It was a long line, mommy and daddy switched off as "place in line holders". Meanwhile Kate went around and high-fived a snowman and a lion, got up close with some real reindeer and went on a train ride.
Viewing by month: November 2008
The dress
Nov 23, 2008
I wanted to make Kate a dress. (See this post). I was disappointed that I couldn't get all the fabrics I wanted at the store, and really wanted to finish it this weekend. I really did miss the fabric I'd planned to use for the bodice, I think it would have been a lot nicer.
Here's the end result, with a goofy mockup in Photoshop. I really need to learn to sew neater and learn how to best do zippers etc. The collar didn't make it because I couldn't get it to look neat.
Here's the end result, with a goofy mockup in Photoshop. I really need to learn to sew neater and learn how to best do zippers etc. The collar didn't make it because I couldn't get it to look neat.
That's what Kate calls them. It means that it's a story that wasn't read from the pages of a book. Sometimes she loses reading before bed. This happens when she might have been a little more obstinate or defiant than usual.
Last night it was simply too late. We came home after 9:30 pm, and she needed to just go to sleep. No reading? Her request was: "Can you tell me a story from your mouth?"
Of course I could, after all, she phrased her request so well.
I'm not one of those people who can come up with stories out of the blue. I'll tell a story based on a fairy tale or a myth or something that really happened. A few days ago she heard the story of JoJo (my younger sister) and how she had gone on an adventure when she was a little girl and how everyone was worried until she finally returned home in a police car. (JoJo was 2 at the time).
Last night I told her two stories about a girl named Annie.
Once upon a time, a long time ago, there was a girl named Annie. Annie's mommy and daddy couldn't take care of her for a bit, so she was living with her aunt and uncle, who loved her very much. It was a difficult time though, and Aunt and Uncle didn't always have a lot of money, and sometimes Annie would be very hungry.
One day Aunt Marie asked Annie to go to the baker to buy half a loaf of white bread. Annie took off, it was quite a long walk, but she enjoyed it, skipping and hopping until she got to the bakery. She had to stand in line for a bit but when it was finally her turn, she bought the half loaf of white bread and set out for home again.
The bread was still warm from the oven and smelled so good. Hungry Annie became even hungrier when she got a whiff of the fresh baked bread smells coming out of the bag. If I take just a little bit, no one will notice, she thought. So she took of a little crumb and put it in her mouth.
Hmmm, that was so delicious. Her hungry tummy grumbled. She took another piece, a little bigger this time, not too much, so no one would notice, right?
By the time Annie came home she'd eaten quite a few of those little pieces that no one was supposed to notice. Oh my, when Aunt Marie opened the bag with the bread, there was no bread left, just a hollowed out bread crust! She was not very happy with Annie! Annie was sent to her bed and Aunt Marie had to get on her bicycle to get a new half loaf so that the rest of the family had bread to eat with dinner!
The end.
Once upon a time, in a land far away, in Opaland (the Netherlands) as a matter of fact, there was a little girl, and her name was Annie. Annie loved to go to Sunday school every Sunday. She loved to hear the stories and she loved singing the songs that the teacher made them sing.
There was a bit of a problem with Annie's singing though. She couldn't sing. She tried, for sure, but somehow her little voice could never find the notes of the song like the other children could.
One day, the teacher had great news for the children. Queen Wilhelmina was coming to visit the Sunday school and had asked if the children could sing a song for her. The class practiced very hard. It all sounded incredibly beautiful, except for one thing. Annie's little voice kept singing out of tune.
Meanwhile, all the children were so excited! Annie and her sisters even got new dresses to wear for the special occasion. Since Annie's parents were poor, this was very special.
A few days before the Queen was supposed to arrive, the teacher took Annie apart. "I'm sorry Annie," she said, "but you just can't sing. We can't let the Queen hear your voice." Annie was sad, and wanted to cry, but bit her lip, she wouldn't let the teacher see how sad she really was.
The teacher said: "Listen Annie, I have a plan. You can come with the other children when we go to sing for the Queen, and your mouth will be moving, but you have to make sure no sound comes out. Let's practice." Annie moved her mouth to the words of the song, but kept her voice quiet. "Beautiful," exclaimed the teacher, "then we're all set! The song will sound as it's supposed to, and you get to see the Queen!"
On the day of Queen Wilhemina's visit all went as planned. Annie and her sisters wore their beautiful new dresses. The children sang beautifully. The Queen gave them a big applause when it was all done, and never knew that the pretty girl with the big brown eyes in the corner only moved her mouth and didn't really sing.
The end.
Annie was Kate's loving Oma, my mom. These stories are based on what she told us about her childhood. She really could not sing, even though she kept trying and sang many children's songs with her grandkids, who didn't mind if Oma didn't hit the notes quite right.
Kate loves hearing stories about people she loves!
Last night it was simply too late. We came home after 9:30 pm, and she needed to just go to sleep. No reading? Her request was: "Can you tell me a story from your mouth?"
Of course I could, after all, she phrased her request so well.
I'm not one of those people who can come up with stories out of the blue. I'll tell a story based on a fairy tale or a myth or something that really happened. A few days ago she heard the story of JoJo (my younger sister) and how she had gone on an adventure when she was a little girl and how everyone was worried until she finally returned home in a police car. (JoJo was 2 at the time).
Last night I told her two stories about a girl named Annie.
Annie and the loaf of bread.
Once upon a time, a long time ago, there was a girl named Annie. Annie's mommy and daddy couldn't take care of her for a bit, so she was living with her aunt and uncle, who loved her very much. It was a difficult time though, and Aunt and Uncle didn't always have a lot of money, and sometimes Annie would be very hungry.
One day Aunt Marie asked Annie to go to the baker to buy half a loaf of white bread. Annie took off, it was quite a long walk, but she enjoyed it, skipping and hopping until she got to the bakery. She had to stand in line for a bit but when it was finally her turn, she bought the half loaf of white bread and set out for home again.
The bread was still warm from the oven and smelled so good. Hungry Annie became even hungrier when she got a whiff of the fresh baked bread smells coming out of the bag. If I take just a little bit, no one will notice, she thought. So she took of a little crumb and put it in her mouth.
Hmmm, that was so delicious. Her hungry tummy grumbled. She took another piece, a little bigger this time, not too much, so no one would notice, right?
By the time Annie came home she'd eaten quite a few of those little pieces that no one was supposed to notice. Oh my, when Aunt Marie opened the bag with the bread, there was no bread left, just a hollowed out bread crust! She was not very happy with Annie! Annie was sent to her bed and Aunt Marie had to get on her bicycle to get a new half loaf so that the rest of the family had bread to eat with dinner!
The end.
Can Annie Sing for the Queen?
Once upon a time, in a land far away, in Opaland (the Netherlands) as a matter of fact, there was a little girl, and her name was Annie. Annie loved to go to Sunday school every Sunday. She loved to hear the stories and she loved singing the songs that the teacher made them sing.
There was a bit of a problem with Annie's singing though. She couldn't sing. She tried, for sure, but somehow her little voice could never find the notes of the song like the other children could.
One day, the teacher had great news for the children. Queen Wilhelmina was coming to visit the Sunday school and had asked if the children could sing a song for her. The class practiced very hard. It all sounded incredibly beautiful, except for one thing. Annie's little voice kept singing out of tune.
Meanwhile, all the children were so excited! Annie and her sisters even got new dresses to wear for the special occasion. Since Annie's parents were poor, this was very special.
A few days before the Queen was supposed to arrive, the teacher took Annie apart. "I'm sorry Annie," she said, "but you just can't sing. We can't let the Queen hear your voice." Annie was sad, and wanted to cry, but bit her lip, she wouldn't let the teacher see how sad she really was.
The teacher said: "Listen Annie, I have a plan. You can come with the other children when we go to sing for the Queen, and your mouth will be moving, but you have to make sure no sound comes out. Let's practice." Annie moved her mouth to the words of the song, but kept her voice quiet. "Beautiful," exclaimed the teacher, "then we're all set! The song will sound as it's supposed to, and you get to see the Queen!"
On the day of Queen Wilhemina's visit all went as planned. Annie and her sisters wore their beautiful new dresses. The children sang beautifully. The Queen gave them a big applause when it was all done, and never knew that the pretty girl with the big brown eyes in the corner only moved her mouth and didn't really sing.
The end.
Annie was Kate's loving Oma, my mom. These stories are based on what she told us about her childhood. She really could not sing, even though she kept trying and sang many children's songs with her grandkids, who didn't mind if Oma didn't hit the notes quite right.
Kate loves hearing stories about people she loves!
I'm going to try ...
Nov 20, 2008
... and make a dress for Kate with these four fabrics. Wish me luck!
November is COPD Awareness Month
Nov 17, 2008
COPD: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
It's the major illness that my mom was dealing with for 15 years. She also had many other issues, including congestive heart failure. The fact that she was unable to get enough oxygen into her system made it hard for anything to function properly.
Most likely if she hadn't been smoking for almost 40 years, she would still be here, enjoying her life, her grandkids, her kids, her husband's company.
Her doctor told my dad once that he should just try and breathe through a straw for a bit and see how he felt, because that was about what my mom was getting in. Can you imagine that on a daily basis, even with oxygen?
My mom passed away July 31 of this year (read about that here). As a kid it's very hard to see your parent go through so much and struggle so hard for every breath, having to recover from the simplest things we take for granted, such as getting up from your chair, going to the bathroom.
For my dad it was even harder. He lived it with her every day, worrying about whether the fever she suddenly spiked meant another infection, and was she going to get better this time, or was this the one that was going to do her in. Not until after she died did he start sharing how hard this was on him. While it was going on he couldn't, because he had to keep going. He's dealing with it now, remembering and reliving and processing what it all meant to him. That can't be easy.
I've thanked him for the wonderful care he gave my mom all those years, a caregiving that increased year by year, as she could do less and less. He shrugs that off and says that's something you just do.
COPD Awareness Month.
STOP SMOKING and if you can't right now KEEP TRYING TO STOP SMOKING. Tell your loved ones, your friends to stop smoking. Don't enable them.
Check this website: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/copd/index.htm for information on COPD.
It's the major illness that my mom was dealing with for 15 years. She also had many other issues, including congestive heart failure. The fact that she was unable to get enough oxygen into her system made it hard for anything to function properly.
Most likely if she hadn't been smoking for almost 40 years, she would still be here, enjoying her life, her grandkids, her kids, her husband's company.
Her doctor told my dad once that he should just try and breathe through a straw for a bit and see how he felt, because that was about what my mom was getting in. Can you imagine that on a daily basis, even with oxygen?
My mom passed away July 31 of this year (read about that here). As a kid it's very hard to see your parent go through so much and struggle so hard for every breath, having to recover from the simplest things we take for granted, such as getting up from your chair, going to the bathroom.
For my dad it was even harder. He lived it with her every day, worrying about whether the fever she suddenly spiked meant another infection, and was she going to get better this time, or was this the one that was going to do her in. Not until after she died did he start sharing how hard this was on him. While it was going on he couldn't, because he had to keep going. He's dealing with it now, remembering and reliving and processing what it all meant to him. That can't be easy.
I've thanked him for the wonderful care he gave my mom all those years, a caregiving that increased year by year, as she could do less and less. He shrugs that off and says that's something you just do.
COPD Awareness Month.
STOP SMOKING and if you can't right now KEEP TRYING TO STOP SMOKING. Tell your loved ones, your friends to stop smoking. Don't enable them.
Check this website: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/copd/index.htm for information on COPD.
This was fun ...
Nov 13, 2008
I wish I had more time to play around like this. There are days I regret getting stuck with computers and not working with paint or something like it.
Kate in Black and White
Nov 07, 2008
