Time Marches On....

Time marches on.  


I was thinking today of Amy's (my eldest child) first Christmas.  I got her blocks, snap beads, and other 4 month old appropriate toys.  Now Amy is 18, working, taking classes at the local community college, and her life revolves around her boyfriend and her Android phone.

Robyn is 11 now.  Too old for the little kid games and toys.. she in is that wonderful nerdy phase that I adore.  The world is her laboratory.. to be studied, experimented, and pondered.  My Robyn, like her sister and her mom, loves stars, shells, and rocks.  Santa knows this of course, and will accommodate her tastes quite well this year. :)   

Mark, my husband, has all the Christmas lights up.  Finally.  We have Santa and his reindeer taking off on our roof, the front reindeer are airborne as the team prepares to go to the next house.  The entire front garden is filled from one boundary line to the other with blow ups, the Nativity scene, soldiers, gingerbread men, and assorted blown plastic, light-up figurines.  It is truly Mark's pride, our front yard.  He delights in all the drive-bys we get, all the admiring faces... we get a lot of traffic... I admit it pleases me to know that people make the effort to make sure they drive by our home each year, as our display continues to grow and change each year.  I always laugh and say our display is "Mark's stuff".  Like, if we were to divorce, (no way! but just sayin'), all the Christmas stuff would be 'his'. :)  He would get his work clothes, his golf clubs, and his Christmas stuff.  LOL  That's it. ;)  LOL  If it were up to me, we'd have one single strand of multi-colored lights up in a window, and a little Charlie Brown Christmas tree. LOL  Mark has spoiled me over these year with Christmas lights. :)  Our daughters love it, and are always excited to show their friends. :)  These two Daddy's girls just love it. :)

Christmas is next week... gosh already?!  So we've gotten all the kids in the family and none of the adults.  Aaack.  Will take care of them this coming up week.  I made out a box of Christmas cards, and used a book of stamps... and ran out.  So tomorrow I'll be stopping for another box of stamps and another box of cards and HOPEFULLY I can find some cards I actually like.  Finding 'Catholic' Christmas cards in a Protestant part of the country is not easy.  Trust me.  If I find some with the Holy Family I will count myself fortunate.

So it's almost 9PM.  My silly gooses are watching Hetalia.  Again. :)  I am stewing chicken for tomorrows soup.  Robyn starts CCD tomorrow.  I can't believe her Confirmation is in just 2 years.  Where does the time go?   It kills me to know I have one 'baby bird' (Amy) standing on the edge of the 'nest' with her little wings just a-flappin'.  She is ready to fly.  She has a job and drives and votes and is GROWN.  I am happy but sad at the same time.  My little precious angel grew up.  My bald baby with big brown eyes and dimples is going to leave eventually.  I am going to be broken hearted when that happens.  She has a boyfriend we actually LIKE, and so I would not be unhappy if that 'progressed'.  But I hope like anything that they take their time and go nice and slow.  I am happy to know that Amy has insisted that she will marry (whether it's this boy or some other boy) in the Church. :)  She wants to homeschool, and raise her children as Catholics.   I am relieved and pleased and happy and proud of that fact.  She makes me proud.

Robyn is such a funny girl.  She has a crush on a boy now, her second crush actually.  I hate to tell her that she is only 11, and will have crushes on many boys. :)   I know, in my heart of hearts, that Robyn is going to continue to grow, and change, and in a few years will be more 'actively' liking boys... and honestly.. she's already half grown.  

Time marches on. I have one grown and one half grown.  I can feel sorry for myself that I didn't have more children, (I do this, I'm afraid), or I can look forward to my future grandchildren.  (I do!) :)  

I look in the mirror and my hair isn't dark brown anymore... it's whatever I've currently colored it, or it's more salt than pepper.  How can we look one way on the outside, (old) when we still feel so young on the inside?  Someone, please stop the roller coaster.  I want the ride to go slower.