by Heather Plett | Nov 5, 2008 | Uncategorized
Maddie had minor surgery this morning (tubes in her ears), and only a couple of hours later she is up and about and feeling fine (though the sounds she’s now hearing are surprising her in their intensity). The same little girl who had a major panic attack (and took a few years off Mommy’s life) a few weeks ago when she had to get blood taken was a brave little trooper today, practically bounding down the hall with the nurse, hanging onto Joe Banana and Lolly Lobster (who traveled back from the east coast with me specially for the event) looking forward to the watermelon-scented gas she’d soon be breathing in to put her to sleep. The procedure was so fast, Marcel and I barely made it to the cafeteria for coffee and chai latte before they were calling us back in to be with her when she woke up.
In other news, I am back from a few delightful days spent in PEI and Nova Scotia. It was a mini “speaking tour” (doesn’t that make me sound all important?) with three speaking engagements in one day, and then some time spent with our new volunteers in the region. I’ll be back soon to tell you a little story about some new friends, a lovely serendipitous moment in a magical gift shop, and one of the most wonderful gifts I’ve every received. Add all of that to a few amazing meals of fresh fish, scallops (pronounced “scullops” by the locals), and lobster, and I was a happy, happy girl.
For now, though, I must spend a little time cuddling with my brave little girl (who just came to ask me if there were any restrictions against eating Halloween candy after surgery :-).
by Heather Plett | Nov 1, 2008 | Uncategorized
The costumes – handmade by mom…
Happy Pumpkin Man (and friend)…
Trick-or-treating with the cousins…
by Heather Plett | Oct 31, 2008 | Uncategorized
When she is sixteen years old, rushing off to a halloween party with her friends and no longer interested in trick-or-treating with Mom, I want to remember six-year-old Maddie, blowing out the candle in the jack-o-lantern, turning off the kitchen light (even though I was doing the dishes) and whispering “Good night, Happy Pumpkin Man”. When I protested, she said “But Mom – he needs a good night sleep – he’s got a big day tomorrow!”
This morning I told her that I was suspicious that Happy Pumpkin Man might have snuck out and partied all night. He’s got such a short life, after all – wouldn’t you want to live it up while you still can?
by Heather Plett | Oct 27, 2008 | Uncategorized
Nikki and Julie to Maddie before heading to a movie: “Of COURSE we don’t buy candy at the movie theatre. It’s way too expensive. Instead we go to Bulk Barn to stock up on cheap candy and then we bring a big purse along so we can stuff it with our own snacks. When you’ve been raised by OUR mom, you know how to find the deals.”
I’m so proud!
by Heather Plett | Oct 23, 2008 | Uncategorized
I know you’ll all find this hard to believe, but, with Halloween still more than a week away, I AM FINISHED THE HALLOWEEN COSTUMES! And they are good. Martha Stewart good. “Mom you ROCK!” good. Try-them-on-a-dozen-times-a-day-just-so-you-can-stare-at-yourself-in-the-mirror good. I am basking in the glow. For the first time in thirteen years, I will NOT be huddled over a sewing machine at midnight on October 30th. (Sorry Accidental Seamstress if I’ve left you feeling abandoned.)
Twenty years from now, when my children are grown, it’s what they’ll talk about. “Remember the costumes mom used to make? The sheep? The monkey? The fairy princess complete with gossamer wings? The elephant? The Campbell’s Soup can?” “Yeah, she was a little crazy/obsessed/single-minded two weeks before Halloween, but MAN did we have good costumes!”
It’s what I do. I make good costumes. Once a year, I get to rock their socks off. Dig deep into my psyche and you’ll probably discover that it’s really about me trying to compensate for all of my other failings as a parent, but I’m not about to visit a shrink to find that out. I’ll just sew. And glue. And cut. And then send them off into the streets to wow their friends and beg for candy.
Truthfully, I didn’t think the glue gun would become a once-a-year tool. I used to spend a lot of time creating things – all kinds of things from leather moccasins to dried flower arrangements to hand-painted Christmas ornaments – before I had kids. When I started having kids, I thought I would be one of those moms who would forever be hauling out paints and feathers and little bits of fabric and spending many magical afternoons creating things with my fanciful, imaginative children. That was before reality set it. It turns out I’m not really very fond of the mixture of children and paints and feathers and little bits of fabric. It turns out that it’s an awful lot of work to create – and more importantly clean up the messes – with your children. And it turns out that a full time job on top of motherhood doesn’t leave a lot of time for magical art-filled afternoons. Some days just keeping them fed seems beyond my capacity.
Nope – I didn’t live up to my own expectations. It’s not that I never do art projects with them, it’s just that I haven’t been as committed to it as I’d anticipated. But what I still do, despite the years it nearly led to a nervous breakdown, is make good costumes. And sometimes, in this obstacle course called parenting, there’s such a thing as “close enough”.
