it's april 19th...

apparently there were some fake tattoos a bit ago. i never saw these until they turned up in the photos...RIP Joey & Tickles

Today is finally April 19, the day of the long-planned caterpillar funeral.

I thought she'd forgotten all about it, but then I heard her talking about it over the weekend.

Jay caught wind of this and asked her if she could change the time. She'd scheduled it for 3:30, and could she do it at 5:30 so he could be there? She said sure.

Well, then they sent out an APB on Facebook to everyone who'd been invited to the 3:30 funeral, that the new time was 5:30.

So all at once,around 2:30, I realize there are like 20 people going to be at my house at suppertime--to attend the burial of two caterpillars.

(This was not the plan...not my plan anyway.)

James helped me--we got the house picked up, and Jay helped me get a meal made, and it actually was fun to have everyone here for supper. The kids played soccer in the backyard, and we all ate.

The funeral itself finally happened around 6.

Kari leaped over the fence with her caterpillars in a little box and the keyboard under her arm, and we all went out to the garden. She dug a hole,and put the box in. My mother had brought a pansy, so she placed that nearby, and then Kari played Greensleeves.

I could see she felt really awkward when she looked around at all twenty of us standing there, her nephews, and sisters and brothers, and sisters and brother in law, and an extra friend Maria brought home from school today... but she carried on anyway, no turning back now, so that was good.

It reminded me of when Maria and her cousin planned an elaborate wedding for Kari and Woody. (The guy from Toy Story.) They wrote the vows, picked flowers, on and on. In the end, it happened on the beach at the lake, late in the afternoon. They were wearing their bathing suits... Someone bailed at the end, so Big Jay ended up as one of the bridesmaids.

But the best part was when they started the vows and it went something like this, "...through sickness and health, and richer and poorer, through rain and sleet and dark of night..." My sister's husband and I looked at each other. The Postal Code? Awww, man. We laughed and laughed. Paul had to dry his eyes.


the bride, Lydia, (aka Kari) and Woody, the groom

We have no pictures from the funeral. I was too discomboobulated to take any.

Julia's caterpillar, Bobby, made a cocoon a few days ago. (The one who said,"Wow," when he saw Jay's van?) He may be metamorphosing as we speak. He's here in a cup on the desk. I certainly hope he does not die because this is the only caterpillar funeral I'm having. If he dies? He missed it.

love, Val