Power in the List

Will came up with the greatest idea ever. I'm not saying he wasn't before....but he is SOOO my hero. Ever the humble guy, I  believe he actually exhibited a bit of pride at this parenting idea....which, I have to tell you is completely warranted. Will disclosed to me that when he was younger he was able to perform morning and evening activities(tasks) easier and without hassle via list. I know. SHOCKING. My husband, the chemical engineer, needing a list? WHAAAAAAT?
OK. I'm done. Thinking of myself, and knowing that a younger version of myself following a list in the A.M. would have had as much success as a snowball's survival in the pit of Hades, I was wondering how Wyatt would react. I was pleasantly surprised. This is putting it mildly mind you. He LOVES the lists. I feel like I need to put these words in CAPS to really REALLY emphasize how exciting this is. I get, how do you say......perturbed?...MUCH more easily in the morning than any other time during the day. My IV pump of coffee has not yet been hooked up and I am much more vulnerable to emitting verbal attacks to people (read:Wyatt) who are not listening, not getting ready, essentially not doing what they need to do to get ready for school. If the bus is missed, I have to ride him to school.....on my bike. Do I really want to do that prior to coffee? No. No I do not. Hence-The beauty of the list. When he's messing around not doing what he needs to do, instead of screaming like a banshee and fighting for control, I tell him, (as calmly as possible mind you) to look at the list. Did you do blah blah blah Wyatt? Etc Etc. If he completes all tasks then he is allowed to bring the Ipad downstairs while we wait for the bus. His 10 minutes of Voltron/Transformer time is a huge motivator for him-  Hey whatever does it. I'm game and Mama's happy. VERY happy...and I can start the day without a sore throat. Sweet.

Look at me on fire with the organization. I thought Will was gonna toss his cookies when he saw the calendar. He doesn't  even know who he married anymore, and keeps making the statement that he loves Taiwan.
I'm trying not to take that personally.

OK OK....

In the spirit of honesty, this is how I really looked as Wyatt was getting picked up by the bus. Credit to my husband for capturing the moment.

Bye Bye Baby

    

As a grown woman (it actually pained me to type that), I am no stranger to heartbreak. Grade school crushes gone bad, middle school angst, high school puppy love and a few "he must be the one(s)" in college that thankfully weren't. Yet, of all my heartache, I never once thought that one day my son would be the source of this type of pain...and yet here I find myself sniffling and trying to put my big girl panties on and get over it. My son, the one whom my mother prayed would be just like me (spite?..or did she just really really love me so much that she wanted another one of us in the world?!...jury's still out) knows my buttons. I've written about this before. He knows what gets me. He knows what pushes me to the brink. He knows he can crush me by dismissing me so casually when I'm vying for his time and he knows he can bring me back with his sly little glance and a sweet kiss or a squeeze on the neck. But what he can't help or take back is growing up. It's gotta be done and I'm going to let it happen if it kills me...I mean for pete's sake I certainly don't want to be one of those mothers that Freud had so often alluded to. It's just SOOO hard. This of course brings us to the first day of Pre-K and his first bus ride.(Two torturous events on two different days). He rocked it. I mean, he was awesome. He wasn't clingy, he wasn't scared- he was confident, self assured, just like we've raised him to be.......so what's the problem? Did I want him to hug a little harder, protest a smidge? No. And that's the truth. It's just hard to let your baby go, you know?

                    

                          

                             

                                   

We're BAAACK.......

Cover up....ready to fly?

4 plane trips, 4 states, 1 wedding, a lot of tears, approximately 24.5 hours in the car....friends, family, extra pounds, a whole lot of extra baggage, uh... luggage.....And we find ourselves home. How weird is that? Taiwan.... Home ?
I've had this discussion with Will a bunch of times- regarding my feelings of "home." And it truly is a feeling- I know you know what I'm talking about- when you're in your house or apartment... even the state your in, either you feel it or you don't. I haven't felt it in a long time. And yes of course home is where your family is and all that crap, but I feel as if that's implied. I mean, home is where my main men are-don't get me wrong... It's not who I'm with, it's just where I'm at, my surroundings I guess. Is this making any sense? Let's take a look..Front Royal? Nope, never really felt like home- Richmond? Nah... Manassas,  yeah, more than the other places in Va. NJ? Absolutely. I can't help it. I feel at home as soon as I cross the PA border- being there makes me feel good. The people make me feel good. (Keep your NJ comments to yourself). I just feel "it" when I'm there. And interestingly enough, I'm feeling that way about Taiwan. - I feel less restless here-the culture, the people, with their street markets and crazy fare, the daily routine...(not working?!...hmmm)I love it.  When we walked into the apartment and collapsed on the bed in exhaustion, it was bittersweet. Sure we missed our animals, our family, our friends....but there was also the startling recognition of knowing we were home. For right now... For the next couple years?....I'm OK with that.

                         

And a great time was had by all..........