I'm so excited for tonight. Both of my girls are going to scrapbook with me! A neighbor who has her basement set up just for scrapbooking is letting us come over and use her tables and will have her supplies ready for us to purchase, and her supplies there to use. The three of us have all had great adventures this year - Mandy and I have pictures of our trip to Japan, and Robyn has some from her trip to the west coast, touring national parks. We want to preserve them. And so we will spend time arranging these photos in albums to keep them safe and so that we can pull them out and remember these times. We can share them with others.
Like every mom, I cherished the time when they were small and looked to me for all their needs. As they got older, they needed me less and less, and although life got a little bit easier, it was hard to let go. When the children become adults, they go off and lead their own lives, and I was a little bit heartbroken. They're no longer my little girls. I can't dress them in pretty, frilly dresses. I can't wipe their pudgy cheeks when they get into their dinners and get half of it on themselves. And I can't be there to hold them every time they get an "owie".
But they're still my girls. I am so thankful that they both still want to do things with me. Last weekend the three of us explored Art Prize in downtown Grand Rapids. And this weekend we'll work on our pictures together. Later this weekend, they plan to go with their father to visit their grandmother in her new digs at the nursing home. They're good kids, and we look forward to watching them become amazing adults.
We must have done something right. Hallelujah.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
Amy's Adventure
Our eldest daughter has been in Haiti this week. She's been assisting a medical team in Port-Au-Prince, which was devastated not only by the earthquakes, but a tornado this fall. She left last week Friday, and tonight her husband and children will meet her at the airport to welcome her back.
Before she went, she directed us to a blog started by Mallery Thurlow, the founder of the Haiti Foundation Against Poverty. You can check it out here. It's very informative. This woman is doing a lot to help the people there. Mallery also has a website, (click here) where monetary donations can be arranged.
Thanks to technology (she texted her husband daily, and her husband posted her updates on facebook), we're able to get regular updates about the things she is encountering on her trip. Some of her stories are so sad - mothers handing their babies to her and begging her to take them to America for a better life, young moms dying in childbirth, school children eager for a friendly, nurturing hand. It's so hard to believe that things like this are happening so close to home.
We've been so afraid for her. She’s been there in a place where there is so much need, and desperate people sometimes do desperate things. She was only six when I married her dad, and sometimes I have difficulty replacing the pigtailed urchin with the amazing woman she is now. But she needed to do this, and I could only pray for her safety and listen for the reports, and rejoice when she comes home.
And I am so thankful for people like her, who are do-ers, rather than worry-ers.
Before she went, she directed us to a blog started by Mallery Thurlow, the founder of the Haiti Foundation Against Poverty. You can check it out here. It's very informative. This woman is doing a lot to help the people there. Mallery also has a website, (click here) where monetary donations can be arranged.
Thanks to technology (she texted her husband daily, and her husband posted her updates on facebook), we're able to get regular updates about the things she is encountering on her trip. Some of her stories are so sad - mothers handing their babies to her and begging her to take them to America for a better life, young moms dying in childbirth, school children eager for a friendly, nurturing hand. It's so hard to believe that things like this are happening so close to home.
We've been so afraid for her. She’s been there in a place where there is so much need, and desperate people sometimes do desperate things. She was only six when I married her dad, and sometimes I have difficulty replacing the pigtailed urchin with the amazing woman she is now. But she needed to do this, and I could only pray for her safety and listen for the reports, and rejoice when she comes home.
And I am so thankful for people like her, who are do-ers, rather than worry-ers.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Distractions
I lead a pretty busy life, and when I'm home I usually have a "to do" list going. A lot of my "to do''s involve sitting down in front of a computer screen. Since I don't have an office, this takes place in my family room, either sititng in my recliner with my lap desk, or at the dining room table. This works well when the other person in my house is asleep for the night, but when he's awake the television is on (or the radio, and he loves talk radio).
So sometimes I'll sit here with the computer in front of me, and the words don't come. It's not that I want to watch or listen to what's on, but it's there, and sometimes it's interesting. Of course, I tend to think a lot of things are interesting. So the words don't get written. Or sometimes things get written and they don't make sense. For example, right now the news is on. My fingers are actually moving across the keyboard, but I can see that a lot of words are misspelled.
In the past I've come up with various strategies for dealing with these problems.
Solution #1: Leave the room. I have a nice three season porch, and when it's light enough to write out there, and it's warm enough (or cool enough) to stand it out there, I can go out and work there. The down side is hubby gets frustrated. He apparently gets lonely because I'm gone so much and he pouts. He offers to turn off the television (grumpily, which lays the guilt trip on me).
Solution #2: Wear earphones. This works especially when the Dear Husband is watching a show I don't particularly like, such as one of those mindless sitcoms he's so fond of. Unfortunately, I can still hear a little bit, and when he's watching something minutely interesting, it doesn't help, unless I turn on the itunes loud enough to overpower it.
Solution #3: Wait to write until after hubby goes to bed. That's at around 6:30 or 7:00 pm, so it's not too bad. Unfortunately, I've been working the 4 AM shift, so I need to go to bed not long after that. By 6:30 or 7 pm my brain is starting to shut down.
Solution #4: Get everything else done in the hopes that someday things will change. I suppose that's what I usually do. Fortunately, I belong to a great writing group. We have two weekends a year set aside for writing. We go away for the weekend. Close enough that it's not too far a drive, but far enough that we can't run home to take care of minor problems. It's great. We all bring our laptops and just write. Those of us who don't particularly want to socialize bring earphones. I'm one of them. The problem? This only happens twice a year. It's not going to happen for another four weeks. I can't write only two times a year! So I've got to keep remembering to use these solutions (maybe on a rotating basis?) so that I can get some writing done! I can do it! I've got a novel to write!
So sometimes I'll sit here with the computer in front of me, and the words don't come. It's not that I want to watch or listen to what's on, but it's there, and sometimes it's interesting. Of course, I tend to think a lot of things are interesting. So the words don't get written. Or sometimes things get written and they don't make sense. For example, right now the news is on. My fingers are actually moving across the keyboard, but I can see that a lot of words are misspelled.
In the past I've come up with various strategies for dealing with these problems.
Solution #1: Leave the room. I have a nice three season porch, and when it's light enough to write out there, and it's warm enough (or cool enough) to stand it out there, I can go out and work there. The down side is hubby gets frustrated. He apparently gets lonely because I'm gone so much and he pouts. He offers to turn off the television (grumpily, which lays the guilt trip on me).
Solution #2: Wear earphones. This works especially when the Dear Husband is watching a show I don't particularly like, such as one of those mindless sitcoms he's so fond of. Unfortunately, I can still hear a little bit, and when he's watching something minutely interesting, it doesn't help, unless I turn on the itunes loud enough to overpower it.
Solution #3: Wait to write until after hubby goes to bed. That's at around 6:30 or 7:00 pm, so it's not too bad. Unfortunately, I've been working the 4 AM shift, so I need to go to bed not long after that. By 6:30 or 7 pm my brain is starting to shut down.
Solution #4: Get everything else done in the hopes that someday things will change. I suppose that's what I usually do. Fortunately, I belong to a great writing group. We have two weekends a year set aside for writing. We go away for the weekend. Close enough that it's not too far a drive, but far enough that we can't run home to take care of minor problems. It's great. We all bring our laptops and just write. Those of us who don't particularly want to socialize bring earphones. I'm one of them. The problem? This only happens twice a year. It's not going to happen for another four weeks. I can't write only two times a year! So I've got to keep remembering to use these solutions (maybe on a rotating basis?) so that I can get some writing done! I can do it! I've got a novel to write!
Friday, September 24, 2010
All Grown Up
I had lunch with my eldest granddaughter last weekend. We went out to celebrate her nineteenth birthday. Lauren is a recent high school graduate, and is going to school to learn to be a medical assistant. She has her own car, so she was able to get herself to my house rather than me picking her up. She's growing up.
Lauren has a boyfriend - rather, she has a fiance. She and Cody have been an item for almost a year. He is in the National Guard, and he's been in basic training for a few months. And when Lauren went to visit him last weekend, she came home with a ring. They plan to get married - soon.
Since I'm only the step-grandma, I don't feel I have the right to voice my opinions to her. My husband and I feel they are both way too young for this step. My husband speaks from experience. She needs to have more life experiences.
My husband expressed his concerns one afternoon when our daughter was here. She asked if he had shared his concerns with the future bride. “No,” he responded, “It’s not our place.”
I guess I've got to agree. The young man is in the military. He graduated from a Christian school, so he's been taught good values. He seems to be a good kid. But still, he's very young. They both are. But it is not up to us. All we can do is be there for her. We need to support her decision, and celebrate with her. Maybe it will work out. We have to respect her decision, and support them as a couple. We need to have listening ears and an open heart.
That’s what families are for.
Lauren has a boyfriend - rather, she has a fiance. She and Cody have been an item for almost a year. He is in the National Guard, and he's been in basic training for a few months. And when Lauren went to visit him last weekend, she came home with a ring. They plan to get married - soon.
Since I'm only the step-grandma, I don't feel I have the right to voice my opinions to her. My husband and I feel they are both way too young for this step. My husband speaks from experience. She needs to have more life experiences.
My husband expressed his concerns one afternoon when our daughter was here. She asked if he had shared his concerns with the future bride. “No,” he responded, “It’s not our place.”
I guess I've got to agree. The young man is in the military. He graduated from a Christian school, so he's been taught good values. He seems to be a good kid. But still, he's very young. They both are. But it is not up to us. All we can do is be there for her. We need to support her decision, and celebrate with her. Maybe it will work out. We have to respect her decision, and support them as a couple. We need to have listening ears and an open heart.
That’s what families are for.
Friday, September 17, 2010
750 Words
I have a tendency to take on more than I'm able to accomplish. That's one of the reasons for the piles of “stuff” in several rooms. I look at a piece of fabric and think of something wonderful that I can make with it - and then it's set aside because I have more pressing commitments. My gym membership hasn't been used in three months, and I have a wii fit collecting dust and a stack of exercise videos. And I have a cupboard full of non-sugar sweeteners, weight loss powders, and vitamins.
But one thing I took on this summer has actually worked out. I love to write, but have had problems making myself sit down to write because I have all this other stuff to do. My writers' group asks for monthly goals and rewards us for meeting them. So I would often set a ridiculously low goal, like "100 words a day" so I could be sure and sit down every day and write something.
A writing friend shared a website with me that has really helped jump-start my creativity, at least as far as writing. It's called "750 Words" and it's changed my mind-set on putting words down. Every day, a blank page is presented to me and I am encouraged to write - anything. It's a personal, online journal. No one else can read what I write, so I can put drivel - and sometimes it has been utter nonsense.
Some days the blank page is filled with things I copy and paste into writing projects. I've written my blog posts here, as well as my "to do" lists, and lots of other things, like thank you notes to the relatives, and plans for the coming week. In Japan I used it to journal each day, so I wouldn't forget names of people and places. Just writing events and names down here helped me when I wrote facebook captions for my pictures, and later I’ll have them to write in my scrapbook. I love it!
Buster, the creator of 750 Words, has several incentives to keep you going. There are "badges" to reward you for various goals- a certain number of days, speedy writing, patronage, etc. This is all available absolutely free of charge!
It's amazing how integrated this exercise is in my life. My husband even knows when to not speak to me. If I just tell him "I'm writing my 750" he knows he needs to keep away until I'm done! Often I'll stay up and write at midnight for the coming day. But other times I'll get up early and write. It's just become a necessary part of each day, like taking vitamins!
But one thing I took on this summer has actually worked out. I love to write, but have had problems making myself sit down to write because I have all this other stuff to do. My writers' group asks for monthly goals and rewards us for meeting them. So I would often set a ridiculously low goal, like "100 words a day" so I could be sure and sit down every day and write something.
A writing friend shared a website with me that has really helped jump-start my creativity, at least as far as writing. It's called "750 Words" and it's changed my mind-set on putting words down. Every day, a blank page is presented to me and I am encouraged to write - anything. It's a personal, online journal. No one else can read what I write, so I can put drivel - and sometimes it has been utter nonsense.
Some days the blank page is filled with things I copy and paste into writing projects. I've written my blog posts here, as well as my "to do" lists, and lots of other things, like thank you notes to the relatives, and plans for the coming week. In Japan I used it to journal each day, so I wouldn't forget names of people and places. Just writing events and names down here helped me when I wrote facebook captions for my pictures, and later I’ll have them to write in my scrapbook. I love it!
Buster, the creator of 750 Words, has several incentives to keep you going. There are "badges" to reward you for various goals- a certain number of days, speedy writing, patronage, etc. This is all available absolutely free of charge!
It's amazing how integrated this exercise is in my life. My husband even knows when to not speak to me. If I just tell him "I'm writing my 750" he knows he needs to keep away until I'm done! Often I'll stay up and write at midnight for the coming day. But other times I'll get up early and write. It's just become a necessary part of each day, like taking vitamins!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Happy News
My husband and I are going to be grandparents. We already have seven grandchildren, but this one has several distinctions that guarantee he or she will be spoiled rotten:
1. This is the first child of a child we had together. This means it is also the first great grandchild for my mom, who is a bona-fide child spoiler - when the child is not her own.
2. This is the first grandchild to be born to a pair of working parents, which means this grandma will be called upon to baby-sit more often. Thankfully, the family lives less than a half-hour drive away.
3. This grandchild has a whole slew of Japanese relatives, who are curious to see whether this child will have blue eyes (a very curious event in their world).
4. This is the first grandchild to be born after my retirement, which means I have more time to make stuff for him/her.
It's this last criteria that I'm hoping will help me clear out some stuff. I have a ton of fabric and other craft stuff patiently waiting for me to work on it. Obviously there will be quilts. This child will be born in January, but will NEVER be cold - because I will personally see to it there are plenty of quilts and blankets around!
I've also got patterns for nighties and jammies and there is lots of flannel down there. The child will sleep in the finest of stuff, if I manage to get the outfits cut out and sewn together.
And there will be toys - lots of them - stuffed teddy bears, and a whole menagerie of animals. I’ll probably buy more than I’ll make, but I’ll have fun planning my projects.
Now all I have to do is find out whether it's a boy or a girl, and what colors his/her mother plans to use in the nursery. My daughter is a very particular decorator. Things will have to match. So I might have to get some more fabric to match the planned décor.
I can’t wait.
1. This is the first child of a child we had together. This means it is also the first great grandchild for my mom, who is a bona-fide child spoiler - when the child is not her own.
2. This is the first grandchild to be born to a pair of working parents, which means this grandma will be called upon to baby-sit more often. Thankfully, the family lives less than a half-hour drive away.
3. This grandchild has a whole slew of Japanese relatives, who are curious to see whether this child will have blue eyes (a very curious event in their world).
4. This is the first grandchild to be born after my retirement, which means I have more time to make stuff for him/her.
It's this last criteria that I'm hoping will help me clear out some stuff. I have a ton of fabric and other craft stuff patiently waiting for me to work on it. Obviously there will be quilts. This child will be born in January, but will NEVER be cold - because I will personally see to it there are plenty of quilts and blankets around!
I've also got patterns for nighties and jammies and there is lots of flannel down there. The child will sleep in the finest of stuff, if I manage to get the outfits cut out and sewn together.
And there will be toys - lots of them - stuffed teddy bears, and a whole menagerie of animals. I’ll probably buy more than I’ll make, but I’ll have fun planning my projects.
Now all I have to do is find out whether it's a boy or a girl, and what colors his/her mother plans to use in the nursery. My daughter is a very particular decorator. Things will have to match. So I might have to get some more fabric to match the planned décor.
I can’t wait.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Back to School Shopping
So it's the first week of school for me. Classes started this week at GVSU. I got ready as most people do. As an instructor I got my copies ordered, my PowerPoint presentations ready and my class lists compiled for attendance. As a student, I got my bag filled with notepaper, and pencils, and I checked the class website for the required textbooks. Unfortunately, both bookstores are out of one book, and the other one hasn't been published yet! So I wait. I’m in third year Japanese this year, and I’m excited to see if my three weeks in Japan will help give me an edge. Probably not.
As an "unconventional student" (read: older) I have a few other items on my back-to-school shopping list that my younger classmates don't have:
- a seat cushion. Sitting for fifty minutes on a hard plastic molded chair is murder on my back. I always carry a special seat cushion that has a cutout for my tailbone. It makes life much easier. Of course, getting up out of the chair after fifty minutes is still a challenge ...
- orthodics. These aging feet have walked a lot more miles than those of my cohorts, and they're carrying around a bit more weight. They need help. I’m not quite at the walker stage yet, thank you very much, but the muscles occasionally complain.
- a recorder. I found out there’s one on my laptop! Technology is wonderful. My memory isn't what it used to be, and I can't write or type fast enough to detail EVERYTHING the prof says. Besides, he talks really fast.
So I have a few extra things in my bag. That’s okay. I’ve got a few extra years of life experience on my classmates. And I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
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