dressed up.
And she blurted out, "Cause it means you're going to work and you're not going to be home waiting for us."
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh...
If words could truly break a Momma's heart, those would have done it.
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Before I met my husband, I wasn't much of a traveller. I enjoyed traveling and had been on a few big trips - Key West and Hawaii, plus I had travelled to Canada many times because it was simply so close to where I lived in Maine. But then, I moved to Indiana and met my husband and he introduced me to the fine art of the road trip. He had spent 6 weeks traveling through Europe as a student, he had lived in Jamaica, and had road tripped his whole life. So, as starving law students, we had no money, but we travelled as far as our tiny car would take us - the summer we got married, we drove from Indiana to Maine (2 days) for final wedding prep, then back to Indiana (2 days) to move our things into a new apartment, then down to Texas (2 days) to work for six weeks at a law firm, then from Texas to Maine (4 days) for our wedding and then back to Indiana (2 days) after the wedding for our 2nd year of law school. And we loved every minute of that summer.
So, when my brother announced 3 years ago that he was getting married and that the wedding would take place in Brazil where his fiance lived, my husband couldn't have been more thrilled. Me? Not so much. I had a 5 yo, a 2.5 yo, and a 6 mo old nursing baby. How in the heck could I go to Brazil? I couldn't leave Andrew because I was nursing and I couldn't even fathom leaving the girls behind - besides, every member of my family was going - there was literally no one to leave them here in the States with. And then the stakes were upped because my brother asked me and Tom and both of the girls to be in the wedding. How do you say no to your baby brother? So, we went to Brazil. And I have to say that the travelling bug officially bit me on that trip. I have never seen such incredible scenery in my life. And hard to believe - but it's been 2.5 years ago since that trip and I stumbled upon the pictures this weekend. And now I'm feeling restless. I'm ready to go somewhere again - see something new, experience new cultures, new people - just ready to go.
Here's a few pictures from the best part of the trip - a 3 hour train ride through the jungle.
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Once upon a time, there was a woman who went to CKU-A with a bunch of online friends. Only to find that these friends were some of the best friends she'd ever made! And some of those friends suggested to the woman that they should all do a circle journal as a way to keep the friendship going after CKU was over. And the woman whined and moaned. Said she didn't have enough time to commit, said she'd never done one before and that she'd heard terrible things about circle journals gone wrong. And the friends continued to persuade her. And the woman continued to whine. Until she finally broke down and said yes.
And boy, was she glad she did!!!!!!! :D I love those friends - you can find them here - Heather, Stef, Mary, Wendy, Sherry, Kelly, and Amanda.
And a sneak peek of my circle journal (made by moi out of chipboard) is here:
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Emily's First Communion was yesterday. It was something that we'd been preparing for for a long time - she had special sunday school classes, a retreat last week, rehearsals, meetings, shopping for the dress, planning for the brunch at our house afterwards, coordinating gifts, and so on. Lots and lots of planning went into this day. And during mass, it was no different. Emily participated in most of mass, so we had a list of things to do and say at certain times, remember when this piece of music started that she needed to walk to the back of the church, when she saw her teacher walk to the altar she need to do something else, and so on. Busy, following the schedule, making sure she hit all of the right cues at the right time - it was the busiest mass I've ever been to.
And then it was her turn for communion - and that was orchestrated, too - Tom and I were to come out of the pew and flank her on both sides - don't walk until the family in front of us was done - wait for a cue to go to a certain priest - all still busy. And then, like in a daze, I was walking her forward, watching her lead us forward, and offer up her hands.
And it was like lightning had hit me - besides the religious ramifications (which are hers and are personal), the parenting ramifications hit me like a ton of bricks. It felt as though, in a way, that I had offered her up to the world. I was there with her - slightly behind and supporting her - but this was her life. And her decision to make. And I had to step back and just watch her make this decision on her own.
And I was instantly in tears, wanting to slow it down, do it over again, wanting to witness it one more time - it was over too quickly. It feels as though in that one moment, that a line has been crossed - that part of her childhood has ended and that my position in her life was moving just a bit. I was simultaneously full of sadness and full of the most intense pride I've ever felt.
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