Strange Weather

It was almost 85 degrees Friday afternoon. It was beautiful and sunny and breezy and just plain ol' wonderful. This morning, it was sleeting and snowing. Seriously. See the snow up there?




Here's a close-up, you know, in case you didn't believe me. ;o)


It is so cold and grey and just yucky today. Mom left around 10:00, Lily is still feeling fairly bad, I don't feel so hot myself, and I miss Hannah something fierce today.

Yesterday, as Lissie and I were making cards, we decided to be goofy and tried to find a disco "station" on Pandora. Quite unexpectedly, "Dancing Queen" began playing. I'm okay with Han reminders when I'm expecting them, when I'm not, they are SO hard.

Yesterday evening, I downloaded Picasa once again. I had had Picasa when I used XP, but when I first got my Vista machine, it was incompatible. After my cousin informed me her photojournalist husband and his friends use it at home, I decided to download again. As Picasa is wont to do, it searched my entire computer for images and you wouldn't believe what turned up. Lil was looking at my computer and kept crying out, "Dere's Hannah!!!! Mommy, a-Hannah again? Peese?"

I began a Hannah movie and Lil loved it. :o) Unfortunately, it caught Mom completely unawares and as is the case with me when something catches me by surprise, it was very shocking. Lily wanted to keep watching the Hannah movies and I couldn't play them. The sound of the Monk's voice was so clear and the laughing joy in it so apparent it was hard to listen to. I wanted to, but didn't want to cause Mom any more distress.

As I was looking at the photos (I can do this again! Yay!!!!!) I was SO grateful I had taken movies and so many photos. Hearing the silly, laughing Monkey's voice again was so wonderful I can't even describe it. I watched her draw on the patio (she had made her Daddy mad about something and drew an apology), dance across the yard, throw a football to her Daddy. Those short little clips really captured the essence of who the Monkey was.

I can say with distance comes some peace. For now, anyway. I'm sure the yo is going to go down again--it always does. However, it stays down for shorter and shorter periods of time. Lily is a godsend. Initially, she was the reason I got out of bed in the morning. She was the reason I got out of the water instead of drowning myself with Hannah. She was the reason I smiled and laughed when I swore I would never smile or laugh again.

In spite of the pain, in spite of the loss, life is still good. Life is still worth living and enjoying. Hannah knew this and I find there are times I need to remind myself of her legacy:
1. Dress up just because it's fun.
2. Sparkly things really are more fun some times.
3. Sing and dance just because you can. Don't worry that you can't. Think of the lyrics to "Sing a Song" and belt one out! You'll feel better, even if only from laughing at yourself. :o)
4. You really can do things better with your toe nails polished.
5. Accessorize. ;oP
6. Go outside and embrace Mother Nature. She has put some AMAZING things out there, just waiting for you to discover them!
7. Where ever you go, put a little spring in your step. You will feel lighter and happier as a result.
8. Smile and laugh. A LOT! The more you smile, the better you feel. The same holds true with laughter.
9. A little drama goes a LONG way. Use sparingly. ;o)
10. LOVE with every fiber of your being. Don't be afraid of being hurt, just throw yourself out there! It will be returned to you ten fold. (Think of how many of you think of a little girl you were never privileged to meet and yet, has touched your hearts).
11. When in doubt, give someone a hug. They can use it, and so can you.
12. Think of others and do things to make them happy. Remember, 'tis better to give than to receive. :o)
13. Keep your eyes open and be aware of the wonder in the world around you. There are so many incredible things we miss, often because we don't pay attention to what is right in front of our noses.

Thank you, Monkey Mine, for reminding me of this.

(If you can think of any other lessons I've missed, please, let me know!)

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Sparklies:

1. Hannah! What a wonderful, amazing, SPECTACULAR little girl she was. Oh how blessed I was to have her with me for almost six years. What wonderful lessons she taught me by example. :o)
2. Oatmeal scones for breakfast two days in a row.
3. Delicious bruschetta for an appetizer last night. Brien found some tasty vine-ripened tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil at the store. I chopped it all, added two cloves of garlic and a shallot and tossed it with evoo and basalmic vinegar. Soooooo good!
4. Lissie's visit! :o)
5. The snap bug I found in the house yesterday. They are so much fun to watch "snap" to turn themselves back over. I also discovered Lil is terrified of bugs during that same exploration. :oP
6. Clean sheets that were aired outside. I just wanted to bury my nose in them. :o)
7. Making cards with Lissie. We are so compatible when we do this. Check out the latest creations in the post below this one. :o)
8. Brien's photos of Lily.
9. Kat (or Troy) posted pictures of Baby Greyson on the blog. Hooray! :o)


Milestones:

I was able to look at photos of Hannah again. There was some pain, but mostly just wistfulness and some sadness. Like I wrote above, I'm SO grateful to have recorded these memories.

Card Cards and More Cards

I made thirty cards this weekend and had a fantastic time doing so. Mom is so much FUN to make cards with. I'm afraid I wasn't as inspired as I have been during past sessions though. Oh, well.

The card up there is a simple thank you note. I actually do like this one quite a bit and am contemplating making a set of five to sell as "thank you" notes.



I obviously really liked the next card since I made it in three different colors. :oP

Bravo Burgundy:

Old Olive:

Chocolate Chip on vanilla paper:

I totally cased these from Stampers' Pad.


I stole this next one from Mom. :oP

The "celebrate" at the bottom was stamped in Versamark and heat embossed using clear embossing powder.


I came up with this next one on my own. The new SU! "Tart and Tangy" set is SO much fun! The paper is pretty fun too. :o)


The next three cards are a variation on a theme.



And, thank you Jen, Fred, Jennifer, the red gingham paper works BEAUTIFULLY!! I made 10 of this set and cut an additional 10 for Mom to make.

I'm contemplating putting together mixed sets of five cards each and selling them. I'm considering $20/set which would cover the cost of the materials and shipping. I'm not positive about this yet as parting with the cards is rather like parting with a baby. I know it sounds silly, but there it is. ;o)

Whew!

After a crazy day of card-making, I've made 30 cards. I also created seven wedding invitation mock-ups (tossed two of them) and hope one of them appeal to Angie. :o) Or, more to the point, that one of the designs is workable and we are able to modify one of the ones I've mocked-up to create something perfect for her.

Lily was a bear all day. Just when I think we're on the mend, we come down with something else. :sigh: So far she's slept soundly and I hope she gets some much needed rest.

Mom leaves early tomorrow and I'm back to the work grind. I've got a quarter to plan, lessons to prepare. In short, the fun is over. :sigh again: I'm hoping to get finished somewhat early tomorrow so I can play for just a little while longer. ;o)

As it is currently 11:20, I'm off to bed. 'Night!

Lily Unenhanced

I need decent, FREE(!) photo editing software. I got some loverly photos of Miss Bit today, but the light was a little flat. :sigh:

Lissie is here for the weekend, so you know what that means--CARDS CARDS CARDS CARDS CARDS!!!! In fact she declared tomorrow "Pajama Day"! Yay!!

To that end, I'm off to make cards. Enjoy the photos of Miss Lil at play in her sand pit. :o)

Guess What I Did!

Using the "No Knead Bread" recipe Jessie posted on Follow Your Bliss, I actually made my very first loaf of homemade bread without a machine! I'm SO proud of myself! :oP

You see, I've always had this fear of yeast and a fear of really messing it up somehow. This recipe seemed pretty foolproof (and I can be a pretty big fool sometimes...), I watched/helped with a loaf at Jessie's, and I did it!


You begin by dissolving a 1/4 teaspoon of yeast in 1 1/2 cups of warm water. To that you add 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 3 cups of flour (I've been using an organic unbleached bread flour). You simply mix it all together until it looks like the mass of dough up there. To quote the recipe, it should be "shaggy and sticky".

Then, you cover it tightly with plastic wrap and let it sit at least 8 hours, but it prefers 12 to 18 hours. So, I let it sit over night. When I was ready to work with it this afternoon, it looked like this:

Woo hoo! I didn't kill the yeast! You'll know it's ready when you see bubbles on the surface. I then lightly dusted a work surface with flour, dusted the top and folded it on itself a couple of times. I covered it with the plastic wrap (leaving it on the work surface) and let it rest for about 15 minutes. Then, I made it into a little ball shape and put it on a dishtowel liberally coated with flour. I dusted the top with flour and got this:

I covered it and let it rise for about 2 hours and then baked it in a Dutch oven. This was the result:



Nothing smells better than fresh baking bread. And, I swear, heaven is a thick slice of freshly baked bread, hot from the oven, slathered in BUTTER. Ummmm.


We really enjoyed the bread this evening and I already have a batch ready to go for Mom's arrival tomorrow. :o)

For full recipe and instructions, click here. :o)

For those of you who may be afraid of yeast, as I was, this is such an easy, hard-to-mess-up recipe. Go for it! You won't be sorry!! :o)

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In other news, Lil definitely has some sort of crud. There's the yucky leaky faucet nose, the fever and bright eyes, the whiny-ness. Poor baby. I envision tomorrow spent on the couch with the boob tube on for company. :o( I'll keep you all posted.

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Quick pic for Paul:

It was even better this time than before! I'll make it for you when you come home! :o)

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Today's Sparklies:

1. It was a windows open day. I LOVE fresh air in the house! :o)
2. Brien's going to get me a retractable clothes line. I just love burying my face in a load of fresh air dried laundry. I won't do it with all the clothes (towels for example just get crunchy), but I can see doing it for sheets (mmmm), t-shirts, etc.
3. I got almost ALL the laundry done (whew!), cleaned the bedroom, Lily's room (put away winter clothes, sorted out too small clothing and put out the spring/summer stuff), the kitchen and living room. I dusted and vacuumed. Whew. Feels pretty good!
4. The delicious bread and chicken tikka masala for dinner. Ahhh.
5. Brien got to work from home this afternoon. Sure, he was working, but I just felt cozy having him in the house with us. :o)
6. Jori, sweet Jori! I forgot to mention your FANTASTIC gift arrived safely and I'm having a heck of a time narrowing down my purchases. ;oP Thank you SOOO much! :o)
7. I got to see Nana tonight--Yay! I haven't seen her since before I left for KS. I'll see Pop tomorrow night and all will be well. :o)


Finally, here's the Dove chocolate fairy bunny I mentioned a while back. He was dug into this evening so I took a photo to preserve his memory. Alas, it's slightly blurry when viewed full size. Oh well. :shrug:



Milestones:

I had to go into Hannah's room this morning to raid her closet for coat hangers to use for Lily's clothes. As I was standing in there, I was amazed at how the nurseries we so carefully prepare for our babies morph into domains that are so reflective of the personalities who inhabit them. I can see Lil's room already beginning to shift into a room that is more "hers" and less "mine".

The Monkey's room SCREAMS "Hannah's Room". From the "decorating" on all the walls and furniture (were she here now, I'd be fussing at her, making her scrub it off with 409 and a Magic Eraser, but, she's not, so I do all I can to lovingly protect these last statements of her creativity and indomitable personality) to the Fancy Hannah dresses in the closet, from the smell (oh, that utterly delicious Hannah smell) to the color of it, the room is HANNAH'S.

As I was in there, I had to remove some dresses from hangers and I found myself talking to the Monk. I told her how beautiful she was when she wore each of the dresses in the closet. I ached a little because there were two we had put away to be worn once school started and she had no opportunity to wear them. :o( (Don't put off wearing those "special" things for a "special occasion", just DO it! Today is a special enough reason to wear them!) I gently placed the dresses I removed on her bed and walked out.

Then, I realized I had such a sense of detachment, as if Han were some little girl I once knew, but that's all. Oh, how sad, this little girl is gone. That was it. I had a pang that I felt that way. That "little girl" is my own sweet Monkey, my first born angel whom I would give anything, do anything for. How could I be so immune? Looking back on it, I'm sure it was self-preservation. To be honest, I have many of those moments and when I'm in the middle of them, I KNOW they are weird and yet, I can't step back from them.

I guess I should once again be glad I'm not on a down yo, that I should be happy to be if not content, then not unhappy. Does that make sense?

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The laundry is calling. I like to let it live in the laundry basket, but it's insisting it needs to be put away. So, I'm off to do so. :sigh: :oP

A Long List of Sparklies :o)

1. These two little darlin's! Look at them! :o)




They had been getting into mischief upstairs as I was trying to pack so Jessie put them at the island with pots of flour and measuring cups and wooden spoons. I've done the same with Lil before and it works well with pasta or rice.

2. While I was gone, my Belle and Boo prints arrived! Yay! Now to have them framed...



3. Lily and I went shopping for "princess dresses" today. I found these for 50% of at the Carter's Outlet and then had a coupon for an additional 20% of my entire purchase. Woo hoo!!







4. The most amazing package arrived from Jen of "Jen, Fred, Jennifer" fame. ;o)

Not only were ALL these papers included, she also sent smaller packs of paper and such. Holy smokes! Thanks, Jen, my mind is already buzzing with ideas!


5. My seed from Baker Creek arrived. :o)



Lily and I will be purchasing the materials with which to start the seeds tomorrow. She is SO wiped out from the trip yesterday that she was begging to come home this afternoon. :o(


6. My renewed faith in humanity. I mentioned Bonnie and Jim who saved my bacon on the way to KC, now, let me tell you about Sue and Dan and Ben.

When we arrived in Chicago yesterday afternoon, we landed at gate B19. I quickly checked the departure board knowing we only had 10 minutes before our next flight was to board, saw our flight was departing from B4 (thank you thank you thank you--we were on the same concourse!!) and began practically running through Ohare. I would quickly glance at every departure board to ascertain I was correct and each time it said we were departing at 1:10 from B4. I finally arrived at B4 winded and sweaty with Lily clinging to my back for dear life, crying and complaining bitterly of the indignity of it all, only to find our flight was delayed!! I could have stopped to grab Lil and me a bite to eat but hadn't because I thought there was no time. Oh, well. I sat down next to a lovely couple--she had the most sparkly silver glitter nail polish!!--and began to chat while Lily went to the windows to peer at all the commotion on the ground.

Sue was lovely to chat with and soon, Dan disappeared. When he returned, Sue tapped me on the shoulder and offered my two cheeseburgers. They had purchased one for me and one for Lil, knowing there we NO way I would be able to haul Lily, all our stuff and myself off to grab some food. I almost wept I was so overcome with gratitude.

Then, we arrived in Richmond and my handy dandy luggage wheely thingy was NOT awaiting me at the door of the plane as it should have been!! I had used this item to wheel the car seat and two bags whilst carrying Lily on my back and my purse on my shoulder and now it was missing. :eye pop: It seems it was stowed with the rest of the checked baggage(!!) and I was now going to have to lug EVERYTHING from the gate (the furthest in the terminal!) to baggage claim.

I'm panting, lugging a screaming Lil (she had only finally fallen asleep on our final approach to the airport, poor baby) and all our belongings towards the carousel when I hear this voice behind me, "May I carry something for you Ma'am?" I am NOT too proud to accept help when it is offered, so I turned around and found the most adorable young man behind me. He was quite serious and sweet, maybe 19 or 20 years old. He had blonde hair, a blonde goatee, deep brown eyes and glasses. So serious. So kind. I took him up on his offer and handed him the car seat and backpack, hanging on to the other two items and Lil.

As he's carrying these things for me (as well as his own belongings) he says, "I'm not in a hurry, ma'am, would you like me to help you to your car?" Now, I suppose he could have been a rapist, but I was desperate. I gratefully accepted his offer and we chatted while waiting for my luggage to appear (Mom, thank you so much for the Mork and Mindy rainbow luggage strap--I can see my bag coming from a mile away! :oP). It turns out he had been in Minnesota for his grandmother's funeral and we driving home to VA Beach that evening. I also discovered his father is an AF chaplain stationed in Turkey.

As he walked me to my car, our conversation turned towards his Christian faith and I told him how wonderful it was to find a person who not only claimed to be a Christian, but who lived a Christ-like existence. Ben was so sweet and polite, "yes ma'am"ing and "no ma'am"ing me throughout our conversation and trip to my car. The sweet man was even going to install the car seat for me--I think he was rather relieved to discover I had one already installed in the van. I gave him a quick hug and thanked him, then drove off as he stood making sure I made it out safely.

Ahhh, there are still kind, good, generous, goodhearted people in this world. Thank you, God!

We're Home

A few quick notes:

• Happy anniversary Jessie and Bob!
  
• Lily's ears weren't bothering her today--thank goodness.
• I hauled taters from gate B19 to gate B4, with only 10 minutes between gates because of boarding times and when I arrived at B4 I discovered my flight had been delayed an hour.
• Lily was MUCH happier flying today.
• Jessie's children have rotavirus so I'm fairly positive we're next. :sigh:
• Lily wanted avocado instead of McD's french fries for supper. I've raised her right, but boy was I tired to be stopping at the grocery store this evening.
• I had a marvelous time in KS and am so sad I'm no longer with Jessie and her family--rotavirus notwithstanding.
• I'm OVERJOYED to be home with my husband!! Oh how I missed him!
• I need to let everyone know why my faith in humanity has been restored. Stories to come tomorrow. Suffice it to say God looks out for fools and mothers traveling alone (who most likely belong in the former category...;oP)

And on those notes I'm off to decompress and be with my honey. Sparklies will return tomorrow. The biggest of today is being home and in one piece. :o)

I'm Leavin' On a Jetplane

Don't know when I'll be back again...

I hate leaving, I really do. I can NOT believe my time here is already over! Where did it go??? Ella and Lily have actually been SO much better than I anticipated, loving each other dearly. Sure, there have been fights--what two year-old really wants to share?--but on the whole, the desperately await the other's awakening in the morning or from naps and they follow each other around. They converse (you should listen in sometime :o)) and play and I'm so sorry we have to leave.

I've had a wonderful time as well. Jessie and I have grown so much closer as adults. We fought incessantly as children, and really, didn't much care for each other. The same can not be said now. I have to say it's quite lovely to have a sister! :o)

Lily is a little anxious at the thought of a return trip on the "bearpane". I have been talking it up today, saying we're going to see Daddy tomorrow night and that she will be at home with her own things, in her own bed, but the only way to get there is on the airplane. She looks at me, quite seriously and says, "But I'll be a little scared, Mommy. Okay?" Poor sweet angel. :o( Please say a little prayer for Miss Lily tomorrow as she is once again forced on that "bearpane".

I confess, I'm not only sad to be leaving, but already exhausted at the thought of all I'll be lugging through airports tomorrow. I'll once again have Lil's seat (since she HAS to ride in it. TRUST me on this one...) and three bags. Oh, and a Lily. Once again, thank goodness for the mei tai. We leave KC at 10:59 local time and will arrive in Chicago around 12:30. I hate flying into both Chicago and Atlanta as we always seem to be delayed at either airport. ALWAYS! Keep your fingers crossed for us...

We'll land back in Richmond around 4:00 EDT and from there I'm hoping to stop in and meet baby Greyson. I spoke with Kat at length today and she's doing well. She is suffering from all the new mommy ailments--lack of sleep, night sweats, hormonal fluctuations, fear of inadequacy--you know, the usuals. I can't think of a mommy alive that doesn't have fears of inadequacy even after years of parenting. Mommyhood, without a doubt, is the HARDEST job I will ever have. EVER. I am continually second guessing myself and viewing all situations with 20/20 hindsight. I always look to see what I could have done differently and/or better, or how I could have changed an outcome. I truly believe it's just human nature.

For now, I long for the days when I could get up in the morning, load our belongings and the girls in my van and head down the road towards home. Jessie's house sure isn't as convenient as it once was...;o)

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Gabriel and I flirted shamelessly with each other today. He is quite the charmer. :o)
2. Ella and Lily are SO much fun to watch. They made up a "going away" game today. Lily said, "Bye bye, Mommy. I love you" to which I replied, "I love you too. Have a safe trip." She and Ella would then take off with their Easter baskets and walk a circle around the house and come back and say, "I'm home, Mommy!!" :o)
3. Lil had to have her "princess dress" and sparkly shoes for dress-up today. :o)
4. Jessie made the easiest delicious homemade bread today! She posted the recipe on our blog a while back and I'll be trying it as soon as I get home! :o)


Milestones:

None that I can think of today.

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With that, I've got loads of packing to do. Have a happy Tuesday, everyone! :o)

Happy Easter, Everyone!

My own little Easter Bunny. :o)

I couldn't sleep last night, my mind was whirring and whirring. I finally fell into a fitful slumber around 2:00 or so and when Lil was ready to get up at 6:30 I was none too pleased.

I was supposed to make hot fudge pies to bring with us to Jen and Sean's and it fell through. You see, although Jessie has a pantry full of flour, there was only about 1/2 cup of All Purpose flour while the rest was bread flour, whole wheat flour, or self-rising flour, none of which would make a decent pie crust. :oP

Therefore, once I got up this morning, the rush was on to make a batch of preacher cookies (YUM!), make deviled eggs, get Lily and myself dressed and coiffed and ready to go by 9:45. We also had fit doing Easter baskets in there.



Lily and her Easter basket. Jessie very generously took on putting together the baskets. She purchased not only the basket, but all sorts of fun goodies to put in them, including "lips", nail polish, fun dolls and gnomes from an on-line friend's Etsy store, and much more. Lily LOVED it all and Ella was a hoot! You should have seen her lobbying to eat as much candy as possible. :oP Meanwhile, my own little candy junkie couldn't be bothered to eat any of it today. She enjoyed unwrapping it, and then gave it to me to eat. Blah. I'm on a sugar glut.

I fondly remember the Easter bunny hiding our baskets and leaving treasure hunts for us. Easter was the one day a year we were allowed to eat candy from sun-up to sun-down, healthful food be damned. ;o) Okay, we had to eat some foods with nutrients, but we were also allowed to gorge ourselves on the items the EB brought.



As I was rushing through the making of the deviled eggs, I happened to slice into this one. I've run into double yolks once or twice in my life and I find it stunning each time it occurs. This is the first hard boiled double yolk I've seen.


Miss Lily with her bear, "binky" (her new name for the item formerly known as "fuffy" and then "banket"), basket and purse. :o)


It looks as if she's on her way to Grandmother's house. We were in fact on our way to Sean and Jen's for a FUN Easter party! There were so many folks there, mostly Jen and Sean's family. I saw Bonnie and Doug whom I had already met Friday night. I also met Jen's parents, Sean's stepmom and dad, his stepmom's sister and her husband, an uncle, and assorted others. It was so delightful to be with family and friends today.


Jen's mom put these cute little guys together as place markers. :o)


Ryan was showing Lily how to make something or other work.



Lily brought the bunny ears over and of course, insisted I put them on. I'm such a ham.



Ella's beautiful sparkly princess shoes. Lily has a pair as well. They both feel so beautiful when they wear them--you can tell by the way they prance and bounce. :o)


We didn't dye eggs last night. We knew neither little girl was particularly interested and, quite frankly, we ran out of time. Jen, however, had plenty of time. Her eggs are not only colorful, they're sparkly as well! :o)


Lily managed to find and destroy a shelf full of books. :eye roll: I can't tell you how many times I cleaned that same box of books up...


Gabe-man, true to form, snoozed the afternoon away snuggled up to mama in his Hotsling.


Ryan, Lily and Ella had the best seats in the house! Dinner was divine. I LOVE potluck meals--everyone brings their favorite dishes and a wide variety of goodies are available. Yum!



Lily is still SO exhausted. She can't seem to catch up on her sleep. The excitement of visiting with her cousin(s) combined with the fantastic activities we've had have kept her wired. You can see here just how pooped she is.


After lunch, the kiddos went downstairs for an Easter egg hunt. The Easter Bunny had been busy, there were eggs EVERYWHERE! The kids had a fantastic time running around finding the eggs. Lil plopped her basket down on the ground and carried eggs by the armfuls to the basket. She was so cute to watch. All the parents were closely monitoring, afraid their child would be the greedy-Gus and take all the eggs. I suppose we need to learn to just step-back. The kids had it all figured out and fairly evenly distributed the loot.


We brought the kiddos back upstairs where they promptly dug into their eggs and other booty. Gift buckets and bags were given to each child. The generosity of these folks overwhelms me. Lily received stickers, bubbles, candy, clothing. It was incredible and I'm so touched. Nobody really knew either Lily or me and yet, they were ready to treat us just like the other guests. :o) Thank you all!


Ella was very intent on the candy!


Can you believe this is one of the only photos I have of both girls in their Easter dresses? Me, with my schwanky new camera and I took maybe two or three photos of the girls next to each other wearing their dresses. :sigh:


I LOVED Ryan's face in this photo! He is concentrating SO hard on peeling and sticking those stickers. Check out his shirt! ;oP

By this point, Lil was done for. She actually came to me and asked quietly, "A ride a car home, Mommy?" At that point, I knew just how wiped-out she was. She managed to stay awake all the way home and took a decent nap. I put her to bed earlier tonight, but still not quite early enough. We'll see how she sleeps tonight and how early she's up tomorrow morning.

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I can't BELIEVE tomorrow is my last full day here. Boo hoo hoo. :o( I've had SUCH a wonderful time visiting everyone and playing with Jessie. :sigh:

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Easter. Christ is risen!
2. The girls were absolutely DARLING today!
3. Ryan and Josie weren't too shabby either. :oP
4. A fun-filled Easter party. Thank you, Jen!!
5. Nobody seemed uncomfortable when I talked about Hannah today. That was really really nice. I didn't have to worry about any awkwardness, there just wasn't any.
6. There were actually snow flurries today! Holy cow!
7. It was a "whatever" night for dinner. That's the Monkey's name for those fend-for-yourself nights when you can have "whatever" you want for supper. ;o)


Today's Milestones:

I made it through yet another holiday. I've done it. There was no dancing, twirling Monkey today. No Han racing around in desperate search of eggs. In spite of that, I smiled, I breathed, I LIVED. We really did have a lovely day. I think it helped immensely I was here, doing something different than we've ever done before.

And, as my friend, Betsy wrote on her blog about her husband, Jim, Hannah is like the wind. She is always there surrounding me, always with me. Thank you, Betsy, for saying that. It was perfect.

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Now, as I too am pooped, I'm off to bed. :o)