This Reminds Me

Sharp – though random – sayings around Casa Woodworth this week.

Lois – chastising Julia after her weak apology for (again) skating around the kitchen while fondue bites were being chopped for Mother’s Day lunch – “Julia!  Nothing says ‘I’m sorry’ like a knife through the stomach!”

Rachel – tasting her favorite Coke Zero with its new vanilla flavor for the first time – “Time to go get rings.  I’m marrying it.”

Lois the Seventh Grader – after receiving a medal from the Duke Talent Identificaiton Program for scoring as well on the SAT as did the average high school senior – “I really need two medals.  Earrings!”

Rachel – rolling her eyes as I squinted at the screen of the Creative Zen MP3 player I got for Mother’s Day – “Mom.  Please.  No reading glasses with a Zen.”

Nothin’ says love like sharing the bud.

Me – rocking Julia Saturday night and talking about what Mother’s Day was and how we would celebrate it:

Me:  “I will always love your mother in Russia because she had you first.”

Julia:  “My old mom – she is with Jesus now.”

Me – quite startled:  “Really?  How do you know that?”

Julia – “She was older than you.  She must be dead.”

And finally – me – right now – to the quarrelsome youngsters who will not leave this game room – “Get out!  All I want are your images.”

Our first annual Sisters Day is Friday, May 18.  Thanks to all our friends and family who have made Julia’s first year home so memorable.

Lois, Hannah and Rachel all participated in school performances today – a record, even for us.

First…to Bush Middle School for a 20-minute, 7th grade performance of “That’s Show Biz.”

Lois portrayed the evil stepmother in a play-within-a-play loosely tied to “Cinderella.”  She screamed at children to clean up after themselves and help carry things inside.  I felt right at home.

Those humidity-defying curls were started last night.  The glasses are fake.  Why, you might ask, does anyone wear fake glasses?  Because they’re “cool.”  Spoken by someone who’s never had to wear real glasses.

Then off to the Stone Oak Elementary cafeteria to see scores of standing scholars in the 5th grade “Wax Museum.”

Fifth grade classes in NEISD present a “Wax Museum” near the end of the school year.  Each student is assigned an historial figure to research and on which to prepare a 60 – 90 second life sketch.  They then dress in costume and all stand frozen in the cafeteria until visitors (younger student, teachers & parents) tap their hands, triggering the one-minute autobiographical recitations.  Five years ago, Rachel was author Helen Hunt Jackson.  Two years ago, Lois was activitst Rosa Parks.  Hannah drew Dr. Virginia Apgar, Depression-era physician and creator of the Apgar scale for newborns.  I learned Dr. Apgar was the first woman ever to be named a full professor at Columbia University.  Perhaps this assignment will inspire Hannah to study hard, become a doctor and earn enough to buy her mother nice gifts.

On the way out, I ran across Julia’s class walking to the library.  Kinder is too young to visit the Wax Museum.  Julia’s teacher gave her permission to go back in with me, since I thought she’d love to hear Hannah.  Ummmm…not exactly.  All she could see was that Hannah had borrowed her Dora the Explorer doll.  “Mom, she no ask me.”

Finally this evening – Reagan High School’s “Bring the House Down,” a really professional music and dance extravaganza.  Rachel performed a trio of numbers with her Bel Canto choir.

Rachel wore rollers to school all day for this curly effect.  Yes.  All day.  I’m not getting the whole curled hair thing.

Always look to the back row for a Woodworth.  That’s Rachel’s head in the upper right.

Julia’s teacher told me today, “School’s out in two weeks.  These kids are done.”  Translation:  “The good has run out.  I am now herding cats.”  My friend Lisa blogged that very theme so very well this week.

And after three sessions of clapclapclapclap today, I can see the end in sight myself.  We still have Rachel’s and Lois’ finals, Lois’ Duke ceremony, Lois’ choir trip to Dallas, Lois’ end of year choir concert, an ESL parents meeting, Julia’s “Poetry Picnic” and Hannah’s 5th grade party and graduation to go.

But that’s later.  I’m thinking while the show must go on – I’ve already been.  Stick a fork in me – because tonight, I’m done.

So can you believe she likes to swing?  Surprising, huh?

We’re coming up on the one year anniversary of our court date. While most adoptive families celebrate “Gotcha Day” at this landmark, we are instead creating “Sisters Day”  – the day we came home, May 18.  Because without Rachel, Lois and Hannah, there would be no Julia.  So we don’t want to be leaving anyone out.

In one year, Julia has:

- Moved around the world with two parents she didn’t know to live with three sisters she didn’t know while learning a language she didn’t know, eating food she didn’t know, riding in “machinas” she didn’t know, going to a school she didn’t know….everything and everyone she just didn’t know.

-  Begun to ask the occassional questions about God and Jesus.

-  Discovered she likes all kinds of foods.

-  Mastered everything in her riding height range at Fiesta Texas.

-  Learned to skate, ride a two-wheel bike and a scooter.

-  Learned to speak and “read” English well enough to be promoted to 1st grade.  Not all of her native English-speaking peer group was as successful.

I could go on and on.   And sometimes have.  So pardon me.  But I am just so proud.  When I reflect on her bravery – taking our hands and walking away from everything she knew at Children’s Home #47 – I am amazed.

And humbled.

Because as the little boy at the volleyball game showed – and as my own daughter shows me, too – I am not always smarter than a seven-year-old.

But hopefully, no one is keeping score.