Friday, August 29, 2008

Brilliant

A Day of Firsts.........

A day of Firsts……….

Today, Emma Sage put on her pink backpack, kissed me on the cheek and told me “OK, let’s go”

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Blowing Momma a kisss........

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We drove the 2.5 miles to her school and we parked around back. On the way in she was greeted by many teachers who have known her since she was snuggled deeply within my womb. There were lots of hugs, hellos and high-fives. This child is such a little social butterfly. I have no doubt that she will be a politician when she grows up….or an ambassador, because it is just a fluid, natural part of her personality to interact with everyone she meets.


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Hugging Mrs. Gross, her gym teacher and a family friend.

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[This is Ms. Weiss, who is phenomenal and I know has great expectations for Emma Sage]


She got right in line with all the other children who had been driven to school [her school is K through 4th] and turned and waved ‘good-bye’ to me. At that point I spotted her teachers in the gym and waved to them and turned and walked away…..and you know what started to stream down my face. Tears……tears of joy.



At 10:22 am [while I was out for a run, alone…….can you imagine that, me, alone in the morning without any little ones at my feet] and the message when like this:
“Hello Mrs. Hintz, this is Ms. Weiss. I just wanted to give you a call, as the children are down at Music and let you know that Emma Sage is having a fantastic first day. She is following directions, interacting and all smiles. She is such a joy and we are going to have a great year with her in our class.”

Ah………more tears.

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At 1:36 pm when the bus pulled up at the bus stop……….a smiling bus driver [I love the children’s bus driver, she is just such a wonderful and happy woman] told me that she was chatting away to her on the way home and was so excited to be riding the bus.

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Emma Sage and Abbie [such dear friends]

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Too cute, they both wanted me to take a picture of their backpacks!!!

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This is the smile she had on all day......she was just so excited!!!!

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Taking papers out of her bag....

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Our big First grader and one of our new 7th graders [Abbie is in 7th grade with Otto]

Emma Sage was non-stop chatting about her day. She sits next to “Ava, you know her?” she asks as she is telling me.

No," I said, "is she nice?” .

“Oh yes, she has red hair and curls” she adds [obviously the red haired trait makes for a nice girl! Lol!!!]

She continues to tell about her day. She went to music and she sang me the song she learned. She LOVES music.

She ate lunch in the cafeteria and “Lily has a Hannah Montana lunch box that is shaped like a guitar”

So I ask her “Do you want a lunch box like that?”

“No, she likes her pink bag like Greta!” she tells me. [whew...good, I hate all that marketing/gimicky stuff....but want to make sure she 'fits in'....if that is what she wants to do. Thank goodness she could care less]

She loved the bus ride and is so excited to go again tomorrow.

Later in the night, she was quite disappointed that she did not have homework like Greta and Otto had……so I had to go pull our homeschooling bin out and give her homework!!! Don’t you just love it, a kid who wants homework!

A day of Firsts…….

What a glorious day!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

An artists gift....

How amazing this video is....created by an eighth-grade girl who is wiser than I ever could hope to be.

What a blessing, to be able to see the gifts hidden within each human being.........we are all a work of art and may our canvas of life be unlimited.

Monday, August 25, 2008

My Godmother, Bernadette, sent me this beautiful link and I just had to share.

Of coarse you know I had tears streaming down my face when I watched it, as the sweet memories of my beautiful Mother came flooding back to me whilst watching.

My father-in-law, Otto, had always said he wished he could have traveled to Ireland with my Mother and his wife, Lorraine, to see Ireland through the eyes of my Mother and her family.

We are planning on doing that next summer......the whole family are going to travel to Ireland for the World Down syndrome Congress in Dublin.

Enjoy this beautiful piece titled 'An Irish Blessing'........may we all be blessed with this wisdom.

Irish Blessing Link

Friday, August 22, 2008

OttoatPopPopscasket


The Mountain sat upon the Plain by Emily Dickinson

The Mountain sat upon the Plain
In his tremendous Chair --
His observation omnifold,
His inquest, everywhere --

The Seasons played around his knees
Like Children round a sire --
Grandfather of the Days is He
Of Dawn, the Ancestor --

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Blessings.......

My life is filled with so many blessings.

Here are the four greatest blessings in my life.


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Amen
means ah so
and so be it
that's the truth
and I see it.

Amen to my children....I love you all so dearly.

A Wish......

I have this primitive star pillow on my couch....it has little rusty bells and stitched in the middle is the word 'Believe'

Emma Sage loves this pillow....she has since she was a baby.

Tonight, after we walked home from my in-laws [I still can't believe my father-in-law has passed on] Emma Sage came in and sat on the couch and waited for me to tidy up before we headed upstairs to tackle her latest collection of books from the library [two huge bags full today].

I'm in the bathroom and hear her chatting away...first singing a song from the Jona's brothers. Then she is jingling the star pillow and I hear her say

"Star-light, star-bright...first star I see tonight...I wish I may, I wish I might, make a wish tonight"

then she proceeds to say......"Ummmmmm....let me think"

Then she goes "I wish I had hair like Hannah Montana.......pants like Hannah Montana....shoes like Hannah Montana...Thank you!!!"

I started cracking up.

Little does she know, I can take her to Targets or Walmart and her little wish could be full-filled 10xs over...she could even get Hannah Montana undies!!!!!!

This child just fills my heart with such joy.

Friday, August 15, 2008



The Power of Words.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Ruhe in Frieden

We have been away.........to take Katrina back to college, visit Mickey Mouse and rest a bit with our feet in the ocean. [This was the first real vacation I have had in a long time]

When you travel, you expect to return home to the way things have always been.

Sadly, this trip we returned home to the loss of our beloved PopPop. I adored my father-in-law and my heart is so heavy at this loss. Emma Sage is having a hard time dealing with this loss, as she just does not fully understand why she saw him when she left and that he is not back at home with Grammy.

Otto Hintz was an amazing man. He was the 'salt of the earth' and I am honored that my son is named after him.

Ruhe in Friden ~ Rest in Peace
Otto, Otto and Otto?

The Magic.....


"If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in."~Rachel Carson


...............and I was blessed to be that adult in Emma Sage's life this past week, where I watched her marval at the magic and wonder of the Magic Kingdom.