Anna Skamarakas

I took Eilis to school this morning, and figured I would spend the two hours while she was at school with my dad.  I went into his room, and he was dozing a bit.  He startled himself awake after a few minutes and asked me if he had been sleeping. I told him he had.  He reported that my wonderful husband had stopped at the diner and brought him a big diner breakfast.  He has been asking for one - scrapple, eggs, hash browns, etc.  Jim left with Brighid earlier this morning and stopped at Ponzios, then brought the breakfast to my dad.  BTW, they saw Bobby Clarke, former Captain for the Philadelphia Flyers, at the diner.  It would have been cool to bring him along!!

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The nights are way too short!   Even with Jim getting up with the baby, I feel like I’m not getting enough sleep.  Tonight, the baby is all mine so that Jim can go to work in the morning.  We’ll see how tomorrow is.

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It was hard to get going today.  I am having a lot of trouble sleeping, and even though Jim has really taken over the baby for the weekend, I feel absolutely exhausted.  I am coming home from hospice with a headache each evening, which I know is nothing compared to what my dad has been through.  I am grateful to only have the headache.

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I get up this morning and take Brighid to get her school uniforms.  I stop and grab lunch at Taco Bell and head home.  I am getting the family together to go spend some time at the hospital. 

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The day didn’t start out well.  Well, actually, I can’t say that.  Jim was working from home today, and he offered to take the night shift with the baby.  I got a fairly good amount of sleep, and woke up feeling not too tired.  I ran to Babies R Us this morning and picked up an oh so cute outfit for Granuaile.  We are having photos done at noon of the baby in her Christening dress, and then photos with all three girls and nothing we have in the closet is small enough to look good on Grace.  I bump into Angel and her little guy, and we have a few minutes to chat. 

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I think it was a beautiful day.  I really don’t know how better to describe it.  Father Newton performed a beautiful ceremony.  He met us at the back of the Church just before Mass started, and basically, we just followed what he told us to do.  We walked into the back of the Church, and he introduced Grace to the parish and asked if we had come to have her baptized.  He asked Megan and Brett something about being Godparents, and then we all processed into the Church together.  We sat in the front pew, and we went through the beginning of the Mass.  After the homily, Father Newton called us up to the Baptismal font.  Grace was so good - she slept through the whole Mass, including the pouring of a generous amount of water on her head, and including a good rubbing in of the Holy Chrism.  Her Baptismal candle was lit and handed to Brett.  Bless his little heart, he didn’t know quite what to do with it, but we have some nice video of him looking confused   Then, after she was Baptized, Father Newton took her and held her up like Rafiki did with Simba in the Lion King for the entire congregation to see.  I know my family thought it was a little corny, but I just thought it was beautiful.

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You think this is going to be about Brighid, don’t you??

Yesterday was the Christening, and my little Eilis thought she was the “Cat’s Pajamas”.  She wore the dress I let her choose out of several options a few weeks before I went into the hospital, and she wore her “princess shoes”.  As soon as we got to the hall after the Mass was over, Eilis found the dance floor.  While the quiet welcoming music was playing, Eilis was the only one on the dance floor.  While the dinner music was playing, Eilis was on the dance floor.  Then, the DJ started playing musical games with the kids - guess who never left the dance floor?   Yep, Eilis.

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but my whole stage fright thing is setting in.  I hate being the center of attention for anything, and I am already dreading having to get up in front of the congregation tomorrow.  I hope there is no standing up on the altar or anything like that - that way even though I’m standing in front of the Church, I’ll only be visible by the first couple of rows.

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After weeks of worrying, planning, deciding, and determining, Granuaile’s Christening is just two days away.  This will be our last big party for a while - at least until Brighid graduates high school, and then I don’t know what kind of shindig she’ll want.  We chose a caterer based on the deliciousness (is that a word) of his food - even though we haven’t eaten it in 13 years!! - and on the location of the hall, which is less than 2 miles from church.

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I have what is commonly refered to as Poker Straight hair.  My sister Megan has what is commonly referred to as Poker Straight hair.  My sister Bean, however, always had dark, wavy hair.  As she got older, and as her tumor got worse, the hair went from a nice, soft, wavy type of hair to a dry feeling, kinky type of hair.

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