Play Ball!

First game 2010!
OK, we lost but it turned out to be a fairly nice afternoon for a good game with good company--thanks for coming over Paula!  We had dinner together and it was just a great way to start vacation.

Here's a dancing picture.

It is his favorite.

Notice he's right in the middle of it all.

I wonder where he gets that from.

His "girlfriend" has the long red hair.

Last Semi-Formal

Aren't they handsome?

National Honor Society Inductee

Maybe he is just a thorn between two (very cute) roses?

Three Ring Circus

I hope this works and you enjoy a little trip into the past!

Happy Birthday to Amy and Aiden

Faith and Begorra

N

Nothing says Happy St Patrick's Day quite like a nice Irish lad......

Takes All Kinds

What do you like (to do or to be or to see) that other people think is weird?  This week while Amy was home we had spaghetti for dinner one night and she mentioned that her friends think it's weird that she puts butter on her pasta.  That's one of those things we grew up with so it doesn't seem the least bit odd to us.  Sometimes we forget that not everyone has the same experiences, so it's good to be reminded once in a while.  Although you always do hope that whatever it is that someone else finds "weird", they aren't also finding it "disgusting". 

I like to SLEEP.  And I pretty much like everything associated with sleep--blankets, pillows, quiet time and comfortable rest.  Some people think that is weird.  I guess it's not really so much the sleep they find weird -- it's that I love to NAP.  I guess this is on my mind because we sprang forward last night and lost an hour of sleep.  I did rest my eyes this afternoon in peace and quiet. Much easier to accomplish now that Amy has returned to school.  It was very nice and reminded me of how much I just love to nap.

I do believe, however, that this is also something I came by honestly.  The acorn doesn't fall far from the tree, as Mom would say.  Nanny and Weenie in particular seemed to enjoy resting.  Both Mom and Dad napped.  When I was in college, my naps were usually deep deep sleep often with vivid (sometimes BAD) dreams.  I don't get that kind of sleep too often anymore but it doesn't diminish my enjoyment of a good nap that brings on a renewed refreshed state of mind.

Are there things that you do that other people think are strange?  Don't worry--YOU aren't strange--we all are!

Priorities

I am not going to try to write something poignant here or I will sound like a moron (I can't even come close to Perfect Patty's writing)

And Away We Go!

We are thinking about finally taking that next leap in television viewing and buying an HDTV.  So many options to sort through!  This got me thinking about our television watching habits.  Of course, we didn't have a color TV right away (kind of like we don't have a digital TV yet) and I can remember watching shows in black and white on Dennison Road.

The sunflower clock on the wall would wind down to 7:30 precisely as a signal for The Monkees to make their appearance.  We liked to watch Daktari, I Dream of Jeannie, Flipper, Gilligan's Island.  It was a special treat to stay up to watch The Wizard of Oz or Peter Pan.  When Jackie Gleason said "And away we go!" it meant bedtime (very clever Mom!).  I remember hating having to go to bed so early especially when it was daylight but I can understand Mom and Dad needed a break.  I also understand that was probably pretty standard at the time--even so, I think we had a pretty early bedtime.

Mom liked to watch the soap operas, though I don't know which ones.  I would sometimes help her put the rollers in her hair so I could sneak a peek at the forbidden shows.  There was no such thing as turning on the TV in the morning before school or work.

There were only the network channels to watch after careful adjustment to the rabbit ear antenna so no small wonder you didn't have it on very much.  I put this picture up because one of my memories is that the TV was in this corner where the hutch is at one time--though that doesn't really make sense.  Mostly I remember it was in the corner where the Christmas tree usually was (where did the TV go when the tree was up?).  The clock was on a wall in a different room because I can remember kind of leaning around the doorway into the den/Mary Jane's room to count down the second hand.  That doesn't make much sense either but that's how I remember it.

I remember watching JFK's funeral on that TV on Dennison Road; the prisoners of war returning home from Vietnam on the TV in the den on Buffalo St but nothing historic comes to mind for Walton.  Mom liked to watch Mannix and Kojak and I liked watching them with her.  Today, Ryan and I watch movies together and I hope this will be one of his fond memories.

I suspect our children will remember coverage of September 11 as it was certainly a turning point in our history--you knew it as you watched it unfold.  I am surprised at how closely television is tied to childhood memories and how it evokes certain feelings.