This old gal…

Was ridiculously anxious about taking Pumpkin to the vet…panicky almost…

Worried about putting him in the carrier…him riding in the car…worried about carrying him…him feeling sick…him being scared…

Worried about how he’d react…worried he’d bite…scratch…freak the he** out…

Worried about taking him alone as that husband of mine wasn’t available…worried and worried…then what to my wondering eyes should appear…that friend of mine…

19 year old walking buddy…dog mom…Vera Bradley lover…offers to come along…takes charge really…calms those emotional waters of her old gal friend…

And so it is…not all heroes wear capes…and as we sat waiting while Pumpkin was with the vet…one of us went on and on about her worries…and the other one…the young wise one…looked over and said…

It doesn’t surprise me that you have a daughter with OCD…

Touche’…my friend…touche’…
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And that daughter of mine…would agree…

This old gal…

Did a thing…a sad thing…meant as a good thing…that became a bad thing…a sad bad this is not a rad thing…

That sweet Pumpkin of ours…wasn’t acting himself…didn’t come one day…then showed up and slept two days straight…

Didn’t eat…didn’t go to the bathroom…didn’t leave at night…just slept…and slept…and slept…

Worried he was sick…a neighbor mentioning her cat had died recently…so took him to the vet…in a little cat carrier…and while he was there…got his shots…

And now he’s mad and scared…running off the minute that carrier was opened…haven’t seen him in a week…call for him in the morning…look for him at night…

But nothing…just nothing…

And so it is…in life…sometimes doing the good thing…has consequences…can hurt…but not doing the good thing…in the end…can hurt…even more…
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And this husband of mine…agrees…

This old gal…

Found a memory from college days during that spring cleaning sort and purge…

That daughter of mine…a freshman floor RA…made Wizard of Oz placards for a hallway bulletin board…crafty…intricate…so adorable…and so her…

Always loved Wizard of Oz…little tyke glued to the TV…eating pretzels…squealing at the flying monkeys part…

Wanted to be Dorothy…actually was Dorothy…but could have been any of the characters…because that spirit of hers…embodies them all…

Brains…courage…caring heart…and if we go one step further down that yellow brick road…we find wisdom…an old soul wisdom…rare to find in one so young…

Who…lions and tigers and bears oh my…just happens to be one year older today…

So happy birthday my little pretty…may your day be filled with rainbows and lollipops and all things magical…

Your mother loves you…and your little dog too…see a phone call in that old crystal ball of mine…because you know what they say…on birthdays and every day…

There’s no place like home…
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And those sisters of yours…agree…

This old gal…

Began to ponder about the word sorry and a little thing those daughters of mine do when someone apologizes…

Goes back…way way back…little them saying I’m sorry…a trusted adult saying…in a not particularly nice way…don’t be sorry…just don’t do it…

And so it began…not a joke really…but a way to break the frame…ease the pain…those girls and I started to use the phrase DON’T be SOR-Ray…in a really stupid and quirky way…

And mama me has had to use that phrase a lot lately…say it…think it…pray on it as those daughters of mine grow up…make changes…

They feel guilt…unnecessary guilt…they apologize…unnecessary apologies…for moving on…for saying good-bye…for leaving that mother of theirs behind…

But listen up…sweet daughters of mine…get out there…follow your dreams…be happy…

And DON’T be SOR-Ray…because mama me…is…and will always be…so very happy for you…
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And this husband of mine…agrees…

This old gal…

Admired that husband of hers sitting by the window…together ten years now…ten years older…ten years creakier…and still…he makes the heart pitter pat…

Until she entered the room and noticed the stench…the overpowering acrid stench…that great-great-uncle-you-had-to-hug-when-you-were-little stench…

Bad breath maybe…rotten teeth maybe…not sure what but it was bad…nasty bad…and here it was in the room with that man of mine…

Decided not to say anything…wait til later…figure out the cause…new meds maybe…make a plan…find a way to make it go away…

The odorous cloud travelled along on the day’s grand adventure…could take it no more…approached him later when we got home…

Let me smell your breath…came the words…the stench still there…stinging the eyes…but what came next surprised us both…

Because that odor…that gagarocious odor…was coming from his blue jeans…new blue jeans…not washed yet and coated in some kind of great-great-uncle-bad-breath coating…

And so it is…in life…things are not always as they seem…and in cases like this…we are thankful…very very thankful…that they aren’t…
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And this husband of mine…agrees…

​This daughter of mine…

Visited her sister awhile back…flew to DC…spent a few days…checked out possible places to live…

Mama me thinking about that move…always a go-getter…organized…a get things done kinda gal…

Wants to help…do more…help pack…help purge…help drive the U-haul to the city…you know…things parents do…

But this old gal feels old…tired…not as handy…not as useful…past her prime…and then there it came…those words…

They’re coming to help me move…have it all arranged…and he will drive the U-haul for me…

That sister of hers and her husband…taking the reins…leading the way…coming in clutch…

And so it is…in life…things change…we slow down…can’t do the things we used to do…can’t do the things we want to do…but those things get done…

And how grateful this mama is…to those now willing and able…to fill…an old gal’s shoes…
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And that daughter of mine…agrees…

That brother of mine…

Has always been a caretaker…hard to believe at first glance…but underneath that say-it-like-he-sees-it exterior…is a softie…

Hamsters…stray dogs…cats…Guinea pigs…Fred…Sophie…Lucy…Cooper…wife…kids…grandkids…garden plants…

That Pizza Haus gang…45 years of teenage employees…including those nieces of his…taking them under his wing…letting them grow…learn…flourish...

And since we’re going back…let’s go way back…60 years back…a little sister three years old…needing safety…security…little six year old him…brave…strong…creating a safety net that’s always been there…

And so happy birthday oh brother of mine…you’ve touched a lot of lives…whether you know it or not…whether they…know it or not…

May your day of lounging be the best lounging day ever…and may your week be filled with joyous Happy Birthdays sent to you by those who care…

Because we do…lots of us…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

This mama’s heart…

Was heavy driving away from that beautiful daughter of mine…standing on the curb…waving…blowing those obligatory kisses…

Bought peanut butter crackers for the trip…still the heart was heavy…a bag of gummy bears too…still the heart was heavy…had the most amazing time…and still…

It was sad saying good-bye…to so many things…good-bye to having an Iowa girl…to her school…the town she called home…

Good-bye to her people…her friends…that cat of hers…good-bye to the way things were…had been…good-bye…just good-bye to it all…

The phone rang…answered with hello…meet me at the buffet…says that husband of mine…I’ll treat you to the Mother’s Day brunch…

And so it is…the thing about good-byes is…they lead to hellos…hello new town…hello new friends…hello new job…and for that daughter of mine…hello to a wonderful new grand adventure…

And the excitement of that…makes a mama’s heart…just a little…bit lighter…
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And that husband of mine…agrees…

This old gal…

Saw some videos on social media…millennials…zoomers…making fun of their memory box…or more like making fun of their mothers…for creating their memory box…

Those girls of mine have one…two actually…plastic totes filled with memories…all kinds of memories…baby clothes…baby blanket…first scribbles…first ABCs…

Mementos documenting those stages of life…lovingly chosen…lovingly stored…and here were these kids…mocking…

Why would I want this crap…said one…as soon as Mom leaves it’s going in the trash…said another…

And that made mama me wonder…question those memory totes she’d saved all these years…made her heart hurt just a little…

But then there we were…that daughter of mine laughing at that scrapbook she’d made…little hands cutting and gluing…

And mama me knew…these memories would be loved…would be treasured…if for no other reason than because they were special…to that person…they call Mom…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

This daughter and I…

Spent our last morning together walking down memory lane…more like sorting doodads from memory lane…her mother’s memory lane…

Mama me packing to move three years ago…had a hard time parting with things…prom dress from the 80s…homecoming dress from the 70s…hand sewn dresses when this old gal fancied herself a seamstress…

A lamp from that mother of mine…all those stamps from the Stampin Up craze…and ribbon…lots and lots of ribbon…

That daughter of mine…sweet thing that she is…took them…said she wanted them…and ended up storing them in a unit…

And now there’s no room for them in DC…and one of us…ok both of us…still can’t let them go…

And so it is…what goes around comes around…those totes…rescued once by that doodad lover of mine…a few years later…re-rescued by that doodad lover mother of hers…

Who is so thankful her new house…has a big basement…welcome back doodads…welcome back…
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And that daughter of mine…agrees…