I went to church this weekend and ate the wafer.

My niece and goddaughter, Maddy, received her first communion this past Saturday. This is the blessed event when one is deemed old and wise enough to eat the body and drink the blood of Christ. I've noticed that at all the churches I've been to (granted not that many) I've never seen anyone but the priest drink the blood of Christ. Must be for sanitary reasons, but my nephew says that one of the boys in the fourth grade of his school can only drink the blood of Christ and can't eat his body. Perhaps this boy has a gluten allergy; will Christ become gluten-free? But I digress.

Maddy was beautiful that day. Maddy is always beautiful, but today she was practically radiant. She was very excited to be making her first communion; it's a very community event. She goes to catholic school, so her whole class was receiving communion that day. I can see how cults can be formed. Not that Catholicism is a cult, but it has that group-think mentality. Maddy and her friends are all being taught the same ideas, and are not yet wondering to themselves if what they are learning is true, if they believe it, or if they should believe it. They go to school together each day, go to church together, receive communion together... they are the picture of good Catholics, and the priest said as much. It's when this group grows up and starts to splinter and develop individual personalities that the sense of community will be lost. That is, if they grow up to develop individual personalities. But, again, I digress.

Here are some photos of the little lady. These are post-ceremony, as the photos of the ceremony are all blurry. You'll note that Maddy is wearing a dress. She picked out this dress herself, and I think she was the most charming of all the girls that day. The others were all wearing fancy wedding-like dresses, with long veils and elaborate up-dos. Maddy was very natural and looked very nice in her dress (though couldn't wait to get it off, and shed the little coat that went with it during the post-ceremony reception as it was "itchy").

Doug and I were eager for the post-church festivities, as these always involve donuts and apple juice. This time was no exception, so Doug and I stuffed ourselves with Munchkins (I ate the body of Christ, but I hate to say it was not very filling), as did everyone else. Frankie at one point at four or five Munchkins in his mouth at once. Here is the beginning of this feat: What a ham.

Back at my sister's house, we ate and ate and ate and ate and ate some more. In between the eating Maddy opened her gifts (several rosaries, a necklace of miraculous Mary, a crucifix, and some other holy-like gifts. Doug & I gave her a gift card to Toys-R-Us...); Maddy was thrilled with the religious swag. A couple of photos of her and her loot: Here's another photo of my dear, sweet Mads looking at her cake, which had yet another rosary on it (and then there's one of me mixing up some whipped cream with my mother looking on... we like desserts in this family):

Finally, here's a photo of me and my mother, in honor of Mother's Day this Sunday. My mother is such a trooper. She loves her grandchildren and does so much for them. She does so much for everyone. I was so happy to see her wearing to the first communion a nice new shirt that she had just bought for herself. She never gets herself anything but always gets for her family. She's very selfless, my mom. We love her! Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Kids and sports.

I was never an athlete. I don't come from a family that really is sportive, though we would bike and take woodsy walks and that kind of recreational athletic activity. I was never on a sports team and I absolutely hated gym class, mostly because I considered myself slower, clumsier, and less athletic than everyone else in the class. Because of this assumption I guess I never really tried to excel at sports, or even tried to do them at all. I did, however, play on my high school badminton team, and I have to say that I wasn't that bad at it, but that never made me want to get more involved in athletics. Maybe all of this is why I am so reluctant to get out there and run - running is what athletes do, and exercise videos in the comfort of my own home are what non-athletes like me do. Anyway, what I am trying to say here is that I am very impressed and proud of my nieces and nephew for actively enjoying sports, and I hope this enjoyment continues. Doug and I went down to see my niece Maddy's last basketball game of the season; after hearing how great of a basketball player Mads is I had to see for myself. And she is very good. She's athletically built and has boundless energy, all of which help her to excel. She is also very eager to get involved and doesn't hold back because of nerves or anxiety, something her dear auntie never mastered. The basketball game was at a local school in her town, and I had never been to an event like this before. There were so many kids and so many parents and grandparents - I was very pleased to see the involvement in the lives of these kids. Plus, it was just fun to see the kids play.

Maddy played on the Huskies this year, and for this game the Huskies were playing the Panthers. The kids warmed up for about a half hour before the game started; they would practice dribbling, practice passing, practice making shots, etc. Once the practice was over, each team was divided into two, and they played two simultaneous games of basketball. Maddy was on a team with her friend and neighbor Jason, and Maddy was really great. Running back and forth, putting up her arms for defense, trying to block the shots of these two burly kids on the Panthers who were rather aggressive and have the potential for becoming ball hogs later in their careers. Maddy made one shot, but tried for many others. I loved that no one yelled or got upset when one of the kids didn't make their shot. You hear all the time about crazy parents who beat their kids on the sidelines if they don't perform well, or don't show their ability to be the next Michael Jordan. Everyone here was very calm, very encouraging, and very welcoming. I liked that. Made me wish I had done sports as a kid! Wonder what that would have done to enhance my life.

I do have photos of Maddy the basketball star. The first few are of her in action; one of her dribbling the ball like a pro, another of her waiting to be passed the ball (note her cool Chuck Taylors; she picked them out herself just for basketball season), and the other of her standing at the basket during the game trying to make a basket. I can't get over the respect on the court - no one's pushing her or getting in her way. She has ample room to try and take her shot. These kids are way too nice.


These other two photos are of the post-game ceremonies. As it was the last game of the season, trophies were handed out. The first shot is of Maddy going up to get her trophy from her coach, and the second is Maddy showing off her bling. With her is her friend and neighbor Jason, who also got a trophy. All the kids did, no matter their ability or contribution to the team. Isn't this great? I like this sense of community.

Back at my sister's house, my niece Maria showed me a picture that she drew for me in sidewalk chalk. I'm on the right and she's on the left. She's wearing a dress, but I seem to have no clothes. And in every picture that little kids draw, the sun is always out. Did you ever notice that? I love the thoughts of little kids.

So good times in Connecticut yesterday! Today we're having good times, too. Doug is eating some fruit: and I'm preparing to do a few hours of work (blogging helps me prepare for weekend work). But before I go, I want to display some photos of the rugs in our bedroom. Last weekend when Chris and Chris were here we went to IKEA. Doug and I have been looking for a different rug for our bedroom for a while now; the old one just washed out the room and seemed to make the space small and confined. I found these small, round rugs in this nice rich purple color at IKEA that day and bought four of them, two for either side of the bed. Doug wasn't convinced that the color would work, or that they would look good, but I knew they would be great. I was right, and Doug agrees - they're much better than our old rug. These circles add color and they lighten up the room a bit. A definite improvement. The rug that was in our bedroom before is now in the guest room, and I think that this is a VAST improvement in the guest room. This new-old rug brightens up the guest room and lessens the severity of the orange in there. You be the judge. Here are some photos of the new and improved guest room - all ready for your visit!

Okay, time to work...