So there is an old saying "You can’t go home again". Well in some ways I suppose that is true. Xander and I just returned from a long over due trip to Northern Minnesota to visit family. We stayed at my childhood home. It is different to go back to your childhood home after 10+ years of being gone (no it has not been 10 years since I have been home to visit, I simply mean having lived there!). It seems like every time I "go home" something is different. For the most part it is exciting, I get to explore my childhood home and see what is different and exciting. Yet at the same time it is sad, because it makes it harder to remember it, as it was, when I lived there! The previous times I came home for visits I did a lot of "running", visiting people here and there. This time I stayed put (but for a couple of trips) and just let my child enjoy his aunties, uncles, cousins and grandparents. I let friends and family come to me!!! We had a great time and to all those who came to see us-thanks, it was nice visiting with you!
It is refreshing to look at things you take for granted through the eyes of a child, where every thing is new and exciting. Who knew that picking up acorns, pine cones, leaves and sticks in the rain could be so much fun and so rewarding!?!?!? How about seeing kitties, dogs, and horses in person instead of a book; riding on a tractor with Grandpa Jeff; chasing your cousin around grandpa and grandma's house and letting her chase you; playing with Grandma Jan's rock collection and then drawing on her refrigerator with dry erase markers; playing with Grandma Peg's "robot" foot and the Velcro straps; getting lots of hugs and kisses and tickles form family members who love you so much and wish you were closer, so that they could see you more than once a year!
So the old saying "You can't go home again", I think that for the most part it rings true. For you see I can go home and visit--for it's not the home, but the family I miss. And, as long as my family is there it doesn't really matter where we are! They say home is where your heart is and now my home is wherever my husband and son are, for they are my heart. Does that mean that I don't miss my family in Minnesota--hell no! I miss them terribly, and I think about them often, but right now it means that my house at the end of the cul-de-sac in Texas is home! We may be physically over a 1000 miles apart but they are always close in my head and my heart! Oh and just a phone call away!
9/23/08
Some of his favorite things...
Well in a couple of weeks my little one will be 16 months old...time flies! Here are some of the things he's loving right now!
1. Dora and Diego cartoons...and I mean LOVES them. He will turn on the t.v. and wait for me to turn them on. He's also started participating more, and will clap when they clap and point at the t.v. and sometimes he runs up to the t.v.
2. Food-he will now go to his highchair when he is ready to eat, either for snack time or lunch time. He will pretty much eat anything, although he has his moods. Some of particular favorites are cottage cheese, yogurt, fish, any kind of fruit and cheesy puffs!
3. Books--he will bring us book after book for us to read to him, both story books (his favorite is Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?) or picture books he loves the ones with animals and other children.
4. His mama--having been with him now 24/7 for a little over a month, he has definitely became more of a mama's boy, and gets very clingy when strangers talk to him, or I leave his sight (unless he's watching Dora or Diego)!
5. Water-he loves to splash in the water, both outside at his water table, and at bath time. The only thing is that he sometimes splashes so hard he gets water in his face which he does not care for!
6. Going outside--he loves to go outside and especially loves the front of the house where the sidewalk and driveway are. He is not as fond of the back yard unless he's at the water table (the grass is kind of poky when he falls down). He loves to pick up rocks and sticks.
7. Balls--anytime we see a ball in a store he goes nuts! He has at least 6 different balls, and he actually has a pretty good arm, he has some pretty good distance. Sometimes he'll throw whatever's within arms reach, blocks, shoes, stuffed animals!
8. Kisses and tickles--he laughs like crazy when Chris or I tickle him, and he loves getting kisses, though he hasn't quite figured out how to give them. When I or Chris ask for kisses he leans his forehead towards us...but it is very sweet.
9. Cell phones and the house phone--he loves to hold them and he'll hold them up to his ear and say Hi or Hey, but when their is actually someone on the other end, he gets shy and will smile and wave, but clams up!
10. Last but not least Ghali and Paci--Paci short for the pacifier of course, he seems to do more biting of the thing then sucking it and he will keep an eye on it, and when we take it form him when he eats, he will go to wherever we put it on the table and if he cannot reach it himself, he starts hollering. Ghali is his lovey, and it is a giraffe/blanket. He is called Ghali because before he was born we called Xander Boutrous, as is Boutrous Boutrous Ghali! Anyways Ghali goes everywhere with us and we actually have two, so he is never without one, especially when he needs a bath (Ghali that is). Xander likes to sniff Ghali, put a corner in is eye, ear, nose, toes, and he loves to rub him between his fingers.
1. Dora and Diego cartoons...and I mean LOVES them. He will turn on the t.v. and wait for me to turn them on. He's also started participating more, and will clap when they clap and point at the t.v. and sometimes he runs up to the t.v.
2. Food-he will now go to his highchair when he is ready to eat, either for snack time or lunch time. He will pretty much eat anything, although he has his moods. Some of particular favorites are cottage cheese, yogurt, fish, any kind of fruit and cheesy puffs!
3. Books--he will bring us book after book for us to read to him, both story books (his favorite is Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?) or picture books he loves the ones with animals and other children.
4. His mama--having been with him now 24/7 for a little over a month, he has definitely became more of a mama's boy, and gets very clingy when strangers talk to him, or I leave his sight (unless he's watching Dora or Diego)!
5. Water-he loves to splash in the water, both outside at his water table, and at bath time. The only thing is that he sometimes splashes so hard he gets water in his face which he does not care for!
6. Going outside--he loves to go outside and especially loves the front of the house where the sidewalk and driveway are. He is not as fond of the back yard unless he's at the water table (the grass is kind of poky when he falls down). He loves to pick up rocks and sticks.
7. Balls--anytime we see a ball in a store he goes nuts! He has at least 6 different balls, and he actually has a pretty good arm, he has some pretty good distance. Sometimes he'll throw whatever's within arms reach, blocks, shoes, stuffed animals!
8. Kisses and tickles--he laughs like crazy when Chris or I tickle him, and he loves getting kisses, though he hasn't quite figured out how to give them. When I or Chris ask for kisses he leans his forehead towards us...but it is very sweet.
9. Cell phones and the house phone--he loves to hold them and he'll hold them up to his ear and say Hi or Hey, but when their is actually someone on the other end, he gets shy and will smile and wave, but clams up!
10. Last but not least Ghali and Paci--Paci short for the pacifier of course, he seems to do more biting of the thing then sucking it and he will keep an eye on it, and when we take it form him when he eats, he will go to wherever we put it on the table and if he cannot reach it himself, he starts hollering. Ghali is his lovey, and it is a giraffe/blanket. He is called Ghali because before he was born we called Xander Boutrous, as is Boutrous Boutrous Ghali! Anyways Ghali goes everywhere with us and we actually have two, so he is never without one, especially when he needs a bath (Ghali that is). Xander likes to sniff Ghali, put a corner in is eye, ear, nose, toes, and he loves to rub him between his fingers.
9/22/08
Returning to normal?
So unless you live under a rock, most of you know that Southeast Texas was hit by a nasty hurricane named Ike! Well unfortunately I can say that I have weathered (no pun intended) a hurricane. Although we were not directly in the line of the hurricane, because Ike was so big, we did receive a lot of wind (70 mph at least) and rain. Thankfully the new house seemed to withstand pretty good. The fence not so much, part of it that was attached between the house and the gate twisted in the wind and fell over. Also, because we lost power from 1:30 a.m. Saturday morning until 4:30 p.m. Monday, most everything in the fridge/freezer had to go, for future reference if you have an ice/water dispenser be sure to plug up the dispenser hole, or you will have leaks as the ice in the dispenser tray melts!! But, we can be thankful that is all we lost.
It was definitely an experience I hope I never have to have again! Our thoughts and prayers are with all the people who lost a little, a lot, or everything!
So now everyone is trying to return to normal, schools are opening back up this week, businesses are getting power back and reopening. That said I am back to the daily grind as well. Trying to maintain a schedule with Xander, as well as looking for child care, taking care of the house, tying up loose moving ends (change of address anyone?)! It is definitely a lot harder to do things when you have a curious little boy with you! I think things take twice as long!!!
Well back to it! The little one will be waking up soon!
It was definitely an experience I hope I never have to have again! Our thoughts and prayers are with all the people who lost a little, a lot, or everything!
So now everyone is trying to return to normal, schools are opening back up this week, businesses are getting power back and reopening. That said I am back to the daily grind as well. Trying to maintain a schedule with Xander, as well as looking for child care, taking care of the house, tying up loose moving ends (change of address anyone?)! It is definitely a lot harder to do things when you have a curious little boy with you! I think things take twice as long!!!
Well back to it! The little one will be waking up soon!
9/4/08
What to do, What to do!
So now that we are getting settled, and things are going smoothly, I have been thinking about going back to work. It's not that I don't want to work, it's just that I don't know if I want to in the same place.
I worked for over nine years at the same store. I helped open the store and saw it before it had any shelves, or fixtures. I set some of the first planograms (for those of you not in retail-planograms are what we use to set all the pegs and shelves in place, so that the merchandise can be organized), filled shelves, put up fresh decals. I have also held a lot of different positions in the store from a cashier supervisor to an hourly store manager. There were definitely good times as well as not so good times at "my" store. But, everything seemed to change around June of 2007. See that is when my son was born. I had a glorious 12 weeks learning how to be a mom and taking care of my new baby. But then I had to go back to work (now I know most people don't get the luxury of 12 weeks, some only get 6) not only was the staff different and people had changed positions, but the attitude was different. The "Fast, Fun and Friendliness" was gone, in its place was laziness, hatefulness and blame. The only thing that kept me going was knowing that Chris was going to get a new job. One that would set me free of that place, and the unhappiness and stress that it caused.
Well, I got my freedom from that store, and although I miss most of the people terribly, I do not miss that atmosphere at all. But my dilemma now, is do I want to continue to work for the same company doing what I know, because it provides me with benefits, or do I want to take a leap and try something new that is not retail, that allows me to work part-time doing something that fulfills me! I have been in the store that I would work at, at to be honest I did not feel the "fast, fun and friendliness" there, but for one cashier! I guess I'll be taking a look in the want-ads! I still have a little time to decide, as I won't be going back to work until after Xander and I get back from a trip to see our family in MN!
I worked for over nine years at the same store. I helped open the store and saw it before it had any shelves, or fixtures. I set some of the first planograms (for those of you not in retail-planograms are what we use to set all the pegs and shelves in place, so that the merchandise can be organized), filled shelves, put up fresh decals. I have also held a lot of different positions in the store from a cashier supervisor to an hourly store manager. There were definitely good times as well as not so good times at "my" store. But, everything seemed to change around June of 2007. See that is when my son was born. I had a glorious 12 weeks learning how to be a mom and taking care of my new baby. But then I had to go back to work (now I know most people don't get the luxury of 12 weeks, some only get 6) not only was the staff different and people had changed positions, but the attitude was different. The "Fast, Fun and Friendliness" was gone, in its place was laziness, hatefulness and blame. The only thing that kept me going was knowing that Chris was going to get a new job. One that would set me free of that place, and the unhappiness and stress that it caused.
Well, I got my freedom from that store, and although I miss most of the people terribly, I do not miss that atmosphere at all. But my dilemma now, is do I want to continue to work for the same company doing what I know, because it provides me with benefits, or do I want to take a leap and try something new that is not retail, that allows me to work part-time doing something that fulfills me! I have been in the store that I would work at, at to be honest I did not feel the "fast, fun and friendliness" there, but for one cashier! I guess I'll be taking a look in the want-ads! I still have a little time to decide, as I won't be going back to work until after Xander and I get back from a trip to see our family in MN!
9/2/08
We made it!!
Well for those of you reading, whom I left hanging...things are great! We did not have a crack in the foundation (just an air bubble), and other than a one day delay, we were able to close on our house and move in! Of course a lot has happened since I last posted. Sorry it has taken so long, but moving is a big effort. Oh and we just got Internet access and such late last week!
So the drive from SC to TX was a pretty smooth one! Unfortunately Chris had to drive the Uhaul, that left me and Xander to make the long drive together. Now if you have never ridden in a car with a toddler, you may not know that they have the attention span of a fruit fly! Thankfully I purchased a personal DVD player. So Xander was amused with Diego and Dora videos for the 949+ mile trip, that and he took some naps, ate snacks, etc. It was a pretty nice drive, and thankfully we made the trip before Gustave arrived, as that was the area which we drove through.
As far as moving into the house and getting settled--so far, so good! I am on a leave of absence from work, so Xander and I get to hang out and I try to unpack things while he "helps"! He has adapted rather well to the move and seems excited by the house, especially the back yard and the stairs (it is a two-story house)! Slowly, but surely we will get everything together! Most everything is unpacked--just have some odds and ends, and a little organizing to do!
Chris started work on the 25th and seems to really enjoy it! He is still learning, but as he is super smart, he will get the hang of things pretty quickly! He had a nice three day weekend because of Labor Day, and spent part of Sunday mowing the lawn--something he hasn't done in over 12 years! Let's just say he was feeling it yesterday morning!
Yesterday was my niece Evie's first birthday! It seems like just yesterday I was crying over the fact that my son was turning one! And then I teared up at the fact that she is now one! I looked at the pictures from her party--what a cutie! Wish we could have been there! Though like I've said before, it is so nice that we have the technology to send pictures within the same day as something happens! I miss our Minnesota families so much, and am very much looking forward to going there in October!
Speaking of little ones--sound as though mine is stirring! Until we meet again!
So the drive from SC to TX was a pretty smooth one! Unfortunately Chris had to drive the Uhaul, that left me and Xander to make the long drive together. Now if you have never ridden in a car with a toddler, you may not know that they have the attention span of a fruit fly! Thankfully I purchased a personal DVD player. So Xander was amused with Diego and Dora videos for the 949+ mile trip, that and he took some naps, ate snacks, etc. It was a pretty nice drive, and thankfully we made the trip before Gustave arrived, as that was the area which we drove through.
As far as moving into the house and getting settled--so far, so good! I am on a leave of absence from work, so Xander and I get to hang out and I try to unpack things while he "helps"! He has adapted rather well to the move and seems excited by the house, especially the back yard and the stairs (it is a two-story house)! Slowly, but surely we will get everything together! Most everything is unpacked--just have some odds and ends, and a little organizing to do!
Chris started work on the 25th and seems to really enjoy it! He is still learning, but as he is super smart, he will get the hang of things pretty quickly! He had a nice three day weekend because of Labor Day, and spent part of Sunday mowing the lawn--something he hasn't done in over 12 years! Let's just say he was feeling it yesterday morning!
Yesterday was my niece Evie's first birthday! It seems like just yesterday I was crying over the fact that my son was turning one! And then I teared up at the fact that she is now one! I looked at the pictures from her party--what a cutie! Wish we could have been there! Though like I've said before, it is so nice that we have the technology to send pictures within the same day as something happens! I miss our Minnesota families so much, and am very much looking forward to going there in October!
Speaking of little ones--sound as though mine is stirring! Until we meet again!
8/14/08
Are you Serious?????
So in my last blog posting I mentioned that we were buying a house. How exciting we thought, our first home. Now I know why I have been renting for the last 10+ years. I think this moving experience is going to give me an ulcer.
Not only do I have to fax like a thousand things both to the mortgage place and the home company, but now we've had an inspection and everything is great except for two things. Turns out they are two really BIG things. First the air conditioner is not working right--hello have you see the weather in TX, it is hot-- A/C is a must! Second there is a crack in the foundation-so now we do not know whether we will be able to get that fixed in a weeks time, which is when we are supposed to be closing on the house---aaaagh! Apparently we have to hire a structural engineer to determine the severity of the crack, and if it is severe enough, then they have to rip up the floor in that spot to get to the foundation, so they can fix it.
Now we cannot just sit here and wait, as we have given our notice at the apartment, and we have a Uhaul truck scheduled for Monday morning!!! Chris also HAS to start work by September 1st--and, that is the reason we are moving in the first place!!! We also have to close by the 26th of August with our mortgage---aaaagh. So either we will be living out of our car until all of this is taken care of, or we will have to get a storage building and live out of it! Oh the stress--I think my stomach just seized! Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!
Not only do I have to fax like a thousand things both to the mortgage place and the home company, but now we've had an inspection and everything is great except for two things. Turns out they are two really BIG things. First the air conditioner is not working right--hello have you see the weather in TX, it is hot-- A/C is a must! Second there is a crack in the foundation-so now we do not know whether we will be able to get that fixed in a weeks time, which is when we are supposed to be closing on the house---aaaagh! Apparently we have to hire a structural engineer to determine the severity of the crack, and if it is severe enough, then they have to rip up the floor in that spot to get to the foundation, so they can fix it.
Now we cannot just sit here and wait, as we have given our notice at the apartment, and we have a Uhaul truck scheduled for Monday morning!!! Chris also HAS to start work by September 1st--and, that is the reason we are moving in the first place!!! We also have to close by the 26th of August with our mortgage---aaaagh. So either we will be living out of our car until all of this is taken care of, or we will have to get a storage building and live out of it! Oh the stress--I think my stomach just seized! Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!
8/9/08
Things have been a little bit crazy!
Well it has been a while since I typed anything, but with good reason. We are soon to be on the move! Chris has found himself a job "Deep in the Heart of Texas"--Near Houston to be more specific! It is an exciting new chapter in the lives of our family! We have lived here in SC for just over 10 years. It will be sad to leave all the wonderful people we have become friends with, but they are never more than a phone call, e-mail or text away.
As our families will tell you they are all a tad disappointed, because we are not moving back to MN. Technically we are only 1-2 hours closer than we are now. But, even though they are sad, I know that they only want the best for us, and are truly excited. And it will be a nice place to visit in the winter months when MN gets sooooo cold!
More exciting news is that Chris and I are buying our first home. It will be nice to finally have something that is ours. Oh to think of all the money we have spent in rent over the years! It will be fun decorate the new house, the way we want it. I of course am not looking forward to the actual painting and such, but you do what you do!
I will be taking a leave of absence from work for multiple reasons. First, I need a break! Secondly, as I have relied on one of my best friends to watch Xander while I'm at work, I need to find a suitable daycare for him. Thirdly, I am not sure exactly what I want to do yet! I know I will transfer to another "retail store", but I just don't know what I want to do there or how many hours I want to work a week! Only time will tell!
Well I hear my sweet little boy stirring in his room, so I will sign off. Until next time!
As our families will tell you they are all a tad disappointed, because we are not moving back to MN. Technically we are only 1-2 hours closer than we are now. But, even though they are sad, I know that they only want the best for us, and are truly excited. And it will be a nice place to visit in the winter months when MN gets sooooo cold!
More exciting news is that Chris and I are buying our first home. It will be nice to finally have something that is ours. Oh to think of all the money we have spent in rent over the years! It will be fun decorate the new house, the way we want it. I of course am not looking forward to the actual painting and such, but you do what you do!
I will be taking a leave of absence from work for multiple reasons. First, I need a break! Secondly, as I have relied on one of my best friends to watch Xander while I'm at work, I need to find a suitable daycare for him. Thirdly, I am not sure exactly what I want to do yet! I know I will transfer to another "retail store", but I just don't know what I want to do there or how many hours I want to work a week! Only time will tell!
Well I hear my sweet little boy stirring in his room, so I will sign off. Until next time!
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