So I won't forget

I like to write these things down so when Elle's thirteen and thinks I'm the wicked witch, I'll remember why we kept her.


1. When she has had a triumphant event on the potty, she says, "Ta-da!" Except it comes out "Ta-ta!"

2. "Aha!" is pronounced "Haha!"

3. When her barrette has come out, she hands it to me and says (in a concerned voice that is so adorably little): "Mommy, my hairs fall down."


A few more of these and I might even pay for college.

Six things about me

I know. It's winter, and the motivation has bled out of my brain. I think it has to do with the lack of sunlight...a mild version of Seasonal Affective Disorder, perhaps.

Whatever the excuse, please forgive my lack of posts. Forgiven? Okay. So.

Six things. Here we go.

Except that before we go, can I please say how difficult this was? Indeed. Finding six things au sujet de moi that are engrossing yet won't freak you out in the thumb-sucking, fetal-position kind of way. Six is a lot. But anyway.

Six things you never knew about me:

1. I have a borderline-obsessive love for all things Harry Potter.

I did not mean to have it, it just happened to me. I tend to sneer at bandwagons and all who jump on them, so you can imagine the particular brand of delight at finding myself bumping along on one, swallowed by a huddle of pimpled faces who say things like, "Isn't Harry like, so totally brilliant? And cute?"

Somebody knock me out till book seven arrives.

2. My brain-vocabulary is much larger than my mouth-vocabulary. This is because books (oh lovely books!) have quadrillions of words that I have never heard someone actually say out loud. So when I want to use one in a conversation, I freeze in fear of mispronunciation.

The solution, of course, you are thinking at me, is to look them up in a dictionary when you read them. Which might be viable IF the book I was reading were dull enough that I could put it down long enough to bother the dictionary. And we all know that books like that do not last two paragraphs with me.

Which brings me to numero tres:

3. I am a self-admitted book snob. Which you already knew, except, (aha!) you did not know I was admitting it. Right out here in the open. For all to see. All three of you who read my blog. (Don't tell anyone, okay?)

4. When I was nine, next-door-Stacey and I climbed our front yard trees and made salads from baby leaves and red petals. I loved how those leaves were still curled in such a pale, new green. We arranged them in plastic containers and stuck them in Stacey's fridge, much (I'm certain) to her mother's delight. Yum.

5. I have a check written to me for a million dollars that I will never cash.

6. The first music video I was privy to featured the boy-band Menudo. I'm fairly sure my sense of personal coolness has never spiked higher.


And now for the tagging. Hmmm. I'll tag De and anyone else who wants to do this. Oh, and if you're remotely related to me and haven't blogged in the last two weeks, consider yourself very tagged.

finally

I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's about time we had a good snow. Another two or three of these, and I think we'll have sufficiently covered winter and can mosey right on to spring.

Snippets of our weekend:

pizza making




rediscovering the wonder




snowmen and general frozen silliness





Happy frigid Tuesday to all.

Brought to you by the letter B

I've never been an avid basketball fan, but Kindergarten ball qualifies as a sport of its own. It's impossible to not have a merry time watching those little people negotiate the court.

Yesterday my Zee scored on a fast break. There was no dribbling involved, but he was paying attention, involved in the play, and headed in the right direction...and he made the basket on top of all that. Why bother with trivialities like dribbling?



On another note, it's my pa's birthday. I was thinking about how to sum him up in a few words, share him with all of you--and well, I can't do him justice. But I will say that he's got this heart so big, I honestly don't know how it fits inside him. I love you, Dad.

the world according to Em

Em: "Mom, do we get any more babies?"

Me: "Nope, honey. I don't think so."

Em: "So that's all? Just three boys and a sister?"

Me: "Yes, aren't we lucky? Three boys and a girl."





Em: "Mom! [Elle] is not a gril! She's a sister!"

Poley

So I have this brother, and today's his birthday.

And because he's got this infectious smile, and understands what it means to be family, and composes symphonies in his head, and makes my dad laugh like no one else can...

I'm wishing him the most joyous of birthdays. :)

Have a good one, Poles.

a sneak peek

...at SweetTea's latest set.

thoughts du jour

It seems to me

that we each walk our bit of earth

filled to the brim

with a blend

of sorrow and beauty,

hope

and

tragedy.

And maybe,

if we can just stand with eyes wide open

for a small minute,

we'll understand

that everyone has their own cup

of heartache;

that we needn't

shouldn't

mustn't

wrestle joy from someone's day.



My immediate goal: be kind today.

yesterday

It was a Mr. Potato Head kind of day.






Simple and sweet. Quiet and creative.

Just the way I like it.