Happy Leap Year Day! February 29, 2016

I really am only posting so that I could write February 29th, which is something you only get to do every 4 years because today is Leap Year Day.

I assumed everyone over the age of 5 knew that, but Anna came home today and was annoyed "that no one told her it was Leap Day."  This is the kind of thing she says that worries me.  I pointed out to her that, theoretically, she should have known it was Leap Day every time and whenever she wrote down 2/29, but she didn't.  And, she pointed out, that last Leap Day, Phineas and Ferb had a Leap Day marathon, so she had been prepared for it.   Again, not sure how to respond to that.

But, if you are one of those people, like my daughter, who didn't know that today is Leap Day, well, it is.   And I  hope it was a good one, even if you didn't know what we all were celebrating!

Six Months and Counting down...

In less than 6 months or so, Anna will be at college.  She doesn't know where that college is, but she will be somewhere.  And that somewhere won't be here, which makes me incredibly sad.

Anna is my heart, in so many ways.  In so many ways, she is a much better version of me.  She is much more kind, thoughtful, considerate, sensitive than I ever was.  And, perhaps in a not so good way, she often shows me how to be a better person, not the other way around, as it probably should be for a mother and her child.  I will miss her so much.

I loved Jack with every bone in my body, but I can remember that with Anna, it was different. I remember at her Christening, looking down at her, and thinking "I finally have a mother/daughter relationship...but this time, I am the mother."     With Anna, I could enjoy looking forward to doing things that mothers and daughters do.

But, it isn't because she is a girl that I will miss her.  It is because she is Anna.  Anyone who knows Anna knows that Anna is special, as I say  She didn't smile until she was almost a year old.  She was happy, but she didn't smile a lot. I think that she was taking it all in.  Aunt Phyllis tried, but Anna was content to be, well, content.  That is only part of why Anna is special.

Anna may end up in on the other side of Philadelphia, or on the other side of the country, but whenever she is anywhere other than upstairs in her room is too far away for me.

Notre Dame's Siegfried Hall Day of Man is on 2/17/16--see the video!

Every year, the guys in Jack's dorm at Notre Dame, Siegfried Hall,  raise money by dressing in shorts/muscle shirts all day on Notre Dame's campus, and asking for donations.  It is one of those things that seems ridiculous to me, but I also am not a boy, and I don't like the cold.  Anyway, this year, they did a really good youtube video promoting the event, which will be on February 17th, 2016.  You can see it here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfk6G9w8jKE


And, if you are so inclined, you can donate here:


http://tinyurl.com/dayofman2016

Jack is in the video...if you pause at 3:26, he is to the left of the teddy bear.

Happy Valentine's Day--February 14. 2016!

It was nice that this year Valentine's Day fell on a Sunday, so it was easy for us to have our usual pancake breakfast for Valentine's Day (pancake-alooza!): 

And dinner...pizza, at our favorite place: 

 Jack called during the middle of dinner, so it was nice...as if he were actually there for a little bit.                                                           Happy Valentine's Day 2016!!

There is a special place in Hell....for women who try to tell me how to vote.

So, I am really getting sick of these women telling other women that they need to vote for Hilary Clinton, because women have to support women.  Specifically, Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State, told a group a few days ago that "there is a special place in Hell for women who don't support other women."   I won't even go into Gloria Steinem saying young girls support Bernie Sanders because "that is where the boys are."  How offensive.   Thanks, Ms. Steinem, for all that faith in women.  You hold yourself out as a role model for women.  You should be ashamed.

I could not be more offended, and any woman, whether or not she supports a woman candidate, should be offended.  This quote, which apparently Ms. Albright first said years ago, was allegedly originally aimed at older women not helping younger ones get a leg up in the workforce.  The problem is, that to now suggest that any woman should vote for a woman candidate simply because she is a woman candidate, is itself sexist, and also suggests that we women can't think for ourselves, and can only vote for a candidate because she is a woman.

Conversely, there is a 19 year old woman who goes to the University of New Hampshire, who apparently understands.  According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Quincy Abramson, said (and there is always a chance this quote is not 100% what she said, but according to the Inquirer, Ms. Abramson said) "To me, feminism is about choices, and women should not be made to feel bad about their choices. I believe (Bernie Sanders) is better.  Picking Hillary (Clinton) just because of her gender is sexism."

Yay for Quincy!!  She gets it.  We shouldn't vote for a person just because she is a woman candidate, just as we shouldn't vote for a black candidate just because she/he is black, etc.  For now, for the United States, we need to pick the best candidate.   That is it.  Not the (fill-in-the-blank) candidate. Just the best candidate.

20 years ago today....February 4th, 1996--Jack's Christening Day!

On February 4, 1996, my 34th birthday (which makes this my 54th birthday!!), Jack was christened.   We had a big party at our house, even though it wasn't completely fixed up yet.

Some thoughts:

1)  Our house is still not fixed up yet.  In fact, it has gotten worse.  And we still have those chairs, which really emphasizes that we need to get new furniture.

2)  I am 40 pounds heavier than I was in this picture.  That is sad.    My hair is the same color, but that requires a lot of Loreal.

3) Chris is 60 pounds heavier than in this picture.  And Chris' hair is totally white.  I don't know how that happened.

4)  Jack is now 6'5".  He no longer wears little outfits like this, and maybe shouldn't have when he did...not so sure about this???

5)  I can't believe how big that cake is!  I do remember it was expensive, but look at that cake!!  He was our first baby, and he was adorable, so I think we really went all out for our first baby...not so much the others, if I recall.....

So, on my 54th birthday, happy 20th Christening day to Jack!!

Happy Groundhog's Day--No Shadow?? February 2, 2016

So, today the groundhog apparently did not see his shadow, which is pretty remarkable because, as Al Roker was quick to point out, there is not even the slightest hint of a cloud anywhere near all of Western Pennsylvania.  We are in Eastern Pennsylvania, which is a bit away, but there is not so much as a whisper of a cloud anywhere...just blue skies.

However, apparently the powers that be decided that the groundhog didn't see his shadow today, which means 6 weeks until Spring (or something like that).  I think I was 25 years old before I realized that 6 more weeks of Winter is saying the same thing as 6 weeks until Spring.  Both events will be happening in 6 weeks.

I always remember Groundhog's day for another reason, because it is a story I have told my children over the years.  When Jack was 5, or 15 years ago (2001--seems like another lifetime), he decided he didn't want to go to school one day, which happened to be on February 2, 2001.  I have never been one of those moms who was willing to let her kids skip school.  If you had school,  even if just preschool, I wanted you to go, because I had other things I had to do in those 2 hours while you were in preschool.  Anyway, Jack really didn't want to go, and I was trying to convince him to go, but he just needed a day off, so I let him stay home.  

When we went to pick up Anna at school at noon, she was only 3 1/2, and I remember Jack asking her how school had been, because I think I had told him he would be missing out on Groundhog Day fun.   She was fairly oblivious, but I jumped in and told him about all the fun things Anna's class had done for Groundhog day, none of which had really occurred, because I wanted him to think he was missing out on a fun morning of school, and then he wouldn't ask me to miss a day of school in the future.   I told him about the Groundhog Day party, and the Groundhog Day parade, etc, etc, really playing up all the fun he had (not really) missed.   Anna turned to me and quietly said "where was I during all that?"  It was adorable, because she thought she had missed out on the fun.

Jack never took another day off of school, so apparently the Groundhog Day parade that he (didn't) miss convinced him he should go to school in the future!!

Anyway, Happy Groundhog Day!