Not a Complete Waste of Time......

I keep thinking that I might get off Face Book and stay off. If I spent less time on there, and less time watching TV I just fantasize about what I might accomplish! I might be thin! My house might be neater! I might have quilts and other things done!
Yesterday morning I awoke to a note on Face Book. It has changed my life - and I didn't have to do a thing but still be on Face Book.
For years I've wondered about my Aunt Florrie and her two children. She was very special to me in my early teen years. Her babies were beautiful, and sweet. I can close my eyes and still see my Grandma rocking them and singing her "rocking song" and I have searched many times for them in various ways. Once Aunt Florrie and my uncle were divorced, she seemed to have dropped out of sight. We had heard she had died.
Yesterday's e-mail was from her daughter! And her mother is very much alive!
Harold and Marianne are, of course, all grown up now...tho' I still think of him as Baby Harold, and it shouldn't be long before we get together. I especially want to hug Aunt Florrie once more.
It's a happy time - thanks to Face Book....so I guess I'll sort of waste my time...since it wasn't such a waste after all.
What's better than fitting a piece of the family puzzle back in place?

85 Years Young

"YOU'RE INVITED" the card read, "TO BILL'S 85TH BIRTHDAY BRUNCH"

We were so happy that we were free to attend this special occasion for a special friend. Bill has turned 85 and has done it so well! He makes it look good. His son Denis and Daughter-in-law Sue had included us in the gathering at the Moshulu - an old ship/restaurant docked at Penn's Landing in Philadelphia for an amazing feast to pay tribute to their Dad. The honor was ours.

Happy, Happy Birthday Bill, and many, many happy, healthy years to come. We love you!

Date Night

We almost never had "date nights" when the kids were growing up. It was lack of money, energy, time and/or babysitter. Lar went to night school for about nine years to graduate from college...and during the early years he worked night work a lot too. With one income - and not a great one since he was the classic American work-your-way-up man - started as a mailboy and worked his way up the corporate ladder to Corporate Staff - was a talking point for the company to show how you can do it. But his salary never caught up.
Anyway, now "date nights" are a common event. We do it a lot. We do dinner, movies, lunches even. But mostly, the magic is still there after 47+ years. Most of the time we step away from everything stressful in our lives and step out into a place where we have lots to talk about, mostly it's all positive, all happy. We laugh a lot. We find out things, some new, some not so new we love about each other. I think it might have been good that we waited so many years to be able to do this.
On Thursday night we had a quick salad and went to see Inception. One of the special things I love about my man is that he will go see almost any movie. "Chick flicks" do not dismay him. He loves them. Inception was Not a Chick flick in the traditional manner, yet, in some ways it really was. It was an action film with lots of Chicky type feeling...we both loved it. And the special effects! Wow!
On Friday he drove over to pick me up from work for lunch, and we had a lovely, almost outdoor lunch at Pat's. They have this entire front that opens out onto a patio...we sat inside looking out, and it was terrific. And at the next table were four kids from highschool who had been practicing football and were there for lunch too. It felt right having them there, almost with us....brought back such memories. That night he decided we should go out for dinner too. We went to Nunzio's, a restaurant we love but haven't visited in a long time. I perused the menu and actually couldn't find anything that tempted me so I spoke with the waiter and they made special for me angel hair with broccoli raab....OMG! It was amazing! A glass or two of red wine and the evening was perfect.
Date nights are so good....even if they took a long time to get here. I cherish every one of them. Thanks Lar.

JUST NOT ENOUGH!

There just isn’t enough summer.
There just isn’t enough time with family.
I’ve been looking so forward to the McCay Reunion planned by the “PA McCays.”
And it was yesterday! It is over! We were together about 6 hours, it was getting dark, time to go home and once again I was sitting there wondering “where did the time go?”
As someone who grew up among a lot of family just upstairs, just across the street, I sorely miss the close time of companionship with several generations, all the stories one heard, all the advice – wanted or not – all the support and love that you feel growing up that way. And yes, the criticism, the censoring, that which at one time felt like negative attention, but which you come to know as sincere forms of trying to help.
Now that I am older, I find myself listening, when our family gets together, to what is happening in the clusters of conversation. The comparing family traits – I won’t go into some of them! – telling of old stories over and over again – talking over childbearing, child raising, child care, getting ready for retirement, recipes, travel, health concerns, building, gardening, crafting, all the things that make up life, and conversing about them with people who actually care, people who truly want the best for you – who will hurt if it doesn’t turn out well – who will rejoice when it does.
Of course, family, as I have often said, is a point of view, a frame of mind….there are certainly friends who fill the bill….blood relations aren’t required, but as Leenie and I were saying last night…there is something rather beautiful in the tapestry of our children, all family, blending and weaving and fitting together in the dance that is family…we feel our hearts swell with pride and gratitude when we can watch them together….the boys – their wives, their children…..almost a oneness that we will leave to grow beyond us.

Mommy Amy with Maddie and Sammie McCay.

The Patriarchs - Dan and Larry - great time for conversation.

Host, Tim with daughter Mollie.


Mom Mom with Maddie.

Tim, Colleen and Larry 4th.

Larry 3rd, Jeff.

Loving Uncle Larry (3rd) with Maddie.

Group photos - one with - one without the beautiful bird house gourds made by Dan and Leenie. Each family got to pick the one of their choice. Uncle Dan also made one for Mike's family who were unable to join us.

Hostess, Amy had the kids prepare signs to show Mike, Tina and Jessica that they were thought of and missed.

Post-Reunion Dance Party! While the grown-ups were ready to call it quits, the kids had just got started!

Stars of the day....The lovely gourds Dan and Leenie made....any bird would be proud to call this home!

Perfect day and a great memory of the summer of 2010.

Just One Moment

Just one moment - suspended in time - you would hardly know, looking at the picture, that at least four of us had broken hearts.

We'd gathered at Knoebels Amusement Park at Gwen's request. She was dying. We all knew it. We all wanted to fight it somehow. We wanted to deny it. But we knew.

She insisted this be the place we all gathered to have fun one last time.

We would have gone anywhere for her.

Gwen is in the front - her hand - as always - protectively reaching out to her brother Bill - they had such a bond. And I think Bill's face betrays his pain.....

I just came across this picture as I was sorting out some things to be scrap booked - and I just sat with it - reliving the love and the pain, the sorrow at losing her, the joy in being a part of the 5 of us - for too short a time, but nevertheless.

She's gone home.....and I think she will be waiting when we get there. And knowing her, she'll have it all sorted out and we'll do whatever she tells us. She may have been the baby, but she was certainly the boss of us! Love you Gweney.

There's Hundreds of Them!

So this old lady calls her husband on the cell phone.
"Honey, you be careful out there!
The radio says there is someone out on the freeway driving the wrong way!
It's causing lots of accidents!"

The old man replies,
"One car driving the wrong way? Hell, honey - there's hundreds of them!"

ba dum dum

Busy Summer - Happy Stuff

We've had such a busy summer! Of course, Lar being retired now, it isn't as crazy for him as it is for me....we've had things almost every weekend...but thank goodness, they have all been wonderful, happy, family times. Last weekend we had the delight of driving upstate to Wilkesbarre PA for the celebration of our darling nephew and his girlfriend from college. We were really looking forward to the trip and were all the more delighted when youngest son Pat and his wife decided to go too. We did a caravan for about half the way until we oldsters had to make a "pit stop" and they didn't want to take a chance on the babies waking when they stopped the car. Traffic was horrendous, but we all arrived safely, which, after all, is the most important thing.

The celebration was at my youngest brother's firehall - he is Fire Chief there.

Brian had graduated Summa Cum Laude from Norwich University in Northfield in VT with a Masters Degree in Architecture. He also received the Henry Adams Medal from the American Institute of Architecture for outstanding academic achievement. He was ranked first in his class and won the outstanding project award as well. Needless to say, we are very, very proud of him.

The food was outstanding - having been lovingly prepared by Brian's mother, Jan, his girlfriend Noy and her mother.
Baby granddaughter Maddie received no shortage of attention from everyone and took it with great charm for a long time. When she finally had a "melt down" I wasn't surprised, as I might too, if I'd been entertaining so many for so long.

Maddie's Great Aunts Carol (my sister) and Sue finally met both Maddie and her big brother Ian.

Ian had a blast running and playing with the other cousins. It is whispered that he also fell somewhat in love with his big cousin 'Randa.

Noy had been wanting a picture of us together...so I didn't forget!

Brian's mom's sister is an artist and she did this amazing rendering of him as a gift. I am amazed at the likeness! Another amazing feature on the gift table was a framed newspaper clipping from when Brian was in SECOND grade! He had won mention for his project in an Architecture class. His proud mom still has the little house he designed! Imagine! Finding your calling in second grade!

It was finally time to say goodbye to all and set out to find a room. We had all 6 decided to stay overnight somewhere on the way. Lar had decided that it looked on line like there were rooms abounding, so no reservations had been made. (Except mine....I definitely had reservations about that!) We went out to our cars, and as we were about to set off, I called the 800 reservation number. After checking all the hotels to which she was connected, she found only two rooms available - about 15 miles or so North - the wrong way. Apparently there were a number of major events going on this weekend and everyone was booked full. It was obvious, we'd have to take them. She made the reservations and we set out. And then Pat called from their car to see if maybe we could have made them connecting so that we could chat together for a while. I hadn't thought of that, but knew that there were only two rooms to be had anywhere. Nevertheless, I called the 800 number again to get the actual hotel number. I told the person who answered that we had made reservations at the Wilkesbarre-Scranton hotel (because that is what the GPS listed it as) and she gave me the number. I called. I explained that we had just made the reservations and wondered if there was any chance at all that the rooms were connected. The young man was shocked that I had been able to make reservations...he said, "but we have no rooms!" I was barely breathing at this point. Then he checked and came back and said, "well, I guess I was wrong....you can have two double rooms and I will see what I can do about getting them adjoining. You see, we have been having a housekeeping shortage and I didn't know we had enough rooms made up." Whew!

So on we drove.

And then we got lost.

And I called the hotel again to get directions.

And the girl at the desk said, "I'm pretty sure you don't have reservations here!"

Turns out - GPS took us to the right hotel, but called it the wrong name. Therefore, I had reservations in the right hotel, and apparently they were trying to clean rooms for me in the Wrong hotel! It was incredibly confusing but the bottom line was, we got great rooms, for a great price - Pat and Amy got a suite so we were able to have the kids sleep in the bedroom and we could hang out and chat and eat pizza and drink beer and wine far into the night.

All's well that ends well.