sometimes life IS all sunshine and roses...

Some days are just sweet. Today, for example. Middle of vacation, sun is shining, kids are happy. Suri listened like a good girl when it was time to come in from fetching the stick and running around in the snow. She is healing up, still uses three legs primarily, but occasionally she uses that fourth one. The vet wants her to walk on it as much as possible to get that scar tissue built up on the muscle that is now replacing the head of the bone that goes in the hip socket. The thing about Suri is this: she is all goodness. She doesn't always listen when she is outside, but she is nothing but sweetness. I make it a point to pet her and talk to her when she eats her food, she wags her tail and doesn't get defensive. She lets the kitty eat out of her bowl (kitty has his own food, but likes Suri's too, plus shares Suri's water). Suri just lies there and waits, wagging her tail. She loves the cats, and loves everyone. BTW, Emily took Miss Swanson Kitten to her house...and thinks she is pregnant. The cat, not Emily. Oops, bad pet owner! How did that happen again? In all of our years of having cats, I always got the cat spayed or neutered in the first year..oops. But, if she does have kittens, we get to keep one...to replace Miss Swanson...we live in the country, and can't be having mice:) Plus, I think it will be adorable to have a kitten with Suri...they will be best friends!

Anyway. The four youngest kids went to the pool with me last night. We were the only ones in the pool, so the lifeguard asked the little girls if they wanted to try out the deep end. 13 feet deep, and they jumped right in. Camille learned to jump without holding her nose! They jumped over and over again, with the lifeguard instructing them. It was great fun, and they were so proud of themselves! I can't believe that I have no children wearing floaty vests anymore!

I had made a big pot of chicken stew in the afternoon, and left some older kids babysitting it...Sam found some frozen croissants and baked them...I came in from the pool and dinner was ready.

Today....the Syracuse basketball game. Paul and I, Emily, Joseph, Samuel, and Margaret are working. The Dome is on a hill, a very evil hill. First up three or four flights of stairs from the parking garage, then a big walk up the hill, then steps. Huge high steps. Like four flights of them. There is the option of going up the stairs of the parking garage then taking the elevator up and missing the huge steps...which is what I shall do....which makes me sad because I used to have a love/hate relationship with my trip into the Dome. I hated it, but loved that I could do it. That flush of accomplishment along with my racing heart and aching legs...it was nice in some strange way. Dang. But I want my knees to last me, right? I decided to take one Naprosyn today before I leave, because elevator or no elevator, my knees will take a beating today.

I got my new sneakers the other day! I had to return the cool orange Reeboks because they were too tight, and get some blue and lime green Addidas. A huge sporting goods store, and only two styles of women's sneakers in wide width. And they were ugly. One can only get the men's sneakers in wide width if they are huge sizes...no size seven wide. So I just tried pairs on until I found some that felt comfy. I am pretty happy with them.

Camille is asking for a bin of water to play with her mermaid dolls in....she says she wants to also play with some of her, "human Barbies" in it. I know they will make a mess, but...it's only water, right? They took one of their marathon baths the other day and used both containers of hand soap.

It is hard to believe that my youngest kids are 5 and 6. How did that happen? Camille is such my baby, yet when Margaret Cheryl was five years old, she had four younger sisters.

Anyway. Jonathan is filling pitchers of water for the girls bin, warm water of course. He now has two train tracks set up in the living room. His nice one, a Lionel, is not working. The poor kid has the screwdriver and is trying to figure it out. He did fix Mali's computer last week, she could not get it to turn on, he got it to somehow. So he nicely gave it back. He has somehow gotten at least three computers to work that were deemed dead. Perhaps he will get his train running again.

I seriously need to get up and get moving here. There are towels in the dryer and there is bedding in the washer...and lots of other loads fighting for a turn. I have only had one cup of coffee though, I could certainly use a refill....