Who says old ladies can't keep up!?

Dr. Deb surprised us when she came to work one day sporting purple hair! She is a little worried, though, that the staff will now follow suit (our clinical assistant, Carrie has been wanting to get pink hair forever and Dr. Deb has always put the brakes on that!). Dr. Deb has brought new meaning to the phrase,"When I'm an old woman, I shall wear purple"!

Happy Holidays!

Ah, it's time to tell Santa what we really want. Justin officially does not have the look of shear terror, and Mei-Ling is calmly enjoying her time with the Big Guy. The Holidays this year with the kids is really great - they're at the age where the Elf on the Shelf works miracles, Herbie the dentist elf is a great role model, and tree decorating and all things Christmas have been really, really fun for all of us.
Happy Holidays! Cherish the ones you love.

The power of love and family

Family fall fun! My kids are shown helping my parents with some Fall clean up around the house. More than just helping their grandparents, they are enjoying their presence for a while. (I never get too old for mom's cooking either!) It always amazes me how much kids remember their family, even if they don't see each other all that often. The last time my folks were here was nearly 6 months ago. While the kids speak periodically with my parents, they never hesitate to miss them, ask for them, and love them like mad when they are here. The power of love and family - awesome.

Continuing Education

Dr. Deb and Dr. Diane are shown here with their study club, New England Orthodontic Study Club. In the rear and center is Dr. Tiziano Baccetti, a world reknown orthodontist and researcher, who presented a 2 day course on "The Orthodontic Management of Impacted Cuspids" and "Updates on Treatment Timing of Class II and Class III Patients." The docs hope to continue providing the best care with the latest information to their patients, and were thrilled to be able to start applying some of what they recently learned... In 2 weeks they attend the NESO conference in Boston with some of your dental providers to continue their ongoing education! Stay tuned.

Pumpkins,pumpkins, and moooore pumpkins!

Have you ever wondered where all the pumpkins come from for our annual pumpkin decorating contest (this is our 20th year!)? A farm delivers them to Dr. Deb’s house in huge cardboard crates on pallets and then she and her husband (she used to coerce her sons into doing this before they went to college!) divide them up into bushel baskets and load them into her car. It is really pleasant when a rotten pumpkin gets accidentally packed up and putrid pumpkin rot gets all over everything. Our team then schleps the baskets into the office. We develop big biceps in October so don’t be messin’ with us!!

Pumpkin Chuckin'?!?

Ok, you know when Fall is here! The mums are out, the cider is brewing, apples are being picked and polished, pumpkins are being carved..... AND tossed. Ever hear of Pumpkin Chukin'? Me neither (so don't feel so badly). Our dear friend's husband is competing in Delaware at a national Trebuche competition. Here we are at Trombley Farm test-firing the homemade, medieval device, which I understand aims to toss a pumpkin as far as it can. The Science Channel was even here interviewing his team! Good luck to our local entrants! Now off to pumpkin PICKING.

Pounding the Pavement

Here is a picture of a motley crew before we ran the 39th Annual Falmouth Road Race (it looks like we already ran the race…!) My 20 yo son, Steve and my husband, Steve (he pulled a fast one when our son was born but that is another story!) and I pounded the pavement for 7.2 miles from Woods Hole to Falmouth on August 14, 2011. I even shaved 3 minutes off my time from last year (trust me, that is not saying much!). Every year I tell myself, “I’m done. I hate training and I don’t even like running” and then I forget the pain (sort of like child birth) and sign up again….old age memory loss!

Natalie "For the love of clean teeth!"

Cleaning my teeth has been a new (and time consuming!) experience. As time has gone by I have become better and more efficient with my cleanings (practice really does make perfect!) I love the feeling of clean teeth; I think they’re actually cleaner now than they ever were before braces! I have to confess, I did try eating popcorn- totally not worth it! Accidentally chomping down on a kernel hurts and the hulls of the corn were stuck here, there, and everywhere under my brackets and under my gums! Never again! A plus to braces, I’ve lost weight! It has to really be worth it to go through my cleaning regimen after any indulgence!

The social hierarchy of the homo studentus universitatus

I have observed that the HSU species gathers in groups and their social hierarchy is complicated. When together the alpha males are attached to video game controllers, totally focused on annihilating their cyber enemies, others are mulling around playing pool, watching the alpha males make their kill, while others are ripping open bags of chips and making popcorn…what intriguing social structure. There is also a select few, usually the females of the group that are intent on rapid communication via texting on their cellular devices. I think they may be socially stunted but who am I to comment?

Dear God....please help my kids grow up to be socially capable and productive members of society (or I will have to change my last name!!)

Raspberries of Wrath...

Berry picking in the summer is filled with lots of laughs, yummy treats, and loads of berries to boot! Gotta watch the sun though! Here's my SPF 1000 son, who loves and insists on applying his own. I know that he will never burn on his face!

My daughter, however, was more content re-enacting a scene from Steinbeck's classic - Raspberries of Wrath, no wait, that was Grapes of Wrath... Same idea.

4th of July Fun!

July 4th in Amherst!

We were lucky to share some front row seats with close friends in the Village. The kids loved the Shriner's cars, and the militia even fired in front of us! Great to be Amherst citizens living with great history and tradition. Next year, we'll enter the bike parade!

I can't believe I've been in braces almost a month!

I can’t believe it; I’ve been in braces for three weeks! The first three days after they were placed, although my teeth were sore, I thought this is a piece of cake! But oh boy, after the third day my teeth started to feel like they were set in sponges and over time it started to feel more “spongy”! I could really feel the movement!



(Getting my braces on...the point of no return!)















(This is my daughter, Charlotte. She was by my side while I got my braces on.)



I recently went to visit my son in South Carolina. I ate something that I wasn't supposed to (lesson learned) and broke a bracket! No worries, I just secured it with some wax until I as able to get back to New Hampshire and have it clipped off.

(Did I mention that wax is my new best friend?)

Primate visitations...

I am the owner of two Homo studentus universitatus (HSU) primates who have migrated home for the summer. HSU is a social creature. I started seeing evidence of other primate visitations when I would get home from work at night ie soda cans lying about, multiple dirty dishes strewn about the sink (not in the sink or in the dishwasher), every light in the house on. They are also nocturnal. These and other primates seem to come and go all night. I’m not sure why they have to go to a 10:30 pm movie rather than a 7 pm one...

Dear God, please help your faithful daughter try to understand their unusual habits and not bite their heads off. Amen

Happy birthday to my precious little girl!

Where does the time go? My precious little girl just turned 4! It's wild thinking about how fast this has been and all the wonderful things she has learned - she's starting to read, learning how to write, and developing her independence... Her little brother is now 2 1/2 and really not so little, but he just loves her to pieces too. I'm so proud of her, and wish that time would slow down. Happy Birthday, Sweet One!

I can't believe I didnt shop!!

This year I attended the annual American Association of Orthodontics meeting in Chicago from May 14-16th. I had never been there before and wanted to experience as many Chicago highlights as possible.

This included: eating a deep dish pizza,

going to the top of the Hancock Tower,

riding the Ferris wheel at Navy Pier,

and going to the Chicago Institute of Art and visiting Millennium Park...

of course attending the meeting was also of paramount importance!! This left no time to shop on the Magnificent Mile (Michigan Ave)---always good to leave something on the table!

He's Baaaack!

He’s baaaack! The summer migration of the Homo studentus universitatus (HSU) has started. I am now lucky enough to have two HSUs! My husband traveled to Colgate University last weekend to collect our eldest. I opted to stay home and do laundry, go to the grocery store, weed, mulch …anything so as not to have to drive back 6 hours to NH with a car full of dirty laundry, moldy sneakers and unwashed popcorn bowls. When they pulled into the driveway, my husband bolted for the house without saying a word and the creature emerged from the car, wrinkled, unwashed, unshaven and full of hugs for his mom! This was the day before Mother’s Day and I have to say it was a really special gift (you can take this anyway you want!!). HSU #2 is coming home Wednesday…can't wait!

Funny What a Year Can Do!

Funny what a year can do! In 2009, you can see the nervousness and near terror on their faces! Maybe it was "Mall Santa" who's larger than life with all his helpers! This year, breakfast with Santa at the Amherst Newcomers' Club event seemed much calmer and relaxed... FYI, they asked for princess stuff and trucks!