Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Day 24 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

 

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So, I didn’t make it, I missed a few days, my 30 days of continuous posting is shot. I missed one day and then another and another, but I am picking up the ball I dropped and moving on!!

Today’s challenge is to talk about something I have learned (in my 41 years), hmmm?

What have I learned?

I have learned that no amount of repetition helps me. I can forget a habit almost immediately.

I have learned that I need to be in charge...all the time...or something bad might happen.

I have learned that one child was the right decision for me.

I have learned that I have no self control, if I want it I HAVE to have it.

I have learned that my husband and daughter are more important than (insert anything here).

I have learned that one very good friend can make all the difference.

I have learned that I was born to knit.

I have learned that 15 years is a lot of work, but worth it in the end.

I have learned that I am still learning...

Friday, November 26, 2010

Day 23 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

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Last winter we went to a small cabin in the mountains of the Adirondacks. It was right on the water, secluded and beautiful.

We rode snowmobiles in and we hiked the area on snow-shoes. We cooked on a wood stove and my girl even learned to ski.

We chopped a hole in the ice of the lake to get water and we cooked outdoors over an open fire.

We went to bed early very night, worn out and exhausted from our winter fun.

I can't wait to go do it again…

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Let’s Be Thankful

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I am thankful for a home and food to put on the table.

I am thankful for a husband who loves me and the extra 50 pounds I have gained since he married me.

I am thankful for a beautiful daughter with a sweet heart.

I am thankful I am not Tiger Woods.

I am thankful that I will get to see my sister today and laugh, laugh, laugh.

I am thankful I don’t have to rush anywhere and can cook this bird in my pj’s.

I am thankful for this French Silk coffee.

I am thankful that there is nothing I need bad enough to forgo sleep and dignity by going shopping tomorrow.

I am thankful...

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Day 22 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

My favorite city

Without a doubt this one is NYC. We went for our daughters' eleventh birthday and it was fantastic.

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We took the train and arrived in this wonderland. We walked through Time Square like it was another country. It is impossible to see everything.

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Everything is so bright and beautiful. We took a red bus tour of the city and I highly recommend it. We got a history lesson and saw some amazing sights.

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My daughter and I will definitely go again!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Day 21 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

A picture of yourself.

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Monday, November 22, 2010

no pressure...

  1. cranberry relish
  2. corn pudding
  3. mashed potatoes
  4. green bean casserole
  5. sage cranberry stuffing
  6. homemade butter
  7. peas & lettuce
  8. squash
  9. rolls
  10. pies

does anyone want to help?

**UPDATE**

I am kickin’ ass!!

Day 20 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

What are your nicknames?

I haven’t had many nicknames. My name just doesn’t lend itself to shortening I guess.

When my little sister was learning to talk she called me “Ea”. It sounded just like it’s spelled, long e and short a.

When I was a kid my dad called me “Lizard”. I really don’t know why, other than I hated it and he thought it was funny.

When I was in high school some people called me “Chug”, no explanation needed here.

In college I don’t recall any nickname, but I don’t recall much.

Now my nickname is “Mom” and I hear it constantly, continuously and loudly.

I am waiting for my next nickname, “Grandma”. There is no rush on that one!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Day 19 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Something you miss…

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Day 18 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Today the challenge is about regret. What would you use your “do-over” on? What words would you take back if you could? What actions would you rewind?

Basically, I think regret is a waste of time and emotion. I try to not do things I will have to then look back on and wish I hadn’t done. None the less, I experience some regret.

I regret that bite of chocolate cake, right after I swallow it.

I regret that second glass of wine.

I regret making eye contact with the over-sharing, crazy patron at work.

I regret not spending more time with my grandparents, while I can.

I regret screaming at my daughter for some small infraction because I am tired or frustrated.

I regret saying I am too tired when my husband wants to cuddle.

I regret yelling at the dog as soon as she cocks her head and looks at me with those big eyes.

So, even though I try to avoid it regret seems to find me.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Day 17 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Something I am looking forward to.

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Need I say more...

Friday, November 19, 2010

Day 16 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

I am past the half way mark!

Woot! Woot!

Today is simply, your dream house. I have had many of these. When you are little it’s castle’s and tree houses. When you get a little older it’s somewhere in Paris or the coast of Greece.

I met my prince and we have a beautiful little house that we love. It is just right for the three of us. I would be happy to be here for ever. I have never thought of it as a starter house. It is where we started, it’s true, but it has always felt like the one.

Until we saw the empty house in the Adirondacks.

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It was at the base of a mountain. It was abandoned and empty. It is gorgeous, it calls to me.

I have thought of it so many times since we first saw it. We drove by it as we went to and from the camp. My husband is also under it’s spell.

We love our little home, but we long to be in the cabin by the mountain…

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Day 15 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

I am supposed to tell you my favorite bible verse. I don’t have a favorite. I can’t even think of one.

I spent my formative years in a catholic school and have attended more masses than anyone should, but I know very little of the bible.

My last challenge was to show you a favorite photo. I chose the one of my beautiful girl in the beauty of the Adirondacks.

When I look at that photo this is what comes to mind...

This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalms 118:24

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Day 14 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

A photo that you love…

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Tuesday, November 16, 2010

{{a moment in words}}

Outside my window…
A dark, wet sky.

I am thankful for…
Ben & Jerry’s Carrot Cake Ice Cream.

From the kitchen…
Baked rigatoni with fresh mozzarella.

I am wearing…
Jeans and a Nike tee shirt.

I am going…
To watch some football, do some face book and go to bed.

I am hoping…
That we have enough money for Christmas.

One of my favorite things…
The first sip of a cold glass of wine.

A few plans for the upcoming week…
Our daughters play is this weekend. she has been practicing for months and we are so excited to see her up on stage.

Here is picture for sharing…

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Monday, November 15, 2010

Day 13 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Today’s challenge is about goals.

My goals are simple, but I don’t kid myself that I won’t struggle with them daily.

I would like to teach my daughter to be a kind and loving person, but first I just want to get her through middle school.

I want to be married to my husband until one of us finally goes on to glory. But I want us to always feel like it’s our first date.

This isn’t asking much, right?

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Happy Birthday Mom

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Today is my mom’s 60th birthday.

I am sure we would be having a huge party, everyone together and laughing.

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I think my dad would have planned a trip or a get-a-way of some sort.

Maybe she would have announced that she was retiring from her nursing career, since dad is retiring in a few months too.

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They would talk about the things they would do together in their dotage.

We would sit around talking and laughing about all the the things she has done in the last 60 years.

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She would hug us all and kiss her granddaughter and tell us how lucky she has been to have had this life.

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Saturday, November 13, 2010

Day 12 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

What do you believe?

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This is a good one, I don’t think we give this question enough thought.

What do we believe?

Is this question about religion, politics, our relationships? These are all things that require some faith.

I’ll tell you what I believe.

I believe my thoughts about God are my business and those people that shove bible verses down your throat maybe don’t believe as much as they think they do.

I believe my mother is somewhere watching me. Is it Heaven? I am not sure.

I believe I would die to protect my daughter, without hesitation.

I believe that I need to work on myself everyday, no matter how old I am.

I believe I found the man I am supposed to be with for the rest of my life, but that doesn’t make it a fairy tale.

I believe I am good at a lot of things, but that doesn’t mean other people aren’t too.

I believe I need yarn and needles in my hands at least once a day to stay balanced.

I believe I procrastinate on everything.

I believe we elected the right man for the job, if we would just give him a chance.

I believe in my friends and they believe in me.

I believe I would win the lottery someday, if I only bought a ticket.

I believe this post has gone on too long...

Friday, November 12, 2010

Day 11 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Growing up my favorite TV shows were WKRP in Cincinnati, M*A*S*H, All in the Family, Laverne & Shirley and Happy Days, all the classics.

Now that I am older and have more refined tastes I am all about reality. Or the completed scripted, edited, made-up reality of reality TV.

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I also have a soft spot for English cooking shows. But mainly in the morning while I am here alone, blogging and drinking my coffee. I also have a favorite one that I watch online with Rohlad Dahl’s granddaughter.

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I actually love TV and just like to have it on in the back ground of anything that I am doing...sad but true.

I am sure that I have many more favorites, but these are my most current ones.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Day 10 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

Today I am supposed to talk about something I am afraid of. Hmmm, I am a famous worrier and I could really get into this one. I think it’s best if I am brief.

I am afraid of something bad happening to my daughter, heartbreak, sickness, abduction. I have had a moments panic over them all.

I am afraid of big trucks and the thruway. All those cars going by me so fast make my heart start beating wildly and merging!? forget about it.

I am afraid of my husband losing his job. A good job is only as secure as the day you have it. You just never know anymore. We are not prepared for such a thing.

I am afraid of getting old and sick. We visit my father in law in the nursing home and I think about how horrible it would be to be sick.

I am afraid of someone hurting my family and not being able to stop them.

Sometimes I am just plain afraid.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

fml

  • wake up and stumble downstairs for that first sip of coffee, only to discover it tastes like shit.
  • totally miss the opportunity to see this as an indication of the day ahead.
  • look into the mirror to see that the zit cream i have liberally applied to my face has made a red, raw map of ugly all over it.
  • leave late for the 13 year olds orthodontist appointment because she can’t find the retainer we are going there to have checked.
  • tailgate a rusty, crappy AstroVan all the way to the appointment only to see it pull into the same dr we are going to…awkward.
  • find out the kid is chewing on the plastic retainer and making it not fit properly and shell out $100 unexpected dollars to get a new one.
  • leave appointment and head out to UPS store. carry heavy, awkward box to door and realize the store is not open yet.
  • sit in car with kid for 15 minutes in complete silence while i ponder the waste of 100 of my dollars.
  • watch store employee arrive at exactly the moment the store is supposed to open and unlock the door.
  • carry heavy, awkward box back to store and listen to employee (who just arrived) tell me it will be a few minutes until the computers warm up.
  • walk around UPS store for 10 minutes while she tells me i will have to reach over the counter and lift my package for her because she has a 5 pound weight limit.
  • look at same employee like she is crazy when she asks me if i would like to take a few minutes to fill out a survey on my service here today.
  • finally head back to school with kid…we are so late.
  • listen to stomach rumble and grumble because i suffer from some weird affliction that makes me physically sick when i am late for something.
  • watch low fuel light blink on even though i just put gas in the damn car yesterday.
  • drop the kid off at school and feel relief that it will be 9 hours before i will have to argue about something with her again.
  • get home, pour more crappy and look at clock...it’s only 10am

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Day 9 – 30 Day Blog Challenge

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A picture of your friends

My friends… I love my friends. They make me laugh, they make me cry, they tell me stuff I don’t want to hear. And they tell me stuff I do want to hear just to make me feel better when they have to.

I would do anything for them and I know they would do anything for me. That is not as common as you would wish it to be.

Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends

Mm, gonna try with a little help from my friends

Mm, I get high with a little help from my friends

Yes I get by with a little help from my friends With a little help from my friends

Monday, November 8, 2010

Day 8 – 30 Day Challenge

Talk about a place you’ve traveled to.

Well,I would rather make a broad, sweeping list of the places I want to travel to instead of the meager list of places I have been. But that is not the challenge...

I have been to Cape Cod, we went every summer when I was little. My grandmother, mom and her sisters would all pile into a car and drive down. My grandfather and my dad would fly down in grandpa’s plane for the weekend. We would stay for what seemed like months… It is one of my favorite childhood memories.

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I have also been to California, to Escondido. My father gave us the trip for Christmas. We got new suitcases with tickets hidden inside. We went to stay with my mother’s cousin in her cute little apartment. This is how we did it Cali style...

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Once my parents woke my sister and I up in the middle of the night and put us in the car. They drove all the way to Hershey, PA while we slept. We woke up to the sweet smell of chocolate drifting in through the car windows.

We drove to Florida as a family several times also. The last time we went I got violently ill at Disneyworld. My dad made me walk along, puking in garbage bins because we were not wasting those expensive tickets!

My husband and I went to the island of St. Lucia for our honeymoon. Thanks to my generous and wonderful in-laws we got to spend a week in a cottage on the beach in that amazing place. It was heaven…

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Since we had our daughter we have gone to Florida a few times when we get the super cheap plane tickets. We’ve been to Disneyworld and Sea World. I would love to go again, very soon.

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One day we bought a cool, vintage motor home and started camping. Since then most of our trips have been place we can drive to. Over the years we have updated to a newer camper and we have broadened our range to the Adirondacks.

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Well that is it, the only other thing I can think of is a trip to Kansas City to visit my sister and we road tripped home.

I think, so far, my favorite place to be...is home.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Day 7 – 30 Day Challenge

Today’s challenge is to talk about your favorite movies.

I LOVE MOVIES.

I am a movie kind of girl. My idea of a perfect evening is a good dinner (at home) a glass of wine, a knitting project and a movie.

If you give me an actor’s name and a tiny blurb of plot I can usually tell you the movie. Before we had information bars at the bottom of our TV screen telling us what was playing my husband used to flip through and I could tell him what was playing after a second or two. He still calls me when there is a dispute between friends about what some movie was. My grandparents also rely on me for movie facts for their daily crossword puzzles.

I have lots of favorites, and for lots of reasons.

Some movies I watch every year, they bring to mind a certain memory and they comfort me.

1500-1251gone-with-the-wind-posters11I watch this one every year when I take down the Christmas decorations on New Years Day. I love it. imagesCAG5THN2I love to watch this one when there is a horrible storm out. When I hear the Laura theme I am instantly transported to my Aunt Sherry’s house and laying in their waterbed. They had the coolest TV shelf unit that rotated from the living room to the bedroom. My sister and I laid in the bed listening to the movie they were watching.

I have some favorites that are all about the music. I don’t even have to really watch, I just listen.

imagesCA19RP85My mother, my sister and I watched this movie so many times I can’t tell you. We knew the words to every song and sang them all the time. I have this soundtrack on my iPod and I still sing ‘em loud and proud.

 

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My love of Elvis is well known. This is movie fits into my action favorite category as well as the music one. I just love to turn it on and listen to him croon.

imagesCA7H2H3CI think this one needs no explanation. I have this soundtrack on my iPod to and I can rock the hell out of the The Lonely Goatherd.

Then there are the action ones. These are another kind of comfort movie. I can watch them over and over.

imagesCAICIXETI am not a huge Angie fan, but there is something about her English accent in this movie that makes me like her more. Daniel Craig doesn’t hurt either...

movieposterI love Matthew McConaughey and Steve Zahn, so this movie just works for me.

intoblue05Paul Walker is nearly naked in this whole movie. Throw in some Josh Brolin and Scott Cann...hell yeah.

Finally, there are the holiday ones. I watch these every year. It just doesn’t seem like a holiday is real without them.

dutchThis is our favorite Thanksgiving movie. I have been trying to buy it for years. It is outrageously expensive. We get it every year from the library or Netflix.

imagesCA2JAHV2Our second must-watch of turkey day is this one. John Candy is a comedic genius...nuff said.

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It is not Christmas till we have seen Chevy and all his antics at least once.

10I am the only one that likes to watch this one every Easter. I love it, Yul Brenner is the best!

Believe it or not this is just the tip of the iceberg where my favorite movies are concerned. I could go on and on, but I’d rather go watch a movie...

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Day 6 – 30 Day Challenge

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*A picture that makes you happy

Friday, November 5, 2010

Day 5 – 30 Day Challenge

Today’s post is all about the siblings. One of my favorite quotes is;

“You can pick your friends, but you are given your family and they are not returnable.”

It was 1973, I was 4 years old and life was fine. I was the first girl born to my dad’s family of 5 boys. My grandmother was thrilled. My mother’s four sister’s were excited to have another one to add to their tribe. I was very spoiled.

I was staying with my grandparents and aunts when mom and dad snuck off to the hospital to have my little sister. I remember my dad showing up with a little tin covered with Victorian ladies and filled with chocolate covered caramels. This was to cushion the news that they were bringing a squalling, screaming little bundle home.

She was tiny and had a dark thatch of hair. I remember thinking she looked like a fly. She laid in that little cradle and I thought,

“Well, it’s all screwed up now. Why did they go and do that?”

I couldn’t have been more wrong. She would, of course, become my partner in crime and only friend for miles, literally. We were “country girls” like Mary and Laura Ingalls. We were surrounded by farms and fields not neighbors and playgrounds. We spent a lot of time outside, using our imagination.

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We fought and we laughed, who doesn’t? We hated each other and then got mad at anyone else that had the nerve to say anything bad about the other.

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She is the funniest person I know. She can make me laugh like no one else. She is super smart and has the most amazing artistic gifts.

When she was 15 she was riding from town to our house with our mom and was in a horrible accident. The snowy, slushy roads pulled my mom’s little car into the path of a semi-truck. Their car was hit on my sisters side and she suffered a bad concussion, cracked ribs and internal bleeding.

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She got better of course, but do you ever get better from something like that? I have spent hours and hours wondering what happened in that car? What was it like to be driving along, probably laughing or singing, with mom and then suddenly out of control with a huge truck bearing down on you?

Our mother was killed instantly. What did my sister see? Was she alone in that car, awake, with mom? She was only 15, so young, and to see that… I can’t imagine. I don’t want to imagine it.

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My sister is still the funniest person I know. She can still make me laugh like no other. She is still super smart and has amazing artistic gifts. She is my best friend and without her I could never have lived through my moms death and the years that followed.

I love my little fly. I am so lucky that my parents brought her home…

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Day 4 – 30 Day Challenge

Today’s question, is simply, your parents. Not really a question, more of a gentle push into a description of them. I only need a small push to talk about my mom and dad.

Some bloggers may not have good memories of their parents, some bloggers may not even know theirs. Luckily, neither of those situations apply to me. I have so many memories, both good and bad, of my parents that it would be impossible to fit them in this post. And I certainly know my parents, probably too much.
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My mom and dad were very young when they started dating. I believe my mom was in the eighth grade (the same grade her granddaughter is in right now!!) My dad was in the ninth grade, obviously more mature and ready to start his life...not.
They lived just a few miles from each other and had very similar families. She had 3 sisters, with more on the way and he had 3 brothers with more on the way. Their parents were both happily married, they went to the same schools and had the same friends.
How many times have I heard about the first school dance, the first kiss, the first dinner with my dad’s little brothers. I loved the story about the time my mom’s parents took her and her sisters to Florida for the summer and she pined away for my dad the whole time. When they got home from the trip my dad was waiting and they ran to each other and held on like it had been years instead of weeks.
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They dated on and off all through high school, mostly on. I remember one story about a break they took and my mom went on a few dates with some other guy. She told us she never kissed him though, she said dad was the only man she had ever kissed. My sister and I were teenagers when she told us this and instead of thinking it was sweet or romantic I remember we both thought it was gross and depressing,
“ The only one!? Ewwww…”
She said she just didn’t want to kiss anyone else.
My father was at Cornell University and mom was in her senior year when she found out she was pregnant with me. He quit school and they were married. I will never forget how I felt when I figured out that my birthday, their wedding date and her senior year were all the same year. I was scared and confused, but one thing about my mom, she would tell us anything we asked. She wasn’t afraid to discuss sex or uncomfortable subjects. If we were brave enough to ask, she would tell us.
So they were married, they had me, my dad sold cars and my mom took care of us. Four years after me my little sister came along.
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I had a good childhood, my parents loved me, we had enough food and a home of our own. I know now how hard they must have worked to give us all that and I am so grateful.
They were young and much cooler than my friends parents, I loved that!
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Looking back, I know it wasn’t easy for my mom. My dad wasn’t the best husband to her. She had to handle more than she should have, but she loved him and she loved us even more.
She worked so hard at making sure their problems weren’t our problems. She went to night school and became a registered nurse. They both made sure we had braces, private schools and trips.
I think they were happy most of the time, I hope they were.
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My mom was killed in a car accident 21 years ago. My dad was driving in another car and was just a few feet ahead of the car his wife and daughter were in when they were hit by a semi on slushy, snowy roads.
They had been married for 19 years, together for years before that. It was just days before my father’s 40th birthday when he lost his wife. I am older than that now and I can’t believe how young he was when he lost her.
I love my parents, maybe more now that I am a parent too and all the things I didn’t understand or appreciate when I was a kid make sense. There were bad times, but what I remember most is the good stuff…and there was way more of that.