Spring Break part two

My spring break is already over 1/2 over. I know I can't complain since most folks in the working world don't get any spring break at all. It's one of the many advantages of a career in education.

Tnere have been a couple of highlights of the week so far. One of the highlights was meeting Jenny, Abbie and Nina at a local mall late Saturday afternoon. The girls were adorable, as always. Nina is too young to ride the train, but Abbie enjoyed a few spins around the tracks.

We also took the girls into the treehouse play area at the mall. Big mistake. Jenny and I are way too old to be comfortable with Abbie climbing into an area where we couldn't see her or hear her. All it took was about 30 seconds of that and we were out of there. We threw some coins into the fountain (after making some wishes) and then stood near the Easter Bunny and watched him for a while. We decided to give the EB a try and it was successful. The girls sat on his lap for a few mintues, blew him kisses and Abbie admired his big feet.

Stay tuned for another post about Spring Break fun.

Spring Break 2K10

Our spring break didn't get off to the best start. Friday was fine. Matt came over around 3 pm to pick up Sally and they headed out to Cincinnati to hang out with Wayne. It was their version of Spring Break 2010. And they did have a great weekend.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we had a sick cat. We didn't realize it until around lunchtime on Saturday. We hadn't seen much of Mandy, our calico cat. Lily, her littermate and sister, was front and center for meals and treats, but Mandy was nowhere to be seen. We finally discovered her in our bedroom. Jack got Mandy her daily treats, but when he threw one to her, she tried to pounce on it and couldn't. When he gave it to her, she just sniffed it. She didn't seem to be in any pain, but wouldn't eat and drink. She climbed into a bin with old comforters and fell asleep. We were trying to avoid an emergency vet vi$it and thought as long as she was comfortable we could wait til Monday am. That was until Sunday afternoon when we noticed what appeared to be an abcess over her left eye. With that discovery, we thought that maybe Mandy just had an infection and with some antibiotics she would be as good as new. We bundled her up and took her to the emergency vet. The vet took one look at her and said that it was not an abcess, but rather it was a tumor. His best guess was that Mandy had cancer somewhere in her body that had spread to her brain. He said it had probably been brewing for a while and then took off. We really had no choice but to do the humane thing. Jack and I were with her when she died. We chose to have her cremated in a group cremation, with her ashes to be spread in a park in a nearby pet cemetery. We will miss Mandy, but we feel worse for Lily, who keeps looking for her sister who was her cuddlemate for the last 11 years.
Rest in peace, Mandy Renee Zellweger. You were a wonderful kitty.

Non-stop Weekend

Wow, it was a jam-packed weekend and lots of fun. It started on Friday afternoon for Jack. He went to see Karl Rove at the Union League Club and took two of Wayne's friends, Drew (who is doing a cool podcast thing) and Mike (who has very similar political views to Jack). Wayne was invited but was too busy at work. Jack had Karl Rove autograph a copy of his book for Wayne.

I had three big social events this weekend: a fund raiser on Saturday afternoon for my co-worker Brigid who is battling breast cancer, JD's deployment party Saturday night, and my mom's birthday brunch at our house Sunday morning.Wayne wanted to go to JD's party and Marmar's brunch and so he and Julie drove in from Cincy. They arrived about 11:30 Friday night. Jack and I tried to stay up to welcome them, but of course we were sound asleep by 10:00. We all had about 1/2 hour to catch up with each other on Saturday morning, then everyone went in different directions.I apologize that I don't have many pictures. I just did not take many pictures this weekend and actually forgot to bring my camera to the parties on Saturday.

Brigid's fund raiser was awesome. She has a wonderful group of friends from growing up and they organized an incredible event. It was held in her neighborhood at a pub named Keegan's. I went with Ellyn, Lisa and Jean and it was a fun way to spend a snowy Saturday afternoon. The place was packed with Brigid supporters and there was a silent auction, a raffle and t-shirts, The highlight was spending a few minutes with Brig. She looks fantastic and is weathering the chemo pretty well. I work with Brigid's niece Jane on Friday mornings and she was there too. It was really an uplifting experience. I really love the people I work with.




I got home around 6:30 and had a little time to get some things ready for Marmar's brunch. Jack and I left for JD's party around 8:30. It was held in the city, near Wrigley Field and started at 9:00. We were thrilled to be invited. We have known JD since he was in kindergarten and he is a sweetheart of a guy. I cannot believe he is leaving for Afghanistan next week. JD recently became engaged to Quillen and I am sure it will be difficult for them to be separated. We will all be praying hard for JD. We only stayed at the party for about an hour and a half, but we were able to catch up with some of Wayne's friends. What a great group of kids. We got to visit with Adam and Kristin, who are getting married in July and also Jeff and Andi who got married last year and are expecting a baby boy in June. We also saw Mike, Conor, Slacks and his wife Sarah (wasn't I just driving Slacks and Wayne to football practice???). Such a nice evening.

On Sunday morning, my side of the family came over for Marmar's brunch. We had fun listening to Marmar talk about the five highlights of her life (in addition to the obvious blessings of her family). Abbie and Nina were a huge hit, as always, and it was good to be together. I felt bad for poor Arne who is very allergic to cats. He was a sport and put up with the sneezing and itching for as long as he could. Christy stopped in before everyone left and we always enjoy her sense of humor. After everyone left, Wayne and Julie packed up and headed back to Ohio, along with Alan, Wayne's friend from high school who was riding back with them.

And then I took a long nap!

Tom

Tom was the most amazing brother and friend. I could always count on him for wise counsel, a good laugh and lots of fun. It is hard to put into words how much I loved being his sister and how much I enjoyed being with him. Tom was very much like my father in that regard (in many other ways, too, for that matter)-he made you feel good just being around him. Tom was so loving and generous to his family and very much a beloved and respected uncle to his niece and nephews. When Tom was diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a highly malignant brain tumor, in January 2006, he handled it with such grace and strength. It certainly helped that he had the support of his wife, the love of his life, Ann, who was a true companion to him through good times and bad times. Tom died three years ago today, on St. Joseph's Day, and I know that he is missed everyday by so many people. I am so thankful that I was blessed to have Tom as my brother. As Wayne said to me one time, "I hope I can be the kind of brother to Sally that Tommy was to you". That is just one of Tom's legacies.
Love you, Tommykins.

Happy birthday and top o' the mornin' to you, Marmar!

Happy birthday to my mom on her 86th! Marmar loves her St. Patrick's Day birthday and we love her.
Have a wonderful day, Mom!

St. Patrick's Day comes early in Chicago

I know that St. Patrick's Day is March 17th. After all, that's my mother's birthday. But in Chicago, we don't feel the need to wait until the actual day to celebrate. It's been that way for many years. In the neighborhood where Jack grew up and his parents still live, there is an annual event that is held on the weekend before St. Patrick's Day. Here is a picture from the world famous South Side Irish Parade.This picture was taken back in 1991. (Check out the gas prices!)We had a ball that year. We got to walk in the parade with Jack's parents as part of the Mercy Hospital group. Wayne was thrilled, Sally not quite so much as she was a little afraid of the clowns. The South Side Irish Parade is more than a parade...it is a neighborhood celebration that lasts all day. Unfortunately, over the years it became too fun and now it is no more. Not officially, anyway, though word on the street is that the celebration was going to continue today

Another fun tradition that we have participated in for the last 15 years or so is the St. Patrick's Day party that our friends Marty and Sheila throw every year. Marty's birthday is also on the 17th and he is very Irish so it's a wonderful reason to have a party. It is always fun and delicious. Sheila makes the best mini-Rueben sandwiches. Yum.
Christy, Carol and Jack in our usual spot in the living room




One of the highlights of Marty and Sheila's party is The Cat. Marty and Sheila were given an obnoxious ceramic cat many years back and they decided, as a joke, to have a drawing every year to see who gets to have possession of The Cat for the next year. Here is Marty, getting everyone ready for the big announcement.

And guess what? WE WON!


The fun will continue this week and we are looking forward to celebrating Marmar's 86th birthday next Sunday.

Rainy Saturday

I have not posted in almost a week and I apologize to all three of my regular readers :) Part of the problem is that not much has been going on this week and the other part is that I have been going to bed early. One night I was in bed by 7:30! I don't feel too badly about that since Sally has also been in bed by that time too.

Sally is loving her student teaching experience and says that she is learning so much. She said that it is not as easy as it looks and I know what she means. There is a ton you have to do and all at the same time...deliver curriculum, manage behavior and connect with your students all at the same time. Her cousin, Arne, teaches chemistry at the high school level and he tells her the same thing that Sally's cooperating teacher has said: Be tough. Sally is working on it and said she is developing her "teacher voice". She also found out yesterday that she passed her final test in the state certification process. Yaay!

We had a big maintenance week here this week. Jack, Sally and I all had eye exams and ordered new glasses. Jack had his first root canal; Sally and I are both way ahead of him in that area. And I went to the dermatologist and had my purple spot on my lip zapped. It's not too pretty to look at yet, even though I had it done on Tuesday. One of my preschool speech kids told me I had a "monkey lip". Love the honesty!

Illinois just lost to Ohio State in double over time in the Big Ten tournament.Bummer. Wonder if they will get a bid for the NCAA tournament?