My last poinsettia from Mom

February 8, 2011 | Birthday,Family,Holidays

This was the last poinsettia I’ll ever get from my mother on my birthday. She and my father had been doing it since I was born. Then, after Dad died, it was Mom.

See, I was born in December. Ten days later, they had me in church for baptism. They had poinsettias on the altar that Sunday. And they sang something about roses … oh, I don’t know. She’s told me the story a dozen times, and she told my children the whole story again last birthday. I didn’t ask questions. Nor did I write any of it down. I just know that my birthday and poinsettias have always gone together.

Now? Not so much.

Posted by Becky @ 11:17 pm | 9 Comments

Happy birthday, Dr. Seuss

March 2, 2010 | Birthday,Books

I’ve said before that we love Dr. Seuss in this house. We have plenty Dr. Seuss books on the shelf, but we have several everywhere else — in the dollhouse, beside pillows and under covers, on the coffee table, in the toybox, in the bathroom. My kids enjoyed looking through my old My Book About Me By Me, which I got when I was about their age. They each got one last year for Christmas.

As I look at the titles, I realize we have read every one of them, some of them many, many times (we went through a serious Horton Hears a Who! phase a while back). We love them all. Well, I don’t care much for Fox in Socks. That was a dirty, dirty trick, Dr. Seuss, that would drive any parent to drink. At least the ones who actually try to read it out loud at bedtime. I mean, c’mon.

Through three cheese trees
three free fleas flew.
While these fleas flew,
freezy breeze blew.
Freezy breeze made
these three trees freeze.
Freezy trees made
these trees’ cheese freeze.
That’s what made these
three free fleas sneeze.
(from Fox in Sox: A Tongue Twister for Super Children by Dr. Seuss)

Seriously? Children. “You have em, I’ll entertain em.” Indeed, Dr. Smart-Aleck.

But really. You gave us The Eye Book, The Foot Book and The Sleep Book. Green Eggs and Ham and Hop on Pop. The Lorax, Sneetches and the Grinch. Most of all, you gave us playful rhythms, language acrobatics and a wonderful carnival ride into the world of your imagination.

If we didn’t have birthdays, you wouldn’t be you.
If you’d never been born, well then what would you do?
If you’d never been born, well then what would you be?
You might be a fish! Or a toad in a tree!
You might be a doorknob! Or three baked potatoes!
You might be a bag full of hard green tomatoes.
Or worse than all that . . . Why, you might be a WASN’T!
A Wasn’t has no fun at all. No, he doesn’t.
A Wasn’t just isn’t. He just isn’t present.
But you . . . You ARE YOU! And, now isn’t that pleasant! (from Happy Birthday to You! by Dr. Seuss)

We’re so glad you had a birthday and that YOU were YOU. Thank you for that. And from all of us in my home, happy birthday, Dr. Seuss!

Posted by Becky @ 12:30 pm | 7 Comments