So, my husband is forcing me to get with the times.

I'm an intelligent girl, but I resist on certain issues already (what will I be like when I'm older?). God help me, I don't want to become someone who's stuck in past. I love:

A real, true, stamped letter- yes e-mail and telephone calls are quick and they do the job, but nothing is sweeter than a pen-to-paper piece of mail from a dear friend... or your grandma...or even your neighbor.

Actual photos- I love the digital age as much as most people. We own a digital camera and I have even been known to use it. However, I find that film, negatives, cool lenses, f-stops, special filters, and a darkroom produce quality prints and an experience unmatched by any digital camera I've seen or used.

Handwritting- I keep an actual handwritten journal for each of the boys. Yes, you can type a letter or keep your thoughts in a Word document, but nothing reveals personality like slanted script or choppy print. Now that my mom is gone, I treasure recipe cards of hers or birthday cards she wrote...its as though a part of her is living on that page. I miss her and it seems to bring her right back to me. I don't feel the same with printouts of e-mails she sent, although the information may be the same.

All this said, Eric and I were talking about things we'd like to do in the boys' bedroom. I started rambling off projects and decorating ideas. He suggested I gather everything into an Excel spreadsheet with cost so that we can plan and take it one step at a time. "Sure, I can organize a nice list and even sketch the finished look for you". That's not what he said. Excel. It needs to be in Excel. I am being given, essentially, a homework assignment that will force me to learn this program. It's been the dragon I just didn't want to slay. I've never needed it before and have done just fine without it for years. I guess this is an excercise in keeping me from becoming the eighty-year-old woman who listens to music on a record player. Incidently, my Grandma Joyce still uses a rotary phone and I love her just the same!

I stopped delivering The News Herrold newspaper months ago. The original time estimates given to me never really were accurate (or maybe I'm incompetent). So, after a three week run, I let the lady know it wasn't for me. However, if they ever needed me on an occasional basis to fill in for someone, "I didn't hate it that much and you'd be welcome to call me and see if I'm available". The other week, I received a call and today's route was the result of me saying "yes".

Sitting in my car bagging papers on the side of the road must have looked suspicious to one of the homeowners. He strolled near my van and said, "is everything okay". "Yes", I replied, holding up one of the circulars protected in its yellow plastic..."I'm just the Paper Lady". The man walked away and Grant exclaimed, "No you're not- you're Mommy!"

I have survived- and so has Mary

Mary Kelso and I have returned from our Michigan trip. For those of you who don't know, Mary is 30 weeks pregnant and will be having little Owen sometime around the start of October. Michiganer (Michiganite?) that she is, her family up north threw a baby shower on Saturday for and her sister, Kristy Jo, who is due mid-November. I tagged along for the ride... eager for a road trip to this much-spoken-of rural area.

Eric, Grant and I had been up there one time before for Mary's mother's funeral nearly two years ago. It was a quick trip and certainly not a "vacation"- so Mary didn't guide us around much and we didn't really see the sites. This time around, I was able to take in a bit more of Michigan and enjoy her charming family.

We left Nashville on Thursday morning and made it to Indianapolis, Indiana by about 3 in the afternoon (give or take) and stopped there to visit a friend of ours, Kerri Kornelson. She and her husband moved up that way last year, so it was nice to catch up and get a tour of her office. As we were heading back to the interstate, we passed by a Trader Joe's. This was an exceptional treat since I have dearly missed these stores during my five years in Tennessee. We went inside and I could hardly decide what to purchase...too many wonderful things! I don't think Mary quite understood my passion. (Yes, I know I've built it up more than it deserves. They are, afterall, just grocery markets. But, there's somehting special.) Friends of ours from Florida understand- they have their own infatuation with Publix markets.

That night, we finally made it into Mary's Dad's house in Burr Oak at about 10 p.m. (normally, an eight hour drive- but Trader Joe's, visiting Kerri and the "two kid" factor certainly delayed our travels a bit) Mr. Harry Troyer was so wonderful to let us stay (I'm sure he'd let his daughter stay anytime...I more mean the Fadely "outsiders"). Grant took a real liking to him over our trip and was sad to say goodbye at the end of it all.

Friday, we went on a day excursion to Lake Michigan (I had never seen a Great Lake before!). We visited the sweet town of South Haven, ate lunch at Three Pelicans restaurant on the river, walked the pier, saw the tiny lighthouse, ate ice cream and headed home. On the way back to Burr Oak, we drove through an old covered bridge, passed by the Magic capitol of the world, and saw where Mary's cousin, Mini Me, lived before hitting it big.

So, there are a few "claims to fame"- but, mostly, you can't escape the serenity, beauty, and delightful quaintness of the area. There are countless fields and trees. Plentiful organized rows of corn fields. Bean fields. Potato fields. Life is simplified and family is big (meaning important, although Mary's family also happens to be big in size) Its the kind of place that makes you feel as though you missed out by living in the SoCal suburbs with just your Mom, Dad, and brother. I never played much with my cousins, never went to Grandma's after church on Sunday for dinner, never lived in a place where everybody knew everybody. There is something so appealing about it all. And, yet, I don't know as I'd easily relinquish the convienent stores, large city opportunities (not that Vista is large...but San Diego is), and anonymity associated with a bigger town. Mary tuned out okay, and so did I- proving God can do amazing things with people from all walks of life.

The rest of the trip, we stayed with Moe and Ruth Troyer, Mary's aunt and uncle. They, as well, invited us in like family and were wonderful hosts.

After staying up until one in the morning, painting toenails and talking, we awoke rather tired on Saturday. This was "shower day". Fun was had. Gifts were given. All went well. Mary's cousin, Mia, who hosted the shower invited us over to swim and relax. It was a bit windy for a dip, but we enjoyed the conversation and relaxation. Mia has two beautiful girls, Megan and Libby, who had such fun with my boys. (black eyes and scratches were exchanged)

Sunday, we went to Harry's church in Colon and then ate lunch at Mia's. She made yummy homemade pizza and we enjoyed leftover cake from the Baby shower.

Monday, it was time to pack up the van and prepare for our trip back down south. We said our goodbyes to Aunt Ruth and proceeded to Vicksburg where we met a high school friend of Mary's, Kim, for lunch at Yogi's Diner. Next was a quick stop in Sturgis at the welding shop for goodbyes with Harry and then we were on the road again.

We made much better time on the way home and were greeted by our dear husbands at about 10:30 last night. Glad to be home, even though it was such a nice trip.

Aaaccckkkkk!!!

Mary and I have settled on a day to leave for Michigan- Thursday morning at 10 a.m. This is a bit overwhelming since I have three people to pack for (since the boys are coming, as well) and I wanted to clean the van AND I have a denist appointment tomorrow to have a filling "installed" (guilty!).

But, this is also great because- and this is just my opinion- when you have long car trips, it makes it feel more worthwhile when you are at your destination for longer than your total time in the vechicle!

Yes, we should have fun....but I've got work to do!

They say say girls grow up to marry men just like their fathers.

I did not intend to do this. And while Eric and my father have many differences, over the years many things have crept up that reveal similarities that are undeniable- almost scary.

My dad likes vanilla ice cream. Plain ol' vanilla. Eric loves Breyer's Natural Vanilla (had some last night, in fact). They both are silly joke men when it comes to kids. Eric has said some things to Grant that I remember hearing as a child (minus the whole "sing God Save the Queen backwards" solution to almost anything....hiccups? "sing God Save the Queen backwards"...stubbed your toe? "sing God Save the Queen backwards"...sometimes the problem might even require singing "God Save the Queen backwards while standing on your head", then you knew it was serious!) My Dad and Eric have been known to pull the whole "Owwie Exchange" game. You don't know it? Well, say you slam your finger in the door- rather than getting a hug or offering to grab some ice for you, these fine men would offer to stomp on your foot to "make you forget about your finger". Very nice, don't you think?

They also share a love of ginger. Today, I am making this. I bought some at Williams-Sonoma recently, and figured I'd try doing it myself. Yum.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIC!

I didn't wake him at 2:40 am to wish him a happy birthday like his mother used to each year. (Does that mean I don't love him as much...or I love him more because I didn't? *smile*) I think he is very pleased that I let him sleep considering that today is a workday! (Plus, I would have had to set an alarm for myself- and seeing as how we're in the same room- he'd hear it too- breaking much of the sweet surprise of it all- it certainly would be more annoying than the gentle voice of your mom saying Happy Birthday...yes, I made the right decision) He keeps insisting that birthdays aren't a big deal to him (I still find that hard to believe!).

Because of recent potty-training activities with Grant, I have been house-bound. Haven't been to the gym at all this month! I can't wait to return to some of the everyday things I'm accustomed to. (And it may happen before I'm completely miserable...I haven't pulled out the steam cleaner once today. Yay!)

All that said, I have tried to get onto our own personal treadmill to make up the difference. Today Dean watched and smiled as I sweated- Grant napped and did his own sweating (that boy wakes up nearly drenched). I only have 7 more pounds until I hit the highly sought after "pre-pregnancy" weight. Luckily, I am fitting into old clothes again instead of the dreaded "in between" wardrobe that previously earned its keep as "first trimester" clothing.

And, boy, I have become addicted to working out! Certainly, I am not one of those "gym junkies" that can't think beyond calories, weight rountines, and athletic attire. That said, I have found that my body craves the exercise and it functions better when i have it. The past few weeks, I have felt more sluggish since I've been less active. It can be a rather horrible cycle if you let yourself get caught in it: you feel tired, so you don't work out- which only makes you more tired in the long run. Take care of the "temple". Schedule it. Make yourself do it. Thank yourself later when you notice the difference.

In an effort to keep accidents to a minimum, I am sticking to Grant like glue and being a complete nag ("do you need to potty?"..."do you need to potty?"..."don't you want to try?". Being a stay-at-home-mom, I play every day with my children...reading books, racing cars, molding Play-Doh, making cookies, coloring (inside and outside the lines), blowing bubbles. But, this toilet-training thing (and we're going on a week now) has really opened my eyes as to how often I let him play solo while I accomplish little tasks like laundry, cooking, or cleaning. Being in the same room is not enough right now- if my back is turned, I can't observe his body language enough to sense his need and remind him to run to the bathroom. This past week, I have tried to eliminate even those tiny moments to help him be more successful and it has been fun (while at the same time exhausting) because all we've done is play(okay, I have still done some cooking- the family does need food).

Tonight, as a reward to myself, I'm going out to dinner with my friend LaDonna to relax without the kids. Just girls. Just fun. We're heading to Olive Garden and then hitting the mall (I'm not a really big "shopper", but the stroll should be nice- and air conditioned). I am on the lookout for some new cosmetics and hear that MAC has a great product called "lip glass", so I plan on checking that out. Not much else- just looking forward to a night without the steam cleaner (Grant and Dean must be in a contest that I don't know about!).

Hopefully, Eric has a fun night with "just the boys". Grant and Dean, be nice to your Daddy; I'd like him in one piece when I return!

Having this blog has opened me up to discovering all sorts of other computer communities. I'm not a really computer oriented person. Until this blog, I mostly just read and wrote e-mail, read my comics and news, and used Allrecipes for my kitchen inspiration.

Now, when I log into Blogger, I find myself tempted to click on other people's blogs in the "Recently Updated" list. Many, if not most, are completely uninteresting (probably what strangers think of mine!). Well, in a series of clicks on another person's blog, I came across some wonderful concepts in art.

Those who know me, know that I am a "wannabe artist". My mind thinks creatively, but I certainly don't exercise it enough to produce great work (...I'm doing this thing called "being a mom"). So, I use sewing, and decorating as outlets that have a more practical purpose.

But, here are some neat things to check out:

20 things. 20 people. 20 days.

http://nervousness.org/index.cgi

I especially love the idea of Artist's Trading Cards (ATCs) that seems to be prevalent on the Nervousness site.

So cool. So very cool. I feel inspired. Ahhhh. Now....I go back to planning dinner and doing dishes.

Mr. Independent, Mr. "I do it!", Mr. Impatient

Grant is in the stage where he wants to do everything himself. Paired with his inablitiy to wait, we have a disasterous combination. He can reach almost anything with his buddy "the dining table chair". He scoots that thing everywhere and has been recently exploring the world of preparing food for himself. You might ask, "Where is his mother? The poor neglacted child!".

You see, Dean came and interrupted things here at the Fadely house. Sometimes I am nursing or changing a diaper and can not immediately rush to the aid of Number 1, as we jokingly refer to the three-year-old first born.

So, this morning Grant waltzed into my room and said, "I want something for breakfast". Feeding Dean, as I somehow always seem to be, I told him that if he waited a minute I would certainly feed him as well. A minute? A whole minute?! Silly me, this is an eternity to my young boy who will surely starve in that amount of time.

When I get downstairs, Grant is standing on Dining Table Chair in front of the toaster oven. There is a perfectly golden toasted waffle waiting for him. Upon seeing me, he points out that he "can't get it- it's hot". So, not only did he pull the frozen waffles out of the freezer- he also took one out of the bag, put it into the toaster oven, closed the door, and plunged down the toaster knob. I was speechless.

Sure, we have outlet plugs and cabinet locks and strangle-free window blinds...but how do you "kid-proof" when the kid is so determined? If I unplug the toaster oven, would he attempt to plug it in himself? And which poses the greater harm- attempting to plug it in (risking electric shock), or burning himself because it wasplugged in?

Potty training update

Grant has just completed his initial chart and will be allowed a trip to Chuck E. Cheese's ("where a kid can be a kid"). We are now working on a chart of 12 spaces that allows him a trip to go swimming. Mom is hanging in there. In an effort to be consistent with him, we haven't gone out much. I'm quite stir crazy- but hopefully we'll make enough progress to change that soon.

What's the deal with the US Postal Service? Is it just here in Nashville, or everywhere? We haven't had our mail delivered by a real-looking Postal vechicle since we lived in the apartment our first year of marriage. So, for four years, we've had various cars and Jeeps with a flashing light on top and a magnetic sign slapped on that indicates it's status as a "mail carrier".

Both houses, we have been part of a "rural route", although I could never figure out why...it just says that on our generic mail (like supermarket ads and pizza coupons). So, I figured that the-less-than official looking cars were because of this supposed rural route-"lots of dust, bumps and unpaved roads...sure, I see- they don't want to mess up their cute little white Post trucks!" But, this logic flew out the window when, today, I saw my mail being delivered in a shiny PT Cruiser with a strobe light on top and the same magnetic sign.

Bought a 3-liter of soda today so that Grant can drink all he wants and have plenty of potty opportunities (I know water would work just as well, but this way, he gets some added incentive). New motto: "the more you drink, the more you can try"! He's got 6 smiley faces now- only four more until Chuck E. Cheese's.

Picked up our vacation photos last night. I hope to put a few shots up on the web site soon. Go ahead, hound me and remind me- it might get them up there faster!

Grapes of Wrath

I did it. I finished the Grapes of Wrath last night. Eric kept telling me it was alright to continue reading until it was complete; afterall, I only had 70 pages left. Oh, but I felt so guilty- we hardly talked at all last night...just me with my nose in my book!

For anyone who has never read this book before (which was me until last night!), I highly recommend it. It truly is a classic; it changes you. Honestly, it changes you. You can read your history books about the Great Depression, but it never provides the imagery to drive the point home. Here, you feel it. You understand the people of that generation more now: why they feel the need to save things (some even hoard because, "you can't waste that!") And not only do you feel the desperation of these people. You feel humbled- by merely reading. You feel embarassed for having so much. You feel thankful to God for the blessings you have- which suddenly seem luxurious.

I think it took me some time to settle into the book, to sink in and get comfortable. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen is not easily left behind for the choppy poor grammar of these Oklahoma Dust Bowl migrants from Sallisaw. By starting Grapes of Wrath one day after finishing Mansfield Park, the transition was rough and unnatural. While Austen's world is refined, Steinbeck's is sprinkled with some cursing and crudeness (PG-13/ R...consider yourself warned). But, they each capture their own world beautifully.

I don't know what I'll be reading next, although have Wuthering Heights and Villette as possibilities.

Mary and I are taking a road trip up to Michigan at the end of this month (her cousin is throwing her a baby shower back "home"). Maybe I'll ask her if she'd like to pick a book to read aloud while we drive. I did this for Eric as we drove to VA and D.C. last week...it was rather fun. Although, it wouldn't work for people who get motion sickness.

Man! Talk about getting nothing accomplished today.

I am attempting to potty-train Grant. He seems to be most conscious of his need to use the toilet when he doesn't have a diaper or underwear on. The result is a half dressed 3 year old running around the house. So far, he has two smiley faces on his "Potty Chart". The real trouble seems to be sticking by his side to remind him to try. Inevitably, when I leave him alone to play he comes running and tells me that he's made a mess. We've used a lot of carpet cleaner today already- thank goodness for the steam vac! But, as anyone can figure out, when you are hovering over a naked child and intermitantly nursing the baby... all other things fall by the wayside.

Grant's down for his nap and I'm finally going to get to my shower!

P.S.- any toilet-training tips are greatly appreciated. Refer your friends!

Vacation Part 3

Apart from a few mini trips to Gatllinburg, Las Vegas and a camping trip in Fall Creek Falls, our previous “holidays” have been visiting family or on business trips. We love our family and think that it’s great that we’ve been to England, California, Dallas and Pennsylvania because of them. But, the downside to having such a spread-out family has been that we never have time or money left to go somewhere that we don’t know someone. So, for our five year anniversary, we did just that (with kids, of course, because all “kid-watching” family is elsewhere). It was a great deal of driving, but we occupied ourselves with reading (His Needs Her Needs and The Grapes of Wrath) as well as playing the Alphabet Game.

JUNE 29, 2003- After stopping by the store for snack foods and bottled water, we hit the road in our Mazda MPV headed east on I-40. We planned on stopping somewhere for the night to break up our trip. When we hit Bristol, Tenn.-Virginia, we knew that it was time to start looking for a hotel. We found an inexpensive Days Inn in Abingdon, VA. Grant was ecstatic about these “cheesy” cement deer that they had surrounding the gazebo. He kept asking to go outside and touch them. I was surprised that he wasn’t disappointed when Eric actually took him out there. Maybe he knew they weren’t real- you never can tell with a three year old.

JUNE 30, 2003- Day two began with breakfast at Cracker Barrel. This was a pretty big deal, as I had never dined there before. Years ago, when I first moved to the South, I heard that they were amazing and that I had to go there. We stepped foot inside with the intention of eating lunch and once I looked at the menu, I realized that I wanted to walk right out (there wasn’t much for a vegetarian- just a lot of cooked vegetable side dishes). Their breakfast menu was great, however, and I found it hard to choose; I finally settled on the pancakes with cherry syrup (with actual whole cherries). Once full, we were ready to continue driving to Williamsburg. The roads around Williamsburg are poorly indicated, but we finally made it to our hotel and checked in. Left with little time in the day, we just decided to relax at the pool and retire for the night. Grant is getting more and more comfortable around the water, especially now that we purchased some “floaties” for his arms.

JULY 1, 2003- Our first day of actual vacation activities. We bought passes to Colonial Williamsburg and walked into the town. It was an extremely warm day and the first thought that hit us was, “how do these people wear these clothes in this weather?!”. We strolled the streets and went into a few buildings- an old courthouse, the magazine where artillery was stored, the windmill, the cobbler’s shop, and the bookbinder’s. We ate lunch at a place called “The Cheese Shop” and had wonderful sandwiches and then proceeded to the Governor’s Palace. This was the residence of the last British Governor to the colonies, Lord Dunmore. There were nice formal gardens and some elegant rooms. Overall, a good day.

Vacation Part 2

JULY 2, 2003- Time to depart for Washington, D.C. We drove out with plans on stopping through Jamestown quickly. It was a lovely drive along the Chesapeake Bay; rain was falling, the water looked still and the air held a quietness that was a great contrast to the previous day’s heat and glaring sun. We arrived at the entrance to Jamestown where there was a line of cars waiting to pay admission. At this point, since we were unsure of what could be seen and we had limited time, we opted for turning around and making it to our hotel in D.C. Once there, we picked up dinner and went down to the pool. There Grant met another boy named Grant and enjoyed watching this big kid splash and dive…he didn’t want to leave (but we eventually did). Back up in our room, Eric got the boys ready for bed while I went back down and worked out in the hotel’s gym room.

JULY 3, 2003- After eating at the breakfast buffet, we picked up our car and drove to Mt. Vernon (President George Washington’s estate). This was one of my favorite parts of the trip. Here was the place that I’d heard about in history class; the place that the Father of our nation lived with his wife; the place he died. Surprisingly, much of the interior structure was original. I climbed up and down the same steps as our first president and held onto the very same wooden banister- it was silky and worn from time. We saw his grave and the gardens he planned. Apparently, he loved farming and designed much of the estate, including the house itself, on his very own. The house is quite beautiful (a gorgeous cupola on the roof) and was situated in a breathtaking spot on the Potomac River. Yep. We could live there- without hesitation. Next, we went to Arlington National Cemetery to pay our respects to the men and women who served our country. The grounds were much more hilly than anticipated so we were rather worn out pushing our bulky double stroller and decided to just see the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns and the grave of President Kennedy. My friend LaDonna recently lost a friend of hers during Operation Iraqi Freedom who is buried at Arlington. It would have been nice to visit his grave, but we were exhausted with the little we accomplished. Hopefully, she will be able to visit on her own some day.

Vacation Part 1

JULY 4, 2003- Hopped on the Metro and went to the National Zoo so that Grant could see a few animals- cheetahs, giraffes, elephants, and Panda Bears… which I was happy about, too, since I have never seen them at the San Diego Zoo in all the times I’d been (either bad timing or the line seemed too long). Next, we went to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Eric and Grant were in heaven; I enjoyed it also…especially the air conditioning! (It was so hot that day!) We saw some amazing parts of our history- the Spirit of St. Louis and the Wright Brother’s plane along with countless space modules and suits. We ate “space ice cream” (freeze dried) and then walked back to the hotel via the National Mall. Crowds were already forming for the fireworks show (and there happened to be a Folk Festival going on at the same time). Went to the hotel and rested a bit. We didn’t want to “camp out” in the heat for prime viewing spots, so we just planned on walking to the edge of the Mall right before the show- saving ourselves from the heat as well as remaining on the outskirts of the masses that would, no doubt, be trampling each other at the end of the finale. Everything worked out well and we even spotted a suspicious helicopter hovering in the vicinity of the White House during the fireworks that mysteriously disappeared at the end. Hmmm.

JULY 5, 2003- Return home.

OUCH

I just spent an hour typing in all the info about our lovely vacation and then got this irritating error in which I lost all my info. Just know that we had a great time in Williamsburg and washington D.C. If I feel up to it, I'll attempt to re-type the whole thing (and from now on, I'll write everything in Word and paste it into Blogger as my in-the-wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time husband suggests).

We're here in Williamsburg. Tomorrow- Jamestown and driving to D.C.

Having fun and getting in plenty of wonderful relaxation!!!