ELIZABETH...Before braces...
Here is the photo taken of Elizabeth before she had her braces...It was taken February 2003. She is going back tomorrow to see if they need to put them back on.
Unfortunately, she still does not have her 'eye' teeth or canines or whatever
you call them. Alot of people said "why did you get them put on so young to begin with?" The long and short off it was that she could not close her mouth. Really!
She had a gap from where her top and bottom teeth would not touch...she could not
close her mouth at all. Now she can thanks to updated orthodontics but her mouth
is not cooperating like we hoped. Phase 2 will probably begin shortly. We will find out tomorrow. Poor Alex is right behind her. He has perfectly straight teeth EXCEPT
for 1 tooth. That's right just 1 tooth sticking out. Oh well. Guess I better start
saving some more money, orthodontics are way expensive, even with insurance. But ,
what's money compared to a child's self-esteem. I remember how embarrassed I was with my smile until I had my teeth straightened. So, until the next update, here is Elizabeth at 8 just before she had her braces put on the first time. Isn't she a little darling? Gotta love her.
Happy Birthday Little brother
Happy Birthday to my "baby" brother Patrick. He was 23 on St. Patrick's Day. The photo was taken on that day at a new Irish Pub called "Fibber McGee's". I picked
him up from work for a birthday lunch and we had a traditional Irish meal of
corned beef, cabbage and potatoes. Also, he had a few (8) green jello shooters.
Alas, when I returned him to work, they sent him home to sleep off his birthday
lunch haha....My mom would shoot me if she was here, but hey, you only live once.
Happy Birhtday Patrick. I love you big boy.
My little Tony
This is my baby Tony. He is the most unusual cat in the world. First, he thinks he is
human. If I eat, he eats. Not cat food mind you, whatever I am eating. He loves yogurt, lettuce, shrimp...you name he eats it. I know your not suppose to let your pets eat people food but what is cat food anyway? It's just food that shaped another way. Secondly, he loves to be held like an infant. It is not unusual for me to hold him and load the dishwasher at the same time, I feel like I have a 3rd child at times. Plus and this is strange, he doesn't meow. I don't think he knows how. If I lock him out of my room at night he will sit at the door and moan. It sounds pathetic, like a lost soul. I have to get up and let him in. He follows me around all day long, he is in whatever room I am in without fail. Tony was rescued almost
2 years ago outside the Petco in Annapolis. He was only 2 weeks old when I got him (the day before my birthday actually) and was so tiny. I had to buy him kitten milk to feed him which is why he acts human I think. He also has lost about 4 of his 9 lives already. The only cat I have ever met that can't land on his feet. He has had a broken nose, broken tooth, swallowed a piece of plastic and sounded like a helicopter until the vet removed it, he has fallen 3 times from the up stairs living room to the downstairs familyroom. Just walked through the rails like he was the Jesus kitty walking on water. Unlike Jesus, Tony landed with a thud on the bottom.
Now that he is a 2 year old, I am hoping that my vet bills will decrease and his accidents come to a screeching halt. Enough about my little boy. Going to bed.
Elizabeth's new haircut
He she is ....Miss America....Doesn't she look so grown up now. She was hating her long. tangly hair. She doesn't need my help in the mornings anymore either, which is
a plus for both of us. Oh. well...I tried , but in the end it was her decision. As is the decision to pierce her ears. I didn't have them pierced as a baby because I
couldn't do it. I saw too many screaming infants and decided that she could make that choice when she was older. As of now, no earrings for ELizabeth. She says she is NEVER gonna get them pierced. Mention a needle and she will faint or throw up on you. I let you know if she ever changes her mind.
PS. Elizabeth adopted a beautiful "black bear" hamster. His name is Shadow and he is the most gentle little thing. We have him in Sandy's old cage which is now securely
fastened on the shelf to keep away the big bad kitty .
Happy Birthday Alex...BIG 10 !!!!
Happy Birthday to my double digit baby boy. 10 years ago tonight,at 5:19pm, my world was changed for the better with the screaming arrival of Alexander Stuart Whelan.
This handsome, dark eyed little boy is a dream come true for his parents and, at
times, Elizabeth kind of likes him too.
Since I have a mid-term exam tonight I won't be able to celebrate his monumental
asencion into the world of pre-teenager-hood. We did however sing Happy Birthday right after school and he opened his presents. I also bought him Alaskan Snow Crab legs for his dinner. Anyone who knows this child, knows that his culinary taste are on the upscale side. For dessert, a rich and delicious Boston Cream Cake. Yummy!!
Well, Richard just took the kids to grandmoms house for yet another birthday gift, so
I will say good bye and head off to school.But before I go I just wanted to let you know that this photo was just taken about 30 minutes ago. Hows that for being prompt in blogging? Happy Birthday Alex, We all love you!
Tragedy...cat vs. hamster...cat wins:(
Tragedy struck the Whelan household this morning. Elizabeth's cat Squinky decided
that it was time for Sandy to go. She jumped up on the her dresser and knocked
Sandy's cage around until it fell off. The crash woke me up and I went running
into her room to find poor Sandy just laying there with her big beautiful eyes
looking at me with complete confusion. I knew immediately that the "accident" was
gonna be fatal when Sandy couldn't mover her back legs. She slept the last few hours
of her life and was with her family when she passed on to animal heaven. Elizabeth
and her dad went to the woods for the funeral and burial. She was buried in a
beautiful blue Tiffany & Co. box lined with a green cotton cloth. It was so hard
for me and Elizabeth. She was so distraught that I couldn't stop crying. So I printed
out a picture of Elizabeth holding Sandy and we are gonna buy a beautiful frame and
place it on her dresser. Death is a tough lesson for anyone but it was a lesson
that Elizabeth handled with grace. After Sandy died she held her lovingly while
I fixed up her casket. She told her she loved her and said her good byes and then gently placed Sandy in the box. Very touching. Poor Squinky, she doesn't understand
why she is not the queen of the house today. I told Elizabeth that what she did
was natural and we can't be mad at her. They lived together happily for about 3 years
before this happened. Now the question remains....how long before she wants a new
hamster. Hopefully not for a long time.
My Cousin Nancy's kids...Jessica and Joshua
I know that many of you hear me talk about my wonderful and beautiful cousin Nancy.
Since I don't have a photo of her I decided to show off her 2 kids. Aren't they
the cuties? It's a little past Christmas but this is my most recent picture...hint hint.
Anyway, Nancy has been wanting to blog for a while now BUT she claims she wants to
wait until summer after her big move to Australia (from England). I think she should
start now. I want to see your kids and you and your farm in England before it's
just a memory. I know you have a digital camera, so get snapping and download those
photos to me. It took me a while to figure out this blog website but I have very
minimal computer experience. so if I can do it, anyone can.
I know you visit Krista's blog and she is an expert so she would probably be willing to give you some pointers too.
I will be eagerly awaiting your new blog....or at the very least a comment..
Elizabeth the Camper
My girl is the brave one of the family, facing temperatures in the 30 degree F range to go camping for 2 days with her class. To make matters wet, oops I mean worse, it also rained on them the first day. Poor kids, they had to be so miserable. Alex and I spent the 2 days together bonding. Shopping and going out to eat at his favorite restaurant, CPK, or California Pizza Kitchen for those not in the know. Remember that place Krista? Anyway, back to camping. I volunteered Richard to be a chaperone, so he was none too pleased with me. Did he actually think I would camp out the first week of March, heck no! Takes two to make a child, takes two to be school trip chaperones, thank you very much. They weren't actually sleeping outside mind you, the cabins were almost luxurious from what I'm told. The entire 5th grade class from her school, which is quite small, went on the environmental camping trip. The theme of course was "How to Save the Chesapeake Bay". That is right up Elizabeth's alley anyway, she has always been the little environmentalist. She loves science and taking water samples was paramount to eating chocolate. Well at least for me :)
The camp ground was a whole 5 minutes from my house, at a huge waterfront educational
park called "Arlington Echo". Complete with classrooms and science labs. During the campout I received notice that Elizabeth was accepted into the college prep school that we applied for. Its call The Chesapeake Science Point School and goes up to 12th grade. As you may have guessed from the name, it has a heavy emphases on math and science. She was thrilled when she found out, as were here parents who were nervous wrecks wondering where to put her next year if she wasn't accepted. Public school was not option for her, she is way to "young". Well, I know that some of you are gonna be surprised to see a post so soon but hey, I have to keep you on your toes. You never know when I am gonna show up...
I am bad blogger....
I am really not the literary type, so for me, blogging is a huge accomplishment.
Krista told me that she is tired of checking into my blog and not seeing any new
entries so I figured I better get snapping. Currrently, as most of you know, I am
a full time college student....again. I stayed up until almost 4:00am working on
one of two term papers I have due this semester. After all the research, typing and retyping I haven't the energy to blog too freguently. I am not complaining, no way, I personally enjoy going to school again. It keeps you young when your not feeling so young. I must admit that I love the surprised look on peoples faces when they find out I am 40 years old...soon to be 41. I guess I inherited the looks gene since I didn't get the literary one..And my classes are quite interesting. I am working towards my degree in Aviation Management. I will be certified in May but plan to continue to receive my bachelors. Also, and this is huge, I received my private pilots FAA endorsement back in December. I passed the written exam with an 88%.
Anyone want to go for a spin???It's just like driving a car but equipped with
barf bags:)Now if only United Airlines would let me come back to work as a pilot I might actually be able to afford to send my kids to college. I applied recently to be tested by the MAA or Maryland Aviation Administration. No, I don't want to run an airline, I want to run the whole airport...such power!!!!!Wish me luck, this truly
bad blogger will probably be back with an update in a few weeks...if your lucky.
