"Mama, can we........?"

".....Watch the Waltons when we are finished with school?!"

(although, she called them "The Wilsons" the first time)

"....print off the sign language alphabet ....I wanna learn it!"

".....get me an abacus? I like those things!"

I realize that my child is a little "different". I mean, she prefers fresh fruit to candy. She would rather HIDE the Easter Eggs for others instead of hunting them. She can hang out with a room full of women for 3 hours and paint pottery, all the while truly contributing to any and all conversations.........but I think this sort of different is cool. It isn't "pushed" upon her. She surely has her own sense of style, her own ideas, her own dreams. I don't know that I would call her "extra mature" or anything.....just different. That's cool with me. As long as she is being a good Christian example, as best she can, then I can't complain.....not.one.bit.

some of our top lessons learned while in NYC.....

that time spent with dear friends (this is G with Pastor Pete) in a different town is extra special memory making time.......
That GROM gelato in Greenwich Village is the most incredible sweet treat we've EVER had.....

That EVERYONE is wanting to make a buck (or two, or five) on each corner & they don't mind dressing up to do it...........

that riding the subway is a wonderful mode of transportation........

that you should NEVER get a pedicure right before going to a city where you do a ton of walking! Those rough spots on the feet are there to PROTECT and THICK (not those thin ones) SOCKS are a MUST!!!!!

It was wonderful, gnarly blisters and all......more photos (and learning experiences!) to come.....

Learning to Give.....

I wish I could say that I have taught our child to give to others......but I have to give God Almighty the credit....He is the one who gave her the EXTRA-giving heart! Please go to our other blog to see the story........she is a precious child. I know she will do many great things in her life....this is just the beginning........

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Me & my Daddy, Easter 1972, out back of my Granna & Pappy's house

Tomorrow, St. Patty's Day, is extra special 'cause it's my Daddy's birthday! The big 65! In this photo above, he was 27 years old......insane!!!
I love this photo....I have incredible memories of my grandparent's house on Paragon Mills Road in Nashville. Our property on Tampa Drive backed up to theirs so we could cut through and be there in 2 seconds. Can you see the metal steps on the far left of the photo? Well, every so often I drive by the house, clustered in the middle of a bunch of little "shacks" basically, and the last time I went, I knocked on the door and asked if I could walk around back, that it was my mother's childhood home. They let me (thank you) and when I saw those stairs, I burst into tears! Where Daddy and I are standing is now part of the yard. It's amazing how things change....and how time flies. Happy Birthday to Gracie's Poppa. You've are the greatest Daddy and Poppa the world has ever known! ;) (well, in MY world at least! ha ha)

a new "discovery" for G.....

The G girl has discovered poetry......she is really diggin' it.....

Especially the work of this odd lookin' dude....
Shel Silverstein!!!

We un-earthed my copy of "A Light in the Attic" that I purchased when I was in college and taking a children and adolescent lit course. Man, that was a fun class.....

We purchased a copy today of "Where the Sidewalk Ends".....

I've gotta find my copy of "The Giving Tree" and check out some of his other work.

He used to sort of scare me. I find him quite talented and brilliant now....

"problem" solvin'.....

G and her new "mini me" from the Barbie Basics collection.....

not really a "problem" to solve, but these sassy little shoes were just the plain slip on mule and really, really, really would NOT stay on her feet! We grabbed a roll of skinny black ribbon and voila! Perfecto! We decided they looked better this way anyway......
(she's gotta show off that red pedicure, ya know......)

We Love.......

The Film? The incredible Actor?.....Both!

LuLu's voice? Her songs? Her acting?.....all 3!

If you have not seen "To Sir With Love", please do. When I was about 15 years old I was enjoying a lazy Saturday afternoon with my Mama. We were watching tv and happened to catch the beginning of this wonderful film. Some years later, I found it on VHS. I wore my copy out. I love the music, the accents, Lulu, the fab gear everyone wears.....most of all I love the message. Sidney Poitier?? My word, he is awesome.

So, we rented it on Netflix. Gigi trusts my judgement in stuff to watch.....I mean,afterall, I am the one who turned her on to Happy Days, Gidget, The Monkees, The Patty Duke Show, Laverne & Shirley, etc. etc. etc......

so the 3 of us sat down after dinner and watched it. The racial and social status issues during the 60's are a great lesson opportunity(and you know I took that bait, man!)
I sadly put the red envelope in the mail today......

I must find a copy on DVD.

Play it cool, Daddy-O......

As we prepare for our field trip to NYC, I've been hunting down my personal film archives for films set in NYC to watch in the afternoons (or on our creative Fridays) and today we watched West Side Story. Well.....almost all of it....**(see below)
Aside from incredible choreography and theatrics, there is a lot to be learned in this classic musical.....it's about cultural barriers/racial issues, the time period/history, sociology...you get it. We discussed these things throughout the film. Racial lines that society draws are thankfully less severe (at least in our corner of the world) but it's still there and we discuss it when a learning experience comes along......I saw this as a great opportunity, the issues between the white "Jets" and the Puerto Rican "Sharks"......

Tony and Maria's love story is tragic....and short lived. Boy, I love Natalie Wood. I believe I might need to find some non fiction books about her. What a gorgeous life ended too soon.....

**(Gracie started crying a little during the rumble when Riff and Bernardo were stabbed and killed.....then she straightened up. But when Chino killed Tony, she started bawling, picked up the remote and swiftly turned the movie off! Such a tender heart.....maybe just a *tad* too tender.........) I wanted to sing to her....."Play it cool, Gracie-O".....but bit my tongue.

We shall try it again....when she is a little older.....

stickin' like glue......

Rose has become G's shadow. She sleeps with her and supervises her school sessions on the computer by sitting on the back of G's chair (photos to come).....Rose will be 15 this summer (or is it 16?!) and since her sister Cosey passed away 2 years ago, she has really become a social butterfly-kitty!
School is going great......we have added a great supplemental program on the computer called "Time 4 Learning". She looooooooooves it! She easily spends an hour on English, Math, Science and Social Studies, so I set a timer to remind us to move on to the next task! I'm guessing this is because of the computer age kiddos way of learning......amazing. I can go in to the site under the parent's login and see her grades and where she is on lessons. Gotta love that! Her cursive is beautiful and she is learning the importance of writing to people. Rhythmic gymnastics is great.....no more tears when she doesn't do something perfect right away....her coach was bragging on that last night. I'm so proud of my smart, sweet, polite, precious girl!