You don't always go where you think you will

... or never have your back to the waves...
There he is. My husband of 27 years (as of the day after this scene). And how many women with a 5 year old can say that? And is there a club? Or a prize? Or a guest spot on Oprah? So, being a devoted wife I tried to get some good shots of his body surfing. On the other hand, being a bit squeamish I turned away before impact. Fortunately it was only a small bruise (last we saw it) and since the victim had apparently spent the morning telling her son to stop whopping people with his boogie board she took it pretty well...



... I particularly like the way his blond hair is swishing in the sea foam. -and how unsuspecting those poor people in the water are. Didn't they see Jaws?

the othe side of the look

I'll get to the title in a minute but first here is a moment from a week or so ago that was one of those this-is-the-life-I-always-wanted-to-live moments. It must be there to balance out the where-the-heck-did-this-come-from-moments. [Also alittle bit of a modern dilemma. Do I need permission to post photos with other people in them especially if, depending on the reality tv you watch, you might recognize them? I am going with the idea that since they're not named and it's a nice picture it's ok. Also, considering Facebookand all, I may be the last human being who even thinks this is an issue.]

There was this moment today when my not 5 year old son and his friend exchanged this look. Not a bad look. Just one I recognized. Perhaps I should clarify this was a friend in the girl category. And it was that "we're in this together" sort of look. And I was mentioning that the one I am in it together with and I need to write a will and figure out guardianship of Jesse should we go out together (so to speak). So there I am worrying about who will raise my baby and suddenly I am feeling way too old. And having just dropped the daughter off at her first apartment it is so clear that we are now on the other side of so much that we don't feel at all that distant from. So clearly we are old people who might very well go anytime and also, quite clearly, at least one of us will have to make it to Jesse's adulthood because I suddenly remember how very young I was too in that not so long ago. Most clearly, we had better stay around for all our babies.

Mixed up: Age confusion

Actually I have height confusion too. When the Home Depot woman said she "loved short people" I wasn't just surprised at her people skills. I was surprised she meant me. I knew she did but I'd forgotten again I wasn't tall. We are returning my next to last baby to college today -moving her in to her first apartment, and I thought we'd look up an old prof. I've kept in sporadic touch with. And then I caught myself thinking how fun it would be to tell him I'm an "adjunct professor" now. And then I realized that it might not be so impressive at 49. I forgot I wasn't right out of college -and only partly because I more or less am. It's like when I think maybe I should figure out how my IRA works and not just let my mom handle it, and won't the stockbroker be impressed at my adult skills? ... and then I remember -because I really had forgotten- that I can actually join AARP in another 3 months. Right after my last baby starts kindergarten. And then there are those times I am talking to someone who is easily 20 years older than I am and we are comparing notes on elderly parents and I realize mine is older than theirs. Or I am with someone my age but the music I grew up with and the depression stories from my mother are what they heard from their grandparents. The sudden moments of complete disconnect at Walmart because I am picking up a Kindergarten sleepmat, college apartment stuff and Serenity ultra pads-and none of it is for me (I swear (yet)).

I have my happy face on

People often asked us why we would want to go through the toddler years again when they'd see us wandering around with a baby and teenagers, or later, an actual toddler and hairy young adult offspring (not you Carolyn) and I'd try yo explain. But see this picture? I took it several weeks ago. It is not the 5 year old who has to make faces out of any produce he sees, and it is not his foot on the kitchen counter here (where else could an adorable short person stand to get the best view of the vegetable faces (but note it is an adorably tiny foot)). Basically the husband and I were just made for toddlers. Five year olds aren't bad but he (the 5 year old) does feel he needs to explain alot to us right now. It is practice for when he gets older and we are clearly clueless. The sibings are just beginning to think we know something again. Except about the fruit faces, I still don't think they get that.

And on the national news front why can't the president comment on the wisdom of a thing?

On the caretaking front 3 more weeks and my mom will be at our house again. I miss her but it does mean remembering the coffee is in the microwave. Caleb's more frequent mouth sores (I finally realized) are from the more frequent seizures but the neurologist has no helpful hints and, in case you were wondering, I hate mail order pharmacies.

trying to fly away

... actually I was helping pull in the kite -but I do look so adorably short. I read that a woman, only a little older than I am, has "finally" been appointed head of a national security agency (admittedly not one anyone has ever heard of before) and I wonder what have I done with my life. She graduated from the same college I went to and she raised 3 daughters -the article didn't say successful and attractive but you just know. And I feel bad about not helping with VBS or losing weight or pushing Caleb more this summer or taking over the "Intelligence Community" -or even being part of one. And for going to my mom's this weekend and washing the boat more than I spent time with her and not checking on Caleb who opted to stay home. Bernie checked. I checked on Nathanael -he was fine, although I didn't know where he was. Turned out he was home, ...checking on Caleb because Caleb had had a seizure when Nathanael happened to be around the night before. The boat cleaned up nicely, and it still made me happy. God must have been checking.

true SHORT story

It was my original intention that my next blog (ie this one) would finish out our travel saga- how a simple hike was fraught and I got mad because a sibling of the (most) challenged one on this hike wanted to go faster and I felt put upon (only I would've worded it much more interestingly and sympathy inducingly) etc etc. Also I intended to follow up my last entry within a week(not because I think anyone is waiting but because it is my idea of trying to be more disciplined, like about sentences that are too long and all that, and the gratuitous uses of parentheses). So why the sudden motivation? What suddenly surpassed an accumulation of 25 years of patiently walking along with walkers and wheelchairs and crutches and whine whine whine? - the Home Depot greeter.

All I wanted to do was buy some paint while I had free time having dropped the littlest one at VBS and guiltily escaped helping with said VBS. My punishment was when I walked into Home Depot the woman handing out the 10% off coupon (for things unrelated to my errand) gave it to me with a warning it only was good for a few more days and then exclaimed, "I just love short people!" (that would clearly include me). I stopped, cemented to the spot by my desperate attempt to think of the appropriate response. And I laughed because what else could I do? This encouraged her to explain the she really loved short people, everything about them was so tiny and they were just so adorable and extra weight didn't show on them-unlike her "apple booty" (enriching my vocabulary and building my self esteem), and her mother had been short and look I even had tiny feet and really who "wanted to be average" when short people were just so cute? I am not making this up. I am adorable. Dr. Adorable that is.

Clearly there must be a plan in my life and purpose in the universe because really this stuff couldn't just happen.