Category Archives: family

Jan11

Good shopping day

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j66419.jpgThe ring!My mom drove out by early afternoon (she is staying overnight), so we took a drive up to the outlets in Lancaster which are about 33 miles away. Sean saw that Borders books had a new store in Rockvale (checking closing time on web) and we knew that would be a dangerous place to go. At first we couldn’t find it. We went to one book store, but it was way too expensive. Sean and I left mom in that bookstore and got some Pepperidge Farms goodies next door. Then we went around the corner to the QVC outlet store and my mom bought me two lovely rings! They are sterling silver and the one has all tiny teardrop shaped abalone shells in a pattern on a dome and the other is a ‘bounty of 10 marquise-shaped, colorful gemstones beam atop this stunning sterling silver ring’s tapered band. The stones, which include blue jade, pink jade (mine doesn’t have the pink ), green jade, rhodolite, peridot, and blue topaz, are prong set in two diagonal rows.’ (from QVC website)
  I love them!We did find Borders and both mom and I did some damage in there. I got a few cross stitch hardback books (like I really need them) and craft books and she got calendars, art books and paperbacks.

We ate at Fuddruckers (a hamburger place) after we had walked around Target. We found out that the woman charged Sean for 3 NFL champion t-shirts instead of the two he actually bought. Don’t worry, I called them up right away when we got home (when he discovered the overcharge) and he has 90 days to get his money back. I told them coming back up there was a lot of trouble for their salesperson making a mistake.

Our last stop-Gap and we had the entire store to ourselves (no one was shopping in this actual bitter winter weather. I got a bunch of long sleeved t-shirts that I love plus a few other things.

So it was a good day and we have lot of books to entertain us if it actually snows this winter!

Dec30

ABCs of me

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When I got up this morning there was almost a near disaster. I knocked into something on the end table and it hit Brian’s coffee mug (which I begged him never to place over my cross stitch stuff). Most of what was left in the mug went on the rug (oh great) and an old mailing envelope. I found a dot of coffee (so far) on a scrap piece of white aida. Whew.
Brian decided to move his childhood desk into the bathroom in the basement. He has some attachment to a rather ugly piece of furniture. It doesn’t look right in there. The reason he moved it is that I want to set up a big table for crafting in a finished room we have. The problem is the room is loaded with junk-mostly old toys! So he just pulled the desk out and everything fell over. I sure hope I can use the room and my allergies won’t get the best of me. I can at least start projects down there and store my gifts on the table. I can’t have them in my small bedroom anymore.
Brian had on the funeral service for Gerald Ford earlier. One funeral was enough for me in one week. I wonder if Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford were there as they were pals with the Fords? Katie Couric and another reporter were saying that Ford and Jimmy Carter were friends too. I didn’t know that.

The ABC’s of me -nabbed from Barbara’s blog, Mainly Stitching.
A – Available or single?:
Married a long time : )
B – Best Friend?:
Bri as male, Mom as female
C – Cake or pie?:
Devil’s food cake with white icing or
yellow cake with chocolate icing
D – Drink of choice?:
Always brewed iced tea with lemon and the pink stuff
E – Essential item I use every day:
My computer.
F – Favorite color?:
Aquamarine
G – Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms?:
Neither-bad for my crowns
H – Hometown?:
Media, PA
I – Indulgence?:
A box of chocolates I make last a few months
or gift moola that I can blow in on anything
J – January or February?:
February because of Valentine’s Day
K – Kids and names?:
Sean Matthew
M – Marriage date?:
April 14, 1984
N – Number of siblings?:
3 brothers
O – Oranges or apples:
Apples all the way
P – Phobias or fears?:
Big spiders, low laying snakes
Q – Favorite quote:
Take it one day at a time.
R – Reasons to smile:
A funny show or movie that tickles me and whoever is watching it. Giving a gift someone really loves.
S – Season:
Spring.
T – Tag 3 or 4 people:
Anyone who reads this and wants to try it.
U – Unknown fact about me:
I couldn’t hardly type before we got a computer in ’93.
V – Vegetable you don’t like:
okra
W – Worst habit:
Procrastination-but I usually do whatever I am holding off doing.
X – X-Rays?:
Had a few
Y – Your favorite food?:
Chocolate or lobster
Z – Zodiac sign?: Scorpio

Dec28

Sad end of the year

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The three of us got up at the crack of dawn-no light-not our time of day at all. It’s cold and dark. But we did it for our family and to remember dear Aunt Berenice. We took separate vehicles as I went to get my mom and the guys had to be at the church a little earlier. It was nice to have quiet on the way down and not hear complaining about the early rising, etc.
B had 11 members of her immediate family there before her closed casket (what she wanted). They were pretty good, but Aunt Sue was a mess. She and B had been like sisters. The entire 25+ yrs I have know her, I haven’t seen her that upset. It was a nice mass with the priest recalling a newlywed B cooking ham and cabbage for the first time and forgetting to take it out of the can. : )
Mom and I didn’t go to the cemetery, but we drove around a little. Mom wanted to see the house that she lived in for 15 yrs in the same town. We were holding our breath, and lo and behold, it was still there and being renovated much to our surprise! I think that made my mom feel good.
We went to the family home (B’s daughter, s-in-l and two kids lived with her). Gerry, her daughter had beautifully decorated the entire place for Christmas-every nook and cranny. I was wondering if she would and she had started a few months ago. I never saw so many Christmas arrangements! I don’t plan to take my stuff down until January 6th or so-we call it ‘Little Christmas’. I go to a lot of trouble to decorate and taking it down too soon just won’t do. The only things that may come down earlier are the outdoor stuff.
So we visited a little and then headed home. Mom wanted to see her old friend’s house in the same town. We didn’t know that Bri and Sean were following behind us. They were wondering why we were turning here and there. Ha!
I left about 2:30 from mom’s and got stuck in a lot of traffic. I stopped off at Borders to get a few 50% off calendars-a watercolor one for mom and crochet, Victorian fairy and origami ones for me!

Dec27

Longwood Gardens 2006

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My mom, sister-in-law, her mom and Kenny and Tori came out to our house so the kiddos could open their gifts from us. Tori got a Tinkerbelle ‘head’ lamp as her main gift. Kenny got an assortment of t-shirts (his favorite thing to wear) and drawing stuff. I had chili, chicken salad tea sandwiches, ham pasta salad, fruit salad and pastries as snacks before we went to Longwood Gardens. It was jammed packed and Sean and I had to walk at least 1/2 mile to get to the front door. My mom and Colleen’s mom got pushed around in wheelchairs, though the kids got a ride when we went into the conservatory. I was using the new camera and it’s hard to get good nighttime shots-I deleted a bunch, but downloaded 60 photos! Here are some of my favorites-

Me and Tori in the main conservatory
Some of the outdoor lights
Stars on the ceiling of the main conservatory
 White tulips
Blue tree outdoors

I finally went over to the ‘side window’ and got my frequent visitor pass so I can go as much as I want. We didn’t get to see the ice skating there which is new this year. We may go again next week. I got tonight’s visit taken off the price. : )

Dec25

A nice Christmas eve

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Kenny, Tori and Sean on Christmas eve

Part of my brother Ken’s finished kitchen/family room. He put the stone work around the gas fireplace himself. That’s a flat screen tv over the fireplace. They had two trees, the other real one is in the next photo.
Tori and me wearing our paper crowns from our Christmas crackers-an English tradition. I happen to find some in a dollar store.
Tori and a Belle doll I gave her.

Brian’s aunt has left us a message on the answering machine and she sounded a little disoriented. She told us that Brian’s other aunt, Berenice passed away on Saturday. She had dementia and had gone down to 50 some pounds. She died at home with everyone around her. She was a dear woman who smiled with her eyes and always made you feel at home in her beautiful Victorian home. Her son and husband were Brian’s teachers where he went to high school. Aunt Sue said she looked at peace at the end. Her funeral is Thursday and Brian and Sean will be pallbearers.

We went to a lovely (but warm) midnight mass service in Delaware last night. The music was wonderful and I couldn’t keep my eyes off an urn on the altar with white, olive green and deep pink colors. Branches that stuck out of the top were white.

We got to sleep about 2 am and I slept better! : )

Dec18

Christmastime visitors

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My mom and Jim came over last night after visiting my Uncle Don. Did I forget to tell you he is home now? He has a lady come in 3 times a week to clean, etc. but he is doing better. I think every 3 weeks the agency has to review his ‘case’ to see if he still needs help.
So, mom wanted to make sure she got here this year to see my house and tree as she wasn’t driving much last year. She told me seeing my tree put her in the Christmas spirit. I told her that’s what I was aiming for. I cleaned most of the weekend, so I am pretty tired today. I do plan to bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies in a few hours and see where that leads me. I have a feeling my ‘baking’ mode will kick in and I’ll go to town in my new kitchen. I had Mom and Jim stay for a pork tenderloin cooked with roasted potatoes, (which I really felt like eating-my sickness last week has put me in a food jag) carrots and also green beans. They enjoyed their dinner. The guys were watching the Eagles football game, so we ate in shifts.
After Mom left, she stopped at Big Lots and was in there an hour. Here I thought she was almost home and she was shopping! She mentioned Sean’s name and the manager there overheard her and said he was waiting for Sean to call him! So I guess he was well liked. Sean may work a few weeks in January at the store if they need him. Speaking of Sean, he has a final today-math and then the dreaded Biology one tomorrow.
Wish me luck in my cookie making attempts!
To Carole-I’ll be thinking of you on your journey. I tried to say something on your blog, but I got knocked off. Thanks for sharing about Jesse. I have a friend who had a similar pregnancy. I had a miscarriage the summer before Sean was born, but I was only about 6 weeks along.

Nov21

Family connection

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I got an email from my father’s half brother today. I have never met or talked to him ever, but he got my email from our cousin Ann who I correspond with. I won’t go into it, but it was about my estranged father. I think I answered his question and I also shared some of the family photos that I shared with you. I said he could share them with my father if he wanted to.
So exactly a year ago, a cousin from my mom’s side of the family had left a comment on blogger wondering who I was (I like to look up posts from a year or two ago). I had written a post about his grandmom and he had googled her name (I guess) and my blogger post came up.
The internet is a great way to connect with new people and family and even those you have wondered about.
I thought it would be interesting to put up a few names of people from the past to see if they google themselves. If you get to my post, please say ‘hello’. All are from the Philadelphia area.
Phil Heaver
Valerie Henschel
John Voelker (WCU)
Donna DiDomenico
Amy and Jessica Nackord
Andrea DeBeacke or DeBecke (I think the spelling is incorrect)
Amy Troy
Michelle Bendo
Regina Naab
Olivia Pettengill Maple
Kathy Clancy