SO. I talked to my little sister today to ask her to look at the post about the childhood dress and tell me if it was hers or mine. (That is not the only reason I called her. We commonly talk on the phone. Sometimes many times a day.)
She knew exactly the dress I was talking about. And, not having even a trace of Mommy Brain, she corrected me on what I remembered. The dress was Debby's. Our oldest sister (Ricki) had the dress last, because her daughter (who is now 37 and a mom of 4!) wore it when she was little. When they were finished with it, Ricki gave the dress back to Debby. It is Ricki's handwriting on the lid of the box, and not our Mother's. Debby actually gave it to me for my girls to wear.
I forgot to ask Debby if she wants her dress back!
It always amazes me how Debby remembers tiny details of things. I used to be that way before I had kids.
I love having my kids ... even though I have LOST MY MIND! LOL! :-)
-Holly
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Childhood Dress
I can't remember if this dress was mine or my little sister's when we were kids. I do remember that it was a FANCY dress! For one thing, it was store bought! My Mother was a WONDERFUL seamstress when we were growing up. She sewed SOOOoooooo many of our clothes.
Quite a while back, my Mother gave me this dress in a store box that is probably as old as the dress is! On the lid of the box was written, "To be saved for Debby's little girl."(Debby is my little sister. I don't think she minds me mentioning her by first name here.) Debby and her husband decided not to have children, and so my Mother gave the dress to me.
It is from about 1963 or 64 if it is mine, and 3 years later than that if it is Debby's.
Last night, I let each of my daughters try the dress on. Aren't they cute?? First is Jane, then Irene, and the last is May. I told them that it never laid flat on me, as I had to wear about 5 really scratchy net slips underneath it to make it stick out! LOL! They wanted to know what a slip was. LOL!!!! Thankfully, times have changed!
OK. Now I have a list of things to do to prepare for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow at our house!
-Holly
Quite a while back, my Mother gave me this dress in a store box that is probably as old as the dress is! On the lid of the box was written, "To be saved for Debby's little girl."(Debby is my little sister. I don't think she minds me mentioning her by first name here.) Debby and her husband decided not to have children, and so my Mother gave the dress to me.
It is from about 1963 or 64 if it is mine, and 3 years later than that if it is Debby's.
Last night, I let each of my daughters try the dress on. Aren't they cute?? First is Jane, then Irene, and the last is May. I told them that it never laid flat on me, as I had to wear about 5 really scratchy net slips underneath it to make it stick out! LOL! They wanted to know what a slip was. LOL!!!! Thankfully, times have changed!
OK. Now I have a list of things to do to prepare for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow at our house!
-Holly
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Playroom Fun
We have spent many hours recently, cleaning up the upstairs playroom (there is a larger playroom in the basement). The toys were allllllllll jumbled together and covered every inch of the floor, the bunkbed, and the closet. The girls and I sorted about 75% of them into big plastic boxes.
You could see the carpet!
Then, I looked away for a couple of days.
And, the adorable kids next-door came over to play. (I never know whether I should mention people's names on this blog, since it is public. I will call the next-door neighbor girl "V" - she is pictured below with my Irene, Jane and May.)
The playroom got messy again, but I cleaned it up again today.
Look at these 4 sweet and happy faces. Could you EAT THEM RIGHT UP, or what?? It is SO GOOD to have wonderful neighbors! The kids play together all the time. No formal or arranged-ahead play dates needed. They just run back and forth between the two houses. Just like when I was a kid. I love it!
-Holly
Monsters!!
So. There I was. Just peacefully minding my own business. Preparing the toppings on a homemade pizza for my lovely family ... when ...
MONSTERS!!
They came right up to the kitchen island and scared me!!
They became more friendly when I topped their fingers with black olives.
THIS is why I love being a Mom. It is fun. And, fun is good!
-Holly
Friday, November 21, 2008
November Weather
On Tuesday it got to 75 here in our neck of Colorado! This was 20 degrees higher than the normal temps. I surprised the girls with a visit to the park on the way home after school. Many of the Other Mothers had the same idea. Very nice chatting and watching the kids play. Below are a few that feature my 3 lovelies. I think it is interesting how they sit in that predomnantly Asian squat-sit when they are playing in the sandbox.
As soon as the sun set, it got cold (normal!). The skies were sooooooooo beautiful as we drove home from this burst of warm November fun in the park.
On Wednesday, it dropped to just 15 degrees above the seasonal norms.
As soon as the sun set, it got cold (normal!). The skies were sooooooooo beautiful as we drove home from this burst of warm November fun in the park.
On Wednesday, it dropped to just 15 degrees above the seasonal norms.
Then -- Thursday hit. I believe the high was 26 or 27. BBBBRRRRRRRRRRR!!!
Today was more normal, with a high around 53.
-Holly
IB Night at School
A week ago, our family attended IB Night at the girls' school. The school is an IB Candidate school this year. IB is such a wonderful concept! They are boosting a generation of world citizens! It is very cool.
The evening started with a FANTASTIC (!!) presentation about volcanoes, by Bruce Junek who is an adventure traveler (with his wife). They have traveled to MANY of the world's active and inactive volcanoes. The slides he showed were magnificent!
I have a thing for geology, including anything to do with volcanoes.
After the presentation, the Kindergarteners took the stage and sang a song about IB Attitudes. SO CUTE!
After that, we took our "Passport" and went from classroom to classroom, taking part in various activities centered on IB Attitudes/Behaviors such as being open-minded, keeping balance, being an inquirer, caring, being principled, being a thinker, being a risk-taker, being knowledgeable, being a communicator, and being reflective.
Aren't these GREAT traits for a school to teach?!! I just LOVE this school!
In the photos where the girls are writing, they are reflecting on who has been the greatest influence on them or who has made a big difference in their lives. I joined in (as did many of the parents).
It was a fun night!
-Holly
Time for Change
When we were waiting to travel to get Irene, we had a case of bottled Jones sodas. Inside the lids, they had a type of "fortune." For some reason, we tucked away a few of the lids.
Yesterday, I was cleaning out old boxes in my progress toward having a neater home, and I ran across one of the bottle caps. Inside, it said, "Try a new hair color."
This was AFTER I had changed my hair color to chestnut brown (with lots of deep red tones) earlier in the day!
do-do-do-do
-Holly
Your brunette friend (I have never had hair this color!)
Yesterday, I was cleaning out old boxes in my progress toward having a neater home, and I ran across one of the bottle caps. Inside, it said, "Try a new hair color."
This was AFTER I had changed my hair color to chestnut brown (with lots of deep red tones) earlier in the day!
do-do-do-do
-Holly
Your brunette friend (I have never had hair this color!)
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Irene and Jane
I'm constantly happy that we added Irene to our family, for many reasons. One of the main reasons is the way that Irene and Jane are together. They truly enjoy one another. It seems like they needed each other.
This first year (+3 months) of transition has been tough in SOOOO many ways. I knew all the things about adopting an older child, but I don't think I REALLY knew until we passed through a year. We are still adjusting. I won't lie to you ... it has been tough.
But, there are many more golden moments these days. And, many more cracks in Irene's tiny set of armor.
And, my own.
But, look at Irene and Jane ... it has all been worth it. They are meant to be sisters.
Time to Blog
Here we are at November 20 and I only have 9 posts for this month. I better play some catch-up!
I want to post about the Veteran's Day parade, but I have cut the pictures down to "just" 72 shots. LOL! I better get a few more cut out before I post about that.
Meanwhile, let's see what I can yack about for the next 10 posts, or so. :-)
-Holly
I want to post about the Veteran's Day parade, but I have cut the pictures down to "just" 72 shots. LOL! I better get a few more cut out before I post about that.
Meanwhile, let's see what I can yack about for the next 10 posts, or so. :-)
-Holly
Saturday, November 8, 2008
It's A New Day
My new favorite song is "It's A New Day" by Will.I.Am ("Will I am"). I saw it on Oprah (and you can, too, by clicking the link below):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpW4gLb3p8M
Pretty soon, I will get more used to the FANTASTIC times we are in now and I will go back to posting about my girls and our life together. (We went to the Veteran's Day parade today and so pictures will follow!)
I have never been one to be so "political." The most I have done is tease my mom back and forth every election with "I cancelled your vote!" (She got the first shot this year and told me SHE cancelled MY vote. LOL! I replied, "Yes, but you can't cancel all the votes." And, I hoped with all my heart that what would happen with the election was what DID happen with the election.)
I have never put a bumper sticker on my car before. But, I put an Obama-Biden sticker on my car. At first, I taped it to the inside of my car's window. (CHICKEN!) But, when Gen. Powell came out to back Obama, I strutted out to my garage and moved the bumper sticker to the outside of my rear window on my car. I felt pride and hope.
Hope is a thing I have not felt since 9-11-2001.
I don't put bumper stickers on my vehicles, because I do not like to alienate people. I am all about oneness and acceptance. To shove my point of view at every driver who happens along behind me is just not my thing. Ugh.
But, I believed so strongly in Obama and his message that I decided to work FOR him, and not AGAINST anyone else. I have a lot of respect for Senator McCain. If he had won, I would not have died! LOL! His choice of running mates? Wellllll ... that's a whole other story! Sheesh.
I put on that Obama bumper sticker, knowing full well the Red condition of my county. (This county voted 60% for McCain.)
But, by now people know me. They know I love my family. They know I care for my neighbors. They trust me with their kids, their secrets, their friendship. They see me volunteer at the school in each of my children's classes. They know me in the China-adopt community. They know me in my church community. They know I am a friend to many. They are safe with me.
I am a child of the 60's. I grew up with the Civil Rights fight. I remember Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy. I can recall as a child being APPALLED that anyone would be judged by skin color. I remember being threatened in high school because of the color of my own skin. I remember race riots in the school cafeteria. I remember being friends with the only person of color in each of my classes. I remember a high school friend pretending to be Black when he was actually Eastern Indian. So many memories.
I worked for the Visiting Nurse Association in the early 80's and it was a true melting pot! We had a large work group, and group of friends from all walks of life. It was wonderful!
I am a huge fan of jazz music, and I have learned over and over and over of the prejudice, hate, struggle and injustice that black musicians have suffered. One of my life's greatest moments (two days) of joy was when I met and spent some extended time with jazz great, Joe Williams.
More recently, an adoption agency risked their relationship with the Chinese adoption officials when they went to bat to help an African American woman adopted a daughter from China. It was a hard fought fight and almost did not happen! They are a beautiful family!
So, as much as I tried to leave race out of the presidential election (Senator Obama is a man to be respected, regardless of race), I could not help but long, dream, and yearn for this moment. The first African American President of the United States!! It makes my heart SOAR!!
Our family is a family of color. Our cultures are blended. Mostly, we fight "reverse prejudice" and things such as "That great Asian math brain" and "Chinese girls are are so ____." While these blanket statements appear positive on the surface, they are generalizations based on race.
I could go on and on and on.
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream. His dream is coming true! Isn't it an amazing time we live in??? WOW!! Wow is not a big enough word.
It's a new day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpW4gLb3p8M
-Holly
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpW4gLb3p8M
Pretty soon, I will get more used to the FANTASTIC times we are in now and I will go back to posting about my girls and our life together. (We went to the Veteran's Day parade today and so pictures will follow!)
I have never been one to be so "political." The most I have done is tease my mom back and forth every election with "I cancelled your vote!" (She got the first shot this year and told me SHE cancelled MY vote. LOL! I replied, "Yes, but you can't cancel all the votes." And, I hoped with all my heart that what would happen with the election was what DID happen with the election.)
I have never put a bumper sticker on my car before. But, I put an Obama-Biden sticker on my car. At first, I taped it to the inside of my car's window. (CHICKEN!) But, when Gen. Powell came out to back Obama, I strutted out to my garage and moved the bumper sticker to the outside of my rear window on my car. I felt pride and hope.
Hope is a thing I have not felt since 9-11-2001.
I don't put bumper stickers on my vehicles, because I do not like to alienate people. I am all about oneness and acceptance. To shove my point of view at every driver who happens along behind me is just not my thing. Ugh.
But, I believed so strongly in Obama and his message that I decided to work FOR him, and not AGAINST anyone else. I have a lot of respect for Senator McCain. If he had won, I would not have died! LOL! His choice of running mates? Wellllll ... that's a whole other story! Sheesh.
I put on that Obama bumper sticker, knowing full well the Red condition of my county. (This county voted 60% for McCain.)
But, by now people know me. They know I love my family. They know I care for my neighbors. They trust me with their kids, their secrets, their friendship. They see me volunteer at the school in each of my children's classes. They know me in the China-adopt community. They know me in my church community. They know I am a friend to many. They are safe with me.
I am a child of the 60's. I grew up with the Civil Rights fight. I remember Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy. I can recall as a child being APPALLED that anyone would be judged by skin color. I remember being threatened in high school because of the color of my own skin. I remember race riots in the school cafeteria. I remember being friends with the only person of color in each of my classes. I remember a high school friend pretending to be Black when he was actually Eastern Indian. So many memories.
I worked for the Visiting Nurse Association in the early 80's and it was a true melting pot! We had a large work group, and group of friends from all walks of life. It was wonderful!
I am a huge fan of jazz music, and I have learned over and over and over of the prejudice, hate, struggle and injustice that black musicians have suffered. One of my life's greatest moments (two days) of joy was when I met and spent some extended time with jazz great, Joe Williams.
More recently, an adoption agency risked their relationship with the Chinese adoption officials when they went to bat to help an African American woman adopted a daughter from China. It was a hard fought fight and almost did not happen! They are a beautiful family!
So, as much as I tried to leave race out of the presidential election (Senator Obama is a man to be respected, regardless of race), I could not help but long, dream, and yearn for this moment. The first African American President of the United States!! It makes my heart SOAR!!
Our family is a family of color. Our cultures are blended. Mostly, we fight "reverse prejudice" and things such as "That great Asian math brain" and "Chinese girls are are so ____." While these blanket statements appear positive on the surface, they are generalizations based on race.
I could go on and on and on.
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream. His dream is coming true! Isn't it an amazing time we live in??? WOW!! Wow is not a big enough word.
It's a new day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpW4gLb3p8M
-Holly
My Daddy's Bible
I mentioned about 500 posts ago that I have my Daddy's Bible and I often open it with my eyes closed and point my finger to a verse to read. I did that today, and here is what I got:
1 Peter 3:13
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?
-Holly
1 Peter 3:13
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?
-Holly
Friday, November 7, 2008
Stand With Me
Look! I stole a copy of the Facebook profile picture that my fabulous friend Fats is using! Isn't it cool?? Fats directedme to http://www.guyjuke.com/ for more info about this picture.
Fats is a collector of folk art and always has the BEST art! Thanks, Fats!
-Holly
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Oneness
The results are coming in. The race has been called. We will have President Obama to lead us along our path to wellness in our wonderful country. We are in good hands.
We are in ALLLLLLL of our hands!
It is time to truly strive for Oneness, Unity, Healing, Progress, and TEAMWORK.
Senator McCain gave a truly gracious concession speech. May we all take his words to heart.
It is not time for tears or gloating! It is time to link arms, grab hands and get to work.
YES, WE CAN!!!!!
-Holly
I have a dream/ VOTE!!
I am watching CNN and seeing Barack Obama vote. Wow. I have tears in my eyes. He has his daughters with him. It is taking him a long time - didn't he bring his Cheat Sheet with him? LOL!
If you are local and reading this and need a place to leave your kids while you go vote, please feel free to bring them to our house! I told this to the Preschool moms yesterday and I don't think they knew I was serious! Ask a PTA mom about our address. Or, call me. Or, email me. Seriously!
Even if you are voting for someone other than OBAMA! :-)
If you are reading this and are registered to vote, please PLEASE go and vote today. Let NOTHING keep you from this. VOTE. Do whatever you need to do to get this done. VOTE.
-Holly
If you are local and reading this and need a place to leave your kids while you go vote, please feel free to bring them to our house! I told this to the Preschool moms yesterday and I don't think they knew I was serious! Ask a PTA mom about our address. Or, call me. Or, email me. Seriously!
Even if you are voting for someone other than OBAMA! :-)
If you are reading this and are registered to vote, please PLEASE go and vote today. Let NOTHING keep you from this. VOTE. Do whatever you need to do to get this done. VOTE.
-Holly
Monday, November 3, 2008
Ping!
My email has been acting weird for the last 4 days or so. So, if you have emailed me and I have not replied, now you know why! I have some time tomorrow to crawl under there with my wrench and fix it. Stay tuned.
-Holly
-Holly
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Yes, we can (Saturday with THAT ONE)
You may have noticed that I support Barack Obama as the next President of the United States of America. All during the campaign, I have wanted to attend a rally where he speaks, but things have not worked out where I could go ... until TODAY!
The girls and I drove to Pueblo, Colorado (no, really) to see both Barack and Michelle Obama speak. It was wonderful!! (And, gas was just $2.26/gallon! WOO! HOO!)
We were seated (well, we 4 shared 2 chairs - they had THOUSANDS more people than they expected!) in the ADA area because of my knees (don't get too excited, the access for mobility-challenged folks was not great. I don't know how many of the people did it. And, exiting was WAY WAY worse!!) But, it was worth the little struggles to get there.
We were maybe 25 rows from the podium. But, we were on the back side of the people speaking! They had not planned for anyone to be seated where we were, and so the loudspeakers were not pointed our way! I was really wishing I knew more ASL, as the woman who was signing was clearly visible from our seats! LOL! The row of elderly women seated right behind us, who talked the entire time about how they could not hear, did not help things. :-) When they were quiet (didn't their mothers teach them better??) I could hear Senator Obama very well. It was impossible to hear Michelle, or the couple of other people who spoke before she took the stand. They must have turned up the volume when Senator Obalama spoke.
There were security people everywhere! I enjoyed watching the men on top of the two buildings to our left and right.
It was THRILLING to be engulfed in a sea of politically like-minded people. And, it was wonderful to be able to take my children! May has asked me TONS of questions about voting, the electoral process (she GETS the fact that no matter how many people vote in Colorado, we have 9 votes to cast and the next President needs 270 to win - it took me 40 years to understand that. LOL!). Jane and Irene just get swept along in the flow of excitment. May is old enough to be more discerning. I told her to think with her OWN head and heart about who to back. Never just vote the way your parent(s) vote.
Michelle Obama wore a pair of rockin' tight purple pants! You go, Girl!
It was HOT in Pueblo today and so Senator Obama went without jacket and tie and rolled his sleeves to the elbow.
He is SO FIT on TV that I expected him to be skinny in real life. But, he looks just the same in person as he does on TV.
They hugged as she left the podium and he entered it. They are very natural and loving together. They were the same way with their two daughters when the entire family was on the stage after Obama's speech. There is an easy way about them.
There were no surprises in his speech, but it was stirring nonetheless.
All the people around us flirted and chatted with my girls. They all told me how well-behaved my daughters are. I love that!! The girls colored and drew and strung beads into necklaces. I sat next to an older man who didn't mind them brushing past his leg 5000 times. He also (with my permission) gave them candy out of his pocket (the individually wrapped Brach's mix you can get at the grocery store - it brought back great memories to me). He teased May and she and he got along great. I asked the girls who he reminded them of and they all said "POP POP!" I told him that he reminded me of my Daddy (my girls' Pop Pop), but he was younger. He said he would take that as a compliment. I told him it was a HIGH compliment. He glowed. He was dear.
ANYWAY -- we had just a fantastic time seeing Michelle and Barack Obama today in Pueblo!!
Yes, we can.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
