Hello, Hello?

Oh my goodness! Is anyone still checking this? I realize that it has been eons since I wrote anything. I also realize that I left on a morbid note.

Well, faithful readers (read Grandma and Dad), many things have happened since I last wrote. The highlights include: Claudia breaking her leg, a trip to Philly, Kindergarten for Claudia and Preschool for Wilson.

School is such a bittersweet milestone. I know that Claudia was ready and excited to go, but it is hard to let go. I was nervous about her starting Spanish immersion (a language that I don't know at all, save how to order a beer or two) and the bus is a scary proposition--no seatbelts and lots of older kids.

I guess I did not need to worry. The first day Claudia marched right on that bus and did not even turn around once! No wave, no tears--nothing! Her bus is packed with kids and she did not hesitate to find a seat. She was ready.

My mom said it best, "Claudia is a marvel. A real twenty-first century girl." I like that. I hope that her enthusiasm for school and new challenges will never wane.

It was also a big adventure for Wilson. His first time at school--really his first time away for me. He could properly be called a "mama's boy," so I was anticipating a lot of tears and clutching on to my pants with a pleading look of "don't leave me!"

Well, I guess I over-estimated my appeal or under-estimated the lure of a few good trucks and trains. Wilson found those toys and barely noticed when I kissed him good-bye on this first day. Geez, perhaps my company got quite stale over the summer?!?

Perhaps this is a much a new schooling for me as a mother as it is for them as new students. As hard as it is to see that you child may not need to hold your hand and have you walk them through the world, it is also awe-inspiring to see them make their own little paths. Gulp.

Understandably Inappropriate

With my grandpa's death last week, I encountered a whole new aspect of parenting a four and a half-year-old--explaining death.

I wanted to talk to Claudia about the funeral before we went. Claudia had some expected questions about death, like "how do people die?" or "why do people die?" I tried my best to answer her questions honestly and age appropriately. I was actually surprised by her ready acceptance of my answers without fear. She thoughtful about what I was saying to her, but in the end it did not seem like "big deal" to her.

This isn't to say that she did have some moments of, shall we say, "insensitivity." For example the night that I found out that my grandpa died Scott had picked Claudia up from school and talked to her about it on the way home. When she walked in the door she said her "hellos" and then said, "Mom, you remember that you grandpa died?" I couldn't help it, I started to cry and told her, "yes, it hadn't slipped my mind."

She had another question for us after the funeral while we were taking the short drive to the cemetery. We were piled in the car and I was upset after the service and Claudia blurts out, "where are we taking the dead guy?" I hate to admit it, but Scott and I started to laugh. I guess it was a good relief from the sad emotions I was having.

Although, I have to say that Scott's response was strangely funny too. He said, "Well, we are taking the box that Mommy's grandpa is in to a place called a cemetery. We can visit him there."

That was it, no more explanation. I told him, "You need to elaborate on that." I just caught a glimpse of what her little mind must be thinking.... sitting and talking to him in the box?!?

However, I don't think that the more elaborate explanation is much better or less confusing. "We dig a hole. Place the box in the ground. Cover it up. Come later and visit the covered hole."

Again, she did not have any questions about the explanation. I guess when you're four you just take some things at face value.

Other than that the funeral went well. I miss my grandpa, but it was good to remember and celebrate what an amazing, loving, funny person he was.

Grandparents

I received some very sad news today. My maternal grandfather passed away this morning. He would have been 92-years-old in June. What a long life to witness an overwhelming number of changes in the world.

He lived his entire life in the same couple square miles of Minnesota. His grandfather, father and he all farmed the same land and raised dairy cows and other livestock. He farmed the fields with large teams of horses and later with massive columbines. He knew every square inch of that land. He was a good and kind caretaker to all his animals (a "softy," I would say).

The farm was my favorite place to go as a child. Some of my fondest memories were summers spent running around that farm, playing in the barn, feeding the calves, wandering the pastures, and leading the cows home from the pasture to the barn for milking. It was just about the closest thing to heaven to a little kid who spent most of the time in the city.

Nights my grandma and grandpa would pop popcorn and we would play Uno. I still think of having zero points in Uno as "a goose egg" as my grandma would say. I clearly remember laughing all night during those games. My grandpa had a great laugh and an easy sense of humor. I will miss him.

I must remind myself that I have been very fortunate. I had all my grandparents well into my 30s, not many people get to have such amazing people in their lives for that long; I lost my paternal grandfather almost 3 years ago.

I very deliberately use the word "lost" because it does feel like losing something that is irreplaceable. There is no other relationship like the one between a grandparent and grandchild--all love and nothing else.

It is a pleasure to watch my kids have this special relationship with their grandparents. They are incredibly lucky to have the grandparents that they do. All love and spoiling and no criticisms or expectations.

So, thank you Grandpa, rest well now.

Special Surprises

Claudia is just full of the Christmas-giving spirit. They have been making special Christmas gifts to give away to family members at her school. She brought home a bag with a couple of wrapped gifts yesterday. I asked her if she wanted to put them under the tree, but she said, "Mom, I need to find a place to hide it in my room. I don't want Wilson to find it!" (pesky brothers!)

She then started to say, "Mom, you can't open this until Christmas! No peeking. It is so special! You are going to love it! I can't tell you what it is... it's got something really special in it. Oh! I can't say that! You can't open it until Christmas! It really special! Oh! I can't say that!"

I think that teachers at school must have drilled it into them that they can't tell anyone at home what the present is. I can't imagine how many times you have to tell a four or five-year-old not to give away a surprise for it to actually stick with them. My guess would be at least 1,000 times.

Now, she is finding other "gifts" to wrap and put under the tree. This morning she found "something really special to wrap up with used wrapping paper she found and put it under the tree for me. I have a feeling I am going to be missing a mascara or a sock or something for the next week until we open gifts on Christmas morning. I am sure there are going to be many "treasures" under the tree this year.

Letters to Santa

The other day Claudia walked up to me and said that she wanted "such and such" for Christmas. I told her that that sounded "good." She said, "Mom!! I need to tell him that!" My immediate thought was, "oh no! I need to get these kids to a Santa ASAP! Christmas is coming!" Later I thought perhaps I could avoid the long lines and tormenting Wilson with a sure-to-be scary man in a red suit by having her write her letter to Santa.

So Claudia is at this moment sitting at our kitchen table and writing her letter to Santa. She is writing it (with Scott spelling the words). Wow, what a difference a year can make. Last year she was still working on singing her ABCs. Next year is Kindergarten! I can't believe it!

Here is her letter:

Dear Santa,
(She is cutting to the chase, no pleasantries. The man is busy!)
Barbie
Pillow Pet
Easy Bake Oven
kitchen set

She is also writing Wilson's letter for him:
blue mack (this is a semi-truck)
fire truck
cars

love
Claudia Wilson

Christmas Can't Come Soon Enough

Poor Wilson! I think that he needs some new toys from Santa. (Sorry about the picture quality-it's from my cell phone.)

Broke-down Bunny

I think that this may go down as one of Scott's favorite Claudie stories.

One lovely Sunday afternoon while Scott was mowing the yard, Claudia ran up to him breathless holding a plastic bag. She exclaimed in a panicked voice, "Daddy, I need your help! There is a broke-down bunny! Come on!"

She grabbed Scott's hand and led him across the street from our house and urgently pointed to a dead bunny on the side of the road. She had been biking and come upon this sad scene. She handed the bag to Scott and told him that he needed to take care of the bunny. (She did not like the way the bunny looked at her.) Scott scooped up the bunny and bought it to the garbage can.

Claudia was genuinely sad for the bunny and asked Scott if it was going to be lonely in the garbage can without any of its bunny friends and she thought maybe she could put some toys in the can with it. Scott explained that we throw away a lot of "interesting" things and the bunny would find things to play with in the can. She seemed satisfied with that.

Scott has asked Claudia a number of times to repeat the story of the broke-down bunny and when she is asked what it means to be a "broke-down" bunny, she will say that the bunny "died-ed."

It is sort of a sad and gross story if you think about it, but the part that I like best is that she really did feel for the little bunny and wanted to make sure that it was entertained while awaiting the trip to the dump. (Of course she doesn't really realize where the garbage ends up. I know that we should tell her about landfills and whatnot in order to give her some "green education," but that sure wasn't the time!)

Fall

All I can say is, "Oh my!" We are a busy family here in Chanhassen (or as my sister refers to it "Chan-happin'). We returned from our wonderful trip to The Shore to a very new Fall routine. Claudia started school, soccer and gymnastics the first week that we returned.

Claudia is greatly enjoying school. I think that she is just mostly happy that she isn't relying solely on me for her entertainment. I think that my company grew rather tiresome for her by the end of the summer. She has made a lot of new friends. We are still working on names. I asked her for the first 3 weeks if she played with any friends and she said that she did and when I asked for their names she did not have a clue.

Soccer is fairly hysterical. I don't know if Claudia had ever really kicked a ball before she started that first night. She has improved and is really having fun. She has a particular way of kicking the ball-very danceline-esque with a straight leg that gets pretty high up in the air. She is certainly the only member of her team to skip to the ball while she is playing. She is a great "social ambassador" for her team as well. At the last game, her coach was told by a little girl on the opposing team that "Claudia can't play right now because we are making friends." Claudia did not see any problems with that.

All and all things are going very well. The kids are tired as are Scott and I. I think that I am getting a good glimpse into what the next 15 years are going to be like--CRAZY and BUSY!

See some photos from our great trip and Claudia's soccer in the upper-right corner.

I hope I can get my GTL done by Saturday...

because we are off to visit "The Shore" on Saturday!

Wilson has been working on his "blow out" so that he is ready to "creep" on the ladies at the beach. He has been practicing his "fist pump" in the hopes of attracting a sweet girl with a great "pouf." Scott and Uncle Bret will be on "grenade watch" for him because they are totally "juiced."

If you have no idea what I am talking about I am so very proud of you! (If you would like to know, check it out here.)

This one's for you, Dad

Yes, I made it back! My sister and I had a wonderful time visiting my mom. Her new adopted country is more beautiful than I had imagined. Truly, I don't think I could see a more picturesque place. I would LOVE to show you some photos (and I will) but I did not bring my camera with me and I am waiting for my sister to send me hers (this is a not so very subtle hint, Sarah).

So, not wanting to try to tell you about my trip without providing illustrations, I, however, apparently still need to update my blog--this according to my dad. I have to tell you that I find it just a little funny to receive a text message from my dad stating, "you can call tonight or update your blog." First, the reason why I find it funny is that my dad is texting me. He recently got an I-Phone and has started to text, many texts complete with an "OMG" or a "TTFN," which I find charming to say the least. The second reason why I find this funny is that he really does read my blog. I would never have guessed that he would have adopted this form of media. I suppose I shouldn't be that surprised, it is a great way to know what's going on with the grandkids (and you don't have to change diapers to learn about it).

So, not wanting to disappoint my dear ol' dad, I would like to update my blog with some of my favorite and often repeatedly-heard sayings from my childhood a la dad: (I should add that most of these were then followed with a "Rachael Anne"

1.) "You are skating on thin ice." (I actually said this to Claudia a couple of weeks ago! I couldn't believe it. I don't think that she has learned the laws of physics yet, so I don't think this saying made too much of an impression. Do you think that only parents in the Northern climates can say this?)

2)"It's no skin off my nose." ("teeth" was sometimes used in place of nose.) This one actually always grossed me out just thinking about skin off of a nose. Yuck.

3)"You are cruisin' for a bruisin'" I should clarify that the bruising did not really ever come into being. I think that I can only attribute that to some infinite patience on my dad's part. I was a bit of a, oh let's just say, "handful."

4)"You're just cutting off your nose to spite your face." Again, really, really grossed me out, but made an impression.

I certainly don't want to give the impression that my dad only had things like this to say, that is certainly not the case, but these are phrases that instantly spring to mind when I am dealing with my own "handfuls." Which times, of course, are so exceedingly rare because my children are angels.

So, thank you Dad for many useful and strangely gross saying to use with my children. And thank you as well for being a super, duper fantastic dad and grandpa! We love you!

Away

(Yes, I did change the blog background. You're not going crazy!)

Oh faithful readers, I will be away for a little while. I am going to be leaving my hubby, my kids, my doggies, and my country for a visit with the frogs.

I am going to be visiting my mom in the South of France. I know, I know, poor me. I am having some nervous feelings (Rhett Butler, where is my fainting couch and smelling salts?!?) about leaving. I have not flown by myself since Claudia was born. Now, I will be jumping across the pond, as they say!

The kids will be in good hands while I am away. Our 15-year-old babysitter will be taking care of the kids while Scott is at work. I have a real fear that Wilson and Claudia are going to prefer her to me when I get home. I think that I will need to self-medicate while I am away. Perhaps with some french wine, bread and chocolate. (Yes, definitely chocolate.)

On the serious side, if you think about it on the 28th and again on the 6th, could you please send good thoughts for a safe journey for my sister and me?

Au revoir!

A Lot Can Happen...

in the time it takes for me to take a shower. Oh, let's just take yesterday for instance. While I was very quickly taking my shower, Claudia decided that Wilson was going to be a "big boy" who wears underpants. Not just any underpants, mind you, but pink "Hello Kitty" underpants.

I got out of the shower and Claudia burst into my room and said, "Mom, Wilson is a big boy and he is going to wear underwear now. He has them on right now!" Of course I assumed that he had only the underwear on, but Claudia surprised me. She put them on over his diaper and then put his shorts on top of them.

I didn't feel like fighting that fight, so off we went to return some things at the mall. Really, no incidents there. That happened later.

After Wilson's nap, he saw the underwear and insisted on wearing them. This time he needed to put them on OVER his shorts. While this was happening, Claudia and Scott decided they would take a walk to the neighborhood park. Of course Wilson was going to accompany them.

Good ol' Daddy didn't think it was worth the fight either and off they went to the park where they saw some neighborhood kids and a dad. I guess the conversation between the dads went like this:

Scott: "Pay no mind to Wilson's pink underpants."

Other Dad: "I wasn't even going to ask."

That just struck me as too, too funny when Scott told me about it last night! (Just picture the scene.)

Oh, Wilson these last two posts are for sure going to cost us some money in therapy bills one day.

Girls have all the fun?

Wilson may just think so. Claudia received some really fun "girly" things for her birthday--bracelets, headbands, make-up (really it's chap stick), etc. Why wouldn't Wilson want to use them for some entertainment?

I am sure that he will want to burn these pictures when he is 14. I think that it may be good to have a few "blackmail photographs" in my back pocket to be used strategically.

Really, the final blow to a 14-year-old boy would be a photo of him getting make-up on by his sister. I think that I would only pull this out in the most dire circumstances.

Birthday Bonanza

What a birthday party! The Friday before Claudia's birthday we had a party with some her friends. What a great time! It was so wonderful to have the room to host a party. (Our old house never really accommodated more than 5 people very well.) The "older" girls found Claudia's dress up clothes right away and stayed in them through the whole party. (So much for the new birthday dress that I bought for Claudie.)

Here are some photos from the day:

Coco all dressed up

Lilly as Snow White (it was great--I didn't have to pay for a Disney character to appear at the party!)

Seriously, I had a great dress for Claudia and she ends up wearing this sad dress!

Elliot and little sis Stella

You can count on Lucy to "clean up" after everyone with the vacuum

Sweet Alison cheering on her friend Claudie!

Claudia is one lucky little girl to have such great friends. I am doubly lucky that Claudie's friends have such fantastic moms!

Give Thanks

I once saw a billboard while driving that said, "Give thanks for your healthy kids." It was advertising for St. Jude's or another children's health non-profit. I remember thinking, "That is so true. I need to be more appreciative that I have healthy kids." This took on a whole new meaning for me this past Thursday.

Wilson had been ill for a couple of days with a bad chest cold, high fever and vomiting. We went to the doctor's office on Thursday to get him checked out. The doctor was concerned about his cough and so he ordered a chest x-ray.

After two trys at the chest x-ray, we sat waiting for the results. I was thinking worst case scenario is he would have pneumonia. (I should learn not to tempt fate like that.) The doctor came in and said that he was "perplexed." He took me out in the hallway to view the x-rays.

From what I remember of the conversation, he was saying that Wilson's chest was clear, but the"shadow" around his liver was much larger than they would expect. We walked back into the room and he said that we needed to go to Children's Hospital to have a radiologist read the x-ray. Panic was taking over. The doctor then said, "During my external exam I did not feel a mass or lump" and I asked, "Is that what you think it is?" He replied, "I don't know." Sheer terror set in.

We went to Children's and Wilson's x-rays were examined and an ultrasound was ordered. Finally, after a number of truly agonizing hours the doctor said, "The ultrasound was totally clear. We don't have to worry about all that really bad, scary stuff."

I have felt relief in my life: the safe birth of my children, passing the bar exam, etc. but nothing can touch the relief and gratitude that I felt at hearing those words. To be able to walk out of the hospital that night holding Wilson was such a gift and one that I won't soon forget.

I can't help thinking about all the parents that don't get the same news that we did and that don't get to carry their healthy child home with them. I really cannot imagine what they must go through. I had a very small glimpse that day and I can only say that it must be beyond belief and I don't know if there are adequate words to describe the agony, terror, and heartache that they feel.

It seems like it often takes something scary to wake us up and remind us to be thankful for what we have. I hope that this experience will stay with me and serve as a reminder every day to be thankful for my wonderful kids. I hope that I won't need a billboard or another terrifying situation to remind me to truly give thanks.

Everyone give your kids, spouse, partner, friend, pet, parent, etc. a hug tonight.

Chanhassen Nice

You know the saying, "Minnesota Nice," but I think that the heart of the "nice" is in Chanhassen. Truly, I am continually surprised by how friendly everyone is here-everyday encounters at Target (this is very important as I go there almost every, single day), the grocery store, gas station, etc. are just so darn nice.

We have met so many of our neighbors just being outside gardening and playing with the kids. What a great 'hood we've found. Scott was with the neighborhood men last Friday until 3:30 in the morning! (When I asked him what they talked about for 8(!) hours his answer was, of course, "oh, nothing much.") Claudia is-as I write this-having a tea party at the neighbor's house. We also have had 2 playdates with some adorable twin boys who are Claudia's age from the neighborhood who I met while weeding the garden one day. (Well, that sounds kind of creepy. I met their mother while I was outside. Although, I was just about ready to accost any child that looked halfway "normal" and close to Claudia's age with a "hey, do you want to be my daughter's friend?" because Claudia had been saying to me, "Mom, when are you going to find some new friends for me at our new house?" I am sure that wouldn't have scared any street-savvy kid away and/or brought a suspicious mom or dad to my door.)

We are making ourselves at home here and not freaking out the neighbor kids (yet). It feels great.

Dancing with the...

Walkers! (Well, Wilson and Claudia Walker that is.)

We were practicing dancing this morning for the big wedding this weekend. My cousin Hannah is getting married and so the whole Lawson gang will be there (yay Hannah!). This will be the first wedding for Claudia and Wilson. I foresee that Claudia will be quite enamoured with all the elements of the wedding--getting dressed up in a new dress, the bride and bridesmaid dresses, the cake and the dancing.

Purely in preparation for this grand event, (I hate to admit this) Claudia may have seen a couple of episodes of the latest round of "Dancing with the Stars." She loved it! I think that the lifts and spins really made an impression on her. (Poor Wilson...the little guy is just along for the ride. Anyone have an air sickness bag?)

Please see below:

Well, Lawson family, consider this your fair warning. I think that I am going to be bringing a couple of dancing fools!

Finally! A True Use for Dog Hair!

As I said in my last post, we have A LOT of dog hair floating around this house. Martha is a veritable fur factory. I have said more times than I care to remember, "if we could sell dog fur, we would be millionaires by now."

Well, I may have not found a way to make money off the dog fur, but I have discovered a way to put it to some really great use--using it to clean up the oil spill in the Gulf. I knew that many hair salons are collecting their clients' hair clippings and sending them to organizations that make "hair booms" or "hair mats." I guess animal fur can be used similarly. Apparently, hair and fur are great oil absorbers.

I found an organization that you can sign up with that will give you information on where you can send your fur: A Matter of Trust. I found a large number of hair salons and groomers in the Twin Cities that are collecting hair/fur.

If you are a dog, cat, horse owner and you want to finally make some use out of all the fur, I would encourage you to sign up with this website. Or, if you don't feel like signing up with another website, I would check with an area groomer and see if they are collecting fur. If they aren't maybe they did not know that they could and you can encourage them to start a new collection site!

Happy grooming!

We did it!

[insert big sigh of relief]

We made it through the "big move." It actually went very well.

It was very bittersweet to leave our little house in Minneapolis. The hardest part was when Claudia and Wilson were in the house for the last time. I had been trying to prepare them (well really just Claudia) for the fact that she was not going to be back at that house ever again, but I did not want to make it too overly-dramatic. The last time that they were in the house I told Claudia that she should say "goodbye" to the house. She went into her room and said, "Goodbye room. I will miss you." I hadn't cried until that point, but you can bet I did after I heard that.

I walked Wilson into his little blue room (that I had so lovingly decorated as a nursery before Claudia was born) and told him to say "goodbye" and he waved his hand. That just about broke me in two pieces.

Scott and I said goodbye the next day and that went without tears. I think I was just too excited to get into our new house.

The new house is better than I anticipated. We love it and it feels like we have already been here for awhile. We walked to the Chanhassen Library the other day. I love that we are within walking distance to "downtown Chan!" The kids are making themselves right at home. The only family members that seem to be having some adjustment problems our Martha and Frannie (our canine children). Who would have thought that I would have to comfort our dogs more than our kids?!? I think Martha has already lost a couple pounds of fur (she sheds when she's nervous, which is so much fun).

Have a Chantastic day!

There's always time for...

a princess dance!

Despite our crazy schedule lately with getting the house packed for our move, we found some time on Saturday night to enjoy a little party. It was the second annual daddy/daughter princess dance in Hastings. Claudia, Scott, cousin Brynne and uncle Eric were among the royalty in attendance.

Here are some photos of the beautiful princesses:








Meanwhile, the mommies spent the evening with a couple of hams: