Recently ... Jill's School Musical and more

Jill was the 2nd Narrator in her 2nd grade class musical last night. She did a great job! The musical was about the race between the tortoise and the hare. It was adorable. It took place at the same high school auditorium where her Dad starred in several theatrical productions back in the day. Brought back a lot of memories and made me proud! Then we all went to Yogurt Mountain as a treat. Fun!

Jill and Mia and I were the first to arrive at the church Easter egg hunt last Saturday. I forgot to take more pictures in the heat of the hunt but many eggs were found with treats inside.

Jill and Mia had a sleepover at Grandma's. Jill is dressed for Christmas Eve for some reason. She just wanted to wear her reindeer pj's, I guess.

Jill on the way to school one morning with her school hat on. She got the hat for straight A's and a pin for Principal's Honor Roll.

Some things I didn't get a picture of: I attended my first Passover Sedar at Aaron's parents' house. It was beautiful. Jaime and Jonah and Mia attended, but Aaron was late because he had classes. I have lots of pictures of the girls, but it is hard to pin Jonah down long enough to snap a pic. He is doing his homework, riding his bike and shooting baskets with his friends.

Owl

Stephanie and Cory have a condo in a beautiful setting on a lake. Here are a few pictures Stephanie posted on facebook including some of an owl they saw. I was reminded of it by Ruth's posting and poem about a boeautiful owl on her blog sync-ro-ni-zing. Click on the link to see.

Double Birthday Party and Housewarming

Jaime and Mia

Why are there no pictures of Aaron, the birthday boy and new homeowner? The sign above says it all.

Jaime's friend, Sonny and her baby, Hunter and Jaime. Sonny grew up two blocks from my house and Jaime's new house.

Me and Irma

Erica

Seth and Jonah would not pose for pictures. I had to get them from the back guarding the compound.

Mia in the dining room. The wood floor has just been installed. A new light fixture that matches the sconces is soon to be added -- a beautiful housewarming gift from Jaime's boss and our family friend, Linda.

The party table isn't ready yet, but check out the new sconces.

The new kitchen cabinet paint is on the bottom. Jaime hasn't started on the top yet.

Living Room

There was lots of food, lots of people and a lovely fire in the outdoor fireplace. The photographer (me) got distracted and stopped taking pictures. The house and grounds were swept and painted and polished. Jaime has been painting the cabinets a new color. In the dining room, the walls have been textured and painted and a new floor installed. Mia was sick and lying down in the bedroom watching a Care Bear video. Irma brought two awesome quiches. I hope to get her recipes. I hope this is the first of an annual event.

Happy Birthday, Jaime!

Jaime and Emboly

Here is the doomed Rebecca by the Christmas tree.

Jaime and Cory

Jaime at kindergarten graduation

Grandma and Jaime

Jaime and Grandma at her 3rd birthday

Jaime and Grandma - birthday # 2

She liked to play kitchen and dress up with my purse and shoes

This fancy crib was a gift from Grandma White

Me, Jaime and Cory *** Mother and daughter. A very complex relationship.

My daughter, Jaime, is 31 years old today. She is the same age as I was when she was born. It was a high risk pregnancy but she was born, premature but healthy, at 4 lbs. 3 oz. She was the tiniest baby in the nursery and I felt completely inadequate to care for her. I had already gone home and was coming back to the hospital each day to feed her but she would not open her eyes except to crack one eyelid once in a while. One day when I went to put her into the bassinet she screamed in such a way that I thought a pin was pricking her even though she was wearing a disposable diaper. I looked at the nurse in panic and said, "What is WRONG with her?" The nurse said, "She doesn't want you to put her down." That is the first time she seemed to know I was there.

She came home and proceeded to sleep only two hours at a time. Her brother, Cory, who was nine, feared for her safety. It was two whole years before I got a good night's sleep. By that time she could catapault herself out of her crib and lie down on the floor in front of my bedroom door crying. She finally started sleeping all night after I got a major kidney infection and could NOT get out of bed.

Sleeping wasn't the only problem. She could change from a sweet, happy child to throwing the worst tantrums I ever saw. I never judge parents when their children have a fit in public. Spanking her had no effect when she was in that state. Finally, I read a magazine article that suggested isolating her since making her sit in time out on her own was completely hopeless. We installed a chain latch on her bedroom door so that she could see out but not get the door open. She would scream and thrash around and bite her own hand for a while and then she would say sweetly, "I froo now." One day, I was slow getting the door opened and she screamed, "I said I froo!!!!!" The grandparents were horrified at the chain latch, but it saved our sanity. Lucky she was cute.

I will tell one more story about Jaime and her doll, Emboly. I tried to correct her and say Emily, but Emboly it was. Jaime had cut the doll's hair and she was pretty ugly but Jaime loved her anyway. I could never figure out what happened to another doll Jaime got for Christmas. Her name was Rebecca, and she had red hair and came with her own little stroller. Rebecca disappeared right after Christmas. I looked everywhere but I never found her. Only a few years ago, I found out why. Jaime buried the new doll by the shed because she thought Emboly's feelings would be hurt. I guess if I went back to our old house, that doll would still be there. Weird!!!

These are only a few pictures from Jaime's early life. She has grown up to be a beautiful and capable woman. She is a great mom and a loving daughter with a wicked sense of humor and dozens of different hair styles. She can make bargain clothes look like a million bucks and she always has to have the last word no matter what. That is a problem since her son, Jonah, has the same idea. Neither one will back down. She cannot get over the bad habit of constantly losing her purse and her cell phone. She is convinced she can build or fix anything, and she does, ever since she helped her dad assemble a fertilizer spreader when she was five. She is one of a kind. I can't think of any daughter I would rather have. I love her very, very much. So, Happy Birthday, Jaime!

Cory and his Green Machine - 1976

If you can see Cory's mouth, he is making his Green Machine engine sound while shifting gears.

He could spin that thing on a dime.

Here is Cory and me and our old blue Pinto in front of Aunt Nellie's house. I think the sun was in our eyes. Check out that bleached hair and hippy shirt. Wish I still had that shirt. P.S. Cory's comment when he saw these pictures on facebook: "Happiness is a pleather jacket and a finely tuned green machine."

Slide Whistle Songs - $1.00

It can be a lonely job selling stuff on the golf course.

Mia has some artwork. Jill has a sign that says "Slide Wistle Songs - $1.00. The picture below is Jaime at about the same age selling golf balls (1987).

Our dog, Tip, and Jaime's friend, Brooke, are also in this picture.

School Field Trip - Lettuce Lake Park

A school field trip at Lettuce Lake Park on the Hillsborough River. Three classes full of fourth graders. What was I thinking? The trip had two main parts. First we walked on a path to the river, learning about the different types of wetlands and uplands and identifying plants (like poisin ivy) and trees. Then the children took turns scooping out mud from the river and identifying the critters they found - minnows, snails, water bugs, etc. Jonah LOVED this, of course. Then we went back to the starting point and walked the second half of the trip - a long loop of boardwalk that went out over the water. The kids were instructed on how to use binoculars. Lettuce Lake is not really a lake, but just a very wide part of the river where a tall tower is built for observing the wildlife. We saw several kinds of birds such as a white Ibis and a baby aligator who was about a foot long. Finally, we all had lunch and headed back to school. I was just glad to keep up the whole way.