Family Archives - Page 22 of 26 - Enjoying the Small Things

at home.

May 7, 2011 By Kelle

I am back home.

Where May means daffodils and bluebells.

I miss this soft grass.

I miss dandelions.

And spring that feels like a new beginning rather than a slight shift in constant.

We’ve seen old friends.

And slept five to a bed last night, with bodies of cousins overlapped like a nice lattice crust.

My heart is full. This house is full of cousins and aunts and my grandma who made us promise when she went to bed last night that we wouldn’t have any fun because she didn’t want to miss it.

My mama’s getting married today. It’s a good day.

More to come from the Great Lake State.

Lainey says “Kimmif” for “Christmas,” and I stifle laughter every time she says it. Like “Hey Mama, maybe we can color Nana Kate a picture for Kimmif” or “Hey, can we have bacon for breakfast on Kimmif?”

Well, to clarify, for Kimmif, we are exploring the art of nothing. As in every time my phone beeps, I click it off and ignore it. And, as much as this has always been my place to “feed the good wolf” and get away, the computer’s not the place I want to be right now. There’s Candyland and cookie dough and another Lifetime movie about a single mother who falls in love with a smoldering mountain man on Christmas Eve and lives happily ever after.

For the first time ever, we are “just us” on Christmas day. No grandmas or grandpas or other speck of extended gene pool. Just us, and we’re rockin’ it. (although, for the record, if any family happens to walk in our door on Christmas Eve to surprise us, I’d die a million deaths and be forever grateful…just sayin’.)

We soaked up Brett’s mama and stepdad before they left for up north.

Today, we headed out to see Santa. Lainey was a little iffy on the whole seeing-him-in-person thing, and we swore she’d cave and lose it when it came to sitting on his lap. In fact, I would have bet money on the fact that she’d be in the stroller crying and hiding her face while Nella swooned and charmed him, but, alas, my big girl was cool and the little one lost it.

Thank you, Peyton, for Lainey’s sparkle shirt!

And this whole Santa picture experience does nothing but entertain the grown-ups because the kids are all frozen and posed, and the interaction between Santa and child is completely awkward and a bit silent, but behind this whole scene? Why, there’s Brett and I, snapping pictures and laughing our asses off because the weirdness and stillness is completely hilarious and memorable.

Why this is so funny, I’m not sure. But hey…we have cool pictures for the scrapbook.

There’s a lot I want to say. There’s a whole lot of high-on-Christmas stuff flying’ around my brain these days, and I could gush disgustingly right now on just how much I love these days. But, you get it, right?

My sister says Blitzen hates carrots and that he spits them out in the driveway on Christmas Eve. She says her kids loved this little story bit. So, I told Lainey this whole thing, and she’s thrilled by the story line…can’t quit talking about how we’ll leave carrots for Donner and Vixen, but that she knows Blitzen’s just going to spit them out. That alone has my brain spinning, and it’s dominoes here after. It reminds me of the power I possess. I am the matriarch of our family traditions, and Dammit, they’re gonna be good.

We call this the “Love Touch.” It happens several times a day. She reaches out and touches our faces, and when it happens, time stands still.

So, there.
It’s family time right now.

Events are slow and purposeful, and I am happy to have good reason to breathe it all in.

Wherever you are, whoever you are with, Merry Christmas.

Or, as Lainey would say…Merry Kimmif.

Our Christmas card this year…

Reading between the lines, I intend this post to scream one thing: Grateful, grateful, grateful.

For this crazy, soul-stretching year.

Little details of these blessed holiday days to come.
In the meantime, make your own memorable.
Much love to every home these words land.

Merry Kimmif.

Mama’s Home and the Professor’s Debut

September 23, 2010 By Kelle

Okay, with two continental jaunts under our belt and the first day of fall at our door–not to mention a harvest moon, whatever that is–I’m ready for all the comforts of home.

And there ain’t no one to make home feel like home more than a mama.

Guess who’s here?

Grandma Krissy has arrived, and that means late-night board games and Discovery Channel shows and a trip to the yarn store and apple pie and smells from the kitchen and all the things that make an autumn-hungry Florida home seem like Fall.

And this post can’t be too long because, as I type, this cinnamony scent is growing thicker, spreading faster and right about now the perfect sugared crust is bubbling brown and seeping apple-y syrup, and a mug is frosting in the freezer for the milk that will accompany a late pie snack.

With that said…I’m happy to be home.

It took me awhile to feel like the unforgiving sun and prickly grass of southwest Florida was my home, but it feels so right-where-we-belong now. I miss the scarlet maples of a midwest Autumn. I loved the energy and evening glow of New York City’s skyline. I imagined myself in artsy glasses scouring the hippie shops of mountainesque Missoula. But home is right where we are, and after all that travel, it feels good to settle back into our salty sea-breezed, palm-peppered, sun-soaked town.

I rifled through our monstrous duffle bag in front of the front door–the one I haven’t even bothered to unpack yet–for a clean tank top this morning before setting out with Grandma and the girls to feel a little bit of our home. My mom wanted to do something “nature-y”, so to the hot and humid wetlands of Corkscrew swamp we headed for a two-mile boardwalk trail amid thick Cypress woods.

A far cry from Montana, today’s walk had me drenched with humidity after peeling Nella off my chest. And humidity is just a nice word for sweat.

And having this cool, contrasting perspective of having just been to the mountains of Montana made me appreciate our little Florida even more today. Because they are both different and beautiful and rich with all kind of wonder in their own way. Apples to oranges. Moose to alligators. Mountain lions to snowy egrets.

And to top it off, one of our familiar afternoon storms rolled in today, bringing with it very jumpable puddles.

It feels good to be home.

And finally…

The noise of everyday life continues amid the calm of the season. I am learning the joy of celebrating milestones that are extra special. While savoring the magic of her *boneless puddle* (thank you, Philip, for the term) that sinks so perfectly into our shoulder as she falls asleep, there’s also the clapping and the hooting and the Go-Nella-Go! that comes from pre-crawl rocking on all fours and standing with little support.

We love our P.T.!

And finally, the debut of The Professor.

We never forget our gratitude for any of our family member’s health, but especially Nella’s because D.S. does come with a list of added concerns–ones that have found a comfortable place in my mind right between the regions of obsessively-dwelling-too-much and ignorantly-forgetting-about-it. I know they are there. I read the books. I make the appointments. I proactively parent my designer-gened kitten as best as I know how, and that’s a carefully crafted brew of research and instincts, but mostly just a shit-load of love.

With that said, when we took her for her 6 month eye appointment, it took me off guard when the doctor concluded our lengthy appointment with a non-chalant, “So, she needs glasses.” Like it was no big deal. He might as well have just said she had a hang-nail.

It is no big deal. Especially when we are treading a lot worse what-ifs in life.

But I’m still a mama. A mama who’s memorized the sweet face of my almond-eyed one so meticulously, I can trace her cheeks in my sleep. So, it took me a couple swallows and blinks before I got there.

Okay, she needs glasses. This is cake. We’ll rock it out.

And, um…a good internet search for the smallest rectangular frames I could find and a chocolate brown paint job and…behold, I present…

The Professor.

Both Brett and I thought she’d look so different and when we finally slid them on, we just laughed. Our funny little professor. We still have some questions and are a little iffy on the far-sighted script (just one eye), so we have an appointment in Miami in December, but at least until then, we’re gonna do this Lisa Loeb style.

Pie’s outta the oven, so I’ll wrap this up.

But first, I am so excited to introduce a new sponsor: Bel Kai Designs. I’ve had my Freedom necklace for a few months now and its vintagey charm makes it unique and beautiful and the perfect choice when I’m perusing my jewelry drawer for something that will stand out.

Some of my favorites from her collection:

And if any of you have traveled the adoption journey, Bel Kai has the most beautiful Adoption Journey necklace customized for the special place your love was born. Enter “kelle” at discount and receive 10% off your order.

Scrabble game a’ callin. That and some hot apple pie.

Grandma’s here. Much love to come.