Joy Ride
The first days of school this year were a little rough for us….to say the least. Maybe I should say it was rough…for me. And no I’m not talking about the saddness and sentimentality that my girls were another year older. What happened was–well– any parent’s worst fear come true. Let’s just say my girls went on a unexpected joy ride at the end of the school day, thanks to a mix-up at their school.
The bell rang and school was dismissed, as usual. My girls knew–as did the school per my instructions–that they never ride the bus home. Nothing against buses. In fact, everyone knows I love buses! In fact, I have 13 of them myself. (see www.littlerocktours.com ) We just have other after school arrangements at the end of every day.
So I called the school that morning to confirm the plan—since it was the first day of the first official week. But still, at the end of the day, school officials insisted my girls take the bus. Both girls explained to separate teachers in different rooms that they didn’t think that was what they were supposed to be doing. In fact, my daughters have never taken the school bus home…and they knew that. Even so, the teachers still insisted that the instructions were to put them on the bus. They told my daughters that I had called the school. The reality was, I did call the school…to confirm the plan–not change it.
So my first grader and third grader -against their own better judgment–got on the bus…and off they went…home to an empty house. And no we don’t keep a key anywhere outside.
When they arrived home, Presley told the bus driver she didn’t think anyone would be home. The bus driver told her that he would wait for her to check. Apparently my two little girls pounded on our door for a few minutes and then turned back to the driver when no one answered our door. Presley then walked back over to the bus and asked the driver if he would call mommy or daddy. Thankfully, my girls know our cell phone numbers.
My husband answered his phone and told the driver just to take them back to the school in their aftercare program where we would pick them up. When they arrived the driver got off the bus and walked around through the school until he found what appeared to be an after-school care program. And it was at that moment, their joyride ended.
My girls always wanted to ride the bus home. They finally got their wish. The nice, responsible bus driver who took care of them got something too ….an offer to drive a bigger bus. Welcome to Little Rock Tours.
Check Out My Weed, Dude
A ha. So you took the bait. I’m always one for catchy titles, if only to lure in new readers. Of course, I think I am appealing to a completely different demographic this time.
Our weed has been growing in my backyard for months. How groovy, huh? It sprung up in April…smack dab in the center of a small flower pot on the back deck. My husband first noticed the weed made for nice greenery around the vinca flowers. So when my mom visited our joint in May and was immediately inclined to dig it up and remove it–I had to stop her immediately.
“Don’t do it!” I implored. “Cary likes it. Just replant it into a bigger pot.”
“Huh?” she questioned in disbelief. “Are you sure about this?”
“Yes!” I insisted.
You see, my mom and I were staining our back deck on a –um–smokin’ hot day this past spring. It was 95 degrees and we decided to pot some flowers –which we accomplished while managing to save our beloved weed.
“Well at least no one will see your pot,” she laughed, as she planted it into a bigger pot. She was thankful that our weed is hidden away from the judgmental public— on our back deck.
She was right. Our weed was a bit of a secret, naturally. We wondered what our friends would think if they came over to our joint and saw our weed. Our friends do come over and enjoy being high. After all, our neighborhood is located at the highest elevation in the county!
Okay, beyond that, I am a bit stumped. They say write what you know. However, I can’t come up with any more stupid puns or metaphorial comparisons since I’ve never actually touched the other stuff–the illegal stuff that is.
As for this weed I write about…it’s perfectly legal. And it grows bigger by the day. Since this is a mamas blog, I guess I have to throw in something about the kiddos. So I’ll conclude by saying I fully understand why so many say their little ones are growing like weeds. Check it out:
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- Check out our weed!
Tags: Gina Martin
Unpredicted Chaos
I made a prediction–and I was wrong. I predicted that by the end of July and August–my life would have slowed down enough to tackle a few projects and some freelance work on the side. Of course, I made this prediction at the end of the school year..when I committed to those jobs. Now I have been living in the chaotic consequences these past few weeks.
There’s a lesson there. Whether that lesson is learning how to say “no” every once in a while, or learning that when you have two kids and a small-but-becoming -bigger-everyday-business you should never forecast a slow down. And when time is very limited..something always falls to the wayside. Unfortunately, that has been my blog, which I have been longing to get back to now for three weeks.
So I apologize to my readers–I know there are at least of few of you out there–because you’ve either written, called, or texted me with the same question. My answer: yes, I am alive.
I predict I will be back in regular blogging mode by next week. Of course who am I to make predictions…..
Journey by Design
This rainbow appeared at dinner.
But this latest product of Mother Nature came as a complete surprise. It’s not like we’ve never experienced a tornado before. Come on, we live in Arkansas! I’ve just never been in a tornado while driving in Montana–in a vast, remote area, where we didn’t know if an exit –or even a house for that matter– was within two miles or two-hundred miles.
The unfamiliarity of the landscape prevented us from creating a plan of action as we heard tornado sirens blare and these words come across on the radio (Beep. Beep. Beep) “The following counties are under a tornado warning (etc, etc)…. A tornado has been spotted in the area, approximately 40 miles southwest of Billings. This storm is also capable of producing flash flooding, strong winds, and apple-sized hail. Please seek shelter immediately.”
We knew we were somewhere in the vicinity of this storm. We didn’t know the exact county we were driving through, but we did know that it was only afternoon and dark skies fell upon us like nightfall as rain battered down on our windshield so hard we thought the glass would shatter. I guess we should have opted for that insurance for our rental car after all. Oops.
My in-laws followed us in their own car and picked up a voice through xm satellite warning listeners of the severity of the storm and described the widespread damage it was already leaving in its path. Reports said this was the first such tornado for Billings in more than 50 years! Go figure. We couldn’t help but joke that we brought the tornado from Arkansas.
I took a picture of the headline the next day.
I immediately texted BFF Leah back in Little Rock: “ A tornado just touched down in Billings! There is lots of damage and we are driving somewhere near Billings.” I figured someone ought to know our situation and our whereabouts. I also gave her the address of our hotel if –in fact–it was still intact.
She texted back, “Okay I’ll get online and see.” Moments later, I received this, “Lots of damage in Billings! Your hotel has no power. I called the power company in Montana & reported the outage. They didn’t even know your hotel had lost power! They are sending a crew out to restore it. Since its a business it has priority…except for the area with all the damage.”
Leave it to Arkansans to save the day after a tornado. Those poor Montana hotel workers–who aren’t used to tornados like we are–had no idea they had to actually report the power outage in order to get it restored quickly. Luckily for them, we Arkansans were already on top of it.
More sirens blared as emergency vehicles buzzed by with the glow of their flashing lights illuminating the eerie dark sky. What looked like a multi-car accident turned out to be cars pulled off the interstate– not to avoid the blinding rain–but disabled from the perfectly round holes in their windshields. We witnessed car after car that did not survive the hail.
As we forged on towards Billings, I stared back at the shattered glass along the highway and for an instant, the whole convoluted route of our journey was clear to me. From the unexpected stop at Devil’s Tower to the unusually inept waitstaff that prolonged our lunch…every misstep, every wrong turn, was made for a reason. Those sometimes frustrating delays were there to keep us safe.
Now I look back at our vacation with a different perspective. Yes, there was the wonder of the geysers, the mountains, and the mammoth springs. There were the awe-inspiring creations of Rushmore and Crazy Horse. But you have to wonder about the other forces out there, the ones protecting us, and allowing us to be able to feel, touch, and experience their enormity in a very different way.
Copycat
- There’s an old saying “look what the cat dragged in.” This morning…the tables were turned.
- If you’ve been following our long and dramatic missing cat saga …you’re not alone. I’ve discussed the MIA feline on our popular neighborhood google group, on our mamas blog, and on drive-time radio. You would think everyone in Little Rock has heard about our Cat Gone Wild. In fact, email inquiries from strangers regularly ask me about everything from his status…to how he got his name. To clarify the latter, our cat Leno is named after Jay Leno, the famous comedian /talk show host because his markings. The comedian has a spot of white in his black hair, while our cat had a splotch of black on his white hair. Close enough, right?
Leno -pictured here last year with Brooke!
- Well, our missing “Leno” was spotted in the neighborhood a few weeks ago, just down the street. The good neighbors who spotted him took a photo of him from their yard and showed it to us. He was obviously one lost kitty and looked exactly like our short-haired white cat, even down to that little black marking on his head. We just knew this was our Leno.
Leno was treated like a baby...literally.
- There was only one problem. Whenever we got within feet of him, he darted off deep into the woods. Very strange for a cat who was babied like a baby. (See Stroller Photo!) Give him time, people told us. Cats act differently after they’ve been in the wild. He will eventually let you grab him, we were told.
- Day by day, we walked down the street, put down fresh food, and called his name. But whenever we approached him within 10 feet he took off into a remote area. It was a game of cat and mouse. Except, well, our cat decided he was going to be the mouse.
- Then my animal-loving BFF Leah had an idea. Get an animal trap, she said. It wasn’t a bad idea. At first, the thought of trapping an animal –especially our sweet little Leno–sounded awful . But the thought of our cat starving to death or enduring this Arkansas summer heat sounded even worse. So yesterday I posted a email on our neighorhood google group that explained our need to borrow an animal trap. And just like that. Viola! Within only 5 minutes…we were in business!
- We waited until nightfall to set the trap to avoid the blazing heat of the day. Then, last night, it was like a scene out of Animal Kingdom. We called it Operation: Save Leno. I put on my knee-high boots and carried a big clanky animal trap down the street. Hobbling along beside me was 8-month pregnant Leah, who –along with her big belly–also carried a very stinky can of fresh pink salmon. The only thing she was expecting tonight…to be a part of the special Operation.
- Neighbors stopped us along the way. “You two look like you are up to something!” Then they chuckled at her big belly, my big boots, and the big clanky animal trap I had in my grasp. But they knew about our missing cat and wished us luck on our endeavor.
- Leah and I toyed with the trap for a little while, and finally set it up. We glanced at each other with a sense of excitement and walked away as the sun faded, deciding that if we caught anything other than a cat–we were pounding on Daniel’s door–our next door neighbor who is a true outdoorsman and would not be squeamish about releasing a racoon, rodent, or –gulp—skunk!
- But early this morning it seems all our hard efforts had paid off…the trap worked like a charm. A furry white cat sat remarkably calm inside the cage. Spackles of dirt on his head and face camouflaged his true black markings. He looked worn down and tired. But all that didn’t matter. Our Leno was finally home.
Leno Imposter--Photo taken by neighbor
Once inside our house , the trap was opened and he leapt out, meowing a deep scratchy call that seemed awkward and unfamiliar. And it was at that moment, I knew something was terribly wrong. His meow sounded very different. So I scooped him up like a baby, turned him over, and glanced down at them. Yes, I looked at his two…. paws. And there it was, the tell tale sign this was not our cat, as claws protruded sharply out into the air. Our Leno was declawed.
So what will we do with a strange kitty? I’ll conduct a search to find his true home. If no one claims him, perhaps we’ll keep him.. this copycat…this imposter of Leno. Perhaps we’ll call him Conan. Maybe only then “Leno” will return.
Tags: Gina Martin, Leno, missing cat
Vacation Numerology
Just returned from an awesome vacation that can be summed up by the numbers…
- 2000 miles on a plane
- 1000 miles in a rental car
- 25 miles on a bus
- 20 miles of trails
- 15 miles on a boat
- 10 miles on a river raft safari
- 7 states visted
- 6 windshields damaged by apple-sized hail (thankfully not ours!)
- 5 National Parks
- 4 US Presidents carved into a mountain
- 3 Rainbows appearing out of nowwhere
- 2.5 miles of climbing up a mountain
- 2 children having a great time
- 1 Grizzly Bear encounter
- 1 tornado
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- The Grand Canyon –picture taken from our airplane
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- Common Scene from our Rental Car
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- This is NOT a Little Rock Tours bus :)
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- 20 miles of trails. Here are my little Trailblazers.
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- This tornado touched down upon our arrival in Billings. Our hotel had no power!
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- Brooke enjoyed the boat ride in the Grand Tetons
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- We saw this double rainbow at dinner
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- Brooke loved the Rainbows
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- Yes, this is a Grizzly Bear!
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- Can you see the Bear? He was about 20 feet from us.
Wordless Wednesday
Presley’s First Dance Recital. She danced a Hip-Hop and a Tap dance. Pictured below (with her fellow dancers) from last night’s show at Robinson Auditorium! What a great show! Good job girls!
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- Ashley (Presley’s BFF) and Presley (on right)
Tags: Dance Recital, Gina Martin, Presley Martin
A “Marry” Life
I had the most interesting conversation today about love and marriage. It came out of nowhere when my 6-year old came up to me and just started asking questions. The conversation went something like this:
“Mom, how do you find someone to marry?” Brooke asked so seriously.
“How much time do you have?” I replied.
“One hour and twenty minutes,” she answered without hestitation.
“I don’t know if I can explain it to you in that short amount of time.”
“Okay then. But can I have the jewelry you wore when you got married?”
“Nope.” I said.
“Why not?” she asked.
“Because it’s special to me,” I said. “Maybe someday you can have it…but not today.”
“Is it special because you had a wedding in it?”
“Yes…sort of.”
“Well, what if you married someone else, then can I have the jewelry right now?” she asked. “That way you could have new wedding jewelry and I can have your old wedding jewelry!”
At this point, I decided to play along with her because I became more and more intrigued by where I could take this conversation. So I asked her, “Well what if I did marry someone else and you didn’t like that person, then you would be stuck with someone you didn’t like!”
“Well, I wouldn’t be stuck with that man, you would be stuck with him,” Brooke giggled as she corrected me. Okay, score a point for the 6-year old! Then she quickly added on, “But mommy, if you didn’t like him then you could just marry someone else. And then if you didn’t like him you could marry someone else. And if you didn’t like him you could marry someone else…” she repeated that 3 more times.
“It doesn’t work that way.” I said. Then again, I realized to some people it does work that way.
“Okay so how do you find someone to marry?” Brooke asked one more time. We were already back to the original question.
“Go watch Cinderella.” I told her. “And then come back and tell me if you think that’s for real.”
And just like that she walked away, forgetting about the jewelry. I just hope her next request isn’t for a glass slipper…
Tags: Gina Martin, love, marriage, wedding
Hug Your Children Tighter Today
- I awoke this morning to the thundering claps of helicopters…lots and lots of helicopters. Chopper after chopper buzzed by our bedroom window, flying practically at eye level. From our elevated vantage point– high on our neighborhood’s ridge overlooking the Arkansas River–any aircraft that flies by is usually very close in proximity and occassionally it’s sound is near deafening.
- On a normal day, we would just peer out of our windows and watch them fly by. This time, though, it was different. It sent chills up my spine knowing those were search and rescue helicopters on their way into the nearby Ouachita Mountains to look for any survivors left from yesterday morning’s flash floods that have already claimed the lives of 16 campers, including small children. I hope and pray their efforts will turn up some hope for the many families waiting to find their missing loved ones.
Arkansas Camping Tragedy
- Any strange tragedy like this one always makes me reflect and question the unexpected abrupt end of human life. I was particulary disturbed by the woman who tried to rescue some of the campers, only to be saddened that she could not save even one. She found herself cradling a two year old who drowned, and offering comfort to the distraught mother who could do nothing to save her baby.
Search and Rescue by Horse
One by one those helicopters kept roaring by…and all I could do was just watch and feel useless. I want so much to help, but know that there is absolutely nothing I could do, either logistically or otherwise that isn’t already being done by the hundreds of good men and women who are down there searching for signs of life.
- I am so saddened by what is happening in those mountains that I want to spring into action and do something about it. But I feel helpless. As a mom, I can only imagine the breaking hearts of the mothers who helplessly watched their children be swept down the rushing river. I can only imagine the screams they heard and how such sounds will echo in their minds and torment them forever.
- I want to help, but can’t. The only thing the rest of us can do is look at our own precious children, and love them unequivically and unconditionally. We can tell them we love them a million times.
- And we can hug them like there is no tomorrow.
A Lesson from Swinging
You might be a bit curious about this blog because of its title. I debated its appropriateness. Then I figured, if nothing else, it just might generate a few more readers. So if I’ve aroused your curiousity, please read on. 
This past Thursday I was at the playground with my daughters. I was still busy catching up from a crazy week, one where I wore several different hats. The business owner in me had to make sure tours were planned, employees were working, and customers were happy. The parent in me had to make sure clothes were laundered, homework was finished, and kids were happy.
Meanwhile, the journalist in me took on extra projects. I reported election night for channel 7, going live from the Election Commission headquarters downtown, followed by my regular morning talk show gig on KARN shortly thereafter. After only managing about 4 hours of sleep from one show to the next, we did live interviews with the winners of the big May primary in Arkansas. This year, the balance of power could be affected by Arkansas voters.
As my daughters took turns going up and down the slide, my mind is all abuzz with politcs, parenting , and pets. Yes, pets. Our cat also decided to disappear during one of the busiest weeks I’ve had in months. I sat down on a nearby park bench to take a load off my feet and my mind. I was going thru my usual mental checklist ..making sure I hadn’t missed any meetings or projects. And I was still trying to figure out where the cat went.
Suddenly, just as I was finding my first peaceful moment, Brooke called out, “Mommy, come and push me on the swing! Come on!!”
I looked up from my Blackberry as she sat on the swing, dangling her legs, with an impatient look on her face. Normally, at this point, I would make my way over to the swing and start pushing her. But on this day I just wanted to sit there on that bench and relax for the first time all week. I knew the guilt in me was probably not going to let that happen. Then I had an idea… an idea that turned into a potential life lesson for her…and a continuation of peace for me.
“Brooke, you don’t always need mommy to push you to get to high places. If you try hard enough, if you are motivated enough, you will go as high as you want to go,” I shouted back to her from the comfort of my park bench, realizing this lesson went well beyond the confines of that swingset.
She looked at me, baffled that I resisted her pleas. And then, without further hesitation, “Okay mommy, I guess I’ll see if I can push myself really high. ”
Wow, that was easy. (I can hear the Staples button now)
At this point, I realized what I had just told her was the same advice I told myself decades ago. To get where you want to go ..it’s okay if others push you…but its more gratifying if you push yourself…whether it be in a job, in a relationship, or even on a swing.
“Mommy, mommy…look at me! I’m doing it! Look how high I was able to go! And I was able to do it all my myself!” Brooke called out with excitement. I could see her satisfaction from afar.
I knew I had just spent some of the most valuable time ever with her…from the comfort of a park bench. I found peace on a playground. Now if only I could find the cat…
Gina Martin is co-founder, with her husband, of Little Rock tours. Before that, she was an award-winning television news anchor and reporter. Gina has two daughters, Presley and Brooke. 