My mom's side of the family has been generally a silent or fleeting part of my life since I was very young. Whether due to my mom's stubborness or the family's, that was the reality. When I was a rebellious teenager I spent some time with my Uncles William and Chris who werent all that much older than me, however when they hit the road so did our relationship, for the most part.
Well, all these years later my mom has passed on, on June 10, 2009. And out of these ashes has come new life from the Craddocks. Mom's husband asked me to be the person to tell my Grandmother Lois of mom's passing and so I did. As a result of that conversation I am now corresponding with my dear Aunt Pam, who I have only good memories of. She sent Goodnight Moon and Runaway Bunny to Gigi for her birthday, so thoughtful.
And today, in the mail, I received a wobbly but nice letter from Grandma Lois' sister Marilyn, who always had a wild beehive in my memories, high and strange. Auntie Marilyn had a different dad from Grandma, and that man was greek I believe... Auntie Marilyn of olive skin, exotic dress, love and beehives. I am rich in memories and sadness that it took my mom's death to give me such treasures.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Transitions
Even more so than January, September has always been a transitional month for me, and if there was one particular week this month that was the most transitional, I think this would be it.
Gigi turned 1 on the 5th, of course, and we are getting ready for her party this weekend. We are happy to be having friends and family over to help us celebrate.
This is the halfway mark for Nick's MBA! Thinking about it, Nick learned in one of his classes that the average candidate was worth 35k more once those letters are applied. So that must mean we are at the 17.5k mark. Nick has had the last two Mondays off and next Monday is the start of a new module, so Nick has been reading from his shiny Marketing book this week to prepare.
We got a membership to the Main Street YMCA a few weeks ago, and I have gone a few times, however my schedule wasnt fitting thier childwatch schedule which is limited in the summer. They have just reopened after their fall shutdown and it's time to sit down with their schedule and hammer it out. Of course, Nick and Gigi still have their swim every Saturday morning!
We are taking the Air Conditioning units out of the windows tomorrow. It feels like we just put them in (because we did- early August, if I recall!) but it's a short window (heh) of time that they are really needed and it's best to remove them as soon as they aren't useful any longer. Last year when Gigi was a twee little one, Nick had a medical emergency trying to move the heavy one on his own (due to lack of sleep among other things) so this year it will be a team effort. I think we used them about 5 times. Was it worth the effort of putting them in? Yep- those 5 hot days were brutally hot. Transitions aside, the question comes up every year- were we wise not to install Central Air back when we bought the house? The answer has never been definitive.
For the last week or two, I have been purging Gigi's summer wear. There are already things she cant wear all day, like sleeveless tops, and I cannot bring up fall wear without putting away the summer- no room! So most all the little shorts and tanks and skirts and whatnot went away, never to be worn by Gigi again, so sad. Sometimes I secretly hope that our next little one is a girl just so I can have the joy of seeing these cute things worn again... and then I realize that it would also be joyful to have a boy.
I have also always intended to move away from spamming family and friends with pictures of Gigi once her first birthday had passed, however I know there are people who will want to keep up with Gigi (if not Nick and me) so this is the beginning of a new way of doing things and the beginning of the end of BabySpam.
It's these times of transition that help me reflect on my experiences and values. It is through the shift from one state to another that I realize what I had and what I have to look forward to. Transitions are by their nature temporary, and bring me burdens and freedoms that help to remind me who I am and to propel me forward.
Gigi turned 1 on the 5th, of course, and we are getting ready for her party this weekend. We are happy to be having friends and family over to help us celebrate.
This is the halfway mark for Nick's MBA! Thinking about it, Nick learned in one of his classes that the average candidate was worth 35k more once those letters are applied. So that must mean we are at the 17.5k mark. Nick has had the last two Mondays off and next Monday is the start of a new module, so Nick has been reading from his shiny Marketing book this week to prepare.
We got a membership to the Main Street YMCA a few weeks ago, and I have gone a few times, however my schedule wasnt fitting thier childwatch schedule which is limited in the summer. They have just reopened after their fall shutdown and it's time to sit down with their schedule and hammer it out. Of course, Nick and Gigi still have their swim every Saturday morning!
We are taking the Air Conditioning units out of the windows tomorrow. It feels like we just put them in (because we did- early August, if I recall!) but it's a short window (heh) of time that they are really needed and it's best to remove them as soon as they aren't useful any longer. Last year when Gigi was a twee little one, Nick had a medical emergency trying to move the heavy one on his own (due to lack of sleep among other things) so this year it will be a team effort. I think we used them about 5 times. Was it worth the effort of putting them in? Yep- those 5 hot days were brutally hot. Transitions aside, the question comes up every year- were we wise not to install Central Air back when we bought the house? The answer has never been definitive.
For the last week or two, I have been purging Gigi's summer wear. There are already things she cant wear all day, like sleeveless tops, and I cannot bring up fall wear without putting away the summer- no room! So most all the little shorts and tanks and skirts and whatnot went away, never to be worn by Gigi again, so sad. Sometimes I secretly hope that our next little one is a girl just so I can have the joy of seeing these cute things worn again... and then I realize that it would also be joyful to have a boy.
I have also always intended to move away from spamming family and friends with pictures of Gigi once her first birthday had passed, however I know there are people who will want to keep up with Gigi (if not Nick and me) so this is the beginning of a new way of doing things and the beginning of the end of BabySpam.
It's these times of transition that help me reflect on my experiences and values. It is through the shift from one state to another that I realize what I had and what I have to look forward to. Transitions are by their nature temporary, and bring me burdens and freedoms that help to remind me who I am and to propel me forward.
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