Home

I have actually written about where I grew up before, but it has been on my mind a lot lately. Partially because of the song above and partially because sometimes when I think about escaping reality, I think about going "home". Home for me was 3 Scarsdale Road in Boulder Hill. We moved there when I was 2. I remember doing summersalts on the green carpet in the upstairs living room. The house was empty and seemed so big. My life that I remember began there. I met my best friend, started school, learned to read, went to girl scouts, had lemonade stands, played school, met my first and only love and brought Timmy home there. Most of my memories from 3 Scarsdale Road are amazing. I am one of the lucky ones that can say that. I have very few bad memories from growing up. My parents loved me. They loved my friends and they loved Tim. I remember sitting on the stairs watching out the big picture window when there was something on my mind or bothering me. It was like a secret hiding place even though it was fully visible. I could fit on that stair and just look at the world go by. I have thought about sitting there a lot. It would be peaceful to sit there right now and watch the world go by. I just went home to Illinois, but I didn't go past the house. I thought about it, but just didn't do it. When Tim and I got pregnant with Timmy when I was 16, this was the home I came to. My mom and dad didn't kick me out or anything like that. They made a home for Timmy. I remember his room. It had paneling, so my sister-in-law, Debi told me to use wrapping paper to cut out some wall hangings. I used Snoopy with balloons. I cut out the words "Timmy's Room" and added some paper balloons. I am just now realizing that Sebastian had Snoopy crib bedding. I must have a Snoopy issue I didn't realize I had. I guess my want to escape there is that is where I first had Timmy. Not all was right with the world. My dad was very sick. It was a hard time after I had Timmy, but Timmy brought so much happiness. There is a part in this song that says,

"I thought if I could touch this place or feel it
this brokenness inside me might start healing.
Out here its like I'm someone else,
I thought that maybe I could find myself"

Every time I hear that part, it makes me cry. I think that when I went home to Illinois that I hoped that it would help the pain. It did some. My friends and family are amazing. I am so incredibly blessed to have two childhood friends that get me. They let me be who I need to be and they don't run away. They remember when Timmy was just a crazy plan that Tim and I had. They remember summer driver's ed and morning sickness. They remember me having a baby in high school and never even for a minute stopping our friendship. I don't think it helped heal me though. I think I came away just as broken as I was before. If not a bit more because I saw how so much had changed there. My baby wasn't there anymore than he is here. You really can't go home to fix the brokenness inside, but you can go home to for a moment feel the love of family.

Sisters...

I know I just posted about my friends, but I just got this in an email from a friend. Seen it before, but somehow the words are ringing in my ears today. I had a wonderful week with my oldest friends. I sat in TGIFridays and cried to Jorge she just held my hand and listened. I drove through cornfields and Tricia understood exactly how the loss of a child felt. She let me cry and hugged me. I do not know what I would do without my family and friends right now or ever.

A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day, drinking iced
tea and visiting with her mother. As they talked about life, about
marriage, about the responsibilities of life and the obligations of
adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her glass thoughtfully and
turned a clear, sober glance upon her daughter.

"Don't forget your Sisters," she advised, swirling the tea
leaves to the bottom of her glass. "They'll be more important as you get
older. No matter how much you love your husband, no matter how much you
love the children you may have, you are still going to need Sisters.
Remember to go places with them now and then; do things with them.

"Remember that 'Sisters' means ALL the women...your
girlfriends, your daughters, and all your other women relatives too.

"You'll need other women. Women always do."

What a funny piece of advice, the young woman thought. Haven't
I just gotten married? Haven't I just joined the couple-world? I'm now a
married woman, for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely my husband and the
family we may start will be all I need to make my life worthwhile!

But she listened to her mother. She kept in contact with her
Sisters and made more women friends each year. As the years tumbled
by,one after another, she gradually came to understand that her Mom really
knew what she was talking about. As time and nature work their changes and
their mysteries upon a woman, Sisters are the mainstays of her life.
After many years of living in this world, here is what I've learned:

Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.
Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Men don't do what Sisters do.
Hearts break.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favours.
Careers end.

BUT--------
Sisters are there, no matter how much time and how many miles
are between you.

A girlfriend is never farther away than needing her can reach.

When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk
it by yourself, the women in your life will be on the valley's rim,
cheering you on, praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on your behalf,
and waiting with open arms at the valley's end.

Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk beside you.
Or come in and carry you out.

Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law, sisters,
sisters-in-law, Mothers, Grandmothers, aunties, nieces, cousins,and extended
family, all bless our life!

The world wouldn't be the same without women, and neither would I.

When we began this adventure called womanhood, we had no idea of the
incredible joys or sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we
would need each other. Every day, we need each other still.
Author unknown

The alarm clock (or lack of one)

This is going to sound like a silly post. I wanted to find a time to blog all week, but I just didn't get there. One of the mornings, I was laying there in bed thinking about my blog. It occurred to me that one of my very favorite things about my life is a simple luxury that most do not have. Sleep. I pretty much get 9 hours of sleep a night. That was never the case when I worked outside the home. I was either up early or working late into the night. These days, the alarm goes off for Tim at 5:30. That is the first one. I turn it off and we cuddle for 15 minutes until the second alarm goes off. We started that routine over 10 years ago and we still love it. Then, typically, I scoot him out of bed. These days I am getting up and taking Scout (our chiuaua) out. I hate that, but I am doing it. Then I go back to sleep for a good two hours (okay, sometimes 3... but I try to be up in 2.) That is a sweet, sweet luxury and I guess I would call it an every day blessing to me because I love waking up on my own time. Sebastian comes in lots of mornings and sneaks into Tim's spot. He is always so sweet and snuggly. Again one of my very favorite times of the day when he snuggles up to me and gives me a big kiss. Just awesome! So, while lots of people are getting up to alarms this next week or so and rushing their kids off to school... I will be snuggling with my hubby and then with my little Bubba Luka. Simply perfect.