Charleston, South Carolina

I didn't take enough pictures, but trust me - there are so many gorgeous streets and homes.

My mom and sisters and I went to Charleston, South Carolina for a long weekend to celebrate a couple milestone birthdays. My mom turned 70, and my little sister is now 40! We had a fun time getting caught up in person. I had never been to Charleston before, and it's such a beautiful little city. Gorgeous homes, great restaurants, a rich and fascinating history. The weather was not great - cool and dreary, and soaking wet one day - but we still managed to venture out and explore the city. The food was amazing. 

I loved getting to know the city, learning a little about its history, and I really loved getting the opportunity to catch up with my mom and sisters in person. We are all bad about talking on the phone, and it's never the same, so there was a lot to catch up on. It was also great that it was just the four of us - no spouses or kids or home responsibilities to distract us. Hopefully we'll get the opportunity to do it again at some point. In the meantime, we continue to struggle to find time to get the families together. Geography, flight times, work/vacation/school schedules, money, space...these are just some of the challenges we face. But we'll do the best we can to stay connected.

There was a lot of laughing and silliness.

Letters to Cleo

Last weekend, we went to see Letters to Cleo at The Paradise in Boston. It was such a fun show! It was great to listen to the songs of my 20s. I still remember all the words, and I sang them out and danced along with Kay Hanley and the band. Most of the audience knew all the words too. One of my favorite things in the world is to experience live music with a crowd of strangers. 

This is from the night before, in New York. This was their closing song - one of my all-time favorites.

Thankful...

My boys

I say it every year:  Thanksgiving is the best day of the year. A day focused on family, food, and gratitude. What could be better?

I am thankful for so much.

I am thankful for the new snood my mom bought me in Charleston. We are calling it a "birthday present" even though my birthday is in March. It is so soft and warm and cute, and I will most likely wear it every single day this winter.

Speaking of Charleston, I am thankful to have spent four days in that beautiful city with my fabulous mom and sisters. It had been many years since the four of us had spent time together, without kids and spouses and general chaos involved. It was lovely. We walked, rode bikes, toured historic homes, visited a museum, did some shopping, ate a ton of really fabulous food, and laughed and really caught up with each other in a way we hadn't in years.

I am thankful for our sitter. She picks the boys up from school, takes them to piano/drums/soccer/etc, reminds them to practice their instruments and to be nice to each other, plays games with them, and generally makes my life better. Oh! And she also cleans my kitchen and tidies the house each day. Last week she took everything out of the pantry, cleaned the whole thing, and organized everything on the shelves. Amazing!

I am thankful for the times that my boys like each other. Unfortunately, it isn't all the time, but there's a decent amount of love in their love/hate relationship. I'm going to focus on the love. They play soccer, trade pokemon, make up silly games, have races... When they play well together, it's beautiful to see.

I am thankful for my cute little old house. It's warm and comfortable. It's home.

We are heading to Connecticut for Thanksgiving. I have been the host for many years now, but I'm handing the reigns over to my sister-in-law this year. I am thankful for my family, for yummy food, for the opportunity to spend time together and enjoy each other's company.

What's Going On...

Election Day in Boston

I didn't mean to take such a long break from the blog. Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the stuff of life and have so much to do that it becomes difficult to do anything. On election night, I watched the results come in, and once the tide started to turn in an unexpected direction, I simply couldn't look away. We stayed up too late, until just before the final call was made - I couldn't watch that. Following the election, I became very engaged online and watching the news, and after a while I realized that I had to turn it all off. It became too much. The initial shock and disappointment has worn off, but I am still overwhelmed by the number of articles and opinions hitting my feeds every day.  

It's impossible to avoid the news, and it's still necessary to remain engaged. I am incredibly saddened by the events occurring in my country right now, including acts occurring in my own town. If it's happening here, in the bluest of blue states, what must it be like for people in other parts of the country? So I will speak up more. I will do what I can to encourage tolerance and understanding. I'm honestly saddened by the voices on both sides right now - it feels like we're pushing each other to our corners rather than listening to each other. I hope that will change. I don't want these current despicable actions to become normalized, but I do want things to calm down enough for us to hear each other. 

I had to explain to my kids who our next President will be and answer their questions. Then I donated to the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, called my state representatives, signed up to provide a Thanksgiving meal to a family in need, and attended a peace rally in my town. Doing something positive made me feel better, and I want to show my children that what we do as individuals matters. I'd encourage everyone to do the same.  

Halloween 2016

 

As we enter the month of gratitude and look forward to my very favorite holiday, let's not forget to document the fun that we had this past week. Between our company Halloween party, the school carnival, and of course the big day itself...fun was had by all.

This year, the boys and I decided to go as Gryffindors:  Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger to be specific.  Nathan was so excited to have orange hair!  

Of course the Stormtrooper also made an appearance and got in on the trick-or-treating fun.