Monday...

Today was just one of those days from the very beginning. Very Monday-ish.

It started with a 5:00 am automated phone call from the school district letting us know that school was cancelled because of snow. First of all, why on earth did we need to hear that news at 5:00 am? I don't know any kindergarten mom getting the kids up at that time of the morning. Second, a snow day!? We had not even an inch of snow overnight and were only one of two districts in the state that closed. So frustrating, especially when I'm working a short week already and really had work to catch up on, plus Alex was home last week sick and really needed to get back into a routine. UGH!

OK, rant over. In all seriousness, did you ever have that day (or week or month) when you just didn't feel like all that effective of a parent? When your kid's acting out of sorts, not listening and your patience for doing the "right" thing is about nil? That's how I'm feeling today. The past few weeks have just been awful and I know that Alex is going through dealing with his grandpa's death in his own way. I'm just so looking forward to a new year and a fresh start.

So, I thought it would be nice to pull a fun picture, taken a few weeks ago when Alex was into experimenting with the auto-timer on my little camera. A goofy family shot does wonders for the soul!

Wishes and Wisdom

So, this is my first challenge layout for this great blog I found called the Good Grief Blog. I was surfing around some new to me scrapbooking blogs and found this a couple of weeks after Dad's death. It was serendipitous in a way. I'd been thinking about some pages I might want to do about Dad and that I might find it healing and here was a whole site about it!

Anyway, the challenge is to use handwriting in a layout. Dad wasn't much of a writer. Most of what we have are little notes about something he was working on, a phone call he'd made, etc. When we were getting ready for his memorial, the funeral director asked for a quote or saying that we could include on the program and I remembered this gem that we had from Alex's baby shower.

Dad's passing has solidified my belief that we need to use our handwriting more! It doesn't matter that it's messy or if we don't like it. It is a precious piece of who we are. I only wish we had more of Dad's.

(Journaling reads: We don't have many handwritten notes from Grandpa Don. He wasn't really a writer. But, during our baby showers, we had everyone write down a piece of wisdom or a wish for Alex. I'm so happy that we have this piece of wisdom from my dad. It's something he believed in and totally lived by. He loved the work he did. Building up Specialty Forest Products was one of his proudest achievements. I sincerely hope that Alex is lucky enough to find work that he loves as much as Grandpa loved his.)

Santa and Alex

Made our annual trip to see Santa last night. We got there just in the nick of time... it was almost Santa's dinner time!

Alex was not shy, as usual, and had a list of items that were mostly electronic (XBox 360, a new TV, etc.). Don't know where this kid gets his tastes, but hope he's not too disappointed when it isn't all under the tree!

I was looking back at all of our Santa pictures. It's amazing how much change happens over the course of one year and how unaware we are of it happening. Somehow, Alex has turned from a toddler into a boy right underneath our noses. I'm not sure I'm ready for that!

I was happy to finally make this trip. This holiday season hasn't felt that festive with Dad's death. Luckily, Alex is as excited as any six year old should be. Our decorations got put out a little late, and most of our traditions are a few weeks behind, but it's great to have Alex helping us remember a bit about the holiday spirit.

Remembering Dad

I've been thinking a lot about recording memories of Dad, and sometimes it feels a little soon... feelings are still pretty raw and I'm feeling almost zero creativity. But I was thinking about his service and what a great celebration it was of Dad and his life. That morning, Mom said "we're having a party! It isn't one we wanted to have, but we're having it!" We were determined not to be sad and we mostly succeeded. I want to remember this day for what it was and all it took was one great picture. Almost no creativity required!