Dancing with the Stars ????

Paul has a favorite Backyardigans episode, the one where they Polka ..... we have affectionately named it "The Redneck Polka", since underneath it all, we really are just a bunch of Rednecks in this house.

For your viewing pleasure, I present live footage from a July evening when Daddy and Brooke danced along with the TV and Kristen watched.

*** Disclaimer: 1) Yes, he knows I posted this and sort gave his expressed permission.  2) This was previously only available on my Facebook page and was loaded here on Romanskiville by request (seriously - people wanted to see it here)

For every thing there is a season

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance ........ a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace" Ecclesiastes 3:1-8


I purposely didn't post here on Jan 1 ....  I've been thinking seriously about New Years Resolutions for 2011 the last few weeks and every time I thought about them, I got a little discouraged.  You see it takes me all of about 2.8 seconds (OK, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration) but within a few weeks of the "New Year" I've faltered or stopped all together, you know the eating healthy, the exercising, the doing this or not doing that.  The list is too long to be practical and it leaves me feeling discouraged and disappointed. I'm not doing it again ...

Don't get me wrong, I was excited about a New Year, 2010 was exhausting for us, physically and mentally.  I was ready to be able to draw that proverbial "line in the sand" and start fresh but I needed to approach it differently then in the past.

January 1, 2011 was a good day.

We spent time with close friends and with each other.  We did chores and we played.  It was not over planned, over scheduled, or over stressed ...... it was calm, peaceful and balanced.  It was SO GOOD.

Brooke & Daddy & Frosty the Snowman

This year, 2011, is going to be all about a "new normal." Where clean dishes out the dishwasher and clean laundry out of the basket is OK, a year where I'm going to embrace "One day at a time" and "Just keep swimming", where balance is going to be paramount ...... and rather than resolutions its going to be about recognizing when it is time - - time to plant, heal, build, laugh, cry, give up, be silent, speak, love, fight, and be at peace. 
 
We'll see how it goes .......

Two of the Most Exceptional People I Know

On Saturday, November 27, we honored my parents at a surprise retirement party at the Groton Inn & Suites. It was the perfect celebration to honor them.  After 40 years of marriage and long and successful careers they are now getting ready to hit the open road and start "living the dream!"

I ended the formal part of the evening with the following tribute:

I’ve been thinking a lot about what I was going to say to all of you tonight about our parents. There is so much that could be said, they truly are 2 of the most exceptional people I know. I could talk about when my Mom first brought my Dad to a family gathering at her house and how her Mother was slightly annoyed. I could talk about my Dad’s tour of duty in the Army or my Mom having the distinction of being the first woman on an ambulance crew in Mystic. I could go on about how my dad worked all day long and then went to school at night to get his Associates’ Degree. I could talk about how while that was difficult for him to juggle and balance, that the person who sacrificed just as much if not more during that time was my Mom. While all that is quite impressive, it just didn’t seem like it was enough.

A few nights ago, I asked my husband what I should say about my parents here tonight. He barely thought before he answered simply “they always put everyone else first” - - - He was exactly right – whether it was coaching a team, leading a troop, devoting countless hours to the North Stonington Ambulance Association, teaching the babysitter course, acting as the Chairman of the School Building Committee, they always seemed to find the time when no one else did. Their lives have been committed to service.

I think if you asked my parents what their biggest accomplishment is, what the one thing they are most proud of is they wouldn’t mention any of those achievements I listed. I think they would say it was their family. They taught us to be honest, trust-worthy, generous, and thoughtful. To help out when you can, in whatever way you can. We learned by example that if you worked hard and did your best good things will come to you. My parents believe that a family is, above all other things, loyal to each other. A family supports each other in good times and during the struggles, that is what has been instilled in us.

My sister and I attend a church where every week the service starts with the proclamation “Whoever you are and where ever you are on life’s journey you are always welcome here.” That could easily be painted on a plaque and hung on the wall at 11 Mains Crossing Rd because that was the way my parents built their house - the house that built Heather, Heidi and David and all the other friends and family that were welcomed inside those walls.

I speak for our family when I say that we are privileged to call these two people Mom and Dad. Please join us in congratulating them on their distinguished careers and 40 years of marriage.

Brooke is Four

In September, Brooke turned 4.  We've seen a big change in her in the last few months - she is more independent, more confident, smarter and a little sassy. As Paul likes to say, "we really never experienced "the terrible two's" and "three is the 'new' two" but four, we'll I'm not so impressed."  While we all adjust to these personality changes, there is one thing we can't argue with.  She is SO pretty !!!!

The Newest American Girl Model

When I picked up Kristen from school today "Grammy" had put her hair up in pigtails and before I could say anything Carol looked and me and said "Kristen looks just like that little blonde Bitty Twin from American Girl" .... my thoughts exactly. 

Decide for yourself

Eighteen Months Old

Eighteen Months ALREADY ??????

Some how eighteen months have passed since Kristen arrived. At her checkup she weighed in at 25 lbs 13 oz and measured 35 inches tall.  She runs, climbs, tries so hard to carry on a conversation with you and recently took over the spoon. She is extremely proud of this latest skill.

Happy Halloween 2010

It was a little chilly here on Halloween, but the girls had a great time.  Brooke announced Monday morning that "Trick or Treating was AWESOME"

Kristen dressed as a little pink elephant - she is a true animal lover

We never did get get the trunk quite right .........

Brooke was a "Purple Pony Singer" - aka StarSong from My Little Pony

She was all attitude ............ working her poses