The Fabulous B@ker Blog

Heartbreak, Round 2 Today we found out we will not be able to get a puppy from the litter born on May 29. There were 10 puppies, but only 2 of them were females, and there were three people on the list before us. We really want to hold out for a female, so it's back to the drawing board. Will we ever get another dog? I see the "summer of the dog" fading away, even though it's only a couple of days away from June. Oh well. I suppose we'll REALLY appreciate our puppy when we finally get her. I've been acutely aware for a while that sometimes you just have to sit back and stop trying so hard, and, as my friend JoAnn used to say, let the universe take care of things. We all just miss our companion so much! This will be a good lesson in patience, and I'm sure it will all be worth it.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario ( www.niagaraonthelake.com/ ) is about an hour-and-a-half from here. It's a great day trip that we've been taking for at least the last five years during the Memorial Day weekend. Just a hop-and-a-skip from Niagara Falls, Ontario, it is well worth the trip (I prefer it to the tacky and overcrowded Niagara Falls). In NOTL, you feel like you are stepping into a quaint European town. When we go in late May it is usually not as beautiful as when everything is in full bloom in the summer, but attractive nevertheless and a heck of a lot less crowded! Some great things about NOTL: The wineries - in particular, Inniskillin ( http://www.inniskillin.com/ ) and Jackson-Triggs ( http://www.jacksontriggswinery.com/ ) The fudge shops and European bakeries The horse-drawn carriage rides around the historic village Another good thing that I can't attest to: The Shaw Festival...we've never gone but many make the trip with the festival as their destination. w

Wow! It's the 30-year anniversary of the release of Star Wars! I can still remember standing in line as a 13-year old in my hometown of Massena , New York, to go to the movie everybody was talking about. I wasn't too hyped-up about it - it didn't look too interesting to me, but, to this day, I don't think a movie has had the same lasting impact/impression as the first Star Wars movie (then know simply as "Star Wars," now know as "Episode IV: A New Hope"). I had such a crush on Mark Hamill - here's my favorite image of him from that movie. A couple of years ago when, I think it was, the second of the new movies (prequels) came out, we were sitting in the theatre and the excitement was building - we've been a Star Wars family from way back - when my daughter turned to a total stranger (an older man, and seemingly as excited as we were) and said, "My mom married my dad because his name is Mark, just like Mark Hamill." Embarrassing ,

Finally, something resembling summer has arrived. This weekend, the long Memorial Day weekend, marks the unofficial start of my favorite season. I absolutely love the warm weather, and absolutely hate working in the summer. I blame that on my father, who never made me work while I was a teenager. The warm nights, the cool mornings, the birds, the breeze, the summer food - all of it!! At least I only work 1/2 days on Fridays (my job has "summer hours"). This summer's schedule is revolving around when/if we get our puppy. Scheduled to be born next week, we're hoping, if all goes well, we'll be bringing her home around July 25 - still enough time to enjoy the warm weather and all the fun stuff that goes along with having a puppy. The kids schedules - that's another story. Every year it's like a giant puzzle between planning summer camp, child care, my vacation time, and other activities. This year the kids will once again be going to 4-H Camp Brisol for two

Music has always been a big part of my life. It is able to evoke long buried memories, much like certain smells can, and I have always dreamed of having all my favorite music, "the music of my life" in one place. Along the way I thought it would be cool if you could go on the Internet and order a CD of all your favorite songs, and I looked into that several years ago. While someone had actually thought of it, it cost quite a bit to order such a CD. Then, and I think you know where I'm going with this, my friend Sue turned me onto the iPod. I think Sue got one of the first off the assembly line (when they were made just for Apple computers) and she would rave about how I needed to get one (she knew me well and knew how I loved "my music."). I put her off for a little while, until the PC version of the iPod came out, and I think I got one of those first models off the assembly line (judging from the size of my iPod in relation to later models - it's a bit of

For those of you who know us, you know we lost our beloved Golden Retriever, Casey at 2 3/4 years old in April after she ate 2-16 oz. bags of semi-sweet chocolate chips. A counter surfer from way back, she got into the chocolate during the brief hour-and-a-half we had left the house on a Saturday morning. We truly feel like we have lost a family member, and think about (and talk about, and miss) her every day. We are "on the list" for a new golden pup to be born in late May, and are hoping all arrive safely , and that there will be a girl in the litter for us. Her mom is expecting 10 puppies, so the odds seem pretty good. We are so looking forward to our life getting "back to normal" once the puppy arrives. Her name will be Clover (officially: Clover Do-Over). I recently read an article about what the the type of dog a person/family chooses says about them: http://www.usaweekend.com/07_issues/070422/070422pets.html . In particular, with the outgoing and friendly Gol

For a really long time, we've been collecting Annalisse -isms. That is, things that our daughter, Annalisse has said that make absolutely no sense or are mixed up in a very funny way. A couple of classics: Hey! Look at that Red Jay (cardinal/bird)! I'm going to ruin the world! (rule the world) This summer I'm going to sleep in early every day. When tattled on by her brother for picking her butt...her reply: I try not to! Jugs Judy (the TV judge) At the airport gate in Pittsburgh: Look Mom! Those people are going to King Kong! ( Hong Kong) At the Nazareth College Bookstore: Let's go into the Nazareth gift shop! Referring to "The Soup's" Kick-Ass Clip of the Week: Cameron, it's the *bleep* Ass Clip of the Week ~ ooops , wrong word bleeped.... And from Sunday School... It was ordered by King Harold (vs. King Herrod). Jesus had 12 impossals. Jesus went to Duruselem (Jerusalem).

The comings, goings, and musings of Mark, Judy, Cameron and Annalisse (and their old cat Bailey) Baker of Fairport, New York, a quaint suburban community on the outskirts of Rochester, New York. Welcome friends and family!