NINE

Somehow, we went from this...

to this...

Our Bee.

Each parent can name the unending list of wonderful adjectives to describe the children that they love so much and I am no different.

This child is so creative, energetic, bold, and clever.

She still enjoys playing and does so with great zeal every day. This summer alone she has been a spy, detective, puppy, wedding organizer (stuffed animals), gardener, caretaker to fairies and an actress. I know that list doesn't include every scene she's done, but those are the ones I've known about!

Being here to watch her grow from the tiny bean who came into this world on this date nine years ago into the tall young lady she is today has been one of my life's great adventures.

Happy Birthday Bee.
Thanks for letting us come along for the ride!

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spring baby

Please excuse me while I get a little nostalgic...

I remember how much fun it was to dress her up and take her outside. I'm trying to remember what those long stretches of one on one time felt like. How wide-eyed she was about every little discovery.

She's still much the same. She still gets excited about new adventures and makes sure that there is joy in each day. She still likes to get all dressed up to go out. And she still likes it when we get some 1:1 time.

Tomorrow she'll be nine. Today, I'm just trying as hard as I can to remember that day. March 14, 2004. She was almost eight months old and I was as happy as I'd ever been.

And it just keeps getting better.
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we interrupt this heat wave...

For this bit of cuteness from January 2004. My Bee was six months old.

Doesn't she look thrilled that I plopped her out in that snowbank for a photo op?!

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First Food

My Bee was born before I had a digital camera.
Before blogging.
Before facebook.

This was her first food. Rice cereal at 4 months of age.

It was very exciting. As was everything our perfect first baby did.

She will be NINE on Saturday, so the next few days will be spent scanning in a few of these memories. Now preserved in digital format. Though in my memory, this seems like it could've happened last night.

Blink.
And it's nine years later.

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mid-year check

I realize that 2012 is past the halfway point. I decided this morning to check in on that resolutions post I had made back in January.



Doing well with:
*Teaching the kids to cook. We haven't done this a ton, but I have had them do a few recipes and taught them a few new things. Especially Bee. Yesterday she made her own quesadilla in the microwave while I was busy doing something else. I gave her the verbal instructions and she went to it. She even used a butter knife to cut it and give half to her brother.
*Teaching the kids about money. We've fallen off the chore chart this summer, but it has worked well and we did set them up with allowance and a system to divide their money into spend/save/give portions (a small three-drawer tote with labels did the trick). We also read Three Cups and another book from the library about money.
*Undivided attention.
*Exercise. It has come in several ways, but I've been doing a lot more physical activity this summer and plan to continue with that.

Still on the 'to do' list:
*One new vegetarian meal per week. We have had meatless meals often, but I have not tried many new recipes.  I default to the meals I have always cooked and have to remind myself to try new things that don't always start with a pack of chicken breasts or ground beef.
*Red folder routine. Long story. But to start this one, I will need to go find the red folder. Ha. It is a routine I had made up and put into a sleeve so that I can mark off the items with a dry erase marker. I compiled the routine from several helpful places and continue to think that if I could just follow that routine, my house and life would be in order...now where did I put that folder....
*Mail one card per week. I do send things to friends and family on occasion, but I want to make it a more deliberate action not only reserved for birthdays and holidays.

All in all, I'd say I'm in good shape. This week I shall take steps to get those last three resolutions underway. I do love a project!

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walking and talking

Bee and I took a walk on the trail that runs behind our house this morning. I took this picture at a park nearby, the yellow flowers made me feel happy.

We went a little over a mile. She was a great walking partner and I hope it's the first of many.

If I lure her into a routine now, perhaps it will continue into her teen years. I'm hoping she will be so used to walking and talking, she will continue to do so even after it's not cool to hang around your mom any more.


Devious? Maybe. Fingers crossed that it just might work.


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It's silly, how proud I am when I get to harvest a vegetable I've grown in my garden. I'd be a terribly arrogant farmer. With acres and acres of crops, my pride would really get out of hand.

Being able to cut up a cucumber that tastes so delicious and put it into some dressing for lunch the next day. The taste of a tomato fresh from the garden cannot be compared to anything you can get in the store.

I enjoying weeding, watering, checking it for signs of problems.

It is small, our garden. The amount of happiness it brings us through the summer is well worth the work.

 We've got squash, tomatoes, basil, jalapenos and cucumbers. We've also started a strawberry patch (fingers crossed) that we'll be able to harvest in two years.

 Bee and her grandmother outfitted her fairy garden, which turned out to be such fun. We water those happy plants too and make sure that everything stays in good shape.

It really is one of the best parts of summer. I love my garden.

blurry but good

June is gone. It was a blur of activities, all fun, but a bit exhausting. Baseball, softball, swim lessons, library trips, splash park, swim pond, playground, free school lunch, a grown ups only trip to St. Louis, a few nights of 4th of July fun.

I'm trying not to be one of those moms who is forever complaining about all of the stuff we are doing when we're the ones who made the choice to do it all! Instead we find joy in each day and sleep really well at night.

It is a really fun phase we are in right now. The kids enjoy most everything we do and are so much more portable. I think we are in the magical period of time between the exhaustion of having toddlers and whatever having teenagers will be like. I had read once that it is a very contented period of time to be in as a parent.


I plan to savor every second.

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