Flower Child

Thanks for the idea, Holly!

These were all taken this morning at Washington Park--except the ones where her face is painted; those are from Zoofari a couple weeks ago.

I can't believe how much my baby is starting to look like a big girl.

Harry Potter and The Tangled Thoughts of a Fan

Thank you, J.K. Rowling. Thank you for a piece of literature that will truly be with me always (I've already had HPDH dreams!)

I could go on and on and on and on and on and on about all the many things I think are so outstanding about the Harry Potter series, but last night while I was out for a run, I was thinking about all the people who say Harry is evil. How on earth can they think that? Especially when all the loose ends come together?

First of all, this is not a religious book. It is not trying to be a religious book at all. That said, since it is essentially about the struggle for good to overcome evil, it is quite easy to find religious allegory.

Especially in the end.

Stop reading here if you are avoiding Book 7 spoilers.




Several things save Harry Potter. One of these things is the protection his mother gave him as she sacrificed herself for him almost 17 years prior. This in itself, as a mother, makes me cry. Any of the mothers I know would do the same; we love our children with such a ferocity that it seems a given that that love should stay with them, in them, even after we are gone.

This same protection is one of the key factors in bringing down Voldemort. Due to his own hubris, Voldemort had also protected Harry, to a point, from death at his hands. Thus, blood, sacrificed through love, saved Harry, and also gave him the means to defeat Lord Voldemort. Non-Christian themes?
If they still think it's so evil, ah well, more copies for the rest of us!

Now I have to re-read and re-read and cross-reference and oh, Harry--how I will miss knowing even more of you, but I am so happy to Know what happened!

If you weren't convinced before, here's proof

I'm a freak. Got a pedicure yesterday. I have never been more excited about my feet.

Before the All-Star Break

We've been too busy to blog!

I just love summer. I especially love summer in the midwest, the soupy, sweaty, hot-and-sticky, wonderfulness of it all. I love the smell of chlorine and sunscreen mingled in Ainslie's hair. I love chubby little bottoms oozing out of swim-bottoms because the person in question is too busy climbing up the hill to the big waterslide to be bothered. I love the heat. I love that produce takes up the most room in our grocery cart. Ah.

Here is what we've been up to so far...

Summer kicked off with Ainslie's birthday party. The week after that was Princess Camp. Then, she did the first summer session of gymnastics. This month we are trading swimming for gymnastics, since she also started dance class. Intermingled in all this have been the summer reading program at the library and about a zillion trips to the waterpark. The season passes paid for themselves in about a week! Who wouldn't love to have Ainslie's life?

The adults in the house have been busy too. Thankfully, summer is wine and fruity cocktail season, so Craig has been busy. My work has slowed down a bit, but there has still been enough to keep me multitasking. We've also joined the church we'd been attending for almost a year, and are working on becoming more involved with various things there.

Coming up...tons of birthdays, Ainslie's baptism, more Cardinals games and my Harry Potter/PALP weekend! Ooh, and the Simpsons Movie, Order of the Phoenix, more trips to the waterpark, preschool orientation...

I love summer.