When life hands you a booger

sometimes you just need to pick it -

Photo by Jessica Loucks

One more?

This evening, we promised Adeleigh we would go to the toy store a.k.a. Barnes & Noble if she stopped whining. Conveniently, after 3+ hours of whining, she stopped.

After a few minutes of playing with the train set, we heard Christmas carols coming from across the store. Adeleigh dropped Thomas the Train, turned to us, and with wide eyes shrieked, "Follow me!" She ran to the opposite end of the store. When she found a resting spot with a perfect view of the Colorado Youth Chorale, Adeleigh grew the biggest grin. She started singing along and swaying back and forth. Then, the lady sitting next to us gave her some jingle bells to play with while the choir sang. Adeleigh's grin grew wider. After each song, Adeleigh would turn to me and ask, "Mommy, one more?" And I'd reply, "Yes, Adeleigh. They are going to sing another one."
Then the Choir Director announced their last song of the evening. Adeleigh played her bells throughout and when the singing was complete, turned to me.
"Mommy, one more?"
I replied, "You know what, Adeleigh? They are all done singing for the evening. But, wasn't that fun?"
Adeleigh's response, "One more?"
"No, Sweetie. They're all done for now."

She didn't like my answer. So, she decided to take matters into her own hands. I have never seen a 2-year-old jump down from her chair so fast. She walked right up to the front of the choir, stood in front of a group of giggling girls and asked, "One more?"
One of the gals announced, "Okay, we're singing one more song for this little girl! What song would you like?"
Adeleigh rang her bells.
"Jingle Bells it is!"
And the singing resumed, while Adeleigh excitedly rang her bells.

I'm officially in the Holiday spirit.

Thankful for this

In preparation of Thanksgiving, I've been reminded of all I have to be grateful for.

I have a wonderful family, the best (and coolest) friends a girl could ever ask for, and a pretty awesome new pink hair dryer. Though it's small, my family has a roof over our heads. And though many of them are either worn or affordable, we have clothing on our backs. If there's one thing we let ourselves splurge on a little, it's food for our bellies. And while it can get a little stressful and hard to juggle at times, we both have jobs that we love.

We didn't achieve all of the goals we set out to accomplish this year, but we've made quite a bit of progress. We lost a dear loved one, but we know that she's not far away. We've had a few setbacks, a few struggles, a few disappointments. But there is so much to be thankful for.

In thinking of this moment, of all that I have surrounding me, I'm just feeling very grateful for this - for now. For everything that has happened that has led me to this moment - and to this one-

I think of all that I have experienced in my 28 years of life - from childhood to college to marriage to motherhood. So much change, so much discovery, so much heartache, and so much happiness throughout. Each moment of the last 28 years has shaped who I am. Every passing minute shapes who I am becoming. Sometimes I look back to all of those defining moments of my life, to all of those unplanned bumps in the road, and sometimes I wonder how my life would be different if [insert defining moment] hadn't happened, or if I had done it differently. And without fail, I'm brought back to today - to now - to my daughter singing songs while painting the coffee table with her markers - to my husband grinding coffee and talking about how much he loves his slippers - to the dog with a sensitive diet, patiently waiting for someone to drop something yummy onto the floor - to the cat scratching the upholstery off the recliner that my parents loaned us....

And though that last one makes me crazy sometimes, and though it may not be easy or perfect all the time -

I'm thankful for this moment - 

and this one - 

Because it feels pretty close to perfect to me.

Trick-or-----May I please come in?

For Halloween this year, the future mayor of Fort Collins dressed up as a dragon. Trick-or-Treating was her time to mingle, to get to know her neighbors, pet their dogs, play with their watering cans on the deck, throw their basketballs around in the driveway, help herself into their homes, and stare at their scary decorations. And in between each house, she'd pause, inspect her new treat and then run as fast as her little dragon legs could take, while screaming flames of joy at the excitement of it all.

Adeleigh and Ashton

Making friends

Making sure that the goblin decoration doesn't come any closer....

What an adventure.