positive changes

Sometimes, Indiana just doesn't provide much material to write about. He grows and changes everyday, says new words, trys new things, gets into stuff... Standard toddler stuff. It is all exciting and wonderful, but not necessarily the most interesting writing. Thus, today's post is again not about Indy. Instead it's about some wonderful things that have been happening for me lately:

Most folks realize that I can be a bit of a snob about things. I figured I would never jump on the "Myspace" bandwagon because it seemed rather silly to me. I love my blog and blogging seems like such a more versatile way of conversing with the world at large. However, my beloved Duck has a myspace page and I had to see it (and get involved in it) because I'm his mom and I like to be involved. So, I made a page (if you want to see it, there's a link on the sidebar), and he helped me figure out how to do fun things with it. In the process of discovering myspace, I found some great old friends who I have been able to reconnect with. Some are far away, some are very nearby, but all are wonderful re-additions to my life. I feel so blessed with my small circle of friends; however there is always room for old faces, rediscovered. Welcome back, I look forward to getting to know you all, all over again.

Update on "meme":
A few folks have participated in the "high school era photograph meme". Faira, over at Daffodils and Dragons put up some fun ones.
Bart, from Daze of our lives contributed this juicy one.

There are a few more I am waiting to see come in... Stay tuned!

Cut, Crop, Chop...

I am very self aware of my appearance. I was something of an ugly duckling when I was young, always struggling with self esteem issues and in the shadow of a "Pioneer Picnic Queen" sister. When I came into my own, during my twenties I wore a size 6 pant, bleached my hair into light shades of red and dark shades of blond, wore flashy jewelry, drank heavily and was admired my many a fellow. Then the unthinkable happened. I got FAT. I don't mean I put on a few pounds. I don't even mean I put on twenty pounds. I couldn't fit one BUTT CHECK into my old jeans now, even if I greased up and used a shoe horn. One thing I had never been in my life was a fat girl... It was hard enough being less than a beauty in an era when beauty was all that mattered, when substance (a mind, opinions, and a personality) was less than nothing, but to have been fat also... A fate worse than death. So, now I am a rapidly aging, mostly unattractive, fat woman. Thank Gawd I am married to a guy who is not only blind without his glasses, but blinded by love. So, I cut myself out of the picture above before posting, and I continue to exercise... And I work on accepting my changed reality, everyday.

Bravery comes in many forms:

My buddy John was brave enough to post a high school picture of himself in a Toga. It is worth the time to look at it, the giggle will do you good.

I am not nearly as brave, so although this is a picture of me from high school, its a good one... This was taken when I was 12 years old (Freshman year of High School). You can tell from the turned up collar that it was the 1980s and I thought I was cool. The giant fish is a long dead fellow who happened to be climbing the Bonneville fish ladder.If YOU are brave enough to post a high school picture of yourself, leave me a comment and I will be sure to come visit!

Informative:

Indiana is practicing his "Elvis sneer". Indy makes some of the strangest faces. I wish I could capture all of them on camera. Unfortunately, when Indy sees the camera he usually stops whatever he is doing to "pose" with a grin.
Indiana is developing so quickly now. His vocabulary increases everyday. Often we don't even comment on new words now, as there are so many of them coming so fast, it would be all we talked about if we mentioned each word.
He is practicing following more and more complex instructions, with three or four steps. He can usually be induced to "go to your room and get the orange ball and bring it to mama" or to "climb on the wicker box and shut off the kitchen light switch, please" (there are two light switches in that spot, the kitchen and the dining room).
He is having some trouble adjusting to the cold and dark and wet of our pre-winter storms. I don't let him venture outside as often as before. Indy still gets in his quality time with Jack, running the balcony and feeding the birds.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What are you thankful for?

Here is my top ten list:

1) I have two wonderful sons who are healthy, happy, beautiful, boys.
2) I have a great husband who loves me very much.
3) I have wonderful parents; my mom and Donnie are fabulous, and I love them.
4) I have a very nice ex-husband.
5) My ex-husbands family are a wonderful group of people whom are all very special to me and treat Indiana with special kindness.
6) I have a nice home that is warm, dry, and safe.
7) I am blessed with a mother-in-law, who (although crazy) is one of the nicest, most well meaning people I know.
8) I have a small group of friends so close, they might as well be family.
9) I have digital cable television which includes the PBS kids Sprout channel that keeps Indiana busy.
10) I live in a neighborhood where all the neighbors are supportive of one another and look out for each other.

Cruising

In honor of Papa Harley's upcoming birthday, Indiana took to the road! Well, actually, the local Harley owner's club was holding a fund raiser. For a small fee, the club members would take your photo on a bike and frame it for you. Indy loved it and had to be removed forcibly from the motorcycle. The original framed photo will be on its way to Florida sometime this week.

Welcome to the world:

Our upstairs neighbor, Jennifer, brought her little bundle of humanity into the world this morning 11/20/2006 at 8:51 am. His name (according to sources close to the parents) is Darien Rian. He was just 6 lbs 9 oz and 19 1/2 inches long.

Darien, Welcome to the world. Welcome to the neighborhood. Welcome to the wonderful life you have ahead of you. We wish you and your mommy nothing but the very best. I know that Ox (the dog) will be waiting to greet you when you get home, and watch over you as you grow up. I hope you and Indiana will be fast friends.

pictures of the new baby forthcoming... stay tuned!

Saying Goodbye to Fall...

Most of the leaves have progressed through their startling shades and fallen. The chill in the air, the fog on the ground, tells us that Winter has arrived, although the solstice has not yet arrived. The snow level has dropped, the passes and icy and the valley floor is soaked from days of cold rain that seems to put a lie to the promise of the rainbow.
One of the bonuses of parenting is seeing everything through newly opened eyes. The wondrousness of the world comprehended for the first time. When I stop to think about how delightful the world around me is, it takes my breath away.

On a different note... I think we should purchase stock in Kraft. Indiana currently will consume 5-6 slices of Kraft American cheese at a sitting, followed a few hours later by half a box of Kraft macaroni and cheese. He tolerates velveta shells and cheese, but he prefers the blue box. He shouts impatiently as it cooks. His favorite word seems to be CHEESE, spoken at 1950 decibels.

More confessions of a worrier...

I don't know what happened to the care-free, care-less woman I once was. Sometimes, like today, I miss her.
Normally, I hear from my husband everyday while he is at work. I tease him about calling home so often. Today, he didn't call. Today he was at work for eleven hours with no word. Today, I called his work. I never do that unless there is an emergency. I don't even know the name of the regular receptionist, I have so little contact with her. But, I was worried. I don't even know WHAT I was worried about. But, I was worried. I had to be sure he was at work and okay.
A long time ago I lived with a nice man named Tom. It wasn't a grand romantic passionate love, but it was a comfortable, happy life until one day he went on an overnight visit to Idaho and instead of him coming home the next morning, a police officer showed up at our door to let me know that Tom wouldn't be coming home, ever. He had been killed in Idaho. Maybe that is why I worry when Indiana's dad is late home from work. Maybe, when you love someone, you just worry; either way.

I'm in LOVE!

Today, Indiana assisted me with lunch. That's a nice way of saying he swiped the crackers that went with my soup and crunched them all over the carpet. Oh, and then danced on the crunched up bits. I did not yell. I smiled. No, I am NOT having a nervous breakdown. I got a brand new shiny purple Dyson Animal Vacuum Cleaner. I was excited to get to use it! Had I known how incredibly amazingly stupendously fabulous these things were, I would have started whining for one long ago!

So this is my testimonial: I keep a fairly tidy home. We live in it with a toddler, so it isn't immaculate, but it is comfortably clean. I was stunned upon using this new Dyson vacuum to discover that We are danged dirty pigs! I went over the carpet three times and the Dyson is still sucking nasty looking dirt out of the carpets. Oh and it leaves behind a nice smell... Not that nasty-just-vacuumed-dust-in-the-air yuck smell. There's some sort of air freshener built right into it. Man, it's cool!
I think I am going to go vacuum again.

Who knew that one day I would find the greatest things in life to be "Dyson's vacuum" and "Clorox's Anywhere Spray"!?!

Elmo mania hits home...

I grew up loving Sesame Street. When I was a little girl, my mom made sure that when I started school (at 5) I could count, I could say the alphabet, I could write and spell my name, tie my own shoes, and do several neat little tricks like that. So many kids don't know those things when they go into school.
So, the experts say that watching the telly is bad for kids. Sesame Street has already taught Indiana, at just 19 months to say his ABC's and 123's. He recognizes those three letters and those three numbers when he sees them written down. When you say "One" to him, he says "Two"! He has recently started "sharing" with his stuffed Elmo. He will take a bite of his food, then try to give a bite to Elmo. He doesn't just sit and stare, he gets up and dances and shouts. When he hears the opening bars "Sunny day, chasing the clouds away..." He will drop everything and come running! So, screw the experts, We love Elmo.

Ding Dong the Crib is Gone...

Indiana used to have one of those excellent cribs that converts from a little baby bed into a day bed style toddler bed. Today, that bed found a new home with our very pregnant neighbor and Indiana got his new "sesame street elmo toddler bed"... complete with new sheets, pillows, pillow cases and comforter. He loves it. In the store he hugged the box and shouted, "elmo, elmo, elmo". As his dad was putting it together he had to be in the middle of it all; once it was all set up, he climbed in and took a nap. So, I love it, too!
(you might have noticed how bare the wall behind his new bed looks in the picture... I recently had to move many of his posters from that wall. Anything he could reach he was pulling down to investigate.)

In other news... 5 days ago, I did the unthinkable. For the first time in ten years I got a haircut. My hair, which was down below my waist, now swings lightly across the top of my shoulders. We removed fully two feet of length from my hair.

Break in the Rain...

Boy, is it RAINING! Thankfully we aren't being hit as badly as some parts of the Pacific Northwest, but it is WET. Our local news station out of Portland, Oregon KPTV has the forecast. Nothing but more rain is on its way for the foreseeable future.

We took advantage of a momentary break in the rain to run out and take a few pictures. Indy just grows more and more and more everyday. We are all looking forward to his birthday (5 months away) when we take him out to visit his Florida relatives.

Veterans Day

Veteran' Day has always been a special day to me. Sure, when I was young the day off of school and the big parade in town was probably all I cared about.
Growing up changes a lot of things.
When I think of Veteran's now (not the day, but the group of people) the first image that springs to mind is my grandfathers tattoo. The anchor tattooed on his forearm in a far flung place called Iwo Jima was a lifelong reminder of his service to this country. I think of my dad, the one who raised me. He wasn't a very nice fellow, far from it, but he served his country in Vietnam with the United States Marine Corp. I think of my uncle Jim, who went to that same Asian nation, returning forever changed. I think of Duck's Grandfather, sitting in his bunker with that u-boat in his sights. There's my best friend's father, spending an entire career in service with the Army. My mom's brother Rick, keeping the Navy's F14's ship-shape at Miramar and in the Persian gulf. My grandfather's brother Tom, who's ship was shot out from underneath him, losing many of his friends in the unforgiving southern pacific sea. Many an ex boyfriend sailed the seas and hit the beaches in places most of us have never heard of. Indiana's dad, even, spent his time inside an M1A1.
So, Veteran's day is a celebration of all of those who have served or are serving our country, our community and our family in one branch of the service or another...

Remember, those Veteran's aren't nameless faceless folks. Those Veteran's who risked it all, some paying the ultimate price, those guys are your brothers, your sons, your fathers, your uncles and cousins, Veteran's aren't some strangers in a sea of other strangers, and the day isn't about celebrating wars (past or present), it's about acknowledging the risk and the sacrifice these men (and women) are willing to take on your behalf. It's about holding them close, even if only in spirit or memory, and saying "thank you for making my life better, thank you for making it safer for my children to grow up in this world"...

I miss cleanliness the most.

I remember when a guest could show up unannounced and I did not have to blush and apologize for the state of my home. It seems like a long time since those days, at least as long as Indiana has been walking.

I do not spend a lot of time in Indiana's bedroom. Today I wandered in there to check on his laundry, see if it was time to wash; to my horror, I discovered that of his three toy boxes, none were more than half full. All his toys are thrown haphazardly around his room. So, consequently, today Indiana is going to learn the joys of putting toys IN the boxes. Hopefully it will be a lesson we can learn quickly and painlessly. Hey, I can hope.

Happy Halloween (yesterday)...

Happy Halloween!