Hunting turkeys

May 16, 2013May 16, 2013Leave a comment

Mario and Jon have gone turkey hunting a few times over the last month. They have come back empty-handed every time. Jon has, too, when he goes it alone. In fact, I think it’s been at least five years since Jon or my dad have gotten a turkey (the last time I remember is when I was laying out in the front yard and dad pulled up with a turkey he shot -I held it up by its turkey legs in my bikini – classy).

So, when Mario and I walked by the library on Tuesday night (Ri went out to dinner with her girlfriends after softball practice) and caught a glimpse of a turkey, we got excited. Mario screamed “Look at the big boy!” He strutted his fine self all around the cage (the turkey, that is).

Mario begged me to call Jon and tell him. “Dad can’t shoot this turkey, though because he’s a pet.” At least he’s got some sense (every other time we talk about turkeys he wants to get out and hunt ’em). The woman owner was sweet as can be with the kids. She had ducks, chicks, rabbits and the Tom turkey. Mario petted all of them but couldn’t quite leave that turkey.

When we headed home, I looked back at the turkey and glanced at Mario. “See, you couldn’t shoot one of those babes, could you?” He looked up at me for a second, grinned, and ran down the street laughing.

Birthday madness

May 7, 2013May 7, 2013Leave a comment

The 8 year-old birthday festivities have concluded. They lasted four days and made me a zombie by the end.

Ri did not want a big bash at an inflatable gym or a sleepover with 10 girls this year. She wanted her best girlfriend and her cousin to come out to the farm for the weekend. And she wanted me to do a “surprise” at her school. Piece of cake, heh? Not for the mom who has to think of fifty different ways to create the best surprise.

It started at the beginning of the week with traveling to four different bike shops to look for bikes for Ri. Then debating over and over whether to get her a used bike of a new one. Then whether to get a new Target bike or a new Trek bike. In the end, we opted for the Trek because Ri loves to bike so much. She also just reached the height to be on a 24 inch bike so she’ll use this one for a while. I took her to the Trek store in the guise of getting a bike for Jon’s birthday so I could see which one she gravitated towards. Surprisingly, she went for the black one with pink writing and not the pink one. Good girl.

I also ran around shoe stores and Target to buy her some sandals and shorts. She loves these new athletic shorts at Target and she needs them – her running shorts from last year barely cover her tush (not a look Jon likes).

On Thursday, I went to her school at 1:30 and set up decorations at the shelter across the street. I had cupcakes, balloons, poster board for the kids to sign, water bottles for all the kids to take home, and treats. I had ordered pizzas because I had planned on going at 11 am but when we woke up that morning and I told Ri I’d surprise her at 11, she flipped out. “Today I get to go to computer lab with Ms. Palmer. I can’t do it any other day but today!” So, my plans changed. Thanks to Ms. Palmer for rolling with the punches.

The kids were hyper when they arrived for the party. They bolted over to me wanting to dive in the cupcakes and run around the field. They all sang happy birthday to Ri and signed her poster and flung themselves into the cupcakes. We played trivia – the first person to give the correct answer got a water bottle. Everyone knew Ri’s favorite band – Big Time Rush. The boys scattered to one area of the park and the girls to another and the party continued until school was out. One little boy came up to me afterwards and told me it was the best day he’s had in school. What a compliment!

Afterwards, I took two of Ri’s friends to the park and back to the house to play. We couldn’t find Janira’s mom when we headed to dinner so she got to come with us. Mario made them watch Ghostbusters in the back seat while we drove to Olive Garden. Ri chose it because Alana told her they had all you can eat breadsticks. My little Italian gal. Patty and Joe met us there.

The food was pretty bland but the breadsticks and salad weren’t bad. And they brought a nice size cake for Ri which is all we truly cared about.

We headed home to open presents. We gave Ri her shoes (too big) and her clothes (perfect). Then she looked at us quizzically wondering if there was any more. I left and brought in the black bike and her eyes opened so wide. She loved it. She went directly outside and rode it. Now every night she wants to practice using the gears.

I spent Friday buying treats for the girls’ gift bags at the farm. I wanted little magnifying glasses and journals to record their findings but I could not find them anywhere. So they got Nerds (not a smart candy to eat in the car) and bubbles and notebooks and pens and stuffed animals. Saturday arrived and I packed up the Volvo (freshly detailed) with sleeping bags, pillows, clothes, boots and giggling kids. Mario got to sleep over at Gio’s house and Jon went hunting.

We stopped at Giant Eagle for Ri’s horsey cake and then Walgreens for some Red Box movies. Alana begged to listen to Shake It Up on the way out. Poor Sophie is not too into that music so after the fifth song, I told Alana we had to turn it off (Alana knows every word to every song). They played with Furby (Grandma Ionno’s gift to Ri) and laughed. Then we played a game the rest of the way out where I gave them a letter and they had to draw a picture of a word that began with that letter. They loved it. Then they had to make up a sentence with the words they made up. Yeah, a little creative thinking to add to the ride.

We stopped at McDonalds Playland in Zanesville for some lunch and some play. There were a ton of local kids screaming and running throughout the area, however, so it was a quick trip (thank god).

We arrived at Red Hawk farm at 3 pm to a pen of barking, excited pups. Little did they know what they were in for over the next 24 hours. The girls immediately begged to get them out and run with them. The once tranquil farm exploded with yelling and laughter and the “chuck-it” winging a tennis ball across the lawn for Stella. Ahh, the energy kids bring to a place.

The chickens also had it in for the weekend. The girls moved to them next. They “herded” them like sheep and surprisingly did a good job at it. They also discovered six eggs in the henhouse which was quite exciting for them (and tasted delicious the next morning).

They then moved onto the creek to bathe in the mud-filled water. They loved the freedom to get as wet and dirty as they wanted. Alana about died when I told her she could get her shorts wet. And Ri beamed when I told her she could dunk her head under water. One of the simple joys of the farm – splashing in cold water on a sunny day.

The next stop was the horses. Sweet Taz allowed all three girls to ride him without any issue (he was quite ornery with Ri the weekend before but she handled it well due to her Grandma Meg training). I wish we could snap our fingers and have Ri at the farm for riding lessons and then back home an hour later for shower and bed.

It was back to the creek with Sarah and Jorge joining us later. Stella took a liking to Sophie following her down the creek bed. Maria discovered the wonders of slimy, soft algae and caressed it with her hands. Alana held on to Rosie tightly since Peepaw had warned that she would get lost if you let go of her leash. At one point, Stella grabbed the leash with her teeth and swung Rosie, and Alana, around in a circle. Alana somehow held on until Sarah got Stella but she was shaken up. All it took was us affirming what a strong girl she was and she stood up, shook it off and said “Maria’s grandpa will be proud of me!”

Sarah spotted trillium flowers on the bank of the creek. Beautiful and purple. Luckily, we had our renowned photographer with us.

I was ready for some food after all of the activities. So were the girls. We chowed on homemade Boboli pizzas while sitting on the screened in porch – a slight breeze hitting our skin and the sounds of evening surrounding us. Presents came next. Ri scored some cowboy boots and horse galoshes from Meg and dad, American girl clothes from Alana, a game from Sarah and Jorge, and a watch from Sophie. She hugged everyone with her monster hug squeeze and we were ready for cake.

I got a picture of a horse for her this year; I guess she’s graduated from the party theme cakes at Giant Eagle. She loved it. We broke out the game Sarah bought her, Quizzle, after cake. It was a blast. I think adults enjoy it more than kids. We played a mean game with Jorge winning due to his superior visual acumen. Dad set up the tent while we played and the girls took their board games in the tent and played. The adults called it a night at 9:30 but the girls stayed strong. At least two of them did. Ri fell asleep on the couch watching a movie with them at 10 pm. Sophie got scared shortly thereafter because the movie was spooky. Alana has no fear from all her Goosebumps movies. I put them in the tent at 10:30 and laid on the couch looking out the large window at the sparkling stars in the sky. It’s beautiful to view the night with no artificial light surrounding it. Alana came in five minutes later complaining that Ri was kicking her. She laid with me all night.

The morning brought dazed, punch-drink looks from both kids and adults. The kids played with the chickens and dogs some more and devoured Peepaw’s blueberry and walnut pancakes (easy to do). We took a creek walk again but this time from the road all the way back to the pasture. I told my dad that he needed to host a Warrior Race out at the farm between the mud and water and branches and thorns we needed to traverse as we walked the creek. Forget barbed wire fences and hoses for water – we have it au natural at Red Hawk. The girls were unstoppable and in heaven.

Dad and I got to take a walk together on his new trail through the woods. I got some insight on flowers and trees as well as the latest news on fracking and the plea of oil companies to lease his land. He, as always, is thinking through every option available and being practical yet principled about the ordeal. I just adore my pops.

We ended our time there with another chicken round-up, discovering a few more eggs, and spoiling the pups in their pen. We weren’t on the road twenty minutes before Ri was conked out.

I should have seen this coming between her lounging in the hammock with Meg and her dazed and confused look with me!

By the time we got home in Sunday, I was beyond exhausted. Poor Jon sat on the back deck waiting for us to arrive. Oh shoot! It was his birthday. I barely could muster happy birthday to him but he understood. “You do too much, babe” he told me gently as I whined about being tired. “I love you too death and you’re a magnificent mom but you do too much.” He had a point. I probably didn’t need to stop at Meijer’s on the way home and let the girls get a little toy.or unload the entire car as soon as we got home.

“Baby steps” I told him and he nodded his head and grinned. We sat on the deck and talked while M&M ran around with the neighbor kids.

Twice-baked goodness

November 26, 2012November 26, 2012Leave a comment

We ended the four-day holiday with twice-baked potatoes; Jon’s and his brother, Chris’s favorite and one of Patty’s signature dishes. I am not a velveeta cheese fan and was hesitant to try one but I had put so much effort into helping Patty make them that I felt compelled. It was not a mistake. Pure yumminess.

I need to buy some stock in Nike elastic sweatpants because that’s all I will be wearing for the next two months between all of the holiday goodies.

Maria and Mario called me from the road on their way back from the farm to see when Grandma and Grandpa Ionno would be over. They had a good time at the farm with Sarah and Jorge and Mama Meg and Peepaw. Maria got in a hike with Sarah and the pups and Mario got to go hunting with Peepaw.

They also got treated to a holiday parade in Marietta. Peepaw piled ’em up in the car on Saturday and drove to Marietta to see what was happening; he had no idea that a parade was in order! Mario scored some plastic army men and a tank and Maria nabbed a ladybug pillow. Maria got to bathe Taz and love on him, too. Mandatory horse fixes when she’s out on that farm.

I got some monstrous hugs upon their return, which I soaked up like bubbles in a bubble bath. The farm (or maybe Aunt Sarah or Mama Meg) had quite the effect on Maria. She went upstairs without any prodding and took a shower, got dressed, and brought down both hers and Mario’s dirty clothes bins. She dragged them right over to the washer and threw them inside. She went back upstairs and got a hamper for the clean clothes in the dryer. All without any peep from me or Jon. Alleluia! She did ask for help with the detergent though and I walked over to get it down for her. She pointed at the Downy and said “I need that, too.” I told her she didn’t need to use that with detergent and she promptly channeled her dad directing me to get it. “We need both – Downy makes the clothes smell better.” I could practically hear Jon in her voice.

Grandma and Grandpa Ionno arrived at 2 pm and Mario promptly laid his body across Grandma and played his iPad game. When she tried to move, he cried “No, grandma!” Finally, she got to move but only to help Ri with her homework. Ri got lucky because Grandma is the master of word puzzles. They cranked the puzzle out with the help of Alana and me at the end. As soon as that was over, Ri and Alana dashed upstairs to Ri’s room never to be seen again until dinner. Mario and Gio watched tv in our room and then went outside to play frisbee and bounce on the trampoline. They referred to each other as “dude” continuously. I picture them on a cross country road trip in ten years with feet hanging out the window and music blaring.

We all watched the Browns game (Patrick was lucky the Bengals weren’t playing) and caught up on the latest. Chris and Connie arrived with pictures from their wedding. Dinner was fabulous with the twice baked potatoes quite the hit. Ri ate two and begged for a third. We talked about Jon and Patrick as kids – Patrick slapping his cheeks outside in order to stay awake on New Years Eve and win 50 cents. Jon had no trouble staying awake. It was a superb time especially with the kids eating in the other room.

After dinner, the kids helped Alana and Grandma open birthday presents. Grandma scored an iPad for her birthday – I can’t wait to see her on Facebook! I am also going to urge her to write her and Joe’s story on it because it would be an amazing memoir.

We had to end the holiday on a pumpkin pie note so we sat down at 7 pm for one (or two) last pieces of pie with lots of whipped cream. Maria showed us her “trick” which entails putting the tip of the can of whipped cream in her mouth and pressing down to fill her entire throat and mouth with whipped cream. About as impressive as her dad swallowing a whole deviled egg.

We sang happy birthday to Patty and Alana and wrapped up the night. I kept wanting to extend the days longer so that the reality of work and school could be quashed. But I woke up this morning (after falling asleep with the kids at 8:30) happy as a clam – my body filled with tenderness and appreciation for a most incredible family and a most fantastic holiday weekend.

Weekend getaway

August 21, 2012August 21, 2012Leave a comment

We packed the Volvo full of blankets and pillows and sleeping bags and Red Bulls and chips and chocolate.

All to head two hours east to my folks’ farm.

We had to take the Volvo due to weird sounds coming from Jon’s Yukon. You would have thought the world ended according to Ri who complained about how squeezed she felt in the Volvo. We would expect nothing less from her, however, since she always talks about her first car being a mammoth SUV. My girl likes her space just like her dad.

We arrived at the farm and within five minutes of exiting the car, Mario begged to play badminton. The boy loves this game and could literally spend all afternoon playing it. He looks like a pro out there with his shirt off, hair tussled and tanned body. Maria went straight in the house to help cook and position herself for any sampling of extra food.

We celebrated dad’s and Jorge’s birthdays with cherry pie and cupcakes. Maria snagged a gift for Peepaw from her treasure chest at school. It was a huge pair of clay lips. She wrapped them in a Victoria’s Secret box. Dad was clearly surprised at the box and the lips! Maria explained that the lips were a paper weight to hold down his poems after he wrote them. What a doll.

Dad retired in June after working 40+ years to support his family. He plans on writing in his spare time which Maria overheard during one of our conversations. The girl has my desire to think through presents to the nth degree and make sure they have a purpose. I love it!

We sang the traditional happy birthday song to the boys and watched them make their wishes.

After the celebration, we worked off dessert with a family badminton game. Mario made sure it stayed competitive and Maria made sure we kept it light-hearted! After an hour and a half of competition, Mario, Jon and Peepaw stacked wood to make a fire. Ri and I got the materials to make s’mores and before we knew it we were sitting in front of a blazing fire eating marshmallows and s’mores and telling stories about when Sarah was little. Maria loves listening to stories about the past (especially when she’s able to eat marshmallows!). Mario played with the fire the entire time intrigued by the heat and flames.

Maria enjoyed seeing her horses and got to perform obstacles while riding Taz. She amazes me on the horse. She is so calm and in control, and she knows so much about them already. I love watching her brush them and kiss their noses.

We headed to Mario’s and Vicki’s house on Sunday after gobbling up Sarah’s sweet potato hash for breakfast. We had not been to their house in months and Vicki cooked so many magnificent things, as always! Meatballs, spaghetti, tomato salad, homemade bread, steak, and zucchini bread for dessert! Jon and I could not move for a half hour. When I did finally move, I bounced on the trampoline with Maria. God help me. I can’t believe all that food stayed down!

Ri and I had a blast on the trampoline – we laughed so hard at each other bouncing everywhere. At one point she crawled over to me, laid on me, gave me a huge smooch and whispered “I love seeing you laugh mommy!” My baby girl. Mario and Ri had a good time, too, while Jon and I sat with Mario and Vicki on the porch and chatted. The weather was perfect.

We arrived back at our house in time for Ri and I to take a quick bike ride to Giant Eagle to get food for school and work. We even got sample sheet cake from the bakery ( two pieces each!). Life is good.

The joys of nature, good food and family

May 7, 2012Leave a comment

The farm delivered good times this past weekend. Maria, her cousin and her friend drove out with me on Saturday afternoon. We jammed it out to Now 41 and Justin Bieber during the ride. Everytime I tried to sing with them, Maria would yell “Moooom, please don’t!” Even though she did not want me to sing, she did want me pump my arm up and down when we passed truck drivers along the way. She remembers me telling her my story of doing that as a kid and truck drivers honking away at me and my girlfriends when we were on long trips with our parents. They tried to do it from the back seat but the windows are tinted. I pulled through for them and pumped my arm (and showed a little leg) and got a few honks for them!

When we pulled up the drive to the farm, Maria began explaining the entire set-up to her friends. “There is my pee-paw in the garden and there is Rosie’s dog-run and the chickens are up in their house and the cabin is in the back and….” SHe is definitely at home out at the farm. The girls jumped out of the truck and bee-lined to Rosie. Maria and Alana love to play with Rosie. They throw her toy, play chase, love on her, and exhaust her. Janira, Maria’s school friend, was much more hesitant to get in the gated area with them. She stood back and watched. I think the whole farm scene overwhelmed her – she is a true city girl. However, she did get up her nerve to go into the chicken coop with the girls. And much to her amazement, she retrieved a chicken egg. All three girls retrieved one, and came running back to the house with eggs in their hands. They were different colors, mostly peach and grey-blue. Maria described to Grandma Meg how they found the eggs by digging under the hay (she knows all of the tricks of the farm, too).

Next, we headed to the creek below the house. Meg and I walked with them enjoying a few minutes together to talk about the latest going-ons in our lives. Meg and I don’t get to talk as much as we used to pre-kids because she lives two hours away and the kids are always with me when we see each other. I value even the small moments in time that we can catch up. The water in the creek flowed at a manageable level for the girls to walk around in their water shoes. Maria and Alana took off again, and Janira was a trooper trying to keep up. We walked to the swimming hole; a pool of water less than waist-high where the girls could jump around and splash. It looked like a little bit of paradise with the sun shining through the trees onto the water; the green plants and wildflowers lining the edge of the bank, the birds flying from one bush to the other, and the smell of nature. My dad talked about making a cleaner path to the swimming hole and setting up stones near the hole for adults to talk while the kids played. Retirement is hitting him soon, and he is already scoping out projects to keep him busy!

The kids were soaked after the swimming hole. We took them to the house and dried them off. When they moved to the table, they found sweet surprises from Grandma Meg. First, goodie bags with headbands and snap bracelets and crayons and pens. Second, a homemade Nature Journal complete with a twig fastener and activities inside. Leave it to my Meg-pie – she has a perfect combo of teacher, conservationist and nature guru. It had educational yet fun activities in it like discovering a tree and finding certain colors pasted onto a sheet of the journal (when we were walking in the woods and saw yellow bark, Janira yelled out “I found our yellow!”). She also had pages to detail the day, including writing one thing in nature that made you have a happier day (Meg gave them an example of a butterfly landing on her leg). They stood around the table soaking up her words. What an awesome influence for Maria Grace and her friends. These girls certainly walked away from the weekend with a greater appreciation for nature. They also got so excited over finding a caterpillar (which Meg looked up in her guide-book with Maria completely intrigued), a toad, and a woodpecker.

I helped my dad later in the afternoon following a sumptuous meal of spaghetti and meatballs, garlic bread and corn on the cob. We loaded up all of the slate from the barn to store next to the chicken house (the barn needs to be refurbished due to its age and the fact that it could topple over any second). Nothing better than some good, hard labor (when you are not forced to do it, heh?!). My body was rather shaky and exhausted after moving the slate and picking up a few giant rocks, but it was a good exhausted – one where you feel you’ve actually done something useful with this machine that is our body. I enjoyed time with my pops, too. When we rode on the forklift to get the rocks, there was a moment he looked back at me to make sure I was on securely. I felt like a kid again hanging out my dad. I wanted to tell him how much it meant to me to share that moment with him but it seemed a rather strange comment to make when we were both dripping in sweat and riding a forklift down a gravel hill. So I kept it to myself but I believe he knew just from the sheer fact of being my dad, and having an intuition for those things.

We returned to cake and ice cream – yummy. Meg and I laughed at our sweet Maria as she sat in her chair eating the icing off her cake. All was quiet and she chimed in “Ahh, I am enjoying this cake.” A perfect summation of what we were all thinking. We finished the night with Matilda – an absolutely adorable movie with Danny Devito and Rhea Perlman. It was super moon night, and it shined into the house so brightly that I felt like I was being interrogated at times. But it was gorgeous in the clear black night out in the country.

We woke on Sunday and rode horses. The girls all did a fab job with Meg and dad helping them. The horses were in great moods and caused no distress. After the girls rode, we had some killer pancakes made by dad. He uses a regular whole wheat mix but adds a bit of brown sugar to it and it makes them to die for. They have this crispness around the edges and a melt in your mouth taste. Sometimes he makes them with nuts and blueberries, which sounds amazing. After pancakes, the girls took a tractor ride around the pasture and gathered a few more eggs from the chicken brood. The bickering began around that time with little slights setting them off (Maria yelled at Alana for talking about dogs because it made Maria miss Cy; Alana yelled back; Maria yelled at Janira for “bragging” and Janira cried that she was not trying to brag but Maria always thought she was and it’s not fair…). Hence, it was a good time to leave so Meg and dad would not be subjected to it and I could ignore it from the long way off in the front of the truck.

We pulled out of the drive, and I felt so happy. You know those moments you get every once in a while where the entire world looks peachy-keen and life has circled around to right where you want it? I had it. Right in the palm of my hand. And then Maria threw a marker past Alana so she couldn’t use it and Alana screamed at Maria and Janira cried her head hurt, and I was back in reality. I had promised that we would stop at McDonald’s Playland on the way back home. Why did I do that? This McDonald’s Playland was the grossest one I have ever seen. The tables were dirty; the kids were loud and obnoxious, and the parents were even worse. One parent was yelling at her son to get down from the slide. When he refused she yelled “That’s it, Tiger, I am going to whoop on your ass with my belt in front of everyone.” I was ready to rescue the kid if she did it in front of me but she refrained. Eye-opening to see other walks of life. I pride myself on appreciating diversity but the folks in that McDonald’s tested me.

When we finally got home, we got to start the party all over again with Jon’s family. Patty had kept Giovanni and Mario all weekend up at her condo, and I am sure was ready to bring them down to our house to say good riddance! It took her over ten hours to make potato salad because she had to keep running after them. What a woman. I was being a little pissy from being tired when the rest of the clan arrived. The kids went down in the basement to dance to “I’m Sexy and I Know it” and Jon grilled hamburgers and brats and peppers. The meal was delicious, and I shook off my irritable mood and had a good time (it was probably the realization that I would get another whole sheet cake to eat (I had already had two others for Maria’s b-day earlier in the week)).

Everyone left around 8:30. Jon and I dropped on the couch. The kids fell pretty quickly, too. Maria’s b-day weekend brought lots of good times but I was glad to be on my couch with my hubby staring off into space. Although, loading up slate would be a close second.

Practicing gratitude

November 7, 2011November 7, 2011Leave a comment

I asked Maria and Mario what they were grateful for while we ate dinner tonight.

Holding the baby chicks at the farm

Maria: eggs (she had just brought some back from Grandma Meg’s and Peepaw’s farm); little grapes (we had found “baby” sized grapes in the bunch of grapes earlier in the evening); and her grandmas (all three of them!).

Mario: for a wonderful night; mom and dad and Ria and Cy (“I miss him, mom”); my grandmas; and the farm.

Mom: for the bike ride and for 62 degree weather and for our new home.

I try to ask this question every night in order to reinforce how important it is to recognize all the wonderful people and things around us. As part of my training to be a culture shaping facilitator at the university, we performed an exercise around gratitude. We were asked to think about how many times through the day we stressed about something or we wallowed in self-pity because we did not have something or we missed someone or we failed to get something done. Then we were asked to think about all that we did have – be it a home, significant other, health, car to travel in, clothes, friends, etc. Most of us realized that when all was said and done a great majority of our life was good. We had a roof over our head, we were able to travel, we had family who loved us, we had a pet who licked us, we fed ourselves three meals a day (if not more); yet, we realized that we tended to focus a significant amount of our time and energy on the negative things or people in our lives.

Hence, the idea of practicing gratitude. Ever since that training, I have consciously made an effort to push myself to be grateful, especially during the times I see myself heading downhill. And I figure if I can start M&M praciticing it, they will be experts by age 10.

And it’s not that hard. Each day, I find myself tripping over a wealth of things and activities and people for which to be grateful. Tonight, I was grateful for the chilly fall weather that allowed us to throw on our sweatshirts and bike helmets and take a ride to visit our friends. I love watching M&M head out on their cycles, laughing and talking the entire way to the destination. Maria sings songs to herself. Mario points out each animal and flower he sees on the way. I love seeing the grin on Maria’s face as she turns a corner all by herself and the excitement in Mario’s voice when he spots a squirrel behind a bush. I try to allow myself to see the world anew like M&M. When Mario points to the squirrel, I look at the little critter and wonder if he will find a nut, what tree he will choose to climb, how many brothers and sisters he has at home. When Maria turns that corner, I remember back to riding my back with Beth Ann, my grade school friend, and how thrilling it was to speed up and down our alley.

M&M keep me practicing gratitude. It is hard not to practice it when I have them by my side. Hopefully, our evening ritual will become embodied in them to where they hit the pillow at night and think about all they have to be grateful for in the day that is about to pass under them. The stars, the night, a warm blanket, sweet dreams….

The city mice head to the country

September 1, 2011September 1, 2011Leave a comment

The kids and I traveled out to Noble County last weekend to see Mama Meg and Peepaw and Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jorge. And just as importantly, Stella, Mona and Rosie (the pups). We jammed the last twenty minutes of the ride to Uncle Jack’s Alpine Ghost CD. The kids love the first two songs of the CD because they are fast-paced and provide a beat that is easy to dance to wherever you are (car, bedroom, back yard). Both of the kids break into dance while listening to the tunes but in completely different fashions. Maria dances around like a nymph and Mario bangs his head and pumps his fists.

As we drove up the gravel drive to the farm-house, we all sang loudly out of our windows to alert the crew that we had arrived. The dogs took care of our arrival, also, by barking incessantly until we stopped the car and got out to acknowledge their presence. They could not withhold their excitement; they knew that the kids would beg to get them out of their pen so they could play with them. Little munchkin saviors. And sure enough, within ten minutes of arrival, Mario was tossing a ball to Stella and Maria was trying to get Mona to do tricks for treats. When Mona failed to adhere to Maria’s commands (she has only one leader – Aunt Sarah), Maria headed to the chicken pen. She tried like mad to hold a chicken but they were in no mood to be touched. She has the trick down – approach them quietly and calmly – but they still sense her presence and flee. There is one female that loves Peepaw and Maria keeps her hopes up that if she stands around Peepaw long enough while he holds her, she will fall in love with Maria, too.

We took a hike up to the swing a while later. It still floors me after three years that my folks live on a farm with 40+ acres of land. We can go out there whenever we want and hike through the woods looking at flowers and trees and mushrooms and caterpillars. We can skim through the creek streaming alongside the trail and admire the slate soaking up the sunshine through the leaves. We can study the circles on a fallen old oak tree to see how old it is and we can find all sorts of acorns and sticks to carry. I love that the kids get this experience growing up. I am a pure city girl so when I head into the woods with the kids, I feel like one, too. I get excited at seeing a caterpillar on a tree limb or a big white-capped mushroom alone in a pile of clovers.

After the hike, we ate a yummy wholesome meal and then visited the horses. Taz and Sabe. They are the most regal of creatures but I am still rather frightened of them. I remember being eight or nine and being scared to death to ride on one by myself. I still harbor that fear today when I saddle up. I get nervous thinking about Taz trotting away. But not Maria or Mario. They saddle up on Taz and ride her around the ring like it is their business. Mama Meg asks if they want to trot and there is no hesitancy: “YES” they reply. What a treat for a six and three and year old. The experience of riding and grooming and loving a horse – that has got to instill some seriously awesome life-long skills and lessons, doesn’t it?! Seriously, I do feel like it raises their confidence and may push them to take on opportunities and challenges that they face as they get older. Riding a horse is no easy task but they have always had the encouragement and patience of Mama Meg and Peepaw and now it is a rather easy task for them.

We got to start a fire in the evening and make some yummy s’mores. I could never tire of burnt marshmallows and chocolate and graham crackers. Maria and I were going to town on the marshmallows while Mario “roasted” graham crackers. The little guy found some way to actually get the spears of the tongs in the cracker without breaking it. What a freak. After we stuffed ourselves on those little sandwiches or goodness, the kids and I went down to our tent to call it a night. Maria and Mario were adamant that they were going to sleep outside alone, especially Maria. But within five minutes of wrapping herself in the sleeping bag in the tent, she allegedly got leg cramps and wanted to come inside. Dad went outside with Mario and I rubbed Maria’s legs. Within five minutes fo that, Mario wanted to come in to be near me. He begged me to sleep with him outside so dad and I switched roles. I am learning that it is much harder to sleep on the ground than it used to be ten years ago. I was hurting and at about 1 am, I decided that it was time for Mario and me to hit the bed in the house. I scooped him up while trying to hold the two pillows and flashlight and waddled up to the bed on the second floor of the house. He was out cold. I was not. I could not get back to sleep for some crazy reason.

Morning came and I heard tiny little voices. Mario was asking Mama Meg if they could see Duke’s grave (their dog that died). Maria was talking about something I could not understand. I looked out the window at the meadow and at the morning sky and I felt happy as if everything was perfect for those few seconds. Life was good and there was much for which to be grateful. I breathed in that moment and remember it still. I promised myself I would try not to forget it because it is a helpful talisman during those days of chaos and stress. We packed up later in the morning but only after two rides on the bulldozer and backhoe from a neighbor who had them at the farm in order to build a riding ring for Meg-pie. The kids were in heaven sitting in those big ol’ machines and moving gravel all over the place.

We headed back to the house and gave kisses and hugs to Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jorge and Mama Meg and Peepaw. We showered the dogs with treats and love. We waved good-bye to the chickens and horses. And we headed back down the country roads towards our city home packed full of country goodness.

Family, Ham and Chocolate

April 24, 2011Leave a comment

: Mario’s game face

: M & M getting ready for the hunt!

I love Easter. It is my favorite holiday for two reasons: (1) I adore chocolate and there is a ton of it between the easter egg hunts, the grandparents, and me splurging on it “for the kids’ baskets;” and (2) people seem to be more relaxed on Easter – less frantic about presents, meals, attire. Easter comes right at the time of a new season – winter cold is gone and grass is turning green. People are excited about being outside again.

We celebrated Easter today out at the farm. The forecast called for rain all weekend with strong thunderstorms at times. When we woke up this morning, the sky was grey and dreary but had promise to it. Patches of yellow and blue broke through in the sky, and I had a feeling during my morning run that we would be spared. I was right. The Grandview Easter Egg Hunt began at 10 am with soggy grass underfoot but no rain showers. Maria’s nightmare came true when she heard that 5-7 year olds were grouped together (“I will never get as many eggs as 7 years olds). However, she perked back up when she met up with her friend Anna and her grandma. I stood with Mario in the 2-4 year old group coaching him about how to engage in the hunt (“pick up the eggs first – not the bags of oreos and cookies”). He put his game face on after my speech, and anxiously awaited for the announcer to yell “GO!” What comes over me and other parents at these easter egg hunts? We are so competitive following our kids around the area pointing frantically at eggs that we see. When the kid is looking in the opposite direction, we yell “Mario, look! Mario! Mario, over here! Mario!!!” Mario ended up with more eggs than Maria, which led to Maria frowning and complaining that she did not get “any” eggs even though she had three in her basket. Her friend gave her two of her eggs, which led to 180 degree change in Maria who smiled from ear to ear. the kids sat down to open their eggs, and Mario promptly gave me the first chocolate candy piece he opened. What a doll. I had told him how much I loved easter chocolate and he had told me that he would share his with me. However, I was not going to believe it until I saw it. And there it was. He does love his mama! Maria, on the other hand, gave me a stern look when I grabbed a chocolate chip cookie from her basket. “Mom, this is my food.” She is so generous when it comes to other things but not her food!

We rushed home after the hunt and hopped in the car to the farm. Within five minutes of walking in the door, Maria and Mario and their cousins found the baby chicks. Tiny and precious and so delicate. Just what three and five-year olds need to handle. But Grandma Meg managed to let all of the kids hold them without incident. Mario chanted “Calm, calm” to the chick while he held it. Maria acted like she was a vet while she held one asking me what was wrong with my baby chick. They were infatuated at first sight. Maria and Anneliese, her 8 year old cousin, played beautifully together. Surprisingly, Mario and his three-year old cousin, Ben, also played together for the first time ever. In the past, they were into their own things (and still at that young age where you don’t play much with other kids) but this time they were by each others’ sides for most of the day. Ben would yell for Mario and Mario would run to him. Mario would ask Ben to get something for him and Ben would get it. They threw stones in the stream for 30 minutes and talked about being in the army while they rode the rocking horses. They used croquet clubs as hammers and swords. Boys. Maria and Anneliese held the chicks a lot and walked Rosie and played in the stream. Tomgirls – yeah!

We ate yummy ham and potato salad and deviled eggs and corn casserole and butter rolls. Patty’s potato salad won everyone over with people going up for thirds! I swear I am going to enter her p. salad into a contest – it will undoubtedly take first place. Desserts made my stomach larger just looking at them – brownies, cookies, shortcake, chocolate cake, lemon bars in addition to all of the Easter candy! Oh, how I love this holiday! But, oh, how I wish I had some sort of will power. I get on Maria about eating too much but then I stand around the table eating 3 brownies, cake, candy and cookies. I blame those Menkedick genes that cannot resist chocolate (unless you are supernatural like my father). My 91 year-old grandmother devoured the desserts just like me so I think I am doomed.

The kids got to ride the horses towards the end of the day and then got treated to a stellar easter egg hunt. There is part of me that still wants to participate in those hunts – I see an egg hiding in the fence post and I get so excited. I was a damn good egg finder back in my day…. We finished up the afternoon holding the chicks some more and chatting with family that we don’t see as often as we would like. Maria would love to have Anneliese closer and Mario and Ben would have a blast together now that they are the ripe old age of three. Grandma M. is strong as ever, carrying on conversation and watching the kids play. I wish I lived closer to her so we could see her more often even though she even states that having M&M over any more often would seriously wear her out. She has got to be kidding – my kids are little angels…!

In sum, a great start to a holiday weekend. The farm is a gem, and Meg did an awesome job hosting us all. Dad did an awesome job entertaining the kids (even though he allowed Mario to fall in the stream!). And the rest of us just soaked in the beauty of a wet Spring day.

New “Moan” ugh!

November 15, 20101 Comment

I hate staying indoors, especially when it is sunny and 68 degrees outside in November. I love taking a morning rum, especially when it is barely light and a chilly 40 degrees outside. I hate coming home after a day at work and sitting in the house the rest of the evening. I love taking a walk in the dusk of the evening when it is crisp and the air is invigorating. That is why I was so bummed out after my hospital trip last week.

Last Sunday night, the pain stabbed through my left chest and up through my left shoulder like it has in the past. I took two Aleeve and went to bed. I tossed and turned but slept decently through the night. On Monday, I ran and worked out in the morning and had a little bit of pain in my left shoulder through the day. Slept fine on Monday night. On Tuesday, I started to get the pain back so I took it easy and decided against a morning run. Tuesday night I tossed and turned and felt a lot of pain in my left chest again. I stayed up a good portion of the night. Wednesday rolled around and I went to work with the continuous pain shooting through my left chest. By the time I got home in the evening, I was not feeling well. I started to have a shortness of breath and a headache. Jon forced me to head to the Urgent Care, which was closed. I travelled on to the ER.

There I was amongst a lot of people complaining about how long they had been waiting for a doctor. A woman in a wheelchair rolled up to me and gave me some advice “You are gonna be waiting here for hours – I have been out here for four.” She rolled back to her group and began cursing about the length of time in the waiting room. Turns out she was only 28 (looked 50) and she was a heavy drug user and smoker (at least that was what she was divulging to her group). Luckily, I got in to see a doctor within an hour. They hooked me up to an EKG immediately, which was normal. They did chest x-rays and blood work, which were normal. They were perplexed at how a non-smoker, runner, healthy woman could have such severe chest pain. The doctor decided to keep me overnight in order to have me do a stress test in the morning.

I was in such pain through the night. Morphine did nothing. It was one of the scariest times in my life because I could not breathe in without excruciating pain. My breathing was so shallow because if I breathed any heavier, I felt like a knife was stabbing me in my left chest. Because I could only breathe in a little bit, I got anxious that I would not be able to breathe at all if I laid down and fell asleep. Therefore, I did not sleep all night. I stared at the tv, the door, the machines and wondered if I would make it. Yeah, your mind works in crazy ways at 3 am in a hospital bed. Morning arrived and the new doctor was skeptical of a stress test. First, I probably could not perform it because I could not breathe in enough to stress my heart. Second, he saw nothing abnormal in all of the x-rays and tests so he did not think it was a heart problem. He ordered a CAT Scan for me. I had never had one of those before. Not pleasant. When the nurse shot die through my veins, I immediately thought I would throw up metal and swore I had gone to the bathroom on the machine. What a horrid feeling! Luckily, they were all just sensations from the dye. An hour later, the doctor walked in and informed me that I had pneumonia. It had showed up on the CAT Scan test.

Maria showing me the words she learned from her "word ring"

Jon picked me up with Maria in the back seat holding a picture of me when I was ten. She loves this picture of me with my super balls (little round rubber balls that they used to sell at the grocery store for 10 cents). She wanted to know how I was feeling and if I would be ok. She led me upstairs when we got home and put me in bed. She proceeded to bring me two flowers from the yard in a small vase and a bag with her and I drawn on it. She showed me the words that she had learned while I was gone. She is so good to me – a natural caretaker.

For the first two nights, I was miserable. The pain killers could not relieve the pain in my chest, and I sat up most of the night looking out the window thinking of my grandma. I just visited my grandma a few weeks ago when she had pneumonia (could I have gotten it from her?) and she told me that she had such trouble breathing because of all the phlegm in her nose and lungs that she just stayed up all night worried that she would lose her breath. I remember thinking that she had to be scared. Now, I experienced first-hand what she felt. And, I can attest to the fact that I have known all along – you can never truly know what another individual feels in a situation until you are in it yourself.

Maria and Mario enjoying some sofa time

Jon was a doll trying to calm me down but nothing helped. The kids loved life because Jon and I were too tired to do much but let them watch tv!

Finally, on Saturday night, I slept for a few hours soundly. I woke up Sunday feeling a little better. Jon took the kiddies all day so I could rest. He picked them up from Grandma Meg’s and Peepaw’s house where they had played on Saturday and spent the night on Saturday night. Maria got in a three-hour hike with Peepaw and Mario (Mario, being the youngest, gets Peepaw’s shoulders). She walked the entire way. There is something about the farm that brings out the hiker in her because when she is in Columbus or Cincy it is all stroller for her! Mario wore his Spiderman costume the entire time, which gave the grandparents a chuckle. Jon picked them up and carted them to Uncle Mario’s and Aunt Vicki’s house for a day of four-wheelin’ and spaghetti and meatballs. Maria’s dream come true.

Maria getting ready to four-wheel with her dad

They spotted bucks and cows. They petted kittens and saw the dogs. Maria got her toenails painted in Buckeye colors by Bianca. Mario got to wrestle Big Mario. Jon got to ride his four-wheeler around the farm. A good day.

Mario refusing to pose for a picture at Big Mario's

I sat in bed, laid on the couch, watched Sex and the City 2 and the Turning Point. Thought about cooking dinners and reading more books. Came up with new games and activities for the kids. Went stir-crazy eventually.

I rejoiced in seeing the kids and Jon at 8:30 pm. I made the mistake of walking out to say hi and the chest began pounding again. Mario sat on the couch and told me about the bucks. Maria sat at her desk and did her homework. She is getting so good at spelling her words and figuring out what words begin with a certain letter. She had the letter “f” tonight and was able to spell out “friends” and “fish” and “frame” with my help. The smartest kid ever!

The two munchballs doing their love pose for mom!

I helped Jon put them to bed, and promised I would read Maria 20 books tomorrow night since we did not read any tonight. I love that she wants to read with me! And I promised Mario that he would wake up with Superhero powers if he slept under his Spiderman cover all night. Within 10 minutes of coming downstairs, Jon and I heard the pitter patter of toddler feet running through the hall – he must be confident that he has all the powers he needs.

"MOM!"

Adventures in the Life of a Working Mama

Tag: Farm