Monthly Archives: August 2011

reconnecting

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I’m writing this post from the beautiful coastal town of Yachats, Oregon. I absolutely love the Oregon coast, and I adore Yachats. It’s a tiny little town that is full of sheer beauty: one of those places that somehow makes you appreciate just being alive.

I’ve been here twice before: the first time when Jeff and I came alone a couple of years ago to celebrate our anniversary and the second time just this past March when we (meaning, all four of us) rented a house here for the weekend to get away for the first weekend that our house was up for sale.

This time, I’m here with my mom. It’s been a very long time since just the two of us have spent any time together and some circumstances told us it was time to reconnect. So, I took a couple of days off work and we met here in Yachats, staying at the Fireside Motel. It’s not the fanciest place I’ve ever stayed by far, but you know what? It’s pretty awesome in its own right. The room is a bit on the retro side, quite large (king bed, thank you very much) and has a fireplace and a balcony with an oceanfront view that is more often found in the kind of place that costs a heck of a lot more than some $100ish a night. No wonder this place gets great reviews on Trip Advisor!

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caution: yawning can be dangerous to your health

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When I woke up this morning, I immediately thought about this same Monday morning one year ago today. Not that I often remember what my Monday mornings are like one year later – but this particular one was memorable. It went something like this:

I got up around 6 a.m. and found my way downstairs for that all-important first cup of coffee. Caffeine in hand, I could already hear Elena (nine months old at the time) stirring in her room – at which point I probably spent the next few minutes pretending I didn’t hear a thing except the hum of Matt’s voice on the television informing me of the latest political scandal, crisis, war report or weather-related tragedy. (Or wait, maybe that was last week? Or last month? So hard to tell the difference.) And hey, I never said I was trying for Mother of the Year.

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changes, they are a comin’

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I think there are at least a few people in this world who adapt to change better than I do. Wait, scratch that. I’m sorry to say that I have no idea what the world’s population is off the top of my head, but let’s just say that if it’s 609 zillion people – there are probably 603 zillion of them who accept change better than I do. Now, that’s not to say that I’m inflexible, but I do like to stay the course, if possible. For instance, whenever we go to Muchas Gracias for dinner, I always get a cheese enchilada and chicken taco. Why? Because it’s a sure (read: safe) bet.

Believe it or not, the same goes when it comes to matters involving parenting. Stability: good. Change: often not quite as good. When Ian came along, we lived in the Washington, D.C. area where you are more likely to see a politician acting like a mature adult than you are to get a spot for your baby at a daycare. It’s commonly known there that if you have any hope of getting your child into a “decent” daycare – meaning they at least feed them at some point during the day – you had better start going on tours and getting on wait lists before you get pregnant. Wait until conceive and you’ve already missed the boat. That’s all to say that it can be a beyond-stressful process to locate a place where you a) feel comfortable leaving your child and b) can actually get a spot to park them.

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crazy and stressful, sprinkled with some beautiful

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It’s been kind of a crazy week. Actually, crazy and incredibly stressful, if you must know. Not that you even asked, but hey, I told you anyway. But isn’t that kind of what blogging is all about? I digress. Now, where was I? Crazy and stressful. Right.

First of all, lots going on at work. But then again, there usually is. Second, Jeff was out of town so I was playing single mom. So, you know what I did the first night I picked them up? Yep, I hit the McDonald’s drive thru. Probably not going to win the Nutritional Mom of the Year award for that one but I was tired, stressed (did I mention that already?) and essentially in survival mode. And, I’m pretty sure that the Golden Arches were created for parents having days like that. Let the record show that I did not get anything for Elena, though. I did manage to dig up something semi-nutritious for her. I think I have created some unofficial rule that my children can’t have fast food until they turn three or something – and then all bets are off. Don’t ask my logic in this, because I have no idea but it seems like the right thing to do so I just go with it.

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