A Year in the Life

Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand Six Hundred Minutes

 Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand Moments so dear

Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand Six Hundred Minutes

How Do You Measure - Measure A Year?

 In Daylights - In Sunsets

In Midnights - In Cups Of Coffee

In Inches - In Miles

In Laughter - In Strife

In - Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand Six Hundred Minutes

How Do You Measure A Year In The Life?

How About Love? How About Love? How About Love?

Measure In Love

Seasons of Love.

Seasons of Love.

Lyrics: RENT

Merry Christmas

Wordless Wednesday

Packed & Ready to Go

In an attempt earlier today to start packing for our holiday trip to Minnesota, I set a suitcase in Sara's room.  It didn't take her long to discover the suitcase, which prompted her to let me know that she was going to pack her things for the trip.  I left her to it in her room, and a few minutes later she beckoned me to come zip the suitcase for her.  She had put time and effort to packing the most crucial necessesities: her red cape, a chewy, her blanket, and a big-ol' pile of books.  Sara then announced that she was ready to go the airport.  While I did remind her that we would not be using the airport for this particular trip (and she looked at me like I had just escaped from the nut house because, after all, we only ever get to G & G's by first going to the airport), I didn't have the heart to tell her that we'd probably need to repack her suitcase before leaving home.  I sure do appreciate her sweet effort!  And seriously, how easy would travel be if all we needed was a blanket, some books, and a cape?  Maybe she's on to something here...

'Tis the Season

Christmas Eve is a week away!  When it comes to Christmas, I still feel like a little kid ... I wait for it all year long, and in the blink of an eye, it's over.  I'm definitely one of those people who gets the post-Christmas blues when all of the decorations come down and the carols on the radio turn back into regular old bad music.  I vote for year-round Christmas, but admit that it wouldn't be nearly as exciting as it is as a holiday that comes once a year.

Sara asks almost daily if it's Christmas Day yet.  I love seeing her excitement and enchantment this year.  We've been faithful to the chocolate Advent calendar, which really pays no homage at all to Advent since there is a big picture of Santa Claus on the front, but it has turned into an excellent learning opportunity each day as we look for precisely the right number to correspond with the date.  Among other parts of the season, the Advent calendar bit has me taking notice of my great inadequacies in teaching my daughter about the real reason for - and meaning of - Christmas.  Sometimes I think I'm totally failing in this department, but then I recognize that it's hard for me to preach what I don't practice.  That's a larger topic for another day.

Tomorrow we're heading to Flower Mound to celebrate an early Christmas with Steve's parents and brother.  We've opted to go out to eat, and neither my mother-in-law nor I are sad about the fact that we won't be cooking on this particular occassion.  As if Sara didn't come home from her birthday party with enough toys, I know that tomorrow will be the beginning of yet another windfall for her.  It's possible that, very shortly, I'm going to need a bigger house just to accomodate my three-year-old's belongings.

On Wednesday, we're hopping in the car for our second road trip to MN.  After the first one, when Sara was six months old, we found that the trip, though long, really was pretty enjoyable.  Then when I realized flights to MN for the holidays would cost $500 a piece, which would result in nobody receiving gifts as well as unnecessary financial stress, we quickly convinced ourselves that a road trip again it would be.  We have plans to stay on the Plaza in KCMO on Wednesday night.  We haven't been there in ages, and the Plaza has long been known for its holiday lights display.  I'm excited to spend a fun and festive night there, and hope we'll be lucky enough to hear the carol on the radio that says something to the effect of, "It's Christmas in Kansas City - snow is on the ground - the Plaza lights are pretty - it's good to be in my hometown..."  The song itself isn't what I'd call a hit, but it made us laugh a lot when we lived there.

Speaking of snow, I hope we'll see some in MN.  As of today, according to my mom, it has all melted.  We need enough to take at least a few good sled rides down the hill behind my parents' house.  And a White Christmas would be wonderful.  Regardless, I am looking forward to just getting home and relaxing for a bit.

The shopping is done, the presents are wrapped, and I absolutely ate my way through the last week thanks to the festivities at work ... c'mon, Christmas!

I believe in bows.

As soon as I found out that my baby would be a girl, I started buying bows.  While I know that some people find it obnoxious, unnecessary, or inappropriately role-defining, I just can't help but love bow-headed little girls.  And Sara has turned into (most days) a girl who won't leave the house without a bow upon her sweet head.  But for all the bows and dresses and frilly clothes that Sara wore as a baby, she hasn't been defined by such items.   As you know, she fell hard early on for Thomas the Train, Batman, Superman, and other so-called boy toys.

I have never fought Sara's obsession with trains and superheroes.  What would have been the point?  For the longest, she wanted only to wear Thomas pajamas, and we let her.  When she wanted a Batmobile for Christmas, she got one.  She kept wearing bows and dresses happily, but her heart belonged to toys that wouldn't fall under the traditional girl category.  People told me that my daughter was a tomboy, some in tones that indicated I should do something about it.  I didn't, and as it turns out, I didn't need to.

One day about six or seven months ago, Sara woke up and decided she was a princess.  A princess who loves her some Thomas, mind you, but a princess nonetheless (she wants a Green Lantern and dress-up for Christmas).  This notion intensified with our trip to Disney, and has only grown by leaps and bounds since.  And all of this happened without any prompting or encouraging on my part.  She is programed, after all, as a girl, and right at about two-and-a-half, the princess built into her DNA magically kicked in. 

Now it's princess dresses, princess bedspread, princess curtain, princess dolls, princess tea sets and t-shirts and panties and everything else you can imagine.  It's like a little princess heaven in our playroom.  I laugh to myself at how much Sara has changed in her three short years, and how she seems to have adopted a love for certain things for no other reason than that she's a girl and, well, that's just what girls do. 

When I was pregnant with my little girl, I had visions of a princess in my head.  And now a princess is exactly what I have, in the flesh.  Could it have been the bows?  It must have been the bows.

Birthday Festivities

We celebrated Sara's birthday over the course of three days.  Friday: cupcakes at school; Saturday: party with friends; Sunday: special day with mom and dad.  So I understood her confusion when, on Friday morning on our drive to school, she asked, "Mommy, am I three yet?"

I debated for a long time over where to have Sara's birthday party (actually, I first debated whether to have one at all, but my mom talked me into it).  A co-worked suggested McDonald's, and I'm so glad she did.  It was inexpensive (especially compared to other places), fun (food + play area), and easy (they provided everything from food to cake to goody bags for ten kids ... all we had to do was show up).  I guess I thought the McDonald's birthday party had become a thing of the past (of my past, specifically), but - oh, no - it was on in full force!

Sara & Audrey: birthday BFFs.

 This is Parker.  Sara talks about riding on the tire swing with him.  A lot.  According to Parker's mom, he also talks about Sara.  A lot.  There might be something there.  How cute is he?!

The only one standing in Parker's way could be this guy: Corbin.  If everyone had cancelled last minute and only Corbin would have been able to attend the party, Sara would have been just as happy ... we all love this boy!

 After Charlotte came to Sara's party, we turned around and went to a cookie party at Charlotte's.  Charlotte is about to be 4, and I think Sara wants to be just like her when she grows up.

 Ms. Ashley, one of Sara's teachers, came to the party.  The kids were all excited to see her, and I thought it was so sweet for her to give up a Saturday afternoon to spend more time with the kids she sees everyday.

Sunday was the real birthday.  When Sara woke up, I told her, "Today is your birthday!  You are THREE now!"  She was so excited.  We started the day with a special breakfast of eggs, hash browns, bacon, and cinnamon rolls. 

Later in the day, we went to open skate for Sara's first skating experience.  As many of you can guess, I have literally been waiting years for this (it might as well have been my birthday!).  Sara has a Pinkalicious book about ice skating, and has been asking about it for a while.  My days of teaching little ones came in handy as we practiced "march-march-marching" off and on the ice.

 Sara was hesitant at first, but soon caught on and made a few good laps around the rink.

She took a short break on the bench in between laps.  When we left, she said she wants to skate again.  Success! 

We ended our celebration with a meal at Matt's, complete with a complimentary ice cream sombrero that we all enjoyed.  This morning Sara asked, "Is my birthday over?"  I told her that yes, her birthday is over.  She then asked, "Am I still three?"  I assured her that she is still three, and that she will be three for a whole entire year.  To this, she responded, "WOW!  I got SO big, Mommy!" (Sigh.)