Posts tagged “daughters”

Minecraft: Self-Reliance & Empathy

Posted on December 22, 2014

They were in the middle seat of the car; Finley was asleep in the row behind them. It was dark through the windows and snow was mixing with rain. Ave was playing Minecraft on her iPod, while Briar did the same on her phone. “Briar, can you make me a pyramid?” Avery asked quietly holding her iPod toward Briar. It was the tail end of a long day. We were all still exhausted from the monster loop we did trick-or-treating in  the neighborhood. We’d gotten up first thing and driven to Vermont to see friends in a production of Joseph. The girls had been champs, getting along in the backseat and playing very little of the “Are we there yet” game. “Not right now,…

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Categories: Random

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Before Bedtime Requests End; I Hope I Hear Them

Posted on December 16, 2014

Somehow I thought that in the years of chronicling the ups and downs of parenting, maybe a lesson or two would stick. Perhaps a bit of writing it down would offer up a moment of grace to keep me from utterly screwing things up because I’m in a bad mood. Mostly that doesn’t work,  the truth ends up being that as I tally board at the end of the night it comes in at a draw, the screw ups and wins in a dead heat. The other night I was looking through my iPhoto library and was sobered by the absence of photos of Briar. What happened? There’s Ave, there’s Fin, there’s another selfie. Do I not see her? Are pictures of her not as easily sharable…

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Categories: Mama Sap, Random

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Can’t You See You Like I Do?

Posted on December 8, 2014

“Mama, you are so pretty in that shirt,” I turned to look at where the voice had come from and saw Briar. I had known it was her talking, but the words were so out of context with how I was feeling. Her lips were turned up in the sweetest little smile and her eyes danced, happy. “Thank you, sweet love,” I said smiling at her. My smile was genuine, my face calm, but my insides were racing. I’d gone through the morning bedraggled, stretched out pajama bottoms hanging from my frame, a t-shirt with just a tank top underneath, and my hair doing that 40-something, morning halo of kinks. The bags under my eyes taunt me, even after a night of more than…

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Categories: Me

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Travel Travails Triumph

Posted on November 23, 2014

If it weren’t for suspicious luggage and whispers of a bomb scare and a subsequent lockdown in the baggage claim at Orlando’s airport, I’d have written a proper post. Instead, there is this: a post with two images that capture the most important things about today—the anticipation of an adventure as seen from the window seat and then, after so many hiccups…             And a trip to the beach to do cartwheels and scream as they leapt in the surf hours after bedtime had passed.     Sometimes dwelling on the goo in between isn’t worth the time.

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Categories: Random

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Outtakes that Stole My Heart

Posted on November 18, 2014

About a week ago, maybe a little longer, we did a photo shoot for work. The photographer, Rachael, caught me talking with the girls and chirped, “Ok, stop. Let’s just get a couple.” Then she called Sean over, “C’mon, this’ll be your family Christmas card.” We laughed at the time, looking at them now I am so very grateful. Self-care, family photos, just stopping to laugh, it doesn’t always happen. Thanks to Trampoline and Rachael, it did. We did. Going to let the smiles and poker faces speak for themselves.  

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Categories: Random

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