Cottage Blessings

What the Scrabble Board sees

(Photo and caption credit, Marie.)

The Breakfast of Penitents

We came home from Mass yesterday to the planned green smoothies. Notice how cold and lonely this smoothie appears.

This was unposed. Looks like they were making the best of it:

 It was quite delicious actually.

 

In other words . . . .

So I've been trying to train my two youngest daughters out of  asking for things by beginning, "Mommy, you said . . . . "  

"Mommy, you said we were going to the park."

"Mommy, you said we were going to read books after dinner."

"Mommy, you said you would come downstairs with us and play dollies."

"Girls," I told them, "it sounds rude to demand and say 'you said.'  If you want to remind me of something I promised, go right ahead, but be sure to say it politely."

A few minutes later, my three-year-old approached me with her little tin of watercolors:  "Mommy, you, you . . . you sweared you would paint with me today."

Another grammar lesson

Maureen (age 5): There's you were--I was looking all over for you.

Marie (age 10): There's you were? That's terrible grammar.

Maureen: Oh, fine. There's you was.

What no mother wants to hear on Christmas morning

"The tooth fairy didn't come!"

Oops.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

The Fine Print

Eight-year-old Marie was talking to her sister Margaret about my upcoming Socialization book. I managed to catch a snippet of their conversation in which Marie was announcing:

"And on the cover page, Mommy's going to have an asterisk with teeny, tiny letters at the bottom saying, 'RESULTS MAY VARY.'"

Present company excepted

Maureen: I can't find a bandaid, and Eileen has the biggest cut in the world!

Mom: That's OK, honey. Why don't you just comfort her with your presence?

Maureen: I don't have any presents!!!

Scalding pot, hapless tot

A couple of years ago, I poked a bit of fun at this Eloise Wilkin illustration:

But I don't think I showed you how very closely life imitates art here at the cottage:

[Many thanks to Marie for posing--this picture took about ten shots to attain!]

Possibly my favorite expectant mother picture ever

Helen as The Big Green Pocketbook.

Helen, you are truly beautiful--and so much fun!!!

My cousin guessed it!

Well, leave it to my cousin, Therese. She knows my children well, particularly Marie!

I just loved this picture of Marie in the tulle ballet skirt she received for her birthday. Her head to toe pink reminded me of the third week of Advent, and I called the original post "Joy." An hour or so after I posted, my daughter Theresa noticed and laughed out loud.

"I can't believe you posted that picture," she said. "It was a joke between Marie and me--if you look really closely, you'll see she is not wearing the skirt, just holding it up in front of her!" [Marie was very quick to tell me that she was wearing a different skirt though, one you cannot see behind the tulle.]

I for one never would have noticed, but my cousin Therese did! Mary G. did too. You both have eagle eyes!