Six months ago, I began planning Dexter's birthday party. He was very interested in trains at the time and I thought a trip to the railway museum would be perfect, but it turned out that trains were a fleeting interest and not a lasting obsession. Next, he began to ask to ride "blue horses" and, as weird as the request was, we thought a carousel party would fit, but, when we went to scope out the carousel, he took one look at the horses spinning around and around and shook his head. "Too high," he declared. "Too scary!" So, we considered a garden party, a carnival themed party, a party at the children's museum, the splash pad, the creek, and a horse farm ...but nothing felt quite right. Dexter loves strange things, none of which translate easily into a party theme. He loves fruit snacks and he loves spraying things with the hose. He loves to stack things into towers and then knock the towers down. He loves to color himself with magic markers. He loves to watch about three minutes of every episode of Little Einsteins available on Netflix. Most of all, he loves to "help you." Laundry, dishes, vacuuming, dusting, changing light bulbs, moving furniture, watering plants, carrying things to the car, pouring milk, cooking dinner-- no one can attempt to complete any task without soon hearing Dexter's feet stomping to catch up. "I help you?" he calls, enthusiastically. He is genuinely thrilled to work, dedicated to his tasks and proud of his accomplishments. "What we need for Dexter is a job party," I said to Ryan one day. And then, we had an idea. Blackberry and blueberry season is upon us and Crabtree Farms generously allowed us to have Dexter's "U-Pick" birthday party in their picnic area. A sweet "job" for our little helper. It was perfect. The morning was humid but overcast. We explored the farm and had some snacks. Dexter was thrilled with his birthday sign on a chalkboard we borrowed from Miss Amanda, and his birthday crown made by Miss Myrissa, and the birthday balloons picked up by his Papa. Most of all, he was absolutely thrilled with all his friends and family coming to see and celebrate with him. I loved that he felt so special. We ordered donuts from our favorite local donut shop. Dexter chose a pink one because "it's so beautiful" and, as everyone sang the birthday song to him, my sweet boy's face shone with absolute delight. As we headed out to pick berries, it began to rain. It felt great! The blackberries were a little bit sad but the blueberries were abundant. Dexter was quite serious about his job and he enthusiastically filled his pail with every green blueberry and red blackberry he could find. It was a very sweet day for our soon to be three year old. We are so appreciative to everyone that helped us make it happen and to all our lovely friends and family who got up early to help us celebrate our Dexter Keats. Thank you.
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I love the holidays. I enjoy rhythm, tradition and celebration. I find joy and meaning in even the cheesiest of rituals and I throw myself into the carrying out of the rituals wholeheartedly. This will never change. I know that it is sort of trendy for my generation to turn their noses up at various holidays for various reason. I have read my fair share of internet soapboxes and, while I cannot say I always disagree with the points made, I have to admit I do not find them particularly compelling either. Regardless of what you celebrate or when you celebrate or how you celebrate, holidays connect people to one another and they remind us that we belong to each other. Meaningful family rituals, symbolic acts, and special occasions are also consistently linked to positive outcomes for children and families as well. So, I will happily continue to toast the New Year with Shirley Temples, wear my Santa hat at Christmas, and send my children to collect candy from strangers on Halloween without hesitation because....science. I cannot explain why Independence Day is my favorite holiday. I am not a particularly patriotic person or anything. My best guess is that I have a lot of positive memories associated with summertime and the Fourth of July, and it has turned into a deep love for parades and fireworks and cookouts and a desire to create those same positive memories for my own children. We used to attend the same Independence Day celebration every year. For the last few years various circumstances have kept us from that tradition and, inadvertently, a new tradition was born in its absence. Now, we seek out a celebration somewhere near by, load up in the car and head out for a day in Small Town, USA. Chattanooga certainly isn't The Big City or anything, but it also isn't the sort of place with one elementary school and a general store either. I have always been curious about the little places that are usually no more than a white name on a highway sign. It is fun to have a chance to take a closer look. This year, we visited Sweetwater, TN. All the streets in downtown were blocked off and filled with music, performances, prayer meetings, vendors and fun. The boys were thrilled with the free train rides (Rory did not love the train whistle so much though). They also enjoyed watermelon slices and bounce house fun. We lasted several hours before attitudes began melting and we needed to head indoors. We found a place to eat on Yelp and headed out for dinner. The little restaurant we discovered was so cute. Dinner was a country-style buffet and I am fairly certain my little Southern boys felt like they had died and gone to heaven. They stuffed themselves silly and topped it all of with a trip to the ice cream sundae bar. The general store was also adorable and a little window-shopping was a nice break from the heat. After dinner, we changed into pajamas and headed back downtown for more fun. We made it just in time to watch a martial arts performance. Liam is obsessed with ninjas and was thoroughly impressed. And then....just when we did not think it could get any better..... the music started.... Everyone rushed to the streets to dance and Dexter was not about to be left behind. While his brothers observed from the sidelines, my Wild Child whipped and nae-naed right along with the best of them. He was very serious about it but I could not stop smiling. When the music ended, he took his bow. We ended the night with a lovely fireworks show and then loaded our tired, sweaty boys up in the car to head home.
Thank you, Sweetwater, for a lovely Fourth of July! |
WHO AM I?
I am Michelle: a wannabe hippie in love with a bonafide geek. We also spawned. I spend my days with our four wild, beautiful boy children and I overshare about our life online because I am a Millennial and that is what we do.
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