It's hard to believe it's been five years since Clara came into our lives! But on September 4, 2006, in a room in the civil affairs building in Guangzhou, China we were handed Xin Xiao Huan for the first time. She was already Clara Ruth Huan Pierce in our hearts, she'd been born in our hearts a long time. In fact, we actually decided to adopt about the time Clara was conceived. So, we had prayed for that sweet girl since her first moments of existence.
On "Gotcha Day" (as we call it....because that's the day we "gotcha") one of the officials from the orphanage handed Clara to me. She was a big, chunky, football player of a baby girl! And we fell head over heels in love!!! We were watching videos from Gotcha Day and our trip to China the other day. I had kind of forgotten just how chubby our girl was. She was so serious, sticking her jaw out and furrowing her brow, taking it all in. When she cried for the first time, it was a deep, throaty cry. And she did the sweetest thing...she would pat her face really gently to comfort herself. Oh, it was so sweet and feminine. One of my favorite pictures is of Clara asleep in my arms on the bus in China with her little hand to her face. My other favorite is our first picture of Harrison and Clara together. Oh my goodness, he was so crazy about her! It's about the happiest face I've ever seen in my life.
It only took a few days and Clara opened up and we saw her real personality. She was silly and funny, sweet and affectionate, content and adaptable. And she's pretty much the same way today. She is our creative one. On a pretty regular basis Harrison finds something Clara has done and asks me "WHY would she do that?" My answer is always "she's creative." She will literally walk into a wall because she is off in Clara's world somewhere. She draws and colors all the time. Lately, she will draw all the shapes and inside them she writes the letter that they start with. She can count by 5's and 10's to 100. And she can count to 30 by 2's. The other day she told us she was going to count by 1's.....1...3...5...7... You get the gist! She cracks me up! You never quite know what you're going to find in her bed, or under her bed, or behind her bed. The other night she crashed into something because she had her panties on her head. And a few days before that Harrison found her stuck between the head board and the wall...she was trying to reach a sock she had dropped so she figured if she put her legs down there she could pick it up with her toes. I do have to give it to her, she is a pretty good problem solver most of the time. She comes up with solutions from a whole other direction than the rest of us. I love it!
Ahhhh, five years! I cannot imagine our life without Clara! What a blessing she is and we thank God for her everyday. I still love to think back to the day we landed in Oklahoma City coming home from China. About 40 friends were gathered at the airport to greet us and meet Clara. It is one of my all-time favorite days! And I have to admit, everytime we get off the plane in Oklahoma City now it is pretty much a letdown after that wonderful homecoming!!!
(If you've not seen our story...please feel free to look at http://www.journeytoclara.com/)
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Hello Fifteen! Hello High School!
It's just been a weird month around our house! First the baby turned 6. Then, I took one to kindergarten and the other to high school. Then the big one turned 15. Not quite sure how that happened! But there's no denying it. He's 5'10", hairy legs, owns his own razor (for his face, not his legs).....and his birthday cake with 15 candles qualified as a fire hazard. It's just not right how fast time goes by!!!
Harrison was ready for high school. He was done with middle school and ready for a new adventure. So, off he goes as a freshman whether I'm ready or not. And so far, so good. Our high school has done a great job of helping the freshmen (and their parents....cuz it's really all about me, right?) transition into high school. Harrison started running with the cross country team a couple of weeks before school started. And I just have to say....I'd never make it! It has been over 100 degrees just about every day for the past two months. But he is out there running in the heat of the day everyday. No wonder he's so skinny! The day before his birthday H ran in his first official high school cross country meet. It was so hot, no wind, and Clara truly thought she was going to melt. But he did great and came home with his first medal from high school. So fun to watch him work hard and do well. And this group of boys on the cross country team are such great kids, so encouraging and positive! The first night of practice the coach prayed with the boys before practice....forever earning him a soft spot in my heart.
On Harrison's birthday we were heathens and skipped church and took our boy and his buddy Colton to Eskimo Joe's in Stillwater. Clara had announced several weeks earlier that Judy (her treasured bitty baby) also has August 28th as her birthday. Harrison was NOT amused to share his birthday with Judy. On the way to Stillwater Clara told us that Judy was turning 10 months old this birthday. Harrison was quick to explain that it wasn't her birthday if she was just 10 months old. He quieted down when we reminded him of his imaginary brothers he had when he was little. They were twins, Jack and Jackie, and they were 2 and 3 years old. Yes....he said they were twins. He also had an imaginary sister, Katie, who was either 9 or 16, depending on whether she needed to drive herself somewhere. Harrison did not find it amusing at all when Judy got a high chair at Eskimo Joe's to eat lunch with us. I think Colton found it pretty amusing though! : )
After some shoe and jeans shopping that afternoon we celebrated Harrison's birthday at our flock (small group from church) meeting. We had borrowed our friend Mike & Trudy's car to go to Stillwater. And Mike had not so subtely put a bunch of notes about OU #1 (or some other nonsense) on the car. Well, Harrison had a little fun filling the car with orange notes about OSU and Orange Power before we returned the car to Mike that night. Hee! Hee! We crack ourselves up!!!
Fifteen years has flown by and I sure enjoy being this kid's mom!!! It's fun watching and seeing the young man he's becoming. And I'm curious to see what God has in store for him in the future! Happy Birthday Buddy!!!
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Hello Six! Hello Kindergarten!
My baby is six! Seriously, how did that happen??? On August 30, it will be five years since we got on a plane to go to China to bring Clara home. A couple of weeks ago we celebrated her sixth birthday. Last week she started kindergarten. And look at her, she looks so big and grown up!
For Clara's birthday she got to pick what she wanted to eat. She chose Freddy's. She always chooses Freddy's. So, off we went with Papa Ken, Nini, Kendra and Kelsey to Freddy's. Who wouldn't love a greasy hamburger (or hot dog in Clara's case) and some skinny fries with ranch dressing? No one here was complaining! Unfortunately, Buddy had his first ever high school cross country practice during dinner, so he missed out. But we waited for him to come home to have cake with our friends the Merideths and the Surrittes. Clara was so happy to get an Ivy doll and some new clothes for Judy for her birthday. Papa and Nini and the girls gave her lots of art projects. And my "bestie" Christine and the Merideth clan gave her a microphone. Yes, people, I said my "bestie" gave my child a microphone. I might add that last Christmas they gave her a darling book that they recorded the story in...love that...but it has no volume control. Harrison woke up on Christmas morning saying "do you know what I woke up to...the sound of Christine's voice!" A couple years ago I believe it was an "educational toy" that TALKED....LOUDLY! They think I'm old and I won't remember....but I remember.
For Clara's friend party we planned a swim party. Now, it has been over 100 degrees here for something like 45 days. We haven't had rain in a coon's age (whatever that is). But the morning of the party date...it stormed. And it rained and stormed and was cloudy all day. So, I moved the party to our house. Where of course, the sun promptly came out and the skies were blue. Clara is pretty easy going, she was tickled to have the party here and when I told her I'd decorate some tables and put games on them, she told me, "Or....I could sing!" Did I mention she got a microphone for her birthday? Anyway, I digress! So all her buddies came here, we ate cake, opened presents, played Hungry Hungry Hippo (which her brother gave her for her birthday...and I might mention is also quite loud!), and turned 'em loose outside to run, blow bubbles and play. I have to admit, it was fun! I love a yard full of kids! There is just nothing like it. There were the flower pickers, who blew bubbles and giggled. And there were the tag players, who chased, tagged, and giggled. And at the end of the evening, there was one very, very happy six year old.
Then, before we knew it, kindergarten started. Clara was so excited to get Mrs. Hawkins as her teacher since Harrison also had her. And it was a bonus to have her buddy Jack and a few other friends in her class. She told me she was excited to get to make new friends in kindergarten. She was just as happy as could be to start school. No fears, no tears. She is such an adaptable kid! She never ceases to amaze me. I'm one of the few people who is glad we still have half-day kindergarten at our school. I'm afraid first grade is going to come way too soon. But like I tell Clara, we are going to enjoy six every day that you are six until you turn seven. And we will!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Farewell Five!
It's my last night parenting a five year old. It's a little sad! I know this time will definitely be the last time, no surprises in five years like last time. I have to admit, I love five! It's a fun, fun age! And Clara is a fun, fun kid! She makes me smile, shake my head, and laugh out loud every day. She has to be one of the funniest girls in the world. And one of the sweetest and snuggliest girls too.
Turning six means there's no more time to decide if she'll go to school this year or not. It's official, she starts kindergarten in 11 days. I'm so glad we are one of the few schools who doesn't have all day kindergarten this year. I was NOT geared up for that just yet. We were setting family goals a couple weeks ago. A couple of Clara's goals for the year are to learn how to read and to ride a bike without training wheels. Today she was sitting with me reading her Bob books to me while wiggling her front two top teeth. So, she's going to do it! She's just going to keep growing up! Dang it! I have talked and bargained with her for weeks trying to get her to stay five. I was even game to go backwards and let her be four. But not really ready to give up my baby to six just yet. (I won't even talk about the hairy-legged man child in the other room.....my other baby....that is for another day.) A few months ago she would tell me "I'm trying to stay little for you Mommy." But as her birthday draws near, she is all about being six! She was one squirrely girl before bedtime. Spinning, twirling, giggling....okay, she ended up with her underwear on her head. Really!
I can't think about Clara's birthday without thanking God for our sweet little blessing. He took us all the way around the world to bring us together. And we are thankful everyday. And I am so thankful to a woman in China, who I do not know, who shared a huge piece of her heart with me. I pray right now for her, that she will know deep in her heart how much her baby girl is loved. And even more than that, I pray that she will know the Lord and He will be her savior. And in Him, she will find a peace that passes all understanding.
Farewell Sweet Five! It's been an amazing, fun, blessed year! I can't wait to see what God has in store this next year!!!
Turning six means there's no more time to decide if she'll go to school this year or not. It's official, she starts kindergarten in 11 days. I'm so glad we are one of the few schools who doesn't have all day kindergarten this year. I was NOT geared up for that just yet. We were setting family goals a couple weeks ago. A couple of Clara's goals for the year are to learn how to read and to ride a bike without training wheels. Today she was sitting with me reading her Bob books to me while wiggling her front two top teeth. So, she's going to do it! She's just going to keep growing up! Dang it! I have talked and bargained with her for weeks trying to get her to stay five. I was even game to go backwards and let her be four. But not really ready to give up my baby to six just yet. (I won't even talk about the hairy-legged man child in the other room.....my other baby....that is for another day.) A few months ago she would tell me "I'm trying to stay little for you Mommy." But as her birthday draws near, she is all about being six! She was one squirrely girl before bedtime. Spinning, twirling, giggling....okay, she ended up with her underwear on her head. Really!
I can't think about Clara's birthday without thanking God for our sweet little blessing. He took us all the way around the world to bring us together. And we are thankful everyday. And I am so thankful to a woman in China, who I do not know, who shared a huge piece of her heart with me. I pray right now for her, that she will know deep in her heart how much her baby girl is loved. And even more than that, I pray that she will know the Lord and He will be her savior. And in Him, she will find a peace that passes all understanding.
Farewell Sweet Five! It's been an amazing, fun, blessed year! I can't wait to see what God has in store this next year!!!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Road Trip Summer 2011
Well....I never got to the rest of June. And apparently July has vaporized in the heat. So, here it is, August and I'm way behind on blogging. But I'll just have to write things as I remember them over the next few weeks. Of course, the way my memory is these days that may mean a whole lot of nothing!
So in July we took a road trip. We spent eight days driving to see family and friends in Indiana and Ohio. We thought it would be fun to drive as far as possible during the hottest summer on record in many years. And I'm happy to say, we all came home alive. It was close a couple of times, but no one was harmed in the making of this vacation. The first day we drove to St. Louis and spent the night. It was equally hot in St. Louis, but we had a great room at the Westin, right across from the Cardinals stadium. We ate some yummy fish for dinner and enjoyed the Heavenly Beds at the Westin. Joe was the deal finder and managed to get us a great room at a cheap price, he just kept asking what he might get credit for (like being old, working for the school district, etc.). We got up the next day and went to check out the Arch before we got on the road again. We all rode up to the top of the Arch and enjoyed the view. I remember doing this with my parents as a kid, so it was kind of fun to take my own kids. The last time we stopped there Harrison would have no part of going up in the Arch. But it was pretty cool, even though the ride up is a bit claustrophobic. And to prove that I know someone everywhere we go, we ran into the Harberts at the Arch. That was a nice surprise!
Next stop....Indiana. We drove to New Castle, unloaded our bags and went directly to Top Hat Pizza (without passing go). I admit, I'm not a pizza snob, I like it, I'll eat it most anywhere. But Top Hat Pizza....it is truly the best pizza ever! We did refrain from eating there all 5 days we were in Indiana. Which shows that we do have some small amount of self control. Very small...very, very small!
We had the best time staying with Joe's cousins Lisa and John. They have a beautiful home that has cornfields all around it. Clara loves to stay in the frilly girlie room. She announced "I love this room" over and over. And we had fun staying up talking and laughing each night. It was great to spend time with Joe's dad and visit with lots of other family too. It's fun to see the newest generation of Dicken kiddos and I loved getting my baby fix with sweet Alaina. We also made a run up to Muncie to check out Ball State. And as you can imagine, that set off a whole new set of "ball" jokes and puns. Why do men become 12 years old anytime there is anything with the word "ball" in it???
While we were there, we made a day trip over to Cincinatti to see two of our Xinhui girls! We met up with the Dakters and Morans and let Clara, Maia and Anna have the whole day to play together. There were lots of "ahhhhh" moments watching our girls reconnect. As soon as Anna saw Clara she just ran up to her and hugged and kissed her. Then Maia arrived and both Clara and Anna were so thrilled to see her. They all donned their matching shirts that Maia brought and away they went. There was giggling, hugging, running, more giggling and lots of fun. It is amazing how these little girls, who slept next to each other in cribs in China, are so connected even though we don't get to see each other very often. They always just pick up where they left off and have so much fun together. I have these pictures in my mind, with the little girls all holding hands and running through the museum. We were all wishing our 4th Xinhui girl, Alyse, could have been there with us! We missed her so much!
So....my top five things from our Indiana road trip were...(I don't include the Xinhui girls visit....it's in a top 5 all its own!).
#5 - Family Fun with Dicken clan. I always love fun times with the Dicken clan (Joe's mom's side of the family). They truly are some of my favorite people! We laughed, enjoyed Top Hat pizza, laughed some more, held sweet babies, enjoyed the little kids laughter, ate some yummy peanut butter pie, and watched the Dicken boys, who were little when I joined this family, all grown up now. I loved that when we walked to our car that night Harrison said "so....we have a pretty cool family."
#4 - Late night visits with Lisa and John. Oh okay....and a glass of wine....or maybe Sangria....or whatever! It's not my fault that Lisa was trying out new Sangria recipes while we were there in preparation for Lindsey's wedding reception. I'm just helpful that way. Lisa is the source for family history and has lots of fun stories. And John....well, he's naughty. And I'm trying to deprogram my kids. But, he is hilarious!
#3 - Garage sale Alf and jewelry run. Joe's dad is a collector. We are not. He loves to find great things and collect them. And he remembers if you like something. So....he took us over to a garage sale because they had a talking "Alf" doll and my son is obsessed with Alf. (No joke, he often says "well, I learned that from Alf". Which is not always a great thing.) This same sale had some classic costume jewelry from the 50's and 60's. So Clara got a tub full of clip on earrings, necklaces and bracelets. Oh, it brought back memories of me dressing up in my mom's jewelry.
#2 - Toy boat, toy boat, toy boat. I'm not sure why or how it happened. But Harrison got started on trying to say toy boat 5 times fast with his grandpa. And Joe's dad got laughing until he cried! They went on and on and on and I have to admit, it was hilarious. It was great to see Joe's dad laughing hysterically! Makes me smile just thinking about it.
#1 - Top Hat Pizza. I bet nobody saw that one coming! There are no words to describe it....just YUM!!!
So in July we took a road trip. We spent eight days driving to see family and friends in Indiana and Ohio. We thought it would be fun to drive as far as possible during the hottest summer on record in many years. And I'm happy to say, we all came home alive. It was close a couple of times, but no one was harmed in the making of this vacation. The first day we drove to St. Louis and spent the night. It was equally hot in St. Louis, but we had a great room at the Westin, right across from the Cardinals stadium. We ate some yummy fish for dinner and enjoyed the Heavenly Beds at the Westin. Joe was the deal finder and managed to get us a great room at a cheap price, he just kept asking what he might get credit for (like being old, working for the school district, etc.). We got up the next day and went to check out the Arch before we got on the road again. We all rode up to the top of the Arch and enjoyed the view. I remember doing this with my parents as a kid, so it was kind of fun to take my own kids. The last time we stopped there Harrison would have no part of going up in the Arch. But it was pretty cool, even though the ride up is a bit claustrophobic. And to prove that I know someone everywhere we go, we ran into the Harberts at the Arch. That was a nice surprise!
Next stop....Indiana. We drove to New Castle, unloaded our bags and went directly to Top Hat Pizza (without passing go). I admit, I'm not a pizza snob, I like it, I'll eat it most anywhere. But Top Hat Pizza....it is truly the best pizza ever! We did refrain from eating there all 5 days we were in Indiana. Which shows that we do have some small amount of self control. Very small...very, very small!
We had the best time staying with Joe's cousins Lisa and John. They have a beautiful home that has cornfields all around it. Clara loves to stay in the frilly girlie room. She announced "I love this room" over and over. And we had fun staying up talking and laughing each night. It was great to spend time with Joe's dad and visit with lots of other family too. It's fun to see the newest generation of Dicken kiddos and I loved getting my baby fix with sweet Alaina. We also made a run up to Muncie to check out Ball State. And as you can imagine, that set off a whole new set of "ball" jokes and puns. Why do men become 12 years old anytime there is anything with the word "ball" in it???
While we were there, we made a day trip over to Cincinatti to see two of our Xinhui girls! We met up with the Dakters and Morans and let Clara, Maia and Anna have the whole day to play together. There were lots of "ahhhhh" moments watching our girls reconnect. As soon as Anna saw Clara she just ran up to her and hugged and kissed her. Then Maia arrived and both Clara and Anna were so thrilled to see her. They all donned their matching shirts that Maia brought and away they went. There was giggling, hugging, running, more giggling and lots of fun. It is amazing how these little girls, who slept next to each other in cribs in China, are so connected even though we don't get to see each other very often. They always just pick up where they left off and have so much fun together. I have these pictures in my mind, with the little girls all holding hands and running through the museum. We were all wishing our 4th Xinhui girl, Alyse, could have been there with us! We missed her so much!
So....my top five things from our Indiana road trip were...(I don't include the Xinhui girls visit....it's in a top 5 all its own!).
#5 - Family Fun with Dicken clan. I always love fun times with the Dicken clan (Joe's mom's side of the family). They truly are some of my favorite people! We laughed, enjoyed Top Hat pizza, laughed some more, held sweet babies, enjoyed the little kids laughter, ate some yummy peanut butter pie, and watched the Dicken boys, who were little when I joined this family, all grown up now. I loved that when we walked to our car that night Harrison said "so....we have a pretty cool family."
#4 - Late night visits with Lisa and John. Oh okay....and a glass of wine....or maybe Sangria....or whatever! It's not my fault that Lisa was trying out new Sangria recipes while we were there in preparation for Lindsey's wedding reception. I'm just helpful that way. Lisa is the source for family history and has lots of fun stories. And John....well, he's naughty. And I'm trying to deprogram my kids. But, he is hilarious!
#3 - Garage sale Alf and jewelry run. Joe's dad is a collector. We are not. He loves to find great things and collect them. And he remembers if you like something. So....he took us over to a garage sale because they had a talking "Alf" doll and my son is obsessed with Alf. (No joke, he often says "well, I learned that from Alf". Which is not always a great thing.) This same sale had some classic costume jewelry from the 50's and 60's. So Clara got a tub full of clip on earrings, necklaces and bracelets. Oh, it brought back memories of me dressing up in my mom's jewelry.
#2 - Toy boat, toy boat, toy boat. I'm not sure why or how it happened. But Harrison got started on trying to say toy boat 5 times fast with his grandpa. And Joe's dad got laughing until he cried! They went on and on and on and I have to admit, it was hilarious. It was great to see Joe's dad laughing hysterically! Makes me smile just thinking about it.
#1 - Top Hat Pizza. I bet nobody saw that one coming! There are no words to describe it....just YUM!!!
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Classic Conversations
Living with a 14 year old and a 5 year old brings some classic conversations. Somedays I just have to laugh out loud at the absurdity of some conversations and statements. I remember when we wished our kids would talk. We have moved past that dream. And I'll admit that more than once over the years we offered to pay Harrison to be quiet in the car, Which I might add, he never collected a dime because he just couldn't be quiet. He literally would just burst out a big old squeak because he just couldn't keep it all inside. Now...his sister is following suit. The other day I took the kids to Kingfisher (where I lived all through grade school). At one point I think Clara had talked non-stop for a good two hours without taking a breath. So I asked her if she could possibly be quiet for a little bit. Here is the classic conversation that followed with her brother.
H - "Yeah, Sister, you haven't stopped talking in forever."
C - "Oh yeah! Well, you're talking like a duck."
H - "I'm not talking like a duck. I didn't say quack. Could you just be quiet?"
C - "I love geese."
H - "What? That doesn't even make sense."
C - "Exactly!"
HUH? "Exactly" is Clara's favorite new quip. Once in a blue moon she uses it appropriately (and totally by coincidence).
Another day in the car Clara asked me to play "opposites" with her. I named something and she named the opposite. She did really good...for awhile....then she just cracked us up!
J - "High"
C - "Low"
J - "Hot"
C - "Cold"
H - "Soft"
C - "Crunchy"
HUH?
She also has a talent for nursery rhymes....here are a few of our favorites.
"Baa! Baa! Black sheep, have you anymore. Yes sir. Yes sir. Three and Four..."
"Hey Little Diddle, the cat and the fiddle...."
In case you were wondering, she doesn't like "funder" or "tomatoes" (think storms, not vegetables). And she has the Pierce family gift for song lyrics. I'm proud to say, that Clara loves Michael Jackson. No really...LOVES his music! If she hears one of his songs coming on the radio, her face just lights up and she gets so excited. She knows the entire "Bad" cd. Honestly, she knows "Liberian Girl". These are proud parenting moments...excuse me while I wipe the tears of joy. Here are a few of Clara's lyrics to MJ songs....
"I'm mad, I'm mad, I'm really, really mad"....from MJ's song "Bad".
"I'm looking at the man in the river" or occasionally "I'm looking at the man in the liver" or another favorite "I'm looking
at the man in the middle"....from MJ's "Man in the Mirror".
Of course, Harrison has some classic song lyrics too. Our favorite is...
"No fried dust, gotta make a living"....from "Low Rider"
And I'll go ahead and admit that my brother called me a total idiot when I told him that I thought the lyrics "I want a new truck, one that won't make me sick" were incredibly stupid. He informed me that Huey Lewis was saying "I want a new drug". OHHHHH! That makes a lot more sense. And Joe argued with me at length one night years ago about the song "We want the funk" by George Clinton...he just swore the song said "we want the bump, gotta have the bump". Of course, he was going to prove me wrong and look it up on the computer....which did not end in his favor. : ) Did I mention that we are gifted with song lyrics. Someday I'll tell you about Joe's gift for foreign languages too. We are a family with many talents.
Today we drove through Sonic to get drinks. We hadn't driven through with Joe in awhile. We kind of forgot it seems like he's had a stroke when he's ordering at the drive through. He orders one thing SLOWLY. Then pauses so long that the waiter thinks he is done and confirms his order. Then he has to start over and add the second item. Again, long pause....waiter confirms order a second time....but wait, he still has two more drinks to order. So by the time he's actually finished ordering, we have all broken out in the Steve Martin ""I - would - like - a - ham - burger" routine from Pink Panther. And we are the funniest people we know, all doing the hamburger schtick. But I will say, this line of conversation is a great improvement over the whole "Weinergate" conversation that followed at lunch. Geez! We were trying to imagine what kind of campaign signs Congressman Weiner had. Really, when you think about it, that's not an easy name to make campaign signs for. Here are some of our top campaign slogans...
"Vote Weiner"
"I'm for Weiner"
"I'm with Weiner "(with finger pointing to your neighbor)
"Vote Weiner and be a Winner"
And on that weiner...I mean note...I'm done!
H - "Yeah, Sister, you haven't stopped talking in forever."
C - "Oh yeah! Well, you're talking like a duck."
H - "I'm not talking like a duck. I didn't say quack. Could you just be quiet?"
C - "I love geese."
H - "What? That doesn't even make sense."
C - "Exactly!"
HUH? "Exactly" is Clara's favorite new quip. Once in a blue moon she uses it appropriately (and totally by coincidence).
Another day in the car Clara asked me to play "opposites" with her. I named something and she named the opposite. She did really good...for awhile....then she just cracked us up!
J - "High"
C - "Low"
J - "Hot"
C - "Cold"
H - "Soft"
C - "Crunchy"
HUH?
She also has a talent for nursery rhymes....here are a few of our favorites.
"Baa! Baa! Black sheep, have you anymore. Yes sir. Yes sir. Three and Four..."
"Hey Little Diddle, the cat and the fiddle...."
In case you were wondering, she doesn't like "funder" or "tomatoes" (think storms, not vegetables). And she has the Pierce family gift for song lyrics. I'm proud to say, that Clara loves Michael Jackson. No really...LOVES his music! If she hears one of his songs coming on the radio, her face just lights up and she gets so excited. She knows the entire "Bad" cd. Honestly, she knows "Liberian Girl". These are proud parenting moments...excuse me while I wipe the tears of joy. Here are a few of Clara's lyrics to MJ songs....
"I'm mad, I'm mad, I'm really, really mad"....from MJ's song "Bad".
"I'm looking at the man in the river" or occasionally "I'm looking at the man in the liver" or another favorite "I'm looking
at the man in the middle"....from MJ's "Man in the Mirror".
Of course, Harrison has some classic song lyrics too. Our favorite is...
"No fried dust, gotta make a living"....from "Low Rider"
And I'll go ahead and admit that my brother called me a total idiot when I told him that I thought the lyrics "I want a new truck, one that won't make me sick" were incredibly stupid. He informed me that Huey Lewis was saying "I want a new drug". OHHHHH! That makes a lot more sense. And Joe argued with me at length one night years ago about the song "We want the funk" by George Clinton...he just swore the song said "we want the bump, gotta have the bump". Of course, he was going to prove me wrong and look it up on the computer....which did not end in his favor. : ) Did I mention that we are gifted with song lyrics. Someday I'll tell you about Joe's gift for foreign languages too. We are a family with many talents.
Today we drove through Sonic to get drinks. We hadn't driven through with Joe in awhile. We kind of forgot it seems like he's had a stroke when he's ordering at the drive through. He orders one thing SLOWLY. Then pauses so long that the waiter thinks he is done and confirms his order. Then he has to start over and add the second item. Again, long pause....waiter confirms order a second time....but wait, he still has two more drinks to order. So by the time he's actually finished ordering, we have all broken out in the Steve Martin ""I - would - like - a - ham - burger" routine from Pink Panther. And we are the funniest people we know, all doing the hamburger schtick. But I will say, this line of conversation is a great improvement over the whole "Weinergate" conversation that followed at lunch. Geez! We were trying to imagine what kind of campaign signs Congressman Weiner had. Really, when you think about it, that's not an easy name to make campaign signs for. Here are some of our top campaign slogans...
"Vote Weiner"
"I'm for Weiner"
"I'm with Weiner "(with finger pointing to your neighbor)
"Vote Weiner and be a Winner"
And on that weiner...I mean note...I'm done!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
A few of my favorite things - May
Seeing as how it's June...it's past time for my favorite things of May. May was a little bit of a blur. Lots of lasts and lots of new beginnings. As much as I'd love to keep my kids little, it really is a joy seeing who they are becoming. Even after almost 15 years, I'm still discovering things about my kids. And if I slow down and pay attention, I might even discover a few new things about myself....and I'm not even talking about bulges, wrinkles or my vision. So, with no further ado, here are my top five things from May.
#5 - Mother's Day (and my new garden)
The best thing about Mother's Day? Being a mom! I so love being a mom, it's really all I ever wanted to be! So celebrating being a mom is a treat. My family took me to Charleston's for lunch, which is always a favorite. And as I mentioned in an earlier post, we put in a raised bed vegetable garden. Having a garden takes me back to my dad (even though it's no Father's Day). My dad is an old farm kid. You can take the kid off the farm, but can never take the farm out of the kid. And all my life my dad has been growing vegetables in a big garden each year. I honestly didn't really appreciate it as a kid. But I do remember helping Dad water and pull weeds. He is always at his most peaceful when he's digging in the dirt. And now my kids are enjoying watching our first garden grow. Clara just loves to go to Grandpa's and explore the garden with my dad. I love that!!! Those days of roaming around my grandparents farm when I was a kid are some of my favorite memories. So now we have a garden....and even chickens next door. The chicken story is for another day.
#4 - Painting my art out
I've always said, I'm creative, but not artistic. In the back of my brain, I think a little artistic bent might have been squelched as a kid. I do vaguely remember sitting and sketching in a sketch pad when I was in middle school. But that might just have been a brooding teenager thing. ANYWAY...I digress. So, my friend Kristen invited me to go to Paint Your Art Out for a girl's night out of painting. We all painted a poppy, and I have to admit, I really enjoyed it! It was so fun! Of course, spending time with friends, sipping a glass of wine and laughing a lot certainly made it even more fun. But the whole being artistic thing (which is certainly up for debate) was a nice departure from my normal life.
#3 - Clara's dance recital
My mom put my brother and I in dance class one year. We were probably 4 and 5. I was a scrawny little girlie girl and my brother was 200% boy. So, the pictures of us in our dance costumes, with our cat ears and tails.....it makes me laugh out loud even now! In fact, now I'm going to have to go find that picture and get Joe to scan it in for me because it is hilarious!!! And my brother's not on the computer, so he can't kill me for posting it. Again, I digress! So, my baby girl is taking ballet. And she LOVES it, LOVES it, LOVES it. She is a child who takes direction well and loves to learn, so she really does what the teacher asks her to do. So when the teacher obviously told the kids to "smile, smile, smile while you're on stage" she took that literally. During her dance Harrison leaned over and said "her face is going to hurt from that huge smile". I admit, I thought she might be a little timid on stage, she's fairly quiet at school. But....she LOVES the stage! Go figure! After the recital I said "Clara, I think you kind of like being on stage" and she said "Like it? I love it!"
#2 - 8th Grade Dance
As the 8th graders prepared to graduate, they had their big dance at the school. I went to chaperone. I have to admit, it was really fun. Not only watching the kids, but watching the principals and some of the teachers have a great time with the kids. And watching 13 and 14 year olds at a dance....well, there's lot of things to make you smile (and a couple things that scare the foo out of you). I was standing by a table that had several boys standing or sitting around it. All of a sudden the music turned slow and a 6-foot boy comes running (literally) across the room frantically shouting "Sit down! Sit down! It's a slow dance! Everyone sit down!" I was laughing so hard I almost cried. The girls all looked so grown up and beautiful, and the boys cleaned up pretty good too. And what dance would be complete without several 8th graders sucking helium out of the balloons at the end and entertaining themselves with their helium voices. Some things never change! After the dance, about fifty kids went to Hideaway Pizza for dinner and dessert. It was fun watching from the room next door as they toasted themselves with their Dr. Peppers and enjoyed their friendships. This is such a great class of kids!
Yep....they are headed to high school....class of 2015!
Harrison & Rhett.....nice!
Our little ballerina!
Me and my boy, before the 8th grade dance.
Mason and Harrison....two peas in a pod!
Harrison and his date to the dance.
Just some of the 50 kids who went to Hideaway after the dance.
Braden and Harrison heading off to the last day of 8th grade.
Harrison and Lawson....if they look like they could get in trouble...well, maybe!
Mrs. Graham loved Harrison this year!!!
Post graduation party time!
Officially parents of a freshman and kindergartener!
#1 - Graduation Days
Clara graduated from Sonshine School. It's an end of an era, no more Mother's Day Out for the Pierce family. She was so cute in her graduation cap and gown. It's a little sad to say good-bye to this season. But it is so fun watching who she is becoming as she grows.
Then it happened....Harrison graduated from 8th grade. I'm not sure how that happened! Three years ago he turned 12 and started 6th grade. He wasn't even 5 feet tall. He had a little boy voice. He was a boy!!! Now...he's 5'10", he has a "manly" voice, armpit hair, a size 12 shoe, and he's becoming a young man. Three years people, just three years! Where does the time go? He got dressed for graduation, putting on a tie and the whole works. Then his buddy Braden came by to walk to school with him (which they have done everyday for the last 3 years....waaaaah! That's over too!). And I stood there taking a picture of these two who have been friends since they were babies. Literally! Julie and I met when we were pregnant. They started spending the night together when they were still in diapers. And I started thinking about all the friends Harrison has from school. What a blessing! Honestly, he has such great friends, both boys and girls. Thanks to Harrison's school friends I have made my very dearest friends in the whole world. Merlene and I met when we became homeroom moms together in first grade. Christine and I met because Lawson and Harrison became buddies at school in 1st grade. Robin and I met in 2nd grade, when Rhett and Harrison were in class together. Christi and I met when the boys were in mother's day out when they were 4. Kristen and I met when we were pregnant and Harrison and Jenna hung out when they were babies. Hmmmm....I'm kind of wondering if I'd have any friends at all if I didn't have kids. Weird! Anyway...I'm thankful that Harrison has such great friends and I'm doubly blessed by the friendships with their moms. And now we are all headed to high school together! Watch out world, here they come! And you never know, Harrison might just make the Craig's List. (Hee! Hee! That's one of my favorite Harrison stories. One night he told us he didn't know if he would be able to make national merit scholar, but he was pretty sure he could make the Craig's List. We laughed so hard!)
#5 - Mother's Day (and my new garden)
The best thing about Mother's Day? Being a mom! I so love being a mom, it's really all I ever wanted to be! So celebrating being a mom is a treat. My family took me to Charleston's for lunch, which is always a favorite. And as I mentioned in an earlier post, we put in a raised bed vegetable garden. Having a garden takes me back to my dad (even though it's no Father's Day). My dad is an old farm kid. You can take the kid off the farm, but can never take the farm out of the kid. And all my life my dad has been growing vegetables in a big garden each year. I honestly didn't really appreciate it as a kid. But I do remember helping Dad water and pull weeds. He is always at his most peaceful when he's digging in the dirt. And now my kids are enjoying watching our first garden grow. Clara just loves to go to Grandpa's and explore the garden with my dad. I love that!!! Those days of roaming around my grandparents farm when I was a kid are some of my favorite memories. So now we have a garden....and even chickens next door. The chicken story is for another day.
#4 - Painting my art out
I've always said, I'm creative, but not artistic. In the back of my brain, I think a little artistic bent might have been squelched as a kid. I do vaguely remember sitting and sketching in a sketch pad when I was in middle school. But that might just have been a brooding teenager thing. ANYWAY...I digress. So, my friend Kristen invited me to go to Paint Your Art Out for a girl's night out of painting. We all painted a poppy, and I have to admit, I really enjoyed it! It was so fun! Of course, spending time with friends, sipping a glass of wine and laughing a lot certainly made it even more fun. But the whole being artistic thing (which is certainly up for debate) was a nice departure from my normal life.
#3 - Clara's dance recital
My mom put my brother and I in dance class one year. We were probably 4 and 5. I was a scrawny little girlie girl and my brother was 200% boy. So, the pictures of us in our dance costumes, with our cat ears and tails.....it makes me laugh out loud even now! In fact, now I'm going to have to go find that picture and get Joe to scan it in for me because it is hilarious!!! And my brother's not on the computer, so he can't kill me for posting it. Again, I digress! So, my baby girl is taking ballet. And she LOVES it, LOVES it, LOVES it. She is a child who takes direction well and loves to learn, so she really does what the teacher asks her to do. So when the teacher obviously told the kids to "smile, smile, smile while you're on stage" she took that literally. During her dance Harrison leaned over and said "her face is going to hurt from that huge smile". I admit, I thought she might be a little timid on stage, she's fairly quiet at school. But....she LOVES the stage! Go figure! After the recital I said "Clara, I think you kind of like being on stage" and she said "Like it? I love it!"
#2 - 8th Grade Dance
As the 8th graders prepared to graduate, they had their big dance at the school. I went to chaperone. I have to admit, it was really fun. Not only watching the kids, but watching the principals and some of the teachers have a great time with the kids. And watching 13 and 14 year olds at a dance....well, there's lot of things to make you smile (and a couple things that scare the foo out of you). I was standing by a table that had several boys standing or sitting around it. All of a sudden the music turned slow and a 6-foot boy comes running (literally) across the room frantically shouting "Sit down! Sit down! It's a slow dance! Everyone sit down!" I was laughing so hard I almost cried. The girls all looked so grown up and beautiful, and the boys cleaned up pretty good too. And what dance would be complete without several 8th graders sucking helium out of the balloons at the end and entertaining themselves with their helium voices. Some things never change! After the dance, about fifty kids went to Hideaway Pizza for dinner and dessert. It was fun watching from the room next door as they toasted themselves with their Dr. Peppers and enjoyed their friendships. This is such a great class of kids!
#1 - Graduation Days
Clara graduated from Sonshine School. It's an end of an era, no more Mother's Day Out for the Pierce family. She was so cute in her graduation cap and gown. It's a little sad to say good-bye to this season. But it is so fun watching who she is becoming as she grows.
Then it happened....Harrison graduated from 8th grade. I'm not sure how that happened! Three years ago he turned 12 and started 6th grade. He wasn't even 5 feet tall. He had a little boy voice. He was a boy!!! Now...he's 5'10", he has a "manly" voice, armpit hair, a size 12 shoe, and he's becoming a young man. Three years people, just three years! Where does the time go? He got dressed for graduation, putting on a tie and the whole works. Then his buddy Braden came by to walk to school with him (which they have done everyday for the last 3 years....waaaaah! That's over too!). And I stood there taking a picture of these two who have been friends since they were babies. Literally! Julie and I met when we were pregnant. They started spending the night together when they were still in diapers. And I started thinking about all the friends Harrison has from school. What a blessing! Honestly, he has such great friends, both boys and girls. Thanks to Harrison's school friends I have made my very dearest friends in the whole world. Merlene and I met when we became homeroom moms together in first grade. Christine and I met because Lawson and Harrison became buddies at school in 1st grade. Robin and I met in 2nd grade, when Rhett and Harrison were in class together. Christi and I met when the boys were in mother's day out when they were 4. Kristen and I met when we were pregnant and Harrison and Jenna hung out when they were babies. Hmmmm....I'm kind of wondering if I'd have any friends at all if I didn't have kids. Weird! Anyway...I'm thankful that Harrison has such great friends and I'm doubly blessed by the friendships with their moms. And now we are all headed to high school together! Watch out world, here they come! And you never know, Harrison might just make the Craig's List. (Hee! Hee! That's one of my favorite Harrison stories. One night he told us he didn't know if he would be able to make national merit scholar, but he was pretty sure he could make the Craig's List. We laughed so hard!)
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