pitter patter of (not so) little feet

My 15 year old son slid his worn out Sperry's off in my car yesterday afternoon after I picked him up from the gym with his friend. He immediately stuck his feet out the car window because, well, if any of you have a 15 year old boy you know their feet always stink and when you add a nice worn out pair of swampy - non sock wearing shoes to the mix, the smell is oh so aromatic. Like a nice garbage dump breeze, so out the window his feet went. I studied him as we laughed about his boy parts flying like flags out the window. I noticed a shade of dirt on his top lip, a pair of big foot feet that have doubled since the last time we measured them for shoes, a pair of legs that are hairier then the last time I rubbed icy hot on them and have more mass then the chicken bones that I remember.

I know how this works, he has a brother 3 years older than him.
I know they grow. Fast.
I know they change. Fast.
I know they wake up and one day have a different voice, a mustache and an attitude.

You think you will be ready when the next one in the birth order grows into a man right in front of your eyes, but, you aren't.

Easier? Maybe.
Bittersweet? Absolutely.
Fast? Even faster than what I remember the first time :)

A Day We Will Never Forget

 I was 3 months pregnant with my daughter, driving with my 2 year old to drop my 5 year old off at school. The first report on the radio said, "oh my, there has been a terrible accident. A plane has just crashed into the World Trade Center."... By the time I pulled out the carpool line the dj's voice completely changed.
"If you are able, get to a TV. There has been another crash into the second building but this is not an accident folks."
I called my grandma and asked her what was going on as I drove back to my house. I got my 2 year old in the house, turned on the TV and saw the unbelievable. I then took my baby and went right back to the school to get Alex. I called my grandma again and told her we were coming to her after I got Alex. I waited in the check out line for about 10 minutes to get him. People in front of me all looked as stunned as I did. I drove my babies to her house and we spend the rest of the day watching the horror unfold. A day I will never forget. See More

Let me 'splain it to you Lucy

As we get older we start to realize family members traits in ourselves more and more, my children pointed out another one to me the other day.

My grandmother (Lucy) has always loved to tell stories. Stories from the past, stories from her day, whatever it was it was never just a -this is how it went deal- it was always a story. Usually long and usually filled with to much information.

Before finding out that a family member was getting married she would say what she was doing before she answered the phone, how she knew by the tone of their voice that it was going to be good news and everything that person had done in life (good and bad) since the first day she knew them. After about 30 minutes in, I would realize that I have no idea who this person is and that she is now talking about someone else and of course I still don't know who they are. But just for the sake of having to hear WHY I SHOULD know these people I smile and nod and think about what I'm doing with my potatoes for dinner .

Alas, the wedding is this March and the bridesmaids will wear lavender.

And then starts the next story of her friend who got married in March and now I'm on to what I'm cooking tomorrow.

This of course is just a made up version but you get the drift. And if you don't then let me explain it to you, you see my grandmother is an Italian lady who grew up in a large family. She had 3 sisters and 1 brother, all of whom she loved very much, but of course they got on each others nerves as families do, she married my paw paw who came from an even bigger Cajun French family......

Are you baking or frying your chicken tonight?