2.14.2013

Red plates.....for love.


HaPpY VaLenTine'S DaY!

It's no secret that I appreciate small moments -
as a mom of a teenager and tween-ager, I am reminded
daily about just how fast time is passing.  However, one
of the many benefits of getting to this point in my parenthood
journey is to learn how the seemingly 'little' things I have 
done for and with my girls are appreciated and loved........

Let me explain.....
My teenager is in the midst of applying to Catholic high school -
it's a process, albeit a bit stressful and involving lots of paperwork and essays
and interviews.......  This past weekend we had the
'big' interview at her school of choice.  My teenager was
asked about family traditions.  The interviewer was really 
wanting to know about our religious traditions but my daughter 
talked about our RED PLATE tradition
{and I may have felt a lump in my throat}.

I thought it would be fun to share {again}.

Long before the days of Pinterest or blogs - early in my
days as a new mother, I read about creating easy, small family
traditions.  One of the suggestions was to award children's big
and small accomplishments with a red dinner plate.
I purchased a couple plastic red plates and have tried
my best to surprise my girls with their place set at dinner with a red
plate when they do well on a spelling test, lose a tooth,
win a soccer game, play a violin recital....you get the idea.


I share this, not to increase my chances for Mother of the Year
or make anyone feel inadequate.
I share this because while Pinterest and blogs are wonderful,
they can often lead us momma's to feel overwhelmed, 
especially around these holidays - like today.
I share this for all mothers of wee ones  and big ones - just beginning
or in the middle or this wonderful journey that often feels completely thankless,
draining and overwhelming.......

I have been guilty of overindulging my children 
with expensive gifts, inviting way too many
six years olds to a birthday party, insisting on a homemade
birthday cake that required me to stay up frosting into the 
wee hours of the night and planning 'perfect' vacations.....
among many other crazy things us momma's do.
{raise your hand if you were up late last night making homemade Valentine's}

This weekend, during a high school interview, I learned
how something as simple as a plastic red plate, could 
mean so much....


And how could I not use the red plates this morning?
The photos above were taken late last night 
{yes, I still have alot to learn}so
I apologize for the bad light.  

Oh, and those plates......they may just might show
up on someone's wedding day too....but I can't
think about that right now - high school looming 
next year is almost too much to handle right now.

May love find you today.......


11 comments on "Red plates.....for love."
  1. Jill, I love this. Thanks for sharing such a great post. Great Luck to your daughter. I so remember going through HS apps. ♥

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  2. What a special tradition you've created, and love that your daughter thought of this tradition to share during the interview. Lump in my throat too.
    Have a great day!

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  3. What a wonderful tradition. Thanks for sharing! As a mother of 3 littles I enjoy your honesty & appreciate your blog so much!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Angela! Those day with littles seem long but the years go by too fast! Enjoy them.
      xo~Jill

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  4. Such a beautiful post. The "wedding day" brought tears to my eyes. They grow up so fast.

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    Replies
    1. It brings a pit to my stomach and a tear to my eye!
      xo~Jill

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  5. Happy love day girlie. Looks so pretty over here. Great new look. I'm wanting that connect bar under each post. What an awesome idea. May need to contact your girl.

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  6. Love this story!! Enjoy those moments, before you blink they will be almost finished with high school (my youngest) and almost finished with their first year of college (oldest) :( It just goes way too fast!! Cant think about weddings yet either...makes me lose my breath!!

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  7. So sweet! Loved the story, I would have cried:)

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  8. Aren't kids wonderful. I"m sure you will never forget how important the red plate is to her. At least she gave a more sensible answer than my son did when he was asked in Grade 1 what some of his chores were at home and he said "brushing his teeth". Sigh.

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