Ike Blows

I didn't make that title up. But I love it! I saw it spray painted on a boarded up window in a photo reminiscent of "Breast Pumps Suck." I will make a million on that T-shirt yet.

Certainly things won't be the same at home for some time. I have been glued to the news and Internet trying to comprehend the impact of Ike. I want some facts of course... but I have spent a lot of time viewing photos. I can write my own story based on what I see. I don't want the spin. That said, I saw Geraldo standing in front of a pile of rubble tonight and a Seawall Blvd. green street sign was so strategically on top, I could hardly stand it. This is why I love to hate him. I heard he blew over at least once during his reporting. I would love to find that clip too!

As for our Ike story, there's no drama (thankfully). On Thursday we had decided to stay home and hunker down which was what our Mayor and Co. suggested. Deeda was hard at work boarding up the windows... I was at the store in line. And then we were "ready" with nothing to do and a view of plywood. So we opened a bottle of Champagne.

On Friday morning, Deeda finished up some additional boarding I requested Thursday evening, while G and I went to the park, with about every other mom and kid in the hood, to run off some steam... As the morning went on, I kept seeing on the traffic report that the roads were clear and kept thinking, even though we weren't at all ready to leave, maybe we should just get outta dodge. I was scared. I was scared G would be scared.

Once the decision was made, we were gone in about 30 minutes. A major record for the Dionne's but time was running out and the wind was picking up. By Bastrop it was blue skies and smooth sailing. So, we made a late escape and were almost feeling guilty yesterday evening when we sipped our cocktail in the AC in Austin.

Today we learned from our neighbors our house is fine and major tree limbs intact. Our fence is down but it was on its last leg anyway. Our neighbors lost a beautiful pear tree in their front yard. It was always gorgeous in the fall...

I am relived but I also have to go moderately melted Velveta and say I realized only a few miles down I-10 west that it didn't matter if we had the things we thought we needed or if the house has a foot of water in it when we get home. Deeda and mommy-mommy-ma were riding up front, Dee-dog and G-man were riding in the back "happy together." We made PB&J and ate Pringles on the road.

Deeda was up texting for updates in the wee hours. It was awkward to wake up not knowing how things were at home with our family and family of friends. And it felt even funnier to go about our daily rituals in a basically business as usual way.

By about 1o we were at Home Depot in search of a generator (couldn't hurt- this won't be our last rodeo and we're unsure how long this one will last). The customer service lady told about five people standing there, a nearby location had 4 generators left. It was like a race to the cars... as our favorite comedian says, "everybody out!"

By 10:30 we had arrived at Home Depot number two where we put our hand on the last box first (we win)! We are now the happy owners of a generator. I can finally put all those safety tips I've written about for the Co-op to good use. Generator or not, I'll admit, I hope to have my happy-self here at Camp Butera until the generator is not a necessary tool. I don't do heat. Everyone knows this about me. I don't catch either. Most people know this about me. (except Kyle Haver who learned a few years back)

After a trip this afternoon to the nicest Wal-mart on the face of the plant (no kidding!) we were home for a steak dinner. We brought them from our freezer. Can't let a good steak go to waste! I know everyone who spent Saturday evening in the heat at home is hating on us. We know. You're still welcome to join us. Come on up.

Ike is over but it ain't over... the hard part is only just beginning. I hope as we hear from more of our peeps we learn nothing but good news.

G-man thinks the greatest thing about the last couple days is that he can hold Huey's leash on walks "all by himself." He walks confidently and when he's really proud of himself he shrugs his shoulders. Yeah, we don't know either. It's like a bird strutting his stuff...Friday he said, "I have an idea" and "I have a special game for your mommy." Loved both those things. And he introduced me as Amy to the dog. AND he now pretend answers the phone "this is Grant Thomas Dionne." No lie.

Why ask why?

Tonight I am recalling the successful ad campaign “why ask why?” G has been in his new big kid class for two days… For two days he’s come to me when I pick him up and said, “I had a bad day.” It’s killing me. He misses Luci and Bertha his teachers from the two’s room. But his friends Brooks and Zachary gave him a very warm welcome Tuesday morning, so I am comforted by that… still, transition is hard. And some of the kids in this room are considerably older. Almost four and going on three are very different. Already I can see he’s learning a lot from the older kids. The word of today is “why?” Tomorrow it might be something choice like SH#*T, so I should be grateful I suppose.

Here’s a taste of turkey taco dinner with the Dionne’s tonight.

“Grant, sit down. Don’t stand in your chair.”

“Why, Mommy, me no stand on my chair?”

“Because it’s against the rules."

Sitting down slowly he says,"Why?"

"It's not safe.”

“Why?”

“Because you might fall down and hurt yourself. Plus, it’s not polite.”

Deeda adds, “You don’t see me or mommy standing in our chairs do you?”

“Why?”

“Grant, that's enough. Be a good boy.”

“Why be a good boy, Deeda?”

“Because if you are a good boy, and you don't stand in your chair, and you eat your dinner you may be lucky enough to get a Popsicle.”

(Now I am rolling my eyes at Deeda for the bribery- thinking the child has just gotten exactly what he wanted)

“Me have purple Popsicle?”

“Maybe. It’s a surprise,” Deeda says and smiles at me thinking we’ve dodged that bullet and then…

“Why?...”

And that’s just a sampling. The hits kept coming. Why, deeda, me no pee pee in bathtub? Why no watch more lightning mcqueen? Why brush my teeth? Oh boy!

Anytime we are in transition, from play to dinner, from dinner to bath, from bath to bed, from book to lullabies—we have stalling. Laying on the floor. Changing his mind 200 times. The stalling has been getting insane and now the child has a new tactic in his bag of tricks. The famous, infamous, "Why?"

I can hear the whole bit Bill Cosby does in his Himself show. Next thing we know, we'll be asking why did you drink my drink and his line will be I don't know. (You said for me not to drink your drink. Then, why did you do it? I don't know.... )

Anyway, we first attempted reasoning. Such a rookie mistake. And so we quickly learned the best way to end the interrogation and resorted to the classic, I never wanted to say because I hated to hear it as a child, “because I am I said so.” This doesn’t end the questioning but it doesn’t offer a new topic query either. It’s something.

The other favorite phrase these days is: “heeeeey, wait a minute!” A line of Mater's when he realizes it's not the Ghost Light. Speaking of Cars,he has two new additions to the box and hasn’t put them down since he got them. Tex and Dinoco Lightning are the hottest “fast race cars” in the box right now.

Singing is also in Vogue. “Our favorite song” as he calls it is, Happy Together by the Turtles. We heard it one evening on the radio about two weeks ago and he loved it from the first time he heard it. Easy to learn, long notes he can sing LOUD. So happy to-geth-eeeeeeeer!

Not so easy to learn but another fav is "Old Mc Farmy had a duck. E-I-E-I-O." He’s close. Of course Old McDonald had a Farm…and then the duck, but you get the point. I am laughing out loud just typing this one. It’s really funny!

My favorite phrase these days is “Hold me like baby. Never let me go.” This is one he says when we tuck him in to bed. A request I love to hear.