It Must be in His Genes

Lane has taken to rearranging all of the toys in the house.

Um, no, make that moving all of the toys in the house.

When did this begin?


Last week when we went to Specialize, and Lane discovered his cousin's trucks. When he wasn't busy riding his forklift around the warehouse, Lane figured out how to push the trucks across the floor.

We didn't have any trucks at our house yet. We do now.

It doesn't matter though. Lane quickly moved beyond scooting trucks all over the floor. He will scoot anything he can get his hands on: his toy basket, his phone, the remote control.

This morning, he moved his activity table all over the living room.

He moved it from in front of the couch, to the window and then back over to the couch.

And then thought about where else it could go.

When James and I determined our son's name would be Lane Thomas Rader, there were certain criteria met. 1.)It was a strong, short name. 2.)He would be called Lane. No nicknames. 3.)Lane Rader would look good in print - either on the front cover of the next great American novel or on the thousands of plats he would send out as a surveyor.


Lane is pretty much like his papa in every way. I have all but given up the novelist idea.
1.)He is strong willed. 2.)He is determined to do things on his own and his own way. 3.)He is bossy.

So, I am pretty sure he is going to follow in his papa's footsteps.

But, we know some other men who are just like that. They work out in Hoschton and move things around all day long. We call them Pops and Uncle Pork chop.



If the writing gig doesn't work out and Lane isn't in to surveying, I'm pretty sure there will be something he can do over at Specialize. Looks like moving things around might just be in his genes.

On Our Own Two Feet

Papa is in North Carolina.

Lane and I have been on our own all week long.

We miss him.

Here are some things that have happened while he has been gone:

We went treasure shopping and found Papa the perfect birthday present.

We lost the remote control - and the card reader for the camera.

We stopped by the Mush house to pick up the sewing machine and stayed all night - even getting a home cooked dinner.

We went to Target.

We had a play date with Andrea and Maddie.

We lost the remote again.

Lane has been spending a lot of time in his birthday suit.

We got a new rug for the living room.

We found the cord for the camera so we could download photos but then the camera battery died.

Lane has been sleeping all night - I have not been.

Old Crazy next door is getting a new roof.

Lane pulls himself up on everything. Including Chloe. He loves being able to stand.

And, today is my mom's birthday. So, we are heading out to Hoschton this afternoon.

We miss you Papa. But, we are doing OK on our own.

(Sorry for the tears this morning. The house is lonely without you. And you know I don't sleep well when you are gone. No one to lobster.)

Hurry home, Papa. The short hair is getting a little tired of entertaining Lane.

"Hey, Papa. Don't I look just like you in these photos? Mama is making me take tubbies in the kitchen sink. Hurry up and get home."

Sunset: Until We Meet Again

Sunset: Beach Hound

When we got the news we were heading to North Carolina for work, we turned on the computer and began looking for sleepy little beach towns.

The pups could stay with my parents, and we would take the babe to the beach for the first time.

If you know our old hound dog Marley than you more than likely know that Marley doesn't handle change well. Mar prefers to spend her mornings alone in the sun, her days in bed, her evenings getting a home cooked meal, and then back to bed - her own bed. A bed covered with a down comforter.

We were concerned about how she would handle staying with my mom for the week. So, when we saw that these tiny little towns along the Carolina coast welcomed pups, we decided Mar would join us.

The fresh air would be good for her. She could use a little change of atmosphere. This has been a rough eight months for Mar.

Mar does not dislike Lane in any way. She just chooses to treat him like she treats the dining room table: it is in our house, it takes up a lot of room, and it is not going any where.

Occasionally, Mar will give Lane a little sniff or look at him in passing. Yet she still prefers not to touch him, be near him or pretty much acknowledge him.

So, yes, a family beach trip - minus the short hair - would do all four of us well. We could relax. Lane could experience the beach. Mar could feel important - because she is. Mar is so important to our family. If Mar is in a good mood. We are all in a good mood.

Because, the thing is, Lane loves Mar. Elly Mae will play with him all the time. Elly Mae doesn't mind his tiny hands pulling at her ears or lips. Those two are always in each others faces.

But Mar, she is hesitant. And Lane, he wants Mar to love him. He gets so excited when she walks in a room or looks his way.

You can't imagine the pure glee we felt when we took Mar to the beach Friday evening and saw our ten-year-old hound transform into a pup. James and I laughed and smiled. Lane was elated to see his black dog running, playing in the water and having fun.

It was a sight.

A sight I am sure James and I will always remember.

Sunset: Calabash

Thursday morning, we woke to gray skies. No problem. We headed over to Calabash, the little town located next to Sunset, to do some sight seeing and have some lunch.

Calabash is known as the "Seafood Capital of the World." The name of this tiny port town might sound familiar - think Calabash shrimp. The restaurants in Calabash all prepare their sea food the same way: battered in corn meal and fried.

And the atmosphere is awesome. Not a single chain restaurant in the entire town.

Yum.

We'd dined at one of the seafood restaurants the night before, when Lane tasted hush puppies,which we renamed Hush Hooties, for the first time.

He was hooked.

Good thing hush puppies accompany every meal in Calabash.

Sunset: Beach Babe

On Tuesday afternoon, we packed up the car and hit the road toward North Carolina. After a brief stop in Braselton to drop off the short hair and visit with Pops and Mom mom, we were on our way.

We spent all day Wednesday and Thursday morning in Cary, NC, while Papa worked.

Thursday afternoon brought us to Sunset.

After checking in to our villa, we put on our suits and headed toward the sand.

The beach was bare that afternoon. So, we decided to let Lane experience it the same way.