Rainbow Dress

Today you wore a rainbow dress you received as birthday gift. We went to the library play group where Ms. Brenda exclaimed: "That girl needs a tent!" You would not stop playing under the easel where the felt rhymes are done. You would peek out of either side, under it sometimes. Waving your hands at whoever would pay you any attention. Your dad and I set up your tent and tunnel from Christmas. You played all evening in the living room while the thunder storm rolled through. You laughed and laughed. You took books and your piano inside the tunnel. I would grab your feet through the material. You would break down in a fit of giggles.

We spent the afternoon outside. We played with bubbles, swung on the hammock, fed the fish in the pond, played in the dirt. You love to "throw" the ball for the dogs but it never goes far and the dogs don't know whether or not you actually threw it. They stand there befuddled wondering what's wrong with your throwing ability. You laugh. We all laugh.

Lately, you have been communicating rather well. You use jesters and hand signals to tell us what you want. The cutest is when you want out of your highchair or you need to be picked up you lift both hands in the air and wait. You are able to follow simple directions like, "give this bowl to daddy" and you toddle away to hand him the bowl. I tell you to "go get your juice" and you toddle off and find your juice.

Today you went with Daddy and Reidun to the garden store to get mulch. When you arrived home, I waved to you from the back deck and called your name. You looked up at me from the back fence and smiled your toothy grin and waved back at me. It was like a scene out a movie. I went running down the stairs, you toddled as fast as your little legs would allow. We met in front of the pond. I knelt down and held out my arms. You came toward me with your arms outstretched, smile on your face. You embraced me with all the muster a one year old could manage. I held you tight in the hug and was filled with such content I could have exploded. The moment was pure. I want to always remember your tiny hands clutching onto me as if we had been a part for months, not minutes.
Thank you for such love. I feel unworthy but I savor every morsel of it nevertheless.

Mornings With You

One day you will not want me around. I will be "uncool"... probably the word cool will be old fashioned. Maybe it already is.

I work with middle school students. I get it. One day you will either walk 20 feet in front of me or 20 feet behind me but never with me. You will want to go to the mall with friends, hang out with 'just friends' and God forbid I want to tag along. I know this day is coming. I promise not to take offense. It's only natural. You grow up and learn to be by yourself, without me. On the upside, one day you will return to me... as a friend and a daughter. The knowledge of this will keep me sane.

But I am getting ahead of myself. You are only 1. Right now, you want me to hold you. You look pathetically at me with your hands outstretched. You've learned this gets me every time. I pick you up and cuddle. This morning, you didn't want to be put down. You snuggled your head into my chest and hung on tight. Now, when you are walking you instinctively stick your hand up in the air waiting for my hand to grab yours. One day you will not grab for my hand. One day you will not want to cuddle with me.

I am happy for today. I like to relish the time in the morning right when you awake. You want to snuggle just a minute more before it's time to dress and face the world. We tend to linger in the mornings. I watch you sleep, I feed you breakfast, we watch Blues Clues, we pick out an outfit and get dressed. Sometimes we even walk together to the car (very slowly since someone takes small steps). I'm lucky I don't have to rush into work and can spend extra time with you. Too many mornings will be rushed. Too many breakfasts will be eaten in the car. Too many snuggles will be cut short. This morning I took the time to move at your pace. I wish every morning could be this way. I suppose we have the hectic mornings to remind us to savor the ones we can. Oh how I savor our mornings Nora.

One day, too soon, I will be yelling up the stairs for you to hurry up because we're late. You will sulk as I drive you to school, not wanting to be seen with me, then shy away when I go to kiss you goodbye. I will smile to myself, remembering how our mornings used to be.

You Are What You Eat.

Picking You Up in the Sunshine

Today I dropped you off at daycare. It was 90 degrees. I knew this afternoon you would get to play outside after your nap. When I picked you up everyone would be outside playing in the sunshine. I looked forward to this moment all day long. As I drove in an hour in traffic listening to NPR. As I gave a school tour to 5th graders who will be attending middle school next year. As I fixed computers, meet with teachers, wrote emails, made calls. All I wanted to do was pick you up and see your smiling face in the sun. I had to leave work by 3:30pm in order to pick you up on time. 3:05pm came then a phone call, then a visit, then a delivery, then a meeting with the principal. Soon it was 3:35pm. I thought, I can still make it! I have to leave NOW!

Then there he was sitting in the principals office. A 7th grade student I do not know that well. He has a "reputation" among the staff. He needed help on a project. No one could stay after to help him. Our principal would but it was her son's 7th birthday and she had to get home for the celebration dinner. I had to get home to pick you up, outside in the sunshine. He needed someone. Someone to sit with him and help him on his project. It's also well known among the staff that this 7th grade student does not have the best home life. You have a great home life. Someone to love you, fix you dinner, play with you in the sun & blow bubbles in the bathtub. This boy does not.

So I called Reidun to ask her to pick you up in the sunshine. As Reidun went to get you, I sat in a hot computer lab next to a student I barely know. I watched, I helped, I encouraged, I taught... I missed you. I missed you in the sunshine. I missed you walking in the grass barefoot, I missed playing ball in the backyard. But I don't regret my decision. I pray I will be blessed with lots of sunshine pick ups outside this summer. I hope that my efforts today will help another child feel appreciated and smart. I have to make decisions as your mommy. I cannot be there for every moment, every pick up, every field trip or project. But I know that someone will be there. Someone in our large village will take over when I can't.

I wish I could do it all.

I did get to visit the Inner Harbor and National Aquarium with you yesterday in Baltimore. All the experience, culture and fun... and you loved the moving sidewalks the best. You would become thrilled whenever it was time to get on one. It would end and you would immediately turn around to jump on again, resulting in tripping some unexpected tourist, who I would then have to apologize too. Although you became crabby toward the end of the day and passed out the moment we got into the car, I enjoyed being with you. Today I could not be with you since I was at work. Tomorrow I want to start again and hopefully if all goes according to plan, I will be able to pick you up in the sunshine. I count on the chance for tomorrow far too much.

Nora goes to Washington

Marta and Troy are in town from Seattle this week. What do we do with out of town visitors the first week in April??? Take them to see the cherry blossoms in Washington DC.

Down we went for the day. It was a good day; clear, sunny, a little bit of wind, in the mid 70s. Although during mid day it did get quite warm. You took a nap as Troy pushed your stroller from the Air and Space museum to the War World II memorial. We walked from Capitol South all the way to the Lincoln Memorial and then around the Tidal Basin to see the flowers. It was quite the adventure.
I grew up in a Washington DC suburb. I have ridden the metro a thousand times. I have walked the mall, ridden the carousel, seen the Air and Space exhibits over and over. Cherry blossoms are no big deal. Happens every year. A few times I marched in the Cherry Blossom Festival parade as a balloon carrier. I forget sometimes how special Washington DC is. It's still the same old set up as from when I was a child. But there was something special going into DC to see the cherry blossoms with you.

It could've been my own ignorance. Since you turned one, I thought all your 'firsts' are over. Mommy can be silly sometimes. Today, you went to the Air and Space museum for the first time, sat under cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin for the first time, rode the carousel on the mall for the first time. Although we went to the National Gallery of Art and walked the mall and rode the metro all before, today was a day of firsts for you. I became very excited when I thought of all the experiences that have not happened yet. First time in a swimming pool without me holding you, first time at a amusement park, first time eating cotton candy, first time on an airplane! So many experiences have not happened to you yet. I will cherish them all.

Tomorrow we have plans to go to the Baltimore Aquarium. I have high hopes for this adventure after today's experience. Oh! And you have never gone to the Bmore aquarium before, another first! Hooray! I think almost everyday lately you have been doing something you never did before. You have new words, new games to play, new places to explore. I think I understand the old adage, "children keep you young" because you not only keep me constantly on my toes, you help me see the same old places and events with a renewed sense of beauty and wonder. Thank you Nora for showing me how blind I have been.

Easter & Egg Hunts

Oh Nora. Where do I begin? This weekend has been priceless.
We started with a Good Friday visit to the Easter Bunny at our local mall. You loved the bunny from a far. Close up? Not so much. I haven't uploaded the picture from Shutterfly but... well let's just say you look pissed. I guess it's rather scary and annoying to be placed on a giant fuzzy rabbit and then be expected to smile!!! You were cute though. You wore your Easter dress with bunny ears that Ms. Patti gave you. The ears happened to match your dress perfectly! It was meant to be!

Saturday we had the town egg hunt in the morning. Again, you wore your Easter dress. The egg hunt was very competitive and some parents didn't follow the rules!!! I can say that your father and I never touched an egg! You did all the picking up, but we helped you hunt and would point out the eggs. Some parents just picked up tons and tons of eggs for their child. Not us. You did it all yourself. Ok, those other kids might have ended up with a lot more eggs but you had an EXPERIENCE! Four eggs worth of hunting experience. But don't worry too much, when an older child took an egg right out from under you, I stood up for both of us. After all, we were in the ONE year old section of the hunt.

We went to Grandma and Grandpa's for an early Easter dinner. We had a fun hunt with everyone. You were an expert egg hunter by this time. You could find the eggs (with some pointing help), pick them up and placed them in your basket. There were many treats hidden inside of the eggs that you tried to stuff in your mouth. But we kept preventing you from actually eating the candy. I think this might have been rather frustrating. But when dessert was serve you would not be denied.

It was good to spend time with family.

Easter morning was spent eating hot cross buns, hunting your Easter basket in the backyard and running up the aisle during mass.

I think Jesus would have liked the way you celebrated his Resurrection. In church, you wanted to be a part of the mass by singing, dancing, responding, testifying. Although some may not have been able to interrupt your noises as such, your intentions were pure. You are good celebrator. At one point you found the air vent in church and stood over it so your dress and hair blew all over the place. You lingered over the spot as you saw every one's reaction to your antics. It was quite hilarious.
The afternoon was spent with Ms. Shirley and Erin where they had another small hunt for you! You totally kicked butt in this egg hunt and found 11 eggs! We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with Nonna and Nonni at Easter dinner. You were so tired when we got home, you did not want any bedtime routine. You only wanted BED!

It was a good Easter weekend. My soul is full.

the beginning

Today you had an Easter party at daycare. You made a craft. A bunny out of paper, foam, pipe cleaners and cotton balls. It made me tear up when Ms. Patti handed it over. Your first arts & craft project. Although since hot glue was used Ms. Patti had to do your cutting and gluing. Apparently, you were an expert at 'patting down" the glued pieces. We put the pink bunny with white ears in the area of highest distinction: our refrigerator.

I know this is only the beginning of art projects and refrigerator worthy material. It seems so special to have something your little hands created. I never want to loose the feeling of today. I want to appreciate and love everything you make, the way I did today. I hope I never become complacent with your creations. Every drawing, every painting, every piece of pottery I want to treasure and keep. I might need to get more storage space. I also might be unrealistic. However, I can promise you this Nora, I am privileged to be given your creations, I will never turn them away and they will always make it to the refrigerator for the world to see.

In other news....
Reidun, Becca, you and I walked 2 miles tonight to get ice cream. Well we walked and you rode in your new birthday wagon. Hoffmans Ice Cream is a town treasure. All homemade. Yum! It's an institution here in Westminster. You will know it well. Anyway, we felt spunky tonight so we walked instead of driving. Most of the trek had no sidewalks and cars zoomed by at 40 MPH. This made me very nervous. I would cradle you in my arms when I got too worried about the danger of speeding vehicles and the fading light. I thought holding you was better than riding in the death trap wagon. Don't fret, we made it safe and sound to Hoffman's Ice Cream. However, Daddy came and picked us up, wagon and all, so we did not have to walk back home. You ate a soft served vanilla cone then attacked the rest of our ice creams.

Laughter was abundant and memories were made. It was a good night. When I worry about not capturing every moment, every project, every ice cream adventure, I have to keep reminding myself, it's only the beginning.

Tomorrow, we take on the Easter Bunny at the mall!!! Wish us luck!