In Memory

Happy Memorial Day to everyone. Two years ago on Memorial Day Ryan and I found our current home. It's been a great two years in that house and we have no intention of leaving it. Maddie thought that was a funny concept; us finding our new home.



I just wanted to honor those whom I remembered this Memorial Day.



Dad, Mom, Grandpa Leland, Grandma Betty,My Great Grandma and Grandpa Momo and Popo, Uncle Tut, Great Aunt Sue, Lois, Irl, our friend Armelle, my friend Jason, our friend Shelly, our former pastor and friend Larry, my old neighbor and our friend Benny our neighbors Fred, Joe and Leo. I saw a few of these people leave this world and I realize now that the worst part of growing older is seeing your friends and loved ones leave this world.

Our departed furry friends include Little Kitty, Nermal and Peanuts.

Happy Memorial Day in honor of those we love and miss.

Celebration!

Ryan opening his cards.

He requested cheesecake, so I made him one. :)


Ryan in Maddie's "floor bed"

Ryan, Maddie and Anna at the T-Rex Restaurant in KC

Ryan and Madeline at a school carnival
Happy Birthday to Ryan today!

Shy extrovert

I distincty recall walking down the street, up to a house and ringing the bell. "Hi, I'm Rebecca, I'm four years old". I can remember inviting myself in, and meeting just about every neighbor on the block in this way. I was continually in trouble for wandering off. One of our neighbors was so intrigued by me that she took me to her work and she ran me through a barage of aptitude tests on a computer. This was 1979 and computers, my dear friend, were few and far between. I was not shy. In fact I was probably not shy enough but I do consider myself to be a bit introverted. I was an outgoing introvert, if that's even possible. Madeline is nearly a complete opposite. She is very extroverted and loves to be with people, however she is very shy around new people. Once she warms up to someone she is very outgoing, but only once she feels comfortable. So I have come to realize that Maddie is a shy extrovert. It's an interesting combonation, and a bit conterproductive but that's her personality. I am not going to try to make her be something she's not but it does make for interesting introductions. I am not sure how Annalise's personality will be the same or different, but she may just become like her mother and complete opposite of her sister. Only time will tell.

Springtime

We got the weekend off to an early start by coming home a little early today. Anna enjoyed some fresh air while I strolled her around the neighborhood a bit. Ryan is building half of the retaining wall this weekend and will be filling it later this week. He rented a skidloader to move the dirt to the backyard.

Tomorrow Ryan is taking Mary and Ted's engagement pictures downtown on the ConAgra campus and in the Old Market. The girls and I will be hitting the garage sales since it's our neighborhood sale this weekend. Tomorrow night we're having dinner at Old Chicago as part of their training exercise. We get to enjoy a free meal while their staff learns how to serve. It's heir new restaurant in Shadow Lake. Joyce and my co-worker Michelle will be meeting us there so we can have dinner with good company.

Last week Madeline had her 5 year checkup with the pediatrician. She's in the 50th percentile for weight and height. She got four shots and her hemoglobin is great. She is doing very well. I have to add that tonight as Maddie was snuggling in bed and we were reading stories I took out a Bob book and Madeline read it on the first try! She had never tried to read before but she did it on the first try. It was pretty easy for her since she's been studying her sounds. I was so impressed and I can't wait to read another book tomorrow night. I can't believe it, Maddie can READ!!!!! (I am such a proud mama)

Anna tipped the scales just under 18 pounds. She still only takes about 3 ounces per feeding, but she's doing well and growing (made obvious by her chubby bubby leg rolls).

Three peas in a pod

Becky (held by big bro Randy)

Madeline Sue

Annalise Renee (with Grandpa John)

My girls

My sunshine

Anna Renee with Aunt Renee and Grandpa John

From the left: Rich, Debbie, Ian, Ryan, Becky, Madeline, Grandpa John, Renee & Annalise, Bob, Matt and Sarah.

Madeline and Madison

Anna is close to crawling. She moves all over the room by scooting on her booty, scooting backwards, and using a combo of twists and turns. She is very mobile and can get all over a room in these ways.

This past week we were busy as usual. Maddie attended a birthday party at My Gym, we went to the farmer's market and to a graduation celebration for my cousins Sarah and Matt. We were very blessed to spend time with my family (on my dad's side) including my Grandpa, two uncles and aunts and cousins. Maddie had a great time playing with two other girls and two nine-week old kittens. They are always a fun bunch to be with and we appreciate the opportunity. The painter has been working on our house for the past week and he's a little more than half done. The weather will delay him for a couple of days but it should be done by next weekend. We're being very daring by painting it white. But it's a brighter white, you know as opposed to the bright white it was already. :)

For Mother's Day we stayed close to home, but did venture out for gelatos at Whole Foods. Maddie picked out a very cool red trivet and Ryan gave me a heavy scone pan. Everything is great! Maddie spent the late afternoon playing in the sprinkler on our back deck. Anna played a little too.

I want my mom

As I walked through my house this morning I stumbled over the everyday reminders of my motherhood; a tube of diaper cream, tub toys, tiara’s, teddy bears, and a teeny knit sock the size of my big toe. I absolutely love being a mom. I wouldn’t trade the sleepless nights, slobbery kisses, sweet “I love you mommy” and bear hugs, for anything. Being a mother is the most selfless act of love and I am overjoyed to have the opportunity to love these two beautiful girls.

I often wonder what my own mother felt as she raised me. Did she have a sense of wonder and life as I grew? Did I make her laugh daily, as my own daughters do? Did she know that I loved her? I can only assume that she experienced the same feelings as do I.

Madeline loves to cuddle at night. She asks me to cuddle with her every night after reading books. I occasionally oblige and snuggle up under she sheets, pull her close to me and squeeze her right, sniff her hair (which no longer has that sweet baby smell) and think “this is the best moment of my life”. Later in the evening as I hold Anna close and sniff her smelly baby head I wonder :how did I get so lucky, to have these two precious babies that love their mama so much?”.

When I walk out of a room Anna starts to squeal and continues to protest until I return. Even though she can’t talk, she speaks clearly in her love for her mama. She has a sense of calm when she sits close to me, preferably touching. She doesn’t even need to be looking at me, but if she can feel my skin, she’s content. It’s a good feeling to be needed and loved so greatly.

At the end of the day I realize that the most important way we can live on is through our children. We will someday die, but our children, and their children will live on.

We all have an innate need for our mothers, even after they’ve gone.

Spring is here!

It was a nice week for biking to work. Friday was Maddie's Morning with Mom at her school. It was very exciting to see her working on math, geography and tieing. She can now lace her shoes. Well, she could lace her shoes if they had laces. She mastered the tie work in one sitting. I distinctly remember my kindergraden teacher, Mr. something or other, teaching me how to tie my shoes when I was 5 in kindergarden. I was very happy to see Madeline working on math. She can write all of her numbers, is working on teens, knows her 10, 100 and 1000. She's doing very well. It was fun to see her working on the maps too. She has mastered the world map and is working on North America. She and I did the United States map while I was there.

Friday we went to another Carnival. Maddie had fun and Anna enjoyed watching the other kids. Maddie was on a winning streak because she managed to win at every game she played. It's good they make them easy for the kiddos. She's now enjoying her new baton.

Ryan is working on filling up the new garden beds. A load of dirt was delivered and it looks like it's already half gone. He's trying to get the beds filled today so he can plant seeds. The potatoes, peas and beets look great already.

Anna loves pinching and eating chunks of graham sticks, pears, zuchini, carrots, and banana. She is pretty good at chomping things down with her gums, despite the lack of teeth. She's due to pop a tooth in a few weeks since Maddie got her first tooth at 8.5 months. Anna is also trying very hard to crawl forward. She scoots backwards, goes from the sitting to tummy position frequently and turns on her tummy. She is the most smiley baby you've ever seen. It seems like at least one or two people comment on what a happy baby she is, when we're out. I always tell them that she only see's happy parents and a happy sister so that's all she knows. :)

Tomorrow is the last day of Sunday school so Maddie is working on a gift for her two teachers. She's had so much fun and we're thinking about sending her to Vacation Bible School even though we'd have to take off work. Church is very important to Madeline so we want to embrace her interests. Ryan also found a wonderful art-focused summer school that we're contemplating for Madeline. It would be a great experience for her to immerse in the arts. She's such an artistic person. That was one of the things the teacher told us at parent-teacher conferences. She spends much of her time drawing and is very social (shocker). She always seems to have one eye on everyone else while the other is on her work. She chooses work that she can do with others and enjoys being with other people more than alone. She does do things independently but is also very very social. She did show Grandma JoLene, Aunt Mary and I the "silence" work while we were observing. She sat perfectly still and silent watching an hourglass and the word "silent" for three minutes. I was impressed! After she finished she exclaimed "that work is soooo hard!"