Happy Birthday (Great) Grandma!

Here are some memories and pictures from our recent trip to KC:

Happy 85th Birthday Grandma!

Grandma was one of the first women to train at Camp Dodge, IA to be an Army medic for WWII. Below are her graduation pictures, her dog tags, and her diploma.

Lil"Bug practiced and practiced Happy Birthday To You only to at the last minute add the "you live in a zoo" verse. Lucky for us, she was too excited when the time came to sing to remember the added verse! Her Great Grandma is one of our best supporters for our homeschooling decision- for that we are grateful. In the below picture, Nana (Lil'Bug's grandma) holds her while she squirms. Nana organized the whole birthday party in KC from at home in Iowa. She did an awesome job. I'd like to add here that my MIL is wonderful. I am so grateful not to have the adversarial relationship so many have with their in-laws. I feel so blessed that they welcomed me into their family!

The pinata. Lil'Bug tentatively handed back the big stick to Dearest Husband in exchange for a more appropriate sized one. Then she whacked at it with all her little might. Too cute. Later a big kid managed to bust it and it was a free for all for candy. Dearest husband gave the littles cups to aid their collection efforts and Lil'Bug got all the mints because the bigger kids hate mints. She thought she was getting a good deal, let me tell you!

I had the opportunity to meet people and family that knew Dearest Husband when he was a wee tot. I met his preschool Sunday School teacher. Her stories about him were so sweet and really capture the core of his personality. I can definitely see why he misses this particular church community.

This Weekend

Tot and I are in Kansas City for a birthday party this weekend. It's a family reunion of sorts, which is really cool. KC is where Dearest Husband is from and the party is at his childhood church. We'll post pictures later tonight.

Simple Tree

Several years ago I worked for a museum. It was a living history Victorian museum dedicated to celebrating the story of corn hybridization. Every year I worked there I was in charge of creating Christmas for tours. There were several criteria of authenticity: no electric light, firesafe, simple, under 25$ total.

I worried over these many weeks. People expect pretty twinkly lights. People expect elaborate schemes and themes. Ugh. Then a good friend brought me a box of ribbon, some wheat, pine cones, and old post cards. Ah ha! She grinned. We spent a good Saturday tying, twining, and stringing. We invited some neighborhood kids to help, we sat by the fireplace and chatted, we drank hot chocolate until we could burst!

The tree ornaments, tree trimmed by friends and children:

• Red glass balls, each with a ribbon tied at the top
• Wheat, wrapped in bunches with wire and tied with a ribbon
• Pine cones, looped with wire. Sometimes tied in bunches and garnished with ribbon or glass balls
• Postcards, hole punched and tied with ribbon or rafia
  
• Candy canes! Given as gifts to all who visited
  

Gearing Up for the Holidays

I love Christmas, oh let me count the ways.......

Growing up I had some pretty rotten Christmases. My family was not religious, but dragged us to church, the big Catholic Basilica, for midnight mass some years. Some years certain relatives spiked the punch or the turkey stuffing (thus my dislike for stuffing). One year, I was 16, no one in my family remembered to wrap or set out any gifts for me. They were there, but were not found until February when someone cleaned out a closet. Other years, the family dysfunction was at its prime. Tears were shed over the not perfectly trimmed Victorian tree, the family pictures, presents not wrapped in the right paper.

There were goods years/moments too. That's what I wrapped myself in. I was really good at wrapping presents. I was also pretty good at wrapping myself up in holiday spirit and reminding myself what the spirit of Christmas is/was all about. It's not about presents, it ia about celebration of faith, friends, and family. It's about giving not receiving. The good years were spent trimming a fun tree and baking cookies while watching the ABC family movie or helping my little sister write letters to Santa. Trips to the mall to find gifts, thoughtfully picked out, for everyone that I loved..... AND the best Christmas memory, a gift shared by my Dearest Husband and I, our first kiss: Christmas Eve 1996. We've been inseparable ever since.

Now that I am a mom, I get to make memories for my daughter. I get to share with her the gathering of friends and family and memories of holiday cheer. This year we are baking cookies and decorating a Nutcracker tree and hosting craft days, the monthly IHE meeting, the cookie exchange, and other things yet undecided too. I get to help her make cards, decorate boxes, and generally have a good time. I get to take pictures!

Sometimes I get a little haunted by Christmases past, but this year we have much to be thankful for. Our little family is happy and healthy, we will enjoy the company of friends and family again this year, and many other things too many to list. I will be posting our crafts, past fun crafts, and recipes in the following weeks. I'm so excited!