The Girls

Me and Sue with our mother at Sand Hill Cove beach in RI. That's me on the back corner of the blanket, and that's Sue in the foreground, working on a Sugar Daddy. 1957.

Easter Sunday in front of "the yellow bushes," 1958.

Another Easter Sunday on the front steps of 256 Maple Street, 1960.

My 8th birthday party, March 16th, 1962. Sue and I had matching Kelly Green corduroy jumpers with green and white gingham checked blouses, to go with the shamrock theme...

Yet another Easter Sunday in front of "the yellow bushes." 1963.

Hey, we had different pins at least, and Sue, the maverick, added that sky blue stretchy headband to the ensemble...
1964.

Susie and Martha with baby sister, Amy. 1965.

Matching sweatshirts, different shades...

Martha and Susie on Easter Sunday in front of, you guessed it, "the yellow bushes," not quite in bloom yet...

Ok, the yellow bushes. And Easter. Again. But now we are daring to dress in different outfits (although I do remember that I had that same outfit that Sue is wearing - just chose not to wear it that day...)

1965.

Branching out with big brother Steve,1966.

Wow. Totally on my own now, and what a look! My Grandmother always knit those slippers for all of us at Christmastime. Christmas Eve, 1969.

Susan (with our brother, Ken) on her own now, as well. Check out those Marcia Brady kneesocks! 1969.

Me and Sue with our big sister Debby, and Deb's former husband, summer of 1971.

Sue and me on my wedding day in June of 1976. She was my maid of honor.

Martha and Susan, summer of 1985.

Susan and Martha, Fall 2008.

I received this last picture in the mail recently. It was taken by my brother Kenny at my daughter Kaitlyn's wedding this past September. This is my sister Susan and me. When I saw this photo it brought back a flood of memories of other photos taken of us over the years. I have many of my father's old photo albums and perhaps this post is the start the family website we've had on the back burner. I grew up in a family of six - I was fourth and Susan was fifth. We are 13 months apart and have always been very close. Our other siblings had more separate identities. But Sue and I were always referred to as "the girls" or as Martha and Susie, or Susie and Martha. Our two names were always spoken together like you'd say ham and eggs or horse and carriage (those are the first two pairs that come to my mind...hmmm......)

Anyhow, we were dressed alike as you can see and we were side by side from the time Susan was born. Except for a few squabbles here and there, we've always gotten along famously. We are both artists, we both have Leo moons, and we have alot of quirky connections like twins reportedly experience. And we have that thing that happens when we can't remember what happened to who. For instance, to this day Susan swears that I was the one who got molested by that awful boxer dog on our paper route, and she was the one who ran home to get our big brothers to come help. But I say, No way! That happened to Sue!

There are many interesting Martha and Susie stories - perhaps one day we'll write a book together, eh, Sue?