Random Notes from the Sandwich Life
1. I walked into the living room last night and was disappointed to find only my family there. It was much more fun the night before to have Fats and Kristi Rose there as well! Actually I was pretty happy to find my family. It was nice to have a lazy evening....sat in the yard and talked to Ernie and Dave about the party, ate leftover food....
2. After the last...well, let's see....I guess about six years of dealing with elderly parents, Alzheimer's and the like it feels strange to not be in the midst of it. And now a couple of my dearest friends are in the same boat and it feels so ODD....I wish I could think of a better word....almost surreal....to be on the outside looking in. I just feel for them so deeply because I know how there's that knot in your chest that never really goes away---no matter how happy you are. All I could say the other night to them was that I know when you're in the middle of it, it seems as though it will be endless and this will be your life forever....but it ends. It ends...and although you can't really see it coming....it will be over. And then you'll feel this strange weightlessness the way I do now. And sometimes I look back with regret----wishing I had done more for them--or remembering the times when I wasn't patient enough or as generous with my time as I should have been, but it will be in the past. And so you shake your head and try to pull a good memory out of your hat.
3. We did our family Friday afternoon lunch at Fries and Peanuts. The boys spent a good part of the time negotiating for higher allowances. We finally brokered a deal in which they will each get an additional $2 a week and Leo will now be unloading the dishwasher M-F and Owen will be cleaning the catbox M-F. I'll let you know how this goes lol.... Leo was campaigning for a higher rate and Owen kept coming up with these complicated plans with different amounts each week or a monthly allowance on top of a weekly allowance.... They agreed to our terms though so we'll see!
4. We also ended up somehow discussing the number of farts that emanate from one blonde child. We all ended up giggling and I was shushing them, and I said, "you guys, please be quiet...you know, I was never even ALLOWED to say the word fart when I was growing up!" In fact, that word never crossed your grandmother's lips." Owen smiled smugly and said, "oh yes it did." Then he proceeded to tell us how one time when they were alone with Grandma they told her that Aunt Debbie had bought them fart machines. "and Grandma started laughing---and then kind of coughing too cause she wasn't doing too good" and there he squinched up face in sympathy. "But then she said, "she sent you a FART machine?" Owen and Leo BOTH smiled rather smugly and Owen said, "so she did say 'fart' ONCE!" God I love those boys.....and my mom and my crazy sister who sent them fart machines.....
5. A couple of pictures from the party by Richard Hill: