This Girl

This girl is nothing but love and pure joy. We have been abundantly blessed!!!!

Bus Stop Silliness

Things got extra silly at the bus stop yesterday morning. Campbell has chosen to wear a beautiful, sparkly dress and I wanted one nice picture of her (and her sister).

It was a nice idea, but this is what I got.

 

  

Check out the photobomb attempt at the bottom of the frame.

Soooooooooo silly!!!!!

It's Been A Tough One

If anything is going to break or go wrong, it will be when LT is away. Everybody knows that's how it works, and this week has certainly proven the rule over and over again.

Even still, I'm trying hard to keep my focus on the positives:

* Everybody has gotten to school on time every day this week, with a packed lunch in their backpack and appropriate clothing on their body. Winning!

* The bus broke down on the way home yesterday and was 45 minutes late, but we still got all the homework done - even though it was a late dance night.

* The girlz are well rested and I haven't lost either one of them. I, on the other hand, am NOT well-rested. And I can only wish somebody would lose me (just long enough for a good nap, please and thank you).

* The closet broke, but I bought the replacement part and fixed it myself.

* The girlz got to their hair appointment less than 5 minutes late.

* I assembled 45 goody bags for our neighborhood Trick or Treaters.

* The girlz have brought home some really great grades this week.

Only one more day and a wake up until life gets back to normal!

Sweetest Day Gifts

I'm on top of my game this year (well, so far). The girlz and I made gifts for the teachers and bus driver for Sweetest Day. Sweetest day is technically tomorrow, but we celebrated today!

I'm not even sure what Sweetest Day really is, but it sounds like a good excuse to give a sweet gift. I found decorative mason jars at Michael's on clearance for $.30 each, and spend another $3 for standard mason jar lids and tops.

The girlz decorated white jumbo cupcake wrappers and we used those as a pretty topper.

We then packaged the mugs in pretty bags and handed them out to our favorite teachers and bus drivers.

Happy Sweetest Day!

A Dash Through The Pumpkin Patch

We had just enough time on Sunday to squeeze in a trip to the pumpkin patch. I was afraid it wasn't going to happen this year -- this is the first year Cassidy has dance all day on Saturdays. In years past, Saturdays were our time to spend doing fun things. Not this year - it's already starting to get dark by the time Cassidy finishes at the dance studio. Sunday mornings are spent at church and Sunday afternoons are spent dancing in Norfolk, so we really only had about 2 hours early Sunday afternoon to get our pumpkins.

In the interest of time, we went to a patch that's much closer to our house instead of going to our favorite pumpkin patch way out in the country. There was no time to waste, so Cassidy had to wear her dance clothes instead of a cute fall outfit.

We got it done, and now we have pumpkins on the front porch. Whew!

If the girlz continue increasing their commitment to dance each year, it looks like this year's dash through the pumpkin patch is just a glimpse of what our future will hold. It's time to change our approach -- instead of letting things like the pumpkin patch and Santa pictures happen when they happen, we'll need to start planning ahead and scheduling our favorite family activities.

The winds are changing!

18 Years And Counting

Today marks my 18th year at the Evil Empire. 18 years ago I started a journey that has been grueling at times, and yet so rewarding. I think most careers are difficult, regardless of the industry. It seems everyone is asked to do more with less, adapt to constant change, make no mistakes, and play nice in the sandbox.

At The Evil Empire, you don't have any street cred until you reach 20 years of service, so hitting 18 years is a big deal for me.

To mark this momentous occasion, I found a video called "A Conference Call In Real Life".

The conference call struggle is real, y'all.

An Exceptional Teacher

It's taken me a while to write this post. And then I stumbled across this little gem as I was hunting through old pictures today to find the Spirit Day picture from 2011.

The gentleman in the red shirt is our beloved music teacher, Mr. Conley. He passed away suddenly at the beginning of the school year from a heart attack.

Both girls - but especially Cassidy - adored Mr. Conley. To be fair, EVERYBODY adored Mr. Conley. He seemed to be at every school event - running sound for the Preschool Thanksgiving Program, Grandparent's Day, and Kindergarten Graduation... or being the Emcee of the Harvest Festival Costume Contest... or helping the kids show off their musical skills at the Christmas and Spring Concerts.

He chose Cassidy for a solo in last year's Christmas Concert. He taught the Third Graders to play the recorder last year, and the Spring Concert wasn't even close to the painful torture I expected it to be. When it came time for the high school band to play, he picked up his trombone and played along. He was tremendously talented and a genuinely kind person. Most of all, he was an exceptional teacher.

At our school, Fourth Graders are allowed to try Beginning Band. Cassidy decided months ago that she wanted to learn how to play Mama's clarinet. I traded emails with Mr. Conley over the summer asking if he could hold a clarinet spot for Cassidy so we could move forward with refurbishing the instrument and getting her some starter lessons.

The whole thing made me think of Mr. Holland's Opus, and I even watched this clip over the summer. In my mind's eye, this was Cassidy and Mr. Conley in about 4 years.

Spoiler - that gorgeous girl with the red hair grows up and becomes the governor.

Cassidy looked for Mr. Conley the night of Orientation. She was SO EXCITED to tell him about her clarinet and show him how much she had learned over the summer. Little did we know, he'd had a heart attack the night before and was very sick. He died two days later, leaving an impossible pair of shoes to fill.

It was a devastating loss for our children and our school. I'm so grateful our children got to be his students, even if their time was cut short.

Heaven's band gained quite a member with Mr. Conley!

Spirit Day!

What a difference three years makes!  This is Spirit Day 2011 -- Campbell's first Spirit Day.

And this is Spirit Day 2014. It looks like somebody's growing, in spite of their candy and chicken nugget diet!

Spirit Week - Day 4: Camo Day

Yes, we skipped day 3. It was 'Merica Day and the girls were properly decked out in their finest red, white, and blue. I didn't get a picture because Cassidy was running late and joined Campbell and I in the driveway just as the bus rolled up.

Today is Camo Day! I think we're the only family at the school that doesn't have a closet full of camouflage to choose from on Camo Day. Even still, I was able to scrape together an outfit for the girlz after spending some time at the Goodwill and Stuff Mart. WINNING!

Tomorrow is the last day of Spirit Week - Spirit Day! Cassidy has outgrown all her school shirts, so she chose a new one from the school store earlier this week. I think we're ready for the Homecoming festivities!

Sprit Week - Day 2: Team Day

Today was Team Day, the day when you sport gear from your favorite team.

Team Day is a fairly standard choice for Spirit Week at our school, so we had plenty of Cassidy's outgrown Team Day outfits on hand for Campbell to choose from. She ended up choosing a Notre Dame cheerleader outfit.

There was nothing for Cassidy to wear, so I checked out the offerings at the Goodwill over the weekend. The only thing I could find was a Redskins t-shirt. The problem? Cassidy is a Cowboys fan.

I thought I could sell her on the idea, so I bought the t-shirt. But as soon as I pulled it out of the bag, I saw it. 

Her mouth said "thank you", but the split-second crinkle of her nose gave it away.

Nope. Redskins would definitely NOT do.

She ended up wearing her dance team t-shirt and warm-ups. Because as cool as the Cowboys are, her favorite team really is the Dance Team!

Super-Fun Birthday Week

We had a quiet, but fun week and weekend.  We quietly celebrated my birthday during the week with a delicious cookie cake, one dozen roses, Lou Malnati's pizza, and a tub of Garrett's popcorn.

It was awesome, and now I want to book another trip to Chicago!!

For some reason, this birthday bothered me more than any other birthday. 40 has always seemed so far away - a very distant milestone that was eons away. Some people have a hard time with 30, but that wasn't the case for me. I was pregnant with Cassidy and we had the 20 week ultrasound right around my birthday. We learned she was a SHE (yay!!) and she was healthy and developing normally for the most part. That was all I really cared about at the time. The 30th birthday was a blip on the radar - an afterthought, and a good excuse to eat cake.

It's not like that this time, but that's okay. I'm doing my best to embrace my new age.

Cassidy spends all day at the dance studio on Saturdays, so we took Campbell to Smithfield for a few hours. Her favorite spot on Main Street is the "Mama Papa Bench". The town has moved this bench a few times over the years, and now it sits right outside the ice cream shop. Fitting!

Once we were back home and waiting to get Cassidy from the studio, we heard the familiar sounds of the ice cream truck outside. We missed the truck all summer, but were lucky to get outside just in time to catch him today. Campbell chose a Ninja Turtle ice cream! 

Homecoming is this Friday, so we're celebrating Spirit Week at school. Today is Pajama Day - a day Campbell has been anxiously awaiting since the summer. Both girlz were SO EXCITED to wear their pajamas to school today!!

Tomorrow is Team Day, and Cassidy was less than thrilled with the Redskins shirt I found for her at the Goodwill. If I get a chance today, I'm going to try to find her something a little more agreeable... perhaps and nice blue shirt with a gray star on it?

2 Inches

We found out today that a measly 2 inches prevented Campbell from getting a spot on The Nutcracker cast.

To put that into perspective, my debit card is 2 inches tall.

Having worked backstage with the costumes, I get it.  The costumes are high-quality garments designed to last 10 years. Many were made in England with thick fabrics and a complex series of inner loops and buckles. The costumes either fit or they don't - and in Miss Campbell's case, they don't.

It gives me the sadz to know that nugget was a mere 2 inches from the cast list.

The Results Are In!

We finally received the results from The Nutcracker casting last night. The results weren't exactly what we were hoping for, but they were also not completely unexpected.

This girl was cast as one of Mother Ginger's Children. This is a BIG part, and I'm so excited for her!

Sadly, this little nugget wasn't cast. We suspect she was too small to fit into any of the costumes. If you look at the picture I posted earlier this week, she was a pretty much full head shorter than the next shortest child.

Campbell was so excited for her sister, but also disappointed that this year would not be her year. I'm crossing my fingers that she gets to do it next year!

Patiently Impatient

Still no cast list. There is no choice but to sit quietly and be patient.

I had convinced myself that the list would be released on the same schedule as last year, and I wouldn't suffer any mental anguish if I could just make it to Wednesday night at 5:09 PM.

Well, Wednesday was yesterday. And yesterday came and went with no email.

The funny thing is that I vividly remember how completely OVER Nutcracker music I was by last December. It was a huge commitment - both in time and money - and my feet ached from the countless hours I spent walking downtown Norfolk with no place to go.

Yes, it was terribly inconvenient and expensive. And yet as my kid's loudest and most enthusiastic cheerleader, I'm hoping and praying they both get the chance to participate this year.

The irony does not escape me.

Still Waiting...

I'm hoping the results of the Nutcracker Auditions will come later today. I looked back in my emails from last year and we received the preliminary cast list at 5:09 PM on the Wednesday a week and half after the auditions. If they stick to the same schedule this year, that would be TODAY.

I have already died a thousand deaths waiting for that silly email.

The suspense is killing me, but I refuse to even say the word "Nutcracker" in front of the girlz. They usually do a better job at the waiting game than I do, but they did ask this morning when I thought we would hear back.

The Richmond Ballet posted this picture from the auditions on Facebook yesterday.  See anyone you recognize?

Take A Walk In My Shoes

Campbell had a tough morning yesterday and was a sobbing, snotty mess when the bus rolled up. I ended up skipping my morning walk and drove the girlz to school instead.

It was the first time I'd driven them this year. Although I wish it hadn't come at the expense of my exercise time, it was nice to see how their classrooms had changed since Orientation Night.

Cassidy was excited to show me her desk and locker. Some of her artwork was already displayed on the wall - a huge picture of a pair of hightops (right up her alley!).

It's nearly impossible to see what she wrote, so I've written it out:

SHOE ON THE LEFT

Things I like to do...
With family - Go to Hatteras
With friends - Dance
At home - Go swimming
At school - Everything
In my town: Go to the donut shop
I am most talented at: Dance
Some day I would like to be: The owner of the studio


SHOE ON THE RIGHT

My favorite...
Food - Pizza
Drink - Pink Lemonade
Movie - Teen Beach Movie
Song - Kung Fu Fighting
Subject - Science
These are my favorite books: Nancy Drew Mysteries
Place I would like to go: Disney World

She also drew a terrific picture of herself, Campbell, Daddy, and me. She's an amazing little artist.

Oh how I love that girl!

I Will Never Forget

Everything changed in September 2001.

Up until the morning of September 11th, I lived in blissful ignorance of the deep hatred some people had for America. It was the first terror attack of my adult life, and it brought the harsh reality of my future as a police officer's wife into glaring full color.

I had a great life in September 2001. I was 26 years old and had a solid career with promising potential. I was living in a cute little condo near the beach and spent all my free time planning my wedding. The most concerning thing in my world until that morning was choosing wedding cake flavors.

I had waited years to get an office next to the window at work. Up until that day, I would look out my office window overlooking downtown Norfolk and admire the view. From that day forward, I would think of the people that had been working in the World Trade Center every time I looked out that window. It must have been terrifying for those that watched the plane hit their office building.

I remember watching people that looked just like me running down the streets of New Your City, covered in ash and dust. Some of those people were my co-workers.

And I remember my heart sinking as I watched people that looked just like LT running toward the mangled mess of twisted steel in a frantic search for survivors.

17 days later, one of LT's best friends was killed in the line of duty.

Everything changed in September 2001. The logistics of our wedding reception had to be re-worked because of tighter security on the Navy Base. Patriotism hit an all-time high. Security checkpoints, bag searches, and metal detectors became common and expected. Sitting next to that office window I had waited so long for became scary and difficult. And my awareness of what could happen after LT left for work became painfully clear.

I will never forget.

And Now We Wait...

We took the girlz to Norfolk yesterday for Nutcracker Auditions. They both had a great time and did their best. I am so very proud of them!!

Cassidy has been looking forward to this day all year long, and she's so excited she might have a chance to do it again.

Campbell watched her sister have all the fun last year and is crossing her fingers she'll get to participate this year. The minimum age is 7 with at least 2 years of dance experience, but the Richmond Ballet made an exception for Campbell - she's several months short of the age minimum but is in her 4th year of dance.

I'd be a little skeptical and apprehensive because of her age, but she danced at Chrysler Hall last Spring -- and not only did she dance, she started the dance on that huge stage by herself in front of a screaming audience. The Nutcracker will be a cakewalk compared to that!

Campbell's audition was first, so I took her and LT brought Cassidy later. Once Campbell's group was finished, she went home with LT and I stayed at the studio with Cassidy until her time was over.

  

Cassidy wanted dinner at Johnny Rockets, of course!

And now we settle in for the long wait!

Blessing of the Backpacks

Growing up in the church, I've attended lots and lots of church services. Our Children's Minister did something this past Sunday that I've never seen in all my years in the church.

She had the church bless the children's backpacks.

We had been asked to have the children bring their backpacks to church with them on Sunday. The children were called up for the Children's Message and were asked to bring their backpacks with them. The Children's Minister then read the letter below to the children (adapted from a blog post on Momastery). When she was done, the Sunday School Teachers made a circle around the children while the church prayed for them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Some of you have already started school and some will be starting next week. You're growing up so fast and I am very proud of you!  When I was in third grade, there was a little boy in my class named Adam.

Adam looked a little different and he wore funny clothes and sometimes he even smelled a little bit. Adam didn’t smile. He hung his head low and he never looked at anyone at all. Adam never did his homework. I don’t think his parents reminded him like yours do. The other kids teased Adam a lot. Whenever they did, his head hung lower and lower and lower. I never teased him, but I never told the other kids to stop, either.

And I never talked to Adam, not once. I never invited him to sit next to me at lunch, or to play with me at recess. Instead, he sat and played by himself. He must have been very lonely.

I think that God puts people in our lives as gifts to us. The children in your class this year, they are some of God’s gifts to you.

So please treat each one like a gift from God. Every single one.

If you see a child being left out, or hurt, or teased, a part of your heart will hurt a little. I want you to trust that heart-ache, because it's called compassion, and it is God’s signal to you to do something. It is God saying, Wake up! One of my children is hurting! Do something! Whenever you feel compassion, that means God is speaking to you. It means He trusts you and needs you to take action.

Sometimes compassion will make you speak up right away and sometimes you'll wait to speak up. That’s okay, too. You might choose instead to tell your teacher or your parents or me. We're all on your team – we are on your whole class’s team. Asking for help for someone who is hurting is not tattling, it is doing the right thing. If someone in your class needs help, please tell someone.

When God speaks to you by making your heart hurt for another, do something. Please do not ignore God whispering to you. I so wish I had not ignored God when He spoke to me about Adam. I remember Him trying, I remember feeling compassion, but I chose fear over compassion. I wish I hadn’t. Adam could have used a friend and I could have, too.

I do not care if you are the smartest or fastest or coolest or funniest. There will be lots of contests at school, and I don’t care if you win a single one of them. I don’t care if you get straight As. I don't care if you're picked first or last for kickball at recess. I don’t care if you are your teacher’s favorite or not. I don’t care if you have the best clothes or most Pokemon cards or the coolest gadgets.

You don't go to school to become the best at anything. God and I already love you as much as we possibly could. You do not have to earn our love or pride and you can’t lose it. It's a done deal.

When you go to school, practice being brave and kind.

Kind people are brave people. Brave is not a feeling that you should wait for. It is a decision. It is a decision that compassion is more important than fear, than fitting in, than following the crowd.

Trust me, it is. It is more important.

Don’t try to be the best this year.  Be grateful and kind and brave. That’s all you ever need to be.

Take care of your classmates, and your teacher, too. You Belong to Each Other. You are very lucky girls and boys with all kinds of new gifts to unwrap this year.

I love you and God loves you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was awesome. As a member of the congregation, it's a priviledge to pray over the children as they start a new school year. And as a parent, it makes me unspeakably thankful to know our church loves my children enough to pray for their protection.

What a terrific way to start the school year!

First Day of School 2014-2015

We now have a first grader and a fourth grader!

The girlz had new Hello Kitty necklaces at their spots this morning to mark the occasion. Breakfast went well and the bus came right on time. I can hardly wait to see them this afternoon and hear about their first day of the school year! 

Fun, Fun, Fun

We packed some serious fun and shopping into the last four days. Over the weekend, I took each girl out one at the time to shop for a few new school outfits and shoes. On Monday and Tuesday, the three of us spent all day doing fun things.

The girlz call these days our "Fun Fun Days" but that's because they don't understand the term "Mandatory Fun". As usual, we rang in the new school year with a blast.

Fort Fun

Lunar Golf

Campbell on the Sky Jumper

Cassidy on the Sky Jumper

Bowling

Spa treatments at Sweet Treats Spa

We didn't waste a minute of our time together! Mandatory Fun days are the BEST days!

The girlz are asleep and their new backpacks are full of new school supplies. Lunches have been prepped and the alarms have been set. We're ready for the first day of school!!