Mom and Dad's Wedding Day: December 25, 1955

I entered a posting titled "Unchained Memories a few weeks ago where I was being nostalgic about my parent's 50 year marriage. Here are the pictures that stirred that posting. They are of my mom and dad's wedding day on December 25, 1955. Magic!

When did that happen?

Last weekend, Rebecca and I braved the crowds and visited the mall to search for a dress, shoes and jewelry that she would find acceptable for my parent's 50th wedding celebration. Rebecca knew she wanted a RED dress. Not black, not pink, not purple....bright RED. OK, I mused, we'll look for a red dress.

Surprisingly, we found one! AND it was half price! It is long, simple, elegant and redder than RED! Next, we needed to find some shoes. THAT would be much harder task since Rebecca is plagued with the same affliction as me: Big Feet. But before we moved on to that hunt, we decided we needed food, so we stopped for a burger and fries. As I'm sitting next to Rebecca at the food court, I listen to her school experiences and dreams of becoming the world's best trombone player. She tells me about the Harry Potter movie and how much she enjoyed it. She laughs as she describes her heavy-set teacher and how she dresses. She gives me advice on what we need to do with youth ministry at the church and what she likes most about being on the basketball team. As I sit there and listen to her, it struck me..... she had grown up on me when I wasn't looking. People told me that kids grow up quickly, but I didn't really believe them. When did she get so smart? and tall? and funny? and confident? and beautiful? At the ripe age of 13, I trust her to get things done better than many adults I know. She's more FUN to be with than most adults and I find that I prefer her company more than anyone else's---with the exception of my husband. I love my daughter and all her funny quirks...

Sigh.

We moved on to the task before us. Rebecca found some silver shoes, size 11 that matched her RED dress nicely. We were both surprised with the ease at which she was able to walk in the 1 1/2 inch heels. "Let's go with these mom....can I go look at the tennis shoes?" I said, " Go for it... I'm going to try on your sliver shoes."

At the end of the night, we realized that our shopping trip was successful:

Red Dress: $40.00

Burger and Fries: $9.00

Silver Shoes: $29.00

Realizing that you and your daughter can SHARE shoes: priceless!

The Book of Wisdom

It's finally here! Peggy Noonan's book: John Paul The Great---Remembering A Spiritual Father is now on bookshelves. There are many books out there on the life of John Paul, but this is the only one you NEED. It's easy to read, devoid of posturing or church politics, Peggy Noonan (who is Catholic and a writer for the Wall Street Journal) takes the reader down memory lane telling well-known stories---and some not so well known--- of the world's most important person.

As I began reading my copy of the book, I was immediately carried back to my pilgrimage to the Vatican last summer. I was moved by Peggy's ability to capture in words all that I saw when I was there as well as the many feelings of those who came into contact with JPII.
To read more from Peggy Noonan herself, click here.

Happy Birthday Gus!

Five years ago today I gave birth to my fourth child, Samuel Augustine. I thank God everyday for the surprise gift I had in my little Gus. Happy Birthday Gussie!

It's true that every child one gives birth to brings out qualities in the parent that eventually mold them into better parents/people and Gus is no exception. I confess that I cried tears of exhaustion and fear when I first learned that I was a pregnant with my fourth child. I was unsure of how I would handle four children..away from any grandparents and free help. With Jack only 6 months old at the time, Nick being 4 and Rebecca aged 8, I wondered how and why God chose this time for another child.

Then Gus arrived. 10 1/2 pounds of baby. Rolls of fat. He seemed ready for college. I remember looking into those blue eyes for the first time and saying, "OK Ooooghlie. What does the future hold for you and me?" 'Tis true that Gus was a challenging baby. He was demanding, hard-headed, and cranky but was and is still a child who knows what he wants: good or bad. Most of all, he either loves you or dislikes you. He runs hot or cold. One thing is for sure: He LOVES his mommy fiercely and makes sure that I know it. He does NOT love the boy who tattles on him incessantly across the street and lets him know it (much to my embarrassment) Gus: (yelling to the boy) "Hey you.. kid! You just go on back to your side of the street. You are NOT welcome here." then there was the time when he said to the boy, "Hey, do you think your COOL??? Well you're NOT!" He then turns his back to the sobbing kid and walks away. Ug!(I don't know whether to laugh or cry!)

Today, Gus is five and I can't imagine what life would be without my Gus. He is big. He is loud. He is heavy (55lbs) and He is my special consolation prize. It is because of Gus that I trust God more, that I trust myself as a mom, that I trust my instinct and that I realize that yelling at your neighbor is NOT necessarily a good thing...but it is funny.

Happy Birthday Gus!

Baskets 'o Food!

Volunteers packing up Thanksgiving Baskets


Food Donations Galore!

Congratulations to our Junior High Youth for collecting over 1000 food donations that filled over 40 Thanksgiving Baskets for the needy poor in our community! Special recognigion goes to all 6th grade Faith Development classes for collecting the most donations. They have won a pizza and game night for all their hard work!

Eucharist MEANS "Thanksgiving"

Fr. John's favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and everyone in the parish knows it. We hold a beautiful Mass on Thanksgiving day complete with our 3 combined choirs, bells, horns, guitars, piano, and organ. The church is usually packed with parishioners and their visitors and to top it off, everyone takes home a loaf of fresh baked bread to share at their Thanksgiving tables. It is a lovely celebration, one which I always look forward to, except for this year. I decided not to go this year. I needed a break from HAVING to go somewhere. I needed a day to stay HOME, enjoy my surroundings, cook our Thanksgiving feast, and prepare for our dear friends.

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were spent assembling food baskets with our youth group, delivering those baskets, participating in school parties, cooking, grocery store shopping and all the other everyday stuff that needs to be taken care of. I had made the definite decision that the Clemens family WAS NOT going to the Thanksgiving Mass......until Fr. John asked the dreaded question:

Fr. John: Georgie, are you going to the Thanksgiving Mass?

Me: (Hesitantly) Noooo. Um. I just need a day off to slowly get up, cook, you know, watch the Thanksgiving Day parade, a day where I don't HAVE to go anywhere.

Fr. John: (jokingly) What???? You will be in TOWN and you will not be attending the Thanksgiving Mass?? You can TAPE the parade. You can relax on FRIDAY! I can't believe that our YOUTH MINISTER is MISSING our Thanksgiving Mass! I mean missing a chance to have Jesus in your hand! Oh I can't BE-LIEVE it!!

Me: (desperate) Well, I can't take Friday off...are YOU going to watch the kids for me?

Fr. John: Your kids will be with you on Thanksgiving anyway! I think there is someone influencing you.....maybe...ummm....SATAN??? (church lady)

Me: OK, OK, OK! I'll be there! But I'm NOT dressing up.

Fr. John: Wear your jeans...come in your P.J.s. Heck, I don't care what you wear. I just want you there.

Me: (exasperated) OK

Yesterday, (the night before Thanksgiving)I stayed up until 1:00am baking pies with my friend Mary. I threw myself into bed and woke up the next morning groaning....why??oh why?? did I tell Fr. John I would be at Mass!! I want to stay in bed..not fight the kids when I tell them they are going to church on a Thursday, rush through another breakfast, sort through the laundry looking for the proper clothes. Why did I ever tell him I would BE there.

While still in bed, I said to Chris: Do you want to go?

Chris responded with an unenthusiastic, "not really, but we'll have to hurry the kids if we do."

We'll go, I said. Let's get moving.

I put on my jeans and sweater, stuffed sweet rolls into the kids, got them dressed and threw everyone into the car.

We arrived to a packed church. The choirs were singing a glorious entrace hymn(Oh God Beyond All Praising...my absolute favorite!) Everyone looked beautiful and happy to be present at our Lord's table on this busy day. During the presentation of the gifts I was moved by so many parishioners who came forward with thousands of donations of food that were blessed and sent to the food pantry. Fr. John's homily was one of thankfulness and reminders to stop, and slow down...to take time for others and to thank God for all His blessings. The best part of the Mass was the Eucharist. Jesus there for me despite the fact that I was unenthusiastic to be there today. His real presence. I was willing to MISS ALL this for a parade on TV?

While Fr. John was simply joking with me the other day, I believe God spoke through Him to let me know that I needed to see Jesus on Thanksgiving, to take time for Jesus..to slow down and make Him the priority.

I didn't need a break on Thanksgiving, I needed Jesus on Thanksgiving.

Thanks for the prompting Fr. John. What a great day today was! Thank YOU Jesus!

A Mother's Thankful Heart

I’m thankful for these intimate glimpses of God:

When Gus wakes me by stroking my cheek gently saying, “Mom, you are beautiful.”
When Jack happily presents me with a Thanksgiving card bearing a print of his small hand.
When Nick plays me an unintelligible beat using his new drumsticks.
When Rebecca sings harmony line alongside my melody when we are driving in the car.
When my husband offers to pour me my favorite drink: Diet Coke.

When I realize God's profound love for me in these simple moments.

Turkey Talk!

Jack and Gus's schools held their Thanksgiving Celebrations today. They were both dressed up as Indians. Jack's Kindergarten class prepared a feast for parents, and staff, complete with a costume parade and drum music (Jack was the drummer). Gus's Pre-K class held a short concert where the kids sang songs that go kind of like this: "Hay yonna, Ho yonna, Hey yonn---NAH" and "A turkey ran away before Thanksgiving Day, they said they'll make a roast out of me if I should stay!" I could not be at both events, so poor Chris had to step in and make an appearance at Gus's school while I worked at helping to set up at Jack's feast. Unfortunately I had the camera and could only take pictures of Jack's event. You'll just have to imagine Gus's celebration. All in a days work!



Jack marching to the beat of his drum.




As soon as the boys got home, they compared their costumes (made of painted brown paper bags, feathers, beads etc), spoke about their individual celebrations, and then finally moved on to the more interesting things of boy life: A battle between the Pilgrims and Indians clothed in their new uniforms.

Jack: Gus, you are a Pilgrim, so you have to wear shoes. Indians don't wear shoes.
I'm Squanto so I'm not wearing shoes.

Gus: Who is Squanto?

Jack: He's the cool Indian that taught the Pilgrims how to make Thanksgiving food. He helped them hunt and cook their food 'cause there were no people on the island...only Indians. That was the start of the First Thanksgiving.

Gus: Oh. OK. I'm a Pilgrim with a gold cape and I'm part Zorro. OK? Hey yanna, Ho yanna, Hey Ya NAH!

Jack: Yeah. You shoot me and then I'll shoot you. I think you are the dark knight.

The boys head upstairs planning the details of their battle.

I'll give them about 5 minutes before I hear the blood-curdling scream indicating the end of the battle.

Francesco's Friendly World

St. Dominic meeting St. Francis

St. Thomas More School adopts a saint every year. This year's Saint is my personal favorite: St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis is admirable in my eyes mostly because of his willingness to repair the church without breaking it apart like Luther did.

One of Jack and Gus's favorite videos is Francesco's Friendly world. This 41 minute cartoon video tells the story of St. Francis and how he rebuilt the chapel of San Damiano. There are numerous "cutesy" songs that children ages 2-9 would enjoy. Keep in mind...this is not high quality video, but will capture your child's imagination and maybe even teach them a thing or two about this wonderful Catholic Saint. Another great Christmas gift option.....

Rules for kids this week

As I've mentioned in an earlier post, Sr. Catherine at STM School always publishes two rules from Ron Clark's Essential 55 Workbook in the Wednesday note. If you have not yet purchased this book, make it a Christmas present to your family:

Rule 12: In School, your child my be asked to evaluate another student's work. When grading other students' papers, giving someone and incorrect grade, whether it is higher or lower than the student derserves, is unfair and may result in a penalty to your child's grade. Make your child aware that the only marks she should make on others' papers are an "X" and the number of answers that were incorrect.

Rule 13 for the week of November 21-December 2: When your child's class reads together, your child must follow along. He must be prepared when called upon and know exactly where to begin immediately reading aloud.

Give Me A Break!

We are having dinner at Spanky's Restaurant on Franklin Street.



Would you BELIEVE that John Stossell is 58??? I'll have what he's having! Whoa!

Chris and I had dinner with John Stossell this evening. (What a cool opportunity!) He was speaking on the UNC campus as a distinguished speaker. Since Chris is the faculty representative for the group who invited John, we were invited to the dinner. John Stossell insisted on paying for our dinners which was very generous of him, but considering the fact that the University paid $15,000 for his lecture, he was not short on cash. I, of course, was blubbering around him asking him silly questions about 20/20. Here was one of them:

Me: (with wide eyes) John, I just have to ask you a question about Barbara Walters! She sometimes seems "ticked" at you after your segment. Is she ticked???

John: (frankly) No. She really doesn't get upset.

Me: Can I take a picture with you?

John: Sure.

Me: (blubbering)Thank you! Thank You!



Chris and I at Memorial Hall, waiting to hear JS speak. Front row...

S.O.S.

I'm sorry for the dead time. My parents have been in town for the last week, and I've been spending a glorious amount of time with them. It is so good to have them around...not only to lend a helping hand, but to keep me company while I do the 'ol routine!

One of the perks of having my mom around, is that she is doing the Clemens laundry. Laundry is one of those things that I do without much complaint, but I sometimes get overwhelmed with the amount of clothes put before me on a weekly basis. Washing clothes for a family of six is tricky, especially when one child needs a specific outfit on a certain day. (Hopefully I can find it in the bottomless pit of the hamper.)

Before my parents came, I made a concerted effort to get as much laundry done as possible to keep my mother from being too overwhelmed herself. I was able to get a good amount done. (It is a victory for me when the clothes are NOT overflowing OUT of the hampers on to the floor.) The remainder of my family's dirty clothes fit nicely inside my two hampers...NO evidence that underneath the lids of these hampers that clothes were begging to explode onto the floor. I was so proud of the fact that you could actually see the floor of my laundry room!

The funny thing was, when my mom arrived and looked in the hampers she immediately said in her gentle way,

"Georgie honey, you don't need to let your laundry get so out of control. "

I was stunned.

I sputtered back, " Mom, this is IN control! "

She laughed.

After one week of doing laundry for me, she started to see how difficult it is to keep up with so much.

I heard her mutter to herself, "This laundry is NOT going to beat me."

Well, mom's been visiting for a week and a half today. She announced, "Well, Georgie, I've given up on the laundry. You are on your own!"

She at least made a good dent in it for me, but I'm where I was before mom came: Two hampers filled to the brim, covered with lids. Thanks for trying mom!

Thank God for that!

Well, there is always hope that the tide will turn and Hollywood will see the error of their ways. Go to the link below and click on "Hollywood finds Religion".

Click Here

Never forget.

May we never forget the sacrifice of the men and women who have protected our country in the past and those who continue to do so today. May God Bless them all!


Click here

Say Cheese?

Jack came in this afternoon with his class picture in his hand.

He proclaimed, " I didn't smile in my picture because I wasn't in the MOOOOOD! "

"OK", I said. "You look like a cutie anyway."

Jack smiled then.

Autumn

God's creation is so beautiful this time of year.

The weather was perfect today. The skies were clear and the colors of the leaves on the trees so vivid to the eye. I thank God for the season of Autumn....mostly for the visible reminder that we humans will one day have our own Autumn in life, where our bodies will whither, become frail and die similar to the leaves on the trees. Autumn reminds me to cherish the time I have with my children and my husband and to relish each and every breath of life. Autumn, with its warm colors, fragrant smells, and shorter days, gently encourages me to stay outside longer before Winter descends. It is a season where God plays with my senses and gives me a glimpse of his wondrous majesty...

Rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated

Chris is on his way to South Africa via London to participate in the ribbon cutting of the SALT telescope. He sent me this e-mail today from London where he had a long layover.

Georgie my love,

As usual when travelling on Sunday, I set out from Gatwick to Victoria
Station with no plan but to walk aimlessly until I found a Catholic
Church. I said the same prayer as always, "Lord if you want me at
mass, show me the church." Last time he showed me the Santiago subway
station instead, but I knew how to get to the Plaza de Armas from
there, and I knew from our visit the Cathedral was there. This time I
wandered an hour, and found 3 churches, all Church of England. I
considered going in one of them, but there were two elderly ladies
waiting to greet me, and no one else there, and I didn't want to
explain that they were my second choice.

One of the Anglican churches was down a side street, and on my way back
from walking to it I saw an older couple parking their car. They got
out and began to go at a near run in a different direction than I was
walking. There were not many people out, and I enjoyed the riddle
"what makes an older couple in their late sixties run early on Sunday
morning?" I decided to follow. Then I heard the peal of bells, and I
could see them speed up even more; with my luggage I could barely keep
up. They twisted down streets like geriatric olympians. Just as I
thought, they were headed toward the bells, which turned out to be
coming from a very large Catholic-looking church. We reached the
square, but the sign in front of the church did not give a
denomination, which usually would mean it is Church of England. The
bells were pealing continuously and people were rushing across the
square in front of the church to get inside it.

So I thought, "whatever is in there must be pretty good, so I'll just
go see." I went in. There were a thousand people or more packed in
rows, far up in the front a choir of 30 or more singing in Latin, and
14 or more altar boys, acolytes, deacons, and priests in precession
with a large gold cross and incense. What followed was the most
beautiful solemn high mass you could imagine, all sung in Latin and
English. I wept. Half-way through I looked back for the first time to
the rear of the church. In addition to the thousand in rows, there
were large crowds standing in the back. This is a Sunday in ordinary
time, no special occasion. Just our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
body, blood, soul and divinity. No wonder they ran.

I would say the rumours that Europe has lost its faith are exaggerated.

Chris

St. Nicholas

I bought Nicholas some new underwear today.

Since Nicholas is my one of middle children, he usually gets the least amount of attention compared to the other three. But despite his unfortunate birth order, Nicholas is probably my most easy going child. He has friends in every corner of the town;his brothers think of him as their hero, and he is happy to just go along and do his thing. He loves life and has not a care in the world. He doesn't SEEM to be suffering from a lack of attention from his mom but how do I really KNOW? He is an easy, low-maintenance child. He doesn't notice or complain that his closet has less clothes in it than the rest of the children, never complains that sometimes he has to wear Jack or Gus's size 6 underwear simply because he does not have enough in his size (10), and is happy to wear the same clothes over again the next day. (Now, I have to put my foot down somewhere. I tell him he MUST wear clean clothes everyday, period.) There ARE days that he makes it out of the house wearing the same shorts as the day before, but hey, I just don't pay close attention....UG!

I was at Marshalls the other day and remembered that Nick needed new underwear.I saw that there was a sale on boys underwear and purchased a 3 pack for the poor soul. I bought them alittle big since he has been growing so quickly these days. I proudly placed them on his bed for him to use after he had his bath.


Nick: (yelling from upstairs) Mom, these underwear don't make me feel too good.

Me: (downstairs) Why Nick? Come down and show me.

Nick: (plods down the steps, walks into the den with his shorts down by his knees revealing his new underwear) I think they are too big. You bought me a size 20.(Get this, the crotch is HANG-ING below his privates)

Me: Well, Nick, I bought them alittle bigger than normal, but they should be OK. Are they really a size 20??? Pull them up over your belly button.

Nick: (confused) Over my belly button? That would be weird. (He does it)

Me: OK, now that looks better. What do you think?

Nick: (He smiles that sweet Nick smile and laughs) Well, I guess it will do.

Nick then pulls up his shorts and heads for the bed. Not one complaint.

He is a saint.

Dessert Test

Mr friend Irene, knowing my love of chocolate, sent me this funny little test. Take it and see where you stand on the Dessert scale of psychology. My favorite dessert was..big surprise...Chocolate Icing on Chocolate Cake. What's your favorite?


If all of the desserts listed below were sitting in front of you, which would you choose? Pick your dessert, and then look to see what psychiatrists think about you! Sorry you can only pick one.

Angel Food Cake
Brownies
Lemon Meringue Pie
Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Icing
Strawberry Short Cake
Chocolate Icing on Chocolate Cake
Ice Cream
Carrot Cake


OK - Now that you've made your choice, this is what psychiatric research
says about you:


ANGEL FOOD CAKE... Sweet, loving, cuddly. You love all warm and fuzzy
items. A little nutty at times. Sometimes you need an ice cream cone at
the end of the day.. Others perceive you as being childlike and immature at times.


BROWNIES... You are adventurous, love new ideas, and are a champion
of underdogs and a slayer of dragons. When tempers flare up, you whip out
your saber. You are always the oddball with a unique sense of humor and
direction. You tend to be very loyal.


LEMON MERINGUE.. Smooth, sexy, and articulate with your hands, you
are an excellent after-dinner speaker and a good teacher. But don't try to
walk and chew gum at the same time. A bit of a diva at times, but you have many
good friends.

VANILLA CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE ICING... Fun loving, sassy, humorous.
Not very grounded in life; very indecisive and lack motivation. Everyone
enjoys being around you. You are a practical joker. Others should be cautious in
making you mad. However, you are a friend for life.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE... Romantic, warm, loving. You care about
other people and can be counted on in a pinch. ! You also tend to melt.
You can be overly emotional at times. And sometimes can be annoying.

CHOCOLATE ON CHOCOLATE... Sexy; always ready to give and receive.
Very adventurous, ambitious, and passionate. You can appear to have a cold
exterior but are warm on the inside. Not afraid to take chances. Will not
settle for anything average in life. Love to laugh.

ICE CREAM... You like sports, whether it is baseball, football,
basketball, or soccer. If you could, you would like to participate, but
you enjoy watching sports. You don't like to give up the remote control. You
tend to be self-centered and high maintenance.

CARROT CAKE... You are a very fun loving person, who likes to
laugh. You are fun to be with. People like to hang out with you. You are
a very warm hearted person and a little quirky at times. You have many loyal
friends.

I could not agree more.

After pondering how fast things go, Gus (who's almost 5 years old) proclaimed,
"Mom, the speed of life is really fast."

I'm sure he wanted to say the speed of LIGHT is really fast, but I think the first statement may be more accurate.

My boys can't WAIT!

The "knight" obsessed Clemens Boys cannot wait for this movie to come out! The Chronicles of Narnia written by last century's most popular theologian, C.S. Lewis, promises lots of action, knights, an evil witch, 4 curious siblings (I like that!), all having an adventure when they walk through a wardrobe. I'll be there opening day with my own handsome heroes. Watch the trailer, it is boy heaven.

Be sure to check the website highlighted above for resources that can be used by faith development teachers/school teachers...a great movie for classroom discussions.

Unchained Memories

I've been helping my parents put together invitations for their 50th wedding anniversary. They were married on Christmas Day in 1955.

I have a batch of slides from their wedding day on my dining room table, and was waiting for the spare time to examine each slide for the one that struck me as being the one perfect to place on the anniversary invitation. Each precious slide is carefully numbered and dated by my father. Each slide with the same handwriting written with the same ink pen documenting the event and capturing a moment of time never to be experienced again. Most of the edges of each slide have turned an antique brown color, but the slide pictures themselves are still as vivid today as the day the picture was taken. How can that be? after 50 years of marriage? The color is so bright and beautiful...almost as beautiful as their 50 year marriage.

Keep in mind that I'd seen these slides many times before(as the youngest in a family of four kids) when my dad would regularly get out the slide projector and show pictures on the pull down screen in the den. The slides he would show were mostly from a time I never knew, but only could imagine about. Many a night my parents would point out people in these slides I never knew, places they had lived and places they had visited. Oh, there were pictures of Niagara Falls, Alaska, Maine, South America, numerous Catholic landmarks, churches, First Holy Communions of my sisters, deceased aunts and uncles, divorced friends, military moves, baby pics and on and on. But none of the 1000's of slides that my dad maintains to this day can ever compare to mom and dad's wedding slides.

Why? My mom was a princess in the most beautiful dress in the world (hand-made by her mom-in-law). The yards and yards of heavy satin flowed into a gorgeous train. The lace. The crown, you know the whole nine yards. It was beautiful. My dad, so handsome in his black and white tux. He looked a bit like Elvis with his perfectly combed hair and his crisp white cuffs. The bridesmaid dresses were of a mauve color and mom's attendants wore long gloves and held prayer books and rosaries. Things were simpler then, purer and maybe a bit magical to a young girl. It captured my young imagination years ago and still moves me as a woman today. But somehow, in viewing these slides today, I feel a sense of loss; that I've missed something along the way; something that MY generation does not have. What could it be?

Images are very influential on young minds. Subliminally, these images of my parents' past formed my worldview, my opinions, my expectations for my future, my dreams and my hopes. But most importantly those slides were evidence that LOVE was real..marriage was good and that love can LAST. Those slides, more than any other influence in my young life, told me that married life is a dance...a beautiful dance. These images helped to form in me a firm foundation from which to build my family, my marriage, and my faith. Not everything is or will be perfect in life, but that is all part of the dance.

I hope you dance in your marriage like my parents have and never give up on love.

Bored?

Ever wonder what the view is like from the
inside of a water bottle? Be sure to follow your cursor around.

I want candy!

Here are Becca's friends enjoying chicken soup before embarking on their trick or treat adventures in the neighborhood and beyond. Becca is some sort of dead person. I don't know.
I'm just the mom.



Here is only a small part of what they came back with. But if you look closely, there is something very wrong with this picture....not ONE box of Dots Candy! All that candy and NO dots? Did the candy manufacturers decide that Dots were not IN this year??? I LOVE Dots on Halloween! It's the only time I can find them. Sadness.



Now THIS is a picture of my friend Mary's hand. She stuck her hand in front of my camera as I was taking the picture. Nice. I especially like the finger puppets on your finger nubs. Nice touch. Take my advice though...stick to pole dancing.



Here are some of the neighborhood goblins. Do you feel afraid?