Wedding Preparations - Full Speed Ahead

Well, it hasn't taken any time for Sprout's wedding preparations to fall into full swing. Everything is falling into place nicely and us girls (me, Bridey and MOTB-Mother of the Bride) are having a really good time with all the plans.

Yesterday, we took the Little General to pick out a flowergirl dress. The other flowergirl doesn't know it yet, but the Little General has appointed herself "Head-Flowergirl-In-Charge". One thing I gotta say about the Little General...she is a girl, through and through. She loves all things feminine and if it were possible, I'm sure she would have moved all of her belongings to the bridal store and just lived there for the rest of her life. She was definately in her element. We had to laugh at her as she modeled her pretty dress while all the other future brides milled around in theirs...I think she thinks she's getting married. There's only one problem with that - boys are mean and she's never getting married. But she can still have the dress and the shoes and the gloves and the tiara crown...can't she?
Here she is looking so darn cute that you would never guess that she will one day be either the leader of the free world or the leader of the Crips and the Bloods. That's my Little General!

antiboredom campaign

An oldie but goody. It'll leave you laughing.

All You Young Mothers...Thank Your Lucky Stars

Okay, all you young mothers out there. Here is some poetry my sister dug up while doing some family history research. She has found that we are descended from a wealthy guy with a castle in Holland (which is still in use today) from around the 16th century. We are sprung from his illegitimate family (some things never change) who he allowed to settle on land below his castle...our family name means "flatlanders".

Anyway, one of my long lost relatives from about a hundred years ago or so, named Fannebelle, must have lost a child at some time because she apparently wrote these three beautiful poems while grieving. Sis did a quick Google search and couldn't find them anywhere so we're pretty sure she wrote them. They really make you thankful that we are alive today and not back in the day when medicine left so much to be desired. We really do have it good. Now, get ready to cry.

My Sick Baby --

This one, Dear God, of all you gave
Allow me still to keep;
The fevered hand I clutch, grows weaker,
For his pain has been too much.
If you will spare him, henceforth will I vow
To pledge my services as your own
-But now, It must be his,
I am the only crutch he has, to serve his needs.
And he is such a little thing!
Oh, hearken me some how.
The other children are so gay and strong
Can he not have his chance to be the same?
His innocence has done no breath of wrong.
Nor has he learned to play a single game.
Lord, who can hear the slightest sparrows song,
Have pity on my baby, In your name.

*******************************
Gone Away To Heaven

Just thinking, in a quiet house.
No tiny feet upon the stair
No sudden rush along the hall
No call of "Mama, are you there.

Just thinking. Not a thing to do.
No baby voice is heard today
No dirty little hands to wash
No broken toys to put away.

Just thinking. Everything in place
The little white crib is empty quite
And angel came and took
Our Billy away last night

Just thinking. It is twilight time
I hear the clock upon the stairs
Chime slowly till I've counted eight
Wonder - Did God hear my prayers?

******************************
My Baby's First Day In Heaven

Dear God, this is the first strange day for him
Among your shining cherubims
So please, Lord seek him out, and smile
And hold him on your knee awhile,
he is so small and maybe shy
Of stately angels in the sky
And when the little haloed boys and girls
play games with shrill bright noise
Oh, please make sure that they invite
My little Bill to play.

So...What Did You Do Fun Today?

Today I watched the most amazing thing. A helicopter placed a spire on top of a new thirty-four story building that is being built just up the street from my office. I had to go take pictures. It was just amazing watching these guys work. How cool a job is doing this?

and this


AND VOILA!

They make it look so darn easy.

A New "Next of Kin"

Well, it's now official and I can talk about it. Sprout is taking a wife. They are planning a wedding when he comes home for Christmas leave. This will be fun, especially since last Christmas was such a bummer for me since he was about a million miles from home. I must say, Sprout has chosen well. The two of them have dated since high school and I have secretly hoped that he would marry this one. Since he joined the Army, their relationship has been sort of on-again off-again. But I think surviving the last year apart from each other was a good lesson. While Sprout went to Korea, she went to Switzerland to be an au pair for a set of twins. Both of them suffered a lot of homesickness but I think they both did a whole lot of growing up. When Sprout was home this summer, the girlfriend was glued super-glued to his side. I should have seen it coming.

What all of this means is that I will no longer be his "next of kin". The only person I'll be the next of kin to is a man I don't share one iota of blood with. Well, we share everything else so I guess that counts the same as blood. It also means that I won't be the one receiving any "dreaded phone calls" (since we now know that Sprout's deployment over there is probably sooner than we care to think about and which I suspect has something to do with these sudden wedding plans). It also means that while he is over there, I probably won't hear his voice for about a year because his few phone calls home will go to Mrs. Sprout, as so they should. Thank God, she is good at taking notes and repeating things...not that she gossips, mind you. She always only deals in facts (it ain't gossip if it's true, is it?) And it means that FINALLY this family will have an equal number of males and females. For too many years I was the only rose among thorns. Now, with D-I-L #1 and D-I-L #2 and the Little General and me, we can take the guys on in a game of basketball or sumptin'. And it means that I will have a close female ally who, astoundingly, loves my son as much as I do. Someone that I can commiserate with and cry with while my child lives in a war zone straight out of the eighth century. I hope she is strong enough...I think she is.

So this upcoming holiday season will be one for the record books around here. We are planning a trip to see Sprout for Thanksgiving and then a Christmas-themed wedding...maybe Santa will be there...it don't get no better than this. For now, we will celebrate. Next year I will spend the year looking for Sprout an appropriate deployment tree to store away until Christmas (thanks for that idea, SoldierMom). Phew! Life around here just got a little bit crazy.

Congratulations young ones...I know you'll both be happy.

Mercery Responds

I got this nice little note in email after posting my 9/11 tribute. This young lady sounds like such a sweet child and I just love her name.

"Thank you for everything Stoicmom (name has been changed to protect the guilty) i saw the blog its wonderful. You don't know how happy I was when i saw your blog.Again thank you for everything!