Random Acts of Kindness

As my children and I walked down the sidewalk to a nearby Duane Reade a sweet, elderly lady stopped and told me she wanted to to donate a hat and a scarf to me and my kids. She said she does it all the time for people she knows and she wanted to to do it for us.

I was stunned. I had never thought what to do in that situation. Oddly enough however, I have been in the situation before. That is how we got our very sturdy double stroller. That time however we seriously looked like we were desperate for it (we were too--it has been such a blessing).

We ended up with a beautifully knitted bright red scarf and barrette (R says he can't wait to look French).

I'm going to wash them first, just because, well, you know.

Summer Updates

This is a 100 year old ribbon. Yay for Relief Society. Look at how fabulous my family's kidlets are. This was from Rexburg ID from this summer.

You know you are jealous that you didn't come to this dental office.

I love posing by a mannequin.

Hey teacher, pick me!

I love family reunions.

Look at this fabulous painting--someday I want a painting like this in my kid's room.
I love the nursery rhymes.

The Ouchie of the Week

This posting may contain an image that is slightly disturbing. If you are affected by pictures of abnormally large blisters, shield your eyes.

You may have noticed a weird addendum to the side my foot today. Well, it is official. I have got the biggest blister I have ever had. Sadly I cannot claim to have gotten it in some courageous way like a death-defying feat to save the whales or even climbing a tree to rescue a caterpillar. It came from an attempted roller blade ride to Shore Road (approximately 1 mile away) with one pair of normal socks and roller blades from the thrift store.

I started out, sure I got a few amused smiles--okay a lot of amused smiles. My helmet felt like it should fit when I started but the minute I got outside it promptly determined otherwise. For some reason it preferred to sit on the back of my head (or off) but I pulled it on as quickly as possible.

There was a point when I started going down the hill and decided that I should practice what W suggested. There was a sweet family walking up the hill from below. I stopped to wait for them and the father gave me a sort of worried look and told me, "Just being wary." I smiled understandingly and laughed, "I'd be wary too if I were you." They walked by and I rode on.

It was around then I noticed a small pain in my foot. I rode about 3 more blocks and all of the sudden the pain was excruciating. If I stepped or try to ride at all it felt like a tack entering into my feet (it was awful). I started the mile long trek back to the house and each step was pain filled. I passed a few people and smiled as if nothing was wrong. I tried breathing techniques to quell my attention the pain (you know, like when you have a baby). Apparently I need more practice at that.

A few people gave me really funny looks because I was taking baby steps (they were the most comfortable). An old man walked slowly passed me, that was kind of embarrassing. I just kept on the baby steps until I crossed roads and then I let the pain reign as I raced across.

I took of my shoes the second I got inside the front door and found a blister 1.5 to 2 inches across and an inch tall. In short--OUCH!

I later went to a nearby store and purchased 50 huge band-aids (it takes two to completely cover it). If I ever use those skates again I am going to wear three pairs of socks.


Note to self: Do not buy skates from the thrift store--unless they are brand new.


The oozing part is only a part of the blister. The circled part is how biggish it really is. That white blob is the removed skin, I couldn't bring myself to pull it off. Thank heaven for Neosporin-y anti-everything salves.

Kidlets

Lately I have been striving (somewhat successfully) to enjoy my children more every day and to enjoy all the little things my kids have been doing. I have been impressed by the little things my kids have been doing.

R has started school. He likes it for the most part, but isn't too thrilled with the length (I miss him too so I can't argue with that). He listens well and is quite obedient. He is determined and loves to play any game on the computer. When he was reading to me yesterday I felt so thankful and blessed and proud. Sure he's not ready to start reading professionally, but he is getting better and I can hear the progress.

When I was growing up my parents had me and my brothers read in the car when we went on family trips (you've probably read this before). It always felt like my parents thought I was the best reader in the world and I could almost touch their pride in me. Thanks Mom and Dad! I want my kids to feel that too!

S has been playing with T. She is so loving and kind and they both laugh almost the entire time they are playing. They build castles out of the couch cushions and they tunnel through the blankets. The "cook" yummy food in their kitchen and pretend to eat it. S reads T his favorite book of colors and objects. She shares the telephone when addressed by T (thank you Grandmas for your dear patience in waiting for the telephone transfers). She loves to help with cooking and we've cooked dozens of yummy whole wheat muffins in the last few weeks. She loves to go to the park and makes friends quickly with any girls or boys on the playground. She loves to paint and draw. I am so thankful she is my girl!

T adores W and follows him everywhere. When it comes time for W to go, T will wail for him at the door (until sidetracked). He loves, loves, loves phones. He will spend an hour playing with the same phone. It makes him feel sublimely happy. When I take pictures he gives me a complementary smile. He loves stories and he pushes his stroller any where he can. He says "apple," "ball" "kack kack" (back pack) and a small assortment of other words.

These are just a few of the great things that I love about my dear ones. I am so blessed!

Sky by R

I just found a poem that R wrote last year and I felt like it was so wonderful (it may be the mom in me) that I thought you may like to see it, with his special spelling and all.

Sky

The sky is bloo
anb the clads or wite
and the sun is hot
and i see my shadoe
anh the wind fils gud.

Tooth Fairy

R lost his second tooth last night. In anticipation for the celebrated and exciting tooth fairy he carefully situated the tooth under his pillow during the night.

Somehow the tooth fairy fell asleep on the way and failed to make the proper switch.

Luckily Daddy was there to save the day. He gave her a quick phone call, rushed into the room and told the kids they had to close their eyes so the tooth fairy could come (because, as you know, children cannot see her). Then when they opened their eyes R tore the pillow off of the bed and Ta-da the money was there. That tooth fairy is one clever fairy.


Before this occurred I heard the kids talking together.

R: Do you think the tooth fairy is real? I mean, Santa is real because we see him, but we don't see the tooth fairy. . .

What NOT to say.

Last night I went to GAP to see if I could find a pair of pants that fits. Before making it over to their overpriced pants I stopped to see what was on clearance. It was there I met two sales associates and a woman with her daughter, preparing for another daughters exit to the great unknown--college--in Maine.

Somehow the woman got slightly agitated that the boy sales associate suggested a white shirt with everything (because white seems to go with everything). She wanted a splash of color for her daughter. Finally she burst out, "How old do you think I am?" With a Brooklyn accent the "am" sounded sort of like "yam."

The guy looked at her (he was African American by the way--which I am adding because I found out that between races we have difficulty recognizing facial features and for me--age) and said, "sixty---uhhhh."

The lady said, "Stwop it right there. That is way to old."

Then she asked the other sales associate and me--since I was in the general vicinity. The sales associate kindly said 35. I said 41 (granted I may have given her leeway--you never know if people smoke because that adds about 20 years depending on the amount of time they have smoked).

At any rate she went around guessing people's ages and she guess I was about 5-10 years older than I am. Ugh. Now I remember why we do not EVER talk about people's ages.

Of course she capped it off several times by saying, "But age doesn't really matter to me. Then giving me detailed snippets of her 50+ (which I have nothing against) year life."

Now I understand weight, age, and abilities talks to women --never work--avoid them.

I don't think I'll go back to GAP for awhile.

Albanian Rescue from the Ticket Department

Today was laundry day. So carried 3 very large bags down the stairs and huffed and puffed them into the double stroller and then navigated carefully across the street to the laundromat. This is one of the times I smugly think to myself, "I am so proud of me."

About an hour later someone told me they had to haul their kids out of their house to move their car---and it struck me that I needed to move my car as well. So I ran to the car, passing ticketed vehicles on the way hoping that my car would somehow remain unticketed. I got to the car by which two men were standing. One said to me, referring to the other, "This man saved you from getting a ticket. You owe him $22." Thinking of the price of the ticket (normally $45) I figured this was a fair trade so I said, "I don't have $22 with me right this minute, but I do have $20." The second guy laughed and said not to worry about it.

Then the man that originally spoke said, "Come over here and we'll rinse your car off. He had a pressure washer so that was pretty cool. Then he said, "Are you Albanian?"

Where we live it is most usual to be an immigrant or the son or daughter of an immigrant. It is unusual to be from anywhere other than Brooklyn in the USA. I am asked quite often if I am from Poland or Albania and I always reply that I think my ancestors were, but I am not sure they understand what an ancestor is. So they usual look a little confused and taken aback. Maybe I need to learn how to do speak with a good Brooklyn accent. I have also considered learning the different Russian, Albanian, Arabic, etc. accents so I can act like I blend in and they won't ask where I am from.

Anyway, it was really nice of these people to save us from getting a ticket and to give my car a shower. I was very thankful.

Oh, and my laundry is all clean. . . now to get it all completely folded and put away (the last half of the monumental task).

Saturday is a special day . . .

What could be more fun than spending time as a family. We were trying to find a festival in Red Hook, but ended up going to Ikea and driving around. We pretended we were going on a cruise and drove through the Carribean Princess Cruise parking lot a couple of times. We should have gotten out and taken pictures of us waving at passengers, but they kept giving us the suspicious look so we stayed in the car and took pictures instead. I love being with my dear ones. Each day is a new adventure and I am so thankful to be having an adventure with them--especially my sweet husband that I love profusely! Heaven wouldn't be Heaven without them.

R's happy face about being at Ikea--or something like that makes me happy.

Also, the pictures are blurry because my dear T has a fetish for my phone and will not put it down if he gets his sweet, often dirty hands on it. I think his small, lens size fingertips were all over the lens prior to this picture. It could have also have been that it was taken with a camera phone inside a building.

Apparently he wants a moment at the keyboard and he's sitting next to me saying "Hep! Hep" which means, "Help." He wants to help me. Such a sweetie.

fdhv-- love T

Announcing . . . . . [drumroll please]. . . .

Tiffany and Mike are ENGAGED!!!

Real men are glad to help, whenever and however they can. (Thanks!)

Pictures from the July Utah/Idaho Trip

For those of you not familiar with my dear sister-in-law and her soon-to-be-hubbie they are a couple of the nicest and in my personal opinion best people on the planet (of course, I'm not biased [wink, wink]).
We (myself and my family) are so thankful for them!

P.S. I would also like to note that my bro-in-law Ben also in the picture, is also a real man. He was so helpful when we were in Utah. Thanks Ben! And you should have seen Grandpa VDG loading my kidlets on his shoulders as if they were as light as a feather. Did I mention that we were blessed? That was an understatement, but I couldn't think of a better way to put it.