New! I like New!

New Year ... new things to do!

Here's a brief sketch of Kenzie's (age 9) current life activities...Montessori School, After School Spanish, Soccer (All Stars),  Piano lessons,  and Sunday School.  Oh and Brownies Group! Am I forgetting anything?

When she is at Nana and Daba's she's writing stories, reading, putzing around.. looking at the stuff Nana has nooked, or like yesterday she did an art project and began the makings of a collage.

I took this one in the car yesterday and she took the one of me  on the side bar.   First pictures since  Christmas. The first pics in the NEW year.

When Kenz is with her dad she's watching sports, walking the dogs, watching daddy cook dinner or reading. With Mommy she does homework, plays board games (Rummykins, Apples to Apples, Headbanz and others). She also watches some TV and  plays the Wii games (tennis, bowling, Michael Jackson dance).  In her room she plays Barbies, American Girl dolls and music on her CD player or MP3. She keeps her room nice and neat, folds her laundry and just about everyday writes in her journal about the very things I've mentioned above.

What an incredible girl she is! I love the fact that her life is full and meaningful. She has good friends at school and although there are the tensions between girls at this age she is quick to forgive and move on. Yesterday when I picked her up from aftercare (oh yeah another activity) she had good-bye hugs for just about everyone on the playground. She is tall and strong, beautiful, healthy and smart.

Brody had to say good-bye to Santa, but guess what! Christmas is coming again this year. Yeah Nana, we are going to have Christmas again!  He loved loved loved the whole holiday season!

And Brody (age 3) is a busy guy, too. He 's in preschool two mornings a week.  He still  has a couple of half-days at Nanas. We play puppet show, read books, take walks, play matching games, color, paint and all that fun stuff. He likes to ride his bike here and at home, go to the park with his parents, play computer games and go to the Movie Theater. His parents told me he sat through the Chipmunk movie and a couple others during the holiday season.  He wants to take Nan to the movie. "What movie you wanna see Nana?" Oh what a cute, smart, happy, calm boy my grandson is!

So that leaves one more person I want to tell you about. Me! I am working three days a week as an RN in a Rehab hospital. For exercise, I am working out a the gym once a week.  My body builder son is giving me some coaching on proper form and I am using the principles in the book Body By Science.   I am also doing some day walks (the weather has been awesome), reading, resting, writing,  and eating dinners with Daba. The highlight of my week is my new writing class... for Poetry and Fiction writing. I'm loving getting the motivation to write and write and write....


 So excited about the new year ahead!  I hope you are too!  Happy New Year!

Annual Musts

I cannot believe how fast the year went!  Today I had my annual eye exam.  There is some law somewhere that requires contac lens wearers to see the Optometrist once a year. The visit then allows  a purchase of a twelve month supply of contacs.  I felt like I was sitting in that chair, getting the puffs of air in the eyes (to check for glaucoma) a couple of months ago, but my chart showed that it was December of 2010.  At least my eyes didn't change this year. They see the same.

The days speed by, too! It's dawn, then it's dusk, then it's dark.  I've heard 'old' people say this happens. I'm feeling it! I remember when a year was a long stretch of months ahead. Without a doubt my years supply of contacs will be gone before I know it.

Christmas day... has come and gone.  I think it's smart that we start getting ready for the holidays right after Halloween instead of after Thanksgiving, like in the olden days.  Nowadays, everything moves so fast...

Kenzer is almost as tall as me! 

Brody had a blast with the inflatibles!  He absolutely loves these things!

What a nice Christmas we had! This year we went to my son's and daughter-in-law's house. (Thanks guys!)  Daba still did the cooking.  He made the best prime rib... ever.  Our same gang was there again... my niece Lara, sister-in-law Rita, Nana Sandy, Gabe (Kenzie's dad), Shelley, (Kenzie's mom), Mike (my son) and his wife Jodi. And the stars of the show... of course... Kenz and Brody.

Our family has well-established annual traditions. Last Christmas we did the same format. Rita's for Christmas Eve.  Then Daba makes the Christmas dinner. Not only did we do it this way last Christmas, but every Christmas since 1990, after Daba's mother passed away.  She had Christmas at her house for many years.

Sort of like a contac lenses exam, there is some law somewhere that says... our family must gather at the appointed times, eat wonderful treats, exchange gifts, eat a nice dinner, play with the new toys (this year was Wii games). Traditions are essential. My children wouldn't know any different. They never had a year without the tree, the presents, the family, the Christmas dinner.  Now they are passing these traditions to their kids!

Time may be slipping away, but it's good to have a way to package it up and experience it the same time, same station year in and year out! Variations on theme are of course just fine.  It's the doing of something, anything to mark the holidays that help us to stop the clock for a moment and see things in a new light!

And a good time was had by all!

Winnie and Tigger were at the neighbor's house last year. Brody was thrilled that they came back this season! 

                                

This Old Box

You do realize that some of these boxes are ancient? I was talking to myself while unloading the contents of the green plastic containers onto the kitchen table. I've had more time to do this lately. That is, talk to myself. Brody's other grandma is in town. And like Santa Claus coming to town... she and Bro Bro are off on a sleigh ride enjoying each other's company.

This leaves Nana Connie in the step house doing something she is very good at.  Daba calls it... fimble-ling. I call it putzing or puttering. Sort of like fluttering, too. I flit from one thing to the next. (Brody probably learned some of his behaviors from me. See my recent post IF YOU...)

Anyhow, this morning, there I was studying the ornament boxes. You know the ones I'm talking about.  The ones you find... after Christmas... lying around the house or tucked under the tree, days after the presents have disappeared. These are not trash!

An old Steve Madden slipper box and a Mikasa stemware box with dividers!

A whole year has gone by and once again I am delighted to see my ornaments and the odd boxes keeping them intact. I am particularly fond of the Raggedy Ann box. You know this was something I bought for Kenz, I told Daba, who was now nearby cooking us some peppers and scrambled eggs. He didn't care about the box. He doesn't get it.  An old box to him is well... nothing to write home about. (And he'll probably think I'm nuts when he finds out I am blogging about them.)

Believe it or not, the cellophane on Raggedy Ann is intact. I turned over the box to check the price.  Aha! Now I remember where I bought it.  It wasn't in a big box store, but at a real toy store, one that several years ago went by the wayside. The tag is bright orange. It was eight dollars and fifty cents. Knowing me, I must have bought it on sale.

My Raggedy Ann box is not ragged. The doll, however, is long gone. Kenz was a newborn when I gave it to her, nine years ago. Ann didn't make it through my daughter's own move in 2009 and she may have even disappeared long before that. But hey, I got the box. I love the box. I have others, too. They are keepsakes of the traditions. They have purpose. They have storage rights. Since this will be the first Christmas in our apartment after living in our house for 28 years, I may be more sentimental than usual. The boxes and all the trimmings survived the shuffle! They weren't sold at the yard sale or donated to the Salvation Army.  They have arrived again this holiday season ready to give branchfuls of memories.

I have the Precious Moment box (and the ornament) Ant Jean gave us in 2005. I also have the box for the cactus ornaments I bought for my sister Joni.. gotta be... a decade ago. I remember I couldn't send them to Denver for fear they'd break, so I mailed them in different box. The Dillard's  cactus box is just sturdy enough to hold my mirrored disco balls. Dillard's Department store is gone too! It became Macy's, but in between it was some other store.

 I'm grateful for the little treasures that follow us through our lives.  My Christmas stuff is exactly as it was last year, even though so many things have changed...

And now, let the moments of joyful preparation continue...

Clips from a busy week

Brody and I went to visit the mall Santa. We went early in the week . NO one was there. Snap a dap. 22 dollars later we were done.  Brody loved it. Pic immediately scanned and posted on Facebook. 

After Santa we went to the mall play area. I ran into a lady I  used to see when Kenz was climbing on this bear. She had her four-year old with her . Her older girl Amanada who was Kenzie's age was in school. She showed me pictures. Oh the years go by and children grow up and up and up.

Kenz already had Kit and now she has Kiana. American Gals... her treasures.

This globe thing plays about ten Christmas songs. Jingle Bells , Jingle  Bells is our favorite.

Kenzer blowing out her nine candles at Aunt Lara's! 

What a guy! What a boy! That face, that face, that wonderful face!

Nine Sweet Years

My Kenzie grand girl is turning NINE this week! 

My inspiration

a song sung pink

a smile so quick

She is...

so alive 

so sweet 

so neat

this girl 

this girl

this grand 

grand girl.

Kenzie wit her beautiful mommy.

I love this one. The brand new grandma. I loved my blue room ! Look at mommy's smile.

I remember being freaked out about the first bath. I had forgotten how to do it. I looked up the instructions in a book. Daba was there making sure she wasnn't  going under.

Look at Kenzie's Uncle Mi Mi! He is now Super Dad to Brody. 

Nana Nine years younger.... celebrating Christmas with our precious package.

Pink wit  Rosebuds Princess Girl!

Those first magical days in the Crib... 

Daba's trick to get Kenz to Nanee (pronounced NAH-KNEE)
Walk in circle around the kitchen island with the water running full blast.
I don't know who enjoyed this more him or the baby?

The sweetest Princess Bride you'll ever meet!


Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!