Energetic Erin

Erin with her family

Erin is strong, imaginative, and fun.  She finds energy when I'm sure I couldn't, and she uses that energy to take care of those that she loves.  I remember once that I was talking to somebody who I thought might know Erin.  I knew she was describing Erin when she said, "Is she the one that's always carrying two children?"  Erin says it keeps her balanced to have one child in each arm.  It would have kept my children at the emergency room being treated for head wounds.  It probably would have sent me off for early shoulder surgeries too, but Erin is strong and she seems to manage just fine.  Somehow she never gripes about her arms or her aching back or anything, at least not to me, and her two youngest children know they can count on her to hold them when they need snuggles.

Okay, so this isn't Erin.  But this is exactly how she would carry these boys.
It must be a family talent.

Erin has five children and a husband (Russell).  The husband came first.  She also has a nice house.  She uses her imagination in playing with and teaching her children, and in coming up with more ways to decorate, and redecorate her house.  It is always fun to go and try to figure out what is different.  She only lives about 15 minutes away, but something is different every time I go.  I haven't kept track of how many times the front room has been repainted, or any room.  The floors have changed, the furniture gets added to, the rugs come and go, the cabinets are a different color, new pictures or plaques take the place of old ones.  The constant is that it always looks nice, and there are always happy children around.

Happy Erin with a happy Dylan

Erin has a couple of different blogs, including a cooking blog.  She cooks up yummy things and then posts the recipes and pictures.  I admit to not visiting that blog often, but it is not the blogs fault, it is Dan's allergies.  We all know that yummy stuff has milk, or cheese, or eggs thrown in there somewhere!  Yummy desserts seem to be her specialty and for a while she seemed to get the dessert assignment for every single family dinner that we had.

I call Erin every now and then when I want someone to talk to and I always enjoy the chance to chat.  Quite frankly, it makes my day that she always seems so happy that I called.  She's on the computer quite a bit too and so I like to write her e-mail because she's usually very good about writing right back.

Erin likes to shop and I hear (from my girls, and Russell, and Tanya) that she is fun to shop with.  I think I'd like to peak and see how many shoes she owns.  She shops both in stores and online and has been known to sell a thing or two on ebay, which I think is brave because, well, because it would make me nervous to do that.

When our kids are opening presents slowly we tell them to "open it like Aunt Erin!"  Because of her childhood habit of sneaking a peak at her wrapped gifts, I still wonder if Russell dares put any of her presents anywhere in the house before Christmas -- or maybe she just buys her own now, but I think Russell has managed to surprise her a few times. 

Erin makes me smile.  She's just so creative and quick witted.  She reminds me of her Mom in the way she can take a rather daunting task and tackle it with a positive attitude and the thought that if we just get to work, we'll get done soon.  She also seems to have inherited, or developed, the gift of keeping a positive attitude even when sleep isn't very abundant.  All the same, I hope that she got a good nights sleep before her birthday and that today is a totally awesome day for her.  She won't want me to be too mushy, but I love her, and hope she has a happy birthday!

This is to let Erin see the lone picture she would have had on here if I hadn't gotten some off of her Picasa web album.