HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHRISTINA!

Time marches on and our beautiful little girl is a year older and not so very little anymore.  On my facebook page, I noted that our life ever since Christina was born has been both interesting and precious.  If there is ever a final accounting after this life, then she and her sister will be at the top of the list of the best things we have ever done.

There is some sort of creeping crud moving through out neighborhood and it hit Christina just after her final on Wednesday night.  So, for her final last night we drove her to Baltimore and back, then took the Kangaroo for the night so she could get some decent sleep before getting up at 4:15 in the morning for school.  This morning, Christina was feeling better, but Erin got sick in her the car on their war over here -- something that did not please perfectionist Erin because she has her school concerts this afternoon and tonight.  We had Erin ensconced on the couch while we dropped Mark off early at school for his field trip to King's Dominion.  Then we let Erin sleep while we took Gabby to the dentist for what we thought was merely going to be a checkup.  While some God-awful howling began emanating from the back room of the dentist's office, the Kangaroo threw up in his car seat.  The howling, of course, came from Gabby as they pulled three teeth -- something we had not expected.  By this time Kitty was beginning to feel a little bit off.  The dentist gave us some gauze and told us that Gabby probably should be going back to the first grade today.  We got home and put Gabby to bed, where she slept for three hours.  Put Kitty to bed and she's still sleeping.  Got the Kangaroo cleaned up and put his clothes in the laundry, by which time a pretty foul odor started coming from his diaper.  Because he turned a whole ten months yesterday, he has decided that his new maturity should come with a far more aggressive wiggling, twisting, and kicking whenever possible.  He displayed this newly-found skill in spades when I began to change him, spreading the mess onto his feet and, ultimately, onto my leg and the slipcover.  More fodder for the laundry.  Since he had done his job as he saw fit, he then fell asleep for almost two hours, giving me a chance to get the laundry washed, dried, folded, and put away.

Anyway, my darling, sweet, youngest child, we had planned to go out this morning and get the remainder of your birthday presents.  Alas, something intervened.  So, today on your **mumble, mumble**th birthday, we give you only our undying love and admiration.

Then, this weekend -- presents!

And thank you for being a part of our lives.