The Tooth Fairy

This tooth had been wiggling for weeks. It was dangling and had worked itself in a 180 degree rotation. It needed to come out.



She looked in every mirror, then got very busy with the matter of preparing a lovely display of fairy bites (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches), the silver container which held the prized tooth, and nice sign. (You can double-click the image to see it full-size.)



We sat there for a moment and pondered what the tooth fairy does with all these teeth from kids around the world. Ella thought about it: "Well, that's easy. No matter where a kid comes from, their teeth look the same. She uses them to build her white sparkly castle." So it was only fitting that she added a contribution of her two favorite (and corresponding) silly bands, along with peace, love & happiness.



The next morning, I woke her up and she dug under her pillow.

"I'M RICH!!!" she squealed as she pulled two singles out and held them up in the air.

The sandwiches were nibbled. The bracelets and the tooth were gone.
Then Ella went pale as she noticed the thin layer of pink glitter sprinkled across her nightstand.

My Lady and her Moo

Everyone said, "Oh my, what a beautiful costume!" then turned to me and asked if I made it. Clearly these are people who don't know me well. This one was compliments of Grandma and Grandpa.


Then there was Carson, who quickly caught on to the whole "ring a doorbell, get a sucker" gig. After the 6th house he went into a sugar tornado, and we cut him off.

He spent the next 10 minutes standing very still with this look on his face, as if he were:
1. filling his diaper
2. plotting to see how much candy he could stuff inside that tiny cow costume
3. pleading for one more tootsie roll before the night was over.

After frisking him and ruling out the first two, I folded on #3.
Who's the sucker now?

The Great Pumpkin

NOTES TO SELF from a day at the pumpkin patch:
colorful mums make great backdrops, and...

it's never a good idea to dress your tiny toddler in orange and green,
then let him loose in this situation.

A Week of Whatever

What's this thing in public school called "fall break?"
An entire week off in October?

I finished penciling this fact in at the end of my long list of reasons for becoming a teacher, then went about looking at my work calendar to see what I could move around.

And so I took the whole week off. With no plans. Shocking for me, really. And quite lovely!
I won't lie...I did draw a small chart (gasp!) that helped me plan for a block of time each day for nothing but silly fun and complete nonsense, one block for naps and tackling a few of my otherwise insurmountable household projects, and one block of time for artsy/learning activities.

Every day was a dream.
I vow, right here in writing, that I will do this every year.

I met my babes all over again, and got to spend a week completely void of drive-thrus, cubicles, laptops, DVD's, flatscreen TV's, iPods, leapsters, iPhones, and any other device that might clog my head with electromagnetic waves, messages about penis enlargements, or voicemails squawking out pre-election political pleas.

We spent time breathing the crisp autumn air, letting the sun bathe our faces in warmth. Ella read me books and Carson sang to us from the car seat on our daily adventures. We met up with friends old and new, but most of all we met each other for a special date every day.

NYC to celebrate a PhD

Ella, I know how desperately you'd like to go to New York, but kiddo - we'll do that when you're just a bit older. For now, it was time to celebrate Cindy's graduation.

Her wish? To hit the Big Apple. And boy, did we. Our long weekend was filled with great restaurants and broadway shows, subways and taxis and the hustle of Times Square. We got makeovers, bought purses in Chinatown, found some ethnic cuisine, and watched people dance and play The Beatles' music in Central Park in celebration of John Lennon's birthday. It was spectacular. I was SO happy to help Cindy celebrate such an incredible accomplishment!



But the thing I want my two babes to realize is this: we are some of the most fortunate people in the world! We spent a whole morning at the Ellis Island museum, hearing about the thousands of poverty-stricken immigrants who made the journey from Italy, Ireland and Germany in hope of a better future. Women and children rode in the hulls of giant ships for weeks to get here. They arrived sick and scared, not knowing a word of English. The whole display was touching and fascinating.


The steps below were those which the immigrants took once they were fully checked and given entry into the country. They called these the "kissing steps" because it's where so many men, who had made the journey ahead of time, waited to see their families after months apart. Can you imagine?


The next time you complain about dinner or ask, "are we there yet?" just think: this life we have...it's what millions of people struggled to find.

This was the goal. Let's cherish every minute.

Ice, Ice Baby

Summer fun: five & one

It's hard to do a post for every event I want you two to remember, so here are the highlights. You had an AMAZING summer full of...

camping with Poppa and the Kline family


learning how to play into both hands (or bowls of ice cream) at once

learning to walk at 11 months

us learning that there is no stopping you, Carson. You approached the duck pond and walked right into it.

riding with Leif, who had just gotten his golf cart license



simple fun in the back yard

Celebrating Aunt Cindy's PhD

and Ella - going from a pre-schooler to a TEENAGER! Look at this beautiful face :)

Kindergarten

Ella bounded out of bed, so anxious to get up and start kindergarten. She got ready cheerfully, but as we got closer to her bus arrival time, a look of concern and worry came over her.

I knealt down to say, "Ella...you aren't allowed to take toys with you, but if you want to go into your room and find something really small, we'll hide it in your backpack and only you will know it's there. That way you'll have something from home." Her face lit up.

She sprinted down the hall to her room, and came out holding this in her white-knuckled grasp:



She said, "the mommy from my dollhouse...she kinda looks like you."

I (loudly) whispered a few tips into the Mommy's ear, so if Ella got scared, she could peek into her backpack and hear some reassuring phrases. Ella pretended not to listen, but craned her neck to hear my advice: "please tell her that every kid there will feel a little bit scared.Tell her to make the teacher's job easy, to listen and learn a lot, and remember that if she wants to make new friends, the only thing she needs is her beautiful smile."

We tucked "Mommy" down deep into a secret pocket, and walked hand-in-hand out to the end of the driveway to wait for the schoolbus.







Yes, my sweet girl, it's a new day—and you are ready for it!

The First Day

tomorrow morning
we'll wake her gently
feed her a warm breakfast
brush her hair and teeth

we'll take her outside
with cameras and kleenex
at a somewhat nocturnal hour
and walk her to the end of our driveway.

we'll hear it coming for her
the giant yellow machine
puffing dark diesel smoke
pulling loud pneumatic brakes

the steel jaws of the monster
will creak open wide, waiting
she'll break from our grasp
and enter, ever so innocently.

we'll stand there and say
but she was just teething
first steps were on Mothers Day
how can this be?

and what if they don't know
her have-to-pee dance
or that her extra barrette
is in her backpack pocket?

we'll stand at the driveway's edge
as she waves back from the window
we'll watch as her tiny hand
disappears in the morning fog.

Fashionista or Hippie Chick?

Ella has always embraced our love of nature, animals and the outdoors.


(Releasing baby butterflies that she grew from pupae stage)

Last year, she found my jewelry box and makeup drawer. Now that she's five, we're dealing with a teenager in a tiny body.

it's not uncommon to find her on the phone, chatting away to someone. It could be her Grandma or a poor telemarketer...Ella is still happy to tell them about her silly band collection or her new bike.

I'll get into the car and find her buckled up, donning sunglasses and hot pink lipstick, prepared for any adventure.

And oh, her love of clothes...at 8:30am, this is how she arrived at the breakfast table to have her cereal.


She was in her room, working on something quietly for over an hour. I peeked in to find her doing a song and dance about the color pink. Her baby dolls were all propped up, "watching."

Just when I wonder which one of these personas will bloom as she gets older, I am reminded; she's no different than most of the great women I know. She's a mix of all of us, yet she holds her own.

And on the third day of camping with no shower, she knows how to strike a pose.

Yes indeed—this little lady will do just fine in the world.

Mimi was turning 70, so the whole family spent a week at Holden Beach to celebrate.

Her only request? That we all attend her party on the beach in costumes that related to the ocean. It was a week of fireworks, kite flying, parasailing, and the sweet sound of crashing waves outside our beach houses. Mimi and Papa know how to age gracefully...and generously.




















Happy birthday to my sweet Mom who doesn't look a day over 50.
Seventy looks good on you, girl!