Fancy Easter Baby

Kayden was Mr. Baby GQ on his first Easter, dressed to the nines. He had an Easter basket with a fuzzy white chicken- bunny and a new rattle, and was a great success hunting eggs.

Once upon a time about 27 years ago, I dressed my little boy in his first Easter outfit. Peter was about 2 months old and had a yellow terry cloth sleeper with a little white tail and a bib with "My First Easter" embroidered on it. Back in those days, there were no gathers on the legs of paper diapers. Baby poop had a tendency to shoot right out the side, which is exactly what happened about 5 minutes after Peter was all dressed to go. Somehow I had enough time to remove his poopy- legged outfit and throw it in the washer before we left to show him off. I pulled it from the dryer, dressed him again, and we were off. As I recall, we did actually get to have a few pictures with Grandma and Grandpa before a repeat diaper failure occurred. Say what you want about the "good old days", but I think gathered leg diapers make today a better place.

Kayden

Through all the sadness of the past month, Kayden is my one constant source of happiness and laughter. At 3 months old, he is a happy baby who loves to smile. His little fist is in his mouth most of the time and the "drooly" stage has started. Several nights ago I was caring for him while Heidi and Ashley went out for the evening. He had finished his bottle around 11PM and I was holding him while swaying back and forth as he gradually went to sleep. Just as his eyes closed he let out this little chuckle and smiled- like he was thinking of something amusing.

In memory of our Winnie

We lost our beloved Winnie on Thursday, April 2. Advancing arthritis had gradually been making walking difficult for her, and on Wednesday she lost the use of her back legs. She had lived a full life and was surrounded by love for the last 9 years we we were blessed to have her as a member of our family. Home is not the same without her smile.

Patience Kitty

"To make a difference in the life of another..."
Patience was not a social cat. After she came to live with us she spent the first month upstairs, hiding under the futon. Gradually she came step-by-step down the stairs, and came to be a member of our family. Quiet, wanting to be left unprovoked by other furry family members, she chose Jim's lap as her place. In her way, she changed his life, allowing him to know, through her friendship, feline companionship.
Today, Patience completed her work. In Jim's lap, where she had given and received great love, Patience went ahead to bask in the warmth of the sun, where she is whole. And God, who loved her before we knew her and allowed us the gift of her unique friendship, must surely have welcomed her into his arms, saying, "Well done, good and faithful Patience."

Flying!

St. Thomas! What better way to spend a morning than para sailing!! Jim and I boarded a small boat along with about 10 others. Each pair of us climbed onto the back, where we were hooked into the support bars and straps. After a thumbs up the boat accelerated and we had lift off!
It was so lovely to be up above the blue sea with only the sound of the wind. About half way through our "flight" we were lowered for a quick dunk in the ocean, then lifted off once more for a final time before we were brought back in, landing (amazingly gently) on the back of the boat.
To Jim's and my amazement, we shared this experience with a retired nuclear submarine commander. He was very modest and had some great stories. And they DO say "Dive, dive" when the sub descends. (He corrected me when I asked if they said "dive, dive, dive" when descending; apparently the 3 dive sequence is for coming back up.) He said that in a severe sea condition the water is relatively calm below, but he was under hurricane conditions once and at 400 feet below the surface they were rocking and rolling. We had a wonderful day.

Old San Juan

We left Miami on Saturday, January 24 on a warm sunny late afternoon. Sunday was a day at sea. No ports of call, no where to go. It was the perfect way to detoxify and relax. It was hot and sunny with few clouds but a nice breeze. The hundreds of lounge chairs on the decks were occupied by 9AM and stayed that way till evening as all of us basked in sun and warmth. We sailed on through the night and into Monday. Our first port of call was in Puerto Rico (...and EVERY time I heard that name, immediately my mind took off with "...my heart's devotion. Let it sink back in the ocean!", having listened to West Side Story once or twice.) We docked at 5PM and were free to wander, with warnings to be back on board by midnight or start swimming.
Neither Jim nor I had ever visited this country set in the Caribbean Sea. We trolled around old San Juan, where the streets were still cobblestone and very hilly. It rained off and on as we walked, so we would duck in under an overhanging porch to wait out the shower. All along each street there were colorfully painted entrances to private residences, some very nice and some tattered. We walked by Castillo de San Cristóbal, a Spanish fort built by the Spaniards in the 18th century to protect against land based attacks on the city of San Juan. We were told that after dark every night, thousands of feral cats, who live in the fort, come out and sit on the rocks surrounding it. Had we not been back on the ship when we were told of this, we probably would have stayed to watch their eyes glow in the night. We popped into a small local pub for a light dinner, where the menu was in Spanish and the food was great. (No Whopper at the local Burger King for us, although I do admit to being slightly hesitant at first. I don't think the place was FDA inspected, but did turn out to be clean and was filled with both locals and tourists the whole time we were there.)
As darkness fell, we walked back to the ship for a good night's sleep and plans for adventure the next day at St. Thomas.

Jessie Day

One year ago today, Jessie came home to live at the Sheffield cottage, bringing with him his sweet and lovable personality. Jim and I have thought of him every day and still miss him very much. But we want his legacy to be a happy one and, in his memory, we hope for good things for other animals. So, we ask our friends and family to do something special today for an animal. Give your cat an extra treat, or your dog a big hug. We will be donating to the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, where research to prevent and cure feline infectious peritonitis is going on, funded mostly through contributions. We would be honored and grateful if any of you would want to donate any amount to a shelter, or to Cornell. Here is the link: http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/oppsupp.htm

Jessie lives on in our hearts and in our memory.