Best Friends

What would this year have been without my best friend's constant support, wisdom, guidance, compassion, empathy, sense of humor and patience? 

We are in touch almost daily and share almost everything.

And while we live only four houses apart, we actually don't see each other all of the time, or have a lot of photo opportunities. 

We celebrated Jeannine's birthday a little later (in June instead of May) because I had an abdominal migraine on her birthday. But we celebrated with her favorite foods including seafood and pineapple. :)

Jeannine's joy for life and her grace in the midst of challenges are a constant reminder to me of her amazing spirit.

Blessings,

Emily

Monday Dog Blog: A Rainy Day

Peacefully Co-Existing for a Photo-Op

Tovah Rose and Gershwin settled in next to each other on the sofa for a brief moment today. No wrestling, no fighting over space--just nicely coexisting in close proximity to one another. This may be my new favorite picture of the two of them.

A View of The World

We're having a lot of rainy weather, which Tovah Rose finds to be very depressing because she cannot go outside and play in the yard all day long. After incessantly ringing the bell and realizing we weren't' going to let her go outside again, we looked over to find her at her perch on the sofa. 

It's So Sad to be Trapped Inside on a Rainy Day!

From her perch, this little girl has a great view of everything that is going on in 'her yard'.

Would Someone Please Come Over Here To Sit With Me?

Gershwin jumped up on the sofa as well, but appeared more interested in his 'humans' and the possibility of a lap to snuggle up to.

G thinks he is a people

Gershwin loves to settle in just like a 'little people', as we say. And as soon as I head for my recliner, he has his paws up on the foot rest before I am even sitting down. 

My Cuties

After a long visit back home with us, Asher is back at Dad and Abbie's where he seems content and relaxed. While here, he was very anxious. whining and pacing a lot, and tweaking his shoulder the wrong way when trying to keep tabs on everything. I savored the evening cuddle time with him and miss my special 'Asher time' when he is not here.

Happy Monday!

Blessings,

Emily

Going to Arts Festival!

Our Arts Festival

Each year, I eagerly anticipate one particular week in the summer when lots of townies come back for our arts festival. It's an event that is part of the fabric of my life and one I've attended since I was a little girl. Growing up, I enjoyed selling my own crafts during children's day, attending the performances and visiting the art booths. Many of my very favorite pieces of jewelry and art are from this festival, as well as many fond memories of time with my mom and time with my friends.

Kate and Me

Early on, after I first got sick, we did try to go for a short while to the festival, but it was so difficult that I have not tried again until this year.

I typically use all of my energy to visit with friends who are in town, but miss out on the joy of the festival itself, which is something that I've missed deeply and makes me very sad.

This year, the combination of my new level of functioning, the Rolls, and a perfectly cool cloudy day on the least busy day of the festival (Thursday), Mom and I were able to take in a about half of the booths. 

I was sitting upright in my Rolls, looking at art for FOUR HOURS! I honestly don't know how I pulled it off, but I was able to completely enjoy the experience without struggling through it. 

Kate, Tovah and Gershwin

I purchased two pieces of artwork for my bedroom (one of dragonflies and one of moths, of course), one piece for my new bathroom, and a fun pair of earrings, and a small ring. Mom also surprised me with a pair of earrings because she didn't think I would be well enough to go. I was also able to get a baby gift for one of my best friends who no longer lives in the area. I went a little crazy!

Engaging with the artists, running into people we knew, seeing so much creativity, being a part of an event that I have so deeply missed made me feel so alive. Being able to choose artwork for myself felt incredible. I now have new pieces of jewelry and art that reflect the 'me' now.

Kira, Zoey and Tovah

That same week, I also saw Kate for a girls only visit with just the two of us, which is something we haven't done in a very long time and is always something I look forward to because Kate is such an authentic, tell-it-like-it-is person. She's good for me. :)

I also saw Jess and her two girls, Kira and Zoey. I met Zoey when she was a toddler and hadn't met Kira yet! As you can tell, the girls were crazy for the dogs. 

Tovah and Zoey

After my four hours at the festival, it took me two days of time in bed to begin to recover, which is a pretty big price. Since going to the festival was unimaginable even a year ago, I'll take those precious four hours surrounded by art and creativity, time with Mom, and wonderful memories hanging on my walls.

Blessings,

Emily

New Christmas Traditions with Dad and Abbie

Abbie Has the House Decorated Beautifully

We celebrated Christmas tonight at Dad and Abbie's. And it just might be one of my favorite Christmas celebrations ever.

Dad, Me, Jeannine

I grew up celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah. After my parents divorced, we never really came up with new traditions for Christmas. Many years I've been too sick to go to Christmas with all of the family at Dad and Abbie's, and in general it's a little overwhelming for me physically.

So, we decided to try something a little different. Dad and Abbie had Jeannine and I over for a steak dinner. Afterwards we exchanged meaningful gifts that everyone was excited about. (I'm most excited about another year of audible membership, a Golden State Warriors sweatshirt and some new 'tunes.)

Dad, Me, Abbie

Just being able to go over to Dad and Abbie's for an evening, share a meal together, and celebrate the holiday made this year so special. What made it extra special was how much we all laughed and enjoyed being together.

A new Christmas tradition has been born, and I couldn't be happier about it.

Blessings,

Emily

More Iowa Visitors: Mary, Ross and Jan

Ross, Me, Mom and Mary

I realize I'm down to the wire here when it comes to recapping the joys of 2013. But I know I'll be disappointed in myself if I don't post about the people and places of this special year. I just might finish posting before your holiday card arrives in the mail. :)

We had travel this year (!) and lots of out of town visitors, including more Iowa family. 

Mary and Gershwin

Shortly after we returned from our big trip to see the Jewish side of the family, a couple of members of my Dad's big Catholic family arrived at our doorstep. My cousin-by-marriage, Mary; her son, Ross; and Mary's sister Jan stayed for almost three days. 

Jan and Tovah

My cousin Craig (Mary's husband) wasn't able to make the trip. As I've mentioned about all of my visitors that I haven't seen in so many years, it's fun to reconnect in new ways. 

Craig is the oldest of the 40 cousins, so he and Mary are cousins that I did not know well growing up. And, their son Ross was only about seven when I was last in Iowa!

Tovah and Jan: Jan Spoiled the Puppies!

Mary has been faithful and loyal in her reading of my blog, her emails of support, and her prayers for me. So, it was special to finally be together in person.

Ross and Me

We ate lots of good food, picked on Ross lots, heard lots of stories from Mary, enjoyed meeting her wonderful sister, and they all took in the 4th of July fireworks and other fun town events while I rested in between visiting.

Thanks for bringing Iowa to us, Mary, Jan and Ross!

Blessings,

Emily

A New Tradition: Chinese Dinner!

Our First Hibachi Experience

Typically, we spend Christmas day quietly resting at home (and I usually work on our New Year's cards) or I go to Dad and Abbie's house for the afternoon.

I still spent much of the afternoon working on our holiday cards, but we decided to mix things up a bit this year, give Mom a night off from cooking, and go OUT for Chinese food with the rest of the folks not celebrating Christmas. The restaurant was packed!

Got the Waiter to Snap a Pic!

This was our first time at this restaurant and our fist time at a place we could have hibachi made in front of us. Fun and yummy.

When I texted a friend that we had gone out to dinner tonight she said: "I always get so thrilled when I can go to restaurants. I remember when I couldn't even THINK about sitting up that long."

My thoughts exactly. And I'm hoping the trend will continue so that this can become a new holiday tradition for us.

To those of you who celebrate Christmas, I hope your day was a blessed one.

Blessings,

Emily

Our Jewish Family: A 45th Anniversary and Family Reunion

Happy 45th Anniversary Diane and Michael!

One of our absolute top memories of 2013 will be traveling to Stroudsburg, PA for the 45th anniversary party of Diane and Michael, where we were able to be together with the entire Jewish side of the family.

Wedding Photo

A little introduction: My Uncle Stan married my Aunt Vicki, who sadly passed away too early. She has a sister, Diane. Diane, Michael and their children feel like family to us. There are so few of us on the Jewish side of the family, that we have extended the definition of 'family' just a little bit to include them. 

The View

We traveled on a Friday and returned on a Monday afternoon at the end of June.

Our Residence for the Weekend

We stayed in a little cottage on the grounds where the big party was held.

The Grounds

Over the years, we have seen Diane and Michael a few times when they have generously come to visit us. Other than the small number of times I have seen Diane and Michael, Stan and a couple of other members of the family, I have either only seen some people once or twice in the past 15 years or not at all.

The Whole Crew!

Seeing everyone and being together in a big family environment is something that filled my heart with such joy.

Dinner Crew: Dan, Marilyn, Stan, Sandie, Michael, Diane, Beth, Stephen and Mom

We spent every meal gathered at Diane's house, where she had prepared insane amounts of food (what else is a Jewish mother to do? :)). 

Cousin Stephen says I am 'too sweet', so to get this picture I told everyone to 'shut up and stop talking'! It worked!

A Game of Hats: Diane and Maddie

Despite all of the other family Diane had to take care of, she still found time to worry about whether there was food I could eat, to make sure the venue for the party was handicapped accessible and to ask if I'd like to bring a reclining chair to the reception if I didn't feel I could sit up the whole time. 

Diane and Me

What a gift to have someone go to so much extra effort to make sure that I felt included.

Diane, Mom and Me.

I made myself right at home on the comfy furniture.

Me and Mom

Somehow I managed to attend dinner Friday evening after a nap Friday afternoon, lunch and dinner on Saturday, the party on Sunday afternoon, dinner on Sunday evening, and lunch Monday afternoon before we left to come home.

 Most everyone else was at Diane and Michael's house all or most of the days, but we had to leave so that I could rest. A lot. It took a lot of extra meds and a lot of help from my mom to get through the weekend, but it was 100% worth it. 

A Toast From Uncle!

I hope you'll join me as I share more about the weekend and introduce you to my family.

Sister and Brother

Mom and her brother got to see each other for the second time this year. 

Uncle and Me

I love being "Beautiful Niece" and was excited to feel so much better on this trip than I did when we traveled to Chicago for Uncle's 80th birthday party.

Having too much Fun

I hope I enjoy life when I am 80 as much as he does :) And did Sandie either dodge all of these photos, or did I leave her out? :(

Beth and Stephen

In addition to seeing Stan and Sandie again this year, we saw my cousin Stephen and his wife, Beth, with whom I've become fast friends. 

Daughter and Father

We all had so much more time to talk compared to the very, very brief time we were together for Stan's 80th party.

Cousin Dana

After this last visit, I think Dana and I can now say we've seen each other four times in the past 15 years?

Aawwww...

This wonderful loving couple have been through so much together, and continue to share such a deep love and affection for one another. We can all only hope to be so fortunate in love.

At the Sunday Party

Diane and Michael have three children: Karen and Jonathan (twins) and Daniel, as well as four grandchildren (all girls! :))

Karen and Maddie

I have not seen Daniel, Karen or Jonathan since I was 13 years old and attended Karen and Jonathan's B'nai Mitzvah. Other than being in touch with Karen via FB, I haven't been in touch with any of them, met their spouses or their children!

How amazing to reconnect as adults and meet the whole crew!

Spin Me Again, Daddy!

During lunch on Saturday, I got to catch up with Karen, and meet her husband Loren, and daughter, Maddie. 

Loren and Maddie

Me, Maddie and George. 

Maddie wasn't into having too many people hold her, so I was pretty excited that she gave me a few minutes of her time. :)

Stella, Jonathan, Camellia and Jenny

I didn't get to see Jonathan, his wife Jenny, and their daughters Stella and Camellia as much as I would have liked (I think me and the girls were on opposite nap schedules!), but goodness did I ever enjoy meeting them all. 

Listening to the Mushy Speech: Stella, Jenny, Jonathan and Camellia

Buddies: Me and Camellia. 

Camellia and I had lots of fun together at the Sunday afternoon party. All those speeches were a little long for her. :)

Daniel, Stan, Stephen and Cristina

Daniel (far left) is married to Cristina (far right).

Gabrielle and her Buddy

They have a daughter, Gabrielle, who had a friend tagging along with her for the trip. 

Gabrielle, her friend and Cristina

Marilyn, Diane and Mom

We were also joined by Diane's cousin, Marilyn, and her husband, Dan.

Party!

The anniversary party took place in a beautiful setting, with wonderful food, good company and lots of toasts from family. 

The Head Table

Time to Recline

I took Diane up on her offer to recline after the meal, and settled in for the toasts and slideshow. 

Michael and Diane Share Their Love Story

Michael's speech had us all in tears.

Jonathan and Karen

And the kids roasted...

Gabrielle Assists Karen in Roasting Michael and Diane

and toasted…their parents.

Dancing

After Diane and Michael shared the first dance...

Gabrielle and Stella Burn Up the Dance Floor

The granddaughters kept us all entertained with their first-class moves.

Beth and Stephen

We were able to sit at a table of just the family: Stan, Sandie, Stephen, Beth, Dana, Marilyn, Dan, Mom and me. Diane, Michael and their immediate family sat at the head table.

Daniel, Stan, Stephen and Cristina

Look at those stylish men! 

Me and Mom

Mom and I will forever hold the memories of this weekend in our hearts and hope that we will not go this many years again without seeing this wonderful family of ours, who traveled from Texas, California, Georgia and Illinois to be with Diane and Michael on their 45th anniversary.

Diane and Me

We are so thankful to Diane for welcoming us into the arms of the family as if we were blood relatives, and for her constant concern and consideration for our needs.

Diane and Me

Diane knows what a Herculean effort it took for me to get through the whole weekend, be at all of the meals and push through. She made me feel that I could be myself, and not worry about embarrassing anyone while I reclined at the party. 

I'm not sure I would have been brave enough to go on this big trip and visit without knowing that everyone knew what to expect when they saw me and knowing that it was okay. 

Wedding Photo Signed by all of the Guests this Summer

We wish Diane and Michael many more years of love and companionship. May you remember to do what you have done for the past 45 years: never go to bed mad at each other.

Blessings,

Emily

Note: Thanks to Marilyn and Dana for some of the extra photos!