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Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Blog Hopping With Brielle







































I spend a considerable amount of time with my three year old granddaughter, Brielle. It is my privilege to babysit for her on the three days each week mommy works as a registered nurse. Bree and I are very good friends, sharing many special moments and learning experiences.

I slip away occasionally (with Bree still in my sight), to read an email or something newly posted by a fellow blogger. Immersed last week in Frugal Little Bungalow, I sensed a presence at my elbow.....

"Oooooh, what a pretty dog!" Bree exclaims of Lily. Lily is one of three pets belonging to Debra - grandmother, photographer, gardener, quilter, friend, and author of that charming site, one of my very favorites. "Want to see more?" I ask. Bree pops up onto my lap, and together we're off. We're Blog Hopping!

We scroll down a bit once we've agreed that Lily is, indeed, a beautiful dog. And there she is again, snuggled up with "Jugsy," keeping warm together on a cozy little rug between dining and living rooms. Bree leans in closely and studies the picture. I am proud of her attention to detail as she animatedly describes what she sees - two well loved canine companions who couldn't look any more different from one another.

The next pictures are quilts and groupings of glassware that my friend collects and displays seasonally. I usually enjoy studying them, but this time I'm hurried along. "Hey! I want to see more dogs!" We move ahead, discovering instead, a close up of  "Kanga." She is "occupying" the sewing table, as cats are wont to do. I expect an exclamation of delight from Bree, but instead the screen is treated to a stern finger pointing and the declaration that "Kitty should not be playing with scissors!" Well, of course that is correct, and we mention it to Debra in the comment section.

We're back "hopping" the next day and what a surprise awaits us! Debra has appreciated the humor in our comment and has dedicated a post to Bree on another of her blogs. Showcased photos on both sites, like the captions beneath them, are wonderful. Simple and sweet. They describe a lifestyle sated with home, hearth, hobbies, family and pets....they are, in a word, "Homespun."

"Awww, look at that pretty brown bird," I exclaim. "That's a cardinal, grandma. A female," she replies. "Well okay, smarty pants!" I say to myself. "I knew that. Just wanted to see if you did!"

Jugsy is next. A striking close up. I explain to Bree that he is the white dog's "brother." Then I hold my breath, waiting for her to inform me that this is biologically impossible. But she lets it go. Whew! Dodged that one!

A flock of busy blue birds fills the screen. "Blue Jays," I am told, among other things. Bree chatters away about her feeder at home and how she watches it while she eats breakfast. Her cats observe too, from the window sill. There are lots of visitors, squirrels included. Mommy puts little ears of corn out for them so they don't grab the "bird stuff." Then they scamper up the big pine tree, eat the corn and drop cobs to the ground. Daddy picks these up when he goes out to scoop dog poop. Interesting!

I finally score when I correctly identify a sweet little feathered friend as a "titmouse." Bree didn't know that (HA!) but says these frequently appear at her feeder, bringing all of their friends with them. She fills me in on hummingbirds, too. They'll be back when the snow is gone, she confidently relates. My jaw is on the floor. How does this kid know all this stuff?

I find a picture of Debra's cute four year old grandson. He is working a wooden puzzle. Bree examines it closely and announces that she has one of those too. I tell her the little boy's name is Brent and he spends time cooking and crafting and playing at his grandma's too. She asks if Brent is a nice boy. I assure her that he is, omitting to say that if the two of them were to someday marry, I'd be guaranteed a terrific grandma-in-law for myself!
"Want to see some quilts?" I ask. "No. That's enough! I want string cheese now." And away she goes, leaving me, alone, to conclude with another comment for Debra:
"Visiting your blogs together in search of birds, squirrels, Lily, Jugsy, and Kanga is a new tradition for me and Brielle - unless your posts feature only cozy quilts or beautiful grandchildren or stunning landscapes or quaint collectibles or breathtaking flowers or savory recipes - then it will be only me who shows up to read them!"

11 comments:

  1. grrrrrrrrr I left a nice long comment, hit publish and it disappeared! Silly 'puters! So if this shows up twice delete one!
    This is probably my favorite post ever! I have made such wonderful Grandma friends since I started blogging and I feel like I know them and their grandchildren -- such fun to watch them all grow. I read about Bree and am instantly taken back 5 years to when Amara was that age. I love that Bree will grow up to marry Brent and that he and Amara are going to own a restaurant together! 20 years ago this friendship we all have would never have been possible -- so glad we live when we do.

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  2. Kate and I are reading this now! :) No school today due to snow and we are having girl-time ( Harrumph, Brent chose to go to the gym with his grandfather! :) Kate is in heaven, dressing dolls and playing Calico Critters, practicing piano...all without interference from little brother.

    This is the cutest photo of Bree yet! I swear she gets prettier every day! :) Kate and I say Good Morning, Bree! :) Love this post..so much fun :)

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  3. Ahh Joyce! Bree is so pretty! And I know you cherish your time with her. It is wonderful to be able to have the kids one at a time. Of course having them all together at once is fun too, just not the perfect time for developing the closeness. And how fun to catch up on blogs with her by your side! Yes where do kids get the info they know?! They are such little sponges!

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  4. Brielle is so sweet and I love her name. My daughter often looks at blogs with me too. She loves to look at animals and other kids, but also crochet and quilts! She's got a pretty good eye for this stuff already. :)

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  5. What a cute granddaughter you have. It sounds like you get to share some great times with her. I'm watching my 2 year old grandson right now. He loves my ipad but he really loves looking at photos of himself on my ipad.
    Best, Sharon

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  6. Awww that is so sweet. I have no little ones to blog hop with - my boys are older now and they take me on adventures on the internet - how does a first grader know about DNA I ask you?

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  7. What a lucky lady you are to spend three days a week with that beautiful little girl, and you're learning from each other - doesn't get much better than that.

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  8. Joyce, Miss Brielle is such a cutie, and oh-my-goodness smart, too!! I think it's grandma's influence. ;) Please tell Brielle that I love Debra and Lily and Jugsy, too! ♥ She has great taste!

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  9. What a wonderful post. You sound like the best grandma ever, and I just love how you go with the flow and adapt to whatever inspires your lovely grand-daughter. Happy blog hopping!

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  10. Children and animals are an unbeatable combination, aren't they? My grands can watch those funny cat videos over and over.

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  11. Oh how fun! My grandkids will occasionally look at something I show them - usually wild or wacky animal pictures or LEGO ideas. My oldest granddaughter loves to give me ideas for blogging articles. It's definitely fun to incorporate them in a variety of ways. :)

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