Fly Away...

My dad and brother are pilots... not, its my job to be a pilot, pilots, but its my hobby to fly, pilots. They have shared this hobby for quite some time... 10 years ago my brother got his license to fly, and on the heels of getting that, they bought their first plane together. It is a small four-seater...a Piper Cherokee. Just a few short years after they purchased the plane, my dad got his license. To sum it up, flying has been a part of our family for many years...

While my dad and brother love to fly, and their spouses seem to be good with it, too, and my nephews have been crazy about it, I have historically been the one to try and avoid flying. Not that I don't have faith that the two of them know what they are doing, but more about the fact that flying in a very small plane does not make me very comfortable. Frankly, flying in a big plane doesn't really thrill me either, but I'll do it to get where I just can't drive to...

After many years of quite successfully avoiding flying, my dad decided that O might find it appealing and basically guilt-tripped me into our first flight together (my motto: if we go down, we go down together). That was when O was about 2. Since that first flight... yes, she loves it, and I have now been trapped into flying on a very regular basis. So, periodically, we make a trip that involves flying to somewhere that has a restaurant/ice cream stand close to the airport... we fly there, we eat, we fly home. So far, so good...everyone lives...

Today, my dad wanted to make a trip with my step-mom, O and I to the Mississippi river... there is an airport in Cassville, WI that borders the river and has a park very close to the airport. He wanted to take us all there for a picnic, knowing that O would love to play at the park, too. We took off from their home airport on a beautiful summer day...it was the first time I have flown on a day that there were big, puffy clouds in the sky. It was amazing! We flew above these magnificent clouds for most of the way to Cassville...

At some point in our flight there I realized... I no longer dread flying!? I have now gone so many places, thanks to my dad and O, that I have basically forgotten that I was nervous about flying in that little plane. I now find myself actually relaxing and enjoying how unique it is to have the experiences that we have had... The bottom line is that not too many families can say that they can spend an afternoon going on a trip that would be 7-hours round-trip in the car, just because they have an airplane of their own. O and I are truly lucky...

The Dance...

Little O just recently started her very first dance class... "creative movement and pre-ballet" with Miss Amy. So far, O has learned how to plie and she has learned retire... I can barely pronounce either, let alone explain them, but her teacher is very good at boiling the moves down to simple terms and teaching the girls how to do them. I am very impressed so far... O does not appear particularly graceful when she demonstrates the moves, but I am sure that will come in time. And let's face it... at this age, it is really about the super cute tutu that she will get to wear at a recital, right?!

Anyway, all of the dancing that O has been doing has also inspired me... I am really just a frustrated dancer at heart... all of my life, from little one and on, I wished I could be a dancer. I did not, however, come from a family that believed that type of activity was worthwhile, so no dance lessons for me. But, at this stage in my life, I have become intrigued with the idea of learning to dance now... I have been checking into adult beginner tap lessons... how much fun does that sound like?! Seems like it would be a great workout, as well as an opportunity to learn something new and take my very first dance class! So what is holding me back? I haven't signed up yet anywhere... The not signing up is for one reason mostly...many of the studios require that you participate in a "recital" at the end of the class. Are you kidding me?

For most of my life, I have avoided all things related to being on stage, being video-taped, etc...you get the idea. For those of you that have known me a long time, my fear of the "stage" seems unlikely considering that I was a cheerleader for six-years and have always been considered "outgoing"... Here is what you have to keep in mind... as a cheerleader, I was just one in the pack, and was not ever singled out really. There is a certain safety in being a part of the crowd as it were...

It has recently been suggested to me that perhaps this would be my opportunity to step out of my comfort zone and conquer a long-time fear... I keep trying to go back to the fact that all I am looking for is an opportunity to try something new and also get a great workout. Who said anything about trying to step outside my comfort zone???? I am perfectly happy staying "offstage"...

All of this has me thinking about one thing... all of life really is a dance. Some of us dance to the beat of a different drummer...we go out of our way to defy the odds, make our own rules, do things in our own way regardless of how others feel. There are those of us who dance to everyone else's tune... so afraid of making a mistake or disappointing others that we decide to just "go along" because it is so much easier. So, what kind of dancer are you?

I would like to be the person who dances to their own tune, but I think the reality is that I am somewhere between that and dancing to everyone else's tune. Perhaps that makes me the tap dancer that I aspire to be...taping around the real issues. Some days I get through just fine, on my own, strong and secure, and others I have the daring to do that thing outside my comfort zone... Mostly, I come close to doing the things I really want to do, but just can't quite convince myself that I really can do them... Does that mean I am a tap dancer already?

Annual camping trip...

My dad has this picture of me from when I was little... I must have been 4 or 5-years old, in my grandparents greenhouse, sitting on a little wood stool in front of an old, deep, metal bucket filled with potting soil. I have twin braids in my hair, a sprinkling of freckles across my sunburned nose, and the biggest, happiest smile on my face. This is my dad's favorite picture...it even hangs in his kitchen, and he gave me a framed copy of it that hangs in my hallway upstairs. When things seem a little tough, this is a picture I have often looked at and said to myself "that is you; you can be that girl again". It is yet another reminder that sometimes simple can be best... a running theme I am always working on remembering.

Speaking of keeping that in mind... this past weekend was our annual family camping trip. Each year, my dad and step-mom choose a place for our entire family to camp for a long weekend. Because we all have families and live all over, it is our one chance each year to get together and really have some good time to catch up with each other. This year we were really excited because my sister came home from Boston with her one-year old son to join our little expedition...

In theory, this was going to be the best fun ever... all weekend for the kids to play with each other, the adults to get some time to rest and relax, all while enjoying nature. Now those who know me well will say that I don't come off as a very "outdoorsy" kind of girl...and really, I'm not. But for my dad and step-mom, I will gladly pretend that I am...for one weekend each year, that is.

So, now the reality... The weather gods must not have heard about our plans... Friday we did get to the campground and setup prior to the rain starting... it just kept right on raining, however, for most of the evening. It did finally stop long enough for a campfire, which I didn't get much chance to enjoy because it was way past O's bedtime, and I hoped to get her to sleep so that she was ready for a full day Sat. But, a 7x7 tent with two toddlers and two adult women turns out not to be the ideal recipe for sleep. This became especially clear at 2:30am when O had a little accident that resulted in me trying to not awaken my sister and nephew while using paper towels and baby wipes to clean up the mess. Not much sleep going on...

Saturday, the weather finally cleared before lunch, and we had the chance to take the kids to the beach, and then to the pool for a full afternoon of swimming. They were thrilled! I was just so glad to be dry and to finally have a chance to shower while O napped, that I hardly knew what to do with myself. Sat night we went from sleeping in a wet tent, to sleeping in a very hot, humid, damp tent... this time O and I were on our own, as my sister and nephew joined the crew in the camper. Night two, no puddles to clean in the middle of the night, but not much sleeping going on...again.

Sunday morning was beautiful... we could finally sit at the picnic table that had dried out overnight, had breakfast, then took the kids to the pool for one last swim before packing our things up. The packing up went smoothly, and we actually managed to get everything ready to go...right before it started to rain and storm again. Made for an interesting ride home, but at least we were in a dry, temperature controlled car for the ride home.

All of this adds up to a less than ideal weekend... But, here is what I choose to remember...here is my list of the good things: The two-hours of uninterrupted conversation my sister and I had on the way to the campground while the kids slept the whole way; O and the heart sticker she put in the perfect place; those chocolate chip pancakes only Papa can make; baby A's "uh oh" at all the right times; the pure comedy of trying to find the lost car keys, in the dark, following cleanup from the peeing incident; Uncle Jay launching Nate in the pool a million times; O being so proud of jumping into the pool on her own and without fear; Aunt Candy taking O for a shower; Papa's birthday shirt surprise; O and Aunt Angie playing bean bag toss; Andrew, playing with the "big boys"; s'mores cooked just right; Dad and Sue just so happy to have us there, together...

So, like the girl in the greenhouse, just happy to play in the dirt, I am going to remember that the simplest things were the best parts of the weekend... And before you know it, it will be time for our next family camping adventure! I just have to get all the gear dried out before then...