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.