Me: Danny, what’s wrong.
Danny: First it is so hot in this house, then it’s freezing. Then it’s hot again. I feel like a menopausal woman!
I love that boy!
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under conversations, danny
Ok, so I am a mom and I like to think in these terms. But this post is more than just a matriacentric (yeh I think I made that word up) view of the world as I see it in terms of my own mothering.
First, you should know that the beautifully manicured hand pointing to that shirt would be that of my mom. The full mom is in the original picture but I was afraid she might be a little shy about being featured here. Those who know her would recognize that hand anywhere.
So there hangs this cute little shirt in an equally cute little shop in Delray Beach. I am sure many a mommy (or maternal grandmommy) wanders into that shop to purchase this item and clothe some sweet little baby in it before they are old enough to have a say in what clothing they will wear (in the case of my daughter that would be by the time she was two!) My mom noticed it and we took a picture to send to my daughter. I am sure her response was something like ‘Aw, Gram!”
So what makes this Time to Cry Tuesday worthy. Well, just the way my daughter says “Aw, Gram!” is a start. Or the fact that we moms so often take the heat for what is wrong with our kids, I felt it was time to praise the idea of what we do right. Face it, we are accused of being overprotective (ahem, cough cough, Gary and Danny accusing me of that just yesterday), helicoptering, nagging, being the heavy, the number one culprit for all that is wrong in the lives of our adult children– as in all therapists blaming the mothers (exactly why don’t the fathers get the blame in therapy?)
This post is dedicated to and in recognition of all the fabulous moms in my life. Mine, my husband’s, both of whom I have been so very fortunate to have been able to share my adult life with – there is never a day I take that for granted. And all of my mommy friends who have been in the mothering trenches with me for the past (almost) 21 years. There is much truth in that silly little shirt. If you were raised by a woman who always put you first (as I was) or you know what it feels like to mother a child and how you would throw yourself in front of a bus for them – for real, you understand that it really is (kinda) all about your mother.
It is hard to explain the joys of motherhood. The best thing I can say is that without it my life would never have been so full. Colors would have been a little less bright. Things simply would not have tasted the same. Laughter would not have been as hearty and tears would not have been so sorrowful.
In short: Life, it’s all about your mother. (oh and of course your dad too)
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under danny, family, Jana, Time to Cry Tuesdays
Danny and I were behind this car the other day and could not agree on what it meant.
I think it meant Girls 24/7, perhaps with a pimp driving. Or maybe a Tiger Woods type.
But Danny? He thought it meant Girls 2,4 and 7. As if this was a mom’s car and she had three daughters that were 2, 4 and 7.
Now, does anyone else find it concerning that the mom thinks pimpmobile and the 17-year-old boy thinks mom-mobile?
I will put this out to the crowd. Please vote on this and help end the discussion.
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under carry a camera, danny, license plates
File this under I am pretty sure my son will need therapy after being parented by the likes of us.
Dinner conversation:
Gary: Danny if I was an oby/gyn I would let you come in the delivery room.
Danny: Oh greeeeaaaat. (lots of eye rolling)
Me: That’s lovely. Would the tagline on your business card be ‘Hey Nanny Nanny is my bi-nuss’?
Gary: No, but Hey Nanny Nanny would definitely be my license plate.
(Judy, just a quick question, does anyone in your practice refer to it as the Hey Nanny Nanny? And if yes, do they have it on their license plate?)
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under absurdities, advice to my son, conversations, danny, family, humor, license plates
Seems that this is a monumental week in our household. As Jana is packing to leave for her semester abroad, young Daniel made the big announcement at dinner tonight. Friends, it would appear I will spend the next four years continuing to book flights from the midwest and cheering on the Badgers.
Danny boy is going to Wisconsin in the fall.
The upside for me is no learning curve. I already know the ropes and maybe after 7 years I will finally have enough points on Midwest for a free flight.
UW Madison will continue to be the single largest holder of our family’s income for a little while longer.
Congrats to my boy and may you enjoy the rest of your senior year knowing where you will be in the fall.
Now about that empty nest…
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
You have to love a street artist with a sense of humor. Great marketing, this guy really broke the clutter on a strip in New Orleans where you couldn’t walk down the street without tripping over people trying to draw your portrait. (and psychics, more street psychics per square block than I have ever seen).
In case you can’t read the small type on the top sign under “Ugly People One Dollar Extra”, it reads “So Hurry – Get your caricature NOW (before the UGLY sets in).
Now the butt sketch? It was tempting. And with the way my boy wears his pants these days he would only have to lift his shirt for them to get a full view.
This is my kind of town!
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under absurdities, art, body image, college touring, danny, travel
Teacup pigs have become all the rage lately and I am not going to lie, I sort of want one. How damn cute is this little thing? I decided to do a little research on them before I ran out and brought home another heartbeat to my house.
I learned these are not like teacup poodles. These critters can actually grow anywhere from 25-60 llbs. Hmmm, that could be like the size of my dog. Hey cute as a little piggy but getting a bit slovenly when tipping the scales at 60.
When I told Danny that I wanted one who told me he would feel kind of bad eating bacon in front of it. So we did a little more research and have decided to get a miniature horse instead.
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under absurdities, danny, humor, pets
These days we take for granted the ease in which we document and share our memories. With digital cameras, smartphones and flip video we can share a moment in real-time with our entire network of friends and family without giving it much thought. Our children do not know a time when photos and videos were not shared before the sun rose on another day.
But back in 1974, just one lone Yale film student was cool enough to have a Super 8 camera at the summer camp I have written about so lovingly before. And that super(8), cool guy just happened to be my husband’s co-counselor and dear friend. As luck would have it, this Time to Cry Tuesday happens to be his birthday. So, Steve, this one is for you.
After thirty-five years, most probably buried in a box at his parent’s house, Steve uncovered an artifact like no other. The very Super 8 film that he shot in the summer of 1974. He burned a bunch of DVDs of that most incredible piece of history and shipped it back east to those of us that he knew would love it the most. Thanks to Dr. Jimmy as courier, we are now in possession of a copy of these 55 precious minutes from the past.
For those who have not read my gushing posts about this very special sleepaway camp, it is a place where 3 generations of my family have attended (yes, my mom went there). So did my husband, his siblings, my cousin as well as both our kids. The friends we made there are counted amongst some of our closest friends today, and their children are friends with ours. Ok, so my daughter’s boyfriend is the son of one of them, too. There it is all out in the open. One big happy family.
We watched this amazing footage with our son the other night. His love for the place is as strong as ours. And there, in silence as there was no soundtrack on Super 8, were the younger versions of ourselves and people we have known for all these years. To see the place in action, as it was back then, was such a gift. Not just to ourselves, but to our son as well. He hears the stories and knows the way we feel about the place, but for him to see that history come to life was such a joy. There we were, his age! Seeing not what has changed so much as what has remained exactly the same – the essence of the place. The traditions. The love. The complete and utter freedom to just BE. And do it with passion.
This young man of a generation that documents every move it makes stopped and sat in awe of a generation that was so very lucky to have that one lone Yale film student who took the time to painstakingly piece together that carefree summer for all eternity. In his own words:
I can’t believe it’s been hidden as if in the Grateful Dead vault for 35 years. But as that was my last summer of camp, it’s frozen in time for me there. I remember the fall of ’74… I spent three months cutting the thin little slivers of Regular 8 film on a tiny film viewer and splicing them together with tape.
Thank you, dear birthday boy, for giving us all back that magical summer, and letting us share it with our children.
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visitLeaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under camp, danny, freindship, gary, Jana, Time to Cry Tuesdays
My mother in law called this morning, “Don’t you dare shovel”, she said.
Then my mom called, “Please don’t shovel”, she said.
Me? Oh I am a big shot. I LOVE shoveling. The cold crisp air, the dogs running around, the neighbors being all neighborly. Yeh, one big happy group out there shoveling away, throwing balls for the dogs and snowballs with the kids. (note the heartbreakingly adorable picture of my dog)
Well hear me now world. THAT WAS THE LAST TIME I SHOVEL.
Dinner conversation:
Me: I am pretty sure I am having a heart attack.
Gary: Nah, I am pretty sure you pulled a muscle, that is what manual labor feels like.
Me: What do you know from manual labor? Tennis is NOT manual labor.
Danny: He uses the leaf blower.
Me: (after 20 years of refusing to agree to this) Ok, go buy a snowblower. And make sure it is a big-ass one and gas powered.
I suppose there are times in all our lives where we have to start to realize our limitations and adjust our behaviors. I can rock n roll with the best of them, but the snow shoveling, not so much. And hey, it’s not like giving up something that is all that pleasurable.
Now you will excuse me while I go crawl up to bed with my cardiologist on speed dial (just in case).
(kidding moms! seriously that was just for effect. i am fine, really)
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under conversations, current events, danny, gary, health, humor
My mom found this the other day. I think Danny wrote it in 4th grade. (you gotta love the illustration!)
One would expect a little brother, three years junior to his sister, would idolize her at that age and write something sweet like this. But what got me as I read this was how close they have become now that they are grown. Not just siblings, they are truly friends who always have each other’s back.
‘I hope you be with me till the day I die’
And that, my friends, is a hell of a way to start Thanksgiving. Welcome home Jana-girl – nothing like everyone sleeping in their own beds!
Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at 50-Something Moms Blog. For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.
Filed under danny, family, friendship, holidays, Jana, Time to Cry Tuesdays
i could cry but i don't have time 