Category Archives: family

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(Not) The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Christmas is Peak Season at my husband’s work. That usually means that the Thanksgiving long weekend is a kind of a calm before the storm: we have Thanksgiving dinner, put up the Christmas tree, take our annual family portrait, and enjoy one another’s company. Because once this weekend is over, he goes in to work early, and I get to see him even less than usual.

Except, this year, Peak not only started the week before Thanksgiving, but it intruded on our long weekend, too. Aaron worked on Friday, and he works again on Sunday. Not only that, but I need to leave my work 90 minutes early two days a week during December so I can get home in time for Aaron to leave for work on non-daycare days.

I am displeased, to say the least.

I’m trying not to get all Grinchy, but it’s hard. I was looking forward to some very rare quality time with everyone home and awake and in a good mood, with some Christmas Music That Doesn’t Suck and some take-out for dinner. Instead, we get to figure out how to cram all the normal weekend stuff into the same abbreviated space as trimming the tree and taking a family picture in front of it. And try to have a good time doing it.

I know we’ll figure it out. I know it’s totally a First World Problem. But that doesn’t make it any less frustrating and disappointing.

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TBT: The Wringer-Washer (1978)

Memaw and Diana and the Wringer-Washer

When I pulled this photograph out of the big envelope bursting with memories, and looked at it closely, the first thing I did was text my Mom.

Mom! Is this THE wringer-washer?

I’d heard the story so many times, but I never had an actual image to put with it.

As the story goes, Mom and I were living in a trailer in Florida with my Memaw and Papaw. Two-year-old me was standing in the yard, barefoot as usual, crying, “Boo-boo! Boo-boo!” Memaw came to see what the problem was, and discovered fire ants climbing up my legs. I was apparently standing on an anthill with fire ants climbing up me and biting me, and I didn’t know what to do but tell someone that I had a boo-boo.

Memaw thought fast — she picked me up and dunked me in the wringer-washer!

That wringer-washer. Right there.

…

Looking through these pictures, seeing myself at my son’s age, has really made me miss my Memaw in a new and poignant way that I never have before. She really was my second parent for most of my childhood.

It’s hard to articulate exactly how I feel. On one hand, I miss her and I wish I could talk to her again and share with her all the stuff that her great-grandbaby is doing, and ask her if I was like that, and ask how her son was different from her daughters at this age, all those kinds of new-common-ground questions.

On the other hand, it makes me feel very… Zen. Others have felt like this, and others who come after me will feel like this, and it makes me part of the human condition to be recognizing how I fit into this whole big hippy-dippy circle of life, where grandparents and great-grandparents are missed and we share their legacy with our children and hope something sticks.

I sang Memaw’s lullaby for me to Connor last week without losing it — and without changing any words to make it Connor’s song. I told Connor that it’s a song that Grammy and Memaw used to sing to Mommy when she was little.

He seemed to understand.

He asks for it every night now.

I miss you, Memaw.

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TBT: My 3rd Birthday, 1979

As I’ve been preparing photos and words about my son’s third birthday, I realized that actually remember my own third birthday party. Aunt Connie hosted it at her house, and it was Mickey Mouse themed. I got a Mickey Mouse Club tea set (above), which I had forgotten was from that birthday; and my Super Girl shirt, which I had completely forgotten existed until I scanned this picture.

There are more pictures of me and my cake and my cousins! Continue reading →