In Case They Ever Wonder

My parents are reinventing grandparenthood. My mom doesn't bake cookies; my dad doesn't plant a garden. My mom doesn't sew; my dad doesn't fish. For me, grandparents are listening to made up bedtime stories, riding in the back of the truck, trying on handmade dresses and playing school in a yard swing. Will and Sophie will have very different ideas about grandparents because my parents are reinventing grandparenthood.   Even their "grandparent names" are different. My dad is Tato, Ukrainian for father and a pet name that Hope gave him, and my mom is Patti-Grams (and often times, just Patti - you could say that she is on a first-name basis with her grandchildren!) For Sophie, grandparents are eating popsicles and popcorn while watching Disney Channel in the bed (or some movie I would not approve of that Tato chooses). To her, grandparents are choosing between Garcia's, PF Chang's, or Famous Dave's and staying up late, sleeping in, and throwing rout...

Today while Sophie was at preschool, I spent some special time with Will just playing in his room and hanging out with him one-on-one. I'm glad to have this time with him because when his spitfire big sister is around, he is so captivated with her that it is hard to get his attention! While we were playing, I turned on the "Will cd ." Matt and I made cds (our version of the middle school "mix tape") for both of the kids with songs that are special to us, that make us think of that particular child or that express our feelings for them better than we can. One of the songs that is on both of the kids' cds is Edwin McCain's I Could Not Ask For More . This song came on while we were playing, and I was literally struck by how this is the theme song for my life right now. I have always been a person who lives for the future - wishing and worrying. As a little girl, I dreamed of being a wife and a mother. In college, I rushed through my courses to get on ...

I'm in a season of not getting everything or even close to everything done that I want to do in a day. I want to settle in, to create order and even beauty in our home. I so want to make the most of the moments I have, especially with my children, and I very often feel discouraged that I've wasted time or at least not maximized it. The other afternoon while I was rocking Will, I was feeling overwhelmed and decided to think through what my most important priorities with the kids are. What are the things I want to be sure to do whether or not anything else gets done? In thinking this through, I realized that it is important to me that I hear the laughter of my children every day. I want to tickle them, chase them or be silly with them so we can experience this type of joy. Sophie has one of the sweetest laughs I've ever heard. I've always prayed for her to have a child-like heart, and I can see that prayer being continually answered in her precious laugh. Will doesn...

Yesterday was day of firsts at our house. The day began with Sophie's first day of preschool. She woke up early (for her) before 8 a.m., and was treated to a "princess-style" breakfast, complete with crown and princess magazine. My mom always made the first day of school special in one way or another, and I so wanted to make Sophie's "first" first day of school exciting and special for her. We gathered her "brand new" (nothing with Sophie is ever "new," always "brand new") backpack and lunch box, all prepared th e night before, ate a special breakfast of peaches, cantaloupe, cereal and eggs (a virtual feast at our house), read The Kissing Hand (a must-read when mother and child will be separated) and took first day pictures at the front door. The drama level was relatively low, all things considered. (Things tend to get quite dramatic around here at special times - the drama gene is one Sophie and I both possess). We arrived ...

In Case They Ever Wonder... After writing "Sophie's Sayings" and "From Will's World" on my facebook page, I decided to begin a semi-private blog to record these precious memories that we are making daily. When Sophie was a baby, I wrote her a monthly letter for the first year of her life, and I definitely haven't done that for my poor second-born, so I am also hoping that this will serve to help both of my children have a peak at what their childhood was like, "in case they ever wonder." Not living near many of our friends and all of our family, I often think about how much they are missing. As often as we visit and talk on the phone, many of the people who love our kids the most aren't able to keep up with all the sweet moments I am privileged to experience. So this blog is for them, "in case they ever wonder." Just In Case You Ever Wonder , by Max Lucado is one of our very favorite stories (we read it tonight), and it is...