20-years, Peppered Pianos & Diapers

My 20-year high school class reunion was a week ago. I didn’t go. I did attend our 10-year reunion and it wasn’t as great as I had expected it would be. It just seemed like everyone was still in their little clicks. There were a few dramatic improvements and surprises from some late bloomers and I got to know a few people I never really knew at all before due to my post-grad Hawaiian connections. It was great to see some people who were already admirable hadn’t lost their genuine coolness at all but for the most part, the snobs and drama queens hadn’t changed much and it just felt like we were back in HS at a party but nobody was worried about the cops showing up now. It was the whole drinking scene that made the reunion less fun for me. I just don’t like being around alcohol or intoxicated people at all so cocktail parties are not on my list of fun ways to spend an evening. Don’t get me wrong, I love parties, I just prefer an atmosphere where people are not all souped up.

So skipping my 20-year reunion was not such a hard choice since the venue and agenda seemed to be exactly like our 10-year was. I was hoping they’d plan a family BBQ picnic or something like that now that we’re in our mid 30s and many of us are now raising young children. That might have been worth finding a good reason to plan a trip – well, maybe not. If I were still living in the area maybe I’d be more involved with the planning and could have arranged something worth attending but really it doesn’t matter. With online social networking evolving so quickly, you don’t really need a reunion to reconnect and catch up with those who really matter now and they can get as souped-up as they like without me having to be around the nauseating smell of it.

We had about 25-people over for Family Home Evening & dinner last night and our house was rockin. I dressed up one of the teens, Tyger, in the Whole Armor of God from D&C 27 (wish I had taken a picture) then we talked about protecting our virtue with an object lesson of a piece of bread smothered in Nutella. I let the kids take turns licking the chocolate off the bread. After a few kids, none of the older group wanting to take licks. Unfortunately the younger generation kinda spoiled my point because they all wanted to eat the germy bread but the older kids were who I was directing the message to wanted nothing to do with committing to eating the lickety-lickety object that had lost its virtue. School starts in 2 weeks and I thought it’s probably never too early to start gearing our kids up for the peer pressure of the new year.

We have friends coming tomorrow to stay with us for the rest of the week so I’ve been getting the guest room ready for their arrival. This morning before work I went to get something from the room and was greeted by a powerful odor. I looked around and found that someone had taken it upon themselves to sprinkle an entire bottle of ground black pepper all over the furniture, piano keyboard, beds & carpet. I’m sure it happened during FHE last night but have no way of knowing who the demented fairy-dust sprinkler was. So I was already running late but I pulled out the vacuum, stripped the beds and did what I could to rid the room of the spicy splendor. Falls in the category of “What Were They Thinking!!” I really hope our guests don’t feel any after effects.

We are on the verge of a potty training break through with Zeth. He is so close to embracing his “big boy” status but still loves pulling out that “I’m a baby” trump card. We’re rewarding potty time with his favorite bubble gum. I think I may need to make a progress sticker chart and see if that does anything for him. However, I think fate may be lending a hand. In conjunction with the summer humidity, he has really bad diaper rash this week and it just hurts when he wets his diaper so I’m trying to use this opportunity to convince him to control himself. He woke up screaming at 4a today so I went in to calm him down. I thought he was having a nightmare about his ball he left outside but he was actually screaming about his own balls hurting because he had started to pee in his sleep. Poor guy. He went pee on the potty, then and I got him back to sleep. He wouldn’t let me touch him to put diaper cream on him so I just sprayed olive oil over the rash which he didn’t mind. It’s time for him to lose the diaper. We’re close, real close.

My favorite Zeth vocabulary word currently is ‘actually.’ He often tells stories where he uses the word ‘ak-shoe-weee’ frequently. It’s very cute.

Zana started taking piano lessons about a month ago and last night listening to her play I was struck at how far she has already come in just 4-weeks of lessons and practice. I’m trying to capitalize on our investment by re-learning everything right along with her. I took lessons as a kid but resented being forced to continue after I’d lost interest and promptly forgot everything I could after I’d endured the 1-year commitment my mom held me to. I think we’re just going to go with giving her some exposure to piano – just like we do with all her sports activities and we’ll encourage her to continue as time and schedules permit. She’s got natural musical talent we want to help her develop, I’m just hoping this will be something she wants to continue learning for herself. In the meantime, I’m learning it all over again too.

Committed & Converted

If kids are considered adolescents until their 18th birthday, then my marriage to Ramond is about to begin it’s last year as a juvenile relationship. Tomorrow is our 17th wedding anniversary. That feels like a big number to me. I was 17 when I started college and back then, I thought I was pretty much grown up. But looking back over the years, I can see how much I’ve grown personally since my freshman year and that personal growth parallels the past 17 years of my relationship development with Ram since I made the vow and officially converted to Tahitianism.

We’ve had our ups & downs but I’m so glad to be able to say I’m still married to my best friend. He has stayed with me through the good & bad, gorgeous & ugly, fit & flabby, rich & poor, elated & depressed, pregnant & barren, sane & insane. He’s a crazy good chef – even though he gets exuberant like Emeril & forgets to clean up after himself. He’s a fun Dad and reliable parent. He thinks he has his own reggae band in his head and puts on an audible percussion & bass concert almost every morning after his run that drives everyone out of their beds. He reminds me to have a sense of humor and to keep a Zen mentality when things like road rage threaten. He is my #1 substitute teacher for the children at church and covers for one or more classes just about every Sunday. He avoids unfamiliar social situations like the plague but once you’re in his inner circle, he’s loyal to you for life. He and his family have lavished me in pearls and immersed me in French culture which just makes life more diverse and fun. He’s not normally inclined to start a home maintenance project but once I get one started, he’s right there helping me complete it. The reverse holds true for technology, he expertly tackles computer related issues and helps others do the same frequently. He reminds me to forgive and encourages me to strengthen important relationships – even if I don’t want to. He is gentle & kind. He lets me be me and helps me be better. He’s a keeper.