Blessed Baptisms

I see on my old friend Facebook, Calvin and Claire are being baptized today so I thought you might enjoy this slideshow of pictures I gathered up to celebrate Tessa's baptism.


Indeed, we are very lucky!  Enjoy your trip down memory lane.

Wild weekend

We've had a heck of a weekend.  Friday afternoon we drove to Brooklyn for Jim's niece's wedding.  It was held in a TV/Movie studio called Steiner Studios--it was like pulling into one of those old time studio lots with the big overhead sign and the gate that has to be raised after you are deemed worthy of entry.  The wedding was held on the rooftop of Studio 6 as the sun went down and the city lights began to twinkle.

It was like the bride and groom looked into my heart and said "How can we do this to maximize Patty Anne's raw emotions?"  It was a Glee episode not unlike the episode where Finn's mother and Kurt's father get married. The groom and the wedding party broke into Queen's Somebody To Love which the bride finished solo on the arms of her parents.  THEN (as if that wasn't enough to reduce me to tears) the celebrant honored the ancestors and conducted a traditional Celtic tying the knot ceremony.  I'm not even going to share the whole "mother's last kiss" business because I still can't think about that without melting.  Sigh.  Then we got in the car and drove home by 4 AM. 

Then because we hadn't put enough miles on the car, we decided to take a ride to Cooperstown on Sunday.  There was a regatta on the lake

There was a hidden garden

And there were butterflies by the lake

Wild times and Wildlife all in one weekend.  It was great!

Happy Birthday Mom

Circa 1953 when she must have been about 19

Ceiling: 1 Patty Anne: 0

Jim's field hockey field

The water is out of bounds -- see the lines?

OK, I'm down by 1 and we haven't even had a full day of school yet!

Every now and again, we (and by that I mean ME) have to make new rules around the house.  I'm sure it's the same at your house.  Last week, Jim took the air conditioners and the fans from the windows and put them away.  It wasn't even September yet, but I could see some sense in taking the air conditioners out. I mean, winter seems to come along the same week as the Walton Fair every year.  But not the fans!  I usually take that stuff out at the end of September but keep the fans on hand.  Sure enough, we (and by that I mean I) had to drag the fans out again last night.  Yikes it was humid!


So here's the new rule:  The fans can be put away when I stop shaving my legs with the straight razor for purposes of wearing shorts.  There.

My new "rule" for the upcoming school year is based on the Staples Back to School supply commercials.  There's an elementary teacher needing glitter and tape that sticks; a music teacher singing about denim needs; and a gym teacher swinging down from the ceiling with a jump drive.  He says he doesn't know what a jump drive is, but those kids are going to be jumping.  He tells us that our kids will be having "a year long tug-of-war with the ceiling".  And therein lies my new daily motto.

I will face each crazy new initiative or state guideline or administrative directive with the resolve it takes to play tug-of-war with the ceiling.  For some of these challenges, I may decide to just bat the rope to the side and move forward.  I may decide to climb that rope (however long it takes) just to touch the ceiling.  Seems like a logical enough motto for my 33rd year of teaching.

Last Rose of Summer

I guess these are my last roses of summer 2011.  This is a rose bush I don't pay too much attention to but the pink flowers really "popped" in the hours after the winds and rains from Hurricane Irene passed our way.  I am impressed by their resiliency, especially since they are basically neglected.

Labor Day weekend always presents an opportunity to think about the past summer.  "What summer?" is my first thought, but that's just because I haven't really stopped to think about the last 12 weeks or so.  It's been filled with family events (a Long Island wedding, Pam's shower); home improvement projects; visits from family; Charlotte NC; and generally more relaxed days and nights.  It's hard to see it go.  I love the fall but it's hard to say good bye to summer.

Today I had the chance to participate in some hurricane relief efforts to benefit those east of us in Delaware County so badly affected by the storm.  It was a VERY small effort on my part and the level of appreciation far outweighed my actual participation.   The leader there made note that everyone deserves a chance to be part of the recovery.  It was good to help even in a very small way.  It was good to be reminded how generous people can be if you give them the chance.  New beginnings for the affected families as there is a new season on our doorstep.  Gotta admire that resiliency too. 

(Not the last rose of summer 2011)