I thought since I was going to write my memoirs you might need to see the stars of the show. This photo is our daughter Erin and her husband Ron and our son Ben. They're the best kids in the world! They never have really allowed me to boss them around too much. I like to say that it's not that I am too directive, I just didn't have enough children!
When Ben was born, Erin was 6, almost 7. He was born 3 weeks late in Kodiak in the tiny hospital there. Erin told us that she was thrown out of the nest too soon and that we should take him back before we got attached to him. Too late. When he was a baby, one of her favorite things to do was to put her Little Orphan Annie wig on Ben and call him Chubbola Marie. It didn't seem to bother him much...he was cute either way. She also used to pump his little legs, which also didn't bother him. In that way, she takes partial credit for him becoming such a good runner.
Erin is fluent in Russian. I saw her potential as an infant. We lived in a cabin with a woodstove when she was born. She used to kick and pull off her socks all the time. I nicknamed her Erin Sockoff. I sewed her a little sleepsack (now they're all the rage) with elastic strips at the top so that she wouldn't get cold in the Fairbanks mornings. One night, she woke up hollaring. When I gave up and checked on her, she had pinned her legs up under her chin, the elastic preventing her from freeing them.
"Disposable" diapers were not readily available in 1977 and were highly perfumed Pampers so she wore cloth diapers with a waterproof coated nylon cloth pinned to the outside. I split and hauled wood and water, then cranked up the woodstove to heat the water to wash her diapers. Good old days? I don't think so.
My children have defined my priorities and values, taught me patience, forced me to introspection and explained life's purpose. I've had many laughs at their expense and they've had some at mine. And, it's not over yet. Remember kids, if you have comments, you need to put them in writing in this blog.
Aren't they cute?
1 comment:
Dear Mom,
It's nice to finally get some press on your blog. Although I could do without the diaper details, and the reemergence of memories that I've been effectively repressing for the last twenty years - I don't want to have to cut a check to Ron and fly back to Chicago.
我想妳，妳兒子
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