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| Just a normal day on the farm (getting dressed wasn't priority one) |
Today I'm going to share a few (I know you were all hoping.) And, each comes with an explanation so the "Not Miller" readers can enjoy the fun.
"You know you're a Miller if you've had sardines for lunch on a road trip." We took a lot of road trips. We would visit our grandparents in UT and on special years, Disneyland. Our family was sometimes poor but always frugal. If we were going to stop at McDonald's, it wasn't going to be until the lunch we had packed was gone. What better travelling lunch food than canned sardines? They last forever, they're full of protein and taste...well they're full of protein.
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| All the Millers together after Carrie and Heidi Jo's missions |
"You know you're a Miller if you shared 1 can of 7up with your 5 siblings and it was enough." On these road trips, after we had our satisfying lunch, Dad would buy us a little treat from the gas station. Now he knew that a can of pop for one little girl was too much and not that healthy, but a little sip of pop would be just the ticket, so he'd buy 1 can to share. One or two sips is actually all I need to this day.
"You know you're a Miller if you have painted the family room floor with a checkerboard, hopscotch and your name." We were adding a room onto the house. The concrete was poured and dry. For family night one night my Dad decided to make a family "time capsule" of sorts. We all got a brush and paint. We decorated the whole floor with the delightful idea that someday, someone else would be living in our home, pull up the carpet and say, "What the?"
"You know you're a Miller if your field was a maternity ward for cows." In California we lived on 10 acres, about 3 of which we used. We rented the other part to the dairy across the street. Our property was the pasture for the pregnant cows. I remember watching out the window while a cow gave birth. It was terrifying, but I couldn't look away.
"You know you're a Miller if you've snuck a bite of Dad's paddle-sized sugar daddy sucker." My Dad had this huge sugar daddy sucker that he got in college. I don't remember the story, but it was somehow connected to his fraternity. He kept the sucker in a special place, and for years he would take it out and show us. It was magnificent. I don't remember the day I went to the dark side, but at some point the temptation was too great. I untwisted a little of the paper covering and snuck a teeny piece. Time went on and one night he called us all together. He showed us his prized sucker with a significant cavity in the side of its previously perfect rectangular shape. "I want you to tell the truth. Who's been sneaking my sucker?" . I had to confess, "I have." Do you know what? So had my other siblings. That doesn't make it right, but it did make me feel better about my criminal past. There was still hope for us.
"You know you're a Miller if you have Pete's dragon in your yard." It could also be ykyam if you love and sing the music to the Pete's Dragon movie. My brother Sam was young when the movie came out and there was seriously nothing cuter than hearing him sing the song. We made him perform it for us time after time. My Dad loves to create. There was a dead tree in the yard and Dad knew just what it needed to be turned into. He used his chain saw and turned the dead tree into Elliot.
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| Sam, Dad , Pete and Pete's dragon coming down. |
