5

"Bailey get your room clean."

"I don't want to."

"Then you won't be able to play later. Your brothers are almost done with their rooms."

(with raised eyebrows and a little head shake) "Mom, when my brothers are done with their rooms they'll come do mine for me. They always do."

Yep. That pretty much sums up the family dynamic here. We're working on that.

She's a diva, all right. But the sweetest, kindest, most compassionate one.

She adores Tyler, is best pals with Trey and loves to entertain Jack.

She cries every single day missing her Peyton.

She can strut with the best of 'em and run in heels.

After an hour of quietly working at the writing table upstairs, Bailey will bring me down the most creative ensembles of glue, glitter, paint, markers and paper. Daily.

She likes her nails done, her hair smooth and the way her sassy pink cowgirl boots look with just about anything.

She eats nothing that doesn't completely please her unless dipping it in ketchup is an option. Then she might consider it.

We sure love her. Drama and all.

Happy Birthday Bailey Bug!

Old. So very old.

This was the year of the card. Yep. The first one that points out oldness.

The front made reference to the beautiful century old redwoods in California, the inside thanked him for planting them. It made me laugh.

Robert read the card to Bailey and then said "See how I always get your mom sweet love birthday cards and she gets me cards that tell me that I'm old?"

To which Bailey responded with a head tilt, shoulder shrug, and "well, you are old, dad!"

33 big ones.

Happy Birthday Robert !!!!

2 Months

Two months ago our little Peyton passed away.

Early, early that morning I made a cement casting of his hand, covered his warm body with his fuzzy light blue blanket, and laid down next to him on our couch.

I put my arm around his panting chest, kissed his forehead, swept his beautiful orange hair over to the side and fell asleep.

When I woke up he was still.

It's still surreal. It probably always will be.

Peyton's headstone has been patiently awaiting our decision on what picture we wanted to put on it. I made all of the other decisions (with the help of the kids who were all too anxious to show me the ones they want when they die) weeks ago. We just couldn't decide what needed to go on there along with his name and dates.

Last night I was tired of looking through pictures and decided to try going another route and came up with this.

We are so grateful for this declaration. I just can't imagine never seeing Peyton again. We miss him so much.

What I've Learned in the Last 27 (and counting) Hours

Well, at least been reminded of.

Don't ask. Just let me vent.

This needed a title. (Hey, a flipping Grecian Urn got one. Blah.)

Ode to Tempting Providence

Fresh air is a marvelous luxury.
Good shows are on only when you are too busy to watch them.
Cats are overrated.
Nice people don't take themselves too seriously.
Technology is fallible.
You can never have too many wall outlets.
I sure love my kids.
Their daddy isn't so bad either :)
Walgreens photo lab just might be magic.
Sometimes cookies are a source of stress (who'd have thought?).
Tardy just means a little more family time.
Sometimes unexpected good news is way more fun then expected stupendous news.
There are good people. Good, good, people.
Happiness is relative.
So is stubbornness.
And sanity.
Cub scouts are indeed prepared.
I am usually right. Ask my kids. They think I'm psychic.

The End.

So thank you, 27 (and counting) hours of my life that I will never, ever get back. You may have just proven my kids right!

I knew you would.

So I am fully aware that this is the epitome of talking the talk without walking the walk but here it goes...

A great friend of mine (Vicki, for those of you who might be interested in supporting your favorite Zumba instructor/scout leader/PTO volunteer) and her walking pals are participating in their 3rd Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. Tee shirts with the above logo are being sold to help raise money for the cause.

The pink will be a bit brighter and they are $10 ($12 for 2XL-3XL) each.
The back will display sponsor ads and memorials.

You can contact Vicki at raginggeese@comcast.net or you can contact me at jennajricker@yahoo.com to place an order and we'll figure out shipping/drop off/pick up details.

Thanks in advance for your support!

The Afterlife Re-Written

A brief history lesson of sorts...

The Ancient Egyptians believed that after death, the spirit made a journey to the afterlife.
This was no easy task. Lots of tests. Lots of stuff to know.

During this journey, the soul met with the heart-weighing Anubis...

The outcome was recorded by Thoth...

If found worthy, the soul was welcomed into the underworld by Isis...

The end.

See. Brief. Borderline painfully brief. But you get the idea.

In an attempt to indoctrinate my offspring, I lovingly provide toys and books that foster an interest in my interest. What can I say? I need some dig buddies.

We've got a small collection of Egyptian figures. Bailey enjoys them. I'm not convinced it's because of their historical significance.

The Journey to the Afterlife According to Bailey
(Pictures taken from another room by my fabulously zoomable camera. Semi-sadly, these were completely unstaged. Well, except the last one)...

Thoth and Anubis meet with Isis to be wed...

Isis is so excited for them and gives them a hug...

Thoth and Anubis tie the knot and lovingly kiss...

Guests start arriving for the big reception...

And get ready to dance. In a line. Yee!Haw!...

So, judging by all this I might be led to believe she's leaning towards studying the history of, um, weddings, parties, or perhaps even choreography. My guess is her specialization will end up being something like the history of fierce, sparkly, peep-toe pumps. She does like her some cute sassy shoes!

I just need to hook her up with Cleopatra. That'll win her over!

*** Update (9 hours after above post)***
Just this morning I walked into my bedroom to find nearly all of the pillows in our house lined up slightly overlapping so they all stood upright.

"Mom! I made the Great Wall of China!"

Ah!Ha! I am getting through to her! She may just be the only 4 year old with any knowledge of the Ming Dynasty.

Now if I could only get her to remember things like where she left the super glue...