Nifty 50!
Everyone kept asking me what Phillip was planning for my 50th. He’s arranged some pretty spectacular things for me over the years so I knew whatever it was I’d be thrilled. Our son captured the moment:
  
  
Good Lord! What could it be? Well, prior to opening this envelope, Phillip planned a weekend of delights including dinner at La Panetiere.
   
  
 
     
    
We visited the Cloisters on the northern tip of Manhattan overlooking the Hudson to enjoy the stunning array of more than 5,000 pieces of European Medieval works of art from the 12th – 15th centuries including the famous Unicorn Tapestries. The Cloister’s Library contains over 15,000 volumes of books.
  
  
Later, we toured the World of Wings butterfly atrium where I had my 1st opportunity to take photos with my gorgeous new Canon from my son. For the amount of time I invest in my photography, this latest Canon with touchscreen, image sensor & built-in Wi-Fi was the p-e-r-f-e-c-t gift!! Thank you, darling!
  
 
  
  
And if anyone knows our family well, you’ll know why the logo above is so significant!! 🙂
As you can s
ee, this day was magnificent with brilliant sunshine & deep blue skies. But 50 years ago, there was a blizzard and my mother arrived at the hospital with a police escort. That’s one way to make an entrance.
Mom recapped the story over dinner. Then she surprised me with a very special gift…a piece of jewelry I’ve admired for 45 years. It was given to mother by my father’s mother when I was 5.
I’ve worn it in the past with great delight (photo on right), but on this special night, my mother said it was now mine. Overjoyed is an understatement. It means so much to me on many levels.
 
  
 
  
  
So what was in the envelope in the opening pics? Let me first explain that my greatest gift ~ now & always ~ is being loved by my family & friends. Flowers & cards, emails & posts. All is appreciated. The kindness, the thoughtfulness, the time spent to make my day special. Thank you all!!
 
The above cards from my children touched my heart deeply. My son chose a card that says I make him feel understood, happy and loved. Wonderful, wonderful!! And our little one says I make her happy every day…down to even the school snack. What more could any mother want? Happy, thriving kids – this was, by far, the very best gift of all!!
  
    
    
        
     
   
   
  
 
  
16 years ago, I started the Harry Potter series with our son…reading it in “real time,” that is, waiting each year for another book to be published…standing in line at midnight openings with great anticipation for 1st edition hardcovers. We saw the movies, he had the posters, the comforter set, the throw pillows, the robe, Harry’s wand, etc. He even had a Harry-esque look to him, especially when he got his glasses.
   
  
  
Fast-forward more than a decade and our little daughter & her friends are relishing in the adventures, quoting the spells, whipping up potions and donning the robe. The perfect hardcovers have moved from our son’s room to our daughters’s bookcase. Over the holiday break, we watched all 8 movies (Yes, 8. The last book was filmed in 2 parts).
My friend, Sara, took one of our daughter’s best-est friends (since the girls were infants) to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter last month. The girls are now 9 & 10, the perfect age for the story. Sara posted this video of Platform 9 3/4 on her FB page & that was it!! What more fun could our family have than to venture through the fantastical world of wizards?
 
 
 
 
CoCo Key water resort & hotel:
 
  
We finished up the weekend celebrations with my favorite movie, The Scarlet Pimpernel, with Jane Seymour & Anthony Andrews. Luscious ~ Dreamy ~ Yum!
    
 
  
So many other details went into this weekend that I would just like to say thank you to my husband, my whole family and my friends for marking this milestone with great joy.
The Bright SpotTM Â – Thankfulness that my mother is feeling better, it’s on & off and for my birthday she was really “on!” Even sparkly! And thank you to all who sent wishes for a beautiful birthday weekend. So ready for this next great decade, bring it on!!
Pearl Princess
Ahh, to be 9! Our little one wished for a Pearl Princess slumber party and, sure enough, the 3-day birthday festivities kicked off with her friends celebrating her special weekend: the magic garden, hibachi dinner, Barbie mermaids for each child, The Pearl Princess movie, m&m smiley pancakes, a midnight dance party & 3am pillow fight. There were sparkle tattoos, buckets of slime, arts & crafts and a surprise party at the aquarium – a favorite place for our budding marine biologist. Can I be 9 again?? 
     
     
   
  
 
 
The Bright SpotTM – The whole birthday party weekend!! I went to sleep just before the 3am pillow fight and left Phillip on the couch asleep with one of our kitty cats. The girls each wrote their “observations” of him. So funny and so 9!!
Wow! Wow! & Wow!
“Wow! Wow! & Wow!” our   8-year-old repeatedly exclaimed in-flight.
That perfectly described our wow-tastic foliage tour of NY state & New York City – compliments of Wings Air Helicopters.
This has been a particularly glorious Autumn! Comfortable temperatures, blazing leaves, plenty of sunshine. Phillip & I took these pics from our cell phones.
Our pilot, Brett, flew our family & 2 of our kids’ friends from Westchester airport over the Empire State Building and around Manhattan island.
 The George Washington Double-The George Washington Bridge
  
The Freedom Tower & The Statue of Liberty
Roosevelt Island, the East River along the FDR & the Queensboro Bridge
  
The 840 acres of beautiful Central Park
……………The curved landscape of New York City along the East River & Ward’s Island Bridge
The Henry Hudson River, West Side Highway &Â Skateboard Park, Baseball & Soccer Fields
So if you want some bang-waving, ponytail-flying wow! wow! & wow! family fun, take yours on a bird’s-eye tour of Manhattan * 7 days a week * from sunrise to sunset!
       
       
     
The Bright SpotTM Â – Wings Air (914) 202 – 3440 also offers helicopter charters, flight training, aerial photography & full-service aerial film production!
Kite Flying & Laughter
Indeed, the cards, poems, drawings, gifts, flowers, those are all very appreciated, loved & cherished on Mother’s Day.
But the best part of the day was not the wonderful breakfast with smoked salmon or our afternoon in New York City, it was watching my children’s silliness & laughter wrapped in hugs & snuggles topped by kite flying with my kids in the early evening.
Running, playing, enjoying a gorgeous Spring day with the family.Â
  
  
The Bright SpotTMÂ – Be present with your kids, they are your future memories, they are what makes Mother’s Day possible, they are the gift. Happy Mother’s Day, Moms~!! Â 🙂
Hide the Candy!
Easter is my favorite holiday.
I love that our daughter was born the day after Easter.
I sometimes call her my Little BunnyChickie.
I love that Spring just 
started. Everything awakens from Winter’s long freeze & is born anew. The air smells fresh & green baby leaves are 
slowly unfurling. I love pussy willows and forsythia, big blossoms and tiny crocuses.
I love the Easter story of Jesus’ Resurrection & I love the trumpets at church that glorious, Holy morning when we all celebrate together in song & praise. I love & appreciate the religious traditions of other folks as I am a member of a very large, close-knit, multicultural, multi-religious, multi-international, multi-lingual family.
I love coloring eggs & decorating them with the kids. I love the little 50-year-old, wooden, hand-painted European Easter decorations from my grandparents. I love to mix those decorations with our little one’s pretty, handmade decorations from preschool. Old & new crafts together.
I love the Easter Bunny, the delicate, ceramic decorations, fragile Easter eggs, egg-citing hunts & yummy candies.
I particularly love pastel M&Ms!! I like all chocolate, but those tiny, pale- colored little chocolate dots of joy always seem to find my lips, hummm… I admit, I will steal bites here & there from my children’s baskets in passing. I’ll pass a lot – cover those baskets!!
I love the Easter egg hunts at farms, in fields, at church & at friends.
  Parties, celebrations, the Easter Bunny arriving on the fire truck!
I love Biblical epics on TV at this time of year and was particularly pleased with Mark Burnett’s The Bible miniseries ~ simply outstanding!!
The Bright SpotTM  – I love Spring & all the cheeriness of the season!
Airlifted St. Patty`s Day!
Today the world celebrates St. Patrick’s Day. I love the festivities, I love being in parades,
 I love Ireland having studied at Trinity College in Dublin, and I love that even though I’m not Irish, everyone can be Irish for the day. But there is a special reason for a few of us to celebrate: 7 years ago today our son helped save the life of his schoolmate. They were 14 years old.
It had snowed a few days earlier and a bunch of boys went sledding at school. But part of the steep hill had iced over during the night. His friend’s sled flew across the ice and he lost control slamming his head into a brick wall.
The boys didn’t want to get into trouble at school and panicked. They thought it best to get their buddy inside without telling anyone. Our son stood up and said no. He ordered one kid to run and get adult help. He told another to call 911. He ripped off his coat and wrapped it around his friend who was in shock. He told the rest of the boys to not move him at all. His friend received a plate & 37 metal staples in his head. The doctors at the hospital where he was airlifted said had he been moved, he would have died. The immediate actions to get help, warmth and stay calm saved his life.
Our son had learned emergency care in Scouts. He knew it was right to risk reprimand from the school administrators rather than risk someone’s life.
The Bright SpotTM – Both boys are 21 now. We are so proud of them ~ fine young boys grown into fine young men.
More about our son: http://www.theletstalkmom.com/tea-talk-momversations/the-making-of-a-superhero/
Credit: Associated Press
I Am Here For You
It’s no secret children need their parents’ attention. Unconditional love, devotion, affection, warmth, trust, mutual respect and communication. Put down your handheld and be present when you’re with your kids. Nothing makes me sadder than to see a child at a playground looking longingly at his parent texting hoping the adult will play with him soon. They know you’re really not present. Or when a child bounds out of school with a look of excitement bursting to tell his parent about his day and he’s greeted with an obligatory wave while still looking down texting. How long do you think that excitement is going to last? How long do you think the communication lines will stay open? It can be forever if you always give your child the message “I’m here for you, I’m present.”
 Our son so long ago & today,
nothing’s more comforting than just being there…Â 
Â
   
 
    
Hanging out or hanging in…
 
 
  
  
  
 
  
   
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
And our little one…
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
Teens are notorious for keeping to themselves, mumbling when spoken to, hanging out in their room rather than the den, etc., you know the drill if you have a teen. But if they have that secure feeling that you will give them 100% of your attention when they do open up about their world, their happenings, their loves and their heartaches, what a lucky parent you are! Drop everything and lend your ear and your heart. I never felt my parents didn’t hear me. They not only heard, they listened.
There’s a large, soft, pale green armchair next to my desk. I love when our son slumps into the chair, tossing his legs over the armrest ready to confide in me. Of course, it’s usually when I’m working or on a deadline, but nothing swells my heart more than knowing I’m the one who he chose to speak to at that very moment. I’ll stop anything I’m doing, swivel my chair in his direction and look into his deep, thoughtful eyes.
The Bright SpotTMÂ 
– The great communicator in my life taught me this line of communication can stay open through all stages of my life and I can pass that gift on to my children. So can you. Click here http://theletstalkmom.com/tea-talk-momversations/daddy/ to read the special Bright SpotTM of that story to see what I mean - the message in that Bright SpotTM is important for ALL parents. So important it’s bold & underlined. It’s a lesson for us all in this modern world!
After you have taken a look at the link in the above paragraph, please read the quote below from the Dalai Lama about “being present:”
When asked, “What thing about Humanity surprises you the most?” the Dalai Lama answered: “Man…because he sacrifices health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future. He lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.” – Dalai Lama XIV
Be in a “present” state of mind when you are with your children. They will grow and leave before you know it. And when you are old, what greater gift than for them to be in a “present” state of mind when spending time with you.
You will be leaning on them one day.   xo~b 
Wings
 
This month marks the anniversary of Daddy’s passing. It’s been many years now, but I can still picture that shocking moment like it was yesterday. Sudden, unexpected, heartbreaking.
I grieved deeply, crying a sea of sorrow…and I emerged strong, sturdy and resilient. Why?
Well, there are two main reasons. The first is because he was the most incredible father in the world to my sister and me and gave us unconditional love, time, tenderness and devotion.
The second reason dates back to when I was in college. His mother passed away and sometime later I was talking to him and asked him how he was not falling apart.
My father, one of seven children, said, “Although you haven’t seen my tears and pain, my parents raised me to be strong and independent; they gave me wings so one day I could start my own family and teach my children to be independent and give them wings. If I fell apart, my mother’s teachings would have failed, and there I will not fail her. That is completely different to my emotions which I feel deeply.â€
                                                  So sometimes, especially the years close to when my father passed away, those poignant feelings would pierce my heart, but I wouldn’t fall apart, because that would fail him.
 
He gave me wings and I am blessed to be a mother now having the honor to teach my own children to be strong, loving future adults with wings.
   
Daddy’s legacy is indelible. And this lesson is true: Be present with your children. Of course you love them, but give them 100% of your attention, be truly present. You know, push the swing without the handheld…rather than texting someone who’s not there, focus on the one who is there – the person who thinks you’re the world! The person you are giving wings to.
The Bright SpotTM – Daddy was kind & generous, and loved by his community. He was laid to rest on Valentine’s Day…appropriate for a man with such a big heart. To read all about my father’s story & see one of my *favorite pictorials*, click right here: http://theletstalkmom.com/tea-talk-momversations/daddy/
I miss you, Daddy, here’s to you!  
 xoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxo
An Offering to Change a Life
I often talk about giving – giving of one’s heart, one’s time, one’s energies…but what about giving a part of oneself?
2 months ago, our 5-year-old saw some children who didn’t have any hair, and naturally she was full of questions. We gently explained how others can help by showing her pictures and answering all her questions.
The outcome: “I want to donate my hair to the children who lost their hair.â€
We let 2 months pass to make absolutely sure, but she was adamant. So last week, our family took her to Mommy’s hairdresser for her 1st real salon experience.
The salon made a real fuss over her – from chocolates and orange juice to special organic products gifted from the family owners presented in a lovely embroidered bag.
  
Everyone in the salon was simply thrilled a little 5 year old knew exactly what she wanted to do and why.
It was a wonderful experience we will never forget!!
The Bright Spot™ – Our daughter says she’s looking forward to doing it again. We are very proud!
For more information, visit Angel Hair for Kids, Pantene Beautiful Lengths, Wigs for Kids, or Locks of Love to make a donation.
Please take a minute to read the next 2 short stories ~ Grandma didn’t pass away from old age – she had cancer – as did her youngest daughter whom she lost years earlier. The above was an important story for us, thank you for sharing.
“Kisses in a Box”
There is a story that circulated on the Internet years ago – it was so poignant and touched my heart so deeply, that I printed it out and sent a copy in the mail to everyone I love.
Material things don’t matter to me, my children do. Our home is cozy, our place is warm and inviting, our things are respected and taken care of, but in a nutshell, my children’s happiness and contentment far outweighs any value in material possessions whatsoever.
 If you have a hard time getting your head around this notion, please read the story. I hope it changes your perspective.
 “Some time ago, a man punished his 3-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and he became infuriated when the child tried to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree.
Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning and said, “This is for you, Daddy.” He was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found the box was empty. Â
He yelled at her, “Don’t you know that when you give someone a present, there’s supposed to be something inside it?” 
Â
The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said, “Oh, Daddy, it is not empty. I blew kisses into the box. All for you, Daddy.”
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl, and he begged for her forgiveness.
It is told that the man kept that gold box by his bed for years and whenever he was disheartened and discouraged, he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, each of us as humans has been given a gold container filled with unconditional love and kisses from our children, friends, family and God. There is no more precious possession anyone could hold.â€
The Bright Spot  – that we are affected by stories like this, can learn from them and not make the same mistakes in our lives.
