|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
| I've mentioned before the lack of sleeves on wedding dresses. Strapless is ubiquitous.
When growing up, the only black worn at a wedding was by men, in either suits or tuxedos. No woman would dream of wearing black to a wedding, as it was a funeral color.
Now, of course, black-and-white weddings are common, and the bridesmaids at the wedding I volunteered at today wore short, black, strapless gowns.
As did a significant proportion of the female guests. One after another they showed up in dresses similar to the bridesmaids. Some of the dresses weren't black, naturally, but almost all were strapless and short. The church tends to be chilly . . . how do they stand it? Don't they freeze in the Fort Worth air-conditioning?
Today brought an entirely new wrinkle: the "first look" photo. Teresa, the wedding director for this particular wedding, said it began to appear about six months ago. The idea is that instead of the groom seeing his bride in her bridal raiment when she comes down the aisle at the beginning of the ceremony, they first see each other a couple of hours prior to it....just them in the sanctuary along with the photographer. I must say it makes it easier for everyone, as it puts an end to the whole "keep the bride away from the groom!" concern. Most of the photographs of the bridal party were taken this afternoon before the wedding, cutting down on the number of pictures to be shot afterward.
Black dresses on attendants and guests, and now the bride and groom see each other well before the ceremony starts. How things have changed! 
| | |
| It's a lovely green, nicely complementing the olive green walls. I love it! Bought it from Empire Today, and by golly I ordered it one afternoon and it was installed the next morning.
The only purples they had were too pricey, though, so I've ordered that from Lowe's. Okay, fine, I like purple, so shoot me. That's what's going into the master bedroom and the new off-shoot room. Light yellow walls and sort of a violet carpet. I think it's going to be smashing.
Kenny said he had a nightmare about it last night. 
It took some doing - and a visit from AT&T Uverse - but the oversized TV has been moved from one side of the room to the other. It was really always too large for that corner, but the big corner desk pretty much had to go where it did.
So I gave Kirstin and Matt the huge corner desk set and am using the small one that had been in the dining room. The recliners are now positioned on either side of the fireplace, the sofa is back on the long wall, and I really need to get another end table or two. Still, I love the living room arrangement and the new carpet. 
Today brought very exciting news: Dmitry passed the Math TAKS test! 
And he came within TWO points of passing the science TAKS. The English results aren't in yet, but everyone is confidant he passed it, too.
That would mean all he's lacking is his German class and the science TAKS to graduate. 
The graduation stuff info is her in the chair with me and, by jingo, I'm going to be an optimist and place the order for the cap and gown and invitations. Dmitry was first reluctant to think about going through the graduation ceremony, but when I pointed out how excited all his family would be - not to mention his mother - he willingly agreed, going out to his car to fetch the info.
[wistfully] Of course, it's hard to think of Dmitry graduating without his father with me, but there it is. Earlier this year I didn't want Dmitry to go through the ceremony, but through God's grace this has changed, and I'm back to looking forward to happy events such as this, Kirstin's new baby, etc.
Oh, and did I mention that as an early Christmas gift (early, and pretty much THE Christmas gift, except for a trifle for the grandkids at Christmas itself) I'm taking all of us to Great Wolf Lodge for a night?  Yes, it's not cheap, but by the time I finish buying for six children, two in-laws, and eight grandchildren, I'd spend that much, so I decided to please them and myself (nowhere near as much to wrap....I hate wrapping) by doing this. It'll be my first visit to GWL and I'm eagerly anticipating it. Gonna take my swimsuit, too. Lazy river, here I come!
Speaking of Christmas, do you believe I saw a house a few blocks north of here with it's Christmas tree up already? 
| | |
| Well, "boo" to me. The evening began with trick-or-treating in Elaine's neighborhood, where Brianna joined with her cousins and a couple of their friends to run madly from house to house, with Jessica following at a more sedate pace with Bridgette. First, a picture of the four girls with Jessica looking on:
Bridgette was a little hard to see, so here she is:
One of the houses had a fenced back yard with a couple of rather largish, loud dogs. Bridgette, of course, was delighted and rushed up to see them, with Jessica in hot pursuit:
This shows Brianna and Margaret scurrying from one house to another:
Mom was there, too, passing out candy that she'd brought, so Elaine's house was a double-dipper for trick-or-treaters!
This year we had some trick-or-treaters, too, doubtless because of the decorations put up by Kenny's son, Larry:
After the initial round, we came home to dinner, then Jessica and Brianna took off for some serious candy-gathering action; here she is with her sugariferous loot:
Plus she got the bear, and a couple of toothbrushes.  She's so funny....she makes a careful, written inventory of what she collected. I've no idea why, but Jessica says she's done it for a while now.
| | |
| On Wednesday night - blessedly, after Bridgette was asleep! - Jasmine started having her kittens. Here she is giving birth to her first one:
The miracle of life has its messy moments:
Jasmine, examining her baby:
I regret to report the next two kittens were stillborn, which made us all very sad. What worried us was that Jasmine was clearly still pregnant. The next morning - after causing Jessica and Brianna a sleepless night due to the surviving kitten's mewling and Jasmine's meowing (Jasmine hauled the kitten to the small closet in their room) - I stuffed the two of them (Jasmine and her kitten, not Jessica and Brianna) into a pet carrier and took them to the vet. Later that morning there came the call saying Jasmine needed to be either euthanized or be essentially spayed, because were are at least two dead kittens in her. Easy choice! Do the surgery.
Later that afternoon came yet another call, this time an excited vet employee exclaiming she had "awesome" news: there were three kittens born alive! The vet was stunned to discover this, and performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on them (which I rather hate thinking about) to get them going. How he knew those three had a chance while the fourth one didn't, I don't know. That's why he's the vet and I'm not, presumably.
Anyway, we wound up with four kittens...three white with black areas on their heads, and one black:
Brianna insists on keeping the black one, while I want the one born first, as I saw it born and held it almost immediately afterward (we'd thought it was stillborn, too, then it surprised us by moving while Jasmine licked it).
It's awkward, that Jasmine is determined to keep the kittens in that closet in Jessica and the girls' room, as a rowdy two-year-old is scarcely suitable company for them. Last night I kept them in my room so they could sleep, meaning I had no sleep at all until nearly 7:30, when I grumpily handed them over to Jess. Jasmine was dogged in her persistence about trying to take various kittens to Jessica's room, while I was just as dogged about hauling them back. That was one of the most exhausting nights I've ever spent.
Maybe tomorrow I'll go look at them; today I've felt I had quite enough of them overnight.
This afternoon Bridgette had been pulling towels out of some shelves in the hall, and climbing onto the middle shelf. I didn't object to the towels being pulled out, but did object rather strenuously to her being on that shelf, so wound up having to pull her out of it, over her vociferous, furious wails. Being crabby due to the lack of sleep (to be fair, I slept this morning for a few hours), I gave her a swat on her diapered bottom. Mercy Maud, what a flood of tears that elicited:
She stood sobbing with her hands over her eyes for at least two minutes, the little Drama Queen.
This evening we went to the Halloween party up at the club, where we were delighted to find Elaine and her family. Elaine made Meredith's costume, and Margaret was a star, wasn't that clever?
Jessica and I aren't made of such creative stuff, instead simply purchasing the girls' costumes (Brianna's a cat, while Bridgette's a fairy, though the cool evening necessitated the latter forgoing her wings for a jacket). Here's Kirsten with Bridgette:
Kirsten told her sisters she's dressed as an annoyed teenager. Good costume.
I'll get a decent photo of Brianna tomorrow night. What is frustrating is that I left early, then Brianna was chosen to go on stage during the magic show but no one took pictures. Boo.
It's about time for me to turn in, leaving Jessica, Kirsten, Dmitry and Zhenya watching some scary movie. Ugh.
| | |
| ....don't you know those pilots are mortified who had to finally admit to having been on their laptops while in the cockpit of whichever Northwest flight it was, lost track of time, and that's why they overshot their destination by 150 miles?
From now on I want to hear the pilots on any flight I'm on periodically assuring the passengers that they're still awake and paying attention. 
| | |
|
|
True
Lifetime
