Two Dozen Years

04. March 2011 · Write a comment · Categories: Anniversary, family


It’s been twenty four years since my wife and I said “I do.” We were in Connecticut then as we are today, but have put thousands and thousands of miles under our feet and have lived in four homes in four states. We started in Gettysburg, PA, then moved to the Phoenix area in Arizona where our children were born. Then, we moved on to Richmond, VA for ten outstanding years where our kids grew up and we grew into some unbelievable adult friendships and our kids grew with their “other” parents. Finally, we moved to Connecticut, back to where Sue grew up and where I visited briefly to get married so many years ago.

Twenty-four years have been both good and challenging to us personally and to us as a couple. There have been bad times and good, horrible rentals and great homes, nightmare jobs and seemingly perfect ones. The children have grown up without the benefit of living in one location, without the benefit of close relatives who could pick up a night or weekend to let their parents get away and reconnect. They have learned that they can adapt, survive, and thrive in a new environment. They benefit from experiences that their new friends have only read of, and are more resilient than all their friends combined.

We have camped on the beaches of Mexico, gone 4-wheeling through rural Arizona, spent a night on the Hopi Reservation, and survived driving all our worldly goods across the country a few feet apart, in separate vehicles and without communications for a week, just 3 months after getting married. We’ve driven the family back across the country to relocate to a new area without friends, only to find friends that turned into family. And a decade later, drove 500 miles to the north where we had no family, only one job, and had little to look forward except opportunity, challenge, and financial reality of a new, very difficult financial reality.

Over the two dozen years, we’ve gone through periods of unemployment, extended travel, the birth of two children and the purchase of three homes, and we’ve done more than most married couples will ever do in their lifetime.

After all of this, we’ve survived stronger than most couples. We are starting into our 25th year of marriage, significantly stronger than most couples. I am so thankful of each day of those 24 years, ready to keep adding onto the daily count as we keep on progressing down the road.

Christmas season in Georgia

27. December 2009 · Write a comment · Categories: family, Georgia, kids, Richmond, vacation
It’s two days after Christmas, and the family is all in Georgia visiting my mother in law. We’re in Northwest Georgia, basically we are about 10 miles south of the Tennessee border. We arrived via an 18-hour drive from New England. I believe that this is the single longest drive I’ve ever taken in a single, non-stop trip. Certainly, I have driven further over a multiple-day drive, but 18 hours in one day is very draining. The worse part was that I slept for only a few hours the night before leaving, then almost none in the car. I don’t sleep well (or at all) in cars or on planes. You’d think that I could find a way to get comfortable, but it doesn’t happen. So, we arrived exhausted, ready to collapse. We did, and after a solid night’s sleep, were refreshed and ready to start visiting.

It’s been cold here, as should be expected in late December in the mountains of Georgia — no snow, just a heavy frost on the car windows each morning. Sue got to see all three of her brothers this weekend, including David who lives in Florida and whom she hasn’t seen in many years. Late yesterday, my nephew showed up with his kids – peers of my own kids. They were instantly having fun. Today, after most got a good night’s sleep, they should have the opportunity to burn off some much needed energy. They haven’t see this family in several years, although the eldest (Alex) and my daughter have started chatting quite a bit via Facebook. It was an instant bond when they saw each other – and the hug was quite genuine!

We had quite a meal last night – 9 adults (ranging from 45 to 87) and 6 children, ranging from (3) 17-year olds to 12. I was glad to neither be the eldest nor the youngest! I had never eaten beef wellington before – it was very well prepared, but didn’t end up sitting with me well. I think the combination of very heavy foods and lack of salad-like substances, that my body is rejecting my holiday-eating patterns. We have eaten very well over the past year, so changing that pattern for more than a few meals in a row evoke havoc!

So far, the vacation has been a good bit of work, but all worth while getting in some visiting that has been long overdue, and never knowing when it will be the last time, is being embraced. At least my dog is getting spoiled with all of the attention!

A trip back home

12. June 2008 · Write a comment · Categories: Connecticut, family, Massachusetts, travel, US Air

I am in the Philadelphia International Airport right now, heading home. I have been pushing very hard lately, trying to see home after home, trying to get the laundry done, pay the bills, feed myself in a somewhat healthy manner, and trying to get sleep. The sleep has taken a back seat to everything else. I would give anything to have someone else helping with some of it, but it is the path that we have to take right now. Last night, I got about four hours of sleep before heading to the office. That allowed me to leave early to make my flight without taking any time off. It’s the advantage of flex time.

My children don’t know I’m coming, so I expect that it will be a good homecoming. Neither does my dog! I miss him since I haven’t seen him at all in almost 5 weeks. Certainly not as much as I miss the normalcy of life, but he is part of that normal life. Brewster never fails to make me smile, so I expect to spend a good bit of time with him this weekend. Tomorrow night is a party at our local pool. While we didn’t join the pool, we were extended a free membership for the part of the year we were still in town. This was for several reasons, but mostly due to my contribution of time and effort with the web site, the stereo, etc. That took a good bit of time, although has been turned over to someone else to maintain.

Back to the fortune. Last night, after seeing all of the homes in the Connecticut town that I could, I headed back to wash the car (dirty, dirty, dirty), then to get some dinner. Obviously, my choice was Chinese food and the above fortune was in the cookie I received. I laughed when I opened the cookie, knowing that I would be home in about 24 hours. Maybe I need to play the lottery with these numbers.

Our daughter’s knee surgery

04. January 2008 · Write a comment · Categories: doctor, family, kids, knee pain

Kaite is home and resting, with her leg elevated and iced, doing exercises every TV commercial (she is NOT allowed to fast forward through the TIVO’d ads!). For the next 48 hours, that is the prescribed treatment.

She had a plica band which was causing the majority of the pain. A plica is a band of dense scar-like tissue that occurs normally in many people. It is left over tissue from when the knee was developing prior to birth. We always knew she had a little something special! This was removed since it’s location was preventing her knee cap from doing it’s thing. Since the plica band had acted up, the IT band (a group of fibers that run up the outside of the thigh) had positioned itself so that it was pushing her knee cap out of position. This was surgically released to allow the knee cap to re-align itself correctly. Which should allow her ankle, knee and hip joints to re-align eventually. She was great and really held it together throughout. I am so proud of her — and she did far better than I ever would have done (I’m such a baby about such things).

She has pain meds for as long as needed, has crutches for as long as needed, but has already put weight on the leg. She will have physical therapy tomorrow (Friday) morning and will keep up with that for another 6 weeks or so to re-build the muscles again. The bandage comes off either tomorrow or Saturday and then she can hop in the shower – she seems opposed to the yellow of the Betadine as an accessory color!

There are no stitches. It is an amazing thing.

Newer articles »