Black & White Wednesday: Snakeskin Boots

Sixteen years ago my precious niece, Tigerlily, received these custom snakeskin boots from Grandma & Grandpa when they traveled out West.


The moment I saw them on her I just knew that there was no way I could ever part with them...and if she had to grow up...well, then, the boots would remind me how little she was forever and ever and they do....



Actually, they remind me of Tigerlily and WonderBoy because he sported them too. A rite of passage of sorts...cooler than cool; the kind of hand-me-down kids can't wait to get their feet into.



And now, the littliest of the 3 babies in my life finally fits in them. I was saving them in the back of her closet for her to grow into a wee bit more...but I don't really need to tell you how willful she is now, do I?



She called me out to the yard the other day and there she was, proud as a peacock in this little ensemble put together by none other than Princess Darling herself.... she was hunting for "glow in the dark" bugs she told me (lightning bugs, as I call them....or fireflies).



I didn't have the heart to tell her that she wouldn't be finding any in broad daylight.

P.S.
I'm.never.giving. these. boots. away.

It's Black and White Wednesday!
To see some great images from some fantastic photographers,

click on over to The Long Road to China

Black & White Wednesday: Cousins

TigerLily and WonderBoy

It's Black and White Wednesday!
To see some really great images from some very cool photographers,

click on over to

The Long Road to China

Flowering TigerLily

My only niece, TigerLily, is going to her senior prom in 2 days

and graduating high school in 2 short weeks.

Where has the time gone, my Little TigerLily?

I will never forget when you fit in the palms of my hands.

Some days it feels like only yesterday when I first learned of you and waited

9 long (LONG) months (less 6 weeks!) for your arrival.

As you stand here ready to achieve yet another wonderful milestone in your

young, beautiful life...I'd like to share something with you

that always makes me reflect on the person I am and the one I strive to be.




Directions For Life
(Author Unknown)

•Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

•Memorize your favorite poem.

•Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

•When you say, "I love you", mean it.

•When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye.

•Believe in love at first sight.

•Never laugh at anyone's dreams.

•Love deeply and passionately.

You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.

•In disagreements, fight fairly.

•Don't judge people by their relatives.

•Talk slow but think quick.

•When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer,

smile and ask,"Why do you want to know?"

•Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

•Call your mom. (and your aunt!)

•Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.

•Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

•When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

•Marry someone you love to talk to.

As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

•Spend some time alone.

•Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.

•Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

•Read more books and watch less TV.

•Live a good, honorable life.

Then when you get older and think back, you'll get to enjoy it a second time.

•A loving atmosphere in your home is so important.

Do all you can to create a tranquil harmonious home.

•In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.

•Read between the lines.

•Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.

•Be gentle with the earth...and yourself.

•Pray. There's immeasurable power in it.

•Never interrupt when you are being flattered.

•Mind your own business.

•Don't trust someone who doesn't close their eyes when you kiss them.

•Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.

•If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you are living.

That is wealth's greatest satisfaction.

•Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck.

•Learn the rules, then break some.

•Remember that the best relationship is one where your love for each other

is greater than your need for each other.

•Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

•Remember that your character is your destiny.

•Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Congratulations on your completion of your high school career, with honors,

and your acceptance to your college of choice.

I am so proud of you.

I never doubted you for a moment...never have and never will.

I look forward to sharing this next chapter with you, and all the chapters to come.

I love you, my Darling...with all my heart.

Ever yours,

B2

*******

It's Black and White Wednesday
To see some gorgeous images that never disappoint....click on over to

The Long Road to China

Happy Birthday, TigerLily!

Eighteen years have passed since I first held you in my arms.



To me, it is a yesterday I will never forget.
I always thought today was a day so far off in the distance.



I have had the pleasure of watching you grow and loving you

for every single one of the 6,570 days you have been here with us.



I couldn't love you more if I gave birth to you myself.
To others you are my niece, to me you are my very first daughter.

You have become everything I ever hoped you'd be and so much more.



I am so incredibly proud of you.

I am forever grateful to share our unique bond.

Happy 18th Birthday, Baby!
I Love You!

(To see some more gorgeous pictures of TigerLily

and read just how special she is to me click HERE)

Coming of Age

My beautiful niece, Tigerlily, surprised me a few weeks ago while I was making dinner.

She's just so beautiful I couldn't help but stop dinner and grab my camera.

She's good at surprising people.

She was born 6 weeks early.

This was actually quite inconvenient for me as I had planned my sister's baby shower for the following weekend figuring we'd have time to spare.

To be fair, we had all been secretly (and not so secretly) sending wishes to the Pregnancy Fairy for the better part of my sister's gestation that she'd sprinkle some labor dust on her a wee bit early and speed things along.

My sister was not enjoying her pregnancy one little bit, therefore, neither were the rest of us!

It didn't help that her husband had vowed not to drink any alcohol and to carefully watch his diet during the pregnancy to keep his wife company; he lost 40 pounds and she gained 50.

Oh, it wasn't pretty!

So, imagine my surprise that Sunday morning when my brother called frantically to tell me that he was driving our big sister to the hospital and we could expect our first niece in short order.

I rushed through work and practically flew to the hospital. (This was long before cell phones!) When I got there and was directed to the neonatal unit I realized that she had arrived already.

I vividly remember standing at the window hoping to catch a glimpse of her.

That's when my life changed forever....

a nurse held up this tiny, sweet little angel

(with the most hysterical spiked, blonde tipped, punk rock hairdo).

Tigerlily was screaming at the top of her lungs and her little 5 pound body had turned completely red with all the excitement.

She was beyond perfect.

I was in love! We all were!

That was 17 years ago.

In addition to certain physical familial resemblances she and I share (feet, hands, other various and sundry body parts!),

Tigerlily and I have always had our own secret language.

We're two of a kind for sure.

She thinks I'm crazy (she's so darned smart, that kid...I can't fool HER!)

From early on she knew I'd let her break all her mother's rules

when I was around...

which was all the time.

I'd let her eat in the bathtub, stay up way too late, not brush her teeth the minute she woke up (before her OJ, like my sister did...yuck!), eat lots of goodies,

let her hair go wild and

talk to her like a grown up or in pretend foreign languages.

We'd do crafts together, bake or just be silly.

My sister, (who's a fantastic mom, by the way) never really got in touch with her "crafty" side so she'd have a list of things for Tigerlily and me to do together.

My sister swears that Tigerlily is my daughter. She tells me all the time..."she's YOU!"

To this day you can often hear my sister calling Tigerlily by my name

(especially when Tigerlily is being sarcastic with her mother or gives her the infamous eyebrow!)

This makes Tigerlily and me crack up which makes my sister exasperated at first

and hysterical a second later as she hugs us both in futility.

In addition to her obvious physical beauty

(those eyes just kill me...they're the perfect combination of her beautiful Mom's shape and her ridiculously handsome Dad's color);

she's a seriously gifted student with a wicked sense of humor that keeps me in stitches.



Unlike me at her age, though, Tigerlily has a certain calm to her personality and a confidence in herself that enables her to walk at ease with young, old and her peers alike without losing her identity and her solid core values.

She is kind, caring, thoughtful, responsible, forward thinking, goal-oriented and truly wise beyond her years.

Yes, an old soul for sure.

I often tell my sister that she got off easy because Tigerlily didn't need to be raised at all....we all just got to sit back and enjoy watching her blossom

into the amazing young woman she has become.

She has made her parents (and all of us) so proud over the years.

She is a treasure and I adore her.

As I watched her buckle up and drive off in her shiny new car that day I couldn't help but wonder how the little girl who had been my shadow for so long could actually

be old enough to drive a car.

Senior year of high school is upon her.

Twinkling out there on the horizon is an incredible, limitless future.

A year from now we'll be waving goodbye to Tigerlily as she heads off to college.

Oh, my poor sister is going to be a basket case.

Actually, we'll BOTH be basket cases, unless I can convince my little partner in crime to pack me in her suitcase and bring me with her!