I went into the house today. It was chilling. I've never been in a house destroyed by fire before. I guess I'm lucky that this hasn't touched my life before now. First - the stench. It's unbearable. Second - *everything* seems to be destroyed. Even the things that didn't touch fire are completely ruined by smoke. Third - did I mention the stench?
In the interest of privacy, I will continue to use the term "daycare provider" instead of a name, but really, this is someone whom we consider part of our family. When our old house flooded the day after we put it on the market, and husband D. was in China - guess who came over and helped clean up the water in the basement until 1 am? That would be "daycare provider." I could give a thousand other examples of things she has done for us. We don't have any family nearby and she has become our extended family. She spends Christmas with us. She bakes the kids their birthday cakes every year. She knows their favorite foods and their deepest fears. She knows what books they've read and how to make them laugh. She's their second mother - their surrogate grandparent - their favorite aunt - all rolled into one.
After we went to see her yesterday, we headed up to the Wisconsin Dells for a company outing. The kids spend the day on water slides - in wave pools - eating ice cream - on bumper boats - you name it, they did it.
Later that night, I asked son D. what his favorite part of the day in the Dells was. His answer? "My favorite part of the day was seeing 'daycare provider' before we left."
She's that good. Multi-million dollar amusement parks pale in comparison.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Friday, August 10, 2007
Fire
Yesterday, our kids and all their friends were happily playing at their daycare provider's house.
Today, that house was engulfed in flames. Luckily, there were no kids there (she is closed on Friday afternoons) and our daycare provider managed to get out safely. A fire started in the garage and spread quickly. The garage and 2 bedrooms were destroyed. What used to be her car is now a bunch of ashes. They said the flames reached 30 feet in height.
I just got back from her house. My clothes smell like soot. I can't get the picture of what used to be her house out of my head. You can see right through it now. Where there used to be a garage - there are just ashes attached to beams. It's disturbingly frightening.
She's the safest person I know. Not only does she have smoke detectors - she has *heat* detectors, not to mention carbon monoxide detectors and 20 different "fire plans." She has whistles by every window! This woman is prepared.
And yet, half of her house was destroyed in 30 short minutes.
They don't know what started the fire. It was something in the garage.
I keep thinking, "What if this had happened yesterday..." but I can't go there. Thank god it happened today and no one got hurt. Yesterday, 3 babies would have been sleeping in those bedrooms.
Guess who is going to come up with a family fire plan tomorrow? And buy a smoke detector for the garage? And do all those other fire safety things I've been meaning to do for the last few years?
And our poor daycare provider - she's lost everything. They said she has to get rid of just about everything because of the smoke damage. I know that they are just things, and she's lucky no one got hurt, and insurance will take care of almost everything....but still. That's hard.
Today, that house was engulfed in flames. Luckily, there were no kids there (she is closed on Friday afternoons) and our daycare provider managed to get out safely. A fire started in the garage and spread quickly. The garage and 2 bedrooms were destroyed. What used to be her car is now a bunch of ashes. They said the flames reached 30 feet in height.
I just got back from her house. My clothes smell like soot. I can't get the picture of what used to be her house out of my head. You can see right through it now. Where there used to be a garage - there are just ashes attached to beams. It's disturbingly frightening.
She's the safest person I know. Not only does she have smoke detectors - she has *heat* detectors, not to mention carbon monoxide detectors and 20 different "fire plans." She has whistles by every window! This woman is prepared.
And yet, half of her house was destroyed in 30 short minutes.
They don't know what started the fire. It was something in the garage.
I keep thinking, "What if this had happened yesterday..." but I can't go there. Thank god it happened today and no one got hurt. Yesterday, 3 babies would have been sleeping in those bedrooms.
Guess who is going to come up with a family fire plan tomorrow? And buy a smoke detector for the garage? And do all those other fire safety things I've been meaning to do for the last few years?
And our poor daycare provider - she's lost everything. They said she has to get rid of just about everything because of the smoke damage. I know that they are just things, and she's lucky no one got hurt, and insurance will take care of almost everything....but still. That's hard.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Busted
One of my deepest darkest secrets is that I have a message from NPR reporter Ari Shapiro on my answering machine at home. It's from September 2005 and I still haven't erased it.
It wasn't even for me. My "Master of Disaster" dad was visiting when Katrina struck and every reporter in the entire world wanted to speak to him. Immediately. He was doing interviews from our front porch.
My mother was adamant that he stop working and pay attention to the grandchildren instead of the reporters. Me, I was all: "But Mom! Ari Shapiro! On my Answering Machine! Ari Shapiro!"
I've always had a "never actually seen him before, but think his voice is nice" crush on Ari Shapiro. So, I can't bring myself to erase it. Sad, isn't it?
My parents are currently on a 3 week whirlwind tour in Europe that involves cycling through Croatia and boating on the Danube. (Yes, I have cool parents. Their last big trip involved weeks of trekking through Nepal. I am decidedly the most boring person in my family, by far.)
My impression was that they are a bit unreachable. So, imagine my surprise when I was doing my daily reading of the Washington Post, and saw my dad quoted in a front page article today:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR2007080702115.html?referrer=emailarticle
Dad, I can't help you out with this one. I don't currently have any crushes at all on any WaPo reporters. But if Ari ever calls again, I will totally defend your right to work on any vacation, ever. I promise.
It wasn't even for me. My "Master of Disaster" dad was visiting when Katrina struck and every reporter in the entire world wanted to speak to him. Immediately. He was doing interviews from our front porch.
My mother was adamant that he stop working and pay attention to the grandchildren instead of the reporters. Me, I was all: "But Mom! Ari Shapiro! On my Answering Machine! Ari Shapiro!"
I've always had a "never actually seen him before, but think his voice is nice" crush on Ari Shapiro. So, I can't bring myself to erase it. Sad, isn't it?
My parents are currently on a 3 week whirlwind tour in Europe that involves cycling through Croatia and boating on the Danube. (Yes, I have cool parents. Their last big trip involved weeks of trekking through Nepal. I am decidedly the most boring person in my family, by far.)
My impression was that they are a bit unreachable. So, imagine my surprise when I was doing my daily reading of the Washington Post, and saw my dad quoted in a front page article today:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR2007080702115.html?referrer=emailarticle
Dad, I can't help you out with this one. I don't currently have any crushes at all on any WaPo reporters. But if Ari ever calls again, I will totally defend your right to work on any vacation, ever. I promise.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Broken Line
Daughter D's school practices the "above the line" behavior practices made popular by Corwin Kronenberg.
The school came to the PTA at the beginning of the year, wanted to buy 300 "Above the Line" plastic bracelets to hand out to the kids after they "earned" it from good behavior.
I thought that was the silliest thing I'd ever heard of. Who needs more plastic crap from China? And does the world really need another plastic cause bracelet? But I was outvoted by the other parents, and we got the bracelets.
Guess which child wore her bracelet EVERY SINGLE DAY since she earned it? I'll give you a hint - in the entire school - only *one* child cherished that plastic bracelet above all other possessions. She slept in it. She wore it every day. She wore it for swim meets. In the lake. On her bike. Never took it off. The other kids brought the bracelets home and promptly lost them in their sea of other stuff. But not this girl. She never let it out of her sight.
Yep, that would be daughter D. - the one and only daughter of the PTA president who announced that these were worthless pieces of cheap plastic to all the other parents and teachers.
Do our children actively attempt to make us look like idiots or does it just work out that way?
And today - approximately 300 days after "earning" her cheap plastic Above-the-Line bracelet....it broke. It completely snapped in two.
Words cannot describe the devastation. I could lose my wedding ring and not be that upset. (Honestly, I was about to offer said wedding ring in a trade for the broken cheap plastic bracelet, if it would calm her down!)
So, how much of a complete hypocrite will I be if my first order of the first PTA meeting of the year is to make sure we get a reorder of those bracelets in, pronto?
The school came to the PTA at the beginning of the year, wanted to buy 300 "Above the Line" plastic bracelets to hand out to the kids after they "earned" it from good behavior.
I thought that was the silliest thing I'd ever heard of. Who needs more plastic crap from China? And does the world really need another plastic cause bracelet? But I was outvoted by the other parents, and we got the bracelets.
Guess which child wore her bracelet EVERY SINGLE DAY since she earned it? I'll give you a hint - in the entire school - only *one* child cherished that plastic bracelet above all other possessions. She slept in it. She wore it every day. She wore it for swim meets. In the lake. On her bike. Never took it off. The other kids brought the bracelets home and promptly lost them in their sea of other stuff. But not this girl. She never let it out of her sight.
Yep, that would be daughter D. - the one and only daughter of the PTA president who announced that these were worthless pieces of cheap plastic to all the other parents and teachers.
Do our children actively attempt to make us look like idiots or does it just work out that way?
And today - approximately 300 days after "earning" her cheap plastic Above-the-Line bracelet....it broke. It completely snapped in two.
Words cannot describe the devastation. I could lose my wedding ring and not be that upset. (Honestly, I was about to offer said wedding ring in a trade for the broken cheap plastic bracelet, if it would calm her down!)
So, how much of a complete hypocrite will I be if my first order of the first PTA meeting of the year is to make sure we get a reorder of those bracelets in, pronto?
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Meow
OK, it's official. We have now spent more time debating the pluses/minuses of adding another pet to our house then we EVER spent considering adding a child. (Either the first or the second time.)
We (OK, "I") started thinking about getting another pet back in the winter. Our cat is getting old. We adopted her from the humane society as an adult cat, so we aren't sure exactly how old she is. We *think* she is about 13. She's not in great health - nothing is wrong, but she is starting to act a lot older.
There is a pet store down the street that takes in rescue kittens. The kittens roam freely through the store during the week. So, let's say you drop in with a 7 year old girl and a 4 year old boy. They will immediately be surrounded by 20+ kittens within an instant. The kittens crawl all over them, lick them, play with their hair. It's kid heaven.
So, obviously, I have convinced the kids. Every time we go in there, they demand we take 4 of them home.
We brought our older cat to the vet this week. The Vet gave us the thumbs-up to get another cat. She recommended a young male. (Our cat is female)
The pet store is of two schools of thought. One of the employees - an older woman - has basically told me point-blank that she won't sell me a kitten. She said we'd be pushing the older cat "out to pasture" and we'd basically kill her. She said she could never do that to an older cat. (Although later I found out she has 12 cats - at one point, didn't she have to add one???)
The other employees at the pet store are recommending that we get TWO kittens. They think that two kittens will amuse each other and stay out of the older cat's way.
So, our options are:
None (voted for by pet store employee #1 and perhaps Husband D.)
One (voted for by the vet)
Two (my preference - and the rest of the pet store employees' recommendations)
Four (what the kids have requested)
...but if I do start adding cats now - will I end up as a crazy old lady with 12 cats who works in a pet store and won't sell someone like me kittens?
It's a possibility.
We (OK, "I") started thinking about getting another pet back in the winter. Our cat is getting old. We adopted her from the humane society as an adult cat, so we aren't sure exactly how old she is. We *think* she is about 13. She's not in great health - nothing is wrong, but she is starting to act a lot older.
There is a pet store down the street that takes in rescue kittens. The kittens roam freely through the store during the week. So, let's say you drop in with a 7 year old girl and a 4 year old boy. They will immediately be surrounded by 20+ kittens within an instant. The kittens crawl all over them, lick them, play with their hair. It's kid heaven.
So, obviously, I have convinced the kids. Every time we go in there, they demand we take 4 of them home.
We brought our older cat to the vet this week. The Vet gave us the thumbs-up to get another cat. She recommended a young male. (Our cat is female)
The pet store is of two schools of thought. One of the employees - an older woman - has basically told me point-blank that she won't sell me a kitten. She said we'd be pushing the older cat "out to pasture" and we'd basically kill her. She said she could never do that to an older cat. (Although later I found out she has 12 cats - at one point, didn't she have to add one???)
The other employees at the pet store are recommending that we get TWO kittens. They think that two kittens will amuse each other and stay out of the older cat's way.
So, our options are:
None (voted for by pet store employee #1 and perhaps Husband D.)
One (voted for by the vet)
Two (my preference - and the rest of the pet store employees' recommendations)
Four (what the kids have requested)
...but if I do start adding cats now - will I end up as a crazy old lady with 12 cats who works in a pet store and won't sell someone like me kittens?
It's a possibility.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
If you are one who prays...
Read this:
http://toddlerplanet.wordpress.com/2007/08/04/the-thing-i-didnt-share/
Read the whole blog, actually. She's a brilliant writer with a beautiful family...and inflammatory breast cancer:
http://toddlerplanet.wordpress.com/2007/07/23/inflammatory-breast-cancer/
And it sounds like she could use prayers from all over the world.
http://toddlerplanet.wordpress.com/2007/08/04/the-thing-i-didnt-share/
Read the whole blog, actually. She's a brilliant writer with a beautiful family...and inflammatory breast cancer:
http://toddlerplanet.wordpress.com/2007/07/23/inflammatory-breast-cancer/
And it sounds like she could use prayers from all over the world.
Thursday, August 2, 2007
You know you are really bad at Basketball when...
...You play basketball in the driveway for 30 minutes before you notice there is a rather large wasps' nest in back of the basketball hoop.
Daughter D. finally got a ball in, and about 20 wasps came furiously out to let us know they didn't appreciate the disturbance to their habitat.
The previous 29 minutes of play were blissful. The ball went nowhere near the net.
Son D. lectured me, "Mama, you gotta get your head in the game!"
(Any other families of 7 year old girls counting down the days until August 17?)
Daughter D. finally got a ball in, and about 20 wasps came furiously out to let us know they didn't appreciate the disturbance to their habitat.
The previous 29 minutes of play were blissful. The ball went nowhere near the net.
Son D. lectured me, "Mama, you gotta get your head in the game!"
(Any other families of 7 year old girls counting down the days until August 17?)
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