Emma’s First Sleepover:) July 19, 2008

Emma had her first sleepover tonight.  She’s spent the night before at Dani’s house, but this time the girls decided that it would be Dani’s turn to sleep at our house.  Once we got those pesky boys to sleep (okay Clyde wasn’t a problem, but Nolan wouldn’t stop climbing all over Dani because he was so excited that she was here), it was time for some girl-time.  I love my boys’ energy, but the peaceful way that girls play and talk is very refreshing.  So, after playing house, watching Ratatouille and playing doctor, we settled down for some fairy stories.  We’re reading “The Trouble with Tink” right now.  After I was done with my chapter, the girls “read” their own books.  They are laying in the living room floor right now, talking quietly about puppies and dolls and actually begging me to turn off the lights.

The lights are now off, the girls have been tucked in and kissed goodnight (Dani instructed me to not give her my slobbers – too funny:), and they are now talking about princesses and turtles.  Okay, now they’re whishpering – too cute.  Here’s a couple of images:

My Sunshine June 13, 2008

How appropriate that Emma was born on the first day of summer? She is my sunshine, my warmth, my contentment. Almost five years ago, Emma came into my world and changed it. She made me a mom. Being the first, she has suffered through all of my first-time mom mistakes with grace. She has forgiven me for every misstep I have taken and let her light shine through to let me know that those missteps do not define my motherhood. My motherhood is defined by these three wonderful creatures that have dug a place into my heart that I did not know existed. With them in my life, my life is extraordinary. She is extraordinary in a world that seems so ordinary without her. She is not only my daughter, she is my heart and my hope – maybe because she’s my first, maybe because she’s my only girl, maybe just because she’s Emma.

The sheer pleasure she took in this skirt was extraordinary. I braced myself for this session with her. Most of the time, taking pictures of my kids is nothing short of a one-way ticket to the looney bin. But she was so excited about it that it really took me by surprise. I know she cherishes time with just Mom. And I know she loves her skirt (thanks again, MOM). But I thought for sure that once we got out there, she would get tired or just have her own idea of what to do. And she definitely had her own ideas, but somehow we seamlessly worked together and got the best photos of her that I’ve ever taken (and there have been lots).

It is so important to me that as she grows older, that we remain friends. I will always be her parent, but there is something so much more to our relationship. She laughs with me just because I’m laughing. And she cries with me simply because I’m crying. That’s not just a daughter – that’s an angel, my angel.

I watch her with people, with little kids, with anyone – and you know what makes her the happiest? To see others happy. I used to think that she didn’t have an identity because she depended on others reactions to form her own. But now I think that I’m the one that had it all wrong to begin with. She doesn’t have the identity that I do or that other kids do – she has one that is so much more humble and loving than anything I could have imagined.

If I could freeze time, I would have stopped yesterday evening and held onto it forever.

The Best $17 I’ve ever spent!! June 2, 2008

I was in Target the other day, buying way more than I went in there for. I only had Nolan because the other two yahoo’s were still in school. Nolan caught sight of the big humungo bin of big bouncy balls and decided that he just had to have one. I let him play with one and to my surprise he kept himself *and quite a few other patrons* entertained with that ball for about 30 minutes. So, I bought the ball for him *I’m not a softy kind of mom, but how could I deny him hours of entertainment with this ball?*

Upon checkout, the nice employee was commenting on how there are hundreds of big-wig toy company big-boss-bass’s trying to make sure that their company comes up with the next “toy to talk about”. And what do the kids always end up playing with? The balls and the boxes.

Two of the most boring, simple, common shapes and object. And somehow, the simplicity of these objects appeals to every young child out there. Maybe the simplicity of it makes it possible for each kid to allow the object to be whatever the child wants it to be. In their head, maybe it’s a cave in the middle of the jungle. Or a sewer filled with an army of rats that they must combat. Or maybe they can pretend to be a bear hibernating for the winter.

Which leads me to my all-time favorite summer buy – the slip n’ slide! Who didn’t have fun on these as a kid? And their premise is soooo simple. Make a surface wet – and slide down it. Last summer, Emma and Clyde had so much fun on this thing that I found myself praying to the slip n’ slide gods every night and thanking them for making such a simply beautiful product. This was followed by a prayer to the red wine gods which make it possible for me to have a moment at the end of every evening that is all to myself:)

And no one is more passionate, more spirited, more fun-loving, grab life by the horns (and then take a nap) than my Clyde. He could probably slip n’ slide all day long, pretending he was diving off a watercliff in Micronesia or racing to save a baby turtle in dire need. His imagination is endless and so is his energy. I love watching him engage with toys that allow him to explore the far reaches of his mind until he finds a certain adventure that’s just waiting to be explore. Have you ever seen the cartoon Backyardigans? In Clyde’s mind, his backyard really does turn into a dude ranch filled with cattle to be herded, or a vast desert filled with dinosaurs. He is amazing to watch and even more amazing to watch grow.

So, here are my kids – Clyde being adventurous, Emma being cute and docile, and Nolan being goofy. God please let me remember these days – they are such a unique treasure.

Okay, so I just have to comment about this picture below *the rest tell the story on their own*. The other day, I was talking to Nolan and I asked him, “Are you tired?” I fully expected the freak-out that comes after that question that adamantly refuses any admission of fatigue but is shrouded by an overall, subliminal message of “PUT ME TO BED!” But to my surprise, Nolan seemed to yawn, almost on command. I laughed. And being my little clown, he laughed too. And now, ever since then, if I ask him if he’s tired, he gives me the biggest fake yawn that he can muster, waits for me to laugh at him, and then cracks up like he’s the hit on Last Comic Standing – what a little belly buster he’s going to be. So, here it is – documented for him to see when he grows up – t h e f a k e y a w n