Why didn't I think of that?!

My husband and I had a lunch date in this quaint little town nearby.  After lunch, we visited the local shops.  There was a lot of junk, but some cute things, as well.  Someone is marketing pairs of unmatched socks - called "Miss Match" and on the label, it says, "These socks are not supposed to match".  If you could see my odd sock basket!  Just this morning, I had to send Megan upstairs to change her unmatched socks before school so that people would not think she is an orphan.  Perhaps things are turning around for those of us with big families (or little organizational skills)!  While I would never pay money for a new pair of socks that don't match, maybe my kids can feel like they are in style.............and I can worry less that people will think my kids have a mother that doesn't notice what her kids leave the house wearing! Most days, it's enough for me that they have shoes on........

Random thoughts......

"Happy Birthday Mommy, can you make muffins?"  These were the first words I heard this morning,  from my 5 year old boy with the big brown eyes.  Yes, it is my birthday, and I am 41, but don't feel a day over 40! 

Life is good. 

My brother is actually getting a little better - perhaps I was a bit premature in my last blog entry.  Apparently, he had a visit from Pope John Paul himself, and he has since started receiving the sacraments and his health is improving.  God is good!

I just finished my shopping list of last minute items to get for our Thanksgiving dinner.  Everyone had a chance to submit his/her requests and it is a lot of food.  There should be a lot of leftovers! 

Tonight is our unit Marine Corps Ball.  It is an hour away, in a convention center.  We are providing babysitting onsite and my oldest daughter, her friend, and three other girls/women will be doing the babysitting for about 35 kids ages 12 months up, while Molly and Jack will be at the hotel watching the rest of our kids.  I hope all goes smoothly.  I am bringing assorted toys and movies for them to watch.  Beyond that, I'd like to say the rest is up to those in charge, but I'll have to restrain myself from going up and checking on the babysitters.  Since this is likely the one and only time Tim will have his own unit ball, I really want to enjoy it with him and the Marines and their spouses. 

To tie the last two paragraphs together, I recently purchased some "wonderwear".  They are called Spanx, and they are supposed to pull you all together, from upper waist to mid-thigh, to give the illusion of firmness and fitness, with no visible underwear lines or muffin top.  I will wear them tonight under my ball gown.  Every time I put them on (which is best done in the bathroom, away from the mirror, with the door locked), I can't help but think this is what it must be like to work in a sausage factory.  Stuffing 30 extra pounds into spandex is the only sausage stuffing we'll have this holiday!  But I will be making a bag of Pepperidge Farm bread stuffing for my husband........

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dennis

My brother is dying. 

He is in a hospital in Michigan.  We are all praying for him, and his family.  He is 13 years older than I am, and we were never really close – not because of anything my parents did or didn’t do, but because our age difference left us with little in common, and by the time I was a teenager, he had been out on his own for quite some time.  I do remember him calling the zoo and telling them to pick me up once when my parents weren't home, and he was in charge, I guess.  He also tied me to a tree once.  And gave me swirlies pretty regularly.   He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had surgery last year.  He called me one evening, a few months ago, and we had a nice chat.  I think it was the very first time he has ever called me on the phone.  He said he was looking at pictures from a vacation we all took together a few years ago, and he was remembering how much fun we all had.    I wonder now if he was trying to connect, and in some way, to say goodbye.  It is hard being so far away, because I cannot see him, or do anything to help him or his family.  He is married and has one son, who is almost 12.   Soon, my mother will lose a child.  A wife will lose her husband, and a son will lose his father.  6 of us will lose a brother.       

My family has always had a realistic view of death.  Some might call it morbid - my dad and one of my brothers have photos ofrelatives in their coffins.  I myself don't feel the need to take such mementos, but, death is a part of life.  My dad had a “Death list” on his bedroom wall for years.  Every time someone he knew died, he would add that person’s name and the date of death to the list,.  He had his own name written at the bottom.  Kind of creepy, but you had to know my dad -  If you believe as we do, that there is a Heaven, and those that lead a good life will receive their reward, then death is just a step towards a better life, so-to-speak.  I think of my dad at every mass, though, because he told us several times not to stop praying for him after he was gone, that he would always need our prayers.  I can say that I believe he is in heaven, because I still talk to him sometimes (although I try to keep these conversations in my head), and I have had signs that he has heard me.  It gives me comfort to know that he is still watching out for me.  And I feel like he knows my kids – even the ones that were born after he died – I like to think he picked them out just for us!  I remember after he died, my mom said that he can do more for us now than he could when he was living.   This is a comforting thought.

But….. faith is for the ones left behind.  I am a wife.  I cannot imagine the pain of losing my husband, my soul mate, my best friend.  Nor can I imagine losing a child, no matter how old that child happened to be when he/she died.  The thought of my nephew losing his dad is heartbreaking.   And, I wonder if it makes him more afraid because his mom is all he will have left.   My greatest prayer is that my brother will go peacefully, and without much pain,  and that my sister-in-law and my nephew will find the faith to accept God’s plan, and the strength to carry on.