Janet's Blog

I read an article recently, stating emphatically that capris are out . Capris, defined as “close fitting women’s pants that end above the ankle,” or alternately, “just below the knee,” have been quite popular for more than a decade, this time, but lately we have been told that only unfashionable, old women choose to wear them, despite their practicality. Capris are considered, by some, to be unflattering because the hem often bisects the leg right at the widest part of the calf, making the legs look “stumpy, and cutting the line of the body at its most awkward point.” One commentator asserted that capris make a woman look like she is “standing in a ditch.” Some fashionistas further claim that capris are often over-embellished with cuffs, obvious pockets, and other details on the legs, making them even more tacky.  Victoria and me, about 15 years ago, in our "unfashionable" capris The name of these three-quarter length pants comes from the Italian Isle of Capri, where they fir

I don’t remember the actual wedding ceremony, or the reception, either, when my Aunt Marj married Norm, but I know the wedding was held at the Methodist church in Norfolk. By the time I was nine years old, I had attended a few weddings and receptions and, by then, I realized that most church weddings and receptions were about the same; they were special occasions, for sure, launching marriages that might last for decades, but the wedding ceremony itself was nothing memorable for a child who had attended more than one, and the wedding cake and punch, while satisfying, weren’t much different than any other cake and punch I'd ever had. Just a few weeks earlier, my family had moved from the Oxnard Hotel in Norfolk to the Hotel Mary-Etta in Fairbury. The wedding would have marked the first time our family returned to Norfolk for a visit, so that added to our excitement. I remember arriving at Grandpa and Grandma's house that mild June morning, and finding a houseful of relatives scu

It was a warm, sunny morning, 38 years ago. After a good night's sleep, I rolled out of bed at 7:00, and immediately had a contraction. That was nothing new; I'd been having contractions off and on for a month. But since we had already waited for five days beyond my due date, I was hopeful that this contraction was signaling the start of real labor. I was really hoping that this baby wouldn't make me wait as long as big sister, Erin, who had been born 10 days late. I got dressed quickly, and helped three-year-old Erin get dressed, as well, before we all sat down for breakfast. I doubt if I ate much. I don't remember where Bill was working that day--perhaps he was doing a repair at one of the apartments he managed, or he might have been working at a construction job somewhere. Either way, in that time before cell phones, he promised to call me every hour throughout the morning to check on me. Mom had flown into the Scottsbluff airport a few days earlier to help after the