childhood memories

vanilla cupcakes
birthday parties
jump ropes
freeze tag
balloons
dirt under my fingernails
holding baby dolls
Christmas morning
feeling fuzzy wool carpet between my toes
shuffling along said carpet to shock my siblings
red Kool-Aid, and the one time Mom accidentally used salt
my yellow floral wallpaper
Crayons
writing silly poems
swinging on the swings Dad put in the basement
daydreaming
playing house
carrying my yellow duckie-shaped purse to Sunday School
singing in children's choir
writing on yellow paper with blue dotted lines
my purple zip-up fleece jacket
bright pink scrunchies
jumping in the leaves
Sesame Street
running and somersaulting onto the living room couch
dancing to "The Nutcracker" - in the living room
my pink doll beds that Daddy made
making cakes with Mommy
singing hymns at night before bed
all four of us kids brushing our teeth at the same time
footed pajamas - yellow, with Winnie the Pooh on the front
Saturday morning Bugs Bunny
archery with Dad
piano lessons
shopping with Mom
my grandparents
old church ladies
squeaky patent leather Mary Janes
an old toy organ
chalkboard drawings
climbing trees
trying to save little birds' eggs
kittens
sibling rivalry
snow play
long car trips
Disney World
"special sauce" - A1 and ketchup, mixed together
campfires and camping out
forget-me-nots
brown spots on my hands from picking dandelions
braiding my friends' hair
school ice cream socials
walking to elementary school
riding the bus - cold pleather seats and freezing windows
spelling bees
reports and projects
music class...

now that i'm off to grad school, it's pleasant to look back on what i was, where i've been, and what i've become because of it all.