What Ana Does

I have a treasured memory of walking across the public library lawn on a sunny but slightly chilly November day in 1984 holding my Mom's hand. The reason I know this date is because we were heading to the polling place to vote for Walter Mondale for President. I was only 8-years-old, but I remember clearly the feelings of that afternoon. Mom was jubilant. Excited. Proud. She was voting for a female vice president - Geraldine Ferraro. This was big. I think she may have even been a bit teary. Maybe my hazy memory is just upping the drama. I really should ask her about it. She was voting for a woman in a presidential election, can you imagine!? The only talk I can recall is her teaching me not to tell anyone who you're voting for; it was a secret. And my elementary-school brain LOVED secrets. Anyway, she was so happy we might have gotten a treat at Dairy Queen afterwards, but, again, I might just be making that part up. I am beyond excited/proud/jubilant to take MY...

It doesn't take much to make me cry. In fact, I'd make a great soap opera actress because I can produce tears on command. So, of course I cried when I saw the new Adele "Hello" video. She digs so deep into that well of longing and regret that I can't help being swept up in the emotion. Which got me to thinking about all the other songs that will abruptly come up on my Pandora station at work or in the car and I'm reduced to tears. I Hope You Dance -- I don't often listen to country stations so Lee Ann Womack doesn't blindside me too often but you'd have to be dead inside not to get weepy at this tune.  Make You Feel My Love  -- This is originally Bob Dylan but Adele does a fantastic version, though I'm partial to the way Tim McGraw sings it. My City of Ruin -- This takes me back to Bruce's 9/11 TV performance which I sobbed through. Like any good Bruce song, it's timeless and universal and sad and hopeful all wrapped up together....

I detest the chandelier -- if you can even call it that -- in my dining room. It's dinky, underwhelming and sometimes it just refuses to turn on. It was the previous owner's attempt at modern, maybe? Someday I vow to replace it. But for now ... the only good thing about this chandelier is I can hang stuff from it. Which I do. A lot. I found these glorious silver stars at Target last weekend and they look amazing dangling from the hideous light fixture. Stars for the Holidays Related posts: You'll love my dining room stories

Here's one for the scrapbook. It's Sunday afternoon and Leah's at a sleepover and all is quiet in Alice's room. I'm puttering around the house and Dave is watching football. I love quiet afternoons like this. Alice has been down a few times for supplies, including a coach pillow she needed to have in her room "forever." Later, I'm getting her ready for bed and finally enter her room. Here's what I find: Three pillows set-up with blanket "chairs" and a swatch of doll hair taped to each pillow. There are hair brushes on each pillow. The Barbie is set up on a "desk" ready for the demonstration of how to correctly brush hair. Nearby, three dolls now have much shorter hair. Is it wrong that I just laughed and laughed? Anyway, she quickly enrolls me in her hair brushing class, which I pass with flying colors -- I'm happy to add. Alice is an excellent instructor and shows me a few times the right technique. ...

Here's the best way to spend a weekend morning:  Fill a table with cookbooks, back-issues of magazines you haven't read yet, your grocery list, your weekly menu planner, to-do notebook, plenty of tech so you can check in with social media and listen to music, and a hot cup of coffee (with lots of milk). Don't forget to throw in a soft blanket and send the kids away on a sleepover.  Then, simply bask in the glory of Me time.  

With our fall soccer season starting this week and school underway next Wednesday -- I can't believe the summer is coming to an end. I was school supply shopping this morning, for pete's sake! I'm not ready to say good bye to this fantastic summer. Working part-time this summer (first part time hours ever!) has given me so much extra time with the kiddos and to tackle projects in the house and in the backyard. And to keep up with this blog. The weather has been good and we've done a lot of fun activities -- exploring more of this new state we're still not completely used to. Fall, already? No way.

Rise up! Clearly I Didn't Get a Chance to Make Them Up for This Picture These are the bunk bed that I had as a kid. Carol and I would take turns sleeping on the top and bottom. I usually got stuck on the bottom, which I eventually decided was okay because if the house flooded, I'd be the first one to know and could escape faster. Carol would likely float away. Our favorite game at the LaSalle Ave house was running from the crocodiles that swam out of our closet. And the bunks made for good sailing out on the open seas. This was also the bed frame we threw Liza against. (Sorry, little sister!) It's been a decade, at least, since these beds have been bunked. And here they are, ready for the next generation to discover new games. Though, they are a bit lower than I remember. Could the bunks be shrinking?! Alice was worried at first, but excited once she saw them in her room. A few practice climbs up the ladder gave her enough confidence to want to sleep ON THE TO...