sunday still life

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Sunday Still Life is an evolving photography project; a weekly invitation to pause the busy of our days, to re-center and celebrate the beauty and depth of life. If you are inspired to join in, please leave a link in Erin’s comments.

A sunny pause following breakfast out in the mountains with the family where the girls entertained themselves coloring. Zuzu learned to draw birds this morning. Lovey and I had a second cup of coffee. No one cried, threw food or launched their toys into a neighboring table. As still as life can be with spirited small ones. Bliss indeed

gratitude

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1. Spontaneous food math from the 5 year old
2. The feigned look of surprise on the almost 3 year old’s face when I pick her up from school- which is promptly followed each and every day by a greeting worthy of a soldier coming home on leave.
3. Our family tree gathering tradition

4. Sugarplum being named Sugarplum

5. The nightly request from the 5 year old to tuck, tuck, tuck her in

6. The nightly and insistent request from the almost 3 year old to kiss her duck-ducks at bedtime.

7. Books on CD weaving stories into my daily commute

8. Our Holiday Cards- I just keep staring at them.

9. Friends & Family sending Sugarplum Christmas presents already. Oh it warms my heart to have her seen as here already.

10. International justice and hope for the dear orphans.

11. Waking to realize you didn’t wake during the night

12. Gifts of meals arriving from far and wide.

13. The holidays peaceably coming together almost like it had been well orchestrated.

14. A wrapping day with Lovey.

15. Sisters realizing they fit side by side in either end of the tubby

16. The mischievious giggle from the almost 3 year old as her 3rd request to go potty at bedtime is finally denied.

17. Seeing the almost 3 year old thoughtfully ponder the cookie tray before precisely choosing the brownie after considering taking the same cookie her sister had.

18. 5 minutes for a conversation with a friend

19. calmness in the night
20. Sugarplum’s tumblings

21. The almost 3 year old learning to say, “No Momma” and stopping her tantrum short when prompted

corner view: black & white

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Corner view is a weekly Wednesday date hosted originally hosted by Jane, currently by Francesca. A topic is given and you can see impressions; be it in photographic or poetic in form from around the world: Jane, Dana, Bonny, Joyce, Ian, Francesca, Theresa, Cate, Kasia, Otli, Trinsch, Isabelle, Janis, Kari, jgy, Lise, Dorte, McGillicutty, Sunnymama, Ibb, Kelleyn, Ninja, Sky, RosaMaria, Juniper, Valerie, Sammi, Cole, Don, WanderChow, FlowTops, Tania, Tzivia, Kristin, Laura, Guusje, Susanna, Juana, Elsa, Nadine

sunday still life

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Sunday Still Life is an evolving photography project; a weekly invitation to pause the busy of our days, to re-center and celebrate the beauty and depth of life. If you are inspired to join in, please leave a link in Erin’s comments.

This spring promises to be an eventful one for our well feathered nest. The first signs of it are in the air as Sugarplum kicks her presence known into the third and final trimester of growth under my heart and the first yellow blooms open early in our garden. Their arrival is early, a sign maybe of an early spring in our home as well….

corner view: Ring out the old, Ring in the new

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Happy New Year’s Friends!!!! (waving vigorously) It’s been far too long since I’ve posted and fueled by a little afternoon caffeine chosen over the afternoon nap, I’ve decided to pop in and share our New Year’s Holiday. We’ve been fortunate over the years to have a multitude of opportunities to ring in the New Year with a variety of friends. This year while we did not make it to the southern good luck tradition of eating greens and Hoppin John on New Years Day, we  feel lucky to have been at a fun gathering with a group of families that involved yummy appetizers, fireworks, fondue and lots of littles for our Sistred to run around with.

The reason we didn’t manage a New Year’s day brunch was a happy one as well. Our Zuzu is a big fan of what she calls “Hotel Vacations”. On the first day back to school after the Christmas Holiday you would expect her to excitedly tell about all the loot and loving gifts she received from loved ones near and far. But no. Instead in her mind she had already moved on to the potential “Hotel Vacation” Lovey and I had been discussing in the past week. With our newest bird getting ready to join us we’ve been trying to find devoted time to these little ones and their favorite things while not wearing out ourselves or becoming buried in an avalanche off of Mt. Washmore. So we agreed after our New Year’s gathering we would trek back up the mountain to one of our favorite towns to visit- Asheville and relax in a hotel that offered an indoor pool and go out for tasty treats and an activity or two.

We toasted in the New Year’s with a breakfast toast that is more in time with a tired family who can’t manage to see the New Year in at midnight these days.

The Early Girl is one of our favorite Asheville hang-outs. Any restaurant that offers up a tin of crayons, a paper tablecloth and a bucket of toys with each highchair has my blessing. Of course the tasty breakfast treats like multigrain pancakes for the kids, Early Girl Eggs Bennie which is the traditional with a substitute of a grit cake for a muffin and tomato gravy for the topping for me and a sweet potato-sausage scramble for Charlie all served in a sunny room makes sure that we have many happy returns. It doesn’t hurt that Zuzu learned to draw a bird off of the local pottery and the neighboring table offered to take our photo rather than ask us to leave.

The girls love to have the opportunity to swim and so the hotel was a hit. The other great treat for us was our first family movie as a group of 4. We had taken Zuzu to her first movie theater movie the friday after Thanksgiving while her sister went to school. It had been a special day for her to have solo attention from both of her parents and she had thoroughly enjoyed watching Arthur Christmas and a lunch out a restaurant. Zuzu’s always been one that is easily spooked by violence, even cartoon violence. Every time we try to show her The Muppet Show it is met with the question of “Why does that pig keep hitting that frog? It’s not nice!” So we’ve been hesitant to take her to a new show that hasn’t been previewed. Her sister on the other hand, is not easily scared. Knowing this we ventured out on New Year’s Day to Asheville’s Pizza and Brewing. A movie theater that offers up slices of gourmet pizza, micro-brews and second run shows. Puss N Boots was showing  and for $3 a ticket we figured if we made it through the opening credits with both girls it was still worth it to grab some lunch. Much to our surprise and delight, the Quail LOVED being in the theater. She immediately stood up and started pretending to run and dance along with the cats on screen and helped herself to Momma and Lovey’s specialty pizza of walnuts, pesto, gorgonzola and sesame seed while making it clear she wasn’t interested in the old grilled cheese we had bought her. It was a fun day for all and a great way to end the holidays. We’ll definitely be rining in the new as we prepare for our spring bird to join our family! Hope the holiday season was a delight for everyone!

 

Corner view is a weekly Wednesday date hosted originally hosted by Jane, currently by Francesca. A topic is given and you can see impressions; be it in photographic or poetic in form from around the world: Jane, Dana, Bonny, Joyce, Ian, Francesca, Theresa, Cate, Kasia, Otli, Trinsch, Isabelle, Janis, Kari, jgy, Lise, Dorte, McGillicutty, Sunnymama, Ibb, Kelleyn, Ninja, Sky, RosaMaria, Juniper, Valerie, Sammi, Cole, Don, WanderChow, FlowTops, Tania, Tzivia, Kristin, Laura, Guusje, Susanna, Juana, Elsa, Nadine

Mommaday: gettin back in the saddle

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Oh I promise this blog wasn’t created for the sole purpose of whining. But well, I’m thinking mentioning it a third time equates to whining. I’m tired. Not so very tired, more suseptibly tired. As in my OB said, “How’s your energy level?” at one of my last appointments and I gleefully crowed, “It’s absolutely fine!”

And then the next day I yawned in the middle of the day. And then that weekend when the Sistred went down for a nap, so did I. And from then on, well, my weekend writing/photo editing/blog time was given over to the land of nod. I have lots to update on. It’s been a fabulously fun-filled last 3 months. 3 months! I haven’t told you about Zuzu’s birthday party, Halloween, our holiday tree gathering trek up the mountains, our holiday festivities including Zuzu’s first parade march, our gingerbread house decorating, our pastry building, our Tur-duck-in, our Christmas day and the glorious 5 days we had to ourselves to celebrate it or our happy little weekend heading back to the mountains over New Years. I haven’t gone on and on about the Quail’s horn tooting, her acquisition of new words and subsequent program plan update with Sara Rosenfeld Johnson, her new found fierocity and independence or the giggles and secrets between Stisters. I haven’t told you about the joy that is growing Sugarplum, whom I’m happy to report is officially tagged in-utero by her eldest stister and the name has stuck. The reports by my OBs, one of which involves my favorite OB mistakenly asking if I was 5 weeks further along than I am (oh the pastry builidng, did involve pastry eating, and Sugarplum measures more like a Watermelon than a sweet plum these days).

See how much you’ve missed? Well stay tuned. I’m going to do my best to catch you all up. Scouts honor!

Quailday: Bird Growth…

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In addition to the growth of her vocabulary our bird; who earlier this fall lept into her 2T pants, 3T fall shirts (with a slightly rolled sleeve cuff remaining) and size 6  shoes (which I swear had just been a 4 weeks earlier), started sporting size 7 shoes and 3T Christmas Jammies!!!! I had poured over the choices at the store wishing I could mix and match tops and bottoms just knowing that she needed a 3T top to cover her bowl full of jelly, but knowing that the long pant size would certainly cause more than a couple of bumps and bruises. Well she donned them this weekend and proudly ran off with the cuffs at her ankles. I’m certain it has to just be the style of the pant and a slight irregularity in the making of the pant that it fits, but regardless our bird has grown and bares very little resemblance to her her previous 2 year old toddling self of this summer. I remember the striking difference when Zuzu turned 3  and marveling at how much she had changed since she was 2. It seemed like a change that should have been heralded in the parenting books as worthy of proclamation as the change from fetus to newborn, newborn to one year old and one to two. She was no longer a baby. I think with the Quail’s growth pattern being more like watching a rose slowly unfold I had told myself not to expect the same level of change between 2-3.

That 2 year old, she was still my sweet baby. This almost 3 year old, is stunningly and heart-warmingly little kiddish, and now with the swift size to match.

Mommaday: Keep the Yule log burning…

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Rest assured dear friends, that all is well in our little nest. I’ve mentioned before that my daily blogger status was pure illusion. I write, edit and schedule my posts while The Sistred sleep. Currently, with one of them residing within me, my mind has harkened back to that other-worldly voice of mothers past reminding me to sleep when the littles do, and I feel the need to practice before the littlest of the littles arrives during my usual weekend bloggy reflection time. You can understand the need to be rested up for resting right?

Merriment is currently underway in the forms of lemon & peppermint sprinkled spritz cookies, warm roasted chickens, steamed milk with chocolate sauce, apricot brioche, a trip for our traditional tree hunt, that happily involved a lot less tears this year, the Sistred in residence all helping to dress the tree (and subsequently and routinely undress it), daily movement from our resident Elf on the Shelf- TJ, a marching 5 year old joining the Twinkle Brigade, an almost 3 year old learning to shout Santa and whisper sweet nothings to her now vocally referenced Momma and a closet full of giftees needing some wrapped attention.  I’m hoping for some quiet AND awake time in the weeks ahead. Until then Season’s Greetings to all and to all some peace and rest!

 

Zuzuday: Math, Kisses & Paris

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I love seeing the slow unfolding of my children’s minds. I love when I see the process of a new connection forming. I’m blown out of the water though, when I couldn’t see it coming and it’s suddenly presented to me out of seemingly nowhere. This happened earlier this year when Zuzu sat down one day and wrote “hat” in clear legible lettering with no prompting or cueing. Earlier in the week of December 19, she stunned me again when on the ride home from school she bubbled out a request for a trip to Paris. “Paris?” I questioned?

“Yes, Momma- I want to see the tower for myself!” she quipped.

“The Eiffel Tower in Paris?” Yes she confirmed as I went on to explain that it would take an entire day to get to Paris and that would be quite difficult for the littlest of the littles to hold still and quiet for such a voyage.

Zuzu nodded thoughtfully and declared, “ Then we will go when I’m 10! The Quail will be 7 and Sugarplum will be 4!”

Math. This ridiculously articulate little girl had done math on her own! Brilliant! So mature! Clearly the next Einstein! As I was quietly preening in the front seat over my prodigious progeny, she then announced she kissed two boys earlier that day. You could have heard a pin drop while I struggled for the right response to my 5 year old. I mentally reminded myself to not make a huge deal out of this, that while I could hear the glee in her voice, she does not have the sophistication to have it mean to her what it means in my mind. That said, I did ask what happened, who was involved and issued a reminder of the rules in place in Ms. Jan’s class that involves “No boyfriends/girlfriends allowed.” All the while kicking myself for my earlier laughing off of this rule from 2 years ago when I first heard of it and deemed it silly. It also was not lost on me that this event of 2 separate boys asking her to kiss them coincided with the mixing of her class with a full day of the after-schoolers  presence who in light of the 2 week holiday break from their cosmopolitan elementary world had rejoined the 4 year olds that very day.

As I regaled this news to Lovey during the girl’s bathtime that evening I couched it in Fred Eaglesmith terms, “Time to get your gun.” Sigh…

Zuzuday: The Twinkle Brigade

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Zuzu was in her first parade. Anyone that knew me in childhood knows that I do not love a parade. Growing up they were in summer and winter- harsh weather, itchy band uniforms coupled with a slightly anxious disposition created much turmoil in my young head and bladder. Zuzu’s been taking dance classes for the last 3 years. Each year we get a notice home about the local Christmas Parade and an invitation to participate with her class. Each year, I mentally mark it off my calendar and file the invitation away. This year though, Zuzu was quite aware of what she was missing. She knew there was a special holiday dance class sweatshirt, an opportunity to don a Santa hat and strut her stuff. I knew that I had to be out of town for work that day and that it would be too much to march with her in the parade and keep the Quail comfortable on what was likely to be a cold, blustery day. So we explained why we were unable to participate and promised to look into it next year if she remained in dance.

Then the weather fairies collaborated to create enough rain to cancel the parade and reschedule it to a night where there were no obvious problems. AND, Zuzu came home from dance class with a note from her teacher with a phone number and additional invitation to call and get the last extra small holiday sweatshirt so she could participate. So I got down a Santa hat, rounded up some red pants and a turtleneck, bundled up the Quail and Lovey and I headed down to the parade. At first I was delighted. The girls were all smiles and it was nice to be out and see friends that we hadn’t in quite some time.  Then the sun started to set. The dance mother in charge of Zuzu’s age group started handing out candy cane batons and calling the girls over to practice. Zuzu started to hedge. She started announcing she was hungry, then thirsty, then cold, then just gave in to her urge to cling to me.

It was obvious that I wasn’t going to be able to leave her with her group and join Lovey & the Quail at the end of the parade to cheer for her. And that is how I came out of my 20 year plus parade hiatus to march my 20+ week pregnant belly down the main street of our fair town waving to friends that I haven’t seen in months. I learned a couple things in this: the importance of keeping a calm façade in the face of our children who fortunately didn’t genetically inherit my hang-ups and that a lot of the whining I hear from Zuzu seems to stem from anxiety. We went back and forth with the instructions to get in line to the point where the dance mother asked the instructor if we could put Zuzu on the float if she didn’t come around.

I’m happy to report she did come around and proudly led the group of her classmates with her candy cane held high and hollered out her happy holiday messages for all to hear. She was so convincing that it appeared most others than the dance mother didn’t realize the struggle it was to get her to stay there. I even found a small piece of myself that rallied as a proud dance mother encouraging the girls to keep their candy canes up with the group. I’m happy to report that we left with a clear uncertainty as to whether we would do it again.

The Quail’s highlight of that evening was in our hurried walk to get back to the beginning of the parade in time to see Santa waving from the top of the firetruck. Our girl who had shoved away from a previous Santa interaction just days earlier waved fanatically and even was able to work out a fairly loud greeting of “SANTAAAAAA!!!!!!” A sweet end to a festive night.