We are officially Iced in thanks to Winter Storm Titan. Sounds pretty official, that storm's handle. There's been Thunder Sleet galore, which is quite literally 'freak of nature' weather. I'm not overly bummed by the shut down this thing is causing though because, selfishly, it means my best friend gets to hang out here all day with us. (I'm talking about my husband.) Ask me again in a few days after we've dwindled through our beer and wine stash and are fed up with entertaining our guys (who by the way are hilarious and spirited and, well, they're pretty loud) and I may be whistling (likely grumping) a different tune. But for now we are in the honeymoon phase of Winter Storm life and luckily, we got out and did a little Saturday exploring yesterday.
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| picking the perfect rock, there were many a rocks kerplunked |
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In other happenings
I heard a little voice say, "owww," yesterday afternoon and looked over to find Loukas strangling himself with my purse. Obviously, he wasn't legit strangling because he could talk, but it looked like he had bent forward with the three foot strap of my leather messenger bag around his neck and maybe spun the purse around and around until the strap tightened around this neck. He was trying to free himself and became entangled and was all kinds of confused. What the heck, kids?! This was not a true emergency or anything, but I couldn't help but dwell on the what ifs.
Truth be told, I'm a bit of an over... um, how do you say? Aware? Parent.
In the 90s, I was glutton for the punishment of that medical re-dramatization show "Rescue 9-11" hosted by William Shatner. I probably shouldn't have watched it, and my Mom probably only let me because I probably begged her to let me. Now, every time my kids are under my feet while starting a load of laundry I think of the little girl who nearly drown in her parents' washing machine after falling in headfirst. I'm a little embarrassed that I referenced a case from the show at a baby bookworm gathering at our public library when Loukas was baby- about twenty years after seeing the episode. A Mom telling me she liked to give her child a toothbrush to walk around with and chew on for teething got an ear full about that one time on 9-11 when the toddler fell while running with his tooth brush, lodging the thing in his soft palate. Don't even get me started on the leaving the kids in the car thing. Death due to overheating in vehicles is the number one reason why my kids have not been in the car with many people other than my husband and me. I'll probably never see my kids off without reminding their care taker to not leave them in a hot car. I'll laugh a little and point my air guns and wink and it'll seem like a joke, but- no. Seriously.
Life comes down to seconds and inches. Seconds and inches can be huge.
It has taken 4 years of (s)mothering and lot of shot nerves to come to a point where I can begin to try to navigate the idea of possibly probably trying to ease up on the what ifs. I'll let you know how that goes.
The funny thing is that I've had two babies at home, and rarely take my kids to see a physician. I don't consider myself a total spaz- I'm not one to gasp and rush-to and cry along with my children when they fall or injure themselves. They shouldn't have to be responsible for my emotions in their moments of need. Sure, I've panicked- I've felt my blood pressure rise and stomach drop and have had those moments where your ears feel full, deafened by the sound of your pounding heart while you tremble and you are still while you hold your child but mind is racing trying assess what to do next. I usually keep it together and consider myself a pretty even-keeled person despite the catalog of random dramatic freak medical emergencies from 1990s t.v. episodes that my brain has decided to hang on to despite not being about to recall details from last week. The Mind is a strange place.
Yesterday afternoon's purse strapping ultimately provided an excellent segue to approach the topic of wrapping things around one's neck. I was glad I was standing right there, at the same time I'm astonished at how these things happen so quickly and how nutty parenting feels at times. I'm finding myself relating to ole
Harold Weir of Freaks and Geeks, "You know what happened to him?" "He Died," schtick.
In Summation: Jeez.
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How about some color and happy to finish this guy out
Happy Slices of Life from this week:
1-5/ Bright-Cheery Nooks of our Home
6&7/ Afternoon Tea with my First Born
8/ Mid-week Impromptu Barefoot picnic in the Winter Sun
9/ Favorite Snap this week, Second Born on his little Perch
10/ Peachy Sunset Clouds
Happy Week to You, folks.
xo
