It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Okay, except for the traffic. And the crowds. And the long lines. And the bored/tired/greedy/sleepy/grumpy/hungry kids. Shopping for Christmas WITH the kids? What is WRONG with you? Well, if you’re that desperate, what you need is something to help the kids to pass the time. And if you have [...]

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I have a very important question for you: Are you finished with your Christmas shopping? If you answered, “yes,” then this post may not be for you. (And we might not be compatible as friends.) . . . Okay. So now it’s just us procrastinators here, right? There’s an event that I want to tell [...]

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Tonight is the first night of Hanukkah, so it seems appropriate to celebrate it in song. By the way, when I heard this version of this song on the radio, I almost barfed. Neil Diamond trying to channel Adam Sandler? Ick. HOWEVER… I have to admit that the video is kinda sweet. Happy Hanukkah, Y’all! [...]

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My late father-in-law, Lt Col Charles Wetzel, Sr Air Force He served his country at a pivotal point in history. Navigated B26 bombers in WWII. Served in counterintelligence in Germany after WWII (catching Nazis). Navigated for Strategic Air Command. Worked on the Minuteman Project (world’s first ballistic missiles). My father-in-law worked on some important projects [...]

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One thing I’ve discovered about myself and writing: I often do my best work in silence. At least with blogging, the only “background music” I usually have is the thud-thud-thud of the dryer off in the laundry room, dogs making licky-scratchy noises in harmony, and the occasional barking at a squirrel (by the dogs, not [...]

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Did you miss me? Did you even notice that I was gone? (According to my lovely friend Wendy, my absence was basically UN-marked.) Yes, it’s been a week since my last post. I’ve been in Philadelphia for a conference, and every day after 14 hours of information, I just didn’t have enough brainpower to blog. [...]

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We were at Target the other night, looking for Barbie storage units. And at our Target, the storage stuff is right by the pet stuff. So while I was pricing flimsy plastic drawers, the girls were examining the items on the end of the pet aisle: Dog Costumes. “Mom! I know what we can make Tess [...]

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Scene: Living room, Night. Man and woman on sofa, watching TV. On the TV is The Grammys / VMAs / any other musical award show. On TV, Scantily-clad presenter: And the winner is…. Singy McAutotune! Man on sofa: Who’s that? Woman on sofa: I don’t know. Let’s see if we have anything on DVR. Man: [...]

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This past weekend we saw a sight for sore eyes: The kids actually playing in our treehouse. Well, technically, they were cleaning out dead leaves and bird poo and conspiring to sleep out there one night this fall. But after a summer of neglect due to an evil ant infestation and sweltering heat, the treehouse [...]

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I’ve never been much for bottled water. Even before we lived out here in the country, with our own pure well water, I wasn’t too picky about drinking water from a tap. A point of too much pride, I’m sure. Because while I’m not picky by American standards, I’d have a hard time accepting a [...]

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