Love
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Soundtrack to Love…
For several years after we first married, I would find my thoughts drifting back to July of 1993…”last year right now, we were driving to the pier to pick up the discounted wine for our wedding reception…” or “2 years ago now we were on the plane to London to start our honeymoon…” That sort of thing. Well, as the years pass, I find my thoughts going back to specific days less and less, but for some reason today I was thinking about 17 years ago, when we took the train from Amsterdam to Paris, for the last part of our Honeymoon. We bought coach tickets, but decided while underway…
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Happy Birthday Ted!
Happy Birthday today to my wonderful husband, Ted, who has actually started blogging again! Welcome back, to the same old place that you laughed about, hon. 😉 So yesterday was a lovely picnic lunch with friends and family at a local park, and today he’s crossing an item off of his lifetime, ‘to do’ list, and taking his bike over to the City, and riding it across the Golden Gate Bridge. He loves his bike, so this is the perfect way to spend a little ‘me time’. Ted is a wonderful man, a wonderful husband, and a wonderful father. I’m so very grateful that we found each other, and that…
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Mistaken Identity
My dear friend Cherry is having her baby today…as we speak, she’s going in to O.R. for her c-section, and I’m expecting a call and can hardly contain myself! Breath, J, breath. OK, but of course Cherry having her baby reminded me of when I had my baby, lo these many years ago. I wanted what any new mom wants right then…my mom. So we planned for my mom to fly from Juneau, Alaska (where she was living), to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (where we were living). At this sad point, I hadn’t seen my mom in about 3 years. A few weeks after Ted and I were married in ’93, my…
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Dear Mom
Dear Mom, First of all, Happy Birthday. You would have been 68 today, and probably would have gone to Stockton to celebrate with Grandma and Aunt Flo (whose birthday it is today as well, she’s 86). Maybe you’d have fried chicken and angel food cake, or maybe you’d go out somewhere. I would have come to see you at Kate’s house this weekend, and we would have celebrated somehow. Maybe with a pedicure for the changing weather. I think about you all of the time, though I don’t cry as much as I used to. Which is good, because Maya had a hard time with that, and would feel guilty…
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Happy 14th Birthday, Maya!
Maya is 14 today, so obviously this picture is an oldie but a goodie. I have been thinking about the difference between those times when she was a preschooler, and these times, getting ready for high school next year. Sometimes I miss those times, because she was so sweet and said some pretty funny things sometimes, and if only I had had a blog then….but these times are wonderful and special as well. Watching her grow from a little girl into a teen, not too long from now into a woman…it’s amazing. Seeing the things she’s interested in, that I never was. Seeing the things she doesn’t really care about,…
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Gorgeousness and Gorgeousity
Where the heck does the time go? Maya will be 14 in 6 weeks. All grown up, yes? Admire the new hairdo. The cool pink and blue are gone, the lovely blonde highlights are in. In about 10 days, the braces come off. Those high school boys won’t know what hit them.
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Lovely Weekend
(Pescadero State Beach, gorgeous photo found here) This weekend, I joined Maya and her girl scout troop camping at Camp Butano, in lovely Pescadero, California. Pescadero is just south of Half Moon Bay, and we were fortunate to get perfect weather. The girl scout camp at Butano is way off the beaten path, with a creek babbling nearby. We arrived on Friday night, and layed low there. Then on Saturday we went to the beach, where we had a lovely picnic, including a loaf of amazing artichoke garlic herb bread, which was hot out of the oven. We happened to be there as the tide was going out, and there…
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Friday Randomness
Thanks everyone for your kind birthday wishes. I had a lovely birthday, and a lovely time off from work. One of Maya’s Christmas gifts was tickets to go see Wicked, which was a lot of fun. I’m not a huge fan of the musical as a play, but this one was really fun and interesting and kept your attention the whole way through. Excellent gift, Ted! Btw, Ted wrote a great review of the show for Popdose, and he included a couple of YouTube clips that are pretty great. Along the theme of gifts that are not things, we also received tickets for dinner on the Napa Valley Wine Train,…
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Half Life
I know, you’ve seen this picture before. I do like it, though, and gosh, we’re so young way back then, huh? I was thinking the other day that this is our 22nd year together. Our first date was December 12, 1987. Then I realized, I’m turning 44 in a few weeks…which means, I’ve been together with Ted for longer than we were apart. More simply put, he and I have been together for over half of my life thus far. How can that be? How can I be that old? Kinda strange. But when I look in the mirror, and see that I’m not that fresh faced, wrinkle free girl…
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Wordless Wednesday ~ Gorgeous Edition!
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Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone
It’s Wednesday afternoon, and tomorrow’s Thanksgiving. I got up early and went to the grocery store before it got too crowded and insane. Came home and started some cooking. Sweet Potato Pudding? Check. Homemade Cranberry Sauce? Check. Green beans prepped for my favorite green bean dish (green beans, steamed, then sauteed with butter, then tossed with Gorgonzola cheese and toasted walnuts. Yum.) Check. Pumpkin pie and pecan pie purchased? Check. All that’s left to do tomorrow is make my Grandma’s Fruit Salad, put together the green beans, and enjoy a lovely feast with the family. And, of course, stop to think about what I’m thankful for. That is a long…
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Ted is a Good Sport
So for years, whenever I make a batch of cupcakes, Ted likes to amuse the family by cramming a whole cupcake into his mouth. It’s amazing. Today, Maya went to a birthday party, and brought home a HUGE cupcake for Ted, and double dog dared him to shove the whole thing in his mouth. He’s a pretty good sport, so he went for it. WARNING…if you’re eating or drinking anything while watching this video, it may end up all over your computer screen.
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13 Again
(pic found here) I remember 13. I remember how emotional I was. Stupid hormones going crazy. I remember crying bitter tears because my mother thought I was ugly. My proof? SHE LOOKED AT ME. Clearly she hated me. And now, I’m the mom. It’s a confusing position to be in, because there are days that are perfectly fine, with laughter and happiness…and then there are days when hormones run hot, and I feel like I can’t say anything right. And when I ask her what’s wrong, she has been thinking I was mad at her the whole time. Which I was not. Not in the least. I remember that, from…
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Helpless
When people talk to you about having kids, they often ask you if you’re ready to give up your freedom, your ability to go out when you want, see whatever movie you want, eat whatever you want, stay up until 4am, sleep in when you want, have sex when you want, work late if you need to, live in a crappy apartment in a bad school district if you so choose…so many sacrifices. People list them and warn you. And you say, “Yes, I’m ready. I want a baby to love and to hold and to care for. I want to smell the sweet smell of a baby’s head after…
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Happy Anniversary!
16 years ago today, I made the best move I’ve made in my life. I married my best friend, my partner in crime, my love. I think we all make mistakes in life, or wonder about the path not taken. We wonder how things might have been different if we had taken x job, or moved to y city, or finished school (or not finished school). One thing I know, is that I have never regretted the decision to marry Ted. He has been, and always is, the best husband I could ever want. Someone who is always on my side, always has me back, always trusts me to do…