THREE
When the Rug Is Pulled Out From Under You
November 25, 1982
Thanksgiving Day didn’t disappoint. It had been a long day of family togetherness accompanied by the proverbial feeding trough of tom turkey and sides. Candied yams smothered in golden toasted marshmallows, sausage stuffing, space cranberries, green bean casserole, jello salad laced with pineapple, more marshmallows and cool whip, and of course the standard pumpkin, pecan and apple pies rendered most of the family unfit for any other social gathering. Reclining on couches and floors, those who failed to wear the appropriate sweatpants could be found with zippers down and shirttails out disguising the bloat that comes from gluttony. What is it about Thanksgiving that compels everyone to gorge them selves like it was their last meal on the planet? I suppose for some it might be, but that’s just unfortunate timing; or fortunate, I suppose, depending upon one’s point of view.
Nevertheless, it was the first Thanksgiving for our little guy at just 5 ½ months old. The youngest member of the family and our first child, he captured everyone’s attention throughout the day, bouncing on knees and scooting about in his red and white bouncy walker that barely allowed his toes to touch the floor. Always smiling with his big dimples and deep blue eyes, he stole the hearts of aunts, uncles and cousins.
We had morphed easily from a couple into parents and we felt in control of our new situation. The past five months had gone smoothly. Our little man was growing well, hitting or surpassing milestones at every pediatric check up. Breastfeeding was effortless and milk was plentiful. Poops were “healthy” and frequent. Distressing and unattractive hormonal rashes that often plague a nursing infant had cleared up (the one that clearly upsets mom more than anyone else) and we had resumed our relentless photo taking of the cutest baby boy that ever was. Life was good. We were good and he was jovial except for a runny nose most of the day. Teething or cold, it was hard to know, but we wanted to get back to our quiet cocoon of a home and recover f
