Out of the mouth of our almost 5 year-old---
*We sent her to the corner because she decided to turn on the Wii after we told her not to.*
Ben: "Corner...now"
Caitlin: "I've been in the corner so many times that I need a vacation!
Give that girl 10 points for creativity!
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Elephant Walk
While I am hoping to get these events on video, I just had to share them before I forgot. Here is what's new for Cara as of late---
**She is walking up to 20 steps without assistance! She just stands herself up and waddles around the room. She still likes to have something to hold onto at her final destination, but this is great progress!
**She walked, holding onto my hand, from our car, up several steps, and to the door of the ice cream place without falling or stopping! That was about a 1/8 of a mile. Her endurance certainly is building.
**She is now doing the "elephant walk" or crawling with her hands and feet instead of knees. She thinks this is so funny to do and is usually laughing her heart out while moving across the floor.
Lost & Found
Temporary panic set in a few days ago when I could not locate my cell phone. I even backtracked to both Walgreen and the local pizza joint where I last had conscious thought of having the phone on me. When the phone didn't turn up at either establishment, I tore the house apart looking for it--did it get in the wash, in the trash, in the toilet? How would I survive without being able to text message? Oh goodness me! Ben, Caitlin & I looked everywhere we could think of over the course of a few days with no luck. I finally gave in and called Verizon to hear about any special deals that they had on phones since this one was not insured (It didn't seem worth it at the time because it was a free phone, retailed for $30). The best deal that I could find on a compatible phone was $60, which in the wireless world is a good deal. I was so upset going to be throwing $60+tax down the tubes because of my carelessness! This is how Verizon and other cell phone providers make money...off of scatter-brained, burnt out, but desperate moms like me. After 48 hours without a phone, I decided enough was enough, piled the girls into the car and went down to the Verizon store prepared to come home with yet another new phone (we had gotten a new one for adding Ben to my plan just a few months ago). As we were heading to the store, Caitlin pipes up from the backseat, "Mom, your phone is going off!" I told her that she must be hearing things because we had searched the car and my phone wasn't in there. She didn't hear the beeping noise again, so we dismissed it. When we got to the mall's parking structure, I decided, what the heck, let's look through the car one more time before we blow a hole in the wallet. I pulled my seat all the way forward and lo & behold, what do I find? My trusty cell phone, right there on the floorboard under my seat! Caitlin had heard my phone's low battery alert noise in the car! I was so thrilled that I took her out of her car seat and twirled her around the parking structure. People looked at me like I was nuts, but I didn't care! $60 is a lot of money to us, and now, we could spend it on something else. As a reward, Caitlin got to pick out a small bag of candy from the candy store. She was in hog heaven. I went to the Verizon store but only to reactivate my phone (I had it shut off in case someone found it and tried to call Mexico or something) and charge the battery. Final cost=$5.64 for the bag of candy. MUCH better than $60+tax! It pays to have a child with the hearing of a bat.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Home Again?
Time's are a-changing, yes sirree. My parents' house in under contract and they are to close on the 25th of this month. I have such mixed feelings about this whole change, which I never really expected to have, being that I'm a *cough* 30 year old with a family of her own but...bare with me as I try to explain my feelings.
My parents are entering a new stage in their lives. They have an empty nest as my youngest brother is going to graduate college soon and, by the sound of things, will be moving to one coast or the other (boo, hiss). They are both getting into their "golden years" and my dad doesn't want the upkeep of their acre of land. For my mom, it was either a new house or a new career. Since they don't want to move out of their smallish town for the big city, a new house was more attainable, especially since the perils of the housing market haven't hit their area as hard as others.
That said, they put the house on the market at a very reasonable price and were under contract in about 90 days. They are building a brand new house about 5 miles from where the current house is, in a subdivision. We haven't lived in a real subdivision since I was 5 years old. Big changes for them (and me). The house will not be done until about September, so they will be living in their 14' trailer at a local campground for a few months. Before you all start feeling too bad for them, they will have air conditioning, TV and a DVD player. The only challenge is going to be accommodating two grown dogs.
This brings back memories for me because when we first moved to Colorado from dreadful Michigan (sorry Michiganders but you know it's true) we lived in an eight foot pop-up camper at the local KOA while our house was being manufactured. I have a very clear recollection of watching our house come down the road while we were having dinner at Burger King.
My parents have been in that house since late 1993! It has been a wonderful house for us, filled with memories. Most will come with us to the new house, but certainly, some will stay behind. The girls & I recently visited the house for the last time before the move. As we pulled up, I noticed that the trademark "MC" wasn't on the garage. Tears came to my eyes. That logo has been on every house we've lived in since I was born. It was official then, they were moving. Helping my mom pack up all the knick knacks and pictures was hard for me too, but I am also looking forward to seeing how they will be displayed in the new house. I will miss the soon-to-be old house. The peacefulness of not having neighbors close by, the breathtaking mountain views. The current house was the first place that I called home and will always be considered that in my mind.
For years, my parents' house was, in my mind, my "home" too. Things were rocky in my life and a series of moves didn't make me feel that a home of my own had been established. On more than one occasion, I have fled to my "home" when things were bad or tough and magically, everything seemed better there. It was like another realm, another dimension. The move couldn't have come at a better time for me, personally, because for the first time, I finally feel that I have a "home" of my own. I don't know when or how things changed, but I feel established, safe and secure where we are now and I need less of a refuge somewhere else. I will say that this past year has been the best to date in terms of my marriage. I think all of the kinks have finally been ironed out. Praise be!
I do yearn for a house (not home), in the physical sense, of my own. I would love to create a place that my own children can come to some day, to seek refuge, love and advice. My parents have done a wonderful job of building both a house and a home and it is my sincerest hope to do that same some day in the near future.
Someday, I will truly come home again.
My parents are entering a new stage in their lives. They have an empty nest as my youngest brother is going to graduate college soon and, by the sound of things, will be moving to one coast or the other (boo, hiss). They are both getting into their "golden years" and my dad doesn't want the upkeep of their acre of land. For my mom, it was either a new house or a new career. Since they don't want to move out of their smallish town for the big city, a new house was more attainable, especially since the perils of the housing market haven't hit their area as hard as others.
That said, they put the house on the market at a very reasonable price and were under contract in about 90 days. They are building a brand new house about 5 miles from where the current house is, in a subdivision. We haven't lived in a real subdivision since I was 5 years old. Big changes for them (and me). The house will not be done until about September, so they will be living in their 14' trailer at a local campground for a few months. Before you all start feeling too bad for them, they will have air conditioning, TV and a DVD player. The only challenge is going to be accommodating two grown dogs.
This brings back memories for me because when we first moved to Colorado from dreadful Michigan (sorry Michiganders but you know it's true) we lived in an eight foot pop-up camper at the local KOA while our house was being manufactured. I have a very clear recollection of watching our house come down the road while we were having dinner at Burger King.
My parents have been in that house since late 1993! It has been a wonderful house for us, filled with memories. Most will come with us to the new house, but certainly, some will stay behind. The girls & I recently visited the house for the last time before the move. As we pulled up, I noticed that the trademark "MC" wasn't on the garage. Tears came to my eyes. That logo has been on every house we've lived in since I was born. It was official then, they were moving. Helping my mom pack up all the knick knacks and pictures was hard for me too, but I am also looking forward to seeing how they will be displayed in the new house. I will miss the soon-to-be old house. The peacefulness of not having neighbors close by, the breathtaking mountain views. The current house was the first place that I called home and will always be considered that in my mind.
For years, my parents' house was, in my mind, my "home" too. Things were rocky in my life and a series of moves didn't make me feel that a home of my own had been established. On more than one occasion, I have fled to my "home" when things were bad or tough and magically, everything seemed better there. It was like another realm, another dimension. The move couldn't have come at a better time for me, personally, because for the first time, I finally feel that I have a "home" of my own. I don't know when or how things changed, but I feel established, safe and secure where we are now and I need less of a refuge somewhere else. I will say that this past year has been the best to date in terms of my marriage. I think all of the kinks have finally been ironed out. Praise be!
I do yearn for a house (not home), in the physical sense, of my own. I would love to create a place that my own children can come to some day, to seek refuge, love and advice. My parents have done a wonderful job of building both a house and a home and it is my sincerest hope to do that same some day in the near future.
Someday, I will truly come home again.
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