Where Does The Time Go?

Where does the time go? I remember hearing both my parents say that when I was younger. I never understood what they meant. What do you mean where did it go? The days seemed long, and the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas was the longest time period in history! There was always time to play and ride my bike and hang out. With time left to be bored. Now, I would give anything to have another 6-8 hours in the day. Alas, there will always be 24 hours in a day. Now I need to figure out how to make the most of my 24 hours. Well, let's start with sleep. A very necessary part of the day. That takes up 7-8 hours. Then we have making meals, chores, work, driving back and forth to school, throw in a few hours for family time and, well, we're pretty much done. In a perfect world, I would go to bed at 10:00pm and fall right to sleep. Get up at 6:00am, have coffee on the deck or porch and take the dog for a walk. At 6:30 Jake would get up when called, fix his own breakfast and be ready for school by 7:30. Then I would get my computer time done and start work. By noon, I would have completed an insane amount of work, have a healthy lunch, finish up some household chores and start dinner at 5:00, eat at 6:00 and spend the rest of the evening with my family. WOW, that would be fantastic. But that is not my reality. I stay up late, get up early, drive car pool, run a business and run a household. There never seems to be time. So this morning I changed up my routine. After Jake left for school, I took my coffee and went outside in the back yard. I just sat there. I heard the birds singing and watched as a few came to the feeder. There was a mockingbird taking a bath, a heron flew over the house. There were people jogging and walking their dogs. We waved to each other and I thought about the fact that these were neighbors I really didn't know. People don't take the time to get to know each other, we run from here to there and always have more things on the to do list than hours to do them. I hope to change my ways this summer. I want to sit and watch. Observe what happens in my corner of the world. I hope that you too will take a bit of time and see what is happening right outside your back door. Have fun and take care!

Ditched at Sea!

This past summer we took a Caribbean cruise. It was very nice. We were on the Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas. That ship was huge! We were very impressed by the size of everything on the ship. We were on the 8th deck and there still was a lot of ship above us. Besides having a baby pool, splash pool, adult pool, regular pool and several jacuzzis, there was putt putt, rock climbing, wave riding and ice skating. Add in the theater where they played movies and broadway type shows, night clubs, teen clubs, and the casino, there was something going on the entire time we were on board. When we went to Alaska, we did a bunch of family things. Played games, watched movies or just watched the scenery as it glided by. There were mostly "mature" people on the Alaskan cruise. This time was very different. There was a teen club that actually had teens in it. There were kids everywhere. All ages, sizes, countries were represented. In the afternoon, there would be a parade of little ones through the shopping area. They would be dressed in that days arts and craft. It was always amusing to see them strut through smiling and waving at everyone. The group that seemed to vanish was the 12-14 group. We left on Sunday, by Monday afternoon we had been ditched. That's right. Jake would get up and walk with us to breakfast at 9:30 or 10:00. One of his new friends would materialize out of nowhere and mention that a group of them would be at that table over there. As Jake melted into the crowd, we would yell out a time and place to check in. By Tuesday I was hearing names like, Jordan, Justin, Cameron, Matt, Jasmine...countries like Norway, Germany, and Canada. Once is awhile there would be a glimpse of a teenager. Wed. we set some rules. Jake must eat one meal a day with us, dinner. Attending the after dinner show was optional, but we would like his company. That night after dinner, Jake said he would meet us at the theater entrance. He showed up on time, with four of his buddies in tow. That was when we realized that Jordan was female and from Orange County. Technically he did attend the show with us. He just didn't sit anywhere near us. Usually on the other side of the theater! There were activities planned for the teenagers from 10:00am-1:00am. This was time to let him have some space. What could happen? There is always the he could fall overboard thought, but we were confident that Jake would not put himself in any danger and as far as we know, he didn't. Jake had a taste of "freedom" during that cruise. He met all kinds of kids and he is still in touch with a few of them. The Freedom of the Seas gave Jake a taste of independence. It gave Lee and I a look of what's  to come. Being ditched. If you have to be ditched by your kid, it's nice that he did it on a cruise ship that had all kinds of fun things to do, for everyone!! Take Care!

The end is near!

Yes, the end is near, of summer that is. I cannot believe that it is the end of August already. As far as I'm concerned it's the beginning of June! School just let out and we have hot, sunny, lazy days ahead of us. Which we did, two months ago. How time flies! When I was younger, it seemed like summer lasted FOREVER! I spent my summers on my bike. I'd ride "uptown"Bright and meet my friends at Jot Em Down or Rencks store. We'd get a can of pop, sometimes it would be frozen, then off we'd go. We would then ride the loop, which took us through Logan, down Mt. Plesant and then back up Sneakville to Bright. There were no bike trails then. We rode on the road, up and down hills, and waved at all the cars as they went by. It took a couple of hours and we had a great time. We had no video games or air conditioning to keep us inside. The world was different then. I can't say that it was better, just different. I would love for Jake to be outside more, instead of laying on the couch glued to TV/iPad/PS3. But I also can't blame him for laying on the couch in a nice air conditioned room when it's 90* with 80% humidity. I would have loved that too. Add in allergies and I'm right there on the couch with him. Maybe that's what happened. I laid down on the couch and went into a TV coma. It started in June and ended the end of August. I know we went on vacation, I'll tell you that story later, and I started my business, it's just all a blur! Now, this coming weekend is Labor Day. The official end of summer weekend. The WEBN fireworks will happen on Sunday. The family will get together several times over the weekend for pool parties. The evenings will become cooler as will the mornings. It's already started. The mornings are brisk, I love that. I can sit outside with my coffee and enjoy the cool air, in my mind. In reality I am getting breakfast, packing lunches and driving the car pool. Yes, the end is near. Next year I will take a bit more time to enjoy summer! I hope that you created some wonderful moments this summer, there are more to come! Take Care!!

Happy Easter

Today is Easter Sunday. Probably the holiest day of the Christian faith. I was raised Lutheran, and even though we didn't attend church on a regular basis, we did on Easter. When I was little Mom would get me a hat. Everyone had Easter hats. In church you couldn't see over all the hats. All sizes and shapes! It was all very colorful. As I have gotten older, my religious views have slightly changed. I guess it is from working in hospitals for years. Science has a way of changing the way you look at the world. Those are thoughts and feelings for another time, today is Easter. The real Easter is that Christ died for us, and then rose to heaven to be with God. I am really not sure when the bunny, basket, eggs etc. came into the picture. It seems like every holiday has some sort of commercial side. I should look it up and see when that all started. There is usually something innocent in the beginning, then it blooms into something very big. I'll let you know what I find in a later post. For most Christians this morning will have a sunrise service, probably in the rain, the traditional egg hunt, and usually a pot luck lunch. Kids will find their colorful Easter Basket full of candy, stuffed toys and maybe a small gift or two. When Jake was little, he loved looking in his Easter basket and going through what he had. When I was young, my brother would always pick out the black jelly beans. Now you can buy bags of just black jelly beans, it's kind of sad. It was fun going through all the colors. One of the things that hasn't changed is that families get together on Easter. It's another occasion that finds people gathering for a reason. Usually we eat ham, why? This year we are going in a different direction and having ribs and chicken. It's not that we don't like ham, it's just that we wanted a change. No matter, it will still feel like Easter. There will be baskets for the kids, colorful eggs, only this year they are chocolate, and the family will be together. We should really try an celebrate like this more often. The old fashioned family dinner. If you celebrate Easter, Happy Easter and I hope you find the golden egg! Take Care!

Happy Birthday Jake!!

 Jake at 3!

Jake at 13!

13 years ago we welcomed our son Jacob Adam Lautman into the world. It was a Tuesday, the weather was warm and clear, I had a C-section scheduled at 9:00am. At 9:12, he arrived, all 7 lbs. 21 inches of him. I remember looking over at the table where they were cleaning him up, and I noticed his feet. They looked just like Lees. They both have a space between the big toe and the one next to it. Then I remember feeling very tired. The next thing I knew, I was in recovery. I remember seeing my parents and in laws, then falling back to sleep. I woke up in my room, with everyone there. In the afternoon, I got a call from a former neighbor, Susan Farnham. She had delivered her third boy the day before. She was describing eating a sandwich after giving birth to Steven, via natural child birth. I couldn't eat anything because of the surgery. It was wonderful to hear from her and I wished that she still lived next door instead of moving to Cleveland. As the day moved on, we had many visitors. My brother Greg was coaching at U.C. at the time, he called in the evening and asked if he would still be able to come after a spring football camp. I said sure, come on down, I had no idea what the visiting hours were. He ended up talking himself into the hospital at 11:00pm. The day only has a few clear memories for me. I found out why the next day. I had a "bleeder" after Jake was born and lost 1/2 my blood volume. That would explain why all I wanted to do was sleep! We spent the next few days in the hospital. The day we went home it was raining. Jake screamed all the way to the car. He wasn't happy, but as soon as we  buckled him into his seat, he was quiet. Jake was a very good baby. He was happy, slept 6 1/2 hours a night at 10 weeks and smiled often. Now that he is a teenager, he is back to sleeping 6 1/2 hours a night. He likes to stay up and isn't really a morning person. I hope he is happy, he seems to be. He smiles, but not always showing his teeth, but he does laugh easily. This creature that is a teenager is new to us. We are now entering a new phase of life. He will become more independent. We will need to learn to let him fall. He will change more physically and emotionally than he will ever imagine, and we will have to learn to let go. It's a bittersweet time. No longer a little boy, not yet a man. One thing will not change, he will always be my son. I hope that we sail through these changing tides with little storms. I am sure that we will face a hurricane or two, but we'll just batten down the family and move through them. That is what you do isn't it? Take care!

She's a G.E.M.

Here is the reason I haven't posted lately. Meet Lily. Lily is now 10 weeks old. Lily is a Goldendoodle. Her mother was a Golden Retriever and her father was a miniature Poodle. She is what we call, a Genetically Engineered Mutt, G.E.M. Yes, the world shall soon be over run with these GEMs. There is nothing wrong with a pure bred dog. I think that people want something different, so they came up with hybrids, designer dogs, or GEMS. As humans, we always want to see what would happen if we changed something. We want to know what makes something work, what would happen if we mixed these ingredients together. That is what makes big companies like P & G so successful. We mess with stuff to create other stuff. It is the same thing in the dog world. There are dog allergies. What would happen if we bred these low shed dogs with other dogs and create a new type of dog. Now, with Lily, the poodle side of her has the soft wavy coat, no shed, intelligence and love of family. The golden side of her has the buff color, easily trained, longer coat, love of family. That is what is expected of this mix. That may not be what you get. So far, we know that Lily loves us. She loves being around the family. She is working on training us more than we are training her. She is showing some signs of intelligence, but mostly she is showing signs of selective hearing. She will come, when she wants to. She will stop doing something she shouldn't when she is done doing it. She knows who will give her treats, and who she can bully. Jake has't gotten use to her yet. He is gone most of the day, and when he is home she feels the need to bite his feet. He then runs from her and puts his feet up yelling for somebody to get the dog. I must admit it is funny seeing a 5'8", 130 lb. boy running from a 10", 7 lb. puppy. Beside that entertainment factor, I also love seeing my husband yell every time the dog looks like she is going to squat. This could be just to sit down. The dog makes this move, Lee jumps up and yells outside! This makes her wag her tail and run in a circle, growling. Yes, she is training us well. I have read that having a dog will extend your life. You will have unconditional love. I think that it makes a person feel needed. We need to take care of something. We need to have that feeling of reward that we helped something in this lifetime. The dog takes care of that need. I hope that you have something to care for, and someone to care for you. Take Care!

Backseat Driver

We were all excited when we got our drivers license. In the 70's when I got my license, the requirement was a two week class I took in the summer, then on your 16th birthday you got your drivers license. Now there are a lot more requirements. Before you turn 16 you start taking classes, then you have so many hours of driving at night, during the day, with someone over 25, with and without passengers. It all seems so complicated. It could all be so simple. Just put my Mom in the backseat. At 78 years old, Mom knows she is the best driver on earth. The worst driver, in Moms opinion, would be my Dad. He can't possibly make it without Mom telling him what lane to be in, what the speed limit is, and which exit to take. Mom and Dad are in Florida right now. Yesterday I spoke with Mom on the phone. The conversation went something like this. "Hi Mom, how are you?" "We're fine, on our way to Orlando...get in the right lane...how are you?....Don, that's your exit!" "Mom, have you made it to the airport to pick up Gwen and Chris?" "Yes, we have them in the car, say Hi to Aunt Kim....you better watch your speed or you'll get a ticket...the weather is warm and sunny." It is always interesting to talk with Mom while she is telling Dad how to drive. She flows very easily from one conversation to another. Once you get the hang of it, it's easy to follow. The only time there is a problem is when she is on speaker and I am driving, then I feel the need to do what she says, even if she is telling Dad and not me how to drive. In three years Jake will be of driving age. Lee and I talk about who will teach him how to drive. I think we should just put Mom in the car. She's going to tell him how to drive anyway and he would be learning from the best! Take Care!

The Magic of Spring

March is always a month of change. As the snow melts, magically you find that daffodils, tulips, crocus all are peeking up through the cold earth. The gold finches are turning from brownish green to bright yellow. The song sparrow is singing loudly now in the mornings. Gray cloudy days give way to bright sunny days. Although it is still cold, we don't mind it as much because of the sunshine that comes with it at this time of year. Spring Break plans are being put in place. Lots of cars headed to Florida to soak up the sun and play on the beach. When it's our turn, we will head down to Orlando to visit rat world, I mean Disney. Disney is a magical place. Any other place that had a giant rodent would not be a vacation destination. Unless it is a critter getter convention. Once there we will stand in line to get in, stand in line to ride the rides, stand in line to get food and for women, stand in line at the bathroom.  A place where  a man would put on a hat with ears and walk around with a big, goofy smile on his face and not have a beer in his hand. The song It's a Small World will run over and over in your head until the end of April. Every ride ends in the gift shop. That is the only way out! Get off the ride and walk through the gift shop. They have everything! You can get towels, golf balls, stuffed animals, candy, anything that can have a logo printed on it, they sell it. You can have sets of golf balls! Golf balls with the main disney characters, Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Pluto or you can have golf balls with movie characters, like Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story. I can see it now. You are getting ready to tee off on the first hole. You reach in your bag and pull out a ball. You check with your foursome to make sure you can tell your balls apart once they are in flight. "Today I'm planning on using Minnie." For some reason, unless your golf partners are under the age of 10, that seems like an unlikely statement. Then there is the fact that you paid $20 for three character balls. Disney is truly a magical place. You are under some sort of spell that causes you to buy things you would never dream of, but it seemed like such a good idea at the time. Maybe it's the magic of Disney, combined with the magic of Spring. After a cold snowy winter like this year, we give into the magic of the warmth of the sun, big blue skies and the feeling of awakening from a long winters nap, refreshed and happy. Maybe even a bit goofy. Whatever your Spring Break plans are I hope that you find the magic. Just look outside and you will see it. Take Care!

Happy Valentines Day!!!

Today is one of those Hallmark holidays. You know the ones, the ones that have been pushed on us by card companies. I'm sure there is a history to Valentines Day but I really didn't have the time to look it up. I thought instead I would reflect on Valentines through the years. When I was in grade school, we would make a Valentines Card Box. Each child in the class would bring in a Valentine for all the other children. Some cards would be hand made, some might contain candy and others might not even be signed. When I got married, great care was taken in picking out just the right card. We would go to a wonderful dinner, with candles, wine, and I would get a nice little present, usually jewelry. Maybe even take a get away weekend. When Jake was little, it was more about celebrating us as a family. We would go out to an age appropriate restaurant, and give cute little gift bags. Of course we still made the Valentines Card Box for school. This year Lee and I have been together for 29 Valentines Days, 27 of those we have been married. We started dating in December, there is a big story about that for another time, when Valentines Day came around we were supposedly dating just each other. I went over to Lees apartment and he told me to get him a drink out of the fridge. He NEVER asks me to do that, so I told him no. He keeps asking me about going to the fridge, so I give up go. Inside the refrigerator was a beautiful red rose in a bud vase, sitting right next to a plate of home made heart shaped sugar cookies! Lee doesn't bake. I picked up the rose and a cookie and walked back into the living room. Lees face went from a great big smile, to a stunned look, then a sheepish grin. I asked if the roses were cheaper by the dozen? It seems that he was still seeing an ex girlfriend "on occasion." Well, our first Valentines Day wasn't that special, though we've had some really great ones over the years. The past several years we go to dinner the weekend after Valentines Day, usually with a coupon. This year we are having friends over for dinner a few days before. I think we will celebrate not just our family, but friends too. When I look around, I have all kinds of Valentines in my life. I hope that you have many Valentines in your life too! Take care!

Grandma Attacks Nature

My mother is not usually a mean person. She has respect for most living things. However, sometimes she doesn't think about her actions. There was this incident that happened when my niece Gwen was about five years old. Gwen and Mom were on the deck during a fine summers day. They were talking and Gwen was playing with a worm that was minding its own business, crawling across the floor. Mom looked down, saw the worm and decided that it would be better off in the hereafter. So she stepped on it! Gwen let out a scream and started to cry. Grandma had just crushed her new little friend. Now Mom was having a problem. Gwen is crying "He was going home to his Mommy!", and Mom can't figure out how to get worm guts off her shoe. It was quite the scene. Mom sent Gwen in the house to get a tissue, this gave her time to scrape what was left of the worm on the edge of the deck. She then promised Gwen that she would not take the lives of anymore worms, ever! It's times like these that we need to think before we act. I'm sure that Gwen is scarred for life, and Mom can't help laughing when she retells this story. I guess it just depends on where the shoe falls. Take Care!

The Queen and Her Court

It all started in 2007. Mom and Dad wintered in Arcadia, Florida. One of Moms friends was going to enter the Senior Ms. Arcadia pageant and wanted someone else to enter also. At first Mom said no, then decided it might be fun. She had never done anything like this before.  Once she did, she received all kinds of advice.  There was an 80 year old who was a pageant pro. She wanted to know what Moms talent was? Talent? No one mentioned a talent part of the program. This lady’ s talent was to do the waltz with her walker. Mom was a bit dismayed by that, but soon was relieved to find out there wouldn’t be time to have a talent show. There was a lot of being escorted back and forth across the stage. The judge was a beauty Queen from Florida. Mom was shocked when she was crowned. That’s when it started, the beginning of the crown collecting. My nieces soon followed in royal style.  Gwen, won homecoming Princess that same year, in 2008, Courtney won and in 2009 Meredith won. Now that we are out of girls to win, they needed to find a different venue. Gwen took the Snowball crown and Courtney took the Farmers Fair. I’m not at all surprised by this. When the girls were little, I bought them all the Disney Princess halloween costumes. Gwen was Cinderella, Courtney was Ariel and Meredith was Snow White. They did indeed look like Princesses, as well as acted like it. We decided this year to do a crown picture. I wanted to capture this moment with Grandmother and Granddaughters. It was fun, there were goofy pictures and comparing who has the biggest crown. By the way, Mom does. I resisted putting a crown on Jake just for fun. He felt that might come back to haunt him. My own family royalty. You never know when the Princess will grow up to be Queen. Take care!