Well dang it all anyway...

...my mom used to say that when my ears were around to hear. My dad's version may have been more colorful. But shoot, people! I thought I was going to be better at this in 2019.

Here we are late on the evening of May 6 and poof - 4 months have evaporated since my last post.

It seems as though the same feelings I've been having the last few years have not gone away: the days are fleeting. Fourth grade has about 18 days left until it expires. She will say goodbye to our beloved Mrs. V after two great years with her.

So we haven't been lazy in all this quiet time.

We welcomed our new little buddy, Penn Michael.

Our bed continues to be THE place EVERYONE wants to be (translation: not her bed)

We got some great quality time with my gal pals, and embarrassed Ella endlessly.

We hosted a slumber party for my the big kids.

We celebrated Mama B's birthday!

 And wouldn't you know it - the week Ella had spring break was also Holy Week. I work for a church, that has something going every spare moment, of every day, the entire Holy Week. She was a trooper and magnificent helper. She helped deliver meals to a few folks.

 She took a few moments to pose with me AND carefully placed Panda and Sealy in the church sanctuary.

 We invited Roz and Grandma and Papa for the Maundy Thursday feast.

 And because she was a patient little thing, when I got the call that a foster home was needed for four babies...I could not say no. And she was the happiest little girl this side of the Mississippi. Agnes, Sam, Hiro and Oscar were with a foster family that a medical emergency. We swooped in and took over. They have been some of the easiest kittens we've ever known. Ella had her favorite in less than 60 seconds.

Easter Morning!

 We left the kittens at home and took a roadtrip to the Henry Ford Museum to finish up spring break. Ella's main goal: find that Rosa Parks bus and sit in her seat. She seems to be equal parts fascinated and haunted by Civil Rights issues. Dear Lord, that makes my heart sing although I don't dare fuss about it because, "Mom! Stop making such a big deal! {insert eye roll}"

Help me. The recorder...

2 1/2 weeks later...still awesome and chubbier

Sleepovers galore, made even better when Mama Sar and Daddy John take them for drinks.

Thirteen days away from DOUBLE DIGITS for our girl and 51 years for me. So I'm 51 and it doesn't freak me out to announce it to the Internets. There are days I feel 34. There are days I feel 61. I know I'm a much better mom because I was 41 when this all started but there is some solid evidence in my book as to why folks embark on the parenthood journey at a younger age. For reals.

~H

january in a jiffy.

My funny, little Ella. What a month we had. It started out with ringing in the new year with our Finnish-Toledo family home for the holidays. Now we've been bitten by the bug to try to make travel to them happen this summer. 

The winter got off to a rather mild start and then blasted us quite nicely the past 3 days. In fact, so much so that it has been the coldest weather on record for our little corner of the world. The three of us have been working from home and are just a tad bit stir crazy. Of course it will be 55 degrees in four short days. When you do the math, that equals about a 70 degree temperature increase from what we've had. 

NOT photographed on the coldest day in history.

The piano lessons continue with our favorite piano teacher, and the homework comes home every night. Thomas does his part to help with the homework by lounging on the kitchen table to catch as much sun as he can. Mavis saves up all her snuggles for anytime after 7pm. She is your girl, Ella, and is happiest sleeping with you - not us. She is also one of the biggest reasons I cannot get you out of bed in the morning. 

Christmas Day 2018!

We have two big weddings coming up in the family as Christian and Libby and Allison and Ryan tie the knots within 5 weeks of each other this fall. Your cousins are so much older than you that they are more like aunts and uncles. In fact, you often have to have me remind you of that. I'm just happy that you'll be old enough to remember both of these celebrations.

You are still such a unique contradiction in so many ways - outspoken yet bashful; independent and yet still under my feet at every turn (or in our bed). All the while, you are funny. You have a fantastic sense of humor - the one trait I so desperately hoped you would have. I promise it will make life so much easier as you continue to grow up. And although I shouldn't be surprised, you adore helping me cook or bake. It is a trade off for me as I've always enjoyed getting lost in a recipe, the solitude, making a huge mess in the kitchen as I measure and stir and stuff. But showing you how to do it for yourself cancels out all that I used to have. It is a different joy with you at my side. You're messy though and I can only think Grandma Donna is looking over us calling us both left-handed cooks because the clean up after we are done is ridiculous.

~H



 

BRB. OMG. WTH.

I'm warning you, I've blown the cob webs off this sacred little space. There is no way for me to summarize the last 10 months of life we've lived. It was great and chaotic.

Never once did I think I would stop documenting for her but doing the actual work in the evening at the laptop just kept falling down the list of things to accomplish, because feeding the humans and the cats and the foster kittens and doing the homework and laundry took over.

So I start anew with guarded expectations and joy in my heart to be back at it.

Stay tuned.
H