joy seeker (april)

april 14, 2012

When I think about this day we had with Grandma and Grandpa on Lake Superior, I can still hear your laughter. Actually, you would probably be happy to play on this beach every day, learning more about the ways sand moves when you sink different rocks and sticks and other bits found on the beach into it. And then Grandma taught you how to throw rocks into the water. The look of absolute delight on your face each time you discovered something new was contagious. I can't remember the last time I laughed so much with Grandma. Thank you for sharing your joyful light with all of us. (I am so lucky to know you.)

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the series "joy seeker" is one way i am documenting the "joy" superhero power that ellie jane has. i am gathering a photo + short story each month from her first to second birthday and sharing a few of them here on the blog. i plan put them all together and have them printed in a small book this summer.

a chocolate chip cookie and project life

January 6: You have discovered the joy of eating chocolate chip cookies. Today, you wanted one as a snack and sat like a big girl at the table and ate all of it, small bite by small bite. You offered to share with me, but as I started to take a bite, you pulled the cookie back and broke off one tiny crumb for me and smiled so big. It was pretty funny. Then you gave me the very last bite as you climbed out of the chair and ran off to play. Later, you decided you wanted another cookie and were not content with the half I offered you and insisted on sitting in this chair again to eat another whole cookie all by yourself. While you eat, you often say, “mmmm” just after you take a bite. You bring such joy to the simple moments of living.

*****

I have decided to attempt Project Life this year (for real this time). I actually ordered the Amber kit about a year ago...but it sat in the box on the floor of our family room. Now it sits out by the kitchen table next to the Canon Selphy printer I am using for some of the photos. (Love that this year you can now just get the core kit and choose your album based on your style etc. So many cool products out for Project Life. I think I am going to get a few other types of page protectors to add to what came in last year's kit.)

After talking with Ali about her experience with Project Life and being so inspired by her weekly posts in 2011 (and then looking at how other members of Becky Higgins' creative team approach it), I decided to jump in this year.

And, I am so happy to report that the first week is almost done! As I was working on choosing the photos, I knew that I would want to add the above "chocolate chip cookie" photos + words to this week's story. I love how you can just add additional page protectors into the album and how there really aren't any rules, so I am working on learning a bit more about digital scrapbooking so I can add a few more stories here and there. And then I really want to use what I learn to create other books of other stories I want to tell with words + photos. A big thank you to Ali and Danielle for holding my hand through this learning curve.

So the pieces above are what I will be putting into this first layout. Stay tuned...I think I am going to have a little too much fun with this.

(edited to add) In the spirit of yesterday's post and your kind support (thank you), I want to share this other layer to the story: Seeing her devour this cookie and show such a big appetite made me so so happy. She is a wee one because of her heart issues and doesn't have much of an appetite because of the medication she is on. We have been in a "holding pattern" with her weight recently as she uses up all the calories she takes in as she runs and dances and explores, and we are hoping she will gain more this month. Although she will never have those baby fat rolls that so many people talk about, that I dreamed about when I was pregnant, I am just so happy she is here eating chocolate chip cookies and french fries and ravioli and blueberries and peas and brocolli. I am just so happy when I hear her say, "mmmm" after each bite. 

(This is also my January "Joy Seeker" story. This series is one way I am documenting the "joy" superhero power that Ellie Jane has. My plan is to gather these glimpses here on the blog from her first to second birthday, and then, I will put them all together and have them printed in a small book. Posting the October, November, and December Joy Seeker entries here didn't happen, but I am still gathering them for the book.)

joy seeker (september)

A guest post from Jon:

We were wandering on that stretch of beach near the Point Wilson Lighthouse, and you found a stick in the sand. My first instinct was to keep it away from you for fear of injury, but I knew you needed to be allowed to investigate and explore things in nature. Also, you are currently figuring out how to be quite persistent, so I decided to see how this moment would unfold. You tromped and stomped around in the sand, briefly losing your footing, only to regain it an instant later. You would swing the stick wildly to spread out sand and then move on to another spot. Later, we played with a small stone and tapped it against larger rocks and logs to make music. I always want to remember the sense of discovery you had throughout our adventure on the beach.

*****

the series "joy seeker" is one way i am documenting the "joy" superhero power that ellie jane has. i hope to gather these glimpses here on the blog from her first to second birthday, and then, i will put them all together and have them printed in a small book.

joy seeker (august)

Usually it goes like this: You will suddenly look at one of us and pause whatever you are doing. Then, you will frown. Then you will almost start laughing, but instead, you will frown even deeper. Then, you will close your eyes for a few seconds. Blink. Blink. Blink. Now you will open your twinkling eyes wide. Then, you will giggle until your whole body shakes. You laugh even harder if one of us frowns back at you.

I think this is my most favorite game ever.

*****

the series "joy seeker" is one way that i plan to document the "joy" superhero power that this kid has. i hope to gather these glimpses here on the blog from her first to second birthday, and then, i will put them all together and have them printed in a small book.

joy seeker (july)

as evening pulled on the afternoon sun, we shared a small bowl of blueberries tucked under the cherry tree in the backyard. you kept trying to give me a few of your blueberries and would laugh each time i said, "thank you. now here is one for you."

i always want to remember the moment when i noticed you were waving at the fence, and i looked up to see a house finch hopping from post to post. you were waving to that finch! and you had the biggest smile on your face as though you were greeting an old friend. i am in awe of the way you seem to intuitively understand that joy is the way.

*****

the series, "joy seeker," is one way that i plan to document the "joy" superhero power that ellie jane has. i hope to gather these glimpses here on the blog throughout the next year, and then around her second birthday, i will put them all together and have them printed in a small book. 

joy seeker (june)

in this moment, you paused in the midst of your snack and looked up at the blue sky and took a breath. your big blue eyes taking in the birds flittering above us and the trees slightly swaying. we talked about how noticing the birds and the trees and the sky and feeling the breeze across our bodies was a way to just be right here sinking into the joy of being alive.

your superhero powers bloom more each day, and i am so glad one of them is that you are a seeker and bringer of joy. as we walk this part of your path together, i will take notes so we can both remember the beauty and joy that surrounds us.

*****

spending time with ali at the your story retreat has inspired me to think about how i can continue to gather words and photos together in more tangible ways. i recently created my first shutterfly book (more on that soon), and i love how simple (and rewarding) it is to pair photos and words together in this digital world. this series, "joy seeker," is going to be one way that i document the "joy" superhero power that ellie jane has. i hope to gather these glimpses here on the blog over the next year, and then around her second birthday, i will put them all together in a book.