Saturday, May 31, 2008

Our Family Theme Song




Do'in the Best We Can
Elaine Kolb 1987

Dustin and I discovered this song last month as a small group of ADAPTers gathered around Elaine Kolb to sing with her at the close of ADAPT's 25th Anniversary Celebration. It was great! - She passed out copies of the lyrics and we all sang along!

Do'in the Best We Can

Chorus
Well, I just want you to know
You can be yourself with me
I like you just the way you are
Unconditionally
And I don’t expect perfection
So I hope you understand
While we both will make some big mistakes
We’re do’in the best we can.


Have you noticed lots of people
Try to live in fantasy
And they have their own ideas
Of how they think you ought to be
And they don’t know much about giving
But they sure know how to take
So, if you’d like to try some sharing
Let’s be friends, for heaven’s sake.

Chorus

To be honest, I can’t promise
That I always will be fair
Or that when you think you need me
That I always will be there
And I know that you can’t give me
Everything I may desire
And yet, together we share our music
In a universal choir.

Chorus

There are times we feel so desperate
That we don’t know where to turn
At the end of our rope, we tie a knot
And, eventually, we learn
If we simply just hang in there
And do our best, with love
Then, the answers come within us
All around us, and from above.

Chorus

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

The Birth of this Mommy Blogger - The Intro

I have been "MomOnWheelZ" for a little short of four years if you don't count Benny's gestation period. I, however, count his gestation period as part of my motherhood experience, in fact, the 10 or so months leading up to the birth of Benny were the wildest of my entire life...and I have done many wild things...

Destiny "Desty" now 2.5 years cute, still wears a 6 - 12 Month white Winnie the Pooh furry coat that I had bought for Benny at ~8 weeks gestation, as I KNEW the little girl of my dreams was just incubating away in my uterus. Dustin was working at Meier & Frank by then, and buying Winnie the Pooh clothes with our $200 M & F credit card was apparently symbolic of my rite of passage. (LOL Benny is currently wearing a handsome Winnie the Pooh outfit that is 3/4 T, and purchased four years ago!) It took some time but I finally (~1 week ;-) accepted that the child in tow was equipped with a penis, that it did not necessarily mean I'd be raising Hannibal Lecter, and that I could mother a son without ever having been one...Remember, this was when I was about 17 weeks along - the hormones!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a post of its' own, and a sneak peak at what the future of this blog will bear.

Why am I starting this blog now? There is no straight answer. I have been encouraged by many to write a book, an autobiography. For the record, sorry, not interested. I don't wanna write a book! I'd have to include the good, the bad and the ugly, and it would not be fun for the author ('tiz me!) nor the reader ('tiz you!). No, authorship of such drama is not for me. Besides, my younger years are not of significant interest to me. My life as "Mommy" is much more entertaining and significant; the life of the Burton family is the real story. If I'm going to author anything, it will be a children's book that goes along with the song "Walkin' On My Wheels" (the lyrics can be found at the bottom of this post). Each book in the series can be based on the separate verses...Not that I've thought about it much. Okay, back to reality!

I hope this doesn't sound too morbid or self-centered, but I could die tomorrow and would my kids remember me in five years, would they know the stories that make my world go 'round and 'round and 'round and 'round again? Would they know that I would lie in front of a run-away train if it meant saving either of them from pain? Would Dustin know the extent of my love for him? Would you know me? Really know me? Heck! - I wouldn't even claim to really know me! No, I do not have some fatal ailment, nor am I expecting to die anytime soon, however I'm quite sure I do not have the longevity of Dustin's Grandma Hafen, who lived to be 93 years old (and that was after having 10 kids!) I will say that my body is not getting any younger, and as I age, my youthful sense of immortality vanishes much like a balloon floating into the atmosphere.

I'm also starting this blog for my good friend "T1", because when she tries to view my photo albums on Facebook, the State of Utah computer system insists that doing so would be an 'inappropriate use of the internet'! LOL I haven't forgotten...do you think blogspot is appropriate enough?! NOT! Oh well, let's hope!

Much of what I share will be about the kids, and our family. At this posting, Destiny is two and a half years old and Benny (yes B.E.N.N.Y!) is three and three fourths.


Some of what I share will be random rantings, wild epiphanies and thoughtful reflections about the world around me. I will, no doubt, piss you off from time to time, but a little of that is good for us. After all, this is my reality, not necessarily yours ;-) ENJOY and feel free to comment, too!

To be very continued...



Walking on My Wheels From Marz Barz
Words & Music © by Mark Cohen

My name is Terry and I’m nine
Take a look at this amazing chair of mine
Silver and Black and the wheels go round
Just a little push and I can really cover ground

Walking on my wheels I’m walkin’ on my wheels
People let me tell you just how good it feels
I can go anywhere if I’ve got my chair
Watch me now I’m walkin’ on my wheels

Why don’t my legs work? I don’t know
Something happened to them very long ago
But I work out every day and my arms are strong
They’re just the thing for walking me along

Chorus:

Every day when I go to school
I ride in a van that’s really pretty cool
The lift takes my chair right down to the floor
Help me with the straps and I’ll race you to the door

Chorus:

Wasn’t it funny when that substitute teacher
Asked us to name that silly looking creature
I raised my hand she nearly dropped her chalk
She thought I couldn’t think just because I couldn’t walk

Chorus:

Can you come over ask your folks
We can use the computer or just tell jokes
And maybe late on I can come and visit you
If your building has a ramp so my chair can visit too!

Chorus:

My friend Jack rides a chair like me
But he’s really old he’s almost twenty three!
He can shoot a basketball just like Dr. J
And just last week he started teachin me to play!

Chorus:

You can listen to an except at http://www.bobreidmusic.com/recording.htm