Sunday, July 24, 2011

MY Life... MY family

MY View... where I'll be sharing a lot about ME, which also includes my family. You may see references to them and stories about them, so it helps to know a little bit about who they are... plus it tells you a lot about who I am!

Okay, we'll start with... BF, which can refer to either my Best Friend or my Boy Friend. BF is the man I have spent the last 25 years of my life with and both references are appropriate, considering we've never married. It's not for lack of thinking about it a few times and maybe even talking about it in some detail and CERTAINLY not for lack of our oldest daughters efforts; however, I believe the basic reasons why it never happened could be that we knew we were both committed to each other and we could have cared less about the 'ritual' part of it. Regardless, we have been through countless things together; some life changing, some small and I know that without BF... I wouldn't have made it through most of them.

BF is a very 'laid back' personality and 'goes with the flow' for the most part. His personality is an ideal contrast to mine, although there have been many times we haven't see it that way. He is conscientious with finances and competitive in any sport or game that involves 'winning'. He 'misplaces' almost everything he touches and uses certain words incorrectly -to the ongoing amusement of our 2nd daughter. He will cook and do the dishes if they need to be done and on rare occasion, he has lost his temper. According to daughter #2, you know when he has reached his blowing point by the vein in his forehead popping out. He is fearless when it comes to ANYTHING involving physical activity. He will stand at the very edge of the highest point of a cliff at the Grand Canyon, 4 wheel his Jeep over the steepest point of the highest mountain and dive into the deepest waters. I believe his only fear is that of change, of any kind, in normal everyday life.

Our love has been, is and will be one that is incomparable. It has also been ever-changing through the years and though most of our moments have been that of great happiness, we also had times of despair and contempt... but we dealt with each moment as it happened. We didn't come into this relationship lightly, like so many others seem to do. Somedays we struggled and fought to stay together and other days it was effortless... those days surpassed any of the difficult days. We have pushed each others buttons more than a thousand times and I'm quite certain that a few of those times they were pushed on purpose. My OCD and his phlegmatic personality does not meld well in most circumstances pertaining to picking up after himself (shoes do NOT go under the bakers rack in the dining room), replacing something he uses (the guitar polish does NOT go in the end table drawer in the living room), finding the 'right' place for something (tools go in the $1500 toolbox in the shed, NOT in the kitchen drawer nor the bathroom nor the linen closet) or just using the right thing for the job (one of the 12 screwdrivers work better than my kitchen knife). I've learned to live with some of this over the years and he has CERTAINLY learned to live with me!

We have made a great parenting team and we have 3 wonderful children to prove this, so yes... I feel I can brag about that. We have (almost) always agreed and stood behind each other in any decision regarding our kids. We alternated nights of worry if one of them was out too late and made it to almost every game, performance, activity and school function possible. We took them on vacations, celebrated holidays and sometimes gave in when they were being punished yet had an event to go to. We didn't always make the best choices for them, but always taught them to stand up for themselves, follow their dreams, don't steal and don't lie. I would have to say... we did a great job! They are the most awesome kids anyone could EVER ask for and the most wonderful adults anyone could ever meet!! To top it off... 2 of them are excellent parents themselves now and I have no doubt the other one will be as well.

Which brings me to.... my children! We have 2 daughters (16 months apart) and a son (6 years after that). They are the most beautiful people you will ever meet... inside and out. I have to add here that our family grew in 2003 when our German daughter skipped (literally - she never walked... only skipped, ran or scampered) into our lives and then again in 2009 when our Swedish son sauntered (yes, sauntered) into our home and hearts. In 2010 it grew a little more with the addition of our Italian and Danish sons... and I am so thankful for each and every one of them!

Here is a synopsis on each one (because I could go on and on about them)

Eldest Daughter, (aka Sky) is full of life, happy, funny, determined, protective, driven, energetic and simple. She put herself through school to become a teacher... all while going through a marriage, divorce, new relationship, 3 difficult pregnancies, 3 wonderful and fearless boys and countless other obstacles. Sky likes to re-tell stories of her childhood and 9 times out of 10 gets the details wrong... to the amusement of her family. She does not see the hilarity we do, but being the good sport she is... she will usually get mad and walk away... leaving us all rolling on the floor in laughter. At 26, she recently learned to walk without tripping and we couldn't be more pleased. She is much like her mother in that she doesn't take teasing very well... therefore, she is teased constantly! She has a bigger heart than anyone I know and rarely gets angry.

Younger Daughter, (aka Kel) is also full of life (if she has had enough sleep and there is coffee), happy, funny, determined, protective, individualistic, impulsive and complex. She has an amazing artistic talent, but doesn't use it as much as she should. She works her butt off to provide for herself and her daughter and would drop anything to help a friend. Kel likes to live on the edge with most things, especially traffic tickets. We believe she may be independently wealthy, as she prefers to pay them once they have gone from $120 to $1500. She could also be the poster child for driving with a cell phone... she doesn't touch it while driving and will lecture anyone who does. She knows fashion better than any high paid designer and yet is quite comfortable (and cute) in her faded, bleached 'muumuu'.

Son, (aka Colt) is full of life (always able to find something to do), happy, funny, determined, protective, inquisitive, strong and precarious. He hasn't made up his mind what he wants to do with life yet, because he has his mothers attention span... but continues to search. He is very loyal to what he commits to and believes in and he is very thoughtful with everyone he knows. He is a strong person and through his courage... has conquered many fears. Colt can go from driving me absolutely insane to melting my heart in a matter of seconds. He, like his father, has no fear when it comes to any dangerous sport, stunt or activity.

I admire everyone of my children and the traits that make them who they are... I hope someday I can grow up to be just like them! They have a lot in common and most people can tell they are related, but they are unique of one another in so many ways which makes them the most wonderful individuals I know.

That's my condensed description of BF and the kids ~ MY world . MY life . MY everything!

til my next post... jlk

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