How little minds work, still house shopping, provoking your children

Victoria arrived in Milton without incident. She drove the car I took from New Jersey to Hot Springs about a year ago, a ’97 Plymouth Breeze. This is the second trip the car has made to Florida. It is holding up well considering the age of the vehicle and the repairs we have made on it. It got her there on a little over one tank of gas. I did miss that car when it was gone but it has served my kids well.


This morning Cori, Victoria and the grandkids got in my daughter Cori’s car to make a trip to Wal-Mart. As soon as they were buckled in Mykenzie asked, “Where are we going to eat?” Mommy and Victoria laughed and mommy explained, “This is Victoria, Baby, not Grammy.” That girl certainly knows her Grammy.

The ups and downs of looking for a house are beginning to take their toll on Mama. She has taken in upon herself to have a place waiting on Grandma and Grandpa. But without the two of them here to make the final decision it presents a challenge. Like us, when we first got here, what we wanted and what we got are two different things.

Fortunately, like me and Mama they are not looking for their dream home, just a place to live in relative safety and comfort. Grandpa says he will get a job once they get here but the rent price range they have to consider is pretty high for the income they now have. The place Mama was excited to look at yesterday turned out to be more of a dump than a rental dream; beautifully situated, poorly kept.

We now have a storage building sitting behind out house. It is 8’x12’ and looks to be very well made. It will take no time to fill it to capacity especially if the girls and Grandma and Grandpa have things that need to be stored. Finding a place with a garage has proved difficult given the price attached to the houses that offer one.

I told Chase last night that I was not going to buy him a ticket to fly to New Jersey for Winter Camp, saying specifically that “I do not reward rebellion.” He was a little confused but I think he will figure it out. For those of you who might feel sorry for him and want to clue him in, for over two years I have been politely reminding him of something he needs to be doing and it is still undone. Wilma Parish likes to say, “To delay is to disobey.” Disobedience is rebellion. Rebellion brings no reward.

Needless to say, he was upset last night. He will probably get up that way this morning. Hopefully he will recover long enough to play in the basketball game his JV team is playing in this morning.

Though most all actions in his life are good, this one point is a matter of determined refusal and it is time to get it right.

Some people like to say, “Someday you’ll thank me for this.” This, he will probably never thank me for.