Holy cow -- less than one week after our ice/sleet storm, we got socked with 11 inches of real, actual snow! We couldn't believe it. When we woke up on Saturday, there was two inches on the ground and huge clumps of flakes were still coming down. It didn't stop until after we went to bed that night!
Once there was about 4 inches, we went across the street to our neighbor's backyard, which has a big hill. Little Man didn't want to come, but the girls and MJ and I had a lot of fun. Little Man waited until later in the day, when he convinced Sweet Pea to let him bury her.
The next day the sun came out, and a lot of snow melted. But we still had 8-10 inches in most of the backyard, which stays shady all day. Amber was unhappy with the snow, and would only go outside when required, and only as quickly as absolutely necessary. But with a lot of encouragement, she finally came out and had a few cases of the zoomies in the snow.
This was a snowfall for the ages! Definitely the most snow we've seen since MJ and I moved here in 2008. And I fear the kids may never go back to school!
Like a large chunk of the country, we are experiencing a severe winter storm. The kids are disappointed that we aren't getting tons of snow, but let's be realistic -- most years here go by without even a snowflake. So they were thrilled to wake up this morning to see our driveway and street covered in white!
It's actually sleet, not snow. And I'm glad, because we were supposed to get freezing rain, and sleet is much less dangerous than freezing rain. But it's just snow-adjacent enough that we could go out and enjoy it for a bit!
And my personal favorite picture, after Sweet Pea attempted to push CC on the sled:
Once we were done outside, Sweet Pea decided to try a pull-apart garlic bread recipe. It was delicious. She's very proud of herself! As long as we have power, I feel strongly that there's more baking in our immediate future.
Now we just have to pray to keep our power. We have batteries, flashlights, canned goods, plenty of water and lots of blankets. Fingers crossed ...
On the anniversary of my mom's death, naturally, I had to be with my dad. I went to visit him and it was really nice to spend some quiet time together. We sat and talked for long periods, cooked dinner together, ate at several restaurants that my mom enjoyed, watched a pretty bad movie, went to Mass and to visit her grave, and met up with a friend of his for hot chocolate. We planned to go for a hike as well, but ran out of time, so instead we visited a Civil War site that was interesting and well maintained. We'll save the hike for my next visit.
I'm not eloquent enough to put the enormity of my feelings into words. But I think of my mom a hundred times a day. I hardly ever talk about her, not because I don't miss her terribly or feel her absence keenly, but because it's impossible to keep my composure. I think she would be happy if she saw how we were doing: the grandkids are happy and healthy; we all continue to stay close and spend a lot of time together; my dad is active and social, and visits us often. I feel her presence around me all the time, because she's such a part of who I am. We were so blessed to have had her.
Last summer, Sweet Pea was invited to join an adult cirque company here, as they prepared a show to perform in New York at the Association of Performing Arts Professionals conference. This past weekend was the trip, and Sweet Pea did great!
Leading up to the trip, there was only one rehearsal. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but I had been warned that professionals don't need as many rehearsals as students are used to having. And the other performers in the group lived across the US; they only all came to town once to rehearse together before we all met in New York.
Sweet Pea was the only child in the show, and in fact, she was the only child we saw all weekend out of thousands of performers in hundreds of shows. She was a little shy with everyone else, but the other cast members were very kind and gentle with her.
We arrived at noon on Saturday, and all had a nice lunch together at a deli (Sweet Pea had a burger, and immediately declared that she loved NY delis). After lunch, we had about an hour to ourselves before the first rehearsal. She and I walked around midtown, and were thrilled to see that the Rockefeller Christmas tree was still up! We also walked through FAO Schwartz, which was packed but fun, and she picked out a few miniature Jellycat stuffies for Little Man and CC.
Rehearsal that evening was rough. It was in an empty studio, so the apparatuses weren't available. Sweet Pea was dropped several times, and there were a lot of last-minute changes to choreography, costumes, and timing. She left feeling very nervous -- the performances were the next day! But we ended on a high note: grabbing some New York pizza for dinner ("It was bussin!") and getting to bed early.
Early the next day they did a tech rehearsal in the theater where their performances would be. It went much better, and they had the chance to get on the lyra, trapeze, and rope. I sat in the audience to record the show, and prayed hard that she could clear her mind of distractions and remember all her notes. The show went great! She came off the stage afterwards with a big smile of relief.
We had a few hours before the next show, so we took off to walk though Times Square, get lunch at a different deli, stop by Magnolia Bakery for dessert (the banana pudding was delish!), and visit the top of the Rockefeller Center for some amazing views of New York. (She loved that the elevator to the observation deck was on floor SIX SEVEN!)
The final show again went very well. Afterwards, we packed up and headed to the airport. Sweet Pea had a window seat, and got some great nighttime views of the city as the plane took off. We got home late but happy, and I let Sweet Pea sleep in a few hours before going to school the next day. It was an exhausting but incredible trip. So many performers would give anything to have such an opportunity! I'm so proud of her hard work, which led to this invitation. She loves cirque, and it's wonderful to see her rewarded like this.
On the 3rd, we got together at Patrick and Karen's house to celebrate Christmas with them. Pepere had moved from our house to theirs, so he was with us as well.
Unfortunately, Karen had the flu, so she stayed upstairs the whole time to keep from infecting us. And MJ woke up that morning feeling sick, so we all tested for flu as well, to make sure we weren't bringing it to Patrick or the boys (or bringing a different strain). Fortunately none of us had Flu A, Flu B, or Covid -- MJ just had a cold -- so we had a smaller visit, without MJ or Karen.
But it was still nice. We exchanged gifts, had a nice meal, and just enjoyed each other's company. The boys played video games together, and CC was surprised to learn that Braxton and Bryson share a love for the Keeper of the Lost Cities books! They had quite a lively conversation, debating their favorite characters and plot points. Little Man loved the Zelda Encyclopedia he received, and coincidentally Braxton received a Zelda book that Little Man already has, so the two of them immediately curled up on the couch to dive in.
One of my favorite outings each year: our Christmas afternoon with Alice! This year we went after New Year's, because we had to wait for CC to finish Drivers Ed. Unfortunately, that meant the gingerbread house exhibit that we usually visit afterwards was gone, but we still had a great time.
Sweet Pea went back and forth between several books, but ultimately picked The Summer of Broken Rules. CC was agonizing -- there are so many books she wants! -- but she selected the first book of the Crescent City series, which is on her "To Be Read" list. And although Little Man was initially disappointed that they didn't have any Zelda books in stock, he was excited to find a Minecraft book that he hadn't read yet.
Afterwards we had a nice lunch at our usual place. CC is always excited to get ribs, because there aren't very many restaurants we frequent that offer ribs! Pepere came with us, because he had been visiting for New Year's (and his birthday!), and we were so happy to include him in our adventure.
Lastly, I asked Alice to take a picture of me and Pepere with the kids. And then my dad took a picture of me with Alice. I don't think we've taken a picture together since my baby shower in 2011!
Pepere was here, and we celebrated his birthday with an ice cream cake while we rang in the new year. MJ and I attended a swanky NYE party at the house of our tennis friends, Lauren and Justin (I forgot to ask someone to take our picture, and I'm really bummed about it!). But we ducked out a little early so we'd be home for the stroke of midnight. MJ went straight to bed, but Pepere and I and the kids watched the ball drop together.
2025 was hands-down the worst year of my life. But it's still hard to say good bye to it, because it was the last year I saw my mom, hugged her, and told her I loved her. I don't want there to be another year without her, another year of milestones and memories she wasn't a part of. But I know she's watching us all, cheering for us, and celebrating every event with us.
I'm not usually one for New Years resolutions, but this year I actually have one: to update this blog more often. I've gotten way behind on a lot of the big events (our beach vacation last summer, for example) and most of the little ones, too. My mom loved reading updates and seeing so many pictures of our family, so I'll try to be better about it. You'll be seeing a LOT of old posts and pictures for the new few weeks!
