in other news...

alot has happened in the past two weeks, but most significantly, the boy has turned 10! he has lived on this earth for one decade now, and i have to admit, it does seem like a long time: ten years for him has also been ten years for me...

we have just completed a week off of school for spring break, in which my parents flew out to surprise francis for his birthday. the preceeding week, the week i was supposed to be cleaning and preparing, francis came down with strep and missed 4 days of school. needless to say, we watched alot of cartoons and i didn't get much done. but we managed, and luckily he was over his contagious factor so as not to interefere with all our guests and his birthday party. we had greg's brothers dave and brad, and brad's kids, all sleepover the night before the party, then francis had a whole day with uncles and cousins while i baked the brownies and picked up my parents from the airport. we surprised him at the party, which was at a boys and girls club that we had rented out last minute, when we were done deluding ourselves that we could fit everyone into our apartment. (well, we might have been able to fit everyone, but then no one would be able to move, so...it was a win-win situation for everyone. but mostly for me!)

his party was a blast: thanks to all of you who came out and made the evening so much fun! and then, in the following week, francis had a fun-filled vacation with his grandma and grandpa, and also us, which he didn't notice much. for his birthday, monday, greg took off work, and we were all trying to figure out what grand plans we would do for the day...take the ferry to port townsend? drive up to deception pass? but finally we realized we weren't giving francis his say on his special day, we were treating it more like a vacation day. so, francis, what do YOU want to do on your birthday? and instantly he said: museum of flight! so there we went. it's a boys paradise really. and my dad got a kick out of touring the concorde, which he actually has ridden on before, back in the 80's, for business. so of course we took all the necessary touristy pictures. (i'll post more on my flickr page).









i must mention this: it was sunny and bright EVERY SINGLE DAY they were here. a miracle of miracles! my dad said: "so what are you complaining about?" we were stripping off coats, had red mill burgers OUTSIDE! ON PICNIC TABLES! IN FEBRUARY! i had been preparing myself for what we could do in the rain. but as it was, we were lazy in the mornings, getting coffee and sun in my kitchen, then went out for the afternoons: downtown, pike place market, the zoo, the EMP and science fiction museum, and going out to eat for lunch or dinner to all our favorite places. we played card games, napped, watched movies, ate popcorn...truly vacationed without going anywhere. it was very relaxing, very fun, and now that my parents have returned to the actual winter that is morgantown, pennsylvania...we miss them very much.

and life has returned to its pace it was before: busy. normal. back to school and homework. ignored laundry is a towering mountain of mess, francis' room is an absolute disaster, as is our room, and my to-do list is so long that i decided if i got one thing done a day, i'd feel ok. so i make my coffee in the mornings, stove-top style, and slowly make a dent, to get myself back on track.

p.s. that birthday sign? my mother made. when we were growing up, she had made stuffed letters out of fabric, you know, the whole 70's thing, and the more kids she had, the more letters she made. i have never had the skill to do this, being i can't sew, but this year, she sent francis, in the mail, letters cut out of cereal boxes, and dollars, for him to put together. the first envelope were the letters H and A, with a dollar bill. he was confused. so i put them together and said: "HA HA, you get ONE dollar for your birthday!" and he sighed. but the next day, with a P and a P, and two more dollars, he started to get the hint. so then everyday, he ran to the mail box, predicting the next letters and eagerly awaiting the dollars. once he completed "happy birthday" there was a left-over F, and he yelped with joy! wahoo!! it wasn't just "happy birthday"; it was "happy birthday francis"!!! and he excitedly counted up the next letters and dollars he would receive. it was a wonderful plan, thanks mom and dad. and it led up to the final and best gift: you coming to spend time with us...we miss you already! and wouldn't you know it? it's back to gray...