Paying it forward 2013

The closer we get to Thanksgiving, the giddier I become. At our house, we try to do one good deed a day the whole year, but we ramp it up near the holidays. It's important to pay it forward and  not pay it back, because we want the goodwill, good intentions, happiness to catch on like a virus!! Let's face it, everything nowadays always holds a note of gloom, whether it's the news, or day-to-day nonsense. We need to combat that!!

What's the cure for the winter blues? Doing something for another person just because. No strings attached! There's not a better feeling in the world than getting he warm fuzzies after you've made someone's day. My project that goes on year-round, is to collect any used "play condition" cloth diapers, wash them and pass them on to needy Mamas. I sometimes give them a little lesson on how to use the diapers and what things to stuff them with(kitchen towels work, and socks too in a pinch). It feels good to know that these Mamas won't have to choose between putting food on the table or diapering their newborn. Sometimes, I had more Mamas asking for diapers than I had diapers!! It's a labor of love that I hope I can continue throughout the years.

Lisa's gifting again!

In addition to this project, I always pick a person to do something nice for daily. It can be nothing more than stopping to ask them how they' are doing, or sending a package of something that they really wanted, or complimenting someone on a job well done. This year, I've picked my recipient. She doesn't know that I'm up to something, as she's living with a disability and forgets things sometimes, but I see her at Mass and always try to help her caretakers out when they're there. They're always grateful that I sit in the same pew and don't ask if they need help, I just give it. Well, since I sit behind her, I've seen the condition of her wheelchair bag, and I've decided to gift her a new one anonymously. Maybe leave it with a note on her wheelchair when she's not in it. I'm notorious for stealthy sneaking, even when in plain sight, so it shouldn't be too hard...albeit funny, as I'm sneaking around in church. Ha! I'm positively giddy about it and can't wait to carry it out. Wish me luck!

So, what does his have to do with you? I challenge you to Pay it Forward, whether by doing a small good deed daily, a big project, or a stealthy good-deed drive by. The prize for this: warm fuzzies that will catch on and multiply until it's a virus everyone wants to catch. When the deed is done, come back here and report it!! Let us know what you've done, who was the recipient, and how it was received. Just remember the rules: don't expect anything back from recipient, don't break the bank, have fun, and share win everyone you know not in order to get a pat on the back, but with the sole intent to get them to do it too. That's it!! Simple, huh? Pay it Forward 2013 starts now!! :)

You know what to do!! Tell us all about your Pay it Forward adventures. Let's make this a new family tradition!! Have fun !! 

Photo "Wheel Chair In Hospital" by sakhorn38 from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

8 years...whoa!

On a day like yesterday, October 8th, the Sailor and I got married. Wow. Time just flies by, literally. In these 8 years, we have learned quite a few things from each other and about life in general. We were two young kids, with a typical Navy courtship, who knew that it was time to settle down when we met. Crazy stuff! Even crazier when you find out that I had sworn off marriage! I didn't want to do it. The universe had other plans it seems. So, join me down memory lane! Here are some highlights from those 8 years:

- Me swearing to Sailor that I didn't really mean to flash the crowd of kids at the playground. It was the wind that blew my skirt. I mean, could I really do anything about that?

- Sailor flirting with some girl, finding out it was Katherine McPhee, and then immediately calling me to find out who that was. Yes, folks. He really did do this. I still laugh about it to this day. 

- Me being told by a pimp in Atlantic City that he could buy me bigger diamonds than the ones Sailor was looking at. My answer: Really? Wanna talk? I don't know who was more shocked, the jeweler or the pimp, that I actually answered him. I am a smart ass. Sorry.

- Sailor being kind and taking the time to talk to a grieving family at Arlington National Cemetery, after he bugled. This part of the job can be tough on all trumpet players because they are human. They can feel and see the emotional response of the family as Taps is being played. He didn't have to talk to them, he could have just walked away...but he didn't. That to me is huge.

- In 8 years, we have created 5 children: Angel (in heaven), Pixy , Banshee, Louie(in heaven), and Cubby(in utero). Lots of happiness and sadness, all rolled up into one big package. We cried, laughed, and are aware that we have been blessed. Little miracles all of them.

- My wolf dog, Kai, is still extremely pissed that Pixy was born and they fight like siblings ALL THE TIME. It is getting better, though. They do play together before one decides to push the other and then it starts all over again. He has no problem with Banshee though.

-Our other dog, Juneau, was my Mother's Day present. His number was up at the ASPCA and we rescued him. He was skinny and sick then. It was actually very sad. He isn't very bright but he's a good soul, and I am happy to report that he is now attempting to learn how to play. For the most part, he just sits around. He is learning though. 

- Me sitting in an abandoned neighborhood park while Sailor was on a gig, reading a book in the sunshine. I was visited by a chipmunk, some birds, and a bunny. Best couple hours ever!

- Sailor laughing up on stage as Banshee screamed "Yay!", after it was announced that it was the last song of the recital. This is huge because nothing breaks through to him when he is in the 'zone'. Banshee knows what buttons to push. 

- Me taking Sailor out to a date to see David Sedaris read from his book in Baltimore. What a win! I had a literary orgasm and Sailor laughed his ass off. It was magical!

-In 6 months, my father passed away, we put my mother's house for sale, we moved her into our house,  we found out we were pregnant with Cubby, we put our house up for sale, bought a new one, moved two houses worth of crap into the new one, found that Banshee has an Autism Spectrum Disorder, Pixy started Kinder, Banshee started a new school, we are STILL settling in. Sailor has been my sidekick through all of this and I am grateful. It would have been easy for him to wash his hands of the whole thing and keep walking. But, he didn't because he is a rock star. 

Anyway, those are some highlights from our 8 years of bliss, read craziness. I am sure we have some more adventures to take on. Life rarely settles down enough for us to be able to just be still somewhere. Eh, don't know why we would expect anything different. It is the way we are and it works. 

                    Have you any cool highlights from your relationship? Share them with us. 

Full moon fever

Last night, I was woken up by the Pixy at 3am: "Is it full moon time yet, Mama?" Nope, not yet, get back to bed! At our house, full moon time is always marked by a couple things: misbehavior by the wolves, i.e. dominance plays, howling randomly, wolfy behavior...you get the idea, and my spawn goes wild. I am not kidding! The girls energy level ramps up and they can't sleep, their appetite goes off, and my house turns into a zoo.

Back home in Puerto Rico, my family would say that full moon fever hits children and animals strongest, because they are so sensitive to nature and her rhythms. Something with the ground being close to their center of gravity, you know, they are 'in touch' with the Earth. I remember my uncles watching the calendar and watching the tides, too. They were fishermen and would often say that the full moon played havoc on their night fishing. This is usually about the time that they would come back with tales of mermaids, or shark attacks('Never swim where a female shark roams!'), or one night when they saw a drug deal going down in the ocean! Can you believe it? So, for me, being respectful of the full moon and her powers, is really second nature. I didn't know that this information would come in handy when I got older.

My personal big bad wolf and lord of our little wolf pack, Kai, goes very wolfy at full moon. He starts to do naughty things all over the place. This morning, I was nipped on the butt for shuffling by him, half-asleep I might add, and not greeting him. He opens trash cans, opens doors, climbs into beds to randomly wake up the occupants. He will hunt me when we go to the backyard and get extremely protective of the girls. You would think he would hunt down the girls--they're easy prey after all. But noooo. Kai likes to hunt his pack leader down, pregnancy is not an obstacle. In other words, if Kai was human, he would totally punch a guy with glasses. HAHA! I digress... I will go outside and about four steps into the backyard, I realize that everything has gone deathly quiet. No sounds whatsoever. This of course means, I need to brace myself because Kai is lying in wait somewhere around me. Sigh! Then, with no warning, BAM! He nips my butt, grab my ankles, and yes...he tries to pull my pants off. Randy wolf! It is actually kind of funny, but when you are on the receiving end of 100+lbs of wolf love, it can get frustrating. A few strong words on my part quickly calm him down and he is back to trying to figure out when to attack me next. Juneau, on the other hand, follows Kai's lead. He waits in the wings and then runs around in excitement. He is still getting the hang of full moon fever. Poor boy was forever tied to a chain when we rescued him, so he loves the feel of open space much better than silly wolf games.

All of the cubs (as they are lovingly called by family friends), wait with excitement and crazy anticipation for full moon night because it is the one night of the month when we go outside when it is dark enough for moonlight to shine over everything and we howl together. It is a way to get the energy out, worship the moon(who, I am sure appreciates it), and scare the neighbors silly. It truly is terrifying to hear Kai and Juneau howl and be accompanied by other howls too--even if they are human howls. There is something very primitive, powerful, and refreshing about letting it all out. Our old neighbors got used to it and though they wouldn't howl with us, would sit outside and just admire the moon. Our silly little family ritual rubbed off! They often said it took our little band of misfits to get them back in touch with nature. Woohoo! More power to us!

Tonight will be much the same as every other full moon night, with the exception that it is a new house, with new neighbors. But also, because we are actually in the countryside now! We might get some interesting answers back! Whoever hears an answer back first, gets a prize. Here's hoping I hear it first! Last full moon, Kai and Pixy banded together and won an ice cream before bed..cheaters. I hope that in spite of the silliness of this ritual, once the spawn grows up, they remember it and create something similar for their children. Sometimes, family legends get started this way.

Does your family have any traditions that are fun? Were they superstitious? Tell us all about it! We might use your tradition soon! 

Going Amish

We all have that happy place we go to. Most of the time for me, it's in a book. I love to get away from it all while in the comfort of my reading nook. Sometimes though....you really do need to physically get away. Just for a break. Lately, it seems I need to do that STAT. My special escape is not too far of a drive away from my house, I can get to it in an hour and a half. It's quiet, relaxing, has some good eats, and great friendly people. Yup, we like to escape to Lancaster, PA, or Amish country.

I know, I know. You're saying right now: "You go Amish?" Yes, we really do. We've been going to Amish country for years now and when we want to disconnect from the world, that's the best place to do it. It's like a little slice of peace pie when you go there. Life runs at the speed of a buggy, the day starts very early, and winds down at dinner time. Perfect! And this is coming from a night owl, ok?

While we are still Englischers (non Amish) to the friends we've made there, we try to respect their rules, so we don't offend anyone. We put cell phones away, take no pictures of any kind, and try to dress in colors and styles that are close to what they would wear. The Amish ladies always laugh that they can't tell our girls apart from theirs, as they are barefoot in dresses and bonnets, running around with the rest of the children. I always find that to be a nice compliment...I mean, there are worse things to be than dirty right? A little Tide and a good scrubbing takes care of that.

Truth is, we hold a special place in our hearts for Amish country and our Amish friends. When Banshee was 5 or 6 months old, she couldn't keep any commercial baby food down, even though we'd gotten the go ahead from the pediatrician. We decided to get away from life back home and ended up in the old schoolhouse, with a baby that was vomiting everything and would go catatonic almost after. Some Amish lady friends saw Banshee's problem and made her some homemade baby food. It was the first meal that Banshee kept down, along with breast milk, and she got fat during that trip very fast. It was a godsend. So, after that, we religiously went up every weekend to the farms to get our groceries. It has been a routine/tradition ever since the girls have known, and a fun one for the Sailor, who had never been exposed to that culture before.

While we are there, we visit the farms and see what's new with life: at the Esh farm, there's a new calf and a new quilt finished, at the Lapp place the ice cream is ready to eat, the Fishers have a cookbook out now and the best pretzels ever, Mr. Stolzfus has some yummy bacon burgers out in the freezer, pop by Zook's fabrics and talk cloth diapers with some of the Amish mamas there(yup, I got them on the cloth train again. They'd gone the disposable route), and at Bluegate farm, the shoofly pie is ready to eat. Of course, a visit wouldn't be complete without stopping by a local playground, where we can play with the Amish children, I can read my book, Sailor can eat a whoopie pie, and we can watch everyone cruise by in their buggies for an end-of-day treat. It's a different kind of fun, you know?

I always feel refreshed after a trip there. Almost like the simplicity of things, helps my brain to run on actual time and not hyper speed.  I'm sure Banshee feels the same way! Some of our Amish friends always tell her its ok to not like being around people(how they interpret autism), because they don't much like being around lots of people either. I think she likes that she can go at her own speed there and not struggle to catch up, while Pixy just fits right in. She asks questions, makes friends, and bounces along as she always does. Sailor likes to turn off his "music brain" and talk about landscaping and the outdoors with folks there, something he loves to do. So, it is always nice to reboot that way.

This doesn't mean I haven't made an ass of myself while there. I've had a breeze come by and blow my skirt up over my head one time while walking. I fell off the porch of a farm with an armload of whoopie pies that ended up in my face. I lost my shoes (I've been doing this since childhood, don't ask why), in a field and ended up needing to get new ones before we left. Oh!! My personal favorite, I got stuck on top of a mule because my dress got tangled. Yup....sigh!! At least, I know how to laugh at myself and laugh along with others, even though its at my own expense. My little family just shakes their head and says: Mama's always doing crazy things like that. Thing is, they're right. I think Amish country, though different, reminds me a lot of life in Puerto Rico. I want my girls to know that feeling and way of life. I think it's great. Now, let me go warm up the truck for the trip up.

                               Do you have a getaway spot to reboot? Tell us all about it! :)