Lest I Forget

Before dawn's early light, we arose. In the cool darkness, I dressed, made the coffee, and when at last it could be put off no longer, I woke the kids. Anna shot right out of bed and got ready. Jack, not so much. If a body can ooze out of bed, then that is what he did. I dressed the little ones and loaded them up in the car. The sky was beginning to lighten over the black mountain that looked much like a sleeping giant. The sliver of moon and one star were still brilliant against the deep blue-black sky. I really love seeing the day creep into being like that, I just don't like having to get up so early! We arrived at our destination, the driver testing center. Tony dropped me off at the door and then went in search of breakfast for the kids who were by now fully awake and wanting nourishment. I looked over the rules and signs one last time. It was very important to pass this on the first try, for we had found a used car to buy for Tony and we were to pick it up today. Not ve...

One dreary gray morning, Peter toddles over to his mama in his gray robot pajamas. Pulling on her skirt and peering up with his big brown eyes, he says "Egg." So Peter's mama scoops him up and goes into the kitchen to make breakfast. She sits him on the counter while she gets the eggs and a pan. Peter likes to help. He reaches out to grab an egg. His mama gently places the egg in his hand, and holding his hand in hers, shows him how to gently tap, tap, tap the egg on the edge of the counter. He grins and picks up the next egg. Before his mama can help, he firmly smashes the egg into the counter! Oops! It did not do the same thing as before. But it makes Peter laugh and laugh. His mama scrambles the eggs, puts them on a plate, and sets them on the table. Peter uses his fork all by himself, for the first few bites, then growing impatient with those eggs, he picks them up in his little fingers. Much easier! Peter likes to climb. He is very good at it, most of the time. The...

As in, I have a very limited kitchen here in the hotel. One skillet, 2 pots, no oven safe dishes, and the most meager selection of cooking utensils. The spatula came pre-melted and the kitchen scissors were already broken. We have exactly 6 plates, forks, knives, spoons, and cups, so I have to either run the dishwasher or do all the dishes by hand after each meal. We arrived on the fourth of this month and I am fast running out of ideas. Oh, and everything I am cooking is from memory since my cookbooks are still in a crate somewhere. I have another 2 weeks of this before we can move into the house we found, if we have managed to communicate effectively with the landlord. We are still not sure he understands us and we are not understanding him. Tomorrow's task is to get with the housing office and see if we can get all this straightened out.  Peter was supposed to start feeding therapy before we left, but time ran out. He spits out more than he consumes, which is messy and fru...

Dear friends, We are arrived in Germany! What a way to arrive though. The morning of our departure, I carried Peter down to the hotel lobby for breakfast. I did not even get to pour my coffee and he threw up right there, in front of all the poor people trying to enjoy their breakfast. He and I made a hasty exit back to the room to get cleaned up, all the while my brain is thinking, "We have to get on a plane today!" Thirty minutes later let me know that this was not a one time deal. Thirty minutes later brought the realization that we were in for a long day. We found a urgent care center that was kind enough to prescribe some anti-nausea medicine for not only Peter but some extra "just in case". We loaded up the van and headed toward the airport. On the way there, I looked over at Tony and knew. He was sick too. He somehow managed to get all of our belongings into the airport before succumbing to the illness. We got on the plane, got to our seats, and took off. Th...