Thankful for Thanksgiving

The kids were really into hanging their thankful squares for 2013. At first Vanessa explained that she was thankful for animals -- "If there are no animals, we would not have food, like turkey."

Happy Birthday, Tollie!

Cousins

"A cousin is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost."
~Unknown

Not all cousins are included below but we are extremely thankful for all of them and love them all the same!

So Long

But never too long to sleep on Daddy. Zane still requires a lot of cuddling.

Mam-maw, 100 Years

(Evelyn Lorena Gibson Lumbard, left; her cousin Sherman, right)

 (her sister Helen Louise Gibson, left; Evelyn, right)

 (one of my all-time favorites; Age 16)

(And yes, that's where I get some of my goofiness, or as Vanessa would say, my "weirdness." Mam-maw, center, and my father connected really well through their goofiness. In her later years, he made her laugh until she would hyperventilate. Auntie Helen, left; G-G Aunt Martha, right) 

I've mentioned my admiration for her several times on the blog. Today she would have been 100. I think of her legacy often and hope to instill her legacy in my children.

One thing she helped teach me is that God places and allows each and every person and interaction for His purpose. It is up to us to spin it in a positive or negative way.

Mam-maw spun almost everything in a positive way. She dug through the negatives to get to the positives. Her laughter and song fill my head.

Too many times I've gotten hung up on the negatives rather than focusing on the positives. I'm sure she did too. I'm so extremely thankful I witnessed her strength and unconditional love to work through that.

I discovered that she was effortlessly wired for joy. I'm sure this was possible through grace, and grace alone. I pray my children accept the same grace.

Recently Sparked Memories:
1. Uncle Phil brought up that Mam-maw demonstrated the Charleston dance for him in the kitchen of their Barboursville home. It reminded me when she showed me in her living room, in front of her fireplace. Separate occasions. What we remember is that it was like she was losing control because she was dancing so hard and fast, and we weren't sure whether or not we should put a stop to it. She completed it successfully without injury. We can't ever forget that.

2. She carried several copies of the Christian Worker Bible to hand out to various strangers who in that moment became her friend.

3. For someone who never smoked, she sure cleared her throat a lot. I think I got my drainage issues from her.

4. I wish I could get my hands on a news video she did in 1989, telling about her battle with colon cancer. It started out with her playing the piano and belting out hymns. I can still hear the unique way her voice and piano resonated through their humble home.

5. Uncle Thom likes to share Cracker Jacks with us to remind us that Mam-maw and Pap-paw almost always had a stash in their pantry.

6. She verbally warned me once regarding my consumption of Little Debbie Cakes. I was 14 and giggling with Aunt Diane (21 or 22) at their kitchen table. I obeyed and stopped at 3 or 4 but I remember thinking I didn't need her to tell me stop. I eventually learned I did. Who needs 3 or 4 Little Debbie Cakes?!

7. She learned to drive to acquire a drivers license -- you know, for just in case. And she renewed it continuously into her 70s, but she NEVER drove.

8. She loved roses, peonies and gladioluses. Pap-paw was sure to grow and manicure the flowers for her.

9. When she made lunches, almost everything in the refrigerator was pulled out. She made the moistest and fluffiest scrambled eggs - I think with real butter since they had a tinge of sweetness too. I was extremely familiar with the various refrigerators and freezer they had. This is also when we heard the stories about being bothered by watching her mother kill chickens. The stories were a little gory but you could sense her terror for the chickens. Her tuna salad always had sweet pickles and their juice and Worcestershire sauce in it. I've come to learn that not everyone does that.

10. She easily took two hours to get ready to leave the house. I'm not sure if time increased with age, but I remember my Pap-paw always attempting to speed her up -- she was sort of free-spirited in that way. Interestingly I never remember her being late or them arriving late. Perhaps Pap-paw was extra antsy by nature.

11. I remember her short stint with selling Avon. It seemed to me she did it to get the pieces she wanted and then quit. She loved that cranberry glass. We never used it and it was always stashed neatly in boxes in a cabinet.

12. She always had Wrigley's gum and Tic Tacs stashed in her purse to accompany the large amount of tissues. We counted on it for church services. And the pretty little fans she would bring for me to use. Not sure why we used them since their church was air conditioned -- maybe it was a habit of hers since her early days in church camps and revivals. 

13. I would guess she used anywhere from 15 to 25 hair pins to twist up her hair. For really special occasions she would put in pin curls before bed. I loved to brush her really long hair. I remember it thinning and the creative ways we hid those thin spots.

14. I loved to hide and play in their hallway closet. Mam-maw loved shoes, sweaters, hats and coats. She and Pap-paw shared that love.

15. She always had to have a working watch on her wrist, which is funny since she was nagged about her timing quite a bit. She wore broaches with every dress and blouse, sometimes even with her house dress.

I could probably write 100 things about ways I treasure her. She deserves that. But I'll stop for now since my list provides an adequate taste for her uniqueness. 

Pardon Another Interruption

We interrupt the posting schedule to share news about Vanessa's sudden urge to vomit. Yep, as we were walking out the door, Vanessa gagged but was awesome to recognize the need to run to the bathroom. She's had some drainage. She coughed in the morning after waking. She didn't have much of an appetite. And so considering everything, she needed to stay home.

Once she collected herself, she accepted my authority and went back to change into PJs. She came down and had some water and chilled on the couch. I took her temp -- no temp. So I considered that maybe it's just an upset tummy due to drainage. She felt better knowing the trash can was nearby. Zane patted her head and gave her hugs, "I'm sorry. You be okay, Da-dess."

Ten minutes later she asked if the tardy bell had rung at school. She believed she was ready to get there. I explained that we need to follow school rules and she needs to be sure to hold down food before we know if she's okay. I assured her it was okay since I emailed Mr. Harris and said we would continue to read chapters in our leveled reader if Vanessa felt up to it. And she can afford to miss a day. But I'm delighted she hates to.

I reminded her several times that she is required to take it easy. Recognizing that her mind won't settle completely, she did things that were easy physically. She worked puzzles, read books, played computer games, watched a favorite movie, wrote notes, colored pictures, etc.

A little while after an easy lunch of toast with a hint of jelly and grapes, she ran for the bathroom again. It was then that I decided it is a bug. So more fluids and easy food and lots of rest in hope that she's feeling better the next day. Good thing she loves Jello! :-)

Zane is fine, so far, but he liked the PJ Day idea . . . and eating lunch on a tray. :-) His concern for his sister makes his kicking her in the nose a couple of days ago, causing it to gush blood, more easily forgivable.

Dinner Guests

These two were some of the easiest guests. Vanessa prepared a spot for BFF Cat at the other head of the table. BFF Cat was so gracious and didn't complain about anything Vanessa placed before her. And then Vanessa was kind enough to consider Zane might like to have a guest as well, so she helped him prepare a spot for Woody. Woody was also a very polite guest.

Uncles

Bring nature to life.

*Uncle Adam is holding a snake and Uncle Andy is holding a salamander.

In a Week's Time

Just over a week ago the leaves on our trees began to change. The leaves held on through some big winds and we got to admire the beauty when arriving home a few times, for once. It seems the last few years the leaves were blown off before we were able to notice our own fall beauty.

Then an abundant amount of leaves started to fall over this last weekend. We decided it would be good to get them to the curb before the forecasted snow. Daddy had his first day off in a long while, so among many projects and chores, he took a little time to pile the leaves. Daddy shared his plan with Vanessa when he picked her up from school. Needless to say, the kids were excited.

Vanessa likes to perform stunts in the leaves. Zane approached the piles more cautiously, running and then almost coming to a stop to plop down. When Vanessa grew tired, she grew still on and under a bed of leaves, thoroughly enjoying the comfort and warmth they provided.

My only regret is not thinking about the lighter coat Vanessa wore -- I now need to shopvac the leaves embedded in the liner. At least I know for next time. :-)

Vanessa was disappointed to hear the snow wouldn't likely be around for the afternoon, for an ample chance to play in it. She ran out before school to get a taste of fun, though. And I assured her that we'll have another chance to play in snow soon. Zane grabbed a moment to play at his own pace after we took her to school. And then to our surprise, there was still some snow where the sun didn't shine, so Vanessa took a turn in the evening.

His Hat Hangs

So on several occasions I've written about my father's desire for an Army career and how his dream was destroyed by an ugly disease, schizophrenia. I went searching for one draft on the blog but I can't seem to find it. But I did, however, find a picture of Vanessa at about 3 wearing my father's Army dress hat -- it was a related blog draft I started in 2010. 

While serving in Germany as a tank mechanic during the Vietnam War era, my father had a severe psychotic episode which involved seizures. His memory around the events picked up at arriving at Walter Reed Hospital where he spent approximately 6 months undergoing tests and treatments. Tests and experimentation for schizo patients in the 60s were rather scary, and unfortunately, my father endured them without much support from family and friends. That breaks my heart but I can also flash a soft and touched expression since it demonstrates the amount of strength he had.

But even with a less fortunate situation, my father was a honorable veteran. He fell in love with his country. His memories for basic training and service were good and fun -- he was the troop clown, I'm sure. Can you tell by the picture below?! My father strived to do what he must in spite of personal consequences. Many times I saw my father get emotional with patriotism. He believed in the service so much that he persuaded his children to consider the same path in life.

Note: The antique radio my father's hat is resting on today, was a prized possession for him. He acquired it when I was really young. The most impressive thing with it is that it works. Dad was incredibly proud of the fact. When I was a late teen, young adult, he passed the radio on to me. He held onto it through times we lost everything.  He told me that it reminded him of times when listening to the radio when he was a young, finding peace and enjoyment during those special times. Every time I look up at it, I think of him and what a special treasure it was to him. Then I think how lucky I am to have it.

Present

Our days fill up so fast. Keeping Zane involved in supplemental activities wipes away the time Vanessa is at school very quickly. I'm so thankful that I'm able to do these things with him and to focus on his moments as each presents. We average one or two days a week where he helps me run errands -- the skills he is developing with helping are amazing. We're very careful to not overschedule ourselves since it can be so easy to do so and some weeks are fuller than we like.

Vanessa wants to sign up for everything. We try to help her balance those choices with remembering that her main responsibility right now is to be schooled. She's already taken the liberty to trade some of her recess time for Book Club and Walking Club. When we pick Vanessa up from school, we head home to eat snacks and go through her backpack, lunchbox and folders.  (I really like some Wednesdays when she buys cheese pizza at school -- it gives me 5 or 10 extra minutes in the morning, so we don't feel as rushed.)

(I grabbed this picture from Avery Twitter . The kids are working in the computer lab -- creating narratives to go with pictures from their field trip to Slate Run Historical Farm.)

Monday through Thursday we play a tad before homework. Every so often we squeeze in a visit or playdate with friends -- everything in moderation! Surprisingly it seems she has had more homework in K and 1st grade than some of her friends at different schools. It seems to work for her since it's scheduled and we can anticipate it. I feel bad for those, though, who struggle to finish their class work. (Reading homework on Mondays through Thursdays. And math homework on Tuesdays and Thursdays.) At school she's able to help others, which she finds quite satisfying -- I really enjoyed this when I was little too. She creates books full of illustrations and captions, describing each step of her day.

Zane thrives on being present with her in the evenings. We make and eat dinner, talk with Dad and then bathe before starting it all over again.

(One day when gift shopping, Zane insisted I take a picture of him with the faceless mannequin to show Vanessa and put on the blog. He said something incredibly funny following the snapshot but I can't remember for the life of me what it was! I thought for sure I would. Daggone mommy brain!)

:-)

Cheer Squad

 Keeping her girls warm!

Vanessa begged to do cheer camp. She's definitely spirited! Last week she got to show us what she learned during a "real" football game. It was a cold day but the girls had fun! They warmed up with a game of Duck, Duck, Goose.