It doesn't matter

I read this tonight on Story People, and it touched me.

I had a dream & I heard music & there were children standing around, but no one was dancing. I asked a little girl, why not? & she said they didn't know how, or maybe they used to but they forgot & so I started to hop up & down & the children asked me, Is that dancing? & I laughed & said, no, that's hopping, but at least it's a start & soon everyone was hopping & laughing & it didn't matter any more that no one was dancing.

The end of an era

I am getting ready to put aside something that has been a fixture in our home for the last eleven years. How strange it will feel to fully reclaim this space.

Good bye, diaper pail.

Simon has been using the potty consistently even when wearing clothes. Yes, we are big fans of the "let 'em go bottomless" school of potty training. It works, but then they have to learn to use the potty while wearing clothing too, and Simon is doing great.

I thought that putting aside the diapers forever in our household would be a bittersweet milestone, but I have to say that it is not. Maybe I'll feel a bit verklempt when I get around to packing up the diapers themselves, but for now, I am thrilled. No more diaper changes and diaper bags. Forever.

I wonder what other milestones will feel this way as Simon ages?

Oh the memories

Luis and I took a ballroom dance class back in our college years. It was a lovely experience except for one thing: the instructor insisted that we could not focus on learning how to dance together. She said we must dance with other partners because that is the way life is.

She was wrong. I could count on one hand the number of times I have danced with another man as an adult woman. I'd bet all of those times were with my own father. I am sure she thought college romance wouldn't last, and that she was doing a good thing by teaching us to dance with others, but what she did instead was take some of the joy and beauty out of dance for us.

Over the years, I have occasionally mentioned to Luis that I would like to take another dance class with him. When the local theater guild started a dance class for the bargain price of $10 per person for five classes, he signed us up.

What a joy it has been to relearn to dance with my husband. Sure, he is usually a half beat off and I often mess up on the footing after spins, but when we dance and he looks at me...

I remember why I fell in love.

To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak. ~Hopi Indian Saying

Points to ponder

Think about it:

~ Many other developed countries tax gas at a rate of $2-4 per gallon. We tax it at less than 55 cents per gallon in most states.

~ Levi's says it take 919 gallons of water to create one pair of 501 blue jeans. That is to grow the cotton, create and dye the cloth, and put the finish on. Good news: they are starting to recycle the water more, up to 70-80%. They are also encouraging consumers to wash only when dirty and encouraging line drying. Kudos to them for their changes.