Well, Thatch, I asked him, what do you and Annabelle want to do for Thanksgiving? Open our presents! Sorry, Thatch, no presents on Thanksgiving; you only get presents on Christmas.  Or Hanukka, if you’re Jewish.  Christmas is a Christian holiday. No presents? Annabelle yelled.  I hate this holiday! Are you a Christian, Daddy? he asked … Continue reading 33. TURKEY LURKEY TIME →

Death is stalking the building, Annabelle?  Really? I told you, I saw him, and it really frightened me, Daddy.  Someone in this building is dying. Do you know who? Thatch asked her. Thatch, I am not clairvoyant.  I saw Death and I ran, she answered him.  I did not stop to talk.  I wanted to … Continue reading 32. TROUBLE ON FOUR →

Annabelle jumped off the computer table in disgust. This is all your fault, she said to me. I was washing their dishes in the kitchen, but I heard her.  What’s wrong, Missy? I asked her.  What’s my fault? Facebook, she told me. I told you about that. He did, Annabelle, Thatch told her. That’s all … Continue reading 31. DEATH BY FACEBOOK AND OTHER NATURAL CAUSES →

Dinner is late, Annabelle informed me. We’re starving, Thatch added. I had just changed all the clocks in the apartment, so as far as I was concerned, we were now an hour earlier. Sorry, babies, I told them. Dinner will be in another hour. Another hour? Thatch moaned. I’m starving! He fell on the floor … Continue reading 30. TURN BACK THE CLOCKS? →

Thatch! I yelled as I watch him scamper across the top of the dresser, jump down onto the chair, and run across the room. I also watched the newly purchased lottery tickets fly in various directions. Annabelle! Missy! Is this your doing? I turned on her. Moi? She turned her gaze from the computer screen. … Continue reading 29. POWERBALL →

Top o’ the marnin’, Thatch said to me as I dragged myself out of bed. Now that Thatch had decided he was Irish, I barely understood a thing he said. Still, I had to admit his dialect was better than Annabelle’s. We’d gone through every DVD I could find with an Irish setting, and Annabelle … Continue reading 28. ANNABELLE’S AUDITION →

The glass of water in my hand spilled but thankfully did not break as I somersaulted over the humidifier.  The landing on my left hip was extremely painful, and my first reaction - as soon as I took stock and realized there were no broken bones, cuts, or concussion - was to sit up and … Continue reading 27. THAT WAS THE WEEK THAT WAS? →

Thatch and Annabelle had a fight this afternoon. She had decided that she required the Amazon carton and two Fancy Feast carton for her sleeping pleasure. The result was that Thatch was evicted from his Amazon carton, which he found the perfect combo porch and bed. I was editing a score, but their voices carried … Continue reading 26. ALL ABOUT ANNABELLE →

Daddy! Daddy! Come and see Annabelle! Thatch grabbed my knee in an effort to drag me from my writing table. I put down my red pencil, put on my glasses, and gave him a serious look. Is she okay? Yes! Then let me finish this page and I’ll come and see what’s going on. No! … Continue reading 25. ANNABELLE’S ANNIVERSARY →

Christmas in New York stirs up the wintry air, bringing out the humanity - or lack of it - in everyone. The store decorations, the cheery music playing everywhere, and the desperation to be ready on time keep everything rolling along at a nice clip. I can’t say if people are genuinely friendlier, but for … Continue reading 2. HAPPY HOLIDAYS →