Chased by Children

A fish story

"The babies are here!"  Princess CoCo was so excited.

Her Mickey Mouse fish had finally given birth.  It had required all of her patience to wait for them since buying the fish a week and a half before (with her own money).  Everyone at the pet store had been happy to tell her that the single Mickey Mouse fish had been pregnant.

9 little fishies.  One tired mommy who immediately started swimming backward.

When Princess CoCo got home from school today the mommy had passed away...and was bobbing lifelessly under the filter. 

9 little orphans.  CoCo dutifully scooped the dead fish out of the water and flushed her.  Over the last four hours every time I've seen her she's been just staring at the fish tank. 

Those 9 little fishies have a new mommy now.

The Things I See in Traffic

You would not believe the things I see in Chicago traffic on my way to work.

The truck drivers are very flirty.

And is it me, or are bumper stickers getting too wordy?  I have to get reeeeeeeeeeeal close to make out what complex message some of them are making. My theory is that if you can't say it in four or five words then it's not bumper sticker it's a driving hazard.  Who's with me?

And yet they are irrisistable to me...I MUST get close enough to read that bumper sticker. The risk is worth it on the off chance I might agree with that person...or better yet, DISAGREE!!

I see a lot of anti-Bush slogans.  I see a lot of Support the Troops "ribbons".   I see honor student messages and classic football/baseball/soccer supporters.  There are the funny and ironic and weirdly off-beat messages about life.  A lot of colleges and universities that I have never heard of....and letters, just one or two on a white background in a black circle.  It's either a cult or club that I have never been invited to join.  jerks.

There are messages of salvation and damnation.  There are police associations and community causes.  And all of these people are up early and on their way somewhere, with their message on their bumper and a little hope in their heart.  Hope that maybe someone who reads their message might find it in their heart to let them into the other lane at the next merge.  suckers.   

10 Things my Mother was right about

My Mother's birthday is this time of year...always right around Mother's Day and the King's birthday so she often gets lost in the shuffle.

Today, after years of torturing my mother over the things she was wrong about (things I am not mentioning here, ahem) I've decided to list the most important ones that she got right.

1.  Always look your best, no matter how much money you have or don't have, no matter how much sleep you've had or haven't had, no matter how much you weigh or how long it's been since you could afford a haircut-- when you go out in public you should look the absolute best that you can.  In the absence of everything else put on some lipstick and  wear a smile.

2.  You are allowed to talk to anyone, anywhere, anytime about anything.  My mother will chat with people at the oddest times and within roughly 30 seconds figure out who they know that she knows, or where they lived that she's lived, or how they do something that she does exactly the same way.  She's genuinely interested in people, and within 34 seconds they are interested in her too.

3.  Making other people feel good about themselves should be one of your goals.  While not every conversation can end happily, my mother has a knack for finding the good in an interpretation of things.  I could tell her that I got fired and by the end of the conversation be convinced that I was better off if they didn't recognize my genius. (by the way, she WASN'T right about me being a genius)

4.  Savor every minute of your children's childhood.  Savor it.  It all goes so fast and every minute of it is a gift.  I really have tried and am sooooo glad she told me.

5.  Try every day to be better than you were the day before.  My mother is constantly striving to be a better person, wife, mother and especially Christian.  She's never once sat back and been satisfied with how far she's come, she's always improving.

6.  Pray.    a     lot.

7.  Sprinkle a little humor into every day.  My Mom's a funny gal, but more importantly she's easy to make laugh.  Once she gets going it's fun just to watch her try to stop.

8. Don't cook when you can go out.  Does that need an explanation?

9.  Boys who didn't like me were too short for me anyway.  What one thing has to do with the other...I have no idea.  I think it's in the same vein as the serenity prayer but with a more practical application.

10.  If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.  While she didn't coin the phrase she quoted it in a way that made you believe.  I mimic her in my own little happy home with this phrase all of the time.

Who loves you Mom?  It's me.  The funny one. 

The Little Bugle Girl

Princess CoCo plays the trumpet.

Yeah.

Sometimes Princess CoCo wakes up really early.

Yeah.

When she wakes up really early, she likes to play her trumpet.

I'd like to tell you that she plays revelry.  Unfortunately she likes to warm up with an enthusiastic version of "Good King Wenceslas".

There is nothing like a rousing rendition of "Good King Wenceslas" at 5am.

Nothing.