Fun for the Summer

Bea is going to camp at the Primrose School, the same place where Lewis is going to Preschool and PreK. She has been attending for about a week and has already gone on 2 field trips - to the Art Barn and to the local Fireman's Museum. The school director has sent me a few photos that I thought I'd share.

Family Photos

Some weeks ago a professional photographer came to our home to take shots of the family. Here's some of my favorites. They're in no order and have no captions. I don't really see the need.

Milestone for Bea

I just put Bea on the bus for her last day of kindergarden. This is a huge day for every child - both the first and last day of their first year at official gradeschool. But, for Bea, this is especially significant that she has survived and is healthy through her last day of school.

To her it's a special day of popcorn and movies and a water balloon fight is waiting for her at the bus stop when she gets home. For me, it's one stop in a monumental journey that shows me just how strong a little person she is.

Keep going, Bea. You're living an amazing life.

Bea the Designer!

Beatrice has taken a liking to design lately. Funny how a parent's work can have such an influence. Even as a 6-year-old she understands the difference between design and art. She knows what an icon is and how it's different from a drawing. Every day she amazes me with just how darn smart she is.

So, just like I did back in January with selling Bea's art I thought about how to can Bea do design for sale? I'd heard about a site called Zazzle, checked it out and decided that it provided exactly what we needed. An easy way to design product with Bea's artwork (and mine, too!)

So, Beatrice and I have worked on some lovely product designs to sell on http://www.zazzle.com/craftygraphics. The sale of each will garner us a royalty. Clicking on any of the ad banners in this blog (to the right) can also garner a 15% royalty for us if a sale results. The goal of any profits we make is to help pay for amazing activities for Bea and the family this summer and fall. These activities include local trips to Savannah, St. Simon and Chattanooga.

We are also planning to use sales from this Zazzle shop to help pay for a new back garden. We have some money saved but it's not quite enough to make it happen. Our yard is a wreck and the hope is to give Bea as much outdoor time as possible to keep her strong and healthy. And, Bea would like her own garden to plan flowers and vegetables, too.


See other gifts available on Zazzle.

Third Time Around

Bea had her third treatment as Pittsburgh last Monday. Her tolerance for the vaccine was great on the day and she's had no noticable bruising at the injection site. Considering how deep this injection is the fact that she doesn't get a big bruise is pretty amazing. But, this time around Bea has complained about bad headaches. She was fine the day after but she has had a headache every day since. She hasn't had a headache in weeks and weeks. Tylenol gets rid of it quickly but I still don't like that she's getting them.

There are all kinds of reasons outside of the vaccine for her headaches right now. Bea has a cold and heavy cough and the cough bothers her head. It's getting hot in Georgia and she forgets to drink, especially at school. She had a class trip at a local nature center and then a field day last week. Not on the same day but back to back. I know she didn't drink as much as she should have because she never does. But, the headaches are a still cause for concern. I can't talk myself out of knowing that it could be the vaccine. That wouldn't be responsible.

The headaches can be a sign that the vaccine is causing swelling in her brain. There can are additional symptoms similar to what happened to her in December. I haven't seen them but am keeping watch for them. That has made life a bit more stressful over the past week but these are the ups and downs I'd been warned about. Day in and day out, week in and week out and month in and month out I'm riding them as best I can. My goal is to hit that ride into year in and year out.

40

I am 40 today.

The opportunity to scrutinize one's past on a birthday is irresistible and I believe that turning 40 is a definitive landmark in one's personal history. It's not a source of stress for me, never has been. I like birthdays but the attention that comes with it is often odd for me. I don't love being the center of attention. So, writing about my birthday on my birthday is clearly drawing attention to a day that I usually don't make a big deal about.

But, this birthday is a big one and not entirely because I'm turning 40. It's because my past has become a blur and I'm starting to recognize that fact. I've lived long enough that I don't always remember my past clearly and I hate that. I've done so many amazing things in my life. I was in Berlin in 1990 and hacked a piece of the Wall off myself. I went off to grad school at 22 and finished within 2 years. I exhibit my artwork nationally and have had several solo exhibitions of my work. I got married to an amazing man who by all accounts I never should have met. A chance meeting and the next thing I know we moved from Philadelphia to Atlanta and have 2 great kids. And, eight years ago I finally got the job I always wanted - that of an art educator - working as a graphic design instructor at the Art Institute of Atlanta. I mean, the boxes are there and check, check, check...

The sad thing is that I really have to dig to think of these amazingly good things. They are not in the front of my consciousness. In my conscious life the benchmarks include 2 major events - the day my dad died when I was 23 and the day Bea was diagnosed with cancer. It's so hard to put other experiences into perspective when these 2 events are just so huge.

We all seem to forget the good things so easily. They become a part of our past and often stay there. So, my question is... why do the sad things of the past stay with us so much longer?

With that being said, my goal for this 40th birthday is to spend the day relishing the good things in my past and to try to strike a balance between those great events and accomplishments with the difficult experiences. It's not going to be easy but I know that I deserve some joy and sense of accomplishment today. Maybe tomorrow will bring a new mood, new thoughts, new worries or new promises. But that's tomorrow and it hasn't happened yet.

Brother and Sister

A professional photographer came to our home a few weeks ago and took some family photos. This is the first I have to share. Once I get all of them I'll post a gallery for you all to see. If this photo is any indication they are going to be magical.