We left Colorado two and half years ago, leaving the home that the five of us lived in for 11 years. As much as we all look back on our beloved home on South Pine Road in Evergreen we have all come to appreciate that home is were the family is and not the physical address that we reside.
Both Hunter and Jordan flew from their lives in Colorado and Japan to spend Christmas with us in New York City. It has taken several years to feel like I have truly nested into our new lives here. But for them coming home is more than just being at a physical address it means coming back to the safety and familiarity of "home". Everyone's family has a certain feel, smell, and flavor. When you go home you know the smell of the towels and you can expect the classic foods in your refrigerator/cabinet. For weeks before the kids arrived Cameron and I would be shopping and I'd grab something off the store shelf and say, "Oh, I have to get these for Hunter" or " Jordan will want me to have those. She loves them." They may have never bought Sunshine Snack Mix or Queen Anne's Chocolate Covered Cherries for themselves, but you feel compelled to make sure those flavors of the past are available to them when they visit. As I'm buying all this junk food for Jordan and Hunter, Cameron is asking me why I'm buying all this crap for them but she never gets any treats. Of course, she can't understand that six years from now when she is visiting from college I will be sure to have Nutella in the cabinet although she may be long past that teenage food fad.
Jeff and I have a queen sized bed in our bedroom, Cam has a twin, and we have fold-out queen in the living room. Between the five of us we had rotating sleeping arrangements. Jordan being the only person who does not have a regular bed (she sleeps on a futon in Japan) had less fold-out couch time than anyone else during her 10 day visit. The one (and maybe only) desirable thing about the fold out couch was the memory lane bedding, including the Toy Story and Lion King pillow cases, flannel elk patterned sheets, and the Olsen Twins comforter from Wal-Mart circa 2000. There is something humbling and comforting about sleeping on childhood bedding.
So the kids are home and snuggled in. And now we all regress.
One afternoon after I got off of work I met the kids down on 5th Avenue and 42nd Street. Hunter had never been to the New York City Central Public Library so we went in for a bathroom break and a photo shoot. When we were out front taking photos of the lions Hunter framed a photo and said to me, "Ok, Mom, stand here and shoot when I say when." Before I knew it Hunter had nimbly scaled the lion and was sitting on his back. You have to understand that as a mother what I see is not a great photo op, but instead a missed step that sends my baby plummeting to the concrete below or the sound of a cop's whistle calling him down to issue a ticket for trespassing. Thank god none of that happened and it was a great shot (see below). But in that minute of taking the photo I am no longer the mother of a 22 year old man, but instead I regress to the mother of a 14 year old boy who is climbing to the top of a 50 foot pine tree in the backyard and wants me to take a photo of him, which I oblige just to get him to come down.
Cameron is a wonderfully self-assured and accomplished high school girl. But after a day running around the city with Jordan and Hunter she was a puddle of tears telling me that they didn't pay any attention to her and disregarded her knowledge of the city. Jordan and Hunter are both well traveled but no one knows the city like Camie, but they negated that with her little sister status.
Jordan is sunshine and light, except.... for a secret side of her personality that Hunter and Cam call "Sheila". Forget that Jordan has graduated from college and now lives in Japan. She can't resist being the big sis. She has an opinion on who's turn it is to do the dishes, spending Mom and Dad's money, who's turn it is to walk the dog, and which subway line is the safest way to their destination.
My children have all grown up to be so self-sufficient and responsible, yet somehow when they are sleeping under my roof I have the need to know where they are, where they are going, what time they will be home, and who has Cameron with them. When they are spending their own hard earned money I can't resist asking if they really have money for that or if they really need that. My two older kids have tackled the subways of foreign cities and Cam navigates the NYC subway city on a daily basis, yet when the three of them head to Soho together I insist on them calling me once they reach their destination so that I will know they are not lost somewhere in Queens.
Between everyone's holiday "must" list we accomplished a lot. Hunter wanted to go shopping in Chinatown for his Fayus shoes and teas (check), Jordan needed to go the dentist, get a flu shot, and exchange a game at Game Stop (check), and Cameron wanted to hang out with Jordan and Hunter and go see "Frozen" (check). Jeff wanted to get through the holidays without getting caught up in a work IT emergency (check), and I wanted to stop time while we were all snuggled on the couch watching "The Waltons - A Homecoming" (fail).
Last February we adopted a dog from Bark Animal Shelter in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. When we lost our beloved Golden Retriever, Trooper three years ago we never imagined replacing him, but we truly believe that our little Oliver is blessed by Trooper to be our new dog. Just having him in our apartment, making his walks in Central Park part of our daily routine, and hushing his barking at the noise in the general hallway makes our apartment feel like a full house.
Life in New York City is so hard and so wonderful. But when we are all together eating the same delicious Christmas feast that Jeff used to make in Evergreen we are a family without a city. We are a family cherishing our history, our independence, and each other.
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