Slowing the Pace

The following is an essay I had published a few (about 4) years ago. A few very short years ago, but long enough ago that it almost seems like another lifetime. We've made some major changes in our lives since then, but we made them slowly, at a pace that allowed easy adjustment. I'm publishing this essay here today because of this blog post by my friend Rita over at Grammy's Sweet Nothings. I hope you enjoy it, but more than that...I hope it encourages you to slow down and enjoy the simple things. :)


Some of my most treasured memories are centered on the carefree summer days of my 1970s childhood. Mornings spent bicycling and skating before it got ‘too hot’. Afternoons at the community pool mastering the art of the underwater handstand. Evenings of firefly-filled jelly jars and games of Spotlight. Even rainy days weren’t all that bad when Mom spread a blanket on the front porch and my friends and I played Barbies, Play Doh and Spirograph for hours on end. Of course, the highlight of each week was the three block trek to the Bookmobile to search its wonderfully stuffed shelves for just the right volume to carry me away.

We sometimes complained of no excitement. “There’s nothing to do!” was a common cry when my friends and I grew bored with whatever we were into at the time. Even though I remember this with great clarity, I can now honestly say that I often find myself longing for some of that same boredom I so loathed back then. I also wonder if my kids might subconsciously long for some of the same.

This year our vacation was scheduled for the week after a busy school year ended. The trip was much anticipated and while I can’t say that we were disappointed, I can look back and say that we sure packed an awful lot into a few short days. By the time we pulled into our driveway, I felt like I needed a vacation to recuperate from our vacation! That Monday afternoon, we unpacked the vehicle and immediately loaded ourselves back into it so that we could travel another hour to my daughter’s All-Star softball game. We had Bible School the rest of the week and other church activities in which we participate, plus the usual hours spent in the gym while my daughter works out with her gymnastics team. Of course, there were still dental and orthodontic appointments to be kept, my community volunteer commitments and my husband’s work schedule. It is getting so that we have to actually pencil-in family time and it makes me feel like a thief. In my desire to give my kids more opportunities to participate in activities and sports than I had as a child, I am basically robbing them of the very things I remember so fondly. Most of the time it feels like a no-win situation.

When did things begin to get so out of hand? I ask myself that question on a regular basis. Is it because I’m not good at saying NO? Perhaps. Are the kids involved in too many things? Maybe. I just find it difficult to tell them they can’t at least try something to see how they like it. I was not an athletic child and I’ve always regretted that fact, so I want them to have the chance to pick and choose the kinds of activities they might enjoy. Should I put my foot down and limit the running? Probably, and I suppose I will when I reach the breaking point.

Sometimes when they’re winding down at bedtime, one of the kids will ask me to tell a story about my childhood. I tell them of those laid back summer days and the things my friends and I did for fun. As expected, they get that faraway look in their eyes as only daydreaming children can. I know they are right there, in their minds’ versions of my childhood, splashing in the pool on a hot summer day or sneaking quietly through the dewy evening grass, flashlight in hand, attempting to locate a hiding playmate. I wonder if it is fair that they aren’t making these same kinds of memories for themselves, and if the memories they are making will be looked back upon as fondly when they’re grown. Then reality slaps me in the face when I realize that even if they weren’t so involved in extracurricular activities, there still would be no games of Spotlight or bicycling with their friends. Why? Because those friends’ schedules look a whole lot like our own. It is now officially an epidemic.

It is a very sad fact that we’re raising an entire generation that requires constant entertainment and amusement. (Handheld video games, DVD players in the vehicle, etc.)Trouble is that we, as parents, are setting the example by cramming so much into our own hectic days. I suppose that until every family decides to draw the line somewhere, our calendars will continue to be too full and our children too busy to know how to enjoy the simple things in life.

And now, we’re off to soccer camp...

Name that issue!

Yes, I have issues. I suppose we all do, right? I mean everyone has to have an issue with something!

Right?

(Come on, people! Agree with me! I'm feelin' all alone here!) ;)

Today's issue (for me) has a somewhat loooooong name. But at least it isn't Latin and it is pronouncable. It's called:

I-WANNA-GET-OUT-OF-THE-HOUSE-BECAUSE-I-KNOW-I-CAN'T Syndrome.

What's up with that?

It seems that any time I know I absolutely can't leave the house for some reason, that's the time I most want to run into town for something. It isn't like I don't have plenty here to keep me busy. I just want OUT.

I NEED out.

And yet, I can't GO OUT.

Tucker is still home from school with this dreadful ear infection so we're stuck here at the house until he's better. I mean, if he can't go to school, he has no business out running around. The Mommy in me knows this.

But the Kelli in me is screaming for a breather!

I know that all of the days we've spent snowed-in this winter play a huge part in this. But still.

I haven't left the house since taking him to the doctor on Tuesday, and that doesn't really count. After all, there isn't any fun in sitting in a doctor's office.

And what exactly do I consider fun? If I could leave the house right this very minute, what would I do? (I heard these questions running through your mind.)

I'd pay a visit to Walmart (which is the only place open this early....I live in a very rural area) and look around just to kill some time. Then I'd hit the Dollar Tree to see what's new. I'd drive through Arby's to get an extra-large diet Dr. Pepper (they're the only place in town that has it!) and then maybe I'd run out to Cedar Lakes to take a nice, leisurely stroll around the park.

Doesn't that sound great? Heavenly, even?

Don't answer that.

No, really...no reply necessary. I know I'm boring.

And it doesn't even matter because it probably wouldn't happen anyway.

You see, I know me. If Tucker had gone to school this morning, I would still probably be right here, in this house, doing pretty much exactly what I'm doing right now. I'd do a load or two of laundry. Run the dishwasher. Straighten up the house a little. Dust and vacuum. Plan dinner. Bake something.

It's simply knowing that I CAN'T leave the house that makes me want to all that much more.

Childish, I know.

So how about you? What is it that you want more than anything when you know it's not in the cards for you?

Tucker's Idea of a Good Time

Not really, but we're trying to make the best of it.

Had to make a trip to the doctor's office yesterday. When Tucker got out of bed Saturday he said "Mom, this is ear is stuffed up. I can't hear out of it." He indicated his right ear and I took a look at it. It wasn't red or hurting, so we decided to just keep an eye on it. He didn't complain much on Sunday. He went to school as usual on Monday.

At 2:00 p.m. on Monday, the school's phone number popped up on my Caller ID. Don't ya just love it when that happens? That knot of dread forms immediately in your gut.

Tucker's ear was starting to hurt. Would I want to bring him some eardrops? I had gotten some drops for pain, just in case, and off to the school I went. He felt like finishing the school day (just another hour) and I came home and called the doc's office. They could work him in at 11 a.m. on Tuesday.

When the doc looked in Tucker's ear yesterday, his first words were "This is horrible" and he called in someone else to look at it. Then they allowed me to look at it with the scope.

I nearly cried.

Doc said he didn't know how he was functioning. It is the worst ear infection he has seen in years. There was pus and blood and the eardrum was so inflamed. He told me to not be surprised if it ruptured and we saw some blood on the pillowcase, but that it would bring him immediate relief and it would heal pretty quickly on its own.

And through it all, Tucker Man was a tough little nut. To this point he had not shed a single tear and had really complained very little.

We headed home, stopping on the way to pick up his four prescriptions. Before we even got to the pharmacy he announced that his other ear was hurting.

I nearly crumbled.

We started with the numbing drops and while they helped the right ear (the really bad one) they didn't touch the pain he was feeling in the left. It continued to worsen until the poor little guy was in agony. I was ready to head to the ER but he begged me to not take him there. I told him we'd wait a short time to see if the pain would subside. All I could do for a while was hold him while he sobbed. Talk about breaking my heart. :( He was even sick to his stomach, plus his asthma is flaring and the doc put him back on neb treatments.

Thanks to much prayer, the pain finally subsided and he was able to rest. Except that he had to take a steroid which wound him too tightly to actually sit still. Add in the albuterol for the breathing treatments and you have a wired 7 year old who doesn't feel well enough to do much but is completely incapable of relaxing. Great.

Today? So far, so good. :) He's adjusting to the meds and hopefully that antibiotic is working its magic. He's also talking my ear off. :)

I need a vacation. Anybody up for a trip to the beach?

Viruses, Trojans and worms...OH MY!

I think I would prefer lions and tigers and bears right now.

Once again my laptop is down for the count. I am posting from Perri's netbook which is extremely difficult for me. I have big hands and long fingernails and this keyboard is quite teeny tiny. Plus I don't want to bog down her computer with all the clipart and stuff I typically use in my postings. So this will probably be short and sweet, which I'm sure will be a relief to some. ;) I am so pleased to have picked up 26 followers and I absolutely hate to lose any of you, so I'm trying hard to get this issue remedied. I have a great deal of fun writing this blog!

Even worse than this is the fact that my little Tucker Man is fighting an earache. :( He's never really dealt with ear problems before. He's had so many health issues in his seven short years and I certainly hate to add this to the list. We have an appointment with his super-fantastically-wonderful doc at 11 this morning, so with any luck we'll be able to get him some relief.

The good news is that Perri got her phone back! :) She still has to earn the AR points to get her netbook returned, but her Dad and I decided that with the grades she brought home this term, she deserved to have her phone. :) She's a happy girl.

I'll do my best to check out all the blogs I'm missing just as soon as I possible can! Hopefully my laptop will be back up and running before the week is out. My best advice to all of you is to make sure that you are careful in choosing your virus protection and that you run a good malware program as well. I think the problem I'm having now stems from the issues I was fighting a couple of weeks ago and that it just wasn't fully remedied that first time around.

Hope to be back really, really soon! Don't have TOO much fun without me. ;)