Manomet 2.0 HOMEwork

 For some time now we’ve been busy 

building Mano 2.0 

which has been exciting 

but has required lots of HOMEwork…

lotsa visits to plumbing stores, tile stores, floor stores, 

kitchen stores, quartz stores, 

you name it stores….etc etc etc

I’m hoping now that all is said and built…

I get an "A" on my HOMEwork  

Or at least Extra Credit for the work involved. 

I remember a particular visit to a plumbing store 

where after too much time there…

I got the freaky feels.

As I walked through an aisle of toilets, 

I was caught off guard when 

a few toilets raised their lids.

 After I put 1 and 1 together

and got Number 2, 

I realized the toilets weren’t alive. 

So then, 

 I did what every mature acting person would do.

I walked back and forth to get them to raise and lower again  

and again 

and again.

There is nothing like a 21 toilet salute.

I am not a fan of automatic lids on toilets for a 

couple of reasons.

Number 1:  they would be especially creepy at night.

Number 2:  ….ummmm

Number 1 and Number 2 ….

That pretty much sums up toilets.

From the bowels of the store,

 I moved up the pipeline 

to faucets.  

After staring at kitchen faucets way too long…

the long goose necks seemingly came alive.  

No longer were they mechanical devices for delivering water…

they were evil creatures …

twisting and turning themselves toward me…

in an effort 

to grab me and pull me down the drain. 

It was time to plumb and run.

As months upon months 

rolled by 

with unending waves of Manomet 2.0 HOMEwork,

I hit the plaster wall 

when it came to choosing paint. 

Paint ain’t easy, folks.  

There’s so much to consider like

undertones and 

LRV (Light Reflectance Value.)

Apparently

if the room is facing east/west/north/south...

our guys,

Ben Moore and Sher Williams, 

can look differently on your walls.  

 So don’t forget your compass, Columbus.

There may be 50 shades of gray, 

but I found there are 100 shades of white…

super white, pure white, simply white, alabaster white, etc etc.

I went round and round with so many different whites 

that I painted myself into a corner.

The whole paintful experience had me turning 

Ghostly White…

which could have been the perfect white 

but I also had to consider…

Sickly White.

Anywhooooo

Manomet 2.0 HOMEwork is finally finished

and turned in.

All we need now for finishing touches is…

visitors.

If you’ve managed to read 

this blog 

thus far….

you are cordially invited.

My Sister Jayne

 Sadly my dear sweet sister Jayne passed away in March.

 

Jayne fought cancer for a couple of years…

fighting a tough and heroic fight and

I admired her great strength and bravery through it all.   

There were many days when we would chat about things,

                                                                         like sisters do,

                                                                  and 

there were other days, 

when we would just cry, like sisters do.  

The sister/friend bond is a strong one and forever. 

In the end, Jayne was at peace,  

but it’s so hard to make peace with saying goodbye

to someone you love. 

No matter how many years you have together, 

you never have enough. 

I’m still thinking that I’m going to see her,

talk to her, see a comment from her pop up on FB.

I hope I never lose the feeling that Jayne is still with me.

Growing up, I shared a bedroom with Jayne.  

She was the best roommate... 

the proverbial teenage drama around sharing clothes was never an issue.  

It probably was because Jayne quickly grew past my 5' 4" inches 

to her lovely lanky 5' 9". 

She would have looked pretty silly wearing my pants. 

I remember Jayne in our bedroom at night…

lying in the twin bed next to me, 

       the two of us chatting about our day, 

                                                                             as sisters do,

                                                         then wishing each other   

                                                            goodnight.  sleep tight.

                                             

Anywhoo...

Jayne was a gentle and beautiful soul, 

loved  travel, her dogs and her family.   

She was not only a great sister…

she was a great Aunt….

literally and figuratively. 

She was a wonderful and loving Aunt to 

Chelsea, Colin, Brianna 

and Natalie, 

                                                                                 Natalie's  2nd bday

 

but also a Great Aunt  to Chelsea’s Ansley and Presley.  

These kids were Jayne’s pride and joy through all the years.  

They all knew how much she loved them and

Jayne knew how much they loved her.   

It was a mutual love society. 

Back in the day,  Jayne and I both took Spanish in high school.

                                                  She was Juanita and I was Carlotta.  

We were far from fluent 

but that didn’t stop the daily Juanita - Carlotta convos.  

During  dinner, the spanish language was

 sliced, diced and butchered more than our food.

Juanita pass the pollo, por favor.  

But Carlotta, this is a burger???

Besides known as mi amiga, Juanita…

Jayne was family famous

for the time she kissed a lady bug and it crawled down her throat.

(Okay, she was  3)

Hence her family nickname, Jaynie bug .

Whenever I see a ladybug,

 I  think of Jayne…

we all do. 

Family stories and sweet memories of those we love and

keep deep in our hearts 

must be passed down.

Now it’s time to tell Ansley and Presley about the time their 

 Aunt Jayne swallowed a ladybug.  

Pass it down.

Our sister Jayne will be greatly missed by us all

but we are comforted  knowing she is with our parents.

“We grew to the same beat of our mother’s heart.”

The day Jayne died, I sadly went to bed that night, 

closed my eyes and 

I clearly saw Jayne's face...

the side of her face

the same way she looked 

when I would look over and say goodnight to her from my bed.  

Buenos Noches, Juanita.

Goodnight Jayne. 

                                                                                              Sleep tight.

                                                                                       I miss you.

    

                      

Happy Birthday Colin

 It's only fitting that Colin was born on 

Valentine's Day

a day all about love.

aka

Colintine's Day

The day Colin was born 

he had my heart...

                                                        hook, line and sinker.

Before he was born tho,

I wasn’t particularly sweet on Valentine’s Day...

(maybe savory)

because it comes with a runnnnn on

reservations.

Unless you’ve made dinner reservations early 

you are late to the party of 2. 

You and your valentine are left looking at each other like…

'what up Val?'

But sometimes you get lucky, and land on your sweet feet 

like I remember one Valentine’s Day back in the day. 

(Colinboy was away at college so I was free from making

meatloaf for his usual requested birthday dinner.)

PaulA had forgotten to make dinner reservations so was SOL

(sorry out of luck)

 (of course, not my fault)  

but after some scrambling…

PaulA found a reservation online at a Chinese Restaurant 

we had never heard of.  

He tried convincing me that this was a great idea…

and that the restaurant was gonna be the 

DimSumDiggiity.  

He had read they had a large tropical fish tank and a grand piano…

which sounded summa cheesy to me.  

I wasn’t biting at first…but he is my Valentine for life…

so off we egg rolled.

And, of course, PaulA was right!  

I ordered their signature scorpion bowl the size of my head…

and the rest was Valentine’s history.

The experience left us Wonton for more, 

so we went back the following year for Valentines’s Day.  

So Colin…

may you always pull a Peking Roasted Duck out of your hat…

and 

land on your sweet and sour feet like your Dad.

Anywhoooo….

On this day filled with hearts and love, 

PaulA and I remember and celebrate our cute Valentine …

💗

He’s still cute, 

but our baby

has a beard now.

Stuck in the middle 

between Big C and Sweet Wish…

Colin is sooo loved by us all.

He's in our hearts 

this Colintine's day and beyond.  

This guy is the best son 

                                                         a mama could ask for

Happy Birthday Colin

Cheers to you 

for making Valentine's Day extra special

for me.

We love you 

and 

your BIG ideas,

your BIG ambition, 

BUT, most of all 

your 

BIG HEART.

💖

Happy Thirtysomething Chelsea

 Today Chelsea is 

Thirty Something  

Back in the day when Chelsea was just a baby...

the show Thirtysomething was all the rage.   

I would put my lil pumpkin down 

and tune in to a show about baby boomers in their 30's. 

Such a full circle moment...

to think....

watching Thirtysomething while thirty something….

and now my firstborn is thirty something.  

Woah,

how’d that happen so fast?

Now thirty something years later...

I’m watching “This is Us”…

a show with a similar vibe

 altho Thirtysomething didn't have 

cellphones, Facebook and hashtags. 

#thegoodoledays

If you’ve seen "This is Us"...

it has its Big 3 

and

 so do I. 

I admit I’m a fan of "This is Us"

 mainly for a good cry... 

not the ugly cry…just some minor blubbering.

And it gets me reminiscing...

"This is Us"  

as a Party of 5...

"This is Us" 

as a Party of 10...

after the Big 3 each found their person.

Anywhooo.......

I remember waking up that 

Tuesday morning, 1/21//86 

in Jacksonville, FL. 

I wasn't due for another 3 days and 

 I had a CPCU exam scheduled 

(insurance designation…don’t ask) 

but that exam was derailed...

when my water broke.  

I remember calling out... 

“PauuuuuulAAAAAAA I’m going to have a baby today.”  

Anything to get out of taking the test.

And we were off and ready…

we had the checklist checked.

(We got this PaulA)

Overnight bag ✅

Crib  ✅

Diapers ✅

Baby swing ✅

Cute baby outfits ✅

We were ready for mission: New Baby

but 

there was one thing I wasn't entirely ready for…

the primal love connection that comes with parenthood,

the infinite and unwavering strength of the parent/child bond,

and the willingness to protect at all costs.

Granted I knew we would love our baby ALOT…

after all, my parents loved me so.

But I did not understand the depth and fierceness of that love…

until she was here.

 

January 21st,

1986

changed my life. 

Forever. 

For the best.

ever.

Proud mom '86

Proud Mom thirty something years later

Happy Birthday Chelsea

At thirty something….

you definitely are …

something 

special

 

and your family knows that.

  

Don't blink Chelsea...

cuz before you know it ...

your Ansley and Presley will grow up

and be 

thirtysomething...

but

they will always be your babies...

forever and ever.

Happy Birthday 2 Presley

Precious Presley Parker 

aka Sis 

aka Sissy 

is 2. 

Yahoo 2 be 2. 

She’s 2 cute, 2 sweet, 2 precious 

and all 2 squeezable. 

From birth to age 2 a child learns a lot from the world around them. 

During that time, 

Presley has learned by watching and taking cues from her big sista. 

Imitating, copying, repeating and even choosing the same snack... 

Presley looks up to her big sis and will follow her lead. 

But don’t let her fool ya….

sometimes Presley’s driving the bus…

and everyone else is along for the ride. 

This precious peanut can rough house with the best of them 

and definitely hold her own. 

She may be a Sis….but she ain’t no sissy. 

At times Presley gets delegated to the role of 

royal subject 

by self-proclaimed princess big sis..…

but today

 

Lil Sis wears the crown 

and reigns over her royal subjects.

Her subjects may be stuffed.

Anywhoooo.....

At 2, life is simple... 

as it should be.

Presley loves all dogs and 

will bark with the best of them. 

She loves to clap/dance and 

to groove to music in the carpool drop off/pick up line.

 

She loves her “school” 

(Trigonometry is her favorite subject😉 )

and gets bummed when it's not her day to go. 

She's never a met a stuffed animal 

she didn’t love, want or need

in her crib. 

She loves fruit and will choose a bowl of grapes 

over sugar cookies. 

Whaaat?! And you're my granddaughter. 

And she loves, loves, 

LOVES her Mama and Daddy and Big Sis.

No one gives a better thumbs up than this little one. 

Hands down, Presley's thumbs up 

with that lil thumb curl

is the best.

 

Me Me and Hop couldn’t love our Presley Parker more 

and remember all the feels this day 

2 years ago... 

the excitement, the love, the gratitude...

when she joined our family.

Today, by royal edict...

 Presley can have her cake 

and it eat 2.

Just put a grape on it...

and it's

Perfectly Presley.