Pancake Morning - Take 2

So recently I wrote about the bliss of a pancake morning and how it can become such a strong center when getting through a tough move. Today, not so much!

We have been on vacation for the past week. Now we are home and dealing with the post-vacation house cleaning. My least favorite part of vacation. My daughter had a friend spend the night, and everyone was excited when I said I would make chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. I didn't want to make pancakes - I have work to do. I wished they would be excited for cereal. No one is excited for cereal...not even PB Crunch.

My kitchen is still not completely cleaned since returning home - everyone gasps with shock since I am such an impeccable housekeeper - and I couldn't find my pancake recipe. There was also no other mix in the house. No problem-o; I will just google my recipe from the web...and I did.

Fastforward to me making the pancakes from the computer and only half paying attention. The result: three times the salt in the mix. I tried to pick some of it out, but how bad can it be? I like salt.

Well, they were eaten. They were SALTY! The kids didn't even criticize. Our sweet guest tried to make me feel better and said, "It's ok. My mom doesn't cook either." But I do cook! I am supposed to be a good cook! And chocolate chip pancakes are supposed to be one of my signature dishes! Insult to injury, we ran out of syrup. But still no complaints.

Lessons learned: 1) Not all pancake mornings are perfect; 2) Too salty pancakes are still somewhat edible when eaten with large amounts of chocolate chips and milk; 3) Too salty pancakes are still (in the minds of 12, 13, and 14-year olds) better than cereal; and 4) Don't complain about salty pancakes or you will find yourself eating cereal.

I am the girl of 100 lists

Do you remember this song by the Go Go's?  Do you remember the Go Go's?  Were you born after the Go Go's broke up and Belinda Carlisle went on to have a mediocre solo career so you have no recollection of them except for the 80s weekends on the radio when they play "Vacation"?  It doesn't really matter.  This is not about the Go Go's.  But it does relate to one of their songs that resonates with me to this day.

Hello.  My name is Cherie, and I am a compulsive list maker.

I love making lists.  I get great joy out of categorizing the world according to my own labels.  Need to make a grocery list?  Hooray!  Honey-do list?  Sweet!  New Year's Resolutions?  Nirvana!  And these lists are simply the tip of the ship-sinking ice burg.

One of my favorite things about my iPhone is that I can create these lists on a whim, and store them so they are always at my fingertips.  Songs on the radio that I heard and want to see if the artist has recorded anything else decent.  Books I want to check out.  Places to vacation.  Activities and crafts to make with my daughter.  Ways to improve my health and well-being.  And my favorite list....Things that Make Cherie Happy.  This is a compilation of things that make me smile, and things that I'd be happy to accumulate.  For instance, my favorite perfume is on the list (Have) as well as a fluffy Turkish bath robe (Have not).  It really comes in handy around birthdays and holidays when someone asks you what you want.  Most of the time I draw a blank, which I think is a good sign because I do feel that I already have a very rich and fulfilling life.  But that can be frustrating to the potential gift-giver.  This gives me an arsenal of ideas; things that I really would like, from inexpensive trifles to "only if someone dies" kind of gifts.  And it does help to hinder (though not entirely prohibit) receiving moose emblazoned napkin rings.

The other purpose for this list is that on bluesy days I can read over it and it is an emotional pick-me-up.  Ceylon tea with mint Milano cookies.  Meryl Streep movies.  My favorite sheets on the bed.  The earthy smell that rises up when it rains.  I can't help but smile when I read this very sensory list.

I also find lists littered all over my office and home on bits and scraps of paper, the back of an envelope, a sticky-note.  Some topics I've written down many times, others are new categories, but I resist throwing them away, unless they are able to be compiled into a MASTER list.  Now, one might mistakenly think that with all this list-making that I am uber organized.  Not so.  List making does not translate on its own into doing.  My follow-through...now, that's something that still needs some work.  But in the meantime, I'm ready...making lists.

You may even be on one of them.

Courage

What makes a king out of a slave? Courage! 

What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage! 

What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk?

What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage! 

What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage! 

What makes the dawn come up like thunder? Courage! 

What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the "ape" in apricot? 

What have they got that I ain't got? 

Courage.

Ever notice how some people in this world give you a shot of adrenaline just by being around?  They wake you up.  Shake you up.  Keep you on your toes.  Inspire you.  And, my favorite part, make you braver than you ever thought you could be.  I have friends like these.

There are days that I wake up and feel deflated and listless and proceed to beat myself up for every shortcoming and perceived inadequacy that I can concoct about myself.  On those days particularly (I believe Holly Golightly called it "the Mean Reds") I need a prescription for a good dose of ego-stroking friendship.

I'm actually a very shy person.  Not many people know (or believe) this about me because I try very hard to overcome it.  And I'm not afraid to speak in front of people.  I think that's where the misconception breeds from.  It's the social mingling, one-on-one introductions that throw my Chi into the blender.  I relish the thought of a world based on the TV series "Cheers" where everybody knows your name.  Wouldn't that be nice?  Except for the fact that I'm terrible with names.  But I digress...

I've noticed that when I'm with my particular friends, I feel like the world is my oyster.  That I infinitely belong and fit in.  So what's with all this insecurity when I fly solo?  I think it must be that when you're with your friends, you can trust that you'll have the acceptance of at least one person in the room.  You don't have to put on an act for them.  You can dance down the aisles of the grocery store to the Muzak version of David Bowie's "Let's Dance" and know that at least the person next to you is laughing WITH you.

As of late, I've had...well, not more instances of, but...more opportunities for this petrifying social stuff, and  I find myself avoiding it - opting out - instead of mustering up the courage to do this one simple act.  Say "Hello".  Nope.  Instead I'll just stay in at home, check Facebook one more time, read a book, watch something mind-numbing on the tube.  I'll schedule play dates with my friends, the ones that know and love me, but I'm putting off doing things I'm interested in trying for the lack of my safety net...and I know that's not right.  So, while I wish I could keep one of these brilliant friends in my back pocket at all times so I can reach in for reassurance, like a worry stone, I know in my head and my heart that all I really need to do is take a deep breath and step forward.

I need to ask the Wizard for some courage.

Pancake Mornings

When I was in the process of moving - it's been two years now - a friend of mine (who had also moved across the country) gave me some very wise advice. She said to keep moving forward, do what needs to be done, and someday soon I would wake up in my new home with the boxes unpacked and the only thing on my to-do list being to make pancakes for my family.

Those words got me through some really wretched times! Bad realtor (in WI, not KS), unstable seller (in WI, not KS - hehehe), bleeding money, economic downturn, etc... I just kept holding out for my pancake morning. For more than a year, I held out for my pancake morning. I talked about my pancake morning, I dreamed about my pancake morning - my pancake morning became a symbol of survival!

One day it happened. I woke up - no alarm needed. I lay in bed and wondered what we should have for breakfast on that beautiful Saturday morning. And then I realized, there was only one thing to have...pancakes. The house in KS was sold, the house in WI was mine, there was of course a monster to-do list - but nothing that needed to be done immediately. It was finally my pancake morning.

I went to the kitchen and made chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, and coffee. I took my husband's and my plates to the porch and sat to eat breakfast with him. The kids snarfed their pancakes while watching cartoons - oblivious to the monumental occasion that was taking place.

I took a bite of the BEST pancake I had ever tasted and sighed. I told Todd, "This is my pancake morning." I cried. I know, how could I cry? But if you have ever moved, you will understand. And if you have ever had a move that is so bad it seems more like a dark comedy movie script, you REALLY know.

My pancake morning was perfect. I have many more of these since then. I appreciate these types of mornings so much more than I ever did!

Now Cherie is in the process of moving. Since they are building their dream home, there will be a long wait, headaches, and hope. She is lucky that so many wonderful people are surrounding her with support, but I can tell she is looking forward to her pancake morning.

It is soooo worth it!

Rosie and Lola - A Dog's Life

Rosie won the cutest pet contest at the kids' school. Rosie is our bloodhound. She may be cute, but she is drama! She is an in-the-trash, howl-at-the-moon, eat-off-the-counter kind of dog. If Rosie were a human, she would be a garish, brassy, stubborn, blues-singing doll from nowhere and everywhere. Rosie is not to be crossed - or woken up! She also eats lipstick.

Rosie and Lola are sisters. Lola is everyone's "lab mix." We are not telling her she did not make it into the finals of the cutest pet contest.

Lola is nervous and calm all in the same day. She is loyal and ever-present (to the point of being annoying). She watches as Rosie steals from the counter, sits constantly by your side, and hopes for a pet, kiss, treat, or scratch behind the ears. She barks at any and all dangers she perceives from the outside world, yips as she leaps outside, chases falling snow, and occasionally steals out the door for a break-neck race around the block! Her collar is her most prized possession. If Lola were human, she would be your slightly neurotic forever friend who will never betray your trust or her family and who always wants you to decide where to go for lunch...but once she lets loose there is not stopping her.

Neither are easy, but both are wonderful. They are just what I need. Both will break my heart someday. Today, we will just play, sleep, and eat.

If I were a dog, I like to think that I would be somewhere between Lola and Rosie - that I would be full of energy, like to chase birds, howl along with good music and sirens, dish out attitude, and have a family that loves me. Hmmm, I think I already am a cross between them...don't wake me up, I will take what I need (even if it's on the counter), I love a walk on the beach, I get soo excited when we have guests, nothing makes me happier that sitting next to Todd on the couch, and I strive to live freely!