Just call me Auntie

There has been some exciting news in the Atkinson family recently. And I have been dying to share. A good secret can be awfully difficult to keep.

I'm sure now that you all know there was a top secret involved, you want in too.

Well, just head on over to my sister's blog (www.billsology.blogspot.com) to check out her announcement.

Let me just state for the record that though the Chinese Lunar Calendar predicts a boy, and that is what I am secretly longing for her to have, I am predicting lots of pink in her future.

Congratulations Bills Family!

Someone to watch over me

I knelt down this evening to offer the most sincere and humble prayer of thanks and gratitude I could muster. The type of prayer I think really only a mother can understand.

But I'm getting ahead of myself...

Today was a good day. The kind of day when you can't help but take a step back and notice. You know, the kind of day when you are awoken, an hour later than usual, by the laughter of a happy baby playing in his crib. The kind of day you DREAD because grocery shopping is on the agenda, but your mischievous boy manages to stay in his seat the entire time, never once asking for a treat, or screaming "POOP!" at complete strangers at the top of his lungs. The kind of day when everything at the grocery store you want to buy is on sale, and your one week budget stretches to purchase two weeks worth of food. Add to that the 3.5 hour nap my little guy took, and I was on top of the world!

Ironic how everything can change in an instant.

We had such an enjoyable day together, me and that little Miles of mine. And the weather was PERFECT outside. So we drove downtown to Bishop Park. It's a beautifully massive park right on the Detroit river. We go there often to run and play on the playground, chase the seagulls, and watch the fishermen on the pier. The place never disappoints, and today was no exception.

When Miles and I were completely tuckered and could not muster the strength to slide one more time, I scooped him up and loaded him for the short 5 minute drive home. And then I don't know what happened......

Maybe I was lost somewhere between exhaustion and motherhood bliss. Maybe I was distracted by my own incessant mental dialogue, or I was replaying my good fortunes of the day in mind to enjoy a second time. I just don't know.

But one thing I DO know: I never saw the stoplight. What I did see was a large Chevy Silverado. Close. Much too close. I tried to turn, and he tried to turn, but impact was unavoidable. In the blink of an eye, my perfect day was smashed to smithereens all over the intersection at Biddle and Cedar.

I was buckled, and I was okay. And I saw the man getting out of his truck. He was okay. And my sweet sweet screaming baby in the backseat, he would be just fine once the scare was over. The police were summoned, an ambulance arrived (no one needed it), witnesses gathered, and later a tow truck driving man (who heard the whole thing on his police scanner) towed my beloved RAV away.

I have never been one for public displays of emotion. "Public" meaning around anyone but myself. I have developed an uncanny ability to keep it together until I can find a quiet time, usually very late, to be alone. Then the walls come crumbling.

Which leads me to my tearful conversation I had with God tonight. I thanked him for watching over us and expressed my gratitude that neither myself nor the gentleman I hit were injured. I thanked him for the kind and forgiving heart of that same gentleman who, when I apologized over and over said," well, that's why they call it an accident." I expressed my utmost gratitude for the passers-by who rushed to my car and to my side, offering assistance to me, a complete stranger, and my baby boy. I thanked him for a hard working police force who arrived in only minutes. I was ESPECIALLY thankful for a wonderful husband who, I could tell was boiling mad under the surface, but put his arm around me and simply said "I'm glad both of you are okay." But I saved my most heart felt pleas for last.

"Thank you, Thank you Dear Lord, for watching over and protecting my precious baby. Thank you for keeping him safe. I don't know if I deserve it, but I will continue to do everything I can to show You I did. Amen."

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

After 3+ years of weighing his options, saving, and searching high and low, my dad finally did it! He went and bought himself one of these sweet rides.

I was a little hurt he bought this mean machine the day AFTER I left from my 3 week stay. (you know, as oppossed to the day BEFORE I got there.)

But, in the spirit of forgiveness, I have taken it upon myself to find the perfect name.

I already tried "My daughter moved to Michigan and the only thing that would mend my broken heart was to buy this kick ass boat."

But it won't fit on the hull. :)

So, I have come up with a few OTHER options that are more length appropriate. Check out the poll over on my side bar and let me know what YOU think!

(New suggestions are also always appreciated.)

Gone Again

If you hadn't noticed, I took a little break from blogging last month. And for good reason I think. We (meaning Miles and myself) took a 3 1/2 week vacation back to Utah. When I'm away on vacation, I just don't like to spend my time plucking away at the keys on my computer. Or worrying about editing and organizing photos.

No. When I'm on vacation, the only thing I worry about is entertaining me and the little guy.

And this last month, we have kept ourselves VERY entertained. We:

Attended my beautiful Sister-in-Law's wedding

Visited friends at my 10 year High School Reunion

Took in the Little Big Town and Josh Turner concert at the Uinta County Fair

Spent time in the surf and sand at the Atkinson Family Reunion in Bear Lake

And participated in a little event I nicknamed "Spring Break at the Zoo: 2nd Generation"

Nearly every spring break we had growing up, my mom loaded the van up with the Atkinson kids, drove nearly a WHOLE BLOCK to pick up my cousin Darcey, and off we went to spend the day at the Hogle Zoo. Now Darcey and I are all grown up with kids of our own. I live in Michigan and she lives in Oregon, but we happened to be visiting Utah at the exact same time. So Grandma and Grandpa Atkinson arranged for the whole clan to enjoy a day at the zoo.

We had a wonderful time and were grateful to our families for letting us stay. But I noticed a strange thing while I was away. I missed my little Wyandotte bungalow. And I missed husband immensely. (That goes without saying.) And after a couple of weeks, I found I was excited to make my flight back home.

Yes, Home. To Michigan.

How is it that I can feel more at home in a town I have only spent the last 6 weeks, than a place I lived the first 18 years of my life? Yes, most of my worldy posessions were waiting for me in Michigan. My sheets so soft they send me instantly to dream land and my old down pillow that now conforms perfectly to my head, were a full 3 days drive away. But I had left more than that behind.

The old saying: "Home is where your heart is," may be considered cliche, but it is true.

I had left my heart in Michigan, a long with my husband and everything else.

And now I am home, heart and family reunited. And I can't think of a better place to be.