TBT - Planting a Memory Tree

A few years ago my Uncle wanted to plant a new orange tree in his yard.  

He thought it would be fun for the grand-kids/grand-nieces &grand-nephews 

to plant it in honor of my Grandma and my Mother.  

Plus, any excuse to get together is a good one.

So we all met at his house, my cousins and brothers, my Aunt and Uncle and all our kids.  

Aren't they a good looking bunch?  The girls outnumber the boys in this group.

Sara Jane

 Garrett and Abby - two peas in a pod

 Uncle Pete dug a hole then we shared memories of Grandma Betty and Aunt Barbara (my Mom)

Everyone brough something to put in the hole.

Little notes, rose petals from a special rose bush, little girl trinkets and i guess a sugar cookie went in there!  (I don't remember that.) Good thing we have pictures to spark a memory.

The tree being planted.  All the kids got to help.  

This is a fun idea to do every time you plant a tree.

It makes that tree have memories from the very start of it's life.

Every time we go to my Aunt & Uncles house we smile and know that tree is filled with love and sugar. (literally)

 

I brought a Dr. Pepper because we all know that was my mom's favorite. 

 We all toasted and drank Dr. Pepper at her funeral.

It was only fitting to add a bottle to the tree.

Plus, plants like caffeine and high fructose corn syrup....don't they?

Thank You Uncle Pete for thinking of this fun memory making activity.

And good luck little tree!  

We love you already.

TBT = Throw Back Thursday 

Pictures and Memories from Feb. 2010

The Gig is Up

It's happened.  My life as a fun Mom is officially over. 

Abby found about the Easter Bunny yesterday. 

The..day..before..Easter!

I was gone helping a friend with her garage sale. 
Abby came in and put her little face right in front of Tom's face and said,

" Dad, is the Easter Bunny real?  Tell the truth."

And he did.  He told her everything gosh darn it.  If it were me I would have lied my pants off and kept the whole thing going till she was 25.  I mean what's the fun in the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus if the kids know about it?

I guess they had a very enlightening conversation about it and Tom told her about the "secret of Christmas" and that even though Santa and the Easter Bunny aren't real, Heavenly Father and Jesus ARE real and they love her.  Abby said, "Dad I know they are real, I can feel them".  It was a very powerful teaching moment Tom said.  They decided not to tell me and to keep her knowing a secret.  But by that night she just couldn't hold it in.  She told me she knew and then we had a cute conversation about it.  I said, "so you know everything?"   She said, "yes"  i said, "does that mean the Tooth Fairy doesn't have to come now?" she got this shocked look on her face and just looked at me, then turned to Tom and looked at him like, WHAT?  YOU DIDN'T TELL ME ABOUT THE TOOTH FAIRY?!  I then turned to Tom and said those same words out loud.  He sheepishly said he forgot.  So basically the whole thing is done.  Over.  Finished.

As I was getting their baskets ready to put out from "the Easter Bunny"  I just sat there and bawled.  My heart was broken.  Sounds dumb but I lived for these holidays.  I even made some up so I could live for more holidays.  We had the Valentine Fairy, The Little Leprechaun, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, The Birthday Fairy, and Santa Claus.  I cried and cried and the worst part was I couldn't call my Mom and ask her what to do now?  I had a major pitty party I've got to tell you.  I even cried the entire next day about it.  I would tell people at church and just start to cry.  It will be alright.  My girls were very sweet about how sad I was and said they would continue to "believe" so I could keep up with my traditions.  I'm thinking I only have about ten years until I have grand-kids and then watch out!  This Grandma is going to pull out all the stops!  Just you wait.

Growing up my family had a joke that our house was called, "Clausen Cafe and Boarding House". I am following in the tradition with glee!

♥♥Thursday at 4pm my Aunt Kathy came for a visit - stayed till Monday at 4pm
♥♥Thursday at 8pm my friends Anny & Kass came for a visit - stayed till Friday
♥♥Today Tom's Brother Mike flies in at 5:05pm - not sure when the return is.
♥♥Today my friend Kim and her family fly in (not sure the time) for good! They are finally, after five long years moving here. (yippee for me!!)

So in honor of all these fun friends and a fun filled weekend I'm going to carry on the tradition and call my house:

Garden View Cottage Bed and Breakfast

(and I do have to admit - I can make a yummy breakfast!)

Christmas Traditions #10 (are you bored yet?)

Growing up being the only girl in a family of all boys as you can guess I was a tad bit spoiled. Not too spoiled, just enough spoiled! Which leads me to my next tradition.

Birthday Trees and Ornaments!

My birthday is December 23rd. Every year growing up when we would go get our family Christmas tree I would also get a little live pine tree in a wooden pot. It was my "Birthday Tree". My birthday presents went under that tree in birthday paper NOT Christmas paper. And every year I would get a new ornament for my tree from my Mom.

When I got married and had my first real Christmas tree it was so nice to pull out those ornaments that I had been collecting thanks to Mom and share all the memories that went with them. The ornaments usually had to do with something that happened that year. For example: One year I think I was about 8 years old my Mom and I and my best friend Leah and her Mom went to San Francisco (ooooh the BIG city!) to see the Nutcracker Ballet. It was AMAZING!! I can still remember how magical it was. That year for my birthday ornament my Mom got me a mini nutcracker to hang on my tree. Last year I started a new tradition with my brothers to have an ornament exchange. I think my brothers really like the idea and have been quite creative in picking out their ornaments. This year Matt made us all an ornament out of our Christmas cards. He's the crafty one!

I know I complain a bit about having all our birthdays and anniversary in December but one of the things I love about that is that I get to share my birthday tradition with my girls. They each have a birthday tree (not a live one I have no room to plant two trees a year) and they are each decorated to fit their personality. Abby's is pink (of course what other color would it be?) and Cassidy's is a candy tree for her LOVE of the sweet stuff! They love their trees and I love searching for the perfect ornament to give to them on their birthdays just as I'm sure my Mother did for me.

Abby's tree (above all in pink) and Cassidy's tree (below filled with color and sugary things)

Christmas Traditions #9

The Advent Calendarthe original
the new one, along with our candy garland advent calendar

Growing up one of my favorite memories was getting to do the advent calendar every year. My Mom made the one in the above photo I'm sure at some church function. The best part of that calendar is that she had a red heart with white pearls for her anniversary (and now our anniversary) and a little pink and white birthday cake with a candle for my birthday.

Ever since she had moved to AZ I had been asking her for the advent calendar. She couldn't find it but said she would keep looking. After she died and we were going through all her stuff I found the advent calendar right behind her bedroom door! That's when I started crying. I hadn't really cried up to that point but when I saw that calendar the flood gates opened! My brother Kurt came in and saw the calendar and said he had been wanting it too. So for some unselfish reason (not normal for me, he-he) I let him have it. Last year for Christmas I bought all my brothers an advent calendar similar to the one we grew up with. I even made them a red heart with white pearls and 3 little cakes for the girls and I.

When I went to my brothers house the other night it was nice to see that good ol' calendar hanging with pride on his wall for his little boys to start their own tradition. (I even got a little teary)

Christmas Traditions #8

Friend and Neighbor Gifts!

This year for our Friend and Neighbor gifts I did my all time favorite magazine - Real Simple and then I stole Mindy's idea for some cookies in a tin with hot chocolate and candy canes (Sams Club) I thought they turned out super cute and I would have delivered more of them but I ran out and Sams club didn't have anything left by the time I went back (so sad!) The girls and I had fun delivering them one night in our P.J.'s!!

The best memory of this gift is me going down every checkout isle at Wal-Mart taking all the Real Simple Magazines. I went back later that day and they had re-stocked! Yippee for me! I went down every checkout isle again and took every last magazine. I'm sure whoever stocks those racks was very confused!!!