Happy Birthday Brenna!

My big girl is having a birthday.

My big girl is turning 9.

9!

That's halfway to 18.

That's halfway to gone!

(Well, it would be if she wasn't constantly telling us that she's never moving out. She claims she's staying here forever and never getting a job. Having Anna-Nicole living in basement is how I envision this, but I digress . . .)

So, 9.

May it be even half as good as the first 8.

She is one great kid and I am really looking forward to another year of watching her grow and continuing to see who she is becoming.

I really like what I see.

Cousin Days

In the past week we cousins talked a lot about special memories we have of being at Auntie Dottie's house. Of course I have tons and tons of stories having spent so many of my February and April vacations staying with them, not to mention the seemingly hundreds of family events they hosted there.

Some of our favorite memories though have been made in recent years as we "big cousins" have brought our own kids - the "little cousins" - to spend fun-filled days together swimming, swinging, playing ball in the yard, ransacking the toy closet in the den and eating our hearts out in a house where absolutely everyone feels welcome.

These "Cousin Days," as Auntie Dottie called them, will certainly continue because that's exactly what she would want us to do. And also because I think Uncle Al enjoys them as much as Dottie did! So we'll swim, drink blue juice, play in the kitchen drawer and tap dance while singing her "meatball song" so that a whole new generation of cousins become the best of buddies - just like their mommies and daddies! And for that gift we will always thank Auntie Dottie.

(This drawer in Auntie Dottie's kitchen is chock full of 30+ years worth of Happy Meal toys and small figurines. At any given time nearly half of its contents are strewn all over the floor! Every kid has their personal favorites that they search for each time. Brenna likes the mini Cabbage Patch Kids and for Molly, no visit is complete until she finds Gumby and the McDonalds fries box that flips into binoculars. The very same ones I played with when I was their age!)

Saying Goodbye

We said goodbye to my aunt this week - a goodbye we just weren't ready to say. Losing her has left us all asking that age-old question "Why?" and grappling for answers that will never come. I read something a few weeks ago and mentally filed it away not really thinking I would have to pull it out so soon.

"In God's plan every life is long enough and every death is timely. And though you and I might wish for a longer life, God knows better. And - this is very important - though you and I may wish a longer life for our loved ones, they don't. Ironically, the first to accept God's decision of death is the one who dies. While we are shaking heads in disbelief, they are lifting hands to worship. While we are mourning at a grave, they are marveling at heaven. While we are questioning God, they are praising God." From Max Lucado....Traveling Light.

I am trying to find some truth in this.

I do truly believe that Auntie Dottie is in a perfect place. I do truly believe that it is this eternal happiness completely transcends what we know on earth. I know I can't begin to understand the larger plan that He has in store.

But my heart feels something different.

Because no matter what heaven is, and no matter why you called her Home,

I'm sorry God . . . You took her way too soon.

As Brenna said "we weren't done with her here yet."

Uncle Al is right - "It is what it is - but it stinks."

Con Artist

Brenna is a very sweet and kind girl. She's a good friend and I hear all the time about what a nice kid she is.

She's also a con artist.

For two weeks now she's been on a quest to get us to commit to sending her to sleepaway camp with her friend next summer. She's been pestering and pestering and I finally said she could go if she saved up the money (knowing that's that's a complete impossibility because I could never save up that amount of money much less have her save it!) So now her focus is completely on what she can do to get cash quickly and with the least amount of effort. (Because although she's sweet, kind and nice - she can also be a bit . . . sluggish shall we say, when it comes to doing the hard work. wink wink!)

Yesterday I heard her talking to her sister.

B: "Molly, would you like to have two weeks home all by yourself?"
M: "I don't know. . ."
B: "Think about it. Two weeks that I wouldn't be bugging you all the time!"
M: "I don't know. . ."
B: "If I went to camp you'd be like an only child."
M: "I don't know . . ."
B: "Well, think about it. If it's something you'd like, we could arrange it. If you just save some money and give it to me, I could make it happen."

It was an honest-to-goodness shakedown! "I could make it happen" . . . Where did that come from? It's like my darling little blonde is a hitman or something!

The worst part? Molly went and gave Brenna her whole piggy bank!

Camporee

Yesterday Brenna had a Camporee with many of her fellow scouts from school. It was a great day and the girls had a ball making crafts, hiking to the river (thus explaining why very few of them are wearing the same clothes in the morning vs. afternoon photos. It got a bit messy!) singing songs, learning first aid and of course, making s'mores!

Since I'm a co-leader for one troop I had the joy of managing a craft station where the girls made tie-dye shirts and bandanas using markers and rubbing alcohol. They came out great!

Molly was sad that we don't yet have a troop registered for her grade (no one will volunteer to lead and although I will happily assist, I can't take a full leader role) but I promised her she'd be all signed up before the sping Camporee. In the end she was quite content to spend the day with Daddy.

(You can always find Brenna in her floppy hat!)

One more!

Tooth that is. This time it was one of the top incisors.

So Miss Molly has lost a whopping total of 7 teeth so far and she's not quite 6 1/2. That's only one less than Brenna who will be 9 in a few weeks!

Those front teeth have come in amazingly fast. I'm just hoping these next ones coming in help straighten things out or we're well on our way to keeping the othodontist in business!

Blue Ribbon!!!!

It was announced today that our school has been awarded a national Dept. of Education Blue Ribbon!!

There are about 30,000 non-public schools in the US and no more than 50 awards are given each year (they also recognize 200 of the 95,000 public schools). A school must have test scores in the top 10% of the country and meet a number of other criteria just to be invited to apply and then within that, a school can only be invited to apply once every 5 years.

We were told just 5 days ago (the third day of school - like we weren't already swamped!) that we are among the 2008 winners. Six public schools and 2 non-public schools in Maryland are being honored and we are the only one from both our county (public or non-public) as well as the Archdiocese of Washington so it's a great award. So today we had a huge announcement celebration.

All of the kids had to come in at 7:15am because the Archbishop was only available at 7:30am. Naturally we couldn't tell the parents or kids why so speculation has been running wild all weekend. (Some kids were saying the Jonas Brothers were coming so there may have been some letdown!)

We decked the school out with blue and white balloons and had blue hairbows for all the girls. The kids got blueberry muffins for breakfast, a special pizza lunch and then blue cupcakes at the end of the day. Laura Bush sent a congratulatory letter and will visit sometime later in the year (we weren't given enough notice to get the necessary clearance for her to be there today) and we'll be getting new banners with the Blue Ribbon logo.

So yesterday was a frantic day (and I had the stomach flu - came home and got sick as a dog but was better this morning) but it was so well worth it!

Brenna sings with the Children's Choir

Molly in her class procession

School Days, School Days

Today was the big day! my 2 little darlings headed back to school - Brenna to Gr. 4 and Molly to Gr. 1. They were excited and came home wearing the same smiles they went out in the morning with.

We'll see how long those smiles last!