Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Graduation Day

My little man "Big Sticky" graduated today.  Not from college, not from high school, not from kindergarten... from pre-school.  The Fours.  My big little guy is now five and headed to the big "K".  The preschool had a graduation ceremony along with cap and gown pictures. 

My mom and I arrived at the ceremony a full 45 minutes early so we could get a seat down front and have room for Princess in her umbrella stroller.  (Without being strapped into the stroller, she would have never made it through the ceremony.)  And thankfully Little Sticky was having a year end beach party with his class. 

Big Daddy arrived just in time before the ceremony started.  All the Fours walked in to Pomp and Circumstance (and yes I got a lot teary!), and then proceeded down front to sing a few songs for the parents. 

Overall, we were so very proud.  With one exception.  As each graduate approached their teacher for their diploma, the Director shared the child's future aspirations.  Most of Big's classmates dreamed of becoming a Firefighter or an Olympic Athlete or a Teacher or even a Doctor.  Big?  He aspired to "Put his shoes on by himself."  Since he was the very first one to step onto stage and accept his diploma, I thought, "Oh, that's so (kind of) cute."  Soon after though, after hearing everyone else, I was a little embarassed, mortified, hoping no one would remember that first kid...  

That got me wondering, why he would aspire to put his shoes on by himself?  Afterall, he had been doing it since he was three.  Then I remembered, a few days earlier, Big had left his sneakers on the trampoline in the back yard.  The sprinklers came on, soaked the already tight shoes, which when dried, no longer fit.

The only option was a pair of canvas sneakers with a super thin tongue that Big struggled un-bunching each morning as we were rushing out the door in our usual late manner, causing me to assist him.  So there you go.  The mind of a pre-schooler.  The future is the present and the present is all that matters.



Notice how all the little children are facing forward... except Big.
He's the one on the corner... talking.


Getting his "diploma."


This is what a preschooler looks like when he stays up until 11:30 the night before.


With a few buddies.


His cap and gown picture.  SO grown up but still SO cute!

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Happy Mother's Day

I typically only buy greeting cards for birthdays and the two "big" holidays.  Not Christmas and Easter, but those other two that were seemingly created by the greeting card companies just so you would buy their overpriced paper products... Mother's Day and Father's Day. 

Choosing the right Mother's Day card is no easy task.  First, you have to jockey for position in the Hallmark store.  And if you are also buying for a Grandma, or a Great Grandma, or a Mother-in-Law, or a Sister-in-Law, or a Sister, or an Aunt, then you have to fight positions several times.   And if you go to the greeting card store during lunch or just after work, that makes your struggle all the more difficult.   Waiting until the Friday or Saturday before said holiday more than quadruples the crowd.  Lucky for me, I was able to go early in the week and early in the day so I only had to throw a few elbows and "excuse me's."    

When choosing my MD and FD cards, I use the chuckle factor for my dad, and the choke factor for my mom.  When I say "choke," I am referring to the lump you get in your throat when you find just the right card. 

Before I tell you how this year's perfect card reads, I must give you two background notes.  One, when I was a tween, my mom tried her hardest to french braid my super fine hair.  She literally would spend nearly an hour twisting and combing and tucking and huffing to get my hair to stay... only for it to fall out before second period was over.  Two, in the last week, Princess has grown just enough hair to sport two of the cutest, crookedist, teeny-weeny, pig tails.

So here is the "choker."  A photo is affixed to the corner of a brunette mom french-braiding her blond little girl.  Props and credit go to Hallmark for this tear-jerker.

When does a daughter need her Mom?
She needs her when she's little...
to kiss her good night
and sing the lullaby...
to do her hair
(and get the pigtails just right)...

A girl needs her mom
when she's finally ready
to set out on her own...
to give her lots of good advice,
to hug her and tell her
she knows she'll do just fine...

A gril needs her mom
when she's not really a girl anymore...
to smile at her
when she tries on her wedding gown...
to hug her through teary eyes
at news of a baby on the way...
to sing her kids the lullaby
(and get it just right)...

When does a girl need her mom?

Always.

Happy Mother's Day!


This is what three generations looks like.


Princess with her Grandma.


Mommy and her little Princess.



And if you ZOOM out on the last photo, you get mommy and all her babies.



Happy Mother's Day everyone!