Almost as good as snow

 

I'd say it's much more fun to be outside in jackets, but Sophia is still holding out for a really good snowstorm. We certainly did enjoy our visit to the park today. For the first time in a couple of months, Sophia wasn't alone on the swings and made some new friends.

Looks like this balmy weather may bring in the new year. Last year on New Year's Day, we were at the zoo and had to leave because of a tornado warning. And the year continued with the trend of weird weather. I really hope that the coming year is more predictable. On the other hand, I won't complain about lovely days like this for sure!

Things that make me mad

Ridiculous super powers and my insanely mundane and unhelpful memory.

Please, allow me to elaborate. I hate the hiccups. Once I have them in a day, I know I'm going to get them again. And I don't get dainty, ladylike hiccups. I get the kind that jerk my whole upper body and leave me sore in the chest. Not a great experience. On the other hand, ever since I have known Erick, he has been able to control his diaphragm when he has a hiccup or two and stop its spasms. Imagine my frustration and infuriation when he advises me to calm down and focus as my body heaves involuntarily. I have always taken him to task for wasting such a clear gift of mind control on the hiccups. "This must be the lamest super power that I've ever heard of," I always said. That is until the last few times I've had the nasty hiccups and have been able to stop them after only a few minutes. This makes me mad. Are you telling me that I can choose to control my body, but only to rid myself of the hiccups? How about my metabolism or my hearing or coming down with illness?! I'm just saying. It's a ridiculous super power.

Okay, part two, which holds a similar frustration to part one. My memory. I have a really, really terrible memory. This is not an exaggeration or an excuse. It's a fact. My memory is particularly unreliable when it comes to names and how I know people. I can't remember names of people who were in my life on a daily basis only a few years ago. I can see faces but not names.

An example is easy to come up with. In recent months, I have met several new people. Two of these people are connected to my friend Hillary. These two also happen to share some similar physical characteristics. The circumstantial differences are that with one (let's call her Stacey), Hillary and I shared a long evening, full of laughter and deep conversation. The other (let's call her Sharon), was Sophia's babysitter one night. A lovely young woman with whom I shared general pleasantries but nothing beyond small talk. I haven't seen either of them in a few weeks. Fast forward to last night. Emily, Erick, Sophia and I were at the Botanical Gardens for the free concert. A young lady walked up and said, "Hi Laurie!" It took me a minute, but I placed her as Stacey, a person with whom I have a relationship of sorts. I stood up and gave her a hug, of course. It was more awkward than I expected, but no problem. Then I continued in the conversation with the assumption that I was talking with Stacey, not making any overt mistakes but enough small ones that I began to notice something wasn't right. All the while, Erick was looking on with an amused expression, and I had no idea why. Finally, she left, and the light turned on. That was Sharon. Not Stacey. Awkward. Unreliable memory.

Flashback a couple of weeks ago. Erick made a comment about the title of a book by Harold Bell Wright that I haven't read since junior high school. I answered with the complete title and could have added the rest of the author's works if asked. Why? That information was never important to me. It was just there. So why would my mind choose to retain that over people? This makes me mad. Really mad.

Jam Packed

This 3-day weekend was packed full of activity for our family. In order to get our summer off to a start that would feel more like accepting our place in St. Louis and less like longing for our place in Columbia, we apparently determined to pack as many things as we could into that time.

It started Friday evening with a date for Erick and me, out with a new couple. Our "first date," if you will. A great way to start off the weekend. Saturday and Sunday were spent just the three of us. We went downtown a couple of times. Once to decorate Erick's office and once to make Sophia's dreams come true, as we took a ride in Cinderella's carriage. Sophia made a special connection with Cruiser the horse.

 

We swam a couple of times.

 

I have a feeling I'll be doing that a lot. I have mixed feelings about that. It's an easy way to get Sophia out and active, but it's a lot of time in a bathing suit....

Yesterday, we went to my friend Hillary's pool then ate out with her and her friend. Last night, we wrapped it up with our friends in the neighborhood, Cayla and Tarek and their sweet babies.

After one of our long days together as a family, when we had swam, napped and had a carriage ride, Sophia was in the back seat chattering about her favorite parts of the day. She said, "This was the best day of my life!" She says that frequently, but then again it might be true every time... Anyway, she sealed the deal with, "And the best part of the whole day was hanging out with you and you, my best family ever!"

It was a great way to kick off a summer that will be busy and full. I am going to have to start going to bed earlier if this is going to be our summer, though, because I am pooooped!!

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope all of the moms I know had a wonderful day today. I've had a lovely Mother's Day with the girl who makes me a mom and the guy who keeps it doable.

I had a feeling I was going to have a fantastic Mother's Day since it all started with a Muffins for Mom event at Sophia's preschool on Friday morning. She has been talking about it for weeks, keeping it secret what they were working on. When she told me about it, she said, "It will be the best day ever!" And, if I'm honest, it came pretty close.

There is just no substitute for being told you're the best mom ever, especially when parenting a 4 1/2 year old who makes the job interesting. When we walked into her preschool, each mom found a picture of their child in a frame made by that child, along with a list of things that each kid knows and/or loves about his or her mom. Here are Sophia and her friend Tommy with their work.



Most of the kids were satisfied with the admiration of their own mothers. Sophia, on the other hand, felt that each and every mother deserved a chance to admire her particular picture frame. Before I really realized what was happening, Sophia started approaching each mom and bringing her over to look at and admire her picture frame. There are about fifteen kids in Sophia's class, so she realized there was a more efficient way to get the job done. She picked up her frame, tucked it behind her back and walked up to another mom. Mind you, she has never met most of these moms. She would ask, "Do you want to see the picture frame I made?" Before a response was often offered, she'd hold it out and wait for the coming accolades. No exaggeration when I say that every single mom in that room saw Sophia's picture. It was a pretty entertaining scene. Sophia's teacher said that she was the first kid to do that. Somehow, I think she'll probably be the last. Here she is showing one mom her frame.



It's a gift and a memory I'll cherish.

My day today has been everything I could hope for. Sunshine and heat. Plenty of time outside and enough activity to remember the day! We started the day with a trip to Laumeier Sculpture Park. We haven't been there since Sophia was born, but it's a place that I really enjoy. This weekend is their Art Fair, so we got to enjoy the music, booths and food as well as the normal sculptures. I had forgotten how much fun I have at that particular park. It's such a great combination of nature and art.



We got pretty hot there, so it seemed like a good idea to head to City Garden to cool down at the splash park. We met Sophia's friend Tommy's family there and had a really great time - until he fell and hit his head. He'll be fine, but neither Sophia or Tommy recovered.

Since getting home, our afternoon at home has been relaxing and refreshing. I am just so grateful to be Sophia's mother and to share parenthood with Erick. It's never simple, but it's always interesting. And more often than not, it's a genuinely good time.

Almost Trouble

Tonight, Erick and I went to dinner while a local tween from the neighborhood stayed and played with Sophia. She is a friend of a friend, and we thought it would be nice to have someone handy for daytime/early dates or appointments, so we gave her a call to let them get to know each other tonight.

Sophia took her directly to her room and barely looked up when we left, so we knew it would be a good time. When we got home, they were still (or again) in her room playing. They told us what fun they had and what they had done. When I got out the door with the sitter to drive her the three blocks home (it's really cold), she said, "Sophia was really fun and sweet." Short pause. "She offered me wine." WHAT?? Yeah, apparently the sitter told Sophia that she was thirsty, and being the gracious hostess that she is, Sophia said, "We have some wine there. Would you like some?"

I doubled over in laughter when she told me. Then I promptly thanked this girl for not taking her up on the offer. Whew. That could have been a very ugly scenario to come home to.

We'll be using her again. Next time, I will put out a nice full glass of water and put my wine out of Sophia's sight...

Magic House Membership

We have been to the Magic House, here in St. Louis, several times. Last week was our first visit since the move. For that matter, we have done surprisingly little in the kid amenity category since arriving.

In the past, we have never come with friends, so I didn't think this would be any different. I think since Sophia has been the only kid around for a while, she was much more interested in what other kids around were doing. She would nonchalantly walk up to kids and start playing with them. It went pretty well, but she's new at this friend-making thing, too, so she tired pretty quickly of doing what someone else wanted. It was just interesting to watch her mind working when other kids came around. Basically deciding if it was worth the effort. I imagine my face looked pretty similar as the moms approached...

Anywho, we did have a very good time. Sophia served pizza to the parents in the pizza kitchen.



She birthed and named babies. You'll notice one of her temporary friends in the background.



She had two favorite spots. One is her normal favorite. There is a quiet little nook in the loud and busy Magic House. A gable filled with books and tea things. This is her old favorite.



Her new favorite is the opposite. It's loud and bright. But she is on screen, and as she dances to tunes from The Nutcracker Ballet, the lights follow her movements making delightful patterns and scenes. It took her a while to leave this room.



At the end of the day, we became members. During the holidays, they are giving out gift baskets to new members. Sophia is a very good gift-getter.