It's a hit

I took the opportunity in the beautiful 69 degree weather this afternoon to stroll through some downtown shops on the waterfront. I found this little green treasure with the help of some friends at a quaint little antique store. It's jade! He has a few tiny little knicks that don't take away from the overall charm, so he was discounted into a price range I could appreciate. I brought him home to one happy little seven-year-old girl who loves elephants and green.

Memories . . .

I do miss this, just a little. This was the sign in front of the theatre every night of my performances. I'm hoping to get reacquainted with it in the fall. I'll keep you posted.

a little bonus

I love Bernadette Peters. She has a magical ability to morph into any character flawlessly, and she brings gut-wrenching emotion to any song she sings on any stage. I was surfing youtube for a theatre fix, because . . . well, because I like theatre. And I miss it right now. I got a little spoiled with my last show. :-) Anyway, I always look for clips of Ms. Peters, and I've posted my personal favorite down at the bottom of my blog. Amazingly, it's not from Annie Get Your Gun. The context of the song in its actual show is a lover singing of the one she has bitterly lost but can't seem to get away from. However, the first time I heard it, I thought it captured one of the facets of loss for anyone, the early days of grief . . . "Not a Day Goes By" that the person isn't part of your life. You wait for the day you'll start forgetting, but you don't. For a time, you feel like you are dying yourself, over and over every day. Eventually, it's not as angry and painful, and then you move on to another song . . .
I hope you like it. If you're a theatre person, you'll love it. If you're not, I think there is a good chance you'll still love it. :-)

A Pleasant Surprise

This morning I walked outside to put the garbage out and I noticed a new flower in my little garden. It is a tiny little white thing, barely noticeable, but it is a promise of things to come. I almost gave up on this jasmine plant when I cleaned this flower bed out several months ago. It was one puny little brown twig that made a half-hearted "y" shape at the top, and it had maybe 4 or 5 crispy leaves on it. It looked dead! However, when I scraped a little piece with my fingernail, I saw a speck of green. So, I left it to see what would happen.

In the past few weeks, it has grown like crazy! It is starting to climb the little trellis I'm attempting to train it on, and its leaves have filled in beautifully. Today it has finally opened one of its little buds to say hello, and I can't wait for the rest of them to join it. It's going to be a heavenly smell by my front door!

New shoes

It occurred to me that my posts are becoming a journal of my daily activities with my only child. Well, that's just my life these days. :-) I also think I have a need, on a subconscious level, to keep my mom-in-law updated on our day to day activities so that she just eases right into things when she arrives. It will be as if she were never away.

That said, here was our plan for the day today: shopping. It is the final week of Bath and Body Works semi-annual summer sale, and I wanted those smelly-good things that plug into the wall. I wouldn't be caught dead paying full price, so I stocked up. I'm currently enjoying one of my most favorite summer scents - honeysuckle. Haleigh also got shimmery green peppermint lip gloss. What can I say, it was essential! Her other essential acquisition was this pair of shoes. She calls them her "bling bling crocs" and she hasn't taken them off yet. Note: This blogger is not responsible for the dirty socks in the above picture.

Is it really stealing

if you know they won't mind? I have a new look for my blog. It needed a little updating, and I shamelessly stole a picture from my mother-in-law's blog. :-) It is of some of the daylilies in my grandmother-in-law's yard, which I happen to love. I changed the colors around a little to complement the picture, and I started having a "deja vu" feeling, as if I had seen these colors before and there was nostalgia there!

After a few minutes of staring at the page, it finally came to me . . . my first bikini! It was a very modest thing (as was I), and it was color-blocked with the green and purple from my page. I LOVED that swimsuit, because it made me feel sooooo grown-up. It marked the first time that I was allowed to get a two-piece and I was so proud!

Now that I have a daughter of my own (who is 7, going on 16) I am trying very hard to remember my perceptions of things as a child. I forget sometimes how much I wanted to grow up! I thought that if I could just become an adult I could do whatever I wanted whenever I felt like it! If only it were that easy, right? I understand now why my mom always said "oh, Amy, enjoy being a kid! You'll grow up before you know it and you'll miss this freedom!" Freedom! That's exactly what I thought I lacked!

That bikini was important to me. It was a symbolic thing that I thought would bring me closer to being "grown up". My mama recognized that, and helped me select something that was still age-appropriate but helped me fulfill that need. For my little girl, it's things like being allowed occasionally to wear a little lip gloss or the "dangly" earrings out of the house that help her assert some independence and feel grown up while remaining a child.

I remember being on the other side of this battle, so I know it will feel eternal as my child longs to grow up and I long for her to stay young and innocent and care-free. I hope I can find the wisdom my mama had!

How cute!

Here's the original June 5, 1950 advertisement in Life magazine for Esquire Lanol White Shoe Polish! It's even safer for babies!!!! Now my story is changing. Maybe my bottle belonged to a new mom who kept her baby's first shoes spotless as he or she toddled around my backyard!