August in Review

The August page of my fridge Mom calendar was so saturated with events and appointments that I ripped it off with a sense of relief and accomplishment only to note that my dance card for September is pretty full as well.

We began August with quite possibly the loudest birthday party ever. I originally planned to have a few of Lil's friends over for pizza and a swim but lost my mind a little and decided to have a big bash. It was great fun, the kids wore themselves out and our new home survived the assault except for one doorknob that mysteriously disappeared.
Of course, not everyone could make it to the first party, so we had another when Anne, Scott and Lindsay visited from Wisconsin. As usual, we had a wonderful visit with them, and probably drank too much wine and ate too much ice cream but it seemed necessary at the time.

Lil's birthday gift from Aunti Cathy was five days of camping, staying up late, eating lots of bad stuff, and watching as much TV as she could tolerate. Lil said she was happy to get away from Grace's whining for a week and despite my fretting about her leaving home for 5 days, she was soooo excited to go off on this adventure. When I retrieved Lil today she was bundles of energy and giggles but Aunti Cathy had the look of someone who now completely comprehends why my hair has turned white.
Grace on the other hand was happy to see Lil go on day one, decided she hated me on day two, hated Daddy on day 3, and cried because she missed her Lily on day 4. The rest of the time she complained because her little pug nose was stuffed up from rag weed pollen. But today the sisters are back to fighting, stealing each other's nail polish, and cutting the hair off of each others dolls.

Sophie got "tutored" this month in the hopes that taking her ovaries out would settle her down a bit. No such luck because now Sophie thinks she is a big boy dog in charge of all moving things. She has also taken up woodworking and no chair leg in the house is safe from her brand new secondary teeth. Bella's fur has turned white.
We had some sadness this month with Tony's Aunti Carol passing away leaving her husband of 67 years with many wonderful memories. They were a remarkable couple who took care of their grandchildren and great grandchildren and continued to travel the world well into their 80's. They've made aging look like a privilege and a delight and we hope to follow their example.
A man we lost too soon was Jack Layton, who passed at 61 this month. Jack was head of our official opposition party in Canada: the NDP. He was a gregarious and energetic leader who hoped great things for our country and he will be missed for a long time as his party struggles to find another rare gem like Jack.

So farewell August...thanks for the memories...I think I could use a nap.