Uncle Don's Frogs

I've been kind of bummed out because last week I learned that my aunt (my mom's only sister) will soon be put permanently in a nursing home. Her mind has been slowly slipping over the last several years and it is getting to the point that my uncle Don can no longer take care of her. I was very close to both of them during my childhood. My mom was closer to her sister than any of her brothers. I have many dear childhood memories with my aunt and uncle. It seemed like they always had a new car, so they always took my mom and I along on mini-vacations. I probably never would have taken any childhood vacations if it were not for my aunt and uncle. They have been married for fifty-three years. That's a long time.

This picture was taken during Christmas 2003. Aaron and I traveled back to the Midwest and we spent a lovely evening at their house. We ended up sitting around the kitchen table listening to their stories of being teenagers in the late 1940's in Iuka, IL (population 200). They told us how they hung out at a small "juke joint" called the "Beehive". It was not difficult to imagine the wooden shacks,swimming holes, and pranks between friends. It was wonderful to hear the stories of how they met and started dating. My husband and I found ourselves transported to another time when life was simpler and fun almost seemed easier to come by. We left that night with a sense of longing for "the good old days" and a sense of mourning for the passing of time. I could already tell that my aunt's mind was getting slower.

As we hurried out to our car in the December chill, I couldn't help but laugh out loud when I noticed that my uncle Don had taken a small terrycloth towel and placed it around the shoulders of the cement frogs which grace his front sidewalk. He had used a very small safety pin to fasten it with. My heart swelled as I realized that silly, little gesture said a lot about the type of person my Uncle Don is. I have always enjoyed his kooky sense of "Uncle Don humor", but over time he has also been a loving and dedicated caretaker to my aunt. For awhile now, the roles have been reversed and he has taken care of my aunt the way a traditional wife takes care of her husband. The way a seventy year-old man takes care of cement frogs, little cement frogs with tragically endearing frowns huddled together on a tiny parkbench on the front lawn.

Although my aunt's mental decline comes as no abrupt surprise, it does not make it any easier to deal with. Aaron and I are planning to take a trip back there in June, so that my mother and the rest of my family can finally meet Nova. I so look forward to my family getting to meet this little bundle of love that brings me so much joy everyday. I had hoped that we would be able to visit with my aunt and uncle again and maybe hear more enthralling tales of their vintage teenage antics. Unfortunately, it looks as though we will be visiting my aunt in the nursing home, and then I'm not sure that she will be in a place to even know who I am. I am so grateful that I stopped in the frigid night air to take this photo of Uncle Don's cement frogs.

A Sense of Wonder

Today begins my first solo childcare stint, while hubby attends a trade show in Vegas for three days. And I'm sure it will be nothing but business. HaHa. I'm sure there will be a few beers and a few pulls of the slot thrown in. Anyway, I'm nervous about not having any relief for three days, combined with the fact that Nova is teething! Yes, she has been exhibiting all of the symptoms and then it was confirmed when we looked in her mouth and spotted a flash of white. It is a bottom side tooth though, not the front bottom, as most childcare books claim to come in first. Luckily, I am armed with Hyland's homeopathic teething tablets, baby Tylenol, baby Orajel, and a multitude of cold teething rings. A few friends will also be stopping by to check in. I think the time will go quickly, and then on Thursday night a few girlfriends are taking me out for a belated birthday dinner. That will be a nice reward to look forward to.

Yesterday, Hubby let me do whatever I wanted so that I could get some down-time before this stretch. I started my day by lazing in bed drinking coffee and reading my latest issue of Jane magazine, which I have been reading for years and wonder if I will ever outgrow. Anyway, I read about this amazing online gaming site called Second Life which is being 80% developed by women. It allows you to create an avatar online which can be anything you want it to be, a person, a dragon, a flying pig, etc. You can purchase land in this cyberspace and open a business or a shop to sell practically anything. The freaky thing is that there is actual money used "Linden dollars" which can be exchanged at online ATMs for U.S. dollars, and people are actually making money by creating clothing, vehicles, popular real estate attractions, etc. for all of these online characters to own. I started reading about it and I almost lost my mind. It is seriously like this netherworld "grid" where people are creating a second life to live. It is very heavy with computer geeks, scripters and developers. The possibilities are endless. There is even an island where characters are run by patients with autism and Asperger's Syndrome and they can practice their social skills through their online characters.

I quickly felt my internet addiction kick in. What more could you want? Total cross-cultural creative freedom with the possibility of making money and building an empire in a new frontier. My palms started sweating and my heart started racing. Luckily, I shortly discovered that the videocard in my Dell Inspiron 5100 laptop is not capable of handling Second Life. What really bums me out is that the videocard can't be upgraded because it is attached to the motherboard. I have been greatly disatisfied with this Dell laptop. I'm sure it is for the best, though. After my technogasm and disappointment at not being able to escape this reality by going to a different one, I picked up my baby girl and thought to myself "Why do I need a Second Life when I have this one right here?" The discovery of such a complex cyberworld was still enough to give me a huge sense of wonder and amazement.

My sense of wonder grew last night when I caught the 60 Minutes segment about how NASA is building a "Highway in the Sky" to prepare for the onslaught of "personal flying machines" which they also previewed on the segment. There are half a dozen or so prototypes which are only the beginning. Since my childhood, I have had a silly dream about what it must feel like to glide through the air in a little Jetson-esque hovercraft. Those dreams are going to become more of a reality in the next twenty years. Hearing the experts speak about the future of flight really blew my mind. The combination of discovering Second Life and The Highway in the Sky and thinking about the technological advances that Nova will experience in her lifetime really moves me. It affirms for me the role of the dreamer in society. It confirms for me that anything is possible.

Motherhood: It's Hot!

I have wanted to post this image for a long time. Last October I was honored to be in one of my best friend's wedding. The only problem was that this dear friend is male and he asked me if I would mind being one of his "groomsmen." I was honored and didn't have a problem with the gender-bending nature of the request, as long as he didn't mind that I was nine months pregnant. The biggest dilemma was figuring out what I would wear and how could I plan ahead for how big I would be?

They were planning a lovely Hawaiian themed wedding on the beach. I did not want to stick out like a sore thumb (was that possible?). Okay, but I did at least want to blend in to their color scheme. In doing so I decided to make a trip to one of these "Motherhood" maternity stores. Previous to this, I had purchased most of my maternity clothing from yard sales and thrift stores. My frugal nature would not allow me to drop a ton of money for clothing with such a short lifespan.

Anyway, upon visiting the store and luckily finding the perfect shirt to match the other "groomsmen" I stumbled upon this advertising brochure for the store. It simply cracked me up!! I don't have a scanner, so this digital pic will have to do. If you look closely you will notice that the man with the insanely cheesy expression is lustily staring at the pregnant woman in the foreground while his nonpregnant lunchdate glares angrily at him for oogling the pregnant gal. Is that some bold marketing or what?! One half of me finds it so cheesy and disturbing. How sexy can you possible feel with varicose veins, swollen ankles, heartburn, backpain, stretchmarks and a multitude of other preggo side effects?

Another part of me sees it and says "Hell Yeah! Motherhood is hot!" because it is a miracle and a privilege for a woman's body to be able to produce such an amazing product. It's fertility, baby! Ancient civilizations used to make sacrifices to little goddess statues with incredibly wide hips. Unfortunately, most media today celebrates a straight, clean, "boyish" figure - not very feminine at all. In fact, it has almost become a pregnancy trend to try to remain as thin looking as possible with just a big ol'belly sticking out. I have even heard that there is a new wave of pregnant women who are secretely dieting during their pregnancy in order to acheive that look. How sad. . .

I guess the moral of this story is that next time you see a panting pregnant woman who looks like she's going to drop that sucker any minute, take a moment to appreciate her beauty and think to yourself "Motherhood: It's Hot!"