We are Part of Life's Eternal Rhyme

How very special are we
For just a moment to be
Part of life’s eternal rhyme
How very special are we
To have on our family tree
Mother Earth and Father Time

He turns the seasons around
And so she changes her gown
But they always look in their prime
They go on dancing their dance
Of every lasting romance
Mother Earth and Father Time

The summer larks return to sing
Oh what a gift they give
Then autumn days grow short and cold
Oh what a joy to live

How very special are we
For just a moment to be
Part of life’s eternal rhyme
How very special are we
To have on our family tree
Mother Earth and Father Time

The autumn days grow short and cold
Its Christmas time again
The snows of winter slowly melt
The days grow short and then
He turns the seasons around
And so she changes her gown
Mother Earth and Father Time
How very special are we
For just a moment to be
Part of life’s….eternal….rhyme

I have heard your sweet Mother sing this beautiful song to you several times. It was sung by Debbie Reynolds in the 1973 version of Charlotte’s Web. (Debbie Reynolds was born in 1932 and was once known as “America’s Sweetheart”.) Charlotte’s Web was a cartoon so only her voice was a part of the movie, and this song was especially beautiful and somewhat haunting. Your mother loved this sweet & inspiring but some what sad story of the friendship between a pig and a spider. Charlotte knew her life would be short and Wilbur the pig didn’t understand until after he heard this song. Fortunately our lives are longer than a spider’s, but we are very special to be part of ”life’s eternal rhyme” even for just a moment. On Tuesday this week the mother of your Saba Rafi died in Israel. She was your Dad’s grandmother and your great-grandmother. You never met her but your Mother and Daddy visited her on a trip to Israel before you were born. On the night you were born I sat in the Labor & Delivery waiting room with Rafi and he told me the story of his father escaping from Nazi Germany when he was a teenager; his parents (Rafi's grandparents) did not escape. He made his way to Palestine where he entered illegally but stayed and made his life there. His grandson, your Dad, was born in Israel. I didn’t think to ask Rafi about his Mother. But the night of her death I was with you while your Dad was bathing you and he told me she also escaped from Nazi-occupied Europe when she was a teenager. She and her sister were able to escape from a train because a guard who had once dated your great-grandmother, turned his head and gave them a chance to flee. I’ll need to learn more about her when I have a chance to talk with Rafi again. Maybe we will have another time together one day waiting for a Rotter baby to be born. But you are the descendent of survivors, strong and brave people who would be proud of you and rejoiced when you arrived to be a part of the joy of living. I have enjoyed the moments I have spent with you this month! January 8 was one of the coldest days ever in Birmingham. Because it was so cold (below 10 degrees) your school opened late but I took you to school bundled in your warmest coat! After you went to bed for your nap, I heard you singing this sweet song. On January 12 your Uncle Alan came to visit & you enjoyed showing him your trampoline skills and playing Candy Land and "Matching Game" with him and your Daddy! They watched the college national champion (Ohio defeated Oregon 42 to 20). One daily challenge with you is deciding what you will wear to work. Some mornings you will wear what your mother has laid out  for you. But some mornings it is the fourth outfit before you finally will decide to actually wear it! You love to wear skirts that allow you to twirl! We have started spending time in your “big girl room” playing with puzzles and trucks. It is always fun and you are learning how to put puzzles together, a good skill since life is full of puzzles! One beautiful warm Tuesday after you got out of school I met you and your mother at Pablo’s restaurant and we ate outside. We went back to your house and played outside with play doh before I took you to gymnastics where your Dad met us to take you home. It was a wonderful visit. Because you have to be at gymnastics at 4:00 pm we have started skipping a nap on Tuesdays. You really enjoy gymnastics and you are very good at it. It is fun to watch you in class. On Thursday, January 22 I was at your house early and you woke up singing “Tomorrow” from Annie. We had a good morning and a fun time playing after school with only a short “test of Granny” in the morning getting ready and in the afternoon pre-nap. It is so hard for me to be firm with you. But I know you have to make it to school on time and you need an afternoon nap, so as the representative of your parents, I have to set limits regarding how many times you can change your mind about clothes and how long you can stall before taking a nap!  You seem to feel an obligation to test my commitment to you doing what's right at least once or twice a day! On Sunday, January 25 you went to the circus with me, your Mom & Aunt Kristina and Eli and Maggie Rae. Everyone had a great time! We had good seats and you really enjoyed the show & the souvenirs and your cousins. It was fun to watch you enjoy the circus and your cousins. The most recent two days I spent with you were especially nice. The weather was great and other than a brief time the morning you finally wore the 4th outfit you picked out, it was a perfect visit. After school both days we played at the park close to your school. It was fun to watch you negotiate turns with other children and for me to go down the slides multiple times with you. Tuesday the 27th was the day your great-grandmother died. After school we  did not go home until after gymnastics. We went to Taziki’s for lunch after our time at the park, then to Bruster’s for ice cream where we went down the slide many times (and ate a little ice cream) and shopped at Dollar Tree before gymnastics. You really enjoyed gymnastics and we had a good ride home where we found both of your parents there and happy to see you. After your bath I took a cute picture of you with your Daddy. You are so special and so funny and happy and excited about life. I am so glad our moments as part of “life’s eternal rhyme” are overlapping for this season of time...which I hope is long enough for you to have memories of me and to tell my great-grandchildren about our season together.

Top of Slide Mt. Laurel Park

 

Piloting the new see-saw airplane at the park!

 

Circus Jan 25 with cousins!

Front row circus seats!

Pre-gymnastics slide at Bruster's Ice Cream



Candyland with Dad & Uncle

Trampoline time!

Learning to play Matching game

Post-bath time!

Now 2014 is over and it's 2015!

In December both of your parents had a birthday and I kept you while they went to a movie the night of  December 4, your Mother's 35th birthday. It was the first night I spent the night at your new house and bathed you and put you to bed. The other nights I spent at your house were while your mother was working and your Dad had the honor of putting you to bed. Your bed has continued to get more crowded. I think there are now 17 stuffed animals who sleep with you! December 11 was the second time I went to your class and listened to students read aloud. (I think you will be reading soon!) While I was there I got to go with you to a holiday musical performance by the older students. One song they sang was an original composition by the HMS music teacher titled "Maria Montesori" about the Italian physician and educator who developed the wonderful method of teaching at your school. It was quite a catchy tune! It was fun to sit with you among all of your classmates and listen to the program. You have a great school! On Monday, December 15 I got to go to your school again for "Muffins with Mom". Your mom was on call and able to attend as well. After I took you home, both of the dogs had been sick and vomited on the rug. Yuck! On Thursday, December 18 I kept you while your parents went to an appointment. You were really coughing and didn't seem to feel well. The next morning you had a fever and didn't go to school. I was very sorry you didn't get to go to the Holiday party & Pajama Day, but you really weren't feeling well. You were very sweet and we, and your 17 animals, took a long nap together! After your Dad got home I took the dogs home with me because you were heading to the beach the next day. Unfortunately you & your parents were all sick and didn't have as much fun at the beach as you deserved! By Tuesday, December 23 when you returned, I wasn't feeling good either. I brought your dogs home to you after I went to the doctor & started antibiotics. The next time I saw you was Christmas morning and I stayed with you until I went home again to stay after your Dad returned home the morning of January 2 from a camping trip in New Mexico, and a long drive through Texas in snow and ice and cold. It was great to have your family back together again! Although you really hated taking the yucky white medicine (you had both strep throat and the flu!), you eventually began to feel better and we got to do some fun things. Your mother and I put together the trampoline Great Grandmother Hastie gave you for Christmas and you really enjoyed jumping in it! Your gymnastics classes have helped you develop your jumping skills! You got a Candyland game which is a longtime traditional children's game & we played quite a few rounds of it. Your mother wasn't feeling well and on Friday I took you to the Hoover Library and then met Nitza at Galleria Mall where you rode the carousel with her. And then we ate at your favorite place--Chace Lake Taziki's! On Saturday your former neighbors Dustyn and her almost 2 year old son Camdyn came to visit from Florida. You walked to the Mt. Laurel pizza place & had lunch with your mom & Dustyn while I kept Camdyn. You were quite grown up! That night I sat with you and your mom while your mom put you to bed. You have added a sweet part to your bedtime routine when you & your mom "talk a little bit". You want to have your new Barbie Doll with you while you read a book about Barbie the Gymnist and you want to hold Olivia while you read a book about her pretending to be in the circus. Although you finally go to sleep well you really like to drag it out as much as possible! On Sunday we went to celebrate the holidays with Sabba Raffi and Granna in Jasper. You were very sweet and got lots of presents and had fun. There are a lot of people who love you a lot! On Monday you and I went to see the new version of the musical Annie. We went to the 10:30 am show and there were very few people there. It was the most fun I can remember having at a movie! You enjoyed it so much and sang along with some of the songs and really paid attention to it. We stayed through all of the credits and I would have stayed and watched it again with you if we could have! On Tuesday you joyfully took the last dose of your antibiotic. We met your mom for lunch at Zoe's in Homewood then I met you at TCBY in Homewood after I had a doctor's appointment and took you home while your mom had a hair appointment! On the way home was another sweet time while you sang along with your "old favorites" on the Toddler Tunes CD we listened to a lot when you were younger. After we got home your new neighbors (one house down) came over to play for awhile. Carlie is 4 years old and maybe she'll be a long term play mate. Tata & Sabba Koplan kept you while I went to the Greystone Y. Wednesday, December 31 your mom had to work. Nitza came over and played with you while I walked the dogs & grocery shopped. After she left we enjoyed watching Frozen together and I tried unsuccessfully to get you to nap in the bed with me. You were very sweet at bedtime until fireworks started going off in the neighborhood! It was hard for you to go to sleep. But you finally did and 2014 quietly ended and 2015 began! On New Year's Day your mom had to work again and we learned your Dad's return was going to be delayed due to bad weather. You visited at Nitza's for a few hours on New Year's Day and went to Starlight Lake and had a great time with her. Both Auburn and Alabama lost their Bowl games!  Because you took a nap and your mom was able to leave work a little early you were very happy to have your mom put you to bed Friday night! You have a wonderful mother! On Friday I took Sunday to the local dog groomer for a bath and your mom & I took you to buy some "twirly skirts" at the local children's clothes shop where you also bought some mittens you loved! Then we went to Chuck E Cheese for lunch & play time. You like to play & eat there, but you don't like Chuck E! You missed a nap but went to bed early. During the night your father came home so even though your mom had to go to work Saturday morning you were very happy to see your Dad after you woke up. I packed up and headed home to stay until the next time I get to come to your house. Although the "non-routine" of holidays was a good change-of-pace for you, it will be good to have you back in your routine of school and regular wake up & bed times. You have a wonderful school and wonderful friends and wonderful parents & a wonderful house...and a Granny who loves you and is so grateful to be a part of your wonderful life! Looking forward to many good times with you in 2015!



At Chuck E Cheese in new Twirly Skirt!

Christmas Day presents

New Mittens!

Your first Barbie Doll!!

Snack at Galleria Mall with Tata

Lunch at Chace Lake Tazki's

After wonderful time at movie with you!!!

New trampoline!!

Visit with Sabba Raffi in Jasper

Words to song!

I know you'll be playing & singing one day!

Dec 4-1st bath by Granny at new house!

November 2014-Cousins & Autumn Weather & Growing Up Fast

Cozy coupe at Granny's-numerous rides down hill!



Almost headless "leaf angel"

Walking Sunday at Granny's

Silly faces with cousin Abigail & Annie!

Annie actually slept w/ Granny!



Baths at Granny's (but no "hair night"!)



Cartoons with cousins Jackson & Abigail



This Thanksgiving-10 yr old Abigail "favorite cousin"!



Practicing medical skills!



The 3 girl cousins! T'giving day at Roseanne's!



Hideaway pets-1st ride to school!



Listening to students read in Ms. Shelley's class last month



Beautiful girl & day at Mt. Laurel park after school

Patient concerned about what MD may be hearing?

Dec 2, 2014

Today is your Daddy’s 40^th birthday & Thursday will be your Mother’s 35^th birthday! While they went out of town for an early celebration you spent 3 days & 2 nights with Granny!  

A lot of things happened this month: Annie stopped crying at night & your Dad finished the fence in your back yard. We had lunch at Jimbo’s & I took you to gymnastics once (and we arrived early!). You are doing great at Gymnastics! We watched a lot of Dora the Explorer & Calliou & ate a lot of mac & cheese. The “hide-away pet” cats arrived & you love them! We solved the mystery of the lost shoes--they had been stuffed back in the shelf by the front door when you changed shoes to go out & play. We shopped with your mother at Toys R Us and had lunch at Johnny Rockets where you saw your sweet friend Georgia (who had a b’day party this month where you rode a horse named Lillie). One day it rained so much Highway 280 flooded and there were several days of unseasonably cold weather and I had  several especially sweet & delightful days with you. The last pre-Thanksgiving Day with you we discovered your silver shoes had been left at school. I put you & Annie in your wagon & pulled you to school to get them. As we passed the park on the way home you wanted to stop. Since there were lots of HMS students there and the weather was great we did. It was so much fun and you were so sweet. Annie drew a lot of attention which you really liked. And so many of the older students were so nice to you, which you also liked! You did a lot of swinging and sliding and you were sweet when it was time to leave. It was a special time at the park. Your parents brought you to the “Stuedeman” Thanksgiving Day  Gathering. You had a blast! You played outside at the neighborhood playground & inside with 1^st cousins Abigail (10) and Jackson (7) Green & Eli (4) and Maggie Rae (6) Brown and some other kids as well. Eli & Maggie Rae went to visit you at your house. The morning of  Friday after Thanksgiving your parents dropped off you & the 2 dogs on the way to their trip to North Carolina. You had a great morning playing with your 4 cousins before the Browns headed home to Mississippi & the Greens went to Demopolis to pick up Jacob who had been deer hunting. The weather was great & you & I played outside in the leaves with the dogs & had lots of Cozy Coupe rides down the driveway & played with Play Doh & swang in porch swing & took a nap together. You watched Calliou and after supper enjoyed your playtime during your bath & went to bed sweetly. Soon after you called out you forgot to poop! You told me you “tooted” and it reminded you that you needed to poop. I love the way you are so comfortable about using the bathroom & you do it so well. I can’t remember any “accidents” post initial toilet training! The Greens came back while you were asleep & you really enjoyed playing with Jackson & Abigail & Jacob again. Jacob pulled you all around on a blanket & the 4 of you played a lot without me until they left about 1:00 pm. Then we went to see the movie “Penguins of Madagascar”. You enjoyed the popcorn and paid attention to the movie, but it wasn’t a really great movie. Since we skipped a nap you were in bed asleep about 7 pm..after a fairly long “play bath”! Sunday morning I heard what I thought was the neighbor doing some early morning hammering but it was you banging on the crib rails with one of your animals! We had a great day playing outside in the leaves & walking dogs & many more Cozy Coupe rides down the hill before we went to your house. We had temporary crisis when we thought we lost Nanny pre-nap but you found her in the covers. Since you were late going to sleep I let you sleep until about 5:15 then you & I were outside on the porch when your parents returned before 6 pm. You were very happy and I headed home. Now it’s December & I’m looking forward to another month with Lyla!!

October 2014-"Make it into a ball!!"

Halloween Day at School

Ready for gymnastics & Halloween
 



In the air at gymnastics!

Sunday & Annie napping



Your wonderful school!



New back yard (pre-fence)

New Neighborhood



Taziki's!

Nose must not be indented!


 

October 2014

“Make it into a ball” was a mystery of the month. Nap time & bedtime is always preceded by many routines…closing all drawers, positioning the pillow in the chair, being sure the vitamins aren’t visible behind the picture, lining up & counting your 8 bed-mates--2 bunnies, 2 sheepies, owl, brown puppy, owl & nanny—and being sure owl’s beak is not inverted. And books & songs & “high 5,4,3,2,1,0 and water then ending with your sweet “good night I love you see you in the morning” (even at naptime). But recently the request to make nanny into a ball was added and it was very frustrating to all that we did not know what you meant! Your mother finally figured out you had seen a commercial for “hideaway pets” that curl up into a ball to “hide away”. Of course I ordered you one (the white cat was what you chose—I hope you’re not disappointed when it comes). But I thought it was interesting you would have seen a commercial for a toy that became a ball and you would assume we could convert your current favorite toy into a ball.  I think that’s a great idea and maybe one day you can discover a way to make that happen. Maybe you just assumed your amazing parents could do anything? You do have amazing parents who love you very much and do good things for you including making you feel loved and also helping you learn to obey and have self-control. And provide you a great house & neighborhood to live in and an exceptional school to attend. And much more. October, my first month of retirement, was a good month. On the 3^rd I took you to your pediatrician for your flu shot and to Dairy Queen before the shot & to Krispy Kreme donut after. Then we went to the Mt. Laurel park, watched Calliou had pasta supper & I put you to bed & spent the night at your house. I took you to gymnastics twice (only got lost the 1^st time!) and realized it’s tough to get in a nap on gymnastics day! You are so cute & do so well at gymnastics! Your new puppy Annie moved into your house. It took her awhile to stop crying all night, but she has adapted. That’s a good reminder that the adage “this too shall pass” and “everything is just for now” apply to the annoying things…and to the precious wonderful things as well. One night I was at your house after you Dad put you to bed and we could hear you sweetly singing on the monitor. It was so touching. I took you to eat supper at Taziki’s twice in the evenings while your Dad was working on your new fence. One time I got lost trying to find Taziki’s & the other time I missed the turn onto Highway 41 coming back. But I’m beginning to get used to a new area of town for me. You really like going to Taziki’s! You pay attention to the people around you & ask questions about them like “where is the mommy?”. And you recognized an older child from your school. You are very observant. When the fence is finished it will be great to be able to let the dogs out in the back yard and for you to play there too. You are very particular and know what you want and don’t want which is a good trait in the long run but sometimes difficult in the short run! Your mom bought you a cute Unicorn costume which you were ambivalent about. And a simple “back up” dog costume with ears &  nose & tail & a cute dog-face shirt. But you ended up wearing a Disney princess shirt & skirt—and you looked precious in the parade at school! I am lucky to spend a lot of time with you and I feel very inadequate at times…I am not good at making piggy tails (I get the part crooked) and can’t put cute outfits together. And I feed you too much mac & cheese because I can’t cook. But I love being with you and know that you are growing so quickly and will not be a toddler for long. One day I went to your class to listen to children read. There are 3, 4 & 5 year olds in your class and it was a window into what is ahead for you at your wonderful school. It was sweet to see you do your jobs & watch you obey the teachers and keep an eye on me as I was listening to the new readers read…and realize it won’t be long before you are reading! But I hope you will let me read bedtime & naptime books to you for a long time! Today is November 1st…another fun month with you!

Moved to your new house...Granny retired ..and now you are 3!!

You are now Three years old! I was with you & woke you up on the morning of your birthday! You held up three fingers before you even got out of bed! We had balloons & you opened the present from me & Papa-a scooter. You wore your shirt with a big 3 to school and after school went to Chuck E Cheese with me & Tata as a "practice" for your impending party on Sunday, September 21. Tata took you home but it was my first day to wake you up at your new house. It was a great day! But more about the month...September 8 was the last school day you came to our house. Then on Saturday, September 13 you & I spent a great day at the zoo. It was overcast and although too cool to play in the water, it was perfect weather to walk around the zoo. We "picnicked" and watched a peacock and you rode the train with me for the first time (other than on our trip with your school class). You seemed to enjoy it but you wouldn't ride it a second time. However we rode the carousel many times! You came to our house for naptime and for the last time before your move, I took you from our house back to Nitza's. The only bad thing about the day was my mother had a fall and was readmitted to the hospital in Mobile. The day after you birthday I also took you to school and stayed with you at your new house for the whole day for the first time. We had a great day. After school and nap you rode your scooter outside a lot. I was amazed at how well you did! I ran along side you which was good exercise for me. When I left you hugged me and cried and said "please don't go granny!" Even though I know you are fine after I'm gone, it always makes me sad for you to cry! On Sunday September 21 I brought Eli & Maggie Rae to your house and we all enjoyed eating in Mt. Laurel and playing in your wonderful new house! Then we went to the big party at Chuck E Cheese which was loud and very busy but there were so many of your friends & family celebrating with you & it was a great time. Then on September 22 I spent the day with you again. You got the proofs of your cute school pictures back! On Friday the 26th when I spent the day with you, you were a little nervous about your "share" at school. You took a children's book about Israel, where your Dad was born. You are always happy about your wonderful school. After school I asked if you wanted to take Sunday to the dog park and you said "yes". But when we got to the dog park you were confused because there were no swings & slides and you wanted to go to "the train", which is at the children's park! So we took Sunday to the children's park where she was leashed to a tree and didn't have a fun time. But you did. A lot of older children from your school were there for their recess time. The only hard part was keeping an eye on Sunday because she isn't too friendly with other children! We won't take Sunday to the kid park any more! I spent the night at your new house for the first time. The plan was for me to take care of you while your mom helped your dad get things done around the new house on Saturday. Your Uncle Allen came over to help as well. But almost every time I'm with you it's because your mother is working so you seldom are with me and your mother together. You were very fussy and I don't think I helped very much! September 30 was my last day to work full time! I've worked full time since December 1973. And sometimes worked more than one job and spent several years getting a PhD in nursing at UAB while also teaching nursing full time at Samford University where I worked for 15 years. I've been at UAB for 24 years. So this is an exciting but big change. Having you in my life has really helped me wean myself from work and get ready for retirement. Yesterday was my first post-retirement day with you and we had a great time. After school we went to the park and you really enjoyed playing. On the way to the car you fell and skinned your knee a little. You noticed the reason you fell was the pattern of the sidewalk changed...specifically you said there were holes in the sidewalk that made you fall!  Even though you didn't really nap you did rest in bed with me. I'm not very good with your new TV system but then I never really learned the one at Chase Lake either! But that might be good to keep from too much TV watching. You like to watch a Super Wyatt episode on my phone in bed before your nap.

Reading at Mt. Laurel Library



Riding tricycle to park

After nap you rode your tricycle (with me pushing it) into town for the first time. We stopped at the Mt. Laurel Library where you noted which of the children's books in the basket were books you had at home...there were quite a few that met that criteria! Then we went back to the park. It was cooler and there was a new group of kids there and you had a good time. I was pleased you rode your tricycle all the way there & back! After we got home, you were happy your Dad was there but sad I was leaving. You hugged me and cried when I left. You have had a lot of changes recently! Maybe after you get settled into your new house and new routine you will be more content. I'm looking forward to every day I am with you. You are growing & changing all the time!

3 fingers!

You aren't a big fan of balloons!

The new scooter!

Sept 17 at Chuck E Cheese!

Sept 21 at Chuck E Cheese

Sept 21 in Mt Laurel with cousins Maggie Rae & Eli

Party Crowd!

This is the year of "Frozen"! Big birthday items!

Annie the Dog..birthday present from parents...Still with her Mother..more to come later!