The News I Prefer

I've been pretty good at avoiding the news due to an event which took place in 2016 because it's been nothing but embarrassing and I prefer the news not to feature misogynistic, racist, fear monger, hate-filled, narcissistic lunatics but that's another story altogether. And not at all what this blog will ever promote.

This post is about the news I do follow. The segments featuring positivity. The ones showing humanity and hope are alive and well. The ones showing compassion for our planet and our fellow humans. People being good humans.

N is for news. The good kind.

You can skip past Jane Pauley to get to the good part in this one. 

There are so many more of these news stories out there but I'm stopping here. I'd love to hear about your favorite news story of the last year or two. Whether local, national, or international there are good people out there spreading good things and these are the stories I look for every day.

N is for news.

If You Give a Toddler a Cookie

And some icing, there's going to be a mess. A BIG mess. And no one will care because the toddlers will be having such a grand time and that's all that really matters in the scheme of things.

Yesterday, I took Lula Mae to visit Opie because cousin time is the best and thought taking cookies and icing to decorate those cookies would be a wonderfully delightfully fun idea.

M is for mess.

Someone was quite excited about going to visit her cousin.

The cookie decorating commenced immediately following the hugs and kisses portion of the day.

Yes, we used Christmas plates but we were going to have enough to wash so anything we found that could be thrown away was used. We discussed colors as we mixed them with the white icing and watched as they magically appeared in the bowls. Then, we dove right in.

One spatula of icing for the cookie

and one spatula of icing for the mouth.

Sometimes you have to hold the icing tube up high to get it to come out.

You can pick up the cookie

or just dive right in with your whole face.

We even tried the bags with the tips sort of decorating.

 

Fun was had and there was a sticky mess but it was contained to the table so that was a pleasant surprise. We even actually got the kids cleaned up before they touched anything which hardly ever happens. All that being said, I hope their mamas are planning on washing some hair tonight.

Afterward, there was playing and playing and playing, the sharing of lunch, and more playing and playing and playing and a huge mess was made all over the floor but it was such fun. Yes, those are chicken nuggets and fries but after you give them sugar cookies and icing what's the use of going with veggies and fruit. We can do that tomorrow.

No one was happy about leaving but we had a storm to outrun. A day of cousin time makes my heart happy. And full. But not messy. That's reserved for the kitchen table. And the family room floor.

M is for mess. And we had a blast making ours.

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Toddlers Know Best

I've learned a lesson or two from having two grandchildren in the toddler phase of life the first being I'm so glad I don't have them every single day because toddlers are not the easiest people on earth.

Perhaps I don't remember the days I had toddlers in the house on a daily basis or perhaps I was younger and could keep up. It's probably a combination of the two. The energy alone will exhaust the fittest of grandparents and I know this because I've asked. They're tired, too.

She. Never. Stops. NEVER.

When the toddlers began talking in full sentences I had forgotten how those sentences are strung together and how answers are expected immediately and if you can't get that answer out before the next question you're going to pay and you will pay because the questions are one continuous stream of who/what/why.

Our toddlers have taught us many things like just get in there and try it even if you're a little bit scared at first.

 And if you don't like it, you can run away.

We've learned there is almost always more than one way to use things-

We've learned spinning makes you dizzy but it's so very much worth the effort--

To love our pets fully-

And dog kisses are great.

They've taught us to appreciate sleep for a variety of reasons--

That girls truly can do it all-

Even if that means being a ballerina, astronaut, dragon slayer--

Blue tutus are awesome--

So is playing in the dirt or sand--

All you need to have a blast is a chair and a blanket-

Making up your own rules for games is cool--

Asking for help when you're in a tight situation is a good idea and perfectly acceptable--

Time with family is the most wonderful time of all---

There are lessons to learn or relearn every single day spent with a toddler. Life lessons we never thought about or those we knew once upon a time but lost it when we grew up. It's grand we can take those lessons back when we become grandparents.

L is for lessons. The most valuable lessons we can learn. Those taught by toddlers.

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The Kitchen Table

Most of this post is a re-post of an earlier post but K is still for kitchen at our house so...


The kitchen has always been a gathering place for my family for as long as I can remember. The women in our family have probably spent over half of their lives in their kitchens and I am no different. I spent countless hours conversing with my grandmother as she prepared meal after meal- three meals/day seven days/week and while she baked cakes and breads from scratch. I also enjoyed listening to her sing while she worked in the kitchen. Our family ate all of our meals at the kitchen table and, if someone had football practice or a meeting, we waited for them to get home and we ate together. Meals at the table with everyone around are the only kind I have ever known (and not just during the holidays) so it is no surprise that I would continue this tradition with my own kids. Certainly, our kitchen table saw thousands of meals over the years. Sometimes we were even a bit creative with our meals- candlelight dinners; no manners night; dessert first night; etc. However, saying our table only satisfied family time during meals would diminish the importance and quality of the times our family shared while sitting there together.  

   

Our kitchen table provided space for creating school projects; gingerbread houses; Christmas cookies; Easter eggs; colorful artwork. The lovelies also studied and read books there. Many a game of telephone has been played at the table as well as hundreds of hours of playing board games, card games, and putting together jigsaw puzzles. The laughter still resounds if you listen carefully. This table has seen more than anyone’s fair share of girl talk, both serious and silly- the sharing of the deepest secrets and fears that young girls harbor as well as the silly thoughts and stories of a day in the life. Our kitchen table has witnessed the tears and anger brought on by disagreements as well as the tears, hugs, understanding, and smiles the resolutions brought.  It heard the intense discussions of the injustices of the world and the ways to make changes. It heard me telling my girls they could be anything in the world they wanted to be. The table has been the meeting place for friends both young and old as each of their friends sat and discussed their lives with me as well. How amazing it was to know their friends almost as well as I knew my own girls. They all knew that there was no judge or jury at the table, only listening and an attempt to understand.  

 The kitchen table is still a meeting place for my girls and myself and it remains our center when everyone comes home as it stirs past memories, and encourages the sharing of present goals and future dreams. And those games and all that laughter? Yep, it still takes place right at the kitchen table. 

The biggest, and best, difference is now I get to share our kitchen table with my grandbabies. How wonderful as small as our house is there is always room at the kitchen table especially for these two--

Yes, she's in the high chair because she recently
rediscovered it and she loves it and I have no idea
as to why other than, she's a two-year-old.

I'm already having tea at the table with this one. 

Sometimes we bake brownies and have them with milk in moose cups. 

K is for kitchen table. 

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The Juggling Boy

Yes, this is a day late but I couldn't think of a J word that would allow me to be clever...Ha! I thought of a few ideas but they all required some deep thinking and I just wasn't in the mood for that so I thought of a few more and realized I'd really be reaching and end up sounding ridiculous so...

J is for juggle.

I might have missed out on clever, but I've got cute covered.


I'm working on K and will post it later today. Any guesses as to what it will be? Hint: I've written about it before.

Have a great weekend, Y'all!

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I is for Many Words and M is for Medley

Here we are back at Wednesday and I'm still trying to get through the A-Z Challenge which is NOT easy. I couldn't figure out any other way to combine the letter I with the Medley except to discuss feelings and siblings in the intro so, here we go--

It's National Siblings Day and there is no word beginning with the letter I to work into this post other than to give y'all a little story. Once upon a time when I was 11 years old, my parents had the IDEA to adopt a child, preferably a boy. The day finally came and we were all under the IMPRESSION they were to meet my new brother. You can just IMAGINE our surprise when they were INTRODUCED to 3 biological brothers to see if they might be INTERESTED in taking all three into our family. They were and we went from a family of 3 to a family of 6 in one day! And that is my INCREDIBLE sibling story. 

One of our first pictures together...it may actually be THE first. 

Y'all can read a bit more about the story right HERE. 

And now, the Medley!

(Just a note before we start... if you are an only child, substitute an aunt, cousin, or a friend if you want to participate!)

1.  Stealing the questions from above:  How many siblings do you have? 3 Are you rivals or do you support each other in all you do? We pretty much support each other in all we do. 

2.  Have you heard of the Birth Order Book?  What are your thoughts on the premise that your birth order affects everything you do in life? I have heard of it and much has been said about birth order. Based on my 4 daughters I'd say it's more of a hit or miss type thing.  

3.  Is there something that you still do that drives your siblings crazy? Probably but they don't say anything about it so I can't say for sure. 

4.  Are you closer to your siblings now than you were when you were younger? I think so. All three of my brothers are adopted and, while it didn't take long for us to adjust, we did seem to have gotten closer and closer as things settled down and we are quite close now.  

5.  Would you dare to tell us an embarrassing story about a sibling? Well, there was that time we were all home alone in our early teens and my oldest younger brother had us all hit the deck because someone was peering into the den window. Turns out it was his own reflection but he has us terrified for our lives! And he was going to take care of business with a bb gun so... We still laugh about that one. 

6.  Tell us something random about your week. There's not much to tell so far but I'll have plenty to discuss over the weekend so I hope there will be words to fit the daily letter. Ha! I will say the weather is icky with temps in the high 70s and low 80s accompanied by humidity so yes, the AC has been turned on in my house.

Oh, I did start this workbook. I'll keep y'all posted. 

Have a great rest of the week, y'all!

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Hurry Up Already

Why are we in such a hurry? How do we get ourselves in such a rush? We sit in traffic and get all kinds of irritated because we're going to be late or we just want to get home but the fact is all that irritation doesn't move the traffic any faster. If you're going to be late why didn't you just start out earlier? There are all sorts of ways to check the traffic so I'm not sure why that is ever an issue unless whatever it is happens right in front of you but either way expending energy on irritation won't help a thing. You just want to get home? You will. So, chill.

H is for hurry.

There are times when I am convinced the slow down in traffic is saving me from something such as an accident I am involved it. I know, but I don't really care if people think that's crazy. I have experienced the whole getting caught by a red light and fussing over it but once on my way there was an accident just about where I would have been had I had a green light so...

We're going through a difficult time in life and we put our heads down and go through as quickly as possible but how does that help us learn whatever it is we should be learning from that period? We get excited over some event and before we know it the whole thing is over and we didn't pay attention and enjoy it to the fullest. We rushed through and that took whatever enjoyment we could have had or whatever lesson we could have learned and left us without either.

Pregnant moms want to hurry through the last moments. Parents of toddlers want that phase to hurry and end. Parents of teenagers can't get through that phase fast enough. Employees rush through their day to get home and their work suffers and stress ensues. Drivers rush through traffic and accidents happen. People hurry up to get to the next thing but, when the next thing comes along they rush through to get to the next and before we know it our lives are over. Rush, rush, rush. Hurry up and rush.

My granddaddy always used to tell us not to wish our lives away and I think rushing through things is the same as wishing we were someone else, some other age, some other location, etc. When we aren't focused on what's right now, right there in front of us we rush through with nothing left but that deer in the headlights look of, "WTH just happened?"

It happens in business, too. Instead of following the instructions some brilliant sort decides he can get it done quicker if he just does what he wants to do and problems galore suddenly appear and guess what? It's not anyone's fault and the finger pointing begins. All because someone was in a hurry or someone's boss put on the pressure to hurry or for whatever reason, people were hurried and mistakes were made and there you go.

That kind of thing drives me nuts. Where are the stand-up people who make mistakes and own up to them? I guess that particular trait has died out.

Sometimes we rush through because we have way too much on our plate. This one happens to me, a lot. I over-extend myself and have to hurry up to get through each task and what happens? I don't give myself a chance to enjoy, learn from, appreciate each task and the end result is sometimes lacking. Just getting through the daily routine that has become doldrum can make us not pay attention, rush through, and miss any little light the chore may have brought with it.

Life goes by in a flash as it is so why in the world we try to make it go by even faster is a mystery to me. It seems rather stupid to do this. At the same time, I understand some situations are good to just get through because they are super sad, painful, hurtful...but I've heard it told there are healing and lessons in these situations.

When we don't pay attention and rush through we miss the hidden little delights each day, each task, each moment holds.

H is for hurry up and slow down.

Enjoy your moments.

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Get Your Giggle On

Raise your hand if you thought my G word was going to be, grandchildren. Ha! I got ya!

These daily words are driving me nuts to the point I'm about to throw in the towel. I feel as though I've run out of things to say or by the time I can sit down and write I'm too tired to do it.

I thought about writing about my grandmother but I've done that so much y'all probably feel as though you knew her personally. And there's no doubt in my mind you've heard me mention my grandchildren a time or two but have I mentioned all the giggling that goes on around here since their arrival?

G is for giggle.

Yes I have more but going through all my folders looking for nothing but videos featuring giggles takes a ridiculous amount of time considering I have yet to organize my folders, pictures, and videos coupled with how long it takes blogger to upload these things...but this is enough to give y'all the idea we giggle a lot in our family and, since these two arrived, it's nearly nonstop.

G is for giggling grandchildren.

And grateful grandmother.

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