Saturday, June 20, 2009

The Food Groups

Yes, yes. I know children don't have the four food groups anymore. However, the cut and paste project my daughter brought home from school this week was very much like the old food group art projects we used to do years ago.

Her favorite fruit was apples. Her favorite meat was steak. Her favorite vegetable was broccoli. Her favorite dairy was chocolate milk. Her favorite grain was pancakes.

This is where my friends get to laugh. Big, loud, rolling on the floor ones. Why? Because. Every Sunday, I make "made from scratch" pancakes. Not the ones from the box that says complete. But real honest to goodness made from scratch pancakes. My friend Kris who is in the food business once threatened to fly here to eat them. Considering she lives 18 hours from me it seemed extreme. I did not realize what a big deal these were. Until today.

It made me feel like a good mom.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

A Few Good Men

I love that speech in A Few Good Men. You know the one I mean. Where Tom Cruise is giving Jack Nicholson a hard time. I almost know it by heart and every time I watch that movie I practice the speech.

I do a lot of public speaking in my life. Peronally and professionally. It always surprises me when I hear someone else tell me how frightened they are to stand up in a crowd to talk or to sing. My middle child had to get up on stage this week and boy was he scared. It was so strange to me. In my mind I was thinking, "Boy when I was his age I was singing in front of crowds of hundreds of people."

Three years ago I spoke professionally at a conference. There were 800 people in the room. I was thrilled and proud that so many people came to hear what I had to say. It was truly exciting. I couldn't believe it when my friends said that they couldn't believe I had the courage. Courage? Me? Are you kidding?

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Sewing Again

I admit it. I haven't sewn in years. I used to enjoy it a lot. I also used to have a lot more quiet time in my life to concentrate without any interruptions. However, a custom job in my home has called my name. I needed to replace an item on my patio that provides shade and was destroyed by a windstorm. It is too expensive to replace the entire thing. I bought a canvas dropcloth at my local home improvement store, measured, chalked and cut. I pinned it together and began the sewing. I had forgotten what a wonderful feeling of accomplishment it gives you to make something with your own two hands. It was as if waves of calm were washing over me. What a wonderful feeling. I can't wait to finish this project that I had dreaded to begin.