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Laura Lipari, Author Part XVIII Children

Children

Vivian, my daughter, had two rows of curl and she used to put up such a fight in the morning when she was younger! I finally got so mad I took the scissors and cut them! At first I would pin the hair and comb the curls at the bottom, then comb the curls at the top. Black and heavy! Her eyes too, big black eyes! They’re still big, but they’re not like how they were. Just like my sister Virginia, she had eyes so big I used to call them cow eyes. My brother had blue eyes until he was about four or five, then they turned gray, he had marvelous gray eyes. I have hazel eyes. My son Tom had blue eyes when he was a baby. I had asked them to take a picture, but never got one in the hospital. He was considered a beautiful baby. He had blue beautiful eyes! I remember I was out in California when he was born and I had gotten special permission to go in and see the babies. I went and I looked for his name and I saw “Lipari” and I was so thrilled! He was the prettiest one there. He was gorgeous, it’s too bad Laura never got those pictures! The most beautiful of all of them was Charles, Charles was so handsome! I had people come and ask me if I would give him up–right there! They said they would pay for all the hospital bills and give me $1,000! I told that to my husband and he said, “What?! Give my baby away? I wouldn’t take a million dollars for him!” He once told me that he didn’t want the babies, any of them, but now that they are here, Nobody could take them. He wanted them all.  He didn’t want to have kids, but I did. I didn’t want five! I thought two would be enough, but I got five. John, Charles, and Myriam were born in Sicily and Vivian and Tom were both born in Riverside, California. Tom spent a lot of money on his children. I told him he was spoiling his children but he told me if he had more money that he would spend all of it on his kids! He told me, “Mom, right now I have the money. Wouldn’t it be terrible when I got older if I didn’t have the money? At least at this one time I could be generous with my kids, I will do all I can.” He loves his children so much. The baby he spanked the most was Desiree, she was so difficult. I remember she made me carry her from the plaza in Corona, California all the way to the house. I was so exhausted! She wouldn’t walk and cried when I put her down. My daughter Vivian is a great teacher. When she graduated from high school she received straight A’s. Then when she graduated from college she received straight A’s! I thought my son, Tom, and her would be attorneys and have their own firm. They would have been the best attorneys in Cleveland! Every Sunday when the children were younger we ate in the dining room with my sister’s fancy candles and china. We would have lunch and dinner, just the family, in the house every Sunday. We all talked and had a good time. Well one night my daughters, Myriam and Vivian, got into an “enlightened conversation” and finally Myriam said, “You’re right! You’re right!” to Vivian. We never interrupted them in their discussion, but finally we thought it was over after that. So we looked at Vivian expecting her to end it but she responded to Myriam and said, “But do you know why I’m right?” She just couldn’t drop it! Between all of us after that point, when we had an argument, we would say, “But do you know why I’m right?” To this very day I truly insist if Tom and Vivi had a law firm, they would be the best in Cleveland! Once Vivian starts she won’t stop and Tom doesn’t take a back seat to anything!