Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

These two incredible kids and how much they teach me each and every day.

This week T. Bone had to write 3 paragraphs on 3 varying topics in addition to a great deal of other homework. That's a lot of writing for an active 11 year old. I was not always my best self in terms of being a model of patience or a muse of inspiration through this process. At one point my son looked at me, locked eyes and said, "You want me to write like I'm in college, but I'm only in 5th grade." I protested...I denied...and then I ruminated on his assertion. As I tucked him in last night, I told shared with him that writing has always been my preferred mode of expression and in a sense the written word has always come easily to me. It's what I've always been most passionate about in the same way that he loves and excells at any and every sport he has ever played. I confessed to him that he was right that perhaps my expectations were unreasonable and I assured him that he is a fine writer who makes me quite proud. I'll never forget the smile on his face when I spoke. And leave it to my 100%, all American athlete to spoil the sappy moment by saying ever so sweetly, "Yea Mom, what sport WERE you good at?"

Oh, and he can sing too.

I have my own editor who prefers I pet him instead of press the keys.

Back on track this week...eating more veggies, only the wholest of whole grains and little to no refined sugar. We don't even miss our holiday vices with meals like southwest chicken soup with cilantro and lime or lettuce wraps.

This 7 year old mastered the art of division with the help of her math loving daddy and she was really deservedly proud of her accomplishments. No, she was not wearing my glasses during her studies, but she agrees that she looks "cute in a nerdy way" with them on. I agree too.

My hubby for filling up my gas tank last week unbeknownest to me, and also that no one saw me get agitated trying to fill said full tank at not one, but two pumps before getting back in my car frustrated and obviously clueless that I didn't need gas.

T. Bone got another perfect score on another math test yet again this quarter.

The way Peanut asks me for hugs in the morning and how Tigger will make his bed on any item of clothing we leave lying around. Peanut has a new morning routine. He is glued to Miss Bit from the minute she gets up in the morning. He follows her to and fro the bathroom, her bedroom, the kitchen, right to the back door as we leave and it makes her feel just a little bit special.

Really sitting with the knowledge that there's no time like the present. Embracing that is life changing and, thus a tad scary.

Curling up on the couch with Miss Bit to read side by side. We read for 40 minutes before she even knew it. It reinforced for me the poignancy and power of leading by example.

Many miles this week and more to come.

Today's Thoughts

I didn't want to get up this morning.
When I finally did roll out of bed, I had only 20 minutes to make T. Bone breakfast and lunch.
I still managed to send him off with a full tummy after a warm meal proving that I perform best under pressure.

I'm trying to phase out 1 of my 2 cups of morning coffee with a cup of green tea.
It probably shouldn't be the first I forgo.
I didn't much enjoy my tea for the whole time I sat sipping it.
I was coveting my coffee.

Miss Bit is eating her breakfast and watching cartoons beside me.
I didn't mind that she changed the channel because I have little interest in the academy award nominations.
I find Curious George more endearing than Brangelina these days.
For the life of me, I'm trying to get to the bottom of a bowl of oatmeal.
I know breakfast is important, but I'm not much into it most mornings.

I made a list of what I need to make laundry soap and I'm a little giddy about doing that today.
And maybe just a little more excited to find the perfect container in which to store it.
Too bad I already stripped the beds and started a load.
Oh well, there's always more where that came from.

After I drop Miss Bit off at school, I am looking forward to a long walk.
It's a chilly, grey day so I'll bundle up and brave it.
When I return, I'll fix a bowl of last night's leftover minestrone to warm me from the inside out.
It was quite good with the layers of flavor: onion, garlic, fresh rosemary, bay, parsley and basil.
Not too mention a little freshly grated Parmesan on top of the crunchy veggies and nutty pasta.

Last week I committed to meeting a friend downtown tonight.
She needed a wing woman, and she asks little of me.
Regrettably, I bowed out on her yesterday.
I'm really grateful that she understands that right now I just don't feel up to meeting new people, being in a crowd or being on.
I'm rather off.
It's why I'm talking about sleep and soup and laundry, but at least I'm still talking.

On My Mind Monday

The pathos and the gift of life is that we cannot know which will be our defining heartbreak, or our most victorious joy.

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Cocktail Hour Under The Tree Of Forgetfulness
Alexandra Fuller

And I ask this: Would we really want to know if we even could?

2 day pass

we all took it down several notches this weekend and were blissfully happy to do so.
t. bone kept his snowboarding date friday and came home talking about grinds and getting air still clearly soaring after the totally awesome experience.
then he asked to skip basketball practice saturday morning and declined an invitation for sunday and so it is that there's a first for everything.
miss bit had a friend over both afternoons much to her delight.
my brother and sil joined us for an impromptu saturday night soire.
i made a deliciously easy 3 ingredient caprese dip and oooey, gooey salted caramel bars, and they kindly brought a tasty shephard's pie and also the wine.
leftovers became lunch the next day after church and a walk.
the wind along the lake was biting and brutal.
i couldn't shake the chill for the rest of the day.
but i tried by curling up on the couch under not 1, but 2 afghans with my book and numerous episodes of trash t.v. in cue.
And that's a wrap.

Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for snow and the fact that just now all of my family members are home safe, sound and warm. I'm grateful for the quiet of the house this moment and knowing we do not have to leave until church on Sunday morning. I'm grateful for time to just be this weekend. I wish you a hibernating, happy, peace-filled weekend too.

Today...A Glimpse.

Today was:

Waking up to flurries.
The yard is so eerily quiet and deserted as the critters seek cover.
Before we leave the house, the streets are slippery and snow covered, and the trees dusted in the flying flakes.
There is palpable energy in our midst despite the quiet in the yard because my kids sort of worship the white stuff, and maybe I do just a little bit too even if it means I have to drive white knuckled.
Of course, there is endless speculation on the number of inches and the likelihood of a snow day this week.
Me and Bit take T. Bone to school, come home, discover he left his shoes in the mudroom, dress, and are back out the door in 20 minutes.
In that time, he calls to ask me to deliver his shoes to which I reply, "Have you seen the roads? Wear your boots."
Miss Bit and all her oozing empathy somehow convinces me to save her brother from having to spend the day sporting soggy, rubber soles.
He owes her.
Have I told you lately how hugely this girl makes me want to do the right thing?
I make a quick trip to the grocery and because of the weather I have the store to myself always a bonus.
Once home, I cook and bake and clean before retiring under an afghan with a cat flanking my both sides.
I finally finish Cocktail Hour Under The Tree Of Forgetfulness.
This quote sticks with me all day: What my mother won't say - lost in all her talk of chemicals and pills - is that she knows not only the route grief takes through blood but also the route it takes through the heart's cracks. What she won't tell me is that recovering from the madness of grief wasn't just a matter of prescriptions, but of willpower.
I am so glad to have Fuller's first memoir: Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, and start it immediately.
Bam! Just like that and six hours have flown by so I leave to get my T. Bone.
Smart kid gets in the car and the first words out of his mouth are, "Thank you."
"For what?" I inquire testing him.
"Bringing my shoes," he says making the small sacrifice worth it big.
Then he carries on about what he calls "Two exciting things" about his day.
One: he lost his first molar...his eleventh tooth.
Two: ski club is planning an all day trip in February and now he's wishing the next four weeks away.
Have I said it here lately how much I L-O-V-E this kid and his enthusiasm???
He runs to retrieve his sister and they race back to the van like they always do only she wins today because he's wearing his tennis shoes instead of his boots (WTH) and therefore treading carefully.
She's almost more excited than he is with regard to the lost tooth.
He decides of his own free will and without the power of suggestion that he will shovel the driveway for his Dad before he calls his friend who he plans to snowboard with.
She keeps him company, but doesn't dig in.
They come in and declare my snowman cupcakes "too cute to eat."
But they do, and then decide that they are "THE best cupcakes" I have ever made!
Of course, this is one of the rare times I doctor up a cake mix and use a can of frosting so I'm a tad beside myself that they prefer the processed crap to homemade.
Then I eat one and realize that they taste just like Twinkies and if I worked out today I'd have two just like T. Bone cuz' I am a closet Twinkie lover even if I haven't had one in decades.
T. Bone does his homework with one eye on the clocks while he waits for his friend to finish his own assignments.
Miss Bit bundles up and waits for her friend in the fort they built the day before.
Hubby comes home and we have time to chat and chill.
I don't see the kids until we call them home for dinner.
It's dark outside, they both have cheeks that look like apples, they are soaked to the bone and starving.
They inhale their turkey burgers, naan and carrots hoping to get more time outside on the "totally awesome jump" they built.
The adults have tuna casserole that my hubby tells me is so good he has to have seconds when he doesn't usually even want firsts.
After I take a bite, I must humbly admit that he is right.
This polygamous marriage between my Mom's recipe and my paternal Grandma's recipe and my own recipe seems to take this casserole to a new level.
I have seconds too and eat my salad for dessert despite the fact that I would really like thirds.
We settle in our spots and someone queries, "Does Peanut really need two afghans?"
I don't answer because what kind of crazy question is this?
Of course he does, he's a cat and he has a fur coat, but he's too cute to deny or disturb.
We watch Celebrity Wife Swap, which is Miss Bit's new favorite show right up there with The Wild Man and Toddlers and Tiaras.
I go with it though because these moms make me look like June Cleaver (not that the kids know who she is or anything, but note to self...they should).
Soon as they're tucked in bed, hubby gets a phone call pertaining to little league, and another and another.
Yes, despite the fact that it's the middle of winter, we are already forging ahead to spring.
Hey...the draft is in 30 days I'll have you know!
I am half asleep for the news, but I hear enough to know that tomorrow is going to be cold and there will be more snow this week.
And that was today...ordinary and extraordinary all at once.

Happy Birthday Dr. King

Miss Bit and I got to talking about why we were off yesterday on our way to school today. (I was still off my game Monday and not 100% due to my sickness so forgive my Nyquil induced fog please and lack of pertinent discussion on the actual day.) This morning on our long snowy drive we talked about MLK, his dream, segregation, and civil rights. She was speechless when I told her that there were separate schools and bathrooms and buses for African Americans not that long ago in our country. We discussed how when we crack open a brown egg and a white egg, they are both the same inside. That what's inside is what matters. She wanted to how and why such things happened, which led me to touch on slavery. Before I finished gently explaining slavery to her...how Africans were brought over on ships and families were sold as workers and sometimes separated forever...she was on the verge of tears. She said, "I just can't hear any more of this! It makes no sense because what you said about the eggs is what is true." And while I didn't like seeing my girl blue, I was sure glad that she sees no difference between peachy skin or brown skin or black skin or yellow skin....that she loves colors and yet she's colorblind.