The Fountain of Youth

Let's face it...at our respective ages, we're tired.  We can't party like we used to, stay up until all hours, eat whatever we want and not gain an ounce or not get out of bed without some twinge of pain.  Joey's father used to call doing that, "making my father's noise."

 

But that all changes when kids are in the house.  This past weekend, we had Tony, Marie, Coleton and Anthony stay over.  The kids were a blast.  We found energy we didn't know we had and played like kids in pre-school.  Hugging them was like jumping into the fountain of youth.

 

Unfortunately, I worked a lot while they were here, but Tuesday, I had the day off and was able to sleep in...sort of!

 

As I was laying in bed, in that nether world of sleep and distant awareness, I heard Coleton, who was two feet away from me, yelling to Marie who was in the kitchen, "Maw-Mee, Momo is still sleeping."  Um, at that point--no I wasn't!

 

So, I rolled out of bed and Coleton immediately handed me three pictures of airplanes that he and Tony worked on.  Tony did the design and Coleton did the coloring.  I wonder how NASA and the Department of Defense would feel about blue, yellow and pink war machines!

 

But, I did think they were beautiful--and so before my first cup of coffee and with only one eye open, we hung them on the refrigerator.  They look wonderful and it was certainly worth getting out of bed to hang them.

 

And then there was Anthony--or Mr. Smiley, as we call him.  He is getting to be so big.  And, he has found his voice.   He can say, "NO" and "NOT NOW," really well.  When you take his picture, he squeezes his eyes shut so he doesn't see the flash...so here you have this cute little man saying,"cheeeeeese," with a nice smile on his face and eyes scrunched tight and closed. 

 

They went to our pool and to the beach with Mommy and Daddy and they all went by the battleship, "The North Carolina," which, Coleton informed me, does not move anymore but used to have airplanes on it. 

 

All of the Swegle men even spent time in the kitchen (I would say, "where they belong," but I'm afraid Tony would stop cooking for me and I would starve!)

The days went quickly by and soon they were in the backseat of their car, yelling, "Bye, Papa, Bye Momo, we love you."

What a nice visit. 

We are off tomorrow to Tampa to see David and Brenda and get some wedding updates.  I'm so excited to see them. 

I'm off work until September 15!  YIPPEE!

My beautiful fridge--A Purdum Calendar and artwork by Coleton

A Pink Airplane...well, why not?

Yellow, maybe it makes the plane invisible!

 

The blue Enterprise

One of my birthday presents from Coleton

Anthony and Coleton--Coleton decided to get into the closing your eyes for photos game

Anthony and his pretty Mama

Anthony and Anthony

Momo, Papa and Anthony

 

Making cheese pizza

A job well done

 

Dinner's Ready!!

 

At the beach

 

New Stuff

David and Brenda's wedding draws closer and closer and we are getting so excited...OK, I'm getting excited, Tony is happy in a reserved, guy,  kind of way.  I love Brenda's dress and shoes and I know the venue is going to be great.    We will be going to Florida next week for a "meet the parents" moment.  The movie keeps running through my mind.   I keep wondering if we are the Barbra Streisand and Dustin Hoffman or Blythe Danner and Robert DeNiro characters.  If you recall from the "Meet the Parents" movie, Barbra and Dustin were the groom's parents...free spirits, enjoying life (and sex) and really cool people.  Geez, I hope that's Tony and me!!!  We have seen pictures of Brenda's parents and they look like really nice people.  I know one thing for sure, they have raised a wonderful daughter that we are thrilled to be adding to our family. 

 

I have been working a lot again.  We are still in need of people because of maternity leave, vacations or long term disability.  I worked part of the day today and then went to a doctor's appointment.  I was hoping for another cortisone shot, but had to settle to a topical skin cream and a prescription for my knee, which is arthritic. 

 

Tonight, it's pizza and rain.  The pizza is a Friday night staple, but the rain, holy cow....this is remnants of the hurricane and it is massive.  I was at work by 6:30 a.m. today and didn't register a patient until 9:15 a.m.   It was that bad.  No one wanted to venture out in the rain and high winds.  What we did get, for once,  were true emergencies. 

 

Offices all over were closing early and it looks like the same for tomorrow.  I work 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. tomorrow and I'm guessing we won't be busy--unless of course, we get a ton of car accidents. 

 

Tony, Marie and the kids were planning to come up this weekend, but now, with the weather, I'm not sure what is going on.  Tyson, Tony's boxer, is as old as Ben.  I have a picture of Jenna holding Tyson and Tony Jr. holding Ben when they were both so, so little.  It's cute.  I hope Tyson is around for a long time.  He is a good dog and very loyal to his family--especially the kids!

 

We took pictures of the rain and a video....I know I can upload the pictures, but I never have much luck with the video.  If I fail again, just look at the still photos and make rain and storm noises...you'll get the drift!!

 

 

Puddles around the front yard....

Water getting higher near the lanai

Rain, Rain, Rain

 

Rain water gushing from the down spout....

 

 

I hope Dixie can cross her legs and hold on....this storm is going to be around for awhile and she hates going out in the rain!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is What 64 Looks Like

I am officially in my mid 60's...yuck.  But,  I just don't feel 64.  OK, I've had my share of old people's health issues but I still like to dance, I enjoy traveling and having date night with Tony is the best.  Who has date night at 64?  I do!! 

But, I must admit, this was one of my best birthdays.  We started out by visiting Donna and Bob in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Donna and Bob also have August birthdays, so we celebrated together.  Chris, Shannon and Emma were also there.  Emma had a blast in the pool.  She is only 4, but swims really well.  She was diving for plastic Olympic rings, holding her breath under water and learning new swimming strokes.  She's a fish!  This year, since my skin is somewhat under control, I actually wore a bathing suit and dangled my feet/legs in the water.  Emma swam up to me and said, "Come in, Aunt Jan, I won't splash you."  I told her that I couldn't swim and that I was cool and enjoyed watching her swim.  She was amazed that I couldn't swim, because it came so easily to her.  "I can teach you," she said.  I passed on her offer, but I'm sure she could.

Emma is also turning out to be a great shopper, just like her mom, Nana and me.   While the guys played golf, Donna, Shannon, Emma and I massaged the South Carolina economy.  It's safe to say that South Carolina will not be going bankrupt any time soon. 

We took Dixie on the trip with us and she had a great time running through the house with Emma.  At one point, landscapers came to mow and were dumping dead leaves and tree limbs from the roof.  Dixie recognized the sounds of their equipment and was not happy.  She usually runs and hides in Tony's closet when our landscapers come.  This time, Emma sat with her, petting her softly and saying, "Don't be afraid, Dixie, they won't hurt you.  I will take care of you."  It was cute.  They sat in front of the window watching the guys work and Dixie felt secure. 

We went to dinner to celebrate our collective birthdays and had great food and a fun time. 

Tony and I left on Friday and on Saturday, we went to Southport to one of my favorite restaurants, Oliver's.  It's right on the water.  We shopped at the boutiques and Tony bought me a Brighton bracelet, which I love.  He also got me a necklace and another bracelet to add to my "coastal" jewelry collection.  We had a great time.  After that, it was music and lights on the lanai before watching, "Fools Rush In," a favorite movie of mine.  It was my day and it was a good one!

I also received cards from family and friends, gift cards, text messages, a video of Coleton and Anthony singing "Happy Birthday" to me (my birthday card had balloons drawn by Coleton--very nice!)  Anthony didn't do a lot of singing, but Coleton did a great job.  Coleton and Anthony remind me so much of Ben and Sam.  Coleton is all legs and rib bones just like Ben.  Anthony is solid and compact, just like Sam. 

And speaking of Ben and Sam, I got to talk to Ben, Sam, Ellie and Zach for my birthday.  Jenna dialed the phone and when I answered, they all sang, "Happy Birthday" to me.  What a great gift that was.  Ben told me he will be 10 in 9 days--wow, double digits!  He told me he grew, which is a joke between us.  I told him never to grow and stay a baby for his whole life.  When he sees us, the first thing he tells, me is, "Momo, I grew."  And, at that point, I tickle him.  Sam, joined in the fun and told me that he, too, grew...I guess he is in for tickles too.   Ellie announced that she was 5 years old.  I told her that I saw her doing gymnastics, I meant that I saw the video that Jenna posted on her blog, but Ellie said, "You did?  Were you there?"  How cute.  Zach is a doll.  He told me about their dog, Charlie, and how he likes to play outside.   

 

Today, we will be face timing with David and Brenda--I can't wait to show off my bracelet and hear wedding news. 

All in all, turning 64 wasn't bad....I am not, however, looking forward to getting any older!

 

 At Olivers, with my bling!  This is what 64 looks like!

 

Ignore the scars, check out the bracelet!

 

 

 

 

 

The Czaplinski Crew:  Bob, Donna, Chris, Emma and Shannon; Dixie photo bombed!

 

The Golf Guys

 

The Economy Savers!

 

 

 

Check out the Goggles!!

 

Uncle Tony splashing Emma

 

This is what 69 looks like, pretty good, huh?

 

Emma's Papa always had a big smile on his face when she was around!

 

 

Papa, Just Relaxing

 

Emma, diving over her Papa

 

Diving for Rings...what a great swimmer she is!

 

 

 

Next up, our Tampa trip to see David and Brenda!

 

 

 

Starting in July

It's been awhile between blogs so I will start in July...other than working, working, working, we managed to get to Gallery Walk in downtown Wilmington.  It was nice to get out and see what the galleries had to offer.  We found 2 new places, which is always fun.  I think the one that had the most impact was a place called 216.  It was a gallery, but not like most.  This is a theme gallery and the theme happened to be ecology and what we are doing to our environment.  I learned about the floating "garbage island," that is half the size of Texas and is floating off of the west coast.  It's made up of stuff we have thrown away that isn't breaking down, like plastic bottles.

 

We also saw how plastic is affecting wildlife.  Large, dead birds who died because of what they ate were cut open and more plastic bottles and other man made things fell out of them.  Fish were caught in the plastic thing that holds six cans/bottles (of soft drinks or water)  together and seals and sea lions were caught in fishing line.  It was eye opening. 

 

On a happier note, we did see some great artwork and I continue to hope that one day, we will be going to a Swegle showing.  Tony has a few of his paintings hanging in the Wellness Center and has received really good feedback on them.

 

We are going to Hilton Head for a few days next week as we have done the past few years.  Donna/Bob/Chris/Shannon and Emma will be there for a week.  Donna, Bob and I share August birthday's so we will be going out for a joint birthday dinner.  Should be fun.

 

A month after that, we are going to Tampa.  We finally got David and Brenda's wedding invitation and I just love it.  It's clean and classy, which describes both of them.  

 

It's fun to hear about the planning and the progress they are making getting their new life started.

 

I'm also going back to the rheumatologist in September.  My skin has stayed clear and I am thrilled.  I have large, purple spots on my legs where the open wounds used to be, but, to me that is head and shoulders above where I was. 

 

When I talk about September, I can't believe we are on the downside of 2016.  I will turn 64 this year...can you believe it?  I sure can't.  It really makes my day when someone at the hospital who is checking in says, "wait till you get to be my age, dear...."   And I find that I was "their age" 10 years ago.  YIPPEE....shallow, I know, but YIPPEE.   Hopefully, retirement is somewhere in my future.

 

Well, we are headed to the beach this afternoon before I start my six day straight work shift,  tomorrow.  The beach always relaxes me.  Too bad Dixie is afraid of the waves.  She has to stay home in the air conditioning, lounging on Tony's reclining chair, eating the steak bites we saved her from dinner.  Hmmm....what's wrong with that picture? 

Dixie says....."hurry up and leave, I've got the bitches and studs coming over for steak dinner..."

 

 

 

 

 

Short and Sweet

I met a young girl named Mia the other night.  I was asking her mother for some information and Mia told me that she liked to dance.  "Show me your moves,"  I said.  And she did. 

Mia told me that she was three.  She reminded me of Ellie.  She had beautiful skin and fly away straight hair. 

"Three," I said.  "Wow, you don't look a day over two and a half," I said.  "What do you put on your skin to make it so pretty?"  I asked. 

Mia thought for a minute and said, "Black.  I put black on my skin,"   as she put her hand on her face....  "And I put it on my arms too,"  she said, holding out her arms.

How sweet she was.  She let me put her on my lap and sing, "Itsy Bitsy Spider," with her. 

It reminded me that I wish I could see Ellie more. 

Catching Up

It's been two weeks since I blogged about our visit with Nada and I feel like it's been longer because lots has been going on with us. 

 

First, my skin is clearing up after getting a cortisone shot from my Rheumatologist--all the medication I have taken in these past years and a simple cortisone shot has the most impact...incredible.  I go again on August 19 for a second shot to ensure that my skin stays clear for David and Brenda's wedding.  I can finally wear short pants again and I love it.  I'm still not into shorts, but one step at a time!

 

Tony is enjoying his job at the golf course.  Not only is he a starter and course Ambassador, yesterday he added onto his job duties by becoming a snake wrangler.  Yep....he actually reached down and picked up a snake to move it from the road to a grassy, rough area on the course.  To his credit, it was a Black snake and he knew it wasn't poisonous--and he picked it up by the tail, so the risk was small.  The most important thing, however, was that he assured me that he washed his hands before he touched me or Dixie!

 

My job continues to be stressful.  We have changed the workflow to be compliant with HIPPA regulations and it is causing a backup in getting registrations finished because of the  huge increase summer tourist volume brings.  The end result is that some patients are being discharged before we have them registered--that means, we have no address or phone numbers to contact them and no idea where to send the bill.  It's a balancing act between losing money and being in compliance.  Last week, I was at work until almost midnight just getting everything caught up.  The staff, collectively, is not happy about the changes and you can see the stress on their faces as incomplete registrations pile up.

 

Tony and I did some more visiting last week.  Our friends, Dave and Kathy Henderson (Tony's former co-worker) rented a house in Topsail (pronounced Topsull) Beach and their two daughters came down with their families.  It was a fun day hanging out by the pool and catching up.  Tony Jr and David went to school with the Henderson girls, so seeing them married with children had the same effect on us that seeing our kids does--where did the time go? 

 

I have the whole weekend off, so Tony and I are headed to the beach.  While my Dermatologist said to stay out of the sun, my Rheumatologist said to get some sun.  We're going to compromise and go to the beach later in the day so the sun isn't as punishing. 

 

The wedding is getting closer and so is the time for Tony Jr to go to Rio...I am excited about one event and worry about the other, but I hold out great hope for both things.

 

We had some rain a few days ago and wind...check out the photos below.

The guys hanging out

 

Grandma Kathy with Mason

Kathy, Mason and Lauren

Connor and Mommy, Katie

 

Lauren and Mason

Katie, Connor and Danny play in the pool

 

Dixie didn't get to go, she spent the day with Uncle Stu and Aunt Jan. Even though she had fun, I got the feeling she was annoyed with us.

It started to cloud up...here is the tree in the next door neighbor's yard

 

It's getting darker...you can't even see our backyard clearly

After the storm...the neighbor's tree was uprooted...

 

 

...and the neighbor on the other side had their patio furniture relocated!  See the chair by the fence?  It was near the grill before the rain started

Our yard fared better...our roses jut got wet!

 

 

 

Friends

I have never seen an episode of the TV series, "Friends."  I know the basic premise and I know that Jennifer Aniston and Courtney Cox appeared in the show, but that's about all I know. 

 

What I do know is that the word, "friend" is a very important one.  I have maintained some level of friendship/connection with many of the people I have worked with over the years in various companies.  I value their friendship.  I value the impact they have had on my life.  I value the support they gave to me when I needed it and the discoveries we made together.

 

We met a friend last week.  Nada.  Nada and I worked together at Ohio Savings Bank in 2000.  Nada was a trainer who worked with my staff on mortgage banking products and sales techniques.    We clicked immediately.  She has an "impish" smile that carried over beyond work and a teaching technique that reached many people and made them successful. 

 

It didn't take long for our professional interaction to become personal sharing.  We did lunch, had after work drinks and talked for hours about the men in our lives.  Tony and I went to Nada's wedding to Alec.  It was  my first Greek Orthodox wedding and it was beautiful.  The reception was catered--by all of the women in Nada's church.  All home made food...and tons of it.  We learned that on the wedding day, the groom goes to the bride's house to spirit her away to marry her.  The bride's father objects and tells the groom how special she is and how much she is loved in their home.  All the time, the bride is walking  toward her groom.  When she reaches him, her father gives in and allows the groom to take his bride to the church to marry her.  The church was ornate and the service long and touching.   It is a wedding I will always remember.  

 

When Nada was laid off from Ohio Savings, she became an independent training contractor and has established an impressive customer base and book of business of her own.

 

Nada and her husband and kids visited friends in Raleigh, North Carolina and then drove down to Wrightsville Beach to spend a few day enjoying the weather. 

 

We met for drinks and appetizers and the time and distance since our last visit melted away. 

 

Nada will always be more than a friend....when I think back on some of the things we did, I know she is an accomplice!

 

Come back soon, Nada...and family!

 

 

Nada and Me

At the beach!

Tony, Me, Nada, Alec and Nikko...a real charmer at 4!