The Art of a Saturday Luncheon
April 5, 2011
Bridal and Baby Showers are almost always lovely — some more extravagant than others. I was recently at The Milton Inn in Sparks, Maryland for my cousin Jill’s wedding shower. And until then, I can’t remember the last time I have taken a full afternoon to just lunch with the ladies.
No silly games, no embarrassing stories for Jill. Just fellowship…for her (as she made her way among the tables to visit with everyone) ..and for us.. (of course I lost track of how much coffee I sipped).
With a big family like the one from which my mom and Jill’s dad originate (12 siblings), family functions are lively and meaningful. But twice a year gatherings are not enough. Bring on more weddings! More baby showers! I could get used to “Lunching with the Aunties” on a regular basis.
America the Beautiful…
January 31, 2009
One of my favorite blogs out there is Motherlode at the New York Times, by Lisa Belkin. She keeps it simple but seems to be able to weave significance, pop culture, and every day honesty into her posts. There are a few I’ve really liked recently about keeping kids home from school (or awake past bedtime) for significance sake. She did one back in November around summer’s highlights, including the conventions…
Seems the timing for doing the same thing with my little ones was upon us this month when we escaped the mayhem of the city and instead decided to stay home from school at Nana and PopPop’s house to witness our nation’s historic transfer of power, the Inauguration of Barack Obama. Being little, my munchkins preferred playing with their barbies and cars instead of listening to a swearing in, but I forced them to pose, flags in hand, in front of the TV so that I had something to remember and show them later. The best picture really ended up being when Aretha Franklin, big grey hat ‘n all, was about to sing.
Little Patriots
Say it Isn’t So….
January 8, 2009
Little Connor James Neff died yesterday. Here is the story we received through email from my Aunt Norma Jean’s sister Nancy….
Connor is safely home with Jesus now. This morning when they took him off the respirator his lungs collapsed. That was the turning point. They took all the machines away, and Kelly held Connor on the rocking chair, and Jim knelt beside her, whispering to Connor. Bob and Pam and NJ and Larry (all grandparents) were there, and Connor’s heart stopped at about 11:20 this morning.
Bob and Pam are having lunch with NJ and Larry at their house. Jim and Kelly asked them to take all their things from the Ronald McDonald room, where they were staying, to their house before Jim and Kelly go there, and to put the baby things in the nursery and close the door. Norma Jean is expecting Jim and Kelly to come to their house this afternoon before they go home.
My heart aches for the parents going home to an empty nursery. Such wonderful expectations, and now such a different reality to deal with. Connor is safe, and we are sad.
so sad.
Born in the USA…..
January 7, 2009
It is always (in my book) fun, like today, to get a “Welcome Joey Scott Martian” or “Welcome Minerva Sue Flannigan” email in my inbox at work announcing that the Microsoft Public Sector family has been extended by one very tiny stockholder (read: employee’s child). In the United States we have the most incredible access to quality health care in the world. We take for granted healthy births. We expect them, many even schedule them, like a dinner reservation. That’s why when what happened to my cousin Jim and Kelly this week is so jarring. In short, amidst a very long labor with Kelly giving birth to their first child, their little boy’s heart rate took a nosedive while he was in the birth canal, and til an emergency C-section was performed, he was without oxygen for 11 minutes.
Little Connor James Neff. Perfect little boy, now barely able to move. What looks like almost certain brain damage has led to days with a cooling cap on, multiple seizures, just one session of opening his eyes, and life (so far) on a respirator. Jim and Kelly’s lives, while already being turned upside down by the addition of their first child, now hold the most unimaginable of circumstances. Right now, this is all we know. Whether and how Connor will develop and recover is in God’s hands. We pray unceasingly for the Neff family, for grace through trauma, for BIG miracles.
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Tonya is a Community Content Producer for
WUSA9.com, DC's CBS affiliate.