Welcome to flamingobear. We're the Martin family. Jenn cooks a lot. Tim eats it. And the trees are awesome.
We’ve discussed, more than once, how Oakley has a talent with words. She reads beautifully, and writes equally well. I think she’s nothing short of brilliant. And, in a way, I was telling her that in the car today.
We’d been cruising along, talking a bit about the words she coined in this piece (Squack! Skit!).
One thing I love about Oakley is that she just decides to do stuff. It’s not because she’s asked, or she feels she has to, she just decides to do something. This birthday card is a perfect example.
Like other 1st grade students, Oakley was asked to complete a writing assessment sometime in the last couple of weeks. This is something they write at school in which they are encouraged to use all of their writing tools. I think Oakley comes with a truckload…
My favorite snowy day activity is sledding. I like sledding because sledding makes me feel like I am soaring down a massive hill with very swift and jerkey moments. Another thing I like to do is sip hot chocolate. Sipping hot chocolate makes me feel all warm and toasty inside. It makes me feel like I do when someone I love is surounding me. Hot chocolate makes me feel spectacular. When hot chocolate has marshmellows with it the hot chocolate makes feel even better. I also like building snowmen. The chilly snow on my fingertips makes me remember how fortanate we are to be having this much snow. It is so fun to roll the snow balls all different sizes. I wonder how many cinemeters it takes to get across the bottom sphere. Finnaly when I am on the last object I know every time that I am going to be satisfied with my snowman. When I am finished, I make sure that I have added every single part. Then I stand back to admire it. Sometimes I might say its to big. Sometimes I say its just right. And sometimes I might say, “Its to small. I will make it bigger next time!” I positivly love snowy winter days! I love playing in the snow, hot chocolate with marshmellows, and last but not least, building snowmen. I wish the whole world was of snow.
I have it on pretty good authority that this would have been a good writing assessment for a 5th grader… How awesome is Oakley!?
Lindy just walked in here while I was processing some pictures for Jenn (including perhaps her least favorite thing she’s ever made!) She was being sweet and kind of leaning on me. So I picked her up, and gave her a hug.
Tim: Lindy, will you always be my baby?
Lindy: Yes.
Tim: What about when you’re 22?
Lindy: Yes.
Tim: So, if I call you, and say, “Lindy, come and give me a hug,” will you do it? Even if you live somewhere different from me?
Lindy: nods sweetly Yes… but my name might not be Lindy!
Aspen and Jenn were hanging out this week, and Aspen happened to notice a bag with a logo much like the one above.
Aspen: Now I get it!
Jenn: What?
Aspen: Now I get why a Target bag has that shape on it. It’s a target.
Jenn: Yes.
Aspen: That must be their mah-tah!
Jenn: What?!
Aspen: Their mah-tah.
Jenn: Do you mean their “motto”?
Aspen: Yes. Sorry.
Jenn: Yeah, well, it’s OK. That’s their logo…
(Note: Aspen finds stuff like this funny, too! We still laugh about the way she first pronounced “dev-ah-stuh-ted”…)
This afternoon, I walked through the garage, and I noticed the hula hoops, piled up behind the ball bin. The looked sad. Just six months ago, hula hoops were all the rage… at school, at home, in this awesome video… And now, they sit, restless, useless, tossed aside.
When Oakley got home, it occurred to me to ask her what had overtaken the hula hoop…
As new homes in Tennessee go, ours is in a pretty old spot. The very first settlement in Williamson County was, literally, across the street from us, and dates back to at least 1800. We’re talking really old. In fact, our local plant expert, Mike Berkley, tells us that his read on things is that our “orchard” has been cultivated for an incredibly long time.
I love the way my girls speak… it impresses me constantly, and makes me laugh regularly.
Today, I was walking Aspen and Oakley to the bus stop, and Aspen accidentally stepped on a snail. Trust me, it was an accident; this girl loves animals.
As we walked on, she was concerned because she saw several more. This is what she said:
I’m exercising great caution not to tread upon another snail.
So funny… who actually talks like that?
Aspen’s helping Lindy with making her Valentine’s cards right now.
Aspen: Do you want to use the “Be Mine” heart or the “Be My Valentine” heart?
Lindy: This is XXXXX’s [name redacted].
Aspen: So you want it to say, “Be Mine”?
Lindy: No. I want it to say, “Stop pushing and hitting and being mean.”
Sorry, Lindy, we didn’t get that card this year.
Just heard in the Martin house…
Jenn: Do y’all want anything at the grocery store?
silence
Oakley: Bacon.
No argument here, my girl.