Pachi

Pachi "before" her "makeover"

Pachi "after" her makeover!
Pachi was a gift to Emma from a dear friend of Robert's. We were given Pachi at a "Meet Emma Shower" that was given for us by the folks at the plant. This shower was the first official time that anyone outside of my sister had met our daughter, so it really was a very big deal for all three of us! For almost 6 months after Emma came home, it was just the three of us. We didn't go out much, except maybe to the park for walks or to play in the yard. The agency that helped us adopt Emma suggested that for the first few months that we be the only 'care-takers' of Emma so that we could bond as a family...i took these instructions very seriously, so for most of the time, it was just me and Emma as Robert worked and traveled.

Pachi and Mr. Moo were Emma's constant friends. Slowly, Mr. Moo faded to the side and Pachi took front and center as Emma's go-to friend. Emma named this pink elephant "Pachi"....we aren't sure where this name came from, but Emma babbled it out one morning and the name stuck like glue. Pachi has been there for crawling, standing, walking, running, rides in the stroller, first trips and vacations...you name it, Pachi has been there for Emma.

After five years of love, slobber, and being carried around by her ear, well, a stuffed pink elephant takes a beating. One elephant ear was barely hanging on, the tail, well, was also just hanging on and Pachi's stuffing wasn't so 'fluffy' anymore. And of course, somewhere along the line, Pachi started looking like a grey elephant instead of the pink elephant he was.

Action was required!

On Friday, after dropping Emma off at school, i decided to try and 'freshen' up our well-loved friend. First, i had to 're-stuff' Pachi. Luckily, there was a hole already near his barely hanging on ear, so i stuffed him through that hole. After i finished stuffing my patient, i then had to sew his ear back on. I come from a very long line of excellent seemstresses, but too bad for me that this skill seemed to skip over me totally. I do think, however, that i did a pretty good job with Pachi's ear.

The next task was to wash Pachi....because Pachi was starting to smell just like elephant dung.

I threw Pachi in the washer with some oxi-soap stuff and did a super-wash on him.

When the washer stopped, i was a little hesitant to open the washer door. What if i didn't do the stuffing right? What if his ear totally came off in the 'super' wash setting? Emma would be crushed if anything ever happened to Pachi...

I peeked in the washer, and there was a FLUFFY AND VERY PINK PACHI!

In fact, Pachi looked like he had gained a little bit of weight....

Into the dryer Pachi went....and when he was finished drying, it was already time for me to pick up Emma from school. And of course, that's when i really started to worry. What if she hated fluffy, pink Pachi and wanted old, raggy Pachi back? Then what would i do?

Emma climbed into the back seat and instantly saw Pachi sitting in her sear with a snack. She snatched him up...and squeaks "PACHI!! YOU SMELL SOOOO GOOD!! MOMMY, YOU DID A GOOD JOB!! I LOBE HIM!!"

Melt my heart....

All the way home, Emma is chatting to Pachi.

I am secretly thrilled that my poor sewing skills and my make-over of Pachi is a huge success.

Pachi seems to have many years ahead of him of being Emma's best buddy....and he is now in much better shape (even if i did stuff him a bit too much!) to take on that job!

Happy Birthday to me!
I love birthdays....especially my birthday!

It is a beautiful fall day today. The sun is out, it's a little cool but perfect.

Pickles is outside laying in the grass, soaking up the sun.

Robert is off somewhere running errands.

Emma is playing upstairs in her room with her dinos.

I'm sitting here in my birthday bliss....waiting for my husband to come back with my cake. It's lunchtime and i want to eat cake for lunch.

The only thing that i'm missing today is my Mama. I miss her calling me on my birthday, first thing in the morning and singing Happy Birthday to me in Spanish. I miss her so very much...the ache of missing her hasn't gone away or dulled in time. If anything, the ache has gotten worse as i see how much she is missing. I know that she watches over us, and especially Emma, but what i wouldn't do to have her here with me.

Off to enjoy my day...

A Birthday....

GRRR....BLOGGER IS ACTING UP!

Tomorrow is my birthday.


I'll be 46 years old.


I'm grateful for every single year that God has given me.


Granted, some of those years i would have really liked to skipped or at the very least, pretend that those years didn't happen...but each one of those really horrible years brought me to the place i am today.


I now have an amazing husband....and i'm just not saying that to be nice. Robert is the type of man who makes you want to be a better person. You know those folks that do right when no one is looking? Or the folks that do right because it is the right thing to do? Robert is that kind of man. He's honest, fair, dependable, faithful, loving, and a Godly man. He has restored my faith in mankind...my husband is really that awesome.


I have a little daughter who i love with everything i have.


I have a warm place to lay my head at night, food to eat, water to drink.


I get to be a stay-at-home Mama.


I am loved.


I could not ask for anything more....


As i have gotten older, i have made it part of my daily ritual to tell God how grateful i am. Every single day, i tell Him that i am so glad that He didn't give up on me, even when i wanted to give up on myself. I tell Him that i'm thankful that He carried me when i couldn't carry myself and that i'm trying my best to try and be a good Mama and wife, even though some days, i fall horribly short of being a good Mama and wife. I tell Him thank you for getting me through the times where i didn't think that i would make it through....and i thank Him for the amazing people that He has put into my life.


And i ask Him to help me be a blessing to someone who maybe is where i use to be. To give someone something for the sake of giving is truly amazing. It is even more amazing when you do something for someone and they have no idea that it is you who is doing the giving. The is giving thing doesn't have to be something huge...helping someone who has a screaming child in the checkout line can seem like a life line to a tired Mama who feels like she is at end of her rope. Simple acts of kindness mean the most, i think...it's a good way to serve the folks around you.


I've learned a lot in my 46 years, haven't i? :o)


Tomorrow i am spending my birthday with my husband and daughter....there will be cake and ice cream, giggles and laughter and much love.


A very perfect way to spend the day....

Barbie Dolls and Dinosaurs

Emma is indeed growing up.

I know, i'm quick, aren't i? Nothing gets past this Mommy, eh?

Kindergarten is just a part of growing up, albeit a very big part.

Peer pressure or what your peers like or think is neat is a big part of growing up, too. I honestly didn't think what another kindergartner likes/thought was neat would have any bearing on what another kindergartner liked or thought was neat. I honestly thought that at the ages of five or six, you liked what you liked and that was that.

"Oh, no!" said the butterfly to the grasshopper....

Emma has a apple kind of book bag. It's not really a book bag, more like a bag that clinches that you can carry stuff in. It matches her lunch bag.

I'm matchy-matchy like that.

One day, i picked her up from school and she informed me that she maybe needed a new book bag. We used this apple book bag/clinchy bag and lunch bag last year for pre-k.

"What kind of book bag do you think that you would like, Emma?" i ask, fully expecting the answer of dinosaurs or tree frogs to be screamed from the back seat.

"I would like a BARBIE BOOK BAG, Mommy!" replies Emma in her most grownup voice.

Honestly, i couldn't have been more stunned surprised if she had answered that she wanted a Magic Mike (you know, that yummy movie with the male strippers?) on her new book bag.

A Barbie Book Bag?

Emma doesn't play with Barbies.

Emma doesn't play with dolls.

She plays with dinosaurs, farm animals, jungle animals, etc.

Not Barbies.

As soon as i managed to find my voice, i squeaked out "But Emme, you don't like Barbies. You like dinosaurs and frogs."

"I like Barbies, Mommy! And i lobe the color PINK. Barbie book bags are pink. So i would like a Barbie book bag, pwlease."

The only word i can managed is "oh!" so that's what i say and continue driving home, wondering if, by chance, i picked up the wrong little brown eyed, brown haired girl up from school. Maybe she was kicked in the head or something today at school....

When we get home, we have an ice pop together and chat about her day. We go outside with Pickles to look for acorns and chase each other around the trees. After a bit, we go back inside and Emma tells me that she is going to play in her room.

Which is a good thing, as i need a large drink diet coke and time to sit and think for a bit.

I hear Emma in her room, as she turns on her cd player and classical music comes tinkling through the air. And then i hear her start to chat to Pachi and her dinosaurs....and i realize something rather quickly. I bet he little girls in Emma's class have Barbie book bags!

AHA!

NO! Aha!

I don't want my girl to like things just because some other kindergartner likes them. I want her to like what she likes. I don't want her to follow on this. Really, how many grown women now like things because other women like things? And isn't this a little young to worry about liking what other friends like?

Dang it.

Why can't i be the Mother-Earth type and home school? Why can't i just be Emma's teacher? She only needs me anyway, right? Actually, that's not right. She needs others. As an only child, school is a fantastic place for my little social butterfly. Emma is in an amazing school system with a fantastic teacher who cares about her. She gets so much at school; much more than i could possibly pull off.

The next morning in the car on the way to school, i ask Emma:

"Sweetie, you know, everyone has different likes and dislikes. Just because someone likes Barbies doesn't mean everyone has to like Barbies. Some friends like frogs and dinos and some friends like kitties and doggies. Everyone is different! God made us all different, you know...."

"I know, Mommy, i know...." Emma responds like she really could care less

"I would rather you get a book bag that YOU love, not one that your friends would love." i tell her, looking at her through the rear view mirror.

"'Tay, Mommy. I wiff tink 'bout it," she tells me, kissing Pachi.

hmmm.

Okay, i guess thinking about it is a start, right? We aren't rushing out to go Barbie-Pink-Crazy, right?

What worry about is today, it's just about Barbies and Dinosaurs.

But what about later? What about when she's older? How to do you teach a child to stand up and like what she likes or do what she knows is right? I am sure that keeping dialog open between she and i is important....and honestly, i need to remember that even though she has an amazing teacher at school, Robert and i are her teachers, too...

....and it's one of the most important jobs that we will ever have.

Maybe i can find a pink Barbie book bag with a large, green Triceratops on it....