Family History

I've been in the mood to get my family trees sorted out. I started an ancestry.com tree, but I haven't wanted to spend $15/month for the full membership. So I'm filling in what I know, and at some point I'll be able to link up my trees with other family members who've been doing their own branches.

I've been doing more on the DuBois side, because that history is all in New York and it's fun to get it untangled now that I live in New York too. Also, growing up, I was more interested in all the Irish ancestors and annoyed with the DuBois line and the constant mispronunciation of the name. But now I think it's pretty cool that I had ancestors who came to the U.S. in the 1600's and decided to settle in the Catskills after someone's wife was kidnapped by Indians. I've also finally solved the mystery of why my Father's Grandfather and Great-Grandfather married Irish-born women. There was a stone quarry in the town the DuBois's lived in, so a lot of Irish came to work the quarry in the late 1800's.

Not that I've completely forgotten my Mom's side. My cousin Mary has set-up a Yahoo group for folks to post pictures and stories, which is really fun. Don't you love this picture of my Nana in Asbury park?

She has an amazing diary from the 3-4 years before she got married. It's very short entries each day, but there is something on every day. Plays, vacations, bowling, going out for drives with boys. I'd love to get that online too. I'd tried typing it up years ago, but it was back in the dark ages of computers and I didn't get very far. I've seen people enter old diaries in blog style, which probably makes searching it easier. I'll have to take a look at it again and see what I can do. Or see if any of my cousins wants to tackle the job.

Take me out to the ballgame

Dan and I are still arguing over whether the kids will play baseball or lacrosse every spring. But I've drawn first blood. Lacrosse won't take kids until Kindergarten, but T-ball will start them at 3 or 4 years old. he he he

So here's Nathan, ready to hit a home run.


Turned out to be more of a dribbler up the third base line. And there were a few foul tips and bunts. He's a bit slow on the fielding plays too. And I think he's trying to bowl the ball. Maybe lacrosse is better. And maybe I should bring the video camera next time so you can all experience the charm of 14 boys and girls who have no idea how to play baseball.

Red Sox Round-up

I'm watching the Sox on the YES network (Pride Power Pinstripes... Puke), and Jacoby Ellsbury just slid into second, then did a fantastic little skip jump when he realized the ball got thrown into the outfield, so he took off and stole third too. I may have found a new love. Not that I'd ever forget Tek.

My baby's growing up!

 

The tooth fairy has been ready and waiting to make a delivery here, and the wait continues. Nathan's bottom two teeth have been wiggly for a few weeks, but there is extra urgency now that their replacements have shown up. We need to get the stragglers out to lessen the orthodontist bill down the road.

The string tonight seemed to help him get a grip for more pulling and wiggling. Backseat dentist's will recommend tying the string to a door and giving it a slam, but there's too much danger of trauma or leaving a piece behind. So we'll skip that.

It may help that his friend Nadia (with the same birthday as him) just lost the exact same tooth we're focusing on. C'mon peer pressure! I was very happy to hear that her first tooth netted her .25 and a tooth fairy box, because I've heard of people giving $20.00 or toys and didn't want to pony up that much. We are going with a shiny gold dollar for each tooth, plus a box for the first one. We'll use the box for the tooth exchange now, and then when we're done, I may take it to store the teeth in for a keepsake.

Mrs. Butterworth can take a flying leap

Have you been in suspense wondering about the output of the McFarland Sugarbush? Well, wonder no more. We've gotten a little over three pints so far, much better than I expected. Although we have to re-bottle things now that some of the sediment has settled, otherwise there's some weird black sludge inside. Yuck. I bought cheesecloth to strain it, but I don't know if Dan remembered to use it while bottling.

For comparison, I took this photo of a big sugaring operation up the road that can make 80 gallons of syrup a day. Here's their evaporator.



And ours.


And here's our finished product. I don't think it's quite fancy grade, it's a bit darker with stronger flavor. But still very nice. And it smells so nice while it's boiling down.

Slight hitch in the proceedings today. Dan went to boil down about 7 more gallons, and it went much faster than usual, and he left it unattended at the wrong time. So now our pot has a burned mess inside. Not quite sure if we'll be able to resume operations.

Dr. Seuss Made me Cry

Sarah was a loving, generous, playful person. And although we shed many tears, there was also an outflowing of love and generosity from all her friends and family at the funeral. I hope it has helped to comfort my dear Aunt Erin and my cousin Patrick and his family.

Sarah loved books, and especially children's books. To honor her, people who came to the wake and the funeral brought books and toys to donate to the elementary school. I think there were probably a hundred books there, and her best friend Phyllis used them to decorate the reception hall, a much needed burst of color and humor after the funeral mass.

Here are some of her favorite books, some books that she gave my kids, and some books that she shared with others.

Superdog: The Heart of a Hero This is an amazing gift. Not just because the story and the illustration are so good, but because the Superhero dachshund shares his name with my childhood dachshund, Dexter. Although my Dexter was much happier lying in the sun than rescuing stranded cats.



A Teeny Tiny Baby was another great gift, that really celebrate new motherhood. My favorite page is when the two week old goes to the botanic garden and the guard says..."Ahhh, and already he's seen the forsythia", because it just expresses how wonderful the world is when you see it with fresh eyes. And now it will continue to remind me of Sarah because of how the sight of the blooming forsythia welcomed us to Maryland and brightened the tables at the reception for her.


The Legend of the Curse of the Bambino It's a kid's book about the Red Sox. What's not to love.


The Giving Tree I've always had my doubts about whether this is really a children's book. It's always seemed to be more for the parents, a reminder that as we give our love and help to our children, it may not always be appreciated, but that we can be happiest when we give without expecting anything in return. My mother had this book for a long time, and I think it helped her when she needed to grieve the illnesses and loss of her mother. It was the center theme of Patrick's eulogy, as he remarked on Sarah's unceasing generosity to her four young nephews and all her friends.



Where the Wild Things Are One of Sarah's prized possesions was a signed copy of this. But even without the signature, it should be in every child's bookcase. I love it because when Max says "Let the wild rumpus start" I give Nathan three pages worth of wild jungle music

Oooomba laka laka, Oooomba laka laka, Oomba Oomba Oooomba laka laka

there's more, but it doesn't really translate to English.



Phyllis talked of two books in her eulogy. She first talked of how the day we heard the news was definately a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day!

And then she did an amazing job of reminding us all of the fun that Sarah brought to our lives every time we saw her. Who else makes regular pilgrimages to NYC to go to a children's book store? Or decides to memorialize her vacations by taking pictures of an Ernie doll at famous tourist attractions? And who else gives a book to a best friend that has adorable pictures of how best friends still love each other through bad hair days, green spotted faces and pepperoni earrings?


Bad Kitty One last book. I saw it on a table at the reception and thought it was delightful, and funny, and sneakily educational. I later found out that it was her newest favorite, and her co-workers at Barnes and Noble had given it to Patrick to read to the boys. There's going to be copy in my house as soon as possible too. It's an absolutely perfect book to remind me of Sarah.


And finally, a last word from Dr. Seuss.

You'll be on your way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights.