Project Volcano

WonderBoy's 4th Grade Science Project was due this week.

It's a good thing that I review WonderBoy's assignment book and search his backpack with an iron fist fine tooth comb because left to his own devices, he'd have told me the night before the project was due that it had to be done...or worse, he'd have forgotten about it altogether.

Since I saw the assignment I was up nights with flashbacks of my own 4th grade (mis)adventures and I kept replaying the deadline in my head over and over again. The stress of the deadling trumped all of the deadlines I had at work and I could think of nothing else. It just had to end. So, the weekend before last I insisted that WonderBoy start and finish the project. He darned near had a nervous breakdown as to how I could require such a thing so far from the actual deadline.

Somehow, I as usual won the argument. We went over all the instructions line by line and lemme tell ya' there were plenty of ways you could lose points if those directions weren't followed precisely! WonderBoy got to choose what he wanted to create involving the module they just completed about the mighty volcano. He could make a poster or a diorama (a.k.a. a shadowbox for those of us who remember when there wasn't a fancy name for it) but he had to use color, create interest, incorporate all the main parts of the volcano, label those parts, answer one of 8 topic questions and base the project theme on that question AND put his name in the lower right hand corner (an old teacher's trick old as the hills of my own youth in which teachers always subtract points if the students don't following directions)

We only had a tiny shoebox that Big Foot's Sweetie Pie's new sandals came in. The shoebox really was tiny, though, by WonderBoy's standards and he was not impressed with the magnitude and potential impact that my boring "mom idea" of using that tiny shoebox might have. He woefully stared at the large, rectangular hunk of green florists' oasis, the brown tempera paint, the 3 pack glitter glue and the lonely piece of scrapbook paper that we had picked up at the dollar store and hung his head. Oh, the poor fella looked so downtrodden, he of little faith!

He kept trying to make his case to me that the project wasn't due for another week and that is was painfully unfair that he was spending his Sunday working on it so far in advance. He painted a pathetic picture of himself stuck inside with his mother as the other kids who were out running and jumping somewhere around town free from such worries as working on their project so far from the due date. I told him that I was LOSING SLEEP over this project and it just had to be completed or I was certainly going to lose what was left of my mind.

Luckily, WonderBoy took me seriously. It may have been that steely look in my eyes and that clump of my hair in my hands from pulling it out...but I can't be certain.

We carved up the oasis, lined the box and covered the outside with black construction paper. WonderBoy wasn't happy. He sighed heavily (just enough to annoy me) as he grabbed his glue stick and said it would never work and anyway the box was way too small. Somewhere between his painting the oasis "volcano" brown on a paper plate, chipping away at the oasis "rocks" left behind from the carving and painting them brown too to serve as bits of volcanic rock and making the ash cloud from some cotton...WonderBoy began getting very excited. It was fun to see the look on his face when he actually saw that his work was taking shape and yielding a very fun project that he could be proud of.

The pinnacle moment for him was when he got to use the 3 colors of glitter glue for his own interpretation of hot lava and fire and poked the toothpick flags into his homemade rocks.

Heck, we were both having so much fun that neither of us even noticed that Sweetie Pie had opened the top of the Elm*r's Glue and dumped it on her head (no, I am not kidding....I wish I were) and then proceeded to wipe her little white glue hands on the only upholstered item in the room. (And, no, I don't have pictures of that since it's difficult to scream hysterically, grab the child, grab a cloth, protect the project from tumbling off the table and hold a camera steady all the while making sure the metering is right and the perfect composition has been achieved)

By the time the afternoon was over, WonderBoy couldn't contain himself. He was so proud of his work and said those 6 little words that every mother longs to hear; "You know, Mom...you were right."

A veritable symphony for my ears!

Turns out WonderBoy went to school the next day and chatted it up so much to his Science teacher that she emailed me midday to tell me about his exuberance and to have him bring it in early, 'magine that!

And I've been sleeping like a baby ever since!

Turkey Dinner

When they got the memo that the Memorial Day menu consisted of filet mignon on the grill, the natives showed up and showed off!

Nothing like dinner walking right to your table, huh?
I wonder if they'll be quite so brazen in November?!

Mr. Shirley Temple

WonderBoy has a "usual".

He orders a Shirley Temple wherever we go.

Sometimes they have them, sometimes they don't, but he doesn't hesitate to at least try. He even gets me to make them at home on special occasions.

Oh, and is he ever a connoisseur of the great syrupy youth beverage that has stood the test of time.

Upon first sip he always gives us that seal of approval look when the bartender has created the perfect concoction.

My brother and I always favored the Shirley Temple and always ordered a round or two when we went out to eat; extra maraschino cherries please!

I remember my father trying to get my brother to call his a Roy Rogers instead of a Shirley Temple.

Even though it was the EXACT same thing, it just didn't taste the same when he called it a Roy Rogers...so it was back to Shirley Temple for him.

WonderBoy doesn't buy the whole Roy Rogers thing either. He doesn't even know who Trigger was so I'm not pushing it.

Well, yesterday WonderBoy introduced his sister to his "usual" and we immediately had another believer in the sheer, sugary tastin' power of that infamous "cotton candy in a glass" beverage.

All that sugar ensured they were both up for HOURS past their bedtimes! Oh well.

WonderBoy's Favorite Pursuits

WonderBoy just loves anything camoflage or army.

He’ll play with his army men for hours on end creating elaborate battle scenes that can span a room or two, may require the dismantling of sofa cushions or the rolling up of carpets and always require keeping Sweetie Pie far away from the scene.

He'll call me in every few minutes to survey whether I can tell who the good guys are, who the bad guys are or who won the battle.

Often I’ll be cooking, folding laundry or working on the computer and I’ll turn around with a start to find that I am being “guarded” by one of his men.

Anyone who knows WonderBoy knows that staying focused on one thing or sitting still in one place just isn’t his strong suit (actually, that’s putting it mildly as normal for him is a state of perpetual motion) but when it comes to his army men…well, he gets lost in fantasy, like countless generations of little boys before him.

(Being that he is also a huge Star Wars fan, I do spy the occasional stray Clone Trooper, Chicken Walker or Battle Droid thrown into the battle mix when I'm called to assess, however, I suspend my disbelief as this is, after all, his fantasy and who can beat the lasers those guys wield!)

These are the moments I will always cherish... watching my little boy still revel in chasing little boy pursuits!

Little Ladies

Sweetie Pie and Ysa share a very special connection.

They were born on the very same day just hours apart 19 months ago.

Ysa's Nana and I became friends from the day I began my new job 2 years ago. I passed an ultrasound photo on her office wall that looked almost identical to the one I had had earlier that week. She told me that it was a picture of her new granddaughter.

We compared notes and realized that our babies were due on the same day.

Since then we've shared many wonderful moments and whether we are together or apart...I always know she's right there for me whenever I need her with her unique brand of lovin' and her belief in me.

Her presence in my life is very special and it looks like our little ladies are well on their way to enjoying the same wonderful gift of friendship!

(Looking at these photos its no wonder those ultrasounds looked so much alike!)

(Click on the "play" button then click on the bottom right icon to make the images full screen)

Enchanted Forest

Happy Mother's Day

Here's hoping you all remember to stop and smell the flowers today!

WonderBoy's 10th Birthday

I finally had a chance to sort through the photos of WonderBoy's birthday party.  We decided to surprise him with 10 of his favorite things along with a few special gifts that he had on his wish list.  He was thrilled!

The weather was on our side that day and even bordered on a bit too nice since it hit a record high 92 degrees by the time the party started.  We all enjoyed spending some outside on our patio after a long winter cooped up inside.  We made mini roadside sliders on the grill, mini mac and cheese and bite sized pizzas along with lots of other goodies!   

For dessert WonderBoy helped create a giant cupcake and lots of little ones (all chocolate, of course) for our guests...oh, and how could I forget....we turned that great big ol' Easter bunny into the most perfect chocolate covered strawberries ever!

Almost Wordless Wednesday

TODDLER




TEENAGER

Thankful Thursday

JR goes into work very early each day. He gets up, takes a shower, empties the dishwasher (I'm not kidding!) and makes sure he kisses every one of us goodbye, no matter what, as we lay sleeping.

He's usually gone by 5am and has put in a full day by the time most of us have lunch.

Somehow he always manages to come home in time to be waiting at the bus for WonderBoy and then they're off to pick up Sweet Pea from her Nana's house or her school. He makes sure they both gets lots of his attention. He can be found crawling around on the floor with Sweet Pea making barking sounds to her sheer delight, skateboarding in front of our house with WonderBoy and the Sweet Sisters, raking a neighbor's leaves or helping shovel their snow.

Somehow he manages to give Sweet Pea a bath and help WonderBoy with his homework before they're off to whatever the sport du jour is for WonderBoy on any particular day.

By the time I get home from work (usually after 7pm) all of my lovelies are standing at the open front door watching me walk up the path. When I see them there I can't help but pinch myself to think that I am the luckiest girl in the world to have such a loving family waiting there just for me!

As I cross the threshold, they each pretend to fight over who will get the first kiss from Mama......oh, how it melts my heart and makes me crystal clear on exactly what is important in life and exactly what isn't.

I dreamed about having this family and I am so thankful to JR for the patience and love that he shows me and our children every single day!

Three Thousand, Six Hundred and Fifty-Two

This morning when you woke and kissed me good morning, we stood nearly eye to eye. How can one little boy grow so much overnight?

You chuckle at that and remind me that the doctor says you will probably grow to be 6’ 4”. Laughing you tell me not to worry, that you’ll just have to lift me up one day to kiss me good morning when that happens.
Promise me, my son, that your kisses will never stop!

It has been 3,652.42 days since you were born.
Today marks the close of the first decade of your life and the beginning of the next.

Today, you are TEN!

I will never forget the first time I ever saw you, just one day old. I wasn’t expecting to feel anything special. But the minute I saw you…you took my breath away. I don’t ever remember having seen anything quite as perfect as your face that day.

As I reflect back today, I am certain I saw your beauty, but I did not know how incredibly strong you were, both physically or emotionally. It never dawned on me that it was your huge spirit and sheer determination that kept you alive those 9 months despite the fact that the deck had been stacked so clearly against you. I refused to let myself imagine then what you had been through just to get here or where you might end up now that you had, indeed, arrived. I tried to fool myself into believing that the mere fact that you made it as far as you had meant that you were strong enough to survive the life you had been born into.

There's a big difference between survive and thrive, I came to learn.

I had a very busy life you know; single, career girl in her prime…no ties… just starting out on my own with big plans, things to do, people to meet, social life to maintain and a world to see. That afternoon at the hospital, I pushed my rose colored glasses back up the bridge of my nose and went on my way.

In a matter of a few months my life (our lives) changed forever. Thinking back, now, I believe that the moment I met you in the hospital you magically and indelibly embedded your heart inside of mine. That is so YOU!

My world truly stopped revolving around me that day and I just couldn't put you out of my mind.
I took comfort, however, in rationalizing that you were put here for a reason. I remember thinking that your arrival was probably meant to be a catalyst to ignite a spark of change in someone who had squandered so much of her life and who, in realizing what a miracle your survival was despite the insurmountable odds she placed in your way, would certainly change because of it. I apologize to you today for only thinking of you back then in terms of your being a means to another's end, a tool rather than the person you were just hours old...the person you were to become. Old habits die hard. I had spent a lifetime wondering what it would take for true change to occur. When I saw the miracle of you, I knew there was nothing and no one on this Earth more incredible than you. If change was going to happen for her it would be because of you.

And so, you waited it out. A couple months passed. I’d swoop in time and again when something blew up or problems flared. I’d try to right the course, tidy that little messy world up, give you love and hugs, try to make your life better without interfering and hope for the best.

The winds of change never did begin to blow and you, little helpless boy, found yourself squarely in the cross-hairs of that world out of control.

In the blink of an eye, it happened…. "the call.” Some people wait years for the call. I wasn't even waiting and within hours you were fast asleep in my arms...just you and me, forever.

I never forgot the words I whispered in your precious little ear that night……never again, never again will I ever put anyone before you. I am so sorry you had to wait so long. I am so sorry that your life was put in such jeopardy by those who swore you were their priority. I promised you then that I would never let you fall and, baby, I never, ever will.

Turns out we were both put here for a very special reason. We were put here for each other!

Nearly 10 years have passed since you and I began our journey.

We have had many challenges and we met them all head on. I have never waivered in my decision and I thank God for placing my arms around you when the time came. My heart belongs to you.

Biology does not create the bond between mother, father, sister and brother. You and I together had the privilege of choosing Papa to join our family. That day, Papa committed to both of us because we are a team!

Then the three of us prepared for the long 9 months we had to wait for Sweet Pea to make her entrance.

When I think of us, I see you and me as the sturdy trunk of this family and those two lovelies are our precious, beautiful branches. We are a family that love created...one very special, hand-picked member at a time!

On this day, I celebrate the fact that I have been blessed and honored beyond measure to be your mother all these years. People often say how lucky you are to have me as your mother. That's because they can't possibly imagine how lucky I am to have you for my son.

When I look at you, I see your heart of gold, empathy for others, an iron will and resolve, a curiosity and sense of wonder unparalleled, a razor sharp wit and keen sense of humor. Your wisdom is far beyond your years. You are a zenith of electrifying, infectious energy with the ability to focus with laser precision when you want something. Your charm and the magnetism that has been your hallmark from the very begining, have only gotten better with time . Without a doubt, you are a remarkable young man. No one who knows you can resist your unique brand of exuberance, intensity and mischief. You have single handedly changed lives with yours and I have every reason to believe that you are well on your way to even greater things ahead.

You are MY MIRACLE….my WONDERBOY!

A decade later, I remain in awe when I look at you…. you still take my breath away.

Happy 10th Birthday, WonderBoy!

I love you with all of my heart,

Mama

Wordless

Shadow

Never be afraid of your shadow, my love.....

There's no one in the world like you.

Take a deep breath, hold your head high, smile and be yourself!

YOU are irresistable!

Sunday Paper

Easter

The Bunny arranged for a very early Easter breakfast together

before our little egg hunt.

Braving the chilly weather

and reaping the rewards of treasure found.

A little something for everyone, including Kiddie!

Ever mindful of how incredibly grateful we are for one another.

That afternoon we shared a lovely dinner together with family and friends,

experiencing traditions old and new, sharing wonderful stories

and contemplating a gigantic bunny.

Wordless Wednesday

Palm Sunday

Flickr and I have been at odds all week.

I have been feverishly trying to post these photos in a slideshow all week however,

Flickr has been stubbornly refusing to cooperate.

Did I mention that I have been trying ALL WEEK?

I finally decided to post the photos of our lovely Palm Sunday

garden stroll, individually.

(oh, and Flickr, I'm not done with you yet!)

Wordless Wednesday

How is it possible

that it only took 18 months for Sweet Pea

to morph into a mini-teenager...

SUGAR

SPICE

and lock the door, throw away the key

ATTITUDE!

Wordless Wednesday