A Little Break from the Cold

We had a brief two day reprieve from the bitter cold and snow.  The warmer weather made it seem almost impossible that we were doing this just two days before..... 

 

We actually got to see the ground again!  We broke out the tricycle for an hour or so and pretended like spring was really on the way.  We tried to carry that spring feeling over to the next day by taking a stroll.  Unfortunately the temps dropped so much that we only made it to the Stone Arch Bridge before we decided we were too cold to go on.  So the miserably cold weather is back again.

 

Evangeline brought this paper home from preschool the other day.  She said, "These are the things my mommy likes: summertime, bread- wheat bread, flowers, feeding the birds, and apple trees."  (That's a little bird peeking out from behind the tree eating his bird seed, and that's Mommy by the tree wearing a dress.)  Oh, I love how she sees me.

 

I went to the library the other day and stumbled upon this gem of a quote, "A Perfectly Kept House is the Sign of a Life Misspent".  It was actually the title of a book by a woman named Mary Randolph Carter.  My, oh my, this one really resonated with me....and I couldn't agree more, Mary! 

 

As I lay down with Evangeline each night to tuck her in we usually chat for a bit about various things before I leave the room.  Tonight she was so sleepy she said, "Can we just lay? My peepers can't stay open."

And the Exciting News Is........

***Zachary and Candice are expecting a baby!!!!  Yay!  I'm going to be an auntie again!  They had a really suspenseful day last week when they had to have an early ultrasound because of the possible detection of two heartbeats, but with a sigh of relief they found out there would only be one little Walters baby to be born this time around.  That might just be all the world can handle at once anyway. ***

 

Evangeline had a piece of her artwork in a children's art show at the local art gallery.  She told me that the flowers in her collage are singing and that's what the squiggly lines are showing.  She aptly named her artwork "Singing Flowers". 

 

 As I've said before, Evangeline loves the spinning wheel.  As she was checking it out the other day she declared that it's an "awesome machine".  I have to note that I knitted this dress for Evangeline when I was pregnant.  Of course I didn't take the time to check my gage hence she is wearing it at 4 and a half years old. 

 

One night last week as we were having dinner with Grandpa at Rick's Smokehouse she wanted to know why there were so many thermometers on the wall.  "I don't know, your guess is as good as mine", I said.  Not liking my answer she said, "no mommy, my guesses are questionable!!"

Spread Love...

“Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own home. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor . . . Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.” -Mother Teresa

 

Valentine's Day was nice.  We had conferences so I got to leave school at 11:00.  On the way home I visited a little sewing shop and bought a charm pack.  It snowed.  It was a pretty snow: the kind with the big flakes.  I picked Evangeline up early from school.  Kyle came home earlier than usual.  We ate chili and spent the evening watching the Olympics. 



 

Here Evangeline is pretending she has long hair with one of her famous "clip fabric to her hair" looks.

 

For Valentine's Day Kyle and I got Evangeline 2 new books and a little box of chocolates.  One of the books is a chapter book.  I wondered if she would have the attention span for a chapter book.  We started her new book, "Juliet, the Valentine's Fairy" on Valentine's Day and she is HOOKED!  She keeps begging for just one more chapter.  One of the best parts is that the book has a map in the front.  Evangeline really likes maps.  I came in to check on her one night last week and found her with the light on studying every page.  She said, "I love this book so much! It has a map in it!"  I said, "pretty cool, huh".  Evangeline replied, "It's cooler than a frog on a log."

Snow Bunnies

What a week.  I made it through my evaluation.  Whew,  job secured for another year.  It's a completely exhausting 5 day process. 

 

A few weekends ago Papa and Karen took me and the girls to see Disney on Ice.  It was fun.  The girlies had a great time munching cotton candy and dreaming about being princesses.   

 

These little things Evangeline brings home from Ms. Linda's are the things I just want to keep forever.  However, I know that if I did I would need an additional room in our house to store them.  

 

And lately I've been receiving these notes to "Mom" that she surprises me with when I pick her up.  They are just precious.  She's excited that she can spell "Mom" and she loves to fold up paper like cards to give to me.  She tells me that she thought about me all day and it just makes me smile from the inside out. 

 

This is how she draws her mama.  She always draws me with my hair down, which is kind of amusing since she hates it when I wear it down and always insists I pull it back.  She says I don't look like Mommy with my hair down.  

 

We had yet another snow day last week.  This time I was ready with some fun activities to pass the time stuck indoors.  We made snow ice cream which was a big hit considering eating snow is one of Evangeline's favorite things to do in this weather.   

 

I also had a little "color it yourself" purse I bought a few years ago that I intended to use for a gift, but I guess I never got around to giving it.  It's just been sitting in our closet waiting for the right time to be used.  It was a big thrill for the little girl. So she worked on coloring her bag while I worked on my quilt.... I started a quilt class a few weeks ago and have already gained a wealth of knowledge on the quilting process.  There is something very addicting about cutting and sewing little pieces of fabric together.  There's a nice rhythm to it.  It's fun to see how it comes together, much like putting together a puzzle.   

 

So this is how we've been spending our bonus days at home.  After so long we decide to bundle up and take a walk until our noses are frozen, then we come in for some hot cocoa. I do love the Midwest.  I can enjoy this weather as much as a hot summer day.  Each offer their own special kind of beauty.  

 

Oh, this darling girl...how I love her so.  As we were walking the other day and I'm listening to her babble on, I just felt so blessed knowing that I get to spend my life with this special person.  I look forward to every single stage of her. 

She loves to "read" a book to us called "What Makes a Rainbow".  I totally enjoy listening to her version of it.  She will start each page out with "What makes a rainbow?" asked the bunny".  The bunny asks a different animal or bug on each page.  My favorite is when she gets to the grasshopper and says "Hopgrasser, what makes a rainbow?" Then she makes the "hopgrasser" say "green a'course". 

She always likes to remind us that she can do things all by "herselth". 

One of her favorite little things is this tiny pink Bible, like the ones people hand you on campus of just the New Testament.  She is always thumbing through that thing.  Sometimes it's a Bible, sometimes it's a songbook, sometimes it's instructions on how to build your own violin.  She loves it.  Yesterday as we were getting ready for school she asked me if she could take her Bible to Ms. Linda's to show her friends.  She very adamantly said to me "if I don't show my friends my Bible and I just give up, they will never know about the Bible."  It was simply adorable.  How could I refuse.  She tucked it in her Little Mermaid purse and took it with her to school.

She has had babies on the brain lately.  I don't know if it's because of her burning desire to be a sister, or if it's just talk from school that has her all excited about it.   The other night as I was laying with her before bed she said, "I started out as an egg, right?"  "Yes." I said.  Then she said, "so you eat a magical egg and then there's a baby inside you?" 

Happy Birthday, Mother of Love and Laughter

Here is my mother of love and laughter, as we affectionately have called her through the years.  She is 61 and has never looked better. 

 

We celebrated Mom's birthday in Patricksburg since Zachary and Candice are all settled in at the farm.  They have the house so nicely fixed up.  It's great for everyone to have them living there taking care of the place.  I should have taken more pictures of the inside.  Next time. 

 

Instead I took pictures of the food.....

 

Kyle and Zachary tried out their shooting skills.  They have plans in the works to turkey hunt this fall.  I do my best not to snicker.  Here they are checking out their target. 

 

Mom and I took a walk in through the old house, which is something I like to do every so often.  It's kind of sad, but in a weird way, kind of comforting.  If I stare long enough I can picture Grandma's Thanksgiving spread along this wall....

 

 

...and Grandpa's chair right where that black bookcase is.  I can stand quietly and still feel the warmth from the wood burning stove in the winter, and the cool relief from the air conditioner unit this room would offer during the hot summer months.  I can picture the couch where I would sit and get crochet lessons from my aunts, and the smell of Grandma's fried chicken that would make its way from the kitchen. So many memories fill what is left of this little place.  Happy, wonderful, priceless memories.  

 

We stepped into Grandpa's old CB room and got a kick out of all of the things he had on the wall.  His old CB's are still sitting there.  I remember peeking in this room and seeing him sitting there talking to scrambled voices, and wondering what in the world he was doing.  

 

We found his handle...

 

and his blueprint for peace.

 

Oh, Grandpa, there will never be another one like you. 

It was a lovely, lovely day celebrating my mommy.  She is one heck of a piece of work.  I just don't know what I would do without her.  Happy birthday, dear Mother!!!!