Rosey cheeks, no warts ...

Growing up, Kristie and I would spend hours memorizing scripts to our favorite movies. She was much better at it than I, but we had fun doing it nonetheless. To this day, we can still do the full script, word for word, to movies like "Annie" (Albert Finney and Carol Burnett), "The Breakfast Club" (Anthony Michael Hall and Molly Ringwald), "The Incredible Shrinking Woman" (Lily Tomlin) and many others. One of our favorites was the musical "Mary Poppins". We loved to sing with an accent like Jane and Michael. "If you want this choice position, have a cheery disposition. Rosey cheeks, no warts, plays games all sorts. You must be kind you must be witty, very sweet and fairly pretty. Take us on outings give us treats, sing songs, bring sweets. Never be cross or cruel, never give us castor oil, or gruel. Love us as a son and daughter ... "

Anyway, I'll stop singing and get to the reason for my post. This morning I won a contest on the show Great Day St. Louis (Channel 4 KMOV here in St. Louis.) They asked that you write a 25-word statement why your nanny or babysitter was "the best". Well, I certainly don't have a nanny (although I was one 16 years ago!), but I do have some pretty incredible sitters who watch my kiddos for me while I'm in the hospital, at doctor's appointments and undergoing my chemo treatments ... my sister and my dad. I thought, "Why not?" and wrote in. My 25-word sentence was:

While I undergo cancer treatment, my babysitter gives my 5 children the love and assurance they need while they wait for Mommy to get better.

Apparently the judges for the contest liked my words! I won 4 tickets (worth $280) to the opening night of "Mary Poppins" at the Fox Theater in downtown St. Louis! YAY!!! They announced it on TV this morning and even took the time to wish me well with my treatment!

The cunnundrum was to decide who to take. It didn't take me long to decide that my oldest daughter would certainly enjoy the show. I'd taken her to The Fox as a 4 year old to see Cinderella. She was in awe of the building and the show as a young child. I just knew she'd love it and appreciate it even more now. Joining Nita and me will be my sister (and babysitter) Kristie as well as my best friend, Tonya, who has been so wonderful to me and to the kids during this whole medical fiasco. Of course we'll have to go out for dinner before the show!

So that's our exciting news for today! August 13th is the big day, so keep an eye out for pictures and a review of the evening. What a treat to forget about our daily grind and get to spend the night out on the town with three of the most incredible women in my life. God is good!

Until Tomorrow,

Kathy ... rosey cheeks, no warts