Good morning! I too try to visualize people and it rarely, if ever, works out. it is nice to put faces to names. Shirley, still thinking of you and keeping you in my prayers. i know that's your daughter, brittney and dawson -- who are the others (inquiring nosey minds want to know) and as for your mom, you never know what the next roommate may be, perhaps you can hold off on the move until you see what comes in LOL, however, I think I'd want to be with my own and her secrets kept!!!! annie your dogs are beautiful, as are you. my aunt and uncle, for as long as i can remember, were the first home for service dogs until they were ready to go into training. they had several different dogs from what i recall. sorry about your lizzie...i know how hard it is to lose a beloved pet. my next dog is going to be a shepherd, but it's been decided that we will only have one dog at a time now, so I have to wait my turn. (we'll see) i made an anniversary cake for a group i belong to, it was our 7 year anniversary so i made this massive cake. i filled it with alternating layers of buttercream and lemon curd, and dang, if it was not tasty. I was able to take a slice home for the family to taste and seriously wish there had been more leftover, would have made a nice breakfast!!!! a real nice combination, even though it started out that i was going to use raspberry as well...i just couldn't get enough to cook them down to make a nice sauce/filling. it's still so cold and seems to be staying that way until at least next week, when it's supposed to go to the high 40's, with rain. by then, i'll think it's summer. this cold is bone chilling and of course, they are calling for more snow. we haven't got much of it, but.....this year it is bothering me like mad! i shouldn't complain, there are parts of the country that are in the negatives, so i'll just keep my mouth shut on this subject any further! so whose left to post their pic? come out. come out whereever you are! speaking of which, jeanne, how are those triplets of late? is mary ellen still a part of this group? i feel like i haven't seen her in a long time...maybe since she became a grandmom, or right before that? hae a nice thursday! maryanne

lkplatow is very close to me and I was fortunate enough to get to meet her this Spring! We both commented how none of our friends 'get it'. Unfortunately time and $$$ prevents me from going oout and about to the places I desire to go so much. We talked about a trip to Stoudts in Lancaster and all of those great flea-markets/ antique malls but it would torture me too muchn to not be able to buy and to get so many ideas that I can't do anything about at this time. Like dream about my own small shop (I would also sell cupcakes - inside joke!). DH is much better w/ it since he started working in the furniture biz and that's good Since I'm constantly repurposing what we have. My mom is great to go out w/ and she does work at an antiques mall very PT but she's 4 hours away from me and only gets 1 wknd off. My sister would be great but she's more of a 'Can you do something w/ my house while you're here?' kind of call. Not exactly a visionary. Everybody elses eyes just glaze over so I don't talk about it anymore. My boss just says 'Come over - can you do something w/ this? Whatever you want to do.' I confess to showing my magazines to my 6 and 4yr old boys and asking them their opinions. DD (2) is bound to be the next Kelly Wearstler the way she crayons all over our walls. Either that or she has a future as a grafitti artist. For now her art lives on our walls. Oh well maybe someday we can be decorating buddies. Or someday I'll catch a breath and lkplatow and I can really get together.

Here are a couple of versions of Twas the night before Christmas. The first one isn't funny but I thought it was nice. The Night before Christmas for Moms It was the night before Christmas, when all thru the abode only one creature was stirring, and she was cleaning the commode. The children were finally sleeping, all snug in their beds, while visions of Nintendo 64 and Barbie, flipped through their heads. The dad was snoring in front of the TV, with a half-constructed bicycle on his knee. So only the mom heard the reindeer hooves clatter, which made her sigh, "Now what's the matter?" With toilet bowl brush still clutched in her hand, she descended the stairs, and saw the old man. He was covered with ashes and soot, which fell with a shrug, "Oh great," muttered the mom, "Now I have to clean the rug." "Ho-ho-ho!" cried Santa, "I'm glad you're awake. Your gift was especially difficult to make." "Thanks, Santa, but all I want is some time alone." "Exactly!", he chuckled, "I've made you a clone." "A clone?" she asked, "What good is that? Run along, Santa, I've no time for chit-chat." The mother's twin; Same hair, same eyes, same double chin. "She'll cook, she'll dust, she'll mop every mess. You'll relax, take it easy, watch The Young & the Restless." "Fantastic!" the mom cheered. "My dream come true! I'll shop. I'll read. I'll sleep a whole night through!" From the room above, the youngest began to fret. "Mommy?! I scared...and wet." The clone replied, "I'm coming, sweetheart." "Hey," the mom smiled, "She knows her part." The clone changed the small one, and hummed a tune, as she bundled the child, in a blanket cocoon. "You the best mommy ever. I really love you." The clone smiled and sighed, "I love you too," The mom frowned and said, "Sorry Santa, no deal. That's my child's love, she's trying to steal." Smiling wisely Santa said, "To me it is clear," Only one loving mother, is needed here." The mom kissed her child, and tucked her into bed. "Thank you Santa, for clearing my head. I sometimes forget, it won't be very long, when they'll be too old, for my cradle-song." The clock on the mantle began to chime. Santa whispered to the clone, "It works every time." With the clone by his side Santa said, "Goodnight. Merry Christmas, Mom, you'll be all right. A Parent's Night Before Christmas Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house I searched for the tools to hand to my spouse Instructions were studied and we were inspired, in hopes we could manage "Some Assembly Required." The children were quiet (not asleep) in their beds, while Dad and I faced the evening with dread: a kitchen, two bikes, Barbie's townhouse to boot! And now, thanks to Grandpa, a train with a toot! We opened the boxes, my heart skipped a beat - let no parts be missing or parts incomplete! "Too late for last-minute returns or replacement; if we can't get it right, it goes...

Thank you, Radar. I really don't know what he thinks of it, but I do wonder that, too. If he's talked to DH about it, I know my husband did not mention to him that Sue came on to him, as well. Perhaps, after they got back together, they were hoping that we would call and arrange to do something together again. When we didn't, because (1) I was very angry still at Sue for trying to have an affair or whatever with my husband and (2) because we were both very upset and, yes, angry at how Sue helped destroy our mutual friends' marriage they most likely thought that it was because of the latter reason. Thankfully, though, it hasn't ruined DH and Jim's longtime golf games together. But, from what I've been told, the talk during golf and after in the clubhouse is pretty much just about everything golf related.