I just talked to my sister for about an hour and a half. It was great to talk to her... I dont get to talk to her much. But some of the things she told me have really made me think...

First off, I'm extremely excited to hear that Evan is walking. Nette plays hide and seek with the boys, only it's the lazy-man's hide and seek that my parents invented while my brother was young. She sits on the couch and counts with her eyes closed. After she's done, she calls out "Andrew, are you under the desk?"
"No Mommy"
"Are you in my shoe?"
*giggle* "Don't be silly"
"Ok... are you behind the couch?"
"You found me!"
It's the greatest game to play when you're feeling sluggish or just plain don't want to get up. Apparently Evan hasn't really caught onto the idea yet though... he'll "hide" behind a piece of paper or Lego. It's adorable enough to hear over the phone, never mind what it would look like first-hand.

Mom and Lynette are planning on coming to visit me for a girls' weekend aways within the next couple weeks. I really cant wait. Originally they were going to bring the boys, but Evan's not good on long car rides (they realized that during the 8 hr drive to the cottage last weekend) and we decided we need time for just us girls. They'll be here for 3 nights, meaning we all get to pick an event or activity for a night. My choice is... karaoke! Are we surprised? Hardly. I can just imagine my mom, my sister and I standing on a stage and belting out a song. It'll be awesome! Mom's found a new passion for ATVing so I'm supposed to find soemthing around here for that.

Mom's new passion and eagerness to try new things is one of the things that scares me. She's going through her mid-life crisis... Nette says Mom's getting kinda depressed about work and life and, mostly, Dad. They've been married for 30 years, and he put us through absolute hell while Mike Nette and I were growing up. We pretty much begged her to leave him for most of our childhood... growing up with being told that we were useless, stupid, ugly, fat, lazy... not overly great for the self-confidence. I like to think that I've grown stronger, but I still digress to the 6 yr old at the face of conflict -- which is why I cry whenever I'm faced with conflict or am confronted by authority. It's also contributed to my fear of thunder -- loud, overbearing noises. But the main difference is that now Mom actually acknowledges what Dad did to us, because now that none of us are around for him to pick on, he's targeted her. And she's thinking of running.
You have no idea how long I've been waiting to hear that. I know it sounds horrible, and I love my dad a lot... now. But I remember when Melissa and I used to actually go out searching for new men for my mom to date and how I spent most of high school calling him Ford instead of Dad.
But now I've grown up, and away from the idea that he was so horrible. I dont hate him anymore... the best way to live with him is to live away from him. But now Mom is thinking of leaving. She's confided in Nette about it, and she's been trying to talk her out of it... just timing-wise. Why now? Why not 10 years ago when there were four of us going through this hell?

I honestly don't know how I feel about it. Nette says that Dad's clueless about Mom's ideas, and I honestly dont think he could survive without her. So if Mom does leave, Nette will end up with a "fourth child" as she puts it (Andrew Evan and Shawn).

*sigh* Be careful what you wish for... but don't wishes have expiration dates?