The Pevensie Family.....

 
.....shortly before entering the portal to Narnia. 
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OK, that's not exactly true. It's really my mom and dad and siblings, taken at a family reunion this past summer. But after watching "Narnia" today, I got a hankerin' for the ol' family ties. We never went to other worlds--at least not intentionally--but we lived through some scrapes and good times together, growing up.

On the left is not me. That is a pasty-faced stand-in, dressed exclusively in attire purchased from Goodwill. Just as soon as I have the mother of extreme makeovers, I'll try to edit this blog with a picture of Loren and myself. Until then, just squint. People always look better when you squint. Gives them that soft look.

Next to the stand-in, is my oldest brother, Doug. He's the one who's been driving up to Chicago for that computer programming job every week. He's a good guy. His wife, Cindy, put together a calendar for our family, made up of everyone's pictures. It includes the one with Nolan's fingers up his nose. I expect it to become a collector's item some day. I figured if my siblings made the calendar, they wouldn't mind me posting them all over the blog :-)

Next comes Solly, the second oldest. He is a massage therapist out in Virginia. Wife Lorinda and he grow a LOT of things in their garden, much of which they sell in a local farmer's market. I think they sell lamb, also, as in meat--to--eat. Solly is one of the gentlest souls you'd ever meet.

Then we have my other older brother, Tim. He and Ann live waaaayyyy out in Bellingham Washington, with son Asher. Tim is a paralegal and Ann works for a women's shelter....I think. You can tell we're really close :-) No, no, it's not that, it's just that SOME PEOPLE NEVER WRITE. All my brothers have a good sense of humor, Tim being no exception.

Next in line is my older sister, Nancy. Yes, as I've said older for everyone, you can tell by now that I am the BABY of the family. It's ok, though....I milked it for all it was worth :-) Anyway, Nancy is a teacher in Elkhart, Indiana, carrying on a career in the same discipline and city as my father. Right now, Nancy is teaching 4th grade (I think) and is the brand of teacher that goes the extra mile, or two or three for her students.

Swinging around to the front, right, is my dad. A junior high science teacher for....well....I'm thinkin' around 40 years. He can correct me if I'm wrong. It was certainly a LONG time :-) It was from him I learned about perseverance. I'm not saying I mastered that character quality, but he certainly taught it by example. He always had time to spend with his children. How well I remember visiting a local pond to collect scum for some school experiment, or his bringing a microscope home so I could look at onion skins, amoeba, and paramecium. We had insect collections, rock collections and coin collections. What can I say....he grew up in the Depression.

Last and best of all is Mom. I'm sure Dad would agree with that evaluation. In every family there is a quiet, behind the scenes person, who steadfastly continues in all those crucial activities that never get an award, but should. As well as providing the stability of a stay-at-home mom--not to mention DOING all the things a full-time mother does, she was also the proofreader for many of my dad's writing endeavors. My mom also carted me around to many concerts, music contests and piano recitals, as well as giving me my initial piano lessons. I may have gotten a little humor from my dad, but mom was the one who imparted culture to our family.

Well, there you have it. The Baker clan.

My name, though not intentioned by my parents, lent itself quite well to various nicknames. In college I was dubbed, "Becky Boom Boom Baker." I assure you, it was all about alliteration, and nothing else.

Being far to old and *cough* mature for any such monikers at this stage in life, I'm happy just to stick with "Ma," for now. Though, I am open to "the one and only....."

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