Red Letter Day Remembered

It was a year ago today that things got really exciting. A little after 9 in the morning, my cell phone rang and it was my agency calling to tell me the stork had been sighted, and our referral could come at any time. (Yazmine was giving me a clue, I was just too obtuse to get it at the time) I called Jeff at work to tell him the good news, and Meg and I trotted off to Monclair plaza for some shopping, and then to downtown Claremont for lunch. Having bought Tenley’s first pair of shoes and indulged in a little dessert at the ice cream shop, we were heading home when my cell rang. It was my agency again. In point of fact, it was the director of my agency calling to tell me I was a Mom. I veered across two lanes of traffic and whipped into the nearest parking lot so I could write down the details. I was glad Meg was there- it was so much more fun to share the moment with someone- I think I would have been very disappointed to have been alone...it also helped that she reminded me to put the car in park before I hit the building. We called Jeff- who was stunned- and then we sat there overwhelmed and weeping with surprise and joy. Neither my Mom nor Jeff’s parents could be reached, and for once it was my Dad who got to hear the good news first. Tina was still on maternity leave, delighted to be among the first to know, and happily got out her “What to Expect the First Year” book and converted Tenley’s height and weight from the metric and figured out which percentiles she was in. Jeff and I celebrated by buying the furniture for the nursery and dining at the Panda Inn which was where we had dinner after our first meeting with our agency.

So, a year later Meg and I got back in the CRV and headed for Montclair plaza again- this time with Tenley in tow. Our destination was the JC Penney portrait studio so we could have Ten’s 18 month pictures taken. Our appointment was at 11:10, and if we had been taken on time we might have gotten more than the 6 pictures we managed before the Tenster was done. She was so good during the long wait, but it was windy and her allergies were bugging her so by the time we actually took the pictures she was tired and clingy. Still 2 of the 6 were really good and a 3rd was ok.

Tenley fell asleep as we cruised down the freeway a couple off ramps to downtown Claremont. We got lucky and found a parking place within a block of Aruffo’s Italian Cafe, and they had a nice spot by the window where Ten could continue to slumber in her stroller while Meg and I relived last year’s yummy lunch at this spot. Then we strolled up to Tattle Tales where Meg had bought the shoes, and picked up some cute orange barrettes to complement Tenley’s summer wardrobe. The next stop was, of course the ice cream shop for a little dessert.

Then we left and went to THE parking space at the insurance office where I sat on the phone and got the details about my new daughter. We commandeered a nice lady to take a picture of the three of us to commemorate the occasion.

Meg summed the whole thing up perfectly while we were at lunch: it’s yesterday and forever. It feels like Tenley has always been here- we search old high school memories for where she was although we know she was not even a thought, and yet it feels like it was just yesterday that we walked these same paces and cried tears of joy as we found out about the new life that was becoming a part of our family....but it’s been a whole year.

...we close our eyes and the world has turned around again...we close our eyes and another year has come and gone...
~Oingo Boingo