Yesterday, Thanksgiving Day 2011, was filled with frolicking children, a fabulous feast, interesting conversations, reconnecting, and memory making. My lil family of four spent the day with one side of my husband's large extended family at a lake front cabin in Oklahoma. It was truly a wonderful day, and I was purposefully aware that my sweet girls are making holiday memories that will be sacred to them many years from now.
I also found myself thinking back to Thanksgiving of 2010 which, for me, in no way resembled this one. Though my husband and Pookie spent last year at this same cabin with many of these same folks, I was left behind in Denver recovering from a nasty stomach bug, managing postpartum anxiety, and taking care of a seven week old newborn who was in the throes of colic. My mom sacrificed her own Thanksgiving to come and keep me company and (in reality) aid in maintaining my sanity. Because the fancier establishments (such a Golden Corral) had far too long of lines, we celebrated the holiday by eating sub-par, luke-warm food at a local restaurant that is really nothing more than a university campus bar.
While on that particular day last year I felt sad to be spending a holiday away from my husband and my Pookie, when I recall that time in general the feelings were far more intense than mere sadness. I can vividly remember the feelings of helplessness that were at times overwhelming as my sweet Murphy Girl would cry for hours on end for no apparent reason. It was hard to imagine a day would ever come that was not dominated by Murphy's wails and my strong desire to comfort my baby while still managing to show my big girl all the love and attention she had received for the previous two and a half years.
Then one day after Thanksgiving but before Christmas, unexpectedly and without warning, the light began to peek through the clouds. Murphy's tears began to appear less and less frequently, and her bright, contagious smile was seen more often than not. Simultaneously her disposition became one of the sweetest I had ever seen before nor have encountered since. Life became more manageable, and the transition from one child to two suddenly felt much more smooth.
While I would not wish to relive those challenging months, nor would I wish them for others, I feel grateful for the perspective that those trying days helped me to gain. So, yesterday as I watched both of my girls gleeful and giggly with all their 'big' cousins, I felt an extra sense of gratitude, an additional measure of thanks, and a deeper appreciation for a home filled with both joy and peace.

Diary of a Snow Day

I was abruptly awakened this morning at 5:45 AM by the sound of my phone ringing. Seeing that it was an unrecognized -but local- number I answered the call only to hear a friendly, recorded voice stating that Aspen Academy would be closed today. No sooner than I began to doze back to sleep, was I jolted awake my an email coming through on my phone AND by the sound of a text coming through on my phone AND by the sound of a second email coming through on my phone all relaying the same information. (Generally, I would be able to sleep through text and email notifications, but the phone call had put me in a compromised state of sleep.) While I certainly appreciate the thoughtfulness of my daughter's school making parents aware nice and early that school would be cancelled, I should mention that Carter does not go to school on Wednesdays. It is quite a rare thing for anything to shut down in Denver due to snow (Denver Public Schools opened as usual), so I knew that there must be quite a bit of snow both here and due to come throughout the day.

I was finally able to get back to sleep and was so pleased that both of my girlies slept in (particularly Carter who'd woken in a panic/sleep-like-confusion at 3:00 AM screaming my name as if her hair was on fire only to calmly ask me to find her caged -toy- gorilla), and I actually got to begin the Snow Day by sleeping until 7:40 (a real treat.) When my Murphy Girl and I glanced out the backdoor first thing this morning, this is what we saw...

It was a gorgeous, peaceful sight, and I couldn't wait for Carter to wake up and see it, too. She likes to say that all weather treats (puddles, rainbows, snow) are presents to her straight from God, so I was sure this would make her day. When I heard her stirring in her room, I excitedly threw open her door and told her there was a surprise outside. Her not-so-enthusiastic response, 'I already saw.' She then proceeded to walk no more than 12 feet to the living room, curl up in a chair, ask for a blanket and some milk, and tell me that I woke her up too early. (It was 8:30, and I did not wake her!) She began to perk up after her third cup of milk (two white, one choc-y) and bordered happy when I reminder her that I was going to make blueberry muffins for breakfast.
It was at this point in the morning, with Murphy down for her morning nap and Carter having a breakfast picnic in the living room floor, that I began my day of grazing. Of the dozen muffins I'd made, I ate three of them. I also ate some string cheese, some candy corn, two skewers  of stove-top roasted marshmallows, and a huge bowl of chicken and rice left over from last night: all before 11:00 AM.
With her belly nice and full from the 2/3 of a muffin that she'd eaten, Carter decided she was ready to head outside to play.

Here she is 'yicking' snowflakes!

Rarely is a smile so 

genuine caught on camera!

Sweet little angel began rolling a ball to make a snowman, and came knocking on the door asking for buttons for his 'shirt.' She also asked when Daddy would be home to help her. This would be the point in the day when I began to feel like the worst Mommy in all of Denver for sitting in my warm house, pajama clad and never offering to help her myself. She lasted a good 30-45 minutes in the freezing temps before coming inside and disrobing at the back door.

 

I suggested she take a warm shower before we headed out for gymnastics. I was so glad that her gymnastics class would go on as scheduled thus forcing us to get out of the house for a bit. I went to warm the car up thirty minutes before we needed to leave. Then, while Pookie played in the shower, and I got dressed, Murphy kept herself occupied with random items in my bathroom. You can imagine my joy at discovering she was nano-seconds away from eating the icing-free Oreo Carter had a left pre-licked in the trash can the day before. 

When I suggested the warm shower idea to Carter, it did not occur to me that I would then have to dry her hair post-shower since we were heading out into what was now pouring snow. The hair drying process/rushing around to get her dressed got the best of me. I don't know what it is, but I just hate the feeling of panic that comes over me when I am in a hurry. So, on our way out the door, I grabbed a Mommy's Little Helper-a homeopathic calming tablet-and clinched it in my palm. 

Despite the long time that the car had to warm up, the windshield was still completely covered in snow keeping the windshield wipers from being able to move at all. After buckling the girls in (did I mention Carter was not wearing socks? another not so proud Mommy move on a snow day), I opened the back of my car and grabbed the first thing I saw: a plastic package of disposable kids' placemats. Then, with my non-gloved hands (one of which still clenching my little tablet) I began using the package to throw the snow off as quickly as I could-still in my hurry/panic mode. Once the wipers began moving, I jumped in the car, swallowed my pill, put my wet frozen hands on the wheel, and headed to gymnastics. 

As I'd hoped, getting out of the house was good for us. Carter loves gymnastics, and Murphy enjoys being in a different environment. On the way home we ran through the Starbucks' drive-thru for a Mocha (two pump, non-fat) for Mommy and a Whoopie Pie (they were out of Cakepops!) for Pooks. 

We made it home around 2:00, and I put Murphy in her highchair for a late lunch. I offered her: chicken, cheese, broccoli, rice, and peas; she ate: five marshmallows. At 2:30, I put her in her crib for her nap, came back downstairs, got on my hands and knees, and hand-scrubbed this off the floor: 

And I wonder why I can never seem to 

maintain a manicure...

For a child who ate virtually nothing for lunch, she sure managed to create a mess! Once the kitchen was semi-clean, I asked Carter if she'd like to snuggle-buggle with me and watch a movie in bed. She was excited and chose An American Tail.

In case you're wondering what she's holding in the Starbucks' bag, she had told me that she could only watch a movie if we celebrated the ponies' birthday during movie time. Apparently the bag was the party spot. 

During our Snow Day Movie Snuggle Fest, I kept hearing Murphy on the monitor. This was odd because she normally goes to sleep almost the moment she lays down. So, at around 3:45, I went up to her room and found this darling little face saying, 'Hi!' 

Despite this rather peppy disposition, she did finally fall asleep and stayed that way until Carter ran upstairs to wake her up at around 5:00. That's when the real fun began.

Pony party moved to the crib!

Tickle Torture!

Hey! Where's she go?

Peek-a-boo from beneath the bed.

All the sisterly shenanigans continued until about 5:20, when this Mommy decided we had no choice but to hop in the car for a quick errand. We swung by here:

And my Pookie was thrilled that the drive-thru attendant gave her this lollipop! 

(For any of you detail oriented readers out there, yes, you are correct in your observation that my daughter is not wearing a coat. Or a hat. Or gloves. As I said, not my best Mommy day.) So, we got home and a smile spread across my lips as I poured myself a glass. For those of you non-Denver readers,  yes!, we have DRIVE THRU WINE SHOPS HERE! Best (snow day). Idea. Ever.

Ahhhh, Malbec, take me away!

I then began to up my Mommy report card by whipping up a simple, yet tastey and healthy dinner for my girls: protein plus spaghetti with organic marinara for both of them, peas and raspberries for Murphy, and carrots and grapes for Pooks. (As for me, I sipped my wine and dipped white, sandwich loaf bread into the jar of cold pasta sauce.)

Once dinner was wrapped up, Murphy enjoyed a nice relaxing bubble bath (mostly to keep her skin from permanently turning tomato-red) while Carter opted to take her second 'grown up' shower of the day.

Daddy arrived home mid-shower, too late to build that snowman, but just in time to join her for some splashin' fun. We read stories, said prayers, and tucked the girls in. I poured myself a second glass of wine, and the Hubby made himself a hearty plate of nachos (his dinner choice, I should add.) 

Surely a boot covered porch is 

a clear sign of a great snow day!

Ahhhhh, the good life...