MY BLOG HAS MOVED TO LITTLEMARYMIXUP.TUMBLR.COM

I Do

littlemarymixup moving to littlemarymixup.tumblr.com! Come on over! It's easier! You'll like it there. You can even comment without giving your whole life story. Come check it out. You'll be happy there too! Change is wierd but I'm giving it a go. So far I love it...I can always come back....please take a peek! Let me know what you think!!! I love my blog friends...I don't want to lose you...so tumble on over to my new home! xoxo

Surprise!

Friendships. Birthday celebrations. BFFs...Best Friends Forever. Sharing moments. Growing up together. Living through life's ups and downs. Making memories. Setting goals. Learning. Dreaming dreams. Encouraging. Laughing. Giggling incessantly. Singing. Creating drama. Talking. Talking. Talking.

Grace and some friends planned a surprise party for their best friend Kaley. Kaley is a true friend. They're "besties"...she's like family....she's always welcome...always!

Best of all, Kaley was surprised!

Coffee Break

Seriously? Does Fitzy really need a caffeine boost mid afternoon? I think not. Energy is one thing that's never been an issue with this dog! I just hope it doesn't become a habit!

"Never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth." - Erma Bombeck

Oh my. It was only yesterday that I was pushing the jog stroller...or pulling the bike cart behind me on my bike....or teaching how to race the big wheels.....or holding my breath for those first moments with the Playskool plastic roller skates....or sending my 15 month old out on the ice to skate with single blade skates....or taking off training wheels on the bike.....or watching the speed of the Razor Scooter as it rolled down the steep hill...or watching the sailboat sail off into the horizon with my little sailor...or watching the speed of the kid with the brand new high tech Rollerblades zip by me....or watching the little feet work so hard to make that Little Tykes cozy coupe roll.

Grace. She has passed her driver's test. She has completed the driver's education class. she has driven for miles. She has parallel parked, 3 point turned, blinkered, reversed down the driveway, stopped at stop signs, merged on interstates, righted on reds, slowed for pedestrians, driven over bridges, driven around rotaries, parked in shopping malls, grocery stores, friend's driveways and at sports fields...in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts ....even little Rhode Island. She's ready. The paperwork will be finished today...it will be official.

I just had a flash of me putting her in her little automatic indoor baby swing....it was like sending her off to the moon on the Apollo Space Mission! My itty bitty baby was flying...through the air! I wasn't sure I could trust that motorized swing with our precious baby...how could I let go...what if....she LOVED it! She squealed! She smiled. She relaxed. So did I.

The next step. She's so ready. I know. It's me. It's one more step of letting go. I remember my own excitement when I could drive! My mom had great faith in me....as a driver and in life...just as I do with Grace.

Wait! Snap! As in Snap out of it! I can hear it already....like nails on the chalkboard, "Mom! Can I have the car?" I have an even greater faith that I'll be hearing those words quite a bit! And then T.J. will start....ahhhhhhhh! We haven't even gotten to the D.M.V. yet....why do I already feel stranded?

Time

Kaboom!

One minute we were walking in sunshine and the next minute....CLAPS of THUNDER! BANGING from above! CRACKS of THUNDER and LIGHTNING! Grace and I ran between the raindrops ....rainplops! Pouring! We scooted along through plentiful puddles....dashing to the car.....splashing and wading all the way....the windows were only open a crack...still, the seats in the car were as soaked as we were! We just sat and laughed...at ourselves! That felt good. Then the sun peeked out. Life is funny.

Fitzy checking the vet's notes on the computer

Adding to the vet's notes:

1. Give extra treats
2. Serve steak for dinner
3. Serve steak for lunch
4. Serve steak for breakfast
5. Serve steak for snacks
6. Serve steak for treats
7. Repeat
8. Repeat again
9. Repeat again and again
10. Repeat again and again and again

Fitz... she's proud of the number on the scale

Here's Fitzy on the scale at the vet....I think she's showing off. Yup. It's true. Fitzy and Daisy both took off a few pounds...and only because we began feeding them a little less at meal time. And to think that surprised me!

Maybe it's just that simple....eat a little less at each meal, exercise and drop a few pounds. So simple! To think of all of those fad diets we hear about everyday in books, on TV shows, the news and commercials. Maybe we should take a page out of our doggy notebook! Eat a little less, walk everyday and add some swimming, running on the beach and hiking in the woods and romping playfully in the yard! So simple. It's something we can all do....everyday!

How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?

Oh wait. That's about looking IN the window....Fitz is the doggie in the window looking OUT! She's not trying to make a break for it....she's looking for a kitchen, the garbage or an Ice Cream truck! Always checking....sniffing...looking...on the hunt. A Golden Retriever retrieves....Fitz just can't get that far...she only retrieves if she's motivated to eat it.....whatever "it" may be!

Where's The Vet?

Daisy and Fitz at the vet today

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Monkey's Fist to the Max! Last summer, we made our usual beach trek on one of the glorious uninhabited islands off of the cape. As we always do, once the boat is anchored, we walk the beach and climb rocks, step over stones, hunt and gather random treasures washed ashore by some storms.

Hunting List:
Sea glass

Gathering List:

1. Buoys
2. Beach balls
3. Boat line
4. Flags
5. Occasional tire
6. sneaker or single flip flop
7. tennis ball
8. Fishing lures
9. Fishing line
10. Pail
11. Shovel
12. Beach chair
13. Cooler
14. Tattered tacky beach towel
15. Boat ladder
16. Frisbee
17. Goodyear tire
18. Tugboat dock lines
19. 14k Gold and sterling silver bracelet
20. Cell phone

** #18...huge hunk of big clunky tugboat line stuck in the rocks...most intriguing ...especially to the kids. To repurpose? Huh? Ta-da! It's been hauled from boat to dock to beach to little red wagon to...home, made into a Mega Monkey's Fist like sailors made for their ships long ago. How will this be used? We're not quite sure...but we painted it anyway!

**#19...a shimmer of gold caught my eye one day...pushed away some sand with my toes and voila! simple abundance! A treasure that I treasure...for it's reminder of the abundance in our world.

Buoys Will Be Buoys

When The Paints Go Marching In

Well not quite. The paint crews arrived on the cape Saturday. Paint brushes. Check. Paint. Check. Enthusiasm. Check. Experience? Some. Many hands make light work is a saying Grace and T.J. know well around our house.

Somehow, out of state, on Cape Cod, at a beach house, with friends like family, Memorial Day weekend, with music, laughter and catching up....many hands make light work turns out to be much more fun....lightening the load than home sweet home.

And what fun we had today! 4 parents, 4 kids, 2 grandparents and one stereo...painting the porch, prepping the house, stopping for lunch and a quick jaunt to the beach, coffee, clean up.

What a gift! All of it. Even the paint on my toes. Life's better barefoot! With family and friends! With music! With enthusiasm to welcome summer!

Fitzy Again?

NO! Are you as surprised as we were when we got home from the movies? Remember, we're on the cape...so unless Fitz followed us....I don't think she got to the pizza. Daisy? Never! But Quigley?

Yes! He seemed to be running wild while we were out...was it a party? We think he was worried he was left behind. Ooh! Did he look guilty when we got home! Guilty and full!

Guilty As Charged!