Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Introductions

my people

While I've no doubt that some readers will find their way to this space from one of my former blogs, I still feel it might be useful to those who are new to make some introductions. In the past, I've used first names when writing, but I think it will serve my little family better to go by first initial instead. I'm not sure just how I'd like to handle privacy in this new space, but I feel that as my children grow, it becomes more and more important to limit images and other identifying information. Their lives are their own, and I want to respect that. There may come a time that we all agree that certain photos and videos are just too good not to share, but for now we'll keep it to a bit of a profile and the backs of their heads.


J, the tall one in the middle, is my husband of nearly eight years. We met at an Apple store in Kansas City where he was working at the time, and where I was bringing the children I nannied in regularly to play with the computers for free. J is a computer nerd and does something related to that for a living; if he wants to tell you more, I'll let you know later. To be honest, I don't always exactly understand what he does at work. I like to exasperate him by resisting software updates, and when I finally capitulate, then regale him with tales of how each change to the operating system is ruining my life. J is a very patient man. I am lucky to have him.

Z, on the left, is eight years old and one of the most inquisitive people I have ever met. She is creative and compassionate, and she thinks deeply about everything. She is a hard worker and a kind person,  just the sort of girl you want in your corner. She is teaching herself to sew and pretty much blowing my mind with her persistence. She made me a mother five years ago, and I still feel like the luckiest person on the planet just to know her, let alone to be able to call her my daughter.

E, on the right, is three years old and has a big personality. Whatever she does, she does it in a big way. She is fierce and loving, and really, really funny. Her current favorite things to do are to send messages on my phone and to eat while sitting on someone's lap. I was convinced that I would never mother a baby, but then E came along at age four and a half months, and I've had the pleasure of watching her grow from the tiniest of babes into the strong, rambunctious force of nature she is now. What a wonderful surprise.

And then there's me. I will tell you my whole first name, because it is common and boring, and because I don't mind if you know it. I am Mary, and I am a little weird, but not so weird that you can tell by looking. (At least I don't think you can.) (Correct me if I'm wrong, once you've seen a photo.) I'd be a full on hippie, what with the way I make my own deodorant and am finding new and exciting ways to use apple cider vinegar, but I love Boden clothing and Shake Shack cheese fries too much to be 100% into making sure the man isn't keeping me down. I love to travel and read and eat good food, and I really love my job, which is to take care of our family and create the kind of family life that we want to live.

Finally, there are the cats. I wasn't going to mention them, but each time I say there are four people in our family, two little voices correct me. We've got two cats, three if you count the one recently departed to kitty heaven (E counts her, for sure, so I probably should, too). We've also got a whole lot of slugs that come in through a gap in the back door to eat the cat food, that the kids keep naming as if they are pets. It has been requested that we get a bird or a hamster or maybe a small rabbit, but I don't wish to give any of those animals a very short life full of terror, so we will just stick with the predators and avoid naming and getting attached to anything that would just become prey.

That's us. Just four humans and two cats in a little house in East London. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. I hope you'll stick around.


2 comments:

  1. Blog post suggestion - how to get Boden on the cheap! Thanks to you, I am a Boden fan, though I don't actually own any. Yet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hmmm...I could do that. But I'll give you my #1 tip now: eBay. I make a mental note of the things I really like and then look for them on eBay the next season, when people have gotten tired of them or figured out they can no longer return them. I've gotten about 75% of the things I've really wanted to have by checking eBay regularly.

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