"On the page we live again......."

"On the page we live again, young and unknowing, everything yet to happen."

   -Natasha Solomons "The House at Tyneford" a novel

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In almost every endeavor I  choose to begin, or commitment that I make, I am compelled to discover the "why" behind the promises that I make.    In a way the "why" enhances and adds strength to the time, effort and sometimes passion that ensues.   Making the decision to author this blog really didn't begin with a good understanding of the "why" until today;  The quote by Natasha Solomons, author of "the House at Tyneford" jumped off the page as I read and officially validated  all of the stories and posts that have preceded today's page.        

Busy With Other Things

Sometimes you just have to work your way through life, prioritizing as you go.  I have been learning some new things, organizing a new assignment and getting acquainted with some fabulous women - all of us busy but focusing on the same goal.

While I've been gone from my blogging I have still been collecting thoughts and ideas and quotes. The author of this quote has inspired me to begin again:

"I've built a future by rummaging through the past."

-Thea Beasley/Atlanta Artist

More to come.........

Mary Had A Little Sheep

Amid the dress-up rehearsal of the Nativity, the wearing of Santa hats, Rudolph noses and antlers, the decorating of Christmas cookies, on-going play of dart guns, the tripping over shoes, match-book cars, and baby dolls we have the annual family Christmas program.  After the special Christmas Eve dinner, young and old are welcome to share their talents.  The baby grand piano is the center of attention, and the couches, chairs and dinning table are rearranged to make an area for the stage.  Needless to say, the house is trashed at this point.  Inhibitions are left behind and then begins the piano duets and solos, singing, and guitar playing.   This Christmas Eve we rallied together to make it through all 12 verses of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" accompanied by our 11-year-old male performer.  Then followed the guitar, piano and voice of an unlikely combination of a 15-year-old teenage boy, budding 13-year-old beauty and another 11-year-old male soloist singing "What Child is This".   Next, the 8-year-old (blond curls,all boy) ended his two-hand rendition of "Up On The Housetop" in the midst of applause and whistles.   The crowning finale of the evening before the more non-secular production of the Nativity was our very own, just-turned-5, bright and shining star playing "Mary Had A Little Sheep"; one finger only.  Perhaps you are more familiar with the the "Mary Had A Little Lamb" rendition but our 5-year-old was adamant that she would be playing "Mary Had A Little Sheep".   

The fun and tender moments of Christmas Eve 2012 will be added to the years of collected memories.  The tradition of doing something special the night before Christmas started back in the 70's with our two little pre-school children.  We started capturing the memories in pictures after our third child was born.  Through the years, the costumes for the Nativity have expanded; the aluminum foil star on the stick has been replaced several times, the real-dog-hair stuffed puppy (AKA lamb) has been tucked away for safe-keeping and replaced with a stuffed animal lamb.  The robes have grown in size from little to grown-up.  We have added a hanging star to be turned on at just the right moment, increased the production crew for music, lights and narrative and added 12 grandchildren for cast members.   The evening comes to a close after we conquer the chimes (made from metal conduit pipes cut just the right size for melodic ringing).  Grandma Shelle accompanies the group through "Jingle Bells", "Christmas Bells Are Ringing"  and "O Little Town of Bethlehem".  We kneel in family prayer and then share gifts in the middle of squeals, hugs and kisses.  

Our tradition of making Christmas Eve day and evening something to remember doesn't always have all of the cast members and the itinerary changes from year to year.  Great Grandparents, uncles, aunts, and neighbors have joined in the fun through the years.  Our string-playing orchestra of grandchildren live far away and are creating memories of their own - but when we are all together - there is nothing like it.  Much like the rendition of "Mary Had A Little Sheep"!              

Strawberries and Toast

Now you have to feel close to that child that loves the same things you do.  It is like - if you pour milk over cake and one of your children pours milk over cake then you kind of feel proud-like.  Incidentally, it gags me to eat soggy cake with frosting!  But soaking homemade buttered toast in a bowl of bottled strawberries and juice is another thing all together.  I grew up on strawberries and toast and so each harvest I make certain I have bottled an ample supply for the winter months.  Now I make certain that I have bottled strawberries for the son who loves them just like me.  But it isn't just the love of bottled strawberries that we share - we have a bond that is kind of like a sixth sense;  we understand each other.  I know why he is private and doesn't share every single thing about what is going on in his life or in his thoughts, why he would rather go without if he can't have the best, why he doesn't give the shirt off his back like his dad or brother do, loves to have money, work with sums and figures, be in charge, work hard and play hard, be totally loyal to those he feels close to, be content with life but always looking for a better, more efficient way to do things.  I know these things because he is just like me with a  few good character traits that he picked up from his dad and brother and sister.  He is my child that was, and is, best friends with his brother and best friends with his sister.  Is it normal to take your sister to the "Prom" just 'cause it would be so fun?  And another thing, is it possible to reach 6'4" by just eating cold cereal?  Apparently!  I crack up every time I remember the gray felt floppy hat he insisted on wearing the first three years of his life.  

I am endeared to each of my three children in different ways but that last baby - the one you finally conquered the nursing challenge with, the one everyone spoiled and loved and gave him everything he ever wanted, the one that hung around when the others were gone, the one who continues to honor and bless your life and check on you every few days, the one who loves strawberries and toast.  Yea, that one!

When You Wish Upon A Star

The first time the ship's horn blew out the notes to "When You Wish Upon a Star" I knew we were going to have a great time.  I grew up with the films, music and magic of Walt Disney.  However, I was a mother with three children by the first time I  actually went to Disneyland.    I was a little surprised to find out that it was just a theme park with rides like a carnival but it didn't take long to get absorbed into the vision of Walt Disney.  I often wonder if he even had a clue how immense his dream would become.

We decided that if we were going to go on a cruise for our birthdays then we might as well go on a Disney Cruise to the Bahamas.  Hence, the Bahama Mamas was conceived.  We started saving and planning a year in advance.  We asked our husband's to give us money instead of gifts for every holiday we could think of including Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, 4th of July, etc.  Half way through the cruise and out on the open sea we wished we could have wired home, "Send More Money!"  There were so many things that we wanted to do.

Snorkeling was on our to-do list along with bicycle riding on the islands, sitting on the shore with our toes in the sand, trips to the ship's spa, watching live Disney performances and movies on the big screen and indulging in delectable foods and tropical fruit smoothies.  We laughed 'til we cried, shared our fun with others and dropped into our cabin bed, exhausted, at the end of each day.  You ask, "Were there any kids on the cruise?"  "Yup...Us!  Mother and daughter!  It was a trip to remember".  

That's What It's All About

We bought the Mickey Mouse hats back in 2005 when our whole family traveled to Disneyland for the holidays.  We tucked the hats away for safe keeping until 2010 when my daughter and I decided that our annual birthday trip of shopping in the big city just wasn't full of enough adventure or fun.  We put pencil to paper and started saving money for our birthday-celebration flight to LA and Disneyland - just mother and daughter.  We landed, checked into the motel, donned our hats and suddenly we were the most popular two-some in Disneyland with our limited-edition hats.   We managed to scream our way through 11 total rides, 7 of them consecutive in the back seat of the Big Thunder Mountain train  and ended up with a count of 42 animals, 8 1/2 rights turns and an unknown bat count.  The next year we were just as popular with our hats but this time we broke our record on Big Thunder Mountain with 12 total rides with 8 in a row, adding 24 bats and a buzzard to our count.  I celebrated my actual birth day by courageously going on the Hollywood Tower just to impress all of my grandchildren.  My daughter's birthday celebration was culminated with knee surgery several months later to repair the damage of running from the exit of Thunder Mountain to the Entrance of Thunder Mountain 12 different times.  Come to think about it, maybe adding in the running to Indiana Jones, Space Mountain and the Matterhorn may have also contributed to the problem.

It has taken a year to earn the money for the ultimate birthday-celebration;  a Disneyland cruise for the Bahama Mamas!    But....it really isn't about the adventure, or trying to do something that is more impressive or more expensive - it is all about mother and daughter, two grown woman, friends, best friends.....laughing, hugging, sharing, splurging on cheesecake, sharing giant turkey legs, screaming and laughing, sharing lotion and lip salve, hair brush and razors and on the more spiritual side.....praying together before we head off each day, spending pillow-talk time at the motel, talking about our dreams, our challenges, and how much we love each other.  That's what it's all about!                  

Sometimes a memory.....

...will appear at the most unusual time;  take "klinkers" for example:  we were talking about the beautiful homes that were damaged when a dike broke from heavy rains and the muddy water followed the natural channel down to the river.  The homes were built on the flood plane under a level of trust that the  dike would hold, forever.  Then I remembered how the fruit cellar would flood each spring because the water table was so high and Mother would have to put on the knee-high rubber boots and step on cinder blocks to get to the jars of fruit.  Then my mind wandered up the cellar stairs to the back porch and then the furnace room, to the coal bin, remembering my dad shoveling coal each morning to feed the furnace and then the furnace itself.  The heavy cast iron door had a round wire handle and when open would make you reel with the blast of hot, flaming klinkers.  Then I remembered the marble maker (at least that is what we thought it was).  It was discovered by my brother in an old shed somewhere.  The two long metal handles came together at the end with two small round casings that fit together like a waffle maker.  Clay was dug up from a deep hole out in the garden, a little ball was formed and put in the mold.  I remember my brother placing the marble maker in the klinkers for a period of time and ending up with a nice little hard ball.  The only other thing that I know about klinkers is that they have to be discarded on a regular basis and can be used like gravel to fill holes in the farmyard and that you never want to walk on them in bare feet!