My very own flowers...

There is something quite fulfilling about being able to use your own flowers.




The vase is milk glass and was one of the many treasures my grandfather owned and thought nothing of. When he died he had so many beautiful things he had bought at thrift stores over the years. The flowers are from my Gardenia tree. This year she has been covered in blooms. Breathtaking don't you think?

Kindergarten here we come again...

After much consideration, praying, and down right crying we (my husband and I) decided to keep the Rooster in Kindergarten one more year. We know all the logical reasons why: he's a young six, he will be at the top of his class, he will gain so much confidence, etc. but nothing prepares you for the heartbreak. While he is completely thrilled that he will be with his teacher again and gets to be her special assistant next year I for one am emotionally spent. We started by telling him that we had heard that his teacher was going to pick one student to be her special assistant next year. He started to cry so I thought "great, here we go!" Turns out he was crying because he wanted to be picked. When I told him it would be him, he was excited. Then it hit him (for one second)... He said "my friends are all going to first grade," and started to cry. It took every fiber of my being to hold it together. I quickly explained how hard first grade would be and that his friends would not have share time, free choice, and all the fun things one does in Kindergarten. Ecstasy, palpable and raw, blatantly on his face and he said "don't worry mommy I'll make new friends." Today was his Kindergarten celebration. Thankfully it was not a graduation but a celebration of the year. My big brave boy got up there and shared his memories of the year. But the one that broke my heart was when he said that what he would remember the most about Kindergarten were his friends. I was doing sooo good until that moment. I bravely tried to pull it together but could not. He was fine and I was giving him the thumbs up but it was hard. The final blow came with the slide show and the pictures of him and his buddies... He is such a gentle and brave soul. I am so proud of him. He really has showed me what courage is. "Stand up tall. To become a real boy you must prove yourself brave, truthful, and unselfish."

No more babies...

Why is that so hard to understand? I love my boy with all of my being and I feel that he's enough. So why do people look at me like I'm committing some great sin against humanity to only have one? To set the record straight, chances are I can't have anymore children. With that said I never pictured myself with more than one. My boy was truly a miracle baby that should not have been conceived with out medical intervention. He came into the world six weeks early and ready for the world. He was healthy and small. He had 10 fingers and 10 toes. I think he could not wait to meet us. The minute he heard my voice he turned his beautiful little head and looked right at me and I fell in love...

Summer is unofficially here...

Summer comes early for us down here in the South. Starting in May the temperatures start to reach the mid 80s and afternoon thunderstorms begin to roll in. Summer has unofficially begun. Now begins the countless hours of me on my treadmill so I can look decent in a bathing suit and Rooster wants to go to Adventure Island every Saturday (thank goodness we have year round passes)! Rooster and his Toh (yes that is what he calls my dad and we're not sure how to spell it either) in the deep end. This is a big deal for the Rooster because although he knows how to swim he's still deathly afraid of the deep. He must trust Toh a lot :-) Here is the Rooster at my parents' pool.

My precious peaches....

I only have one child and now I know the reason that I was born. God gave me the best present 6 years ago and although I make mistakes I try very hard to be a good momma. I cherish every moment with him (even the when he is naughty). Being a momma is the hardest job I've ever had!

But I also have some precious peaches...

Child of 1,000 names..

His name is Richie, but he has 1,000 names (ok not really 1,000). In the famous words of Eloise "he is my mostly companion." I stick with Roo or Rooster but he's been called all of these at some point. Let's count:

1. Buddy
2. Buddy Boy
3. Buddo
4. Bug
5. Bugalicious
6. Buggy
7. Sweet Pea
8. Sugar Plum
9. Roo
10. Richie Roo
11. Rooster
12. Bean
Not quite a thousand but I'm surprised he's not confused. More later...

Countless hours..

I spend countless hours making Legos for my Rooster. As a child I never owned Legos. My cousin always had them and when I tried to make something it was usually unrecognizable. Fast forward 30 years...
They are time consuming but the smile on his face is worth it. Goodnight.

My Gardenias are blooming and a self-portrait for good measure

I decided to play with my old camera. My husband bought it for me 6 years ago and I know it is obsolete by now. I've begged and begged for a new camera to no avail because the one I want, a Cannon EOS Rebel XSi, is "too expensive." So I decided to open the owner's manual on my Kodak and play with different settings.