Thor Douglas Hawkins

It's been quiet here because I've been growing a baby.   Unsure of how I wanted to share this news on the internets, I haven't said much save a few posts on the FB and a Tweet or two. Amazingly, I found out I was pregnant exactly one week after my beloved Gramps passed. Because of this, I had this innate sense that I was carrying a sweet boy.  I was & he has arrived; I'd like you to meet him.

Introducing 

Thor Douglas Hawkins

Born Thursday (Thor's Day), September 27, 2012 | 6lbs, 4oz | 19 inches long

He amazes us more every day.

xoxx

Heirloom.

Yesterday my Gramps gave me this lovely little painting. In 1939 he purchased it at Dayton's for his mother (my great-grandmother & namesake) as a birthday gift. It was a mere coincidence that it was inscribed, "Delilah", though I suspect that is what spurred Gramps to buy the painting for her as Delilah was her first name.

I never knew her, but I was named for her so I do feel a certain affinity for her. I grew up hearing about her. I know her life story backwards & forwards: the names of all nine of her children, the house she lived in, the house she was born in. Her heartaches & her joy.

Handsome Randy & I have recently begun watching the new HBO series, Boardwalk Empire. Boardwalk Empire takes place in the year 1920, which is the year Gramps was born. As I've been watching this program, I have been struck with thoughts of my great-grandmother, Delilah- Dolly actually is the name she went by- and what life must have been like for her as a woman/mother/wife during that time. Pretty tough.

By 1920, Dolly had bore 7 of 9 children. She was 32 years old. The family lived on what was then considered the outskirts of Minneapolis in Liberty Heights, not so affectionately referred to as "The Sticks," according to Gramps. They had 4 rooms in that little house - 2 bedrooms, a kitchen & sitting room. The bathroom was an outdoor outhouse or "biffy". There were chickens and a pig in the backyard. Working in construction, her husband, Royce was the sole financial supporter of the family while she stayed home with the children and tended to the house. Voting was a brand new right for women.

This is in great contrast to my own life at age 32 today in 2010. I have not born any children. While I live in Minneapolis less than a mile from where Dolly raised her family & lived out her years, I have no animals in my backyard (aside from a house cat) & I have indoor plumbing. My husband Randy and I share household expenses equally and I hold a full time job. I did not have to fight for the right to vote & have exercised this right since I turned 18.

Oh yes, I think about Dolly a lot and needless to say, this little painting is a priceless and prized possession.

I have grown up admiring it and being told that one day, when I was old enough, it would be mine. When I brought it home yesterday I was elated. I rubbed the frame with lemon oil and polished the glass. I held the painting in my hands and imagined what Dolly felt when she saw it for the first time. She smiled, was happy- probably very touched- and said, "Thank you, Doug, " or maybe even, "Thank you, Dougie." I like to think that she called him Dougie for endearment. I don't know where it hung in her home, only that it hung somewhere from that day in 1939 until my grandpa reclaimed it after her death in 1977.

This Little Painting does not only represent my great-grandmother, Dolly, but also my Gramps, Doug Davis. Gramps had it hanging in his living room until a few years ago when he took it down to make way for an art piece he'd received as a gift. It was then moved to an easel and set among family photos on a dining room hutch. This spring the hutch was dismantled ("too much clutter") and The Little Painting was set aside.

The Little Painting brings me back to rides to piano lessons and theatre classes given by Gramps during which he gave history lessons as well as talked past and present day politics with me. These car rides made me feel wise beyond my years and as I grew older the lessons grew into discussions. Now the conversations we used to have in his little Ford Escort take place a few times a week in the living room of his apartment a mere 3 blocks from my own house and a mile or so from Dolly's, his childhood home, where The Little Painting originally hung for 38 years.

I am not exactly certain where I will hang it, but The Little Painting will be in a place that I pass by everyday. And with that passing, I will always be reminded of my great-grandmother Dolly, my Gramps and the impressive stock that I come from.

xoxx

Some Good Shots: Wyatt

A few more from last Thursday's dinner. After dinner came cake and the little ones were very excited. This is Wyatt who is cousin to Everett & very much enjoyed his cake once it was time to eat it.


xoxx

Some Good Shots: Everett

Thursday night was lucky to have an unexpected night off of work. I had dinner with my aunt, uncle, two cousins & their families. Everett is a 11 days away from turning two. It was a treat to watch him play by himself with "The Old Woman & The Shoe", a toy that I vividly remember playing with alongside my cousins.




xoxx

winter contrast

I love the contrast of sleeping leaveless trees against the stark blue winter sky, even more so lately. The contrast is breathtakingly beautiful to me.

I snapped this shot last weekend as I took some wintertime portraits of my Uncle Chris, Aunt Kathy & Shadow the German Shepherd. We were at this location for the cityscape view. I love the blue hues in this and the contrast of the trees framing one side of the cityscape & my uncle, in his suspenders and plaid flannel framing the other.

See a this photo in larger form here.

xoxx

Giving Thanks and...

A great day was had today as we ate turkey & such while gathered with relatives around a few different tables in good old Northeast Minneapolis.  I am not sure if our new house being in such close proximity to both Thanksgiving destinations has something to do with this or if we've just gotten it together finally, but this was the first year in which it did not feel like a giant production to get out the door.  

We woke up, gussied ourselves up & headed out with cheeseball in hand arriving at our first of two destinations around noon.  The day was lovely.  So much laughter, the best food ever, and of course a family walk around the block.  Additionally there was a light wand show, a clarinet & flute duo, a very complex Christmas gift drawing of names, & a heated discussion or two...or three.

I still can't believe that today was Thanksgiving.  It feels too early, or perhaps I'm just not quite ready to deal with the hassles of the month of December.  

xoxx

Spinning in Circles.

Remember Wyatt? He is now 19 months. We bonded this weekend over somersaults, floor rolling and spinning in circles (pictured). Such good times.

It is always a great thing when you finally bond with a kid who's in your life significantly but you don't see them that often and their just too little to really remember you.

Me & Wyatt, I think we've made the final connection and I can't wait for more somersaults & to hear those adorable giggles.

xoxx

Gramps is 89.

A little belated, I know.
One week ago my gramps, the infamous gramps, turned 89.
Yep, 89.

We celebrated the weekend before at the Horse Track where as family ranging in ages 10 to 89, we gambled, ate pizza, enjoyed Tanqueray & Tonics and gambled some more.

Now that he's 89, with a renewed driver's license in hand and many admirers at his feet, gramps says he's going to relax.

xoxx

Wedding.

I spent the weekend in Kansas City in honor of my sister, Kati's nuptials to my fantastic new brother-in-law, Chris.

Yay! Yay! Yay!

Set in my dad & stepmom's backyard, it was the most low key wedding I've ever been to & easily the most beautiful. Including my sister and her new husband, there 9 of us in attendance. Minutes before the ceremony was to begin Kati looked at myself and our other sister, Maura, "Will one of you hold the ring 'til I need it?"

After the ceremony we had a lovely lunch of chicken salad sandwiches, fresh fruit and oriental salad and watered ourselves with Champagne (of course). The meal (& wedding festivities) were completed with a strawberry mousse filled wedding cake and a reviewal of photos taken of the ceremony.

The bride and groom pulled out of the driveway around 3pm. We all waved, hugged each other and then changed into casual clothes and headed downtown. It was funny later when we ducked into a Starbuck's for coffee and I looked at my dad & said, "Kati and Chris were married today,"
"YEAH! Isn't it great?!"
It is. So great.

xoxx

Photos & Captions.

Easter was yesterday & I am lucky enough to be part of two families who continue to give me Easter Schwag despite being in my thirties. They give Randy chocolate too & he's into his forties. This gives us no incentive to have children as we are still reaping the benefits the little ones are with the all the glorious benefits of adulthood.

In my family we coerce children to perform music for us & then we make them laugh by singing along to "Hot Cross Buns" (which was requested because we knew the words). Liam was a great sport yesterday and played many pieces on his clarinet despite our gregarious singing along to Hot Cross Buns, Let's Go Band & When The Saints Go Marching In.

So, as you may have gathered yesterday was a fun & food filled day. More ham than I could ever dream of, mashed potatoes, au gratin potatoes, asparagus, chocolate fondue, cole slaw, croissants, and so much more. All the food combined with all the laughs and conversation that comes with such family events put me in bed at 10:30 last night.
Too bad I decided to start New Moon (the second book in the Twilight series because I was up until 4am reading. I finished it this morning and went on with a nice spring day telling myself I should go for a bike ride but had a pedicure and a few beers instead. The good news is that it's April so there are many more lovely days upon us & I will have so many more opportunities to go for a great ride.

And then there was this.
This is my cat, Asha, she loves boxes. I snapped this today while cleaning out a closet. She also is completely in the know about how adorable she is.

Have a great Tuesday.

xoxx

The Spectacular Cousin Liam

My cousin, Liam invited me to his school play this week. I've been to a few school plays of Liam's, they are always so much fun to watch. He is in them, of course, but also because I have done so much theatre in my life that it's so refreshing to see it done by elementary school kids.

So I went with camera in tow ready to take photo after photo of my favorite ten year old. I went to a daytime performance; there were only a few other family members there and the rest of the audience was comprised of students. Liam attends the same elementary school I did so it's kind of fun to be back there in the middle of the day amongst the student body. Not to mention there is a teacher or two still there from my day.

This production held a little more weight than the past plays because it's Liam's last year in elementary school & his final play there. The play was called, "The Best Little Theatre in Town". It was about a theatre that was in danger of closing due to financial problems. It had all the necessary ingredients for a good and exciting times: lies, love & police chases and it was a musical which added singing and dancing. So much fun.

My cousin, Liam is more like a nephew to me as he's 20 years younger. So I have a little more of a maternal feeling toward him than I do with my other cousins who are all closer to my age. He sang a duet and when he sang it was perfect; great pitch, lovely tone and he sported spectacular stage presence. I was so proud that when the applause came I stood up and shouted, "BRAVO!! BRAVO!!" and then looked back at the entire school population behind me and said, "That's my cousin!! Wasn't he fantastic!!".

Okay, I didn't do that. But I really, really wanted to.

xoxo

Paris + my mom + the real housewives...

Tonight I have kind of a lot to blog about...Blahg Blahg Blahg.

First & foremost. PARIS!
After I last wrote I took the train with bleary eyed commuters to Champs-Elysse. I got off the train & was immediately approached by an elderly woman walking with a cane. She spoke quickly with great agitation to me in French and in French I told her I was sorry but I didn't speak very much French.

"BAH!" Lots of French & AMERICANS & more French. I laughed & marveled at the famous street I was walking down in hour just before sunrise all the while singing the song from JR high french class, "Oh, Champs-Elysse..."

I arrived at L'Arc d'Triomphe & walked all the way around snapping photos along the way. Every early morning jogger who passed me would cause me to think, "Wow! They live in PARIS!" Needless to say, I was enamored by the city.

I walked back to the train and rode to Hotel Deville. I walked over the Siene & returned to Notre Dame. 8am Monday morning is so very different than 4pm on Sunday afternoon. It was quiet, nearly empty with the exception of those there to attend morning Mass. I walked back to Hotel Deville and found a cafe to eat my final French meal: a chocolate croissant and coffee. I ordered in French & was replied to in French which was so validating of my French speaking skills..and then back to the hotel to get ready to fly home.

********************************************

Next.
I stopped by my mom's house the last night & was taken aback by her living room. It has been overtaken by Tiffany Lamps. Four very beautiful Tiffany lamps grace the presence of my mother's lovely mission style bungalow living room. I asked her what was going on and she non chalantly replied that there was a really good sale & she couldn't pick (3 for under $100 total - that is pretty good). She asked my advice & I told her that I would relocate 2 of the four to other rooms. She agreed but then gave me a long list of reasons why she couldn't...so I giggled & called her the Tiffany Lamp Lady. She laughed & said, "Well, better than cats!".

********************************************

And finally.
The Real Housewives of Orange County 08-09 season ended tonight. While the traditional reunion episode airs next week, I count the season as being over. I am so glad. The cattyness was annoying & the endless ripping on Gretchen was so tiring. In the end, Gretchen was my favorite and it was the constant berating of her on Tamra's part that has led me to almost despise the show. almost.

xoxx

Gramps.

Around 3 o'clock every Thursday afternoon, I ring the doorbell of my grandpa's Northeast Minneapolis 4-plex. He lets me in saying, "Come in! Come in! Come in!" and I do helping myself to a cookie a can of soda. I sit down in his lone recliner & he takes post at his desk. Sometimes the television is on, sometimes it's not. If it is it's usually tuned into baseball or CSPAN.

Sometimes we tell each other jokes, sometimes we don't. We always talk about current politics, current events and about the most recent issue of the magazine, The Week. He allows me to read his latest piece for his weekly writing group and typically has a new trick to show me that involves his color photo printer. At some point he asks "Now, where in the world is Randy today?" as he gestures at his world atlas and I give him the latest. Later on he'll say, "It's nearly 4! You better get to work!", and so I bid him farewell and am on my way.

He gets a lot of credit for who I am today, the convictions I carry and the manner in which I do so. He is part of the reason I adore & enjoy the elderly so very much (my other two grandparents are the other part). He is why I have the ability to think critically and embrace unconventional ways. He is a great man who has led an extraordinary life giving service for others.

A few weeks ago as we talked I couldn't help but notice what a perfect portrait he was making of himself. The lighting, his mood and disposition. So I snapped a few shots. Initially he laughed as he always does, but soon enough he relaxed, continued our conversation and I shot some pretty good ones. These are my favorite.
xoxx

magical snow.

Snow. The magic of white flakes falling from the sky.
It is so very magical.
When my grandmother was living she always seemed to be so happy when the pretty white flakes feel from the sky, especially when they were those thick, tissue paper like kind that are so picturesque. Sometimes, when it snows I feel as though that is her way of saying hello & I try really hard to feel her presence.
This weekend it snowed overnight. I slept late & walked out of the house to meet Handsome Randy & there it was: SNOW! Not a lot, only enough to blanket the yard with a few fallen leaves poking through. But enough to make it officially winter in Minneapolis & celebrate my grandma's love for snow for a few moments while I relished her memory.
xoxx

Wyatt Turns One!

(That's cousin Everett off to the side taking notes for his big day in March).
xoxx

jumping in mud puddles with my dad.

Saturday morning I woke up at 5am, got in the Subaru & drove to Kansas City to surprise my dad for Father's Day. I arrived around lunch time, talking to my dad on the phone the last 10 miles of the drive. I was telling him all about the weather in Minneapolis like I was there & all the things I was going to get done that day. We got off the phone just as I was pulling into their subdivision.
I walked into the house & he says, "HI!", followed by, "Wait! What are you doing here?!"
Happy Father's Day.

It was priceless. I wished I had my camera to take a picture of the expression on his face, but I'd left it in the car.

After my presence set in we ate chicken salad sandwiches as he marveled how we (my stepmom, Karen, my two sisters & I) pulled off the surprise without him knowing. We had a great Saturday concluding with dinner al fresco & staying up late laughing and drinking too much wine.

Today, in great tradition, my dad & I went to Kansas City's Loose Park to take photos. There's a beautiful rose garden there and lots and lots of pathways. More importantly there is a tree that my dad loves to photograph. Today this tree was surrounded by lots of mud.


So my dad sets up his camera on a tripod in front of the tree. I stand by the tree so he can focus the picture. He puts the automatic timer on, pushes the button & runs to the tree with hopes to sit on the branch with me standing in front of him.
only he can't get up on the branch, not enough time.



take two.

flips flops are off so he can run to the tree faster thus having more time to climb it. He jumps in a mud puddle on the way splattering mud all over his feet and legs. As he approaches the tree I back away worried that he'll splash mud on me and precious $7 H&M sundress. The photo takes and we do not take a pretty picture.

take three.

My dad climbs the tree (causing me to laugh hysterically), I press the button on the camera & run to the tree in time to smile and pose with my dad. Only on the way I land in the giant mud puddle covering my legs and sundress. I do manage to make it to the tree in time, pose graciously for the photo & then survey the mud situation. it's not bad & makes us both laugh, but there's enough to wonder if there's a spare towel nearby (there wasn't).

In the end all was well. We rinsed off in a nearby fountain (Kansas City is the city of fountains after all) & looked like new. We walked around The Plaza, and did a little driving tour of other cool areas of Kansas City. Later on we all ate dinner al fresco once again and visited family nearby.

Tonight I still laugh as I think about my dad climbing the tree (or trying to) and the splatters of mud we endured for the ever perfect picture.

xoxx

& they're off!

Saturday handsome randy & I spent the afternoon at the horse races with my family in honor of my uncle's 50th & grandpa's 88th birthdays. It was a lot more fun than either of us anticipated & as far as gambling goes, I came out about even & HR came out only $5 in the hole. We had so much fun! We may spend every Saturday there for the rest of the summer.
xoxx

it's cyclic.

The babies are getting older which means of course that so are we. (That's Everett & jessie on the left, Wyatt & Heather on the right).

Last night I attended another family gathering. This time honoring my aunt Priscilla's 62nd birthday. Someone brought out a photo taken 12 years ago of my dad, his three siblings & their parents. My cousins & I studied the photo remarking how young everyone looked. Crazy, it was only 12 years ago. It really only feels like 5.

I don't think I'll ever stop feeling fascinated by the cycles that take place in families. The perpetual changing of the guard as people get older, have children, and so on.
Last night my aunt Priscilla was the last to sit down to dinner. She was worried about bottles for the babies and making sure we all had corn on the cob that was hot. Everyone encouraged her to sit down and eat (it was her birthday after all). When it became clear she wasn't going to, we reminisced about my grandma, who in her day was also the last to sit down at the dinner table. I looked at two of my cousins and said, "That will be us too."

It's cyclic.

As I snapped the photo above I thought about how Everett & Wyatt will look at it in 15 or 25 years. Will they study the photo as we did & remark at how young their moms looked?

xoxx

DFL Saturday

I've been busy. Since arriving home from L.A. work seems to have consumed me. Oh, this is bittersweet as money is always nice, but it's always great to have downtime too. Today is Saturday & I had great plans for my Saturday night, but, I drank 2 beers this afternoon with not a lot of sleep under my belt and experienced an evening hangover. It really sucks being a light weight. But the beers were worth sacrificing my evening for; they were celebrating my aunt, Jill Davis winning DFL endorsement for her Minneapolis School Board Race.

It was a great day, DFL delegate conventions are always interesting and entertaining. As my grandpa said to me this afternoon as we wandered waiting to hear the results, "These conventions bring all kinds, people like you & me and then people like that old lady over there holding her dog. Who brings their dog to a convention?".

At these conventions you are required to sit with your ward. I live in Minneapolis' ward 6 and beside me sat my Council Member, Robert Lilligren who was pretty fun to sit next to. Not because we know each other well, we don't know each other at all, but because enthusiasm for the whole event was contagious.

The most entertaining aspect of these conventions is the anger that comes out of people. I saw people visibly shaking with anger as they approached the microphone to oppose a ballot measure being discussed. One man stood up screaming about the rules for voting (you had to sign your name on the ballot) & finally stated, "To hell with all of you, I'm outta here!" and out he went. During the Q&A one of the candidates stated that he would run even if he did not receive the endorsement (a major faux pas) and was actively booed only to be topped with, "There's no place for you in our party!" But I think the most interesting outburst occurred when we were waiting for the votes to come in.

County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin made a speech while we waited for the votes to be tallied. As he concluded his speech a man stood up and yelled, "I want my tax money back that went to the new baseball stadium!" The Commissioner politely ignored the man & urged us to continue our activism with public schools as he walked off the same man yelled, "And Carl Pohlad can go to hell!" (Carl Pohlad is the owner of the Minnesota Twins). Gasps were audibly heard around the auditorium and the moderator spoke sternly into the microphone of respect and there being a time and place for certain topics. She then apologized for bring out her "mama voice" but said it seemed like it really needed to come out just then.

In the end Jill received the endorsement with 77% of the votes (60% was needed) and if she is elected in November, I know she will do great things.

xoxx

my real weekend: Friday night (to be followed with Saturday later)

working the job that I do it is so rare to have a series of days & nights off that fall on Friday, Saturday & Sunday. I did this weekend by pure chance & I made really good use of it.

Friday was a night with the fam. My uncle Chris turned 52 so there was dinner & cake to be had with my aunts, uncles & cousins. Additionally, my grandpa & his writing group were also hosting a reading that night. So got to see & celebrate something with everyone, how nice!
The birthday was great - so fun. I got to see so many members of my family & exchange stories making each other oooh & aaah or laugh really hard. I always leave family gatherings on that side (The Langers) marveling at our individual rhythms of laughter & how similar we all are to one another & how we just are together in a room. Reminiscing (of course) & making fun of each other..I savor all of it & it really keeps me happy.

Gramps' reading was great - I really feel lucky to have such a talented & active grandpa (who is nearly 88 by the way). He read two pieces, one poem called "Ode to the Walleye" which is pretty self explanatory, the other was called "Power to the People" which was a brief prose about his lobbying days at the state legislature. At the reading they had a compilation book of the groups favorite pieces for sale. Gramps put together & bound by hand all 15 of the books for sale (which were sold for cost, not profit) & they were pretty cool looking.
I was home by 11 & just was there..putzing with my keyboard, laundry and enjoying being home. I went to bed so relaxed, more than I've been in a long time. It was great. Tomorrow I'll tell you all about Saturday..xoxx
p.s. Aunts Stephanie & Kathy - this post was posted by monday morning for you...to make your monday morning that much easier. Thanks for reading so often...love you.