Kathleen Botsford

Love Thee Notre Dame

Victoria has spent this summer in LA

working for one of her dream companies.

As she returns this week to the midwest

and begins packing for her senior year at ND

there will be tears.....

many tears.

We are so very lucky when our children love their

lives and choices so much that the thought of it ending

is bittersweet and sad.

We are not allowed to talk about

Tori's senior year or graduation.

Maybe if we stay very, very vigilant

and focused in each and every moment,

we can capture a bit of the magic

and keep it with us

close to our hearts.

And our hearts forever

Love thee Notre Dame

 

 

 

Postcards from Home

 

 

   

I collect bits and pieces of paper

and scraps.

Nothing is out of bounds.

If I cannot get the whole label

off a wine bottle ~

just a scraped off bit will do.

 

I have had lots of fun

decorating envelopes

and postcards to send to

Victoria in London

and Alex in Chicago.

 

It's a fun way to share some of

my favorite quotes

and they enjoy receiving

my art postcards and each uniquely

designed envelope.

Lots of fun!

 

 

 

Happy 25th Birthday Stevie

 

 

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings ~ nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And ~ which is more ~ you'll be a Man, my son!

~Rudyard Kipling

Victoria

*Looking through a few journals this morning I came across this piece. 

Now that she is a junior in college

and studying this semester in London, it made me miss her that much more....

Victoria sinks into her cuddly bed,

filled with soft cushy pillows and more

down comforters than any one 17 year old girl needs for a lifetime.

Her long hair sweeps softly about her round flushed cheeks

in silky cascades and tangles too.

Her room is barely bigger than her bed, now her throne as her favorite stuffed animals

and dolls gather at her royal feet.

The walls are filled with theatre posters of the many shows she has seen with

a special section reserved for her Broadway adventures.

The worn rug lying beside her bed can easily trip the unaware; rags and pieces

of garments long gone,

tied together with the loving hands and nimble fingers of a grandmother.

The sharp edges of her desk protect her personal papers and high school secrets from intruders of all sizes.

The room smells of little girls; sweet perfumes and scented candles.

Move in a little farther I snuggle my toes into soft flannel jammies;

lying right where they were taken off, still warm....

Hearts Filled with Thanksgiving

A week full of emotions,

much elation and excitement

sprinkled with bittersweet

endings and goodbyes.

The Student Athlete Bill

was signed and brought to the House floor.

Stevie's passion and eloquence

took center stage

as he wrote and championed

a cause so close his heart.

Alex brought her boss

and his family to South Bend

for the final home game of the season.

The Kool-aid may have been

a bit frozen and another trip necessary.

Now the bittersweet 

as we say goodbye to young men

who have become family.

Our last Thursday night dinner....

Their last time running out of the tunnel....

Their last game in Notre Dame Stadium.....

We will see them often

but this magical time at Notre Dame

has bound our hearts

and lives together....

always and forever.

Wishing you all a

Thanksgiving filled with

love and family.
 

Change of Plans

There has been a change of plans.

Our spring break visit to London

has been cancelled due to illness.

Victoria caught some sort of bug and has been

battleing a high fever and flu symptoms since last weekend. 

Her big sister, Alex, took a limo to South Bend very late Monday evening

and drove her little sister home. 

In a snow storm.

The good news is her professors were very understanding and have allowed her

to re-schedule her mid-terms until school resumes after break.

The bad news is.... no trip to London.

In between preparing soup and crackers and trays of

ginger-ale in sippy cups with Winnie the Pooh spoons.....

 I have been playing with my camera and lighting

trying to figure things out....

It has become obvious I need to polish my computer skills

as well as my photography skills

I guess there is no time like the present.

Especially with my un-expected as well as un-welcome

present of time....

Empty Nest for 2013

I cannot believe it is the end of January 2013. 

I remember when I was in grade school and we read 1984 by George Orwell.

The book deeply distrubed me but I comforted myself with the thought,

"At least I will never live to 1984....

that is way too far in the future...."

Ha!

Well here I am in 2013

An official empty nester~

with my son off to seek his fortune in Washington DC

working for a freshman Congressman from LA~

My sophomore daughter at Notre Dame waiting

not so patiently to hear if she will be interning at

the Cannes Film Festival this spring~

And my oldest daughter living in the city,

making her own way,

searching for that ever elusive "perfect" career~

 

I purposely took time off from blogging

this past fall

as I felt the urgent need

to be "IN" the moment.

Gratefully soaking up every last

drop of a magical

time with my family and friends.

Sometimes cameras and writing

can get in the way for me.

While they definitely capture special memories to preserve and savor,

I also find they leave me a little bit

removed from the actual experience.

I will have lots of time to relive and recount

these moments now...

Now that I am an "official" empty nester.....

 

6 or 7 of the kids are on their way for the weekend as I write

so I better get the beds changed and the Birthday cakes baked!

Endless Grief

Words cannot help

Or begin to touch

the raw and ragged

grief of these heartbroken parents.

Oh Divine Beloved

we ask for your sweet mercy

and steadfast embrace

to somehow comfort the

families involved in this

senselessly tragic event

As we their neighbors

stand by helplessly

praying, praying, praying.

New Year New Condo

Summer has come and gone.

I have been busy designing and decorating our new condo.

The last four years we have rented a condo

near the Notre Dame campus

to enjoy our family and friends

and our beloved college football team.

We finally decided to buy.

These are photos of one of the collages

I have been working on to adorn the walls.

 Victoria is back at school and snugly enschonced into her

sophomore year.

Even she thinks time is flying

much too swiftly.

Our Alexandra has flown the cozy

suburbs to experience the excitement

of city life in Chicago

as she starts a new and challenging

consulting career in the city

and a new apartment in Old Town.

Stevie will enjoy a final year working

with his father and

and cheering on his team mates

before his life takes an

adventurous and exciting turn.

*details to follow at a later date.

In the meantime,

being present in the moment

is as always,

my secular and spiritual challenge.

Wishing you and yours

a fabulous new school year

filled with appropriate challenge

and sweet success.

GO IRISH!

p.s. I think I may have to rename this post due to

all of the "challenges" I noted upon re-reading!

How about "New Year New Challenge"?

 

 

 

 

Easter Baby

We are humbly grateful dear Lord

for Holiday celebrations

filled with love and laughter

of friends and family

And most of all

this precious little baby boy

Amen