The Front Porch Swing

[perchie.girl]

Some plums are self pollinating, so you don't necessarily need another tree, but to my understanding they produce better if you do get it a friend.

*Edit*

And that getting pregnant just to hook someone sounds horrible to me.

Or you can graft on another plumb for the "other friend" If you dont have space.

deb

 

[Alice28]

Make sure you have him chew on some gum to relieve the pressure in his ears for the flight.... or do a yawning game....   Disney land is soooo much fun for the little ones.  and even as much fun as parents to watch that joy and excitement...

deb

I don't give him gum, but practice the "yawning game" is a great idea! We have been talking about the airplane ride a lot, so that's a really good idea to explain about the ears getting plugged! He's only been on an airplane once as a baby so he doesn't remember it.

 

[vehve]

Why no gum?

 

[perchie.girl]

Why no gum?

Untill kids are about seven or eight they have a hard time about that no swallowing thing..... OR the gum winds up in hair on clothes in the chair or on the carpet.... With infants you can give em a pacifier to help equalize air pressure. But if you ever been on a plane where there is a screaming child Pain in the ears feels like icepicks stabbing you. I did it with a head cold once OH MY GAWD.

deb

 

[Alice28]

Untill kids are about seven or eight they have a hard time about that no swallowing thing..... OR the gum winds up in hair on clothes in the chair or on the carpet....  With infants you can give em a pacifier to help equalize air pressure.  But if you ever been on a plane where there is a screaming child Pain in the ears feels like icepicks stabbing you.  I did it with a head cold once OH MY GAWD.

deb

When we were on a plane with him as a baby (and he was getting over an ear infection) take off and landing he cried, but was great the rest of it. I'm really hoping he will do well this time and I think he will, but am a little worried about take off and landing.
vehve, gum is really bad for your teeth, as are suckers. I have never given my son gum ad I don't chew it, so it's just not a can of worms I want to open yet. But for the next nine days I will be talking with him about yawning to get "the bubble out of his ear". That's what he says when water gets in his ears.

 

[LindaB220]

Today is one of those days that everything just seems to be as it should be.

Someone posted baby clothes on a yard sale site and I arranged to come see them right away.. something unusual for us, I usually plan days ahead.

I got 26 pieces of clothing for $20 which is great because most were carter's blanket sleepers which are $8 and up, new.

Our cell service is a mess, so as we drive down the road Justin gets signal and his phone goes nuts with text messages that he did not receive earlier. We pull into a gas station so he can read them. A big red truck pulls in with a flat tire.. I notice the license plate says retired army veteran, so I watch them for a minute. I see a middle aged man with a limp get out, so I say "Honey, you need to see if you can help those folks". Now, this couple is black, we're white. Race isn't a huge issue to us, but we're in Alabama... there's still some hesitance in people. So he helps these folks, and people pass by and obviously stare a little, probably curious as to what's going on. I like that we're perhaps part of something greater, increasing neighborliness regardless of color, hopefully someone sees it and remembers that, rather than Ferguson on TV. Or just even that you should help out others, elderly, veterans especially.

Whatever.

The man's wife comes and looks at my kids in the car and we talk a bit, she gives Thomas some gummies.

Justin has replaced the tire, I air it up with our little portable compressor.

All said and done, the lady tries to give Justin money and he refuses. That's just how he is, he's a really REALLY good guy. Genuinely good.

She offers it to me, I turn it down several times, so she stuffs it in my hands (I've got my hands full with dirty diaper wipes from cleaning Justin's hands). I felt guilty, I didn't wanna take it, but she said "Don't tell me my money isn't good enough" and that was like.. well, I don't wanna insult her either. She said "Buy yourself some new clothes" and I realized we both looked kinda ragamuffin. We dont buy new clothes... ever.. not for us anyway.

I doubt we'll buy new clothes for us, though.. Justin said "You didnt take her money, did ya?" but it's not like she gave me much choice. I felt guilty taking it and I felt guilty not taking it. Turns out she gave me $50. Justin felt bad, saying it's way too much.

It was just one of those right place right time things. We had no plans of being there, 4 hours ago. They were just gonna put some fix-a-flat in the tire (there's no way they would've gotten far with that, that tire was messed up bad). All these church going folk driving by to go to church, just ignoring these folks. It drives me crazy how folks can sit in church and listen to a preacher and not notice the world around them where they can put the word of Jesus to use. They'll go on some missionary trip to God knows where, but ignore their fellows right next to them.

Anyhoo.

Justin is a good man.

I think I'll buy him a plum tree. That's what he's been wanting

(He also 'saved' a cat the other day. Poor thing got hit by a car on our street, he took it to the vet, but didn't make it. That man is a true angel. Not a bad bone in his body.)

No, it was one of the right place, right time, right type of people kind of things. If you both didn't have a caring heart, it wouldn't have gotten done.

 

[LindaB220]

TTmom, that's a nice story. It pays helping others, you never know when you might be the one needing help yourself. And planting a plum tree is fun. But ours still sin't giving any fruit, I mean come on, it's been in the ground for at least a month now.

Here it is freshly planted.

And now:


Absolutely no progress. These fruit trees really are not for the impatient gardeners

How inconsiderate of it. Wait it out. It looks good.

 

[LindaB220]

Story form my boss- he swears it is true and he overheard the whole thing while he and his wife were having lunch in a restaurant. Here is the condensed version of the conversation one booth over:
High School Senior - Man, I graduate in a couple of months. I don't know what to do with my life.
Mother - Well, Julio seems like a nice boy. Go to the dance with him and get pregnant. Then he will marry you and take care of everything.
High School Senior - No, he plans to go to college and says that he isn't going to marry anyone until he graduates with a degree.
Mother - well, isn't there another boy that you can marry?
Grandma - Don't worry if they won't marry you. Just go on assistance. Free money and you don't have to work.
High School Senior - I don't know if I can live on what they give you for assistance.
Grandma - No problem, just have more kids with other daddies. That what I did.
Mother - Yah, me too.

I felt like an oddity there, I was married, never been divorced and no kids from other daddies.

Shakes head.

 

[vehve]

Alice, funny, here gum is considered good for your teeth. Almost all of our gum is xylitol based though.

 

[Tomtommom]

I've been married but we conciously chose not to have kids, part of the reason we went separate ways: I changed my mind on that. I am glad to be an "older" mom.