Tuesday before Thanksgiving

The preparations have begun for the annual feast at our house. The turkey was not thawing very quickly in the refrigerator so I took it out this morning and have started the quick thaw method. We will brine tomorrow and so I also made the vegetable stock for the brine solution. The kitchen is beginning to smell like the holidays. A trip to the grocery store today should provide all of the other essentials. Of course I have not found the required rutabaga yet but I am confident that it will be out there today. We have a full table with family and friends. Jessica is due in later today and Mike will be coming up after work tomorrow. They are both looking forward to Mom's traditional preparations which include making an apple pie while watching the Macy's Christmas parade. We still remember what a wonderful Thanksgiving we had in New York for Mike's 10th birthday trip. It doesn't seem like it could have been 16 years ago.

Thinking of everyone this Thanksgiving and wishing safe travels.

I loved this blog

Well I am making a committment! I have referred to the blog history three times this week and so I am thinking this is not the time to stop posting. Of course the reasons for posting are different, but I have really enjoyed looking back at certain events and being able to find the "real" details. Like I think it was a year ago and in fact it was 2 or even 3 years ago. I started the blog never thinking about it having a life of its own. Now it has. Stay tuned for more postings.

Great weekend lots of memories

Jessica and AJ

This is a picture of Jessica and AJ outside of St. Patricks Church in Toledo.

Our niece Gretchen Miller (Judy Stanford Miller's daughter) was married Saturday night. It was a beautiful wedding and a great reception. It was fun to see all of the relatives and enjoy the festivities. I was surprised at the impact on me though. I was once again overwhelmed with thoughts of my John. He loved the family weddings. He would have had a great time at this wedding. I spent much of my time Saturday night with AJ and I could not help but think about John as a father. I still miss my son.

Hello Again

To say that it has been a busy summer would certainly be an understatement. To say that I have not been on the computer would be an untruth. So why has the blog not seen more action? No good answer for that. Perhaps the blog has served its purpose and I don't have the need for the emotional support that I got from writing to my friends and family; knowing they looked at the blog to see how we were all doing was very comforting at times. The responses were always great. I loved sharing everything and knowing that people were interested. I think a lot of this summer has been living life instead of recording it. I am sure I will look back on this blog and read about events that I do not really remember because I only got through them. Writing about these events will give me a history of a dark time period in my life. The fact is that I am living life and being very busy with daily details.  I still really miss John but life has gone on and all of the good things in his life are still here. The memories are not so painful now. I laugh, I have fun, I can enjoy my life. I didn't for awhile. It was too hard to understand the whys of some of the events and not remember the good things. I will not say I am totally past that now, but I am definitely getting there.

So with a rainy day on the horizon and a cup of coffee here is the latest in the Stanford household.

Jessica is now a student at Brandeis University in Boston. She started classes Monday, working toward her MBA with a focus in international business and marketing.  I still have a road trip in the works to transport the rest of her stuff to Boston sometime later this month. This will complete my coast to coast summer adventure. Being in the same time zone is going to be a real bonus for mother daughter phone conversations. And with Boston being only a 10-11 hour road trip I expect we will see more of each other too.

Mike has moved into his new digs in Bowling Green and is doing OK. He is struggling with cooking for himself and his weight has become an issue. He has all of the tools and information to diet and exercise, but like many of us taking action is the hardest part. He enjoyed spending time with Jessica this summer.

Jesi just had a birthday party for AJ who turned 4, on August 28th. It is so much fun to see Marty and Annal, but it also reminds me of AJ's first party when John was there to watch his son. Some raw memories will never go away. But Saturday was fun. AJ is such an intelligent young man. So much like his Dad and Mom. He is truly a mix of both John and Jesi, not only in looks but in personality too. I love being around him, although I am beginning to understand why we have families when we are young. His energy level wears me out. We go to the museum and the zoo together and have even visited Steve's office after a trip to the Imagination Station (the Toledo science museum or old COSI). AJ liked having lunch with Grandpa in the office conference room and looking down at Toledo from high above his usual viewpoint. We all continue to learn more about diabetes and hope within AJ's lifetime a cure is found. He now has a pump which delivers the insulin continuously and has the long range potential to make his life easier. Jesi does an amazing job of parenting.

Steve and I have enjoyed the summer. Our trip through the California, Oregon and Washington State wineries with Jessica went too quickly. Our time on the golf course and the back deck will sadly be winding down for another year. We missed Tortola this year but have a plan in the works for sometime next year.

So I end with a thoughtful quote. Have a great day and take time to enjoy life!

"Who will tell whether one happy moment of love or the joy of breathing or walking on a bright morning and smelling the fresh air, is not worth all the suffering and effort which life implies. "~Erich Fromm

Too much to do too little time

Such a long time since I have made  a post. Sorry. The road trip was sooooo much FUN. There are so many pictures and stories to tell and it is just too time consuming to handle while we have Jessica here with us. She leaves for Boston sometime late next week.  She has secured an apartment and school will start August 23. Until then we are just enjoying having her around. We are all enjoying time spent visiting with friends and family. Time with AJ has been special. He knows his aunt Jessica now and she hopes to keep it that way. After I get her off to Boston and my house cleaned again I hope to put a short story of the trip on the blog. We did find that the internet was pretty available but we were just too  busy to keep up on a daily basis. I thought it would be easier at home but I didn't factor in everyone who wanted to spend some time with Jessica before she leaves again. Life is good. We love having her here.

P.S. Mike got moved into a new mobile home in a  park in Bowling Green. He is renting for a year and if this situation seems to work he may be able to buy. The people seem so nice  and he is just over 2 miles from work. Hoping he can meet some friends here. He has been up to Perrysburg more to spent time with his sister too. He misses her.

America the Beautiful

Bye Dad on Saturday night after a great week of wine tastings

Vancouver BC, on Sunday

Walk in Big Sky , Montana

Old Faithful Erupts at Yellowstone

Mount Rushmore

Back road mountain pass from Yellowstone to South Dakota





Thelma and Louise are in Mitchell, South Dakota tonight after 2 more wonderful days of travel. Sensory overload has been the key phrase the last few days. From Seattle to Vancouver. A visit with friends in Big Sky. Yellowstone park....Mountain passes....Mount Rushmore. We truly live in a beautiful country.