A Myers Merry Reunion

This Saturday we attended a weenie roast at my in-law's house for the Myers family.  It was a time of getting together with family that we don't see very often and catching up.

Now first off, who can tell you that they don't like a good weenie roast?  Hot dogs straight off of the fire, s'mores, and the smell of bonfire that gets stuck in your hair for days, even after you wash it.

Did I mention the s'mores?

We showed up a little early to visit.  My niece Kinley was with there because my sister-in-law and her husband were both working, so she and Cooper got a chance to play for a bit before the weenie roast started.

Don't they share so nicely together?!

I wish that I was as easily entertained by a set of coasters as what these two were.

Nannie really shouldn't leave the room.  And especially not the house!  This is what happens.

How incredibly handsome.

And how unbelievably beautiful.

"Whoa, Daddy!"

Mmm.  Styrofoam.

After several hours of play time, the family ended up at the homestead.  I tried to count everybody up and I think that I got 32.  Not too bad!  Here are most of the adults around the fire.  It was crazy windy outside, but that didn't stop the fun!

The two guys standing to the left of Nate are his twin cousins Dave and Darrin.  The resemblance between them and Nate is pretty obvious.  Both in personality and looks.

I haven't decided yet if that's a good thing.

I kid, I kid!

Kind of.

This is Nate's Uncle Dave.  The first time I met him was at Christmas.  I kid you not, he pulled me onto his lap and told me to call him Santa.

He has been Santa since that day.

Here, he is telling some very important story which I am sure has to do with golf or gambling.  They both have a true love for both.

Out of everybody, I'm pretty sure the kids had the best time of all.  Here they are hiding from Nate's cousin Lauren...

...only to be found!

This is Susie's great niece, Isabella.  I LOVE this girl.  I want her to come and live with me.  She is hilarious and responsible and such an awesome little girl.  If her family would let me, I would bring her home with me and keep her for mine.  But I don't think they're going to let me so I'll just have to enjoy seeing her at my in-law's house.

Can you feel the love people?

I was only fortunate enough to attend one family reunion with Nate's Grandfather and Grandmother in attendance.  The summer after Nate and I got engaged his Grandfather passed away.  I didn't know him for very long, but I loved going to visit him.  He was funny and kind and the admiration that Nate had and still has for him is the kind that only a grandson could have for his grandfather.

Nate's Grandmother passed away at the beginning of this past summer.  When we went to visit her she would be sitting in her recliner watching 1) the Cubs or 2) the Bears.  She was such a lovely lady.  Nate was very blessed to have her and his Grandfather for his Grandparents.

As mentioned before, I was only around for one previous family reunion.  But from what I understand, this pitch fork is pretty symbolic for every past bonfire.  His Grandfather would stand around the fire, push around the logs, and tell old stories.

While there were many family members that weren't there and missed, their memory sure did live on.  Stories were told and laughs were had.

Just how any family reunion should be.

Mission: Organization

I have a real thing for making lists.  I love to make lists.  Grocery lists.  Cleaning lists.  Schedules.  To do lists.  Honey do lists.  And the all important Christmas list.

But here's the problem.  My house is the perfect example of disorganization.

I don't know why.  I don't know what makes me this way.  I don't know how the entire house can be spotless and perfect and wonderful, but in the blink of an eye it is in shambles again.

Wait, maybe this is the cause.

And then there's this.

But I have to wonder.  Am I the only one this happens to?  Am I lacking some sort of skill that makes me able to keep my house organized all the time?  Was I born without it?

Or maybe there's the fact that I've read too many organization blogs.  And they've got me feeling that everybody lives without a speck of dust in their house.  No clutter.  No excess.

So I've made a decision.  It's time to get organized.

And when I say organized, I mean organized.

In the next three months we will be cleaning, purging, organizing and scheduling.  And I'm going to take you along for the ride.

There's a couple of reasons for blogging about this.  Because trust me, the state of some of my closets is downright embarrassing.  But here's the deal.

1)  We're all friends here.  I figure that if you read this blog regularly, it's because maybe you kinda sorta like me and maybe you kinda sorta consider me a friend.  And friends don't judge.  So I've got that going for me.

B) It's a means of motivation.  I can get on this here blog and say, "Hey!  Guess what I did this week!"  Or, "Look at this before and after transformation of my linen closet!"  And now because I've told you about it, you're going to be expecting it.  And because you're expecting it, I have to show you results.

I was reading a book last week and it said, more or less, that the more disorganized you are, the more time you spend on unimportant things that shouldn't be taking up your time (like trying to find a camera charger, cleaning out a pantry that you let go WAY too long, or going through a stack of mail that has gotten out of hand) and you spend less time on the important things.  Like playing with your kids.  Or making a healthy dinner.

This struck home with me.  Everyday as I leave school I think, "When I get home I've got this and this and this to do."  Or, "I guess I'd better stop at the store AGAIN."  It never fails.  I'm always at the darned store.  It eats up my time.  These things take away from my time with Cooper and Nate. 

And it's time to fix that.

I have a pretty serious list of things that I want to get done.  I've done my research and I'm mentally prepared for a long process.  I've read a lot of blogs and I hope that what I've learned I can share with you and you might get something out of.

So, are you ready for a long, and what I'm sure will be comical, ride of organization with Yours Truly?

The Tale of the Missing Sock

So I'm from Worthington.  When I told somebody I was from Greene County last week (a student I might add) she said, "You're from Greenetucky?!"  Why yes. Yes I am.

And I know a lot of you that read this blog appreciate the Greene County love.  I was born there.  I was raised there.  I love it there.  I love the nuances of growing up in a small town.  I love that I was considered a "city girl" even though that "city" was surrounded by corn and beans.  Basketball games are where you found almost the entire population on Friday nights and if you wanted to cruise town with your friends you had to drive fifteen minutes to another town to do so.  It isn't uncommon to see a cow roaming the streets and almost every house has a deer head (or turkey, or squirrel, doesn't matter as long as it's stuffed) in it.

Part of what I have taken with me from Worthington is a strong desire to be barefoot.  Always.  I don't like wearing shoes.  I water flowers barefoot.  I walk my kid up and down the sidewalk barefoot.  My living room is littered with my shoes because the first thing that I do when I come home is kick them off.

And yeah, right.  Like I'm actually going to walk all the way upstairs to put them in my closet.  Forget it.

I take my shoes off at work.  I walk around my classroom barefoot.  I can't help it.  It's ingrained in me!

But here's where things start getting sticky.

This small habit of mine has transferred onto my son.

He has a really strong aversion to socks.  He flat out refuses to keep them on his feet.

We take him to day care with them on.  He returns with them off.

I'll put him in the car with them on.  When I get him out, they are thrown across the car.

Sometimes I'll even find them under the cushions of the car seat.  All hidden and tucked away, like he was hoping I would never find them.

And these socks have been a major pain in our house.

Lola likes to eat them.

They wad themselves up and then made our washer leak.

But anyways, he dislikes them.  Pulls them right off and then chucks them.

So it was no surprise last week when I found this laying on the floor.

But where was the other one?  I had found one sock, but the other was nowhere in sight.

Great.  I'll probably find that in Lola's food bowl.

Oh wait.  There it is.

30 Years Ago...

Thirty years ago today was a blessed day.  In an old church in Worthington, Indiana where many family weddings have been held, my Mom and Dad exchanged vows to unite in marriage.  My Mom wore a beautiful long sleeved dress with matching hat while my Dad donned a brown tux and a smile.

Little did they know then that their marriage would be what it is today.  Strong.  Solid.  Full of love, trust, and companionship.

I think back on the 28 years of my life and the relationship that I have watched between my parents.  I'm so blessed that they are mine and that I was fortunate enough to grow up as their daughter.  You'd be hard pressed to find better parents than what this girl has.

To this day I'm grateful for my parents.  They would give anything, ANYTHING for me.  And they have always made that incredibly clear.

Now they have not only become great parents, but phenomenal grandparents.  I always knew that they were excited about having grandbabies, but never did I know that the title would fit them so appropriately.  That they would be so good at it.  That I would be able to see their love for my son.  Which is just like their love for me.

Because now that I am a parent myself, I see so much more.  I see their sacrifices for me.  I see their love for me.  Their unconditional love.  I see their selflessness and their support.

I think of all of the softball games that they came to.  The games in which I cheered that they didn't miss.  The fact that my Mom, while in college 45 minutes away, didn't miss volleyball games.  And then the fact that my Dad came to all of those games that I cheered at, and watched what I did and commented on what I had done.  Because he did watch me.  And did I mention that I was cheering?

I'm so blessed to have such wonderful role models.  Both in their marriage and in their parenting.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad.  I love you so much.  Here's to 30 more years!

Photo courtesy of Ericka Hostetter Photography 

Photo courtesy of Cornelius Photography

Resilience

Cooper has been feeling under the weather this week.  It's the time of year again where I'm sure the doctor's office is

1) going to be seeing a lot of us

and

B) going to be very sick of phone calls from me.

Can we say paranoid Mama?

Anyways, I was home with Cooper and as I watched him I became entranced.  And here's the deal.  He amazes me.

This kid is running a fever, got snot pouring out of his little nose, and coughing up a storm.  But he taught me a huge lesson.

A lesson in resilience.

Kids...are...awesome.

They're sick and they don't feel good.  But it doesn't stop them from enjoying their day!

Now when I'm sick, I just want to lay around and sleep.  I want to watch smut TV, have someone wait on me hand and foot, and complain about how yucky I feel.

But my kid?  He saw it as an opportunity.  We were in the house all day, so he was going to seize the chance of playing.  All...day...long.

And please don't ask why he has pants on in one picture and not in the other.  I can't answer it.

But back to the resilience thing.

It really did amaze me how he just was up and going and had all of this energy even though a simple look at his eyes told you everything you needed to know about how he felt.

What does that say about babies?  And us as adults?  Are these babies just a lot stronger than we give them credit for?  Super babies by chance? 

Where is the elixir that they drink from that makes them like this?  I want some.  I neeeeeed some.

And by the way, nap time was almost non-existent.  And well, that just made somebody pretty displeased.

Humor on the Job

As a teacher, I have a lot of things that can be quite funny. Middle school is a funny age. You don't get the innocent humor of elementary school, but they still have a little bit of that raw hilarity in them. You know it. It's the kind where they don't even try to be funny, but it turns out being absolutely hilarious.

Because we've all been in middle school before. We all know that feeling of trying almost anything to fit in, but yet you want to try so hard to be individualized too. Middle school has to be the hardest years to encounter.

And I've got to hand it to my students. They truthfully do it in an amazing manner. They are such awesome kids. The things that they accomplish would stun you. I'm so proud of these kids.

When I tell people what I do for a living they look at me like I'm crazy. When I was in college and people asked me what I wanted to do with my life and replied with being a middle school teacher, they thought I had lost a few brain cells during my college years.

But it is the coolest age. They are awesome students. I love my job. I love seeing the transformation of a 7th grader from the beginning of the school year to the end of the school year. But what's even cooler is seeing that same 7th grader after summer break and then not hardly being able to recognize them because they are SO different.

And what's even greater than that is the appreciation that a student will show you at school, but then when you see them at the mall they turn a blind eye to you and act like they don't know who you are.

Alright, so maybe that one hurts a little bit.

But anyways, most of the situations that happen at school you have to be there to think they are funny. All but a few you have to know who the student is to really appreciate it.

However, yesterday I encountered a student who made a comment that I appreciated. I ran it by Nate, got a chuckle out of him, and thought okay! Maybe this actually is a good story and one that I'll share with you.

A girl completed her assignment in my class and wandered up to my desk. She stood there for a second, contemplated her statement, and then belted it out.

Student: Hey Mrs. Myers? Mr. Hollett (another Tri-North teacher) said that you guys all make, like, $$$ every two weeks.

Me: Well, he wasn't that far off.

Student: Really?

Me: Well, kind of.

Student: (After a few moments of contemplation) Wow! I thought you guys didn't make much money! That's a lot!

And that's when I had to chuckle at her. Because there's a couple things that you can take from this statement.

First of all, you have to love the innocence of it. The absolute purity of her statement. Because to this girl, $$$ was enough money to live on for a good 2-3 months. At least! She was astounded that I could pull in that kind of cash!

Second of all, wouldn't you love to go back to have the perspective of a kid? I think back to where I was in middle school. My biggest worry was what flannel shirt I was going to wear to match my overalls.

Don't laugh.

It was in style then.

I worried about how I was going to get all the way to the movie theater in Linton on Saturday night. Where, exactly, to hang my Jonathan Taylor Thomas poster. If I would be home to watch TGIF television. How I could convince my Mom and Dad that I needed that new boom box.

I didn't worry about money. Or bills. Or if my kid's runny nose was going to turn into yet another ear infection.

I didn't worry about what we were going to be having for dinner and how it was going to get cooked. Who was going to feed the dog when I was out of town, or better yet, how in the world was I going to find the time to clean my house?

Oh how I wish my only cleaning responsibility was one room again...

Anyways, it's amazing how much your life changes. How the worries of a middle schooler seemed so important, so imperative at the time.

Little did we know what would meet us later in life.

Oh the beauty of middle school.

Pushing My Buttons

This week we took Cooper for his one year check-up.  Every time we take him we get this great big checklist of things we should and shouldn't be doing, what to expect between now and the fifteen month check-up, and little tidbits of advice.

I always make sure to read these carefully.  I don't want to mess this kid up. Well, more than I have already anyways.

But there was something very disturbing on this list.  Something that I can hardly even bear to tell you.

It said...

It said....

***Sigh.***

It said that children of Cooper's age should not watch TV.  They are too young.  So instead, they should be entertained with books and games and age appropriate toys.

My heart sank.

But then I thought, "What do these doctors know anyways?"

I mean, how am I supposed to keep my kid away from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse?  And Jake and the Neverland Pirates?  Special Agent Oso?  And Sesame Street? 

And does this mean that I have to give up the television too?  That any time that he's awake I have to leave the television off?  How will I catch up on my smut?  How will I know what's going on in the land of reality TV?  This is just too much for me.

I don't think that they know what they're asking.  My life centers around my television schedule.  Yeah, it's sad.  But I don't care.  I love television.  It's an addiction that I'm not willing to rehab.  No.  I refuse.

But then something happened.

I was home with Coop, watching him play with his toys and everything in the entertainment center because, well, that's what he does.  I was enjoying a Keeping Up With The Kardashians marathon.  And this happened.

"The doctor said, 'No,' Mama.  And he meant it."

"Now.  The bad influence of the television is off.  I can get back to the intelligence boosting things that the doctor recommended."

And then Mama turns the TV back on.

"Mama, I said NO.  You will not ruin my highly influential years with your smut.  No, Mama.  No."

I would like you to notice two things.

First, this can't be my kid.  MY kid would not have turned off the television.  No.  He would embrace it.  Love it.  Watch it until his vision starts becoming impaired. 

Second, check out the fingerprints on that television.  Niiiiiiiice.

I just can't believe that my child would take the doctor's orders so seriously.  I mean, come on kid!  We were about to see Kim get engaged!  And we were going to find out what happened between Scott and Kourtney!

What more could you ask for?! 

And more importantly, why do you want to tear out my soul this way?  Why Coop?  Why?