I've wondered about this before...

I was over at Dating Dummy's site
and he brought up the question (nutshelling it here) about what do singles think when they see someone they're interested in with someone of the opposite gender? If I'm attracted to a guy and he's with a girl - do I approach, do I assume he's taken and therefore off the market?
Do go and read the comments there - very interesting dialogue going on...
Which leads me to my post today...I'm in a 'group' of friends that's usually about 4 women, 1 Guy (give or take the # of both genders) and I love to watch how people perceive what's going on with us. Is the '1 Guy' gay or are the 4 women desperate for this 1 guy? People SO don't realize how much nonverbal communication goes on...
When it's just me and the 1 Guy, people ALWAYS think we're together. Because I am a great female wingman (tooting of person horn here), I don't want to hinder his possibilities so I always give the 'oh, no, we're not...' explanation. The only kicker to the situation is that 1 Guy feels that I respond in such a way that he sometimes is offended. 'Why do you say we're not together like us being together is almost a bad thing?' It has often left me wondering why this freaks him out so.
I think there are two ways you could go with this. First, he wishes we were together and hearing me flat out saying we're not, hurts his feeling. I so don't think this is the reason.
The second & more believable route is that he thinks I'm saying 'We're not together' like, 'HEEEELLL NO I'm not with him and sister, you wouldn't want to be either.' I HONESTLY don't say it like that at all - really, I don't. So to stroke his ego, I've played the part a little - like when we're in a restaurant and waitperson asks if my boyfriend liked the dessert and I say, 'Oh yes, especially when I fed it to him'...I only do this when I know the waitperson is someone 1 Guy wouldn't be attracted to ;)
So, this is my thought-provoking question of the day...which route do you think it is?
ps - Eddo, 1 Guy is who I saw Hitch with - we howled at it!

Blog Patrol, will you ever forgive me..

My goodness, it's already Wednesday and I haven't posted since Sunday...where have the last three days gone?
I've been trying to get some stuff done at the humble abode...oh, to dust and vacuum? To clear out my winter clothes and bring out all kinds of fun, springy items??? Last night a chunk of the evening was spent three-way calling the other bridemaids and filling 'em in on the shower event coming up in less than four weeks - YIKES!
So, it's hump day and now I have to head out and get all psyched up for a PC party that I'm having tomorrow night...if you checked out GFF site today - I just haven't been in the blogging mood lately either so I apologize...I'll aim for something a tad more hip & happening tomorrow....or Friday....;) Peace.
oh, yeah - go give HUGS galore to Sque Pleasegonow. Thanks.

I think I feel...

violated! Yes, I think I've received a number of 'spam comments' - yikes! What is a girl to do? Any advice?
I also feel very very very sad that it's almost Monday all over again...I had such a great weekend...I so wish I could host a party all the time - if it were possible, I would! I've become one of those scary 'Pampered Chef' consultants in my lifelong search of constant 'partydom'.
No, I really just signed up for my consultantship because my roomie and I share quite a bit of PC 'property'(ok, I have to 'sell' for a second here - it's great stuff, really. If you ever get the opportunity - their stoneware line is fantastic!) So, with roomie moving out in TWO MONTHS FROM TOMORROW (slight freak out typing that) to divy the loot up, I joined up so I get loads free and we can each have one of what we got - got it?
(Crazy post, crazy post, crazy post.......)
Back to my weekend - my roomie's brother came down for the weekend - oh so fun. Tears to my eyes fun. A bunch of us went out to dinner Friday night then we went to see 'The Interpreter' with Sean and Nicole. Won't say much cuz many may not have seen it yet. Yes, I typed 'yet' because you really should see it - I really liked it. Suspense, kept you guessing, liked it, liked it a lot! And BTW - Sean's getting ollllllder...as much as I like Robin Wright Penn, I'll always remember his babyface married to Madonna...nutty.
Saturday we worked out, went to lunch (yummy Mexican that my roomie's fiance paid for, no less!) then went to the tux store for fittings. Hilfrigginlarious. My roomie's brother was a riot...pretended to be a runway model the whole time and being the lanky TALL boy he is, his pants and shirt were initially WAYYYYY too short so it made it all the more funny. Again, tears to my eyes funny.
Then we had a surprise birthday party to go to for a friend of mine who I can't imagine life without. She's a mentor, a role model, a sounding board, a friend who hears me whenever I need it most. Knowing all that, I try to be careful cuz her time is precious as she's married, with three great kids who I love dearly. Her hubby is marrying my roomie and her fiance and it will be an amazing ceremony for so many reasons (blog on that later)...anyway...the party was so fun. Saw some peeps I hadn't for awhile...from my old church. Ouch...it was ok but boy, I was reminded of how very content I am at my new church. :)
Then today at my new church, we had a potluck after service...just fun ALL THE WAY AROUND...I've mailed out the invites to my roomie's SURPRISE bridal shower and now I'm off to do laundry (which I like to do -scary, I know) SO...have a great night, everyone...and try to really enjoy tomorrow as I will. I promise :) Take care...

Another shoutout to blogdom...

Can I just say how amazing you guys are....I could list you all but hopefully you know...over the last couple days I've been so blessed by some 'virtual friends' with their openness, encouragement, faithfulness, oh, I could on. And those of you that answered my 'close to God' post - how great. Just wanted to love on you all a little...I'll try to visit your blogs and thank you individually :)

So I got the pseudo final word on my 'dream job'. I say pseudo because they are hiring me but we don't know exactly for what or for how long. Can I just say - welcome to my crazy world. I'm supposed to meet with my buddy (my wouldbeboss) soon and I'm basically asking for SOMETHING to be carved in stone. I'm not used to this ... for most of my 'career' I've been in fulltime ministry with the emphasis on serving...not really looking out for me - God's got my back so I don't need to worry, right? Well, I think God's allowed me some time to process (hence waiting for almost two months to hear about the school's decision to hire me!) and He's helped me realize that there is truly 'more to this life' (a little SCC reference here) than 'slaving away' at my place of employment. I'm getting the vibe that they (the place that's 'hiring' me) are expecting me to do the job of 4-5 people...I've been there, certainly done it. Don't know if I want to go back.

Please pray for a godly, timely decision on my part...I trust God's going to 'show me the way' to go but I'm sure you know what I mean when you feel those doubts creep in and the path is obscured with shadows and obstacles we put there ourselves.

Thanks guys...you're fabulous! Have a super Thursday!

A New Pope Elected!

The white smoke was up and the bells were ringing about fifteen minutes ago! Now we're waiting to hear who it is!

Now here's your question...

From my last post....A professor in a class I took in seminary once asked, "What is something you do that while you're doing it, makes you feel close to God?"
I'd love to hear your answers....let me know :)

Come on...it's not Tuesday already, is it?

Crazy how fast time is aflyin'...finally purchase the good ol' bridesmaid dress this weekend AND finalized plans for the infamous bridal shower on May 21st - the theme you ask? (I know you're dying for this...) "East Marries West" - my Vermonter roomie is gettin' hitched to my buddy from Sri Lanka. (In case you wondered - his family back home is fine. Their home was flooded from the tsunami but thankfully no one they knew had died or suffered terribly. Thank God.)
So...knowing that not too many of my roomie's family and even some friends that'll be there, really don't know a lot about the great country of Sri Lanka...the theme is to help lay out some info on B's homeland. I'm all about the games (aim to not make them cheesey but help pass the time) - one will focus on trivia about Sri Lanka and Vermont (from sheets that will be at the tables as guests arrive and eat). Another game is 'Couples Trivia' and then I have a 'table team' game where the peeps try and figure out a "Wedding Words Scramble"...
The other bridesmaids (all out of state and seeing as I'm MOH anyway, this puppy is my responsibility for the most part) have literally wigged on me saying that I should drop all other possible vocations and go directly into event planning. I think this particular wedding at this particular point in my life and really pushed that point to the forefront of my thinking...
As much as I thought the job at my alma mater was my 'dream job' - I don't want to fundraise. Eek. I was to plan - I was born to plan events - seriously. A professor in a class I took in seminary once asked, "What is something you do that while you're doing it, makes you feel close to God?" The prof said obvious answers like prayer and singing worship songs are ok but really think about your talents, the blessings God's given you, etc.....for me - it's event planning. The whole concept of pulling together details so that a group of people can celebrate and truly enjoy a milestone moment - I tell ya - it soooo jazzes me.
OK OK OK time is still flying and I need to get back to the task at hand....printing out the cute poem I wrote to put on the favors - little spice jars (didn't most spices come from Southeast Asia???). In fact, did you know that cinnamon was originally found in Sri Lanka?
There's your trivia tidbit for the day! Take care!

What a game...

Seriously. Last night's Red Sox game was terrific for a zillion reasons. Not only did we win (!!!) but the entire atmosphere where we were sitting was incredible...we were right behind third plate (could practically reach out and touch ARod-not that I'd want to! AND during the almostbrawl with the fan and Sheffield, Jason Varitek was on third waiting patiently - LOVE him!) and everyone around us was just having such a good time. Laughing, some were drinking but not too much, and just, well, enjoying two great teams play their hearts out.
At one point everyone was a little fearful Terry Francona was going to have a heartattack over the lame umpire's calls but things worked out ok...and Fenway - don't even get me started! Seeing the World Championship banner hanging proudly AND to see Doug Flutie pull up to Fenway and get out to say hi to some fans...fabulous. (He caught a foul ball last night, too!) Just a great night all around :) GO RED SOX!!
I came up with a TV/radio show concept, too...I think I may even pursue how to get the idea out there! I'll let you know how that goes.
Happy Friday everyone!

Hi there....haven't seen you in awhile!

So sorry it's taken me so long to get on back here! It's just been quite a week...right now I'm slightly miffed that my boss didn't go with two particular perspective tenants...I just had that feeling that they'd make great tenants but for a whole list of reasons (all because of the current tenant - it has NOTHING to do with this cute couple I like) it didn't work out. So in my slightly passive/agressive way, I returned their deposit with a letter that read how sorry I was that it ended up this way. :( Oh well...I hope they find an even nicer place with a lower rent!
On to better news...my gf M called me Tuesday night to let me know we're going to the RED SOX game tonight!! Oh, I seriously can't wait...I used to live 5 minutes away from Notre Dame in IN and as much as that place certainly has it's own mystique to it - Fenway Park is in a league of it's own (pun intended). I watched most of last night's game :( , part of Monday's :) and tonight I'll be behind third base....maybe I'll catch a pop fly ball....woooohooo!
To continue my RS rampage....anyone see Fever Pitch? For those of you outside the greater Boston area, I'm not surprised but in the off chance you did...I loved it. It's hysterical and the scary part is - I KNOW PEOPLE LIKE JIMMY FALLON'S CHARACTER....it's almost as though they can commit to the Red Sox but nothing else. I told you - scary.
Anyone want to debrief Fever Pitch - let me know :) and did you know that in the original movie Colin Firth (SERIOUSLY LOVE HIM, married though he is) played the British bloke who had a certain fondness for English football (our soccer). Need to rent that bad boy....
Gotta scoot out to get to Fenway - oh it's sunny out, not toooo warm but I can deal. More tomorrow...take care!

TADA! My 100 things list...

Here it is - 100 about me.
1) Love the number 23
2) Have a need to nickname and or abbreviate most everyone/thing
3) The eighth child in my fam - only one brother in the brood
4) 92% of the time I love being the baby
5) 8% of the time it REALLY ROTS
6) See how good I am at math? Honestly love it.
7) Taught English, History, and Bible to middle school students - love those subjects, too.
8) LOVED school. Every aspect of it - loved it.
9) Won 'Most School Spirit' in Jr & Sr High
10) Won MSS in Jr High because on 'School Colors Day' (it was blue & gold) I wore over 200 items with those colors in them, an item could be anything wearable - hat, jewelry, shirts, skirts.
11) I was just a TAD unstable in Jr. High
12) I won 'Most Friendly' in high school, too.
13) I'm an extrovert.
14) I like times when I'm introverted, too.
15) Love meeting people.
16) Love hearing people's stories.
17) Like waiting for a train to take me somewhere.
18) Don't like waiting on hold on the phone. Someone talk to me!!
19) Love planning events.
20) Especially weddings.
21) Have a wonderful group of friends from various points in my life.
22) I've had three serious relationships - all practically altarbound but didn't quite get there. Thank God. ;)
23) I like the number 88 too.
24) Have started running at the gym and am really coming to like it.
25) I'm on hold right now.
26) Grew up in the wonderful state Maine.
27) Moved to Massachusetts (good state but not as GREAT as Maine)
28) My roomie for the last nine.five years is getting married in June. God help me.
29) By help I mean, this girl can't plan an event to save her life. God help me cuz I do.
30) I've been in thirteen weddings. All a blast!
31) I taught in the traditional classroom for four years.
32) I was a children's ministry director for six years - some of my best & worst memories are during that time period.
33) You gotta love the Celtics.
34) In fact, all Boston sports teams rock.
35) My age this July...woohoo!
36) I've met Johnny Damon, Tim Wakefield, Keith Foulke and Mike Timlin of the Boston Red Sox.
37) I've also met Tom Brady of the NE Patriots. He's even better looking in person.
38) I've won a trip for four to Florida - my three closest college buds and I went the year we all turned 30. It was such an incredible time.
39) The year each of my sibligs turn '40' we have a big ol' party for the person. Love on 'em, embarrass 'em, etc.
40) By the time I turn '40', my siblings will probably have forgotten ;)
41) The age my mom was when she birthed me.
42) I was my mom's ONLY C-section (out of seven, one was a set of twins).
43) They lost my heartbeat as I was trying to come out naturally.
44) My mom found out she was pregnant with me while on a cruise with my dad.
45) So I tell people I've been on three cruises. One while I was a senior in high school, one a couple of years ago, and the 'original one'. :)
46) I've lived in four different states at some point - ME, MA, NH, IN.
47) My most embarrassing moment occurred when I was the 'torchbearer' for our National Honor Society induction ceremony in high school. Ask me about it later...
48) I'm a Jill of All Trades, Missus of None. :)
49) Am I done yet? I'd like to think I'm a patient person but this list could be proving me wrong.
50) We're half way there...thanks for reading. I like to nuture a 'garden of gratitude' in my life.
51) The reason I think this is taking me a short lifetime to accomplish is because I'm putting too much info in just one item. Figures.
52) I'm much better at answering questions about me than offering these little tidbits.
53) I'm a TOTAL list maker.
54) I just emailed my roomie and her fiance' 'the ultimate wedding to do list' that I came up with for them.
55) I love checking the things OFF the list that I've accomplished.
56) The age of my eldest sibling this year.
57) How many years my parents have been married. :)
58) I love my folks...they are the cutest little shruggie couple you'd ever want to meet - with slight New England accents. OOOOO, I love 'em.
59) Love to quilt although I haven't done a ton of it.
60) Scrapbooking is SUCH a fun thing for me to do - again, want to. No, NEED to do more of it...I have photos coming out of places I know not of.
61) Would seriously love to meet some blogger friends. Seriously.
62) Met a guy online and we dated longdistantly for two years.
63) He is an aerospace engineer - brainac.
64) He's from England and on one trip to see him over my birthday, he brought me to Rome as my present.
65) That trip rocked. Although seeing so much of St. Peter's over this last week has made my heart hurt for more than just the passing of the Pope. :(
66) My life is a true testimony of God's faithfulness in even the smallest of things.
Thank God.
67) I honestly have no idea where I'd be today with my personal relationship with Christ.
68) I've known Him since I was six.
69) Reading posts about how God has worked in someone's life or made Himself real to the person makes me cry - good tears, though.
70) Oh yeah, I'm a weeper - and a very scary looking one at that. Red eyes, runny nose...ek.
71) I'm a woman of extremes...I've been told that I've been located due to my contagious laugh..hee hee hee.
'72) The year my eldest sib & sister was married - her wedding is my first memory.
73) One of my most difficult memories was when my brother and my SIL had to decide whether or not to take my nephew off life support on my birthday. My nephew Matthew was seven days old at the time. They eventually did and he went to be with Jesus shortly after. I turned ten that year.
74) The year I became an aunt.
75) I have fourteen nieces and nephews, one grandnephew, and two grandnieces.
77) Holidays and celebrations are a BIG deal in my family - purely due to the number involved!
78) I loved Barbies, stuffed animals, and Star Wars stuff when I was a kid.
79) Star Wars was the first movie I ever saw - my sister R brought me.
80) I've only had two crushes in my life. One in high school and one in college.
81) Because of my height (ONLY 5'11") people used to think I was a good 4-5 years older than I was.
82) Love eighties music.
83) Got an 80's trivia game for Christmas. A hoot.
84) The year I won that scarybutt award for having so many dang blue and gold items on my bod.
85) Trees have always been a theme in my life...the big ol' oak outside my old home....the trees on the campus where I went to school, the visions people had of me comparing me to the oak that is mentioned in the Psalms 1:3...'And (s)he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his(her) fruit in his(her) season; his(her) leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever (s)he doeth shall prosper.'
86) I've been a member of three churches over my lifetime.
87) I love the church I attend now - it's nondenominational. Funny - being raised baptist and having attended an A/G church for the last ten years...to end up at a non-denom makes me chuckle.
88) The year I graduated high school - the school where our 'mascot' was a trojan. Yes, made rivalry games a great place to find a condom. Fabulous.
89) All my sibs graduated from there except the eldest. When my guidance counselor met me he asked me if I was the last of the bunch. When I told him as far as I knew I was, he said he wished there were more. (Sweet man.)
90) I was in the top ten of my highschool - yippee!
91) I got my BS degree in college. BS can stand for a lot of things I always told my mother.
'92) Year I graduated college - broke up with the guy I thought I'd marry and met the 2nd one I thought I was gonna get hitched to.
'93) Moved to Indiana and was a nanny for an absolutely wonderful family. I am blessed to have been a part of their lives.
'94) Began teaching.
'95) Found out about my BIL's brain tumor and came back to New England.
96) As much as I thought I loved high school, I loved college even more. My relationship with Christ truly became my own and I wasn't riding on my parents' coattails anymore.
'97) Fell in love with the guy from college all over again.
'98) Broke his heart and told him we couldn't get married. We were on very different pages spiritually and neither one of us could settle.
99) As much as I think my heart is broken beyond repair, God is always there to carry it, hold it, and ultimately heal it like no one else can.
100) WOW - there it is. My last one...I hope this list brought a smile to your face as I believe that's one of the reasons God made me...I like to be a joydeliverer! :)

Again, thanks for reading...it took me LONG enough to get this badboy done, can't imagine the time it took for you to read it! There really is something to this 100 list that is like a rite of passage in blogdom. I'll hold my head up a little higher now that I've done mine!
If I'm not a regular commenter on your site, please put your 100 list link in my comments. I would seriously LOVE to read it!
Have a great weekend everyone....

Rough day or what?

If you're reading my site today and saying, 'Ah she DID NOT have these posts yesterday!' that's cuz I didn't. I thought I had posted with I had 'saved as draft'. Opps. It's been a week.
At least we're on hump day & I LOVE Thursdays. Peaceout.

What a day...

I got the call. My buddy at the school where I interviewed for a job (dream job, seriously wanted it) called and he gave me the 411 on it. I'm still the #1 applicant but the 'higher ups' have decided to retool the position. Oh please. All I'm asking is for the simple, 'yes it's yours' or 'no it's not'. Instead I have to consider a six month contract where both parties are feel to see how things go. If in that time I decide nay, nay then I'm done in six months. If they find someone better suited for the position while I'm there, again, I'm done.

If in six months, it's bliss for both, then I'm in like flynn. What to do? Part of me wants to say, no. I won't use vulgarities...my mom's voice is ringing in my ears...a part of me wants to say, thanks but no thanks (know I'm thinking something much worse.) Then another part of me says, what the heck? Why not? I really don't have much to lose. The job I have now is not the one I want to 'hold on to' forever. If it works at the school - yippee. If not, I'd have to find one in six months. Yikes.

Any thoughts? Feel free to comment, in fact, please do.
To top it off, the blogmeister you got me going in this realm posted today that she's going to decide by May 1st if she's still in this mad world with us. I certainly hope Samira hangs on - even if for the monthly update! Anywho...I must wrap up, leave work and go to the gym. THAT will make me feel better...I certainly hope it does.

I honestly think extreme emotions are better to feel than that middle BLAH place that I'm in right now. Look at me - who am I to complain! No, really, I know I need to vent and get it out there but I really have nothing to whine about...thanks for reading and leave me your advice or thoughts :) Take care out there...

"All Things New" yet we still age...

Some have requested a 'review' of sorts of the Steven Curtis Chapman concert...in a word - fabulous. I seriously adore the man. He's so focused and fun, and his music!Oh, are there really words for it?

To begin with, the traffic leaving the Boston area was horrific! We completely missed Casting Crowns (I was seriously bummed about that - if you don't have their CD - go now and get it!) but when we walked in Steven was up on stage doing a little acoustic with his bandmates...seeing as he has SO many hits, he can't do 'em ALL during his set so he did a couple songs with CC then some on his own. Then he introduced Chris Tomlin and we had an amazing time of worship - Chris's music is terrific. I hadn't realized all he's written...

Right before the intermission they focus on where God has brought Steven and his wife MaryBeth. They have had their lives turned upside down these last 3-4 years as they have adopted 3 ADORABLE girls from China (three separate adoptions and the girls are something like 5,3,almost 2 now). They have one ministry for helping people adopt kids and another organization that helps families on the financial side of it. It's just great. (FYI - he and his wife have three biological kids too...in fact, it was his eldest, Emily, who encouraged them to consider adoption - it's AN INCREDIBLE story of how they listened to their child and believed God was using her to clue them into something so lifechanging...just beautiful)

Steven comes out after intermission to the title track of the CD, the tour's name - "ALL THINGS NEW". In a spiritual sense, that's exactly what happens when we come to know Christ in a personal relationship. I guess what struck me partway thru the concert was the fact that we are aging. Physically, I don't see much on me getting 'newer'! I mean, my posse and I have been to SCC's concerts for well over ten years now. Steven, as good as he looks, is getting older too. It's just crazy. Honestly, where does time go? I have very specific memories that coincide with some of Steven's songs...it's just that list of memories is getting longer and longer - it just blows me away...time seriously waits for no man or woman.

In light of this...I need to get off my duff and DO SOMETHING. The last couple weeks I have felt like I've just been waiting for something to happen. Well, fagetabowit...tonight I'm making some headway in some major planning I need to do for the next couple months - bridal shower, wedding stuff for my roomie, plans to head home some weekend soon, etc etc etc...life's just gonna pass me by IF I LET IT. Well, I'm not :)

All that & I need to squeeze in 'Alias'~woohoo!!!
(to finish the 'review' - am I tangentqueen or what? - Steven does a great job blending in the NEW fab songs with some of the major hits he didn't do during the acoustic set. Chris Tomlin does a duet with him on 'Speechless' - Steven sings some of the tunes from the 'love CD' he did for his wife - 'All About Love'. He even covered the Proclaimers hit he does on the CD '500 miles'. Just wonderful. Sitting in the 10th row (ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC SEATS) it felt like we were all just sitting around jamming together. Seeing as I know all the words and sang right along with the hundreds of other fans - hence the 'jam session'. Just a great night...the friends I was with - just more super memories with them as well!)

Bridal Show #2

Sunday, April 3rd, 2005. Somehow I won another set of tickets for another bridal show this spring. This one had free chowder, cake, wine. Fabu. The only downside to the event was that my roomie and I didn't win anything in the raffle at the end.:(

This bridal show took place at a diamond store, too, so that was a little different. We looked at rings (yeah, my roomie STILL doesn't have an engagement ring yet - I REALLY can't go there) & wedding bands. She's really grooving on a Scott Key ring (GREAT ring designer, in case you haven't heard of him) and we got into this terrific talk with his representative. Yes, it even lead to a discussion of his love of the Boston and how he and Scott argue over the best baseball team - he for the RED SOX and Scott for the Yankees. Oh please, like there needs to be an agrument!

The fashion show was hysterical...my roomie and I had our own personal commentary the entire time. Some of the most beautiful & ugliest dresses I've ever seen were on that badboy runway! And the woman MCing - she could be the stand-in voice for the Wicked Witch of the West in 'The Wizard of Oz' ~ seriously!

All in all, it was ok...the OTHER show we went to back in January was a blast - it was HUGE and at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston. There was a little of everything there - vendors for almost anything you could imagine! I was slightly bummed due to the fact that there were no chocolate fountains!

Gotta run - I'm trying to pucnh out my '100 list'!

More answers...probably not the ones you're looking for though...

Here's some more 411 on me (why don't I just do the 100 list, I know, I know...)

You're the baby of the family and yet you moved away. Very unusual. What drew you from ME to MA? Boyfriend, college, job? (The beauty of my 'position' in my family is this - there are seven years between me and the next one up so, for those of you that follow birth order stuff - this allows me to take on qualities of both the 'baby' AND 'first born'. Just beautiful isn't it? All this to say, my 'baby' qualities are sometimes overcast by the 'first born' ones - hence I moved away from home. First it was college that lured me away from the bliss of Maine ~ down in MA on the northshore: couldn't leave the coast. LOVE THE OCEAN. I think GFF mentioned her dream house has a view of the ocean? Me too.

Then it was a boyfriend...trekked out to Indiana of all places for P. I was a nanny for a wonderful family - oh so great. They had a 5 yr old son and a 3 yr old daughter and surprise! newborn triplet girls. Enter, SuperNanny! Hee hee hee. I nannied for year then worked in the public school system in South Bend, IN the following year. During that second year, P & I realized we were not altar bound - unless one of us ended up sacrificing the other and we were putting the body on the altar. ;) That spring of '95 my family found out about my BIL's cancer and one of my sisters were told that she wouldn't be able to get pregnant so she and her hub were contemplating artificial insemination. In another blog I'll write about how God called me home to Maine. Short story - He did and I came back to Maine that summer. In August my best friend and I got teaching jobs in Burlington, MA and became roomies again (we were in college, too.) I've stayed in MA since. Ten crazy years later...a decade really does fly by.)

Your eldest sib is old enough to be your parent? (Yep. In fact, my mom LOVES the story of how she and my eldest sis were walking through town one day shopping, my sis carrying me. I was probably like 2-3 months old. They ran into some old friends who hadn't heard mom had popped out her 8th so they assumed my sister had me out of wedlock - EGADS! My mom thought it was hysterical. I love my mom.) How does the age diff affect your relationship? Was s/he even at home when you were born?
(Yes, T was home. But not for long. My very first memory was when I was 2.5 and we were at T's wedding to W. I remember standing up in the pew and looking back at T coming down the aisle with our dad and she was in ALL white (of course - she wasn't my mother. ;)
I just remember being so awestruck at all the formality of that moment. People watching with big smiles, music playing, my sisters standing in front of a huge crowd in some pretty buttcrazy purple numbers. Yeah, it was a terrific first memory.

Back to the question - the three eldest sisters have all played mom to me at some point in my life. I'm blessed to have welcomed them playing that role as well. Not to say that my other siblings are any less important to me, it's just that each one has played a specific part in who I've become. I love each of them very much. What I love about my relationship with T though, is that we think a lot alike. Even though we've experienced our family from very different perspectives, we tend to 'see it' similarly. T has a daughter that's 3.5 years younger than me and we were raised almost like sisters. I know T sees me as her honorary daughter and I am so thankful for that.)

35 isn't so old, my friend. (I know, I just like to joke. I do consider myself an old soul with a child's heart however!)

You up for a little on-on-one basketball? I'm not very good, and you have a couple inch height advantage, so you'd have to spot me a few points.
(Hmmmm, I don't know...I wouldn't want to detach your retina. I'll post about that story in a few...gotta tease the reading audience with something!)

Pretty please.

Fight Cancer. Please go here now.
I have so much to blog but out of honoring Cheryl and her family, all I can post today is a request for you to go to that site and post a comment. Please. And tell them Cookie sent you.
(The concert was incredible. Have a great weekend while we get SOAKED out in here in Boston!)