Double Nickels!

This past week both my parents celebrated their 55th birthday. My mom is such an inspiration to me. She has always lived with her heart on her sleeves, protected by her keen momma-bear-senses and no-nonsense attitude. She is a source of unwavering support in my life. She has reinvented herself several times in the past 55 years but always put her children first. She has known love, divorce, re-marriage, love of her parents and watching them become grandparents. She has become a grandparent herself and blossomed into the roll. She has known loss and grief, love and happiness, and, has taught me so much from each. She has had an amazing 55 years and grown into each new revision of herself with grace and just a smidge of dirt. Just enough to keep her humble. As I watched her blow out her candles this year with her grandbabies in her lap, I couldn’t help but envision the woman she will become over the next 50+ years. I continually find myself modeling my choices and actions as a parent based off the life of example she has shared with me. My dad is another source of inspiration and support in my life. He has lived a life of international travel and experiences just out of his comfort zone. He has a fantastic work ethic and is an example to live up to for myself and my kids. He has been with the same company for over 30 years and has been all over the world as one of the best in his field. He is a great example of the distance you can go if you stretch your wings. One of the things I admire most about my dad is his work and home life balance. He has always had a very high pressure job (although you wouldn’t know it by talking to him) and has always found time to support his family and his favorite hobby, fishing. I see so many people struggle with a proper balance, I myself at times have been overwhelmed by my work commitments and let the other important things in my life slide. My Dad has mastered the balance. The Zen he finds on the water, fishing poll in hand, has perfectly balanced his stressful work life. He has always set non-work related goals for himself, such as fish in the majors, and is exceptional at realizing those dreams. As he begins the closing chapters of his career I can’t help but wonder at the dreams he will realize and the goals he will accomplish with the ‘free’ time of retirement. Happy Birthday to both my parents. Thank you for being such beautiful individuals who continue to inspire, teach and radiate love in all that you do.

Surrounded by Love

A few nights ago before we sat down to dinner I grabbed a piece of poster paper and a bright marker. In the very center, I drew a heart with the word ‘You’ in the middle. I laid the poster next to my plate and sat the kids around us.

The kids, each in their own way, have expressed some fears lately. Makenna has been having nightmares about dragons, dinosaurs and various monsters. It may sound silly but it’s real to her. She’s been ending up in our bed every other night or so needing comfort. Hailey, being of my genes, has been worrying about her upcoming start of 1st grade. She worries about ‘messing up,’ not fitting in, being laughed at for one thing or another and, since it’s a new school, getting lost. Anthony’s are a bit more serious, though each kids fears are equally real to them. Since losing our G-ma suddenly in February (an almost instant brain aneurism) he’s been worrying about loosing other family members. He worries about being ‘left behind’ if Brad and I were gone. He of course knows the heart of the lesion I was about to teach but when you’re in the grip of a fear, logic doesn’t always win out.

So, with the three sitting around me, I showed them the heart and asked them to help me brainstorm the names of people that love ‘You.’ They started out with the obvious, Mom, Dad, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and close cousins. Then we started talking about friends, Scout leaders, teachers, church leaders, etc. Anthony asked if these people truly ‘loved’ us or if they were just friends. My return question was: “If you went to any of these people and said you had an emergency and needed immediate help, would they do it? Would they drop what they were doing to help you?” The answer was yes, if we had a crisis, they would unquestionably help.

As our poster board started to fill up, name after name linked by a line directly to our heart, Makenna said God, Hailey chimed in Jesus and Anthony said G-ma, Papa and Pappy. (Grandparents who’ve passed away) Hailey questioned weather or not they could help from heaven. My answer was, that like God and Jesus, sometimes we don’t always see the direct ways they help us but I believe that if we were in any danger, those we love that are watching over us would do everything they could to help us, even if it was only to wrap us in a constant invisible hug.

After our poster was full and we had written most of the names we could think of (most of the ones that the kids have met in person, although in my heart I know there are those out there from Brad and my past that would step up to help our children if ever the true need arose) I pinned the poster up behind the kitchen table.

“This poster represents the group of people that love you, unconditionally, and will be here for you if ever you ask. These people would take care of you for the rest of your life if something were to happen to Mom and Dad. These people don’t care if you fumble, stumble, say something wrong or can’t remember where your class is. They love you anyways. These people would help you fight a dragon if ever needed. These people are your family, your friends and your community. With them behind us, we overcome any obstacle; override any fear and stand, always, with our head held high.”

“But, it’s our job, to be at the ready to do the same for them. It is our job to be a loyal family, good friends and active community members so that if any one of the people on our list were to write a list of their own, we would be on it. Unconditional love does not come with a price, the very definition of unconditional means at no cost, but, love creates love. The more we do our part in the world, the more others will recognize us and our poster of love will grow. You are surrounded by love. Don’t be afraid, be brave, ask for help when you need it and never miss a chance to show or receive love.”

The poster, several days later, still hangs above our table and the kids have each referenced it at various times. Makenna reminds herself of it at night before she sleeps to help ward off her nightmares. Hailey continues to come up with names we could add, names of people she loves and would help. Anthony and I have been exchanging text messages (digital age!) “You are surrounded by love” and the response is “And, you’re a dork” since he is a boy after all and thinks it’s a bit cheesy. (I know though, that the message resounded with him, I can tell in his demeanor and the fact that he has gone out of his way a few extra times to tell us he loves us)

I think I’m going to find a way to frame the poster or a copy of it and hang it in our hallway right between the kids’ bedrooms. What a great reminder to look at daily. We all can use a reminder now and then that we are not alone, that we have an army behind us ready if we only ask and that we can be called to the ready at any point.

Interview with a 6 year old

Today is Hailey’s 6th birthday. She is my ultimate girly girl. She loves anything Barbie, princess, dance or singing related. She loves to color and has a different baby doll she cherishes each day.
I decided that a fun thing to do today would be to interview her about all her favorite things. I tried 3 times to record the interview, not sure why I thought it would work. Between dogs barking, phones ringing, Makenna or Anthony talking, my house is never quiet enough. So, instead, I’ve written the interview down.

Me: Hi Hailey, what’s today?
Hailey: My Birthday!
Me: How old are you?
Hailey: 6
Me: Any big plans for your 6th year?
Hailey: Go to First Grade, do activities, meet new friends
Me: Wow, that sounds like fun! Mind if I ask you some questions?
Hailey: Sure!
Me: What are some of your favorite foods?
Hailey: Artichokes, Avacados, Carrots
Me: What is your favorite snack?
Hailey: Yogurt.
Me: What’s your favorite dessert?
Hailey: Coconut! Any kind of coconut
Me: What’s your favorite thing to drink?
Hailey: Soda, Root Beer, Sprite, and Ginger ale – but not real ginger, I don’t like that
Me: What’s your favorite thing to do?
Hailey: Color, Dance and Sing!
Me: Where are some of your favorite places to go?
Hailey: Grannie and B-pa’s, Little Anthony’s, Aunt Sasha’s
Me: What are some of your favorite adventures we’ve had?
Hailey: The Aquarium, The Childrens Museum, skating, bowling
Me: What are you most grateful for?
Hailey: That I was born. My family and that my family loves me and that mom has new nail polish paints
Me: What else do you want to tell us?
Hailey: That I love the whole world and I love the friends I make and I love that my mom helps me be brave on my first day of school.


I was able to get a cute snippet of her singing a song during her interview. Enjoy!

She is such a kind spirit and truly blesses us every day with her smile. Happy Birthday to my beautiful, smart and gentle young lady.

My name is Jennifer.

I’m the Chief, CEO, and matriarch of The Uwood Clan. I oversee 3 youngin’s as they learn to navigate the world through learning, laughing and responsibility. Oh yea, I get to do it all with a cute co-chieftain too!

I love to sew, bake, cook and I believe a clean home soothes the soul.  I don’t have a master plan I follow, I tend to make it up as I go and I’m notorious for changing my mind mid-plan. My hubby of 12 years, Brad, has learned to just kind of go with it.

We love to go camping, swimming, bowling and roller skating. We have lots of family movie nights at home and seek adventures together as a clan.

We’re extremely fortunate to be surrounded by a great support network, family that lives close by and some that are far away, all of whom we love and cherish. Most of our friends are our family but we’re blessed with a few close out-siders we grown to love.

We believe in exploration and responsibility for our children and try to teach them to lead with a gracious heart. They all three love to cook and bake, are avid explorers and, they would tell you, their imagination is one of their favorite things about themselves.

We base our lives in faith, not religion, but actively participate in our local church for the opportunity to be a part of a greater community. I am a lectern at church and am active in the quilting ministry. Brad is an Assistant Scout Master for the church Boy Scout troop that Anthony is a member of. The kids all participate in the children’s program and attend church with us each week dressed in their Sunday best.

Brad and I both work. He works in technology and computers and has blessed us with a tech savvy home that has most the modern bells and whistles. Our kids are all computer smart and each have personal computers that Dad has built or recycled from his work. I work from home, in the evenings and weekends, as an On Call Manager for a home health agency. Because of my husband’s tech connections I can really work from anywhere. I keep my phone by me at all times and am responsible for any calls I get when the main office is closed. This means that I can go whole evenings with no calls, no work, or I can have busy nights where I’m on the phone constantly. Our kids are used to this way of life, as I’ve been in this position for over 6 years. They’ve learned self-reliance or to rely on each other when Mom’s on the phone.  Brad works long hours during the week and sometimes isn’t home before the kids go to bed but he’s always home with us on the weekends. A strong work ethic is a moral best taught by example and we try to be the best we can be for ourselves and our kids.

This blog is my space to write about my life, my stories as a mom and all the ensuing adventures. Occasionally I’ll share craft projects, recipes, and thoughts on navigating my life as a mom, wife, daughter, step-daughter, granddaughter, a sister, a sister-in-law, a niece, an aunt, and a friend.

Welcome to The Uwood Clan.