Monthly ArchiveAugust 2005
Life before 2008 29 Aug 2005 05:05 am
Hurricane Katrina
To our family in Mississippi, Tom, Carol, Cheryl, and Brandon, and also the Parker family…you are all in our prayers this week as this storm hits. We’ve been watching the news since early morning. I don’t know if any of you still have power or if you will this week. If you need to get out and come to Knoxville, we can find a place for you to stay.
I think all we’re forcasted to get is some rain. The last time I’d seen the news was last week, when the storm was just a small thing, finished with Florida. It was really shocking and scary last night to see!
David is due south today, if traffic allows for it. We’ll be watching for updates and praying for your safety this week.
Food 27 Aug 2005 05:29 am
Happy Saturday!
I’m thinking of founding a hall of fame for parents dealing with chronic sleep deprivation….I supose it’s painfully narcissistic to make myself the poster child? 
Yes, He Who Does Not Sleep has been at it again, up every two hours the last four nights in a row. And we’re still functioning! We are, though, exceedingly glad that it’s the weekend.
Celia had her first camping trip last night! She’s still gone and I can’t wait to hear how it went. It was a slumber party camping trip, which means we have some very BRAVE new friends! We are very excitedly looking forward to our first family tent trip in the next month and she’s kind of our “scout”.
Meanwhile, we had a nice evening with the boys. Big burgers mingled with a giant sigh that we had a few days of down time. We settled in for some Dublin Mud Slide by Ben and Jerry and later a glass of Pinot Noir while watching The Upside of Anger after the chickens were in bed. The movie was pretty good; bad in the theater but a good rental. Some plot holes and a character badly needing therapy but clearly indicating what long term anger and resentment can produce.
We also have a very enthusiastic new Cub Scout in the house. He got his shirt, badges, and handbook last night and was pouring over the catalog. Scouting has so many…..um, spending opprotunities! His wish list quickly included a swiss army knife, binoculars, a compass, and other camping gear. This morning he was up early, devouring 3 bagels (boys eat SO MUCH!) and begging to learn the stuff he needs to in order to get his first badge. He’s memorizing the oath right now.
I’ve known for a long time that his baby hood and young childhood were gone. This fall it’s more evident than ever, with his list of interests, new literacy, and bold adventures. It’s weird to think that in 8 or so years, the time it will take for Rowan to reach Andrew’s age now, he could be grown and out of the house. His worn little bunny, that still has a faithful spot on the bed, is soon to head to a shadowbox. I wonder how often he’ll look at it and want to stroke it’s ear one more time, and also how often I’ll look at it and want to do the same.
Life before 2008 25 Aug 2005 05:12 am
Waiting for words to come.
What follows is just bits from the week. Someone once suggested that a quiet blog means “undesirables” are happening, that we only “blog” the happy stuff.
At the time I agreed. After all, whose going to want to flaunt thier warts? Then again, 940 square feet doesn’t ALLOW for many warts!
In 940 square feet, for instance, you can’t have a big old tumble fight with your lover. In 940 square feet and four kids, you also can’t often do the other things married people do.
Ahem.
In 940 square feet and four kids, the littlest one started crawling properly, on all fours, this week. He sucked on a push point and miraculously didn’t scratch himself. He learned how to make “babababababa” sounds without putting his hand to his mouth.
In 940 square feet and four kids, our oldest has pushed at the gates, insisting his siblings must move out and sleep outside. He wants his space. He’s into building plastic models of airplanes and war tanks and space has become sacred. He’s also reading Hardy Boys’ Mysteries. We’ve secured his fall activies and it’s a full plate that has him drooling: boy scouts, fencing, violin and orchestra, and a science and math co-op.
In 940 square feet and four kids, our daughter is singing about having been bought a PINK sleeping bag for her first camping trip this weekend. We’ve solved the mystery of what was making her hair so straw-like: the chlorine in the pool. She started soccer this week and her coach gave her a charm bracelet with little soccer balls on it. She was over the moon.
In 940 square feet and four kids, there’s a little man who has resorted to LOUD tantrums when he is infringed upon, which happens often in 940 square feet and four kids. He too started soccer this week, and his coach says his enthusiasm is infectious. He is into Narnia, happily vegged out to The Silver Chair right now.
In 940 square feet and four kids, David is struggling to find time to do the “home” portion of his job. He needs an office and so goes in to the shop more often than he should need to, just to get the quiet and peace. His ambition is high; he has a “big deal” meeting this morning for a HUGE account, may have gotten another large one yesterday, and has set his sights on the Toyota machine shops as well. Give this man a challenge and he’ll meet it every time. 940 square feet and four kids is, excellent motivation though, to get those commissions coming and the income up high enough to get LAND and a BIG HOUSE.
940 square feet and four kids dallied with my limits this week. We don’t call this “hard”. “Hard” is your baby going through open heart surgery. This was more like “uncomfortable”. 940 square feet is fine for NOW; I just havent’ been that enthusiastic this week about doing it for a YEAR. But “tomorrow has enough trouble for itself”. Now is a great time to keep the current day at the forefront of my mind, to get out a little, and not worry about the coming months.
I’ve started a container garden on the balcony. My talented writer brother in law (who knew his secret!?) and sis are coming next week. We have a field trip tomorrow with friends and a campout on friday. Activities are starting up. Things are better than little down moments might indicate.
Back in the bedrooms of this 940 square feet, a girl is playing “drums” with a cake pan with a baby. Two boys are sucking thier thumbs watching Prince Caspian and “useless Eustis” have a sword fighting adventure. Our breadwinner has gone to win bread. In awhile I’ll load everyone up for a morning in the greenbelt. The day is foggy…everything is August Tired and limp and you can feel it in the air that the place is right on the cusp of a seasonal change. We’ve noticed the Sycamores and some of the maples already turning. The cicadas are dying off. Somehow enough time has passed for us to have been here a whopping 6 weeks. My baby is 9 months old on Saturday. I watched him like a pot and it didnt’ matter; he still boiled.
I’ll wrap up with a few recomendations: Mother Earth News is a fantastically fun read of a magazine, for those with a mind towards conservation. I had a cozy “no bra day” on the couch reading back issues. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou was a quirky and subtley funny movie, but is not for everyone. I liked it; David slept. Never Let Me Go by Ishiguru was a great, fast read on a very timely topic. Castle Rock makes a very complex Pinot Noir and if you ever get a chance to eat a freshly harvested Stripey tomato, be prepared for your eyes to roll back in your head and your legs to involuntarily quake. You will be beyond bliss.
Life before 2008 19 Aug 2005 05:15 am
my medium sized town
Blissfully mundane miracles around every corner….
Yesterday I realized that I almost never wait in lines anymore. Well, unless I’ve been a “freakin’ idiot” (thankyou Napoleon Dynamite!) and gone to Walmart on a Saturday! But in my day, traffic lines cycle through in one light, checkers are fast and incredilbly friendly, not to mention “mentally engaged” in what they are doing! And I had what was a common experience here but a nearly surreal one for me.
I went to the bank. (I told you it was mundane!). There was a problem with my new debit card and pin number and I had been procrastinating going to the “main office” downtown, thinking it would be a hairy ordeal with four kids in this recent heat. I needn’t of worried.
It was lunch time, which should have meant a crowd, but I got a front and center parking place. The spacious office was full of smiling and happy co-workers and a few older people taking care of thier business. I was helped quickly and no one looked at my somewhat active children like they were escaped from the Knox Zoo. In fact, they go a step further and CONVERSE with the kids! This is totally new to me and it continues to happen everywhere we go. In fact, they have “friends” in the sports, photo, kids, toy, and checkout section of Walmart. Two at Kroger. Three or four at Horn of Plenty. Thier behavior in stores has dramtically improved for one reason: the adults around them don’t act like they are invisible. It really makes a huge difference.
The bank was so easy! I was in and out in 10 minutes but I could have easily stayed and chatted for longer in comfort. The drive-thru ATM is somthing I appreciated, having come from Navy Federal, which didn’t have them. It’s nice to not have to unload everyone for everything little thing.
It seems we constantly observe that Maryville is not a sleepy little town, but actually an “about to burst” town on the cusp of becoming a city. And yet, the people here don’t seem to know it. They act as if it’s a small town where everyone know’s your name and everyone deserves kindness and respect. It’s amazing and hard to describe. I go around with the silliest grin on my face half the time!
Today my parents are here! It’s hard to beleive that they are really just a mile down the road, having continental breakfast, and will be here in less than an hour rather than a day’s drive away! We’ve got a fun day planned with ever-evolving event changes. Mostly I’m sure, we’ll just enjoy being around each other again for a little while.
Have I written about Stripey Tomatoes yet? I’m going to have to go look. If not, buckle your seatbelt becasue a big ole food post is headed your way…
Life before 2008 16 Aug 2005 01:45 pm
Simplicity
Life is simple here. I remember having days when I’d feel overwhelmed or discouraged and wonder what it would be like to just get rid of a bunch of stuff and live the “simple life”.
Well we’re livin’ it baby! With 2/3 stuff in storage, just 1000 sq. feet of light filled living space, all maintained by OTHERS, no debt, no committments…it’s sort of amazing.
In rapid speed life has assumed a new rythm. We rise, we eat, we laugh, we see Dad off. We school, we clean, we watch movies. We read, we play, we swim. Or we hike, or visit, or get lost ;-). We welcome Dad home, we eat, we explore. We worship, we talk, we wind down.
Soon there will be soccer practice, classes to take, houses to hunt for. But just now, things are calm. Things are cheap. Sometimes I sit and look at the mountains and realize that I”m breathing very deeply. Not in an “out of breath” way, but instead it’s like my lungs go farther down, are filled to more capacity, and the air is cleaner. It’s not really of course…they have pollution and ozone here. But breathing feels differently than it did before.
Old things have passed away. All things are new. The verse has never meant more to me before.
******************
Funny things from the kids:
Celia, throwing a hissy fit over something: “It’s not going to work until you take me to the hospital and have my head chopped off!”
Mom: “what will that do?” (trying not to laugh, which will make her even poofier)
Celia: “It’ll make me shorter! That’s what!”
huh???
From Wheaton: “look! it’s going back to skin!” (his scab is healing)
Rowan is not only crawling, but also standing in his crib! It’s weird to find him at night sitting straight up in his bed! He’s working on a few more teeth, though they aren’t through yet. He’s at the height of roly-poly cuteness!
Life before 2008 12 Aug 2005 06:08 pm
FANTASTIC field trip!
Today we went to the James White Fort. (see the link that has jwf at the end). This house and small cluster of other cabins were the first homes in Knoxville and they are now (200 yards from thier origional site) right in the center of the city, across from the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
Since I’m a St. Augustine touring veteran, the grounds weren’t terribly impressive. Pretty, yes. Well preserved, definately. But what really made this trip stand out was the tour guide. He is an 8th generation descendant of the White family and most certainly passionate about his job! He made the tour completely interactive with the kids, getting down on thier level, even sitting on the floor with them!
We went with our new friends, the Pierce family, who moved here last year from Seattle in a similar set of circumstances as our own. Thier kids are matched in age well with ours and we anticipate many more fun trips with them! (they are the ones we went berry picking with two weeks ago). This guide singled out each child and told them at length what thier lives would have been like had they lived back then. They sampled lye soap, sat on beds, played with iron in the blacksmith shop, and handled all the kitchen tools. It was no stripped down or glassed of exhibit!
Together with a picnic lunch under oaks, maples, and paw paw trees (new discovery!) it was a beautiful morning.
Of course no trip to Knoxville would be complete without getting lost! I made one circle, then got horridly lost, then found my way back with the help of David on the phone working with mapquest. I’ll get it one of these days!
Later my new stroller got here. What a fun new toy! And Rowan loves it. It was really easy to assemble and I’m hoping we can put air in the tires and try it out tomorrow.
I took Andrew to a scouting swim party and then headed over to Horn of Plenty, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite places to be! I found a new variety of tomoto: a black tomato. It’s not really black, but very deep red and I suspect sort of purplish inside. And I got more of my crazy-daisy favorite, the Stripey. They are getting more in next week so I can get a bunch for Mom!
Another fantastic food find was the fried pies they had at HOP. I got peach, apple, and strawberry. I’ve been reading about fried pies for a few months now but have never eaten one that tasted remotely close to as good as how the best are described. Well this one must be up there with the best! Not just nasty pie filling inside…real fruit and not overly sweet. The crust wasn’t tough or greasy at all but tender and also not too sweet. A really nice pie. And that was just the peach! I know they don’t have a long shelf life but I”m going to warm the others up in the morning and see how they fare with coffee.
David met me at the mexican place where we had dinner: good, filling, and pretty typical mex. We did the groceries and then he took his tired self home with the cold stuff while I went and picked up Andrew. Our Boy, also tired and happy and chowing down on too many cheetos, had a good time with his new friends. The lot of them are cuddled up on the couch watching the next Horatio Hornblower in the series. All with thumbs and loveys….well, not David! 
I can’t believe this week went as quickly as it did and that we’ve now been here 4 whole weeks! I find I spend alot of time lost, alot of time reflecting, alot of time smiling. David’s had a good one too, signing a new account and making a couple of good sales. He’s encouraged and I’m proud of him.
Life before 2008 12 Aug 2005 04:57 am
happy children
What a good day yesterday!! It really was the kind of day that David and I sank our heads on our pillows and smiled. We were tired and feeling extremely blessed.
It started in the usual way: coffee, breakfast (oatmeal with pecans), a bit of school, watching the baby’s newest trick, seeing Dad off…
Mid-morning we set off for Knoxville. Until yesterday I’d done most of my exploring around Maryville, which I much prefer to Knoxville. But our church and most of the members live in the city and it’s time to venture in broader directions. Our plans were to meet the Waldrep family at a park for a picnic and mom chit-chat and I allowed enough extra time to get a little lost and look around.
The park is down Northshore Dr. which is the same road our church is on but in the other direction. So pretty!! Full of parks and most of them on fingers and lakes from the Tennessee River, Northshore twists and turns past farms, farmland now being built up with brick “Monopoly Hotel” houses, and a few small businesses. It’s right on the edge of the newer and very pristine “Farragut” area.
The Cove was a gorgeous small park. It has a kind of penisula with a bike/walking path, canoe and kayak rental, playground, pavillion, ducks and geese, and roped off swim area in the lake. I can only imagine how beautiful it’s going to be a couple of months when the color strikes! There was even a porch swing for sitting and watching sunsets on the lake.
The kids played with the Waldrep children; rowdy, “boybarian” kind of play on rollerblades, feet, tree climbing, and involving plenty of sweat! There’s a girl in that group as well so Celia and Hannah do what girls do: sequestered themselves under the playground platform and set up “house”.
It was absolutely joyful to sit and talk with a kindred-sprit Mom (Kathy) and see my kids having so much fun. Just another occassion to say, “I love this place!”
From there the plan was to go home for a couple of hours and get in naps. But I took a different way, hoping to find a short cut to the church where the kids are going to play soccer. Not such a hot idea. We ended up SO LOST. Not the “fun, lets explore” kind of lost, but the “CARP! I’m wasting a half tank of gas” kind of lost.
An hour and a half and almost to Pigeon Forge later we figured out how to get back into Maryville and headed to the Richardson’s.
There the kids had a play date. I made my brownies for the evening’s Scouting Family Picnic and chatted with Adele. Our roly-poly babies, Rowan and her Amelia, were all over each other and the floor. They are both in that fun, “hey ….there’s another little person!” discovery stage. The boys built a lego world complete with plot and structure of discovery, adventure, and weapons while the girls got dressed to the nines and performed “Cindrella” for Adele and I in the parlor/living room. Adele lives in a large, historic house, which is just perfect for her because her passion is vintage things. The girls were *hilarious*!
I followed her to Pearson’s park for our Scout picnic. Low key and casual, it was just for the families to get to know each other before a year of activities. It was HOT with humidity to rival Florida’s but it cooled down nicely as the sun went down. This park is right on the Greenbelt. AFter too many hot dogs and red food coloring (punch) the boys played Extreme Frisby with the dads and the mom’s chatted about uniforms.
This is probably all terribly mundane and boring to read! But life is the simple stuff and it takes my breath away to see our dreams coming true. Our kids were unbelievably happy! Each one playing with a crowd of kids, sweaty, hot , exhausted, making plans to see each other again. People skated by, ran by, walked thier dogs…moms offered to help each other or invited kids to thiers for swim parties.
This town has a well-trodden welcome mat and they just keep it out. When we got home after sun-down, I had good, exciting, and secret news in my inbox. The kids got showered and David and I read and planned our next day. It’s a good feeling to sink onto your pillow knowing “day is done” and that it was so satisfying.
No bed time battles last night; they went down with the same full love-tanks and goofy grins.
Life before 2008 10 Aug 2005 05:13 am
Miscellaneous Mish-mash of Motherhood
Another morning, another wonderful cup of coffee. Do you know that coffee has to be a one of the more inspiring fluids known to man? Here we have it every morning but every single day we can wake up anticipating it’s dark warmth and jolt of invigoration! We brew good coffee here at the Graham’s…I try to get the freshest, best beans, we grind each pot right before brewing, and we use a French Press which makes an awesome couple of cups. Fortunately the world seems to be agreeable to this quest and getting good stuff is easily accessible to just about everyone.
And every day is like a fresh start. Forget that I just had a cup 24 hours ago and that it was wonderful. Today’s could be BETTER! With a tad of sugar and good douse of milk or cream, it always tastes that way too. And if it’s shade grown and my man is home that day…watch out ’cause I’ll be in utter bliss and won’t be opening my eyes anytime soon! It’s worse than “Lucy in tke sky”.
This morning we had a breakfast that knew how to stand up to it’s coffee. Thick sliced bacon, then most of the drippings drained off save for a couple of tablespoons. Then an AWESOME, frsh tomato with deep, dark red juice, also sliced thick, seared in the fat. You can’t scoot these around in the pan or they break down! Just leave them until you think they may be browning on one side and then flip them. A fried egg (poached would have been better though) on top, with melted cheese. Oh manohmanohman……..
Beautiful discovery: when the juices mix with the golden yolk of a fresh, free roaming chicken egg (none that pale tasteless stuff; get good eggs folks!) there is a whole new tone of warm oranges and yellows on the plate. It’s gorgeous. With little flecks of pepper…my goodness you’ll want to lick it up so serve some good toast with it. A year ago we bought nice heavy, white plates, “bistro” style. You don’t get tired of plain plates when the food is so darn fun and gorgeous to observe!!
Wheaton and Celia are sword fighting in the living room. The little vino makers just finished squashing a bunch of black grapes into juice. Black grapes are another fun new produce item I’ve found up here. They are incredibly juicy and the kids didn’t waste any time devouring them.
Wheaton said a funny last night: he had me peel him a banana. We’d gone to Horn of Plenty yesterday afternoon and they sell a different banana than we’re used to. It’s not a mini and not plantain and not as big as the Chiquitas. Just a nice medium yellow banana. I peeled it for him and he pulled the white fruit out of the peel, smelled it, and said, “ah….FRESH!” Guess I have him trained ‘eh?
Rowan is pushing himself up to a sit this week and very close to figuring out how to pull into a stand. He knows “up” is there but hasn’t quite gotten the idea of how he’s going to get there. He’s doen three nights in a row of sleeping through to 4 am so we’re feeling happy!
Speaking of sleeping…When one sleeps, it doesn’t mean everyone does! Last night there was a strange lump by my feet. I sat up and there was Wheaton, on his tummy with his bum up in the air, sound asleep hugging David’s feet. About then came in Celia, who’d had a dream or something and wanted David to check it out in her room. He got up and she crawled into his spot. David just headed to the couch. Getting kicked out of bed almost never happens and I’m glad for that! After all, they are a couple of of bed hogs with very sharp elbows. But I couldn’t resist stroking Celia’s hair for a little bit and patting W. How much longer will they be warm and snuggly little lumps that want company in the middle of the night?
After half a night on the couch, David deserved a good breakfast. I was glad I could provide it. He’s off to westerly points today; with a scorching forecast and no AC. He’s planning on the men’s bible study tonight on covenant baptistism, with fellowship and “Lutheresque Libations”. We have a class at the library and plenty of swimming today. We’re watching through the Horatio Hornblower series, which is worth a trip to the library if you haven’t seen it. It’s EXCELLENT.
School calls…