Tag Archives: Tanya H. Franklin

On the Seventh Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…A Memorable Moment with Santa & Mrs. Claus

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2016-11-28-18-49-56On the Seventh Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…A Memorable Moment with Santa & Mrs. Claus.

Seeing Santa and Mrs. Claus can be an all day adventure, especially as Christmas day gets closer and closer. So when I received an invitation from my local mall for a special welcome event for Santa and Mrs. Claus on November 18th, I quickly RSVP’d for my daughter, mom and me. To avoid the massive crowds, I smartly took advantage of the Santa speed pass, and boy am I glad I did because though it was not even Thanksgiving, the line was wrapped all the way around the corner.

Though I was proud of myself for planning ahead, I did, however, have a misstep. I decided to not tell my three year old that we were going to see Santa and Mrs. Claus as a special surprise. So when we arrived and the Claus’ were within sight, Quinn’s initial excitement of being at the special event turned into nervousness and feeling overwhelmed. It took a little time to get her relaxed as we waited in line, but luckily she was fine by the time she and her best friend Grover got to sit and speak with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Next year, I’ll be sure to let her know ahead of time so that she’ll be prepped and less nervous, but I’m glad it was still a memorable moment for her and for me too.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Sixth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Family Fun with Ugly Christmas Sweaters

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On the Sixth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Family Fun with Ugly Christmas Sweaters

“Mommy, Daddy, Grover and I are wearing Christmas sweaters. Mine has a gingerbread man and says, ‘Oh snap,'” my little girl told her Nana. We often have some type of theme for our outfits at our annual holiday party, but wearing “ugly” Christmas sweaters just might be a new family tradition of ours. My light-up Christmas tree sweater came from Macy’s (On sale with a 20% off coupon), my husband shirt and daughter’s sweaters came from Target, and Grover’s sweater is actually is a wine bottle sweater cover I found at Burlington Coat Factory for just three dollars, and it fit him perfectly.

I really enjoy having family fun time with both my husband and three year old  (and Grover too) and know Quinn does too. Next time, I just need to find one that lights up for her just like her father’s and mine. Here’s to “ugly” Christmas sweaters and beautiful family moments!

All the best,

Tanya

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Excitement of Spending Time with Family

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Quinn and Nana
Quinn and her big cousin

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Excitement of Spending Time with Family

“Are you excited about Christmas?” I asked my little girl. “Yes!”she responded. When I asked her what she was most excited about, I anticipated her saying presents, Santa or something along those lines, but with a big smile on her face, she said, “Having fun and spending time with Nana and Kenzie (her big cousin). I love seeing them, Mommy!” She continued, “I can’t wait to spend all day with them and the rest of our family.”

Sometimes, we all get so busy with work, our immediate families and other obligations, so I truly look forward to getting together on Christmas, and it’s even more wonderful to know my three year old looks forward to it too. While we may not have a large family, we have a close-knit one, and it pleases me so much that at a young age Quinn appreciates her family and the importance of spending time with each other, especially around Christmas.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Fourth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Nostalgic Moments Singing and Dancing to the Jackson Five Christmas Album

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On the Fourth Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Nostalgic Moments Singing and Dancing to the Jackson Five Christmas Album.

“Can we hear Santa Claus is Coming to Town again, Mommy?!” Upon putting it on, my three year quickly corrected me, “Not that one, Mommy! The one with Jackson 5, please!”

I remember decorating the Christmas tree with my mother, sister and brother as a little girl singing along with the Jackson 5 and squabbling with me sister over who would sing Michael Jackson’s part. We’d use wrapping paper rolls as our microphones and come up with our own dance moves. Never did we tire of listening to the album that was originally released well over a fifteen years prior, actually when my mom was barely a teenager in 1970.

Now, instead of requesting Daniel Tiger as the album of choice for our breakfast mood music like my daughter’s been doing for the past half year, she’s been asking for the Jackson Five for the past couple of weeks. She’s even asked for it to be played in place of her bath and bed time routine Beethoven music. While in the car, The Temptations version of “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” came on, and with an inquisitive look, Quinn asked, “Who is this? Why are they singing The Jackson 5’s song?” I explained to her that there are many different versions of Christmas songs, and without hesitation she informed me, “I like the Jackson 5, mommy. They sing it much better!” I just giggled to myself, and said, “Okay, I’ll keep that in mind.”

It warms my heart that my daughter and I are bonding over this album as I once did with my mother and siblings. I can still close my eyes and reminisce about the fun times with had with it playing in the background as though it was yesterday. I hope as time goes on that Quinn will have fond memories of the moments we’ve shared together as a family while listening to the Jackson 5 Christmas allbum.

 

All the best,

Tanya

On the Third Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Being Mesmerized by Christmas Lights

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On the Third Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Being Mesmerized by Christmas Lights.

“Is it dark enough to see the lights, Mommy? Can we go outside to see them now? Is Santa in the window too?” My little girl excitedly inquired. Looking at the twinkling Christmas lights is a simple activity, yet it’s something I’ve always enjoyed doing because it brings me joy and puts a smile on my face. Quinn loves looking at the lights too and wanted to go outside with me with no coat (I convinced her to put one on) just to see the light decorations on our house.

This year, we added Santa and Mrs. Claus in the downstairs windows, the nostalgic leg lap from “Christmas Story” on our front porch, a snowman and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer in the front yard and moved the reindeer and sleigh with gifts that light up to the side yard. Another feature that’s not exactly lights is a digital decoration where Santa is busy placing presents, going into his red sack or eating cookies in our the second floor window using the special projector by the company AtmosFX. It is so realistic that my three year old along with some guests at our annual holiday party really thought Santa was upstairs in our room.

While there will be a little bump in our electric bill, having those beautiful Christmas lights twinkle and having Santa greet us in the window makes it feel a lot like Christmas.

Here’s a little clip of us looking at Santa in the window.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Second Day of Christmas, My Little Girl Gave to Me…Fun Decorating Our Christmas Tree

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Turning Off The Light to Check Out Our Tree
Proud of Our New Tree Decorations
Our Rainbow Tree

On the second day of Christmas, my little girl gave to me, fun decorating our Christmas tree.

“Next year, let’s do a fun tree, Mommy!” my little girl suggested back in 2015. For the past few years, even before Quinn was born, our tree could be classified as sophisticated, so when Quinn asked about a fun tree, it was right on time because I was eager to break up the monotony of the same decorations year after year. Shortly after Christmas last year, I started googling “fun Christmas trees,” but the types were vast. So I thought, why not ask my daughter what she thought would be a fun tree, and she immediately said, “How about a rainbow tree just like my playroom!?”

I was instantly on board, told my husband, and we were both on the hunt for after Christmas discounts on ornaments since quite a few would be required, especially with the tree in previous years just having blue, silver and gold ornaments. Then, in September, I saw a commercial for a Christmas tree light called “Tree Dazzler.” I did a little research and found that it was a knockoff of the original “Geek My Tree,” from Shark Tank which comes with an app, unlike the Tree Dazzler, and far more color sequences to set the lights to do just about whatever you want. Though much pricier than the “Tree Dazzler,” it goes perfectly with our rainbow theme, and I was able to set the lights to be in accordance with the color order of the ornaments.

Not only was it fun decorating our tree together, it was a wonderful way to reinforce sorting, color recognition and the order of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. The decorations are certainly more fun and playful now, just like my little three year old wanted. Quinn is very happy with the new tree decorations, and so am I.

All the best,

Tanya

On the First Day of Christmas: My Little Girl Gave to Me…Fun Picking Out Our Tree

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On the first day of Christmas, my little girl gave to me, fun picking out our Christmas tree. Selecting a Christmas tree on Black Friday has been a tradition my husband and I started since we had my daughter, and now that she’s three and a half, she really looks forward to that special outing. Quinn loves having the responsibility of choosing our tree and takes it very seriously. This year she insisted, “Mommy, it has to be very tall and fluffy!” Within less than five minutes, she found the perfect tree. “It’s taller than Daddy!” she exclaimed. We asked if she wanted to look at others, and with absolute certainty she said, “No, this is the one!” For the past few years, our tree’s have been named Greeny, Big Green Jr. and  BG3. This year, Quinn came up with the name Bert.

Once we got “Bert” home, she wanted to help her daddy bring him into his new home and set him up. It’s so nice to see her face light up, and I’m happy to share this tradition with her.

All the best,

Tanya

Mommy’s Monday Moments: Taking Time Out to Reflect

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2016-11-09-15-48-13“Are you still doing your blog entries?” and “I haven’t seen any post from you in a while?” a few of my family members and friends have been inquiring. Since my daughter started school and I started having a five day a week teaching schedule instead of two, it’s been a very busy transition. Between Quinn wanting to play from the moment she arrives home from school until dinner and then after dinner until bath and bed time; and with me tending to grading, prepping and other teaching duties, my entries have not been as frequent these past couple of months.

Needless to say, I miss sharing what new “mommy steps” I’ve taken and reflecting on what’s going on with Quinn. As the fall semester draws to a close, I’m eager to post a little more not just for me but to continue chronicling different events and activities involving my little three year old so that she may one day read them and know how much I love her and want the best for her by trying to be the best mom I can be.

Here’s to more  mommy steps and blog entries in the weeks to come!

All the best,

Tanya

What A Difference a Week Makes! The Ups and Downs of Starting Preschool

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2016-09-02-16-31-32“There’s no school tomorrow! Why not, Daddy!” my daughter inquired in a teary eyed voice Friday evening before bedtime. I asked my husband, “Did I hear what I think I heard?” He shook his head with a smirk on his face, “Yes, you did!” he said.  About a week and a half ago, Quinn told me she didn’t want to go to school and cried when her father or I dropped her off in the morning. I was so concerned and was so nervous about her developing a strong dislike for school since she missed us so much and kept asking why she had to go (even when she admitted that she had fun.)

All last week, her best friend Grover (from Sesame Street) has been accompanying her to school and spending a little time with her in the morning before the day’s activities got underway, and there’s been no tears: only smiles and stories about how the two of them had a great day. Though I do not know for certain what this week will bring, this evening, as we prepare for tomorrow, Quinn excitedly asked to “play school” and told her dad and me, “I’m going to have the best day ever at school tomorrow!” What a difference a week makes!

All the best,

Tanya

Grateful to Grover: Easing the Transition of Preschool for My Little Girl

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2016-09-10-19-50-55“Please, Mommy! Don’t Go!” my three year old cried out. My chest tensed up, and I could feel a tear or two welling up in my eyes as I pried my daughter’s hand off of my arm while struggling to comfort her as I left her with the teacher who was trying to console and distract her with an activity or toy as I left for work. What a difference a week makes! Quinn went from being excited the first week to adamantly voicing her dislike of being left at school by her father and me in the second week. We’ve explained how fun school is and how it’s great to meet new friends and learn from the teacher, but she is still somewhat resistant, especially considering that this is her first school experience.

Actually, she mainly cries for us not to go during the initial drop-off, and the teacher has reassured us that she is smiling, having fun and interacting with the other children for the rest of the day. So, we’ve been trying to come up with a way to help with the transition from home-life to school life in the morning.

Apparently, Quinn had the answer all along; it was me who was not receptive to the idea because I wasn’t sure if it would be acceptable by the teacher. “Can Grover please come with me, Mommy?” Quinn would ask in such a sweet yet desperate voice. I suggested that she could bring him for show and tell to which she quipped, “Mommy, Grover is my friend, not a toy. We bring toys for show and tell, not friends.”

On this past Friday, we had a talk in the car before heading into the preschool building, and she seemed to be doing okay. She asked again if Grover could come with her, and I said that he could but needed to stay in her book bag, and I’d ask the teacher if it was okay for Quinn to nap with him. Quinn was fine with this compromise, but as I hung up her book bag and little jacket, tears began to form in her eyes.

As I gave her a hug and tried to console her, the teacher saw that Quinn was visibly upset and asked, “Where’s Grover, Quinn?” I was surprised at this inquiry. How did she know about Grover? Maybe Quinn mentioned him during nap time or when they were talking about friends or toys at some point. I asked, “Is it okay that she has Grover?” The teacher smiled and nodded, “Of course, she can have Grover!” She then looked at Quinn as I handed Grover to her from the book bag, “Your friend Grover can spend a little time with you this morning, and then you’ll be able to put him away in your book bag until nap time. Okay, Quinn.” Her tears subsided, and she smiled and clung to Grover. Quinn was going to be okay. I later found out that my husband allowed Quinn to bring Grover on that Thursday but just didn’t tell me.

While some people may think children should not be permitted to have “security blankets,” such as a binkie, favorite toy or an actual favorite blanket that provides comfort, I think it is sometimes necessary to get them through a major change or transition. I am so grateful to Grover, for he has provided my daughter with some comfort during this major change, and when I picked her up, she immediately informed me, “Grover and I had a fun day at school Mommy!” Hearing her say this really made my day because it truly did upset me to see her so distraught.

All the best,

Tanya