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Late Night Election Night
I'm still beaming from Tuesday. Aren't you?
What a night!
Nothing can get me down, not even the Sears repairman who says fixing my 5-year-old washing machine would cost nearly as much as purchasing a new one. OK, that caused some temporary frustration, but now I’m trying to think of my new purchase as one of the ways I can help stimulate the economy. Barack Obama is going to need all the help he can to get it back on track.
In honor of Election Day, we hosted a small party. For awhile it was chaos, with kids running from room to room and then back into the rain, while the adults talked over music on the stereo and political pundits on the television. Maya and Guillermo had a blast. I had visions that they would be so worn out that we could quickly tuck them into bed after their friends left so I could focus exclusively on election night returns.
That plan failed because I didn’t even attempt to usher them into bed. Instead, Guillermo, my 4-year-old, was up until nearly 1 a.m. Maya, who is 2, fell asleep in my arms just minutes before Obama spoke in Chicago.
But I didn’t mind at all because with them up, I had two extra special people with whom to celebrate the election results.
When the television anchors declared Obama the winner of Ohio, I scooped Maya up in my arms and twirled her around the room, cheering. A few minutes later, Guillermo came into the room and I gave him a big hug.
Later, when it was official Obama would become the next president, I picked Maya up and cheered as we spun around the room again. She was beaming. I hope I always remember the smile on her face, her laughter in my ears.
She has no idea why I was so happy, of course. She knew Obama won, but neither she nor Guillermo really knows what that means. Over time, we’ll teach them — there are so many lessons they will learn.
Barack Obama inspires me to be a better neighbor, a harder worker, a better parent. My job, as it always has been, is to inspire my children in the same way.
Natalie appears Sundays on TriangleMom2Mom. Read more about Natalie at her blog A Day at the Park. Read all of our blogs and forums about the elections by clicking here.
Natalie Gott
Natalie is a TriangleMom2Mom featured blogger, appearing every Sunday.
Natalie is a stay-at-home mom in Carrboro to castle- and super hero-loving Guillermo, 5, and puzzle- and big brother-adoring Maya, 2. Natalie was a wire service reporter for nine years, but stopped working after Maya was born in 2006. Most mornings you can now find her at the playgrounds chasing her kids, who frequently are wearing superhero capes. Natalie grew up in Iowa and Peoria, Ill. After college, she lived in St. Louis, Baton Rouge, La.,and Austin, Texas. In 2005, she and her husband moved to North Carolina and she proudly sings every word to the "It's Carrboro" rap. Natalie loves politics, reggae and grocery stores and readily admits she wastes too much time reading celebrity gossip, but just can't stop herself.
Comments
Not everyone is as excited as you are. :) That being said, now that Obama is president, we all have the duty to respect and pray for our nation's leaders regardless of our political persuasions.
:)
Cady
I agree, Cady. I've always tried to teach my kids that we respect the president, even if we don't agree with all of their decisions.
As an unabashed liberal, I am thrilled that America has stood up again for diversity and tolerance as well as the recognition that an intelligent and thoughtful leader is not only important but crucial to regain our standing in the world. As Obama stated toward the end of the compaign, we can finally claim that we have a "righteous wind at our backs." It has been a long time coming.
I'm quite intrigued in spite of myself, to see how things drastically change. I'm skeptical, but asbsolutely open-minded to the possibilities.
There will be changes in the approach of the president to both domestic and international concerns due to Obama's deliberate and thoughtful evaluation of issues. I am concerned that the Republican minority, particularly in the House, is already verbalizing a readiness to fight rather than an attitude of compromise. Somehow the magnitude of the mandate on Tuesday failed to impress upon the leaders of the right wing that they have to, at the very least, reassess their principles. Look at the passage of several propositions allowing for the use of marijuana and the resounding defeat of all of the antiabortion efforts. Although the conservative talk show hosts may disagree, I think this country is more liberal than we have been perceived.
Natalie...if you need a break before purchasing a new washer, I have an old washer (and dryer) from the house before we rebuilt. Works perfectly fine. It's yours if you want it!
Di, you are so nice. However, we bought one on Saturday and it was delivered today, just in time. I have at least four loads of laundry waiting for me tomorrow.