My Saviour


Casserole!
Originally uploaded by whiskotangey.
This is Casserole. Isn't she cute??

She's the only reason I don't spend each and every day crying in misery, wondering what the hell I was thinking when I moved so far away from my family.
She's the reason I can laugh and have some semblance of a normal life here.
She laughs at me when I'm trying to make her laugh, which is gratifying.
She also laughs at me when I'm NOT trying to make her laugh, which is humbling.
She doesn't look at me with big, googly eyes or gasp in shock when I drop the f-bomb on occasion.
She hands me two Premysyn and a glass of water, hold the judgement, when I need it.
She does the best homemade chicken noodle soup ever. She cheats on the noodle part, but it's so good I'm willing to overlook it.
She tries to motivate me to move my fat ass in some way that will benefit my general health.
She's just as devious as I am, plus she could kick my ass with her little 5'2" self if she felt it was necessary. I'm scared of her in that way, and I wouldn't say that about much of anyone else I know - except for maybe Shell.
She takes care of my most treasured posessions on a daily basis, and loves them almost as much as I do, I think.

She's my fiend, and I love her. In a completely non-lesbian way, of course. All that lesbo stuff is totally reserved for my Shell.
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Party Animals

Saturday was Kierstin's Birthday party at the Build-A-Bear Workshop.

If I'd had any idea what I was getting myself into, I'd have convinced her that she wanted to have a sleepover at home. It would have been way less nerve-wracking, I'm sure.

The place was crowede to begin with, then add a line of 11 girls of assorted ages marching through the store shouting "Chose Me!" and you've got yourself a party. My favorite moment was when said line marched around yelling "Stuff Me!" repeatedly.

Aside from the clogged stuffing blower thingy, it went off without issues, though. Everyone had fun, and the monster raked in a fat load of loot. She got enough beads to make a necklace and bracelet for every girl in her first-grade class. When we got home, she lined up her haul in a very orderly fashion, across the length of her bedroom, and sat and admired it all for a moment before beginning the onslaught. Right now there are barbie boxes and bead strings and assorted packaging strewn about her bedroom. It's a disaster area.
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au naturale


au naturale
Originally uploaded by whiskotangey.
I love this picture, because it's a perfect representation of my two young ladies and who they are.

Madison: the slightly moody, emotional, pre-pre-teenager who is pretty sure she's going to make her living as a supermodel. She's definitely going to be a 6-footer; she's athletic and, in my humble opinion, beautiful.

Kierstin: the freakshow sister. Crazy, unpredictable, always making a face of some sort in pictures. An unending source of amusement to me and everyone else she knows.

These are the poses they struck when I told them to "show off your new haircut". Enough said?
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Seven years of...



Pain in my butt. Seriously.

But she's living proof that:
One can be totally in love with pain in the backside.
Smiling is therapeutic.
Redheads have a temper.
Chemotherapy does not necessarily equal sterility.

I love you, Miss Roo. Happy Birthday.
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The Faux Party


Shell and Avery
Originally uploaded by whiskotangey.
Rochelle Nicole. (Yes, I know you hate that name, but it's yours.) She was there for the birth, and all birthdays thereafter. But not this year.

We've moved to Seattle - a crime that will never be forgiven - and she can't be here for Kierstin's birthday for the first time in 7 years. Kierstin is most likely not aware of this fact, but Shell is. And I think it just might break her heart all over again.

Last weekend we went to Teddy Crafters and I took pictures of the teddy-making process. After Kierstin's party I'm going to give her the elephant and the pictures of her being made, in an attempt to make her cry.
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