Life with Emma 2010

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I've been working My husband started this photo book on his own.

For me.

It is one of the sweetest things ever.

But, i took it one step further and totally stole his idea and most of his words and changed some photos made it a little differently. I wanted it to be a gift to some friends of my Mom's who have wanted to keep up with Emma. I think that they will love it!

I do love Shutterfly. And not because i think i'll get something free or whatever, i just love the look and feel of their items. The Christmas cards i ordered this year turned out beautifully and i loved the weight of the paper and envelopes. Their books are the bomb...they are very nice and they make a fast, and wonderful gift for those friends and relatives who live far away.

Okay, enough of that....but really, i do love my book. :)

~Issy the Busy Elf

Miss this view...

...from my sister's home.

This view is from where her office sits among the palm trees.

See the path?

See the beach?

Yeah.

She's that close to it.

I know that Christmas is near and with it, at least in TN, you get cold weather.

And yes, i'm happy that the holidays are near...

But oh, do i long to have my toes in the sand again...

The Christmas Cactus....

Above is Claudine's new Christmas Cactus that

i bought for her while we were in FL for

Thanksgiving this year.

This was my Mom's Christmas Cactus. It was

actually her last plant; it was given to her on

her last wedding anniversary by my Dad

in December 2006 before she passed

away in early January 2007...

...it's mine now.

It's a happy, happy plant.

Above is pieces of a plant i bought 5 years ago

when i first came to Nashville. It cost

a whole $1.00 for 5 almost dead pieces.

It's a beauty now, though...

And here is a off-spring of my Mom's plant. It is

in one of my Mom's favorite pots and is a gift

for my sister. It's her favorite flower pot, too.

...has always been one of my Mom's favorite flowering plants. Perhaps it's because, without fail, every year just before Thanksgiving, they show their stuff and bloom like crazy. It's like my official signal that the holidays are on their way. Easy to grow and take care of and they don't require much. Just lots of sun and in the winter, i move them inside to a sunny spot and wait for them to do their thing.

One of the very best things about this plant is that they are easy to root so you can share them. I can't even begin to count how many plants i've rooted from a Christmas Cactus!

And, i guess i should tell you: i'm not even sure that "Christmas Cactus" is this plant's real official name. My Mom always called it that so of course, i now call it that, too. I'm sure that if she called it a Thanksgiving Plant, lol, i would call it that, too.

Isn't it interesting the things that we keep to make those who have left us feel closer to them? A pretty flowering plant, a flower pot, a pair of reading glasses, favorite recipes, a favorite perfume, a Spanish cross, a robe, favorite old photos, old gardening hand clippers.....these are all simple things that make my Mom feel like she's all around me. I think that my sister thinks that i have "too many things of hers and it feels like a shrine" but i don't care. These are the things that bring me comfort when i miss her so much that my heart hurts. These are the things that bring me comfort when tears come because i miss her so much.

These are also the things that make me smile when i see them and think about her. I feel lucky to have the things of hers that i do. Each piece reminds me of a story or time with her and to me, that is priceless to have. It's almost like having gifts from her. We loved so many of the same things; flowers, trees, shopping (we always looked more than we shopped!), sweets, Chinese fried rice, chocolate, Spanish meats/candy/food, QVC, peaches, the beach, peanut butter and jelly, baking, Thanksgiving, Christmas and traveling. I guess in this way, she'll never really be gone from me and always be a part of me.

I just wish sometimes, that she was still here with me instead of in heaven. I know that feeling that way is selfish because where she's at, she isn't sick anymore. She's not stuck in a bed anymore, watching life through her bedroom window. She's not in pain anymore. She doesn't have cancer anymore. She's beautiful, happy and free of all of the sickness.

But even in knowing that, i still wish for her....i still wish for her.

And i'm pretty sure that i always will.

The weather outside...

....here in TN is cold. In fact, we are having our very first taste of snow flurries today. Which, of course, makes me miss our Thanksgiving digs just that much more. Emma, however, no matter how much she loves the beach, is a ball of excitement over everything and anything Christmas. No matter if it's a Christmas tree, a blow-up sixty-foot freakin' Santa decoration in a neighbor's yard or her most favorite baby Jesus from her Little People Nativity, all of it is cause for excitement. No matter where this child of mine is, life is fun, exciting and filled with laughter and joy.

I am beginning to think that God gives us children in the world so we are able to see the world again in wonderment. As we grow up, we just forget the magic sometimes of life and seasons and we start to complain....

....and we sometimes forget to be thankful and grateful for all that we have.

Instead of complaining that i have to clean a bathroom, i need to just stop and be grateful that i have one. Many folks in the world don't have a bathroom.

Instead of complaining that the water coming out of the faucet isn't cold enough, i should be grateful that i have running water unlike most folks in the world. Really, how amazing is it that you can go to a faucet in your kitchen and bathroom and clean water comes out all of the time?!?

Instead of complaining about how cold it is, i should be grateful to a husband who will bring me my cuddly socks and be grateful that i'm in a house with heat and a roof.

It's my goal to stop the complaining....heck, and even to stop thinking that way. For i am surrounded with things to be grateful for. I guess that i truly forget the joys, grace and excitement that God has given me in my life.

It's time for me to stop forgetting and learn to be more like my Emma.

Da Beach...

I'm not sure where my attraction to the beach comes from. I'm not sure if it's because growing up, i was lucky enough to spend an entire month there every summer or if it's because of the soothing calmness i get when i'm there. Whatever the reason, the beach truly is one of my most favorite places to be.

I don't, however, swim at the beach. You know, because of Jaws. Because i know he's out there.

Just waiting for me. So, i don't swim. But i do love to lay in the sun and do the whole sand castle thing. Because Jaws has never been able to eat a woman who is laying on the beach or making a sand castle.

I love that Emma loves the beach, too. Of course, she does go into the water because she doesn't know about Jaws yet. Instead of acting like a helicopter Mom, i do let her go into the water.

Up to her knees.

Really, no one needs to go any deeper than that. Besides, at that depth, you can find some really great sea shells, which is really one of the best reasons to go to the beach. Jaws has never eaten anyone who has been in the ocean up to their knees looking for shells, either.

Yep, i'm going to be great fun when Emma gets into her teenage years, aren't i?

Because when....

...you're cute, you should have your photo taken many times by your aunt who will follow you around until you let her take as many photos as she wants. :)

Thanksgiving...

...Day was amazingly low key and wonderful. Since my sister's little ones were with their dad, we decided to do something a little different for our meal: a standing rib roast. I was a little concerned that we weren't going to do turkey, but since Claudine's little ones would be with us on Friday and we would be doing the "official Thanksgiving" with one of Claudine's closest friends and his girls, i was hoping it would be okay because i hate to break traditions. Robert did a beautiful job on that standing rib roast; really it was so dang yummy. It was also the first time i've had a standing rib roast, so that was kinda neat, too. Claudine and i kept the entire meal simple, having a green bean and mushroom casserole, asparagus spears and a favorite pumpkin chocolate chip bread as dessert.

I was a bit taken back at how much i loved our simple meal. There was no stress, no huge clean up, no stuffed feelings after our meal. A lesson learned here for me....stress-free and simple really is the way to go on meals for the holiday. While food is important, only a few recipes are needed and instead of staying with our usual recipes, Claudine and i searched for new one. But truly, it was being around family that made the day special.

Oh, yeah, and the fact that we were by the beach was special, too!

I also learned the importance of spending this holiday with others. Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite holidays and it really should be a multi-family gathering. If that can't be arranged, then i really think that it's important to invite others to your home or to organize a get-together with friends and their families. There is nothing better than preparing a meal together, laughing together, saying grace together and enjoying each other's company. It is in those moments that you truly understand how important your family and friends are and how grateful you are to have them with you.

We were lucky to have Aunt Betty with us on this Thanksgiving. She isn't "our" aunt, but Claudine and i have now adopted her. Aunt Betty has been an important part of Claudine's life the past two years and has become Claudine's mentor of sorts spiritually. She gave Claudine a beautiful bible a while back and Claudine is slowly, slowly, with Aunt Betty's help, working her way through it and asking questions.

Out of the shattered pieces of Claudine's former life, good is slowly shining through...

Aunt Betty reminds Claudine and i so much of our Mom. She thinks the same things are funny, has the same hair style and is very intent on taking care of herself. Aunt Betty knew my Mom and my Mom really loved being around Aunt Betty so it was special for Claudine and i to have her with us.

A walk on the beach to look for shells after dinner made the day perfect....and one to be very thankful for.

A Play-Date...

I recently had a "Kid Craft Day" at my home with my table at MOPS and some of the Steering bunch. It was a fun day and i think that all of the kids had a great time as did their Moms. We did ghosts using their feet....i painted small canvases with a muted blue before hand and then we had each child put their feet in white paint and step on the canvas. After the canvas dried, i glued on googly eyes to each of the ghost.

It was really a lot of fun and something neat to keep to remember those cute toes and feet in Halloween times to come.

It was also a big, huge deal for me.

Not the craft, but in having friends over to my home.

Why?

Because i've never done that before.

For reasons that are icky in my past, i've never invited folks to my home.

Never.

Ever.

Yeah, i know. I'm in my 40-ish years. I just didn't want anyone to be in my home at that time. Maybe because i didn't see my 'home' as a "home" at that time.

But, many years later, and since being re-married and becoming a Mommy, i've wanted to have other Mommies over.

I just wasn't sure how to do it. One morning, i figured out that it surely couldn't be that hard to have other Mommies over. I would plan a craft for their children, have a simple lunch of veggie soup and salad for the Mommies and pizza for the kids. And i would invite my table from MOPS.

As so, i did.

I now wish that i had invited Mommy friends over before now. Because your real friends who are Mommies don't care how your house looks. In fact, if they see toys everywhere or laundry that needs to be folded, they will probably feel more at home in your home....because it looks just like their home!

Stunning that it took me so long to figure this out, eh?

But now that i have figured it out, i'm busy thinking about my next little play-date....

Sometimes, it takes a bit of time to come full circle, doesn't it? But maybe that's what makes the journey so worth it in the end.

It's beginning to look...

....like a mess at my house. While, yes, i know that it's much too early to decorate for Christmas, i have started. Mainly because Emma and i will be visiting my sister for a week and that will put me a week behind in dragging out decorating. As much work as it is to decorate, i want to put the stuff up and enjoy it as long as possible. Of course, i'm sure that by the 26th of December, i'll have had enough of the 'festive' season and want to take it all down before the new year.

Emma, of course, is thrilled about decorating. We have huge stuffed Santa's that are being dragged all over the house, angels who are now bed-time friends and the Little People Nativity scene has had elephants, giraffes, snakes, penguins, and tigers added to the manger part. Some, it's hard to imagine them there as i try to tell Emma the Christmas story, but she's happy that they are there, so i'm happy, too.

I've been going through my recipes and hunting for new ones to bake for neighbors. We are finally settling into our neighborhood and have met others. I'm planning on setting aside a weekend morning to bake and deliver baked stuff with Emma. I want her to understand the joy of giving to others very early in her life...and i think that baking and delivering is somewhere to start. Some of my best memories of my Mom are of us baking during the holidays...i don't remember many of the gifts that i've been given, but i do remember baking with my Mama in the kitchen during the holidays. No gift could ever replace that sweet memory...

For the past 5 years, i've tried to convince my sweet husband (who has all of the patience of this marriage, btw) that we should throw away all of the Christmas lights at the end of the season and buy new ones for the next year. Sweet Husband, being the tight wad that he is thrifty, has always objected. And sometimes, quite loudly.

Not this year.

hehee.....

Out off all of the strands of lights, only 2 of them completely light. Even the handy-dandy light tool he bought last year didn't help. And so, our upstairs tree is only half with lights. The downstairs monster of a tree isn't up yet, so i guess we will deal with that later in the week.

But, i do have to say, it is exciting. Mostly because of Emma, and mostly because i love this season. It's the season to remember traditions, start new one, enjoy friends and family and remember the true meaning of the season. It's also so important to teach Emma the 'why' of the season: Why Christ died on the cross for us. I don't know if at the age of three she quite understands any of it, but baby "Wesus" from the Little People is now sleeping with Emma at night.

And that makes my heart smile.

Venting....

...which isn't a grateful-type of thing to do with Thanksgiving right around the corner. And i guess i'm not really venting, i'm complaining. What a surprise, eh? I am suppose to be working on my "Thankful List" but instead i'm complaining. That's very 'thankful' is it?

But....

It's about texting.

And cell phones.

I know, i know, with all in the world that is wrong, this is what i pick this to complain about?

At lunch today, i watched a couple together. I assume that they were married, but who knows. I do know that i saw them hold hands and they had rings on. Any way, at their table, instead of chatting together, they were on their phones. And when they weren't on their phones, they were both texting. They were so wrapped in their stupid phones that they didn't even really pay attention to each other.

I finally had to stop being nosey and stop watching because i wanted to walk over and take both of their phones away from them and tell them to pay attention to each other instead of their phones.

Why do folks text other folks while they are with friends at lunch? Or while they are spending time together? Don't the people that they are with deserve their full attention? I see this all of the time.....parents with their children at the park are texting while their child is playing at the park. Instead of texting, why aren't they having a conversation with their child? Why aren't they on the swings? What is so important that they need to spend the entire time at the park, sitting on a bench, texting while their child is playing alone?

What could be so much more important than paying attention to the person in front of you that you would have to text the entire time that you were "spending time" with another person? Doesn't that person your with deserved all of you?

Good heavens, this is how i know that i am getting older. I expect manners and not rudeness.

Please, when you're with your family or with your friends, shut off your phone, put away your phones and don't text. Pay attention to who-ever you are with. Talk to them. Give the folks in your life your full attention. Talk to them. Make them feel important. The people who are texting and calling can wait a bit. Really.

Treasure your time with your friends and family.

And give them all of you and your attention when you're with them.

I promise that they will be thankful for you if you do...