Eggplant makes "her" debut on Beerma's blog

Hello and welcome to the snow. Or take the snow and shove-l it. I'm over it, jealous that I wasn't on a Caribbean cruise and slightly embittered by being housebound. I miss my wheels!

Good time coming this weekend - unless the weather craps on us, of course. Eggplant, the newest photo posted here, is bringing her parents to visit this weekend from Kansas City. Let me say that the gender isn't determined and Joel and Amy don't want to know, but I'm applying all voodoo I can for another girl. We're severely outnumbered in this Wazac clan by the guys, so I'm hoping. But you and I know it won't make a bit of difference. Once here, he or she will be perfect, as are all my grandchildren. Some days they're perfect hellions, but that's all part of the package.

Evan turned five the day after his Mom and Dad got home from their cruise, so his party is this coming weekend, too. It'll be nice that his Uncle Joel and Auntie Amy can be here. That doesn't happen too often. Evan is something of our "miracle baby." He was born 10 weeks premature with several health issues that required an immediate ambulance trip to Iowa City, where he spent the next many weeks in ICU. At one point, he was only as big as his daddy's hand. Granted Michael at 6'5" has big hands, but that was still one small baby. He survived all the bumps in the road and now graces us with charm and humor way beyond his years. He just knew he was going to need new clothes the day after his birthday since he would be five and nothing from four years old would fit. He also wants Wolverine claws, which I'm hoping to find before this weekend. If you know where I can find them, please let me know!

I keep looking at the snow out there, trying to screw up the courage to shovel, but I'm slowly stifling the urge. My mail carrier said forget it, save the hip since she's already been through and has nice tall boots. After all, who else matters? Well, meter readers like my son Michael, but I hear they can read from a distance and hopefully my unshoveled sidewalk won't matter today. I've been motating around here without my walker - ain't that great! Even doing the stairs without and feeling pretty confident. Pretty soon, I'll be walking that track on my own, too, and then ... rats, I'll be driving to Iowa City every day for work. Ah well, time enough to dread that. At least I can hope that the snow will be gone by then.

Lunchtime!