Piper Finn Willow
Mix a little foolishness with your serious plans; it's lovely to be silly at the right moments. - Horace
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Goodnight Little Willow
After tucking Piper Finn in tonight and watching her nightly rituals for about the 400th time (a pretty close estimate I think) I began to wonder if obsessive compulsive behavior was normal in two year olds. I feel confident that it is. The evening line up seldom varies. I spread the blanket over her (the same soft, sweater-like, pale green blanket Uncle Luke and Aunt Jessica bought for her as an infant) and she tucks it just so – never allowing even a slight edge to hang over the bed rail. Eagle (her constant companion since Aunt Beckey picked it up for her at the Marine Corp. Museum when Finn…
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This Is Not Good
Look what happenswhen I answer the phoneand have the audacityto walk into another roomto finish my conversation.
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seriously.
Oh Man. After this morning’s Bible study, I had a small window of time to get back to our house, grab a quick lunch for everyone (and by “grab” I mean “Mommy has to assemble”) and get everyone back in the car and headed in the opposite direction to the afternoon’s art lessons. It was raining. Time was limited. I had five children with me. I knew it was a recipe for disaster. But I had no idea how violently it would all break down. The kids got corralled in, stepping in each puddle and muddy inch in the yard and splash their wet selves across the sun room floor.…
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One Thing Leads To Another
Ups and downs. Highs and lows. This and that. A chain of events that connects one thing to another. We were in the car on the way to the bank. Piper threw up in the car again. (Is this a pattern?) I turned the car around, errands never completed. I unbuckled the entire car seat, with the sticky, smelly two-year-old still buckled in, and set it all on the driveway. I left the car seat outside and carried the little Finnian directly in to the bathtub. I forgot about the car seat. Magnus did not. Riley (or as our kids call her – Girl Staff Riley, not to be confused…
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Little Bites
Piper Finnian is notorious for a lot of reasons around these parts. Standing anywhere she can gather a crowd and announcing, “Everybody! Dance!” Agreeing with all who may perchance comment about her cuteness. “I cooot!” Wrapping grown men around her finger by announcing how much she loves them. Men such as Kevin Keigley, Nathan Heffington, Walter Howard, Jody Deming, Jamal Quattlebaum and Greg Boone. Singing “How He Loves” at the top of her lungs. Finding the half-eaten bag of M&Ms reserved for potty training and eating the remainder of the entire bag before being caught. Recognizing songs by Michael Jackson and Ben Harper without any prompting. Waiting until naptime every…
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This Circus
Tell me the truth, am I the only one who feels like life with small children is more often a circus than anything else? Do these things happen only at our house? At your house do reusable silicone muffin wrappers fall out of your washing machine when you open the door? Do you walk into the kitchen to discover your toddler surrounded by piles of cornmeal, of which she is shoving into her mouth? And when you ask her what she is eating does she reply, “powder”? Do children sing Michael Jackson’s “Will You Be There?” with your husband while dancing around the kitchen using antique wooden rolling pins as…
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Just Right
Dinner tonight. Piper Finn asks, “Pray?” Of course I let her. She squeezes her eyes shut tightly. She puts her two inch hands over her four inch face. She speaks. “God. Magnus. Feel better. Daddy. Safe. AMEN!” I couldn’t have said it better myself.
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While You Were Sleeping
I was feeding Wilder in his bedroom. I finished. I walked to the kitchen and was greeted by a wild scene. Two small children, one two, the other four, stood before me. Looking sheepish. And guilty. And white. Looking very white. “What?” I started to say. I quickly realized that the white that had settled on their entire beings, from toes to roots of hair to cheeks to the two stuffed animals carried in their arms, was from powder. I could see it everywhere. I could smell it. Wait a minute. While I was feeding Wilder weren’t these two playing in our bedroom? With their father? Or so I thought.…
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Birthday Dos
A lot of my pictures recently seem to be of this kid. But she’s just so darn cute. And today there are more shots of Little Willow. Because it’s a big day. She turns two today. Piper, you’re a pretty cool kid. I like how you ask me to sing your special song every night. “Bennnnd Will-whoa”. And I think it’s hilarious how you wander around the house singing, “We will ROCK you!” Your stuffed eagle is still your absolute favorite toy and companion. He’s filthy and you have a particular way in which you hold him – upside down so you can caress his tail feathers all day long.…
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The Wise Finnian
This little girl may be a genius. Or not. But I probably owe her a positive post since the last time that I wrote about her I think I may have mentioned the word “terrible” and dwelt heavily upon her tiny child misbehavior. At any rate, I think we all know there are many sides to every person. So why would a two foot tall person be any different? We think she is learning the ropes awfully fast. Of all the Keigley children, perhaps even including Riley, Piper Finn is the only one not at all afraid of Magnus. (The dog that is beginning to make me question my judgement.)…
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Not Yet Two
That second year of every child’s life is supposed to be the killer one, right? I mean, the year has gotten so bad historically that someone gave the entire 365 days a special name – The Terrible Two’s. I don’t have any two-year-olds living in my house right now. But I have this one kid, who is NOT two, mind you, who spent her day trying to live like a legendary Terrible Two. After breakfast I stepped into the bathroom. (Uh-oh. I should know better than to do that, right?) When I emerged, mere mili-seconds later, I heard Piper making interesting sounds in the other part of our house. I…
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Something About Love
Piper has a little friend. His name is Beckett. Piper is not always very kind to Beckett. Beckett will be standing still. Minding his own business. Being happy and content – a model citizen. Piper approaches out of the shadowy background. She walks behind her young companion. And then, without provocation, Piper two-hand shoves Beckett. It’s awful. I am so embarrassed by her behavior. Ashamed. What in the world? Why would she do that? I scoop her up and take her off to the other room for some baby discipline. But I don’t stop loving her. When we are done with the discipline, I don’t turn away from her affection.…
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Wee Little Finnian Facts
Tonight, even as I type this, Piper Finnian is sleeping in her big girl bed. A bed without walls. A bed that does not mandate containment, but merely suggests containment. Wait, did I type “sleeping”? She is not sleeping. At last check, her lights were on. I have corrected that situation and now we will proceed to see how the night breaks down. In other Piper news, she learned a trick from her friends Mandy and Jody. And it’s really cute. She lies down somewhere, anywhere, puts her hands behind her head and says in an exaggerated sigh, “Lax”. (Which means “relax” you know.) Oh and she can also drink…
