Through the Eyes of a 2 Year Old

Granddad and I are sitting in the family room and unwinding after our Christmas weekend.  The weather predictions had changed in our area almost on a daily basis over the past week.  Up until Christmas Eve morning, we really had no idea whether we would be making our Christmas visit to Grandma & Grandpa's on the Eve or Christmas Day.  

We decided that we would take a last minute chance on the weather and go to G-G's on Christmas Day.  So, the 'Joes were able to celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary on Christmas Eve.

(I'll post later on how to plan a Christmas Eve wedding within 2 weeks, do Christmas shopping/preparations, work full-time & brace for a new son-in-law's deployment within days of the wedding ... God is good!)  

So, Granddad & I took Lucy for a Christmas Eve breakfast to her favorite fast food place and last minute preparations for Christmas Day.

We passed by malls and shopping centers whose parking lots looked like seas of used cars, so we thought it not the best decision to take a 2 year old into such unorderly chaos.  No regrets whatsoever.  So, after breakfast, homeward bound for the last minute gift wrapping.  But Lucy was insistent that we were not "all done" ...

"We need Baby Jesus a birthday cake ... 

We have to get Baby Jesus a birthday cake, Granny."

O, out of the mouths of babes!  Out of the mouth of our 2 year old granddaughter!  Thank you, Lucy, for jolting us back to the True Meaning of why we celebrate Christmas.

Once we got back home, the insistence persisted.  Granny's stocked pantry without birthday cake ingredients or even a box of ready to make mix or frosting ... but, Lucy had a solution to our dilemma -- her Granddad.  Thank heaven for Granddad who was more than willing to go to the store at 2pm on Christmas Eve ... one item ... parking lot full ... Baby Jesus' birthday cake ... frantic shoppers in search of their their last minute cooking preparations ... Baby Jesus' birthday cake ... Baby Jesus' birthday cake ...

Lucy putting finishing touches on Baby Jesus' birthday cake

  

Christmas Eve night found this 2 year old 'too excited to sleep'!  So, Lucy chose the perfect cookies to leave for Santa and then ... 

Well, I'll let the pictures tell their own story ~~~

Choosing the perfect cookies for Santa, and then ...

You guessed it!

Santa's little cookie taster!

Now, where's the perfect spot for Santa to find his perfect cookies?

Christmas morning is exciting with a 2 year old ... 

 

Princess instruments!

Mommy made a yummy Christmas breakfast!

Oh, Cindy ... I love you!

Watch me go, Granddad!!!

We made our Christmas Day visit to the Great-One's for more family fun ... 

Of course Cindy wanted to go to G-G's with Lucy.

These presents just looked too inviting for Lucy to wait on everybody.

Just what I asked G-G for!!!

G-G and Grandpa know exactly what Lucy likes!

 

Unwinding with Granddad at the end of a very Merry Christmas Day.

There's something about the tenderness of little ones  

their honesty, their innocence, their heart ... 

My prayer is that I will continue to learn from my granddaughter each and every day.  

May my heart be tender, my actions be gentle, and my thoughts be gracious.  

Thank You Jesus for my granddaughter and her tender heart for You ...   

   

Inside or Outside?

When I began "blogging", my main purpose was to write for Lucy, my granddaughter ... to give her something tangible to read from her Granny ... to give her a glimpse into her family history ... to give her life lessons that she can take with her and pass down through her generations.  This blog touches on one of those life lessons.  It's a subject that I truly hope and pray that she doesn't experience -- from the inside or from the outside ... a subject that can bring hurt and distance even to the strongest of people ... a subject that we see too often in our various communities (whether family, friends -- businesses, churches -- schools, neighborhoods -- children, adults).  I'm writing tonight about cliques.  

Dictionary.com defines a clique as "a small, exclusive group of people" and gives its synonyms "circle", "ring".  Taking a look at the word "circle" -- have you ever thought about making the shape of a circle?  The letter O is a circular shape.  Where is its beginning point?  Its ending point?  And what about the synonym "ring"?  It's impossible to define the beginning and ending on a ring.  So, I'm putting these together as "a small exclusive group of people within a circle."

I have seen many cliques in my lifetime, as I'm sure you have too.  Imagine a little boy who may not have the greatest athletic ability but hopes that one day the other boys will ask him to be on their team at recess.  Or a middle school girl who sits alone at lunch everyday, and looks at the table full of other girls whispering and making sleepover plans for the weekend.  What about the teen who tries to join in at a youth activity, but no one will even acknowledge he's in the room.  Or the new lady at the office who just moved to the area and doesn't know her way around the city?

I know that there's times when we may not even realize that we are right in the middle of a clique.  We have our 'circle of friends' around us, and we are quite content.  But what happens when another person comes along and wants to 'join in'?  Are we open to accepting a new person into our little group, or do we shut the person out?  I've seen people within cliques even go so far as to say "I can't be seen talking to so & so. What will the others say?" And even "I've got the people I want around me.  I don't need anybody else."  

What are we missing out on when we close our circle?  Who is it that maybe God wants to come into our lives, but we aren't open to it?  Have you ever been on the inside or the outside of a clique?  I am so very thankful for my Mother and my Granny who taught me at a very young age not to shut anyone out.  My Mother would ask me "How would you feel if you were the one who was sitting by yourself, or not invited to join in?" 

And what about on social media?  Someone may say that cliques cannot exist on the Internet.  I would have to disagree.  Do we find ourselves 'visiting' social media only from those who are within a certain circle? (I'm not talking about the immoral or illegal -- I avoid those too!) Do we find ourselves 'avoiding' social media from those who are on the outside of our circle?  Are we 'antsy' that "someone may see my name on this person's friend list" or that "I'm following this person on twitter/linkedin ..." and the list of 'excuses' can go on.  This may sound a bit far-fetched to some people, but in reality it happens.  It's unfortunate ... but it happens.    

I have been on both sides of cliques -- the inside (unfortunately) and the outside (fortunately).  And you know, I have learned that actually being on the outside is more open than being on the inside. I said earlier that I hope Lucy does not have to experience the cliques in her life, but I know that she will.  My only prayer is that she will follow her Great-Grandma and her Great-Great Granny's advice to be open to other people coming into her life.  They may just turn out to be her dearest friends in this world. 

A Generation Thing ...

I am so blessed to share a special relationship with my granddaughter Lucy Michaela. I know how cliche that sounds, and I know that many people will be rolling their eyes. So, let me give a little background on a couple of reasons why this relationship is special to me.

For the first 7 years of my life, my parents and I lived with my Granny and my Mother's youngest sister. With my Mother and Daddy both working, I stayed with my Granny. She and I had a special relationship. Through many years, she taught me that relationships are the most important aspect of life. It didn't matter how much or how little we had in material things, but what mattered was our relationship to each other. Some of my best memories are of sitting on her back porch in the swing and listening to her tell stories of her childhood, raising her family, and our home town. We would work side-by-side in her garden (green beans, potatoes, corn...), water her many flower beds, or sit and just watch the birds and listen to God's creation. Many good childhood memories.

Although our daughter didn't have the same childhood experience as I had, she has a special relationship with her Grandma (my Mother). Spring breaks, Christmas breaks, summer weeks, long weekends ... time for Grandma's and Grandpa's house! The first time she stayed with her grandparents, she was only a couple of weeks old. Granddad and I traveled for a few days on job interviews that would eventually send us out of state. But, even though several hours separated us, the relationship actually grew very strong. Grandma kept up with the middle school/high school fashion trends, the makeup (age-appropriate), and Barnes & Noble (and their coffee too). Even to this day, the relationship bond between Grandma and her granddaughter is very strong. (Grandma even drove an hour and a half, through morning rush hour traffic, to the hospital when I called to let them know that Lucy Michaela was going to make her appearance that day! Grandpa couldn't come, but we were so glad that Grandma did.)

So now, this brings me to Lucy and her Granny. For one, granddaughter Lucy is named in honor of my Granny Lucy. This has meant a great deal to me and my Mother. My daughter was my Granny's first great-granddaughter, and to have my Granny's first great-great-granddaughter named for her is an honor. My Granny was a hands-on person -- she was active in all of her grandkids lives. She showed us all (her children and her grandchildren) just how important relationships are in a family. And this is what I want to show my daughter and my granddaughter. I never want to be too busy that I can't take time for my family. And although the 'Joes will be moving to a military post, Granddad & I want our relationship with them to grow stronger just like our daughter's relationship with her G'Ma and G'Pa.

 

Relationships take time to build, nurture and maintain. Although we all find ourselves with many other responsibilities, our relationships with family (and friends) are very important to pass down to our future generations. How will they learn if we don't show them?