Sisters

With an arduous work travel schedule for the past few months, my weekends have been much less about relaxation and more so about trying to cram a week's worth of activity - laundry, grocery shopping, etc - into two days.  Despite the long weekend, this one has been just as busy as usual with family pictures scheduled for Sunday afternoon.  With my two sidekicks in tow, we headed out to Alexa's swim practice followed by an afternoon of errands.

I was on a quest to find a pair of jeans for Ani to wear in our family pictures.  At face value, this seems like it should be a relatively easy task, but not with this little peanut.  Ani is extremely tiny for her age, so trying to find jeans that fit proved to be an impossible task.  We tried Target, Carters, H&M and BabyGap, but even the 'Mini Skinny' jeans at BabyGap were way too big for our skinny mini.  Despite trying on a least 10 pair at BabyGap, Ani stayed in great spirits and thought it was a lot of fun to entice me to chase her in the large fitting room to try on the next pair.

Since Ani was still in a good mood, I couldn't resist the lure of a 20-percent off sale at Athleta and decided to push my luck and stop in a quick look.  Of course, I found a few things to try on but the large fitting room that would accommodate Ani's running stroller was occupied.  Alexa offered to hang out with Ani from the comfy lounge chair immediately outside my fitting room, and since they were within two feet of me, I figured it would work.  It was probably the best decision I made all day.

It was both comical and sweet to listen to the two girls as I hurriedly tried on my selections.  Alexa was a perfect doting big sister, looting the diaper bag for snacks (I think she ended up eating most of them) and speaking in silly voices to make Ani laugh.  I'm not sure everything Alexa was doing, but she had Ani giggling hysterically in her great baby laugh.  As I tried on my last hoodie, I could hear the employees commenting how wonderful it was to have that moment of levity in the day and admiring how sweet Alexa is in the big sister role.

When I made my way to the checkout, the cashier commented that the sight of my girls had made her day.  She said the love between my two girls was very obvious, and it made her want a sister (she was an only child) to have a relationship like that.  It was a very hectic day and afternoon, but a comment like that is another reminder of how lucky I am. :)

A little blurry, but my favorite image of the girls from a wedding last weekend.
There's no doubt they love each other.

Powerful Influence

In a house filled with every toy, Build-A-Bear animal and crafts a kid could ever want, it never fails to amaze me that the ones that get the most play, by far, are the herd of stuffed giraffes we have amassed over the past few years.  At least once a week, I find all of the giraffes together on the floor or rearranged on the shelves.  Both girls love playing with them, and Ani loves to make the 'munch munch' sound of the giraffe.

Reminders of Grant span well-beyond the stuffed giraffes scatted throughout the house.  On our way home from swim practice tonight, Alexa was asking me whether the Elf on the Shelf would be making its annual appearance soon.  Although the nightly placement of the Elf is kind of a pain, I always look forward to having a greater power than I....the threat of Santa...to help enforce some of the right behaviors.  I happily responded that it was Elf season, but quickly a much more pressing dilemma than good behavior struck Alexa; the seemingly androgynous nature of our Elf began to trouble her.  Our Elf wears a skirt (I think it even has pierced ears), but Alexa name him/her Granty when my friend Linda sent us it as a gift in 2012.  During the next five minutes of the drive, Alexa contemplating changing the name, using Grant as its last name - candidates included Katie Elizabeth Grant and Elizabeth Jewel Grant - but ultimately she decided she just couldn't abandon the name Granty.  She even rejected my proposal to change it to Grantie (I thought it may be more feminine), saying she needed to leave the Elf named after her brother...even if it is a girl elf.

Nothing makes me happier to know the memory of Grant will continue to live through Alexa.  She talks about Grant on a regular basis, tells people her brother is three and continues to remind me that I have three, not two, kids when people ask.  In fact, she's already narrowed down her dating and marriage pool substantially, as she has informed me on numerous occasions that the boy she will marry has to be named Grant.  I could see that likely changing, but if Alexa ever has a son of her own, I would be willing to bet he will be named in honor of her beloved baby brother.  The bond of these siblings, despite the brevity of their time together, is undeniable and an example for all of us.

Caught playing with the herd (Ani said the one laying down was going 'night night');
Even Alstott gets into the action.

Kisses all around!

Thankful

I stopped updating the blog last year – coincidentally on Ani’s six-month birthday – because I knew my work commitments at the time were going to make it a challenge to update the blog on a regular cadence.  However, as I have gone through the past year and a half, I realized that my blog updates were a therapeutic outlet for me.  The blog updates reminded me to appreciate everything I have in my life and also to recognize the impact and influence of my little guy upon it.  Yesterday, on the three year anniversary of Grant’s death, it hit me like a ton of bricks that I still need this outlet; I miss him so much.  I can't guarantee daily updates, but I will do my best to make frequent posts.

Thanksgiving is a very bittersweet holiday for me that is forever associated with the sadness of the 2012 celebration at Phoenix Children's Hospital.  I have been travelling a ton for work lately, so a low-key celebration in Scottsdale was the perfect way to spend the day.  Wildfish (Damon's restaurant) was open for the holiday, so it provided an ideal solution for our family dinner.  I was happy to abandon the idea of cooking since I returned from Tijuana around 10:30pm Wednesday night - not to mention cooking is not my forte whatsoever.

Thanksgiving dinner was exactly what I expected with my two girls - quick and messy, but a very enjoyable time.  Ani really liked the cranberry sauce, but by the end of dinner, it appears she was using them as an edible finger paint.  Since there's a Costco pumpkin pie in our refrigerator at home, Alexa selected a Godiva chocolate cake for our dessert...so much for tradition.  Needless to say, by the time we were ready to leave the restaurant, Ani was a mess of chocolate and cranberry and Alexa was practically licking her plate to enjoy every last bit of chocolate.  A good Thanksgiving dinner by all accounts.

I look forward to resuming the blog posts, a constant reminder of how truly fortunate I am.  There is not a day that goes by without a reminder of Grant and the influence he's had upon our lives.  His two spitfire sisters have the same tenacious spirit he demonstrated in his life, and I am sure he's proudly looking down upon all of us.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving @ Wildfish.

Sisterly love.
I captured this candid shot as the girls watched the Macy's parade this am...hand-in-hand :)