Ways To Wear A Scarf

Tanti modi per indossare la sciarpa :)

Posted by Donna Fanpage on Thursday, December 11, 2014

Super Moon and Lunar Eclipse September 27, 2015

Click here to see my video of the Super Moon just before the eclipse  Super Moon Video

Click here to see the beginning of the Super Moon and  Lunar EclipseLunar Eclipse

Click here to see the ending of the Super Moon to Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse Prior to the Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse

Click here to see after the Blood Mood as the Lunar Eclipse was ending Lunar Eclipse Ending

Click here to see the ending of the Lunar Eclipse  Ending of Lunar Eclipse

9/11 Tribute

Remembrance of this day has significant meaning in our lives, and not just because of the tragedy that occurred in NY, Pennsylvania and Virginia in 2001. I don't think there is anyone that doesn't remember exactly where they were when they heard or saw the news. I was at work working with patients at an Alcohol and Drug Abuse Center, mornings were the time our women met in groups to talk, share, and process through their addiction. Group ended and I entered my office to hear my messages. I heard Jonathan's voice shaking as he said a plane hit the World Trade Center and as he was talking the second plane hit and I could hear how shook him to his core. He said he wanted to come to my work and for us to go home, he knew we were being attacked after the second plane hit and he was worried about more attacks. I immediately called him and told him that we would be ok and that I had to go tell my patients what had happened. I sat in a recreation room with patients and staff and watched in horror as the news replayed the scenes over and over, and the interviews and footage that continued. I tried to call my parents but the lines were overwhelmed with calls to VA and I could not get through. I signed on to AOL messenger and was able to chat with my mother and get updates on family members that were at the Pentagon. It was as if time stood still and a feeling of helplessness took over. The drive home from that day, full of sadness for all those that perished the innocent men, women and children....the first responders, the heroes, the survivors. I remember how flags were popping up in the days, weeks and months after, our country united, friends and neighbors reaching out to each other and helping strangers. This was my generations "Pearl Harbor", a date that brings heartache, tears as we honor and remember the events. We did not lose anyone in our family, but we had friends we did. This date has so many meanings for us, but it's what occurred a year later, in a doctors office in Greenville that gave us hope. It is where for the first time, we got a glimpse that our pregnancy was solid and my beta numbers were rising. The numbers were so high in fact, I started to wonder if I was carrying multiples. I had taken two pregnancy tests at home, the first one on September 8th. I stumbled into the bathroom bright and early around 6:30AM and saw what appeared to be a faint positive. Surely I was seeing things. I called Jonathan, who was at work, and told him the news. I told him to look at the test when he got home, if he sees two lines then I'll start believing it. You see, I had taken a test the day before, and had a big fat negative. I went online to my chat group for support, and was quickly told that I need an early response test to pick up the hcg hormone that a woman's body puts out when she is pregnant. Silly me, I wasn't aware that were levels of pregnancy tests. So, I went out to buy one of these so called early detection tests and awaited my first mornings sample  Ok, back to Jonathan who comes in from a hard nights work, and crawls into bed. "Did you see the test?" "Um, no.....I forgot....and I've already taken out my contacts" Great, just great.....without his contacts, Jonathan is as blind as a bat...He would never see that line. He got up and went into the bathroom and was back. Silence, I was dying....what did he see??? He curled up behind me and nuzzled my ear and said "Looks like we are going to have a baby!!" Those were the happiest words I could have ever heard.... I also remember I had a dream around that time, it was of me and three other people in a doctors office. I was laying on the table and the doctor was placing the doppler on my belly to hear the heartbeat. There were two other women in the room, but I could never make out their faces. We listened to the whoosh, whoosh sound of the heartbeat generated from the right side of my abdomen, when the focus turned towards the left side of my belly. The doctor said "Do you want to hear the other one?" I sat upright in bed and exclaimed out loud "THE OTHER ONE??!!" It was then that I knew that I was carrying twins. It would be weeks later before our first sonogram would confirm that I was indeed carrying twins. After so many losses and heartache of miscarriages, this day I was renewed with hope. So, you see September 11, 2001 was a great loss for our country.....and September 11, 2002 was the beginning of our family.

'Twas A Week Before School Starts

A week before school starts
and all through this place
not a school supply has been bought
sad looks on our face!
Our backpacks are hung,
in the same place that we left them
we can use them again
if we clean out the mayhem
My children are nestled
all snugged in their beds, 
with visions of surfing 
on waves in their heads
And I in my sadness 
that summer's now gone, 
toast a glass of red wine,
before Armageddon.... 
Now schedules, Now homework, 
Now Projects and Wishlists,
On backpacks, On lunches,
On Uniforms, On packed snacks! 
We'll hold onto summer 
for as long as we can
we're not ready for school
so we're making a plan
To make on this island
a place we call home,
so no matter the school year
our beach we can roam!

Day 40: Breathe, Seek, Play....Rise

What an extraordinary experience this journey during lent has been.  I have begun to focus, simplify and enjoy more of this gift of life than I have ever had before.  Over the past 40 days I have lived the sweet life, found that messy experiences can bring about sweet rewards, experienced a winter wonderland, the joys of captured moments, discovered things left unwritten, began to write with meaning, realized the joys in spilled milk, to dance, recognize the joy in ordinary days, be grateful for all the moments, to exhale, to play and play some more, to make the moments count, to surf daffodils (our version of stopping to smell the roses),  to be still,  to read, to throw our hands up on the roller coaster of life and enjoy the ride, to make my mark, realizing that sometimes you have to be lost to be found, the benefits of home,  how ironic things in life can be, what makes someone a super hero,  how to rest, how my life is like a beach,  that we all need a little luck, storing treasures in scrapbooks, that imperfection is bliss, to spring forward and push through the seasons of life, to have acceptance for things that you cannot change, to chase a maverick or two, to celebrate the changes, that kindness matters, finding kindness delivers you, and cheers up everyone, cannot be erased, can be the sweetest dessert in life, where you not only throw a stone that makes ripple but in the end you end up splashing everyone with the biggest cannonball...but the greatest lesson of lent is that no matter what life throws at you, if you have faith, family and friends you can RISE up and meet any challenge. And what I mean by RISE UP is that "you never stand taller than when you are on your knees to pray" <3 Amen! Happy Easter!

Day 39: Breath, Seek and Play.....Spring Fever.

Day 39: Breath, Seek and Play.....Spring Fever. Our Random Acts of Kindness have been delayed for today....spring fever has hit and the boys are going for a late evening swim ♥ We take our PLAY time very seriously! CANNONBALL!

Day 38: Breathe, Seek, Play....Random Act of Kindness Dessert Style.

Today was a crazy,chaotic day...pretty typical for our house. The kids had a half day of school, and we are now officially on Easter Break. We are so excited to spend some time a the coast but it seemed as much as I was moving in fast forward someone kept hitting the pause and rewind button today. Thankfully at the craziest times of today, angels stepped in to help smooth things over and keep me on my path. My mother in law was having the same kind of day and we shared many a good laugh over our Murphy's Law Kind of day. You know the kind of day when you walk into a room for something but can't remember what? Only to go into another room and you get clued in as to what you were looking for in the other room. The kind where you go to look for something and can't find it only to realize that it is right under your nose. The kind where you have so much on your mind you can't seem to focus on getting one thing done. Or the kind when you try to get the "one thing done" everything seems to unravel just as fast as you are getting it completed. It wasn't just one thing, it was a never ending colossal of a chaotic Murphy's Law waterfall. But this is normal, just today someone turned the craziness up on the spin cycle and time was not on my side. My mother in law suggested to go out for dinner, which was a fabulous idea since me in a kitchen today with my luck may have ended up with a call to the fire department! So out to dinner we went, aaaahhhhh finally to sit down and try not to think about all the things I still had yet to do. The server comes over and asked to take our order, I said I would like my mind, I seemed to have lost it! We all laughed...well, the kids didn't exactly get it, but we "big" kids have all known that kind of feeling. We enjoyed a lovely dinner and Elliott brought a book and Cooper brought a sketchbook to occupy their time so we could have an adult conversation. A table of three ladies sat down next to us and we all thought of getting them a dessert for our random act of kindness. They all ordered salad, and we thought maybe not...but then decided to press on. So Cooper opened up his sketch book to make a card. And one mishap after another, he dropped his papers under the table, then his pencil and trying to make it the card, it was more than obvious it would not be random and they would know it was us. The restaurant wasn't packed. I got up and said I'd go to the ladies room and scoured the restaurant for an unsuspecting table. There were not many to choose from, one looked like a business meeting, a birthday party getting ready to set up, and then a group of ladies that were having a great conversation caught my eye. We asked for a dessert menu and the boys, Grandma and I decided on the sweetest treat we'd never eat...because we were going to surprise someone else tonight. The boys drew ice cream cones and a sweet note. We ordered the brownie sundae because it was the biggest and that all the women could share it. The manager came over and asked us was one of the women the boys teacher. I said no, are they teachers...he said yes they just got off work. I said we don't know any of them....but that made it even sweeter to know we were surprising a group of teachers! The boys could not see them and wanted to know who was getting the yummy dessert. They both decided they had to go to the bathroom, curiosity getting the better of them. Around the corner they saw three of the ladies, two of them had stepped out for a moment....and we thought oh no, they may all be leaving. But the boys went to the restroom and the two ladies returned just in time for the server to bring the card and the ice cream brownie surprise. I heard one teacher say "Oh my this is so nice, please tell them we appreciate this". Our server seemed to enjoy this random surprise we had him deliver and smiled at us as we overheard the teachers asking him to bring more spoons! We went back to our table and filled Grandma in on how the delivery went. We knew we better scram before they discovered us, as we were the only table with kids in the restaurant. As we left the restaurant the boys wanted one more last look but as we scurried by the ladies were enjoying their sweet treat. It was Grandmas first Random Act of Kindness with us...and after our crazy, chaotic day we knew just how much that dessert meant to that deserving group of ladies...they deserved to be treated and reminded that what they do does make a difference. For a day when everything seemed to be going wrong, this was one of the things that went right!  Sometimes a sweet reward can come at just the right time, and change everything, even enjoying a dessert we'd never eat!