We Interrerupt This Blog

Today marks the 10th anniversary of 9/11. I've been thinking about it a lot today, and I'm sure all the coverage by the mass media is a part of it. As the kids grow up, I think about it a little more every year. Neither one has spoken of the day, and I'm not quite sure how much they know about it. I've been trying not to watch too much about it on TV, for fear that they might see something that would make them uncomfortable. And, quite frankly, I don't think I'm ready to deal with answering questions about that fateful day.

But as I sit, watching the news this evening, I'm at a loss. To hear a little boy speak of the father he never met, but is eternally grateful for giving him life. For those spouses who lost their loved ones simply just because they went to work that day. The firefighters who sacrificed their lives to help others, and hearing of their colleagues who live with survivors' guilt.

And like most people who were adults just 10 years ago, I know exactly where I was. I was at work, and, like every morning, I had my radio on. Most people were starting work that day--I started at 7:30--and I remember hearing the DJs talking about a plane hitting a building in New York. They were saying how scary that was, and then the newscaster came on to say another building has been hit and that it was no accident. By then, the DJs sounded panicked, and I immediately went around to find other cooworkers to talk about it.

I doubt any work was completed that day. About 30 of us found a TV in the executive area, and we sat and watched the coverage. A collective gasp came over when the first tower collapsed, and then when the other went down just a few minutes later. What on earth was happening? It seemed more like a movie scene than real life. Many people were crying. Others were concerned about friends/family in the New York area. This was before cell phones were really prevalent, and it was hard to get a hold of people.

We heard that many of the office buildings downtown were being evacuated. My company was on the outskirts of the city, but we were told to stay put. I don't even think I called Phil, which is surprising because on 9/11, that marked our one-month anniversary of being married. He was actually home that day, as he was to have worked the evening shift at work. Needless to say, he was a tad worried when he left me 4-5 voice mails at work and I hadn't returned his call.

The next week was eerie. I used to drive over the Edens, and I remember someone placed an American flag on the fence, and it remained for several weeks. The skies were so quiet, which, if you live anywhere near an airport is shocking enough. I do remember sometime later that week that there were fighter jets that flew overhead, and I think my heart skipped a beat.

Slowly life resumed. It never got back to normal, and my kids will never know what normal once was. They'll never be able to greet their loved ones at the gate at the airport. That sounds minute, but they'll never get to experience it. 9/11 will remain a part of our lives, and as we've heard, we will never forget. God bless all those who lost loved ones. God bless all those who sacrificed their lives to save others. And God bless those who keep us safe every day. On behalf of my family, we cannot thank them enough.
 

Summer Roundup Part 1

We've had quite the busy summer, and there's no way I can keep up with the blog if I don't just do an overall synopsis of everything. So forgive the massive amounts of pictures, but I figure that most of you would rather see pictures of the kids than read about my musings! :) Here is part 1!

A week after school ended, the kids and I headed off to the zoo. It was a beautiful day, but it was a little crowded. We were able to see the usual attractions, minus the dolphins. It was our first of three zoo trips this summer.

J on the carousel.

Riley on the carousel.

The kids by the underwater seal exhibit.

In the middle of June, both kids enjoyed a week-long session of Bible school at our church. This was Riley's second year doing Bible school at our church (she did two other sessions at a church with a friend of hers), and this was Jeremy's first time. It was nice to have three hours to myself, and the fact that the kids had a blast didn't hurt. Riley asked one of her best friends to join her, and Jeremy was with the two girls. I think next year I'll let him hang out with boys of his own. :)

Singing some songs.

Toward the end of June, we celebrated Papa and Nana's 39th wedding anniversary. We so enjoy spending time with them, and the kids just can't get enough of Nana's energy and Papa's ability to joke around and do puzzles with them.

The kids with Papa.

Nana and the kids.

For the 4th of July, we made our annual trek to Palatine to spend the holiday with some of Phil's best friends. It was a somber occasion because the local pool was set to be demolished later that summer. The pool holds a special place in Phil's heart because it was the pool that he was a lifeguard at for 15+ years. The kids had fun playing with Jeeves the dog, and we had a great time catching up with everyone. I took the kids home while Phil stayed for the fireworks. The kids are still a little hesitant on the fireworks--they don't do well with loud noises.

Aunt Clare and the kids.

Aunt Maggie and the kids.

Our big summer outing was a trip up to Green Bay to visit with Phil's family. We met up with Phil's brother's family at his uncle's house, where the kids hung out with their cousins and went riding on a four-wheeler. The following day we went to Bay Beach, which is a local amusement park. Riley rode the swings by herself, and both kids experienced the Ferris wheel for the first time. We capped off the day with a trip on the kiddie train.

Cousins.

Cousins on the 4-wheeler with Autumn.

Riley on the swings at Bay Beach.

Family pic in front of Lake Michigan.

J with me on the Ferris wheel.

Riley and Phil were right behind us.

Daddy's girl.

The two of them on the Scrambler.

Riley and Grandma (with Phil in the back).

Phil decided that Riley deserved a trip to mighty Lambeau Field. Because let's face it, I want nothing to do with football (seriously, I never thought I would hate a sport as much as I hate football thanks to the dear husband!), and Jeremy wants to do anything for me (just as Riley would do anything for Phil), so Phil took Riley, and J and I stayed behind. She loved it, but the Pro Shop (gift shop) was rather crowded. We got on the road about dinnertime, and some of us enjoyed a nice nap on the way home.

Riley with Vince Lombardi.

Typical cheesehead.

Exhausted!

Both kids participated in swimming lessons, and I'm happy to say that Jeremy did MUCH better than last year. Riley was in the third level, and did such a great job that she moved up another level. She jumped off the diving board numerous times, and certainly is Phil's little fishy. Jeremy enjoyed picking up the rings from the bottom of the pool and was happy to hear that he "graduated."

J's class.

Riley on her last day. I couldn't make it since J had hockey.

More to come! I'll try to be timely. :)

Happy __ Day!

Today is Labor Day, but according to Jeremy it's Neighbor Day. He thought that today was the day when we go visit all our friends at their houses. I thought that was pretty cute. We did spend a majority of our weekend with friends, so I guess he was correct in some regard!

 

Hockey Boy

I'm working on a longer post, but I wanted to include some video of J skating during his summer hockey session. We've had about four weeks off, but we're starting up again tonight. J couldn't be happier, but Riley is not looking forward to being in the cold. Her words, not mine.

At the end of the second video, you can hear his coach kindly reminding Jeremy to get out of the goal, as there are no goalies during scrimmages. :)

Jeremy practicing his drills. This is his least-favorite part of hockey!

Scrimmaging. He's in the gray sweater.

Skating around.

Last Days

Tomorrow marks my little man's first day of all-day kindy. I've lamented many a-time on how hard it's going to be for me. I've tried to not think about the reality of it--I've purposefully filled our last few days chalked full of stuff to keep the kids busy and to let me enjoy every last bit of them. And it's worked. For the most part.

Riley's first day of school was today, and she was up at 6:30 to start the day. Luckily she went back to sleep for a little bit, but we heard them excitedly talk about the day this morning. She couldn't wait to get back into the swing of things, and I can't blame her. She enjoys school, loves to learn, is an avid reader and excels in math. I have no doubt she'll exceed again this year.

Last night, while tucking Jeremy in, we had this conversation:

Me: So tomorrow's your last day at home with me.
J: I'm moving?
Me: No, I meant that it's your last day before school. Do you want to move out?
J: Not yet. Maybe in 3 months.
Me: So around Riley's birthday?
J: No. How about 100 months?
Me: OK, so when you're 12?
J: Yes. Wait, I'll just stay here forever.
Me: What about when you have kids?
J: You live at home until you're a parent. Then you have to move.

*sigh* My boy. So insightful. :)

I have no doubt he will succeed in school. He has 3 kids in his class that he knows of, which I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. They're all 3 boys, too. His teacher seems great, and I'm looking forward to hearing all about his first day.

It's just going to be awfully quiet around here. You know, in between my sobs. :)

School

Here we are with just a few days away from school starting, and I'm finally posting pics of the kids' last days of school back in June! :)

As mentioned, oh, a few months ago, Riley didn't have a very good last day of school. The poor girl didn't feel well, but the bad parents that we were, we sent her along. J and I planned to have lunch with her on her last day, and while we were waiting at the school for her class to arrive, she comes walking toward the nurse's office. The nurse took her temp, and sure enough, she had a fever. We ended up having to take her home, which made her so upset. She wanted to celebrate with her class. Her teacher was nice enough to send Riley's autograph book from school home with her a few days later, but the look on Riley's face as we had to clean our her desk was so sad. Luckily it was only a 24-hour bug, but of all the days for her to get sick, it had to be the last one!

You can tell she's not 100%.

At least I was able to get the tradition-based picture.

My little man, on the other hand, had a very cool-temp day for his last day. He had a picnic with his preschool friends, and I admit that I got a little emotional. It's so much different with preschool. When the kids are that young, you grow an attachment to the parents and teachers because you see them every day, or every time you take your kid to school. Once your child hits elementary school, you send them on their way via the bus (at least in our case), and you don't interact with other parents (except for those at the bus stop) and rarely with the teachers (unless you volunteer a lot). And I cannot say enough about our dear Miss Betty.


If you're lucky, you have a Miss Betty at least once for your children to experience. Never have I encountered a teacher who not only loves enthusiastically what she does, but makes you laugh and makes the kids feel so special. Both my children were lucky enough to have her as their preschool teacher, and she was one of the reasons why I'm sad to be done with preschool.


The graduation ceremony was rough. My little boy was all done with this phase of his life. Miss Betty and I chatted for a bit, and we both agreed that we didn't want to mention that this was the end. She praised my kids and my parenting, which still means so much. (I'm tearing up as I write this.) But what was harder was my 1-on-1 meeting with her that I had the following week. I walked into the classroom stating that I didn't want to be there. I didn't want this meeting to happen because of what it meant. I spent much of the meeting teary-eyed, which, honestly isn't hard for me to do when it comes to Jeremy! That little guy has learned so much and gained some wonderful friendships for years to come, I hope.

Hunter, Logan, Diego, Ryan and Jeremy.
Hunter and Jeremy are in the same kindy class!

Brady was added to the mix.

Standing with the other preschool class.

Waiting for his name to be called.

Shaking Miss Peg's hand.

Getting a hug from Miss Peg while Miss Betty looks on.

And a hug from Miss Betty.

Me and my guy.

Watching him walk away.

We did get a chance to visit Miss Betty over the summer, but when hockey season starts this fall, it won't be the same. Miss Betty is a big Blackhawks fan, and Jeremy would keep her up-to-date on the Blackhawks results. But she will never be forgotten. I'm just sorry we don't have any more children to send her way. :(

Quick Wit

On the way to the pool today, Riley saw a sign that read: For Rent. She asked me what that meant.

After much discussion about what it means to rent a house vs. what it means to buy a house, the kids pretty much understood that you rent a place when you aren't sure where you want to live for a long time or if you don't have money to buy a house.

Jeremy said, "I know how you can get more money to buy a house. Steal some!"

Nice.