Greetings From California

Dear Friends,

This letter is long overdue. I just wanted to let you know what's new around here.

The school play, Into the Woods, wrapped up about a week ago. It was a great production, the kids were very funny. When they were working on the Big Bad Wolf scene, they told John that he needed to act more like a "pimp." Ruth was half the size of her husband, yet bossing him around with spunk. The prince was off to save his DAM-ZELL in every production.

I love that play. The writing is so funny. The characters are so outrageous, yet so true. The junior version is even better than the full version, I think. Whenever I get to the second half of the play, I am surprised that the story keeps going on and on and on.

Of course it was nice to watch my own kids, but ALL of the kids really were fantastic. They sang and danced and acted up a storm to standing ovations every performance.

At the same time, high school acceptance letters arrived. To add to the chaos, we had to figure out high school in 5 days...that's when the decisions were due. John did very well, in that, he was accepted everywhere he applied. His final choice is an AMAZING school very close to our home. It was actually a hard choice, he really liked all four schools he applied to, but now we can finally settle in a little bit and know what lies ahead for next September.

Meanwhile, we had visitors in our house for two weeks. My dad and George's parents arrived to see the play. The kids were thrilled. My dad left last week and my in-laws just left this morning. It is always a lot to add more people into the mix of our busy lives, but it's very nice that the kids have such a great opportunity to spend time with their parents.

Cottage plans are everywhere I look. How do I know where I want a window? A door? An oven? I can tell you that I don't want 2nd floor laundry in a house where only the master bedroom is on the second floor. There needs to be some changes and I wish I was more equipped with a vision to know just what they are. This all could really push me over the edge.

We also just had our school auction. We get to act crazy and silly for a cause once a year, so we did. It was very fun and a very late night and I'm still suffering from lack of sleep well into Tuesday. The theme was 1920's, and everyone got into the spirit.

Well, mostly my house is a gigantic mess with tons of laundry to do and a fridge full of uneaten leftovers. I had a double espresso and I'm off to whip this place into shape. Back to real life.

Time to think about Easter!

Ciao for now,

Deb