Little get-aways. We drove to St. Joseph, Missouri, for our first club volleyball tournament last weekend. We were only gone from home from Friday afternoon to Saturday night (laaaate), but it was nice to be somewhere that wasn't home.
Little wins. Our team was undefeated all day and won 1st place in the tournament - a great start to the season! And in spite of the COMPLETE FAILURE of both my husband and my friend's husband Derik to protect me from errant volleyballs during warm-ups in which not one, but TWO volleyballs whizzed past my head with mere inches to spare, slammed into the wall three feet behind me and HIT ME IN THE BACK OF THE HEAD, I did not show signs of concussion, BUT I COULD HAVE.
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| Joplin Dunamis 15-1 Team |
Little distinctions. This week, the girls are ranked #1 in the team rankings for the Heart of America volleyball region in their age group. Can't say at this point whether it will ever happen again, but THIS WEEK, they are #1. Proof:
Little hands. Precious little preschool hands made into mittens for the bulletin board.
Little giggles. We had show and tell this week for my pre-k class. Each child got to bring one new toy ("N" week, you know) that they received for Christmas. One of the boys brought Buddy the Tyrannosaurus from "Dinosaur Train." I had him (the boy, not Buddy) in a fit of giggles when I said the sound Buddy makes when you stick your finger in his mouth is most certainly NOT a chomping sound, but a burp, and I kept sticking my finger in Buddy's mouth to prove it. He giggled even harder when I pointed out that Buddy's on/off button was located in Buddy's stinky armpit. Love it when kids develop their senses of humor!
Little candor. During the same show and tell, one of the girls was showing her new Lalaloopsy doll. I asked her what the doll's name was, but she hadn't named it yet. I suggested "Dyanne" as a good name for her doll, and she shifted her weight on her feet, bobbed her head from side to side, then, as politely as she could, gently said to me, "'Dyanne' is kind of an OLD name." Ouch.
Little hope. Got a smidge of good-ish news this week, helping to ever-so-slightly redeem what has been a crappy start to 2014.
Little talks. Enjoyed sitting with my friend Traci at Cupcakes by Liz (yum) for an hour and a half, just visiting. And eating cupcakes.
Little breaks. Through an elaborate set of arrangements caused by my daughter attending a show choir competition today and mucking up what might have been a nice, long weekend at the lake house, my husband, son and Ruby are now at the lake house with my parents, and Pete thinks life is worth living again.
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| Relaxed and Ruby-free |
Little kitties. Ruby is living the good life right now, visiting a new house and getting lots of good nap time in while she waits for her mama to get there tonight.
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| Looking more than a little comfortable |
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Hey, first, your profile picture or Gravatar picture is GORGEOUS! Look at you! Never mind whether Dyanne is an "old" name - you don't look old by a long shot!
ReplyDeleteWe all love the picture of Ruby sleeping with her feet up in the air. Kidzilla is convinced it's not a real cat because our Rotten Cats do not sleep like that. And something about Ruby's head bothered her - I think she couldn't see the ears so she thought it was a fake cat.
Glad for the bit of good news.
And again, thanks to you for being the place I first saw the TToT and linked up. Couldn't have imagined what a great thing it would be for me or that I would be CO-HOSTing! Wow.
Well, thanks, Lisa! I don't FEEL old....
DeleteTell Kidzilla it's a real kitten with very peculiar sleeping habits.
I can't say enough how glad I met you and that you joined the TToT, first as a contributor and now as a co-host.
Well, I thought that was great and I love your photos! xox jean
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jean! I appreciate you stopping by AND joining in with your own TToT this week.
DeleteOh my goodness, those mitten hands are adorable! I need to do that project with the girls next winter, as this winter is not one to speak of. Congrats to your girl on winning the volleyball tournament, so exciting! Have a great weekend, Dyanne!
ReplyDeleteIn retrospect, it might have been easier to cut out the mittens first, then added the handprints instead of the other way around. But then again, I would have had to make sure their thumbs were in the right place, which would have made the whole thing so much messier.
Deletelove the new pic... loved your old pic too...not the one where your old name was Dyanne... wow, kids huh? ... glad you got some good news no matter small, large , medium,... been thinking about you cuz of the bad start to 2014 was a bit of a concern... hope all is well... will keep sending good vibes... and that ruby has some mighty big feet! maybe the kid could name her doll RUby if it has giant gams!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Zoe. I'm hoping things will get better soon.
DeleteRuby has feet like a jack rabbit.
Lalaloopsy dolls have these ginormous, oversized heads and little bodies and appendages. I do not see the appeal of them.
since you said that the volley balls did, in fact, miss your head, can I contribute a little lol on the visual?
ReplyDelete(oh damn! I just re-read your opening statement and it would appear, the normal Reader immediately (and to me on a second reading) that you did get hit in the head. I will surpass on the joke reference, because getting hit in the head with most things are not *that* funny.
have fun at the lake house… photos of ice will be appreciated.
The volleyballs had lost a lot of their velocity by the time they hit the back of my head (TWICE), so it really did nothing much more than startle me. So laugh away at the visual. My husband and Derik sure did!
DeleteNo ice at the lake house. We're in Missouri, not Rhode Island!
oooh ick forgot about the hamsters!
ReplyDeleteYou make the cutest things with your little kiddies. I love seeing their (your) stuff. Hope that little hope grows into a big one!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sarah, very much!
DeleteLooks like a lovely week...glad to hear that you did not have a concussion, because YES, you COULD have...phew.
ReplyDeleteLOVE the preschool mittens.
And your little friend is wrong about the name Dyanne...especially because the way you spell it is very hip and trendy! :)
And the new pic of you is BEAUTY-FULL!
I may start wearing a helmet to volleyball games.
DeleteThank you, thank you, thank you!
Being number one in the tourney is not little- it's huge! Although negative points should be had for hitting you with the volleyball! Glad you had a good week!!
ReplyDeleteIt was a little tournament, but you're right, still a huge win! And the volleyballs I got hit with came from other teams, not ours. Volleyball is a dangerous spectator sport.
DeleteAwww, this was a sweet little ten from start to finish! The little things make up the biggest bulk of our lives, and a string of little blessings makes for a much brighter week. I smiled all the way thru your list, and had to chuckle at Pete, my three big girls are feeling very much like him these days as they grow accustomed to the energetic presence of little Toby, the kitten we adopted last week.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Josie! But I think your girls are adjusting to Toby much more quickly than my boys are adjusting to Ruby. Maybe it's the difference between girls and boys?
Delete"Dyanne is kinda an old name"....and to think your name is spelled with a "Y" and 2 "N's". Mine would be considered ancient. :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats to the girls and the team!!!
If she could only read, she'd know just how cool my name actually is!
DeletePlease tell me you moderate your comments and that I did NOT just lose mine. UGH!
ReplyDeleteComment? WHAT comment? I KID, I KID!
DeleteThat is a list of big littles! So sorry to hear about the volleyball to the back of the head! I have spent many moments dodging volleyballs...no fun! Great news for the girls though...so awesome! I'm always very glad to hear of good news and cupcakes...yes, there should ALWAYS be cupcakes! Kids do say the darndest things....but just the thought of the little girl saying that is funny, even if Dyanne is so not an old name!
ReplyDeleteYou would think after the Thumb Incident of 2012, I would pay more attention during volleyball warm ups. And cupcakes make everything at least a little bit better. Even for someone with an old name....
DeleteThat is so funny what she said about your name :-) My son still insists there were steam engines when I was a kid. Then when I say no, he says, "But there were no phones, right?"
ReplyDeleteI am NOT that old!
And congrats to the team! That's awesome and must be really fun for the girls!
She was so POLITE about it, trying to let me down gently.
DeleteIt was a great start to the season. Hoping they keep up the momentum through April.
Sounded like a great week and just glad you were again after that ball hit you. And Emma also got a Lalaloopsy Baby Doll at Toys R Us from a gift card she got for Christmas from one of our friends. The damn thing's hat keeps falling off her head and I must have to put it back on a thousand times a day, but she loves that doll, so I guess it is worth it! But loved that little girl's reaction and trust me name or not, I feel old with some of the things that come out of my kids' mouths, too.
ReplyDeleteI totally do not get the fascination with Lalaloopsy. They are top-heavy. They don't do anything and are too hard to be cuddled. Beats me.
DeleteYou've gotta love how brutally honest a 5 year old can be.
Dyanne, congrats on your team doing so well with Volley Ball!!! That's amazing. I'm glad your head is doing ok. Those volley balls are hard so I know that must have hurt. Oh my goodness. The photo of the cat sleeping on her back was so hilarious to me! So cute.
ReplyDeleteFortunately, it didn't really hurt either time I got hit, the wall absorbing most of the power of the ball before it rebounded and whacked me. It was certainly startling, though!
DeleteThat kitten has the strangest sleeping positions I've ever seen.
Congrats to the volleyball team. I will state for the record, volleyball is the most dangerous sport for spectators. The warm-ups are completely, insanely ridiculous. To be hit ricochet-style twice, though, kinda made me giggle. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI really hope whatever has been going on these last few weeks are getting better and that the end of January will be much better than the start. We've been a touch worried about you.
Oh, how I love preschoolers. You and I do lots of the same crafts with our kids. How funny is that?
Hope your break at the lake was marvelously relaxing.
I forgive you for giggling at my plight with the volleyball, especially since it happened TWICE.
DeleteI'm hoping and praying for better.
We painted feet for our snowman project today. Did you do that yet this year?
The lake was very relaxing, thanks!
How sad is it that I laughed at the image I got of the volleyball missing your face, only to bounce on the wall to hit you on the back of the head made me laugh----before I read further to make sure you were ok? Sorry. :-/ ;)
ReplyDeleteRelaxed & Ruby-free. I know that is what our cats felt like when the dog went to the groomer's for the day...well, not "ruby-free' since my dog's name wasn't Ruby, but you get my meaning, right?
And whooooo-hooooo on the volleyballs wins and #1 placement! I really miss playing volleyball -- such a fun sport. To play and to watch!
and "ouch" is right... Dyanne = OLD name... phew! out of the mouths of babes!
I totally forgive you for laughing at me. How do things like that happen to me TWICE?
DeleteYou should have seen the faces of those kitty boys when we brought Ruby back home. Utter disappointment and shock.
If you ask my preschoolers how old I am, they will usually say 6. That seems old to them, too, so really, I shouldn't take it too hard *SOB*
I got very vocal this weekend yelling at a football game on the TV, and I thought to myself that I could be a terribly annoying spectator if my kids ever play sports. Don't you get so so excited at the games? Sounds fun!
ReplyDeleteI am not a Woo Girl (which is a How I Met Your Mother reference, look it up), so I am a relatively quiet spectator. You will probably get thrown out of a game some day.
DeleteIf it's any consolation, I think that little girl would have said the same about my name! It is funny how some names go out of fashion.
ReplyDeleteThe mittens are so cute! And congrats to your team!
Thank you, Yvonne! And we could start an Old Names Club.
DeleteKind of forgot the hamsters....again.
ReplyDeleteYes, yay for volleyball girls! They did a really great job!