Archives - Weekly Update

Whoosh...January is exiting the house. But not before we saw the “non-blizzard” happen. It’s amazing how “not snowing” can wreak as much havoc on our schedules as a “historic” snowstorm. On Monday, as the flakes started flying, the exodus from the city started early and was pretty steady. Greg and I opted to head out after the rush, and we got home in about the same time as it usually takes on a busy traffic day. Then we waited for the highly anticipated storm like we were waiting for Godot. There were dramatic presentations on television, where anxiety was amped up by the minute. I joked that if you wanted to teach children dramatic reading, all you needed to do was watch the endless commentary.

Big day today in our house as Cory turns 20, which means that I have officially survived the teen years and now am the mom of two 20somethings. Greg turns 25 next Wednesday, thus this week and next are a blur of chocolate cake and memories. The candles get lit, and I get flashbacks of earlier birthdays. And though there is not a balloon in the room, I still can picture them, as well as a rush of faces through the years in my own version of the movie Boyhood. By the way, I am sticking with my claim that I am 27, no matter how old the boys are. Cory started his new semester at college on Tuesday, so we celebrated Monday night; it’s only the second time that we are not celebrating on the “really really” day, but life does march on!

In last Friday’s newsletter, there was a picture of a pretty turquoise coffee mug (which I actually use for tea). In a race to catch you up on the two weeks when we had been on hiatus, I failed to tell you what that was. You clearly are “close readers” (remember that term from school that referenced reading comprehension?), as I got lots of notes asking me about it --- and where you could buy it. It was in the house that we rented on the Outer Banks. In fact, all the dishes in that house were in a blue color scheme, and there was an entire cabinet of turquoise bowls and vases; it’s like they knew I was coming. For those who wanted to know where they can buy the mug, I have no answers, but if you see it somewhere, let me know.

It’s been a hectic week of “re-entry” after a fabulous two weeks away. When the holiday breaks on a Thursday, it allows for maximum vacation time (I learned this from my mom who was a teacher). Keith Raffel wrote and told me that this will not happen again for 10 years, so I am glad we savored this year. We spent the first week on the Outer Banks, and then came home for the second week as both of the boys had New Year’s plans. It was the first time we had been home for New Year’s since 2001!