Sometimes, as parents, we worry that we aren't doing or giving enough to our children. In reality, what our children really want is not stuff but us - even though they don't always know it. In light of yesterday being Mother's day, I wanted to share with everyone a memory that is probably only shared by Adam and me.
When we first moved to Nebraska, we lived in a beat up, drafty old trailer. I am sure Mom and Dad hated it. I loved it. Sure, it smelled a little funny at times (dead mice in the vents) and the pipes had a tendency to freeze in the winter but I have some great memories there. One of them actually took place multiple times during the winter months we spent in that old trailer. Adam and I slept in a room at the end of the house. Sometimes, when it would get really cold, the furnace just couldn't keep the cold out. It would get so cold in there that we could see our breath. Mom wouldn't let us sleep in there when it got that cold. We would shut the door and have Narnia parties. We would first pile into the kitchen and make home-made donuts and hot chocolate. Mom would then get us comfortable in the living room and as we ate our donuts and drank our hot chocolate, she would read the Chronicles of Narnia to us. Those were truly wonderful times for me. I didn't realize how poor we were, nor would I have cared. I am sure those times were very difficult for Mom and Dad but to their tribute (especially Mom's) those were the easiest and some of the happiest times of my life. Thanks, Mom.
3 comments:
What a neat memory. Thanks for sharing. I don't have as many memories of the trailer, but I do have a few. I actually learned to tie my shoes sitting on the kitchen floor there.
As much as I hated that trailer, there are some good memories for me, too. Do you remember when we played monster? I couldn't get off my bed and as long as you could keep away from my reach, you were all safe but if I could catch you, it was a lot of tickling. We played that nearly every night. Because we didn't have a TV or computer, we spent a lot of time together. We used to rub our feet on the carpet and see who could shock someone else harder than they could shock us. And we played hide-n-seek. How can you play that in a small little trailer? But we played it often. You could never find me when I hid behind coats in the closet by the front door. We had a lot of fun together, didn't we? I'm glad you have a few good memories.
I'm sure Chelsey and Adrianne were completely traumatized by the mice. (I was getting that way by the time we moved out.) Your silly yellow cat would play with the mice, maime them and then leave them to crawl down into the heater vents to die. The dang cat would never eat the mice so we were actually worse off with him than without him as far as helping with the mice situation.
Thanks for the sentiments. I'm always glad when we have been able to leave a few good memories with our kids.
Mom
Don't forget the floor waxings with our stockinged feet. The challenge was to slide as close to the edge of the kitchen without falling off the edge into your bedroom.
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