Celebrations are a good thing. The month of July is full of them in my family. In this photo, my kids are celebrating July birthdays with their cousins. 3 of these adorable kiddos has a July birthday. Now I can think of 9 family birthdays in July! I love the expressions and the energy in those little bodies. And boy do I love the puppy dog cake, that I know their grandmother made! What I also love, is knowing you don't have to have a birthday or holiday. There's always something worth celebrating! Things I Remember Celebrating: Our dog's birthday, with an iced, Gainesburger cake... Celebrating midnight in my youth, with a feast... last days of school... Vincent Van Gogh's birthday... my Birth-Year-Birthday, when my age matched my birth year at 57... and celebrating a rainy day by making a fort!
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There is something about the color and the curves, that just delights me! Two years ago, I enjoyed some up close and personal time, with flamingos in Aruba. We got to the island early and had about 8 birds, all to ourselves. From a distance their graceful poses and movements were soothing to watch. Close up, I was giddy and somewhat terrified by their pecking beaks as they fought for the seed in my hand! Observations: Delicious, creamsicle color... eerie eyes... a neck as long as the legs... the letter "S" in the neck... clever knees that bend backwards... smooth feathers that tempted me to pat... all their striking poses... bold & stalking behavior by one particular flamingo!
I really do love them, especially when they look at you... the way this young Iowa cow did! I wish I could remember the poem my mother used to recite... "My daddy held me up to the Moo Cow Moo..." That poem earned my mom the nickname Moo, from my little brother. She was a good sport about all the variations of cow names she ended with. Over the years she was called these names by her kids, their spouses and her grandkids! All Mom's Nicknames: Moo, Jersey Mother, The Jerse, Jersey, Moo Cow, Grandma Moo...
Bubbles are pretty festive and uplifting, but honestly it's the kids that make me smile in this photo. The "Hart Kids" and the "Dean Kids" all lived just steps away from my kids, for many years. Yes, air-conditioning did lure them inside on some hot days. But they spent a lot of time running from yard to yard, amusing themselves with games and toys, as simple as old fashioned bubble blowing! Bubbles I Like: Bubble baths with bubble hair-dos, spit bubbles coming from a baby's mouth, bubbles behind the Staten Island Ferry, watching a child accomplish their first bubble with gum, champagne bubbles, studying a bubble before it pops and... Kristin Wigg's, tiny-handed character on SNL, popping Lawrence Welk's bubbles! (And that one makes me laugh the most!)
The Rockcliffe Mansion in Hannibal, MO makes me smile... with raised eyebrows! There's something fantastically eerie about this place, especially when you are the only overnight guests. (an amazing B & B) Most mansions are gated off, so we can't snoop. But I love it when I get the chance to drive by an actual mansion, or tour one, or even explore one. I love imaging the people, the happenings...the secrets! Favorite Mansions: As a kid I was in awe of circus owner, John Ringling's mansion in Sarasota, Florida... In Texas my favorite is Moody Mansion in Galveston... I love the Vandamm House in Hitchcock's North By Northwest, even though it was just a film set... and The Biltmore could have been a favorite... but I never visited, since the tour ticket was too dang high!
This was taken at Debbie's birthday party. She is the adorable girl with the dimpled smile, standing far left on the second row. I am the goofball, proudly grinning beside my good buddy, Debbie. (There's no need to explain my appearance, the photo says it all) This photo amuses and delights me. I could study these faces and dresses for days. I don't remember exactly what we did at the party, but I'm sure there were games, balloons, cake and lots of giggling and squealing. There's also a chance there was at least 1 pouting loser and 1 sassy winner in the crowd! Thanks to Debbie's Dad, I have this wonderful photo! Games I Remember: Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Drop the Clothespin in the Milk Bottle, Musical Chairs, Drop the Hanky, What's Missing Game...
Yesterday's post about leaping, reminded me of this wonderful photo taken by my brother, Chris. it was 1969 and we were visiting my friend Tammy, who lived in an Italian villa outside of Florence. She is the lovely little girl in tights and Sunday dress, leaping from rock to rock. My brother, David looks like a young Italian boy. I sort of ruined the photo by wearing my striped gondolier's shirt, with my skirt and sagging knee socks. But I remember the magical setting. We started off at the creek, leaping about, like small fairies hidden in tall grass. Then we ended up diving into haystacks in a nearby field. I wish I could go back to that storybook day. Magical Places: Summer St. in Grinnell, Iowa at dusk with lightning bugs... St. Mark's Square in Venice at 2 am, with only the sound of our footsteps and cooing pigeons... December in St. Louis, when Xmas lights glowed under layers of snow and ice, turning bushes into illuminated, dotted mushrooms.
Today I need an empowering photo for the 50th day of this journey. Today is also the day I meet with my doctor to go over results which determine what I'll be doing for the next 9 to 12 months. Whatever my test results show, I know I'll be back to leaping one of these days... just like I was last fall in beautiful Arches National Park! Best Leaping Memories: My favorite part of ballet class was leaping across the old wooden dance floor, while the instructor clapped the rhythm and a dear aged woman played the piano... When I was 11, I recall leaping with my friend and brother across a small creek in the Italian countryside, while my older brother snapped photos. The black & white images look like fairytale illustrations... I adored playing leap frog with my neighborhood buddies!
Any sunrise is a treat. Sometimes you have to make an effort to enjoy one. When you do rise early enough, there are fewer people doing the same... which makes it more special. This sunrise at our nearby Texas park, Brazos Bend, was easier to catch because we were camping. There was nothing peaceful about this misty morning. There must have been 50 different, exotic bird sounds echoing over the water! Memorable Sunrises: Sunrise bacon & egg picnic with Mom & sibs in a Michigan park, shivery-cold view of sunrise at North Rim of the Grand Canyon, driving through Kentucky as a kid and seeing the sun rise over fields of horses, Galveston Beach last Christmas, when the dim view of the ocean & "Pleasure Pier" began to show colors... as the sun rose and broke though the fog.
It's hard not to smile when you see a sleeping child. But, it also makes me a little jealous. I would love to sleep long and deep, like a kid again! Maybe I should take notes from this photo of Scott at age 2. If I had Mickey Mouse pjs, a bed as cozy as a small boat, a soft quilt, a Cookie Monster pillowcase and a couple of plastic dinosaurs... I might have the perfect night's sleep! No List. Scott actually was not the best sleeper as a child, so there is no list to be made. But I have a fun memory of Scott at about this age, falling asleep in an Italian restaurant. Our small group lingered late and Scott drifted off. When a family with young ones left the booth nearby, we moved our sleeping tot to the empty, cushioned bench. Moments later, we caught the alarmed look on the waiter's face as he cleared the table. We chuckled a moment before informing him, the other family had not left their child behind.
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Happy List
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