9 Years.

It's hard to believe 9 years have passed since September 11, 2001. I was a 19-year old sophomore in college on that morning. I remember my phone ringing pretty early, and my dad's voice came over the phone: "Something bad is happening. Stay inside today and be careful." I don't remember what else he said, but I do remember the stress in his voice. I turned on the TV in my dorm room and tried to understand what was going on. The news channels were filled with chaotic reporting, the confused newscasters doing their best to relay what had happened. I think my roommate, Alli, and I sat there for hours, watching as the towers fell and reports came in of more hijacked planes. Strangely, I don't remember if I was scared or not. I think shocked is a more accurate description. I think our classes were all cancelled...I don't really remember much about that either. Later that afternoon, my (then ex) high school boyfriend called me. We talked about how horrible it was, and I think I cried as he told me that if the military needed volunteers, he would find a way to go fight. I don't remember when life on our campus went back to normal. I remember prayer vigils for the people who had lost their lives, and the amazing show of support for our country at the next Aggie home game, dubbed the "Red, White, and Blue Out" (rather than our usual Maroon Out). Here's a picture of our stands during that game:


So many selfless people risked (and also lost) their lives trying to save others and find survivors at Ground Zero. As others fled, they walked into the blinding dust, burning debris, and falling metal. We can never repay them for their bravery.

A great number of people were trapped in areas that were inaccessible by human rescuers. Something we rarely hear about are the 300 search and rescue dogs that helped locate the survivors and also the remains of those who perished. Here's a very touching video about these brave dogs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D91GQRX3YdY

We have a book in our house called One Nation: America Remembers September 11, 2001. The images in it are horrific, haunting, and heroic. It tells a minute-by-minute account of what happened that morning and also delves more deeply into the stories of some of the fallen, and still living, heros. I highly recommend this book. We all need something like this in our homes to ensure that we, and our future generations, never forget.

A Special Old Friend

As everyone probably knows, I have been doing some volunteer work with Paws in the City, an animal rescue organization here in Dallas. This week, one of the co-founders of the organization lost her companion, Max. I learned this through Facebook, and it brought back memories of my childhood buddy, Ben. Here we are - just a kid and her giant puppy!!




I got Ben when I was in 2nd grade, and he was a wonderful, slobbery, goofy companion to my family until I was a sophomore in college. Losing him was so hard since we had practically grown up together - in fact, since I had no human siblings, I often thought of my pets as my brothers and sisters! When we got Ben, we were told that he was most likely a Beagle/Basset Hound mix and would be a medium sized dog when full grown. My parents noted his large paws and were a bit skeptical of this estimate, but nobody cared because 1. we are a family who loves LARGE dogs and 2. he was so darn adorable that we couldn't NOT take him home. I named him Benji, after the scruffy mutt in the movies, which were favorites of mine as an animal-obsessed kid!

As he grew, we could see that Ben was most certainly NOT a Beagle/Basset. He was more likely a German Shepherd/American Foxhound - with the deep chest (and later hip problems) of the shepherd with the coloration of a black, tan, and white foxhound. He had the best personality traits from both breeds, too. Quick to learn his tricks, protective yet gentle, and loyal to his humans...in short, absolutely the sweetest, smartest dog ever!

My parents and I always say, if only we could have cloned Ben and been guaranteed to get his loveable personality, we could have had a lifetime of wonderful dogs! It's too bad our pet companions have so few years with us, but the important thing is to show them all the love we have while they're around. I need to scan some old pics of two other wonderful childhood pets - Garfield the cat, who I adopted from a neighbor's litter of kittens when I was 5 years old (he lived until I was a junior in college) and Chief the horse (he was a gentle old man of 18 when my parents bought him for me at age 9, and he lived to the ripe old age of 26)!

Here's the ONLY pic I have scanned of Garfield - unfortunately you have to bear witness to me at a very awkward stage (brace-face) with a very ticked-off cat in a hat!



Who were your favorite animal friends when you were young?

I Miss the Sun

On beautiful summer days like the ones we've been having lately, I get kinda depressed. That seems odd, right? Well, it's just because I miss the sun. I live a mostly indoor life now, and I don't always love it. It's been one year and 4 months since I had a mole that turned out to be melanoma excised from my right side, and since then, I've had to be very careful about sun exposure. And I know that EVERYONE should be very careful about sun exposure no matter what, but for people with previous melanomas, this is particularly important. Now if I go out, I have to make sure I can find a shady spot to hide under every half-hour or so. I have to spend a long time before going outside covering every inch of my body with SPF 50 sunscreen, and even then I notice my skin getting red more quickly than usual. My poor skin is just not used to seeing any rays, so it turns red in an instant. In reality, these are small sacrifices...and I know I am complaining when I shouldn't be. I am SO incredibly grateful that my melanoma was discovered and removed before it became a life-threatening cancer. But still, I just get jealous of all those people who can just slap on a bit of sunscreen and head to the pool or the lake at a moment's notice. Also, I hate the way I look in a bikini these days...but more on that particular complaint in a later post!

Book Review - House Rules by Jodi Picoult

I have a good book for you! House Rules, by Jodi Picoult.

I have read almost all of Jodi Picoult’s novels. I like the multiple-narrator approach she uses, and the detail with which she writes. It’s obvious in her novels that she thoroughly researches her subject matter, so even though it is fiction, it doesn’t come off as mindless.

One caveat – once you’ve read a couple of her books, you will be able to predict the endings of most of her others. She likes to throw in a twist towards the end that makes you rethink your impressions about the rest of the book. But once you’re used to her formula, you will guess the twist pretty easily. For some people, that might ruin the entire book. For me it doesn’t. I still like seeing following the characters and seeing how the story plays out, and every once in a while, she still surprises me.

There were no surprises in House Rules – I knew what the “mystery twist” would be after reading the first couple of chapters. One thing did disappoint me, but I can’t say what it is without ruining the book for anyone who might read it. But I loved the subject matter of this book: Asperger’s Syndrome. I don’t know why, but autism and autism-spectrum disorders have always fascinated me. I don’t really know where it started…maybe with the movie Rain Man, which I love! All I know is that in high school, I wrote a research paper titled “The Unsolved Mystery of Autism.” It explored the potential causes of autism and explained some of the typical behaviors exhibited by autistic kids. That was in 1998, when even less was known about the autism spectrum disorders than is known at present. Asperger’s wasn’t even standardized as an autism-spectrum disorder until six years prior to my high school paper. If I see a book with an autistic character, I will buy it. If there’s a movie or TV show about kids with these disorders, I will watch it. I have no idea why it interests me so much, but it does.

If I had been smart, I would have gone to school to be a behavioral therapist or something similar so I could work with these kinds of kids. I have no doubt that it would be an incredibly frustrating, fascinating job. But that’s another story.

So, finally, a bit about the book. It’s about an 18-year old boy, Jacob, with high-functioning Asperger’s Syndrome. His fixation is crime scene forensic science, so you can probably see where this is going. He is accused of a murder when his social skills tutor is found dead. He knows far too much about the crime scene to be innocent, apparently. The book follows his arrest, imprisonment, subsequent house arrest, and trial, narrated by Jacob himself, his brother Theo, the police detective, Jacob’s mother, and Jacob’s attorney. This book will make you laugh and will make you mad. You see how the quirks of autism disorders can lead to a person with a wonderfully dry and witty sense of humor. You also see the incredible struggle of a family whose life must revolve around one person’s needs, to the detriment of all others. There’s a neglected brother who is torn between loving and hating his autistic sibling. There’s a single mother who was abandoned by her husband when their son was diagnosed and who suffers every day when she sees her son trying, and failing, to become a part of the world of neurotypical people. Also, you see how the legal system could be incredibly flawed and unforgiving to a defendant with an autism disorder. All in all, a very interesting, fast-paced read – I plowed through it in a couple of days!

One thing I found questionable in this book was Jacob’s insightfulness. At times, he seemed more like the traditional Asperger’s kid – lacking empathy, extremely literal, obsessive about his fixation topic – but at other times, the chapters from his point of view seemed to show too much self-awareness and emotion. But what do I know, maybe people with high-functioning Asperger’s really do walk that fine of a line between what is considered normal and what is considered “different.”

I went to the author’s website after finishing the book, as I usually do. She always posts more information about her topics and discusses the inspiration behind her books. In her discussion of House Rules, she addresses the debate about the cause of autism disorders, which is still unknown. Many people believe that vaccinations are the cause, and for good reason, in my opinion. In researching her book, Jodi Picoult came across mothers who showed her videos of their normal babies, making eye contact with the camera, playing with other children. Later home videos of these same children, taken days after an extensive round of shots, show them rocking or flapping their hands, avoiding eye contact, and withdrawing into their own world. If that is not scary stuff, I don’t know what is. On the other hand, most kids get their vaccinations and never show any symptoms. No conclusive scientific test has ever proven a link between vaccines and autism, according to Picoult’s research. Either way, autism-spectrum disorders are on the rise – the author cites this statistic: 1 in 100 children are now diagnosed somewhere on the spectrum. While these kids are no less treasured or loved, their lives are inarguably more difficult. Their peers will inevitably make fun of their repetitive tics, obsessive tendencies, tantrums, and inability to carry on normal conversations. Mainstream society is full of things that are hard to handle for them – bright lights, loud noises, confusing social cues, and disrupted routines. And I can only imagine how their parents’ hearts must break as they try to forge a loving connection to children who cannot understand that kind of emotion. I won’t begin to speculate about the causes of autism because I am not nearly knowledgeable enough to do so. But I do know that when I get pregnant, I am going to find a pediatrician who will talk to me about these concerns. Jodi Picoult lists several tips about vaccinations on her website that I found very interesting. She obviously makes no claim that by following these tips, you can prevent your child from having autism, but they are definitely things for parents to think about. I know I will.

2nd Anniversary

Yesterday Jeff and I celebrated our 2nd Anniversary! I can't believe it's already been two years since our awesomely fun wedding. I wish we could keep re-living our wedding reception over and over again - it was so much fun to party and celebrate with our friends and family!

Our first anniversary was on a Sunday, and we spent the day at the spa getting couple's massages. This year, since our anniversary fell on a Monday, we had to do something in the evening after work. When Jeff got home from work, we exchanged gifts. We don't really "go big" on anniversary gifts, so we each just got each other something small. Plus, the theme for 2nd year anniversary gifts is apparently "cotton." Not sure who came up with this random correlation of gifts and years, but hey, we went with it!

I got him this silly t-shirt that I made on CustomInk.com. Some of the things on there are little jokes between the two of us - he is so goofy that we always have something to laugh about!



I wanted it to be an apron because he has said he needs one, but with the font size restrictions, it wouldn't fit on the front of the apron. So I just got a comfy t-shirt that he can wear around the house.

His gift was WAY sweeter than mine! I can never think of anything to get him because 1) whatever he needs, he goes out and gets himself, and 2) the only stuff he ever wants is fishing gear! Anyway, here is what he got me:



Yep, that is exactly what it looks like: a crib sheet!! This may seem odd, since we don't have a baby, nor am I pregnant. But, no...it's perfect! He got this for me to symbolize that he is excited to take that next step with me and become parents together. He said he realizes that he rarely ever talks about having a baby in a positive light, so he wanted me to know that as we enter our third year of marriage, we can begin to plan our family! Jeff has often said that he is scared to have a child because he knows it means that we will have to do a lot of growing up, and our lives will have to change significantly. Right now, when we want to go out of town, we just pack up and go. We have our own schedule that we are very comfortable with, and obviously a baby will change that. Our lives will revolve more around our children than ourselves, and they will take top priority in our considerations. That doesn't mean we won't still be able to have fun, though! We are so lucky to live in a great family-raising neighborhood near many of our closest friends. We all love to get together for game nights, back yard BBQs, and game-watching parties. We stopped going out to the bar for a "fun activitiy" a LONG time ago! When we have kids, we can still do these same things that we enjoy doing now. It just may be more of a 3-ring circus with all our kiddos running around the house and yard!

This is by far the sweetest gift ever! Out of the blue, he can be so thoughtful. The best thing is, the sheet is not just any old crib sheet! It's made from super soft organic cotton, good for babies who just MIGHT inherit their mother's incredibly allergy-prone skin! And it's GREEN, my favorite color...and good for either a girl or boy's crib.

So, stay tuned this year for the Prudhomme's baby plans! We aren't going to rush into it right this minute, but we are going to start planning.

Easter Weekend

My parents came in to visit us for Easter weekend, and we got some quality family time. They are definitely not ones to sit idly around, so we got a TON of work done to the yard. Jeff and I have been wanting to do a long day of yard work for months, but we lacked the motivation to get it started by ourselves. So my parents came to the rescue, and all four of us worked hard for at least 7 hours yesterday. We cleaned out all the dead leaves from the flowerbeds, trimmed bushes, planted a few flowers, raked the dead thatched layer of grass from the yard, and filled in low spots with topsoil. It looks amazingly better - I'll post some pics soon when I finish planting the rest of the flowers.

Today we cooked a big Easter lunch before they headed home. I was able to log at least 4 new recipes that I'll add to my Six Degrees blog posts. We had ham, 3-cheese mac & cheese, fruit salad, homemade yeast rolls, asparagus, and a carrot cake with cream cheese icing for dessert.






YUM! But now I am too full and can't manage to get off the couch. But when and if I do get off the couch, I should go work out because I probably gained 5 lbs this weekend!

I HATE Thieves

So, something horrible happened this week. Someone broke into my locker at the gym and stole my wedding rings, credit cards, and driver's license. I go to the gym to lift weights for 30 minutes every day at lunch. As usual, I changed into my workout clothes, stowed my rings in the inside zipper pocket of my purse, locked my locker, and went about my workout. When I got back upstairs to change back into my work clothes, I noticed first that my rings were missing. I thought maybe they had fallen into the bottom of my purse, so I searched there...nothing. My heart was starting to beat a little quickly at this point.

For some reason the next thing I did, without even thinking, was to open my wallet. It was becoming clear to me at that point what had happened. All the slots where I keep my credit cards and driver's license were empty. I just kind of stood there for a minute, not understanding what was going on. I mean, my locker was freaking LOCKED this entire time. I even had to unlock it when I came back to get dressed, so they locked it back when they were done. They didn't cut the lock or break it in any way, which means they either must have picked it or watched me for days and memorized my combination. But I think I would have noticed someone hovering behind me staring at my hand as I put in the combination! Apparently combination locks are easy to pick, though, so that's probably what happened. But I definitely think I was targeted. I mean, a ton of women do not put locks on their lockers at ALL. They just close the doors to the locker...I often open 3 or more lockers each day before finding an empty one I can use. Yet nobody else was robbed that day...only me. Also, since they didn't take my entire purse, but only the things they wanted out of it (they ignored my camera and iPod), I think they have had their eye on me for a while.


I have tried to look on the bright side of this situation, because things could have been a lot worse. The thief who has been watching me could have ambushed me in the parking garage and shot me to get what they wanted. (Maybe a bit dramatic, but this kind of thing does happen every day in Dallas). So now, with my second anniversary a few weeks away, Jeff and I have to design my rings all over again and wait for them to be made. Luckily the insurance company is not dragging its feet and is already in the process of completing our claim, so it shouldn't take too long.

What really pisses me off about this situation is the complete disregard for people's belongings. How does a person come to the conclusion that it is OK to take something that does not belong to them?! I can cancel credit cards and replace my driver's license, but my rings were one of a kind. Jeff picked out the stones and designed my ring himself, and it was on my hand the day we got married. That can't be replaced. I typically have a lot of patience with and faith in people, but this is something I just can't understand or tolerate. It makes me SO angry to think about it. I don't hold out much hope that the police will find whoever did this, but it sure would be nice if they did. The detective is going to check the videos from the gym entrance and the gas station where they used my credit card 10 minutes before I discovered the theft. He is also going to check pawn shops for my rings...but again, it's a needle in a haystack! UGH...it has been a crappy week.