I Love Rocky Road - "Weird Al" Yankovic

Another One Rides The Bus - "Weird Al" Yankovic

Aurelia's school pics from 2009

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Originally uploaded by hippoxmas

My baby graduates from her preschool entirely this year. She will begin kindergarten in the fall as her older brother enters college. Man, oh man... are we in for it!! LOL

Prom Picture

Prom Picture
Originally uploaded by hippoxmas

My sweet boy at his senior prom. I tried to convince him that a tux was a good choice, but in the end he opted for what you see there. He's making his "I'm a total cheese" smile... :0)

Upcoming Events

My oldest graduates from high school on May 30th at Big Sandy Superstore Arena at eleven am. It doesn't seem possible. It seems like it was just 3:44 pm October 5, 1991 yesterday. That tall brooding man that lurks around my house can't possibly be the sunshine haired boy that brought me rainbow pictures and talked with a lisp when his teeth fell out. He can't be the same boy that loved to cuddle and read bedtime stories and sing and dance with me in the living room like crazy people. But he is. Just bigger, more distant, more ready to roll his eyes at me. But every time he does... I have an image of him in my mind... running across our yard, laughing his fool head off, yelling "Mommy, Mommy!" Oh the bittersweet heartache of watching my child grow into a man. Cory---even when I am upset with you, disappointed, angry... know always that I am proud of you, that I love you and I am looking forward to seeing what you do with your life because I know it's going to be gooood!

Aurelia on a pony

Aurelia on a pony
Originally uploaded by hippoxmas

My sweet girl on a pony ride at her school carnival this year. Now I have a photo of all my kids on a pony....

Hither and yon

Way back when I was a teensy person, I started staying weekends with my grandparents. I would stay on Saturday nights and my brother would stay Fridays. My brother would hang out with my Pawpaw and I would cling to my Mawmaw. I would follow her around, asking her questions from her big question book, cleaning her glass tables, rearranging her newspapers, arranging her Wild Wonderful West Virginia magazines in the correct order. The high stools at her kitchen bar would turn and I remember spinning until I was dizzy. Every meal was fried ham and macaroni and cheese (because I am a picky picky girl) and breakfast was either canned biscuits or frozen waffles. As a kid, everyone always told me how much I looked like my dad (still do). But my dad has three sisters and I formed a working kid theory that his youngest sister must be my real mom (how else could I look so much like them all) and had given me to my parents to raise. That's the way my mind worked... there was always some other thing in the regular things... My aunt Penny, real name Cheryl, was always something of a mystery to me. She had moved out of state before I was born and that alone was enough to make me think about her every day. Mawmaw had told me once or twice about what she did for a living (travel related.. very exciting), and that she had been a hand model once and had even competed in the Miss USA (or Miss America ?) with Vanna White... Oh dear god, that woman was enchanting. My other aunts (my mom had six sisters) were amazing to me too, but they were all so close in proximity to me that they were everyday amazing. Penny was a goddess to me. I never aspired to be pretty or fashionable or adventure-seeking. I was content to be me, wallflower extrordinaire, jeans and tshirt girl, ponytail, sans makeup, nose in book. But on the rare occasions I would pretend, it was always Penny I was pretending to be. The hand model thing stuck in my mind (Palmolive commercial, maybe) and even though my hands were scratched and the joints were swollen, I could look at my long fingers and pretend that they would be perfect for that sort of thing. I would write letters, pages long, to Penny about what I was doing in my boring life. I never sent them. It was too boring. :0) Now in my life, I still think about her everyday. She still seems more exciting, exotic, and well-traveled than I will ever be. But I am thankful for the getting to know her part. When she calls or emails, I don't feel like a little kid writing her a secret letter about her boring life. We talk. We converse. Because she is three dimensional to me now. She is a person, not an idea. And I love her even more.

I desperately want to blog about the Folk Sampler broadcast that I heard tonight on the way home from Charleston (it was the Mother's Day songs...), but I cannot link to it and I am losing the battle with sleep.

Reminder to self... I also want to blog about Appalachia and the things that make me part of it.

Update: Here is the link to the playlist for that broadcast.

http://www.candacecorrigan.com/songs/mixed/mothersblues.mp3.

Michael Thomas “Mike” Ray, 38, of Charleston gained peace with God and passed away, surrounded by his loving family, Monday, May 4, 2009, at a CAMC Hospital.
Mike was born May 19, 1970, in Charleston and was a son of Susan Perrow Ray of South Charleston and the late Donald Allen Ray.
Mike was a member of Rock Lake Presbyterian Church, South Charleston. He was a 1988 graduate of George Washington High School and 1993 graduate of WVU with a physical education degree. He was employed by Means Landscaping Company.
Besides his father, Mike was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Tom and Lucille Ray; and maternal grandparents, Bill and Louise Perrow.
He is survived by his mother, Susan. Mike was a wonderful and proud dad of his children: two daughters, Gretchen Ann and Emily Elizabeth; and one son, Michael Thomas II. They were the light of his life.
Also surviving are four brothers and their families, Jeff, his wife, Sandi, and their children, Amber and Morgan, of Charleston, Donald, his wife, Lisa, and their children, Greg and Trenton, of Pearisburg, Va., Doug, his wife, BJ, and their children, Kelly and Holly, of McKinney, Texas, and John, his wife, Carol, and their children, Devon and Dylan, of Indianapolis, Ind.; and several aunts, uncles and cousins.
A tribute to Mike's life will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, May 8, at Rock Lake Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Rick McGuire officiating.
The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church.
The family wishes to extend a special thanks to the Rev. Rick McGuire for his love and support and the many friends and neighbors who have shared their hearts and concern.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Rock Lake Presbyterian Care Fund, Ray Memorial, 905 Village Drive, South Charleston, WV 25309, for the Ray children's future needs. The church will be administering these funds by custodial accounts. Envelopes will be made available at the church.
Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.hardingfamilygroup.com.
Harding Funerals & Cremations, 514 50th St. SE, Kanawha City, is serving the Ramsey family.
John 14: 1, “Let not your heart be troubled.”

Today's ponderings

Why does my dog want to run full speed down the street only when I am wearing the pants that are loose?

Why does my teenage son schedule a follow-up visit with the Mormon elders that stop by when I am not home?

In times of grief and sadness, I find my natural tendency toward humor to be less than useful.

Does anyone besides Daisy believe the streamers on Aurelia's bike are edible?

:0)

How to get worked over by a teenager

First you tell them something that is irrevocable. You stress how irrevocable it is. You really make it clear. Then you wait.

Months later, confusion will show its head. There will be a story about something Dad may or may not have said and how it might have been translated. A girl will have been invited to her senior prom. A mother's guilt will take over.

Then you will tell your teenage son that he may go to the prom he had been forbidden to go to because of his devil lies. BUT you hold your ground and insist that even if there is a pre or post prom party, he may not go. He may take the girl to dinner, but if she wants to party it up outside the perimeters of the prom, not our problem.

Then you spend the rest of the evening trying to make the son feel guilty. It does not work. Hang head in defeat, walk away.

;0)

Slow ride home

Apparently the slowdown on I-64 this evening during my ride home was due to a body being found by the interstate inside a trash can and duct taped.

The story is here!

Vacations are heaven, travel is HELL

We returned from our long awaited vacation on Saturday evening. Our travel time was approximately eleven hours.... with two children under the age of 10 in the backseat. Making barely audible noises, fighting, farting, telling bad jokes, fighting, sniffing, being hungry, and overall driving us up a wall. We had a great time at the beach and have decided our next family vacation (Aurelia says we will go to the desert) will be taken by plane!

Top Ten Porterfield Field Trip MUST HAVES

10. Snacks----easy to eat, minimal mess, munchies... the kids like cheese sticks, cereal, bread, and anything manufactured under the Little Debbie brand name.

9. Comfortable clothes.... no crotch eating jeans, no hot shoes. It's gym shorts and worn out shirts all the way....

8. Simple packing... it all has to fit in the trunk and I don't really care how that happens. I have never met a wrinkle I truly hated and I don't believe I'll start now.

7. Leg room... goes with simple packing... NOTHING can be in the leg room... it must all fit in the trunk...

6. Functioning A/C.... I know when we were young the windows could be rolled down and the air would flow through our hair and we would feel so much COOLER, but I am flying across several states at 60-75 mph and I want to be cool for real...

5. DVD player.... kids are like drunks in d/t's after a couple hours with no visual stimulation save for the roadside livestock and dilapidated buildings.... thanks heavens for the digital age.

4. Map.... preferrably directions, a sense of direction, or something remotely kin to those things would also accompany an actual paper map. GPS is great when you can figure out how to use it, where you are in relation to whatever it is telling you, or if you haven't wandered off the face of the planet accidentally.

3. MP3 players, audiobooks, playaways, crayons, .... necessary for the under 10 crowd to secure their safety.

2. Potty breaks.... I have an iron bladder...I work in an office where the only bathroom is reached through two locked doors, a keypad, a padlock and climbing over yard equipment... but I need me a potty break.... gotta stretch the legs... breathe that polluted highway air... be tempted to sit, but always squat....ahhh... the beloved rest area...

1. D-R-A-M-A-M-I-N-E...... in any form, under any brand name, Dan the man must have this wonder of the drug age, lest we should be forced to adhere a chuck bucket to his face with a heavy duty adhesive (aka DUCK TAPE). No one wants to see the man get motion sickness... and he has been sick on a drive from here to Charleston (which is about as straight as you can get in the hills of West Virginny). TWICE....

We will be enjoying our extended family time with four generations under one roof... Many pictures will be taken and shared.... Have a happy Spring Break!!

FOUND

She was located several blocks away this evening. She was missing her collar and tags, but seems otherwise unscathed!! Happy day!!

MISSING

Last night at around 9:30, Daisy went missing off of our front porch. She had been outside for less than 10 minutes on her lead to go potty. She should still have her green collar with her pink heart ID tag on that has her name and our contact information. I have placed a missing dog ad in the Herald Dispatch and with Little Victories. I was able to place a missing dog ad on Petfinders (our local animal shelter uses that service to show the pets they have available). I have a huge gripe about our local shelter. I called yesterday to report that our local deviants had returned to their rental house with the pit bulls that were removed from them on the 18th of the month. I called no less than a dozen times and there was NO ANSWER.... not even an answering machine. Later in the afternoon, it was necessary to call 911 to report the unmuzzled pooches were out of the crates and walking about again. When they paged animal control and I finally spoke with someone, I was told the "owners" had come in to claim three out of the four dogs that were removed. WTF?!! No one from animal control came by that I am aware of. Definitely not in the time frame needed to get those dogs back into reasonable custody. Now understand that I have nothing against the breed of dog, but these idiots were keeping them in crowded conditions and manufacturing drugs to boot... it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know they were not given the best life. I'd like someone to explain to me why I have to call 911 to get a response from animal control before 5 o'clock. Why is there no hotline, no answering machine, no anything? If those dogs had been attacking someone, or if there was a true animal control emergency, what then? I would have to call 911 and get a response by phone more than a half hour later??? And to beat the band, now that I am trying to report my own sweet puppy missing, there is still no answer.... NO ANSWER. I cannot even check to see if anyone brought her in to their office, because no one can be reached...

If you see Daisy, please let me know. We love her and miss her and would like to have her back before we go on vacation. Thank you.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

The plague has been making its way slowly round our neighborhood. I thought we had dodged the bullet of sickness for the winter, until Aurelia developed a 104 fever a while back. She rallied after a few days of reclining on the couch in fevered Victorian fashion, with her pale white skin and her fluttery movements to indicate her needs. The following weekend, I developed some sort of head cold thing that fortunately lasted just a little while. Aurelia then fell back into her sickbed. Daniel followed suit after dropping a padlock on Aurelia's head in our back playroom. Apparently he caught the attention of good ol' karma. I think everyone is on the mend, but both are still home with Ted today. It strikes me that each time the children get sick, Ted and I develop the stomach whirlies. Not sickness, but we are tensed and ready for getting our fair share of the pukes, which by default makes us a little queasy. It's raining today, and that makes it just a little harder to find that peaceful sunny spot in my soul that reminds me how fortunate we are and thankful we should be. But I am determined to find that spot, bask in my good life, and come away at the end of the day with a sunny disposition... rain and sickness, be damned!

Silly Rabbit

Each evening on my way to bed, I stop in to check on the little ones. I usually turn off Aurelia's fake fish tank, resituate her blankets, and brush the hair out of her face. Daniel usually reads at bedtime, so I turn off his lamp and move the stack of pillows from under his head. Last night, as I moved the pillows, he started talking. Most of it was unintelligible, but I caught "changing into the Earth/dirt." Not sure if he was awake, I said "Huh?"... He shifted in the bed... and then mumbled for 30 seconds about.........chipmunks. That was the only clear word I caught, but it was repeated over and over. I have never laughed so hard, so silently, for fear of waking him. When I told him about it this morning, on the way to school, I wished I could bottle up that laugh he has!!

The day has come

Anyone who has known me for very long will know that this is something I never thought I would say........ "Can you help find a cheerleading class/group?"

Now there is nothing wrong with cheerleading, but I have never been girly. NEVER....

My daughter, on the other hand, was born with a powder puff in one hand and pom pom in the other.....

Spaghetti Dinner and Book Fair

My son's school has an annual spaghetti dinner and book fair. I applaud the resourcefulness of raising money this way, but I personally despise spaghetti. If they had pizza, I would be in like Flynn, but spaghetti makes me gag a little just thinking about it. My son likes spaghetti at home, but at school he just eats the noodles plain... even grosser. And the book fair that accompanies this dinner gives me pause. The term "book fair" to me means that there should be books, not junk erasers, high dollar toys, light up pens, scented pencil sharpeners, etc... I have to tell my son every time they gear up to sell him these things that the money I have provided is to be used for books only. He pouts, I pout, we gnash teeth.. and generally I find some piece of dollar store junk stashed in his back pack anyway... OR a book about farts, a book with a toy on it, a book about the most annoying cartoon character currently in fad. WHY must we need to tell the children to only buy books? WHY can't the book fair JUST be books? I really think it isn't that much to ask...