The latest new pages.

My pretty dancers!

Work it, Mads!
Tap with an attitude.
The shortest is always on the top of the pyramid.
Jazz with Pom Pom!
She loves the camera.
And it loves her!

The Ocean and I.

Until 1990, I lived close to the ocean. I grew up learning to respect its sleeper waves, to navigate across and out of its riptides. I stood for hours in its foam and talked to friends year after year. I body surfed and Boogie Boarded. My friends and I would swim out past the breakers, near the pier and would ride the bus home at night sandy and gritty and sunburned. At night, after a shower, I would lie in my twin bed, on my Raggedy Ann sheets, and, as I drifted off to sleep, I would feel the undertow pulling on my feet.

I left the ocean in 1990, and did not return until 2005. This ocean is different. Though it shares the same name as the one I grew up on, this ocean is much colder, more turbulent. I can't imagine swimming out past the breakers. There's no pier to judge whether or not I'm drifting out too far. I don't picture feeling warm and buoyant, not wanting to leave, like I did in that Pacific. But that ocean also didn't let me drive on its sand, and let my dogs out the run their hearts out. That Pacific was often crowded, with people knocking into each other as the waves tumbled them.

Yet on days like today, I am at the beach again, barefoot. And I am wading in deeper and deeper, my body growing accustomed to the frigid water. I haven't worn a suit, and now I regret it. So I stay with the children, and watch them wonder at the way the water pulls back out to sea, burying their small feet as it goes.

I'll get out further, I know, as the summer goes on. But for today, it was enough to know that now my own children will go home with sand between their toes, tired from playing hard, digging holes to China, burying each other in the sand.

I know tonight that they'll sleep hard, with the sound of the waves crashing in their ears and the water still pulling at their feet.

He's a lot bigger now.

Bubbly.

I did this while Tom was talking to me.

83 words

Speed test

New and Old Pages.

Sometimes, you just get lucky.

With the weather. With the camera. With life.

New Pages.

Time for an update.

This is Spring????
Little Eskimo.
Snow bunnies.
Too much Easter.
The haul.
Coloring eggs.
Easter fun, spring snow and more.

Easter Photos, 2008.

The eldest.
He refused to take photos alone this year. Or sit still.
Work the cute, Abby!

Coming to a mailbox near you soon.

Happy Birthday, Little Poppa!!!

Hey, Mom, send me the stirped snake!

Okay, I could start out by blaming it on my kids. I mean, that's how it started.

"Mom, can you go an my account and get me enough Kinz Cash to buy a bathtub? Mom, can you get on my account and win me enough Kinz Cash for the Pink Fairy Bed?"Like all addictions, this one started quite innocently. Then the kids decided I should have a Webkinz, so I could come over to visit their homes. Already, Eldest had the pink pony and some other pets I can't recall, and Princess had gotten a Panda Bear. With my help, they were busily playing games to win Kinz Cash, in order to furnish rooms for their pets, and add bathrooms, etc.
the next time we were all at Purple Cow, picking out their latest allowance Webkinz, I picked up the Pug. Just one, little, innocuous-looking Pug. With Eldest's help, I logged on, went to the adoption center, and my account was born.And like a good pusher, the people at Webkinz know how to do things to suck you in. Not only are their games fun and challenging for all ages (I like Word Challenge and Goober's Lab (a version of Bejeweled) the best), but you have to log on every day. Not because your pet will die if you don't--Webkinz are much heartier than their Neopets counterparts--but so you can spin the Wheel of Wow and win everything from free Kinz Cash to frog-themed sofas, then get your gem of the day at the mines, either to sell or keep for a larger prize, or to take your five free turns at the Wishing Well, a kind of cuted-up slot machine game that can net you up to 3000 points if you're very lucky.
So now, not only was I raising funds to "Kinz Mail" my kids' items of their dreams, but I was also now obsessed with outfitting Olivia (yes, that's the Pug's name) in style. I chose the celestial theme, which had a bunch of expensive pieces, including an operating TV (which shows cooking shows and other such fare) that cost over 1100 points.
Then, Chubby the bull frog came, and of course, not only did he need a room, but, being a frog, he needed water.
Well, you could only put the swimming pool into a garden area, so now I had three rooms.Lest you think virtual pets don't need a bathroom, guess again. This one has the same scheme as ours at home.
But for three weeks, for some reason, it wouldn't load, so I put in a second one. Yes, they can brush their teeth, take baths, and even use the toilet (Little Man thinks this is hysterical).Oh, and they need to eat. For this reason, not only do you have to earn points to purchase food, but they need a kitchen. You want your pet living in a tenement? I think not.Next came a big package from Nonna, in which Eldest got two, Princess got two, and I got two: Rocky, and Lillie. Then, Eldest told me about a hedge maze that someone had made. I had to have one. The herd was joined soon by Noah, and Chip.Once you have a room for everyone, now it's time to get creative with spare rooms. We needed a game room, and a garage, as well as a dorm (in case you want to put your Webkinz to bed in a hurry--they have to be asleep before you log out), and, of course, a classroom, because we want well-educated stuffed animals.It's at this point, you may be saying to yourself, "Yeah. She's gone." But I'm not alone. I have two friends who love the games and are always getting points for their kids. But let's face it, your kids will never decorate the way YOU want to, so why not bypass them as the little designers and do it your way? Princess doesn't even want to put all of her little clothes away, so I got my own storage room.Where else can parents and kids agree to keep their spaces exactly as they want, without argument?

Needless to say, my cross-stitching has gone to Hell.

Sorry for the Lapse...Broken Computer!