Reading: All Creatures Great and Small, still. It remains one of my all-time favorite books.

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Ace of Space

Happy Birthday, Matthew and Stephen

I set my alarm for 4:15 a.m. so that I could see Mom off, despite her protestations. I wanted to be able to say goodbye to her and thanks for all she has done for us. I am so glad she was able to be here for Nana's funeral. It helped me get through it.

Dad and Bunny arrived at 4:30 sharp, as he had said they would. I waved goodbye to them and then puttered around downstairs for a little while longer before going back upstairs for a few more hours sleep.

Sleep was slow in coming, however. My mind darted about aimlessly. I guess I was trying to avoid thinking about Nana. Just as I was drifting off, the thought occurred to me: "I have lost one of the few people in this world who loved me unconditionally." And then I cried again.

I drove Tab to work this morning. It was the first time we'd been on campus for nearly two weeks, and we spotted the unmistakable signs that the semester is almost ready to start. Grass seed has been planted where the ground was torn up earlier in the summer for building projects. A furniture truck was delivering new desks and beds to a dorm that had been renovated. Soon the students will invade, a few at first and then a full-scale infestation. Driving through campus becomes far more perilous during the school year because of all the careless kids who thoughtlessly step into the roadway without looking.

Just another reason why I love summers.

Today is the twins' birthday! They are four years old today. For months now, they have been telling anyone who would listen (and many who would not) that they will be four in August.

This morning I told Daniel, "Wish your brothers a happy birthday, Dans. They're four today."

"Aw, man," he moaned with a sour look on his face. "Now I'm going to have to drag them up to my room all the time and let them play with my K'Nex."

For months, Daniel has rested secure in the knowledge that K'Nex are prohibited for children three and under. Whenever the twins asked to play with K'Nex, he told them, "No kids 0 to 3!" Now the dreaded day has arrived and he can no longer use that excuse.

I assured him that his brothers aren't quite ready for K'Nex yet, but suggested he might want to go through his toybox to find some other toys he's outgrown that they can have.

"Happy birthday, Stephen! Happy birthday, Matthew!" Tab said to them when they came down the stairs.

"Happy birthday to you, too," said Matthew, who apparently thought the greeting should be returned in the same fashion as "Merry Christmas" or "Happy New Year."

We had a small family party for the twins at home after dinner. We invited Tab's cousin and Stephen's godmother, Lorraine (our next door neighbor with all the dogs), along with my aunt Rita. I thought Rita might enjoy getting out of Nana's house for the evening. The house must seem so empty now.

My mother-in-law picked up two ice cream cakes for the boys. She thought they should each have a cake, an unnecessary extravagance as far as Tab and I were concerned, but Stephanie has her own ideas. She was more than an hour late in arriving, and the boys were tired, anxious for cake, and irritable. Daniel sulked when he discovered he was not going to get any gifts and had to be sent upstairs with the threat of no ice cream cake. Matthew got scared when we all sang "Happy Birthday," and wanted me to hold him.

All in all, it was a typical family gathering at our house.

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