(Because some people like Blogger and some like WordPress, i am putting the same content at both. If you would prefer to read this on the other site, it is linked here.)
Bigger Girl moved out yesterday, and so at least for now, our nest is empty. (Yes, if one of them needs to come home for a short time, they know they have a safe place to land. Things happen.)
These last couple of days i’ve been thinking about the memories and the good times and some of the reasons i am glad to be a parent, so i thought i would share some of the those. Of course, i am thankful for many more memories than i can list, but there are a few that stand out.
#1 Son singing “Oh Little Town of Destrehan” (the spoof song by a local artist) in church because his mother in her warped sense of humor didn’t teach him the correct words.
Bigger Girl simply picking up her sandwich and taking a bite as if nothing had happened after the dining table collapsed.
#2 Son coming home from the creek and saying, “Hey, mom! Guess what! I caught seven snakes today, and I only got bitten twice!”
Little Girl making her own mascot costumes and performing for a local school.
Summer vacations at the beach, swimming, castle building, fishing, watching the Blue Angels and going to the zoo to pet the lemurs and kangaroos.
#1 Son helping perform CPR on a friend when a motorcycle lost a wheel and the rider flew off the bike and crashed into her. (She and the rider recovered.)
Bigger Girl asking if we could volunteer to clean cages of cats up for adoption at a local pet store, thus beginning our years of volunteering with the current shelter.
#2 Son taking over the BBQ pit at age 9 when he said, “That’s not how Grandpa does it. Here, let me show you!”
Little Girl driving the Jalopy into the front of the house. (Yes, i thought it was funny then, and i think it’s funny now, and she is a very good, safe driver these days.)
Walt Disney World vacations that were all we dreamed they would be.
Sleepovers with friends, pizza nights, the slip-n-slide set up on the hill, summers at the pool, and #2 son getting up on the roof to practice his golf swing.
No matter how old they get, they are my babies, and i am grateful for the joy they’ve brought to my life.
If you have a list of things for which you are thankful (and it does not have to be ten, we aren’t picky), our hostess is Ms. Josie Two-Shoes and you can link up at Ten Things of Thankful. It is a great way to spread the joy around.
Today is:
Day of Remembrance for Oleg the Prophet -- Asatru/Slavic Pagan
Four Chaplains Day -- US (by act of Congress, honoring the four chaplains of the Dorchester who gave their life jackets to others and went down with the ship on Feb. 3, 1943)
Fukuju no mai (Jimai) -- Sensouji Temple, Japan (dance of the seven gods of fortune)
Halfway Point of Winter/Summer -- which it is depends, of course, on your hemisphere; enjoy that cold weather will warm soon, or that cooler temps will relieve your hot spells
Heroes' Day -- Mozambique
Homstrom -- Scuol, Switzerland (burning of the straw man effigy of Old Man Winter, signaling the coming spring and winter's demise)
Laura Ingalls Wilder Gingerbread Sociable -- Pomona, CA, US (Pomona Public Library has on permanent display many of her original manuscripts)
Magnolia and Fish Jubilee -- Fairy Calendar
Martyr's Day -- Sao Tome and Principe
National Carrot Cake Day
Nuestra Señora de Suyapa -- Honduras (Festival of the Virgin of Suyapa, Patroness of Honduras)
Orchid Festival -- Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO, US (through Mar. 25)
Setsubun-sai (Bean-Throwing Festival) -- Japan/Shinto (many fests throughout Japan)
St. Anskar's Day (patron of Denmark, Scandinavia, Sweden; Bremen, Germany; Hamburg, Germany)
St. Blaise's Day/Blessing of Throats Day (Patron of animals, builders, carvers, healthy throats, stonecutters, veterinarians, wool-combers, wool weavers; Dalmatia; Anguillara Sabazia, Italy; Bovolone, Italy; Camastra, Sicily, Italy; Cassano allo Ionio, Italy; Castellania, Italy; Doues, Italy; Dubrovnik, Croatia; Militello, Sicily, Italy; Montecatini Val di Cecina, Italy; Palombara Sabina, Italy; Pietrasanta, Italy; Revello, Italy; Sacrofano, Italy; against coughs, goiters, throat diseases, whooping cough, wild beasts)
Takisanji Oni Matsuri -- Takisan-ji Temple, Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, Japan
The Day the Music Died -- anniversary of the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson)
Veterans' Day -- Thailand
Yukon Quest International 1,000 Mile Sled Dog Race -- Whitehorse, YT, Canada to Fairbanks, AK, US (two week international competition for the best mushers and dogs from around the world)
Anniversaries Today:
Jean-Claude van Damme weds Darcy Lapier, 1994
Wake Forest University is established, 1834
Birthdays Today:
Isla Fisher, 1976
Maura Tierney, 1965
Keith Gordon, 1961
Thmas Calabro, 1959
Nathan Lane, 1956
Morgan Fairchild, 1950
Dave Davies, 1947
Blythe Danner, 1943
Fran Tarkenton, 1940
Shelley Berman, 1926
Joey Bishop, 1918
Simone Weil, 1909
James Michener, 1907
Norman Rockwell, 1894
Gertrude Stein, 1874
Elizabeth Blackwell, 1821
Horace Greeley, 1811
Debuting/Premiering Today:
"Victor BorgeShow"(TV), 1951
"The Three Caballeros"(Cartoon Film; US debut), 1945
"Face the Music"(Musical), 1932
"Le carnaval romain"(Berlioz, Op. 9), 1844
"Semiramide"(Opera, Rossini), 1823
Today in History
Bartolomeu Dias of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, becoming the first known European to travel so far south, 1488
The first paper money in America is issued by the colony of Massachusetts, 1690
Philadelphia establishes a "pesthouse" to quarantine immigrants, 1743
The Dutch States-General forbid the export of windmills, 1752
Spain recognizes US independence, 1783
The world's first commercial cheese factory is established in Switzerland, 1815
The sovereignty of Greece is confirmed in a London Protocol, 1830
The Wisconsin Supreme Court declares the US Fugitive Slave Law unconstitutional,1855
Emperor Meiji becomes the 122nd emperor of Japan, 1867
The 15th Amendment to the US Constitution, guaranteeing Black suffrage, is passed, 1870
Albert Spalding, with only $800, starts a sporting goods company, which eventually manufactured the first official baseball, tennis ball, basketball, golf ball, and football (American style football), 1876
Circus owner P.T. Barnum buys Jumbo the elephant, 1882
The 16th Amendment to the US Constitution, the income tax, is ratified, 1913
Canada's original Parliament building, in Ottowa, burns down, 1916
Percival Prattis becomes the first African-American news correspondent allowed in the United States House of Representatives and Senate press galleries, 1947
A plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa kills Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, and pilot Roger Peterson and the incident becomes known as The Day the Music Died, 1959
British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan speaks of the "a wind of change" of increasing national consciousness blowing through colonial Africa, signalling that his Government was likely to support decolonisation, 1960
The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft makes the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the Moon, 1966
In Cairo, Yasser Arafat is appointed Palestine Liberation Organization leader at the Palestinian National Congress, 1969
New York Police Officer Frank Serpico is shot during a drug bust in Brooklyn and survives to later testify against police corruption, 1971
John Buster and the research team at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center announce history's first embryo transfer, from one woman to another resulting in a live birth, 1984
Astronaut Eileen Collins becomes the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle as mission STS-63 gets underway from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, 1995
The New York Giants defeated the heavily favored and previously undefeated 18-0 New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, 17-14, in what is known to be one of the greatest upsets in sports history, 2008
I love to hear about your kids. You're a very good parent. It shows. These are some very fond memories. I will tell you that when they leave you have more money. That is if you're not giving it to them. By experience I would recommend you don't. It sure didn't turn out well for us.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous thankful weekend. ♥
This is my favorite list of thankfuls you have done, although I always enjoy them. You are a wonderful mom and it sounds like you raised some wonderful children.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful sharing about your children and being a mom! You have brought them up well and its time to release them.
ReplyDeleteNice list indeed.
ReplyDeleteThe Day the Music Died - I can only imagine the music we lost, especially Buddy Holly, he had so many hits in such a short time and his music was evolving much like that of the Beatles years later.
Your post is wonderful. Full of laughter, love and memorable moments. Just what family life should be.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite list of thankfuls, too. It brings back so many memories about my kids... well, not the one of Little Girl crashing the car into the house. Unless you count my eldest crashing her Barbie Corvette into the back deck and breaking off the windshield her very first drive.
ReplyDeleteThose are some mighty good things to be thankful for We can all be thankful for just what ever we have. Doesn't matter if it is big or little. Have a great day.
ReplyDeletelol for Item 1.5 & 2!
ReplyDelete"Bigger Girl simply picking up her sandwich and taking a bite as if nothing had happened after the dining table collapsed.
#2 Son coming home from the creek and saying, “Hey, mom! Guess what! I caught seven snakes today, and I only got bitten twice!”
very funny/very cool (for family stories)
What a sweet idea for a post! I might have to borrow the idea sometime. Enjoy your empty nest!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post. Thank you for sharing special family moments. Your kids certainly provided plenty of laughter and maybe a few early gray hairs :)
ReplyDeleteNational Carrot Cake Day?! Yes! :D
I love how you've picked a theme for your TToT post. Memories of children are worth remembering and also sharing, more than once. Glad you have these in writing!
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of snakes was your son catching? Did he bring them home?
Thanks for sharing these memories.
I had an involuntary shudder at the snake bite one! I too am so grateful for my grown children. I love reflecting back on the stories (can't think of any of ours that include snakes, but there are definitely some lizard stories!), and I love seeing who they have become.
ReplyDeleteI love everything about your list! My favorite has to be your daughter calmly eating her sandwich after the table collapsed. I don't know what that hit me like it did, but I giggled out loud over the mental picture!
ReplyDeleteToo funny! I love the mental images of your children.
ReplyDeleteYou've got brave kids there! And with a sense of humour too! Will be coming round the mountain!
ReplyDeleteLovely and some silly family memories it sounds like. I can relate with the Disney one because my family went twice, once when I was eight and again when I was thirteen. I'll never forget that. I am sure your children won't either.
ReplyDeleteI would much rather eat actual carrots instead of in a cake.
The elephant you mention died in a town, not too far from me here in canada. He was hit by a train. Sad stuff.
Have a great weekend. Thanks for sharing all these memories with all of us.