Amaryllis Amour

Here we are with Joe, Annemarie, Wally and Robert on our wedding day. We were married on Christmas. Those standing with us stood up for us that day as our witnesses. Every Christmas since Robert has sent us an amaryllis in honor of our anniversary.

The plant comes decorated for Christmas not quite ready to bloom. We get to watch it bloom over the next couple of weeks. After the flowers have gone by we plant the bulb in the front yard.

This year's amaryllis is spectacular and has not yet finished blooming.

Once planted out front they bloom around Robert's birthday every June.

SNOW DAY!

You know that Mitch and friends love it when they call off school.You could hear them whooping it up as they slid down the ice. They came in once for hot cocoa and then they were out again until they were soaked through to the skin. We had to wash and dry everything from his coat to his skivvies.

Home IS Where the Heart Is

I am a “dyed-in-the-wool” Yankee who was transplanted from Massachusetts to North Carolina. I have just spent a week back in Massachusetts with my mother and some time with my siblings. And yet this is not my home. My mother lives in an apartment complex near my sister and has been out of the house of my childhood for over a year. This is definitely not my home.

Before heading back to North Carolina, I spent the weekend with Robert. He has been my friend since we were 15 and even though I have lived 800 miles away for the past twelve years, we have remained close. We enjoy cooking and eating and drinking and spending time together.

We had the excuse of his sister Carole's birthday to kick the party up a notch. Otherwise we may have spent the entire weekend in our pajamas. We have always been lounge lizards. It was great to be in his company, yet this is not my home.

At the end of today’s air flights I will land in North Carolina. I am not from the South. It does not feel remotely like anything I have known growing up. However, when I get off the plane and see these faces,

I will, at long last, be home.

Number Nusiance

Over the past few years it has been a challenge to keep up with cell phone numbers. One that has eluded me in particular is Annemarie's. I thought I had it, finally. Posted on the wall of The Palms were the phone numbers of all of the managers. I grabbed a post-it note and jotted down Annemarie's number. I tucked it into the pocket of my jeans. Later, I searched all of the pockets of all my jeans to no avail. I have no idea where the post-it went.

This morning as I was packing up again to head to Massachusetts for a week, I pulled on a pair of jeans. I stuck my hand in my back pocket and came up with this sorry remnant of a post-it note. I believe it is the one bearing Annemarie's number.

I guess I am not destined to have this number.

That's okay. I will use Joe's number. Annemarie will most likely answer.

Inspired

Our pseudo niece, Nikki, started to blog when she was expecting her son. It was terrific. She lives 3000 miles from us. Through her blog we were able to meet and learn all about her boy and her family and her life. It made us feel close even though there is a continent between us.

Danielle, our other pseudo niece, is about to have a baby. She is in New Jersey, still a distance from us. We hope she will blog so that we can keep up with her burgeoning family, too.

Nikki's and Dani's parents, Joe and Annemarie (aka the Charbs), followed Nikki to the left coast. We recently followed after them, if only for a visit. Joe and Annemarie are two of our closest friends. They live and work in The Palms. We stayed with them there. And so we are inspired to blog about our trip and how wonderful life is when you fill it with such good friends.

Not These Palms

The Palms

Mitch hams it up at The Palms

The Palms is the retirement community where Joe & Annemarie are Co-Managers. We stayed in the guest suite on the property. This particular retirement community has been in existence for quite some time as have most of its residents. It is an apartment complex with a dining hall and other facilities.

Breakfast is served at 8 a.m., dinner at 12:30 p.m. and supper at 5:30 p.m. We were invited to the manager's table for these meals. It was like sitting at the Captain's Table on a cruise ship. There is a weight room and beauty salon. They have movies and bingo and social events with entertainment. We decided this glimpse into a possibility for our future was like being on a landlocked cruise.

AND we could walk to the liquor store. Susan could definitely retire here. Mitch could get a job at the local bodega. Brian always feels at home at Cross Roads.

Days were spent hanging with the Charbs, eating too much, walking and finally getting to meet Cooper, son of Nikki & Jakob.

Cooper is a great fun but difficult to catch in a photo. He is not one to stay still. Brian managed to catch him once, barely.

It was wonderful to see him and Mitchell play together rolling around on the floor and whooping it up.

We did get Mitch to the Pacific.

Mum tried wading with her boy but it was toooooooo cold!

Auntie Riri likes to take pictures with her digital camera. Hopefully she will feel inspired to pick up where she left off with her blog. One thing is for certain. The West Coast definitely agrees with her. It looks pretty good on Uncle Joe, too.

We may not blog often, but will try to keep reporting our adventures.

Susan, Brian and Mitch