our kids' childhood memories

On an afternoon that felt particularly exhausting, I was thinking back to easier days and I caught myself in a string of flashbacks of things that feel very much like they defined my childhood.

The heat vent at the top of the steps that we used to sit on with our shirt all the way over our knees while the heat filled up our pajamas like a circus tent.

The space below the thin counter near our wall phone that we used to sit under while chatting to our school friends, before we had any thought that we needed privacy for conversations.

Macaroni & Cheese with hot dogs and ketchup on top, kool-aid in a 'borrowed' pizza hut pitcher, balloon volleyball in the living room, cereal on the porch in an Adirondack chair during summer vacation.

My sisters and I in the backseat of our car - always in the same seats - sharing space and blankets and trying to sing over top of each other.

Jumping on the trampoline in autumn when the leaves would fall down all around us while the cool wind whipped our hair around mid-jump.

French toast for brunch at Gram's house that was always filled with her laugh and Pap tickling behind our ears as we ran by him on his reclining chair.

Pap's hands around our wrists to make us 'clap, clap, whoops!' and Gram's hug - fully consumed inside the safe, soft circle of her body.

Our cool kitchen floor, where when I was overwhelmed in high school - I used to lay down with my cheek flat against it and just breathe.

My Dad's steady voice and my Mom's soft, worn hands.

A shared, knowing glance with Kayla and Tasha's head asleep, leaning on my shoulder.

My parents planned awesome birthday parties and vacations, and occasionally we received gifts that we had been wanting for so long, and we got to attend amazing events and opportunities.  And although each of these extraordinary moments were important to who I have become - they rarely make their way into my mind when I think about my childhood as a whole.  My childhood memory is made up of ordinary moments.  These unremarkable flickers of the things that feel like 'home' to me; feel like being young.

I've been thinking recently about what it will be that our kids look back on and define as their childhood.  I imagine they will feel nostalgic about the ordinary, just as we do.  I don't want to attempt to speculate on the things that I hope the kids will remember because I believe their memories will be held together by the little moments that we maybe don't even know we're doing - all the ordinary things that slide through our days without a second glance from our grown up eyes.

Somehow this thought gives me solace to know that they will look back on what it was like to grow up in our house through a lens that we, as their parents, are not yet privy; that someday they'll remind us of some small regular moment and we'll be awed that it was saved somewhere in their childhood repository.

Since I can't predict those moments that they will cling to - I hope to keep myself in check by making sure that there are more smiles than tears in each day - more cuddles than shipments to time-out.  I will attempt to make the time that we share all together include more laughs than arguments.  That more of our days are blanketed with peacefulness and patience rather than stress and hastiness.

I don't know what ordinary moments will make up my kids' childhood memories someday - all I do know is that they are being made right now.

Booboo's Mail - Highlights High Five

Sometime early last year, I signed Greyson up to receive the Highlights High Five magazine.  It's just like the standard Highlights magazine that has been available for a bajillion 65 years, but it is tailored to a little younger group of kids.  The High Five magazine targets ages 2-6 with its stories, puzzles, and games.

And for the last year, Grey has loved receiving his very own mail in the mailbox!  Not only the receiving the mail part - but we have both enjoyed reading the stories together, finding the objects in the hidden puzzle and putting together the game or mini book that is always on the last pages.  But our favorite part is the 'That's Silly' pages - where we go back and forth and point out things that look silly in the picture.

Our High Five subscription has encouraged time for us to be huddled up on the couch together reading and giggling, but also talking and asking questions.  We have loved our High Five subscription so much - that we've subscribed two of Grey's friends up to receive it as gifts this past year!  Its an awesome gift - and one that lasts the whole year through!

Our blog was recently accepted to be a Highlights Affiliate (the link in the sidebar will always remain) - so if you are interested in taking a look at the Highlights High Five magazine- here's your chance!  As always, they still have the Highlights magazine for kids 6-12 as well.  And what is great, is that if you start your child off on the High Five, you can switch your subscription to the older Highlights magazine once they have their birthday - even if its in the middle of your subscription!

High Five Magazineâ„¢ for Children
Each issue of High Fiveâ„¢ magazine is packed with colorful, fun-filled features develo... [More]

Price: 29.64

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I also want to mention that we will be adding another little gremlin to the Highlights train - Gemmi has just been signed up for her very own mail to arrive - the brand new Highlights Hello magazine that is geared towards 0-2 year olds.  Gem is still sort of in the I'm-going-to-rip-a-page-out-of-this-book-to-see-what-Mum-says phase, so I was hesitant to sign her up - but after learning that the Highlights Hello magazines are bound with thread and have tough washable pages with rounded corners - I was sold.  

Same goes for the Hello subscriptions - if your child grows out of the magazine mid-subscription, no worries - just switch up to High Five at anytime.  (this especially helps if you want to $ave money by purchasing a 2-3 year subscription - since you can move up at any time!)

Highlights Hello Magazineâ„¢ for Children
Hello magazine supports both language and cognitive development, and social and emotion... [More]

Price: 29.64

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And I was delighted to find possibly the next thing on my Highlights ordering list might just be the Highlights Stencil Kit.  Do you guys remember these?  We had them when we were little girls and just looking at them makes me feel giddy and nostalgic.  I feel like they are a relic from my childhood and I can't wait to introduce Grey to the vast fun that is using stencils.

Stencil Set
Stencils spark creative fun! The colorful Highlights Stencil Set is perfect for creatin... [More]

Price: 16.98

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If your kids love receiving mail and enjoy puzzles, games, and stories - I think signing up for a Highlights subscription is a no-brainer and a great gift idea to keep in mind as summer birthday parties loom in the future.

If you're interested in learning more about our experience with Highlights High Five - just let me know! We really do love it - this is not solely a shameless plug for my new button in the sidebar, hah.  We truly enjoy our subscription and it has come in handy on more than one occasion when Mumma needs a distraction from the kids making a huge mess - we just get 'Booboo's Mail' and sit at the kitchen table together.  

Remember these 2 kids

There is this beautiful saying that always makes me smile when I occasionally see it [on pinterest]...

And a few weeks ago, in a very serendipitous moment, I was thinking of this quote while cleaning up a scrapbook that had fallen from our closet shelf.  I've been taping pictures of Brandon and I in since high school (its hilarious and cheesy) and that afternoon I came upon a picture of the two of us.  We are young and fresh faced and starry-eyed.  And I suddenly realized, WE were the someone elses praying for so many of the things we take for granted everyday in this very messy, usually chaotic life.

Once upon a time, when we were young and dating long distance - we used to dream about a life that we could share and make together.  We giggled about owning pets and raising kids with sticky hands, sharing a bed every night; while our young, eager bodies squeezed together into twin beds at Brandon's college or in my Brooklyn apartment.  We prayed for the day that we wouldn't be apart and we would be married, happy grown ups doing ordinary adult things - sharing bank accounts, and making each other dinners, ordering pizza from a place we considered to be 'our favorite.'  It all seemed so romantic and dream-like to be grown ups and married.

And now -  here we are.  Married, mostly happy, always busy, usually tired grown ups.

These past few weeks have been particularly happy, busy, and tiring - so in my moment of realization - I snatched that picture out of that floppy, worn scrapbook and stuck it to our bathroom mirror and above it I wrote, "Remember these 2 kids"

And there it has stayed for the last few weeks as a daily reminder that once upon a time - we were the somebodies wishing for all of these things that we sometimes take for granted.  We were just two kids praying for this life that we are sharing every day...and all the other tiring, busy junk just doesn't seem to bother us as much when we think of those 2 kids.

(i love you, B).