You Must Be Elizabeth

I showed up late to my first day of CCD class when I was in 2nd grade. When I walked in the room, the teacher said.."You must be Elizabeth Corbett". I said..."Ok". For the entire class, I signed my papers Elizabeth and raised my hand when she called Elizabeth's name. Did not respond when she called Mary-Jo. This lasted through to the next class. I finally told Mom that my teacher thought my name was Elizabeth. She wrote me a note to give to the teacher, but she was out and we had a sub, so I didn't turn in the note. Mom urged me to tell the teacher the following week. I finally got up the nerve during attendence and raised my hand when she called Elizabeth, and then I raised my hand when she called Mary-Jo. She looked at me funny (as did all the students), and said.."Elizabeth, why are you raising your hand for Mary-Jo?" I said.."Because my name is not Elizabeth, my name is Mary-Jo." She said.."Um...ok."

She did say I must be Elizabeth.

I was shy. Very, very shy. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

If You Want a Man..

We went skiing for the weekend with Mom's friends Marilyn, Maryanne, and their families. One evening, the ladies decided to go out for a few cocktails while the kids stayed in and watched t.v. When they arrived home there was a lot of chatter and giggling going on..from the ladies mind you. When Mom came in to our room to say goodnight, she sat on the bed, and gave us a bit of advice that I do believe helped me in the future to find my husband. "If you want a man...you got to wash your feet."

Don't Touch that Dial!

One of our most beloved memories revolves around a new TV set. Back in the day, there were no remotes, you had to get out of your chair and change the channel. And there were all of seven channels at the time - 2, 4, 5, 7, 38, 56 and an occasional 27. On one particular afternoon, my sisters and I were arguing about what to watch. So every few minutes, one of us would get up and change the channel. Back and forth and back and forth, we would get up, walk across the room, turn the nob, sit back down. The constant bickering and the never ending parade of channel changers was just too much for our dear mother to bear. So, as the next kid approached the TV, my mother loudly declared, "You touch that dial again and I'll cut your legs off at the knees and you'll be walking around on stumps!!!"

Flashback: Mortified by Mom, moment #83

Mom, Friendly A-bay waitress extraordinaire, spies a familiar face sitting at the counter. She chats with the teen, commenting that she knows him from somewhere.

Did she say, "We are both from Medway!"
No.

Did she say, "You attend the same school as my daughters."
No.

Did she say, "My daughter Eileen has a picture of you on her bureau!"
Yes! Yes, she did.

She told Charlie, my secret crush, that her dorky daughter had sniped a photo of him and placed it bedside.

Within days, Charlie's sister presented me with a framed, autographed 8x10. I could have died of embarrassment.

The world revolves around Aidan

When I was very visibly pregnant with Charlotte I ran to Walmart to pick up some baby items. I was holding a box of baby crackers, trying to see if they were age appropriate for Aidan when a Walmart employee came up to me:

Emp: How many months?

MJ: Eight

Emp: Are you nervous?

MJ: Yes, a little bit

Emp: Your first?

MJ: Yes, and i'm just not sure if he'll choke on these, he only has two teeth

Emp: Huh? Um...oh..you have another one at home?

MJ: Oh..er..yes, i have an 8 month old at home, and i'm 7 months pregnant

Emp: Oh, well, i have a 2 year old, and she loves those crackers

MJ: Ok, thanks....


So needless to say, I was very embarrassed. It never occurred to me that he was talking about my very pregnant belly. I thought for sure he was asking me about Aidan..how could he not know that I had an eight month old at home??

I guess the world doesn't revolve around Aidan??

POOH !!!

We were sitting at the table after dinner last night, looking for themes to use for Charlotte's bday party. Aidan was perusing one of the catalogs, which was flat down on the table, when he saw Winnie the Pooh. He got so excited, he screamed out POOH, and then slammed his face down on the table at full force in order to give Pooh a kiss.

Ouch. Too much excitement can hurt. :(

Starting us off: a heart-warming holiday tale

December 19, 2009, Annie wrote:

OK, so I wanted to get Sadie the same make-up case my girls use for dance, and they are sold out everywhere. Can't get them online. I google them - available in the Walmart in Woonsocket. Try to get there early Friday morning, but Dad came by to have me do our usual last minute LLBean order for Mom for Christmas, so I got a late start. I get there, get one of the two available kits, grab the make-up, stocking stuffers, candy - all set for Christmas. Heading to the checkout. Then it begins - the fire alarm. Everyone out! We had to evacuate the store and leave everything where it was. It was now 11:20 - I have to be back in Medway at noon. I call Mark on the phone, so trying not to cry! Stuck in the parking lot with a zillion other holiday shoppers trapped by fire trucks. It sucked. I so wanted that case for Sadie!

So I head to work, sad, mad, pissed. Get a call about an hour and a half later - it's Mark. He's at the Woonsocket Wallmart - what the heck does this thing look like? OMG! He got the LAST ONE!! And, got some serious serious points!!

I'm thrilled to come home and start supper. Abby tells me she's setting the table. She gets out a fancy holiday table cloth, the Christmas dishes, wine glasses, candles, cloth napkins, the works. Went well with the sloppy joes!!

Here we go!

Joe McLaughlin married Eileen Reen September 23, 1961. They settled in Medway, Ma. They live there still.

Joe and Eileen raised four daughters. I am one. By New Year's Day 2010, each daughter had married and given birth to two children ... with one exception. Steve and I literally one-upped everyone by popping out a third. Have you done the math? Joe and Eileen have four daughters, four sons-in-law, nine grandchildren.

We sisters, we daughters of Joe and Eileen, intend to keep one another abreast of our little life stories through this blog. Our oldest children may chime in as well. Mary-Jo's kids are barely toddling and talking, so it will be some time before they are direct contributors.

Peek if you will. Peter may mind, but we don't.

Happy birthday, Mark!

Historical Note: Mark Carver shares his birthday with Grandpa, Mom's father.
Quick Quiz: Which of my sisters knows the year he was born?