WHAT MY FATHER TAUGHT ME

When I think back to childhood memories, there is no doubt mom really did the dirty work when it came to child rearing.  I never ever ever remember my dad yelling at me, scolding me, or spanking me.  I do remember him sticking up for me.....a lot! 

I've mentioned in past blogs that my grades in school were less than ideal.  I thought school was a social event, not a scholarly one.  I lived for recess and lunch.  In eighth grade I was getting D's and F's in American History.  The teacher wanted to see my parents.  I think mom had finally had enough of my stupidness and made my dad go with her to school.  Well, right off the bat the the teacher, who was a man all of 4 feet 11 inches, pissed my dad off.  He had Statistics on the board as to what percent of students were getting A's B's C's D's and F's.  There were a lot of kids who were in the D and F range.  After the teacher had ranted and raved about how stupid this particular class was my dad said "well, you either have a lot of stupid kids, or you have a lot of stupid teachers trying to teach them"  BOOOYAAAAA CHA CHING!  Dad got him with that one. 

When I had my wreck at the age of 16 ( I rear ended someone) it was my dad who took me to court.  The judge said "so MS. Tedrick, how many feet are you to stay back from the car in front of you?  What is your assured clear distance"  My answer was "two car lengths"   The grumpy judge said " I asked you how many feet!"  at that point my dad spoke up and told the judge he wouldn't know the answer to that question even at his age.  Mr Judge didn't like that.....I don't remember his exact response, but he was grumpy.

Dad was not the modern father of today, in fact he was pretty old school.  The lessons he taught me were quiet subtle lessons.  No lecturing required. 

Things my Dad taught me:

1.  Never say you hate church
2.  Fart is not a nice word
3.  Never ever use the Lord's name in vain
4.  Be nice
5.  Sty's on your eyes happen because I obviously peed in the middle of the road.  (WTH?)
6.  Coffee mixed with toast is a meal.  (as in they are mixed together in a bowl...ewwwww)
7.  Work without complaining.  (I'm a work in progress)
8.  Taught me how to drive stick shift by handing me the keys in Downtown Columbus.
9.  Patience
10.  Be kind to others
11.  To know what channel Fox News is on regardless of which provider you used:  cable, Dish, or direct TV
12.  To love others even if they are democrats.
13.  A love for Cats
14.  Enjoy a good party
15.  It's best if you don't wear a ring at work (his wedding band got caught and tore his finger off)
16. No Bobbie, that hang nail on your finger will not make your finger fall off (well I was only 4!)
17.  If you are at someone else's house and need to use the bathroom, do not be too to embarrassed to use it.  Don't try to make it home.....You just might not make it.  ( you know what I mean dad)
18.  For the big decisions, wait until your mother gets home.
19.  Most of all I learned that a person doesn't have to continually say the words I love you to be loved.  It was rarely said, but definitely guaranteed and I never once doubted it. 


I thank God for both my parents, as in all good relationships, they off set one another.  If mom was against me, I could always count on dad being for me.  It's the same way with John and I....When I'm losing my cool, he's usually holding it together and plays the protective role.  That works both ways.  I find myself being the mediator when he's losing his sh**.  Maybe this is why God set up this whole parenting thing as a partnership.  All  know is I would never ever want to have done it alone and I'm glad I was fortunate enough to have two great parents!

Happy Fathers day to all!

SAD BEACH DAY 6

Geez, what a way to end a vacation.  Sam got a call this morning from the kennel that was keeping her Great Dane Mickey, that Mickey had died.  They said he had a seizure....the vet believes his stomach probably twisted and that killed him. We don't know what to believe and having an autopsy on an animal wasn't something we were going to do.  So losing Mickey just pretty much set the pace for the day. 

One of the most touching things was while Sam was crying, Taylor looked at Sarah and me and said "Seeing mama crying breaks my heart"  and she put her hand to her heart.   That made me cry.  I guess compassion starts early in life.  There is a lesson in everything I guess.

So, John and I thought we would take Taylor away from the sadness for a bit and take her to the Aquarium.  It was OK, but nothing spectacular.  We saw fish, sharks, sting rays etc.  Taylor got her picture taken with a real life mermaid whose name was also Taylor.

Later on that evening we went to our last dinner at Cagney's.  Cagney's is famous for their prime rib.  Jon and Sarah decided to live large and got a fillet and lobster tail.  Sam and John had the prime rib and I just got a fillet.  Prices are what you would expect to see for a good steak and prime rib place. 

Other than today, this vacation was a wonderful week.  There were no sibling fights (that I'm aware of) Taylor was a joy to watch scamper around the beach and the weather turned out 50/50.  Now it's time to pack up our mess (poor poor maid)  I'm proud to say that there is no structural damage. 

RIP Mickey.  You were a loving, doppy, klutzy, ginormous dog that will be missed

REST IN PEACE MICKEY!

BEACH DAY 5

Well Thursday FINALLY the sun came out.  We were so so happy.  We went out around 10 am and most did not come back in until seven that evening.  We skipped going out to dinner just so every ounce of sunshine could be absorbed.  Taylor and I came in around five because she said she wanted a nap.  I never thought I would hear those words come out of her mouth. 

Not much to report except, sand, surf, sun and fun!




We planted us a tator in the sand. 



We swam.





We made new friends.  This little girl wanted her picture taken so Tay would remember her FOREVER.

 Only one more day of fun in the sun....it's been great! 


 

BEACH DAY 4

So I've done the non rain rain dance, prayed to the Stop the Rain god's, tried playing mind games with Mother Nature and nothing seems to be bringing out the sun. 

By day 4, I have to say I'm not happy.  We only have two more days to pull this thing out and I'm hoping for a little sympathy from whoever is in charge.  I really haven't bothered God with my prayers because well, I just think there are a lot more important things for Him to worry about than a family of 6 having sun at the beach. ( like keeping our deployed soldiers safe in their desert of hell, Especially Benjamin Soehnlen)  We will just ride it out and make the best of whatever comes up. 

Speaking of Ben, We really do miss him being with us.  Though, the odds of somone being arrested would probably have increased, he would have been the life of this party, seeing as we are so so boring! 

Today, Sam and I went to the outlet malls.  It was kind of cool to just get out and spend a little time in shopping therapy.  Taylor now believes it's her birthday because she got so many presents.

Let's see she got the dress, matching shoes, Prince and princess dolls and a Belle play set.  Besides being able to swim, what more could a girl ask for. 

Then the most amazing thing happened.  The sun started coming out.  We decided to skip dinner (OK we never skip a meal, but we ordered in) and just enjoy the sun.  WOO HOO!!

As for dinner:  WE ordered from the BBQ House in North Myrtle Beach.  Their deal was 1 pint pulled pork, Pint Cole slaw, Pint green beans, two orders of hush puppies, four buns and a gallon of sweet tea.....all for $23. 

Forecast says Mostly Sunny tomorrow YEAHHHHHHHH!

BEACH DAY 3

Day three was much like beach day two. Cloudy and chilly.  As you all can tell by my Goddess like tan, I love the sun.  Well, OK.....maybe not.  I do like the sun.  I was really hoping for more sunny days, but you know what?  You get what you get.  It's still uber relaxing and away from the routine of life so I"m choosing not to complain too much. 

What were the highlights on Day 3? 

We ate....yes when all else fails make a good dinner reservation. We ate at a place called Umberto's at Barefoot landing.  I would give it 3-4 stars.  The side dishes were family style.  Your first side dish was some sort of beans.  I don't know how to explain it except to say it was like bean soup without much soup.  I didn't care for it.  Then we got a cucumber, tomato and onion salad with an Italian dressing on it.  In my opinion this would have been much better just being a regular salad with the dressing on it.  I'm not a tomato person, but the cucumbers were delish and I loved the dressing. 

For the main entree John and I chose a twofer again.  It was a strip steak with two ginormous pork chops on top.  There were also green pepper, onions, mushrooms and red potatoes.

The pork chops and steak were at least two inches thick.  I had half the steak and a couple bites of pork chops.  Amazingly enough the pork chops were more tender than the steak, but all had a great flavor. 

After dinner we had ice cream and a carousel ride.  Then as seems to be the norm, the sun breaks out in the evening, giving you the impression that the next day is going to be gorgeous sunny. We will see....



BEACH DAY TWO

So if you know the Canton's at all, you know we are listed in the dictionary under boring.  When we go on vacation we just want to chill and do what we want to do, which in a lot of circumstances is just sit and enjoy the sound of the waves crashing on the shore.  Day two was cloudy all day.  You know what?  Three year olds don't care.  Sam and Taylor went swimming several times yesterday in spite of the weather. 



Tay Playing America's Next Top Model (oh boy)



It's kind of interesting how we adults rate our days.  If the sun isn't shining, or we have the sniffles, we tend to rate the day as bad.  A three year old, on the other hand, can find joy in putting on her favorite princess dress and dancing around the living room.  We adults need to learn some things from the three year old crowd. 

So, day two ( and possibly day three) seems to have been drearier than we would like, but all is still good.  We will just take Taylors lead and be happy in spite of bad weather.

The restaurant chosen by Sarah tonight (which incidently turns out she didn't care for) was PF Changs.  Overall review.....Out of five stars I'd give it 4.  I thought it was good.  John and I had a two for 39.95 which included soup, appetizer (I chose chicken lettuce wraps) two entrees with white or brown rice and a tiny dessert.  I thought everything was really good, we took home a ton of left overs. 

If you EVER want to get a three year old to eat hand her some chopsticks....she did really really well!



BEACH DAY ONE



First day at the beach!

 Sunday Taylor was up bright and early.  Like 6:30 am early....She was getting bored in the Condo so I asked if she wanted to go take a walk along the beach.  Of course she did.  She grabbed her bucket and I had to talk her into NOT wearing shoes.  (goos as she calls them) 

It was a sunny beautiful day.  The temp was in the low 80's and we all probaby got more sun than we needed, but who could resist such perfect weather. 



Beach Fun with mama



Crabby Mikes dinner day one

So as I said we talk about our next meal at the previous meal.  First night's dinner out was Crabby Mikes Seafood Buffet.  I give it two stars.  First, We are not big on buffets and second we decided seafood buffets are where fishermen send their too little for good restaurants fish and shrimp.  The crab legs were good, but really how can you go wrong with crab legs?  Every thing else was just sub standard.  Tomorrow we are looking for a menu we can order off of.

I LIVE FOR VACATION

I love vacation.  I love getting away from real life.  Right now we are in Myrtle Beach.  (The house is secured with real human beings and a dog that will saw you in half, so don't think you will be able to break in and steal the fine china. (more like Corelle ware)  Our cat, on the other hand would have handed you the keys to the safe.  That's why she is no longer with us.)

We are kind of getting away from real life, except we are taking all the kids with us.  (plus baby talk-a-lot Taylor)  I know, I know, this could go either way.  It could bring back precious memories of vacations past where we would take the kids on vacation each summer.  OR......someone could get arrested and I will have to spend good money to bail them out of jail.

After this week however, I decided it probably can't get much worse, so what the heck. 

• computer contracted a virus.....not just any virus, but a Trojan Bomb
• Sarah had one of the worst abscesses I've ever seen which landed her in the hospital
• Work had it's share of out of the ordinary issues.
• Then we finished with a dog with a paw that is infected and could, if it doesn't clear up, require amputation,(she will still saw you in half, she's not happy!)  You're heard the expression " Bear with a sore ass?'  Well, this is dog with a sore foot.
• A husband who is mad we have a dog and well let's just say I'm glad he doesn't own a gun.(sounds heartless, but.......)

I thought I might blog our vacation daily, but at a beach vacation there is not much to talk about except wind, surf and sun and fun.  We will see where this leads.  Maybe we will call it the Best of Myrtle Beach?? Just like old people, we discuss our next meal at the previous meal.  so who knows, maybe something exciting will happen......gosh I hope not.....boring is good.