Random Summer Photos . . .

It's so hard to believe that summer vacation is almost over around here!! Nine more days and it's back to school for the boys. Connor is going to be a senior, Trevor is going to be a freshman and Brendan will be a big third grader. Soon it will be just Megan and Mommy on the days that her Daddy is working. We had lots of visitors this summer to see Meggie and lots of sleepovers with the cousins. I took a lot of pictures so I thought I'd share some this week.

My niece Annie and Brendan are a month apart and looked like twins when they were babies. Both with big brown eyes!! They are pictured above.

Below are the four cousins after a sleepover.

Tristan is my nephew. He and Megan have a mutual love for each other. It's the sweetest thing!!

Cousin Andre and Aunt Michelle

Cousin Jason with a "mohawk" compliments of Trev. I wish this pic was clearer!!
Jason is Aunt Michelle's other little man. He'll be a year old in a couple of weeks. So hard to believe!!

Trevor's friends spent a lot of time here this summer swimming in the pool, hanging out with Meggie and making me laugh. The picture above is of Trev, Dylan and Joe after we sang "Happy Birthday" to Trevor. These guys are fun to be around and are a great group of kids. They all start high school next week. I can't believe it!!!!!


Can you tell this was taken very early in the morning?!!? I call these my husband's "sleep sexy eyes." Is that TMI?!!?


Tomorrow I think I'll share some beach photos. Have a wonderful and peaceful day!!





Many blessings ~ Wendy

A Day Trip . . .

On Saturday, Jim, Brendan, his friend Julian, Megan and I took a long drive to Connecticut to attend a Native American Wigwam as they called it. It was held on grounds belonging to Mohawk Indians.





Many people may be familiar with the casino that was opened by them several years ago called Mohegan Sun.

The weather was absolutely perfect. Not too sunny and low humidity and cooler temps. Our summer here in New York has been horribly hot and humid this year so it was a much welcomed change!!

Megan was well prepared in her sun hat!!

After arriving at Mohegan Sun we took a shuttle bus to the site of the Wigwam a few miles away.

Brendan and Julian at the back of the shuttle bus.

There were lots of vendors peddling their Native American crafts, clothing, jewelry, dolls and other assorted goodies.

These sweaters were all handmade in Peru. Each one told a story on the front and the back.

This is the sweater we chose for Meggie. I thought that $20.00 was a pretty reasonable price.

Lots of gorgeous beaded necklaces.

The most gorgeous handmade Native American Dolls. The detail is difficult to see in the pics.

Lots of colorful handmade bracelets.

Megan got to pick one out for herself.

And a pair of moccasins, too!! These are actually a creamy white color but I took this picture at night and couldn't get a good shot of them.

The boys got to see what it felt like to have a bear's giant claws resting on their head!! Boys will be boys!! They got to pick out a few goodies to bring home. They each got a necklace with an arrow head on it and a hand-carved wooden gun that shoots rubber bands. Brendan also chose, with his own money, a real hand-carved spear. It's going to be hung in his room and he was given strict rules about it. It's small but sharp nonetheless. It was fun listening to their plans for the next day's activities when they got home. These included "forming a club for the two of them where they had to wear their necklaces and walking thru the woods looking for animals like the Native Americans did long ago." Don't you just love it?!!? : )

All in all, it was a wonderful day followed by dinner at one of my and my husband's favorite places to eat, Cracker Barrel. I'll save that for next time!!

Many blessings ~ Wendy

Sunday Sayings . . .

" Let us be grateful to people who make us happy: they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. "

~ Marcel Proust

Many blessings ~ Wendy

Lots of Fun in Very Little Sun . . .

It's hard to believe how quickly our week at the beach came and went this year. We all had a great time catching up with friends and family, some of which we hadn't seen since last year's reunion at the beach.

For the last couple of years Eileen and Bob (the two in polka dots) have become the "cruise directors" of our beach reunion. There are no words to describe what an incredible job they've done!! They're pictured with our DJ that we hire every year for our annual BBQ. We run 50/50's all weekend to offset the cost and it really makes the BBQ such a great time. Everyone dances and we even sing karaoke.

We've pretty much taken over the motel where we stay but for the few non-family members that are staying there we are more than happy to let them join us. There are several families that have even decided to book the same week every year just so they can be at the beach the same time as us because we're such a fun group!! : )

This year's theme for the BBQ was polka dots. Don't you just love the socks!!

My sister Cindy and nephew Tristan at the polka dot BBQ.

Megan wearing her polka dots.

The picture above is of the sign that is hung the day of the BBQ. The day has been dedicated to my first husband, John. For those of you that aren't familiar with the story, John passed away almost six years ago very suddenly at the age of 40. He LOVED to BBQ and helped cook for everyone at the BBQ every year before he passed. We also have "Pat's Derby" and "Walter's Duck Race." These were named for two other beloved family members who have passed in the last several years.

This year was very different for me. Traveling to a sunny location with an infant who is too young to wear sunscreen makes it very difficult to spend any time at the beach or even at poolside so lots of my time was spent in our motel room.

Who got more sun? My nephew or my foot?!? He even wore sunscreen every day!!

I know that probably sounds like a bummer to lots of people but, truth be told, I'm not much of a sun person. The temperature was also in the 90's most of the time and mixed with high humidity. With that said, Meggie and I didn't have such a bad time hanging together indoors. PLUS they had the Bravo channel on the television. I caught up on all of my favorite reality shows that I've become addicted to in a BIG way since I've been spending so much time on the couch nursing a baby. I think I have the slowest nurser in breastfeeding history!! so it's nothing for me to sit and feed her for an hour.

Besides . . . how could anybody mind spending oodles of time with this pretty baby girl?!!?

Many blessings ~ Wendy

Sunday Sayings . . .

" Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass.

It's about learning to dance in the rain. "

Author Unknown

Many blessings ~ Wendy

Be back in a week!!

Many blessings ~ Wendy

"What Does a Cat Have to do to Get Some Sleep Around Here?" . . .

The Many Faces of Megan Part 1 . . .

A Surprise Summer Rainstorm . . .

This morning we were treated to a sudden and unexpected summer thunderstorm. It was the kind of storm that is fast and furious and takes the humidity out of the air.

Sparky loved watching the rain come down from his perch in the front window although he ran to me when the thunder scared him. Such a baby!!







There's been lots of heat and humidity so far this summer and not so much rain so this was a much welcomed surprise!!

I took this picture thru the front window. So much for the towels drying over the porch railing!!

Thank you Mother Nature!! Now our bird bath is filled and our flowers are watered. My "TO DO" list just got a little shorter. :)

Many blessings ~ Wendy