Family | Peaches Prattlings

{December 18, 2017} My dad rocks and my sister has an anniversary!

I think you already know I think my dad is awesome, but I’m gonna tell you again! So there!

Today, I had to mail out those packages I told you about yesterday and we were at the post office and as I’m writing some addresses, a woman comes in, looks to be about my age and is grinning like a Cheshire cat and I look over and she says quietly, I think I know him! He looks so familiar! I smile and then I look at my dad and tell him what she said. They look at each other and all of a sudden, the light bulb is going off over both their heads! And the recognition is starting to creep in.

First, where did you go to high school, that wasn’t it, she didn’t go to the school he taught at. Then they both start to talk sports, high school sports that is and all of a sudden, he said soccer and they both said basketball! She was on a rival school’s girls basketball team that my dad was coaching! She is now a teacher and the basketball coach at my old high school. They started going down memory lane, ‘you played with so and so’, ‘you were great’.

I have to tell you, all I did was stand there, addressing my envelopes and grinning from ear to ear and my chest swelling with pride! I love when people see my dad and get excited. And he remembers so much about his days as a coach and the people he coached and or coached against, and what a coach he was! Boys basketball for a minute, girls tennis for a minute, then girls basketball and soccer.

He was a such great coach, as evident by the Facebook friends in his former players, the things people say when they meet him, the glint and gleam they get in their eye. It tickles me so much, I am so proud of him and to be his daughter. Like I needed another reason!

On to the next great thing happening today, my sister and brother-in-law are celebrating their thirteenth wedding anniversary today! I remember the day I met ACS, had no idea what would blossom and develop and a few years later I would be standing up next to my sister as her matron of honor and a minute there would be a bundle of joy and love and light called EJS and three minutes later there would be a fireball of love and goofiness and wonder and now thirteen years later I would be sitting here, wishing them a very happy anniversary.

What a fantastic couple they are, standing by each other, with each other and for each other and you know my family has been through some shite over the last few years. They have stuck together and stuck it out, through thick and thin, as they say and whatever adversity has thrown their way, they have smacked it straight out of the park, but what’s most important is they did it together.

I’ll never forget way back in the beginning when we were all sitting at the table in my parents kitchen and ACS said something and GES zinged him but good! I was so proud and ACS was thrown and thought it was great! My sister, so cute, still in the honeymoon phase apologized! What?! Nooo! you don’t apologize for a good zing, you go with it! Today, they have fun and zing each other left and right and I love watching it because most of the time, they can’t keep a straight face when they do it!

They welcome everyone and anyone into their home as if they are family and they pretty much become family instantly. You come into their home and it’s welcoming and warm and you feel like you can prop your feet up on a chair or chill out and take a nap on the sofa and no one would say boo. I’ve told you about the holidays and parties and get-togethers, once you attend one, you have an open invitation to the next and so on. This is a life they built together and it’s fabulous to see.

Here we are thirteen years of marriage later and they are as strong as ever and and I am looking forward to watching the next thirteen and the next and the next to see how much more fabulous they can become, I have a feeling they are going to be a force to be reckoned with, wait, that’s what they are now. I can’t wait to see what’s next!

Happy anniversary GES and ACS. I love you both very much.

{December 17, 2017} Two days, two cities, two friends, two family members, one feeling

Joy!

Yesterday, I got to spend the afternoon with a friend and tonight I got to spend the evening with another and it was divine! Pure joy! Yup, that about covers it!

Yesterday morning, I got up and headed into the city. Now, when you’re from NYC and you don’t live in Manhattan, when you say you’re ‘going into the city’ that means into Manhattan. I needed to clarify that because a few years ago talking to someone, when I said I was going into the city, they thought that meant I was going into the town we lived in.

I got put together, headed down to the Staten Island Ferry, found a place to park and grabbed the shuttle, then waited with everyone else and got on the ferry, found a place to sit and took in the sights and sounds. The people, all walks of life and different reasons for traveling this vessel. Some people just take the ferry back and forth between Staten Island and Manhattan, it’s a lovely trip and it’s free! It was fifty cents at one time, but that was a very long time ago. You used to be able to take your car on the ferry, that cost money, but now, it’s just people.

You get a great view of the NYC skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Everyone crowds around to see Lady Liberty and then people gather on the deck before docking, to see the skyline as it gets closer. It’s also beautiful at night, so peaceful. I love seeing the tourists clamoring to take pictures, it’s fun.

Off the ferry to meet CWB, what are the odds, last minute trip for me into NYC and she’s going to be at her husband’s family for a holiday dinner, perfect! They drove in, she took the train to meet me and we had lunch, walked, did some damage at Old Navy, go figure! They were having an amazing sale you couldn’t pass up! I got a new hat and glove set and then a hat/glove/scarf set, too cute for words and CWB got a scarf and hat set, were adorable. Are adorable! Oh! On the way to wherever, we passed Kleinfeld’s! Do you watch ‘Say Yes to the Dress’?! This is Kleinfeld’s in NYC!!! OMG! Now I know where it is!

Then…we were passing by Goodwill and saw a bag we both loved so… we bought the bag together and we’re going to share it! That means we have to see each other at least every year and bring the bag with us! Our own version of the traveling pants! Ha ha!

How could I forget, we walked a little ways up and found a Christmas Market! I so love Christmas Markets! There were shops and shops and more shops of all shapes and sizes, well, the shape and sizes were the same, but the contents all different! Jewelry, cards, kids stuff, holiday stuff, food, gifts, you name it! And crowded and wonderful and just what we love! Sigh!

What an amazing time we had, we’ve known each other for so many years, we figured since about 1981! Yes, gasp, oh my! Since we started in middle school and we saw each other through so much! And as things happen, we went in separate directions and thank goodness for Facebook, reconnected so many years ago with passing contact and a visit and then…sometime in the last year or so ago, seriously reconnected and here we are, thick as thieves! We need more of these visits!

Back to the ferry, wow, the subway train and stations were really clean, I don’t remember that from childhood! I got the ferry and as I was walking to the terminal, I saw a merry go round of fish made of sea glass, it was so cool! Don’t you think?!

On the ferry, a nice ride and then I walked to the Winter Wonderland at the Staten Island Yankee Stadium. It’s a winter festival with pop-up shops, games, Santa, a skating rink, slides, music, an ice bar and food. What more could you want. This was definitely something that would be more fun with friends, well, more fun with little kids, but it was still fun to walk around and take it all in. Perfect winter night out with the family!

And…as I walked around, I heard something that told me it’s Christmas season. Bruce Springsteen singing “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town!” Until I hear that, I never feel it’s Christmas. Ahh…

Then it was time to find my car, get some food, Chinese restaurant I haven’t eaten at in years! Then head home to watch Christmas movies, wrap gifts to ship out! Be on the lookout friends and family, packages are on their way! I should have taken a picture of the pile, it was impressive!

Today, I got up, finished wrapping some gifts, attempted to go to see Star Wars, but it was sold out, so back to the house and surprise visit from ‘Mr & Mrs The Bs’. It was great. I’ve known them since I was a kid, I’ve told you about them and you might remember, they are LBK’s parents. We caught up, laughed, talked family, travel, work, well, work for me, they’re both retired

After they left, I ran some errands and eventually went out to meet HW, a fabulous friend from middle and high school, for dinner. We had the best time, talking, laughing, being completely goofy. We talked family, kids, nieces, grandkids, love, life, the pursuit of happiness, travel. Hmm..anything we didn’t talk about? No, don’t think so.

We couldn’t believe how long we’ve known each other either, since 1981, what the heck! I actually met both CWB and HW at the same middle school. I have to say, I’m so glad my parents got a variance to send me to that school! She is funny, fabulous, full of life, piss and vinegar, sass, you name it. Could be why we get along, oh yeah, she’s a red head! Natural though! Ok, so maybe I’m a little jealous of that one!

And again, thank you to Facebook for reconnecting us, I really am thankful, we were good friends in high school and as adults, different relationships, but when I come back home, she’s one of the first people I think of to try to see.

Then it was home and I was going to do something and ended up talking to DLP for a few hours! What a day I had! I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings! Keep you posted!

{December 13, 2017} Happy Chanukah 2017

Tonight at sundown, we begin to celebrate the Festival of Light, also known as Chanukah.

You might also know it as Hanukkah, however you say it or spell it, the meaning is the same. This is the festival of lights, a great miracle happened here. Let’s talk about the miracle.

When Antiochus IV was in power, he took to less than pleasant activities towards the Jews and the desecration of the temple. When the Jews went in to the temple for the rededication, they found enough oil to light the lamps for one night and a great miracle happened there and the oil burned for eight nights!

And that, my friends, is why we celebrate Chanukah for eight nights, why we call it the Festival of Light and why treats that are traditional are fried in oil. There is a theme here!

Oh, the treats! Potato latkes, you might know them as potato pancakes. There are different ways they can be made, regular potato, sweet potato, with scallions, served with apple sauce or sour cream. The Sufganiyah, the fried jelly donut covered in powdered sugar. Anything fried, it’s the frying in the oil that’s important.

We play games, like dreidel, it’s a square top with Hebrew letters. We play for matchsticks, candy, gelt, which are chocolate coins. The traditional explanation of this game is that during the time of Antiochus’ oppression, those who wanted to study Torah (an illegal activity) would conceal their activity by playing gambling games with a top (a common and legal activity) whenever an official or inspector was within sight. Each letter tells you how much you’re going to get out of the pot or have to add to the pot.

The magical part of Chanukah? The tradition of lighting the candles in the menorah. Now, all menorahs are different, some are more traditional, some even use oil to keep very much with tradition. The important thing are the prayers, lighting the candles from right to left, one candle added for each night. There are nine candles, one for each night and the shammus, this candle lights all the others and it is set either slightly away from the others, higher from the others, you just know this is the candle to light the others.

And yes, there are gifts, but that is not what’s important about the holiday. Gift giving is at each person’s discretion. As kids, our big family gift was tickets to see The Nutcracker Ballet at Lincoln Center in New York City. Then we would get little things each night, just something to open, but it is a nice sight to see the menorahs lit, the gifts lined or piled up and family playing together and really just spending the time together, that is what is most important, knowing what the holiday is about and enjoying in each other’s company.

My family has a few menorahs, my favorite family menorah, one that was made by a family friend, HT, it’s hand made and it looks like his arms are stretched out with the holes for the candles in each arm. I have my own collection of menorahs, I can’t wait to get them out of storage one day! Oh, when I have them all lit up, what a glow and feeling of love and warmth.

Oh, one more tradition, my mom would read us one story each night from The Power of Light, stories by Issac Bashevis Singer. As adults, GES and I realized some of these stories are not that happy, but they are important and my favorite, The Parakeet Named Dreidel.

When young David and Mama and Papa are celebrating Hanukkah one frosty winter evening in Brooklyn, Papa sees a parakeet sitting on the window ledge. He lets the parakeet in and everyone is delighted to find that it speaks Yiddish. They name it Dreidel and it becomes part of their family. Many years later, when David is in college, he is at a party one night and tells Dreidel’s story―only to discover that Zelda, a young woman at the party, owned the bird herself as a child. Papa and Mama are worried that they will have to give their beloved pet back, but then David and Zelda decide to get married after college, and everyone agrees that they should take Dreidel with them as they start their own family. Isn’t that wonderful?

I hope you’ve enjoyed my wonderful holiday of Chanukah, maybe one day you’ll celebrate and light the lights with me!

Chag Sameach!

{December 8, 2017} Paper, I recommend paper!!!

I am tired of doing dishes! Only paper!!

I say that every time I am washing dishes! Argh! And the reason I am washing so many dishes is that the dishwasher is broken and it turns out we are waiting is our landlord. When PSM reported that the dishwasher was broken, the owner wanted to know what we did to break it, “I barely used the dishwasher, what did they do?” Seriously?

PSM and I are both landlords and know when something breaks at our respective houses, we talk to the management company about what happened and who to send out to fix it. We don’t ask what the tenant did, unless it’s something that sounds absolutely crazy, not general wear and tear on a house.

So, that being said, every time we cook, we have to wash the dishes. Now, when PSM is here by himself, he doesn’t use a lot of dishes, it’s just cooking for one and I’m the same way when I’m on my own, probably use the same dish, spoon and cup, so to speak.

With me being home and cooking every day, I’m cooking for two, some of the dishes have been quite simple, but others have required multiple pots, pans, spoons, measuring utensils and then of course, we have to serve the food on something!

I have enjoyed every minute, getting to create new things, come up with something creative or just the simple and cooking for PSM and sharing meals with him. It really has been great and makes me want to be in the kitchen more often, so I think that tells you why cooking when I’m on the road is a treat.

But…no more dirty dishes! Paper plates please! Of course I don’t think of the paper plates until I am washing dishes again! Drat!

Is that the water running? Nooooooo!

{November 29, 2017} An early flight, a canyon and an opinion

The day started way early, but we had an adventure to get to! SDL, Miss A and I were going to Kauai! Miss A had this strong desire to see lots of roosters and chickens, how could we deny her!? 430am wake up on vacation seems excessive, but the traffic on Oahu can be horrible, especially at 5am, which is rush hour. But we made it in plenty of time to get a snack and watch the sunrise. Then it was time to board our 40 minute flight and have an adventure! We got to the car rental desk and upgraded for a jeep. So, here is where my opinion comes in… I’ll stick with a convertible! We had a few circumstsnces that made me think this. It’s a two door jeep, which makes it tougher getting a child in and out of the back seat, I’m sure with a four door it would be different. And the window and back flaps were not that cooperative, especially when it started raining! I really enjoyed driving it and it was esay getting up the canyon drive. I did miss having the top down, but after the trouble with the flaps, we weren’t taking a chance with the top, especially since rain was in our future! SDL had a jeep in the past, she said it was much easier. I’ll take my 13 second up/ down beetle convertible top any day! We got in the jeep, headed to the hotel to drop our bags and started out for the Waimea Canyon Drive. They say that The Waimea Canyon is the Grand Canyon of Hawaii and when you see it, you get it! You can really see it as you go up and up and up, amazing!it We stopped along the way at some of the scenic overlooks, and they were true to their name, scenic and overlooking the canyon. We saw rock faces and formations, waterfalls, foliage and so much more! Spectacular! Even the second time! A few times, the three of us got out, walked around and took pictures, other times, just SDL, Miss A and I admired from the jeep. We drove up the canyon, it’s close to 30 miles up into the mountains to the top. We got out at a few of the state parks to walk around and get up to the overlooks there. It truly is spectacular. And Miss A walked them all, like a champ! We didn’t take the stroller out once today, awesome! After we viewed the canyon, we drove back down the Waimea Canyon Drive into Waimea, had some lunch at a local Thai stand with all the chickens and roosters. We were going to go to Ke’e beach, but it was getting late and the sun would be going down in about two hours, when we got to the beach. We took a chance and got on the road. Guess what happened…the sky opened up! So…rain makes for a different experience! We stopped at Kauai Harley Davidson, https://www.kauaiharley.com/, for a gift for Miss A’s bus driver and a photo with the Hawaiian hog! Then a stop at the famous Hilo Hattie’s, a Hawaiian staple, unfortunately had gone under a few years ago and then a few shops have popped up and here was one! SDL had great memories of shopping at Hilo Hattie’s years ago, as did I when I first visited Hawaii. https://www.hilohattie.com/ Each time we walked into or out of a store, we were running through the raindrops, ok, let’s be real, we were dashing through the deluge! A quick stop at Walmart for some rain ponchos was just the thing! Luckily, the rain stopped when we went in and when we came out! Imagine us getting Miss A into the jeep in the rain! At Hilo Hattie’s we decided to put the windows back on, um… that was fun! But we would be dry! All that matters! So, raining hard, we went back to the hotel, dinner for Miss A, SDL and I ordered Italian and ate on the sofa while Miss A crashed out. What a day! What’s in store for tomorrow?!

{November 28, 2017} I’m home and it’s date night!

It’s Monday, and after a great week and weekend, it was time to head home and away I went!

I boarded my first flight, settled in, connected to WiFi and started working. I worked and watched movies on both my flights, even caught a few zzzz’s, could be why I’m wide awake at 10:17pm Pacific Island time!

PSM was able to meet me at the airport, it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other, just about 36 hours! On the way home, we decided we would get some dinner and then see a movie.

So, off to the movie theater complex and went to Gyu-Koku, Japanese BBQ, a few tasty treats for dinner and then a movie! We went to see Justice League and we both loved it!

Tomorrow, I’ll tell you all about the movie, but right now, I think I need to pass out! I just sat down and my body is telling me what time it thinks it is!

That being said, have a great night!

{November 24, 2017} Thanksgiving is over…right?

Nope! Ha ha!

Thanksgiving was yesterday, here we are on Friday, most people are maybe tightening their belts again after their Thanksgiving meals yesterday and some people are black Friday shopping. No thanks.

Ok, I can’t say that completely. We have PSM’s family Chanukah party tomorrow and we need gifts for all the kids, uh oh. But first…

I need to prep a turkey! I know, you’re like what? Aren’t you vegan JJ? Yup! The vegan is prepping the turkey! The family seems to love my champagne turkey, I’ve been doing it for years! Super simple recipe [1 stick of butter, cubed, under the skin, 2 apples halved, in the cavity, 1 tbsp garlic powder, put the turkey in a roasting bag, cover with 1 bottle of champagne, seal the bag, cook for about 3-31/2 hours at 350 and fall off the bone, moist turkey, enjoy!]

And I’ll explain about the turkey in a moment. As the turkey is cooking, I took a shower and then ran out to Five Below, a fabulous store where everything is five dollars or below, https://www.fivebelow.com/. It’s better than the dollar store, pretty good stuff and I found something for everyone.

Back to the house, check on the turkey and spend time with the folks who have shown up. And what are they here for? Thanksgiving round two! GES’ b-i-l and s-i-l spend Thanksgiving with AS’ family and on Friday, they come to GES’ house for another Thanksgiving celebration. We were joined by J&E K, their kids and EJS had a friend over as well. I think there may have been more food than at the two meals yesterday! Crazy! What a wonderful afternoon spent with friends and family, the celebration and love continued.

After lunch, PSM and I headed out to K&D N’s house for an evening ‘with the gang’. K&D N and their kids, SC, S&B B and their kids, G&J B and their kids and there are always extra kids there or coming with the other families, it’s fabulous. There was food, drink, laughter, catching up and a few games of Pitch. This is a card game I was told I’d played before, but I don’t remember! But I will now! Apparently, I did alright, probably beginners luck, but I’m game to try again!

What a fun evening! Then it was back to GES’ house, I needed to make a quiche for tomorrow and wrap presents, we have the family Chanukah party tomorrow!

What a great day!

{November 23, 2017} I’m Thankful For…

It’s Thanksgiving 2017 and don’t we have so much to be thankful for? I do! Where do I start?

There is so much to be thankful for, every day we should be thankful, I know am, but it’s interesting that we almost boil it down to one day, but that’s not even true, is it? It’s more like we boil it down to one day to shout it from the rooftops! We are all thankful in some small way each and every day, but may not express it to everyone. Today, we feel the gratitude well up in our hearts and want to share it with everyone and that’s why we gather together with friends and family to tell them how we feel and that’s what I’m going to do with you now!

How did you spend your Thanksgiving holiday? For me, typical, ha ha. Got up, spent a little time with the family before EJS, dad and ACS went off to the local high school for the big Thanksgiving rivalry football game. Now, this is what I call a rivalry, it’s been going on since 1882! Now, that is something! They came back at half time, apparently, the visitors were sitting in the shade and in Boston, in the fall/winter cusp, pretty cold!

GES, PSM, MGS and I had a nice breakfast of eggs and home made waffles, GES was prepping for what she needed for Thanksgiving dinner at S&T S’s house. GES and I talked about what to cook for tomorrow’s second Thanksgiving lunch with ACS’ brother and sister-in-law. Then…

PSM and I went to visit his family, first stop, was to meet his mom, aunt and grandparents in two lovely cemeteries, not far from my sister’s house. It was a nice tribute and a special time for both of us. He tries to visit at least once a year and he is faithful about it and this year, I was able to join him and visit their graves and hear wonderful stories, I was honored that he asked me to join him.

The next stop was his brother, SM’s house. There, it was several families for appetizers, then some of the family go to their aunt’s sister’s house and the rest of us stayed for a nice meal. His brother doesn’t care for turkey, so there is chicken and brisket. I had plenty to eat, don’t you worry! A great time talking, catching up, laughing and just enjoying each other’s company.

A few hours later, we left to go to S&T S’s house for their Thanksgiving dinner. My sister hosts the Jewish holidays and TS host Thanksgiving and wow! Do you see the cornucopia she made? And the Oreo turkeys? They have little kids, so it’s always fun to see what cute treats they are going to come up with each year. We always arrive at the tail end of dinner, just in time for a taste of the meal, then clean up, we seem to time that just right, hmmm. Then chatting and then dessert, sounds good to me! More laughing, talking, catching up, enjoying each other’s company.

Oh yeah, of course there was some football thrown in, along with Arlo Guthrie’s Alice’s Restaurant. This is a Thanksgiving staple and I don’t feel the holiday is complete without it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m57gzA2JCcM

After dessert, eventually it was time to clean up and head home. Jammies, games with the girls, movies and bed. I think that is a full day.

Now, since I’ve told you about my day, I want to tell you what I am thankful for and I hope you will indulge me for a moment.

I am thankful for a job that I love that affords me the opportunity to learn new things, explore strange new worlds, to boldly go…just wanted to see if you were paying attention. Thankful that it gives me the opportunity to travel to see friends and family and explore new places. It’s brought people into my life who I value and now regard as friends.

To my friends who are my family, I am so thankful that you allow me to be a part of your lives, to accept me for who and what I am, and I know it can be trying at times, but you don’t throw it back in my face and hope you know I value and love you more than I could ever say.

My friends in Georgia, who make time for me when I come to visit, do you have any idea how amazing that is for me? The fact that we have stayed friends after I moved away, is a testament to the bonds we formed so many years ago and I cannot imagine my life without you in it. Actually, I refuse!

I am so thankful to have a group of people in my life that have stayed with me and reunited with me after the thing that brought us together is in the past. I have my kids, who I reconnected with after a very long time, who love me and make me feel welcome and loved. I knew the minute I met them that I wanted them in my life and I was lucky to help raise them and the memories they have. And that they want to spend time with me, now, that’s the real bonus!

My son, WCH, who is as wonderful, special and goofy, as ever, has brought a girl into his life and now mine who I am looking forward to getting to know better. My daughter, TYL, a bright, fabulous woman and amazing mother, has given me a grandson I get to spend time with, love on and spoil with hugs and kisses, what could be better!

KAB and CS, who first made me JJ! have given me four amazing, wonderful and very special grandchildren that I have spent the last six plus years getting to know, love and adore. Yeah, pretty special!

PSM’s family. To them, I am thankful to have been welcome and accepted as a part of the family, it was almost immediate and an amazing feeling. I am thankful to be allowed in to witness the love and affection they all have for each other and for PSM, how much they love and cherish him, yeah, wow.

To PSM’s friends, they couldn’t wait to meet me, but they were cautious, he is after all, their friend and we are all protective of our friends, especially the ones that are like family. I guess I won them over, because the love I feel when we are all together and that I am included in the events in their lives, pretty special.

To the extended family in Boston, I came as a package deal with my sister, but I was welcomed into the fold and never felt anything but a part of their worlds. I was auntie J to my nieces and why wouldn’t I become auntie J to all of their kids? I may have mentioned once or twice or a thousand times how much I love that! As my sister once said, you don’t have to be related by blood to be family.

LaLa came into our lives almost thirteen years ago and has been such a strong force in it since. The girls have a grandmother that dotes on them and when they get to spend time together, it’s definitely a treat!

Then there is my sister and her family. It’s not a visit when I come to Boston, it’s just a weekend, yup, I’m supposed to be there and it’s like any other day and that’s the way it should be, right? I sneak in late at night, kiss the girls while they sleep, big hugs when they get up in the morning, laughs, hugs, giggles, tickling, silliness. How long are you staying? Why can’t you stay longer? Oh man do I love to hear that! Sometimes it’s from GES and not just the girls! Big sister/auntie love!

My dad, what can I say about my dad that you haven’t already heard? He’s funny, goofy, smart, clever, a fighter, champion, granddad/Poppa extraordinaire. He is always in our corner, no matter what happens and will go to bat for us when we need it. GES and I were so lucky to grow up with a dad like him and I feel so fortunate for my girls that they have grandfather as awesome as he is. I am just thankful that he not only loves us, but likes us, just as we are. Oh, most thankful is that he got to pick my name! Ha Ha!

To PSM, my friend, my partner, my love. The goofy, sensitive, scary smart, talented, geeky, gentle, sexy, guy that took me to an Irish pub on our first date almost three years ago who has shared so much with me these past, almost three years! I am thankful for that brain, that heart, that love of exploring, new places, things, tastes, sounds, sights. I am thankful for his spirit his sense of indignation when someone is wronged and how he will go to bat for what he believes in, there’s a lot more, but I’ll save the rest for him. Mostly, I am thankful that he likes and loves me just the way I am, as frustrating as that can be sometimes! He said he’ll take it, and I think he means it!

Lastly, to you, my friends, I am thankful that you take this journey with me, almost every day. You are curious to what I have to say, what I want to share and sometimes, you just want to laugh and for those things and so many more, I am and forever will be grateful to you. You’ve stuck with me for almost five years and I hope you will continue this adventure wherever it chooses to take us!

{November 13, 2017} What a weekend! It’s Daddy-Daughter time and It was on!

Oh what a weekend I had with my dad! Let me tell you all about it!

Now, sit back and relax, because I just spent a fun filled weekend with my dad and I’m going to share it all with you! And I got there Thursday night, so this is a full weekend sharing!

I got in Thursday evening, earlier than I thought I was going to be there, so I was quite pleased. Except for the long commute from the airport to dad’s house, now that was not fun. I went from Long Island to Brooklyn to Manhattan to Brooklyn to Staten Island. Seriously?! Argh!

I finally made it! Hugs, kisses, hugs and kisses, catch up and food! We ordered sushi, it was all veggie, wahoo! And yummy! Nice that we could share and he was good with veggie and not fish. whew! We ate, caught up, talked, laughed, it was great.

Then the festivities started. We put on comfy clothes and started watching Ghostbusters, the one that came out last year, he hadn’t seen it yet, good thing I own it! He liked it! We laughed a lot, I had forgotten how much I actually liked it! We didn’t get through the whole thing, it was late, so we turned in, knowing we would watch the rest Friday.

Friday morning came too early, no alarm, but I was still up too early! I started working when I got up, broke eventually for breakfast, back to work, break for lunch, back to work. I kept going until about 4:30, then it was time to go out and run errands. Bed, Bath & Beyond and Best Buy. Treats for all! Then on the way home, Chinese food for dinner at a very popular joint! At home, we finished Ghostbusters, then started watching Versailles and he sucked me in!

Saturday, I actually slept past 8am! Relaxing, wahoo! I watched a new baking competition show, breakfast, relax, hang out, then…movie date! Murder on the Orient Express. LOVED IT! Tomorrow, I’ll tell you all about it!

A few more errands, Best Buy and Bed, Bath & Beyond again, we love those two places. Love my new slipper socks? Time for food, Mediterranean, it was nice to share the entire meal. Lentil soup, hummus, babaganoush, bean salad, shepard’s salad, couscous, doesn’t that sound fabulous!

Back home and more Versailles, it’s addictive, darn it! Dessert too! I brought my dad one of those cookie dough cups, he loved it, I knew he would. More Versailles, boy is it violent, the intrigue, the sex, the violence, the sneaking around, the sneaky behavior, the underhandedness, the you name it, it happened!

Sunday morning came and it was breakfast, pack and then next movie date! Thor: Ragnorak. LOVED it! We laughed and laughed and really enjoyed it! It was fun figuring out who the actors were, the previews, deciding if we’re going to see any of them!

Then it was a late lunch, finish packing and getting ready to head to the airport. Then…it was time to go, boo.

It was such a great weekend, I had so much fun with my dad, it was great spending time together, we laughed so much. I can’t wait for a repeat!

{November 11, 2017} Happy birthday WCH!!

It’s actually CH, his given name is WCH and we just called him by his middle name.

Did you need to know all that? Probably not, but it’s my blog, ha ha! But what you do need to know is that November 11th is a very important to me. It’s the day my son, WCH was born!

I met WCH about a month after his seventh birthday and it was love at first site! We hit it off immediately, I get along with kids, but this one was special. His sister, TYL, now she was another story, a much tougher customer! She was very protective of her dad and brother and I respected that very much.

WCH was cute and funny and shorter than me! He was loving and sweet and a hugger and a love muffin and a snuggler, oh we all loved Saturday and Sunday mornings, they used to crawl in bed with me and we wild talk and cuddle and laugh and tickle and be silly, just like parents and kids should be!

It was such a treat to watch him grow up into this amazing man I see before me today. A very smart kid, on occasion I wasn’t sure if he any common sense, but I think that’s part of being a kid!

Today, seeing the amazing man he has become is so fabulous. He is a wonderful husband, a doting uncle and always a kickin’ brother! He is confident in the kitchen and everyone works for and with him respects him and values this relationship.

It makes me swell with so much pride to see him today and hope that I had a small part to play is his amazingness for the time we were together as a family when he was a kid.

Happy, happy, happy to a man I still think of as my baby boy! I hope today is as fabulous as you!

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