Textless Tuesday

Today's blog entry was brought to you by the letter "V"

"V" is for Vacation!



And by the numbers:

24 & 39... why? Why you ask? Well, those are the magic numbers for today children!

Because, you see, we will be going to the beach in.. ahh, ahh, ahh.. 24 days!

And, to Disney World in.. count them.. ah, ah, ah 39 days!

So, what have we learned?

We have learned Eric has become obsessed with counting down the days until we go on vacation!

Vacation where art thou?

It's official... (if it wasn't before, it is now!) I, we, need a VACATION!

So, all of our friends have been to the beach... (some multiple times!)

It seems as if every weekend I see new posts on facebook that say ...

"Headin' out to the beach...," "On our way to our beach vacation," or "watching a beautiful sunset while on the beach.."

Lucky bast....

Okay, I may be a little envious, but I have every right to be! My wife, Laura, and I sit at home, in our lovely little home, and dream of the day when we will be "beach-bound!" Sadly, our time won't be for aleast another month. So close, yet so far..

The only thing that sets my anxious mind at ease is we get almost two vacations in one month, however, waiting for said vacations may drive me mad.

Mad I tell you!

When will it be my time in the sun?! September...
sigh...

When it's our turn we are painting on our car with those white markers... "We're on F&*%$#%^ Vacation!" Okay, maybe not those exact words, but something like that.

Hope everyone is enjoying the beginning of their week and those who are on vacation... enjoy it while you can!!!!!!!!!

Summer vacation in the fall?

Today, while my boss is out-of-town on her week-long vacation, I am reminded that I have yet to take a vacation of my own. I sit at my desk looking longingly into the background scene I have plastered across my computer screen. The water looks so cool and inviting. I can almost feel the warm breeze, the sun and the wave mist splashing in the distance. I am then rudely awakened by a ringing office phone.

I mean my wife, Laura, and I have been on a short, quickie trip to Chateau Elan, a much-needed overnight stay, for our one-year wedding anniversary, but that’s it! I need more, I need more…

That’s my summer, happy freakin’ summer!

No, seriously, we are going on vacation, don’t get me wrong, but not until, okay, wait for it…. September. That’s is so many months away!!! Many, many moons.

However, the Skates family will be making up for our lost time-off, this fall, trust this.

Labor Day weekend we will be going with my family to Panama City Beach, FL. Yes, you read me right, the “Red neck Riviera” here we come. This will be our annual “beach” trip with my mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, nephew, Everett, and my nephew’s Nanu. We will only be there Friday to Monday, but it will be worth it just to have some time to slip my feet into the sandy beach and warm Gulf water.

Then it is back to work, for us, for about two weeks and then we are off to… wait for it… are you waiting for it or just reading on? Dammit, you spoiled the surprise. Anyway, Disney World! We have been planning this trip for what seems like forever, but it is finally winding down. It won’t be long until we will be in the presence of the Great Mouse, Mickey. (Cue angelic music from above.) We will be there for a whole glorious week of fun and well-mannered frivolity. Hopefully my niece will not run screaming in terror from Chip & Dale or Lilo & Stitch. She is a bit skittish with “plushies.” I have a feeling this was fostered and inherited from my sister-in-law, her mother, Laura’s sister, Jennifer. I heard word that she has never done well with things like this from theme parks.

We will be traveling to Disney and staying at the Wilderness Lodge. All of Laura’s, immediate, family will be in attendance. Of course, me, Laura and MJ; her mom, dad, older sister, brother-in-law and nephew, Drew; also her second oldest sister, brother-in-law and Annagrace, the aforementioned niece. I have only been to Disney World with a “group” of people once before and that was in high school when I went on a band trip, no band camp jokes please. Yes, I went to band camp. Moving on…

All I am saying is I am due for a nice vacation and sadly I won’t be able to enjoy time off during the true “summer,” but I will make up for it on the tale end. So my summer vacation will be in the Fall. Is that weird? Hope you all are having great fun summer vacations with your families.

Have you ever been to the beach with a six month old? What about Disney World?

Oh rest and relaxation, how I long for thee.

Did you pack his DVD's?

“Did you remember to pack his Baby Neptune DVD?” I asked my wife Laura as I strolled through the kitchen on my way to the garage door.

The kitchen was so clean, the counters did not have random bills, magazines and pictures on it. The sink was empty from all glasses and dishes. It was a clear sign that either a maid had been here or we were about to go out of town. We always try and clean the house up a little bit right before we leave so we don’t come home to a mess. This weekend we were heading to one of our favorite getaways, Chateau Elan. Chateau Elan is a local Atlanta Spa, and winery, that we go to on special occasions and this upcoming occasion was none other than our one-year wedding anniversary.

“Oh! Oops, no I forgot!” my wife Laura exclaimed. “Can you get it?”

“It’s okay,” I said while holding Mauldin. He was resting on my right shoulder. I had just changed him into a little white onesie that had little green alligators showcased randomly.

“Here,” I said; handing off Mauldin like he was a bag of groceries from Publix.

“Go ahead and be putting him in his car seat carrier and I will go get it.”

“Sounds good.” Said Laura. She took Mauldin and with her other free hand pushed her oversized, black sunglasses up onto the top of her head in effort to see in the darkness that was our house. As I hit the stairs running I could hear her baby talking to our son, Mauldin, just in a way that only the mother of my own child could do and it not be insanely annoying.

(Insert cutesy, high pitch voice)

“Are you ready to go to Nana & Papa’s?” she started.

“Oh yes you are, oh yes, we are going to be happy aren’t we? Uh hu! Yes, yes, yes!”

Her voice trailed off the closer to the nursery I reached. I had to get this video for him because it seriously is one of the only videos he really pays attention to… Of course, we are not sure what is going through his mind, but we expect it is something knowledgeable and very advanced. (insert sarcasm).

I walked into my son’s nursery and the room is lit up, on the left side of the room, because the window blinds were open and the mid-morning sun was shining through. It was if the light was trying to reach out to Mauldin’s closet. The light beams hit the floor and bent up the white closet doors. The illumination reached up halfway; highlighting some of his cute clothes through the crack in the middle of the two doors. You could see hints of blue, red and yellow from a pair of overalls that showcase Winnie-the-Pooh. He wore it during his first photo session at Babies R-us. Whenever I see them I immediately crack a smile because I am reminded of how tiny he was that day…

I reached out… the light cast on my right arm as I opened the portable DVD player that rest on top of the antique cabinet that is home to many receiving blankets, sheets and sleepers. To my dismay the DVD was not there, but as I scanned the top of the dresser I saw it lying in the middle of Baby Bach and Baby Monet. It struck me, “what would it hurt to bring all three DVD’s?” I like to make sure he has as many comforts from home as I can. We were told not to bring diapers, blankets or wipes because my in-laws had all this in stock at their home. My in-laws have three grandchildren so the amount of diapers they keep on hand is staggering. However, each child is a different age, 4 ½, 2 ½ and 11 weeks, so, I’m sure, it does come with a bit of financial complication, but I just don’t ask questions... I am appreciative. My parents are the same way… thank the Lord for caring Grandparents. We packed the little man clothes and breast milk and his DVD’s.

I contemplated packing more, just in case, but decided not to and turned and headed for the door ready to hit the road so my wife, Laura, and I could make it to our destination, Chateau Elan. This would be the first time we would be leaving Mauldin over night. It hit me on the way down the stairs, we have to leave the little guy… we haven’t left him over night before… I kept saying this in my head over and over.

“It is going to be okay.” Laura said.

“What?” I replied.

“He is going to be alright. I know you,” She continued… “I know what you are thinking.”

I stood there holding three Disney Baby Einstein DVD’s and my grip was growing more and more firm as if it were a metaphor for Mauldin and not wanting to let go.

“He is ready to go and so am I.” Laura said.

I nodded with an affirmative “Yes.”

Laura grasped my left hand and leaned in and kissed me. It was at that moment that I knew I had nothing to worry about. My wife has the uncanny knack to always put my mind at ease no matter the circumstance. So, what happened? Well, lets just say the weekend was perfect, well we did miss our exit going to Chateau Elan and going to Laura's parents house, but I will say if that was the only hiccup our weekend exalted then I will say it was close to perfect.

But, you can blame the "exit" issue on me... well not totally on me... it was a joint oversight.

Out-of-my mind

Vacations are an important necessity… I have discovered. It has really started to effect my wife and I that we have not been out-of-town for a while. The last time, that I can actually recall, that we were gone on a true “vacation,” was probably, oh dear Lord, I cannot even remember! I think it was before Christmas, sometime in November, before even Thanksgiving… September maybe? Don't people in Europe go on "holiday" for like, months?

Lately, where ever I go I am reminded of places I am not. My very computer background mocks me with its sandy beach and shartuse, blue-green, gorgeous water. I imagine the waves lightly crashing on the shore and the sky as blue as can be. It allures and disgusts me at the same time. My very being wants to be in a warmer climate and is ill, no, just plain sick of all the cold weather. Hotlanta, my ass.

Mauldin will actually be six-months old before Laura and I will be able to set our sights on our true vacation. We will be heading to none-other than Walt Disney World. Yes, I don’t even wanna hear it, we will be accessing one of the most populated amusement parks resorts in the world with a six-month old in tow. It seems everywhere I go I am seeing ads for WDW. I am receiving emails, I see TV commercials making me want to make an impromptu trip to the inner Orlando area… did you know they are offering three nights free when you book a four-night trip between now and August? Blimey! Although, that is sooooo not gonna happen for us.

The other day I stumbled upon my friend Jim’s blog: Busy Dad. He took his little son Fury, and some other munchkins, to the Happiest Place on Earth. Impressive man. Then we had a shower this past weekend and I discovered that my wife, Laura’s, cousins are heading there in a couple o’ weeks! It took everything within me to not cry. (*tear.)

This coming September, Mauldin, my wife and my wife’s family and I will be trekking down to the home of Mickey Mouse, Brer Rabbit and Space Mountain for a week of well-mannered and joyous frivolity! Our Grand Gathering, if you will. So, are we out-of-our-minds to take a six-month old baby? Maybe so, but Laura and I made this decision together. We could not even fathom going off to Disney without our son. It is our choice to do so and I am actually pretty darn excited about making all new memories with my little family.

When I was younger, about eight years ago to be exact, I would go on vacations probably every three months. I had the money to do so then because I was still living with my mom and dad and had no other aspirations at the time. My frivolous nature was sparked by the very reason of I had no true responsibilities. No wife, no pets, no job I really liked and, more importantly, no baby on the way. At one time, I think, no, I know, but I didn’t want to divulge this information, I went to Disney World five times in one year, ok two years (2000 and 2002). Sad, yes I know, but I had the means to do so and I loved it! There were times I went for a weekend and other times I drove down to spend a day in the park and then drove home. I would love to have that kind of stamina now… Don't get me wrong... I would never go back though because my life couldn't be any better, well... mostly because I love my wife. I couldn't dream of a better life without her in it. (Cue sensitive music) Life is good, but it can always get better, (or worse), however, if we had a little more money, a little more time off... ok I digress.

So back to the real world, the grind and the true reality of knowing I have a while to look forward to a day at the beach, by the pool or even moments with my wife in a hot tub. But, when I do get that chance it will make that time even sweeter… C'est la vie, eh?

Blogger's Block

I’m sorry that it has taken me so long to write another blog, but honestly there is not much to report!

Although, when my loyal blog fans, all two of you out there, asked me to write another entry who am I to deny you???

It is true though, not much has been happening lately, so I guess I kinda fell into, what I call, blogger’s block… I don’t know if that is a real term or not, but maybe I just made it up?

This past weekend, Labor Day weekend 2008, was a fun time, Laura and I went to Panama City Beach, FL with my family to have a short, but very well-deserved vacay. Went got some sun, ate some overpriced seafood and enjoyed spending quality time with my sister, Mandy, mom and dad, nephew, Everett, brother-in-law, Kelly, and my mom’s friend and my sister’s nanny, Sherrie!

It was a lot of fun and Laura and I had not been on a road trip together probably since our trip to Gatlinburg with her parents. We saw quite a lot of Mormons on that trip, but alas, no Mormons in PCB, although they could have been there, but just out spreading their gospel.

We took off on Friday, August 29^th, after work, even though hurricane Gustav was lurking and looming in the Gulf of Mexico. But, thankfully the weather was fair and we didn’t get any ill remnants of Gustav. And, could someone please give Soledad O’Brien a call and tell her how to pronounce “Gustav.” We listened to satellite radio on the way home and she mispronounced the hurricane the whole way.

We had to get back because both Laura and I had to be at work on Tuesday. We got up on Monday and by 10am, est. we were on our way back to Canton.

Thanks to Jenn and Paul, mine and Laura's sister and brother-in-law, for watching the kids for us! (Logan and Andy stayed behind, of course, and were ever-so excited to see us when we got back.)

In other news, our 12-week check up for the baby is coming into view next week! Tuesday, September 9^th, we will go and make sure everything is “right as rain” with Baby Skates. I will surely have a more interesting blog entry that day, I promise.

Hope you all are having a great week…

You know you are a fan when...

You know you are a fan when…

You certainly know you are a fan when you plan your life around a vacation to the sacred place that is, Walt Disney World. Well, that is just what we did… In September 2009, Laura’s family and mine will be going to Disney World at the same time!!! Not sure if it will be the same resort, but… we’ll see if that happens.

Somehow the stars have aligned and it has given me, oh I’m sorry, us, the chance to experience our favorite vacation spot with our immediate family members!!! We knew we had to plan it or Laura may be at Disney World 8 months pregnant or even possibly we could have just had the baby and how would we swing that??? So, we figured if we didn’t get pregnant by September of this year then we would have to stop trying until this Spring… so that way, Laura would just be pregnant at Disney and not actually about to give birth! But, wouldn’t it be cool to say “I had my baby at Disney World?” LOL! Just kidding, but seriously!

Another reason for thinking ahead is because of Laura’s job… she is a teacher, so we thought if we plan this just right she can have more time with the baby during the summer and that is less time we have to have childcare!!! So, planning ahead is not just crazy… it’s very economical! As you can tell…we are the type of people who like to plan ahead, but this is a little out there, right? Well, not if you think about how many people if effects! You try telling three kids under the age of 5 “no, we cannot go to Disney World because you are getting a new cousin!” Drew, Everett & Annagrace would probably never forgive Aunt Lala and Uncle Eric if they were the reason they didn’t get to go see Mickey Mouse!!!

So far we have planned it just right… I never once thought, in December 2007, the last time I was at Disney, the next time I would return I’d be a DAD! Try to wrap that around your head… It still boggles my mind that we are actually going to have a baby! I hate that our child won’t be able to remember anything from this trip, but there will be plenty of pictures and family members around to tell stories… Dad J So, not only are we planning for a baby, we will also be planning a trip of epic proportions to the happiest place on earth!!! Pray for us, will you? HAHAHA!