Whew!

Lily and I were busy little beavers today! Sure, she technically has strep throat, but she has no fever and has been medicated for 24 hours so she was feeling GOOD. :o) Typically when she stays home sick, we both veg on the couch in front of the boob tube--Lil because she's sick and wants to do nothing and me because I'm lazy. We did NOT follow this routine today. Sure, we had the TV on for about thirty minutes this morning, just long enough for two episodes of "Bipper" and then, Lil was ready to go!

We cleaned, Lily painted and colored, I cleaned, we cooked. In fact, I asked Lily if she wanted to cook and she dashed off to grab her apron, chef's hat and oven mitt. :o)


She wanted to be sure you could read that it says, "Lily" on her apron.


My friend Cate had posted a lovely sugar cookie recipe on her blog a week ago and I knew we had to make those cookies. Unfortunately, we did not have the almond extract the recipe called for so I used lemon extract instead. And, loving citrus (lime and lemon in particular) the way I do, I added the zest of one lemon to the dough.

The dough is quite tender and was also quite tasty if these photos of Lil are anything to judge by. ;o)

Because the dough is so soft and tender, it needs to be refrigerated for 24 hours before you can use it, so Lil and I wrapped it up and it's chillin', ready for us to use tomorrow. I can't wait to make these cookies and decorate them. I'll post all about it when we do. :o)

Lily surprised me today for many reasons. First of all, she took her medicine, ALL of it(!!) without being coaxed, cajoled, bribed, threatened, or forced!! I put the Omnicef in the little cup with her Motrin and she drank them down without even being asked! This evening she did the same, and she took the nasty cough medicine without so much as a peep of protest!! I'm floored.

As if this weren't enough, she stayed dry, ALL DAY LONG!! Sure, she didn't use the potty, not even once (even though she sat on it for what seemed like hours...), but she didn't have any accidents either. I put her in a diaper for nap time and she was wet when I got her so I know she is going to the bathroom. It seems she's figured out how to control her bladder muscles. Cool!

I introduced Lily to finger paints this morning, and well, she doesn't much care for them. I should have realized that little girls that don't enjoy having messy hands whilst eating would not enjoy finger paints...oh, well. Watercolors really do seem to be her forte. :oP

Meanwhile, I spent the morning cleaning once we had finished the cookie dough. I deep cleaned the entire kitchen, including scrubbing the floors. I loaded, ran and emptied the dishwasher, did three loads of laundry (even folded and put it away!), deep cleaned our bathroom; cleaned, straighted, dusted and vacuumed the living room; scrubbed the downstairs bathroom--including the floor; and worked on my stamping stuff in the dining room. Overall, I'm quite pleased with my progress today. :o) Pooped, but pleased. :oP

*****************************************

Today's Sparklies:

1. I listed quite a few up there, and here are two more:


Yes, I'm a proud Mama showing off her baby's work. ;oP

2. A most delightful apple crisp. Oh, did I mention I made an apple crisp today?



3. Jessie, Lissie and I are going to have a joint blog where we post recipes, ideas, shopping local and so much more. It began as Jessie's blog, but she and I got excited talking about having a place to come together as a family. You can read all about that yummy looking apple crisp right here. We're hoping to post to this blog somewhat regularly, so if you are interested, bookmark and come visit. :o)

4. You know, I love the feeling of accomplishment and a job well-done I have from days like today. I just feel good.

5. Pictures of Hannah with her beautiful smooth, golden skin, her BIG blue eyes and her gorgeous straight hair in that sweet bob. Oh, let's not forget that face-lighting smile. :o) Oh how I miss her...

***********************************

Milestones:

I went into Han's room this afternoon. I knew the sun would be shining on the front of the house, thereby warming her room. As I had hoped, it also intensified the smell of her room. I found her trashcan hiding in a corner and dug it out. I found myself digging through it, thinking, "The last person to touch this was Hannah," hoping against hope I would find something, anything that I had not seen before, that she had created something and thrown it away, that somehow, someway, Hannah would have made something "new" for me. Alas, it was filled with tissues and an "Easter Bonnet" from last year that she hadn't been too thrilled with, nothing new, nothing with her handwriting and invented spellings all over it. :sigh:

It's getting easier. Every day is a little easier. I breathe a little freer, the pain is a tiny bit less constricting. As I was vacuuming the stairs, I had another one of those very strange moments of clarity during which I realized this is my life. My life will always be remembering Hannah and making sure no body else forgets her. This is my life now. "Normal" has a whole new meaning, and well, it's beginning to feel "normal" whether I like it or not.


********************************

Dan, I'd be more than happy to send you those scones. I'll be sure to pack them in the box with the Tropical Smoothie. ;oP