Baby It's Cold Outside!!!!! . . .

We are in the midst of some crazy weather here in New York!!  Two days ago,  the temperature was close to 50 degrees and today we are in single digits with windchill factors below zero.  Our schools were placed on a two hour delay for opening yesterday.  We got the call the night before.  It's a rare occasion that a delay is decided upon the night before.  Needless to say, my two sons that were effected by the delay were literally dancing around the living room that night.  Ahh, life's simple pleasures!!!  : )

A flower box around the pool.

Frost on my storm door!!!

I haven't had much of a chance to take photos lately other then from my back or front windows.  Between all of the whirlwind of activities during Christmas break, catching up on work during a very busy time of year in the card industry (American Greetings), taking care of damage control around the house that comes with having four kids, two dogs, two cats and after-Christmas clean up and plain old everyday life, I haven't had much "me" time lately.  I'm the kind of person who needs to spend time in solitude every so often just to recharge my batteries and it's been next to impossible for that to happen for the last month.  I'm not complaining because that's just how life is sometimes.  I'll bet every person reading this right now is saying to themselves, "Boy, is she preachin' to the choir!!!"  LOL!!!  I have a birthday coming up this weekend and I think I'm going to use the spa package my incredibly wonderful husband gifted to me on Christmas.  We said we weren't going to exchange gifts this year but he surprised me with a bunch of gift certificates.  I felt kinda bad when all he got from me was a pair of slippers!!!  : )

Megan all dressed up for her first ballet recital a couple of weeks ago.

Can you spot the squirrel??  I had no idea what it was on the end of the branch until I looked at it thru my camera lens!!

It's back to the grind today.  So much to be grateful for and looking forward to what the day has to bring. Tomorrow, my brother in law has to go in for more surgery on his leg.  I can't tell you how sad I am that he has to go thru this again.  But I'll deal with that tomorrow.  One day at a time.  : )


Many blessings for a beautiful Wednesday ~ Wendy

Counting my Blessings Again & Again . . .

Yesterday I spent the day with a friend who is going thru a terrible emotional time right now. I recognized the look in her eyes as soon as I saw her. It was the same one I saw in the eyes of myself and my sisters after we found out my father was going to die. It is a look of total devastation and defeat. All I could do was hug her and listen to her as she spoke of this sudden "loss" in her life. My heart cried for her. This beautiful woman that I've come to know these last few years was suddenly transformed into a little girl who so badly wanted me to stay with her and tell her everything was going to be okay. "One Day at a Time" is what I told her. Even one hour at a time at this point. That is how I dealt with my husband's stroke and then sudden death the year before my father's death. I found myself referring back to that time in my life repeatedly yesterday when my friend asked how she can go on when it feels like her whole world has been turned upside down. When you're on the outside looking in, you recognize the beauty that still shines thru the sadness. How we are all just human beings put on this earth to help one another and to share good times and bad. The letting go of ego. The realization of just how miniscule so many of our day to day "problems" are. As my friend said, it is amazing how easily and guilt-free you can drop everything else when you feel like your world is crumbling around you.

I will see my friend again later on today. I hope to see a glimmer of hope and light in her eyes. Until then, I am counting my blessings and thanking God for how far I've come and how much my life has changed for the better since my losses occurred. One day at a time.


Many blessings for a happy and peaceful Thursday ~ Wendy

Looking Past One Day at a Time . . .

Today is a dark and dreary day in New York ~ my favorite kind of weather. I love the rain and the gray clouds and the little breezes blowing thru the trees. The house is still quiet. Probably the last bit of quiet I'm going to have for the next few days since the kids are off from school Thursday and Friday for the Jewish holidays and my niece and nephew are going to be here for a couple of days. Connor comes home from college today for five days and my honey has a week off so there's going to be a house-full. We might actually be able to sit around the dinner table together as a family!! Those times are few and far between lately.

My husband and I were talking the other day and we got into a discussion about long term goals for ourselves and our family. The first thing that came into my head, of course, was the kids and wanting to keep them happy and healthy and to be the best parent that I can be for them. After that, I got stuck. I've been living pretty much One Day at a Time since my first husband very unexpectedly passed away almost seven years ago. There's nothing wrong with living this way and it's served me well and gotten me thru some very difficult times. However, I think it's time to work toward something in the future. It's almost like taking a leap of faith for me ~ letting go and trusting that it's okay to make long-term plans.

We've been talking a lot about how much we'd like to move north to Vermont or New Hampshire when my husband retires. He has a wonderful job but, unfortunately, for him to receive full retirement benefits he'll have to work almost twenty more years. This will put us into our mid 60's (GULP!!). I've been so unhappy with the changes in the county where we live. I grew up here and adored this area and was thrilled that my children would be able to graduate from the same high school that I did. It is still a wonderful community but has grown by leaps and bounds and I'm not happy with the direction it's going in. I want that small-town feeling again. I want a slower pace again. I want to feel like I'm a part of a community again without there being so many people everywhere you go. I want a simpler life-style.

While driving to my sister's house over the weekend, I noticed how peaceful I felt when I got to her town. It's a 40 minute drive up the Hudson River from where we live but it's like going to another world. Lots of trees and little brooks and streams and rocking chairs on the front porches and old barns and people that wave to you and smile when you drive thru their neighborhood. And then it hit me . . . it's like going to Vermont but much closer.

So here is what we've decided . . . when our middle son graduates from high school in three years, we're going to put our house on the market and move to that peaceful little Vermont-like town. Our youngest son is okay with leaving his friends behind and going to a different school. My niece Annie is the same age as him and would be going to the same school. They are like frick and frack so I think that made his decision much easier.

Of course, I don't know what is in store for us for the next three years but I'm going to trust that we're moving in the right direction (so to speak). I'm not used to having long term goals but I have to say that it feels good. I feel like I'm focused on making this happen ~ One Day at a Time. : )

Many blessings ~ Wendy

Where Does the Time Go . . .

It's really been hitting me lately how quickly the time passes. I remember, when I was a child, hearing "grown-ups" talk about how the older you get the faster the time goes. I don't feel like I'm getting older. Yes, there are some days that I think about the things I used to do that I no longer am able to do but those also seem to be the things that I have absolutely no desire to do anymore. The dose of reality comes in the form of seeing your children from a distance and realizing that you gave birth to that 6 foot 2 inch, 245 lbs. offensive lineman on the football team who asks you for the car now. Or it comes in the form of a 13 year old red head who needs a ride to the mall on a Friday nite to go on a double date. It even comes in the form of your 7 year old "baby" who is now in second grade and can play at a neighbor's house without you having to look out the window every two minutes and no longer needs you to tuck him into bed. Time is marching on and there is nothing we can do about it.

Recently, I was talking to some girlfriends about getting older. We all agreed that we are very happy where we are right now. My one friend is rapidly approaching fifty. She still has a few years to go but she's closer to it than 40, nonetheless. I have to tell you she looks wonderful and is one of the busiest people I know. The other friend is rapidly approaching 40. She, too, loves her age. The last of her four sons just started kindergarten and she is working a couple of days a week for the first time since her first son was born.

I do have some friends that worry about getting older and I just can't relate to that. I try to live my life one day at a time and not worry about things that, for the most part, we don't have a whole lot of control over. And remember, 40 is the new 20 anyway!! : )

Many blessings ~ Wendy