A Trip to the Antique Store Reveals...

 ...a little about me.

 

There's a store called the Antique Pavilion about a mile from our house. The place is huge, not quite as big as WalMart but it might be close. I went there this last weekend, walked up the long staircase to the store and took a deep breath. I couldn't help but smile.

 

It's filled with treasures from long ago. It takes me back to my childhood as I walk past stall after stall of items that remind me of my grandma, my parents or my older sisters. It fills my mind with memories of childhood: of playing hopscotch and jump rope; riding my bike with the banana seat and tall handlebars; I grew up in San Diego and I still remember the sidewalk being warm from the sun as me and my friends would sit criss-cross-applesause for a long game of jacks.

 

 

This store is my escape. I can spend hours here...

 

 I found some children's tap shoes! A little bigger than the ones I wore, I took tap when I was six or seven. I still remember the 'tap-tap-shuffle-ball-change' routine. I don't know if that's what it's called today, but I can still do it!

 

 I left the world of tap at the ripe old age of eight and joined a baton corp. I was in that for about 3 years and I still have my baton. This is us waiting for our turn to join the parade.

 

 

That's me on the right, carrying the banner. Every girl got a turn to carry it in at least one parade if she wanted to.

 

That's me in the back. My two best friends Cheri and Robin on the left, and my cousin Sandy on the right. I still keep in touch with these guys.

 

Meanwhile, back at the antique store... they have true antiques, retro items and not-quite-antique antiques.

 

 

What do you think, are these antiques? My kids played with My Little Ponies! I played with Little Kiddles. You pop the top off and the front separates from the back. The tiny doll smelled like perfume. I still have my original Little Kiddle and you know what? You can still smell the perfume!

 

 There's a corner in our house that has been dubbed as Ally's Area for many years. We put her pack 'n play there when she was first born. I would babysit her on Saturdays when Sharaya would work and Ally's Area would fill with books and sidewalk chalk and bubbles, coloring books and dolls. Then the pack and play was replaced with a toy box and doll house. Then a white, round furry chair took their place. Now at 13, only the books are there. 

 

So I pulled out all of my antiques and redid the area. My mom's typewriter, my dad's reel-to-reel projector, my grandpa's camera, pics of Chuck's and my mom. A dog piggy bank that the dealership gave me when my dad bought a Ford car in 1966. And an old chair that wraps around you like a hug. It's become one of my favorite spots in the house.

 

 Do you have anything from your childhood? An item that holds precious memories?

Around The House

This is a picture of me and my mom, around 1971. We lived in San Diego, I was 10 years old and we had just moved to this house. This is a story about the picture behind us. I know it's kind of hard to see but it's a field of daisies and each petal and stem is made with yarn.

 

My sisters are six and eight years older than me and they said this was a kit that our mom bought and she'd work on it at night after I'd gone to bed. It's fairly large, around 22" x 18" and they said it took her quite a while to make. Course she had 3 small kids at the time and was going to school to get her high school diploma.

We moved out of this house the summer between my sophomore and junior years of high school and I never saw this picture again. It never hung in any of the homes we lived in, I never saw it with any donated things... I actually never even thought about it again.

I got married and Chuck and I moved from San Diego up to the Seattle area. My mom moved up here for a few years but ended up going back to San Diego. She eventually moved to an assisted living facility and passed away in 2005.

About a year after she died I was walking through an antique store here in Seattle and saw this hanging on the wall. 

 

I just stood there staring at it! I called Chuck and told him that no matter how much it cost I was going to buy it! (Thankfully it wasn't that much!)

I remember as a little girl touching the flower on the far right because a few of the 'petals' were a cream color while all the others were white. I remember that so clearly. And this one is the same! You can see one flower has just a few cream 'petals' on the bottom while the rest of the flower is white. That's exactly how my mom's was.

I was in that same antique store a few years later and saw another picture just like this and I immediately checked out the flower... it was all white!! 

Now, I don't know if this is the exact kit my mom made. Maybe many of the kits didn't have enough white yarn... maybe there are hundreds of these around and I just happen to find one. I don't know.

But I like to think it is. 

I think this is the exact one my mom made, sitting in our living room all those years ago. It now hangs in our den, along with the small photograph of it hanging in our dining room in 1971. 

Do you have something that brings back memories of childhood? 

A Text From Beth, Childhood Memories and Swimming Pools

August has been such a difficult and emotional month. I hope things are beginning to settle down and September will be better.

I got this text from Beth a couple weeks ago:

"my life ear got big pot already"

Hmmm. I showed it to Chuck and thought maybe it's like that game where you have to say it fast so you can understand it?!

mylifeeargotbigpotalready

And that actually helped!!

We stayed in an Airbnb while we were in San Diego and the backyard had a pool. 

 

It was, it's hard to describe. I grew up in San Diego and for a few years we had a house with a below ground pool and the memories that came flooding back when I walked out to that backyard took me by surprise! In the 5th grade I would get up before my parents and be in the pool even before breakfast. I remember swimming at night and seeing my shadow in the pool light as I swam laps. 

So I absolutely loved this Airbnb!

Well anyway, Beth's ears plugged up the minute she went underwater and they stayed plugged for days. I tried using a, like a nostril suction bulb in her ears; she would plug her nose and try breathing out but nothing worked. Then one afternoon she was at All Aboard and sent this text:

my life ear got big pot already

Which essentially means, "My left ear has finally popped!" 

And I guess it was a big pop too!

Do you know how to swim?

Do you have memories of swimming when you were growing up? 

Child-Like Or Childish? And Where Do You Draw The Line?

I've read some blogs and Facebook posts from parents who are angry that someone said their son or daughter with special needs was like a child. Some of the phrases I've read - and heard, "They will always be like a child" "Perpetual children" and "So child-like."

But I wonder if some parents think it means their child is childish. 

When I hear phrases like that said about Beth, I try to remember the heart of the person saying it and 99% of the time, they're not being mean or facetious. They just notice a child-like innocence about Beth that honestly, most adults no longer have.

Beth isn't cynical
She doesn't look for the bad in every situation
She looks at the heart of a person
Doesn't care what clothes you wear
Won't judge you by your shoes
She forgives easily (when she understands the situation)

But you know what, Beth also has a lot of childish qualities. 

She still eats garlic bread by taking a huge bite right out of the middle. When I suggested she cut the second piece, she did but she wasn't thrilled about her mom telling her how to eat.

She eats too many sweets. Her idea of a snack is a half a bag of marshmallows. And when I suggest to her that those are not healthy and she shouldn't eat them, she gets mad at me. 

Then I have to remember, "How did I feel when I was in my 30's and my mom would tell me how to live my life?" Course, now I realize my mom was right, but at that time, those poor decisions were mine to make and I was gonna make them if I wanted to!

That's one of the privileges of finally becoming an adult. We get to make our own decisions! Good or bad. No more mom and dad telling me what to do, I get to choose for myself!

So where do I draw the line with Beth? When do I let her make those poor decisions like a real adult and when do I step in and tell her how to live her life?
 
That is the age old question for every parent of a child with special needs.

I remember when she was a teenager and still wanting to watch kids shows, like Dora the Explorer. I would occasionally let her, thinking she knew all the answers and maybe it made her feel smart. I don't know. But I also remember finally saying no. I would turn on something a little older like iCarly. And I noticed those were the shows she really liked and she never went back to the younger ones. 

I will always step in when I see Beth being childish, but I believe she will always be child-like. And I'm okay with that. 

Aaaand, It's Over

It's been a good week.

Daylight Saving Time, I stepped outside early this morning and was immediately brought back to my childhood. The smell of the pine trees, the birds chirping, the crisp cool air, overwhelmed my senses and reminded me of camping at Green Valley Falls in the mountains east of San Diego.



 

Anyway, I just stood outside for a while, breathing in the cool air and smiling at the sights and sounds. So grateful I could get this just by stepping out my back door.

 

 

 

Diana and I took walks along the marina.

 

 

 

I forced myself to relax this week. I got bored but I embraced it. :) I got tired of sitting around but I made myself do it. IT. WAS. WONDERFUL!!

 

I spent some time in prayer, pouring my heart out to the Lord about our circumstances. I cried at times, I actually laughed myself to sleep one night! (I'm unique, I know. Don't judge.) :)

 

It was a good week but tomorrow I head back to work. To be honest, I've kinda missed it. It will be good to get back to my usual routine, see my friends and coworkers.

 

I hope you all have a very blessed week.