It Can Change on a Dime

As in Life, can.
I heard that phrase a lot growing up.  My grandma used to remind me of it when telling me to "do right" because you never knew when it would be "your time". 
When you are a 15 year old girl who knows everything, this doesn't carry much weight.  But now as a 38 year old mother of three whose own mother died at only 31, I can feel the load.

Like so many things in life, it usually takes some sort of calamity to shake people into realizing the goodness all around them.  People mean well-they love a lot, pray much and work hard.  But it's easy to take things for granted when you have the luxury of waking up in your own bed each day and know you can walk across the room to hug your child or friend.

I have a very dear friend.  She made my high school days much more palatable.  We commiserated about asshole first-boyfriends and rocked out to John Mellencamp until our brains were mush.  I could walk into her house and open the right cabinet to find the cookies.  I lived at her house as much as my own it seemed in those days.  We got into trouble together, had entirely too much fun together and laugh about it all now.

She is a great mom and friend.  Her life changed in a single instant.  Out of the blue. 
Whenever anything happens to someone young, there is stunned silence.  I was actually unable to speak for about 90 seconds yesterday when hearing the news. 
This girl is vivacious, has a smile that lights up a room and a great laugh.  It shouldn't be her.  It can't be her.  But it is, so I am praying non-stop that God holds her in the palm of His hand.  I am using all my mental telethapy to tell her to FIGHT!  Come on, man!  We have porksteaks to barbeque, Blue Moons to drink and many laughs to still enjoy.  Don't leave the party just yet-we haven't got into nearly enough trouble.

Love the one you're with.  Love you ADM.

Yes, You Can

My D is so sweet.  I love to see his face light up when he discovers something for the first time.  Tonight he learned that a person can go to college anywhere they want, not just in Charlotte or NC.  You should have seen his eyes when he realized he could go to college in California.  So then I had to teach him about something called scholarships.  Because he will need a few to go to school in the land of sun and silicone.
Then he tells me he wants to go to school where Daddy went...(in-state tuition).  I tell him great, that's a good choice.  Apparently that was too much parental approval because then he tells me Well, Maybe. 
Yes, let's not limit ourselves at the ripe old age of 7.

Meanwhile while cooking dinner, I overhear GoGo tell Agent P "she's going to get served".  I don't know if she meant at the ABC store or by a flying fist, but neither one can be good for a 19-month old.

And maybe that is why Agent P rocked the furrowed brow this afternoon.

And So it Begins

Another year.
Another chance to do right, make right, live right.
A clean slate.
I gave up New Year resolutions a long time ago.  I don't keep them.  I try to, but it never seems to work out in my favor. 
Instead I'm going to just give thanks I woke up another day and see where that leads me.
Sure, I have a long list of things I would like to do this year...take horseback lessons, learn to play guitar, improve my photography, bake better, workout more.  Oh and of course, BE A BETTER MOM. 
Can't forget that one.
But what will I really do, in the end?
Definitely the better mom thing.  These aren't house plants I'm raising.  These little people deserve 110% and then-some when it comes to their childhood.  Plus, I can't save for college, weddings AND therapy.
I will probably fore-go the horse and guitar lessons for myself to give swim lessons and summer camps to my kids instead.  No martyr here, just enough Catholic guilt to last a lifetime.
I will work on my photography, thoroughly using highlighting my beautiful children.
I will workout more because I haven't been this flabby in a while, even with 3 kids.
Hmm.  That leaves the baking thing...I will use my stand mixer more often to create Food Network worthy desserts.  Hmm.
See why I gave up resolutions long ago?

Is It Really Over?

Either I rush through the Christmas season or it just simply is too short.  I can't decide which.

I look forward to this time of year with almost as much anticipation as my little people and I promise myself at the beginning of each holiday season that I will sllooww down and fully savor the sounds, sights and the people. 

Instead, I usually find myself at a ToysRUs two days before Christmas getting a "few last minute" things, along with every other maniac in town.  Or I rush to the Harris Teeter the afternoon of Christmas Eve, thinking I surely do not have enough sugar or chicken stock in my pantry.

I did get the whole family to church more this year and I did remember to say Merry Christmas to more people.  But I am sad at the prospect of taking down the tree, removing my candles from the windows and turning off my Christmas music.  Of course come June, I will be saying "Less than 6 months to Christmas!  How can that be?"  On to Valentine's Day.

My kids had a great Christmas-lots of smiles and squeals and super cute pics.  Too bad Mommy had her settings set for something other than a low-lit room Christmas morning but oh well.  Memories, right?  Even darkly lit ones.  I will have to narrate.

Um, stockings?

Going for the stocking grab.

D, enthralled with a Lego game.

Agent P, writing secret messages to parties unknown.

Lord, I hope she got some hair product in her stocking.

Santa's BIG GIFT to the older ones was a Nintendo DS.  The basic one, not the one that allows for skyping and God knows what else.  Apparently GoGo missed that memo though, because I caught her "taxting" her friend Julie several times on her DS.  Love that girl.

D received a Nerf gun that would put Rambo to shame.  It comes with a tripod, for the Love of Pete.  I am waiting for him tell someone to "Say Hello to his Little Freend".

Agent P is just happy playing with the boxes stuff came in and everyone elses' presents but her own. 

Go figure.

And then it SNOWED.  Could this Christmas get any better?  I was able to put Agent P's hot pink boots on and let her romp in the snow for the first time.  She was a bit uncertain but my older 2 had a non-stop snow party for about 36 hours with the neighborhood kids and were flat wore out.  Good times.

Now.  When can I get my flip flops out, again?

Counting Down

To Christmas break being over.
NO!  I mean until CHRISTMAS, of course.

Counting down to...
the hum of the oven baking dozens of fresh Christmas cookies
hot cocoa made from scratch
Honey-Baked Ham                                                                    
a glowing Christmas tree
bright presents and bows
stockings filled to the brim
children screeching with glee
family just hanging
Christmas music blaring
Joy and Peace.

Merry Christmas!

You Have to Believe to Receive

 The Elf has landed.  The one on the shelf, that is.
My kids are really into the idea of Santa, and for that I am thankful.  I think I will be incredibly sad the day they no longer Believe in the Magic.
So the first morning we woke up with the Elf in our house, GoGo could not wait to find Kramer.
In fact, she forgot one of the golden rules as it relates to the Elf and TOUCHED HIM.  Ugh oh.
So daddy reminds her of this cardinal sin and big tears well up, she freezes with the Elf in her hand and nearly has a breakdown.

Later that day when the Elf was safely back in his viewing spot, GoGo tells me NOT to come into the dining room as she is going to be talking to Kramer, not touching him. 

So of course I spy on her and that is what I saw/heard.
GoGo - I'm sorry if I hurt you earlier when I picked you up.  I hope Santa isn't mad at me.
Kramer the Elf - curious silence.
GoGo - Here are some Hershey kisses for you.  Love you Kramer.  (as she lays 6 kisses next to him, which Mommy ate later to prove the Elf was real).
Now how could Santa be mad at such sweetness??

Or my handsome D, when I explain to him we're gift shopping for a family that doesn't have much money and no insurance and are just in a bad way, as my grandma would say.  He suggests to me that we do 2 things:
1.  Give them a Target gift card so they have more money (Ah, Tar-jay...the medicine that cures all)
2.  Buy them some medicine at Target, of course, so they will have some if they get sick again.
Who can argue with such a simple but clear perspective?

This one is really too young to appreciate any of this but did figure out how to open Hershey Kisses and consume them while on the short drive to preschool this am.  Love her.  And the bandaid on her bottom lip is due to a shaving mishap.  Big times at 17 months.

Meanwhile Mommy caves in to Christmas Card Pressure and creates and mails a sub-par card but is ok with it because she Believes In The Magic, anyway.

A Few Things

Know what this is?  Something very special! from GoGo, for Mommy.  She ran up to me, barely able to contain her pride and excitement, and handed me this "piece of artwork".  Hmm.  Love that she thought to add the heart and peace sign, as if that somehow mitigates it all.

This would be the 234th outtake from our annual Christmas Card Photo Extravaganza. 

God Help Us, everyone.

If I could have somehow wrangled obtained this picture with all 3 little people, I could sleep easy.

Ever, the escape artist.

And on a completely different train of thought, the other night I was asked to help with a 6th grade Faith Formation class.  Ok, fine-just don't ask me any hard questions.  Let me pass out markers and smile alot.

Wow.  What a HARD age.  The boys were on one side of the room, girls on the other.  The "cool boys" were snickering during the whole thing.  One girl re-did her updo at LEAST 10x during the class.  And all of this was going on during PRAYER.  About MARY, for the love of pete.  At then at the end they were to draw a picture of Mary (using the markers I so helpfully passed out). 
One boy turned one in with a green squiggle.  A GREEN SQUIGGLE. 
I gave him my best eyebrowup-dartsforeyes-whatthehellareyouthinking look.  All moms have one.
And I think it worked.  He looked mighty small for a minute and told me "that wasn't his REAL picture.  He can't find that one."  Right, kid. 
Now.  I am far from a Puritan and oh so far from perfect.  I could have been any of these kids once (except for the girl actually named Mary, as she was the only participating). 
But Oh.My.Word.  It gave me cold chills, thinking of what I have to look forward to with my own 3 little people.  Had this been my own class, I would have reminded them of CONFESSION and how they all needed to go.  Including the teacher.
Oh, Happy Advent.