Nana’s Weekend

I must admit that looking at this post again this morning, after having prepared it last night, I do wonder if it’s just a bit too idiosyncratically sentimental, hokey, personal, domestic, and, especially, marked with that great big Grandma stamp that makes you edge away discreetly when you see a Woman My Age reaching for her SmartPhone that you know is going to be loaded with photos of The Cleverest or Cutest or Best-Looking Child Ever.

I’ve debated back and forth about pushing the Publish button. But I keep coming back to my overall intention for the blog, that it somehow captures the fullness of my life in its many aspects, and the Nana role is an important part of that. Don’t worry. . . I won’t notice if you sidle away quietly, having enough of my granddaughter tales. . . 

 Yes, there may have been a bit of a mess at Nana’s this weekend.  But all that cutting and pasting and sheer power of a 4 11/12-year old’s imagination yielded the makings of a puppet show. Meet Twilight Sparkle and her sidekick Spike — I was introduced to these characters when Nola and I watched My Little Pony together on Saturday night. Shockingly, I declined the opportunity to watch the show again last night, although I peeked in regularly as little girl watched it yet again. It’s surprisingly good for the genre, truth be told. . .

 After we’d cleaned up the mess inside, we headed to the beach. (“Nana, I have to go home to see my Mom and Dad today, but we still haven’t looked for any beach glass.”)

And then we emptied our bucket onto a table on the deck . . . and somehow, the allicorn Twilight Sparkle made another appearance.

 although you might have to look hard

 to recognize the long horn (made from a beach-scavenged pipe fragment), the 4 legs (limpet shells arranged in rows of 2), long fluffy tail (a piece of bottle-green glass)

and Twilight Sparkle’s wing (a piece of oyster shell) . . . .

That was hard work — good thing Nana planned ahead and made these cute little individual Baked Apple/Apple Pie hybrids from arecipe I’d long ago pinned on a Pinterest board and almost forgotten about. Turns out it makes a good compromise as a Weight Watchers dessert (mine is the littlest apple in the background, just enough pastry to get a pie-hit without racking up the WW points). . . .and it’s a great way to use up pastry balls I’ve tucked away in the freezer.  Next time I’d use a firmer apple, but this was a spur-of-the minute baking session, so I worked with what I had at hand. . . .

So we made things together and we beach-combed together, and she and Granddad and I played in the park and biked and read books and danced. . . . I drove her and her Granddad to the afternoon ferry; her Mom and Dad picked them up on the other side, and I’ve been getting the house back into some semblance of order for tomorrow’s Cleaning (Every Second Tuesday, the house gleams by afternoon — such a gift! even if poetry gets shifted)

It’s quiet, and I’m enjoying that, getting my gear ready for tomorrow (pack the Pilates clothes, remember the stack of essays I need to return, put some soup into a container for my lunch, should I iron that skirt? and what boots work best with it?) . . . and I’m feeling my granddaughter’s presence still animating this space. . . .

It’s a good way for the weekend to end . . .

28 Comments

  1. hostess of the humble bungalow
    12 November 2013 / 4:55 pm

    Well I am not shying away from these Nana and Nola posts! Looks like a delightful weekend, one for the memory book.
    She looks so cute in her beret too…perhaps she has a flair for fashion like her Nana.

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:16 pm

      I know! And she doesn't even try — the beret was actually my imposition for fear she'd get cold. It's mine, but she wears it much more stylishly . . . 😉

  2. LPC
    12 November 2013 / 6:30 pm

    I love these posts. I have a whole set of young women Internet friends – who live largely across the pond – and I am rarely happier than when they post photos, stories, even videos of their small ones. It's part of the good village aspect of the Internet.

    Also, I love her creativity and visual musings.

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:17 pm

      Thanks for the encouragement — much as we loved being with little ones when they were our own children, it's quite wonderful seeing them from this different perspective, isn't it?

  3. Susan B
    12 November 2013 / 6:53 pm

    Awww, I enjoy these Nana posts! You really know how to nurture her creativity, and I suspect someday she'll be sharing the recipes she learned from you.

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:18 pm

      Funny you'd say that — my daughter just texted me a photo N had drawn of those "apple pies" and asked her mom to make them.

  4. Duchesse
    12 November 2013 / 9:13 pm

    What a joy to see a young girl's creativity burst forth! Thank you!

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:18 pm

      It was so much fun for me to watch, and I was happy to share. You're welcome!

  5. Anonymous
    12 November 2013 / 9:15 pm

    I love these. Not sure my sons will ever have grandchildren so I have to experience from afar. It's also a reminder to slow down and look for beach glass instead of stressing over assignments and chores. Now if I just had a beach…..

    Lynn

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:19 pm

      Now that's a great motto: Slow down and Look for Beach Glass!

  6. Unknown
    12 November 2013 / 11:42 pm

    It looks like a wonderful day. I love your grandchildren posts!!
    These things are what round out our lives. Heaven knows, I'm going to drive people batty with pictures and posts about my newest one 🙂

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:20 pm

      Can't wait to be driven batty — that new little guy is precious!

  7. K.Line
    13 November 2013 / 2:21 am

    Awww – I say, revel in your nana-ness!

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:20 pm

      Thanks — I do!

  8. Tiffany
    13 November 2013 / 7:04 am

    She is so luck to have a nana like you. Grandmothers are incredibly important … I love reading about that part of your life. As you say, that's the whole point – your life is not just one thing …

  9. Tiffany
    13 November 2013 / 7:05 am

    luckY. You can see a 2-hour hands-on art class (imagine the top pic times about 50 million, as my kids would say) has addled my brain.

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:21 pm

      Hey, what's a slipped Y given all the juggling we do! I can only imagine a room full of this activity multiplied — craziness!

  10. Madame LĂ -bas
    13 November 2013 / 2:13 pm

    It looks like so much fun! My Little Ponies have made a comeback? I remember them the first time. You are lucky to have all the "mess" once in a while. Nola's hat is very cute. I actually own a purple beret with a sequinned rainbow on it. Girl imagination is a wonderful thing!

    • materfamilias
      13 November 2013 / 2:26 pm

      I was surprised to know they're still around as well, although I could always see their appeal. They have some pretty eclectic fans, besides the obvious kids. . . And the stories/movies offer a rich narrative of a world Equestria with all the classic struggles between good and evil . . . models values worth emulating, explores all kinds of relationship issues, morality, etc. etc. . . . And ponies, unicorns, and allicorns (winged AND horned) — who could ask for more, really?!

  11. Patricia
    13 November 2013 / 4:41 pm

    I love the grandmother posts too! It looks like so much fun. We are going to a 1st birthday party this weekend – not a grandchild, but a grand-niece. Very much looking forward to it as the grandparents – my husband's sister and brother-in-law – will be there, and we so seldom get together with family.

    • materfamilias
      14 November 2013 / 4:30 am

      Sounds as if you have a fun weekend coming up — and especially great to see your sister and brother-in-law in their new role as grandparents.

  12. ilona
    13 November 2013 / 7:29 pm

    From one Nana to another: Are there ever enough Nana Weekends? Thanks for sharing yours with the rest of us.

    • materfamilias
      14 November 2013 / 4:31 am

      There aren't enough for me! You're welcome. . . 😉

  13. Unknown
    13 November 2013 / 9:29 pm

    Your Nana posts are some of my favorite posts. And I can't wait to be a granny so your granny doings give me ideas…

    • materfamilias
      14 November 2013 / 4:31 am

      It's really such a good gig — you'll love it!

  14. Lorrie
    13 November 2013 / 10:01 pm

    Nana posts won't keep me away. Love them. I find the creativity of my own granddaughters astounding – more so, perhaps, than I did with my children. Is it because of added maturity that we look upon these grandchildren as such marvelous creatures?

    Who needs plastic toys when there's a beach full of possibilities?

    • materfamilias
      14 November 2013 / 4:34 am

      Our focus seems both sharper and mellower at once, although I'm not sure how that can be so. . . I was really impressed to see what she did with the very basic materials I supplied. In fact, I had oodles of paper leftover from various drafts and the cardboard she used for her puppet "sticks" came from various food containers gleaned from the recycling. . . No plastic toys needed! 😉

    • Lorrie
      14 November 2013 / 5:30 pm

      I like that contrast of a sharper, yet mellower focus. Very well put.

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