The Fabulous B@ker Blog

Last spring, Mark and I attended a German trip fundraiser that Cam was involved in. One of the Fairport High School acts that performed that night was the high school comedy improv troupe, Downstage . The kids were just hilarious and very entertaining , and at the time I thought, "Wow, Annalisse would really love this!" So, when auditions for Downstate were taking place this week, she hemmed and hawed and tried to decide if she wanted to try out. Of course, everyone she asked said she should because of her quick wit and funny sense of humor. The Downstage troupe is composed of 10 kids, and this year there were three slots available. On Monday, she and many kids went through the first round of auditions, and afterwards she was so excited about the prospect of joining the group. On the second day of auditions, although she wasn't required to, she auditioned again so she could, in her words, "make sure she got noticed." Then, Tuesday night, we waited and checked ...

Roomies Today we took Annalisse back to school for her J(anuary)Term, which is a three-week session where she takes one course for four days a week/three hours a day. She is taking Western Literature, for which she had to purchase two huge volumes of Norton Anthology of Western Literature , and Macbeth . She is definitely not looking forward to it, but what can you do? At least it's just one course demanding her time, even though it will be ton of reading (and writing). I think she was excited to get back to see her "new" roommate, Brittany, a good friend who she had the opportunity to room with late last semester when Brittany's roommate moved out. She was very happy about that as they seem to have similar dispositions and lite sense of humor. The kids had a great fall semester (Cam ended up with a 3.3 and Annalisse with a 3.125), so I'm hoping they can keep up the momentum for the spring semester which includes increasingly challenging courses for both. ...

I lost a very important person today: Barb Bell, my best friend Sue's mom who was like a second mother to me. She had been in declining health for several months, and today she passed away peacefully at Sue and Ken's home in Roanoke. She's now at peace, joining her beloved husband, Jack, who passed away 30 years ago. I am heartbroken, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I often tell people I got my sense of humor from the Bells (and their cousin San) as they were always such fun people, never taking themselves too seriously and finding fun whereever they went. Charades, a colander on your head at the New Year's party, enjoying that "generous" glass of wine, and our favorite British comedies. For God's sake, would I even know Benny Hill existed if not for the Bells? The Bell family, and especially Ma, always welcomed me with open arms as if I were one of their own. Growing up I spent so many nights there I had my own toothbrush. They knew if I was go...

Our Irish student, Eve, is here!! The kids got in around 4pm, a weary looking bunch after, for many, what was a sleepless night and a full day of travel. She's very sweet, and doesn't think we're too weird (so far), with our "unusual" sense of humor and crazy family banter. Once we got on our way from the airport everyone was getting hungry so we went to (where else??) Mulconry's Irish Pub in Fairport for dinner. The bartender, who was the owner Damien's brother, was from the same town/area as Eve, so they chatted a little. After a short walk Eve is trying to stay awake a little longer to make the jet lag adjustment a little easier. Then, it's off to school tomorrow and gearing up for a jam-packed week!!