Options

I think the most trying part of living in a small town for me has been the loss of options. For instance, we can go to a pediatrician who is bright, but has a dumpy, dingy office and who's wife is a witch, literally. Or we can go to a doctor who has a clean office, but not much in the way of experience. I realize that it may not seam like a big deal, but Maisy is truly complicated. I have described her health history to medical professionals before only to watch their eyes glaze over or worse, had them brush it off as nothing. I need to trust her doctor.

(The Riverwalk in San Antonio)

Then there is the teacher issue. Ella would love to have a different teacher, I would love to find a different teacher for Maisy. We don't have any other options. There are fifteen third graders at Ella's school, they only need one third grade teacher. I feel bad that she can be mean and I'm sorry that the emphasis is on timed multiplication tests, but in the long run it will serve her well and she will have stories to tell her kids.

(Ella in the Christmas pageant.)

I asked another mom the other day, trying to sound like I knew what I was talking about, "So, which park do you usually take your kids to?" She looked at me kind of funny and said, "There's only one park in town, the one on Main St." I thought that might be the case but I was really hoping I was wrong. The town park has only big kid swings and the sand underneath it is as hard as concrete. Too dangerous for Miss Maisy.

(Sadie in the Christmas pageant.)

We do however have one grocery store other than Walmart and it is a nice store. There aren't any fabric stores within fifty miles, but I hear there is a good one in a town about seventy-five miles away. There are a lot of antique stores and if I could keep little hands in check I could spend hours wandering in all of them.

There are six different stores that sell cowboy gear and the options of camouflauge are amazing. We can get homemade tortillas almost anywhere we go and the refried beans are wonderful. Jack sings like Gaston, "I use antlers in all of my decorating." every time we walk into the outfitters store/restaurant in town.

I also have the option to spend countless hours in the car, I can't opt out. We have interesting conversations and I spend a lot of time talking and teaching.