Self-Interests and Sweaty Socks

A major decision was to be made at our house last week. All parties had evident self-interests at play.

• When one member of your family has suffered a traumatic brain injury, he may tend to be cautious about certain aspects of child safety.
• When one member of your family is primarily in charge of putting children to sleep, she may tend towards keeping children in their cages, I mean cribs, for longer.
• When one member of your family shares a room with his sister, he might see this as the long awaited opportunity to also share a bed.
• When one member of your family is tired, she doesn't care where you put her to sleep.
  

That being said, one fall out of the crib was one time too many at our house, so say goodbye to one more piece of childhood:



Nope, it won't go lower than that. The crib Owen had lasted much longer, but it was left behind in Fresno to a dear friend. This second-hand crib is now dismantled on the porch. Any takers?

It's been a week since the dismantling. I'll confess to doubting June's readiness (15 months?!), but after a few days of catching her asleep at the door or off the mattress, she's figured out that the bed is a lot more cozy than apartment grade carpet...or brother's pee pee sheets.



Yes, these are the pee-pee sheets that were in that black hamper awaiting their laundering. Oh, and those are also his sweaty socks. You see, some mothers perfume their child's sheets so that their child will be comforted by their scent. Evidently, June misses Owen so much while he's at kindergarten, that she too must find some remnant of him to cuddle with. Maybe this is a sign that I need to bathe Owen more often if eau de sweat socks and urine is his signature perfume. BLECH!


Even Hello Kitty rolled over in disgust! But I say, sleep on sister!

As for me, it's naptime here, so I'm off to do some laundry.

For those concerned: we will be covering up the electrical sockets soon and getting a bed frame for Christmas. :)

3 Cheers for Pre-Arranged Friendships

My east Indian neighbor and I had a conversation recently about my love-match and her arranged-match. She had questions about how Michael and I met, our wedding, and how our families got along. I wondered if she did the traditional week-long wedding and how her family knew his. All that to say this, I'm all for arrangements. For example, here are Owen and June with their arranged friendships.



Now, Casen may not be thrilled by the idea and Keaton is hiding his head in shame, but Owen seems delighted with the arrangement and June is looking longingly at my best friend's boys. You will all be friends, like it or lump it.

June, chillin' in Abilene with her boys.


I put another one in just so you could see that Keaton isn't so upset about the idea. And in Casen's defense, he doesn't always wear a helmet to swing. Sometimes it's difficult to decide to swing or to bike; leaving the helmet on gives you options. He's clever like that.



Speaking of helmets, who can come to our house without putting on the Darth Vader helmet? You have an open invitation to come over and test your will power, but I warn you, "Your powers are weak."


Casen and Owen dual it out.


Victory!!



Crazy girl! Walked 6 steps this week and crawled (fell?) out of her crib. We are on the move and going to level orange on baby proofing the house.

How Did That Happen?

How did that happen? #1

PBS: said something about being an American
Owen: chortle
Mom: What's so funny? You're an American.
Owen: No I'm not. I'm a Texan.

For my non-Texan friends, we don't intentionally teach them these things...they just know.

How did that happen? #2

Ten years of being married to this guy:


To be fair, he was following through on his disc golf shot in this picture. No, don't call it Frisbee golf...that would imply that it's a juvenile hobby.

Seriously, 10 years?

How did that happen? #3
We hadn't been away as a couple more than one night since Owen was born (that's 5.5 years!).
So, for our 10 year anniversary, we took a road trip down to San Antonio.

Thank you to Priceline hotels and a compassionate concierge for a great stay at the Emily Morgan Hotel, right across the street from this beloved Texas landmark:


That's the hotel (with the flag flying at the top):

We caught up on movies, went to Schlitterbahn, went disc golfing, and ate so much that I couldn't button my shorts on the last day. Let the workouts resume, I mean, begin!

My main squeeze and I out on the course.

Me, the night of our best meal in a LONG LONG time.

A filet with a chimichurri, fried plantains, deep fried jalapenos, and shoestring potatoes.

I'm so spoiled, I know. Here's to less than 5 years before the next big trip!