What happened to the time? Like just the other day, Sheldon and I were at UNC holding this brand new baby boy, starting our new life out together as a family. When I think back to those days, I also realize how young Sheldon and I were. Sheldon had just turned 23, and I was only a couple of weeks shy of 24.
Chase was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen. I had a difficult delivery with him, with some very frightening moments, for he and I. I remember seeing him and just like the new country song, I did see God that day. I will tell you, if you ever doubt there is a God, just look at a precious newborn.
I blinked my eyes and Chase was turning one. Chase has always been a light at the end of my tunnel. He makes me grin now, just like he did when he was a toddler. He always seemed to know when someone needed a smile.
What seemed like a few days later, Chase was two, and we had a second baby on the way. Just like every Mom I have ever talked to, I was petrified that I would not love the next like I loved Chase. How could I? I had experienced a love that was unimaginable. I remember the night I went into labor like it was just yesterday. My mom came to pick Chase up after she and John finished their Friday night routine of eating at Clarksville Station. When she left with my Chase, I sobbed harder than I had since I was a child myself. It hurt my heart that the next time I saw him, he would not be my only baby. This might have been the first time I realized the love of a mother and her child.
Mackenzie Claire Perkins was born the next day, with a great delivery. She was the tiniest thing we had ever seen, weighing only 5 lbs 15oz. Mom and John brought Chase to see us a few hours after her birth. And by the way, I was already in love with her, and knew that I could love two children. Chase came in to see his baby sis-ser. He loved her immediately. He was intrigued with her hair, rubbing her head over and over. We were the perfect little family. Everything was perfect....until the nurse came it to take Mackenzie to the nursery to get her vitals and such.
Our sweet baby boy, our perfect child, our son that everybody commented on how good he was, threw the worst fit one could ever imagine. He screamed at the top of his lungs because they had taken his baby away. I guess in his little mind, he had waited all this time to get her, and they just took her.
We remind Chase of this story occasionally. Since he and Mac argue all the time now. I cannot seem to make him understand that one day they will need each other. I try to remind myself that my brother and I use to fight and argue to. I am sure if Mom was here she would tell me that we were just as bad as Chase and Mac, but I would probably doubt her.
I look at the two of them and just wonder. Will Mac cry at Chase's wedding as I did at Tim's? Will Chase hold Mac in a time of a crisis and let her cry on his shoulder,even though his heart is as crumbled as hers, as Tim has for me? Will Mac try to "adopt" Chase's first born, as I did with Tim's? Will Chase secretly protect Mac when she is a freshman at OHS and he is a big time Senior, as Tim did with me? Will I sit back one day and giggle because Mac and Chase are whining to me that their own children are argueing and they are swearing that they never argued like that when they were young!
Friday, February 29, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
A Little More of the Nitty Gritty
Well, yesterday, I wrote about the children, barely scratching the surface, for sure. So today, I thougt a little info on the parents of these precious children would be good.
Sheldon is still working in the great City of Durham, awaiting his promotion to Sergeant. He recently left the homicide unit and went back on the street to patrol. He loves his job....most days.
As a family we are adjusting to shift work again. Funny, a few years ago I was pretty good at doing the single parent thing when Sheldon worked nights. We (me and the kids) would do things, go places, see people while he worked. The kids listened to me, I was good at being the disciplinarian. Then Sheldon went on a 9-5 schedule for a couple of years. I sort of had the opportunity to step back and be the sweet mommy, one that could say, "Wait until your father gets home." See, when Sheldon worked nights, I was determined that I would handle things here at home, and NEVER wait for him to come home to handle the problems. I did not think that was fair. Now, I am certaintly not saying that I did not vent, A LOT, about how the kids had drove me crazy, or how the they had been whiny, or one had been sick, or they were fighting, or when they were babies, how they had cried all night. As much as I did not want to depend on Sheldon while he worked, wanting him to be able to focus 100% on his job, I did lean on him often. But what I did not do, was to expect him to come home and punish the children if they needed it for something they had done on my watch.
Now that he is back on shift work, and gone for several nights straight, me and the kids are learning how to co-exist. Seriously. Sometimes I think those two children have meetings on how to get momma crazy(ier). They sneak in each others room while I am sleeping and plot things agianst me. They send morse code messages. Maybe they pass notes, I don't know, but I can assure you, something goes on between those too.
I moved my office from the Raleigh location to the Durham location. This has been a great move for me. I drive so much less. I was in the car for over an hour each way, now, I am not even in my car long enough to put my dang make up on. (Yes, I am that crazy women trying to put her mascara on at the stop light.)
I work normal hours, which works great with all the running we have to do every night of the week. Chase has swim practice 3-4 times a week, Mac has dance twice a week, and I have Yoga on Monday nights. Sheldon and I take turns with the swim practices. I perfer for Sheldon to take him, becuase when I take him, Mac goes with me, and for one hour and forty five minutes, she is on Misson Drive Mama Absolutly Crazy With Random Questions. No kidding. In the future I will journal some of the questions, amazing questions no doubt.
As a family, our life is pretty routine. Monday's I do yoga, come home. Tuesdays Chase has swim, Mac has dance. Wednesday is our free night. Thursday nights Chase has swim, and Mac has dance and tumble class. Friday nights, more swimming for Chase. Saturday morning....more swimming. Sunday evenings, we go to Granddaddy's for supper with the whole family. And then we start over.....
Just a few side notes about us....
Sheldon is still working in the great City of Durham, awaiting his promotion to Sergeant. He recently left the homicide unit and went back on the street to patrol. He loves his job....most days.
As a family we are adjusting to shift work again. Funny, a few years ago I was pretty good at doing the single parent thing when Sheldon worked nights. We (me and the kids) would do things, go places, see people while he worked. The kids listened to me, I was good at being the disciplinarian. Then Sheldon went on a 9-5 schedule for a couple of years. I sort of had the opportunity to step back and be the sweet mommy, one that could say, "Wait until your father gets home." See, when Sheldon worked nights, I was determined that I would handle things here at home, and NEVER wait for him to come home to handle the problems. I did not think that was fair. Now, I am certaintly not saying that I did not vent, A LOT, about how the kids had drove me crazy, or how the they had been whiny, or one had been sick, or they were fighting, or when they were babies, how they had cried all night. As much as I did not want to depend on Sheldon while he worked, wanting him to be able to focus 100% on his job, I did lean on him often. But what I did not do, was to expect him to come home and punish the children if they needed it for something they had done on my watch.
Now that he is back on shift work, and gone for several nights straight, me and the kids are learning how to co-exist. Seriously. Sometimes I think those two children have meetings on how to get momma crazy(ier). They sneak in each others room while I am sleeping and plot things agianst me. They send morse code messages. Maybe they pass notes, I don't know, but I can assure you, something goes on between those too.
I moved my office from the Raleigh location to the Durham location. This has been a great move for me. I drive so much less. I was in the car for over an hour each way, now, I am not even in my car long enough to put my dang make up on. (Yes, I am that crazy women trying to put her mascara on at the stop light.)
I work normal hours, which works great with all the running we have to do every night of the week. Chase has swim practice 3-4 times a week, Mac has dance twice a week, and I have Yoga on Monday nights. Sheldon and I take turns with the swim practices. I perfer for Sheldon to take him, becuase when I take him, Mac goes with me, and for one hour and forty five minutes, she is on Misson Drive Mama Absolutly Crazy With Random Questions. No kidding. In the future I will journal some of the questions, amazing questions no doubt.
As a family, our life is pretty routine. Monday's I do yoga, come home. Tuesdays Chase has swim, Mac has dance. Wednesday is our free night. Thursday nights Chase has swim, and Mac has dance and tumble class. Friday nights, more swimming for Chase. Saturday morning....more swimming. Sunday evenings, we go to Granddaddy's for supper with the whole family. And then we start over.....
Just a few side notes about us....
- Sheldon and I have been together since 1991, and were married in 1994. We will be married 14 years in September.
- I am 34 years old, Sheldon is 33. Both of us have birthdays coming up this spring/summer....which means.....I am about to be 35 years old. Oh my God!
- For hobbies, Sheldon likes to play racket ball, play video games with Chase, and read comics. He is also enjoys working out.
- For hobbies, I like photography.
- I recently began practicing yoga, and really think I have found a new passion.
Sheldon is working tonight, Mackenzie is spending the night with her cousin. Chase is snoring beside me right now. So far it has been a really good weekend. Very laid back.
Mac spent the night with Taylor last night too, she called me tonight, I was so glad to hear her sweet voice....until she said, "I called to talk to dad, where is he?" "Work," I said. "Tell him to call me, okay? Okay, goodbye." Well........goodnight sweetie, I love you sweetie, see you tomorrow sweetie.....I thought as I heard the phone go dead on the other end.
Daddys Girl!!
Friday, February 22, 2008
Who We Are, What We Do.....
I decided on doing a blog, one, because I love reading them, two, because I use to be good about journal ling my thoughts about these two creatures that live at my house with my husband and myself, but I quit, and three, becuase you people just need to know what we go through as parents of the most adorable, aggravating, intelligent, crazy, sneaky, honest, (brutially honest), precious, energitic, "spunky" (I prayed for a a spunky little girl, be careful, very careful what you wish for), and finally, the best children God created, just for me and Sheldon.
Chase is now 10. He is the sweetest, kindess child out there. Heart of gold. He amazes me as to how giving he can be. For example, he is saving every nickel and dime for an IPod. He wants one so bad he can taste it. For Valentines, I decided that since neither of the kids are big candy eaters, and we have about 100 too many stuff animals and such...I would just give them money. $20.00 each...this brought Chase's total to $68.00. Almost half way there. Well, he and I had some time to waste before we had to pick up Mac from her Valentine Party at dance. We went to Walmart just to walk around.
While enjoying some ice cream at the McDonalds, Chase asked if he could show me something when we were done. "Sure," I said. So, we clean up, and he walks me to the jewelry counter of Walmart, looks at me and says, "Pick anything you want up to $68.00. " He was dead serious. I almost cried. I told him I wanted him to keep his money, so he could get that IPod, and that I just did not need any jewelry, having all of mine and Grandma's. What a sweet, giving child. Had I had the money, he would have had that IPod that night. (So, they are a little spoiled)
Mackenzie is my drama girl. She loves to be dramatic. She is a complete trip. You just never know what she might say, or do. She has not one shy bone in her body. She likes to talk....a lot. She is absolutely beautiful, if I do say so myself. She knows how to bat her eyes to get anything she wants from her daddy, and if that does not work, she just yells out, "Daddy's Girl!" That usually seals the deal. Mackenzie likes to dance. She is on the company team at To The Pointe Arts and Dance Academy. On Thursday afternoons, I get there in time to watch her in tumble class. It makes me giggle to watch her. She spends all of her time primping in the mirror, posing, adjusting her clothes, swinging her hair around and such. We are in such trouble as she gets older. The one thing that Mac does to drive me crazy, and she knows it, is...she likes to ask the most random questions. I do not know where she comes up with them sometimes. I mean, they are out there.
Sheldon and I are regular parents...I think. I guess. Okay, maybe not. We are the kind of parents that like to hide in the closet and jump out to scare them. We like to pretend like we do not know them sometimes, which drives Mac crazy. We told them that we had a previous child, named Freeda, but we gave her away because she acted up at the table. Stuff like that... we are normal parents, right?
Chase is now 10. He is the sweetest, kindess child out there. Heart of gold. He amazes me as to how giving he can be. For example, he is saving every nickel and dime for an IPod. He wants one so bad he can taste it. For Valentines, I decided that since neither of the kids are big candy eaters, and we have about 100 too many stuff animals and such...I would just give them money. $20.00 each...this brought Chase's total to $68.00. Almost half way there. Well, he and I had some time to waste before we had to pick up Mac from her Valentine Party at dance. We went to Walmart just to walk around.
While enjoying some ice cream at the McDonalds, Chase asked if he could show me something when we were done. "Sure," I said. So, we clean up, and he walks me to the jewelry counter of Walmart, looks at me and says, "Pick anything you want up to $68.00. " He was dead serious. I almost cried. I told him I wanted him to keep his money, so he could get that IPod, and that I just did not need any jewelry, having all of mine and Grandma's. What a sweet, giving child. Had I had the money, he would have had that IPod that night. (So, they are a little spoiled)
Mackenzie is my drama girl. She loves to be dramatic. She is a complete trip. You just never know what she might say, or do. She has not one shy bone in her body. She likes to talk....a lot. She is absolutely beautiful, if I do say so myself. She knows how to bat her eyes to get anything she wants from her daddy, and if that does not work, she just yells out, "Daddy's Girl!" That usually seals the deal. Mackenzie likes to dance. She is on the company team at To The Pointe Arts and Dance Academy. On Thursday afternoons, I get there in time to watch her in tumble class. It makes me giggle to watch her. She spends all of her time primping in the mirror, posing, adjusting her clothes, swinging her hair around and such. We are in such trouble as she gets older. The one thing that Mac does to drive me crazy, and she knows it, is...she likes to ask the most random questions. I do not know where she comes up with them sometimes. I mean, they are out there.
Sheldon and I are regular parents...I think. I guess. Okay, maybe not. We are the kind of parents that like to hide in the closet and jump out to scare them. We like to pretend like we do not know them sometimes, which drives Mac crazy. We told them that we had a previous child, named Freeda, but we gave her away because she acted up at the table. Stuff like that... we are normal parents, right?
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