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Monday, March 26th, 2012Saturday night, I sat in front of my computer searching our hard drive. I was on a mission to find photos of my parents. Yesterday, they celebrated their 39th anniversary and I had to find some pictures of them for the post. In my quest, I was side tracked a bit. Suddenly, I was sifting through photos from before I was married to TechyDad and WAY before we had the boys.
Just after TechyDad and I were engaged, we were invited to a celebration for Uncle M’s father’s 80th birthday. Here is a photo of TechyDad and I. This is just about two weeks after we were engaged.
My Mimi and Poppy were also there. Here is a photo of the four of us while at this dinner.
One other photo caught my eye. It was the two of us with three of my cousins. Hard to believe how we have all grown up. Everyone is out of college, on their own, and cousin AW was just married earlier this year.
Less than a year after these photos were taken, everyone was gathered again at our wedding. Hard to believe that it has been so long and some of these special people, like my Poppy are no longer with us. Thank goodness we captured these moments to remember and share with our kids.
These are just some of the pictures I came across the other night. Do you ever find yourself just sifting through old photos in books or digital ones on your computer?
Nana and Papa with the Grandkids
Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012
Putting My Family First Can Hurt
Tuesday, January 10th, 2012Guilt, sometimes it hits like a big freight train. This weekend, my extended family will all be together for a special reason and I will not be there. My first cousin is getting married and I am going to be home instead of doing the Horah in celebration.
Why, you ask?
I am putting my family first. For multiple reasons, going would not be a good choice for the four of us. No need to go into that here, those have been explained, discussed, and debated countless times over the last year. There is no doubt that I am hurting feelings, and I feel quite guilty about that. Still, I do hope that family members will forgive me and realize that I am being an adult and doing what is best for my children.
On the night of the wedding, I will sit and remember babysitting my cousin when he was little, going to his hockey games, and joking with him as he helped to paint our house. So many memories of watching him grow up into the man that he has become. Perhaps we will get some donuts to celebrate the event – I know Cousin A will get that reference. I wish both A and A a wonderful life ahead of them and much happiness in their new life as husband and wife. Although we will not be there in person, we will be with you in our hearts.
With that, I leave you with a song that seems fitting right now. The song is My Family by The Laurie Berkner Band. The song really hits home and seemed appropriate at this moment
When you’re in my heart, you’re in my family,
When I’m in your heart, I’m in your family.
When you’re in my heart, you’re in my family,
When I’m in your heart, I’m in your family!
Fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers,
Cousins, friends, sons and daughters,
Uncles, aunts, and grandparents
I’m so glad you’re my family!
Have you ever had to put your family first and miss a big family event like a wedding? I would love to hear from you and share in the comments below.
P.S. Many tears were shed in the typing of this post, but I still know it was the right decision for my family.
Bridal Shower Weekend Out West
Sunday, November 6th, 2011Hello from sitting at my brother’s house while away from the boys for the weekend. I went with my parents to a bridal shower for the soon to be bride of my first cousin. It has been a non-stop day filled with many memories. Here is the gorgeous cake:
Of course, I miss my boys, but seeing my niece and nephew and being able to play with them for a little while without distractions has been a different experience.
Now, I feel a little helpless. Poor TechyDad is home with the boys and JSL is not feeling 100%. Let’s just say that they had an exciting evening with carpet cleaning, medicine avoidance, and more. Hopefully everyone will get rest and I can give them all hugs when I get home on Sunday.
Bounce House Birthday Fun
Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
Birthday Cake Making Dreams
Monday, September 19th, 2011This weekend, we went to visit my brother and his family. My niece, SG, turned four on Saturday, so it was time for a birthday celebration. When we arrived, her cake was sitting on the dining room table. Check this out and guess the theme:
This gorgeous cake was made by a co-worker of my sister-in-law. Here is her business card in case you happen to live out in western NY.
Not only are Molly’s Cakes delicious, her work is gorgeous. She also worked around a slight complication for my niece. SG is highly allergic to eggs. As you can probably guess, this can make baked goods complicated. We make cupcakes with no-egg substitute in them for birthdays to allow her to enjoy what everyone else is eating. Molly made SG’s top layer of the cake with no egg. It was a pumpkin cake. The bottom two layers had chocolate and vanilla with egg. Oh and the fondant was a new kind that she was testing. While I did not try any, others raved about it.
Did you guess the theme of the party? Here’s a little more decorations to help you out:
Here is a photo of the cake with the cute little toppers added right before everyone enjoyed the cake:
The birthday girl seemed very happy with her layer. Check her out with her cloud cake layer.
Of course, seeing SG’s cake made me realize how much I would still love to take a Wilton Cake Decorating class. They are given at several of the local craft stores. One of these days, I may. I think I am ready to explore with fondant, but then again – I really love my piping fun with cupcakes.
Happy 8th Birthday NHL
Wednesday, August 17th, 2011Dear NHL,
I can not believe that you are already eight years old. It seems like yesterday that Daddy and I were in the store picking out your crib. Then, we brought you home and suddenly you grew up before our eyes.
So much has happened in the last year. Some were amazing, while others ones I wish we could have shielded you from. No matter what, you will learn and grow and have survived these bumps in the road of life.
Now let’s take a walk down memory lane at the last year – NHL at 7.
After your last birthday, you really started to enjoy using the Nintendo Wii, and, with time, the DS. Daddy and I allowed you to try your new games and often your little brother watched on in amazement. Of course, now he’s starting to get some of the Wii games thanks to you helping him. (August 2010)
Second grade, well it proved to be a challenging year. Academically, there was no issues for you. Sad to say, it will probably be the year we hope to forget. Rather than dwell on the drama that included switching schools, let’s recall the happy times. Just after the year started, we went up to the lake for a big extended family weekend. You were so thrilled to drive the boat with Uncle M. (September 2010)
Much of October was filled with preparing for Halloween. You were thrilled to be Luigi again since your love of all things Super Mario was really getting started. (October 2010)
Thanksgiving this year was even more special thanks to Uncle I, Aunt M, and cousins SG and BA coming. This meant celebrating Chanukah a little earlier. I think your favorite part was often reading to the little kids. I loved one of your gifts – your new Thing 1 shirt. You may not remember this, but when JSL was born Daddy and I used to call both of you by those names. (November 2010)
December found us keeping busy with Chanukah, snow, and a fun outing. We all went to see Toy Story 3 on Ice. You loved the entire show and could not wait to see Lotso. It was a magical family outing that we all needed with special time together. (December 2010)
Snow, snow, and more snow greeted us in January. There were several days that school was canceled. This was also the time that I gave you my old laptop to use. You adored playing math games and more on it. I think your favorite snow day was the one where we never got our of our pajamas and stayed warm playing games. (January 2011)
February brought us even more snow and a lot of ice. At a certain point, even you were getting sick of it. Of course, since you were 7, you liked to play outside, build, and try to keep warm. By the end of the month, we were all dreaming of our upcoming trip to Florida. (February 2011)
The magical month of March arrived just in time for a much needed escape from life here in NY. We were lucky enough to be able to go to the second Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. You certainly showed that you are a NDK (Neurotic Disney Kid) and enjoyed every minute wanting to know when we could go back again. Seeing the joy in your face and the stress melt away was beyond magical. I think the highlight for you was meeting Beast since you had been begging for that moment for months. (March 2011)
The snow finally melted away and some warmer weather came to stay. You adored the times when we could head to the park and run around without a worry in the world. Of course, it also allowed you time to be silly in front of the camera. (April 2011)
Much of May was spent getting used to new things. A new school, your little brother turning four, and heading to the circus. You were fascinated with the circus clowns, animals, and acts in general. May was definitely a month where we turned things around and started to see the light at the end of the second grade tunnel. (May 2011)
Lots of things were going on in June. The end of the month officially made you a third grader. Much to our surprise, you were so sad to see things end at your new school. It made my heart so happy that you liked the new place where you learned so much in a short time. We also found a new favorite ice cream location. Yes, we met Nana and Papa there for lunch a few times and we were ok with that. (June 2011)
This summer, we have kept busy going to crafting events. You really do enjoy trying new crafts, as well as learning new things at the library’s passport program. Different countries, lizards, t-shirt making, and more thanks to our travels. Of course, the summer would not be complete without time under the water at the fun new park we found.
Suddenly, it is August again and the end of being a seven year old. You now love chapter books, are into Harry Potter (with a crush on Hermione), and are determined to finish and win DS games. You are a big helper, especially when it comes to your littlest cousin. You loved spending your birthday party weekend helping him around the park and other locations. (August 2011)
With tears in my eyes, I honestly find it hard to believe that you are already eight. You start third grade in a few short weeks. Getting to really watch you and spend time being creative with you this summer has taught me so much. I look forward to watching you grow, learn even more, and become the person you want to be. With some help, I hope that Daddy and I can make it more stress free and fun this year. I truly hope that your dreams and wishes come true and you have an amazing year – you deserve it!
Love,
Mommy
The Yankees Stink Shirt
Saturday, August 13th, 2011Dear JSL,
Yesterday morning, I had to bribe you a little bit. It was Papa’s birthday and I wanted you to try to make him smile. As you know, he’s not really into the smiling thing. Case in point:
Anyway, there is a shirt that Uncle I bought NHL when he was little. The shirt is not exactly loved by Daddy. He does allow one of you to wear it on special occasions for Papa. This morning, I pulled it out, but you were not really into wearing it. So I bribed you. Lucky for me, you asked for some lemonade with breakfast. DONE! Here you are wearing the shirt at Hoffman’s.
I think the problem with wearing this shirt is that you get a lot of attention. Seeing that we live in NY, a Yankees Stink shirt either gets a lot of glares, or laughter from Red Sox fans in the area. Of course, this didn’t phase you too much. You liked people looking, smiling, and giving you attention. Plus, you were busy being a big helper on the rides with cousin BA.
Then, you were thrilled to go again, leading the way with BA in the back driving solo.
Of course, during this time NHL was on the roller coaster with Uncle I. You did not quite get what a big deal it was that they were in the front row.
What impressed me even more was you also went on a ride you were not too sure about. Rides up high seem to get you scared. Cousin SG wanted to go on one with you. After chatting a bit, you agreed to try it. You can tell you were not thrilled here.
Then, while you were whirling around above, I heard giggles. Yes, you were laughing and smiling while flying with cousin SG for your last ride of the day.
Of course, you probably thought the ice cream that came right after this – rainbow sprinkles and all was another part of the bribe.
Thank you for being such a big boy. You helped Papa smile and you made me so very proud by being such a big helper.
Love,
Mommy
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CowParade Las Vegas – 2002
Wednesday, August 10th, 2011
Quick note about this week’s Wordless Wednesday. Photos were taken in Las Vegas throughout the city during the 2002 CowParade exhibit. We had countless other photos on TechyDad’s digital camera. Unfortunately, that camera was stolen on our way home in the airport (right off my back). These were pictures that I took and scanned with my now dated film camera. Wandering and seeing all of the CowParade pieces was amazing in itself.
Learning About Niagara Falls
Thursday, July 7th, 2011When NHL heard that we were going to visit my brother and his family, he was excited to hear that we were thinking about going to see Niagara Falls. Although he had been to the Canadian side of the falls years ago, he had no memory of this.
As the trip got closer NHL kept asking questions and telling us things about Niagara Falls. You see, at NHL’s new school, they learned about the falls. My son was like an encyclopedia of knowledge telling us one thing after another.
As we were driving toward Niagara State Park, he asked if the water we saw was the Niagara River. He was fascinated with the water under the bridge. Then, as we walked into the park, he noted how quickly the water was flowing.
First, we looked at the American Falls and he was blown away with the beauty, just standing there and taking it all in.
Of course, NHL was really interested in the Maid of the Mist boats across the water. We promised him that another time we would take him on this.
Then, it was time to head over to see the Horseshoe Falls. These really had NHL’s attention. He thought it was funny getting cold water misted by the water.
He also liked the view of the Skylon Tower. Yes, this was another item he had learned about in school. It made him so happy when TechyDad mentioned taking a photo of him with the Skylon in back. Here he is posing with Cousin SG.
Have you ever been amazed by something your child has learned at school? I would love to know.
Summer memories and learning are something I recall from my childhood. I hope to continue this tradition and Niagara Falls was just the start.
Other recent posts about Niagara Falls:
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