Happy Birthday, Laura...

Laura's our youngest--well, actually, I guess she's married to our youngest, the one you see in the entry below. But Laura's been a part of our lives since her junior high days, long before she became Jock's wife, Fionnegan's mother, or a pharmacist. She's smart and talented and funny, and eventually the other girls and I will forgive her for being a size two.

This is Laura. And Fionn. You seldom see one without the other.

Seven years ago, I finally decided that yes, okay, I would quit smoking. Maybe. But I was doing it with medication and a coach. Laura was my coach and she promised she would make me a queensize quilt if I stopped smoking. To make a long story short, I did and she did. The quilt hasn't been off the bed since. She says I have to give it back if I start smoking again and I think she means it.

I'm not giving that quilt back, and I wouldn't give her back, either. She has perfectly good parents of her own, but she's still ours. Her birthday was this week.

Love you, Laura.