I See A Haze of Yellow

I'm one of those crazy people who like a winter.  I like snow on the ground.  I like to shovel.  I like playing in the white stuff.  I LOVE IT.

Now I have one more reason to love winter.  It kills all the weird stuff that mild winters don't.  This spring has been horrible for my allergies.  I constantly sound like Nicholas Cage playing Charlie Bodwell in Peggy Sue Got Married.  That's not a pretty comparison.

This weekend N got some kind of charge to his system.  I think it's because one of our neighbors is this guy who on the first sunny day of spring is out mowing his yard, weed wacking and edging.  His yard is always done before anyone else's.  N has this crazy competitive drive to have the best looking lawn in the neighborhood.  He wants it to feel like carpet. 

He usually succeeds.  Our neighbor kicked him into high gear.  This weekend we spent hours outside thatching, pulling weeds, fixing sprinkler heads and generally getting the yard ready to become carpet.  Or something like that.

Zoe LOVES to be outside.  She now says, "I don't want to go home.  I don't like home."  That's her way of saying she'd rather sleep under the stars and be one with the wilderness.  As long as mom or dad is out there.  Apparently she's never met me.  Bugs love me and the wilderness and outdoors isn't really my favorite thing.  In an effort to keep her outdoors and allow me to get some gardening done, I bought her some new gardening gloves.

We pulled weeds, pruned bushes and raked bark most of the weekend.  She wore her new gloves and shoveled dirt into her wheelbarrow, then dumped it to where I was working.  Then she'd cover her ears when daddy started some yard machine.

It was just a nice weekend of being outside as a family.  We all had our jobs and worked to get the yard in good shape.

Even though my eyes are involuntarily watering today and I sound like Charlie Bodwell again today, it's one of those memories that I'll take with me to the home. 

My Best Time

Last night, after dinner, Zoe looked at me with big eyes and said, "Mommy, going to the park right now would make my heart happy."  Those big eyes are my kryptonite and she knows it.

We got the jogging stroller ready, got her snacks, some water for both of us, my keys, my cell phone and some jackets.  It's always a production!

We quickly ran to the potty before we left because the park is actually an elementary school.  There are no potties there.

Her favorite thing to do at the park is play on the swings and go down the blue slide.  Last night there were a couple boys just her age playing at the park.  They pretended to be dragons and bats together while Zoe cheered them on.  Then they all found sticks and started to make things in the pebbles on the playground.  We made a volcano that erupted and was totally destroyed.  Then we swang.  When you have three little ones who can't get on the swings themselves or get them going or know how to pump, the mommy gets to run between all three, pushing, doing under-dogs and trying to keep her balance on that pebble-gravel stuff. 

I have the coordination of a rhino on ice skates.

Anyway, by this time the sun was getting lower and it was time to head home.  We washed our hands with my water and Zoe started on her snack.  About a block away from the school and any trees, I heard the word I dread in this situation.  "POTTY!" 

I'm not really big into running.  I think I've used our jogging stroller for jogging maybe 3 times.  Since it's uber allergy season, running isn't really that great for me.  Seeings how I can't really breathe well.  You overcome those things when a cute girl, with big, wild eyes is depending on you.

It's a full 1/2 mile back to our house.  About 1/4 mile in she started kicking her legs and moving around.  She yelled, "I'm doing the potty polka mommy!  HURRY!"

We made it a block away from our house before the accident happened.  At which point Zoe looked at me and said, "I'm soaked!  Oh no, it's ruined."

In between my gasps for breath I tried to comfort her and tell her that it's okay, but she thought maybe she should be out of breath too.  She started breathing like she had just run a 1/2 mile with someone doing the potty polka.

As I got her ready for a bath and she was still doing that gasping breath thing to imitate me, she looked at me and said, "that was a really fun time mommy.  Except for getting all wet.  Next time, can we not do that part?"

Absolutely.  Mommy lesson #735, next time we'll wear a pull-up.  Mommy needs better conditioning before sprinting 1/2 mile during allergy season.

Memory Is Tricky Business

Yesterday Zoe had a follow-up eye appointment.  Because of her prematurity, there was concerns about her vision.  I have concerns about her vision too.  Not because I don't think she can see, but because I fear she's inherited my vision and it's bad.  Very bad.

We sat in a doctor's office yesterday afternoon and they peppered me with questions about her possible cerebral palsy, vision concerns, hearing concerns, her growth and every other topic that surrounded her prematurity.  As I sat there with my 3-year old my lap I realized just how far we've come in the last two years.

Zoe is absolutely equal with her peers.  She's the same size, she has the same likes/dislikes for a pre-schooler and her vocabulary is fantastic.  She doesn't have cerebral palsy.  She doesn't have hearing problems.  She doesn't have weak lungs.  She doesn't need glasses.  She absolutely normal.  It was as though her due date was January 26th and not April 6th.

I know that God has truly held her in His hands since the moment she was conceived. 

How truly blessed are we.  Not because of the great outcome, but because she's alive.  Because she was even conceived.  Because we get to spend all our free minutes with her. 

I didn't need a doctor to remind me of that.  Or to tell me her vision is great.

She can spot an ice cream shop from miles away.

Might As Well Face I'm Addicted to....Blogging?

I haven't really shared much on here about certain things in my personal life.  Mainly because I wanted to see how it was going to work before I shared.  I joined Weight Watchers. 

Hi, my name is Kelly and I'm addicted to food.

I always thought those kinds of things were crazy.  You know what, they actually work.  I'm eating better.  I'm eating less.  Most importantly, I'm weighing less.

I decided to start a blog.  I know, that's crazy since I hardly post anything here!  It's really just my journal about my WW journey, but if you're interested, it's here.

I'm thinking about posting some things that are working for me, my set-backs and really just trying to keep myself accountable. 

It's Amazing How Much Your Head Sweats

This weekend D came over for a visit.  I love having her come to our house.  She settles into the routine without problems and it's like she just belongs.  It's like that with E too, but since she wasn't with us this weekend, that didn't happen.

Saturday morning D had a soccer game.  Fortunately for N it was at 11, so that meant we got to sleep in.  D asked me to do her hair.  That usually means small braids that pull back sections of her hair. 

Later that afternoon, we surprised her with a hair cut.  As we were taking out the braids, her hair was all wet and sweaty.  A sure sign of running a good soccer game. 

Nothing compared to the smile once she knew why we took her braids out.  She is all girl.  Loves the salon and loves a manicure (which we did this weekend too.  Both Zoe and D got their nails painted this weekend during some "girl time.")

I never thought I'd be the mom who loved having girly-girls.  But I do.  It's one of my favorite things, getting my girls all ready for church with their hair, their nails, their skirts and their earrings.  Maybe it's because I just love being involved in the process.  It's my job and there's nothing else I'd rather do!

It Warms My Heart and Hurts My Ears

Years ago, in my single life, one of the things I loved was tap dancing.  I practiced several times a week, had dance classes and even became an assistant teacher for a 3-5 year old class.  It was an outlet for me and really the first type of "sport" I was good at.

When I got married and moved away, I couldn't find a studio in Tacoma, so I gave up dancing.  Although there are times still, when I'll be walking down an aisle at the grocery store and start to do a riff walk rather than a normal, non-tap dancing walk.

Don't judge, it's part of my charm. 

Since Zoe turned 3 this year, that has opened up a world of opportunities for activities and classes.  We can do Mom and Me art classes, gymnastics classes and dance classes.  In July a 4-week session begins.  I think it will be a good opportunity to test the waters with Zoe and see if she's ready.  If the amount of time she dances at home is any indication, she's beyond ready.

Often times I'll hear "go daddy, go daddy, go daddy" to look up and see they've started a dance circle and daddy is busting his moves in the center.  Moments later I'll hear "go Zoe, go Zoe, go Zoe" to see it's her turn in the center.  Dancing is just part of who she is.  It comes naturally to her.

I decided to look up the studio's website and see if the July session's schedule was listed.  It wasn't, but the few pictures of tap dancing made Zoe scream, "I want to do that too!"

We got out her leotard, some socks and her black dress shoes.  I taught her a few moves from my days as an assistant teacher and she's not only ready for class, she's ready to teach it.

Go Zoe, go Zoe, go Zoe, go!

We Will Lose Our Saturday Mornings

This weekend began the spring soccer season.  We have two players in the family.  They never play at close to the same time or on the same complex.  That means there will be early Saturdays and lots of driving.

We're okay with it because we're some big fans.  D & E have their own cheering section at the games.  Usually there are at least 4 people at the games, plus a couple younger siblings. 

This year E isn't too keen on playing.  She mentioned that this will be her last season.  It's just not her thing.

D on the other hand, is all about soccer.  She typically plays goalie and in her first game the other team didn't score on her once. 

In good news, this Saturday is supposed to be 70 degrees.  Not only can we cheer on our favorite soccer stars, but I can work on my tan.