The Lost Art of Blogging

How rusty my blogging skills have become over the past few months...what has been going on? I guess a lot of life.... with 2007 being full of moving to a new house, new jobs for both of us, a new car, and a very sick Maddox we had our hands full just by ourselves. It seems that now we are actually settled in I find I have the time to stay on top of laundry, dishes, and things that would seem like such a normalcy in everyday life became a BIG task in the face of doctors appointments, organizing the house, working, etc. How things can be placed in perspective now looking back. There are things that I enjoyed such as blogging about our daily lives, a way for me to vent my joys and frustrations. The ironic thing is that during our hectic time I might have benefited from blogging...if only I had the time.

Now my 27th birthday is around the corner...what a life that we are living, and what a world we are living in. Both Randy & Maddox are sleeping now. As the world lay still for a moment around me I relish in the peace that I have with me, my cup of hot peppermint tea, and the computers soft glow bouncing around the room. I might have lost the art of blogging for a few months, but I'm back.

In memory of the GREAT Uncle Josh

Admiration is a word that I'll use to sum up for how I felt towards my Uncle Josh. He was always just so cool and growing up he was larger than life to me. He lived in the most beautiful places, had the coolest friends, and always was himself. I can remember feeling like I needed to be one of the adults because I just wanted to hang out with someone as cool as Uncle Josh but I was never quite there until a few years ago. It's funny because I remember moving out to California and I knew he had a roomate...but it didn't dawn on me until maybe a few years later that they were dating. It was actually a wonderful learning experience for me to be exposed to that because it helped me to form opinions I carry with me through life. He was outspoken, funny, and a FABULOUS cook. I mean I can remember back to when I was a little girl eating his Thanksgiving meals...I would look forward to eating his food all year and when Thanksgiving came it was a feast. Dishes everywhere with only the best of the best foods placed just perfectly on the table. I can only hope that we will be able to try to match his Thanksgiving dinner to honor him and show how much we love him.

I remember the last time I saw him this summer and brought Maddox with me to New York. He & Maddox and really lit up when they were around each other. He was so proud that he and Grandma Judy were "GREAT" Uncle's and Grandma's and we would tease each other about that often.

That was one thing about Uncle Josh...he loved Grandma Judy SO much. They had such a special relationship and really gave each other a lot of support. Grandma was such a caring and open mother to him...they really had such a wonderful bond together. I love that in their relationship hope I can have a bond with Maddox like they had.

He had so many really good friends and family who really cared for him. It just shows how much people really loved him. It's a really special thing to have him as my uncle.

May he always have a window view of the world...

Donations in his memory may be made to the Long Island Association for AIDS Care

Childress Winery Trip

Maddox had a great opportunity to spend a week with Tee & Papa at Carolina Beach here in North Carolina! Randy and I went down as we could between our work schedules but it was a beautiful home. They really did good! We also got to see Jennifer, Joe, Papa & DeeDee there too from Tenn. which was a great time. They looked great and it's always so nice to see family that you haven't seen in a while. We love you guys! Thanks for the wonderful time.

GrandmaLa & Maddox enjoying a relaxing summer day together...

There is a quote that says you can't move forward until you know your past. As some of you may know my wonderful mom has been staying with us this summer. It has given us a wonderful opportunity to really connect, develop a stronger relationship, and to really understand each other at our points in our lives. I think we have both grown from these moments that we have shared together. We have laughed together, cried in movies together, shared huge hugs together, and most of all enjoyed spending time with Maddox.
Our lives are amazing in so many ways because of Maddox and one of many ways he has brought joy in our lives is by bringing so many of us together. GrandmaLa (Mom) has really enjoyed spending every hour by bonding, playing, and communicating with her grandson. He grows more and more each day with each sign he learns watching us use sign language everyday. As much as Mom loves spending time here with us we love it even more. She brightens up our home and makes it feel so inviting just like a ray of sunshine. It's been a great time for all of us to get to know one another...renew our relationships....and look to the future for many wonderful years ahead. Here are three pictures of GrandmaLa (Mom) and Maddox today...

Ocracoke Island Trip-Our Romantic Weekend Getaway

We needed some time to ourselves..don't get me wrong. We love our friends and family and spending time with everyone but we haven't had an opportunity to spend some time with eachother in a while. We decided to take our first camping trip together in Dr. Beach's #1 beach in the United States...Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Our trip started at 1:30am on Saturday morning. We were both stumbling over our bags, clothes, etc. to try and get out the door. Grandma La (Mom) met us at the door to say goodbye and we were on our way. A 4 hour drive and then another 3 hour ferry ride finally put us on the island. I can't believe we actually made it but we did sleep on the ferry ride over so that helped out...I think. I was still a bit groggy when we stepped off and made it over to the camp ground. We got such a great camp site. They had a system that was first come first serve and we had driven around twice wanting to find a spot by the beach. Of course there was none avaliable so we settled for D36. The very last one across from the beach side and with a beautiful view of the trash can. The thing we didn't know was that there was a private trail to get to the top of the sand dune and a cleared out spot for a tent. That's right, our own private spot overlooking the campground...we loved it. Now here comes the setting up the tent part...yes I know what you are thinking. Novice campers...it took hours to set up the tent. It took 20 minutes, that's right. We were really supprised too...and after that we got some lunch, filled up our cooler with water and beer and started on our vacation. There were many walks on the beach, a relaxing rainy night, and a day for exploring the island on Sunday. We walked the nature trail, stopped by the speciality stores,Blackbeards Museum since Ocracoke island is where he was laid to rest, and walked along the beach some more. There were times we were the only people on the beach and there are no houses built on the beach, just a beautiful ocean view as far as your eye can see. Randy and I had some great time to talk, enjoy our company, and focus on our relationship. Maddox was the topic of many of our converstations naturally and we really were glad to see him when we got back but I think more than ever we realize that we really need to take some time out for ourselves so we can give more of ourselves to Maddox. When we came home Maddox was just wanting to cuddle with us all day on Monday...as if he was letting us know how much he missed us. We were more than happy to cuddle back, we missed him too. It was a great weekend, we are planning another weekend camping trip in August. This time in the mountains....until our next adventure....

Weekend with Mimi, Papa Ran, & Todd

What a weekend for Maddox!! He got to spend some time with family and take a dip in the pool, go to the park, and just enjoy his time with the family! We are so glad to have such wonderful family that will watch Maddox (and I am sure enjoy the time with him) so we can enjoy some time with each other. We really needed it! :) Apparently he had a great time because the next day Maddox and I took a 3 hour nap together during the middle of the day! SMILE.