Celebrating 101 Days
I was working on my post yesterday when it hit me, it was my 100th post.
Holy cow! Didn’t that call for a celebration or something? The trouble was I wasn’t feeling very creative yesterday, I was hot and tired… so I finished what I was writing and called it a day.
Today is my 101st post… and I had the same urge… I really should celebrate.
I should write 101 things you never knew about me… if I wanted to send you running for the hills.
I should write about 101 things I love… this is a wonderful activity, by the way. Last January, I took the time to write down 50 things. It made me feel so grateful. But probably not too riveting for you dear readers…
So at the risk of sounding quite hokey, I thought I would share the reason I started this blog.
I’m warning you, this might sound a little flighty….
You see, I had a dream that inspired “Make it Do.”
Now I also must tell you, I am not one to underestimate the power of dreams…
When I was barely pregnant with my twin daughters, my mother in law, phoned my husband early in the morning. She had just had a dream that she needed to tell us about.
In her dream, she was in a hen house. She was standing over an egg, and although she knows you are not supposed to help a chick break out of it’s shell, she felt she compelled to help this one. She peeled away the shell. When she was done, she was horrified… there was not one, but two chicks in the shell. But the birds weren’t ready to be hatched… they looked limp, gray and lifeless. And she was filled with shock and remorse. She turned away. But after a moment, she heard a chirping sound and looked back at the shell. Inside were two yellow, healthy, darling, little chicks.
After she finished telling my husband about the dream she said, “I think it means you are going to have twins.” He had a good chuckle and hung up the phone. He told me the story of the dream and I ran to the bathroom to throw up. When I was done, I came back and told my husband “Oh no, I am not having twins… I am not the twin mom type… I don’t even like any two names that rhyme and I hate matching outfits!”
As time unfolded her dream became incredibly prescient, because I was indeed having twins. And they came early… way too early. They weighed 1 lb. 10 oz. and 1 lb. 3 oz. at birth and they looked limp and gray and lifeless. They actually looked like unfeathered baby birds with thin translucent skin and incredibly tiny limbs.
Thankfully, Kit’s dream continued to be right. My little chicks eventually fattened up, turned pink and healthy… and although I didn’t name them matching names and rarely buy matching outfits (though I love to sometimes…) I especially love having my twins.
Early this year I had a dream that I had written a book called, “Make it Do.” I woke up with my heart racing… I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was something really important. I immediately wrote down everything I could remember from the dream. It was about my grandmother and the 1930’s and about finding ways of making life sweet when times are hard. And it was a lovely book in my dream.
My life is full and busy and I went about living it. The dreamed nagged at me and I ignored it. It nagged at me some more. But I had no idea how to write a book. So in the end I started this blog. And 101 posts later… I am really glad I did.
I’m just *thrilled* that you heeded your dream and began this blog! Thank you for the inspiration!
oh, I’m so glad you did let that nag nag at you! (I even came out of lurking to tell you so!)
And as for the le creuset pans – my large casserole pot was bought as a wedding gift 11 years ago, it still looks new despite being used most days for something or the other, and sits with pride on the stove top – the only pan to do so. My parents bought me a full set of stainless steel pans when I was 21 (yep, I actually asked for pans), they weren’t le creuset, but they were expensive – really silly money, but we got them at an outlet on sale and the money seemed to be a good investment, and they also have lasted, still look as shiny as the day they were bought (it’s 13 years later). Making it do often means spending more, but the quality meaning they last and last.
that is a wonderful story!!
I’m glad you started this blog… it’s always a joy to see what you post about.
God bless you and your family today!!
Thanks you for sharing this! We all need to “make it do”!
I love your blog! I’m also glad you started writing it. It has really inspired me to think out of the box and use my resources better.
I also have twins so it’s fun to hear about yours.
I’m glad you did too!
I find it interesting that through reading your blog posts the last month since I’ve discovered it, I feel like I’ve made a friend, though you know nothing about me, nor have we ever met. But I, too, have a deep interest in life “back in the day” when Making it Do was a way of life. I yearn for the simpler times when neighbors knew each other and watched out for each other’s children. When cell phones were not attatched at the ear. When home made clothing was really all you had and that was great. When “keeping up with the Joneses” was about who had a greener lawn, not who owned more ATVs or who had the bigger flatscreen etc….
Thanks for all of the inspiration, tips, and insight. I hope to continue our unknown friendship.lol
I’m really glad you did too! This blog has been so inspiring to me. Thank you!
I too, am glad that you followed your inspiration and your passion. Many years ago as a new father, I really wanted a girl–you were the answer to my prayers.
My own mother worked all the years when I was young and she practically ran a plumbing contracting firm but was paid peanuts, because she was a woman. She quit once to have my little sister, your aunt, and they replaced her with two full-time secretaries and a man, part-time book-keeper. They talked her into coming back to work after she had the baby and they gave her half of everybody’s income. It still wasn’t as much as they paid the part-time male bookkeeper.
This made me a real women’s libber, before its time and before it was popular.
I wanted you and your sisters to believe in yourselves; to know that you were capable of doing anything you set your minds to do, yet to have some “old-fashioned” ideas about motherhood and family values.
Right or wrong, it’s what your Mom and I believed in.
Look at you, you are amazing and exceeded anything we could have wished for you. The daughter to make any father proud!!
Wow Dad, you make me cry. That means a great deal to me. In her own way, your mother is also an inspiration to me… with her toughness, work ethic and courage. Thank you for always being there for me. All my love, Calli
I had no idea! I’ve only been around for thirty or so posts. I’m glad your chickies are thriving.
ANd I love it… have your button on my blog!!
You have a gift for blogging and “making do,”
Thank you for sharing your ideas and knowledge with all of us that have had the good fortune of finding you!
Keep up the good work, I learn something new every day.
Wow that is so great that dreams are a source of inspiration and wisdom in your family! I think that is a really neat story so thanks for sharing! Your blog is wonderful and I think I’ve made your mint brownies 3 times since you posted about it. You inspire me!
I love your story, both the twin chicks part and the book/blog part. Dreams never cease to amaze me.
I’m so glad you did, too, Calli! Your blogs is one of my favorites that I read because you always give me something really helpful to add to my life. Keep it up!
Aw what a sweet story. We have to live our dreams. We must. Congrats on 100 posts. You have a voice and it is so worth listening to.
I’m glad you started this blog too. It’s real and goes to the heart of our lives, even more now for those who perhaps have never had to “Make It Do” like some of us have. I too think about years gone by and try to keep as much of those traditions alive as I can. Keep it going girl, you’re doing great.