Holy Cow!

Has it been almost a month since I've blogged? I don't know if I've ever gone that long. I haven't even been keeping up with SMA Fridays... so I'm going to have to find a lot of Hugh pictures to make up for it!

I suppose there hasn't been a lot to blog about. I've been updating "my selective reality" regarding design star, but I wonder what's been happening overe here that I can talk about?

DD1 and DD2 are in school. 4th grade is getting tougher, and 1st grade is the most wonderful place DD2 has ever been. She's making new friends, having a blast - and she is reading much better than we knew she could. They're both doing great in math (DD1 is working on square roots this week, and "everyday math" is finally beginning to be recognizable as MATH to me now), and our annual book fair "Dads and Donuts" is tomorrow morning. Where I tell them they can each get 2 books, and they talk dad in to many more. Every year they laugh as they tell me how they snuck one past me!

In eleven days we are leaving for our first family trip to Walt Disney World. We'll be there Monday to Monday - and I think Husband and I are as excited as the kids.

The flooring is going in slowly but surely. Husband now has it figured out, but has been slowed down by a long upper respiratory virus, a hectic workload, and a bout of the flu. (Which DD1 also had. Pretty bad stuff - but over fairly quickly.) The rest of the house? Not coming along at all - which is my fault!

Sadly, this pretty much catches us up. I'm sure I'll have lots to tell you when we get back from Disney!!!!!! Tune in tomorrow when I get back to SMA Friday! Not much longer until we have a new SMA, and who knows if I'll find him blog worthy?

First day of school...

It's back to school week here at our house! DD1 began 4th grade - and DD2 started 1st grade. They seem quite happy so far, DD1 said she had lunch "with the girls." DD2 came home from the first day and told me she had made a new friend. All is well.

Now I will tell you of my shame: each and every year I cry on the first day of school.

Why? Heaven only knows... but I am that mom, the one you can place bets will be crying at first day drop off. One of the other first grade moms was fine until she saw me crying... and then she started too. At afternoon pick up that first day a mom who has known me for four years was laughing and said she should have warned her friend not to stand near me that morning because I always cry! It's really ridiculous, I even cried over my 4th grader this year and 4th grade isn't some huge milestone or anything.

When I got home I cried again. Partly because I'm afraid my kids are growning up too fast, partly because I don't know what becomes of me as they get older and need me less, and partly because I didn't really have anyone to call and talk to. It's one of those times that my mom would have been able to understand. She would have had sympathized with me, and then we would have shared a laugh at my expense - because I truly am a total sap... and she so got that about me.

The Tooth Fairy

I have it on good word from my friend who grew up in Poland that the Tooth Fairy is an American thing. (There are tooth losing related rituals in other cultures - but most of them involve little mice taking the teeth, which is simply not true and completely ridiculous.) Imagine her surprise when her kindergarten daughter lost her first tooth and started wondering how much the Tooth Fairy would leave.

DD2 is in the throes of Tooth Fairy fantasy. Just having lost teeth numbers 3 and 4 (with a little help from the dentist yesterday - as her teeth don't come out on their own, just like mine as a child) it was time for a visit from the Tooth Fairy last night.

At 11:30pm, just after the Tooth Fairy had retired for the night, she popped up out of bed whispering, "Oh God, I forgot about DD2!" I go downstairs, grab the greenbacks out of my purse (because she'd found my stash of gold dollar coins earlier in the Summer - so I can't use anything so obvious), and dash back upstairs. I kid you not, as I'm slipping the teeth out of the pouch SHE SAT UP AND LOOKED AT ME.

My heart stopped. I smiled at her, quietly murmured in her ear "Mommy is just kissing you Goodnight like always." Kissed her cheek, left quietly. I waited about 15 minutes before attempting to slip the newly filled satin pouch back under her pillow. (I'm sure I was a sight, crawling stealthily in to her room.) Then I returned to my room and cried, afraid I have screwed up one of the most fun things about being six years old for my daughter.

This morning she appears to have no memory of seeing me last night. She probably was fast asleep and truly remembers nothing - but I wonder.

I wonder.

Daily Drama

Welcome to the House of Daily Drama. With two daughters it's always something dramatic. How do girls even live past the age of 10 with all the tragedy and chaos they create? You'd think their hearts would give out...

8:15am


DD1: "Oh NO! Our Webkinz account is going to expire!"

DD2: "No! Mama!!!! Our Webkinz will all die and we can't play with them anymore." (comes running to get me)

DD1: "It's going to EXPIRE! Mom!!" (Trying to push her way past her sister in an attempt to get to me first)

Me: "When is it going to expire?" (thinking to myself it hasn't been all that long since we registered a new precious Webkinz family member and getting annoyed that Webkinz seems to have shortened their 'free' membership time...)

DD1: "APRIL SECOND, TWO THOUSAND AND TEN"

Me: "Are you KIDDING me with this? That happens to be NEXT APRIL. I think you can stop panicking - you have 8 months. Now get out of here, and shut the bathroom door on the way out."

DD1: "Well, to be on the safe side...."

Me: "NO."

SMA Friday!!!!

I like this picture of Hugh, he looks just like Husband's friend, Brian.

I blame Farm Town...

Has anyone given up on ever seeing me blog again? I blame Farm Town.

What is Farm Town? It's basically a Sims type game, but building farms, and it's addictive. I'm on the Farm Town that is connected to Facebook - although I think MySpace also offers the app.

I'm not kidding - it's a total time suck. My kids are telling me I'm on there too much... one night last week my husband looked over while I was on the computer. He asked, "You farmin?" I said, "No, I'm doing research." DD1 shouts from the family room, "Yea, research on FARM TOWN!" (Which I wasn't... really... maybe a little...) My sister-in-law and I are arranging times to harvest each other's farms (in pursuit of the magical gold coins we so desperately need to pimp out our farms), and even texting each other farm updates. ("My grapes are going to ferment on the vine - where are you??") I can't stop.

So, right now I'm on Facebook a lot. I've neglected my blog, although My Selective Reality is still going strong and slowly gaining readership. (However, I didn't even get my recap up until last night this week - and my aim is always no later than Tuesday afternoon so I'm slacking there, too.) When Project Runway starts I don't know how I'll balance it all out. (TGFTDVR... Thank God for the DVR)

So what have I learned from my foray in to Farm Town that I didn't know before? I know that I was correct in suspecting that I would be a Sims addict if I had ever installed them on my computer two Christmases ago. (I told my husband that I'd keep it in case I changed my mind, but I was pretty sure if I started a Sims life I'd never leave the computer again. CORRECT.)

I have missed my blog, missed sharing my life with God only knows who stumbles by, and am going to try to cut down on my latest obsession. After all, in any good 12 step program, the first step is admitting you have a problem.

My name is Dodi, and I'm a Farm Town Addict...

SMA Friday!

...already! It never fails to amaze me, the amount of Hugh there is on the internet. I think this one was taken on he and Tracey's wedding day?

Because he's ANCIENT!

I noted this on facebook, but it cracks me up so much I'm putting it on my blog too. (If I manage to get it up on Twitter is that like a social networking hat trick?)

We were at my dad's house yesterday. The Ellen Show came on the TV. (Because the television is never off at my dad's house.) It was Ellen's birthday, and all kinds of celebrities sent video messages. All of the sudden DD1 turns towards the TV because one of the stars has caught her attention.

"George Clooney? Is he still around?"

New Blog

So, here's the deal. There are two shows on reality TV shows that I watch every season without fail. One is Bravo's Project Runway (which after a long delay premiers on August 20th) and the other is HGTV's Design Star (which premiered last night).

I follow these two shows, and I do recaps on them which usually contain my unflattering and somewhat judgemental comments. Am I qualified to fire away at these people? No. Not even remotely. Which, I think you'll agree, makes it even more fun. I had posted my recaps on this blog last year, but they are lengthy and not really related to what I usually talk about here. Which is Hugh Jackman. Who has never been on either show as far as I know.

Anyway, I started a new blog and if you watch these shows with me this summer we'll have a lot of fun over on My Selective Reality.

Join me over on the dark side!

Walter Cronkite

When I was a child the voice of the evening news was Walter Cronkite. The evening anchor for the CBS News, he was invited in to our household every night. I didn't revere him as a child - because to me the News was an interruption to Gilligan's Island or The Brady Bunch... I hated watching the News. But my parents loved the News, and Walter Cronkite was an evening fixture at our house. As I stop and think about Mr. Cronkite, I wish I had been more aware of who he actually was, and what he represented to our society.

In 1963 (no, I wasn't born yet - but I remember my mother telling me about this), Walter Cronkite reported the death of John F. Kennedy to America:

(on air) the editor handed Cronkite the bulletin. Cronkite stopped speaking, put on his eyeglasses, looked over the bulletin sheet for a moment, took off his glasses, and made the official announcement:

"President Kennedy died at 1 p.m. Central Standard Time." (glancing up at clock) 2 o'clock Eastern Standard Time, some 38 minutes ago."

After making that announcement, Cronkite paused briefly, put his glasses back on and swallowed hard to maintain his composure. There was noticeable emotion in his voice as he intoned the next sentence of the news report:

"Vice President Johnson *cough* has left the hospital in Dallas, but we do not know to where he has proceeded. Presumably, he will be taking the oath of office shortly and become the 36th president of the United States."

On February 27th, 1968, (in this very famous broadcast) Walter Cronkite correctly predicted that the war in Vietnam was not winnable:

Tonight, back in more familiar surroundings in New York, we'd like to sum up our findings in Vietnam, an analysis that must be speculative, personal, subjective. Who won and who lost in the great Tet offensive against the cities? I'm not sure. The Vietcong did not win by a knockout, but neither did we. The referees of history may make it a draw. Another standoff may be coming in the big battles expected south of the Demilitarized Zone. Khe Sanh could well fall, with a terrible loss in American lives, prestige and morale, and this is a tragedy of our stubbornness there; but the bastion no longer is a key to the rest of the northern regions, and it is doubtful that the American forces can be defeated across the breadth of the DMZ with any substantial loss of ground. Another standoff. On the political front, past performance gives no confidence that the Vietnamese government can cope with its problems, now compounded by the attack on the cities. It may not fall, it may hold on, but it probably won't show the dynamic qualities demanded of this young nation. Another standoff.

We have been too often disappointed by the optimism of the American leaders, both in Vietnam and Washington, to have faith any longer in the silver linings they find in the darkest clouds. They may be right, that Hanoi's winter-spring offensive has been forced by the Communist realization that they could not win the longer war of attrition, and that the Communists hope that any success in the offensive will improve their position for eventual negotiations. It would improve their position, and it would also require our realization, that we should have had all along, that any negotiations must be that -- negotiations, not the dictation of peace terms. For it seems now more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate. This summer's almost certain standoff will either end in real give-and-take negotiations or terrible escalation; and for every means we have to escalate, the enemy can match us, and that applies to invasion of the North, the use of nuclear weapons, or the mere commitment of one hundred, or two hundred, or three hundred thousand more American troops to the battle. And with each escalation, the world comes closer to the brink of cosmic disaster.

To say that we are closer to victory today is to believe, in the face of the evidence, the optimists who have been wrong in the past. To suggest we are on the edge of defeat is to yield to unreasonable pessimism. To say that we are mired in stalemate seems the only realistic, yet unsatisfactory, conclusion. On the off chance that military and political analysts are right, in the next few months we must test the enemy's intentions, in case this is indeed his last big gasp before negotiations. But it is increasingly clear to this reporter that the only rational way out then will be to negotiate, not as victors, but as an honorable people who lived up to their pledge to defend democracy, and did the best they could.

This is Walter Cronkite. Good night.

Walter Cronkite was the man that reported to us in 1969 that man had landed on the moon.
Walter Cronkite was the voice we heard reporting Watergate and the resignation of an American President.
When something important happened on the world's stage during my childhood, it was Walter Cronkite who reported on it.

Walter Cronkite died yesterday at the age of 92. May he rest in peace and may his family be comforted at the knowledge that we are all impacted by his death, and send our blessings in their time of sorrow.

SMA Friday!

Just under the wire! Almost forgot it was Friday!!!

Here's our hot Hugh:

July 14th

My mom always liked Bastille Day... because she was born on Bastille Day!

Happy Birthday, Mom. I hope they have excellent chocolate cake where you are!

UP

Finally took the girls to see UP.

I'm not going to lie - I sobbed through the entire first 10 to 15 minutes... and then intermittently choked up throughout the rest of the movie. (Seriously, I spent the first 15 minutes thinking, "This is a DISNEY movie?" Bambi has NOTHING on this one in the realm of lump in the throat and unabashed tears.) The animation was crazy cool, and the story was touching, funny, sad, clever, magical, happy, and beautiful. The characters were amazingly "real". Doug was endearing, trying so hard and he was so genuinely loving. I've had dogs like that, and would love for my dogs to have a collar like that. How much fun! Plus, the old man was hilarious, in part because he reminded me of my dad in a way. My dad? Would totally send that kid out snipe hunting.

It was a great movie, but I think the old man losing his wife before he was ready hit a little too close to home for me. Every time he crossed his heart I cried. DD2 kept leaning over to pat me on the arm, and DD1 would whisper in my ear while giving me a squeeze, "It'll get better mom, just hang in there." How funny, that now they can comfort me instead of it always being the other way around. Sometimes I get to see a side of them that surprises me, and I'll always remember UP being one of those experiences.

P.S. My SMA post back in May that featured the SMA and his wife? Has been hit 39 times in the last 13 hours - mostly from Europe. All over Europe, not one little clumping of a specific country. Why??

A funny thing happened on the way to decorating the bedroom...

Because y'all thought I'd be ON that by now, right? I have the bedding, I even have the bed. I need to get some stuff from the container store for turning her shelving unit in to a desk unit, remove the Pooh wall border, and make a stop at the paint store... but the Ipod docking station is bought by golly!

HOWEVER... before I decorate that room, I have to empty the closet that I've been storing things in since the girls were babies. (It was the nursery - and what newborn needs an entire closet? Half of it is taken up with storage... well more like 3/4.) I cannot leave my stuff there, as when you are nine you can easily fill an entire closet with your wardrobe.

Whats that you say? Move the stuff to the basement?

Therein lies a problem.

When we moved in, the basement was were we put boxes we would "get to later." During the nine years we've lived here the basement has been were we stored things, dumped stuff we had no place for, and where I'd lug tubs of "stuff" after a big cleanup. The desk with my main computer is down there, my photography stuff is down there, and the washer and dryer are down there. My friend, SA, has some stuff stored in our basement too, as she was already living in TX when her condo was sold. The extra stuff ended up in our basement. There was literally NO MORE ROOM for anything else.

So, on Monday night I started to sort. By Tuesday night we had several bags of trash (lawn and leaf size), lots of empty boxes, and a small Goodwill pile. By Wednesday night I had 5 more bags of trash, way too many more empty boxes, and a much larger Goodwill pile. Things that I need to work on AFTER I finish the initial sort would be the entire bin of pictures collected from about 15 different locations around the basement, a huge amount of stuff for Husband to keep or toss (technical stuff, mostly obsolete - but that isn't a decision I'll make), cables... hundreds of assorted cables, my grandmother's dishes all sorted out and stacked, one large box of mildewed bedding that I swear I have never seen before (Husband's from before I even knew him I think and I think it's headed for the dump), an entire copy paper box full of stuff to shred, and a drafting table that I haven't used since college but have moved to 6 different locations since graduating.

I am about halfway through the main room. This does not count the storage under the stairs that I am not dealing with at this time.

Hopefully I will be done with this unexpected "project" by Saturday.
Then I can start on the bedroom.

So, in essence, part of decorating my daughter's new bedroom is cleaning out the basement. Don't you hate it when that happens?

SMA Friday!

Ahhh, lets end this week on a good note, shall we?


Nothing says "have a great weekend" like a little Hugh!

Great New Book!

If you ever check the lists to the right, you'll see some of the blogs I follow. One of them is the QC Report, which I cannot recommend highly enough. Entertaining, well written, sometimes cerebral, honest, and funny. This is the blog of Quinn Cummings: Academy Award nominated actor, longtime Hollywood participant, and now a full time mom and inventor. When I heard she was writing a book, I waited until amazon.com had it for pre-order and signed up. I received the book yesterday ("Notes from the Underwire, adventures from my awkward and lovely life"), and it does not disappoint! (I'm restraining myself to read it slowly... one or two chapters at a time and then force myself to put it down so I don't read through it too quickly - it's that good.) It's not a book about her Hollywood adventures, although they do not completely escape mention, but a book in which "she tackles the domestic and the delightfully absurd." If you're looking for celebrity snark? It isn't here. (Which I DID know before I purchased, btw!)

On her blog, Quinn opened herself up to questions in exchange for a blurb on that individual's website. Since I'd recommend her blog (and now book) to anyone without her doing such a thing, and you all know how nosy I am... well, I couldn't resist.

My question appeared on her blog today. I've cut and pasted it below - but you should really link over and read through her blog. You'll love it!

P.S. My question won't surprise any of you who have heard me rant about young Hollywood behavior! (example here)

***************

It's a Dodi's Life asks:
Knowing what you know about the Hollywood lifestyle (from being a child star and later a casting agent), and seeing how some of the young actors Hollywood are tempted with excess, what would you say to your daughter if she asked if she could go into acting?

QC Report: If she couldn't breathe right unless she was acting, if you peeled apart her mitochondria and found "Performer" writ there, I'd still be very hesitant. I had a rock-solid upbringing and my mother didn't confuse me with an ATM and I still consider myself damn lucky I got out intact. Fortunately, I believe my daughter has other paths drawing her.
posted by Quinn Cummings at 10:12 PM

Thank you, Quinn!

Why your children shouldn't read "fantasy" genre books...

I blame Harry Potter.

Today DD2 wanted a powdered sugar donut for breakfast (luckily we had a couple of donettes on hand, leftover from the weekend). She's happily eating a donut while I was making her sister some peanut butter toast.

Then all hell broke loose. I didn't hear the first sentence... because I'm trying to set a personal best for time spent ignoring my children this Summer, and I pretty much zone them out unless they are loud.*

DD2 (screeching): "Don't you ever say that to me again!"

DD1 (defensively, and loudly): "You DO have powdered sugar on your face! Mom! (DD2) has POWDERED SUGAR ALL OVER HER FACE!" (Wait, thinks mom, why are they fighting about that? I'm going to give them a moment... see where this takes us.)

DD2 (still screeching, not sure why): "YOU are going to have PEANUT BUTTER all over your face!"

DD1 (comes to a sudden halt, and begins practically hyperventilating): "MOM!!!! (DD2) is making PROPHECIES in the kitchen!! And you know no good can come of that!"

Suddenly we don't have predictions or obnoxious come-backs, we have prophecies. Her sister is now Sybil Trelawney and DD1 is the chosen one to bear nut butter on her face. This? Is my life.


(*This comment? Was a JOKE.)

SMA Friday

Here is Hugh, wishing Husband and I a Happy Eleventh Anniversary today! He looks good giving us well wishes, doesn't he??




Well, maybe he does look a bit upset - probably because he wasn't invited to the wedding.
You know, on the other hand, I think he might not be wishing us well at all... that isn't a "Hope you have many more happy years together!" look in his eye, is it? I think it's so sad when people can't be happy for other people. I'm disappointed Hugh, I really am.

(Have a great weekend, a safe 4th, and may the rain stop long enough for fireworks!)

Messiest House

OK, on my facebook I joked about the episode of Clean House in which they found the messiest home in the country. Ha Ha Ha, and it wasn't MY house! Small victories taken where I can find them all all that, I have to laugh at how many of us can joke about our messy homes.

But this episode was really sad. The host of the show even cried, as it was so.... so.... much? There are seriously no words to describe how overwhelming it was. They had to stage the garage sale in an empty store, they had 5000 visitors to the sale, and they made OVER $17,000! (At garage sale prices... that is a lot of crap sold. Proceeds from the sale went to charity.) This woman had so much stuff in her attic that her living room ceiling was collapsing.

I downloaded a few pictures from The Cincinnati Enquirer to show you how messy your home isn't:

This is the living room...


The Home owner's bedroom...


The kitchen...


...and the basement. You could do a 360 degree turn and never see a wall.

The thing that bothered me isn't that they came in and helped this woman out. That doesn't bother me. I don't believe this show "rewards" people's bad habits - everyone needs a hand sometimes. What bothered me is that this isn't just a messy house. This isn't a woman that can start the flylady system and in 6-10 weeks be on top of her home. This is mental illness - and the show should have arranged for some counseling, because this isn't going away. This woman had to buy a third Christmas tree because she couldn't remember where she had stuffed the other two she already had. There were rodents living within the clutter in this basement, and the homeowner actually got mad at the end of all this. She was really upset that all of her stuff was gone - and I have not doubt that, since this episode was taped 3 months ago, she has started collecting again. She was "attached" to all of this junk; gift bags from 15 years ago, hundreds of blazers she never wore, stuff that was behind all that stuff in the basement that she hadn't seen in over 10 years - didn't even remember she had... she didn't want to let go of it. She'd "sort through it later, when (she) had time."

Now, I want you to know that I normally really like this show. Most of the people they help have portions of their homes that have gotten out of control with clutter, or they need help bouncing back after a personal trauma temporarily threw them off track... and they're really good at helping these people and their individual situations. I think Niecy Nash and the rest of the crew honestly want to help others. However, if they're going to help people they need to really help people. Have counselors and/or psychologists weed out who is mentally ill as opposed to who is just an over achiever at slack house keeping. Because if they don't? It doesn't matter how much furniture they give them or how pretty they leave it looking... it's exploitation. In the end they may not have helped this woman at all, not in ways that really matter.

Wordless Wednesday

(found at Haley's Cottage... cute stuff!)

On a very hot summer day...

there is no place better than the pool! Met some friends at the above pool - and it was gorgeous, sunny, and wonderful! DD1 loved the big slides (which you can't see in the picture), and DD2 clung to me like Saran Wrap per her usual.

My only question is: How come I can't get tan this Summer? Really, am usually much more tan by now!

(Picture of H2O'Brien Pool found online. No WAY I would take my camera to a public pool!)

I know, I'm late for....

SMA FRIDAY!


Missed one or two of them, haven't I???


Today I just couldn't decide - should I go ahead with SMA Friday, or write a post about what a weird week it's been.? A week that not one, or two, but THREE entertainment icons have passed away.


Tuesday it was Ed McMahon. Some may not think of Ed McMahon as an icon - but I do. He and Johnny Carson were late night television at it's finest. If you were a child in the 70's, and were staying awake in your bed at night, you knew it was LATE if you heard the TV start playing the theme music to The Tonight Show. There was a coziness in hearing that music, seeing the bluish light flickering under the bedroom door... mom and dad were in bed, and it really was time to go to sleep. Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon were a late night comedy duo more famous than David Letterman and Paul Shaffer, and they created the chemistry all late night talk shows try to emulate. If you are too young to remember Johnny and Ed, perhaps you remember Ed McMahon and the Publishers Clearing House giveaway? Again, iconic stuff. Ed had some financial troubles these past few years, and I wished for him to find peace. After a career of that length he deserved some peace. I truly hope God provides that for him now. Blessings to his wife and family, a loss like that will be earth shattering for them.


Thursday morning we lost Farrah Fawcett. Charlie's prettiest angel, the angel with the coolest car... the angel that every boy and teenager I knew had a poster of on their wall. She took a mediocre swimsuit and made it in to the sexiest thing most men had ever seen - she was gorgeous. She was 29 years old when that picture was taken - think about that. That poster came out in 1976. She was 29 years old. All the "it" girls now are under 21... tells you where we are as a society, yes? At the age of 29 she was the sexiest thing boys and men had ever seen - that would probably never happen now. No actress starts her career at almost 30 years old. If you haven't made it by then these days you don't have a chance. That poster made her an icon a full year before Charlie's Angels brought her in to our homes every week as Jill Munroe. Her personal life was all over the map of happy and troubled. I saddens me that her last couple of years were physically and mentally so painful for her. No one should have to struggle with all of that chaos and sickness. I sincerely hope she will rest in the peace, and that her son will find a peace of his own making in her honor.


Then, more unexpectedly than the others, we heard that Michael Jackson had passed away on Thursday afternoon. Hearing that Michael Jackson had died was, to our generation, probably much like hearing that Elvis had died to the generation before us. Michael Jackson was the music of my late high school and early college years. "Thriller" was one of the most amazing albums ever made - and the boy was GIFTED in the music video department. MTV was just hitting it's stride, and Michael Jackson had found his place in the world. All was right with the music universe. The follow up album, "Bad", was also good - although I don't think it was possible to top "Thriller". Everyone who was of a certain age in the early and mid 80's knew that one guy who always wore a red and black jacket and one glove - convinced he WAS Michael. He could dance like Michael, do his hair like Michael, tweak his voice like Michael... you remember him? He was at all the talent shows! Michael was, is, and always will be one of the greatest musical icons that has ever lived. Before he was the freak show he became in the late 90's, he was the personification of "it". He changed the world. I send him my heartfelt "thanks" for the music that accompanies so many of the fun memories from a wonderful time in my life. May God bless him and keep him, heal his pain and confusion, and send comfort to those who were caused pain by the craziness and strangeness that was Michael Jackson's life. I hope their pain is gone now.


But, in keeping with tradition... this IS SMA Friday... here's a little Hugh to lift your spirits. A kinder, gentler Hugh. (Did you even think that was possible?)

Enjoy!

My own Little Edie

OK, DD2 was marching around the house like this, and I had to grab a photo.

The similarities to Little Edie are astounding:

1) you can tell from the background that we are also living in absolute squalor.

2) the costume of the day DOES, indeed, include a swimsuit underneath that lovely pink cover up.

3) she was speaking in an accent I could hardly understand.

I just hope her hair doesn't fall out now.

(For those of you who think I'm ranting and don't understand what I'm talking about, please rent "Grey Gardens" on DVD soon!)

She AGREED with me?

Background: A few years ago our daughters started sharing a room. One of the bedrooms upstairs has two closets, is plenty big enough for two twin beds, and a charming window seat that my father-in-law built. They liked sharing a room (we moved them in together when DD2 got to move to a "big girl bed")... and that left another bedroom - the former nursery - to function as a play room.

Which worked pretty well.
Until about 6 months ago.

It seems that sometime after the first of the year, the girls discovered talking and playing in their beds instead of going to sleep. We would seriously catch them with flashlights and dollhouses in bed with them. And the giggling was not quiet. This just wouldn't do, because two tired girls are two cranky girls. And two frustrated parents are not fun.

We decided that they lost the privilege of sharing a room. An idea that does not thrill me entirely - as now there will be a lot of homeless toys and fighting over where to keep certain "collections" that are so much easier kept together. (Littlest Pets, Polly's, etc.) However, there is good news.

I asked DD1 (who is moving to the smaller, "new" room - because she gets to redecorate and loves the idea) what colors she thought she'd like for the new room.
DD1: "Green."
Me: "No, the word was COLORS, which is PLURAL. Your entire room cannot be green."
DD1: "Green and whatever goes with green?"
(She may have inherited a bit of sarcasm from her mother.)

I decided that I'd look at quilts and comforters online - see if there was anything I liked that she might also like. I discovered that there is a world of ugly bedding out there. But, I did find one that I really, really liked. One that would make it very easy to coordinate the rest of the room around it - as it contained so many colors and patterns. A quilt that is not one bit "little girl", and not stuffy and "grown up" either. A quilt that I can imagine won't need to be replaced because she grows out of it and needs something less babyish. But, since I thought it was perfect I did not expect that she would agree. When it comes to clothes, she hates most everything I think would look good on her. In fact no matter what it is, usually if I like it? She hates it. Happily, though, I am here to report that the very first quilt that I showed her - the only one I really liked - was accepted exuberantly. She loves it, and as soon as it arrives we will go get that green border color matched (which is also the quilt border and backing), remove the Pooh wallpaper border from the walls, and start moving all that elfa shelving around to accommodate two "new" rooms.

Wish us luck!

Happens every time!

Had this happened just over a week ago, she'd have gotten her name on the "tooth chart" in kindergarten. I, however, didn't notice until last Thursday that her big tooth had already come in behind her baby tooth... so she didn't end up getting her not-so-wiggly baby tooth pulled out until today. Poor DD2! (If you look closely you can see it back there. How I missed that I'll never know.)




They actually took the loose baby tooth, and the one next to it - as her permanent teeth are very large. It is easily double the size of the baby tooth. Both my husband and the dentist wanted to take all 4 of the bottom baby teeth out today. My reaction? "She's got a DANCE RECITAL on Saturday WHERE SHE'LL BE SMILING ON STAGE! Hell. No." Because I? Am all about excellent parenting, and excellent childhood pictures.

Kindergarten Graduation

Do you ever watch the show "Clean House"? (I think it's on the Style channel.) I was watching the other night, and this woman started crying when she sold a cabinet that her mom (who has since passed away) had given her. Niecy Nash (the host) asked, "Are you sad because it's something she gave you?" and the woman shook her head. "No. It's just that I miss her so much."

Before I lost my mom, I would have thought what Niecy was thinking... that it was the THING that mattered. However, that wasn't it at all - that cabinet was just the subtle reminder. It's the fact that she isn't here anymore, the "it's just that I miss her so much", that makes your heart ache.

DD2 finished up Kindergarten this week. The the ceremony was cute, the kids were excited... and I cried. Not just because my baby is growing up (although I am a sap about stuff like that) but because, as they did when DD1 finished Kindergarten, Mom would have attended with Dad (who happened to be in Alaska, so he was also unable to attend). She would have enjoyed sharing in the milestone.

"It's just that I miss her so much."

I know my name is Dorothy...

... but I've no wish to visit OZ via tornado! Martha, of the Chang Gang infamy, posted about our funnel cloud / tornado that hit on Sunday. Here are two additional pictures sent to Husband from a friend that lives out by Southlands - where the tornado touched down and caused it's damage.

We Parkviewians missed being fodder for the debris cloud of this tornado by about a mile on Sunday afternoon as it flew from Quincy Reservoir towards our favorite shopping mall. It's a good thing people we know took pictures, as the DD's and I were huddled in our basement waiting for the "all clear!"

Thank God cable and internet weren't knocked out on this side of the neighborhood!

SMA Friday

...and I swear I wasn't even looking for anything like this when I googled more "images" of Hugh Jackman. This is, allegedly, the 12 room West Village Triplex home of Hugh and family. (Only one photo here, if you'd like to see more photos of this amazing house that takes up floors 8-10 of a building in NY, CLICK HERE)

It's sort of weird what shows up on the internet, isn't it?

Wordless Wednesday

Ahhhh, lovely June weather...

Anybody wanna join me at the pool this afternoon in this lovely rainstorm? No sunscreen needed! Heck, no TOWELS needed!

On second thought, anyone up for a nap?