parenting

Friday Five for 9/6/2013

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In keeping with the idea of sharing five things every Friday, this is the second edition of the Friday Five! These are five (probably) random, (rarely) newsworthy and on (nearly every) occasion strange or unique. I hope there’s at least one thing on the list you haven’t already heard about so you have something to share with your grandmother when you call her this weekend (you know you’ve meant to call).

And off we go…

1. Johnstown, Pennsylvania, my hometown, is also home to the world’s steepest vehicular inclined plane. Not to be confused with the world’s longest vehicular inclined plane which is near-by Pittsburgh. If you’re ever in the area check it out, it’s kind of cool.

A woman's head on a mollusk's body

Artistic collaboration between a mother and her 4-year-old daughter.

2. What do you get when an artist mom and her 4-year-old daughter collaborate on a project? Some pretty cool art that what!

3. Small town politics can be dog-eat-dog. Some people are wondering if it wasn’t more of an assassination attempt when the cat mayor of a town in Alaska was attacked by a dog. What do you think?

4. A stork was recently arrested in Egypt on suspicion of spying. There was some concern that it was in cahoots with some GPS sharks that were allegedly swimming off the coast. No word from Dr. Doolittle on his involvement.

5. Would you be willing to wait eight years to get your expensive diamond earring back? A woman in England is! You won’t believe who took it.

That’s this week’s Friday 5! Do you have something you think would be perfect for the list? Drop me a line here: 

Have a great weekend!

A Special Edition of Tell Me a Story Tuesday

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Last week marked the 19th anniversary of my mother’s passing. The date doesn’t bring the heavy grief it used to 10 or 15 years ago. But I was still left feeling a little melancholy and out of sorts. Which is part of the reason there was no post last week.

Sunny morning at the beach - boy do I wish I was there.

God bless the characters we’ve loved.

I’m kind of at a lost about this week’s post too. My mother was very shy, and some how a post about her doesn’t seem right somehow. But I thought I would share a few words about the kind of character she was.

Joyce, was short with big eyes and a soft smile. She was everyone’s mom. All of my friends and classmates from grade school to college called her Mom when they saw her. She was always ready to give whatever they needed – a hug, a pep talk or a snack, many times it was all three. She was strict. She was cautious. She had high standards. She was quiet until there was a need to fight for a child, any child, and then she was fierce. Most of all she believed in all of her kids (hers by birth, babysitting or happenstance) more than any of us believed in ourselves.

I would like to invite you to take a moment and share a few words or a story about someone in your life that is gone but not forgotten. Sharing the memories keep them, and us, alive.