Animals for Sale

My very good friends from college, Mo and Andy, were in town this weekend, looking for a pet.  Mo and I lived together in college, and she is, by far, the most sensible person I know.  Andy was like a brother to all the Farley girls, and he is, by far, the second most sensible person I know.  I miss them dearly.

They drove up from Chicago, and, like I said, they were looking for a pet.  So, before they came over, I cleaned up all my animals and put them in the back yard so Andy and Mo could "shop."

Here's the first one.  He's not potty-trained, but he is learning new tricks by the day.

The second one is kinda wild, but really good at fetch.

The third one is the prettiest of the crew.

The last one is the oldest and wisest of the bunch, very set in his ways.  No new tricks for this guy.  But he does cook.

Andy and Mo are leaving today with a yellow lab.

Oh well, I'm stuck with my animals, and they're stuck with me.  I wouldn't ACTUALLY trade them or sell them or anything.  I dreamed a dream of peace and quiet for a few minutes, and then I got lonely for them.

Love,


Momma T.

Why I don't like Easter and why I love it...

Easter has never been one of my favorite holidays.  I could never get past the deprivation of Lent and the solemnity of Christ's death and then the oddity of a bunny that drops off gifts in celebration of Christ's resurrection.  Don't get me wrong - I love the idea of celebrating the afterlife and I totally get the celebration of the rebirth of spring.  But I so much prefer to celebrate the birth of Christ than the death.  I can't get my arms around his mother watching him die like that.  It's always shaken me to the core, even when I was a kid.

Over the past half dozen years or so, though, I have started to LOVE Easter.  Easter means Spring Break with the DeFosses.  My sister and her husband, Jesse, have three fabulous children and a fourth on the way.  For the past six or so years, we've spent Easter vacationing with them.  It is perfection.  It's made me long for the days of old when families lived under the same roof or on the same block, when a mom to one was a mom to all, and when you learned to navigate the world by watching the bigger kids who went before you and who shared all their secrets.  

Easter has become the one time of year when my sister and I share the same roof  - even if it's the roof of a giant condo complex.  We are nuclear family once again.  

It's the time of year when there is always an extra adult hand for a little kid to hold.  

It's the time of year when Uncle Ryan taught Gus to "scuba swim" and Gannon jumped off the side of the pool and touched the bottom and Maguire did her first cannonball and swam the length of the pool without help.  

It's growing up and independence and all those things kids want so much and we so want to keep from them.

Spring Break is when Poj got his first taste of the good life....

And Aunt Tt told Francie that her mother lied when she said the world did not revolve around her...

And I saw through new eyes how much my son looks like Daddy...

And Grandma D snuggled each kid like she'd birthed them herself...

And Poj got words of wisdom, like "don't eat sand," from his godfather...

                                      

And everyone found out that sandcastles are best built by many hands...

                          

And we all realized that Maddie is not a kid anymore, but a beautiful and graceful young lady...

Happy Easter to all of you from all of us - - my family.

Love,

Momma T.

MURPHY FOR SENATE - 2042!

My Gan will be 36 years old in 2042 - just the right age to run for U.S. Senate.  He has a special gift that makes him perfect for the job.

We discovered the gift last summer when we started a special project in the Murphy house.  The goal was to get everyone to stop interrupting each other.  I am probably the most frequent abuser of this social faux pas, but I knew we all needed a little practice.  

I got the idea for the special project on the drive home after picking Magoo up from school one day.  As usual, Maguire and Gannon both started talking about their day at the same time, without pause.  I'd be listening to two full-on monologues, and it started to make me feel crazy in my head.  Hence, the special project.

Almost immediately, Gan figured out a way around the special project.  He fillibusts in the tradition of a great U.S. Senator of old.  He starts talking as soon as Magoo gets in the car, and he doesn't stop, not even to take a breath, until we get home.  He also manages to weave in gentle reminders that we are not to interrupt him.  It's truly remarkable.  I'd make him stop, but we all tend to get mesmerized by the constant chatter.  

Ryan experienced the filibusting phenomenon a few weekends ago when we took a little day trip.  He, too, was amazed.  

What can I say - the kid's got skills.

MURPHY FOR SENATE 2042!!

For my Republican friends and relatives, I'm sorry to say that Gan seems to favor his mom's leftist leanings so he'll probably be a Democrat.  But I can guarantee that a vote for him will not be a wasted vote.  He'll earn his salary in word count alone.  Look out C-Span closed captioners.  

Love,

Momma T.