Treasure From Home

>> Wednesday, February 24, 2010

When I moved to Colorado, my parents decided that it was time to clean out their attic and the storage unit that they had. Good for them -- and better for me & my brother since we wouldn't have to do it. Or so I thought.......until the day a random box was delivered by my mailman.

It started off small -- little magnets or angel pins. Cookbooks and recipes. Books in general. But then the boxes got bigger and their contents more puzzling.

One box had juice boxes, 4 cans of ravioli, a box of Kashi breakfast bars and no note, no letter, no explanation. I called my parents.

Me - Really? Juice boxes, ravioli, and breakfast bars? Seriously mom & dad -- we do have food here in Colorado.

Dad - Well, it was leftover from your visit with the girls, so we thought we'd send it back to you. And the breakfast bars are for Nani (who calls them "Grandpap's cookies)


Another box contained a pair of slippers.

Me - Why did you send me a box of slippers?

Mom - Well, when you were here, Mitzi kept sniffing them, so I just sent them out for her.

I just didn't have the heart to tell her that Mitzi was just sniffing them to decide if she wanted to eat them.  She wasn't going to wear them for God's sake -- she has paws -- not size 7 feet.

Another box had a box of Splenda, a small jar of instant coffee, a box of oatmeal, and a container of Charmain wipes. I knew this box was from my dad right away. Turns out that he was going to be visiting in a few days and shipped out a couple things that he would "need" -- again, like he couldn't find that stuff here in Colorado. Leave it up to my dad to send HIMSELF a care package!

Little by little, my folks were cleaning and consolidating -- and sending it all to me. Somehow, the day we signed the mortgage papers became the day they thought our house became a satellite storage facility for them.

But, the crowning glory was the day I came home from one of my mommy-running errands and saw the box the size of a refridgerator on my front lawn. (Ok, so I exaggerate a bit -- it was the size of an air conditioner). As soon as I saw the familiar handwriting on the label - I did my patented eye roll and "put out" sigh and dragged the box in the house. Nani was immediately at my heels -- "What's that mommy?" "Is it for me mommy?" "What did Bubbe & Grandpap send me?"

(My parents have my daughter trained better than Pavlov's dogs. Any time the mailman brings a box, they know it contains something for them from Bubbe & Grandpap -- whether it's a toy or a can of ravioli.  I've started telling her that it's not from Bubbe or Grandpap, but the garbage man -- which isn't so far from the truth!)

I open the box and find myself staring at 16 years worth of my dance costumes. Yep -- my parents packed up every single dance costume I ever wore (and that my mother saved) and sent the whole kit and kaboodle to me -- under the guise of "Oh, Nani would just LOVE to play dress up with these!" What they didn't know was just THAT VERY MORNING I JUST GOT RID OF TWO LARGE GARBAGE BAGS OF STUFF THAT THE GIRLS DON'T PLAY WITH ANYMORE!

Another phone call home.....

Dad - Hello?

Me - I got the box.

Dad - Chuckling

Me - Slick move sending it out without telling me

Dad - More chuckling

(I hear my mother in the background - "She got the box, didn't she?)

More sighing and eye-rolling.

In their defense though -- Nani did get a kick out of all the costumes and loves to play dress up with them. But geez - give me some warning next time.

And when they don't have boxes to send, that's when the envelopes come. Chock fill of newspaper articles and clippings with my mom's handwriting in the margin. The article about cleaning your garbage disposal ("Thought you could use this! Love, Mom). The clipping about washing cloth diapers. (Really handy since I use disposables). The picture of the dog cut out of their local paper because it looked like Mitzi. The article about savings accounts and stocks from my dad. The Consumer Reports magazines and the articles about diabetes. (All my dad's way of subtly telling me I'm 1) financially irresponsible, 2) uneducated when it comes to big purchases, and 3) a potential diabetic)

Daddy's getting sneaky though -- and is now sending me stuff through email. Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky!

(Dad - I know you're reading this -- so know that I do appreciate all that stuff and read every single thing!)

Really, I love my parents to bits and in the end, do appreciate these little gestures. If I can't poke a little fun at them, what good are they?

Now I'm off to check my mailbox to see what treasure from home are waiting for me!

11 comments:

Anonymous February 24, 2010 at 6:42 AM  

LOL Funny!

My dad will put out a box of stuff of mine in their basement.

THen a year later when I ask for stuff, he say, "Well I put it out for you to look at and then I threw it away"

The thing is, he never tells me to come and look at it!!!!!!!

He just thiinks that I will "sense" he is throwing out my stuff!

Buckeroomama February 24, 2010 at 7:43 AM  

LOL! I think it's rather sweet of them, though. :)

--
Do stop by and check out my SafetyTat giveaway (the coolest product that you hope you'll never need):

http://buckeroomama.blogspot.com/2010/02/safetytat-review-and-give-away.html

Lisa February 24, 2010 at 12:19 PM  

Awwww, they love you so much!! I poke fun at my mom too but in the end I'd miss it terribly if she didn't send me "articles" she found and thought I needed to read:)

Helene February 24, 2010 at 2:06 PM  

Your parents sound like a riot! Way more fun than mine for sure!!

They just miss you and the grandkids, it sounds like!!

But I could see how after awhile, you're just like, "Okay, enough already!" Too bad we don't live closer...Bella and Nani could play dress up 24/7 with all those dance costumes!

Stephanie February 24, 2010 at 5:54 PM  

Just found you and had to comment! This is hilarious and I hope my Mother never sees this post. I am certain the boxes of my old textbooks and stuffed animals would start arriving the very next day. Your parents are brilliant!

Sara February 24, 2010 at 5:55 PM  

you have such sweet parents. It has to be getting crowded at your house, but awww it's so sweet

Vanessa February 24, 2010 at 9:05 PM  

Hahahah! Funny and sweet and maybe a little frustrating all at the same time! :-D The Husband's parents talk to us about getting his stuff now that we have a house... I'm a little scared now! ;-)

Anonymous February 25, 2010 at 3:14 AM  
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous February 25, 2010 at 8:29 AM  

Thanks for making me smile. Your parents obviously love and think of you often. I bet you get many laughs out of the things they send you.

Have a great day,and have fun with whatever you receive in the mail.:)

Personalized Sketches and Sentiments February 28, 2010 at 8:06 AM  

haha!!!! LOVE this post! Oh, what will the next fun surprises be? :o)
My mom was always sending coupons and recipes and this and that.... (Our kids, when they were little, were always anticipating something fun in the mail for them, like a few dollars for an icecream cone, little beanie baby, etc... My mom passed away in 2004, I sure do miss her letters and care packages!)

And I think that was pretty good about your dad sending things he would like to have on his visit :o)

i love your Phone calls and your dad's responses with chuckling! haha

Blessings & Aloha!
(love your sense of humor!)

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