Three Generations

I love capturing images of the three generations of our family. And I love how much love we all share.

 

 

Gifts from Heart and Hands

In addition to the wonderful gifts of time, labor, and friendship we are being showered with, we've been blessed with some other wonderful things, too.

I know I mentioned previously the wonderful pregnancy organizer from our friend Deb - it has SO come in handy - well, my mom, who also knows us well, recently sent us a package. One of the best parts was that it was addressed to M + M and Zordan (our baby's temporary name until we meet and find out if s/he's a she (Zoe) or a he (Jordan)).

And inside, was a reference guide to babies (in response to my frequent comment to my mom: I really hope there's a book on that!) and a Michael Jackson DVD, for Michele, MJ's biggest fan.

To join the Dr. Suess book the the lovely Bridget gifted us with early on, we now have a collection of Winnie the Pooh books from Sue. They are currently gracing the book case in the new living room - right next to where the awesome accent chair will be - the perfect spot for reading time!

And then there are the baby blankets! Our dear friend Sue collected many, many baby blankets when she was pregnant with her now four-year-old son, Max. And she's started us out right with the beginnings of a collection of our own. One very special one was hand-knit by Sue! I know it will be a favorite!

We just feel so blessed with all the love in all these gifts and know that little Zordan will feel blessed as well!

The Best Weekend Ever, Part 3 (The Final Chapter)

Today marks the end of my amazing birthday weekend. It was just the best weekend ever, truly! Yesterday was the height of  fun. I hosted my first ever brunch with two very good, very sweet friends, Jena and Sarah (Bad influence Sarah of football and sledding fame). It was such a treat having them over!

Then, that afternoon when I opened my gifts from Michele, I got the best surprise! OK, first I've got to tell you the back story: every six months, at Christmas and my birthday, Michele heads to the local Lindt store and buys me six months worth of chocolate. Well, the local Lindt store closed and the closest ones were in Niagara Falls and Syracuse - both about an hour and a half drive from us! And my extra special birthday surprise, you ask? Michele, sweetheart that she is, drove to Niagara to buy my birthday chocolate! I felt so touched and so bad at the same time - I mean, she drives for a living and the day after she got home, she turned around and drove to Niagara just to make sure that I would have my favorite chocolate for my birthday! I'm still overwhelmed! It is such a blessing to have such a wonderful partner and such wonderful friends and family (both here in Rochester, around the world, and in cyberspace) to spend this special birthday with! Thank you everyone for you lovely birthday wishes!

Two Really Great Things to Tell You

Thing 1: My sister had throat surgery today and came through it with flying colors. Surgery of any kind has its dangers and this surgery in particular was a big concern for Kym because 1. it was to remove her cancerous thyroid and cancer is scary! and 2. it was throat surgery and she is an opera singer! Well, the removal of the thyroid went great and examination of it revealed NO cancer - the previous biopsies were either incorrect or had been inconclusive. And, I've spoken to Kym, and she said that the first thing she did upon regaining consciousness was sing a few notes to test the "opera-singing nerves" - yes, there really are nerves associated with the ability to sing opera - who knew! I'm so glad my sis is back in good working order!

Thing 2: Etsy in general and my local team (RNEST), in particular, was featured in the local paper - with a very nice picture of me in it! So fun! Here's the link to check it out.

All in all, it was a banner day!