The Wise Family

The Three Wise Men

2006-12-25T11:25:00.000-05:00

Holly Tour

2006-12-07T17:44:00.000-05:00

2006 - Dec - Holly Tour

Click on image above to see my photos from the 2006 Holly Tour.
The owner of 16 W. Chase was nice enough to allow me to take photos.

If it doesn't rain, it pours from the ceiling!

2006-11-15T23:22:00.000-05:00

We woke to the sound of running water in the basement this morning to find the main water pipe had busted during the night. We had it repaired (John's Plumbing in Catonsville was here by 8:00 a.m.! Will definitely use them again!). The insurance company sent us a fire/water restoration company, AllPro. They immediately ripped all the carpet up (it was only four years old) and cut the whole in the ceiling even larger to remove all of the wet drywall and left us with two enormous dehumidifiers and two large fans that we have to run for the next three days. Now I have to coordinate new carpet and repairs.

Will we ever get this house ready to put back on the market? I swear this house does not want us to leave!

The day started on a stressful note but ended on a strange one. The grandfather wall clock hanging in our living room hasn't worked in over a year. It started running today, and striking the hour for about five hours and then stopped again.

Can anyone recommend a good exorcist?!

"Fleas" by Ogden Nash

2006-11-04T18:02:00.000-05:00

Adam
Had'em!

Ogden Nash (although debatable) wrote the world's shortest couplet. Today I amend his couplet to read:

Teddie & Boo
Had'em, too!

Our part-time pooches (affectionately known as "the Rodents") arrived yesterday to visit while my father-in-law is in Mexico. This morning I found a flea. You may think one flea is no biggy, right? It is a biggy when you also have four long-haired indoor cats! We were panic stricken! So today we have given two dogs flea baths, washed anything we could fit in the washer, vacuumed and sprayed what we couldn't and have treated six animals with Frontline. The interesting part is they were groomed at Petsmart on Thursday!

Hmmmm . . . wonder where they got the fleas?

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T19:24:00.000-05:00

“What’s next?”

2006-10-25T16:57:00.000-04:00

I’ve been asked what I am planning on writing about next from quite a few people. It is heart warming to know that people are reading my books and are waiting for the next one! Here is what is on the drawing board:

Baltimore Neighborhoods in Vintage Postcards

Images of America: Howard County

The postcard book was my idea and my publisher liked it. I found that in researching Catonsville and Ellicott City that many subjects are most often best represented in vintage dime-store postcards. Often the postcard is the only image to have survived.

The Howard Co. book was my editor’s idea. She felt there was more of a story to tell beyond Ellicott City and I was the person to do it! Thanks for the confidence, Lauren!

Both books will most likely be released sometime after the second quarter of next year.

Catonsville has sold over 3,000 copies so far! Ellicott City over 2,000 copies! Pretty good for books written by someone who has never lived in either venue! Thanks for welcoming me and sharing your stories Catonsville and Ellicott City!

Cape May, NJ

2006-08-07T11:33:00.000-04:00

We went to Cape May for the first time. Why anyone would want to go to over-built tacky Ocean City when they can go to Cape May is beyond me. It was so laid back. No amusement piers or monolithic hotels. No hoards of unsupervised teenagers. Just beach, sun, and families. It was also the boys' first time seeing the ocean. Getting there was half the fun -- for everyone but me. We took the Cape May-Lewes Ferry from Lewes, Delaware. Have I mentioned I hate boats? I was so relieved to get to the other side!

We were suppose to be staying in a rental I found on the Internet. The woman said she had A/C. We went by her house (probably a $2 million piece of real estate) and dropped our check off in her mailbox. We went to the 2-br townhouse to discover, to our dismay, that the only A/C was a window unit in one bedroom! John hates to be hot, so now what do we do? I run back to the woman's lighthouse mailbox and retrieve our check while John got our stuff and kids out on the porch. I "borrowed" the phonebook from the rental and called around to find a vacancies and then we drove around to see if we liked the looks of them.

Did I mentioned that Cape May has a historic district?!! We ended up staying in a pretty little hotel called Hotel Macomber. But was our A/C worries over? No! Apparently, the window unit in our room was on the fritz and we sweated all night! So the next morning I moved us down the hall to another room with an air conditioner that would make a penguin happy!

Did you ever see the movie Under the Tuscan Sun ? There is a scene where the plumbing was reversed and steaming hot water was in the toilet. Sandra Oh declared she didn't think it was a good thing "unless you want to give your ass a facial." Well, Sandra, I had a real ass facial at the Hotel Macomber! I was using the toilet when I couldn't figure out why my butt was getting warm and a little clammy. Then it suddenly hit me -- steam from the toilet! I touched the tank, and sure enough, it was hot! I started laughing and John was at the door asking if I was okay. I just said, "I'm getting a butt facial"!

Matthew and Jared couldn't get enough of the ocean! Jason, on the other hand, couldn't be far enough away! He stayed at the blanket and played in a little blow up pool we bought him. Matthew and Jared got their exercise hauling water up to him.

Jared had another first at the beach . . . He lost his first tooth! He was afraid the Tooth Fairy wouldn't find us in Cape May so I had to hold his tooth until we got home.

We made two stops on the way home. Our first stop was the Cape May Lighthouse. It was a short visit. The plan was to climb to the top of the lighthouse (100 steps). We lasted about 10 minutes. At the first landing, Jason decided he was afraid of the spiral staircase and Jared decided he was tired. John and Matthew kept climbing. They were about two landings from the top when Matthew decided he had to go to the bathroom...NOW! So down they came and that was the end of our lighthouse visit.

Our second stop was in Margate, New Jersey to visit Lucy the Elephant. Jared has had a long-time love affair with elephant. I found Lucy mentioned in a travel guide so we made a detour. Lucy is a 65 foot high wooden elephant built in 1881 to attract investors to the Jersey Shore. The kids loved being inside an elephant.

All in all, it was a great vacation!

Ellicott City Released!

2006-06-26T00:31:00.000-04:00

My second book is in a store near you! Images of America: Ellicott City joins the Catonsville book in helping me become a footnote in history!

Easter Trip

2006-04-15T22:11:00.000-04:00

Remember the Pumpkin Patch? Well, Butler's Orchard in Germantown applied the idea to Easter. Yes, we went on an Easter hayride!

Avoid the book "Wicked"

2005-11-27T00:39:00.000-05:00

I love audible books. I love The Wizard of Oz. I hated the book Wicked. "Wicked" is only one word to describe this book . . . Other more appropriate words are heinous, terrible, awful and atrocious. Around the third disk I found myself fighting back the urge to scream "make it stop"! If you are a fan of "The Wizard of Oz" you will NOT be a fan of this book. From the incestuous sex of puppets to the constant insinuation that the Wicked Witch of the West was born a hermaphrodite you will be asking yourself "why?" Why did the author turn something so beautiful and magical into such a dark and ugly place? Maguire even goes as far as to make the Munchkins into lawless, over-sexed freaks. This was four hours of my life I will never get back but I guess it could have been worse. I could have listened to all 20 hours!

My newest great-niece has arrived!

2005-09-23T10:40:00.000-04:00

REECE ALEXANDRA WIGHT

September 23, 2005

3:44 a.m.

7 lbs. 3 oz.

Bonnie Returns

2005-09-20T19:01:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone,

Just a little note to let everyone know that I have returned from LA. I returned on Saturday at 7pm. I received a service award from the Maryland Army National Guard and a pin is to follow in the mail. I resigned from the MDDF upon my return. I have taken a lot of pictures and hope to have them developed this evening, I will share them with everyone when I have put together a presentable package. I would like to thank my friends and family for their thoughts and prayers. I hope this finds everyone well. God Bless the people of the gulf coast, hope they can weather Rita.

Much Love,

Bonnie

A few of my favorite things -- #3

2005-09-20T10:43:00.000-04:00

Here is my answer to "What's for dinner?" I don't cook 30 days worth of meals at once. Usually about two weeks worth with doubling receipes.

Start filling your freezer here: www.30daygourmet.com

What is Bush's position on Roe vs. Wade?

2005-09-19T18:05:00.000-04:00

He says he really doesn't care how people get out of New Orleans.

The good, the bad and the ugly.

2005-09-16T11:53:00.000-04:00

The bad news: I had to pick Matthew up from school early today.

The good news: It was only Pink Eye! I have to be the only parent happy that their kid has Pink Eye (I told the school nurse my heart was in my throat when I saw that St. Mark's was on the caller ID).

The ugly: Today is school picture day! He should look wonderful with a red, swollen, oozy eye and four teeth missing!

Where's Waldo? . . . I mean Bonnie?

2005-09-13T20:49:00.000-04:00

Click on photo to see larger . . .

Message from Bonnie -- #3

2005-09-11T21:47:00.000-04:00

"Hello everyone,

Greetings from Gretna, LA. Thought everyone would like to know that our 6 clinics in Jefferson Parrish has seen over 1000 patients since we set up shop. We are very proud of ourselves. The Parrish President is overwhelmed with the response we have gotten. My clinic, at Lincoln Elementary, saw 83 people today. We also sent 20 people home today, and received 20 people in their place. This morning we had a special service and a moment of silence in observance of 9/11. Then I had breakfast with the Mayor of Ocean City, MD - Jim Mathias. Please check out this picture, http://aacomccu.blogspot.com/ , it is the original group of volunteers from Maryland for Operation Life Line. Hope this finds everyone well, take care. Bonnie"

Message from Bonnie -- #2

2005-09-09T15:39:00.000-04:00

"Hello everyone,

Just a little update, apparently I was confused and I was sworn in as a Lieutenant in the Maryland Defense Force, not as a Sargent First Class in the Maryland National Guard. I also have the option to stay in if I so desire. Things are taking shape around here, I feel like I'm a part of something very great. I'm told that us "Marylanders" are on the news. I don't know, I don't have access to tv, except in the AA Co mobile command & communications unit. We set up 6 clinics in Jefferson Parrish, which is about 4 miles north of New Orleans, within 24 hours of arrival. We were all very impressed. Operations are running more smoothly now, I'm told by the military this is the first time anything like this has ever happened and we are setting a precedence. My clinic is at Lincoln Elementary, we saw 61 people today. We are running a MASH unit at this school, very limited resources, no electricity, we had fans today with the help of a generator (Thank God). The school is very poverty stricken and my group would like to sponsor it upon our return to Maryland. It's hard to believe I'm in the U.S., I can't believe that there are children who attend schools like this. The library is very tiny and disheveled, very limited books and supplies. It makes me very sad, as most of you know my love for books. Well, so long for now. Hope this finds everyone well. Take Care, Bonnie"

Message from Bonnie -- #1

2005-09-08T23:23:00.000-04:00

"Hey guys,

Just wanted to let everyone know that I'm doing ok, hot and tired. The weather has a lot to be desired for. The conditions here well, for me they aren't bad at all. Although, I am told that we are in "austere" conditions. We are under Marshall Law, which means we have a curfew from sun down to dawn, and you are not to be any where where there is not a guy in green military gear with an m-16. I am very safe. I am in an abandoned hospital Meadowcrest, and the military has commandeered the building. There is a bunch of people staying here, Doctors, Nurses, Paramedics Fire Fighters and Police. We all seem to be having a good time. I feel like I am taking care of a lot of people, and boy did they need our help. What everyone is seeing on tv isn't the half of it. I have computer access thanks to AACo. We all appreciate the thoughts and prayers. I am drinking more water than I have ever done in my entire life, and eating MRE's, boy do they have a lot to be desired for. I'm told they are better than they used to be. HAHA. Well everyone take care, I will try to write again soon. The computers are a hot item here. Hope to see and talk to everyone on my return. I'm taking a lot of pictures, so I will have a lot to share.

Love to everyone,
Bon"

Bonnie Update

2005-09-08T23:03:00.000-04:00

Bonnie has been on the move! She is no longer at West Jefferson Medical Center. On Tuesday they moved to Meadowcrest Hospital in Tenet, Louisiana. The hospital was abandoned due to no electricity. The power is back up in that area so the Maryland National Guard Unit Bonnie is traveling with went in and cleaned the whole hospital, threw out all of the perishables, and flew the Maryland Flag from the hospital flag pole. Yesterday she was part of a team that began setting up triage centers in all of the area schools as the residents are allowed to return to their homes . . . or what is left of them.

Picture of the Day

2005-09-08T16:32:00.000-04:00

And who said George Duh-ble U can't multi-task? Clearly he can vacation and take care of the good people of LA at the same time!

Hero Bonnie

2005-09-06T08:08:00.000-04:00

We have all looked at the television over the last week, watching the devastation in New Orleans, and said either to ourselves or out loud, “I wish there was something I could do.” My friend Bonnie is doing more than “wishing”.

For those of you who do not know her, Bonnie is an ER nurse at Harbor Hospital. Last week she called the American Red Cross, who she is disaster certified as an emergency nurse through, and volunteered to go to Louisiana to help. At 7:15 p.m. Sunday night they took her up on her offer. They gave her 14 hours to pack up and be at Martin’s State Airport by 10:00 a.m. yesterday. There she was inducted into the Maryland National Guard as a Sergeant First Class and had her vaccinations updated. From Martin’s she flew out on a C-130 to Jefferson Parrish, Louisiana which is a suburb just to the west of New Orleans. Bonnie was told she will be working and sleeping at the West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero for at least two weeks but was instructed to pack for three. She will not be paid for her time but Harbor Hospital has given her indefinite leave and her job will be waiting for her when she gets home.

I haven’t spoken to her husband Brian since yesterday so I don’t know if he has heard from her since she left. Please keep Bonnie in your thoughts and prayers. I’ll post updates as I get them so stay tune.

To Bonnie: Bon, please be careful! We are very proud of you. We love you!

A few of my favorite things -- #2

2005-08-10T14:53:00.000-04:00

FreeCycling! Check it out at: www.freecycling.org.

A few of my favorite things -- #1

2005-08-04T13:22:00.000-04:00

My friend Ada accuses me of being a "gadget freak", and she's right! I like anything that makes my life easier (or at least I perceive as being easier). I think I will start listing them as I think of them (Oprah's not the only one who can share her favorites with the world). Here is the first thing I can't live without . . . My LightWedge! I can read in bed and not disturb John. The many nights I wake up in the middle of the night and can't sleep, I can sit on the couch and not light the whole place up. I even used it one time during a power failure to read to the kids. If you love to read, this is a must have gadget. Go to www.lightwedge.net to get your own. They also carry them in Barnes & Noble and the Discovery Store.

Truth in advertising

2005-07-19T21:54:00.000-04:00

My Favorite Hunky Cookie Addict

2005-07-08T13:49:00.000-04:00

I think I may now officially qualify as a “Gary Gulman Groupie.” Does attending his two shows in Baltimore, taking him cookies both times, and having my picture taken with him qualify me?

For those of you who live under a rock, Gary is a very funny comedian. John and I discovered him summer before last when he appeared on “Last Comic Standing.” Why he didn’t win, I have no idea. It’s not like I didn’t try stuffing the ballot box every week! Besides being a gifted comedic writer, Gary is also probably one of the most handsome, gorgeous, adorable guys over six-feet tall I have ever seen. My husband, of course, holds the under six-foot title (Damn! I should I apply for a job as a UN diplomat).

LCS is the only reality show I have ever watched. I just don’t understand people who watch “Survivor” or “Fear Factor.” I guess I am not a voyeur or need to live vicariously through others. At least with LCS I got to laugh every week!

Since Gary is the ultimate “Cookie Monster” I took him a box of Berger Cookies, being the Balmer delicacy they are (in December I took him a box of homemade cookies). I told Gary to eat them slowly as they were an $81 box of cookies!

A funny thing happened on the way to the Improv last night . . . While I was in the Giant buying cookies John was on the receiving end of a $77 ticket because he was stopped in front of the grocery store! John told the officer that he was picking up his wife and besides, he wasn’t stopped he was standing, the cop said “you aren’t moving” and promptly wrote him a ticket. I was in the car and ready to go before he finished writing the ticket. What a jerk! (Feel free to substitute “jerk” with a stronger word. My nine-year-old Niece Jenna reads this and I need to keep it G rated!)

Gary has just released a CD (here's my autographed copy). If you aren’t familiar with him get a copy! You won’t look at cookies, grapefruits or walruses the same way again.

If you catch Gary’s act and he goes into his Nazis-serve-a-purpose shtick, he got the “Sound of Music” reference from yours truly!

Brimfield or Bust? BUST!

2005-07-07T11:18:00.000-04:00

Beth left without me this morning. I decided that it wouldn’t be very fun to go to a crowded town (she said the traffic just getting in and out of Brimfield was brutal) and look at antiques I couldn’t afford. :(

I haven’t given up on a getaway for me. I think maybe in the fall a trip to Newport would be in order? My idea of Disneyland is spending the day drifting through the “cottages” of Newport, RI.

Last year when we were on vacation we visited the Biltmore in Ashville, NC. Surprisingly Matthew even liked it. The next day my darling hubby stayed back with the kids and let me go to the Biltmore and really explore by myself. I was able to take the Rooftop and Behind the Scenes Tours that wouldn’t have been possible with the kids. It was a wonderfully relaxing day that recharged my batteries for months after.

How do you get blood stains out of the carpet?

2005-07-05T14:05:00.000-04:00

I didn’t know a forehead could bleed that much.

My day started with Jared screaming up the basement steps, “I’m bleeding!” With Matthew close behind screaming, “I’m sorry, Jared!” I hit the top of the steps to see Jared’s face completely covered in blood and dripping down his legs and feet!

Once I got him in the kitchen and cleaned off I saw the source – a 3/4 inch gash in his forehead. It was wide enough that I knew a butterfly bandage wasn’t going to be the answer. In the midst of all this, John calls home. I told him what was up and he headed out the door from work.

There was a fight over the Xbox and Matthew threw a talking farm toy of Jason’s at Jared. Bull’s-eye!

Our pediatrician is about 40 minutes away, so I opted for the Patient First clinic about ten minutes away. On the way there Jared threw-up all over himself and the backseat of John’s Outback. He had swallowed some of the blood when he was crying and it ran down his face and into his mouth (Jared can’t cry without opening his mouth to the point of almost unhinging for full volume effect).

The doctor papoosed him in a blanket, I laid across him, and a nurse held his head. The doctor numbed his forehead and put in three stitches. He fought, but I think that was only because they had his face covered with just a hole cut in it for the area she was working on.

I brought him home and gave him a shower since he smelled like puke and blood. He is now watching the “The Incredibles”. Matthew, on the other hand, is in his room contemplating life without Xbox. He volunteered his own punishment -- He said that he will go without Xbox until Jared’s head is better. I was only going to go for the six days until the stitches come out!

Now I need to get the blood out of the carpet. It looks like a crime scene!

Never a dull moment . . .

Three years ago today

2005-07-03T01:47:00.000-04:00

Three years ago today I walked in the front door of our house for the first time. One look at the staircase and window and I knew I was home!

Baby Jail

2005-06-25T00:53:00.000-04:00

I went on a consignment store crawl looking for a toddler bed for Jason. We decided not to buy him a big boy's bed right now.

I found this crib tent for $15! We just zip him in. My peace of mind has been restored . . . for now!

My Babies are Growing Up!

2005-06-24T00:30:00.000-04:00

We had two milestones today . . .

Matthew lost his second front tooth! He is now has a huge gap where his front teeth should be! He looks so grown-up!

I put Jason down for a nap. I heard him fussing in his room. He evidentally wasn't ready for a nap. The next thing I know, the crying seemed to get louder . . . he was coming down the steps! He had climbed out and must have hurt his knee because he was pointing to it. I am not ready for him to go into a big boy's bed.

Matthew and Jared never climbed out. I guess that is because they were "evicted" before they were big enough because someone new was coming to take their place in the crib.

Jason has already been climbing out of the playpen. I have no where to contain him. Help!

Happy Father's Day

2005-06-19T23:23:00.000-04:00

Today was John's 8th Father's Day. The boys gave him cards, a big cookie (Jason called it a "bird-day cake") and a gift certificate for the GQ treatment at a dayspa. He said he had never had a professional massage, so now he can have an hour's massage, a man's facial, and a man's pedicure and manicure. Do I take care of my man or what?

I had seen that there was going to be a BBQ Show and thought John would enjoy it. He is always looking for good steak sauces, BBQ sauces, etc. and I thought this would be a good place to find and sample some . . . Wrong! It was just a BBQ competition. The only BBQ you could eat was produced by a McCaterer in mass quantities with Sysco BBQ sauce. YAWN! Oh, well, I tried!

I did get to "pimp my ride" there. I bought window decals of Tinkerbell, Mickey and Goofy so that I can find my gray minivan among all the other gray minivans in the parking lot at school!

Family History

2005-06-18T21:41:00.000-04:00

Today I spent a wonderful day with my first cousin, once removed, Dorothy French Todd. She is 91 years young and we had not met until today. I also had the pleasure of meeting her son Bob and his wife Kristine. Dorothy is my oldest living Wight relative.

Cousin Dorothy shared stories with me I had never heard. Especially about my grandmother who died in 1928 when my father was two years old. Dorothy told me that, as a child, she remembered Sunday dinners my grandmother, Elizabeth Roberta "Bert" Kriener Wight, cooked. She especially remembered her fried chicken, home made egg noodles and bread, and that she was quite a cook. My grandmother had long blonde hair that she braided every morning and wrapped around and around her head. Dorothy remembers my grandmother sitting at her vanity and letting her brush her hair. She also said my grandmother had a slight accent. Maybe she had been born in Germany?

My Great-Aunt Raey has an interesting story. I found out that the Wights weren't always Catholic as I had thought. Aunt Raey had converted to Catholisim and then proceeded to convert the rest of the family. When Dorothy found out that I had converted when I was 26 she said, "Aunt Raey is still at work!" Aunt Raey was a devote Catholic and probably would have become a nun but her family didn't approve. Dorothy remembers that after Raey died there were people from St. Paul's church who wanted to nominate her for sainthood. That is certainly a story I plan to investigate.

Here are some of the photos I scanned:

(left to right) Oliver J. Wight (great-grandfather), Birkie, Edna, Raey

This is my grandfather Joseph Earl Wight, Sr. in his WWI uniform.

Uncle Birkie is on the left. He went downtown after the Great Fire of 1904.

My Great Great-Grandfather Oliver Birkhead Wight

To see the rest of the photos go to my Shutterfly album.

We plan to get together again very soon.

Pat, Elbows & Dogs

2005-06-14T01:55:00.000-04:00

My mother called to tell me my sister was warming a bed in Harbor Hospital. For a week Pat and Mom had been sick and Wendy had pnumonia. I was staying away from them! Pat ended up at the doctor, and he didn't like the sound in her chest. She had been in the hospital since the day before, and was hoping to get out.

The kids and I were on our way to my father-in-law's to pick up his "babies" -- an adorable, lovable Yorkie named Teddy and a bug-eyed rodent Chihuahua named Boo. When I went to put Jason into the van, he decided to go limp (because he didn't want to get in the van), and I ended up dislocating his elbow. Now before you go calling Social Services, this is a common thing for children his age, as is often referred to as "Nursemaids Elbow." Matthew had done it too at the same age. This wasn't Jason's first time either dislocating something. He had dislocated his wrist before, and John was able to get it back in place. I took Jason to John's work and he came out and tried to get his wrist back in, but it didn't work this time. We ended up at the pediatrician's office, where he diagnosed it as a dislocated elbow (which would explain why John couldn't re-set it). We finally got to my FIL's and came home with the dogs -- four hours after we had started out!

Never a dull moment!

My Newest Obsession

2005-06-10T01:42:00.000-04:00

Post cards. Vintage post cards. I came to appreciate them when I was writing the Catonsville book. I am now selling my Longaberger baskets on eBay so I can buy post cards. But heck, you can find post cards for $1 - 5 for the most part so those over-priced baskets should put me in the black for awhile!

Today I visited a local post card dealer in Westminster. Memory Lane Postcards is in the garage of a really nice lady named Shirley Cox. As you can see she has a few postcards! She gave me an education on collecting and for this I am very thankful. Thanks Shirley! I'll be back soon!

Vacation Day - 8

2005-06-09T01:32:00.000-04:00

We didn't know where we were until morning -- Creedmoor, NC. Jason threw up at the complimentary breakfast. I think that return of groceries was due to the fact that he was empty. We cleaned out the van the best we could and headed home again. By lunch Jason had a fever but I had come prepared and gave him some Motrin.

We got home around 3:00 p.m. We weren't home 20 minutes when here come Zack. He was very happy to receive his cat-sitting gifts and went right home to put the shirt on.

I am not going on vacation with those children again until they are old enough to take a turn at driving!

Vacation Day - 7 -- Heading home two days early.lunchett

2005-06-08T00:50:00.000-04:00

We began heading north. I planned to drive all day and night and not lay over. Before leaving Villa Rica I wanted to follow the signs to "Historic Villa Rica". It was a main street with a lot of antique shops. No place to take children. We ate in the luncheonette and headed out of town.

We had picked up a brochure for the Babyland General Hospital -- Birthplace of Cabbage Patch Dolls. It was a cute place. We even say a Cabbage Patch baby born!
There weren't many boy dolls there but we did adopt "Alphonso Parker". Jared talked to him all the way home.

At least one thing went as planned -- we visited Big Zack's Fireworks in Anderson, SC. I bought Zack a T-Shirt and some fireworks. We bought some sparklers for the kids for the Fourth.

We separated Matthew and Jared's carseats. That helped reduced the Scream Fest. Jason sat in the back with Matthew and Jared sat in Jason's spot. Of course Jason, finds everything Matthew does funny and Matthew likes an audience so we had a lot of giggling. Jason shrieks even when he's happy so I just can't win!

Around the North/South Carolina border, we gave up on the thought of driving straight through. At about 11:00 p.m, Jason started crying and we couldn't figure out why. He had been asleep. At 11:30 p.m., he promptly threw up everything he had eaten that day! We pulled into a rest stop and John was trying to get him out of his carseat when, you guessed it, he threw up all over John! We cleaned up the best we could with baby wipes and Clorox Wipes. We drove until we could find a hotel and checked into a Holiday Inn Express.

Vacation Day - 6

2005-06-07T00:29:00.000-04:00

I told the kids in the morning that we were going to Six Flags Atlanta. But it was only because Daddy deserved it, not them. And when we got there we were going to do what Daddy wanted to do first. They readily agreed. What did they care, they were getting to go to Six Flags.

There was no one there so we didn't have to stand in line. The kids rode some rides twice. Jason loved his first time on rides! He would scream everytime we had to take him off of something. Matthew wanted to get on rides that were on the other side of the park and not the ones we were standing in front of. We told him that he had to ride the closer ones first or he wasn't going to get to ride the ones "over there" that he wanted. He eventually got it. All in all it was not a bad day, except for the fact that Six Flags was more expensive than any amusement park (including Disneyworld) we had ever been to. There were some rides that you had to pay extra to ride and a soda was $3.00 ($8 if you got a sports cup!). Here are some of the highlights.

Vacation Day - 5

2005-06-06T13:25:00.000-04:00

Today was the day we do something Mommy will enjoy -- Gone with the Wind stuff. There isn't much in Atlanta. You have to head to Jonesboro where Tara was located (Margaret Mitchell's grandparents house, which she based Tara on was torn down and located in Jonesboro). Still, there isn't much of Hollywood's Tara in Jonesboro because they based it on the ornate houses of Charlestown and not the modest farm house that Mitchell wrote about. We went to the Road to Tara Museum.

It was a short visit... Jared decided it was boring and proceeded to bang his head against all of the glass display cases. I took this photo so I can show it to his future girlfriends.

The museum offered a driving tour map of Jonesboro's historic houses and buildings. We got everyone into the van and started following the map. Here is Margaret Mitchell's playhouse that had been moved behind the local funeral parlor.The highlight of the funeral parlor wasn't the playhouse, it was the window display of antique morticians tools and hearse!

We made it to about the sixth location on the map of 24 highlights when the screaming festival began in the backseat. They were threatened with not going to Six Flags -- but they continued to scream and fight. John told them he was going to swat them -- yet they continued. This was the moment, ladies and gentlemen, that I declared our vacation over! It had became painfully clear that a large part of the last five days had been spent listening to screaming, refereeing and putting up with difficult children. For this we drove over 600 miles and were spending $100 a day on food and attractions? I told John just to take us back to the townhouse I was packing. That's when John got unusually quiet . . . I had to ask.

He too really wanted to go to Six Flags. He made a good argument -- he worked all year and didn't get to spend one day in an amusement park (which is loves doing) because of the Brat Pack. He was right, he deserved at least that much. So we agreed to go to Six Flags the next day and then head home the day after that.

Vacation - Day 4

2005-06-05T22:17:00.000-04:00

Our townhouse was on Lake Tara. Jason enjoyed our daily visitors -- a flock of geese and a pair of ducks. Whenever they showed up he would start yelling "Quack-Quacks!" We bought a couple of loaves of bread and let the kids feed them. The duck couple would wait for the geese to leave to come up.

We visited Fernbank Museum in Atlanta. I had read about its large dinosaur bone collection and knew the boys would like it. What I didn't know was that Fernbank had just began a new exhibit -- Grossology -- the Impolite Science of the Human Body! Instead of spending the majority of our time there having an educational afternoon learning about dinosaurs, we learned about why we burp and fart! Why and how our bodies make snot and poop!
Matthew and Jared were in little boy heaven. They got to use "bathroom words" in public and I couldn't complain! Here they are coming out of the intestine maze. Yes, your memory of Anatomy 101 is correct, they are exiting the rectum. I especially liked the brown mat!

John captioned this photo, "Little Shits"!

The gift shop even got in on the gross thing!

Vacation - Day 3

2005-06-04T16:05:00.000-04:00

We were in the south, in deed! We ate breakfast at the Waffle House, served to us by an over made-up blonde named Alice. Both Jason and Jared gagged on the grits! After that we hit the Wal-Mart SuperCenter and stocked up on some groceries for the week.

In the afternoon we visited the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta.

Matthew, Jason, Jared and John entering the World of Coca-Cola.

Now that's a bear hug!

Jared was less than cooperative...

Jared was mad because he didn't get to the above cut-out before Matthew. He whined the rest of the way through the museum. Even when we were sampling the 31 different flavors of Coke products from around the world. The orange-flavored Coke from Germany (Mezzo Mix) was really good. The bitter flavored stuff from Italy was vile!

We had dinner at what had to have been the worst Pizza Hut on the way home. I complained that I didn't think it was appropriate for the movie "The Matrix" to be on the TV and the three employees that responded to my request could not figure out how to change the channel . . . I took matters in to my own hands, being the Cyber Muffin that I am . . . I pushed the "off" button. John had to request Sweet 'n Low three times for his ice tea before he got it. After adding the sugar to his tea he promptly knocked the item glass of tea into my lap! That was not the place to be covered in stickiness because it was about that same moment that Matthew noticed the army of ants climbing up the wall next to him. Our waitress disappeared . . . John never got a re-fill on his tea and I had to go looking for a box to take our pizza and get out of there!

Our townhouse had the world's largest Jacuzzi bathtub! John and all three kids got in and there was room for about three more people! After they were all in bed I filled the tub/swimming pool up, plug into my MP3 player, grabbed a Bartles & Jaymes (you have to love a Wal-Mart where you can get cookies, tires, and alcohol all under the same roof), and soaked the iced tea away! Ahhhhhhh..........

Three days of vacation down, seven more to (survive) go . . .

Vacation - Day 2

2005-06-03T16:56:00.000-04:00

The kids were up bright and early. No worse for wear from only having had five hours of sleep! As for their parents . . .

We enjoyed a shower with really good pressure and then fueled up at the complimentary breakfast the hotel offered. There was a group of over-the-hill baseball players in the breakfast room with us (we were very close to Durham and I am guessing that the men's' favorite movie was "Bull Durham"?). Jason kept looking at them and clapping and yelling "yeah". I am guessing he saw a baseball game somewhere and was repeating what he saw when he seen their uniforms.

On the road again at 10:30 a.m. . . After we crossed over the South Carolina border we start seeing billboards for "Big Zack's Fireworks." My "oldest son" Zack's last words were, "bring me home some fireworks!" He was home house/cat sitting for us. We made a mental note to stop on our way home and bring him something back with the name on it at least.

We stopped at a restaurant for lunch called the Roadhouse. We were hoping with some food in their stomachs the Scream Machine (aka our children) would nap. Jason napped for about 40 mins. He probably would have slept longer if his brothers weren't fighting and screaming a foot from his head! Not to be left out of the high jinx, John felt the need to yell, "Shut Up!" every two minutes.

We arrived in Villa Rica at 7:00 p.m. It was deja vu all over again! The place we were staying in looked exactly like the place we stayed in last summer in Lake Lure, NC. (Thanks again, Dad, for giving us a week).

We had dinner at the Maple Street Mansion in Carrollton, GA. An old Victorian mansion. It finally started to feel like vacation for me -- I was in an old building!

Jason, evidently had had his share of sitting for the day and refused to sit in the high chair. John and I took turns walking him around the restaurant so we (and the people around us) could eat in peace.

At bedtime, Jason went right to sleep. Matthew and Jared weren't so easy. They was a TV in their room. They asked if they could watch TV until they fell asleep. We agreed. It didn't take them long to be jumping from bed to bed so that was the end of TV time. Sometime around five in the morning I went in to check on them and the TV was on and they were asleep. Lord only knows what time they turned it on!

Vacation - Day 1

2005-06-02T14:17:00.000-04:00

We left for vacation late (at 1 p.m. instead of 9 a.m.) because the legal department at Arcadia Publishing had their panties in a wad over the last photo in my Catonsville book. It was an Associated Press photo from 1935 that was stamped on the back "If photo used give credit to API". Me, wanting to doing everything by the book, did the right thing and gave API credit. Arcadia said I had to get permission from API in writing. After several phone calls, emails and faxes to New York API said they would gladly let me use the photo -- for $175! And what was this awsome photo of? An osprey!

Yes, a stupid bird that made her nest on a telephone pole in Catonsville in 1935. Since I had not paid for the use of a single photo I wasn't going to start. So I went through the 175 photos I didn't use in the book (can we say "sequel"?) and selected another photo and wrote a caption for it. Now all I had to do was to email it to the publisher, right? Wrong! My email provider didn't want to let me send a file that large. Just zip it and send it, right? You're 0-2 now. Even zipped it was too big. Finally I just made the photo smaller and got on with my life and our vacation.

We stopped at Appleby's for lunch where they promptly served me way undercooked salmon. By the time I got a piece of fish I could eat, the kids were done and ready to go. John took them out to the car while I wolfed down my food and paid the bill.

I packed the car well to keep the kids entertained -- DVD player, Video Now, View Master, Game Boy, Leap Pad, Etch-a-Sketch, maze books, board books for Jason, crayons and coloring books, sticker books -- everything a bored child could want. These things held them through dinner, about 25% of the way to Villa Rica, GA. That's when Matthew and Jared found tormenting each other the greatest form of entertainment. Jason wanted whatever he couldn't reach and shrieked for it until someone handed it to him. He had a pacifier strapped to his carseat but wanted the one on the floor . . . and here, ladies and gentlemen, is where the tone for the rest of our vacation was set -- we just didn't know it yet.

We reached Burlington, NC around 11:30 p.m. and stayed at the Country Suites where I had made reservations in advance. It was exactly half way to our final destination.

How did I know Burlington, NC was the half-way mark? Because John purchased a GPS device and software for the laptop computer (and a power inverter for the car). He spent the whole time on the way down with the laptop in his lap while I drove. I alternated listening to "Microsoft Mary" tell me, in her monotone voice, when to turn and John telling me how many unsecured wireless networks were in the area that the laptop was picking up.

Matthew and Jared wouldn't settle down so we had to separate them. I slept with Matthew, he slept with Jared. Jason didn't like his crib at the hotel and didn't go to sleep until after 1:00 a.m.

One day of vacation down, nine to go . . .