Category Archives: Commercial Fishing Kids
For Valentine’s Day, the Norovirus. How Sweet.
If you suspect someone has the norovirus, run as far and as fast away from that person as you can! Not to be confused with your basic, everyday flu, the norovirus is an instant, violent, ravaging, wicked virus that will take you down before you even realize what is happening.
Right on Valentine’s Day, I suddenly became so sick with this yuck that I lost eight pounds in twelve hours. I had to miss Eva’s kindergarten Valentine’s party, missed Vincent’s preschool Valentine’s festivities, and was only able to give the dozen roses George bought for me barely a glance before they wilted and died.
With my body still weakened by nine months of pregnancy and childbirth less than three weeks before, I guess I was not strong enough to give this hostile virus much of a fight, and it ransacked me. I tell you—I would not wish it upon my worst enemy. After the initial onslought, you still aren’t done. You go on to spend the next few days in bed, unable to stand, while your stomach cramps up and burns like fire.
Wow. Except for last month in the birth center, when the IV fell out of my arm (taking all pain medication with it) and then a fumbling anesthesiologist could not figure out how to insert an epidural just as Valerie shocked us all by suddenly appearing out of nowhere, the virus is the worst pain I have ever experienced. Ever.
The upside is that G was able to hand the boat off to Bryan to take out and run through the Dungeness crab gear for a couple of days (thank you, Bryan!!), and then a storm blew in on the coast so G got to come back home and help deal with the aftermath. I guess I can also be grateful that as a result of all this sickness, I’ve been able to start phasing out my maternity clothes more quickly.
The most amazing thing is that, while Eva and Vincent did get mild cases of the virus, Valerie and George emerged unscathed. I was so worried about Valerie; I don’t know how a three-week old infant could have withstood this. Praise God.
So, that was my Valentine’s Day. Never a dull moment around here! I hope that at least you all enjoyed a pleasant and healthy Valentine’s Day! :) There’s always next year.
Sweet Valerie, dressed in yellow and scrubbed in sunshine. Happy one-month birthday!
Hello, Extreme Exhaustion. I’d Forgotten All About You.
The baby is in her bassinet for a few minutes and the older children have been taken out to dinner by our friends, so I’m taking this moment to let you know that no, I have not abandoned my blog. I’ve simply been taken over by unbelievable exhaustion. Valerie is three weeks old now and I am STILL dashing to my bed or to the couch every possible second that I can.
When I was a younger gal working as a deckhand on my dad’s seine crew, I thought I was deprived of sleep when we’d go to bed at 11 p.m. after reaching the fishing grounds and then wake up at 3 a.m. to get ready and set the net. And then, once Eva was born, I thought I was sleep deprived when I was up every two hours with a fussy newborn. But wow—nothing compares to this!
Being awake all night with a newborn and then getting up to meet the needs of two young children is definitely not easy. Thank goodness for my parents, who are still coming by to take Eva and Vincent to kindergarten and preschool each day. I don’t know what I’d do if I had to have everyone up, ready, and out the door in the freezing cold at 8 a.m. each day after being up all night. I have worked up to doing one afternoon pick-up each day, which makes me feel pretty good.
I’m eager to rejoin the real world again but wow, this no-energy thing is killing me. I also don’t want to consume too much caffeine or other energy-inducing methods since I’m nursing and don’t want to inadvertantly keep Valerie awake any more than she already is.
Valerie is now three weeks old, and George was recently able to make it home for one 24-hour period to visit with the kids and me. I was grateful that he found it worth arriving home at midnight and leaving the next day just to see us, and it was good to see him while he was here.
While not a huge disappointment, the 2012 Washington Dungeness crab season has been nothing compared to last year, which is not entirely unexpected. You can’t expect to have a stellar season every year! Fortunately, George will turn the boat around and head up to Alaska to catch the blackcod and halibut quota as soon as he ends the crab season. Unfortunately, he’ll be heading up to Alaska sooner than we expected. Darn!
If you are one of the people who has written to me via my blog with questions and comments that I have not been able to get to yet, please know that I have received your inquiries and comments and I look forward to replying as soon as I can! Thank you for taking the time to write, and know that your feedback and questions are valuable to me. As soon as I get another moment when I’m thinking clearly, I will respond, maybe even in a blog post.
My goal for this week is to rally long enough to make popcorn for Eva’s Valentine’s Day party at school, prepare a snack for Vincent’s Valentine’s Day party at preschool, and make sure the kids have made enough Valentines for all of their friends. I wonder if George will remember to send roses to me this year? I never hold my breath but I do always hope.
Sweet Vincent hosted a tea party for Eva, Mommy, and Frog.
Eva and Vincent making Valentines.
Dad swaddling the baby on a quick visit home.
Eva's Valentines for the crew.
May the Dungeness Crab and Baby Party Begin Already!
The boat left with a load of Dungeness crab pots last weekend. Although it is always sad to hug G goodbye and wave the crew off, it’s also kind of a relief. Especially this year. There has been so much waiting, wondering, and anticipation as to when the gear work will end, when the boat will leave for Westport, when the season will start, and if the weather will cooperate.
And of course, this year we have the added anticipation of a baby due on the exact day George and the fellas will dump five-hundred crab pots to the bottom of the ocean, hoping the season will be profitable and safe for the five families—including at least a dozen children combined—who are relying on it.
No pressure!
Ah, what can you do? That’s life, moving forward the way life tends to do.
Here are a few pictures of this year’s Dungeness Crab Season 2012 Departure Day:
What an awesome, sweet, and tough crew we have in Bryan, Johnny, Brett, Oscar, and George.
Precious and resilient commercial fishing kids watching Dad pull away from the dock.
Johnny on top of the pots.
George will have a few days at home in between getting the boat to Westport and when the season officially begins, so here’s still hoping the baby decides to arrive during the window in which he is home.
I’m ready.
The kids’ bedroom switch and redesign is complete; Vincent has cool new bunk beds, Eva has her rainbow/butterfly/flower room. Holidays are over, children are back in school, preschool, and activities. House is clean, Christmas presents are put away, writing invoices have been sent off.
I’m tired of waiting; I’m looking ahead already to springtime, capris, sandals, renewed energy, evenings of sunshine and bayside cocktails, and a body I can actually move with ease and feel comfortable within.
Time to get this party started! :)
I love this picture of Vincent; he looks like he just climbed off a Dutch Harbor fishing vessel.
Goodbye, 2011. Great to Finally Meet You, 2012.
I just hung up my new 2012 kitchen wall calendar and deposited the 2011 edition into the recycling bin. I have to say—I am not sorry to see 2011 go.
It’s not that it has been a bad year; for the most part, it moved along just fine. When I look back, I’m incredibly grateful for the health of my kids and family and a good year of fishing and safety for George and the crew. We had a couple of fun trips; Las Vegas in March and Kauai in April, and plans to start making vacations a more regular part of our routine after not taking any for years.
But then I remember the way our beloved pitbull, Toby, died suddenly last April (the day before we left on our first family vacation in five years) after successfully and healthily beating a cancer diagnosis for three years. George left for Alaska and the halibut/blackcod longlining season soon after, and then shortly after that, I discovered we were unexpectedly expecting again.
Pregnancy sickness lasted throughout the summer, fall, and now into winter, making the challenge of being a seasonally single commercial fishing mom much more difficult than it really needs to be.
I have to say that after dealing with a variety of doctors, various medical offices and front desk staff, nurses, opinions, test results, and appointments for the past nine months, I would be happy to never, ever have to step foot in an office or deal with anyone in the medical profession ever again. I plan to write a much longer essay on the topic later, after I’ve had some distance and can gain perspective on this experience, but for now, all I can think is that I want this to be over.
The good news is that in eighteen days (if not sooner), it will be. Assuming all goes well with delivery and the first few months with baby at home, I will so grateful to have my life, my body, and my peace of mind back.
On the other hand, I now have a better appreciation and empathy for patients who struggle with chronic illness, who are told they have medical issues, troubles that can’t be diagnosed or treated effectively, who are not listened to or treated well by the medical profession, and who must attend appointment after appointment and try to stay pleasant all the while.
I’ve written before that after struggling with the physical, mental, and emotional effects of infertility before we were blessed with our Eva and Vincent, I never dreamed I would have a third baby years later. I also never imagined that after such a wonderful experience with the one doctor who saw me through those first two amazing pregnancies, this final surprise would be so different.
I’m going to spend these last two weeks trying to stay calm, looking forward to delivery, and then getting on with caring for a newborn and my two other children and letting the experience of the past nine months fade away in time.
Moving forward and beyond is something I love to do, and I’m excited and eager to make 2012 a great year.
So, we’ll have this baby girl in January, and then in the spring I will be launching my first e-book right here on this blog and via Kindle and other e-reader formats. Details on the e-book will come in the following months, but I am extremely excited about this new project. The book is currently in design and editing stages and I know it will be something I’m proud of and that many of my readers will find useful.
Speaking of blog readers; thank you to all for making 2011 a record year on Highliners and Homecomings. It’s been fun reviewing blog statistics, reading your comments, keeping an eye on subscriptions, seeing which posts get the most “hits” and which pictures get clicked on the most, reviewing where traffic is coming from and watching numbers rise.
As we head into the fifth year, I want to sincerely thank you so much for the support and the time you take to come over and see or read what’s new.
The best to you as we start this new year—health and happiness to all.
Someone posted this on Facebook. It's not the most eloquent wording, but I think it's a sentiment worth keeping in mind.
Another Great Time at Pacific Marine Expo 2011!
Attending Pacific Marine Expo (also known as Fish Expo) each year is as much a fall tradition in our family as Thanksgiving dinner or choosing a Christmas tree. It is the perfect way for us to kick off the holiday and Dungeness crab seasons, and we always leave the event looking forward to and pumped about all that lies ahead.
This year’s PME brimmed with heightened energy and cheer. There were more vendors than ever, the freebies at each booth were awesome, and almost the entire crew from National Fisherman magazine came out to publish the Show Daily after the show publication was put on hiatus for a couple of years.
I was excited to see the Show Daily back in effect because I have great memories of a decade ago when I ran around the Convention Center with my recorder and notebook, attending PME workshops and listening to speakers, taking notes, then running upstairs to sit down and type it all up into short news bits for the Daily.
I can’t believe what little-to-no-turnover occurs with the editing, publishing, and art gang at National Fisherman. Seriously. Even after ten years, I still see Jerry, Linc, Jen, Michael, and Michael at Fish Expo. These are the original characters that were in place when Jerry Fraser first gave me my fiFrst professional writing gig as a correspondent for the magazine long ago!
So, I feel pretty okay when I see Jerry in the NF booth at PME and make my annual pitch for work I’d like to do or see in the magazine.
“Hey, how’s it going?!” I say. “Great! It’s good! Yep, here’s Eva and Vincent. George is around here somewhere. Yes, Dad’s here, too! I know, crazy, another one on the way, huh? Say, about what we talked about last year, here’s what I was thinking…”
I try Linc next.
“Hey, Linc! Longtime no see! Remember when we ordered those Cosmopolitans years ago? Mmm, those were good. Hey, what do you think about this idea I’ve been working on….?”
I see Jes, who actually took over as senior editor of NF last year.
“Jes! Hi! Great to see you. Magazine looks good! Yep, pregnant! Due in only eight more weeks! Can’t wait! Hey, I wanted to get in touch with you about this thing I’ve been tossing around….”
Then I have a laugh.
“No? Still not interested? That’s okay. I’ll be back again next year!”
We spent all day at PME and saw fishermen we knew, a neighbor or two, a relative, some of George’s longtime/sometime business partners (along with the spec sheet for the new $10 million Bering Sea longliner they’re having built).
We also ran into one of our favorites, Fred Wahl, along with his lovely wife. Of course, Fred Wahl and National Fisherman magazine is how George and I first met. You can read more about that here.
“There they are!” Fred called in our direction when we spotted each other across the aisle. “No strollers this year, eh?” he asked.
That’s when I pointed to my seven-months pregnant tummy.
“Ah!” he said.
The children also had a great time and were incredibly well-behaved. Their first stop was the Xtra Tuff booth, where Eva and Vincent received their free pair of Xtra Tuff boots. They also got t-shirts and red cups at the booth this year, and I came away with two luggage tags made out of my business cards.
George scored a free hooded sweatshirt and ball cap from the Redden Marine Supply booth, I went around collecting tons of pens, and the children collected candy, flashlights, and keychains. George also scooped up lots of tablets with lined paper (including one with his favorite…graph paper!).
The guys at the Toyota Industries booth were especially kind; they let Eva and Vincent sit inside the enclosed forklifts pushing buttons, honking horns, and pulling levers for the better part of an hour. Vincent also had a good time helping the ice-maker demonstration folks pick up renegade ice from the floor.
We spotted a fancy Porsche in the parking garage on our way into the show and again on our way out. “Must be a Deadliest Catch guy,” we said to each other. When I spotted a fellow wearing a Time Bandit jacket during the show, I did wonder for a moment if that Porsche belonged to him!
A great day for all, to be sure. Can’t wait for next year. Even if we’ll be hauling the stroller back out. :)
Operation Christmas Child–A Gift For Everyone.
It comes as no surprise to anyone who knows me, or who has ever read this blog, that I am in love with and so proud of my children. That’s not to say we are always well-behaved or that we don’t test boundaries, ignore rules, or make unwise choices. Of course we do! But I am always proud of their sweetness, their caring hearts, and their desire to do nice things and to love people.
This year at a church event, we learned about Operation Christmas Child, a program in which you obtain an empty shoe box and fill it with gifts to send to a boy or girl somewhere around the world for Christmas. Boxes were provided at the event, so we grabbed two of them. Vincent was responsible for choosing gifts for a boy between the ages of two and four, and Eva became responsible for selecting gifts for a girl between the ages of five and nine.
We went shopping this weekend and each of my children chose gifts they thought a boy and girl would love. They selected hair barrettes, hot wheels, chapstick, toothpaste, toothbrushes, stuffed animals, blankets, colorful socks, and rubber lizards for their boxes. At home, we packed the boxes, printed out labels, and waited for this morning when we took them to church and the kids carried them in to place on a table growing with similar boxes.
I was nearly brought to tears several times this weekend as I watched how excited Eva and Vincent were to choose things for someone across the world, close to their ages, who did not have “as much” in the way of toys and the like as they did. Surprisingly, my children never asked for anything for themselves as we chose gifts for their boxes, and they couldn’t wait to proudly, and with huge smiles, carry their boxes into church.
I tallied up the cost and discovered that each box held $35 worth of product. Of course, that amount could have varied in either direction, depending on where one chose to shop. Now, I’m no math whiz (I was an English major!) but a total of $70 seemed pretty darn reasonable, and worth every penny. When I fill up my vehicle with gas, it costs $70. I took the kids to lunch after we did our box shopping, and that cost $20. We went to the mall, where I dropped way too much money on face and hair products.
Keeping the gift box tally in mind compared to what we spend in an average day was a real eye opener for me.
We aren’t strangers to local and global giving around here, but most of our giving is done anonymously or to places we don’t see the impact first hand or know exactly where the money is going. We sponsor a low-income family in town, contribute to young single mothers, volunteer with a no-kill animal shelter, and George gives to Boy Scouts and the Smile Train. But these are things—except for the animal shelter—for which we simply write checks and never actually see impact.
To see my kids smiling and thoughtfully choosing gifts for other children, to print out labels and watch Eva tape them to the boxes, to look forward to tracking the packages to see where they end up, imagining what joy $35 will bring to each child…incredible.
If you have $15 or $30 lying around, consider grabbing a shoe box and filling it up to send across the world through Operation Christmas Child. Drop off for the boxes runs until November 21!
Eva waiting to pack her box that will be sent to a little girl between the ages of five and nine years old somewhere across the world.
Vincent giving two thumbs up for the box he created that will be delivered to a boy aged 2-4 years in a foreign country.
On the way in to church, a drop-off location for the kids' Operation Christmas Child boxes.
Eva and Vincent were all smiles as they added their boxes to the growing pile on the table. We tracked the gift tags so we'll know to which country their boxes will arrive.
Love Kingergarten, Hate the Kindergarten Rat Race.
This has been the most peaceful day I’ve had since school started…and oddly, it’s been an awesome day in part because there was no school today. I went to bed last night looking so forward to this morning because I knew we wouldn’t have to rush, rush, rush everyone to “get dressed” and “eat breakfast” and “gather backpacks” and “remember lunches” and hustle everyone out the door, down the stairs, and into the car.
Just like the good ole days, the kids and I got up early but we took the morning slow and easy. No rushing, no panic, no last-minute remembering, no racing. We went to Jazzercise all together, saw our friends, went out for breakfast, and then came home. Later this afternoon we made popcorn, put in a movie, and listened to hail pound against the windows and watched the tree limbs going nuts outside during a perfect fall storm.
I tell you, I just can’t stand all-day, every day kindergarten. I really wish that it was a full day but just three days a week, leaving a mother two week days to spend with her little ones exactly as she (and they) wish. I knew that adjusting to a daily 9-5 school grind was going to be a challenge for this commercial fishing mom and family, and it is.
Getting up early is not a problem, but I find hustling and strict schedules really annoying. Be at school by 8:20 each and every morning of the week…or else. Be at the bus stop by this time in the afternoon…or else. Yesterday, I saw that we were going to be late to school and instead of rushing and ordering my kids around, I chose instead to call Eva’s school.
“Eva will be at school at 9 this morning,” I announced. I know that being late is not a good precedent to set for your children, but I weighed the odds and decided to make the call. Hey, these are my kids, not the school’s. They are still little, I’m seven months pregnant, and darn it, I just did not feel like hurrying everyone.
I cannot wait for the holiday season to get into full swing. I am looking forward to a few days off at Thanksgiving and a couple weeks at Christmas with the children so we can have more time to play and relax and not make every day about being on time, dropping off, picking up, eating dinner, and going to bed. They are only four and five years old! And soon, we will have an infant in tow. How did we become part of the workday grind along with working adults?
The school district and most parents absolutely love all-day, every day kindergarten and I’m well aware that my view on the matter is in the minority. I understand the reasoning for the school district implementing all-day, every day kindergarten and I’ve listened to and read all of the arguments on both sides. But this is my blog and I can spout my opinion here…so here it is. I am one mom who does not like it. At all.
I’m glad that today, for one day during the week, we got a break from the elementary school rat race and I had both of my children home to spend time with and enjoy.
Speaking of the holiday season (and moving on from the topic of school—it is Friday, after all!)…it’s not only the holiday season, but it’s pre-Dungeness crab season, too! G and the crew are on the boat working hard each day getting it all ready to go. George has been working on the boat by himself for the last two months, so I love it when the crew rolls into town with their help.
Here are a few pictures of the last couple weeks…
First things first, get the boat back in the water.
Quick time out to celebrate Halloween and go trick or treating…
Back on the boat to keep getting ready for the crab season…
Foster a precious pitbull named Ryder….
Dream of next spring’s Florida or Hawaiian beach vacation, as Eva and her iPhone sketches seem to be doing as well.
I’m Pretty Sure the Crew Doesn’t Cry Over Broccoli.
I don’t think anyone is more excited than me for the iPhone 4S to make its début on Friday. I’ve been eligible for an upgrade for at least two years, but I’ve put it off because I kept waiting for iPhone 5 to come out. Well, the heck with more waiting; the 4S is going to be amazing and I’m clearing my schedule for Friday so I can go get the phone and then play with it all day and night.
George has continued work on the boat every day to get a jump on it before the Dungeness crab crew shows up. In fact, he just warned me today that he’s working this weekend as well. I’ve tried to get him to stick around the house and hang out with me a bit now and again when it’s nice and quiet and the kids are at school, but no dice. The boat’s still hauled out, paint has arrived, the welder is coming….
I have already consulted with my parents, though, and they are going to have the kids over one weekend before crab season starts and the baby arrives. In fact, my mom put it on my kitchen calendar herself. I’ll be sure and give G plenty of advance warning. If he still can’t make it, I’ll just pack my little bag and head to the nearest fancy hotel for a spa day and a night of fine dining and rest. :)
It occurred to me the other day that having your firstborn in kindergarten is a lot like when your firstborn was a newborn. Like a brand new mom in awe over her baby, I’m so proud of everything Eva is doing. Look, Eva is the line leader for the field trip! Awe; look how cute she is in her jeans and cowgirl boots! Look how she gets off the bus! Oh, that’s cute! She’s checking out library books! She’s leaving little notes with practice writing all over the house! What a sweet, smart girl!
Remember how the hospital photographer comes around before you leave with your newborn and you study the portrait packages, agonizing over which one to choose? That’s how it went yesterday with Eva’s first official school pictures. As I did when she was born, I went a bit overboard on the package and the extras. If you are on my Christmas card list, be prepared to receive a wallet-sized picture of Eva. Or a mini-wallet-sized picture of Eva. In fact, I have so many pictures of Eva coming I could send one to all my Facebook friends.
Or…I can provide you with a refrigerator magnet of Eva. How about a bookmark of Eva? Door hanger? Sticker? Better yet, if you receive Christmas gifts from me, you may well have an Eva gift tag attached to your present this year.
Not to be left out, of course, is my sweet buddy, Vincent. I’m constantly amazed at the growth he’s shown in his first month of preschool. For the first time, he’s showing interest in art and receiving compliments on his work. He’s recognizing his name and attempting to write it. He’s memorizing and singing all the songs he learns. And just yesterday, while bike riding with Grandpa, he mastered pedaling and balance without training wheels or assists.
He even accompanied Eva’s kindergarten class on their field trip to the fire station and I was so proud of the way he listened so well to the firemen, raised his hand to ask questions, and walked with the group in an orderly fashion.
Vincent is determined to work on the boat and be “as big and strong as Daddy” when he grows up. We used this to our advantage at the dinner table this week when Vincent refused to eat a nice dinner (prepared by G, of course).
“I don’t like potatoes,” he announced. “I don’t eat steak. Don’t want broccoli. I want bread.”
“Wow,” I said. “You know that you won’t grow up to be big and strong enough to work on the boat with Bryan and Brett if you don’t eat your healthy food, right?
“Do you think Bryan sits at the galley table and says ‘I don’t like potatoes!’ And I’m pretty sure Brett doesn’t sit next to him and cry over broccoli. If you want to be strong like they are, you’d better have another bite of steak.”
George chimed in with a couple of words about sending people who complain about dinner into the hatch to finish it up, but that only made us laugh. Eventually, Vincent did eat his entire dinner.
Will be back tomorrow with a report on the new iPhone 4S! Can’t wait!
Fishing Mommy Down (But Not Out!)
It’s a day on the couch for me. Here’s a bit of advice; if you have a cough that lingers for a week and is not suppressed or helped in any way by cough medicine or Musinex, you might want to go to the doctor. Especially if you are in the middle of a pregnancy.
Don’t give your strange cough seven days, then ten, and then fourteen, thinking it’s got to get better at some point! By the time you enter your third week of gagging, throwing up, and coughing, you might find out what you really had to begin with was viral bronchitis. And when viral bronchitis doesn’t get treated, it becomes bacterial bronchitis. And when that goes untreated, it becomes walking pneumonia….which is what I have now and why I’m on the couch with doctor’s (and husband’s) orders to REST!
I “should have” gone in to the doctor a long time ago, but I’m not an alarmist and I figured it was a simple back-to-school cough that would go away soon. It will go away soon now that I’m on antibiotics and prescription cough syrup.
When you’re a mom of active children, though, what can you do? You keep going. We had school and preschool to get to, open houses, ballet, gymnastics, Jazzercise, and church. We aren’t super busy but we do enjoy these activities and I certainly can’t sit around when we have things to do.
I’m accustomed to keeping going without a lot of help no matter how I’m feeling because that’s what a fishing mom does. Nobody is going to come over to get Eva dressed for ballet, or convince Vincent to eat his breakfast, and there’s no way I’m missing the open house and potluck at school.
G is a huge help when he’s here, but he’s back to work at the harbor and the boat. He had the boat hauled out for bottom painting and is also working on an overhaul of the refrigeration in preparation for the Dungeness crab season.
I did suddenly start to feel bad for the new baby, though, like I wasn’t taking good care of her. My tummy started to pull and hurt when I coughed, and I worried that if it was bacterial, that would definitely not good for a baby. To help ease my guilt I finally went and bought a pink baby book for her and a frame for one of her ultrasound pictures. Then, when G told me to call the doctor, I agreed it was probably time!
Onward and upward. Let the antibiotics and cough medicine do the trick and Mommy will be up and running again in no time.
"Dad, I think the leak is right here. If we could just tighten up this socket a bit..."
"Aw, let's just forget it and go have a popsicle instead."
Adding the first picture of the third child to the family collection.
Slow Down, World. You’re Moving Too Fast For Mommy.
I have not slept well at all for the last month and I’ve been more jittery than usual during the day. (No, it isn’t from alcohol withdrawal due to my being pregnant! LOL.) It’s because I don’t deal very well with change and everything is changing at a pace I’m not comfortable with.
First, the end of summer vacation. It hasn’t been much of a vacation as our weather did not cooperate this year, but still. In about two weeks, my first-born baby is headed to kindergarten and my second-born baby will be in preschool each day. This means that for the first time since I actually held a “real” job (eleven years ago), I will be getting up at 6 a.m. each day to get us all ready for the long day ahead. Five days a week, every week, for the next nine months.
It’s not that I can’t get up early; it’s more that I like the freedom of taking our mornings nice and easy, choosing our pace and deciding how to spend the day. We’ve always had some obligation (Jazzercise, Eva’s preschool) but nothing we were absolutely compelled to do or for which we required permission to miss.
A few months ago, when our school district went to all-day, every day kindergarten, we balked. We started looking into private kindergartens and did a lot of research. In the end, we opted for public school as Eva was set to attend a very small, reputable, nearby, historic 1920s elementary kindergarten in our neighborhood. In addition, her best friend was attending the same school which thrilled Eva. We toured the school, met the kindergarten teachers, saw the cafeteria, met the librarian, and turned in all her paperwork.
Last week, I got a call notifying me that there had been a mistake and in fact, after all that, Eva was not actually attending that school!
As it turns out, our house is literally on the border between two schools and we are supposed to go to the other one. (If we lived in our neighbor’s house, we’d be at the first school.)
I started tossing and turning all night, wondering whether to transfer Eva to the school we thought we were going to or simply have her attend the school she’s supposed to. I made calls to each school and the district and decided it would not be worth the hassle to have her transfer. I’d have to renew the transfer every year in March and wait months to see if it was approved, so we’d never know until August each year where she was going to school. There would also be no guarantee she’d stay at the school throughout her elementary years or that Vincent would go with her to the same school next year or in years to come.
Way too much of a pain.
So, Eva’s going to the school she’s supposed to attend. What I like about the “new” school is that it is even smaller than the original one! It’s a tiny, even more historic (1904) old schoolhouse atop a hill just four streets over from the first school. Her kindergarten teacher is a gal I even know who is just a few years older than me. She was actually a teaching assistant in one of my college classes while she was getting her Master’s and I was getting my Bachelor’s.
In addition, her husband is a commercial fisherman and they have three daughters, making them a fishing family like us. I was even on the same salmon seine crew with her husband years ago on my dad’s boat up in Southeast Alaska!
I feel comfortable knowing Eva will be in the hands of someone I know personally and who understands our lifestyle and Daddy’s comings and goings. Between G’s rigorous fishing schedule and the impending arrival of a new baby in January, Eva has a big year ahead and I like that I won’t have to keep explaining to someone exactly the way we operate.
So, I’m filling out Eva’s kindergarten paperwork and assessment information, Vincent’s preschool paperwork, getting the kids to the doctor for appointments and vaccinations, and trying not to feel anxious about Wednesday September 7, when we find out if this new baby is a girl or a boy.
Oh, and did I mention I’m also trying to get used to the idea of selling my fun little Infiniti G 35x? That’s right. Eva, Vincent and I currently cruise all over town in my sporty car, but it will be too tight with three kids/carseats and a momma.
Bye bye, little car.
George and I have researched several seven-passenger SUVs, crossovers, and mini vans for the kids and me. We’ve looked at, test driven, and considered the Toyota Sequoia, Highlander, and Sienna, the Honda Odyssey and Pilot, the Acura MDX, the three-row Volvo, and the Ford Flex.
The good news right now is we are escaping town and my Mom’s Plan-It desk calendar for a week before the madness begins. We’re going to bunker in at the coast where we don’t have Internet or cell coverage. Hello to my parent’s beach house, my books, bacon and sourdough toast for breakfast, and wearing jammies all day. Can’t wait! :)
Here are a few pictures from the last month or two; as usual, the picture quality isn’t very good because my iPhone is a couple years old. The iPhone 5 is supposedly coming out in October so I’m still holding out for that version, as it comes with an 8 mega pixel camera and flash.
Eva with the map of Puget Sound she created at art camp.
Eva's map featured the Strait of Georgia, which we told her helped Daddy find his way home from Alaska! :)
My little pirates at our friend Danielle's pirate birthday party in July.
The scariest face painting I've seen in a while, courtesy of the farmer's market at the Village Green.
Bike helmets and jammies on a summer morning. What could be more fun?
Vincent's little John Deere 4th birthday party in July.
