It was a glorious day today. Only about 80*. It felt like there was no humidity, but the weatherman said it was 40% humidity. Crystal clear bright blue sky, just a little wispy cloud here or there. We turned the a/c off at the house and opened the windows. There was a little bit of a breeze. Of course, since it was the middle of the week, I was stuck in my windowless office in the basement. But the few times I was outside, it was heavenly.
When I got in my car this evening, I put the windows all the way down, hooked up my MP3 player, turned up the volume and let my hair dance in the wind. It is days like today I wish I had a sunroof in the car. I don't like sunroofs, and it would probably look a little odd in my SUV. But on days like today, I want just a little more sunshine and happiness streaming in on me.
I have very eclectic music tastes. My MP3 has songs I enjoy, with no thought to the Genre. So this afternoon I rocked out to Sinatra, Alabama, and BareNaked Ladies. I have to laugh when I have my music blaring, windows rolled down, the base thumping and I'm singing along to 'My Way' or 'Old Flame' . Hilarious!!! The thought of what others think when they hear this, just cracks me up. How many people out there are grooving in their cars to Sinatra?
Today's weather made me think of NY. This is the way I remember summer in NY. Yes, we had hot days-- days that it was so hot and humid you felt like you needed a shower as soon as you stepped out of the shower. But I remember summers as not being extremely hot and uncomfortable. 80, maybe into the 90s, but the humidity most of the time is lower. Since I grew up in the mountains, it's always a bit cooler there. You have the breezes rustling through the forest; the lakes, brooks, rivers, and ponds keeping the heat at bay. People in NY don't have 'central air'. My parents bought two window a/c units (one for upstairs and one for the downstairs) only a couple of years ago. Before that, we had ceiling fans. If summer were two months of days like today, it could easily replace winter as my favorite season.
It was such a perfect day we HAD to grill out. Initially, we were going to grill the steaks tomorrow night, since I had a massage after work. But Erich practically begged to grill out. I'm so glad we did. He fixed steaks on the grill. I made cheddar mashed potatoes. Then I remembered I had a cucumber in the frig. Erich picked it in our yard the other day. It was not growing where the other cucumbers in the garden were. No, it was growing in the back of the yard, where we had cucumbers last year. It was a volunteer cucumber. I used it to make cucumber salad.
Cucumber salad is one of those things my mom made in the summer. We never had it in the winter. It is best with cucumbers fresh from the garden. Or as we say in NY, 'farm fresh'. It just doesn't taste the same with the cucumbers you buy at the store. Some people might think it is gross. It's miracle whip, milk, white vinegar, and sugar. I don't know the exact measurements. When I first started making it, I would call my mom every time to get the 'recipe'. She would say well, some of this, and just a little bit of that... There isn't a formal recipe. You just do it until it is right. So today I had one cucumber, two heaping tablespoons of Miracle Whip (not measuring spoons, the table spoons that are part of your silverware- you have the little spoons (teaspoons) and the big ones (tablespoons) ). Some milk- maybe it was about 1/4 cup. A couple splashes of vinegar and a couple teaspoons of sugar. You whisk this together until smooth. It should be pourable, but not thin. Then you slice the cucumber and put it in the dressing. You get the coolness of the cucumber, covered with a tangy, smooth dressing with just a touch of sweet.
The first crisp bite took me back to my childhood. We would have this several times a week. Everyone in our family loved it. There weren't ever leftovers. Which is just as well-it is one of those things that does not keep very well. You are better to make it fresh every day. I mix it in my glass measuring cup. Since Erich does not like cucumbers, I get it all to myself. I tend to be very informal. I've already dirtied the measuring cup to make it, what is the point dirtying a bowl to pour it into? Just grab a spoon and dig in. A fork lets you grab the cucumbers better, but the spoon lets you get all the extra dressing- and you don't want to miss any of it! It is also good over starchy things, like potatoes and corn. Although I can't eat corn, but I remember when I could eat it and how yummy it tasted pouring the dressing over the corn.
I know the calendar said summer arrived last week, but to me, nothing says summer like cucumber salad. Now that I have had that first taste for the year, I want more! I did eat the whole thing tonight, and kept thinking what a deliciously sinful way to enjoy veggies. Of course, I can eat cucumbers just as they are. But sometimes it's nice to dress them up. The other cucumbers in our garden are too little, so I will have to hit a farm stand to get my fix. If you want to come over and have some, I promise to pour it into a bowl and not eat out of the measuring cup!
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
My Culinary Point of View
We all have a channel that is our 'go-to' channel. When we can't find anything on the tv, there's a channel or two we go to, even if we have no idea what is on. My Dad's has always been ESPN. Sometimes Speed. I have seen Dad watch swamp buggy racing or lacrosse, just because it's on ESPN. Erich's channels are Comedy Central, Cartoon Network (For Adult Swim at night), or MSNBC.
My go-to channels are HGTV or Food Network. So last night there wasn't anything on, and I was watching The Next Food Network Star. I did not see last week's episode, but you can watch one and not have to watch others. I wasn't really interested in it, but I kept hearing the selection committee complain about one contestant. Their complaint was they didn't know what her Culinary Point of View was. So at the end, when it was down to her and another competitor, I told Erich they would send her home because they didn't know what her Culinary Point of View was. I was correct.
Erich asked, "What is a Culinary Point of View?" In trying to explain it to him, I told him, "For example, mine would be I cook and eat to survive, and sometimes I like it to be tasty". He found this extremely amusing. It's true though. I am not a foodie. I am not a gourmet cook. I don't even like cooking. I love to bake, but you cannot survive on cookies and brownies. Well, you shouldn't. So I cook meals because we have to eat. I make basic food that usually tastes good. It serves the purpose: nutrition. Not that I am a health nut. But I usually cover protein and a vegetable serving with a meal. I try to work in beef and chicken for sure in a week, and sometimes pork. We eat a lot of beef. We also eat a lot of pasta.
My recipes aren't fancy. I have different recipes for colder months than for warmer months. In colder months we eat beef stew, lasagna, ziti, swiss steak, chicken casserole. In warmer months, we eat less Italian- I don't like to eat really heavy things in the summer months. We do a lot more grilling outside. Rainy cool days are spaghetti days, all year round. We eat a lot of the same things over and over. I suppose some people would get really bored, but it works for us. Both of us could eat the same thing for several days straight.
My Culinary Point of View won't get me on the Food Network. Who would want to watch me cook hamburgers? But it gives us nourishment, and isn't that the point of food? Oh, and in case you're wondering, Erich's culinary point of view is: 1000 Things to put in a Sandwich.
Yeah, we're a good match. :)
My go-to channels are HGTV or Food Network. So last night there wasn't anything on, and I was watching The Next Food Network Star. I did not see last week's episode, but you can watch one and not have to watch others. I wasn't really interested in it, but I kept hearing the selection committee complain about one contestant. Their complaint was they didn't know what her Culinary Point of View was. So at the end, when it was down to her and another competitor, I told Erich they would send her home because they didn't know what her Culinary Point of View was. I was correct.
Erich asked, "What is a Culinary Point of View?" In trying to explain it to him, I told him, "For example, mine would be I cook and eat to survive, and sometimes I like it to be tasty". He found this extremely amusing. It's true though. I am not a foodie. I am not a gourmet cook. I don't even like cooking. I love to bake, but you cannot survive on cookies and brownies. Well, you shouldn't. So I cook meals because we have to eat. I make basic food that usually tastes good. It serves the purpose: nutrition. Not that I am a health nut. But I usually cover protein and a vegetable serving with a meal. I try to work in beef and chicken for sure in a week, and sometimes pork. We eat a lot of beef. We also eat a lot of pasta.
My recipes aren't fancy. I have different recipes for colder months than for warmer months. In colder months we eat beef stew, lasagna, ziti, swiss steak, chicken casserole. In warmer months, we eat less Italian- I don't like to eat really heavy things in the summer months. We do a lot more grilling outside. Rainy cool days are spaghetti days, all year round. We eat a lot of the same things over and over. I suppose some people would get really bored, but it works for us. Both of us could eat the same thing for several days straight.
My Culinary Point of View won't get me on the Food Network. Who would want to watch me cook hamburgers? But it gives us nourishment, and isn't that the point of food? Oh, and in case you're wondering, Erich's culinary point of view is: 1000 Things to put in a Sandwich.
Yeah, we're a good match. :)
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Adventures with Sydney
This post might be a little long, and maybe even disjointed. I'm going to wrap up my weekend home to NY, and put the remaining Sydney memories together.
The day I arrived, we picked her up at school and went shopping. When we got home, she brought out various toys to play with. One of these was a little bat and ball. It was kind of like those blow up toys you get at the fair, but the bat and ball had some sort of stuffing. The bat is maybe 18", and the ball looks more like a hackeysack. Whenever Syd wants to play something in the house that doesn't seem to fit, I ask her if she's allowed to do that. Of course, she always tells me she is. Sometimes I know better. But with the bat & ball, I looked at my mom, who shrugged. So Sydney and I played baseball in the living room. I enjoy watching baseball, but I was never good at playing it. I throw like a girl, and I lack the hand-eye coordination to hit the ball. My batting average is probably like .050. Playing with Syd showed that age has NOT improved my skills. I felt like a bit of a spaz. Fortunately, Sydney plays about as well as I do. We alternated batting and throwing, and our game was interrupted frequently by Sydney stopping to eat a strawberry, or mom & I talking. We didn't keep score, but there were a lot of giggles!
When my sister came home, she told Sydney, "You know you aren't supposed to play that in the house". My mom and I looked at each other and told my sister that Sydney said she was. Laura reminded Sydney that if you play ball in the house, Chesie (the female cocker spaniel) tries to play because she loves balls. Sydney looked at her mother and said, "But we took care of that problem-we blocked Chesie and Patterson in the kitchen!"
On Friday, we went shopping. This was our major shopping event. I had promised Syd I would buy her a special big sister outfit, to wear when she meets her new brother. She told me she wanted a dress (no surprise, the child LOVES to wear dresses), and she wanted a beautiful dress. Mom had the day off, so the three of us set out. We went to Macy's, because mom had extra savings coupons to use, and she said when they have a good sale you can get some really good deals. They had all the summer stuff on clearance! Sydney was like a little whirlwind through her section. In just a few minutes, we headed off to the fitting room. Sydney wouldn't let me come in the room with her, so I had to wait outside and she came out to show me what she was wearing. As she is pulling dresses over her head, she told my mom how much fun she was having. We had just about exhausted the one section of the store, and still not yet found that perfect dress. Then I turned around, and found all these party type dresses across the aisle. They were mostly girls sizes 7-16, but I saw some that were smaller. And we hit the jackpot! She found more dresses.
We made at least two trips into the fitting room, and perhaps it was three. As she and mom were headed in one time, I saw the perfect dress. It was a white sundress, with a puffy skirt (it has a tulle underskirt thing under the material). It had pink and green polka dots- great big happy polka dots. It had a big sash at the waist, that tied in the back.The dress had a little pink sweater with it. It was originally $65, but marked down to $9.99. But it was a 6. So I took it into mom, hoping it would run small, as Sydney is just into a 5. Sydney put the dress on, and it was perfect! It's a little big, but in another couple of months, it will fit her like a glove. I asked her if that was the beautiful dress she was hoping for, and she said yes, but did they have it in blue? She thought she should wear blue for her brother. Fortunately, the same style came with blue & green polka dots and a blue sweater. Thankfully, they still had a 6! With mom's coupons, I got the dress for $7.50! That's what I call a deal! :) Sydney walked out of Macy's with a giant bag of dresses. Most of them were dresses she could wear every day, but the one was her special big sister dress.
We walked through the mall from Macy's to the movies. The whole way, she was swinging my arm and singing 'I'm going to see Marmaduke!'. At the snack bar, she got popcorn and a drink and candy. She enjoyed Marmaduke. I can understand why it had a PG rating. At one point, he almost drowns. Even I had my hands over my face, peeking through my fingers. On our way back to Macy's, we walked past Claire's boutique, and she dragged Mom in there to get girly things. We found her little lip glosses and nail polish for ages 3 and up, and she & I got matching hair decorations for the 4th of July. She promptly lost one of the lip glosses down the seat of mom's car. She decorated herself, then had me put on green and yellow lip gloss. I was beautiful! (Actually, it went on clear, so I didn't look like a clown). I have to say, Syd shops like a pro! She fits right in with her mother, her MeMe, her Aunt Amy, and would have gotten along well with her Great-Grandma Wager.
Fast forward to Sunday night. When I give Sydney the gift bag full of things for the baby, she takes it over to her mother, and starts opening it. Baby clothes are flying all over the living room as Hurricane Sydney goes through the gift bag. I had the outfits folded together, but after Syd opened the bag, we were piecing them together, trying to remember what pants went with which onesie. When Sydney got to the bottom, she pulled out the blanket I made for her brother. Laura took the blanket and spread it out over her legs to look at it. Laura was oohing and aahing over it, and Sydney said 'let me try it'. Laura was sitting on the floor, with her legs stretched out in front of her. Sydney pulled the blanket back, sat on Laura's lap (or what is left of it), stretched out under the blanket, and pulled it back over her. She snuggled into Laura, and declared that the blanket was good!
After Syd had her bath, we were upstairs at Mom & Dad's, and Syd wanted to play hide & Seek. She and I played a few times, then she started telling me where to hide. Mom's house is only about 1000 square feet, and the upstairs consists of the three bedrooms, plus a small hallway. There aren't many places to hide. Once she tired of this, we started playing 'Pay'. This is basically store (hmm...shopping works it's way into her playing too!). Mom has an adding machine in Sydney's room (which doubles as the computer room), and Sydney likes to play with that. So you buy things, and she rings them up for you. We played the same two games Monday morning too. We played Hide & Seek or Pay for an hour Sunday night, and for about two hours on Monday. Sydney never seems to tire of these games. I do get tired of them, but she giggles the whole time and I just love to hear her giggle.
Sunday night, as I told her things her mother did, I told her that her mother & I used to play the same game (pay), although we called it 'store'. What I did NOT tell her is that the best time to play this game is after you have gone school clothes shopping: because all the clothes have tags on them! My mom would take us school clothes shopping (or pickup a layaway from one of the stores), and we would come home with the clothes and put them away in our drawers. Then, we would decide to play store, and we would take ALL the clothes out of our drawers and play with them. So, Laura, you can thank me for not telling your daughter this! When we were playing, I noticed if I said something, she started saying it. When I was the sales person, I thanked Sydney for coming to our store. The next time, when I was the customer, she thanked me for coming. So I did not tell her how we played store, but maybe sometime I will.
She had asked me if I have toys at my house for her. I told her I didn't, but I would buy some for her. I told her I did have teddy bears, and I started telling her about my bears, how they have different outfits. She asked if she could dress them, and I told her each bear has a specific outfit. She was a little amazed that I have all these teddy bears. If she could only see them in person, she'd be blown away! :) She also told me that she keeps wishing and wishing to come see my beagles, and it hasn't happened. I explained to her that she has to be big enough to leave her Mommy & Daddy for a few days. She listened to me carefully, and I told her she will come visit me some day, maybe next year.
Monday morning, Sydney wanted pancakes for breakfast. She had told me this Sunday night, so I was able to confirm with Mom that she had all the ingredients. After we played for a couple of hours, she was finally ready for breakfast. I made the pancake batter, turned on the stove, and heated the skillet. She wanted to help, so she got her little stool and stood in front of the stove. I told her not to touch the stove or the pan, but she could help me pour the batter. She did that, and then watched the pancakes and told me when to flip them. We ate our pancakes and then she got dressed. Dad came home from his morning bus run not long after, and she told him we'd make him pancakes. Dad took her out on her swing to push her, so I ended up making pancakes. She offered to make mom some too, when mom came home, but it was almost lunch time so mom passed.
After lunch, Dad went back to the bus garage. Sydney and I went out to her swing set. I pushed her on the swings, then she got out her toys and went into her sand box. I sat next to her,and soon she jumped up yelling 'spider!' and came into my lap. Sydney is terrified of all creepy and crawly things- bugs, ants, bees, spiders. It does not matter how small the creature is. When she jumped into my lap for the spider in her sand box, I told her I was the wrong person to go to. I could see the spider was a daddy long legs (I know, technically they aren't spiders, I still think they are!). It walked out of her sandbox, and I assured her it was ok to go back into it. So we did not need Mom to come save the two of us.
That afternoon, we went to visit people. We first went to Aunt Vera's. Aunt Vera spends the summer in a travel trailer/motor home at a camp ground in Petersburgh. We went inside to visit, and she turned on her little keyboard for Sydney. Aunt Vera always had an organ at her house, and Laura and I spent all kinds of time playing that. Sydney enjoyed it too- she gave us quite a concert. She was entertained, and the adults were able to talk. At one point Sydney asked Aunt Vera where her bedroom was, and Aunt Vera showed her. Then Sydney said,
"Where's your potty?" Mom and I just laughed. She is her mother's daughter. When we left Aunt Vera's, Sydney said, "Can we go in these other little houses now?" (the campground is full of trailers/motor homes). We had to explain to her that we don't know those people, so we could not just go in their houses.
On the way back to Mom's, we drove past a field that had a pair of Canadian geese. Sydney didn't see them, so Mom told her she would turn around. Sydney told me, "MeMe's going to turn around! You better hang on!" Mom laughed so hard I thought she was going to have to pull over! We have always teased mom about having a bit of a lead foot (Dad used to call her AJ Foyt), so to hear her three and a half year old granddaughter say this, was just priceless! Even better- I grabbed the handle that is on the crossbar between the windshield and the door on my side, and Sydney looked around her booster seat and declared "I have nothing to hold onto!"
After a brief stop at Mom's so Sydney could get a snack (three freezer pops), we went to visit Laura Hill. She has little things in her living room to occupy Sydney. Mom takes Sydney there sometimes, so Syd knew just what to play with. We visited with Laura for about an hour, and then had to leave to go pick up Dad and go for dinner. When we got in the car, Sydney said "Now who are we going to visit?" Apparently, she was having a great time!
We all met at Kay's for pizza- Mom, Dad, Laura, Andy, Sydney, Aunt Arlene, and I. The pizza was delicious! Sometimes, if they get busy, the pizza gets over done. Both nights I was there this time, it was just right. Everything was delicious. When dinner was over, it was time to say goodbye. This is always the worst part. Sydney and I walked over to look at the ducks, and I told her to be a good girl, and help her mommy with the new baby. I reminded her that I love her, and even though I'm not here all the time, I always love her.
I started missing her as soon as she was in her booster seat and the door to Andy's truck was closed. I cherish each memory, and can't wait til I see her again!
The day I arrived, we picked her up at school and went shopping. When we got home, she brought out various toys to play with. One of these was a little bat and ball. It was kind of like those blow up toys you get at the fair, but the bat and ball had some sort of stuffing. The bat is maybe 18", and the ball looks more like a hackeysack. Whenever Syd wants to play something in the house that doesn't seem to fit, I ask her if she's allowed to do that. Of course, she always tells me she is. Sometimes I know better. But with the bat & ball, I looked at my mom, who shrugged. So Sydney and I played baseball in the living room. I enjoy watching baseball, but I was never good at playing it. I throw like a girl, and I lack the hand-eye coordination to hit the ball. My batting average is probably like .050. Playing with Syd showed that age has NOT improved my skills. I felt like a bit of a spaz. Fortunately, Sydney plays about as well as I do. We alternated batting and throwing, and our game was interrupted frequently by Sydney stopping to eat a strawberry, or mom & I talking. We didn't keep score, but there were a lot of giggles!
When my sister came home, she told Sydney, "You know you aren't supposed to play that in the house". My mom and I looked at each other and told my sister that Sydney said she was. Laura reminded Sydney that if you play ball in the house, Chesie (the female cocker spaniel) tries to play because she loves balls. Sydney looked at her mother and said, "But we took care of that problem-we blocked Chesie and Patterson in the kitchen!"
On Friday, we went shopping. This was our major shopping event. I had promised Syd I would buy her a special big sister outfit, to wear when she meets her new brother. She told me she wanted a dress (no surprise, the child LOVES to wear dresses), and she wanted a beautiful dress. Mom had the day off, so the three of us set out. We went to Macy's, because mom had extra savings coupons to use, and she said when they have a good sale you can get some really good deals. They had all the summer stuff on clearance! Sydney was like a little whirlwind through her section. In just a few minutes, we headed off to the fitting room. Sydney wouldn't let me come in the room with her, so I had to wait outside and she came out to show me what she was wearing. As she is pulling dresses over her head, she told my mom how much fun she was having. We had just about exhausted the one section of the store, and still not yet found that perfect dress. Then I turned around, and found all these party type dresses across the aisle. They were mostly girls sizes 7-16, but I saw some that were smaller. And we hit the jackpot! She found more dresses.
We made at least two trips into the fitting room, and perhaps it was three. As she and mom were headed in one time, I saw the perfect dress. It was a white sundress, with a puffy skirt (it has a tulle underskirt thing under the material). It had pink and green polka dots- great big happy polka dots. It had a big sash at the waist, that tied in the back.The dress had a little pink sweater with it. It was originally $65, but marked down to $9.99. But it was a 6. So I took it into mom, hoping it would run small, as Sydney is just into a 5. Sydney put the dress on, and it was perfect! It's a little big, but in another couple of months, it will fit her like a glove. I asked her if that was the beautiful dress she was hoping for, and she said yes, but did they have it in blue? She thought she should wear blue for her brother. Fortunately, the same style came with blue & green polka dots and a blue sweater. Thankfully, they still had a 6! With mom's coupons, I got the dress for $7.50! That's what I call a deal! :) Sydney walked out of Macy's with a giant bag of dresses. Most of them were dresses she could wear every day, but the one was her special big sister dress.
We walked through the mall from Macy's to the movies. The whole way, she was swinging my arm and singing 'I'm going to see Marmaduke!'. At the snack bar, she got popcorn and a drink and candy. She enjoyed Marmaduke. I can understand why it had a PG rating. At one point, he almost drowns. Even I had my hands over my face, peeking through my fingers. On our way back to Macy's, we walked past Claire's boutique, and she dragged Mom in there to get girly things. We found her little lip glosses and nail polish for ages 3 and up, and she & I got matching hair decorations for the 4th of July. She promptly lost one of the lip glosses down the seat of mom's car. She decorated herself, then had me put on green and yellow lip gloss. I was beautiful! (Actually, it went on clear, so I didn't look like a clown). I have to say, Syd shops like a pro! She fits right in with her mother, her MeMe, her Aunt Amy, and would have gotten along well with her Great-Grandma Wager.
Fast forward to Sunday night. When I give Sydney the gift bag full of things for the baby, she takes it over to her mother, and starts opening it. Baby clothes are flying all over the living room as Hurricane Sydney goes through the gift bag. I had the outfits folded together, but after Syd opened the bag, we were piecing them together, trying to remember what pants went with which onesie. When Sydney got to the bottom, she pulled out the blanket I made for her brother. Laura took the blanket and spread it out over her legs to look at it. Laura was oohing and aahing over it, and Sydney said 'let me try it'. Laura was sitting on the floor, with her legs stretched out in front of her. Sydney pulled the blanket back, sat on Laura's lap (or what is left of it), stretched out under the blanket, and pulled it back over her. She snuggled into Laura, and declared that the blanket was good!
After Syd had her bath, we were upstairs at Mom & Dad's, and Syd wanted to play hide & Seek. She and I played a few times, then she started telling me where to hide. Mom's house is only about 1000 square feet, and the upstairs consists of the three bedrooms, plus a small hallway. There aren't many places to hide. Once she tired of this, we started playing 'Pay'. This is basically store (hmm...shopping works it's way into her playing too!). Mom has an adding machine in Sydney's room (which doubles as the computer room), and Sydney likes to play with that. So you buy things, and she rings them up for you. We played the same two games Monday morning too. We played Hide & Seek or Pay for an hour Sunday night, and for about two hours on Monday. Sydney never seems to tire of these games. I do get tired of them, but she giggles the whole time and I just love to hear her giggle.
Sunday night, as I told her things her mother did, I told her that her mother & I used to play the same game (pay), although we called it 'store'. What I did NOT tell her is that the best time to play this game is after you have gone school clothes shopping: because all the clothes have tags on them! My mom would take us school clothes shopping (or pickup a layaway from one of the stores), and we would come home with the clothes and put them away in our drawers. Then, we would decide to play store, and we would take ALL the clothes out of our drawers and play with them. So, Laura, you can thank me for not telling your daughter this! When we were playing, I noticed if I said something, she started saying it. When I was the sales person, I thanked Sydney for coming to our store. The next time, when I was the customer, she thanked me for coming. So I did not tell her how we played store, but maybe sometime I will.
She had asked me if I have toys at my house for her. I told her I didn't, but I would buy some for her. I told her I did have teddy bears, and I started telling her about my bears, how they have different outfits. She asked if she could dress them, and I told her each bear has a specific outfit. She was a little amazed that I have all these teddy bears. If she could only see them in person, she'd be blown away! :) She also told me that she keeps wishing and wishing to come see my beagles, and it hasn't happened. I explained to her that she has to be big enough to leave her Mommy & Daddy for a few days. She listened to me carefully, and I told her she will come visit me some day, maybe next year.
Monday morning, Sydney wanted pancakes for breakfast. She had told me this Sunday night, so I was able to confirm with Mom that she had all the ingredients. After we played for a couple of hours, she was finally ready for breakfast. I made the pancake batter, turned on the stove, and heated the skillet. She wanted to help, so she got her little stool and stood in front of the stove. I told her not to touch the stove or the pan, but she could help me pour the batter. She did that, and then watched the pancakes and told me when to flip them. We ate our pancakes and then she got dressed. Dad came home from his morning bus run not long after, and she told him we'd make him pancakes. Dad took her out on her swing to push her, so I ended up making pancakes. She offered to make mom some too, when mom came home, but it was almost lunch time so mom passed.
After lunch, Dad went back to the bus garage. Sydney and I went out to her swing set. I pushed her on the swings, then she got out her toys and went into her sand box. I sat next to her,and soon she jumped up yelling 'spider!' and came into my lap. Sydney is terrified of all creepy and crawly things- bugs, ants, bees, spiders. It does not matter how small the creature is. When she jumped into my lap for the spider in her sand box, I told her I was the wrong person to go to. I could see the spider was a daddy long legs (I know, technically they aren't spiders, I still think they are!). It walked out of her sandbox, and I assured her it was ok to go back into it. So we did not need Mom to come save the two of us.
That afternoon, we went to visit people. We first went to Aunt Vera's. Aunt Vera spends the summer in a travel trailer/motor home at a camp ground in Petersburgh. We went inside to visit, and she turned on her little keyboard for Sydney. Aunt Vera always had an organ at her house, and Laura and I spent all kinds of time playing that. Sydney enjoyed it too- she gave us quite a concert. She was entertained, and the adults were able to talk. At one point Sydney asked Aunt Vera where her bedroom was, and Aunt Vera showed her. Then Sydney said,
"Where's your potty?" Mom and I just laughed. She is her mother's daughter. When we left Aunt Vera's, Sydney said, "Can we go in these other little houses now?" (the campground is full of trailers/motor homes). We had to explain to her that we don't know those people, so we could not just go in their houses.
On the way back to Mom's, we drove past a field that had a pair of Canadian geese. Sydney didn't see them, so Mom told her she would turn around. Sydney told me, "MeMe's going to turn around! You better hang on!" Mom laughed so hard I thought she was going to have to pull over! We have always teased mom about having a bit of a lead foot (Dad used to call her AJ Foyt), so to hear her three and a half year old granddaughter say this, was just priceless! Even better- I grabbed the handle that is on the crossbar between the windshield and the door on my side, and Sydney looked around her booster seat and declared "I have nothing to hold onto!"
After a brief stop at Mom's so Sydney could get a snack (three freezer pops), we went to visit Laura Hill. She has little things in her living room to occupy Sydney. Mom takes Sydney there sometimes, so Syd knew just what to play with. We visited with Laura for about an hour, and then had to leave to go pick up Dad and go for dinner. When we got in the car, Sydney said "Now who are we going to visit?" Apparently, she was having a great time!
We all met at Kay's for pizza- Mom, Dad, Laura, Andy, Sydney, Aunt Arlene, and I. The pizza was delicious! Sometimes, if they get busy, the pizza gets over done. Both nights I was there this time, it was just right. Everything was delicious. When dinner was over, it was time to say goodbye. This is always the worst part. Sydney and I walked over to look at the ducks, and I told her to be a good girl, and help her mommy with the new baby. I reminded her that I love her, and even though I'm not here all the time, I always love her.
I started missing her as soon as she was in her booster seat and the door to Andy's truck was closed. I cherish each memory, and can't wait til I see her again!
Friday, June 11, 2010
Laura: The Sequel
The night Sydney spent the night at Mom & Dad's, she decided she would sleep with Aunt Amy, rather than in her own bed. I have a queen sized bed at my house, but at mom's I have a full size. I'm always rolling over at moms and throwing an arm into the wall or a leg into the window. Even in my own bed, I rarely get a night where I sleep really well. I am also a night owl, and am usually the last person asleep in the house. Ok, I admit, when it comes to my sleep, I'm a bit of a diva.
So when Sydney said she planned to sleep with me, little panic impulses went through me. Then I remembered the last time I was home she planned to sleep with me, but changed her mind when it was actually bedtime. We snuggled in bed for a while, read books and watched some tv. She got out pictures. She loves to look at pictures. The pictures were mostly of my Dad. She held one to her chest, sighed, and said 'I just love my PopPop so much'. Sydney really is a sensitive child, and very emotional.
At 9pm, we went downstairs to brush our teeth and get ready for bed. She was certain she would sleep with me. I decided to embrace it as a good bonding experience for us. What's one night of little sleep for being close to Sydney? We went upstairs to bed, and decided to watch Toy Story 2 for a little bit. She promised me she would fall asleep. She had her two little blankets, plus the comforter on the bed. We watched the movie for a few minutes, then she rolled over towards me, away from the TV. I asked her if she wanted me to turn it off, and she said yes. I got up to turn off the TV, and as I crawled back over her, I had to fight to get some of the comforter.
It brought back memories of sharing a bed with my sister. When we would visit Grandma & Grandpa, we shared a sofa bed in the Florida room. Laura always stole the covers. Grandma tried to make things better by giving us separate sheets and blankets. That solved the blanket stealing problem, but Laura also fights and kicks in her sleep. And sometimes, she would wrap her arms and legs around me. I would feel like I was suffocating. Laura has always had very long arms and legs. It was this behavior that led me to give her the nickname of 'Squid'. Because it felt like it was all arms and legs, wrapped around me. Eventually, Grandma & Grandpa remodeled the garage and attached porch into living space, which essentially created another two rooms. Mom & Dad took the old garage, and I moved to a sofa bed on the old porch, while Laura stayed in the Florida room.
When Syd started stealing the covers, I said to her 'It's just like sleeping with your mother!'. The little girl who had seemed to have one foot in dreamland woke up and wanted to know what else her mommy did, and what she was like. I have waited for this opportunity! I didn't tell her all the things I could have. Primarily because Sydney is a very smart girl, and I did not want to give her ideas. I told her that her mother used to follow me everywhere. I figured this was useful information, since Sydney will soon have her own younger sibling. I told Sydney that sometimes it was very annoying when her mommy followed me, but I know she was just curious. I explained that as the big sister, we get to do everything first, and sometimes the younger ones feel left out. She asked who else is a big sister, and I started naming family members she knows. She wanted to know more stories about her mom. I told her that once I started driving, her mother and I would go exploring after school. Laura always wanted to know where different people we knew lived. We had some grand adventures, including getting stuck in mud season!
I told her that her mother likes bathrooms. No matter where we went, Laura would go to the bathroom. Just to look at it. It's not that she needed to use the bathroom; she was just curious about people. The more I talked to Sydney, the more tired I became. She, on the other hand, became more awake. She kept talking, and talking, and talking. There is no clock in the room, but I know she talked for well over an hour (I found out from Mom & Dad the next morning that it was an hour and a half).
Around 10pm, she jumped out of bed. I asked her where she was going, and she said 'to play on my swing set!'. I had to tell her she couldn't go play on the swing set. Darkness did not seem to be enough of a reason why not, so I had to get creative. She kept asking me why she couldn't go outside. Finally I told her that her swing set was sleeping. Sydney laughed at me, and told me that swing sets don't have eyes, so they can't go to sleep. I told her the whole world goes to sleep when it gets dark. So she started naming things in the room, and said they were sleeping. The tv, the dresser, the closet, the light, the clothes. This is where Dad opened the bedroom door and wanted to know what was going on. He tried to sound all fierce, but I know he was stifling a laugh. He told her to go to sleep.
Sydney kept talking, and about 10 minutes later mom came in. She kissed Sydney good night again, and told her to go to bed. When mom left, Sydney started crying. She and Mom are very close, and Sydney did not want mom to go. I pulled Sydney into my arms and she fell asleep pretty quickly.
I know I didn't get much sleep Sunday night. I was worried about her. Plus, I kept wondering how such a little person can take up so much room! Sometimes she'd be curled up in a little ball, and then other times she'd be flat on her back, legs and arms all sprawled out. She would roll into me and snuggle, and then she'd wrap arms and legs around me. It really did feel like I was sleeping with Laura again. Except with Laura, I could slap her and push her because we were sisters. We were almost the same size. Sydney is a lot smaller than I am, so I just kept readjusting, moving over closer to the wall.
Sometime during the night she fell out of bed. We have decided this room must tilt a little bit, because my sister fell out of bed in that room too. It must tilt towards the center of the room. I felt Syd fall out of bed, because she took the covers with her! She landed on this little cushion of blankets. She didn't even wake up. I scooped her up and placed her back on her pillows. She muttered 'My Pooh Blankie'. I told her it was right here, and patted it for her, and she went right back to sleep. My parents never heard her fall. When I told my mom about it the next morning, Sydney piped up and said 'Aunt Amy pushed me'. The little monster! Making up stories.
The sun comes up around 5:15am this time of year in NY. I had the window open and I could tell when it was daylight. I would roll over and check on Sydney, then roll back and close my eyes again. I rolled over around 7:30, and her eyes were open. I asked her if she was up, and she jumped up and said 'Let's play!'. Later, Dad asked her if she had fun sleeping with me. She told him 'Yes, but I was up when the sun came up and I had to wait for Aunt Amy to get up'. There she goes, telling stories again.
Overall, it was a sweet experience. I am touched that she felt close enough to want to sleep with me. We have a great relationship, and the bond seems to get stronger each time I see her. When we were reading books, she pulled out the 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' book I got her for Christmas. I bought it at Hallmark. It has a recordable chip in it, so I recorded myself reading the story to her. At the end of the story, I tell her 'Merry Christmas, Sydie bear! Aunt Amy loves you!' Mom has told me that Syd plays this book over and over and over again, and when she hears my voice she tells mom how much she loves me. So when she brought the book to me, she said 'I'll read this to you'. She opened the book, and the story played. She told me 'this lady is really busy!' I asked her who she meant, and she said, 'the lady reading the story'. We got to the last page, and Sydney said, almost breathlessly, 'This is my favorite part'. I asked her why, and she said 'Because you have a special message for me'. Aww! If I didn't already love this little girl so much, she would have just won my heart.
I will have to remember next time I'm home to put her against the wall in the bed though. Then she won't fall out. She'll probably just push me to the floor and take my blankets!
So when Sydney said she planned to sleep with me, little panic impulses went through me. Then I remembered the last time I was home she planned to sleep with me, but changed her mind when it was actually bedtime. We snuggled in bed for a while, read books and watched some tv. She got out pictures. She loves to look at pictures. The pictures were mostly of my Dad. She held one to her chest, sighed, and said 'I just love my PopPop so much'. Sydney really is a sensitive child, and very emotional.
At 9pm, we went downstairs to brush our teeth and get ready for bed. She was certain she would sleep with me. I decided to embrace it as a good bonding experience for us. What's one night of little sleep for being close to Sydney? We went upstairs to bed, and decided to watch Toy Story 2 for a little bit. She promised me she would fall asleep. She had her two little blankets, plus the comforter on the bed. We watched the movie for a few minutes, then she rolled over towards me, away from the TV. I asked her if she wanted me to turn it off, and she said yes. I got up to turn off the TV, and as I crawled back over her, I had to fight to get some of the comforter.
It brought back memories of sharing a bed with my sister. When we would visit Grandma & Grandpa, we shared a sofa bed in the Florida room. Laura always stole the covers. Grandma tried to make things better by giving us separate sheets and blankets. That solved the blanket stealing problem, but Laura also fights and kicks in her sleep. And sometimes, she would wrap her arms and legs around me. I would feel like I was suffocating. Laura has always had very long arms and legs. It was this behavior that led me to give her the nickname of 'Squid'. Because it felt like it was all arms and legs, wrapped around me. Eventually, Grandma & Grandpa remodeled the garage and attached porch into living space, which essentially created another two rooms. Mom & Dad took the old garage, and I moved to a sofa bed on the old porch, while Laura stayed in the Florida room.
When Syd started stealing the covers, I said to her 'It's just like sleeping with your mother!'. The little girl who had seemed to have one foot in dreamland woke up and wanted to know what else her mommy did, and what she was like. I have waited for this opportunity! I didn't tell her all the things I could have. Primarily because Sydney is a very smart girl, and I did not want to give her ideas. I told her that her mother used to follow me everywhere. I figured this was useful information, since Sydney will soon have her own younger sibling. I told Sydney that sometimes it was very annoying when her mommy followed me, but I know she was just curious. I explained that as the big sister, we get to do everything first, and sometimes the younger ones feel left out. She asked who else is a big sister, and I started naming family members she knows. She wanted to know more stories about her mom. I told her that once I started driving, her mother and I would go exploring after school. Laura always wanted to know where different people we knew lived. We had some grand adventures, including getting stuck in mud season!
I told her that her mother likes bathrooms. No matter where we went, Laura would go to the bathroom. Just to look at it. It's not that she needed to use the bathroom; she was just curious about people. The more I talked to Sydney, the more tired I became. She, on the other hand, became more awake. She kept talking, and talking, and talking. There is no clock in the room, but I know she talked for well over an hour (I found out from Mom & Dad the next morning that it was an hour and a half).
Around 10pm, she jumped out of bed. I asked her where she was going, and she said 'to play on my swing set!'. I had to tell her she couldn't go play on the swing set. Darkness did not seem to be enough of a reason why not, so I had to get creative. She kept asking me why she couldn't go outside. Finally I told her that her swing set was sleeping. Sydney laughed at me, and told me that swing sets don't have eyes, so they can't go to sleep. I told her the whole world goes to sleep when it gets dark. So she started naming things in the room, and said they were sleeping. The tv, the dresser, the closet, the light, the clothes. This is where Dad opened the bedroom door and wanted to know what was going on. He tried to sound all fierce, but I know he was stifling a laugh. He told her to go to sleep.
Sydney kept talking, and about 10 minutes later mom came in. She kissed Sydney good night again, and told her to go to bed. When mom left, Sydney started crying. She and Mom are very close, and Sydney did not want mom to go. I pulled Sydney into my arms and she fell asleep pretty quickly.
I know I didn't get much sleep Sunday night. I was worried about her. Plus, I kept wondering how such a little person can take up so much room! Sometimes she'd be curled up in a little ball, and then other times she'd be flat on her back, legs and arms all sprawled out. She would roll into me and snuggle, and then she'd wrap arms and legs around me. It really did feel like I was sleeping with Laura again. Except with Laura, I could slap her and push her because we were sisters. We were almost the same size. Sydney is a lot smaller than I am, so I just kept readjusting, moving over closer to the wall.
Sometime during the night she fell out of bed. We have decided this room must tilt a little bit, because my sister fell out of bed in that room too. It must tilt towards the center of the room. I felt Syd fall out of bed, because she took the covers with her! She landed on this little cushion of blankets. She didn't even wake up. I scooped her up and placed her back on her pillows. She muttered 'My Pooh Blankie'. I told her it was right here, and patted it for her, and she went right back to sleep. My parents never heard her fall. When I told my mom about it the next morning, Sydney piped up and said 'Aunt Amy pushed me'. The little monster! Making up stories.
The sun comes up around 5:15am this time of year in NY. I had the window open and I could tell when it was daylight. I would roll over and check on Sydney, then roll back and close my eyes again. I rolled over around 7:30, and her eyes were open. I asked her if she was up, and she jumped up and said 'Let's play!'. Later, Dad asked her if she had fun sleeping with me. She told him 'Yes, but I was up when the sun came up and I had to wait for Aunt Amy to get up'. There she goes, telling stories again.
Overall, it was a sweet experience. I am touched that she felt close enough to want to sleep with me. We have a great relationship, and the bond seems to get stronger each time I see her. When we were reading books, she pulled out the 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' book I got her for Christmas. I bought it at Hallmark. It has a recordable chip in it, so I recorded myself reading the story to her. At the end of the story, I tell her 'Merry Christmas, Sydie bear! Aunt Amy loves you!' Mom has told me that Syd plays this book over and over and over again, and when she hears my voice she tells mom how much she loves me. So when she brought the book to me, she said 'I'll read this to you'. She opened the book, and the story played. She told me 'this lady is really busy!' I asked her who she meant, and she said, 'the lady reading the story'. We got to the last page, and Sydney said, almost breathlessly, 'This is my favorite part'. I asked her why, and she said 'Because you have a special message for me'. Aww! If I didn't already love this little girl so much, she would have just won my heart.
I will have to remember next time I'm home to put her against the wall in the bed though. Then she won't fall out. She'll probably just push me to the floor and take my blankets!
Happy Birthday, Little Rain Cloud!
Recently I wrote about my history of rainy birthdays. My 34th Birthday did not disappoint. I told someone the other day that it rained on my birthday, and they said 'Oh, I'm sorry'. They really didn't understand why I was laughing.
I do have to say, if someone had an outdoor party planned for last Sunday; or a wedding or picnic; I feel badly for them. There was no saving any outdoor activity. Friday the weather people were saying that Sunday would be a nice, dry day. By Saturday morning, they had changed their tune. A storm to the south of the Capital District (The Albany, NY area) had changed its course. Originally, the weather people thought this storm would miss Albany. By Saturday morning, they said that Sunday would be a 'gulleywasher'. Which is a technical term for it's going to rain buckets!
It started raining Saturday night. Sunday morning when I woke up, there was a steady rain falling. I went downstairs, and mom and dad looked outside and said "Happy Birthday!" We had bacon, egg, & cheese sandwiches for breakfast. I rarely eat eggs. The only reason I have eggs in my house is for baking. But it tasted good.
The steady rain increased to a downpour. The downpour then got worse. There really are no words to describe it. It rained so hard during the morning that my dad kept putting off going to the transfer station. He had to take the trash and recycling to the transfer station, but it was raining so hard he couldn't get to the truck in the driveway without getting drenched. So we stayed indoors, watched tv, and just hung out. It was a welcome rest after our adventures in Boston. In the afternoon, we all watched the Yankee game.
Around mid-day, the rain stopped. The sun came out. Dad took off for the transfer station. And just as suddenly as it had stopped it started again. He came home, soaked. The transfer station is only about 3 minutes away. He went out to dig ditches along the driveway. The problem with living at the bottom of a mountain is that water runs downhill. Mom and Dad live next to a brook. Dad digs ditches along the road to divert the water into the brook, otherwise, it goes into their backyard, and in the worst cases ends up in their cellar. They do have a dirt floor in the cellar, so they don't need a sump pump. But you still don't want water getting into the furnace or hot water heater. When he came back in, he had to change his clothes because they were wringing wet.
You could look out the window, but you could not see anything outside. The rain was loud against the roof and windows. Dad told me 'This is just what you were born in'. They had so much rain, the weathermen had said they would cut their deficit for the year in half. At 3pm, there was another break in the weather. Mom and I decided to run up to Petersburg and visit Aunt Vera. It was not raining when we left the house, and by the time we turned onto Rt. 22, not two minutes later, it was raining hard again. Motorcyclists were pulled over on the road, putting their rain gear on. I don't think it helped them any. Aunt Vera was not home, so we went back to Mom's. By this time, it was raining so hard you couldn't see past the windshield. Mom was sitting up on the steering wheel, and was struggling to see the road. We were inching along on the highway, and we just kept thinking 'we're almost home'. Back in town, the culverts and ditches were overflowing. (Berlin doesn't have storm sewers.) Main Street sits up a little hill off of Rt. 22. The parking lot of the Seventh Day Baptist Church is gravel, and it was running down Main Street onto 22. I think the best way to describe the rain is Monsoon.
But my Birthday wasn't just about the rain. My brother in law shares the birthday. We all met at Lu A Hale, which is a Polynesian restaurant. I don't know if I have spelled the name correctly. We had a nice dinner. While we were waiting for Laura & Andy & Syd to get there, Dad told the waitress we had two birthdays to celebrate. So at the end of the dinner, the waitress brings out two little bowls, each had a lit candle in it. She wanted to know who the birthdays were, so everyone pointed out Andy & I. It was a dish of maraschino cherries, pineapple chunks, and whipped cream. Very odd. It was fine though, we were too stuffed to eat anything else.
After dinner, we went back to mom's for cake. Presents and cards were put in front of Andy & I. Sydney loves presents, so she asked me if she could help me. She tore into the cards, and ripped open the present. Once she saw what was in it, she moved onto her dad's cards. Mom & Dad bought me several books on their trip to Washington DC. And they did a great job, because I did not already have any of the books they bought. And of course, my main present was the plane ticket home to see everyone. Andy wanted money for the membership at the local fish & game club, so he had cards with money in them. Sydney saw the money and said "Can I have that for my piggy?" Andy told her no. But if her piggy had eaten that bill, it would have been full for weeks! :)
Laura & Andy went home, but Sydney spent the night with us. Mom had told her after cake & presents she needed a bath, so as soon as we were finished with them, she stripped down in the dining room and told everyone she was ready for a bath. She also said she wanted Aunt Amy to give her the bath! Aunt Amy has no experience giving little girls baths, but she trusted me. I washed her hair for her. It's longer than mine! And it is getting thicker, so she's going to have a lot of hair. I told her that I liked her curls, and she looked at me very seriously and said ''Well, you can't have them". When bath time was over, we went upstairs and played until bedtime.
Overall, 34 was a pretty good birthday. Here's hoping the year will be good!
I do have to say, if someone had an outdoor party planned for last Sunday; or a wedding or picnic; I feel badly for them. There was no saving any outdoor activity. Friday the weather people were saying that Sunday would be a nice, dry day. By Saturday morning, they had changed their tune. A storm to the south of the Capital District (The Albany, NY area) had changed its course. Originally, the weather people thought this storm would miss Albany. By Saturday morning, they said that Sunday would be a 'gulleywasher'. Which is a technical term for it's going to rain buckets!
It started raining Saturday night. Sunday morning when I woke up, there was a steady rain falling. I went downstairs, and mom and dad looked outside and said "Happy Birthday!" We had bacon, egg, & cheese sandwiches for breakfast. I rarely eat eggs. The only reason I have eggs in my house is for baking. But it tasted good.
The steady rain increased to a downpour. The downpour then got worse. There really are no words to describe it. It rained so hard during the morning that my dad kept putting off going to the transfer station. He had to take the trash and recycling to the transfer station, but it was raining so hard he couldn't get to the truck in the driveway without getting drenched. So we stayed indoors, watched tv, and just hung out. It was a welcome rest after our adventures in Boston. In the afternoon, we all watched the Yankee game.
Around mid-day, the rain stopped. The sun came out. Dad took off for the transfer station. And just as suddenly as it had stopped it started again. He came home, soaked. The transfer station is only about 3 minutes away. He went out to dig ditches along the driveway. The problem with living at the bottom of a mountain is that water runs downhill. Mom and Dad live next to a brook. Dad digs ditches along the road to divert the water into the brook, otherwise, it goes into their backyard, and in the worst cases ends up in their cellar. They do have a dirt floor in the cellar, so they don't need a sump pump. But you still don't want water getting into the furnace or hot water heater. When he came back in, he had to change his clothes because they were wringing wet.
You could look out the window, but you could not see anything outside. The rain was loud against the roof and windows. Dad told me 'This is just what you were born in'. They had so much rain, the weathermen had said they would cut their deficit for the year in half. At 3pm, there was another break in the weather. Mom and I decided to run up to Petersburg and visit Aunt Vera. It was not raining when we left the house, and by the time we turned onto Rt. 22, not two minutes later, it was raining hard again. Motorcyclists were pulled over on the road, putting their rain gear on. I don't think it helped them any. Aunt Vera was not home, so we went back to Mom's. By this time, it was raining so hard you couldn't see past the windshield. Mom was sitting up on the steering wheel, and was struggling to see the road. We were inching along on the highway, and we just kept thinking 'we're almost home'. Back in town, the culverts and ditches were overflowing. (Berlin doesn't have storm sewers.) Main Street sits up a little hill off of Rt. 22. The parking lot of the Seventh Day Baptist Church is gravel, and it was running down Main Street onto 22. I think the best way to describe the rain is Monsoon.
But my Birthday wasn't just about the rain. My brother in law shares the birthday. We all met at Lu A Hale, which is a Polynesian restaurant. I don't know if I have spelled the name correctly. We had a nice dinner. While we were waiting for Laura & Andy & Syd to get there, Dad told the waitress we had two birthdays to celebrate. So at the end of the dinner, the waitress brings out two little bowls, each had a lit candle in it. She wanted to know who the birthdays were, so everyone pointed out Andy & I. It was a dish of maraschino cherries, pineapple chunks, and whipped cream. Very odd. It was fine though, we were too stuffed to eat anything else.
After dinner, we went back to mom's for cake. Presents and cards were put in front of Andy & I. Sydney loves presents, so she asked me if she could help me. She tore into the cards, and ripped open the present. Once she saw what was in it, she moved onto her dad's cards. Mom & Dad bought me several books on their trip to Washington DC. And they did a great job, because I did not already have any of the books they bought. And of course, my main present was the plane ticket home to see everyone. Andy wanted money for the membership at the local fish & game club, so he had cards with money in them. Sydney saw the money and said "Can I have that for my piggy?" Andy told her no. But if her piggy had eaten that bill, it would have been full for weeks! :)
Laura & Andy went home, but Sydney spent the night with us. Mom had told her after cake & presents she needed a bath, so as soon as we were finished with them, she stripped down in the dining room and told everyone she was ready for a bath. She also said she wanted Aunt Amy to give her the bath! Aunt Amy has no experience giving little girls baths, but she trusted me. I washed her hair for her. It's longer than mine! And it is getting thicker, so she's going to have a lot of hair. I told her that I liked her curls, and she looked at me very seriously and said ''Well, you can't have them". When bath time was over, we went upstairs and played until bedtime.
Overall, 34 was a pretty good birthday. Here's hoping the year will be good!
The Honey
When we were at the Aquarium gift shop, Sydney picked out a stuffed penguin for herself, and she had also picked out a smaller one (about 6"). Mom wanted to make sure we were getting something for the baby, so she asked Syd who the penguins were for. Sydney said the big one was for her. Mom asked about the smaller one, and Sydney said, "That's the honey." Mom nodded and moved on, carrying both penguins.
I have heard Sydney say 'that's the honey', or 'I'm the honey' a few times, so I made sure to ask my parents about it. It's just one of those things she does. There's always a mommy, and there's always a honey. I'm not sure where she picked it up. But if there is a big thing, that's the mommy, and the little one is the honey.
The way she says Honey is cute. It's not just 'honey'. It's kind of singsong, but her voice is so sweet and clear. I wish you could hear her. In the car as we came home from Boston, she was playing with her penguins, and from the back of the car you heard this 'Honey, it's time for dinner'. We all laughed, which fueled her. Sydney likes an audience, and she loves to entertain. If she makes you laugh, she will do the same thing over and over again, except she starts laughing too. So we laughed at 'Honey, it's time for dinner', and she kept saying it. She would say 'Honey, it's time for dinner', then wait for us to laugh, and then she would giggle and say it again. Eventually, the giggles gave way to laughter, and that stopped her saying 'Honey, it's time for dinner'.
Sydney takes after mom's side for that. All of us (my grandmother, mom, my sister, and I) run the risk of laughing ourselves senseless. We can laugh so hard that we won't be able to concentrate on what we are doing. Of course, with this comes a slight bladder control concern. My grandmother would truly laugh so hard she'd pee her pants. So far, knock on wood, the rest of us have escaped that, but maybe as age catches up to us we won't be so lucky.
Sometimes when Sydney is playing, she will tell you to be the honey. She tells my sister 'I'm the mommy, you're the honey'. She tells my mom 'I'm the MeMe, you're the honey'. Monday afternoon we were playing with her Melissa and Doug cupcake decorating set (which, by the way, is quite a lot of fun- the 'icing' is made of a surface that you write on, then wipe off. I was really enjoying decorating the cupcakes). Sydney told me 'I'm the mommy. You be the honey!'. She then proceeded to tell me HOW to decorate the cupcakes. "Honey, do it like this". When I did not listen to her, she leaned down, tilted her head in my face and said, "Honey, you're not doing it right!". I apparently was not very good at this game, because I continued to do my own thing (channelling my inner Sydney). Sydney does not like it if, when you are the honey, you act the way she does and show your stubborn, independent side. She got mad at mom & I because we weren't playing right, and she decided she didn't want to play any more. She stomped up the stairs- trying to make her little body bigger than it is and throwing her whole weight onto each stair, thus giving us the maximum effect. She went into her room and slammed the door. Mom and I just laughed. She opened the door and told us 'You made me very very mad!' Which made us laugh even louder. Then she shouted that she was serious! And we couldn't come to her birthday party. (Her birthday is three months away, and she's already planning it).
Mom and I were laughing so hard, the tears rolled down our faces. After a few minutes, Sydney must have forgiven us, because she came back downstairs. She apologized, and we resumed playing 'You're the Honey'. I need to record her saying "Honey, it's time for dinner" or "You be the honey". It would make a great ring tone!
I have heard Sydney say 'that's the honey', or 'I'm the honey' a few times, so I made sure to ask my parents about it. It's just one of those things she does. There's always a mommy, and there's always a honey. I'm not sure where she picked it up. But if there is a big thing, that's the mommy, and the little one is the honey.
The way she says Honey is cute. It's not just 'honey'. It's kind of singsong, but her voice is so sweet and clear. I wish you could hear her. In the car as we came home from Boston, she was playing with her penguins, and from the back of the car you heard this 'Honey, it's time for dinner'. We all laughed, which fueled her. Sydney likes an audience, and she loves to entertain. If she makes you laugh, she will do the same thing over and over again, except she starts laughing too. So we laughed at 'Honey, it's time for dinner', and she kept saying it. She would say 'Honey, it's time for dinner', then wait for us to laugh, and then she would giggle and say it again. Eventually, the giggles gave way to laughter, and that stopped her saying 'Honey, it's time for dinner'.
Sydney takes after mom's side for that. All of us (my grandmother, mom, my sister, and I) run the risk of laughing ourselves senseless. We can laugh so hard that we won't be able to concentrate on what we are doing. Of course, with this comes a slight bladder control concern. My grandmother would truly laugh so hard she'd pee her pants. So far, knock on wood, the rest of us have escaped that, but maybe as age catches up to us we won't be so lucky.
Sometimes when Sydney is playing, she will tell you to be the honey. She tells my sister 'I'm the mommy, you're the honey'. She tells my mom 'I'm the MeMe, you're the honey'. Monday afternoon we were playing with her Melissa and Doug cupcake decorating set (which, by the way, is quite a lot of fun- the 'icing' is made of a surface that you write on, then wipe off. I was really enjoying decorating the cupcakes). Sydney told me 'I'm the mommy. You be the honey!'. She then proceeded to tell me HOW to decorate the cupcakes. "Honey, do it like this". When I did not listen to her, she leaned down, tilted her head in my face and said, "Honey, you're not doing it right!". I apparently was not very good at this game, because I continued to do my own thing (channelling my inner Sydney). Sydney does not like it if, when you are the honey, you act the way she does and show your stubborn, independent side. She got mad at mom & I because we weren't playing right, and she decided she didn't want to play any more. She stomped up the stairs- trying to make her little body bigger than it is and throwing her whole weight onto each stair, thus giving us the maximum effect. She went into her room and slammed the door. Mom and I just laughed. She opened the door and told us 'You made me very very mad!' Which made us laugh even louder. Then she shouted that she was serious! And we couldn't come to her birthday party. (Her birthday is three months away, and she's already planning it).
Mom and I were laughing so hard, the tears rolled down our faces. After a few minutes, Sydney must have forgiven us, because she came back downstairs. She apologized, and we resumed playing 'You're the Honey'. I need to record her saying "Honey, it's time for dinner" or "You be the honey". It would make a great ring tone!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Ice Cream First
When we were walking through Boston on Saturday, Andy wanted ice cream. No one else really did, so he said we could just get some on the way home. Then he, mom, and Sydney fell asleep in the car and the rest of us didn't give it another thought.
Until we hit Stephentown. Then Laura remembered ice cream. By then, Andy's craving had mostly passed. Laura argued that Neil's can do a chocolate flurry with M&M's in it. It had been several hours since lunch, and the rest of us agreed an ice cream would taste good.
Neil's is actually called 'Gardner's Ice Cream'. That's what the sign on the road says. If it is mentioned in the local paper, it is also called 'Gardner's'. But to those of us who are local, it has always been Neil's. This is the benefit of living in a small town, surrounded by other small towns. People use their last name for the official name of the place, but since you know who owns it, you always use their first name. So Neil's is a little ice cream place. They have a coffee shoppe attached, which is open in the mornings. They have added a miniature golf and driving range. You can get hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries; the typical food. It's one of those places that says summer. They used to only be open in the summer, but I think now they might be open year round. It is staffed primarily by high school students. When I was in high school, the really cute boys worked there. So it is also a bit of a hangout. It isn't exactly a dive, and it is certainly not gourmet. You probably wouldn't want to eat there every day, but it is good and fills you up.
Saturday evening we all pile out of the car and place our order for ice cream. Then we go sit on the picnic tables and enjoy the ice cream, the quiet, and the nice evening. As we are sitting there, the breeze carries the aroma of the fryer- french fries, mozzarella sticks, etc. And it smells heavenly. I try to limit my greasy food intake. So I tried to ignore the aromas calling to me. Then my sister says 'Oh, the french fries smell so good!'. I told her I was smelling the mozzarella sticks. We both kind of laugh, and Andy asks her if she wants french fries. Laura tells him how good they are, because they are hand cut. Wanting to appease his pregnant wife, Andy goes up to get french fries. He comes back with mozzarella sticks too. As soon as I dip the hot cheese into the sauce, I remember how great they taste. The sauce is actually the spaghetti sauce with peppers and onions that goes onto the sausage sandwiches. It has so much flavor, and I find myself devouring the mozzarella sticks. Sydney is happily munching french fries and fried cheese- two of her favorite things!
Mom & Dad then mention that the cheeseburgers smell good. We all laugh. And it occurs to us that we ate lunch, and it is now dinner time. Of course, we already had dessert. Dad goes up to get cheeseburgers for he & mom, and asks what else we want. We tell him to get more french fries and mozzarella sticks. While Dad is waiting for the order, Laura decides she wants a cheeseburger too. Andy is getting pretty hungry, so the two of them walk up to place another order. Now we realize we need something to drink, so I go to the car and get the remaining drinks out of our cooler. Sydney decides she doesn't like the drinks mom has for her, and she didn't want water. I asked her if she wanted me to go get her a soda, and she said "Yes, and bring me back that ice cream on the roof" and points to this metal ice cream sculpture on the top of the roof.
When I join the rest of the family at the order window, the girls inside look at us like we are crazy. It was a slow night for them, and we were giving them a lot of entertainment. I told them we've been in the car together since 7am, and we're all a little slap happy. I bought Syd's soda, and took it back to her. Dad & Andy followed with the rest of the food, and we finally ate dinner.
It was really a backwards dinner. It was probably one of the few times Sydney will be allowed to eat ice cream before her dinner. When we were finally full, we piled back into the Highlander and headed for home; laughing at the latest adventure. At the very least, it will give us something to laugh over for a while!
Until we hit Stephentown. Then Laura remembered ice cream. By then, Andy's craving had mostly passed. Laura argued that Neil's can do a chocolate flurry with M&M's in it. It had been several hours since lunch, and the rest of us agreed an ice cream would taste good.
Neil's is actually called 'Gardner's Ice Cream'. That's what the sign on the road says. If it is mentioned in the local paper, it is also called 'Gardner's'. But to those of us who are local, it has always been Neil's. This is the benefit of living in a small town, surrounded by other small towns. People use their last name for the official name of the place, but since you know who owns it, you always use their first name. So Neil's is a little ice cream place. They have a coffee shoppe attached, which is open in the mornings. They have added a miniature golf and driving range. You can get hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries; the typical food. It's one of those places that says summer. They used to only be open in the summer, but I think now they might be open year round. It is staffed primarily by high school students. When I was in high school, the really cute boys worked there. So it is also a bit of a hangout. It isn't exactly a dive, and it is certainly not gourmet. You probably wouldn't want to eat there every day, but it is good and fills you up.
Saturday evening we all pile out of the car and place our order for ice cream. Then we go sit on the picnic tables and enjoy the ice cream, the quiet, and the nice evening. As we are sitting there, the breeze carries the aroma of the fryer- french fries, mozzarella sticks, etc. And it smells heavenly. I try to limit my greasy food intake. So I tried to ignore the aromas calling to me. Then my sister says 'Oh, the french fries smell so good!'. I told her I was smelling the mozzarella sticks. We both kind of laugh, and Andy asks her if she wants french fries. Laura tells him how good they are, because they are hand cut. Wanting to appease his pregnant wife, Andy goes up to get french fries. He comes back with mozzarella sticks too. As soon as I dip the hot cheese into the sauce, I remember how great they taste. The sauce is actually the spaghetti sauce with peppers and onions that goes onto the sausage sandwiches. It has so much flavor, and I find myself devouring the mozzarella sticks. Sydney is happily munching french fries and fried cheese- two of her favorite things!
Mom & Dad then mention that the cheeseburgers smell good. We all laugh. And it occurs to us that we ate lunch, and it is now dinner time. Of course, we already had dessert. Dad goes up to get cheeseburgers for he & mom, and asks what else we want. We tell him to get more french fries and mozzarella sticks. While Dad is waiting for the order, Laura decides she wants a cheeseburger too. Andy is getting pretty hungry, so the two of them walk up to place another order. Now we realize we need something to drink, so I go to the car and get the remaining drinks out of our cooler. Sydney decides she doesn't like the drinks mom has for her, and she didn't want water. I asked her if she wanted me to go get her a soda, and she said "Yes, and bring me back that ice cream on the roof" and points to this metal ice cream sculpture on the top of the roof.
When I join the rest of the family at the order window, the girls inside look at us like we are crazy. It was a slow night for them, and we were giving them a lot of entertainment. I told them we've been in the car together since 7am, and we're all a little slap happy. I bought Syd's soda, and took it back to her. Dad & Andy followed with the rest of the food, and we finally ate dinner.
It was really a backwards dinner. It was probably one of the few times Sydney will be allowed to eat ice cream before her dinner. When we were finally full, we piled back into the Highlander and headed for home; laughing at the latest adventure. At the very least, it will give us something to laugh over for a while!
Boston
On Saturday, my family went to Boston. We were planning to do something fun with all six of us. Originally, the plan was to go to the Bronx Zoo. Then we made a backup plan in the event of rain, because none of us wanted to be in the Bronx Zoo in the rain. We kept checking the weather, and Friday morning the forecast for the Bronx Zoo for Saturday was 90* and 50% chance of strong thunderstorms. So we made the decision to head east to Boston to visit the New England Aquarium.
We all piled into Mom & Dad's new Highlander on Saturday morning. The only adult who would fit in the third seat was my brother in law Andy. So he and Syd sat in the way back, mom sat in the middle, Dad drove, and Laura & I switched back and forth from the front seat to the middle. Boston is about three hours east of Mom & Dad's.
Our first stop was the Aquarium. The seals are outside, next to the ticket counter. We bought our tickets and made our way inside. First we had to pose for the souvenir picture, and then we could go through the Aquarium. It was packed, and pretty hot in the building. There were also a lot of pregnant women. My sister and I were joking about that. I know a lot of people having babies in the next few months. I think it's the Recession- people couldn't afford to go out so they entertained themselves at home.
The Aquarium has a penguin exhibit. We really enjoyed that. Here is a cute picture that Andy took of a pair of penguins. Erich would have enjoyed the penguins, he probably would have stood there all day watching them.
The main attraction of the Aquarium is this huge round ocean tank. It is in the center of the building, and there are ramps that wind around it. You walk up the ramps, and at different levels you see different things. When you get to the top, you can look down into the tank. We saw all kinds of fish. Brightly colored fish, camouflaged fish, small fish, big fish. There were sharks as well. One of the sharks had a big wound in one side. Syd said it had been in a fight with the shark that had all the teeth. In all likelihood, she's right. When she first saw the sharks, she screamed and was very upset. Once she realized the sharks could not get to her, she enjoyed watching them swim around the tank. We saw giant turtles and stingrays too. On each floor of the Aquarium, there are smaller exhibits on the walls. One of these had seahorses, which were pretty neat.
The Aquarium was nice, but I do think the one in Newport (just across the river from Cincinnati) has more . It seems more spread out, where in Boston almost everything was in the one tank. But we enjoyed it.
The Aquarium sits on the wharf, and it was a pleasant walk along the wharf. The buildings have been beautifully redone. They were a nice touch of old and new. There were a lot of boats in the harbor, including some yachts. Sydney wanted to go on the yachts to explore them, and we had a hard time explaining to her why she couldn't just walk onto the boats. It was hot in Boston, about 80*, but there was a nice occasional breeze off the ocean. It started as a bright, sunny day, but by the time we were headed home, it was overcast and looked like it would rain any minute.
From the Aquarium, we walked to Quincy Market. It was not really close by, but it wasn't too long of a walk. Boston has a lot of cobblestone areas, and both my parents were having a hard time walking on those. Fortunately, the cobblestones are framed by large, flat pieces of concrete, so my parents were able to walk on those. We went to Cheers for lunch. Not the original one, this was 'The Replica'. Mom & I always enjoyed watching Cheers. As a Hanover grad, I seem to enjoy it even more. Woody Harrellson graduated from Hanover, my Alma Mater. And he had the writers make his character from Hanover, IN as a tribute. Although I will say, the real Hanover is not quite as podunk as Woody makes it out to be. Close, but not quite as bad. The menu was cutesy. Dad had "Rebecca's Fish & Chips". Mom had Carla's pasta. You get the idea. But it was good. I had a simple grilled chicken sandwich, which was pretty tasty. After we ate, we went to the Gift Shop (there is always a gift shop!). Our only purchase was a onesie for the new baby which said 'Even I don't know my name'. This of course, was a joke, as my sister and BIL have not settled on a name yet for Baby Boy. So far, everyone is calling him 'No Name'. (Syd was showing me her picture album, and there was the sonogram picture. I asked her who that was, and she said 'My baby brother'. I asked what his name was, and she said 'he doesn't have one'.)
After Cheers we walked back through Quincy Market for a bit. There was a band competition going on, and it was crowded. Laura & Andy walked into a couple of stores. We sat down for a few minutes, and all of a sudden, we heard a fife and drum. We looked up, and there were two men dressed in Revolutionary War garb; one playing the fife and one the drum. They stopped in the middle of the courtyard and stood there. People took their picture, and went up to have their picture taken with them. Syd & Andy had their picture taken with the two men. I was getting overcome by the heat (pesky fibro!), so I wasn't thinking well enough to go and get a picture with them.
We started walking back towards the parking garage, and we passed the horse and carriages that were lined up. Syd wanted to take one, so mom treated us kids (Laura, Andy, Syd, & I). It was actually quite pleasant. We got to see a couple of blocks in the city. The driver told us what we were seeing. But the funniest part was Sydney. She was waving to people on the street. She was waving like a princess. I told her I felt like I was in a parade, and Sydney said "I feel like Cinderelly!" She pointed out that we had a white horse and carriage, just like Cinderelly. To her, it was a magical event.
We walked back along the wharf, enjoying the sites. There was a woman standing by the road, dressed in a white ball gown. At first we thought perhaps she was a bride, but she was far too young to be a bride. She was a beautiful young latina teenager. She had a crown, and a wand in her hand. I suspect it was her Quinceñera. Sydney looked at her in awe. Later, Sydney told people she saw a princess.
I know, as a Yankees fan, you will not expect me to say this. But Boston was really pleasant. We were all surprised at how easy it was to get to the Aquarium. The city was clean. New York always has this dingy look to it. And you see trash on the streets. We didn't see that in Boston. Maybe other parts of the city are like that, but the Wharf district and even Quincy Market, were very clean and nice. The parts of the city we saw were a beautiful comforting blend of old and new. We all agreed we would like to go back, and
maybe spend a couple of days there. No worries though, I'm still a Yankees fan!
We all piled into Mom & Dad's new Highlander on Saturday morning. The only adult who would fit in the third seat was my brother in law Andy. So he and Syd sat in the way back, mom sat in the middle, Dad drove, and Laura & I switched back and forth from the front seat to the middle. Boston is about three hours east of Mom & Dad's.
Our first stop was the Aquarium. The seals are outside, next to the ticket counter. We bought our tickets and made our way inside. First we had to pose for the souvenir picture, and then we could go through the Aquarium. It was packed, and pretty hot in the building. There were also a lot of pregnant women. My sister and I were joking about that. I know a lot of people having babies in the next few months. I think it's the Recession- people couldn't afford to go out so they entertained themselves at home.
The Aquarium has a penguin exhibit. We really enjoyed that. Here is a cute picture that Andy took of a pair of penguins. Erich would have enjoyed the penguins, he probably would have stood there all day watching them.
The main attraction of the Aquarium is this huge round ocean tank. It is in the center of the building, and there are ramps that wind around it. You walk up the ramps, and at different levels you see different things. When you get to the top, you can look down into the tank. We saw all kinds of fish. Brightly colored fish, camouflaged fish, small fish, big fish. There were sharks as well. One of the sharks had a big wound in one side. Syd said it had been in a fight with the shark that had all the teeth. In all likelihood, she's right. When she first saw the sharks, she screamed and was very upset. Once she realized the sharks could not get to her, she enjoyed watching them swim around the tank. We saw giant turtles and stingrays too. On each floor of the Aquarium, there are smaller exhibits on the walls. One of these had seahorses, which were pretty neat.
The Aquarium was nice, but I do think the one in Newport (just across the river from Cincinnati) has more . It seems more spread out, where in Boston almost everything was in the one tank. But we enjoyed it.
The Aquarium sits on the wharf, and it was a pleasant walk along the wharf. The buildings have been beautifully redone. They were a nice touch of old and new. There were a lot of boats in the harbor, including some yachts. Sydney wanted to go on the yachts to explore them, and we had a hard time explaining to her why she couldn't just walk onto the boats. It was hot in Boston, about 80*, but there was a nice occasional breeze off the ocean. It started as a bright, sunny day, but by the time we were headed home, it was overcast and looked like it would rain any minute.
From the Aquarium, we walked to Quincy Market. It was not really close by, but it wasn't too long of a walk. Boston has a lot of cobblestone areas, and both my parents were having a hard time walking on those. Fortunately, the cobblestones are framed by large, flat pieces of concrete, so my parents were able to walk on those. We went to Cheers for lunch. Not the original one, this was 'The Replica'. Mom & I always enjoyed watching Cheers. As a Hanover grad, I seem to enjoy it even more. Woody Harrellson graduated from Hanover, my Alma Mater. And he had the writers make his character from Hanover, IN as a tribute. Although I will say, the real Hanover is not quite as podunk as Woody makes it out to be. Close, but not quite as bad. The menu was cutesy. Dad had "Rebecca's Fish & Chips". Mom had Carla's pasta. You get the idea. But it was good. I had a simple grilled chicken sandwich, which was pretty tasty. After we ate, we went to the Gift Shop (there is always a gift shop!). Our only purchase was a onesie for the new baby which said 'Even I don't know my name'. This of course, was a joke, as my sister and BIL have not settled on a name yet for Baby Boy. So far, everyone is calling him 'No Name'. (Syd was showing me her picture album, and there was the sonogram picture. I asked her who that was, and she said 'My baby brother'. I asked what his name was, and she said 'he doesn't have one'.)
After Cheers we walked back through Quincy Market for a bit. There was a band competition going on, and it was crowded. Laura & Andy walked into a couple of stores. We sat down for a few minutes, and all of a sudden, we heard a fife and drum. We looked up, and there were two men dressed in Revolutionary War garb; one playing the fife and one the drum. They stopped in the middle of the courtyard and stood there. People took their picture, and went up to have their picture taken with them. Syd & Andy had their picture taken with the two men. I was getting overcome by the heat (pesky fibro!), so I wasn't thinking well enough to go and get a picture with them.
We started walking back towards the parking garage, and we passed the horse and carriages that were lined up. Syd wanted to take one, so mom treated us kids (Laura, Andy, Syd, & I). It was actually quite pleasant. We got to see a couple of blocks in the city. The driver told us what we were seeing. But the funniest part was Sydney. She was waving to people on the street. She was waving like a princess. I told her I felt like I was in a parade, and Sydney said "I feel like Cinderelly!" She pointed out that we had a white horse and carriage, just like Cinderelly. To her, it was a magical event.
We walked back along the wharf, enjoying the sites. There was a woman standing by the road, dressed in a white ball gown. At first we thought perhaps she was a bride, but she was far too young to be a bride. She was a beautiful young latina teenager. She had a crown, and a wand in her hand. I suspect it was her Quinceñera. Sydney looked at her in awe. Later, Sydney told people she saw a princess.
I know, as a Yankees fan, you will not expect me to say this. But Boston was really pleasant. We were all surprised at how easy it was to get to the Aquarium. The city was clean. New York always has this dingy look to it. And you see trash on the streets. We didn't see that in Boston. Maybe other parts of the city are like that, but the Wharf district and even Quincy Market, were very clean and nice. The parts of the city we saw were a beautiful comforting blend of old and new. We all agreed we would like to go back, and
maybe spend a couple of days there. No worries though, I'm still a Yankees fan! Amy Vs. Mary
Last year Mom & Dad bought a GPS system for car trips. I suppose they had to do this, because I'm not there every time they take a trip. Whenever we took a car trip, my job was always to navigate. Dad was the driver. Mom lost the navigator job permanently one year in Florida. We flew into Orlando to visit Grandma & Grandpa. Our flight had been delayed somewhere on the East Coast, and we didn't get to Orlando until about 10:30pm. We picked up our rental car, and were headed to Deltona, where Grandma lived. Mom sat in the front seat, as she normally does. For some reason, we were not taking I4 down to Grandma's; Dad wanted to take 17-92. He told mom to watch for 17-92. She saw 17 and told him where to turn. We ended up on Orange Blossom Drive in Orlando: home to the red light district. Since it was nighttime, there was a lot of activity. Laura and I were teenagers I think. Once they realized where we were, Mom said 'Girls, go to sleep!'. We closed our eyes, but kept peeking out the windows. We did get to Grandma's, around midnight, but that infamous ride cost mom the job of navigator.
My sister Laura has never been a very good navigator. She gets talking, or watching other people, and forgets to watch for signs. So that left me to be the navigator. If we were going someplace new, Dad and I would sit down with the atlas to scope out our route. If we were on a familiar road, and ran into construction or an accident, it was my job to find a way around. The atlas always went with us on road trips. Dad made sure I knew how to read a map, and how to use the scale on the map to determine distance. My navigator status was helped by the fact that I have always had a good sense of direction. I used to be able to go someplace once, and remember how to get there the next time. I still can do that to some extent, but not as well as I used to (living in Middletown, where everything is a circle, really screwed with my mind for a while).
As navigator, I had to sit in the front seat. It was also my job to talk to Dad and keep him awake, especially when we were driving at night. The navigator's job is to watch the road signs (especially when changing from one interstate to another), watch for rest areas, help Dad, talk to Dad, and make sure he had food, candy, and drinks.
When we left for Boston on Saturday, my BIL Andy programmed the address for the parking garage into the GPS, and off we went. Andy and Laura have named the GPS 'Mary'. Mary told us how to go, and it was kind of amusing as we drove through town. And she did get a bit annoying. Thankfully, however, once we got on I90, she was quiet because we had a couple hundred miles to go on I90. Mary, however, did not point out rest areas. So I still had the joy of turning around in the car and saying 'Who has to go?' . Haha! Mary doesn't like it when you veer off course. So for instance, when we pulled into a rest area, she had to recalculate. Mary, being a computer, never has to get out and stretch her legs or use the restroom. Her little chip brain has trouble understanding why we strayed off the path she chose for us. I imagined her giving an exasperated sigh when we got back into the car and resumed our trip.
As we got closer to Boston, I was reading the map provided on Mary's screen, and telling Dad how to go, before Mary told him. The other occupants of the car found that funny, that I was still faster than Mary. When we got into Boston, she would tell us 'Turn right in point eight miles'. When you are measuring that in city blocks, it seems like a long time. Dad kept asking me 'now what?'. I still had to rely on her little map to assure him we were still on the right path. As we walked through Boston, Dad and I were scoping out how to get back onto the Interstate. Mary was stuffed in the console between the two front seats in the parking garage.
So while Mom & Dad now have Mary to keep them out of red light districts, I think I can be navigator any time I want. After all, when Mary's not telling you what to do, she has nothing to say. I carried on conversations with Dad. And Mary wouldn't be able to open a fireball and give it to Dad. Sometimes a computer just can't compete with a human.
My sister Laura has never been a very good navigator. She gets talking, or watching other people, and forgets to watch for signs. So that left me to be the navigator. If we were going someplace new, Dad and I would sit down with the atlas to scope out our route. If we were on a familiar road, and ran into construction or an accident, it was my job to find a way around. The atlas always went with us on road trips. Dad made sure I knew how to read a map, and how to use the scale on the map to determine distance. My navigator status was helped by the fact that I have always had a good sense of direction. I used to be able to go someplace once, and remember how to get there the next time. I still can do that to some extent, but not as well as I used to (living in Middletown, where everything is a circle, really screwed with my mind for a while).
As navigator, I had to sit in the front seat. It was also my job to talk to Dad and keep him awake, especially when we were driving at night. The navigator's job is to watch the road signs (especially when changing from one interstate to another), watch for rest areas, help Dad, talk to Dad, and make sure he had food, candy, and drinks.
When we left for Boston on Saturday, my BIL Andy programmed the address for the parking garage into the GPS, and off we went. Andy and Laura have named the GPS 'Mary'. Mary told us how to go, and it was kind of amusing as we drove through town. And she did get a bit annoying. Thankfully, however, once we got on I90, she was quiet because we had a couple hundred miles to go on I90. Mary, however, did not point out rest areas. So I still had the joy of turning around in the car and saying 'Who has to go?' . Haha! Mary doesn't like it when you veer off course. So for instance, when we pulled into a rest area, she had to recalculate. Mary, being a computer, never has to get out and stretch her legs or use the restroom. Her little chip brain has trouble understanding why we strayed off the path she chose for us. I imagined her giving an exasperated sigh when we got back into the car and resumed our trip.
As we got closer to Boston, I was reading the map provided on Mary's screen, and telling Dad how to go, before Mary told him. The other occupants of the car found that funny, that I was still faster than Mary. When we got into Boston, she would tell us 'Turn right in point eight miles'. When you are measuring that in city blocks, it seems like a long time. Dad kept asking me 'now what?'. I still had to rely on her little map to assure him we were still on the right path. As we walked through Boston, Dad and I were scoping out how to get back onto the Interstate. Mary was stuffed in the console between the two front seats in the parking garage.
So while Mom & Dad now have Mary to keep them out of red light districts, I think I can be navigator any time I want. After all, when Mary's not telling you what to do, she has nothing to say. I carried on conversations with Dad. And Mary wouldn't be able to open a fireball and give it to Dad. Sometimes a computer just can't compete with a human.
I'm Being Followed!
Last night I found out I do have readers! And tonight, I have followers!! I am so excited. Erich finds it rather amusing that I wanted people to read my blog. I suppose it is a little ironic. When I was a teenager, one of the most devastating things was if my mother, or even worse, my SISTER read my diary!!! (The most devastating thing was when I would get in trouble, and as punishment, mom would take away my hairspray! The horrors!) I would buy diaries with locks on them. I would hide the key in very creative places-sometimes I hid it so well I couldn't even find it! So I'd have to cut the strap that held the lock, which defeated the purpose. Then I switched to diaries that had a combination lock, which worked better. I have read those diaries in recent years, and I've got to tell you, there really wasn't anything in there to keep locked up.
Now I am happy people are reading my posts. Welcome to my world my friends! You've made my night! :)
Now I am happy people are reading my posts. Welcome to my world my friends! You've made my night! :)
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
How Cheez-It's are made
Have you seen the Cheez-it commercials? When a little child explains to an adult how Cheez-its are made? I don't remember all of them, but I know one had an over sized wedge of cheese that is dropped from high above onto a little cracker. Sydney explained to me how they were really made.
One day Sydney sang "God made the sun". Mom asked her "What else?"
Syd sang "God made the rain". Mom again asked "What else?". I knew there had to be a catch somewhere, Syd was going to say something either extremely cute or very funny.
Syd sang 'God made the flowers'. Mom asked 'What else?'
"God made the trees"
"What else?"
"God made the grains"
"What else?" Mom is smiling now, so I know we must be close.
"God made Cheez-its!" And Sydney burst out laughing. Mom laughed. I laughed. I asked Syd "God made Cheez-its?" Syd nodded her head solemnly. I told her "I did not know that." She said 'My teacher told me so".
Mom explained that it is a song Syd's teacher taught them. Syd then sang it all the way through, without prompting from mom. And at the end, God made Cheez-its.
When I told Erich the story, he asked if maybe it was God made Jesus. That is possible, since it is a Catholic pre-school. But all of the three year olds sing 'God made Cheez-its'. So now you know how they are really made.
One day Sydney sang "God made the sun". Mom asked her "What else?"
Syd sang "God made the rain". Mom again asked "What else?". I knew there had to be a catch somewhere, Syd was going to say something either extremely cute or very funny.
Syd sang 'God made the flowers'. Mom asked 'What else?'
"God made the trees"
"What else?"
"God made the grains"
"What else?" Mom is smiling now, so I know we must be close.
"God made Cheez-its!" And Sydney burst out laughing. Mom laughed. I laughed. I asked Syd "God made Cheez-its?" Syd nodded her head solemnly. I told her "I did not know that." She said 'My teacher told me so".
Mom explained that it is a song Syd's teacher taught them. Syd then sang it all the way through, without prompting from mom. And at the end, God made Cheez-its.
When I told Erich the story, he asked if maybe it was God made Jesus. That is possible, since it is a Catholic pre-school. But all of the three year olds sing 'God made Cheez-its'. So now you know how they are really made.
Getting Reaquainted
Sydney gets very excited when I am coming home. My mom, dad, and sister all tell me that she talks about Aunt Amy, and really looks forward to my visits. When I get there, she gets shy. She has come with mom to the airport several times to pick me up. She'll tell everyone she meets that her Aunt Amy is coming in on an airplane. But the moment she sees me, she hides behind my mom. She'll pull at mom, and walk around mom to stay as far away from me as possible. The first time she did this, I was a little hurt. Now I know it's just how she is, she has to warm up to me. Thankfully, the older she gets, the less time it takes her to warm up.
This time, we decided not to have her come to the airport. Mom told her we would pick her up at school. She was very excited that Aunt Amy was going to come to her school. We walked into her classroom, and she saw mom and ran to her. She saw me, and her eyes got really wide, she looked temporarily horrified, and she grabbed mom's leg. She buries her head in mom's leg, and is very careful not to look at me as we walk to the car. She got in the car and still wouldn't talk to me. She told mom she was hungry, and mom gave her a snack. As she started eating and we left the parking lot, she started talking. She still wouldn't say 'Aunt Amy'. Mom kept asking her 'who's here?' and she wouldn't say my name. But she talked. She chattered about different things that happened that day. We told her we were going to Target, and she said she liked shopping.
When we got to Target, mom told her to hold my hand while mom locked the car. She willingly took my hand, and I knew things were warming up. I furthered this when we got to the book section at Target, and she saw books she wanted. I offered to buy them, and she was very happy. By the time we got back in the car, she was bubbly and cute, and talking to Aunt Amy. She created stories about the books. When I stopped looking at her (because I was in the front seat, and craning my neck to look at her was painful), she said 'Aunt Amy....' and then told me something else. We were on the path, somewhere between being terrified of me and being my shadow.
I learned early that a good way to warm her up is to give her something. Ok, so it's a bribe. I had a little dress and stickers in my bag for her, and I let her open my bag to find them. She loves dresses, so I scored a lot of points with that. Once she has warmed up to me, she feels the need to show me things. She always wants to show me her room. Maybe she thinks I've forgotten what it looks like. She shows me her closet, and her dresser, and her toys. She pulls out books for me to read. She shows me her pictures (most of which are of my beagles). I think it is her way of getting reacquainted. She shows me things that are important to her. She showed me the nursery, and told me again that 'we're having a baby brother'.
And then, I knew she was no longer shy. She climbed up next to me on the couch, snuggled up, and played with stickers and books. She still wouldn't give me a hug or kiss, but she would get close to me. By the end of the weekend, she was my shadow. If I left her side for a minute, she called 'Aunt Amy....' until she saw me again. There is always an adjustment period- a time for her to warm up to the idea of me being right there rather than a voice on the phone. I am thankful that the warm up period has been cut down from a day to a few minutes as she has gotten older. Of course, I'll probably have to go through it all over again with her brother. Maybe, if he sees her coming to me quicker, he'll do the same.
This time, we decided not to have her come to the airport. Mom told her we would pick her up at school. She was very excited that Aunt Amy was going to come to her school. We walked into her classroom, and she saw mom and ran to her. She saw me, and her eyes got really wide, she looked temporarily horrified, and she grabbed mom's leg. She buries her head in mom's leg, and is very careful not to look at me as we walk to the car. She got in the car and still wouldn't talk to me. She told mom she was hungry, and mom gave her a snack. As she started eating and we left the parking lot, she started talking. She still wouldn't say 'Aunt Amy'. Mom kept asking her 'who's here?' and she wouldn't say my name. But she talked. She chattered about different things that happened that day. We told her we were going to Target, and she said she liked shopping.
When we got to Target, mom told her to hold my hand while mom locked the car. She willingly took my hand, and I knew things were warming up. I furthered this when we got to the book section at Target, and she saw books she wanted. I offered to buy them, and she was very happy. By the time we got back in the car, she was bubbly and cute, and talking to Aunt Amy. She created stories about the books. When I stopped looking at her (because I was in the front seat, and craning my neck to look at her was painful), she said 'Aunt Amy....' and then told me something else. We were on the path, somewhere between being terrified of me and being my shadow.
I learned early that a good way to warm her up is to give her something. Ok, so it's a bribe. I had a little dress and stickers in my bag for her, and I let her open my bag to find them. She loves dresses, so I scored a lot of points with that. Once she has warmed up to me, she feels the need to show me things. She always wants to show me her room. Maybe she thinks I've forgotten what it looks like. She shows me her closet, and her dresser, and her toys. She pulls out books for me to read. She shows me her pictures (most of which are of my beagles). I think it is her way of getting reacquainted. She shows me things that are important to her. She showed me the nursery, and told me again that 'we're having a baby brother'.
And then, I knew she was no longer shy. She climbed up next to me on the couch, snuggled up, and played with stickers and books. She still wouldn't give me a hug or kiss, but she would get close to me. By the end of the weekend, she was my shadow. If I left her side for a minute, she called 'Aunt Amy....' until she saw me again. There is always an adjustment period- a time for her to warm up to the idea of me being right there rather than a voice on the phone. I am thankful that the warm up period has been cut down from a day to a few minutes as she has gotten older. Of course, I'll probably have to go through it all over again with her brother. Maybe, if he sees her coming to me quicker, he'll do the same.
Home
I was gone for a few days recently. I went home to NY to visit my family for my birthday. My last few trips home have been direct flights. While the Dayton airport is closer to my house, I can get a direct flight out of Cincinnati- which makes the trip easier on my body, since I don't have to schlep through an airport. So I spend about $20 more, drive a little further, and two hours after I get on the plane, I step off in Albany.
The flight was uneventful. I did have a bit of an amusing moment at the security checkpoint. The woman ahead of me appeared to be well-to-do (expensive clothing & jewelry, hair that had that 'just stepped out of the salon' look). She was older; in her late sixties or early seventies. She noticed the full body scanners that Cincinnati recently started using, and asked the TSA agent 'what if I refuse to do that?'. The TSA agent, a burly woman that I wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley, said 'then I'll haul your ass into a private room and strip search you'. I stifled a giggle as the perturbed woman stepped into the scanner.
I always tear up when we land in Albany. I know it's silly. If it has been a particularly long time since I was there, it's an all out cry. This time it was just a few tears welling up in the eyes. Landing in Albany always brings happy tears. Even though Albany isn't 'home'. Home is about an hour east of Albany. Albany is my identifying marker. When people ask where I'm from, and I say 'NY State', Albany is the city I use as a reference. To non-NY'ers, when you say NY, they automatically think NY City. I started telling people 'NY State' and they said 'oh, like Dutchess County?' No- that's still technically NYC. Now I tell people 'Upstate NY'. To that, I get: "Buffalo?" "Syracuse?"
No. 'Near Albany'. People always ask what the name of the town is. As if they know it! There are people in Rensselaer County who do not know where Berlin is (I know this, because as a teenager I was at the Orthodontist in Troy, which is the county seat. The dental tech asked where I lived, and when I told her Berlin, she didn't know where that was. I had to explain it to her, and she was amazed it was in the same county). But still, I tell people Berlin (which is not pronounced like Berlin, Germany. Berlin, NY is pronounced with the emphasis on the first syllable). And I am not surprised when people stare at me blankly.
I have started telling them Berlin is in Eastern NY. If you look on a map where the states of NY, VT, and MA meet- if you were to put a pin at that location, that's Berlin. Wikipedia states the town of Berlin is 59.9 square miles and the 2000 census listed 1, 901 residents. When people talk about growing up in a small town of 6000 people, I just chuckle. Berlin is a very rural area. Our school district covers five towns, yet there were only 43 in my graduating class. My sister had 60 in her class, and that was one of the larger classes in many years. Even in times of prosperity throughout the country; Berlin always seems depressed. There were two main employers in town: Cowee's, which made a lot of wood products, and Seagroatt's; which grew roses. Cowee's used to be one of only two places in the world that made the green wooden floral picks used in floral arrangements. They also at one time, made wooden toys for Fisher Price- before wood was replaced by plastic made in China. In the past couple of years Cowee's has significantly reduced its' workforce, and Seagroatt's has shut down.
Berlin is a beautiful area, geographically. It sits in the Taconic Mountain Range, which lie between the Catskills to the south and the Adirondacks to the north. Part of the Appalachian Trail runs through the Taconics. Berlin Mountain (which is known as Macomber by the locals), is the Eastern border of the town. It is the highest peak in the county, and at 2818 feet, is the highest point in NY outside of the Adirondacks or the Catskills.
When you stand in Berlin, you are surrounded by mountains. No matter which direction you look, you see mountains. There are a lot of forests- dark, thick, lush forests full of evergreens, maples, oak, and ferns. Even on the sunniest and brightest day, you can look into the forest and all you see is darkness. There are parts of the forests that probably never see daylight. As you drive down the road, you see the gentle rolling mountains. The peaks are not as prominent and jagged as the Rockies. The Taconics are much older, so centuries of weathering have made them more round than sharp (and you thought I wasn't paying attention in Science class!). It is a very serene place.
I remember taking my ex husband home the first time. He spent all his life in Indiana, which is very flat. To him, the bank that led from the college campus to the Ohio River was a mountain. He was actually freaked out that you could see the shadows of the clouds on the mountains in NY. I had never really noticed it before, but I find it beautiful. I was once again reminded of the difference between the Midwest and the Northeast when I was telling Erich about driving, and as we started down the mountain, we'd shift the car into a lower gear so the engine will hold the car back without wearing out the brakes. He didn't understand the need for it, but for those of us who grew up in NY, it's just a given. You know just the point in the road that you have to gear down. If you gear down too early, the car will come to a stop. Gear down too late, and you've already built up too much momentum. I haven't driven those roads regularly for 15 years, but I still know the exact part of the curve below Old Maid's turn to gear down into low. Erich laughed and said 'I live in Ohio, we don't have to do that!'.
Naturally, with the dense forests and rural nature of Berlin, there is a lot of wildlife. Deer, foxes- sure! How about hanging out in your backyard! I'm talking Bears, Moose, mountain lions. When I was a teenager we had a bear in our garden. And Mom & Dad live in the village. Last year, one of the resident Moose was in the neighborhood (mom & dad weren't home to see it, but their neighbors told them about it).
Berlin is truly a beautiful place, but also a bit sad. There are some beautiful old buildings, but a lot are dilapidated too. The town used to be a railroad stop, and had quite a bit of industry. In my lifetime, it has been more of a 'has-been', which only seems to have gotten worse in the past few years. I noticed this time when I was home that there would be a house that was abandoned (or a barn, or some other structure), and the trees were already covering it. I imagine in another few years the earth will have claimed these places, and you will never know anything stood there. In urban areas, when you have vacant or abandoned buildings, it is a blight, an eyesore. But in the country, the grass will grow up first, then weeds will grow from the high grass, then trees will sprout, and the forest will reclaim the land. All that will be left are the memories of those who remember when this house or that store stood there. Oh, I'm sure any metal will leech into the earth, it's not a completely green process. And it does not happen instantly. The places that are forests now were wide open fields when my grandfather was a boy in the 1920s. But I was amazed at places that I remember from my youth; which now stand covered with trees. The process has already started. There was something very poetic about the whole thing.
Every time I go home, I tell myself I need to take pictures of the area. Then I get so busy doing things with the family, seeing all the people I need to see, that I run out of time. I must make an effort in October to take time and take pictures. We may have been hicks or hillbillies, but I was truly blessed to grow up in such a beautiful, natural place.
The flight was uneventful. I did have a bit of an amusing moment at the security checkpoint. The woman ahead of me appeared to be well-to-do (expensive clothing & jewelry, hair that had that 'just stepped out of the salon' look). She was older; in her late sixties or early seventies. She noticed the full body scanners that Cincinnati recently started using, and asked the TSA agent 'what if I refuse to do that?'. The TSA agent, a burly woman that I wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley, said 'then I'll haul your ass into a private room and strip search you'. I stifled a giggle as the perturbed woman stepped into the scanner.
I always tear up when we land in Albany. I know it's silly. If it has been a particularly long time since I was there, it's an all out cry. This time it was just a few tears welling up in the eyes. Landing in Albany always brings happy tears. Even though Albany isn't 'home'. Home is about an hour east of Albany. Albany is my identifying marker. When people ask where I'm from, and I say 'NY State', Albany is the city I use as a reference. To non-NY'ers, when you say NY, they automatically think NY City. I started telling people 'NY State' and they said 'oh, like Dutchess County?' No- that's still technically NYC. Now I tell people 'Upstate NY'. To that, I get: "Buffalo?" "Syracuse?"
No. 'Near Albany'. People always ask what the name of the town is. As if they know it! There are people in Rensselaer County who do not know where Berlin is (I know this, because as a teenager I was at the Orthodontist in Troy, which is the county seat. The dental tech asked where I lived, and when I told her Berlin, she didn't know where that was. I had to explain it to her, and she was amazed it was in the same county). But still, I tell people Berlin (which is not pronounced like Berlin, Germany. Berlin, NY is pronounced with the emphasis on the first syllable). And I am not surprised when people stare at me blankly.
I have started telling them Berlin is in Eastern NY. If you look on a map where the states of NY, VT, and MA meet- if you were to put a pin at that location, that's Berlin. Wikipedia states the town of Berlin is 59.9 square miles and the 2000 census listed 1, 901 residents. When people talk about growing up in a small town of 6000 people, I just chuckle. Berlin is a very rural area. Our school district covers five towns, yet there were only 43 in my graduating class. My sister had 60 in her class, and that was one of the larger classes in many years. Even in times of prosperity throughout the country; Berlin always seems depressed. There were two main employers in town: Cowee's, which made a lot of wood products, and Seagroatt's; which grew roses. Cowee's used to be one of only two places in the world that made the green wooden floral picks used in floral arrangements. They also at one time, made wooden toys for Fisher Price- before wood was replaced by plastic made in China. In the past couple of years Cowee's has significantly reduced its' workforce, and Seagroatt's has shut down.
Berlin is a beautiful area, geographically. It sits in the Taconic Mountain Range, which lie between the Catskills to the south and the Adirondacks to the north. Part of the Appalachian Trail runs through the Taconics. Berlin Mountain (which is known as Macomber by the locals), is the Eastern border of the town. It is the highest peak in the county, and at 2818 feet, is the highest point in NY outside of the Adirondacks or the Catskills.
When you stand in Berlin, you are surrounded by mountains. No matter which direction you look, you see mountains. There are a lot of forests- dark, thick, lush forests full of evergreens, maples, oak, and ferns. Even on the sunniest and brightest day, you can look into the forest and all you see is darkness. There are parts of the forests that probably never see daylight. As you drive down the road, you see the gentle rolling mountains. The peaks are not as prominent and jagged as the Rockies. The Taconics are much older, so centuries of weathering have made them more round than sharp (and you thought I wasn't paying attention in Science class!). It is a very serene place.
I remember taking my ex husband home the first time. He spent all his life in Indiana, which is very flat. To him, the bank that led from the college campus to the Ohio River was a mountain. He was actually freaked out that you could see the shadows of the clouds on the mountains in NY. I had never really noticed it before, but I find it beautiful. I was once again reminded of the difference between the Midwest and the Northeast when I was telling Erich about driving, and as we started down the mountain, we'd shift the car into a lower gear so the engine will hold the car back without wearing out the brakes. He didn't understand the need for it, but for those of us who grew up in NY, it's just a given. You know just the point in the road that you have to gear down. If you gear down too early, the car will come to a stop. Gear down too late, and you've already built up too much momentum. I haven't driven those roads regularly for 15 years, but I still know the exact part of the curve below Old Maid's turn to gear down into low. Erich laughed and said 'I live in Ohio, we don't have to do that!'.
Naturally, with the dense forests and rural nature of Berlin, there is a lot of wildlife. Deer, foxes- sure! How about hanging out in your backyard! I'm talking Bears, Moose, mountain lions. When I was a teenager we had a bear in our garden. And Mom & Dad live in the village. Last year, one of the resident Moose was in the neighborhood (mom & dad weren't home to see it, but their neighbors told them about it).
Berlin is truly a beautiful place, but also a bit sad. There are some beautiful old buildings, but a lot are dilapidated too. The town used to be a railroad stop, and had quite a bit of industry. In my lifetime, it has been more of a 'has-been', which only seems to have gotten worse in the past few years. I noticed this time when I was home that there would be a house that was abandoned (or a barn, or some other structure), and the trees were already covering it. I imagine in another few years the earth will have claimed these places, and you will never know anything stood there. In urban areas, when you have vacant or abandoned buildings, it is a blight, an eyesore. But in the country, the grass will grow up first, then weeds will grow from the high grass, then trees will sprout, and the forest will reclaim the land. All that will be left are the memories of those who remember when this house or that store stood there. Oh, I'm sure any metal will leech into the earth, it's not a completely green process. And it does not happen instantly. The places that are forests now were wide open fields when my grandfather was a boy in the 1920s. But I was amazed at places that I remember from my youth; which now stand covered with trees. The process has already started. There was something very poetic about the whole thing.
Every time I go home, I tell myself I need to take pictures of the area. Then I get so busy doing things with the family, seeing all the people I need to see, that I run out of time. I must make an effort in October to take time and take pictures. We may have been hicks or hillbillies, but I was truly blessed to grow up in such a beautiful, natural place.
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